Virtual Assistants Should Niche Their Services for 3 Reasons

As a VA, you can’t be all things to all people. One person can’t be the solution to every client’s problem nor be the right match for every client. Many Virtual Assistants start off offering ALLLLL the tasks they can possibly do - but that’s a mistake.

Virtual assistants should niche services instead and we're going to talk about why; keep reading :)

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First of all, what does niche even mean? 

Niche (noun) - a place, employment, status, or activity for which a person or thing is best fitted

Niche (verb) - to place in or as if in a niche

- definitions courtesy Merriam-Webster dictionary

Applying these to the virtual assistant industry, your NICHE is the part of the industry where you are best suited to work. To NICHE your services is to fit them into that place you're best suited.

While we're at it, how do you pronounce NICHE?

It's a hotly contested debate, I tell ya'. Here's an interesting breakdown, again on Merriam-Webster.com. Long story short, it seems that "nitch" is still most commonly said in American English and "neesh" in British English. But it's totally your preference (I say "nitch").

Okay, back to the main point ... 

Here are 3 reasons that VAs should niche their services:

1. Do Work You Enjoy and Are Good At

Say you used to be a travel agent and you can book flights like an expert ... but that was always your least favorite part of the job. You dreaded doing it - so why offer that as a service in your VA business? Just because you CAN do it doesn’t mean you SHOULD.

Imagine that you take all your favorite parts of the travel agent profession - making charts, researching, marketing, planning social media campaigns - and did those instead? You’ll be happy working in your business every day instead of dreading large parts of it.

So, sure, Virtual Assistants should make a list of everything you’re good at doing. BUT THEN ALSO cross off those things that make you cringe when you think about doing them every day for work.

Maybe what you’re left with has some holes in it, e.g., you love marketing but could stand to get better at email marketing. Do some online learning and get yourself up to speed. Then your entire business can be centered around things you love to do and are good at.  

2. Work with Clients You Love

When you niche down your VA business, it’s not only about WHAT services you’ll offer but WHO you will work with. So take some time to think about what kinds of people you enjoy working with aka your Ideal Clients.

Maybe you’re former military and you feel comfortable around very structured businesspeople. Could be you’re a cake decorator and hand-letterer for fun so you gravitate toward creative entrepreneurs. Perhaps you’re knee-deep in mommy life and you really vibe with mommy bloggers. Those are the people you should work with.

The world is really your oyster here because of the internet. You can find your people no matter who they are because the interwebs segregates them for you.

For example, if you want to work with Etsy store owners, they’re easy to find  and interact with - on Etsy forums,in Etsy Facebook Groups and Pages, on Instagram and Twitter (utilize those hashtags!), and more.

So if you hate stuffy people, think creatives are too flighty, don’t vibe with “hoo-rah” health coaches, etc., it’s simple - don’t market your services to them and, even if they seek you out, don’t work with them. (It’s alway nice to refer them on to other Virtual Assistants who are a better fit, if you can).  

3. Easier to Find and Book Clients

As you’re reading reasons 1 and 2, you might have been thinking, “What total nonsense. I don’t get to be that picky. I’ll never find clients if I don’t offer all the services and outreach to all the people.”

Yes, it may seen counterintuitive - yet it’s been proven over and over by successful Virtual Assistants to be true: Niching down your offerings and ideal clients will help you book MORE clients. You’ll also be happier and stay in business longer, a huge side benefit :)

Here’s the way it works:

If you put yourself out there as a "master of all trades" and willing to work with everyone, YOUR people will look right past you.

• Betty Blogger wants a VA who excels at proofreading, loves to find images for posts, and is great at sharing posts on Pinterest.
  
  
• Bill Businessman wants a Virtual Assistant who has some pro office experience, lives for spreadsheets, and loves to trick out a Google Calendar.
  
  
• Molly Masseuse needs someone who has out-of-the-box marketing ideas, plays Instagram like a fiddle, and knows which essential oil is best for stress relief.

Do you see the difference between these example ICAs and how one VA can't serve them all? If you offer all of the above services and more, these 3 specific clients won't be attracted to you.

Niche Your Services, Niche Your Clients

As one person, you can’t possibly be good at/enjoy doing all of these things and you can’t possibly want to work with all 3 kinds of people for the rest of your career.

But that one ideal client? You can’t wait to show ‘em what you got! You’re excited to work with them and you know you bring the skillz.

All of this is going to come through when you’re marketing to clients and doing discovery calls. It’s going to tell you where to direct your marketing efforts. You’ll love opening your laptop to work each day and your potential clients will feel your excitement and energy.

MacBook Air in rose gold - from Amazon

Recap: Top 3 Reasons VAs Should Niche It Down

So to summarize (or if you’re in a rush, TL;DR), you should niche down your Virtual Assistant business because:

1. You should do work you’re good at and enjoy
2. You should work with clients you love
3. If you do 1 and 2, it will be much easier to find and book clients

Hopefully, you’ve been convinced that being a VA is not like “throwing spaghetti at the wall and seeing what sticks” but more like deciding on a clear goal post and aiming only for that.

Not only will your business be more successful for the long run but you’ll be happier and more aligned in your daily work.