Do you run your own consulting or coaching business in Australia?
If you do, you know the reality: you’re juggling client work, administration, marketing, and business development all at once. It’s not sustainable, and it’s probably keeping you from growing your practice the way you’d like.
So what are your options? Keep pushing through on your own, or take on the costs and commitments of hiring a local employee?
There’s a third option that’s working well for thousands of Australian consultants and coaches: hiring a virtual assistant from the Philippines who works remotely, full-time, exclusively for your business.
Virtual Assistants: The Smart Choice for Australian Consultants
In 2025, roughly 40% of Australian consulting and coaching businesses work with offshore virtual assistants. The numbers have doubled since 2022, and there’s a clear reason why.
These professions demand long hours of client-facing work. Every hour you spend on admin is an hour you can’t bill. Every hour you spend on bookkeeping is an hour you’re not developing new business.
The maths is straightforward. A consultant billing $200-300 per hour loses significant revenue when they spend 15-20 hours per week on non-billable tasks. That’s $3,000-6,000 in lost potential revenue every single week.
Meanwhile, those non-billable tasks still need doing. Client schedules need managing. Invoices need sending. Social media needs updating. Proposals need formatting. The list goes on.
A virtual assistant can handle all of this for around $2,000 per month when hired through a reputable provider. Compare that to the $5,000-7,000 monthly cost of a local administrative assistant in Sydney or Melbourne, and the economics become clear.
Virtual Assistant vs Local Employee: The Real Numbers
Before you commit to hiring locally, consider the actual differences:
- No long-term employment contracts required
- Can start within 1-2 weeks of deciding to hire
- Works from their home office (no desk space needed)
- Costs $2,000-3,500/month for full-time support
- No superannuation, payroll tax, or workers’ compensation obligations
- Can switch between part-time and full-time as needed
- No redundancy payments if you need to end the arrangement
Local Employee:
- Employment contracts with notice periods and obligations
- 4-8 week recruitment process typical
- Requires office space, equipment, and facilities
- Costs $5,000-7,000/month plus super, leave, and other benefits
- All standard employment obligations apply
- Less flexibility to adjust hours
- Potential redundancy costs
When a Virtual Assistant Isn’t the Right Choice
Let’s be honest about limitations. If you need someone to attend face-to-face client meetings in Australia, meet with local suppliers, or handle physical materials at your office, a virtual assistant won’t work for those specific tasks.
But think about how much of your work actually requires physical presence in 2025. Most client meetings happen via Teams or Zoom. Documents are digital. Payments are electronic. Even networking events offer virtual attendance options.
What Virtual Assistants Actually Do for Consultants
Here’s what VAs handle for Australian consulting and coaching businesses every day:
Administrative Tasks:
- Calendar management across multiple time zones
- Email filtering and response drafting
- Travel arrangement coordination
- Invoice creation and follow-up
- Expense tracking and basic bookkeeping
- Document formatting and presentation prep
Marketing Activities:
- LinkedIn post scheduling and engagement
- Email newsletter creation and distribution
- Website content updates
- Webinar setup and attendee management
- Case study development
- SEO-optimised blog post drafting
Client Support:
- Onboarding documentation
- Meeting scheduling and confirmations
- Resource distribution
- Progress tracking and reporting
- Feedback collection and compilation
Five Specific Ways VAs Boost Your Business
1. More Time for High-Value Client Work
When your VA handles 20 hours of admin weekly, you gain 20 hours for billable work. At typical Australian consulting rates, that’s $4,000-6,000 in additional revenue potential per week. Even accounting for your VA’s monthly cost, you’re significantly ahead.
One Melbourne-based strategy consultant we work with increased her monthly billings by 35% within three months of hiring her VA. She didn’t find new clients – she just had time to properly service the ones she had.
2. Professional Digital Presence That Actually Works
Most consultants know they should post on LinkedIn three times per week. Most manage once a fortnight, if that. Your VA can maintain consistent posting schedules, engage with comments, and keep your professional profile active.
We’ve seen coaches triple their inbound enquiries simply by maintaining consistent, quality social media presence. Not because they became social media experts, but because their VA ensured regular, professional content went out while they focused on coaching.
3. Systems That Actually Get Implemented
You’ve probably bought courses on systemising your business. You might even have templates sitting unused in your Google Drive. A VA turns those good intentions into working systems.
They’ll set up your CRM properly, create email templates that actually get used, and build the workflows you’ve been meaning to implement for months. The difference between having systems and using systems is usually having someone dedicated to maintaining them.
4. Capacity for New Revenue Streams
Australian consultants working with VAs often develop online courses, membership programmes, or productised services. Why? Because they finally have time to think strategically about their business instead of just working in it.
Your VA can help launch these initiatives – setting up course platforms, managing member communications, handling customer support. One executive coach we support launched a $2,000/month membership programme that now generates $24,000 monthly recurring revenue. Her VA manages 90% of the programme’s operations.
5. Scalable Lead Generation
A skilled VA can qualify leads, conduct initial research on prospects, and maintain your sales pipeline. They can identify potential clients on LinkedIn, track RFPs relevant to your expertise, and ensure you never miss a follow-up.
This isn’t theoretical. We have VAs who generate 10-15 qualified leads per week for their consultant employers through systematic LinkedIn outreach and content engagement. At a 20% conversion rate, that’s 2-3 new clients per week from efforts you don’t personally manage.
Making It Work: Your Responsibilities
Working with a virtual assistant requires preparation and commitment from you:
Before Hiring:
- Document your current processes (even rough notes work)
- List specific tasks you want to delegate
- Set up password management systems
- Prepare training materials or screen recordings
After Hiring:
- Commit to daily check-ins for the first fortnight
- Provide clear feedback early and often
- Share context about your business and clients
- Invest time in training during month one
The consultants who get exceptional results from their VAs treat them as genuine team members, not just task-doers. They share business context, explain the ‘why’ behind tasks, and invest in their VA’s development.
The Reality in 2025
The Australian consulting and coaching market has never been more competitive. Clients expect rapid responses, professional presentation, and consistent communication. Meeting these expectations while delivering quality work and growing your business isn’t realistic as a solo operator anymore.
The choice isn’t whether to get help – it’s what kind of help makes sense for your business. For most Australian consultants and coaches, a Philippines-based virtual assistant offers the optimal combination of skills, reliability, and value.
Ready to Take Action?
At Virtual Done Well, we specialise in matching Australian consultants and coaches with skilled virtual assistants from the Philippines. Our VAs work from our managed offices with reliable internet, modern equipment, and local support teams.
We handle recruitment, initial training, and ongoing performance management. You get a dedicated professional who understands Australian business culture and can start contributing from day one.
The consultants who succeed with virtual assistants don’t wait for the perfect time – they recognise they’re already losing money and opportunities by trying to do everything themselves.
Contact us today to discuss your specific needs and learn how we can match you with the right virtual assistant for your consulting or coaching business.
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