Virtual assistant or virtual receptionist: cost, tasks, and what Ernestio changes

Short answer: a virtual assistant is a professional who handles your calls, emails and appointments remotely, billed by the hour or on a retainer, during office hours. Ernestio covers the same chores (emails, quotes, follow-ups, appointments, and the phone as an option), but he is available around the clock, for the price of a subscription rather than a salary. And his rule never changes: nothing goes out without your go-ahead.

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If you typed "virtual assistant" or "virtual receptionist" into a search engine, chances are your situation looks like that of most freelancers and tradespeople: the phone rings while you are on a job, emails pile up in the evening, and quotes always go out later than you would like. Delegating is the right idea. The question is to whom, at what price, and for which tasks.

What exactly is a virtual assistant?

There is nothing mysterious behind "virtual": it is an assistant who works remotely. Either a freelancer managing several clients from their own office, or an answering service with a team taking turns. The classic tasks:

• phone answering: picking up in your name, taking messages, filtering;
• booking appointments and keeping the diary;
• typing and formatting letters, quotes and invoices;
• client follow-ups and admin housekeeping.

It is a real profession, and a good virtual assistant is worth their weight in gold: they know your files, your regulars, the way you speak.

How much does a virtual assistant cost?

Prices vary with experience, tasks and volume, but three models come up again and again:

• By the hour: usually somewhere between €25 and €40 an hour for an experienced independent assistant.
• On a retainer: monthly packages of a few hours per week, generally between €200 and €600 a month depending on what is included.
• Per call: for phone answering, a base subscription plus a price per handled call, often around €1 to €2.

Those rates are fair: you are paying for a qualified person, their time and their attention. But for a small business, a few hours of help per week quickly adds up to several hundred euros a month. And those hours sit at fixed times.

What a human assistant does better than anyone

Let's be clear: for delicate situations, a human remains unbeatable. An unhappy customer who needs to be heard out, a sensitive file that calls for tact, a negotiation where every word counts: an experienced assistant feels these things. If your business runs on that kind of relationship all day long, a dedicated professional (or a combination, see below) is an excellent choice.

The limits when you work for yourself

The problem is not the quality of the work. It is the constraints of the format:

• Office hours. Your business does not stop at 6 pm. Quote requests arrive in the evening, customers write on Sundays. An answering service clocks off.
• Volume. With a few hours a week on retainer, you have to pick what gets done and what waits.
• Absences. Holidays, sickness, departures: you need a backup, or you take everything back yourself.
• Budget. For a tradesperson or a freelancer starting out, several hundred euros a month is not a casual line item.

What Ernestio does differently

Ernestio is not a person: he is an assistant you give tasks to, in plain language, like a colleague. And that format changes the rules:

• He is there all the time. A quote request at 10 pm? The reply is ready before your morning coffee. No office hours, no holidays, no backup to organise. To see what that changes for incoming requests, read how to reply fast to customer requests.
• He takes care of emails. He reads, sorts, and drafts replies in your style. You review, you approve, off it goes.
• He prepares quotes and follow-ups. The quote goes out the same day, the follow-up at the right moment, without you thinking about it. It is the most profitable chore to delegate: we explain why in 5 ways to never forget a quote follow-up.
• He keeps your diary. He confirms appointments, sends reminders, preps your days.
• He can answer your phone. As an option, Ernestio picks up with your own front desk: he offers an appointment slot, shares the details from your business card that you chose to make visible, and takes a message for everything else. Every call lands summarised in your space.
• Nothing goes out without your go-ahead. That is his standing rule: he prepares, he shows you, and you are the one who says "send".
• The price of a subscription, not a salary. A clear monthly plan, no commitment, cancel in one click. Plan details, and the price of the front-desk option, are in the pricing section on the homepage.

And one more thing that matters: when Ernestio does not know how to do something, he says so plainly and hands it over. No bluffing.

So, human assistant or Ernestio?

The real question is the nature of what is overwhelming you.

• If it is delicate human situations all day long (mediation, sensitive files, vulnerable customers), a dedicated assistant remains the right choice.
• If it is tasks that keep coming back (answering requests, preparing quotes, following up, confirming appointments), Ernestio absorbs them with no office hours, for a fraction of the price.
• And the two combine very well: Ernestio takes the volume, your assistant keeps the files that need a human touch. Each to their strength.

FAQ

What is the difference between a virtual assistant and Ernestio? A virtual assistant is a remote professional, billed by the hour or on a retainer, available during office hours. Ernestio is an assistant who covers the same everyday chores (emails, quotes, follow-ups, appointments, phone as an option), around the clock, for the price of a subscription.

Can Ernestio really answer the phone? Yes, with the front-desk option: he picks up in your place, offers an appointment slot, shares the details from your business card that you chose to make visible, and takes a message for everything else. Every call is summarised for you in your space.

Do I stay in control of what is sent? Always. Ernestio prepares his work and submits it to you: emails, quotes, follow-ups. Nothing goes out without your go-ahead; everything is built on that rule.

How much does Ernestio cost? A clear monthly plan, no commitment, cancel in one click. You start for free, without a credit card, and chatting with him never costs you anything. The plans are detailed in the pricing section on the homepage, along with the price of the options, including the front desk.

Do I need to be good with computers? If you can send a message, you can use Ernestio. You write to him in plain language, from your space, by email or on Telegram, and he does the rest. Nothing to install.

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The paperwork can wait for your approval, not the other way round. Hand your emails, quotes and follow-ups to Ernestio: he takes care of them while you work, and nothing goes out without your go-ahead. Create my assistant →