As a solo entrepreneur or small- or medium-scale business owner, your time is extremely valuable. How nice it would be to be able to do everything! Unfortunately, the little details and tasks involved in running a business do tend to eat up your time and detract from the more important concerns of running the business. Instead of worrying about these little details, why not hire a virtual assistant to take care of them, leaving you free to put all your energy and time into the more pertinent matters?

In this section, we discuss the process of choosing and hiring a virtual assistant for your company's needs. After you've decided that a virtual assistant is what you need to streamline your operations, there are a few considerations to think about before choosing on a particular virtual assistant. Finding the right virtual assistant for your operations is an involved process and it helps immensely to know just who exactly you are dealing with when looking for a virtual assistant for your company.

First: examine the virtual assistant's online presence. This is usually a website that details the virtual assistant's skillset and qualifications, her work experience, service terms, terms of payment, and contact information. As you browse through the virtual assistant's website, try to answer the following questions: is the website formal, polished, and credible? Is the content clear and detailed? Is the content well-written? Is the site well-organized and is information easy to locate? Today, more than any other time, almost anybody can put up a website. It's important to know if the virtual assistant you are considering is serious about her job and the job you would like to give her. Otherwise, if the questions above are not answered satisfactorily, or if it is blatantly obvious that the so-called virtual assistant is nothing more than a talentless hack, do not hesitate and take your business elsewhere.

Second: consult the virtual assistant in person. This establishes whether or not she is the right person for the job. Often times, personal chemistry, style, and personality can be huge factors in determining the effectiveness of a virtual assistant. If the potential virtual assistant happens to be radically incompatible with your own personality and style, you can expect disagreements and problems. Also, personally meeting the virtual assistant will allow you to gauge her overall competence and effectiveness in a way that her website can't.

Initially, you would schedule a phone call with the virtual assistant. A simple phone is a great way to establish a degree of rapport with the person you are about to deal with. Some of the things to consider when placing the phone call are timeliness in answering the call, timeliness in responding to inquiries and questions, manners and courtesy, and preparedness.

After an initial phone call, should you decide you want to know more about the virtual assistant, a personal meeting should be made. A meeting such as this will reveal many things about the virtual assistant, and will often help you to finalize your decision about hiring or not hiring her. During the meeting, you should take note of the following personal traits: how the virtual assistant works with clients, her personal work processes, the exact services she provides, her work values and attitudes. The goal here is to establish whether or not this virtual assistant is someone you would entrust your administrative work to. Needless to say, you must check for the following attributes and qualities: a take-charge type of personality, confidence, trustworthiness, an agreeable personality, and good listening skills. Naturally, she must also show a genuine interest in your business processes.

Personal traits aside, the virtual assistant's professional traits and qualifications should be your second consideration. Needless to say, the most important professional qualification of the virtual assistant is administrative experience. Extensive experience goes hand in hand with skill, training, and business knowledge. Try to answer the following questions: what was the virtual assistant's work experience prior to becoming a virtual assistant? What kinds of jobs and positions has she held? How much administrative experience does she have? How much does she know about the job you would like her to do? It is especially important to know how much real-world experience she has; do not take much stock in certifications as they often don't hold water. Instead, focus on the virtual assistant's actual professional ability.