photo credit: William Hook
We have done a lot of talking on this site about businesses hiring a virtual assistant (VA) and how beneficial this step can be for businesses outside and inside the home. I think it may also be of some importance and significance to talk about the costs of being a VA for those of you planning on starting your own business from home that revolves around VA’s and their services.
The number one question is always “what are the costs of starting a VA business?” This really depends on several different factors, there is no straight clear cut answer. It all depends on how many clients you intend to work with, what kind of services you plan to offer, what sort of equipment you already have in your possession and equipment you intend to obtain.
You should obviously know what services you are willing to offer as a VA and be sure that these services are in writing in some sort of client contract before any job is accepted, that way there is no room for you to be roped into various outrageous tasks later on down the road.
It is also a great idea to have a client already lined up that wants your services before you quit your 9-5 job. This elevates any stress of being without a pay check while looking for a client. With the bare essentials that you will need, provided you don’t have anything including a computer to work with, the estimated start-up cost could be around $5,000 for your equipment if you bargain shop.
Of course over time you will want to consider taking on other things such as a business coach, accountant, filing cabinets with locks, fax lines and more.
Now, if you think the above is over the top or out of your reach consider that setting up a business as a Virtual Assistant is considerably cheaper than it would be for many industries. Think about the years of study some have to put in at universities to do what they do. As posted on VAdirectory.net.