Growing your business by outsourcing

How would your business grow if you had time to think? To really think about what you would like your business to look like in 10 years’ time. To ensure you are doing what you do best, doing the £100 jobs and not the £10 ones.

We find many business owners initially struggle with the prospect of outsourcing, what it is and how it can add value. As experts we totally understand that it can seem daunting.

So what’s holding you back from growing your business by outsourcing? Do any of these scenarios seems familiar?

• I am fed up with working ‘in’ and not ‘on’ my business
• Why do I need to outsource, I can do everything myself?
• It will be more expensive for me to outsource and I don’t have the budget
• I am frustrated as I want to expand and grow the business. How do I do this and keep working to generate income?
• I genuinely would not know where to start with what to outsource and to whom

We regularly hear motivated business owners say whilst away, or when seeing a Business Coach, they realised the need for change. This ‘time out’, helped them to have a lightbulb moment like no other. With time to consider the business direction, supported by the right experts, that their business could become a gold mine.

Why outsourcing just works

Outsourcing is the business practice of contracting with a freelancer or another business to take care of certain processes or tasks. You can do this as an alternative to hiring staff or assigning them to existing staff.

Outsourced tasks may be occasional like engaging with an Accountant to do your Tax Return once a year. Or more regular on an ongoing basis such as contracting with a Virtual Assistant to do your bookkeeping and invoices.

Generally, the benefits of outsourcing can be substantial. Though recently the main benefit being to make your business more flexible and agile. This enables you to adapt to changing market conditions and challenges, while providing cost savings and service improvements.

Here we look at some of the other benefits outsourcing can deliver for your business:

• Improved focus on core business activities
  Freeing up your business to focus on its strengths, allowing time to generate income and create plans to grow
  • For Client 1 who had a manual system on Excel spreadsheets for tracking operational projects. We implemented a system to collate all projects and management data in one place
• Increased efficiency
  Choosing an outsourcing partner that is an expert in the process you want them to carry out. The benefit being a more productive and efficient, quality service.
  • For Client 2 we designed and implemented a process with supporting templates. This enabled them to onboard clients and manage them efficiently through an online coaching process
• Controlled costs
  Cost savings which will free up funds to help grow the business
  • For Client 3 who wanted to systematise their manual accounting processes. We set-up an implemented an online accounting system saving £5K per year
• Increased reach
  Outsourcing gives you access to experience and capabilities that will otherwise not be accessible or affordable
  • For Client 4 we provided a PRINCE2 qualified Project Manager. This resource mapped out all operational processes and implement systems to underpin the processes

Why focus on what you do best?

The main reason you decide to outsource should be simple, because you can make more money by outsourcing. Though make sure it makes financial sense for your business and will allow your business to drive sales and revenue.

In our experience the biggest challenge to business owners is hiring employees. If outsourcing is the right buiness decision, it will allow you to bypass this and help increase profit and grow revenue. In addition, it is a cheaper option than hiring employees too. We find many business owners are surprised as to how affordable it is to outsource. It is a great flexible option to get highly experienced resources, as and when you need them.

What could you outsource?

Initially we recommend that you take a long hard look at how you are spending your time currently. Its important that if you are going to start this, you must stick to it.

To get you started we would recommend a free app called Toggl. Toggl allows you to track everything you are doing each day and how much time you are spending. It can be a real eye-opening task as most business owners have little insight into where they spend most of their time. In our experience this changes when they have it documented in front of them.

As a result, you will identify the key tasks, establishing what you need someone to do for you. For tasks like booking meetings with clients, invoicing and bookkeeping, a Virtual Assistant will probably be able to help. If you get caught up in operational activity, like setting up processes for a new income stream then an Operations Manager will be the right person to look for.

An alternative way to understand opportunities to outsource is to look at areas where you don’t excel.

This will provide you and your business with huge benefits.

• Firstly, you will be able to get these tasks done by someone who is an expert
  • This means you do not need to worry about tasks being done correctly
• Second you will be able to achieve tasks with an economy of scale
  • If you needed help with social media, you could hire an agency to create a plan, posts and scheduling. This is more cost efficient than hiring different employees on a part time basis to provide these different skills.
• Thirdly you will be able to focus on what is important
  • At its heart focusing on the core competencies of your business and outsourcing the rest is really what makes a successful business. Most of the time this will be your biggest benefit.

Finding an outsourcing partner right for you

If you are making the decision that outsourcing works for your business, its important to choose the right outsourcing partner.

Here are some considerations for you:

1. Experience – look at work the company has done in the past to establish if they are right to help
2. References – understanding that their previous clients have been satisfied with the results and whether they still use the company
3. Communication – one of the most important parts of your relationship, You need to get along and you all need to interact flawlessly
4. Reliability – you need to be able to fully depend on them, consider doing some due diligence on them

At WJL we know that this decision is one of the most important that a business owner will make. Trust being a key foundation at the outset. Your outsourcing partner needs to understand how you feel. Similarly, they take time to work with you to create and implement a plan that works for your business.

One of our success factors is how we can fit into operations seamlessly and expertly. Our bespoke service is built on relationships, creating trust, solving problems, and achieving your business goals.