How To Start A Virtual Assistant Business

Have you ever heard of the virtual assistant or virtual personal assistant? This professional group is increasingly coming to the fore, especially in the online business bubble because it offers some advantages that classic “on-site assistance” does not usually provide. 

In this article, I will give you a big overview of how to start a virtual assistant business, find customers, and what tools you need for your (part-time) self-employment.

Working regardless of time and location is probably the biggest advantage of how to start a virtual assistant business

Several points have a positive effect on both the assistant and the client. In addition to working regardless of time and location, the customer no longer has to pay business establishment costs and social security contributions. As a virtual assistant, you are your boss. 

This means: You decide

• who do you want to work with
• which services and work you would like to undertake
• how many hours do you work
• when and where you work

Start as a virtual assistant: What do you need?

Especially at the beginning, you will be bombarded with much information. I can understand you very well. I felt the same way in 2020/2022. While looking for a part-time job in the home office (as a mother on parental leave at the time), I came across the career field of virtual assistant. And I was immediately hooked.

Virtual assistants were already desperately needed back then. The demand is still huge today because experts are needed in different areas.

You don’t need a lot of money to start. Training or study in the area you want to offer is nice, but not a basic requirement for most services (except for accounting, for example). You can now acquire all of your knowledge online.

If you want to offer social media virtual assistant, you can find all the information about the VA.

Which virtual assistance services are currently in demand?

I have already mentioned that the professional field of virtual assistance is extensive. This means that you should cover only some areas and services. It is smarter to focus on one to a maximum of three services that you publicly include in your offering portfolio. Specializing in specific niches helps you position yourself as an expert in this service and thereby also increases your hourly rate.

Virtual assistance services in high demand in 2024 are:

• Search engine optimization of the website
• Website maintenance (plugins, updates, security, etc.)
• Social media management (content planning, content creation, community management)
• Email marketing
• Launch accompaniment

Don’t worry if you still have question marks in these areas. You can learn about each of these services. There are various courses, books, online workshops, etc. In this blog article, you will find my tips for your further training as a virtual assistant.

Your marketing as a virtual assistant: acquiring customers online

When I started, I looked for my first orders through various Facebook groups. Unfortunately, this was anything but easy because the clients often never responded to my emails. After a few months, I was tired of spending my valuable time as a self-employed on “applications,” so I optimized my marketing as a virtual assistant.

My first steps for my marketing as a virtual assistant:

• I created my website which helps me to be found on Google & Co.
• I created my Instagram account and regularly posted about my services, the needs of my target group, and of course self-employment.
• I was active in Facebook groups for virtual assistants. As a result, I built up a network and was recommended to others.

My top 12 list of the most important things as a virtual assistant

When I started back then, I got my first orders. The posts in the relevant Facebook groups revealed some question marks to me as a newcomer:

• Graphics program?
• Email marketing?
• Technical Equipment?
• Insurance?

Oh my god. Which of these do I need?

I spent hours, days, and finally, weeks looking closely at all the tools and programs and deciding on one.

So that you don’t have to invest this time, I have put together my top 12 of the most important things for starting as a virtual assistant.

I still use these tools today precisely because they offer me enormous added value in my everyday virtual assistant business.

Furnishing

A lot of equipment is not necessary to start as a virtual assistant. In my opinion, a laptop is completely sufficient. What was important to me was the 8 GB of RAM so that the computer ran reasonably smoothly. A webcam (which is often already on the laptop) and a good headset ( that’s what I use* ) are also recommended.

It is advisable to use a good microphone and a camera, especially for conversations with new customers. You can use the built-in laptop cam as a camera or get an external one. The quality is often higher if you use external devices. The acquisition costs are manageable.

No further technical equipment is necessary. With these 3 physical things, you can already work professionally. We’ll get to digital tools later in this article.

The recommended equipment as virtual assistance:

Laptop: e.g. B. Acer Aspire 5 or Acer Aspire 3
Webcam : Logiteck C920 HD Pro
Microphone: Tonor USB microphone

Data protection declaration, general terms and conditions & Insurance

Data protection, general terms and conditions, and insurance are probably not the most popular topics that self-employed people worry about. I include myself in that too. Nevertheless, it is important to think about it and take out certain insurance (such as financial loss liability insurance ). Exali Insurance offers liability insurance directly tailored to the needs of virtual assistants.

The data protection declaration and, if you want, the general terms and conditions are also important elements of your independence. Many of my colleagues have had their contracts drawn up at Lawlikes. Lawlikes also offers a course where you can adapt your terms and conditions to your requirements.

Accounting & business account

A business account is a very important element for your virtual assistant business. The advantage here is that your bookkeeping can be made much clearer for tax returns. All business expenses go through the business account, your private account remains private.

Kontist is a purely online bank from Solaris AG. how to start a personal assistant business that deposits and withdrawals in cash are not possible. However, if you book the premium version, you will receive a physical Visa Business Card and can use it to withdraw cash from all ATMs. In the cheapest version (which I use), you receive a digital Visa Business Card that you can use for all online payment transactions.

The decisive factor for me in choosing an account with Kontist was the cost-effective management of the business account. Deposits and withdrawals in cash are not necessary for me. I work completely digitally and online.

Another advantage: you can open your account within 10 minutes. Easily and conveniently from home. Verification takes place via a video chat with your smartphone and your ID card.

Kontist runs via an app. The app is available free of charge via the Play and Apple Stores. What I find particularly practical is that you receive a push notification when you have a new incoming payment in your account. The fees here are also manageable.

If you would like to outsource your accounting, you can also hand it over directly to Kontist and therefore have everything from a single source. And the best thing: You will receive a bonus of 150 euros if you book the accounting service using this link.

Lexoffice for your clean accounting

I also have a tool tip for you for offers and invoices as well as your accounting: Lexoffice is my product of choice here.

With Lexoffice I record my receipts and write my invoices to my clients.

Setting up the account and creating invoices is simple and clear. In addition to creating invoices, you can also create offers and reminders.

Lexoffice makes it easy for you: You can send your invoices to your customers by email directly from the program. You can also give your tax advisor access to your accounting.

I currently pay EUR 8.90 net per month for the tool. If you still want to use it to create your income surplus calculation, you should upgrade the program. 

Visibility in the online world

Even if you are just starting, I strongly recommend having your website. A big advantage is that you are not dependent on various platforms (e.g. social media, etc.) but can present your offer and yourself in the way you like. I use WordPress for this.

I host my website directly via hostinger. The company’s servers are in India, and the USA, and the customer support is also great. I pay less than 30 euros per year for my website with the provider.

You can also increase your visibility via social media. A Facebook page as well as a profile on Instagram or LinkedIn can be created quickly and free of charge. To display these appealingly, you can easily create graphics with Canva*. Canva is a free graphics program in the basic version and is easy to understand. I use it every day for my work and create all graphics with it.

Helper for your everyday business life

The time-tracking tool Toggl has been with me from the beginning and the free version is sufficient. The tool is available as an app and for offline use or in the browser. I use it to track my customer projects and am completely satisfied with it. You can set your periods and quickly determine how much time you have worked on which project. This makes it easy to write your invoices.

I only use Zoom for video calls. Be it for individual conversations or my group coaching, the tool is worth its weight in gold. You can use Zoom for free in the basic version. This is very practical, especially when starting in virtual assistant business. Sessions between two participants can be carried out indefinitely.

As a virtual assistant, you will receive tons of access, including confidential passwords. You should handle this very sensitively. Strong passwords are mandatory here. I use a password manager for this, LastPass. This means I don’t have to remember twelve thousand passwords or write them down somewhere insecure, but only one master password. If desired, LastPass creates the remaining passwords itself and very securely according to the requirements.

I prefer to use Trello to manage projects. This project management tool is easy to use and the basic version is free. Several other tools can do this, such as Meistertask and Asana.

The 12 tips are summarized again

For a better overview, I have summarized all my tips for starting as a virtual assistant here :

1. The technical work equipment ( laptop, webcam, headset )
2. Financial loss liability insurance (e.g. with Exali)
3. Data protection declaration and terms and conditions
4. The business account ( free at Kontist )
5. The accounting program for your invoices (I use Lexoffice)
6. Your website (e.g. with WordPress)
7. Host your website yourself (German provider: Netcup)
8. Graphics tool: Canva
9. The time tracking tool (e.g. Toggl)
10. Zoom for your video calls with customers
11. Your password manager (e.g. LastPass)
12. The clear project management tool (e.g. Trello, Asana, or Meistertask).

A few more book recommendations for your start as a virtual assistant

Do you need a few reading tips to help you get started on your own virtual assistant business? Then I have a few recommendations here that made my first steps into virtual assistance easier. These are not explicitly books about being a VA, but rather about the general establishment of self-employment. But that shouldn’t put you off, because I was able to take something from each book for myself 🙂

Conclusion for your start as a virtual assistant

Every beginning is difficult… At least that’s what they say. Getting started in an online virtual assistant business doesn’t have to be difficult. If you choose the right tools for you, they will make it easier for you to get started. My 12 tips have all been tried and tested since 2019 and continue to support me in my everyday business.

If this post helped you, I would be very happy if you shared it with your social media community. You can be sure of my thanks 🙂