Outsourcing: staying within your budget

Published: June 23, 2016 3 min. read
Svitla Team
By Svitla Team
Managed Operations
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At some point in your business, you may realize you need to begin outsourcing. It kind of looks like holding your head in your hands feeling frustrated because you’re exhausted from doing everything yourself. It could also look like realizing you can continue to grow your revenue if you simply had more time.

Unfortunately, every time you try to outsource you have the same old predicament. In order to make more money you need to outsource, but in order to outsource you need to make more money. Here’s how you can start to outsource on a budget.

Only outsource the most important thing right now

While I now have a couple of team members and am looking to expand, it wasn’t always this way. I did everything by myself for a long time. When I did finally start to outsource, I started with what was most important at the time – administrative work. As time went on I started layering in other team members depending on what was needed as my business grew. Take a look at your business and determine where you may need the most help right now. Use this to determine what kind of team members you can start layering in.

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Outsource what you hate

Once I started outsourcing everything I hated, I had newfound time I could use to focus on making more money. Over time, that’s exactly what started to occur. When I had more money coming in I could then reinvest some of it back into the business by expanding the team.

Start small

It can be scary to outsource when you are on a tight budget. I get it because I’ve been there. The best thing you can do here is to start small. The point is there are plenty of areas where you can start small without it having to cost an arm and a leg. Once you have them the same concept applies, use this newfound time to make more money.

Outsource tasks that directly affect your bottom line

This is the stage of outsourcing I am in right now, and it could be a good place when you want to outsource on a budget. At this stage in the game, I need help with uploading client work onto WordPress and SEO research – these two things directly affect my bottom line because they are a part of client work and are currently taking up a whole lot of my time. If someone else handles these two things, I can easily take on more clients and make more money.

Final Thoughts

You can outsource on a budget and build your team slowly over time. The internet has made it easier than ever to do so.

Written by
Svitla Team
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FAQ

Does outsourcing really save money?

Yes – business process outsourcing when practiced judiciously. Let’s start with those aspects that are most essential or demanding the most time, usually tasks that take up admin responsibilities. Let’s add some help with the things you don’t like doing, and as cash flow gets better, start outsourcing things that affect the bottom line, such as SEO and content uploads, so that you can take on more clients. Start small to control costs, reinvest gains into the team, and scale gradually to sustain savings and growth.

How much does outsourcing cost?

It all depends on scope and skill level. Obviously, there is no way of keeping costs low by starting something small since, after all, the more impactful tasks assigned to an individual, albeit in a narrow focus and for just a few hours a week, are administrative. As more revenue is generated from the freed-up time, reinvest gradually in the kind of specialization that directly drives income, say SEO or content implementation.

What are the different types of outsourcing contracts?

Typical choices include hourly/freelance work for flexible, small tasks and a retainer for predictable monthly support. Project-based contracts have a fixed scope, timeline, and price for a deliverable. You can also mix models – start hourly to validate, then go to retainer once things are working. Pick the lightest-weight model that does your most critical task, then add on as ROI becomes apparent.

What are the four factors to consider before outsourcing?

Begin with impact. Choose the one single most important or time-consuming task that must be delegated right now. Consider budget and pacing. Start small to keep expenses low and increase as an investment of time saved returns in revenue earned. Consider tasks that align with ROI – those you dislike or those directly related to taking on more clients. Outsource these so that you have the capacity to handle more clients. Sequence and fit: add roles slowly as needs become apparent, matching skill (admin, SEO, implementation) very specifically to a specific outcome and process.

Why does outsourcing fail?

It frequently begins without explicit priorities, delegating low-impact tasks rather than the single most critical time sink. Budgets get stretched by starting too big, too fast, rather than testing with a small, well-defined scope. ROI gets killed when you turn loose of work that doesn’t free you up to earn more (or keep work you despise that drains your focus). Finally, poor sequencing-adding roles before processes are stable-creates rework, misalignment, and wasted spend.