Outsourcing is an essential part of the modern SME. There is one key factor that you must remember about an SME. It needs to stay competitive and lean to stay afloat in the market. To do this, you must work to cut costs and save money in your business model. There are a variety of ways to do this, but outsourcing is by far one of the best.

When you outsource, you will be handing off part of your business to another company. Essentially, they will have free control over this sector of your company. The benefit? You will only be paying one fixed cost for this service. However, if you do not make careful considerations, it can also lead to serious issues. So, let’s make sure you understand how to outsource correctly.

What Areas Should Be Outsourced

Generally speaking, you can outsource any area of your business. However, most companies tend to focus on the most important sections, such as legal areas. You may be aware that legal personnel can cost a fortune. However, with outsourcing, this issue can be rectified. Rather than hiring individuals, you can get a full team for HR services. They’ll handle all the areas of HR in your company for you and ensure that the costs don’t balloon.

Other areas might include IT support. IT support is another area of the business where costs tend to grow out of control. Since this type of support is so essential staff can often demand a far higher pay grade than business owners typically expect.

You may want to avoid outsourcing areas of your business that are directly related to your customers. For instance, call handling does require a lot of staff. However, these individuals are going to be speaking to your customers as the main part of their job. As such, you might want to keep a tighter reign on quality control, ensuring customers aren’t turned off by a poor service.

Choosing The Right Outsourcing Company

Arguably, the best way to choose an outsourcing business is to check the customer and client reviews. Make sure that other businesses are pleased with the service that this company has provided. If they are, there’s a fantastic possibility that they could provide a great level of support for your company. You do, however, want to avoid opting for the cheapest service. In this industry, you often get what you pay for.

Spending a little more may allow you access to a service that uses sophisticated technology which can lead to far better results on the market.

Should You Outsource?

It’s an interesting question. Working in certain industries, you might be in the position where you can provide your own outsourcing service to companies. This can be a fantastic way to boost your profit margin and make your business a more powerful source on the market. To outsource successfully, you will need to build up a solid reputation on the market and ensure that you are trusted by customers and clients.

We hope that this shines some light over the complex possibility of outsourcing in your company.

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When you first start out in business on your own, it’s easy to believe that you’re going to be on your own for a while. And in some circumstances, you may be. But that may not always be the case. Whether you run your own freelance business or you’re a self-employed start up owner, you’ll find that as your business grows, you may need some staff to support your operations. But when you’ve been so used to being on your own, and you’ve never hired anyone before, you may not know exactly how to go about hiring that first employee. So let’s walk through the steps.

Work Out What You Want

First of all, you need to be able to know exactly what you want from your first employee. Whether their role is going to be quite general, or something very specific, it’s important that you know what you need help with, so that you can find the best person for the job. So, at this point, you need to write down all of the things you’re going to need from the person in question. Whether it’s email assistance and general admin or financial support and sales, figure it out now before you try to take someone on.

Write Out A Job Spec

Now that you have that all figured out, you’re going to be able to write up your job description. And for this, you need to be as informative as possible. You should be able to highlight all of the duties that you need your first employee to have, as well as information on what their desired skills and experience should be. This is especially going to be the case if you need them to be skilled in a particular field, or experienced with a certain program or software.

Start By Yourself

Then, you’re going to want to have a go at finding your first employee yourself. In the online world, there are so many ways that you’re able to advertise a vacancy, that it’s always a great place to start. Look out for local job boards, head to LinkedIn and try posting on other social media platforms too. You should find that you will get an overwhelming response and will have to be quite stringent with your shortlisting.

Call In The Pros

However, if you’re unable to see much success by posting online yourself, don’t give up. Instead, you may just need some assistance from professionals in their field. And for this, you should definitely think about using specialists like Portfolio Credit Control rather than going generic. Because sometimes, when you need to fill a particular role, you need recruitment consultants that know the field and what candidates should fill it.

Make Your Questions Count

Then, when it comes to the interviewing process, you need to be able to ensure that you pick out the right person for the job, and the questions you ask can often help with that. So make sure that you do your research first, formulate a strong question sheet, and can get the answers you need from the people you interview to find the perfect person to hire.

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You don’t need us to tell you about the wealth gap in the UK. There’s enough about it on the news to give us all sleepless nights. But, a brief look at the current property market suggests another problem is creeping up – a divide between generations.

Once upon a time, 100% mortgages meant anyone could own a home. This was possible because house prices were lower, and the risks weren’t as high. But, a mixture of failure to pay, and rising home prices, have made the 100% mortgage a thing of the past. Now, young people have to save an average of £33,000, simply to get a mortgage. Need we remind you that a whole house cost that much not so long ago?

To make matters worse, we’re trapped in a wage stagnation situation, and young people are the worst hit. Since the recession of 2008, salaries for those aged 22-30 have fallen 7%. Add that to ever increasing house prices, and we’re trapped in an impossible situation. In many ways, it seems as though the only young people in with a chance are those who come into money.

But does this mean that the rest of us should give up? Not by any means. Though, it will take a fair amount of work to get on that first rung of the ladder. The main issue is the fact that house prices are ever changing. As little as a few years ago, you could afford to take your time saving a big deposit. Now, though, you don’t have that luxury. The issue, of course, is that the average deposit would take the majority at least three years to save. By which time, the housing market could easily have skyrocketed again. This is especially worrying with the uncertain effects of Brexit still hanging over the housing market.

Hence, you need to find a way to save a lot of money, fast. It won’t be an easy task, but keep your end goal in mind, and know that it could be now or never. To help you on your journey, we’ve put together a few fast deposit pointers.

Know how much you need

Knowing how much you need to save is essential when you start out. Without a set amount in mind, there’s no way you can keep to a set timeframe. Of course, working out the average deposit isn’t as easy as it might sound. It varies greatly from region to region. For example, prices in London average at £500,000, while that drops to £150,000 in the North-east. So, take this time to consider where your dream area would be. It may be worth opting for a cheaper postcode while you’re starting out.

Then, consider how large your deposit would need to be to afford a basic property. Bear in mind that this is unlikely to be a home which lasts forever. The trick to the property ladder is getting on it by any means necessary. Look at homes which suit your needs, but don’t push yourself for the sake of an idyllic space. If it has enough bedrooms, it’ll serve your purpose.

Your best chance of gaining an idea of prices is to keep an eye on the property market. Once you’ve gotten used to trends and pricing, make your deposit plan. Write down your set amount, and determine how much you’d need to save each month to get it in your timeframe.

Drastically reduce your spending

Considering you’re looking to save quickly, it’s time to reduce your monthly expenses as much as possible. Don’t put yourself on the breadline to do this, but accept that you may have to go without some things. If you’re currently renting, move back in with family. It’s not ideal, but they’re sure to want to help if it’s only for a year or so. Put the money you would be paying on rent straight into your savings.

Other than that, cut out small luxuries. You don’t need them, and yet they probably account for a significant amount of your budget. Stay in rather than eating out. Don’t get that monthly takeaway. You could even cut unnecessary food costs by writing a shopping list instead of winging it. Small steps like this will take you a long way towards home ownership.

Find extra earning potential

As a sideline, you could also find ways to boost your earnings with a second income. How you do this is up to you. You could opt to get a second job. If you work full-time already, consider the hours you have free. Weekend jobs, or cleaning jobs in the evenings, are always good options.

Or, perhaps you want to have more control over your second income. In that case, consider online money making methods. If you’re crafty, set up an online shop and get selling. If you have a good idea and a way with words, why not start a blog and see if you can earn that way?

Or, consider borrowing the money

If the above sounds like a sacrifice too many, consider whether you could borrow the money. If possible, borrowing from a family member is your best bet. That way, you won’t have to pay high-interest rates. If you take this route, though, make sure to keep things official. Write up a contract and a repayment plan so that you can clear the debt at a rate which suits. This will make everyone involved feel more at ease.

If you have most of the money, but your savings have been stagnating, you could opt for options like installment loans. By taking this step, you can borrow money, and set up clear repayment schemes to rid yourself of debt.

Bear in mind that the key to making this option work is to remain realistic. Consider that you’ll be paying your mortgage, and your lender. With that in mind, only borrow an amount you’ll easily be able to return. Otherwise, you could lose your home anyway.

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Whatever the occasion that’s coming up, it can be very difficult to get the perfect gift for your loved one. You want to show them how special they are for you, but money might be too tight to buy diamonds, games consoles, holidays, or other expensive things every single year. Here are some tips on how to treat your loved ones to something special without going broke in the process.

Give them the day off.

Whether it’s your mum or your best friend, nobody can say no to putting their feet up for a day whilst you look after them. You could cook your loved one’s favourite meal, as this won’t break the bank and it’s an incredibly thoughtful gift. You have to actually put effort into this one rather than simply heading into the shop and simply buying something (unless you’re cooking a ready meal, but you might want to put in a little more effort than that). It doesn’t matter how you choose to treat your loved one; just show them how much you care and how much effort you’re willing to put in to give them a rest on their birthday or whatever the occasion might be.

Get a good bulk deal.

Rather than spending a lot of money on one specific thing, you could save by buying items in bulk or a bundle of things for one decent price. You could look into cheese hampers if your loved one is a big fan of different cheeses. Then you could dish out one new cheese for every occasion (birthdays, Christmases, and perhaps even anniversaries). The point is that you can save a lot of money by thinking ahead into the future for other events at which you’ll need to buy your loved one something special. You can be thoughtful and still save money; it just requires additional planning ahead of time. Bulk-buy for a good price and rid yourself of your gift-buying fear for future occasions.

Give them a sentimental gift.

It’ll make more of an impact on your loved one if you gift them with something that shows just how much you care about them. Photo albums are a great sentimental gift, for example, because they showcase all the great times you’ve shared with your friend, partner, or family member. They’re also tangible unlike Facebook photo albums, so it’s something that your loved one can keep safe forever. Of course, you might prefer to make new memories rather than reflecting on old ones. You could give an experience as a gift to your loved one. A trip to a fair or a lovely day on the beach is something that they’ll remember forever, and that’s far more fun as a present than some novelty expensive item that’ll be forgotten very quickly.

Opt for long-lasting gifts.

If you’re going to spend money on a gift then it might as well as be something relatively permanent, so that your gift makes an impact on your loved one for a long time. Candles are a great option in this regard because they add a beautiful ambiance and fragrance to a room, they last a long time, and they’re very cheap.

It doesn’t matter what you buy, at the end of the day. What matters is your intention. It’s better to spend nothing and hand-craft a beautifully sentimental gift than to spend a lot of money on something into which you put no thought at all.

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