From Brand Vision to Sales, Delegation Isn’t Always the Answer
At Intelligent Office, we’re vocal advocates of delegating and outsourcing. Every entrepreneur has unique skills, and their time is best spent using that expertise to grow the business. That’s why virtual assistants are so helpful. These professionals can handle receptionist duties, provide a boost to customer service, make travel arrangements, manage your calendar, and so much more.
Virtual assistants are versatile, and most blog posts focus on everything they can do to make your life easier. But, there are also some projects and tasks that entrepreneurs and small business owners should never outsource, and that’s what we’re going to focus on today.
1. Developing the brand vision
You can outsource things like logo design, website development, and content, but the brand’s guiding vision needs to come from within the company. This vision and the values it supports will serve as a roadmap for future success. It will influence everything you do to drive the business forward, too.
Once you have a brand vision, remember: you need to live the brand (learn more about that here).
2. Anything you can’t explain clearly
While many entrepreneurs struggle to give away any of the priorities on their plate, others go in the opposite direction, delegating anything and everything. It can be a great way to cut costs, but you still need to proceed strategically.
Outsourcing is perfect for anything outside your core expertise, things you simply don’t have time to do, times when you need an extra hand, and more. However, these projects must also be, “specified in detail, and managed with quantified deliverables and checkpoints.”
If you aren’t sure about specific project parameters or how success will be measured, it’s best to save it for another time.
3. Certain parts of the sales process
If your business requires a sales and outreach process to grow, those functions should be handled by employees of the company. High performing salespeople are nearly priceless to a growing company, and nurturing their enthusiasm for your product or service will ensure lasting success.
Because the sales team is communicating with potential customers every single day, they’ll also acquire valuable information that the company can use to increase conversions. When you understand the customer’s journey and pain points, figuring out how to deliver value is straightforward.
4. Management
Virtual assistants, contractors, and other third parties are great at handling their own work. Still, the people responsible for helping you manage the business should always be employees that you hire and train directly. There are many benefits to this approach, and one of them brings us back to the first point: Implementing and managing a brand’s vision is something that’s best done internally.
These people will also be the ideal candidates to manage any virtual assistants that you do use, because they’ll understand the goals, vision, and spirit of the company.
