Should I Hire A Virtual Assistant?
A virtual assistant, sometimes referred to as a VA, is a person who can perform assistant tasks from a remote location. As the economy flourishes post-pandemic, small businesses grow and owners find themselves overwhelmed with routine tasks and administrative duties while attending to multiple clients. A VA mainly provides remote support for day-to-day business operations.
Recruitment companies have endlessly discussed why it is important to hire a virtual assistant. The benefits are promising, and convincing. However, it is imperative to understand the challenges too if you are looking into hiring a remote employee. A smart person researches both the positive and negative effects of a big decision–like delegating tasks to a virtual assistant.
Task delegation refers to assigning tasks and responsibilities to other individuals to reduce workload and streamline business processes. Distributing duties allows the division of a project into manageable tasks for multiple parties to optimize overall performance at work and eventually save time.
Remote Raven offers offsite support to any entrepreneur who would like to re-focus their energy on more important matters and find work-life balance. The company has professional talent acquisition managers who thoroughly vet all candidates.
Virtual assistants affiliated with Remote Raven possess specialized skills and have the tools and talents to work remotely. Depending on your specific support needs, Remote Raven can make your life easier by creating a detailed job description and taking on the responsibility of finding the right VA for you and your business.
Most Common Problems In Working With Virtual Assistants
Different Timezones
Hiring a VA usually means employing an individual living in a different state or country. Working in different time zones is the most frequent issue that arises when onboarding a remote employee. The problem happens when there is no discussion about the time zone that will be used by the employer and employee.
How to Handle Different Time zones
According to GIS Geography, there are 24 different time zones worldwide. The common time zones are Universal Coordinated Time (UTC), Pacific Standard Time (PST), and Eastern Standard Time (EST). To avoid confusion when talking about dates and times, a virtual assistant should be oriented on which time zone they should follow when communicating and working.
Many virtual assistants are open to following the time of the employer. Sometimes, this means they stay awake even during the wee hours in their country. Remote service providers are usually expected to focus and accomplish tasks during the business hours of their employer. Hiring a virtual assistant means someone will handle administrative work and daily tasks like scheduling meetings, calendar management, and digital marketing.
Language Barriers
Clear communication is the key to a good relationship. A business owner and their employees attain harmony and high productivity at work when instructions and goals are discussed concisely.
According to a report, language barriers are those features of language use that result in miscomprehension or complete loss of communication. Language barriers deal with aspects of language use that make it difficult to understand. Various factors contribute to language barriers like the country or area of the language user, accents, jargon, and educational background. Employers may sometimes experience misperceptions or difficulties when communicating with a virtual assistant.
How to Handle Language Barriers
The founder of Argo Translation, Peter Argondizzo, suggests language training to overcome this challenge. When given basic training, virtual administrative assistants will be familiarized with the vocabulary or jargon used at work. Another way to improve communication despite having language barriers is to discuss cultural differences and utilize visuals when necessary.
Virtual assistants offer versatility, patience, and respect–important values when answering phone calls and managing social media accounts. When given the appropriate orientation and training, a dedicated virtual assistant can overcome language barriers and perform essential tasks efficiently.
Connectivity Issues
Business Insider published an article online identifying the Philippines as one of the top countries with the capability to deliver digital services. In July 2023, Ookla released a Speedtest Global Index report ranking the countries from the fastest to slowest internet speed. Singapore topped the list with 247.44mbps, USA placed sixth with 207.32mbps, while the Philippines ranked 49th with only 91.56mbps.
Statistically, some parts of the globe, not only the Philippines, have slower internet speeds. When employing a remote service provider, reliable connectivity plays a major role. An employer should expect that there will be isolated situations when a virtual assistant will experience unplanned disconnection from the internet.
How to Handle Connectivity Issues
Remote employees with experience providing virtual assistance have an idea of the time of the day when their internet works fastest, and the time when it is slow. The awareness allows virtual assistants to manage and perform their duties promptly.
If you are planning to outsource administrative services, it is paramount to discuss with the virtual assistant the protocol or standard procedures when they experience troubles with their connectivity. Some employers provide allowances to remote full-time employees to be able to afford a package with faster internet speed.
Productivity
Most virtual assistants are delegated with repetitive tasks and time-consuming tasks. Given the nature of the job, it is normal for remote employees to sometimes lose focus and interest or experience burnout. A virtual assistant who is unmotivated cannot perform well at work.
How to Handle Productivity Issues
Business Daily News reported showing employees that you value them can improve engagement, retention, productivity, and morale. Virtual assistants will feel invaluable when employers show interest in their output. If you are a business owner or a professional, you can show support to remote employees by providing basic training, giving access to tools necessary to accomplish their specific tasks, and occasionally giving performance bonuses.
Reasons To Hire A Virtual Assistant
Commonly, entrepreneurs and professionals consider hiring virtual assistants because they feel overwhelmed with administrative tasks and repetitive tasks. One benefit of employing a remote support provider is having the chance to delegate tasks and subsequently gain time and focus for income-generating activities and personal life.
Virtual assistants are skilled professionals capable of handling duties from taking phone calls to admin tasks, social media marketing, and project management.
Additionally, since virtual assistants work remotely, employers manage to save money on operating costs and even taxes. A virtual assistant does not need to be provided with a physical office space and government-imposed full-time employee benefits. This is because a VA is commonly employed as an independent contractor. The sizable savings can enable entrepreneurs to use the money for other purposes to help the business grow.
How Much Does It Cost To Hire Virtual Assistants?
Different businesses have different demands. The cost of availing remote support services varies on several factors including the job description and particular needs of the employer. If you are interested in hiring a virtual assistant as a freelancer or full-time employee, Remote Raven is a company that can help with the recruitment process. During the hiring process, the company will connect you with experienced:
- Executive Assistant
- Medical scheduler
- Medical Coder
- Certified public accountant
- Data entry clerks
- Bookkeeper
- Social Media Marketer or Strategist
- Recruitment Specialists
- Content Writers
- Amazon/Shopify/eCommerce Support
Remote Raven will dedicate great efforts to finding the best virtual assistant for your business needs. You can begin the process of hiring a virtual assistant by reaching out to Remote Raven through email or phone call.
