Virtual assistant- Pros and cons
Life can be tough, and the pressure of all the work and responsibilities starts to pull you down. So, this is where we introduce the solution to that big hurdle: a virtual assistant that can help you reduce daily burdens and lets you focus on more pressing tasks that need more attention, time, and effort. Virtual assistants are a must in today’s time as they provide you with a lot of freedom by completing your repetitive and administrative tasks and freeing up a lot of your valuable time to attend to other aspects. A virtual assistant company can perform several tasks, including-
Calendar management.
Email filtering and management is a big task for a businessman.
Data entry.
Social media management is a must for a business.
Pros of a virtual assistant-
It helps you stay organized-
The main advantage of a virtual assistant is that it frees up a lot of your time which helps you in looking after matters that need your attention more. Virtual Assistants can take over many of your recurring tasks, such as newsletter management, follow-up emails, calendar management, and travel plans, so they don’t bother you.
Lower overhead and training or lower cost-
If you Hire a virtual assistant that will allow you to lower overhead and saves a lot of resources.
Assist with tasks that you might not be as familiar with-
It’s not always necessary for you and your business to have every field’s knowledge. Therefore, a virtual assistant helps you manage tasks that you are new to or don’t know about. This way, your business grows and evolves.
Frees Time for Higher Level Projects-
One of the many advantages of a virtual assistant is that it frees up a lot of your time by doing less important jobs, and you were wasting your time and energy on those things that were never meant for you in the first place.
Ability to Get Large Projects Done Faster-
You sometimes need to hit that big jackpot deal, but for that, you have to be the fastest because it’s not only you. They have an option. Your ability to work fast or on time with the desired results makes you hit that jackpot. So, this is the time when a team of these virtual assistants comes into play as they help you achieve your deadline.
Work Gets Done Even During Your “Off” Hours-
Have you ever wished to be more productive by working 24/7 and completing all the work? Well, this can be achieved with the help of a virtual assistant. For that, you have to choose an assistant who will work in the hours when you are off duty. This option also allows you to start your work day one step ahead of all as when your emails are already sorted, your appointments are made and confirmed, your schedule for the day is also sorted, and the research you need for a project is already waiting for you then it gives you a kick start at the beginning of the day, and you work and think for clearly.
Decreases your stress level-
It helps you decrease your stress by sharing your workload, responsibilities, and duties and getting them all sorted.
Cons of a virtual assistant–
Communication can be difficult due to language and cultural barriers-
The lack of in-person meetings might make working together difficult, at least in the early phase. Although this is particularly an issue if you both are working in different time zones or if there are language barriers. In addition to that, technical or network issues and miscommunication can be a difficult challenge too.
Added supervision might be needed-
A Virtual Assistant is there to free up your time, but in the beginning, it is not necessary that they easily understand the workaround. It takes time to learn and grasp what is expected out of them. So, in the initial phase, it may take your time, but you must not be disheartened as it is more like a future investment.
Delegating work-
Sharing your daily routine or schedule that you used to follow is difficult, especially when you have to forget about that schedule and start a new one completely. In the beginning, it is very tough to give control, but with time and the results, you will learn to do that also.
Sharing your Business Processes and Other Private Information-
It is a very difficult decision for most people as trusting someone with all the private and sensory information of the company puts the company’s and its people’s futures at stake.
Losing Time in Training and Relationship Building-
Training a virtual assistant can take a lot of time as communication in virtual mode is not so happening and clear.
Longer Response Times vs. In-House-
It’s more time-consuming to quickly discuss something with a person sitting in the same building than with the person present virtually.
Possible Impact on Employee Morale-
At times, your in-house employees might take your decision to hire a virtual assistant as the wrong symbol and feel demotivated.
Internet connectivity-
Virtually connecting can be a big task if we talk about internet connectivity, as fluctuations in internet speed or a power cut can sometimes create hindrances in the way of your work or even while connecting.
Lack of trust and commitment-
Creating and maintaining both of these is a task in the real world, and in a virtual model, it gets tougher.
Conclusion-
Like everything, a virtual assistant has its pros and cons. It’s up to you and your needs and requirements that you choose to go for a virtual assistant or not, but this article must have helped you come to a decision you were unsure about. All in all, it depends upon the kind of requirement and work you expect from a virtual assistant who will call the shots. Everything has its cons, but it’s important to weigh the pros and cons equally and then decide.