Virtual Assistant/Virtual Assistance – The Gritty Virtual Assistant Blog

Category Archives: Virtual Assistant/Virtual Assistance

April 6, 2011 – 10:00 am

Dear Gritty VA: Should I Pay for Advertising?

Sometimes great questions come to my attention via Google Alerts, which was the case recently. A new Virtual Assistant asked:

“I am just starting out and doing lots of research. I was wondering if anyone has tried using classified and Yellow Pages for advertising. Also, if anyone could let me know other forms of low budget advertising, I would greatly appreciate it.”

Here’s what you have to understand about such advertising: the amount of money you’d have to spend in order to make those forms of marketing pay off for you in terms of real clients (we call that “ROI–return on investment”), you would have to spend the kind of money–repeatedly and for a great length of time–that most new business owners simply don’t have. And even then, the ROI/conversion rate on that kind of advertising is generally as low as 1%.

That’s not a very good return for the money and effort expended. AND it won’t necessarily bring in specific clients you want to work with.

The good news is that there are alternatives to marketing professional services that actually work FAR better than classifieds and cost very, very little beyond your time and education. It’s called relationship marketing and it’s really very simple:

1. Get really clear about what you are in business to do.

2. Determine a target market. This would be a niche within a profession/industry/field that would have the most need and want for what you are in business to do.

3. Profile your ideal client.

4. Once you know very clearly what you do and who your intended audience is, you can gear your message specifically for that market on your website so that it attracts and draw to you exactly the clients you seek to work with.

5. Knowing who your intended audience is also helps you figure out where to reach out and connect with those likely prospects, both online and off. Once you find those avenues, you begin interacting. Speaking up and participating is what helps people get to know, like and trust you. You’ll begin to build relationships this way, people will send referrals your way and all the while you are creating rapport and establishing trust and credibility, which leads to more prospects contacting you.

Of course, this is where work and effort is involved. And while the steps are simple, getting them done does take some help. I’ve created a step-by-step guide to help folks accomplish this much faster and easier called Articulating Your Value: How to Craft Your Own Unique & Compelling Marketing Message. It’s helped a lot of people make huge hurdles in their business so check it out.

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Dear Gritty VA, Marketing | Comments (0)

March 31, 2011 – 10:00 am

Are Virtual Assistants Employees or Independent Contractors?

That’s the topic of a recent article on the USA Tax Aid blog here: Are Virtual Assistants Employees or Independent Contractors?

It reinforces something I’ve been telling folks all along about those team/multi VA businesses: ICs are not legally part of team/business and they shouldn’t be listed as such on your website.

What they don’t seem to be able to grasp is that there are legal implications in portraying someone as part of your team. Someone is not part of your team unless they are an actual employee and if you insist on calling them that, you are going to put yourself smack dab on the radar of the IRS.

Which is why the “team/multi VA” is so idiotic. If all they are doing is farming out their work and clients to other companies, there is already a (proper) term for that–it’s called subcontracting. And those people–in order to be considered independent contractors running their own businesses–are not part of their team.

Regardless of your position on subbing out your client work/relationships, the fact is that sub is not legally part of your team. You don’t get to tell them when/where/how and you certainly don’t get to dictate hours and pay. And if you do, then you are going to quickly find yourself owing money and facing a great deal of hassle that could bankrupt your business.

Subcontractors do not need to be and shouldn’t be on your website. It’s not about depriving them of “credit.” If they take on a subcontracting job, they don’t get credit. They are doing the work on behalf of your company. It’s your company whose name goes on the work. That’s just how subcontracting works.

You don’t have to like it. But if you want to argue about it, take it up with your tax authority. I think you’ll be set straight real quick.

This is also another reason why VAs/Admin Consultants (or any business owner) should NOT submit resumes and references–because you then give the wrong appearance that you are an employee applying for a job/position. That’s NOT how business owners market.

Not talking about this and getting the story straight is as stupid, irresponsible and unethical as telling people they don’t have to pay their taxes.

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Marketing, Pricing and Getting Paid | Comments (3)

March 30, 2011 – 10:00 am

Dear Gritty VA: How Is the Economy Affecting this Business?

Dear Gritty VA:

I am considering starting a Virtual Assistant business. I have been self-employed for 10 years and know about the hard work and research which goes into embarking upon entrepreneurship. I would like to know how the economy has impacted this business. On one hand, I can see businesses downsizing employees and benefiting from hiring administration support without the extra costs of taxes and providing benefits, which is more cost effective to their bottom line. On the other hand, I can also see how some businesses would think hiring a Virtual Assistant can be another added expense to their bottom line. Any feedback from you would be greatly appreciated –DA

Thanks for the question and I’ll do my best to help shed some light so you can look at this another way. You see, I always struggle with questions like this (which is why it has taken me this long to answer) because… well, how do I say this… it’s not the right question to ask. Not that you are wrong for asking. I’m here to help.

So let me try to explain…

The first thing I want to help you get a clearer understanding about is the fact that Virtual Assistants are not replacement staff or contract workers (a contract worker is a legal term for someone who is an employee of a staffing company). In fact, if you read any of the back posts on this blog, you’ll see that I don’t like the term Virtual Assistant at all as it miseducates clients and industry newcomers alike and sets wrong expectations and perceptions right from the get-go (I prefer the term Administrative Consultant). On top of that, when you are running a business, you are not anyone’s assistant anymore than, say, an attorney is an assistant to their clients or a coach is an assistant to their clients and so on.

As someone in this profession, you are providing a skilled professional service, no different than an attorney, an accountant, a bookkeeper, a coach, a designer or what have you. All of these professions, ours included, requires a high degree of specific skill, experience and expertise. We aren’t replacement workers. As administrative experts, we are providing an expertise–the expertise of administrative support–to businesses that require our particular skills and knowledge.

Once you understand things from that perspective, the question isn’t about how the economy is affecting companies that are downsizing. Those aren’t your clients. Because anyone who is simply looking to replace employees at a cheaper cost is not looking to value the skills or the relationship and is only interested in saving money. If you make those folks your clients, you can bank on always being on a hamster wheel trying to fend off competitors willing to work even cheaper than you.

Which leads me to my next point. You will need to educate yourself about who you are seeking to work with and what their motivation is in hiring you. When you seek the right clients, the economy has no bearing on anything at all. You want to focus on a market that truly has a need for the expertise you offer, not the ones whose initial motivation is looking for cheap right from the get-go. So let me walk you through this thought process…

Who is going to truly need and value having an administrative partner? Is it going to be the big company who can afford their own employees or who is only looking to reduce their bottom line? Or is it the solo and boutique companies who run smaller scale operations, often from home offices of their own, that don’t warrant employees or don’t have anywhere to put them even if they wanted them, but who still need the support and understand how it will help them run a more profitable business and make faster progress? Who do you think has the greater need for what we do and will therefore place a higher value on it because it has more meaning to their business success?

This is why the economy has no bearing once you understand who your market is. Those who need and value what you are in business will pay because people who want or need something, find a way to pay for it. Which again, makes the whole question about the economy irrelevant because you are going to seek only markets who need and value the expertise and are able and willing to afford it.

So your task as a new business owner in this profession is to find a target market who a) has the highest need for what you are in business to do, b) can be found easily enough in order to market to them and fill your practice, and c) earns enough money to pay for professional level fees.

Always remember, you can’t afford to work with anyone who can’t afford you (not my quote, but one I love a lot although I’m not sure of its origins).

Hope that helps!

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Marketing, Pricing and Getting Paid | Tagged Marketing in this Economy, Virtual Assistant, Virtual Assistants | Comments (3)

March 28, 2011 – 10:00 am

How Do We Work Together Virtually?

This is a common question from clients who are new to working with Administrative Consultants (Virtual Assistants). The word “virtual” throws them for a loop and makes it sound as if it’s some mysterious new mode of operation. In reality, they’ve been working virtually all along with businesses of all kinds and just never realized it. Here’s what I mean…

When you hire an attorney, accountant, designer or any kind of professional, does that person come to your office to do their work? Do they work according to hours you set? Do they sign in and out with you whenever they begin or end working on your stuff?

Sounds silly, right? Of course they don’t do those things. That’s the nature of working with independent businesses and professionals. They do their work from their own places of business and according to their own work schedules, processes and policies. You may or may not have ever even meet in person.

And things get done, right? When you retain someone to draft a contract or design a logo or take care of your accounts, they do what they do without needing to be physically present, right? So how does that happen?

Well, you communicate by phone and email, maybe even video chat. Files are sent by email or fax. Electronic signatures are obtained with tools like Echosign. Working documents are shared and transferred via tools like Dropbox. Shared collaborative workspaces are set up with services such as Airset to keep files and information organized in one place. Remote access or online accounts is sometimes used to get things done on your behalf.

This is the day and age of technology, baby! There is a mind-boggling array of tools and services that make working together “virtually” a breeze. Anyone who uses a computer and has ever done business with any other business or professional has already been working “virtually.”

Clients work with an Administrative Consultant exactly the same way. But people get hung up on the word “virtual.” Which is why I’ve always been an advocate for not using it whatsoever in your marketing.

Reason being, a business is a business. It matters not how or where or when you work. If you’re a traveling salesperson, your vehicle is the platform by which you connect and work with clients. If you are a flower shop, it’s your brick and mortar store. Operating a professional service business is no different–it’s just that the computer happens to be your “office” and your tool for working with clients and delivering your services.

The fact that you are an online business is of no importance. The tools are incidental details–don’t focus on that or you will continue to confuse clients and make it seem much more complicated and mysterious than need be.

And for goodness sakes, stop using the analogy of the administrative assistant or secretary. All that does is confuse clients and keep them (mistakenly) thinking that you are some kind of remote, telecommuting employee.

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Marketing | Tagged Administrative Consultants, Virtual Assistant, Virtual Assistants, working virtually | Comments (1)

March 25, 2011 – 11:30 am

Is It Any Wonder Clients Balk at Your Fees?

I hear from Administrative Consultants (Virtual Assistants) all the time complaining about seeming to only hear from clients who balk at their fees and only want to pay $10-15 an hour. Well, if this is you, I’m here to tell you that almost every bit of this difficulty stems from what YOU are talking about with them on your website and in your marketing message.

There will always be cheapskates in the world who want to devalue other people and get work for free. But that leaves the rest of the prospective client market and they are absolutely influenced by how you “sell” yourself. YOU control what they are focused on. And let me tell ya, what many of you are focusing them on right now is creating the very mindsets you are frustrated with and seek to discourage.

Go to just about any Virtual Assistant website and all you see people talking about in their content is how affordable they are, how they are cheaper than an employee, how much clients can save, discounts here and free hours there…

You think you’re enticing them, but this is all they are seeing and hearing:

Is it any wonder they are so focused on money when all you are doing is talking about money, and specifically about how little you cost and how much they will save?

If you want to attract well-paying clients–clients who expect to pay professional level fees and value the work–you have got to stop talking about money in your marketing message. Period. You are training them to devalue you. You are telling them that the only thing that is important to them and you is how much you cost.

Let me say that another way… if you all you are talking about is money, all you will attract is money-conscious clients. Do you get that? If your marketing conversation is all about how how cheap, affordable and “competitively-priced” you are, how much they will save and giving discounts left and right, you are going to keep getting clients who are only looking for cheap. They won’t see or hear anything else.

Surely, you actually have something of value to offer… don’t you? So talk about THAT! How does your work improve their business? How does it help them move forward? What problems does it solve? How might their outlook and clarity and stress and mood be improved with your help?

Think of all the ways your work and skill and knowledge contributes to making your clients’ businesses better and focus on those things. The clients you attract with that message will be like night and day. Promise.

And if you want to learn how to stop selling hours and price and package your support based on value and expertise instead, don’t miss my teleclass coming up April 27 and 28. Early bird special pricing ends March 27. Get the details and register here…

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Marketing, Pricing and Getting Paid | Comments (4)

March 21, 2011 – 9:21 am

POLL: Do You Prefer Live Teleclasses or DIY eProducts?

So I have a new question for you… when it comes to paying for business/marketing learning and you can only do one or the other, which do you prefer: live teleclasses or self-paced do-it-yourself e-products (e.g., ebooks, videos, audio recordings)?

Also, what is the reason for your preference? Curious minds want to know! Please do contribute to the conversation in the comments.

UPDATE: 542 participants as of today! Be sure to spread the word so we can reach goal by April 1!

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Cool Stuff, Fab Ideas | Comments (8)

March 10, 2011 – 10:00 am

You Can Now Earn Commissions By Promoting the Virtual Assistant Industry Survey

Exciting news! I just set up a special affiliate code so that you can also earn commissions by displaying your Virtual Assistant Industry Survey participation badge.

What that means is that by displaying the badge on your site, you will earn 25% commissions on all purchases if someone clicks on your badge and ends up making a purchase from us at some point, whether it’s the same day or six months down the road.

What’s cool about this is that you don’t have to directly promote the products sold on our site in order to earn commissions. Just by referring people to our site via your survey badge, you can earn commissions on any purchases those folks make now or later.

I know some people don’t like to blatantly “hard sell” product referrals and would rather refer to the organization rather than the products directly so this is a nice option. Not only will you be helping to increase survey participation, you’ll also benefit from the earning potential. You can even swap out your membership seal link with your affiliate link in this way as well.

It’s super simple to get started. Here’s the link with the 3 simple steps:

http://www.virtualassistantnetworking.com/surveyflair.htm

Thanks for all your enthusiastic participation! Keep up those reminders about the survey. We’re at 504 participants as of today–the half way mark to our goal of 1,000.

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Cool Stuff, Don't-Miss-It Events, Fab Ideas, Great News | Tagged Virtual Assistance, Virtual Assistant, Virtual Assistant Industry Survey, Virtual Assistants | Comments (0)

March 9, 2011 – 10:00 am

Dear Gritty VA: How Do I Convince Clients They’re Big Enough?

Dear Gritty VA:

Okay, here is a question. I keep getting the message that “I am just not big enough to outsource yet,” even though they have tasks which they are too busy to schedule to do like blog writing, articles and social media networking. How does one convince an entrepreneur that they are indeed “big enough” to contract with an Administrative Consultant? –ST

The quick answer–you don’t.

You don’t want to focus on the people who think they have to do all their own admin work. If they don’t have the need or the want for what you do, you’re barking up the wrong tree.

The bottom line is those folks are never our clients. It’s a complete effort in futility and a waste of precious time and energy trying to convince them otherwise.

And the ones like that who do become clients often end up being the tiresome, irritating, energy-draining micro-managers and pains-in-the-ass that we all dread working with. Don’t do that.

Focus only on the folks who have a need/want for your support. They are the ones who are open to hearing how you can help them and have a need for what you do and will therefore place greater value on it and be willing to pay . You’ll have greater success in getting clients (and the kind of clients you want) if you do.

It also sounds like one of the reasons you’re talking to the wrong people is because you perhaps don’t have a target market. If you’re trying to talk to anyone and everyone, you’re going to waste a TON of time and energy spinning your wheels not getting anywhere.

If you don’t have a target market and don’t know enough about them to know who has the need, you’re gonna have to get clear on that. There are three first rules for deciding on a target market.

It must have a need for what you’re in business to offer. You’ve no doubt heard the phrase, “trying to sell ice cubes to an Eskimo,” right? Same principle. You can’t sell something to someone who doesn’t want it or need it. When they have a need, they will place great value in how you can help them and therefore be willing to pay for it.
It must be able to afford you. For example, I see lots of Administrative Consultants (Virtual Assistants) wanting to target “mom and pops” and “startups.” But those markets are often the least able to afford any kind of professional services. When this is pointed out to them, they’ll wail, “but they really NEED me!” Look, you gotta stop trying to save the world and “fix” people. You can’t afford to work with anyone who can’t afford you and you’ll go broke and hungry trying. Find the folks who can pay and let the others come to you when they get farther along. You can’t sacrifice your own financial needs and well-being to help them or you won’t be able to help anyone. Take that to the bank.
There must be enough of them that you can easily find and market to enough of them to fill your practice. I won’t say there aren’t exceptions to this rule, but generally, if the market is so obscure and esoteric that there aren’t enough to fill your practice or it’s incredibly difficult to find and interact with them, you’re really going to make your life unnecessarily hard. Find another, easier to find market.

Oh, and if you want to know why you need a target market and how it will dramatically increase the success of your business, here’s an article I originally wrote back in 2008: Where Is Your Arrow Pointing?

Once you know who you’re talking to specifically, it becomes infinitely easier to find out when and what makes them seek out and be willing to pay for what you’re in business to do. Which is what you then tie directly into your marketing. And that begins and ends with your compelling message. It’s the very foundation of all the rest of your marketing efforts. Marketing isn’t simply going through the motions of marketing activities. Without the foundation of a resonate, compelling, attractive message that appeals to your target market, none of the actual marketing activities is going to really help you.

Learning how to market in a way that allows you to attract the right people, speak to what their emotional interests are and command professional fees is an art and science. It involves understanding your market and marketing psychology. It’s not even difficult. It’s actually pretty simple. The only thing that’s required is a) the focus and direction that a target market gives you, and b) a shift in your thinking and understanding about marketing.

You would really, really find great benefit from my guide, Articulating Your Value: How to Craft Your Own Unique and Compelling Marketing Message to Attract Your Ideal, Paying Clients. Without the foundation of a proper message, none of the actual marketing activities is going to really help you. That’s what this guide is all about–helping you craft your message which is the foundation of any marketing activities you engage in. It’s about marketing and developing not only your own unique, compelling marketing message, but one that helps you command professional level fees.

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Marketing | Tagged Administrative Consultants, articulating your value, Compelling Offer, Danielle Keister, Dear Gritty VA, Marketing Message, Virtual Assistants | Comments (2)

March 8, 2011 – 10:00 am

How Do I Know If the Virtual Assistant Is Working?

If you ever have a prospective client ask, “How do I know my Virtual Assistant is working if I cannot see what he/she is doing?” you need to rewrite your marketing message.

That kind of question is a sure sign that you have written about yourself and what you do as if you were a substitute employee or virtual worker instead of an administrative expert and professional service provider.

You will never have a client ask that question if your marketing copy is written properly.

And if you don’t know how to do that, you need my guide: Articulating Your Value: How to Craft Your Own Unique, Compelling Marketing Message (GDE-38).

Your thoughts? Post a comment!

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy, Marketing | Tagged Marketing Message, Virtual Assistant | Comments (0)

March 2, 2011 – 10:00 am

Dear Gritty VA: Do I Need a Paralegal Certificate?

Dear Gritty VA:

I have been toying with the idea of starting my own business for some time and recent events (notably, a layoff) have pushed this idea to the forefront. I have purchased your business forms, contracts, etc. and have found your resources and expertise to be exactly what I was looking for. I noted that you work with attorneys. I am interested in targeting sole practitioner attorneys as well and was wondering if obtaining a paralegal certificate would be helpful in breaking into this market? –LP

Great question and I love seeing that you have narrowed things down to a target market. That right there is going to help you get things rolling more quickly and easily, and save you soooo much time and effort because it gives you a direction and focus.

In answer to your specific question, you do not necessarily need a paralegal certificate to support attorneys. Administrative support is administrative support. EVERY business needs it, including law offices, and you don’t need any kind of certification to do that work. However, if you plan to also do paralegal work, then you’ll need to check with your state or locality to find out the rules on that. Some states require a degree or certification to be a paralegal while others do not.

That said, if you want to support the legal profession, there are some specific skills and knowledge you will need. You’ll be more successful if you already have that kind of experience; it’ll be a harder sell if not. Either way, it’s always a great idea to take whatever kind of training or classes you can find, and read any information you can that will help you become more knowledgeable about supporting this market.

Law practice management is extremely valuable knowledge to have or obtain. Plan on keeping up on that every chance you get. It’s especially prized by solo attorneys because you are then able to help get their business organized and running smoothly so that can be more profitable and have more time for their client work (or just have some time off! These guys work like dogs, most of them).

You also want to learn about all the various legal industry specific software and tools that can be utilized so you can bring that knowledge and skillset to the table.

Getting back to the target market thing, I love that you already understand that it’s the solos who are going to have the most need and therefore are going to find greater value in having an administrative support partner.

Large firms don’t really need what we do because they have bigger workloads and can afford in-house employees required to handle it. Therefore, when you do find one that’s even interested in outsourcing, it’s only to save a buck and get it as cheaply as possible, not because they value the work and it’s important to their practice. They aren’t interested in a partnering relationship whereas that partnering relationship plays a critical role in supporting solos. This is why you’ll find greater success with them. They have a great need for what we do and therefore place higher value and are willing to pay for it. Which is one of the first rules in selecting a target market: It must have a real need for what you are in business to offer so that it values it enough to pay for it.

I would have you narrow that down even further that, though. There are all kinds of practice areas in the law and the work and processes involved therefore can vary dramatically. By narrowing down to a solos in a specific practice area, you will be better able to learn more about the work specifically involved and see how you can support them. This, in turn, will allow you to compose a much more compelling marketing message that really speaks their language–all to your greater, faster success in attracting and getting those clients.

Once you do narrow thing down more, you can then start doing your homework by researching and talking with solo attorneys, finding out where their biggest headaches are, how they are currently managing their work and administrative and what solutions they’ve be most interested in.

If you want to learn more about how to craft your own unique, compelling marketing message, I recommend my guide Articulating Your Value: How to Craft Your Own Unique, Compelling Marketing Message (GDE-38).

Hope that helps!

UPDATE: 480 participants so far! Spread the word so we can reach goal by April 1!

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By Danielle Keister | Also posted in Business Savvy | Tagged Administrative Consultant, Danielle Keister, Gritty VA, solo attorneys, Virtual Assistant | Comments (3)