Virtual Assistant Business Review 2025: Growth, Clarity, and Finding My Rhythm

December 9, 2025 Emma Shergold Recent Posts All Posts Productivity Virtual Assistant Business Review 2025: Growth, Clarity, and Finding My Rhythm How a Virtual Assistant can help your business in 2026 How to choose what to outsource to a VA An Introduction to Understanding CRMs 5 reasons to use a password manager Categories Operations & Systems VA ProductivityOffice Management Neurodivergence Connection Corner Newsletter I share what I’m learning about running a business – the wins, the mistakes, and admin solutions that actually work. Delivered fortnightly to your inbox. Join Connection Corner Admin-focused Coworking Sessions Join other business owners for admin focused coworking sessions that gets stuff done. Weekly 1-hour sessions. Monthly topics. Get stuff done together. Join Admin Corner Free Resources Checklist: How to choose what to outsource to a VA CRM Spreadsheet Template See all resources Work with me Whether you would like a done for you or done with you VA service, or you would like a bit of guidance to get you started, please complete my work with me form, from which you will be directed to book a free initial consultation. Work with me Edit Template Virtual Assistant Business Review 2025: Growth, Clarity, and Finding My Rhythm As 2025 draws to a close, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what’s been quite a transformative year for my business, and for me personally. This isn’t going to be a polished highlight reel. Instead, I want to share the real picture: the wins, the lessons, the tools that made a difference, and the honest realisations about how I need to run my business sustainably. A YEAR IN REVIEW 2025 was varied in terms of client work, which I really enjoyed. It spanned IT consultancy, construction consultancy (quantity surveying), and event management – all very different sectors, which kept things interesting. Virtual Assistant clients For my ongoing VA clients, bookkeeping remained a core focus. One client involves straightforward bank feed reconciliation, whilst another requires navigating a complex monthly billing process alongside purchase invoices and bank reconciliation. The latter was previously being done by an in-house employee who, whilst very good at it, was using time that was better used elsewhere in the business. As such, the bookkeeping as a whole was something that was fitted in and juggled by a few different people. Which is probably why I got the feedback: “We’ve never been this organised before a VAT Return before.” This was a new client for 2025, and it was also great to be back working on Xero again. Xero is by far my preferred accounting software, but all my other bookkeeping of recent years, including my own, has been on FreeAgent. NB – FreeAgent comes free with a Mettle bank account, which is really attractive to small businesses and sole traders. FreeAgent does everything most sole traders need, so is a good choice, but it doesn’t have the functionality of Xero. Setting a client up on Asana Asana is a great task management software. This client had already chosen it and, as I was already using it, they asked me to set theirs up for them. Their previous task management tool was their head. To be fair, they had some brilliant ideas, but they were drowning in them rather than actioning them. And, most importantly, they were worried about forgetting things so were constantly going over things in their head leading to overwhelm and risking burnout. THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE YEAR Event coordination This was a five-month maternity cover contract with a sporting events company. Whilst this was technically an employed role, it utilised all my VA skills and was genuinely enjoyable. I covered the Events Manager position, handling helpdesk emails, website updates, marshal and contractor coordination, event pack updates, scheduling communications, and liaising with suppliers (medals, portaloos, venues – all the logistics that make race day happen). I even researched the feasibility of a smoke machine for a finish line – getting quotes and providing a report on how much it would all cost (spoiler alert – it wasn’t worth it, but it was a worthwhile exercise!). Added value One of the improvements I made was developing a new process for marshal sign-ups. Previously, each event had its own Google Form on the individual event pages. I consolidated everything into one central marshal page on the main event management software, where all volunteering opportunities could be accessed in one place. The benefit? Marshals could sign up to several events in one go rather than complete separate forms, and we could easily see how many were signed up in the same way as event entrants. Overall I really liked the definite start-stop nature of this contract. There was clarity about the timeline, clear boundaries around the role, and a satisfying sense of completion when it ended. WHAT WORKED Tools & investments Without question, my best software investment this year was Claude AI. My overall content strategy has become so much more focused in terms of what I want to achieve and targeted in terms of who I’m trying to reach. Instead of trying to create content as a Virtual Assistant, I’ve been able to clarify my messaging and actually create content that reflects how I work as an Operations & Systems VA. In terms of marketing support, joining the Do Crew with Karen Webber of Goodness Marketing has been the best decision I’ve made. Not only did Karen introduce me to Claude, the combination of practical guidance, accountability, and being around other business owners who get it has been invaluable. Asana isn’t new for 2025, but it’s worth mentioning because I probably rely on it more than I realise. I love that I can brain dump everything into it, then assign myself just a few tasks each day to focus on. It means I see what needs doing without being overwhelmed by the entire to-do list at once. Systems & structure My biggest win this year has been creating the most consistent working