Most businesses provide company training to their in-house team members: explaining the details of company branding, ideal methods of communication, and the proper procedures for projects. Yet, most fail to provide this training to their virtual assistants.
Why?
Think about it. Businesses recognize the importance of articulating how things are done in the organization, which is why trainings in the corporate world can take weeks. Yet, few entrepreneurs provide this guidance to their online team.
Sure, virtual assistants can get by without this training. They’ve worked for a variety of clients and know how to handle the tasks you assign. But they aren’t mind readers-they don’t know how to handle the task in the preferred way of your business unless you show them.
Why You Should Provide Training
Yes, your time is stretched thin right now. That’s probably why you hired a virtual assistant in the first place! It’s easy to want to avoid organizing a system together, documenting processes, and explaining them to the VA. But think long term.
You’re limiting the growth of your business by failing to provide this training. Time is wasted as the virtual assistant reinvents the wheel and figures out how your business runs. Remember, they’re working with several clients and each one works differently. They’ll be able to figure your business out. But it will take more time than a bit of training would.
Training your virtual assistant will help you get the most out of your partnership, which helps your business run more efficiently.
What the Training Should Include
The training should cover everything your in-house team members get, and possibly more. Remember your virtual assistant isn’t in the office, so they aren’t being exposed to how the company functions on a day-to-day level. It’s harder to understand the company values, branding, etc. when you’re not experiencing them in person (which is why training online team members is so essential).
- Articulate the method of communication within your business. Which avenues
of communication are acceptable (email, phone calls, texting, Skype messenger, Facebook messenger, etc)? Are there appropriate contexts for these channels (for example, texting is acceptable only for after-hours communication dealing with a time sensitive project)? Is internal communication as formal as external communication, or can it be more conversational? Setting clear guidelines for communication helps avoid misunderstandings, over communicating, and under communicating. When communication runs smoothly, your business runs smoothly.
- Describe the company brand. What words describe your company’s voice? What sets you apart from competitors? What company values are most important? Are there acronyms or abbreviations for your business name (and if so, when are they to be used)? When your virtual assistant understands the identity of your organization, it’s easier for him/her to create on-brand work (without resorting to trial and error).
- Explain how file saving and sharing works. Are completed works to be sent by email, uploaded to a cloud service like Dropbox, or both? Should images be saved as a JPEG or PNG? When are documents saved as a PDF?
- Go over the proper procedures for each project. Remember, the virtual assistant
is working with several clients and each one has their own set of preferences and procedures, as does your virtual assistant. A broad term like social media management can mean anything from creating a few posts a month to creating a thorough multi-page digital marketing strategy. Start by describing clearly the end result and time commitment for the project. Discuss the steps along the way (and any checkpoints where you’ll touch base). Explain any particular methods you want them to use, especially if there are particular ways of doing things that may not be universal. Describe what needs to be documented, what needs to be sent to you or another team member, what needs to be saved and where, etc. It’s important for the virtual assistant to understand how and why your company approaches projects in these ways, so be sure to allow them to ask any questions. You want to be on the same page just like you would be after training an in-house team member.
Providing your virtual assistant training like you do with in-house team members is important to the success of your business. You’re setting up the team member for success, helping make their work more efficient and productive. It does take time, but in the long run providing this training saves more time than it takes.
If you’re ready to expand your virtual assistant team, consider Alpine Small Business Solutions! We’d love to help with any business building task you need, from administrative work to social media management. Reach out with an email or phone call today.