Virtual assistant glossary: 40 terms explained simply

Jump to a letter: ABCDEHILMOPQRSTVW

A

Accounts payable

Money your business owes to suppliers. Bills are entered, approved and paid on a schedule so nothing is paid twice or late. Bookkeeping help.

Accounts receivable

Money customers owe you. Invoices are sent on time and late ones get a polite reminder. Invoice processing.

Administrative assistant

A person who handles everyday office tasks such as email, scheduling, filing and data entry. A virtual one does the same work remotely. Administrative assistant service.

Async communication

Working without needing to talk at the same moment. You send a clear written request, and the reply arrives within an agreed time. It suits teams in different time zones.

B

Bank reconciliation

Matching the transactions in your books to your bank statement so every balance is explained. It is usually done once a month. Outsource bookkeeping.

Bookkeeping

Recording the money coming in and going out of a business: sales, costs, invoices and bills. A bookkeeper keeps records current. Tax advice stays with an accountant. Bookkeeping service.

BPO (business process outsourcing)

Paying an outside team to run a repeat business process, such as customer support, data entry or bookkeeping. What is BPO?.

C

Calendar management

Keeping your diary in order: booking meetings, avoiding clashes, setting reminders and protecting focus time.

Chart of accounts

The list of categories used to sort every transaction, such as sales, rent, software and travel. A clear list makes reports easier to read.

CMS (content management system)

Software for editing a website without writing code. WordPress and Shopify are common examples. Website maintenance.

CRM (customer relationship management)

A tool that stores contacts, conversations and follow-up dates, so no lead is forgotten.

D

Data entry

Typing or copying information into a system, such as invoice details into accounting software or leads into a spreadsheet. Data entry outsourcing.

Dedicated virtual assistant

One named assistant who works on your account for a set number of hours each month, instead of whoever is free. Pricing.

E

Escalation

Passing an unclear or sensitive issue to the owner or a team lead instead of guessing. A clear escalation point is part of any good brief.

Executive assistant

A senior support role that manages a leader's inbox, calendar, travel and projects. A virtual executive assistant works remotely. Executive assistant service.

Expense categorisation

Placing each cost in the right category, such as software, travel or supplies, so reports and tax records are accurate.

H

Handoff

Passing a task from you to your assistant, with written steps, examples and a clear finish line. How to hire a virtual assistant.

Hourly block

A prepaid set of hours, such as 3, 6, 12, 36 or 60, used within a month. Unused hours roll over on MyRemoteVA plans. Pricing.

I

Inbox management

Sorting email, drafting replies for your approval, flagging what matters and archiving the rest.

Invoice processing

Receiving, checking, coding and recording invoices so they are approved and paid correctly. Invoice processing services.

L

Lead generation

Finding and listing people who may want to buy, such as building a prospect list with names, roles and contact details. Lead generation VA.

M

Managed virtual assistant

An assistant who works inside a team. A lead reviews the work, and someone covers when the assistant is away. It differs from a solo freelancer. Virtual assistant vs freelancer.

Monthly close

The set of steps at month end that makes the books ready to read: bank feeds checked, receipts matched, reconciliation done, report sent. Monthly close checklist.

O

Offshore

Work done by a team in another country. MyRemoteVA assistants work from Kerala, India, on shifts planned around your day. Time zones.

Onboarding

The first week of working together: tool access, written steps, a trial task and a review of the results.

P

Pay-as-you-go

Paying for hours as you use them, at $12 an hour on MyRemoteVA. Hours never expire. Pay-as-you-go VA.

Payroll preparation

Logging hours and queuing pay for approval. The owner or payroll provider signs off and runs the payment.

Product listing

The page for one item in an online store, with title, description, images, price and stock. Uploading and updating listings is common VA work. Shopify virtual assistant.

Q

Quarterly plan

A plan billed every three months for a set number of hours, such as 15, 45 or 90. Pricing.

R

Remote work

Work done away from the client's office, using email, chat, shared documents and video calls.

Rollover hours

Hours you paid for but did not use, which carry over to the next period instead of being lost. Pricing.

S

SOP (standard operating procedure)

A short written set of steps for a repeat task. A five to ten line SOP is often enough to hand a task to an assistant.

T

Task list

The agreed list of jobs an assistant does, in priority order. It is the base for hour estimates.

Team lead review

A second person checks completed work before it reaches you. It is a standard part of every MyRemoteVA task. About MyRemoteVA.

Time zone overlap

The hours when your working day and your assistant's day both run. Shifts can be planned around your hours, with a short overlap for questions. Rates and time zones.

V

Virtual assistant

A person who supports a business remotely with admin, customer, marketing or finance tasks. MyRemoteVA assistants are trained people who use AI to work faster. What can a virtual assistant do?.

Virtual receptionist

A person who answers messages and bookings for a business remotely. Some also answer calls. Virtual receptionist service.

W

Website audit

A check of a site for broken links, slow pages, unclear text and missing basics, ending in a prioritised fix list. Website audit checklist.

Website maintenance

Regular updates, backups, fixes and small edits that keep a site working and current. Website maintenance service.

Workflow

The sequence of steps a task follows from request to finish. Writing it down is the first step to handing it off.