Starting a new business is both exciting and daunting – on one hand, there’s so much opportunity; on the other, so much admin. That’s why lots of new startup businesses very quickly outsource some of their day-to-day tasks to a virtual assistant. Not only does it help to get things done – it also gives you some valuable support so that you don’t feel you’re doing everything on your own.
Why use a small business assistant?
Part of the freedom of starting your own business is the ability to do things however you want to. No more being constrained by large corporate hierarchies or processes. Instead, you’re in control. It’s a great feeling, and it’s one of the reasons you’ve started your own business in the first place.
And there’s certainly a lot to keep you busy. Whilst you might not miss working in a corporate environment, you probably will miss the support you got from various places – the IT department, the Finance department, the Marketing department and the HR department, to name a few. All those responsibilities are now yours, in addition to going out and meeting clients and doing the actual work that brings in the money.
So it’s no surprise that an increasing number of new start up company owners are choosing to get some help with the tasks that eat up the time they could be spending elsewhere. Whether you are setting up a business from home, are just thinking about starting up your own business, or have been running for a while and think it’s time to get some support, here are just some of the ways that a startup virtual assistant can help:
Bookkeeping services
For small businesses, keeping on top of day-to-day finances is time-consuming. And, as one of the most important tasks in your business, you can put yourself under a lot of pressure to make sure it’s done. For a new start up, or fledgling microventures, this often means working late into the evenings or at weekends to make sure everything is in order. But, with just a small investment in an experienced virtual assistant, you can free up your spare time and be confident that your finances are in good order at all times.
Travel and expenses
Part of your financial management is organising and recording what you spend as part of your business activities. It’s important to accurately record your expenses so that your accounts are accurate – and these include everything from mileage and train fares to any special equipment you need for your business, or for some of the running costs of your home if your office is based there. What’s more, if you need to travel for your business, you need to make sure tickets and hotels are booked, keeping costs down but keeping your business on the move. Small business expense management can help you to keep a handle on spending and budgets, and it’s an easy and inexpensive thing for anyone setting up a new business to outsource.
Sales outsourcing
For small business owners, getting a good sales process in place is vital. Again, however, making all the initial contacts, putting people into your sales pipeline, booking appointments and doing all the follow-up work is a time-consuming business – when will you get the time to do the work? Savvy owners build this into their startup business plan, ensuring they have budgeted for resource to help with sales support. This could be telemarketing, database management, appointment setting and diary management, follow up sales calls and more. Getting this type of help frees you up to concentrate on making the sale, delivering the contract and building a client relationship that results in repeat business and referrals.
Marketing support
You might have great new business startup ideas, but you need a marketing strategy to get the word out to the right people at the right time. That means creating messages and content that engages your target customers and helps them to make the decision to contact you, or buy from you. It might also include social media channels, which need to have a good mix of content and engagement. All of this takes time, and might be better outsourced to a specialist virtual assistant who has the experience to help you get things off to a flying start.
You don’t have to work on your startup venture alone – there are plenty of support services around to help you. Small business owners who take this route find that they release a significant amount of time back into the business, helping them to clinch more sales and grow the business into something bigger.
If you’re short on time and need help with any of these new business tasks, feel free to call us on 0800 994 9016 or use our contact form in the menu above.
This read comes in handy, especially for startups teetering on the decision to hire virtual assistants. It does a great job highlighting the perks VAs bring to the table. Take, for instance, the tip about getting virtual assistants to whip up content that grabs the attention of your target customer. It’s something so crucial yet often overlooked.