News Archives - Virtual Latinos

Spotlight on Guatemala

News
16Aug '20
0

Few countries in the world can boast of the same rich history and culture as Guatemala. Once the cradle of the Mayan civilization, it has long-standing art, music, textile, literary, agricultural, and architectural traditions, among others. The many sacred Mayan sites preserved in the dense jungle are a driving force growing tourism in Guatemala; some sites receive nearly half a million visitors each year. Indigenous textiles, woven with vibrant colors and often embroidered by hand, are some of the most sought after in the world.

Although much of Guatemala’s history and traditions are rooted firmly in the past, modern technology is also an enormous part of everyday life for a considerable portion of the population. For example, Guatemala has the largest economy in Central America, and its growth has been steady but slow. With a GDP that’s still substantially smaller than most countries in the global north, it’s no wonder that so many young professionals are turning to remote work for companies in the United States.

What Are Some Benefits for Virtual Assistants Working Remotely From Guatemala?

Better PayScale, Across the Board

The pay scales in the United States are frequently more than double those found in Guatemala. For example, this means that a university-educated professional living in Guatemala City would make more than twice as much working remotely for a US-based company. It’s a smart, professional decision.

Remote Work Saves Time

As in the United States, doing remote work in Guatemala saves people time by sparing them sometimes lengthy commutes. Traffic congestion is a real problem throughout Guatemala, but especially in the cities where most professionals reside. Working remotely means that people can reclaim hours of their day, rather than being stuck in traffic jams.

Compensation in a More Stable Currency

With the US dollar being one of the more stable currencies globally, it’s a logical choice for professionals to make.

Professional Development

Dedicated virtual assistants working remotely from Guatemala also can develop connections in the international market and utilize their English skills regularly. This kind of experience is difficult for many professionals to acquire otherwise.

More Time With Family

Family throughout Guatemala is highly valued, and working remotely gives professionals more time to spend with their loved ones.

For many virtual assistants, working remotely offers the perfect combination of advantages. Flor Ganzaro, who works remotely for Virtual Latinos, has nothing but praise for her experiences working with US-based companies. She says,

Just a month after I started working for my client/employer, I was promoted to a new position, which has implied new learning, new challenges, and a huge satisfaction to know that my work is being appreciated. … I have nothing but gratitude and appreciation for the opportunity of working for Virtual Latinos. If anyone is fluent in English, looking for a safe and legitimate form of online work, whichever their set of skills, I encourage them to put aside any fears and insecurities; they can find a great job opportunity.

How Does Hiring a Virtual Assistant in Guatemala Help Your Business?

When companies decide to hire virtual assistants, it’s also a decision to hire quality professional assistants who can ease many of the burdens of everyday operations. In short, if it can be done remotely, a dedicated virtual assistant can do it.

What Sort of Tasks Can a Virtual Assistant Help Perform?

  • One standard function of virtual assistants is to manage a company’s social media. From posting to responding to comments, even creating marketing campaigns, our virtual assistants have you covered in the social media world.
  • Virtual assistants regularly take over phone duties, making and answering client calls as well as making appointments.
  • You can finally unburden yourself from emails when you hire a virtual assistant, as well. They can help with email inquiries, digital newsletters, invoicing, and more.

Many cultural similarities exist (from business to family values) between Guatemala and the United States, owing to their intertwined histories, which makes the partnerships between virtual assistants in Guatemala and US-based companies particularly beneficial. Additionally, they’re usually working in the same time zone, which makes coordinating that much easier.

Here’s what one client of Virtual Latinos had to say:

I needed someone who could answer questions and help customers and hired from you guys; that’s what the VAs do; they do their work and took that work away from me, which is why we hired them, so yes, they are helping us achieve our goals. – Ian Einheiber, Highlevel, LLC

More and more companies are going the way of hiring a virtual assistant from Latin America because it just makes sense. Contact us today to get started!

A Snapshot of Mexico: Your Gateway to Successful Nearshoring

News
25Jul '20
0

Why Mexico Is a Prime Source of the Best Virtual Assistants in the Americas

Mexico is one of the fastest-growing economies in Latin America and home to some of the most beautiful scenery in the Western Hemisphere. The United Mexican States are home to nearly 125 million people and the country’s GDP has steadily climbed since 2016. Visitors can enjoy an incredible range of amazing places to see and interesting things to do, from exploring the coastal Mayan ruins at Tulum to relaxing on the beaches of Cancun and Playa del Carmen along the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. Mexico is an undeniably beautiful country that has continued to grow rapidly in many ways.

One of the best things about Mexico is the diverse range of rapidly expanding industries. For US-based businesses, this means many opportunities to expand into territories and captivate new audiences more easily thanks to bilingual, highly vetted, and easily accessible support. If your organization could use the help of a Latino virtual assistant, hiring a virtual assistant from Mexico could be a gateway to many new and surprising opportunities for your business.

Why Hire a Virtual Assistant from Mexico?

Many opportunities for outsourcing virtual assistant services exist all over the world, but many American companies encounter common difficulties when working with offshore companies far from the US. Mexico not only shares time zones with most of the United States, but Mexican business values are very similar to those held by American businesses. This makes it much easier for top virtual assistant companies employing Mexican virtual assistants like Virtual Latinos to provide dedicated virtual assistants to companies in the US with minimal onboarding time.

A virtual assistant from Mexico will be familiar with United States business norms and conversational trends, so it will be easy for your new virtual assistant to start coordinating with your team, your partners, and even your customers. Virtual assistants from Mexico are also incredibly engaged with their work, taking full advantage of their ability to work from home to balance their professional and personal lives:

“I love working at Virtual Latinos because it is an authentic project, with ethics, that cares about its assistants and is always there for us. It’s also given me the opportunity to continue to develop my professional career from anywhere. It provides me the flexibility to combine my work as a VA and as a mother of three children. Every day I am more grateful, happy, and proud to be part of Virtual Latinos.” -Yelia, Virtual Assistant from Mexico for Virtual Latinos.

“Virtual Latinos gives me the opportunity to work from home and be more productive. I love deciding my schedule and from where I work. Jaime is really involved in every project, you won’t feel like you are on your own, he’ll coach you from the beginning, so you can feel comfortable from the very first day.” -Pepe, Virtual Assistant from Mexico for Virtual Latinos.

These are just a few examples of how virtual assistants from Mexico can be some of the best virtual assistants your company ever hires. They understand American business practices, hold similar values, work in an agreeable time zone that enables easy coordination with American companies and their clients, and truly enjoy the work they do. Bilingual virtual assistants can also open new doors for companies breaking into Spanish-speaking communities or markets in Latin America.

Investing in a Virtual Assistant from Mexico Can Help Grow Your Business

If you’re wondering how to hire a virtual assistant from Mexico to assist your company with a wide variety of business-critical tasks, it’s as easy as contacting Virtual Latinos for an in-depth explanation of all the various ways a new virtual assistant based in Mexico can assist your organization. One of the benefits of working with a virtual assistant based in Mexico is the close proximity to the US. This affords your organization with easier travel options, close cultural relations, and in-depth familiarity with US norms, pop culture, and social trends.

Trust Virtual Latinos to Provide an Experienced Virtual Assistant from Mexico for Your Business

Business professionals in Mexico and the United States have much in common, and many American companies turn to outsourcing to help them solve gaps in their operations in a cost-effective manner. However, looking too far outside the US and trusting an offshore outsourcing company comes with a host of potential frustrations.

Choose a closer option, and work with some of the best virtual assistants on this side of the world by trusting Virtual Latinos. We have a wide network of experienced and highly vetted virtual assistants working from Mexico, Honduras, the Dominican Republic, and throughout Latin America that can help your company grow with added confidence. Contact Virtual Latinos today to learn more about the virtual assistant services we offer.

How Virtual Assistants Could be the Key to Your Small Business Staying Afloat through COVID-19

News
6May '20
0

Why You Should Hire Virtual Assistants to Help Expand Your Reach

These are not easy times to be a small to medium business owner. In the face of the rising COVID-19 global pandemic, many of us are left with questions about what moving forward during and after this crisis means. Perhaps the biggest question of them all being:

“How do we move forward, quickly, before getting left behind?”

We get it. Many small businesses are in the process of having to completely re-structure their day-to-day operations, which is a lot of work and takes a great amount of logistical coordination. Think about some of the changes we’re seeing in so many small businesses in the past months:

  • In order to just stay open, restaurants are shifting over to online ordering with take-out and delivery only.
  • Yoga studios are moving their classes to Zoom, Skype, and other platforms.
  • Accountants are telecommuting with their clients and solely accepting digitized documents.
  • Various places of worship have begun to offer streaming services and private video counseling rather than meeting in person.
  • Many small retail shops are finding themselves jumping into online e-commerce, some for the very first time.

These kinds of expansions can feel intimidating to small business owners, even given appropriate amounts of time and under the best of circumstances. However, whether your business is considered “essential” or not right now, it is probably time for some overhauling of your processes. Our world is changing and adapting to that fact is more important than ever.

At this moment, the common thread we see in businesses that are thriving amidst the COVID-19 pandemic is the ability to adapt and incorporate technology into their daily operations and in their deliverable products. Technology is more accessible than ever before, and it’s allowing so many businesses to reach wider audiences and brand new markets.

Remote work has never seen such high numbers – and it’s not just in the U.S.; it’s around the world, and the current global pandemic has created an increased necessity for it. While there is no way to make your small business completely “pandemic-proof,” there’s one easy step you can take to keep the chaos of the moment at bay as you move forward – you can hire virtual assistants (and do it without breaking the bank).

Regardless of what kind of business you run, chances are that you need extra help right now and aren’t necessarily in a position to hire more in-house staff. Do you dream of being able to delegate tasks like email or database management? Is a ringing phone keeping you from managing other tasks? A Virtual Assistant might be the solution to many (if not all) of your problems.

What Are Some of the Benefits to Hiring a Virtual Assistant?

Probably the single most important thing a virtual assistant can do for you is provide relief from the day to day processes that slow you down from actually running your business. We are all feeling a little overwhelmed these days, but imagine if you had an assistant who could take a few tasks off your hands every day and lighten your workload? There are many benefits when you hire a Virtual Assistant, some of which you may not have even imagined (yet).

Virtual assistants already know how to work remotely

In a time when remote work is new to many, it won’t be to your virtual assistant. It’s likely that they’ve been working remotely for much longer than most. Virtual assistants can help streamline the process for you and won’t need the training or long “onboarding” time that is typical of a new employee, especially in a remote environment.

If your entire business is shifting to a remote-work model, as many are, they can also help you train your current employees to do so efficiently. This is vital in maintaining clear communication within any company, and a virtual assistant is just the kind of person who can facilitate this for you.

Handling all of your marketing tasks just got easier.
Do you spend an inordinate amount of time writing promotions and putting together other marketing content? There are virtual assistants who specialize in this and can handle the work for you, from afar. This includes:

  • Web Design
    Many small businesses don’t update their websites as frequently as they want or need to due to lack of time and/or ability. If you hire virtual assistants, they can do this for you. They are well-versed in most standard webtools and can quickly update your website to reflect the daily changes in our lives (and your business) during a global health crisis and beyond.
  • Social Media Monitoring
    One of the major time-sinks that many small business owners lament having to worry about is social media. Whether it’s post updates, keeping stories current, comment monitoring, or responding to customer questions and reviews, it’s time consuming and not necessarily the best use of your working hours. Virtual assistants know their way around social media, since, in addition to having formal backgrounds in technology and media, most of them have grown up with it. They can help you improve your content, increase engagement on your posts, and chat with your following.
  • Blog or Newsletter Writing
    If your small business maintains a blog or sends out a newsletter, you know how easy it is to get behind on updates, especially when daily operations take precedent. Whether you’re a flower shop or a property management company, chances are, you need to be reaching out more to your clients, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Let your virtual assistant help create regular blogs or newsletter posts to keep your public informed and aware of what you offer and what (if anything) is changing.
  • Branding, Graphic Design
    If you are one of the many businesses moving to e-commerce, you have undoubtedly realized how important both branding and graphic design are. Many virtual assistants specialize in these areas and can do the work for you at a fraction of the cost of a graphic design firm.

Aside from the various marketing-related tasks you can have taken care of when you hire virtual assistants, there are still many more daily and weekly items to consider being able to free yourself of.

  • Payroll
    Managing payroll can be time consuming, especially for small business owners who may not have a dedicated division or staff member to handle it. This is another task that a virtual assistant can take on, so you don’t have to.
  • Customer Support
    Virtual assistants can and do regularly handle customer support for small businesses from property management companies to yoga studios and even accountants. If your accounting firm were to go entirely online, wouldn’t it be nice to have a dedicated staff member to contact clients and prepare them for what they’ll need to have digitized before your video chat with them?
  • Employee Support
    If you are changing day-to-day operations of your business but keeping your staff on (remotely or otherwise), this is a really great way to make sure they feel supported. A virtual assistant can field any questions your staff might have and be the central hub for announcements, changes, and updates.
  • Market Research
    Even if you are unsure which direction to take your small business in during a global pandemic, a virtual assistant can find this information for you! Market research on similar business types is essential to see what is working and what isn’t in these highly unprecedented times.

Other Reasons to Consider Hiring a Virtual Assistant

Those are the most common tasks that bring businesses to seek out virtual assistants, but they are more aspects of running a business that they can take off your plate. Here are a few such tasks.

Scalability
Virtual assistants work within your budget, on short-term contracts, so there are no hidden fees or obligations. For example, if you are a restaurant owner looking for lots of tech support for the first month or two of implementing on-line ordering, your virtual assistant can help you establish a system that works for you and your staff, then decrease their hours as needed. This is a big selling point for many small businesses because it allows them to have an expert consultant involved in the process, helping to increase revenue, but with diminishing labor costs over time. Of course, once you start working with a virtual assistant, it’s entirely possible that you’ll find more for them to do, as it becomes clear what a valuable asset they are to your company.

Handle any tasks you might not know how to do, and/or don’t have time to learn
With time and study, of course, you could become a social media guru or an expert programmer, but most small business owners don’t have that kind of time, especially right now. If, for example, you need to convert your small retail storefront’s website over to e-commerce, and fast, you’ll want someone who already has experience doing this. Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed. Virtual assistants can help facilitate making this transition and set it all up for you, so all you have to do is mail your product out to your customers. They can even set up and schedule any video conference calls you may need to have but were too busy to figure out how to organize.

Increasing your company’s reach through website localization
Many virtual assistants are bilingual, which means that they can also help you to localize or translate your website and services into another language and provide support in that language – organically growing your business. With there currently being more Spanish-speakers in the United States than in Spain, this is a huge market reach that you may not have considered before. Think about being able to reach 50 million more consumers, instantly.

Whether Your Business Is Retail or Accounting, Virtual Assistants Can Help

From marketing tasks to employee support and market research, a virtual assistant could be the key to adapting and growing your business in uncertain times. Many of the businesses we see thriving during the COVID-19 pandemic are doing so precisely because of their embracing technology. Top virtual assistant services are leading in many of these technological charges, as they have the expertise that most small businesses need with years of experience in the field.

If you’re wondering how to hire a virtual assistant, Virtual Latinos can help! Our certified team is at the ready for any of your virtual needs and can help you start growing your sales today.

Virtual Assistants: An Entrepreneur’s Magic Wand for Business Growth

News
24May '19
0

We are very excited to announce our founder and CEO, Jaime Nacach, will be a speaker at the upcoming San Diego Startup Week on May 30, 2019!

Jaime will talk about some of the challenges entrepreneurs and small businesses face while growing their companies, and how hiring a virtual assistant can ease the workload and help businesses flourish efficiently and at a more affordable rate.

Learn how you can start outsourcing and what software and systems you need to use in order to create a scalable process while sourcing great talent.

Jaime, along with Hera Hub’s founder, Felina Hanson, will also share some of the best practices and common mistakes, entrepreneurs make while working with a Virtual Assistant.

Additional topics we’ll cover during our presentation:

  • Laws in the US for hiring independent contractors, including freelancers and virtual assistants
  • Differences between virtual assistants from the US, the Philippines, Latin America, and other regions
  • Mindset of outsourcing
  • Systems and processes to effectively delegate work to your VA
  • Tasks you can ask a virtual assistant to work on
  • Differences between freelancers and virtual assistants
  • How to search, find and hire a virtual assistant
  • Testing a virtual assistant prior to long-term work
  • Finding your “right hand” assistant, working together for the long term
  • Building a system for potential transfer (in case your VA decides to leave)
  • Software, tools, and systems to use when working with a virtual assistant

Thinking about hiring someone to work remotely?

Want to shave off hours from your work week so you can focus on the important tasks you need to do yourself to grow your business?

Don’t want to spend a fortune paying for someone to help you without having the extra costs associated with hiring a full-time employee?

If you answered Yes to any of the previous questions, then you should definitely attend!

The San Diego Startup Week 2019 will take place at the San Diego Convention Center from May 28- June 02, 2019.

Learn more:

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