Virtual Assistant – THE Blog About Our Industry

About the Virtual Assistant industry for VAs and for clients

Monthly Archives: December 2008

Number 2 Mistake Some New VAs Make

Ok, I know many of you have been waiting for this.

I believe it to be setting rates that are too low. This also includes allowing clients to tell you what you should be charging.

Many VAs, particularly in the first year or two of their businesses, mistakenly think they should charge low to get the clients. What happens is a number of things:

  • They find quickly that they’re not making much money and have difficulty covering all their overheads and have some left over for themselves.
  • They feel used and abused after a period of time and consider giving it up as a lost cause.
  • They lose confidence in their abilities and wonder what is wrong with themselves as they know others are successful at this.
  • They return to a job dissatisfied, knowing that’s not where they want to be but what choice do they have?
  • It undermines the industry and their perception of it, and also the clients’ perceptions.

Doing the research and making sure you work out the figures is most important. If you see a VA is charging a rate that appears lower than yours then you need to consider whether it’s the same currency, do they live in the same region or elsewhere, does their cost of living compare with yours?  And don’t make the assumption that all ‘offshore’ VAs charge lower than you do.  Offshore extends to many countries and some have higher costs of living than others and their currencies vary considerably.

Another part of this ‘mistake’ is that many don’t think they need an accountant as they see that as an added expense. The reality is if you don’t have an accountant you’ll miss out on information that is important to the running of your business. Only your accountant knows the facts and figures relevant to your situation, and your tax obligations. It doesn’t matter if you have the same years of experience as the next VA, your location, cost of living, and other things will differ and what one person charges may not be the right thing for you.

So, when starting your business do the homework and work out rates that are right for you. There are formulas available online and also through various VA books, including the one I have linked on this blog in the right-hand menu.

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Getting past the no.1 mistake VAs make

Further to my previous 2 posts, I have more to add and Tracey’s comment included some of what I wanted to say.

When a client contacts you for a quote you need to project confidence and telling someone nervously that you are new and you’re not sure what to charge, or umm and ahh over charges, will help give them a lack of confidence in your abilities and knowing what you are doing.

What is there to be nervous about? If you know well the services you plan to offer then you know you are going to do a great job for a client.  You simply have to tell them what your rate is and how long you think it might take and go from there.  So, knowing your rates in the planning/starting phases of your business is most important.

Also, with respect to time with family or anything/anyone else, when a client wants to make an appointment it would help you considerably if you already have blocked out times that are important to you in your diary and calendar.

When I had things to do at the local school, or had to take a daughter to a doctor’s appointment, or anything else, I had these marked in my diary.  And if a client asked for an appointment, phone meeting or a delivery to be made, I would always advise if I was available or would simply say “I have an appointment at that time but what about ….?” and gave them another option.  This served two purposes – it made me sound busy even when I wasn’t in those early days, but it also gave me a feeling of being in control and not letting clients control my timing or what I was doing.

There is a saying ‘fake it till you make it’ and in many respects this is true.  You need to project the image of a successful business owner before you actually experience it.

A long time ago I was taught about the value of visualisation.  See yourself where you want to be and it will help project you along that path.  Speaking, dressing, thinking, responding in the way you would want to be as a successful business person will help you become that person.

Mixing and mingling with those who are already doing it will go a long way towards helping you on that journey. That’s why the VA forums are so useful.   They have lots of information in their message archives to assist you in your research and you learn from your peers about how they handled challenges and moved on.  Please note this is quite different to asking people to give you the templates, forms, rates charts, etc that they created for their businesses – you need to own what you set up and create them yourself.

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How to get past the no. 1 mistake VAs make

I wrote recently about the no. 1 mistake VAs make and it was good to see the comments coming in.

I thought I’d follow up with things that new (and existing) VAs can do to help shift that employee mindset. Now, I’m not by any means trying to belittle employees and thank you Deb M for your comment.

There are a lot of employees out there who are motivated, have self-initiative and don’t wait to be told what to do.  And this is the stuff that VAs should be made of as well.  But it goes further than that.

When I began my business I did a number of things that helped me change from feeling like I worked for someone else to feeling like I owned a business.

  • Firstly, whenever I answered the phone it was always in my business name. If you don’t have a business name, then just your name is fine but always speak with purpose, never hesitantly and with a smile – it makes a difference you know :-)
  • I made it a rule to go to the post office every day to pick up my mail and when I returned home, I was actually returning to my office.  So I’d left home and gone to work so to speak.  I still do this today almost 15 years later.
  • I never referred to my office as my home when speaking with clients.  In fact, when a client did have to come visit me they got a big surprise as they thought I had a corporate office in the city somewhere. I never told them that – they just had that impression.
  • If you don’t have a post office box think about whether you really want to advertise your home address on your material.  People will realise that you have computer equipment in your home if they know you run a business there – best to protect it as much as you can.
  • In the early days I was engaged by people to come and work on their premises (this was pre-Internet) and if I had to sign contracts or any paperwork it was always done in my business name, never my personal name.  This way I could send someone else through my business if I was unable to fulfil the role – I was always looking ahead.  I never agreed to being put on a payroll and always invoiced the client.
  • I never referred to my family, particularly my children, or used them as an excuse for not being able to do something.  They were rarely mentioned and if clients dared to suggest that my family might get in the way of my business I would remind them that has never been the case and I’ve never brought it up.
  • I have never allowed children to be chatting nearby when on the phone.  I also never allowed them to answer the phone during business hours.
  • I eventually got a separate line for my business – probably should have done that earlier and if you can afford to, do so, and get it listed in the phone book under your business name.

There are other things too which I’ll share on later.  I always had in my mind that I was running a business, never that I was working for someone.  It’s important to change that thinking from the start and the pattern will soon set itself.  Never call a client a boss and never refer to your business as a job.

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Mistakes new Virtual Assistants make

The number one mistake (I believe) Virtual Assistants make is not changing one’s mindset when entering our industry to become a VA.

I’m going to post a series on this topic and I wanted to share the one I believe is at the top of the list.

What do I mean by that?  Many who join the chat forums plunge in and start asking questions before they’ve done the research and read the message archives or articles online about this industry. Or even some of the books available out there.

What happens is that the things they ask about show they still have an employee mindset and not that of a business owner.  They expect everyone else to give them the information, the templates, everything they need to get going, even pass on clients or overflow work.

Those who really get ahead do the research, spend time reading, learning, setting up systems and making direct client contacts (everyone you meet and network with online or offline is a prospective client).  They don’t expect everything to be given to them, or that they can access everything free (including software and training) and know that they have to put in the hard yards to gain ownership of their own business.  They feel empowered because they’ve gone through the process of developing a business that has their own personality and isn’t a copy of someone else’s.

So, number one mistake a (new) VA makes?  Keeping their employee mindset.

Facebook for networking

I was recently having a discussion on my Virtual Assistant forum about using Facebook for networking. Some thought that it might not have value and others thought it a great tool.  Comment had been made about the necessity of using it to advertise how many friends or fans you have.  I’ll share with you here what my response was about using Facebook.

I used to think similarly but I don’t anymore.  And it’s not about ‘advertising’ who your friends are. It’s about keeping in touch.

I didn’t want to bother with it earlier this year as I thought it was just a young person’s networking tool and many still see it that way.  However, when the Pastor (in his 50s) at my church started encouraging members of the congregation to join and connect with him I did so out of curiosity.  I began connecting with others in our church and developing friendships because I could see their daily comments on what was happening in their lives and could join in the commenting.  And I’ve been able to have direct contact with my Pastor rather than going through his secretary which means I can have personal email discussions with him via Facebook.

I connected with my daughters and although at first I was concerned they might think I was ‘spying’ on them, I’m so glad I did.  One of them was Miriam, our beloved daughter who recently passed away. If I had not been connected to her in Facebook I would have had no idea how to contact her friends to tell them of her death or her funeral.  She never kept an address list – Facebook was it. It gave me an opportunity to let them know daily what was happening by posting messages on her wall and it made my husband and I aware of friends we didn’t know she had. Some were overseas and only found out about what happened because of their Facebook connection with Miriam.  I will not underestimate the value of a tool like this any more.

I am more connected with other family members of mine and Graham’s – our brother-in-law, nephews and cousins in other states.  And some friends I’d lost track of I’m now reconnected with. It is a very powerful friends tool and I don’t use for acquaintances at all – but close family and friends.

I have set up a business profile and I use that very differently but again it keeps me informed on what others are doing in their daily work lives and I find out about things I might not have, had I not been connected with these people.  It’s been a very useful networking tool.

So, how about you? Have you started using Facebook?  Do you use it only for business, or only for friends, or both?

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