I was asked this question this morning by a friend, whom I would like to help. I got to thinking that if she has these questions, then surely others do as well. So, I’m going to do my best to answer some of her questions and hopefully that will benefit you all as well.

How do I get started as a VA and where can I find some work to get me started?

Well, I will start with how I personally got into being a Virtual Assistant. I have been working in data entry and transcription for about 7 years now. Some where along the line the data entry (document coding) that I was doing started to fail in the market.

There was a lot of offshoring going on and document coders went a good 5 or 6 years with no raises. In fact, many companies lowered the rates that coders were receiving for their work. While this was once my bread and butter, and I very much enjoyed doing it, I had to let it go. It simply wasn’t profitable anymore.

So, I focused on transcription, which continues to be a great source of income for me and many others like myself. Yes, many people do offshore their transcription work to folks who will work for pennies a day. However, they often find the quality of those transcripts to be lacking. If you’re putting out English spoken audio and video, it’s usually best to hire native English speaking transcribers as well. It just makes sense and you get a better product in the end.

From there and from being part of the WAHM commuinty online (and by that I mean, always being in touch with other WAHMs and sharing common interests) I made some really great contacts over the years. What I really wanted to do was help people grow their business while growing my own at the same time. I didn’t even know that what I wanted to be was a Virtual Assistant until someone told me that’s exactly what I was doing.

It had already happened without my realizing it. I was transcribing audio notes, making customer service phone calls, uploading HTML pages, tweaking code, and making graphics for other WAHMs to help them grow their businesses. I was assisting in a virtual way.

So, how do you become a Virtual Assistant too? I would say the first step in this or any business is building relationships. Talk to people. Find out what they need done. Find out where their goals are. Then determine how you can help them meet those goals.

That’s a great way to get the mind moving in the right direction. Next, you’ll want to think about the skills you have to offer and start writing them down on a sheet of paper. You can refer back to this sheet later when you’re making a website to advertise your services.

No skill is too small. Proficient with Excel spreadsheets? Include that! Good at making videos? Include that! Have a great speaking voice? Include that! Speedy typist? Include that! Telemarketing experience? Include that! If it involves you doing something that you’re good at, include it in your skill list.

What equipment do I need to be a virtual assistant? Chances are you have most of what you need already. First, your computer with an internet connection. Some programs are good to have, such as Word, Excel, Power Point etc…. However, these aren’t even a full requirement, because there is so much great software available open source these days. Just pop by Open Office and you’ll find plenty of goodies to use.

A PayPal account is perfect if you’ll be accepting payments and invoicing online. You can also accept checks and money orders by mail if you wish, and this is especially helpful if you plan to look for local clients.

Local clients? I thought we were doing this virtually? We are. Just because you are working virtually from your home office doesn’t mean you can’t reach out in your local community to find clients. Real Estate agents and Dentist offices all over the country keep VA’s busy all year round! So, don’t discount the local market too quickly in your search for work.

Another important piece of equipment might be your telephone. If you’re offering to handle customer service you’ll want a phone with unlimited long distance plan to avoid excessive charges. Make this a landline or a VOIP phone, not your cell phone.

Since we’re talking about talking I also recommend Skype for conversations with your clients, and I’m finding more and more that a lot of customer service gets done this way. When your clients are also serving up virtual services and information products the majority of their customers will be web based and ringing them up on Skype is the easiest way of reaching them.

I’m sure most of this is already going through your mind, so I’m going to skip to the big question that everyone wants to know. Where do I get work? I’m going to point you towards a few of my favorite resources here.

Let’s start with something many are familiar with. Message Boards. Great for networking, and still a good way to keep in touch with people that are of like business minds and to find people that are seeking help with projects.

Here are a few of my favorites:
Internet Based Moms : http://www.internetbasedmoms.com
Virtual Assistant Forums : http://www.virtualassistantforums.com/

Some Virtual Assistant Resource Sites that I would recommend:
Shelancers : http://www.shelancers.com
Virtual Business Mavens : http://virtualbusinessmavens.com/
VA Networking : http://www.vanetworking.com/
Virtual Assistant Networking : http://www.virtualassistantnetworking.com/

For Shelancers, make sure that you submit your listing to the directory when you join! I’ve made great business contacts just by being a part of this fabulous directory of business women.

Freelance Websites, while not always ideal are still a good way to find a few projects. Bidding on jobs can be time consuming and frustrating, so consider yourself warned and grab a cup of coffee before you dig into these sites looking for work.

Here’s a handful of freelance places to get your search started if you decide to go this route:
Team Double Click : http://teamdoubleclick.com/
Get a Freelancer : http://www.getafreelancer.com
Workaholics 4 Hire : http://www.workaholics4hire.com

Podcasts and blogs are out there to listen to if you’re needing some inspiration along the way:
Easy Wahm Websites - right here for blogging about work!
Wahm 2.0 : http://www.sparkplugging.com/wahm/
VA Talk Show : http://vatalkshow.com/
Yellow Highlighter VA : http://yellowhighlighterva.com/

And what would a Virtual Assistant post be without linking to a few of my favorite VA friends and contacts on the internet. Visit a few of us for reference and you’ll surely find some great ideas flowing through your mind for what you’d like to focus on in your own Virtual Assistant business. I think you’ll be surprised how very different each of us really are.

Val and myself right here at Easy Wahm : http://easywahmwebsites.com
Kit at the Virtual Peach : http://thevirtualpeach.com/
Red Pencil Editing : http://www.redpencilediting.com
Tishia Saves Time : http://www.tishiasavestime.com
Multimedia VA : http://multimediava.com

Now that you’ve got some ideas brewing in your head and you’re thinking about what you want to do as a VA, Val and I would be more than happy to answer any specific questions that may pop up in your mind. Just post a comment here and we’ll chime in with answers for you.

Ready, set …. ASK!