The VA marketplace can be a crowded place. However, just because the marketplace is crowded, it doesn’t mean you can’t (or indeed, shouldn’t try to) stand out. As with any other industry, if you want your business to thrive, you need to be memorable.

But how can you stay at the forefront of the VA marketplace? And what’s the best way to ensure you’re standing out and being remembered by your potential and current clients? Here are some simple tips you can implement to help you stay at the forefront of the VA marketplace.

Know what makes you and/or your clients unique

Not all VAs are the same and the services they offer will also differ. If you want to be memorable, get clear on what makes you unique. Do you offer a specific service that many other VAs don’t? Are there any specialised skills you have, that you bring to your business? How about your clients – do they all come from specific niches? Any of these things can help you stand out in the VA marketplace.

Relate your why to your brand

Your story and your why are what make your brand come alive. So share your story in your marketing. Let people know why you became a VA. Who is it you help and why (i.e. did you used to be in this niche yourself and what problem were you looking to solve)? Why do you help them, instead of others? What drives you to keep going everyday with your business? Where did you first realise you wanted to become a VA – and how does this relate to what you’re now doing? Sit down and write out the story of you, your VA journey and the reason why you’re doing what you’re doing – it’s what makes you unique, so honour it by sharing it.

Keep your marketing consistent in message and frequency

We couldn’t talk about branding and your story, without mentioning marketing. To be at the forefront of the VA marketplace, you need to be visible. Consistency and frequency are key here, as you need to illustrate that you’re here for the long haul and aren’t going to disappear overnight. Your clients want to know they can entrust their business needs to you.

But your marketing message needs to be clear and constant too. You need to be consistently sharing your branding, your story and overall message, and generally putting yourself out there, on a frequent basis. The online world of social media is a fickle one. Thanks to social media algorithms, if you’re not showing up regularly and consistently, you’re less likely to be reaching your target audience when you do show up. Set yourself a marketing schedule and stick with it.

Make a stand for value

Mention value and the majority of business owners will immediately think about the need to be affordable. It often leads to businesses carrying out deep competitor analysis to see what’s out there and what kind of prices competitors are charging.

Whilst it’s good to carry out competitor analysis (and if you need help doing this, make sure you download competitor analysis freebie which is linked at the bottom of this blog post!) it’s equally important that you remember – value isn’t just about price, and it isn’t necessarily about being cheaper than your competitor either.

Value is about ensuring your products and services are of value to your clients, as well as being of good quality generally. Make a stand to always provide things that are of value to your clients – whether it’s via the services you offer, or the blog and social media posts you share.

Remember to turn your features into benefits

Features are of no interest to your clients. Your client is only interested in what something can do for them – how will it benefit them and their personal and/or professional life. If you want to stay at the forefront of the VA marketplace, you need to tell them about the benefits you provide. For example, you may provide search engine optimised content as one of your services – but the benefits to your client will be that their blog posts will be found easier by search engines, more customers will then see those blogs, and your client won’t have to spend out on expensive advertising.

Identify trends in your marketplace

As a VA, you need to have your finger on the pulse of your own industry, as well as those of your clients. By keeping up with the changes and innovations in those industries, you’re also enabling yourself to be at the front of any trends that may be affecting the marketplace – and ensuring you’re adapting what you do, to suit those changing and evolving needs.

Showcase your expertise

You want to be memorable to your clients, but you also want to be memorable to your peers as well. The VA industry is built on collaboration (check out my recent blog on why competition has no place in the VA world, here), so you want to stay at the forefront of other VAs too, if you ever want to work with Associates or be seen as a respected VA within your industry. This opens the door to you showcasing your expertise via guest blogging, being invited to become an Associate, being referred to by other VAs, being invited to attend and/or guest speaker at seminars, joint promotions and ventures, etc. If you get the chance to shine, step up and shine!

Work on your relationships

Staying at the forefront of the VA marketplace isn’t just about putting yourself in front of potential new clients. It’s equally important that you continue to build on relationships you’ve already started. Past clients, existing clients, new contacts, leads, colleagues, industry experts and potential new clients are all relationships you need to continue working on, if you want to be at the forefront of the VA marketplace.

The VA marketplace can be a crowded place. However, as with any other industry, if you want your business to thrive, you need to be memorable. Taking the above steps to ensure you’re staying at the forefront of the VA marketplace, will not only help you attract the right clients to you, it’ll also ensure you become a respected and essential member of the VA industry as a whole.

Competitor analysis is a crucial part of knowing how you can stand out from other VAs in the VA marketplace. If you’re looking to carry out competitor analysis, you’ll find this free competitor analysis via the form below, to help make it easier and show you what you need to do, to review those around you. So make sure you download your copy now!