Have a question for the more experienced VA and for those already servicing clients outside their country.

Besides having a web presence, what other steps can I take to develop clients outside my country? My home market is relatively small, and in order to expand and grow my business, I need to develop clients abroad. Where do I start?

Thanks in advance for your suggestions

Joyann M

Joyann, can you just refresh my memory as to where you are?
When I first started my practice I was in India but I marketed to and interacted with US clients (mainly because I assumed that the highest paying market could be found there, also because I'm American so it just made sense) so...depending on where you are I may have some insight for you, although honestly I don't think there's any real difference in marketing from nation to nation, it's just a matter of where you focus your energies.

Craigslist is global, and that's where I started looking for, and found , my first client.

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Network, network, network. It applies online as well as offline. I gained international clients simply by frequenting different business networks and forums and getting to know people online. They would start to ask questions about what I do and then eventually they would ask me to do work for them. There are thousands of forums and networks online - why not seek some out. Yahoogroups.com is a good place - just enter keywords of interest and you'll find a discussion group on that topic. Or use Google Alert to alert you to new articles and postings online that might lead you to new networks and forums. New to you that is. Linkedin.com is a great business network and I've scored clients from there also.

I'm in the Caribbean, Barbados to be more exact. I have tried craigslist for sometime now, but have not been successful - maybe I'm doing something wrong. When you say that use craigslist, does that mean that you advertise your services or do you simply search for and respond to business opportunities?

Thanks in advance for your reply.

Joyann M

Hi Joyann
When I first started out I was scanning and replying to ads. I did also place an ad once in a while but honestly, I never rec'd a single inquiry that way.

I doubt you're doing anything 'wrong' when replying to ads - but I might suggest taking a look at your 'standard' reply (if you have one) and getting rid of it entirely. I'm a personal fan of originality and so tried to always offer something unique in my own replies to potential clients. I also alway recapped their own job description for them in my reply and followed up with a brief explanation of why I was the best fit for what needed to be done. The other thing, and I know this from personal experience of placing my own ads at times, is many people ask for specific subject lines, types of information in the reply, or a certain format for delivery - this is all to often ignored. I've placed ads and had maybe ten out of 100 people actually DO the thing I've requested (it certainly narrowed down the field! )

But, these things are all true no matter which country you live in and which you're marketing to.

If you wanted to expand your market to say, Australia or the States you might find an e publication in that country that offers advert space and see about getting your business advertised in there.

I think Kathie had some great suggestions regarding networking, an extended network of contacts is never a bad thing to have; it just takes some time to develop and requires persistence and patience. LinkedIn in a superb way to participate in social networking but at a purely business level. Many companies use LinkedIn to tap resources they otherwise wouldn't have direct access to by sending out job descriptions in a given network. You can also answer questions there on their boards - another way of getting out there and getting noticed.

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Thanks for your very useful suggestions Tess

I've also used Craigslist but networking is a always and forever the best way I think.. Also, if you go local, posting newspaper ads is also a great way to tap into your local market!

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Winslow Girl Virtual Assistant
www.winslowgirlva.com
Taking Virtual Assistance to the Next Level

Hi Joyann

I'm in Grenada and my clients are outside of the region. One tip is to target persons or companies you may have worked with in the past who can attest to your capability and professionalism. I do not have any local or regional clients but was able to get quite a few clients from people I would have worked with in the past, so you may want to approach former employers for references and referrals. Participating in great forums like this is also helpful. Other than that NETWORK sensibly - on and offline.