We hear about it, we maybe at some point thought about it: Hiring your very own virtual personal assistant.

Do I need one? Maybe you asked yourself... or maybe because outsourcing is an unfamiliar territory to you, you don't care much if it benefits you or not.

With more and more individuals giving up corporate positions to free themselves from a nine to five office work year in and year out, starting a business seem to be the perfect place to grow and utilize those ideas and talents. But starting a business today is more complex and demanding than it ever was compared a decade or so ago. A small business owner has to consider so much!

In today's market, a product doesn't only sell because it's an excellent product with attractive packaging. Most sales are generated because it is found online. Today a business owner must also consider having a website, a blog, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts, must subscribe to other blogs of similar niche, sends out press releases and much more to sell a product or service.

I am not saying that you cannot sell or find customers with just a store or an ad on your local newspaper alone, but these marketing tools significantly contribute to the success of any business today. With technology becoming more accessible and affordable, many people today are embracing the idea of online shopping and searching the web for products or services. Technology today stream lines and fuels most of peoples' daily activities.

Incorporating technology, internet marketing and networking can be very overwhelming for someone starting a business, and definitely one cannot do it all.

If you are a start-up business owner, and want to get more done before your product launch and want to reach out to your target niche to put the word out that you have the best product than your competitor, hiring a virtual assistant to work for you to take care of web and administrative support services while you focus on the details of your product and business can be the perfect solution.

Why a virtual assistant and not a regular employee? -- There is nothing wrong with having your own employee; anyone can contribute to the success of your business, whether on-site or remotely. But as a start-up business owner, you would want to maximize your time and investment. You would want your dollar to go a long way, so to speak.

Hiring a virtual assistant can allow you to have more things done and more man- hours to work with while saving you money. With the flexibility of time, virtual assistants can work on times you wish including off hours without the obligation of over-time pay. For a fraction of the pay of a regular employee, your website and blog, Facebook and Twitter accounts will be regularly updated, you'll never have to miss replying to client emails and with the proper tools, virtual assistants can receive client calls, set your meetings and manage your calendars while you're doing higher-level tasks even if they are 10,000 miles away.

A full-time virtual assistant from the Philippines typically costs $400 - $600 per month and business owners definitely will have a chance to increase business per month with an intelligent, dedicated individual working for them full-time.

Virtual assistance is an opportunity for a start-up business owner to maximize time and investment. Delegating mundane tasks to your VA will give you more time to get more done on site. Hiring your very own virtual assistant can help you focus on other areas of your business that needs your personal touch and expertise.