Virtual Assistant
5 ways to make your VA really pay!
Juanita Nieuwoudt
Juanita Nieuwoudt

5 ways to make your VA really pay!

 

As many business owners all over the world are finding out, Virtual Assistants are a great asset to any business, saving them on costs and the headaches of hiring permanent staff. What you do need to realise though, as someone who has decided that this outsourcing route will work for you, is that there are certain things you need to do to ensure that you fully benefit from their services. Here then are 5 ways to make your VA really pay!

1. Make them a part of your team 

One of the reasons some employers are hesitant to hire VAs is that they want everyone who works for them to be a part of the business – and not just outsiders providing a service. Well, good VA’s are more than happy to be a part of the team and buy into your corporate culture. 

It’s up to you though to welcome them and introduce them to your team and ensure that they are invited to brainstorming meetings etc – as they can be far more valuable than you think. Remember VA’s are not just glorified P.A.s. They are an outsourced entity with multiple skills and in many cases with an excellent business background.

2. Give them some training

Depending on what you are hiring a VA for, it is necessary to ensure that they are fully trained in any specific tasks that you require from them which are structured in a way with which they may not be familiar. If it is basic admin work, they will need very little from you but may require more time on more specific skills.

Remember your VA is there to free up your time and to let you work on your business instead of in it, but like every other member of your workforce, they do at least need to know what you expect of them and to be correctly briefed. One thing for sure though, skilled VA.s will generally require a lot less training time than hired employees learning the job from scratch!

3. List your expectations

Following on from this aspect of their need to know what you expect of them, make a list at the outset of what your expectations are. The list can include things like their responsibilities, the hours you expect them to cover (Remembering that you only pay VA’s for the hours they work, as they bill by the hour), what the payment arrangements will be and whether you need a confidentiality agreement from them.

Remember that the great advantage though is that there is no HR, tax, pension, sick or leave pay or any of those other obligations in the case of a VA. They are an independent, outsourced entity and this can have great advantages to you!

4. Don’t micro-manage 

Having equipped them with the necessary training, introductions, and expectations, do have the sense to leave them to it! You will certainly not benefit from their services as much if you are always pestering them or worrying about what they are doing. Good VA’s, having been correctly briefed, must return results or they don’t get paid, so remember they always have that incentive to deliver. 

Now it’s time for you to stop worrying about the time you don’t want to spend in your business and start working on it. That’s the way to make your VA really pay! 

5. Choose a VA you can count on!

The most important thing of all is to choose a VA with experience, a great track record and one that offers a wide range of servicesV-Assist has been around a long time and ticks all these boxes.

So, talk to us today and you’ll find that with a motto like ‘It’s about time,’ for the first time, your time, will become your own time! 

 

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