How to Get Great Testimonials in Your VA Business

Question: What’s the first thing you do when you decide to go to a restaurant? Or when you want to plan a spa day? Or hire a plumber?

I’m guessing you:

• Ask your friends for a referral
• Read the reviews
• Do both!

Your potential clients are no different. They want to see who you’ve worked with before and what that experience was like. Nobody wants to spend time and money only to have a bad experience.

Client testimonials help demonstrate that you can do what you say you’re going to do. It helps show that you’re reliable and trustworthy.

If you’re just starting out in your virtual assistant business, getting those first testimonials can feel a bit intimidating.
Often, we’re working with people who are already swamped and it might feel like you’re bothering your client. But, it’s up to you to set yourself up to collect great testimonials right from the beginning. And most clients are happy to help you with this.

(And if you haven’t yet had your first client and don’t have anyone to ask, I’ve been there! Check out this post for ideas on getting that first client here.)

3 Ways to Make Getting Great Testimonials Easy:

1. Provide a Fantastic Client Experience

The obvious and clear first step to getting positive feedback from your clients is to provide the best client experience you can.

(Important note: This does not mean being a doormat and saying yes at all costs. You can and should have boundaries. You’re a business owner too.)

An exceptional client experience is about much more than getting the job done. It really starts before you agree to work together. You need to make sure you’re a good fit during the discovery call.

Once you begin working with your clients, be sure you’re checking in, giving them updates, and get feedback as you go. Save these emails, slack chats (or however you communicate) for later.

2. Put Together a Testimonial for Your Client

I’ve found that saving feedback is the easiest way to get testimonials. As virtual assistants, we’re working with busy people. Rather than asking your client to write you a testimonial from scratch, make it a simple “yes” or “no” for them.

Go through your emails and pull quotes from the most glowing, positive communication you have from them. Then, put it together into a coherent testimonial (but still using their words).

After that, you can just send it to them and ask for permission to use it (and if they want to make any edits, of course).

This kind of testimonial will be genuine, demand nothing of your client’s time, and usually makes everyone happy.

3. Create a Client Feedback Survey

If you’re not seeing anything in your Slack or email communications with your clients that would work well for a testimonial, or, if you want feedback on something specific, try making a survey. In Google Forms, (or your preferred form/survey creator) create a simple form for your clients to fill it out (with permission to share some or all their responses).

This can be a great way to get clients to comment on specific things they like about your business and working with you. Just don’t make this survey super long and all-encompassing.

As I mentioned above, clients are often swamped with too much on their plates as it is. They don’t want more homework.

Keep this survey to 2 to 3 questions. Give your clients the space to provide a long answer if they feel inspired, but there’s no pressure.

Here are a few sample questions for your survey or email:

• What were you most worried about when hiring me as your new VA?
• How has working with me as your VA changed your business?
• What’s your favorite thing about working with me and why?

BONUS: Save Social Media Shout-outs

Lasty, don’t forget to also regularly do a search for kind words and shout-outs on social media about your business. I have a few clients who will occasionally do this via Facebook or Instagram and it’s lovely.

Make Sure You:

• Screenshot the shout-out in a “testimonials/social shout-outs” folder
• Copy and save the words in a spreadsheet
• And then you’ve got the perfect bite-sized love notes to add to your site!

So quick recap: To get great testimonials in your virtual assistant business, start by providing a great experience for your client, make sure to save any positive feedback you receive along the way, and then put together a short survey to gather more information.

I hope this helps you on your way to building a trusted virtual assistance business.

Save this post on Pinterest for reference. And also let me know: What other questions do you have about testimonials? I’d love to help.