In today's market as more and more people are being laid off, costs are rising and incomes are dropping I have had several calls and emails asking me how I became a Virtual Assistant, how I run my company etc. I have had so many people asking me the same questions over and over that I thought it would be helpful to write a blog post or two about it and post it so people can just reference my thoughts and tips on how I started and how you may start your own Professional Virtual Assistant Practice.  There is so much information for me to share I will break it up into a series!

First let me start off by saying going into business for yourself is NOT for everyone if you have to have someone constantly telling you what you need to do or if you are not motivated, if you do not work well independently or you just don't have a desire to work long hours than this is NOT for you. That is not a bad thing owning your own business is not for everyone as it is not easy and takes a lot of time and dedication.  If you think you have what it takes then CONGRATULATIONS and good luck on your road to running your own business.

Before you can start getting clients and actually working there are some key steps that you need to take to get things moving, first and foremost you need to check with your local city and state to find out what if any types of licensing, insurance and certifications you may need to run your own company. If you are going to utilize your home (as so many of us do) you will need to find out if there are any requirements you must meet to run a business out of your home. This is important because if you are running and illegal business out of your home they can shut you down if they find out what you are doing.

Next you will need to come up with a business name and figure out what type of entity you are going to be (Sole Proprietor, LLC, Corporation, S Corporation etc) this is important as this will determine different tax rules, banking rules, bookkeeping requirements etc that you must do to maintain your business. A great resource to utilize is your local Small Business Association or SBA office. They offer free to low cost business advice to small business owners. This is a great tool to utilize and I recommend that you make an appointment and go down and talk to one of their small business counselors. If you don't have time to go down to their office they offer some training on their website for different things.

Once you have come up with a business name and the type of entity that you are going to be you will need to obtain an EIN number from the government. This number is like the social security number for your business. You MUST have this number when doing business and is free to apply for. You may apply for it online or over the phone. You will also need to check with your state to see if you will also need a state number. If you will be selling products you will need a state sales tax number. This you will need to pay for and will need to apply through your state department.

Once you have your EIN number, business name and entity type you will need to establish a banking relationship for your business purpose. You do not want to mix your personal banking with your business banking. Keeping these two separate is the most effective way in tracking cash flow for the business and keeping records for taxes. This is an important step that many people overlook. Most banks have small business checking and savings accounts to fit any size business. Many of them offer free checking for small businesses as well as many tools for running your business. Make sure to ask your small business banker what they can offer you.

It is important to remember when you are looking for and signing clients you are not going to be an "employee" you are going to be a "vendor" this is why it is so important to establish yourself as a business. These clients will fill out a 1099 form at the end of the year and submit it to the IRS. This is what you will use in lieu of a W-2 when you are doing your taxes. When you obtain a new client it is important to give them a W-9 form this is the information that the client is going to use to create your 1099 form at the end of the year.  Any income over $600 must be reported by your client on a 1099 at the end of the year. You are seen as a deduction for that business and they must report that deduction to the IRS. If you keep some pre-filled W-9 forms on hand and put them in your welcome packet or make them part of your contract it will just ensure that your client has all pertinent information for the end of the year reporting.

Another thing you need to think about when starting out in your Virtual Assistant career is what types of services you are going offer if you are going to specialize in a specific area or niche. This is important and will help you to determine what types of marketing efforts you can take. The easiest way to figure this out is determine what skill sets you already have and take those and decide what you like doing. Some Virtual Assistants specialize in working with Authors, some work in the Medical Field, some only offer transcription (they are called transcriptionists), some specialize in Law and legal support and some specialize in Real Estate. This is not the entire list, you can get creative in terms of what support services or niche you want to work with. I recently heard of a Virtual Assistant who supports Mac users. You can get create and use that creativity in your marketing efforts. There are hundreds of avenues to take and always remember if you don't know how to do something you can always get training!!!

You will also need to make sure you have all of the equipment that you are going to needget the job done some of the basics are a computer (desktop or laptop), scanner, copier, fax line, telephone and internet. It is also advisable to have the Microsoft Office Suite installed on your computer if you are offering bookkeeping then you will need to have a good bookkeeping software. I recommend QuickBooks from Intuit but there is also Peachtree and Quicken. QuickBooks I have found to me the most universal. If you are not going to offer bookkeeping it is still advisable to have a basic bookkeeping software for keeping track of your own bookkeeping needs. QuickBooks does offer a Simple Start program for free that you can download and use until your needs are a little greater and you need more features. to

Don't worry if you don't have a lot of space to start out with some Virtual Assistants start out on their kitchen table (I know I did). Some turn small closets into a work space or convert a small room or even your garage into your working domain. You can get very creative and utilize space saving furniture to give you the space you need to work in. Think about it many people who work in an office have a small cubicle to work out of and what does it consist of a computer a telephone and possibly a filing cabinet. You don't need a lot of space to get the job done. As your business grows so will your needs and space.

In my next post I will discuss how to start sourcing for work. Giving websites to look for that have active postings for people needing help. With businesses looking to downsize and save money they are looking to hiring Virtual Assistants to fill the needs. Even if some of these businesses are downsizing the needs for the jobs have not changed they still need someone to do the data entry or bookkeeping or web design. The needs haven't changed they just need to find a more cost effective way of sourcing workers for this type of work. Hiring a Virtual Assistant allows them to eliminate the over head expenses, tax expenses and so much more. We will get more into detail about that in a later post. Until then get busy getting your licensing, EIC numbers and getting your office tools in place.

 
Skye Hawk 
 
REPA (Certified Real Estate Professional Assistant) 
REW (Certified Real Estate Webographer)
Phone: 800-403-2430  ext 101
Fax: 866-625-8864
E-mail: Skyeh@atyourservice-va.com
Web: www.atyourservice-va.com
At Your Service!
Virtual Assistant Specialists
"Offering exceptional off-site administrative support for the busy business professional"