6 Ways to Help Start a Virtual Assistant Business: Sticking with the Basics
With the rise of automation and AI, many people wonder if a virtual assistant business is still relevant. They ask: "What will I do when my boss can just email their own emails?" As it turns out, there is still plenty of demand for administrative services that have no real connection to technology - from calendar management to taking notes at staff meetings or vendor invoicing. Suppose you're an experienced receptionist or administrative assistant. In that case, you can start a side hustle or profitable VA business with add-on services - like event planning, marketing consulting, social media management, etc.
Below are six steps to make sure your new virtual assistant business sticks with the basics:
Step One
Start with the basics. It's important to have a solid foundation and provide general administrative services for your business, which is still in high demand. This includes calendar management, email management (business or personal), note-taking at staff meetings, light vendor or invoice management, etc. If you have experience as a receptionist and admin assistant, this could give you an advantage when starting because you'll already know how to do some of these tasks!
Step Two
Build on what has worked before. Even if it means looking into other industries different from yours, there will always be something in common between those two fields, so leverage it! For example - if I'm running my own virtual assistant business I have experience in bookkeeping, I can still provide a service to a construction company.
Step Three
Set Boundaries. Suppose you are starting and have a family or other obligations. In that case, I recommend not taking on more than one client at a time, which will allow you to maintain your sanity and provide the best service possible. When you create boundaries, it will help you when you start booking additional clients. Setting boundaries helps you, and your clients will know they cannot take advantage of you.
Step Four
Offer Additional Services to Your Clients for the Higher Price Tag They are Willing to Pay. You will want to offer different tiers of service that clients can choose from based on their needs and budget level. The more hours you work per week, increase the hourly rate, but be careful not to price yourself out of contention for potential clientele; it's always best to get referrals and advertise through online networking with other professionals who utilize your services.
Step Five
Build Your Website and Start Marketing Yourself Online. Building your website will provide an additional platform for marketing yourself and provide potential clientele access to all of the information they may need about your company without having to sign up for anything else just yet. Make sure that you're using keywords in strategic places such as your domain name, blog post titles, social media handles, and content so that people who are searching online can find what they need. We want our clients to find you from the get-go quickly. The more people find you, the better you can monetize your VA business.
Step six
Use free marketing like Facebook and Instagram for marketing your services. No matter how many times a day you log on to Facebook, you're going to see posts from people who offer products or services for hire.
"I learn that keywords are the key to monetization." -Virginia Bell.
It's All About the Success of your Content Strategy
Content marketing has emerged as a central pillar of any successful content strategy, and it's arguably the most relevant form of inbound marketing today. Content Marketing Institute (CMI) defines "content marketing" as "a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience?and ultimately drive profitable customer action." It includes five components; traditional forms like digital advertising are usually included here too:
(Identify your customers through data analysis)I learned how important this was by studying my target demographic, single women with children who want to leave their full-time job and start their virtual assistant business.
Define Your Content
I then began to think of the kind of information that would be helpful for my target audience. To help them understand what a virtual assistant does and how it can benefit their life in many ways.
I decided on writing about:
- The benefits of starting a business as a VA (Partial/Full-time)
- What are some common tasks or responsibilities? What do you need to know before becoming one? How much time will this take up?
- How often should they consult with their clients/bosses about progress? And when is it appropriate to contact them instead? Where will this consulting occur online vs. offline?) A weekly meeting is usually enough if some training involves learning the task, platform, or software.
- Where should they work from? What are some of the resources or tools that can keep them organized and profitable?
Should you start a virtual assistant business, becoming one is not just about administrative duties. It's also about providing emotional support and managing customer service tasks as well. Becoming a VA has many advantages for those who want to make their lives better. Still, there are big responsibilities when committing to this job full time, so be sure it's what you want before making any decisions! Before deciding if starting your own virtual assistant business will work out for you, please consider these six points:
- Being self-employed means being in charge of everything related to running your company, including marketing yourself and handling clients ? so don't start it until you are entirely sure this is what you want to do.
- Develop a service package to help you pinpoint what your VA business will provide. What is the main product or service that people are hiring for? Are there other services needed, such as email management, calendar management, project planning/management, and research assistance? It's essential to know what skills you have available to offer something different from competitors to become profitable in this industry.
- Choose an area of work (or niches) that has potential within your niche market?stay away from areas where competition is too high! Consider costs associated with starting up a virtual assistant company, such as marketing materials like brochures, stationery cards, website design, and domain names. Research possible sources to help you, such as Facebook groups, learn more about becoming a virtual assistant, and Facebook groups where your ideal clients are hanging.
- Weigh the pros and cons of starting your own virtual assistant business from scratch vs. partnering with an established company. Do you have enough time to devote to a startup?
- Are some skills more valuable than others for this line of work? What are competitors charging per hour or project rates?what should you charge (considering factors such as location)?
- Determine how much money it will take to start operating day-to-day on average before acquiring new clients. Consider what type of marketing materials might help generate revenue. When researching which social media platforms, choose no more than one or two platforms to start would be appropriate because they can require a significant investment upfront but, if done right, can also provide long-term income streams through ads or sponsored posts/ads. However, organically is the best way to go, in my opinion.
I propose to have success, it is essential first to understand your strengths, talents and set intentional goals. Once you know this, you can offer the services that you love to do. Then there will be more of an opportunity if you choose to provide additional services as you grow your VA business so that potential clients are looking for someone with a specific skill set. Having the basic services as an option allows people who don't want anything too customized, but if they need something simple from time to time (a general administrative service), it will also help them avoid spending money on hiring full-time employees when they only need help occasionally.
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Teekwa Scarborough
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