Outsourcing is a business concept that involves hiring a third party to help carry out some of your business functions.
In most cases, outsourced functions are those that none of your employees has specialized in or they take a long a lot of time. Outsourcing helps increase productivity and allows you to channel your energies to the most pressing issue of the business.
The essence of outsourcing is to help free up time for your employees and help them focus on tasks they are good at. As your business expands, you will realize that some tasks are better delegated instead of using a lot of time and resources trying to accomplish them.
1. Marketing
Marketing and business growth go hand in hand. There are many marketing strategies that can be used to promote and expand your business.
While you can have an in-house marketing team, it is a good idea to hire a marketing firm that will perform all the heavy lifting. Marketing firms understand the business environment better.
Interestingly, you can hire a person to help utilize social media for the sole purpose of marketing your brand.
Whether it is ad campaigns, search engine optimization or social media, a marketing agency will craft a strategy that will work for your business. Since they are professionals, they can advise you on the strategies that can and cannot work for your business.
2. Staffing
Staffing is another function that most businesses outsource. It doesn’t matter how small or big your company is, finding the right employees is not going to be easy.
You can spend hours or even days perusing resumes and still fail to get the right person. How about using a staffing agency instead?
Staffing agencies normally specialize in different types of industries such as engineering and healthcare.
They have experience and strict criteria used to vet prospective employees. All you have is to give them the requirements needed for an employee.
3. Accounting
Proper handling of finances is one of the biggest challenges business owners face. It takes a lot of time to learn how to balance accounting books. But why should you go through all the trouble when you can hire an expert?
The accounting department is considered the nerve center of any business. You need to ensure that everything is done correctly and professionally.
This will help you comply with state, federal, and local regulations. Outsourcing your accounting roles to a credible accounting first is a great way to accomplish this.
4. IT Management
IT is among the most outsourced functions. Not many business owners are familiar with computers and networking. You will need an IT expert or experts to set up devices, configure the internet and ensure all systems are working.
For example, enterprise office 365 onboarding requires an IT expert to execute. Besides, you will need someone to always be on standby in case your systems fail. The good news is that there are many IT companies you can outsource your IT functions and have peace of mind.
5. Customer Service
Customer service is necessary for every business. Your business is bound to fail if you don’t provide good customer service. The role of a customer service department is to ensure that the needs of customers are well taken care of.
Outsourcing your customer service will not only free up your time but also offer excellent services to customers.
Related: What is branding? How it can help your new business
6. Human Resources
For new or small businesses, HR duties usually fall on the business owner or an executive. Outsourcing HR services means delegating a lot of work that consumes your time. This is because HR work consumes a lot of time.
There are many small task tasks such as managing insurance and benefits, attendance issues, enforcing compliance, and payroll among others. One of the best ways to free up time is to outsource these duties to an HR firm.
7. Shipping and Logistics
Businesses can also have a manufacturing facility or a separate drop shipping service to take care of the shipping and handling of their products. This option is popular among e-commerce sellers that would like to focus more on the online and marketing aspects of the business.
Closing Thoughts
Outsourcing certain business functions plays a big role when it comes to increasing the productivity of your team. This is because outsourcing helps free up time and allows you and your workforce to concentrate on the more important areas of the business.
