I’m still met with blank stares when asked what I do for a job. “I’m a Virtual Assistant, or you might be more familiar with the term, Personal Assistant?” The only difference is that I work at home, I’m virtual and businesses outsource their administration tasks to me.
“So what sort of things do you do?” Good question, and when I’m asked this I sometimes feel a little stumped with what to say as I do so many different things. My day is so varied and full of a whole range of tasks from event planning to audio typing to data inputting.
I thought a “Day in the Life of a Virtual Assistant” would be a great way to show you what a typical day brings.
Tuesday
Today is Tuesday, and like any other day, I never know what is going to land in my inbox. I have a couple of regular clients and a couple of ad-hoc clients so one day I could be working for the one client and the next, it could be all of them.
6:30am
Luckily I’m an early riser and love getting up early. This is important for freelancers who have no one to report to and so the temptation to stay in bed can be all too easy. Mornings are when I’m the most productive and I’m always motivated for the day ahead.
After breakfast I have a shower and take my puppy Tilly for her morning walk, she loves a run around the park. I use this opportunity to have a quick scroll through social media and respond to any messages.
9:00am
I always aim to be sat at my desk between 8:30am and 9:00am (although usually check my inbox whilst eating breakfast).
The first part of my morning is spent working for my main client (client A). We’re running an email campaign for a launch party in October. Firstly, I export the target lists into Excel and remove all the undeliverable emails following our first send.
Secondly, I analyse the stats from the marketing campaign to check number of opt outs, number of sign ups on Eventbrite and send a report to the marketing team. These tasks are time consuming and take me a couple of hours.
Next up is some event management. My client is running a series of workshops throughout Wiltshire. I’m in charge of listing them on Eventbrite, adding to our events calendar and liaising with the workshop host. I’ve managed to finalise another two this morning and get them added.
My client is hosting a 25th anniversary summer party in September. We’ve sent out the first round of invitations so this morning I draft up an email reminder. I also need to get some quotes for a marquee/gazebo – just in case – as you never know what the British weather is going to do!
11:30am
Having worked with CRM systems for most of my career I help my client update theirs with new member applications. This morning a new one lands into my inbox so I get the data inputted into the CRM and prepare the welcome email.
12:00pm
Moving on, another client (client B) requested an hours research yesterday so I make a start on that. She wants me to look at phone upgrades and new contracts so I look at the best deals for O2, EE, 3, Virgin Mobile and Vodafone. By the time I finish my research I’m tempted to get a new phone contract myself but continue typing up my findings into an email and send over.
Luckily most mornings my 15 week old puppy sleeps right through, allowing me to get on with my work. As soon as she wakes I take her downstairs and into the garden. The washing has finished and I hang this out on the line and soak up the sun for 10 minutes.
12:45pm
Lunch is usually around 1:00pm which is a quick protein shake or salad whilst Tilly patiently sits on her mat waiting for her lunch. My friend calls so we have a catch up, she’s also wanting to set up as a Virtual Assistant so we talk about that and I encourage her to start researching and getting things in place – I know she won’t regret it.
1:30pm
Back at my desk I check my inbox for client A (as I’ve got my own email address). There are various emails to respond to plus an email from their video editor who is helping me with the YouTube channel. I get a new promotional video uploaded and sent over to the marketing team for social media.
Social media is also factored into my day and I spend a quick 5 mins scrolling through LinkedIn. I know I need to get some content planned for this week but I’ve been so busy I’ve not had a chance yet.
2:30pm
My friend (and now client) calls me as I’ve built her new website. She owns a hair salon so it’s nice to have a mix of different industries. We chat about the changes she wants to make to her site and also arrange her new hosting. I have a list of things to do for her but won’t get to these today, they are added to my to-do-list for Thursday.
3:00pm
Today has been a rare day where I’ve done work for most of my clients. My final client, client D has asked me to check over her Mailchimp newsletter as she isn’t happy with the design. I make some amendments, add in her blog posts and send back for her review.
She’s also asked for some graphics for her blog posts and social media so I add these to my to do list for tomorrow.
4:15pm
Having been sat at my desk for most of the day I make the decision to head to the gym. I usually go in the morning but now we have the puppy I tend to get out for a walk instead and try to schedule the gym in later.
For me, exercising is a great way to escape my desk for 45 minutes and recharge the batteries. It helps me to stay calm, feel energised and overall helps my general wellbeing.
5:15pm
Once I’m back from the gym I have a quick check back through my emails to see if anything urgent has come in. I usually sit down and sort through emails, deleting anything that’s done and completed and flagging tasks for the next day. I add tasks to my to-do-list so that I know what I need to do in the morning.
I always try and finish up by 5:30pm/6:00pm so that I can enjoy my evenings away from my screen. I make dinner, feed Tilly and then we head out for our evening walk.
Who knows what tomorrow will bring. A day in the life of a Virtual Assistant changes from day to day and I enjoy that. I try and get out at least once a week to attend a networking event as I like to meet other local business owners.
Being at home is great and having Tilly gives me company, I wouldn’t change it for the world. Love my job.
If you’re wondering how to work remotely with a Virtual Assistant then have a read of my blog post or get in touch by email: info@kelliesimpsonva.co.uk
