Remote work is currently an integral part of the modern workforce first brought about by the novel coronavirus, but now is heavily adopted by many businesses worldwide. Apart from the businesses themselves going remote, many businesses have also opted to hire virtual assistants and freelancers to supplement their workforce at a low cost. A Filipino virtual assistant is usually a popular, cost-effective option for businesses to increase their workforce.
Despite the growing popularity of virtual assistants, many businesses still have reservations about employing VAs. Some businesses may see VAs as an added expense, while many others see them as a cost-effective means of increasing personnel. COVID forced many companies to limit their operations and shift to remote work settings, and virtual assistants have helped businesses survive during the pandemic. VAs are still important today, and it’s already been proven that they can help businesses function even with a limited budget, like what happened during the early days of the pandemic.
If businesses have reservations about going remote, there’s a big chance that they’re also unlikely to hire virtual assistants to supplement their workforce. Such decisions will cost businesses money, and there’s a good chance that businesses are actually losing money by not having a remote workforce.
Remote work and virtual assistant services are cost-effective for many different reasons, including the following:
Businesses Need to Pay for Real Estate and Utility Expenses
When a business doesn’t have a remote workforce, they will have to pay for real estate costs, utilities, office furniture, office equipment, etc., to continue working on site. The average cost per employee is around $18,000 per year, and going remote and eliminating the need for a physical office will significantly reduce these costs. Businesses will only need to pay for an employee’s salary and benefits when going remote; paying for laptops and the necessary tools also doesn’t necessarily add too many expenditures compared to when they also had to pay for office utilities and cleaning services.
Depending on virtual assistant services first before hiring regular staff will also allow small businesses to save up on expenses. Virtual assistants don’t charge for employee benefits and other costs related to hiring regular employees besides their hourly or per project wage. VAs will also come equipped with their own tools and equipment, further reducing the costs of hiring an employee.
Businesses Usually Spend on Food for the Office
Businesses will usually provide employees with food in the break room as employee benefits. Regular employees will typically enjoy coffee, snacks, and the occasional lunch or dinner at the office. Besides such benefits, office meetings will often need snacks and stocking up for these will cost businesses as the costs stack up.
Remote workers don’t need to be given food since they’ll just buy it themselves. Not having to restock an on-site cafeteria will allow small businesses to save on money that they can allot for other expenses.
Regular On-Site Employees are More Expensive than VAs
Neglecting virtual assistants will keep businesses from having the benefits of an affordable workforce. Regular employees typically cost more than virtual assistants because of the following expenditures:
- Hourly wage
- Tax payments
- Employee benefits
- Vacation and sick leaves
- Appropriate equipment
- Training
Virtual assistants, however, only need to be paid their wage through one of the following options:
- By the hour
- Per project
- Per task
- Through a subscription plan
Individual VAs and freelancers will typically charge by the hour or per project, with some of them offering a set number of services and charging a set amount based on that, not the time they spend working. Relying on a virtual assistant company in the Philippines will require businesses to pay based on a subscription plan.
Apart from not paying VAs as much as regular employees, virtual assistants are also more affordable because they pay for their own expenses, including their equipment and taxes. Businesses also won’t have to train VAs to the same extent as regular employees when hiring experienced Filipina virtual assistants instead of rookies.
A study by Glassdoor showed that the average company spends about $4,000 when hiring a new employee thanks to recruiting teams, background checks, interviews, and onboard training costs. If a small business has a regular on-site workforce, they can opt to hire virtual assistants as additional personnel for the time being to effectively have more employees at a lower cost. Outsourcing work to a virtual assistant will undoubtedly cut costs, especially when the VA is from a reputable VA company.
Many Small Businesses Spend Too Much Time on Administrative and Repetitive Tasks
Many small businesses spend too much time on administrative tasks, and hiring full-time employees is too expensive. Outsourcing the tasks to virtual assistants allows small businesses to save costs while having their admin tasks handled by competent staff.
Businesses will also have repetitive work that regular employees won’t enjoy doing, especially when they’ll have to be diverted from other tasks, mainly core processes. Hiring reliable virtual assistants to do repetitive tasks like managing a database, making calls, scheduling interviews, and other repetitive tasks will allow the regular employees to stay productive on other more important tasks.
Others will handle administrative and repetitive tasks, but it’ll also be done at a lower cost than hiring full-time employees. Businesses can also hire virtual assistants only to take care of any possible task backlogs then let them go after the project.
Conclusion
Whether a remote workforce comprises primarily of regular employees or virtual assistants, a remote workforce is beneficial to businesses. Remote workers can effectively save a small business money by reducing their operational expenses while hiring VAs will also reduce hiring costs.
Businesses sticking to having an on-site workforce are losing money and should heavily consider switching to a remote setup. Also, instead of immediately hiring new employees, businesses should consider to hire a virtual assistant first as a more cost-effective option. Virtual assistants can also outperform office workers, so hiring VAs should also be considered for such a reason.
OVA Virtual can help provide the best virtual assistant services for different businesses. Hire a virtual assistant today and benefit from the high-quality virtual assistant services of one of the most reputable VA companies in the Philippines.
Sources:
https://www.squarefishinc.com/10-ways-virtual-assistants-can-save-you-money/
https://www.streetdirectory.com/etoday/-wuweof.html
https://vavavirtual.com/2020/05/26/how-you-can-save-money-with-a-virtual-assistant/
https://getdivvy.com/blog/does-working-remote-save-money/
https://www.lano.io/en/blog/can-a-company-actually-save-money-with-remote-work/