Editor’s note: This article was first published in September 2010. Faxing work to an assistant reflects 2010 technology, and virtual assistant services have since become mainstream.
As a line of work, there’s nothing new about the great opportunity a virtual assistant has to earn money, whether part time or full time, working remotely on a variety of tasks. The thing is, some American companies have taken the business beyond the bounds of reality, to the point of offering services that were unthinkable until now.
There are now companies dedicated to virtual assistance for the most varied tasks: answering phone calls for people who are away for the day, booking hotels and restaurants because the client is in a business meeting, taking care of choosing a present for their partner online and, better still and bordering on the unthinkable, they now also manage their employer’s private dating calendar.
Yes, you read that right: a married man diverts his conversations to his virtual assistant, who organises the date, books the hotel and sets a time for the meeting. The client isn’t afraid of anyone calling his home, because the call will go to his assistant.
These companies are said to have increased their turnover by 60% thanks to this service, which we might call scheduled, safe infidelity. Of course, the worst thing that can happen to a client is to run into his own partner because she has hired another virtual assistant.
Not much attention has been paid to this type of business, but more and more people are turning to virtual assistants for all kinds of services that can save them work or take a weight off their shoulders.
It’s nine in the evening and you need to type up a clean copy of a piece of work for your company, but you promised your wife you’d take her out to dinner and you don’t want to upset her. You fax the work to your virtual assistant, and when you get back from dinner it will be in your inbox, ready to print.
The rates charged by virtual assistance companies vary widely, from hourly billing to a monthly “flat rate” depending on the services contracted.
Without a doubt, this is an idea that will see growing demand over time because, if you think about it calmly, how many times would you have turned to a virtual assistant if one had existed?
Further reading
- Business ideas related to love
- Businesses of the next decade
- Why new businesses fail
- The mindset of an entrepreneur: Donald Trump
Featured image: IISG, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Flickr.
