5 Tasks Your Startup Should Outsource

It is the 21st Century Horatio Alger story – a couple of people come up with a great tech idea, and go from having an office in their garage to having offices around the world.

However, the stories tend to gloss over some of the realities. 90% of startups fail. And going from two entrepreneurs to a fully-fledged company is incredibly difficult, especially when operating on a shoestring budget.

The stories also tend to gloss over an important aspect in the  growth of many successful startups – that they used outsourcing. Offshoring is something of a secret in the startup industry. Although plenty of companies do it, few talk about it.

Some of the companies which used outsourcing to help develop their breakthrough products include Slack, AppSumo, GitHub, Basecamp, and Cloudmunch.

It makes sense for startups to outsource. Outsourcing allows them to access expertise they don’t have for far less cost than hiring locally. There are a number of tasks your startup should outsource as you grow your business.

Tasks your startup should outsource:

Web and app development

Having great business nous does not often come with the ability to write computer code. So engaging offshore staff to develop the technological aspects of your idea while you handle the business makes sense. Particularly in the case of mobile apps, extensive development and testing is required across platforms.
Outsourcing development isn’t always a long-term proposition. But when you bring in ongoing remote employees, you get the benefit of a developer who is just as invested in the success of your startup as you are.

Office support

As your business takes off, the demands on your time become more numerous. Managing that time can quickly become a drain in itself. By hiring offshore staff as virtual assistants and office support, you can free up more of that time. All the while ensuring everything stays organised.

Customer service

As a startup you need good customer service to keep every new customer you get – and to inspire those customers to spread positive stories about your brand. However, customer service is not something you want your core staff spending most of their day doing. By remote staffing you take advantage of the strong customer service culture in the Philippines. The time difference also allows for customer service which operates longer hours to provide the instant service many customers now expect.

Data analysis and reporting

Particularly in the technology industry, data is power. There are a huge number of metrics which can be tracked in regards to your business, but the sheer mass of data can be overwhelming. This is why analysis and reporting is such an important job. However, it is often dull work which requires a high degree of accuracy and turning numbers into useable information takes skill.
Outsourcing data analysis can save you money, allow you to target and optimise your marketing, and stop you wasting money on things which aren’t producing results.

Brand building

Building your brand online involves a variety of different tasks, all of which take up a lot of time. Replying to social media comments and moderating brand pages, creating and sharing content, SEO optimisation, and ongoing link-building are all essential for getting your brand traction. These are tasks which become more onerous as your startup grows. By engaging remote employees to build your brand you can attract more customers without spending all of your time managing your online presence.

Why Deployed is the perfect partner for your startup

Many startup owners worry that if they outsource, there is a risk of a poor quality product, because the people they outsource to have no real investment in the company’s success. This is why engaging dedicated remote employees is the ideal option. Your employees work solely for you and are part of your company, so they have just as much interest in seeing the company succeed as any of your employees.

Deployed will take care of all the legwork involved in hiring and setting up your remote staff. This allows you to get on with doing business and saves you time and money – both of which are always tight for an expanding startup.