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DQ News: Small Business Outsourcing Dos and Don’ts

As your small business grows, you’ll want to start outsourcing some of your tasks so you can grow your business. The following are tips I’ve learned from starting up and growing my own small business:

Outsourcing Dos

Do Outsource Tasks You Hate

We all have those tasks we despise. Personally, I hate the marketing end of things. I love working my craft, but I hate scrounging up new work. Hire someone to do the parts of the job you find yourself procrastinating, such as:

• Marketing efforts
• Writing copy
• Accounting
• Clean up/janitorial services
• Busywork

Do Outsource Offshore

You’ll find that a lot of tasks can be outsourced to offshore contractors for a fraction of the price it’d cost you to hire someone here in the US. Make sure you don’t need the contractor’s English to be perfect, and if not, consider giving a hardworking person in another country the gig.

Do Write Up a Contract

You need to be specific in what you expect from the contractor, how much and how often you’ll pay, and what time frame you expect the work to be completed within. Get all this is writing so there’s no confusion.

Do Pay Your Contract Employees Often

Contractors are afraid of getting burned, so you’ll need to pay them often (usually weekly) if you want to keep them.

Outsourcing Don’ts

Don’t Outsource Essential Tasks

You’ll want to keep your most important tasks in house, even if you find them tedious or exhausting. This is because you have to protect yourself against a flakey contractor or unanticipated circumstances. Only outsource tasks you can recover on your own in an emergency.

Don’t Outsource to Friends or Family

While the temptation is there to keep the work in the family, you’ll find an impartial contractor to be more efficient and respectful (in most cases). Unless you’re 100% sure your friend or family member can handle the task you need covered and will do it right, outsource to a neutral party. Then you won’t be jeopardizing important relationships if the project falls through or something goes wrong.

Don’t Trust a New Contractor

Your new contractor may claim to know how to hang the moon, but you don’t really know what the contractor is capable of until you’ve worked together for a while. Start with small projects and work your way up over time for best results.

Outsourcing Tips

I hope these tips were helpful! It’s important to start outsourcing once your business grows to the point where you can no longer do everything and do it all well. Just remember to outsource carefully and wisely. None of us can do it all!

About the Author: Erinn Stam is the Managing Editor for a nursing scholarship website. She attends Wake Technical Community College and is learning about lpn grants and scholarships. She lives in Durham, NC with her lovely 4-year-old daughter and exuberant husband.

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