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When you first start out as a Virtual Assistant it can be very tempting to take on any and all work that comes your way.  However, this isn’t always the best thing for your business.

I am sure that, like many Virtual Assistants I have spoken with, you will at some point come across a client who is high maintenance or constantly pays their invoices late, perhaps they quibble down to the last minute.

I started to read an interesting book,The 4-Hour Work Week: Escape the 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich by Timothy Ferris.  Now apart from the fact he suggests outsourcing to a Virtual Assistant who isn’t me he made some interesting observations.  He referred to the Pareto rule, the 80/20.  He looked at what he was doing and found that 80% of what he was doing was only earning him 20% of his income, and it made me think.

I also had a very interesting phone call with Richard White, from The Accidental Salesman, in which we discussed the type of clients I should look to work with.

So what did all this reading and chatting do for me?  It made me stop and think about how I wanted to work, what was best for me, and also what was best for my clients.  I looked at the clients that I was working with at that time and asked myself if I was really the best solution for that particular client, and if they were the right type of client for me.

When you do your job well as a Virtual Assistant you build up a fantastic relationship with your clients.  For some clients you even become that trusted advisor, the one they turn to before they make any decisions, or the person they know they can rely on for that last minute task.

When you first discuss working with a new client listen to your gut instinct.  Do you get on. Will you enjoy the work.  Are you capable of meeting that clients requirements.  Gut instinct may seem a bit chancy to be making important decisions on, but in my two years as  a Virtual Assistant I can assure you that it has served more than one VA well.

So what is a high maintenance client? It’s someone who has you on speed dial and knows how to use it, whatever time of day or day of the week.  It’s someone who constantly sends you work with little or no notice that has to be done right now.  It’s the client who is always ringing up to ask your opinion on everything.  Is this a bad thing? Not always, no.  But if you have more than one client this can all be to the detriment of our other clients.  If this client is your biggest retainer client again it may not be an issue, but typically a high maintenance client will be the one who buys the least hours or pays the lowest rate.

You will find that 80% of your attention is directed to the high maintenance client who actually should only represent 20% of your workload.  Sound familiar? It’s an easy trap to fall into.

The other thing to beware of is the late payer, or the quibbler.  I prefer to offer my clients a healthy discount for buying their hours in advance.  They do have the option of paying by invoice each week but this is at a much higher rate.  If your shiny new client starts to quibble over your first invoice this is generally a good indication of how they will react to future invoices.  Are they dissecting your invoice minute by minute? A healthy interest in how you have spent their money is all well and good but if they are nit picking over 5 minutes here or there despite you using time tracking software then what will they be like when you present your first major invoice. Did they pay their invoice on time, or are there excuses each month when payment should have been made?

Take a moment, step back and review the clients you are currently working with. Do any of the above sound familiar? I do hope not, but if they do, consider whether you should really continue working with them.  It’s not good for your mental health, and it certainly isn’t good for your business.

Whilst the temptation to shoulder the client is there, consider if working with them is stopping you finding the perfect new client that could be out there.

To me a client relationship should be something that you enjoy, not someone who’s name appears on your caller ID and you groan.  Be honest how many of you have that type of client on your books at the moment?  I don’t.  But its taken a steep learning curve to reach this point.

As a Virtual Assistant you cannot just think about yourself, you have to consider how this client relationship will affect your other clients and your workload, as well as thinking about your sanity, and ensuring you enjoy your job.  After all, isn’t part of the reason we became Virtual Assistants that we didn’t enjoy our previous roles.

I would love to hear some of your high maintenance client stories but no names please, it wouldn’t be fair, just a description of the event instead.  Also your best tips on how to get out of these situations if you find yourself there. One of the best things about being a Virtual Assistant is the collaboration with your colleagues, sharing experiences like this and more importantly the solutions that work.  Comment away!

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