The Psychology of Outsourcing
One major barrier to finding work as a virtual assistant is overcoming the psyche of your potential client. Naturally, those that need a virtual assistant to outsource to are successful, busy and more than likely control oriented. So asking them to try outsourcing can be a daunting experience.
I've always used a free trial of some kind to get people to try virtual assistance. Usually this helps them reduce the stress of assigning me something and potentially having me screw it up (which never happens BTW). This seems to be the biggest fear amongst those that outsource. They realize that they will have to "train" me to manage their tasks.
However, despite whatever uniqueness a particular business might have, the tasks are almost always similar. This is key to helping someone overcome the resistance to trying a virtual assistant. Sharing success stories, testimonials or accolades that you have recieved will help your potential employers psyche and will make it less stressful for them to take the leap and partner with you.
I found a great article that shares one mans point of view on the same topic. Give it a read and see if it inspires you in some way: http://www.43folders.com/2007/09/25/enlightened-outsourcing-1
Have a great Tuesday everyone!
I've always used a free trial of some kind to get people to try virtual assistance. Usually this helps them reduce the stress of assigning me something and potentially having me screw it up (which never happens BTW). This seems to be the biggest fear amongst those that outsource. They realize that they will have to "train" me to manage their tasks.
However, despite whatever uniqueness a particular business might have, the tasks are almost always similar. This is key to helping someone overcome the resistance to trying a virtual assistant. Sharing success stories, testimonials or accolades that you have recieved will help your potential employers psyche and will make it less stressful for them to take the leap and partner with you.
I found a great article that shares one mans point of view on the same topic. Give it a read and see if it inspires you in some way: http://www.43folders.com/2007/09/25/enlightened-outsourcing-1
Have a great Tuesday everyone!
Comment
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Comment by Carlana Charles on September 30, 2008 at 11:32pm -
Great post Kelly and nice of you to note that they are our clients and not our employers, Sue.I dont offer things like free trials. Instead I've tried to build my practice on referrals. About 95% of my clients have been referred. I just do my best to give them value for their money, anticipate their needs and over deliver. This has been working well for me at this stage in my business.
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Comment by Sue L Canfield on September 30, 2008 at 11:04am -
I agree, Kelly. The psyche of a potential 'client' can be an obstacle. By the way, I think we do want to refer to them as clients not as employers. After all, we are business owners and get to choose who we work with. They aren't employing us in the standard sense of the word. Using the term 'client' also helps them understand what we do.
What I have found to be useful are these two things:
1. Offer a small trial period. This isn't free. This is a two-hour block of time where they can try my services at my standard hourly rate. But there's no long-term commitment. They get to see how working with me will benefit them and it allows me to make sure I can work with them.
2. Offer references. I let potential clients know that I have existing clients that will be willing to talk with them by phone to discuss what I've done for them, what my turn around time is, etc. More than just a testimonial on my website (which some people think we make up, unfortunately), this allows them to actually talk to a live person and ask all the questions they want.
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