Need Info on using Viretual Assistants

[Wayne Brooks]

Yes, Virtual Assistants-can't spell, can't type!I couldn't get in the conference call last night, and plan on using a VA for various tasks. They'll be creating mailing list from reports I get elesewhere by researching through Appraiser sites/online court case files, etc. I'd also like to them to do multiple daily Craigslist postings, and whatever else I can think of, or some of you can suggest.

Questions:
1) How to find/hire/pay them, use a service?
2) Are they generally computer proficient and pick up new processes/using new sites easily?
3) General experience using VA's?

Any guidance and information is appreciated.

Thanks,
Wayne

[Perry Rosenbloom]

Hi Wayne,

I've worked with MANY VA's over the last 2 years and have had varying degrees of success.

1. Full-time VA from the Philippines found through a head hunting company out there. That ended after 2 months of aggravation and constant headaches.

2. A VA who does as-needed graphic design work for me. Based out of Pakistan and found via elance. He's VERY cheap and produces great work. Call on him only when I need him.

3. A VA team based out of Haiti found via Elance. Did very good work but disappeared off the face of the planet after 5 months.

4. A VA based out of Canada that does as-needed transcription work. Found via Elance and very pleased.

5. A VA based out of India that I found almost a year ago after I fired a part-time assistant that worked out of my home office with me 3 days a week. He has been phenomenal. I pay him more than most VAs out of India (6.50/hour), but he's well worth it. The trick with him (and other non-native English speaker VAs) is getting him to use his brain. You need to tell him to cross his T's and dot his i's.

6. A VA based out of England that does as-needed, part-time work for me. She's been great so far.

And others...

The most important recommendations I can give:

A. If they are across the pond, make sure they spend at least some of the time working on your schedule. This will allow you to train them more easily.

B. Create detailed documents explaining everything from start to finish.

C. Screencast by Jing will be your best friend.

I personally prefer Elance as I have used it for years.

** - Edited to answer your questions specifically - **

I pay them via PayPal. I use Elance to find and hire them. Elance also has a screencast feature that enables you to see the work they do. It takes screenshots of their monitor at various intervals.

Freelancers out of the Pakistan/India area will cost anywhere from 3-7/hour. Philippines will be looking for part or full-time employment and can cost anywhere from 300-1,200/month. I wouldn't hire anyone from the Philippines for less than 750/month full-time. You won't get the right skillset.

I use LastPass to send them passwords that are encrypted so they cannot see my passwords but can access my sites. I can also revoke the passwords easily that way.

Basecamp is a lifesaver for managing them.

Overall, I could not live without VAs. They are essential to my business.

Good luck!! Just like with REI, you're gonna make a few mistakes before getting it right ;-)