Archive for the ‘Recommended VA Training’ Category

Note from Tawnya: Today we have a special guest blogger, Sharon Williams, founder of the Online International Virtual Assistant Convention (OIVAC).  Sharon gave me her take on a  couple of questions VAs have been asking me lately…

Thanks for kicking off OIVAC’s annual VA blog hopping and podcast tour. Over the next 30 days, Sharon Williams, OIVAC Chairperson, will travel the blogosphere responding to questions about the VA industry and how virtual assistants can become a “value-add” benefit for potential clients. She will also discuss the upcoming VA convention (May 20-22) and the benefits of attending. Feel free to add comments or additional questions. Sharon will come back and respond. Okay Tawnya, let’s begin. What’s your first question?

1.   Is the downturn in the economy affecting the VA industry?

Yes! The downturn has had positive and negative effects. I’m sure VAs without a written business plan and concise marketing strategy are experiencing difficulty, because they haven’t “planned” for situations such as client loss or slowdown. Additionally, many entrepreneurs are “price shopping” resulting in “cheap” being the major determining factor when choosing a virtual assistant, instead of “value-add” which takes into consideration an individual’s knowledge, skills, experience and abilities.

Secondly, many VAs are “discounting” their services, in the belief this will attract and retain customers. However, they fail to realize that by under pricing services they are actually digging a deeper hole for themselves, because they aren’t making enough income to support their household/lifestyles. When the economy takes an upswing, it will be very difficult to raise their prices proportionately for a low paying client.

On the other hand, VAs with foresight, flexibility, a targeted customer base, sensible marketing plan, and appreciable skills, will continue, at a minimum, to sustain their business and in many instances increase profits. Why? Savvy business owners are looking for ways to reduce costs, develop alternative resources, and continue providing valuable-add services to their clients, and VAs (if positioned properly) can fulfill these demands.

If a VA’s income is decreasing because of the economic downturn, I recommend the following:

• Evaluate the situation, conduct research and identify services clients are seeking.
• Confer with current clients, to identify new responsibilities you can assume.
• Become efficient (even an expert) in sought-after skills.
• Develop a marketing strategy for your new target audience, to pull those customers into your business funnel.
• Become a valuable asset to the client.

The state of the economy will not matter if the VA possess marketable skills, knows what their ideal client wants, and positions themselves as the value-add; a viable contributing member of the team.

2. Some VAs tell me I’m not a VA because I offer additional services over and beyond my administration skills, i.e. marketing, blog maintenance, shopping cart, etc.  Am I not a VA?

Absolutely! Tell the naysayers to step into the 21^st century and smell the roses.

Seriously, the Internet and new technologies has allowed (even forced) VAs to expand their skill sets, knowledge and training, to offer services entrepreneurs are requesting. Years ago (and even now in some circles), a virtual assistant (in the purest form) was identified as a person solely providing administrative-related services. However, during the industry’s 15 year evolution, we have witnessed the launch of many innovative technologies, resources, etc., and admins (even those in corporate settings) have to adapt to the times and stay abreast of the latest and greatest.

Even traditional corporate admins are responsible for company blogs, marketing campaigns, websites, etc. If a person wants to be a purist, fine! But don’t berate VAs that see beyond the horizon and understand the times and work environments change; and are willing to change with them. So yes, you are a Virtual Assistant – working virtually, providing support services from a remote location or your home office.

3. Is social networking changing the way VAs find clients?

Yes it is. Dating back many years (I don’t want to tell my age), an efficient way to reach clients was the traditional “Yellow Pages” or by “word of mouth”. Now “word of mouth” still works, but online social networking is a good communication tool that has opened many doors, and allows VAs to reach a larger audience, in an informal setting.

VAs have opportunities to regularly initiate conversation amongst peers and potential clients, showcase their authentic self, establish and promote their brand, and monitor and control the dialogue.

However, a downside could be that VAs are “hiding” behind the social networking craze and aren’t attending local events or meet-ups. They may soon forget the concept of “meet and greet” and holding longer than 140 character or two-paragraph conversations. So, ever so often, attend a local networking activity, where you can hone your pitch and “press the flesh”.

While social networking is the newest way to make a connection, next year a new craze may begin, and social networking will become an afterthought. You must stay prepared.

Do you remember 8-track tapes or 3.5 inch disks?

4.  Why should VAs attend conferences in our industry?

I am asked this question often, and my standard reply is, “it’s all relative”. What I mean is, if you want to stay abreast of new technologies, services, niches, and trends, (and network with peers), you should invest in your business. Attending industry events offer great opportunities to achieve these goals.

Participants are able to associate a name, a voice, an experience – with their counterparts, and develop long-term relationships and even joint venture partnerships from the formal and informal interaction.

Finally, based on your individual budget, attending conferences (and OIVAC) allows you to explore subjects that perked your interest or reinforce your knowledge and skills. I highly recommend that VAs participate in industry events – to learn more about our industry, its evolution and trends that can put more dollars in your pockets.

Well, that’s all for today. I hope these responses are helpful and look forward to all of you joining me in the Land of Oz, when we visit Ms. Lyn Prowse-Bishop at Executive Stress Office Support tomorrow.

Sharon Williams is President of The 24 Hour Secretary and Chair of OIVAC. Don’t forget to stop by OIVAC and check our lineup of savvy business owners. Visit the schedule and register for the Technology or Business/Marketing Tracks designed to propel your business to its next plateau.

Virtual Assistants and Online Business Managers …. It’s time to take note of a new trend in the virtual world.

The topic?

Compensation.

Traditionally, us virtual professionals have stuck to the “time for money” compensation model.  Meaning we charge an hourly rate or retainer fee based a block of time to complete our client work.

It works great in many ways … but after building great relationships, taking on more tasks, owning more responsibility in the business and then getting too busy, feeling exhausted, letting things drop and eventually wondering if it’s all really worth it …. You realize it isn’t so great after all.

Why?

Because there are only so many hours in a day you can work. And there’s only so much you can charge per hour.

Online ‘old-timers’ Tina Forsyth and Andrea Lee are taking a stance on breaking free from the time for money trap.  They’re inviting Virtual Assistants and Online Business Managers to join a conversation about incentive based compensation.

My $ecret too! I’ve been utilizing their compensation method for many years within my Virtual Assistant business.  You don’t think I bought all my favourite toys from working just 9-5 on my hourly rates in my home office do you?

On October 20^th, you can join Tina and Andrea for a FREE call about what incentive based compensation means, the options available, how to implement, why to consider it and much more.  This is critical stuff … if you try to introduce incentive based compensation without hearing what they have to say – it may ultimately destroy your client relationships.

Give yourself the opportunity to break free from the time for money trap.  Start by joining Tina and Andrea for their fre’e call on October 20^th.

CLICK NOW to Register for this free call on >>>

Incentive Based Compensation For YOUR Virtual Assistant Business

As you look at the current Social Media frontier in the latter part of 2009, it is clear that there are two particular channels that have become “shining stars” among the business community.

Any idea what those two channels might be? Let me tell you…

Twitter & Facebook Fan Pages

Facebook Fan pages are one of the hottest pieces of Real Estate on the Web today especially since Facebook made some positive changes back in February of 2009. Presently, over ten million users become fans of Facebook pages each day. There are essentially five reasons why Facebook Fan pages are such a compelling channel to increase your business visibility:

1. Fan Pages facilitate greater interaction with a target audience.
2. Fan Pages are very SEO friendly and well indexed in Google.
3. Fan Pages allow you to build and connect with an unlimited fan base.
4. Facebook Applications enable you to now create visually appealing FB landing pages.
5. Fan Pages are a powerful viral marketing tool. As users interact with your page, this shifts to their walls and news feeds leading to increased exposure!

Our colleagues at the training center, VAClassroom seem to have the knack for creating training programs just at the right time when the market demand is on the rise. Businesses are ultra motivated to create compelling Facebook Fanpages, but either lack the time or expertise to pull it off. VAClassroom has recently launched a new two-week mini-course called: ‘Fantastic Facebook Fanpages”.

In this short mini-course, they going to cover such topics as:

• How to design, develop and market your fan page with a user-friendly step by step guide
• How to create visually appealing Facebook landing pages
• Success strategies for leveraging Facebook applications to increase the visibility of your business
• Simple SEO tips for helping your pages get more traffic from the Search Engines
• Practical tips for building a targeted email list with your fan page.

And so much more!

Registration is officially now open for this new mini-course starting on October 19th!

Just click on the link here -> to learn how to create a facebook fan page to grab your seat today!