6 Reasons to Hire Virtual Staff Closer to Home (Instead of Overseas!)

I had a chat with someone recently who mentioned Virtual Assisting had cropped up in conversation over a meal out with some friends. One of the said friends uses a Filipino Virtual Assistant due to the cost saving benefits. This got me thinking about my own offering and my fellow UK based VA’s…

On doing a little more research into this I came across a fantastic article by Chris Ducker, Virtual CEO of YouPreneur that gives a very open, honest and informative outlook on using a VA from both sides of the continent.  You can read the full article here.

As Chris states, there is no right, or wrong way to outsource, as a ‘standard’. Businesses and people are going to do whatever they think is best for them, their business and their bank balance, at the end of the day. So I try to keep an open mind, understanding (and respecting) that everyone has their own way of doing things.

I do not in any way want to discount overseas VA’s as we are a community of workers that are notorious for supporting each other.

In favour of using UK based VA’s, Chris came up with 6 reasons to keep things closer to home.

1. Very little is lost in translation

2. No time zone differences

3. Better understanding of the local market

4. Less training likely to be needed in certain roles

5. Physical presence required

6. More of an entrepreneurial mindset

To add to this, I am a big advocate of supporting local which is why my own offering is geared towards assisting the businesses and tradespeople of my local town Chesterfield in Derbyshire and surrounding areas. I also make myself available to meet all my clients for one to ones and meetings at their premises should they require this.

What are your feelings on this topic? I’m curious to hear what you have to say.