Business Hours
My business hours are Monday
through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to
12:00 p.m. ET. Work completed outside
these hours at the client’s request will be billed at a 25% increase in my
hourly rate.
Communication
E-mail is my preferred
method of communication because it creates a reference trail, but texting is
also acceptable. Telephone/Skype calls
should always be planned to avoid any scheduling conflicts. I will respond to non-urgent e-mails within
24 hours or the next business day and urgent e-mails as soon as possible.
Status Reports
The foundation of the
“virtual” process is communication between the client and virtual assistant, so
it is essential to be in contact regularly regarding ongoing projects (i.e.,
projects that require two weeks of work or more). Therefore, clients with an ongoing project
will receive a weekly project status update via e-mail, including a timesheet
with the number of billable hours that week.
Weekly update e-mails will be sent every Friday.
Programs/Software
I use Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) and Adobe Acrobat. I also use Dropbox (cloud storage), Google Docs and Drive (word processing and cloud storage), Toggl (time-tracking), LastPass (password management), Trello (project management), and TeamViewer (remote control). Most of these programs are suitable for collaborating with clients, and clients will never incur any fees related to my use of these programs.
Meetings
I prefer meeting
“virtually,” but I am open to meetings on location if necessary. Clients will
be invoiced for the actual meeting time (based on my hourly rate), travel time
(also based on my hourly rate), and travel expenses.
Holidays &
Absences
I am not available for work
on the following days:
• New Year’s Day
• Memorial Day
• Fourth of July
• Labor Day
• Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday
• Christmas Eve and Christmas Day
If I am unavailable because of a vacation, I will advise clients at least 30 days in advance.
Billable Hours
Any agreed upon services,
including scheduled telephone/Skype calls, are considered billable hours. However, e-mails and text messages with
clients will not be billed.
Time-Tracking
I use an online program
called Toggl, which tracks billable time in one-minute increments.
Invoicing &
Payment
I will e-mail an invoice at
the beginning of the month based on the number of hours worked in the previous
month. Payment is due 14 days from the
invoice date. If payment is not
received on or before the due date, there will be a late payment fee of 1.5% of
the invoice.
Payment Methods
Payments can be made via
PayPal (preferred) or check. If you wish
to pay using a different method, please let me know, and I will do my best to
accommodate your request.
Referral Bonus
Referrals are always
welcome. If an existing client refers a
new client, I will apply a 20% discount on the referring client’s next
invoice. This discount will be applied
after the new client’s first payment.
Privacy &
Confidentiality
Privacy and client
confidentiality are crucial to me, especially coming from a legal background
that relies on attorney/client privilege.
Client information will never be disclosed or sold to third parties or
made public without the client’s permission unless I am legally obligated to do
so. A client’s data and information will
be kept confidential.
Policy &
Price Changes
I reserve the right to
change my policies and service prices.
If I update these policies and procedures, I will notify my clients
immediately. If I change my service prices, I will send clients notice at least
30 days before effectuating any price changes.
Agreement &
Termination
As a part of the virtual assistant/business
relationship, I ask clients to sign an agreement to protect the working
relationship. I will commence work after the client reads the agreement and
indicates an understanding of said agreement by signing it. Either of us is free to terminate the working
relationship at any point, with the understanding that the business will be
billed for any completed work and unpaid costs.
Virtual Assistant 