Why You Should Re-think That Low-Cost Virtual Assistant

I’ve had a lot of small business people who need help with their business tell me that my rates were too high.  Heck, I’ve even had a person or two tell me I was crazy to charge that much when anyone can go to one of the freelance websites and find an army of virtual assistants charging much, much less.   They have a right to their opinion of course, but it’s funny how many of those same people are contacting me again a few months later with tales of virtual assistant collaborations gone bad.

To save yourself the time, money and headaches here are two things you should think about when a virtual assistant quotes rates below $30 an hour:

How many other clients are they providing services to in order to make a living at that rate?  Remember, they are paying their own taxes and overhead, so stop and really think about that for a minute.

How many hours is that virtual assistant going to have to work in order to make a living?  Remember, they have their own invoicing, marketing and business related tasks to attend to as well as client projects & tasks.

If you’ve stopped and thought about those two items you’ve most likely come to the conclusion that the VA in question is working round the clock, providing services to a ton of others or both in order to make ends meet.

Now think about this…

Is this overworked, over-extended person really who you want to entrust with your business projects and tasks?  Or would your rather trust your business to someone who has taken the time and effort to set their prices at a level that allows them to give your projects the attention and time they deserve as well as taking care of their own business?

You also should keep in mind that a smart, business savvy virtual assistant is going to have the experience and expertise to complete your tasks and projects more quickly with less need for corrections.  And since you’re being billed only for time on task(s) it could end up costing you less than you imagine.

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 Are you a virtual assistant charging less than $30 an hour?  How did you set those rates? 

• The amount of money you wished to make per week (month, year?)?
• Were you more concerned about competing with low-cost VA’s than what you’d need to run a profitable business?
• Do you know what your skills, training and experience are really worth?

If any of these apply to you and your business, attending the webinar “Finding & Claiming Your Value- How to Charge What You’re Really Worth With Confidence” will teach you how to really determine your value and set your rates to reflect it.  Plus we’ll share some secrets that will help you communicate that value to clients in such a way that they’ll pay those rates without blinking.

Did you miss the webinar?!  Good news! You can now get the same material in video, audio and written formats w/worksheet in Module 5a at Virtual Assistant Survival School!)

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