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Small businesses face a lot of technology and IT-related challenges, which can be a major cause for slowing down the growth of a business. However, small business owners often cannot afford to hire significant IT staff. Sometimes it's unnecessary to have a whole tech team, and outsourcing these services has proven convenient and affordable for your company.
For instance, computers don't break all the time in your office. You can outsource repairing services from Computer Chip when they do, instead of having someone on payroll every month. It lets you save a lot.
The following are some tech tasks that small businesses should outsource:
Web design and development
Small businesses have a couple of options on how to develop a website. They can use free website creating apps, hire an in-house web designer or outsource. However, it's advised that you avoid using the free sites and apps because they are limited, and you don't get the most out of them.
If you are considering hiring in-house, think about the monthly expenses from salary to benefits. Outsourcing not only saves you money, but you also gain in-depth knowledge as well as quality.
Customer relationship management (CRM)
Customer relationship management is very important in any business, big or small. It can also be pretty time-consuming. So, it's okay when you need help with your company's CRM.
Using CRM software tools available on the internet is a start. But outsourcing the service is another option you should consider. It'll keep your forecast more accurate, and your business development organized.
Ecommerce
Since the pandemic, online shopping has gone high, with every entrepreneur looking to create an online shop and increase sales. Selling online is more complicated than it looks, so it might be difficult to do it all on your own. You will need a third-party vendor or applicant to help you process your credit cards and ensure the transactions are fully secured.
Instead of putting together a handful of third-party elements, consider outsourcing the whole e-commerce platform to a single provider. The provider should have experience in implementing effective e-commerce platforms. This gives you time to focus on bringing in more business and not on how to get your website to function fully.
However, before launching your business into the world, ensure that you have dealt with everything tax-related. The way your business is formed determines your personal liability and how taxes are paid. You can do all this on your own, but for accuracy and efficiency, online service providers will do all this for you. Although the LLC cost in Texas is a bit higher, it's worth every dime.
These services file all the necessary paperwork with your state and provide you with everything that you need.
Digital and social strategy
Because your company has grown, you are considering hiring a social media manager or a digital strategist; think hard about this decision. Social media has proven to add value to growing businesses, hence a great asset. Outsourcing your digital and social strategy to a digital marketing agency or a well-qualified freelancer is often a strong move.
Cybersecurity
Even if you have a small business, it is usually not economical to hire a large team of qualified IT staff members to handle your cybersecurity. It is too large, complex, and critical of a task to get it on your own. It would be best if you had dedicated experts evaluating your system, probing it for vulnerabilities, and ensuring that the software is up to date. Outsourcing is cheaper, more accurate, and will save you a lot of money.
IT support
With an in-house IT staff, you get dedicated on-site help. But you are limited to what your employee knows. However, you get managed help with access to a wide range of experts with outsourced IT support.
Although you'll lose being able to immediately access your IT guy, in exchange, you'll have access to more specialists and won't be limited to the amount of knowledge your employee has.
Conclusion
Outsourcing saves you a lot of money than hiring in-house specialists. Also, when you outsource, you get things done quicker because freelancers want to impress and are always looking for permanent clients. For a start-up, outsourcing tech-related services is the best idea for your business's growth.
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