How to Use & Hire a Virtual Assistant for Small Business

Small business owners wear many hats in the fast-moving world of business. From customer service to marketing and accounting, the daily hustle can seem never-ending. 

A helping hand can lighten the workload, that’s why hiring an assistant for a small business owner is ideal. With the internet, cheap yet skilled remote labor is at your fingertips. This is why virtual assistants for small businesses have become so popular.

Virtual assistants are remote workers who provide various types of support to businesses. This concept of hiring virtual assistants for small businesses is a game-changer. With a reliable helper or team, owners can free up their time to focus on more important initiatives. 

Lots of small businesses are starting to use virtual assistants (VAs). As per this report by Grand View Research, the global VA service market was $2.48 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow at 24.3% annually from 2021-2028.

This article breaks down the entire process of using a virtual assistant for your small business. You will also learn how to assign tasks, explore hiring options, and tips for working with VAs. 

Key Takeaways

• Virtual assistants help small business owners by taking over routine tasks. This allows them to focus on strategic growth.
• Hiring a virtual assistant involves defining tasks, shortlisting, interviews, and starting with a trial.
• Virtual assistants provide a cost-effective solution for managing workloads and reducing stress.

Understanding the Role of a Virtual Assistant for Small Business

Most business owners reach a point where they struggle to do everything on their own. Usually, when a business owner feels like they aren’t focusing on what’s important, they decide to hire others to do routine tasks for them. 

Hiring people is an important step in developing and scaling a business. If you do everything on your own, you are actually incurring a risk. The main risk is incurring the opportunity cost of filling your schedule with lengthy tasks that do not help you generate income or grow. 

Many business owners daily handle repetitive tasks. These can include scheduling meetings, creating invoices, and answering emails. Now if you hire an individual to do these tasks, you can free up that time to do something productive for your business. By hiring people, you usually end up having free time to focus on more important activities that help you achieve your goals.

The only issue with this is hiring more employees is very expensive. This is where virtual assistants come in.

Virtual assistants for small businesses help with mitigating common pain points. They also boost productivity and make sure that you are not bogged down by menial work. VAs allow you to focus on more important things. Imagine spending your time building solid customer relationships and developing new products. 

VAs Solve Problems Faced by Small Business Owners

Being a small business owner is not easy. You face a lot of challenges such as tight budgets and limited resources that can reduce growth potential and productivity. Virtual assistants are generally a high ROI solution for alleviating these burdens at a low cost.

Here are a few aspects where a virtual assistant can help business owners solve common pain points.

Low morale and burnout from overwork

The crushing feeling of doing everything yourself can lead to burnout. A virtual assistant can help you improve your well-being by sharing that burden. By handing over repetitive tasks, you can free up your time. Ultimately, this will help you not only focus on other important aspects of your business but improve mental health too.

Too busy to focus on business growth

Virtual assistants can handle time-consuming admin tasks. They perform these tasks with precision and efficiency. VAs can handle tasks like appointment scheduling, travel booking, and email management. They also create reports, allowing you to focus on what matters most.

Low customer satisfaction due to slow response times

Providing customer support can be challenging for business owners. VAs are here to help you out by promptly responding to customer inquiries, handling social media, and managing live chat services. This is a perfect example of how a VA can be a high-ROI investment. A customer service VA can turn irritated customers into satisfied customers. Happy customers then recommend you to their network for your great customer service.

High employee turnover due to operational overload

It’s easy to overload your employees, but it can be costly to hire more to share the work. Virtual assistants are a cost-effective solution to growing your team. This is a great way to increase the happiness of your existing team.

Challenges in hiring and retaining skilled employees

The struggle is real when you have to find and keep skilled employees for a small business. Believe it or not, you can also find virtual assistants who are skilled in many different areas of business and tech. This will allow you to bypass time-consuming HR processes and scale up your team now.

Disorganization leads to missed opportunities and errors

Virtual assistants mitigate chaos by handling tasks like email organization and project prioritization. They also manage reminders and calendar scheduling. This will help you reduce the risk of forgotten meetings, lost opportunities, and missed deadlines.

Identifying Tasks to Delegate to a Virtual Assistant

Small business owners struggle to balance daily operations and strategic growth. 

In short, you can outsource pretty much anything to a VA that can be done remotely.

Everyday Tasks Perfect for a Virtual Assistant

Here are a few everyday tasks that are perfect for a virtual assistant:

1. Schedule Management: This is basic work that anyone can do. If you give your VA a checklist on when to schedule things, they can help coordinate schedules without missing anything. 
2. Managing Your Inbox: Your VA can organize your inbox that is constantly flooded with emails. They can categorize emails into urgent, and non-relevant, and then file them in the right folders.
3. Customer Support: Customer support has many forms. You can hire a VA to reply to a live chat, do outbound calls, and provide digital receptionist services.
4. Creating Content: Creating content for email, social, and other platforms boosts your marketing. A VA can also help you come up with engaging ideas to accelerate engagement. 
5. SEO: A virtual assistant with good writing skills can help you to improve your ranking on search engines like Google.
6. Inventory Management: A VA can handle ensuring your warehouse is stocked. They can also shop for office supplies and ensure your office is equipped.
7. Bookkeeping: Your VA could be responsible for reporting current and accurate financial information.
8. Data Entry: A VA can help you manage huge data entry with accuracy and efficiency which can save you time.

These are just a small sample of all the things a VA can do. As long as it’s remote, the possibilities are endless.

When to Consider Hiring a Virtual Assistant

Virtual assistants are not full-time employees. They offer a way to help run your small business without the costs of a full-time employee.

You should consider hiring a VA if:

• You are ok with spending a little money to trade back your time. The amount you pay may depend on what skills you need, time zone, and number of hours. 
• You are inundated with work and feeling overburdened with administrative tasks.
• You already know what recurring tasks you want to outsource. For example, maybe data entry or customer service.
• You are slammed by your business’ growth, work all day, are a busy parent, or have pretty much any reason to need your time back.

The Ultimate Guide to Hiring a Virtual Assistant for Small Business Owners

Hiring a VA is different from hiring freelancers for particular projects. When you hire a freelancer, you have a start and end date. That said, in the case of a VA, you are just hiring a team member. This means the hiring process can be a bit different.

How to Define the Scope of Work for a Virtual Assistant

A clear scope of work for a virtual assistant has to be put in place so that there is no ambiguity. Providing a clear direction also ensures efficiency.

It is all about starting with designing a template for the job with clear instructions. The template should include:

• Job description 
• Specified responsibilities (work and tasks)
• Expectations
• Deadlines 
• Performance metrics
• Definitions 
• If it’s a very specific task, step-by-step instructions including video and screenshots

Pro-tip: Most computers come with free screen recording software that can be used to make tutorials in just a few minutes.

These items help a VA perform their role and help in providing a more productive working relationship. 

The Process of Finding and Hiring a Virtual Assistant for Small Business Owners

Plan the Whole Process Before You Start

Before hiring, plan everything. Know the tasks you need help with, set a budget, and identify needed skills.

Create a Job Description

List all tasks, skills, and tools your VA will use. Mention your business details.

Virtual Assistant Job Description Template

We are a [brief description of your business], specializing in [more details]. We need a virtual assistant to help with [specific tasks].

Responsibilities:

• Task 1
• Task 2
• Task 3

Skills and Requirements:

• Skill 1
• Skill 2
• Skill 3

Shortlist Applicants

Review applications and interview the top 5-7 candidates. Use video interviews to gauge comms skills and fit.

Test Applications

Ask top candidates to complete a test task relevant to the job. This shows their skills and efficiency.

Give the Best Candidate a Trial Period

A trial period helps you see if the candidate is a good fit.

Best Practices for Screening and Selecting the Right Virtual Assistant

• Be Clear with the Job Description
• Be specific about the tasks, skills, and scope of work.
• Ask for Verifiable References
• Check references, online presence, and feedback from previous clients.
• Provide a Paid Task
• Give candidates a paid task with a time limit to test their skills.

Choosing the Right Virtual Assistant

Look for Skills That Align with Your Business Needs

Find VAs with relevant skills and if possible, experience doing what you need them to do. This applies whether it’s data analysis, customer service, or social media expertise.

Conduct Video Interviews

Assess communication style and personality through video interviews.

Opt for a Trial Period

Start with a trial period to test their work.

Use Reputable VA Services

Choose a reputable VA service for reliable results. Check out our services here. 

Tools and Platforms for Hiring Virtual Assistants

The most popular places to hire virtual assistants are: 

• Freelance platforms 
• Dedicated VA service companies 

An example is MyOpsBox Business Services, contact us today!

Best Practices for Managing a Virtual Assistant

Regular Check-ins

Use a comms tool like Slack for regular check-ins. This ensures your VA knows your expectations clearly.

Avoid Micromanaging

Micromanaging can be counterproductive. Trust your VA by setting clear expectations from the start, which reduces the need for constant oversight.

Request Weekly Reports

Ask your VA for a weekly report. Provide a template with questions like:

• What work have you completed this week?
• What are you still working on?
• Do you need any training?
• Do you have any feedback?
• How much time did you spend on each project?

Foster a Feedback Culture

Encourage your VA to ask questions, provide feedback, and share ideas regularly. Consider holding review sessions to exchange constructive feedback and improve collaboration.

Tools and Technologies for Efficient Collaboration

With the right tools for efficient collaboration with your VA, you can build a good relationship. Here are some tools and technologies you can use to make things easier:

Communication tools

• Slack
• Zoom
• Google Hangouts

File security and sharing

• Dropbox
• Google Drive
• LastPass

Project management tools

• Asana
• Trello
• Basecamp

Building a Long-Term Relationship with Your Virtual Assistant

A long-term relationship with your VA is key to improving their contribution to your business. You must establish clear communication via different methods. Set SMART goals and make sure they are aligned with regular feedback and growth. 

Invest yourself in their skill development. Be patient and build trust by offering them support. A strong connection makes your virtual assistant a key teammate driving your business forward. 

Overcoming Common Challenges with Virtual Assistants

Time zone difference

Working across different time zones is tricky sometimes. To manage this, use tools like scheduling apps and world clock extensions to coordinate meetings. 

Miscommunication

Differences in culture, interpretation, and language can lead to serious misunderstandings. To solve this issue, establish a clear comms channel and opt for regular feedback and check-ins.

Time management

Develop a time management system to set clear goals and deadlines. This will help you and your VA to stay focused and organized. 

Tech issues

Tech issues such as software malfunctions can disrupt productivity and workflow. Build a plan for common tech issues, such as backup devices or alternative workspaces. Spend money on reliable equipment and make sure you provide access to the tech support team when needed. If you don’t have dedicated tech support, make a list of how VAs can get in touch with customer service for the software you use.

Summing Up The Benefits 

Hiring a VA can be transformative. They handle various tasks, boosting productivity and freeing your time and energy.

If you want to take back your time and avoid the hassle of finding a VA then check out our Virtual Assistant services today!