A virtual assistant can perform routine business tasks across customer support, sales, and internal operations. They act as an “extended team” that can keep your daily business running without the need for full-time hires.
Traditionally, hiring talent = Adding salaries + Office space + Facing long onboarding cycles. Do you think small businesses could ever scale following this process? Yes, the answer was a big NO for most industry veterans. And this led to a new role, called “virtual assistants”.
In 2026, virtual assistants are seen as business support systems that plug directly into customer service, sales, and daily operations. Studies show that the global VA services market is projected to grow from $19.5 billion in 2025 to $55.4 billion by 2035.
Okay, but is it beneficial? Yes, businesses are reporting up to 13 to 14% higher productivity and 30 to 50% cost reductions in key areas. Want to enjoy similar benefits? Read this article to learn what can a virtual assistant do in different departments, such as customer support, sales, and operations, in 2026.
What Can a Virtual Assistant Do in Customer Support?
A virtual assistant (VA) in customer support is a remote professional or an AI-powered system. Such a VA lets you handle customer communication without hiring a full-time in-house team. They work through channels such as:
- Live chat
- Phone calls
- SMS
- Social media
For a growing D2C company (earning $5M+ revenue), this means you do not need a large support department. A VA can take care of day-to-day customer queries. Studies show that organizations using “agent-assisted VAs” report
- 27% reduced average handle time
- 34% revenue uplift
- $4.3 million in staffing savings
Impressed? Let’s see what can a virtual assistant do in your customer support department.
Core Tasks a VA Can Handle
A customer support VA manages many “routine responsibilities”, such as:
- Answering product or service questions
- Providing order updates and shipment tracking
- Processing refunds or exchanges
- Handling warranty or return requests
- Updating customer records in your CRM or database
- Creating FAQs and help guides
- Scheduling appointments or follow-ups
- Escalating serious or technical issues to you or a senior team member
- Monitoring customer reviews and feedback
These tasks usually consume a large portion of a business owner’s time. A VA takes over these repetitive activities, so you do not need to respond to every message yourself. Additionally, some other advantages are:
A) VAs are Available Across Multiple Channels
Customers reach businesses through different platforms. A VA can manage:
- Email inboxes
- Live chat on websites
- Social media messages and comments
- Phone or VoIP calls
- SMS or messaging apps
The primary advantage? This ensures that no customer query is missed.
B) VAs offer Consistency + Process Control
A VA follows predefined scripts and guidelines. This creates:
- Uniform tone in customer communication
- Standard response formats
- 100% clear escalation rules
- Documented procedures
The benefit? Consistency builds trust! Your customers start receiving “structured responses” instead of random or rushed replies.
C) Benefit From the AI Tools
Some virtual assistants use artificial intelligence tools. These tools can:
- Analyze customer sentiment to detect frustration or satisfaction
- Summarize long conversations into short notes
- Pull answers from knowledge bases or manuals
- Suggest replies for common queries
- Review feedback and identify recurring complaints
For example, let’s say customers often ask about return policies. Now, the system can detect the pattern and suggest creating a detailed help article. This reduces repeated questions over time.
D) Scalability During Busy Periods
Usually, customer inquiries increase during:
- Sales
- Festivals
- Product launches
A VA setup allows you to scale support without permanent hiring. You can increase hours or add more assistants for short periods, and then reduce them once demand falls.
What Can a Virtual Assistant Do in Sales?
A sales VA is a remote professional or an AI-based digital worker who manages sales activities without being a full-time in-office employee. Their main role? It is to take care of support + administrative work so that your sales representatives can focus more on:
- Speaking with prospects
+
- Closing deals
Okay, how does this help a consumer brand? You do not have to personally manage every lead, email, or follow-up. The VA becomes an extension of your sales process. For more clarity, let’s check out what can a virtual assistant do in your sales department:
1. Lead Generation and Research
One of the primary roles of a sales VA is “finding potential customers”. This includes:
- Researching companies or individuals who may need your product or service
- Collecting contact details such as email, phone numbers, or LinkedIn profiles
- Enriching lead profiles with company size, industry, or location
- Scoring or ranking leads based on buying interest
The business advantage? You get a “steady pipeline of prospects”. As a result, you are not starting from zero each time you want new business.
2. CRM + Data Management
Sales virtual assistants maintain your Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. Their responsibilities include:
- Updating contact information
- Recording call notes and meeting outcomes
- Tracking deal stages
- Cleaning duplicate or outdated data
An updated CRM allows you to see which leads are active, which deals are pending, and where follow-ups are required.
3. Follow-Ups and Appointment Scheduling
Many sales opportunities are lost because follow-ups are delayed or forgotten. A VA handles:
- Sending reminder emails
- Making follow-up calls or messages
- Booking meetings or product demos
- Confirming appointments
This keeps communication active with prospects who may need multiple touchpoints before making a purchase decision. Did you know? AI VAs can now handle 50 to 65% of inquiries without human intervention. They can even achieve 25 to 40% faster resolution times.
4. Reporting and Performance Tracking
Sales VAs usually prepare regular reports that show:
- Number of leads generated
- Meetings scheduled
- Deals won or lost
- Response rates from emails or calls
By analyzing them, you can learn what is working and where adjustments are needed.
5. AI Sales Support
Some modern sales virtual assistants also use artificial intelligence software. These tools can:
- Analyze emails or calls to detect customer interest or hesitation
- Suggest responses to objections
- Draft personalized outreach messages
- Summarize long conversations into short notes
- Rank leads based on likelihood to purchase
AI tools also provide training support, such as simulated sales conversations or feedback on communication style. This refines sales skills without formal training programs.
What Can a Virtual Assistant Do in Business Operations?
A VA in business operations is again a remote professional or AI-supported worker. They manage your everyday business tasks that keep the company running. Note that these are not sales or marketing roles. Instead, their focus is internal work, such as:
- Scheduling
- Documentation
- Coordination
- Data handling
As a VP or director of a D2C company, you do not need to personally manage every operational detail. For a better understanding, let’s check out some duties/ roles performed by an operations VA:
1. Administrative and Office Management Tasks
A large portion of operational work is administrative. A VA can take responsibility for:
- Managing calendars and meeting schedules
- Organizing emails and inboxes
- Preparing documents and presentations
- Data entry and spreadsheet updates
- File and folder organization in cloud storage
- Travel bookings or appointment confirmations
These activities consume daily time. Thus, delegating them reduces interruptions and keeps records organized. Studies show that remote VAs even enhance productivity by 13 to 14% versus office staff.
2. Research and Data Support
Do you know the base of every business decision? That’s strong information. An operations VA assists by:
- Conducting market or competitor research
- Collecting pricing or supplier data
- Tracking industry trends
- Preparing summary reports
- Compiling statistics for decision-making
Instead of spending hours searching and organizing information, you receive advanced data that supports planning and budgeting.
3. Project and Process Coordination
Does your business involve multiple tasks or teams? If it’s a YES, “coordination” is highly necessary. A VA can:
- Track project deadlines and milestones
- Send reminders to team members
- Maintain task lists or project boards
- Coordinate with vendors or freelancers
- Monitor inventory or supply levels
4. Take Advantage of AI Operational Support
Some virtual assistants also use artificial intelligence tools that extend their capabilities. These tools can:
- Analyze large sets of data to detect patterns or irregularities
- Predict maintenance or supply needs based on “usage data”
- Automate repetitive workflows such as invoice processing or ticket routing
- Provide chat-based responses to internal or customer queries
- Monitor IT systems and flag technical issues
Want to gain the most? You may integrate such AI tools with your existing software, such as ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) or production management systems. Reason? This allows instant access to schedules, stock levels, or performance metrics, which leads to early problem detection.
Need Extra Support in 2026? Hire Atidiv’s VAs Starting Only $15 Per Hour
So now you know virtual assistants are not limited to only one function. They can perform important functions in your sales, operations, and customer support departments. How? If we were to recap, they can:
- Generate and qualify sales leads
- Manage CRM records and follow-ups
- Handle customer queries across chat, email, and phone
- Process refunds, orders, and tracking requests
- Manage calendars, documents, and daily admin work
- Conduct research and prepare reports
- Coordinate projects, vendors, and internal tasks
Are you searching for experienced VA providers? You may consider Atidiv in 2026. We offer trained virtual assistants across multiple business areas such as Paid Ads, FB Ads, Web, Customer Support, Media Operations, E-commerce, Data Entry, Core Operations, and Accounting.
Our hourly rates start at $15 per hour with a minimum of 168 hours. To learn more, book a free consultation call today!
What Can A Virtual Assistant Do FAQs
1. How does a VA offer a cost advantage to D2C companies?
Hiring full-time support staff involves salaries, office space, training, and equipment. A VA reduces these expenses because:
- You pay only for the required hours or tasks
- There is no office infrastructure cost
- Training time is lower since many VAs already have experience
- One VA can handle tasks that might require several junior employees
If you are searching for a VA partner, you may consider Atidiv in 2026. Our VA services start at only $15 per hour (for a minimum period of 168 hours). For more information, book a free consultation call today!
2. Can I increase the count of sales VAs during my growth phases?
Usually, business activities increase during:
- Promotions
- Product launches
- Seasonal demand
In such events, you can add more hours or additional assistants without permanent hiring.
3. How fast can I hire a virtual assistant compared to full-time staff?
Remote VAs usually reduce time-to-hire by 25 to 35%. Why? That’s because there is no:
- Long recruitment cycle
- Background infrastructure setup
- Onboarding delays
Most providers, like Atidiv, already have trained talent ready. This allows business owners to fill operational gaps within days instead of several weeks or months. For example, with Atidiv, you can get a dedicated resource within 7 days.
4. Can a VA really help my marketing and execution workload?
Yes, studies show that companies see up to 40% reduction in execution time for marketing tasks such as:
- Email campaigns
- Social media posting
- Lead research
- Reporting
Since the VA is managing all the “repetitive actions”, you can spend your time on making campaign strategy, partnerships, and performance decisions rather than daily coordination.
5. Is it better to hire hourly or monthly dedicated VAs in 2026?
Monthly dedicated VAs are more popular! Around 53 to 55% of businesses prefer this model for admin, finance, and operations work. Realize that a dedicated assistant gradually understands your processes. This reduces repeated training and also supports long-term business consistency.