No one can know—and do—it all. And if you’re in business, then you know there are a lot of moving parts that all have to be managed. Websites, shopping carts, email managers, video editing, copywriting, and file storage…the list goes on.
Here’s where many new (and even some established) business owners fall down. They try to bootstrap everything. Need a new website? They build it. Starting an affiliate program? They install it. Creating a video training series? They buy Camtasia; spend weeks learning it, and more weeks recording and editing video.
While there’s much to be said for self-sufficiency, there comes a point where you simply have to decide which tasks are giving you the best ROI, and let go of the rest.
Do what you’re good at, and let others handle the rest.
Why? Because you’re wasting valuable time and energy trying to do it all yourself.
For example, let’s say you’re a service provider or coach and you charge $50/hour. You provide services to 3 clients per day for 2 hours each.
You make a total of $300/day for a total of $1500 per week (30 hours) but then you spend 6 hours editing your videos or setting up your shopping cart on your website.
You have then cut your income down by $300 (an entire day’s earnings!)
You can easily hire an outsourcer on Fivrr.com to complete the video editing or website software setup for less than $50. Try it and you’ll very quickly discover that paying someone to edit your videos or update your website is a worthwhile investment.
When I was selling products on Amazon and needed artwork for my packaging, I hired another professional designer even though I knew how to use the tools to design my own packaging.
My reasons?
- It saved me lots of time and I could focus on costing and acquiring inventory and
- I love to partner with other small businesses and that’s what Fivrr.com is all about.
Now that’s not to say that you shouldn’t know anything about the techy stuff that runs your business. You absolutely should. It’s nearly impossible to outsource work if you don’t have some idea of the work that needs to be done.
What that means is, you need to have an overview. You need to know where you’re going and have a basic idea of the steps that will get you there. You need to know that these things are possible, but you don’t necessarily need to know how to do them.
For example, if you’re using ConvertKit, and you want to send an email with a link that, when clicked, will automatically add the reader to a new campaign, then all you need to know is that it can be done. You don’t have to understand the mechanics behind it or be able to set it up yourself.
That’s what your VA (Virtual Assistant) is for.
And if you’re really thinking ahead (and I know you are) then you’ll also have your VA document the steps they’re using to complete the task. As part of their job, they should be helping to build your operations manual. That will make it easier for everyone on the team to get more done in less time, which in turn will save you money.
But, if you do need to do some of the technical stuff yourself, choose technical tools that are simple to use but get the job done. You don’t need the Cadillac of software with all the latest bells and whistles if you are only going to utilize a small portion of its features.
Do Your Research
Download our handy digital technology tool comparison charts to help you decide which tool is right for you.
So stop fighting with digital technology. Learn only what you must know to do your job, and hand the rest off to someone who can do it faster and better. Then you can spend your time bringing in the money.
You can learn how to get a better handle on streamlining your business growth here or you can quickly get started putting your current systems on auto-pilot by downloading our Ultimate Guide to Creating Stress-free Systems below:
