First Gig of a $7000/Month Virtual Assistant

How does Fiona make money online?

Fiona is a freelance virtual assistant.

She explained her work in a March 2020 interview:

I do a lot of behind the scenes work for several businesses. Imagine a business owner having a meltdown right before a big launch.

I’m the person that fixes everything and does preventative maintenance so they don’t fall apart.

Fiona mainly helps her clients with email marketing, copywriting, automation, and ghostwriting.

How much money does Fiona make?

Fiona reported in March 2020 that her business brings in “roughly $6,000-$7,000 per month.”

I have 3 retainer clients. They pay me $1,000/month each and two of them pay me with commission bonuses.

I also do ghostwriting on the side, though I don’t openly advertise it. Usually, people who enjoy my writing style reach out to me privately about writing and if I have the time, I take it.

Fiona also has a group coaching program for other freelancers, which adds to her income.

What’s Fiona’s background?

As per her interview, it’s clear that Fiona doesn’t have any formal training or qualifications for the work she does today: 

I got kicked out of college and the only job I ever had was being a professional dominatrix – which was fun until I got pregnant.

I also did a term in the Marine Corps but I didn’t care for it. The skills I learned there didn’t translate well to the workplace anyway.

Fiona taught herself the skills she uses as a virtual assistant, mainly through trial and experimentation, but also via the occasional online course.

Two courses she found particularly helpful: 

I invested in Neville Medhora’s Copywriting Course. It is perfect for beginners and people who love something simple and straightforward.

A client of mine told me to do StoryBrand training as well, and their framework has made it so easy for me to write things like my website.

• Related: Best Virtual Assistant Courses

How does Fiona find clients?

Fiona writes:

My first virtual assistant gig was labeling porn for a company I found on Craigslist. They paid $35/hour and a $250 bonus if you labeled over 800 videos that week.

This was my first introduction into the world of being a virtual assistant.

Fiona says she later earned “a good chunk of money” from clients on Upwork, but eventually switched things up:

Instead of clamoring for jobs that 50 other freelancers are trying to get, it was so much easier to just create my own content and let people come to me.

I just put out content on Facebook every single day. I made memes about marketing. I talked about business. I showed people what I knew and tried to make them feel like they could relate to me.

My social media posts led to my website which led to a booking page. 

Then they got to sit on a call with me, talk about how I can help, and I send them their first invoice and contract.

• Discover more ways to find freelance clients

What type of online business does Fiona have?

According to our framework Fiona has a freelance business, which would be considered a Level 2 online business.

• Learn more about freelance businesses and see other examples