Running a business can be overwhelming. There are plenty of tasks to do, and most of the time, hiring a full-time on-site employee to perform specific tasks may be impractical. This is where hiring virtual assistants will be beneficial.
Having a virtual assistant is practically the same as hiring an office employee but with a lot more efficiency and flexibility. Virtual assistants, or VAs, are professionals working from their homes. They complete their tasks virtually within or beyond your business operating hours. VAs can perform a wide range of tasks – from usual administrative jobs to complex, specialized tasks.
Key Benefits of Hiring Virtual Assistants
Having a virtual assistant is much more advantageous than you think. Here are some of the key benefits of adding a VA to your team.
1. Cost Reduction
Compared to hiring an in-house employee, outsourcing a virtual assistant is more cost-efficient. VAs are paid either at a fixed hourly rate or on a per-task basis.
Most VAs can be outsourced from countries with a lower cost of living. This means that you do not have to pay as much as you would if you hire someone from the United States.
According to Glassdoor, a virtual assistant from the Philippines earns $20750 annually. This is almost half compared to the average annual pay of $59,153 for VAs in the US as of February 2023, per ZipRecruiter.
You can also save on miscellaneous costs, such as internet connection, computers and other equipment, and other office space expenses. There is also no need for you to provide a complete employee benefits package.
In addition, you usually spend time and resources training new-hire employees on various aspects of the job. You don’t have to do so if you hire virtual professionals as they work on specific tasks they are already good at. This means additional savings on training costs.
2. Time Saving
Other than overseeing the main aspects of business operations, running a company entails plenty of tasks, such as email, calendar, website, and social media management; data entry and document creation; creating reports and presentations; internet research; and booking travels and accommodations, among others. Some of these can be mundane and time-consuming, but they are equally important.
Getting a virtual professional to perform these tasks frees you of hours of work, which you can allot in more essential tasks such as forging partnerships, focusing on how to increase your revenue, and creating other business strategies.
3. Flexibility and Increased Productivity
Having virtual assistants from a different time zone practically prolongs your business hours without actually extending office operations. For example, you can set up a team of virtual professionals to attend to customer needs and inquiries. If you schedule them strategically, you can even have 24/7 customer support for your business. This is especially beneficial if you have clients and customers from different time zones.
4. Streamlining Business Operations
If your business does not have well-documented processes and systems set up yet, let a virtual professional help you create these strategies and streamline your business operations.
Hiring virtual assistants can also be done on a per-project basis. This can help you address increasing work demands without having to spend as much as you will if you hire a full-time in-house employee.
5. Access to Specialized Services
One good thing about hiring a virtual assistant is that you can select the candidate that best fits your requirement. Most virtual assistants either have solid work experience, have undergone specialized training, or have taken certificate courses to improve the service they offer.
Whether you want someone to focus on managing your website and social media accounts, an assistant who has advanced proficiency in specific tools and software, or a person who will help you create campaign materials for your company, you can select from the pool of candidates the one that has the perfect skill set tailor fit for your needs.
6. Avoiding Burnout and Achieving Work-Life Balance
Since you have the majority of repetitive and time-consuming tasks already taken care of by your virtual assistants, you can just focus on your company’s long-term growth.
Hiring virtual professionals gives you not only peace of mind. With the majority of your tasks delegated to virtual professionals, you now have more time for yourself, so you can do things that you love outside work and more time for your family and friends.
Enjoying these perks allow you to have a good work-life balance and avoid work burnout.