If you’ve been considering hiring a Virtual Assistant to help your business but you’re still not entirely sure about the whole thing, here are some tips to help demystify it all for you.
Virtual Assistants are becoming increasingly popular in today’s business world, especially in Perth where the need and desire for virtual assistance are growing every day.
As business owners, we often run many hats within the company, and over time, these tasks and responsibilities become overwhelming, especially as your business grows. Quite simply, it’s a struggle to keep up with it all.
When things get to this point, or even better before they get to this point, it’s a good idea to bring in some help, to outsource those tasks that are bogging you down each day and free up your time to focus on providing the services your business provides. This in turn will aid productivity and increase sales and revenue.
So what exactly does a Virtual Assistant do? Well, we do anything a normal Secretary or Executive Assistance would do, but it’s done remotely. A Personal Assistant to be on call daily or weekly as, when, or if work is required.
The beauty of hiring a Virtual Assistant is you don’t need to have office space, computer equipment, or insurance, these things are all-inclusive of the hourly rate of your assistant, together with their wealth of experience.
Before you start looking for a Virtual Assistant, do a bit of planning. What is it you need help with? Email Management, Diary & Bookings Management, Data Entry & Filing Management, Operational & Procedure Management, HR Assistance (hiring new staff, etc), Customer liaison, Event Planning? If you have an idea in your mind what areas of assistance you might need then it will assist in choosing the right VA for you.
As Virtual Assistants, we all specialise in different areas, depending on our past employment, experience, and skillset, so it’s important to make sure you choose the right Virtual Assistant that suits the skills and experience you need.
All VA’s should offer a Professional Profile that gives a rundown of their experience and current skill set to offer and assist with your business needs. If this is not supplied or do not feel there is enough information, you can ask for their previous employment CV. This should not be a problem for anyone who is offering an honest and open relationship with their clients. Personally, I believe in full transparency so I will always answer any questions my clients or potential clients have and if they request additional information on my experience, I am happy to provide this. You can also look at the reviews from previous clients which are normally displayed on websites or in FB posts etc.
Once you feel comfortable with a particular Virtual Assistant, their skill set, and what they can offer, then it’s time to meet up for a coffee and meet them in person. Alternatively, you can set up a phone call or Zoom chat if time isn’t on your side and gain an understanding of them and their personality to see if you are a good fit for one another. It’s important you feel comfortable with them as they will be your personal assistant who you trust with your business dealings on a day-to-day basis.
The next item to check is Insurance. All Virtual Assistants are required to hold Public Liability & Public Indemnity Insurance to ensure they adhere to confidentiality and data security laws, so be sure to ask if they have these 2 insurances as it is a very important factor. In addition, they should provide a confidentiality clause in their agreement or at least, a confidentiality statement included with their agreement.
Another matter to consider is if they are VA Certified! There are so many Virtual Assistants out there but only a handful of those have completed the Virtual Assistant course through the Australian Virtual Assistant Institute. Moving from the corporate world to the VA world can be quite different and some new skills and matters need to be learned. All VA’s who have completed this course will have it displayed on their website – and yes, I am VA Certified!
Last, but not least, make sure your newly chosen VA is open and regular with their communication. Be clear on how and what you want to be communicated with and how often. For example, you may want a daily update at the end of each day for the first couple of weeks, then move on to weekly updates every Friday or something similar that suits your specific needs. Having a weekly task list you provide and go through each Monday is also a great idea, however, in time a good VA will instinctively know what is required and be able to just get things done, knowing how you work, what you want, and what your budget is. Keeping your business flowing knowing it’s in safe hands.
Then it’s time for you to relax! Enjoy all the accomplishments you have made in your business, be confident you have a VA that knows what you want, your business can almost run without you (in the backend at least), and you can focus on the greater tasks at hand. Enjoy the life you dreamed of when you started the business.
Happy Days!
If you’d like to know more or would like a FREE no-obligation chat about how Perth Virtual Services can assist you, give us a call today or email us at admin@perthvirtualservices.com.au
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