Do you feel like you’re constantly running to keep up with your workload? Even when you’re working your tail off, tasks keep coming at you. It seems like there’s always something to do. But we all have only so many hours in the day—and not all of us can be as super-productive as Steve Jobs was. So what’s a busy business owner to do? Delegate! If you find yourself buried in tasks and unable to get ahead, hiring a virtual assistant may be the answer. A VA is a perfect partner for any small business owner who can only give 80% of their time. They have the ability to take on many responsibilities that may not directly impact your bottom line, but will free up time for more profitable endeavors.
When is the right time to hire a Virtual Assistant?
If you’re feeling overwhelmed with the increasing demands on your time, it’s a good idea to hire a virtual assistant as soon as possible. If you can’t find the time to complete simple administrative tasks, then you might want to consider hiring an assistant. If you find that phone calls, emails, or texts are interrupting your work flow, consider hiring someone part-time. Even if you’re only able to hire someone for a couple hours per week, you’ll likely be amazed at the results. If you have a business model that requires you to spend most of your time away from the office, you may want to hire a Virtual Assistant. A Virtual Assistant can handle a variety of tasks from organizing your email, booking travel arrangements, creating presentations, or even meeting with clients.
Research and Interviewing
When hiring a virtual assistant for the first time, you’ll probably want to hire someone you’ve worked with before, whether it’s through a friend, or fellow entrepreneur. You may also want to reach out to a virtual staffing agency. Make sure to do thorough research before hiring. Choose the right person for the job. Make sure they have the skills, and traits necessary to be successful in the role. You want them to excel in their tasks, so that you can be free to do what you do best. If you’re interviewing a virtual assistant for the first time, spend some time getting to know them. You want to choose someone who is a good fit for your business. Hire someone who understands what your business culture is. You also want to hire someone who is motivated and driven, and who is able to work independently.
Administrative Tasks
The administrative tasks you can delegate will vary from person to person. However, the most common administrative tasks that you may delegate to a virtual assistant are: - Bookkeeping - Virtual assistants can create reports for your accountant and can be responsible for keeping track of your company’s finances. If you are using a virtual assistant for bookkeeping, you should make sure that there are strict confidentiality policies in place.
Email management: Hire a virtual assistant who can help you to keep your inbox from overflowing. Ideally, your assistant should be able to respond to emails on your behalf. They don’t need to be able to answer every single one, but they should be able to handle the most common emails.
Meeting or event scheduling: It’s best to use a virtual assistant for scheduling events, rather than using an online booking site. It’s not a good idea to force your customers to use an online scheduler. It’s much more efficient to have a virtual assistant create and update the calendars manually.
Business Growth Tasks
Business growth tasks are things your assistant might do that won’t directly produce revenue, but will help your business to grow. These tasks may include:
Creating or updating business plans: Virtual assistants can create business plans for you, or they can create them for you, and then provide you with a polished document.
Creating business or marketing plans: If you need help putting together a marketing plan or a business plan, a VA can help with this.
Creating or updating presentations: Virtual assistants can help with creating PowerPoint presentations that you can use in person or online. They can also help you to create presentations that you can use to train your employees.
Researching new products or markets: If you need help researching markets, new products, or competition, a virtual assistant can help with this.
Marketing Tasks
Marketing tasks can include anything from creating a blog to sending out newsletters. Many marketing tasks can be completed remotely, so you can hire a virtual assistant to take care of these tasks for you. Some marketing tasks your assistant can do include:
Creating content: Virtual assistants can create blogs, presentations, videos, or other types of content for your website.
Website management: A virtual assistant can help with website updates, and they can also manage your website for you.
Email marketing: You can use email marketing to generate new leads, and also to stay in touch with your customers. You can hire a virtual assistant to create email campaigns for you.
Social media management: You can use social media to promote your business, and a virtual assistant can help you with this.
Final Words
If you’re feeling overwhelmed with the increasing demands on your time, it’s a good idea to hire a virtual assistant as soon as possible. When you do hire an assistant, make sure that you set expectations for their work. You don’t want to be responsible for their training. You want to make sure that you’re hiring a virtual assistant who can take on a variety of tasks, so that you can be freed up to do what you do best.