Where to Find Virtual Assistants?

If you need one, here you can start looking for ...

If you read the previous article “What Are Virtual Assistants?”, you might have a good idea what they are. As you are reading this, I assume that you’re now interested to know how to find one or more. This is the right place for that.

Before that, let’s talk about some issues you or anyone else might have by hiring a person as a virtual assistant.

  • Where do I find such person?

  • How must I interview a virtual assistant, because they might be located thousands of miles away and are only available virtually.

  • How do I know if this person is the one for the job I’ve in mind?

  • How do I pay this person and how much?

  • How will I know they’ll be working diligently, verify their credentials and are they trustworthy?

All of those issues are valid issues.

  • The best answer on all of those issues is to get virtual professionals from reputed sources. In this article, I give you a large list.

  • To know if a virtual assistant is working on your projects/tasks/assignments/jobs, you use professional software like Time Doctor.

Let’s start with where can you find virtual assistants.

Virtual assistants can be found as freelancers in the freelance websites. But you can also find them on their private websites (some of them have). If that’s the case, you can ask or watch or examine their portfolios. Another way to find good virtual assistants is by references from other companies or individuals. Another good way to find virtual assistants by Virtual Assistant companies.

Freelancers

If you go via the freelancers route, you will get a number of freelancers, who will respond to your request.

  1. You go to a freelance website and register yourself

  2. You post a job listing

  3. Freelancers can respond to that listing if the job description interests them

  4. You can then sift through all the replies to hire a virtual assistant that suits you

It’s likely that you will receive hundreds of replies to each posting. And with such sites, there are no real interview processes for screening, so you might get some or a lot of bogus replies of people who claim that they know what they are doing.

So, the final step you must take with freelancers is the screening of the person. Testing for the knowledge and experience, checking their credentials, etc. Also, the virtual assistant means that the potential candidate can be located from the North Pole to the South Pole and everywhere between. And that means confronted by totally different cultures.

The ‘best way’ to find freelancers is working with reliable freelance websites, like Upwork and Smashing Magazine (means costs $75 per listing).

Virtual Assistant Companies

Virtual assistant companies can be compared with online agencies for virtual assistant jobs. In my opinion, that’s a good way to find a virtual assistant.

But it’s not always guaranteed the best choice.

  • It cost more money to hire a virtual assistant via the VA companies, because you also pay the company.

  • It’s not always guaranteed that you choose the right person, because the companies claim that the person is the best, but it might be it isn’t.

On the other side, …

  • Significantly reducing your labor costs.

  • Being able to get help 24/7.

  • Outsource tasks to a seasoned professional.

  • Access to a wide set of skills that you and/or your teammates might not possess.

Some words about virtual assistants from China, India and Philipines. Their rates are cheaper than you pay for virtual assistants in - let’s say the US or Europe. Their quality is technically as good as anywhere. Their understanding of business processes are not as good as their couter parts of the professional virtual assistants inthe US and Europe though.

Don’t forget that there are really issues about finding the best virtual assistant. There is no guarantee that you find the correct one via the VA companies or even with the freelancers or the person you could contact thanks to a reference. The best way to find out if the person is good for you is to offer the VA person trial period. Also, when you’re working with VA companies, insist on money-back guarantees.

And if that all is a bit uncomfortable for you, a normal advertisement in a newspaper works always. In such a case, that care that you use the name “virtual assistant” in your ad.

  • Woodbows is a virtual assistant service company in the USA. They are specialized in customer support, website maintenance, social media maintenance, online marketing, lead generation, cold calling, personal assistants for clients follow up, CRM management. Here are their prices.

  • The Serve Team is a virtual assistant company based in the USA. They are specialized in websites, provide exceptional customer support, find qualified leads, optimize your marketing campaigns, and even write articles for you. All of their virtual assistants work from a dedicated office, instead of anywhere in the world. Their weekly package starts from $99 a week (10 hours per week)

  • Premium Help provides end-to-end security for their clients. The priority of The Premium help is to provide support. Their weekly plans start from $99.

  • TheTeamsHub is known for its attention to detail.

  • Phoenix Virtual Solutions is another virtual assistant company. The company specializes in supporting the healthcare industry. Phoenix was founded by former US healthcare executives with over 75 years of combined experience in US healthcare management and offshore staffing. They are Subject-Matter Experts (SME) in all back-office functions, healthcare billing and collections, project management, information technology, content development, and digital marketing.

  • MyOutDesk is the largest, most trusted & reputable provider of virtual staffing - having served over 6,000+ clients including corporate giants such as Keller Williams, Coldwell Banker, Re/Max, along with Fortune 500 clients, Inc. 5000 clients, and half of the top-10 RealTrends™ teams. They are specialized in healthcare, biotech, real estate, finance, construction, consulting, and other professional sectors.

  • BELAY is another one of the top virtual assistant companies. They are specialized in offering help with: travel arrangements, marketing support, calendar management, project research, social media, data presentations, mission-critical recurring tasks, first impressions and voicemail, C-level support, virtual bookkeeping, content writing, and web maintenance, and more.

  • Prialto is the only US-based virtual assistant company focused on supporting executives. They support high-value tasks such as prospect development and lead generation, CRM data entry and maintenance, travel arrangements, scheduling, expense reporting, document preparation, email management, incoming and outgoing calls, and so much more.

  • Connect Center is a top VA company that is awarded by GoodFirms. They have dedicated virtual assistants and expert supervision.

  • UAssist.Me is a thriving virtual assistant company with mentions in 30Under30, CNN, Empact 100, and more. Their plans range from 20 hours per month for $299/month to a full-time assistant for $1499/month.

  • 24/7 Virtual Assistant is a cool company if you are looking for a virtual assistant that extends beyond offering professional services. For example, you can count on your virtual assistant to also help with things like online shopping and other personal tasks that you just don’t have time for each day. They are also quite comprehensive when it comes to offering professional services. They offer administrative support including sorting and filing, photocopying and collating, record keeping, running errands, word processing, scheduling, bookkeeping (Quickbooks, Quicken, Freshbooks, and other top bookkeeping services), help with data mining, basics of email marketing including list development, HR tasks, web development and web research and more. For price information, click here.

  • Premier Veba works to provide comprehensive help with business services: Executive, Creative, and Technical. They offer help with finances, management, and office associates, further they offer designers, artists, illustrators, writers, editors, audio technicians

  • Virtual Employee is another excellent option if you are looking for a virtual assistant company. They offer instant access to highly qualified virtual assistants; you choose which one. They are specialized in IT outsourcing, mobile apps development, sales, internet marketing, content writing, graphics and web design, engineering and architecture, data entry, and multimedia and animation. The pricing for virtual assistant services range from $995-$1995/month.

  • MyTasker is good for telemarketing, web research, transcription services, content writing, classified postings, and more. Here are more details of their pricing.

  • Arup Virtual Assistant is the best hands you can get to handle your routine office chores. They specialize in providing business services like admin support, research, marketing, designing and many more and a flat rate of $6/Hour.

  • Surplus Hands offers services for Virtual Assistants, Web Design and Digital Marketing. Their pricing is as follows:$23 – Pay Hourly, $97 – 5 hrs/Month, $229 – 12 hrs/Month, $449 – 15 hrs/Month and $799 – 45 hrs/Month.

  • GetFriday is one of the leading virtual assistant companies that serve busy individuals, C-level executives, digital nomads, startups and small businesses across the globe. They also provide specialized services like accounting, website designing, development and digital marketing. Check out the pricing for ongoing projects here.

  • The All-American virtual assistant team, Virtual Assist USA provides remote, skilled team members in 100s of disciplines.

  • Virtual Assistant Talent has been in the business since 2009 providing effective & efficient Virtual Assistants for entrepreneurs, Real Estate Agents/Investors, Small Business Owners, and Start-Ups.

  • Magic is an all-in-one, text-based concierge service that went viral in early 2015. They offer on-demand help with everything from the day-to-day personal and professional tasks to the occasional seemingly impossible requests. Get a team of 15 college educated assistants assigned to you, 24/7 coverage, 365 days a year, anywhere in the world. Communicate over SMS, email, Telegram, Slack, & an iOS app. Their $35/hr service works out to about 58 cents per minute. After signing up for free, you are immediately given a team of 15 problem solvers, providing 24/7 support.

  • AVirtual is one of the top virtual assistant companies for the UK and European markets. They are regularly featured in the global business press including the Financial Times, the Times and SUCCESS magazine. They focus on producing virtual personal assistants that are skilled, reliable, and of the highest quality. Pricing for a virtual assistant from AVirtual varies depending on the hourly plan you choose. Hourly rates start from £12.50. You can see all pricing here.

  • Hello Rache is the #1 virtual assistant service for doctors and medical professionals. They offer healthcare-trained virtual assistants that specialize in the healthcare/medical field. They provide in-room live charting, medical transcription, faxes, email management, referrals, medical records, appointment confirmations, phone calls, and more. If needed, their HVAs can be trained to handle your custom office needs.

  • Elite Virtual Assistants is a boutique virtual assistant firm that specializes in providing high-quality virtual assistants, legal assistants, virtual staffing solutions, digital marketing specialists and web designers.

  • Duext is an outsourcing company with offices in the Philippines with many employees around the world and headquartered in New York. They offer recruiting, training, and overseeing daily operations of highly qualified outsource representatives.

  • bizee.co is a UK company offering skilled marketing assistants, property assistants, e-commerce and customer support assistants. Find out more about their pricing plans here.

  • European Virtual Assistant (EVA) offers exceptional services from dedicated (Executive) Virtual Assistants following Swiss standards. They service for European businesses, providing multilingual (English, German, French, Italian, Greek and Russian) administrative support and marketing services not only for start-ups, but also larger multinational companies. They pricing starts from $9.30 per hour with monthly packages starting from $289 for basic services.

  • MYVA360 is an excellent choice if you’re looking for a talented, college-educated virtual assistant who can provide you with a wide range of services. In fact, you can request almost any task possible to outsource to the virtual assistants at MYVA360. They also have virtual assistants who have experience supporting real estate agents, coaches, Amazon sellers, IT companies, and nonprofits, among others. Packages start at $360 a month for 15 hours and the most comprehensive is $1,440 a month for 90 hours.

Be aware, this is only a partial list of Virtual Assistant Companies in the world.

Websites

Maybe it’s a good idea to use the search engines from Google or Bing or Yahoo and othes to find your perfect virtual assistat. Why?

Because several of the more smart virtual assistants are using or buillding websites, where you can read or see (if they use videos or presentations) their expertise. Also they might post samples of their previous work and an overview of their portfolios.

And not to forget, much cheaper then using the Virtual Assistant Companies.

And if you worry about their expectise or experience, start with a trial of a week or so.

So far, so good. But where do you find Virtual assistants? And how do you pay them? And how can you be ensured that they really work on your projects when they get paid by the hour? And where can someone become a virtual assistant? What qualifications does such person have?

All valid questions and you can find all the answers here on this site.