Spend any decent amount of time using any or all of the popular outsourcing services online, you'll swear you've seen and done it all. Spend the same amount of time in the same places, you'll come to acknowledge there's always more to learn about how the outsourcing industry operates.

It's a confounding phenomenon that rings true from either perspective.

Outsourcing online isn't rocket science after all, but the industry manages to continuously bring forth innovations which topple what we think is carved into stone.

Did you know...

• Did you know, for instance, that there's a way to verify a service provider's skills? I don't mean by looking at a degree or certificate of some sort. I mean by checking out actual test scores...

• Did you know there's a way to guarantee originality in your outsourced project and completely obliterate the chance for plagiarism? (There is!)

• What about knowing the difference between outsourcing and outtasking? One of those activities dictates a job's what and how (and the other shouldn't).

• Did you know there's a way to get the same quality out of an inexpensively priced project as if you had paid hundreds or even thousands of dollars for it?

Using outsourcing can be a little bit like using computers. At one moment, you can think it's so easy, a child could master it. Then when a unique problem or situation arises, you suddenly realize you might not know as much as you once thought you did.

That's because outsourcing is a growing industry, and while its entirety may not be mastered within a week, month, or even a year, it can be understood and manipulated in advantageous ways without having to secure a four-year management degree.

One way to do just that is to attend an outsourcing seminar.

You Gotta 'Know Someone'

Through an outsourcing seminar, you can get answers to questions you always had, but didn't know who to ask or perhaps weren't too comfortable asking. You can learn how to avoid critical mistakes, enforce contracts, and reduce risks while building a team of professional online service providers in half the time it would take to vet just one, offline.

And because seminars are small, you get to enjoy an intimate setting in which everyone participates, ultimately expanding knowledge from different points of view.

To find an outsourcing seminar nearest you, you can pour through your local classified ads, college bulletin boards, or even Craigslist for leads. Chances are, unfortunately, you won't find what you're looking for. Seminars of this genre are typically plugged in high-end business circles. You gotta "know someone who knows someone" in other words.

This Outsourcing Seminar is Online

Lucky for you, you already "know someone," and that someone is Nicole Miller, author of 'Outsourcing Through RentACoder.' Starting March 3, 2011, Nicole will teach an online class about outsourcing over the Internet through SitePoint's sister site, Learnable.

Through this course, you'll have access to everything a traditional, offline seminar offers and more: informative videos, handouts, downloads, and an opportunity to chat live with the instructor plus other students.