In the competitive nature of the business world, small companies are utilising creative strategies in order to remain competitive alongside their larger counterparts.
Outsourcing is one of the most popular strategies to do so. Enlisting the help of freelancers, consultants, marketing agencies, graphic designers and other service providers can help even the smallest teams accomplish larger quantities of work and move into the next phase of their business plans. If you’re running a small business, outsourcing can help fuel your growth.
However, simply finding a few freelancers and assigning them work isn’t enough. To receive the full benefits of outsourcing, it’s vital to follow a few key strategies. Keep reading to learn what these strategies are and how you can implement them in your own business.
Make sure you’re insured
Outsourcing is great because it lets you get more work done without having to expand your in-house team. However, letting third-party professionals handle key business activities comes with risks. This is why you should consider protection with liability insurance.
When you’re selling to hundreds or even thousands of customers, a few are bound to take issue with your products or services, no matter how good they are designed to be, or whether or not it was your fault. Some might even file lawsuits against you, which can spell disaster for your business if you don’t have the budget of a massive corporation to defend your business.
Public liability insurance protects you financially if customers suffer damages, harm or injury as a result of interacting with your products, services or workplace. This gives you some margin of error and helps you defend any claims, which is especially important if you’re not working in such close quarters with your freelancers to oversee every last detail of their output.
Listen to the input of third-party professionals
Among the key benefits of hiring outsiders is that they can give you insights a close-knit team may not have thought of. This is especially true if you’re an SME that doesn’t employ hundreds of employees. Freelancers, consultants and accountants with skillsets that aren’t already covered by your internal team can help you improve your processes in ways you might not even have considered.
A key advantage of being a small business is having the ability to be flexible. While you might already have an established way of doing things, listening to the advice of external experts can benefit your enterprise tremendously. You’ll make the most out of your relationships with freelancers and other third-party service providers if you see them as sources of valuable information and respect their inputs and suggestions.
Stay involved with the big picture
In 2025, almost anything can be outsourced. A quick scan through freelance platforms like Upwork and Fiverr will reveal countless individuals offering services ranging from graphic design to proofreading. There are also many professional agencies that specialise in helping clients with a specific set of activities, especially for small businesses.
Even though finding third-party services is easier than ever, it’s still vital for businesses to stay on top of their overall strategy. Once you have a plan in place, it’ll be much easier to determine exactly what tasks you need to outsource (and how) and which ones are better kept in-house. For example, if you’re looking to grow your social media presence, you should first draft an overall social media marketing strategy, which can include setting goals and determining the platforms you’ll be using. Only then should you start hiring freelance social media marketers to create content, and work with them to make tweaks where necessary.
With the increased accessibility of outsourcing, it can be tempting to build an army of freelancers and delegate everything. For freelancing to be effective, however, it’s still vital to make big-picture decisions in-house before you look to third-party service providers for help with the nitty-gritty aspects of running a business. After all, you’re the expert in your industry, and freelancers are experts in theirs.
Implement quality-control measures
Many businesses are reluctant to outsource to freelancers due to worries over the quality of their output. This fear isn’t completely unfounded: even competent service providers might not produce work of the same quality as in-house employees who’ve been working in your company for years and have a much deeper understanding of the product or service.
However, this potential pitfall doesn’t outweigh the benefits to be gained by outsourcing work. Moreover, it’s an issue you can solve through rigorous quality control. An in-house team member should review and edit all work produced by freelancers, whether it’s an SEO article, a social media post or a visual for an online ad.
You should also provide feedback to your freelancers when you identify problems to help them improve future work. Just like how you should invest in your employees, investing in your freelancers boosts the quality of their output and, in the long run, benefits your business.
Outsource to the right people
Finally, outsourcing to the right people is crucial for outsourcing successfully. While there are plenty of quality service providers out there, there are also lots of people who might not have the right skill sets for your unique business.
In order to increase your likelihood of finding the right freelancers, you should implement a rigorous hiring process. Read through CVs and cover letters carefully and conduct in-depth interviews. Even though freelance relationships aren’t as permanent as those with in-house employees, you’ll still be relying on their work, so take the necessary steps to make the correct decisions, and build loyalty with those who produce the best results.
~
Running a small business is difficult. Often, it can seem like there’s more work to do than there are hours in the day. Among the best ways to lighten the load on your team is through outsourcing.
While moving to a more freelance-reliant model might require some business restructuring, it’s worth it if you’re looking to grow while sticking to a tight budget. Follow the tips we’ve given in this article to make sure you go about outsourcing your small business in the right way and make the most out of your third-party service providers.
Sponsored Content
The above article is paid content, and any information presented should be independently verified before making any decisions as a result of the content. This article does not constitute advice of any kind, nor does it represent the opinions of the website publisher.