If crowdsourcing can be used to improve product design, music promotion and sports team management—to name just a few of the examples we’ve written about—why not the process of finding sales leads?
That question is about to be tested through a new site that aims to put the crowds to work as a sort of community sales force.
LeadVine lets users post the types of sales leads they seek along with the referral fee they’re willing to pay; the community is then invited to earn that fee by making the desired connections. Fees listed on the site must be at least USD 50, but the range is considerable.
One listing, for example, offers a USD 100 referral fee for help in finding companies in need of online chat support. Another offers USD 50,000 for investors to contribute USD 2 million toward an Oregon real-estate development project.
Requests are listed by category, and buttons for each allow others to bookmark them, share them via e-mail or make a referral. The resulting transactions are conducted outside the site, but LeadVine facilitates the payment of referral fees via PayPal.
Community members can also rate each other on the site to reflect the quality of each transaction.
Photo by valkarie.
Jaclyn on November 21st, 2008 at 11:07 am
While for business’ this may be a great thing for helping their business, as a resident who get’s sales pitch call’s all the time i would have to disagree with this new website only because it is very irritating getting those sales pitch calls in the middle of dinner or when your trying to feed a baby, etc. and putting yourself on the do not call list never solves the problem but yet still charges you money to be on the list. residents all over may have some real issues with this new site.
Brett Tilford on November 21st, 2008 at 12:57 pm
Sounds like a very cool site and could be beneficial for my new business, Nectar.
@Jaclyn I hear your concern although I don’t think the idea is that people start cold calling their friends- of course I could be wrong. I guess we’ll just have to see how people end up utilizing the tool.
Allan Margate on November 22nd, 2008 at 12:41 am
Hi Jaclyn-
I understand your concern that you might receive cold calls but the whole idea is for business to advertise or contact you only when you have a need for a service or product instead of random cold calls. For example if you have a need to develop a new website, your friend can have a web developer with a listing at LeadVine contact you. Your friend can then get a referral fee and you now have a new vendor to consider. It is during the times of need that people are interested in receiving advertising / solutions.
cassy on November 22nd, 2008 at 2:25 am
Well, I think this site can really help a business especially when you are looking something. They can give a list of what you are looking.