Comments on: Hiring an Expert? Buyer Beware!

By: Ali Davies

Ali Davies — Fri, 21 May 2010 15:39:04 +0000

Christine, you are so right about being particularly careful about people we have met online. But the good news is that the warning signs are all there if we care to look beyond the surface. That was one of my biggest learnings – the warning signs are always there. The onus is on us to have a robust hiring process before parting with our money.

By: Christine Livingston

Christine Livingston — Fri, 21 May 2010 14:59:16 +0000

Hi Ali

This is really sound advice. Sadly, all that glitters...

What I'm learning is that you have to be at least twice as careful with online stuff than offline. Expertise seems more easy to portray on the screen than person to person.

This is all food for thought, not just for who and how we buy expertise, but how we ensure we deliver our own expertise is a trust-worthy way.

Thanks for sharing your story.

By: Ali Davies

Ali Davies — Fri, 21 May 2010 14:39:04 +0000

By: Christine Livingston

Christine Livingston — Fri, 21 May 2010 13:59:16 +0000

By: Ali Davies

Ali Davies — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:25:38 +0000

Great tip Barney. Thanks for sharing it.

By: barneyausten

barneyausten — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:20:34 +0000

Hi Ali. Wise words of warning. Another thing I would add to the list.. I used a personal acquaintance to do some work in the past (couple of years ago) and had chosen him because of work he had done a number of years previously and my perception of him based on that work. It is important, even if you know the person from a past life, to make sure that you check out that persons capabilities without wearing rose-tinted glasses. If you don't chase up properly it costs time, money and can threaten your business.

By: Ali Davies

Ali Davies — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:18:22 +0000

Thank you for sharing your experiences. Great point about listening to gut feeling – really important. Equally important not to beat ourselves up when we do make a mistake – learn, put things in place so it doesn't happen again and move on. As you say, hiring wisely can add a lot of value.

By: Anne Marie

Anne Marie — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:41:07 +0000

Hi Ali

You say “I got my fingers badly burnt. I was so annoyed with myself afterwards and felt so stupid for making such a huge mistake, especially as the warning signs were all there from the start.”

Oh, those feelings in the gut are seldom wrong. The one that really hacked me off was when, despite knowing this was not right, I took a chance and said “OK” on the phone. The invoice was in my email box, for the full amount, barely two hours later. Keen to get the money? I'll say.

I wasted £3000. Will not be doing that again in a hurry.

The other way I have wasted money is buying a “solution” before fully appreciating what I need. This is no-one's fault but mine. Again, I have learned the hard way.

I have worked hard to bootstrap my business. There are too many people ready and willing to relieve us of our hard-earned cash.

Having said that, my most recent purchase of expertise was the best value ever. Worth every penny. I must be learning

By: Ali Davies

Ali Davies — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 00:44:53 +0000

I totally agree. I am also not a lover of words such as expert and also guru. Just to clarify why I used it in this instance – in the post I am referring to coaches, mentors, consultants and other service professionals. It was easiest just to group them into one word.
My experience hasn't put me off hiring people. In fact, I have already hired someone this year to help me develop my internet presence as this is not an area of experience or knowledge for me.
With a good hiring policy, hiring genuine experts in specific fields can speed up progress and success.

By: Paul

Paul — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 00:24:20 +0000

Ali,

I've never been a lover of referring to a person as an expert but I can understand your reasons behind hire one and why you would want to call them an expert. I think the reasons I'm against it are probably the ones you've identified in your post.

However, having read your post I would feel more happy about using your tips to hire an (expert).

Thank you for sharing this.

Regards

Paul