No task too big or small (for a fee)

They found a niche and they filled it.

When Ashley Mayon and Kristy Richards grew tired of the daily commute and work they were doing in Sacramento, and were ready to open their own business, they looked at their desires and talents and compared those to an unmet need.

What the two young women found was that they had an opportunity to open a successful business helping busy people and businesses do the small things that others are too busy to do. Things like picking up laundry, taking a pet to the vet, making copies, or running to the post office.

"We thought about starting a dry-cleaning pickup and delivery service. But as we looked around, we saw that there were already a couple of errand services. We knew there were a number of them in Sacramento, but we hadn't seen any in Yuba City except for a little ad I'd seen," said Mayon, of Yuba City.

Once they had decided on the business, they had to choose a name.

"We finally thought of naming it My Personal Assistant because that way people would know that's what it is." Mayon said, adding that they had first thought of using a name with "girls" in it, but they figured that as the business expanded they'd probably have males working with them and they didn't want to exclude them.

They also decided on a philosophy which they put on their Web site: "No task is too big or too small for the company to handle. Your wish is their command; from planning parties to delivering your morning coffee, just give us a call and have the girls be your personal assistant."

As with most new businesses, things were a little tough at first.

For the first few months after they opened in March 2007, business was slow and money was tight, Mayon said. "We had a small budget, so any credit we got was on our personal credit."

They used all the no-, or low, cost advertising they could find, such as Craigslist (Internet classifieds), networking and lots of word-of-mouth, including joining the Yuba-Sutter Chamber of Commerce

Mayon said that one reason they joined the Yuba-Sutter Chamber was due to all the extras that come with membership. She said they checked out other chambers, but they didn't give out anything. She said Yuba-Sutter gave them free radio time, a free business profile, and let them put their brochures in the Chamber office, in addition to all of other events that they can go to for free.

One advertising idea that didn't work, Mayon said, was having her cell phone number in bold letters on the sign stuck to the side of her vehicle. She said she was getting some strange calls as she was driving. Now, the only number they advertise is their 800 number.

"Things are going pretty good right now," Mayon explained. "We're putting our income back into the business so it can grow."

"From six months ago, we're definitely up. At first, it was one or two new customers a week, but we took on four new clients just last week."

She explained that currently their gross monthly income is about $4,000, and that most of that comes from the steady photocopy work they do. "That alone gets us 20-plus hours a week each."

The errands they do depend on their clients' needs. "We always have etcetera or you-name-it at the bottom of our brochures because there are things we don't think of that people need. One time a guy called from Canada who wanted me to take a picture of a car that was for sale. Another time, some people from Texas wanted us to go to the Secretary of State's Office (in Sacramento) so we could file some papers for them." Mayon said.

"We really cater to the needs of the customer," she said.

A typical day for Mayon and Richards can start as early as 7 a.m, even though some days don't start until the afternoon. "We could start out making medical-record copies in the morning, then run errands like taking the mail over to the post office, and then we could walk a client's dog while finding time to get something to eat."

She said they can do some tasks at night in their homes, such as writing and mailing thank-you cards for clients, designing brochures, transcribing, or party planning.

The two women work more than a 100 hours a week, she said.

Mayon added that another selling point is that the work they do is environmentally-friendly.

"Being an errand service, in itself, is green because we do everyone's errands at once," she said, "so we're taking cars off the street." To further her claim, she explained that she drives a hybrid SUV and her partner drives a Honda Civic — which gets better gas mileage than her hybrid — plus they use canvas shopping bags, recycled paper and they don't print out their invoices; they e-mail them.

Starting a new business can be difficult, and Mayon said she has learned a few lessons along the way.

She said that when they were looking for what business to start, they examined what other businesses were already out there to assess how much competition there would be. Mayon said that the next step was finding out if there was a large enough client base to make their business successful.

Once they had decided what the business would be, the next hurdle they had to vault was simply getting their name out there. Mayon said she learned the importance of networking and the need to "advertise, advertise, advertise."

One other important point she said they've learned is that it's very important to have signed contracts with each client.

Mayon said that they write the contracts so that both sides understand their responsibilities. She gave as examples contracts that cover medical-transcription confidentiality or contracts with pet owners that allow her and her partner to take an animal they're sitting to the veterinarian without being financially responsible for any treatment.

Their clients seem satisfied with the women's work.

"It saves our business money and time to use this service instead of having to take the time to pick up and deliver mail and other documents ourselves," said Tim Kelleher, a partner in the law offices of Kelleher and Olivera in Yuba City who has been using My Personal Assistant since the errand business first started.

Barbara Beal-Lopez of the video advertising business Brightfarm Productions of Rancho Cordova said that she has been using My Personal Assistant for about a year for any type of task she doesn't have time for such as running errands, going to the post office, light shopping, or just dropping things off.

"I have a sense of security using them because I know they'll come on short notice and they'll do the work very professionally," Beal-Lopez said.

Looking ahead, Mayon sees a time when they'll need more associates. She said they won't be taking just anyone, only people who are eco-friendly, people-oriented, service-oriented and have a positive attitude.

MY PERSONAL ASSISTANT

• HOURS: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Friday

• PHONE: 1-888-41-GOFER (1-888-414-6337)

• WEB SITE: www.MyPersonalAssistantCA.com

• E-MAIL: mypersonalassistant_sac@yahoo.com

• FEES: Errand charges range from $15 a service to $20 per hour and may include a mileage charge. After-hours service is available for an additional charge. Membership plans are available.

• SERVICE AREA: Yuba City, Marysville, Wheatland, Live Oak, Sutter, Colusa, Gridley, Oroville

Greater Sacramento, Roseville, Lincoln, Rocklin, Granite Bay, Folsom, El Dorado Hills

Contact Appeal reporter John Hollis at 741-2400 or jhollis@appeal-democrat.com