Where do you find good people to do a job for you? Face-to-face is great—but you might consider the Web as well. We can’t recommend any of these personally, but you may wish to take a look:

Freelancer.com, based in Sydney, Australia, claims that small businesses worldwide had posted 500,000 contract jobs worth $45 million (U.S.) as of November 2009. The average bid is less than $200 (U.S.).

Mfg.com Inc. of Atlanta, Ga., claims that its site lets you source parts and find customers.

Barter? Who knows? Small-business consultant Rieva Lesonsky of Irvine, Calif., points to irta.com, the International Reciprocal Trade Association of Portsmouth, Va. Other such exchanges for goods and services are local.

If you find a site that looks as though it will work for you, check with members who have benefited and who are willing to vouch for the organization.

Finally, if you want to work with people you find on the Web but you really need to read some body language, Lesonsky notes that Skype and other communication services provide video with calls on your computer.