Some business owners find that they cannot juggle all of the necessary tasks without working around the clock. One way to reduce the burden is by outsourcing work to remote employees.
Indeed, many businesses have found that outsourcing not only saves time but can also drive profits.
Here are five ways that outsourcing can increase your company’s bottom line:
1. Lower Costs
Outsourcing can help you cut costs dramatically, especially because you do not have to hire full-time staff to perform business tasks.
Outsourcing to a smaller company or individuals allows you to save on benefits and taxes that you would otherwise have to pay if you have full-time employees.
Further, you can negotiate for great rates when you outsource work, which helps you cut costs and improve your company’s bottom line.
In Hong Kong, I have seen a trend in outsourcing software to Eastern Europe; this trend has been growing here for two reasons, (1) the cost to hire local software developers is extreme – small businesses are competing for talent against some of the world’s most deep pocketed financial firms – and, (2) talent, there is a lack of local talent that can get the job done at adequate quality in Hong Kong.
2. Increased Productivity
Outsourcing administrative and other non-productive tasks can free up time up and owners to concentrate on more productive activities such as marketing, developing strategy, networking, and coming up with new products and business ideas.
Increased productivity means greater sales, more revenue, and ultimately improves a company’s bottom line.
At my company Visichain, for example, I utilize remote workers for many ongoing tasks, including:
- Bookkeeping, to India
- Graphic Design, to Romania
- Website Design, to Philippines
And, other one-off tasks to the best people where ever I can find them.
3. Better Customer Service
Outsourcing the customer service function can result in happier customers who choose your company’s products and services time and again.
Also, happy customers are more likely to recommend your business to friends and family, which leads to more sales, greater revenue, and higher profits.
Another plus when outsourcing customer service for global operations is it allows for 24/7 support because you can utilize back office services that work around the clock. This can be a major service advantage especially for online businesses and companies that are competing against commodified services that don’t yet make the convenience of 24/7 availability an option.
4. Greater Investment
Outsourcing allows you to redirect money you would have used to pay full-time staff into other productive activities such as purchasing more stock or investing in machinery and other assets that grow your business.
And, as Chris Pentago has noted in another article here on Business 2 Community, Strategic Outsourcing Can Lift the ROI of a Small Business.
5. Increased Revenues
Outsourcing business processes allows you and your existing staff to concentrate on activities that bring in customers and drive revenues up.
Increased revenues have a direct impact on your company’s bottom line and allow you to drive up your profit margins.
Since staff is free from having to perform mundane tasks such as data entry or customer service, they can focus on meeting more clients, making more cold calls, networking, and other activities that increase revenue.
In Conclusion
When done correctly, outsourcing can increase your bottom line.
Your office staff are more productive due to the reduced workload and you can use the extra money to invest in your company.
When you are considering outsourcing, take a look at the daily tasks and select ones that do not need to be done in the workplace.