From the WHY Vault*

10 Tasks You Can Farm Out to a Virtual Assistant Right Now

If you run a business from home, it’s hard to bring in an assistant. It’s not just a matter of the expense and paperwork of employing a helper, but the idea of bringing someone into your home, even for work. On top of that, you have to worry about whether you have enough work for an assistant: no matter how many hours you agree on initially, you don’t want to run the risk of paying someone just to sit around.

There is an option that addresses these problems, however: the virtual assistant.

Virtual assistants, or VAs, aren’t employees — they’re contractors. By working with a VA, you don’t have to worry about any of the costs of employment such as taxes and insurance. Furthermore, VAs work as many or as few hours as you agree on, and you only pay for the time you actually use. There are a few drawbacks to working with a virtual assistant: because they don’t actually visit your office or home, there are some limitations on the tasks that a VA can take on. Also, prices can vary significantly. You can work with a VA based in India or another country for just $6 an hour, but most U.S.-based VAs charge at least $30 per hour. Taking that into account, there are still a wide variety of tasks that a VA can handle for you.

1. Newsletters: Many VAs offer newsletter writing services and are also willing to handle the logistics for sending a newsletter out over email or arranging for printing and mailing. You can also arrange to have a VA update a blog or handle other marketing communications.
2. Travel Arrangements: If you need to book a flight, it can take time to find an inexpensive ticket at a time that works for you. A VA can handle these details, along with finding a hotel, making arrangements for a rental car and more.
3. Research: Need to find concrete numbers on a target demographic or find a phone number for a contact? VAs take on research projects both big and small. In most cases, it’s just a matter of telling a VA what you’re looking for.
4. Customer Service: While most customer service matters are routine, you still have to see to them. That means answering emails or phone calls — or having someone else see to them. A VA can handle everyday matters, allowing you to focus on bigger things.
5. Bookkeeping: While you have to find a VA who specializes in bookkeeping to outsource this particular task, it is a fast way to eliminate an administrative chore many people dread.
6. Writing Services: Many VAs provide a wide variety of writing services, from editing and proofreading to creating press releases, articles and other materials for your business.
7. Website Design: Just as many VAs specialize in written projects, others have a wide variety of design skills. Many can create at least a simple website, as well as handle updating and maintenance. VAs also offer print design services, such as creating brochures.
8. Personal Tasks: Need to order flowers for Mom? What about scheduling an oil change for the car? VAs don’t have to handle just business tasks. Many are happy to help with personal matters — and often at prices far below those of concierge services.
9. Payroll: A VA can handle the details of payroll for your other employees. There are even a few employees that outsource filling out their own timesheets to a VA — although that’s usually as part of a larger batch of tasks.
10. Anything Else That Can Be Done Via Computer or Telephone: If you need to outsource a task not listed above, it’s still worthwhile to contact a virtual assistant. Even if you’re looking for a service not normally offered, if a VA can handle the task, he or she will. If not, that person might be able to find you someone who can.

Finding a VA is relatively simple: there are hundreds of agencies that will connect you to a VA as well as many independent VAs. All of them have websites. You can even find VAs through bid sites, such as Elance or oDesk. However, finding a reliable VA who works well with your business can be a little harder. When considering working with a particular VA, think about asking for references. References provide a simple way to weed out potential problems before you pay any money. Even with a VA with excellent references, though, it’s worthwhile to start out with a few probationary tasks — especially if you plan to have your VA handle sensitive information in the future.

Also, keep in mind that you’re not limited to working with one virtual assistant if you find that outsourcing certain tasks works well for your business. You could work with one VA for your bookkeeping needs and another who can handle your online marketing — it’s a matter of what work you need to get done and how much time you want to spend on it. The crucial skill to managing the outsourcing of tasks, though, is clear communication. No matter how good a VA is, he or she will struggle with tasks that aren’t clearly defined — requiring more time and money.

If you’re ready to start looking for a VA, the first step you should take is creating a list of tasks you want your VA to handle. Having such a list will help you narrow your search for a VA — not every VA offers every possible remote service. Instead, you’ll probably have to prioritize the tasks you need taken care of and start with a VA who can help you with those key items. From there, you can branch out as necessary — maybe even hand over the search for additional help to your virtual assistant.

--this article, written by Thursday Bram, ran in the january/february 2009 issue of WHY magazine, sponsored by the The Web Servant.

*From time to time, I'll present info from past WHY articles or WHY Xtras in case you missed them the first time around. :)