I hope you like the series I’ve been doing on the mistakes VAs make in operating their businesses.  I’ve been getting great feedback – both here at the blog and via email from various people and the list has been growing as I’ve been thinking about it when away from my office and doing other things.

So, where did I get the idea to do this? Twitter.  What Twitter?  Yes.  I saw someone post some weeks ago the number one mistake in their industry – it was just a single post and didn’t continue on, but it suddenly made me think about mistakes people make when starting up a virtual assistant practice, or even further down the track. And it’s grown from there.  And of course the mistakes I listed don’t always apply just to virtual assistant practices. They can almost always apply to any small business operator as well. So why not share the series with other business owners you know?  It may just help them avert a problem before it gets started.

I have number 7 coming out on Monday.  If you have any suggestions for more ‘mistakes’ I’d love to hear about them and I will give you the credit for them too, with a link back to your site or your blog.

virtual assistant business, Mistakes VAs make, Twitter, social networking

Staying in our comfort zone.  We need to be flexible and stretch and bend if we want our businesses to grow.

Technology – where would this industry be without it?   And yet we all get comfortable and set in out ways and get to a point where we feel we don’t want to learn anything new. It’s all happening too fast and we’re comfortable where we are… for a time.

I remember I felt like that before learning about blogging.  I only investigated it because a client asked me too but I really did think (at that time) it was another ‘fad of the month’ and would soon pass.  I reluctantly took the time to learn what it was about and look where I am today!

There is a fine line in taking on too much or trying to learn everything, but at the same time it’s important we don’t stay in one spot and not continue to grow.

If we have a solid client base and are happy with that, then I expect it’s realistic that we won’t move on and learn new things. But what happens when those clients either choose to stop or choose to move on? Where does that leave you?

I get faced with new technologies often and introductions to new products almost every week. I have to discern what would be worth exploring and what I need to let go for now.  However, if I see something keeps popping up constantly then I will spend time with it to learn it.  Hence the different social and business networks that I now belong to. I can’t join them all – I just don’t have the time, but I have elected to explore several and learn them, and have been able to introduce other VAs to them, and more to the point, my clients.  In fact, I’ve picked up new clients simply because of my involvement with different social networking tools.

You could be making a mistake if you don’t take the time to explore and learn some of these new tools that come along.  Who knows, it may be just what your business has been waiting for, to move to the next level!

virtual assistants, mistakes VAs make, social networks, business networks, new technologies

If not, then you could be missing out on a potential client base.

I’ve had a Twitter account for sometime now and it really took me sometime to understand what it is about.  But now I’m hooked!  I couldn’t understand what people were doing or going on about and there are some mundane things there. But amongst all that is some really useful information and people willing to lend a hand.  You can literally tweet events such as blogradio, podcasts, teleseminars, webinars, or you can tweet for advice or a help message – you will get replies (make sure you check the replies section otherwise you can miss them).

I began registering for email series on how to use Twitter from those who have been on it longer than I have, and started applying some of those things only 2 or 3 days ago. In the past 24 hours I’ve had an increase of over 100 followers with several actually corresponding with me, which is great.  Some were ‘old friends’ I used to know on other networks some time ago.  And I have a potential new project on the horizon simply from a chance (and flippant) comment to someone after they saw a tweet I’d made.  Amazing but that project has possibilities.

I also see Australia’s PM, Kevin Rudd, twittering about his activities and feel it’s great that he and his staff keep abreast of social networking tools to remain visible and up-to-date.  I’ve since come across several US Senators who tweet, including the Governor of California.  My team and I were just chatting on the VA forum the other day about what a cool job that would be – being employed to act as a social networker on behalf of the Prime Minister (or whomever is in office).

I’ve also learnt about Twitwall which allows you to add to your meagre bio at Twitter.  And it is free and connects to your existing Twitter account so picks up on your chosen background.

I see a lot of Virtual Assistants on there and many I know are finding new clients as a result. I’ve picked up two new clients late last year and begun working with them this year – because of my active social networking online. Just goes to show you can’t dismiss a new tool or fad too quickly on the web – people keep finding new things they can create to add to an idea and build new businesses just from that alone!

Have you begun twittering yet?

twitter, twitwall, tweet

Offering services that they have no experience in or offering too many services.

Many VAs, particularly newer ones, get carried away by the possibilities of what they can offer clients, not realising that if they cannot provide quality service, they not only do themselves a disservice but the whole industry as well.

It’s important you start with what you know best and can do with your eyes closed, so to speak, and then gradually build from there.

Only you know what you’re capable of, but you need to be mindful of ‘biting off more than you can chew’.  Yes, I know, there is that saying that you can ‘chew like hell’ but sometimes it can get you into trouble.

Belonging to VA networks can be particularly useful in this regard. If you do find you’ve taken on something that is beyond your capabilities you can save face by offering to assist the client to find someone more suitable to support them.  It’s better than just leaving them in the lurch, trying to pick up the pieces. I’ve taken on clients that have been abandoned by others for one reason or another and have to spend time sorting out a mess and getting up to speed before I can do the real work of moving the client forward.

Be prepared to share the load – if the client contacts you but you can’t fulfil their need because you don’t have the skill or the time then make use of your VA peer contacts.  There will come a day when the favour is returned. And if the clients are anything like mine they’ll keep coming back to you for whatever information you have or contacts you know, simply because you’ve been so helpful in the past.

bite off more than you can chew, virtual assistant business, no experience

I had written about who your target client base should really be and Kylee had commented about volunteering to get experience.  This is something I’ve often written about in the past and I’m glad Kylee raised it.

As business owners to learn new skills and software packages there are costs incurred over and above the learning time and purchase of software.  We often need to find time to practice new skills or try them out but still need to be working and earning an income. Often the answer is to volunteer our services to a worthwhile club or association so that others can see what we’re capable of and we get the opportunity to practice and enhance our skills without charging for it, till we feel confident in our abilities.

Voluntary work is often done outside of our normal working hours and allows us to meet and mix and mingle with new people, many of whom could become prospective new clients.

volunteer, voluntary work, new skills, Virtual Assistant training

So far we’ve looked at treating your business as a business and having the right mindset; setting rates that are too low; and recognising that clients can be local, they don’t have to be totally virtual.

This 4th mistake relates to the third one in a way.  Many new VAs, particularly those from countries that have a much lower cost of living, make the mistake that other VAs are their target client base.  They’re not – they’re your peers and you learn from them and help shape the industry with them.  But they are not your client base.

Now, let me add here that I am aware that some VAs have actually run businesses that support other VAs and that’s fine.  But mostly your client base are not your peers.  I see so many new VAs on forums asking (or begging) for overflow work to get them started and so they can learn.  However, they need to realise we were all in the same boat at some stage and if they spend time reading archived messages, VA blogs and learning from other members of the forums, they’ll soon find ways of finding clients.  I still believe that networking, i.e. mixing and mingling with your target audience, is one of the best ways of gaining clients.  I started my business and built a client base by going to business networking events close to home 15 years ago and I still attend events to this day.

I know that some VAs live in remote areas or small towns and perhaps local business network groups aren’t so readily available but today there are also many, many business networks online.   Working out the type of client you would like to work with will help you determine what type of networks you need to find.  And then simply do a search online via Google Groups, Yahoogroups, Linkedin.com, Ning.com and many of the other ‘group and forum’ type sites online.

Joining VA networks will help you a great deal and some will provide introductions to clients through job leads and requests for proposals.

virtual assistants, business networking, client base, working virtually