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Delegating To Team Members So They Pay For Themselves

By Sydni Craig-Hart

ROIMost of us went into business for ourselves in part because we wanted to be our own boss.

We wanted to call all the shots, choose how much or how little we worked and to have control over our income.

This sounds GREAT in theory, but if you aren’t careful you can easily create a monster of a J.O.B. for yourself – even worse than when you were actually employed because YOU are wearing all the hats.

The easiest solution to this common problem is to build a team and start delegating. You can do so by working with an intern, hiring a Virtual Assistant, or hiring an employee or an independent contractor with specialized expertise. No matter which option you choose, one thing is for sure…

You want to get your money’s worth out of the investment and you want a high quality product or service at the end of the engagement.

Whether or not you achieve the outcome you seek actually has far more to do with you than it does with the person you hired. Here’s how to avoid common pitfalls that often occur when you work with a team and how to ensure they pay for themselves:

  1. Hire for exactly what you need to save time or increase your income. If you’re losing precious billable hours responding to customer service emails, hire a team member to do exactly that. Then make sure you use that “extra” time to work with more clients or attract new clients. If you need help getting your email newsletter done each week, make sure you include a call to action and again, use that newly found time for a specific revenue generating activity.If you want to get your money’s worth have your team members start out focusing on specific activities that will generate leads and income and make sure you’re using your time to do the same.
  2. Define Project Specs Clearly. Never commit the cardinal sins of:
    • Expecting your contractor or employee to read your mind
    • Hoping they will tell you what to do

    If you don’t know what you want done, you may not be ready to outsource.

    Be sure to let your contractor or employee know how to contact you if she has questions – in fact, encourage her to ask, if anything is unclear. Make sure you provide any research data you wish her to use, a specific deadline, the campaign or project name and billing or sales codes she needs to use. It’s not her job to figure out the details. It’s your job to give clear instructions about what you need and what you expect the outcome of the project to be. Also, be clear about how you are going to monetize the project so you leverage the deliverables as soon as they are ready.

  3. Use the “Right” Communication Channels. There are multiple ways to communicate virtually, so make sure you choose the methods that are the most natural and comfortable for you and your team. You’ll be wasting money if your communication is haphazard and disorganized. When hiring contractors or employees, check to see how comfortable and proficient they are with the following communication systems:
    • Email
    • Telephone
    • Skype
    • Webcam
    • Instant Messaging
    • Online project management systems (e.g. Basecamp)
    • Texting

    Ask their preferences – and make sure your operations manual specifies expected means (and time frames) of communications. Don’t assume they know how and when to communicate with you. Set clear expectations up front to avoid misunderstandings.

  4. Empower, Don’t Dictate. Team members who do their best work are those who are allowed to exercise their competence in the most comfortable manner. Team members who do the poorest work are those who are micro-managed.Micro managing belittles, causes distrusts, and ultimately builds resentment. It also deflates morale and takes creativity out of your projects – and team members.This doesn’t mean everyone can do their own thing in their own time frame, completely ignoring your guidelines.  Ask your team members for their input and leverage their expertise! Take advantage of successes they have had with other clients and learn from what didn’t work. Then set clear parameters.

    Once you are sure everyone is on the same page and aware of deadline and check-in protocols, that’s when you should leave them to it.

    The only person you should ever micro-manage is you.

  5. Be An Example. If you want your team to be well organized, excited, enthusiastic, competent, positive, professional and creative, do your best to live and exhibit those qualities in your every day life, as well as in your business. A team with shared goals and values functions most efficiently.

If you truly want to call your own shots, you MUST build a strong team that can help you to accomplish your goals. You can’t do it alone. More hands make the load lighter.

The better your support teams (and systems), the more you are likely to enjoy the success of your business. Be mindful that you don’t have to break the bank when you consider hiring supporting team members. If you are well organized and focused, building a team to help you in your business will be well worth the investment. In fact, it will pay for itself!

Filed Under: Business Management Tagged With: Delegating, Small Business Owner, Small Business Success, Small Business Team, Smart Simple Marketing, Sydni Craig-Hart



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Sydni Craig-Hart
Sydni Craig-Hart

Is your organization looking to gain market share and deepen loyalty with small businesses, women or minorities? Sydni Craig-Hart is CEO of Smart Simple Marketing and a 4th generation entrepreneur. Since 2006, her team, having worked with over 8,000 small business in 79 different industries, has been helping companies to drive engagement with sought-after, growing market segments. If you want to increase the value of existing-customer spend, recapture marketing investments, grow customer lifetime value or decrease attrition, contact Sydni to discover how her team is doing this for companies like Facebook, Google, LinkedIn and more.

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Comments

  1. Rita Cartwright says

    August 16, 2013 at 1:27 PM

    I recently started working with a team, and I am glad to know I’m on the right track. Great article and perfect timing!

    • Sydni Craig-Hart says

      August 16, 2013 at 1:27 PM

      Good for you Rita! Glad to hear it. What did you hire your team to help you with?

  2. Rita Cartwright says

    August 16, 2013 at 1:28 PM

    Everything! LOL. Seriously, they’re helping me with my internet marketing projects; specifically, social media marketing and my newsletter.

    Right now they are doing my projects. This is my test before I outsource my clients’ projects to them. Thus far, they have been doing an awesome job.

    I asked a facebook connection, who is a social media marketing expert, if she knew of any virtual assistants that she could refer to me. She sent me two. Obviously, one of the two worked out.

    I said all of that to say, I suggest to anyone who is looking for a virtual assistant to ask someone like I did. This eliminates a lot of time, research, headaches, etc. I’ve hired three VAs in the past on my own. They turned out to be nightmares!

    I thank God for my new team. The VA I hired already have systems in place, as well as a team, and I have access to her entire team.

    • Sydni Craig-Hart says

      August 16, 2013 at 1:30 PM

      Good for you Rita! In my experience, asking my colleagues for referrals has been the best way to go too! But there are a lot of great resources like IVAA and VA Classroom that are connected to great VAs too.

      I’m so excited for you that you have a new team to help you and are already seeing positive results. Congratulations!

  3. Randal DeHart, PMP, QPA says

    May 26, 2014 at 5:39 PM

    Sydni,

    Enjoyed reading your article and really enjoyed the part “The easiest solution to this common problem is to build a team and start delegating.”

    That is one of the hardest things to do is delegating and letting go; however, it is key to growth.

    Warm Regards,

    Randal

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