Lifesquire Blog How a virtual assistant can help your business thrive during the holidays

Even though it may be the most wonderful time of the year, we can’t forget it is also the most hectic time of the year. Not only are things busier in your personal life, but they are also busier in your office. From employees going on vacation to spend time with their family to preparing your business for the New Year, the holidays can be a tough time for companies large and small. The good news is, even with fewer employees and more to do, you can still get it all done and have time to enjoy the Christmas festivities. So how do you enjoy the holidays and still keep your business running smoothly? The simple answer is a virtual assistant.  Here are some of the many tasks you can outsource to a virtual assistant during the holiday season:Finding the perfect corporate giftDoes your business send gifts to employees, business partners, or valued clients? Finding the perfect budget-friendly gift can take a lot of time out of your day. Not to mention the time you need to box and ship the gifts. These tasks could quickly take over your day, but it doesn’t have to be that way because your virtual assistant can handle it for you. Send them a budget, an idea of what you are looking for, and have them do some research for you. Once you decide on the perfect gifts, have them place the order and take care of the shipping for you. Get ready for tax seasonEven though it may still feel like months away, tax season is right around the corner. Get ahead and beat the last-minute stress by having your virtual assistant help you prepare.  A virtual assistant can help you get your receipts organized, create spreadsheets, and take care of any paperwork you need to be completed.Start planning for the New YearAs an entrepreneur or business owner, the New Year is a new beginning and a time to set new goals. You may not know how a virtual assistant can help you with this, but we can think of at least two different ways. One way is to have your virtual assistant sit in meetings and help you brainstorm some ideas. You can also use your virtual assistant for idea generation or even as a sounding board. The second way is to delegate some projects and tasks to your virtual assistant so that you have the time to focus on goal planning and business changes. When you have fewer projects on your plate, you can put your focus in the right place.Give your employees some time offDuring the holidays, your employees may want to take some time off, but they may feel guilty when the work is piling up. Gift your employees time off and peace-of-mind by having your virtual assistant help with tasks. They may not be able to fill-in for every role, but they can take over general tasks so others with that particular skill-set can cover. Your employees will be able to enjoy their time off, and the ones that are covering won’t feel like they are being stretched too thin.Responding to emailsWhether you are taking a vacation or you just don’t have enough time in your day, your email inbox shouldn’t be adding to your stress. Reading and responding to emails daily can be a hefty task, but it is also one that you can have your virtual assistant takeover. Have them handle the replies, but also create an email organization system so that you will always know what is received and sent.Send season’s greetings and thank you cardsYour clients and customers play a vital role in your business, and now is a great time to thank them and wish them a wonderful holiday season.  Sending out holiday cards is a tradition in most businesses, but you don’t have to do it alone. Send your client list to a virtual assistant and have them take control of the sending. Other businesses and even customers may show how thankful they are for your business by sending small gifts or holiday treats. Don’t forget to thank them for thinking of you. When you get a gift, pass the information to your virtual assistant. They can send a quick thank you note on your behalf.Creating and sending newslettersNow is the time to remind your clients about sales, new products, gift ideas, or services. Make sure your virtual assistant knows about all of these promotions and have them create email newsletters for all of them. Not only can they help with newsletter creation, but they can also add new mailing list contacts, update old contacts, copy edit text, and more.Get digitally organizedIn this day and age, everything is digital. Your business likely uses digital storage, like Dropbox or Google Drive, and when you have a lot of hands in the pot, things can quickly get disorganized. Your virtual assistant can help you start the New Year organized by taking over control of your digital organization. Whether your storage is a huge mess or you just want to condense, delegate this time-consuming task to your virtual assistant.Customer service and order managementCustomers will likely reach out to you this season for your products or services. They may have placed an order and forgot something, or they may want to change the shipping address. It doesn’t matter what comes up; your virtual assistant should be able to help you manage your orders. They can respond to customers, send tracking information, help with order problems, and more. General business tasksNot all tasks have to be based around holidays for your virtual assistant to help. Virtual assistants can also help you with a variety of office tasks. Consider using your virtual assistant to help you handle tasks and projects like:Schedule managementData entrySetting up appointments and meetings Creating a master digital address bookResearching and condensing information Preparing reports or presentationsSetting up calendar remindersSocial media managementContent creationClient/customer lead generationAnd more! Need a virtual assistant? Would you like some stress relief during the busy holiday season? A LifeSquire Virtual Assistant can help you take care of a variety of tasks. Learn more about our virtual assistant service by clicking below. Hire A Virtual Assistant  Post written by Deaven Cavnar, Content Marketing Manager