How Can a Detailed Virtual Assistant Job Description Help You Land Qualified Candidates?

As more and more workers are offering their services online, hiring a Virtual Assistant has proven advantageous to both small and large businesses. That’s because Virtual Assistants are usually a much more affordable alternative to regular employees.

That said, not all VAs are equally skilled. If you need help with simple, dull, administrative tasks, practically anyone can do the job. However, if you require assistance with more complex tasks that require a certain level of expertise in a particular field, like SEO or content writing, or proficiency with the specific tools your company is using—finding a perfect VA may be a bit more difficult than you anticipate.

The reason for this is that, due to the growing demand for remote workers, anyone and everyone is trying to find an online gig. On top of that, successful companies snatch up all the best VAs as soon they find them, leaving most job boards teeming with sub-par candidates.

To increase the odds of attracting and ultimately hiring a top-notch professional, you have to meticulously craft an in-depth Virtual Assistant job description. 

You may know what you’re looking for in the ideal candidate, but to attract such an individual, it’s necessary to explain it just as well to the job seekers. List out the exact responsibilities they’ll have while working for your organization, and the skills required for them to succeed.

To help you create an outstanding job description that will catch the eye of the most qualified VAs on the market, we will show you:

1. What tasks most Virtual Assistants are expected to carry out in a company
2. What skills and competencies are necessary for them to excel in the role
3. How the specifics of the Virtual Assistant role vary according to the industry they operate in
4. Where you can find some excellent VA job description examples to draw inspiration from

We’ll also provide you with some useful tips on hiring a VA, and teach you how to cut your time-to-hire and hiring costs by setting up Workello’s automated hiring funnel!

What Are the Most Common Duties of a Virtual Assistant?

A Virtual Assistant can be in charge of carrying out various tasks, though the exact scope and nature of the services they provide depends on several factors, such as their field of expertise, previous experience, tool proficiencies, etc. Some companies might need VAs for simple administrative tasks, while others may require a VA to perform more complex, industry-specific tasks that require specialized knowledge.

Despite these variables, some of the most common Virtual Assistant duties and responsibilities include the following:

• Managing your calendar—A Virtual Assistant can schedule, reschedule, and send reminders regarding important business meetings, appointments, interviews, and other meetings
• Adding and updating contacts—Your Virtual Assistant can add new contacts to your list, update contact information, and monitor contacts in your CRM system
• Answering phone calls and responding to emails—These individuals can also be tasked with responding to emails, answering phone calls, transcribing voicemails, and notifying you of important transactional questions
• Taking care of your travel arrangements—Virtual Assistants can also look up flights, research hotels, and check different transportation options for you (rental cars, for example). They will also be in charge of booking flights and making other accommodations
• Performing miscellaneous accounting tasks—VAs are typically expected to have a working knowledge of accounting and statistics. Because of this, they are often tasked with processing invoices, monitoring payments, recording taxes, etc.
• Taking care of other personal errands—A VA can even be tasked with carrying out personal errands in your stead, if you find that your business life is taking up too much time. For example, they can make purchase orders, pay your bills, schedule medical appointments, and make restaurant reservations

Virtual Assistant Requirements—What Skills, Competencies, and Experience Do They Need To Possess?

The exact requirements for a Virtual Assistant can vary drastically from company to company. In general, they may be divided into the following categories:

• Work experience—The amount of experience a candidate should possess is usually determined by the scope of work and the technical difficulty of the tasks they will be performing. A candidate with only a year of experience can easily perform administrative tasks, such as responding to emails and scheduling appointments. But for more demanding, business-critical functions—it’s better to find someone with far more experience in the given industry
• Level of education—A high school diploma may be sufficient for basic administrative and receptionist tasks, but other, more demanding tasks—such as coding and back-end programming—might necessitate an appropriate university degree in the relevant field
• Industry-specific knowledge—A VA should possess solid knowledge of your niche, as well as be proficient with the tools and software used in the industry, to be able to support your business operations. This also includes various technical skills and competencies, such as understanding of MS Word tools, Adobe Suite, or various CRM systems

How Much Do Virtual Assistant Roles Vary Depending on Their Field of Expertise?

There are numerous roles that Virtual Assistants can fill in various business niches. Because of this, the services they offer—as well as skills required for the role—heavily depend on the industry they specialize in.

 A Dental Virtual Assistant, for instance, probably has experience supporting a dental practice—but they may know next to nothing when it comes to working for a web design agency. In that case, it’s better to find a dedicated Web Design Virtual Assistant.

The following table offers you a preview of some key industry-specific services a Virtual Assistant can provide depending on the business niche they have experience in:

How To Find a Talented Virtual Assistant With the Right Skills and Experience for the Job

Hiring a Virtual Assistant who does their job properly can be one of the best decisions you’ve made for your business—but finding the perfect candidate isn’t as easy as you might think. 

You need someone trustworthy enough to handle sensitive internal information. They should also be able to perform their job with minimum supervision. This is why you should be careful to select a professional VA who can provide all the services your business requires.

Here are some useful tips to help you land a competent candidate:

1. Thoroughly customize your job description—It’s crucial that you tailor your job ad to the responsibilities and requirements of a VA in your business. Specify what task they’ll perform, which time-zone they’ll operate in, and state the approximate number of hours they’ll work each day. Also, state the necessary industry-specific knowledge, experience, education, and technical skills. A detailed job description will not only deter unqualified candidates from applying for your ad—you’re also more likely to attract a VA who fits the role perfectly!
2. Don’t make a hasty decision based on low rates alone—It’s a bad idea to hire a VA based on low service rates. The cost of a VA, while not always indicative of their skills, is usually proportional to the amount of experience and expertise they have in the field. While it may seem expedient, a VA whose services are on the cheaper end might not have the necessary skills to competently support your business. This is why you should always look for the most skilled candidate, even if you have to pay a slightly higher Virtual Assistant salary
3. Test as many candidates as possible—It’s important that you test and assess as many applicants as possible before reaching your decision. Don’t settle for the first or the 10th applicant who comes off as competent enough for the job. First, establish a solid base for comparison by testing dozens upon dozens of candidates. In the long run, this will allow you to make a better, more informed hiring decision
4. Automate your hiring process—It can be a long, grueling journey to conduct the hiring process manually from start to finish. Tracking applications, distributing tests, and scheduling interviews can easily get overwhelming without a streamlined, automated system. That’s why you should set up an automated hiring funnel with Workello. Our applicant tracking system allows you to automatically test and interview candidates, filter out unqualified candidates, and hire a skilled VA in no time!

What Are Some Good Virtual Assistant Job Description Examples?

Customizing your Virtual Assistant job description is a necessary step if you want a candidate with the proper experience, competencies, and technical skills to support your company. Still, you don’t have to waste hours or even days devising the most original job ad. Instead, you should take a look at what other companies are doing to attract talented contractors who will support their business remotely.

The list below contains a couple of popular hiring websites where you can find some excellent Virtual Assistant job description examples:

• Glassdoor
• Talent.com
• Indeed
• LinkedIn
• ZipRecruiter

How Workello Can Help You Attract and Recruit a Virtual Assistant in Record Time

Workello is a fine-tuned, fully-automated hiring funnel—the product of hundreds of hours and $100,000+ sunk into tireless R&D. After dozens of iterations, we had managed to perfect an all-in-one hiring tool that automates candidate tracking, testing, interview scheduling, and email correspondence. With Workello behind your back, you can focus on scaling your company without worrying about hundreds of manual tasks involved that can slow your business to a crawl.

Here’s how Workello makes hiring Virtual Assistants a breeze:

1. Create a free Workello account and set up an automated, pre-configured hiring funnel in under 3 minutes
2. Post your job listings across as many job boards as you like—our unique embedded form automatically links back to Workello!
3. Keep track of all candidates from our robust Workello dashboard, regardless of which hiring platform they applied from
4. Test, interview, and send job offers to the most promising Virtual Assistants with a single click
5. Spot and filter out unqualified candidates with Workello’s automated testing feature
6. Move candidates through your hiring funnel and change their status by selecting the appropriate option from the drop-down menu
7. Keep transactional questions to a minimum by giving candidates access to a live Candidate Status page that informs them of their status in your hiring funnel

Sign up for Workello right away, and—since everything is pre-configured—you can immediately test and review up to 5 VAs for free!