Why be a virtual assistant now?
Virtual assistants have been employed for as long as there has been an internet, but their range of responsibilities and level of acceptance have increased recently. Working as a virtual assistant (or VA) can be a very lucrative job option in 2021 and beyond.
Clients use virtual assistants on a daily basis to carry out a variety of routine and highly specialized duties. You could make more money as a virtual assistant (VA) if you specialize in certain tasks for clients, such as writing, bookkeeping/accounting, social media marketing, web design, travel planning/coordination, telemarketing, executive administration, data entry, booking appointments/scheduling, project management, database management, or research. By carving out a specialization for yourself as a virtual assistant, you may stand out from the crowd.
Creative Assistants’ founder, Cindy Opong, provides an explanation of her company: “I believe that a virtual assistant’s job is to support and, in certain situations, manage a client’s business so that they may devote their time and energy to what they do best. Working with [former] top executives who are now beginning or managing their own consulting businesses is my area of expertise. Many of these persons lack the basic skills required of an executive assistant because they were accustomed to working with one in the corporate environment. I step in and assume that position on their behalf afar.”
How much can you make as a virtual assistant?
For its 2020 VA State of the Industry Report, the Association of Virtual Assistants polled more than 500 active virtual assistants. In the survey, 93% of participants stated working as a VA gave them “freedom and flexibility.”
According to the survey, 38% of respondents worked 20 to 30 hours per week, 26% reported working over 40 hours, 24% worked 10 to 20 hours, and 11% worked 1 to 10 hours.
According to the survey, 58 percent of virtual assistants make between $26 and $50 per hour, 23 percent make between $10 and $25 per hour, 18 percent make between $51 and $100 per hour, and only 1 percent make more than $100 per hour.
33 percent of respondents reported having a monthly income of between $2,001 and $5,000, 26 percent between $1,001 and $2,000, 16 percent between $0 and $500, 14 percent between $551 and $1,000, and 11 percent had a monthly income of over $5,000.
What you’ll need
Being a virtual assistant has several advantages, one of which is that clients rarely care where you are as long as you are available during their business hours and deliver your job on schedule. Even though they might never really meet, some clients do prefer virtual assistants (VAs) that reside in and work from their time zone. You become your own boss when you operate as an independent contractor from a home office. You decide on your fees, how many hours you’re willing to work each week, and how your days are scheduled. As a business owner, you are also accountable for:
- Getting and keeping customers
- advertising and marketing your company (online and in the real world) P Taking care of the accounting and bookkeeping
- Billing (and collecting on delinquent invoices) (and collecting on overdue invoices)
- Maintaining your current skill set
- Observing deadlines
