Clients Don't Want to Pay Your Rates?

Clients not wanting to pay your rate? Here's a great video showing how that Vendor/Client relationship would work in real world situations.

My mother discovered Twitter

So, my mother discovered Twitter yesterday. I got an email in my personal account saying someone wanted to follow my "protected" Twitter account. (I do not "use" this account, I only use it for testing Twitter backgrounds I create for my clients.) So, after a brief bio check, and a phone call to confirm my suspicions, I discover it was my mother...who had no idea what the heck she was doing. After a while on the phone with her explaining what Twitter was and how she (as a non-business person) could use it, I realized I REALLY needed to get on the stick and write that "easy to understand" Twitter ebook I'd been pondering for a while. So, that is my goal for this week...finish my Twitter ebook.

How Do I Find a Virtual Assistant?

This week I’ve been posting about what a virtual assistant is and the cost of a virtual assistant. Your next question may be, “How do I go about finding a virtual assistant for my business?”

There are several resources for finding a VA to partner with to help you grow your business. Since virtual assistants are, well, virtual, odds are you will not find a VA in your local yellow pages. Also, because they are virtual, that means you are not limited to a VA in your local area. Other than doing a web search and wading through the thousands of VA web sites, you can turn to virtual assistant associations. All VA associations have a section of their web site dedicated for potential clients to submit a request for proposal (RFP). Once the RFP has been posted to the private, members’ only portion of their web site, individual VAs then respond directly to the business owner who has requested VA services. It is then up to the individual business owner to screen the proposals and begin a conversation with who they believe would be the best fit for them and their business needs.

So, what VA associations are there? There are hundreds of VA associations (local, regional, national, and international). Two good places to start are VAnetworking and the International Virtual Assistants Association (IVAA). Both are international organizations, but the majority of their members are in North America.

Don't Be Shocked by the Cost of a Virtual Assistant

Earlier this week I wrote about what a virtual assistant is. Some people are initially surprised to see the hourly charge for a virtual assistant. VA fees for generalists can range from $25 to $50 per hour and specialized VAs can charge $75 per hour or more. That can seem a lot at first glance, but compared to the actual cost of an hourly employee, VAs are right in line with, and sometimes less than, the cost of an on-site employee. But remember, a virtual assistant is not an employee - VAs are business owners like you, who are responsible for all their own expenses related to running a business such as taxes, software, computers, electricity, Internet connection, health insurance, retirement, etc. The median wage for an entry level administrative assistant in my local area (South Carolina) is $16 per hour, not counting bonuses and benefits. Factoring in bonuses and benefits, the actual cost to the employer is over $24 per hour. Add in the cost of employment taxes, an extra computer, telephone, electricity, work space, unproductive time such as breaks, etc. and the actual cost of an administrative assistant can easily top $30 per hour – that’s just for an entry level assistant. The cost goes up significantly with experience, increased responsibilities and location.

Here is another VA vs. Employee cost comparison at VAnetworking.com.

What is a Virtual Assistant?

“A Virtual Assistant (VA) is a highly-trained independent entrepreneur who provides a myriad of business support services virtually via phone, fax and internet based technology to support and meet the growing needs of businesses worldwide.” - VAnetworking.com

Although the virtual assistant industry has been around for many years and has been utilized by speakers, business/life coaches and real estate professionals, it has only recently been brought into mainstream business world. Entrepreneurs often find they need assistance with business related tasks but often do not have the space, resources or budget for an employee. Enter the VA.

A VA can help with virtually any aspect of your business. Although many virtual assistants are generalists, many VAs offer specialized or niche services. Services range from general administrative services such as data entry, calendar management, email management, transcription and proofreading to specialized services like bookkeeping, email marketing campaign management, desktop publishing and website design and maintenance. Partnering with a VA can significantly free up your time to focus on the money making aspect of your business.

“Why wouldn’t I just hire an employee?”

• If you run your business from home you may not want someone else inside your home.
• You don’t have the budget or space for an extra work station (desk, computer, printer telephone, etc.).
• You don’t want to deal with employment taxes.

“Why wouldn’t I just hire a temp from an agency?”

• Temp employees do not have a vested interest in seeing your business succeed.
• Temp employees are just that – temporary!
• Employment taxes are included in the fee you pay to the temp agency, but you still need the extra work station, have the issue of having someone inside your home (if you’re home based), and many times temps have only basic office skills and are limited in the scope of the work they can perform.

Don't Forget to Be "Social"

Remember – social media starts with “social”. Successful participants in the social media realm will tell you that you are making a HUGE mistake if you go in to the social media arena with guns blazing trying to sell your product or service. That’s like walking straight in to a party and trying to push your product on everyone in the room.

Social Media Industry Report

I just received my download copy of the Social Media Marketing Industry Report. I haven’t had a chance to read the whole thing yet, just skimming over it so far, and it seems to be a good read. I feel another blog post coming on soon.

Does Having a Bio Get You More Twitter Followers?

Does having a bio get you more Twitter followers? According to a study done by HubSpot, the answer is overwhelmingly “yes”. Personally, I’m very hesitant to follow someone with no bio unless I know them outside of Twitter.

Is a Virtual Assistant Retainer the Same as an Attorney's Retainer?

I recently spoke with a potential client and the conversation turned to my retainer option. The PC noted that she had heard the term from other VAs but was not completely clear on what that was and asked if it was similar to the retainer for an attorney. This question has also come up between virtual assistants on various VA forums.

A Virtual Assistant retainer is not quite the same as a retainer for an attorney. Almost every VA I’ve come in contact with has the same definition for a virtual assistant retainer. A VA retainer is pre-purchased hours (generally each calendar month) and they are ‘use or loose’. Some VAs give a discount to retainer clients and some do not.

So, why would you even consider a retainer with a virtual assistant? Other than a potential discount, the major reason is that if you have a retainer agreement with a virtual assistant, that VA has budgeted his/her time for your tasks. “Hourly” clients are not guaranteed a VAs time. If he/she has scheduled his/her time for the week and an hourly client contacts them with a project, the VA is not obligated to accept that project.

50 Social News and Niche Websites You Can Use

While I was doing my reading this morning I came across this blog post. It’s over a year old, but still has some excellent resources and sites.

50 Social News Websites: A List of General and Niche Social Media Communities

10 Most Extraordinary Twitter Updates

I would like to share an excerpt from a post I was reading on Mashable today…

Twitter updates are used to communicate everything from birthday wishes to political opinions. But there are some special, shining cases where the status update has been used to do some extraordinary things, from marriage proposals to breaking news, and much more.

The following are 10 of the most extraordinary and creative uses of Twitter updates. These amazing updates have made the news, pushed the boundaries of what the status update can do, and have even fundamentally changed people’s lives.

Read the whole story 10 Most Extraordinary Twitter Updates.