This small change will put you ahead of the VA pack

I was listening to someone on the radio and he said,

“An entrepreneur satisfies needs we do not even know we have.”

If you embrace that concept in your own Virtual Assistant business, you will separate yourself and solidify your brand and reputation throughout your network.  You will attract clients to you.  So what does it mean, really, to be an entrepreneur?

When you decided to become a Virtual Assistant, you made the decision to work at home, to be independent, to take control of your professional career path…but did you really decide to become an entrepreneur?  Are you searching the job boards online, wandering in the forums, hoping to stumble across an assignment you can do from home?  That is where many of us are right now, by the way, but I am going to suggest that you shift your thinking.

Many, if not most, small business owners today still do not know what a Virtual Assistant does or how a VA can help him or her.  It is your job to educate the small business owners, home business owners, and “solopreneurs” in your local community.  You need to get out there and tell them what you do.  Tell your friends, tell your neighbors, tell your former employer, and attend your local Chamber of Commerce meetings or other networking group for home-business owners or the National Association of Women Business Owners.  Generate free publicity by submitting a press release to your local newspaper, business magazine, or radio station.  You need to be proactive and generate a “word of mouth” campaign about you and your business.

If you take that step, that’s huge.  But let me suggest taking this whole “entrepreneur” thing one step further…

If you could approach potential clients with some specific ideas on how you can save them time and money – in other words, identifying needs they don’t even know they have – THAT is going to catapult you ahead of the pack.  So, how might one do that, you ask??

That begins with identifying your target market, an industry or type of client you would like to focus your marketing efforts on.  Perhaps you worked in that industry previously, or have a strong interest in it now.  Maybe it is nonprofits, business coaches, financial planners, or small businesses with a storefront.  You should have a strong knowledge of your target market’s trends and challenges they face.  If you have selected a target market but do not feel very familiar with the latest information, do some internet research.  Look at the popular publications and subscribe to newsletters or blogs.

When you are up to speed, you can then easily make a list of tasks you can help with, items you can take off a client’s plate, ways that you can create a partnership.  Take that marketing message out, and I know that you will find the long-term clients and projects that you are looking for.  You will break free from the job board searches and instead take charge of the direction of your Virtual Assistant business.