Virtual Assistant Association

Benefits of Joining a Virtual Assistant Association

A Virtual Assistant Association or a Virtual Assistant Organization is basically a group of Virtual Assistants in many areas or in one specific niche who help each other out, refer work to each other and more.  These organizations often set out to not only help Virtual Assistants by providing networking and “water cooler” types of communication for these at-home professionals, but also set out to heighten awareness nationally and abroad for what Virtual Assistance is and how businesses and organizations can benefit from using these valuable off-site professionals.

Many VA organizations/associations offer special membership benefits.  These can vary, but often include:

• Mentoring programs
• Referral programs and/or job leads
• Software training
• Health insurance discount programs
• Networking events
• Advertising and marketing assistance
• Vendor discount programs
• Continued education classes or tutorials or seminars
• Directory listings
• Certifications
• Newsletters, helpful articles
• Training in new areas you would like to expand into
• Possible awards to earn to boost your reputation or to recognize you as an extraordinary service provider or mentor
• And more…

Some existing Virtual Assistant organizations/associations:

• A Clayton’s Secretary (http://www.asecretary.com.au/)
• Executive Virtual Professionals Association (http://www.evpa.net)
• Health Care Executive Assistants (HCEA) of the American Hospital Association (AHA) (http://www.hceaonline.org)
• International Association of Virtual Assistants (http://www.iava.org.uk)
• International Association of Virtual Office Assistants (IAVOA) (http://www.iavoa.org)
• National Association of Executive Secretaries and Administrative Assistants (http://www.naesaa.com)
• The International Association of Administrative Professionals (http://www.iaap-hq.org)
• The International Virtual Assistants Association (IVAA) (http://www.ivaa.org)
• The National Virtual Associates Society (http://www.nvas.org)
• Virtual Business Group (http://www.virtualbizgroup.com)

While this isn’t a complete list and doesn’t go into specialty areas such as Paralegals, Real Estate Virtual Assistants, or many medical specialties, this is a good general list for starting out with researching organizations to join.

When signing up with an organization, you should look into the benefits of each one, the costs associated with each one, and other VAs – especially any who are located closely to you – who also belong.  Then, make a decision based on which organization provides the benefits you are looking for, which organization you can afford and which one will allow both national/international and local networking opportunities for you.

Visit Virtual Assistant Organizations for a list of more VA organizations, associations and networking groups.