Launching Your VA Career with Abbey Ashley of The Virtual Savvy-EP042

Perhaps you dread going to the office every day because you simply aren’t inspired by what you do. Or maybe your heart isn’t in the traditional 9 to 5 anymore because of little ones at home that you are missing. Either way, today’s guest has been in your shoes, and she knows how to launch a business as a virtual assistant that will afford you the opportunity to be the parent you want to be and develop a career that you love.

Abbey Ashley was looking for work-from-home opportunities after the birth of her first child. A friend recommended that she look into becoming a VA, so she did some research and determined that it would be a good fit. She leveraged her background in marketing to help small business owners with various administrative projects, and within four months she had to bring in subcontractors to help with the overload of work!

In March 2016, Abbey founded The Virtual Savvy to help other women launch and grow their own virtual assistant businesses. She is on a mission to empower women to enjoy the freedom and flexibility afforded by a work-from-home VA career. Today she discusses the most in-demand services a virtual assistant can offer as well as proven strategies for landing clients. Turn passion into profit and launch your VA career today!

 

Key Takeaways

The role of a VA

• Help entrepreneurs/small business owners online
• General tasks include marketing, admin and social media

Abbey’s guidance for ‘repackaging’ traditional job skills

• Start with what you already know (list skills you might offer)
• Pick one or two things you are interested in learning as you go

The most in-demand VA services in the current market

• Social media (content creation and scheduling)
• Blog posts
• Web programs (back end)
• Landing page creation
• Email marketing

How to land your first client as a new VA

• Look to people you already know
• Accept one-off/short-term projects

Why it’s better for VAs to offer general services in the beginning

• Small wins build confidence
• Practice period helps you determine your niche, ideal client
• Opportunity to develop processes, learn contracts and invoicing
• Potential to get paid to learn new skills, do research

Abbey’s best strategies for landing new clients

• Leverage online sources (i.e.: Facebook, LinkedIn, Upwork)
• Join 20-30 entrepreneurial Facebook groups
• Use search terms such as VA, hire/help

How to make your proposal stand out

• Develop a value-first mindset
• Invest the time to customize your proposal

Abbey’s number one tip for new VAs

• Spend less time on things that aren’t going to directly land clients
• 80% of your time should be spent on marketing

 

Resources

Canva

MailChimp

ConvertKit

Constant Contact

WordPress

Squarespace

Upwork

Connect with Abbey Ashley

Website

Free Checklist

Facebook

Facebook Group

Pinterest

Twitter