Everyone will tell you that you need to work hard to succeed as a virtual assistant. But not many will tell you what you need to do to grow your VA career to a whole new level. Of course it takes your own research but there is so much information that feels oftentime gatekept or attached to the hefty price tag of a coaching program that you might not even need!
We have found that spending a bit of time every day, working on your business might just put you in the success lane fast. We’ve designed this 30-day challenge with this in mind! If you don’t have the time or resources to dedicate to a coaching program, training modules or even independent learning, this challenge is for you!.
Here is a free 30-Day virtual assistant challenge that will help you land clients fast.
Day 1: Get a Journal
Journaling is vital for your career as a virtual assistant. Use a journal to write down things you’ve learned, things you plan to do, opportunities you will apply, and other ideas that come to mind. With a journal, you’ll never forget to do important things to grow your business.
I never go anywhere without my journal. And I prefer to have both physical and digital journals that complement each other. I alternate the physical and digital journal depending on the situation and activities I am performing.
Day 2: Create a List of All Your Skills
Group your skills into two major categories; professional skills and soft skills. Professional skills are the job-specific skills you have acquired over the years. Examples are IT skills, social media management, copywriting skills, and any other related to automation tools.
On the other hand, soft skills are the personal attributes that help you interact effectively with others. For example, communication, time management, creative thinking, leadership, and adaptability.
Day 3: Pick the Skills You are Best At
Narrow down the skills you are most proficient in from the list you made on day 2. Here, you need to be honest with yourself about what you can and can’t do.
Day 4: Check In On Your To-do List
On this day, do the things in your current to-do list. You can review your goals, reassess your routine and see what you need to change, and perform a brain dump.
Day 5: Rest Day
Like any other business, you’re entitled to a full day of rest. Go out and be with your family and pick up on your business the next day.
Day 6: Research What Tools other VAs are Using
The research will be much easier for you if you are a member of the Royal VA Community. There, you’ll find out more about tools that make VA work easy, fun, and fast. It’s important to understand that a virtual assistants tools are like combat weapons! These are the skills clients will be looking for, and the more tools you have exposure to, the more marketable you are.
Day 7: Prepare for Your Clubhouse Check-In
We’d never let you tackle the challenge by yourself. So, grab your journal, filled with notes and questions! Prepare to gain a bit more insight as you will get the opportunity to recieve clarity on how to be a better VA in our Clubhouse channel. We go live every Thursday at 4:30pm EST.
Day 8: Learn a New Skill
What kind of virtual assistant do you want to be? Learn a new skill that will get you closer to being a competent copywriter, social media manager, graphics designer, or administrative assistant.
Day 9: Grow Your LinkedIn Network
Start growing your network gradually by starting with at least one connection on LinkedIn. Make this a mini challenge for yourself! Go get dressed up and take that headshot, you’ll be needing it! You will also need to optimize your LinkedIn account to be more attractive prospective clients!
Day 10: Join a Second VA Support Group
Now that you know the basics, you should feel more confident! But know this, no one knows everything! Your support system does not necessarily have to be part of your network. You can join several VA groups on social media for support. Not only will you be offered support you will get the opportunity to learn from even MORE virtual assistants. It’s rare for two persons to have the same story, caitalize on that!
Day 11: Create Your Portfolio
Your digital portfolio is what you will use to apply for more VA jobs online. Therefore, work on making it more presentable.
Day 12: Learn Something New About Your Target Market
By now, you should already have figured out your ideal target clients. Try learning something new about them today that would help you win them over. Do this by researching Facebook groups, Reddit, or other platforms where your ideal clients hang out!
Day 13: Create Packages for Your Services and Price Them
Now that you have an idea of what the pain points of your target customers are, it's time to create and align your service packages with your customer's needs as well as your skillset.
Day 14: Set Appropriate Expectations for the New Week
Remember not to put too much pressure on yourself this week. Set achievable targets for the next seven days today.
Day 15: Research Keywords to Market Your Business
Perform research on keywords to use when writing blogs for your website and social media posts for Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. You don’t have to be on all these platforms. Start with the one where your clients hang out a lot. So they can see your posts and gain interest in working with you.
Day 16: Create and Optimize a Blog Related to Your Services
Don't forget the main goal is to secure more clients. Therefore, you have to remain active in your marketing efforts. Today, write a blog and optimize it using one or more of the keywords you researched yesterday. Publish it on your website or LinkedIn.
Day 17: Start A Newsletter for Your Subscribers
If you already have people who’re interested in your services, start a newsletter and encourage them to subscribe to your mailing list. Remember to engage them with personalized communication regularly once they sign up. If you don’t already have persons, maybe its time to learn how to attract and build this audience.
Day 18: Find Out Why Top VAs in Your Industry Stand Out
By now, you know some of the top VAs in your respective field of specialization. You’ve seen their names pop-up time and time again, it is time to identify some of their competitive attributes so you can adopt them to enable your business to succeed. Research and independent learning needs to be your best friend!
Day 19: Market Yourself on Social Media
You know the saying? Closed mouths don’t get fed? Customers won’t know that you exist until you start showing up! Customers won’t know your offerings until you tell them about them! Write a marketing post and publish it on your favorite social media platform. Tip: Tell clients how they can reach you in the call to action.
Day 20: Niche Down
There are so many different avenues that a virtual assistant can chose to settle down in. This is great but it is best to concentrate your marketing efforts on a smaller target market. Find what you do best, and who you do it best for! Work on identifying that market with the biggest prospect. You might have what it takes to tackle health professionals, or you might be more drawn to coaches or your background makes you the perfect right hand for business owners. Find that thing!
Day 21: Create a Simple DIY Website
Having a website is vital to your success as a virtual assistant! You can use numerous free or affordable DIY website builders to develop a virtual assistant website. A one-page website where you will host your portfolio is enough for the start. We will be sharing a FREE Canva website template in the community in the blink of an eye, so say tuned for that gem!
Day 22: Subscribe to At least Two Job Sites
There are numerous job sites you can use to search for VA jobs. For example, LinkedIn, Fiverr, Upwork, or Virtalent.
Day 23: Familiarize Yourself with a New Automation Tool
The learning never stops for you. Enhance your skills by learning about a new tool that’s relevant to your VA career. For example, Zapier, MailChimp, Trello, or even Canva.
Day 24: Engage with Your Contacts and Connections
It is always best to keep converting more leads into paying customers. Message your new connections on LinkedIn and start a conversation that may lead to a contract. Remember, not everyone will convert to a customer, but they may refer you to someone who needs your services.
Day 25: Find and Join a VA Agency
VA agencies are a good option for finding jobs, especially for beginner virtual assistants! This gives you the opportunity to build your portfolio and gain experience! Find an agency that you will enjoy working with and reach out to them!
Day 26: Connect with an Experienced VA in Your Niche
You’ve built your social media accounts, your website is up and running now its time to let that networking you’ve been doing do the work! Start working on arranging a zoom call with one of the experienced VAs in your network. Ask them how they became successful and anything else they can share to help you succeed. Some may refuse your requests if they’re too busy but don’t give up. Reach out to many VAs and soon, someone will agree to share their insights with you. You can also join in on our weekly clubhouse rooms to ask your questions! We have other virtual assistants on different parts of their journey that might be able to help!
Day 27: Streamline Your Working Schedule
Automation tools are the best kept secret of successful business owners and freelancers alike! Use automation tools such as Google Calendar or Calendly to streamline your schedule. It’ll help you save time, be organized, and make it easy to work with you! I can’t count how many times I wish I had known certain things could be automated earlier in my career! It could have saved me a few clients.
Day 28: Review Your Performance
After such a busy month, you will have made some progress in your journey to becoming a successful VA. Now is the time to analyze; find out what you did great and where you need to improve. Set more measurable goals for yourself then set a date for your next performance review.
Day 29: Ask for Testimonials and Possible Referrals
Encourage your clients and/or persons who you have provided with value to offer a testimonial and kindly request them to refer you to their friends and business contacts. Tip: Try not to be to pushy, it’s important to be respectful!
Day 30: Get a New Paying Client
Consistency and accountability are important keys to your success! If you’ve stayed the course, you surely deserve a reward after a full month's challenge. Get the reward you deserve by converting one of your leads into a paying customer. It’s important to give people space and time, be assertive but not pushy! Learning how to nurture leads is an important skill you will need to learn.
You've Made It!!
Congratulations! You have made it through the 30-day virtual assistant career-building challenge. Now, join our Royal VA Community and start networking right away.