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As a small business owner, juggling everything you need to accomplish to maintain and grow your business can be difficult. And, with so much to do, it can be easy to get caught up in administrative tasks rather than being able to focus on the aspects of your job that you actually enjoy. However, this is where hiring a virtual assistant can be beneficial to your small business.
Virtual Assistant Emma Skees has been involved in the art world since high school and has a bachelor’s degree in photography. She always knew she wanted to be involved in the creative world and found that she loved not only being behind the camera but actually behind the scenes altogether.
Today, Emma is a virtual assistant specifically for photographers and creative entrepreneurs. She performs everything from data entry and scheduling to blog posting and photo editing so that photographers can spend more time doing what they do best—taking photos.
In this episode of Priority Pursuit, Emma shares how a virtual assistant can support your small business (even if you aren’t a photographer), free up your time, and—ultimately—help your small biz grow.
Why should small business owners consider hiring a virtual assistant?
Most small business owners wear a lot of hats. Not only are they specialists in their fields, but they also often have to handle administrative tasks, finances, web design, copywriting, marketing, and more—leaving them little time to do what they actually love doing.
Hiring a virtual assistant allows business owners (and their teams) to focus more on their areas of expertise, which ultimately, leads to less burnout and more revenue for their business.
What kinds of tasks can virtual assistants help with?
In general, virtual assistants help with tasks such as maintaining business calendars, managing email and messaging accounts, making calls, organizing travel arrangements, performing data entry, handling financial records, and more.
However, as virtual assistants have become more in demand, more and more VAs have chosen to niche down or serve specific industries, which allows them to offer more industry-specific services in addition to those we just discussed.
For example, Emma is a virtual assistant specifically for photographers and creative entrepreneurs. As a result, her services also include blog scheduling, social media management, editing photographs, creating wedding day schedules, and developing slideshows for her clients.
Depending on what you do, a virtual assistant can help you with just about any of the administrative tasks you have in your business. And, whether you choose to work with a more general or niche VA should depend on your specific needs. However, either way, if you work with a virtual assistant long enough, you can learn their proficiencies and preferences to best utilize them in your business.
How much can small business owners expect to pay for a virtual assistant?
Virtual assistants often charge hourly rates and the price depends on how much work you have available for them.
The U.S. national average for virtual assistants is $20-$22 per hour. In Emma’s case, she typically serves four clients at once and usually works no more than ten hours per week for each client at $15 per hour. If you’re a photographer wanting to learn more about Emma’s services, visit www.emmaedits4me.com.
Rates will vary based on location, niche, and the amount of work you need a virtual assistant to accomplish.
Where should someone interested in hiring a virtual assistant begin their search?
The first place Emma recommends looking for a virtual assistant is online in community groups you’re already a part of. That may include posting to your story and asking your followers for information or suggestions on virtual assistants. It may also look like posting in niche Facebook groups online. If those options are exhausted, doing a simple Google search of virtual assistants in your niche may help you find someone who does well working with businesses like yours.
You may also want to consider working with someone in your region and timezone. Many virtual assistants are international, and business owners often need someone who is available to work at the same time as they do.
Want to hear more?
Be sure to listen to this whole episode (at the top of the page or wherever you listen to podcasts) to learn more about how a virtual assistant can support your small business. If you’d like to connect with Emma, please visit her website, www.emmaedits4me.com. You can also find her on Instagram or email her at skeesphotography@gmail.com.
Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode
- Work with Emma Skees
- “Episode 047: How to Increase Profits Through Upselling (AKA How to Sell a Wedding Album to Every Single Client) with Shaun Austin Gordon of KISS Books”
- Receive 50% Off Your First Order from Photographer’s Edit
- Learn More About Treefrog’s Small Business Marketing Resources & Services
- Join the Priority Pursuit Facebook Community
- Follow or DM Treefrog Marketing on Instagram
- Follow or DM Kelly Rice on Instagram
- Follow or DM Victoria Rayburn on Instagram
The Priority Pursuit Podcast is a podcast dedicated to helping small business owners define, maintain, and pursue both their personal and business priorities so they can build lives and businesses they love.
You can find The Priority Pursuit Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Stitcher, and wherever you listen to podcasts.
If you’re a small business owner wanting weekly content about relationships, proven marketing strategies, setting boundaries, delegating, creating an incredible client experience, and keeping your priorities at the core over everything you do, subscribe to Priority Pursuit on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. To ask questions, share your wins, and connect with other priority-driven small business owners, join The Priority Pursuit Podcast Community on Facebook.
For more information about Treefrog Marketing and even more small business marketing resources, please visit our website. You can also connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.
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