As an entrepreneur, you need to be focusing on opportunities and executing ideas. Working with a Virtual Assistant makes your life simpler and more organized. You needn’t be overwhelmed by your current workload or trying to find ways to be more productive with your time; a Virtual Assistant can cover the following tasks:

• Database management
• Proofreading/editing
• Graphic design
• Photo editing
• SEO services
• Website design/management
• Accounting/payroll
• Blogging
• Social media marketing
• All office administration
• Secretarial work
• Transcription/translation
• Data capturing/spreadsheets
• Personal and professional appointment bookings

They will also save you money – think about it, they work remotely, so all you will have to pay for is the hours you use them for – no extras!

When working with a Virtual Assistant, you will need to use specific tools to ensure communication is effective and that they’re adequately briefed on exactly what it is you want them to do.

Hiring a personal virtual assistant won’t be as beneficial if you spend more time trying to explain everything to your Virtual Assistant than you would have spent just doing it all yourself.

In 2020, there are a bunch of brilliant tools available which make working with a virtual assistant more seamless than ever so that you can focus on your business strategy. Here are our top 5:

1. Loom

Loom is an incredible, easy to use tool that can record your computer screen, voice, and face and instantly share your video in less time than it would take to type an email or explain over the phone. Think about how much time you waste sending mails or sitting in back to back meetings on a weekly basis.

Seriously though, according to Muse, individuals who are in upper management, or own a company can spend up to 50% of their time in meetings.

With loom, you could probably halve that. Instead of hopping on a Skype call, or trying to brief your Virtual assistant over email, just send them a loom.

2. Slack

Slack’s paid version is ideal for working with remote teams, ensuring all work rolls out correctly and on time.

Here are its primary features:

• You can use shared channels and guest accounts to work directly with people outside of your immediate team such as a Virtual assistant
• You can use Slack as a centralized place because of its ability to integrate with other apps and tools such as Google Drive and Trello.
• Slack also offers free voice and video calling plus screen sharing, making it easy to communicate with people from all over the world as long as you both have a decent internet connection

It’s the ultimate, real-time collaboration and communication tool.

3. Office 365

Office 365 is quite frankly a requirement in the modern age as it offers access to all of the office applications by Windows, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and OneDrive. If you set up your organization or business with Office 365, everyone will have online access to the above. Gone are the days where you have to purchase the platform and download to your computer.

Not only will have you have online access to these apps, but Office 365 offers other incredible benefits such as scalability, easy collaboration and of course, it’s always up to date.

As your business grows, your team will have access to the same apps, making it much easier to communicate, set up calendar invites or meeting requests, and of course, integrate a wide array of external applications.

In terms of working with a Virtual Assistant, you will simply be able to add them as a user where you and the rest of your team can effectively communicate with them via Microsoft Teams or Skype for Business.

Your team members, including your virtual assistant, will have online access to email, documents, contacts, and calendars regardless of their preferred device or browser.

Office 365 is also 100% secure and comes with world-class support.

4. Trello

Trello is yet another online tool which is absolutely incredible for working with remote teams or employees such as a Virtual Assistant.

Like lists? Trello is the ultimate list-making tool. Boards, lists, and cards allow you to organize and prioritize your projects in an enjoyable, manageable, and satisfying way.

You can set up a collaborative board for any purpose as it’s fully customizable. For instance, say you are using one of Outsourcery’s Virtual Assistants for writing tasks. All you have to do is create a board called Content Writing and add lists for each day of the week. You can add cards to the list which enable you to add briefs, attach any file, set due dates, allocate time and so much more.

The paid version of Trello even comes with a bot named Butler. Butler can be used for automation tasks such as removing cards once the deadline is met.

Furthermore, it has a bunch of templates to use if you get stuck.

5. LastPass

In a world which is rife with cyber-crime, we can’t stress enough how important it is to secure your data and passwords. Most of our work is conducted online now, and unfortunately, with that, comes some risk.

When working with a Virtual Assistant or any remote employee for that matter, you will need to share your passwords with them. This is so they can access things like your social media, Office 365, Google Analytics and more.

Thankfully, a genius went on and created something called LastPass. At Outsourcery, we swear by it. It is a cloud-based password managing tool.

In short, the application works as follows:

It stores your website login information, address information, Wi-Fi passwords, and credit card details which you can sync with all your devices. Ok, that’s awesome, but how does it protect my passwords? Your data is secured with fingerprint login, mobile pin app unlock, and two-factor authentication and something called your Master Password.

LastPass allows you to add, delete and manage all of your passwords for any website or social media platform. So, not only does it protect you, but it also makes things much more manageable. How often do you forget one of your passwords? In 2020, we have so many different ones to remember to you’re not alone.

You no longer have to type out your information into online forms manually either. Its automatic form-fill feature fills in whichever website’s form fields with whatever details it asks you to provide, such as your name, address, credit card number and zip code.

One of its most impressive features, which is perfect for working with a Virtual Assistant, is that you can share your passwords, without actually having to share your password. You just give someone access by adding their email address and then they will be able to use this information without actually being able to see it.

So, there you have it! Our top 5, tried and tested tools for working with a Virtual Assistant in 2020. We hope they enhance your life as much as they have ours.

If you would like to find out more about working with one or several of Outsourcery’s Virtual Assistants, such as how much it costs, and what they’re actually capable of, get in touch with us, or take out a free, no-obligation trial today.