A couple of weeks ago I soft launched my new project Outsource Resource with the aim of setting up a freelance marketplace tailored to the UK.

The seed of the idea was planted at A4expo, for a fair while I have been dabbling in outsourcing work, and have been active on sites such as elance and odesk, however at the expo I was introduced to fiverr a website where every job costs a mere $5, it wasn’t the pricing structure that appealed to me (you get what you pay for) but the simplicity of the website.

http://outsourceresource.co.uk/ uses the fiverr model but it is aimed as an alternative to odesk and elance with realistic prices.

How it works

1. Freelancers list the service they are willing to provide
2. Clients buy the services they require
3. Freelancers are notified when their services are bought
4. Clients are notified when the work is done and can approve the payment
5. Freelancer receives payment

Alternatively if service required is not available

1. Client posts the service they require
2. Freelancers apply to provide the service
3. Client approves application
4. Clients are notified when the work is done and can approve the payment
5. Freelancer receives payment

Payments

• All transactions are made via Paypal for better security and dispute management
• For each task the freelancer receives 80% of agreed price
• The payment is made only when the client has confirmed the task has been done

So if you have a job you require doing set up a free account and list away, or if you offer a service put up the details and hopefully someone will employ you.

Advantages of Outsource Resource for freelancers who are already active on odesk and elance is that your feedback on those websites can be imported to your profile. Also you can record an introductory video.

If you want to introduce freelancers and employers to Outsource Resource there you can pick up your affiliate link on the edit your profile page.

This project is very much in beta so please give feedback, report any bugs, offer suggestions (keep them clean) etc. using the comments below or the feedback form here and I will pass them on to my developer.

Oh btw the logo on Outsource Resource came from the job I posted

Outsource Resource is also on twitter @1outsource and Facebook.

Silverbean the online marketing agency who are based in Newcastle have just launched a dedicated Affiliate Website.

I have worked with Silverbean for a long time and they are always helpful and willing to go the extra mile to help affiliates promote the merchant programs they look after.

The blurb on their new site says it all really;

We built this site to solely cater for you the affiliate, to make it easier for you to contact and communicate with us, obtain valuable industry information and insights, access resources and receive information about our merchants.

Silverbean look after almost 30 merchant clients including Racing UK, Brora, Fashion Union and Wiltshire Farmfoods.

Check out the new website here www.sbnaffiliates.co.uk

Showing your business off at exhibitions is a great way to attract new customers and clients because of the specialised exposure that you can garnish at such conventions.  For this reason, exhibitions are a great place for small companies that are attempting to make a name for their business.  This is due to the fact that an exhibition stand does not have to be splashy and expensive in order to help attract attention, they simply need to be innovative and eye catching, which are two qualities that do not have to be limited by a budget, following on from this Marler Haley offer a service that allows business to have their own logos and branding printed onto a wide range of different promotional products.

Some of the best innovative custom exhibition stands actually make use of pop up stands and pop up displays in order to attract customers because they can be placed onto a shelf and simply seem to pop right out at browsers.  In fact, add in some free giveaways on your pop up displays with an eye catching sign to advertise the giveaways and you can easily attract new customers and new potential profits to your company.  Plus, they are extremely easy to erect compared to a large stand that is made out of wood or steel.

Pop-up stands are some of the most innovative custom exhibition stands out there are on the market because small businesses can easily fit them into their budget and easily staff them.  In fact, many times it only takes about one to two people to erect the stands making it possible for even a business that is only staffed by the manager to make an appearance at exhibitions. Because they are made out of lightweight materials they are also easy to transport in the back of a vehicle or store while not in use.

The best part is that you can purchase multiple pop-up innovative custom exhibition stands depending on the amount of space that you need.  If you find down the road that you need more space as your business starts to grow you can purchase a few more pop-up exhibition stands to display your business.  By approaching the matter this way your previous investment will never go unused or to waste, and you can still accommodate growth as your appearance at exhibition conventions allows your business to prosper and grow.

Guest article by Marler Haley the leading provider of exhibition stands and display equipment in the UK with over 60 years experience.

Bit of a belated review of a4uexpo London 2010 and much of it has already been covered, see the a4uexpo blog What’s being said about a4uexpo London 2010?

Highlights

Of the sessions I attended 3 absolutely stood out these were the gems I unearthed ata4uexpo. I’m not going to go into any detail as slides and videos are available somewhere, (Chris Johnski where are they).

Starting off with SEO David Naylor of Broncho first session day one spoke about:

The Three Pillars of SEO – An Advanced Review

I said in my timetable post that Dave is a legend and he lived up to the hype, he mentioned a load of tools he uses daily in his SEO many of which I will now also be using.

Conversion Rate Experts for the day 2 early risers told us about:

Conversion Killing Mistakes : 15 things Affiliates still aren’t doing in 2010

I don’t think I have ever made as many notes in an expo session before, and thanks to my shiny new I pad I can actually read them, cheers guys.

Last but not least in my top 3 is Kevin Gibbons of Seoptimise who gave us:

20 Social Media Tools & 20 WordPress Plugins Boost Your Performance

This is an amazing list some I knew about and some I didn’t, Kevin has blogged about his session with links to everything he mentioned in his well presented illuminating talk. Check it out here > 40 Social Media Tools & WordPress Plugins – a4uexpo Presentation.

Those were my highlights and well worth attending for, and I only scratched the surface, 12 time slots and 50 sessions makes seeing everything an impossible task and I will be looking at the Videos and slides as soon as I get the chance.

So how can A4uexpo be improved?

Well I’d like to see an area set aside for open workshops that people could drop in and out of, for example Conversion Rate Experts (yes them again) did a clinic where they looked at various websites, illuminating not only for the website owner in question but a plethora of ideas for all in attendance when the hour was over they still had a mountain of sites they hadn’t looked at, imagine if that had been running for half a day.

Second point was from a merchant who I spoke to on day 2 who was on a day pass they said that they would gladly have paid more to upgrade to a full pass just for the one day, however they were unable to attend on the first day so a full 2 day pass was out of the question. (Apologies to Matt if this option was already available).

Any thing you want to add please comment below and/or leave feedback on the A4uexpo website.

Memorable Quote

This came from the negative SEO session and is a word of warning to anyone when buying links.

“Shitty links will hurt rankings, lose Google love, and getting trust back is very difficult”

so be warned

Expo thanks from me to…

Matthew Wood and his entire team for another excellent event.

All the speakers mentioned above.

Mark Russell and the Existem AM crew for their fine hospitality.

And finally everyone who attended, would have been no show without you.

Again there has been a distinct lack of posts from me of late, but this time I have an excuse I’ve been moving house and endured all the broadband hell that goes with it. Consequently I have just got round to looking at the agenda for a4uexpo London 2010 as always I’m going to highlight the sessions that I intend attending so that I print off this page as a reminder of where I want to be, if anyone else finds this useful that is a bonus.

Please note there are over 50 sessions and I’m only going to mention the ones I’m interested in.

Monday 11th October

a4uexpo kicks off with the traditional Ignite Party, this year it is being held at the Parlour Bar, Canada Square Park from 6pm take along your ID and registration number.

Tuesday 12th October

Registration opens at 8am

The sessions

9:00 – 10:00 room 14-16

The Three Pillars of SEO – An Advanced Review

• David Naylor,?Bronco

When it comes to SEO Dave Naylor is a legend and a fellow Yorkshireman too

10:30 – 11:30 room 14-16

Negative SEO: Online Nightmares Come True

• Paul Madden,?SEOidiot
• Jon Myers,?Mediavest
• David Naylor,?Bronco
• Marcus Tandler,?Mediadonis
• Ralph Tegtmeier,?fantomaster.com GmbH

Thats right 2 SEO sessions straight off the belt, need to get my SEO fix in early.

I was also interested in Advanced Analytics for Affiliates which is on at the same time.

12:00 – 13:00 room Expo Theatre

The Truth About Cookie Overwriting

• Owen Hewitson,?Affiliate Window and Buy.at

A session about how many affiliates are typically involved in a sale and the extent to which their cookies overwrite each other.

I must admit I was tempted to attend SEO Ranking Factors in 2010.

13:15 – 14:15 room Expo Theatre

Becoming an Affiliate: A Reality Check

• Paul Brown,?affilinet
• John Lamerton,?Easy Content Units
• Kirsty McCubbin,?Blue Indian Media
• Nick Smith,?Hardly Rocket Science

Right on lunch time but this should be good and it would be rude not to show support for my good friends Kirsty and John.

14:30 – 15:30 room 17

Successful Information Architecture

• Richard Baxter,?SEOgadget.co.uk

According to the blurb Richard has experience getting sites with millions of pages fully indexed, getting the paltry 2000 pages of my main site fully optimised should be a doddle after that.

16:00 – 17:00

Not sure what to attend here yet my just have a walk round the exhibition hall.

17:15 – 18:15 room 2-4

a4uexpo – The Grill!

• Sanjit Atwal,?TradeDoubler
• Gary Bicker,?affilinet
• David Hall,?Affiliate Window and Buy.at
• Duncan Popham,?Total Search Solutions
• Daniel Powell,?Commission Junction

Moderated Q & A session with Publishing Directors of some of the major UK networks, hopefully very illuminating.

18:00 – 19:15

Drinks reception, Speed Networking or Black Hat Protection hmm difficult choice if I’m flagging the drinks will win if not then its Black Hat SEO time.

Day one concludes with the Breakout Party at The Troxy.

Wednesday 13th October