business – Page 2 – Virtual Assistant Success Strategies

Wil Hart on July 2, 2010

What’s Your Contingency Plan For Your Business?

Let’s face it – we live in uncertain times. On any given day you may have a power outage, your Internet connection may be down, your child could wake up sick or you may be faced with some type of natural disaster. Hiccups and disruptions in your work flow COULD be detrimental to your business. However, that doesn’t have to be the case.

Taking a proactive approach to preparing yourself for the unexpected you can minimize the effect on your business. By having a contingency plan, you are establishing yourself as a business professional just like any large corporation. If done correctly, your clients won’t even know you had an issue unless you decide to tell them.

So what exactly is a contingency plan?

A contingency plan is a process you have for your business to protect yourself and your data from being lost during an emergency. Losing data would be detrimental to your business not only for the information that you would have to recreate, but also the violation of your clients’ private affairs.

Wil Hart on June 21, 2010

Create a Work Schedule That Gives You Time to Play

Starting your own home based Virtual Assistant business is a decision that involves a lot of thought and preparation. One of the biggest “perks” that comes with working for yourself and from home is having a flexible schedule. However, that flexibility can become a liability if you don’t manage it well.

One common pitfall I see VA’s struggling with is the tendency to “multi-task“. While you may think you can get more done, multi-tasking can truly be a detriment to your business and personal life. It’s so easy to think you can do a load of laundry while you’re working on a website, and then take a break to fold the laundry and come back to the website when you’re done. While this may seem harmless, it actually is making you less efficient in your work as a Virtual Assistant and your housework (or whatever the other activity may be). As a Virtual Assistant, it is important to create a work schedule for your clients’ benefit…and yours.

A key to creating a work schedule and maximizing your time is called “batching”. Batching refers to setting aside a specific block of time to handle similar tasks. So, say for example you have 3 clients and all of them need you to do some phone work. You might be making phone calls to clients, checking on insurance rates or whatever. The important thing here though is to do all the phone calls at once. By blocking out 2 hours in your day to do all the phone calls, you are focusing on just being on the phone and completing the project. Even though you will need to track the time spent on the phone for each client so you can allocate the time appropriately, you are still being more efficient by doing all the phone calls at one time. If you were to make a phone call here and there throughout the week, the project would take much longer.

By batching your tasks, you become much more efficient which can free up time for you later in the day to do other client work, or take (some well-deserved) time off. This technique works with virtually all tasks that you do: bookkeeping, reading emails, transcribing files, client projects, etc. You can even batch clients individually, rather than by task. What this means is that maybe you designate each day of the week to a particular client and do everything in that day for them. You’ll have to test this method out to see if it works out for you (and the client), but it can be a really effective way of getting projects done.

Another important thing to remember to schedule in your day is breaks. We all need a mental break throughout the day to ensure we’re on top of our game. So maybe you find that you can work for a solid 2 hours before your mind starts to wander. Then make sure you schedule your day in 2 hour batches with a 15 minute break to get something to drink, take a brief walk or just rest your brain.

By taking the time to outline your schedule and establish how you’ll get work done, you are setting yourself up for business and personal success. You’ll have a clear “start” and “end” time for your business and family time. This gives you the ability to make the time for doing housework (YUCK!) and of course enjoying your family time each day. By focusing on one project at a time, you are also giving your full attention to the task at hand. This is very important to completing clients’ projects, but also to your family who notices when you’re “distracted” by work.

What type of work schedules do you use? How do you batch your day? Please share your techniques with us so we can learn from each other and hopefully help someone improve their work and life balance!

Wil Hart on June 15, 2010

Keep Your Client Pipeline Full With Public Speaking

Public speaking is one of the most effective ways to attract more clients to your Virtual Assistant business. Even if you’re not comfortable talking in front of a crowd – right now – there’s a good reason you should start. Why? Because it’s the fastest way to automatically establish yourself as an expert in your field.

Think about it. When looking to hire a service provider, don’t you typically want to work with the BEST person for the job? Would you really consider hiring someone who offers substandard services? Of course not! So neither would your prospective clients.

By speaking in public, you automatically put yourself in the driver’s seat. Whether your presentation is 5 minutes long or 30 minutes long, the room is focused on you. Everyone is listening what you have to say and if you deliver great content, they are writing down everything you say and making a list of questions. That list of questions is a good thing because they are trying to envision themselves working with you.

Also, public speaking adds credibility to the virtual assistance industry as a whole. There are still so many people who are unclear about VA’s, what they do and how a VA can help them grow their business. By delivering a content rich speech on what a Virtual Assistant is and how you can help business owners increase their business and reduce their stress, you elevate your expertise as well as that of the entire VA industry. Continue Reading>>

Wil Hart on June 8, 2010

Develop a Client Attractive Attitude For Networking

Networking is a great way to meet people and build your business. While it may be easy for some people to just strike up a conversation and make all the right connections, it actually takes work to network. But the more successful you are at networking, the more successful you will be in your business.

One of the biggest indicators of your success as a networker is your attitude. Believe it or not, you demeanor says a lot about you before you even open your mouth. For example, think about the last time you went to the mall and sat on one of the benches to rest your feet and drink some water. What did you do? Well, if you’re like most of us, you watch people.

You know, you looked at all the people walking by you and thought about who they were and what they were doing and thinking…all in the blink of an eye. Admit it, you summed them up based on the way they carried themselves.

People make those same assumptions about you.

So, to ensure that you are networking for success, take these steps to make sure you are projecting the right attitude:

Smile. It might be a cliché but a smile is worth a thousand words. People will be instantly drawn to you or repelled by you based on your smile. Make sure it’s sincere and inviting. Don’t know what that looks like? Picture yourself at your happiest: think of your kids, your favorite vacation spot, etc. That’s the happy look you want.
Stand up straight. Now, I know this all sounds like your mother talking to you, but the rule still hold true. Standing up straight and being confident makes other people want to meet you and get to know you. Nothing is more attractive than self-confidence.
Genuinely listen to others. Make sure you focus on the other person, their story and their background. Building a relationship with them first is the best way to build a connection for life. There’s a reason for the saying, “Your net worth is directly proportional to your network.” Make sure you are making lifelong connections.

Taking a few moments to get an attitude adjustment can make all the difference in your networking. By making these few changes, you will find yourself looking forward to getting out there and meeting other people. Networking is supposed to be fun and exciting, not boring and a waste of time.

One last way to ensure you are getting the most out of any networking event is to make sure you only attend the networking events that make sense for you and your business. For example, if your ideal client is real estate agents, make sure you attend a networking event where you know real estate agents will be attending. Don’t just go to the next Chamber of Commerce meeting because you “might” find a potential client. In the long run, this will be futile and tarnish your perception about networking.

Remember networking is about building relationships and making connections. Make sure you project the right vibes so people will want to connect with you. And make sure you’re in the right place at the right time to make those connections.

Wil Hart on May 29, 2010

Marketing VA’s: How They Help Entrepreneurs Grow Their Business

One of the best ways to grow your business and earn more income, is to specialize in a specific type of virtual assistance. One option is to offer marketing support services. There is an ever growing need for marketing virtual assistants, particularly those who specialize in Internet marketing.

The two things EVERY business owner wants are 1) to make more money in their business and 2) to have more time to enjoy being self-employed. A VA who specializes in marketing and is directly connected to creating more profits and increased productivity will make herself invaluable to her clients. This type of virtual assistance is not just about supporting the entrepreneur to run their business effectively or waiting for the client to ask for help. It’s about taking initiative and being proactive about completing tasks and projects that create more opportunities for exposure and revenue in the client’s business.

Speakers, authors, coaches and consultants are part of the growing group of business owners who are hiring VA’s to help them market their business effectively. They’ve found that they just don’t have the time or the expertise to market themselves and their services . To create the desired results, marketing needs to be done in a focused and consistent way. By hiring a VA who specializes in marketing support, business owners can focus on their gifts and developing their business, while the VA executes their marketing plan to attract more clients and customers. Continue Reading>>

Wil Hart on May 25, 2010

Savvy Systems Means More Pro.fits

Savvy Virtual Assistants setup and implement systems to run their business. Using systems consistently will allow you to work as effectively and efficiently as possible. The more you can systemize, the more you can monetize!

Systems are the key to your business organization. It’s a way to ensure that you create consistent high-quality results in everything you do. This includes bookkeeping, communication, administrative, client support and marketing. Whether you realize it or not, you probably already have a system in place for all of these things, you just haven’t gone through the process of actually documenting them.

Documentation is the key to helping you streamline your processes so that you get better at doing things more quickly. Once you document your processes for how you handle different tasks, you’ll begin to see how you can either automate them or outsource them. This will free up time for you to spend on the two most important things: client work and marketing your business. Continue Reading>>

Wil Hart on May 10, 2010

How to Select a Name for Your Virtual Assistant Business

Choosing a name for your new business can be an exciting but stressful task. There are so many factors in selecting an appropriate name for your new company. While you can change the name down the line if you want/need it, it can be a cumbersome task. So you want to make a decision that will be comfortable for you to live with.

Here are my suggestions on points to consider when selecting a name for your VA business:

How do you want to brand your company? Do you want people to know your business based on what you do or, do you want them to know your business based on your name? Deciding to brand your business or yourself is an important first step in creating your business name.
What image are you trying to convey? When an ideal prospect hears the name of your company what thoughts do you want to come to mind? When they see your company name how to you want them to feel? Remember you’re a solutions provider, a problem solver. You want to convey the benefits and results that clients experience in working with you in every part of your brand, including your business name. Let this guide you toward selecting a name that fits. Continue Reading>>

Wil Hart on April 25, 2010

Need More Clients? Fish Where the Fish Are!

The number one question I get asked about Virtual Assistance EACH week is: “How do I get clients?”

The answer is very simple. You have to “fish, where the fish are!” And you have to “fish” consistently.

Many VAs find it difficult to market their services and thus struggle to consistently attract clients. This has mostly to do with one’s mindset, because we can often hold ourselves back from success because of limiting beliefs, fears or doubts. Have you ever thought to yourself:

“I can’t charge that much!”
“No one is really going to pay that for what I do.”
“Marketing is too hard and I’ll never be good at it.”

If you tell yourself things like this you’re right. But if you tell yourself:

“My time is worth X and I deserve to be paid that much!”
“There are plenty of people who need my services and I’m going to find them!”
“I can learn how to market my services in an authentic and comfortable way!” Continue Reading>>

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