When you own a virtual assistance business, you’re in the thick of it. You’re right there, on the ‘shop floor’ dealing with clients, going through the process of hiring team members, and managing all the business admin.

As time goes on (and if you’ve done all the right things), your business will start to pick up momentum.

If you’re anything like me, it might not often be that you have a moment to stand back and evaluate what you’ve achieved. 

So, how do you know if you’re doing well? What sorts of things can you measure that might indicate success?

And if you’re not yet a VA, but want to be, you might be wondering what sort of things you have to look forward to.

In my opinion, some tell-tale signs will give you a good indication that you’re killing it as a virtual assistant business owner. I’ve managed to round them up and nail them down to a list of nine. 

1. Your Cash is Flowing

Your cash flow is excellent and you can meet all your financial obligations. You have your financials structured in a way that clearly shows what the business is expected to make, and what the outgoings will be each month.

When you reach the point where there are no longer months where you find yourself feeling stressed about how you will pay bills and your contractors, you can rest assured that you’re winning!

2. You're Targeting a Niche

You’ve successfully targeted a niche.

If you've noticed that you’ve become the go-to virtual assistant for a particular type of client, and the referrals for more of the same keep coming, that's a fantastic sign.

Congratulations! This indicates that whatever you're doing, you're doing it very well!

There's officially a ‘word on the street’, and it’s all positive when it comes to your niche service offering.

3. You Have a Specialised Service Offering

You've specialised in something. It doesn’t matter what it is, but the fact that you can confidently tell clients that your business specialises in ‘XYZ’, is a huge plus.

It could be that you are an expert with Xero, or that you have a specialised team of videographers, social media managers, or even that you specialise in setting up efficient systems that streamline a business.

You’re no longer a jack of all trades, you’re a flat-out master, and that's a huge achievement! 

4. You're Generating Organic Leads

You’ve officially become a well-known business when you start generating organic leads!

You’re not out there networking every night, or cold-calling businesses, nope; potential clients are calling and contacting you!

The day you realise you’re no longer hunting for leads like a lion that hasn’t eaten for a week, is one of the best days you’ll ever have in business. 

5. You Lead a High Performing Team

You have a happy, engaged, and skilled team working for you. Jackpot! Your VAs become your business.

They represent your company because they deal directly with your clients.

Building a great team of employees and/or contractors has meant you are no longer delivering client work, and instead use your time to work on your business, not in it! 

6. You Have Freedom

When you hear a tropical beach or an overseas shopping trip calling your name, you can answer that call!

Going on holiday is no longer a struggle because your business runs perfectly without you.

Your team members expertly manage all areas of your business, your systems are well documented on your intranet, and you've coached your team so well that they don’t panic without you; they all know their priorities and responsibilities, and feel empowered to make decisions.  

7. People Are Taking Notice

You're asked to speak at events. Yep!

As a well-known VA in the industry, people have taken notice of what you have to offer, and they're picking up the phone and reaching out to book you in for their events.

They want you to present to an audience because you/your team are considered experts in a specific area, and they know others will be interested to hear your success story.

It's a tremendous honour to be asked, and a useful marker that indicates you're doing well as a business owner! 

8. There's a Waitlist

You have new clients on a waitlist. Yes, you heard me right. People are lining up and waiting to be your clients!

Why? Because you’ve learnt over the years that growing the business too quickly is a bad idea, so you’ve found having new clients added to a waitlist is a winning way to manage steady growth, and to give clients the best service when they do come on board. 

It's human nature to want something you can't have so when potential clients know there's a waitlist, they'll be even more eager to jump onboard.

9. You Pay Your Tax

You put funds into a separate account to ensure that when those tax due dates come along, there are adequate funds to meet your tax obligations.

You know that not being compliant will kill your business no matter how successful it may seem on the outside.

Even if you have leads coming in every single day, and a fantastic team delivering an excellent service, you know it all means nothing if you can't meet your legislative obligations.  

Is there something I missed that you think really shows that you're killing it as a VA business owner?

If you are a VA currently, how many of these points can you tick off? Which ones do you feel like you could be close to ticking off?

If you haven’t quite got to this stage yet, or you’re yet to launch your VA business, please remember that everyone measures success in their own way, and it is so important to celebrate every achievement you attain along the way.

If success for you right now looks like consistent positive client feedback and one new lead per week, fantastic! I’d love you to share how you measure and celebrate success as a virtual assistant business owner.

Want to tick off more from the list above? Check out the Members Club on a FREE 7-Day trial here.