Online Business Management
What is an Online Business Manager and how does one differ from a Virtual Assistant?
With a virtual assistant, you are the manager and decision-maker in your business. You decide the plan of action, the timelines, you manage the projects, and you delegate tasks to your virtual assistant.
An online business manager is more involved in the day-to-day running and management of your business, the long-term planning and bigger picture, project management, and decision-making. The OBM works on the level between you and your team, creating the standard operating procedures manual and keeping it up-to-date, setting up systems, streamlining and automating systems and processes, dealing with issues, ensuring organization, delegating tasks to the appropriate team members and ensuring the work gets done, etc.
The main role of an OBM is to free up your time so that you can focus your time and energy on the things that only you can do in your business.
Whether it’s Standard Operating Procedures, automation, team management, project management, online marketing, list building, product launch management, telesummit management, systems and tech, WordPress websites, membership sites, Infusionsoft, ActiveCampaign, and much more – I’ve done it as a Techie Virtual Assistant and/or managed it as an Online Business Manager.
An Online Business Manager thinks in terms of what’s best for the business.
These scenarios below may be more applicable to a long-term relationship rather than only project-based work (such as launch management, website development, etc.).
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GROWTH STAGE:
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You’re past the start-up phase, with consistent and growing income. The business is starting to get away from you, there are not enough hours in the day, you feel unorganized and inconsistent in your marketing, balls are being dropped. You feel OVERWHELMED. You’re either still trying to do everything yourself or you’re not delegating to your team effectively. Projects are not getting the attention they should be. You may not have the best systems in place to support your continued growth, and you may not even have Standard Operating Procedures in place (gasp).
You Likely Need:
- Standard operating procedures developed or maintained
- The right systems and technology to support your business growth and goals
- Automation to make the systems and procedures run smoothly – for you, your team, your customers
- A small, functional team
- Consistent online marketing strategy put into action
- List building
- Someone to take your plan, look at the big picture with you, and put that plan into action
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ESTABLISHED BUSINESS:
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Your business is growing faster than you can keep up with…
– OR –
You’ve plateaued because you’re spending too much time IN your business rather than working ON your business, which is stifling your creativity, your ability to look at the big picture, and your ability to set long term goals.
You feel stuck IN your business, working long, hard hours, with too much on your plate. You feel OVERWHELMED. You’re feel like you’re always trying to tame chaos and put out fires when it comes to your team and customers, and it’s like you’re repeating the same tasks over and over again, whether it’s answering questions, sending out information, or dealing with issues that come up.
You know if you could just step away from the busy work that you could continue to grow the business by leaps and bounds!
You likely need:
- Standard operating procedures that are kept up-to-date
- Systems and technology to support your business growth and goals
- Streamlined automation to make the systems and procedures run smoothly – for you, your team, your customers
- To expand or maintain your team
- Consistent online marketing strategy put into action
- Implementation of your big picture strategy and plan
- Project management
- An OBM to step in and manage your team, your projects, and day-to-day tasks
Here’s what our first 90 days will look like (brief, general overview):
- A thorough Systems Analysis: audit of systems, technology, processes, team, income streams, funnels, launch strategy, marketing strategy, analytics, and more.
- Brain dump strategy session to determine key priorities (projects, issues and current fires, and what needs to come off your plate)
- Assessment of what’s broken or not working
- Start establishing structure
- Begin to document and update processes for SOP
- Start set up new technology/systems needed
- Set up marketing calendar
- Set up and establish metrics
- Lead the team and be their main point of contact
- Define roles and definitions for team members, recruiting new team members, if necessary.
- Ensure invoices are being managed in a timely manner.
- Determining what else is still on your plate that needs to be on someone else’s.
- Backup systems are in place.
- Ensure top systems are in place that are needed for success of business.
- Streamline and improve.
Again, this is a general overview. The approach for your business in the first 90 days would be customized to what your specific business needs, what your activities and priorities are, and what you’re struggling with most right now.
If neither of these situations describes you, you may not need an ongoing OBM. Project-based work, a VIP Session, or a virtual assistant may be more appropriate for you at this stage. We can discuss all of that.
When is it time to hire an Online Business Manager?
- You may be a 6 or 7-figure business owner who has a team in place, and you have either plateaued or things are in such a chaotic mess that you are stressed out, overwhelmed, and you don’t know what to do to fix it. You are spending all of your time trying to manage the team and put out fires.
- You may be a 6-figure business owner who is trying to manage or do everything yourself, you’re past the point of needing just a virtual assistant, you need a team put in place to do the work (if you don’t already have one), and you need an OBM to manage the team and the projects so you can get out of the weeds of your business and focus on being the CEO and visionary.
- It’s recommended that you are making $250,000+ per year (or you are on track to reach it).
- You may have a big project, like a product launch or telesummit that you need planned out, organized and managed.
What's the difference between an Integrator and an OBM?
What's the difference between a Virtual Assistant and an OBM?
An online business manager is more involved in the day-to-day running and management of your business, the long-term planning and bigger picture, project and team management, decision-making, and freeing up your time. The OBM implements through management and delegation as much as possible to make sure everything gets done on schedule.
What does it cost to hire an Online Business Manager?
That really depends on your situation and the level your business is at, how much time is required. Project-based work (such as launches or website development) will have its own requirements and may be a flat-rate or hourly fee.
For most coaches who are at the level in their business where they need an OBM, it will often range from $2500 to $6000+ USD per month, depending on the time and level of support required, the size of your team, and the experience of the OBM, etc.
For project management only, it will depend on the specific project details and goals.
For ongoing support, there is a 90-day trial period where I get to know your business and the level of support you need and we start with a full operational assessment. After the initial trial, you can sign on for 6 months or 1 year. A coach or CEO whose business is ready for an OBM will likely need a minimum of 40 hours per month. My retainer packages for Online Business Management start at $2800/month.
Can I hire you to be my Virtual Assistant AND Online Business Manager?
I cannot personally be BOTH your virtual assistant and online business manager – at least not at the same time. It’s not an efficient way to run your business. I can be one or the other.
If you hire me as a VA, you or someone else will have to be the manager and delegate tasks to me (and my team, if applicable). It’s also possible to hire me as a VA starting out, with the intention of me transitioning into the role of OBM as your business continues to grow.
If you hire me as your OBM, you will need hire the appropriate team member(s) or virtual assistant(s) to support you. I can assist you in the hiring process.
Alternatively, if you hire me as your OBM and you need a team put in place but you’d prefer a “one stop shop,” I can provide ongoing virtual assistant services to you through a team of VAs that I will recruit to assist me in my own business. That is an option that’s available to you!
If you’re not sure what is the best option for you, we can discuss this further!
Click the button below to apply for a 30-minute Complimentary Discovery Session. Fill out the questionnaire. This will help me to better prepare for our call. After submission, you can schedule a time in my online calendar.
