Hiring a Virtual Assistant From the Philippines Ultimate Guide
Hiring a Virtual Assistant can seem daunting if you haven’t done it before. Should you engage an agency? Do you use freelance website? Or do try posting a job directly on one of the overseas job sites and managing the recruitment process yourself. Find out in our ultimate guide.
If you can find the right virtual assistant they can be a real asset to your business. Whether you need help with admin tasks, customer support, bookkeeping, or social media management, they can take care of day to day tasks and leave you to the high value tasks such as growing your business.
So how do you ensure that you get the right VA for your business? In this ultimate guide, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about hiring a virtual assistant and how to get the best chance of success.
Why Hire a Virtual Assistant from the Philippines?
Why choose the Philippines for your virtual assistant and not other locations like India?
- Excellent English – The Philippines is one of the largest English-speaking countries in Asia. You will have a large pool of candidates to select from with high level English.
- Highly Skilled Workforce – Filipino VAs are well-educated, tech-savvy, and highly adaptable to various business needs.
- Favourable Timezone – Your VA will work in your timezone. An additional benefit is the timezone difference for most of the east coast of Australia is 3 to 4 hrs. Perth is on the same timezone! This means your staff aren’t working through the night.
- Strong Work Ethic & Customer Service – Filipinos are known for their professionalism, dedication, and strong customer service skills.
- History of Outsourcing - Companies have been outsourcing to the Philippines for over 30 years. Primarily for their great communication skills. This means there is a well established infrastructure there.
Ways to Hire a Virtual Assistant: Pros & Cons
Let’s drill down on what are the pro’s and con’s of the different sourcing methods for virtual assistants:
1. Freelance Websites
Freelance websites such as Upwork and Fiverr give you access to a large talent pool from around the world. The number of options can be both a blessing and curse. The process of identifying the right candidate will require a good amount of effort. You will need to carefully review profiles, portfolios, and client feedback. Most people who are experienced on these platforms conduct interviews and start with test projects to assess skills and reliability.
There is no guarantee of commitment when you hire from these websites. This means if they don’t work out you will have to start the process all over again. While freelance websites can be cost effective, they demand a considerable time investment to ensure that the virtual assistant hired is competent and trustworthy.
For businesses with limited time or resources, this vetting process can be a negative, making it essential to weigh the benefits of flexibility against the potential challenges of finding and retaining top talent.
2. Specialist Outsourcing Companies
Specialist outsourcing companies, such as BASE Global, have established systems and processes. They do this every day. Their expertise can save significant time and effort that would otherwise be spent on sourcing, screening, and onboarding virtual assistants.
Having an Australian based support team means they understand how Australian businesses work. If you need support you can always pick up the phone for a chat.
For businesses looking for a solution with the benefits of offshore talent and local oversight, specialist outsourcing firms with local support is the way to go.
3. Job Portals
Websites like OnlineJobs.ph specialise in connecting employers with virtual assistants. These websites allow businesses to post detailed job listings and directly hire candidates.This direct approach does have some benefits, as it provides employers with greater control over the selection process and the ability to build long term relationships with their VA’s.
There are some downsides to this approach though. The responsibility of screening resumes, conducting interviews, and assessing candidates' skills and cultural fit falls entirely on you. This can be a time intensive process, especially for businesses that lack dedicated HR resources. Once a candidate is selected, the onboarding process training the virtual assistant, setting up communication channels, and establishing workflows requires further time and effort.
This approach allows you to control the whole process and can lead to committed working relationships, but it does demand a significant upfront investment in time and energy.
Conclusion
Hiring a Filipino Virtual Assistant is a great way to get time back while improving efficiency. There is a lot to consider when choosing the best method to source candidates. If saving on cost is your biggest priority and you are prepared to invest the time then freelance websites or posting on job sites can be good solutions. If staff quality and support are what’s important to you then working with an Australian based partner like BASE Global Solutions ensures you get top tier talent with local support.
Ready to hire your virtual assistant? Contact BASE Global Solutions today and let us help you find the right VA for your business .