This article originated from being asked again and again what does a Virtual Assistant actually do! A question most VAs are asked regularly.

The tasks and projects we are often asked to complete are usually of the admin nature – newsletters, social media, document formatting, diary management and more. But every so often we are asked to complete a task out of the ordinary. Here are a few ‘out of the box’ projects we have completed on behalf of our clients since EVA launched.

One of our clients is a solopreneur and to publicise an upcoming project, she was to be involved in a media photo shoot. The only problem – she would be away during the week the photo shoot was scheduled. As her virtual assistant, I was the closest thing to an employee for her and was required to step in to represent her and her business.

We have clients all over the country, including Sydney. One of our Sydney based clients had been at a networking event and misplaced her keys. She contacted to seek our support while she continued with her other appointments. We made a few calls and located the keys (they had fallen out of her handbag in a taxi). Next we arranged to have them returned to her. We did this within 5 hours from another state, while our client continued with her appointments uninterrupted.

What do you do, when as a solopreneur, you wake up unwell – too unwell to work and you have a full day of appointments. This has happened to one of our clients, but because we had an established partnership including access to her contacts and calendar, we were able to contact everyone in her calendar and reschedule the appointments, all the while the client rested and recuperated.

For retail and hospitality business owners, knowing your team provide consistent service to the highest standard can almost be guess work. We’ve posed as customers on more than one occasion and mystery shopped our client’s outlet, giving them feedback on the service we received, and the cleanliness of the premises.

We have been asked to shop for a gift to be given to a connection of a client. The brief was vague, given the gift recipient was not well known to our client. The brief required the gift to reflect our clients regional location and a budget was specified. With the recipients name, we established the employer, occupation and a snippet of information via google. Settling on a gift that didn’t include food, alcohol or clothing, the relationship between my client and his new connection was strengthened.

Because our clients are from varying backgrounds, industries and locations – we are often known as the “go to girl” when they are looking for someone or something to help them out. This happened recently when a client had a sitter (a person who sits as a subject for art students) cancel at the last minute. Our client called me to see if we could help, sure enough we could find someone to help him out within a few hours. Later, the same client said we were the first person he thought of to call at his time of need. This was great feedback to receive.

So as you can see, a day in the life of a Virtual Assistant is rarely duplicated. We often have to think on our feet, and explore creative solutions to our clients’ needs.

Download our complimentary ebook: Outsourcing is not a dirty word.

by Sam Spence – Owner & Principal Executive Assistant, Executive Virtual Associate.