Finding the Perfect Virtual Assistant for Your Business Growth

Modern day businesses, especially small and micro businesses struggle to grow mainly due to the fact that as an entrepreneur you try to do every job in your business. This “Superhero Syndrome” will eventually lead your business in a downward spiral.

A change of mindset and opting for some expert help in the form of a virtual assistant can help you grow your business. Instead of trying to don so many hats, you can utilize your time more effectively and outsource tasks to work with talented people in a team.

Finding the Perfect Virtual Assistant (VA)

It is not easy handling different roles simultaneously in a business. Though you might enjoy multitasking, it’s been proven to be a poor way of working, and over a period of time, it affects your morale and eventually your business.

Virtual assistants are true time savers as they perform several administrative tasks while you can work on other aspects to encourage the growth of your business. As an entrepreneur, it is essential to have a virtual assistant in your business. So how do you start?

How to Start?

Many entrepreneurs are perplexed as to what tasks to outsource and how to begin the process. A General Virtual Assistant or a GVA helps you to work on your business rather than work in the business. There are many tasks that you can outsource to a virtual assistant.

You may find that once you have identified your specific business needs you need to build a team and not hire for any specific role.

Ok, now is the moment to get back some of your day – just start!!

1. Let go, prepare and then hire a VA

First, overcome the fear of letting go of some of your tasks. It’s nearly impossible to perform all the day-to-day tasks of running a business yourself as an entrepreneur. To progress, you’ll need to create space to grow your business.

Once you are ready for an assistant, make a list of jobs that can be outsourced to your virtual assistant. You could consider making 3 lists.

1. Tasks you dislike

2. Tasks you don’t have the skills for

3. Tasks you don’t need to do (This one can be the hardest by far as it may include tasks that you enjoy but could still better outsource.)

Get your thinking cap on!

When you have a clear and precise picture of tasks that need to be outsourced, it becomes easier to hire a virtual assistant who fits your requirements.

2. Create a System

Before hiring a virtual assistant, make sure to create a solid system of how your tasks or processes work together and study the system first. This doesn’t need to be perfect – in fact, it’s a great task that your VA can help you with!

You can also create a training program to hand over to your VA. Create a training video of your work or any other process and use this material to train your virtual assistant. The training material can then be used by any other virtual assistant that you hire.

This may initially be time-consuming but the ultimate benefit outweighs this initial injection of your time. You may also uncover weaknesses or problems in your processes and systems that can be improved along the way. Win-win!

3. Some Ideas to get you Started

Here are just some tasks you can outsource to a Virtual Assistant – what have you outsourced?

General and Admin Tasks

Email / Inbox management – including responding to emails, sorting and categorising emails and clearing what’s not important so you can focus on what is
Assistance with Drs letters
Customer Service – client communications
Sending Client Invoices
Basic Bookkeeping (MYOB, XERO & Quickbooks)
Database Building – Updating Contacts or managing a CRM
Calendar Management & Appointment Scheduling
Travel Arrangement and Planning
Data Entry in Word, Excel, Google Docs etc
Preparing Powerpoint Presentations
Transcription of Video and Audio Files
Simple eBook Layout and Formatting
Preparing Online Meeting Minutes
Report Creation
Form Creation
Document Template Creation
Online Research
Blog Publishing Management
Preparation of Training Materials

Content Marketing Tasks

Content and Blog Post Creation
Guest Blogging
SEO Writing

E-Newsletters

Creating new lists in email marketing software
List management – Adding and Removing Subscribers
Creating and Scheduling Emails to Promote Content
Creating Auto-responders
Creating Email Newsletters

Social Media Management Tasks

Creating posts for SM platforms
Posting and Scheduling
Manage your LinkedIn Account and Profile
Manage your YouTube Account – Upload Videos on YouTube, Moderate Comments

WordPress Websites

Blog posting
Keyword Research for Blog and SEO Content

Google Site creation

House all your staff policies and induction information
Create learning sites

At Just in Time we aim to!

Develop collaborative, long-term relationships to benefit your business
Increase your productivity by delegating tasks which need to be done allowing you to focus on core activities
Allow your business to scale
Improve your work-life balance

Need help? Contact Us

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