International Virtual Assistants Day

Virtual assistants are individuals who mostly work on a freelance basis to deliver managerial, administrative and personal assistance related services to clients. They offer support to clients and business owners who need a bit of help but don’t need to hire a person to stay in an office or do their work in person. 

International Virtual Assistants Day is here to raise awareness for the plight of these work-from-home professionals and show appreciation for them!

History of International Virtual Assistants Day

Because of the nature of their jobs, virtual assistants usually make extensive use of the latest technology, mostly the internet, to undertake their duties from a remote location. Tasks might range from taking phone calls to answering emails, from making appointments to carrying out online research.

Because they don’t work for their clients or employers in person, it’s easy to take these support people for granted. While it might be natural to thank an assistant in person by buying them a cup of coffee or taking them out to lunch, a virtual assistant tends to fly under the radar and miss out on these opportunities.

International Virtual Assistants Day is a day set aside to acknowledge the effort, determination, and commitment of these virtual assistants! The day is sponsored by the Alliance for Virtual Businesses and the celebrations are held during the Online Virtual Assistants Convention.

The Alliance for Virtual Businesses, which is composed of a team of virtual professionals as the originators of this day, which is usually celebrated annually on every third Friday of the month of May. Its main purpose is usually to create awareness about virtual assistants’ services in the business community.

How to Celebrate International Virtual Assistants Day

Observing International Virtual Assistants Day is all about making that remote help feel super appreciated and cared for! Celebrate the day with some of these ideas that will help to build and secure this important relationship:

Get a Gift For Your Virtual Assistant

If you know them pretty well and know what they like, it might be nice to get a gift for them in honor of International Virtual Assistants Day. It might be nice to have a gift basket or hamper delivered to them. This is a bit easier if they live in the same region as you, but can get a bit more complicated if they live across the world. In this case, perhaps a virtual gift card purchased for an online company in their region would be a good bet. Also, it doesn’t have to be a surprise, so don’t be afraid to ask them what they enjoy and try to accommodate their interests!

Raise Awareness for Virtual Assistants

One of the purposes of International Virtual Assistants Day is to raise awareness for the ways that virtual assistants are able to help improve the lives of business people all over the world. Those who work in the corporate world or small businesses alike can use their sphere of influence to promote the idea, start conversations, shed some light on what it’s like and perhaps even answer questions to help others become more aware of and interested in the concept of virtual assistants.

Hire a Virtual Assistant

Finding that it’s hard to get everything done in life for a small business or corporation? It makes a lot of sense to consider hiring a virtual assistant to perform various tasks that are keeping you from more important things. Do a bit of research through the Alliance for Virtual Businesses and find out more!

Give Virtual Assistants Some Time Off

Since International Virtual Assistants Day always falls on a Friday, perhaps it would be a good idea to give that virtual assistant a bit of paid time off so they can get their weekend started early. Or a little bonus added to their paycheck would certainly be a well-received gift of appreciation.