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VA Directory

VA Directory - Connecting clients with Virtual Assistants

ACSBlog

Networking isn’t just about building a business…

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It’s also about companionship.  Most of us come from a job – a place where we are amongst many people and then when we venture out on our own, suddenly we’re alone. No wonder many VAs return to a job in the first or second year of their business. It’s not always about whether they’re making enough money, or whether the business is surviving – it is often very much about the person who is running that business needing companionship.

In my first couple of years I could see that being home alone all day long, with no adult companionship, could lead to depression, isolation and so many other things too. You can begin to self-doubt and wonder if you’re doing the right thing.  But I reached out and learnt of local business networks (pre-Internet) and began going to some of these events, just so I could be mixing and mingling with other people too.

There is also a physical and emotional thing that’s happening here – face-to-face contact, the touch of someone else when shaking hands or hugging, and seeing people’s responses to you direct – not assumed through the written word. Networking online is a different thing altogether and won’t give you the same kind of satisfaction or fulfill your needs in the same way.

Not only did it help fulfill my need for companionship, but I also learnt a lot about running a business from other local business people. What works in my municipality, what is legally required, what has worked for others or what hasn’t worked, and so on.  I nearly always came home filled with new ideas, new thoughts, new enthusiasm to continue my day of work.

And in that process and time, I also gained some new clients too – as well as service providers who could support me in business (printers, graphic designers, accountant, etc) plus service providers for my home and family (house cleaner, travel agent, plumber, electrician, etc).

So while many may only think of networking as a way to get more clients, I challenge you to consider it is MUCH more than that. Much, much more.  What have you gotten out of networking?

Using the term ‘Virtual Assistant’

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Some people get hung up on the term VA or Virtual Assistant and I responded to a query awhile back, inadvertently upsetting the person who asked the question. That wasn’t my intention at all.

She’d asked about using the term ‘Virtual Assistant’ and if that made clients disrespect us. I didn’t think so and my answer was taken in the wrong way. Sometimes, how we write can be misinterpreted for the way it was intended.

But perhaps I should add some context to this. The original VA is a lady named Anastacia Brice. She was working for a business coach in the USA back in the 90s and as she was travelling around the country in an RV while doing his work he named her his ‘Virtual Assistant’. The term very much means assisting someone on a virtual basis and can be used for almost any type of service these days, but originally it related to those who provided secretarial and administrative support. Which is how I began in 1994. I didn’t like the term when I first heard it a year or two later but gradually learned to accept it and feel it’s a great way to describe how I (and all of us) support clients.

The important thing is for those who are choosing to work in this way to understand that you are a service provider, not a sub ordinate or an employee. You need to develop a business mindset and be the one in control of the rates you decide to set (negotiation is fine but it shouldn’t be the client who sets your rate for you) and also be the one to show the client (not the employer) how you can help them.

When you’re new to this, and especially if you’ve come straight from a job (or still in one) it’s so easy to mistakenly treat a client like an employer, but so important you work hard not to do this. They come to you for support, advice and direction and, while you need to learn about their business and how it works, that doesn’t mean you need to learn from them how you should be providing a service. Hopefully no-one comes into our industry with no experience at all – you should all have a good amount of working experience behind you (I always say minimum 5 years but some feel different about this).

So whether or not you call yourself a VA is entirely up to you, however it does mean you’re a part of the VA Industry because of the way you are providing your services – something that is needed by so many business owners these days. Feel free to Google about Anastacia, you’ll find a write up in Wikipedia about her and Thomas. And enjoy what you’re doing or plan to do. This is a great industry with fantastic communities, and I am so grateful for this way of working which allows me to be home full time and be present for my family.

How do I get a job opportunity if I have no experience?

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This was a question asked of me recently and here’s my answer:

Do volunteer work.

The reality is you need to build experience so the best way to do this is to volunteer. Are there charity organisations or other groups nearby that you could get involved with?

Depending on the skill set you currently have, or want to develop, there is sure to be stuff you can do to help out. And if you don’t know of any groups, then look for Rotary – there are Rotary Clubs worldwide. Or Lions, or Apex or a Chamber of Commerce.

There will be groups local to where you are needing volunteers. No, you won’t get paid, but it also means you don’t have to pay for training.

I have built up some of my own skills simply by volunteering to organisations that need help. A pro bono website here, help with a membership database there, serving on the front line at local events and so on.  It’s a great way to network and get to know people locally and, more to the point, for them to get to know you. It’s often the way that referrals start to happen too – because people have met you and trust you. Why not look for a volunteer role today?

How do you find your clients?

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I was asked this simple question recently in a VA forum and here’s my simple answer. It was in relation to my work as a Secretariat for Not -for-Profit organisations but the same can apply for any line of work in our industry.

They find me 🙂 Word-of-mouth referrals through networking and meeting other people, plus my website and my LinkedIn Profile. One of the NFPs I’m looking after happened because I met a new committee member at a networking event about 9 years ago. Another was because someone else told them about me and I’ve been with them now about 6 years. The very first found me in a Yellow Pages advert back in 1997.

See the difference? It’s not about how you find clients but how they find you! So, how do clients find you?

Is $5 an hour too cheap for a VA?

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I answer a lot of questions at Quora – are you familiar with this site? Today I was asked if $5 an hour too cheap for a VA. My answer was this:

Depends on a number of things:

  • Where you live and your cost of living
  • The currency you’re working with
  • The type of services you’re providing
  • Your background experience and skill-set
  • How many hours a week you want to work
  • How much you want to earn on a weekly/monthly/annual basis

budget, money, incomeHave you actually done a budget forecast for the year to ensure that you are charging sufficient per hour? For example, if you want to earn just $10,000USD per annum and plan to work a minimum of 30 hours a week for 52 weeks a year, then that would be close to sufficient. However, if you want to earn double, triple or more than that, you need to seriously consider how many hours a week you want to work, and how many weeks per year. Do you want to allow for holiday time? What about sick leave? Will you need to be covering insurances and equipment purchases? What about software purchases or monthly payments? When you add these into the equation, $5 per hour probably doesn’t cut it.

In fact, on reflection, it would be closer to 40 hours a week and would not allow for time for this VA to do their own admin or marketing based on the above unless eating into hours outside of normal working time.There’s more to running a business than just servicing clients and invoicing them for your time. You need to factor in business expenses and your own time for running the business as well.

So important you work out your base annual income and work backwards to ensure you are charging sufficient to cover your expenses and to be able to live.

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