One of your company’s most important assets might be a virtual assistant. They can carry out crucial chores that you would often accomplish on your own. They are more than just an employee; they are the backbone of your business. For this reason, you should get along well with your virtual assistant.

If you’re struggling with this, here are some tips to help you have a better relationship with your virtual assistant. 

How to Build a Better Relationship with Your Virtual Assistants

1. Keep Communication Open

The most crucial aspect of your relationship with your assistant is this. You must maintain constant communication because the majority of your transactions are conducted online. This starts with a thorough onboarding process during their initial weeks of employment. When you believe they can complete their work without your supervision, trust them to do it and provide feedback later. Be available to them for any questions they may have.

Additionally, make a schedule for voice or video calls. The frequency can be once each week, once per month, or twice per month. This enables you to pick up on signs that you often wouldn’t using chat or email and gives you a sense of your assistant’s wellbeing. When a virtual assistant feels appreciated by their company, they are inspired to put in more effort.

2. Always Pay On Time

Work at home employees already shoulder a lot of their own work expenses from internet bills to Paypal fees. The worst thing you can do is delay their payment. It will leave the impression that your business is not doing well enough to pay employees on time –and who really likes to work for a failing company? As the employer, you need to project the image of stability, and that means always paying out salaries on time. To help with this, you can set up a mass payment system for multiple industries. This does not just refer to your virtual assistant but to all the employees in your company.

3. Reward Excellent Performance

Make sure to express your appreciation for their efforts to your virtual assistant if you’re fortunate enough to have found one. They’ll work more if they have the correct incentive. Using your imagination, you can offer incentives that you know they’ll genuinely value. It could be a pay raise, a holiday present, more flexibility at work, or paid time off. You might be surprised to learn that some firms are incredibly frugal when it comes to compensating staff. Become one of the select few who understands how to value their employees.

4. Don’t Forget, They’re Also Human

It can be easy to neglect your virtual assistant especially when you’re not seeing them face to face all the time. You may treat them coldly, handing out endless tasks without thanking them or get extremely upset when they make a mistake. Things will not be perfect with your virtual assistant. But one thing you should remember is that they are only human too.

This means you should treat them with respect, like you would with other employees. Acknowledge their hard work and provide constructive feedback. It also doesn’t hurt to get to know them a bit more. This may just give you some insight on what motivates them to work for you. When an employee feels connected to you, they’ll bring more passion into their work. 

In Conclusion

It pays to have a virtual assistant that stays with you long term. They do tasks more efficiently and are more familiar with the nature of your business. This saves you a lot of time from having to onboard a new assistant every time your current one quits. Tenured virtual assistants feel more invested in your success and won’t just stay with you solely for the money.

Which of these tips did you find the most useful? Share your thoughts in the comments below.