Plenty of information is available on the ‘net about becoming a virtual assistant, but do you know what the nitty-gritty parts of the job really entail?  You may not want to become a VA because you may find that a good amount of your own time is spent on the periphery of the job itself.

It is important to understand first, that a VA does not simply perform an administrative task and then bill for that task.  If you are contracted to do bookkeeping, then you are a bookkeeper.  If you are contracted to write articles, then you are a writer.  A virtual worker bills for those tasks and then moves on to the next. (There is certainly nothing wrong with this business model.)  But a virtual assistant is a right-hand person; a collaborator working daily with a small business owner to help grow their business.  Virtual assistance is not a solely task-oriented job. It takes time and endurance to get to that collaborative point with a client.

Based upon my experience as a Virtual Assistant (VA) I have listed 8 reasons why you may not want to become a virtual assistant.

1)  The job requires responding to many client questions which will be answered on your own time. Expect to spend a lot of time getting to know your client; to be the best partner available, with a good portion of that time being ‘off the clock’.

2)  Expect that even on your ‘off time’ you will be thinking about the client’s work.  Often I will come upon an article or an idea to help improve a process while I am doing something else. Expect that as a virtual assistant, your client’s business will become as important as your own.  I spend much time reading newsletters, books, watching videos and going to the library to educate myself about a client’s industry.  All done on my own time but well worth the effort when I can make a suggestion to a client that will positively affect his bottom line.

3)  Some tasks, such as invoicing are generally not billable and as a new VA or even when starting with a new client, you may spend a lot of time getting your invoicing correctly established, setting up passwords, adding sites to your favorites, checking out the competition…all on your own time.  There are weeks that I work 40 hours but I bill only for 10 or 20 for actual work completed.

4)  Expect that your client may need you after regular office hours.  This does not happen too often, but I have received emails from a client on a Sunday afternoon asking to put real estate listings online asap. Some items can wait until Monday morning, and it is certainly a personal preference as to whether you can drop everything and complete the work but I feel that if I can do it, I will.  Now that is not to say that I do not charge a rush fee for some projects that come in late on a Friday afternoon or that I do not make it clear from the start what my office hours will be, but in my opinion, it is better to be as flexible as possible in this business if you want to survive. 

5)  Expect that some tasks will not go on as seamlessly as anticipated and that you will just need to ‘eat’ the downtime.  The job can be daunting if you succumb to computer errors or if a website is slow to process but if you cannot be patient and move on with a clear head, then being a VA is not the job for you.  Expect to switch between tasks if a site gives you trouble or call support (on your own) to inquire about the problem.  Clients only pay for the work you complete so it is important to have up-to-date software and hardware, know how and where to go to solve problems quickly and above all else, be patient.

6)  I believe that the ideal client is someone who sends clear instructions, knows how to use email effectively, has some computer knowledge and can answer questions about a project within a reasonable amount of time.  However, many clients go out on appointments, do not use email properly, do not read an email entirely and/or do not have a PDA to respond to correspondence quickly. Expect that you will need to wait for your answers before you can continue the work.  If you are not organized in asking the right questions from the start, it can be hours or days before you can get back to work on a client project.  Some clients are available nearly 24/7, while others are out-of-the-office for good parts of the day.  One of my dear clients shuts down on Fridays at 2 pm and I learned early in the game to make sure I get all my information from her in the morning before starting her work.  She’s an early riser, so I log on to her work first and foremost. If you are working on a particular job it is important to plan ahead anticipating that you may not be able to reach them for a final approval or to respond to your question when you need them.

7)  Expect that some of your time will need to be spent on marketing your own business.  During busy weeks, marketing can be difficult to ‘fit in’ but it is necessity in order to maintain a productive business level.  Never forget that you are a business owner too.

8  Expect that potential clients will contact you to inquire about working with a VA but are either unwilling to commit or just want to ‘pick your brain’. Expect that you will work hard to gain a potential client’s trust through responding to questions via email and may even spend the time phone conferencing with them only to be told that they will ‘contact you in a few months’.  Some may never call you back others may ignore your correspondence. It happens, when it does, move on but keep that client in your database. Do not get discouraged.

If you are sure that becoming a virtual assistant is the right job for you, start with a good business plan. Join a peer-to-peer group such as Virtual Assistant Forums.  Here you will find a vast document library to help you get started and an opportunity to post questions and find support from other virtual assistants just like you. 

Janine Gregor

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