How to Overcome the Face-To-Face Factor
Before you can achieve success with Virtual Assistance, you must first be able to overcome the face-to-face factor. Ask yourself two questions before pursing a Virtual Assistant (VA) partnership:
1. Is the face-to-face factor going to be a problem for you?
2. Can you deal with the fact that your VA works from her home office?
Based on your answers to the questions above, working with a VA may or may not be a good idea for you.
For centuries, the traditional office model, which includes a physical location, has worked for businesses and professionals. With advances in telecommunications media and technology, businesses and professionals alike can now be supported remotely without having a physical office location. Remote support, in turn, has given birth to Virtual Assistance and the new “virtual office model.”
How hard do you think it is to work with a Virtual Assistant if you do not understand the concept behind the “virtual office model.” Do you think you would even be excited about working with a Virtual Assistant? Would you be able to understand why Virtual Assistance services are priced as such? Of course not; especially if you’re uneducated about the industry. This is where the face-to-face factor comes into play causing a major hurdle for some individuals thinking about partnering with Virtual Assistants.
The solution is to simply educate yourself about the Virtual Assistance industry. However you decide to do this, the following should be included in the education process:
1. “Google” the Internet for Virtual Assistance. This will provide you with a list of available Virtual Assistants and give you a great place to start.
2. Receive and review pertinent information from any VA you are considering partnering with. Information can be in the form of a website and/or collateral materials. This will greatly help you during the decision making process.
3. Speak with prospective VAs in detail to ensure they can meet your specific Virtual Assistance needs.
What this means is that you must do your homework before and during the search for your VA. If you conduct the proper research and Virtual Assistants are doing their part of putting you in the know, you will find that the face-to-face factor will be quickly eliminated altogether. However, if you go about it blindly, there’s no telling what type of VA you’ll end up with.
Do you remember the first time you tried to ride a bicycle? You had to learn how the bicycle worked, including how to stop it, how to make it move, and how to keep your balance. The bicycle already had everything you needed in order for you to be able to ride it. It was all right there! The rest was up to you and once you had it all figured out you were able to take full advantage of the bicycle and the purpose it served.
You must take this same approach with Virtual Assistance. Conduct your research, gather collateral materials from prospective Virtual Assistants, speak with them in detail, and then get in a quite place and really absorb the information you’ve received. Before you know it, the face-to-face factor will no longer exist and you too will be riding your new bicycle ~ Virtual Assistance!
As with anything new or different, you need to allow yourself time to learn as much as possible about Virtual Assistance before partnering with a Virtual Assistant (VA)
Be sure to check out The VA Podium ~ Virtual Assistance Live! for additional resources.