Oct 15, 2014
Summary
On this episode of Rhodes to Success I interview Lyndsay Phillips, founder and CEO of Smooth Sailing Online Support. Lyndsay’s goal is to serve and help businesses grow and run efficiently using her Virtual Assistant team and account managers. If you want to scale your business and grow, then hiring a virtual assistant is what you need to do! This episode of Rhodes to Success answers all Virtual Assistant questions!
Main Questions Asked
- What is a virtual assistant?
- What are some things a virtual assistant can do for an entrepreneur?
- Talk about the perception of virtual assistants and how they are viewed
- How does a virtual assistant having multiple clients bring more value to your clients?
- How do your clients find you and what advice do you have for entrepreneurs who want to hire a virtual assistant?
- How did you grow relationships so they resulted in paying clients?
- Talk about trading hours for dollars and moving toward being a business owner
Key Lessons Learned
What is a Virtual Assistant?
- A Virtual Assistant (VA) is an executive assistant, a secretary, a receptionist, an administrative assistant and many roles beyond
- A VA doesn’t work in your office but is available remotely (electronically )e.g email, text or phone
- Tasks a VA can complete include email, contracts, letters, scheduling, customer service, event management, promotions, and marketing
- A VA can encompass anything in regards to the operation of your business such as client management, payments, customer support and marketing
The Value of A Virtual Assistant
- Having a VA means you can focus on the revenue generating activities and doing the things that you love
- Remember a VA is a business owner who has other clients so they are an entrepreneur in their own right
- VAs are not employees so you don’t have to pay tax or vacation or sick days
- Many VAs work on retainer or an as needed basis so you don’t need to hire a full time employee (saves you money)
Finding A Virtual Assistant
- Two great ways to hear about VAs for hire is via word of mouth from other business owners and networking
- Make sure you interview your VA before committing to ensure there is synergy and that they meet your needs
- When searching for a VA think about what you value most in a business owner (complete tasks on time or communication in a timely manner etc)
- Make sure your VA is familiar with the software you use or that they are trainable
Be A Virtual Assistant
- Starting by offering services for an hourly rate is a great way to start as a VA
- When building your business ask yourself “what revenue generating things can I do and have my support staff take on?”
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Links to Resources Mentioned
Info@ ssonlinesupport.com
484-284-0933