Admin support for small businesses: what to hand over, and to whom
If you run a small business, the admin usually happens in the evenings: the inbox, the chasers, the diary, the follow-ups. This guide sorts that admin into piles, compares the ways to hand it over, and shows what to agree before anyone, or anything, acts for you.
The admin that eats the week
Most small business admin is small, repeated jobs:
- sorting the inbox and spotting what needs you
- replying to new enquiries
- chasing unpaid invoices and missing documents
- logging new enquiries in a sheet or CRM
- keeping the diary and follow-up reminders up to date
None of these is hard. Together they take hours, and they're easy to put off.
Sort it into three piles: do, delegate, set up once
- Do it yourself: the jobs only you can do, like pricing a quote or a tricky conversation with a client.
- Delegate: jobs that need a person's judgement each time, but not yours.
- Set up once: jobs that follow the same steps every time, like sorting the inbox or sending invoice reminders. These can be set up once and then checked.
Our guide to automating admin tasks goes through the third pile in more detail.
Your options: hire, a virtual assistant, an agency or done-for-you
| Option | Who does the work | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Hire an admin | A new employee | Recruitment, training, pay and employer costs, cover for holidays |
| Virtual assistant | A freelance assistant, paid for their time | Hours, availability, access to your accounts |
| Agency | An agency's staff | Contract length, who you deal with, access |
| Done-for-you setup | Set up once, then runs and gets checked | What it does, what it asks you first, how you cancel |
For what a virtual assistant costs, see virtual assistant costs in the UK.
What a done-for-you setup can take on: a job list
These are the jobs on our Grok Bot setup service page:
- Sort the shared inbox: labels and files new mail.
- Replies for your OK: nothing sends until you approve.
- Invoice reminders: prepared for your OK.
- Chase missing documents: chasers prepared for your OK.
- Log new enquiries: into your sheet or CRM, where it connects.
- Morning summary: what needs you today, by email.
- Diary reminders: follow-ups added to your calendar.
- Weekly round-up: what got done and what's waiting.
Who approves what: keep the say
Whoever does your admin, agree what they can send or pay without asking you. For emails to clients and anything involving money, the simplest rule is that nothing goes out until you've approved it. Our guide to approving before your assistant sends explains how that works in practice, and inbox triage covers the first job most businesses hand over.
What it costs
Our done-for-you service, Grok Bot setup by Your Evenings, is £750 a month. It renews monthly until you cancel, there's no minimum term, and you can cancel any time by email. You need your own Grok Bot plan, in your own account; the £750 doesn't cover your Grok Bot plan.
Questions
What admin can a small business outsource?
Most repeated admin: sorting the inbox, replying to enquiries, chasing invoices and missing documents, logging enquiries and keeping the diary. Keep the jobs that need your own judgement, such as pricing and tricky client conversations.
Is a virtual assistant or a done-for-you setup better for inbox admin?
It depends on the job. A virtual assistant brings a person's judgement each time, and you pay for their time. A done-for-you setup suits jobs that follow the same steps every time, like sorting the inbox or sending reminders, once it's set up and checked.
How much does admin support cost a small business?
It depends on the option. Our Grok Bot setup service is £750 a month, renews monthly until you cancel and has no minimum term. You need your own Grok Bot plan, in your own account; the £750 doesn't cover your Grok Bot plan.
Will anything be sent without my OK?
We set it up to ask for your approval before it sends or pays.
Can I cancel any time?
Yes. There's no minimum term, and you can cancel any time by email. If you cancel before setup starts, we refund you in full. Once setup starts, there's no refund for that month.
Want it set up for you?
Grok Bot setup by Your Evenings is our done-for-you service. Tell us the job by email. We set it up on Grok Bot, test it with dry runs and check it each month. We set it up to ask for your approval before it sends or pays. It's £750 a month and renews monthly until you cancel. There's no minimum term, and you can cancel any time by email. You need your own Grok Bot plan, in your own account; the £750 doesn't cover your Grok Bot plan. Read the terms before you subscribe. Get my admin handled
Your Evenings is an independent service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Grok Bot or its maker, SpaceX Super Intelligence LLC (SpaceXSI).
Sources
- Your Evenings Ltd, Grok Bot setup service page and terms (read 31 October 2026), for what our service does and costs.
Written with AI assistance by the Your Evenings team at Your Evenings Ltd. Last updated 31 October 2026.