Outsourcing is something highly recommended in books like The 4-Hour Workweek. Is outsourcing right for you? You might be thinking about using a job bidding site or advertising for services needed to get various services such as writers and designers, programmers and virtual assistants.
When most internet marketers start out they get going as a one man or one woman show and do everything themselves. As business starts to boom, they might find that:
a) They want more time to themselves. Work/life balance is vital to health and happiness.
b) They need a higher level of expertise than they have to kick their business up a notch.
But isn’t outsourcing expensive?
It may cost very little money to outsource some of your tasks in contrast to the money it could make you. When you look at the time it takes you to do something versus the money it could cost to outsource it may be worth it. Don’t forget that as a business you also have business-related costs and therefore tax write-offs! There’s also another thing to consider. While you might be a master at your trade you might only have ‘dabbling’ skills in various aspects of it. Perhaps you are an ‘ok’ writer or can do very basic web design. Imagine how much more business you can get if you take your top specialty and mix that with another expert’s top specialty? The results could provide quite a ROI for you!
Tips for Outsourcing
- Take the time to choose the right individual for the job. Don’t rush it!
- Protect yourself with contracts and / or non-disclosure agreements
- Ask people who they use! A peer might have a great web designer or copywriter that helps them get fantastic results.
- Take it slow. Don’t suddenly outsource everything. As great an idea as the 4 hour work week is, it can’t happen overnight or you’ll lose your grasp on your business and probably lose money too.
Have a most outstanding day.
Sean RasmussenAussie Internet Marketing
www.SeanSEO.com © 2008 - 2012
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Sean,
My business is still too small to need anything outsourced. If I need a break my partner becomes my assistant and takes care of anything I need done.
When my business gets to the point where I need to outsource some things. I’ll probably outsource the things that I am really not good at or things that require more specialist knowledge than I have. I think Elance is a good site to find people.
Jazz
I have been using Elance and it is excellent. Be aware there are quite a few writers that don’t have English as their first language so the quality is a bit lower.
I have found some good writers at a very reasonable cost
Delegating can be challenging. Letting go of the stuff you are used to do yourself. But if you want to grow there comes a time where you have to share your workload. And either you employ staff or you outsource.
Hi Sean
I have no problems outsourcing my work. I would do it now if I had the money (lol). Really though as my businesse’s grow I most certainly will use outsourcing
When I can outsource time consuming or tedious jobs that I either don’t enjoy or lack skills in, it will free me up to do more income producing activities.
Outsourcing is brilliant.
Outsourcing is one of my main goals, and I am not doing it yet because oif costs – yet here is a great solution!
It can be sort of a JV – find someone who needs my strengths and can offer theirs in areas where I am weak or slack. It could work well – now I just find some matches – but how?
The first thing to do when you consider outsourcing part of your work is a cost-benefit analysis. What is it going to cost you relative to what you expect to gain in increased sales. If you decide to try outsourcing be sure you have an agreement whereby you can discontinue the outsourcing at any time if sales do not meet expectations.
Just my two cents.
I outsource mot of my article writing now and I have never been happier! I found the person I use through a recommendation and she does a better job than me a lot of the time!
It is all about being able to project manage efficiently and effectively and keeping control of what is happening – proof reading and making little adjustments.
I would love to get to a stage for outsourcing whereby I am able to contract out other tasks other than article writing……..my empire building!
Outsourcing may or may not be the perfect solution for one’s business. There are several reasons, advantages and flaws on the idea of outsourcing.
The most worthwhile thing to do is to greatly weigh and draw “what works and doesn’t work” scenarios before jumping into conclusions.
Outsourcing is not bad, It really needs time and careful analysis to find the right person to do the right job. Better yet, venture on a well-establish outsourcing solution provider that will alleviate all your doubts and mishaps.