Mastering The Art Of Outsourcing

Updated January 2026

Many small business owners find it difficult to outsource, as trusting another brand to take on any of your usual tasks or operations can be difficult, especially for entrepreneurs running their first business.

However, mastering outsourcing can give you and your team many benefits, allowing you to focus your energy on what you’re great at rather than wasting your time on tasks you're over or under-qualified for.

Learning how to master the art of outsourcing doesn’t have to be complicated or difficult. There are a few key tips and tricks that you can make the most of to practice productive outsourcing without losing control of the parts of your business that matter to you most!

Find Your Niche 

It's absolutely vital that you and your team are able to find your individual niches to determine your greatest strengths and weaknesses. The best strategy here is to practice your strengths while outsourcing your weaknesses to save time and reduce the likelihood of error. (For example, I am great at copywriting and not so great accounting so I spend my work hours focusing on design projects and leave the finance piece to my accountant!)

Not everyone is cut out to balance budgets, plan for retirement, and ensure your business books are in tip-top shape, but you can easily source a fully qualified accountant that dedicates their time to the task to ensure no mistakes are made (you can read more here about accountant certifications). Attempting to tackle such a nuanced area without the relevant knowledge or experience is likely to cause a variety of different problems, which can be easily been avoided through the use of outsourcing.

Having to deal with a lawsuit due to tax discrepancies is going to be far more expensive and stressful than getting in touch with a trained accountant, so it’s worth even a little trepidation to hand this responsibility off to someone qualified. Ask your team which tasks they feel that they need some support with, and aim to fill the gaps accordingly.

At this stage, I recommend ensuring that you have the foundations in place to get the most out of outsourcing. Clear communication is at the heart of every great working relationship. Even something as basic as opting for 5g home internet facilitates smooth collaboration and interactions, and avoids those awkward video calls where your connection drops and contractors might be tempted to wonder if your business is legit. Of course, high-speed internet also enhances your individual productivity, too. Good internet and reliable tools (like choosing the best cloud-based software for remote employees) matter, too. And just a reminder: once you decide to outsource, give them room to take ownership of projects and show you their value. It’s tempting to micro-manage and keep holding on, but you chose them for their expertise so give them room to work and demonstrate their value.

Decide Once What To Outsource

A common mistake among business owners (and nonprofits) is to waiver on what to outsource and when. By being inconsistent and spending valuable time debating whether or not to handle a task internally or to outsource it to an expert, the benefit of the actual outsourcing decreases. Instead, when working on your annual marketing plan, decide once what you’ll outsource and what you’ll handle internally. Having the decision already made eliminates the need for lengthy debates and confusion later on.

For example, with a smaller marketing team, you might decide to keep all content creation in-house instead of outsourcing to copywriters or using pricey AI tools. However, you could entrust some aspects of lead generation to content syndication services for technology vendors like ActualTech, who can help you make faster progress in your marketing campaign once you have that content in place.

Likewise, you might find that creating social media posts and new content for your social platforms each month is doable with your small team. However, outsourcing the design work and purchasing social media templates can help you create consistent branding and save time.

In addition to that, you can consider outsourcing certain tasks like Shopify or WordPress web development to a professional team, ensuring that your website is always up-to-date and optimized for user experience. By identifying and outsourcing specific tasks, you can make the most of your resources and focus on your core competencies.

Source The Most Trusted Providers

Outsourcing your tasks to the first business that appears on your screen may end up doing more harm than good, as the quality and value for money that each business boasts is totally different and can depend on a number of factors. Sourcing the most trusted providers can take some time, but you can begin by reading reviews left by previous customers to get a better idea of the true quality of the service provided. (Avoid reading reviews listed on their own website site, opting for those posted on unbiased platforms that can be authenticated as honest.)

Request to see any previous examples of the work that they complete if this is relevant to the services you seek, as this is a great way to get a clear view of what they can realistically offer your business. Consider starting with short-term contracts to ensure the relationship is going to be a good fit, and then discuss options like retainer contracts if both parties are in favor of long-term working terms.

Which parts of your business are you outsourcing? Let us know in the comments!

Until next time,

Andrea

One Nine Design is a digital marketing company helping small businesses and nonprofits learn how to use their website and email list to grow their reach and make a bigger impact!

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