Monday, November 2nd, 2009...12:35 am

Make Money by Helping Others Virtually

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Do you have a knack at doing research on obscure or complicated subjects?
Are you good at finding the cheapest airline fares…quickly?
Can you work in Word, Excel or PowerPoint effective and efficiently?

If you answered yes to any of those then you might be a perfect Virtual Assistant, also known as VA, and a candidate to make money.

A VA is essentially the go to person for nearly any task that an employer might need done. Typically an employer has a very specific skill set, and will hire a VA to do those tasks that take away from their productivity. These things are tasks like Internet research, proofreading, composing letters and emails, and making reservations. VAs are nearly identical to a conventional assistant except that they do all their work remotely via the computer, Internet and phone.

Becoming a VA is a great way to make money on the Internet. There are people who devote their full effort to being a VA, and make a decent living at it. Regardless of how you choose to pursue it, you can make money by helping others. It is pretty easy to become a VA. If you are familiar with the Internet, and using basic computer programs such as Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint, then you have a good set of skills that you can market through being a Virtual Assistant.

If you have any specialized skills, you want to make sure you leverage them as much as you can. Specialized skills are any skills that are above ordinary skills. For example, as a VA, you are expected to be able to produce a basic letter in Word. You might posses a specialized skill in taking basic letters and adding graphics and style touches to produce a high quality document for making presentations. These specialized skills will separate you from the normal person, so it is good to hone those skills so they are as good as possible.

Another thing that can set you apart form the norm is expertise. For example, if you have worked in a local tax filling office, then you have expertise in filling taxes. This expertise could allow you to assist others with various tax filling needs. Expertise can vary from very precise, such as expertise in building codes for decks on houses in Miami, Florida, to more vague, such as expertise in residential in building codes. If you have expertise in an area, make sure you know as much as possible about that subject. This will be great way to make your services more valuable.

As a VA, you have virtually unlimited flexibility. As long as you have Internet access, a computer and a working phone, you can work anywhere, anytime. If you want to live in a hut in the Bahamas and work as a VA, then go for it. While an extreme example, it is not all that far-fetched. There are successful Virtual Assistants that work from remote locations making money.

To start the process, you should refer to the websites of the International Virtual Assistants Association (IVAA) and Elance. IVAA is an organization focused around assisting in finding a VA for those who need one. The also have good information for those interested in becoming a Virtual Assistant to make money, including a membership to help you become more professional.

Elance is a great place to start out as a Virtual Assistant. You set up a profile, showing your qualifications and skills, and wait for a money making business opportunity to come along. You can take test showing your credentials and build a strong reputation for doing quality work. There are also many jobs listed that you can apply for. Elance has a good system set up to ensure that jobs are legitimate. The also give guidance on negotiations of contracts when being hired, and assist with payment delivery as well. You can use Elance to find good information about what others are doing; including some prices they are listing. You can get a great start here, or possibly even make a decent living after you build a strong reputation.

An important thing to keep in mind is that your work is all you have to show. Since you are not a physical presence, the only thing an employer sees is the work you do. You need to ensure that your work is always completed properly, fully and on time…every time. Keep constant communication open with your employer, to make sure that you are doing the work that they really want. Bad communication is almost always the source of a problem. When you complete a job, try to keep a good line of communication open with the employer. They might have future jobs that open up, and it is much easier to keep an old client than find a new one.

You should know that you would be a contract employee when you work as a VA. This will mean you must provide for yourself the benefits a typical employer would provide. Keeping track of the taxes you owe, finding insurance coverage, and keeping track of your savings for your future will all be up to you to handle. This should not be a turn off, as with careful planning and though, none of these needs are hard to cover.

Competition in the Virtual Assistant job field is relatively intense. Many overseas countries, such as India and China, have become the go-to-resource for a VA. They provide good work for low prices. There are a few problems with these sources. First is a language problem. They will all speak and write English, and probably do so pretty well. The issue is that they may not write in a way that fits with the commonly used version of English. They might write too formally, or use some words in a too literal form. This can result in work that is technically grammatically correct but difficult to read. Second, time differences are a major issue. If a Virtual Assistant has a 12-hour time difference, then getting work completed in a rush could be an issue. Some jobs require work to be done by the next day. Oversea VAs may not even get the jobs specifications till the next day, and will not be able to complete them in time. If you are located in the same country as many of the employers are, you have a strong advantage. This is something that you can push as your selling point.

Hourly rates for Virtual Assistants can vary dramatically, from $10 for a general assistant to upwards of $80 for one with strong expertise and specializations. When you begin as a VA, you will probably start doing more generalized assistant work to start the cash flow. It would be wise to learn specializations or educate yourself in specific areas of expertise over time so you can raise your hourly rates. When giving rates for a job, make sure to review similar VAs. You don’t want to charge too much or too little, as both will make you seem unprofessional.

Charging an hourly rate is probably one of the more common pay types for Virtual Assistants, but flat rates for a specific job are also seen. It might be worthwhile to use flat rate pricing for some jobs. If you are especially fast at certain jobs, ones that others might be a little slower, then you can charge a flat rate and make more money per hour. On the other side, if you are slower than others, charging hourly rates might allow you to make money form your work

If you decide to become a VA, you will have to do a lot of hard work, but you will also have many freedoms that many other jobs don’t have. As a virtual assistant, you will need to work hard everyday on the jobs at hand, as well as finding new jobs. It is a great way to earn money with your computer and a little free time. It is definitely worth considering.

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