To Outsource Or Not To Outsource, That Is The Question...

Earlier this week, I met with a client of mine to go over some assignments I had laid out for her.  After we completed the business at hand, I asked her how was her business going?  It became quite evident that she was taking on & worried about way too much of the little things & it was hurting her bottom line.

Folks, it is my opinion that there are things we should outsource and there are others that we should definitely do ourselves, even if we start out outsourcing.  As business owners, it is important that we dont get, what I like to call, "Owneritis", however, you dont want to get bogged down doing the little things that should definitely be outsourced.

Here is my view...

Having a business at home is a great way to make a living and fulfill the need to become your own boss. However, as a home business owner, there are some decisions that need to be made concerning your company. There are literally hundreds of tasks every single day that it is possible to outsource. From having someone else answer your phone line to having another individual create your site, outsourcing can be both helpful and a complete headache. Wondering which tasks you should outsource and which you should handle on your own? Let’s consider just one aspect of your company for a moment – your website.

So much time, work, and care goes into your site. If you’re a home-based business owner, the chances are good that your site is your primary advertising vehicle. As a result, everything from the overall design of the site to the text on it has to look amazing to attract customers. With website outsourcing, there are several options to consider. Should you write articles and press releases for your website on your own? What about an e-mail series for your readers? Is that the kind of text you outsource as well? Is it even valuable to learn to handle your own copy? What of the development of your site – should it be professionally handled?  These are important things you need to think about. Some of these can and should be outsourced. The question is which ones need to be done by you and which ones should be left to the professionals?

The simple answer is this. Unless you are a writer, things such as articles and press releases should be outsourced. Allowing professional writers to assist you in this matter not only frees up your time to perform other business related tasks, but it also gives you a level of professional copy that you can’t achieve on your own every single time. Initially, this is also true for an e-mail series.

However, as time goes on, learning to write your own copy is essential. After all, you are the one that is motivated to make your business succeed. Who is better suited for this job than yourself? Because you know your product or service better than anyone else, you will best be able to describe it.  Some online copywriting classes or ones offered through your local community college can be a great help in this area. They will allow you not only to handle your own on-site copy, but eventually to handle your e-mail series as well. That allows you to make your responses a bit more personal. Potential consumers of your product or service will feel that personal touch coming from your company. In addition you can make sure that emails that are captured through initial contact will be responded to and in a timely fashion. Following up on prospecting is the key to any sales job. Therefore, leaving this part of your business up to you will assure that it gets done.

Website development, however, is a wholly different matter. Having a website for your company is essential these days, and it needs to look phenomenal to capture those potential leads. Should website development be a job for you or should it be outsourced? Again, the answer here is simple. If you are a webmaster, then yes, of course you should do it yourself. However, if you have little experience outside of Microsoft Word’s WYSIWYG editor, then leave this task to the professionals. You’ll get a better, more attractive product and far fewer site-based headaches to tackle over time.

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