Lessons from a Digital Marketing Virtual Assistant who actually does the work:
Today I want to share some quick and easy tips for a VA for Q&As during live events with your clients. We already know that nothing builds online relationships faster than going live and being interactive with your audience. But I won’t lie – it can be stressful and challenging. And that’s where your role as a unicorn VA can be essential. By helping your clients be organized and intentional during their live events, you’re going to help their business explode. And here’s how you can plan, manage, and organize it in a few easy steps.
Why Do I Even Need To Go Live at All?
I know I’m going to sound like a broken record, but you and your clients have to connect meaningfully with your audience. It’s what builds the KLT factor, what warms up your audience to you and your brand, and ultimately what makes them eager and willing to spend money for what you have to offer them.
And unlike physical brick and mortar stores, you can’t just talk to your potential customers one at a time when they pop into your store or office. Going live – whether it’s on facebook, Instagram, YouTube, or even a webinar or Zoom conference – is your (and your clients’) best shot to make real connections.
And I know it’s not easy! If you’ve followed me on my IG account or on my facebook page, you know I always considered myself a “behind the scenes” girl. But now after scaling my own VA business and launching my digital media crash course, I’ve learned that I have to put myself out there. And honestly? It’s been great for me and my business. I’ve built confidence and made connections that otherwise would have never happened.
So help your client get over their fears, plan their materials, and be ready to meet their audiences live.
Focus on the Benefits of a Live Q&A
Obviously, your client is going to go live for a lot of different reasons. To teach a technique, demo a product, share a new idea, or prepare to launch a course, to name just a few. No matter what your client’s niche market or unique product might be, there are plenty of things you can offer live.
Whatever your plan, you always have to keep your end goal in sight. And so for a lot of those reasons, you’re going to want to add a q&a portion for your audience.
Live Q&A’s give you (or your VA client) much-needed time to personally interact with your audience. It’s going to ensure that you’re tuned in to your audience’s specific pain points, and give you a chance to target their needs individually. It’s going to make you aware of any potential holes in your material you’ve just featured. And it’s going to make each audience member feel seen and appreciated, and connected.
But it’s also intimidating. You’re already going to be nervous. When you’re going live, your head is spinning. You are hyperaware of every movement, speech inflection, and every time you say “uhm…”. You’re more likely to make careless mistakes and be distracted with unplanned tech hiccups. And you do know you’re going to be just fine in the end. But sometimes the last thing you can even focus on is keeping up with the chat. Or even thinking on your feet to answer questions.
But that’s normal. And it does get easier every time. And in the meantime, here are some quick tips and tricks. These are things that a VA can do in the background to make it all a lot easier. I personally use these three tips whenever I go live. Whether it’s in one of my free webinars, or inside my free facebook group for VAs.
Tips Every VA Should Know for Live Q&As
1. Plan ahead.
Scroll through your client’s social media accounts and emails. What questions keep coming up? What are people asking similar business owners from your niche neighborhoods? Make a list of 10-15 potential questions, with answers. Or even put out a call to your audience ahead of time on social media, “What would you all like me to address during the Q&A on Friday??” Not only will it give you a solid foundation, but it can also warm up your live audience to ask questions if you have a few intro questions you can read out loud to start.
2. Know your stuff.
Practice ahead of time. Think about your audience’s needs and pain points, and how you or your product will help them. Keep your target goals and your “whys” at the top and figure out how to circle back to what you can do and offer. Make a bulleted list or post-it notes of the big picture things you want to showcase and stay focused on those.
3. Stay organized.
Some programs, like Zoom webinar give you a built-in option to track Q&A questions and then mark them off.
I personally like to have help from my own VAs during each live. We share a google doc that we all access during the live event. They hang out in the chat area, prompting the audience for questions, while I’m talking. If it’s a quick easy question, they can respond with the answer directly in the chat. If it’s more detailed, they cut and paste the questions into our shared google doc, and if they have any specific links or info that is helpful, they can add it right there, too.
Then during the Q&A session, it’s easy for me to access all of the questions and answer them, right from the google doc. And while I’m answering, they can drop the relevant links or files right into the chat as I’m discussing them. This works for me because I can stay focused on the presentation without getting distracted by the chat and worrying about missing specific questions. I know that they’re going to all be right there for me when I need them and am ready for them.
The Takeaway: Doing live Q&As is worth it, especially with help from a VA or digital media assistant!
Your client shouldn’t be afraid to step out of their comfort zone and go live with Q&As. Figure out the steps that you can take as their VA to help them, and make it easier for everyone. Take a few minutes ahead of time to prepare and get set up, and you’ll be handling live Q&As like a pro. And you will see huge benefits for your business!
If you want to see examples of how I go live with my own business, make sure you’ve joined my free facebook group for go-getter VAs. I offer frequent FB live events on every topic you need whether you’re just starting out in the digital media world, or you’ve been working as a VA for a while and just need some fresh ideas and tech tools.
Or, make plans now to join my next free Masterclass webinar, “How to Work Online: 5 Areas Online Business Owners are Needing to Hire Out Now”. In these live classes, I use these exact tips to make sure I’m answering everyone’s questions and getting information out there to potential new unicorn VAs! Get on the waitlist now and you’ll be notified as soon as the next Masterclass opens for registration.
See you live in the next Q&A!
-Emily, Digital Marketing Consultant and Implementer
“I help smart women learn the in-demand digital marketing strategies and profitable tech skills to get hired as a unicorn digital marketing assistant.“
3 ways we can work together:
1. Do you need to acquire digital marketing implementation skills and build your workflows so you can solidly put yourself out there for work? Check out the Unicorn Digital Marketing Assistant School. (It opens twice a year so jump on the waitlist now!… I also share job leads with my students so it’s a gateway for anyone who wants to build a freelance business that gives them flexibility and meaningful work). You can also choose to go through the self-study program now. Enroll here.
2. Already doing the work and have clients? But need more clients and a better referral network? Apply for my Digital Marketer’s Workgroup. This is a tight-knit community of freelancers like you, supporting each other. Plus I’ve shared 1,600+ job opportunities with this community.
3. Need to hire a Unicorn Digital Marketing Assistant? Submit your job opportunity here. I’ll share with my workgroups totally free.
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Yes, you really can work online.
Feeling overwhelmed and not sure how you can work from home and build your own online digital marketing business? Take a deep breath – you can do this. Start here with my list of 10 popular tasks that online businesses need help with the most!
These are the tasks that new clients are constantly asking for help with, and skills that they really need to find in a virtual assistant. Get access to this free download right now. Then make sure your own VA toolkit is up-to-date and relevant, and decide where you might need to invest in new growth and development for your biz.
