What is the difference between a remote assistant and a virtual assistant?

Remote assistants and virtual assistants are very similar positions; both involve working from home to support office staff and executives. Some companies treat the two terms as interchangeable, but there are a few differences between them. The primary responsibilities for remote assistants usually focus on clerical and administrative tasks, such as scheduling appointments, responding to emails, answering phone calls, and making travel arrangements. But virtual assistants sometimes provide services beyond clerical work, such as marketing or data entry tasks. These are tasks done alongside the administrative work, rather than the focus of the job. There are no universal guidelines for these two positions; remote assistants and virtual assistants can perform almost any job delegated to support staff.