A virtual assistant runs their own business from a virtual
location/area. When you run your own business you will do the same tasks as
management would do in a larger company, the difference is you might be doing
these tasks yourself unless you get assistance from other like-minded people.
The concept of running a VA businesses is that you are running a business, you
are doing the marketing, bookkeeping, networking, the work, debt collection,
invoicing etc, you do it all yourself.
You are your own boss.
As you are running a company you are on the same level as
other company bosses, CEO’s, managers, directors etc. You are no longer in the
situation where you are a PA or Office Manager getting instructions from a
Boss, you are not working for someone else that can give you instructions, you
have to get the work, you have to draw the clients to you through having
presence on social media, online/offline advertising, website, blog,
networking, advertising in your area etc.
You organise your company, one of the tasks you organise is,
your pricing structure, you as the company owner need to have prices/rates for the
services you are offering or the products that you are selling. Part of running
your company is setting up your pricing structures. You do not contact a
potential client and wait for them to give you a price for the services you are
offering, you have a pricing structure ready and you tell the client your
price.
To run your company/business you need to have a company
structure and follow set procedures to be organised. Specific things need to be
done at specific times, like your office administration, invoicing your
clients, keeping your work schedules up to date etc. You need to have a
structure of how you are going to deal with clients; how you are going to be
doing the work, a structure of dealing with subcontractors should you need to
use them. You need to know how long it will take you to say transcribe a 1 hour
file, how long would it take you to type up a 100 page document, how long will
it take you to organise an event etc. These are things you need to know as
working for many clients you need to be organised and be able to schedule the
work and be able to meet deadlines that are set by your clients.
As a VA you need to be able to do multi-tasking, you could
be working for a few clients at the same time, this is where you will use your
time management and prioritising skills.
Being a VA is about running a business, being your own boss,
scheduling your work times and procedures yourself. You are an Entrepreneur in
a worldwide industry that is growing daily.
