Six Easy Steps to Becoming a Virtual Assistant

First you might ask what a virtual assistant is. Well let me enlighten you, a virtual assistant provides services to individuals, organizations, or companies, but he or she works online and remotely instead of going into an office. It allows you to live life on your terms. May entrepreneurs have realized the growing demand for a virtual assistant. You are able to set your own hours, goals, and priorities. You have flexible hours which truly is great when “life happens.” You have no commute, well aside from getting your coffee and walking down the hall to your office. You determine who you work with, and you get to meet and interact with some incredible people as you develop their business and client base. I could go on and on about the incredible perks of being a virtual assistant. But how do you become one? Let me share our Six Easy Steps with you.

  1. Plan Your Business

steps-to-vaThis is the basic first step to making yourself a legitimate virtual assistant business. You need to know if you are going to be a sole-proprietor or an LLC, or something else. Most virtual assistants run an LLC. You need to make sure you have all your ducks in a row for your accounting and banking and have the general setup for legal requirements in your area. Go do the research. Develop your business plan and model. Get your business license and start diving in.

  1. Decide What to Charge

This is likely the first question anyone is going to ask you. This is a very personal step that you have to be confidant in and fair. You are running the virtual assistant business and you are in charge. Don’t be ashamed or apologetic about people paying you to provide your services. You can charge by the hour, by the project, or have retained rates or even a combination of them.

  1. Define Your Services and Keep Learning

steps-to-va1You have to know what you are going to sell. What are you good at and what do you have to offer people. Once you know what your virtual assistant business is there for, you can learn more and expand your services. I cannot tell you how important it is that you keep learning and stay on top of new developments not only in your industry but with new technology and ways to work. If you keep your skills up to date then you’ll have a more varied ad valuable skill set and will be worth more money. Plus, there is always something to learn and keep learning within the virtual assistant world.

  1. Get a Website

This is a no-brainer. In a world that revolves around technology and as a virtual assistant people need to be able to find you. This allows you to display yourself in a professional appearance, and gives you a chance to highlight your skills and an opportunity to display yourself in a more professional manner.

  1. Get Involved in Social Media

social-mediaSocial media is a common task you will likely be asked to help with or a service you want to offer as a virtual assistant. Join the groups, get in the conversations. There are some great virtual assistant groups out there to get to know. You can check out mine as well- Hell Yes Biz. As a virtual assistant you should submerge yourself in the latest trends of Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Periscope, YouTube, Instagram, Blab, Google +, and so many more. Relationships are key, being involved in social media with your peers is one of the best ways to find clients and network.

  1. Work for a VA Service

You need experience. If you are just getting started as a virtual assistant it can be tough trying to find clients, but consider working for a company that matches VA’s with clients. This is proven to be helpful again when you are just starting out and have not established your cliental base quiet yet. This can also go with working along with other VA’s. Checking out their website, seeing what they offer and get an idea of how it might work for you. Remember those groups you joined, make sure you connect with people in there. They may have some great recommendations for you.

Summary

Figure out what you are good at and what you enjoy. Notice how I said good, and not best at. The important thing is you have skills that your clients need and are willing to pay for, don’t doubt yourself. Becoming a VA allows you so much freedom and flexibility within your day to day life, who you work with, what you day looks like, when you are available when you are not. I love what I do. Make sure you do too! For more information or help getting started contact me today!