Karla Singson
Summary:
Karla is without-a-doubt, the most energetic hustler I have ever met. She is not someone that overthinks anything. She sees an opportunity and she goes for it (regardless of whether she has the skills to pull it off or not. She finds a way). She created a dead simple outsourcing business and has scaled it to over $1M in ARR. If you’re curious to learn how, let’s dive right in…
Tell us about yourself and what your business does?
Hey, my name is Karla Singson and I’m originally from the Philippines, but I have relocated to the US. I am the founder of a company called Proximity Outsourcing – At Proximity, we specialize at helping businesses grow and scale by staffing them with talent in the Philippines. We initially started off just offering VA’s (Virtual Assistants). But due to demand and a gap in the market, we have branched into offering more managerial and high impact roles such as social media management, project management, graphic designers etc.
I have owned (and continue to own) multiple businesses. My very first business was a flower shop right out of college. I wanted a business with high margins, which flowers offer, and over time I’ve managed to grow this business into a franchise model with 13 different locations. I’ve also started an events and marketing consulting business, working with large nonprofits like the United Nations and big brands like Qatar Airways.
What is the specific problem that your business solves?
Most global companies outsource talent to more affordable regions in order to increase their margins and profitability. The challenge is, this is a lot easier said than done. Finding good quality talent is not easy, especially if you are not on the ground. Additionally, training outsourced talent is extremely difficult, costly and time consuming.
Thus, all in all, the specific problem my business solves is helping other companies find highly skilled, pre-vetted, cost-effective professionals for managerial roles, from the Philippines. My differentiator is that I provide long term labour for these companies and I do not provide short term or freelance gigs (even though, contractually, they are all freelancers. But they freelance on a long-term basis).
Filipinos have strong English proficiency and a cultural inclination towards providing great customer service, making them exceptional employees for global companies.
How did you find your business idea?
I first came across the idea when I started traveling in 2016 and noticed the cost of living differences between different countries. After an expensive trip to Australia, I realized that I might be able to make a business out of “labour arbitrage”.
I began by helping my friends hire and train Executive Assistants. After a couple rounds of this, I realized that there is a need for this and companies were willing to pay for the service, so I formalized the process and turned it into a business.
No initial upfront costs were needed and no hugely technical skills were required. I just had to hustle, use my connections / network and take action to make it happen. It wasn't complicated at all and that’s why I think there are so many of these outsourcing businesses popping up nowadays.
How did you find your first customer?
My first customers were friends and people I met at conferences. I didn’t have money to build a website, run ads or do anything complicated. I literally just offered the service to anyone I knew who was working at a corporate and would potentially need an Executive Assistant. At first, they just gave me Amazon gift cards as a “thank you”. Eventually, someone advised me to start charging for my services, and that’s how my business began.
How do you find customers on a regular basis nowadays?
It is as raw and pure as you can get. We don’t run paid ads, go to events or spend big bucks on unnecessary advertising placements. Our “marketing” strategy is super simple – leverage what already exists within our network. The people that are the most likely to buy from you, are the people that have already bought from you. Thus, our acquisition channels are as follows:
- Affiliate program: This is our top acquisition channel. We pay affiliates $1,000 for every successful business referral
- Social media content marketing: I built a large following on Facebook by posting daily long-form content for 3 years, and now I am expanding into LinkedIn. This drives a lot of leads through our doors.
- Client referrals: Many of our satisfied clients refer new customers to us, and we reward them through our affiliate program ($1,000).
What are your current revenue streams and how much do you earn from each?
Putting all my other businesses aside and focusing purely on Proximity Outsourcing – I have scaled the business to seven figures within a year (>$1,000,000), without spending anything on ads.
The only thing that drives revenue for the business is the actual placement of talent within companies. There are no alternative revenue streams. This is both a pro and a con…It’s a pro because it means that I get to focus 100% of my energy on one activity and do that one activity REALLY well. The downside is that the business relies heavily on global market shifts and if anything changes ever-so-slightly, it can cripple the company pretty easily. But we have reserves to manage this if it comes to it.
What are your future plans with the business?
I love my business, but my husband and I are planning to start a family. I might scale down my role, take on a partner, or even sell the business. No matter what, I will continue investing and ensuring my financial future is secure (I have AirBnB property investments).
What type of life has running your own business allowed you to live?
Being an entrepreneur has given me freedom. I have built businesses that operate without me handling daily tasks. My flower shop runs itself except during peak seasons, and my AirBnB properties are managed by a team. This setup allows me to plan for early retirement and prioritize family life while still earning income. You simply can’t get this type of freedom (both time and financial) working a traditional 9-5.
What piece of advice would you give to someone wanting to start a business?
I have 3 things that I will always carry with me and teach my kids one day:
- Protect your reputation – Your name is your most valuable asset in business. Always prioritize your integrity and customer relationships.
- Don’t overthink it, just start – I landed my first corporate client, Sony, simply by saying “yes” to an opportunity before knowing all the details. You can figure things out along the way (I didn’t get into this above, but this was for an events company that I ran for a certain period of time. I somehow found out that Sony needed someone to put together an event for them. I had never done anything like this in my life before, but I said I could do it and I made it happen. Don’t worry about everything that can go wrong, because 95% of the time, it never happens)
- Create cash-producing assets – Making money is exciting, but long-term financial security comes from reinvesting in sustainable income sources (eg: property). If you can create a cash flow business and reinvest all the liquid cash into an appreciating asset that yields monthly cash flow, that is the golden nugget.
