Last year, my buddy Steve and I were having a chat in the chairlift at Whistler about business development.  We'd both recently read "The World is Flat" by Thomas Friedman and were curious about how we might leverage some of opportunities that Friedman discussed.  In the time it took us to get to the top of the hill and mostly on a whim, we decided to hire someone in India.

Steve outsources his manufacturing to China and sells his products over the Internet.  I am a consultant who helps a range of growing businesses in the tech sector with their sales.  While our needs were slightly different, our goals were the same:  How could we generate more sales with minimal cost and risk?

It was a great day of skiing! 

We returned home to a pile of neglected work and it was a couple of days before we got back to one another.  OK, now what?  Where do we start?

A Dollar Saved is a Dollar Earned.

Steve took the direct approach.  Why pay a middleman?  Find the best person at the best cost.  His clients were Mom and Pop retail stores and  distributors.  Only a handful of his clients had email or even fax machines.  He needed someone who was personable and who could close.

Time is Money

Since I was representing the business of a client, my expectations were higher.  I needed to maintain a high level of professionalism.  My client's clients were software companies.  I needed the help of someone who was crisp and professional.  Sales cycles were a bit longer and there was more money at stake.  I was the closer.  I didn't need a clone, rather someone who could qualify my long list of clients-to-be and book meeting for me with qualified prospects who were informed about my services and keen to know more.

Build or Buy

Steve placed some ads in Craigslist in New Delhi and Mumbai. I went looking for a call center that would provide me with a turnkey agent. 

More on our adventures in the book-to-be...