Are you ready to scale your business by hiring a team? Hiring can be a sticky point for business owners.
What if…
- You hire the wrong person?
- This person doesn’t fit your business?
- You spend too much money on the person?
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Abbey Ashley of Virtual Savvy has created a solution for businesses to hire freelancers that are a great match, but also propels their business forward. She also specializes in teaching people the skills they need to be hire-able.
In this episode, Abbey and I talk about how she got started in the digital marketing space, how she hired her first contractors, where she thinks the future of online marketing is headed, and much more!
WHERE DID IT ALL START?
In the beginning, Abbey started a virtual assistant business and was forced into hiring subcontractors because she was about to have a baby. She called it a “literal ticking time bomb”, because she needed people to be trained and ready to help out when she had her baby.
Abbey then went on to develop an online course to teach others how to create their own at-home virtual assistant business using her systems and processes that had been proven to work so well. She THEN went on to hire a team to support the course development and management.
She constantly asked the question: How do I become the CEO and true visionary of my business?
I asked her why she thought she was so willing and able to jump in and hire in the beginning, where many people are afraid to take the leap. I mentioned that people in my audience find themselves worried about spending money on people and not having enough for themselves.
hiring for what you need to scale your business
Abbey says she is big on leaning into her strengths – she says her strengths are really strong and weaknesses are really weak so she NEEDS others to fill in the gaps. She also recommends taking tests like the Strength Finder and Kolbe to identify areas where you may need help and hire for that.
Finding clients for Abbey was easy, but the execution and fulfillment was not her strong suit. She brought in people to execute what she needed, she would approve, and then send off to the clients.
Her initial hires were personal connections – for example: she knew someone who did graphics for a band in college, her sister was really good at writing. This helped remove the initial fear because she was already in relationship with these people.
RELATED: Why and when to hire a Pinterest account manager
knowing your numbers is important
Abbey also recommends researching what percentage of your income/hourly rate should be going towards hiring. In the beginning, she ended up increasing her rates to be able to hire. She said it all depends on your niche, the type of services you offer, what your outgoing expenses are, what you value in your business.
But the most important thing is to know YOUR numbers. Then you can figure out percentages and set your budget. It doesn’t work to base your hiring rate or budget off of someone else’s business model.
HOW HAS HIRING CHANGED RECENTLY?
After the last few years and the massive change in the digital marketing world, I asked Abbey where she sees things going with the freelance market? She believes that the pandemic sped up the process of contractors becoming more prevalent than a “traditional” job model.
As businesses are created by people looking for something different, there will be a bigger need for virtual assistants, Pinterest managers, and freelancers. The pandemic has forced even established business owners to think outside the box.
HOW to scale your business by hiring well (OR BE THE RIGHT PERSON TO HIRE)
Abbey’s new program, Hello Savvy, helps create a space for freelancers to advertise their skills and for business owners to find a good fit for their team. The have also started networking events so people can connect with others, and I loved this quote:
“Hiring starts with hello”
– Abbey Ashley
Inside Hello Savvy, freelancer profiles will really highlight the personality of the freelancer. They’re quick and easy to use, and visually appealing. She describes it as a cross between Upwork and going to your friends on Facebook looking to hire. The addition of a systematized process for finding the right person is the game changer, including adding filter options like Enneagram #, Kolbe, and more.
I asked Abbey who is the ideal person to leverage Hello Savvy?
Abbey says it all depends on when a business owner is ready to hire freelancers. Some hire right away because they have the finances, some have to wait. She also says it will work really well for 6-figure business owners, nearing 7-figures. After that, she knows many businesses will start to hire on-staff employees.
Hello Savvy will be officially opening in September of 2022, but you can join the wait list now! Abbey also suggests joining her email list, as they are heavily focusing on the education piece. She wants to help you decide what and when to outsource, how to build trust, how to define your own company culture and mission.
If you’re interested in learning more about Abbey and her business, check out her website – Virtual Savvy. You can also follow her on Instagram or grab her free Virtual Assistant Checklist!
For further listening/reading:
- Gallup’s Strength Finder test
- Kolbe Index test
- DISC profile assessment
- Creating a digital marketing funnel on Pinterest (podcast/blog post)
- The Simple Pin Story – Lessons learned after 8 years (podcast/blog post)
