

Look for living wage accreditations, awards won and VA community morale. Cheap is rarely cheerful when it comes to customer service and business support, so before you outsource to an international agency, remember that you need a supplier that respects and cares for its virtual assistants. Make sure you engage a service provider that offers a breadth of services you never know what business needs will emerge as you grow!Īnother thing to bear in mind here is values and culture.

There is no use hiring a transcription agency if you also need your phones answered. Also – depending on your brief, it is important that your virtual assistant can offer everything you need.

We often find that a lot of our clients are engaging a virtual PA for the first time, having previously engaged permanent, in-house staff members, so it is important that your virtual assistant provider is patient and talks you through the process. If you don’t know exactly what your brief is and what you need help with, they should help understand your requirements without being pushy.
REMOTE ASSISTANT REQUIREMENTS FREE
We, at SmartPA, always start with a free onboarding session, to ensure that the human connection is maintained, and our clients feel like they’re dealing with a real person with real experience in the admin field.Ī good virtual assistant agency or supplier should always get to know you your business, your goals and needs. Remember, just because you’re hiring a virtual assistant, doesn’t mean you don’t need to click with the human behind the screen. These are great places to check out potential suppliers because they give you a real insight into workplace culture and the people behind the brand. Look for client reviews on sites like Trustpilot to see what existing clients have said about their services and do your due diligence on the company’s social media accounts like LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. There are a lot of companies that claim to offer outsourcing, administration and back-office support services the trick is to find a brand that can live up to their own hype. By making sure your assistant is aware of potential projects or large-scale contracts, you can confirm that they are able to handle incoming correspondence, as well as your diary and engagements. Regular remote meetings, for example, can be an ideal way to discuss your upcoming requirements with your assistant. If your requirements change, however, you can liaise with your remote assistant and determine whether they are able to carry out different tasks or undertake extra work. Identifying your business support needs prior to hiring a remote assistant can help to ensure that you are matched to the right candidate. While you may hire a remote assistant to manage your diary and respond to emails, for example, you may also want them to carry out research for you on an ad-hoc basis. Retaining flexibility is crucial to success and will ensure that your remote assistant is able to carry out a wide variety of roles, as and when they are needed. However, the role may be subject to change and you may require your remote PA to carry out additional duties or tasks which were not originally part of their remit. Often, this will depend on the nature of your role and the industry in which you work.

When hiring a remote assistant, you may need to specify the type of assistance you require.
