Deciding whether or not you should outsource a task or project is a difficult thing for some business owners to do. This is especially true when you’re used to do everything yourself. And let’s face it, a lot of business owners are control freaks.
However, there comes a time when you should outsource a task whenever you can. While we can’t outsource everything (wouldn’t that be great?) there are plenty of things you should outsource as you build your business.
The problem is knowing what you should outsource versus what you shouldn’t outsource. Here are a few questions you can ask yourself the next time you’re wondering whether or not to outsource a task.
Is doing this myself going to keep me from making money?
This question usually does it for me whenever I’m in a situation when I’m trying to determine whether or not I should outsource a task. Numbers don’t lie, so if doing a task myself (like administrative stuff or design) is going to keep me from pursuing new clients, then I usually outsource.
By the way, this also applies to tasks outside of my business. I outsourced my grocery shopping this week so that I would have time to do sales calls and work on a large client project. Paying a $7.99 delivery fee is not a big deal if it can help me make $500 in a single day or close a $3000 consulting contract.
Is this a task where I’m either terrible or only slightly competent?
Another way in which to determine if you should outsource something is to look at the task itself. If it’s something you either completely suck at or it’s something where you’re only slightly competent, then you should definitely outsource.
I also outsourced the design of a sales page for my membership site. Why? Because I’m terrible at designing a whole page.
For example, earlier this year I outsourced Facebook ads management. Why? Because I’m only slightly competent in figuring out Facebook ads.
If I had tried to do either of these I would have a) hated it and b) wasted an immense amount of time trying to figure it out. This is a drag and I’m wasting time I could have otherwise used to make more money. That’s why you should outsource the things you are either terrible at or only slightly competent.
Is doing this task myself going to be a complete waste of time?
Time is an important factor when determining whether or not you should outsource a task, As I previously mentioned, time is money in so far as you can use your time to make more money.
Additionally, I would argue that time is more valuable than money, so sometimes the ROI of outsourcing is simply about having more time.
For example, I feel pretty comfortable traveling because I outsource a lot of things to my virtual assistant and I trust her to keep things running while I’m on the road. If I was doing everything myself I’d probably feel like I can never take a trip. If I’m being honest, I’d rather create amazing memories than be chained to my inbox, so I’ll pay for someone else to help me.
