The most frequently asked question from new Virtual Assistants in my VA Handbookers Facebook group is “how do I get my first client?”. Because marketing and looking for work can be daunting when you’re first starting out, here are the four most successful ways I’ve found to land your very first client.
If you’re a Virtual Assistant who charges by the hour, at some point you’re going to reach an income plateau as there are only so many billable hours in a day. You know you need to raise your rates as time goes on, but you’re worried you might lose some of your clients if you do. Here’s how to up your prices like a pro along with a customisable email template.
Because the VA industry is unregulated, people often try to take advantage of the situation for their own personal or financial gain. From amateur “experts”, dodgy clients and outright scammers, unethical practices appear to be on the rise. But if you know what to look out for, you’re far less likely to be taken for a ride.
If you’re still in the setting-up phase your Virtual Assistant business wouldn’t it be great to receive some personal advice from established VAs who have walked the path before you? I mean, imagine how helpful it would be to hear some words of wisdom, get some pointers and find out what the best course of action would be? Oh wait… what? There is?!
This is a Virtual Assistant case study and interview with Charlotte Souber – known to her friends as Soubs. She lives in New Haw in Surrey with her young son and partner and set up her Virtual Assistant business Hour 25 in September 2016. Charlotte has recently taken on four employees and gone from a solo operation to a VA agency.
In my blog post on how to choose a laptop for your Virtual Assistant business, I mention that I use a Chromebook in conjunction with a “regular” Windows laptop to run my business. This interested quite a few of my readers so I thought I’d tell you more about Chromebooks and how they work so you can decide if they are something you’d like to use as well.
You know when you can’t make a decision and you really wish there was a way to quickly come up with an answer so you can just move on with your life and do something else? Well, I’m delighted to tell you that there is. In fact, I’m the smug custodian of a spectacularly fail-proof method which I will happily share with you today… are you ready?
This is a Virtual Assistant case study and interview with Jane Oriel. As well as being a VA, Jane wanted to freelance as a writer, copywriter and editor so kept her brand identity options open by using her name as her business name. Jane is originally from Kent but now resides in Caerphilly, South Wales with her husband and son.
If you’re a new or potential Virtual Assistant it can be really difficult to imagine what types of business owners would hire you and how that relationship would begin. I already have a blog post on how VAs landed their first client, but I was interested in finding out whether the same methods applied when it came to signing up subsequent clients.
Knowing what to charge and then asking for it is one of the hardest aspects of freelancing. Not only is the subject of pricing unfamiliar to new business owners, but the whole idea of talking about money seems to make most women uncomfortable. But in order to become a successful (i.e. wealthy) VA, you will need to nail your pricing strategy otherwise you will end up with a hobby and not a business.
