|
Many years ago, I knew an entrepreneur who owned a successful desktop publishing and copying business. After putting in long days doing everything from design work to customer relations, he’d trek to a warehouse store in the exurbs to purchase reams and reams of paper and other office supplies. Eventually he burned out and sold the company.
Here’s the point: I couldn’t figure out why he didn’t just pick up the phone and pay to have an office superstore deliver his supplies. I asked him about it once, and he said he didn’t want to pay their prices. I used to feel like a spendthrift in comparison. Heck, I had a courier service on retainer to deliver documents to clients (this was before e-mail) and paid the extra US$2 to have FedEx pick up from me rather than spending my time looking for the nearest drop box.
As a solopreneur, I recognized early that building a successful business meant I needed to focus on those tasks that made the most sense and delegate or eliminate those that would distract me or eat up valuable time. Face-to-face meetings with my clients? A no-brainer. Spending an hour trekking downtown to hand an envelope to a receptionist? Lost productivity.
Many independent consultants and small business owners are notoriously bad at delegating, whether it’s because they don’t want to spend the money or they don’t know where to start. “You wouldn’t hire a writer to do your graphic design. So if you’re a designer, why are you doing all the project management?” asks Gloria Bell, president of Red Stapler Consulting in Philadelphia.
Bell, a former office manager and insurance claims specialist, devotes her time to helping freelancers and other independents run their businesses more effectively by taking on tasks that could be better done by someone else. She is part of the growing ranks of virtual assistants who offer a wide range of professional, administrative and technical services. Virtual assistants can be an efficient, a la carte way to expand your team without overhead or excess costs. They’re typically paid by the hour, and you only pay for the tasks you need done.
Zane Safrit, a social media strategist, blogger and host of a weekly business show on Blog Talk Radio, is a big fan of virtual assistants. (Indeed, it was Safrit’s short blog post in April about his virtual assistant that gave me the idea for this column.) The Fairfield, Iowa, consultant knows that his strengths are creativity and big ideas, and that he needs someone to help him put his ideas into action and keep track of the details.
Safrit’s virtual assistant, Susan Poirier of New Hampshire-based Ace Concierge, transcribes his radio show, enabling him to both better track the content over time and to repurpose key interviews on his blog and for other forums. Poirier is also editing Safrit’s upcoming book on habits for innovation in small business, and she often provides a sounding board for ideas about how to approach a project.
How a virtual assistant can help
Not sure you can use a virtual assistant? Bell gave me several examples of services that she provides for her clients:
- Keeping your contacts list up-to-date. If you’re like most people, you probably have a stack of business cards sitting on your desk from networking events. Bell has one client who, after every conference, mails her all the business cards he’s picked up. She then enters them into his contact relationship software.
- Sorting receipts at tax time. I still have flashbacks to the hours I once lost sorting through envelopes full of receipts in preparation for my annual visit with my accountant. Bell does this for several of her clients, freeing up their time to do something more productive.
- Tracking client milestones. Ever wished you had remembered to send a client a birthday card or acknowledged a business anniversary? Bell has helped several clients establish milestone calendars; she also sends out holiday cards and other mementos of recognition for them.
- Writing and reviewing contracts. While clearly not every virtual assistant is qualified to handle contracts, someone who has seen a lot of them can be a great resource. Bell is always up-front with her clients. “I’m not a lawyer, and I’ll tell someone when they need one,” she says. “But I can usually point out clauses I don’t agree with, and sometimes even suggest language they might want to use instead.”
Bell and other virtual assistants can also help with such tasks as booking hotel and airline reservations and bookkeeping. Some will even order flowers for you for your spouse.
Tips for hiring a virtual assistant
If you think you could benefit from a virtual assistant, both Bell and Safrit emphasize the importance of identifying the right person for your personality and work style.
When Safrit was looking for a virtual assistant, he put the word out via Twitter. He received several recommendations and lots of queries, and interviewed four prospects. He settled on Poirier because she had the right mix of technical and intellectual skills—and she listened to what he needed and offered solutions.
So what should you look for in a virtual assistant? Here are three tips to help you:
- Look for someone with a business background. This could be someone with a track record as an administrative assistant or an office manager, or someone with a business degree. Bell points out that “your virtual assistant needs to understand their role in your business, and how they can fit in to be effective.”
- Pick someone who is organized. While you would think that anyone self-identifying as a virtual assistant would be organized and could multitask, don’t assume it. Verify it, or it can cost you both time and money.
- Don’t hire the first person you talk to. The first person you talk to might end up being your choice, but put the time in up front to be sure. It’s also important to ask for and check references. As Bell points out, “You need to trust this person, because you are likely turning over some important pieces of your business to your virtual assistant.”
The bottom line: Hiring a virtual assistant is a business transaction, and you need to treat it as such and do your due diligence.
I must admit that, before I did the research for this column, I didn’t think I had any tasks to delegate to a virtual assistant. But it’s easy to see how delegating just one or two tasks can free up valuable time—not to mention taking away your excuse for not doing those core activities (i.e., business development) that you need to do but sometimes put off. While every independent consultant, freelancer or small business owner has to calculate how best to spend his or her time, it’s important to remember that time is money—and downtime can be priceless.
Daria Steigman advises clients on business and communication strategy and public affairs. She also blogs about business, entrepreneurship and social media on her Independent Thinking Blog. She can be reached at +1 202.244.7651 or
. Or connect with her via Twitter: @dariasteigman. |
|
