Francesca Moi of Empowering Virtual Solutions on Scaling to 78 Team Members, $1.5M Revenue, 75 Clients, Pivoting After COVID, Delegation Mastery, and Her Mission to Empower Filipino VAs While Helping Aussie Businesses Thrive. (Episode 678 - Francesca Moi)

In this episode of Grow a Small Business, host Troy Trewin interviews Francesca Moi, founder of Empowering Virtual Solutions. Francesca shares her journey from starting a business 15 years ago to pivoting three years ago to focus solely on virtual assistants (VAs). Since then, she has grown the company from 1 to 78 full-time equivalent team members, serving over 1,500 clients and generating $1.8 million in revenue. Her business connects Australian companies with skilled VAs from the Philippines, offering services in admin, customer service, and marketing. Francesca highlights the benefits of offshore teams, including better wages and work-life balance for her staff. She also discusses the importance of leadership, time blocking, and continuous professional development, while reflecting on the challenges and lessons of managing fast growth.

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Troy delves into our guest's startup journey, their perception of success, industry reconsideration, and the pivotal stress point during business expansion. They discuss the joys of small business growth, vital entrepreneurial habits, and strategies for team building, encompassing wins, blunders, and invaluable advice.

And a snapshot of the final five Grow A Small Business Questions:

1. What do you think is the hardest thing in growing a small business?

Francesca Moi believes the hardest part of growing a small business is managing people during fast growth. As her team expanded rapidly, she found herself in a managerial role she didn’t enjoy. Balancing leadership with structured team management became a challenge. She emphasizes the importance of building the right support to complement your strengths.

2. What's your favorite business book that has helped you the most?

Francesca Moi’s favorite business book that has helped her the most is "Buy Back Your Time" by Dan Martell. She values it for its practical strategies on delegation and reclaiming time as a business owner. The book deeply resonated with her as she scaled her VA business. It reinforced her belief in building systems and freeing herself from daily operations.

3. Are there any great podcasts or online learning resources you'd recommend to help grow a small business?

Francesca Moi recommends listening to Alex Hormozi’s podcast and reading his book "\$100M Offers", which she found incredibly helpful for refining offers and sales strategies. She also enjoys mindset-focused podcasts like those by Brooke Castillo from The Life Coach School. Francesca believes combining business tactics with personal development is key to sustainable growth.

4. What tool or resource would you recommend to grow a small business?

Francesca Moi strongly recommends hiring a virtual assistant (VA) as a key tool to grow a small business. She believes VAs help business owners delegate repetitive tasks, free up time, and focus on high-value activities. By building the right support team, entrepreneurs can scale faster and more sustainably.

5. What advice would you give yourself on day one of starting out in business?

Francesca Moi would tell herself on day one: “It’s possible.” She emphasizes that in the beginning, she doubted her ability to succeed or even make a single dollar. Her advice is to keep moving forward, trust the process, and believe in your potential—because success comes with persistence.

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Quotable quotes from our special Grow A Small Business podcast guest:

Success isn't about working more—it's about working smarter with the right team – Francesca Moi

Leadership is knowing your strengths and building support where you’re weak – Francesca Moi

Don’t fear pivoting—sometimes the detour becomes the main road to success – Francesca Moi