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Virtual assistants are revolutionizing the way businesses work today by offering the global connections to get their work done better. Friday, May 19 is the International Virtual Assistants Day Celebration where we celebrate the advancements VA’s have...

Have you heard about the new “kid on the block?” The one that is empowering businesses to do better, and revolutionizing the way work is being done today. Well, fasten your seatbelt and meet--The Virtual Assistant - The business support and Internet technology gurus that are quickly becoming the answer to many entrepreneurs and small business owners’ needs.

For years businesses have complained of needing more help in the office to meet the ever-increasing demands of running a business. They needed more time to devote to marketing and product development without the expense of hiring another employee. Now, with the help of a qualified Virtual Assistant, they are able to do this and much more.

So what is a Virtual Assistant? Virtual Assistants (VAs) are highly skilled professionals who take the time to excel in their given area of expertise. They provide extensive marketing solutions, creative and innovative advertising campaigns, administrative support, proofing and editing capabilities, and other specialized services for entrepreneurs, small businesses, authors, and others who want to bring their business to a new level, or market their books for greater results. VA’s work globally, taking full advantage of all the connections of the online networks.

Diana Ennen, co-author of Virtual Assistant-The Series: Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA (http://www.va-theseries.com/) states, “The future has arrived, and with it a growing partnership that’s sure to last – The Virtual Assistant and Client Partnership.” Ennen and co-author Kelly Poelker of “Another 8 Hours” have just completed the Virtual Assistant-The Series: Workbook Edition that accompanies the main manual and are pleased to already be selling these at many colleges throughout the United States and Canada in addition to virtual assistants eager to start a business.

As Industry Leaders, Ennen and Poelker are proud to see that on Friday, May 19, 2006, Virtual Assistants will finally get the respect they deserve. That’s the day that the OIVAC assembly will salute the global VA industry during the International Virtual Assistants Day celebration. They will honor industry leaders and recognize VA’s who have worked hard to bring our Industry to the forefront.

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About the Author » View Author Profile » Authors Biography

To learn more about what a Virtual Assistant can do for you or if you’d like to become a Virtual Assistant, stop by our site at http://www.virtualwordpublishing.com.

Marie Schulz, an admin to an Air Force general, found herself at a crossroads several years ago when the base closed. She got a new job but hated it because the long commute and office hours drained her, leaving no time or energy to work out or see friends. "The employer expected the employees to live for the job," says the Rumely, Michigan-based Schulz. "They even had computers put into our homes so that when we weren't at work, we were still working from home. I wanted my life back."

Schulz took her life back by rolling up 20-plus years of admin experience and parlaying that to her own business as a virtual assistant, or VA. Now her days are noticeably different.

What is a VA? Stacy Brice, chief visionary officer and founder of AssistU, sums it up this way: "A VA is a small-biz owner who provides administrative and personal support across the board to clients in long-term and collaborative relationships."

Preparation is key to a VA's success, and Brice advises against admins jumping into things because they have years of admin experience. "Remember, it's a business, and you don't want to start a business on the seat of your pants," says Brice. "Most startup businesses don't make it to the five-year mark. You don't want to make mistakes."

VAs' primary client base are the small business owners, or entrepreneurs who need support because they can't do everything on their own but don't want the hassle of hiring a full-time employee, according to Brice. She estimates a VA's rate at $30 per hour. However, that amount can skyrocket if a VA has experience in a niche area.

Being a VA requires numerous hard and soft skills, including:

* Writing: "The world is sloppy when it comes to grammar," says Brice. And a lack of solid language skills can be a great detriment to a VA. "Even if a client is a poor writer or speller, she won't accept that in a VA."

* Organization: Being a VA involves juggling numerous clients. Being able to put your hands on the right files when a client calls is crucial.

* Technological Savvy: A VA must also be comfortable with technology, since the job requires working in a virtual world. "Your primary tools are technological, so if you're not comfortable in that environment, you'll have trouble," says Brice.

* Fast on Your Feet: "You must be able to quickly take in information, synthesize it and logically spit it back out," says Brice.

* Emotional Responsibility: A VA must be entrepreneurial and self-disciplined, since no one is watching over your shoulder, notes Brice. "One thing that comes with the VA territory is you're playing at a different level," says Brice. "You're not sitting in an office being told how, what and when to do things, with set lunch times and the inability to say no to a project. You must be able to transition to the thinking that you're a business owner, you get to say what you want to do, and you get to pick your clients and set your rates."

* Good Communication: Setting business standards and sticking to them can be a rough transition for many VAs. "Sometimes you have to have hard conversations with your clients if things aren't going the way you initially expected," says Brice. "You may have to speak frankly that when you started out with the client, you expected X, but Y is happening, and that you two need to discuss how to make things better. Those aren't easy conversations to have." The upside to such frank discussions is VAs generally build long-term, collaborative relationships with their clients, she says.

* Vision: While many admins want to work from home, many are not willing to do the hard work to make it happen. "The fear of success keeps many people down," says Brice. "They sabotage their actions, because they may think that if they're as successful as they want to be, their lives might change -- and that frightens them."

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Therese Droste - Monster Contributing Writer

Starting a home-based Virtual Assistant (VA) business has many similarities to starting any other type of home-based business. It also has several unique features that you should clearly understand before you begin. When you become aware of these five unique business traits, you'll be able to research the profession with your eyes wide open and decide if being a VA is right for you.

1. What is a Virtual Assistant anyway?
Every VA's first and most prolonged challenge is that Virtual Assistance is a profession that is in its infancy and it still rare to meet prospective clients who know what a VA can do for them. In order to convert prospective clients into paying clients you'll need to do a lot of educating about what Virtual Assistance is and how it can support businesses. Some self-employed entrepreneurs know they need help but they can't fathom receiving that support virtually. You'll need to become well-versed at how you can make their business lives easier and communicate that message ongoingly until it sinks in.

2. You say tomato….
There are as many potential VA services as there are VAs and VA clients. Figuring out what it is you can do best and where you want to focus your services is imperative. Clearly define what you do (and what you won't do) and your potential clients will be more likely to understand how you can help them.

3. Your call is important to us.
When I first started as a Virtual Assistant, many of my clients assumed that because I was 'virtual' and sat at my computer all day that this must mean I provided computer technical support. This confusion is common and can often be difficult to train your clients that what you do is different than tech support. If you wish to provide computer technical support in addition to your VA services, that's fine too. But know what you're getting into first.

4. The two-headed monster
Any self-employed entrepreneur with a home-based business can tell you that when you become self-employed you need to become practiced at two very different skill sets. The first is being good at what you do for your clients. The second is being an entrepreneur. This includes doing all the things it takes to juggle multiple clients and take care of your business as the same time. Often we are fantastic at the first skill, but dismal at the latter, leaving our own bookkeeping piling up for months or years, feeling stymied by the marketing we need to do to fill our practices or finding ourselves under-charging for our services. Having a coach or a VA mentor is a great way to become skilled at both these essential business elements.

5. Is anyone out there?
Even for those of us who are introverted, working alone at home five days a week can lead to thoughts of running away and joining the circus just to have some interesting company for a change. You will need to build a strong community of peers around you and schedule time to get out of your home-office and interact un-virtually with others. Fortunately there are more VA organizations and associations, both virtual and not, popping up all over the globe as the profession gains notoriety and visibility.

Armed with these five points in mind, I hope you'll be more able to clearly decide if building a Virtual Assistant business is the best next step for you. Working at home as a VA is a tremendously rewarding and fulfilling occupation for many. If you choose to join us, welcome!

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About the author:
Alexandra Amor is the author of e-books that help Virtual Assistants build successful businesses, FAST. Sign up to receive The 20 Essential Virtual Assistant Success Habits at http://www.virtual-success.com .

It sounds great, work from home and spend more time with the family and still earn an income. It is great, but it’s hard hard work.

Remember virtual assistants need to actually work to earn their money, so there’s no lounging around watching TV or saying to yourself I’ll just do the housework and then get on with some work later. Or I’ll play with the kids or go out shopping, just because I work from home. You can certainly do those things, but you must allocate work time throughout your day.

And explain to your partner that just because you work from home it doesn’t mean that the house can be immaculate or a great meal can be served at dinner time; you do work from home remember. This is still something my husband is coming to grips with after 4 years.

You need dedication and a drive to actually work. You no longer have a boss breathing down your neck making sure you actually do any work. You are your only motivator to get on with any paid work. Gone are the days that you turned up to your office, put in minimum effort, got paid to chat to colleagues, had coffee breaks, went out to do your banking, surfed the net, talked on the phone. No those days are over, you no longer get paid to do no work, you only get paid when you actually sit down and do some work.

And remember there is unpaid work as well being a virtual assistant. You have to spend time on your accounting, preparing invoices and billing clients, banking, all sorts of unpaid work and this time adds up.

So if you are not highly motivated, this job is not for you. If you are thinking about working from home as a virtual assistant you have to have the drive to find clients, serve those clients appropriately and to the best of your ability.

I will never forget the secretary sitting next to me in my office job years ago whinging because her boss asked her to type a fax up for him. She said gosh you’d think he could have done that himself. What the? She didn’t like being told what to do. Well you know what, as a virtual assistant you will be taking instructions from lots of different clients, not just the one person. And you have to develop a customer service mentality and realize that it’s your job to free up your client from such administrative tasks so he can get on with growing his business.

But you know what I wouldn’t change it for the world. I may work weird hours into the night and grab time during the weekends whenever I can, slip into my office whilst my husband plays with the kids after dinner, etc, but this is the job for me. I now do the school drop offs, see my kids much more and am there for them much more. I can work in my office and can talk to my son in the next room playing on his playstation and I can grab that glass of milk for him as well.

And the biggest benefit is you no longer have to make coffee for clients and business meetings ever again. That is one job that a virtual assistant simply cannot do!!

Sandra Fraser is a virtual assistant and also creator of http://www.virtual-assistant-advice.com which is an information site for WAHMs, prospective and existing virtual assistants and for those wishing to find a VA.

Some individuals are unable to work full-time on their VA business in the beginning. They may be working full time and need the financial security or have young children at home requiring care. Questions arise around how to make this work. Here are some tips...

Working Full-Time

Is it possible to work full-time and still have a VA business? Absolutely! However not without it's challenges.

One of the issues you need to consider is how much time you can dedicate to working on your business while maintaining some work/life balance in your life. Decide what times you will set aside for working on your business. Will you work on weekends? How many evenings or mornings a week? What hours?

Client location may be a factor when determining your hours. For instance a VA located on the east coast would have an easier time servicing a client on the west coast in the evening with the 3-hour time difference. It would be more challenging when the situation is reversed unless you were able to work in the morning hours before work.

Working With Young Children At Home

For some of us the decision to become a VA is influenced by our values around family. It is important we are available to family and want to even up the balance between our work and personal lives. This is often the case when there are small children at home. Being a VA helps us live our lives based on our values.

Once again there can be a transition from full-time parent to full-time VA. We may first begin working around nap times and in the evenings. As children get older we may require additional support from outside parties. What worked well for me was to have someone come into my home to watch my children starting at one day a week and progressing to five days a week once they began to go to school. This allowed me to build the business while still being able to spend time and be there for my children.

Honest Communication

It is important to have honest communication with potential clients around your work situation so they have realistic expectations about your availability. Reassure them you can handle their requests in a timely manner. Keep in mind that your participation in their business will be limited by your hours. Be sure you will be able meet their requirements going forward as well.

Once again it's important that potential clients understand your home situation. Be up front with your priorities as a parent. My experience was that clients appreciated my honesty and honouring my values. Any clients who did not were not ideal clients for me.

Due to some of these limitations it will be more difficult to grow your business. You will only be able to grow the business so far, then at some point you will need to take a leap of faith, making the decision to transition to full-time VA.

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Mary-Lou Ashon successfully launched her Virtual Assistant company in 1997 and holds expertise in organizing information, creation and implementation of administrative procedures and marketing. She has proven that dedication, communication, loyalty and a flare for marketing are keys to developing successful client relationships. Mary-Lou has a keen desire to promote awareness of VAs as a career option both internationally and at home in Canada and has developed a cost effective, convenient and high quality training program which you can locate at http://vatp.ca/.

Many people ask me what the difference between a virtual assistant and a personal assistant is, or between a virtual assistant and a concierge, for that matter. These are important distinctions to make before deciding to set up your new business, because each one suggests a very different set of responsibilities to your potential client.

Virtual assistants are much like administrative assistants. They mostly work from home by themselves, or from a centralized office with a few others, as we do. Their tasks are generally limited to the administrative, too, such as transcription and typing, correspondence, and mass mailings. Speaking of mailing, we find Stamps.com really helpful in that regard. We hate going to the post office and waiting in long lines, even if it is for our beloved clients! With Stamps.com, we don't have to. For $80, we got a 4-week free trial, free postage, and a postage scale, which you'd have to admit is quite a deal. With support for most address book software, mass mailings can actually be easy!

In contrast, a personal assistant can be asked to do some of the administrative stuff, but the emphasis of the position isn't usually concentrated there. We have found, in our storied careers, that personal assistants are generally asked to do more, well, personal things, like picking up dry cleaning, making vacation plans, picking up children from school, etc. This position is great for people who love to be on the go, and hate staring at a computer screen all day. And in order to do it, you're going to need a great cell phone with Blackberry capability, so you can stay in touch with your client, his or her spouse, and any kiddies. Cingular has a great Blackberry phone that's less than $150 when purchased with a new service plan. Great coverage and the ability to text and email from your car? Bring it on!

The concierge may be the most misunderstood of all three fields. Many people assume that concierges work solely from hotels, providing guests with extra services, such as booking transportation to and from the airport, helping with theater or concert tickets, and arranging for secretarial services while in a certain city. But you can start your own concierge business, whether or not you are affiliated with a hotel. If you decide to do this, your target clients will most likely be those who are new to the city, such as temporary workers, new arrivals, or people who are in your city for purely business reasons. Helping these people find the level of service they're seeking can be very lucrative, as well, since many have expense accounts for business and can be a bit freer with cash and tips (we all love that!). Reading up a bit on concierge businesses is important before taking that crucial first step. The Concierge Manual takes you on a step-by-step journey to creating your business, designing a brochure, and even potential legal issues. Don't be without it!

But just because these three are related but different fields doesn't mean you can't mix and match. We include concierge services in our service package for AssistantGirls.com, because we are located in Los Angeles, a large American city that experiences an enormous amount of business travel. One resource we couldn't live without is our Zagat Guides. Whether we need the number of the hottest new restaurant in Beverly Hills, or have to make a suggestion for hotels in Baltimore, or nightlife in New York, these kick-butt little guides make all the difference. And isn't that why they hired you in the first place?

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Copyright 2006 AssistantGirls.com

For more stories like this, visit http://www.AssistantGirls.com

Alyson Mead is founder of http://www.AssistantGirls.com She spent eight years as a book editor in New York, working for companies such as Scholastic, Macmillan, McGraw-Hill, Glencoe, Steck-Vaughn, Silver Burdett & Ginn, Prentice-Hall and others. She has published hundreds of freelance articles in journals such as Salon.com, ChickClick, MSN.com, In These Times and many more, and ghostwritten several book projects.

Second in a two part series.

While the formal virtual-assistant (VA) industry is still young, hundreds, if not thousands, of independent contractors have been providing virtual services for many years. Being a VA today means using the Web to communicate and transfer documents so you can work for anyone, anywhere. But back in the 80s, it typically meant you provided services locally, outside a traditional office.

Claudia Slate has been both an "old" VA and a "new" VA. A long-time paralegal for a Dallas concern, Slate launched her own business in the late 1980s, when the firm laid off several of her colleagues. She promptly hired all the laid-off co-workers on a contract basis.

"This was the most rewarding experience," Slate says. "We were all single mothers, working our butts off to support our families. By working for ourselves, we charged much less than the large firms and still did quite well. We bought houses, and gave our families what they needed."

Over time, however, Slate became an environmental activist, disillusioned with city life and an "overly consumptive lifestyle." Driven by the desire to "live simply so others can live," nine years ago, Slate moved to the Rosebud Lakota Reservation in South Dakota, one of the poorest communities in the United States. Slate and her companion (who teaches at the local middle school) live in a house made of straw bales, without running water. Until two years ago, they did without electricity or telephone service.

When she first arrived, Slate taught reading and GED preparation, and launched a library and learning center. She also studied technology, teaching herself database programming and network administration, then took a job doing tech support for the district schools.

When electric lines were installed, Slate bought a refurbished Compaq laptop and launched a formal virtual-assistant practice while still working part time. She provides Web research, mail list, database and spreadsheet management services primarily to other VAs. Until her phone line was installed a few months later, she accessed the Web using the school's T-1 line after hours, and regularly drove to friends' homes to use their phone lines to download her e-mail.

"Working virtually helps provide the income I need," Slate says. "I use less gas, and have more time to work in my garden or on the house, take time off to spend time with elderly relatives, or attend ceremonies. Things that make life important to me now."

While VAs like Claudia Slate are drawn by the freedom a VA practice affords, others, like Victoria Parham, find it's one of the few practical careers for an Army spouse. Parham, who currently lives in Anchorage, Alaska, relocates with her husband and daughter every three or four years.

Like Slate, Parham started her VA business in 1994, providing secretarial support for a company near her home then at Fort Stewart, Georgia. When the family moved in 1995, Parham sold the business and launched a wholly virtual company. Much of Parham's work is in Web development and translation services, but her specialty is providing personal-assistant services to high-profile clients and entertainers who typically "travel frequently, have no staff and demand a lot of attention," Parham says. One client in Washington forwards Parham all her e-mail - on average 350 messages a day.

When Parham and her husband got word they'd be relocating from Maryland to Anchorage last year, she took the opportunity to put her virtual company to the test. Instead of flying, the family drove the 5,500 miles with Parham working from the back seat.

"It was important for me to see for myself," she says. "It's one thing to talk about it, another to know for sure." Parham's equipment included a laptop, cell phone, mobile printer, pager, and video camera. She downloaded her e-mail by connecting a modem to her cell phone using AT&T's wireless service.

Today, Parham says her business is successful, and she's working on landing some federal contracts. "Before September 11, the Fed wouldn't even return my phone calls," she says. "Now they are. It's changing."

Like Claudia Slate, Nancy Somers is a self taught technician striving to earn a living as a full time VA. With a background in environmental health, Somers went from being a bar and grocery health inspector for Indiana counties to a database administrator, project manager, and back-up network administrator for the air-pollution division of the Indiana department of environmental health. She bought her first computer in 1995 and she and her son built the next two together.

Even with no formal technical training, in 1999 Somers landed a support technician job for a software development firm. She also launched a part time VA practice, specializing in desktop publishing and Web site design and development. Business is good; Somers designed the Web site and handles marketing for a local commercial real estate company, and says many clients would give her more work if she was available during the day. She says she'd love to quit her day job, but can't because that would mean losing her employer-funded health insurance. Her husband, a Canadian citizen, receives workman's compensation and a disability pension for a work-related accident.

Regardless, she's determined to break out on her own within the next six to eight months. These days, while home recovering from an operation, Somers is weighing her insurance options, and making plans to expand her business.

"It's gonna be pretty hard to go back to work," she says.

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Toni Kistner is managing editor of Net.Worker. Contact her at tkistner@nww.com.

Virtual Assistance is one of the hottest home-based businesses, according to articles published by BCentral.com, MSN.com, entrepreneurial experts Paul and Sarah Edwards, and a long list of other publications and experts. One reason is that it's a relatively easy business to start -- the start-up costs are low, and Virtual Assistants (VAs) provide a much needed and valued service that's easy to understand.

Having said that, however there are many things to consider before jumping on the band-wagon:

Q: Am I the right kind of person to be considering working for myself?

That's a terrific question to ask yourself before you take another step forward; not everyone is cut out for the rigors of owning a business! Here at eWorkingWomen, there are experts waiting to help you figure it out. Learn more from Mary Jo Wehniainen, and entrepreneurial expert Priscilla Huff.

To help you figure out if a career as a Virtual Assistant is for you, read on.

Q: What is Virtual Assistance?

A: Virtual Assistance is a fairly new administrative profession. The professionals are called Virtual Assistants, or VAs. VAs are micro business owners who provide administrative and personal support while working in long-term collaborative relationships with only a handful of terrific clients. Using phone, fax and email, VAs support their clients without having to ever step foot inside the clients' offices.

It's a fabulous way of working, and opens new doors for administrative professionals!!

Q: What isn't Virtual Assistance about?

A: As you move around the 'net, you'll see a variety of definitions about what Virtual Assistance is, and what VAs do. It's up to you to decide which definition you want to embrace. One definition is that a VA is anyone who provides any sort of assistance to another person or business without having to be physically present in the client's location. When I formalized the industry with the founding of AssistU in 1997, I created a strong definition; one that has become our brand, and that we believe creates the highest and best standard for the industry as a whole.

That definition has a VA providing administrative and personal support, across the board, in long-term and collaborative relationships. So, a VA is a person who supports a client, across the board, administratively and personally without being geographically present in the client's location.

See the difference in the definitions?

Based on my feeling about what a VA is, it then stands to reason that a VA is not someone who provides consulting services. That person is a consultant. A VA isn't someone who only provides bookkeeping services. That person is a bookkeeper. A VA isn't someone who only provides marketing support. That person is a marketing consultant or a marketing assistant. A VA isn't someone who books speaking engagements. That person is an agent. Nor are VAs Tax Advisors, Accountants, Medical Transcriptionists, Web Designers, or professional business and personal coaches.

In my opinion, "Virtual Assistance" isn't a handy catch-phrase for people working from home. It's a profession in its own right, and it deserves a definition that separates it from all others. Much in the same way that all brain surgeons are doctors, but not all doctors are brain surgeons, all VAs are virtual workers, but not all virtual workers are VAs. What makes a person a VA isn't that the services can be performed at a distance from a client, but rather that the services that are being performed are administrative in scale and scope, and are provided with the desire to support the client across the board, not with just one specific function or task, no matter how ongoing that might be.

While it's possible that a VA may offer additional services, those who offer limited, or non-administrative services are not, in my opinion, Virtual Assistants.

Am I judgmental? I don't believe so. There's certainly room in the business world for whatever any entrepreneur wants to do. However, I feel, and have always felt, that there needs to be a strong definition of what this profession is about; in order for Virtual Assistance and VAs to have a future, we need to distinguish ourselves and what we offer as distinct from all others.

Q: What's the history of the profession?

A: It's difficult to pinpoint when, exactly, virtual assistants began working. I know that I was working as a VA to clients in the mid-80s, long before working that way was easy or cool. I may or may not have been the first VA, but I did formalize the profession when I founded AssistU in early '97.

In the past two years, more companies have started that also support people who want to work in this profession.

Right now, the question people ask is "What is a VA?" I believe that by 2005 the question will be "WHO is your VA?" As a profession, we're young, but moving quickly toward a time when "Virtual Assistant" will be a well-known term, and the vast majority of small business owners and entrepreneurs will be working with at least one VA. Additionally, other client groups will be working with VAs on a usual basis, including busy families and retired executives. We also see the day coming when corporations will be ready to see administrative professionals as professionals, and will want to work in partnership with admins. When that happens, we'll see more VAs working with individuals in corporations.

Q: In the corporate world, many managers are required to do most, if not all their own administrative work. Don't small business owners do it all themselves?

A: They usually do, but sooner or later, as their businesses grow, they often find what managers do — it's impossible to do it all and have a great life. Something has to give! Fortunately, small business owners can do something about it. Managers are fundamentally stuck running faster on the corporate gerbil wheel.

Business owners and entrepreneurs find what great administrative professionals have always known deep down: When the client gives work to a VA, and allows the VA to proactively support the him or her in reaching his or her goals, freed up time and energy are created and available for an abundance of other things.... the things that they love and do best, and should be focusing on.

VAs are dedicated, driven, masterfully skilled administrative professionals who genuinely want to powerfully impact the lives of people they work with.

Q: I can see why it's a great idea for busy people everywhere, but I have to ask, does it work? Why would a client consider it? And, why would I consider it as a profession for myself?

A: For the client, working virtually is especially powerful for many reasons:

1. Giving work away that doesn't need his/her attention gives back time and space for an abundance of other things, which may include:

* Growing a business
* Doing just the work he/she loves
* Spending more time with family and friends
* Seeking other opportunities or being able to take advantage of those already aware of
* More life balance

2. No need to share space in a home-office, or find additional office space for an employee

3. No need to buy additional equipment

4. No need to deal with the managing of an employee

5. No need to deal with the administration details associated with payroll

6. No need to pay associated payroll taxes, insurance, and possibly benefits

7. No need to adhere to Federal and State mandates, like OSHA, the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act

8. No need to pay someone else to administer all of the above, so that he/she isn't further bogged down.

9. Gets to interact with another business owner (the VA!!) who isn't simply task oriented, but instead, wants to help find great solutions to challenges and the best ways to really go for opportunities.

You can see that there are powerful reasons for a client to consider working with a VA!

For you, the VA, working virtually is especially powerful for many reasons:

1. Gaining independence and control over your own life.

2. Being successful on your own terms.

3. Changing the paradigm from working for someone and running on that corporate gerbil wheel to owning your own company and choosing with whom you will work.

4. Working at home lets you spend more time with your children.

5. Only doing work you love.

6. Doing diverse work.

7. Getting to contribute in a way you may never have been permitted to before.

8. Getting to use your creativity freely.

9. Doing dynamic work with interesting people.

10. Having no commute.

11. Working with people who genuinely appreciate your contribution.

12. Being a pioneer in a new profession.

13. Setting your own hours, taking as much time off as is desired.

14. Devising a schedule that works best for you and your family.

15. Receiving compensation that genuinely honors the contribution you make.

16. Not having to any longer be at the mercy of a corporate structure that doesn't see you or honor you as a true professional in your own right.

You might consider becoming a VA because any one reason in the above list, or for a reason not shown. What I know is that the only job security in this country is the security you create on your own. The corporate world will continue to ask you for more, while giving you less. And downsizing continues... there is simply no way for you to know how long your job will be viable. If you want to, and are ready to create your own destiny, becoming a VA might be just the way to do that.

Q: How is it different than being a home-based secretary?

A: Generally speaking, the difference is in the scale and scope of the relationship.

A Virtual Assistant:

Works in a relationship. That relationship is ongoing, with the people working together daily. Because of the nature of the relationship, a VA can only work with a relatively small number of clients.

Becomes the right hand of the person assisted, getting to know the client, his business, his customers, his life. She becomes, literally, a partner in his success.

Does secretarial work, but as partner, she often does much more than that, and it often crosses over into supporting the client in personal matters as well as professional.

Creates value for her clients through a dynamic learning process — the more she learns about the client, his business, his customers and his life, the more she is able to support him, and the more value she creates.

A home-based secretary:

Does piece work. Can have hundreds of clients because a client might only need assistance once or twice each year. There is no partnership.

Doesn't usually get to know a client's business well because there's no need. Only task oriented work is given to them, so the level of trust doesn't need to be high.

Provides a value which is commodity based through a select set of secretarial services offered.

Q: You keep talking about the relationship aspects of being a VA. Can you tell me more about that?

A: Virtual Assistance is similar to Administrative or Executive Assistance, well known in the corporate workplace in many respects. But the corporate world generally devalues its administrative staff. They simply don't yet see, much less understand, the power that could be created if bosses and managers actually saw their administrative people as more than functions, and as being able to bring more to the table than what's typed on a job description. Incredibly lucky is the administrative professional who has a real partnership with her boss — the reality is that those kinds of relationships are too far and few between.

So the main thing that makes Virtual Assistance so special (besides the fact that it's, well, virtual) is the relationship — the partnership formed between the VA and client.

It's a brave, new world, and in our world we shatter traditional models and rewrite definitions all the time — Here's how I define "partnership"...

A Partnership is the purposeful and collaborative commingling of talent, strengths and goals contributing to the constant benefit of all those involved.

Let's look at that more closely to see what this new partnership is all about, because understanding it is going to be critical to you as you consider whether this is the profession for you, and if so, how you want to structure your business:

First, I believe it's critical that the partnerships are constant — the people involved need to be committed to working together on a super frequent and ongoing basis. Each action taken within the relationship leads the pair to another action, moving forward to a specific goal. Each goal moves the pair toward the goal, and the momentum carries them forward, together.

For the VA/Client relationship, the ultimate goal is harmonious and constant partnering — not a series of transactions.

Next, the relationship is purposeful — it's no accident that the two are working together. They chose each other and moved together into the relationship, and they will move together to achieve results.

In the VA/Client relationship, if the purposefulness isn't there, there's no basis for the relationship.

Partnerships are also a commingling of talents, strengths and goals. That implies that each member of the partnership brings all of their talents and strengths to the table, incorporating them together — with each giving what they have so that they can together achieve more than they could alone. Their goals may not be completely the same, but in the shared experience of the partners, both people achieve their independent and combined goals.

In the VA/Client relationship, the VA gives all she has, in terms of talents, skills and resources — BUT here's the important point: while it would seem she does so simply for the good of the client, that's simply not so. That's more traditional corporate thinking.

Instead, partnerships create constant benefit for all involved, and as such, the VA derives as much benefit from the relationship as the client, and in very similar ways.

While the client may grow a business, free up more time for family and friends, do only the things he/she's good at, and generally have a better quality of life as a result of the relationship with the VA, the VA benefits by having greater freedom and flexibility, grows her own business, does the work she most loves and is good at doing, and generally has a better quality of life.

The client gets all this by giving work TO his VA partner, and the VA gets all this by taking work FROM her client partner.

Neither can have all they want and need when working alone. The VA/Client partnership synergistically provides the missing elements.

Q: Why would I want to do this at home, rather than working for a company in their offices?

A: For all the reasons I mentioned above, plus one: control over your own life.

Life is, after all, short. We don't get to rehearse it. What you have is what you have, and unless you're willing to take a stand and do what you love and makes you happy, you're likely to have regrets when you get to the end of your life.

If you want it badly enough, you can have it all -- fabulous well-paying work, and a high-quality personal life. If you don't have that now, perhaps you should ask yourself what would bring it to you.

Q: What's the idea behind Virtual Assistance?

A: Originally, it was driving by corporate downsizing, and by the reality that more and more people were starting their own small or home-based businesses. In order for them to maximize their potential, they really need support of all kinds. As time has gone by, those same kinds of clients still need support, but other client groups have emerged as well. All of them needing the administrative expertise and passion they lack.

Working in a collaborative relationship with a Virtual Assistant is a terrific way to get that support.

Q: Who would work with a VA?

A: All sorts of people. Consultants (marketing, sales, management, corporate, etc.), coaches, professional speakers, CPA's, attorneys, writers, photographers, authors, professional athletes, celebrities, therapists, financial planners, stock brokers, executive recruiters, entrepreneurs - what professions can you think of where a small business owner would need support? The list is limitless! Additionally, we're seeing a trend toward busy families having relationships with VAs as a way to recoup valuable family time rather than dealing with the overwhelming number of tasks and family management details faced on a daily basis.

Q: OK, but why wouldn't they work with a temp?

A: If they have a home-based business, it's unlikely that a temp agency will send someone to work with them. More importantly, they still need to have the space, furniture and equipment in order to have a temp; expenses many small business owners would rather not have.

And families could hire a housekeeper, however the expense is usually prohibitive, where the cost of working with a VA is affordable.

Q: How do I decide if being a VA is the right career path for me?

A: If you're here reading this, if what you're reading is exciting to you, if you have great administrative, communication, and cyber skills, if you genuinely love being of service, if the idea of collaboratively supporting a busy person jazzes you, if you are insatiably curious, love to learn, and love being a resource for people, if you want to create a company of your own visioning — one where you'll do work you love with dynamic people, chances are becoming a VA is right for you.

Q: Aren't the skills I have enough for me to just go out and start working now?

A: Perhaps you have great office and administrative skills. That's perfect! You'll need those every day you work with others as a VA. Still, my experience tells me that that learning to build a virtual business and develop a successful thriving practice happens far more quickly and easily when you get industry specific training.

I firmly believe that anyone considering this profession probably needs additional training. I am certain that people who get great training and really understand the power created in the relationship between the VA and the person assisted, will get their practices up and running much quicker than those who try to do it on their own.

It's a fact that most new businesses won't make it to their fifth year. You and your business deserve every advantage to get you to that point, and beyond. I think professional training gives you that advantage.

Having said that -- you can do it without training. I did. And I was terrifically successful, and possibly the highest paid VA ever. But I stumbled a lot. I made some really horrible decisions. I participated in groups for women business owners where it was clear to me that the opinions I was getting as I asked for ideas and support were coming from others who weren't in any better shape in their own businesses than I was in mine. It felt very much like the blind leading the blind, and no one seemed particularly sure about what she was doing, or especially happy. And despite the fact that I had the support of a fabulous professional coach who helped me a great deal, doing it on my own held me back in significant ways.

Part of the reason I founded AssistU was to provide to others an absolute formula for success, so that they could avoid the potholes and pitfalls, so they could have a strong foundation for their new businesses, so that they could not only start, but sustain a business that would make it, long-term, and that would support them in living high-quality lives of their own creation.

And that's the work I do now, every day of my life.

Q: Can this be done part-time?

A: You can structure your practice any way you like. It's your business! You set your own hours, and if you only have one day a week, or evenings and weekends only, go for it!!

Finding clients who need that kind of support might be a bit more difficult than it would be if you were available from 9-5, but it can be done.

Some people think they'd like to keep a full-time job, and work part-time as a VA in the evening and on weekends, building a practice until the income generated is on par with the income earned at the full-time job. If that's something you're considering, know that, depending on your circumstances and financial needs, that might not be an especially realistic goal, as it may require you to work more hours than you have the capacity to handle.

What's more realistic is that you have a transition plan — a way to move from working full-time to working in your own business. There are only a few ways to make that happen without making yourself crazy in the process, and most of them require you to make some firm choices for your life because transitions aren't easy. If you want to make the transition, however, you'll find a way to make it work for you.

Q: How do VAs find clients?

A: I strongly believe in the adage, "Give a man a fish, feed him for a dayl; teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime." As such, it's important, in my opinion, that anyone starting a business be prepared to do what it takes to find and connect with clients. Since prospective clients are everywhere, you'll need to learn about marketing your services and making yourself attractive to them. At AssistU, we don't teach people how to sell themselves; we find most people are disgusted by the idea and scared of doing it at the same time. We endorse and train people to become more attractive, and then share many attractive marketing and practice building strategies. As a wonderful addition to their own efforts, our graduates have access to high-quality client referrals through our Registry, and can join other professional groups and websites where they can connect with people who are interested in their services. Most of those same groups are available to VAs who create their practices on their own.

Q: How long does it take to build a successful VA practice?

A: A lot depends on the time you have to invest. If your plan is to launch into this and do it full-time, you could have a full practice in a matter of months. If you plan to work part-time, and you have less time to invest now in marketing your services, it could take longer.

Traditional business wisdom tells us that it takes an average small business owner three to five years to build a business. It could take you that long, and you need to be ready for that reality. Most VAs do it in far less time.

Q: What kinds of work might I do as a VA?

A: The beauty of this work is that the only things you can't really do are things which actually need to be touched in your client's office, such as paper filing (and even that's possible if you're creative!). Otherwise, you and your clients are only bound by imagination, need, skills and desire.

Some things we've known VAs to do:

* Handle email or US mail, handling most and forwarding to the client just those which need his/her attention
* Make appointments, keep a schedule
* Make/receive phone calls/inquiries
* Fax/receive faxes
* Research of all sorts
* Plan meetings and events
* Plan parties (business and personal), weddings, reunions
* Make travel arrangements — business and personal
* Handle reservations for seminars given by clients
* Writing
* Proof reading
* Copy editing
* Desktop publishing
* Newsletter publishing (print and internet)
* Coordination of web design/hosting
* Mailings
* Buy gifts/cards for customers of clients
* List managing (majordomo, listserv)
* Reminder service
* Transcription and Dictation
* Bill paying
* Bookkeeping — business and personal
* Manage vendor relations
* Create/maintain databases

You'll remember that all of that is done with a foundation of providing classic administrative and/or personal support.

It's not so important that you know how to do it all. What's important is that you know how to get it all done. That's what's important to clients, and part of what creates uncommon value for them.

Q: What could I expect to earn?

A: Much depends on your skills, what you want to do, how much value you create, your experience, etc.

Generally speaking, an experienced assistant with a new VA practice, great skills and great VA training can expect to make $30+ per hour. A VA with an established practice can make much more ($40 - $70+ per hour). VAs who are professionally certified earn more still. Generally speaking, we've seen VAs who rely solely on their administrative skills and the advice/support of other new business owners to create their businesses billing at rates of $25 or less per hour; those billing at significantly less per hour are doing so, I suspect, simply because they don't know how to put a fair value their services.

Q: How do I move forward to building a VA practice of my own?

A: Some people try to do it on their own. If you want to do that, here are some resources for you:

* International Virtual Assistants Association: www.ivaa.org

* StaffCentrix: www.staffcentrix.com

* VA4Hire: www.va4hire.com

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Others feel that it's important and/or smart for them to be professionally trained. If you want a road-map for success through professional training, please visit AssistU. We offer the most comprehensive synchronous and asynchronous training program and certification for VAs.

This article talks about:

* virtual assistants and what they do

* good ways to network when you arrive

* business concepts to be aware of

Kathie has been a keen supporter of Newcomers Network for several years. We invited her to answer a few questions and here are her responses.

1. What are the best ways to market an online 'virtual' business in Australia - both online and offline?

Offline - via the passing of business cards, attending networking meetings, producing a regular newsletter and giving good service so that current clients will refer me!

Online - keeping my website up to date with fresh content, registering with search engines, making sure my website URL is listed on all my stationery and printed materials, and joining online networking groups. Oh, make sure the web address is in the signature block of all emails that leave my computer!

Actually, making sure you're listed online with directories, search engines and anywhere else is a real plus like Google, Altavista and Yahoo! are just some.

Yesterday (Sunday 27th July), an article was in the Small Office Home Office section of The Age (Melbourne) because the reporter was researching home offices on the internet and everywhere he looked (his words) my name and website kept coming up. I have had this same comment from other people researching my industry as a virtual assistant, and as a result, have been in many major newspapers and other publications, including Reader's Digest.

2. What are the common mistakes businesses make when they are seeking casual support staff?

That the support staff know and understand the 'history' of their business. Most seeking to engage staff forget that the staff do not have background knowledge of their business and what might be commonly understood as part of the culture in that office is frequently something the support staff will not know. It's a learning process - each business has its own culture and way of doing things.

Acronyms are another barrier. I've worked for two large organisations that both used ERL which meant different things - even now I can only remember one interpretation 'Electronics Research Laboratory' - it caused considerable confusion for me at the time.

3. How do you choose a good quality network for new opportunities in a new location?

It depends on what you are looking for and where you are at in life. For us, when we shifted from Adelaide to Melbourne late 1991, the key things we needed at the time were babysitters and cleaners. We both had found jobs as we worked with the government at that time and my husband was being transferred. We connected with a branch of the church we'd been attending in South Australia and found a good cleaner and a number of reliable babysitters in a babysitting circle through the church. We had five young daughters at that stage and knowing they were safe was the ultimate thing for us.

Today if we were doing a shift? Again a church as that is where many of our friends and our support network comes from. For my husband it would be ensuring a good job - his life revolves around his job, family and church. Also some cycling buddies (he's a keen cyclist so he would need to find a club). For me because I run my business online, the things I'd need to locate would be good suppliers of stationery, printing, etc and I usually find these through joining business networks such as http://www.bni.com.au and http://www.bnimelbourne.com.au and http://www.leadsclub.com.

4. What tips would you recommend for newcomers to Australia when preparing written correspondence (including business proposals)?

Be aware of possible differences in the understanding of some words and terminologies, also cultures. Perhaps seek the support of administrative support that can help you put your paperwork together. Be prepared to listen and take advice.

Many people forget to date their correspondence or document. People overseas, particularly India, assume that the business owner is a man - many times I've had to respond and tell them I'm a Mrs, not a Mr and definitely not a sir. One actually responded and said that his upbringing was responsible for his form of approach. However, if someone is contacting me after visiting my website I would think they would check out the 'about us' page and see immediately that the owner/operator is a woman.

5. Describe two of the most unusual situations you have had to deal with on behalf of clients?

Can't think of anything quickly. Perhaps having someone wanting me to research arms, artillery and guns for him - I declined. I didn't know the guy, although he was referred to me by another client in the USA. In today's climate I just don't want to get involved in anything that might later turn out to be something I wished it wasn't. Sometimes it's better to be cautious.

6. What are the most challenging aspects of virtual administration?

Getting the clients to understand what it is we do exactly. Which is really almost anything a regular Personal Assistant does, except it's done virtually - by email, internet (file transfer protocol, uploading/downloading, etc), fax, phone, courier and mail.

I recently spoke to one prospective client (referred to me by someone else) who was extremely negative about the Internet and doesn't trust it - I think he thought I was some sort of con artist. I can't work with anyone like that as they're not willing to bend or learn.

7. What sorts of people are attracted to and good at this type of work?

For clients:

Almost anyone - people who have a home office themselves but do not have the office space, furniture or equipment to place someone in their office with them. Those who are happy to pay for x number of hours of support per month for work that is done, rather than engaging someone to sit in their office and pay for down time as well as work time.

Businesses that have overflow work and are happy to outsource it. Many of my clients are in the speaking industry and I look after their databases, mailouts, client contacts, powerpoint presentations, workbook presentation and formatting, letters, mail merges, newsletters and Internet research. I do bookkeeping for some also.

For workers:

Those with good secretarial and/or administrative backgrounds who are fed up with constant meetings, interruptions, traffic and just want to be home - that was me! I've since heard from many (mainly women) who feel the same way.

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Kathie M. Thomas, AFAIOP, MVA, ASO is the founder of "A Clayton's Secretary", a Virtual Assistant Network with members in many countries. Dedicated to teaching others about operating business over the Internet, Kathie is a multiple award winner as both a Secretary and Virtual Business Operator, and has over 30 years' experience in the secretarial/administrative field. She registered her business in March 1994 and is one of the senior VAs who launched the industry globally. http://www.vadirectory.net.

Help manage clients' offices from your home office.

You're a valuable, trustworthy office assistant or administrator. You're successful at your job because you complete tasks in a way that makes your boss look good and feel better. But you'd rather work for yourself and be in charge of your own time. Maybe you want to be at home when your kids arrive from school, or maybe you're just tired of commuting. Maybe you dream of living in the mountains or your rural hometown, but you still want to produce an income.

The good news is, the explosion of the Internet and the global economy has produced not only the virtual organization, but also a new business opportunity: the virtual assistant.

As a virtual assistant, you take on the nitty-gritty work for independent professionals and small businesses that don't need a full-time secretary or office manager. Your tasks may include secretarial work, meeting and travel planning, project managing, and logistics coordinating.

If you work as a virtual assistant for a start-up company, you may be busy finding sources of insurance or outfitting an office on a minimal budget. You may help an independent professional like an author or consultant manage his or her hectic life by arranging for pet sitting, calling a plumber, scheduling doctor's appointments, planning a family reunion or coordinating a move. You may do market research, write proposals, send out marketing materials and news releases, handle the billing and bookkeeping, or update your client's Web site.

Depending on the needs and personalities of both you and your client, you may work "on call" or set your own schedule. But in all cases, you're virtual, working from your home for clients who may be based in your community or on another continent, communicating via e-mail, phone, fax and online instant messaging. You and your client may even coordinate via online intranets or have access to each other's computers with software like Symantec's PC Anywhere.

Virtual assistants typically earn between $20 and $45 per hour, but those with more specialized expertise and upscale clients like attorneys may charge more than $100 per hour. Some VAs have retainer arrangements with clients who commit to paying for 10 to 20 hours a month, sometimes at a discounted hourly rate.

There are several places you can obtain training to become a virtual assistant. Stacy Brice, one of the founders of the field, offers virtual training at AssistU, and the International Virtual Assistants Association (IVAA) offers a certification program.

Once you're trained, some job sites like Guru.com and FreeAgent.com have specific listing categories for virtual assistants. Another matching service where virtual assistants can list their services in more than 50 different categories is IVAA affiliate Staffcentrix, which bills itself as a "Virtual Assistant Internet Portal."

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Paul and Sarah Edwards are the award-winning co-authors of thirteen books, including Working From Home, The Best Home Businesses for the 21st Centuryand their latest book, The Practical Dreamer's Handbook. More information is available on their Web sites, www.workingfromhome.com and www.simplegoodlife.com.

Part 1 of a two-part series.

Two years ago, there was no such thing. Today, thousands of independent contractors call themselves virtual assistants. While many are former brick-and-mortar executive and administrative assistants, other types of workers are standing under the VA umbrella - IT workers, paralegals, even some accountants and comptrollers. Some are military spouses, many were recently laid off, others juggle full-time jobs while trying to launch VA practices in the off hours - and all are working from home.

Virtual assistants rely heavily on VA industry organizations, Web portals and clearing houses to learn the business, gain support and find clients. At this early stage, at least two nonprofit U.S.-based industry associations have gained decent momentum: the International Virtual Assistants Association (IVAA) and the International Association of Virtual Office Assistants (IAVOA). There's also Staffcentrix, the private company that founded the industry in 1999 and spun off its nonprofit arm IVAA last year. The three step all over each other, offering members education, certification, peer mentoring, community features (chats, bulletin boards), downloadable business forms, conferences and client leads. The IAVOA offers discounted Web hosting and ISP services as well. The good news is that membership to each is cheap: $30 to $50 per year, so most VAs belong to more than one.

Philosophies vary, if only slightly, among the groups. While everyone agrees that the role of certification is to police the industry and increase the quality of work, the IVAA believes VA training and certification must be skills based, and offers an exam that tests proficiency in a number of areas. "People think if they have a computer and can type, they can be a VA. There's a lot more to it. We do a lot of coaching on how to work alone, remotely, and encourage VAs to get certified," explains IVAA President and VA Terri Lee Romine.

But IAVOA CEO Alfred Gandee - a retired army sergeant major and VA - believes certification should be based solely on experience, and as such his organization checks applicants' work history, former employees and references.

How many VAs are there today? Since groups won't share membership data, there's no central registry of VAs to survey. Gandee says his group claims a few hundred members earning anywhere from $8 to $50 per hour, who work for as many as four clients at once. Romine's group has about 300 members, most of whom are just starting out. Staffcentrix claims 1,075 worldwide members and released a survey in January that sheds some light on VA demographics. While only 12% responded, the company claims membership has "nearly doubled" since the survey was completed.

The full survey is available at www.staffcentrix.com, it's interesting to note that 97% of its members are female; 36% have been in the business less than a year; 40% also work full or part time for an employer; 50% are work-at-home parents; 36% are military spouses; and 14% live in rural or underemployed areas. Most common professional services offered: 64% desktop publishing; 56% Web research; 73% word processing. Services range from technical writing, systems management, marketing and advertising, call center support, programming, graphic design, database management and academic writing.

IAVOA and Staffcentrix each have big plans that could be very good for telework. Gandee is launching a company that will bid for large military and private sector contracts and farm them out to IAVOA-certified members. And this January, Staffcentrix will launch the first of three initial pilot programs to help military spouses launch VA practices on Cannon Airforce Base in Clovis, New Mexico.

In time, the initiative will "involve several hundred thousand military spouses and will dramatically change the landscape of VA and probably telework in general," Staffcentrix CEO Michael Haaren says.

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Toni Kistner is managing editor of Net.Worker. Contact her at tkistner@nww.com.

Do you want to start a home business with the technology knowledge you have and/or do you possess good secretarial skills? If so being a Virtual assistant just might be the right home business for you.

Virtual assistants are independent entrepreneurs who work remotely and use technology to deliver services to clients globally doing various clerical and administrative tasks for individuals and companies. So you can work from your home offices and receive their project instructions by phone, fax, e-mail or even instant message. Although many virtual assistants offer secretarial services, as more people with diverse backgrounds and skills enter the this business, virtual assistants who specialize in such areas as marketing, graphic and Web design, IT support or even translations are becoming more common.

So why do these clients want the services of a Virtual Assistant? Clients are most likely to hire virtual assistants to save money—virtual assistants pay for their own equipment, taxes, training, healthcare and insurance—or because they need help with a temporary project. Industries most often hiring virtual assistants include the real estate, coaching, financial services, accounting and legal.

The online revolution has made this business possible. Essentially, you can do everything from your office that you might do at a worksite - except perhaps greet guests and make coffee! You would be your own boss and could have flexibility in scheduling and in choosing what kinds of work to accept.

What you would need:
A computer with internet access (preferably high-speed).
A business phone line (and some companies may want you to add a separate line to answer their calls).
A printer
A fax machine
Office space

Essential Skills
Successful virtual assistants are good at organizing, planning, scheduling, communication, writing, and dealing with people. Just like any good administrative assistant, your job would be to handle projects and tasks requested by the company or person who contracts your services. Your computer skills should be excellent and should include word processing, spreadsheets, databases, and of course emailing, instant messaging and internet navigation.

How to Start
As with any home-based business, check with your local government about business licensing requirements. Typically, your state or county officials can help you get up and running.

There are many certification programs available that may be helpful to you in establishing your credibility and getting clients. Examples include AssistU, IVAA and VACertification.com. These sites can also give you tips on running your virtual assistant business.

Here’s how you can grow
Small businesses and individuals are good targets for your services. Entrepreneurs often do not have time to do many of the clerical tasks that must be done and need help. Examples are business start-ups, other home-based businesses, attorneys, independent real estate and insurance agents, and even writers and artists.

To market your virtual assistant business, you need a resume with good references. Prior administrative experience is definitely a plus. In fact, one of your first clients could be your former employer.

Make a list of all the things you could do – word processing, writing and mailing letters, setting appointments or keeping a schedule, maintaining databases, paying bills, making travel arrangements, setting up meetings or seminars, answering telephones, doing research, and so on. If you have prior experience in secretarial work you are a definite advantage. Inside knowledge of a specific industry will definitely help, too.

What to Charge
Rates vary for virtual assistants based on the industry you work in and your experience. The range is from $12 an hour and up, with $20 being fairly common, but some virtual assistants can make over $50 per hour. When setting your fees, remember that you have to pay your own Self-Employment Tax (social security), insurance and other “benefits”.

You can charge by the project, or you can charge a “retainer” for a certain number of hours per week that would cover any projects your client assigned.

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Joyce Gowens is Editor in Chief of Bizynews, and Home Business Expert at www.bizymoms.com. Bizymoms.com is the leading online resource for work-from-home ideas and home business start-up. The site offers home-based business start-up kits, online classes, e-books, chats and enthusiastic support for moms who want to have it all – a family and a career. Visit www.bizymoms.com for more information.

With gas prices rising, many displaced from their jobs, and more and more businesses downsizing, comes the need for finding an alternative way to make a good income. Now more than ever, families are seeing the need for two incomes. One Industry that is increasing in popularly today, being rated one of the top 5 home-based businesses for 2005 by Entrepreneur Magazine last year, is virtual assisting. Becoming a VA allows you to work from anywhere in the world and requires little in the way of start-up costs or fees. The main requirement is the ability to type well and a good understanding of the Internet.

By definition, a Virtual Assistant or VA, is a highly skilled professional who provides administrative support and other specialized services to businesses, entrepreneurs, authors, online businesses, executives, sales professionals and others who have more work to do than time to do it. Many VA's also provide web design and maintenance, publicity and marketing, desktop publishing, word processing, and business start-up consultations. The services are endless depending upon the VA's knowledge, skills and creativity.

Virtual assistants are instrumental in helping businesses with their marketing, capability to run their offices getting more work accomplished, and also they have a solid understanding of the latest tools to make a business succeed. One example is blogging. We all know that it is essential for a business to have a blog today to succeed, yet many businesses don't have the time to create and maintain a blog. A good virtual assistant will handle that for you and more.

"What started out in the 80's as home-based word processors has grown into what we are seeing today," says Diana Ennen, President of Virtual Word Publishing. "Plus more and more clients are realizing the need to outsource their work and let a professional virtual assistant do it, so they can focus on that they do best, running their business."

Ennen, along with co-author Kelly Poelker have written, "Virtual Assistant ~ the Series, Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA It has the endorsement of work-at-home experts Priscilla Huff and the Mompreneurs® as well as a number of others and has helped thousands over the years start their own thriving business. Virtual Assistant The Series is also the primary textbook for the Red Deer College-Canada VA Certification Program in Canada, Owens College, and several other large colleges, and is required reading for students of "Virtual Assistance U" -- an online training center for virtual professionals.

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For free information on starting a virtual assistant business or to find a qualified virtual assistant, stop by Ennen's new site, Publicity-VA.com You'll also find publicity tips, free booklets on obtaining clients, and sample letters and chapters from their book. Start today in the successful career you've been longing for - a home-based virtual assistant business.

One of the fastest growing home-based business opportunities can help other home-based businesses grow their business. Virtual assistants (VAs) function as online lifesavers for offices of all sizes.

VAs are professional office assistants who provide office services and support without being physically present. They provide a wide range of business services through the Internet, fax and telephone. Unlike temporary employees, VAs are entrepreneurs -- just like many of their clients. Since much of their work is done online, they can work locally or globally.

A virtual assisting business can be started virtually overnight with a computer, online connection, Web site and some sharp office skills. Services range from accounting to bookkeeping; from research to transcription. VAs can make travel arrangements, provide desktop publishing, offer mailing services and help with marketing, billing and word processing.

It's estimated that an efficient VA can make between $25 and $50 an hour, depending on their skills and the kinds of services offered.

Dan Ramsey, author of 101 Best Home Businesses, writes that an established secretarial business should be able to bill at least 75 percent of time to clients. He estimates that overhead expenses for a secretarial-word-processing service range from 20 percent to 40 percent including taxes. This means that VAs could probably keep 60 to 80 cents of every dollar they bring in, according to Ramsey.

The term "virtual assistant" began appearing on Web sites about six years ago. As corporate downsizing and budget cuts continue, VAs will likely be in big demand. Since a VA is a contractor, employers don't have to pay taxes, insurance or any fringe benefits. There's no need for extra office space or equipment. And the employer only pays for "time on task."

Virtual assisting lends itself to both full-time and part-time work. For example, Andrea Pixley, the mother of three and a military spouse, uses her VA business to supplement the family's income. She wanted to find a home-based business that wouldn't be affected whenever her family moves.

"I got started as a VA by first researching other VA's Web sites. I felt confident enough with my skills, and I had all the equipment, so I put up my own Web site," Pixley said. "It took awhile to get my first client, but now I have clients all over the country. I live in New Mexico, but my clients include a business coach in San Francisco, a custom rug maker in Northern California and a marketer in New Jersey, to name a few.

"You have to be organized to be a good VA," she said. "It's a lot harder than you think. You have to be able to run your own business and keep track of all your client projects, too. You also have to market your business every day."

Kathy Ritchie, an Aurora-based VA, says that virtual assistants are in demand, but it takes work to be successful.

"The market is changing and more people are becoming aware of the option of hiring a VA. Self-promotion can be difficult," she said. "A good way to generate business is to build an alliance with a company instead of just getting project work. That way, the company can outsource special or ongoing projects. The ideal place for a VA is to work with a smaller business that can't afford to hire full-time staff."

If you're thinking of becoming a VA, Ritchie recommends getting certified. "It's the equivalent of the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval," she said.

AssistU, an online program affiliated with CoachU, offers training, coaching and referrals for VAs. The Virtual Training Program is an intensive 20-week program. Graduates can earn a Certified Professional Virtual Assistant designation.

The International Virtual Assistants Association, a nonprofit organization, also offers certification. Another certification program is provided as a joint effort of three VA industry leaders: the International Association of Virtual Office Assistants, A VirtualSolution and VirtualAssistance U.

Certification can come in handy when selling your services to people you meet over the Internet, according to Ritchie. "One of the obstacles to hiring a VA, from the client's perspective, is the uncertainty of who they're working with. Trust is something that needs to be built over a period of time," she explained.

According to Staffcentrix, a VA referral service, people from all walks of life are becoming VAs -- including work-at-home moms, people with disabilities, downsized executives, baby boomers nearing retirement, people in rural locations and people who want to reach a global market through the Internet.

If you've always dreamed of having an assistant but couldn't afford an employee, help is now just a mouse click away.

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Jodi Torpey is owner of She Writes, He Draws in Denver. She can be reached by e-mail at torpend@ix.netcom.com.

Liz DePalmer, owner of Reno-based Business Elf, has clients she’s never met face to face, most of which are located out of state.

“Everything that I do is through e-mail,” the 32-year-old said. “Virtually everything is online. I’ve even done chat sessions with one of my clients as opposed to doing a phone conversation.”

She offers business writing, desktop publishing, document scanning, file conversion, editing/proofreading, graphic design, graphic scanning, spreadsheets, Internet research, real-estate agent support, resume writing, Web site design and hosting, and word processing.

Raquel Nilson, owner of Lake Tahoe-based Executive Assistance International, has mostly overseas clients. Eighty percent of communication with them is via the Internet.

Her skills are similar to DePalmer’s but also include accounting, database management, database design/ programming, desktop publishing, interpreting, import/export support, Internet commerce, mailing services, marketing/advertising, market research, multimedia presentation, nonprofit support services, office management, programming, public relations systems management and technical writing/editing.

DePalmer and Nilson are two of a new breed of administrative assistant — virtual assistants — independent entrepreneurs who offer business support services in a virtual environment.

Virtual assistants work off-site, use their own equipment and software, and provide services to home-, Web- or storefront-based small businesses, executives and individuals.

Virtual assistants began to appear around 1995 because of a combination of factors, including Internet growth, corporate downsizing, the evolution of telecommuting relationships and increased virtual services in general, according to the International Virtual Assistants Association.

“What gave the industry a shove is that it’s more acceptable to work at home now,” said Terri Romine, IVAA president and virtual assistant.

The main advantage to using virtual assistants is the cost savings to the employer, Romine said.

“There’s a lot of savings to be had with the employer not having to pay benefits and employment taxes,” she said. “The virtual assistant is only paid for the actual time spent.”

DePalmer charges $30 an hour. Nilson charges by the hour or by the project, the cost depending upon the type of work performed.

Most virtual assistants have a broad skill set, Romine said. They try to be a partner to their clients.

“The virtual assistant is very interested in their clients’ success,” she said. “If their client is not successful, they don’t have a client.”

Romine said she anticipates the virtual assistant industry will continue growing.

“It is not a trend,” she said. “I believe it is very much here to stay.”

In fact, since 2000 the IVAA has grown from 60 members to more than 500.

“Again, it’s people learning more about it,” Romine said. “There are just so many people who want to work at home and not rely on a company to employ them.”

The career of a virtual assistant is not without its challenges. DePalmer said she struggles with landing new clients and finding the time to market her business. Nilson, on the other hand, said adjusting to working with clients in different time zones has been difficult, particularly when she’s had to work in the middle of night and during the day.

Nevertheless, both said they find being a virtual assistant rewarding. DePalmer said she’s thrilled with being able to work from home.

“I can have a family life along with my professional life,” she said. “I get to be here with my little ones. I can work pretty much the hours I want to as long as I’m getting everybody’s deadlines met.”

Nilson said she enjoys being able to work anywhere and the flexibility that allows her. She also likes the variety in her workload.

“It’s not just one thing that you do over and over,” the 38-year-old said. “You get exposed to different kinds of businesses, too. You get to learn a lot, which is quite interesting.

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SPECIAL TO THE RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL - Posted: 8/19/2002

With the latest technologies, the rapid growth of the Internet, and the business community recognizing the benefits of partnering with a qualified virtual assistant, the virtual revolution has begun.

According to a 2004 study, the Center for Women’s Business Research reports there are an estimated 10.6 million privately-held, 50% or more women-owned firms in the U.S., accounting for nearly half (47.7%) of all privately-held firms in the country. Astonishing, isn’t it?

It’s the dream of millions to start their own business and utilize their computer to make money at home. Now, with the help of Diana Ennen and Kelly Poelker’s latest book, Virtual Assistant – The Series, 3rd Edition ($29.95, Another 8 Hours Publishing), it’s a reality! With the latest technologies, the rapid growth of the Internet, and the business community recognizing the benefits of partnering with a qualified virtual assistant, the virtual revolution has begun. And there is no end in sight!

What started out in the 80’s as home-based word processors has grown into what we are seeing today. The local limitations are gone. The boundaries are erased. Modern advancements and the sheer power of the Internet coupled with enterprising, cutting edge entrepreneurs such as these authors have skyrocketed this industry. They know the technology. They have the resources. And they’ve written the book on it! A book so powerful that it’s cited as the “bible” for the virtual assistant industry. Virtual Assistant – The Series is currently used as training material for VA courses including: Virtual Assistance U, an online training center for virtual professionals; Red Deer College’s VA Certification Program (in Canada); and other higher level learning organizations and colleges who are recognizing the potential for growth and continued education in the VA industry.

Priscilla Y. Huff, Author of 101 Best Home-Based Businesses for Women, 3rd. rev .ed, states, “It’s more than just a startup manual, it is written by professional virtual assistants (VAs) who combine their knowledge and experience with practical tips from other successful VAs to help ensure your own success in this exciting new venture. Virtual Assistant – The Series is an essential tool for launching one of the most exciting new entrepreneurial ventures–becoming a professional virtual assistant.”

This book leaves no stone unturned. Virtual Assistant – The Series is a complete guide to starting and running a successful and PROFITABLE practice. It covers the nuts and bolts that are the foundation of a successful practice including business and financial planning, bookkeeping, marketing, and setting up a business. Plus it offers information on domain registration, creating a web site, and most importantly, how and where to find clients.

Virtual Assistant – The Series: Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA 3rd Edition Revised ISBN # 0-9742790-5-6 is available at Amazon, Borders, and online bookstores everywhere also at www.VA-TheSeries for $29.95 plus $5.00 shipping and handling. (First and second editions published under the title Up Close and Virtual).

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About the Author » View Author Profile

Diana Ennen, Author; Virtual Assistant the Series, Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA, and Words From Home, Start, Run and Operate a Successful Word Processing Business available at http://www.virtualwordpublishing.com. She also does publicity and book marketing and has published the science fiction thriller, Sledgehammer by Paulo J. Reyes, M.D.

According to the “George Washington University Forecast of Emerging Technology” (January 2000) revolutionary innovation is now occurring widely in all scientific and technological fields. This phenomenon has been brought about by the IT revolution which is being used as a tool to spread and accelerate scientific and technological advances across a much wider spectrum than previously imagined. As a result over the next 20 to 30 years a broad array of new technologies will emerge in what many now call the coming “technological revolution.”

The report goes on to say that "...the virtual assisting industry is growing rapidly and is expected to be a $130 billion industry by 2008, but it could be larger."
Chronology of Emerging Technologies

Year	Technology	Year	Technology
2003	Portable IT Devices	2007	Mass Customization
2003	Electronic Banking	2008	Virtual Assistants
2003	Electronic Commerce	2008	Genetically Designed Species
2004	Entertainment on Demand	2008	Information Appliances
2006	Fuel Cell Cars	2008	Modular Software
2006	Distant Learning	2009	Computerized Healthcare
2006	Human PC Interface	2010	Fuel Cells
2006	Online Publishing	2010	Computer Translation
2006	Hybrid Autos	2010	Teleworking

Sources: George Washington University Forecast of Emerging Technology, January 2000, Highlights from the George Washington University Forecast of Emerging Technology, Dr. William Halal, December 2000, Technology: A Prism for Learning (Emerging Technologies 2001-2030), Thomas Gaylord Ph.D.., April 2001.

Furthermore, the report documents that by 2008, experienced Virtual Assistants, “highly skilled and knowledgeable office professionals who provide administrative support and specialized business services from an outside location,” will be accepted as viable mainstream business alternatives.

Top-ten Breakthroughs by 2010

Dr. William Halal and his colleagues of George Washington University’s Forecast of Technology and Strategy have for the past decade systematically surveyed a broad range of technologies that are emerging from R&D laboratories worldwide. Based on a Delphi survey comprising 65 leading researchers and consultants George Washington has identified these 10 technologies as breakthrough advance by 2010.

Technology/Technological Outcome	Mainstream Entry	Probability	Level Market Demand
Portable Information Devices	2003	83%	118b
Fuel Cell Cars	2005	70%	69b
Mass Customization	2007	77%	258b
Virtual Assistants	2008	63%	127b
Genetically Modified Species	2008	43%	101b
Computerized Health Care	2008	63%	117b
Optical Computers	2009	58%	120b
Teleliving	2010	60%	349b
Precision Farming	2010	66%	155b
Small Robots	2010	70%	89b

Source: Highlights from the George Washington University Forecast of Emerging Technology, Dr. William Halal, July 2000.

2010 is right around the corner. The scientific and academic communities are acknowledging and validating the virtual assisting industry and its potential financial impact. Mainstream colleges, worldwide, are offering accredited courses and certificate programs. Their efforts, along with promotional campaigns spearheaded by VA industry organizations, leaders and practitioners can drive virtual assisting as a wider accepted alternative for mainstream business and entrepreneurs.

Are you ready?

Excerpts were provided by Marubeni Corporation Economic Research Institute. The complete report can be found at: http://www.marubeni.co.jp/research/eindex/0212-2/

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About the Author

Sharon Williams is a Master Virtual Assistant and president of The 24 Hour Secretary. She is also the Chairperson of The Alliance for Virtual Businesses, whose mission is to promote the VA industry, worldwide. Subscribe to Smart Business = Success, The 24 Hour Secretary's free monthly ezine that provides up-to-the-minute tips that support your continued success. She is the author of Marketing Your VA Practice: It’s Not About Money, It’s About Having the Right Strategy. For more information about how she can save you time and money contact her by email at info@the24hoursecretary.com.

There are basically three general views in today's world of business. The first is that the only thing stable and asset tangible is a company that possesses a building and has in stock an inventory of whatever they are selling. The next are those who have grasped to a certain degree the benefits of virtual assets but are only comfortable with these assets as long as they are representative of a bricks and mortar company. The last of course are those who have grown up with a potion of their reality virtual, and they are as comfortable with browsing a web store as they are walking through a department store, maybe even more so.

There are the inevitable plus and minuses attached to each of these schools of though. Let's discuss the bricks and mortar establishment. There undoubtedly some major advantages to the tangibility of a place where you can pick up the product run your hand over it smell it and make sure it is up to your approval before you lay down your hard earned dollar. Perceived or not some view a bricks and mortar establishment as a guarantee that the consumer will have the customer support necessary should any problems arise with the product. In other words we all like the idea of having a door to kick down and a face to put to the problem, or do we?

That brings us to our next group of consumers. A good example is someone who feels ok about shopping at Costco Online. Although the service provided shows little difference from any other virtual store the difference in reality is that the consumer can imagine that somehow that product is floating off of the shelf at their local Costco, packaged and mailed to their house. The justifications may vary with each person but for the most part it boils down to familiarity. I like to call this phenomenon "the Edsel factor". For those of you born in the last 40 years the Edsel was an extremely innovative car produced in the 50s and 60s. The Edsel however was not as well received as manufactures had dreamed. The Edsel boasted some futuristic options like a push button transmission. Who would not want a car with push button controls? This is "the Edsel factor", your average consumer is just fine with technological advancement and innovation as long as he/she has that gear shift knob to hold onto.

Just look at some of the modern equipment we use everyday, most of it is based on ancient design. Usually we have just improved on the original. If I was looking to market a laser drill, I would first of all want to make sure that the laser drill as much as possible looked and functioned like a traditional drill, even if it was not the most efficient design.

It seems silly to a lot of web design teams but familiarity is much more a factor for product acceptance than functionality is. The key is to make it familiar and functional.

The last group to explore is the virtual generation, or as I like to call them, my kids. It still amazes me to see a three year old navigate the Disney Web Site with utter ease and confidence. The virtual business place is just as real and tangible as the brick and mortar world. The next generation will recognize that the difference between an internet bank and bank on the corner is ease, convenience and cost. In my opinion the web based business will inevitably win out over a majority of brick and mortar establishments, I believe that such establishments will lose momentum in the face of a generation that is 100% web literate. As foot traffic decreases and overhead increases brick and mortar businesses will have to adapt or disappear.

The world is pushing that way at this very moment as the generational torch is passed virtual may very well become a massive part of our reality. The hand writing is on the wall, it just may not be a wall of brick and mortar anymore.

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About the Author: http://www.oinksolutions.com/ http://www.oinksolutions.com/cms/.

WHEN THE TIME CAME FOR WENDY Y. Bailey to promote her one-day coaching workshop earlier this year, she didn't hire a marketing firm to handle the task. She handed over the project to Tonya Thomas, her administrative assistant who oversaw the project from concept to completion.

Using Bailey's handwritten notes, Thomas created an outline of topics to be covered at the event, wrote short descriptions for each topic, and developed e-mail marketing messages that were distributed to Bailey's database of contacts. She then developed a PowerPoint presentation for distribution to seminar participants.

By collaborating with Bailey, Thomas was able to accomplish her tasks and, in many cases, recognize challenges and handle them before they became problems. And Bailey, free of the day-to-day management of the project, was able to focus on the heart of her business while reviewing and approving the administrative tasks Thomas worked on. Each element of the project was completed seamlessly, as if the women had been working together in the same office. But Thomas and Bailey weren't even in the same state.

Thomas, who lives and works in Birmingham, Alabama, is a virtual assistant, a self-employed independent contractor who handles administrative tasks for small offices via e-mail, fax, telephone, and the Internet. Bailey is the owner of Brilliance in Action, an Atlanta-based personal and business coaching firm. She has been using VAs since 2004 as a way to support her growing business. "I look at my VAs as part of my team because they do more than what they're asked to do; they lend their support and creativity to projects," says Bailey.

VAs, one of the fastest growing home-based business opportunities, are often the long-term "growth partners" of the small businesses and independent professionals who hire them. Scores of professional VAs joined the ranks of the self-employed after serving as administrative and executive assistants in the corporate world. Unlike temporary employees, VAs are entrepreneurs, like many of their clients.

The growth of this new, creative labor force is due to advancements in technology. Faster broadband and enhanced communication, such as quick file transfers and video conferencing, are expanding an industry where office professionals can provide administrative and other support services without having to be on-site.

Another factor spurring growth within the VA profession is that small businesses understand the benefits of outsourcing: increased efficiency and reduced labor costs, to name a few. When you hire a VA, you get a computer-trained professional who can provide everything from traditional office support to highly specialized project management.

As small businesses increase their broadband usage, VAs are leveraging enhanced communications tools to become virtual lifesavers. VAs can be located anywhere in the country. They work from their computers, many at home, and don't require office space or health benefits.

Thomas, who launched The Small Office Assistant in 2001, got into the VA industry with $2,500 she used to pay for a computer, fax machine, printer, and a 20-week training program from Assist U, a training, coaching, and referral service for VAs. Armed with administrative experience in the construction and banking industries, Thomas found her first clients by networking at local business groups such as the National Association of Women Business Owners and online through small business-oriented message boards. Today, she works mainly with small business owners (many of whom are home-based), professional coaches, and real estate agents.

Working on a retainer basis only, Thomas collects a fiat fee every month from her clients in exchange for a set number of work hours. She says she devotes about 25 hours a week to her business. Common tasks include e-newsletter management, contact management, database maintenance, bookkeeping, and making travel arrangements.

In exchange, Thomas says she earns a respectable living and is also able to effect change in an industry that's still maturing. "When I started out four years ago, I'd tell people that I was a virtual assistant and get a blank stare," recalls Thomas. "Now, when I tell people that I'm a VA, they ask me what services I can provide."

BIRTH OF AN INDUSTRY

The mutually beneficial relationship between VAs and small businesses has created a virtual small office/home office solution for both parties. More business owners like Bailey are turning to VAs as an alternative to hiring full-time or part-time on-site employees, and VAs are taking advantage of the earnings and job growth potential. For an hourly fee of $15 to $35, skilled VAs are cashing in on the opportunity to handle myriad tasks at the click of a mouse.

In an October 2004 report sponsored by the Alliance for Virtual Businesses (A4VB) and titled A Comprehensive Study of the Virtual Assistant Industry, the birth of the VA industry is traced back to the mid-1990s, when entrepreneurs--some of whom had already been working remotely for their clients--began relying on technology to expand those relationships.

Heading up the charge was Stacy Brice, chief visionary officer at Baltimore-based AssistU.com, which she founded in 1997. "It was the first organization for virtual assistants," recalls Brice. A4VB estimates that approximately 5,000 VAs are in business worldwide; 98% of them are women. Combined, they generate about $132.6 million in annual sales, which is based on the group's average 2003 annual gross sales estimate of $26,519 per VA. Those working part time average $13,813 annually, reports A4VB, while full-time VAs average $38,759 annually.

OVERCOMING THE HURDLES

According to Janet L. Jordan, president of Corpus Christi, Texas-based Virtual Assistance U, the best VAs are organized and adept at multitasking, have excellent communication skills, and possess solid technology knowledge. Many are eager to become successful business owners, says Jordan, who founded VAU in 2000 to serve a growing need for comprehensive, online training for those desiring to launch VA practices.

Minority enrollment in the program is about 30%, with African Americans accounting for about 20% of total enrollment.

But like other fledgling industries, VAs face their set of challenges. Where providing support services to existing companies may seem like a clear-cut business vision, Jordan says many new VAs have a hard time managing their various job functions when providing services to clients for the first time. Answering e-mail messages for a client is one thing, but setting competitive fees, managing accounts receivables, obtaining health insurance, filling the client pipeline, and organizing your day when five different clients are throwing projects at you is entirely different.

Effective planning, done early in the VA's process and updated regularly, says Jordan, can make a significant difference. "At VAU, we explore the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats confronting their practices and develop 'ideal client' profiles," explains Jordan, who advises VAs to look for long-term, retainer-based clients whose needs include marketing, appointment setting, and meeting coordination. "From there, VAs can create a practice that promotes their expertise and sets them apart from others while attracting that ideal client to their practice."

New VAs can also get help from organizations that offer credentials such as VA Certification's Professional Virtual Assistant, Master Virtual Assistant, and AssistU's Virtual Training Program. Obtaining credentials doesn't always require extensive training or education, and some designations are simply given to paying members of an organization.

FUTURE INSIGHTS

A virtual assisting business can be started overnight with a computer, Internet connection, Website, and some sharp office skills. The field is particularly open for African Americans, says A4VB chairwoman Sharon Williams, who notes that minorities have played a prominent role in the industry since its inception.

"Many minorities who now call themselves VAs were actually doing this a long time before the industry was conceived," says Williams. "It's a growing industry because so many small businesses understand that they have to delegate to someone else the responsibilities that they dislike doing or that they don't have time to do anymore."

Virtual Assistant Resources

Interested in becoming a VA, or hiring one? Check out these Websites for more information:

Alliance for Virtual Businesses www.allianceforvirtualbiz.com

Canadian Virtual Assistant Connection www.cvac.ca

International Association of Virtual Office Assistants www.iavoa.com

International Virtual Assistants Association www.ivaa.org

Virtual Assistance U www.virtualassistanceu.com

Basic Training

If the virtual assistance industry sounds like a good business opportunity for you, here are some pointers to get you moving in the right direction:

EQUIPMENT NEEDED: At minimum, you'll need a computer/workstation, desk, fax, scanner, printer, telephone with voicemail or answering machine, a copy machine, and broadband Internet access. Other items you may want to add: a laptop, Webcam, dictation machine, and telephone headset.

SKILLS REQUIRED: Skills that a virtual assistant may find helpful include bilingual capabilities, any earned degrees or certifications in more than one area (such as law, medicine, science, or entertainment), excellent decision making skills, self-discipline, the ability to work under pressure, and the ability to multitask and prioritize.

CERTIFICATIONS AVAILABLE: No specific certifications or designations are required of virtual assistants, although several organizations offer them. The International Virtual Assistants Association (www.ivaa.org), for example, offers a certified virtual assistance exam for $150, while www.vacertification.com offers Professional Virtual Assistant and Master Virtual Assistant certifications for $75 each.

FINDING WORK: Virtual assistants find clients mostly through networking with other professionals. According to the A4VB survey, practicing virtual assistants get the bulk of their clients through word-of-mouth referrals, networking at business functions, and advertising on the Internet via their own Websites. Other strategies include online networking (using industry-related job boards, for example), community involvement, and public speaking.

SETTING AND NEGOTIATING RATES: When establishing rates, be sure to factor in your overhead costs, experience, specialized skill sets, education, and geographic location to come up with a workable number. Also research what other independent professionals are charging and use that as a guide. For example, realize that a virtual assistant with 2 to 5 years of experience located in a rural town in South Dakota may charge $18 per hour. The same VA in New York City could likely charge upwards of $37 per hour. Scope out all projects and their requirements before committing to a fee schedule, and always have in mind a lowest price or hourly rate you're willing to negotiate down to.

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COPYRIGHT 2005 Earl G. Graves Publishing Co., Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2005 Gale Group

I had an interesting email discussion with a member of my team in the past week. She’s trying to decide whether or not to renew her membership or whether to return to the workforce. She’s only been a member for just under six months, so not very long. I had to ask her some questions to get an idea of where she is at and what has taken place at her end to know what to advise her - she was obviously seeking advice, rather than just tell me she wasn’t staying with the team.

A number of items came out in her email back to me and I want to address some of them here, to assist other new VAs who are struggling to get their businesses happening.

You need to be prepared to put time in, in front of the computer, and in the office to develop systems, and get yourself organised to run your own business. Just casually checking in for email now and then to see if a job has come through will not get something happening for you. And this means more than just a couple of hours a day. If you were working 8 hours a day in a corporate office, then it’s realistic to expect you need to put in a good amount of time in your own office. Lack of motivation can be a key factor for many, if nothing happens quickly, i.e. in the first few months. Isolation can often hit too - no face-to-face contact on a daily basis with the people you work for or with.

How long should they hold on or give it a go before giving up? Income is obviously an immediate need and I frequently advise new VAs to get a part-time job so they have some income coming in whilst they are building their businesses. You just can’t quit a fulltime job and expect to be earning from day one - it does take time. The reality is it will probably take a good two years to get your business established so you have regular work coming in - for some it is less, for others more.

Look to see what VA networks are out there, join their chat forums and get a feel for their culture. If you feel the group are people you want to connect with regularly through your business, then consider joining their network as a paid member so you can experience their member benefits, which usually include exposure for your business via website listings and some have client referrals. Don’t make the mistake of thinking though, that joining one or more VA networks are going to keep you busy with clients, although it will definitely help towards that goal, but you need to do more than that. Consider looking for other online business forums too - I’ve often picked up new clients via discussion forums that had nothing to do with being a VA. No business should ever settle for one form of marketing and do nothing else. This applies to both large business and small business alike.

Whilst you will definitely get a number of client referrals sent to you, you also need to look at networking locally in your own vicinity. How many local business networks are there, with business operators who need the services you provide? I know many new VAs think that once they have an office set up at home they don’t ever have to go out in the big wide world to meet people any more, but that is not a reality. Word-of-mouth referrals, which are the best way to get new business, is only going to happen as you meet people, and they meet people. You need to show your face and it’s good to get outside of your four walls on a regular basis. Always take your business cards with you as you never know when you’re going to meet a prospect, could be at the post office, library, school canteen, council office - anywhere you pay bills, purchase something, mix with other people. The reality is that your first clients will more than likely be people who live not that far away from you. Being a virtual assistant does not mean that your clients have to be interstate or overseas - it just means that you are servicing them in a virtual manner.

Whilst I get a lot of online requests for work to be done today, my business was not built via internet access to start with. And evenso today, I still belong to several local business network groups and get lots of word-of-mouth referrals from existing clients and/or people who have heard about me via these business networks. Work is going to come from both offline and online sources and we should never forgo one and concentrate fully on the other. It needs to be an even mix. KMT

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Kathie M. Thomas, AFAIOP, MVA, ASO is the founder of "A Clayton's Secretary", a Virtual Assistant Network with members in many countries. Dedicated to teaching others about operating business over the Internet, Kathie is a multiple award winner as both a Secretary and Virtual Business Operator, and has over 30 years\' experience in the secretarial/administrative field. She registered her business in March 1994 and is one of the senior VAs who launched the industry globally. http://www.vadirectory.net.

What is a Virtual Assistant? This is a question you've probably asked yourself if you have heard of the title "Virtual Assistant." A Virtual Assistant (VA) is an independent contractor and a home-based entrepreneur who uses the Internet, phone, fax, email, and other technology to communicate with his/her clients.

Virtual Assistants provide administrative support and/or specialized business services. Many Virtual Assistants were most often Administrative or Executive Assistants in traditional work environments before launching their Virtual Assistance Practices. Most Virtual Assistants work from their home office and, with the help of technology, other virtual locations. Technology has enabled Virtual Assistants to have a global client base.

Virtual Assistants: What do they do?

Ok...so now you know the answer to the question of what a Virtual Assistant is, now let’s talk about what they do.

Virtual Assistants provide much of the same services as an onsite employee, but without the added expense to employers. Some provide general services while others provide more specialized services such as a Virtual Real Estate Assistant.

Here are some services Virtual Assistants offer (this is not an exhaustive list):

* Website and Graphic Design
* Website Maintenance and Updates
* Online and Offline Marketing and Promotion
* Accounting / Bookkeeping
* Data Entry
* PowerPoint Presentations
* Advertising in Print Media
* Desktop Publishing
* Custom Ad Design for print media
* Travel Arrangements
* Writing, Editing & Researching Services
* Secretarial Services
* Word Processing
* General and Legal Transcription Services
* Database Management
* Personal Assistant Services
* Event Planning
* Technical Support
* Coaching / Consulting
* Customer Service
* Real Estate Support

These are just a few services you can offer as a Virtual Assistant. The more specialized your services are, the less saturated the market will be. Try to find a niche and target market if you have a specialized skill and/or expertise.

Basic equipment and software needed can include, but is not limited to, the following:

Basic Equipment:

* Computer and/or Laptop
* Cable, Satellite, or DSL Internet Service
* Modem
* Fax Machine
* Printer
* Copier
* Scanner
* Telephone with unlimited long distance service
* CD Burner

Software:

* Microsoft Office (Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Word, Publisher, Outlook)
* Macromedia Dreamweaver or Microsoft FrontPage (for web design, editing, and maintenance)
* Instant Messenger (AOL, Yahoo, MSN etc.)
* Antivirus Software
* Adobe Acrobat

While all the equipment and software above is not mandatory, they are very useful and worthwhile to learn how to use.

The Virtual Assistance industry is growing tremendously. It has enabled many to start their own business while being at home with their family. There are many great resources out there if you're an aspiring Virtual Assistant.

If you're an aspiring Virtual Assistant, claim your free e-report "Virtual Assistant Business: A Basic Guide to Start Your Own" at http://www.virtualassistantbusiness.com. VirtualAssistantBusiness.com is a resource site for current and aspiring Virtual Assistants.

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If you're an aspiring Virtual Assistant, claim your free e-report "Virtual Assistant Business: A Basic Guide to Start Your Own" at http://www.virtualassistantbusiness.com. VirtualAssistantBusiness.com is a resource site for current and aspiring Virtual Assistants.

India Jordan is the owner and founder of VirtualAssistantBusiness.com. To learn more about other Virtual Assistant Training programs for aspiring and current Virtual Assistants, visit us today.

What is a Virtual Assistant? And who are you protraying to the business world?

I recently had a wonderful conversation with a woman who was interested in becoming a VA. It was a great reminder about what I believe sets a VA apart from someone offering office support services. I'd like to share with you some of the things that make me so passionate about this profession and hope you will find yourself inspired.

What is a VA?

For me it is not the fact that we provide administrative support or that we work from home offices, it is the totality of the services we provide to support the growth of the client's business and the deeply collaborative nature of the client relationship. This is what I believe sets us apart and makes us Virtual Assistants.

Can you expand on the "collaborative nature of the client relationship"?

When we first begin working with clients we often will be doing smaller administrative tasks or projects very similar to what we did in our employee roles. As we develop the relationship, enter the entrepreneur to begin to see past the day-to-day running of the business and look beyond into the future and growth of the business. We can look at streamlining and improving systems and processes within the business and then to larger goals and visions for the business as a whole by collaborating with our clients.

By sharing our thoughts, ideas, and solutions and not being satisfied with the status quo we work in partnership with the client not for the client. Ask lots of questions and listen carefully to what your client is and is not saying in order to see beyond your current role.

How do I convey this when speaking with clients?

When you are talking to potential clients try to use words such as business solutions, growth and support. Broaden the description of what you are providing. Explain that you partner (not in an legal sense) with clients to support them in all areas of their business including administrative. Make the focus of the conversation on the success of their business in whatever form that may take. Talk about accessing resources whenever necessary and the assistance available from your professional community.

What is meant by "the totality of the services we provide"?

It means that while we do provide administrative services for our client we are not limited to or by those services. Research, implementation, marketing, sales, project management, team building, office management, ghost writing and strategic planning are all areas that a VA can expand into with their client.

I believe if you are only offering bookkeeping then you are not a VA but a bookkeeper, if you only offer editing then you are not a VA but an editor. If you are only offering office support services then you are you a Virtual Assistant? I'll leave that up to you to decide and while some of you may think I am taking a hard line of this and some of you won't agree with me that is okay! If I can inspire some of you to expand your thinking all the better!

What if I don't know how to do some of the things needed by the client?

Be willing to learn, learn and learn some more. One of the wonderful things for me about being a VA is that I am constantly learning new things, and I love to learn! Don't be intimidated by the unknown and know that you can find a solution to just about anything if you put your mind to it. You don't have to know the answers but just be willing to go out and find it. Do this by accessing your community of fellow VA's and other professionals. Even if you think you are not good at something, would not like doing it or don't have the skills for it try it on anyway, you may be surprised to find a hidden gift or passion (I know VA's who have!) If you try something on and it doesn't fit don't be afraid to tell your client and offer to find the right person to fit the bill. Be the source of resources for your client.

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Mary-Lou Ashon successfully launched her Virtual Assistant company in 1997 and holds expertise in organizing information, creation and implementation of administrative procedures and marketing. She has proven that dedication, communication, loyalty and a flare for marketing are keys to developing successful client relationships. Mary-Lou has a keen desire to promote awareness of VAs as a career option both internationally and at home in Canada and has developed a cost effective, convenient and high quality training program which you can locate at http://vatp.ca/.

Not everyone is meant to be an entrepreneur and not everyone is meant to be a VA. It takes a certain kind of person to be able to be both. Let's take a look at what strengths may make up a successful VA.

Building The Foundation

To be a successful VA it's not enough to just be good at administrative tasks, you also have to be able to run your own business. If the focus of a VA is to support our clients with building a successful business then it stands to reason that the better you are at running a successful business the better you will be at supporting your client with creating a successful business.

In order to run a success practice there are skills you need to have or develop. The ability to get really clear on, why you are in business, what impact you want your business to have on the world and document, in detail, all of the systems, procedures, standards and protocols for your company are instrumental to success. Laying a strong foundation is the key to success.

Continued work on your business is essential to sustaining success. Business and strategic planning, marketing, networking and relationship building will continue and sustain the growth of your business. All of this translate to working with your clients.
Soft Skills

Good communication is important in any situation however when developing virtual relationships it is critical to success. Due to the fact that everyone has different styles of communication you need to be able to adjust to various styles of communication and flow between clients matching their style.

If you have a client who is very detailed don't give them just the bottom line and the opposite is true for clients who are bottom line oriented and are not interested in the details. Matching your clients communication style by adjusting your style when necessary will create synergistic communication.

Being solution focused is the corner stone of a good VA. You do not have to have all the answers only the willingness and resources to find out. Doing the research and compiling the end result allows your clients to make good and informed business decisions.

In addition to communication skills the following are valuable soft skills for any VA to have:

* High attention to detail
* Very organized
* Process oriented
* Coachable
* Strong work ethic
* Does complete work
* Takes the initiative
* Has a desire to learn, and expand ideas
* Not afraid to make mistakes
* Confidence to voice opinion
* Minimal supervision and follow up required
* Has the ability to write and edit content text
* Strong technical understanding
* Loves to collaborate and strategize

Technical Skills

The information highway plays an critical role in a VA practice. Because we work virtually you need to have excellent equipment, software, Internet access, equipment and software protection along with a back up system. You need to be able to create a contingency plan should anything happen to the technical side of your business which will allow for minimum down time. VA's are forward thinkers and have paid attention to all the details.

Staying on top of the latest technology, including communication tools and sharing of documents and calendars will put you heads above the rest. Consistent research in this area is a must in order to stay on the leading edge.

The following are the basics for a VA to have:

* PC compatible
* High speed Internet access
* MS Office Suite
* Adobe Acrobat
* Antivirus software
* Firewall
* 512 meg of RAM minimum
* Pentium III processor
* 40 gig hard drive
* Separate business line
* Colour printer
* Fax machine, software or email fax account
* Back up system and process

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Mary-Lou Ashon successfully launched her Virtual Assistant company in 1997 and holds expertise in organizing information, creation and implementation of administrative procedures and marketing. She has proven that dedication, communication, loyalty and a flare for marketing are keys to developing successful client relationships. Mary-Lou has a keen desire to promote awareness of VAs as a career option both internationally and at home in Canada and has developed a cost effective, convenient and high quality training program which you can locate at http://vatp.ca/.

So, why would some believe it doesn’t work? There are a number of reasons and this could end up being a long post, but I’ll try to keep it to a minimum. Firstly, if starting out as a VA you need to realise that approaching other VAs to give you work is NOT the way to go around it. I know and understand the rationalisation of the idea - they would charge a cheaper rate and the VA passing on the work still gets their normal rate, but the reality is that whoever deals direct with the client is putting their name and their business on the line - they have to be responsible for the end result, and therefore would have to spend time checking over the work before passing it on to the client - this could end up being considerable time for very little return (the balance between what is paid out to the subcontracting VA and what is paid by the client), especially if time was spent fixing the job up. If it were passed back to the other VA for fixing up (at no extra charge) then there is a timing issue and whether the client’s deadline is being met. Secondly, when VAs do choose to subcontract work out because they are either too busy, or don’t have all the necessary resources or skills at hand, they are not going to outsource to someone they have no knowledge or experience of (enter the VA forums - more on that in a minute). New VAs need to be dealing with clients direct but I do understand that there is a nervousness about this - it’s breaking new ground. The reality is though, if you are in business for yourself, you do need to take responsibility for marketing your business and learning how to attract clients for yourself - real clients, not just someone subcontracting to you. So, this is where the Virtual Assistant networking forums come into play. Whilst some have membership subscriptions and offer member benefits in the way of web pages, job leads and referrals, discounts on service providers from other businesses (insurances, training, etc), the discussion forums are, in most cases, available to non-financial members as well as financial members. You are welcome to join more than one to get a feel for the different cultures of the groups and the different things that are discussed at the forums. The most valuable thing you are going to learn at a forum is how to operate your business, how to attract clients, how to market your business, how to work with clients, how to handle problems when they arise, how to do all sorts of things. What amazes me though is that some (new) VAs join chat forums and then start selling their services to the discussion forum - that is the WRONG thing to do and totally inappropriate. Everyone else is there to learn, just as you are. The RIGHT thing to do is to join the forums, read through their archives (past messages), see what the most popular topics are, learn from the mistakes of others and apply things that you learn. After settling into the group, introduce yourself and then ask questions, if you’ve seen they haven’t been asked before (or you’ve done a search and can’t find it). Over time other members will get to know who you are, and if you use a signature block, will even check out your website (if you have one) and/or email you privately, especially if they’re seeking help and think you can help them. But, I repeat again, it is NOT appropriate for you start emailing them all and ask them for work. That is the quickest way to put everyone off you and they will not be interested in passing work on at all. Many VAs will tell you they don’t have sufficient work to pass on - this may also be the case. If they themselves are new to the industry and just getting started, or perhaps they choose only to work a few hours a week and have sufficient work for what they wanted, then they won’t have anything to pass on to you. But again, I emphasise, it is important to spend time building relationships, let people get to know you, and spend time learning about the industry and how to run your business. Before you know it you will have your first client and you’ll be asking chat forum members for advice on how to handle different aspects of your client/business relationship. **** Kathie M. Thomas, AFAIOP, MVA, ASO is the founder of \"A Clayton\'s Secretary\", a Virtual Assistant Network with members in many countries. Dedicated to teaching others about operating business over the Internet, Kathie is a multiple award winner as both a Secretary and Virtual Business Operator, and has over 30 years\' experience in the secretarial/administrative field. She registered her business in March 1994 and is one of the senior VAs who launched the industry globally. http://www.vadirectory.net.

A couple of years ago one of my clients got her first Blackberry. She explained that she could send and receive email (among other things) wirelessly from this device while she was on the road. I like to think of myself as someone who is fairly comfortable with technology, yet it still took me a few moments of question-asking and head-scratching before I got my brain completely wrapped around the idea.

If you’re thinking of starting a home-based Virtual Assistant business, you may experience a similar sort of befuddlement. How can it work to be an assistant for someone if you’re not right there in their home-office? How can you possibly ‘share’ the responsibility and support of a business from a remote location?

Today, I’ll answer these questions and more and, hopefully, provide some encouragement and lots of practical advice about how to really be ‘Virtual’. Here’s how it works:

1. Technology is your new best-friend. My Blackberry Befuddlement didn’t last very long and after I got over being ashamed of myself for being a leery as a Luddite of this new technology I realized that the experience brought home this very important point for Virtual Assistants. As a VA you will use email more than you ever thought possible. Sharing documents with your clients will become routine very quickly. Services such as web calendaring will make you weep with joy (your client syncs her hand-held device to her computer AND to a web calendar, which you can access from your computer. Now you can book appointments for her as if you were sitting in her lap, holding the pointer yourself.) You’ll ‘meet’ with your clients once or twice a week via telephone and wonder how you ever got along without using a telephone headset. Eventually you’ll become the person in charge of setting up and managing your clients’ web site shopping cart, or their audio recording account or a conference line account. And this brings us very neatly to the second reason Virtual Assistance works.

2. A VA-Client Relationship is one of Trust. The longer you work with a client, the more of their business you will be entrusted with. Think of a CEO’s executive assistant who can anticipate what the CEO needs before he/she needs it and who knows more about personal preferences for airline seating and lunch and favourite hockey team than anyone. That’s what a VA becomes for each client. You will work almost silently (but not invisibly) in the background, keeping the wheels of the business moving, thinking of new creative ways to support your clients and to take administration off their desks.

3. Systems and Practices. With every new client you’ll very soon begin to understand the things that occur repeatedly in their business. Once you’ve observed this you can set up a system that best supports your client. Systems are the VA’s second-best friend. For example, if your client travels a great deal, you can establish his seating preference, find out what his airline points plans are and what his preferred lodging is. Then, every time your client goes on a trip, he can let you know where he’s going and when he needs to be there and you’ll take care of all the rest. You’ll have his credit card number on file (because you’ve established a relationship of trust with him – see reason #2) so you can book everything, have the e-ticket and hotel confirmation sent to him and even book a limo to pick him up in enough time to get to the airport.

4. The Pony Express. Now just because you’re running a virtual business doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of ‘old-world’ services. Couriers, Express Post, Kinkos – all these are used regularly in a VA business. Sometimes your client will need you to make edits to a training manual or transcribe some flip chart pages that she created at a workshop. There’s nothing wrong with combining virtual and reality.

5. A Good Fit. The perfect pair of jeans is always a challenge to find. But when you do, oh boy! It was worth the search. The same applies to VA clients. Not every self-employed entrepreneur is going to be a good fit for your business. That’s ok; you don’t need them to be. Sometimes potential clients with a home-based business will be more comfortable having their assistant with them in their office (even though we now know that’s not necessary). When you are clear with potential clients about all you can do for them, many of them will be able to adjust to the idea of virtual help. I’ve seen it happen!

Consider these five reasons why Virtual Assistance works to be a brief toe-dip into the rapidly expanding world of home-based businesses. A little creativity, lots of tenacity, a little technological savvy and the skills of an in-office administrative assistant go a long way to creating your ideal Virtual Assistant business.

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Alexandra Amor filled her Virtual Assistant business in record time and now coaches new VAs to do the same. She is the author of two e-books for Virtual Assistants and a monthly contributor to the Canadian VA Network newsletter. Sign up to receive her 20 Essential VA Success Habits at www.virtual-success.com.