Setting goals is extremely important for any business owner. It is something that you should get in the practice of doing in order to build a successful virtual assistant business.
Check out this great article: Why Setting Goals Is Vital For Your Business Success.
Visit http://vasuccessgroup.co.uk/virtual-assistant-freebies/articles
You will hear a lot of people talking about establishing boundaries within your business. You might think that this does not apply to you. However, it is important for all VAs to set their boundaries from the outset.
To identify your boundaries, think about what you are and are not prepared to do.
To give you some ideas, ask yourself these questions:
Will you offer round-the-clock service?
If you do, you should have systems in place to be able to accept and complete work 24 hours a day. Some VAs make this their unique selling point (USP), which sets them apart from others.
Will you speak to family and friends if they call during the day?
Family and friends can be the worst offenders for distraction to those who work at home. They may feel that, as you work at home, they can call you any time for a chat or pop in for a coffee. Tell people what your working hours are, and explain that you cannot speak to them if they call during those times.
Will you be working only certain hours?
When you have decided what your business hours are, make sure that you inform all prospective clients. Some clients might call five minutes before your designated finishing time, asking you to do work for them the following day. Provided that you can fit the work in, advise them that you will start the work as early as possible the next day.
What will your work turnaround time be?
You need to decide in advance what turnaround time you work towards for routine tasks so that you can inform all prospective clients. For example, I say that I will respond to all email correspondence within 24 hours and all routine work will be completed within 48 hours.
Will you be working 52 weeks a year?
Decide in advance whether you want to take a holiday. If so, let your clients know that you will not be available during those weeks, or that their work will be passed to an associate while you are away.
Do you want a ‘term-time only’ business?
If you have a family, you may choose to work only during term time and spend the school holidays with your children. Again, should inform your clients in advance that you will be unavailable, or that their work will be passed to an associate during school holidays.
By establishing your boundaries early on, you can inform new clients and make it clear to friends and family how you operate.
You must remember that you are the boss of your own business and it is your prerogative to say, ‘No’.
Eventually, one of the main problems that virtual assistants face is reaching the limit on the number of hours that can be billed to clients. After all, there are only have 24 hours in every day, and we do need to sleep! We also have to do the administration for our own businesses, as well as continuing our marketing activities to ensure a steady stream of new clients.
So, how can you earn more money? One way is to bring on board associates to undertake some of the client work, so that you can take on additional work. There are two ways that this could work:
1. You act as project manager, dealing directly with all your clients. You then delegate their work to an associate, who returns the completed work to you to check before sending it back to the client. This is a very ‘hands-on’ role, which takes up a fair amount of time. Also, the associate’s contract is with you and, as such, their work cannot be charged to the client.
2. Give your clients direct access to your associates to communicate requests and receive completed work. This means that you can still undertake chargeable work without having to get too involved.
Once you make the decision to start working with associates, think about the people you can bring on board to compliment your skills and even offer new services. For example, think about social media management, bookkeeping, SEO, website design, IT helpdesk, telephone answering, copywriting, audio typing, shopping-cart management and graphic design. The services you offer do not have to be traditional virtual assistant services. Think about the services that might be useful to your customers and offer them. Being seen as a ‘one-stop shop’ for all clients’ requirements will increase your earning potential.
Do you want help with the documents you need to start working with associates? Check out our Associate Templates Pack available to download immediately.
Blogging is a fantastic way to promote your virtual assistant business by demonstrating your expertise on different topics.
This free guide, 10 Steps for Successful Blogging To Raise Your Profile, offers 10 simple steps to help you start promoting your VA business effectively.
Download your free guide at: http://vasuccessgroup.co.uk/virtual-assistant-freebies/10-step-downloads/
Having procedures in place is essential in a virtual assistant business, even if you currently work alone in your business. In the future, as your business expands, you may decide to take on associate VAs or employees, who need to know how you operate.
Once you have decided how you want to run your business, it is sensible to write a procedures manual. You should also think about whom you would call upon to help out if you have to take a break from the business for any reason.
Here are a few procedures to consider:
Disaster recovery
What would you do if your computer stopped working, or you lost internet connection? In addition to my business computer, I have a laptop and separate non-business broadband access, so I would be able to use my laptop and access my home broadband until the problem was fixed.
You need to consider the problems you might face and come up with appropriate solutions for each. Having contingency plans in place will help alleviate the stress as and when these problems arise.
Client intake
What happens when you sign up a client? Think about sending a ‘welcome pack’ outlining how you operate, detailing your procedures, and including any other information you deem appropriate.
Complaints
In the unlikely event that you receive a complaint, you need to have a procedure in place to deal with it. Think about how long it will take to investigate complaints thoroughly, and to respond to them appropriately.
Corporate style
What is your ‘house’ font going to be? What email signature should you use? Whatever the size of your business, having a consistent and recognisable corporate identity creates a good impression with everyone with whom you interact.
An effective client consultation is a vital aspect of building a virtual assistant business comprising a group of clients with whom you love to work.
But what sort of questions do you need to ask prospects?
What are their short and long term goals?
This gives you an idea of how quickly prospective clients see their businesses growing, and helps to identify specific projects with which you could help them. They may want to start offering live events or teleseminars, which you could help to organise.
Do they want support for a particular project or long-term?
You need to know if it is short- or long-term help prospective clients require, so ask the question before you start to work together.
Which tasks do they currently find difficult?
This is your opportunity to find out exactly what help prospective clients need. So, get them to be specific about the tasks with which they are currently struggling. Make notes to which you can refer at the end of the consultation process when closing the sale.
Keep asking: What else do you struggle with? What else takes up your time? What else do you not enjoy doing? What else could you be doing if you had more time?
What are their working hours?
This question is often overlooked, but it is important, as prospective clients may need someone who is available at set times during the week to do certain tasks. They may only work on certain days or at certain times. Find out at the outset to make sure there are no misunderstandings.
Think about what other questions you would suggest in an effective client consultation.
What skills and experience do you think people should have to become a Virtual Assistant?
Find out what two successful virtual assistants (with more than 10 years’ experience) and VA trainers think about this frequently asked question in this free audio interview.
Download it now at: http://vasuccessgroup.co.uk/virtual-assistant-freebies/interviews/
I often hear people complaining that they have not got any business from their networking activities. After digging a little further, it soon becomes obvious why… They expect to just turn up and get new business straight away without putting any work in.
To be a successful networker, you need to do more than just turn up. But, what should you do?
Build relationships
Get to know your local business community by attending a number of different networking groups in your area. You will soon start meeting some of the same people at different events. But, take time to get to know people and discover how you can help them. This will benefit you in the future.
Seek people with whom you can form joint-venture relationships
Once you have formed relationships with others in your local business community, you will have a real sense of who has a similar target market to you, yet is not in direct competition. These are the ideal people with whom you should seek to form joint-venture relationships.
Prepare for each event
Think about what you want to say at each event, whether or not you get a formal opportunity to deliver your elevator speech.
Volunteer your time and services
Most networking organisations are run by a small group of members who are always looking for volunteers to help organise and facilitate events. For a VA, this is a great opportunity to demonstrate your skills to all the members.
When you start your virtual assistant (VA) business, it can be overwhelming when you realise how much work is involved. However, you can make things easier for yourself by putting systems in place to deal with every aspect of the business. You will then feel confident that you can handle any situation.
One of the most important systems you need to put in place is one that makes communicating with prospects and new clients straightforward.
An effective system should include:
Information pack – an outline of your working practices, services and rates, which you send to prospective clients interested in your services.
Prospective client questionnaire – a document in which you collate all the information you need to know about your prospect. It should be a guide to the support a prospective client need might need.
Client consultation – your fact-finding process, and a list of detailed questions to ask prospective clients.
Welcome pack – gives new clients all the information they need before they start working with you. Outline your standard operating procedures and pre-empt any questions you think they may have.
‘Pay As You Go’ contract – for work carried out on an ad-hoc basis, or as a one-off project.
Retainer contract – for clients for whom you provide regular, monthly VA support.
Terms and conditions – includes details regarding payment, confidentiality, omissions, etc. These are a vital part of your process as they tell clients how you operate.
New client questionnaire – once new clients come on board, it is useful to get some basic details from them. A questionnaire is a good way to ensure that you get all the information you require.
New customer checklist – use this to make sure so you do not miss anything.
Proposal – detailed proposal, which you can send, if requested, especially to larger companies.
Find out why we started our own Virtual Assistant businesses, how we get clients and benefit from some top tips by listening to this free audio interview.
Download it now at: http://vasuccessgroup.co.uk/virtual-assistant-freebies/interviews/
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