Is the Virtual Assistant thing a scam?
This question…
Sometimes it comes at us more as an angry statement.
Usually from folks who have never even heard the term before, or had any experience with the remote working world.
So let’s just address it.
Short answer, no, it is not a scam.
Long answer…
I have been in the Virtual Assistant world for 8 years now. I have never been scammed. All of the money I’ve made has been real, spendable money that I pay taxes on.
And even though I’ve been doing this for a while now, I still get questions all of the time about what I actually do and how it works.
It’s unfamiliar, still fairly new for lots of people and frankly…
It goes against everything we’re taught growing up about what a career would look like:
It’s not a traditional 9-5
You pay self-employment tax
You make your own hours
You work from home (or wherever you want)
You don’t need a college education
You don’t have to submit vacation time, you just take it
You don’t have to move to a specific location based on the industry you want to work in
You don’t need any crazy skills
You can work less and make more
You can literally nurse your baby while taking client calls
So what happens, is people who have been investing in their job for years and then see someone who is making more money doing less work, it gets frustrating. And the easiest thing to do is chalk it up to a “scam”
Or “impossible”
“Not gonna last”
It’s scary to think that what you’ve been told you whole life is the only way…is not the only way. It’s frustrating. And our initial response to anything that challenges our normals is to go on defense.
But when was the last time to approached your hair stylist and told them what they are doing is a scam?
Your contractor?
A local coffee shop?
Boutique?
Your favorite Etsy shop?
You don’t. Because these are normalized self-employed opportunities.
The Virtual Assistant role just takes it a bit further and yes, sounds too good to be true but it real.
The trick is that it sounds like it’s easy to get started, it sounds like something you don’t have to put a lot of work into. And that’s why it sounds like a scam.
Let me enlighten you! This journey takes work. If it really was so easy to get started, more people would be doing it. There are loads of people who know about the Virtual Assistant/Freelancing world but they can never crack into their happy place, so they quit. Which is why there are companies like ourselves that offer coaching and training to individuals looking to start their journey.
If you are looking for coaching, you can check us out here >>> https://www.laptopandlittles.com/learn-with-us
Now once you get that first client, it gets easier. Things start to fall into place and of course…you are getting paid! Which makes everything feel a lot easier. :)
Getting paid is another obstacle a lot of folks get hung up on. So let’s break down that process…
There are a few ways this can be set up but the first step is to find an invoicing system you like, and there are many to choose from. Here are the most popular:
Quickbooks
Wave
Paypal
Honeybook
Freshbooks
And so many more!
Once you’ve found a system you like, you practice putting together an invoice. And for this, you need to know how you’re going to bill. Sometimes, this will depend on the client but the way we teach in our coaching program is to bill by a retainer:
If your rate if $25/hr and you find a client that needs 10hrs/month of support, you will bill them $250 at the beginning of each month prior to providing any work.
Of course, there are several different ways you can bill your clients, you can do it hourly, bi-weekly, etc. But this is the tried and true way we’ve found for billing as a Virtual Assistant. The important thing is to find the cadence and structure you are most comfortable with and NO MATTER WHAT, know your worth.
Another thing that makes this a secure career is the fact that you 100% should have a contract in place with your clients. If you don’t have one, they most likely will. The main items in these contracts are to keep their information protected (so basically a standard NDA), the agreement on when and how you get paid, the services you are providing, etc.
This contract protects you and your client and creates the trust that is sometimes lacking from virtual service providers.
Still not convinced?
Check out VA agencies like Zirtual, Belay, Virtual Assist USA, Double… there are so many and the simplified version of what they do is source VA’s to clients needing support. The alternative of this is to work as a self-employed VA, which is how we train the ladies in our program.
Freelancing in general is not a new source of income. It’s been a career for many for some time now, but the Virtual Assistant world especially is beginning to blow up because more and more business owners are seeing the value in them.
In fact, according to Business Insider:
New applications for an employer ID in the US "reached 1.1 million through mid-September, a 12% increase over the same period last year and the most since 2007," according to an analysis of US Census Bureau data by The Wall Street Journal. That number excludes gig workers, but including that specification of independent contractor boosts the number even higher, according to the report.
The world is changing and thankfully, humans are adaptable enough to change with it. Not all people (women especially) have been given the opportunity to adapt, simply because they were never given the knowledge of what opportunities are out there.
This is why we created Laptop + Littles, to help women understand their options.
SO when someone jumps in without any knowledge of what we are or what a Virtual Assistant actually is… yelling “it’s a scam, looks like another mlm, this isn’t legit!!”
You could be robbing others from an opportunity they have been dreaming about.
Don’t let your fear, doubt and lack of awareness stop others from asking questions. If you are genuinely concerned about this career and the legitimacy of it, please, reach out and I will be happy to share more with you. :)