What Is A Virtual Assistant (VA)

You are here:> Observation Mountain » Archives, At Home, At Work, For Entrepreneurs, Making Money » What Is A Virtual Assistant (VA)



You may have heard the term, and also asked the question, “what is a virtual assistant (VA)”

Wikipedia defines a Virtual Assistant (VA) as follows:

A Virtual Assistant (or simply VA), is an independent contractor providing administrative, technical, or sometimes creative assistance to clients–usually to other independent entrepreneurs and solo and small business practices, such as that of a lawyer or realtor. Virtual assistants work from their own office (hence “virtual”), thus making it a fairly popular (and growing) profession. It is estimated that there are about 40,000-50,000 virtual assistants worldwide. Common modes of communication and data delivery include the Internet, File Transfer Protocol (FTP), and fax machine. Although the occupation gives a degree of independence, work is on a contractual basis, and a long-lasting cooperation is standard. Typically 5 years of administrative experience in an office is expected at such positions as executive assistant, secretary, legal assistant, paralegal, legal secretary, real estate assistant, office manager, etc.

Virtual Assistants are independent contractors. They are classified as self employed. Virtual Assistants are responsible for their own self employment taxes, i.e Federal, State, etc… The contract between an “employer” and a Virtual Assistant (VA) can be terminated by either party.

In the past, the jobs of Virtual Assistants were, and still are, referred to as telecommuting. Often, the terms WAH (work at home) or WFM (work from home) are also applied to these positions.

Being able to work from remote locations has made telecommuting extremely popular. Potential employers have a larger pool of “employees” to draw from, and the Virtual Assistants have a wider range of jobs to apply for.

Many employers are turning to Virtual Assistants in instances where an employee does not need to be physically “on location”.

Although some Virtual Assistants are self employed, many Virtual Assistant Agencies are popping up online. Finding a job through an agency could result in lower wages, however, it may be a great way to gain credibility and experience.

It is reported self employed Virtual Assistants can make from $20 to $70 per hour. Wages will vary depending on the task, as well as the expertise required to complete the job.

Telecommuting spawned the rise of offshore outsourcing. With the capabilities of satellites, high speed internet, software programs, laptops, and wifi, etc., working from remote locations has now become a popular way to reduce the carbon footprint for many individuals and corporations.

According to Wikipedia,

Research conducted by Kate Lister and Tom Harnish in 2008 shows that thirty-three million Americans hold jobs that could be performed at home. If they did, the U.S. could make major cuts in oil dependency. Based on their synthesis of data from EPA, DOT, and 7 other recent sources, they found that telework could reduce Gulf oil imports by 24 to 48%, reduce greenhouse gases by up to 67 million metric tons a year, and save as much as 7.5 billion gallons of gasoline each year. These new telecommuters would collectively avoid 154 billion miles of driving and save $25 billion in fuel purchases (even accounting for mileage for errands formerly accomplished driving to or from work). What’s more, their research shows that by not commuting, these new teleworkers would enjoy the equivalent of an extra 5 workweeks of free time each year.

With energy prices rising, and more individuals and corporations striving to reduce their carbon footprint, a surge in the employment of Virtual Assistants appears inevitable.

Related posts:

  1. What Are The Popular Baby Names
  2. What Are Green Collar Jobs
  3. What Happened to the Dress Code?
  4. Organizing Your Office With Color
  5. Recycle Used Print Cartridges -Get An In-Store Credit

April 29, 2008 by Barbara Swafford
Filed under: Archives, At Home, At Work, For Entrepreneurs, Making Money 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Comments

11 Comments on What Is A Virtual Assistant (VA)

  1. Virtual Assisstant on Tue, 29th Apr 2008 9:31 pm

    2. Yes, that’s right! VAs are very good contractors. Having s desk job is a great job, especially when you have one who is good at that particular job. VAs are a great help to many people, and is a great job to have. They are independent from their contractors and all they have to do is follow the instructions they receive, and nothing more. Given the right VA, ny job can get done quickly.

  2. Shakeel Ahmad on Tue, 29th Apr 2008 9:32 pm

    3. Looking for an online home based job like Virtual Assistant…

    His / Her Excellency,

    I am Shakeel Ahmad of 31 years R/o Islamabad (Pakistan) qualified in Faculty of Science (equivalent to Intermediate) having three IT diplomas from different institutions and one secretariat course.

    I have no source of income at this moment inadvertently / unfortunately. And I’m intensely in need of earning. You may do me a favour in this regard, please.
    May you live long with all pleasures / colours of life.

    I’ve a good command on Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point, Outlook, Corel Draw, Power Page Urdu, Internet Explorer (Search Engines) & E-Mailing, Jet Audio, Windows Accessories, DOS, SQL Server ( in a limited way ), Antivirus, ACDC, Adobe Reader, etc.

    I am rather expert in Troubleshooting & Maintenance of personal computers, with Installations of OS, NOS, Office & other Application Software etc.

    I also know the Design, Software / Hardware Installation & Configuration of Local Area Network in Microsoft but something about Linux, Unix, Novell Netware environments.

    My typing speed is more than 60 w.p.m.

    I have a good communication skills in English.

    Looking forward for your early response…

    Yours sincerely,

    Shakeel Ahmad.
    E-Mail: itlogics@hotmail.com,
    it.logics@yahoo.com, itlogicsa@googlemail.com

  3. Shari Sultana on Wed, 30th Apr 2008 6:28 am

    4. Hi Barbara!

    I’m proud to say I’m a Virtual Assistant.

    Thanks for writing this article and helping to promote my industry.

    Best wishes!

    Shari Sultana

  4. Rita Cartwright on Wed, 30th Apr 2008 11:18 am

    5. I recently wrote a blog post on FAQs about virtual assistants. One of the question I answered is “what is a virtual assistant?” If you would like to read the other FAQs, please visit http://rjswordprocessing.wordpress.com/2008/04/22/faqs-about-virtual-assistants/

  5. Barbara Swafford on Wed, 30th Apr 2008 3:14 pm

    6. Hi Virtual Assistant,

    Thanks for stopping by and sharing from your experience. VAs are becoming more and more popular.

    Hi Shakeel,

    From your resume, it looks like you shouldn’t have any problem find a VA job. Hopefully someone in need of a VA will see your comment here and contact you.

    Hi Shari,

    Congratulations on being a VA. I checked out your site and it’s impressive.

    Hi Rita,

    This is great. I not only get a practicing VA, an applicant, but also a comment from two agencies.

    Thank you for sharing your blog post. You’ve answered questions many will have about VAs.

  6. Christine Buffaloe on Thu, 1st May 2008 7:43 am

    7. I’m so glad you mentioned virtual assistants. I am a VA and one of the things I stress to my clients is when you are freed from administrative tasks, you can do what you do best and not be mired in daily tasks that hold you back.

  7. Barbara Swafford on Thu, 1st May 2008 11:10 am

    8. Hi Christine,

    Thanks for the comment.

    I know you’re recommending a great product for those interested in hiring VAs.

    For those interested, go to Christine’s site.

  8. Craig Harper on Sat, 10th May 2008 1:49 am

    9. What a pity employers don’t take a big picture approach to those thirty three million Americans. Great Statistics!

    Craig Harper’s last blog post..Comfort Junkies

  9. Barbara Swafford on Sat, 10th May 2008 10:06 am

    10. Hi Craig,

    Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts.

  10. virtual paralegal on Wed, 21st May 2008 4:00 am

    11. [...] A virtual Assistant or simply VA, is an independent contractor providing administrative, technicalhttp://observationmountain.com/what-is-a-virtual-assistant-va/Virtual Paralegal Solutions – Paralegal Virtual AssistantVirtual paralegal Solutions, LLC offers [...]

  11. Usa Jobs Work At Home on Fri, 23rd May 2008 7:46 am

    12. anybody here know of a good site to find more info on Usa Jobs Work At Home? I’ve got this site bookmarked and im gonna keep checking it out, but i still would like to find a site that covers Usa Jobs Work At Home a little more thoroughly..thanks

Tell me what you're thinking...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!





CommentLuv Enabled