I remember when I first started my business, I really struggled with that concept. How do I differ from any other VA out there? What is going to make people choose me instead of someone else? A lot of VA websites listed the same sort of services (mine included!). Being a “generalist” seemed to be the best way to find clients. I was afraid of alienating any prospective clients by not offering what it is they might have needed. I didn’t get the concept of keywords, or niche marketing, or “Build it and they will come”, because I was afraid of losing clients I didn’t even have yet!

Duh.

So here’s the skinny:

Step 1. Build your business around what you’re good at, what you love, what you know like the back of your hand, what people come to you for advice about, and what’s in demand. There. That’s your niche.

Step 2. Know who your ideal client is (a good start is “someone who values their time, knows their strengths & weaknesses, and gets the concept of paying a little to make a lot”. You don’t want to be spending your time marketing to people who are afraid to spend money or are micro-managers, do you? No, you want big-picture thinkers who are ready to take the next step in their business!).

Step 3. Market to your ideal client. Use specific keywords to help them find you (sign up for my weekly tip sheet over there on your left and you’ll get 2 audios related to driving website traffic). Have an online presence and start building relationships and networking. Walk the walk and Talk the talk!

There’s a place for everybody, especially in the VA industry. We’re SCREAMING for more Virtual Assistants! I’m turning away prospective clients week after week and I have noone to send them to! (That’s another reason why I’m about to launch my training program – but more on that another time.) Perfect example of why a niche is important is, well, me. Right now I have a few word processing jobs that I could use help with as my star Admin VA has recently switched gears and has moved on to another industry. She was my go-to VA for all word processing projects. From building online forms to formulating spreadsheets, to preparing minutes and agendas; all kinds of ad-hoc stuff that comes up from my clients once in a while. Well, for some reason, a bunch of it just came up and I really need someone who’s ON IT with word processing. Someone who knows MS Office products like it’s nobody’s business! Someone who can create a form in a jiffy, not someone who is learning as they go. So there, there’s a great example of a niche. A niche that’s needed. A niche that’s of value.

Don’t be afraid to narrow down your service offerings, or to create a whole business around one service in particular. There’s no shortage of potential clients, that’s one thing I know for sure!

I’m sharing the best of what I learned in a one hour webinar next month, hosted by the Canadian Virtual Assistant Connection. Eight tips on what I found really works – things makes a huge difference in visitors (visitors that buy!).

So stop sweating it. Join me in the webinar to learn some proven no-cost tips to easily increase your website traffic – strategies you can implement right away!

Where: All classes are web-based as such come to you live from your desktop.

Cost: Free for all CVAC members. $5.00 for non-members

Click here if you’re a CVAC member

Click here if you’re NOT a CVAC member

Limited space available, first come first served – complete instructions are provided upon registration.

Full details and registration.

1. Use wordpress as the backbone of your website. It’s SEO friendly and intuitive. And heck, it’s super-easy to build your site on this platform
2. Think of what words your potential clients will be plugging in to Google to find you, and use those keywords on each page of your website.
3. Also use those words on your Linkedin profile, Twitter profile, and Facebook page.
4. Link back and forth between pages of your website. Not overkill, but make sure to do a few here and there.
5. Write blog posts frequently and use specific keywords so your market will find you (big tip: link up your blog feed to your Twitter account and your Facebook page so you’re reaching hundreds or thousands of people at once).
6. Write articles (tip: recycle as much content as possible. You want ot work smarter, not harder, so compile similar blog posts or a series of blog posts into an article and submit to my personal fave: Ezinearticles.com).
7. Write press releases – write one when you launch your biz and submit to to top 5 or 6 online distribution sites (google search for them, they’re easy to find)

The first 2 or 3 tips are the fastest and easiest – things you can implement today. 

There. Done. SEO in a matter of minutes.

*
Note: there’s much more to SEO and you can go layers and layers deep, but for those of us who have small(er) businesses with low (to no!) marketing budgets, this is a great place to start. I increased my business by over 200% in a matter of three weeks by simply implementing the 1st and 2nd point. Not bad, I’d say!

Happy New Year!

Now?

It’s a much different story. I’ve spoken to colleagues in the industry and, like mine, their practices are full.

Which is a GREAT problem to have, for sure, and it tells me something very important:

The world needs more Virtual Assistants.

Simple as that.

It’s a viable business. It’s an adaptable business. It’s a flexible business (if you want it to be). It’s (and oh, so important for us moms who want to be at home) a work-at-home business! There’s low to NO investment necessary. It’s low (to NO) risk. It’s something you can do nights & weekends until you’re ready to take the plunge and go at it full-time. It’s something you can actually get paid to learn.

I had a friend reach out on Facebook recently who was very stressed in her current corporate job (I completely understand THAT one!) as a receptionist in the real estate sector. She desperately wanted to do something on her own but was unsure of how to go about it. Then she remembered me and my business and started looking into the Virtual Assistant industry. We had conversations back and forth on email, facebook and telephone and now she is subcontracting (that’s how you can get paid to learn!) with me to learn a bit about the biz and get her feet wet (and help me out from under that overflowing inbox!).

I offered her a few tips and now I’m offering them to you too… all you Virtual Assistants who don’t know you’re Virtual Assistants yet!

Don’t quit your day job…. yet. For two reasons: the first, of course, is it can take a while to get clients and get known and build a position for yourself in the industry so you’ll need that income from a day job. Secondly, to tail spin on the first… your day job will be less emotionally/mentally stressful when you know what you have happening on the side and when you start to get clients.

Figure out your niche and your target market. What will you specialize in? What do you like to do? What do you know how to do? This is it! I’m known for email management/calendar maintenance and system implementation to make their lives (both online and off) run smoother and more efficiently.

Grab a domain name and set up a website. Use WordPress – it’s free and keyword friendly. As soon as I switched from an html site to wordpress and used keywords to attract my ideal client, the calls started coming in (to the tune of a 200% increase in my roster in a matter of WEEKS). Even if you don’t really know any html, the instructions for installation are easy-peasy. And I can help. (I’d suggest using hostpapa for domain name registration and purchasing. There’s an ad here on my site, over there to the left!, that you can click on to do all this. Yes, I get a small fee for this, but I LOVE hostpapa and will only use them for all my sites. AND their instructions for WordPress installation are SO easy, it pretty much does everything on its own!)

Join the Canadian Virtual Assistant Connection and get on their list serve. Their emails are usually full of great information. Also check out VaNetworking.com – lots of great information from other VA’s there too.

Subcontract for another VA to get some experience under your belt and learn how this sort of business works.

And lastly? Feel free to call or email me anytime to chat about it! So exciting!!!

Some people are of the mind that, hey, if you take the time to follow me, I’ll reciprocate and follow you. Others go more along the lines of hey, if I take the time to follow you and you don’t follow me back immediately, I’m outta here. (So there!)  And yet there are still others who follow just to up their numbers and then dump you like yesterday’s garbage.

And then there are those that follow you because they think you have something of value to say or share. Or perhaps you made them laugh, or think, or strategize. Maybe you inspire them somehow. Maybe they just like you. They’re not necessarily following you just to get followed back, but they like you!

There are a few reasons I follow someone and it has seemed to work rather well for me. I’ve made some great friends, great contacts, learned things of value, had a few chuckles, and landed numerous clients on twitter.  So here is a quick look into why I follow folks on Twitter.

1. I think you’re interesting or funny or engaging. Somehow you’ve resonated with me.

2. I’m supporting you because you’re another mompreneur who’s doing the best she can do make it all happen. (I’m a huge supporter of other mompreneurs).

3. You followed me and I’m reciprocating because of either #1 or #2 above.

4. We’ve done business together, either past or present.

5. I met you either in person or online. It’s a great way to stay connected quickly and easily.

6. You’re my target market and I’ve got a 50/50 chance that you’ll follow me back and perhaps we’ll strike up a conversation.

7. You’re my competition and this is another way of staying on top of what’s happening in the marketplace.

8.You’re either directly or peripherally related to my industry.

9. You’re a local Vancouverite!

A few times a month I go into my list and see who my new followers are.  Sometimes I follow back, sometimes I don’t. It’s nothing personal; I have a lot of folks who don’t follow me back. So hey, whatevs. It’s all good.

I think the disconnect happens when people take Twitter so personally. Just because somebody doesn’t follow you back in the timeline you want them to doesn’t mean they won’t… they just might not have gotten around to it yet! We’re busy folks. We’ve got a lot going on! We’re all being pulled in ten directions at once. So chill.

And I think another thing to watch out for is over-doing the self-promotion. Keep it to the 80/20 ratio. People get tired and click “unfollow” faster than you can say “where’d all my followers go?” when all they see is a stream of self promotion or retweets.  ENGAGE with your followers. Talk with them. Strike up a conversation. Butt in! You’re allowed. It’s an open playing field.  And have fun. Meet new people. Learn new things. It’s all part of the new web. The new way of doing business.

So drop by and say hi. I’ve relaunched my twitter account to really connect with the folks I’m aligned with. Let’s get the party started!

I almost answered, “All of them”. (In hindsight, I should have! I mean, come on, when it’s your own business – especially, I would assume, when running it out of your home, aren’t we always working? Aren’t we always, “on”? Aren’t we always mere steps away from hopping back to it?  But I digress….)

“I work intermittently throughout the day”.

I was greeted with silence. And I was surprised by that. So I piped up again, “I work in chunks of time throughout the day”.

“You mean you’re not glued do your desk like the rest of us?”

And finally, cheekily, “No, I would die.”

See, I’m more productive when I work this way. I’m more focused, I’m faster, I have more clarity, I’m sharper. I’m more creative, I’m recharged, I’m energetic. My body hurts less (I mean hunched over the laptop, slouched, squinting?  OUCH!), my eyes hurt less, my BRAIN hurts less!

And I’m a hell of a lot more fun to be around than when I’ve been working for 8 to 10 (or more) hours straight.

Then 16 months ago I had a baby. Went from being an Entrepreneur to being a Mompreneur overnight (well, actually it was over 55 hours… but that’s another story…).  So thank goodness I was used to this work style, because I had to work intermittently. I had to schedule client calls around nap times (and hope he didn’t wake up screaming, lol!) and child care days. Had to stop everything because it was story time. Had to shut down the laptop at 4pm to start clean up and supper. And had to save that email I was in the middle of writing to Drafts because my kid is so darn cute that I just had to run over and give him a million kisses and hugs.

So yeah, this “punctuated workday” works well for me. Heck, it works extremely well. And for my business model. And especially for my clients. I’m blessed with these amazing clients and customers who get it, who gel with it (or just don’t care!).

Not every day is like this. Take today for example. I’m holed up in my office finishing up a project and starting two more. I’ve been at it for 5 hours and am going for another few. Hey, if a client needs me to be there, I’m there. If I have a deadline on a huge project, you can bet your bottom dollar I’m not away from the computer much. I take a day or 2 a week for this kind of  marathon, but the other 5 days?

Is when the magic happens. Is when the creativity flows. Is when new products are created. Is when productivity increases. Is when new relationships are built. Is when clients join the Scratchpad Secretaries family. Is when I move and shake and make things happen – for me, but more importantly, for my clients. It’s when I’m at my best. It’s when I’m ON!

It just works for me.

And apparently it makes a lot of sense.

How do you work? What works best for yourself, your lifestyle, your business model? Leave me a comment, I can’t wait to hear!

Until one day I could.

I was putting him in his bed for his nap one afternoon and he would have NONE of it. He was crying and crying and standing up with his hands on the railing and just looking at me through teary eyes and a tear-streaked face and it was so sad and pulled at my heart…. so I shut the door and went on about my business.

I knew to my core that if I took him out of his crib and back out into the living room, I’d be actually doing him a disservice. I knew he was tired. I knew he was exhausted. I knew what he needed.  And what he needed was sleep.

Sure enough, after just a few minutes, he was out.

Fast forward to recently.  I was doing a “quick and easy” project for a client. Only it wasn’t so quick and easy (they never are, sigh….).  The software I had didnt’ have the capability for what he wanted. I had put the call out to other Virtual Assistants for info and feedback, had called out on Twitter (and learned a lot), but what he wanted couldn’t be done with what I had, nor with the next step up. And I wasn’t going to make a $299.00 purchase for a quick job when I just knew there had to be a better and easier way. So, I stopped everything and thought for a few minutes.

“Am I really going to tell him I can’t do this? Am I going to send a job back only 3/4 finished? Am I really going to say, Sorry, but there you go?”

No. That wasn’t sitting well with me. It just was all wrong. It just wasn’t me. It just wasn’t my business practice. I don’t work that way. End of story.

BUT, what should have been a 1.5 hour job, was now going on 4 hours. This service was now becoming a disservice to both him and me.  Him, because he should have had this back yesterday, and me because I was spending too much time on this and stressing out. And, I had other clients’ work to be doing. And come on, in an hours for dollars business model? Time is money (and more on that another day!).

And then I found the answer. An online solution. An inexpensive solution. And a much easier and less convoluted solution. One that he could use over and over and over for less cost than hiring an Admin support person.

Did I shoot myself in the foot?

Maybe. But in good graces I just couldn’t leave him high and dry.

So two takeaways really:

1. when service is becoming a disservice, end it. BUT,
2. admit there is a problem and offer a solution!

So I’ve just saved him A) a bit (potentially a lot) of money and B) I’ve found him another way to automate his business and ease some workload.

Oh, and C) I’ve found a great app to use for future clients and for my own business going forward!

***

if anyone is curious, the service is pdffiller.com

Pretty much about getting off your butt and just doing it.

When I was still working in the corporate world, I had the idea for Scratchpad Secretaries. It was my “maybe someday” idea. I mean, I had a cushy job with tremendous perks. I had a steady, and pretty good, income. I knew what I had to do each day, I knew how to do what I had to do each day.

With my eyes closed.

So why rock the boat? Why pursue something totally new and foreign? I mean, I had no idea how to start a business, let alone how to RUN one! Domain name? Hosting? Web development? Social media? Business plan? PR?

Huh?

So I put it away, in the back of my mind, for a rainy day.

Fast forward one month and, well, it was a rainy day.

The rainy day was now the perfect opportunity. So I grabbed it.  With gusto.

And never looked back.

Hindsight is 20/20, we all know that, so one of the best lessons out of all this for me was to JUST DO IT!

If you’re in a corporate job, especially a cushy corporate job, and have fear about striking out on your own?

Do it anyway.

You don’t have to up and quit. You don’t have to drop everything. You DO have nights and weekends though. So yeah, you don’t have to quit your day job (yet).

On maternity leave?

A GOLDEN opportunity to spread your wings. To check things out. To test out your business idea.

To be able to stay at home and raise your babies while bringing in an income!

The piece of advice I give to everyone is to Just Do It. Just start it! Baby steps are okay. Start with some research. Grab that domain name. Survey your target market. Find out if this will fly.  Just make sure you keep on it. You had this idea for a reason.

So act on it!

Whenever you find yourself thinking, “that would be awesome to do”, or “what a great idea for a side business”, or “hey, I could totally do that”?

DO IT!

Turn that someday, into To-Day!

Ei yi yi.

This is why I love Google Calendar.  It’s the one place in my life where everything makes sense! It’s the one place in my life where there is order, lol!

I simply plunk in my “to do’s”, set it to remind me via email, AND (lifesaver) it emails me my agenda for the day each morning.

You can create as many calendars as you want. I have one for my biz, one for my personal, one for my husband and one for my son’s appointments/play dates. Sounds like too many?

The bonus is that you can colour code each one and merge them all together. WAY easier than putting everything into just one – I’m a visual person, I see the colours easier and more quickly than monochromatic text only. And believe it or not, it’s less cluttered.

Try it. Let me know how it goes. Or fill me in on how you keep track of your busy Mompreneur lifestyle; I’m always looking for tips & tricks!