Do you wish you could finish early on Friday’s or even take Friday’s off? Can’t shake the feeling of overwhelm during the weekend because of your ever growing to do list that’s waiting for you. Do you want to stop spending Saturday mornings catching up on emails and to finally be able to focus on working on your business and not in your business?
Recognising that you’re ready to outsource is the first step to getting your work life balance back in check and being able to get back to doing the job you love. But what happens when you’re not quite sure what tasks you need help with?
If this sounds familiar, keep reading to discover a range of tasks you can outsource to a VA. You will also learn how the ‘3 three lists to freedom’ method works and how it can be the key to identifying which tasks to outsource.
First Steps
If you’ve never outsourced anything before it can feel like a big step. The thought of handing over parts of your business to someone else is hard and for some working out what to outsource in the first place is even harder.
Unfortunately, I can't help you if I don't know what you need doing. Yes, it can be difficult to set aside time to do this when you're already super busy, but it's time well spent. Luckily, I have a process that can make this task a little easier.
3 Lists to Freedom
Chris Ducker, who is an outsourcing genius, has an exercise for people to try when they are thinking about outsourcing but have no idea which tasks to delegate. He calls this exercise your 3 Lists to Freedom. I've tweaked it slightly and you can download my version here. I recommend printing the list and keeping it handy so that every time you start or complete a task you can note it down in one of the columns.
Column 1 is a list of the tasks that that only you as the business owner can do.
Column 2 are tasks you love doing but aren't a good use of your time and could be outsourced. Your time would be better spent working on list 1.
Column 3 is all the tasks you loath, can't or shouldn't be doing. Hand these over to a professional who will get them done more efficiently and to a higher standard leaving you to free to focus on list 1. An example could be your accounts.
Consider Everything that Must Be Done
Make sure you add everything, so you get a good overview of your business. After a couple of weeks, you should have quite a long list and be in a better place to think about what needs outsourcing and who to outsource to.
What Can You Can Outsource to a VA?
Below is a list of potential tasks you can outsource to a VA. It’s probably best to note at this stage that not all VA’s will do all the things listed below. VA’s have hugely different skills sets and experience so it’s important to select the VA that matches your requirements. You can read more about this in this blog post.
General Admin
Email management, diary management, CRM input and management, travel bookings, online file management, transcription, minute-taking, data entry, data mining, online research, designing presentations and slidedecks, task accountability, event coordination, venue finding and confirmation/collating attendees and documents/on-site support, proofreading and editing marketing materials, basic bookkeeping (money laundering regulations apply, click here for further info)
Process & Organisation
SOP’s, creating internal processes, report and online form creation, creating/editing/formatting branded templates and guides, online file setup and organisation, task management, streamlining and automating systems. Office 365 and Gmail set up, importing, and creating labels/filters/folders
Social Media
Planning, creating, and scheduling content for social media, monitoring accounts, responding to comments, analysing engagement on previous posts to see what works and what doesn’t work, design banner posts, podcast scripting, video editing, photo editing, sourcing pictures, content curation and creating and managing an editorial calendar.
Website Updates & Maintenance
Adding blog posts, updating photos, updating/adding content.
CRM Management
Setting up and maintaining CRM databases, answering support tickets, analyse customer interactions and use automations, troubleshoot customer problems and handle customer complaints.
Email/Newsletter
Set up email systems, create welcome sequence emails, source content, and write newsletters, create email campaigns, set up automations, design lead pages, landing pages, design lead magnets, updating signup and opt-in forms.
The Key to Successful Outsourcing
In my experience, successful outsourcing happens when the client is clear on what activities they wish to outsource. Choosing a person with the right skills and experience is also essential. To combat the fear of handing over work initially, why not start small? Explain your concerns and that you wish to have a trial with a few small tasks first and once you build trust and get used to how it works you can then consider handing over more work.
Ultimately, all businesses whatever their size will have their own reasons for wanting to outsource. As a small business owner outsourcing allows you to obtain a better work life balance and decrease the feelings of overwhelm that can creep up on us. You also get access to a pool of talent that is more experienced at specific tasks than you, fresh perspectives, access to new technology and ways of working that you hadn’t been aware of before.
Get In Touch
If you’re ready to finish early on Fridays, heck even take Fridays off, please get in touch. I offer a free 30-minute discovery call where I explain the process of working virtually, the various types of tasks I undertake and my availability. It’s also your chance to ask any questions you may have about outsourcing. Click here to book your call via Zoom or over the phone.