Many, if not most, greenhorn entrepreneurs find financing a business their most formidable hurdle to overcome. They concentrate too much on this single problem that sometimes they end up overanalyzing and exaggerating it. The result? They are overwhelmed by it and finally decide to abandon the project altogether.
Let us analyze the money concerns you have that deter you from putting up your business:
- Rental- you do need to rent a place for your business if, instead of putting up a real world store or office, you start an online business. . The initial costs are much lower because there will be no real estate to rent or buy, no furniture to purchase, no utilities to set up, and you can automate almost everything.
- Equipment – with an online business, all you need is a computer with a reliable internet connection so maintenance cost is almost nil.
- Furniture – a working desk and a comfortable chair are enough.
- Employees – you can almost dispense of them! You can save time, effort, and money if you let others do the tasks which you cannot or should not do at much lower cost and more efficiently and effectively than if you are to them yourself! How? Outsource them!
The following questions must have entered your mind regarding outsourcing. Let us analyze them one by one:
WHY OUTSOURCE?
You may be able to do all the tasks but being too engrossed in them will make it difficult for you to achieve your primary objective – to improve the prospects of your business. Being too busy may distract your attention from the more essential elements of the business.
The most practical solution to this dilemma is to hire outside help to enable you to focus on the core areas of your business.
Also, outsourcing saves you money in the long run. When you outsource specific tasks to others, you avoid the need for a large number of employees or rent space to accommodate them all. This means a big reduction of your overhead and operating expenses.
With the proliferation of reliable outsourcing companies like Mr.Outsource, contracting one can be done fast and easy. An outsourcing company can offer services that will meet your need for efficient workers to work on any tasks that will fit your budget.
The availability of highly skilled outsourced workers combined with the accessibility of their services enhances the suitability of the option to outsource.
WHEN TO OUTSOURCE?
There is no “right time” for a business to outsource. Even at the start, outsourcing can be beneficial even for a small business. For any business to succeed, you need to make sure that you stay focus. Therefore, if you have to handle tasks such as attending to calls or bookkeeping, you may ignore the more important tasks at hand. This is where an efficient outsourced staff should be considered to do the menial and time-consuming tasks.
So when is the appropriate time for you to outsource? When you feel you can no longer manage to do run your business as effectively and efficiently as you should due to inadequate time.
WHAT SHOULD YOU OUTSOURCE?
Identify the core areas of your business and any tasks directly associated with it. These require your personal and hands-on supervision so do not outsource them because if you do, there is that big possibility that clients may miss your unique personal touch — a mistake a small business should not make. A web design business for example. He must not hire third-party providers for any tasks related to web designing which the core of your business. What you can do is to outsource tasks such as the following:
• Repetitive or routine tasks: Data entry, payroll, clerical jobs, are good examples under this category. It may be a better idea to outsource this and assign your regular staff to concentrate on more useful work.
• Specialized tasks: IT support is a good example of this type of task. Although his/her services may be needed for your network, a contractor may be ideal for this specialized work.
• Expert tasks: Financial analyst is among the positions that require a high level of expertise. You can appoint a financial analyst on a contractual basis at a much lower cost, especially if your budget will not allow the hiring of an in-house guy for the job.
HOW TO OUTSOURCE? A very good way to go about this is to ask recommendations from your business associates and contacts. You may also search online for contractors who specialize in connecting businesses with outsourcing partners.
The right partner is one who understands if their specialisations can meet your specific requirements. Once you have selected a contractor to outsource, draft a contract that covers every detail of the outsourced tasks.
Be very sure that the partnership works out smoothly well by clearly spelling out everything you require of them. Do not assume anything. Proper communication between you and your outsourcing partner should be established and maintained at all times.
Allow some time for both you and your contracting partner to adjust to your work processes. Avoid micromanagement that may hamper your outsourcing efforts.
Remember: the whole idea behind outsourcing is to save time – and to give you the chance focus more on the core aspects of your business.