When someone decides to become a Virtual Assistant, they usually think in terms of offering services related to their experience.  They are already facing the task of learning how to provide their services as they transition to using hardware and software to go virtual.  Many VA’s, once established, gain steady clients and/or project work.

However, if they are involved in VA organizations or forums, they consistently hear that “niching” their services is the way to go.  If you are considering this option, the first question you should have is “what are the pros and cons of becoming a specialist?”

5 Pros to Become a Specialist:

1. The Virtual Assistance industry is growing rapidly in 2010.  Becoming a Specialist allows you to stand out from the crowd.
2. You can narrow down your “target market” and your “ideal client”.
3. You can become a “thought leader” in your specialized field.
4. You can provide more detailed services, tailored to your client’s needs.
5. You can more easily focus on updating your education and experience to the latest methods and skills in your speciality.

The Cons:

1. In order to become a Specialist you have to train yourself to be fully knowledgeable in your chosen field.  You have 2 choices.  You can choose to research and learn from countless sources on the internet but that involves an extraordinary amount of time and does not necessarily provide you with all the information to be the best at that service and provide the desired results for your clients.  Or you can research all the sites, groups and schools that have courses available but you have to be prepared to spend varying amounts of money to get the education, get certified or obtain a diploma, and purchase the hardware and software you will need.
2. If you specialize, be consistent.   It is very easy to be distracted by providing totally unrelated or general services and robs you of the time you want and need to be making use of  your specialized services.  The way to rise above all the competition, is to “be on top of your game”.  Be clear in your marketing messages and your branding.
3. In specializing, you have narrowed down who your clients will be but it may be difficult to turn down a big project or steady client.

If you have decided that being a specialist is the right choice for you, are you aware of all the areas of specialization available in the Virtual world?  You can choose to have professional clients in specific industries like legal, medical, real estate, authors/speakers, the trades, etc. OR you can choose a specialty service and offer it to various sizes and kinds of businesses.

Some examples of “niched” services:

• Internet Marketing Specialist
• Social Media Marketing Specialist
• Virtual Event Specialist
• Copywriter
• Press Release Specialist
• Research/Development Specialist
• Search Engine Optimization Specialist
• Accounting/Bookkeeping Specialist
• Video Marketing Specialist
• Website Creator
• Desktop Publishing
• Blog Marketing Specialist
• Transcriptionist

…..and the list goes on.

If you have specialized, what was your choice?  Why did you choose that particular specialty?  And if you have a specialized service you want to add to this list, please feel free..

Diane L. Coville

ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

http://www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

 Despite the best of my intentions, I got side-tracked from my Blog in January 2010.  The year started very different from what I anticipated.  Five new opportunities/prospects came my way for which I am very excited as my business is growing again but I also got sidetracked from my strict regime of networking and blogging.

As well, when VA Classroom announced they were offering a new and updated Social Media 2010 program at the beginning of February, I debated for 0nly one day about whether or not to sign-up.  But I realized that although I received excellent training from their first Social Media Marketing course in 2009, things have changed significantly since that time and it is difficult to keep abreast of all the new and innovative ways to use this media to it’s full potential.

A week into the course, and I do not regret signing up.

When I first provided Social Media services to my clients, it was easy to strategize for those clients that had far reaching “ideal clients” internationally or nationally.  But it was more difficult to find and refine helping “local” clients – those that had a focus on clients in a specific region such as – a plumber, a flower store, a nutritionist, a trainer/coach, etc.

Those who also identified the needs of local businesses came up with all sorts of software, sites and tools to help local businesses optimize their strategies.

And on the other end of the spectrum, Corporations and Organizations also recognized that ignoring the Social Media realm as a fad would be a huge mistake.  And so they started dreaming up new ways of making Social Media work for them.

• One great example is Best Buy.  Their people developed Twelpforce for Twitter.  Many of their best salespeople, technicians and customer service people work through Twelpforce to assist customers on-line, and in their stores.
• I also recently discovered another great new resource specifically focused on customer service called Get Satisfaction.  Facebook uses it and so does Ping.fm.  I specifically had a problem within Ping.fm and within 3 hours, using Get Satisfaction, I was communicating with one of their customer service people who resolved my problem effortlessly.  I was very grateful for their efforts in getting my issue resolved to my complete sastisfaction in record time.

Those two examples of how Social Media has spawned new ways for businesses to interact more effectively with their prospects, present customers and referrals with a  fresh approach is only the beginning of many new dynamic trends in how this medium will develop in 2010.

Please feel free to share new methods you have discovered in Social Media.

Diane Coville

ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

Going Green

I recently got “tagged” by Janet Barclay, owner of  Organized Assistant who was tagged, in turn, by Sheila Sheffield of Tree Beginnings who came up with the  Green Challenge!  The challenge is to pass on three ideas about how you try to minimize your impact on the environment, then tag 5 more bloggers to carry it on.

Since January is fast approaching with a fresh New Year ahead, I have been strategizing for 2010 – what worked in 2009 and what didn’t and  how I want to move forward in 2010.  Of course, the economy and the shift in how businesses are operating in this recession plays a large part in the strategizing process and those who do not pay attention to the changes and think the old “tried and true” methods will still produce desired results, should take pause and do a little research.  Just my opinion…

Most of my strategies involve my company, but that directly relates to my personal side as well, being a small business owner and an entrepreneur.  And one big shift I have been working toward is going GREEN. 

Therefore, my three ideas for minimizing my impact on the environment are as follows:

Garbage Waste:

Like Janet, I also recycle and compost. 

On the business side, anything that is still useable, whether it be company related like office equipment, office supplies or the like, is taken to Goodwill or a company that recycles business related items.  I even check for used items that I need for my business such as a filing cabinet or office chair before I look to purchase new items.  I also reuse paper – if printing is on one side, I often print on the other side as well for unofficial documents and also use for scrap paper for writing notes.

On the personal side, I send items like gently used clothing, cooking utensils, books and appliances to Goodwill.  I buy a lot of food items in reusable containers – plastic or glass containers that can be reused to store leftovers or dry goods items that I buy in bulk from Bulk Barn.  When they are broken or damaged, they go to the recycle bin.

Car Usage:

Being virtual, I already have reduced my car travel as I work from my home office and only, when necessary, do on site work for clients.  And when I am out doing site work, I incorporate my runarounds for errands into the same trip, saving gas, time and money.  The bank, drug store and food store are not within walking distance but I do have a bus that stops right outside my door.  I shun drive thrus – no wasteful idling for me.

Hydro:

Computer on standby or shut off when not in use.  Low watt, energy saving light bulbs, LED Xmas lights, TVs and lights turned off when no-one is in a room, cold wash laundry & minimal use of dryer.

And these are the bloggers I am tagging:

• Andrea Kalli
• Kathy Colaiacovo
• Janice Byer
• Lisa Olinda
• Karri Flatla

I realize this is a very busy time of year, but would appreciate your comments and suggestions on how to contribute to going green and link love.

Diane L. Coville

ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

Joint Venture Business

When I first heard about Joint Ventures, I was thinking in terms of big business such as a merger between two large companies.  There have been so many in the last few years.  Recent mergers or acquisitions like Yahoo and Xobit (inbox spelled backwards) or IBM and Outblaze are two examples of companies that want a share of the Social Media realm and email services geared to Social Media.

So, at first, I wasn’t sure whether Joint Ventures would even apply to my tiny business and whether I should consider it.

Joint Ventures are not beneficial for just big business.  Whatever size your business, partnerships with other businesses looks more and more inviting in challenging economic times as a means of acquiring new clients for both parties involved, and sometimes multiple parties.

Since my business is Virtual Assistance, I have heard of many joint venture partnerships amongst many VA’s who specialize in different fields – they have often evolved into multi-VA businesses.  Each individual VA – such as an Internet Marketer, a Copywriter, a Website Developer, an SEO specialist and a Social Media Marketing VA  joining together can each bring their special talents to the table to provide clients with a fantastic service in optimizing a website to reach it’s full potential on the internet.

I encountered someone a short time ago who operates a business group in the trades.  Individual men, each owning their own business – a plumber, a drywaller, a roofer, a painter, an electrician, a carpenter, etc. all worked under one roof as a “group” to provide services to their clients.

Another example might be a Business Coach who partners with a Sales Expert and a Website Developer to present a webinar/seminar or event even though they operate individual businesses.

And often experts come together in multi-speaker events taking place on-line or locally with all kinds of themes such as preparing for the sale of a house or property or environmental issues.

If you think about your business, who would you be interested in collaborating with that could benefit your business, their business and the clients?

One place to look for possibilities would be JV Village, a NING social group.  They can be found at:  http://jvvillage.ning.com/.  As well, if you belong to any Social Media networks like Facebook or LinkedIn, many groups can be found with similar businesses or opportunities for alliances.  One of my clients, who belonged to many groups, posted a discussion, looking for Joint Venture opportunities.  He received 40+ replies in 24 hours.  Not all of them were a good fit for him but it provided him many new opportunites to grow his business.  And there are local networking groups like BNI or your local Chamber of Commerce to explore as well.

Do you have an example of a Joint Venture opportunity which has been beneficial to your business?   I’d appreciate any feedback.

Diane L. Coville

ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

The Baby Boomer Market

 Last week my blog post, entitled “Who is Your Target Market” addressed the importance of identifying your target market and how to direct your marketing efforts to them directly.

In many cases, Baby Boomers, are the ideal client for some products and services.

Recently, a survey was sent to my email focusing on Baby Boomers and their wants, needs and interests.  I filled it out and was provided with the results.  I found it very interesting and would like to share those results at this time.  As well, I have asked for permission from the lady who conducted this survey  to share this information and she graciously approved.  She asked that I share the link to her website and invite others to do her survey themselves.  She will be happy to provide the latest results of this on-going survey to all participants whose birthdates are between 1946 and 1964.

Her name is Elizabeth H. Cottrell and her contact info is below:

And the survey results so far are:

Diane L. Coville

ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

I am sure you have heard about your “Target Market” before  but  many business owners decide what kind of business they are going to operate, whether it be products or services, and after they have hopefully done their Market Research,  the numbers have justified their belief that their product or service is needed and will help solve their client’s problem.

But a lot of business owners actually haven’t defined who their Target Market is and sometimes that is very difficult until they determine who their ideal client is.

For instance, a real estate salesman who specializes in selling estates, wouldn’t have much difficulty determining that their ideal client is someone who has the money to buy.

I have had a business  helping seniors live independently – I’m “sort of” the extended family member who steps in to help the senior.  Originally, I was thinking of the seniors themselves – they would be my ideal client – but my “target market” was the children of seniors who didn’t live close to the senior or had a life full of home, family including children, a full time job, who already had a full plate and couldn’t always be available to their senior parents.

Once you have determined your target market, then you must decide how to market to them.  Where do they hang out?    How will you get your message to them directly?  Decide on your search terms and start looking on the internet.  This not only applys to a internet based business, but now that social media is thriving, you can search for local markets as well, such as that real estate salesman who is selling estates.

The largest and one of the most important strategies in your marketing efforts must be in defining your brand and getting your message to your target market or ideal clients.   What makes you stand out?  What is your expertise?  How do you want your clients to perceive you and the products or services that you offer?  How can you help your client solve their problem?

Your logo is a part of your brand but your message to prospective clients is much more important.

Clearly identifying your target market or ideal client along with developing a precise marketing strategy including your marketing message will, over time, bring great success to your business but it doesn’t happen overnight.

On the subject of your ideal client, would it be a Baby Boomer?  In my next blog post, I will be revealing the results of a survey that was done recently on the needs, concerns and interests of Baby Boomers.

If you are still struggling to identify your target market, seek a mentor or a business coach who will be glad to help you.

Diane L. Coville

ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

http://www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

     Pricing Your Services

This question comes up more and more as new Virtual Assistants set up their businesses and experienced VA’s contemplate adding new services to their company.

Here are 9 steps to set up pricing for your services.  I’ll use a basic service first.

1. Name the service and what it includes.  Word Processing, for an example, includes the typing, formatting, adding pictures, tables, bullet points, headers and footers, etc. and don’t forget the time for spellchecking and proofreading.
2. What is your typing speed?  Generally Word documents are about 500 words long but can be less when you include Headers, Sub Titles, larger or smaller fonts, indentations, pictures, charts, tables, etc.
3. What is your level of experience?  If you are at the expert level, you have a general idea of how long it will take to complete the document.
4. Calculate in the added time if it is handwritten or a transcription job.
5. Give yourself a buffer of extra time for unexpected additions/deletetions/changes.
6. Research other Virtual Assistants sites and what they charge for the same type of service.
7. Are you going to price your services by the hour only?  By the project?  On retainer?  Will you offer discounts for guaranteed hours?  Do you reduce your rate slightly if it is a project or on-going work as opposed to a one time job?
8. What payment options have you set up for your clients?  Cash (local clients only), cheques, credit cards or Paypal?
9. Do you offer discounts for payment on receipt as opposed to the 15 or 30 day option?

For your niche services like internet marketing (which involves many different services) or blog marketing or social media marketing, again you need to decide if you will offer hourly rates, packages/bundled services or discounts.  If you are new to a particular niche service, research with other VA’s or their sites.  You cannot expect to charge clients when you have a “learning curve”.

Don’t forget that you are calculating your time to do the work, that you are providing the expertise and the software and equipment.

In the end, if you are underpricing to get the client, you will feel undervalued.  If the major decision factor for the client is pricing, often you will experience trouble collecting your fees. 

If I have missed anything, please feel free to comment.

Diane L. Coville, ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

Request for Proposal

A Request for Proposal, or an RFP for short, is usually requested by customers looking for the right business to provide a service or sometimes a product to them.

I would like to take this opportunity to submit this proposal in response to your request for a ”event planner”.

Further to the Job Description for this position which you included in your request, I will herewith outline my qualifications, education, knowledge, skills and abilities.

Education:                Diploma or Certificate, University or College Degrees

Additional Training: A list of any additional training courses taken.

Knowledge:              Your skillset, e.g. Expert Level of experience in Microsoft Office.

Skills & Abilities:   A point form list of your experience, e.g                  

                                   o  Successfully supervised and ran the operations of a small business company.

Experience of particular note, I ……… (this is the section where you address the services that are in the post and you can illustrate what experience you have had in performing this particular service(s)  and how you have done it.  “I have had several years of experience in sales and marketing environments, where I have organized events like sales conferences and product launches from conception to completion – researching hotels and conference rooms, making booking arrangements along with audio/visual, meals, special seating or lighting, contacting prospective attendees and providing the details of the event, registration forms, making reservations for travel and hotels for attendees, creating agendas, powerpoint or video presentations,  feedback forms, etc.”

Another paragraph on your associations, affiliations, volunteer work.

Working Conditions:   If you are a Virtual Assistant, you might want to stipulate that you have a fully equipped small home office and the equipment and software you use along with what security practices you have and what communication conveniences for your customers such as a toll free # or faxing.

Compensation:  This is your quotation for pricing for the services requested, such as an hourly rate, a project rate, a retainer package, etc.

Mention that you can provide references, if necessary.

A closeout paragraph about how you provide a free consultation to discuss the clients needs and how you would be happy to partner with them.

I have experienced about a 90% respond rate to the RFP’s I have sent so far.  Don’t forget that if you are unclear about what the prospective client requires, don’t hesitate to ask for clarification from them before you submit your RFP.  Almost all clients are happy to provide that information and appreciate your interest in submitting an accurate RFP.  I usually wait about 2 weeks, and do a follow-up email or phone call to make sure that they have received my proposal and whether they have chosen someone else or haven’t sifted through the proposals yet.  And if they have chosen someone else, ask if you might enquire about why you were unsuitable for the this work or whether there was something you could have added to your proposal.

If anyone else has suggestions to add to this post, please feel free to contribute.

 Diane L. Coville, ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

1.  Review the prospects you have obtained in 2009.  How many converted to actual sales?  How many did not convert?  Revisit these prospective clients.  You could do this by sending an email or making a telephone call.  You may approach this with an enquiry as to how their business is doing, mention your previous communication with them whether it was a quote, a consultation, or a proposal and whether they completed the project or task.  Ask for any feedback they can provide.  OR, you may also send a targeted email to them with a “coupon” offering a free item or service or a discounted rate you are offering for a limited time.

2.  Revisit the clients you have had so far this year.  Those would be the clients you actually provided a product or service to whom you have had no further contact with.  If you neglected to do a customer satisfaction follow-up with them, do it now.  Ask for feedback.  If applicable, enquire about further services you may have discussed with them at the time.  At the least, ask how satisfied they were with your product or service  and whether they have any problems at this time that you might be able to help them with.  This is also an opportunity to tell them you are offering a discount for a limited time.

3.  Check back on your Business Plan or Strategies for this year.  How many To Do’s have you accomplished?  How many have changed since January for whatever reason and have you moved forward with them?  How many have just gone by the wayside because of a lack of time or funds?   Make adjustments such as ticking off the accomplishments, adjusting the changes to other items and how and when you will complete them and for the outstanding items, can you move them to the List for 2010 or do you still have time to set up a schedule to implement them?

4.  Revisit various Profiles or Accounts you have set up, eg. LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Friendfeed, Ezine Articles, Blogger sites.  Have you updated them to reflect any changes in your business – contact information, added services or products, your new brand image, any changes you have made since January 2009?  If, like many people, you have joined groups or opened accounts and never used or participated in them, now would be a good time to trim down those that are no longer important or you don’t have the time to pursue.  As well, there may be others that you want to pursue but haven’t taken the time.  Now would be that time to investigate whether they will benefit you and your business.

5.  The Fall is also the perfect time to contemplate how you are going to strategize for the coming year.  What ideas and plans do you have for 2010?  Do you want to add a product or service, does that entail any training or research on your part?  Make a plan.

Diane L. Coville

ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

http://www.alternativeofficeassistance.com

How Blogging is more Popular than Ever Before

Although I already knew that Blogging has found a new life with the onset of Social Media, I recently attended a seminar presented by Hubspot, Inbound Marketing Specialists, entitled, “How to Use SEO, Blogs, and Social Media to Get Found Online”.

They provided some pretty amazing statistics on Blogging.

• 97% more Inbound Links for Companies that Blog
• Google weighs optimization of your site:  25% On Page, 75% Off Page
• Statistics on two examples:

1. Website with Blog:  99 Google indexed pages & 6,000 unique visitors
2. Website without Blog:  8 Google indexed pages & 2,200 unique visitors

• 434% more indexed pages on Companies that blog as opposed to Companies that don’t
• 55% more visitors to Company sites who blog as opposed to those that don’t.

Of course, blogging is just the start.

√ A well thought out Title will invite and entice readers.

√ Content in the blog is extremely important.  If you are marketing your products and services, you are unlikely to have repeat visitors to your blog.  If you are producing great content that will interest your prospects or show them a solution to their needs or problems, they will come back.  And your blog is a perfect way to demonstrate your expertise in your field.

√ Optimizing your Blog for great Search Engine Optimization is very important too.  You want Google to find your blog and raise your Search Engine ranking.

√ Social Media is the next piece of the puzzle in order to spread the word about your blog.

√ And creating accounts on specific Blog sites and entering the link to your Blog site is pertinent as well.

√ And finally, create interaction with other Bloggers.  Research blogs of some of the prominent bloggers as well as industry specific bloggers.  Make comments on theirs and ask for backlinks.

√ And one final note.  Make sure your Blog invites comments from your readers.  Another great way to interact and build relationships.  Just don’t forget to read the comments and respond!

If you want to check out Blogspots webinar on this subject the link is:

http://www.hubspot.com/marketing-webinars/sbsm-get-found-online-archive/

Diane L. Coville

ALTERNATIVE OFFICE ASSISTANCE

www.alternativeofficeassistance.com