Will I find a good Virtual Assistant on Onlinejobs.ph? Part 2 in the series

In part 1 of this series I covered all the pros and cons of hiring outsourced Virtual Assistant using Upwork.com. In this article I’ll talk about Onlinejobs.ph, another freelancer website with a slightly different business model.

Upwork vs Onlinejobs.ph

Whereas Upwork charges both employer and freelancer for every transaction during the entire duration of the contract, Onlinejobs.ph charges employers a reasonable membership fee to access their database. You pay while you’re looking to hire a VA and cancel once you’ve found someone satisfactory. The next time you need someone, just sign up again for month or two.

Freelancers are not charged at all. Once you’ve hired someone you like, you deal with them directly.

Onlinejobs.ph is like a matchmaker that introduces employers to freelancers – what happens next is up to you.

Upwork is a middleman that takes its cut every time you do business. One of the consequences of this arrangement is that your VA will have to continually visit the Upwork site. If another job catches their eye they might well decide to leave you and go on to something new. There tends to be less loyalty to any one client. Of course, that depends on how you treat your VAs, too.

Onlinejobs.ph is really geared towards employers and workers who want a full-time job with a single company, unlike Upwork.

How it works at Onlinejobs.ph

To get started on this website, you have to open an employer account with your name and company name. There are several types of account: Free, Pro and Premium. They’re all billed monthly.

Free

With a free account you can make up to 3 job postings (with a 2-day approval time) and view job applications. You can look at worker job profiles and bookmark the ones you like. You can also use Timeproof (their time tracking/screenshot software) for the VAs you’ve hired without paying more membership fees. I personally prefer Screenshot Monitor to ensure total performance and productivity.

Pro

This subscription is billed monthly at US$69 (about AU$90) as of June 2018. In addition to the privileges you get with a free membership, you’ll be able to contact up to 75 jobseekers a month. You can read their reviews and hire them. You can still only make 3 job postings, but they go up on the site instantly.

Premium

The Premium account costs US$99 (AU$130) per month. You can make up to 10 job posts and contact up to 500 workers, with unlimited background data checks, which look at jobseeker’s social media accounts and job history on the site. For instance, you’ll be able to identify job hoppers and people exhibiting suspicious behaviour, such as IP addresses that don’t match their stated location. You can also use Onlinejobs.ph’s virtual coaching service to help up to 10 new hires find their feet in their new positions at your business.

Browsing job profiles

A job profile functions as a resume for the jobseeker on the website. It lists the person’s name, the type of work they do, their availability, desired salary, experience and education. Onlinejobs.ph provides an ‘ID Proof’ score as well – the company does some research into the worker’s background and this score is a measure of how well-verified their identity is.

It has nothing to do with their competence, skill or reliability as a worker, but caution might still be a good idea if you see someone with a low ID Proof score. Exchange multiple video calls and emails and do a thorough interview. You might also want to hire them for a short-term test project before taking them fully on board.

What about payments?

Once you’ve hired a VA you cancel your Onlinejobs.ph Pro or Premium membership and settle down to training your new staff member. Work out when, how often and how much you’ll be paying them and do so promptly. I pay every Monday morning via PayPal, but you could also use EasyPay through the Onlinejobs.ph website, MoneyGram.com or any money transfer service of your choice.

Overall, I really like Onlinejobs.ph for finding long term, full time VAs. The people I hire from there seem to stick better than those from Upwork.

If you have any questions about outsourcing or hiring virtual assistants, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Need Help?

Ready to get started?
Next week I will be telling you where and how to source Filipino Va’s
In the mean time if you have any questions shoot me an email

Would you like a short-term coach in your business?

Get a FREE No-obligation 30 minute Coaching session on How to Improve your Digital Sales and Marketing Plan.

Get access to 40 years’ experience in sales and marketing and decide if we are a good fit for each other.

BOOK NOW