It’s been almost 10 years since Thomas Leonard, coach and founder of Coachville.com, coined the term “virtual assistant”. In that time the virtual assistant industry has exploded as the best source for small business owners and entrepreneurs to hire business support personnel.
Small business owners and entrepreneurs with limited budgets but an overriding need for support services have found virtual assistants to fill every support aspect of their the business. Business owners have recognized the huge advantage for hiring virtual assistants who specialize in everything from administrative and office management, secretarial and clerical services, bookkeeping, web site creation and maintenance, copywriting, editing, proofreading, Internet research, graphic design, online marketing, real estate services, legal support services, podcasting to a variety technology services. The services are as endless as the needs of the business owners.
Small business owners are drawn to the entrepreneurial spirit and creativity that virtual assistants possess. As business owners themselves virtual assistants can readily identify with the needs of business owners for the efficiency, productivity and economic considerations of running a successful business. Virtual Assistants often invest their entrepreneurial spirit and creativity in their client’s businesses because if their clients are successful so are they.
Below is a list of eight best reasons to hire a virtual assistant. These reasons have but one outcome for the small business owner/entrepreneur – increased efficiency and productivity = Success!
Efficiency:
1. Virtual assistants call upon their real-world work experience and skills to support their clients. No training involved. Simply give your virtual assistant a project and let her do the work. No micro-management necessary.
2. Because virtual assistants work for many different clients they are masters of time management. Give your virtual assistant a project deadline and she will meet it.
3. Virtual assistants are detail oriented. You will spend a minimal amount of time discussing the re-discussing the specifics of project.
Virtual Assistants have above average administrative and secretarial skills such as:
a. Keyboarding speeds above 80 words per minute
b. 2-5 years of grammar, punctuation and editing experience
c. Superior customer service skills
d. Excellent organizational skills, (not only for their clients projects but in organizing their own businesses)
e. Extensive creative ability and superior problem solving skills
Productivity:
4. Virtual assistants utilize the current technology for the greatest possible efficiency and productivity. Virtual assistants are always looking for better ways to increase their productivity through continued education and sharing knowledge and information with other virtual assistants.
5. Because of their real-world work experience most virtual assistants bring a high quality of productivity into their business. They are multi-taskers by nature and have an exceptional ability for prioritizing tasks and getting them done quickly.
Virtual assistants are productivity driven and can perform simple, everyday tasks such as:
a. Word processing
b. Document formatting and layout
c. Conversion to PDF
d. Grammar, editing and proofreading
e. Data base creation and maintenance
Time Management:
6. Virtual assistants are small business owners themselves. They recognize the need to efficiently manage their time in order to meet client deadlines and maintain their high standards for customer service for all of their clients.
7. Prioritizing and scheduling projects, either reoccurring or one-time, virtual assistants are master of the calendar.
Time management services such as:
a. Appointment scheduling
b. Calendar maintenance
c. Calendar synchronization
d. Tele-class, webinar or web-meeting organization, invitation and set up
Online Services:
8. The virtual assistant industry was born from the internet. Virtual assistants rely on the internet for their own marketing and business operation. They know the “how-to” of the internet. They can:
a. Create and maintain websites
b. Provide Internet research
c. Online marketing venues
d. Affiliate management
e. Subscription management
f. Article submission
g. Auto-responder message creation, scheduling and delivery
h. Shopping cart set up and maintenance
i. Electronic newsletter production and delivery
j. Podcast editing, mixing and posting
k. Blog set up and maintenance
l. Intranet set up and maintenance (using SharePoint Services, a Microsoft program or other free intranet programs)
Most small business owners will recognize the need to hire more than one virtual assistant to service the various sectors of their business. Not all virtual assistants offer the same services let alone the same skill and competency levels for similar services. Small business owners need to approach the hiring of a virtual assistant with the same planning they would use in hiring a fulltime in-house employee. It’s best to develop a profile of the specific service they are looking for, the benefits their business needs and the outcome they expect. Once they have clearly defined their needs they can begin searching for the perfect virtual assistant to fit that service.
Many of the virtual assistant organizations offer RFP services for business owners looking to hire a virtual assistant. Posting a RFP will minimize the business owner’s time in locating several qualified virtual assistants and help them quickly identify potential candidates.
To identify a perfect fit for both business owner and virtual assistant, consideration must be given to the following points:
1. Time Zone. If a business owner needs someone available during their business hours then the virtual assistant’s time zone could play an important part in stable, timely support. Likewise, a virtual assistant in a different time zone could add additional hours to a business owner’s day.
2. Skills and Experience. Not all virtual assistants have the same skill level or experience. A business owner should ask for references and follow up with the references provided.
3. Length of time in business. Because the virtual assistant industry is relatively new, virtual assistants have varying lengths of time in their own business operation. Some virtual assistants have been in business for 15+ years and some only 2 to 6 months. If stability is important to a business owner this should be a consideration in addition to skills and experience.
4. Fees. Because virtual assistants are independent business owners and operate in a global economy they are free to set their own fees and create their own terms. A higher fee does not necessarily indicate a higher skill level. And a lower fee is not necessarily a bargain. Business owners need to strike a balance between skills and experience, their budget and the virtual assistant’s fees.
5. Agreement or Contract. Every good business owner knows it’s only good business to have a signed agreement or contract detailing the specifics of a business relationship. Virtual assistants know this too. Business owners should either have an agreement or contract that they can provide to the virtual assistant outlining the independent contractor relationship or review the virtual assistant’s agreement/contract. An agreement or contract should be in place before any work is delegated or completed.
© 2007 Cheryl K. Callighan, MVA, owner of eOffice-Virtual Assistants LLC providing administrative and secretarial services to small businesses and entrepreneurs and the University of Virtual Assistants where she assists new virtual assistants through online training. She has over 30+ years of administrative experience and 18 years as a virtual assistant. Contact: Cheryl@eOffice-VirtualAssist.com * Cheryl@UofVAs.com. Websites: www.eOffice-VirtualAssist.com * www.UofVAs.com.
