Free Virtual Assistant Mastermind Group

Just launched, a free mastermind group for Virtual Assistants and other work at home professionals. A place to come together, share resources, advice, and best practices. Best of all it’s free to join!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/VAMastermindGroup/join

Free Social Media Training

Last night I tuned in to a wonderful webinar hosted by Ian Griffin and Jim Carillo, two wonderful public speakers and social media experts. They polled other speakers and found out that many people, when it comes to social networking, are still a bit lost. So they put together this program to teach people how to effectively use social media for business.

It was a very well put together presentation and I must admit, even though I have been using social media myself for years, and helping my clients to use social media for business, there were a few things that I picked up that I either had not thought of or didn’t know.

It’s a great series, so sign up, it’s free!

Effective Outsourcing

One of the greatest challenges that I find my clients tend to struggle with is what to outsource first. It’s rare that my clients have a business plan, marketing strategy, and PR strategy all written out with specific tasks. Most of them have a goal in sight, but have not thought much about how to get there.

Here are a few points to consider when outsourcing so that you maximize the billable hours and enjoy the results.

1) First consider what the big picture outcome looks like. What does your business look like? What does your personal life look like? How is your business structured?

2) Thinking about the big picture, where are you one year from now? Two years? Three?

3) The distance between where you are and where you want to be can be large or small depending on where you are in your business, but it’s not unreachable. You just need a plan.

4) Determine your market. Who is your target client, specifically where are they located, how old are they, are they male or female, what is the income level, what clubs and organizations do they belong to, are they “internet savvy” or would they respond better to TV, Radio, or print ads?

5) Once you have identified where your clients live and who they are, you can think about how you will campaign for PR and advertising. Think about your overall budget and start with the most specific and focused method possible. For example, a business that caters to mostly women might advertise in a local women’s paper or magazine. This type of targeted advertising will be much less expensive then advertising with a national magazine or newspaper. Join online communities that serve and support women.

6) After you have determined what methods of PR and Advertising you will use to reach your market, you’re ready to formulate a plan and consider how an outsourced professional can help you to get there. Do you want to learn how to leverage Social Media, blogs, and articles? A Virtual Assistant can help. Most VA’s are willing to consult for a flat rate and assist with implementation on a low hourly fee. Do you have a website with outdated content or content that does not speak to your target market? A good VA can help to revise the website copy and make the updates live.

7) If you’re still not sure what elements of your business strategy you are comfortable outsourcing, start with this question: “What is the number one thing that I know I need to do to grow my business, that I either hate doing or procrastinate doing the most.” Whatever the answer, that will help you identify what key tasks to outsource. In business you should always start with what is most comfortable. As you grow you will sometimes find that your comfort level changes as you enjoy success. A VA can’t market your business for you 100%. When it comes to your business, you are the expert and you have to be willing to sell yourself as the expert. But a VA can help by “lightening the load” so that the process is a bit more comfortable to you.

Relationship Networking

I am a huge supporter of and believer in relationship networking.

Relationship networking is all about cultivating business and personal relationships that help you and your business to grow. It sounds rather self serving and maybe even a little shallow, but in reality it’s what deep and lasting friendships are all about.

It’s a two-way relationship. It’s about giving more than getting. It’s about rewards that are not always tangible or economic. The compensation that comes is deeper and more profound.

One of the questions that I am asked most frequently by other VA’s is “How did you grow your business?” and I used to think it was rather by luck. A closer look reveals that it was all about growing relationships. When I served a client above and beyond their expectation, a bond was formed. As I got to know these clients, the bond grew and deepened. One of my oldest and dearest clients knows my child (and asks about her all the time) and treats her as if she were family. It’s clients like her that have helped my business to grow, develop, and thrive.

Meeting new people and thinking about all of the ways that they could market their business and being ever watchful for opportunities for them is all a part of it too. I’ve learned this from a great friend who also helped me to launch my business. She is one of those rare “master connectors” who knows absolutely EVERYONE and is never shy about making a referral or introduction. She is such a wonderful relationship marketer and a great example of someone who is worthy of being called a mentor.

If you have heard the expression that good work is hard to find, it’s one expression that most people believe. People would rather ask their friends advice before investing time and money into a project, then to have to weed through all of the possibilities to look for the one “diamond in the rough”. This applies to more than just looking for a great VA, it applies to looking for an accountant, a Realtor, even comes in to play when deciding what consumer goods to purchase, where to shop, and more. We all listen to our peers and weigh what they tell us with our own thoughts and desires.

So how do you become one of those people who your friends and peers will refer their friends and peers to?

It’s not really that difficult. It’s all in how you treat people and how you leverage those relationships. If you are honest, ethical, and fair people will think highly of you. If you seek to serve others more than yourself, they will come to admire you. If you are good to your word, they will see that you are reliable too. Once you have shown how hard working, honest, and reliable you are, keep your name on the tip of their tongues. Show up, be involved, stay in touch, be noticed. You don’t have to constantly call and pester and beg, but saying hello and dropping an email just to see how they are, sending a birthday or Christmas card– let them know you care and are thinking of them and they will remember you.

A lot of people when starting a business skip immediately over their friends and peers and start cold calling and soliciting for business from strangers. I’m not saying that you should immediately start selling to your friends and peers, but let them know that you have started a business, let them know who your target market is, and what you can do to serve and further benefit your target market, and ask for their help in getting the word out. Be honest, sincere, and frank about wanting to grow your business and expand. You never know who you know that could know someone who could be your next big client. But you’ll never know unless you first ASK. I’m also not suggesting that you ask your friends every time you want something, but ask for their opinion on the big things. Ask them to look over your new website and give feedback. Ask them to look at your brochures and let you know if they are eye-catching enough. Again, don’t bombard them with requests all the time, but from time to time ask for their opinions. People love to give advice, and will often give it unsolicited, so give them the opportunity to give it.

Another thing to remember is to take the “me” and the “I” out of your networking conversations. Instead of talking incessantly about your new business venture or your new project, ask your friends and peers how they are doing, how their business is growing, ask them how they overcame certain challenges or obstacles. Make it about them, not you. Ask about their grand kids or kids or pets. Ask them about anything having to do with them, and REMEMBER what they tell you. Ask them about some detail that you learned last time you saw them so that they know you remember them.

Building a business based on relationships really and truly is all about the relationship. Often we worry too much about where the money is going and where it will come from, that we forget about the people involved. Get to know people again, and you will feel rewarded by your business every time.