047: How Outsourcing Changed My Business

When it comes to prioritizing things in my business, I typically look at my client’s work as the only priority, but that doesn’t mean that my own business and marketing responsibilities can just fall off my to-do list.

It didn’t take me long to realize just how valuable outsourcing or hiring in my business would be for me. In today’s episode, I’m sharing why outsourcing is valuable, how it’s changed my business, and what I’m outsourcing in my own business.

Clocking In with Haylee Gaffin is produced and brought to you by Gaffin Creative, a podcast production company for creative entrepreneurs. Learn more about our services at Gaffincreative.com, plus you’ll also find resources, show notes, and more for the Clocking In Podcast.

Don’t forget, through January 31, 2022, I’m offering an exclusive discount to my podcast listeners of $50 off Podcast Launch Kit! If you’re looking to take the DIY approach to podcasting this year, Podcast Launch Kit is for you! Use the code CLOCKINGIN at podcastlaunchkit.com and enroll today!

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Why I Outsource

For me, I like to outsource things that will help grow my business forward. For example, a lot of my content creation and marketing is outsourced, because when I may have too much client work that I need to prioritize, I know that I’ll let my own work slip off my radar.

Not only that but working on my own business after a week of working on client work isn’t my favorite thing to do. I found myself ignoring it until the last minute, which wouldn’t allow me to create the best content.

Many business owners may find value in outsourcing like I do OR they’ll also outsource by hiring help within their business for client work. This could be through a virtual assistant, an associate, a designer, a copywriter, etc. There are so many things you can do to hire in your business, but you can also outsource things you don’t know how to do.

Is Outsourcing Right for You?

When it’s time for you to determine if outsourcing or hiring is right for you, consider how many hours you’re working in your business, what tasks you absolutely have to be in control of, which ones you don’t, and which ones you want to get rid of.

By hiring someone to do the work you’re looking to outsource, what can you do with your time instead? Can you serve more clients and bring in more money? Can you create a better balance in your business and life? What do you want to see from outsourcing?

Really think about what your business needs, as well as what your life needs.

My Approach On Outsourcing

I originally started testing the waters in outsourcing with interns. I’d considered hiring in my business, but honestly, I wasn’t too sure how much work I had to hand off. When my first intern came on, I didn’t have a blog or really any resources for podcasting on my website. That was my first task, I wanted to have someone create content for that blog. I’d come up with topics and an outline, then she’d write them. While I didn’t launch that blog immediately, all of that content did help me too!

I tested out an intern for an additional semester before I decided to hire someone part-time. My second intern ended up being a perfect fit when I decided it was time to hire and with her internship ended, everything just aligned perfectly. Now things that I’ve handed off to her have included copywriting, graphics, podcast editing for this show, website updates, and Pinterest management!

In addition to having her join the team, this year I’ve brought on another copywriter to help with copy on my blog and website, along with an additional editor to see how outsourcing client work and building a team will work for my business.

In order to do this though, I had to create systems and expectations in my business. Just like the deadlines I set for my clients, I now have deadlines I have to meet too. Which has been the hardest part for me. I’m used to working on my own time, but if I want something done by a specific time, I have to provide it to each of these contractors.

So that is something you’ll want to consider before outsourcing can you stick to the deadlines you set for yourself and your contractors?

How Outsourcing Has Changed My Business

Outsourcing has allowed me to create content for my business that helps me market it without doing the work. I’m not creating my blog content or the pins that drive traffic to this content, but still I’m getting newsletter signups, opt-ins downloaded, and inquiries from this content.
It has also provided me with more social media content than I’ve ever had before. I promote my weekly blog posts and podcast episodes each week. Additionally, I can take old content and create micro-posts by turning blogs into captions on social media.
Outsourcing has also allowed me to begin the process of scaling my business. While at this time I still want to keep in contact with each of my clients and lead the strategies for each, having someone to help with the day-to-day tasks and management of client podcasts has been amazing! It’s allowed me to accept new clients whereas before I couldn’t.

Outsourcing has transformed my business, and it can do the same for yours. If you’re looking to grow your podcast, improve your processes, and lighten your workload, Mic Check Society is here to help.

Join a community of podcasters who are scaling their shows with expert-led trainings, collaborative Q&A calls, and actionable resources. Whether you’re building systems, outsourcing tasks, or refining your strategy, Mic Check Society provides the tools and support to take your podcast from good to great.

Ready to grow your podcast? Join Mic Check Society today!

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Time-stamps:

Why I Outsource (1:22)

Is Outsourcing Right for You? (2:43)

My Approach on Outsourcing (3:20)

How Outsourcing Has Changed My Business (8:00)

Review the Transcript:

When it comes to prioritizing things in my business, I typically look at my client work as the only priority, but that doesn’t mean that my own business and marketing responsibilities can just fall off my to-do list.

It didn’t take me long to realize just how valuable outsourcing or hiring in my business would be for me. In today’s episode, I’m sharing about why outsourcing is valuable, how it’s changed my business, and what I’m outsourcing in my own business.

This week, we’re continuing our mini series on business development as an entrepreneur and helping you turn your dream into a successful business.

Hey y’all welcome to the clocking in podcast the podcast for entrepreneurs and professionals making their way in the working world i’m your host Haylee Gaffin this podcast is produced and brought to you by Gaffin Creative a podcast production company for creative entrepreneurs learn more about our services at Gaffincreative.com plus you’ll also find resources show notes and more for the clocking in podcast so let’s clock in and get to work.

As a business owner, paying someone to do the work you can do feels silly… but trust me, in most cases, it will benefit you in the long run.

For me, I like to outsource things that will help grow my business forward, for example, a lot of my content creation and marketing is outsourced, because when I may have too much client work that I need to prioritize, I know that I’ll let my own work slip off my radar.

Not only that, but working on my own business after a week of working on client work isn’t my favorite thing to do, so I found myself ignoring it until the last minute, which wouldn’t allow me to create the best content.

Many business owners may find value in outsourcing like I do OR they’ll also outsource by hiring help within their business for client work. This could be through a virtual assistant, an associate (insert whatever title they hold), a designer, a copywriter, etc.

I’ve actually been testing this out in my own business as well this year, by hiring an associate editor to join the team so that I can serve my clients and grow my business.

By hiring someone to do the work you’re looking to outsource, what can you do with your time instead? Can you serve more clients and bring in more money, can you create a better balance in your business and life? What do you want to see from outsourcing?

Really think about what it is that your business needs, but also what your life needs.

Now, I want to share how I approached outsourcing in my own business as a podcast producer, because I think many of us enter business with the mindset that we can’t outsource what we specialize in because we do it best.

I originally started testing the waters in outsourcing with interns. I’d considering hiring in my business, but honestly wasn’t too sure how much work I had to hand off. When my first intern came on, I didn’t have a blog or really any resources for podcasting on my website.

That was my first task, I wanted to have someone create content for that blog. I’d come up with topics and an outline, then she’d write them. While I didn’t launch that blog immediately, all of that content did help me to! I tested out an intern for an additional semester before I decided to hire someone part-time.

My second intern ended up being a perfect fit when I decided it was time to hire and with her internship ended, everything just aligned perfectly.

Now things that I’ve handed off to her have included copywriting, graphics, podcast editing for this show, website updates, and Pinterest management!

In order to do this though, I really had to create great systems and expectations in my business. Just like the deadlines I set for my clients, I now have deadlines I have to meet too.. Which has been the hardest part for me. I’m used to working on my own time, but if I want something done by a specific time, I have to provide it to each of these contractors.

So that is something you’ll want to consider before outsourcing is can you stick to deadlines you set for yourself and your contractors?

So how has outsourcing changed my business?

Outsourcing has allowed me to create content for my business that helps me market it without doing the work. I’m not creating my blog content or the pins that drive traffic to this content, but still I’m getting newsletter signups, opt ins downloaded, and inquiries from this content.
It has also provided me with more social media content than I’ve ever had before. I promote my weekly blog posts and podcast episodes each week, which i barely do any work to create. Additionally, I can take old content and create micro-posts by turning blogs into captions on social media.
Outsourcing has also allowed me to begin the process of scaling my business.. While at this time I still want to keep contact with each of my clients and lead the strategies for each, having someone to help with the day to day tasks and management of client podcasts has been amazing! It’s allowed me to accept new clients whereas before I couldn’t.

I think outsourcing is so wonderful for business owners, but it’s also a key reason my business exists.. I work as a contractor that my clients outsource to because they either don’t enjoy handling their podcast production, they don’t know how, or they don’t have time for it.

So look at your business and see if there is anything that would better serve you overall if it was outsourced.

If you’re ready to outsource your podcast production or even get started with the launch process for your own podcast but aren’t familiar with all of the steps you need to take, make sure you head to today’s show notes to learn more about my podcast production services! I would absolutely love to talk with you about how my team can help you with not only the management of your podcast, but the strategy and planning aspects as well!

You can see the full show notes and more at gaffincreative.com/047.

This has been another episode of The clocking in podcast. You can find the show notes for this episode and more at Gaffincreative.com. Thank you so much for your listenership and support. If you love this episode, I’d be so honored if you leave me a review in Apple podcast app. Until next time, I’m your host Haylee Gaffin, clocking out.