Running a coaching business can be incredibly rewarding.
However, the truth is that it can also be overwhelming at times!
With so many tasks to juggle – from serving your clients to marketing your services – it’s easy to feel like you’re being pulled in a million different directions.
That’s where a virtual assistant can come to the rescue! Keep reading to discover:
- Why do you need a virtual assistant for your coaching business?
- Types of virtual assistants
- How much does it cost to hire a virtual assistant?
- How to hire a virtual assistant
- How to manage your virtual assistant
Why Do You Need a Virtual Assistant for Your Coaching Business?
As a coach, your main focus should be helping your clients achieve their goals and providing top-notch support. However, administrative tasks can quickly eat up your precious time and energy.
The result? You’re left with less availability to focus on what you do best!
Hiring a virtual assistant can help you reclaim your time and allow you to focus on your core coaching responsibilities.
Imagine this:
You wake up in the morning ready to tackle the day and positively impact your clients’ lives. You sit down at your desk, full of enthusiasm and energy, only to be greeted by a flood of emails and messages. Your inbox is overflowing, and you can feel your stress levels rising.
Sound familiar?
This is where a virtual assistant can be a game-changer for your coaching business. By having someone dedicated to managing your calendar and inbox, you can say goodbye to all that time you spend on the tasks that don’t directly impact your clients (and your revenue).
Your virtual assistant will take care of all the logistics and make sure that your schedule is optimized and appointments are seamlessly booked.
But it doesn’t stop there. Your virtual assistant can also be your first line of communication with potential clients!
They can:
- Respond to inquiries
- Handle email communications
- Provide basic information about your coaching services
- Qualify your leads
This saves you time and ensures that your clients receive prompt and professional responses – even when you’re busy.
Plus, a virtual assistant can also assist with other administrative tasks such as:
- Managing your social media accounts
- Updating your website
- Preparing reports
- Uploading or transcribing your coaching session notes
By outsourcing to a virtual assistant for these tasks, you can ensure that your online presence remains strong and your coaching business continues growing.
So, if you find yourself overwhelmed with administrative tasks and longing for more time to focus on what you love – coaching – it’s time to consider hiring a virtual assistant. The same goes if you’re slowly inching toward workaholic territory.
Types of Virtual Assistants
When it comes to hiring a virtual assistant, it’s important to understand that not all VAs are created equal. Virtual assistants offer various services, depending on your specific needs.
General virtual assistants are versatile administrative pros who can handle various tasks for online coaching businesses. They can assist with email management, data entry, and social media scheduling.
On the other hand, specialized virtual assistants have expertise in specific areas. For example, if you need help with graphic design or podcast editing, you can hire a virtual assistant specializing in those fields.
So, which type of VA makes sense for your coaching business? Let’s dive deeper into the world of virtual assistants and explore some of the different types you can find:
1. Administrative Virtual Assistants
Administrative virtual assistants are the jack-of-all-trades when it comes to handling administrative tasks.
They excel in managing calendars, scheduling appointments, organizing files, and handling correspondence. In some cases, they can do other specialized tasks, but they truly brand themselves as people who will help you keep things under control.
For example, let’s take a look at Jada Morgan, who specifically helps creatives and coaches save between 5 and 15 hours a week by taking tasks off their plate.
What types of tasks? According to her Instagram Stories, a bit of everything!
Some administrative assistants will niche down further as virtual assistants for coaches. This means they’ll know more about your business than general admin VAs.
With their strong organizational skills and attention to detail, admin VAs can keep your coaching business running smoothly.
2. Social Media Virtual Assistants
Struggling with your social media marketing? Social media virtual assistants specialize in managing and growing your social media accounts!
They can create engaging content, schedule posts, interact with followers, and analyze social media metrics to help you reach your target audience effectively.
Some social media VAs will also offer help with strategy, like Jasmine from JS Virtual Assistant.
3. Content Creation Virtual Assistants
Content creation virtual assistants are skilled in producing high-quality written or visual content.
They can help you with blog writing, article creation, video editing, graphic design, and more!
Whether you need captivating blog posts or eye-catching visuals for your website, content creation virtual assistants can bring your ideas to life.
4. Technical Virtual Assistants
Technical virtual assistants are experts in handling various technical tasks. They can assist with website maintenance, software installation, troubleshooting, and other IT-related tasks.
The best type of tech VA is highly specialized and knows how to handle your specific tech stack. For instance, Thrive With Vicky specializes in WordPress, MemberVault, Mailchimp, & Mailerlite.
If you’re not tech-savvy or simply don’t have the time to deal with technical issues, a technical virtual assistant can be a valuable asset to your business.
5. Marketing Virtual Assistants
Marketing virtual assistants specialize in helping businesses create and implement effective marketing strategies. They can assist with market research, email marketing campaigns, SEO optimization, and social media advertising.
While some marketing VAs are jack of all trades, others specialize in specific channels. For instance, Katie’s VA Solutions offers podcast management services.
How Much Does it Cost to Hire a Virtual Assistant?
Let’s say you’re interested in hiring your own virtual assistant. How much will it cost you?
There are several factors to consider. One of the primary factors is the virtual assistant’s level of experience.
Just like any other profession, virtual assistants with more experience and a proven track record of success typically charge higher rates. Their expertise and ability to handle complex tasks efficiently can be invaluable to your business.
This is especially true when a VA becomes super effective with their time. What they can do in one hour and their rates increase.
Another factor influencing the cost of hiring a virtual assistant is their skill set. The more specialized the skill set required for your specific needs, the higher the cost may be.
For example, a general administrative VA typically charges less than a highly specialized tech VA or a marketing VA. That’s because it takes much longer to develop these specialized skills compared to learning basic administrative work.
Location is also a significant factor in determining the cost of hiring a virtual assistant. Virtual assistants based in countries with a lower cost of living may charge lower rates than those based in countries with a higher cost of living.
With that being said, a highly skilled VA who knows their worth will charge more, regardless of their location.
Think about it – what matters is the value they can bring to your coaching business. Why should they charge less if they can do so from any location?
Because of all these factors, it’s difficult to give an exact price for how much it will cost. But let’s see what other sources have to say.
According to Time Doctor, the average hourly rate for a VA in the US can range from $10-$20 for administrative services to $30-$40 for executive services.
That said, I have paid close to $100 per hour for specialized VA services in the past. Other times, I’ve paid closer to $20 per hour. It all depended on whether I believed the person I was hiring could help me get my time back – and how much this time was worth to me.
Here’s a formula that can help you figure out how much you can realistically invest in a VA.
First, you need to calculate the value of your time. While time truly has no value, what I mean here is how much you can earn in an hour during your coaching business – when you’re working with clients compared to when you’re not working with clients.
Then, you must calculate what it’s costing you NOT to have a VA.
Let’s say you’re a coach who charges $3,000 for a 3-month coaching package that includes 12 sessions. On average, you spend approximately 30 hours serving this client during your sessions or by offering additional support between sessions.
This means you’re earning:
$3,000 / 30 = $100 per hour.
Because of your workload, you can easily work with 6 clients at a time. That’s $6,000 per month. You’d have the emotional capacity for more, but you’re spending 10+ hours each week on your other tasks.
Let’s say you could onboard 4 more at once to have 10 clients at any given time if only you could free up that time.
4 more clients would give you an additional $4,000 in revenue.
That’s how much you lose by not hiring a VA to handle your tasks.
How To Hire a Virtual Assistant
Finding the right virtual assistant can make or break the experience. Here’s how to find a virtual assistant and hire the right one!
1. Define your needs
Start by identifying the specific tasks you want your virtual assistant to handle. This will help you narrow your search and find candidates with the right skill set.
Go back to the previous sections if you’re unsure which type of VA you need yet!
2. Search for candidates
Wondering where to find a virtual assistant?
You can find a virtual assistant on various platforms, such as online job boards and freelance marketplaces. But you can also use social media to connect with potential VAs.
I find that social media is the best place to hire a virtual assistant because I get to know them through their content. Just like you’d establish trust with your potential coaching clients on social media, your future VA can do the same.
3. Interview candidates
Conduct virtual interviews to get to know potential virtual assistants better.
Ask about their experience, availability, and how they would approach the tasks you need help with.
Be as specific as you can while asking questions. For example, if you use specific software like Kajabi to manage coaching call replays, ask them what experience they’ve had with Kajabi specifically.
4. Check references
Don’t skip this step! Reach out to previous clients or employers to understand a virtual assistant’s reliability, professionalism, and work quality.
Even if your VA has shining testimonials, it helps to understand the context of that testimonial to understand if this person is a good fit for your current needs.
5. Set clear expectations
Once you’ve found the right virtual assistant, communicate your expectations clearly with them.
Let them know what tasks you want them to handle, your preferred communication methods, and other important details.
For instance, do you expect a daily check-in? If so, on what communication channel? This could be Slack, Voxer, email, or something else.
Remember that it isn’t their fault if your VA ‘messes up’ when you don’t set expectations. They can’t succeed if they don’t know what success looks like to them.
6. Start with a trial period
Consider starting with a trial period to evaluate how well you work together before you sign a long-term contract.
This will allow you to assess the virtual assistant’s performance before committing long-term.
Another option is to pay them for a specific project. For instance, if you’re hiring a social media VA, your trial project could be setting up your accounts on all social media platforms.
How To Manage Your Virtual Assistant
Once you’ve hired a virtual assistant, it’s essential to establish effective communication and management practices.
Take it from me: things can go wrong quickly if you don’t manage someone the right way.
Here are some tips to help you manage your virtual assistant successfully!
1. Establish standard operating procedures
How should things be done in your coaching business? That’s what a standard operating procedure (SOP) is.
If you don’t have SOPs, you can hire a VA to create them for you. In this case, you could hop on Zoom with your VA during your work day. Their job will be to document what you do, formalize these documents into SOPs, and perform the associated tasks once they understand them.
2. Provide feedback
Regularly provide constructive feedback to help your virtual assistant improve their performance.
Recognize and acknowledge their accomplishments to keep them motivated, too!
Think of the way you coach your clients – you can coach your VA in the same way.
3. Trust but verify
Trust your virtual assistant to handle the tasks assigned to them.
However, it’s also important to periodically review their work to ensure it meets your expectations – at least at first.
Once that trust has been built, you can review work less frequently and periodically do it.
4. Stay organized
Maintain clear documentation, track tasks, and keep important files easily accessible for your VA. Or, give these responsibilities to your VA!
It is important that someone “owns” the responsibility and that both of you are clear on who owns it.
This will help you and your virtual assistant stay organized and work efficiently.
Hire A Virtual Assistant Only When You’re Ready
Hiring a virtual assistant can be a game-changer for your coaching business.
That said, it adds a layer of complication to your business. Now, you’re no longer a solopreneur but also a manager.
And I’ve seen too many coaches hire VAs before they were ready!
In some cases, you can easily cut down 5-15 hours per week just by having the right systems in place. For example, why not automate the entire process instead of hiring someone to manage your inbox and calendar?
That’s what Paperbell is for. Paperbell is designed to help coaches simplify their business and spend more time doing what they love – without adding complexity (like fancy funnels or hiring VAs).
Want to try it for yourself? Grab your free account right here!
