One of my jobs now is that of a Virtual Assistant Philippines, meaning I now do administrative and secretarial tasks for a client company in Florida while I live here in the Philippines. These I do for about four hours around midnight.

The number of virtual assistants in the Philippines has been rising together with the rise of the Internet — the medium that has enabled developing countries such as ours to win lots of call center jobs.

The Internet has also given opportunities for lots of Pinoys to earn money from various online enterprises, such as writing for websites, designing websites, selling cell phone loads and various products from beauty creams to houses and used cars on websites like sulit, and selling to international buyers on eBay.

How did I get my job as a virtual assistant Philippines?

It started with my job as a freelance online writer and my hobby as a blogger. I worked for years in a U.S.-owned Makati firm summarizing published news items and magazine articles for U.S.-based clients, so when the firm decided to get change its focus, I gravitated towards writing online. And it was here online where I met this client who initially hired me to write articles for his and his wife’s company website.

How did I meet this husband-and-wife team?

I met them through Craigslist Manila. This is an international classified ads site where anyone can post ads for free. It provides a focused site for each major city in the world.

If you haven’t seen this ads site, you can type craigslist manila on Google, and then explore the site, particularly the JOBS section.

However, because Craigslist is free for all posters, there are a lot of scams on the site. I have heard of writers not being paid. Just be analytic about the offer, follow your feelings or instinct, and decide what risk you can bear. Prayers can help, of course. Do your best, and God will do the rest, sabi nga natin. Oftentimes, if I see blessings from this client, I thank God for leading me to go to Craigslist at the time this client advertised for a job, and to apply for this client’s simple ad.

Does being a Virtual Assistant Philippines pay well? And what’s the downside of the job?

Yes, it pays well, if one gets a good client. And it also fits snugly with freelance writing, particularly if you’re also writing for your own blog or other blogs. You also stay at home, and you don’t have to suffer the daily travails of a commuting worker.

The only downside is the night schedule. For some like me, sometimes the abrupt change in sleeping hours causes terrible headaches, but I hope my body clock adjusts soon.

Virtual Assistant Philippines

And I got this job through Craigslist just this May.  The only minus-point is that the workload is not that much.

But the good thing is, in this new project I earn in just two to three days what I’ve been earning in 6 days in the project I’ve been doing for the past 18 months.  Also, the new project does not have a lot of specifications and keywords, and it has prospects of increased workload.

Fellow Pinoy freelance writers have been asking others to accept only writing jobs for not less than $5 per article of 500 words, in order to improve Pinoy writing rates in general.  But it has not been easy finding these clients that really send the payments.

A lot of freelance writing jobs on Craigslist are bargain-priced.  Imagine getting paid for one dollar (that’s only 46 pesos!) for a 400-word original, researched article?  And others even require the articles to be ready for spinning or with some other attached tasks!

Lastly, I’m thankful that I found a  client that didn’t scam me.  Recently, a fellow freelance writer wrote a lot of articles for a certain website, which suddenly disappeared, and which didn’t pay him.  He got the client through Craigslist.

This January 11, 2011, Ash wrote something on the comments section, and I believe what she shared should be read by fellow starting and not-yet-there freelance writers:

“what an inspiring article. thank you for posting this. i had also recently begun freelance writing (used to work in an office) and i was surprised at the going rate of some.

my first offer was $.50/100 words, downgraded from my asking of $2.50/100 words. dirt cheap, i know, but i was new and didn’t have a thing to my name. plus, it was the holidays–i was unemployed, renting, sending a kindergartener to school and my post-shopping overall finances were running low. like P600 low. in short, i was desperate. lol.

good thing the employer added more subtopics bec he got inspired by what i wrote, so the word count increased by another 1000 words.

after 2 days, somebody interviewed me and, after showing him my written samples, he hired me on the spot for $10/hr. it’s only part time, though. which is just as well bec i very recently got hired for a full time home-based editing job that pays good.

i can research and write 1 article in 2-3 hours at my going rate. i don’t think i will lower it; i’m sure that i’m worth every penny i charge them. i know that some employers will tell you that if you don’t lower your rate, they can always find others who will work for much cheaper.

i don’t blame them, that’s their prerogative. my prerogative is this: if they can’t afford my rate, somebody who can will always find me.

and they just did. tonight, somebody contacted me saying they like my writing and will be letting me know when they have a job for me. i will be waiting. and writing and writing until i can justify upping my rate once more. in the future ”

Thanks a lot, Ash.

UPDATE on my blogpost on freelance writing:

It’s now January 2011, and my working relationship with these clients I talked about in the blogpost has been going great. The primary client turned out to be a fellow Pinoy who has immigrated to the U.S., and when he vacationed here last October, we met and treated me to a great expensive lunch.

He and his foreign-born wife are again coming over here this February, and again I received an invitation for another lunch. Last December, he gave me a bonus.  No one else in my past and present freelancing work has given me a bonus.  My other employer, based in the Alabang corporate world, didn’t give a bonus.  I didn’t mind it much though as bonuses weren’t in the homebased-employment contract that I signed.

Additionally, my work with this U.S. client doubled, as I helped bring traffic to his and his wife’s sites.  Surely, if we give our best effort and we comply with the deadlines (although this client is flexible with the deadlines, but I don’t abuse it), we reap great fruits.

Related Article:

My Personal Make Money Online Version

Fellow New Freelance Writers in the Philippines — Some Tips

UPS Uninterruptible Power Supply for Freelance Writers

You can go instead to the article below, if you’re interested in earning some money online:

My Personal Version of Making Money Online

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Just want to share a writing job:

Jobs:  Freelance writers

posted January 26, 2010 on jobsdb.com

You will:

• work for a company, but work at home
• write business, technical and creative articles
• accomplish other writing projects

You need to:

• conform to citation styles and grammar rules
• attend to revision requests
• submit projects promptly
• be a college graduate with excellent reading skills
• computer literate
• have Skype ID, Yahoo Messenger ID and Globe mobile subscription

Employer is a Filipino firm called EHB Business Process Outsourcing, which do outsourced projects from the U.S. and which aims to become one of the best home-based employment in the country.

You can email your resume at recruitment@ebipbpo.com.

Include your Skype ID, Yahoo Messenger ID, and mobile number. EHB will communicate through email, chat, SMS, or phone.  Communication will be done mostly online.

Apply now because the need for writers is urgent.

For more detailed information, visit jobsdb.com.

Check another writing job posted in the January 24, 2010 issue of Manila Bulletin.