The Big List of Frequently Asked Virtual Assistant Questions, Answered

Jul 21, 2022

If you are new to the virtual assistant world, you are not alone! Whether you’re looking into a career as a VA or wanting to hire a VA, it’s definitely a new terrain for those accustomed to corporate environments, in-house executive assistance, and the structured 9-to-5.

First, let’s answer the most basic question: What is a virtual assistant?

Virtual assistants are freelancers who work remotely, and they provide administrative, marketing, and technical support to business owners and entrepreneurs.

Especially during the pandemic and throughout the economic shifts we have seen in the past two years, business owners, entrepreneurs, and large companies have taken an interest in virtual assistants. Some business owners see this outsourcing as a way to replace full-time employees and reduce costs or to simply delegate one-off projects at a time.

Employees are demanding hybrid work environments and more flexibility for better work-life balance and to save money on commutes. The virtual assistant business model serves all of these needs and then some.

We compiled a big list of FAQs for hiring or becoming a virtual assistant. Check them out below!

Read through them all or jump directly to a question here:

How to Hire a Virtual Assistant

How to Become a Virtual Assistant

Hiring a Virtual Assistant

1. How much does it cost to hire a virtual assistant?

The average rate for a VA is $20.25 per hour in the United States. However, the rate can also depend on several factors, such as cost of living due to location, the type of project (hourly or fixed price), and experience. If you’re going through a virtual assistant agency, they can generally charge $30-$50 an hour for services. See this breakdown by Indeed for the average rates in the highest paying cities.

2. Are virtual assistants classified as employees?

Virtual assistants are typically classified as independent contractors. However, in some cases, startups or small businesses might hire VAs as employees.

3. How do I decide if I need a virtual or in-person assistant?

A virtual assistant would be most beneficial for your business if you are comfortable delegating tasks without needing regular check-ins throughout the day as if you were in an office setting. VAs can collaborate with you, but they also work independently and set their own schedules.

4. Is it better to hire a virtual assistant in the US than internationally?

This can depend on the urgency of your tasks, the timing of your phone calls and meetings, and any other day-to-day operations that require a faster turnaround from the VA. If you live in the United States and are handing off a big project to a VA in Australia, for example, chances are you don’t need to check in with them very often but are comfortable with weekly updates. If your tasks are performed daily and require a faster response time, then seek out a VA who lives in the US. You can also make sure your VA works around the same hours of operation, even if they do live in a different time zone in the US. Side note: the cost of hiring a VA internationally can also be significantly different than in the US.

5. How to vet a virtual assistant?

Whether you’re going through a virtual assistant agency or hiring a VA directly for your business, you will want to look for good qualities along with their specific expertise. These can include good communication, time management, resourcefulness, self-motivation, organization, detail-oriented qualities, and if the job requires it, creativity. If you are going through a trial period with the VA, you should be able to see these qualities shine through or fall short after a few weeks.

6. What can a virtual assistant do?

A virtual assistant can perform a wide variety of tasks in administration, marketing, accounting, human resources, tech support, and customer support across several different industries. It’s important to note, however, that one VA may not encompass all the necessary skills or experience that is needed, so you may need to hire additional VAs to get all your tasks done each week.

7. What’s a typical virtual assistant skillset?

A typical VA skillset can include computer efficiency, typing and transcription skills, proofreading, editing, travel coordination, researching, data entry, blogging, content creation; and knowledge of several software programs for workflow, CRM (Customer Relationship Management), marketing, accounting, and other administrative tasks. A VA might also have more specialized skills such as graphic design, HR management, advertising, website design and maintenance, SEO (Search Engine Optimization), podcasting, event planning, and e-commerce.

8. How can a virtual assistant make me more productive?

A VA can take tasks off your plate that aren’t necessarily big projects but part of the day-to-day operations, such as answering emails, writing up SOPs, scheduling meetings, making social media posts, sending out the monthly newsletter, etc. These tasks can be handled by a VA so you can continue with the big picture.

9. Can a virtual assistant manage and share my calendar?

Yes. In fact, many VAs specialize in this, especially executive virtual assistants.

10. Can a virtual assistant manage my email inbox?

Yes. Many email servers allow you to delegate your inbox: learn more about how to do that with Gmail here.

11. Can a virtual assistant help grow my social media following?

Absolutely. Marketing virtual assistants are often very skilled in growing your reach and following.

12. Is it true that virtual assistants are unreliable?

Virtual assistants are only as unreliable as other groups of assistants – in other words, there are excellent and reliable virtual assistants and unreliable ones, just like there are excellent and reliable employees and those who are not. However, in the vetting process, it’s important to look for those qualities and skills that you would want in a VA and monitor them throughout your trial period so that your work together can reach its full potential. It can help significantly to go through an agency whose vetting process you trust.

13. Is hiring a virtual assistant a cybersecurity risk?

No. However, it is extremely necessary to make sure all passwords and data are protected when working with your VA. Make sure to not send your login information over email and instead use a password encryption platform such as LastPass. Gmail also has the option to create an encrypted email if you need to share confidential information. Check out our previous blog for more information on security and how to protect your data from cyberattacks.

14. Is hiring a virtual assistant worth it?

For most small businesses, a virtual assistant is absolutely worth the cost, and can actually impact revenue growth. Virtual assistants have the capacity to shave off hours from your work week. They can take care of things on the back end so you can concentrate on the front end or anything client-facing, such as events, meetings, hosting webinars, shooting videos, and other branded content.

15. How does a virtual assistant help someone with a disability?

A VA can help someone with a disability by developing more of a personal relationship with them and creating personalized solutions based on their disability. For example, if you suffer from anxiety, and the mundane tasks are usually overwhelming, a big part of the VAs work would be organization, project management, setting up meetings, and managing your inbox.

Becoming a Virtual Assistant

1. How do I become a virtual assistant with no experience?

First, you will want to decide which skills you want to be represented as a virtual assistant. Take a look at your previous jobs and identify the tasks where you feel most confident. This could be as simple as answering phone calls, answering email, or data entry. You could also leverage your creative skills when starting out as a VA, such as writing and designing basic graphics. Read our complete guide to becoming a virtual assistant here!

2. How do I decide my virtual assistant specialty?

If you’ve decided that inbox management or data entry are your strong points, then you would market yourself as an administrative virtual assistant. If you want to be known for content creation or social media management, then your specialty would be marketing.

3. How do I get started as a virtual assistant?

After identifying your skills and specialty, either set up your own business and choose your own pricing or go through a virtual assistant agency where the pricing structure is already in place.

4. How much does a virtual assistant get paid per hour?

Generally, VA agencies start out paying $15-$20 an hour, but they can also offer bonuses, commissions, and wage growth up to $25 an hour. If you are starting on your own, it’s a good rule of thumb to charge at least $25 an hour since you will be taking care of all the costs of running a business.

5. What types of clients do virtual assistants work with?

VAs can serve small business owners, entrepreneurs, startups, and occasionally, large companies looking to outsource. The industries can vary from non-profit organizations to authors to yoga instructors to lawyers.

6. What certifications do virtual assistants need?

Some virtual assistant agencies might require certifications in social media marketing, inbound marketing, and email marketing. If you’re running your own VA business and your specialty is marketing, you’ll want to at least have a foundation of knowledge in these areas. Check out Hubspot Academy, General Assembly, Hootsuite Academy, or WordPress Webinars for free courses and workshops. If you’re going the accounting or bookkeeping route, it’s best to get certified in Quickbooks or a similar program, and if you’re going to assist with medical billing and administration, you’ll need the Certified Professional Coder (CPC) certification and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) certification.

7. How do virtual assistants track time?

Virtual assistants can use time tracking apps such as Harvest, Timecamp , or Clockify. There are many different apps and software programs available for virtual assistants to track time for billing to their clients. Find one that has an easy way to share with your clients for ease of invoicing, unless you’re working with an agency, in which case the agency will likely handle client billing for you.

8. What equipment and software do I need to become a virtual assistant?

To start with the basics, you will need a strong internet connection, a computer desktop or laptop, and a cell phone (if that is one of your lines of communication). If you are traveling or sometimes working in noisy areas, have a pair of headphones just in case you have to hop on a call. On that note, for communication, the most common software and apps in which you should get acquainted are Zoom, Loom, and Slack. For scheduling, familiarize yourself with Calendly, Honeybook, or Hubspot. To keep track of files and documents, a lot of clients use Google Drive and Google Workspace, OneDrive, Dropbox, or any cloud-based storage space. For project management, it’s best to get familiar with Trello, Asana, Wrike, or ClickUp. Over time, you will discover more apps according to what a client needs, and then you can add these apps and software to your list of skills!

9. Are virtual assistants taxed as business owners?

Yes. As independent contractors and sole proprietors, virtual assistants provide services to other businesses. Therefore, VAs are considered self-employed or business owners, so they pay self-employment tax as well as income tax to the IRS.

10. How do I develop a web presence as a virtual assistant?

You can develop a web presence by creating a website that showcases your biography, past clientele, work samples, list of services, client testimonials, and more. You can also compile everything into a one-pager so it can serve as a portfolio link you can send to potential clients. It’s also best to stay active on a social media platform, such as LinkedIn, so you can network and find new clients. LinkedIn has a combination of functions – you can show your resume on your profile, you can use the feature section to link publications and work samples, and you can network with other users on the newsfeed.

11. How do I land my first client as a virtual assistant?

The best way to land your first client is to start networking on social media and in person. Find a Facebook group that supports virtual assistants or look for small business meetups in your area where you can spread the word about your services. Whether you’re going through an agency or from your own business, spruce up your VA profile or portfolio to show all your skills and previous experience so that you can make a good first impression.

12. Is it worth it to become a virtual assistant?

Yes! Being a virtual assistant is not only rewarding in terms of work-life balance but also for gaining more skills and working in different industries. If you are starting your own VA business, it can be a liberating experience to become an entrepreneur and to create your own legacy.

13. What kind of work style does a virtual assistant have?

The beauty of becoming a virtual assistant is so you can have any work style you prefer! You can set your own schedule, your own capacity of hours per week, and your own communication style. However, when choosing a client, make sure that your work style aligns with theirs, too. Otherwise, you could find yourself in a strained work relationship where their expectations are not met and your own work style is compromised.

14. What makes me a good fit as a virtual assistant?

To be a good fit as a virtual assistant all depends on two factors. First, how do you align with the client’s needs? Do you have the right expertise for their tasks? Do you have the capacity of hours for what the client is demanding? Does your work style line up with their work style? When you interview with the client, do you feel they will be a right fit for you? Second, you’ll always want to maintain good habits and qualities for all your clients, such as strong communication, reliability, follow-through, and self-motivation. To be a good fit is to align with the client as well as yourself.

15. Are virtual assistants in high demand?

Absolutely. Currently, with The Great Resignation and the pandemic, virtual assistants are definitely in high demand, and employees are ditching their corporate jobs to become virtual assistants or any kind of remote worker so they can finally balance their lives at home.

We hope this list of FAQs have given you a better idea of what to expect when hiring or becoming a virtual assistant. Whether you’re wanting to take things off your plate or gain more flexibility in your work schedule, the virtual assistant is a practical, productive, and valuable solution in today’s workforce.

Ready to delegate to a virtual assistant?

Lauren Lyman

Lauren Lyman is an experienced freelancer in administration and social media management. Lauren originally began her career in academia, aspiring to work as a university professor in music history and classical flute while holding several customer service and office coordinator jobs along the way.

In January 2019, Lauren began working with Trusty Oak as a virtual assistant. She loves helping her clients build their social media brands, and she also assists with project management, email marketing, and blogging. Lauren also worked as the Trusty Oak Social Media Manager from March 2020 to March 2021.

In her spare time, Lauren writes her own music, plays her flute for her partner’s studio sessions as well as for other independent musicians and producers, and she performs at venues in New York City.

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