What to look for when outsourcing business support functions

November 26 2021 - Outsourcing helps you save time and resources, reduce staff workloads, free up your time for more critical tasks, and potentially avoid the cost of mismanagement. Hiring the wrong person is a costly mistake, so consider for a moment the possible consequences of outsourcing business functions to the wrong partner.

That is why we decided to share some advice on what features you should look for when outsourcing business support functions to make sure that you get the best possible service for your money.

What should you consider when outsourcing?

Know the contract

Outsourcing is often seen as a cost-cutting solution where the service provider takes care of your specific needs. Therefore, make sure that the provider gives you all information to be able to evaluate and check everything before signing a contract. It's all too common for a good business relationship to break down because there are misunderstandings of what exactly is covered by the contract

The name and number of contacts

You need to know who will be responsible for each activity and who should you contact to solve any problems that may arise. Having these details on hand will help with the smooth transition when employees leave or join either organisation.

Digging deeper

The first two suggestions will help the success of using most outsourcing services. When you need to outsource specific business activities, such as IT Support, Digital Marketing, or Human Resources, you will need to consider the services being offered that you require today and whether the company will be able to service your business as it grows.

Outsourcing IT Support

Many factors indicate if an outsourced IT solution is a good solution for your business. First, you need to ask yourself if you are capable of providing your own IT support. If the answer is no, the next step would be to look at all possible options available. At this point, when you are choosing the right IT company, you should look for a provider that can support you with the following services:

• Unlimited remote access
• Unlimited callouts
• Unlimited telephone support
• Free professional hosting
• Emergency mobile contacts for out of office hours support
• Free domain renewals and management
• Bespoke backup service - backups verified daily by a human
• Direct access to highly skilled developers and support staff
• Bespoke monitoring of the health of your server(s) remotely
• Broadband supplied and monitored
• Bespoke online support system
• New equipment supplied at trade prices

Initially, it's unlikely that you will require all of the listed services. However, it's best to err on the side of caution and contract with a comprehensive IT Support provider.

Outsourced digital marketing

Digital marketing is becoming ever more complicated. New roles are emerging and becoming more specialised. The cost of maintaining a full-service marketing department is constantly increasing. Therefore, outsourcing the digital marketing function is increasingly on the rise, yet some business owners are still reluctant to outsource this crucial element of their marketing efforts. They fear that the cost will be prohibitive, and a new agency will need a lot of time to understand their business.

As a consequence, they choose not to outsource digital marketing at all. Yet, that may be a mistake. An agency can share the cost of a specialist role across a number of its clients. The key lies in knowing what you need and where you can find it most economically and efficiently.

Digital marketing is evolving rapidly; today, common activities include:

• Website design and management
• Search engine optimisation
• Social media management
• Email marketing
• Infographics and displays
• Mobile marketing

Whatever your needs, a new generation of digital marketing agencies can now help you with your digital marketing strategy to save money and ensure speedy results.

Outsourcing the human resource department

The need for an HR department is becoming increasingly important at both large and small companies regardless of whether the department is in-house or outsourced. For smaller businesses maintaining a full HR team may be cost-prohibitive. This potentially puts a lot of pressure on an individual or small team. Especially if the company starts to grow.

Outsourcing is a great alternative that brings business many benefits:

up to date skills and knowledge

increased legislative compliance

efficiency and reduced cost

time management

Outsourcing allows your business to benefit from the use of qualified personnel that are well trained to meet your company's requirements.

Your entire business could be at stake when you choose the wrong partner to execute a transaction. Therefore, you need to outsource to a provider that you can trust and be confident in today and tomorrow.

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