FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
Everything you need to know about hiring virtual assistants through Aristo Sourcing: cCan’t find your answer? Book a free consultation.
Pricing and Cost Savings
What is the average cost savings when hiring through Aristo Sourcing?
Most clients save 60–70% compared to hiring locally, since you cut costs like office space, benefits, and payroll overhead. Monthly rates start around US$360/month for entry-level Philippines-based roles and range up to US$4,200/month for expert-level South Africa-based technical specialists, depending on role, tier, and region. Use our calculator to get an exact quote for your specific role.
You pay one flat monthly fee. We handle admin and payments, so you never see surprise add-ons.
How do you handle payroll, taxes, and international compliance?
Aristo Sourcing handles cross-border payments and contractor compliance behind the scenes, so you don’t have to navigate international admin yourself. You pay one monthly invoice, and Aristo Sourcing manages the rest.
Book a call for a role-by-role breakdown.
The Hiring Process
How long does it take from the first call to hiring my virtual assistant?
Most hires close in 7 to 14 days. Aristo Sourcing moves through four steps: Consultation, candidate sourcing, client interviews, and onboarding.
Learn more about Aristo Sourcing’s hiring process and how it works.
Which countries do you source virtual assistants from, and what time zones do they work in?
Aristo Sourcing sources from South Africa and the Philippines, two hubs with strong English proficiency and deep remote-work talent pools.
South Africa (SAST, UTC+2) overlaps well with UK and EU working hours, and VAs can shift their schedule to cover US hours when a role needs it. The Philippines (PHT, UTC+8) overlaps well with Australia and APAC hours, and Philippine VAs commonly shift to a US day-shift schedule, a standard practice in the country’s outsourcing industry. At Aristo Sourcing, we match your VA’s hours to your business, not the other way around.
Can I hire a VA for part-time projects, or only full-time?
Most clients hire full-time (40 hours/week) because it delivers faster onboarding, quicker response times, and lower coordination overhead. We also offer part-time arrangements for lower-volume or specialized workloads. Tell us your workload, and Aristo Sourcing will scope out the hours with you upfront.
What happens if my virtual assistant is not the right fit?
Tell your account manager as soon as you notice the mismatch. We at Aristo Sourcing will diagnose the root cause first, then coach for improvement, or move quickly to source and transition a replacement VA if the fit is wrong at a deeper level. Either way, Aristo Sourcing keeps your workflow moving while Aristo Sourcing fixes it.
Quality, Expertise, and Security
What tools and software can your VAs work with?
Your VA gets matched to your existing tech stack, including project management tools (Asana, ClickUp, Trello), CRMs (HubSpot, Salesforce), communication platforms (Slack, Zoom), accounting software (QuickBooks, Xero), and eCommerce platforms (Shopify, WooCommerce).
Read more: Browse VAs by specialty.
How do you ensure cultural fit and language proficiency?
Aristo Sourcing screens for more than technical skill. Every candidate goes through our KSA evaluation (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities), which includes practical skills testing, a communication assessment, and a fit screening matched to your workflow and standards.
What security measures do your remote workers follow?
Security starts before a VA ever touches your workflow. Every VA passes a criminal background check and signs a binding NDA directly with Aristo Sourcing, on top of our KSA evaluation for skill, communication, and fit. From there, you control the specifics: what tools they access, what data they can see, and what oversight you require. Aristo Sourcing recommends role-based access controls, password managers, and approval workflows for anything sensitive, and we’ll help you set those up.
Read more: Safe delegation and access control
What happens if my VA has an internet outage or hardware failure?
Every VA works from a documented contingency checklist: How to notify you, where status updates get posted, what tasks pause, and what continues from a backup connection or device. Aristo Sourcing applies the same standard in both South Africa and the Philippines: VAs are expected to have backup internet (mobile hotspot or a secondary ISP) and power backup (UPS or generator access), so a single outage doesn’t stall your workflow. Both regions have improved infrastructure reliability in recent years, and we build contingency planning into onboarding rather than relying on the grid alone.
Why use Aristo Sourcing instead of hiring a VA independently?
Independent hiring puts screening, quality risk, and compliance entirely on you, with no backup plan if the hire doesn’t work out. Aristo Sourcing gives you a pre-vetted candidate, structured onboarding, and an account manager who stays involved after the hire, so the role stays productive long after day one.
Getting Started, Contracts and Comparisons
What exactly does a virtual assistant do?
A virtual assistant (VA) is a remote professional who handles delegated business tasks: administrative support, email and calendar management, customer service, bookkeeping, social media management, and specialized technical work, all without needing office space or in-house equipment. Aristo Sourcing matches you with a VA suited to your specific role, tools, and workflow.
How do I book a free consultation?
Book a free consultation directly on our calendar. Aristo Sourcing will walk through your role requirements, timeline, and budget, then start sourcing candidates that match.
What are my options for paying for a VA, and is there a minimum contract?
You can hire in one of two ways:
- Hire through Aristo Sourcing: Aristo Sourcing invoices you once a month for a flat US$400 management fee on top of the VA’s salary, with everything covered in a single invoice.
- Hire your VA directly: You pay a one-time US$1,999 recruitment fee, then employ and pay the VA directly like any other staff member. Part-time and fractional arrangements are available alongside full-time hires.
Neither option locks you into a contract. You can cancel anytime, and Aristo Sourcing provides a replacement if needed.
Do you offer a trial period before I commit? Yes. Every hire starts with a 30 to 60-day trial period, during which either party can end the arrangement with short notice. If the match isn’t right during this window, Aristo Sourcing replaces the VA at no extra cost, so you’re not stuck paying for a bad fit while you find out if it’s working.
How is Aristo Sourcing different from hiring on Upwork or Fiverr?
Freelance marketplaces connect you with unvetted candidates and leave sourcing, screening, and quality control entirely on you. Aristo Sourcing pre-vets every candidate through a KSA evaluation, criminal background check, and signed NDA before you ever see a profile, then backs the hire with a dedicated account manager, structured onboarding, and a replacement process, the ongoing support a one-off marketplace hire doesn’t include.
How do I track my VA’s hours and productivity?
Most engagements run on a flat monthly fee rather than billable hours, so you don’t need to track time for invoicing. If you want visibility into activity and output, your account manager can help you set up tools like Time Doctor or Hubstaff alongside the project management software your VA already uses.
Can I hire more than one VA, or scale up later?
Yes. Many clients start with one VA and add more as the workload grows, across the same role or different specialties like admin support, bookkeeping, or technical work. Each additional VA goes through the same KSA evaluation and matching process as your first hire.
Do you have VAs experienced in specific industries, like legal, real estate, or ecommerce?
Yes. Aristo Sourcing sources and matches VAs with direct experience supporting law firms, real estate teams, and ecommerce businesses, including platform-specific skills like Clio and case management tools for legal, MLS, and transaction coordination for real estate, and Shopify or WooCommerce operations for ecommerce.
Who is the founder of Aristo Sourcing?
Mads Singers founded Aristo Sourcing and serves as CEO, holding overall responsibility for the company’s strategy and operations. Janus Basnov, Chief Sales Officer (CSO), joined Aristo Sourcing in 2019 and leads new business development and client acquisition.
When was Aristo Sourcing founded?
Aristo Sourcing was founded in 2014 to help businesses build remote workforces without setting up their own internal recruitment or offshore management infrastructure.