Crowdsourcing is the practice of getting work done traditionally done by one person or a few people, and then getting the community to help with the workload. Most people have heard of crowdfunding, where volunteers chip in money to help a cause they believe in, but many aren’t aware of how it applies to more traditional businesses.
Crowdsourcing For Businesses
Traditional businesses, such as construction, can also take advantage of crowdsourcing to gain valuable project feedback and input from a group of people, both old and new. Platforms like Upwork and Freelancer enable individuals to connect with potential clients and gain valuable feedback on their projects. These businesses can then incorporate this feedback into their processes and products, and grow as a result.
Why Should Your Business Get Involved In Crowdsourcing?
Crowdsourcing has several benefits for businesses. First, it can help you gain valuable feedback on your products and services, and then incorporate this feedback into your processes and products. Second, it can help you gain a broader audience, as not only do you get to interact with potential customers, but you can also reach a network of collaborators and experts, who can then help with your search for capital or employees.
How Do You Get Involved In Crowdsourcing?
To get involved, you simply need to identify a problem or an opportunity that your business can help with. It can be something as simple as gaining feedback on your product or service, to as complex as bringing in new customers via social media. Once you’ve identified a problem that your business can solve, you can find the right platforms to reach the people who can help you make things better.
To begin, you can start a new thread on social media, such as Twitter or LinkedIn, and then simply ask for ideas or help. You can also reach out to your existing contacts and ask them if they have any experience or knowledge that you can incorporate into your business. Finally, you can browse online marketplaces, like Upwork and Freelancer, to identify contractors or freelancers who could perform certain tasks or offer certain services that you need.
Once you’ve found these individuals, you can either outsource the work or incorporate their knowledge and experience into your team.
Solving Problems Via Twitter
The best part of starting a Twitter thread (which I’ll define simply as a conversation between you and another user) is that it provides you with an opportunity to solve problems. One of the best things you can do for your business is to solve problems. It can be as simple as confirming that a customer has received their order, to as complex as helping to locate missing employees and suppliers. Whatever the problem is, you can almost certainly find someone on Twitter who can help you solve it.
You can also use the platform to gain more followers and increase your reach to people interested in your industry. Just remember to be genuine and engage with other users, otherwise, you’re just wasting your time.
Generating Ideas Via LinkedIn
LinkedIn is all about connecting professional people with potential opportunities, so it’s the perfect place for identifying potential problems and generating ideas. Just remember to remain genuine and keep your current and prospective customers, clients, and investors on the platform. You can access your LinkedIn profile from anywhere, so you can easily be connected to your network wherever you go.
When you log onto the platform, you’ll see a list of your connections, as well as those of others whom you’re connected to. You can choose to follow specific people, based on your niche, and receive notifications whenever they update their profile. You can also create specific groups of your connections, so you can better manage your relationships and stay connected with people who are most relevant to your business.
Roughly 93% of People Use LinkedIn To Generate New Ideas
Based on research conducted by HubSpot, if you’re looking for new ideas or just need to brainstorm, you can gain inspiration from your network on LinkedIn. In fact, for many of our customers, it’s one of the primary sources of new ideas. Why? It’s because your network is probably the most knowledgeable, experienced, and connected group of people you’ll ever meet, and they’re the individuals who can help you solve the most complex problems. (If you have a question about anything, you can always reach out to your network for advice.)
Not only can your network help you find employees and contractors, they can also help you develop sales processes, devise new marketing campaigns, and develop new products. If you’re not seeing the results you want, give it another try – you might just find a connection who can help you figure out the solution.
Where Do I Start?
Once you’ve identified a problem that your business can solve, the next step is to find the right people to help you make it happen. First, you can start by reaching out to your existing employees for help or connecting with the local community for individuals who have expertise in your niche. A great place to begin is with your social media network – see if anyone you follow can help solve your problem. You can also ask your network for suggestions on who to contact, or you can go straight to platforms like Upwork or Freelancer, where you can search for the skills you need.