We recently connected with Hamilton Schmid and have shared our conversation below.

Hamilton, appreciate you joining us today. How do you feel about asking friends and family to support your business? What’s appropriate, what’s not? Where do you draw the line?

Sharing about your business, especially as a new entrepreneur, can be intimidating. We’ve all met someone who pretended to be a friend only to sell us on their favorite products. We cringe at the idea of being salesy and “hate to impose.”

The reality is- if you want to make sales, you have to sell.

But it doesn’t have to feel like your family just walked onto your car lot.

My business, Virtual Cornerstone, was founded when my mom shared a friend’s Facebook post with me. She was looking for a virtual assistant, and my mom figured I had the skills to do that as a recent graduate with a Bachelor’s in Corporate Communications. So I reached out and met my first client.

The growth of Virtual Cornerstone to six figures and a team of five amazing women was only possible because that first client shared about me with her friends, I shared about the business with my family and friends, and they met people who needed my services and shared about me, too.

The power of a supportive network cannot be underestimated.

So how do you build a network and ask for support of your business without feeling the sales ick?

Be authentic.

The great thing about being an entrepreneur is you probably have a genuine passion for your work. You started this business because you saw a need and have a beautiful way of meeting that need for your clients. So when you’re asking for support, you can come from a place of vulnerability, genuinely sharing about the heart behind your business.

Offer solutions.

Change your mindset from “selling” and trying to get as many people in the door as you can, consider positioning your business as an offer. How can you serve someone? What are the benefits for them? Offer them solutions that will actually make a difference, and now you’re not selling just to hit your financial goals, you’re offering support/solutions/change to people you care about.

Tell the truth.

Ultimately, if you feel like your selling is too salesy, it might not be truthful. Stay away from overpromising results or agreeing to more than you’ll deliver. Tell the truth about how great your product or service is and leave it with just the truth. If it’s truly great, it’ll be easy for people to say YES without any slimy sales tactics.

The best news is, your family and friends love you. If you’ve started something new, chances are they want to support you. I’ve seen first hand as the members in my VA Mentorship Membership launch their businesses as virtual assistants and start with sharing with friends and family. One member has booked three discovery calls in just two weeks, all through connections from her father-in-law.

Sharing about your business and asking for support can be the difference between reaching your goals and feeling like you’re under a rock. Share boldly— you got this!!!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Virtual Cornerstone provides Content Marketing for female entrepreneurs who want to consistently connect with their audience, without being glued to their phone. As the founder, I’m passionate about supporting women who are business owners, moms, wives, and friends. Our clients wear a lot of hats, and although they know how important consistency is, the idea of regularly sending, publishing, and posting is overwhelming.

We write, review, design, and publish newsletters, email sequences, freebies, blogs, and social media so your audience hears from you on the regular AND you can be off your phone at bath time.

Virtual Cornerstone started as a virtual assistant services business, which quickly grew and morphed into what it is today. Now, I lead the VA Mentorship Membership to teach other women how to build their VA side gig into the business of their dreams through weekly Q&A support, monthly trainings, job opportunities, and more.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

Being a virtual assistant was never on my radar, but then I graduated in the middle of a pandemic. With a degree in Corporate Communications, all the corporate jobs I was interviewing for imposed a hiring freeze in the unknown of 2020.

So as a recent grad, I wasn’t sure what was next. That’s when a Facebook post came my way: “looking for a VA.”

That Facebook post turned into my first client and a deep dive on what a virtual assistant can offer. I quickly fell in love with the work, found clients that I was excited to support, and grew my side gig while working full time as the Office Manager for my dad’s two businesses.

My VA work was “on the side” for two years, then in 2022 I left my day job and started full time. Up to that point, I had been building and taking on quite a lot for a side hustle. I knew it was important to get to what I call the “tipping point” between side gig and full time, so I worked a LOT for those two years.

Even though I was sure about the timing, it was still scary to be officially out on my own. I shared about this transition with my clients, letting them know I was growing and looking for referrals. Within the week, I had a full time roster filled.

That first week of boldly requesting connections, discovery calls, and signing contracts was the catalyst to the now two years of success as a full time business owner. It was only through my willingness to share about what I was doing and asking for support that I was able to fill my business.

Now, my growth is beyond what one person can sustain and I have a team of five brilliant women supporting me. When I think back to my first two years— bouncing to my side gig on my lunch break— I see that every early morning, late night, and overwhelmed moment was worth it. The business I’ve built today is far beyond what I would’ve imagined for myself as a recent graduate wondering if I’d ever find a corporate job. Thank God I didn’t!

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Without a doubt, over delivery is the most important element as a service provider. Virtual Cornerstone has grown solely through referral for the four years I’ve been in business and I attribute it to amazing client relationships. Our clients willingly share about our work, recommend us to their network, and support our business growth.

So much of our positive client relationship experience can be attributed to over delivery. We go above clients’ expectations— beating our own deadlines, remembering small details, and sprinkling little touches throughout our work. From annual Christmas gifts to random coffee gift cards, we’re cheering our clients on in their businesses and supporting not just through task execution, but on an emotional and personal level. That kind of connection is rare, and it’s a gift not only because it has built our reputation in the industry, but because we benefit on an emotional and personal level, too.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.yourvirtualcornerstone.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/virtualcornerstone/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hamilton-schmid/

Image Credits

Rachel Hughes