I had a new prospective client contact me overnight. He feels he now needs a VA and has read through my blog but wasn't sure what the next step was. Ooops! Didn't I tell anyone? My oversight. I have a link in the right-hand menu of this blog but for those who read this via email or RSS, then just simply go to http://www.vadirectory.net/jobrequest.htm and fill out the form giving the details of what you want done. Don't forget to include any software programs that are relevant. The results … [Read more...]
It pays to be cautious
I recently had a request on my website for some research to be done relating to photographs of people wearing jewellery and to report back to the client. One of my team queried that wondering just what the guy might have been up to - I suggested she investigate him to make sure he was a legitimate jeweller - he is and he just wants to be able to let his clients know who is seen wearing his jewellery. Her cautious approach was correct though and it is always best we check things if something … [Read more...]
Start With What You Know
I was speaking to a prospective VA on the phone the other day. She had been researching the Virtual Assistant industry and my name kept popping up everywhere she looked. She is also an avid reader of my blog (hi Helen!). During the course of the conversation she said the same thing I often hear 'newbies' say and that is, they want to learn a number of things before they start their businesses. I decided to explore this further with her. Whilst it is true that VAs need to have a certain … [Read more...]
Getting closer to that 1,000th member!
Remember that post I made a couple of weeks ago? Well, we're getting much closer to the goal! And I promised that some lucky people would win prizes along the way. If the following people would like to get in touch saying they've seen this post, they will be forwarded their choice of book from my VA shop. Debie Brockhoff Sharyn Munro Emina Redzic Jan Bowdery Kerrie Anderson Stay tuned for more lucky prizewinners and that lucky 1,000th member! … [Read more...]
Being a Virtual Assistant in these economic times
You would have had to have your head underground or off the planet, not to know what's been happening in recent times. And everyone's thoughts are about tightening their belts and wondering about their jobs or their businesses. In the VA forums discussions have turned to whether business is increasing or decreasing? Many have reported the former and it's been good to see this response. Why is this? A recent article at Farifax's SMH site talks about how support staff are usually the first … [Read more...]
Watch your language – you never know who might see it!
I got the most astounding and rude email this week. I sent out a follow up email to a number of people who had filled out the application form to join my Virtual Assistant team but never took it any further. Basically I was just making sure they had realised there were more steps - I wasn't sure if they'd seen the autoresponder messages (only 2 of them from a new service) after they'd filled out the form. One response came back very quickly with two very loud and bolded words telling me where … [Read more...]
Time zone vs Cost
I was recently reading a discussion amongst a group of people about their experiences in using a Virtual Assistant company in an Asian country. Some were giving praise and others were vocal about the poor experience they'd had. One of the last commenters said that he was disappointed with the service and that they were closing up shop at 6pm their time just when he was getting into his work for the day. He also made comment that they couldn't be found on Fridays and was thinking he might shift … [Read more...]
I must be mad!
Have you noticed that when you plan to make changes to something, and I mean big changes, that suddenly everyone else (read clients) have projects on the boil too? For months I've been planning a shift from the shoppingcart service I was using to another one, for a variety of reasons. One of those being the affiliate program which I wasn't convinced was working the way it should be. Turns out it was dependent on tracking cookies and if people switch them off, then the affiliate who referred … [Read more...]
How this Virtual Assistant began blogging
I was asked to investigate blogging for a client early 2005 but I didn't really understand what it was about. So I set up my first blog at Blogger for my VA business to explore it. I had to put in a calendar reminder weekly to force myself to do it and I often had no idea what to write about - I would pick out a word from a jar of cards I had just for a topic. Later that year I decided to set up a family one instead of my annual Christmas newsletter. I put up photos, wrote about my family but … [Read more...]
