One of the most common dilemmas faced by companies and businesses is whether to hire virtual assistants or regular full-time employees for their tasks? While the concept of offshore outsourcing and virtual assistance is gaining immense popularity, especially in the times of global economic meltdown, there are still some who refuse to abandon the traditional work module of hiring people for work.

With virtual assistants, the formalities are entirely different. Both the parties, the client and the virtual assistant need to sign a contract that lists a detailed description of their roles, responsibilities and expectations. In addition, it is also necessary to establish a reliable means of communication that ensures that both parties can communicate effectively and without any problems.

Apart from the initial hiring process, there is not much difference between a virtual assistant and a full time employee. In fact, virtual assistants are better than full-time employees for your business. Here are some reasons why:

Virtual Assistants need to be Paid only for the Work Done

This is the major advantage of hiring virtual assistants. Unlike full time employees, they don't need to be paid for the whole term regardless of the work done. Rather, you need to pay your virtual assistant only for the amount of work they do. Most virtual assistants work on hourly basis where you can decide the number of hours they need to spend and when. And unlike regular employees they can even work outside office hours. So, you don't have to pay for wasted office hours etc.

Virtual Assistants Pay their own Taxes and Benefits

This is again a great advantage over full-time employees. You don't have to pay taxes or create benefits package for virtual assistants like you have to do for your regular office employees. Because virtual assistants are actually independent contractors, they are responsible for their own tax payments and benefits. That means you can totally avoid any expenses and costs regarding payrolls, pensions and other employee benefits like medical insurance, paid leaves and so on. From the cost perspective, virtual assistants are definitely better than hiring full time employees.

Virtual Assistants are more Committed to High Quality Work

Virtual assistants are independent professionals who earn their income by working for their clients and delivering them high quality work. They offer a range of services including administrative support and business support functions that help clients to spend more of their time on the core activities of their business. They understand that your business revenue depends upon the positive execution of the tasks delegated to them and that is why they strive to do their best. Unlike full time employees who get their salaries regardless of their effort, virtual assistants need to show result to get paid.