You Virtually Can’t Ignore This Article

Ever since I read Cheryl Richardson’s Take Time for Your Life, I’ve known about “Virtual Assistants.” They’re the people who help you do your office work – without being in your office. Until last week, though, I had never heard of a “Virtual, Virtual Assistant.”

Last week Sheryl and I met Kelly Johnson, the owner of Cornerstone Virtual Assistance, LLC. On the way to the meeting, I was thinking, how could I possibly hire a virtual assistant? I’m too much of a mess to get my stuff organized to even send off to her. I like doing my own correspondence. And, I certainly don’t want her peering into my mounting debits and waning credits.

That was before I met Kelly. You see, there are a lot of virtual assistants in the world. There are not that many virtual, virtual assistants.

If I had done my homework, I would have gone to Kelly’s very complete “Services” link on her web site. There, I would have seen something rather remarkable. You see, I’ve been paying big bucks to go to workshops and conferences to learn how to do things that Kelly already knows how to do.

Some examples? Sure:

Want your articles published all over the Internet? I’ve attended workshops to learn how to do this complicated process. Kelly already knows how.

Want to do some podcasting or hold a teleconference. Yup, you guessed it; I’ve paid for classes about these. Kelly already knows how.

Want to set up one of those cool email marketing systems? Just last week Sheryl and I began reporting about how to find the best email marketing service. We’re doing it with the help of BuyerZone.com and reporting about it over on our HiddenBusinessTreasures blog. Kelly already knows how.

You see, I thought a virtual assistant would maybe do my accounting, write some letters and help get me organized. Nope, not Kelly. She’s there to help you do those mysterious Internet and computer things you never seem to have the time to learn.

And, believe me, hip deep in Constant Contact template designs and Admail.net’s database transfer protocols, we can tell you that if it wasn’t for our reportorial duty, we’d be hiring Kelly to do it for us.

So, if you’re wondering how to set up an online shopping cart, get your email auto-responders launched, configure your RSS feeds (what the heck is that?!), or even get help launching your new blog you’ll want to call a “Virtual, Virtual Assistant,” like Kelly, not just a “Virtual Assistant.”

How do you go about finding someone like Kelly, if she turns out to be too busy? Log on to www.assistu.com. There you will find a link to “How Do I Find a Virtual Assistant?” These VA’s have gone through a 20-week training course and qualified for one of AssistU.com two certification programs – either CPVA (Certified Professional Virtual Assistant) or CMVA (Certified Master Virtual Assistant).

Next time Cheryl Richardson speaks about virtual assistants, I’m going to pay more attention. I could have saved a lot of time and heartache. Let’s see, where the heck did I put Kelly’s phone number?

(Please note: We do not take referral fees from any of the sites or services we feature in our blog articles, workshops or classes. We call ‘em like we see ‘em, period.)