I remember the first day of starting up my very own eCommerce business.
I had to do everything myself from researching the product, setting up the Shopify store, editing the video, to running the ads.
And let me tell you…
It wasn’t easy being a one-man army.
And after all that, I started getting a lot of comments and chats asking about the product.
I quickly realized that I didn’t have any time.
I poured all my free time into the business.
If you’re an aspiring entrepreneur, and you relate to that struggle, I’ve got just the tips to help you delegate your business so you can free up your time.
👉 Tip#1: Setup systems
You have to document the processes for your business no matter how small. Little things snowball overtime. And you’ll find it easier later on if you’ve set up systems and streamlined your process.
One example I can give is when I was flooded with chats and comments asking about the product.
I sat down and wrote down the common questions people asked about the product:
How much is it? Where was it manufactured? What is it made of? What if it doesn’t work? Etc.
Doing that made it easy to organize into scripts that a potential employee could copy-paste from and modify based on the needs of the customer asking for information.
This also gave me insight on what concerns my customers had about the product. The more information you have, the better you can improve your process.
Now, the next step after you setup systems to follow is…
👉 Tip#2: Look for someone to hire
Starting businesses can find freelancers on Upwork, Online Jobs, and other websites. But you can also find quality applicants by posting on LinkedIn or Facebook groups.
Just write a post with the following details:
✅ What the job is?
✅ What the requirements are?
✅ What your expectations are?
✅ How much is the salary?
Of course, documenting the process for the applicant isn’t enough. Sometimes, their job is complex or you are hiring for a job you’re not skilled at (e.g., video editors).
That’s no problem. At the end of the day, you still have expectations on what kind of work you’d like them to produce.
In this case, make a test project for them that also reflects the job they’ll be doing in the company. This will give you an idea of how they will do as your employee.
For our example of customer service representative, give them test questions to find out how they will answer customer questions. For a video editor, give them a test project to edit from scratch to see if they can edit the way you want them to.
From there, you can build your hiring criteria. But of course, this isn’t where the hiring process ends. Before hiring a new employee, it’s recommended to do…
👉 Tip#3: Interviews
Now, conducting interviews means something different for every hiring manager. But at the end of the day, you’re looking for the right people, in the right seats.
Getting this right will remove a huge burden off your chest. Having a team means you have the support of other people to rely on in your business.
For my company, we hire based on core values.
I believe people can be trained, but if we don’t share the same values, the employee won’t be a good fit for the company over time.
Likeminded employees can be your thought partner in providing solutions to your company’s problems.
But if you’re starting out, it’s perfectly okay to hire based solely on skills.
If you want to learn more about getting the right people in the right seats, I highly recommend reading Traction by Gino Wickman.
I’ve picked up a lot of great hiring tips from his book that can help you command attention and gain employees’ trust.
Now, if the interview goes well, you’ve hired a new employee (congrats! 👏)
But this is not time to celebrate just yet. Your work as a hiring manager doesn’t stop after you’ve hired someone. There’s still one more thing to do to make sure business is running smoothly…
👉 Tip#4: Help them do the work
Your job changes from doing all the work to helping your employees do the work.
That means you have to give feedback. You should be able to tell them when they’re doing well, or… Not so well.
And if they’re not performing the way you want, then it becomes your job to teach and guide them back to the right path.
Managing is a whole different skill set, but it sure beats having to do all the work on your own!
Setup KPI’s and metrics so that you and your employees know how the business is performing. This is very much related to the first tip.
Once you have your systems setup and tasks delegated to your employees, that frees up your time to tackle bigger problems: Like getting more sales!
I hope these tips have put you in the leadership mindset.
Practice these tips with active listening and making your employees feel valued, and you’ll have a smooth business flow without the need to run around and do everything on your own.
