Turning the calendar today (calendar courtesy of Direct Line) to the first day of June, I found a very appropriate message.

If you don’t have a PA, you are a PA.

If you find that you’re typing letters, organising meetings, booking travel, sorting out the books, you are officially a PA. Virtual Assistants can deliver a great service for a fraction of the cost if you only need support every now and then.

If you’re running a small business and struggling to do it all, then consider outsourcing as much as you can to a VA.  A Virtual Assistant understands the demands of running a business, after all most of us are doing it ourselves too.  We become an extension of your business, wanting to play a part in helping you to succeed and achieve business growth.

And as the quote above mentions, we can help you out just when you need an extra pair of hands, so it’s a very cost effective way of getting some support at those busier times.

Don’t be a PA, get a VA!

I’ve just watched a short video from Nigel Botterill who heads up the Entrepreneurs Circle and he made a point which struck a chord with me.

His point was about telling customers what you do – meaning all the services that you offer.

So, it got me thinking back to a few of the things that VVA has done for our clients, some of which may not be immediately obvious as a service when looking at the website!

• Researched and downloaded mailing databases from City Business Library
• Arranged upholstery of a customers chairs, then collected and returned the chairs once completed
• Arranged repair of a clients laptop & collected laptop once repaired
• Carried out market research at the British Library, including meeting with their researcher
• Gave a mini-training session to a client on e-marketing
• Designed a logo for a charity (which they chose over the suggestions from a design agency!)
• Travelled across London at short notice to take a pop-up banner for repair
• Sourced a venue for & co-ordinated a training workshop
• Designed, wrote content & sourced images for a client e-newsletter
• Set up a Customer Relationship Management system
• Designed the marketing materials for a Business Expo – marketed the Expo – co-organised the Expo on the day (including being the announcer!!)
• Update clients websites
• Take dictation
• And we even occasionally do filing!!!!

I’m sure there’s lots more that hasn’t sprung immediately to mind.  To be continued………….

I’ve just read a great post by Michael Hyatt on how you can use a Virtual Assistant to help support you in your business.

Of course, I know how useful a VA can be and what we can do for you, but it’s not always straightforward to explain so to read about it from someone who knows the benefits of using a VA, giving you an idea of some of the tasks undertaken, may be beneficial during the decision process of whether a VA is the right option for you.

Here’s an idea of what Michael’s VA does for him:

• She screens my email. She checks my main email accounts, handles what she can, and “redirects” the messages that require my personal attention to my private account. She has reduced my email load by 90 percent.
• She books my travel. She handles all the details, including airline reservations, hotels, car rental, etc. She sets up a trip in TripIt, so I have everything I need in one place.
• She makes calls on my behalf.  She makes appointments (both personal and professional), confirms my appointments, checks my voice mail, and follows up as needed.
• She manages my calendar.  Almost nothing gets on my calendar unless it passes through her first. We have agreed together that I will only accept appointments on two afternoons a week, and she works to stay within those boundaries.
• She handles other projects as needed.  I continue to turn over more and more to her.  For example, she recently screened all the people who had applied to be a community leader on my site. She and my manager, Joy, ended up picking the final ten I appointed.

Read the full post here

I’d recommend reading the full post, and taking a look around & subscribing to Michael’s site as there’s some good stuff on there!