This evening I was delivered a news item through the Virtual Assistant group on Linked In. The post talked about 5 Items You Must Include on Your Virtual Assistant Website .

I was intrigued because I have to say 85% of the virtual assistant websites I land on result in an immediate ‘No’.

The original post written by Tanya Sutherland whose blog is full of great tips for Virtual Assistants. Her list of five items (visit her blog post for more detailed descriptions) every virtual assistant needs on their website includes:

1) Your contact information.
2) Privacy policy.
3) Your rates and/or prices.
4) A sign-up box on EVERY page.
5) The most current information.

So here are some other things you need on your business website if you want me to consider you a professional virtual assistant.

1) A high quality, professional LOGO. If you can’t afford logo design, please spend some time searching for a unique professional free font and create a simple crisp high resolution logo. Brand your business with the font until you can incorporate the font into a professional logo.

2) Your photo, a professional nice photo. I don’t need to know you have a cat or 20 cats. I need to know you look like someone I want representing my business as my VA. Maybe a photo of your very organized workstation would be appropriate, a nice family photo (think portrait like) might make you seem more approachable.

3) High quality stock art. All images should be crisp and professional. You can download high quality stock art from Dreamstime for as little as .50 an image.

4) A content manager. If you created your website in html using frontpage I hate to tell you but that says this;

‘ I know less about administering a business online then your son in grade five’.

As Tanya mentioned in her original post, WORDPRESS. Its free, is easy to learn, and it can help you create a professional site.

5) A professional template that is customized. There are many free templates that are professional and some that are meant to be used for ‘personal blogs’ not business websites.

6) Proper font contrast. I would like to be able to read your blog without having to tilt my screen and stand on my head. Your best bet – BLACK on white. Dark on light. Some fonts are meant for printing, some for computer screens.

Another tip: Learn how to ‘chunk’. Reading on a computer screen is not the same as on paper. Keep your paragraphs short.

AND THE BIG ONE …

7) Web 2.0: Unless your name is McFly, virtual assistants are by name ‘virtual’ and that means you provide services in the year 2009 not 1959

Your virtual assistant business website should not be a dinosaur of the web 1.0 era. Avoid cheesy clip art, wood panel backgrounds, and take some time to learn what is current.

Not sure ? Ask your nearest techy college student to look at your website.

Watch their face – it will tell you what they really think when they tell you it  “Looks good ” . (Remember when your daughter drew a picture of you with your feet on your head when she was 3? You want to ensure they don’t have a similar look on their face to the one on your face when you said “oh its me! I am so beautiful!”.

Think 2009 not 1986 Here’s a little visual for you;

8 ) SEO: Your virtual assistant business website needs to be SEO optimized so that people can find you. (WordPress has great free plugins for this.)

9) Content: Web 1.0 was a website with 6 static pages. Web 2.0 provides a way for your business to interact with your customer. Provide information of value for free and create fresh content/articles every week related to the services you offer.

10) Testimonials & Clients: Let your prospective clients see what others have to say about you and who your clients are. (With their permission of course.)

If you would like your website developed in WordPress including a web 2.0 logo for just $600 Click Here.

And the last one

11) SOCIAL MEDIA. Link to  your social media profiles. By now you should at least have a twitter account and a LinkedIn profile.