Virtual Assistance 101 – Part One - The Definition

Since my post last Friday, several people emailed me with the usual questions: “What is a Virtual Assistant?” “What can a Virtual Assistant do for me?” “How much does it cost?” Starting today, I am going to do a series of posts to attempt to answer these and other basic questions about Virtual Assistance.

First things first: the back-story:

Virtual Assistance is a relatively new profession. It was founded by Stacy Brice, who was working virtually when it was unheard of. Take a moment to read Stacy’s story here.

A Virtual Assistant (VA) is:

Simply stated, a Virtual Assistant is a home-based professional who provides across-the-board administrative services in a long-term collaborative relationship with his or her clients. These services are all done remotely using the latest technology (and a little creativity).

VAs are expert assistants; most having at least 3-5 years of experience in the “real world” as executive level of assistants.

A Virtual Assistant is not:

A Virtual Assistant is not a telecommuter. A telecommuter is an employee that works from home several (or all) days a week. A Virtual Assistant is a self-employed Entrepreneur who decides his or her own hours and polices, pays his or her own taxes and so forth. The VA is equal to the client in all respects.

Also, a Virtual Assistant does not offer one service exclusively. For example: A VA may offer proofreading services; however, if that is her only service, than she is a proofreader, not a VA. Or, a VA may offer accounting services; however, if that is all she offers, than she is a virtual accountant, not a VA.

Having said that, many VAs do offer other services as a companion to their VA practice. There are VAs who offer web design or copy writing or other services according to their expertise alongside their VA practice. These side services have their own prices and policies that are different from the VA business.

The heart of Virtual Assistance:

The heart of Virtual Assistance is relationships. That is why Virtual Assistance works best in long-term collaborative relationships. Some VAs do project work; however, the synergy created in the VA/client relationship does not lend itself well to project work. It is in the long-term that the benefits of Virtual Assistance shine through most brightly.

In conclusion.

A quick search on Google produces various definitions of Virtual Assistance. However, the best, in-depth discussion on Virtual Assistance is found here on the AssistU website.

In the next installment, I will give a sampling of services offered by VAs. For now, if you have questions about this post or Virtual Assistance in general, feel free to leave it in the comments or contact me privately.

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