Entry Level Virtual Assistant Jobs from Home
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Are you interested in finding virtual assistant jobs from home, but are worried the field is crowded with more experienced VAs? While it’s true there are a lot of virtual support workers out there, the need for help continues to grow, giving you opportunities to break into the field.
The other good news is that you don’t necessarily need to have experience as a virtual assistant, office support staff or administrative assistant to get a virtual assistant job from home. That doesn’t mean you won’t be expected to have certain skills, but you don’t necessarily have to have those skills in a virtual support capacity.
Below you’ll find information on what virtual assistants do, plus a list of over 50 places you can find virtual assistant jobs from home, including transcription and data entry.
What do Virtual Assistants do?
The tasks of a virtual assistant can vary greatly depending on the needs and the field of the company doing the hiring. In general, virtual assistants do any of the following:
- Manage email
- Manage contacts
- Manage schedules and calendar
- Transcription
- Data entry
- Answer phone calls
- Social media management
- Book events
- Make reservations
- Create documents (letters, spreadsheets etc)
- Invoicing
- Bookkeeping
- Payroll
In fact, here is a list of over 150 things you can do as a virtual assistant.
Along with basic clerical and office skills, a virtual assistant should also have the following skills:
- Quick learner
- Organized
- Good communication
- Writing (clear, plus good grammar and spelling)
- Ability to multitask
- Work without a lot of direction
- Meet deadlines
- Be discreet
- Be professional
- Work under pressure
What do you need to be a virtual assistant?
It goes without saying that you should have a computer and high speed internet for virtual assistant jobs from home. Other equipment or software you might need include:
- Landline phone
- Mobile phone
- Phone/computer headset
- Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel)
- Knowledge of online tools such as Google Drive, Google Docs, Slack, Dropbox, etc
What do Virtual Assistants Get Paid
The highest paid virtual assistants have their own businesses. The next highest paid virtual assistants have specialized knowledge or experience. For example, a real estate assistant that has a license is paid more than a general VA. Or a VA with good tech skills is often paid more than a VA that does clerical work.
As a beginning VA, you can expect to be paid anywhere from $8 to $50 per hour depending on the skills required and the industry you work in.
Companies that Hire Entry Level Virtual Assistants
Most of these companies hire virtual assistants that have little to no experience as a VA. Remember though, you may still be required to have skills and experience in the tasks they want you to perform. Please note that these companies may or may not be hiring at this time.
Entry-Level General Virtual Support Services
Other Companies that Hire VAs (these may require more experience)
Transcription
American High Tech Transcription
Cambridge Transcription (says experience can be useful but not necessarily required)
Data Entry
Cass Information Systems (Data Verification Clerk – hires locally)
Mechanical Turk (Crowdsourced micorwork. Check out other microwork sites for data entry work.)
Other Resource for Virtual Support Work
These jobs are mostly small tasks that can help you gain the skills you need to lead to a better paying VA job.
EasyShift (mobile phone)
Fivesquids (UK)
Look for more work-at-home virtual support jobs at FlexJobs. FlexJobs is a work-at-home job database where you can find hundreds of jobs, get background information on the companies, get tips on how to submit the best resume and more.
Want to make $30-$50 an hour as a virtual assistant?
Working as a virtual assistant with a company is all fine and good, but if you’re looking for greater pay, ability to pick and choose the type of work you do, and flexibility, then starting your own virtual assistant business is a better option. You’ll be able to set your own prices and decide what services you’ll offer and to whom.
If this sounds interesting, you’ll want to check out Gina Horkey’s 30 Days or Less to Virtual Assistant Success
How to get started as a virtual assistant without any experience, plus over 50 places to find home based virtual support jobs. #workathome #virtualassistant #virtualsupportClick To Tweet
About LTruex
Leslie Truex is an ideaphoric writer, speaker, entrepreneur, social worker and mom trying to do it all from the comfort of her home. Since 1998, she's been helping others create careers they love by providing work-at-home information and resources through Work-At-Home Success.
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