A Guide to Tools for Communication
Communication is one of the most difficult feats in the business world. Even when people are working 2 feet away from each other, communication can be a struggle. It is so important for me in my job to be an open communicator, even if it is tough. So how do I as a virtual assistant, sometimes thousands of miles away from my clients, create an open channel of communication? The answer is, having more than one channel at a time.
These days there are SO many different programs and apps and formats that allow teams to communicate. Here is a breakdown of the different programs out there!
Email*
It’s classic. Simple. Some people can not STAND using email, but I don’t mind it! It is great for those big important things, and then I like to use other tools to deal with the little details!
Asana, Notion, Click-up*
I use both Asana and Notion for organizing mine and my clients’ to-dos. I love that these types of programs also allow for communication using comments and tags.
In both Click-up and Asana, team members can assign each other tasks which is a GREAT way to effectively get things done. I don’t want to have to bother my clients with every little thing, so if I need a piece of information that isn’t time-sensitive, I can create a task and assign it to them.
Click-up has as the board view like Trello, has all of the features of Asana, but more. There is a place for documents, you can track your time for a specific task, there are quite a few ways to view your to-dos outside of the traditional list, board, and calendar views. Click-up is very customizable but can be a bit confusing to start with just like any other program. You can also add comments to a task as a way to keep specific conversations organized when it comes to a certain task.
Notion is free to use for a single user, but is paid for teams. It is not one that I use with my clients (I use Asana with clients), but I really enjoy using the interface to keep track of my own tasks, notes, and goals! It is such a beautifully designed platform and it has TONS of features!
Loom/screen recording videos*
Short videos can be an awesome way to share information and explain how to do things that you might not be able to explain as easily over an email or whatever tool for communication you usually use!
Voxer*
Voxer is essentially a walkie-talkie app. It is so fun to be able to communicate this way! It can be really difficult to communicate exclusively over text. Being able to listen to what someone has to say can sometimes be a lot more effective than trying to get it all across over an email or another form of type.
Text messages
I use text messaging here and there with a few clients, but there are some significant downfalls of using texts. One being that not everyone is comfortable giving their personal phone number to people they met on the internet! Unless you have a business number, it can definitely be a little sketchy. It is a good way to get a fairly quick response though! People tend to check texts more often than email.
Video calls
I usually only use video calls for opening discovery calls (I LOVE using calendly to get them scheduled!). It can become necessary to have video calls for in-depth projects or for people in certain fields. Video calls are an awesome way to kick off working with someone, and while some people use them all the time, I tend to communicate using other forms.
Google Docs
Sometimes google docs can be a fairly effective way of communicating when it needs to be. On a few occasions, I have used a google doc to communicate back and forth in regards to a to-do list. Other forms are probably more effective, but this can work!
This is where I get to be the hype woman. Communication outside of assigning tasks and trading information is so important too! I love being able to hype my clients up in their comments section! Some people also use the voice notes function within Instagram DMs!
trello/17hats/notion/honeybook/slack
There are TONS of project management tools out there. I have some experience in each of them, and they all have their pros and cons. Again to me, Asana and Click-up are some of the best because they combine the features that most project management tools have, with lots more features. Most of them are free or at least have a free version. I do think that project management programs are amazing tools, and every business has a use for one!
What are your thoughts about the different communication tools? I think they all have their time and place. Management systems like click-up/Asana/Trello/Honeybook/etc., email, text messaging, voxer, video calls, they all have a use. It is definitely something that is up to personal preference. My favorites (*) right now are email, asana, screen recordings, and voxer.
No matter what tools for communications you use, if you are ready to begin working with a virtual assistant, feel free to get in touch! You can shoot me an email at hello@marameismer.com, check out my services page, or fill out my discovery form!
