Hiring a Virtual Assistant is Life Changing
Work through these steps and you’ll find it helps you prepare for, and make the most of, working with a VA.
Think about what distracts you the most
This might be sending standard responses to emails, arranging (and rearranging…) meetings, chasing payments or creating presentations. Tally up how long these tasks are taking. Awareness is your first step.
Share how you do things
Each client has a different process and way of doing things and, to start with, your VA won’t always have the background to understand what they’re solving and why.
Record a video or a voice note or write a plain old list to walk your VA through every single step of the task. This ensures the job will be done exactly how you want it (with zero room for error) and your VA will have it “in stock” to refer to in future – plus it also means you only have to do it one more time!
Stay in touch
Make space for a regular 1:1 with your VA (30 mins weekly is usually sufficient). Building a working relationship full of trust is so important. This allows time for updates, making suggestions and sharing feedback to ensure everything is on track (incidentally, this is also how mind readers are born…). We’d also recommend that your VA sends you a daily update at the end of each day so you can keep abreast of where they are with things.
Systems for slick working
Work out a trigger system with your VA to ensure action is taken and tasks are complete – whether that be email labelling or copying them into everything – create it so it’s not too burdensome for you yet ensures your VA will see it and be on it straightaway.
In our experience, as you work together, you’ll find that different scenarios create new queries, new processes and new instructions and it’s useful to have someone on board who knows your business and can advise on how best to deal with these. Listen to your VA – some (i.e., us!) are so experienced that they can make your processes 10 x better.
There are so many Virtual Assistants out there, how do I know who to choose?
Agencies can be tricky as you can be dropped into a “typing pool” never actually knowing who is going to pick up your work. At Rodelle we have a different approach, we take care to match our clients with a dedicated VA on a 1:1 basis so that a solid and trusting working relationship can be built. All our VAs are very experienced with strong, credible careers behind them so there should be no doubt in your mind that they’ll be able to hit the ground running.
Cold hard cash
If you’re still unsure whether to bite the bullet – and we’re all running businesses at the end of the day - think about the money you’ll save. Work out what your hourly charge out rate is and compare that to a VA’s. It’s simply not cost-effective for you to spend any more of your time rearranging a meeting (again!).
You will find that most agencies will charge a retainer every month just to keep you on their books (whether you need assistance or not!). Rodelle is different, we don’t charge a retainer at all – you’ll only pay for the hours worked whether that be 1 hour a week or 10. And this means that if you decide to take a holiday, and you don’t need us to take care of things in your absence* then, of course, there’s no charge until you do – just know we’ll be right here when you get back.
(*Sneaky suspicion you will!)
Conclusion
We guarantee that if you follow the above steps (and join us at Rodelle!) that within a matter of weeks, if not days, you’ll not only have a weight lifted from your shoulders but you’ll also be in awe of the time you’re saving – plus with any luck we’ll be able to pinch a quote from you saying, “Why didn’t I do this earlier?”...!
Lyndsey Shelley
Director, Rodelle VA Services Ltd