The use of Virtual Assistants (VAs) by business owners, entrepreneurs and the self-employed is growing. Research work by Gartner Inc indicates that by 2021, 25% of digital workers will use their services on a daily basis! But this does leave 75% of digital workers without the help they need, or, in some cases, hiring a part-time employee for assistance. There’s a vast difference between the two – but what are those differences, and which is most suitable for you? Let me explain…
Part Time Payroll vs. Flexible Hours
A part-time employee is, as with any other employee of your organisation, contracted to you for certain services. This means that they are to be treated as any other employee – with a full payroll to be run, all employee benefits provided and full taxation and pensions made. Whilst for businesses with a fully functioning HR department, this may be a quick job to hand over and manage on your existing systems, for smaller businesses, this is time, effort and resource heavy.
VAs are also contracted to you for the completion of services, but instead work on a per-need service. This allows for flexible hours, so those using VA services can scale up when busy and pull back when not. You only pay for the exact time used. Indeed, surveys show that in a full 8-hour workday, most workers only do 3-hours of work. Why pay for idle time?!
Single Service vs. Increased Task Expertise
If you’re looking for someone with broad skills and varying sector experience to cover different activities, it may be that you have to hire several staff members to cover off each base – a costly business!
While indeed you may find too that no one VA is able to cater for all of your needs, hiring separate assistants in this manner is considerably easier and cheaper; so you’re able to reap the benefits of specialised staff without having to add to your permanent workforce.
Office Distractions vs. Self-Employed Focus
We’ve all seen how easy it is to get distracted in an office environment… I’m sure we’ve all done it ourselves, too! Employees working within your office are at risk of exactly this, but if you’re looking for an assistant to work next to your desk or that you can micromanage, then a part-time employee is for you.
If, however, you’d prefer someone to work from their own initiative without distraction or office politics, a VA is appropriate for your needs. A self-employed VA will work toward customer satisfaction as their ultimate goal, because after all, it pays their bills and maintains their business! As a result, VAs are extremely highly motivated and focused; always pursuing the best possible service in order to sustain and build their client base.
If you’re in a position where flexible, on-demand, specialised support is what’s needed for you, get in touch. I’ll work with and for you to offer assistance that’s truly second-to-none.