I am very interested in becoming a Virtual Assistant and want to focus on schools in my city. There are many private schools here that operate the choice (or private) school program and need lots of information from the state and Dept. of Public Instruction. Would you advise offering these potential clients newsletters prior to offering services to them? I want to offer them information on what they need from the state, mini reviews of educational programs, etc., until I am able to properly offer them Virtual Assistant services. I read your post on not giving anything away for free, but would this count as a free service or as a client builder? School starts in about four weeks and I’d like to get started on this yesterday. Thanks for the help! –KM

Oh, client builder absolutely! Don’t confuse marketing and networking and creating your client pipelines with free service. When I talk about not giving away free service, I’m talking specifically and precisely about actual services… what you are in business to offer… the thing that earns your income. You never want to make bargains with your value.

Be a resource. Be a fountain of information. Freely and generously share with your target market your insights, opinions, helpful advice and resources on things that are of value and interest to them. If you ever worry about where to draw the line in making sure you aren’t giving away the farm, a good general rule of thumb is this:  Share with folks the “what” not the “how.”

I really like seeing how you have applied some thinking about your target market. I always tell Virtual Assistants to be sure to do some critical analysis in making sure a market is viable and is going to even have a need for the type of solution we provide. It looks like you’ve done some deliberation on that by distinguishing private schools from public schools.

It also sounds like you have some inside knowledge and experience about what information will be useful to this market. And you can never do too much homework. Go out there and talk to some of the people who would be your clients. Ask them what information would be valuable to them, what would make them sign up for your newsletter.

While you’re at it, find out what would make them consider working with an outside administrative expert. I can imagine that one selling point might be that they can streamline and pare down their administrative operations, have you get that work done more effectively, thus allowing them to put more in-house staff focus on community outreach and relationship-building with parents. Learn as much as you can about what kind of administrative work they do so you can hone your message and offerings to them in a way that will clearly and meaningfully resonate with them.

As far as when to do your newsletter, you might want to weigh that with how soon you think you might be ready to open your doors. On the one hand, now is as good a time as any. It takes a while to build up a subscriber base so you probably have plenty of time to before anyone contacts you about actual services. But do have a plan for how you’d handle it if someone did want to talk with you about your services before you were ready to take them on.

One thing you could do is set a “my doors are open for business” date and then promote that in your newsletter. Encourage folks to get on your waiting list and maybe even conduct some consultations in advance for anyone who contacts you before the date. Meanwhile, your newsletter will be working to build the anticipation while at the same time helping establish the know, like and trust factor and start those relationships growing.

Keep in touch and let me know how it goes. I love seeing smart people entering the profession!

I have seen a lot of Virtual Assistants putting “sign up for my newsletter” on their websites. Who would sign up for them? And why? Does it generate future clients? Also, where do they get the content for monthly newsletters? I can’t imagine that each of them are writing their own, but maybe they are. This is an area I’m a little confused about, but would love to get up-to-speed if it’s something that generates clients. –MM

Hi, MM. You’re seeing a lot of Virtual Assistants doing this because a newsletter is one way to continue the dialogue with your prospective clients. By building a list through an opt-in offer (such as a newsletter), you can continue to talk with those folks on a regular basis, keeping your name and face in front of them and thereby helping them get to know you and your company better and developing a rapport with them.

You’ll hear it said often that “the list is the thing,” and it is very true. Your list keeps prospects in your pipeline which is a very good thing because there will be times in your business when your roster isn’t full. If you build a list of subscribers with whom you follow-up and stay in contact, you’ll always have a ready-made audience of prospective clients and referrers who have already indicated (by virtue of their continued subscription) that they are interested in you and your company.

Some things to keep in mind… I see a lot of Virtual Assistants put out newsletters that are either talking to other Virtual Assistants or are very self-centric. To do well with a newsletter, always keep in mind who your intended audience is–your would-be clients!

Write about things that are going to be of interest to them. Write from their perspective and talk directly to them. If you’re using a lot of “I,” “we” and “us,” flip those sentences around to use more “you” and “your.” Offer advice that is genuinely helpful to them in their businesses. Doing so will also demonstrate what a smart cookie you are (and what a great partner you would be to work with).

If you’re going to do a newsletter, I recommend also interspersing your articles with news about your company that is client-centric. Clients aren’t going to care so much that you joined your local Chamber of Commerce. Big woop, right? Save that stuff for filler.

What will be more interesting and relevant to them is hearing about how some work you just completed for a client simplified their business, automated part of their operations saving them X hours a year, brought in X number of new subscribers, or generated $X more in revenues. That’s the kind of stuff that will perk up their ears because they’re looking to achieve those things in their own business and it gives them a clear illustration of how your support could be implemented and what kind of results they can expect.

And don’t assume they know or remember all that you can do. You have to keep reminding them. Each week (or month), talk about a different skill you have or special service you offer and give your readers ideas and suggestions on how they can leverage your expertise in their business.

Of course, you don’t necessarily have to do a newsletter. There are lots of ideas for building your list including offering a free report (something that is highly relevant and of keen interest to your target market), weekly tips and quips, or an e-course to be delivered over the period of several weeks.

Now, to start building your list, you really want to use an autoresponder service to automate things and save time. I highly recommend Aweber. It’s easy to use, it’s very affordable, the uses and functions and integrations they offer are virtually limitless, and they have absolutely fantastic customer service. If you don’t invest in any other tool in your business, this is definitely one you should not go without.

Oh, and I should add that your offer should be free. You’ll hear this referred to frequently as your “pink spoon” in the marketing funnel strategy. It’s a way to get them in the door so that you can become a resource and maintain regular communication thereby increasing your “know/like/trust” quotient.