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Guide to choosing a Virtual Assistant

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The demand for services from Virtual Assistants has seen a steady increase as business owners seek ways to run and grow their businesses using support services that are flexible and cost effective. Virtual Assistants bring many benefits but it can sometimes be difficult to differentiate those that are reputable from those that have set up to make easy money without the relevant experience, skills, or systems to do the job effectively.

Here is a handy guide to help you decide whether virtual support is right for you and how to go about choosing a reputable Virtual Assistant who – what you need to look out for and the questions you should ask.

Understanding how Virtual Assistants work

Virtual Assistants provide services remotely to support businesses, from call minding and diary management to event co-ordination and management. They offer services that are, typically, provided by a Personal Assistant in the traditional office but without the additional staffing, equipment or location costs.

Just as businesses use temporary workers to provide an extra pair of hands, Virtual Assistants provide support but do so remotely, from their own office and using their own equipment. They can work on ad hoc projects as well as on a more regular longer-term basis, so they provide a degree of flexibility that is particularly suited to small and start-up businesses. In general, Virtual Assistants charge between £18 and £25 per hour for their time, with some charging more.

Virtual Assistants can provide a range of services, including: typing; digital transcription; making travel arrangements; carrying out internet research; diary management; general business liaison and support such as; call minding services, message taking, filtering emails, contacts database management; project support; personal life management.

A Virtual Assistant may specialise in a particular area or have expertise using specific software. This is not unusual given the range of computer packages available and the need to stay up-to-date with knowledge and skills. The Society of Virtual Assistants provides a search facility for finding a Virtual Assistant which lists 48 different skills areas from cold calling and desk top publishing to invoicing and translation.

It is essential, therefore, that anyone considering using the skills of a Virtual Assistant carries out thorough research to ensure that any potential virtual support has the expertise, qualifications and experience to meets the needs of the business.

Identifying whether you need virtual assistance

It’s always a difficult dilemma for businesses – you don’t want to turn business down but you must ensure that you have the resources available to satisfy clients. It can often be much more cost effective to use a Virtual Assistant for non fee-paying work and so free up time for the business owner to focus on running and growing the business. Positive answers to the following questions suggest that using virtual assistance may well be helpful for your business.

• Do you find that you spend considerable time on administrative tasks, taking you away from face-to-face contact with clients or from focusing on news business?
• Could you save time by using expert help on particular tasks in your business?
• Do calls from potential clients ever get put through to voicemail because you are away from the office?
• Is your time chargeable and are you spending some of that time on non fee-paying tasks?
• Do the needs of your business vary from month to month so that flexible help would be helpful?
• Are you a small business that needs more resource but wants to avoid taking on staff, and the additional responsibilities that entails (annual salary, National Insurance, holiday and sick pay)?
• Are you struggling to keep on top of day-to-day administration tasks?
• Do you have limited space in your office which restricts basing additional support there?
• Are you looking to expand your business but don’t want to commit to hiring new people yet?
• Do you want to tap into extra resource but keep costs down so you only pay for the time you use?

Recognising a reputable Virtual Assistant

A reputable Virtual Assistant will be member of one or more of the representative bodies reflecting their commitment to upholding strict standards in terms of professionalism and quality. A reputable Virtual Assistant will: have the right systems in place to support your needs; adhere to the highest standards; ensure that your business is protected; and demonstrate professionalism.

Systems

• risk management procedures in place to protect their business and yours
• business security processes, procedures and systems in place
• contracts for any work to be undertaken

Standards

• membership of the relevant professional bodies
• ongoing study and training keep their skills up-to-date

Protecting your business

• personal indemnity insurance
• processes and systems to ensure client confidentiality
• registration with the Data Protection Act

Professionalism

• professional looking website and business cards etc
• separate home and work phone lines
• references/testimonials for previous work
• timesheets for any work undertaken

Where to find a reputable Virtual Assistant

Personal recommendation is always a good start when you are seeking expert help or to outsource work. In addition, a reputable VA should belong to one or more of the Virtual Assistant governing bodies. They all provide listings of Virtual Assistants:

The International Association of Virtual Office Assistants - www.iava.org.uk
Provides an online directory of Virtual Assistants in England and Scotland

The Society of Virtual Assistants - www.scottishvirtualassistants.co.uk
Provides an online database with facility to search by skill area

International Association of Virtual Assistants - www.iavoa.com
Provides a listing of Virtual Assistants in many countries including the United Kingdom

Alliance of UK Virtual Assistants - www.allianceofukvirtualassistants.org.uk
Provides a listing by service area and county

How to get the most out of your VA

Once you have decided to use virtual support, and have found the right Virtual Assistant for you, there are a number of steps your can take to help ensure your working relationship gets off on the right foot and progresses smoothly. Any reputable Virtual Assistant will work with you to agree the following:

• the nature of the work to be carried out, the specific activity, timescales, time inputs and the respective fees
• arrangements for billing and any other costs that may be incurred
• how changes to the outlined programme of work will be noted, to avoid any confusion later
• recording/reporting of activity
• confidentiality and security.

A Virtual Assistant can bring huge benefits to a small or start-up business, providing an extra pair of hands for a one-off project or ongoing support to help the business grow. There are many people, however, who are setting up as Virtual Assistants without the right systems, experience or skills to do the job. It’s worth taking the time to ensure that you choose the right support for your business – you must ensure it is an investment that adds value to your business rather than one that potentially puts it at risk.

About the Author

Lilach Bullock is Managing Director of asklilach Ltd. asklilach Ltd provides Virtual Assistant services to small and start-up businesses. For a free consultation, email info@asklilach.co.uk or visit: www.asklilach.co.uk

Posted June 20, 2007