Becoming a VA

I recently received an email from a young lady looking to start her own VA business but concerned that there might be too many out there for her to make a living as a VA. She wanted to know my thoughts. This is my response to her:

I can appreciate the concern or fear that might be the case, but it’s not.  Getting clients works a number of different ways:

1. Register with VA networks so you can respond to client requests, but also, so clients can find you online.
2. Make sure you have a presence online so clients can learn and read about you:  Your LinkedIn profile should be up-to-date, a Facebook page if you wish, definitely a web presence of some sort.
3. Design a signature block and make sure you use that in all your emails so people have your contact details and information about your business.
4. Find local business networks – this is very important. Local business people need to know you exist. You’ll learn from them and they will learn from you. Over time you’ll gain a number of clients through direct contact or through word-of-mouth referrals.
5. Join business networks online via Facebook groups, LinkedIn discussion forums, Yahoo-groups, etc.  You will gain clients online but probably not as quickly as through face-to-face networking.

We all have different sphere of influences, so unless all the friends, family and personal contacts you make, already have a saturation of VAs, it’s highly unlikely there are ‘too many’.  We all have different skills, experiences, abilities, time availability and locations. There are enough clients around for all of us. But it does take time to build up your confidence in promoting your business and securing the clients. This can be learned through reading about the industry, participating in VA forums and perhaps even taking a VA course. You’ll find a couple through the VA networks listed at the AVAA website.