Q:           What is a virtual assistant?

A:            A virtual assistant is a person who provides virtual office support services to a business from a remote location. Administrative tasks are most common for virtual assistants, but they may also be qualified to assist with any other elements required by the business.

Q:           What can a virtual assistant / Virtual PA help me with?

A:            When you choose a virtual assistant, it is almost certain that you will have bespoke needs to be met. However, most services offered by these assistants fall into one of the following categories; admin support, PA Support, Finance services and project support.

Q:           What are the benefits of hiring a virtual assistant or virtual PA?

A:            The benefits to your business having a freelance virtual office assistant or Virtual Office Manager are:

  • no need to employ staff, therefore saving on recruitment costs
  • no salary on-costs such as National Insurance or Pensions
  • no additional equipment costs
  • no need to increase your office space
  • you only pay for the hours worked on your account
  • no sickness or holiday pay
  • Your virtual office assistant can be based anywhere in the UK to be an effective part of your business
  • Additional time to concentrate on the revenue generating aspects of your business

Q:           Do you need to be based near to me or my office?

A:            With the online support and equipment now available it is not necessary for your virtual support services to be within your area. There are many ways to keep in touch including video-conferencing, which has been enhanced and improved to support virtual working during the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, I am based in West Sussex, the surrounding areas include; Brighton, Chichester, Ferring, Goring, Lancing, Littlehampton, Portslade, Rustington, Shoreham-by-Sea and Worthing. London is also within easy reach. I am always happy to travel to meet for an initial meeting and discussion and for face to face meetings as and when required.

Q:           Are you able to help me with my bookkeeping as well.

A:            Yes, I am an ICB qualified bookkeeper, so I can help with manual and computerised bookkeeping including VAT returns, either manually or through Making Tax Digital (MTD)

Q:           When will I know it is the right time to delegate tasks?

A:            You need a Virtual Assistant / virtual PA when the time you spend on administrative tasks begins to affect your bottom line.

Q:           Why would I want a VA if it costs more than someone onsite, isn’t it cheaper to hire someone to just work at my office?

A:            It may look cheaper if you are only looking at the wage you pay, however, you need to also consider the cost of office equipment, overheads, any benefits or perks you provide, employee on-costs as well as the costs of your time during the hiring, training, reviewing (and, sometimes, even firing) process.

Q:           Do you have any professional Insurance cover?

A:           Yes, I have Public liability Insurance up to £1,000,000.00 and Professional Indemnity Insurance up to £250,000.00