Shownotes
Choosing to outsource in your business or life can feel intimidating or even risky at times.
But I've got to tell you, some of the best things have happened in my business and in my life when I've stopped doing it all alone.
If you've never outsourced either in your personal life or in your business, I want to share a few clues that it might be time to consider asking for help.
I hope this episode encourages you to consider what your life or your business could look like if you delegate tasks to the talented, capable people that are out there.
00:52 — Increase your capacity during busy season
02:41 — Get the guidance and support you need to scale
03:41 — How outsourcing, even as an expense, can actually create more profit
04:00 — Get extra support to run a great promotion (especially for Black Friday)
04:30 — Why you shouldn’t run big promotions alone
07:03 — How to break through a plateau
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
• https://photosbynicolemarie.net/editing/
• https://www.kimdiamondwellness.com/
• https://www.nataliebdavis.com/
• https://www.theemailclub.co/
• https://sabrinagebhardt.com/
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Transcripts
Choosing to outsource in your life or in your business can feel
Speaker:intimidating or even risky at times.
Speaker:But I've got to tell you, some of the best things have happened in
Speaker:my business and in my life when I've stopped doing it all alone.
Speaker:You are listening to The Copywriter On Call podcast.
Speaker:I'm your most Sarah Gillis copywriter, word, magic maker, and owner of
Speaker:what Sarah said on this podcast.
Speaker:You'll feel empowered to show up online in a way that has you saying, that's so me.
Speaker:Let's get started.
Speaker:Welcome back to another episode of The Copywriter On-Call podcast.
Speaker:I'm your host, Sarah Gillis, and I am logging some solo on-call
Speaker:hours today to chat all about outsourcing in your business.
Speaker:If you've never outsourced either in your personal life or in your business,
Speaker:I want to share a few clues that it might be time to consider asking for help.
Speaker:Here's the first reason.
Speaker:Are you coming up on a busy season in your life or in your business?
Speaker:Sometimes planning to outsource before you're ready is key.
Speaker:If you know me personally, you know that both of my sons play competitive
Speaker:travel hockey during hockey season.
Speaker:Each winter we make intentional choices at home to accommodate such heavy travel.
Speaker:In the past, we've hired a house cleaner to come every few weeks during hockey
Speaker:season, so that when we do have a weekend at home, we aren't trying to catch up
Speaker:on chores and house related to dues.
Speaker:This is also a really big reason why I share new podcast
Speaker:episodes in a seasonal format.
Speaker:By opting for a seasonal design to the podcast, I'm able to batch my episode
Speaker:creation ahead of time so that when we're on the go, I'm able to be a present.
Speaker:Hockey mom
Speaker:If you're a photographer, here's an example of thinking ahead to what your
Speaker:capacity might be during your busy season.
Speaker:Maybe you can think about the time you have to dedicate to editing
Speaker:your photos in the midst of Fall.
Speaker:Family sessions, mini sessions, Christmas card, and Santa Sessions.
Speaker:Is what if, for instance, outsourcing your editing to someone that you can
Speaker:trust, allowed you to take on more clients and make more money, all
Speaker:while decreasing your turnaround time for when you deliver your galleries.
Speaker:That's exactly what my friend Nicole offers to her clients.
Speaker:As a photographer herself and a photo editor, she helps photographers save
Speaker:time and serve their people well, and she knows how to edit photos really well
Speaker:and with care Plus, she's lightning fast.
Speaker:This is a great example of choosing your capacity and your mental
Speaker:wellbeing over driving yourself crazy and running yourself dry, and
Speaker:I hope that you'll think about it.
Speaker:Here's another reason that it might be time to outsource in your business.
Speaker:Are you in a season where you're trying to scale?
Speaker:Now, last year I attended a one day conference for business women called
Speaker:the Empower Her Cossum, and one of the speakers who is a business and
Speaker:productivity coach, and also happens to be my friend Jade Boyd, she
Speaker:shared that the basic idea behind scaling is to increase your revenue.
Speaker:While you're keeping your expenses low.
Speaker:So my question for you is, what if it was possible for you to scale
Speaker:your business by outsourcing?
Speaker:I know, I know that sounds counterintuitive because you do
Speaker:have to pay whoever you're bringing on to help you in your business.
Speaker:But hear me out, what if outsourcing allowed you to take
Speaker:on even just one more client?
Speaker:Is outsourcing setting you up to scale and make more money, even if
Speaker:technically you added this new expense.
Speaker:Take this example for a spin.
Speaker:What if the cost of outsourcing whatever task you wanted was $500 a month?
Speaker:And by doing so, you were able to bring in an additional $1,500
Speaker:a month because you had the time to serve another client or two.
Speaker:Now that math is a win in my book.
Speaker:I've got two more reasons for you to consider if outsourcing is right for you.
Speaker:Here's the next one.
Speaker:Black Friday is coming up, and if you are a creative business owner,
Speaker:chances are that you're considering launching something new this holiday
Speaker:season or maybe offering a stellar deal on what it means to work with you.
Speaker:What could a launch look like if you asked for help either
Speaker:at home or in your business?
Speaker:Launching is a great time to consider outsourcing.
Speaker:Now, I've done my fair share of launching alone when my business was brand new,
Speaker:and most of the time I convinced myself that I needed to go it alone because
Speaker:only I was uniquely qualified and familiar with my business and my goals.
Speaker:I would tell myself things like, you can't afford to ask for help.
Speaker:Or your strategy is a mess and everyone's going to laugh at you, or you're
Speaker:not even sure this offer will work.
Speaker:Why would you waste your time sharing this idea with someone else who will
Speaker:see you for the imposter that you are?
Speaker:Yeah, there were many moments of negative self-talk in my early days of business,
Speaker:and so if you're there too, welcome to the club, but I've got to tell you.
Speaker:It is possible to shed those thoughts and move into a better head space.
Speaker:What shifted for me was working on my own self-worth and opening
Speaker:myself up to being vulnerable.
Speaker:I did this with the help and support of my wellness coach, Kim Diamond.
Speaker:If you haven't yet listened to episode eight, this podcast where Kim and I chat
Speaker:all about my journey and why business ownership just feels so darned vulnerable.
Speaker:I recommend it.
Speaker:Anyway, if we fast forward to this past spring, I was planning my launch strategy
Speaker:for StorySale my group coaching program for creative women, and this time around,
Speaker:after doing all of that inner work, I knew that I couldn't launch this alone.
Speaker:After I set up my content calendar for my launch, I looked
Speaker:to see what I could outsource.
Speaker:I ended up outsourcing my blog writing for my own business.
Speaker:Shout out to Natty.
Speaker:You are amazing,
Speaker:and I outsource some of my launch emails.
Speaker:Thanks to my email coach Shannon, Mrs.
Speaker:Vondy and her team.
Speaker:This helped me immensely to ease my workload and allowed me time
Speaker:to rest in the midst of my launch.
Speaker:And here's what happened.
Speaker:My launch felt relaxed, not frantic, not stressed.
Speaker:I had such a sense of ease throughout the promotional period that I just
Speaker:never had with previous launches.
Speaker:Now, note here, I said ease.
Speaker:Now, it wasn't an easy launch, but I felt at ease and at peace
Speaker:in meaningful ways, and that alone is a huge success and is worth
Speaker:celebrating with a margarita in hand.
Speaker:And trust me, I did.
Speaker:But here's the bonus.
Speaker:It was one of the most successful launches financially that I've ever had.
Speaker:The last clue that it might be time to consider outsourcing in your business
Speaker:is if you feel like you've plateaued, whether you're feeling unexcited by the
Speaker:work you're doing, or you don't know what your next step in business looks like.
Speaker:I'm a big believer in shaking things up and in asking for help to find
Speaker:that spark in your business again.
Speaker:Sometimes having a fresh set of eyes on your business can help you bring new
Speaker:ideas to the forefront and can re-energize your processes or your services.
Speaker:When I've hit plateaus in my business, I typically start by looking for education.
Speaker:I am a former teacher and as a lover of learning, I know myself well enough
Speaker:to trust that diving into a mastermind or a course or a coaching relationship.
Speaker:Is really effective in helping me snap out of my funk.
Speaker:Last year when I hired my coach, Sabrina Gehart, who is a lifestyle family and
Speaker:newborn photographer and a business coach in Texas, I really felt unsure
Speaker:of where to go next in my business, but I felt a spark inside of me to
Speaker:return to teaching in some capacity.
Speaker:Not in formal education, not in the classroom, but as a
Speaker:business owner this time.
Speaker:And now while learning from a photographer may seem like an odd
Speaker:choice for me as a copywriter, it's no secret that photographers are
Speaker:my favorite people to write for.
Speaker:Plus, Sabrina has been teaching and coaching for years, and I knew
Speaker:that I would learn so much from her experience in supporting creative women.
Speaker:I am sharing all of this with you today because sometimes outsourcing
Speaker:looks like asking for someone to dream alongside you, to make plans
Speaker:for those dreams and to hold you accountable as you work to achieve them.
Speaker:And honestly, that's what working with Sabrina has done for me.
Speaker:Choosing to outsource in your life or in your business can feel
Speaker:intimidating or even risky at times.
Speaker:But I've got to tell you, some of the best things have happened in
Speaker:my business and in my life when I've stopped doing it all alone.
Speaker:I hope this encourages you to consider what your life or your
Speaker:business could look like if you delegate tasks to the talented,
Speaker:capable people that are out there.
Speaker:I know that you can do it, and I'm cheering you on.
Speaker:As always,
Speaker:thanks for listening and until next time, this is your
Speaker:copywriter on call signing off.
Speaker:Thanks for listening to The Copywriter On Call podcast.
Speaker:If this episode has you feeling all sorts of inspired to show up as yourself online,
Speaker:click that subscribe button so you don't miss my stories or practical advice to
Speaker:help you express your quirky, vulnerable, and authentic self online chat soon.
