Recession is not a good place for any country to be in.
Freelancers and employees feel the heat. It’s a time of uncertainty and the cost of everything increases from food to fuel. During this time, Companies cut costs in every possible manner, and the economy dwindles.
Unfortunately, we can’t control recession but you can prepare for it as a virtual assistant. Virtual assistants can remain very relevant in the midst of the worst recessions and earn a living from offering services that are not affected by recession.
During a down economy, individuals who cannot afford to work with a full time employee anymore choose to work with virtual assistants. So there are services you can offer as a virtual assistant in the midst of a biting recession and still earn a living. Here are 9 of them.
Here are 9 Virtual Assistant Services You Should Offer In This Recession
1.) Content Writing
Content writing is one option for virtual assistants who love writing. You can specialize in an aspect of writing such as blogging, content writing, grant writing, story telling, copywriting, resume writing, etc.
There are limitless opportunities for earning through writing online and there are so many freelancing platforms out there like Upwork that advertise writing jobs daily. As a content writer, clients are going to need your services regardless of the recession and you’ll keep writing and earning no matter what happens.
You may even be asked to write about the recession.
2.) Graphic Design.
This is another service that doesn’t feel the heat of recession. As a graphic designer, you create slides for webinars, design flyers and logos, design ebooks, etc. Individuals and organizations still demand for these services even in recession, so why not?
Like with content writing, you may be required to design graphics that will be used to educate people about the recession. It doesn’t have to be fancy and expensive design tools. Being a pro at a freemium tool like Canva is great.
3.) Social Media Management.
There is a demand for social media management services like creating and managing social media posts, managing social media accounts, responding to social media messages and creating ads for social media even in recession.
So as a virtual assistant, you may look towards providing this service since it is not affected by recession.
Businesses use social media for visibility. The more the recession bites hard, the more they clamour online to get seen, heard and stay fresh in the minds of their customers.
4.) Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Services.
SEO helps increase traffic to a particular place e.g website, so clients still want their website optimized for search engines even in this recession because it puts them in front of their target audience and leads.
It also positions them as a brand leader in their niche and decreases the time you spend creating content. This is a service you should consider offering in this recession. It’s among the most sought after services clients look for.
Combining your writing skills with SEO is gold.
5.) Email & Calendar Management Services.
Individuals and organizations still need help with writing and replying emails, setting up filters and general organization of inboxes during recession. They still need a schedule that works and keeps them productive. So email and calendar management are services that isn’t dependent on economic recession.
Pro tip: If you are already in a 9-5 employment, it is important that you upgrade your skills during the recession and make sure your share your progress with your teams and supervisors at work. When a company wants to let go of people, they consider what they bring to the table.
So if you love your job, make sure you are an asset they can’t afford to lose. Most of these virtual assistant services can also be provided by in-house employees.
Related: How to start and manage a virtual assistant business while in full-time employment
6.) Content Repurposing Services.
This is own underrated recession-proof virtual assistant service that is in high demand.
I see content repurposing used in big and small companies everyday. During this recession brands want to milk every drop out of the content their create instead of constantly creating all the time.
Sometimes they don’t even know they need content repurposing and those that know that they need the service, don’t know it is called content repurposing. Now you know. You can market this skill to client and make money this recession.
You don’t even have to create from scratch or need a laptop to offer this service.
With your smartphone, you can listen to and transcribe published podcast episodes for clients. You can also repurpose podcast content by turning a short episode to a long and meaty piece. You can also clean up a transcription and turn it into proper written English.
Related: Virtual assistant services you can offer with your smartphone.
7.) Website Design and Maintenance.
Even in the midst of recessions, individuals and organizations still look for assistance in building a websites and maintaining already existing sites. It’s a lucrative area that thrives despite economic downturns and this is a recession proof service you can offer as a virtual assistant.
8.) Info Product Creation
Your ability to create digital content is a gold-mine in today’s world. People are monetizing their knowledge and you can support them to achieve this as well as sell your own knowledge online. Think ebooks, courses, etc.
If you can create ebooks or create courses, you are sitting on gold. More and more people are looking for ways to survive this recession, so naturally, the demand for trainings to make money or learn something that’ll make their lives easier, is increasing.
You can support authors, course creators with this recession proof service and make money like it’s not even a recession.
9.) Ads
With the recession comes the need to increase visibility, reach etc. There’s a competition to get seen by more people to increase conversion rates.
This is a recession-proof virtual assistant service you can offer and make money. You can charge as much as you want as long as you are good and can bring good results.
Final Words
These recession-proof virtual assistant skills are a must have if you want to stay in business and make good money even if the recession is ravaging everyone. Your world doesn’t have to come crumbling down as a virtual assistant. You can protect yourself by switching to these services or adding them to your arsenal so that you’ll still be relevant no matter the times. I’ll be happy to teach you some of these skills in my membership platform.