For most VA’s, old or new, putting yourself out there is the hardest part of the whole gig. And we get it – landing a client can feel so intimidating. We’re in the same boat except that we’ve seen how sometimes you have to put yourself out there a lot to get a job you love, so we’re more willing to go through the process. It doesn’t get easy, but the nerves calm down and it’s less terrifying to hit the send button.
With the right information, you can tweak your resume and apply for positions (both published roles and ones you seek out yourself) with confidence.
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What we teach in the course is still 100% right on. The VERY BEST WAY to find a client is to talk to people you know.
Send an email, pick up the phone, connect on social media, or walk right into a business. Ken Coleman says, “A resume without a relationship is worthless.” Now, he’s talking about applying to jobs when there are 75 or more applicants, but his point is that all the HR person is looking for at first is a reason to throw your resume away. But if you have a relationship, it gives someone a reason to pull your resume out of the stack and give it a closer look. Ken said that usually if you know someone (who knows someone, who knows someone) you’re going to at least get an interview.
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Acquaintances are powerful tools – maybe even more powerful than friends and family.
When I was 16 I wanted to go into medical research. My dad was out to lunch with some clients and found out that one of their daughters worked at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles…in research! He asked the client to speak to his daughter, and that summer I landed a coveted internship with her. (True story – I hated every minute of it, except knowing we were making medical progress for children. I hated being in the lab all day, I wasn’t detail oriented enough to do the job well long-term, and sitting by myself at a centrifuge machine was miserable for me. I learned a valuable lesson: I didn’t want to work in a lab after all.) The point is that I didn’t know the doctor or her father, but my dad was able to use a contact of his to get me a great job.
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Your WHY matters, especially to small business owners.
One reason small business owners have such a hard time hiring their first VA is that they can’t imagine someone else caring at the level they do. If you can quickly and early on show them that you’re as passionate about their topic, product, and business as they are, they’ll be much more able to visualize your role.
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The value you add is more important than your credentials when it comes to landing a client.
This is so hard to wrap our brains around, but no one cares what college degree you have in the online world. Okay, maybe there’s someone who does, but 99% of business owners won’t. What matters is what you can do for them and how you can add value (yes, that includes profit) to their business.
What does that look like:
- Making an online acquaintance via a Facebook group or Instagram hashtag. You don’t have to share your life’s story with this person, but simply talking shop and swapping connections can go a long way.
- Tuning your ear to the needs of others. In conversations (both IRL and online) always be listening for ways that you might be able to help someone else with your VA service.
- Making the very first part of a resume, email, or in person pitch who you know and what value you offer. Rework your resume so that these are obvious within the first 5 seconds of someone reading your resume, flyer or email.
You’ve got this!
