Does Your Business Need A Virtual Assistant?

Here are a few warning signals to let you know that a Virtual PA might be able to enhance your daily productivity:

• You've lost a business opportunity because you missed a client deadline
• You don’t have a business development plan because your client or prospect database is out of date
• You’d like to take on more projects but never seem to have sufficient time
• You work nights and weekends to keep up with routine administrative tasks
• You spend too much time on routine work you don't like doing which takes you away  from other more client-focused and creative tasks.

Five steps to help you hire a Virtual PA

How to clarify the regular tasks you really don’t like doing

Starting on a Monday, log all your activities. On the following Friday, review the list and extract the activities you need to do yourself, the rest you can delegate to a VA. For example: uploading your weekly pre-written tweets, physically posting your weekly blog, following up on invoices and writing your newsletter. All perfect projects to give to a VA.

Find A Virtual PA

Search Google by entering "find a VA or virtual assistant." You can usually tell a lot from a Virtual PA’s website, i.e., is it a company who only answers the telephone? Does the website look professional and give you a good overall impression? Do the website images look professional (or a little hand-made)? Is there any reference to the VA’s background? Do they have testimonials from other clients?

Make That Call

Contact your shortlisted candidates to ascertain their compatibility to your business and assess their professionalism.   You will also be able to tell a lot by how they speak and how confidently they answer your questions. Ask yourself whether you would be happy for them to be having a conversation with your clients on your behalf.

Ask to arrange a mutually convenient time for a telephone interview.  

Interview Questions For A Virtual PA

1. Do you have experience in handling A, B C and D (list those tasks you need help with and ask for details of other tasks they carry out which may also be of benefit to you)
2. What are your hours (times, days) of operation?
   (don't be put off if the VA doesn't work weekends - everyone needs a break)!
3. Do you have the time availability in your schedule to support me on an ongoing basis?  If not do you have some time in the short term when you could manage my project?
4. How quickly will you get back to me when I email or call you? 
5. Do you have a team to support you? If yes, will I be working directly with you, or will I work with other members of your team? (Be careful here, you don't want to end up with someone else who is possibly not as qualified or you may need to go through the whole process again).
6. What services do you provide (and what services don't you provide)?
7. Can you give me some examples of how you work with clients? (Understandably there will be client confidentiality so don't expect the VA to reel off specific names).
8. How long have you been in business? (Again, be careful here - someone who is just starting out may need that break but ...how resilient are they?  They may not last)!
9. Do you work on a full time or part time basis?
10. What are your fees? Do you bill hourly, by project or on a retainer basis? (Some VAs will give you a discount if you commit to a minimum number of hours per month - worth asking).

Last but not least:  Ask which software the VA uses, what virus protection and firewalls are in place and whether data protection is covered.

Ask to see the Virtual Pas terms and conditions.  If they’re professional and used to working on a freelance basis they will already have these in place and will ask you to sign them. At a minimum these should include a start date, details of when payment needs to be made, the agreed rate and a mutually agreed notice period.

If you have any tips about hiring a good Virtual Assistant, we would love to hear your comments

Cindy Jalovaara is a freelance virtual business assistant at Virtually247.   She helps businesses save time and adds value to their websites, blogs and social media accounts by ensuring these online marketing platforms are updated on a regular basis. For questions or comments, please contact her via cjvirtualpa.com