The trend towards going local is now being applied to freelancing. Little Rock startup talentt is helping business owners find local, available talent, based on the skills they provide, to get the job done. Finding someone local eliminates common problems such as unreliability and communication breakdown that are often associated with outsourcing work.
“Outsourcing to a distant freelancer often results in poor communication and sub-par work. A business needs to work with freelancers with whom they can speak face-to-face — freelancers who are able to understand the personality and nuance of the business and deliver the results that it needs.”
Founders Luke Irvin and Laura Weiderhaft started Talentt in 2013 and launched their app in March of 2014 (on March 5th, to be specific, which also happens to be my birthday. That’s important to know). Luke claims that while he has a tendency to overcomplicate things, he makes up for that with his patience and attention to detail. Here are a few other things that we can glean from Luke’s experience as a founder:
How do you keep your team motivated?
Over communication and celebrating the opportunities we receive. To build a strong team there has to be a lot of communication. We make sure we each know what we are working on, what we have accomplished, and what our road blocks are. We also take the time to celebrate when we get positive feedback or more customers.
What startup advice do you disagree with?
Work while others are sleeping. Sleep is really important for mental health and productivity. Sleep when your customers are sleeping so you can be awake while they are awake to be there for them!
If your startup were an animal, what would it be?
We would be a penguin because penguins stick together for life. We think a business’ relationship with a freelancer should be long-term. Finding and hiring freelancers locally means that you can find freelancers you trust that can help your business out whenever you might need it. You’ll have a professional relationship for life, just as penguins keep their relationships for life.
What is your long term vision for talentt?
To see growing startup communities happen everywhere. With the rise of freelancers over the next 5 years, many more locations will have more local freelancers to hire. We would love to see talentt used everywhere so businesses can hire more people and to inspire more professionals and students to become freelancers.
Talentt demoed at the first ever Arkansas Tech Cocktail Mixer and Startup Showcase during Arkansas Startup Week held back in November.