March 2005, Vol 12, Issue 1
[Bookstore]
For those who
work at/from home.
[Business Partners]
A list of complementary businesses to our services.
If you would like yours listed, please let us know!
[Case Studies]
Wondering how we
could assist your
business?
[Membership]
For prospective virtual
secretaries.
[Newsletters]
Read our previous
issues.
[Rates]
Kathie's service rates.
[VA Directory]
For a full list of our team.
If you received this newsletter by regular mail, have an email address and would like to receive this online, please either subscribe at our website, or contact our office with your email address.
Feel free to pass this newsletter onto a friend!
Why are you on this list? You could be any of the following:
-
a client
-
we've swapped business cards
-
member of MBN, BNI, NSAA or another networking group that I participate in.
How to get on or off this list:
Send a fax or write me if receiving this by post and wishing to update contact details, or be removed. Or, if receiving online please subscribe or unsubscribe here.
PO Box 2918, Cheltenham, Victoria,
Australia, 3192
Ph: +613 9585 5780
Fax: +613 9585 3785
Acquaintance, Client or Advocate?
Much is said about networking these days, and word of mouth referrals. It seems that they are a very popular way of developing our businesses and building our profiles. Which may be a difficult thing for someone who may be shy or not so outgoing – how do they network or develop word-of-mouth referrals?
It’s important to remember that with everyone we meet or chat, a relationship of some sort is developed from the start, and with a bit of nurturing those people can become more than an acquaintance – someone whose face or name we know, but nothing else. It doesn’t take a lot – ask a few questions, get interested in the people with whom you mix from time to time.
A useful thing to do would be to look at your database (you should have one if you are in business!) and consider whether the people listed there are acquaintances, clients or advocates. Acquaintances I’ve explained in the previous para; a client is someone for whom you provide a service or product either periodically or regularly. An advocate is something much more than that – and something that would be desirable to turn many of your clients and acquaintances into.
What is an advocate? Someone who tells others (enthusiastically) about your business service and/or product – without you prompting them to do so! They so enjoy the service you provide, or are in awe of what you do for them that they happily tell others about it – whenever they perceive a need on behalf of someone else.
What does it take to develop advocates? Not a real lot of extra effort, but there is a requirement for extra remembering to do it! And that is going a little bit further, delivering before the client expects it, providing something extra, or offering more than they asked for. Making an effort to be available to them when they have need and letting them know they can depend on you. Perhaps remembering your last conversation with them and asking them about whatever it was they mentioned to you.
What can you do extra to turn your clients into advocates?
Do you get ALL your emails?
Spam Filters can be effective, to a point. I’ve noticed recently, when sending out bulk emails for some clients, that many corporate offices are now sending back messages that state:
Your email has been quarantined by our automated emails monitoring program.
This is implemented to safeguard our mutual IT systems and to prevent harmful emails and viruses being circulated and spread. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
However as the monitoring is being done automatically and in the event that your quarantined email is work and business related, please kindly resend the email with advice note to webmaster@youknowwho.com immediately to prevent it from auto-deletion.
Thank you for your kind co-operation.
WEBMASTER
or
MailMarshal (an automated content monitoring gateway) has stopped the following message:
Message: B0001994b3.00000001.mml
From: who@youknowwho.com
To: you@youknowwho.com
Subject: WorkshopBecause it believes the message or an attachment to this message contains SPAM.
If you’re in a corporate office I wonder if you know when email is not reaching you because of this situation? It would be worth checking to see if you can set up a ‘safe list’ to add the addresses of those from whom you want to receive newsletters, workshop announcements and other items. Whenever you collect a business card or email details from someone to whose email service you may have subscribed, get in the habit of adding them straight away to that list.
For those of us who send out bulk emails on behalf of clients to have to try and send back email messages to the ‘webmaster’ to get an email approved, every single time an email newsletter is sent out, can take up a lot of time – especially when there are several of them. Whilst those in the IT department may have set up what they think is an effective way of dealing with potential spam from their end, it can cause considerable angst in the time involved to get an email approved and sent through to someone who actually requested it. The end result can be that the receiver is deleted off the email list and will not receive the information they had subscribed to – and they may begin to think that the person who was sending them hasn’t followed through on what they agreed to do.
So – find out how your system works, if in a corporate office, and if you cannot get around the system that is set up to allow you to receive the newsletters and workshop announcements, consider setting up a personal email address (if you haven’t already got one) specifically for subscribing to various newsletters, workshop announcements and other useful business related items.
Home Based CD set available through Networking to Win $99.00 GST incl.
Network or Perish Book, or How to Master Networking Book, $25.00ea GST incl.
Mention this offer through ACS News and you will receive a complimentary CD.
Network or Perish and How to Master Networking by Robyn Henderson (both books)
How to Run a Successful Home-Based Business (CD pack and booklet) by Robyn Henderson and Neen James.
Website:
Copernic – if you have a website and wish to see how it's progressing in various search engine listings, this program is very useful and inexpensive. There is also a free version to try out.
Did you know.....?
National Secretaries Day in Australia is called National Office Professionals Day and is celebrated on Friday 6th May - and not in April as in the UK and USA. Make sure you mark the date in your diary and remember your admin support on that special day!
What is a Virtual Assistant?
It's a term for home-based secretaries, administrative and secretarial support, and others who supply 
remote or virtual support.
We are as close to you as your computer and can do almost anything traditional support staff do - except virtually. You don't need to provide office space, equipment, software or furniture - we have our own!
Location no issue as the work is carried out 'virtually' no matter where you are! See our newest members listed at VA Directory
