How to a hire a virtual assistant for your small business

Do you need to find and hire a virtual assistant to help with your business tasks?

If so, read this guide to learn:

• When to hire a virtual assistant
• The different ways you can hire a virtual assistant
• The different types of virtual assistants  
• Where to hire a virtual assistant
• When to hire a virtual assistant
• How to hire a good virtual assistant
• How to assign work to your virtual assistant

Many entrepreneurs and small business owners hire virtual assistants to double their productivity. Hiring a virtual assistant to complete tasks for your small business or project will help you achieve your business goals faster. 

There are multiple other benefits of hiring a virtual assistant besides completing tasks and growing your business. You can find out more about how a virtual assistant can help your business here

If you know you need a virtual assistant but came here to find out more information, this article will show you everything you need to know before you hire a virtual assistant. 

Rushing into hiring a virtual assistant without taking the proper steps can lead to wasted time and money. By exploring all options properly first you are giving yourself the best chance of finding the right VA for your circumstances. 

How to a hire a virtual assistant in 7 steps

STEP 1 

The first step of how to find a virtual assistant is to determine how often you need a virtual assistant. 

Deciding how often you will be using virtual assistant services will determine where to hire a virtual assistant. 

FLEXIBLE – You need tasks to be completed by a virtual assistant on a flexible basis as and when you choose. 

A professional virtual assistant company is the best choice if you need a flexible virtual assistant 

If a flexible VA service is what you are looking for then hiring a professional virtual assistant is usually the most suitable option. 

Professional virtual assistant companies usually consist of one virtual assistant running the business, or a team of virtual assistants providing services together. 

Prime PA is a virtual assistant assistant company that includes a team of virtual assistants who each provide virtual assistant services for clients. 

One of the main benefits of hiring a professional flexible virtual assistant from Prime PA is that you can always have the same VA or have multiple VA’s working on your tasks as a team.  

A professional virtual assistant company can provide you with virtual assistance on a flexible, continuous, or one-off basis. Virtual assistants complete your administrative and marketing tasks, some VA’s such as our Prime PAs offer more advanced services. 

One of the main benefits of hiring a professional virtual assistant is you receive higher-quality services and results. 

ONCE – You need a virtual assistant to complete one task or project 

A virtual assistant freelancer is the best choice if you need a virtual assistant to complete one job or project. 

There are times when hiring a virtual assistant freelancer from an online marketplace will also be suitable for your business.

People Per Hour and Upwork are online marketplaces where you can hire freelancing virtual assistants. 

Online freelancing platforms such as People Per Hour and Upwork are good choices if you are looking for a virtual assistant to complete a one-off task. 

If you choose to hire a VA from an online marketplace then It’s good to be aware beforehand of the disadvantages of hiring a freelance virtual assistant vs hiring a professional virtual assistant. You can find out more here.  

One of the main benefits of hiring virtual assistant services from an online marketplace is that it is usually cheaper 

PERMANENTLY  – You need a virtual assistant to provide continuous work for your business permanently. 

A virtual assistant recruitment agency is the best option for finding permanent VA staff for your business. 

Using a virtual assistant recruitment agency is the best way to hire a virtual assistant to work for your business permanently. Virtual assistant recruitment agencies match you with the best skilled virtual assistants for full-time or part-time employment. 

At Prime PA we provide virtual assistant training for a lot of our VA candidates. They are trained in advanced VA skills like copywriting and web design. Due to the additional training VA candidates receive they provide more value than regular virtual assistants.

One of the main benefits of hiring a virtual assistant through a VA recruitment agency is that you get quick access to a database of reliable permanent VA candidates. 

STEP 2

To continue with the next step of hiring a virtual assistant ask yourself… 

• What do you need a virtual assistant for?

Do you need a virtual assistant for any of the following? 

Administration

Social media 

Blog Writing 

Email automation setup 

The type of virtual assistant you will need will depend on the type of work you need completed for your business. 

Different types of virtual assistants you can hire

There are many different types of virtual assistants you can hire, most are multi-skilled and can provide you with a range of services. You also have virtual assistants that provide specialist services. Our Prime PAs are an example of this, you can find out more here. 

Specialist virtual assistants usually cater to one niche, for example, marketing. A virtual assistant who specialises in marketing is typically referred to as a marketing virtual assistant. 

STEP 3

To determine whether you should choose a specialist VA or a multi-skilled VA you need to identify what tasks your virtual assistant should complete. 

Make a list of tasks for your business that a VA can complete on your behalf. 

You can view this list of virtual assistant services to get more ideas of the kind of tasks you can delegate to a virtual assistant. 

If you are not sure, answer these three questions that I always ask my clients to help identify what tasks they could delegate to a VA. 

1. What tasks do you spend most of your time doing?
2. How long do you spend on each task? 
3. What are the three main areas you need support with?

Once you are aware of the tasks you want to delegate you will know whether it is best to delegate the tasks to a specialist VA or a multi-skilled VA. 

STEP 4 

Prepare your task for delegation. Download a delegation sheet to send your task details directly to a virtual assistant. 

The virtual assistant delegation sheet includes space to input your task details and specifics, due date, resources etc. 

It is a good idea to prepare some questions before hiring a virtual assistant. Asking questions about the VA’s skills and services will help you determine if they are the right VA for your tasks.  

The delegation sheet download also includes five important questions most people forget to ask before hiring a VA. To find out more about these questions now click here.

STEP 5 

Once you have filled out the delegation sheet and have prepared your questions schedule a consultation with a virtual assistant.

Hiring a virtual assistant is going to reduce your workload and give you more freedom. If you would like a chance to learn more and meet with virtual assistants on an informal basis where you can ask questions and get a taste of the virtual assistant experience then register to attend our next virtual assistance intro experience.