USING A VIRTUAL OFFICE SERVICEVIRTUAL ASSISTANCE IN BUSINESS Using a virtual office service will often help small business solve one of its worst problems, unending things to do and not enough time or people to do them. As a business owner you will be faced with a constant stream of things that need to be done, things that have to be done, as part of being in business, and you can’t get away from it. The business is closed for the day, your employees have all gone home, yet you are still tied up doing administrative and secretarial work, day after day. Seems familiar? What you can do instead however, is to get someone else to do a lot of it, you can delegate. This is where a virtual office service comes in handy and can help free up your life so allowing you to concentrate on establishing, growing and generating revenue for your business.
Employing First you have to hire, then train, provide the needed tools for the job, then pay, tax and cover vacations, illnesses, possible inefficiencies and theft, and if an employee leaves, you start all over again! Is there an alternative? Yes and a great one too, virtual assistance. Virtual Assistance A very real alternative to hiring new employees is to start using virtual assistants recruited through a virtual office service.
A Virtual Assistant or VA is a professional, often with many years service in a specialized field, who decides to work from their home town, usually from their home office. They are self employed. Their means of communication with their clients is via the Internet, email, phone, fax, post or pick-up and delivery. They work on a contract basis and in many cases provide just the type of relief needed to free up a business owners time. VA’s can be very cost effective and help small businesses with all those admin jobs that take up so much time, are non-revenue generating, but still have to be done. Virtual Assistants It was not long ago when no one had even heard of a VA, now there are tens of thousands of them all over the world. This should tell you that they are providing a much needed virtual office service. Here’s what you can expect from a VA.
What is the Cost? Will I Save Money? As VA’s work on a contract basis, using their own facilities, office and equipment, these are all straight savings to you as opposed to employing you own staff member. You will have available virtual office space which gives you all the amenities of a real office but none of the costs. They charge out only for the time actually spent on your work so you are not paying for late arrivals, lunch breaks or sick days. Although a VA charges out what might be considered a lot more than the cost of an employee, say $25 per hour against $12 per hour, once you take into account the true cost of an employee you will find that using a VA is one third to one half cheaper per hour than a full time employee. The big plus with using a VA however are the fringe benefits, such as no lawsuits, labor conflicts, bonuses, 401K’s, social security, health care, pensions, vacations or sick leave costs. If you need help, don’t want or need a full time employee and want to reduce your stress level, use a virtual office service and hire a virtual assistant. VA’s will cost you anything from $20 to $100 per hour, depending on what you need done. Clerical work is generally the cheapest, with highly technical or legal work the most expensive. Most VA’s will work on either an hourly or a retainer basis. All work on contract. Generally contracting a virtual office service, through a retainer agreement, is the least costly with savings of up to 20% on the hourly rate. As a new client you will probably be asked to make a deposit down payment. Once the relationship has been established, you will likely be charged monthly. Finding a Virtual Assistant As VA’s need to help their clients succeed, after all their very livelihood depends on making sure that you are satisfied, they will tend to be very truthful as to what and what not they can or can’t do. Remember that any relationship you have with your VA must be satisfactory to both parties. First though to finding a VA that fits your needs. Here’s one way:- Google ‘Virtual Assistant’ and you will have a million VA sites to choose from. If you want someone close to you, then you can search your geographical area in Google for VA’s who live close to you. You need to check such Vas out very well though. The easiest way however, is to use one of the many virtual assistant organizations. Try these:-
Once you have found a virtual office service site you like, complete their Request for Proposals (RFP) on-line form, state your needs and they will then arrange for suitable VA’s to contact you direct. Keep a copy of your completed RFP. Deciding on Your VA Once you have been contacted by a potential VA here is what to do:-
If everything works out, you can begin a long term relationship. Using a VA can be an excellent way of outsourcing work that needs to be done, but is often time consuming, tedious and unproductive from your point of view. You might never have met or even know what your VA looks like, but with a good VA you will soon realize that you couldn’t do without their help. Use a reputable virtual office service to help recruit a suitable virtual office assistant and you won’t regret it. Return from Virtual Office Service to Recruiting Employees or Return from Virtual Office Service to Business Management Basics Home Page
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