Loading ...You can draw your own conclusions, if there are any to be made, but I find this pattern very interesting (and it’s definitely a pattern)…
The Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce is a professional association geared strictly and specifically for Virtual Assistants only. Virtual Assistants are administrative experts. They specialize in providing ongoing administrative support to clients they work in long-term, continous relationship. We spell out very clearly on our home page, on our registration page and in a number of other places that we do not represent virtual staffing agencies, secretarial services or team VA businesses (so please don’t try to join if you are running one of those categories of businesses).
I don’t know how much more clear we can make it. Nothing against those kinds of businesses, but they are completely different business models that are very distinct and different from a true Virtual Assistant practice. They operate differently. They provide a very different solution from what Virtual Assistants provide. And they get to profitability and financial success in completely different ways. Our work and our conversations, however, are geared specifically for the folks who want to learn how to best run a solo practice, and run one that can earn fantastically more money than they realize is possible as a solo (don’t ever listen to those folks who say a six figure solo practice is impossible because it’s not!).
Yet, almost to a one, on the occasion when someone running a virtual staffing agency or multi/team VA business registers for our Peer Networking Club, they are the ones who inevitably fail to follow directions or who it’s clear haven’t read a darn thing. Literally. I could get rich taking bets that anytime a VSA registers, they aren’t going to follow directions. It happens just about every single time. And then they get indignant when they are not approved. For gawd’s sake, you can’t read, you can’t pay attention, you can’t follow directions, you register anyway when the criteria clearly excludes you because you aren’t a solo Virtual Assistant and you want to get pissed off at us? How crazy it that?!
On the other hand, the folks who join that are operating true Virtual Assistant practices, they consistently as a group demonstrate an ability to pay attention. It’s clear they have read the things that are indicated to read because they subsequently follow directions correctly. As a group, they show a superior command of spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc. They exercise better judgment and discernment and they provide very articulate, intelligent and thoughtful responses to questions that are posed. What a joy it is to deal with those folks! And what a joy it is to represent them as an organization!
If I was a client, I’d be very concerned about the competence and qualification of anyone who couldn’t demonstrate those things. Look, if the criteria excludes you, it excludes you. Why waste your time and ours? And if you can’t at least demonstrate competence with us by reading carefully and following directions, how can you expect us to represent you to the clients who comes to us seeking competent, qualified Virtual Assistants? We can’t in good conscience tell the marketplace that we stand for a high standard of excellence if the people we accept are unable to operate to that standard.
6 Comments
Can’t be anymore clear than that…kudos Danielle!
Don’t hold back, now. Tell us what you really think! Excellent points made, but the offenders are not likely to change their ways. They are of the “she can’t be talking about me, I’m a special case” mentality.
That IS quite interesting… and couldn’t agree with you more!
You go, Danielle!
They’re just nosing around trying to get info for free with absolute disregard for the parameters you’ve set, and set very clearly. You’ve done a great job and keep it up!
I think you’re right, Jenni. Plus, I have the advantage of seeing things from a perspective that most VAs don’t. I’m dealing with all kinds of Virtual Assistants constantly in all kinds of situations at a level and volume that others just aren’t. When you’re in that seat, you begin to see very clear patterns and profiles emerge. What I’ve noticed from this vantage point is that VSAs and teams often are approaching things from a make-a-quick buck and make-as-many-bucks-as-you-can mentality. They don’t necessarily know anything about the work and definitely don’t often view it as a craft because they may not even have any administrative experience and they’re just farming it out anyway. Not that Virtual Assistants aren’t as equally interested in earning well, but this is also a craft to them–a highly developed expertise that takes both skill, experience, talent and even artfulness and creativity. And that translates into a higher, much more tangible and perceivable level of quality–quality in their relationships, quality in the work they do, quality in the effort they put forth, the service they give, the loving care they devote and the attention they pay to details and doing things well and right and thoroughly and correctly.