Solopreneurs: Should You DIY or Outsource?
My insights and tips for busy solopreneurs who are considering outsourcing tasks.
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You’re building your business and finding yourself in many shoes: the CEO, the manager if you’re managing a team, the marketer, the content creator, the admin, the list goes on… that’s the reality.
When I started my spa business almost two decades ago, nobody told me I’d be the receptionist, the cleaner, the person running errands, going to the bank, paying salaries, solving piping issues—the less glamorous side of running a business. But that was the reality until I could hire the right people.
I empathize with you when you feel overwhelmed and have to spend a lot of time figuring out how to launch your website, newsletter, lead magnet, automated email sequence, online course…the list never ends.
And all of this takes a lot of time, and you’re wondering:
Should I DIY or outsource this to a Virtual Assistant?
(Is it better to use a VA (virtual assistant) or hire different Fiverr experts for each task?)
This is such a great question, and I’d love to share my personal experience because I have tried a bit of everything for several years.
This is just a personal experience - not an absolute truth. You will experiment and find your approach to this question.
I worked with three VAs on a retainer basis for 2.5 years. Virtual assistants support you remotely with different tasks that you can delegate. They can be general VAs who perform admin tasks, such as email management, client management, file organization, and documenting processes.
You can also hire “tech VAs” who are comfortable with anything tech and can set up and run your email platform, set up online courses, migrate platforms, and organize your entire business.
I’ve also hired contractors, a Pinterest Manager, a copywriter, and a website and brand designer.
And through Fiverr, I’ve hired a podcast editor, book interior designer, social media graphic designer, proofreader, copywriter, video editor, trademark expert, and translator.
I will focus this episode on my experience with VAs, what kind of tasks I outsourced, why I stopped working with my VA, and my most important pro tips if you’re wondering whether you should DIY or outsource to a VA or an expert in a market place like Fiverr.
VAs can be a Hit-or-Miss.
“Finding a trustworthy person to work with who genuinely cares is invaluable.”
I worked with one VA agency for a few months, and it was a disaster. They were disorganized, made mistakes, and missed deadlines.
After a few months, I had to accept that this was not working and stopped after the three-month trial period.
After this negative experience, I hired another VA, and she was fantastic. She was professional and detail-oriented (like me!), and my clients loved her. I especially loved her style of writing emails, which reflected her kindness, grace, and care. Finding a trustworthy person to work with who genuinely cares is invaluable.
Unfortunately, she pivoted her business after a year, so I hired another VA. Both contributed to making the transition and handover of the tasks as smooth as possible. This was my last experience with VAs, as after another year, I finally decided to stop working with them for good (never say never!).
Tasks I Outsourced to My VA
I worked on a retainer basis, so I committed to outsourcing for 10 hours each month, and sometimes, it would go up to 15 hours.
When the 10-hour mark was almost reached (2-3 hours before), she would check with me to see whether we paused until the following month or whether I was willing to go over the 10-hour package.
The tasks I outsourced were mainly recurring;
Schedule social media posts I had already prepared (captions and graphics). This mechanical task didn’t require creativity but being detail-oriented and organized.
Schedule blog posts—Again, I had prepared the copy and visuals, and they just needed to use my blog post template and processes to publish the post. This was also a simple task to follow and implement as I would share the exact process.
Same for podcasts and newsletters.
Manage clients' bookings and communicate with them about the schedule, time off, rescheduling, etc.
Overview and manage client onboarding and onboarding (this can consume a lot of time if done manually).
Admin tasks: Update trackers, metrics dashboard, invoices, contracts, etc.
Document the processes in the Maika Endo Coaching SOP Manual so anyone can follow the steps and complete the above activities.
Depending on the hours left, I added some special projects such as;
Migrate client data from one platform to another when I switched from Flodesk to Active Campaign.
Migrate my courses when I left Podia for ThrivecartLearn.
As you can notice, when I outsourced tasks to my VA, I didn’t outsource creative and strategic work, primarily administrative, technical, or recurring tasks.
Pro Tips for Hiring a Remote VA
First, clarify for yourself what specific tasks you want to outsource. You can start with a small list to test the waterer and then delegate more later.
Ask for a trial period before committing to a monthly year-long retainer. In the industry, a one to three-month trial period is standard to enable both of you to assess the working relationship and ensure it's a good fit before committing to a long-term arrangement.
Create SOPs for every task you outsource so they can follow and align with your brand standards- the VA can help with that, but that’s also time in the clock to consider!
For the first time a task is delegated, you can simply share and record your screen with Loom and put that in your database for your VA to check before she works on the task.
Meet once or twice a month for check-ins. This can be great for accountability and necessary to build that connection. Thirty minutes each month was perfect. More than that, it becomes a burden on my calendar.
Make time to check in daily and review the task through the project manager you’ll share (we used Trello). You must also ensure that when she needs something from you, you give it to her so this doesn’t delay the task. In time, you learn to work as a team and improve.
Project higher operation expenses; it’s a bad and good thing, as you’ll be under more pressure to generate the appropriate monthly revenue to cover those and make sense of them - it’ll kick you in the butt to work towards creating more sales.
Set clear deadlines for the VA to complete specific tasks. Be precise about your expectations. For instance, requiring a "blog published" by a particular date is different from needing a "draft submitted for approval." If the VA sends you the draft on the desired publication date, it's too late to meet your goal unless you immediately review and approve it.
Agree on a fixed monthly hour and establish clear workload management expectations. Determine how you want the VA to handle approaching the hourly limit, such as sending warnings (my VA would warn me when we passed the 7-hour mark), postponing tasks to the following month, or allowing for overtime. This will help prevent unexpected budget overruns.
Why I stopped working with a VA:
My last VA made occasional mistakes (everyone does; we are humans!)- but they were costly for me, like leaving prospects' inquiries or clients’ emails unanswered for an unreasonable amount of time (beyond what we had agreed).
Rectifying the situation seemed impossible, and due to my non-confrontational Japanese character, I didn’t do a great job pointing out the issues either.
It was more frustrating to blame someone you paid than myself. I realized that it was more stressful to "micromanage" someone to cover in case of mistakes - which defeated the purpose of freeing up your mind and workload.
After working with VAs for over two years, I realized I needed to return to working alone, being accountable to myself only, and not having to check someone's work—I could always hire contractors on a project basis.
Also, it's not a big deal if I have a lower revenue month because my operation costs are low and within my control, and I can maintain higher profit margins.
Finally, I became more conscious about where I invested my time (more than money).
For example, I would easily migrate from one tool to another just because someone else would do that for me. I'm evaluating whether it's worth it in the long run because I will have to do it. I look at the bigger picture.
Hire or DIY? Hire a VA or an Expert?
“I generally learn a skill or task and do it myself first. So when I’m ready to hire an expert, I can confidently invest in someone who can do it way better than I could ever—and learn more from them. ”
When you have systemized and streamlined your content creation process, content creation doesn’t take as long as when you’re just starting and figuring things out.
When your marketing focuses on emails and longer articles instead of social media, you don't need to constantly think up new content or spend all day on social platforms.
Also, with today's tools and templates (Showit, Wix, Squarespace), creating a gorgeous website is easier than ever.
I generally learn a skill or task and do it myself first. So when I’m ready to hire an expert, I can confidently invest in someone who can do it way better than I could ever—and learn more from them. I don’t like to depend completely on someone to fulfill a task and be clueless. I need to be able to do it myself if I need to; otherwise, I’m not in control of my business destiny (and there’s already so much that’s not within our control!).
But if you hate doing certain tasks in your business, and they are a burden, source of stress, and procrastination, go for it and hire help.
If you want speed rather than spending hours learning a tool and have the financial means, then yes, go for it and hire the support you need.
Hire the Right Help
Repetitive and manual work to free up your time and brain bandwidth ➡️ hire a VA.
For some admin tasks and tech work (managing an email platform, setting up an online course, and managing a website) ➡️ hire a tech VA.
Strategic and creative work like website design or copywriting ➡️ hire experts in their fields - not a VA.
For highly technical work such as video editing, sound engineering, or podcast editing ➡️ hire an expert—not a VA.
Fiverr or Not
About Fiverr…It’s great because the market is global, and you can find contractors for anything on any budget.
One downside is that it’s a bit of a hit or miss too; thus, it’s more appropriate for a one-time, short-term task or quick fix. It’s more risky to choose this path for long-term and larger projects.
If you want to hire experts for long-term collaborations, avoid Fiverr and ask people around you (ask me!) for recommendations. Then, meet the candidates (in person or online) to gauge whether this could lead to a positive collaboration.
You’ll derive more joy from this relationship, feeling less transactional and more meaningful. I approach working with clients, contractors, and collaborators as possibly lifelong relationships. I’m still friends with people I met through my past business. And this means the world to me!
Conclusion
I had clients who learned to design their websites and plan to hire a professional later on. I also worked with clients who hired a web agency from the start, and doing it themselves was never a question.
Whether you hire a virtual assistant (VA), a consultant, or do it yourself depends on your needs, goals, and financial capacity.
VAs and consultants can be valuable support for freeing up your time and streamlining your business operations, but you have to hire the right person so this experience doesn’t bring more stress and work.
Here is how I would sum this up:
Define your needs: Identify the tasks you want to outsource and the skills required.
Consider your budget. Consider the cost of hiring a VA or expert versus the time and resources you'll save.
Start small: Begin with a trial period to evaluate the working relationship and ensure it is a fit.
Create clear expectations: Establish clear communication channels and provide detailed instructions on what you want and how you want it to be done to meet your expectations.
Evaluate your options: Explore VA services and freelance platforms to find the best fit for your needs.
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About Maika
Maika mentors heart-centered, impact-driven entrepreneurs to build the foundations of their business with her signature Intentional Business Building™ method. Her approach is holistic and integrates the entrepreneur mindset, marketing strategies, and systems to help create sustainable changes and long-lasting results. A lifelong passion for the human psyche, healing arts, and personal growth brought her to mentorship and coaching. She’s French-born in Japan and currently lives in Istanbul with her family.
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