The e-commerce sector is huge, and with the market expected to hit over $70 trillion by 2028, it’s one that is highly lucrative. However, with such attractive financial figures on offer, it should come as no surprise that competition is fierce. This means that finding a competitive edge is crucial. These edges, though, are closely guarded secrets among those who know them. Luckily, Pineapple is a VA company that knows that one of these secrets concerns virtual assistants. And, even better, we’re going to show you how to hire an e-commerce virtual assistant for a website.
What is a Virtual Assistant?
Trading as a VA company for several years, Pineapple has learned all the insights and knowledge there is when it comes to virtual assistants. But we’re well aware that not everyone else has made this their day-to-day focus. And that’s why we’re going to give you a virtual assistant 101.
So, if you want to know how to hire an e-commerce virtual assistant for a website, you need to start with the basics. The good thing is that you already know the basics. A virtual assistant is the same as any other administrative assistant in your organization. They complete the tasks put in front of them and push your business forwards. However, when we say that a virtual assistant is the same, they aren’t an exact carbon copy. But, don’t worry, these small differences allow you to make some huge gains.
Firstly, a virtual assistant is unlikely to ever step foot within your business premises. And this is because they don’t have to. The development of high speed internet services has made remote working more than a possibility. In fact, many commentators are suggesting that remote working is better for business. So, as long as a virtual assistant has a PC and an internet connection, they should be able to plumb themselves directly into your IT infrastructure. This means that they can be located anywhere in the world, with the Philippines proving to be one of the most popular sources and where 100% of our virtual assistants are based.
Secondly, and perhaps most appealing to busy, modern businesses, there’s no need to take a virtual assistant on a permanent contract. This means that you can introduce a level of flexibility to your workforce which you previously thought was impossible. If you only need help on a specific task for a few hours, days or weeks, there will be a virtual assistant readily available to fill this gap. Not only does this improve your organization’s ability to be scalable when necessary, it also represents a more cost-effective staffing solution.
What Are the Benefits of a Virtual Assistant?
A virtual assistant, or course, is more than just a remote worker with flexibility. In fact, compared to a traditional in-house employee, they boast a wide range of benefits for business owners. The most attractive benefits they have to offer are:
Access to global talent:
due to their remote setting, a virtual assistant can be based anywhere on the planet. This means that businesses aren’t limited to settling for local talent who live within the immediate area. Instead, your virtual assistant could be based in a different state, continent, or hemisphere. Naturally, this opens you up to a much bigger and diverse pool of talent. The chances of finding your perfect employee, therefore, are increased and ensures you have the strongest workforce you can.
Cost efficiency:
one of the most attractive benefits of hiring a virtual assistant from a VA company is that there are a number of cost savings to take advantage of. With cost savings of up to 78% on offer, hiring a virtual assistant warrants serious consideration for any business. Aside from not having to provide any equipment – all you have to do is provide your virtual assistant with login credentials – there is no need to contribute towards holiday pay, retirement funds, or even sickness pay. This enables your organization to invest these savings into more cost-effective investments such as technology upgrades and improved services.
24/7 availability:
e-commerce is a 24/7 industry, and more and more businesses are finding that they need to offer 24/7 support. However, this is difficult to manage due to the number of employees who are required to cover both day and evening shifts. Thankfully, as many virtual assistants are based in different time zones, slotting them into hours which appear to be unsocial and difficult for your in-house employees is straightforward. This improves the work/life balance for all your employees and allows you to maintain that competitive edge.
Enhanced productivity:
the backbone of any successful business is excellent productivity, but there’s always room for improvement. And having a virtual assistant on your team enables you to push your productivity upwards. Highly conscientious, virtual assistants will seamlessly integrate themselves into your workplace and take care of any administrative burdens you have. This gives your in-house employees the opportunity to free themselves from time consuming paperwork and, instead, focus on more strategic operations which will boost your productivity.
The Duties of an E-commerce Virtual Assistant
The benefits of a virtual assistant are many, and if you have read this far, it’s clear that you want to know how to hire an e-commerce virtual assistant. But while you now have a firm understanding of the benefits they can bring to a business, what exactly can they bring to your e-commerce business? It’s a good question and one that any VA company worth its salt should be able to answer, so here’s what an e-commerce virtual assistant can do:
Inventory management:
Once you know how to hire an e-commerce virtual assistant, you will have the luxury of knowing that your inventory is well managed. And this is crucial in e-commerce. Your inventory needs to be meticulously monitored and constantly analyzed. After all, if your inventory isn’t managed closely, there’s a risk that your customers will be ordering products you no longer hold stock of. But this isn’t a problem with an e-commerce virtual assistant on board. They can ensure that stock levels are optimized, conduct inventory audits, and contribute towards maximum efficiency of the supply chain.
Content creation:
Compelling product listings are essential if you want your products to sell. The best way to do this involves writing engaging and informative descriptions alongside optimizing content for search engines. All of this is important, but it may feel like an impossible task. After all, creating engaging narratives for hundreds of products is very time-consuming. However, e-commerce virtual assistants know how to manage their time efficiently to research keywords, enhance the marketing appeal of your content and, most importantly, use it to move customers down the conversion funnel.
Order processing:
Orders are vital when it comes to succeeding in the e-commerce industry, but it’s not just enough to have orders. You need to make sure they are processed correctly. Remember, customers want their orders promptly, and they want what they ordered. Attention to detail, therefore, is paramount here. And this is exactly what an e-commerce virtual assistant can deliver. By confirming orders and verifying payment details, they can ensure that the correct details are forwarded to your order fulfilment and logistics teams. Orders can then be dispatched and delivered to satisfied customers.
Customer support:
Communication is important in any business, but it’s doubly important in e-commerce. The customer, after all, is king and they need to feel as though they are being listened to. However the sheer range of queries they have can be difficult to process. Thankfully, a dedicated e-commerce virtual assistant is trained to handle this. With a strong focus on maintaining high customer satisfaction, a virtual assistant can quickly devise solutions and respond promptly and accurately to customer concerns. This dedication will enhance your brand’s reputation and help foster customer loyalty.
Market research:
If you want to remain successful in e-commerce, you need to make market research one of your main priorities. The problem is that keeping one eye on industry trends and actually running an e-commerce business is a big ask. That’s why it helps to know how to hire an e-commerce virtual assistant. Once you have secured one from a VA company, you can rest assured that they will be able to analyze industry trends, investigate customer preferences, and monitor the activities of your competitors. This allows your business to remain proactive in market research, and also ensures your time is used efficiently.
How to Hire an E-commerce Virtual Assistant
By now, you should be fully versed in not only what a virtual assistant is. But also how an e-commerce virtual assistant can transform your business. This is excellent, but there’s one small problem: you need to know how to hire an e-commerce virtual assistant. The chances are that you haven’t done this before, so you may be struggling to figure out where to start. As always, the best place to start is with an expert. Therefore, if you want to connect with a VA company with years of experience and success, you need to get in touch with Pineapple.
As a successful VA company, we have helped numerous businesses who have wanted to know how to hire an e-commerce virtual assistant. We have been able to do this due to the contacts we have built up and the huge talent pool we have access to. So, if you want to get your business moving forward in a new and exciting direction, drop us a line today by clicking here.
