I Can't Afford a VA - Pickett Fence Virtual Services

I hear this A LOT when speaking with potential clients. In fact, if I had a dime for every time I’ve heard this, I could change career paths and let that be my source of income.

Truth of the matter is, you can’t afford NOT to.

Let’s face it, many of us as business owners and entrepreneurs can be in over our heads! We LOVE what we do and making money doing it… that’s just an added bonus, right? We know what we’re doing, we know the goals we have set for ourselves, we know where we want to be in the next five years. We know our stuff! But knowing your stuff and running the back end of your business is two different things. You’ll start to realize that the administrative tasks, project management, bookkeeping, social media management, customer service, file/organization management, email management, travel management, blogs, newsletters, etc. are extremely time-consuming. BUT, these are all very important aspects of your business and cannot be skipped because these things keep the business running. Now here’s the sucky part, we find ourselves bogged down with these things that we don’t have time to actually “work” and “grow” our business. We’re keeping busy but not being productive – and believe me, there is a difference! Next thing you know, your day is over, you’re too tired for anything else and you lay there in bed thinking, “I need more time!” We’ve all heard that saying, there’s not enough hours in the day, right? Well, that’s not necessarily true. If you use your time wisely, there’s plenty of time.

Is any of this hitting home for you? If you’re a business owner, heck yeah it is!

So, how much does a VA charge? That depends on a few things:

Experience – Have they done this before? Many VA’s come from a corporate-type background and have done this over 10+ years. Those VA’s generally charge the bigger bucks. Then you have VA’s fresh out of college, switching careers or just want to freelance on the side. They may charge less just to get the experience and get their feet in the door.
Type of Services – What do you need help with? Is it more along the lines of general admin tasks such as data entry, calendar management, customer service? Or are you asking for project management, bookkeeping/accounting, website building, email marketing services? Oftentimes, VA’s charge different rates for different types of services, so keep that in mind when you are submitting RFPs (Request for Proposals) and evaluating rates.
Deadlines – Does this project have a realistic deadline or is it a rush job? If it’s something that needs to be done ASAP, every VA reserves the right to charge a little more. After all, you’re asking them to drop everything else to make this possible for you.

In general, virtual assistants charge anywhere from $15 to $100 per hour. Sometimes even more. But for general admin services, you’ll look to pay anywhere between $15 and $30 per hour and between $40 and $100 per hour for more specialized services, such as marketing, project management, financial, technical, higher level tasks.

Use this, only as a guide when you’re evaluating whether an assistant is worth the price they’re asking for.

Virtual Assistants can offer one or more of the following:

Hourly Rates
Monthly Retainer Packages
Flat Fee / Per Project move

Now back to that million-dollar phrase, “I Can’t Afford a VA” or “This is way outside my budget.”

Let’s keep it real here, hiring help is an investment and you need to think of it that way. It’s a new line item in your budget and new expense to account for.

So for some, you might have to forego that bottle of Moscato with every dinner for the sake of your investment. Okay, maybe that was going too far – let’s calm down! Maybe a new pair of shoes. Sometimes you even have to dip into your savings or take out a loan. Not highly recommended, but again, you’re investing in something greater.

This is why “help” is something people pay for. Nannies, lawn care, meal delivery services, and yes, virtual assistants. We’re all here to help make your life better (while making ours great, too!).

If you break it down, most people don’t make enough money in their business, because they don’t have enough time to dedicate (or they treat it as a hobby), they lack some important skill or knowledge that would help them get to the next level, or they just don’t want to invest in it.

You CAN Afford this!

Everyone can afford to get started with a VA for a few hours a month. Even those that don’t think they can. VA’s come at all price points and all experience levels and it’s up to you to work out what you need. Do you need the cheapest person you can find that’s “just good enough” to work as many hours as you can afford, or do you need a very specialized person for a few hours only?

Remember, if a virtual assistant sends you a proposal for services that is above your budget, it’s always within your right to negotiate… within reason, of course. Don’t rush to say “No” just because the price freaks you out. If you really like the VA and what they have to offer but the budget doesn’t match, you can always talk it out. I am not saying to ask the VA to lower their hourly rates because let’s face it, that’s a slap in the face. Never be offensive or insulting, they need to live too. After all, would you ask a plumber or mechanic to drop their prices because they’re not within your budget? Not at all, so instead, maybe use less hours or delete some of the services included, for now. You never know, unless you ask.

The same truth holds for the VA as well. It is always within their right to say no. If you can’t come up with an agreement that works for the both of you, that is okay too. You can find any sort of VA for any rate you want. Just remember: You always get what you pay for.

A VA can free up additional time or give you additional knowledge according to their specialism which can help you to start seeing your business as more of a business than a hobby. Once you change your mindset from not being able to afford a VA to you can’t afford not to hire a VA, you will allow your business the freedom it needs to grow!