Latest / Glovisor Podcast / Ep. 31: The #1 Mistake Keeping Business Owners Overworked (And How to Fix It) Brianne Price
Transcript
- Joe: What if the biggest obstacle of growing your business isn't finding more customers? It's letting go of the work you shouldn't be doing. Welcome to the Globizor Podcast, where we explore communication, business growth, leadership, and personal development through real conversations with people that make an impact. Our guest today is the founder of Mills and Bay Services, a company that helps business owners reclaim their time through strategic delegation and high-level administrative support. She understands the challenges of scaling a business and has built a network of US-based virtual assistants who help entrepreneurs get out of the day-to-day operations so they can focus on growth. Through reliable partnership and practical solutions, she's helping business owners reduce the true cost of doing everything themselves. Globizer welcomes Brianne Price. Brianne Price: Yay. Thank you so much, Joe. I'm really excited to be here today. Joe: looking forward to the conversation. All right. Excellent. So, Brianne, let's start off. What do you do? Brianne Price: Yeah. It's gonna be good. I am a matchmaker, which is kind of a funny word. but I help business owners, specifically small businesses, micro businesses, solopreneurs get connected with really awesome US-based virtual assistants and start to take things off their plate. stop wearing all the hats that the business owners are wearing all the time. and start to learn how to delegate, and and start small to grow big. So that's that's kind of what I do. Joe: how did you get into this line of work? Brianne Price: a good question. This is not my intended path, but I started as a teacher. So taught first and second grade and preschool. And I had two kiddos. So they're actually the namesake of my business. Their middle names are. And once I had them I realized I needed something more flexible. So I became a virtual assistant first. and really loved the work, loved getting to support a couple of different small businesses and solopreneurs and really got to learn like the behind the scenes of entrepreneurship. So then fast forward a couple years and I jumped into other people asking me, Your virtual assistant, how would I do that? And so I built this business from the ground up and just took the leap of deciding that this is this is what small businesses really need and how how can I help support them. And then also how can I help support these stay-at-home moms or other educators that are coming out of education or women that are coming out of corporate world. how do I support them with work that is life giving? and flexible for our crazy our crazy lives. So from teacher to virtual assistant, executive assistant to business owner, I've kind of seen it all. Joe: What a transition. Let's see what's coming up next. So that's right. a question I do have is from your perspective, are you seeing the market growth of people asking for more virtual assistance within their business? Brianne Price: Very much. You just never know. You just never know. I love Yeah, absolutely. I think what's really cool and something that I really help like pride myself on is being able to work with these solopreneurs and giving them support, even ten hours a month. So that's a couple hours a week and it makes a world of difference. and I think I mean we all know small businesses are the backbone of America. and I think people are starting to see that virtual assistance and just delegation in general is so much more accessible than it used to be. and so yeah, like there's been a huge shift. and what's interesting too is even with technology and the advancements in AI and technology in general has not diminished the need for a virtual assistant, a person that's really that strategic. partner in your business, especially when it's just you. So yeah, it's been it's been a lot of growth actually over the last two years. Joe: That is so interesting to hear that AI has not impacted this side of the business. because just about everyone that I interview, I hear the opposite, that their business has been impacted in some way, shape, or form. So this is so different. Brianne Price: yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think what's really cool is like we don't shy away from it. and so the more that we can learn how to utilize it in a responsible way. but like if you're getting a virtual assistant that's coming in that has AI tools or skills, that's huge. That's putting you steps ahead of the other small business owners that are also just trying to figure it out. So Yeah, we've definitely come to embrace it. and I feel like that has set us apart and it's caused growth, Joe: Right. So one of the things that I highlighted in your intro is that it you say it's there are US based VAs, virtual assistants. is there a difference having a US base versus anywhere else? Brianne Price: Yeah. Okay. I would say that I'm the first person to tell a business owner when maybe an offshore virtual assistant or even like simply just automating tasks is the best option and is the cheapest for them. But what I find time and time again is that strategic partner is so valuable. So yes, they're gonna come in and and do your tasks and yes, they're gonna be able to you know, manage your calendar and do the emails and pull data and do social media, all those things. But what they're really doing too is seeing where the holes are at in your business and helping fill those holes and bringing up good questions about, hey, how are we doing this? Why are we doing this? so the US based virtual assistant really brings more of that strategic partnership. more than maybe anywhere else. Joe: who are the most common industries using your services? Brianne Price: It's a good question. a lot of people ask, yeah, like what industries I specifically work with, and I honestly work with pretty much anybody. a lot of the industries that I like have been seeing recently are kind of like trades. contractors, painters, you name it, roofers, real estate agents have also, been popping up recently because they work under a brokerage, but then when they're in the nitty-gritty, they're kind of on their own. So I've worked with a lot of those. business coaches is a big one as well. But really anybody that's running a business. Like at the end of the day, we all have behind the scene tasks. We all have things that need to move the needle that we need to do to move the needle forward. And if you have that then you're a candidate for needing some help and a virtual assistant can be great for that. Joe: can you give us an example of, let's say, a home services contractor, how would they use a VA? Brianne Price: Yeah, great question. a big thing that they are using trade they're using right now is lead qualifying. So the VA is the one that's kind of gatekeeping emails and phone calls and texts and really making sure that the customers that are reaching out, one are not spam or scams, and then two are also the right fit. I'm seeing a lot of business owners realizing that like, yes, we can do. all the things. it's not for the best of us, and it's not for the best of the customer either. So lead qualifying has been a huge one. so appointment setting, that kind of thing for especially for trades. I again social media is a big one. I'm not by any means a marketing agency. but even just having somebody to post one to two times a week. helping generate content, thinking of through content and then posting is is huge. So those are kind of the big ones, especially for trades. Joe: here's a question. How about trust? we have these virtual assistants coming into our business, and as you said, they become their the business's gatekeeper, but we're sharing all this information as they're you know, talking to our customers, seeing what's behind the the curtain. So can you tell us how do you handle this? Brianne Price: Yeah, absolutely. I think that's a great question. and we handle it a couple of different ways. So the first way is starts with a contract. So the contract that you sign between the business owner and the virtual assistant definitely includes like the confidentiality clause. some businesses will sign if it's like medical, they'll sign HIPAA compliance or an NDA. some businesses will need like background checks and fingerprints. So that's not uncommon for us. but the other way that we protect it is through different softwares. So for us as a virtual assistant to be protected as well. there's all sorts of different safety softwares of like one password or last pass so that you're not actually in control of any passwords. The business owner is still very much in control. I think the other way that we do it as well is through like my vetting process. So I don't just bring any VA in. I do have a vetting process with them as well. And then the other thing that I do is a 90-day trial period. and I know we'll talk kind of nitty-gritty of the business, but the 90-day trial period really does help. business owners feel like they can start to hand things off slowly. And then if it's not quite the right fit, looked great on paper, that's okay. business owner and virtual assistant would get reconnected under my services. So there's a lot of different ways, but trust is huge. And another way to think of it is really building a delegation machine. So is gonna take some time up front to really make sure that you feel one that you trust this person but two that they really understand your business they understand what is at stake and as you're building that delegation machine you start to feel more and more comfortable releasing different parts different aspects of the business Joe: I think that going through your organization and working with you is probably one of the value adds because I don't have to connect with someone offshore that I don't know nor trust, but I can go through a brand who's going to be that middle person who would be managing both aspects of it. That's that's how I see it from this perspective. Brianne Price: Yeah. Yes, absolutely. Yeah. I build it so that eventually re it really is a ten ninety nine contract relationship between the business owner and the VA and I don't like I don't take a portion of their contract. it really is their relationship, but I still am very much here to help support that relationship. Joe: is there a minimum number of hours per week, per month that you require in order to work with you? Brianne Price: That is a great question. No, because I love working with solopreneurs, I will do anything from 10 hours a month, so really a couple hours a week, all the way up to I just help someone hire for 30 hours a week. So really anywhere in between that. I work with you mostly on your budget first, and then we decide how many hours you can afford. And then I'm the one that gets to puzzle piece. the virtual assistants hours and income together so that they have what they need. So you don't have to worry about it as a business owner feeling like you need to supply thirty hours of work a week because that's just not realistic. Joe: Yeah, because you're you can solve this this issue. If I have something at work that I need done right now, you can help me with that for a short term. so typically you're the middle person as I understand it, f in the beginning to coordinate it and matchmake us for and you're involved for those ninety days. Thereafter, once we're happy, the relationship is great with the VA, I can continue this relationship on my own Brianne Price: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yep, Yeah, I don't I don't stand in anyone's way. I do offer like an ongoing retainer or support package so that I don't just disappear, but really it is very much your guys' relationship. and that way you can grow your hours too. So I've actually had several VAs start with gosh, what is like five hours a week. and now she's working full-time at this organization as a W-2. So you really get to expand what you need on your terms. Joe: before we go into finding a little bit more of the process as a business owner coming through you to you, let's let's let's work on it from the other perspective. Here I am, I would like a job for about 10 hours a week. Do I contact Brianne and say, Brianne, these are my skills? Can you find me? Can you connect me, matchmake me with someone? Brianne Price: Yep. Absolutely, yeah. matchmaking is so funny to me. some people think I'm like a love matchmaker. I'm like, absolutely not. Not my damn. but yes, that is exactly what I do. So I work with all sorts of different people all across the United States, with a various backgrounds and needs. So yeah, they come to and basically what you do is you come and we have a initial consultation. So we talk like what is a virtual assistant, what kind of work? could you do? What would you expect? How many hours do you need? What's your income? And then we schedule an exploratory consultation. So that's like an hour and a half where I'm really diving into your background, your skill sets. Some of it is like translating from whatever your background used to be to what what are those skill sets in a business world. So like for me, it was what education skill sets do I have that now apply to the business world. So we dive through all that. That's where I do the vetting process. Really get to know the person. and then the what's kind of different about how I do it is because I don't take a portion of the assistance contracts, they there is a one time flat rate fee that the virtual assistants pay. to help find the work that they're looking for. It covers all the hours and it also covers their 90 day trial period too, because they get a choice in if the job opportunity is the right one for them. So yeah that's I work with I have about twenty assistants in my pool right now. So I'm kind of at capacity. but my door's always revolving. So as VAs get the hours they need, they move out and then I bring in new VA. Joe: can you take us through the whole process that a business owner would go through? Brianne Price: So yeah, you would contact and we would set up another free initial consultation. So just really a strategy session where you come and you say, Okay, this is what I'm working on, this is my business, and this is where I think I need help. And one of my favorite things to do during those strategy sessions is to really dig in and be like, Okay, you're saying you need help here, but what about what are some of the other things that are going on in your business that are you're either neglecting, you're drowning in? it's taking you too long to do. And so we really start to pick apart what you might need. And in that strategy session, I I just do a lot of listening. So I just listen. What is your what are your goals? Where are you headed in business? and then from there you can decide. I walk you through the full process of what I do and you get to decide if if this is the right fit. So after that initial consultation, I write up a full like profile basically on the type of assistant and the tasks that you need. And then if you've decided, yeah, like let's move forward. Then the matchmaking process happens and I go out to my community of virtual assistants and hand pick between two to four assistants for interviews. I send you their bios, their information, and then I help coordinate the interviews. and the interview process is I jump on for a couple minutes just to make sure we feel like This is the right fit. Make sure the business owner is on track with like this is what you've asked for. And then you get these interviews with candidates. And then if you want to choose someone, typically you can choose someone between the two to four handpicked candidates. Then we can move into the like contract compensation details. and that 90 day trial period. so it's pretty easy. I would say most of the business owners that I work with end up hiring somebody within a week or two of our initial consultation. So it really help walk through the process, make sure this is what you're looking for, and then we like run as fast as you want to run. Joe: Now can you share a success story with us? Brianne Price: Absolutely. So the one that comes to mind is more recent, but this financial advisor here in Denver is incredible and she and actually has almost like two firms that she runs. And I sat down with her and she'd kind of been on the fence about getting a virtual assistant for almost a year. And she finally reached back out and was like, okay, I'm done. I'm about to throw in the towel. I'm drowning. I don't know what I'm doing. Please just help me. And I said, Great. Let's sit down. Let's talk through again where are you at right now? Where are your goals? What are you looking for? So we did. And hers was interesting because the interview process actually took a little bit longer than normal, but it was because she was feeling so anxious about just everything that she had on her. And she wasn't sure who would be the right kid. So we kept going through different candidates. Okay, this one was good here, but not here, etc. Finally, she walked into an interview with this gal and she called me after and she's like, Yes, this is what I needed. And you could just tell, I mean, I didn't even see her. It was on a phone, but you could like feel the melting of the anxiety. and she was like, Okay. I now have somebody that understands my business, understands me as a person, and is really gonna be there to help kind of explode her business. and then so fast forward, they're doing great, fast forward a couple weeks. and her and I sat down and she's like, Okay, look at this spreadsheet, see all the things that I have going on. I'm so excited, like the virtual assistant's doing all these things, and I was like, This is amazing. Also. I think you've outgrown your spreadsheet because now all of a sudden she has like thirty tabs of all the things that she has going on in her business because she's finally able to see the big picture of her business and finally able to stop doing all the like reach outs and email follow ups and all of that kind of stuff and is starting to be like, we could do this and this and this. and so it's just really exciting to be able to see one, the relief, and two just the growth that is happening in her business. Joe: Yeah, that's interesting shift to see from working in your business to on your business, which is totally different. Brianne Price: Mm-hmm. Yep. Absolutely. Absolutely. Joe: Brianne, what is one message that you want the audience to take away from your episode? Brianne Price: The biggest message is that there's help. There is help out there for these micro businesses and solopreneurs who feel like they just have to do all the things and you don't. There are people out there that want to do all the nitty gritty back end of your business and we want to help you succeed. Joe: where can listeners go to continue this conversation? Brianne Price: my website is the easiest to book those initial consultations. So just head over to millsandmay dot com. I'm also on Instagram and LinkedIn often, so would love to see you guys over there as well. Joe: Thank you, Bran. And thank you for being here today and for sharing your story and the success of your business. Brianne Price: Thank you so much, Joe. I've really appreciated all the the gold nuggets that you've been giving us over the weeks and I'm excited to be part. Joe: you're welcome. Thanks everyone for listening. If this episode inspired you, share it with someone who needs it. And don't forget to follow the Globizer podcast for more conversations that make an impact. Till the next time.