In today’s market businesses are looking to scale or expand through outsourcing which is why you need a partner who is results-driven and who will take responsibility for the tasks you hand to them. Here is our take on choosing the right outsourcing partner to ensure a good return on your investment.
1. Reputation matters
Who you or your business is associated with, is crucially important. Reputations are fragile, on the one hand, a good reputation succeeds its owner and on the other hand, it is something that takes years to build and seconds to come tumbling down.
Evaluate your potential outsourcing partner by doing your homework as you would when faced with any significant business decision:
- Do they have a proven track record that can attest to their quality of work?
- Read online reviews and contact references. This will give you an unbiased idea of what their previous or current clients’ experiences are.
- Do their business values line up with yours and are your standards of work ethic compatible?
2. Communicate your budget up-front
Whether you choose a private virtual assistant or a team of virtual assistants through partnering with a company such as AdminAssist, deciding on and communicating a clear budget is vital.
First and foremost, it helps both parties to form realistic expectations of what can be achieved within the budget. A budget is a good starting point from which you can determine the scope of work and decide on how many hours of assistance you require without jeopardizing your cash flow.
A second layer to communicating your budget comes in when you want to acquire specialised services as opposed to standard services. Their inherent value is different and therefore you should expect to pay a premium price for outsourcing specialised tasks.
Here is an insightful article that explains What makes up the cost of your Virtual Assistant
3. Flexibility
Lastly, choose an outsourcing partner that is flexible and adaptable to your business’ needs. This is where considering a company rather than an individual VA could be beneficial. We are referring to flexibility in terms of the tailored services, but more importantly we are referring to flexibility to handle urgent or unexpected matters because business doesn’t always happen by the book.
Your outsourcing partner needs to take tasks off of your hands, but they also need to be able to provide support or attend to problems as and when they arise. Wouldn’t you feel more at ease knowing that you have a pool of skilled individuals to tap into when the need arises?
Still looking for a reputable outsourcing partner? If your answer is yes, then let’s chat about the perfect virtual assistant for your needs!
