A lot of people still don’t know what a ‘virtual assistant’ does and I usually explain myself by saying that I help business people who have a task, whether it’s regular or sporadic, but they don’t have the time, are fed up with it, don’t have the skill, or anything else, and would rather get someone else to do it.
I’ve also changed my title to ‘Freelance Business Assistant’, because some clients prefer me to go to their premises.
But then I get asked, “But what do you do?” The answer to that’s simple; I do admin! So my elevator pitch would be, “I provide administrative or secretarial help to business people on an ad hoc basis.” That’s it, really.
Admin covers a very wide range of business activities and the best I can do is put these under a number of headings:
PA SERVICES
OFFICE SERVICES
PROOFREADING & EDITING
IT SERVICES
EVENTS
PERSONAL SERVICES
These obviously can all be broken down into many further items, but these would more than likely give you an idea.
What I usually say to people is let’s have a chat. This will usually elicit if there’s a need or not. I certainly wouldn’t force myself on to anyone who wouldn’t benefit from what I can do. But it’s proven that outsourcing can definitely save time.
However, what some might say is, “By the time I’ve shown you, I could’ve done it myself.” Yes, that’s often true, but what if I said I’d come and spend half a day with you to learn your ropes? Okay, this would have to be planned in advance of the actual date you need me, so that I could be armed with the knowledge and you could just pick up the phone and get me in, or ask me to work from home. But the deal is that I come and spend the necessary time with you, for a charge though, of £50. But as soon as you use my services, the £50 comes off the invoice. (This has a time limit – three months.) That way, you have back up for any eventuality!
In the main, though, admin being what it is, is easy to pick up, unless it’s specialised, then I’d take longer, as anyone would.