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Start a Home-Based Personal Assistant Business

Do you know how many people have time to manage the variety of important tasks before them each day?  Not too many, think of your own life.  How many times have you wished you could have more time to complain about a billing error and how long it eventually took to be resolved when you finally had enough time to deal with it?  Well there are thousands of people saying just that and have the same problem with time.  This problem is now your opportunity, now you can start a Home-Based Personal Assistant Business.

Here is a listing of the types of tasks that many people need help with the most:

• Billing Complaints
• Organizing Meetings and Appointments
• Party Planning
• Client Christmas Card Mailing
• Important Date Reminder
• Vacation Planning
• Information Inquiries

Getting started is simple, there are three things to consider, business setup, service pricing and marketing.

Business Setup You will need a phone that can handle multiple incoming calls at one time.  Nothing worse than a busy signal when an important call is coming in and you cannot handle it in a professional manner.  A cell phone and a pager, always be

available for your clients.  You may even consider obtaining a blackberry to handle email when you are away from your office.  Next, you will need a fax machine, a computer and a high quality printer.  The last essential piece of office equipment is a tickler file.  The tickler file is a filing system methodology that incorporates organizing tasks by importance and due date.  Those tasks that are of most importance and are due sooner than the others are placed in front of the file, while those of least importance and are due later are placed behind.  As tasks are completed, they are moved out of the file system and into a separate complete file so that only your active tasks remain in the tickler file.

Pricing You can be paid in two ways, though methods that are more creative can be used also.  The first is to be paid by the hour, if you do choose to employ this method, make sure you keep good track of the time you spend on tasks so that you can provide detailed billing, much as an attorney would for his clients.  Do not be too fussy, some minor tasks can be listed but can also be discounted.  The second way to be paid is to obtain a type of retainer fee from the client whereby you promise to complete a set number of tasks in each given year without sending a bill.

Marketing Start by advertising in your local newspaper and gradually graduate to prominent business journals, magazines and newsletters.  Once you have a few clients and have successfully completed a few tasks, ask them for referrals.  If they use your services, chances are they have the same types of friends that will also need your services.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Peter Engelbrecht is President of Diagonal Street Business Services. The company offers practical advice and business ideas to stay at home moms. If you are planning a home-based business, you can obtain a FREE copy of Starting a Home-Based Business: Internet Guide.