How much is your time worth to you? Every minute that you spend doing paperwork is a minute lost for developing your product or service, networking with potential clients, or making sales. In simple terms, every minute you spend on administrative tasks is a minute you could have spent growing your business. But, without the resources to hire an Administrative Assistant, how can you get the help you need?

Virtual assistance is an industry that has grown immensely in the past few years. This development is due in part to the growth of the internet and new technologies, which have made working with an Assistant, as simple as sending an email. It has also grown as a result of the number of entrepreneurs that simply don't have the space and/or the money to hire an in-house Assistant. More and more small businesses are coming to the realization that the solution to this problem is virtual assistance.

Outsourcing administrative work allows entrepreneurs to focus on the income earning aspects of their business while saving the money that would have been spent on hiring an Administrative Assistant.

Most Virtual Assistants offer two options for acquiring their services. For those who need help regularly, most VAs offer retainer plans, which allow you to purchase their services in monthly time blocks. This is a good option when you need multiple tasks performed each month. For example, if you have a customer database that needs regular maintenance and weekly invoicing that must be performed, then hiring a Virtual Assistant on a retainer basis will enable you to outsource those tasks and get them off of your own to-do list. If you need ten hours of service per month, you only pay for ten hours of service. If you need twenty hours of administrative work completed per month, you pay for twenty hours, and so on. Most Virtual Assistants offer discounts for clients who purchase their services on a retainer basis. Usually, the more hours purchased, the larger the discount.

For clients who only need an occasional project completed, such as a document typed or the completion of a spreadsheet, services can be purchased on an hourly basis. This means that if your project will take only an hour to complete, you will pay for only one hour of service. Your Virtual Assistant will be able to give you an estimate on the amount of time the project should take to complete. Some VAs have a minimum hourly requirement however, so it's best to inquire about this first.

When working with a Virtual Assistant for the first time, it is always best to start with a small project to see if you and the VA are compatible. Once you have established that he/she provides quality work and that you communicate well, you can decide whether or not to continue sending projects or retaining their services.

The growth of the Virtual Assistant industry has made it possible for anyone to have their own Assistant. Whether you are an office of one or one hundred, virtual assistance might be the answer for you. Acquiring quality assistance will free up your time and simplify your life.