Micro-Labor Marketplaces Having A Moment
Once the sole province of Craigslist, a host of Web sites and mobile applications have popped up to help people contract out all manner of chores and services. Along with Amazon.com’s Amazon Mechanical Turk and TaskRabbit, new marketplaces are emerging like Zaarly, which recently raised $14.1 million from Google Inc. investor and venture-capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
Enabled by these new platforms -- and a terrible economy -- “these micro-employees are taking the division of labor to once-unthinkable extremes,” The Wall Street Journal reports. “Thousands of unemployed or underemployed workers have parlayed one-off job requests into part- or full-time work.” And their willingness to work has meant good business for sites like Zaarly.
After launching six months ago, the startup is now processing over 1,000 transactions a week for jobs that cost around $50 a pop, according to WSJ. Co-founder and CEO Bo Fishback says that about half the requests involve tangible goods, and the rest involve some sort of service. “One of his favorites: a person who hired someone to buy a Michael Jackson-themed dog costume for a puppy.”
Recent Around the Net In Online Marketing Articles
-
Samsung Plans Faster Galaxy S4 June 17, 12:01 p.m.
Samsung says it will soon launch the world's first smartphone with a network connection boasting ultra-fast ... -
Apple Tries To Clear Its Name June 17, 11:37 a.m.
Trying to make good with consumers in the wake of reports that technology companies cooperated with ... -
Netflix Taps DreamWorks To Dream Up Original Shows June 17, 11:35 a.m.
Partnering with the makers of "Shrek" and "Kung Fu Panda," Netflix on Monday announced multi-year deal ... -
Instagram Adding Video? June 17, 11:34 a.m.
Later this week, Facebook will reportedly add a video feature to Instagram. “On June 20, a ... -
Boxee Seeking Investment, Buyout June 14, 11:39 a.m.
Web TV startup Boxee is reportedly ready to raise a lot of money, or sell the ... -
Microsoft Setting Up Shops In Best Buy June 14, 11:38 a.m.
Embracing brick and mortar like never before, Microsoft plans to open 500 “special stores” within existing ... -
Why Waze Sold To Google June 14, 11:37 a.m.
Months before Google agreed to buy Waze, the CEO of the social mapping service gave an ... -
NYC Embraces Neighborhood Network Nextdoor June 14, 11:36 a.m.
New York City is embracing Nextdoor in a big way. Yes, the Big Apple plans to ... -
Microsoft Ad Pushes Products And Services June 13, 11:28 a.m.
Microsoft debuted a new ad this week that is designed to reflect the company’s increasingly focus ... -
Yahoo Buys App Maker, Conference Call Service June 13, 11:25 a.m.
Continuing its acquisition spree, Yahoo just picked up two separate startups in the span of about ...
Be the first to comment on "Micro-Labor Marketplaces Having A Moment"
Leave a Comment