Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce

The Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce is a professional association committed to empowering business-minded Virtual Assistants to grow smarter, more successful practices and providing business owners with free tools and resources to connect with qualified, reputable Virtual Assistant professionals.

The Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce is a different kind of Virtual Assistant association unlike any of the others out there, and our intent is to stay different—in a good way. The VACOC was founded with quality, excellence, substance and ethics in mind.

... If you're tired of "advice" that is nothing more than opinions doled out by those who are no better off than you are and have no proven expertise and success;

... If you're repelled by fluff sites, often run by industry outsiders and exploiters who are only out to get your money (hint: there's a difference between a true professional association that is motivated by ideals of excellence and a sales organization where the primary motive is selling);

... If you're turned off by industry organizations that allow anyone and everyone in regardless of their competence, ethics or business category;

... If you want to belong to an association that caters exclusively to Virtual Assistants and not every virtual professional under the sun;

... If you want to surround yourself with only those who are as business-minded, competent and reputable as you are (the cream of the crop) and network amongst peers who possess a higher caliber of skill and experience;

... If you are disillusioned with organizations that sell you out by devaluing your service and teaching clients to think of you as cheap labor;

... If you believe that Virtual Assistance is a very specific concept and brand of administrative support and feel that a consistent marketing message is important in aligning understanding and expectations between Virtual Assistants and their clients;

... If you appreciate an industry organization that never wavers in its quest to educate the marketplace to view Virtual Assistance as a skilled profession and not a cheap commodity;

... If you'd like to be associated with a Virtual Assistant association that places great value on ethics, honesty and scrupulous business practices;

... If you are thirsting for more stimulating conversation that will inspire and motivate, that will challenge you to think and become bigger, that will actually help you increase your business knowledge and success;

... If you want to hear and learn something different from the same tired, old industry rhetoric that hasn't led you anywhere so far;

... then you've come to the right place!

We are the association for the Virtual Assistant who:

• Has at least 5 years upper level administrative experience (e.g., secretary, administrative assistant, executive assistant, etc.).
• Is highly skilled before entering the profession.
• Offers support that is primarily administrative in nature.
• Operates a committed, legitimate business (not freelancing on the side).
• Operates a solo practice (we do not represent telecommuters, secretarial services, virtual teams or virtual staffing agencies).
• Believes in ethics, honesty and integrity in business.
• Is serious about the profession, and committed to building a successful business.

Wanna know a dirty little secret?

There's a dirty little secret in this industry and it's that no one is making any money. Not that there aren't some who are are, but overall this is an industry where a Virtual Assistant is lucky if she breaks $20,000 a year, much less $10,000. This is supported by the 2008 Virtual Assistant Industry Survey: Of 346 respondents, most are making less than $10,000 a year with only 13.87% earning $16,000-$25,000 annually and 11.85% earning $26,000-$35,000 annually.

Why is that?

In large part, it's because Virtual Assistants are setting up their "businesses" and working with clients as if they were still employees. Typically, this is because they don't understand basic, essential principles of business. They let clients run them ragged; they try to be all things to all people; they don't set proper business policies; they don't take the time to really think through and create intentioned, reasoned, practical processes; they don't charge appropriately, much less profitably; they neglect their own interests and don't establish standards and boundaries (at the peril of their business and sanity)... the list goes on.

Additionally, many don't understand the fundamental concept of Virtual Assistance itself and so they end up on a never-ending hamster wheel of scrambling to get any kind of work and clients they can. That's not business strategy — that's flailing around to keep from drowning. And the more they flail, the more they are doomed to sink.

The first step is understanding the difference between Virtual Assistance and secretarial services

There are many people these days calling themselves Virtual Assistants when, in fact, they aren't Virtual Assistants at all.

There are those providing line-item administrative services on one-off, project-based, transactional basis — that is a secretarial/clerical service.

There are those who are simply farming workers out to clients and may or may not work in ongoing, retained collaboration — that is a staffing agency or team VA practice (these most often also operate outside of the law as they do not comply with state and federal laws concerning employees/staffing workers.)

There are those who focus on personal services and errand running — that is a concierge service.

There are those who specialize in bookkeeping — that is a bookkeeper.

There are those who do web and/or graphic design — those are designers.

There are those who specialize in typing and transcription — those are transcriptionists.

There are those who don’t provide administrative support at all, but instead focus on business and marketing advice and strategies — those are consultants.

There is only one simple thing that differentiates Virtual Assistance from secretarial services...

It's not about the mindset of the Virtual Assistant or secretarial service provider because you can find employee mindset in Virtual Assistants as well as secretarial service providers. It's not about how much they care about their businesses or clients because both kinds of business owners presumably care about the satisfaction of their clients, strive to be proactive, and have a desire to go beyond a job well done. It's not entirely about the kind of work they do because both kinds of businesses focus on administrative services. And while consumers expect professionals to be competently skilled, anyone can slap up a website these days whether they are professionally qualified and highly skilled or not, so it's not about skill level.

It doesn't have anything to do with the person or business providing the service. It has to do with the fact that each is an entirely distinct business model that offers a different solution from the other. The difference all hinges upon whether the relationship is project by project or if it is an intentionally continuous relationship of administrative support.

What Virtual Assistants are really selling

If someone is focused on selling line-item administrative services ala carte, there is already a name for that kind of business model and it is called a secretarial service. It's like the relationship you have with, say, Kinkos. You go there for one-off types of services. You might be a repeat customer and come back periodically because they have done good work on past projects and you've become friendly with the people you work with there. But they aren't any more involved in your business than your mailman. It's not the same kind of relationship that is referred to in Virtual Assistance.

Virtual Assistance is not about repeat business. The concept of Virtual Assistance is about providing ongoing, continuous support and working in collaborative relationship with clients. Why is that? Because administrative work isn't an event. It's not something that is done once and never has to be performed again. Administration is ongoing throughout the life of every business.

So as a Virtual Assistant, the focus isn't on selling one-off, individual services. If that is what you are doing, that is not Virtual Assistance. As a Virtual Assistant, what you are selling is the relationship itself; the opportunity for a business owner to have an administrative right-hand which could include any number of administrative roles or service areas depending on the client and their needs (which you would determine and negotiate through your consultation process).

The ongoing, continuous administrative support is what defines Virtual Assistance and makes it what it is.

Without the continuity and consistency of the relationship, you don't get to know the client, their business or their work to the degree that allows you to provide that right-hand value. Without the relationship, administrative work can only be done in fits and starts and bits and pieces, and you can't begin to develop an idea of the big picture of the business — because you aren't part of the business.

Without the big picture, there is no view for discovering where improvements in systems and processes can be made. Without working together on an ongoing basis, the client never gets to actualize the kind of efficiencies and forward growth that occur only when there is a body of intimate knowledge and familiarity that is built and expanded upon on a continuous basis. It is an entirely unique dynamic that can only be had by working together, continuously, in collaborative partnership.

If administrative work is performed on a start and stop, occasional basis (services ala carte), the impact it has on the business as a whole organism is very isolated. But if you are a Virtual Assistant, what you are selling is a package of ongoing support (a relationship) which uniquely offers clients the ability to achieve an entirely different, higher body of knowledge, forward growth and results that will not just get tasks done, but build upon the foundation of their business. The value is higher and you can command higher fees; it is what distinguishes Virtual Assistance from secretarial services and makes it so much more cost-effective.

Why is it important that you know and understand all this? Because when you gain a deeper understanding of the Virtual Assistance brand, the true concept of Virtual Assistance, you are able to have an entirely different (more effective) conversation with your prospects which makes all the difference in the world between just getting by (or not even that!) and being able to build a truly successful, profitable business.

Why the Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce exists

The good news about all this is that there is a methodology for making great money in this industry as a solo. You don't have to be forced into becoming a multi-team VA practice or anything else if that's not what you're interested in doing. One of the reasons this organization exists is to raise the business consciousness in the industry and help Virtual Assistants begin to think more like business owners so they can better understand business principles, why they exist and how they can implement them for more successful, profitable businesses.

We are the professional organization exclusively for Virtual Assistants who are serious about their chosen profession and creating a successful, profitable business. We believe that by helping Virtual Assistants become better business people and run more sustainable practices, we not only elevate the Virtual Assistant profession, but also better serve clients. And the smarter we all are in business, the better we will then educate the marketplace. As a result, Virtual Assistants will have a wider range of more informed industries seeking our services, which will benefit all of us in getting clients and commanding professional fees.

Our Virtual Assistants stand for quality, substance and excellence

Striving to achieve greatness involves tough work and tougher decisions. We believe that as Virtual Assistants, we need to collectively "get off the fence" and stand for excellence if we are going to put this industry on the map once and for all.

Standing for excellence requires us to commit to a deliberately defined identity, one that clearly indicates our unique specialization and differentiates us from the generic virtual professional umbrella.

Standing for excellence requires us to uphold standards we define as a group for the greater good of the profession.

Standing for excellence sometimes requires us to talk about things that aren't comfortable.

Standing for excellence means understanding the value of constructive feedback to professional growth, even when that feedback is not easy to hear, but knowing that you are better and stronger for allowing yourself to receive it.

It is our goal here to provide a much-needed avenue for this kind of REAL shared support in professional growth and business knowledge, so that we can all, individually and together, advance awareness of Virtual Assistance in the mainstream business world. If you want to be among those who are making the big bucks in the Virtual Assistant industry and creating businesses that allow them to achieve personal and financial freedom and success, then the Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce is the Virtual Assistant association for you.

We would love to have you join us... but only if you are serious about your business. We are not here to enable unsuccessful, sabatoging behaviors. We're not here to coddle, placate or indulge victims or thin-skinned hobbyists who take everything personally. You may be challenged to more consciously examine ideas you have been indoctrinated to believe and blindly accept. Our forum is primarily an educational platform and we are only interested in those who intend to enter as students of business, regardless of where they are currently at in their business.

The Virtual Assistants who join our ranks are driven and committed to making their business a success. They are sick of working themselves to the bone and still not making any money. They want to learn how it can be done better, easier and more efficiently with greater profitability and superior client service. They want to talk about real business and learn proven strategies for marketing, finding clients, navigating the consultation process and setting foundations in their business that will lead to true growth, freedom, financial success and personal satisfaction. If you are ready to be challenged to think in new ways and grow your business to an entirely different level, it is our sincere pleasure to welcome you to apply for membership.

In the meantime, you are encouraged to attend our free public events and utilize all the free information and resources we make available on our site to increase your knowledge and build your Virtual Assistant business.

To your success!

Danielle Keister
Founder & CVO
Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce

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