A virtual assistant is someone who provide support for individuals or businesses remotely. They take on admin tasks, customer service, lifestyle management, social media, bookkeeping and more. Some VA’s do certain tasks, others do them all.
Why Choose a Virtual Assistant?
Choosing a Virtual Assistant has lots of benefits:
It can save you time, a VA handles the time-consuming tasks like emails, data entry and scheduling.
It is cost effective, having a VA is cheaper than an employee, no need for office space, equipment, or HR.
Scalability - You can decide how often you want to have a VA work for you.
Speciality - You have a VA that has the expertise for the job you have asked for. No need for training, they know what they are doing.
Improved Productivity - You've handed over your routine tasks, now you can get on with the jobs that will improve your business.
Is a Virtual Assistant an Employee?
A virtual assistant is a contractor; they are not an employee. You are paying for their service, they are self-employed. You do not pay benefits, taxes or need to provide any equipment. You can hire a VA as an employee but if you hire them through a website or agency you are hiring a contractor.
How Do I Manage Virtual Assistants?
You do not necessarily manage a VA. The idea is you have a discovery call; you have a client questionnaire, you decide together how your relationship is going to work. You define the tasks you wish your VA to take on, you talk about deadlines and priorities and how you wish to communicate with each other. You discuss the tools you use and how you want to use together. The main thing about having a VA is communicating in the beginning, you have to decide how much involvement you wish to have.