What not to do when you start a new Virtual Support business.
by Rosie Shilo
Article from Run Your Business Life
As a network manager, I’ve seen many start-up Virtual Support (or Virtual Assistant – called VAs) businesses come through Virtually Yours. I’ve seen new VAs who are unsure of what they should or could be doing, and others that leap in and give everything a go with a smile.
One thing I have seen on occasion though, are VAs who start up their new venture, and begin by emulating the VAs they admire. Personally, I think this is a good idea, however, there are a few golden rules to consider when starting up in the VA Industry.
Respect copyright is the first. You may admire another VA for their products and promotions, but be inspired by it and create your own.
Your business name needs to be unique and reflect who you are and what you want your business to become. Your products are unique to you and your skillset. Stand out by being you. As they say, ‘everyone else is already taken’ and ‘you are best at being you than anyone else’.
Join networks and get involved. Work isn’t going to just come to you, you need to build up your networks both in the VA Industry and in the Industries you would like to target as clients. People hire people they trust.
Don’t just sell your product. Sell yourself too. You can sell yourself by being active in your Industry, dedicating yourself to enhancing your skills and supporting those around you.
Don’t just see other VAs as ‘the competition’. The VAs with the most successful businesses are those who have worked alongside other VAs, lending a hand when needed, collaborating to build better ideas and products. There is plenty of work to go around if you are good at what you do.
Love what you do. Don’t just provide a service because you can. This might get you by when you are employed – you still get your paycheque at the end of the month even if you didn’t push yourself to be the best you can be. But when you run your own business – loving it is the key to success. If you love it, you will care about what your clients think of your work and you will be energised by it. If you only do it because you can, it can be easy to be uninspired and not really care so much about the end product and how it helps your client. Plus, it’s not as much fun!
And finally, ask questions! Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Ask friends, peers, mentors. Listen to their advice and use what you think best suits you and your situation. You don’t have to do it on your own.
Joining VYVA FAQs – please read before contacting us
So you are thinking about joining VYVA?
Here are some of our more FAQs!
Will I get jobs?
This is the most common question we get asked, and to be honest, it’s the one we really cannot answer. We will provide you with information about jobs which are posted to us via our site or via phone and after that, it is up to you to convince the potential client that you are the one for the job.
We generally have fairly regular jobleads (sometimes lots, sometimes none), but they are not always going to be matched to your skills, location or rates. And sometimes, when you speak to the client, you just won’t feel like you are a good match.
Other times the job sounds perfect for you, the client thinks you sound perfect for them, and you have a wonderful business match!
When this is the case, the client relationship is in your hands from then on – you need to ensure you have an agreement in place, any insurances you might need, an invoicing system etc, so that you can provide that service to that client.
While we are happy to help if you have any issues, at the end of the day, they are your client, not ours.
How do I get support from VYVA?
The VYVA forums are simply amazing. The wealth of knowledge, support, humour and honesty is absolutely incredible. This is a tool that money can’t buy and you get out of it what you put in.
Networking in business is vital, and in this industry, it’s vital that you also network with your peers. They will make you stronger, connect you with more businesses and be that shoulder you may need as you ride the roller coaster of business ownership!
The forums are run through Yahoo Groups and this means that once registered to the groups, you won’t need to log into Yahoo Groups as the emails will be sent directly to your chosen email address and you can send messages to the forum straight from your own email! Fantastic!
What else do I get?
Once registered and logged into this website, you will see a large navigation open up to you on the right hand side of this page.
This includes access to
- Training opportunities and recordings
- Articles about working from home and working with other VAs etc
- Access to useful documents/files
- Skill testing
- And the VYVA Loves You! Section where we include some more fun tips and ideas.
You get lots of support from not only VYVA members, but from the VYVA Manager, Rosie Shilo, who is always happy to respond to your questions.
Is this just for new VAs? Or just for experienced VAs?
No this forum is for ALL VAs and all VAs will see the benefits of their membership.
Running a business can be very hard and with technology evolving as it does, you will always have questions, new things to learn, whether you are new or well established.
We also have a separate forum for new or struggling VAs to ask questions they might feel more embarrassed about (even though there is no need to feel embarrassed!) – this forum is the newbie cheer squad called VYVA Plus and that’s where you can really ask the base level business questions to get you off the ground.
Our workshops are run regularly and are aimed at all VAs. They have included sessions about business insurance, VOIP systems, using Dreamweaver, setting up businesses, writing resumes etc.
How much does it cost?
Membership is monthly and costs AU$15 per month payable via paypal subscription.
There are no other costs unless you want to take advantage of special training events or workshops, which cost anywhere from $10 to $400 each depending on what they are for.
Submit a Job Request
Fill out the form below to request contact from suitably qualified and skilled Virtual Assistants.
Our members generally charge a minimum of $30 per hour – increasing based on service type, skills and experience.
What happens next?
- After submitting this form, the “job” will be open to the network for 7 days unless otherwise specified. You can request for the job to be removed earlier if you receive enough responses.
- You will be emailed applications by appropriately skilled and experienced Virtual Assistants who will explain to you how they can assist you with your requirements. Each VA is an independent contractor and has their own business with unique skills, qualifications, rates and agreements. Our reference checked VAs will provide you with a unique ref number to identify them as reference checked. Those without reference checks may still be establishing a client base.
Your requirements:
You are under no obligation to utilise the business support services of any of our Virtual Assistants, however our only requirement of you is that you RESPOND to each VA who contacts you, to let them know if they were successful or not. Our VAs spend their valuable time contacting you to discuss business solutions and they appreciate a response and any feedback that you are willing to provide. Thank you!
Choose Membership
It is a condition of membership that you read our membership conditions before application. By submitting your application, you are declaring that you have read the conditions and agree to all points.
Please select the membership option. You will be redirected to PayPal to confirm your membership.
Please note:
Your membership will not be active unless you complete a payment option below.
You will be redirected back to the website after payment to create your logins.
Monthly Membership – $15 per month. (First month only $5.00!)*
Annual Membership $167.50 per year recurring subscription (First month trial only $5.00!)*
Annual Membership $167.50 – non-subscription – requires manual renewal – can use credit card.
Resources
Take the ATO test here.
Sites we love 
www.runyourbusinesslife.com.au
Handy Sites 
- Exit Strategy article -
http://www.e-myth.com/cs/user/print/post/exit-your-company-the-right-way
- Converting colours from RGB to CMYK
http://www.goffgrafix.com/pantone-rgb-100.php
- Converting image files
http://www.coolutils.com/Online-Image-Converter.php
- Setting up a 1300 or 1800 phone number -
http://www.alltel.com.au/
- If you want to check if a particular website is down or if it’s just you having issues with it, this is a good bookmark to keep handy…
http://downforeveryoneorjustme.com/
- The Small Business Hub – Great online resource for businesses.
http://www.thesbhub.com.au/
- Adobe eSeminars- BLISS! For any Adobe junkie out there, this site is a must-bookmark.
http://www.adobeeseminars.com.au/
- What’s your Elevatory Speech? 30 second infomercial? How do you simply explain what it is you actually do? This can help you -
http://www.15secondpitch.com/
- This is a fabulous site when you work on websites – see how the site looks in a variety of browsers-
http://www.browsershots.com
- If you offer proofreading services you might want to subscribe to the grammar tips e-newsletter or download the ‘common grammar rules’ document. ProofReadNow.
http://www.proofreadnow.com/
- International Social Media Association-
http://www.ismaconnects.org/
- Online Tech- this page shows how to manage email rules -
http://www.online-tech-tips.com/ms-office-tips/outlook-tip-2-how-to-use-email-rules-to-automatically-move-incoming-emails-into-folders/
- Website Gear - breadcrumbs for your website nav.
http://content.websitegear.com/article/breadcrumb_navigation.htm
- Association for the Protection of Internet Copyright! -
http://www.a-w.org/index.html
- Check to see what was hosted on your domain address in the past! This is FABULOUS especially when you have a new site to develop for a client who ‘used to have something up’ – now you can find it!
Waybackmachine
