How to Become a Virtual Assistant with no Experience [90 Day VA Review]
Updated on October 12th, 2022
Before becoming a VA, I was endlessly searching for the perfect remote job. This is when I stumbled upon Esther Inman’s 90 Day VA course, 2 months later I signed my first client (before even finishing) and 6 months later, I was working full-time as a VA with no prior experience! This course is so legit guys! I seriously cannot recommend it enough for people who want to be digital nomads. I’m so obsessed with the direction this course has taken me that I can’t wait to tell you how you too can become a virtual assistant with no experience. Yipeeeee.
There are a couple of ways you can go about becoming a virtual assistant – and I want to preface this by saying this is all from personal experience. The first route is to go off on your own and apply for basic social media jobs like repinning from Facebook groups (OMG! boring). With jobs like these, you are looking at getting paid $10/hour. Sure, that’s great for a bit of side work, but it’s not a career.
When I found Esther’s course, I was sceptical. Why would I want to pay $500 for a course when I can get a job working as a VA without it? (see above) Now I know the true value in her course. I have learnt SO many skills. You get a bunch of resources, best practices, tips of prepping for interviews, how to prepare contracts and the best part – your wage will be higher because you went to school to become a VA! Esther also answers this in her FREE masterclass. 👇👇
Disclaimer: Some links in this article are affiliate links, which means that if you purchase through them, I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. For more information on my disclaimer click here.
What is a virtual assistant?
Right, before we go any further, let’s get into what even is a VA? Becoming a virtual assistant is really opening up a tap with never-ending possibilities pouring out. Essentially you are someone’s, right-hand woman. You will be there to assist with any pre-arranged online tasks for entrepreneurs, businesses and bloggers. If someone has an online presence they can hire you as their virtual assistant. Speaking of, you can follow me on Instagram here 😉
What jobs does a virtual assistant do
Being a virtual assistant is so varied. You can choose to niche down and specialise in a couple of fields. Or generalise and help with overall tasks. Some of the jobs you can assist with are:
- Content writing – blog posts, social media captions, emails
- Editing – documents, blogs
- Graphic creation – using Canva to make social media posts
- WordPress management – responding to comments, removing spam, updating plugins
- Social media management – creating strategies, researching target audiences and hashtags, scheduling posts, responding to comments and DM’s, growing following and engagement.
- Data entry
- PR
- Project management
- Podcast editing
- Video editing
These are just to get you started. Chances are you look up to someone you follow online. Imagine what it would be like working for them? Because you can bet, if they have a decent following they probably have a VA or will be needing one soon.
If something on this list draws your fancy you can begin to specialise which starts drawing the big bucks.
The job I just signed is to create social media graphics to go with a blog post. I will be in charge of creating the captions and pin descriptions. As well as strategically hashtagging and ensuring these are posted to their appropriate social media channel at the best time for my clients target audience. I will be creating an Instagram strategy for my client and doing 30-day Pinterest management.
Earlier this year I was teaching English online and struggled to get enough hours. This first gig is paying me more than what I was making as an online English teacher. That’s not to say you can’t make money that way, I actually know a lot of travellers who do. You can read my interview with Nic who makes her living teaching English with VIPKID.
Who makes the perfect virtual assistant?
You’re on my blog, which makes me believe you are a traveller. If you’re looking to move into a remote lifestyle of any sort, being a virtual assistant is for you. Imagine being able to travel the world and get paid for it! It’s an absolute dream come true.
A VA is also perfect if you are looking for a side-hustle. Maybe you’re currently saving up for a big world trip or even travelling primarily with work exchange programs like Worldpackers and Workaway. The best part about being a VA is that you set your own hours.
What skills do you need
Esther’s program is built on you having no previous experience or skills. She teaches you everything you need to work online. However, in saying that you do need to be computer literate and staying organised is essential.
If you’re worried about how to best use your time and stay organised, Esther actually even has lessons teaching you about the best programs to plan your day and client’s tasks and which online calendars to use. She really has thought of everything.
How much money can you make working as a virtual assistant
The question you all want to know. How much money can you make as a virtual assistant? Similar to the job roles being an open tap, the amount of money you can make is also this way. At the beginning of your VA career, you can expect to charge between $15 and $25 an hour. With 6-12 months of experience, you can start charging upwards of $30/hour. Then add some specialty skills to your CV and the sky is the limit.
While I love free walking tours and travelled through Europe on a budget I can’t help but think how this would have taken a bit of stress out of travelling. I was reading about an Infusionsoft course in the Facebook community recently. The course was $1000 and afterwards, you are an Infusionsoft specialist. As a specialist, your hourly rate is $100-$200! Another lady in the group after 6 months set her rate at $40/hour and was hired for the job.
Are people even hiring virtual assistants?
They sure are! As mentioned earlier, if someone has an online business or even online presence (think everyone with a social media account) then they could hire you.
Think of a field you are interested in but don’t necessarily work in. For example, I am very interested in nutrition and follow a lot of nutritionists on Instagram. Once I have built up my profile I can cold pitch the owners of these accounts and sell my services to them. Essentially letting me work with a dream client and building my interest in that topic.
90 Day VA Review – Esther Inman’s Virtual Assistant Internship
The quickest way you can go from your current job to working online as a virtual assistant is by doing the 90 Day VA internship. There are so many benefits to joining her course. I’ll go through each of these in more detail below, but these three things are what makes Esther’s course standout.
Firstly, you’ll learn a bunch of applicable skills. Esther holds your hand through the basics right through to more advanced skills. Even in the modules that I thought I knew, I ended up learning so many tips and tricks that in the end make my job easier.
Secondly, Esther is a hoot! I love watching the lessons that she teaches. She’s so bubbly and captivating. You won’t get bored that’s for sure.
Finally, the members-only Facebook community has a really supportive group of women who are all rooting for each other. The team at 90 Day VA sources 760 jobs a month and puts them in the group.
I know that parting with $500 USD (especially if your exchange rate, like mine, sucks at the moment) is really hard. There are so many courses on the internet, many with false promises. I umm’d and ahh’d about this one for about 2 weeks before signing up and can safely safe it’s the best thing I’ve invested in this year. I have made back my money already before finishing the course!
Not only is the course legit teaching the necessary skills but it also gives you the confidence to get out there and apply for jobs.
The modules and skills you learn in 90 Day VA
There are 12 self-paced modules in the course. It’s designed for full-time workers, so really there’s no excuse for not getting through it. What you get out of the course is how much work you put in. At the end of the 12 modules, there is a bonus VA starter pack giving you everything you need to know about taxes, getting paid, networking, pricing and much more.
Want to know exactly what you will learn? These are the modules and lessons within:
Start Here
- Welcome
- How to Best Go Through This Course
- How to Prep For the Portfolio
- Creating Your Path to Success (Mindset Series Ep. 1)
Setting up
- Avoiding the Pit of Despair (Mindset Series Ep. 2)
- Is Virtual Assisting Right For Me?
- Getting Started Right
- Client Calendar & Email Management
- Working With Clients’ Projects
Content
- Content Re-purposing 101
- How to Content Market Like a Boss!
- How to Source Content Ideas (without copying)
Blogging
- Rewiring Your Brain for Imperfect Action (Mindset Series Ep. 3)
- Why Blogging + What EXACTLY Are You Doing
- Start with SEO
- Anatomy of a Blog Post
- Blog + Pinterest Images
- Example Walk-through
- Blog Challenge
- Submit Your Blog! ?
Social Media
- Are You Really Cut Out For This? (Mindset Series Ep. 4)
- Social Media Platforms + Strategies for Businesses
- Creating Killer Captions
- Easy Social Graphics
- Managing Groups as a VA
- Scheduling Software For Social Media
- Instagram Management
- Content for Instagram
- Instagram Strategy
- Instagram Tools
- Using Instagram Stories With Clients
- Client Instagram Highlights + Engagement Techniques
- Welcome to Pinterest
- Introduction to Pinterest
- Walking Through Pinterest
- Top Tips for Pinning
- Walk Through Tailwind
Podcast Management
- Podcasting 101 & Podcast Process
- Audio Editing & Uploading to Libsyn
- How to Create Show Notes & Promo Graphics
- How to Publish and Promote & Your Homework
Video Management
- Video 101 & Video Process
- Video Editing
- How to Create Descriptions, Promo Graphics & Publish
- How to Promote & Your Homework
Email Marketing
- What is Email Marketing?
- Newsletter Do’s & Don’ts
- Setting Up a Newsletter in Mail Chimp
- Convert Kit
Lite Web Management
- Welcome to WordPress
- WordPress Overview
- WordPress Maintenance and Updates
- Posting Blogs + Yoast SEO
- Managing Spam Comments for Clients
- Niching in Web Development
- Get Your Own Website
Project Management
- Project Management
- How to Use Infusionsoft Parts 1 – 5
PR
- PR Welcome
- Intro to PR
- Audience Research
- Research for Podcast
- Researching Publications
- Researching influencers
- Staying organized
- Pitch templates
- Brittney Lynn
Advanced Courses
- Further Learning
Bonus: VA Starter Pack
- Welcome to the VA Starter Pack
- Meet Mrs. Imposter Syndrome (Mindset Series Ep. 5)
- Using the VA Starter Pack with Business Owners
- Application Kit + Remote Resume Do’s & Don’ts
- Preparing Your Instagram To Get Clients
- Using Instagram Stories to Find Clients
- Networking Like a Pro Online
- Networking Like a Pro IRL
- From Consultation to Paid Gig
- How To Price Your Services
- How to Get Paid Virtually
- Taxes & Health Insurance
- Contracts & Onboarding
- Accounting Basics
- Get Your Own Website
In 90 days or less go from no experience to working as a virtual assistant
As you can see the course is jam-packed with so much information. To get through it each Esther recommends allocating 2-5 hours per week to the course.
I found I was able to get through the lessons in this time frame, but some weeks the portfolio homework would take me a lot longer.
The great part is, the course is self-paced. Even if you’re really busy at the moment, you have lifetime access to the modules, so can get through it when you have the chance. Or maybe you have more free time and such you are free to fly through the course.
Whichever your situation you can start applying for jobs when you feel ready. It took me 2 months to apply for my first job and I got the first one!
About Esther
Another great part of the course is Esther. She has such a fun and bubbly personality. Not too many years ago, Esther was looking for work online and started working as a VA. Knowing how much this career path helped her she created 90 Day VA to help people like us.
Esther has helped a bunch of entrepreneurs in the past and they know and trust her program. When it comes time for them to hire a VA they come to her and she posts the job on the Facebook page.
The Facebook community
Another priceless part of the program is having access to the members-only Facebook group. The group is FULL of supportive women empowering each other to succeed. I always feel comfortable asking questions and have even joined an accountability group with some of the ladies I met in there.
When I joined 2 months ago, the inclusive deal was they would source and advertise 30+ jobs a month. Now, they have upped this number to 60+! It’s never been easier to find an online job.
Should you sign up to 90 Day VA today?
Absolutely!
When I got back to Australia after breaking up with my partner and leaving Myanmar I was struggling to get hours teaching English online. Then COVID hit and I honestly had no idea what I was going to do or how I was going to make money. It definitely kept me mentally healthy while at home.
Esther’s course could not have come at a better time. 90 Day VA gave me a clear path to follow and guided me step-by-step to build a client portfolio (without experience) and built my confidence in all things working online – and I’m not even finished yet!
If you’re worried about the upfront cost, there are payments plans available. If you haven’t yet, head over and watch the free class to discover how you can become a virtual assistant without experience.
Don’t want the free class? Ready to sign up?
If you do sign up through my link, send me an email [email protected] I’d love to welcome you personally and share this digital nomad path with you!
How to find jobs as a virtual assistant
The best way to get jobs are through Facebook groups and then from referrals. Platforms like Upwork and Fiverr take such a huge chunk of your commission that it is hardly worth signing up to them.
Another good way to get a virtual assistant job is to reach out to people. When you build a stunning portfolio (which you will) you will feel confident reaching out to potential clients to offer your services. The finding jobs part is also included in the course. Including setting up a website, Facebook business page and Instagram account.
