One of the toughest things about creating a startup is that you are likely to have a small team with a lot to do. Each person will be stretching themselves across various roles. Yes, it can be exhilarating, but it’s entirely unsustainable. At some point, you will need to invest in expertise – and this is where problems can start.
Bridging the gap between your knowledge and that of your employees is hard. It needs an investment of some kind, whether time or money. And, given that most startups are already running on shoestring budgets, it’s a thankless task.
There are options, however. In today’s guide, we’re going to run through some of the ways you can bridge that knowledge gap. We hope it will help you ensure you have the right expertise in place to get the job done to perfection. Read on to find out more.
College Degrees 360Identify the skills gaps
The first step in the process is to identify areas where you are lacking. Everyone in your startup will have skills in a particular area, and it’s important they have the opportunity to focus on those skills. Look at what is taking them away from being productive – and run a similar time audit on yourself, too. There is an element of ‘doing everything’ in all startups, of course. But there will be visible problem areas that should be your primary concern.
Look at immediate need
You should also take into consideration where your business lies in its development. If for example, you are software developers close to launching, it is going to be essential to start marketing your product. Unless your team has the right skills in marketing, it’s going to be time to find a third party. Outsourcing can take away a lot of your pains – as long as you find a company that matches your expectations.
Subject specific help
Let’s say that everyone is pitching in with the online marketing of your product. You all have a basic understanding of SEO and content, but because of the vast array of work that needs doing, things are going to fall behind. There are a couple of ways to dig yourself out of this hole. First of all, you can outsource specific tasks to experts. But you can also look at using subject specific products to help you stay on track. For example, if you are struggling to entice visitors to your website, you might benefit from an SEO white label service. It can help you identify knowledge gaps in your SEO that you probably didn’t even know existed.
Reach out to other business owners for advice.
Big company owners had to start somewhere and with all their experience and knowledge they are usually happy to help! I reached out to Mamma as I wanted to start a discount site and the CEO replied and gave me some useful advice and we still stay in touch!
Slow-burning issue? Try training
There will be other areas of your startup that need work, but not right away. You can think about investing in training for your team members so that they can develop their skills over a fixed period. Keep your eyes on the bigger picture when considering training plans, though. Make sure that any courses you find are laser-focused on your business objectives. It’s pointless and a waste of money to invest in unnecessary training programs at any stage, let alone when you have limited funds.
Hope this has helped – let us know your thoughts!
