According to a 2021 study by consultancy firm Global Workplace Analytics, hiring a remote workforce can help US employers save up to $11,000 in operating costs. This is one of the reasons why there is an increase in both the number of VAs and companies hiring them. With so many managed VA solutions on the market today, it pays to do a little research to see which is the best fit for your business. In this article, we’ll take a look at BELAY Solutions vs. Wing Assistant to discuss the pros and cons of each, so let’s get to it!
Wing offers trained, dedicated assistants for a variety of tasks, everything from expenses and web research to basic content marketing and graphic design. Assistants can do unlimited work during pre-arranged time blocks, 8 hours a day, 5 days a week.
Now let’s dive into BELAY Solutions and see how their services compare.
BELAY Solutions vs. Wing Assistant: All about BELAY
Headquartered in Atlanta, and founded in 2010, BELAY Solutions provides skilled remote assistants to companies in a variety of industries. According to the company’s website, BELAY employs over 1100 remote workers to staff clients in a variety of industries.
The four main areas that BELAY virtual assistants handle are:
- Virtual Assistant Services
- Bookkeeping Services
- Website Specialist Services
- Social Media Manager Services
How does BELAY Solutions work?
The BELAY hiring and onboarding process begins with a sales call to discuss needs and pain points. Assuming both businesses are a good fit, clients sign a contract and the BELAY team will connect you with a Client Success Consultant.
After a discovery call to dive deeper into tasks, tools, culture, and personality requirements, the BELAY Client Success Consultant will select 2-3 candidates from BELAY’s talent pool of hundreds of U.S.-based remote assistants.
The Client Success Consultant then selects the best candidate and matches them with your business so you can be on your way to task delegation. Then it’s time for a kickoff call.
Following the placement process, your BELAY Client Success Consultant will schedule a kickoff call to connect you officially with your talents and discuss goals. Your team can then begin the process of onboarding your remote assistant, with periodic check-ins from the BELAY team to ensure everyone is on the same page.
Who is the ideal BELAY client?
BELAY hires U.S.-based assistants, so the ideal client would definitely be entrepreneurs and small businesses based stateside. According to their website, the company has VAs with a variety of professional experience employed in 48 states.
Having U.S.-based talent may be a requirement for some businesses, but keep in mind that it does add to the bottom line in terms of account costs. Since the cost of living in the U.S. is so high, it stands to reason that BELAY assistants will require highly competitive rates.
While Wing does offer U.S.-based assistance specifically, international VAs are also an option. Wing remote assistants not based in the U.S. provide the same great level of service at a slightly more competitive rate. All Wing VAs are fluent in English regardless of where they are based.
Why would business leaders choose BELAY?
BELAY Solutions has been in the business of remote assistant staffing for over 10 years and has a solid track record for results. Their hiring and onboarding process is relatively straightforward, which ensures that business is conducted smoothly. In addition, BELAY has experience working with clients in a variety of fields, from medicine and real estate, to technology and non-profits.
Here are a few reasons why hiring managers would choose BELAY:
- Available bookkeeping, social media, website, or virtual assistance
- Strong track record
- Diverse U.S.-based staff
Now that we’ve explored the benefits of BELAY solutions, let’s take a look at one or two of the downsides.
Drawbacks of hiring BELAY Solutions
It’s important to crunch the numbers before making an investment in any staffing solution, and here’s where we find one of the drawbacks to BELAY’s approach. According to the business model, clients pay around $40-50 per month while VAs only net $15-19 of that amount (about 38%). This could be why there are reports of lack of job security at the company and high employee turnover.
Another troubling factor is the variety of services offered. As a managed service, BELAY does promise to connect clients with skilled workers, but the tasks they can complete are rather basic and include inbox maintenance and light bookkeeping.
In many cases it might be better to contract a virtual service provider who will complete these basic tasks for much less. Some would argue that BELAY relies on quality instead of quantity, but for $40-50 per month, the service should be exceptional. Other businesses will be left out in the cold entirely if they need VAs with a more specialized skillset at a competitive rate.
Now let’s take a look at how the second company stacks up in our comparison of BELAY Solutions vs. Wing Assistant.
BELAY Solutions vs. Wing Assistant: All about Wing
Founded in California in 2018, Wing Assistant provides unlimited and dedicated virtual assistants for busy startups and executives.
Wing VAs have a response time between 3 and 5 minutes and are available 24/7 for pre-arranged 8-hour blocks. Let’s discuss how Wing matches hiring managers with remote talent.
How does Wing match SMBs with VAs?
Connecting with your Wing virtual assistant is a simple 4-step process:
- Schedule a 15-minute intro call to explain your business needs.
- Meet your Wing customer Success Manager and begin delegating tasks.
- Set up your free Wing account for access to workflow management tools, communicate with your Wing VA, and more.
- Work with your assistant.
Wing digital assistants are fully managed, meaning that trained operations staff oversee their work and assist with professional development, ensuring that you get a qualified assistant invested in the success of your business. And how you contact your Wing VA is flexible. Wing assistants are available to communicate via text, email, Slack, or pretty much any other way that’s convenient for you, not just the Wing app.
Once you’ve got the ball rolling, your Wing Customer Success Manager (CSM) can handle just about anything that comes up. Just like with BELAY Solutions, you’ll have periodic check-ins with your Customer Success Manager. Your Wing CSM is your point of contact at Wing and can help match you with the best VA for your needs. It’s like having another set of eyes on your team looking out for your business.
Who is the ideal Wing client?
Wing helps clients from a variety of industries and backgrounds, but the ideal Wing customer is typically a busy hiring manager or executive whose plate is filled with tasks.
Whether it’s a startup or a Fortune 500 company, Wing clients are usually savvy businesspeople who recognize that their resources are stretched thin and they need to outsource some less mission-critical tasks. They’re looking to get the best value for their money and want a versatile assistant who can complete many different tasks.
Wing also offers virtual assistants with specialized training in fields like Amazon e-commerce, real estate, and bilingual sales calling.
A trained, dedicated Wing assistant can handle scheduling and reception tasks or more specialized services like:
- Social Media Marketing (Community Management, Content Creation, Content Calendar)
- Content Marketing (Audience Research, Content Strategy, Events and Reminders)
- B2B Lead Acquisition and Telemarketing
- Real Estate (Cold calling, Preparation of Listing Materials, Property Listing, Managing Inbound Leads)
- E-commerce (Market Research, Order Fulfillment, Customer Support, Track Refunds/Claims)
- Graphic Design (Content Creation, Ad Creative, Simple Branding Collateral)
There are a variety of plans catering to different specialized remote talent and clients can choose the number of user accounts and number of hours per day that is best for their business.
Why would business leaders hire Wing?
Hiring and onboarding a Wing VA to do low impact tasks is a great way to increase bandwidth for other team members who can then take on more strategic projects in the company.
Wing makes it easy to hire and onboard a virtual assistant. Rather than slogging through a lengthy candidate search process, Wing will match you with a trained VA who can handle your specific business needs instantly at an industry-leading price rate.
You won’t need to spend time training your new VA on basic skills, all you need to do is provide specific details about your business and consistent feedback so they can improve.
In contrast to BELAY Solutions, some Wing assistants are also based outside of the U.S. Having an international VA poses an advantage to businesses in a number of different ways however. First, it allows for competitive rates for services. It also comes in handy if you’re looking to get tasks done outside of typical business hours, for instance very early in the morning or late at night.
Some Wing clients like to assign tasks overnight so they can review completed work in the morning. Managers can contact Wing assistants within minutes during working hours, whenever those hours may be.
YMMV, but think about how –and when– you’d like to deploy your assistant before choosing a managed VA service.
BELAY Solutions vs. Wing Assistant: comparing their services
BELAY Solutions offers U.S.-based college-educated professionals in a variety of different fields, including personal assistance, bookkeeping, social media management, and website management.
Most hiring managers are looking for a VA, so let’s take a look at how VA services in particular stack up for the two companies.
BELAY’s VA services include help with basic tasks like:
- Research and reporting
- Inbox and schedule management
- Travel and expense reporting
- Project coordination
- Social media marketing
Wing offers all the basic services of BELAY and more. In addition to the tasks listed, Wing can provide specially trained VA support for tasks like:
- Graphic Design
- CRM Management
- Inventory Management
- Sales Calling (including bilingual VAs)
- Sales Development
- Executive Assistance
Wing can provide specialized VA services for a variety of specific use cases to tackle the needs of a dynamic and ever-evolving workplace.
BELAY Solutions vs. Wing Assistant: comparing their pricing
As we discussed earlier, BELAY focuses on providing U.S.-based remote talent to busy startups and entrepreneurs. This may be necessary for one reason or another, but it’s important to note that Wing offers a global solution.
Sourcing remote talent from around the world lets Wing keep costs low. It’s an ideal fit for startups or entrepreneurs with an aim for a global reach. In addition, your business will not have to absorb the costs associated with benefits for a full-time employee.
For all these reasons, Wing offers a great value for your money and may just be a better fit for your team.
Conclusion: BELAY Solutions vs. Wing Assistant – which one to choose
A smart businessperson always does their research. It makes sense to take a look at BELAY Solutions vs. Wing Assistant and see how both managed VA services stack up.
BELAY is a strong option for American small businesses and entrepreneurs. The company has a great track record in providing reliable, skilled U.S.-based VAs for basic tasks. Here are a few of the benefits of hiring BELAY:
- U.S.-based assistants
- Strong track record
- Fast onboarding
- Assistants can handle basic tasks
But if your company has needs in specific industries or for specific skills such as sales calling, real estate, e-commerce, graphic design, or content marketing, you should consider Wing Assistant. Plus, Wing’s global business model provides VAs at more competitive rates and can save you money.
To sum up, Wing Assistant provides all of the benefits BELAY, plus:
- Flexible plans
- Flexible communication (through Slack, phone, email, or the Wing app)
- A wider variety of tasks
- Fully managed assistants
- Competitive rates
While both businesses offer a great level of basic VA support, only Wing remote assistants go the extra mile to provide support for everything your business needs. Wing will always be there for your business. Schedule a call to find out how we can help your team today.
Dan Eder writes frequently about digital marketing trends, SaaS, and e-commerce. He has previously worked as a content writer at an SEO agency for tech companies, an e-commerce specialist at a Fortune 500 company, and a journalist for several educational outlets. Read more from him at www.daneder.com.
