Growing your Home Based Business with Contractors
A while back, I posted this - Outsourcing for the Home-Based Business. It talks about some reasons why a home-based business will need help along the way. To expand on that a bit, you really can't grow your home-based business unless you get some help. Some areas where outside help is commonly needed are
- Bookkeeping
- Order taking
- Shipping and Fulfillment
- Filing
- Telephone Customer Service
Assuming you have a procedure in place for these kinds of things, it's often better to hand them off so that you can focus on the activities that build and grow your business. When some people think of 'getting help' they think of hiring employees. But you don't have to actually hire someone to pay them to help you. You can take them on as an independent contractor. This is different than taking on an employee and leaves both parties with much more freedom in the arrangement.
There is some recordkeeping you'll need to do if you hire a contractor (although it pales in comparison to the recordkeeping you would have to do if you actually hired someone as an employee).
First, you should mutually sign a contract. You can find Independent Contractor Form templates here at All Business. The contract should stipulate such things as the work you intend for them to do, the length of the contract, the payment rate, schedules and other pertinent details.
Second, you will need to file with the Internal Revenue Service. Again, this filing is far easier than the tax reporting you would have to do with an employee. You can refer to Jillian Dearing's post - IRS Forms W-9 and 1099 Overview; that information applies to you if you hire contractors.
In reality, most home-based businesses aren't typically set up to take on employees. So contractor relationships are a natural fit to help you grow your business!
