Freelancers A to Z #004. 5 Things You Need to Know Before You Hire a Virtual Assistant
In this issue of Freelancers A to Z. The Articles Every Freelancer Needs to Read
you’ll learn everything you should know before you hire a virtual assistant.
This posts starts The Outsourcing Month. Virtual assistants, outsourcing tasks and delegating business tasks - this will be the main theme on our blog in March.
Plus: every week together with Weekend Startup Warriors I’ll be co-hosting an IG Live session about outsourcing.
The first session will take place on Monday, March the 2nd at 8:30PM London time (3:30PM USA East Coast).
We’ll be talking about why having help is so important to grow a business and when is it the right time to get help.
To tune in follow our IG profile. And spread the word! Invite your fellow freelancers/business owners to join The Outsourcing Month.
Now, are you ready to dive in?
1
How Virtual Assistants Can Help?
Business owners tend to take everything on their own shoulders and struggle as a result. Can you relate to this?
With the daily tasks that must be completed piling on top of additional business duties, frustration and exhaustion can set in quickly. That is why a virtual assistant is one of the best things a business owner can have.
The Article How to Grow Your Business With Virtual Assistants (Infographic), written by Felix Tarcomnicu on Entreprenur.com, really details how virtual assistants can help.
Tarcomnicu outlines how one of the biggest weaknesses of entrepreneurs is their lack of organization. They have so much work to complete that the need to keep organized is often placed last on the long list of tasks that need to be accomplished.
That is where virtual assistants shine.
By keeping books balanced, mail filtered, items organized, and other little tasks done, the business owner can put their sole focus on the business.
That is why the business of becoming a virtual assistant has remained popular; there is always someone, somewhere, who could use help staying organized.
No business owner should overlook the benefits of hiring a virtual assistant. There is nothing to be ashamed of for needing help.
One person cannot handle an entire business on their own, especially once it begins to take off.
2
What is The Cost Of Virtual Assistants?
The first hurdle that you might see is the cost of working with a virtual assistant.
It could be assumed that people who work in that area cost a lot to hire. That isn’t necessarily true as the article Can You Afford a VA? How Much a Virtual Assistant Costs, written by Jess Tyson points out. She explains simply how different factors influence how much a virtual assistant will cost.
Compared to a regular employee, a virtual assistant costs much less.
They can be paid hourly, instead of on a salary. In addition, they cost less because the business does not have to pay them benefits.
Experience is one of the main aspects.
There is a big difference between a virtual assistant who has been doing their job for five weeks, versus five years. The hourly rate will be less for an assistant who has less experience.
Another important thing that influences price is what kind of jobs the assistant would complete.
Some VA’s would only book hotels, manage calendars or complete light data entry. Others would do video editing, email marketing or copywriting. Depending on the service, the cost changes. Typically, virtual assistants charge $10 to $100 dollars per hour.
As a business owner you shouldn’t be turned away by potential prices.
What virtual assistants can bring to the table far outweighs the costs that will be incurred. Virtual assistants don’t have to be hired for years at a time, in fact most of them prefer a month to month basis, or even by project. So, don’t hesitate!
3
Where To Hire a Virtual Assistant?
Once you’ve decided to hire a virtual assistant, deciding where to find one can be an important choice.
There are an overwhelming number of websites out there to find assistants and filtering through the muck can be difficult.
The Best Sites to Hire a Virtual Assistant. The author of this article went through the Internet and handpicked the best websites to find talented VA’s that can help businesses.
Upwork and Fiverr (my favourite!!!) are two of the most popular websites to hire virtual assistants.
They are popular for good reason.
Both of them allow interested businesses to hire assistants on a project to project basis, or for a short time only. The number of virtual assistants on both of these sites allow entrepreneurs to find exactly what they are looking for.
Experience on these sites shows through five-star reviews, a well put together bio and page, and clear instructions to hire their services.
Share, like, follow
4
What Are the Most Common Tasks Virtual Assistants Can Do?
After you’ve hired a VA the first – and hardest – step is to give them tasks to complete on a daily basis.
It is important to make sure that the virtual assistant is lifting weight off the shoulders of the business owner and they won’t accomplish that by working on things that have no real impact.
The cost of paying the salary of a virtual assistant must be worthwhile.
On Chris Duckers Blog, he details twenty-five tasks that virtual assistants can complete.
His blog post is extremely helpful to any entrepreneur who has recently hired a virtual assistant and wants to make the most of the time they have with their employee during working hours.
Management of emails, booking appointments with customers, completing topic research, personal errands and calendar management are just the tip of the many things virtual assistants can do.
Throughout his blog, Chris Ducker helps newcomers to the virtual assistant world see the true potential they have to reduce stress and raise success.
Of course, those twenty-five tasks are not the only things a virtual assistant can do, but it is an excellent starting point to branch out from.
5
Long Term Outlook
The long-term outlook for hiring virtual assistants is very good.
There is no need for you to worry about relying on VA’s and then having them disappear from the job market.
The website Virtual Assistant: Job Description & Salary really shows that with data. There is a projected 3% increase in jobs from 2014 – 2024. While that isn’t a large increase, it shows that the job market will remain stable with a slight uptick.
There is no need to stress that virtual assistants will suddenly shift to another job and leave you trying to find someone else.
Virtual assistants are here to stay because the potential for them to make a decent wage is not slowing in the slightest.
It is important to do research and figure out what is needed from a virtual assistant. It will make it easier on the employee and employer in the long run.
6
All work and no play…
As always, the last thing I would like to share with you is music. It has a special place in my life. For that reason I listen to music when I work. Hoverer, as some of you already know, it’s also because I want to cut off the noise caused by my neighbors.
This time something special. If you like jazz you’ll be delighted. If you think jazz is nothing for you, just give it a try.
Skalpel is a Polish nu jazz duo. As Wikipedia says: Their musical style is a distinctive blend of hip hop beats, laced with samples lifted from the rich seam of Polish jazz records of the 1960s and 1970s.
Hope you’ll enjoy it! Let me know in comments below if you like it!
Last but not least: in the next issue your playlist can appear in this place. So leave in comments your favourite music that you love to listen when you work.
One last thing
In the comments below let me know what do you think about this issue of Freelancers A to Z. Tell me what do you like, what is not so good, what do you want more of. I need to know everything.
Also, if you like it, please sign up for updates, so that you will not miss the next post. You can find the form below.
And stay tuned for the next blog posts in our The Outsourcing Month series.
Take care and have a nice time
Mariusz from the Time Continuum App