If each of us had a dollar for every article that’s been published about the recession since it started…well, it would have been over long ago. Of course, one topic that is frequently brought up when discussing economic recovery is that of small businesses; I’m sure you’ve heard the statistics about their role and the difficulties they face.
We here at Cyberlicious® have talked to a lot of small business owners. They’ve run a wide variety of different types of businesses, but there do tend to be some common themes. Correct me if I’m wrong, but they generally don’t like having to spend more money. Of course this is understandable, considering that it takes at least two or three years for a start-up company to get into the black. With the economy down, sometimes it takes even longer than that, and the owner’s investment capital just doesn’t quite have the necessary staying power. Many business owners – often husband and wife – don’t even take a paycheck because absolutely everything the company makes goes back into keeping it operational.
To be fair, the reluctance to invest – to give up something now for uncertain future potential – is something that we all experience, whether we own a business or not. Of course, when it comes to reaching out to external experts for help, many small business owners are also handicapped by the determination that they “can make it on their own.” The business isn’t yet big enough to have an in-house accountant, HR manager, IT admin, marketing specialist, etc.…so the boss is wearing all of the hats him- or herself.
Well, that brings us to the good news about hiring outside experts. You see, money isn’t the only thing that my business owner friends are short on. They’re so busy running around wearing all those hats, they have even less time than they do spare cash. That’s where the outside help can save the day:
- They can get it done sooner. – Your business is probably like my house, with a list from here to the horizon of tasks that need to get done “eventually.” However, unlike my household chores, your business to-dos – things like replacing old equipment, improving public image/visibility, running a marketing campaign, or even boosting morale with better employee benefits – can yield real monetary returns…so who wouldn’t want to get started on them as sooner rather than later? Now, just because you don’t have the time to take care of those tasks now, doesn’t mean that somebody else doesn’t.
- They can get it done faster. – Let’s face it: not everybody is good at everything…and that’s okay. So, while you’re busy taking care of your business, external service providers are busy specializing in accounting, or IT, or marketing, or whatever else it is that you need. That means that they can get the job done in less time than if you were to do it yourself, simply based on the fact that they do it more often. (Of course, if the task is new to you, then there is even more time to be lost by learning the process, to say nothing of what happens if your inexperience causes errors. There’s no shame; no one wants to be like Cliff Huxtable trying to do his own plumbing on The Cosby Show.)
- They can get it done better. – Naturally, since your external provider is specialized, it means that the end result will be much better if you let them do the job than if you do it yourself. Let’s face it: better is…well, better.
- They can get it done less expensively. – Okay, so we’ve already agreed that the external specialist can get the job done more quickly than you can, and that you don’t really have that time to spare anyway. Now think about how much your time is worth monetarily. Think about what else you could do with that same time, things that only you can do for your business – it’s a high school-level economics concept called “division of labor.” So, if the specialist can get it done in fewer hours, for less money per hour…well, that’s a lot of savings. I mean real savings; not make-believe, “you can’t afford not to take advantage of this offer” savings.
So, think about the idea of “hiring” some part-time specialists for your business; give us a call at 727.820.1988 to find out more. Everyone needs help sometimes, every business has to make investments, and it’s likely to be the easiest and best staff expansion you’ll ever make.