How to become a Virtual Assistant

You have probably just heard about virtual assistants and you are considering being one. You are in the right place and yes, it is true. You can earn money comfortably from your home by being a virtual assistant. But who exactly is a virtual assistant? Check out this article for a thorough description of a virtual assistant.

To put it simply, I would describe a virtual assistant as a remote worker who helps out business owners, entrepreneurs, busy professionals, and the like with the day to day tasks that are usually very time-consuming. Virtual assistants do these non-core tasks for their clients so that they can in turn focus on the more important tasks that directly relate to the growth of their businesses. A virtual assistant can be able to do any task that can be done remotely. The list of tasks is endless but for the article, we are going to group the tasks into administrative, technical, and creative tasks.

So how do you become a virtual assistant? What do you need to get started? The bare minimum you need to become a virtual assistant is some good organization skills, a computer, and a good internet connection. Since you will be working remotely, you will need a reliable computer for completing tasks and communicating with clients. If your home is prone to power outages, consider also investing in a good battery. It goes without saying that the computer will do you no good if you do not have a good internet connection

To effectively carry out tasks, you also need to have some level of organizational skills. Remember nobody will be monitoring you, you, therefore, need to schedule your time properly so that you can hit deadlines and also have a healthy work-life balance. Remember, all work and no play made Jack and even Jackie very dull and grumpy.

That is just the starter pack! To be successful as a virtual assistant you need much more. To start you off let us look at some of the critical areas:

1. Choose a service you can offer.

The list of tasks that can be done online is endless. That is definitely a good thing, you have very many options to choose from. The most successful virtual assistant choose one or two skills which they enjoy and they apply maximum effort to make sure that they are the very best. This way, they will be able to earn more and they will minimize stress levels brought about by clients who are not happy about subpar work.

So long as you enjoy doing the task, you don’t necessarily have to go to school to learn. In this information age, the internet is awash with short courses that can turn you into a master in a very short time. Let’s not forget the almighty YouTube that has tutorials for almost everything that you may need.

The services that you can offer as a virtual assistant include:

• Content creation e.g. Facebook and Instagram content creation, blog writing
• Group management e.g. WhatsApp group management
• Website design and development e.g. HTML/CSS, WordPress, SEO
• Design e.g. Canva, Photoshop
• Social media management e.g Instagram and Pinterest social media management

These services are just but some of them. Remember the list endless.

2. Set up your business.

There are many ways you can go about this. The easiest way is to join a virtual assistant agency/company like Runnovate. These companies will most likely train you and once they are assured that you have met the requirements, they will link you up with a client. The only catch is that they will take a percentage of your earnings.

The alternative is to set yourself up as an individual. This could be through creating a portfolio showcasing your skills and customizing your online platforms to get the word out there. Most people can find this a bit difficult but once you get your first clients, everything falls into place if you deliver high-quality work.

When working alone ensure that you always agree on the fee for the services before undertaking a task. When pricing your services ensure you do not overcharge. Overcharging will make your clients look for more affordable services elsewhere. Also do not under charge, this may lead to the clients doubting the quality of work that you deliver. Find the sweet midspot and you will be happy.

3. Network.

One of the best ways to be very successful in the virtual assistant industry is to network. Curate your social media profiles professionally so that your clients are convinced you mean business. Do not stop there, join societies and groups online. Here you will get to learn about the latest market trends and you may even get a client there.

Make sure to also read widely in your area of interest. Subscribe to blogs like this one that will ensure you are up to date with everything that is happening in the industry.

Since you will be mostly alone while working as a virtual assistant, it is very important to foster connections with people in the industry like you. These connections will be fundamental for when you need answers that you can not get online or when you need inputs from third parties.

4. Practice! Practice! Practice!

Since you are a newbie and very green in the industry, use your time to perfect your skills. Make sure to schedule sometime regularly to practice your skills. Do not just watch tutorials and stop there, make sure you get your hands dirty and actually do some work. This is very important, not only will you be really good at what you do (practice makes perfect), you will also have completed tasks that you can showcase in your portfolio.

This will give you an upper hand when looking for clients. Clients are more likely to trust you if you can show them you have done similar things before and that your quality of work is high. For example, if you are interested in making social media graphics, you can start by making graphics for your friends’ businesses. If you are into blogging like me, you can start writing articles and posting them online. There is a very difference between someone who says he can write and someone who actually writes. Remember to walk your talk.

4. Get clients.

The end goal of becoming a virtual assistant is getting a client, earning some money, and living a comfortable life. So how do you go about this? There several ways that you can get clients and as I had mentioned before one of the easiest ways is to join a virtual assistant company/firm.

There are many virtual assistant firms/ companies that you can join and all have different requirements. Some will require you to pay them so that they link you up with a client, others will require you to have certain credentials and others will require you to go through training. It is all up to you to choose the most convenient one for you. I have compiled a list of the top virtual assistant companies here. Please check it out for more details.

However, the most ideal client is the one you get directly. The major reason for this is because you will get paid in full without any deductions going to third parties. You can get clients directly from social media platforms, from friends, and referrals.

When it comes to clients, the magic trick is to provide your first client with top-notch impeccable services. This way this client is bound to always give you more tasks and perhaps they may even refer you to their friends.

Conclusion

Being a virtual assistant can be very rewarding. You get to work from home and you also get paid to do what you love. Like everything else you need to take your time and learn as much as you can about the specific sector, you want to venture in. Read widely. Also when you make mistakes and have fallouts with clients, do not be very hard on yourself, sometimes it may even not be your fault. With determination and hard work, you can comfortably live off what you make as a virtual assistant.

If you have stuck with me to this end, then you must be very serious about becoming a virtual assistant. Runnovate offers free monthly virtual assistant training. The training is online and is at very convenient times. The whole period for the training is only two weeks! After attending the training you will graduate with a presentable and good quality portfolio that you can use to get clients. The icing on the cake is that Runnovate may link you up with clients directly immediately after the training. If you are interested in joining Runnovate, fill out this form on our website and we will get back to you.