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You’ve been working in an office as an executive assistant, project manager, or another admin role for years but just CANNOT crack the virtual assistant code. It SEEMS like it should be as easy as just submitting your killer resume for remote jobs instead of traditional ones…but you aren’t even getting interviews. Or worse, you are getting caught in scams and have about just given up on this ‘virtual assistant’ pipe dream.
I was a degree holding former teacher with years of software product management experience trying to toss my hat in for VA jobs after I’d had enough of my husbands military career leaving me alone for months with our (at the time) 2 year old. I needed something virtual with flex time I could take with me to various duty stations, when we had to stay with family during deployments or when my son had time off school or was home sick.
Here’s what I found when trying to transition: SHOCKER! It’s not that straightforward or easy! So here are my best tips for those of you with some admin experience to speak of but just need help transitioning.
Your resume sucks
Sorry but the resume you made in high school or with your Word template isn’t going to cut it. There is a specific strategy to ensure your resume and entire application process is remote appropriate and stands out from the HUNDREDS of please pick me, I want to work from home so badly resumes these employers have to comb through.
In my virtual assistant training & online job support program, 90 Day VA, we provide what I call an ‘Application Kit’ template which is what you use for applying for client jobs. It’s a beautiful branded multi-page PDF that includes your skills, packages, testimonials, references, and links to samples relevant to the job you are applying for. You tweak it slightly for each application with a fab tool called Canva.
I also suggest using Loom to record a quick 1-2 minute video to go along with your Application Kit. Just of your face talking about why THIS job or company of ALL companies is the one you are super excited to talk with.
These 2 tweaks alone have gotten our program members to the top of the interview and hire lists ASAP (even without the experience others like you may have!) so it works.
Your experience sucks
I know you don’t want to hear this, but majority of the tasks you did IN an office aren’t the same that you would do virtually. Most office managers, executive assistants, etc don’t have experience doing the tasks virtual assistants are typically hired for.
Plus working online is a totally different ball game then working in an office. It requires insane self direction, home office organization, online project management and chat tool experience (even if you aren’t a project manager).
Remote companies and online employers KNOW both of these things which is why your resume is being overlooked time and time again. Your 10 years of office management (or whatever) experience is overshadowed by the fact that you don’t have any relevant or virtual experience.
Your portfolio sucks (or you don’t even know what one is?!)
This relates to your experience so if you don’t have relevant experience then you need to upskill and do it quickly. But even if you have, for example, social media and email newsletter writing experience from your admin job and it’s listed on your resume – the online employer doesn’t care.
Before they even bother inviting you for an interview that’s just going to be a waste of time if you don’t actually know what you are doing, they want to SEE what you can do!
You need a relevant experience for virtual jobs thats AWESOME and you need to send it with your application kit every time!
You are just applying for remote job board jobs
Dude. We find 10-30 virtual assistant jobs every WEEK that our 90 Day VA girls qualify for. They pay MINIMUM $15-$20/hr.
But guess what? We aren’t getting them from big remote companies or job boards!
There’s amazing specific Facebook Groups with tons of online business owners ALWAYS hiring long term positions. There’s also virtual agency’s that don’t pay as well but are almost always hiring.
The highest quality online jobs will always come through specific groups and programs you can join (like mine, 90 Day VA, there’s others too!) that have a special job submission board for online business owners to pop their jobs or they’ll actually hire me to find them a quality VA. Community managers actually network on your behalf and get a few amazing jobs in there exclusive to the community every week.
There’s always tons of entrepreneur or online business live events, meet ups, chamber of commerce events, real estate agent get togethers, workshops, or just local cowork space meet and greets where there’s literally a room of 20-200+ people that all need online admin help. Even paying a ticket to attend higher end events will yield amazing clients that can afford to pay for a ticket and therefore can and want to pay for quality online help!
There’s other more lucrative methods too we talk about in our program, but for now get off the job boards and get creative! That’s where all the jobs are!
You have the wrong attitude
The word I would use is pretentious. I know you have all these years of experience, but until you realize that you actually don’t know how to qualify, find, apply properly and land legit online jobs then you are just going to be doing the same thing you are now.
It’s ok to need a little help sometimes, we all do! How else are you supposed to know how to make an application kit, portfolio, how to find these ‘secret’ virtual jobs that are apparently all over the internet but seem like a ruse to the untrained eye AND THEN on top of that avoid all the prevalent scams that are on the remote job boards? Arg. It’s enough to make your head spin.
Which is why women like me cracked the code and put together programs like 90 Day VA. A space to upskill, organize your relevant and new experience properly, get legit job opportunities and be surrounded by an incredible community of almost 300 women all doing the same thing.
So if you need help getting your resume remote ready then get it! If you need someone to work with you on putting together a portfolio and remote Linkedin then get it! Figure out what from the list I gave is missing for you and bridge the gap however you need.
Get real if you need some help otherwise we’ll be having this same chat 1 year from now while you are still spinning your wheels and another 300 women are working online who had NO prior experience.
If you are ready to accept some help and dominate 2019 like the badass woman I know you are, then consider 90 Day VA to help bridge the gap and get you there! Syllabus, testimonials and enrollment details are HERE
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