It only takes 4 steps to find the right VA (or VAs) that your business needs today.
Virtual assistants have been around probably as long as the Internet has been around. However, we have only seen a rise in the number of people looking for and hiring virtual assistants in the past couple of months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This is because of people starting online businesses, moving their businesses online, and more. It’s simply a lot more practical and it makes everything easier — you won’t have to think about all those mundane tasks while trying to build your empire.
How does one find the right virtual assistant? We understand there are a lot of factors to consider and you wouldn’t want to overlook any of these important things, especially since this is such an important part of growing your business.
1. What do you need?
The first thing you have to determine is what exactly it is you need in a virtual assistant. There are two types: Generalists and Specialists.
Generalists are the type who can take care of anything you ask them to do, whether it be paperwork, fixing your website, etc. This means they need to have a wide set of skills and knowledge to be able to fit your needs.
Specialists are those who specialize in a specific task or specific area that you need help in. These could be areas like accounting, marketing management, data mining, etc.
2. Does location matter?
Since what you’re looking for is a virtual assistant, there’s a high chance you’ll rarely be seeing them. This gives you a wider range of options when it comes to selecting the candidate you want because this means they can come from anywhere.
This is why you should decide if where they live matters. Do you need them in the same time zone or is it okay if they live in a different one? Keep in mind that living in different time zones means that they may not always be available to you due to time differences.
But depending on your agreement with them, you can have them at your beck and call, or you can also just communicate all the tasks they need to do and have them get back to you once they finish everything.
3. How do you get to know your VA better?
Since this is all (interview, screening tests, formal offer) probably going to be conducted online, you won’t really be able to get a complete "feel" of your potential VA through emailing or messaging them on Skype.
It’s important to be able to set a meeting with them, even if virtually. A face-to-face meeting is always preferable so you get to know their energy and you can see if you can work with each other. But if they live at a distance, a video conference is the best option!
Ask them anything you need to at this time: their work ethic; the times they are available; if they are willing to go above and beyond their duty; how fast they can get work done, etc. It’s important to know these things early on.
4. References and reviews
Again, since this may be all online, you want to be able to be sure that this person is really credible. What you can do is to ask for verifiable references of people they’ve worked with and worked for so you can get a broader (and deeper) understanding of their work ethic and the kind of person they are.
When choosing a VA, it’s important to be extremely thorough and not just pick the first one you meet. There are a lot of people out there applying for VA positions so you don’t really have a shortage of potential VAs.
Remember, there really isn’t any rule or assurance about finding the "perfect" virtual assistant, but having one (or more!) is a must for your business’ productivity and scalability.
Meet awesome VA candidates here on BizScale! Email us at sales@bizscale.com, call us at 833-722-5310, or book time at https://calendly.com/bizscale to get started!
