Anne, Author at Virtual Office Angels | Online Virtual Assistant Services

Improving Business Health with Virtual Office Angels Virtual Financial Planning Assistance and Administration Services on World Health Day

World Health Day is a time to reflect on the importance of health and well-being. This year, the focus is on building a fairer, healthier world for everyone. At Virtual Office Angels, we recognize the importance of financial health in overall well-being, and we believe that businesses can benefit greatly from our Financial Planning Assistance and Administration services. Our Virtual Assistants can help businesses focus on all the time-consuming tasks and improve their financial health.

Financial planning is an essential component of running a successful business. However, it can be time-consuming and complex, especially for businesses without a dedicated finance team. This is where our Virtual Assistants can help. Equipped with the needed Australian Financial experience and knowledge, our highly skilled virtual financial assistants can provide the needed support to assist Australian Financial Planners and Mortgage Brokers thus helping them grow their businesses faster. By outsourcing the day-to-day administration tasks to our highly specialised Virtual Assistants, businesses can free up their time and focus on other aspects of their operations thus helping them grow their businesses faster and easier too.

Here are some reasons why businesses need a Virtual Assistant to focus on financial planning and administration tasks:

Expertise: Our Virtual Assistants are highly skilled and experienced in supporting Australian Financial Planners and managing their day-to-day administrative tasks. They can provide priceless support that can save a lot of time and money to help businesses grow faster.

Time savings: By outsourcing day-to-day preparation of financial documents and administration routine tasks, businesses can free up their time and focus on other areas of their operations. This can improve productivity and efficiency thus saving a lot of precious time.

As we celebrate World Health Day on April 7th, let us remember that financial health is an essential component of overall health and well-being. By using Virtual Office Angels’ Virtual Financial Planning Assistance , Virtual Mortgage Support and Administration services, businesses can improve their financial health and build a fairer, healthier world for everyone. Contact us today to learn more about how our Virtual Assistants can help your business achieve financial stability and success.

The Problems with Outsourcing and How to Solve Them

Outsourcing a virtual assistant brings substantial benefits for your business. Firstly, it can save you a lot of your time and a significant amount money because it is definitely more cost effective than hiring someone working with you in an expensive office. However, there are also challenges that come with hiring one and it became more apparent during the pandemic when everybody started working from home when the world of virtual assistance and outsourcing boomed.

From the lack of quality control, communication issues, cultural differences to security concerns, etc so let us provide you with tips on how to overcome the problems that come with outsourcing.

If You’re Not Reaping the Benefits of Outsourcing a Virtual Assistant Yet…

Businesses of all sizes have been reaping the benefits of outsourcing virtual assistants who can help them not only with administrative tasks, but also accounting, marketing, mortgage and loans processing support and many more.

The act of employing a third party to carry out a commercial task that is usually handled internally is known as outsourcing. It is beneficial to businesses because it could lower costs, increase efficiency, allows you to concentrate on your core skills and most especially, gives you back the needed time you need to do and create other things you love. Access to specialist resources and talents that might not be accessible internally can also be provided by outsourcing.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed with work lately, it’s a sign to hire a virtual assistant right now.

Communication and Cultural Differences

Working with people that have different language and cultural standards can cause miscommunications, hence it is one of the major concerns when outsourcing. This could lead to confusion, delays, and unmet expectations. Finding common ground, cultural training, and clear communication can all help to lessen these difficulties.

Time zones can be a hurdle too since it can be challenging to organize meetings and coordinate communication when the outsourced business and the client are in different time zones. This could result in miscommunication and delays in finishing the project. Also, if there is a considerable time difference, it could force people to work outside of regular business hours, which can affect both productivity and work-life balance.

Established in 2020, Virtual Office Angels is a boutique outsourcing company that manages only highly specialised virtual assistants. With hands-on expertise and experience in managing the Australian business culture and dealing with Australian clients, VA productivity is higher with tasks easily done and completed with confidence and great knowledge.

Additionally, with the Philippines only 2 – 3 hours behind, it is easier to work on fixed Australian business hours.

Quality Control and Performance Issues

When dealing with remote teams, quality control can be a concern because you are not working next to the staff and one is unable to correct mistakes that come along right away.

This risk can be reduced by creating clear expectations, keeping communication lines open, processes in place and quality assurance procedures. It’s also crucial to establish precise contractual agreements and closely examine prospective outsourcing partners.

Virtual Office Angels has a team of HR and team leaders that ensure nothing is missed out. From its VA Recruitment procedure and the VA Onboarding process, we are able to assist you in the needed support you need to ensure that tasks are done and completed to your expectation each and every day.

Lower Productivity Levels

Another problem with outsourcing is productivity, but it ultimately boils down to how well the outsourcing is handled. Setting expectations, keeping track of progress, and having open lines of communication can all assist to keep productivity on track. Also, selecting an outsourcing partner with a track record of producing high-quality work on schedule might assist reduce any productivity concerns.

Here are some tips to help make sure virtual assistants are effective during work hours:

· Thoroughly explain the role, your expectations and outcome

· Establish clear objectives and due dates

· Provide needed on boarding and the special tools, if needed

· Arrange regular progress updates or check-ins

· Promote open dialogue and feedback

· Track their work using productivity tools and software.

Security Threats and Concerns

Concerns about intellectual property rights, confidentiality, security lapses, and compliance with local laws and regulations can arise as a result of outsourcing. For instance, outsourcing could entail disclosing private data to independent suppliers, raising the danger of security lapses and the potential loss of intellectual property. Also, there may be differences in how local rules and regulations are followed between countries, which can lead to moral and legal conundrums. When outsourcing, it’s crucial for businesses to carefully weigh these potential dangers and take the necessary precautions to reduce them.

Here are some guidelines to help you protect your company’s papers when outsourcing:

Carefully identify and communicate to the outsourcing provider your expectations and requirements for data security.
Make use of secure file-sharing and communication methods, such virtual data rooms or encrypted email.
Use security tools like firewalls, antivirus software, and data encryption to safeguard the devices and network of your business.

Choosing a highly reputable Australian outsourcing company such as Virtual Office Angels Pty Ltd with a proven track record can help mitigate or completely avoid the above challenges of outsourcing virtual assistants in Australia. More importantly, you can work less, earn more and save a lot of your precious time to help you grow your business faster, easily.

Maintain a Work-Life Balance by Outsourcing – Hire a Virtual Assistant

Have you been stressing out and feeling so overwhelmed lately that you’ve

Have you been stressing out and feeling so overwhelmed lately that you’ve missed out on special family gatherings and had to refuse invites from friends? Have you been spending long hours at work and at the end of the day feel like so little has been done and more tasks are still left in your inbox? When was the last time you took a holiday?
As the saying goes, if your business can’t survive and grow without you, then it’s not a sustainable business. You just got yourself a demanding job.
If your goal this year is to continuously expand and bring higher returns to your business while maintaining a work-life balance, outsourcing and hiring the right fit Virtual Assistant support (or a team of VAs) for your business is the best solution.

What’s a Virtual Assistant and How Can It Help You Maintain a Work-Life Balance?

A virtual assistant is an online worker who provides a variety of virtual services to businesses and entrepreneurs. Not physically working in your office, virtual assistants have the needed skills, knowledge and are equipped with tools to perform their duties. But not all Virtual Assistants are the same and created equal. While some VAs jump into the online world straight from uni with no experience at all, some of them perform their tasks by reading templates provided to them by their employers which means a lot of time, energy, money and resources are needed (and wasted) in their training and development.
At Virtual Office Angels, we can help you delegate and offload the time-consuming tasks that takes all your time and energy. With decades of HR experience, we can assist you in the search of only highly qualified Virtual Assistants (or a team of VAs) for your specific needs. With the right virtual assistant that matches your specific needs, you can have peace of mind in offloading all your workload to free yourself from all the time consuming tasks that bogs you down.

Here are some of the services a virtual office assistant from Virtual Office Angels can help you with:

Back-end Administrative Assistance and Support
Financial Planning Virtual Assistance and Support
Virtual Mortgage and Loans Assistance
Virtual Accounting and Bookkeeping Assistance
Real Estate Support and Assistance
Digital Marketing Support and Assistance

Key Reasons Why Hire a Virtual Assistant for Your Business

Running a business includes a wide range of various, time consuming and meticulous tasks that can take so much of one’s time if not effectively delegated. If you want to maintain a better lifestyle, then stop working harder, and instead, you have to work smarter.

But there’s more to hiring a virtual assistant than getting things done faster. If you are still on the fence on hiring a virtual office assistant for your business, here’s a list of the main reasons why your business needs it now more than ever.

Reduced expenses without compromising the service quality

Any medium firm or small business owner can minimize overhead costs by employing only highly qualified and professional Virtual Assistants. Cost is the obvious reason to outsource. You can save – around 50% – 60% on labour cost, NO additional expensive infrastructure to pay, NO electricity bill, NO computer hardware and software expenses, NO superannuation cost, NO payroll tax and more importantly, without the hassles of a traditional employee (i.e. No Unfair dismissal issue, No harassment issues, No bullying, etc). As one of our clients agan said, “Same quality, fraction of the costs”.

Scale your business operations quickly

Delegate, delegate and delegate more so you can offload all the time consuming and repetitive tasks in your inbox to a highly qualified Virtual Assistant. With this in place, you will have more time, can breathe better and focus to attending to the more important aspect of your business – getting more clients – Your client who also needs your time and attention to provide them the outstanding customer service that they deserve.

Avoid burnout

Hiring a virtual assistant will lower your workload significantly (and your blood pressure too). Repetitive tasks like responding to emails, scheduling meetings, calendar management consume a lot more time than individuals believe. Besides, you’ll need more mental space for more important things. A virtual assistant can do these administrative and repetitive tasks and more. By learning how to delegate these time consuming workload and reducing repetitive tasks from your plate, you have more time to achieve a healthy work-life balance.

Work-life balance is often overlooked because it is easier to stick to old habits. However, we can’t expect the same results by doing the same thing every day. Maximise outsourcing and let it grow your business faster and change your life for the better.

Ready to start your journey with the right Virtual Assistant for your business? Contact Virtual Office Angels now or read here why Virtual Office Angels may be the company for your business virtual staffing.

Empowering Businesses on International Women’s Day

As we celebrate International Women’s Day, it’s important to take a moment to recognize and honor the amazing women of Virtual Office Angels. We have women in our organization in all different functions – from our talented and highly qualified Virtual Assistants who are making a significant impact in the world of business, helping small to large businesses grow faster, to our Team Leaders and Managers who mentor and guide our team, and our very own founder, Anne Villavieja.

Virtual Office Angels is a trusted partner for Australian businesses looking to leverage their time, money, and resources. Their expertise in the industry and their knowledge of the Australian business environment, combined with their understanding of the local Philippine talent, make them an invaluable resource for companies searching for the perfect match to help their businesses grow sustainably and ethically.

At Virtual Office Angels, women are at the forefront of everything they do, and they believe in empowering women by providing opportunities for professional growth and success.

On this International Women’s Day, let’s celebrate the incredible women of Virtual Office Angels and all the amazing women who are making a difference in the world of business.

Virtual Financial Planning Support: A Must for Financial Planners

A day in a life of a financial planner is hectic. Not only does one require the knowledge, professional competency in wearing many hats and beyond is also one of them. While you are on your way to success, getting there means ensuring that every nitty gritty of tasks on hand are covered not to mention having time for yourself, too.

This is where you need a reliable and a highly skilled virtual financial support assistant.

Let’s drill into the details and let us explore the why’s and how’s of getting on board a virtual financial planning support.

Why Hire a Virtual Assistant for Financial Planning Support?

You may want to believe that you can carry on with all your tasks and still grow on your own. However, it is impossible to earn double or triple without passing any tasks to someone else. Automation can’t solve everything yet and even so, it would still require human verification. Part of expansion is to find a virtual office assistant that you can rely on to and help you with administrative and other repetitive tasks so you can focus on what is more important.

Here are some of the many tasks you can delegate to a financial planning support assistant:

Organise meetings and appointments
Prepare client meeting pack that will include FSG, Adviser Profile, Fact Find, Risk Profile and Third-Party Authority
Ensure all important data is in the financial planning software like XPLan or Midwinter, to name name a few
Perform Fact Find wizard and risk profiling
Ensure all critical data is in financial planning software and CRM.
Double-check if data is incomplete and coordinate with product providers, clients, etc.
Lodge signed Third Party Authority to product providers
Assist in the preparation of Due Diligence reports
Input data to Wealthsolver, Xtools (CALM) and Risk Researcher
Monitor review dates for insurance
Send reminder letters and review letters to clients
Coordinate with insurers
Obtain Risk Quotes from Product Providers (i.e., policy types, benefit amount, etc.)
Pre-fill application forms and member data forms in preparation for the client’s signature before submission to government agencies or providers
Do research based on Client/s existing data risk, Superannuation, banking arrangements, etc.
Liaise and follow up information with fund managers, administrators and life companies regarding documentation, etc.

Update financial planning software and CRM for any changes in client’s circumstances
Update and communicate with clients regarding supporting documents required in preparing their SOA
Assist in the preparation of SOA

A virtual office assistant is widely preferred by Australians due to cost efficiency. With a virtual financial planning support assistant, you don’t need to spend an extra overhead for someone you’d be requiring to show up in the office every day. Output will basically be the same as they are focused with their tasks on hand rather than spending their time chatting with their officemates.

On top of that, as we all need a break, work does not need to take a pause while you’re spending some time bonding with your family. Take a holiday with peace of mind while your work runs on its own. Taking a break is one of the most overlooked essentials but our bodies and minds need it. Stepping out and re-energizing can give you better perspective when it comes to handling your work, and a well-trained virtual office assistant can definitely take care of the mundane tasks you left so you can put your mind at ease.

How Do You Hire a Reliable Virtual Office Assistant for Your Financial Planning

Not all virtual assistants are created equal. Since the pandemic started, the outsourcing industry has experienced big growth. As a financial planner who has built a reputation in the industry, you need an office assistant who cares about your business.

Sure, it can be tempting to hire a low-cost assistant. However, it is not guaranteed that they’ll be careful, for instance, with data security.

There is always a considerable risk with adding a new member to your team without knowing their experience and capabilities. You’ll need a virtual office assistant who would stay in the long haul because hiring new staff for the same role costs you both time and money.

If you want to know if you are on the right path in hiring virtual financial support, here’s a quick checklist for you:

A Virtual Office Assistant Who Shows Up

Imagine hiring a staff who would only show up for a few days and then disappear after briefing them with all the necessary information. Or after a few weeks of work? Unfortunately, this happens a lot. Applicants would jump in and out from one employer to another for different reasons, and that’s the last thing your busy schedule would need.

It can be tricky to find an experienced online assistant who knows what to expect in working online and serving Australian financial planners. The best solution is hiring a company that offers online support services that specialise in financial planning.

That’s where Virtual Office Angels comes in. Our team is made up of highly-skilled and well-trained professionals whom you can rely on. We’ll do the screening for you to ensure that you get best virtual office assistant.

A Virtual Office Assistant Who Matches Your Requirements

While it is vital to find an online assistant who have the skills, experience and personality that may suit your requirements, an exact match based on what you need is what sets Virtual Office Angels apart from other service companies.

As we’ve been in the business for over 12 years now, we know what most Financial Planners need and at the onset, we shall already evaluate if the candidate is a match and would suit your requirement to a T.

A Virtual Office Assistant that Comes with a Supporting Team

And because we’d like to ensure that your virtual office assistants do what they say they’ll do, our Virtual Office Angels’ team leaders ensure that you reach your goal because your online assistant shows up on time and works effectively and efficiently on their tasks– whether you’re online or offline. A monthly check-up where the supporting team gathers feedback to see which area our virtual office assistants can improve on is also one way to keep the line of communication smooth.

Ready to work with us? Contact Virtual Office Angels for a free quote: 1300 737 883.

The Complete Guide to Accounting and Bookkeeping Virtual Assistants

Introduction: What is an Accounting & Bookkeeping Virtual Assistant?

Accounting and bookkeeping virtual assistants are one of the many specialized services that a virtual assistant can provide. They can do all sorts of administrative tasks, such as invoicing, bookkeeping, and payroll. They can be a great help for small business owners who have limited time to focus on these tasks.

Virtual assistants are becoming more popular in today’s world because they allow people to get things done without having to leave their homes or offices. With an accounting and bookkeeping virtual assistant, you can forget about the stress of doing tedious paperwork and focus on what you do best!

What Skills Does an Accounting & Bookkeeping VA Have?

Accounting and bookkeeping VAs have a wide range of skills that can be applied to a variety of
industries. They have experience in the following areas:

Accounting and bookkeeping
Data entry
Xero
Payroll
Bookkeeping for small businesses, start-ups, and individuals
Financial statements preparation
Financial analysis

Why is Working with an Accounting and Bookkeeping VA Beneficial?

Accounting and bookkeeping VA can help you in a variety of ways. They can do your monthly or quarterly bookkeeping, manage your accounts payable, and prepare your taxes.

Accounting and bookkeeping VA are beneficial because they offer a wide range of services at an affordable price. They can also help you with other tasks that may not be their primary responsibility but are still important to the success of your business.

This section will talk about the benefits of working with an accounting and bookkeeping VA.

How to Hire the Right Virtual Assistant for Your Business Needs?

The virtual assistant is becoming a popular choice for entrepreneurs and small business owners. It is a way to save time and money while still receiving the same high-quality service. However, not all virtual assistants are created equal. If you are looking to hire one, it is important to know the qualities of the right virtual assistant for your business needs.

A good virtual assistant should be able to do a variety of tasks for you. They should be able to take care of administrative tasks like managing your calendar, sending out emails, and scheduling meetings. They should also be able to handle more complex tasks like setting up accounting systems, maintaining databases, and generating reports.

It is also important that they have strong communication skills in order to work with clients on a regular basis. A good virtual assistant will have excellent written and spoken English skills as well as knowledge of other languages that may be needed depending on your clientele or industry expertise that you need them for.

Conclusion: 5 Reasons Why You Should Hire An Accounting and Bookkeeping
VA Now!

Hiring an accounting and bookkeeping VA is the best decision you can make for your business.
Here are 5 reasons why:

1. Cost-effective: Hiring a virtual assistant will save you money in the long run because of their affordable hourly rates.

2. Save time: Virtual assistants are skilled at managing your tasks, so you can spend more time doing what matters most to your business.

3. Focus on what matters most: With a virtual assistant, you can focus on what matters most to your business and let them handle everything else for you.

4. Work when it’s convenient for you: You don’t have to worry about any office hours or meeting with clients anymore because virtual assistants work from anywhere in the world!

5. Get rid of administrative tasks: Virtual assistants can help with all sorts of administrative tasks that take up too much time, like answering emails and scheduling meetings or events.

Businesses these days must be smarter to survive. You must find new ways and sustainable solutions to ensure that competitive edge. Let Virtual Office Angels make your life easier. With a strong track record of long-term businesses from our clients, we continue to win new customers on a consistent basis. Check out what our clients say about us.

Give us a call now at 1300 737 883 or simply email me back
at clientcare@virtualofficengels.com.au.

How to Organize Digital Events Successfully with a Virtual Office Assistant

During the pandemic, virtual events of all kinds became popular worldwide as an alternative to face-to-face meetings, webinars, and networking. Even in the post-pandemic setting, given the various apps available in the market such as Zoom, GoogleMeet and Webex, individuals and businesses use digital events to connect with colleagues, suppliers and clients.

A digital event has many advantages and, if done right, will bring more benefits to your business. Organizing events, big or small, could be an overwhelming task requiring much coordination. If you are struggling with where to start and how to organize digital events successfully, we created a guide for you that our experienced virtual assistants can help with.

A virtual online assistant can help you with all the time consuming tasks of advertising the event, inviting the relevant parties to coordinate and solve issues that may occur during the event. If you are looking for online virtual assistant services, we also have experienced virtual bookkeeping assistants, real estate virtual assistants and mortgage process outsourcing assistants that could help you execute your online events.

Advantages of Digital Events

There are different types of digital events. Each has its purpose and approach to getting the desired results. With a growing percentage of people working remotely and still choosing to do so during the post-pandemic set-up, a digital event covers anything from webinars to conferences.

There are many reasons why more people are still opting for digital events and here are the most common reasons:

Saves the business time and money logistically

Say goodbye to taking flights and staying at hotels just because you need to attend a meeting that could have been held online. An online meeting saves the business both time and money while achieving the same results.

Provides flexibility

It does not matter where you or your colleagues or clients are located, a digital event could be attended by anyone who has access to the internet. Since you do not have to think about the traveling time, if necessary, you could reach out to clients from different time zones.

Expands audience

Live streaming is a digital event where you can offer value to your target audience that could convert into paying clients. With online events that aim to find new customers for your business, you don’t have to rely on your own network anymore because your online content could also appear in public.

How Virtual Assistants Can Help in Event Management

Experienced personal assistants can help you manage and run all kinds of events, whether they are private events or public networking events. Maybe you have an idea or other preferences, our expert and dedicated virtual assistants can make that happen for you.

Here are the different ways our online assistants can help you:

Sets up your event

Our Virtual Assistants or Virtual Angels know the ins and outs of organizing online events, and every element must be well-taken care of. Whether they are simple online meetings to touch-base with colleagues or complex online events with your customers, the nitty-gritty details would be checked by experienced online assistants ensuring that there are no details left to unfold.

Finds sponsorship opportunities

An online assistant can also help you look for potential sponsors by emailing or calling them. Aside from offering a place for their logos, you can also offer the option of putting their logos, videos and link to their website on the welcome page of the event. Your virtual office angels could also organize a giveaway file that contains your sponsors’ information and advertising materials for all the attendees.

Coordinates with all the parties involved

Coordinating with the different parties involved before, during and after the event requires a lot of your hours and energy. Allocating these tasks to your online assistant takes a lot from your shoulder so that you can still focus on the other things that matter to your business.

Your Virtual Office Angels will check all the details, tie any loose ends and finalise all the arrangements. Changes are inevitable until the last minute, but you don’t have to stress because an online assistant will be with you every step.

The Elements of a Digital Event

For a successful networking digital event, every element requires 100% attention which could be taken care of by your online assistant. On your next digital event, make sure you cover the following:

Virtual Booths

It is a fact that virtual platforms can’t replicate face-to-face meetings, but it is possible to allow a one-on-one meeting with the use of virtual booths. A virtual event booth in trade shows or festivals allows converting event leads into real opportunities. A virtual office assistant could set up an online event with the option of going for a separate booth where you can chat instantly with a prospect.

Live Broadcast

A live broadcast could include live polling and Q&A that increase the viewers’ engagement. There are also live broadcasting platforms that allow multi-speaker sessions as done in conferences or exhibitor event. Another advantage of a live broadcast is it creates a sense of urgency for the audience.

Integration with Social Media

Social media plays a significant role in ensuring that your attendees are engaged throughout the digital event. It could be a way for the attendees to share what’s happening during the event with other parties who are not aware of the event. This way, the audience themselves could be the ambassadors of your event.

Your virtual office assistant can remind the audience what to do during the event, such as sharing quotes, hashtags, screenshots, etc., that could generate more buzz for your business.

Pre-recorded content

There will be times when speakers and attendees themselves can’t attend the event at the same time. In this case, your online assistant can collect the pre-recorded content of the speaker and stream it during the event. For the attendees who could not make it, there is an option to send the link to the recorded event afterwards.

Reporting and Analytics

There are many factors to consider to prove that a digital event is successful, from the number of attendees and those who engaged during the event to sales conversion. Many apps have analytic features, but they still need to be manually compiled and analysed.

Live Troubleshooting

Issues are inevitable in all kinds of online events, no matter how prepared you are. You might be dealing with connection issues or technical errors, a virtual assistant can help with back-ups and live troubleshooting. A reliable online assistant would know what to do shall the problem arise.

A virtual assistant could also send reminders to all the parties involved to attend the online event with the requirements in terms of sounds, camera and background.

Preparation is the key

Prevention is better than cure. This rings true in every digital event. It is better to prevent any problem than fix it on site. Your virtual office assistant can make sure that everything on the list is correctly done.

Embrace your angle on video

Digital events can’t 100% replicate the face-to-face interaction, but knowing where and when to stay put in front of the camera helps to make it feel like you are near and naturally interacting with each other. Stay at the center, use hand gestures and make use of the entire square.

Check everyone’s equipment beforehand

Your online assistant can send reminders of what’s required connection and equipment-wise to the participants of the event. Otherwise, there could be connectivity, equipment, or software mismatch during the event.

Businesses these days have to be smarter to survive. You have to find new ways and sustainable solutions to ensure that competitive edge. Let Virtual Office Angels make your life easier. With a strong track record of long-term businesses from our clients, we continue to win new customers on a consistent basis. Check out what our clients say about us.

Give us a call now on 02 8313 7135 or simply email me back at clientcare@virtualofficengels.com.au.

How to Save Time Whilst Getting More Things Done

Time is money, but unfortunately, not every business owner takes this saying seriously. Every hour you and your staff spend on your business must add value to your business. Thus, it makes a lot of sense to optimise how your company spends that time fully.

Time management, however, is easier said than done. For instance, only 20% of an average workday is spent on essential things, while 80% of it is spent on – you guessed it, time wasters. To solve this, it is best to identify the time wasters in your workday and find a solution to reduce them to get more things done.

It is also essential to know that there are ‘time wasters’ that are only applied to you. As the business owner, you play the most valuable role, so your time and skills must be spent wisely. This means your time is better off doing something most important, while you can allocate other repetitive or administrative tasks to a professional and highly skilled virtual assistant.

For example, suppose you are in the Australian mortgage and finance industry and working as a mortgage broker . In that case, it may be wise that you delegate and offload the time-consuming tasks to a highly skilled virtual assistant who has specific knowledge in helping you do your day-to-day tasks, such as data entry to broker’s CRM (Connective, Mercury, ApplyOnline, Podium, Symmetry, AdviserLogic, COIN, etc.), as well as knows how to communicate with clients, patiently wait in the long queue for the BDMs to answer the calls, conduct lender research, prepare servicing calculator, etc.

Here is a step-by-step guide on how to reduce or stop your business’s time wasters to get more things done:

Distinguish the common time wasters in your business

Off the top of your head, you probably know what these are. These are obvious time wasters in your business, such as daily meetings, internal emails and micromanaging your staff. According to research, about 40% of staff time is wasted on reading internal emails – that’s a lot. Do you really need to update your internal staff this way?

Another time waster, if you have staff to manage, is micromanaging employees. This is when you try to control every tiny detail of your business. You might be the person who asks for frequent updates or prefers to be cc’d on every email. Or maybe you focus too much on unimportant details. Micromanaging does more damage to your business as it discourages independent decision making by employees and leaves no room for creativity and initiative.

Point out the less-popular time wasters

These things make you less productive, but you often don’t notice. This could be sending emails back and forth, which can be solved by just picking up the phone and talking to that person. This could also be the ambiance of an office. Is your office too open that you hear every little thing that happens in it that you can’t focus on your work?

Another example is taking breaks, which is beneficial as it avoids the feeling of burnout and fatigue. However, it can also derail you from work. Another overlooked time waster is decision fatigue. This refers to exhaustion from making unimportant decisions that could affect making impactful decisions. This is the reason why Mark Zuckerberg wears the same shirt colour every day – this leads to fewer decisions he has to make in a day.

Gather data from your time wasters

This is the time to track the time you and your staff spent in the office. Although it might be impossible to track everything, there are software or apps that can help you, such as RescueTime, time-tracking software, and Toggl, project management software. Another way to get more information is to conduct an anonymous employee survey to determine which time waster is more impactful on their tasks.

Use Alternative Solutions to Stop Wasting Time

Once you’ve compiled the list of top time wasters, it’s time to examine them. You may want to ask yourself the following questions:

Is it possible to avoid or even stop this time waster?

Social media are a distraction at work and can be avoided or even be stopped with a website blocker. You may also encourage your staff to use the Pomodoro Technique, in which one works non-stop for 25 minutes, followed by a 10-minute break.

Is it possible to reschedule?

An example is a weekly meeting. Could it be turned into a once-a-month meeting?

Is it better to delegate this specific task?

There are essential tasks that are beneficial to the business which can be time consuming and frustrating but must be done. These are repetitive admin tasks and/or part of the entire process that can be delegated to a highly competent virtual assistant.

Conducting the above steps might take some time, but imagine the time you can save and be productive instead.

Only a Highly Skilled Virtual Assistant for Your Repetitive Tasks and Time Wasters

Whether you are an employee working for a large organisation, a business owner managing a medium/small company or a self-employed working from home, you can reduce time wasters and get more things done by leveraging and maximising the use of highly specialised and professional virtual assistants.

Like any other businesses or if you are in the Australian financial planning industry and working as a financial planner, you’ll need a highly experienced and tailored-fit virtual assistant who is knowledgeable in navigating software, such as XPlan, Zoho, WealthSolver and XTools (CALMS). These highly specialised virtual assistants also know how to manage SOAs, coordinate and speak with other insurer brokers, monitor review dates for insurance and even organise meetings and appointments, if needed.

Your ‘time wasters’ are better off done by a virtual assistant you can trust and rely on, a person who’s fit to your highly special and specific needs. And that’s where Virtual Office Angels comes in.

Why Work with Virtual Office Angels

Established in 2010, Virtual Office Angels P/L is a boutique Sydney-based VA outsourcing company that specialises solely in the recruitment and management of only highly skilled virtual assistants (VAs) from the Philippines. With our combined 45-year work experience in the Australian human resources and recruitment management industry, we can help you work less, earn more and grow your business faster in the most cost-effective manner. As one of our clients said, ‘Same quality, fraction of the costs.’ More importantly, we specialise in the search and matching of highly professional virtual assistants for your special needs who can minimise, if not eliminate, time wasters for you and your business.

10 Signs You Might Need to Hire a Virtual Assistant

Has somebody ever told you that you need to hire a virtual assistant, yet you wonder if it is the right move for you? In which way could a virtual assistant help you in your business?

Check out these 10 signs that mean you may need to hire a virtual assistant. If you encounter at least five of the issues mentioned, the best step for you is to hire a virtual assistant – ASAP.

Being an entrepreneur can be both exhausting and rewarding. And the trap that most ambitious business owners fall into? It is the thought that if they work hard and fast enough, they can accomplish everything by themselves.

However, they would wake up the next day, and they get into the same routine of getting exhausted with still a long list in their hands.

Before you read the ten signs below, it is essential to know that there is a better way to do things. Hiring a virtual office assistant can provide you with all the virtual support you and your business need.

A virtual assistant can improve your life in so many ways and make your life easier, so along with the signs, we’ve provided you with the solution.

1. Day-to-day administrative tasks overwhelm you.

Administrative tasks are small, tedious, time-consuming and highly repetitive that require careful attention to detail. It can steal away precious time and hours daily, weekly, and monthly from you when you could be doing and pursuing bigger things where you can exercise your valuable knowledge and priceless skills better.

Administrative tasks include email and calendar management, appointment setting and confirmation, calling clients, contacting suppliers, issuing out invoices, processing regular bill payments, calling BDMs, confirming transactions, etc., etc. – and the list goes on and on. Outsourcing these tasks to a virtual administration assistant or virtual assistant can a d will definitely save you a lot of your time, which you can use on the more important aspects of your business.

2. You have big plans for your business, but you end up unable to implement them.

According to the Eisenhower’s urgent/ important principle, tasks should be categorised according to priority:

• Important and urgent

• Important but not urgent

• Not important but urgent

• Not important and not urgent

The important but not urgent tasks are being neglected because of the ‘not important but urgent’ tasks. Would you rather allocate the latter to a virtual assistant and focus on the first two task categories?

3. You work more than 10 hours a day, every day, and yet you are still behind your all your tasks.

Do you find yourself also working very late at night and on weekends too? How do you live your best life with all work and no play? We may all agree that to function better, time for rest and spending time with your family are essential ingredients for a balanced life.

Why not let a virtual assistant do your tasks while you sleep or spend time with yourself and your family? Let’s say you work 8 hours a day and a virtual assistant works another 8 hours for you. That’s actually working less and earning more. How much is your time compared to a virtual online assistant?

4. You’re missing great sales opportunities.

Have you experienced losing sales because you are just too busy and don’t have the time to work on the marketing aspect of your business? How about hiring an online admin assistant who can take care of your social media and email marketing? Or a professional writer who can manage the regular submission of SEO articles needed by your website for optimisation.

5. You feel stressed most, if not all, of the time.

Taking care of all aspects of your business requires a lot of focus and time. Without a virtual office assistant, you may find yourself working on administrative tasks in one minute, then suddenly finding yourself getting interrupted by a sales call. This can destroy your work momentum and can lead to a lack of focus and feeling stressed the whole day, every day.

6. You’re not ready to pay for a local administration assistant working in an office.

Hiring a local office assistant who comes into your office will definitely cost you more expenses. That’s an extra high cost on infrastructure expense, computer, additional electricity and water bill, petrol/ transportation expense and in addition to this, a (high) local employee salary/wage, payroll tax, superannuation, fringe benefit tax, sick and annual leave entitlement, workers compensation tax, etc., etc. Hiring a virtual office assistant offers super value for your money because the virtual assistants come equipped with their own needed resources (i.e. desktop, headsets, internet connection, etc), inclusive of annual and sick leave in their one-off monthly pay.

7. You can’t find anyone locally or somebody who lives within your vicinity who can help you with your specific requirements.

It happens. Sometimes, the person with the exact skills you need for your business is not available in your area. In this case, it is best to find someone who can work online, someplace or overseas or a virtual assistant, tailored fit for your needs and with exactly the skills you require.

8. Your business does not require you to have an office.

If you are the type of entrepreneur who constantly moves around, or works remotely, then chances are you don’t need an admin assistant physically reporting to you every day. A virtual assistant is all you need to execute the much-needed tasks for your business.

9. You need a highly skilled, flexible, disciplined, and skillful assistant who you can delegate your special type of work.

Fortunately, the industry of virtual office assistants offers a wide variety and selection of highly specialised and talented online workers. These highly skilled virtual assistants are tailored to fit your specific needs and have more than one or even two skillsets. Whether you need an online mortgage assistant, online loans processor assistant or online financial admin support, all you need to do is find one that suits your specific business needs. That’s what we at Virtual Office Angels comes in and can definitely assist and help you with.

10. You want to get rid of all the hassle of the hiring process.

Despite the pool of virtual assistant talents, there is no guarantee that you will be able to hire who is best for the specific needs of your company. What if it’s not the right fit and the new virtual assistant quits right after you’ve spent time investing training time?

Let’s admit it: Recruiting a new virtual assistant for your business can be a painful process. And here’s another vital part where Virtual Office Angels can help you out with. By doing all the hard work of the selection process, filtering out the applicants, interviewing, conducting needed tests, and ensuring all the proper equipment is working for you. By doing all these, you can be assured that you’ll be matched with the right fit, highly skilled and professional virtual assistant specifically tailored for your individual needs.

Can you relate to any of the above signs? Then it’s time for you to delegate and hire a virtual office assistant for your business.

What makes Virtual Office Angels different? By hiring virtual office assistants through us, you also get a dedicated virtual support team with a client care manager that ensures optimum and outstanding service is delivered for you.

Make your life easier and contact us.

The Pandemic’s Effect on Businesses and Tips to Cut Costs

The devastating effect of the pandemic is worldwide and has affected all of us in one way or another. It has left a distressful impact in almost all areas of our lives, in not just the way we live but also in our health, livelihood, business and economy. The coronavirus disease, also known as COVID-19, started in late 2019 and was first detected at a local wet market in Wuhan, China. It has now spread around the globe and remains until today. It feels like it will never end soon.

Whilst some businesses have shut down because they were unable to sustain the financial needs of their businesses, others are reducing costs by laying off their staff. So, how can one keep going and cope, especially during this awful time? Should you just close your business and give up? Or hold on until the pandemic ends? Here are some tips that will help your business thrive in the midst of the pandemic without sacrificing the quality of work needed to keep going:

1. Be ready to adapt.

It was Darwin who said that ‘It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but rather the one most adaptable.’ Many businesses have shut down because they didn’t adapt well to the pandemic. They thought that the pandemic was just a flu that would eventually go away, but they were wrong. It’s been years since the pandemic started. Remember, adaptation or being flexible is the very first step to move your business forward and stay productive.

The first thing you need to do is to enumerate what the needs of your business are or what types of improvements your business requires. You may start with the principle of asking questions and/or suggestions from your team. Brainstorming or asking the right questions, especially from your team, is not an act of weakness, but rather a step up and a skill to becoming a great leader.

2. Invest in the work-from-home setup.

Investing in the work-from-home setup is one of the best solutions to cut costs, particularly if your business is about customer services, bookkeeping, accounting and other non-face-to-face office-related tasks. It will help you save in shouldering the cost of office lease, electricity bills and other infrastructure costs needed from an office environment.

3. Find a smaller office space or consider shared office space.

IRe-evaluate if you need a smaller office, and go search for one. Finding a smaller office is indeed necessary, especially in this time of pandemic; it will help you cut a lot of expenses. The average office cubicle size is 5.5 square metres per person, and the current rate per square metre is $940.00 per annum. Let’s say you have 12 persons in your office, including you. The cost will be $62,040.00 per year or $5,170.00 per month, excluding electricity bills, water bills, costs for additional spaces, such as pantry and rest rooms, and other expenses. If you have a smaller team in your business, you can set up a small office or a shared office space somewhere in the city or at a convenient location close to home so that your leasing cost will decrease drastically.

4. Shift to online! Increase your online presence.

Most people are using the internet. Online presence, such as via classified ads, SEO and websites, is one of the best keys to marketing your business, whether it is about providing food or services. It is a great marketing tool, particularly during this time of pandemic. You can endorse your company without breaking a sweat, and it is very cost-effective.

5. Hire a virtual assistant.

Every business, no matter how big or small, requires a person or a team that will take care of the time-consuming admin tasks (e.g. marketing for social media presence, accounts to manage the money that comes in and out of the business and customer service to handle client retention and satisfaction).

Hiring a virtual assistant is one of the best solutions for cost-effectiveness, not just during the pandemic but especially after, to ensure continued and sustainable business growth. You can work less, earn more and grow your business faster in the most cost-effective manner, ensuring the success of your business in the many years to come.

Conclusion:

If business is a gamble, then stop taking risks and make calculated decisions for sustainability and growth. Be patient and courageous, and master resilient skills to survive. The best solution we can do is to learn from our mistakes; don’t give up, continuously market your business, and do your best to always adapt to the changing situations continuously.

We, at Virtual Office Angels, Australia’s best virtual assistance provider, have been providing accounting and bookkeeping virtual assistance services to Australian SMEs for over 10 years. We offer peace of mind to business owners to ensure that they can focus on growing their business faster and more efficiently. With Virtual Office Angels, you will have your own H.R. management team working and ensuring that support is there for you every business hour of the day.

For any other online virtual assistance services, we are here to help. Contact us now!