A Virtual Assistant or VA is a self-employed administrative or personal assistant who works remotely for various clients. These days, a VA is someone a lot of busy professionals and entrepreneurs simply cannot do without. 

Why do people hire VA's?

If you need an assistant, why not just hire someone to work for you full-time? It's pretty simple, really. It comes down to money and convenience. There is a hefty price to pay if you hire someone full-time and don't need them around all the time or if you only need their help on a few projects from time to time.

You can hire your VA for only the hours or tasks that you actually need them for. If you just need someone for five or so hours a week, they can do that. If you need them to work more hours one week, they can accommodate that. And if for some reason you need to save some cash, you can usually just discontinue their services until you've got the cash to afford it. 

What can a VA do for you?

There are a variety of virtual assistants and they all have different skills. Some may gear their work more toward scheduling and logistics, while others may focus on web-based services like manning email accounts, doing research or assisting in social media marketing. Here are just a few things they can help you with.

• Upload blogs or email newsletters

• Respond to emails and set up email lists

• Transcribe voice memos, conference calls and more

• Run your calendar and plan your travel

• Research

• Compile data into organized spreadsheets

• Handle forwarded phone calls when you're unavailable or out of town

• Any time-consuming or repetitive tasks

• Help you hire other employees by doing preliminary research on candidates

• Write and distribute standard business communications

• Prepare presentations

• Manage your social media accounts

• Coordinate with vendors

• Place orders for new supplies

There are actually so many things a VA can do, I can't list them all!