fbpx

VA Directory

VA Directory - Connecting clients with Virtual Assistants

Operating a VA Business

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

Leave a Comment

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?

Leave a Comment

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?

Leave a Comment

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.

What are the typical start up costs for a VA business?

Leave a Comment

It really depends on what type of services you’re planning to provide and my answer below is fairly generic.

As a VA who provides general secretarial and administrative support, the initial costs were:

  • a reliable computer – most people already own this but didn’t when I started in 1994
  • a reliable printer – ditto above
  • somewhere to sit that is ergonomic to protect your back and neck from aches
  • suitable software for the services you provide. Microsoft Office is still the standard. But there may be other software you need
  • a good bookkeeping program. I use QuickBooks online but many are using Xero these days.
  • you will need back up storage. You can get Dropbox for free for up to 2GB but there are other services around too. I believe you get 15GB with Google Drive
  • a domain name for your business (around $35.00AUD for 2 years for an Australian domain and around $12USD for other domains per annum)
  • possibly a registered business name.
  • a website but you can start with a freebie at WordPress.com and then go from there (highly recommend WordPress as you can upgrade to a self hosted site and export what you’ve created without having to start the process all over again)
  • Social Media is a must these days too.

So going with the above – much of this is your own time in setting up and organising things with minimal cost. If you already have a computer and printer, then the software would just be a monthly or outright cost and the domain an annual or bi-annual cost, depending on if it’s a .com or .com.au.

No Commissions Payable

Leave a Comment

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

 

I see, in various places, people asking if they should join freelancing sites like Upwork, Freelancer and others.

I can’t answer for all freelancers, but I can answer for those who call themselves Virtual Assistants and the answer I have is this:

Joining a VA Network or Directory means paying an annual or monthly membership fee. Generally engaging one regular client through these avenues more than covers your membership fee each year, anything else is a bonus. And the good news is, you don’t have to pay a commission fee for the work you receive. Everything you earn is yours.

So, in my way of thinking, belonging to a VA Network or Directory makes sense, don’t you think?

Powered by WishList Member - Membership Software