Make Sure You’re Compensated For ALL Of Your Time!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard my fellow Virtual Assistant’s say something like:
“Should I charge my client for learning a new skill/software package/program?”
“Can I charge my clients for research time, telephone calls, and email correspondence?”
The answer is YES and YES!! You should absolutely be charging for EVERY minute spent on client work. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again….
Unless you intended to start a non-profit organization, then don’t give your time, expertise or skills away for FREE! In doing so, you are undermining your business, selling yourself short and giving your clients too much power (which starts to sound like a J.O.B.).
From the very beginning you MUST be clear with your clients about how your billable time is calculated and that ALL of the time you spend on their projects will be billed to them.
My coach extraordinaire, Stacy Brice, wrote a brilliant blog post on this topic today. Check it out and then come back here and post your comments below! I want to hear about your thoughts and experiences.
I enjoyed this article and it is helpful. I would never have thought to charge a client for training. Would this be training they specifically ask you to take on? Wouldn’t they feel you should have this expertise they are already paying for?
Thanks for the great question Renee! If a client asks you to handle a particular project/task, and you tell them you don’t have the knowledge/experience in that particular area, but they still want you to do the work, then they should absolutely compensate you for the time it takes to learn what you need to learn.
This is why it is so important to be honest and forthright about your skill set. Most Virtual Assistance clients are more concerned with having a great relationship with their VA and that the VA is a good fit for their business overall, than on their knowledge of a particular software program or skill.