According to YouGov, 70% of British businesses currently outsource some tasks to third parties – but why?
When you’re running a business with a brilliant team of in-house staff, it can be difficult to understand why so many businesses choose to outsource certain tasks or procedures. But when you take a minute to really understand the reasoning behind doing so, it becomes clear as to why outsourcing is such a popular choice.
Let’s take a look at the key reasons why businesses choose to share their workload.
Why Businesses Outsource
1. Outsourcing Reduces Costs
What do you do when you need an extra pair of hands in the office? Chances are, you take on another member of staff to cover the tasks your existing team no longer has time for. While this solves one issue, it also creates another. Expense.
Onboarding new in-house staff members can be incredibly expensive. Not only do you have to pay them a full-time salary, but you also need to cover expenses like holiday pay and sick pay, as well as forking out for new desks, computer equipment, phones, etc.
Instead, many businesses choose to outsource the tasks their in-house team can’t squeeze into their schedule, simply because it’s cheaper.
Outsource professionals are only paid for the time they work, eliminating additional costs and the financial commitment of paying a full-time salary. You’ll still solve your issue with time and your tasks will still be handled by industry experts, just without the financial strain caused by taking on more in-house staff.
2. Outsourcing Gives You Access to Experts
One of the main reasons why businesses choose to outsource particular tasks is because they don’t have a team of in-house staff who have honed every skill known to man. Of course, their existing staff will be brilliant at their jobs and be experts within the field they’ve trained. But if you’re running an Accounting Firm, for example, you may not have an experienced website builder on your team for that new website you’ve been thinking about.
Similarly, if you’re running a Content Agency, you’ll be great at creating content, but you may not be great at keeping on top of credit control and making sure your clients pay on time.
Outsourcing allows experts to step in. Instead of spending copious amounts of time trying to tackle tasks, you’re not familiar with or simply dislike doing, had them over to someone who can complete them to the standard you require.
This way, you’ll rest assured that all aspects of your business are maintaining your high standards, while you get on with the tasks in which you excel.
3. Outsourcing Speeds Up Processes
In any business, time is tight. Days run away with you, your schedule is somehow suddenly booked up without you even realising it, and before you know it it’s the end of the day and you’re left with a to-do list as long as it was when you started – if not longer!
Business processes take time. Admin and credit control can really begin to eat into your day, and it can be difficult to break your hours up accordingly when you feel like you’re being pulled in a million different directions.
Outsourcing tasks speeds things up. Not only do you save time by not having to do the thing that was taking up so many hours, but the tasks you’ve outsourced have been handed over to individuals who excel at them. They’ll be able to complete these tasks far more quickly and efficiently, benefitting your business overall.
For example, the quicker you (or in the case, your outsource professional!) get those invoices sent out, the quicker you’ll be paid.
4. Outsourcing Allows Flexibility
No business is equally busy all year round. You’ll have some months, or weeks even, that are ten times busier than the one before. Others may be substantially slower and quieter.
When you outsource, you give yourself the opportunity to be flexible with your staffing. When it comes to in-house staff, you have to pay them the same amount regardless of how busy you are or how much work you’re asking them to do. So, in your quieter times, you may feel a bit out of pocket.
When you outsource, you only pay for the hours your outsource professionals actually work. This allows you to outsource more when you need to, and stop when you don’t need to, meaning you’ll never be spending money on a service you don’t actually need.
Busy times are covered and your in-house team will have additional support, quieter times can be covered by your key existing staff- a win, win situation if ever we’ve seen one!
5. Outsourcing Gives you Peace of Mind
Running a business can be stressful at the best of times. The last thing you want to be worrying about is all those niggly tasks you need to do but just don’t have time for.
Outsourcing gives businesses peace of mind that even the tasks they don’t have time for are being taken care of by experts who will complete tasks to the high standard expected. No more evenings spent catching up on admin, no more adding extra workload to existing staff’s already full scheduled.
Just a well-run business being supported by expert outsourced professionals.