Work from Home but Earn Dollars: Ardin's Success Story in Getting 9 Clients
Oni Lestari
Virtual Assistant, Copywriter, SEO Expert
Do you want to work from home and set your own work hours?
Or, do you want to switch careers so you can have more time with your family?
Then you need to know the story of Ardin, a mother of two who decided to become a virtual assistant for business owners and leave her office job. Now she can work from home, set her own hours, and spend more time with her family.
Through this article, Ardin will share her journey to becoming a virtual assistant and answer questions about:
How to become a virtual assistant and get 9 foreign clients?
How to manage time between work and family?
How to face the challenges of being a remote worker?
To find out the answers, let’s read it together!
Table of Contents:
Meet Ardin
I am Ardin, alumni of SGB VA Batch 4, who graduated in August 2022. I used to work in an office. Like most people, I went to work at 8 am and came home at 5 pm.
In 2022, I was pregnant with my second child and I did have a plan to stop working in the office. So, in the middle of my pregnancy, I prepared a business, so that even if I resigned later and became a stay-at-home mom, I would still have activities and income.
But it turned out that the business went bankrupt. So, after giving birth, there was nothing else to do but to be with the children. And because I used to work before, I wanted to have activities when the children were sleeping, and I was confused, how can I work from home?
Then I met an ad for SGB VA, which made me want to dive deeper into what a virtual assistant is. It turns out that virtual assistants are also businesses and can be flexible. Finally, I am now a virtual assistant.
What is Ardin's view on Virtual Assistant?
At first, I thought virtual assistants were just ordinary freelancers, but it turns out there is a mindset that we need to form in order to be consistent as virtual assistants. That is, the mindset that we are business service providers, meaning that we are also business owners, which means that we must be proactive in looking for clients. So, when I was doing it, I felt “Wow, we are running a business, even though we work from home”.
Virtual Assistants are very prospective because from year to year, business owners continue to grow. Many people want to become business owners, build businesses, build brands, and they need a team. Virtual Assistants are one of the options for business owners to have a team with efficient costs.
They say that Virtual Assistants' Income is Uncertain, is that True?
For most people, virtual assistants are considered freelancers whose income is uncertain. But why is their income uncertain? Because we are business service providers. We are business owners, so when we approach potential clients, we are on the same level. We are partners, we are not their subordinates.
That’s why virtual assistants can set their own hours. We can convey to the client, for example, “We are available 4 hours a day, and we respond quickly when contacted from this hour to that hour.” We have boundaries with clients. SGB VA equips me with the knowledge to thrive in a work-from-home environment.
And because we set the time, we also set the income.
About Niche and Service
My niche is business owners and entrepreneurs. It’s still quite general actually. Many other friends are more focused, some focus on partnering with fashion businesses, or with FnB businesses, and there are also art businesses.
For services, when I first became a virtual assistant, my services were admin and project management. Because I feel that I have to be a specialist if I want to be a virtual assistant. But when I went through it, I realized that it turns out that we can offer the service we like. And it turns out that with my journey as a virtual assistant, I have come to know what I like.
So, my service now is virtual marketing assistant. Marketing is quite broad in scope. I’m still not that specific. Many people lean towards a specific service. Like content marketing, and social media marketing. And for me, it’s broad but the area is still marketing.
How does Ardin approach potential clients?
At SGB VA, we are taught to research potential clients’ businesses first. One example of research is to look at their website, Google reviews, and social media. This is how we can get insights.
So, when I approach clients or even during discovery calls, I don’t just talk about “me” and my services, but I also provide value. I provide insights from my perspective as an outsider to their business. This can also show my abilities and what I can help with.
I initially couldn’t imagine approaching clients through Instagram or LinkedIn. But eventually, I was able to get clients from there.
To successfully approach potential clients, research is really important. And it does take time. But we must be sincere in wanting to help business owners grow their businesses. This is also what Tania teaches. For that, we need to find ways to improve their business.
How does Ardin submit proposals to potential clients?
For proposals, we can do some research about their business first. For example, I once approached a medical clinic. I looked at their Google reviews, and the reviews were good, up to 4.9/5 from 200 reviewers. However, it turned out that their Instagram and Facebook were not managed.
Wow, that’s a shame. Their reviews and customers are that good, but their social media isn’t handled. Especially if it is managed, it will definitely be even better. So, we have to be smart in researching and finding opportunities.
We can also ask the potential client directly. For example, if you approach a coach who works alone, you can ask them something like “Do you need an admin?”. Because many small things in the administrative field of business are sometimes overlooked.
I created a portfolio on Instagram to showcase my services. I also created a portfolio using Canva. Because with Canva we just need to share the link, and potential clients don’t have to bother downloading the document.
Where do you get so many clients from?
I have 9 clients, but not all of them at the same time. There are long-term and project-based clients. They are from Singapore, Kazakhstan, China, Saudi Arabia, India, and Senegal.
I get clients from Instagram, LinkedIn, Upwork and also from the SGB VA community. We, alumni of SGB VA, sometimes share job vacancies from our clients. And I got clients from there, the SGB VA Jabodetabek alumni group.
SGB VA also has a Tinder, but it’s not Tinder to find a partner. So, SGB VA has a lot of connections with business owners or entrepreneurs, and they are looking for virtual assistants from SGB VA. SGB VA Tinder Group is a platform to connect them. I also got clients from there.
How Ardin Gets Clients
In the past, when I was really eager to get clients, I would reach out to 20 potential clients per day. I would approach anyone I considered a prospect, while also doing research.
Of course, not all of them bore fruit. Out of 20 people I approached, maybe only 1 person would respond, and that might be a rejection.
But the key is consistency, that’s really important. Consistency in approach, consistency in posting, consistency in building connections, and building networking. So after approaching them, don’t just leave them alone. We have to really build a connection. We give their posts ‘love’, and also ‘comment’.
Later, if they ever need us, we’ll definitely be the top of mind for them. One of my clients experienced that. So, when I first approached him, he said he didn’t need a virtual assistant anymore. But, 1 month later, he approached me first and said “Ardin, I need you, can you help me?”. I started thinking, “Wow, this must be the result of me giving ‘love’ on his Instagram stories.”
With That Many Clients, Isn't It Hard to Manage Time?
At first, I only worked as a virtual assistant for 2 hours a day. Because at that time I was just starting out as a virtual assistant, and I had just given birth to my second child. Balancing the responsibilities of a mom with a work-from-home career can be challenging. My top priority at that time was to recoup my investment.
Thankfully, I have already recouped my investment several times over now. Joining SGB VA was the best investment I made in 2022.
At first, I set my working hours from home at 2 hours per day, which was during my children’s naps and bedtime. In the past, when I worked in an office, I had an 8-hour contract, but I would still be contacted after I got home, or I would still have deadlines to meet. But it turned out that with clients from overseas, 2 hours per day was actually on time.
That’s why I decided to add more clients after that. But before looking for more clients, I decided to invest again. The investment was to hire a nanny. Because if I wanted to increase my work hours to 4 hours, I knew I would need help. The nanny would help me take care of the children for 4 hours during the day. Since I needed to focus on my laptop to fulfill my commitments to my clients. And it turned out that after hiring a nanny, I was actually able to get more clients.
I took clients who only needed me for 20-30 hours per month. Imagine, 20 hours per month, which means I can only work for an hour a day, or even not at all. I also look for project-based work. I usually look for this type of work on Upwork.
Tips for Maintaining Relationships with Clients to Become Long-Term Clients
I’ve been a virtual assistant for almost 2 years. And my longest client is my client from Senegal. At first, he asked me to work 15 hours per month.
But because I always gave value, and gave feedback, he really appreciated it. He knew that I really cared about his business. Finally, he trusted me to handle other work, which is to be a community manager.
Want to have a success story like Ardin?
- In this webinar, you’ll learn:
- How to break free from ‘feeling trapped’! Discover a career path that sparks joy and allows you to have much time for family while contributing meaningfully.
- The exact steps to becoming a virtual assistant, even with no experience.
- How to find high-paying clients from all over the world.
- How to overcome challenges and thrive as a remote worker.
