There comes a time when small businesses and entrepreneurs reach a point of saturation... their business is successful, referrals are coming in, profits are going up, and the workload suddenly seems to be increasing exponentially. You find yourself working a ridiculous number of hours trying to stay on top of everything and start feeling overwhelmed. If this sounds familiar and you're ready to reclaim your personal life and reduce your stress level, it's time to find a virtual assistant (VA).
What is a virtual assistant? Virtual assistants are independent contractors who provide administrative, technical, and creative services for clients using telecommuting technologies, so they don't have to be local. They enable small businesses the luxury of having the expertise of an administrative assistant without the costs of a full time employee. You only pay for the time spent working on your projects and you don't have to worry about benefits, payroll taxes, additional office equipment, etc.
Often, small business owners and entrepreneurs feel that they can't afford to hire an assistant even though they could really use some help. A virtual assistant is the perfect solution to this dilemma because you have the option of hiring them for just a few hours per week if that's all you need. If you have an ongoing need for support, most VA’s will offer you a retainer package that gives incremental discounts depending on the number of hours you commit to each month. Delegating five hours of work per week to a VA could have a big impact on your life - what would you do with an extra 20 hours of free time each month?
To increase your effectiveness and successfully build your business, you should be focusing on the things you do best. It's a good idea to make a list of all the tasks you are currently doing to see which ones directly contribute to growing your business and what could be delegated to someone else. If you're spending extra hours doing administrative tasks instead of networking, marketing, or selling your products or services, you are wasting valuable time.
Another way to work smarter instead of harder is to outsource projects that require skills you don’t have time to learn. For example, if you’ve been putting off starting a blog or online newsletter because you can’t find the time to learn the software (or don’t have the patience!), it makes sense to find someone who can do it for you. To help minimize costs, you can write the articles yourself and let a VA proof and post them. There are lots of little things you can do to save time while also building your business.
Virtual assistants can help with anything from proofreading to desktop publishing to blog management. Give some thought to how you're spending your time and how you can become more effective in growing your business. Look at the amount of time and energy you’re putting into non-revenue producing activities and decide which tasks can be delegated. Just because you're a small business or a solo entrepreneur doesn't mean you have to do it all yourself!
source: http://biznik.com/members/kimberly-christensen
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Post a Comment