Technology has seeped into myriad business channels today. Ironically, this doesn’t mean that people prefer robots over human interaction. Albeit technology has the upper hand over several areas, it is yet to tackle empathy as one of the pre-requisites to effective communication. Hence, until this limitation is rectified, it looks like people will not be losing their jobs to bots anytime soon.

Meanwhile, for those individuals or businesses that are looking out for efficient workers with a human touch, there is a well-known solution in the market and that is – virtual assistants.

Virtual Assistants - Who are they?

Virtual assistants are professionals who work outside of the traditional work environment. They work remotely, to give clients reliable and unending support and assistance on any tasks that have been delegated to them. One might ask the obvious question – what about time differences? Fortunately, virtual assistants are not deterred by varying time zones or physical boundaries and so, no matter the location or time, their work would still reflect great quality and punctuality.

Why are they good for your business?

Let’s suppose, you are a busy entrepreneur, constantly shuttling between various locales, with minimal time to oversee your business processes. The catch here is that you might not have a large budget to hire an employee to supervise the business for you. At times like these, a virtual employee can come in handy.

Firstly, a virtual assistant or VA isn’t a fresher you need to keep tabs on. He/she is already an established expert in the relative field. Second, they come with an affordable price tag, which as you know, for a business owner, makes for a good deal.

Third, unlike a physical employee, VA’s are not constricted to traditional business hours. This means that if and when need be, they can work well after a certain time period if it seems convenient for you.

What goes into hiring a virtual assistant?

Presuming that you’ve already made up your mind on hiring a virtual employee for yourself, let’s take a quick look at what goes on behind the scenes.

Upon contacting the virtual assistant company of your choice, you will have initiated the chain of events that will lead you to your own VA. The company will then get back to you with a categorized quote for each service that they offer.

After you have accepted the same, they will contact the operations team, who will look for a suitable assistant that will be a) perfect for your requirements and b) willing to work on the given delegated task, no matter the time and effort. Soon after the aforementioned process is done, the VA will get in touch with you, thus commencing the stage of assisting and tending to your needs.

What services do they offer?

Depending on the company, a virtual executive or assistant will offer certain services, which typically fall into the category of:

Virtual Assistance: Here, a personal assistant would be delegated to you. He/she would help you in tending to myriad personal needs such as – scheduling appointments, travel planning, calendar management and more.

Business Support: For those that need an additional pair of hands to manage certain business processes, they can hire a virtual business executive to tend to tasks such as – Data entry, business research, customer service, document management etc. this will leave business owners with ample time to concentrate on core business ideas and decisions.

Finance & Accounting: Professionals that need assistance with their financial processes, can hire a financial assistant to aid them in tasks such as – Bookkeeping, financial analysis, payroll processing and so on.

IT & Website Development: Enterprises that are looking to boost their venture by establishing an independent domain or app, can hire a web developing assistant to help them in – E-commerce web design & development, responsive website design, CMS web development and more.

Digital Marketing: Companies can hire a marketing assistant to aid them in – Lead generation, SEO & SMO services, PPC marketing, affiliate marketing purposes and a lot more other solutions.

Graphic Design: Businesses with specific design related issues will benefit greatly, by hiring a graphic design assistant for – UI/UX design, brochure/ flyer design, website design, print & electronic design etc.

Call Center Services: Customer satisfaction is primal to companies’ reputation and expansion. If a business is lacking in this department, they can hire a call center assistant aid them in – Telemarketing, inbound/outbound calling, live chat support and so on.

Content Writing Services: Content creation requires a specific skill set that not many possess. For those companies who can’t afford a full time employee for this purpose, can employ a virtual content expert to help them in tasks such as – blogs & article writing, product descriptions, case studies, white papers, technical writing and more.

IMS: Maintaining good IT infrastructure is imperative for not just software companies but rather any enterprise. Hence, a virtual IMs expert would offer their expertise in – Server monitoring, IT help-desk service, network infrastructure management and much more.

By now, you might have gotten a fair sense of how the virtual assistance industry works. If you need further information or looking to hire a virtual assistant for yourself, reach out to us to get your journey started!

warner john

| Posted on February 22, 2019

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warner john

| Updated on July 23, 2021

The ultimate guide on hiring a virtual assistant