Work at Home as a Virtual Assistant
By Chris Simpson
Virtual assistants are becoming quite popular in the online world of the internet. They
stand to earn a good living working from the comfort of their own homes and on their own
watch. Let's take a look at exactly who they are and what they do.
A virtual assistant is anyone who provides assistance to a company or individual from
his or her home or alternate location via the internet. Virtual assistants is a growing
trend in these tough economic times, even though the cost of fuel is falling the recent
economic problems have alerted companies that they need to cut costs and become more efficient.
A virtual assistant helps to control costs in many ways. The company or individual may
not need more than a few hours of administrative assistance each week, therefore employing
a person working from home means they are only paying for those few hours instead of a
full time employee. This leads to reduction in benefits and vacation expenses as well.
The position of a virtual assistant also has many benefits for the assistant. They can
work around other schedules, such as doctor's appointments, school conferences and even
furthering education while still maintaining a fair income.
Rates will depend on your area of expertise and your experience. A sample wage range is
$20 - $40 per hour. Not bad considering you are working from your home with no commuting
costs and in some cases you can work in your pjs.
What your duties consist of will of course depend on the area you are working in. The
job you would do as a virtual assistant for an attorney will vary greatly from a corporate
executive. The important thing to remember is stick to what you know. If you are not
skilled in any particular area there are training programs cropping up in many diverse places.
Getting started may be as close as your current job. Have you noticed that you could do
most of your duties from your home computer? Take the idea to your boss, but have a clear
picture of it before you do.
Know what you can do, how long it will take you, how you will communicate with the
company, compensation, and any other concerns your boss may have. Have all the answers to
the questions before they are asked and you could wake up tomorrow as a virtual assistant.
Starting from scratch will be a bit tougher but it is possible. The first thing to do
is take an honest evaluation of your skill set. What are you good at and what do you enjoy
doing? This is commonly called a niche. Restaurants, small business, and lawyers all are
niche businesses.
Now that you know what and who, you will need to market your skills. If you have prior
experience in the field ask for referrals from a previous boss, which can get your foot in
the door. You will want to name your business, create a webpage and begin to sell your
skills. You can do this with cold call type letters, advertising, and referral programs.
Anything and everything that would get your name out there in a positive light.
The going may be slow at first, but when you have built a reputation for great service,
you will be in high demand. At this point, you will be able to be choosier when it comes
to clients, as well as your compensation.
Chris Simpson is dedicated to helping people find honest and legitimate
work at home opportunities and home
based business ideas. Find legitimate work from home opportunities and many other great
way's to make money online today at:
HomeNetPro.com
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