10 Outsourcing Tips That Actually Work

Outsourcing is an important part of expanding and growing an online business. If you produce all the content and do all the promotion, you’ll reach a point of diminishing returns. You’ll have to work harder to earn more revenue. This oftentimes backfires as many entrepreneurs burn out and have to take a break to recuperate.

With the popularity of The 4-Hour Workweek, more internet marketers are looking to outsource. If you have cash to spare, outsourcing can greatly increase your bottom line by adding value to your site through the labor of other skilled workers.

Even if you’re not in a position to outsource, bookmark this page. When your online business begins to grow and your cash flow improves, these 10 tips will help you reinvest your money so that your business can become even more profitable.

1. Lean towards hiring outsourcing firms rather than individuals.
The problem with individuals is they can leave you when they find a better offer. Also, if your they get sick, your business suffers. By going to reputable companies, you’ll delegate the responsibility of finding replacement workers.

However, don’t be dogmatic about this. If you find awesome individual workers especially for one-time projects and highly skilled tasks, feel free to hire them.

What you’ll avoid: Spending the time and money it takes to find a replacement worker.

2. Know your hourly rate.
Figure out how much you’re making an hour. Then, begin to outsource all the tasks that can be done for less than your hourly rate. This will save you time. Spend that time on the more profitable tasks.

What you’ll avoid: Doing low-profit tasks instead of the tasks that actually bring in the most money.

3. Find people more skilled than you.
Set your ego aside. If you’re expanding your business through outsourcing, you might as well expand with workers more talented than you. The super rich understand this principle. They may not be the most talented people in the world. However, they know how to find, hire, and retain excellent workers.

What you’ll avoid: Stunting the growth of your business by not seeking qualified help.

4. Know your strengths.
Do you know what your strengths are? Most of us live such busy, multi-tasked lives that we are not sure what our strengths are. Slow down and assess your talents and skills. Take a strengths test. Ask your friends and business contacts for feedback.

Once you know your strengths, outsource the business activities that don’t correspond to them.

What you’ll avoid: Doing activities you’re not really good at.

5. Outsource the tedious and mundane parts of your work.
A happy entrepreneur is a entrepreneur that stands to make a lot of money :) What don’t you like doing?

See value in blog commenting, but don’t want to do it? Find someone who’s passionate about your niche and have them comment. Think of writing as a necessary evil? Hire a blogger or copywriter. Love writing but hate marketing? Hire a search or social media marketer.

What you’ll avoid: Doing tasks you don’t enjoy.

6. Take time to assess job candidates/firms.
The huge value in outsourcing is finding someone you can count on for the long-term. If you have to keep firing and hiring, you’re wasting time. If you have to micromanage your workers to get them to produce quality work, you’re wasting time.

Spend as much time as you need to find the perfect person/firm for the job. Even if you have to go through 15+ candidates, don’t settle for average. Your business is at stake. Hire top quality workers and your bottom line will increase.

What you’ll avoid: Headaches, frustration, and low income.

7. Assess your candidates well.
I like to give job candidates small tasks before hiring them. These small tasks help evaluate me their skills more accurately. For example, if you’re looking for a blogger, have them post 3 times and gauge the traffic and reaction of your readers. If you want to hire a search marketer, ask them to build a couple links. If you want a new site design, ask them to send you a couple sample drafts.

Also, ask for prior work. A writer worth their salt should have a couple articles published. A good programmer should have some programs already built. An excellent virtual assistant should have great references.

Finally, check for plagiarism with your writer/blogger candidates.

What you’ll avoid: Low quality work.

8. Once you find great workers, treat them VERY well.
These workers are among the most important assets in your business. Give them a percentage share of your profits. Hand out bonuses when they reach goals. Increase their wages when your business grows significantly.

Encourage them when they make your site look good. Train them and give them skills so they’ll feel like they’re improving personally. Give them room to take calculated risks. Allow them to come up with their own ideas.

Finally, keep this in mind. Great workers know they can find other jobs. Give them reasons to stay with you.

What you’ll avoid: A high turnover rate of quality workers.

9. Don’t micromanage.
Talented workers hate this. It makes them feel like robots. Micromanaging is definitely a real reason why many workers leave their job. Also, micromanaging is an inefficient use of time.

Outsourcing is about finding people who can do a job without you instant messaging them every 15 minutes. If you’re gonna micromanage, save the money, skip outsourcing, and do the job yourself.

What you’ll avoid: Low morale between you and your workers.

10. Get referrals.
This is one of the best ways to find a valuable worker. Ask your business contacts if they have any recommendations. If you don’t have any business contacts, now is the time to start networking with other webmasters.

What you’ll avoid: The time it takes to sift through 50 Elance proposals.

Feedback

Join the conversation by leaving a comment. Which outsourcing tips did you like? Also, can you think of more tips?