Your Extended Team – How to Know When to Outsource Services
Orca Communications invited business consultants and inventors Kim Strong & Jamye Baker to write a series of guest posts on overcoming some of the challenges entrepreneurs face while building their businesses. Today, they talk about knowing how and when to outsource services.
As entrepreneurs, we’re naturally wired to do everything ourselves. Some of us are even self-proclaimed control freaks. “I’m a one-man show”… “I burn the candle from both ends”… sleep? who needs sleep? HOWEVER, sharing the load and knowing when and what aspects of your business to let go of may end up being one of the best things you can do to keep your sanity and scale your business. Keep reading for our tips on how to know when to outsource services.
Outsourcing allows you to focus your time on important projects while entrusting tasks to other professionals without actually hiring someone full-time on your team. The challenging part may be determining what you should outsource! Some commonly outsourced services are accounting, marketing/PR, customer service, and IT management.
Start with your skill set and your goals. If you have a strong financial or IT background, contracting someone to do your monthly accounting and technology updates may not feel like a good way to spend money. But, if it isn’t your strength and it’s something you struggle with or put off, it may be worth looking into. This could actually increase your efficiency and save you money.
Marketing and PR are popular services to consider when evaluating your ability to make a significant impact on your overall growth plan. There are agencies that can take the lead on communications, advertising, content creation, and social media postings that will help grow your business. These outsource providers will likely bring a fresh, creative perspective to your products/services. They have expertise that may extend well beyond your own. While you may deem marketing a fun part of your job, don’t be afraid to give someone else a shot at it.
If your customer service is done primarily online and/or over the phone, a call center or chat service may be a good way for you to stay focused on the bigger picture. However, it is critical that whomever you entrust with your customers know exactly what your expectations are and how to deal with your clients. You will need clear instructions for handling virtually every situation that comes up. Our personal experience led us to believe that talking to customers on the frontline was just too important to farm out. But, if you feel you can coach your extended team well enough on your products, this can be a great time-saver for you.
Virtual assistants, VA’s, are all the rage! With so many Americans transitioning to working at home, a lot of great people are taking on the role of VA. This could be a great way for you to transfer a small portion of all your needs with a person versus picking just one area to outsource. You may especially benefit from a VA if you struggle to stay focused on your big goals and burn a lot of time on tedious tasks.
If you think you can’t afford an extended team, ask yourself these questions. What is the cost of your time? How many more sales or networking opportunities could you pursue if you had ten more hours in a week? How could your product development scale if you had someone doing the legwork? What could you accomplish if you weren’t constantly interrupted by customer calls and emails?
Regardless of what you decide you can “let go,” our most critical piece of advice is to stay on pulse in all aspects of your business. “Trust but verify” is a motto that will keep you in check and comfortable using an extended team.
Kim Strong & Jamye Baker are the inventors of the award-winning ciao! baby portable high chair and are currently franchise consultants representing over 300 franchises(jamfranconsult.com). They help entrepreneurs find their niche and are “business matchmakers”, helping people find business opportunities that align with their lifestyle and personal growth goals. jbaker@jamfranconsult.com