How important is your website to your service provider business? Amazingly I still see some ‘so-called’ experts telling people it’s not all that important. In the recent past I’ve overheard at least two conversations in which the expert told the new business owner to ‘just get a free website or Facebook page‘. If I hadn’t…
Many times we spend so much time and energy on finding clients that we fail to see other equally as important aspects of marketing our small businesses. One of those aspects is the way we introduce ourselves and our businesses. As a small business owner, you need to separate yourself from all of the other…
Starting your own virtual assistant business requires more than just a desire to make money working from home. Ask yourself the following questions and answer honestly. Too many individuals look at becoming a VA as a way to make easy money from home, but the truth is, running your own business is anything but easy. …
I’ve talked about Twitter Do’s and Don’ts before. Today I want to talk about making sure you’re not a Twitter menace. So just what is a Twitter menace? Those people that are using Twitter as a bullhorn rather than a communication device. Are you guilty of the following? Hourly auto-posting of advertisement type tweets Responding…
Since my post on virtual assistant rates continues to be discovered and enjoyed almost two months after I first published it, I thought perhaps it was time for another post on pricing for service related businesses. Yes, that includes virtual assistants. And since we already tackled the issue of not charging enough, let’s move on…
Virtual Assistants provide business to business services. They own and maintain their own businesses. So would you be surprised to find out that many of them are providing services in such a way that the IRS would actually classify them as ‘remote employees’ and as such their clients are in danger of owing taxes for…
I broke the rules. When I consult clients on blogging for business, one of the first ‘rules’ is to post on a regular basis. I also suggest that if they are going to experience a particularly busy time or if they are going on vacation to write posts in advance and schedule them to publish…
Occasionally I’m asked to do interviews related to my business. Most of them ask similar questions, how did you start, when did you get your first client, what you did for marketing… but recently one of these interviews asked me what I thought were the five keys to success. That one made me stop and…
I have a Google Alert set up for the term Virtual Assistant, and today’s alert brought me a link to an ABC News story on, you guessed it, Virtual Assistants. I was excited at the possibility of a major news network shedding some light on our industry. That was, until the video began. First, it…
In my last post I discussed the importance of conducting consultations with in your search for a virtual assistant. Top Secret Tip #6: The Contract- When you’ve found the virtual professional you feel comfortable and confident with, let them know that you’d like to work with them. If they too feel that you’re a good…