I recently spent some time with a client of three years who wanted to see if there were other ways we may be able to support them. They were pleasantly surprised that I was able to suggest new technologies and processes that could not only save them money, and increase productivity, but that required minimal support from either Accurate Business Services, or in-house staff. By sharing my knowledge and experience I was able to increase the value of our working relationship and create cost-effective ways to accomplish their goals whether or not they needed us to implement them.

They could now see how partnering with us benefitted their bottom-line.  We are now both excited to be moving their business forward in a manner that creates a win-win.  If we don’t help make them more successful, why would they need us long-term?

Many of my prospects don’t see the need to work with a Virtual Assistant when they already have and employ in-house staff.  Sometimes in-house staff sees the VA as someone who is poised to take their job.  That’s just not what our relationship is about.

We work with a number of clients who employ full-time staff, or in-house support shared by a number of people.  Working with a Virtual Assistant allows you access to resources they don’t have access to, and professional assistance in times when your in-house staff is overwhelmed and the added expense of training, taxes and benefits, make a temp person an ineffective and overly costly option. Because we work with clients nationwide, we can also share our successes in many business and marketing situations. Why re-invent the wheel?

Still not sure a virtual professional is right for you – find one or two projects you could delegate to a VA, and give it a try – look at www.ivaa.org and check out their Directory, or submit an RFP (Request for Proposal) and see what happens.  Or contact us for a no-obligation complimentary 30-minute consultation to see if working with a VA is right for you.

Once you experience the freedom and professional support, I’m sure you’ll agree there are some distinct advantages to working with a VA.

Wishing you and yours a happy, healthy and prosperous 2011! Let’s work together to increase your success.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.accbizsvcs.com, or contact her at info@accbizsvsc.com

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Imagine my surprise when they were inducted a few weeks later without my signature in the approval section of the application for just this situation.  I asked why I hadn’t been contacted, and was told that the president told them it wasn’t necessary.

It seemed like they’d stopped promoting my services, but soon I found out that they did on weeks I was not in attendance.  Then I overheard reviews from members for my services as being performed by the other member.

I submitted a formal written complaint to the president and vice-president explaining the situation and came up with what I thought were our only alternatives, my competitor could start another chapter, they leave, or I leave.  Nothing happened for three weeks, so I asked them to meet with me after the meeting.

Yeah, they got my letter…no, they hadn’t done anything.  Since I was getting ready to  take a leave of absence they’d already approved, I told them they must get it taken care of, as I would have no way to monitor the situation after I took leave.

I was appalled with their solution.  The following week EVERY member received a memo from the vice-president saying that this person was getting referrals that belonged to me, and that everyone should ask me before referring them any business.

Oh, my God!  I wanted to crawl in a hole somewhere and die.  Now they’ve taken what should have been handled one on one with the conflicting party and made me out to be, “Oh whoa is me” Jeannine.

Needless to say, the conflicting party was very upset and voiced some very angry words about how this was handled.  I made it very clear that I agreed.  Now everyone felt like I was picking on my competitor.  As you may have already guessed, my referrals were all sent their direction.

Unethical – you bet!  On the conflicting party’s part for not adhering to the rules and heeding the warnings, on the leadership team’s part for not having handled it properly, quickly, or discreetly, and on the rest of the membership for not trying to understand the conflict, and supporting a long-time “charter” member.

I took my leave of absence, and started utilizing that time to market my business in other ways. Since I left the group I’ve put on many new clients, making me realize that this group truly wasn’t the right place for me.

When I received an invoice for meals and dues last week, I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised.  Bet they miss my referrals.  I was almost always the group leader!  Ignoring my personal feelings, I penned a cordial letter letting them know that it just wasn’t working for me as a good option for marketing my business.

About six months later I heard the Chapter had folded.  I was probably one of a few people who understood why.  When they didn’t use good business ethics as the foundation for the organization, how could they expect to succeed?

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, owner of Accurate Business Services is a Virtual Assistant (VA).  ABS provides ‘as needed marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs.  Clontz is a writer, author, VA Coach, and speaker on business topics including business ethics. For her free 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, send a request to: service@accbizsvcs.com or visit: http://www.accbizsvcs.com, www.VAbizcoach.com or her book website http://www.entrepreneurialfreedom.com

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By the ‘80’s piggybanks had changed; they had stoppers in the bottom to remove money whenever you wanted. By not having to keep adding to your savings until you’d reached your goal, many times they were never met.  The bank became a place to gather loose change and such, but it took away the demand, if you will, that you reach a goal or lose it all, by having to ‘break the bank’.

It makes me think about my business goals in somewhat the same way.  I have to find ways of making myself accountable to reaching the goals I’ve set.  Last year, I setup several reminders to check in on my 2010 goals. When I got the first reminder, I realized, – YIKES, now where did I put those goals? J  I was not focused on reaching them.

It’s difficult when you’re the boss, isn’t it?  How can we set goals and make ourselves accountable for the goals we need to keep our businesses afloat in these challenging times?

First, take a look at what types of goals you might want to set for yourself.  Some to consider might include:

• Sales/income
• Number of new clients
• New equipment/software
• Knowledge-based achievements (certifications; classes)
• Adding staff or sub-contractors

As you can see, there are many types of goals you can set for your business.  I usually try and have three to four of these areas covered in my yearly goals; that way, if one seems to be lacking, I can transition more time and effort into making that particular goal a priority, or adjust it to give myself a clearer way to achieve it.

I think the next most important thing is to put it in writing – something about memorializing it makes it seem more attainable, and real.  You might even consider sharing your yearly goals with a colleague or peer and ask them to check in with you several times a year to make sure you’re on track to achieving them.

Equally as important is making sure that you don’t beat yourself up if you don’t attain a particular goal.  Goals are something you are aspiring to achieve; they should help you be accountable for where you want your business to go.

2008 was a perfect example of that for me.  I was right on track with my sales/income and new client goals for 2008, right until the stock market crashed in October.  Suddenly, everything changed.  By the end of the year, several goals had not been met.

I rewarded myself for those goals I did achieve, took stock of those I didn’t, and tried to understand why; then I realigned my goals for 2009 and again for 2010, to offset these changes, and added several new categories of goals that will help me keep my business on track and growing.

Goals are meant to inspire you and invoke you into taking action.  Don’t let them bring you down if you don’t achieve them; re-adjust them. Find a cheerleader, someone who will help you stay on track with your goals, but will also encourage you and help you see the positive changes and growth you have experienced.

I am pleased to say I exceeded my 2009 goals and I look forward to a prosperous 2010 and achieving my goals.  Re-invent yourself and keep making deposits in your unbreakable piggybank of growth.  Stay positive and watch what happens.

Jeannine Clontz, owner of Accurate Business Services, a VA practice, is an author, writer, speaker and VA Business Coach specializing in providing professional business coaching to established and start-up virtual assistants (VA’s).  For her FREE audio CD “What’s Holding Back my Business Success?” or a 2-month trial in her group coaching program visit:  http://www.VAbizcoach.com; or contact her at: coach@VAbizcoach.com.

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I don’t think it’s about the time at all, I think it’s about how we manage ourselves.  My friend, Pam Vaccaro (www.designsontime.com) says it best, “It’s about your focus!”

I know from my own experience, making a few simple changes have made a HUGE impact on my effectiveness, and stress levels.   I tried several different options and settled on the system that worked for me.

One of my biggest faux pas was thinking multi-tasking was a good thing.  I would work on a client document while I was running another client’s color postcards on my laser jet and another project on my copier, only to find that somewhere along the line the copier jammed, or the laser jet ran out of ink, and I was overwhelmed trying to juggle them all.  I don’t believe our brains work that way.  Since I stopped multi-tasking, I get so much more done, and feel more energized and effective.

I’ve also been guilty of creating a sense of urgency where one may not exist, or not being clear with a client who gives me an unreasonable deadline.  Since I’ve taken back that control, managing time is much simpler.  By increasing my level of communication, I also avoid having to spend time solving problems.  They just simply don’t exist.

I also try and be more aware of the time I’m spending on non-income generating Emails.  That was very difficult for me since a lot of my client projects and communication come through Email.   I used to cringe when I’d look at my watch only to find I’d spent several hours going through social media or volunteer Emails that didn’t need to be handled right away.

I now have a basic kitchen timer on my desk and allow myself a specific amount of time, at the beginning of the day, and at the end of the day, to handle these Emails.  My life feels so much more organized now, it’s truly amazing how these few simple changes have made a profound impact on the way I manage my time.

So give several of these options a try or come up with a few of your own, and see if you can’t transition your focus to better manage your time.  And remember to enjoy your life to the fullest; it’s not JUST about business!

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, owner of Accurate Business Services is a Virtual Assistant (VA). ABS provides ‘as needed’ marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. Clontz is a writer, author, VA Coach, and speaker on business topics including business ethics. For her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or herFREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.accbizsvcs.com. Find out more at www.VAbizcoach.com or her book website http://www.entrepreneurialfreedom.com

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Through a targeted email marketing approach you may tailor or personalize your message to your specific audience or niche. In marketing terms, this is called segmentation.

The advantages to using an email marketing strategy to promote your business are many, such as: low cost as compared to traditional mailing costs, the speed at which your message is delivered, and the ability for recipients to forward the message to others who may also be interested. Moreover, email marketing software allows you to track results of your communications, allowing you to evaluate your success and enhance your messages through your statistical insights.

While there are multiple advantages, keep in mind that email marketing is intended to be an enhancement to your other marketing activities. For example, it may be used to lead your prospects to your website, which should be designed to process sales, while your email marketing campaign will highlight the benefits of your offerings and encourage prospects to make a purchase. Your website should also be the focus of other online marketing strategies such as search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, and article marketing. Email marketing allows you to enhance all your marketing efforts and encourages customers to patronize your business and become loyal fans.

Always remember when implementing an email marketing campaign do not overdo it, one of the downsides or disadvantages of email marketing. If you’re sending emails to thousands of people every other day, they’re going to get tired of hearing from you and either delete them or opt out of your mailing list, which will potentially cost you a lot of business. The last thing you want to do is irritate your subscribers by making them feel they’ve been tricked into signing up for something they didn’t actually want.

Email marketing is a very valuable tool to supplement your marketing strategies while giving you an additional method to keep in touch with your customers and prospects to build a loyal following.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, owner of Accurate Business Services is a Virtual Assistant (VA).  ABS provides ‘as needed marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs.  Clontz is a writer, author, VA Coach, and speaker on business topics including business ethics. For her free 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, send a request to: service@accbizsvcs.com or visit: http://www.accbizsvcs.com, www.VAbizcoach.com or her book website http://www.entrepreneurialfreedom.com

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Here are five things to consider in crafting your 60-second infomercial:

1. Who is your target market?  While I can open my informercial by saying, “although I have clients in almost every industry…” – you still want to focus on your niche or target market to help people think of who they know that could benefit from your services.  If you’re still not sure, analyze your current client list and see if there is a particular industry, or type of client that seems most logical to your offerings.
2. What problems does your target market have that you can solve?  Keep it simple.  Come up with one or two things – don’t overdo it – less is more!
3. How do you solve these problems?  Again, don’t come up with a laundry list of products/services, just enough to whet the appetite so they’ll want to find out more.
4. Mention something specific that speaks to results, like: ‘many of my clients say their sales increased at least 20% as a result of working with us’.
5. End with either a memorable tagline, or a question – like – ‘is that something that might be of interest to you or someone you know?’

Once you have it setup, print it out and practice it (and time yourself) several times until you have it pretty well memorized.  You don’t want to come off sounding too scripted, but you will need to get comfortable with all the aspects so that you’re sure to hit all the points you need to in your time allotment.

Once you have this mastered, you will want to cut the content even more, for a true elevator speech – which is usually only 30-seconds in length.

Finally, especially if you attend networking events regularly, you will want to have several different versions for answering the questions numbered two, three, and four above.  This gives people the opportunity to hear more about the additional services/products you provide.  If you only talk about one specific product or service, they’ll believe that’s all you offer and you could be leaving potential sales on the table.

With a little bit of work, and practice, you’ll have the perfect 60-second infomercial that helps people immediately recognize what it is you do, and who they need to refer to you.  Word of mouth marketing is the most cost-effective way to market your business.  The infomercial is the best tool to close the sale!

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA,  EthicsChecked™, owner of Accurate Business Services is a Virtual Assistant (VA).  ABS provides ‘as needed’ marketing support and consulting to busy entrepreneurs.  Clontz is a writer, author, VA Coach, and speaker on business topics including business ethics. For her free 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit:  http://www.accbizsvcs.com, www.VAbizcoach.com or her book website http://www.entrepreneurialfreedom.com

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So, if you’re like millions of people around the world you resolved as the new year came in to get healthier.  And, if you’re trying to get moving and watch what you eat what better way to help you with that then some apps for your BlackBerry to help you along.

Most weight loss experts will tell you (and most people who have successfully taken off weight will agree) that keeping a food journal is a great help in watching your food intake.  Being the geek that I am I have a few requirements for my food journal:  1.  It needs to be “techy cool” 2.  It needs to have a web and blackberry sync 3.  It needs to be easy to use.  I’ve tried some computer based applications, I’ve tried BlackBerry only applications but I want something with both options.  Well, I found one and it’s FREE:  Calorie Counter by FatSecret.  FatSecret has an iGoogle add-on or you can use the website.  It also has apps for the iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, and iPod Touch.  I love this app (and website) for helping me track my food.  Calorie Counter is available for free at the BlackBerry App World.

FatSecret also keeps track of your exercise and calories burned but to help me track my walking, cycling, and running I use Bones in Motion.  It has a website to track your cumulative mileage, etc.  But, the BlackBerry app (also free) uses the GPS capabilities to track your average speed, distance, time spent walking, and the amount of calories it estimates you’ve burned.  It can also give you audible warnings at certain mile markers if you desire.  One cool feature (if you like to go on long excursions) is a tracker online that you can give your family.  It’s password protected so it’s not like anyone can see where you are but if you have the app running your family can track where you are on your walk/run/ride (I will admit that I haven’t used this because I haven’t had a need to have someone know where I am — but it is a cool feature — I wouldn’t mind if my friends who do the Ironman triathlon had this so we could figure out where they are).   Bones in Motion is free and available at BlackBerry App World as BiM Active.

So, here’s to a healthier, happier, and thinner 2010!

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So, how can you keep your BlackBerry happy?  QuickPull.  One quirky thing about the BlackBerry is that it needs a soft reset every once in a while to keep it running at it’s best.  To do a soft reset you have to do a battery pull which isn’t fun when that means peeling off your cool case and pulling the battery out.  Well, there’s a super cool free option — QuickPull.  You can schedule a soft reset when ever you want it (mine is scheduled daily at 3AM).  QuickPull is available at BlackBerry App World (which if you don’t have that on your BlackBerry get it NOW).

So, what is BlackBerry App World?  It’s the official store for BlackBerry Apps.   There are 100s, heck maybe 1,000s of apps for your BlackBerry on here.  You can download it to your phone to browse at your leasure.  Some apps are free some have a fee.  The nice thing is that most have reviews written by other users so you can see what people are saying before you try it out.  You definitely want it on your phone, though.  Nothing like being on a long car ride and needing a new game for your nephew (or yourself) and being able to click-click your phone and provide some quick entertainment.

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Evolving Software

WordPress is free, web-based software that is open source, which means it is available for developers to build upon and alter at will. Over time, its open source flexibility has allowed WordPress to become a content management system (CMS), or a program that creates, edits, and manages website content as well as blog content.

The best part about WordPress is that it doesn’t require knowledge of PHP or HTML code to use it. The blog or website creator chooses the look and rearranges the content simply and without rebuilding whole pages through the code.

While utilizing WordPress to build a website is possible, my preference is to maintain separate platforms for my website and blog by using traditional website development options.  I believe it allows me to take advantage of different options, and search engine optimization methods to capture as many prospects as possible.

Themes and Plug-ins

WordPress has a theme system that allows for easy customization for your blog allowing the creator to change the look of the site as often as they like. WordPress also has features that assist with link management, complex indexing of blog posts, and the ability for multiple authors to add blog or site content. WordPress works well with other blogging services like Trackback and Pingback as well as easy importing of content from other blogs. WordPress also has security features such to control spam and visitor comments, user registration, and password protection for selected posts. There are also hundreds of compatible plugins available that can greatly extend the functionality.

WordPress for Business and Pleasure

WordPress started as a communication tool for the individual, but it also has many benefits to offer to the business world. Since WordPress is so simple to use and maintain, this means less overhead and less time spent for creation and maintenance of the blog platform. The blogging aspect of WordPress also means that companies have an on-demand method for keeping their audiences updated on company business and advertising their products and services. Plus, blogging offers a wonderful method for companies to get feedback from their consumers. It allows you to keep the content fresh, which increases search engine ranking so that the company’s content will have a better chance of audience exposure.

Everyone’s Doing It

With the popularity of social media and the flexible program, ease of installation, and added functionality of plug ins, WordPress provides a way for everyone to be involved and engaged in social media, and utilize the benefits it provides to your overall presence on the Internet.

Jeannine Clontz, owner of Accurate Business Services, a VA practice, is an author, writer, speaker and VA Business Coach specializing in providing professional business coaching to established and start-up virtual assistants (VA’s).  For her FREE audio CD “What’s Holding Back my Business Success?”,  a 2-month trial in her Insider group coaching program, or 1-month trial of her coaching club visit:  http://www.VAbizcoach.com; or contact her at: coach@VAbizcoach.com.

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Of course you can use the screenshot functionality included in your operating system (Apple Grab on a Mac, and the print screen function or Snipping Tool on Windows), but if you want a little more functionality, here are some really cool (and free) tools to check out.

Screenshot Tools for Windows

Cropper: A simple screenshot tool that lets you take screen grabs and crop out sections you don’t need.

MWSnap: An installation-free screenshot tool that can capture your entire desktop, a highlighted window, an active menu, a control, or a fixed or free rectangular part of the screen.

Snippy:  An installation-free tool for Windows XP that allows you to take screenshots of a page, even if you have a dual monitor setup.

Webshot: A tool that allows you to take screenshots in Internet Explorer and save them in JPG, GIF, PNG, or BMP formats.

Screenshot Tools for Macs

Paparazzi!: A small utility for Mac OS X that takes screenshots of web pages.

Skitch: Take screenshots, do some light modifications, and annotate with text, graphics and more.

SnapNDrag: A tool that lets you take a screenshot by just clicking a button and dragging the window. Supports PNG, TIFF and JPEG.

Cross-Platform Screenshot Tools

Jing: A powerful program that not only lets you take screenshots, but record screencasts and audio. From TechSmith, the makers of Camtasia.

Screengrab: A Firefox add-on that captures a full window, the entire page, just a selection, or a particular frame and lets you save the images either to a file, or to the clipboard.

Tiny Grab: A tool that instantly uploads your screenshots to easily share online. Free version is limited to 10 uploads per day.

What’s your favorite tools for capturing screenshots?

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