5 Mistakes To Avoid With Your Virtual Assistants

When you are working with virtual assistants, you will want to be sure that you take a moment to consider that there are some things you will want to avoid. These are common mistakes that people make which can result in a nightmarish experience.

1. Know about the virtual assistant before you hire them. You should know this individual as well as a normal employee or contract worker. This means contacting former clients or companies who have worked with the individual to get an idea about their work ethic.

2. Provide clear details on the work you expect to be performed. It doesn't do any good to tell them that you want a spreadsheet and offer them numbers. Be precise and to the point when giving instructions for optimal results.

3. Check the knowledge of the virtual assistant before you hire them. It is important that you don't simply hire them on based on price. There are basics they will need to be able to do for you, be sure that those minimum requirements can be met.

4. Provide them with firm deadlines. If you leave a task open-ended, they may not get their work done. Have a clearly defined deadline for your jobs and give more time than you would actually expect it to take. This means that if a job should take 8 hours to do, provide them a 12 hour deadline. That way if something does come up, there is some wiggle room for them.

5. After each project, decide if the relationship should continue. If you started off getting amazing work and the quality has deteriorated, then you might want to consider looking for a new virtual assistant. This helps you avoid becoming trapped with an individual that simply goes through the motions of the job.

The overall success you have with your virtual assistant will depend on you and your approach to this individual. Never settle below your actual standards, and you should find that you are happy with the results that you get. And if things start taking a turn for the worse, reestablish guidelines and communications to steer things back on track.

Get help as needed from other companies and individuals who work with virtual assistants by networking on forums in your niche or reaching out via email or social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. As outsourcing grows in popularity, you will find many resources and people available to help you.

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