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Virtual assistant serves clients from her home or laptop

October 20, 2003|CHRISTINA CATHCART

There is virtually nothing Angela Allen misses about working behind cubicle walls. As a virtual assistant for dozens of clients across the United States and internationally, she has discovered her ideal office environment: her home, deep in the woods of Dunnville.

"Things are slower, calmer down there. There's no pressure from anybody but yourself," Allen said. "You live away from the cubicle and it's a good way to live."

As a single mother of three, Allen needs the flexible hours. She keeps normal business hours at Wicked Word Craft, but her laptop and cell phone are always with her when she leaves home.

"The goal for me was to be able to have the freedom to do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted to do it," Allen said. "Whenever I have 5 or 10 minutes somewhere, I'm working. There is no wasted time for me. Ever. When I'm not working, I'm away from it and I'm living my life, but I can work from anywhere. No matter where I am, my clients know I'll stop and help them."

Communication with clients is done through instant messaging, e-mail or phone. By making herself accessible to clients and being technologically savvy, Allen uses her background in journalism, marketing and advertising to offer professional writing and marketing for Web sites.

"You have people who work with words and you have people who work with hardware and software," Allen said. "You don't have many who do both. My background serves me well."

Allen's background in real estate often brings her clients in that business: Jeff Aughey, a ReMax agent in Georgia, who has been developing a Web site with Allen for the last 10 months, called Allen on a recommendation. He had never worked with a VA before, but said this project prompted him to try to work with Allen on future projects.

"I've never felt the need that we should be sitting down face to face," Aughey said. "It's been surprisingly smooth. I've come to depend on her a lot."

Allen said that most clients find VAs just as reliable as on-site staff, if not more.

"Clients love that the technology has progressed to the point that they can do what they want with instant gratification," Allen said. "VAs tend to provide things faster than on-site staff because we're not pulled in different directions when we're working on their project."

Although she will still spend plenty of time behind a desk, Allen finds that her life is simpler.

"The only true thing you have in life is your time. You can either spend it or you can sell it. Those are your two options: What are you going to do with yours?"

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