How To Hire An Awesome Virtual Administrative Assistant

The best option for any business owner is to hire a virtual administrative assistant to help lighten the load.

Here's everything you need to know about hiring a remote administrative assistant for your business:

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What do virtual administrative assistants do?

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Virtual administrative assistants are remote workers who can help you complete a wide range of tasks essential to everyday operations. These admin tasks are varied and can fall into any of these categories:

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Communication tasks

Virtual admin assistants are skilled in completing tasks that involve communication with clients, partners, and customers. You can assign them to:

• Answer phone calls and respond to emails on your behalf
• Take messages from partners, clients, and customers
• Manage your email inbox
• Notify you of important correspondence
• Respond to customer service inquiries in a timely and professional manner

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Calendar management

Admin VAs are great at organizing messy schedules. If you’re struggling with tons of meetings and projects, a virtual administrative assistant can help you stay on your feet by:

• Setting professional and personal appointments for you
• Organizing your schedule days or even weeks in advance
• Blocking off time for important meetings or deep work
• Arranging travel details like flights, car rentals, and accommodation

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File organization

A remote administrative assistant is the perfect person to help you with clerical tasks like:

• Organizing digital files and folders
• Basic data entry, including updating existing records and deleting old ones
• Monitoring your customer relationship management (CRM) tools
• Transcription
• Managing financial records, as well as monitoring and paying bills

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Who needs virtual administrative assistants?

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Virtual admin assistants are useful for busy business owners, freelancers, or executives who need help completing various clerical tasks. They can help anyone who’s drowning in office chores. These assistants can also help you step away from daily operations so you can focus on growing your business.

If you feel overwhelmed by what seems like a hundred little tasks, hiring an administrative VA could be the best choice for you.

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Benefits of hiring an admin VA

You’ll have more time to focus on things you’re passionate about

Admin tasks are important, but they’re time-consuming. Take email management, for example. Studies show that the average person spends at least 5 hours a day just going through email.

Imagine all the things you could do if someone else managed your inbox— and other admin stuff —  for you.

Hiring a virtual administrative assistant helps you take back your time so you can focus on things that only you can tackle. These things could involve growing your business, spending some quality time with family, or pursuing other interests outside of the office.

Whichever it is, an administrative assistant can help you leverage your time so you can do more in a day.

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You’ll finally get rid of clutter

Combing through a huge pile of emails, documents, and files kills your efficiency. With the help of a virtual admin assistant, you’ll be able to get rid of clutter and finally organize your virtual office.

We’re talking files in the right folders, your email sorted according to importance, and your CRM tools updated with the latest information. You’ll have a more streamlined process in no time thanks to an admin assistant.

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You'll boost productivity

When you don't waste entire afternoons looking for files or fielding inquiries, you’ll be more efficient. By delegating tasks to a virtual administrative assistant, you’re giving yourself time and energy to do more in a day. You’ll be able to increase productivity, build meaningful relationships, and grab more opportunities.

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What to look for in a virtual administrative assistant

Excited to hire an administrative assistant? Here are the traits and skills you should look for when screening candidates:

• Excellent communication skills - your VA will be working closely with you, as well as your customers and business partners, so choose someone who can communicate well. They should have impeccable spoken and written English skills. They should also be able to respond promptly and professionally to messages.

• Stellar time management - the ideal candidate knows how to manage their time and energy well. They can think on their feet and are proactive. They don’t get easily distracted or overwhelmed by various tasks. They should know how to prioritize these tasks, too.

• Organized and efficient - choose someone who values attention to detail and organization. The ideal assistant should be able to efficiently organize your email, calendar, digital folders, and CRM tools. The ideal candidate must know effective organizational strategies and techniques.

• Responds well to feedback - they should be able to respond well to constructive feedback. They learn from mistakes and view it as an opportunity to improve their performance and help you achieve your goals. They ask questions when they need to clarify something.

• Initiative - they’re keen self-starters that show initiative. They come from a place of help and curiosity. They love taking action.

• Trustworthiness and transparency - your admin assistant will have access to your accounts, emails, and financial information. Choose someone reliable and trustworthy.

• Savvy with various digital tools - lastly, the ideal virtual administrative assistant must know how to use a wide variety of tools like Google Suite, email management apps, and team communication tools.

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How to hire a virtual administrative assistant using Somewhere

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Finding an awesome virtual administrative assistant can be challenging, but here at Somewhere, we make it easy.

We’re a headhunter agency that specializes in finding awesome remote virtual assistants for busy business owners at a fraction of the local cost. We work with a team of talent assessors and scouts to find you the best overseas remote staff.

Here’s how you can hire an admin VA using our service:

Step 1: Let us know about the position you're hiring for

Fill out this form to let us know about the candidate you’re looking for. We’ll be asking for a job description, so make sure to have one ready. Feel free to use this post as reference.

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Step 2: We’ll kick off a search

We’ll hop on a call with you to discuss details and then introduce you to a project manager who will be your point of contact throughout the process.

Our team of talent assessors and scouts will then kick off a search for the best candidates. We exclusively work with a pool of Filipino talents who’ll go through a rigorous screening process before being presented to you.

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‍Learn more: Why founders choose virtual assistants from the Philippines

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Step 3: Choose from a list of vetted candidates

We’ll present a bunch of highly vetted candidates to you. You can schedule an interview to see which candidates best fits the remote administrative assistant job.

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Step 4: Hire the best virtual administrative assistant and start taking back your time

Once you’ve chosen a candidate,  we’ll hand the relationship over to you. You can then start delegating tasks to them.

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How much should you pay a virtual administrative assistant?

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Depending on the scope of the role and the skill of the candidate, you can hire a Filipino virtual administrative assistant for around $800-$1,000 per month, full-time. That’s around 80% less than local hires.

To learn more about salaries for various remote positions, check out this guide.

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Ready to hire a virtual administrative assistant?

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Admin tasks keep your business running. Make sure they get done by hiring a competent administrative assistant to help you out.

These highly skilled remote team members not only help you run your day-to-day operations, they also allow you to take back your time, be more productive, and actually enjoy building a business.

Let us know about your ideal admin VA today and we’ll find one for you at a fraction of the cost.

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FAQs about hiring virtual administrative assistants