As a virtual assistant, you are a business owner providing another business owner with a service. The service offered can be extremely diverse and it all depends on your skillset as a VA. Now you may be thinking, “I have never done any personal assistant work, how can I become a virtual assistant?” Well, believe me, you do not need years of experience as a PA to start on this VA career path. All the skills you have learned throughout your life are transferable and you can create services based on this. There will always be something that you can do that someone else cannot and you will then be able to use that skill, that knowledge to benefit the business at hand. You will ultimately save the company money in the long run, develop strategies for business growth. Free up the time of the business owner so they may focus their energies elsewhere. You will be a major asset to their business.
BENEFITS
Been a VA in someone’s business means that you allow them to focus on what they do best, grow their business and make money. You use your specific skill set to do the things that they don’t like doing, or in some cases things that they can’t do. The benefits for you are flexible, you are a business owner and you get to learn new things all the time.
TIPS AND TRICKS
One of my biggest tips, when you are starting on this VA journey, is – remember that you are not employed by a company and therefore you are now responsible for ensuring you have finances to cover taxes, sick leave, holidays and national insurance. So always make sure your monthly or annual salary can cover these costs. Now to circle back to the learning of new things – that is another very big ‘must-have’ in my opinion. Get as much training as possible; workshops, paid training, free training, any time you get the opportunity to learn something new, take it as it will be extremely beneficial for you on your VA journey. I also believe that the only way to grow your business is to reach out to people. Reach out to people in your network and talk about what you do, the sort of service you can offer them and why they should be hiring you. Tools that help with this are business cards, and something great to have at hand is a Virtual Assistant Brochure. The Virtual Assistant Brochure is a fabulous tool if you do not have a website. Create something eye-catching and informative highlighting your top skills, packages on offer and so forth and send that off in an email to potential clients. You will be amazed at the response you will get from this.
OVERVIEW
The world is ever-changing, technology is ever-changing and with that, it means the option to work from home is becoming somewhat of a norm. Take this time to start your virtual business. Network, learn and you will be successful!
