I regularly have clients contacting me via my website asking for a Virtual Assistant to support them. The work is quite wide and varied, with some jobs being one-offs and others being short- or long-term commitments.
Most of the time I introduce the client to a Virtual Assistant team member and I don’t hear from them again, unless it’s to thank me for my assistance in connecting them – but very few clients do that.
However, on odd occasions a client will come back to me to ask for a new VA and I then need to ask questions to find out what wasn’t working for them – had I not understood their need and connected them with the wrong person, or was the VA not what they were expecting? Some clients don’t realise they can keep the VA long-term, thinking they have to contact me everytime they have a new job.
Recently one client contacted me because the VA announced she was not doing any more work for a few months because she is having a baby. The client was devastated as the working relationship seemed to be right but she hadn’t known that the VA would only be available to her for a month for her needs. Naturally I was disappointed as I did not know the situation either and when I reposted the job to the team I emphasised the need for long-term commitment and if they knew anything that might impede that in the next few months, not to reply to the job request.
I know that everyone gets anxious to secure work and clients but it’s little things like this that can make clients wonder if VAs in general are flighty, moving from client to client as it suits them. And I want to ensure those who read this blog and thinking about using a VA, that the answer is generally ‘no’. The majority of us are in it for the long haul and would love to keep our clients for long periods of time. My longest-term client has been with me for 12 years and I have other clients that have been with me for between 5 and 10 years or more. I’d like to see many of my VA team experience the same.
Gwynne says
I would MUCH rather have a few long-term clients than be constantly getting new clients. It just makes the job so much easier! As you build that relationship and get to know each other, it becomes easier to anticipate the needs of the client and get things done so much faster!
Jessica says
When I had my son last summer, my client knew about it ahead of time and he was willing to work with me on some time off and a more flexible schedule after the baby. Don’t be afraid to let them know what is going on and ask how to make it work for both of you.