When it comes to outsourcing work to freelancers, there’s no shortage of candidates. From large sites like Fivver, Elance, and Odesk to smaller job boards like Mediabistro and Problogger, there are thousands of freelancers on dozens of different channels chomping at the bit for you to bring them on-board. But where are you supposed to go to find the right one?

What’s more, there’s an assortment of different types of freelancers themselves. They vary wildly in price, experience, and overall quality. Even after you figure out where to look you’ve still got to choose what kind of freelancer you really want to work with.

Unfortunately, most companies gravitate toward lower end freelancers, the ones that work at dirt cheap rates and advertise their services on the bigger job boards. They think to themselves, What could go wrong? This is a simple job, and I’d rather have money in my pocket than hire some high-flying freelancer that charges twice as much. There’s no way the quality difference is that major. But they couldn’t be more wrong!

Legitimate freelancers know the reality of this situation all to well. Employers, on the other hand, usually have to get burned a few times before it starts sinking in.

Behoove yourself by reading the tale of one such incident in which we failed to understand the value in hiring a quality freelancer. You’ll get some valuable information on how to avoid our mistakes, and you’re bound to have a few good laughs when you see how bad the work was as well.

Our story

As a local Phoenix business, we had an interest in getting some professionally produced photographs of the area to use on our website, in our blog posts, and so forth. So we did what any small business with little knowledge of photography would do: we hired a freelance photographer.

Not knowing any better, we hired one of the first freelancers we found. At the outset of our business relationship with this individual, everything seemed fine. This was our first time hiring a freelancer, so we simply explained what were looking for, agreed on a price, and sent our newly employed freelancer off into the blistering Arizona heat to capture some images of the town.

Little did we know, the images our new friend was about to produce wouldn’t exceed the quality of those shot with a potato.

The deliverables

With high hopes and bated breath, we patiently awaited the delivery of our photos. Finally, the day arrived.

When we opened the first JPG, our mouths almost hit the floor. Our “photographer” hadn’t even gotten out of his car – in many cases hadn’t even stopped it – to take the photos we received. To make matters worse, this guy’s windshield probably hadn’t seen a drop of water for half a decade or more. It was covered in crud.

This first gem was taken in Scottsdale near the intersection of East Camelback and North Scottsdale roads.

Where should we start? First, although it’s tough to overlook the spots of dirt and dust on the windshield in conjunction with the horrible lighting and crooked composition, we can at least say that business shown on the left-hand side of the photo, Sprinkles, does have delicious cupcakes. Seriously, check them out. They’ve even got a cupcake ATM.

Aside from the cupcake factor, this image is practically useless.

After rolling through Scottsdale, our freelancer decided to soak up some of the local culture in Avondale. Below you can see the renowned Avondale Waffle House.

Now, this isn’t just any Waffle House. This is the only location of the franchise that is flanked by both a McDonald’s and one of Phoenix’s own S&S Tire and Auto Service Centers. We can totally see how this was an important landmark to document.

Next, you can see our freelancer’s idea of a dramatic action shot. To capture the urgency of this assignment, he decided to keep the car moving while capturing the image.

It only goes downhill from here, folks. Out of the dozens of laughably terrible images we received, not a single one was usable.

How to learn from our mistakes

Ok, so what’s the moral of this story? Well, there are actually a few:

Do your due diligence

No matter how trustworthy a freelancer, seems you shouldn’t just take them at face value. Do a little digging, investigate their portfolio, and see if they have any testimonials or previous clients you can consult. Anyone can talk a big game, but only the best have a proven track record.

Don’t be a cheapskate

Reliable freelancers who know their stuff command a certain premium. Getting stingy by snagging one of the cheapest candidates off a site like Odesk or Elance is almost always a gamble. Good freelancers know the work they do has value, and they aren’t going to work for pennies on the dollar.

Always use a contract

Nobody likes paperwork and legalese, but working with a contract is a must. Plus, the best freelancers are going to want to use a contract anyway. Having the project laid out on paper makes everybody’s life a little easier. The deliverables are defined, a concrete timeline is established, and terms of payment are set in stone. At no point should any of these three elements be open for interpretation, and that’s what your contract should prevent.

Where to find the good guys

So where do you turn to find a good freelancer? You now know what not to do, so let’s take a minute to discuss the best avenues for hiring.

Tap into your network of contacts

Ask any freelancer worth their salt where their best clients come from and they’re likely to say personal referrals. This is a two-way street. Many of the best freelancers are *found* through personal referrals too.

Freelancers found through personal recommendations from satisfied clients are almost always going to beat out candidates found through other methods.

Utilize Craigslist (with caution)

Ok, so you’re not going to totally avoid sub par freelancers by posting to Craigslist. You’re going to have to sort through some duds. However, you might be surprised to find that there are some really knowledgeable freelancers who check Craigslist postings quite frequently.

As long as you use a little discretion, there are plenty of capable freelancers to be found through Craigslist.

Post on niche-specific job boards

One of the main problems with massive sites like Elance and Odesk is that they’re packed to the gills with low-end candidates that you’ll have to sift through to get to the good guys. Good freelancers can be found on these sites, but you’ll have to be diligent.

You’ll find a higher concentration of quality pros on niche sites that are specific to their respective skill sets.

Great writers, for example, are more likely to be found on Journalismjobs.com or Freelancewritinggigs.com. Likewise, there are plenty of exceptional designers frequenting the pages of 99Designs and Smashing Jobs.

Tying it all together

We hope that these tips keep you from ever having to experience the frustration of dealing with a bad freelancer. Now that you’ve heard our cautionary tale and gotten the rundown on the right way to hire a freelancer, go forth and outsource with confidence.