Becoming a Virtual Assistant: What Does a Virtual Assistant Do and 4 Ways to Get Started

Aside from freelance writing, becoming a virtual assistant is another way you can have an additional income at the comfort of your home. It is an in demand opportunity since a lot of individuals and businesses need someone who can offer various services in an affordable and convenient way. 

A virtual assistant is someone who offers administrative or personal assistance and work remotely (home-based) for various clients. Another definition of a virtual assistant is someone whom professionals trust to do a things that they may not be able to accomplish because of other priorities or busy schedule. READ: Becoming a Technical Writer in the Philippines, Becoming a Freelance Writer in the Philippines

Setting your heart and mind to be a virtual assistant means committing in giving your skills and services to your clients. Thus, it is of high importance that you first assess whether becoming a virtual assistant is really for you.

 

What Does Virtual Assistant Do?

A virtual assistant offer countless tasks  and services to individuals, organizations and companies. As a virtual assistant your task may depend on the field/business of your client. Below are eamples of 

1. Writing
2. Ghost Writing
3. Proof reading
4. Creating Graphic Design
5. Project Management
6. Audio, Photo and Video Editing
7. Transcribing
8. Data Entry
9. Researching
10. Bookkeeping
11. Social Media Management

And the list just goes on and on...

How to Become a Virtual Assistant

Becoming a virtual assistant starts with building a  solid foundation. Here are tips on how you can start earning by assisting virtually.

Assess The Services You Can Offer

Virtual Assistance offer a variety of services just like mentioned above. This means you need to establish what services/skill you will offer to the public. Know where you excel most whether its writing, doing graphic design or simple data entry. You can research for the complete list of services every virtual assistant can choose to offer. Do not offer something you aren't familiar because you will certainly loose your clients. 

READ: Becoming a Technical Writer in the Philippines, Becoming a Freelance Writer in the Philippines

Learn More

Just like my tip in freelance writing as a career, you need to get educated if your goal is to become successful. Read virtual assistant themed websites and learn from the experience of other established VAs. It is also helpful for you to attend courses or seminars that can harness your skills. You also want to keep on growing as a virtual assistant. Your goal is to move from becoming a freelance virtual assistant to becoming a virtual assistant business owner. So take your time and get tons of learning in how to handle the said field.

Offer Your Services to the Public

If you are just starting to become a virtual assistant then you can promote your services via Facebook or by talking to people you know that you can be a help in their business. You need to involved in places where your potential clients hang out. Broadcast what you can do for you will never get clients if you don't become active and sell yourself to others.

Network with Others

The more people you know the better. I encourage you to network with other virtual assistance and go roam around to people who can help you get known. It is a tough competition but in the online community, Filipinos is the race to beat. We are known because of how skilled we are and because we  are always give our prompt service. If you haven't like SavingsPinay on Facebook then please do. It is a great network where you'll get to know how to earn money online.

I hope that this post helped you!

Are you interested in becoming a virtual assistant?

I hope you liked this post. Don't forget to do any of the following:

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Jobs with High Salary in the Philippines

The graduation season has begun and new graduates will face the early challenges of finding a job. And as many will introduce you to the idea of working for experience first, many will surely aspire jobs with high salary right? 

Today's career post will focus on industries/jobs that can guarantee competitive salary perfect for someone who's wanting to provide a more solid financial foundation for the future. New graduates are you ready?

But first my career advice for you...

As a fresh graduate last 2013, finding a job was a special moment in my life. I felt like I finally am doing decisions that will affect my life. Finally I am standing by my own intuition. Things didn't happen the way I wanted and to tell you honestly the career life I have today is so far from the life I wished. 

Confucius once said, "choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life", but apparently, that's not always the case. You will find a job you sincerely love but at every working day will turn out to be a battle. And you become a silent fighter...fighting for your rights, for your status and for your job. 

Till now, I have no idea whether I am in the right career path. Imagine I am a BS Journalism graduate working in an IT industry as a Technical Documentation Specialist. Two contrasting field that's hard to connect together. READ: Becoming a Technical Writer in the Philippines

So what's my one and only career advice for you?

Know that some things doesn't go the way you wanted it to be. The job will not fit you...you will have to fit for the job. You will have to learn how to adjust, how to adapt and how to blend with your co-workers. 

Now that I've mentioned the above I will get back to the real topic of today's post. Let's face it salary is one of the most important factors to be considered in every job search so to give you an idea here are the Top 10 Highest-Paying Jobs as per Jobstreet.com Annual Salary Report.

Image and Info Source : www.jobstreet.com

IT-Related

Possible jobs to try: Software Engineer, System Analyst, Network Security Specialist, Database Administrator, Web Developer, Computer Tech Support, Graphic Designer and Programmer.

Law/Legal Service

Possible jobs to try: Head of Legal, Documentation Officer, Paralegal Officer and Associate Lawyer

Actuarial/ Statistics

Possible jobs to try: All businesses needs/wants a statistician specially aircraft, pharmaceuticals, food and chemicals.

Customer Service

Possible jobs to try: Customer Service Representative, Technical Support Representative, Technical Support Analyst, Technical Sales Support Representative and Sales Product Support Representative

Training and Development

Possible jobs to try: Training Development Specialist, Program Coordinator, Service Training, Learning and Development Consultant

Public Relations/Communications

Possible jobs to try: Public Relations Specialist, Public Relations Manager, Event Coordinator and PR/Social Media Manager

Banking/Financial Services

Possible jobs to try: Bank worker/teller, Company Auditor, Economist, Loan Officers and Stockbrokers.

Arts/Creatives

Possible jobs to try: Interior Designer, Creative Designer, Graphic Artist and Product Development Specialist.

Finance Related

Possible jobs to try: Finance Managers, Financial Brokers, Financial Dealer and Financial Investment Adviser

Marketing/Business Development

Possible jobs to try: Marketing Assistant, Marketing Coordinator, 

Hope this post helps. 

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More Career Lessons for New Graduates

My biggest congratulations to Batch 2016 Graduates! In the next 1-3 years you will find yourself in the challenging journey of transitioning from university to work. I've been in that situation and still facing big financial and career decisions up until today. Funny how sometimes I want to go back to school when before I have always wanted to work in an office. 

Now that I am on my second year working in Makati I have experienced, gathered and learned more important lessons that can be valuable to new graduates. READ: 6 Career Lessons for New Graduates. I hope after your graduation day, once all the celebration is done, you read this post and ponder upon the following things:

Your Diploma, Award and/or Grades will be worthless

As ruthless as it may sound, your diploma will be just a piece of paper mounted, framed and displayed in your living room. The medal you earned as top of the class will just become a good reminder of your achievement while the high grades you have accomplished will soon be forgotten. 

Once you start working your attitude will be the number one thing that people will value for. You need to work with your relationships. You will become part of a team and if you can't work together with your other co-employees you will surely find yourself caught in a big problem. Forget about the diploma, award or the good grades you have and focus on how you can manifest a good character at work.

Take Charge of Your Finances. 

It will be your full-responsibility to budget your money and manage your income. This is both exciting and daunting because it means taking a big responsibility that may affect your future. The earlier you learn to take charge of your finances, the better your journey to financial will be.

Below are some posts that can help you:

1. How Much Money Should You Save Each Month?
2. How to Achieve Financial Stability in Your 20’s
3. How to Actually be Good in Money
4. How to Correctly Spend Your Money 
5. How To Save within Your Salary?

Saving automatically a portion of your income is as important as budgeting. I have always regretted overspending and not saving earlier. If only I saved money as soon as my first paycheck arrived, I will have a better financial status today. 

There are those who will earn more than you for doing the same job --- even less of the same job

This is a reality that you need to prepare for once you become part of a company. There will always be a people around you who will earn better even though you feel like working more. These people have long-earned experience that make them worthy for a bigger salary and no matter how much you hate this reality.

Sometimes it's all about finding a good manager

You are lucky if in your fist job you are blessed with a good manager. Managers are the first person who will shape a new graduate on how and what it is to be an employee. The manager should oversee and inspire you to become a better part of the team. He clears what is and what is not your responsibility. He sets you in the direction you need to go. A manager can also be the factor why you will quit or hate your job someday. READ: 5 Reasons to Find Enjoyment in Your Daily Job

Build a Network

Networking is important if you want growth in your career. You need to learn how to build a relationship with individuals whom you share similar interest, values and goals. A good network will gear you towards advancement. Opportunities will open up easily and you will learn a lot from these people. 

Quit for the Right Reasons

There will come a time that you will be too burdened maybe or find yourself in a tough decision whether to quit or not to quit. Whether you are still in the career path that you wish to follow. It is important not to quit just because of hard work or challenge that you experience. Quit because your heart tells you so and I know it sounds cheesy but I mean it. Quit because it is clear in your heart and mind that you don't see anymore satisfaction in the current work situation.  READ: When To Quit Your Job and How to Do It

Hope this post helps.

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Becoming a Freelance Content Writer in the Philippines

Freelance content writing is a good example of a work-at-home job anyone can easily start. If you have good grammar and research skills then all you have to do is practice how you write. As a Freelance Writer your goal is to deliver quality content to your clients. The online community is filled with freelance writing jobs for beginners that all you need is apply, send a proposal and wait for your interview. Freelance Content Writers must be able to do any type of written documents. From a simple letter, a product description to SEO contents and eBooks, freelance writers can just select any job they want to do. 

The Job 

Freelance content writing is a popular job for those finding means to earn extra income even at home. Businesses and even private individuals hire a freelance content writer to deliver the content that can make them rank higher in Google. Remember that freelance content writing falls in different expertise (technical writing, service page writing, SEO article writing etc.) which I will soon disclose to you. 

The Skills You Need

You need to be well-rounded as a content writer so remember to develop your skills more often. The skills you have will separate you from the rest of aspiring freelance content writers. Below are the top skills a writer should possess:

• Writing Skills
• Research Skills 
• Computer Skills
• Content Management Skills
• Negotiation Skills
• Time Management Skills
• Ability to Work Under Tight Deadline

How It All Began for Me

Even at a young age I knew that writing is what I want to do in life. I became a campus journalist during elementary and high school then decided to take up BS Journalism for college. There is something about writing content that gives me happiness and inspiration in life.

So I transition it as a career after college. I was hired as a Marketing Staff in a milk tea company in Pasay City wherein my main job is to create posts on social media and words for marketing materials such as brochures, fliers and even website. READ: My Life, My Job, My Career and 6 Success Tips That Helped Me

Then an offer as a SEO Content Writer came to me. I wrote contents for the web such as About Page, Guarantee Page, Service Page and more. I have also written keyword based articles that aims to encourage online readers to turn as potential customers.

Fast forward to today, content writing has been my career. I blog and I do freelance work though my main job has been writing technical stuffs for an IT Company already. It was tough. Content writing is tough... But the everyday practice made me better.

READ: Becoming a Technical Writer in the Philippines

 

7 Steps to Start Your Freelance Content Writing Career

Becoming a freelance writer requires commitment. It is necessary that you know exactly what you are getting into. You may suffer from lack of sleep, you may encounter random writer's block and you may undergo a series of rejection before a client finally entrust you with  more projects.

But freelance content writing as a career is worth it. You have the ability to earn more with the freedom of working in your 

Below are the seven easy steps that will help you get started in freelance content writing. 

1. Assess Your Writing Specialization. 

As mentioned earlier content writing comes in different forms. Choosing the perfect niche that matches your skills as a writer is highly important. If you are fond of blogging then it is best to offer your services as a ghost blogger or blog contributor. 

2. Create a List of Your Service Offering. 

The best thing about freelance content writing is the fact that you can easily offer different services. Soon I will disclose a whole list of writing services you can do as a freelance content writer. 

My freelance content writing story started by offering my SEO writing service. I got clients who will pitch me topic and keyword that I need to strategically write. After some time I had clients wanted me to do blog posts, product descriptions and others. 

The key is to focus on one to two services first before moving to more. This is to avoid burn out and also to ensure that all your output is of the highest quality. Remember that freelance content writing also involves research, actual writing and more. 

3. Choose Your Rates. 

If you are just beginning to go freelance then it will be best to ask for a minimal fee per number of words. Your goal is to build a portfolio and generate related experience to  the service you are offering. I started with $1 per 150-200 words then went higher and higher depending on the difficulty of the job and the total number of words.

4. Build Your Portfolio.

Since you are going online, it is very important to create a portfolio. Freelance writers can opt for a blog or an official website where you can upload your recent projects and promote your other services. 

If you don't have enough time or you don't really see yourself creating a blog then you can easily create a sample for each writing services you offer. You can choose any topic and just layout to a PDF file for clients to access.

5. Find Your First Client. 

If you really want to have clients then you need to sell your services to people. You can post a status that you are now ready to accept content writing or try to email companies about your services. You have get known so that people will remember what you do.

READ: How My Job Interview Went

6. Learn From Each Writing Experience. 

The journey to freelance world is full of lessons. You will learn on a daily basis because of the research you do and the different topics and clients you will encounter. Make sure that you learn from each writing experience. Develop your writing skills by acquiring more projects and clients.

7. Just Do It.  

If freelance writing is something you see yourself doing then why limit yourself just because you lack experience. All it takes is courage and action to really do it. 

How to Succeed in the Freelance Content Writing Field?

Your success as a freelance content writer depends solely on the time and effort you spend. If you are hard working enough and really put  your heart and soul for the job then you will be sure to be a success.

Read a lot of books and blogs in accordance to the writing niche you chose and learn the ways of the successful people. Take note of every mistake, failure and reject you get and count into it as something that will make your foundation stronger.

Success in freelance content writing doesn't happen overnight. You need to be very intentional if you really want to earn thousands of extra income with what you do. Continue learning new skills, new tools and new writing styles that will make you original. 

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• Or leave a comment below!!!