Over the course of this blog we’ve waxed lyrical about the business benefits of working with a VA. Mainly because there has always been a strong business case for hiring a VA, unless you are big enough to hire a PA in house. And if that’s you – why are you reading this blog?
But with the pandemic things have changed. Priorities have shifted, and the focus now for many business owners is on preserving their business and shoring up cash flow. The pandemic has meant putting staff on furlough, adjusting work roles and schedules, or even just letting staff go, completely. Which might be good for them, but isn’t great for business. So, the question now really is, is a pandemic a good time to hire a VA?
Yes, yes it is. And here’s why.
Become An Octopus
Do you ever feel like 2 arms just isn’t enough to get everything done? Us too! Especially when the pandemic has added so much more work and processes to our daily lives. Even if you haven’t had to reduce your staffing over the last 2 years, your staffing and productivity have almost certainly still been impacted in some way. Sickness, self-isolation, social distancing, caring for others and even school closures probably mean you’re operating at much less than maximum efficiency. But to get your business through this last hurdle of the pandemic you need to be kicking it up a gear, as well as taking care of the extra personal tasks, and that’s where a VA can help. You can outsource your business tasks, any business tasks, to a qualified VA, who can get them done for you in a fraction of the time and cost of hiring someone in house or doing it yourself. This leaves you free to focus on yourself and your family, dedicate some extra time to managing your remote team, or working on your crisis plan, all while knowing the work is getting done.
Channel Your Inner Gymnast
If you haven’t figured it out already, flexibility is one of the most important aspects of running a business, especially during a pandemic. Things are still changing on an almost daily basis, and it’s often difficult to know what’s coming next. Now, the last thing on your mind right now is taking on new staff, but you may have partners, staff or suppliers off sick. You might have even had to do the worst and let some people go. But now more than ever you need all hands-on deck to keep things going and make sure your business keeps booming, which can put you in a bit of a quandary. Honestly, it’s something a lot of businesses are struggling with. But a VA means you can get everything you need in one place, with no recruitment headaches, and only paying for what you need. So you end up spending less money, but getting more done. What’s not to love about that? It’s no wonder businesses are crying out for VAs during the pandemic!
Don’t Just Tread Water
Every business owner wants their business to grow. That goes without saying really. But in the pandemic a lot of people are panicking, trying to keep everything stable and losing focus on growth. Even now, 2 years in, the focus is on maintaining and staying afloat. But with a little organisation and time, your business could keep growing throughout the pandemic and beyond.
Many businesses could actually be leveraging the Covid-19 pandemic to their advantage, and in a positive way for everyone. A flexible attitude and some smart thinking are all you need to adjust your offering, provide extra support to your customers, and keep your business going strong. But with everything else you need to focus on, that can be difficult. A VA can be your sounding board for ideas, do the research needed for new ideas and work in the background to get new or adjusted services up and running, while you focus on keeping things ticking over.
So, what’s on your to do list that a VA could help with? What tasks just never seem to get done, even with a pandemic as motivation? Or, maybe most importantly, what could your business achieve right now if you just had a little extra support? At Your Admin Hub those are the jobs we love to do, so why not outsource them and give yourself the gift of time this year? If you’d like to know more, you know where we are – all you have to do is get in touch.