Virtual Assistant

Samara T. "A Virtual Assistant (VA) comes alongside people such as business owners and bloggers, who are needing help with administration tasks or the "extra" tasks they do not have time for. A VA will manage social media pages, write posts, network with prospective clients for the business, create images, schedule posts, respond to comments, engage readers, and viewers, or handle administration tasks. Their job is to relieve business owners and bloggers with these "extra" tasks, giving them time to focus on expanding, connecting with clients, viewers, or other businesses, and put their attention towards growing their business."

Education

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Required License(s) None

Required Degree(s) None

Importance of GPA not very important

Samara's Highest Degree: Bachelor's degree
Samara's College Major: Events Coordination and Management
Samara's College GPA: 3.6-3.9

Salary

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There is no "typical" salary. It depends on you.

You can charge by the hour (typically $10-$25/hour depending on experience and tasks),  you can charge a fixed rate per month, or you can charge by task (e.g., per article or image), which would be considered contract work. 

Getting the Job

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How did you get your job?

I got my job by seeking out opportunity. I knew that this was what I wanted to do, and I sought out the jobs on my own. I contacted bloggers who I knew were bigger and would likely need help, and presented what I could offer them. Over time, after contacting enough people, I found my first client. Finding my first client led to finding my second client because it gave me more experience. What got me started was the desire to do something and willingness to not give up, even when I was turned down more times than I was accepted. Being an Events Coordinator really helped with this position. You have to be organized, good with people, and be able to manage many tasks. As a Virtual Assistant, you are often working for more than one client and have to balance many tasks and accounts. You need to manage your time to fit them all in, in one day. My previous experience really helped me with this, and also gave me the confidence I needed to reach out to people and network.

How important was networking to landing your position?

Extremely! The way you get positions like this is by networking with other bloggers and business owners. The field of "Virtual Assistants" is still a growing industry. Many business owners do not even realize this is a thing. The only way that I have gained clients is by networking with bloggers and business owners.

Life on the Job

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What is a typical day (or week) for you like?

This one is a hard one to explain. This is one job that I do, but it is not my main job. Most afternoons I spend in cafes doing my VA work and my own blogging work. I usually spend time scheduling social media content, researching, creating posts, networking, and promoting the bloggers work on different platforms. It is an incredibly flexible job, as I can do it from anywhere and all I need is the internet. If I have a really busy day with other responsibilities then I will catch up on my VA work in the evening. I also do not need to do it every day (although I do for the most part). I can schedule things to happen on days but not actually do it that day (e.g., social media posts). There is no day that looks the same, which makes it a fun job.

Does being a woman affect any aspect of your career?

No, it does not. You do not have to be a woman to do this.

What is the best thing about your job?

It is flexible. I can do it from anywhere since all I need is the internet. I have also learned so many things, gained a lot of experience, and connected with some wonderful people.

What is the worst thing about your job?

You do not always have enough work, and have to seek out more opportunity yourself. It is not a typical 9-5 job where you show up and get paid whether or not the day was very busy. I do not mind this aspect of the job, but it can be unpredictable at times (at least until you are well established with a couple good, reliable clients).

How demanding is your job?

It is not very demanding, but does take time. It is important to take time and do the job well, but it is not a job that will keep you up at night. (At least it shouldn't.)

Do you have any advancement opportunities?

Yes, I can advance, for example, by taking on more clients, establishing a business to help others find VA work, using my experience to connect bloggers/business owners with VAs, or training people who want to become a VA. At some point, I will definitely take the next step and expand this position. At this point, though, my focus is not fully my VA position because I am doing other things as well. When these other things end, I will take the next step, and further my career and position as a VA.

Advice for You

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What are the skills, characteristics, or talents that are most important to be effective in your position?

Being organized, creative, attentive, willing to learn, sociable, knowledgeable in social media, and blogging, knowledgeable in a few social media platforms and scheduling tools, and determination to not give up.

What advice would you give to someone thinking about pursuing a career like yours?

Often times I hear people say, "Well, I am not experienced enough and don't know what I have to offer." My response is this: if you have/had a blog, even if it is new, you have something to offer. You know how social media works and have at least a basic understanding of at least one blogging platform. The most important part of this job is the willingness to learn and research when you do not know the answer. I am learning all the time (new things, new programs, better ways to do things, etc.). And when I don't know something, I spend time with my trusty friend Google to find others who do know.

If you could do it over again, would you still pursue the same career?

Yes! If I could do it over again, I would pursue this first and would have skipped other things. Although those other positions in the past gave me more confidence to reach out to people and network effectively, I would have much rather started with this from the beginning.

Follow Up

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Want to learn more? Check out Samara's site here. Want to read later? Pin me -->

Digital Marketing Consultant

Tami B. "I help small businesses and startups market themselves online. Their goal is to reach customers and sell something, like a new product, a service, an app, etc., but they don't really know where to begin. I help them set up and manage their online presence, which might include their website, an e-commerce store, social media platforms, email campaigns, and more."

Education

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Required License(s) None

Required Degree(s) Bachelor's degree

Importance of GPA not very important

Tami's Highest Degree: Bachelor's degree (Bachelor of the Arts)
Tami's College Major: Telecommunication
Tami's College GPA Range: 3.6-3.9

Salary

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Depends on Experience

$25,000 - $30,000 for entry-level

$100,000+ for senior-level

Getting the Job

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How did you get your job?

I began my career right out of college as a TV news reporter (that's what I went to school for). I spent five years in TV before making the transition into public relations, which allowed for a much less stressful work schedule. Public relations is a common transition for people coming from journalism jobs. I got a job at a PR/advertising agency, and while working there realized I wanted to hone in on digital services (aka online). I started taking freelance clients on the side, and when I felt comfortable with my freelance income I left my full-time job to work for myself as a consultant.

How important was networking to landing your position?

It wasn't necessarily very useful for landing my position, but it's very useful in getting new clients. Nearly all of my clients have been referred to me by a mutual friend or colleague, so it helps to know people in a wide variety of fields.

Life on the Job

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What is a typical day (or week) for you like?

Since I work for myself, my schedule is very flexible. I prefer to keep normal(ish) working hours, but work naturally creeps in on nights and weekends. A typical day might consist of creating and scheduling social media posts for clients, writing and posting blog posts, coordinating promotions or sales, writing and scheduling marketing emails, meeting with clients to plan our strategy, and doing my own admin "stuff" like accounting and billing. Sometimes I spend the day outside the office doing fun stuff like a photo shoot or media interview. Occasionally I travel for work to attend events or meet in person with an out-of-state client.

How closely does your typical day (or week) match up to the general "job description" for your position?

I'd say it's a pretty standard digital marketing job, though people in this field tend to specialize on one thing or another. For example, I have a heavy workload of social media clients, while another digital marketing professional might do more search engine optimization or website development

Does being a woman affect any aspect of your career?

On a day-to-day basis, it doesn't, but there have been times when I've needed to assert myself or "prove" myself simply because I was the only woman in a group of men. Thankfully these times have been few and far between.

What is the best thing about your job?

Being my own boss and knowing that my successes are the direct result of my own hard work.

What is the worst thing about your job?

Dealing with the ever-changing demands of clients.

How demanding is your job?

Working for yourself is incredibly demanding in terms of time. For the first year I worked many, many nights and weekends. That gets better with time, though. There are periods where it's very mentally challenging. When things aren't going so well, you don't have anyone but yourself to blame or turn to for support. But, I'd say there are far more high points than there are lows.

Do you have any advancement opportunities?

Working for yourself is interesting because it's up to you to create the "next step" in your career. For me, that might mean hiring full-time employees and growing into a full-fledged agency. Or, someone in my position might opt to go back into the corporate world as a marketing director for a major company. I've spent so much time helping other startups launch THEIR product lines that that's a very interesting option for me. I could see potentially creating and launching my own product or service OUTSIDE of marketing, and building an entirely different company.

Advice for You

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What are the skills, characteristics, or talents that are most important to be effective in your position?

Working well with many different personalities, being able to manage various projects that each have their own deadline, being motivated enough to work even when you don't have a "boss" to answer to.

What advice would you give to someone thinking about pursuing a career like yours?

Regarding working for yourself, absolutely go for it. If you have an inkling that you want to be self-employed, you most likely won't be fully satisfied in any job until you are. Regarding marketing, be a sponge and learn everything you can, even if it means you won't make that much money right away. My time in TV and at a PR agency were both critical in putting me in the position to be able to eventually take on my own clients.

If you could do it over again, would you still pursue the same career?

Probably, yes.

Follow Up

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Want to learn more? Check out Tami's site here. Want to read later? Pin me -->