Upwork's slide deck from StartUp Britain marketing week 2015.

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Your marketing dream
team
How to scale up your marketing efforts

2. 2000-2015 Elance-oDesk, Inc. Elance-oDesk proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute.
• UK Country Manager, Upwork
• Founding Team of Smarta.com
• 10 yrs+ in small business and start-up
strategy
• Mentor for accelerators, entrepreneurs
and start-ups
@hayleyconick @UpworkUK
About me

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Almost 2.7 million SMEs in the
UK wish to grow but are not
doing so.
Source: BIS

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“First mover advantage doesn’t
go to the first company that
launches, it goes to the first
company that scales.”
Reid Hoffman
Co-founder of Linkedin

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‘Scale-ups’ are in fashion
5

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5.2m
6

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5.2m
9000
7

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5.2m
9000
0.2%
8

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Barriers to Growth
The following factors, in order of importance, are the key
reasons why companies are unable to scale in the UK.
• Finding the skills they need
• Building their leadership capability
• Accessing customers in other markets
• Accessing the right combination of finance
• Navigating infrastructure
Source: The Scale-up Report, Sherry Coutu

10. © 2015 Upwork Inc. Proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute.
Barriers to Growth
The following factors, in order of importance, are the key
reasons why companies are unable to scale in the UK.
• Finding the skills they need
• Building their leadership capability
• Accessing customers in other markets
• Accessing the right combination of finance
• Navigating infrastructure
Source: The Scale-up Report, Sherry Coutu

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2 in 5 UK firms are struggling to
find the skills they need
Source: Tech City News

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“Why limit your talent search to
your own backyard? Most of your
competition is looking within the
same area.
In Silicon Valley, we call it an
actual talent war.”
Stephane Kasriel
CEO, Upwork

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49% of small businesses believe
marketing is the most important
growth factor
46% believe they spend too
much time on marketing
Source: Upwork research

14. SEO
SEM
Advertising
PR
Event
Direct
Mail
Email
Social
Media
Content

15. SEO
SEM
Advertising
PR
Event
Direct
Mail
Email
Social
Media
Content
“Marketing”
comprises lots of
specialist areas

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SEO is a specialist subject
16
Source: Moz.com

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95% of business owners said
they did not delegate soon
enough
30% said it significantly held
back their business growth
Source: Upwork research

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What is online hiring?
Online hiring is the practice of finding, hiring and
collaborating with talent through an online workplace
An online workplace is a website that connects businesses
and freelancers together
Online hiring increased by over 25% in the UK last year
19

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Social Media – Alexia’s Challenge
23
Role: Senior Manager for
Social Media, Upwork
Location: Copenhagen

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Social Media – Alexia’s Challenge
24

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Social Media – Alexia’s Challenge
25
• 24/7
• 80+ posts
• Customer Support
• Moderation

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Alexia’s Social Media Dream Team
26
Melanie
Writer and Moderator
Toronto
Mellonie
Moderator
Nairobi
Shan
Moderator
Sydney
Radhika
Writer and Curator
Digital Nomad
Alexia
Senior Manager
Copenhagen
Matt
Manager
San Francisco

27. 24/7 Coverage

28. Time zone hopscotch
- 8
+10
GMT
3 days work done in 24 hours

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The Business Show
29

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● Web Developers
● Mobile Developers
● Designers & Creatives
● Writers
● Virtual Assistants
● Customer Service Agents
● Sales & Marketing Experts
● Accountants & Consultants
We offer access to freelancers covering over
2,700 skills:

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How to choose the right projects
• Is this project going to take too much of my
time?
• Is it outside of my core skill set?
• Will this project add stress to or distract me or
my team?
• Do I need to complete this project asap?
• Does this project require a niche skill set for a
finite period of time?
• Could this project be completed by someone in
a different location?
• Can this project be delivered online?

33. © 2015 Upwork Inc. Proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute.
How to choose the right projects
• Is this project going to take too much of my
time?
• Is it outside of my core skill set?
• Will this project add stress to or distract me or
my team?
• Do I need to complete this project asap?
• Does this project require a niche skill set for a
finite period of time?
• Could this project be completed by someone in
a different location?
• Can this project be delivered online?
33

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Average traditional hiring takes
43 days
Average hiring online takes 3
Source: Upwork Online Work Report

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Four steps to marketing nirvana
Think scale in all aspects of your business

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Four steps to marketing nirvana
Think scale in all aspects of your business
Embrace delegation sooner rather than later

37. © 2015 Upwork Inc. Proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute.
Four steps to marketing nirvana
Think scale in all aspects of your business
Embrace delegation sooner rather than later
Use experts to fill your marketing skill gaps

38. © 2015 Upwork Inc. Proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute.
Four steps to marketing nirvana
Think scale in all aspects of your business
Embrace delegation sooner rather than later
Use experts to fill your marketing skill gaps
Build your “dream team” bench of freelance
marketers

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Find out more at
www.upwork.com
Thanks!
Hayley Conick
hconick@upwork.com
@hayleyconick
@upworkuk