Why You Need a Virtual Assistant to Grow Your eCommerce Store
TeleworkPH
Published: September 4, 2020
Online shopping is one of the most popular internet activities today and it’s projected to grow even more over time. According to this survey, eCommerce revenues of 2019 were already at US$3.53 trillion and they’re predicted to grow at US$6.54 trillion by 2022. These numbers give the opportunity for business owners to capitalize on a growing industry. That’s why plenty of online stores are popping in and out nowadays. However, for an online store to truly succeed, you’ll need a unique product or service offer, a well-executed marketing campaign, and an excellent customer support team. A knowledgeable virtual assistant can help you execute the majority of those key aspects that are critical to a growing business.
Today, we’ll share with you the benefits of hiring an eCommerce virtual assistant and the tasks you can outsource that will scale your online business.
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Benefits of Hiring an eCommerce Virtual Assistant
Outsourcing a virtual assistant reaps countless benefits. From cost-effectivity to full focus, a virtual assistant will definitely give you an edge in the competitive eCommerce market.
Value for Money
It’s been said time and again that outsourcing’s main benefit is cost-effectiveness. Outsourcing a virtual assistant is a testament to that. By hiring a virtual assistant, you’ll spend less on operational costs since they have their own office space and equipment that can service your tasks remotely.
Free up Time and Focus
The second benefit of outsourcing a virtual assistant is the free time to focus on the core aspects of your business. Managing an eCommerce store takes up every bit of your time. Leaving the operational aspect of your business to a detail-oriented professional will not only guarantee foolproof results but improve your operational efficiency as well.
Expert-Level Service
ECommerce virtual assistants are available all around the world. They are trained and flexible to carry out a wide range of tasks from product entry to web design and digital marketing. So even if you’re not an expert in some digital tasks, an eCommerce virtual assistant will not leave you hanging.
Tasks You Can Outsource to Your eCommerce Virtual Assistant
Maintaining an eCommerce store can be time-consuming and monotonous. Outsourcing these tasks to your virtual assistant can help you focus on more ways to grow your business. Let’s take a look at the tasks you can outsource to your eCommerce virtual assistant:
Order Processing
Your eCommerce virtual assistant can monitor and process orders from your website on a daily basis. Here are some order-processing tasks:
-Monitoring and compiling orders
-Updating order tracking (from preparing to shipping orders)
-Organizing order shipments
-Preparing customer and shipping invoices
These are repetitive tasks, but your virtual assistant will be able to seamlessly track customer orders from the initial purchase up to the actual delivery.
Inventory Management
Inventory management can be considered the most tedious part of managing an eCommerce store. A person with a keen sense of detail is needed in order to balance and manage stocks. These are various inventory management tasks:
-Regularly check inventory and availability of stocks
-Update product and category lists
-Managing beginning and ending inventory
-Correct errors that don’t match with your actual stock count from your website
-Update your website with the latest stock level
-Coordinate with suppliers for purchase orders
-Monitor low inventory items and recommend replenishing of stocks
In short, your virtual assistant can help you regularly monitor stocks in your warehouse.
Customer Support
Customer support is a vital aspect of any business. Your customers should be able to reach your business and get the proper resolution for their issues or concerns. Your virtual assistant should be able to handle these customer service tasks:
-Promptly respond to customer inquiries across all channels: chat, phone, email, social media
-Handle customer complaints with order issues (wrong orders, shipment tracking, etc)
-Handle irate customers professionally
-Look for opportunities to upsell
-Engage with customers on social media
These are customer-centric tasks and you need to make sure that your virtual assistant has extensive experience when it comes to customer satisfaction and getting a successful resolution.
Market Research
Market research can provide valuable business insights you may have missed out on. A virtual assistant can conduct thorough research about your target market, the performance of your competitors, and a full picture of your industry. Here are some of the market research tasks:
-Product research
-Consumer research (preferences, values, insights)
-Keyword research to rank on search engines
-Conduct competitor check
Aside from doing extensive market research, your virtual assistant can also analyze data and present it in an informative manner that can help you leverage crucial business decisions.
Website Maintenance
Setting up your online store may be easy, but maintaining it can be quite a challenge. You’ll need a virtual assistant that can consistently and correctly enter details into your online store. Here are some of the tasks to maintain a well-updated website:
-Navigate eCommerce platforms like WooCommerce, Shopify, WordPress, or whichever platform your store is in
-Consistently update price information and/or product descriptions
-Clean up the website by removing old product pages
-Identify and remove broken links that can affect your digital marketing efforts
-Ensure the website is optimized and loads quickly for a seamless customer experience
-Knowledgeable in addressing server issues
-Create relevant blog content if your virtual assistant has a background in content writing
These are simple tasks to ensure your website is up to standard. However, for more complicated and technical issues, you may need to get in touch with a web developer or an IT professional.
Digital Marketing
Digital marketing not only gives you a brand presence online but can also boost your profits and brand value. You can delegate these digital marketing tasks to your virtual assistant:
-Manage your brand’s social media accounts and engage with your audience
-Create marketing content to boost brand awareness and generate sales
-Strategize paid advertising efforts
-Extensive knowledge in search marketing, especially technical and on-page SEO
With the help of digital marketing tools, your virtual assistant can easily create marketing campaigns that can contribute to customer loyalty and leave a lasting impression.
Telework PH eCommerce Virtual Assistant
Hiring a virtual assistant to handle your day-to-day operations will be the best cost-effective decision you’ll ever make. More than that, an experienced virtual assistant can also accomplish high-level tasks that can scale your business over time.
Instead of trying to find the perfect virtual assistant, try to look for the RIGHT virtual assistant for your business. Bounded by solution-forward practices, Telework PH tailor-fits virtual assistants that will address your business needs. Telework PH can also provide you with a reliable and expert-level virtual assistant that’s unique to your business. At the end of the day, the right virtual assistant will take your eCommerce business to the next level.
