How to Get Started with a Virtual Assistant

You’ve finally hired a Virtual Assistant and it’s going to be great, but how do you get started? Some VAs will give you instructions on how to prepare for your first meeting together, but in case they don’t, I’ve got you covered!

How to Prepare

Providing Access

Decide how you’d like to communicate and make sure your VA has your email address (I can’t imagine they wouldn’t, but…). Give them your Slack, your Voxer, and possibly your cell for emergencies. Let your VA know what hours you will be available.

If you’re planning to have a long-term relationship with your VA, you should consider creating a Gmail account for them. If you both use Google Workspace, you’ll be able to share documents, calendars, and forms. Most importantly, you’ll be able to access your VA’s account, so if your VA is on vacation and you need something, the info will be accessible to you—or if you and your VA part ways, all documents and correspondence will belong to you.

Give your VA access to all the accounts and platforms they’ll need to complete tasks, like Asana, Canva, Hootsuite, Quickbooks, and your social media platforms. Be sure to set the permissions so that your VA has the ability to do things like scheduling social media posts or adding clients to your CRM.

To give your VA access to multiple accounts, it’s best to use a password manager tool like LastPass. Taking this extra safety precausion will protect your passwords, allow you to track logins, and cancel access should the need arise.

Considering Tasks

Make a list of the tasks you envision your VA performing. Then, create a spreadsheet, putting the tasks into three categories.

1. Tasks you hate

2. Tasks that must be accurate or are time-sensitive, or both

3. Tasks you love but aren’t skilled at doing

Some tasks might fit into more than one category, but start with tasks that only fit Category 1. Choose tasks that aren’t as affected by the small errors that come with performing a task for the first time.

Create SOPs for each of the tasks. By taking your VA through each step in writing, you’ll make it easier for them to learn—and having a document to refer back to will mean fewer moments of confusion. Plus, if there comes a time when someone else will need to do that task, you’ll be ahead of the game.

Now, this is not to say that your VA won’t need direction. During the meeting, spend some time sharing your screen to let them see how each task is done. Be available to answer questions. You may even want to make a loom video for them to refer back to.

Once your VA is up to speed, give them a task from Category 2. When they’ve mastered that, add another task. This is how you avoid overwhelming them and ensure that tasks don’t bounce back to you.

Check your VA’s work—at least the first few times they complete tasks—to make sure they understand and are completing the work acurately. Kindly let the VA know what they need to pay extra attention to. Also let them know when they’re doing a great job!

Since your VA is learning something new (not just the task, but your preferred way of completing it and documenting it), it will probably take more time from start to finish. They will be slower than you and that’s to be expected. You’re experienced and have done that task repeatedly. Please be patient and give your VA a chance to grow comfortable. In about a month, you’ll be so happy. It’s worth it, I promise!

Set up a weekly check-in time. One 15-minute call a week is sometimes all it takes to clarify priorities. Let your VA know you’re available to them, expecially in these early stages. It’s normal to have a few kinks to work out, but if you take the time to be supportive, you and your VA will grow into an efficient team.

If this all feels overwhelming, you might consider outsourcing the VA onboarding process. If you’d like to learn more about this process, contact me and we’ll talk it over.

Best wishes as you take a huge step towards the work/life balance you deserve!

How to Hire a Virtual Assistant

You’re a small business owner who’s been working on your own. You’re starting to see results from your efforts and that’s encouraging, but you’re also feeling overwhelmed. You’re drowning as you try to complete all the things and it’s becoming visible to your clients.

You’re not responding to requests for support, you’re forgetting things, and although you need to accomplish more, your productivity has decreased.

It’s clear that something has to change. This is your dream job but the only way for it to stop feeling like a nightmare is to get some support. You need a virtual assistant.

Let me tell you how to hire one…

Figure out your budget

It’s important to be clear about what you can afford. You can find virtual assistants for $3/hour up to $100/hour. The reason for this broad range has to do with experience, skills, and the size of the pool of freelancers. For example, if you’re looking for a virtual assistant on Upwork, there are many, MANY to choose from. To be competitive, some VAs will lower their rates.

There are people that say, “Those are VAs from countries like the Philippines. The cost of living is much lower there, so $3 an hour is a great rate for them!”

This is not true. I am in social media groups with many VAs from the Philippines and they all say that $3 and hour is not a living wage. These are highly skilled individuals who deserve to be paid fairly and if you hire someone for $3/hour, chances are they will leave you as soon as they find someone who will pay them $5/hour, which is understandable. It’s my opinion that this is not a risk worth taking, not to mention the bad juju.

Virtual assistants who charge higher rates are specialized. If you would like someone to focus on social media, content creation, or web development, you can expect to pay more.

Decide on a freelancer platform, an agency, or a freelance virtual assistant

There are many ways to find your VA. Let’s look at three.

Freelancer Platform

A freelancer platform like Upwork or Fiverr allows you to search with filters like location, experience, price range, specialty, rating, and delivery time. You will quickly have a list of qualified VAs who can take on your time-sensitive project.

You will communicate with your VA through the platform and both of you will sign a contract. Payment is also through the platform. Your relationship can be short-term or extend into other projects.

Agency

With an agency, you work through the agency’s human resources managers or owners to pin down what you need and the agency managers/owners match you with a virtual assistant. This works well if you’re a busy entrepreneur who doesn’t have the time to vet someone. Another bonus is that if your VA becomes unavailable for some reason (either short-term for something like a surgery or permanently because they’ve left the agency), the agency will find you a replacement. This way, you will have a very little time without assistance.

Freelance Virtual Assistant

If you will only feel comfortable working with someone you’ve personally vetted and you’re looking for someone who will stay with you for a long time, you should look for a freelance virtual assistant on your own. One way to find someone is to post a job on VA Facebook or LinkedIn groups (following their best practices, of course). The fastest way might be to post on social media and let people know you’re looking. (This is how I was put in contact with one of my clients.) This is the most time-consuming approach, but because you’re involved in the entire process, it will most likely lead you to someone you will form a bond with and trust.

Ask the right questions during your discovery call

A discovery call is the first conversation you have with a virtual assistant. It’s often on Zoom or FaceTime and it’s your chance to get to know each other. You will find out if you and the VA will get along well together and have the same working style.

Remember that this isn’t usually a corporate 9 to 5 situation. When the VA completes their work doesn’t matter if it’s done on time, however, if you need someone who will be available nights, say so. If you need someone to make phone calls between 1:00pm and 5:00pm ET, be sure to mention that. Also be sure to tell them your preferred method of communication and when you are available to answer questions.

Ask how they will communicate their progress to you. For example, I send my clients a weekly email that lists the projects I worked on with the time spent on each. I let them know the time they have remaining for the month and make sure my work priorities are aligned with theirs.

See if your personalities are compatible. If you like to joke around but the VA is serious, it might not be a great fit. If you have a relaxed work style but the VA prefers deadlines with precise instructions, you should probably keep looking for someone who “gets” you. And it might be that you like the VA but they decide that you’re not a good fit for them. That’s okay. It’s good that they told you before you were invested in the relationship and it allows you to move on quickly.

Before hiring on a virtual assistant, check references

If you’re going the freelancer route, check the freelancer’s references. I have done this for clients and believe me, you can learn a lot from a 15-minute conversation with someone. Don’t skip this step!

Sign your contract

Once you and your virtual assistant agree to work together, they will send you a contract. You will usually be expected to pay them before work begins.

This is an exciting time for you! You’re taking the first step towards having less on your plate! If you have any questions, feel free to post them below or if you’d like me to help you build your team, drop me a line. Check back next week for my blog post on getting started with your VA.

How to Create a Volunteer Recruitment Email

Recruiting volunteers can be an intimidating task, but I’m here to help you streamline this process. Keep reading to learn how…

For 5 years, I had a job where I managed up to 54 volunteers at a time. I learned the best strategies for volunteer engagement and community building so I would get the support I needed. Now I’m part of an organization that regularly needs assistance: Scouts. The other members of our committee were surprised when I recently filled all the volunteer slots for an event in under 48 hours. Here’s how I did it:

Figure out what you need first

A month or two in advance of the event, gather all the information necessary to clearly communicate your needs to the group. For example, If you need volunteers for a fundraising event, make sure you have all Five Ws: Who, What, Where, When, Why, + How. Not having all the information is a surefire way to get 0 responses because no one wants to be the only one there or find themselves wandering through an empty parking lot at 11:00pm to put trash in the dumpster. Being clear about what you need will make it easier for people to say “yes” to your request and more likely that they’ll assist you in the future.

Here’s an example of a volunteer recruitment email:

Good evening, scouting families.

Next Tuesday is our Court of Honor, which will take place at the park pavilion at 7:00pm. We will serve ice cream from the local dairy afterwards!

We need some volunteers!

• Several people to assist with set-up at 6:30pm (arranging tables and food, unloading troop supplies)

• Several volunteers to assist with clean-up until 9:00pm (packing up troop supplies, cleaning tables, moving tables back where we found them, disposal of trash)

• 2 volunteers to scoop ice cream

• 2 packages of cookies (family packs)

• 2 packages of cupcakes (12-packs)

• 2 packages of Italian ice (12-packs in an ice chest)

• 3 families to bring water bottles (24-packs in an ice chest)

  Please contact me as soon as you’re able to let me know that you’re able to contribute. We need your help to make it a great night.

Thanks and have a nice weekend,

Stephanie Kalka, Troop Secretary/Recruiting Coordinator

Send a clear email to the right people

In this email, I answered any question someone might have that would stand in the way of them volunteering. Everything is clearly laid out for the recipient’s reference. And at the end of the email, I am already assuming they’re going to volunteer their time and I’m thanking them because it’s SO important to thank your volunteers—even before they’ve volunteered.

Before you send the email to everyone one your list, check the list in and remove people who have already mentioned that they won’t be available for the event. This way, you won’t receive emails that say, “I already told you I won’t be around that weekend,” etc. Annoy them this time and they might avoid you next time.

After you send your email, you will hear from those friends and colleagues who understand the work that goes into planning for this sort of event. These people are my favorites. Even if they respond to say they aren’t available, at least they let you know.

Send a second email

Give the initial email 48 to 72 hours to work its magic. You will have a handful of people to fill up volunteer slots. Before sending the email again, remove the people on the list who have signed up. If you send an email to someone who’s already volunteered, they will be might be confused. Then they’ll probably send you an email asking if you put them on the schedule, which will create unnecessary back-and-forth. Clean up your list and update the email to say something like, “We heard from a few people and are grateful to them for stepping up. We still need XX people for these time slots on these days.” Once your email has been proofread, send it out.

Send “special invitation” emails

You will hear from several people, usually with an apology, “Sorry I didn’t let you know sooner, but yes, I can volunteer at this time on this day.” Some will decline, and that’s all right. Now you will be left with the people who haven’t responded at all. I think of these people as the “special invitation” group. Sometimes they’re overwhelmed, sometimes they just want to hide in the herd and let the overachievers do the heavy lifting. Whatever their reason, you will need to reach out to each of them personally.

Create a personalized email for each of these people. Something like this:

Hi L,

How was your son’s soccer tournament? The last time I saw Fred, I couldn’t believe how tall he’s gotten!

I know you’re busy, but is there any way you two could assist with the Court of Honor set-up? We could really use the help of an experienced family that night, since the other volunteers are new this year. You have such a nice way of making people feel welcome and I think the Smith family would increase their participation if they spent some time getting to know you guys. Would you please think about participating? Will you let me know tonight?

Thanks for considering,

Stephanie

Like I did in this sample email, find a way to relate to the person. What did they mention when you saw them last? Do they have pets? Have they recently moved or gotten a new car? Find something personal to ask them about. If you begin with, “We really need you to volunteer…” they’ll tune you out. Talk about them and ask them questions about their file and they’ll be more likely to listen.

Try to make one request. Ask them for this one thing and be very clear about it. Tell them why you think they are the person best equipped for this one job. Pay them a compliment. I know it sounds like I’m buttering them up—and I am—but the compliment is sincere. I really mean what I say and I’m hoping that the positive traits I noticed in L will encourage her to participate in the fundraiser because her specific skills are needed. You may be thinking, “I don’t have time for this. These folks should just volunteer because we all know everyone has to participate for the event to be successful.”

This is true, but not everyone will do the right thing just because it’s expected of them. Some people will not help unless you take the time to make it look more attractive to them in a Tom-Sawyer-painting-the-fence kind of way.

Is this exasperating? You bet! Can I take the time to gently recruit volunteers if it means I will cultivate better relationships and make the event a success? YES, I CAN!

Remind your volunteers

Once you have all the volunteers you need, be sure to send out reminder emails and provide them with your contact information in case of emergency. Send a reminder out several days before and the night before so they remember that you’re counting on them. Thank them for being part of the team.

Thank your volunteers

Thank your volunteers in person at the event and then thank them by email after the event. Point out something specific they did at the event if you can think of something. Take the time to do this and your team will be much more likely to help you in the future. You will be known as an excellent leader who cares about the individual people within their community.

I wish you luck with your email requests. If you would like to have a consultation with me about this or any other business process topic, please reach out!