Why a Virtual Assistant Might Not be Your Best First Hire and who you should hire instead
Why You Shouldn't Hire a Virtual Assistant First
I see people asking for VA recommendations in Facebook groups all the time. And it is so fun to watch businesses grow to the point where the solopreneur is ready to bring on help! But I also see these hundreds of responses to the initial post and many of these questions get asked a lot after that one:
- how do I know who to hire first
- what does a VA do
- what type of tasks are you looking for
- how do I make sure they know my processes or voice
You need help in your business, right? Your first thought may be "I see a lot of people hiring Virtual Assistants, maybe that's who I need to hire." But I don't think a VA should always be your first hire.
Virtual assistants can do just about anything you need them to, however, I don't think it is always the best choice to hire a virtual assistant. Don't get me wrong, answering those types of posts on Facebook was one way that I grew my business, but I learned over the course of the past year and a half, that it is more important to specialize in certain areas. For me, I don't offer full graphics for social media - that should be done by graphic designers. I don't 100% ghost write blogs - that's what copy writers are for. Here at The Social Walker Agency, for things I don't offer, I have relationships with graphic designers and copy writers who are amazing at what they do and they will tell you that they don't offer blog formatting, newsletter writing, or social media scheduling - that's what TSWa does for you.
It is important to know exactly what you need help with so you can bring on the best person for your business at that time. If you're looking for someone to just respond to emails, a virtual assistant may be just who you need.
But...
If you're looking to bring on someone who believes in your business and your dreams, you need to determine exactly what tasks you need help with and start looking for someone more specific. Yes, that may mean bringing on several different people, and that's okay. They will be the ones who are experts in their fields and take those heavy items off your plate.
It can seem even more overwhelming to manage all the moving parts and people, but here at The Agency, we offer full brand management. This means that we work with you to develop your brand and we coordinate with our graphic designer and copy writers, so you don't have to. We'll work hand-in-hand with you and with them to keep your business growing forward!
