YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource

YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource Guide to Working with a VA Image by: Dreamstime.com By Rhonda Holscher Owner CEO Rhonda s Virtual Office YOUR Virtual Assistant Copyright 2012 All Rights Reserved - Rhonda s Virtual Office

Table of Contents Secretary NO MORE Virtual Assistant s NOW on the Scene. Pg3 What is a Virtual Assistant? Pg4 Why do I need a Virtual Assistant?.. Pg4 What services does a Virtual Assistant provide?.. Pg5 How do I find a Virtual Assistant? Pg5 How do I work with a Virtual Assistant?. Pg6 What are my responsibilities when working with a Virtual Assistant? Pg8 Virtual Assistant vs Full Time Employee: Cost Comparison Pg9 Why is an independent contractor agreement important?. Pg12 Why is a non-disclosure agreement important? Pg13 Why should I work with Rhonda s Virtual Office?... Pg14 I have written YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA to help you understand the ins and outs of working with a Virtual Assistant. I would love it if you would share this book with others by sending them to this link. Please do not alter or utilize my ebook in any other way. It is not intended for resale or distributions accept through my website. So please be considerate and give them the link to the sign up form so that I may send them the ebook myself. Copyright 2012 All Rights Reserved - Rhonda s Virtual Office

3 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA Secretary NO MORE Virtual Assistant s NOW on the Scene Image by: Access Images The Secretary was on the scene for many years, and then was replaced by the Administrative Assistant and that role as evolved into the Virtual Assistant. Secretaries held a common role in almost every office across the globe. The typical secretary would perform many general office duties from typing, taking dictation, filing, answering phones, scheduling appointments, to even getting coffee for the boss. As computers and new technologies began to enter the typical office the role of the secretary evolved into the Administrative Assistant. Administrative Assistants had to learn even more skills to operate these new machines that have entered into the office environment. Then something happened that called upon the role of the Virtual Assistant. The economy took a dive that stung many businesses and forced them to lay off their in house office staff and sadly the Administrative Assistants role was one of the first to go. This left a huge weight on the shoulders of the rest of the office and the boss, and if you were a small business it probably left the brunt of the Administrative Assistants duties right in your lap. Having lost the in house Administrative Assistant the rest of the office staff became overwhelmed with all their new duties especially if you were a solopreneur. This caused confusion, lost documents, forgotten appointments, and many oversights that could really be costly to the business. Many of these men and women who lost their Administrative Assistant jobs were left without a job and without a means for a sustainable income. In comes the Virtual Assistant. The Virtual Assistant evolved from both the need for the former Administrative Assistant to produce an income and from the much needed services these offices that let them go now required. These businesses began seeking viable solutions to meet the end goal, and the Virtual Assistant filled this role quite well. A Virtual Assistant became the perfect solution!

4 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA What is a Virtual Assistant? A Virtual Assistant is an independent contractor, a business owner just like you. They are not an employee. They work from a remote location providing administrative services or other service depending on their specialty (niche). Virtual Assistant s pay their own taxes, health, dental or other insurance. They have their own fully equipped office, and are responsible for its upkeep. I know you re asking yourself Why do I need a Virtual Assistant? You need a Virtual Assistant because the work you do, the business you own/run, and your family need YOU! If you are busy with busy work then you are wasting precious time and money! Your time is valuable, and busy work will eat your valuable time up like a garbage disposal eats up your leftovers. Allowing a Virtual Assistant to step in take that busy work off your plate will allow you to free up your valuable time and focus on the other tasks in your business. You know the ones that actually make the money! It will allow you to spend more time with your family. Your money is your survival in this world. It s how you and your family eat, buy clothes, pay your bills, and sometimes just have fun. Does your family deserve to have more of you? Are you tired of working so hard and gaining so little ground because that busy work is keeping you to busy? Do you want to see your business become more productive? Do you want to see your business become more profitable? If you answered yes to even one of these questions then you should be working with a Virtual Assistant! So step back and let a Virtual Assistant take care of the busy work!

5 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA Okay, so now you want to know how a Virtual Assistant can help you What services does a Virtual Assistant provide? A Virtual Assistant depending on their expertise provides a variety of administrative, desktop publishing, web, transcription, bookkeeping services, and more. Administrative Services can be anything including but not limited to typing, mail/calendar support, to editing and proofreading. Desktop Publishing Services can include designing newsletters, brochures, fliers, business cards, letterhead, post cards, and more. Web Services might include web research, website design, website maintenance, social media support and other techy stuff. Transcription Services might include your personal recorded notes, voicemail, webinars, one-on-one interviews, and much more. Bookkeeping Services might include accounts receivables and payables, invoicing and bill payments, bank reconciliations, etc. and so much more can be done by YOUR Virtual Assistant. This sounds great but How do I find a Virtual Assistant? The obvious answer of course is we at Rhonda s Virtual Office can provide you with many if not all of YOUR Virtual Assistant needs, and if we do not provide that service we can assist you by helping you find a Virtual Assistant that can assist you. If you like we can also oversee that Virtual Assistant allowing you less worry over how your tasks are being completed. However, there are other sources of course to find a Virtual Assistant that will be a perfect match for you and your business. You can simply Google the question, How do I find a Virtual Assistant? or Virtual Assistant. Tons of options will pop up to assist you in your search. I can recommend Virtual Assistant Forums and Hire My Mom. These are two great places to find a fabulous Virtual Assistant. Virtual Assistant Forums is owned and operated by a terrific lady who brought us this awesome forum to help Virtual Assistants find resources and support in running their businesses, as well as to help you find a Virtual Assistant. It is loaded with Virtual Assistants who are members, and many have many years of service and training in their portfolio. Hire My Mom was created for mom s who work from home to connect with potential new clients.

6 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA I still have many more questions How do I work with a Virtual Assistant? Most Virtual Assistant s will have systems and processes already established, and can walk you through the ways that have worked well for them with working with clients. So let s review a few often asked questions to help you understand how to work with a Virtual Assistant? How do I know if my Virtual Assistant is working if I cannot see them? Remember that YOUR Virtual Assistant is a business owner and as such will treat your projects as if they are their very own projects. A Virtual Assistant has a huge stake in how they perform their work. If a Virtual Assistant does not perform satisfactorily then their business reputation is damaged and therefore is highly motivated to complete all projects in a timely and professional manner. How do I know how much time a Virtual Assistant is spending on my work? YOUR Virtual Assistant can supply you with a time sheet upon your request to show you the amount of time spent on each project. What if I need services that are not provided by my Virtual Assistant? YOUR Virtual Assistant can assist you in finding the right Virtual Assistant to meet that need. They may also be able to oversee the new Virtual Assistant while she is working on that project allowing you a worry free solution to completing your projects/tasks. How do I exchange files with my Virtual Assistant? There are many solutions available to allow you to easily share or exchange files with YOUR Virtual Assistant. YOUR Virtual Assistant probably already has systems in place to make this process even easier. There are programs that can be utilized such as Dropbox, SugarSync, Box.net for easy file sharing and it s as simple as drop and drag into the folder that YOUR Virtual Assistant has set up to be shared with you. You can also utilize email, fax, regular mail, Google docs and programs like SendThisFile to share documents.

7 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA Is my information secure? A Virtual Assistant will take precautions to ensure that your information is secure by utilizing software programs that are installed on their computer to ensure your projects are secure. Programs such as Norton AntiVirus, and Norton and Windows firewalls. Is my information confidential? Yes! All information is kept in the strictest of confidence. YOUR Virtual Assistant should provide you with or at least be willing to sign a Non-disclosure agreement (NDA) in order to ensure the confidentiality of your documents and other proprietary information. Learn more about the NDA later in this ebook. How long will it take for my projects to be completed? Each Virtual Assistant will have a different turnaround time depending on how many clients and projects they have going at the current time, but will be able to let you know the turnaround time before the start of most projects. Some projects it is difficult to give an exact time, but you can work with milestones to help you break it down for each step of a project if need be. A good standard turnaround time is between 1 3 days for average tasks. Projects or tasks that require more will obviously take more time. What does a Virtual Assistant charge? Virtual Assistants have different rates for different types of projects and often offer some sort of pricing packages. So the rate will depend upon a few factors such as the location of YOUR Virtual Assistant, their skills, their training, their experience, etc. Currently average Virtual Assistant rates are somewhere from $30 and up hourly. Image by: Dreamstime.com I bet your wondering what the benefit is cost wise of working with a Virtual Assistant.

8 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA What are my responsibilities when working with a Virtual Assistant? Working with a Virtual Assistant is a great way to improve your processes and productivity, and makes meeting your bottom line as effortless and painless as possible. It is important that you (the Client) understands that you have a role to play as well. It is also important that you understand that in the beginning of any working relationship there will be a short period of adjustment and you need to allow for that adjustment to take place to fully realize the benefit of YOUR Virtual Assistant. If we decide to start an exercise program but grunt, grumble, and groan because we are so out of shape or we don t have time or blah, blah, blah. Stop the whining right! I mean let s get real it s not going to benefit us unless we stick to it. The growing pains eventually go away! So you need a little fortitude here. It s not always easy giving up the reigns to your things so figure out a plan with YOUR Virtual Assistant and stick to it! So what are my responsibilities anyway? 1. You need a clearly defined list of what you expect from YOUR Virtual Assistant. a. Projects/tasks b. Processes and procedures 2. You need to clearly communicate to YOUR Virtual Assistant any policies that she will need to be concerned with. a. Branding b. Email signatures c. Communication with your VA i. Email / phone / appointment only 3. You will need to be prepared to surrender certain items that may or may not be confidential. a. URL s, username s, and password s i. Email ii. Website iii. Social Media iv. Other Accounts 4. You will also need to be sure YOUR Virtual Assistant has all relevant documents, images, and videos. This can be done easily via Dropbox, your server, email, etc. 5. YOUR Virtual Assistant will also need all relevant contact information in regards to her specific tasks. a. Your team b. Your clients c. Vendors and others

9 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA What is the cost comparison of working with a Virtual Assistant compared to hiring an employee? Let s take a look at the chart below Image by: Rhonda s Virtual Office As you can see by the above chart the employee is making $25 hourly for 40 hours a week. For the year including taxes/benefits the employee is earning $64,800. If you look at the Virtual Assistant you ll notice that they are making $35 hourly in this comparison, but only working 20 hours a week so by the time you add that up for the year they are making $33,600. Saving you $31,200 plus annually! Why is the Virtual Assistant only working 20 hours? Because the Virtual Assistant does not take coffee, lunch, or bathroom breaks on your time. They are only being paid for the actual work that they do and not the non-productive time that is wasted by an employee.

10 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA Don t forget about overhead expenses! Image by: Rhonda s Virtual Office Overhead expenses can include anything from the actual hiring process to the training. It includes what I call non-productive and un-necessary costs. The cost of breaks, sick days, vacation time, office equipment, taxes, workers compensation, and other benefits. Many hours are wasted that are non-productive and un-necessary, but are still on the clock. With a Virtual Assistant you pay only for the actual work done!

11 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA Image by: Dreamstime.com The era of the simple handshake and a man s word is no longer sanctioned in today s business world. Business has left the office and moved online and making it even more feasible for someone to scam or take advantage of another. So protect yourself and your business by utilizing contract and non-disclosure agreements. The next two sections discuss the importance of Independent Contractor Agreements and Nondisclosure / Confidentiality Agreements. Rhonda s Virtual Office is not a lawyer and the information provided herein is solely to be used at your discretion. Rhonda s Virtual Office or any of its assigns will not be held accountable for any use of such information regarding these Agreements.

12 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA Why is an Independent Contractor Agreement important? The Independent Contractor Agreement is important as it spells out the relationship between your business and the contractor. You the client are fully aware that YOUR Virtual Asssitant has systems in place and takes their business seriously. The agreement will outline when and how work will be completed. Defines what services are being provided. Payment arrangements will be outlined, i.e. hourly, per project, retainer, when and how payment is to be made, and what happens if payment is not made. What should be in your Independent Contractor Agreement? Proper classification it should clearly state that this is an Independent Contractor (not an employee). If not properly classified your business may be held accountable for federal and state taxes, benefits, and overtime liabilities. This could seriously add up to a large sum of money. So make sure that contract clearly identifies them as an Independent Contractor. The Independent Contractor Agreement should state that the Independent Contractor is solely responsible for their own taxes and benefits. The agreement should also clearly identify services, deliverables, and milestones up front. It is inevitable that project scopes will change from time to time so clarify that all changes must be agreed to in writing before the Independent Contractor proceeds. Be sure all costs are clearly identified before the start of the project and if any unforeseen costs should arise the Independent Contractor should receive approval for such costs in writing before proceeding. Specify who owns the product - if, when, and how projects/products should be returned or destroyed. Confidential information should be addressed. The client s confidential information belongs to the client and should not be used for any other purposes other than what the client has stated. Be clear on what those purposes are. Guarantee of satisfactory work should be addressed. Termination of agreement should be clearly stated.

13 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA Why is a Non-disclosure Agreement (NDA) important? The NDA / Confidentiality Agreement are crucial to your confidential information. It should clearly define the below listed aspects of the agreement. Clearly define what information is confidential Sometimes confidential information needs to be shared with others clearly define who and why The Independent Contractor in return for agreeing to keep confidential information confidential has the right to receive such information The Independent Contractor will not disclose such information to third parties without express written consent from the client The independent Contractor will not use any confidential information for any purposes other than what is outlined in the NDA The term should be addressed and may be 1 5 years or even indefinitely You may also add provisions o Stating the agreement is binding on heirs and assigns o Governing the controlling law for a contract o Calling for a return of records (confidential information or materials) o Regarding how disputes are handled (arbitration) Image by: Rhonda s Virtual Office

14 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA This is all great information, but Why should I work with Rhonda s Virtual Office? You should work with Rhonda s Virtual Office because we provide quality solutions to assist you in freeing up your time and allowing you to focus on the more pressing tasks. We take pride in our business and our team members on being professional with the highest ethics. Our team has 25 plus years experience and are all highly qualified and certified to work in the Virtual Assistant industry. At Rhonda s Virtual Office we take pride in our services that we provide and guarantee all work will be handled in a timely and professional manner. We track out time using a time tracking software that allows us to provide you with a report of the time we spend on your projects/tasks, and are provided to the client upon the client s request. We utilize current and relevant systems that allow us to provide you with peace of mind. We protect our PC s with updated software from Norton AntiVirus to Norton and Windows firewalls. We have systems in place that make the sharing of your documents easy and secure. We have contracts in place that outline the scope of our agreements and utilize Non-disclosure agreements that ensure the protection of your documents and or proprietary information. We offer custom package solutions that allow us to tailor to your specific needs and budget. We offer a 1 3 day turnaround time for most projects excluding weekends and holidays. If your project should fall on a weekend or holiday then the next business day will count toward your project s completion. At Rhonda s Virtual Office we are independent contractor s eliminating the need for you to pay insurance, workers compensation, taxes, and more. You will not be responsible for maintaining office space or equipment as we will be responsible for our own offices and equipment. Working with Rhonda s Virtual Office is the perfect solution for you!

15 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA I am Rhonda Holscher and I am very excited that you have taken the time to read my YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA. I hope that you walk away with a better sense of what working with a Virtual Assistant entails. If after completing this ebook you still have questions I would love for you to get in touch today and let me know your questions. I would be very happy to answer them for you. A little about me: I am a Christian, single parent of two really terrific children, with lots of pets, and lots of love in our home. I love Pepsi and coffee, and I could live off of Pepsi, coffee, crackers and peanut butter. I am a business owner since 2009. I came to this life changing decision after years of being a caregiver for my parents. Upon their deaths it became obvious that it was high time I made some major changes in my life. I chose to start my own business, and have not regretted a single day. Through all the ups and downs of life and owning and running a business this has truly been one of the best decisions I have ever made. I absolutely love serving others and always have, but now I not only get to serve others but I get to serve them in ways that also serve me and that I thoroughly enjoy.

16 YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource - Guide to Working with a VA I have written YOUR Virtual Assistant Resource Guide to Working with a VA to help you understand the ins and outs of working with a Virtual Assistant. I would love it if you would share this book with others by sending them to this link. Please do not alter or utilize my ebook in any other way. It is not intended for resale or distributions accept through my website. So please be considerate and give them the link to the sign up form so that I may send them the ebook myself. Copyright 2012 All Rights Reserved - Rhonda s Virtual Office Go ahead and pick up your phone and call us right now at 1-800-314-0980 / local calls to 513-32RVOVA / 513-327-8682. Email us at R.Holscher@RhondasVirtualOffice.com Visit our website at http://rhondasvirtualoffice.com If you would like to request a proposal via our web form please visit http:/rhondasvirtualoffice.com/forms/request-proposal/ Copyright 2012 All Rights Reserved - Rhonda s Virtual Office