Hiring Subcontractors: How to Keep Costs Low and Quality High

Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

I was recently asked by a journalist for my advice about how to hire a virtual assistant (VA). I started my business as a virtual assistant over 8 years ago and as an internet marketing consultant I’ve hired all kinds of subcontractors for a wide variety of tasks. Since I’ve been on both sides of the equation I hoped my answer makes life easier for both parties.

It sucks to overspend on a project and not get what you expected. It also sucks to have unhappy clients due to miscommunication. That’s why the #1 most important piece of advice I would give any one looking to hire a virtual assistant is to write down in as much detail as possible what you need them to do. You might think “Oh I just need them to do data entry” or “I just need them to update my website.” But once you starting writing down what you mean by data entry or website updates, you will be surprised at the variety of tasks involved.

Before you start looking for and interviewing possible candidates, you need to answer the following questions in as much detail as possible:

1. What exactly do you need this person to do?
The more detail the better. I explain why below.
2. How often will they do it?
Is this daily, weekly, monthly or as needed. You don’t want them assuming it’s a fulltime job if it’s not.
3. What skills are necessary to get the task done?
Don’t forget the soft skills like excellent communication or attention to detail.
4. What software programs are necessary to get the task done?
5. What is the pay range for these tasks?
What would you pay someone you have to teach versus expecting they can run with the task?
Do you want to start them at an intro rate with the ability to make more once they prove themselves?
6. Are you paying by the piece or by the hour?
I try to pay on a project basis as much as possible. That way I know what I’m spending and they know what they’re making. When project based pay is not possible, I give the person a range of how long I expect it will take with an understanding to check in at about the 30% point so we cal see how it’s going and re-evaluate the agreement.

Getting Clear on What You Need a Subcontractor to Do
A request I often hear from people is “I need someone to update my website.” That may sound clear but it actually covers a lot of ground. To decide who to hire, you need to have a clear picture of their skill level. You need to answer questions like:
 What pages will they update? Are they just copy pasting text or do they need to know HTML well enough to add images and format the page?
 Will they be adding products to a shopping cart?
 Will they adding blog posts? If so what systems do the need to know? WordPress or Blogger?
 Do they need to know how to use a online content management system or do they need to have Dreamweaver? (An expensive but often necessary program for updating websites.)

The answers to these questions will determine if you can hire someone at $20 an hour or you need someone who will likely charge you $60 an hour.

The Key To Keeping Costs Low and Quality High
Another important reason for answering these questions is that if you need a variety of tasks done, you might need more than one person. For example, if you need data entry, travel arrangements, copy editing and website updates, you probably need to hire three different people. Other wise you wind up paying too much for data entry or get poorly done copy editing and website updates.

Far too often business people try to hire one person to do it all. They interview a virtual assistant who assures them they can do it all while they’re thinking to themselves “I’ll figure it out.” You don’t want someone “figuring it out” on your dime (unless that’s part of the agreement). In the long run understanding what are logical skill sets and hiring accordingly will help you keep costs low and quality high.

If you’ve spent some time thinking about your answers to the questions above writing a job description doesn’t have to take more than about 20 minutes. If you’re looking for someone online, you’re going to need this info any way so just take the time and write it down!

Resources:
Writing Job Descriptions:
http://www.howtodothings.com/business/how-to-write-a-job-description
http://www.entrepreneur.com/humanresources/hiring/article56490.html
http://blogs.payscale.com/compensation/2009/03/how-to-write-a-job-description.html

Tags: hiring subcontractors virtual assistant
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