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Working from Home as a Virtual Assistant

Working from Home as a Virtual Assistant

The workplace as we know it is changing. More and more people are now working remotely. In fact, businesses and companies are hiring freelancers instead of having a large number of employees on their payroll.

Research shows that half of the UK workforce will be working remotely by 2020. Of these, 90% of remote workers are planning to continue working remotely for the rest of their careers. One of the best freelancing opportunities is working as a virtual assistant.

What Is a Virtual Assistant?

A virtual assistant is a freelancer who provides professional help to individuals and businesses remotely. Popularly referred to as VAs, virtual assistants offer a variety of services. For example, you can task a VA to write blog posts and post them on social media or your blog.

A company director can request a VA to make arrangements for his or her business trips. Such arrangements include booking flights, accommodation and others. Virtual assistants are extremely useful and can save you time and money.

Other tasks VAs can do include:

  • Social media management
  • Image editing
  • Content creation
  • Keyword research
  • Proofreading
  • Carrying out research
  • SEO
  • Event Management
  • Translation
  • CV Writing
  • Web design
  • Phone answering service

There are more tasks a VA can complete. The good news is, no matter what your skills are, someone out there needs your skills.

How Much Money Can I Earn as a Virtual Assistant?

In the UK, the starting rate for a virtual assistant is £10 to £20 per hour. Several factors will determine how much you can make. One of those factors is experience.

Have you worked as a VA before? How long have you worked as a VA? In the UK, 53% of businesses find it harder to get qualified professionals now than five years ago. This is a significant challenge for most companies.

If you’ve worked longer as a VA, it means you have more experience. Also, if you worked as a VA before, then you’re skilled to offer the best services to your client. Clients value experience just as much as your education level. The more years who’ve spent in your role as a VA will have a significant impact on your earnings.

The client’s location is another factor that determines your salary. London, Chichester, York, Manchester and Coventry are the highest paying cities for VAs. For example, a client in York can pay up to £15.92, while a client in Chichester can pay £15 per hour.

Can I Make More Money as a Virtual Assistant in the UK?

Of course, you can. In this post, we’ll explain how you can make more money as a virtual assistant.

Improve Your Skills

A virtual assistant requires a similar skill set as a social media strategist or personal assistant. If you’re looking to make a leap from your current virtual assistant salary to a higher pay, you must improve your skills.

The following are critical skills every virtual assistant should have:

  • Time management
  • Communication
  • Cloud-based knowledge
  • Organizational skills
  • Take charge attitude
  • Sales skills
  • Accounting knowledge

Communication is critical to your success as a virtual assistant. Without an excellent form of communication in place, your relationship with your clients will not run smoothly. First, improve your grammar skills and writing skills. Next learn how to use instant messaging systems such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Twitter.

Another way to stand out is by having a take-charge attitude. When interacting with your clients, you need to make suggestions on how to work better. Bring to attention anything that can improve productivity.

Increase Your Productivity

Time is precious to your clients. Often when people transition from an office environment to work at home, they lose focus. As such, they are not able to accomplish as much as the client requires in a day.

One reason that may contribute to a lack of focus is distractions at home. According to a University of California study, it takes 23 minutes to get back on track after a distraction. If a client is paying you per hour, it means half the time gets lost to distractions. As such, you’ll fail to complete your tasks.

To improve your productivity, limit your distractions. For example, if video games, TV shows and movies distract you, choose a room without a TV. If your loved ones are visiting you unexpectedly, remind them to respect your work hours and workspace.

The only time you should allow yourself to be distracted is when you take a break. Experts recommend scheduling a 5-minute break after every 25 to 30 minutes. After four breaks, take a longer break of 20 to 30 minutes.

If you don’t want to lower your income potential, avoid distracting yourself. We also recommend using productivity apps to track your time and set your goals.

Charge More Money

Clients pay virtual assistants based on three levels of experience:

  • Beginner
  • Intermediate
  • Expert

The type of work plays a role when a client is considering how much to pay. Beginners with basic skills get paid £10. In some cases, the rate may go lower than £7. Virtual assistant with intermediate skills earns an average income.

Experienced virtual assistants earn more. In fact, some may make more than £20 per hour. A specialist VA has mastery in several skills, such as:

  • Graphic design
  • Email marketing
  • Social media marketing
  • Copywriting
  • Blog writing
  • Keyword Research
  • Website design

To make more money, not only do you have to master more skills but become a better negotiator. The first thing you need to do is look to your expertise and experience. What skills have you mastered? How long have you been working as a virtual assistant?

If you’ve worked for a couple of years and mastered several skills, you can enter into a negotiation with your client and ask for more. Most clients pay the minimum acceptable rate. Instead of summing up your pay, calculate the business costs and personal overheads. You can also include annual bonus paid time off, health insurance and other benefits.

It’s vital to demonstrate to your clients the value of your skills and time. Prove to your clients that you’re an irreplaceable member.

Final Thoughts

Working as a virtual assistant is awesome. Not only do you get to benefit from the numerous transferable skills. But you can work for any business, in any time zone and location. This translates into more opportunities and money.

To become a better virtual assistant, improve your skills by taking nano degrees and other online courses. Use apps to manage your time, create goals, bookkeeping, customer service and task management.

To avoid poor performance and burnout, take 5-minute breaks every 25 to 30 minutes. Eat healthy foods and exercise two hours a day.

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