Virtual Assistant

Some people dream of rolling out of bed and walking to another room of their house in their slippers and robe, settling down in front of their computer and begin to work. Well if you are a virtual assistant you could do just that. In a nutshell, a virtual assistant is someone who performs office duties from a remote location for other businesses. You may type invoices, schedule appointments, arrange meetings, type recorded meeting minutes, track project status, type proposals, perform research, prepare and mail marketing campaigns, design or update websites, ezines or blogs. For the most part anything you can do in a standard office you could do as a virtual assistant in your own location. Before you begin this endeavor think about what activities you enjoy doing. You can pick and choose the services you will offer – it’s your business.

Please don’t confuse telecommuting with being a virtual assistant. The difference is that a telecommuter is one who works for the company as an employee with benefits and such. A virtual assistant, on the other hand, is a business owner who contracts work from other businesses. You will need to be organized, dependable and disciplined. While you can set your own hours you will need to be flexible.

To start a virtual assistance business you will need to contact your state and determine what is necessary in order to become a legal entity doing business in your state including state and federal filings and registering a business name. You also need to contact your local municipality to see what forms and fees are necessary to run a business from your home. Don’t forget about business insurance, legal assistance and a business bank account.

You must also have a fully functioning home office with phone, computer, printer and fax capabilities. You will need to have a professional looking website that clearly states the types of services you offer. Don’t forget about business cards and a marketing plan to drum up business. If you require capital to start your business venture you will need to prepare a solid business plan to present to a bank for such a loan.

A good place to start is to join a few virtual assistant organizations. They have fantastic message boards and the members are always willing to help out. Two that I recommend are Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce and VA Networking. When you are ready to begin your business, one tool that may fill your needs comes from VA Networking called Virtual Business Start Up System, it contains practically everything you need to begin your business.