By Manisha Dhalani
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Imagine this – you already have a day job which pays enough to put food on the table. This is great but not satisfactory in terms of helping you fulfill your other life goals – a new house, a car, or even a ticket across Europe.
So what do you do? You consider juggling a side business that’ll help you earn a little bit extra on the side. But then you come across a dead-end: with your full-time job, you’re left with no time to spare on another venture after considering time you need to spend with the family and friends and over handling other responsibilities. |
Why not hire a Virtual Assistant (VA) then?
I know – the idea seems a tad bit ridiculous. Here you are trying to make ends meet and fulfill your own passions and goals. How could hiring someone else that you have to pay help you generate more income?
In other words, why should someone starting a side hustle to get extra income waste money by getting a VA to help?
This might not make sense to anyone. It might even sound like shooting your own foot, slamming the door in your own face, digging your own grave.
All exaggerated emotions aside – trust me, it’s the right thing to do.
I’ll use myself as an example in this situation.
I have a day job that takes up a good 8 hours of my day – 10 if you consider travelling time. On top of that, I pursue my passion as a freelance writer after working hours and on weekends. Which leaves me with practically ZERO HOURS to consider making any additional income for any lavish expenditure I suddenly have an interest in.
I think they call it the itch - if I need the money, I have to get it.
And one way to do it is to first SPEND MONEY.
I do so by hiring a VA to help me manage my side hustle. Whilst it is clearly unethical for me to hire a writer to do my writing, I can however, hire a VA to help me handle all the tasks that I do not want to waste my time on. In other words, tasks that are important but I have no slightest interest in actually participating in (think accounts, for example).
But that’s just me.
Now put yourself in that situation. Do you see how a VA can help you?
No? Still not convinced as to why you should hire a VA to help you with your side income?
I have more reasons:
Figure out things without wasting extra time
Those who are new to side hustle industry will face a lot of roadblocks in their starting phase. You need to consider options that will take away precious time of actually getting the job done and making you the money you need. Spend a few hours with your VA, directing him or her to find out things you need to ease your business process. For instance, a VA can help you set good foundation on the following things, just to name a few:
Give your customers full attention, even when you’re away
Once your business is up and running, you can rightfully expect customer requests to flood in. However, given your situation of already having a day job, you may not be able to be on the ball with your business at all times.
Sure, you can set up auto-responders, but depending on the nature of your business, it’s not always the best option. Hire a VA to check your emails and send template replies that are skewed to different kinds of customer requests. This way, your customers will know that it’s a human being replying and that they are given due attention instead of speaking to a computer all the time.
On top of that, a VA can come beneficial to help you track customer requests, follow up with customers on their orders, and even assist you on consumer relationship aspects like sending thank you or even birthday cards to loyal customers. In other words, a VA can help you build long term relationships with your customers.
Focus on development and growth of your business, not small tasks
One of the things a lot of new side hustlers forget about is the growth part of the business. There are times that a side hustle lasts for as long as one needs the cash, but there are times that the potential is greater than that.
With a VA, you can expect assistance on research for development, consider customer retention programmes, and plan out social media and marketing tactics that can reach out to a wider audience. Who knows you might just end up converting your side hustle to a legitimate full-fledge business in the near future?
So don’t stop where you are. Keep a budget aside to hire someone like a VA who can help you virtually so it’s easy on your pocket yet is able to help you operate your business smoothly.
Think big.
Start today.
Looking for a VA to give you just the boost you need for your side hustle? We’re here for you.
Get in touch with us today to find out how we can work together.
I know – the idea seems a tad bit ridiculous. Here you are trying to make ends meet and fulfill your own passions and goals. How could hiring someone else that you have to pay help you generate more income?
In other words, why should someone starting a side hustle to get extra income waste money by getting a VA to help?
This might not make sense to anyone. It might even sound like shooting your own foot, slamming the door in your own face, digging your own grave.
All exaggerated emotions aside – trust me, it’s the right thing to do.
I’ll use myself as an example in this situation.
I have a day job that takes up a good 8 hours of my day – 10 if you consider travelling time. On top of that, I pursue my passion as a freelance writer after working hours and on weekends. Which leaves me with practically ZERO HOURS to consider making any additional income for any lavish expenditure I suddenly have an interest in.
I think they call it the itch - if I need the money, I have to get it.
And one way to do it is to first SPEND MONEY.
I do so by hiring a VA to help me manage my side hustle. Whilst it is clearly unethical for me to hire a writer to do my writing, I can however, hire a VA to help me handle all the tasks that I do not want to waste my time on. In other words, tasks that are important but I have no slightest interest in actually participating in (think accounts, for example).
But that’s just me.
Now put yourself in that situation. Do you see how a VA can help you?
No? Still not convinced as to why you should hire a VA to help you with your side income?
I have more reasons:
Figure out things without wasting extra time
Those who are new to side hustle industry will face a lot of roadblocks in their starting phase. You need to consider options that will take away precious time of actually getting the job done and making you the money you need. Spend a few hours with your VA, directing him or her to find out things you need to ease your business process. For instance, a VA can help you set good foundation on the following things, just to name a few:
- Providing you with comparisons and options for services you need
- Getting yourself a domain and web hosting
- Setting up email accounts
- Setting up social media accounts
Give your customers full attention, even when you’re away
Once your business is up and running, you can rightfully expect customer requests to flood in. However, given your situation of already having a day job, you may not be able to be on the ball with your business at all times.
Sure, you can set up auto-responders, but depending on the nature of your business, it’s not always the best option. Hire a VA to check your emails and send template replies that are skewed to different kinds of customer requests. This way, your customers will know that it’s a human being replying and that they are given due attention instead of speaking to a computer all the time.
On top of that, a VA can come beneficial to help you track customer requests, follow up with customers on their orders, and even assist you on consumer relationship aspects like sending thank you or even birthday cards to loyal customers. In other words, a VA can help you build long term relationships with your customers.
Focus on development and growth of your business, not small tasks
One of the things a lot of new side hustlers forget about is the growth part of the business. There are times that a side hustle lasts for as long as one needs the cash, but there are times that the potential is greater than that.
With a VA, you can expect assistance on research for development, consider customer retention programmes, and plan out social media and marketing tactics that can reach out to a wider audience. Who knows you might just end up converting your side hustle to a legitimate full-fledge business in the near future?
So don’t stop where you are. Keep a budget aside to hire someone like a VA who can help you virtually so it’s easy on your pocket yet is able to help you operate your business smoothly.
Think big.
Start today.
Looking for a VA to give you just the boost you need for your side hustle? We’re here for you.
Get in touch with us today to find out how we can work together.
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About The Author
Manisha Dhalani is a freelance content manager who, if not found with her head buried in a book, is usually busy trying to find ways to better the world with words that tug on the heart’s strings. Thanks to years of experience as a writer, editor and entrepreneur, she is also capable of using content to boost your business awareness and help you gain a competitive edge. Visit her website at www.manishadhalani.com for more information.
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