This newsletter is distributed to anyone selling in a Slivers-Of-Time
marketplace. Also, to those waiting for a market to start in their area who have registered at www.sliversoftime.com
It will keep you posted on developments in this exciting new way of working. |
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IN THIS ISSUE |
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SPOTLIGHT ON THE SELLER: |
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Complementing the therapies |
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Carmen: Slivers and therapy |
Starting your own business can be a hard graft. Customers are likely to start as a trickle, not a flood. You need time to get out and market your services. Cashflow is uncertain. So how do you survive? By prioritising the needs of your venture, then working Slivers at other times to plug the gaps in your income.
Carmen Webbe knows that. She’s recently started up as a Complementary Therapist. “I offer body massage, aromatherapy and reflexology” she explains. “At the moment that fills 7-8 hours a week, but I am doing my own marketing to expand that”. Carmen was looking for a way of earning that would allow her to focus on the work she loves. She recalls: “It was a pure fluke that I found Slivers”.
Carmen [Bookings: 4, Hours Sold: 28, Buyers: 2] signed up for the Leeds Slivers market. “My first booking was cleaning work in a City Centre building. I wouldn’t normally do that type of work but I thought ‘What the heck!’ and it was OK.” She’s also done short bursts of telesales work. The flexibility of Slivers allows her to focus on herlong term plans.
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SLIVERS FUTURES: |
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LB&F launch |
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Hammersmith HQ: starting Slivers |
Hammersmith & Fulham Council in London calls itself “The Borough of Opportunity”. They are determined to help local people and local businesses to thrive. Now, LBH&F has become the latest council-as-catalyst to launch a Slivers market for the benefit of the local economy. It also helps Council Taxpayers. Even before the official launch of the market, Slivers workers are cutting costs for the council.
Staff at Hammersmith Town Hall had wrestled for months with problems around Child Transport Supervisors. These highly vetted staff accompany children in care to and from school. Average shift pattern? Two one-hour shifts at either end of the day. Huge costs were being incurred using traditional temps. But Slivers unlocked a pool of local trainee nurses and teachers, vetted to the standards required and eager to earn some pin money either side of their studies.
The Council is also starting to use Slivers sellers for cleaning, catering and other tasks. And that’s just to get the market going for wider benefit. Council Leader, Cllr Stephen Greenhalgh, says, “There are always employers who want extra staff to work odd hours or cover peak times or absences. And there are always residents with a few hours to spare in need of an extra income. Now we are matching these two groups.”
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TIP: |
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Don't delay |
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Cartoon by Shamima Aktar Koli, Slivers-of-Time seller
[Bookings: 82, Hours Sold: 293, Buyers: 4] |
Selling in a Slivers-of-Time Market? When you get a booking, don’t delay your confirmation. If you say you are willing to do short-notice bookings you may only have 10 minutes to confirm on some assignments. |
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CASE STUDY: |
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On hand for handing out |
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| Archant: where the papers start |
You’re walking towards the station or through the precinct and someone offers you a freebie newspaper. Sounds simple enough? But there’s a mass of logistical considerations behind that distribution.
Steve Fenton knows that. He’s Head of Communications for media company Archant in London. He explains “we use Slivers workers, typically for four hour bookings to distribute our publications in public places.” And those requirements can change. Weather can impact distribution times. A bigger than usual edition means more distributors required. Different venues for distribution need to be tried.
But using Slivers allows Steve to be more responsive. “I like being able to book at short notice. I like the fact there’s no minimum booking period” he says. “I was sceptical at first but we’ve had some good sellers and overall the quality’s been just as good as a promotion agency.”
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March 2008
Published on the last Friday of the month |
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Slivers-of-Time Working: the basics
Marketplaces for Slivers-of-Time are for:
who wants to work around other things in their life, such as:
-childcare
-studying
-part-time work
-caring for adult
-medical commitments
- Organisations who need top-up workers at short notice, for short periods:
-councils
-caterers
-retailers
-logistics supplier
Benefits:
- Sellers: do whatever odd hours of work they want and quickly build skills, experience and a track record they can print at any time.
- Buyers: access a self-selecting pool of local people who choose to work in a way that demands flexibility and rewards reliability.
Signing up:
Anyone who wants to know when a market-place is starting in their area should enter their details at:
www.sliversoftime.com
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