As entrepreneurs we all know what it is like to wear a million hats. This is not counting the actual service or product that we offer. We range from accountant to graphic designer to owner to advertising director to social media manager, to copywriter and beyond. If only there were a simple solution (hint: it’s OUTSOURCING!).

Praise be to the one person that said one day, “Ya know, I think I can find someone to outsource this task to so I don’t have to do it anymore.” 

Let me be the first to tell you that it was the best decision that I could have ever made. When I got to the point that someone else was handling my site design, someone taking voice messages and turning them into beautiful copy for my blogs and course launches, and someone handling my Pinterest (I’ll go into that in another post!), and someone handling my photo editing, I was able to have more time to do what I love, which is spend more time with my husband and children, create, and focus on my clients. It was at this point that I stopped staying up burning the midnight oil as often.

Don’t get me wrong, I have three small children, so sometimes time gets away and I do have to stay up, but it isn’t near as often as it used to be.

What to Outsource

So how do you know WHAT to begin outsourcing? Here are some questions for you to consider when determining what area might be worth investing in outsourcing first.

1. Where do you find yourself dropping the ball? Organizing your inbox? Responding to inquiries? Uploading photo galleries? Getting posts out on social media? Or is it blogging?

2. What tasks do you just DREAD? It might be some that were listed above and maybe that is why you were dropping the ball on them. It is ok if any of these things just don’t spark that joy for you.

3. Where are your weaknesses – we all have them and it is ok to own it! Find your limitations and seek out an expert in that area that can help you with it! Are you not as good at writing good copy? Are you just not the best at design and prefer to simply not do it? Whatever it is, there are people out there who are GREAT at it that can help you!

How to Outsource

Now is the HOW to begin outsourcing! Where do you look for quality candidates that can assist? 

There are a few sites dedicated to this, one of which is Outsourcing with Love. I have used their site to reach out to Virtual Assistants, Social Media Managers, and Copywriters and you will find quality, vetted experts there.

I have also just happened to stumble across people in Facebook groups for entrepreneurs and on Instagram – I would do some research on the person first like looking at their site, checking out anyone who they had done work for by looking at those accounts, blogs, etc… and then I would reach out via email to set up a call to chat about what they have to offer. You know pretty darn quick if someone is a good fit for you or not.

The hard part is when it doesn’t work out…and it happens. Luckily I haven’t had it happen a lot, but unfortunately it is a possibility and I want you to be prepared with a backup plan if something doesn’t work out.

Employees or Contracts?

Are these people employees?

No, they are not your employee. You CAN hire someone as an employee but that gets into a whole new level of things you will want to talk to your accountant about.

Instead, you typically outsource to a freelance contractor. You sign a contract with them to do x-amount of months worth of work for you. Most offer a trial period contract and then if it doesn’t work out for either of you, you have a way out. If it winds up being a great fit, then you extend the contract out.

How much does it cost to outsource?

Cost? Well, it depends. I know, what a vague answer. But I’m serious. It will definitely depend on the years of experience plus the quality of work the individual provides.

We are talking about $10-50/hour, and maybe higher depending on what you are having done. Or a monthly fee of $100-$500 / month…again, maybe higher depending on what the job is and how much work is going into it. These are very vague numbers to give you a rough idea of what outsourcing could cost.

You could pay per month for a certain amount of blog posts, or social media posts. Or you might pay per hour for hours worked toward a certain task, for example, having someone monitor your inbox and respond to inquiries. 

I pay a monthly fee for each area I have outsourced, or keep them on retainer to do x-amount of hours of work for me each month. 

Why it outsourcing worth it?

We all think we can do more than we actually can, we are certain we can do it all. But friend, I am here to tell you that you are not meant to do it all on your own. Not if you want an actual life to live. So remember that if you do hire a virtual assistant, LET THEM DO IT. Your relationship with your VA will suffer if you keep trying to do what you hired them to do. 

So if you are ready to get started, then I wish you the best of luck on your search! I know you will find the perfect fit for you and the goals for your business – giving you the time to focus on what matters most to you!

For more tips on life and business make sure you bookmark Magan Ward and head on over to the blog!

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