Being a small business owner means being a little bit of everything for your company. Owner, customer service, sales, IT, etc. You may have found as your business starts to grow that you are in need of a little assistance. A lot of business owners outsource and you wonder if this is the avenue to take. As I’ve talked about in other blogs there are a lot of great ways a virtual assistant can help you but there are also some important things to consider when outsourcing. If you do a search for a virtual assistance on the Internet you may be overwhelmed with the thousands of websites offering similar services for very different prices. When browsing your options it is tempting to go for the cheapest outsourcing firm you can find. It makes sense to want to save money but sometimes cheaper outsourcing can cause expensive mistakes.
Unfortunately cheaper isn’t always the best way to go. There can be a big downside to this and a lot of business owners have been disappointed to learn, you truly do get what you pay for. Extremely cheap outsourcing can often mean that the projects are being sent overseas where language barriers and time zones can interfere or to a company that doesn’t have the time to develop a relationship with there clients. You may end up dealing with so many different contacts that being able to relay the correct information to ensure the job gets done right the first time can be difficult. Outsourcing to overseas can be a problem especially when maintaining networking sites, blog posts and press releases because of relevancy and language barriers. Someone overseas may not be able to write something relevant about your particular market because of the different background and culture and would not produce something relevant to your local marketplace.
Though usually more expensive, a smaller VA firm based closer to home can be a better option for a lot of businesses. Having only one or two contacts can make the experience more personable and you’ll find with only one or two people working on your projects that effectively communicating what you need is easier. Small firms tend to take on less clients and instead work on keeping clients coming back by taking a vested interest in each customers business and having more time to get to know what will help you grow and thrive.
No matter what you pay, having a successful experience is most important. Choosing a Virtual Assistant who makes the effort to give you quality results will make running your business a lot more efficient and give you a lot more time.
Current research in psychology has found that the teaching we are instilled with growing up, to work on our weaknesses is in fact not the most effective way toexcel in life. The school of thought that teaches to work on our weak points have shown in the past only marginal improvements in weaker behaviours. A moreproductive way to become the best you can be in every aspect of life is to focus and hone the skills that come naturally to you. Playing up your strengths and continuously improving upon your natural talents is a sure way to find yourself succeeding professionally and personally. However it is important to note that weaknesses cannot be ignored. This is especially pertinent when it relates to the business you have built on your talents and strengths. Unfortunately after you have discovered and put into play your dream of starting your own business, developing a plan and having a unique vision there will be the inevitable tasks that are vital to succeeding- most likely these things will be the very weaknesses you dread even loath doing(i.e. menial, daunting tasks or the little, but essential details you’d rather push aside).
Because of these weaknesses the power of your vision can feel compromised, and that original enthusiasm that beamed from you may turn into piles of paperwork, ridiculously long days and in need of some serious rest (you’ll know you’ve gotten to that point when you see the dark circles under your eyes from lack of sleep).
Instead of begrudgingly working your way through administrative work and other projects that may not be your forte, it is now time to delegate those tasks to someone who’s business is to accomplish these projects. When you delegate work that is not your niche or you just don’t have time for to someone like a Virtual Assistant, your weakness instantly becomes another strength.
A lot of small business owners may have at one point or another worked behind the scenes at an office and may even be quite proficient in administrative duties but now you have your own business and that means as the owner your job is to focus on the clients and customers rather than, say…the data entry. You can hire a Virtual Assistant and pay by project or by the hour. That helps you in two ways. If you’re just starting out with you’re brand new business, chances are you do not have the overhead to hire someone in-house (which means even more paperwork, training and legal red tape). The other pro of hiring a VA to help your business grow is that any VA worth hiring is going to be dedicated to helping you achieve the success you seek. A VA can truly help you turn that weakness into strength with there dedication and desire to take care of your enterprise as if it was their own. As VA’s we know that your vision deserves to stay undiluted and we can help you take care of so much, giving you the freedom to focus on building your venture to it’s highest possible success.
We are here to help you and we wish you luck in your ventures!
Are you losing money because of your marketing? Even very large successful companies can make mistakes-the difference between you and them is you may not have the capital to fix them. Don’t let your next marketing plan cost you.
A great starting point is working with a small business consultant. They are experts at knowing what works and what doesn’t for a small company, they also know what kind of errors a smaller business can handle and what kind can be disastrous. Putting together a marketing campaign and applying it is important as well. Marketing efforts can be expensive mistakes if there is no developed campaign so having one is key.
Another mistake small businesses can make in marketing is not reaching out to both the on and offline clients and customers. Ignoring one form of marketing cuts out a huge percentage of your demographic and in the very competitive marketplace around us this can be detrimental to the campaign. Another error that can be avoided is not tracking the methods and efforts of the campaign. If you don’t keep track of how effective the campaign is, you won’t know how it is effecting your business and whether or not it’s time to modify the plan. By tracking it you can figure out that may need a small tweek or a complete marketing overhaul. You don’t have to scrap ideas immediately when results aren’t being yielded but don’t let a bad idea bury you. Sometimes it doesn’t mean the idea is bad but the timing might be off or it may not be the right idea for your particular kind of business.
Finally, following up with your clients (new and old) is also very important. Once you’ve made new customers and clients you want to keep them coming back. Make sure you don’t forget about them while not being too pushy. If they aren’t able to help you now they may still in the future so maintaining a good relationship is also a great idea.
