Basics:
Belay Belay matches remote workers to companies needing service in four areas — social media, virtual assisting, accounting and bookkeeping
Expected pay: $19 – $33 per hour
Husl$core: $$$
Commissions & fees: 50%
Where: Nationwide, but excludes applicants from California, Montana, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania
Requirements: Vary based on position
What is Belay?
Belay connects virtual assistants, bookkeepers and marketing assistants with companies that need their help.
How it works
If you want to sign up here, you fill out a short application. You’ll include your experience and the number of hours you’d like to work per week.
The site will then do a skills assessment to see if you’re a good fit for platform.
If you are accepted, the site will add you to their talent pool and start matching you with potential clients.
Belay review
Belay launched as a company providing virtual assistants to companies needing help managing email, schedules and projects. It moved into bookkeeping, and social media with the purchase of MAG Bookkeeping. Now the company matches remote freelance workers with companies needing service in social media, virtual assisting, and bookkeeping.
The amount you are paid is based on your role. Virtual assistants earn between $19 and $22 per hour; bookkeepers earn $20-$25; and digital marketing experts earn $28 to $33. The range apparently varies based on the freelancer’s experience and the client.
Benefits and detriments
The benefits of working through the site are practical ones. Belay has a pool of clients that you can pitch. The site does all the invoicing and pays you on a regular schedule. This saves you from the hassle of marketing your services, invoicing clients and having to track down those slow-payers.
But the the detriments are also practical. The site takes about half of the client’s payment for this service, which is a pretty high price to pay. Moreover, you don’t simply get assigned to clients — you have pitch clients, who choose you from the various freelancers available in the Belay worker pool. So you’re still doing some marketing.
On call
While your hours are flexible, the site says you’re supposed to be on call for your clients from Monday – Friday during normal working hours (based on Atlanta time). That’s also not quite as “flexible” as advertised.
Pay
Workers are paid once a month via direct deposit.
Recommendations:
If you’re looking for full-time work, you may also want to check out Indeed and Glassdoor, which are highly-rated job boards. If you’re an accountant or bookkeeper, also check out AccountingDepartment.com, Acuity, Paro, and Robert Half.
You also can post your availability to handle any job/project through Fiverr, which will only charge a 20% commission.
Want to freelance for Belay?
Here’s a direct link to where you can sign up.
What their workers say (from Indeed*):
“Great pay, wonderful management, best flexibility. Takes time to get full-time schedule, but worth it. Company mission is outstanding. Lots of resources provided for success.”
*”Great Company – But they do take about 50% of your pay. They tend to over-hire for the number of jobs they have open. The culture is great – they do follow up with you and the client for happiness.”
“The pitch and idea of this is great, but doesn’t play out as advertised. The pay is low, demands are high and the Client Success Consultants put all of the onus on the contractor to deal with any issues. You can’t really EVER take time off. Been with them a few years now and approaching total burnout. Will be relieved to move on to something else soon. Might as well work as a temp as do this.”
“I am highly qualified and I make similar pay as I did in high school which is definitely a con. There wasn’t any negotiation in pay. And there is never any mention of raises, even for those of us who have been with the company for years.”
(From Glassdoor)
Did not find out until the interview was finished, that the independent contractors become a part of a pool, and must expend much time and effort to ‘apply’ for the roles/clients that Belay currently has. You are not being compensated for the time and effort that must be exerted for ‘applying’ to these roles.
I never had to wait too long to get a new client until this last year. They have made operational changes and have had a lot of growth recently and now VA’s are a dime a dozen. Not to mention the quality of the client has changed, more “personal support” rather than admin.
Getting contracts can be a pain, but it is still easier than going out and getting them on your own.
Good tools/no advancement
They give you most of the tools you need to be successful in the industry. Everyone I have made contact with has been super supportive, kind, and great at communicating. My clients I was paired with have been great, for the most part. But there’s no room for growth in the company. I started at the top of the pay scale, so there isn’t much wiggle room for a pay increase. And my client pays over double what I am paid on a monthly basis for the services.
The culture at Belay is very supportive to WFH moms and they have always encouraged me to lean into my strengths. But the top pay for VA’s is $22 an hour which I feel is respectable. But there could be a bigger sliding scale for those with more experience.
Inflexible
Everything about this company and their client were terrible! Belay sells you on flexibility but the client expects you to be available any moment they need you. Belay does not back you up at all, they are not on your side and they are a complete sham.
You are a contractor so do not expect them to give you the hours that you need. You go through an application process that matches you with a client, which can take a very long time. As a contractor you do not get any benefits. They match you with the clients.
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