Outsourcing & Virtual Assistants: GROW YOUR BUSINESS

Today’s blog is all about supporting you with OUTSOURCING.  Whether you're hiring freelancers or working with a virtual assistant, it’s important to start delegating tasks so you can grow your business, and go from being an employee to stepping into an owners role!  

So if you’re thinking to yourself, “YES, I need to start delegating” then keep reading!

One of the fastest, easiest, most harmonious ways to get your message out to the world is by hiring people to support you in different areas of your business.

Now, you may be thinking to yourself, "KellyAnne I don’t know what to hire out for, and I don’t have money to waste.”.

If this is you, I have your back! We’re going to be covering that in just a moment.

There’s a saying that goes something like this, “Once you’ve decided to outsource in your business is at least two months after you really should have.”

It’s hard to know when the “right” time is, because there really isn’t one! Everyone has a different journey in their business.

What I can say is that In the beginning, we do everything. We're the content creator, strategist, copywriter, designer, videographer, and accountant.

I remember feeling empowered by this when I first started my coaching business and it was even fun and exciting for a while. But friend...

It’s not a sustainable model.

When new coaches insist on wearing ALL the hats all the time, they’re on a fast track to burnout city. 

There will inevitably come a time where you realize that if you’re going to grow your business, you need help! And the help you receive is how you are going to scale your business and start seeing major shifts in not only your income, but in how many people you’ll be able to have an impact on. You’re going to shift from being an “employee” in your coaching biz to being the “owner,” and I know that’s just where you belong. 

So, in saying all that, here are a few outsourcing steps to get you started. 

Know that this blog may contain affiliate links to help you easily find the tools, products, programs, and/or services mentioned in the content. Please see Self Leadership Global's affiliate disclaimer in the terms & conditions below. 

Outsourcing Step #1: Determine What To Outsource

First things first, think about your marketing funnel and how you create influence, impact and income in your business.

You’re going to list out all the non-negotiable monthly tasks that need to be complete.  Things like social media images & content, blogs/youtube videos/podcasts, email newsletters, designing pins for Pinterest, or SEO (just to name a few).

Next, think about the tasks that are the greatest time suckers and LEAST enjoyable for you. Remember just because you’re capable of something doesn’t mean that it’s serving you or your clients to do it all yourself.  These are the tasks you’re going to hand off to someone else. 

For example, if you have a podcast and you love the creative part of recording, but you dread the tech-y side of things, you could outsource that. 

Or, if you want to up your blog posting game to improve your SEO ranking, but uploading them, finding the images, and optimizing the meta descriptions are all just too time-consuming... This is a great opportunity to outsource. You’re still the visionary in this scenario, but you give someone else the opportunity to take care of the technical side for you.

So think about it! Do you feel like you could increase your visibility on social media? Are you sending out as many emails as you would like? 

Really figure out where it is that you need support, and be open to letting go of the reigns to hire help.

Here’s the thing, coach.  We all have strengths and weaknesses. Your weakness will be someone else’s strength. Instead of using time, energy and effort on things you don’t like hand it off to someone who will complete it in less time with more love!

The cool part about all this is that you’ll discover people who LOVE doing the tasks that you absolutely hate! It ends up being a win-win situation once you find that perfect fit.

Outsourcing Step #2: Clearly Describe What You Need

From personal experience, clear communication is one of the most important aspects of outsourcing, working with a virtual assistant, and growing your team.

Your job as a leader is to clarify what you need, and then clarify it even more. Never assume the person you bring on board is 100% on the same page as you are--> even if you know them personally, were referred by a friend, or have had great communication up until this point.

People aren’t mind readers.  They need clear instructions and examples of what you’re expecting.

One way that you could support a new team member with clarity is to create a position profile. Clarifying expectations on both ends of the relationship is going to be a huge help once you get rolling. Having a position profile will cut down the back and forth of questions, clarifications, and feedback, and help you get into a “groove” much faster.

Here’s what the outline of your position profile could look like:

1. Start with the “Position Title” and who they “Report To”.
2. Then, give the purpose of the position. For example, if you’re hiring a copywriter, the purpose could be to increase the visibility, engagement, and enrollments with your brand via social media and searchable platforms.
3. After that, write out a job description where you’ll go into greater detail on the specifics of the job. You’re basically expanding upon the purpose in this section.
4. Then finally, you’ll have a Responsibilities, Supporting Actions, and End Results section. This is where you list out exactly what you’re expecting from them.
   • So, Using the Copywriter example, their Responsibility could be to write 15 Facebook posts for your business page, 12 Instagram captions, and 4 blog posts.
   • Supporting Actions can be things like communicating your brand message, attracting a certain number of potential clients, and developing monthly content themes.
   • The End Result can be gaining new Instagram followers, enrolling new members, or increasing sales of your products or programs. 

Outsourcing Step #3: Find A Communication Platform

There are a lot of different tools to use to communicate with your team. Some are paid services and some are free, but here’s a brief overview of a few of my favorites.

Asana

If you’re a fan of the “calendar view” and color coding, this is a project management platform you’ll want to check out.

In asana you can organize your projects into categories, assign projects to people, communicate within the platform through a conversation tab, and a little unicorn flies across the screen when a task is complete... so that’s fun.

You can also create boards, or see all your specific tasks in a list format (without having to go into different projects). It’s a great way to get a birds-eye-view of your business, and as a bonus they have a fantastic, easy to use app!

Trello

This is another popular project management option. On it, you can create “boards” for projects, and “cards” for the tasks within that project. Teams can all collaborate on the same board, and the cards can be moved around based on where they are in the process.

So it may be “in progress” or “Complete” or “Ready for approval”.  You can tag people, assign tasks, set due dates, and create checklists.

Know that Asana and Trello are very similar, so you may want to do your due diligence to see which one would be the right fit for you!

Google Docs

I love using Google Docs alongside my project management platform when working with my team. They give you all the tools you need to create organized folder structures, track changes and auto-save on content docs, leave comments and tag people, and you can also share the content using links rather than attachments. 

Outsourcing Step #4:  Find Your Perfect Teammate

Now that you know what you need help with and how you’re going to manage & communicate with a team, it’s time to find your peeps!

There are tons of resources online to take a look at. A few of my favorites are:

• Fiverr --> (freelancers from all around the world doing tasks starting at $5.00 USD)
• UpWork --> (freelancers from all around the world doing tasks and bidding on job posts)
• Kapa99 --> (graphic design outsourcing)
• Online Jobs PH --> (inexpensive virtual assistants)

... AND they're all fairly inexpensive. 

You can also post your job opportunity on Facebook Groups, or even on Craigslist.

Regardless of where you post your job opportunity, the important thing is to take your time and be diligent.

Look at their reviews or testimonials, ask for sample work or a portfolio, ask for references (and actually check them), start with a trial period, and interview multiple people.

This is YOUR business, remember? You get to hire who you want, and at the pace you want. Take your time and follow your instinct. You’ll know what the best choice for you is.

At the end of the day, a good rule of thumb is to hire slow and fire fast if you know it’s not the right fit. You don’t want to waste anyone’s time or money.

Well there you have it, friend. Now you know the 4 steps to outsourcing, hiring a virtual assistant, and building a team to grow and scale your business faster and easier. 

If you want ALL my favorite outsourcing tools and resources in a simply organized list, CLICK HERE and check them out! This one webpage has created simplicity, ease and hundreds of thousands of dollars in my coaching business!

Lastly, if this video was just what you needed in your coaching business, please let me know by sharing it with your coach friends. 

Until next time, keep building your empire!

XO KellyAnne 

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