Interested in freeing up valuable hours, focusing on growing the business, and generating revenue? These are all attractive benefits for small business owners and large-scale companies as they ask Google, “what is a virtual assistant?” or “how to build your e-commerce remote workforce?”
Working remotely is gaining popularity in small businesses up to large-scale companies ever since the pandemic. What started as getting people to work despite social distancing protocols, eventually led to opportunities like cost savings on office real estate, fuel, and other overheads. There are also cases where there is increased productivity and lower absenteeism.
These are all good news so, why not hire a remote team for your e-commerce business immediately? Well, there are many factors to consider in determining whether work-from-home assistants are what your business really needs.
We’ll talk about:
We’ll also give a few tips for an effective remote working team and the top remote working tools that can benefit your e-commerce business. Before anything else, let’s dive into what a virtual assistant is.
An e-commerce virtual assistant is an independent contractor or freelancer providing administrative or skilled services from a remote location. The location can be from another country, as long as time zones are set for the meetings. You can also hire an e-commerce virtual assistant through an agency like Remote Dynamics PH.
Most e-commerce virtual assistants have years of experience as administrative office assistants or professional office managers. Depending on the skills a business or company needs, an e-commerce virtual assistant can be hired for a specific service only.
Having the freedom to select a specific service for your business can save money on unnecessary expenses. This also provides a better vision of which areas the company shines best or needs improvement.
Virtual assistants are like doctors — they also have specializations. Some work best in administrative tasks like coordinating information between clients, upper management, and staff or creating daily to monthly reports.
Just like in a typical corporate setting, there are administrative assistants assigned to keep track of timekeeping, filing paperwork, drafting contracts, and conducting interviews.
Some are more talented in skills-based job descriptions such as graphic design, video editing, content writing, web development, accounting, and more.
In a survey, 62% of hiring managers choose a remote workforce after experiencing the impact of COVID-19 on operations. 59% of these hiring managers even agree that companies risk falling behind by not adopting a flexible workforce as a part of their strategy.
So, is this a career boom that will eventually lose its trend? The US Bureau of Labor Statistics thinks differently.
Part of the list of fast-growing jobs until 2030 are agents and business managers of artists, performers, and athletes, statisticians, information security analysts, and film and video editors. These are industries where e-commerce virtual assistants are popularly hired.
Some entrepreneurs hire a Shopify virtual assistant to manage orders, communicate with suppliers, or launch online marketing. This goes the same for hiring an Amazon seller virtual assistant.
There are a few tell-tale signs to know if you need an e-commerce virtual assistant. As a business owner, you may directly handle operations at first. Tasks like communicating with suppliers, organizing inventory, tracking and managing sales, or engaging with customers, are things business owners take charge of at the beginning of a business.
When business improvement and growth start, these tasks begin to become mundane or too repetitive for business leaders. At this point, it is more valuable for business owners to spend more time introducing the business for partnerships or expanding the business for a franchise.
Hiring e-commerce virtual assistants will help business owners focus on growing the business and generating revenue. While virtual assistants keep the business operations running, managers, leaders, and decision-makers can venture into sponsorships, marketing, or securing deals.
There are also business perspectives that may be overlooked while becoming immersed in the operations or administrative tasks. By gaining valuable hours, business leaders will be able to assess which practices are great to keep or reevaluate for improvement.
Another benefit of e-commerce virtual assistants is their flexibility to contract. E-commerce virtual assistants do not need to have the same benefits or pay the same taxes as compared to full-time employees.
You can also select and pay for specific services you’ll need. The business or company can save up on unnecessary expenses and focus the budget on business development projects.
If you plan to test the waters if an e-commerce virtual assistant can help you gain back valuable business hours, you can hire one on a trial basis. This will also help business owners determine whether a virtual assistant fits a business or company’s culture.
Building a remote e-commerce team may also be a good idea for accomplishing cost savings on office real estate, fuel, and other overheads. Since all tasks are done virtually, a business doesn’t have to spend on renting office spaces, paying utility bills like electricity, water, and internet, or fuel allowance for logistics and some employees.
E-commerce virtual assistants also save up a lot of money and time from not commuting to work. This allows virtual assistants to maximize their time on family, hobbies, or personal time.
Reports show that e-commerce virtual assistants have increased productivity and lower absenteeism.
To find the right e-commerce virtual assistant for your business, you’ll need to review the different types of roles and tasks you can outsource from virtual assistants. Here are some types of virtual assistants or VAs you can consider to free up valuable business hours:
Learning about the types of VAs you will need for your remote e-commerce team will help you create a well-defined team structure.
The next question is where to access skilled and talented e-commerce virtual assistants. There are various online platforms with a large database of people looking for remote work. You can explore Upwork, Onlinejobs.ph, Kalibrr, or Remote Dynamics PH to discover a wide range of candidates.
Create a good job description where you’ll list a clear set of your qualifications. You can require higher-level education, specialized training, community college courses, or certifications for virtual assistant skills.
It is recommended to hire e-commerce virtual assistants that are tech savvy, equipped with a wide range of computer skills, and proficient in commonly used software and business programs in your business.
Most VAs have excellent typing skills and great communication skills. To help you filter out candidates who are willing to go the extra mile for your company, you can add an unusual question to include the applicant’s favorite movie at the end of your job posting.
Adopting the correct tools will help your business achieve an effective remote working team. Here are a few recommendations that have helped many businesses on various platforms become successful.
Zoom
Zoom is a great platform for company meetings. This platform allows company members to interact live through a video call. Officers in charge may also share their screens to help discuss valuable company information with precision.
The number of participants in a meeting can include 300 people or 500 people upon request. The maximum time limit is 45 minutes for free accounts. Premium membership is available for businesses who want an extended time for meetings.
Google Suite - Docs, Sheets, Slides, Calendar, Drive
Creating a remote e-commerce team requires accessible file storage online. This makes it easier for members to download necessary files to distribute to clients or company members.
Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drive allow the free creation of documents needed for monthly reports, meetings, or assessments.
Working remotely can involve multiple time zones in a team. For instances where meeting at the same time is impossible, company members can record videos to demonstrate various company processes, memos, and updates. These recorded videos are available for sharing at any time. Just send the loom video link!
Slack is a communication platform where different channels can be created for different projects or departments. With this feature, it is easier to locate updates and files. People assigned to certain tasks can also be tagged for greater efficiency in communication and tracking progress.
Another fun feature of Slack is its easy-to-navigate audio huddles and diverse collection of emojis. Try out numerous Slackmojis yourself!
Asana is a productivity tracker that can manage campaigns for your business. In this platform, you can assign team members to different tasks, set deadlines, and track progress.
A successful remote e-commerce team is not just about the benefits of building a remote e-commerce team, how to find the right candidates and the top tools you can utilize for virtual work. It also includes a recipe for cultivating a positive remote working culture.
Flexible working schedules are ideal for employees but they can also cause a disconnection in human interaction. Great work is still dependent on teamwork and good rapport. Keep engaging your remote e-commerce team and let VAs feel that the whole company is anticipating and winning over challenges together. Plan an e-commerce virtual assistant training and feedback to ensure that your workforce is growing with the business.
Interested in building a remote team for your e-commerce business?
Contact Remote Dynamics PH at Info@remotedynamicsph.com to get product or service recommendations suitable for your business!
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