Archive for the ‘Legal’ Category

Dear Danielle: Can You Just Give Us a Ballpark Figure When It Comes to Pricing?

By Danielle Keister | July 23rd, 2014

Dear Danielle:

I recently purchased your Value-Based Pricing & Packaging guide which I LOVE! I love where your head is at! I was tired of reading about, seeing, experiencing and potentially lining myself up for selling hours in my business. Your Value-Based Pricing model has given me a fresh and positive outlook for amazing client relationships to come. I understand that you can’t single-handedly put a finger on exact prices for everyone, but perhaps a ballpark figure in examples would help? Kind of where I’m at now. I totally get the Value-Based Pricing model now after reading, listening and watching your guide. I’ve organized my service line and am ready to price each offering and…I’m stuck! How is one to know how much each service block should cost?! I understand that expertise is a major factor, as well as determining what you need to make annually to survive based on your AWESOME Income & Pricing Calculator, but a bit of guidance surrounding actual ballpark figures would be a MASSIVE help, just to kick start the process. —NH

Thanks so much for your feedback. It is MUCH appreciated and I’m so glad my guide is helping you. 🙂

Regarding the ballpark figures, it is HIGHLY against U.S. antitrust laws to provide even ballpark figures.

We just aren’t allowed to do that in the U.S. Having any kind of conversations about setting fees within an industry (which constitutes price-fixing), it’s a very serious, prosecutable offense.

I know it sounds crazy because it seems like such an innocuous thing, and I know that we do see pricing conversations going on in the industry occasionally; however, that’s only because those people engaging in those conversations are ignorant of antitrust laws and the serious consequences involved.

When I first heard about antitrust and price-fixing in relation to our industry back in 2004 or so, I didn’t want to take anyone’s word for anything so I investigated myself.

I’m a firm believer in going straight to the source to get the facts, not hearsay and opinion from those who don’t know, so I spoke with our state attorney general office, as well as two federal attorneys with the U.S. Dept. of Justice Antitrust Division.

They assured me that talking about fees within one’s industry with colleagues was no small matter (e.g., how much to charge, starting prices, coming up with standardized fees), and those offenses are taken very seriously.

In fact, after explaining how new people in our industry didn’t know what to charge and that it was common to see conversations where colleagues were talking about how much to charge, etc., they started trying to get me to give them specifics, asking for names and where these discussions were taking place. They were not amused. It was very scary!

The bottom line is that we absolutely cannot have pricing conversations as it goes against our entire system of free and open competition and carries very serious criminal penalties if found to be engaging in them.

The other thing I wanted to mention is there is no “should” when it comes to pricing. It’s whatever you deem appropriate and well worth what you offer and the results and benefits you achieve for clients.

Of course, there are considerations to take into account when setting your fees. Here’s a blog post that might be some additional help to you with that:

How Do You Price Your Service?

Beyond basic business economics and practical matters (i.e., profitability), pricing is largely a marketing effort.

And what is marketing but simply the communication process of educating and informing your audience of would-be clients and illuminating for them what you do, who you do it for, how it helps them and all that they can expect to gain by working with you (as well as what they stand to lose if they don’t).

When you get good at articulating that value to potential clients and helping them to see and understand that value in the context of their own business and life, the sky is the limit with regard to what you can charge.

But only YOU can decide what that will be. No else is allowed to tell you, not even a ballpark starting point.

Stop with the Money-Back Guarantees

By Danielle Keister | October 30th, 2013

6 Comments

Stop with the “100% money-back guarantee” on your service. You’re not selling a ShamWow, for crying out loud! Your blood, sweat and tears do not come with a money-back offer.

Plus, there are theories of law at play here.

Ideally, you have great skills and do great work for clients. But whether someone likes the work or not is a completely different value from the fact that they engaged you to do the work.

By law, you are entitled to be paid for work you were engaged to do, as long as you made every good faith effort and held up your end of the bargain.

Whether they like the end result is something else entirely. And they aren’t entitled to 100% of their money back on that.

Plus, think about it. You’d have to hold those funds aside and deprive yourself of their use until the end of whatever period you’ve given.

That’s ridiculous!

Clients who don’t like your work have the same recourse we all do: to express our dissatisfaction and give the provider an opportunity to do better and/or stop working with that provider any further and take our business elsewhere. Simple as that.

It’s up to all of us to do our homework and choose service providers wisely, with quality in mind, not cheapness.

We usually get what we pay for in this life, and when clients cheap out, they shouldn’t be surprised when that’s the kind of quality they get in return. They just aren’t going to get a Rolls Royce for the price of a Ford, no way no how.

You, on the other hand, as a conscientious service provider of integrity who cares about your clients and doing good work can offer to redo any work that a client isn’t satisfied with.

But beyond that, you need to stop prostrating yourself and begging and bribing people to work with you.

You’re offering a service and knowledge work, not selling products that can be returned to the shelves.

Are We Sole Proprietors or Independent Contractors?

By Danielle Keister | July 15th, 2013

2 Comments

Someone asked the question on a listserv I’m on: Are we sole proprietors or independent contractors?

Here is the answer:

These are just different terms for the same thing: business owner. There is no difference.

It’s just that when someone goes into business for themselves, they are self-employed. By default, when there has been no official business formation filed, anyone who is in business is a sole-proprietor (unless they have a partner, in which case they are a partnership).

There are legal guidelines that govern self-employment. When someone is self-employed, they are still a business. And when you are in business, by law and by practice, it is you who determines everything in your business: how the work is done, what you charge, when, where and how you work, what tools you use… everything.

As someone who is a self-employed business owner (independent contractor), the people you work with are clients. Clients do not get to determine any of these things (and it is their duty and responsibility in business to know this).

They come to you because you are in business to provide a particular service and expertise they have need of. However, any client who is setting your “rate of pay,” supervising you or controlling any other working conditions is no longer a client. By law, they are an employer.

It’s important for people going into business for themselves to understand these distinctions. Employers who engage in illegal misclassification of employees pay stiff and severe penalties when they are caught. They are actually also stealing from these people because they are not paying into Social Security and Medicare funds and all the other legally required benefits and standards that employers are liable for.

I have a free Intro to Business Formations guide that you can download here: http://www.administrativeconsultantsassoc.com/freeresources

Dear Danielle: Client Is About to Ask Me to Pose as an Employee

By Danielle Keister | April 3rd, 2013

11 Comments

Dear Danielle:

HELP! I have a new client I am trying to sign who I think is about to ask me to pose as an employee. Their first project requires us to meet with one of their clients in person tomorrow. I received an email saying they wanted to set me up with an email under their domain and wanted to talk before tomorrow’s meeting. I know my gut says this probably isn’t the best for my company, but I really can’t tap into why exactly. In other words, it seems wrong, but I don’t know what to say when they call as to why. On their end I know that they deal with sensitive data from their client so they probably want to present a united front and not make it seem like this client’s data is in the hands of a third party, but it is. Thoughts? —Anonymous by request.

First off, I want to to validate your feelings. Anything that a client requests that does not sit well with you is nothing to second-guess yourself about. It doesn’t matter if they don’t like it or if anyone else disagrees. If something in your gut is saying, “no, this doesn’t feel right” then it’s not right for you.

What you are feeling that you can’t quite put your finger on is the fact that, whether they realize it or not, a) this client is basically asking you to be is a liar and b) asking something that’s inappropriate of an independent professional (which deep down makes you feel disrespected as a business owner).

They need some additional conversation and education about the fact that you are not a substitute employee.

The best policy is to be firm, clear and upfront.

You might say something like, “Oh, I see there is some misunderstanding about how we work together. Since I am an independent company from yours (rather than an employee), I use my own email address when I deal with people on behalf of my clients.”

If they need further clarification, explain the fact that when people work with vendors and independent professionals, those are companies that are independent of theirs. As such, and for their own protection, there cannot be any appearance that those vendors and independant professionals with whom they work are employees.

Likewise, along with the privilege of being a business owner, you also have a responsibility to operate ethically and legally according to those business protocols and guidelines that are laid out for us under the law.

Hopefully, that will be sufficient, but if they press you a bit further, you could have them consider this: Would they be asking their attorney or their accountant or their whatever to use an email address through their domain?

Of course not! It would be a highly unusual and inappropriate request. I don’t think it would ever cross their mind to ask.

Well, as an independent professional, you are no different. So why do they think it’s okay to ask you to do that? If they want an employee, that’s who they need to hire.

This is not a common dilemma for Administrative Consultants, but it is for those who are still calling themselves virtual assistants.

People equate the word “assistant” one way—employee. And the virtual assistant industry has miseducated the public to view VAs as under-the-table substitute employees.

This is why what you call yourself is an important part of setting the right understandings, expectations, perceptions and context.

Moving forward, this could be a good time to review your website, marketing message and other client-educating materials (e.g., Client Guide).

Make sure prospects and clients are getting thoroughly and properly educated so there are no misconceptions or confusion about the nature of the relationship.

In your consultations, have a frank discussion about the relationship and how it will be different from working with an employee.

And of course, never refer to yourself as an assistant. When you are a business owner, you are not anyone’s assistant. You are an independent expert who specializes in administrative support.

Here are a couple other posts that may be helpful to you on this topic as well:

Dear Danielle: Should My Client Say I Am Part of His Team?

You Are Not an Assistant

Are Virtual Assistants Employees or Independent Contractors

Of note from the US Tax Aid article:

You may have an employee if you:

Provide training — If you provide training to your workers, this is a good indication that they are really employees.

Pay them for their time – An independent contractor simply does work in his or her own way. There is little need for meetings, especially team-building ones, except for progress reports.

Instruct on minutiae – Don’t tell your IC how to do his job. I know you spent a lot of time developing your step-by-step procedures, but requiring your IC to follow them means you have an employee, not an IC.

Require certain hours –You cannot require that an IC be “open” or “available” during any specific hours that they are not paying you. The IC should have her own system in place to track time if she’s charging hourly instead of by package.

Furnish software or supplies –Do not provide any software, supplies, cell phones, or even a special email address in which to conduct business or the IRS could decide that you have an employee. It is tempting and I have done it myself, but I am second thinking this due to this rule.

Assign a title – Don’t list your ICs on your website, office door, or anywhere that indicates they are part of your business.

Contracts Have Nothing to Do with Being a Hardass

By Danielle Keister | March 21st, 2013

9 Comments

Contracts are not merely for legally enforcing “rules and regulations” on clients.

Their first function is to memorialize (in writing) your promises and understandings to each other.

Memories fail. Things are conveniently “forgotten.” Your contract serves as a written memory of what you both agreed on to each other.

The other role your contract plays is in outlining your standards and helping set proper understandings and expectations for the relationship.

With your contract, you are saying, Here is how I expect to be treated with courtesy and respect. And for my part, here is how I will treat you with courtesy and respect as a client…

So it’s just dumb for anyone to tell you to take anything out of your contract that you may or may not enforce legally.

You might as well not even bother with a contract at all then because if that’s the logic, more than half the standard terms and conditions that need to legally be in a contract to be enforceable would get taken out.

And why stop there. There’s no point then in putting anything in writing if you think the only reason for it is whether you’re really going to sue someone or not if they don’t comply.

Shoot, just let clients do whatever they want and dictate everything to you. Because again, by that logic, anything else would be being a “hardass.”

There’s nothing hardass about informing clients that when you are working on retainer, you expect them to give you 30 days notice if they intend to terminate the relationship. (I actually recommend 20 days, which is what I do in my practice.)

The reasoning is that you have reserved space for that client and dedicated priority to them. If they decide to terminate at a moment’s notice, that leaves you in a lurch without being given a courteous, reasonable amount of time with which to try to refill that slot.

It’s like the policy of requiring 24 or 48 hours notice if someone needs to cancel an appointment. By stating it in your policies, you are telling people how you expect to be treated and respected, that your time is valuable.

And that clause (at least in the ACA contracts) works both ways. You are saying to them, I’m not going to leave you in a lurch either. If I determine that our relationship needs to end, I’m going to give you X number of days notice as well.

It has nothing to do with being a hardass or whether or not you would even take them to court if they didn’t honor the agreements they made to you.

It’s about good business, having and honoring your standards, and informing clients upfront what is expected.

Definition of Subcontracting

By Danielle Keister | November 12th, 2012

0 Comments

It’s important that people in business understand and use the term “subcontracting” correctly.

When you hire someone to help you in your business, that is not subcontracting. That is “contracting.” You are contracting someone to support you.

Subcontracting is when you outsource your client work (the work your client hired you to do as their contractor) to another business (i.e., an outside, third party). You are “subbing” that work. Hence the term SUB-contracting.

How to Opt Out of PayPal’s New Arbitration Clause

By Danielle Keister | November 1st, 2012

5 Comments

Just a quickie for you today… I came across a great resource on The Consumerist blog which shared a letter template for opting out of PayPal’s new arbitration clause.

In case you hadn’t heard, PayPal recently added a clause to its user agreement that forces everyone into mandatory, binding arbitration in the event of legal complaints and takes away the right to join together in a class action unless you opt out in writing.

Apparently, many folks’ opt-out letters were rejected due to improper formatting so the Consumerist came to the rescue with a properly formatted template.

If you want to opt-out, just be sure you get your letter in by the deadline of December 1, 2012.

I got mine in AND I brought this to the attention of my clients and drafted up letters on their biz letterhead on their behalf. All they had to do was sign!

TIP: Alert your clients and do letters for them as well; it’s a great opportunity to show how you’re always looking out for them and provide more value!

Dear Danielle: Can I Use Content from Your Site?

By Danielle Keister | October 24th, 2012

1 Comment

Dear Danielle:

The templates I purchased from your site have been, and continue to be, very helpful. I’m working on my website and I wonder what the policy is for using information from your site if credit is given with a link to your site. There is soooo much useful and helpful information and if I may use some of it (with appropriate credit) then I would be most grateful! —MB

I’m so happy you are finding everything so helpful to you, and I really appreciate you letting me know that!

I’m afraid, however, using our content (or anyone else’s, for that matter) is a BIG no-no.

(It’s also the quickest way to get on my bad side. 😉 )

The idea is not to copy other people. Whether you give them credit or not, simply taking content from someone else’s site to use on your own is copyright infringement.

Only the content owner gets to decide who may use what content, if any. Likewise, the content owner may not want her content used in a particular way or on a particular site.

You don’t want to be a copycat anyway. Nor do you want to get into legal hot water because you have used their content or made derivative use of it.

(“Derivative use” is a legal term that basically means plagiarism. It’s where someone takes someone else’s content and changes words or things around a bit to disguise the use. But that’s still copyright infringement and it’s illegal.)

If you want to educate the marketplace with our content, the only way I allow that is by placing a membership button on your website so that those who are interested can follow the link and read our content on our site.

(By the way, as a side note, we have things coded so that the link opens in a new window and doesn’t take your visitors away from your website).

Ultimately, it’s not your job to educate the marketplace about Administrative Consultants. The ACA site already does that.

You need to speak for your business. Your job is to educate your target market on how you do things and how you help them.

Plus, we don’t need an industry where everyone is all using the same words. Clients actually hate that and it frustrates them to no end.

You do nothing to differentiate yourself from the crowd and help them choose YOU by using someone else’s content and repeating the same tired, boring, ineffective industry script that everyone else in the industry is reciting chapter, line and verse.

And think about it… imagine what it would be like if I let everyone use our content.

If I gave one person permission, everyone else would expect to have favors and exceptions made for them as well. That doesn’t do anything to help Administrative Consultants be original and stand on their own two feet as business owners, and we’d have a sea of websites all saying the same thing (like there is already).

Giving people content and doing all their thinking and work for them is against everything I stand for. Without going through those exercises for themselves, they do not gain the important lessons and insights necessary to succeed on their own in business and marketing.

It’s sort of like this: I’m not here to do the math (or the work) for you, which teaches you nothing. I’m here to give you the knowledge, know-how and tools so you can do the “math” for yourself and be unique.

Everything I do is about encouraging and helping people come up with their OWN content, in their OWN voice. I even have a product to help you do that: Articulating Your Value: How to Craft Your Unique, Irresistible Marketing Message to Stand Out from the Crowd and Attract Well-Paying Clients Who Can’t Wait to Hire You (GDE-38).

You May Only Share What Belongs to You

By Danielle Keister | September 27th, 2012

5 Comments

I need to bring up a somewhat uncomfortable topic and that is intellectual property.

It’s been brought to my attention that there are people sharing the contracts they’ve purchased from me and the ACA Success Store with others and that is a HUGE no-no.

Those products are my intellectual property. Your license to use them extends only to your business with your own clients.

Outside of that, you do not have any legal right to share them with colleagues, and you will get yourself into real legal hot water if you do.

If you come across posts on listservs and forums where people are asking others to share their contracts, you would be doing the members and the list/forum owner a favor by letting them know that the contracts they are sharing may be someone else’s intellectual property and they could be opening themselves up to legal liability by sharing them.

It’s not ethical and could cost them a pretty penny legally defending themselves. They can also potentially have their assets and bank accounts frozen by Court-ordered injunction if they are found to have misused someone else’s intellectual property in this manner.

It’s a very, very bad idea and list owners (if only out of self-preservation) should discourage those kind of conversations as they can be held liable as well. You do not want to be dragged into costly legal proceedings, especially if you are not the one doing the sharing, so it’s best not to promote or faciliate those conversations.

I know you’re trying to be helpful, but you can only be helpful with things that belong to you. My contracts and other products do not belong to you. They are strictly for your own personal use in your own business.

There is an alternative though, one that will allow you to be helpful AND earn you money at the same time.

Join my affiliate program so that you can refer others to the ACA Success Store and earn 25% commissions on every successful sale you’ve referred via your affiliate link.

Here are the details (super, super simple and easy): ACA Affiliate Program

Would You Give Your Car Away for Free to Anyone Who Asked If They Could Have It?

By Danielle Keister | July 23rd, 2012

1 Comment

If your car were to be stolen, would you think it was “a compliment” to you that the thief liked it so much he decided to take it for himself?

Is it a “compliment” when someone steals anything that belongs to you? No? Then stop saying such a completely ridiculous thing to those who have had their content stolen.

Stealing is stealing, whether it’s someone else’s words or belongings. They are both property, the latter being physical and the former being intellectual.

Your content is one of your most prize possessions in business. It’s supposed to be unique to you and you alone. It’s what helps differentiate you from the rest of the field. And clients do not want to see and hear the same things on everyone’s website and copy.

For someone to capitalize on YOUR content is illegal and creates unfair competition. So to those out there repurposing other people’s content, stop being a thief.

I would further advise people, it’s not even cool to ask people to use their content. Have the good manners not to put them in the uncomfortable/awkward position of having to tell you no.

If you do ask and they tell you no, be a grown-up. Just because you ask doesn’t give you any special rights nor is anyone obligated to say “yes” just because you ask.

It’s their property and they and they alone have the right to decide whether or not allow anyone to use their content. And in my opinion, they would be foolish to give that permission because it is not in the best interests of their business to do so whatsoever.

Here’s another way to look at this… are you going to give your car away just because someone likes it and asks if they can have it? That would be completely ridiculous, right? You might SELL them your car if the offer were good enough, lol.

Where do people get this crazy idea that they can just walk up and take content from your site, or that just because they ask, they are somehow entitled to be given your content free of charge? It’s ludicrous!

So maybe you help people realize what they’re asking by replying that you are paid good money for your writing skills, that your unique content is what differentiates you from everyone else and helps earn you business and clients, and that allowing others to copy it would dillute and diminish its power. But hey, if they want to PAY for your content or HIRE you to write them some content, maybe then there’s a conversation to be had.

(Trust me, they want to do neither.) 😉