All business owners will agree that, without help, you won’t have a business. This is particularly true for legal firms, where the complexities involved in even the simplest tasks can quickly overwhelm you and your lawyers. Therefore, the traditional approach for assisting business owners and legal professionals has been via a legal assistant. Tradition, of course, is good, but it’s not the definitive or best solution. That’s why legal virtual assistants represent such an exciting option.
An In-Depth Guide to Legal Virtual Assistants
Legal virtual assistants are an exciting sector of the rapidly growing virtual assistant industry. But what exactly puts the ‘virtual’ into a legal virtual assistant? It’s an excellent question and one which can be answered simply: the internet. Yes, legal virtual assistants are powered and provided by the internet.
However, rather than being an automated bot that infuriates your clients with generic, unhelpful responses, a virtual legal assistant is a living, breathing individual. So, in many ways, they are the same as your everyday legal assistant, but with one difference: they work remotely.
Whereas a legal assistant will turn up to your premises to work their allocated hours, their virtual counterpart could be living on the other side of town, in a different country, time zone or even hemisphere. And this is where the internet comes in. In the past, remote working had a bad reputation due to poor internet speeds and unreliable connections. But this is now a thing of the past thanks to high-speed broadband and enhanced reliability. Accordingly, as long as a virtual assistant has an internet connection and a PC, they can connect to your IT system.
This virtual presence positions them perfectly to tackle your workload and provide support. Not only can virtual assistants adapt to your needs, but they can streamline your daily operations. This scenario grants you more time and freedom to focus on what truly matters. So, if you want your legal firm’s productivity to soar to new heights, it’s time to move your focus from legal assistants to legal virtual assistants.
Why Do You Need a Legal Virtual Assistant?
Now that you understand the mechanics of a virtual assistant, it’s time to dig deeper and discover why there’s such a difference when it comes to a legal assistant vs. legal virtual assistant. Thankfully, the benefits that legal virtual assistants bring are numerous:
Cost savings:
One of the most significant advantages of hiring legal virtual assistants is the cost savings they offer. As they work remotely, there’s no need for you to invest in the expenses associated with having an in-house employee. This means no office space, equipment, benefits, or taxes. And, by reducing your overheads, you can allocate your budget more efficiently, invest in other areas of your business, and even save money. These savings are clear to see and guarantee that a virtual assistant is a cost-effective solution.
Global talent pool:
The beauty of hiring a virtual assistant is that it instantly opens up your options to a much wider range of talent. Instead of being limited to candidates in your local area, you can find the perfect fit for the job, no matter where they are based. This means you can tap into a diverse range of skills, backgrounds, and perspectives. With access to this huge pool of talent, you are significantly increasing your chances of finding the perfect candidate.
Time zone benefits:
The global nature of legal virtual assistants grants them an undeniable benefit that in-house legal assistants simply can’t offer. Due to the difference in time zones, virtual assistants can easily handle tasks outside of your normal working hours. So, for example, if your team is working on an important case that is time-dependent, you don’t have to worry about the end of the day. When 5pm comes, you simply delegate the task to a virtual assistant who can work overnight and have it ready for you in the morning.
Enhanced focus:
Virtual assistants are defined by their remote nature, and it’s a factor that has been shown to enhance focus. We all know just how distracting an office can be, with conversations and debates often taking employees away from the work they should be doing. But legal virtual assistants don’t have this problem. Working off-site, they can concentrate on their allocated duties without the risk of distractions eating into their productivity. The result is that tasks are completed more quickly and to a higher standard.
Quicker training times:
Taking on a new employee always results in a drop in productivity for your team. This stems from the training schedule required to get a new employee up to scratch. Not only does it take time for the new starter to get to grips with your business, but more established employees have to take time out of their schedule to complete the training. Luckily, legal virtual assistants come fully trained in the most common legal administration tasks and software packages e.g. MyCase and Lawmatics. As a result, virtual assistants can minimize the onboarding time and get to work much quicker.
Increased flexibility:
One of the major benefits of virtual assistants is their unparalleled flexibility. With virtual assistants, you have the freedom to set flexible working hours which align with your specific needs. They can adapt their schedules to accommodate different time zones or urgent tasks, and this element ensures that you never have to break your productivity flow. Additionally, remote assistants are often more willing to accommodate sudden changes or adjust their workload to meet demand. Ultimately, this flexibility will enhance your productivity and ensure you always get support when you need it.
Specialized experience:
Legal administrative work is highly complex and isn’t something that just anyone can dive into. Therefore, you need assistants who have experience with legal documents and terminology. In your local area, however, this is going to be limited. But going global with legal virtual assistants gives you a much better chance of securing that professional with a wealth of experience. This expertise will instantly enhance the quality and efficiency of your administrative efforts, and your legal firm’s results will only be going upward.
Taking That Next Step With Legal Virtual Assistants
There are numerous compelling reasons for making the switch from legal assistants to legal virtual assistants. Not only is there the cost savings and global talent pool to consider but also the increased productivity that remote workers are so adept at delivering. Furthermore, opening your employment options up to a global scale increases your chances of locating and securing specialized knowledge for your legal firm.
Where, though, do you find these amazing legal virtual assistants? They may not grow on trees, but pineapples do! And that’s why Pineapple can help connect you with the very best virtual assistants in the legal industry. As well as offering you high quality virtual assistants, we can also do this at highly competitive prices. So, if you want to find out how to take that next step, just click here to get in touch with us.
