Times change, including how entrepreneurs run a business. Between the internet and technology, it is possible to avoid leasing an office space for you and your employees. Instead, many are using online resources to hire a remote staff and save the cost of renting an office space. Many startups outsource tasks to companies and freelancers worldwide, while still getting high quality work in return.
Keep reading to see why you should consider outsourcing aspects of your company to experts located around the globe.
You know you need the help and can’t afford someone full time
One of the top reasons to hire a remote staff is to cut down on business expenses. Outsourcing work is much cheaper than hiring an in-house employee.
CNN Money reports that a recent Elance survey showed that the majority of small businesses found that using freelance workers cuts costs by at least half.
This means that now you can put money toward expanding your business in other parts. Also, with the money you save by outsourcing work to freelancers, you now have room to hire more full-time employees for your core functions that can’t be outsourced. As they say, many hands makes for light work.
Related: The Job Most Entrepreneurs Don’t Think to Outsource
Hire experts
The idea is to find a freelancer or company that specializes in what you specifically need. Their expertise comes with the passion and drive that makes for excellent work. With their help, you can offload a specific task onto them, leaving you time to focus on growing your business.
Some popular jobs to outsource are legal work, payroll and marketing. Tweakyourbiz.com explains that in some cases, “outsourcing payroll saves four to six hours of staff time a month.” The article goes on to share that using an outsourced marketing company saves up to 20 hours a month. Using a bookkeeper can save up to 30 hours a month. You’ll have one less thing to worry about knowing that you’ve hired an expert to complete time-consuming tasks.
Get an outside perspective on your business
A bonus to outsourcing work to others is that it gives you another chance to get data and information needed to run a successful business. A great way to take advantage of outsourcing work is to let someone else run the numbers for a change. They can compare stats to show you where you need improvement and how to go about it.
Outsourcing work also gives you the opportunity to get someone else’s opinion on your business model. Hiring the right person for the job can bring light to something you could be doing more efficiently. Having someone else examine your business critically is a wonderful learning opportunity.
You learn to trust in others
When you decide to outsource work, you take a leap of faith by hiring someone you may have never shaken hands with before. This can make it tough to give up control over the performance of certain job roles. It’s tempting to want to check in with a remote worker frequently. While that’s not a bad idea, do so without being noisy or intrusive. Instead, set up a schedule where you check in on them once a week. If you find that you don’t have the time to do so, shoot for a monthly meeting with the entire staff, remote and in-house. Remember, your remote staff will respect you more when you include them.
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Avoid burnout
Trying to save money by running your business alone isn’t the right way to do so. You work longer hours and run the risk of burnout. Entrepreneur Magazine explains how it is easy for entrepreneurs to experience job burnout quicker than others. According to a survey by The Alternative Board, “more than 85.8 percent of men and 66.5 percent of women in the United States work more than 40 work hours each week. The hours go up for small business owners – 19 percent work more than 60 hours a week.”
Often, working that much causes you to quickly lose passion in your business. With outsourcing, you win back a healthy work-life balance. Letting certain tasks go gives you time to de-stress and grow both as an individual and entrepreneur.
Outsourcing work to the right experts gives you a higher chance at maintaining your passion for your business. When you outsource work and hire a remote staff you are able to cut back on costs, bringing the focus back to your business, allowing you to use your workweek more wisely.
