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Why don't you outsource?

by Andrew H
13 replies
This is my dilemma regarding outsourcing (I do web design/development for local customers):

1. My clients expect quick turnaround
2. My clients expect high quality work
3. I feel the skills I personally have are too varied to expect an outsourcer to have (JS, HTML, CSS, PHP, MySQL, etc).
4. I don't want to lose the full income (however, I lose work by not having enough time... so this is happening anyways)

The list could go on. I have lots of doubts. However I really NEED to start outsourcing. I am just too busy with finishing my uni degree and handling customer service + doing all the work.

So the reason for this post. I want to see what other peoples doubts, if any, are about outsourcing. And if you are currently outsourcing how did you overcome these? Ever successfully outsource large programming jobs?
#outsource
  • Profile picture of the author RimaNaj2011
    Originally Posted by Andrew H View Post

    This is my dilemma regarding outsourcing (I do web design/development for local customers):

    1. My clients expect quick turnaround
    2. My clients expect high quality work
    3. I feel the skills I personally have are too varied to expect an outsourcer to have (JS, HTML, CSS, PHP, MySQL, etc).
    4. I don't want to lose the full income (however, I lose work by not having enough time... so this is happening anyways)

    The list could go on. I have lots of doubts. However I really NEED to start outsourcing. I am just too busy with finishing my uni degree and handling customer service + doing all the work.

    So the reason for this post. I want to see what other peoples doubts, if any, are about outsourcing. And if you are currently outsourcing how did you overcome these? Ever successfully outsource large programming jobs?
    I never outsource important front-end things. Just the "BS" stuff like content, finding guest post opportunities, cold calls, etc. If you want to have someone else to do main project, you need to hire some locally and don't source it out to Asia or anything.
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  • Profile picture of the author Andrew H
    I never outsource important front-end things. Just the "BS" stuff like content
    This sounds like the right way to go about it. Do you use the same person everytime? or do you just post jobs on a freelance board?
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    • Profile picture of the author kebertt
      Ideally you'd like to find someone who is fast, reliable, and knowledgeable in many different fields; unfortunately these people are hard to come by (inexpensively). Find individuals who specialize in certain tasks. If you have some HTML fixes you need done, content made, cold calls needed, have someone specific for each project. It will break up the work so that it gets done faster, and will ensure that you have someone who knows what they're doing.

      Once you establish a solid outsourcing team you can rely on, you'll find yourself outsourcing the work you used to not mind doing, simply because you can.

      Easier job = more profits, and faster turn around.

      All of that said, I've ALWAYS done the bulk of the work myself, and just passed on the tedious/difficult tasks to those who enjoy and specialize in doing it. There are some things I like to take charge on, to ensure that they get done the right way - but that also leaves only one person's perspective and limited creativity.

      KNOW YOUR SKILLS AND WEAKNESSES - if there's a skill that you know you lack, there's nothing wrong with hiring someone else to do it.
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    • Profile picture of the author RimaNaj2011
      Originally Posted by Andrew H View Post

      This sounds like the right way to go about it. Do you use the same person everytime? or do you just post jobs on a freelance board?
      No, I use a different person for each thing. For me, it's 3 people that do small design work, a cold caller, and a content writer. Those are the 3 main duties that I outsource. I'm sure they are skilled with the other stuff too but I like to give each person just 1 job to do. Again, these are just tedious things I outsource. I'm not looking to add these guys to a real team and make them employees and faces of the company.
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      • Profile picture of the author AndrewCavanagh
        If you analyze the work you're doing and where a lot of your
        time is going you'll probably discover that there are repeated
        tasks you're doing or repeated specific types of projects that
        you can start by outsourcing to one person who is great at
        that particular task.

        This doesn't have to be complicated.

        Just reduce your workload by outsourcing things that you
        know you can outsource now.

        Over time you can develop a team but starting with just one
        person to get experienced at the process will help empower
        you and build your outsourcing skills.

        Kindest regards,
        Andrew Cavanagh
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        • Profile picture of the author kyusho77
          You're right. If you want to cover as much tasks as possible that can bring you new leads and customers at the end you have to think about outsourcing some of your jobs. For me it's 1) cold calling - I had to pick someone who's proficient enough to bring me new leads (I've found that female voice is well received), 2) Someone who can walk through the door and talk to business owner about my services (get them interested and I'll close the deal), 3) Someone who can copy and paste. All these tasks could be performed by one or two people. Just whoever wants to earn more.
          If someone can close the deal over the phone or face-2-face gets % for as long as this client is buying my services.
          A lot could be said about training your team etc. but in a nutshell this is a structure I use for my business.
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    • Profile picture of the author twisters
      Originally Posted by RimaNaj2011 View Post

      I never outsource important front-end things. Just the "BS" stuff like content, finding guest post opportunities, cold calls, etc. If you want to have someone else to do main project, you need to hire some locally and don't source it out to Asia or anything.
      Very true............
      I am an ASIAN but I know how other ASIAN treats with their US or UK employers. They should be ashamed. But if he gonna hire local people then he have to pay higher, so I think he should do some work by his own.

      Originally Posted by Andrew H View Post

      This sounds like the right way to go about it. Do you use the same person everytime? or do you just post jobs on a freelance board?
      Well, I basically outsource my work to Outsourcing & Offshoring to the Philippines | 123Employee.com and oDesk.
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      • Profile picture of the author RimaNaj2011
        Originally Posted by twisters View Post

        Very true............
        I am an ASIAN but I know how other ASIAN treats with their US or UK employers. They should be ashamed. But if he gonna hire local people then he have to pay higher, so I think he should do some work by his own.
        Yeah, if you hire local people and the pay is higher, I hope the service has enough margin to make up for that.
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      • Profile picture of the author sdentrepreneur
        I have had good luck with outsourcing to 123Employee

        Been doing more high end consulting lately, nothing to outsource.


        Originally Posted by twisters View Post

        Very true............
        I am an ASIAN but I know how other ASIAN treats with their US or UK employers. They should be ashamed. But if he gonna hire local people then he have to pay higher, so I think he should do some work by his own.



        Well, I basically outsource my work to Outsourcing & Offshoring to the Philippines | 123Employee.com and oDesk.
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    • Profile picture of the author patadeperro
      Originally Posted by Andrew H View Post

      This sounds like the right way to go about it. Do you use the same person everytime? or do you just post jobs on a freelance board?
      Not to me, you need to outsource more and more activities with the exception of client acquisition, the rest needs to be outsourced or done by somebody else, the big problems I see with people who want to outsource are:

      a) They dont have clear processes.

      b) They dont train their employees.

      c) They dont give clear specific instructions on what they want.

      d) They dont have follow up meetings or milestones.

      e) They dont have formats or templates to give the outsources to do their work (check lists).

      f) They want to pay peanuts and get gold in return
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  • Profile picture of the author Adrian John
    All you need to find it's someone who has some experience in what you're looking for, someone who shows interest and could deliver hi quality services to you and your clients(leading to potential referrals) and someone who can be reachable when you need urgent stuff to be done(email,skype,phone)... just few things that comes into my mind from my personal experience
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  • Profile picture of the author kellyyarnsbro
    Top companies in the US does outsourcing and it saves them a lot of time and money no doubt about it. Outsourcing is never been or has never been a problem, it's on choosing whom you outsource it.
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