Before outsourcing, you’ll need to determine how much to pay your virtual assistant. And since the decision you are about to make is innovative and strategic, you’ll need to establish a budget for paying the virtual assistant to assist with business tasks. Many considerations go into the salary or hourly rate you give your virtual assistant. You will also have to consider training, skillset, workload, etc. In this post, we’ll dive into what factors determine how much to pay your virtual assistant – and help you determine what’s best for your business and budget.
Factors to Consider When Paying your Virtual Assistant
Outsourcing is like a marketing strategy. You formulate a plan, allocate a budget, then identify Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure the effectiveness of outsourcing business tasks. There are three factors to consider in determining how much a virtual assistant is paid. The first factor is the type of tasks or work, the second is the experience level, and the third is where the virtual assistant is located.
Factor #1: Type of Tasks/ Work
Virtual assistants vary widely in their skill sets, affecting the charges they receive. Here is the average salary of a Filipino virtual assistant based on skills and expertise. Source: https://ph.indeed.com/career/virtual-assistant/salaries. The average virtual assistant fees are based on full-time. Thus, if your business only plans to hire part-time VAs, the salary will be 50% of the full-time VA. As you are looking for a Virtual Assistant, you must first figure out what type of tasks and work you will give your VA. The more tasks that the VA performs, the more money you will have to pay them. You can determine the amount of money to pay based on what type of tasks and work you require them. Suppose you are looking for a VA that can do administrative tasks, such as scheduling meetings or arranging travel arrangements. In that case, they should charge less than someone doing more complex tasks like research or writing content for your website. The amount of time spent working on each task should also be considered when determining how much money should be paid.
Factor #2: Experience Level
Often, a newbie virtual assistant’s services are cheaper than that of an established one. Also, since virtual assistants are growing in demand and their salaries change, you need to determine how much is the VA’s experience. For example, you need someone to develop a social media marketing strategy and manage it. You need results quickly, so a larger budget is required as the experience level is relatively high. Nevertheless, suppose you are looking for a virtual assistant who can create and post content. In that case, you can choose either a newbie or someone with experience. In terms of fees, you will pay the VA at a lower cost. The experience level of your virtual assistant is an important consideration when determining how much to pay them. Depending on your needs, a more experienced assistant may be able to handle more complex tasks and responsibilities. However, more experienced VAs also tend to be more expensive. You also may want to consider the cost of training an entry-level employee (for example, if you have never hired a virtual assistant before). The cost of hiring someone with more experience may outweigh the investment in training for all positions. Still, training may not be necessary for all.
Factor #3: The location they are working from
You might wonder why you should consider the country where the VA lives. Paying a low per-hour rate does not necessarily mean the VA is limited and cannot add value to your business. Countries like India and the Philippines offer an attractive marketplace for VAs with phenomenal expertise at lower rates. These virtual assistants undergo much training and experience, yet, they charge less. Why is that so? This is because of the Philippine peso’s strong US Dollar exchange rate. Many brands and businesses prefer working with Filipino virtual assistants because of the quality of their work. Also, the charges are lower compared to other countries like the US and Europe. When hiring a Virtual Assistant, you first consider how much you will pay them. Many factors go into determining how much to pay your virtual assistant. The location they are working from, how much experience they have, what type of work they will be doing for you, and more all play a role in deciding how much to pay them. When hiring a Virtual Assistant, consider these factors before deciding on an hourly rate or salary.
How to Pay your Virtual Assistant
To pay your virtual assistant, you must consider the following: 1. The proper payment structure 2. Use popular payment platforms. When deciding how much to pay your virtual assistant, there are a few factors to consider. The first is the type of work you’ll ask them to do. If it’s administrative, you’ll probably want to pay them less than if they’re running your entire marketing strategy. You should also consider the time involved in what you need to do. If it’s just once a month, you can probably get away with paying less than if it’s ongoing. Finally, think about how much time you’ll have to spend training them and keeping them up-to-date on any changes in the business. Or new technologies that might impact the Virtual Assistant’s work. This will depend mainly on their experience level and how quickly they learn new things. You may want to offer a trial period without payment so that both parties can assess whether this will work well for you.
1. Choose The Right Payment Structure
It is imperative to distinguish the most suitable payment structure for your virtual assistant before paying them. The first move is to decide whether to pay your VA hourly or fixed rates. The proper payment structure is essential because it directly affects your bottom line. It’s a delicate balance between paying your virtual assistant enough to motivate them to do a great job and not overpaying them so that you lose money on the deal. Suppose you are considering hiring a virtual assistant. In that case, there are a few basic guidelines that you can follow when choosing a payment structure. It is essential to consider how much time you will need from your virtual assistant each month. Calculate their hourly rate so they can make enough money to justify taking on the job with you. If this number seems too high, consider offering them more tasks or projects instead of paying them more per hour. This way, you can keep costs down while still having your VA do enough work for it all to be worth their while. 2. Use Popular Payment Platforms One of the most common ways to pay your virtual assistant is through a popular payment platform. These platforms are easy to use and have built-in features that make it easy for you to get paid. Popular platforms include PayPal, Stripe, and Square. There are advantages to each site, such as ensuring your client’s information is not revealed when they pay or get paid quickly from a merchant account. You should also consider using a payment processor like Payoneer or Stripe if you do business internationally. They will help you accept payments from clients worldwide without setting up multiple accounts in each country where you plan on selling your product or service. You must know which payment platforms to use when paying your virtual assistant. Here are the top three payment platforms most businesses use. Virtual assistants are location-independent, allowing you to choose from a wider talent pool. You don’t have to hire someone who lives in your city or country. Because virtual assistants can be anywhere, you need to use a payment platform that is accepted globally.
These payment platforms are:
1. PayPal Payments for virtual assistants are paid with PayPal, a leading payment platform.
2. Payoneer With Payoneer, you can quickly pay virtual assistants across countries.
2. Wise, formerly Transferwise – a global money transfer platform that charges low and transparent fees on all transactions. You should first identify the tasks you need to outsource to estimate the cost of hiring a virtual assistant.
Determine how much you will have to pay a VA for their services after determining the type of VA support you need.