Skip to content
Home Blog Real Estate Business Management

Hire a Virtual Assistant for These 21 Tasks (& Supercharge Your Productivity!)

Marcus Maloney
4 min read
Hire a Virtual Assistant for These 21 Tasks (& Supercharge Your Productivity!)

Everyone likes to win, but only the top performers position themselves to be victorious. How do they do this? Top performers have a plan, remain focused, and are determined.

In doing research on top performers in a variety of industries, I noticed a common thread that binds them together: they delegate menial tasks. For entrepreneurs, this is often challenging. Some entrepreneurs believe no one is going to care about the project as much as him or her, which is true. Or he or she may mistakenly believe no one can do it like it should be done. These beliefs have damaged the growth of many potential businesses.

I found myself aligning with this faulty belief system. I was taught at an early age to always learn how to do things yourself so you never have to call a professional. It took many years to learn this was the opposite of what I was trying to accomplish.

Time is the most precious resource, and many of us trade time for money, which is a terrible philosophy. Trying to save a buck can cost you more than what you’re trying to save.

So how can we accomplish our goals, be extremely productive, and maintain efficiency? The answer is to leverage others. To keep costs low, you don’t even need to hire someone locally anymore. Instead, find a virtual assistant, or VA.

This is a mutually beneficial agreement. Pay for services rendered while you work on tasks that are more profitable. That said, let’s break down the 21 most effective ways to leverage virtual assistants.

short-selling

21 Ways to Use Virtual Assistants in Real Estate

Marketing

Using VAs in your marketing department is highly effective. If you have multiple marketing tasks like I do—be it seller marketing, buyer marketing, agent marketing, graphics, video editing, podcast editing, website design—there are many ways to leverage virtual assistance in this area. It’s good to be able to assign a task and see what you envisioned come to life while exerting little time, effort, and money.

Related: How to Find the Correct Virtual Assistant for Your Real Estate Marketing Needs

Administrative Tasks

Administrative tasks are always important, but you have to ask yourself if sending mailers or following up with a tenant is this the best use of your time. I would think not.

As an investor, or entrepreneur your most profitable task is closing deals. So this is the area of focus that needs to be a priority.

Never could I have imagined the small tasks that were taking me away from completing things far more important. But I was challenged to write down all the activities I do on a daily basis, and I was shocked. Although I was doing important things that needed to be completed, I didn’t need to be the one completing those tasks.

One area I am currently looking to utilize a VA is to handle inbound calls. When I have something pressing to do, the calls will be routed to this individual. Someone else may not see the need for this, but personally I can’t help but to answer a call or email when I receive a notification. I just have to. I know it’s simple enough to turn notifications off, but when I do, I feel like I’m missing something. Knowing I have someone taking care of these tasks in my absence will ease my mind.

Here are 10 additional administrative tasks a VA can accomplish for you:

  • Data entry
  • Accounting
  • Bookkeeping
  • Transaction coordinating
  • Social media management
  • Scheduling
  • Database management
  • Proofreading
  • Photo editing
  • Content writing

Automation

How could we ever live without automation? In the 21st century, if it’s not automated in some capacity, it’s often not efficient enough.

We have automation for emails, database management, lead mining, and so much more. Automation is another area where a VA can propel your business forward.

Here are a few tasks VAs can help you automate: 

  • Coding
  • Customer relationship management (CRM) development and integration
  • Web site and social media updating

I highly recommend using automation if you’re not already.

Related: Six Helpful Tools Your Virtual Assistant Can Use For Your Real Estate Business

phonecoffee 1

Creative/Design

Creative/design is another area where numerous investors use VAs. There are a lot of talented VAs in this field.

Here’s how to leverage VAs for creative/design:

  • Website development
  • Graphics/art
  • Logos
  • Videography/video production/editing
  • Animation
  • Audio production/editing

There are many other creative/design services offered by VAs, too. I’m not the most gifted person when it come to art, so I definitely have to hire someone for these assignments.

Where to Find Quality Virtual Assistants

Finding a network of VAs is not difficult. There are many services offered online. I actually hired a new VA recently for database management.

Here’s where to look:

  • Upwork.com
  • MyOutDesk.com
  • Freelancer.com
  • TimeEtc.com
  • ReferralExchange.com
  • Fiverr.com
  • Zirtual.com

Clearly, there are many sites to find VAs. There are even some exclusively for real estate investors!

The Bottom Line

I do want to caution you: you get what you pay for. If you always hire the most affordable assistant, you will be disappointed.

Also, be aware that there are instances where managing assistants can create more work. To avoid this, have a clearly defined job description that outlines the roles, responsibilities, performance measures, outcomes, and deadlines you require.

I could go on and on about the tasks VAs can do to make your life a little easier. The possibilities are endless. If you’re looking to streamline certain processes or need a little help with day-to-day assignments, make VAs a go-to resource.

blog ads 01

Have you used virtual assistants yet? How so?

Share your experiences—the good and the bad—in a comment below. 

 

Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.