spaceylacie - 9:13 pm on Oct 30, 2006 (gmt 0)

Lots of comments have been made that I'd like to respond to because I think the wrong impression of my business model has been protrayed.

First, I don't just go out looking for ignorant folks to hire as contractors. Every one of them is someone I have previously gotten to know online and are people interested in the subject matter that my site covers(as opposed to my previous way of hiring people-seeking out the best in the field and overpaying them because they have a row of useless plaques on their wall showing off their training and expertise). The people I hire are also the ones interested in seeing the sites succeed because they think the sites are fun/interesting and they want to become part of it's growth and help it grow. Even though they are only handling a small part of the job, each day presents new challenges in most cases and is a learning experience for them. Not only this, but also, in most cases, they become known as a member of our team and gratitude from members/visitors makes their job fulfilling.

A couple examples:
-A retired man contacted me saying that he spends hours daily on a particular site of mine and with the information he learned was hoping to be able an extra $150 a month selling items he created from the instructions I provide through a local merchant. But, since he lives in a very small town and interest was slim, did I have any other suggestions? His SS check covered most of his living costs but if only he had just another $150 a month, he could cover all his living costs. Since he seemed to be very familiar with the site layout and how it was organized, I asked him if he's be willing to learn a new skill and help with organizing content that visitors and site members submit. I offered him free training if he was willing to try it out and assured him that I had enough extra work available to allow him to make the extra $150 a month he needed to cover his living expenses. So I gave him a small job based on his skill level and now he can not only afford to buy groceries, but also pay his monthly electric bill.

-We asked for volunteers to help out with a portion of one of my sites. That portion had become very popular among visitors, some saying they have withdrawal symptoms when they are unable to check in daily. We let these die-hard visitors know that new features requested would not be possible unless we had additional help maintaining it. The response was overwhelming. Some sent in resumes with lists of referrals showing they were qualified and vied over a volunteer position(some aware that paid positions, albeit low paying, are offered first to volunteers before being offered to others). One particular applicant was very qualified, over qualified in fact, but was not "hired" because I felt this person was more interested in their own gain(exposure for themselves as an artist) than helping that portion of the site succeed. Upon asking opinions from avid site members and other members of our team that would have to work with this person if selected, my suspicions were confirmed. I got replies like, "I'm glad you brought up this possible problem first because I was thinking the same thing but didn't want to mention it for fear of going against your final decision."

-Another person who was very interested in the sites' topic was regularly sending in information to be added as content just because she wanted to "give back". The descriptions of her work were so detailed and eloquent that I finally asked her if she ever did any commission work as a writer/what type of training she had to be such a great writer. She turned out to be self-taught, having enjoyed literature all her life, but was currently a stay-at-home mom. I asked her if she would be interested in a work-at-home position as a writer/editor for my sites. I offered to send her a batch of work, along with detailed instructions, for her to look over. If she was interested, just send back a sample of her work, a quote on what she would charge to do this on a regular basis and I would get back to her. She did this, the work was excellent, and the quote she gave me was far less than I would normally expect to pay by hiring a "professional" writer. I gave her the job(less than $100 a month) and within a month upped her pay by 25% because I felt that her quote was not enough and she deserved a little more. I'm still paying her less than I would have originally expected to pay for the service. My lawyer wrote something up for her to sign(waiving her copyrights) which she gladly did.

In the case that something happens to me, the organizational part of the job I do could easily be explained to one person. "When this info comes back, make sure it gets uploaded." Let Winston(a made-up name) know that he will have to handle this other part of the site totally on his own until I'm available again. Winston is fully trained to oversee certain volunteer positions(in fact, does all the training) and give him a raise while you are at it. That's it, the sites would be completely running on their own minus the newsletters and fresh content that I provide myself. Since we have so many visitors/members willing to contribute now, I'm probably not needed anyway in order to guarentee future growth. I see this becoming more and more true as time goes on.

I'm only in my mid-30s now and my teenage son(whom I had at a young age) is prepping for college based on the skills he will need to take over the business(business management skills, etc) because I plan on retiring in the not so distant future. I plan on helping to provide fresh content for the sites even after I retire because it's fun for me and something I'd be doing even if I didn't get paid for it. If my son decides he doesn't want to take over the business, my daughter, a little younger, will be next in line for the position.

This post will either clear up my views on the matter or cause more controversy.... we'll see.