We’ve talked a lot about using social media to hire tech-savvy Filipinos, but the most popular ‘free’ way to find remote staff in the Philippines is still job boards.
What follows is a list of the big players.
AyosDito.com.ph
AyosDito is Filipino slang for “It’s great here!”, and it’s the country’s answer to Craigslist. While Craigslist does have a section on the Philippines, people rarely use it. Most ads are scuzzy, and no one ever takes the wanted ads seriously. Instead, they gravitate towards AyosDito, which is a little flashier than Craigslist. Posting an Ad is free, and people looking for other items, such as cars and electronics, often venture towards the job boards just to see what’s there.
While this method is a little bit more reactive, it’s aggressive marketing strategies (there isn’t a Philippine net user who hasn’t seen their banner ads) guarantees that you will have more eyes looking at your post.
Sulit.com.ph
Loosely translated, Sulit means “A great buy”, or “Bargain” in Filipino, and that’s what it’s offering. Similar to AyosDito, Sulit is a site that is popular among sellers, and those looking for a bargain. Popular purchases include pets, cars, and electronics.
While it wasn’t meant to be a job board, its users are mostly tech savvy, enterprising, young Filipinos, and a good chunk of them happen to be freelancers, both part-time VAs and full time VAs.
This is a site where people love to hustle, and it shows in other sections of the site: MLMs, Joint Ventures, partnerships, and small brokerage firms. They don’t even file want ads under “jobs”, but as “Business and Earning Opportunities.”
What you will find are savvy marketing virtual assistant professionals and salesmen. If you want to hire someone who is passionate about selling, this is where they are. People on this site are always looking for an opportunity and they’ll scan the Business and Earning Opportunities often.
You may have to train them, but they’re hungry enough that you won’t have to motivate them. If they’ve had experience selling on this site, then they already know how to hustle and negotiate prices. People here have an entrepreneur’s heart, and that’s something that can be very hard to find in the Philippines.
Good old Google, you can always count on it to find anything and anyone on the Internet, including Filipino VA’s. If you know a bit of SEO, then searching for freelancers will be a breeze. A lot of outsourcers now have their own blogs, or an online portfolio that can be crawled just in case someone like you comes looking. find your virtual assistant from Google
Another group that usually has a lot of online presence is writers, artists, photographers, and designers. Not unusual, since they’re the ones that will benefit the most from having an online portfolio. (Unlike VA’s, who rely mostly on client testimonials.)
Filipino outsourcers doing CAD, 3D rendering, and MEPs design usually work in firms dedicated to doing outsourced work. Individual outsourcers could also have a team ready to take on big projects, bringing in friends that they might have worked with at a firm.
Architects, draftsmen, CAD operators, and engineers, who work online doing MEPs and design work typically have at least 4 years of schooling, or a degree, and at a minimum, six months working at a firm. Others are licensed professionals looking to earn more money by setting up their own firms or side projects.
Referrals
The best, and the most organic way to hire a Filipino VA or an outsourcing team, is through referrals. Just like in a regular, physical company, nothing beats a referral from a trusted employee.
Filipinos are always looking for a chance to grow, or other great opportunities. Even if they’re already pretty happy in their jobs, they always have a friend or a family member that’s looking for a job, or is more than willing to jump on a chance to work from home.
If you already have one Filipino VA, make sure you tell them about existing openings. If you’re lucky, you already have a connector in your hands, and recruitment might end up being easier than without.
If you trust your employees, then it’s a good idea to include them in the screening process, even with the final decision is still up to you. These are people they will be working with, so you can ask them what they think. They might catch little things, such as lapses in the resume, or offer insights, such as which candidates come from the top schools, have the best ‘local’ attitude, and so on.
There are several types of VA’s that we have helped over 600 business owners find to date, and they are as follows:
- General VA’s (every business owners best friend!)
- Web Developers
- SEO Specialists
- Content Writers
- Graphic Designers
- Video / Audio Editors
It’s a simple process of signing-up, completing our job description document, my team goes through the sourcing process, background checks, tons of interviews, etc., before we then provide you with three candidates, based on your requirements – and then, you hiring your VA.
Okay – yes, this now has turned into a bit of a pitch, I know. Apologies, but hey – the process WORKS and continues to work over and over again.
Once you’re at the point where you need dedicated help and support, following testing the waters with some project-based outsourcing to freelancers, let us know and we’ll hook you up!
