.net: How can web designers and developers benefit from using blur Group?
Philip Letts: They benefit at all stages of the Exchange process. First of all, they're part of a community of peers – that's expert designers, developers and agencies. Then the big bit – the new business opportunities manifested as briefs on the Exchange. Only those who are signed up can see and pitch for these briefs. They're of significant values, with significant customers – so it's not just about new opportunities, but new opportunities that you'd be very unlikely to encounter through your usual word-of-mouth referrals and local new business generation. Then the cloud-based platform means that you pitch for these projects online, and you're given your own dashboard to check the progress of your pitches. There's an Exchange Support team who can provide you with guidance to make sure you hit the needs of the customer, and who will answer any questions – so you're not pitching into a void! And if you are shortlisted and then selected, you have a dedicated online workspace for the project right through to completion, so you really could be working on a project for a company in Boston, MA when you're from Boston, Lincolnshire. The final part of the process is that we manage the invoicing and payment to you – so those days of chasing up clients are over! You don't start work until the first part of the payment is received. So, to sum up – a new way of working, new business and lots of hassle taken away.
.net: How do you vet your creative people?
PL: The Exchange Support team mentioned above vets all the online applications: you'll be asked to complete standard questions, link to your portfolio or website and talk about clients you've worked with. And if you've not gone through this vetting process and joined the Exchange, then you won't be able to pitch because our projects are 'closed'. For the professional designer or developer this simply means that they're dealing with serious projects – this isn't for the amateur or the clever kid – it's businesses wanting expert sourcing.