Virtual assistants are like the 90s trend that never goes out of style. They’re what every successful entrepreneur is talking about, and it’s getting into you. You are highly considering hiring a VA and adding them to your team.

Along that line, you’re also second-guessing your readiness and timing. Do you really need to recruit an online assistant? Is now a good time to enlist them?

We’ll get to all these questions one by one.

In this blog post, learn how a virtual assistant works to make your growing company a success.

What Is a Virtual Assistant?

A virtual assistant is a contractual worker who offers administrative services while operating from anywhere. They typically work straight from a home office, using collaboration tools to access documents and communicate with the team.

Remote professionals have years of experience under their belts. Now, with the continuous demand for VA services, remote workers are taking over various roles beyond administration. From content creation to digital marketing, they are the go-to staffing solution for modern-day business.

The working-from-home setup has been widely embraced by business owners and entrepreneurs due to its ability to cut costs and encourage more flexibility. As such, the virtual assistant market is projected to expand in the coming years.

What are Virtual Assistant Duties?

So, what do virtual assistants actually do?

In truth, remote professionals can do anything. Their responsibilities are shaped according to your industry and business needs.

Here are some of the common tasks that you can hand over to them:

• Basic bookkeeping
• Content writing
• Data entry
• Research
• Appointment scheduling
• Travel arrangement
• Website management
• Social media management
• Digital marketing
• Video editing

Simply put, VAs are well-rounded and can adapt according to your current workload.

When’s the Best Time to Bring in a Virtual Assistant?

It’s okay to take care of the daily tasks by yourself. Once your business takes off, it’s a different game. You can’t keep doing everything on your own—you need to start delegating.

The growth of your company means growing responsibilities. With the time you only have in a day, you won’t be able to cover the essential tasks while running the company. If you don’t let go of control and delegate, you might risk halting your business growth.

However, is this the right time to outsource to a virtual assistant? It is, once you start noticing these distressing signals.

A Messy Inbox

What’s your current inbox email situation?

• Hundreds of unread messages
• Business emails are getting mixed up with personal messages
• Important messages are drowned out by spam emails
• Days-old emails left unanswered

To sum it up, you have a disorganized inbox, poor response time, missed opportunities and increasing stress levels.

Don’t fret, this situation you’re in is still salvageable—call in a remote professional. How a virtual assistant works on your email will leave it clean, sorted and updated. No more junk emails crowding your inbox and too-long waiting time to send a response.

Routine Tasks Are Taking Over Your Life

You don’t want to delegate because nobody knows your business like you do. Well, you’re right, but wouldn’t it be nice to take some of the weight off your tired shoulders? Just bring in a virtual assistant.

You can rest easy because these remote workers are experts in what they do, which is why you’re hiring them in the first place. They can manage all your repetitive processes at once, so you don’t lose sleep on low-level tasks that don’t generate money.

Missed Opportunities

With a packed schedule like yours, it’s easy to lose sight of the more important work.

Every time you turn down a client because you can’t squeeze an extra request into your tight schedule, you’re losing money. Ugh, that could’ve been the deal you’ve been waiting for.

It’s not too late to recruit a virtual assistant for your team. Rest assured, you have capable hands supporting you toward your company’s goals.

Business is Not Moving

You have this amazing idea for your product, but you’re putting it off. Why? You just don’t have the time right now, so you’re pausing until God knows when.

Just so you know, the menial tasks that are consuming your attention can be delegated to a virtual assistant. They can handle the rest, so you can venture out, be creative and scale the business.

Spending Too Much Time on a Task

The truth is that you can’t be good at everything. There are tasks you’re not skilled at that are better off in the hands of an expert. Why? Because they can complete the job faster than you can, with better results.

These remote professionals are versed in many fields. They have mastery, fuelled by practical knowledge from working in various domains.

So, outsource the extra work that you don’t like and spend your time on core tasks. This way, your business doesn’t suffer, and you avoid wasting time.

What are the Virtual Assistant Qualifications?

You can’t put all virtual assistants in the same category. Like everything else, some of them are great, while others are simply a waste of investment.

While there are no specific qualifications for what makes an excellent VA, look for an assistant who embodies the following qualities:

• Has experience with the position you’re hiring for
• Tech-savvy (proficiency in using the computer and software programs)
• Communication skills (both verbal and written)
• Independent
• Reliable
• Time management skills
• Attention to detail
• Interpersonal skills
• Adaptable
• Resourceful
• Multitasking skills

What are the Benefits of a Virtual Assistant?

One of the main reasons why business owners hire virtual assistants is because of their immense flexibility. They offer flexible contracts where you only pay for the services you need.

Apart from that, you get to choose whether to pay per project or task. This is so different when hiring onsite employees, where the salary is fixed per month, regardless of productive hours.

In addition, partnering with VAs means freeing up your time to focus on revenue-generating ventures.

As you can see, remote workers are not only a cost-effective solution but also less stressful to work with. You don’t need to set up anything because they take care of delivering their service to you.

How to Hire a Virtual Assistant

Look, there are many methods to hire a virtual assistant. Right now, there’s a growing population of freelance marketplaces. These freelancer sites have a massive pool of talented global online workers with diverse skill sets and experience.

Platforms like Upwork, Fiverr and Freelancer allow you to post a job where freelance workers can bid. They will submit their resumes and portfolios for you to evaluate.

Once you have your set of top candidates, you can conduct a video interview to thoroughly assess their fitness for the position.

Compared to traditional hiring, recruiting virtual assistants is like a walk in the park, especially when you collaborate with a VA company like VAV.

Just to be clear, you still need to put in the time and energy to find what you’re looking for. However, you can get through the process in quick, easy steps.

Create the Right Job Description

You should know what sort of VA you want to hire. So, in creating a job description, be specific about the position. What are the responsibilities? What are the prerequisites to triumph in this role?

By understanding what you’re seeking, it will be easier to choose the candidates who fit the bill.

Arrange an Interview

Interviews are leveraged to carefully assess your virtual assistant’s capabilities and personality. Via an interview, you can talk to your VA candidates and ask about their past experiences in the same role. Or you can use the video chat to peek into your candidate’s character and nonverbal behavior—can you work comfortably with them?

Assess the Skills

To succeed in the position, your remote assistant must have the necessary soft and hard skills. The best way you can measure that is through a skills-related test. By doing this, you can save yourself money, effort, energy and a ton of headaches from landing on a bad hire.

Why Work with a Virtual Assistant and Not Employees?

First of all, employees are costly. They always come with the drama. It doesn’t matter if you’re hiring close; they’re still associated with expenses beyond salary. From office equipment to training costs, the expenditures add up fast, and it can be scary for small business owners with finite resources.

Virtual assistants are different, though. You hire them for their specific skills, which means they require little to no training. Once you bring them in, they’re ready to go. You don’t need to set the space or buy office tools because they take care of their own equipment.

Remote professionals can do many things at half the price of hiring employees. Right now, you’re a business owner with changing needs and few resources; a VA calls to you.

Want to know how a virtual assistant works to get the job done? Scroll down.

• You can do more with less with a VA in tow. They cover a myriad of tasks so you can focus on impactful work. This way, you can accomplish more.
• Remember, your time is gold. By maximizing it, you trigger the company’s profitability.
• You can pay attention to meaningful work. How so? Your VA handles most of the administrative needs, freeing your time to deal with priorities.

Find out how a virtual assistant can help in 2025.

How to Make the Most of Your Rockstar Virtual Assistant?

Finding the virtual assistant of your dreams is just the first step. If you want to reap a higher return on investment, make the most of your virtual partnership. How? Guide them in the right direction.

Design a Clear Job Description

List all the tasks you want your VA to manage and create detailed instructions on how you want these tasks to be performed. With a roadmap for day-to-day operation, they can streamline the processes and waste no time.

Hand Out Training Resources

Don’t get us wrong, your remote worker is ready and needs no training at all. But this doesn’t mean that they should not develop their skills and continuously improve.

Training materials can be very helpful in elevating the performance of your online assistant to a peak level.

Set Communication Guidelines

Your VA has to be reachable and available whenever you need them. The best way to do that is for you and your remote professional to agree on a schedule. When’s the best time to discuss? What’s the expected response time?

You have to figure this out and build a habit of using time wisely. By setting communication guidelines, you can avoid misunderstandings and have access to your assistant whenever you need them.

How to Effectively Monitor Your Virtual Assistant’s Time?

Your assistant won’t be sharing the same physical space. They’re thousands of miles away from you. Without close supervision, a virtual assistant gets to enjoy a flexible schedule.

Now, your question is, “How to track your VA’s time to make sure they’re actually working?”

Well, here’s some time-tracking and communication wisdom from our team to yours:

• During the early stages of collaboration, frequently communicate. This is crucial since you both are still figuring out how to work together.
• Monitor your VA’s hours from time to time. You can use the insight to assess whether your assistant needs more time to finish a task or needs more assignments.
• Utilize time-tracking applications. This helps in strategically allocating time, as well as letting you know “how” and “where” your VAs use their time.

How a Virtual Assistant Works is Pure Magic!

It takes effort to hire and work with a virtual assistant. But the rewards that await you from collaborating with them are truly magical.

From higher productivity and cost reduction to streamlined processes, you and your business get to thrive and grow with a VA's help.

Like the sound of that? Consider partnering with VAV and experience firsthand how a virtual assistant works so you can maintain a competitive edge.