Thinking about hiring a Virtual Assistant (VA)? When’s the right time to get help for your business? Wondering how to optimize your time with a VA? You’re in the right place.
I recently asked you guys what your pain points were when it came to blogging and many of you mentioned hiring a VA. So, I interviewed the best, most authentic Virtual Assistant I know, Felly Day.
Felly Day is the CEO of Felly Day VA, a boutique agency for online coaches to outsource their Pinterest and Email Marketing. After learning about manifestation, she set out to create her dream lifestyle also known as the 4-hour workweek. Felly now lives as a digital nomad, traveling the world and working from her laptop.
Felly is here to answer everything we want to know, but were afraid to ask.
Let’s dig in!
About Felly
Hey Felly! First off, can you tell us more about yourself? Where are you in the world and what made you start on this path?
I’m currently living in San Cristobal, Chiapas, Mexico! I was supposed to be backpacking Central America this year but COVID had me set up shop in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca only one month into my trip.
I’m from Vancouver, Canada where it’s cold and wet and my entire life I just wanted to live in the sun. By 23, I was over it and by 25, I decided to take myself seriously and start a business so I could leave. The whole husband for a green card was just taking too long you know?
What is a Virtual Assistant (VA)?
A virtual assistant can fill many roles. You have admin, tech, and creative VA’s then from there, there’s VA’s that specifically set up automations, or only write social media captions and create graphics for your business.
A lot of people will start as general VA’s and then niche down into the area they like most. Maybe they’ll become copywriters, Pinterest managers or graphic designers after trying it all.
At some point, you went from VA work to running an agency: what did that process look like?
Me accepting that I couldn’t do everything myself. I had an influx of referrals all at once, all ideal clients but there wasn’t enough time for me to enjoy my travels and keep increasing my income so I brought on a second VA, from there a 3rd when I started doing more Pinterest and then an OBM and SMM to fill the gaps. The alternative would’ve been to raise my rates and take less clients but I like having a team support me and the entrepreneurs I attract.
What services do you offer and/or specialize in?
I offer email marketing, content writing, and Pinterest management. They all tend to blend into each other which is why I love it.
I also end up connecting a lot of my clients to podcasts as that’s something I also love.
How did you go about educating and preparing yourself to be a successful VA?
Google will be your best friend in any online business. But I’ve also had a Pinterest coach, an email funnels coach, and a general mentor on the way. I like to take a specialized course every few months to keep growing my knowledge without overwhelming myself.
How to Find a VA + Tips for Finding a VA
How does a blogger or entrepreneur know if or when they are ready for a VA? How much should you be making a month before you invest in help?
I don’t believe there’s a price point to hit to start outsourcing. I’ve worked with people who are setting up their business and don’t have an “income” yet. I think we all know when it’s time. It’s either when you find yourself doing something you don’t like and knowing someone else could do it better, for me that was graphics.
OR when you need something done but don’t have the time to do it or learn how to. You don’t have to hire full-time, you can always hire on a project-based system.
Let’s say someone reading this is overwhelmed and needs to hire help yesterday. Where’s the best place to find a VA?
I love word of mouth because I want to know how the person truly works not just how they tell me. Though others will disagree and say they’d rather train someone from scratch. Putting together a form detailing what you need and who you are is a great way to prevent, or you can ask for people to email you though I tried that and got a lot of emails that were instant no’s.
You are a mindset guru. Do you have mindset advice for someone who is afraid to invest or ask for help?
Ask yourself what you’re afraid of. In my experience, hiring an extra set of hands expands you and your business to earn more. You never lose money by investing in yourself. Have a contract/read their contract thoroughly and learn to let go of needing to be in control of your business.
Is there anything we should be mindful of when searching for a VA? Is it okay to work with someone with no experience?
Absolutely. If you have systems in place already, it’s no problem to bring someone on and show them how you do things. They can bring forward their ideas once they get going and start to understand your process more.
How much is a VA or what is industry standard? Is it appropriate to negotiate rates?
For obvious reasons, I don’t agree with the $3-5/per hour rates [outsourcing to a VA in the Phillippines for a few dollars an hour]. A lot of coaches will say no less than $25 USD/per hour.
Personally, I started at $18 CAD/$14 USD and as I grew, I upped my rates.
I wouldn’t negotiate as rates are kind of a personal decision based on someone’s living.
Advice for How to Optimize a VA Relationship
What can we do to make a VA’s life easier?
Communicate. While it can feel like it at times, we’re not mind readers and would always prefer you to let us know if you don’t like something or want to change something.
Do you have any pet peeves when working with a blogger?
Nope, they tend to have a lot of content so it’s always made my job of repurposing easy.
Any tools, systems, or apps you recommend for working with a VA? Or is it better to have your VA set things up for you?
Having SOP’s in place are of course helpful but VA’s can help you with that. I’d say as long as your info is in a saved and shareable place like asana or google drive so you can share back and forth.
Do you have any advice on how to figure out which task to outsource to a VA?
Write a list of everything you do. Order the tasks by how much you enjoy doing it/how important it is to your business. If it can’t be removed or automated, it most likely can be outsourced. So if you don’t like doing it or know someone could do it better, take it off your plate.
Anything else you’d like to say to bloggers or entrepreneurs? Last bits of advice?
Relax and trust the process. You’ll thank me later.
Are you accepting clients? If so, what’s the best way to reach you?
My website has an interest form for those wanting to book calls with me! I am taking clients right now but won’t be in December again.
Stay Connected with Felly:
Thank you so much for your time, Felly! <3
Are you looking for a VA? Do you have anymore questions? *comment below*
BONUS: I recommend listening to “6 Myths About Delegating That Are Sabotaging The Growth of Your Business” from Screw the Nine to Five Podcast. That episode was the initial push that I needed to outsource for help.
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