21 Ways to Use a Virtual Assistant

Here’s a list of 21 tasks you can outsource to your Virtual Assistant:

1. Scheduling appointments. Let your Virtual Assistant schedule and manage all your appointments for you. You just view your diary every morning and show up to every appointment prepared and let your VA do all the admin work.
2. Managing events. Managing a corporate event can be stressful, especially if you’re inviting international delegates. What’s even more stressful is handling the queries from each delegate. Outsource this task to your VA to ensure a successful event.
3. You can outsource your general reporting to a VA. Make sure you take your VA through adequate training before expecting him/her to produce accurate reports.
4. You can get your VA to do basic bookkeeping tasks such as updating your journals or cash book.
5. Running errands. Do you have personal errands you need to run but no time to do it? Let a VA do that for you!
6. Cold calling. You’ll have to be careful with this one as not everyone is good on the phone. If you hire a VA to make cold calls, make sure he/she has sales experience.
7. Blog writing. You can send a list of blog titles to your VA and have him/her write your blog posts. Regular blog posts will not only keep you connected to your audience but also get more traffic to your website through search engine traffic.
8. Social media management. No time to manage your social media accounts? Let a VA handle that for you Just give him/her the posting schedule in advance so that he/she will know what to post.
9. Editing and proof-reading of written content. Editing written content can be time-consuming especially for people who are not professional writers. Let a VA edit all your documents so that you may have more time for other tasks.
10. Managing emails. Most entrepreneurs have a mailbox full of emails that they can’t get to. This leads to missed opportunities. Outsource this function to a VA.
11. Chat support. These days customers want to hear from you within 24-hours of sending a query. If not, they go to a competitor. A VA would be a perfect match for this type of role as you can pay him/her by the hour.
12. Transcription of audio/video content. If you’ve got audio and video content that you need to transform into written content, outsource it to a VA.
13. SEO/web developing. Let your VA search for popular keywords in your industry so that you can add them to your blog posts/content. Also, your VA can develop your website or landing pages.
14. Building databases. If you need a database to start calling for appointments, a VA can build it for you by searching the internet.
15. Travel arrangements. Flying for a business meeting? Let your VA handle that for you!
16. Sorting online files/documents. A virtual business may not have physical files, but the online files can get just as crowded as physical files. Have your VA sort all your documents in well-labelled folders so that you and other staff members can easily find information.
17. Online research. If you need to research a specific topic, let your VA do it for you.
18. Creating forms and templates. If you require templates to send emails, guide employees and onboard new employees, let your VA handle it for you.
19. Creating and sending email marketing campaigns. Email marketing campaigns are successful in increasing your sales, let your VA create and send them to your clients.
20. Designing visual content such as images, logos, banners and headers. Need a graphic designer but can’t afford one? Let a VA design your visual content and pay only for each completed project.
21. Managing teams. You can hire a VA to manage other team members. This is great for a small business because you can have him/her work for a few hours per day and pay by the hour.

If you are currently hiring a Virtual Assistant we would love to hear more about the kinds of tasks you outsource in the comments below!