Virtual Assistant Company vs Freelancer – Which One Should You Get and Why? 

Max 5min read

04 March, 2022
Virtual Assistant Company vs Freelancer

There are only so many hours in a day. As a business owner, sometimes you may feel like there’s just not enough time to do everything you want to do to drive the success of your business. When you have so much going on, you’re not able to accurately focus on individual tasks and you actually get less done during your working hours. If all of this sounds familiar, the first step is to recognize that you need some help, and the next step is knowing where to get it. 

Two popular options for assistance at a reasonable cost are virtual assists and freelancers, but what’s the difference between hiring these two options, and which one is best for you and your business? While they seem similar to each other, there are actually quite a few key differences that might help make this decision easier than you originally thought. 

What’s the difference between using a virtual assistant company vs a freelancer? 

Virtual Assistants

Virtual assistants come from a virtual assistant company where the company both trains and puts their virtual assistants through an extensive vetting process. Since they’re managed by the company, there is much more consistency in the quality of work once you hire them. When virtual assistants are trained by a centralized company, you can know with confidence what their skills and strengths are. In addition, virtual assistant companies often cross-train their virtual assistants in multiple skills, so you’re getting more expertise for the same price.  

Speaking of price, virtual assistants are often less expensive than other types of employees. Considering the hidden costs that come with hiring a traditional employee – like desks, computers, and more –  hiring a virtual assistant can actually decrease companies’ costs by 78%. Since they’re coming from a company, the company’s rate needs to be competitive so you can be sure you’re getting the most support for the best price. The company is also ultimately responsible for the performance of the virtual assistant, and they will work with you to ensure you’re happy with your experience. Virtual assistants are looked after by a customer success manager, so you will always have support not only from the virtual assistant but also the company if any issues arise. 

Since the virtual assistant company wants you to have a good experience, they also give you some additional flexibility once you hire a virtual assistant. If the fit isn’t right with your current virtual assistant, they will provide you with a replacement as needed. Additionally, you can have confidence that if something happens and your virtual assistant can no longer work for you, you’ll be able to secure a backup immediately. 

Freelancers

Freelancers are another option to consider -​​ over 40% of all US employees were expected to be freelancers by 2020. One of the main differences between virtual assistants and freelancers is that freelancers are self-employed. Since they’re self-employed, they don’t have an agency or company that manages them or helps build up their skills. For this reason, freelancers are more unpredictable. 

If you’re looking to hire a freelancer, you’ll need to go through the entire hiring process all by yourself. Creating a job posting, vetting the candidates, interviewing, and teaching someone the skills they might not already have can actually take away from the time that they were supposed to help you save. If your freelancer decides to leave, you’d have to do this all over again each time. You never know how long they’re going to stay because freelancers work only for themselves. There’s no one else keeping them accountable to their commitments or helping them when they make mistakes. 

Freelancers also tend to have a more specialized skillset and are more expensive because of that. They may not know how to do all the things that you need them to do, so you’re getting fewer skills at a higher cost. It’s also likely that they’re working with other clients, so your projects and business are not their main priority. If you’re looking for one person with a very specialized skill a freelancer might be the right fit, but oftentimes they cannot be as connected to your business as a virtual assistant can. 

Why is a virtual assistant usually a better option than a freelancer? 

Virtual assistants have a higher skill level 

Virtual assistants usually have a wider variety of expertise that they’ve built up through other projects and specialized training. Not only that, but they go through a vetting process with their virtual assistant company to verify they actually have all the skills and experience they say they do. There’s no getting past the vetting process from the virtual assistant company, so you can be confident they actually have the skills necessary to make your business more successful. 

Even if virtual assistants have a lot of skills, the virtual assistant company will still train them to ensure they’re executing at the level required by the company before assigning them to clients. This also means that the virtual assistant company has many virtual assistants ready to assist you, so they can select the right person who will be the best fit for your specific needs. The company does all the hard work for you, so you save time by not having to find the perfect candidate on your own. 

While you may notice that some freelancers have larger individual portfolios, that’s only because they have to prove themselves to you all on their own. No company is standing behind them and giving them their stamp of approval. You have to decide for yourself if the freelancer’s standards are up to par with your expectations. 

Virtual assistants have a higher
Virtual assistants give you extra security 

Virtual assistant companies provide you with a lot of additional flexibility in comparison to a freelancer. A freelancer’s policies are often less clear, and you’d have to negotiate them one-on-one each time you want them to work on something new. You’ll also have to discuss what to do if they are taking time off and how to handle performance issues. All of this one-on-one management takes away a lot of your time and ability to focus on other things. 

However, a virtual assistant company will often have some kind of satisfaction guarantee or policy, so you won’t lose your money if things don’t work out. You’ll have clear policies to rely on if you ever have any questions or issues with your virtual assistant. 

Bonus: Replacements are easy with virtual assistants 

Virtual assistant company policies make it easy for your to replace, or even add on, a virtual assistant as needed. With a freelancer, you may go through the entire interviewing process only to have them leave soon after. This is significant because, according to a Glassdoor study, the average cost of hiring an employee is around $4000. Instead of having to go through that process again, a virtual assistant company can provide you with a replacement so your business can continue to grow without missing a beat. 

Virtual assistants have stable working hours 

Chances are you’re not the only client that a freelancer is working with. According to the State of Digital, the average number of clients any freelancer personally handles is about 14. For this reason, they may be able to dedicate only a few hours to your business. Virtual assistants, on the other hand, are fully invested in your success. They are committed to you and can work whatever hours you need them to work. This stability will help you accurately predict the work you can accomplish alongside your virtual assistant. 

Additionally, virtual assistants often work in different time zones. If you’re running behind on something, you can pass it along to your virtual assistant to complete while you’re sleeping. You really will have “more hours in the day” with a virtual assistant who is able to work toward the success of your business while you’re taking a well-deserved break.  

So, should you hire a freelancer go through a virtual assistant company?

While a freelancer has some perks, the benefits of hiring a virtual assistant through a virtual assistant company make it the better choice in most cases. The skills, dedication, flexibility, and ease of hiring a virtual assistant will allow you to spend more time working on what’s most important to you. 

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