Thanks so much for this post! I have been trying to simplify my billing aspect and go towards a pre-paid retainer method. This has helped me greatly!!

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Heidi Payne
www.HMPBusinessSolutions.com

Originally Posted by girlfridayresults

WOW.....I am just starting and the whole "figuring out the hourly" has me in a frenzy. My husband is full time employed, and doing pretty ok. So this is something we hope to BUILD together. But I never considered that GIANT percentage taken by the govt. Thank you so much for that!! (PS....I don't even know how to "PM" yet, took me a second to figure out what that was. But I am very interested in any further number-crunching you have to offer.) Thanks again!

Most people when they first decide to self contract don't realize how much more expensive taxes, health insurance and days off can be. I'm glad I found this post! I will be using it to calculate my rates. Thank you!

I just wrote an article on this topic: http://virtualassistanttrainer.com/5...money-as-a-va/

I wholeheartedly advocate that you not base your rate on expenses or geographic location, but instead on the VALUE you are bringing to your clients. If you market yourself and position your business as the valuable partner that you are, there's no reason why you can't charge at the high end of the spectrum.

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Lisa Wells - VAs!! Go here to get Free VA Business Startup Kit and Forms Pack for your VA Biz

I agree 100% that we need to include the value we bring to the client when we price our rates. But I also think we need to include our experience, expenses, etc. I wrote a blog post on this recently as well, which mentions using this great hourly rate calculator that I originally found on a VAF blog post by The Brainy Gal (Lisa McDonnell).

And if a big part of your marketing focus is on local clients, I do believe you have to consider what others in your area are charging. Just like any local business, if you're priced higher than your competition it's hard to get clients; if you're priced lower you run the risk of not getting good clients! (In the last year or so I've noticed from the calls I get that many businesses and individuals are wanting to stick with local businesses to support what is in the local area.) If your focus is more national (or international), then I don't believe what is being charged locally is as big of an issue.

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Pam Deyerle - Transcriptionist in Richmond, Virginia (Since September 1996 - 19 years)
The Perfect Word Transcription Service

Thank you for posting this, it helps a lot!

Lisa- I love that article you wrote. I am in the planning phase currently and I actually thought about starting with a lower rate and then increasing with more experience. You are correct, why would they want to pay more after paying less initially? Also, I have a lot of great experience to bring to clients regardless if it's my first client or my 30th. Thank you for sharing!

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Niki
Real Virtual Solutions

I may be a little late on this thread, but Office Goddess's template is great! This would be a good tool for a lot of service oriented start ups.

I'm glad you did this. My rates were just a ballpark of where I figured I would need them to be to make it profitable. I didn't realize that you factored EVERYTHING else in too. But since I don't do this full time sometimes I forget that this is someones sole source of income, and that at some point I hope it's mine too. I never broke it down like that before though. This gave me a lot to think about, and that maybe my rate is too low O.O

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This actually helped me quite a lot. I realized that I was actually charging the right rate (go figure), but checked other VA sites and raised my rate a little to have the going rate instead.

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Richard Rinyai
www.virtualofficeguy.com

I found this budgeting calculator at www.about.com. It outlines all your possible expenses calculated against income. Still have not found one for monthly or biweekly retainer rates cost calculator for VA's.

Monthly Budget Calculator

Income Salary/Wages: Other: Expenses Housing (mortgage/rent): Utilities (gas/electric/water/garbage): Phone (landline and cell phones): TV (cable or satellite/movie subscriptions): Internet: Food (groceries and eating out): Gas: Family Expenses (day care/tuition/activities/child support/alimony): Personal Care (hair cuts/toiletries/clothing): Pets (food/vet/grooming): Entertainment (books and mags/movies/hobbies): Insurance (car/home/life/disability/health/dental): Debt Repayment (credit cards/car loans/home equity/student loans): Property Tax (if not included in mortgage): Emergency Fund: Retirement Savings: College Savings: Savings Towards a Goal (buy a house or car/go on vacation): Gifts/Charitable Donations (including tithes): Other:

Total:

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Coastal Biz Hands - Helping You Maintain Impact, Virtually & Beyond!