Greetings from bonnie Scotland!

I think it might now be spring here by the loch, but tbh I don't want to jinx it. However, I can 100% confirm that:

a) It's true that in Scotland, every day contains every kind of weather.
b) British people really do love to talk about the weather.

Not a myth.

As many Virtual Assistants struggle to market their businesses, and it's also one of the biggest topics in your VA Handbookers Facebook group, I thought I'd dedicate a whole edition to it.

You might want to grab a coffee for this one.
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MARKETING TIP #1 (Show off)

I am connected to hundreds of VAs on LinkedIn, but I rarely see posts that tell me what they know.

It's almost as if they aren't sure what to write.

VAs know countless (seriously, countless) things, but clients are unlikely to hire you if they don't know what those things are.

Writing social media content can be tricky at the best of times, but a good place to start is by sharing tips.

Because while you may think something is obvious, most people won't have a clue about it.

So when you share a tip, you're actually showing someone what you can do rather than just saying, "I'm a Virtual Assistant, hire me."

Here’s a simple template you can use.

Here are 10 ways to write the post, depending on your services.

1. Prioritise your to-do list
2. Clear your inbox
3. Lock down your Zoom privacy settings
4. Write a scroll-stopping Instagram bio
5. Set up Gmail filters
6. Correctly format a spreadsheet
7. Reorganise your Drive folders
8. Politely decline a meeting
9. Clean your email list
10. Write a polite but firm out-of-office message

You can even add an intro such as "Six quick and easy ways to [task] in under ten minutes."

Want more ideas?

Great, you'll love my free 12-month content planner then.

MARKETING TIP #2 (Play games)

VAs consistently say that they get the majority of their clients through networking and referrals. So it pays to do both well.

First, let's kick off with a networking tip.

Networking event presentation coming up? Here's a little game that will 100% get you noticed.

STEPS:

1. Hand out small sticky notes and ask business owners to write down their least favourite tasks.
2. Collect the notes.​
3. During your presentation, read out a few and explain how a VA could take care of those specific tasks.

I've found that business owners need to hear SPECIFIC tasks you can do, instead of just "I help people with their admin".

MARKETING TIP #3 (Don't ask, don't get)

Now, let's look at increasing your referrals.

Most clients are happy to recommend you; they just need a nudge.

Here’s a quick template you can tweak and send:

Hi [Client's Name],

I currently have space for one or two new clients [this month]. If you know anyone who might need help with [type of work], I’d really appreciate an introduction.

My ideal work at the moment is [tasks or niche].

No pressure at all. I just thought I’d ask, as personal recommendations tend to be the best fit.

[Your preferred sign off]

MARKETING TIP #4 (Rinse and repeat)

Like all good admin freaks, I keep a social media content spreadsheet.

You'll find it in the social media planner I linked to above, but basically, I list the platform and the date, and write a post description in each cell.

This is particularly handy for LinkedIn because you can then check your analytics to see which content performed best over a period of time.

How to do this:

1. Go to LinkedIn and view your profile.
2. Scroll down to Analytics (just above the "About" section) and click "Show all analytics".​
3. Select Post impressions.
4. Set the date range to Past 365 days.
5. Set it to Daily (instead of cumulative) and select "Show results".
6. Hover over the spikes to see the dates.
7. Check those dates against your spreadsheet.
8. Make more content on the same theme. Mark the posts that did well so you can spot patterns quickly.

You can also look at engagement as well as impressions. The main thing is having a simple way to identify what your audience responds to.

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It's worth noting that the content may have performed well because of the day/date it was posted, the content or the format. So assess, test and refine.

That's all from me. I hope life is treating you well wherever you are.