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HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCH A NEW BUSINESS
Every week I talk with business owners who tell me how excited they are about their new product, service or business opportunity. Usually, their comments include something like, "Everybody needs it. I know I'm going to make a lot of money with...
Never Throw Business Away
You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are included. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated - send to: info@DebbieAllen.com Never Throw Business Away ...
Non-Profit Organizations - What Are They?
Definition of Fund; Assets; and Fund Balance According to the “Financial and Accounting Guide for Not-For-Profit Organizations” written by CPAs Gross, Larkin, Bruttomesso, and McNalley, (fifth edition, pg 25) the definition of a these three terms...
Questions to ask a REALTOR
When you are ready to select a REALTOR®, here are a few
questions you can ask.
Make sure the REALTOR® presents a "listing presentation" to you.
This presentation should answer many of these questions. If you
will need a buyer's agent, also...
Use Magnetic Gift Cards To Skyrocket Restaurant Sales and Profits
Gift Card and Gift Certificate Management Software
The History of Gift Cards
Whoever created the idea of gift certificates was a marketing
genius. The idea of taking someones money (which is valid
anywhere) and giving them a...
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Do You Need the Help of a Virtual Assistant?
Running a business, whether large, small or in your home, is full of challenges. Getting the day-to-day tasks completed, e-mail, faxes and telephones answered, bills and statements sent out, reports run, schedule updated, travel arrangements made, marketing pieces and website updated, as well as a plethora of other tasks, can be downright daunting.
In swoops the "Virtual Assistant" to handle these and many other tasks for you and help your company's bottom line. In case you're still working out of a cave (as you may be if you're still doing it all yourself), a Virtual Assistant, who has been touted as one of the must-haves of the modern entrepreneurial arsenal of time and money-saving tricks, is a highly skilled independent contractor who handle their client's administrative (and sometimes personal) needs in a large variety of ways.
Because Virtual Assistants (VAs) are business owners themselves, they have a vested interest in your company's success -- your success leads to their success. They really aim to please because their business depends on it. And who better to understand the trials and tribulations than another business owner? Also, most VAs came from the corporate world and were executive or administrative assistants (secretaries), customer service managers or representatives, paralegals, project managers or coordinators, database administrators, or bookkeepers.
Here are just some of the services a Virtual Assistant can provide:
Typing / Word Processing
Database Management and Entry
Proofreading and Copy Editing
Accounts Payable and Receivable
Calendaring / Scheduling / Reminder Services
Travel Arrangements
Customer Service (including answering forwarded phones, making outgoing calls and answering e-mails)
Presentations
Event Planning
Research
Web Services
Ordering Supplies and Equipment
Project Coordination / Management
Marketing Projects
Incoming and Outgoing Mail
Expense Reports
Reporting
You have a lot of work you could delegate to a Virtual Assistant, but you're still not convinced one would be right for your business. According to Hackett Group, a Hudson, Ohio consultancy, "outsourcing, in general, can cost 50% less than hiring a full-time employee." Because your VA is an entrepreneur and not an employee, you don't have the extra expense of paying additional taxes, providing insurance, purchasing office supplies and equipment, updating software, sick, vacation and personal time, office space to provide, and you only pay for the time the VA actually works (you're not paying for coffee
breaks, downtime, etc.).
Hiring a temporary can come with a whole host of problems including their lack of skills, the need to provide equipment, supplies, and office space, as well as going through several temps (or agencies) to find one that can adequately provide the skills you need! Also keep in mind that temporary services normally take about 1/2 of the monies you pay them -- when the temp only receives $7 - $11 an hour, you really can't expect a high quality person. If you still think it's best to do it yourself, you'll find that your time is much more profitably spent on revenue-generating activities. Outsourcing to a Virtual Assistant adds to up increased profits for your business.
Work is transmitted via e-mail, fax, mail, overnight service, etc. -- they will coordinate with you to provide the work to you in the most timely and inexpensive manner possible. You can also keep in touch via telephone, e-mail and instant messaging.
Costs of a Virtual Assistant run from $15 - $50 per hour (depending on the scope of the work and their skill level) and some work by the project or on a monthly retainer. I know of a few VAs that are willing to barter for the right products and/or service. Always read any potential Virtual Assistant's website and take a look at their testimonials, client list, etc. If you notice grammatical and spelling errors anywhere on their site or newsletters, you can be assured that your work will come back with spelling and grammatical errors. A highly skilled VA will be very detail oriented and will not put out work with these errors.
I recommend contacting a few VAs via e-mail, then by telephone to see if the rapport is there, which is very important for anyone you work with. The one you are most comfortable with that charges a reasonable cost is the one to try first. You may want to keep the contact information of your second pick where you can easily find it in case your first pick is unavailable for any reason. Then give them a small project and work up from there.
Soon you will find that a dependable, accomplished VA will become your indispensable partner for years to come.
About the Author
(c) 2005 Nita Helping Hand?, all rights reserved.
You are free to use this material in whole or in part as long as you include the following:
About the author: Nita is a proofreader and the President of Nita Helping Hand? Please visit Nita's website for information about proofreading, copy-editing and other administrative needs available at www.NitaHelpingHand.com or contact her at info@NitaHelpingHand.com.
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