The RatRaceRebellion.com Blog

Reader Query: Advertising for Virtual Assistant Clients on Craigslist

A reader recently wrote me, "I'm a new Virtual Assistant. To attract clients I'm advertising my services on Craigslist. I've been getting a lot of replies, but some of them sound iffy. This one man wants me to do "check processing" for a commission. He says he's a lawyer, but his emails have a lot of spelling errors. Are these red flags?"

Craigslist is a marvelous tool for many things, but, as this VA is discovering, it's not necessarily an optimal place to advertise for clients. (VAs are usually better off approaching small businesses and other prospects directly.) You're liable to receive a mixed bag of replies, from legit to dubious and beyond.

"Check processing" is a common scam (you receive a "cashier’s check" – to go "mystery shopping," for example – deposit it and wire funds to the hirer, and keep a "commission" or "leftover funds," only to find that the check was fraudulent, and you're on the hook with your bank). Although I'd need more detail in this case to be certain "beyond the shadow of a doubt," it sounds mighty fishy, particularly when paired with claims of attorney status and spelling errors.

(Of course, going to law school is no guarantee of good spelling. It merely guarantees that you can distinguish between identical things, argue with people for no apparent reason, and speak authoritatively on any topic at cocktail parties and other noteworthy endeavors. I should know; I'm a lawyer (well, rehabilitated now) myself.)

As I mentioned to her, the VA should take a pass on this one.

Skype on Your Cell Phone Will Bode Well for Telework Movement

Verizon and Skype announced yesterday (per today's Washington Post) that Skype applications -- including videoconferencing -- would be coming to Verizon smartphones. This is good news for the telework movement, as it's one more nail in the "distance" coffin.

The biggest retardant in telework (apart from monumental vested interests that stand to lose from it) isn't distance itself, of course, but the FEELING of distance. Almost anything that dispels that feeling -- that makes the parties feel "there" with each other -- is good for telework, telecommuting, home-based businesses, etc.

Sure, no silver lining is without a cloud. Seeing a little face on a small screen isn't going to duplicate HP's Halo Room or Cisco's TelePresence experience anytime soon. And it isn't certain yet when that little face will be coming, how much the service might cost, how long till it's seamless, etc. But those are comparative details, next to the innovation and its ramifications.

"Soon," the tablets (iPad, etc.) will have decent videoconferencing too, and it will become ever more difficult for managers and employers to deny workers the right to get their work done at home, or wherever else they want to.

In other words, the future isn't tomorrow; it can just be slow catching up.

 

FTC Again Targets Work-at-Home Scammers

The FTC is going after work-at-home scammers again. The agency will hold a press conference at its Washington, DC, HQ on Tuesday, Feb. 9, to discuss the initiative, an FTC press release announced yesterday.

"Also attending will be representatives of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Monster.com, and Microsoft," the release notes.

The agency produced a video with anti-scam tips to accompany the press conference. "[It] can be downloaded at aperturefilms.com/ftc when the press conference begins."

We've been tracking the work-at-home job-lead "scam ratio" (see the Scam-o-Meter on our home page) for years, and at 59-to-1, it's never been higher. The recession and record unemployment have brought the con artists out en masse, and the FTC's actions couldn't come at a better time.

Even so, the authorities in general are overwhelmed with work-at-home and other Internet fraud, and the scammers themselves (many -- though hardly all -- operating beyond easy jurisdictional reach from Nigeria, Benin, Romania, etc.) grow ever more sophisticated.

For its part, the FTC is seeking broader consumer-protection powers, which, as the Internet continues to spread and build out internationally, it will surely need.

Work from Home News -- Inc. Magazine to Go "All Virtual" for One Month

In a virtual-work experiment, Inc. magazine reported yesterday that its editorial staff will work from home for the entire month of February.

"Everyone knows the workforce is becoming more virtual," Inc.'s Max Chafkin posted to the magazine's blog. "Free online technologies offered by the likes of Skype and Google have made it possible for start-ups to be launched by teams of people who live in different cities or, for that matter, on different continents."

As conventional print media consolidates and otherwise deals with the competitive pressures of the Net, more magazines and newspapers may be expected to experiment with or adopt virtual-work arrangements. Though not without potential disadvantages (isolation, diminished team cohesion, etc.), telework -- in addition to its clear Green benefits -- can significantly cut real estate costs and other overhead and boost productivity as well.

Already, newspapers here and there are reportedly sending staff home to work, joining tens of thousands of freelance writers working on everything from blogs to high-volume content for hirers such as Demand Studios and AOL's new Seed.   

We salute Inc. for its innovative initiative, and wish them every success.