Saving Time and Money through Outsourcing
Posted on January 19, 2012 by Wanda Baader, One of Thousands of Business Coaches on Noomii.
Ways that an Entrepreneurs Can Increase Their Bottom Line
“Outsourcing” is one of those buzz words that we seem to hear everywhere lately. On the news we hear about big corporations “outsourcing” manufacturing jobs overseas to foreign countries. Internet marketing gurus talk about “outsourcing” as a way to make money and to grow your business.
But do you understand what the word “outsourcing” means?
The official definition of “outsource” according to Dictionary.com is “to purchase (goods) or subcontract (services) from an outside supplier or source.”
Essentially, a company that outsources some of its work is hiring an outside person or vendor to complete a project or series of tasks. Here are some examples:
The big corporations are hiring manufacturing plants in other countries to complete the production of their physical product while they control the creative, marketing, sales, and financial aspects of their company at home.
The internet marketing guru will hire a graphic designer to create product images while she concentrates on creating her next product.
The small pizza place down the street might hire a local baker to supply their Italian bread because their kitchen is too small.
A popular blogger might hire a ghostwriter to write some in-depth articles or an ebook so she always has content ready to publish.
A medium-sized brick and mortar business might hire an advertising agency to create a comprehensive marketing and advertising plan while they concentrate on sales.
A single virtual assistant who gets swamped with client work might outsource some projects to other virtual assistants who have room in their calendars.
A website designer who does not have experience working with WordPress websites might hire another designer who is a WordPress expert for this project.
A motivational speaker might hire a virtual assistant to manage her speaking calendar, arrange her travel schedule, and manage her inbox volume.
These independent contractors – also known as vendors, service providers or freelancers – are not employees so you do not have to pay their taxes or health benefits. Nor do you have to give them space to work. Each independent contractor is responsible for doing their own bookkeeping, paying their own taxes, and completing the work in their own work space.
Depending on the terms of your contract with each vendor, there is no obligation on your part to continue using a vendor if you have recurring tasks. Likewise, vendors should not expect you to always send work to them. You can certainly shop around for multiple vendors, try them out to test their quality of work, and make your hiring decisions based on their quality and ability to meet deadlines.
One key thing to remember is that absolutely any business – no matter the size or the budget – can benefit from outsourcing. Large corporations with hefty budgets will have more vendors competing to get their business and their outsourcing needs will be widely different from small to mid-sized businesses. But the small mom and pop deli in your neighborhood can certainly find a web designer within their budget to create their website. The popular wedding boutique can find a virtual assistant within their budget to manage their emails. Even the new work at home mom can find an affordable graphic designer to create her business cards. Nothing is impossible.
