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Virtual Secretary - the Assistance You Need

By Jim Eastman

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 30Jan2011 Word count: 792 Viewed: 269 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

First of all, what is a "Virtual Secretary"? A virtual secretary is an individual who will work for an employer, but from a far off place. By way of example, you could operate a small (or not so small) company located in Chicago, and your virtual secretary works from his or her apartment in Seattle. Or maybe a place in another country altogether ... say, in Romania or the Philippines.

A virtual secretary may communicate with his/her client in various ways: by email, by online instant messaging such as Skype, Yahoo! Instant Messaging, or ICQ or a variety of comparable services, as well as by phone. In addition, services like Skype render it possible to correspond in real time by typing, speech (using a head set), and even visually making use of a webcam... and the service is free (apart from the minor price to buy a headset and web cam).

A virtual secretary (often known as a virtual assistant) can execute virtually any kind of activity as a person working for you in the next room, such as:

planning events, administrative work, telephone support, past due invoice followup, research, arranging travel, transcription, handling orders, word processing, order placement, mailings, making appointments, sending letters, e-mail processing, manage freelancers, taking telephone calls, follow-up with customers, human resources, concierge services, setting up meetings, data processing, procedure documentation, handling support by email, live IM support, preparing letters, data entry, managing your schedule, marketing, personal assistant duties, email management, bookkeeping, handling reports

Hey... there's a great big list!

However will a virtual secretary (or VA) brew coffee for you personally? I'm sorry... than won't happen. If you want an employee to make coffee, you're out of luck.

Needless to say, if brewing coffee and fetching your dry cleaning will be necessary duties you want to have someone else to execute, then you could always appoint someone close to you. But then, why would you NOT merely look for someone in your neighborhood from the outset? Just what is the benefit of choosing a Virtual assistant in any event?

Well, there are many.

For one thing, she will possess her own computer, worktable, furniture, office equipment, utilities, and communications apparatus. You'll not have to acquire those accessories, neither will you need to have additional working space for your virtual secretary.

Additionally, your VA may be agreeable to take a bit lower pay, because she will not have the expense or the hassle of traveling to and from a standard "job." It spares her time, dollars, and annoyance! Consequently in the end, she comes out ahead, though the salary is a less.

Hey, who wouldn't be satisfied with such set up?

But probably the primary gain to engaging a virtual secretary is so as to make full use of something termed "Arbitrage." Arbitrage, simply put, is the practice of benefiting from a price differential between two markets. As an example, assume that you live somewhere like New York City, where the living expense is quite high (ın contrast to other places in the US) and the VA resides in a village in Texas, where the living costs is a whole lot lower. Since 10 bucks where she lives will buy 2 times the amount of products and services as 10 dollars in New York (and perhaps "twice" is even a conservative estimate), your VA will, once more, be prepared to take less pay in comparison with what you may need to pay a local person.

But what happens if your virtual secretary lives in another country altogether... for example, in India, Romania, Pakistan, the Philippines, or another nation where English is a common (if not primary) language?

This is when the advantages seriously begin to multiply! The United States dollar stretches a whole lot farther in lots of other nations compared to in America. For illustration, in the Philippines $50 buys a whole month's of food. How much does $50 buy where you live? If you're like me, you visit the local grocery, purchase 2 bags of groceries, give the cashier a pair of 20s and a ten, and you're given back some small change!

"But... " as they say on TV "hold on... there's more!"

Profiting from arbitrage is just the beginning. You can also avoid the cost... not even considering the headache... of retirement contributions, payroll taxes, numerous IRS forms, providing health insurance, worker's comp, social security taxes, and all the multitude of legal prerequisites connected with labor compliance laws. Hey, you won't need to pay an accountant to do all of that!

Beginning to get the picture?

If you run a business, and are caught up in a "Catch 22" of seriously wanting help, and yet you're unable to afford it... a virtual secretary may perhaps be just what you've been looking for!

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