When your business is growing, you will need to put your focus on the big issues, like the scaling growth,
developing strategy, and developing clients. This is when those tiny things are starting to fall through the
cracks, or you’re just too exhausted to want to handy the basic daily tasks that are responsible for
supporting your business – this is when you know you need a virtual assistant. Trust us, the right virtual
assistant will do a great job with keeping you on track. The question is – how do you find the right virtual
assistant?
In the beginning, when you are looking to hire a VA, search for one as if you were actually hiring
someone in-house that will be working right next to you. With some care, you will be able to find an
individual that fits your business and is able to get the work done just as you would expect.
Next, we recommend scoping out the work you know you need done at the moment. Start out by
writing out a job description and during this time, make sure you are specific so that the VA knows what
you’re asking. If you’re looking for an assistant that is capable of managing email, scheduling
appointments and so on, interacting with clients via email or phone, running your social media or site, or
a combination of it all, make sure you list it.
The immediate work load should be laid out clearly, then you can use those to extrapolate the necessary
skills: Excel, writing, phone communication, and so on. During this time, you may learn that while you’re
looking for someone that is capable of professionally returning customer calls, what’s really important is
their interpersonal skills.
Afterwards, think broader. Moving forward down the road, what do you see your VA doing? After this
individual learns about your business, is there a specific direction you would like them to grow? Maybe
five months from now, you’d like your assistant to be able to go from returning customer calls to setting
up a nice database full of customer information. Regardless, it is important that you have a vision of the
future you would like to have with a VA – this will help when you’re looking for someone.
How would you like to interact with the assistant? Do they really need to work the same hours as your
clients, or are the tasks you have at hand flexible? How do you prefer communicating with them?
Whether you prefer text, speaking on the phone, using email or Skype, it’s important that you find
someone that is comfortable with communicating your way.
Last, you should put some thought into what you see as your business culture and personality. Identify
some qualities you’re looking for. For example, do you need the VA to be communicative? Creative?
Detail-oriented? Sure, we all want to find someone that is capable of doing it all, but try to come up with
3-5 qualities that are necessary, then write them all down.
During this time, you should have a helpful document that will help point you in the direction of the
right virtual assistant for your business. So go ahead and hire a VA! Doing so is going to make things a
whole lot easier on you.
