The Successful Virtual Administrative Assistant

By Gayle Buske, President and CEO, Team Double-Click® and VirtualAssistingUSA;

We continually, despite how well we screen and interview, find people in administrative and other positions that need to be replaced for poor job performance. Now, I know from being self-employed and owning businesses for the past 15 years that not everyone is going to be a good employee/contractor. In fact, statistically, only about 30% of all applicants for any given position stand a chance at being good at what they do. Staggering odds. Yet, I continue to hold hope that 100% are good. That's my nature - I trust everyone at face value until they show me otherwise. So it never ceases to surprise me when we find poor performers amongst us. Maybe it's naivety, maybe it's my eternal optimism.

So this week, I'm dedicating this article to what makes not only a successful administrative assistant, but a successful VIRTUAL administrative assistant. In other words, what are the successful ones doing that the unsuccessful ones aren't?

The successful virtual administrative assistants...

 Are communicating regularly with the clients we place them with
 Are keeping regular business hours. Yes, working virtually does allow for flexibility of hours. BUT, it doesn't mean you can shirk your duties   without repercussions.
 Following through with their promises.
 Sending in their daily reporting.
 Letting us and their clients know immediately when there's a problem.
 Giving us and their clients a heads up when they have a planned day off - as soon as they know about it.
 Are not treating their position as a hobby to be taken lightly.
 Are treating their position as a JOB and taking it seriously.
 Are taking a proactive approach to potential problems.
 Are taking ownership and responsibility for their work.
 Are not blaming others for their shortcomings.
 Are not blaming others for work that didn't get done.
 Are continuing to learn more about the software’s they're required to use on a regular basis - Word, Excel, etc.
 Respond quickly to client requests.
 Promptly return phone calls from clients.
 Make themselves available when the client needs them.
 Realize that to EARN flexibility from the client, they themselves cannot be rigid.
 Don't make demands of the client, rather offer suggestions for improvement.
 Are offering to help the client grow his business realizing that this will make their position that much more secure and will allow their position to grow in the   process.
 Are keeping their clients apprised of their marketing efforts, offering suggestions or solutions when necessary.
 Are up selling the client - letting the client know what other duties they might do to lighten the client's load.
 Are being respectful of the client, realizing s/he holds the purse strings.
 Are exercising patience with a demanding client.
 Are reporting their time accurately.

All of these things and many other factors, which I'll address in another article, weigh into being successful as an admin/virtual/freelancer/contractor. But first and foremost, you must realize that despite its outward appearance - this is a JOB. The client will expect you to treat it as such and not as something to be done when you decide you have time.

Our clients, for example, don't make any outlandish requests - just normal, everyday duties that they've hired us and you to do and they expect them to be done. That's really not too much for any client to ask, is it?





About the author:
Gayle Buske is the co-founder, president and CEO of Team Double-Click® and VirtualAssistingUSA. As the head of a virtual staffing agency with over 57,000 virtual professionals in its pool, Ms. Buske is uniquely qualified to aid small business owners in their growth and development through virtual outsourcing. Virtual Assistants across the globe look to Ms. Buske and her organizations for guidance, mentoring and motivation.

Team Double-Click®, the country's foremost staffing agency for trained Virtual Assistants - Matching Top Virtual Workers with Top Companies! Visit www.teamdoubleclick.com or phone 888.827.9129 for a variety of full-service virtual staffing options.

VirtualAssistingUSA provides Virtual Assistants a place to upload their profile, advertise their services and get access to affordable training, marketing and billing assistance for their business. VirtualAssistingUSA gives small business owners direct access to our database of tens of thousands of virtual assistants - without the ongoing agency fees and gives them access to talent that is not available through other venues. Visit www.virtualassistingusa.com for more information.

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