A virtual assistant is a business professional who provides a service for other businesses. The area of virtual assisting has grown by leaps and bounds over the last several years. The skills that a virtual assistant brings to the table make the difference between getting hired and being passed over for another company.
A virtual assistant survives first and foremost on her skills. Why should a client hire you over the other candidates? Playing to your strengths will lead to the niche that can set your virtual assisting business apart from the rest.
The skill set that you bring to the table is what the client is looking at. When the virtual assisting industry began, the skills needed revolved around executive assistant duties. Virtual assistants performed tasks like transcription, mass mailings, mail merge documents, proofreading, and the like.
As the industry grew and evolved so did the type of person running the business. Virtual assistants were former executive assistants, but also business executives, paralegal assistants, and other corporate types. The skills that they developed during their careers assisted them in developing new niches for the virtual assisting industry.
Virtual assisting has extended itself into the Internet. Many small businesses and larger ones for that matter, have an online presence to increase business. Managing that enterprise as well as other business ventures can be a lot to handle. Having a skill set that involves the Internet will interest clients looking for someone who can maneuver around in cyberspace.
Internet skills involve all areas of website management and upkeep. Website skills include: website building, website hosting, blog management, and website marketing. A virtual assistant who can manage an email or viral marketing campaign is a valuable asset to any business.
Website skills are not learned overnight. They require overcoming a learning curve and in some cases, lots of classes. Many individuals are in search of people skilled in this area. The plus for a virtual assistant lies in the fact that these skills are not the only ones that they can market to a potential client.
Maybe you can type, transcribe, master Microsoft Office tools, and respond to emails. These are valuable skills but, the secret to being a successful virtual assistant is providing skills beyond what is proven to be “customary”. If you have to, return to school and take a few classes to increase your skill set. Even a novice can succeed if they have the right skills and the drive to be a virtual assistant.