In my field I get requests for help almost every day from those who want to be VAs or those who have been trying to get their businesses going for a while but not getting anywhere. In most cases there are some fundamental things missing in their approach to develop business and two of those things are: networking and having an online presence. They pay out money here and there for what seems a great opportunity and promise of lots of work, and then find nothing happens, except their money is … [Read more...]
Getting Back Into Things
Well, we've been back home for 3 days now but still suffering the jetlag thing and waking up at 2am with our minds busy! Guess it will go away eventually but a little annoying. Although I'd switched off the forum lists I belong to and a few other things I still had a mountain of emails to go through when I got back home - although I did deal with a few whilst I was away. Having my laptop with me was really worth the hassle of getting it through security each time we went through an airport (and … [Read more...]
One thing……
I do have one thing to add here before I go on leave. This morning a new member of one of the VA chat forums I belong to posted a message requesting help on how to attract more work. Unfortunately their post was not very well typed, spelling errors, no caps used, words run together. I emailed them privately suggesting that their typed email is also a form of marketing - to their fellow VAs, and if someone wanted to outsource work to them, examples of their typed emails is the only way to get … [Read more...]
Silence
I may be a bit silent here over the next few weeks. We're taking some leave (you can read about it on our family blog) and unless I have some fantastic thought or a sudden revelation, I'll probably not post here. Much of my writing comes from things that happen during my working day and so I expand on what's taken place, or on something I've shared with others, or something I've learnt. I will be meeting with some business contacts during the time away so perhaps something might be forthcoming, … [Read more...]
Putting Your Eggs All In One Basket
Discussions via the VA forums get quite interesting and it's good to see really meaty topics take place. Recently one of my team posted a series of questions for other members to answer and it gave real insight into the background of many, their experience, why they started out as VAs, would they ever return to the corporate world, and so on. One answer given to a question asked brought to memory something I'd done a couple of times (hopefully I've learnt from it) where I became dependent on … [Read more...]
Advice For Clients Seeking To Use A VA
Each virtual assistant works as an independent contractor in their own business. Some work full-time and some part-time and also in temporary positions. Because they work independently, prices vary amongst VAs, plus they are in many countries around the world, so feel free to shop around. Please understand that until the work is sighted, it is sometimes difficult to accurately price a job. Thought to consider: The speed and experience of one VA may mean they charge higher than another VA who … [Read more...]
Advice For New VA’s
Time again on VA forums I see the same request. "I'm just starting my business and want to know how to get clients". They get a number of responses and are often encouraged to read the archives of the forums for further information. I thought sharing via this blog might help those considering a career as a Virtual Assistant. Apart from the obvious requirements such as computer, internet connection, suitable software, good knowledge in how to use that software and suitable experience in … [Read more...]
Putting an Accent (Emphasis) on Your Business
I read today a newsletter that's just been published online for the VA industry. Had some great information in it - it's obviously tax time in the US! Along with it was a very useful article about how seriously VAs should take their businesses and the survey done in 2004 by the Brenner Information Group. The article is on page 6 of the newsletter (thanks Ramona). Please note that the figures quoted throughout the article are in USD and I believe a large number of those surveyed would have been … [Read more...]
Sad Week For Our Community
It was a sad week for the Virtual Assistant community with the passing of one of our very active leaders and participants in the Virtual Assistant industry. That lady was Janet Jordan, who was very well known amongst most of the VA chat forums and to many other aspiring VAs as well. Janet founded a training organisation to assist new VAs in the development of their businesses and many, many owed Janet so much. I never met Janet personally but had spoken to her via web conferencing (using … [Read more...]
