A career as an independent contractor or freelancer is believed to come with all of the perks of working at home and managing your own, supposedly ample, time. More often than not, this belief is merely a misconception.

Virtual assistants are the Digital Age solution for maximising productivity. Attempting to act as their own admin team, legal team, accounting team, business development team, and marketing team while still executing the core aspects of their businesses, independent contractors and freelancers are often time poor. When hiring employees is simply not an option, a virtual assistant may be the perfect solution. Forget about the interference and interruption of a physical employee.  

Moneypenny

What it is: A telephone answering service that assigns you a remote PA.

What it does: If a client calls your business number and you are unavailable or do not wish to take the call, it is forwarded to your Moneypenny PA. Your PA will answer the call round the clock and record any messages, sending them immediately to your email or via text message if they are urgent.

Fee: Reviewers note that though the minimum charge per month is £25, the end charge per month was closer to £125.  

Worldwide 101

What it is: A multifaceted virtual assistant service.

What it does: Worldwide 101 offers admin support, customer service, multilingual services, marketing/social media services, design services, web development, transcription and project management.

Fee: The entry-level ‘standard’ plan includes 10 hours of service at $280 per month (approximately £165 per month).  

Society of Virtual Assistants

What it is: A database for those seeking and acting as virtual assistants.

What it does: Run by volunteers, the Society of Virtual Assistants claims over 1,300 members. While the site does not specify the perimeters of the virtual assistants' undertakings, it seems to suggest comparable services to Moneypenny, and notes that SVA ‘only take on tasks which they are fully capable of completing.’

Fee: Not applicable.  

Pink Spaghetti

What it is: A self-proclaimed ‘pick up and put down PA service'.

What it does: Pink Spaghetti offers research, organization, administration, Facebook, franchise, LinkedIn, Twitter, marketing, newsletters, and free listing services.

Fee: The company notes that it charges a standard rate of £25 per hour or £6.25 for 15 minutes. It also lists separate rates for research, branded Facebook pages, newsletter templates, etc.

Has one of these services worked particularly well for you and your business? We’d love to hear about it!

By Camille Todaro