Q: What tools can my client use to document processes?

Process Street Using Process Street is a solid way to document key processes within 'checklists' for you (and other team members) to follow. Tasks can be assigned to yourself and other members of the team and due dates set. Google Docs For simpler processes, just use Google Docs and share directly with your client. The "suggesting" tool is so useful for collaboration if you are working things out together! CloudApp We find screen recordings very helpful when documenting processes too - nothing makes a better "here's how you do it!" easier than simply watching a video of someone actually doing the task. We recommend CloudApp to help you demonstrate processes via screenshots or recordings, which you can also annotate. It's free!

Question 1

How can my client share passwords and sensitive information with me?

Accepted Answer

Using a dedicated password-sharing app allows your client to safely share sensitive and confidential data with you. This could range from passport details to passwords.

A dedicated app will keep everything in one place and access can be revoked by the client whenever necessary, giving them complete peace of mind. Recommendations include:

Please be careful about how you share passwords - always make sure you are working in a safe, secure way.

Question 2

What tools can my client use to document processes?

Accepted Answer

Process Street

Using Process Street is a solid way to document key processes within 'checklists' for you (and other team members) to follow. Tasks can be assigned to yourself and other members of the team and due dates set.

Google Docs

For simpler processes, just use Google Docs and share directly with your client. The "suggesting" tool is so useful for collaboration if you are working things out together!

CloudApp

We find screen recordings very helpful when documenting processes too - nothing makes a better "here's how you do it!" easier than simply watching a video of someone actually doing the task.

We recommend CloudApp to help you demonstrate processes via screenshots or recordings, which you can also annotate. It's free!

Question 3

What tasks can Virtalent NOT help my client with?

Accepted Answer

There isn't very much we avoid helping clients with - these areas would generally fall under the following 'categories'.

Being "On Call"

As you work with your client on a 1:1 basis and only log the time you spend carying out work for them, we feel it is unfair to ask you to be available 24/7 for a client. You should be able to log in and out of a client's account, completing any work required as set tasks.

This means we will usually avoid asking you to answer live chat messages on-demand or handling incoming calls, throughout the day, though we can recommend some great providers that many of our clients use in tandem with their Virtalent VA. These tasks would require you to be "online" all day as it's impossible to know when these chats or calls could come in to the client's business.

An exception to this 'rule' can sometimes be made if you are already online for a client throughout the day. If you are working on other tasks for a larger client, say, every day from 9am to 3pm (and logging this time anyway), then most of our team are happy to receive calls/messages during this time.

This is very different to supporting a client on a 10-hour plan who is asking you to be available all day, "just in case" something comes through - this approach is not workable or expected.

Highly-Specialised Work

A client shouldn't see their Virtual Assistant as a 'replacement' to hiring a trained, qualified professional to carry out tasks that it's reasonable to feel should need a license or professional accreditation to be completed, or are simply very specialised in nature. For example:

We generally can’t help with highly complex marketing campaigns involving technical implementation of SEO/SEM, PPC or affiliate marketing campaigns. You might well be able to implement certain aspects of these projects, under the guidance of the client or their marketing agency, but we shouldn't be launching highly specialised campaigns from scratch.
We can certainly help with financial admin tasks (sending out invoices, making bill payments, etc.) but it is important to point out that we don’t offer bookkeeping, payroll or accountancy services. You can’t act as their agent with HMRC, reconcile bank transactions or prepare a VAT return, for example.
We aren't there to provide highly-specialised advice to a client. It is one thing to recommend some CRM software, but a completely different thing to advise them how to run their business more widely. We aren't there to act as their business coach or consultant, but to assist them in the running of their business.

Spam

We also generally don’t help with:

'Bulk' cold-calling campaigns, where you are expected to call through a long list of cold leads. Our team don’t usually come from this type of sales-driven environment - we prefer digital or online campaigns - and client expectations are usually out of sync with the reality of such campaigns. It is one thing to follow up with an existing sales lead, and another to call through 1000 people in a database the client has purchased online.
Sending spam emails - it is one thing to send targeted messages on LinkedIn or email (to B2B recipients), but another to send 10,000 people the client's latest newsletter, without them having asked to receive it.

Something That Doesn't "Feel Right"

Anything both very small and short-term in nature. We aren’t a temp agency and we don’t help with small one-off projects or tasks. We support our clients on a long-term, ongoing basis, building trusting and long-lived business relationships. We feel this is a really important factor of your work with Virtalent. The client shouldn't see us as an equivalent to Fiverr!
Anything that would reasonably make you feel uncomfortable (or break the law). We reserve the right to reject any task assigned to us, as do you. Please always let us know if you are ever asked to do something you don't want to do!

Still not sure? Do contact your Client Success Manager, they will be happy to help you with any queries.

Question 4

How do I log the time that I work for a client and are there any limitations?

Accepted Answer

Any time that you spend working on client tasks must be logged in the portal using the timer.

Here is a link to a full video with clear instructions on how to do this.

You should be able to run the timer for as long as you need to.

Should you forget to run the timer there is the option to make a manual time entry.

We do strongly advise against this but understand that mistakes can happen.

Question 5

How is it best to "check in" with a client? When should I do so?

Accepted Answer

After working with a client for some time, it's likely you'll have both settled into a comfortable working pattern together.

This is very positive, however, it's also important that you both review how the relationship is going from time to time too.

Could you be adding even more value to their day? Could you be doing anything differently? Has anything changed?

Revisit Their Initial Brief

Go back to the original "brief" you received from us following the client's initial consultation call with Virtalent and revisit any notes you subsequently made from your first few calls together.

Are they delegating all of the tasks that they originally spoke to you and our Selection Team about? If not, why have they decided not to delegate something? Could they do so now?

Now that you’ve established a good working relationship with your client and they feel comfortable, where else can you add value? Are you skilled in a certain area that they didn’t realise at first, or has the client started working on a new project where you think your experience could be relevant? Clients will always appreciate a proactive approach to working with them.

At Virtalent, our goal as a team should not only be to take care of the day-to-day tasks and projects our clients need support with, but ultimately we also want to help grow them their businesses and realise their ambitions.

Keep Their Goals In Mind

Think back to when you started together. Why did they hire you, a talented, professional Virtual Assistant, in the first place?

Whether this was to save time or access new skills, it can be useful to ask your client whether they feel they have achieve their original goal.

Have they achieved what they set out to do?
What has changed for them since working with you, both personally and professionally?
What are their short-term and long-term goals now?
Have they changed?
How will YOU help them hit those goals?

Maintain Open Communication

When a client is busy and you also have other clients to attend to yourself, it's easy to let day after day pass by without 'checking in' with each other. Gradually you could become distant and lose the rapport you've worked so hard to build together at the start of your relationship.

Try to ensure you set aside time to ensure your client has everything they need from you (and you have everything you need from them!), to discuss the progress of any ongoing tasks/projects and plan the weeks ahead.

It only needs to be a 10 minute 'hello' on the phone here and there!

Question 6

What is AssistYou?

Accepted Answer

AssistYou is Virtalent’s Individual Assistance Programme (IAP), a service we have invested in to support your health and wellbeing. You can use this as little or as often as you need.

An IAP is a confidential service designed to help you deal with both personal and professional challenges that could be affecting your health and general wellbeing.

AssistYou is delivered in confidence by leading UK healthcare provider Health Assured.

The Health Assured helpline is available 24/7, 365 days a year. Just call 0800 917 6470.

Find out more here:

One Pager
IAP Leaflet from Health Assured

Question 7

Can I share my personal email address or contact details with a client?

Accepted Answer

It's very important that you only ever contact your client using your Virtalent email address, never your personal one.

Alternatively, your client might give you a company email account to use when working with them.

The nature of your role means that your client will need and expect to have your mobile number, just as you will have theirs. However, we don't recommend sharing your home address with your client. We will never share this information with a client ourselves.

If you're ever concerned or unsure about anything relating to your contact information, or what you should share with a client, please contact your Client Success Manager.

Question 8

Do I get reimbursed for the time I spend speaking to new clients?

Accepted Answer

We will reimburse you for up to 60 minutes for any initial introduction call with a potential new client, as part of the matching process.

It's up to you if you would like to continue past this time, but we have to put a sensible cap in place here. We feel an hour is plenty of time for you to check whether or not you and the client a good match for each other - this is not supposed to be a kick-off call to plan out the work you will start on, but rather a time to simply say hello.

Keep a note of the start/stop time of the call and head into My Time to log this (My Time -> Internal -> Add Time Entry).

Please explain clearly which prospective client this relates to, so that we can verify the time log is accurate on our side.

"Call with new client, Bob Smith, at ABC Company. Opportunity ID 123445".

More Info

You can find more information about this process in the e-book here.

The client will have already read a detailed profile that we have put together about your skills and professional background, and they have already had a consultation call with our Client Engagement team to go over how the service works at Virtalent.

Likewise, you will have read the client brief, which details the support they would be looking for fro you. This leaves very little detail to actually cover on the call - you already know each other to some extent!

These calls are therefore really just designed for you both to cover off any other questions that you have of each other, and to make sure you 'click', before you start working together. A typical call will last 30-40 minutes - a particularly chatty or inquisitive client may naturally take longer to talk everything through with you, but likewise some clients only want to say a quick 'hello'!

At this point the client should not be trying to train or onboard you into their team, nor is this in 'interview'. We’ve already told them how wonderful you are!

It's also up to you to lead the call, so you should aim to wrap it up before 60 minutes if you would like to do so. If the client wants to work with you, they should then be finishing the setup of their account with us and you can then arrange any calls needed (billed to the client) for training, onboarding, planning work, and any other more "intensive" discussions. The first step is actually making their final decision as to whether to work with you.

Question 9

How do expenses work at Virtalent?

Accepted Answer

Though we encourage clients to manage any costs or bills themselves, we do offer the facility for Virtalent VAs to log expenses to a client account.

If you need to log an expense (e.g. travel costs), always first check you have obtained written permission from your client that they are happy for you to do this. It is also vital to manage the client's expectation on costs. We don't want them to be surprised by this!

If frequent expenses are likely to be incurred, we recommend arranging a prepaid debit card that your client can "top up" for you to use. Good examples of this are:

Logging An Expense

As well as the video above, there is also guidance provided on page 7 of the PDF guide to using the portal.

To log an expense:

Name the expense (e.g. train ticket to Brighton)
Make a note of any extra relevant information in the description box (e.g. dates of travel, reason for trip)
Choose the date the expense was incurred (i.e. the date on the receipt)
Enter the total amount you paid out
Upload your receipt (you cannot claim an expense without this)
Check and submit the expense

This will add the expense to the client's account.

It will then appear on your next invoice to Virtalent, so you will be automatically repaid.

Question 10

How do I access the services offered as part of AssistYou?

Accepted Answer

In order to access your services, all you need is our Virtalent access codes:

**My Healthy Advantage app **

Available for iOS and Android devices, you can gain access to My Healthy Advantage with the following login credentials.

Employer code: MHA218897

Wellbeing Portal

Username: wellbeing

The Health Assured helpline

A full AssistYou IAP summary including all access details needed can be found in our one pager here.