Tag: communication

Calculating the return on investment (ROI) in the months after taking on a Virtual Assistant is more than a financial exercise for UK Estate Agents. It has more facets to it than only determining a growth in the number of properties sold before and after they joined – or calculating their impact on annual turnover.  When you evaluate ROI on a more holistic basis there are multiple factors to consider. Ultimately, all of these – financial or non-financial – have been proven to impact positively on a company’s bottom line.

Here are the financially related facets to consider when evaluating the source of ROI your company will enjoy through taking on a bespoke VA through VA Central.

Financial returns on investment

Saving money

• Saving on upfront recruitment costs: Not having to pay recruitment costs when growing your team lowers annual business costs.
• Not having to pay employee benefits and compensations: Not having to pay employee benefits reduces monthly cost-to-company.

Containing costs

• Cost-effective rates: Paying for a half or full day package in which the hourly rate for your VA equates to the National Minimum Living Wage regulates annual salary costs (making growing the team affordable).

Increasing capacity

• Time is money: Freeing up the Agency Principal and Estate Agents’ time so that they can take on more properties, spend more time nurturing client relationships and closing deals will increase turnover.

Increasing efficiency

• Streamlining workflow: Having experienced VA’s onboard who will automate and streamline workflow has been proven to increase efficiency and level up Estate Agents’ service offering. This further capacitates Estate Agents to service the socks off their clients, increase their fees and grow the business.

There are benefits to be enjoyed where there is an indirect correlation between the cost of growing a team and ROI. What is tremendous about these non-financial gains (such as satisfied and engaged team members and a happy work environment) is that they also have a calculable impact on the company’s bottom line.

What are the costs associated with taking on staff?

Estate Agents in the UK are right to be hesitant in taking on additional full-time employees, even if extra hands are greatly needed in the business because of the time and costs involved. They know that the expense of taking on a new employee entails more than just the person’s salary and benefits. Additional costs cannot be ignored when crunching the numbers to ensure it is financially feasible to grow a team.

Here is an overview of 5 cost categories to include when considering the financial outlay for a full-time staff member:

1. Recruitment costs

Traditional recruitment agencies can charge 20-30% of the starting salary, which for a role associated with a salary of £25,000 per annum would equate to 5,000 to £7,500 in agency fees.

2. Remuneration

• Salaries

The average base salary for an Office Worker in the UK is £25,310 per year.

• Employee benefits

Additionally, employers of full-time staff are also responsible for the following monthly costs for each employee:

• Employer’s National Insurance Contributions (NICs) of 13.8% on any salary above the National Insurance Secondary threshold.
• Auto-enrolment pension contributions, the minimum total contribution is 8% in the 2024/25 tax year, with a minimum of 3% coming from the employer and the balance from the employee.
• Employees’ liability insurance.

• Payroll costs

There is also time-consuming employee-related administration to consider. There can be overheads associated with the cost of running an RTI-compliant PAYE payroll system to facilitate Income Tax and NIC deductions from your employee’s pay.

3. Employee entitlements

Employees are entitled to the following non-working days with pay:

• Holiday pay, which includes their leave entitlement plus bank holidays. UK holiday entitlement equates to about 6 weeks’ salary.
• Sick pay, for which employees pay eligible employees £99.35 per week for 28 weeks if they claim Statutory Sick Pay.
• Maternity/Paternity pay, for which you may need to pay employees up to 52 weeks.

4. Training and onboarding

Whether in-house or through an outside company the average cost to a UK business of training new employees is about £1,000 per employee.

5. Overhead expenses

To properly equip a new in-office employee, overhead costs will be incurred. These once-off or repetitive costs can include:

• Suitable office workspace
• Office furniture
• Computer equipment and software
• A phone line
• Extra insurance
• Travel expenses
• Increased utility expenses
• Office consumables, including stationery and refreshments

The pandemic brought on a ‘race for space’

In what has been called a ‘race for space’, the arrival of the Covid pandemic in 2020, saw the UK property market take off – in spite of predictions of a slump. During this property boom, even hard to sell houses were being snapped up. The outcome, according to the Lloyds Banking Group¹, was that at a national level, average UK house prices grew by +20.4% between January 2020 and December 2022.

For Estate Agents to conduct business as usual during lockdown, two things had to happen. In-office support staff had to work from home. And property software providers had to ramp up the development of digital solutions to facilitate remote work and client interaction. Advances in PropTech have since vastly enhanced many estate agency businesses and streamlined processes.

Post-pandemic problems

However, even with the post-Covid downturn in the UK’s domestic property market – and the subsequent equilibrium leading to a predicted upturn – three problems have arisen within Estate Agency’s “new normal”.

1. Technology has ramped up the need for speed and fitting more into each working day.

Yes, technology is an essential tool for automating workflow and facilitating seamless client communication. But it also means that clients have the marketplace at their fingertips 24/7. Prospective clients start their house-hunting online, giving rise to the need to market online, respond instantly to client enquiries and a whole host of other responsibilities that are added to each Estate Agent’s working day.

2. Talent is hard to find.

Even before the pandemic radically changed employees’ expectations and the working environment, a looming talent gap was noted as one of the most pressing concerns facing UK companies. UK-based Estate Agents are particularly hard hit in this regard, as industry-related skills and know-how are hard to find.

3. Remuneration costs are on the rise.

Today, with the cost of living on the increase, not only have salary expectations skyrocketed, younger employees are looking for faster career progression. They are taking on more senior roles without sufficient experience behind them and may quickly move on, changing jobs after a relatively short period of time.

Filling the talent gap – affordably

Award-winning Estate Agent and Mentor, Sanjay Gandhi, from Moss Properties and his Operations Director, Bronwyn Schmidt, quickly spotted the critical need to build an expanded talent pool from which UK Estate Agents could source a wider range of experienced support staff to grow their business.

Sanjay and Bronwyn understand that to be successful, freeing up valuable time and saving money is every Estate Agents’ imperative. They founded VA Central in 2020 to provide each of their UK-based Estate Agent clients with access to a global talent pool whose salary requirements are affordable – in line with the National Living Wage. Every VA Central client gets to take on the best Virtual Assistant to suit a variety of needs from among top quality, English-speaking candidates who reside in a parallel time zone.

How VA Central is transforming UK Estate Agency

Our Virtual Assistants have emerged as a game-changer for more and more UK-based Estate Agents – saving them time and money while supporting their business growth. As our clients’ needs grow, we assist them scale though taking on additional Virtual Assistant support. In this way, the business can adapt quickly to meeting changing demands.

Have you ever worked in an environment where one individual in the team is a nice person but clearly bluffed their way into their job – they don’t have the right skills – or where a person is good at their job but has such a poisonous personality – through grumbling, gossip or spite – that they cause havoc with team relationships. Both these situations can derail efficiency and productivity at a tremendous cost to a company. The costs are felt in lost revenue through inefficiency, fixing mistakes or bad service that loses clients. They are felt in having to pay recruitment costs to replace an unsuitable person and then spend time training someone new.  Plus they are costly in terms of damaging team morale.

Our mission at VA Central is to recruit Virtual Assistant who become valuable, long-standing team members who help each of our clients’ companies to flourish and grow. It’s the reason we take extra care to ensure that our candidates have the right skills and experience – and positive personal attributes that match each clients’ unique culture.

Here are three ways our clients benefit from the quality of our bespoke service:

1. Well-matched, bespoke Virtual Assistants

Every one of our bespoke Virtual Assistants is sourced with a particular client’s needs and culture in mind. Our meticulous selection process involves first getting to know each of our clients and understanding their needs. Only then do we set about sourcing the best candidates for the job. We put the top three candidates forward for a client interview and there have been several instances where the candidates have been of such a high quality that a client decides to employ more than one of them.

2. Skilled and experienced professionals

Only experienced candidates with the right skills make the cut. Successful applicants who make the shortlist are those that have the right tertiary education plus 3 – 5 years’ prior experience working in the role we are looking to fill. We have many instances where senior candidates are keen to work as Virtual Assistants in a first world market. These are highly qualified individuals who are passionate about their work and who are delighted to earn an hourly rate in keeping with the UK’s National Minimum Living Wage.

3. Well-supported through ongoing training and development

We believe in life-long learning – for ourselves and our team of Virtual Assistants. Our clients benefit from our team of VAs being provided with ongoing support through regular training and personal development initiatives. There have been instances where our clients have requested bespoke training for their incoming VA – and of course we have been happy to upskill their VA accordingly.

And there is a fourth benefit. Our clients find it invaluable to take on a Virtual Assistant who lives and works in a compatible time zone so that the whole team’s working day is in sync. Our Virtual Assistants live in a time zone that is only an hour (or two in summer) different to the UK. They enjoy keeping UK office hours. The outcome is that in every way that matters, our VAs are present and working alongside the team, competently handling important routine tasks to free up their boss’s valuable time.

What is the difference between teamwork and collaboration?

Teamwork happens when people work together toward achieving a common goal. The key difference between teamwork and collaboration is that while teamwork entails the individual efforts of team members to achieve a goal, collaboration involves a team of people sharing their ideas and skills, working together to achieve a common goal.

Why are teamwork and collaboration so important?

Teamwork and collaboration are both essential to a company’s success. Each team member has unique talents and skills. When these are shared for a common purpose, it can give a company a profound competitive advantage.

Research agrees that teamwork and collaboration bring these three benefits:

• Working in a team encourages personal growth, increases job satisfaction and reduces stress.
• People are more likely to take calculated risks that lead to innovation and creativity if they have the support of a team behind them.
• Collaborative problem-solving leads to better outcomes.

Integrating VAs into your existing team

Integrating your new Virtual Assistant into your team seamlessly is all about being properly prepared for their arrival. Here are 5 tips for a making your new VA’s entry into the company worthwhile and welcoming:

1. Prepare your existing team

It makes sense that bringing in a new personality with new attributes and capabilities will have an impact on the existing dynamic of the team. Communicate what the new person’s role is and provide information on their background and skillset to get the team excited for their arrival. Use the new person’s onboarding to introduce them and provide insights on each team member.

2. Assign an orientation partner

Having someone appropriate to answer simple questions is a great way to make sure a new person settles in quickly. Then your new VA won’t have to feel spare about interrupting a colleague. A “buddy” can also provide insights that go beyond run-of-the-mill orientation and so should be both loyal and familiar with the company culture.

3. Pre-set up protocols and procedures

Ensure you have things like an email address and logins ready – and that your new VA knows in advance what to expect when they get to work on their first day.

4. Make onboarding a priority

Onboarding should be a priority in your new Virtual Assistant’s first few days of work – including introducing them to their colleagues – and followed by any systems training that is required.  If your company does not have a formal induction programme, ensure you have prepared training manuals and company information to assist your new team member throughout their startup period.

5. Establish which are the best communication channels

You can help your new VA get to grips with which communication channels to use in different circumstances by creating a short and succinct internal communication process document that outlines the purpose of each communication tool and taking them through work in progress to bring them up to speed and illustrate how each of them are put to use. This will help them to be productive right from the get-go.

The UK’s legal requirement to ensure data security and privacy

In the UK, The Data Protection Act 2018 controls how personal information is used by organisations, companies or the government. The Data Protection Act 2018 is the UK’s implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

• The GDPR is set around 7 principles: Lawfulness, Fairness and transparency, Purpose limitation, Data minimization, Accuracy, Storage limitation, Integrity and confidentiality, and Accountability.
• The definition of personal data includes the term “any information” by which the subject of the data is identifiable:

“Especially by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or one of several special characteristics, which expresses the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, commercial, cultural or social identity of these natural persons.”

Why is data security important?

In business, the main purpose of data security is to protect a company’s data that contains trade information or customer data. Unprotected data can be accessed by cybercriminals for malicious reasons and so compromise customer privacy. Data security is important because if a data breach does occur, a company can be exposed to litigation, fines and reputational damage.

Ensuring data security in remote teams

As technology allows organisations collect more and more data, effective governance and access management protocols are essential to scaling data use without losing control. While companies reap the benefits of reduced overheads when taking on Virtual Assistants, remote working has precipitated new cybersecurity threats and risks that could impact negatively on a business.

Training your Virtual Assistants on data security protocols

When it comes to any security, people can inadvertently be the weakest link. One of the most important aspects of data security is education. Educate yourself and your Virtual Assistants about UK data protection legalities and about the latest trends, threats, tools and best practices in data security – as well as drilling them to adopt and maintain secure data sharing habits.

Here are 7 best practices for protecting and sharing sensitive information:

1. Encrypt sensitive data: Article 32 of the UK GDPR includes encryption as an example of an appropriate technical measure, depending on the nature and risks of your processing activities. If sensitive data must be stored on local computer hard drives, external hard drives, or flash memory drives it must be encrypted using security-approved encryption methods.
2. Safeguard information to which you have access: Ensure you and every member of your team chooses strong passwords and changes them often. Do not leave paper documents containing sensitive information unattended. You should also update or delete the information as needed, disposing of it securely when it is no longer needed.
3. Adhere to policy: Everyone in the company should know and adhere strictly to relevant policies. You may be bound by company policy, professional codes of conduct, legal obligations, or ethical standards that govern how you handle sensitive information. Insist that every team member sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that prohibits the improper sharing of sensitive information.
4. Restrict access: The best way to alleviate internal security breaches is by restricting access to as appropriate to each role. Access control systems allow company IT admins to define who within the company can access which files and networks.
5. Get consent: Consent means that the subject of the data agrees for you to hold and share the information having understood why the information is necessary, how you will use it, store it and protect it.
6. Use discretion when sharing: Before sharing any sensitive information (be it with a trusted colleague or vendor) ask yourself why you are doing it. Is it relevant, necessary and essential for a set purpose?
7. Monitor and evaluate: Put your internal processes to the test to ensure preserving data integrity and security. Keep track of what information is shared, with whom and for what purpose to avoid negative outcomes and trouble-shoot if need be.

Your Virtual Assistant should be seen as an integral part of your team – not a “bolt on” employee who works from afar. Due to your VA working remotely, building a strong working relationship will not begin with face-to-face onboarding or being able to pop into each other’s offices to get an update or answer questions. Instead, it will entail structured interaction, using digital communication tools and automated systems. However, what does not vary is that it will be forged through mutual commitment to the success of the business and regular two-way communication.

Building a strong working relationship takes time. It is not passive or self-sustaining – it takes continual input and action. Practically speaking, from your VA’s perspective, their commitment to building a strong working relationship is founded on their dedication to doing their job well and turning in work of a high standard – along with a positive can-do attitude. From the business owner’s side, it has its foundation in a commitment to thorough onboarding and any training needed, followed by regular communication and support – and consciously creating a work environment that nurtures engagement and builds a sense of belonging. One of the main benefits of building a strong working relationship is that it engenders trust.

Creating a positive virtual working environment lies at the heart of maintaining a strong working relationship with your VA – or any member of your team. One of the most positive aspects of taking on Virtual Assistants is that it allows remote members of the team to keep to office hours while also having the flexibility to see to personal commitments. This enabling of work-life balance contributes to a happy working environment.

Setting clear expectations for your newly appointed Virtual Assistant is of vital importance and should be seen as part of the upfront onboarding process. Establishing your expectations from the get-go will not only support your VA in quickly getting up to speed on the key performance essentials of their new position, it will pave the way for their being efficient and productive down the line and will support their positive engagement with the team.

First make your expectations clear for yourself

It is impossible to build a set of clear expectations with your VA if you haven’t first determined what you need and defined these expectations for yourself.  Here is a simple, five-pronged approach when thinking through your expectations:

1. What is my objective or end goal?
2. What steps are there to completing the job?
3. What is the required timing – and is this realistic?
4. What does my measure of “good” look like?
5. Are there any examples I can refer to?

How to set goals and expectations with your VA

Once you are clear you can set expectations for tasks and goals with your VA. Here are 3 helpful hints when establishing what you require:

• Provide context: Explain why certain expectations are in place. When your VA understands the rationale behind your expectations, they are more likely to engage wholeheartedly with the task at hand.
• Be specific: Being specific, ideally using clear written communication, helps to avoid misunderstandings by plainly outlining the desired outcome of a task as well as the series of steps needed to complete it. Your expectations become particularly specific when they are connected to metrics such as Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The metrics used must be clearly defined and measurable.
• Be realistic: It is important for you to understand the time it takes to do each task to set realistic expectations when considering resources and your VA’s capabilities. Overburdening your Virtual Assistant can lead to mistakes, time wasted, demoralisation, a drop in productivity and burnout.

Setting an effective task list

Creating a structured task list provides a blow-by-blow road map to effectively getting things done. This entails listing all the tasks that your VA is responsible to complete.

• Some tasks on the list will be routine and repetitive.
• Other tasks will be once-off initiatives.
• Larger jobs and projects will require first breaking down the task into “sub tasks” or the elements that make up the whole. In this case, a series of deadlines for each sub task can be set toward completing the overall task.

Today, people tend to see work and their personal lives as equally important. They make conscious career and work choices based on achieving work-life balance. Work-life balance can be defined as the equilibrium between one’s work and personal life, where one aspect does not swamp the other. What makes for work-life balance is unique to every individual.

With the rise in hybrid and remote work, work-life balance requires the dovetailing of work and personal life – or work-life integration – where work and personal lives fit together side by side in the best possible way.

• For workers, work-life integration is made possible through enjoying a flexible work schedule. It is this flexible work schedule that makes work as a Virtual Assistant so attractive to many experienced and capable VAs.
• For business owners, by delegating tasks to Virtual Assistants and reclaiming valuable time, they can lead a more fulfilling and balanced life, personally and professionally. Plus it is the key to a growing and thriving business.

Here are five ways taking on a Virtual Assistant can help you achieve work-life balance:

• Free up valuable work time

A top-notch and experienced Virtual Assistant will take over time-consuming routine tasks like administrative work, project management, bookkeeping, social media management, and so much more. This frees up your schedule so you can concentrate on priority tasks with a strategic business benefit.

• Improve overall productivity

Assigning tasks to a tech savvy VA will significantly streamline workflow and enhance productivity. With their passion for what they do, dedicated focus, and understanding of the latest digital technology, VAs often complete tasks more accurately and in less time than you would – with better outcomes.

• Reduce work and financial stress

By capably handling routine tasks, Virtual Assistants can significantly alleviate stress. With the assurance that your team is competently handling operational detail, you can focus on what you do best. Virtual Assistants are also an extremely cost-effective way to add more hands to your business, in an era when cost-efficiency is vital to success.

• Enhance personal time

When it comes to avoiding burnout, paying attention to your personal life (without feeling guilty that you are taking time out) is as important as a manageable professional life. Whether you want to spend quality time with family, pursue a hobby, or take a holiday, a Virtual Assistant can free up personal time and can be trusted to oversee day to day operations while you take a break.

• Improved wellbeing for all

A business owner’s poor work-life balance can hurt their own employees. Reduced stress and more personal time result in better focus and energy at work and being more present in your personal life. Achieving a better work-life balance will significantly contribute to your overall physical and mental wellbeing – and benefit those around you.

As a UK Estate Agent, finding ways to maximise efficiency and curtail costs is the key to achieving long-term success. Nothing saves you more time than delegating tasks to a Virtual Assistant. Today’s Virtual Assistants are supremely versatile. If there is a task that can be done remotely, there is an appropriately skilled VA who is able to take it off your plate – from appointment scheduling and email management to market research, CRM, sales and letting administration, social media marketing and bookkeeping.

How can you make the most of working with a Virtual Assistant?

The answer lies in creating a daily success plan that alleviates the need to micromanage your VA while keeping your finger on the pulse of what is happening in your business. Technology is very helpful in this regard, offering a range of online work and project management tools that allow for remote team interaction, project planning, implementation and tracking.  However, in the beginning, extra communication is key.

Here are five considerations when creating your daily success plan:

1. Clearly define your VA’s role

Know upfront what you want from your Virtual Assistant. Is your VA full or half-day? Decide which of their duties have the highest priorities before guiding them in allocating their time and resources.

2. Establish parameters for the working day

Establish the times when each of the team – both remote and in office – will be working and available for interaction. This should include the hours they will take breaks or be away from their desks for personal activities.

3. Have realistic expectations − time is limited

To avoid your VA being overcommitted (which can lead to them being overwhelmed – especially as they settle into the position) work out how much time, realistically, is needed for them to complete each task.

4. Be flexible

There is much research that supports the idea that the length of a workday is irrelevant. What matters is how people structure their day. People who take regular short breaks are far more productive than those who work without stopping for a break. Flexible work arrangements can offer an advantage to businesses and their people. Employees appreciate having flexible schedules, as it can make it easier for them to achieve work-life balance.

1. Always rank tasks in order of importance and urgency

• Prioritise tasks according to importance

If two projects must be worked on simultaneously, but one is more urgent than the other communicate which project is to be completed first.

• Prioritise tasks according to urgency

If something must be done quickly, but not necessarily immediately, have your VA prioritise it accordingly in their to do list.