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Marie in the Media Reap What You Sow OfficePro, June/July 2001 No one takes the leap to business ownership and a virtual assistant (VA) practice with the goal of minimal success. Fortunately, extraordinary success is only as far away as the kind of investments you make in your relationships with clients. Investments in relationships pay off in huge ways, such as referrals to other fabulous clients and increased value in the eyes of the clients, leading to increased fees. Here are some ways you can create more value for your clients. Be a valuable resource. Even if you learned 100 new things each day, you still could never know how to do everything. Given that, it stands to reason that you won't be able to do everything clients need. There are bound to be things you don't do well, or that you can do but simply don't enjoy and don't want to do. You'll begin to see gaps in your service offering, but that's OK. It doesn't matter that you can't do it all if you can get it all done. And you can get it all done if you fill your gaps with excellent resources. Be innovative, and come up with ideas your clients haven't thought of. Become a collector of experiences; each of your experiences contributes, in some way, to what you can offer your clients. Pay attention as you move through your life—you never know when you'll see, hear, or learn something that will help a client tomorrow, next week, or next month. Find others to call on who have mastered what you don't do. Then, go beyond that, finding resources for just about anything a client could ever ask for . Build a resource file that's full of terrific people, services, and products so that no matter what a client wants or needs, you'll be the person to turn to. Be an ace problem solver and a grade-A opportunity seeker. In everything you do, ask yourself, "Who do I know who needs to meet my clients, and what can I do to support my client's success?" Whenever you have the chance to be an advocate for your client's business, do it. Do far more than you need to and far more than is expected. Like all relationships, those you have with your virtual clients need to be nurtured. Do more than your share to model for the client the way you want to be treated. Add value just for the joy of it. Keep your clients in your mind at all times, and give, even when you don't have to. There's amazing power in doing the unexpected. For instance, if you see something you think your client would appreciate (i.e., a newspaper or magazine article, a URL to a helpful Web site), make a note, and then send it, or mention it to the client. When you have some free time, consider calling a client and saying,"I have 30 free minutes. What are the top three things you can't get to right now? I'll handle them for you immediately so you can focus on more important things." The kind of nurturing involved in doing more than you need or is expected is extraordinary—not just in virtual relationships, but in all relationships. Make it the norm for you and watch what happens. Play big. When you challenge yourself to be more than you think you can be, you're playing big. That growth allows you to always offer more to your clients than they expect, and keeps your business fresh,. Consider what you might need to do; how you could challenge yourself to play bigger in all aspects of your life. You and your clients will win from your efforts. Be available, engaged, and passionate, and put people before tasks. My virtual assistant, Marie Schulz CPS, CMVA, is always available to me when I need her. Although she has a full practice, she makes me feel as though I am the only client she has, or that of all her clients, I matter most. I'm not, and I don't; I know some of her other clients and they all feel the same way. It's still an extraordinary feeling to know that I'll get what I need, when I need it, and I'll get it from someone who is incredibly engaged and passionate about my business. Although she's never been able to explain how she does it, over time, I've realized that, for her, people come before tasks. Remember that. Marie can always find the time to help me. If I call, it's because I need something from her. And she takes the time away from whatever she's doing to pay attention to me. It makes me feel like a million bucks and incredibly well cared for. Be generous. Be generous with compliments, with your attention, with your time, and with small gifts (for holidays and no reason at all), and with calls of encouragement. Say "thank you" often and remember important days. If you're unsure about where to take your business next, or how to power-charge your success, consider what investing more in your relationships can do for your practice and your life. Give of yourself, and reap the rewards. Reprinted with permission from OfficePro, the publication of the International Association of Administrative Professionals, www.iaap-hq.org |
