Hire a VA!

Fancy spending more time growing your business? 

 

Hiring a VA can help

I know that you’re busy and there are a hundred things you need to do today. If you’re a solo entrepreneur or run your own small business, your attention will be spread across multiple projects and deadlines. It can be a huge challenge to focus on your daily tasks whilst also looking for opportunities to grow.

 

In days gone past, entrepreneurs whose business had reached a certain level could afford the luxury of hiring an assistant. Nowadays with the freedom brought about by the internet and the fast-growing nature of the gig economy, you can easily find someone online to help with your workload. Enter the role of the virtual assistant (VA).

 

What exactly is a virtual assistant?

 

A virtual assistant is someone who works remotely and can help with a wide range of daily tasks. They carry out the same work as an in-house employee but will cost you far less to hire and maintain. Employing a freelancer is a good idea if you feel overwhelmed with chores and a mountain of paperwork, but don’t have the resources available to hire someone full-time.

 

While initially hiring a VA may require some quick training, if you have a note of daily tasks and a system in place it shouldn’t take long to have them up to speed. If you know what you do each day and have it documented, a VA can have an almost seamless integration into your usual processes.

 

Virtual assistants are used by business owners and entrepreneurs who favour the lean approach: those who look to shave time off the daily grind to concentrate their efforts on expanding for the future. I’d recommend Tim Ferris’  4 hour Work Week to help explain this more. It gives some great tips on outsourcing your workload and becoming a more efficient entrepreneur. There are also loads of articles and free resources on his website.

 

What can a VA do for you?

 

There are hundreds of daily tasks that can be outsourced to a virtual assistant. Here are a few to give you some inspiration:

 

●       Data entry

●       Social media management

●       Market research

●       Scheduling

●       Prep for meetings

●       Bookkeeping

●       Blog writing

 

If you think you don’t have the time to plan to outsource your workload, try jotting down the things that take up most of your time each day. Can these tasks only be done by you, or can someone else pick up the work?

 

Are Virtual Assistants worth it?

 

Today almost all business transactions are conducted via email and over the phone. This means that there’s no longer any real need to bring a VA in-house when you can hire a freelancer at a much cheaper rate who can work from anywhere.

 

Employing a virtual assistant, which was once seen as a luxury, has also become incredibly affordable thanks to the sheer number of tools online that can help with communication, collaboration, and boosting your productivity.

 

If you choose someone who’s the right fit, hiring a VA can help give back the time during your day so you can work on the tasks that will help your business reach new heights. If you choose someone who’s the right fit for your company, a virtual assistant can be an incredibly smart investment.