Articles

How to Empower An Outsourced Virtual Team

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 06:13:00 GMT

How does one deal with staff that he never gets to see?

Specifically for outsourced employees, the fear of constantly thinking that the virtual employee does not measure up to his qualifications could be very daunting.

If one is the manager of a project and oversees the work of his virtual office team, there are several ways for him to become successful in managing them.

Give them clear instructions with an email documenting and explaining the task in detail. Never miss giving them a deadline. Check back a week with them before it is due. You allow your virtual assistant team to handle the task their way and give them feedback after. Offer necessary guidance at all times.

Empower your staff by giving recognition where and when it is due. Express how resourceful and skillful they are when they meet expectations.

Communication is vital. Make certain that the virtual assistant and his manager is in sync. Exchange work goals and processes. Share problems and changes. When there are department or company news, alert them constantly.

Support and commitment. When encouragement and support is present in the virtual workforce, your virtual assistant team can sense it even when they are miles away or countries apart. Guide without breathing down their necks all the time.

Liability. The virtual employee, measured by metrics that the virtual assistant team manager imposed, will objectively determine goals if they are met satisfactorily or not. His responsibility on hitting his target will rely on the communication and hands on support he will be receiving from his team members. If he errs, he should learn.

Again, the virtual assistant team may start well and then start to slack on – or slack later on. One must build his team by being consistent in his support, expectations and commitment. Although each case is unique, one must understand that to know his or her virtual employees, he must also know enough about himself, his business and where the spectrum is appropriate. Managing and empowering your staff will be easier if one knows where he needs to be more involved when communicating and measuring is consistent.

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Blogging for Business

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 07:04:00 GMT

A blog is the simplest form of a web log. Entered into internet society, the readers will immediately visualize that what the creator posted is going to be a hit or not. This brand new medium for generating articles, essays, statements and comment sharing is dependent on an author’s creativity to create a compelling, informative, and rational article. Other writers just wanted to speak up to the world of the things that are maintaining them shut.

Blogging wouldn’t be taxing if the writer has the appropriate recipes. Although technical expertise such as grammar might not be a major requirement, the skill to communicate well is an advantage. If the writer or blogger has a quick mind and the desire to share ideas, the freedom to publish one’s thoughts is in the power of a mouse click.

One direction a blogger might want to lead his readers to is sharing business and professional ideas to his followers. Just like how anyone can be a content writer, a blogger will have more authority over his topics on the level of expertise he gained. A vast stretch of information opens up and bloggers writing about their businesses and profession now have control about shaping their messages to the public. In this age of mass media, publications like blogs spread the news.

Now that bloggers have a corporate tool for communicating to their followers and potential clients, it provides businesses a chance to gain online presence.

Give blogging a shot. Contribute to society. Share one of the best things in the world – your profile and your business.

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Why hiring a home-based Virtual Assistant is business suicide

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 02:43:00 GMT

Working with an offshore Virtual Assistant will provide you some early cultural challenges that takes some time and effort to master. The last thing you need to add to the mix is the vast array of challenges that you will face if you engage a home-based Virtual Assistant instead.

Firstly, there is the obvious issue of supervision. While some software companies have developed fancy spying technology that takes screen shots of your Virtual assistants PC every 3-5 minutes, this is hardly a viable solution. By installing this software, you are saying to your Virtual Assistant “I really want you to be engaged and enrolled in the vision of my company, but I really don’t trust you”. Let me ask you, would you be happy if screen shot of your PC was taken every 3-5 minutes?

Secondly, there is the issue of local infrastructure. While your business is probably located in the 1st world, your Virtual Assistant is likely to be located in the 3rd world. Infrastructure is spread very differently in the 3rd world when compared to the 1st world. For example, black-outs occur daily and for sustained periods of time in residential areas. Very few homes are fitted with air conditioning making working conditions very uncomfortable to those who are not equipped with it.

Thirdly, there is the issue of loyalty. The vast majority of home-based virtual assistants are contractors who often work part time. In situations like this, the virtual assistant is highly motivated to constantly look for more stable, high paying clients that provide them with the stability that can be found mostly at office-based jobs. The result is that home-based staff will often jump from job to job, providing employers with a succession-planning nightmare.

Finally, and most importantly, is the legal issue. When engaging with a bricks and mortar virtual assistant firm, you are engaging with a legitimate business that will provide you with a contract that safeguards your investment.

While you may pay a premium for an office-based Virtual Assistant, the benefits of supervision, infrastructure, loyalty and safeguarding your legal position far outweigh the incremental costs.

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How to Find A Virtual Assistant

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 09:00:00 GMT

Juggling tasks such as answering calls, editing several papers and containing all the messages in your emails at the same time sound so exhausting and stressful. If the to-do list is way overwhelming for one person to do it all, then it is high time you realize that you simply cannot do it all by yourself. You simply cannot seek out opportunities for growth and expansion if you are glued to your desk all day.

The answer is to find someone online that appears, get you caught up and then disappears until you need them again. This someone must be trustworthy enough for you to rely on and trust with your proprietary information.

How do you start? Where do you start? Before you give an online assistant or virtual assistant the keys to your business, locate your own superhero that will save you from all that workload the wise way.

Search in Google, Yahoo and Bing. Although these search engines will give you millions of results, filter the ones that you want to work with. There's a raft of virtual assistants out there waiting to work with you.

Do your social media homework. For small to medium businesses, Linkedin has the largest network for virtual assistants. To find the best ones, find out where they hang out. You normally would not find the brightest virtual assistants in small sites and forums.

Read testimonials and reviews. Learn the pitfalls of people who have gone before you. Get references and get to know the virtual assistant first. Get feedback on their profiles

Do the math. Costs vary. A certain level of skill set requires you to pay more especially when you need administrative skills from your virtual assistant. Set expectations.

Communication is key. Virtual assistants or online assistants must know how to communicate in English. Language barrier is not supposed to be a problem.

With a little bit of effort, you will eventually find your own virtual assistant and take over your workload thus allowing you to focus more on strategic initiatives for your small business.

Your phone has been ringing off the hook and we know it is not you who will be answering it soon.

Ultimate Checklist for Running Your Home-Based Business

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 09:17:00 GMT

From speciality web-based shops, a home-based car service, to your own chiropractic clinic or massage parlour, running your home business can involve meeting registration requirements and other issues such as marketing and billing. A professional answering service may be invaluable for organisations of any size. Here, we look at the main issues you need to consider for running your own home-based business.

Council Approval, Registration, Licensing, and Insurance

If you have a particular business name in mind and will not be trading under your own name, you should register your business name with the relevant body in your state or territory or register a company with ASIC. You’ll also need an ABN, to be obtained from the ATO, and any other licenses or permits that apply to your industry or type of business. There may be other compliance requirements associated with your state or territory and your area of practice.

As a home-based business owner you need to check with your local council for regulations that can apply to pollution, energy or parking issues. You may be required to obtain a permit from your council if you exceed permitted levels of noise or want to put up special signs.

Insurance

Your home and contents insurance won’t cover you for losses or liability arising from the conduct of your business at home. You should obtain the appropriate insurance for your business:

Public liability insurance – for clients and other business partners who visit your place of work

Professional indemnity insurance – for those in service industries covering losses that may arise from professional negligence

Business equipment insurance – covers any inventory, office furniture or equipment resulting from physical damage or theft cover

Workers compensation – for any employees

Income protection – covers loss from personal accident or if you become ill

Business Planning

Make sure you have a good business plan in place for the medium to long term. This will help you clarify your goals and budget successfully.

Design a Professional-Looking Home Office

If you will be seeing clients in your home office, invest in some nice furniture. Place some pot plants and amenities such as a coffee machine or water cooler in the waiting area and remember to display your credentials to establish credibility.

Set Up Marketing Channels

Think about how you will market yourself and your business. Be selective about how you use your marketing budget.

Consider Your First Point of Client Contact

How will clients – potential and current – contact you at first instance? For a sole trader or small business owner with limited time and resources, this is a crucial step in making the right impression. Using a virtual assistant ensures you make a great first impression and helps you sustain interest and accessibility even when you are personally tending to another client. Virtual assistants are also much cheaper than having an onsite employee.

Invoicing and Billing

Make sure you have a full invoicing and billing system in place well before you start. Computerised systems based on open source software are commonly available for free or a small service fee. Having a well-organised invoicing and billing system in place helps you keep of track your business cycle.

Support and Ongoing Skills

Lastly, make sure you have sufficient support and stay interested with ongoing professional development. Join some business groups or professional membership forums or sign up for seminars to enhance your business skills and meet other business owners. The federal government (through entities such as the ATO) and your local government run free workshops for new businesses on tax and other matters.

Small Business - What Should and Can You Outsource?

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 09:05:00 GMT

As a small business owner, there are two central ways in which outsourcing can add value for you and your business. First, there is the issue of time. You may be able to do the task yourself but it’s much more convenient for you to outsource the function to focus on your core business activities. Second is the issue of expertise. Outsourcing lets you access expertise at a fraction of the cost required to hire a full-time skilled employee. From a virtual assistant to debt collectors and accountants, we look at the functions that you may find useful to outsource and why.

Marketing and Advertising

Marketing and advertising requires a good degree of specialise knowledge. However, small businesses should be selective in the type of marketing and advertising that they use as mass media advertising can be expensive for new businesses. Logos, graphics and website design, copywriting, cold calling, online advertising, and search-engine optimisation are all ways in which business owners can have specialist subcontractors generate leads and clients without having to engage in the work themselves.

Accounting

Accountants and lawyers are most commonly engaged on an hourly or project-by-project basis for small businesses, rather than in-house. A skilled accountant is well worth the money for small businesses – you can avoid pitfalls associated with compliance, particularly in your first year of operation. Don’t be shy about shopping around and talking to a few before you commit to a trusted accountant. They could be your best partner for business success.

Administrative Services

Outsourcing administrative services not only de-clutters your time and frees you from non-core business functions, it can create a great impression for your business. If you’re time-challenged, use an answering service to make sure you don’t miss any client queries or new leads. Virtual offices are great if you’re working from home and want to create the highest degree of professionalism to clients. Data entry, research, organising files, transcription and other administrative tasks can all be outsourced to maximise your time, allowing you to concentrate on key business tasks.

Function Rooms and Conferences

There’s no need to rent a large office space if you only hold functions twice a year. Virtual offices and conference spaces can be hired on an hourly basis for those times that you need to connect and communicate with a large audience.

Fundraising and Event Planning

If you are charged with organising a fundraising activity or need a big event for your small business to be well-organised, why not engage with a professional host and event planner to save time and ensure everything goes as planned?

Consulting

Strategy and consulting advice will come handy later down the line, when your business has expanded and needs a new plan with fresh ideas. However, if you’re in a niche industry and have large budget, you may find it useful to hire a consultant on an hourly or project basis from the very start to clarify your objectives and obtain invaluable advice.

Public Relations

PR companies are probably useful for medium to large company or where businesses suffer some reputation damage. However, if you have aggressive expansion plans and have the budget for it, using a public relations company can help with rapid expansion.

Top Six Strategies for Profit Maximisation for Small Business Success

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 08:58:00 GMT

Small businesses are more vulnerable to the downturns of economic cycles. As a small business owner, there are many steps you can take to minimise your exposure and generate greater profits for your business. For example, instead of having a full office with administrative staff, you can choose to use an outsourced answering service or use second-hand and refurnished equipment and furniture that will serve your purposes just as well as completely new goods. Here we look at the top six strategies for profit maximisation for your small business.

Outsource Non-Core Functions

Outsource your non-core functions as much as possible in your first few years. Outsourcing gives you and your business access to time, skills, know-how and expertise without the long-term commitment associated with hiring people. Pick and choose the staff you need on a project-by-project basis if appropriate for your industry. No matter your business size, outsourcing could be a very useful long-term feature of your business.

Don’t Waste Money on Fancy Touches

You want to make a great impression and get your message out there. But spending a lot of money on fancy touches may not necessary generate the interest and excitement that you’re looking for. Your time and effort should be convincing clients and potential customers that you will do or deliver what they want for them rather than demonstrating that you are in touch with the latest interior decoration trends or that you use the latest printing technology on your business cards.

Choose minimalist styles for business cards and brochures if your budget is not unlimited. Keep your office tidy and well-maintained but don’t spend your monthly takings on expensive sofas. Skip costly exhibitions and trade shows unless they are central to players in your industry. Expensive trips and fancy hotels can be avoided by teleconferencing or agreeing to meet the client at their premises for the day.

Use Second Hand or Lease-Hire

Unless you’re in a highly specialised industry, you probably won’t need state-of-the-art equipment. Second-hand, refurbished and lease-hire purchases will give your business the same value at a fraction of the cost while bringing potential tax benefits. Computer equipment, in particular, is superseded very quickly and there is a huge variety of refurbished computer systems that will serve your small business needs for years.

Go Easy on Hiring Staff and Expansion

It’s understandable for you to be excited about your growing business. But be careful about staff expansion, particularly in your first year or two. Work with your accountant to identify the real costs of hiring an additional staff member or two, and consider whether you would be better off outsourcing or hiring a subcontractor to do the same job upon demand.

Use a Virtual Office

Virtual offices can be one of the best budgeting choices you make for your small business. A virtual assistant creates the right impression to first time callers, helping you convert leads into sales. Unlike using a full-time personal assistant, there’s no need to worry about superannuation, wages or providing onsite facilities for employees.

Skip the Consultants and PR Firms

Unless you have an unlimited budget, using a consultant or PR firm will probably hinder your immediate business goals by blowing out your budget. While using consultants and PR firms could be of use to any type of business, sole traders and start ups should do their own research as much as possible rather than committing to a long-term relationship with expensive consultants. Advisers such as accountants, tax lawyers, and online marketing experts are appropriate partners for small business but defer looking to other advisers like consultants and PR firms until your business has expanded.

Seven Keys for Small Business Success in Your First Year

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 08:52:00 GMT

You quit your job and have entered your first month as a small business owner, or perhaps you’re in the planning stages of starting up your own small business. From having a virtual assistant to making use of effective marketing techniques, we bring you the top seven keys to achieving small business success in your first year.

Networking

Networking is essential for business success. But it’s not just any type of networking that will bring your business more clients and useful contacts. Being a small business owner, your time is limited. If you’re in a niche retail area, knowing all the major builders in your state or territory won’t help bring in the right kind of business. Practice selective networking – research the industry areas, pay attention to medium and longer term trends, and make a narrow list of professional and industry groups that will provide useful links. Don’t waste your time chasing irrelevant contacts.

Smart Marketing

Smart marketing is crucial for your first year and well-beyond. Make use of internet marketing and free marketing (for example, social networking) where possible. The reach of the internet when compared with traditional media such as radio and television is broader and more suited to the small business budget. It’s easy to spend your entire annual budget on unrewarding marketing, while using narrowly focused internet marketing tools can help you fine tune your campaigns to create selective channels targeting the right markets.

Keeping Overheads Low

Small business owners should be careful about keeping overheads and expenditure low. One of the simplest ways to do this is to outsource wherever possible. Using a virtual office will impress clients while allowing you to work from home for the majority of the time, saving you commuting and rental costs as well as additional outlays associated with having employees. An answering service adds an extra degree of professionalism and credibility.

Strategise

One of the easiest ways to strategise is to have a detailed business plan and update it regularly. Having your annual, two-year, or five-year goals definitively set out forces you to think about your business in a strategic way and allows you a chance to consider the issues that can arise so that your business can adapt more quickly.

Find a Good Accountant or Tax Lawyer

It’s easy to forget about tax and compliance with your busy schedule. Make the process smooth by finding a trusted accountant and/or tax lawyer. This will not only give you a clear picture of the financial position of your business, but save you many hours of hair-pulling when reporting time comes.

Maintain Liquidity

As the saying goes, “you have to spend money to make money.” This is true if you spend money wisely rather than impulsively. Don’t underestimate operating costs: maintain sensible stock levels and don’t be afraid of spending money on marketing and technology associated upgrades where necessary. Where these expenditures result in returns for your company, they are investments rather than costs. So maintain liquidity by budgeting well, spending sensibly, and ensure that you have access to short-term funding where required.

Don’t Overdo It

Finally, remember you’re in it for the long haul. Don’t overdo it in the short time. The first years will be an exciting challenge. Stay focused and positive; remember that persistence and tenacity is essential for a business owner and make sure you recharge mentally and physically on a regular basis.

How to Give Good Customer Service Without Compromising Efficiency

Wed, 16 Feb 2011 09:22:00 GMT

Providing a good service that makes your customers feel valued, while maintaining efficiency, is a tricky balancing act for any business. Outsourcing to an answering service or virtual assistant is one way to ensure that the person dealing with incoming calls is focused on that particular job, but this alone is not enough. You need to make sure that customers never feel rushed, but no one issue should be allowed to drag on, costing you money. Achieving this takes skill and practice. Here are a few tips to help you get the balance right.

Own the problem

One of the most common complaints that customers have regarding customer service is that they keep getting passed from one person to another without anyone ever taking responsibility. An important part of good customer service is ensuring that very quickly the caller speaks to a representative who is prepared to own the problem. If they are unable to deal with every aspect of the problem themselves, it is still far better if one person remains the contact point for the customer, even if behind the scenes several people are required to get to the bottom of the issue. It is important that the person to take responsibility for a customer's case should be the first person they speak to when they call, or if that is not possible, the first person they are transferred to. If they are transferred more than once, it will begin to feel as if they are being fobbed off.

Be ready

There is a temptation to try to demonstrate good service by answering a call the moment the phone rings. There is nothing wrong with this in principal -- callers should never be left hanging, after all -- but it is important to make sure that you are completely ready. When you speak to a customer, their case should be the only thing that you are thinking about. If you are still writing up notes from a previous call, or attending to some administration, you will make a poor first impression and you won't be able to give the level of service that the call demands.

Set a positive tone

Building a rapport with the customer is vital if you are to resolve their problem in a way that is mutually satisfactory. More often than not the caller will have experienced some level of frustration or inconvenience that has prompted their call. Therefore, the onus is on you to set a positive tone to the discussion. Treating every caller as someone you genuinely want to help, and every call as an opportunity to achieve a positive outcome, will create a good impression on your customers and will make your job easier and more enjoyable.

Stay in control

In a desire to avoid seeming brusque, there can be a temptation to allow the caller to wander off on a tangent. You must always be on the lookout for this. If you find it happening, you need to get back on track as quickly as possible. Avoid interrupting the customer, but take the first opportunity to say something like, "You mentioned that you were having difficulty with..." and bring the conversation back to the topic in hand.

Listen

Whether your calls are outsourced to an answering service or you are dealing with them in-house, the most important thing that any customer service representative can do is listen. It may sound obvious, but you'd be surprised how often it is ignored. Just because you think you know what the customer is going to say, it doesn't mean that you do. Listening carefully increases the chances of resolving the problem first time, which is both good customer service and efficient.

Top Tips For Reducing Business Expenditure

Wed, 16 Feb 2011 09:19:00 GMT

Businesses should always be looking to operate more cost effectively. As soon as you take your eye off the ball inefficiencies start to creep in. There are countless ways of reducing office expenditure. Some are obvious, such as employing a virtual assistant that works from a remote location; some, like going green, are perhaps a little more surprising. Here are few of our favourite ways to streamline how your office operates.

Use social media

Marketing your business is always important. Even in tough economic times you cannot afford simply to stop advertising in order to reduce expenditure. You can however change the way you do it. Using social media is a cheap alternative to traditional marketing methods and can be very effective. If you do it properly your return on investment can be very high indeed.

Go green

Environmentally friendly products are often more expensive than their standard alternatives, so going green might seem a little counterintuitive when it comes to cutting costs. It is worth remembering, however, that one of the key principles of environmentalism is to use resources more efficiently. Create a formal environmental policy that covers all aspects of the business including travel and energy use, as well as more obvious areas such as recycling and working towards a paperless office. Embrace this philosophy throughout your business and as well as getting great PR, you will find that you save money too.

Install a VoIP phone system

Telephone calls can be a significant cost within a business, but they needn't be. A VoIP phone system is relatively straightforward and inexpensive to install. It will pay for it self through reduced ongoing costs in a matter of months, after which every call you make will represent a financial saving.

Outsource

Outsourcing is an increasingly popular way of cutting costs and increasing efficiency in the office. It has the dual effect of reducing office costs associated with employees (such as payroll, office space and computer equipment) and also freeing up remaining staff members to engage more efficiently in generating profits and driving the business forward. Almost any part of a business can be considered for outsourcing, but it lends itself particularly well to areas such as payroll or administration, where a virtual assistant or answering service can be an extremely effective solution. Key profit centres are perhaps best kept in-house.

Downsize

How much of your current space do you actually use on a daily basis? Probably not as much as you think. Try to divide the contents of your office into three separate sections by identifying what is required on a day-to-day basis; what is not required daily, but may be required in the future or must be kept for legal reasons; and what is superfluous to requirements. Ditch the rubbish, rent an offsite storage facility (much cheaper than office space) for everything you might need in the future and only spend money on the office space that you really need. You could take this idea further by considering whether some of your employees could work from home. Many people are actively seeking this type of employment as a means to improving their work/life balance, so it shouldn't be too hard to find volunteers willing to help you save money this way.

Communication Skills--How To Cross the Language Barrier

Wed, 16 Feb 2011 09:16:00 GMT

When you work with someone, such as a virtual assistant, whose native tongue is not English, the language barrier is a potential obstacle to overcome. In fact, it is amazing how often miscommunication occurs even between two native speakers. The onus is on everyone, therefore, to take every opportunity to make communication more effective. There are many simple ways to improve your communication skills. Here are just a few of them:

Listen

Many people instinctively equate communication with talking, but that is only one half of what is going on. Being able to listen well is at least as important. When you are communicating with someone, focus completely on what they are saying; do not allow yourself to be distracted by anything else. It is equally important to forget any preconceived ideas you may have. Just because you think you know what someone is going to say, it doesn't mean that you do. Listen carefully and without prejudice and you might learn all sorts of unexpected things.

Think before you speak

Before you open your mouth to speak, take a moment to think about whether what your about to say is really what you mean. Many people have a habit of 'thinking aloud', and while this is a perfectly reasonable approach in a social context or when debating ideas, it can lead to confusion when you are giving instructions or communicating requirements to colleagues or service providers.

Be clear and concise

When you are giving instructions or assigning tasks, it is imperative that you are clear and concise. Try to put yourself in the shoes of the person you are instructing and imagine what questions they might have. Include all the detail necessary to complete the task, but nothing else. Extraneous detail only serves to muddy the waters and provides an opening for potential confusion. If it isn't useful, leave it out. This is particularly important when you are communicating with someone who is no a native English speaker.

Be alert to problems

With the best will in the world, communication problems will always arise as long as human beings are involved. The key to minimising the damage that they cause is to be alert, spot them quickly and clarify the issues before things get out of hand.

Use technology

Whether you are communicating with a client, a colleague, the provider of your answering service or virtual assistant, it is important to use the available technology to get the most from your relationship. Online telephony, instant messaging and e-mail are all fast and effective methods of communication. Consider also using a task management platform, which ensures that everyone involved can see the requirements and progress of a project or projects.

Build relationships

Good communication is about building relationships. This does not mean that everyone you communicate with at work needs to become your best friend, but it does mean that you should take an interest. Who are they? What makes them tick? What are their strengths and weaknesses? If you can answer these kinds of questions, you will be better placed to communicate with them effectively.

How to Choose the Best Virtual Assistant

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 07:12:00 GMT

Outsourcing elements of your business can be a great way of reducing costs and freeing up your own time, or that of your staff. Almost any part of a business can be outsourced (though it is a good idea to keep key profit centres in-house) and hiring an external organisation to provide an answering service or look after payroll increasingly popular. One of the most common and successful outsourcing solutions is the 'virtual assistant' who can provide administrative support economically and efficiently from a remote location. Choosing a VA is an important decision. Here are a few priorities to consider, which should ensure that you get it right.

Good 'business fit'

Not all virtual assistants are equal. You need to make sure that the person you hire is not just a capable professional, but also that you and they have a good 'business fit'. This means that the virtual assistant's skill set must closely match your requirements. It is no use having an assistant who excels in all sorts of areas you don't need, if you have to explain everything that you do need as if you were talking to a complete beginner.

Rapport

Even if your virtual assistant is hundreds or thousands of kilometres away, they are going to become an important part of your life. You need, therefore, to be able to get on with them. When you speak to a prospective VA, how comfortable and easy is the communication? Do you think this is someone you will enjoy working with? Building a rapport with your VA will play a big part in defining the success of this working relationship.

Professionalism

When you interview virtual assistants, how professional is their manner? Does it meet the standards you would expect of someone representing your company? If you send an e-mail, do you receive a prompt and courteous reply? If their standards of professionalism are not sufficiently high when they are trying to win your business, it is very unlikely that they will improve when they are working on your behalf.

Availability

Make sure that your virtual assistant is able to work the hours that you need to meet your business requirements. This is particularly important if you are outsourcing from a different time zone. Some VAs will work hours that overlap with yours, some will match the hours that you work and others will even offer 24/7 support. Figure out what you need and you will be able to find someone who is happy to work to your schedule.

Language

Check that the language skills of your VA are sufficient to represent your company well. This is of course particularly important when you are employing someone for whom English is a second language, but it is still relevant even if your prospective VA is a native English speaker. Study their website, and any written communications you have, to make sure that there are no issues of grammar or spelling that would reflect badly on your business.

References

Always ask for references and check testimonials. A fancy website and a brief interview can only tell you so much. You will get far more information from the experiences of other people who have worked with your VA before. If references and testimonials are not forthcoming, you need to ask yourself why not.

5 Common Problems with Offshore Outsourcing

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 08:36:00 GMT

Offshore outsourcing is a popular way of reducing costs and freeing up resources to concentrate on other, more fundamental, elements of a business. It is possible to outsource almost any part of a business, though it is wise to keep key profit centres in house. Using a virtual assistant is an increasingly common way of taking advantage of these benefits. Offshore outsourcing is not without risks though. You should take these into account before deciding whether it is the right option for your business. Here are a few of the most common problems with offshore outsourcing:

Operational problems

Engaging any outside organisation in the day-to-day running of your business inevitably introduces the possibility of operational problems. First you need to consider whether the outsourcing company has sufficient infrastructure to allow it to do the job that you require. Once you are satisfied that it has the capabilities to meet your needs, you need to establish whether its internal processes are compatible with yours. If they are very different, is the outsourcing company going to be able to adapt, in order to fit in with you?

Specific project problems

Not all problems are fundamental or relate to the organisation as a whole. You may have found a company that you are confident you can work with, but that does not mean that there will be no further difficulties. Some problems relate to specific projects. These can occur as a result of a lack of expertise in a specific area on the part of the outsourcing company, but more often than not they arise from a misunderstanding of the requirements. Creating clear, detailed project requirements from the very beginning will go a long way to eliminating this risk.

Quality assurance problems

Even with the best systems in place and the best people on board nothing in business, as in life, is perfect. This is why a good quality assurance program is important. Quality assurance problems can occur for a number of reasons. Sometimes there is miscommunication about who is responsible for QA, sometimes the outsourcing company is simply not given enough time to include adequate QA in a project, and on other occasions a misunderstanding of the requirements of a project can render insufficient the QA that is used.

Intellectual property/confidential data problems

When dealing with an outside organisation you are potentially opening your business up to risks relating to intellectual property and confidential data. Minimise these problems by only ever providing exactly what is required and no more, and by dealing only with companies that have clear policies and processes in place relating to this area.

Communication problems

Good communication is essential in any business and this is often one of the first areas that offshore outsourcing falls down. Whether it is your staff or your clients that are speaking with the offshore team you need to know that there will not be communication problems. Fluency in English is the most obvious area of concern, but potentially just as problematic are issues relating to time zones and cultural differences. If you are using offshore outsourcing in the form of an answering service this becomes more important than ever. Make sure you discuss these concerns with any outsourcing company before you hire them. Are they able to reassure you that you will not experience these problems?

Ensuring Ethical Practices with your Virtual Assistant

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 09:15:00 GMT

All types of services have an ethical basis. With Virtual Assistants, because they're handling your business, you need to understand what the ethics and quality controls are on the service you're getting. The best Virtual Assistant services provide very clear indicators of their service standards. If for example you’re using a virtual assistant handling your sensitive business information, you want to be sure of the ethical obligations on the service provider. The good news is that these standards are part of the service.

Ethics basics- What Virtual Assistants are supposed to do

There are no ambiguities whatsoever in regards to the ethics required of Virtual Assistants:

Privacy issues and laws must be respected at all times and under all circumstances.
Business information is by default only for the eyes of the Virtual Assistant's client, and nobody else.
Providers of Virtual Assistant services are bound by law in terms of any statutory issues related to materials in their possession. (If a court or statutory authority with appropriate legal powers orders a Virtual Assistant service to release business information, or the materials are subject to a subpoena, etc, the provider must obey the law. There are no legal options in these cases.)
Virtual Assistants are responsible for their conduct of business on behalf of clients.
The information provided by clients is also covered by these requirements.

Virtual Assistant services must be conducted on a “letter of the law” basis to ensure best practice. This is a true “same page” effect, where clients can be absolutely sure of their rights under service agreements.

Confidentiality and non-disclosure issues

By default, all information managed by the Virtual Assistant is considered confidential. Except as outlined above, nobody has access to these materials but the Virtual Assistant's client. No information is disclosed.

This is as much common business sense as anything. Virtual Assistants act as the point of contact for clients. They can relay to clients requests for information by third parties, but the actual management of any disclosure is entirely at the client’s discretion.

Service standards- Telling the great services from the rest

Consider the service standards you’d expect from a professional personal assistant. Those are the standards you’re entitled to expect from a Virtual Assistant. Whether the service you’re receiving is an answering service or a suite of services, the non-negotiable bottom line is “top quality service” in all areas.

Some Virtual Assistants know how to make their point. The best services have things like “Staff rental”, task-specific hire options and/or call centre operations and some also specialize in particular industry areas. These are all reliable indicators of a focused, professionally adept Virtual Assistant service.

The specialist services in particular can only be handled by experienced service providers. The heavy duty jobs like call centres are another indicator. If you know what’s involved in operating a business call centre, you’ll understand that people don’t take on these jobs under contract unless they know how to manage them very well.

Ethical practices are core practices for Virtual Assistants. There are no exceptions.

The Benefits of Having a Virtual PA for Your Business

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 09:10:00 GMT

Getting any service for your business involves definite cost benefits. If you're looking for a virtual PA service, you need to be sure what you're paying for, and see strong positive values. A virtual PA service has a lot going for it. When you hire a virtual assistant, you’re paying for service, and that’s all. You can get everything you need from one source, without the “hard labor” side of employing people. You don’t need an MBA to figure this out, just a good eye for good business.

Defining what you need

The big issue is pinning down exactly what you need. You may be able to outsource a lot of high value work very effectively. It’s best to define your needs systematically.

Consider all your business needs:

Admin
Information management and handling
Client contacts
New customer contacts
Basic office work

A bit of thought about these things can be very productive. Consider the time factor, and how much of your time, money and space gets taken up doing “grunt work” when you could be concentrating on business. All this work needs to be done, but it doesn’t have to be done by you on the spot.

Identify which of these types of work you’d really like to get off your back once and for all. The things you really need will always show a distinct, immediate benefit to your operational issues.

Cost benefit analysis, getting it right

The next stage is doing the numbers. In this case, a cost benefit analysis is stunningly easy. Consider how much the things you’d like to outsource cost you as a raw number. Now compare rates for virtual outsourcing. You’re looking at savings of anything up to 80% on any single operational issue.

If this is looking a bit interesting at this point, virtual outsourcing isn’t some sort of fad. It’s very good business practice, and extremely popular among the New Economy businesses which are taking over the markets. These new businesses are all business. They outsource everything, wherever possible.

In this case “cost benefit analysis” comparing virtual outsourcing and other options is the difference between caviar and cement. If you check out real costs, you can define the cost benefits of outsourcing to the cent. Even better, these costs are under contract, fixed, and very clearly defined.

With virtual outsourcing you pay for performance, and you get it. There are no grey areas, and no guesswork.

The functional benefits of a Virtual PA

Whether you get an answering service and/or any of the other services available through virtual outsourcing, you can see immediate benefits:

Everything is done for you, and it really is that simple.
You can check anything simply by accessing the service.
Providers are responsible for virtual operations, so they keep strict control over service quality at all times.
The entire operational process can be as simple as just accessing your computer.

Virtual PAs work exactly like a good PA, very efficiently, unobtrusively, and they’re available all the time. There are no limits to the benefits of Virtual PAs. Check out your options, check your cost benefits, and see what’s possible.