www.DaybreakVirtual.com
“Time is the scarcest resource and
unless it is managed nothing else
can be managed.”
- Peter Drucker
5 Ways to Work Efficiently with Your
Virtual Office
Assistant
More and more business people are benefiting from the services a Virtual Office Assistant can provide. Let’s all face it; the pace of business today is exponentially faster that it was even 5 years ago. Technology has set an expectation of ‘immediate response’ that touches almost every aspect of being in business. And, business people are consumed by administrative requirements. So a Virtual Assistant makes sense for anyone who needs to focus on moving their business forward. By off-loading office and administrative tasks to a professional who sounds and acts just like an in-house assistant, you apply your attention to the things you do best and deliver the highest return on your time.
Here are some of questions to ask yourself. The more “Yes” answers you give, the more Virtual Office services can benefit your business:
• Do you find yourself missing important calls and spending too much time sorting through voicemail? • Do you spend a good part of your day resolving
customer issues?
• Do you find yourself missing deadlines or appointments?
Introduction:
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• Are you spending time chasing past-due payments? • Are you unable to follow up on leads and
opportunities in a systematic way?
• Do you never seem to be able to find time for Strategic Planning?
• Is your business growth and profitability nowhere near where you want it to be?
• Do you drown in paperwork?
• Would you like to put in fewer hours than you need to now?
So, you’ve given a bunch of “Yes” answers, or at least enough to keep on reading…Now you can take action!
What did you say yes to? You just identified barriers to your success. Well, the good news is that there are affordable, professional, virtual services to help you break through. The most popular tasks assigned to a Virtual Office Assistant are: • Gatekeeping (answering and screening your incoming
calls so you can speak directly to those you need to, and prioritize call-backs)
• Appointment Scheduling and Rescheduling • To-Do List Management
• eMail Monitoring
• Chasing Past-Due Invoices • Project Status Monitoring • Business Communications
The best part is, a Virtual Office Assistant is your company’s ‘face’ to both existing and prospective customers, making certain they
are treated the way you want them to be.
While there are many advantages to off-loading administrative tasks virtually, there can be a period of adjustment for you.
The simple key to working efficiently with a Virtual Assistant is communication – but how do you make sure your assistant has access to what they need to know to do the job, keeping you in-the-loop, but not consumed by minutia?
Here are the 5 things you can implement to do just that:
1. Take charge
2. Treat your Virtual Office Assistant as a valuable member of your company
3. Don’t leave room for misinterpretation 4. Make your Virtual Assistant feel like a
partner in your operation 5. Stay engaged
“An organization, no matter how
well designed, is only as good as
the people who live and work in it.”
www.DaybreakVirtual.com
1.
Take Charge
Remember, you are the boss. It’s your name on the sign and your reputation on the line.
Set clear expectations and standards as to how your Virtual Assistant engages with you, and with people both inside and outside your organization.
Make sure every task you expect to be performed is detailed, documented, understood, and acknowledged. Review that list of documented tasks regularly, update it as required, and keep it in a place that can be easily accessed by everyone who needs it. Take your Virtual Assistant through the common scenarios that will be encounted as part of the tasks at hand. Encourage questions. Provide answers. Document anything that may be unclear.
Let your Virtual Assistant know when it’s OK to handle an interaction without directly involving you, and under what circumstances you need to be notified immediately.
2.
Treat Your Virtual Office Assistant
as a Valuable Member of
Your Company
You want to maximize the value you get from your virtual
working relationship. The best way to do that is to engage ‘the person’ by reinforcing the culture of your company, and his or her place in it.
Provide your virtual staff with the same information and updates you provide your in-house employees.
Making everyone feel part of a single organization with a common purpose will create a team that best represents you and your company.
Sharing your company’s vision and ambtions goes a long way to creating loyalty and a sense of purpose across the team.
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In a virtual work environment, you will loose some of the ‘understanding’ gained from face-to-face interaction. That’s why it is critical to make sure your instructions are clear and unambiguous. Email is now the default-technology for communication, but be careful how you use it. Long message trails of ‘FWs’ and ‘Replys’ can be easily overlooked or misread. Summarize the action that recipient needs to take in the first part of any communication, then add the details as they may apply. Ask for a confirmation that your instructions are understood.
3.
Don’t Leave Room for
Misinterpretation
As you gain trust in your Virtual Assistant’s abilities, the insight into your organization and business activities he or she displays may become a valuable source of intellegence. Virtual Assistants may not be experts in your field, but this additional front-line insight can help you identify opportunities and make decisions. They also may not volunteer this information, but if you ask for it, you reinforce their contribution to your business success. If your trust in your Virtual Assistant moves a step further, you may even find a source of constructive criticism and positive suggestions.
4.
Make Your Virtual Assistant Feel
Like a Partner in Your Operation
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Ok. So you’ve got things working smoothly, and your new team member is performing to your expectations. You are applying your new-found bandwidth to driving your business, and you’re actually seeing results. Well done, you! But, now is not the time to let up.
The best outsourcing relationships are those that have frequent open and honest communication. You may still be very busy, but make time for your Virtual Staff the same way you would for key in-house personnel. Find out what improvements could be made. Make sure there aren’t roadblocks inhibiting performance. Most importantly, take the time to hear what your Virtual Assistant is actually saying. It will be time well spent.
5.
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Need help creating a superb customer service experience? Take this quiz to find out today if your company can benefit by having Daybeak Virtual on your team tomorrow.
