This is a question I am frequently asked. And I like it because it indicates that people are concentrating on building their businesses by outsourcing the jobs and activities that they no longer need to conduct – yay! When you can devote more time to working ON the business rather than IN it, your company will be able to expand.
Hiring your first virtual assistant (also known as a VA) can be intimidating, so I usually advise other entrepreneurs to start small.
Regardless of whether you’re full-time, part-time, or half-time in your business, it’s never too early to start outsourcing portions of your business that you don’t need to do or don’t want to do.
When I First Started my Career
When I first started in my career, I was spending so much time getting it going that I was barely sleeping. I gave up sleep for late work nights, I was working for very low pay, and I was unable to outsource. This is the cost of building a business as many are aware. And, I wanted to make sure I was successful in building this business of mine not only to support my passion but also to finance my family’s lifestyle.
As a single mother, it’s critical for me to be successful. My children depend on me and I have a standard of living I prefer to be kept for my boys. There are actually still nights that I do sacrifice sleep for my company, although fortunately those have become rare as my business has grown. I am now able to outsource some of my lower, non-confidential tasks saving me time; allowing me to spend more time sleeping, traveling, or simply enjoying a movie with my kids.
If you’re considering hiring a virtual assistant, there are several tips I can offer you below.
Keep it Simple
If you’re just getting started with outsourcing, I recommend starting small. What are some simple, repetitive tasks that you conduct on a regular basis that you could delegate to someone else?
This could include graphic design, proofreading, social media scheduling, email follow-ups, podcast production, and so on. Just in these tasks alone, there is a ton of time spent.
Brainstorm the Steps Regarding the Task
Once you’ve selected what you want to outsource, take a sheet of paper and write out all of the steps involved in that single task. Don’t worry about getting everything in the right order; after you’ve written everything down, you’ll go back and put it all together correctly.
With this stage, you want to be as specific as possible. Let’s imagine you’re in charge of social media marketing. Outsourcing includes not just the text to be released, but also photos, captions, and the optimum time to publish, among other things. Make your steps as specific as possible. What processes are involved in creating an effective social media marketing campaign?
Videos and Process Documents
Capture videos of everything you do (and make process spreadsheets or samples) and store them in a location where your virtual assistant can easily access them. When it comes to outsourcing and on-boarding new VAs, I can’t tell you how much time and energy this has saved me.
Find the Right Virtual Assistant for Your Unique Work
Consider the attributes you’d like to see in someone to handle the work you’d like to outsource.
Post job opportunities on Fiverr, Upwork, and Facebook groups.
Slack, Trello, and Asana are the two main apps I use to coordinate projects with my VAs and communicate.
Good luck on your outsourcing journey! Keep in mind, you may also want to have the sign a non-disclosure agreement prior to hire to ensure your company details aren’t disclosed.
