Even successful entrepreneurs will admit that at times they have experienced a feeling of overwhelm in trying to manage their workload and run their business on their own, as they have felt they had to do everything.
As your business grows it becomes more and more difficult for one person to carry out all of the work and there is definitely not a rule book out there which says you have to! Outsourcing some of your work to a virtual assistant is something which should be seriously considered, even if you’re early on in your journey. By taking the time to find the right person for this role, you will soon alleviate that feeling of overwhelm and/or stress.
Most VAs are contract or freelance workers who work from home. There is not a task list available which all VAs are proficient in following but the tasks can be pretty diverse. VAs are professionals in their own right and like you, have fields of work and tasks that they love to do and are experts at, and those they don’t like doing.
Before outsourcing any work to a virtual assistant it is important to establish why you think hiring a VA will be beneficial to you and your business. Here are some of the key benefits of working with one (or a team of VAs).
A Virtual Assistant Frees Up Your Time And Energy
Hiring a VA frees up your time and energy from carrying out tasks that you are not good at, aren’t knowledgeable about or don’t like doing, leaving you to focus on doing things that need you to be the one that does them. You will likely have to spend some time upfront in guiding your new VA(s) on how you run things, but you will soon find routine, weekly tasks can be delegated. Quality of work and consistency will be improved, and you will feel more inspired as you are getting to work on the things you enjoy and do best.
You Have More Time For Other Skills
It can also boost your confidence and your well-being as you will be able to put more into self-care and self-development. This in turn will strengthen relationships and your business and you will learn leadership/management skills. Through spending YOUR time more purposefully, you will be able to take on new things like speaking gigs, joint ventures and other PR opportunities, you will increase your visibility leading to more clients/customers and even more opportunities.
It Makes Your Business More Efficient
Hiring a virtual assistant who specializes will likely streamline your processes and get things done quicker. Although I personally use the term VA loosely, clients hire me especially because they know (from online presence) my core area is funnels assistance. I specialize in opt-ins, email sequences, courses and memberships. This means I know exactly which tools to use, which plans to be on, how they all integrate with each other, what is needed from the client (and from my end), and everything from how to set them up right through to how to efficiently and effectively maintain them.
Virtual Assistants Provide an Excellent ROI
When you hire a VA by onboarding them well and take them on to do intentional tasks that move the business forward, you will absolutely see its’ cost effectiveness. I recently watched an online summit where an entrepreneur said that you have to be willing to take the risk of investing because by not doing so you will lose/not make up to 10x the investment. Crazy!
If the VA knows you and your business, they can help your business grow and increase profits. I’ve had clients I’ve worked with for up to a year and who I’ve been able to grow a really great, professional connection with. This has also enabled them to take time off and not feel guilty or worry about how things are going (for an extended version of this, look at hiring an Online Business Manager) and to bounce ideas off me as I have been there helping them to nurture their community. Some of my clients have consistent five-figure months and launches because together we’ve identified what needed doing, how we are going to get there and worked individually and alongside each other to make it happen!
What to Outsource to a Virtual Assistant
- Writing, editing and scheduling blog posts, publications, social media posts or newsletters
- Strategizing, editorial calendar planning and content curation
- Setting up and managing social media accounts; sourcing / designing social media images
- Welcoming new members to your community / moderating your Facebook group
- Diary / calendar / inbox / file / project management
- Admin / accounting / legal tasks
- Online research, influencer marketing, affiliate marketing and outreach
- Designing / copywriting sales pages or website pages
- Editing and uploading webinars, videos or podcasts
- Customer/client support
Top Tips For Hiring Your First Virtual Assistant
- VAs usually work for more than one client so it is also important to bear this in mind. I always advise you go for a trial run before you enter into anything big or long-term – you want to make sure both of you are on the same page!
- Some VAs work hourly and others work by the project. Have a baseline and top-line figure for your budget and find out what you can get for that amount. PS, often you’ll find outsourcing isn’t as expensive as you first thought (and like I said earlier, you can make a whole lot more by making this investment).
- Give them as much information about yourself and your business (who your ideal client is, your branding/style, your mission/goals and objectives/vision) as you can. This will really help to make sure you’re a good fit for each other before you get started. Your VA may or may not have their own onboarding process. If they haven’t asked you these questions, it’s important you do share them so you can be as upfront as possible.
- Be clear about what you view as a success of your investment (this is one of my questions when I have discovery calls with leads). Boundaries and expectations are key to great communication and a delightful working relationships.
- ALWAYS have a contract in place, no matter how small or short-term the project is.
So have you thought of hiring a VA? What hesitations do you have? If you could outsource ONE thing right now, what would it be?
I’d love to chat about this with you in the comments below and/or over in my free Facebook group for female entrepreneurs!
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