Virtual Assistant

July 10, 2023

How an Online Business Manager Can Streamline Your Business

Running a successful online business requires wearing many hats. As a business owner, you may be handling everything from marketing to bookkeeping and client management. However, taking on too much can lead to burnout and inefficiency. This is where an Online Business Manager (OBM) comes in. An OBM can help organize and streamline your business operations, allowing you to focus on what you do best – growing your business.

What is an Online Business Manager?

An Online Business Manager (OBM) is a virtual professional who can help business owners streamline their operations, increase their revenue, and reduce their workload. They are experienced managers who work remotely and take charge of the day-to-day management of an online business. An OBM is different from a Virtual Assistant (VA) in that they are more of a strategic partner and oversee the bigger picture. While VAs are typically responsible for administrative tasks such as scheduling, email management, and customer support, OBMs take on a more extensive role. An OBM will analyze and identify the areas of the business that need improvement, create systems and processes that improve efficiency and productivity, manage and supervise staff, and keep the business running smoothly. OBMs are versatile professionals who can adapt to different industries and help businesses of various sizes and structures.

The Benefits of Hiring an Online Business Manager

Managing a business can be overwhelming, especially if you’re doing it all by yourself. However, with the help of an Online Business Manager (OBM), you can streamline your operations and focus on the aspects of your business that require your expertise. Here are some benefits of hiring an OBM:

Better management and use of your time
Improved organization of your business
Expertise in multiple areas – including areas you may not be strong in
Increased efficiency for your business and team
Strategic planning for your business

How to Hire an Online Business Manager

Now that you understand the benefits of hiring an Online Business Manager, it’s important to know how to go about finding the right person for the job. Here are some steps you can take to make sure you hire the right Online Business Manager for your business.

Define your business needs: Do you need help with operations, finances, organization, team management, marketing or all of the above?
Look for experience and expertise: Look for someone with experience and expertise in the areas you need help with. For example, if you need help with operations, look for someone who has a background in operations or management and can show you results from their previous work.
Interview candidates: Ask about their approach to managing projects and how they would handle different scenarios that might come up in your business. If this is your first time hiring an OBM, we offer Concierge Services for companies where our HR experts complete the hiring process for you, both to save you time and hire someone they know will be great for the job.
Check references: Talk to their previous clients to get a sense of their experience working with the Online Business Manager and how effective they were in achieving their business goals.
Negotiate the contract: Once you’ve found the right Online Business Manager for your business, negotiate the terms of the contract, including payment, the scope of work, and the length of the engagement. Be clear about your expectations and what you hope to achieve through working with them.

Tips for Successfully Working with an Online Business Manager

Be upfront and specific about what you need from your online business manager. This includes timelines, tasks, and deadlines. If there are any special requirements or preferences, make sure to communicate them early on. Next, determine your availability and preferred communication methods. If you prefer email or regular check-ins, make that clear from the start. Make sure to establish trust with your online business manager by communicating openly and honestly. Provide regular feedback, give clear direction, and trust them to handle their responsibilities.

Be sure to keep your OBM informed of any changes in your business. Most important of all, take the time to celebrate the milestones that your online business manager helps you achieve. Recognize their contributions and show your appreciation for their hard work.

Hiring an OBM can be one of the best decisions you make for your business. They can take care of day-to-day operations, leaving you free to focus on what you do best. By following these tips, you can successfully work with your online business manager to streamline your business and achieve your goals.

Do you have more questions about an OBM? Reach out, and we can share those with our audience because chances are, someone else has the same questions!

Written by HMMCustomer Care

July 3, 2023

Get Hired: Mastering the Art of Writing a Virtual Assistant Cover Letter

If you’re looking for a job as a Virtual Assistant, the cover letter you write can make or break your application. Crafting an effective cover letter that conveys your experience and skills while demonstrating your enthusiasm and commitment to the position is essential in standing out from other candidates. Explore the key components of a successful Virtual Assistant cover letter and provide tips on how to make yours stand out below:

Outline Your Skills and Experience

As a mom looking to enter the virtual assistant job market, you already have an abundance of skills that will be highly valued by potential employers. Here are a few key skills and experiences you should highlight in your cover letter:

Time Management: As a mom, you’ve likely honed your ability to juggle multiple tasks and responsibilities. Employers will be impressed by your ability to efficiently manage your time and prioritize tasks.
Organizational Skills: Being organized is crucial for any virtual assistant role. Make sure to highlight your skills in maintaining schedules, tracking important dates, and managing digital files.
Communication: Clear and effective communication is essential when working remotely. Emphasize your excellent written and verbal communication skills, as well as your experience in collaborating with others.
Technical Savvy: With technology at the forefront of the virtual assistant world, make sure to showcase your proficiency with various software programs and tools. Be specific in your cover letter about the types of software you’ve used in the past.
Flexibility: Employers need someone who is adaptable and willing to take on new tasks as needed. Share examples of how you’ve been able to pivot and adjust to new situations in the past.

By highlighting these skills and experiences in your cover letter, you’ll show potential employers that you have what it takes to succeed as a virtual assistant. Just remember, while you have lots of skills to share, keep it short so that hiring managers can easily read your cover letter quickly.

Use Keywords from the Job Posting

To truly stand out among other applicants, it’s important to use keywords from the job posting in your virtual assistant cover letter. This means analyzing the job description and taking note of the key skills and responsibilities listed. Including these keywords shows that you have carefully read the job posting and understand the requirements of the position. Additionally, many employers use automated systems to sort through resumes and cover letters, and using the right keywords can increase your chances of being seen by a hiring manager.

For example, if the job posting emphasizes proficiency in Microsoft Office, make sure to mention your experience with Excel and Word in your cover letter. If the job requires scheduling and organization skills, mention specific tools or software you’ve used in the past to manage tasks and appointments. However, don’t just throw in random keywords for the sake of it. Make sure they are relevant to your skills and experience, and use them in a natural, contextual way. Finding online cover letter templates can help show you how to do this.

Explain What You Can Do for the Company

Now that you’ve outlined your skills and experience and used relevant keywords from the job posting, it’s time to explain what you can do for the company. This is the heart of your cover letter – you need to convince the employer that you’re the perfect fit for the position.

Start by researching the company and understanding what they do. Then, explain how your skills and experience make you an ideal candidate to help them achieve their goals. For example, if the company is looking for a virtual assistant to help with social media management, you could say:

“I am confident that my skills in social media marketing, content creation, and scheduling would make me an asset to your team. With my experience working for a variety of clients in different industries, I am comfortable with creating engaging and effective content across multiple platforms. Additionally, I am skilled in using scheduling tools such as Hootsuite and Buffer to ensure that posts are published at optimal times for maximum reach. I am excited at the opportunity to help your company grow and reach new audiences through social media.”

Notice how this paragraph not only highlights the applicant’s skills and experience, but also connects them directly to the needs of the company. By explaining how they can help the company achieve its goals, the applicant is demonstrating their value as an employee and making a compelling case for why they should be hired. You can also take this a step further and include a tip or two on how you would change their current practices to make their company better.

Close with a Call to Action

After explaining what you can bring to the table and highlighting your skills and experience, it’s important to end your cover letter with a call to action. This shows the employer that you’re confident in your abilities and are excited about the possibility of working with them. A call to action is a statement that invites the reader to take a specific action. In this case, you want the employer to invite you for an interview or to contact you with any further questions they may have. Here are some examples of strong calls to action for a cover letter:

I look forward to hearing from you to discuss how my skills and experience can benefit your company. Thank you for your consideration.
If you’re interested in learning more about my qualifications, I’d love to speak with you in more detail. Please feel free to contact me at [insert your contact information].
Thank you for considering my application. I believe that I could be an asset to your team and would love the opportunity to discuss this further in an interview. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions.

Remember, a call to action is a chance for you to leave a lasting impression on the employer. Be confident, courteous, and professional, and you’re sure to catch their attention.

Remember, the cover letter is your chance to make a great first impression and stand out from other applicants. So take the time to craft a well-written and personalized cover letter, and you may just land your dream virtual assistant position. Good luck!

If you need help writing a cover letter or would like a professional to review your current cover letter, check out our Cover Letter Services!

Written by Lesley Pyle

September 19, 2022

How to Make Money as a Stay at Home Mom with No Child Care

Many moms enjoy spending time with their children and don’t want to miss out on those precious moments by working outside the home. That’s why it’s so important to find ways to make money as a stay at home mom. There are lots of options out there that can work with your schedule — the number one type of job being a virtual assistant. But, there are tons of options beyond that! Maybe you only have a couple hours a day to yourself that you can work — there are things you can do from bookkeeping to social media management. Don’t be scared when you hear the word ‘job’ because that does not mean full time (or even part time) chained to a desk with specific hours; jobs can be just a couple of hours, flexible, and virtual so you can do them from anywhere! Here are some ways to make money as a stay at home mom with no child care:

Find A Work From Home Job

There are plenty of work from home jobs that don’t require any child care. One option is to become a virtual assistant. Virtual assistants provide administrative, secretarial, and clerical support to clients from home. To be a successful virtual assistant, you’ll need excellent communication and organizational skills, as well as the ability to work independently. However, we also see moms doing things such as remote website management, HR tasks, and more. Whatever you choose, make sure it’s something you’re passionate about and that you have the drive and determination to make it work. And of course, we have to do a shameless plug for our platform! Use HireMyMom to find a work from home job that works with your schedule! (And if you are unsure of your skills or think you need a bit of help to get started, make sure you check out our training course, Cultivate, which was designed to help moms fast track their work from home career.)

Work As A Freelancer

There are a number of ways to make money as a stay at home mom, even if you don’t have child care. One option is to work as a freelancer. You can find small jobs online in a variety of industries, from writing and editing to customer service and social media. While you may not make a lot of money per job, the cumulative effect can add up over time. Plus, working from home gives you the flexibility to set your own hours and take care of your family as well. While we see virtual assistants as the most popular jobs with moms, we also see lots of moms become freelancers so they have a little more control over their schedule and what projects they take on; freelancers generally do not get company benefits, but a part time or full time employee normally does not get to pick projects or their schedules so there is a bit of a trade off here that should be considered.

Create A Routine

One of the biggest things that will help you work from home as a mom is to create a routine for yourself and your kiddos. Put your kids down for a nap at the same time each day, and use that time to get some work done. Is your kid an early riser? Plan to work after they go to sleep. Is your child a night owl? Get up early and work then. Figure out what works best for your lifestyle, and stick to that so that you are able to work in between spending those precious moments with your babies.

Ask For Help

Starting a business or finding work can be tough, especially when you’re a stay at home mom with no child care. But there are ways to make it work. First, ask your friends and family if they can watch your kids for an hour or two while you work. If that’s not possible, try to find another stay at home mom who can trade off watching each other’s kids. You can also look into hiring a part-time nanny or babysitter to help out. Some companies even offer childcare stipends to help. When you are going through the job hunt process, let potential employers know what your schedule is, how often you can work, and ask how they can help you create a work environment at home.

Finally, there are some ways you can save money too that can help! Check those out here.

What suggestions do you have for moms looking to earn money while staying at home with their kids? Let us know!

Written by Lesley Pyle

July 4, 2022

10 Services You Can Offer As A Virtual Assistant

If you’re looking to become a virtual assistant, or if you’re just wondering what services you can offer companies, this list will help you out. A virtual assistant is an employee who works remotely and provides administrative, creative, and other types of support to clients on an as-needed basis. Being a virtual assistant lets you work from home, on your own schedule, but it does require considerable organization and self-motivation. Keep reading to learn what skills make a good virtual assistant and what services you can offer companies as a result!

1) Customer Service/Support

Being a virtual assistant means that you are a vital part of any business! Whether it’s answering customer questions, setting up meetings, or making travel arrangements for your team, a VA’s customer service can either make or break a business. Being great at customer service is an essential part of being a successful VA, and you can put that to work for other companies by specifically handling customer inquiries.

2) Bookkeeping

One of the first things you can offer as a virtual assistant is bookkeeping services. This will allow businesses to outsource bookkeeping to you and save time and money. If your clients are small businesses, it’s likely they don’t have much of a budget for hiring a full-time employee to handle their books.

3) Website Work

Any business will likely have a website, and most websites need some sort of maintenance or improvement every now and then. If you’re comfortable with HTML and other web-building tools, you can offer your services to help fix up a site.

4) Writing & Proofreading

If you’re a writer, someone in your circle of friends is bound to ask you for a writing or proofreading job at some point. In fact, according to recent stats, employment of writers is going to grow by 9% over the next few years! That’s because everyone needs something written at some point — anything from a blog to an annual report. If you’re good with words and already have an idea of what’s involved in being a writer, then working as a virtual assistant will be a breeze!

5) Administrative Support

Administrators are in high demand. Most important for this type of VA is your ability to multitask and use your problem-solving skills to solve any problem that comes your way. As an admin support VA, you will schedule meetings, coordinate schedules, and more.

6) Digital Marketing

Marketers are turning to virtual assistants for tasks ranging from running pay-per-click campaigns and managing social media accounts to creating sales copy and performing keyword research. If you have experience with SEO, PPC advertising, content marketing, or anything else digital marketers do, you can offer your services as a VA to local businesses or online companies. If you’re already working as a VA, why not add digital marketing to your skill set? The more services you offer clients, the higher your hourly rate will be — and you might even be able to charge by project instead of per hour if you offer enough value.

7) Event Planning

If you have an eye for detail and are willing to work with a flexible schedule, event planning might be a great service option for clients looking for help with conferences, trade shows, or even weddings.

8) Advertising

If you have experience in social media, search engine optimization, or email marketing, then it might be a good idea to offer ad-related services as a virtual assistant. Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn all frequently hire freelancers to help them advertise their platform by posting updates, writing descriptions for ads and banner ads that appear on their social media pages, and writing copy for email campaigns. Virtual assistants are also often hired to help with SEM (search engine marketing) and SEO (search engine optimization) campaigns.

9) Market Research

When you’re a virtual assistant, your research could range from market research to competitor analysis, to social media and digital marketing analytics. You may conduct site audits or content audits for clients as part of your research. There are a number of tools available for conducting market research online, such as Google Analytics and Kissmetrics, that can help you with various aspects of doing market research as a VA.

10) Fundraising & Donation Management

Fundraising is an ongoing necessity for non-profit organizations. Being able to track donations, process receipts, and generate donor acknowledgements is key to any fundraising campaign’s success. Because of its importance in non-profit fundraising, using a virtual assistant who can take care of these processes effectively and efficiently will help an organization’s bottom line.

These, of course, are just a few of the services you can offer as a virtual assistant, and with lots of tools out there, you can offer more services than those listed here! Is there a service you offer that you want to share with the HireMyMom community? Reach out and tell us about it!

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