Hello, hello! It’s your host, Billie Gardner. Welcome to episode 1 of the Desire to Done podcast!
Since this podcast is for Virtual Assistants, I’m kicking things off with an episode on what a Virtual Assistant is. This episode is for you if you’re unsure what a Virtual Assistant does, how they help clients, and who hires them.
A back story about me - I’m currently a VA Mentor but I first started out as a Virtual Assistant in December 2014. I actually didn’t plan on becoming a VA, but I had a dream of quitting my job and working from home, but I wasn’t able to bring in enough money with the side hustle I currently had.
Desperate, I reached out to a business coach and asked her if she’d be willing to coach me in exchange for me helping her with anything she needed, like editing videos, sending newsletters, etc. Luckily, she excitedly took me up on the offer, and I instantly became a VA.
I ended up enjoying it so much that I picked up a few more clients. And before I knew it, I was turning clients away because I didn’t have space in my schedule. I then quit my job and became a VA full time. I was pleasantly surprised that this all happened within 3 months!
This is why I love helping other people start their own VA businesses. Becoming a Virtual Assistant fulfilled my dream of working from home. I also worked with amazing people, made more money than I did at my job, and had the flexibility in my schedule for what mattered to me.
Now that you know a little more about me, let’s talk about what a Virtual Assistant is!
A Virtual Assistant (otherwise known as a VA) is a freelancer who provides services remotely, which means they can work from anywhere! If you like to travel, you can bring your laptop along and work on the road. If you prefer to work from home in your PJs or at a coffee shop, you can do that too!
As far as the type of services you can offer, the list is pretty endless.
You can offer admin, creative, or technical help, or you can mix and match any of these.
The good news is, you can offer what you enjoy doing! You get to tap into those passions, skills, and talents that you have and create services based on them.
Here are a few ideas for ya:
- Social media management
- Graphic Design
- Web Design and maintenance
- Blog writing
- Book formatting
- Editing & proofreading
- Writing & scheduling emails
- Customer service through emails
- Video or audio editing
- Podcast management
- Project management
- Bookkeeping
If you want more ideas, I have a full list of service ideas on my website that you can download. I’ll link to it in the show notes. (https://desiretodone.com/va-services/)
So, if you’re an Administrative Assistant, you could probably offer services similar to what you do at your job (that is if you like what you’re doing). If you’re a writer, you can write and edit blog posts, newsletters, ebooks, or social media content. If you’re creative, you can offer graphic design or web design services.
There’s so much you can offer; it’s ridiculous!
Basically, if you have a specific skill, there’s probably someone willing to pay for it.
As far as clients, you get to choose who you work with.
So the question is, who do you want to work with? What type of industry do you want to work in? What does your ideal client do?
Are you into healthy eating and fitness? You could work with health coaches and fitness professionals.
Do you enjoy fashion? You could work with fashion bloggers or stylists.
Do you love to write? You could work with authors.
Some of the people you could work with are:
- Business coaches, life coaches, and health coaches
- Online magazines/publishers
- Speakers
- Podcasters
- Graphic Designers
- Web Designers
- Event Planners
- Artists
- Photographers
- Natural Healers
- Lawyers
- Accountants
- Realtors
- Other Virtual Assistants
Whether you’re right-brained or left, there’s an industry out there for you. You’d be surprised how many people need your help.
Business owners and entrepreneurs worldwide are looking for people to help them with their day-to-day tasks and special projects. Hiring a Virtual Assistant is a more cost-effective solution than hiring an employee.
It’s also a great solution for small businesses that can’t afford to have a part or full-time employee and only need someone to help occasionally or only a few hours a month.
In fact, I currently have 4 VAs that help me with my biz. Each one specializes in something different. I have someone who helps me format my blog posts and pin on Pinterest, a VA who helps me with my Instagram and Facebook, one who helps me manage my community inside my membership, the Introvert VA Club, and one who helps me with a wide variety of tasks, like tech, newsletters, community management, etc. I couldn’t run my business without them!
In case you’re wondering, online businesses aren’t the only ones who hire VAs. Things have changed and brick and mortar or local businesses are seeing the value of hiring VAs.
By now you should have a clearer picture of what a Virtual Assistant is, what they do, and who they work with. The great thing is, you get to choose what you offer and who you work with!
If you’d like to learn more about starting a VA business, I invite you to check out the Introvert VA Club. It includes detailed steps on how to start your business, tech tutorials, and a forum for support! Go to introvertvaclub.com for more details.
I hope you enjoyed this episode! You can find out more about me at desiretodone.com. Please subscribe and I’ll talk to you soon!