Choosing The Right Remote Assistant: Hiring That Makes Sense

Choosing The Right Remote Assistant: Hiring That Makes Sense

Running a business forces you to take on countless roles. From answering client calls to managing your finances, your daily responsibilities are as vast as the sky.

While we know you’re used to wearing too many hats, there’s a cost-effective remote support…just a click away.

Hiring a remote assistant has tons of benefits. Yes, it can be a bit scary delegating to a stranger for the first time, but there’s no reason to be.

There are many reliable virtual assistants on the market with the expertise and experience to match. So many, in fact, that you might be wondering how to choose the right one for your business.

Now, that’s a question we can answer for you.

Here’s an article with a step-by-step guide to aid your ongoing dilemma. It has everything you need to know about a remote assistant; what they do, the bevy benefits and finding the right one.

What is a Remote Assistant?

A remote assistant is an online worker who offers support to an individual or a company. These services can range from calendar management to high-level business tasks in the office, depending on the client’s needs.

What Does Remote Assistant Do?

The job of a remote assistant is to lighten your daily to-do list. And they can do it in a variety of ways.

Here's a breakdown of the activities a remote assistant can accomplish for you.

  • Email Management
  • Travel Arrangement
  • Personal Assistance
  • Calendar Management
  • Event Coordination
  • Online Research
  • Write Content
  • Financial Management

How to Choose Your Virtual Assistant?

We know, you’re excited about the idea of working with a talented remote assistant. But before you get jumpy, here’s a point of consideration for you.

How do you choose the right virtual assistant that fits your business needs?

Well, that one takes a series of steps that we’ll be happy to walk you through.

  • Plan it Out

    The first step involves you, your self-reflection…and strategizing.

    Ask yourself these questions: What tasks are you comfortable outsourcing? What office chores do you need help with?

    If you understand your needs, you’ll be able to create a list without trouble. The point is to know which tasks are best outsourced and you are willing to pass on to an online stranger who hails from another continent.

    Let’s be honest, there is some information about your work that you’re unwilling to share such as schedule and contacts.

    By knowing firsthand what you’re okay and not okay with, you can find and delegate work to a remote assistant smoothly.

  • Do Your Research

    While it’s easy to put the entire responsibility to a virtual assistant agency in choosing your remote worker, you should still be a part of the “choosing process.” Why?

    Successful collaboration goes beyond the impressive feats on resumes and letters of recommendation. You need to get along with your remote assistant to work with them well.

    Take the hiring process as a hands-on project. Examine their qualifications outside the paper. Find out their ability to accomplish a task and in meeting your expectations.

    In short, do your homework and conduct research.

  • Filter Out Your List of VA Candidates

    If you’ve done step number 2 thoroughly, you probably have several candidates to choose from right now.

    To avoid wasting your time interviewing unqualified candidates, you should filter out your pool down to the best ones who are equipped to handle the job.

    Think about it this way; an event coordinator needs a different kind of VA from a relationship coach. They use separate tools and work differently.
    That’s why it’s necessary to find a remote assistant custom-fitted to your business and your type of industry.

  • Choose the Best Among the Remote Assistant Bunch

    Once you’re done with the grueling screening process, it’s time to choose the best among the remote assistant bunch.

    By now, you should have explored your options and understood pretty well what you’re looking for.

    Your remote assistant should have the qualities and the skills that match your job requirements. Of course, they should also embody your vision and working habits in order to work with them well.

  • Make Your Final Decision

    Congratulations! You’re in the final phase of choosing your remote assistant.

    This is where you think about the budget, price range and the tasks you’re going to offload to an RA.

    Look at this in a more realistic view, before putting everything on paper and making an offer.

What Are the Benefits of Having a Virtual Assistant?

Why should you outsource to a virtual assistant? Well, there are good reasons for that.

Investing in a virtual assistant is an answer to many business demands — from productivity and scalability to costs.

Here are the 8 benefits of hiring a virtual assistant:

  • Time-Saving

    As a business owner, you could only wish you had more hours in a day just to get around your packed schedule.

    Enough with wishful thinking because a virtual assistant can give you more time, no magic wands required. They can free your schedule so you can concentrate on actually running your business and achieving bigger business goals.

    Also, hiring a remote assistant from a different time zone can increase your business operation beyond your normal working hours, without paying extra.

    You can sleep soundly at night and still have plenty of client coverage for more opportunities.

  • Cost-Saving

    One of the major sellouts for remote assistants is that they’re cost-effective.

    Yes, this special workforce charges less for their amazing service, making them an ideal alternative for those on a tight budget.

    But salary aside, what makes outsourcing remote workers cheaper is that you don’t get to deal with the overhead costs and the extra compensation benefits.

    Remote assistants get paid when they work, if they don’t, you don’t need to pay them.

  • Highly-Efficient

    What do we mean by highly efficient? Remote assistants are capable of streamlining your business processes in such a way that time-consuming tasks are automated.

    This means things are done a lot quicker (with great results), giving more time for other tasks.

  • Great Flexibility

    Just because it’s long-distance doesn’t mean everything is about to break.

    A remote assistant is flexible and can move up and down your business operations whenever crunch time calls for it.

    You get to meet your demands without additional resources and paying extra…all thanks to your remote miracle worker.

  • Experience and Specialized Skills

    Remote assistants live in all parts of the globe. Do you know what that implies? They’ve got a unique perspective on things, completely different from yours.

    Such fresh ideas will come in handy when you’re trying to tap an untapped market. Your VA can help muster creative solutions that will keep you ahead of the pack.

  • Scalability

    Nothing is easy when you’re trying to grow your business from scratch. It’s hard to make binding commitments when you don’t know what’s going to happen in the next few months.

    Hiring full-time employees seems like a huge financial burden that may not be viable in the long run, especially for a small company.

    A remote assistant is a much safer bet that offers you a lot of benefits without the financial pressure.

    Since they work on an “as needed” basis, you can scale them up or down, add or remove them in whichever way you want without stressing about it.

  • Time Management

    You’re a busy boss who has several engagements in a day. We could only guess how crammed your calendar is.

    But with a remote assistant, you can manage your calendar with no room for cracks to slip through.

    Yes, you’re never going to miss any important commitments and deadlines, so long as you have them.

  • More Resources to Spend

    Instead of spending more money and time hiring full-timers and training them, you can work with a remote assistant and use those saved resources for other lucrative ventures.

  • Getting to do Things You Love

    You love your business, we get it. Still, you need to take a break.

    Thanks to your remote workers, you can take a breather and enjoy doing things you love outside your business.

    When you hire a VA, you get to work with a trusted employee who can get things done, even when you’re not there.

Hire Your First Remote Assistant!

From time-saving to specialized skills, there are so many advantages to working with a remote assistant.

Those benefits, however, can only be enjoyed if you get to land the right VA for your business. With our comprehensive guidelines, we’re certain that you will.

So, get on the right track and explore the working efficiency of a remote assistant by signing up today!

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