You spend hours choosing a new tool to use for your business operations, such as project management or others. You check the reviews and go for trials. Then why not spend a bit more time choosing the best virtual assistant service to get you more free time?
Without proper guidelines, it seems tough to choose a good VA agency out of thousands of agencies in the industry. Only the best VA can help you reach your business goals. So, today, we are here to help you with that.
Undoubtedly, you need to make a checklist of the requirements you want to outsource from the VA company, the type of projects and pricing. Then, shortlist the agencies based on your needs but with a good reputation.
There are more criteria you need to follow to choose a suitable VA service. Let’s find out!
Assess Your Needs: One-Time Project or Ongoing?
You know that you need to outsource a virtual assistant service to handle administrative tasks, email management, or other tasks. But you have not assessed for how much time you will be needing that service. Will it be project-based or contractual, or do you need a full-time staff?
Without outlining the required tasks you want to outsource, you will surely roam around out of nowhere. That’s why the first step is assessing your needs, the type of project, and time sensitivity. All this will also have an effect on your budget and the pricing model of the VA agencies.
Here is a checklist of questions that will better help you assess your business requirements.
- What specific tasks do I need help with?
- What are your task priorities?
- Are these tasks regularly recurring or one-time projects?
- How many hours per week do I expect to need virtual assistant services?
- Do I need a virtual assistant who is available during specific hours or time zones?
- What is my budget for virtual assistant services?
- What are my expectations regarding confidentiality and data security?
- How will the performance of the virtual assistant be monitored and evaluated?
- Do I need a virtual assistant who can scale up to meet my business needs?
Industry-Specific Virtual Assistant Services
Is industry-specific experience or specialized skill important for the tasks you need to be completed?
Here most business owners do the same mistake of not searching for the industry-specific virtual assistant. You may also think you need help with email marketing where industry-specific knowledge is not mandatory. But it actually mandatory.
For example you are in real-estate industry where you need to pitch home buyers. So, the email subject line, potential buyer’s pain points, is far different than pitching to an e-commerce site owner.
So, check out whether the virtual assistant service provider aligns with your business industry or not. Ask them if they can provide niche-specific services, the service differs according to who need the VA.
Besides being a cost-effective solution, VA agencies mainly provide a wide range of services such as,
- Administrative assistance & handling admin tasks.
- Appointment setting or appointment scheduling.
- Assist in social media management & social media marketing.
- Digital marketing.
- Calendar management.
- Do strategic planning.
- Excellent customer service.
- Handle all other basic routine tasks.
Reputation & Service Capabilities
You want expertise and experience, not someone who can handle tons of work but cost you hefty mistakes. So, before hiring the virtual assistant service, check their previous reviews on completing responsibilities for business growth and their service capabilities.
If the service provider tells you they can do all of the work for you. It will be a big red flag. You need someone who is an expert on doing specific tasks where there is no room for mistakes.
Search a bit in the industry about the reputation of the agency. A couple of years of experience with positive reviews can narrow down your search list.
Compatibility Factors: Time Zone, Culture, and Communication
Think about the three compatibility factors when working with a virtual assistant service provider: time-zone, culture, and communication.
Time-zone is must important because the VA need to work according to your time. Though VA agencies work based on the client time-zone, they still clarify this point in the first.
Next, cultural differences can impact communication to give customer service. If the VA need to cold call or handle virtual receptionist responsibilities, the tone and accent of their language must be same with your customers. So, the VA with great communication skills can understand customers emotions and needs better.
Lastly, by communicating with you or your team member, the VA should be able to adapt to your working ecosystem. Look for VA services that are flexible in your preferred worksystems.
Prioritization of Services with In-House Staff
When choosing a virtual assistant service, ask yourself,
Do I prefer a virtual assistant who works as part of a team or an independent contractor?
Based on your answer, you know what type of VA service you need to outsource. If you want a team, then you must go for the agency’s in-house VAs team. With an in-house team, you can rest assured about their proper training, experience and expertise.
Internal teams always stay under supervisors and know about professionalism. This way there will be no compromise with the quality of work, because you are already getting qualified and best trained VAs.
Check Technological Proficiency
With technological proficiency, it takes less time to complete tasks and become more productive. So, another step in choosing a virtual assistant service is checking how adaptable they are using tools and software.
To handle the basic tasks and your projects the VA should be able to use these software, so they can bring more value to your business.
- Office Productivity Tools: Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) & Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides).
- Communication Platforms: Email platforms (like Gmail and Outlook), messaging apps (Slack and Microsoft Teams), & video conferencing tools (like Zoom, Google Meet, and Skype).
- Project Management Software: Asana, Trello, or Monday.com.
- Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software: Salesforce, HubSpot, or Zoho.
- Social Media Management Tools: Hootsuite, Buffer, or Sprout Social.
- Cloud Storage and File Sharing: Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive.
- Financial and Budget Management Software: QuickBooks, Xero, or FreshBooks.
Training: Extent of Required Training for Virtual Assistants
Now you know your business needs are different, and whenever you hire either on-site employees or virtual assistants, they need training. The level of training depends on the VAs expertise. If they are already capable of handling administrative tasks, marketing, or other tasks and know how to use the software, then you won’t need much time to train them.
The best virtual assistant service providers already train their teams with the basic tasks. And if they have experience doing with past clients, then they already know about the routine tasks, what to do.
In the beginning, check the required training for the VAs. If you have limited time, then go for an experienced VA.
Turnover: Considerations for VA Departures
The quality and reputable virtual assistant service already has backup if your current VA departure or take any emergency leave. They ensure your workflow isn’t disrupted at any cost.
But if you go for independent contractors, they won’t facilitate you with an alternative VA.
Thus stay transparent with this alternative VA service in time of turnover. This will later save you from interrupting your natural workflow.
Trial Period and Evaluation
Most virtual assistant agencies offer trial period and have refund policy if you do not like the service or do not match your expectations. It is better you find a VA service who offer the same.
With a trial period, you can best know whether the VA is meeting your expectations and what their expertise is in fulfilling responsibilities. Both you and the service provider should be transparent about giving trial sessions and the refund policy.
Review of Contract and Terms of Service
Now based on the previous steps, you must have chosen a dedicated virtual assistant service for you. The last step is reviewing the contract and agreements. Take time and go through the contract policy. You may need to adjust some terms; add yours. If you have any doubts regarding any terms or laws, clarify them with the agency.
Sign the contract, and here you are. Welcome to your new VA service.
Conclusion
Virtual assistant services, indeed, have made the life easier by taking your time-consuming tasks whether you run a business or an entrepreneur. But it is also important you choose the right service provider, if you want the best service.
Thus start with your own requirement first, then go for searching for the VA agency. Try to find out reputable VA agency and experience in your industry. Next match up the culture, language, and time-zone. Lastly, it is best if you go for a free trial period and check the agreements carefully.
Here, you have your virtual partner taking the administrative burdens to optimize your business operations!
