FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: What does a personal assistant, concierge, or Lifestyle Manager do?
A: Yes, it can be confusing to differentiate between these roles as they do overlap in many areas and the terms are used interchangeably. It's more or less a discussion around semantics. Essentially, a personal assistant is a jack- or jill-of-all-trades that assists people with tasks, errands and projects across all areas of their life, helping them to manage and organize their personal and business life. The role can be varied—depending on the client’s needs and requirements and the personal assistant’s background, core competencies, experience, and skill sets.
By definition, a concierge may refer to an individual that holds a position in a hotel, within a company, or in a building complex, like a condo, whose responsibility is to fulfill requests for a client, visitor, guest, or tenant such as arranging for onsite services, booking theatre and restaurant reservations, or assisting with the day-to-day operations of the building complex or business.
Whether in a business or personal context, a personal assistant, concierge or lifestyle manager will expertly and proactively provide services to seamlessly manage and organize their client's personal and/or business life. They also assist with the tasks, chores and errands of day-to-day life, from shopping, laundry, booking appointments, meetings and reservations, administrative tasks, arranging travel and transportation, to home management services and research as well as event planning, project management, and many other services.
For simplicity sake, the personal assistant, concierge and lifestyle manager are usually one and the same, with some differences in their roles and responsibilities depending on the client's requirements and needs, the context of the work situation or environment, the scope of the work and services requested as well as the nature of the requests. We focus on who you are and what you need to help manage and organize your busy life and/or provide essential support services. We individualize our services to proactively anticipate, meet, and adapt to the client’s evolving needs and requirements based on their values, preferences, priorities, experiences, aspirations, and goals.
Q: Who uses the services of a concierge, Personal assistant or lifestyle manager?
A: Times have changed! We live in a complex, fast-paced, challenging world. In some cases, it is a necessity—not a luxury— for everyday people to use the services of a personal assistant, concierge or lifestyle manager so they can have a trusted, reliable personal support system or go-to person.
Your never-ending to-do lists, mundane chores, and errands are a time sponge that a personal assistant and concierge will happily and effectively absorb so you can leverage your time for the bigger priorities in life.
A Personal Assistant/Concierge/Lifestyle Manager is ideal for people who need help in any domain or aspect of their life. People who would benefit from receiving dedicated support and a helping hand in their daily lives, or with work-life integration, or to help them achieve their personal, business, and lifestyle goals. There are many different ways that you can utilize the services of a personal assistant or concierge. This is a high-trust relationship so it is vitally important that your interests are being well represented with the highest standards of integrity, and that you are working with a service provider with whom you feel comfortable and secure, knowing that you are in excellent hands, at all times.
People that may use a personal assistant, concierge or lifestyle manager may include, but are not limited to:
Busy professionals
Time-starved working parents
People juggling career and family responsibilities while caring for aging parents
Families who need extra help
Frequent travellers
Celebrities, professional actors, musicians, artists, athletes
People that need help with managing multiple households/residences
People looking to recharge and revitalize their life
People dealing with major life changes or transitions
Seniors
People that feel like their life is spiralling out of control and want to restore harmony, equilibrium and balance to their life.
People that are seeking optimal work-life balance so they have more quality time to focus on what is really important to them.
People that are looking to simplify, streamline and organize their life, their home and their stuff, to create order out of chaos.
People that want more time, space, and energy to experience life with a renewed purpose.
People recuperating from illness or surgery.
Just about anyone that is getting lost in the time crunch and feeling overwhelmed from the responsibilities, demands, and deadlines of our 24/7 world—the "too much to do, not enough time" syndrome.
Anyone that feels like their bucket list is becoming a distant dream.
Q: What are the purchasing options available for your services?
A: We provide flexible options and packages based on your criteria and needs. We customize our services and tailor our options and plans so that it works for you. You can even mix n' match services to get the coverage you need. There are a variety of purchasing options from which to choose, including:
Hourly services
Custom programs, package and plans — monthly or annually
Project-based fees
Customized options and service plans that suit your needs
Q: how much does it cost?
A: It depends on the context of the role, the scope of work required, and the nature of the service requests. We offer flexible options for purchasing our services, including hourly rates, à la carte services, and comprehensive concierge packages, programs and plans. Once you choose the service(s) that interests you and decide on the level of support you need, we will customize our services accordingly to create an option or package that best meets your needs, and then you can book our services based on the option that works best for you.
We can customize our program and packaging options so they are specifically tailored to meet your needs, pain points, challenges, priorities and preferences. You can mix n’ match the services you need. Our goal is to provide flexible, customizable options and services that best meet your needs.
q: Are Materials, Expenses, and Taxes included in your Rates?
A: No, they are not included. The cost of purchases such as products, merchandise, items, materials, goods and services, or any other related expenses or charges or applicable taxes incurred while executing service requests on behalf of the client are the responsibility of the client, and they are to be pre-paid in full by the client. Third-party services and expenses are also extra and paid by the client.
Q: How Do I Book a Consultation or Request Your Services?
A: It’s easy! You can reach us by choosing any of the three options below:
Online: Click here or click the "CONTACT" navigation button at the top right hand corner of this page, where you can complete and submit the form to either schedule a consultation, request more information, or book a service request.
Email: info@contessaconcierge.com
Call or text: 416-885-5941
Q: How Does It Work Once I hAVE Booked A Service?
A: Here’s what happens after you have booked a service request with us:
The client will be sent a quotation, contract/service agreement for their review and approval via email.
Upon approval of the quotation and service agreement, we can schedule and initiate work on the client’s request.
Once the service and/or work request is completed, we will send the client an invoice for payment. This may vary depending on the terms and conditions of the service agreement. Please note that some services must be pre-paid.
If the client has purchased a pre-paid program, package, or plan, we will issue regular statements that provide your current balance on your account. For clients enrolled in a monthly or annual program, package or plan, we will issue an invoice prior to the start of each month. Our monthly packages and plans are set up on a monthly billing cycle starting on the first of each month, and they automatically renew from month to month.
Q: When is Payment Due for Services?
A: Payment is due immediately upon receipt of invoice for the services rendered.
Packages and plans are pre-paid in full. Monthly or annual packages or plans are set up on a monthly billing cycle.
Payment for purchases, products, items, merchandise, materials, goods and services, and any other expenses, charges or taxes incurred on the client’s behalf in order to perform the work or service requested is the responsibility of the client and they must be pre-paid in full.
Deposits may be required for certain services such as event planning or production services or other services, or by any service that involves a third-party vendor, supplier, contractor, sub-contractor and/or any other type of service provider. Deposits and subsequent payments to the vendor/supplier/contractor are the responsibility of the client and must be paid in full by the client as per the vendor's contract terms and conditions.
Q: What method of Payment Do You Accept?
A: We accept bank E-transfer, cash and cheque unless otherwise indicated by us.
Q: What Are Your Hours of Business?
A: We maintain a flexible schedule in order to be readily available to serve our clients. Emergencies can arise and life happens. If you have a request outside of our standard business hours, then you may reach us by phone/text at 416-885-5941 or email us at info@contessaconcierge.com. We frequently monitor requests and we will respond to you as quickly as possible.
Our business office hours are:
Monday to Friday: 9:00 A.M. – 6:00 P.M.
Saturday: Closed
Sunday: Closed
Ideally, we prefer to be given 48 hours notice for service requests. We will do our absolute best to accommodate urgent or last-minute requests, or requests that fall outside of our standard business hours as well as requests beyond our service area.
Any services or work performed outside of our regular business office hours, such as evenings, overnights, weekends, and Canadian civic and statutory holidays will incur a surcharge, additional fee or premium rate.
Q: What is Your Service Area?
A: We service Toronto & the GTA. We are more than happy to do our best to accommodate clients outside of our current service area, where possible.
Q: Can I request services that are not listed on your website?
A: Yes, of course! We will make every effort to accommodate your requests, with the proviso that they are ethical, legal, and safe. Contact us and let us know how we can best serve you. As always, we will do our utmost to find a way to make it happen.
Q: Is there a minimum billing period?
A: We bill at a minimum three-hour charge and then in 15-minute increments thereafter. For more information, please refer to our Terms and Conditions.