I remember sitting in a local Tuesdays Together meeting back in 2016 with my warm cup of chai tea. We were talking about balancing the tasks in your business, and this question came up:
“What is one of the tasks that you hate doing, and that takes all your time away from something that you love doing?”
Immediately, I knew the one task I dreaded most: blog prep.
Resizing images, watermarking them, uploading them to the blog, plugging in the SEO. For me, it was so monotonous and tedious, and it was the #1 reason I only published a TOTAL of 57 blog posts in 2016. And even that was a struggle.
Blogging was always pushed further down my to do list, and I wasn’t prioritizing it. That meant my SEO wasn't optimized, so the chance of me turning up in online searches for local photographers, quite frankly... sucked.
I had recently moved to a new state, so I was new to the area and no one could find me online. I knew I wanted to make a change in my business in 2017, so I decided to outsource a few tasks so that I could focus more of my energy on the parts of running a business that I love. Little did I know that this person would become an essential part of my team and that we’d still be going strong six years later!!!
Hiring a virtual assistant was one of THE VERY BEST DECISIONS I have made for my business. I’ve been working with the same VA since 2017, and it has truly transformed my business and freed up so much time in my week!
Meet Kristina Dowler of Dot The I’s Outsourcing. She has been my incredible right-hand woman for the past six years, a behind-the-scenes boss lady who has helped me make big things happen.
Before working with Kristina, I had never outsourced a single task in my business besides web design. The first time we talked, I remember being so hesitant to trust anyone with the tasks that I had become accustomed to doing on my own for years. I started off very small with what I asked her to help me with, but I quickly saw how much faster she was at accomplishing some of these tasks than I was, and how talented she was with words and writing copy for me! It wasn’t long before I asked her to handle more and more for me, and felt totally comfortable giving up control of these tasks knowing that she cared about my business’s growth and reputation as much as I did. This freed up hours upon hours of time for me so that I could spend my time growing my business and focusing on the creative things that I love!
If you’re looking for a virtual assistant you want to find one that is the perfect fit for you. Where do you begin?
I put an ISO (in search of) request in the Rising Tide Society group, and I received an incredible response from talented VA's who were taking on new clients. You can also ask in Facebook groups of local business owners, and you might even know somebody looking for part-time work who you can train and who you feel would be a good fit.
So what should you look for in potential candidates? Here are some of the must-haves on my list:
An easy-going personality
Killer organizational skills
Familiarity with the software & programs you use
Clear communication
A timely response to your emails
An established method of tracking to-do lists, time on task, and billing information.
Respect for your privacy, and someone you trust knowing the innermost workings of your business.
Remember how I said that in 2016 I only published 57 blog posts all year? Well, ever since I hired Kristina I have regularly published 100-120 new blog posts every single year. My SEO is on point and constantly being updated, and I have so much content to share on all of my social media platforms thanks for her awesome blogging skills. We literally have it on auto pilot now with the most amazing system that we’ve refined over the years. Having this organized system in place has allowed me to vary my content, and working with a virtual assistant has ensured that I stay up to date with my end of the blogging tasks so that nothing falls behind for her.
The end result? So much more traffic on my website, leading to many more new inquiries and booked clients!
I wanted to let you in on this little secret today because as we start to move into the slower season, business owners naturally begin to reflect on their year and make plans to streamline and improve their business in the new year.
If you have tasks that are bogging you down, that are getting pushed to the bottom of your to do list, and that you truly dread doing…. outsource them! It’s not that expensive, and it frees up so much time for you to focus on other areas. Truly, what you spend on a VA will come back to you many times over as you’re able to grow your business without wasting time on the tedious tasks.
Kristina is accepting a few new clients in January 2023, and she’s currently scheduling discovery calls with prospective clients. I would love for you to have the opportunity to grow your business with someone who is just as passionate about your success as you are!
Blog prep
Watermarking images, using Blogstomp, uploading images, adding keywords, and scheduling posts. Copyrighting and adding all of the text content for your blog!
PINTEREST MANAGEMENT
Creating graphics to pin, linking back to your blog, scheduling posts, and driving more traffic to your account and to your website.
Creating e-newsletters
Creating the copy and designing the layout for all of your client newsletters!
album design
Beautifully and artfully arrange your client’s favorite images into album layouts that are ready to print.
Workflow creation as needed
And literally countless other tasks.
Plus, if you’re not quite ready to hire a virtual assistant just yet and instead you’re looking for some resources on how to get better at blogging and workflows, Kristina has tons of resources and templates available in The Blog Shop that will help your business immediately!
If you have questions about my experience hiring a VA, just ask! And when you're ready to get in touch with Kristina, you can reach her at kristina.dowler@gmail.com. Tell her Nicole sent you!
Meet Kristina,
your lifesaver.
Kristina lives in Virginia with her husband and their little boy, David. She loves the beach, regularly travels to the Outer Banks, and spends her free time playing the cello in musical productions. She has built an incredible team of copyrighters and assistants who help business owners across the country keep things runnings seamlessly. She enjoys all of those tedious tasks in running a business that you don't have the time or energy for, and she loves helping other creative entrepreneurs grow their businesses by taking a few tasks off their plate so that they can focus on what they love.