Hi,

I will try to explain myself. I am starting up a mobile secretary business, but after googling about it, i have seen the word virtual assistant..

ANYWAY - i am just asking how to actually bill someone - ie the process.. ill try in baby talk..

ok..say someone emails me their resume and wants it proofread and made into a neater resume - i am just asking how EXACTLY the billing would work?? ie... do you send back the work via an attachment on an email with their finished work (which i did at home) AND do you just attach an invoice in your email as well?? isnt there some kind of online *resume/finished work* viewing system (ie where the client could see what i actually did and then be forced to click some kind of online payment to pass)...or what?

i am very confused..and how do you know if say - you send them back the finished work and attach an invoice - how do you know if they will pay you??

i am just asking on how you actually "really" bill someone - ie the process - googling hasnt gotten me anywhere.. PLS help

With the smalled project like you mentioned I think it is fine to do it and invoice them at the same time.

With larger projects I suggest getting a portion of it up front. Lucky for me my first client is someone I know semi well and I am just going to bill her every 30 days but there is a stipulation that if I am not paid after 15 days all projects will cease.

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-Amanda
www.virtualsolutionsmadesimple.com

Originally Posted by candctroll

With the smalled project like you mentioned I think it is fine to do it and invoice them at the same time. With larger projects I suggest getting a portion of it up front. Lucky for me my first client is someone I know semi well and I am just going to bill her every 30 days but there is a stipulation that if I am not paid after 15 days all projects will cease.

aaah ok - so i mean thats what every other va does? ie just attach an invoice and their completed work via an email? mmm i just thought there was some other magic way of doing it..

if anyone else can help me out and reassure me then pls reply thanks

If you're worried about not getting paid, you could go through guru.com and use their escrow service...

That way they have to pay in advance and when you deliver they release the funds.

Non-payment is a chance you take as part of doing business.

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Amanda Moore
Virtual Assistant
VagabondetteVA Blog

aaah ok thats cool - thats why they have the accrual part of quickbooks..ok thanks guys

I always charge a deposit for new clients and then apply the deposit towards the final bill. The accrual part of QuickBooks has nothing to do with how payments are received, it is an accounting method.

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Rebecka Melson ~ Virtual Business Services

I also charge a deposit for new clients - held against fully paid invoices for a certain period of time. If it's a one-time project I'd still take a deposit but a smaller one, relative to the estimated total cost of the work involved.

All of my completed projects are returned to the client via email, FTP, or document library (online storage).

I generally invoice every two weeks, with a few exceptions depending on the type of project.

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For a case like the one you mentioned, I would send them a non-editable version of the file -- perhaps a locked PDF with the word DRAFT across it, along with the invoice. They wouldn't be able to use it (unless they wanted to copy the format and take the time to re-type it). They could send the approval back with the payment and you can send them the editable file(s).