A lot of start-ups fail because they lack the expertise, funding and other resources they need to survive in a highly competitive environment that is the business world. One of the ways that startups can avoid failure is by outsourcing the non-core tasks - that is, tasks that are not core to your business offering like payroll, unless you are an accounting firm. This way, start-ups can do more with their limited resources and improve their business.

If you are a start-up, listed below are seven time-sucking, energy-draining tasks that you should outsource.

1. Data Entry and Processing

Outsourcing your data entry process is one of the ways that you can free up time as a business owner. This task is very time-guzzling, whether data is automated or manual. And it is also a task that is best done by a trained data entering professional who can sort and analyse your data which is important because we are in the era of data.

By discovering what's not working, what's working, where your target market is, what you can consumers want, and how to improve brand loyalty; you could then use this data provided to better tailor your business processes.

2. Payroll

A lot of small businesses pay billions in fines every year as a result of incorrectly filling out payroll details. Yikes! But if you’d like to get such time-consuming task off your hands instead while also protecting your business from the legal ramifications of incorrect payroll filling, then you should outsource and become more efficient.  
 

3. Financial Planning

Apart from outsourcing your every day accounting transactions, it would also be beneficial for you to get external help for your bigger financial outlook. By doing this, you will get the essential financial guidance that is key to building and growing a successful business. An external CFO will help you with budgeting, financial planning, fundraising, forecasting, cash flow analysis, pricing, MA, and much more.

 

4.Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing is a very powerful tool that companies can use to increase brand visibility, exposure and get in touch with, or get in front of new audiences to promote their services and goods. But managing social media marketing campaigns can be daunting. This is why it is a great idea for start-ups to hire social media managers to promote and manage their business's social interaction on social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and so on. This way, they are able to get all the benefits of social media promotion without having to spend hours generating the content that drives this.

5. Research

The importance of research for a great business cannot be overstated. However, as a start-up, you may not always have the time to run proper research. This is why you should hire the services of a researcher for research tasks such as creating a report that compares the advantages and disadvantages of data such as pricing for a service your business is considering, finding the best deals on accommodations and flights for a trip, find statistics and expert resources for a new blog post, collate industries so that you can stay on top of trends and happenings in your industry.

Your research assistant will basically be a wellspring of information. Your research assistant can also handle research tasks that would otherwise require a lot of your time. To help make this process easier, you can put together a basic template for the information you require, your preferred sources as well as your preferred delivery formats.

 

6. Human Resources

Human resource management can quickly become overwhelming - managing personnel issues, running recruitment, drafting employee policies and procedures, detailing compensations and benefits can quickly take up a lot of your time. Outsourcing your HR functions will cost you some money in the beginning, sure, but it will save you a lot of hassle and money in the long run.
 

7. Web Design/Site Management

Unless your business offering is building and managing websites, you should outsource the building and management of your website - because a well-crafted website takes a lot of work. It doesn't stop there, the website would require frequent updates and maintenance which takes a lot of time and effort - and ensuring that your site is current and meets up with the latest technological advancements requires a lot of monitoring. By outsourcing this task to a provider that specialises in web design and management, you can maintain a strong online presence without having to spend a lot of time on it.

 

On a Final Note

Before you begin the search for outsourcing companies, you should clearly define what business function or processes that you would like to outsource. This would require you to carefully consider your start-up process in order to determine what your non-core activities are and the tasks that must remain with the business. Once that is done, make sure you carefully research your outsourcing company and go with the one that you are sure would help your business grow and has a favourable exit option for when you want to leave.