Working over time zones and using different communication methods adds some complexity to the problem.

That’s why Sharp End Training, our training partner invite all VA’s whatever their level of experience to a free webinar.

James Knight discovered that even though we might appear to speak the same language that there are in fact 4 separate and distinct dialects each looking at and filtering the world through different eyes and ears.

Each of us speaks 1 dialect naturally, and that if we rely on just this one dialect that it means that we are unable to communicate effectively with 75% of the people that we come in contact with daily including family members, friends, business associates and clients.

James created a new way of communicating called iMA to help change peoples lives for the better.

iMA begins by identifying how a person wants to receive information, and then teaches you to modify and adapt the message in a way that is most likely to be understood.

By communicating on the other persons wavelength, and speaking in a way that the other person finds it easiest to listen to, communication, trust, and co-operation go up and stress and tension go down.

Even better news for us all is that James has agreed to be a guest NEXT TUESDAY 22nd May 2012. The event is FREE to attend. Here is the sign up page >>

“iMA is going to change the face of business networking for the better”.

Penny Power a founder of Ecademy

Below is an extract from a webinar I recently did on Setting up as a Virtual Assistant

Yes I’m back on the topic of being professional.  And I’m back on the email address again as it’s something I feel very strongly about.  As I’ve already mentioned a free email address looks amateur.  We’re not setting up a virtual assistant business here that will be seeking $3 hour work from people per hour after all.  We’re looking at working with professional business owners who can afford to pay us a sensible rate.

Your domain name is important.  It’s the backbone of your email address for a start.  It should also be easy for people to use.  Don’t go for something that could be interpreted incorrectly and give the wrong impression.  Look at the words without the spaces, could they actually make up inappropriate words if the spacing was altered?  Can people spell your domain name if you tell them it over the phone?  Do you really want a domain name or email address full of hyphens and underscores?  I trade as HLS Business Solutions.  All those s’s in the browser could lead to trouble, so for ease my domain name is hlsbs.com and my email is hlsbs.co.uk  It’s short, it doesn’t take up the whole of my business card and  it’s easy enough for people to jot down in passing.

Don’t start the search for your domain name straight away on the internet, spend some time thinking about it first, and only start looking when you have a short list and are in a position to buy.  There are companies out there who find out what domain names have been searched for but not purchased then go buy them in the hope you’ll come back and want it and be prepared to pay them a premium to get it back.  There’s a whole blog post on choosing your domain name over on the intelligentVA website.

Something else that screams ‘amateur’ are the website creation sites that add the word free to the browser address.  If you don’t care enough about your business to invest in a domain and hosting to create your own website then why should a client give you the care of their business.

If you cannot afford to have someone create a professional website for you then I recommend that you use a wordpress.org website, not the wordpress hosted wordpress.com version either.  A good hosting company will offer one click installation of wordpress for you, may even include a free domain name and should cost you less than £40 year. That’s just under $30.  With a plethora of free themes available to help you personalise your site you can quickly have a website showcasing you, the services you offer and the rates that you charge.  Then, when you’ve made some money, you can have the design professionally upgraded and the content doesn’t need recreating.

intelligentVA is hosted by evohosting (aff link) and has been since it was launched.  Like any company they occasionally experience a hiccup but it’s how they deal with it that count and I have always found they offer great customer service.

At the time of writing they advertise a free domain name (remember a .com domain costs over £10 year on it’s own) from them on their Starter annual plan for £39.99 year.   You can pay £3.99 month but you won’t get the free domain.  The account includes one click installation of WordPress so it’s nice and easy to start up and no reason not to have a professional website and address.

evohosting have very kindly given us a discount code for our members which can be viewed in the members offer area of the site. If you’re not already a member you can join here.

In my book the 30 Day Setting up as a Virtual Assistant Challenge (without breaking the bank) several of the challenges revolve around choosing your email address, domain name and walk you through the early stages of creating your website.

]]> http://www.trainingforvas.com/does-your-website-email-and-domain-give-the-right-impression/feed/ 0 http://www.trainingforvas.com/ivameet-transcript-14th-may/ http://www.trainingforvas.com/ivameet-transcript-14th-may/#comments Mon, 14 May 2012 21:03:07 +0000 admin http://www.trainingforvas.com/?p=2533 Our chat this evening was all about the mistakes we make when setting up as a Virtual Assistant. The transcript of the chat is shown below.  Please do feel free to add your comments at the bottom of the post.

Our virtual training department, Sharp End Training are hosting another Tuesdays webinar featuring Ian Brodie (pictured).

Ian is a sought after coach to marketing professionals and other “solo-preneurs”

Ian teaches them to network successfully. If they didn’t – they would have no business.

More than than, Ian’s teaching includes a REFERRAL generating STRATEGY. Actually getting people to pass your details on to potential clients, customers and collaborators rather than just gossiping over endless cups of coffee.

Ian will teach this to YOU as he is interviewed by our Virtual Training Director Jonathan Senior.

The event is FREE to attend at 5PM Tuesday 8th May 2012.

Here is the link to sign up >> http://bit.ly/iVATweb

PS Ian’s site is at http://www.ianbrodie.com

Bob’s presentation is funny (very funny) and his concept of (k)notty words is VITAL for all virtual workers.

WHY?

Because working virtually means we don’t have the luxury often of a second chance.

We need to know EXACTLY what we need to do.

The concept is so simple but so complex at the same time. Once you have mastered the simple technique, you will QUITE literally see the world in a different light.

Bob is a global strategic partner with BNI and has spoken and consulted all around the world.

“Communication is of the utmost importance in business, networking, and life in general and Bob Nicoll’s Remember the Ice program demonstrates how powerful results can be achieved in all areas, simply by focusing on word choice.  I highly recommend it to everyone.”

Dr. Ivan Misner, NY Times Bestselling author and Founder of BNI

The event on 1st May 2012 at 5PM UK time is TOTALLY FREE to attend > here is the link

I have been extremely busy since our last catch-up.  I don’t feel like I have stopped.

I started the month with a meeting with a member of the Leeds Chamber of Commerce, after requesting contact details from my local jobcentre.  They are hoping to be able to help me with marketing and meeting new clients.  They talked me through writing a business plan, which I didn’t think I would need as I wasn’t going to be asking a bank for financial assistance, but they helped me see that it is actually a tool to help you focus where you are with your business and where you’re going; something you can review regularly to make sure you’re still achieving what you hope to achieve.  When it was complete, he said that he had enjoyed reading it as it was obvious that I was passionate about Amber Cat Admin and making my business into a success.  We also discussed the potential of a press release for the local newspapers, regarding being a green VA, to try and introduce people into the concept of what a VA does, but do a subtle nod to my target market too.

I have started writing blog-posts regarding what I’m doing to try and keep Amber Cat Admin as a green business.  I have also planned my next blog post, to tell people why I want to be a VA; to try and get across some of the passion that I have for my job, to let them know that, although they may be the sort of person that hates having to deal with paperwork, typing, etc., I am the sort of person who seriously loves it!

I have also been learning how to use a couple of cloud-based tools:

• Xero – a cloud-based bookkeeping tool, so I can keep track of Amber Cat Admin’s finances (which are mostly out-goings at the minute!), and
• Capsule – a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool, which helps me to keep track of people I’ve met, how and where I met them and what they do.
• DropBox – an online filing system, which I am using to back-up everything relating to Amber Cat Admin, but I can also use in the future to potentially work with clients as it allows you to share specific files and folders with individuals.

I have also attended some networking events and training sessions, which I will talk about below.

Oh – and thanks to Helen Stothard, I have also become addicted to Twitter; I know I’ve connected with some lovely people on there and, one can hope, some valuable contacts for the future!  If anyone out there would like to connect, I’m on there as @TraceyADixon

Have you been to any networking events?

I have been trying to go to a variety of Networking Events.  I have been to lunches and evening events with Forward Ladies, the Leeds Enterprise Network quarterly event, the monthly Green Drinks Leeds meet-up and the Fruit Tree pre-launch meetings in Leeds!

I will admit that walking into a room of people you don’t know is terrifying, but I would add that my first networking lunch was with the Forward Ladies and everyone was so welcoming, that I felt I was meeting up with some old friends for a catch-up, rather than people I’d never met before.  It reassured me that they are not all the kind of “speed dating” style networking events that you hear about and there are a lot of people out there wanting to make real connections, not just give you their sales patter and move on.

What have you been doing to actively promote your business?

I have been exploring the use of social media and have started trying to use Facebook and Google + business pages, but I don’t feel these are ideal for me.  I won’t give up on them yet, but I will admit that I prefer Linked In as it gives a more professional appearance and I am hoping to use this more in the future.  As mentioned above, Helen Stothard has now addicted me to Twitter.  I have also been tweeting about my blog posts, my website and myself and at the end of February I had about 475 people following me; I know it’s not a “numbers game”, but it is a nice ego-boost to know that I must be doing something right!

What have you enjoyed most?

I would have to admit that, when the Forward Ladies were having a “Spa Networking Event” at the Cedar Court Hotel in York, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to mix business with pleasure and I enjoyed an evening where I was able to meet some wonderful women whilst relaxing in a bubbling hot tub!

What has been most successful?

Without a measure for “success”, I think that this is a very hard question to answer.  If you want to use the traditional measure of pennies, I don’t have any paying clients yet, however, using a different measure I do feel that everything has gone well and that everything has been a positive experience, both for me and hopefully for the people and companies I’ve met.  I feel that trying to get my name, and the name of Amber Cat Admin out into the world, especially with local and green businesses, is going well and I have always known it would take a little while for things to get started, so I’m not worried, (yet!).

Do you have your first client?

I don’t have my first “paying” client; however, I have found a potential client that I hope to start working with on a “barter” basis, my admin time in lieu of payment for membership to a business growth group.

I am also doing some free of charge work with clients for testimonials, so hopefully these will appear on Linked In in the near future and potentially consider working with Amber Cat Admin in the future.

What have you learned?

It has been pointed out to me to make sure that I’m not losing out on any barter trades. I need to make sure it’s fair and that a contract is in place to ensure the trade-for-trade isn’t taking advantage of either party!

I think the hardest lesson I have learnt is that, for networking I have no head for names.  I love meeting new people and learning about them, but I struggle to match names to faces.  I am finding that, if I can then find them on LinkedIn and they have a good profile picture, it is easier for me to remember them.  I need to make adding people to Capsule (with their LinkedIn link) a priority after a networking event.

I have also learnt that I want to get to know people better.  I don’t want the people I meet through networking to just be a stack of business cards and names on a list, I might not need their services personally, but I do need to know them and more about their business if I am to be able to consider connecting them with other people who might benefit from knowing them.  I am finding that Twitter is a nice way to know a bit more about people and their business and a good place to ask questions too.

Have you done any official training?

I attended a webinar run by Forward Ladies, called “Forget CRM – Think MCR! – Maximise your Customer Relationships” and I also joined a Business Start-Up course at Leeds Met, which is a 6-week course that I am using to check that I haven’t missed anything.  The first two sessions covered the basics of self-employment, then research and business planning.  The sessions in March will cover marketing, social media, legal aspects and financial options.

What are your plans for the upcoming months

I will be continuing the Leeds Met Business Start-up Workshops, and I have booked onto several more networking events in March including the “Fabulous Ladies’ Lunch” in honour of International Women’s Day organised by the JCI Leeds.  I have also suggested that the students on the Leeds Met Business Start-Up group have a mini-networking event after the last workshop, to let them have a taster of a networking event and start making their first connections for future networking opportunities.  I’ll let you know if they take that forward.

I also intend to contact the people I’ve met at networking events and see if we can build stronger relationships, including a newsletter-style e-mail to introduce them to the concept of virtual working and the benefits that it can present, and a questionnaire (with a prize draw entry for responding) to gather information on the types of services they might need, as well as asking if they have any other contacts who might want to work with a Virtual Assistant; this could help to spread the word about the opportunities working with a VA can present, without being to “hard-sell”.

I hope to be more involved with Green Drinks Leeds, and I have also signed up to go to the Eco Fair on 1 May 2012.  I would love to meet more green companies as they are my dream clients; I want to be able to provide assistance so they have more time to save the world!

It’s also Global VA week and we’ll be celebrating that as well as holding our regular discussion on how we can help each other out in terms of support or just brainstorming ideas to improve our businesses.

The previous coffee mornings have been a great success, and I have to confess, do tend to over run a little more each time as we always seem to have so much to share with each other.

As a special treat we’ll be welcoming local York photographers Todd & Moore Photography along.  Jill and Julia have offered to shoot a single profile image for each of us in exchange for a £10 donation to our chosen charity – Martin House Hospice.  This is a very generous offer to help us celebrate both Global VA week and collaborating with local businesses.

I also know that both Jill and Julia are much more confident behind the camera than in front of it, so trust me, they do understand those of us who hate having our photo taken, so they’ll meet up with us for our coffee chat to make us feel more comfortable.  The Cedar Court Grand Hotel will make a stunning backdrop for your profile picture, and they’ll be taken individually, so no need to worry about what anyone else is thinking!

You can sign up for the coffee morning here, I look forward to seeing you on the day.

If you have an event you’d like to promote via intelligentVA then contact us with the details and we’ll add you to our event calendar.

• Why you should become a Virtual Assistant
• What you need to set up
• Thinking about your services
• Doing your research
• Being professional
• Getting your rates right
• Cashflow Projection
• Embracing Social Media
• Joining a support network

Praise for the Setting up as a Virtual Assistant Webinar

Thank you so much for yesterday’s webinar, I found it extremely informative and very useful.  I am in the early stages of setting up and although I did learn from yesterday’s webinar I was also reassured that what I have accomplished so far is correct!

Sandy Hearn, Elite PA Solutions

I was prompted to write this post after seeing the latest advert  from Vistaprint.  Now if any of you have ever fallen into the trap of ordering these business cards in their pure form (without any of the available add ons) can you honestly say that they portray a professional image of a business?

My first impression of these cards, now I have been in business for several years and seen what professional business cards offer, is they shout out back bedroom business.  They are thin, they have stock images and they look cheap.  I’ve actually printed better looking business cards from my own printer in the past for employers when we needed something to tide us over till new stock arrived.  It should be noted that there are various cost add ons that you can select with Vistaprint that will reduce this impression but by the time you have paid for all of them and the postage you may well find a local printer offers a better deal.

Be it business cards, email address or phone number you only get one opportunity to make that first impression so you need to make sure that you do everything you can to make it count.  You don’t have to break the bank to do so, you just have to do it properly.  Besides, when ordering your first batch of business cards it’s best to stick with a small amount as most people I know need to change something within a few weeks of receiving them anyway!  I think that is what is known as sods law!

Have your email address contain your domain name, don’t use the free email ending that you get assigned with BT, Yahoo, Gmail or Hotmail. Don’t use free offerings for websites that have the word free emblazoned all over them. And don’t just work with a mobile phone number, invest in a geographic VoIP phone number and divert the calls to your mobile if you need to.

As a Virtual Assistant you will want to work with professional clients.  If you cannot portray a professional image yourself why should they spend their hard earned cash with you?

Step back and look at the image your current business card or website presents.  If you were buying a service would you choose you as a supplier?

If you need help finding a suitable supplier for these services then check out our Tools of the Trade page or drop us a line via our Contact page, we’ll be happy to introduce you.

And if you have a supplier you’d love to recommend to the rest of us then share it in the comments below.

Lee, author of “The FT guide to double your business” will be speaking about

“How to make your business run without you”

This FREE event is on 24th April 2012 at 5pm UK time.

For most virtual assistants – they ARE the business.

Think about it – when you are not at your desk or at your computer – what tends to happen to your business?

That’s right… Nothing…

So… Don’t let that be you…

Lee doesn’t make many appearances – so grab this chance to hear him give this VITAL presentation.

Sign up here