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Finding the Right Virtual Assistant for Your Small Business
For example, I have yet to have a prospective client actually ask me for a “list of references,” although if one did, I would happily provide him or her with a name or two if I thought the request was a valid one from a serious, qualified prospect.
Many writers also suggest that a good VA will have formal training and credentials. This is entirely subjective, however, and I caution against spending too much energy counting letters. Many highly sought after and capable VAs have no letters behind their name yet provide a caliber of service that is second to none. While formal training certainly lends credibility in a virtual environment where a warm handshake is not a reality, I advise people seeking a VA to evaluate other qualities first such as experience, professionalism, presentation, and honesty.
Here are some additional suggestions as to what you should look for when seeking a Virtual Assistant:
-> A professional presentation. When you speak to or correspond with the VA, how does he or she present? What do the VA's website and marketing materials look like? Is the copy well written and informative? Or is it full of typos and grammatical errors? These types of things say a great deal about a VA as a potential contributor to the success, image, and reputation of your small business.
-> Inquiry turnaround. When you send an inquiry to a VA asking about his or her services, rates, etc., what is the turnaround time for getting a response? A good VA respects the entrepreneur’s time and will get back to you within at least 48 hours. (My own turnaround time for email inquiries from prospects is 24 hours or less.)
-> Price. This is a hot topic but has to be addressed if you are going to get real value from your Virtual Assistant. If the VA charges "peanuts, " please turn and run in the other direction. You get what you pay for in this life. A VA who is charging anything less than $25 to $30 (USD) per hour cannot possibly be running a profitable business and may not be the person you want to trust with your own small business and life's work.
-> Quality over quantity. Does the VA offer every possible service under the sun? Or does he or she strategically focus on one or two categories of B2B services? While the VA doesn’t necessarily have to be "niched" into a narrow market, he or she should know who they are talking to in their marketing communications. A good VA does not try to be all things to all people. This does not mean we will not flex to accommodate a new and exciting request. Still, if your project requires skills and experience the VA simply does not possess, a true professional will either refer you to another VA altogether or strategically partner with a VA who has the requisite expertise. (Yes, VAs use subcontractors too!)
-> An online presence. Here is something that perhaps you haven't considered. VAs operate, for the most part, in a virtual environment (thus the "V" in VA!). Before approaching a VA, do some research to see if he or she has an online presence anywhere else besides his or her website. (If the VA doesn’t have a website, that should make you take pause. How committed to this whole virtual thing is he or she anyway?) Many VAs are active in various online "communities" such as business blogs, forums, networks, etc. This is great way to get to know your VA's true colors before committing to a partnership.
Those are just a few of the many things to consider when surveying the Internet landscape for your new Virtual Assistant.
*****
Karri Flatla is a business graduate of the University of Lethbridge and principal of snap! virtual assistance inc., a virtual consulting firm providing Internet marketing and business communication services to the busy entrepreneur. Karri also produces Outsmart, a small business newsletter full of practical tips and fresh insights. Visit http://www.snap-va.com for more information.
Karri Flatla is a business graduate of the University of Lethbridge and principal of snap! virtual assistance inc., a virtual consulting firm providing Internet marketing and business communication services to the busy entrepreneur. Karri also produces Outsmart, a small business newsletter full of practical tips and fresh insights. Visit http://www.snap-va.com for more information.
Give Yourself a Raise — Get an Assistant
If so, you’ve got a lot in common with most other small business owners.
Owning your own business is a great achievement and requires you to wear a lot of hats: owner, marketer, finance manager, widget maker/service provider, etc. Wearing all these hats eventually leads to a state of burnout or overwhelm and the love, the passion for what made you start your own business in the first place drowns in all the details.
If you want to grow your business AND maintain your sanity, there are two things you need to accept:
1. It’s not just okay to delegate, it’s essential to your survival.
2. A virtual assistant or online business manager (whichever description you prefer) is an investment in your business – not just an expense.
Consider the following scenario:
You own a small business as a marketing guru who makes $150/hour. Your website crashes and you spend the next five hours calling your webmaster, testing different links, doing what you can to get it back up and running. The five hours that you just spent cost you $750.
If you had a virtual assistant whom you pay $50 an hour and she solved the problem in four hours (she would be 100% focused on this task and has likely encountered similar issues with other clients), the cost would be $200.
The word “cost” is based on a simple premise. If you are fixing your website, you are not making money. You could otherwise be engaged in billable tasks or you could have completed the new client proposal that brings you a $10,000 client – neither of which is possible if you are fixing the website.
Make Sense?
Over the next week, keep a time log and track everything you do using this FREE Productivity Tracker. Then sit down and make a list of all those tasks that you either shouldn’t be doing (not worth your time given the sacrifice) or hate doing. Here are a few things that immediately come to mind:
* Maintaining your website
* Bookkeeping – both invoicing clients and paying bills, providing accountant
with data, reconciling bank statements, preparing your expense reports, etc.
* Submitting articles to article sites
* Researching competition
* Maintaining your mailing lists – online and offline
* Coordinating vendor activities
* Reminding you about birthdays, arranging for cards and gifts to be sent
* Spending hours on the phone with any type of support vendor (Microsoft and
Comcast pop into my head here)
* Creating and distributing prospect letters
* Handling all your travel arrangements – business and personal
* Scheduling meetings, conference calls, etc.
* Providing you with website and sales reports
* Designing presentations for client meetings (e.g., formatting in PowerPoint)
* Ordering office supplies, promotional items
* Placing advertising – online and offline
* Managing client mailings – promotional, holiday, sales, etc.
* The list goes on. . .
Each person’s list will be unique to him. You may love the clarity of mind you get stuffing envelopes but run at the thought of reconciling your checking account.
And don’t stop at the above. What are those personal things that you’re doing that you could contract out so you can focus on growing your business? A teenager would be great for any of the following:
* Grocery shopping
* Housekeeping
* Laundry assistant
* Mow the lawn
Don’t think you can afford an assistant?
The first thing to remember is that virtual assistants charge you only for the time they are ACTUALLY WORKING on YOUR projects and you will most likely not need someone full time.
You would pay a traditional employee a salary, sick time, vacation time, holiday time, provide a desk and office space, pay for training, pay payroll taxes, provide software and equipment and do all this for someone who likely considers what you are offering as a J O B that he needs to go to every day.
With a virtual assistant, you are paying an independent contractor who owns her own business and charges only for time she works on your projects, has her own office and equipment, pays her own taxes, is already trained in multiple software applications and who loves what she does.
Virtual assistants are self-motivated and focused on getting things done FOR YOU. This will greatly free up your time to focus on marketing your business, attending to your larger clients and generally growing your business.
Given the above can you afford NOT to hire an assistant?
The key is to start at a level where you feel comfortable: both financially and delegation-wise. Anything that you can give to someone else will give you more time to do what you do best and grow your business!
Ready to get started?
Click Productivity Tracker to immediately download or print the Productivity Tracker.
****
Copyright 2006-2007 Sandra P. Martini
DO YOU WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE ON YOUR WEBSITE OR IN YOUR EZINE? You
can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Online Business Success
Coach & Entrepreneur, Sandra Martini teaches small business owners how to
create more success in their business while maintaining their sanity and having
fun. For more information and to receive the FREE special report, “7 Wealth-Building
Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs”, go to http://www.Online-Biz-Coach.com.
HELP! I'm Buried and I Can't See My Clients
Amidst the Internet craze, millions of email exchanges, and web and teleconferencing, many sales people have literally 'lost sight' of their clients. In a day and age where we thrive on customer relationship management, personal sales calls have taken a back seat to technology. Further, today's economy has forced more layoffs and corporate downsizing which has impacted the availability of internal support systems. The lack of internal resources has forced companies to rely on already overburdened staff to pick up the slack. Staff such as sales people who are now spending more time doing administrative tasks than they are generating sales. Put an end to the madness and partner with a virtual assistant.
You Can See Your Clients But They Can't See Me
Partnering with a virtual assistant affords you the luxury of spending more
time in front of your clients and less time behind your desk. Because virtual
assistants are independent professionals they come equipped with their own office,
their own equipment, the latest software programs, and the know how of running
a successful business. They don't, however, come equipped with added expenses
like payroll taxes, expensive benefit packages, paid vacations, holiday pay,
or "free time" (that you pay for) spent talking to co-workers. They're
only there when you need them. Sometimes they're even there when you don't think
you need them!
"I write marketing materials for a billion-dollar software company, but some days it's hard to find even one free hour to sit down and write. Employing a virtual assistant lets me dedicate more of my time to the process of writing." says Alison Bolen, Corporate Communications Specialist, SAS.
Less Paperwork Means More Revenue
A virtual assistant, or VA, is an independent business professional who can
help busy sales and marketing professionals handle administrative tasks so they
can focus on growing their business. Utilizing the latest technology your VA
can:
o Manage your email
o Manage your calendar
o Tweak or create your presentations
o Make travel arrangements
o Be your own personal concierge
o Write letters
o Transcribe notes and interviews
o Follow up on trade show leads
o Handle literature fulfillment
They can even prepare your expense and call reports. The possibilities are endless once you start to see how many tasks you really can delegate.
Mark Loudenslager, VP of Sales, Cathay Pigments USA states, "I don't know what I'd do without my VA. As a sales professional who works out of my home and travels extensively I don't have an on-site staff to keep things moving. I can rely on my VA to prepare marketing materials, organize my contacts, send out letters, and keep me on track with special projects. Delegating routine tasks and special projects to my VA allows me to spend more time growing the business."
A VA is like having your own business partner, business support specialist, personal assistant, executive assistant, appointment scheduler, client relations manager, marketing consultant, web designer, word processor, concierge, or whatever role you need them to play. They use the latest technology to communicate work assignments via the Internet, e-mail, web-based calendars, virtual networks, and disk transfer.
"Since I work with clients who are trying to improve both their sales numbers and get some of their life back, a Virtual Assistant is a crucial element in any future plan. My suggestion is to try using a VA for just one month and you'll be hooked for life! It's an amazing thing for someone in sales to actually have the time to visit clients and build relationships as opposed to being buried in paperwork everyday." says Scott Stratten, President of Un-Marketing.com.
Perhaps you're one of the reported 70% of sales managers overburdened with paperwork. Maybe, you're an independent professional without corporate backing. Whatever the case, if you're spending too much time on administrative tasks it's time to make a change. It's time to get out from under the paperwork and get back in front of your clients!
****
© 2003 Kelly Poelker
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kelly Poelker is a certified Master Virtual Assistant, President of Another 8 Hours, Inc. and Co-Author of Virtual Assistant - The Series: Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA . To learn more about how to utilize a virtual assistant visit her website at http://www.Another8Hours.com.
Help! I’m Overwhelmed with Paperwork: Options That Can Get You Back to the Business of Your Business
http://www.virtuallythereva.com
"Comparative advantage is a concept used by economists to explain international trade. It suggests that even if a country has an absolute advantage in the production of all goods, it will maximize its wealth by specializing in those commodities in which it has the greatest advantage and trading for the others. For example, Martha Stewart may have an absolute advantage relative to just about everyone she could hire in cooking and cleaning. Should we then conclude that she should do the cooking and cleaning at home or should she outsource these activities? The answer clearly rests on the opportunity cost of her carrying out these tasks versus the cost of hiring someone else to do them. Her comparative advantage is likely in growing her business. Outsourcing is almost certainly the wealth maximizing strategy for Ms. Stewart."
In the context of our example, the opportunity cost of you carrying out the Administrative tasks yourself is the value of the time you will lose that you could have spent on other things, such as growing your business or spending time with your family and friends. There are only so many hours in a day. Let’s assume that you can make $150 dollars per hour for every hour you spend growing your business. The opportunity cost of you doing your own typing would be $600.00, whereas the cost of the Assistant doing the work (assuming an effective wage of $43.28 (calculations shown later)) is $259.68. Using the Assistant would result in a savings of over $340.00. Although your prospective Assistant would take 50% longer to complete the task, you would still be wise to maximize your wealth by spending your time growing your business. Despite the fact that you have an absolute advantage at typing, the Assistant has a comparative advantage (i.e. a lower cost) in carrying out administrative tasks. You should therefore, specialize in the task in which you have the greatest advantage.
Perhaps you’ve decided that you would profit by hiring an Administrative Assistant. But what about the other option, the Virtual Assistant? Hiring a VA couldn’t possibly be less expensive than hiring an Administrative Assistant, right? Wrong! According to Monster.ca, the median salary of an Administrative Assistant in Toronto is $42,837 per year. Assuming a 40 hour work week and a 52 week year, this employee would be paid for 2080 hours throughout the year at a rate of $20.60 per hour. This would seem quite reasonable but, according to a new survey by America Online and Salary.com, the average worker admits to wasting 2.09 hours per 8 hour workday on non-work related activities. So, assuming that an Administrative Assistant takes a 0.5 hour lunch and has 0.5 hours in break time, the work year turns into 1276.6 hours. This yields an effective hourly rate of $33.56.
Next we incorporate benefits. According to the Greater Toronto Marketing Alliance, the approximate total benefits paid by the average Ontario employer are 28.97%. This means the average Ontario employer pays $42,837 x 28.97% = $55,247 per year. This is an effective hourly rate of $43.28. This result would be even higher if we included the cost of office space and equipment.
As for the Virtual Assistant option, rates for VAs are usually between $20-45 per hour and can even be as much as $75 per hour for VAs that specializes in a particular field. The downside here is that although a VA is a qualified professional Administrative Assistant, he/she is also an entrepreneur and is therefore not available at your beck and call. Nevertheless, in working with a Virtual Assistant, you would pay only for the time spent on task and you have the added benefits that you don’t need to buy any office furniture and equipment, pay any benefits or allocate any extra space. It would seem likely at an early stage of a business’ lifecycle, if the administrative tasks are not sufficient to warrant hiring a full time employee, the best solution would be a Virtual Assistant. Indeed even if the workload justifies a full time employee the calculations above might suggest the VA route should be considered.
The choice is ultimately yours. If you can’t bring yourself to let go of even the smallest of tasks, you might be more comfortable continuing to do everything yourself. But, if you have decided you need help, your next decision should be whether to hire an Employee or use the services of a qualified Virtual Assistant. Carefully measure the benefits and cost involved with both options. Hopefully this article will allow you to make an informed decision.
*****Kelly Sims is a Virtual Assistant and President of Virtually There VA Services.
She is dedicated to making the lives of small business entrepreneurs easier.
For more information, visit her website at => http://www.virtuallythereva.com.
Hiring extra help without extra costs
If you can relate, you're due for a personal assistant. Sure, you say, you'll hire one right after you get that personal trainer and personal chef. But thanks to a rapidly growing service field known as virtual assisting, you can get nearly all the same services provided by an in-house personal assistant at a fraction of the cost.
The big distinction between a regular personal assistant and a virtual personal assistant (VA) is that VAs complete your office tasks from their own office. They do this by using typical communication methods such as the telephone, fax machine and, of course, the Internet.
VAs can take your calls, prepare documents, manage databases, handle sales and Internet marketing projects, manage your mail flow, book travel arrangements and keep your schedule. The only thing a VA could not handle, given the distance, is paper filing and getting your coffee.
With a little creative collaboration, like having your calls automatically forwarded to a VA's office, or establishing a P.O. box at their location, your VA can be based hundreds of miles from your office. (Learn how to expand your telecommunication services by visiting http://www.buyerzone.com/telecom_services/index.html.) I have even come across VAs who offer such specialized services as designing and regularly updating your Web site and creating PowerPoint presentations.
The second distinction is that a VA is not a temp or your full-time employee. A virtual assistant is a contractor. You won't need to provide any office space, purchase any equipment or offer any benefits.
Fees can range from $15 to $40 per hour, depending on location. Some may offer a discounted rate if you agree to use a minimum amount of hours each week.
A good way to locate an experienced VA is through a VA community such as AssistU (http://www.assistu.com) or the International Virtual Assistant Association (http://www.IVAA.org). As with any hire, make sure to check the VA's references.
And above all, take your time to get to know a VA's personality before hiring one. The best VAs are often the ones who take an interest in your particular business and take great pride in watching it grow.
****
Mie-Yun Lee is editorial director of BuyerZone (www.buyerzone.com),
a virtual purchasing advisor for small businesses. Call 800-938-0088 for more
information.
How Can A Virtual Assistant Help You?
http://www.agentsofvalue.com/services/virtual-personal-assistant
This simple reason can be summed up in this sentence: almost everybody has a practical reason to get them. A virtual assistant can work in practically any kind of industry. This all comes from the selection process that the client wants.
A virtual personal assistant can have different kinds of clients or employers.
Small to Medium Scale Businesses
Most companies that gets virtual assistants are small to medium scale companies.
These are shops and entrepreneurs that are either just starting or flourishing
already. Startups have a lot of tasks that are better delegated to someone else,
like website promotions, creative writing, forum posting, blogging and database
management.
Medium scale businesses on the other hand, can also benefit with a VA working on the same tasks but with the addition of possible file management, support and assistance that a working business model could eventually need. Some outsourcing companies like Agents of Value, can help you screen and get the kind of personnel you want, easily and quickly.
Home-Based Businesses
Then there are businesses that can range from handicraft makers to home bakers-
businesses that operate right from their own homes. Since these businesses do
not require an office and a building, it is most prudent and practical to hire
a virtual assistant to meet their promotion and creative needs. Often, these
creative tasks can be brochure designing, blogging and writing. With a VA working
for the employers, they are free to do their specialized tasks and skills in
their own time, while getting the promotion they need.
Professionals
Professionals can be lawyers, real estate agents, doctors or accountants. In
their line of work, they certainly will need an assistant that can help them
sort out their files, data and schedule. In addition, more and more professionals
today are setting up a website of their own, where their portfolio and credentials
can achieve wider promotion and recognition. A virtual personal assistant can
help with these and with so much more.
Large Companies
Bigger companies are usually known to outsource skilled people for different
projects and jobs. However if the job at hand only needs one to two persons,
is specified and takes special skill, then hiring a virtual personal assistant
may be much more practical. Several companies do this mainly because it is easier
to manage at the fraction of the cost.
When a business starts to grow, it is a wise choice to keep your attention and energy into directing your business where you want it, not spending your time doing tasks that other people can do. Most often than not, these tasks like blogging, designing and writing can be better done by other people, especially if you think they are not your forte.
Agents of Value Virtual Personal Assistant is a webmaster staffing company based in the Philippines that provides direct access to motivated agents for cost-effective web services.
How To Boost Your Business With Some VA VA Voom
There are several hats to juggle when starting out in a new business and before long comes the realisation that just one person simply cannot afford the time to wear each and every one of those hats. Everyone will soon come to appreciate those that fit best, but who is going to wear the rest?
Enter the Virtual Assistant – more affectionately known as the VA. Although not heavily publicised, hiring a Virtual Assistant to help develop small businesses is becoming a serious option for those willing to move with the times. The VA concept has been widely embraced in the United States as well as in Canada, and slowly but surely the idea is catching on in the UK with the number of VAs approaching 2,000 according to the UK Association of Virtual Assistants (UKAVA). VAs can be sourced through the internet via a host of websites dedicated to the industry.
Like most individuals setting out on their own to develop a successful business, VAs are self-employed entrepreneurs working just as hard as the next person in their chosen field. Their dedication to help others succeed ensures their own personal success. Rather than work “for” another business, they prefer to “partner” with other business people.
VAs are usually very well educated with several years experience of working in larger organisations in a secretarial, administrative or personal assistant role. The services they offer range from basic copy typing, audio typing and word processing, through more involved tasks such as meeting and event organisation, and even diary management. Many offer a telephone answering and message relay service which gives callers the impression that they are dealing with a serious business, rather than a one-man-band who cannot even put the simplest procedures in place. Thousands of business enquiries go cold right away because the telephone was not answered – that is a fact.
Partnering with a Virtual Assistant has to be the ideal solution to help small businesses succeed. Rather than having to pay the FULL cost of employment (such as tax, national insurance, pensions, etc), a small business can source a VA who will advertise a set fee per hour. With no long term obligation on either side of the partnership, it provides a very flexible and cost-effective solution to many of the problems associated with establishing a new business.
If you have your own business, and find yourself struggling with the more mundane
day-to-day tasks when you should be out and about growing your business, get
yourself online and turbo-charge your New Year with some VA VA Voom.
How To Find A Virtual Assistant When You Need REAL Help!
As my business grows I seem to have less time to devote to developing and implementing new marketing strategies. Is there some way the Internet can help me with this?
Rick Miner
Coldwell Banker Bain Associates
Seattle, WA
Dear Rick:
You betcha! In fact, help is just a few milliseconds away. Thanks to the Internet, there is a whole new category of talent available to you called "Virtual Assistants" (sometimes also referred to as virtual consultants).
Let's say you need someone to help you with a new e-mail marketing campaign that involves targeting the recipients, creating the content, building the list, executing the ongoing mailing, and measuring results.
Now imagine you could hire the former Marketing Director of a Fortune 1000 company who has "retired" to start raising her family. However, she has the time, talent, and willingness to take on challenging projects from the comfort of her home over the Net, and at a price far below her previous salary! So, where do you find these virtual godsends?
Have Modem, Will Telecommute...
Well, if you limit your search to just your community, you will probably be disappointed --or pay too much. If, like the example above, the job/project you have in mind does not require physical proximity, then you have the whole world open to you.
Before you start looking for and hiring these digital gunslingers, it is important that you are very clear about the following issues:
# Job Description - when working with someone at a distance, you don't have the luxury of being vague or general about what needs to get done. You are much better off being very explicit and exact (in writing) about what needs to be accomplished.
# Position vs. Project - does the job require someone who will work with you on an ongoing basis or just on a project by project basis?
# Proximity - is it important that your virtual assistant be located in a particular geographical region? Will face-to-face meetings occasionally be needed? These requirements can severely limit your search.
# Autonomy - most virtual assistants are used to working autonomously. The question is: are you ready to let someone take a project and run with it, without the ability to hover over them?
# Benchmarks & Milestones - since with a virtual assistant you will not have arbitrary access to work in progress, it is important that you layout specific expected timelines, benchmarks, and milestones for any work that needs to be completed. Remember, it can be difficult to work through misunderstandings with someone who is 2,000 miles away.
# Fees - know what fee range you are willing to pay
The above is a good start, but of course there is more to consider. Such as what kind of computer and software do they need to have, what kind of Internet access, etc.. Fortunately, most of the online resources below allow you to screen for these kinds of requirements.
Your Virtual Assistant Marketplace
As you might expect, there are a number of online resources that cater to matching up virtual assistants with prospective employers:
StaffCentrix - has a listing of Virtual Assistants in 56 different experience categories including REALTOR support. They have a free matching service that allows you to be very specific and comprehensive regarding your needs. This site is also a wealth of information about the how, what, and whys of using virtual assistants.
AssistU.com - not as well laid out as StaffCentrix above, but does have a comprehensive matching service as well (once you find it!) that includes screening for people who specialize in helping real estate professionals.
FreeAgent.com - much more of a real "Dot Com" company (i.e. has a "commercial" feel to it), this site is a good one to check out for project oriented jobs, rather than those requiring ongoing assistance.
IVAA - International Virtual Assistance Association. This group is has set up standards (theirs...) for telecommuters who want to become certified Virtual Assistants. This appears to be a "work in progress" as it appears they have relatively few members currently.
Your Virtual Organization
Virtual Assistants, along with the very rich online means to connect and communicate with them (see the "Let's Do Virtual Lunch" Ask Mr. Internet! article for October 1999), form the foundation of your burgeoning online "Virtual Organization".
Imagine running your business through the Internet using high powered talent from all over the world. You save time (it's all done in Net speed and you eliminate many needless meetings), money (virtual assistants are independent contractors), and effort (virtual assistants don't require high level management). This is exactly how I run my company, working quite effectively with people I have never even met!
Virtual Assistants broaden the possibilities for your business in ways that are just not possible in traditional modes of doing business. A warm and cozy thought indeed when you think about all your competitors who haven't quite figured it out yet!
Tip O' The Month
Online newsletters, often called "e-zines" are truly one of the most
incredible information resources on the Net. Most of them are free, and the
best part is that you don't have to go looking for information, it comes to
you on a regular basis via e-mail.
There are many thousands of e-zines currently published and the following indexes are great tools to find the ones that you are most interested in, typically categorized by topic. First there is EZine Search which bills itself as the "World's Ultimate e-Magazine Database". Another good one is EZine Seek as well. If you decide to publish your own e-zine, both of these sites offer advice on to how to get started and build a credible readership which could turn into an important marketing tool.
I am often asked how I can stay on top of the Internet so well given my very booked speaking schedule, writing deadlines, and major projects that I'm responsible for (including being a dad who faithfully reads "Harry Potter" to his kids every night he's home!). E-zines play a critical part in keeping me informed with minimal effort --and they can do the same for you!
****
Michael J. Russer (a.k.a. Mr. Internet®) is an internationally acclaimed speaker, trainer, author, and strategic consultant to the real estate industry and small business. He is also the exclusive Internet columnist for REALTOR® Magazine, the architect of the revolutionary e-ProductivityTM system and leading voice for the use of Virtual Assistants in small business. You can subscribe to his free monthly leading-edge newsletter ePOWER NEWS by going to www.ePowerNews.com.
How to hire a Virtual Assistant
You should always check their references and ask to see samples of their work. I recommend that you start off with a small amount of hours for the first month to ensure that you are both happy with the relationship and then you can move forward.
A lot of clients forget that VA’s are highly skilled professional people, who have decided to leave corporate America to start their own business because they want more flexibility in their lives, so a lot of VA’s will work around their families schedule so be sure that you find a VA who is available for the schedule that you need.
Here are some questions to help you with this:
- What tasks can the VA assist you with?
- What experience would you like the VA to have?
- How many hours per week/month will you need a VA?
- Will this be an ongoing partnership or is it just for a specific period of
time?
- Are there specific hours that you need the VA to be available?
- How would you like to communicate with the VA – phone/email/IM?
- Do you need the VA to be on the East/West Coast?
- What budget do you have for this?
- Does the VA need to have specific equipment?
- How does the client prefer to exchange documents & data?
- Do you need more than one VA?
- Would you like to have a backup VA?
- When do you want to start the partnership?
When you work with AJWD, we will work with you to ensure that you find the best VA for your needs. Our VA’s are already screened and are ready to hit the ground running. We conduct an initial consultation with you to locate your business’ needs and to educate you about hiring a VA.
Best of luck
****
For more information please contact:
Grainne Foley
A Job Well Done
www.ajwd.com
P: 704.341.9542
How to Know When it's Time to Call a Virtual Assistant
My clients and other practitioners that I’ve talked with all tell me the same things: “I don’t have time to get it all done. I’m months behind.” These are the tasks that I’ve been told need the most attention:
• Daily bookkeeping (entering income and expenses)
• Cleaning up contacts from pieces of paper, business cards, or emails
and compiling a database from the information
• Desktop publishing, i.e. creating brochures, gift certificates, etc.
• More marketing
• Contacting insurance companies to see about getting on the panels
• Credentialing
• Creation of a client database (for those who don’t use a software
program designed for therapists)
• Billing
Are any of these tasks on your list? The whole point to being in business for yourself is to be able to run things in ways that work best for you, and being able to make a profit. Can you say that you are meeting both of these goals? If you are doing more work with patients than administration tasks, then you are successful; but, what if you are one of the ones who is constantly bogged down with paperwork and unfinished tasks? You didn’t spend all that time in school just to try to keep up with paperwork and phone calls. It may be time to call for help.
A virtual assistant with a healthcare or mental health background would be able to take that paperwork off your hands. It wouldn’t matter if this person was in the same geographic location as you. There are many ways to take care of your administrative needs while remaining HIPPA compliant.
A virtual assistant can remotely access your computer and work directly with your files. An alternative to that would be for both of you to have the same set of files, and transfer new data monthly. There are clearing houses that electronically file insurance claims for a variety of health plans, or claims can be submitted directly through the websites of the individual health plans. There is one website that I know of that offers HIPPA compliant storage and file sharing capabilities; I’m sure there are more out there that I’m not aware of.
Paperwork such as EOBs and intake forms can be faxed directly to the virtual assistant for processing and data entry. According to HIPPA guidelines, a stand-alone fax machine is a safe transmitter of data. In addition, data can be transferred using CDs, or simply through regular mail, although that would not be efficient for time-sensitive material.
Virtual assistants can call for eligibility and benefits, get authorizations, follow up on unpaid claims, make reminder phone calls to patients, or return calls for you.
There is really no need these days to resort to the added expense and bother of hiring employees when most of your administrative needs can be taken care of by a virtual assistant. Partnering with a virtual assistant, you would only pay for the exact amount of time worked, and be billed monthly. There are no tax or insurance expenses, no training (other than familiarizing the virtual assistant to your way of doing things), no more worrying about whether or not your employee will be sick or late, or quit after a few months. There are even some virtual assistants who tailor their hours to match yours, and who work evenings and weekends.
Being in a different time zone can be an added benefit in working with a virtual assistant, especially if the virtual assistant is on the west coast. All other time zones would fall within the virtual assistant’s workday; the only snag comes when there are things that need to be done early in the morning – this would be sleep time for the west coast virtual assistant!
The question, then, would be this: How do you know when it’s time to work with a virtual assistant? And the answer would be: When you are losing sleep, losing business, or losing personal time because of your unfinished administrative tasks, then it is time to make that call.
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Rita Ballard is the owner of Healer’s Helper, a virtual assistance business for practitioners in the healing professions. Because she is on the west coast, she has been very successful in working with clients across the country. Rita derives great satisfaction in helping practitioners get their unfinished tasks under control. Visit her website, at http://www.healershelper.com, or give her a call at 877-716-4880.
How to Work with a Virtual Assistant
What is a Virtual Assistant?
A Virtual Assistant is a person or company that completes a variety of administrative, web, and computer work virtually. This means that they complete the work from their office and send it to their client via email, web link, postal mail, or fax. Communication is mainly done via email and phone, with many Virtual Assistants never meeting their client face to face.
Who uses a Virtual Assistant?
Anyone can. Real estate agents, coaches, non-profit, churches, small business owners, and big corporations are a few that can benefit from the services of a Virtual Assistant. The benefit of a Virtual Assistant is that they can be used on an “as-needed” basis, or a client can contract them to work so many hours a month.
How can they complete my work without being in my office?
The power of technology allows work to be done from anywhere. Some Virtual Assistants will connect their computer to a client’s and work directly on the client’s computer. Other options are to send work via email, postal mail, and even put it on the web and have clients download it. Depending on the project, a Virtual Assistant can find a way to complete the work and make sure the client gets it.
How is a Virtual Assistant more beneficial than someone in my office?
The main benefits of a Virtual Assistant to someone in an office are financial and space. An average office employee makes $43.54/hour (United States Bureau of Labor Statistics March, 2003) with their benefits package and wage. By the time an in-office employee takes breaks, lunch, restroom breaks, and chatting with others in the office, think of how much money is wasted! A Virtual Assistant will charge their client ONLY for the time spent working on the project and they pay their own benefits.
The other benefit is space. Having another person in an office means somewhere to put another desk, computer, and other office equipment needed by that employee (plus the cost of all this equipment and maintenance). Virtual Assistants provide their own work space, computer, equipment, maintenance, etc. In addition, most Virtual Assistants will cover the cost of supplies, which for an employee, the employer must also provide. When adding up these costs, the Virtual Assistant comes out as a far cheaper option.
How do I know that I can trust the hours they charge and that they won’t share my personal information?
Most Virtual Assistants use some sort of software to track their time in and out. There are several software programs that allow the user to punch in and out, just like a punch clock. It tracks the time, and at anytime the user can create a “report” that vouches for time spent and can be sent to a client when needed. As a Virtual Assistant, I use TraxTime. This allows me to record my time working, and easily punch out if I need to take care of something personal. It also allows me to make memos as to what I am working on, so a client has an idea of how long something takes to be completed. All Virtual Assistants have their own preference of software they like to use, but all work under the same ethics that they charge only for time spent working on a project. They won’t charge you for their lunch break, or the call that came in from another client. Obviously, Virtual Assistants work on the honor system of punching out for personal time. Clients always have the right to find another Virtual Assistant to work with if they feel their Virtual Assistant is charging them for time not spent on their project.
As for sharing a client’s company information, clients need to be sure to have a contract in place that ensures their company secrets and information will not be shared. Many Virtual Assistants have “niched” an industry, and this results in them having competing clients. With a contract in place, they cannot share a client’s information or use it to help another client. And to speak logically on this, if a Virtual Assistant did this, they would lose the faith and trust of clients, which would result in the failure of their business. So, it is not to their benefit to share a client’s information. But, to protect themselves, clients should be sure to sign a privacy clause in a contract.
How much do they charge?
The general price ranges from $25 to $50+ per hour depending on the services requested and the Virtual Assistants experience and degree. Many Virtual Assistants offer a “retainer plan” for those clients that are willing to commit to a certain number of hours per month. With a retainer plan, a client can get a discount on hourly rates.
How do I go about finding a Virtual Assistant that is a “match” for me?
As I mentioned previously, many Virtual Assistants find a “niche” which is an area they excel in. A client needs to find a Virtual Assistant that niches in their area of expertise and that offers the services they need. Some clients find it beneficial to have 2 or 3 Virtual Assistants that have different areas of expertise. The most important thing in finding a Virtual Assistant is not cost, or even area of expertise, but do you match well? Do you have the same work ethics? Do you have personalities that will work well together? Finding someone you feel comfortable with is the most important because a Virtual Assistant will become your partner in business and will help your business become even more successful.
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Patty Benton is the owner of JERPAT Virtual Assistants and JERPAT Web Design, www.moretime4u.org, which provides affordable administrative and web design support to coaches, small businesses, religious organizations, and realtors. Additionally, Patty is a coach for new entrepreneurs interested in venturing into the virtual assistance industry that is affordable to all, and she has also written an e-book that takes virtual assistants through the process of setting up their business. Visit her coaching site at www.virtualvacoach.com for program details and great business resources. She has also partnered to establish the ministry Acknowledging Christ Together at Work www.actatwork.com. If you would like to receive Patty's articles and other tips in your mailbox every month, you can sign up at www.mortime4u.org/home.html.
How Virtual Personal Assistants Can Help Your Online Business
http://www.agentsofvalue.com/services/virtual-personal-assistant
Want to know what else a VPAs are capable of? They can help your business generate extra income! How? With the use of your website and the virtual personal assistants online marketing skills.
Business owners are not only getting VPAs to serve as their virtual secretaries. Many owners are also hiring virtual assistants to help them promote their online business. This is because most of them are skilled web marketers. They know how to get your website advertised and be more visible.
Since most businesses today can already be found online, it is very important that they maintain visibility to keep up with the competition. Furthermore, customers can be found searching on the internet first before they ever go to the actual business.
So how can your virtual personal assistant help your online business?
1. Content Marketing.
One article can be submitted to hundreds of article sites in a day. And these articles are republished and pirated by other related websites once they see the usefulness of its contents.
Having your virtual assistant do some simple writing and submission will mean that you get to advertise your website and have it posted around the internet. Before you know it, more people are visiting your website and checking about your business because they have it about it on online articles.
2. Newsletters.
There are still people out there that read newsletters. Most of them own businesses that deal with a specific niche market. Newsletters are a way of keeping in touch with what is currently happening in that market.
Get your virtual assistant to research about recent developments and interesting topics that are related to your business. Then have your assistant compile them into a newsletter to be sent out regularly via email.
Send the newsletters to former and current customers. You can also ask your VPA to look for more potential customers so your newsletter will be emailed to them too.
3. Joint Ventures.
One of the best way to get your business out there is to form alliance with other businesses that are related to your own. A simple search over the internet will provide websites and contact information of businesses that you can form a joint venture with.
Have your virtual personal assistant scour the internet for companies that are willing to go into a joint venture with you. It is also important to check out first the types of customers that the site is catering to and how these people will benefit from what you have to offer.
Need more be said? Your virtual personal assistant can do all these and more. Knowing about the VPAs capabilities is a plus factor for you and your business. If you already have your own website, then all you have to do is take advantage of your virtual personal assistants’ skills.
This is if you want to start generating additional income from your business.
Agents
of Value Virtual Personal Assistant is a webmaster staffing company based
in the Philippines that provides direct access to motivated agents for cost-effective
web services.
In Doubt About A Virtual Assistant?
http://www.agentsofvalue.com/services/virtual-personal-assistant
Planning to get a virtual assistant but is having doubts about whether it is a good idea or not? Then this is for you.
Things that you should consider when you decide to hire a virtual assistant.
1. Professionalism.
You will get to speak with the virtual assistant in the initial interview process. Just like your ordinary employee, this is the stage where you get to ask questions. The manner in which the virtual assistant answers you will reflect how professionalism that person is.
Check out if the assistant is smart and respectful when answering questions. This is one way of telling how he or she will go about handling your clients and other matters once the virtual assistant is already working for you.
2. Personality.
Professionalism and personality go hand in hand. Having a great personality can mean a lot especially if the assistant is required to interact with clients. You surely would not want someone that is surly and rude when dealing with clients.
In addition, choose someone that is driven and enthusiastic about work. How the person carry himself is also another means of checking if that person has the confidence it takes to carry on tasks that will be assigned later on.
3. Skills.
The unlimited skills of virtual assistants are what make them valuable to their employers. Most of them are highly trained and skilled in different tasks. Another thing that sets them apart is their ability to adapt and learn about new things in the process of working.
You should set your skills requirement even before you hire a virtual assistant. Make a list of the most important skills you need and technologies that the assistant will use. Review the list with the virtual assistant during the interview so you are assured that the person knows about what you want done.
4. Experience.
It is always wise to ask first about past work experiences of the virtual assistant. It is also a good idea to check out the references presented to you. The more experience the virtual assistant has, the more you are assured that you are getting what your money is worth.
Take the time to check out past work like websites, contents and sample work. You can ask them to take some preliminary tests to see if the result jives with your expectations.
5. Availability.
Keep in mind that virtual assistants are not anywhere near you. This is why you need to come up with a work schedule that suits both of you perfectly. Are you fine with them working for you in real time or not? Are you also amenable with correspondence through emails or other forms of online communication?
Make sure that the virtual assistant is available whenever you need him or her. The important factor when hiring a virtual assistant is trust. And you need to be assured that the assistant will be able to keep up with the trust and the tasks that you have given.
Review the things above before and during the process of getting a virtual assistant. These things are the assurance you need when you still have doubts about whether you are getting the perfect virtual employee.
Agents of Value Virtual Personal Assistant is a webmaster staffing company based in the Philippines that provides direct access to motivated agents for cost-effective web services.
Increase Your Bottom Line by Hiring Help
Not delegating is one of the major hurdles my private clients seem to struggle with. They are doing everything themselves and are so busy with the little adminstrative things that they have little time to devote to their "genius" work - developing products and services for their niche and working directly with their clients. Once they've hired help, either a virtual assistant or an in-office assistant, and move through the growing pains of delegating and trusting that the work will get done (and might even get done faster and better than they could do it themselves), I can always sense a feeling of freedom and excitement as the space opens up for them to work on the things that are really creative and inspiring to them, instead of dealing with invoices or fixing a glitch with their web page. And very soon after, their business really starts to move forward because they have the time and focus to dedicate to increasing their product and services line, which, of course, translates into more profits.
There are many ways that you can work with an assistant. You can hire someone on an hourly basis, or hire someone on a monthly retainer, which is often less expensive. You can hire someone for a single project only or you could hire someone fulltime to work in your office with you. Think about which of these scenarios might work best for you.
A tip: If you hire someone as an employee, remember to check with your accountant about filing the appropriate paperwork. The beauty of working with a freelancer, independent contractor or virtual assistant is that they cover their own overhead, including any insurance needs.
Here are 10 ways you can use an assistant: 1. submitting your articles to hundreds of submission sites 2. handling registrations for your teleclasses/workshops 3. proofing and formatting your written material 4. creating graphics for your products 5. maintaining your website 6. inputting any necessary updates to your products/services 7. as a sounding board for new ideas 8. responding to your customer/client inquiries 9. bookkeeping 10. packaging and shipping your products
If you can't quite see how an assistant could help you deal with all the time-suckers in your business, keep a log of your business activities for a week, including how long each task takes you to complete. Then at then end of the week, review it and circle all the tasks that an assistant can help you with (there should be quite a few!). Consider the number of hours those things have taken you to accomplish, and decide if the $25-$50 an hour for an assistant would be worth the investment. Statistics tell us that your bottom line could increase as much as 40% once you hire help - now that's a pretty good return on investment, isn't it?
And if you still think you can't afford to hire someone, then start asking around in your network for someone who would be interested in an exchange of services or for an intern or apprentice.
If you're ready to start the process of hiring a VA in particular, I recommend these services: www.multiplestreamsteam.com - VA's particularly well-versed in helping entrepreneurs who use a multiple streams approach www.AssistU.com - VA training program www.ivaa.com - the International Virtual Assistants Association
Or ask your colleagues who are happy with their own VAs to see if any of their assistants are looking for additional clients.
So before you burn out and lose the passion for owning your own business that you started off with, hire someone to help you. You'll reach more people with your message and make more money at the same time. Start small and add hours as you feel comfortable and for what you find necessary. You'll never regret it and you'll never go back to being a lone ranger!
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Copyright 2005 Alicia Forest
Alicia M Forest, MBA, Multiple Streams Queen & Coach™, & Founder of http://www.ClientAbundance.com, teaches coaches, consultants, online entrepreneurs and solo professionals to attract more clients, create profit-making products and services, make more sales, and ultimately live the life they desire and deserve. For FREE tips on how to create abundance in your business, visit http://www.ClientAbundance.com.
Making Sense: A Virtual Assistant IS Practical
http://www.agentsofvalue.com/services/virtual-personal-assistant
Inexpensive Rates
One of the key things any employer and any company thinks about when hiring
is expenses for skilled labor. Having a personal assistant on an affordable
budget is definitely a plus for any company. Outsourced VA rates can be so competitive
that one has only need to worry about interviewing the right personal assistant
for him/her instead of worrying about the rates.
Same or Equal Work Quality
A clinching factor in any business deal, the quality of work coming from virtual
personal assistants is often impressive and at par with other professionals.
This is because they are screened and tested to fit the client's needs with
regards to the work at hand.
A lot of talented and educated people are not able to got to an office everyday for various reasons. Having a “virtual” office where work can be done is a lot more practical and inexpensive. Think of it as doing away with office and building maintenance.
No Employee Tax Management
Virtual assistants are independent professionals. This means that you do not
have to manage and plan a tax system when you employ them. This frees you from
additional work. Plus, they are contractual, meaning that they can be there
as long as you need them, no annual contracts and hassle of the sort you are
accustomed to in a traditional nine to five workplace.
Avoid the Office Drama
We all know this one. A closed office environment, a staff made up of different
types of people and a case of mismanagement can all lead up to some unwanted
scenarios. Arguments and conflicts are inevitable in an office working environment.
Luckily, virtual personal assistants does away with that. Since communication with your assistant is done electronically, working is smoother, faster and drama-free. In addition, virtual personal assistants are known to be polite and communicative, aiming to accomplish the work you give them.
Hundreds, no, thousands of professionals, business-owners and site owners are satisfied and impressed with their choice of virtual personal assistants because of the reasons just stated. They fully know that they are not just hiring grunt work and man power but skilled individuals that excel at their own fields. This is the current focus of some outsourcing companies like Agents of Value, to create a connection to skilled persons and clients who needs them.
Looking at this emerging business model, it makes perfect sense: its a business arrangement made faster, made more efficient, and made more time-friendly, accommodating both employers and employee. It is truly the employment model that fits today's technology and generation.
Agents of Value Virtual Personal Assistant is a webmaster staffing company based in the Philippines that provides direct access to motivated agents for cost-effective web services.
More firms use virtual assistance
Over the last decade, thousands have swapped corporate jobs to provide services for new bosses who they may never actually meet.
These home-based workers help out with anything from bookkeeping, Web design or travel arrangements via phone, e-mail or fax.
And the industry is now so big that there are trade groups and Web sites that assist virtual assistants (V.A.s) -- and try to attract potential clients.
"The growth is fastest in the U.S. There is also a substantial base in Australia, Canada and the UK," Bronwyn Robertson a virtual assistant for British arts companies, told CNN.
"Many employees who suffered from downsizing discovered they could offer their skills on a self-employed basis."
Even though the concept has been around for a while, according to some virtual assistants, many bosses are only just beginning to realize administrative support can easily be done virtually.
"The term virtual assistant is frequently not looked for because the general public are still not familiar with it," said Kathie Thomas, a virtual assistant in Australia.
"They tend to think -- home-based secretary -- or something similar."
However, as independent contractors, V.A.s are involved in all kinds of work including data entry, tax advice, accountancy and technology support.
Those in the industry say it is on the rise because it is cost-effective. The employer does not pay for extra office space, furniture, equipment or software. There is also no additional cost for training, pensions or work insurance.
In the U.S., medical practitioners, legal practitioners, realtors, public speakers and corporate trainers are the most prominent users of V.A.s.
The downside of employing them is that relationships take longer to develop, since they are not actually in the office.
Carolyn Moncel a V.A. in Paris, France, provides support for companies in North America, while her employers take advantage of the time difference to meet deadlines.
"I think people choose to be a V.A. because it gives them a alternative way of working -- it's mobile, flexible and empowering," she says.
Many mothers have become V.A.s in order to balance work with family commitments and for many the advantages are numerous, while others miss the office environment.
"I sometimes miss the camaraderie of my former work colleagues, although there is instant messaging, E-mail and phone," says Robertson.
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CNN.com - posted December 29, 2003
Office Help is Just a Click Away!
What a VA does for Your Business
VA’s are flexible, working on an as-needed basis, often beyond traditional business days and hours if required. Virtual Assistants typically offer administrative support but some VAs offer marketing and technical support services as well. Services include e-mail management; online article promotion; data entry; Internet research; project management; lead generation; website design; desktop publishing , online newsletter (ezine) services and shopping cart management.
The VA’s primary clients are small business owners and entrepreneurs who realize that they can’t "do it all" and need an alternate solution to hiring employees. A Virtual Assistant gives them the freedom and confidence to achieve their business goals by taking care of the day-to-day details, follow-up and maintenance of their business. Large corporations have realized the benefits of Virtual Assistance as well. They call on VAs to work on special projects, handle overflow and for on-going assignments. A VA increases employee productivity and ensures the business maintains its quality reputation.
VA’s are Independent Contractors, charging only for productive time - actual time worked. Clients avoid the hassles and costs of hiring employees and can reduce their overhead expenses by 50% (on average) when they hire a VA instead on an employee. Clients don’t pay for benefits; payroll taxes; recruiting costs, downtime, personal time etc. nor does the client have to provide a physical workspace, equipment or software.
Virtual Assistants typically have two service options to suit the diverse needs of clients: an hourly rate (Pay-as-U-Go) as well as monthly retainer plans with discounted retainer rates for clients who commit to a 3-month contract.
Some companies hire temporary staff through Temp Agencies. However, there are many downsides to this option. Recruiting and training costs can be high, with no flexibility on the minimum level of service to be contracted. It can also be difficult to ensure continuity of service, as you won’t always get the same temp.
Chances are, temps aren’t a viable option for the home-based business owner. Most temporary agencies don’t offer services to home offices because those offices tend to lack space, equipment and facilities for on-site staff.
There’s an extra benefit businesses get using a Virtual Assistant rather
than hiring employees or temporary personnel. VA’s are business owners
who are highly qualified and experienced. Because they are entrepreneurs, they
understand the needs of today’s business and go the extra mile in their
work. Moreover, Virtual Assistants have a vested interest in their clients’
success. If VAs aren’t satisfying their clients, they’ll soon be
out of business!
The Client/VA Relationship
Working with a VA can be a rewarding experience for the client. To get the most benefit from a partnership with a VA, here are some tips:
* Be concise and direct, especially when communicating by email
* Be open to new ideas from your VA
* Communicate any concerns you may have to foster a sense of trust
* Be patient during the learning phase
* Establish ground rules from day one
* Keep in touch often
Because of modern technology, there isn’t much that a VA can’t do if the client is willing to work to make it happen. Because of this flexibility, VA’s will continue to remain the leaders in skills and overall ability to meet the changing needs of today’s business.
Copyright © 2005 Michele Hanson-O’Reggio. All Rights Reserved.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Michele O’Reggio is the Entrepreneur’s Leverage Coach. She helps entrepreneurs grow their business and get more clients by delegating and using systems like the Get Clients Now!™ sales and marketing system. Claim your FR-EE report “ The Top 7 Clues that you Need Help and Systems” by sending an email to top7clues@getresponse.com and visit Michele’s sites for more information – www.IWantMoreClients.com & www.DelegationCoach.com.
Office support is just a click away
One Internet benefit is electronic outsourcing to a virtual assistant. The virtual assistant is known as an administrative assistant in the traditional office. But VAs work from their own offices, use their own equipment and provide support services to businesses, entrepreneurs and busy people. They can do everything from handling your bookkeeping to event planning. All of this occurs via e-mail, fax, telephone and overnight mail.
Sunday morning found me surfing the Web for information on the virtual assistant. In minutes I found myself in a world of hundreds of professionals who were ready to relieve entrepreneurs inundated with tasks that can drain productive time. I met terrific and energetic people who used the strength of the Internet to create businesses designed to fit their lives and our needs.
Andrea Pixley, the mother of three and a military spouse, told me: "I wanted to have my own business. But the business had to allow me to stay home with the children. And, since my husband is in the military, it had to be a business that could move across the country or around the globe."
She turned to the Internet in search of something that would fit her needs. A visit to iVillage.com listed a virtual assistant as one of the Top 10 home-based businesses. "I enjoy every moment of my VA business, and I've helped many entrepreneurs reduce their paperwork," she says. Check her out at www.andreapixley.com.
After 15 years in corporate America, Jackie Eastwick took a leave of absence to give birth to her daughter. Several months into motherhood, Jackie realized that she missed working. Her mother-in-law suggested she consider working from home. Jackie took her advice. Using the skills from her job as an administrative assistant, she started a home-based secretarial service and got several local clients. To increase her business, she surfed the Internet for places in her locale to promote her clerical service. During her search, she stumbled upon staffcentrix.com, a Web site devoted to the training and endorsement of virtual assistants. This discovery started Jackie's VA business. Jackie had her first client within five days.
"I believed that I could make a virtual assistant business work for me," she says. "And it's working." Jackie's talents as an entrepreneur and a mom are growing nicely. Click by her VA site, which is named for her daughter: www.allisonlane.com.
Take a look at the flipside. Your kids are grown and you're ready to launch your own business. That's what Meri Siersema and Carolyn Peterson did. Meri was office manager for a television station and responsible for recruiting and managing freelancers. Carolyn worked as executive assistant to the president of a marketing company. The women combined their talents and started a part-time freelance business while maintaining their full-time jobs. In May 2000, they quit their day jobs and launched the Virtual Freelance Network. They have more than 100 men and women around the country who get freelance work through their network.
Meri said, "I knew we were on the right track when I learned from an International Data report that outsourcing services are estimated to grow from a $51 billion industry to $81 billion by 2003." Visit Meri and Carolyn at www.virtualfreelance.net.
These women are an example of how powerful the Internet can be for earning a living while providing a service.
Next week, I'll return with Jackie and Meri to share information on how you can start your own VA business or use your skills to partner with an existing VA freelance network.
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About Gladys Edmunds
Entrepreneurial Tightrope appears Wednesdays. You can write to Edmunds here and visit her Web site at www.gladysedmunds.com. Click here for her previous columns.
Gladys Edmunds was a single teenage mom in early 1960s Pittsburgh. She posed as an adult to make money by doing other people's laundry, whipped up chicken dinners in her grandmother's kitchen for taxi drivers and stared down snarling dogs to sell fire extinguishers and Bibles door-to-door. Today, Edmunds, 52, is an evangelical entrepreneur preaching the value of self-employment. The founder of a successful travel agency, Edmunds Travel Consultants in Pittsburgh, she is the author of There's No Business Like Your Own Business, a six-step guide to success published in February by Viking.
Outsource Your Hiring Process
A lot of small business owners and human resources managers run into these issues. Yes, hiring new employees is your responsibility.
However, it is certainly not your only responsibility. You can’t always spend as much time dealing with prospective employees as you might like. Somebody has to finish the payroll, handle all the benefits claims, schedules and everything else that’s on your plate everyday. People would certainly notice how much you have going on if they didn’t receive their paycheck on time or get their vacation time!
A lot of small business owners and hr managers are now choosing a new option to help them deal with all the hassles of advertising positions, pre-screening employees and setting up interviews. Some virtual assistant companies are now offering these services.
Hiring a virtual assistant (VA) or virtual hiring assistant can be a very cost-effective and efficient way to handle all the tasks filling a position requires.
Virtual assistants can assist you in the hiring process at any and all levels. You decide what steps you’d like to outsource to them and how involved you’d like them to be in the process.
Four of the most common hr services virtual assistants provide in this area are:
1)Placing Employment Ads- Not only can this save you time, but if you find a virtual assistance provider that regularly provides hr services, it can save you lots of time researching the best places to place your ads. You can use your virtual assistant not only as a service provider but also as a consultant. Ask them if they’ve placed ads for similar positions in the past and where they got the best results.
2)Handling All Initial Responses- This is one area where you can really decide to what degree you want your virtual assistant involved. Most VA’s who provide this service can set up unique response e-mail box when posting your jobs with autoresponders. They can also set up an incoming phone number that they can answer to deal with all the initial inquiries.
3)Pre-Screening Applicants- Most you have probably experienced being overwhelmed with resumes and applications. They can come in such a flurry that its hard to even distinguish those who are actually qualified from those who simply aren’t. Your virtual assistant can filter through the resumes for you based on criteria you provide or even perform pre-screening phone interviews with questions you provide.
4)Reference checks- Actually getting in touch with your prospective employee’s references can be an on-going hassle and game of phone tag. A virtual assistant can dedicate a lot more time to being available for references to call back because they aren’t tied down to all of the responsibilities you have at the office. They can check personal and professional references for you.
A virtual assistant can really simplify your hiring process. If you are a small business owner or hiring manager who is always strapped for time, you may want to explore this option.
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Dana Wallert is the owner of an online virtual assistance company. She has many years experience in sales and marketing, as well as office management. Find more about Dana and sign up to receive her free monthly newsletter at DW Office Solutions - Virtual Assistant Services.
Outsourcing and Virtual Assistants: Small Business Saviors
What is one of the best ways to work smarter without working harder? The answer is outsourcing. Whether you need occasional or ongoing assistance, outsourcing can save you money and time. Graphic designers, copywriters, bookkeepers, website programmers, office assistants, and other types of professionals are all readily available.
And, there’s a new way of hiring people – the World Wide Web connects independent professionals and small businesses that don’t need or want full-time help. Try typing “Virtual Assistant” into a search engine. You will find a vast array of online resources. According to the International Virtual Assistants Association,
“A Virtual Assistant (VA) is an independent entrepreneur providing administrative, creative, and/or technical services. Utilizing advanced technological modes of communication and data delivery, a professional VA assists clients in his/her area of expertise from his/her own office on a contractual basis."
This means you can find a virtual assistant for almost any type of work. Are you a plumber who needs accounting? Or a professional speaker who needs help arranging your appointments? Perhaps you would like some help writing proposals, designing a new website, or sending out press releases. You can find someone online for all of these services.
For many “around the office” types of jobs, virtual assistants get paid $20 to $50 an hour. More specialized services such as programming, legal assistance, graphic design, or coaching can cost $75 to $125 an hour. This may sound expensive at first. However, if you are not in need of a person in your office 40 hours every week, it becomes a very cost-effective solution.
While I realize, costs fluctuate widely, let’s look at some sample numbers to compare the typical costs of maintaining an employee versus outsourcing:
Sample costs of a full-time employee Employee Salary: $36,000/ $17.31/hr.
·Two-week paid vacation: $1,385 to cover your employee’s role (more if a temp is hired)
·Health Insurance (employer portion for 12 mos.@$150): $1,800
·FICA Taxes (7.65%): $2,754
·Worker's Comp. (.61%): $220
·Unemployment (State & Fed): $309
·Misc. costs (Vision, Dental, Disability & 401K Matching, Profit Sharing & Stock Options): >$3,000
·Office Space, Equipment, and Software (100 sq. Ft. @ applicable rate): $2500 ($25/sq. ft. is conservative)
·Annual Bonus (1 mo. salary): $3000
·Sick Time (10 days/year): $1385
·Other intangible costs (furniture, testing, training & fees, sick children, etc.): $1200
Total Typical Costs: $53,553/ $25.75/hr. total effective hourly rate at 100% productivity
At a 75% productivity level, this employee’s cost for actual work becomes $34.33/hour and at a 50% productivity level, it’s $51.50/hour. A full-time staff person is very unlikely to be 100% productive because of idle time, errands, tasks, personal matters, and a learning curve for certain functions. This is combined with an employer’s inability to generate work due to distractions, staff meetings, company functions, lack of time to delegate or supervise, and sales fluctuations.
So, depending on the productivity level of a full-time employee, you may be paying up to 3 times his or her actual salary! You do the math! What's the wise choice? Does an in-house employee save money? In most small businesses, this method simply is not the most cost effective.
Entreprenuer, get your life back!
Outsourcing will save you money, time, and energy. Virtual assistants and other out-of-office professionals own their own equipment with the latest software, they pay their own taxes and benefits, they are experts in their field, they don’t require morale building or training, and they aren’t going to bring their personal problems into your work space. Virtual assistants and outsourced professionals offer even more advantages: they are loyal to their client companies and will support your goals – they will help you generate ideas and allow you more time to make your business more profitable.
So, if you have employees that you are happy with, then of course that’s perfect for your business. Don't fix what ain't broke. However, if you find you are paying too much overhead or spending too much time managing, try a virtual assistant. If you need a new type of service, but don't have the in-house expertise, outsourcing is a great option. There’s a world of online help available at your fingertips.
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Wendy Maynard, your friendly marketing maven, is the owner of Kinesis (http://www.kinesisinc.com). Kinesis specializes in marketing, graphic and website design, and business writing. You can visit her marketing blog, Kinetic Ideas at: http://www.wendy.kinesisinc.com
Want to harness the power of kinetic marketing? Sign up for Kinesis Quickies, a free bi-monthly marketing e-newsletter: http://www.news.kinesisinc.com.
Overworked? Try a virtual assistant
"VA"s work from home, offering services for businesses which might not have enough work to justify employing their own full-time administrative staff.
It is an attractive way of working for many people as jobs can be done at any time of day.
Jill Spencer is a former conference organiser who lives just outside Looe in Cornwall. She had retired, but when she decided to earn some extra money, becoming a VA meant she did not have to leave her home in its idyllic country setting.
Own timetable
She had made a number of contacts during her career, and was soon providing everything from book-keeping and proof-reading to event booking and research for clients around the UK.
"You can work to your own timetable," Jill explains.
"You don't have to be in at nine o'clock and leave at five. If it's a lovely day you can sit in the garden and do the work in the evening."
Rates can range between £15 and £30, but for many people, the biggest advantage is the flexibility.
"I wasn't looking to earn a fantastic amount of money," says Jill. "You do as much or as little work as you want to do."
The basic tools are a computer, fax machine and a mobile phone, although a specialised printer might be needed for some types of presentation work.
Anyone with office skills could set up as a VA, and there is a trade body which gives advice on getting started and what equipment to buy and also offers training programmes.
Ideal career
The International Association of Virtual Assistants (IAVA) was founded to alert businesses to the potential of using VAs, and also to give home workers a forum to share acheivements and problems.
The IAVA's Bridget Postlethwaite, who has run a VA business from her home in the Channel Islands since 1997, believes it is an ideal career for many people. While office skills provide a basis, she says clients can often be looking for different attributes in their VAs.
"Companies get a huge amount out of it because they only use a VA when they need one," she says.
"You get perhaps an assistant of a more professional level than you would get if you were hiring someone on a full-time basis.
"If a businessman can be out of the office doing something he actually wants during the day, knowing his VA will be there to talk to him in the evening if he wants, it will make a great deal of difference to everyone's lifestyle."
While there is no doubt of the growing demand for virtual assistants, it seems increasing numbers of people are keen to get out of the office and work from home.
New research by recruitment agency Kelly Services predicts that by 2020 one-quarter of all UK workers will be based at home, with half doing some form of teleworking at one time or another.
Cultural differences
But the UK is more progressive when it comes to new working methods than many other European countries.
In France, for instance, there is a resistance to teleworking because executives worry what the neighbours would think if they did not put on their suits and head off to work.
The number of teleworkers in southern Europe is below the European average.
The reasons for this cultural divide were discussed at the Telework 2000 conference in London last week.
Bettina von Stamm of the London Business School said self-confidence, devolved authority and autonomy were keys to successful teleworking and the British style of management fostered those qualities.
"There are deeper cultural differences in attitudes to what constitutes job status," said Alan Denbigh of the UK Telework Association.
"The self-employed in Finland are generally classified as entrepreneurs, and it's probably no coincidence that this country has the highest percentage of teleworkers in Europe."
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By BBC Working Lunch's Ian Jolly
Partner with a Virtual Assistant to Help Your Growing Business Blossom
http://www.yvonneweld.com/blog/
Many people who start businesses believe they can wear every hat required and grow their business on their own. The problem is that every business gets to a point when in order to truly blossom the owners need to start handing off those hats. The best place to start is by partnering with a Virtual Assistant.
Many people don’t realize all of the things a Virtual Assistant can truly do for their business and many others still hold the belief that they require a physical presence to truly be able to assist you. This just is not true. A Virtual Assistant can do absolutely anything an in-house assistant can do and so much more. Here are just a few of the main areas where a Virtual Assistant can help your growing business:
Word processing, Formatting, Editing and Proofreading
Letters, reports, training manuals, contracts, proposals, business plans, and
progress reports … the list goes on – anything you need typed, formatted,
edited or proofread, a VA can assist you with. No task is too big or too small.
Whenever you need a second set of eyes to ensure that your document is the best
it can be, your VA is there to assist you. VAs have the skills to format your
document and give it the finishing touches it requires for the professional
image you want to portray.
Transcription
Whether hand-written or recorded, meeting minutes, voice mail messages, phone
conversations, lengthy reports, and notes from focus groups – whatever
you need, the document is sure to be delivered efficiently.
Project Assistance
A VA is there to assist you to meet all your deadlines and targets. They can
handle any organizational tasks required to get your projects done effectively
and efficiently.
Internet Research
Want a list of your competitors or potential clients? Want some research done
on a new product or service you would like to offer? Want some ideas for promotions?
A VA can find the information you need when you need it.
Database Management
Wish you had time to keep track of your client list, the people you meet at
various networking functions, or a list of your products and services? A VA
can develop and maintain a list of any data you keep track of.
Mass Mailings
Whether by “snail mail”, e-mail or fax broadcast, your VA can assist
you to get the data to your target.
E-Mail and Voice Mail Management
Going out of town and wish you had someone who could respond to your e-mails
and voice mails? Maybe you require someone to maintain your informational e-mail
and send out information packages to people inquiring at your Web site. We can
sort through the junk so you only have to deal with the important matters.
Specialized Services
Many Virtual Assistants offer their own specialized services including Web design,
desktop publishing, event planning, human resources assistance and bookkeeping.
Finding a VA who meets your demands as a business owner has never been so easy.
As you can see a Virtual Assistant can truly do anything an in-house employee can do, but unlike an employee, as a fellow business owner, they also have a personal stake in your business success. They can help your business blossom into the beautiful flower it is meant to become.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Yvonne Weld is the owner of ABLE
Virtual Assistant Services and offers administrative and bookkeeping support
to busy solopreneurs. She is also the author of The
Ultimate Guide to Creating a Thriving Business and Managing
Your Thriving Business for Success. For more information and for your free
downloads, visit her Web site at http://www.yvonneweld.com
Partnering with a Virtual Assistant Makes Good Business Sense
Time is money right? So, if you outsource work to a Virtual Assistant (particularly non-income-earning work) you will have more time to spend personally on activities that generate income.
You are not limited to the type of work you can outsource to a Virtual Assistant. You can source Virtual Assistants online to undertake a range of different tasks such as secretarial, marketing, design, accounting, personal assistance, programming and even freelance writing. According to the International Virtual Assistants Association, “A Virtual Assistant (VA) is an independent entrepreneur providing administrative, creative, and/or technical services. Utilizing advanced technological modes of communication and data delivery, a professional VA assists clients in his/her area of expertise from his/her own office on a contractual basis."
An experienced online Virtual Assistant can be an excellent resource for your business, since generally speaking they have a broad range of skills that you can draw upon. Most Virtual Assistants offer a host of administrative services such as word processing, desk top publishing, bill paying, managing mailing lists, invoicing, and even travel arrangements. You can access a range of services quickly, easily and cost-effectively.
Partnering with an online Virtual Assistant tends to be more economical than hiring temporary staff or using an offline service when you need urgent work done. Since Virtual Assistants work for themselves, they bear their own costs making them a cost-effective alternative to other labour hire options. Basically, by having access to quality online Virtual Assistants who can fit around your needs and deadlines, a small to medium-sized business can experience the benefits of a large corporation, but with none of their employee-related costs.
An added benefit of sourcing a Virtual Assistant online is that you have access to a global marketplace. This means that if you partner with an Assistant who is in a different time zone, you can be confident that your work is getting done while you sleep!
You may have to try a few different online Assistants before you find the right person for your needs. However, it is worth persisting until you have developed a rewarding relationship with at least one Virtual Assistant.
The internet has made a global workforce available to small and medium-sized businesses, making improvements in productivity, income and even lifestyle a lot easier than ever before. Why not take advantage of this flexible work force and benefit from high quality support on a pay-as-you-go basis?
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Article written by
Helen Byrne is a UK-based Virtual
Office Assistant and Owner of Virtualoso - Virtual
Office Solutions Online. To promote the business on a wider scale, Helen
also created PA-as-you-go.com
as a simple introduction to Virtual Assistance.
Reasons For The Virtual Personal Assistant Boom
http://www.agentsofvalue.com/services/virtual-personal-assistant/
Ask business owners what it felt like when they were just starting their business and they will tell you one thing: it was not easy! The paper works and arrangements are enough to make you think twice. And of course, there is always the matter of getting the right employee…
Thanks to the advancement of technology, these problems are now things of the past. All people have to do nowadays is to go online and get themselves a virtual personal assistant.
Virtual personal assistants are now taking over the work of any regular employee. Their capabilities are basically the same. The only difference is that virtual assistants are more technology-wise. They make use of modern tools to provide their clients with the best of service.
Below are some of the reasons why many people are getting their own virtual assistants:
1. Virtual personal assistants are capable of multi-tasking.
You will be surprised with the many skills virtual assistants are capable of. From sorting out emails to logging important files, you name it and it is done. Some virtual assistants can even do site maintenance and web marketing on the side.
Think how easy it would be for you to just rely on one person what would have been a task delegated to three or more persons. And imagine how reassuring it is for you to know that you do not have to train or teach your assistant everything.
2. Virtual personal assistants know what it like running a business.
Many virtual assistants have prior experience about running a business. Some are even business owners themselves. You know you are in good hands when a virtual assistant is helping you with your business.
For all you know, they might be able to share their ideas about how a business should go about. Experiences they had in the past makes them capable of giving sound advices and even strategies that can help your business become successful.
3. Virtual personal assistants are affordable. A virtual assistant is your best option if you are on a tight budget. They do not cost as much as your regular employee.
In addition, you can agree upon certain terms of payment which will help you manage your finances better without getting a big hole in your pocket. You can hire the assistant on a per project term, months or years. It all depends on you.
4. Virtual personal assistants can start working for you ASAP.
Virtual personal assistants are not only equipped with the required skills, they also have with them the materials needed to start working immediately.
You do not have to worry about renting an office space or equipments. All you have to do is designate the tasks, specify your requirements and set deadlines and the virtual assistant is all set.
Lack of space, limited budget and work experience should not bother you anymore if you are just starting your business. What you should be concerned about is finding the person who can get the work done.
Agents of Value Virtual Personal Assistant is a webmaster staffing company based in the Philippines that provides direct access to motivated agents for cost-effective web services.
Reasons Why You Should Hire an epVirtual Assistant
2. Sales & Marketing - VA’s can provide online sales and promotion of your products. They can make your website rank in search engines.
3. More Personal Time - VA’s can help you organize your schedule and even eliminate you from time consuming tasks like reading emails, online payments and purchases. You can even train your VA to act like you while you’re on vacation. You can now enjoy your vacation without having to worry about missing important emails or even phone calls.
4. Delegation - If you are running a business and you want your personal secretary
or other employee focus on other things, you can delegate tasks to your VA’s
instead. Increasing your company’s productivity.
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