Don’t hire a function, virtualize it

Do you have an assistant in your business? Someone to take care of day-to-day functions so you can take care of running the business? No? Why not? Small business owners will typically answer this question by noting that they can’t possibly afford another employee. While you may not be able to hire a full time employee, why not outsource and hire a virtual assistant?

A virtual assistant is much like any other assistant, just they don’t work in your office. They could be across town, or in another country, and work with you through the Internet. They could take care of your accounting, social media platforms or secretarial work, freeing you up to work on what you excel at. At its most basic form, it’s outsourcing.

Different types of virtual assistants
There are three different categories of virtual assistants:

1. Generalist: responsible for rote tasks like data entry and answering calls.
2. Technical: responsible for all your IT related tasks like website design, SEO, updating and installing programs, etc.
3. Specialist: responsible for specialized business functions like HR, accounting, legal, etc.

Virtual assistants can be hired at nearly any cost. Some general assistants can be hired for as little as USD 100 a month. Some more specialists could cost upwards of USD 100 an hour. As an added advantage, you won’t have to pay them local benefits like health insurance, tax and bonuses.

Ways you can leverage an assistant
One of the best ways to leverage a virtual assistant is to have them take care of your technology related functions. Managed service providers (MSP) are a form of virtual assistant that’ll look after your network, technical security, backup and recovery. They’re particularly useful if you don’t have the technical expertise needed to maintain support for your business. The majority of MSPs are also a lot cheaper than employing an in-house IT staff.

Another way to leverage an assistant is for bookkeeping. It’s essential that your bookkeeping is done correctly, it’s also one of the few functions that follow strict regulations. While it’s important to have a licensed professional review your books, there’s no need to have them also do the work prior to the review process. A virtual assistant can help you get your books in order so time spent on the financials is minimized.

Having a virtual assistant can help you focus on the important tasks, running and growing your business. Properly leveraged, you could indirectly see higher profits. If you’d like more information on ways you can outsource some functions, please contact us.