Finally, you have decided to hire a virtual assistant for your business. Then it is time for them to take the interview and check their skill set. You hire only the person who has the skill set that matches the job profile. It is an excellent move for you to hire a virtual assistant who can take care of all your mundane tasks. The time you spend on doing these tasks can be dedicated to doing the work to take your business to new highs.
There are a few skills that you must look into the virtual assistant you are going to hire so that you do not get disappointed later. After checking their qualification, the next big thing is to check their skill set required to handle Virtual assistant jobs.
Excellent communication skills
The virtual assistant may require communicating with the client every day. They should have good communication skills to schedule business owners’ meeting with them or talk to them when there is any problem. They should know how to convey the message through phone, chat, or email. When you are hiring the virtual assistant, ensure that they are efficient in communicating in all these formats well. They should also give an update about the work and have weekly calls. If they have unique ideas, they should be able to present them eloquently.
Computer skills
If you are hiring the virtual assistant, you must hire the one who has good computer skills as all the tasks must be done on the system. They should also have good typing skills and must be able to type without any mistakes in English. They should also have excellent browsing skills to find the best tools for the projects. They should know how to schedule the meetings using the tools, host video conferences, and must be able to use and learn more about chat tools.
Fundamental accounting skills
Virtual assistants need not be an accountant, but they should have the necessary accounting skills. If you are hiring a virtual assistant, meaning they must do administrative and financial tasks. They should be able to work on simple accounting software. They must check the accounting software from time to time to ensure that the clients make the payments on time and follow up on the clients whose payment is pending. They should also keep a close watch on the company expenses. Though you will have a dedicated accountant to take care of the office finances, the office assistant must have fundamental accounting skills to manage small accounting jobs.
Good researching skills on the internet
The virtual assistant must have good browsing skills and be able to browse and find the information that a business owner is looking for from reliable sources. Though the virtual assistant knows how to use the tools, excellent ones can find the best tools to complete the work at a brisk pace. When you are hiring a virtual assistant, you must ask about their researching skills.
Writing skills
The virtual assistant may also have to send emails to the clients to have good writing skills and typing speed. They have to interact with the clients through chat. The shoddy language would take a toll on the company’s reputation. You cannot take a chance on it. So, hire the one with excellent writing skills. They may have to write the memos and documents. This task can be attained only when they have an excellent vocabulary and decent knowledge of English Grammar. If you don’t think that the person has good writing skills, before hiring someone proficient.
English proficiency
People are hiring virtual assistants from other countries through platforms like Dormzi. When you are hiring from other countries, ensure that they have good command over the English language. It is cost-effective to hire virtual assistants from other countries to do mundane tasks. If you look for the price and hire a shoddy one, they end up making costly mistakes, and they may not have proficiency in the English language. Though you would communicate with them over the phone or Skype, the clients would send the emails they must reply to. You must make them take the proficiency test in English before hiring and take an interview later. It helps you to hire the one with good knowledge of the English language. You can handle the tasks of dealing with the clients to them happily.
Planning and scheduling skills
The best skill that a virtual assistant needs is to plan and schedule the tasks properly. Every business owner wants to hire someone who can manage the tasks and complete them in a short period. Even in the tight schedule, they would be able to accommodate the priority or Adhoc tasks. A proficient virtual assistant would be quick and use the right set of tools to automate the schedule notifications. They can also reorganize the schedules.
These are a few skills that you need to look into a virtual assistant to get the job done immaculately.