Six skills you should look for in a VA

Businesses hire virtual assistants (VAs) to handle time-consuming tasks that are part of the company’s everyday operations. But with thousands of VAs across the globe, it is important to know first the abilities that you would need from your remote employee.

Having the right VA that suits your brand can help you succeed not only locally, but globally. This article would discuss the common skills needed in a remote assistant and why they are important for your organization.

VA definition

A virtual assistant (VA) provides support services to a company remotely. They mostly perform administrative or technical tasks for companies that need an extra pair of hands for their operations.

However, VA duties are not limited to clerical work. Other skilled remote employees also offer their help in marketing, web design, bookkeeping, and many other services needed in your company.

Some assistants have a specialized skill set and perform tasks related to those skills. Others specialize in a niche field or industry to assist a company within a specific sector — such as realtors.

Why work with a virtual assistant?

As technology advanced and the internet became a necessity, businesses realized they do not have to bring their employees into the office to finish a task. This idea led to the creation of virtual assistants.

It is convenient to work with VAs because they take care of miscellaneous functions in your company while you handle core business operations. 

Aside from that, hiring a VA presents several benefits for your brand like the following.

• Increased productivity. A virtual assistant can help you in completing tasks that your in-house team is not an expert on, letting you finish other pending workloads in your business.
• Scalability. You can use VAs to deal with the sudden volume increase while you do not have full-time employees in your organization. 
• 24/7 support. You can hire virtual assistants from various countries with different time zones, ensuring full-day service to clients and a good work-life balance for your team.
• Prioritize the company’s development. With the help of VAs, you can have more time to prioritize planning strategic decisions that will impact the growth of your company.

What are the skills you should consider when hiring a VA?

Virtual assistants are known to have a wide range of skills that employers value in today’s digital age. Having a VA with the right abilities will help your company stay competitive in the marketplace.

Here are some skills you should consider when looking for qualified VAs for your company.

Word processing skills

Word processing is a basic task that is mostly done by virtual assistants. It includes the crucial work of data entry and typing so a VA must not only be able to type fast but also be 100% accurate. 

Typing is a crucial technical skill that is required for all virtual assistants. A superb word processing skill can help a VA accomplish its tasks quickly and efficiently. 

Communication

Clients nowadays usually rely on emails, phone calls, or messaging platforms to reach a business. That is why VAs must be able to communicate effectively with customers both verbally and through writing.  

Writing and speaking clearly to customers help provide a positive experience to all who are contacting your virtual assistant. This could also lead to positive feedback for the brand.

Self-motivation and discipline

Self-motivation and discipline are important skills to have, especially in a virtual assistant. Because they work remotely, they must know how to prioritize their workload and complete their tasks on time.

Despite the freedom present in remote working, a VA must be motivated and disciplined enough to succeed. When your remote team stays organized and follows a regular work routine, they have an easier time staying active throughout the day.

Organization

VAs with excellent organizational skills can help your business keep up with client’s information, schedules, and deadlines. With their help, you can manage your emails, passwords, workload lists, timelines, appointments, and reminders easily.

Virtual assistants with enough experience in the field have systems in place that help them keep track of any important changes in their workload. Being organized also helps VAs finish their tasks efficiently and excellently.

Resourcefulness

It is important for VAs to be resourceful in searching for solutions to problems and providing high-quality work to their tasks. The last thing you want is to recruit someone who simply finished their checklist without putting time and effort into their jobs. 

Additionally, resourceful virtual assistants can stay on top of industry trends, competitions, and the latest tech, helping your business compete with other brands.  

Reliability

When recruiting a virtual assistant, you need to look for someone who is reliable – someone who will deliver high-quality work within the deadline that is initially agreed upon. 

Since virtual assistants mostly work in a remote capacity, they need to exhibit a level of responsibility and autonomy to perform the tasks assigned to them with minimal supervision. 

Find the perfect virtual assistant with Outsource Access

Finding the perfect virtual assistant that fits your brand is important in the success of your business. A skilled VA can help you complete the tasks in your day-to-day operations quickly and efficiently.

Scale your business now and finish more tasks with the help of Outsource Access. They provide verified VAs who you can work with directly to make sure your projects are done on time.

Their VAs go through a strict selection process to ensure that they are the best for your company. With the help of their over 200 tactical staff, they could help provide your organization a whole support system fit to your operations. 

Contact Outsource Access to start today.