Building a Better Outsourcing Services Business
Competition among different businesses and companies is becoming tougher and tougher these days. If you have already stepped up the ladder and started an outsourcing services business, then we congratulate you. You are already ahead of the majority of entrepreneurs who believe that economical help is hard to find. The fact of the matter is, outsourcing bits and pieces of your business (or in some cases, most parts of your business) is a critical part of making you as productive as possible.
How to Make BIG Money
If you are on your way to start an outsource business, we have some valuable and effective tips that you could apply to your new business venture:
1. Clear communication is a must
Virtual Assistants are definitely being paid at a much lower rates compared to any in house staff. You might be paying your VA at $7 per hour but if your tasks will all wind up and take three times longer than it should be, then you’re still paying $21 for just a simple task. If the delay continues, it won’t help you save money at all. There are even instances when you have to re-do the entire project. Therefore, it’s not worth rushing your instructions or explanations and assuming that the other person thinks the way you do.
Sometimes, just one clear explanation is not enough. Do not hesitate to make a phone call as a follow up to your written instruction. Or you may also include reminders such as “Please let me know if you wish to discuss these instructions further over the phone.” Most VA’s are accessible via Skype or any other applications that will not cost you any extra to use.
Taking an extra five minutes to explain something a bit further could mean shaving a couple hours of wasted time off your project. Hence, if you wish to have a successful outsource business, clear and constant communication with your VA is truly a must. A little time spent to talk and clear things out with your VA will turn to be a great thing for you to save time and money.
2. Always set deadlines
In an outsource business, it is always important for you to set due dates or deadlines. It is fairly obvious; certain situations will come that you will need something done yet you haven’t set a deadline or have forgotten to communicate with your VA. VA’s will commonly ask for deadlines but this does not happen 100% of the time.
Deadlines are definitely important. Some tasks might not be urgent for you at the moment, but still, don’t miss out in leaving a deadline. Some VA’s are pretty busy so they need to know which tasks should they prioritize or accomplish first. If you are not going to leave a deadline, it is possible that your task might not be prioritized or turned around when you expected. You have to set terms on each task to make your outsourcing work. VA’s can be marvelous for your outsource business but they are not mind readers.
3. Reward your staff for a job well done
Even in any other form of businesses and non-outsourcing companies, motivation and morale plays a vital factor. Most especially that VA’s work remotely, you have to make ways to keep them motivated and interested with your business. Morale plays a huge factor in productivity.
It’s human nature to want to feel good about what you do, and when you’re unhappy about your work situation, it will reflect in your work. Although you don’t work physically with your virtual assistant, it is significant that you treat them the same as with your other workers. When your VA’s does a good job, let them know, if you have criticisms, communicate them. Just like onshore employees, they want to feel like they are valued member of your business.
Happy VA’s are no doubt more productive and make sure that they do a much better job in the future. Don’t hesitate to praise or reward your VA’s especially when they deserve it. This can help you and your outsource business go a long way with your VA’s. That means, you will spend less time in training replacement VA’s and will also help you accomplish your tasks or projects more efficiently.
Maintaining good working relationship with your VA’s is important so your outsource business attains the desired results. If you wish to run your business smoothly, you also need to work on with your relationship with your employees, either in house or offshore. A happy working environment can increase productivity to every employee.