When can outsourcing be helpful to my business?

If you want to grow a business, work smarter not harder. Whether your challenge is achieving growth or getting your weekends back, outsourcing may be the solution for your business.

Determining whether you should outsource depends on our time, ability, and cash flow. Consider this example:

You would like to distribute fliers in the local park during youth sporting events to advertise custom shirts for parents and children. Can you create an advertisement that reads well and grabs potential customers’ attention? Do you have the necessary equipment to print the fliers? Are you available to sell at these events on weekends?

We now have three possible outsourcing situations: design, print, and labor. Outsourcing each task is the least time consuming, but it comes with a financial burden. Completing the job yourself could lead to a 20-hour project. Conversely, if you’re capable and business is slow, time might be in surplus over money. Each task can be outsourced or completed in-house, so it’s dependent upon your unique situation. Do what’s best based on your skills, time, and finances.

You could do nothing more than oversee business and outsource every facet, but that’s not why you got into the decorated apparel industry. Perhaps you’re the designer who enjoys working with customers and becoming involved in a project. Maybe you love turning an idea into a beautifully decorated T. That’s why you’re in this business.

Still, if you want to grow, realize that you can’t do everything. There are always limitations. With this in mind, decide what should be outsourced. Here are some examples:

• Digitizing embroidery designs
• Color separations for screen printing
• Vector art conversion
• Large or small production runs
• Custom sewing or garment modification
• Bookkeeping
• Website maintenance and development
• Bogging and social media writing
• Equipment maintenance
• Inbound or outbound calls

—Colman and Company