According to a recent study, freelancers now make up 35% of the total US workforce. The trend in the UK is pretty much the same. And how come the numbers keep on increasing? Well, that is mainly because numerous in-house jobs are now being widely outsourced.
In fact, 300,000 job positions are outsourced annually, which makes outsourcing a big business worldwide, with $507 billion of revenue in 2014 alone. The popularity comes from the multiple benefits outsourcing jobs provide.
From cutting expenses, enhanced quality of service, affordable expert employees, to time-saving and the ability to focus on the core of the business, outsourcing is always the best option for turning a small business into an established enterprise.
What is the Best Outsourcing Approach?
You might be wondering when is the right time to start outsourcing, so to address this issue, think about your daily operations. Does the workforce struggle with management? Do business operations consume so much time that you can’t grow the company with the resources you already have? Then outsourcing is the right decision for your business.
Hiring freelancers for remote work on bookkeeping, design, customer services or other commonly outsourced business weaknesses will help to increase productivity without having to break the bank by employing a full-time staff. On the other hand, you can choose to outsource any type of tasks, but avoid outsourcing the core of your business.
That is something you or your trusting business partners should work on while outsourcing jobs that require:
⦁ Repetitive tasks – Customer care, data entry, product updates, etc.
⦁ Specialist knowledge – Special set of skills like a web/graphic design.
⦁ Executive expertise – Bookkeeping, Marketing, and so on.
How to Find a Professional Freelance Vendor for your business?
Trusting a stranger is always a bit tricky. Therefore, whatever you do in the process of search, avoid being vague. You should always be clear about the budget, task requirements, and give precise instructions. Don’t make such huge business decision based on the lowest freelancer price, look for value and quality.
The beauty of outsourcing is that you get to dive into the international talent pool, so take advantage and look for the one with discipline, positive recommendations, and a proven skilful work behind them. Likewise, assess if the freelancer will be an asset to your company by hiring them for a couple of hours to test their capabilities.
What Comes Next?
Once you have made your choice, it is time to create a contract (NDA) and set clear objectives through a proper client/freelancer communication. This includes setting the price and task requirements a vendor agrees upon.
Keep the communication lines open throughout the whole working process and schedule regular checkups and milestones to better navigate the project. Of course, don’t try to micromanage everything and give some space to the new employee. Not only will this save time, but it will also lower the risks of any problems or work issues for both parties.
Soon enough, every business realizes the potential of outsourcing . After engaging freelancers for tasks, you don’t actually need around the clock employees, and visible results begin to show starting with an increase in revenue. After all, the majority of high-performing organizations wouldn’t be successful without this share of duties.
So why not take your business to another level? And outsourcing is the key that will rapidly take you there. Just slowly build a remote workforce and free yourself to focus on more crucial business matters.
