Diaries of a Momemployeneur: Know when to Outsource or Seek Expert Advise

Sometimes in an attempt to cut down on cost in your business or your journey as an entrepreneur you may employ quite a number of Do-It-Yourself techniques. But sometimes this strategy may not work because eventually you realize you spent much more than you would have used if that task was outsourced. I had contacted quite a number of people to assist with a website but unfortunately the quotes were on a high side. One day whilst browsing online I chanced upon an advert which looked catchy “Build a website on your own for free in less than 48hours”.

“Wow I said that was my moment of saving some money”., I thought to myself.  I signed up on the site and went through the procedure . I chose my template , and started working on the interface design. But wait, now I had to choose a domain name and pay for hosting and that wasn’t free. But they never stated that in their ad. I went ahead to pay for the domain name and the hosting for a month to try it out first.

Went back to the website design but realized it was getting tough so I sought the advise of an expert to help and I made him aware I had my domain and hosting as well as template already. He went through the template I had chosen and checked out the package for hosting for a year.

Imagine my disappointment when he revealed to me the hosting alone cost much more than he was charging me initially for developing the website. Also getting plug-ins were going to be way expensive than the platform he had initially discussed with me to implement.

I tried to cut corners but eventually I could not even use the domain name and hosting site again. My money went down the drain.

Let’s check out some aspects of our businesses that play an integral role in its success and may function better when outsourced;

• Graphic Designing:   Getting a good graphic designer for your business helps you to stand out in marketing campaigns and promotions. Especially for your blog and social media handles. It may be expensive to have a good graphic designer on retainer so usually small business outsource when they need to meet their graphic designing needs.
• Book keeping: Book keeping is a commonly outsourced task for small businesses. It is essential to get an expert for this aspect for your business as it helps you manage your taxes, income statements and petty cash. All these help you to know how your business is progressing.
• Website design: Your website is the face of your company online. Its essential to get an expert to handle this as it directly reflects on your brand image. If you are not a web designer you could outsource to a freelancer as this may sometimes be cheaper as compared to a website design company. As  business owners it is essential that we learn to outsource delicate aspects of your business which you do not have any expertise or seek expert advise if you want to Do it yourself. Eventually you are able to weigh the cost benefits. If it is something you can quickly learn on your own and work it out. Bingo! Then you are good to go