When you start a business in many ways your business is kinda like your baby. You’ve conceived the idea, put in the work to get it on its metaphorical feet and now you’re looking forward to the day when it can basically care for itself, but it can be so hard to let go.
Just like with human babies, sometimes you need help caring for your business. That care can come in the form of a tax professional, or a business coach, but more often than not that help comes in the form of an assistant.
Sometimes, it can be hard to identify when you need to hire a virtual assistant to keep you on track for meeting, and in a lot of cases exceeding, your business goals. Here are our top 5 ways for knowing when you need a virtual assistant.
Your Business Needs Skills That You Don’t Have
It can be hard to admit, but everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. For example, maybe you know how to curate the most beautiful events, you’ve made friends with venue owners and vendors so you can get the best price for the best experiences. But now you need to create an invitation to get the word out about your swanky shindig and you’re starting to feel overwhelmed because you don’t know the first thing about graphic design.
That’s okay! So many business owners have the mentality that if they don’t have a skill that their business needs then they need to go out and learn that skill. They head over to YouTube University, spend hours on end learning the systems and then don’t feel confident in their final product.
Instead of wasting your precious time and energy, try working with a virtual assistant. The hours it would take you to just learn that new skill are hours you could be using more effectively by doing the work that you are actually qualified to do.
One of the most well known business quotes states that “time is money” so start seeing your time as your most valuable resource instead of throwing it away. It’ll pay off in the long run to invest in your business instead of trying to save money by doing it yourself.
You’re Working For Your Business, When Your Business Should be Working For You
It’s common to hear entrepreneurs speaking to a shared desire to have more time and space in their schedule for doing things that they actually want to do, instead of being stuck in some office tied down to their employer.
Maybe you felt that way and decided to take a chance on yourself. Maybe your business has grown faster than you projected and now you are constantly finding yourself playing catch up. Early mornings answering emails and late nights sending emails. Does this sound familiar?
While it’s natural to pull long hours when you first start your business, living like that isn’t sustainable. Burnout is real, and it’s one of the top reasons why great businesses don’t work out long term. If you’re at a place where you have the ability to make room in your budget to get someone to help you optimize your business, then do it! Trust us, you’ll be thanking yourself later.
You’re Juggling so Much That You’re Starting to Drop The Ball
With an inbox swimming with emails, a calendar full of important meetings and project deadlines approaching anyone would feel overwhelmed. But overwhelm can lead to crucial emails being missed and deadlines being overlooked, and that just won’t do.
When you work with a virtual assistant you’re basically bringing in someone to help you manage your life. Meeting rescheduled? No problem, your virtual assistant can handle it and update your calendar so that you never miss another meeting. Falling behind on your social media strategy? Great, a virtual assistant would be the perfect person to create content for you and schedule it to post at the most optimized time. Inbox swamped with emails? Never fear, your virtual assistant is here!
No matter what you need, a travel itinerary for your upcoming business trip, or compiling lists of the best organic conditioning bars made specifically for wavy hair, a virtual assistant can handle just about any task so you don’t have to.
You Can’t or Don’t Want to Hire an Employee
Running a business is one thing, but bringing in employees to that business is a totally different thing. It can be stressful to have someone else’s livelihood resting on your shoulders. Also, the costs associated with employees really add up. Office supplies, vacation time and benefits… stop it’s too much! Most virtual assistants are independent contractors, so you’re automatically released from the obligations of an employer.
With a virtual assistant you pay for what you need, so If you only have 10 hours of extra work for them that’s fine. 20-25 hours per week? Even better! Many virtual assistants have different tiers of service with appropriate pricing for each tier.
If you do want to build a team around your business in the future, then working with a virtual assistant is a great intermediary step. You can get the feel of what it’s like having someone else help with your business and learn what you may like further help with in the future.
You’re Ready to Scale Your Business
Congratulations! It’s so exciting to be in a place where you’re contemplating scaling and really broadening the reach of your business. But with excitement comes some level of anxiety, they’re just different sides of the same coin.
Having someone to help you grow your business when you scale is invaluable. When you go for it yourself you can feel so alone and overwhelmed, and that’s nothing to celebrate. Having a virtual assistant to support you while you grow can help to alleviate a lot of the pressure that comes with scaling a business.
Are your needs ever evolving? That’s nothing to worry about when you’re working with a virtual assistant. You can adjust your level of service to reflect the needs of your business. With flexible monthly packages, you can add more virtual assistants with different areas of expertise as you need them.
Final Thoughts
While you do a great job running your business, how many times have you wished that there were two of you? By working with a virtual assistant you can delegate administrative or other non income generating tasks to your assistant while you focus on the main event, your business!
If you’re ready to start working smarter, instead of working harder, we think it’s time for you to invest in a virtual assistant. Click here to book a discovery call today, so that you can be matched with a virtual assistant who can meet your needs and start receiving quality help with your business at your convenience.
