Last summer, we wrote about how to avoid burnout during a busy wedding season. One of the recommendations we made was outsourcing. This summer we wanted to expand on that and share how you can get started with outsourcing!
Most of us start our own businesses out of a passion for the product or service we create and offer, but when we really get into it, we quickly realize there’s a lot more to running a profitable business than initially anticipated. And one might even argue we find ourselves spending the least amount of time on the actual thing we started our business for in the first place – planning and executing incredible events! Instead, we wear all the hats: service provider, administrator, IT department, bookkeeper, social media manager, and content creator.
Outsourcing in your business frees up valuable time that can be put into bettering the company. You can do more of what you love to do and less of things you don’t enjoy and actually move the needle forward. Not to mention, outsourcing saves you time and money. It allows you to bring in a professional who is an expert at what they do. Not only can they do the task better, but they’re more efficient and knowledgeable as well. This means you will not just save hours, but the money that you would have spent trying to learn it yourself!
01. Blogging
Blogging may be one of the biggest time sucks, but it’s an important one to prioritize in our line of work since couples are constantly searching for not only inspiration but tips and tricks as well. We’ve said it before, but with Google being the leading search engine, blogging is an important one to prioritize in your business. But if you don’t enjoy writing or simply don’t have the bandwidth to produce a blog or two per month, then this could be a great first thing to outsource in your business.
Outsourcing your blogging can free up a lot of time, even if you’re knowledgeable about blogging and find writing easier. If you work with someone who specializes in blog copy, they can also help you come up with a true strategy for your blog content, prep that content far ahead of time, and schedule it in advance. Plus, if you prioritize blogging, then you can repurpose that content for social media, which makes your life much easier. One blog post can turn into two to four social media posts, stories, or Reels. Plus, blogs are the ideal content for Pinterest!
One of our favorite copywriters in the business is Ava and the Bee! Adrienna has years of experience in the wedding industry, and her company has worked with dozens of wedding pros to help them create amazing blog content. They’ll help you come up with a strategy too, which not all bloggers do. It’s so great to be able to bounce ideas off with someone who is a marketing professional and create the best strategy.
02. Bookkeeping
It’s probably safe to say that a majority of business owners don’t have a background in finance. If keeping track of your expenses is hard for you or you find yourself doing six months or even an entire year’s worth of books at a time, then hiring a bookkeeper may be a great thing to outsource.
A professional bookkeeper will have an understanding of the software system you use, keep up with your bookkeeping on a monthly basis, provide advice, and give you detailed reporting. Your finances are the absolute last thing you want to mess around with! Having an expert in your corner means fewer mistakes, and it means you’re more ready when tax time rolls around.
It will also let you keep track of your goals, since you can have reports run and analyzed by an expert!
03. Social Media
Up there with blogging, social media probably takes the cake as one of the biggest time sucks in our businesses! With the wedding industry being so visual, it’s important to have a presence on social media in some capacity.
Some marketing gurus may say you need to be posting or engaging every day. I don’t necessarily agree. I think more than anything, it’s important to just be consistent. Even if that means just two to three days a week, consistency is the key to social media. That is one reason I love to use Planoly! This app lets you plan out your Instagram content visually and is also one that most social media managers use.
You can work with a social media expert to plan and schedule social content from Instagram posts, Reels, and Stories to Pins. If you find someone who specializes in both blog and social copy, work with them to strategize blog copy and produce social content for those blogs so that you not only have new content for Google to crawl, but new content you can count on for social as well.
Social media managers can, of course, do more for you. They can engage with your followers, schedule posts on your behalf, research trends, track your analytics, etc. Just know that these things, especially engagement, take time and may up your investment in a manager.
04. Admin Assistance
The everyday tasks we have to manage as a small business take up more time than we think. From our inboxes to inquiries to calendar management, these things really add up. Hiring someone to take these basic things off your plate can free up some time and allow you to focus more on what you do best. You can set up your account so your virtual assistant can screen messages, respond, and forward to you messages that require your direct attention.
In my business, we use Honeybook as our CRM system, and it’s been a game-changer! You can have an admin virtual assistant help you set up a CRM system like Honeybook, and even help you create automated workflows or manage client contracts on your behalf!
05. Monthly Marketing
Many of your marketing items require consistency and monthly management. And you can outsource many of these tasks! One consistent platform is Pinterest. Weddings are huge on Pinterest and are a great way to get your content in front of local couples. By pinning consistently, you can grow your website views, target potential clients, and offer Freebie opt-ins to grow your newsletter list.
Speaking of newsletters, you can also outsource your email marketing! From welcome sequences to monthly newsletters, you can hire someone to keep your audience connected with your business. My favorite platform for this is Flodesk! You can make gorgeous emails in just a few steps with this easy-to-learn program.
Outsourcing Is Worth The Investment
When it comes to outsourcing, sometimes we only think about what the investment would be. We often look at it as a money thing and don’t want to pay for things when we could do them ourselves. But it’s important to remember that outsourcing can really help you scale up your business and offset that investment.
While yes, we do need to have the funds in order to pay someone to do it for us, it’s important to see the big picture and understand that time is money. If we can hire someone to do tasks we don’t enjoy doing, don’t have time to do, or simply isn’t worth us as the owner does, then we should bring in someone that specializes in that particular task This means we can focus on the things that only we can do. Start small. Pick one thing and work towards outsourcing more things as your business grows.
Also, remember that a quality hire will give you a much bigger return on investment! Just like we teach our couples to hire quality vendors, it’s important to remember that it is the same with outsourcing. Think about what you charge an hour. If you are making $150/hour at a wedding, would you rather be spending that hour making $150, or outsourcing to someone charging $30/hour?
Look Into Coaching
One thing you might consider if you’re struggling to find the time to get things done or find the funds to cover outsourcing is coaching. If you’re currently offering unlimited hours within your packages or you don’t have a system for charging for additional hours or services worked, you’re leaving money on the table. I’ve worked with many clients helping them to restructure their offer suite, so they’re set up for success. If this sounds like something you need, check out my coaching offers!
Xo,
Jess
Related resources
Additionally, we are participants in the Honeybook, Flodesk and Quickbooks Referral Programs, affiliate referral programs designed for active users like ourselves to provide a means for us to earn fees by referring genuine leads to their CRM, email marketing and accounting software.
