In preparation for a seminar a fellow VA is presenting later this week, she posed a question to LinkedIn members about the social marketing tasks they would be comfortable outsourcing to a VA. One person actually said, “Honestly, I can’t think of one task that I would be comfortable having an assistant take over.”
To me, the above statement shows a lack of understanding of exactly what a VA does and how they work WITH their clients. I do not have a lot of time this morning to devote to this particular post, but I plan on getting a more eloquent post together later today about my thoughts on the above statement.
YOUR comments are welcome!
I think it’s important to find out why this person is uncomfortable delegating anything to a VA. It may be that he’s not at a stage in his business where he feels comfortable letting go. It may be that he’s heard horror stories about VAs, and as we all know, those abound. It may also be that he’s had an unhappy VA experience himself.
If the reason is that he doesn’t know what a VA can do for his business, then he definitely needs to be educated. A LinkedIn member has started a VA group (free), and its purpose is to educate LinkedIn members about working with a VA as well as provide an avenue for LinkedIn members to find a VA to work with. Anyone who is interested in joining the LinkedIn VA Community can send email to linkedin-virtual-assistant-community@googlegroups.com, and an invitation to join will be forthcoming.
=>Donna Caissie, Virtual Assistant
ExtraOrdinary Assistance
dcaissie@extra-assist.com
Donna,
Thank you for the comment and the link for the LinkedIn VA group.
Indeed, perhaps it is a lack of understanding or perhaps it is a case of someone who is afraid of giving up some of the control. It all comes down to educating your market. As a Virtual Assistant and as an industry we need to be able to articulate to others why they might benefit from working with a Virtual Assistant as well as specific ways a Virtual Assistant can help.
I’ve heard many entrepreneurs and small business owners who feel they cannot delegate to a Virtual Assistant because they just don’t feel as though anyone could as good a job as they do. This is another opportunity to educate about Virtual Assistants are experienced, knowledgeable professionals who often times are just as meticulous in their work as those who fear giving up the control.
Kimberly
http://www.jkvirtualoffice.com/blog