As Founder and Director of the Golden Horseshoe Virtual Assistants Group (GHVA), I receive many inquiries from individuals wanting to know how they can get started in this field. My schedule does not allow me to respond to each one personally, so I have written this article to answer the questions that I receive most often.
For anyone who is thinking about starting a virtual assistant (VA) business, I highly recommend joining Virtual Assistant Forums (VAF). There are many online networks for VAs, but VAF is open to anyone, regardless of geographic location or specialty (or lack thereof), and there’s no cost to join. The forum is very well organized, and the members are extremely helpful and friendly. You must contribute a certain number of posts to be eligible for certain benefits, such as access to RFPs.
As a virtual assistant, do you have a specialty? Or do you offer anything and everything? Experts strongly recommend specializing. Here’s why:
Being self-employed can be extremely rewarding, but it can also be a challenge. Often the difference is the type of client you have. The better your clients, the more rewarding your business feels and the happier you are. So, it makes sense to create a strategy to find great clients. Here are a few tactics to consider.
As a business owner, it’s nearly impossible to do everything on your own. Whether you have a strictly online business, a direct sales business, or a traditional bricks-and-mortar business, it’s unlikely you have both the time and the skills to complete all of the necessary tasks.
Setting the rates for your virtual assistant services can be one of the most challenging decisions you have to make. In fact, many aspiring VAs struggle with this decision on an ongoing basis. Let’s take a look at some of the more common rate setting questions. The answers may help you with your decision.
Here is a listing of our favourite tools that allow us to work effectively and efficiently for our clients:
Last month, many GHVA members participated in the 6th Annual