When and Where to Outsource for Your Business

As a business owner, you have many hats to wear. Not only are you running the ins and outs of your business, but to a point, you are an employer, a colleague, a co-worker and a friend to your employees. You also have to be a certain person for specific clients and customers, all while keeping the operations of your business running smoothly.

This can all become too much at times. What is a business owner to do?

Of course, to release some of the weight, outsourcing certain responsibilities can help your business expand and grow, while also improving business operations. It could also save your business money.

Here is when and where to outsource for your business.

• Your Website

Not everybody is as savvy with websites as others, and even if you choose to set up one of the free website templates, this can often mean you're not getting the best from your website. To improve your chances of getting the people you want to your website, it can be a good idea to outsource this work to a web design company or individual. This means you can have the website you want and leave the technical knowledge to somebody else. It also means that you can leave regular updating and changes to the website to them which will save you time. It is important, however, that you ask them for a way that you can make small adjustments to your website without having to defer to them all the time.

• Customer Service

Your customers are the most important people to your business and trying to generate support and trust in your brand can take many years. It can also be difficult to train your staff to be great at customer service if you haven't experience in this field yourself. However, if you place your customer support in the hands of an outside agency, then you can rely on specialized staff that are trained to deal with customers professionally. They can be asked to deal with as much or as little work as you want and can refer to you if there happens to be a question they can't answer. External agencies can also have access to the best technology such as online support and web chat which can improve your customer loyalty and trust.

• Virtual Assistants

If your staffing budget is tight, yet you still need help with some of your procedures and day to day tasks, then consider using a virtual assistant. There are many freelancers that operate as virtual assistants, and they can often do many of the things a personal assistant can do if they were in the office. Of course, with virtual assistants, you do have some advantages. These include being able to use them as and when you need them, and also you don't have to pay them vacation leave or sick leave. If you are going to be choosing a virtual assistant, you need to think about the time difference, especially if you're hiring from another country. It depends on your busiest time of day and which countries you get the most custom from.

• Accounting

Although there are many types of accounting software out there, that doesn't necessarily mean you will be doing the right things. What’s more, there could be changes in tax law or in accounting regulations that you might not be aware of, and this could leave you with a hole in your accounts. That is why unless you are a qualified accountant, or you know what you're doing it is best to pass this work on to someone who is in the trade. It will mean you won't have to spend a lot of time on this, and your accountant will be out to tell you what documents you need for the end of your tax year.

• IT and Computing

Most companies now rely on IT and computers in their business, so you'll be forgiven for thinking you need someone full time to manage your system. However, this isn't always the case, especially if you've decided to have all of your service in the cloud. Apart from the computer terminals you have in your office, you won’t necessarily have any other equipment that could break or needs updating. For that reason, the need for someone full time isn't as important. Plus, it means you only really need to spend money when something needs to be corrected or updated rather than a constant salary. There are many companies that can handle IT solutions for your business, and they are generally on call most hours of the day and night should problems occur.

• Storage and Shipping

If you sell a number of different products, the chances are that you will need a large warehouse to store them all until they are shipped to the customers. A warehouse of a decent size can cost a lot to rent, and if you ever think about expanding your company, you would need to expand your warehouse to accommodate more products and sales. However, there are some companies that can help you by storing and shipping order your products for you. You can find additional info online about many of these companies and how they can save your ongoing running costs.

• Cleaners

If you run an office, you will be needing cleaners for disposing of rubbish and cleaning the facilities. However, in a similar way to IT support, you don't need to have them work for you full time. That is why many businesses outsource their cleaning services to third-party companies. This means that they can come into the office usually out of hours and perform their duties when no-one else is there. Some cleaning companies will also be able to deal with secret and confidential waste, which can be beneficial as part of one contract.

There are many tasks that you can now outsource to third-party companies that can make your business run smoother and also save you money. However, it is important to note that you need to select these companies carefully so that you're able to get the best quality service for your money.