No, You Don’t Test Drive a Virtual Assistant – She is not a Vehicle!

I recently came across a blog post that got my ire up. The name of this post is “How to Test Drive a Virtual Assistant.” It came through Google Alerts and as soon as I saw the title I knew it was going to be another wasted article misrepresenting the Virtual Assistant industry. {deep sigh}

There are several things wrong with this article:

First, it comes with the employer/employee mindset. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, Virtual Assistants are NOT employees. They are highly-skilled business owners in their own right. An entrepreneur (or other small business owner) does NOT hire a Virtual Assistant, they PARTNER with Virtual Assistant.

Second, the post recommends getting references from past employers and friends. Wrong. Do you get references when you are looking for other types of professionals, such as lawyers, bookkeepers, etc.? So why would you try to get references for a VA? Most Virtual Assistants who truly understand the value they bring to their clients won’t waste their clients time (or their own) to provide references. (There’s a lot more to say about this and so I’ll be doing a post about references soon.)

Third, this article suggests assigning a “test project” or “test file” to see if the Virtual Assistant has the skill set or level of competence you want. Excuse me? Again, a Virtual Assistant is a highly-skilled, highly-trained professional business owner. Do you “test drive” an attorney or contractor or other business owner? No, you don’t. If you asked any one of those to do a “test drive” they would laugh you out of the office, so why would a competent Virtual Assistant agree to this?

There are other ways to find out if the Virtual Assistant has the skills you need and is a good fit for your business. I’ve discussed this at length here. Let me just say that most, if not all, Virtual Assistants have an interview process in place that helps them *and* the client discern whether or not working together would be mutually beneficial. During this process there is ample opportunity to ask questions and gather enough information to know if the Virtual Assistant has the skills and/or specific knowledge a potential client needs.

Besides all this, doing a “test drive” (or in my opinion, pay as you go rates in general) does not foster trust or collaboration which is essential for a successful, long-term client/VA relationship.

Finally, the author has the nerve to suggest that a potential client “drop the wage a little with the guarantee that if the trial goes well there will be a direct raise after a week.” !! Seriously?? It is the Virtual Assistant who sets her own rates for her own business. No one else. If the potential client doesn’t like or can’t afford to pay the rate of a particular Virtual Assistant than there isn’t a fit and he/she should look for someone else. It’s that simple.

Oh, and by the way, if you are a Virtual Assistant and do lower your rates to accommodate a potential client, not only do you undermine your own value but you indirectly undermine the Virtual Assistant industry as a whole – so don’t do it. If you are skilled, confident and have your rates set properly you will get clients.