When To Stop and Ask For Help

Feeling overwhelmed by all the different functions that your small business needs to have in order to be successful and efficient? You are not alone – accounting, finance, marketing, sales, management, human resources, and any other areas where your business has hired employees for can be a lot to take on. Business owners sometimes feel the need to hire more people or give more responsibility to one person which can backfire; hiring more means spending more and giving more responsibility to one person when they may or may not be well versed in the area can be a dangerous path to go down. That’s why there is outside help and sometimes business owners need to learn when to stop and ask for help.

Depending on what industry you are in, hiring outside help may be beneficial. Paying an outside marketing firm to do your mail outs, e-mail campaigns, maintain your website and social media can take a huge stressor off the plate. These small things may seem like a hassle or even seem unimportant, but they are huge if you want to get your name out there and generate more business. Additionally, as we have discussed in previous blog posts, you can also network which does a lot of your marketing for you. By joining a networking organization or group, you attend and participate in a comfortable environment, and have the business generated for you. But your online presence is massively important and some business owners just don’t have the time to make sure that all their bases are covered. By hiring outside help, this can diminish your time spent slaving over the computer and more time out making sales, but it also helps because these website/SEO/social media companies focus on your company fully. You pay them to be focused and dedicated to your online presence, in a more attentive way then the average small business owner could. Scared to spend on an outside firm? Create your website on a website designer that has great analytics tools and readily accessible help – this can also help diminish the stress that comes with managing your online presence.

Financial, selling, and accounting can be pricier when it comes to getting outside help, but it’s not infeasible. There are small accounting firms that help small businesses get going and get moving. Hiring an additional employee to cover these areas may be a better course of action if you, the owner, are overwhelmed. You can train the employee to cover more ground with finance and accounting. Depending on what industry you are involved in, outside sales may be beneficial or it may be beneficial to hire one salesman to conduct all of your sales. Be sure to train your new employees to be fully versed in company ideals, your mission and everything in between. The more knowledgeable the employee, the better they can sell your product or service.

There is a lot to take into account when it comes to asking for help, but recognize when it is time to do so. If you find your business suffering due to lack of time spent creating your product or doing your service, then it might be time to consider getting additional help. Are you spending more hours on administrative tasks then you are living your life and enjoying your business? This could mean the time to hire outside help or hire another employee. Growing your business is important, but it shouldn’t be overwhelming. Do your research, ask current employees and look at how business is doing in order to decide your next step.