Hiring a Virtual Assistant for your Small Business

When setting up a small business, it can often be challenging as we can end up solely managing most of the business’s workload and many find it difficult to balance it on a daily basis. A full-time assistant does seem like the solution to this, but it can be very expensive to hire them and too much of a commitment for some new business owners, especially in terms of increased utility fees and insurance. This is where the convenience of a virtual assistant steps in.

What is a Virtual Assistant?

A virtual assistant (VA) is a remote online helping-hand who takes on tasks for you in order to reduce your overall workload, and can be situated anywhere in the world. A VA is usually an individual but can sometimes be comprised of a whole company of employees. These two kinds of VAs suit different businesses and business owners, depending on their needs.

With an individual, there is an opportunity for getting to know the person who will be taking on various jobs and tasks in your business. This is especially good for business owners who are sensitive about their business data. Having someone you can directly contact, converse with regularly and train to your standards are bonus features of an individual VA.

VA companies are also very helpful, especially for businesses with greater needs as they can manage larger jobs and project work by allocating tasks to multiple employees who can collaboratively get the work done faster than an individual could.

What kind of help can a Virtual Assistant provide?

Depending on the type of business you run, a VA can offer lots of help, especially with your online presence. Tasks they can generally perform include managing schedules, running customer service, taking on admin tasks, order fulfilment, managing social media accounts and campaigns, accounting, etc. The list goes on, and each task depends on the skillset of the VA in mind, however training for a particular task could be an option.

Keeping in touch with VAs via email and messaging is a great way to send quick notifications but video calls are a better way to build a relationship and explain the business and its goals in full.

Advice on hiring a Virtual Assistant

Before hiring, consider how close you want to work with a VA and implement these thoughts when choosing someone. Think about what tasks you can pass on that a VA will be able to perform with or without specific training, and if you are experienced enough in this task to explain what needs to be done with it. Consider how many hours should be dedicated to it.