Hiring a VA is a big commitment and investment for many business owners and It’s important they make the right choice, for themselves and their business. They’ll understandably, have a lot of questions to ask, before making their final decision and it’s therefore essential, that you can allay their fears and give them the answers they need.
Common questions potential clients have
So, what type of questions will you need to answer? Here’s a list of the most common questions business owners have, when looking to hire a VA:
- How long have you been in business?
- What do you specialise in?
- What hours do you work and do you work weekends?
- Does location matter – i.e. where are you based and what time zone are you in?
- How do you charge for work? Is it per project or in slots of time?
- What is the turnaround for work and how do I pass work to you?
- What do I need to sign and is there a minimum length of service?
- Is our work covered by a non-disclosure or confidentiality agreement?
- What programs do you use and how much experience do you have in them?
- Are you personally doing the work or is it being sub-contracted out?
- How often do we stay in touch and what is your preferred communication method?
- How quickly do you respond to emails and phone calls?
- What happens to your client work when you’re ill or on holiday?
- Do you invoice upfront or once the work is completed?
- What payment methods do you accept?
- Do you have client testimonials and can I contact any of your clients direct?
You must feel a good fit with the client too!
Of course, it’s equally important that you feel happy working with the client too. It’s therefore a good idea to meet them (either in person or via video call), so you can both see how you interact and gel with each other, as well as to answer any questions you both may have. If you feel you’re not a good fit for them – don’t keep them waiting – let them know within 48 hours of meeting with them.
Hiring a VA is a big decision for any business owner. However, if you can confidently answer the above questions, you’ll have given them the information needed, to make the best decision for them.
How do you feel about the above questions? It can be daunting being asked lots of questions, however if you’re confident about your skills and your ability to provide a great service to your clients, as well as knowing your answers to the questions above, you’ll have done all you’re able, to be seen in the best possible light.
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Really helpful and useful questions Amanda, thank you!
Hi Sidel, thanks for that – I am glad you found them useful. Sometimes it is helpful to look at our business from the eyes of our clients rather than us.
I was looking at this today in terms of what questions I could be asked by a potential client! Thanks Amanda, very helpful
Thanks Louisa, for me these questions make great FAQs or blog posts also on a website. They help from an SEO perspective.
Great questions, my only wobble was if I was off sick or holidays! I don’t have cover but I’m in the process of sorting that one out
Claire, I am glad you liked the question – cover for busy times, emergencies and even holidays is critical. So I am glad that you are in the process of sorting it out. I suggest having an Associate agreement set up and in place so that you are not scrabbling around at a critical time. You then just need to work out how you will keep your team member updated and current. I always think its nice to introduce the Associate to your clients too – if only by name so that they are not shocked.
What if we’re starting out and have no associates to refer to?
Great question Stephanie – so one of the things we teach and recommend in our VA Mastery Course is that you ensure you have a “Disaster Recovery Plan” which includes things like finding an associate VA to act as your emergency back up for periods of sickness / holiday etc. It is not easy at start up stage, I know but these are things that need to be considered and factored into your plans.
Very useful questions, Amanda, and thanks for putting together all the big scares from a client point of view.
I thought it might be useful to have a FAQ section, on the website, to guide people in taking a decision and this list covers all the questions I was struggling to write down! Thank for helping me out!
Great questions, thank you for sharing Amanda! I’m just building my website and want to have a FAQ page so these have been very helpful.
Amanda
Thank you very much for the above information, some very useful questions and will assist moving forward.
Philippa
Very useful to know. One question for me relates to not honestly having any recent clients, apart from a small local company last year, where I worked onsite part-time. I was a contractor, technical admin and PA previous to that in a corporate setting, so I would not really want to rely on an agency to give me a reference, as they basically say ‘yes, this person was there at that time, etc.’ I could contact one of two of the systems engineers whose team I worked with and ask them personally, but generally, I was working for teams of people in a technical setting. How would do you recommend I would approach this, in terms of proving my capability?
Hi Kathyrn, that’s a tough one – I think you could create a couple of case studies that you could display on your website about the type of things you have done and then there is an element of talking to people about it and showing them how you can help through proving your knowledge in the way in which you present what it is you are talking about. I hope that helps. Amanda