The first challenge to getting new clients is getting them to trust you with their businesses and their money. It’s not an easy challenge to overcome. That’s why the technique I’m going to share with you in this article WORKS and works well. What I’m suggesting is … working for FREE (do I hear a big gasp of horror from the audience?).

Why work for free? Well, it makes sense. Many virtual assistance companies offer a free consultation where the client can ask questions and you can explain your process. You need to stand out from the crowd and win the business.

Here are two reasons why offering a free sample of your services works:

It eliminates the risk factor. Business is risky from all sides of the fence. It’s risky for you and it’s risky for the person doing the hiring. He or she will be trusting you to work for his or her business and get results. They’ll be taking their valuable time and money to invest in your services and they want to choose wisely. You help them not waste their time by proving yourself before they ever pay a penny.

It builds the relationship. Working well together is all about having a good relationship. It’s really hard to do great work for someone who doesn’t like you and vice-versa. If you offer a little sample of your work you can create an instant relationship and they will usually like you already! That’s a great start.

Before I get the fifth degree from some die-hard virtual assistants, I’ll admit that this technique of getting new clients is risky. You just need to be smart about what you’re doing and you’ll eliminate a large part of the risk.

You’ve probably heard the saying “Why buy the milk when you can get the cow for free?” Yes, some unscrupulous marketers may go around getting freebies and never be willing to pay, so that’s why it’s your responsibility to do your research and hand-pick the clients you want to work with.

That’s right. Don’t just take any ol’ Billy-Bob who comes to hire your services. Make sure she is the kind of person you want to work with, will most probably love to work with and who you can create a rewarding relationship with. When I used this technique for my own business I went to online marketers who I already had a relationship with and whose business models I greatly admired. This allowed me to know exactly who I was going to be working for. It also gave me the added bonus of learning what they did in their own businesses to make them great successes!

If you’re thinking giving a sample of your work away for free might be a good idea for you, here’s a bit of a game plan:

 Offer a small sample of your work; one or two hours would be good.
 Offer the work with no-strings attached; they’ll hire you if you’re needed.
 Only offer to people who are interested in hiring and who need the help (research).
 Do an amazing job.
 Ask for referrals and/or testimonials in exchange for your free work.

Finally, this isn’t a technique to do all the time. It’s one you will use for a hand-picked group of highly sought after employers. Try it once and see what happens. You really only need one good high-profile client who loves your work to get great referrals for a long time coming.

I have done this both with great success and the expected wasted effort, you might say.

I love to proofread and edit so did this for several web sites with just the promise to have the caption “Edited by Jan Tallent” with a link to my VA site. So far, of the 5 or 6 I did this for, only one has kept her word but we do live and learn AND I know that I did it.

Plus, to be honest, I turned 2 of them down later for paid jobs because the trust factor was destroyed when they did not keep their end of the bargain and that is the biggest thing with me – my word and yours 

Wishing you all of the best in your client-getting goals.

Remember, I am a Virtual Assistant who LOVES to do editing and proofreading
assignments along with research, blog posts, article submissions
and social media maintenance!

Why not Schedule a Project now?

Before you can start your own home business you should designate
a place for you to work. The area that you work in should be free
of distractions and have a computer,a desk, a phone, a connection
to the Internet, and, if possible, a bathroom and coffee pot or pitcher
with your favorite drink. ( I always have a cup of tea next to me -
it is the one thing that I love hot, cold or in between temps. )

This way you will have everything you need until you take your lunch break.

Something to remember is that you are ‘at work’ in this area. An ideal solution is to have
every distraction taken care of. This means that you have someone looking after your child or children, if possible. If your children are younger than school age, hire someone to look
after them during the day.

This may seem strange since you are working at home, but would you take a baby
into your office with you? Probably not – your boss wouldn’t allow it. Having someone
look after them while you are working ensures that you will get everything done during business hours.

If your children are school age and old enough to understand, let them know that you are working, and that you should only be disturbed if it’s an emergency. If they are still young, have someone watch them after school.

This may seem like an unnecessary expense, but if you are talking to someone on the phone, they won’t take you seriously if they hear a crying baby in the background, or children fighting. You want to make yourself seem as professional as you can so that people know they can trust you.

I learned all of this first hand when I started my home based office services business 13 years ago. I had, at that time, a 16 year old girl, a 10 year old boy and a 6 year old girl. I had to set limits once they were home from school – they had their special “Mom times” and I had my “Mom is working here!” guidelines. It took some work but we did manage to survive it.

Like I told them, they wanted me to work at HOME instead of going out to another “job” when I got laid off from being a telemarketer – and in order for me to do this, they had to understand that this WAS a job and that I was working. If I had a “real” job, they could not run in and out bothering me with silly snitching, fighting and whining and they had to learn to pretend that I was NOT here.

It worked – they are all grown and here I am, still working at home!

Remember, I am a Virtual Assistant who LOVES to do editing, proofreading
and transcription assignments along with research, blog posts, article submissions
and social media maintenance!

Why not Schedule a Project now?

One of the things that I do as a Virtual Assistant is help other VAs.
I happen to be a member of Sophie Zollman’s team. She is a very savvy
business woman and here is one of her great articles from her ezine.

VA Tip: Are You Doing What You Love?
Guest Post by Sophie Zollman
of SophieZo, LLC Virtually There For You

Many business owners start their own business to do something they love, something they have great passion for. Those same business owners end up spending more time running the business instead doing the part they love. Why? They try to do it all. When they do it all themselves, they spend more time on running their business.

Many of the tasks required to run a business are difficult, time consuming and even a drag. When you get mired in that, you lose focus on your passion. You can no longer do what you love. You are too busy doing the “daily grind” stuff. One of the best ways to get out of that “mess” is to hire a Virtual Assistant or Online Business Manager.

VAs and OBMs are not employees. They are independent contractors working from their own home office. In many cases, they are small business owners, too, but running a business is their specialty. They can generally do those things faster, more efficiently, and they actually enjoy doing it, too. You don’t pay them for vacation or sick time. They have their own equipment. The best part of this is that you only pay for the work they do. They are not on the clock from 9 to 5 waiting for work to come in when things are “slow.” You have less overhead and better productivity.

If you are in business to do what you love and find yourself NOT doing what you love, it’s time to talk to a Virtual Assistant or Online Business Manager. By delegating the business tasks to a VA or OBM, you can return to doing what you love. When you’re doing what you love, you’re growing your business, making more money and enjoying life again. You will have more time for everything you love both in your personal and business lives. Talk to a Virtual Assistant or Online Business Manager today and get back to doing what you love most!

Thanks, Sophie, for both this wonderful information and for allowing ME to be a happy member of YOUR team.

Remember, I am a Virtual Assistant who LOVES to do editing, proofreading
and transcription assignments along with research, blog posts, article submissions
and social media maintenance!

Why not Schedule a Project now?