I notice on many of the VA forums that there are VA trainers and coaches, and other list owners, keen to promote the teleseminars, coaching sessions and other things they have happening and they want to let the VA community know. Some may feel they have a right to cross promote across the various lists as much as possible so they can get as many VAs involved as they can. Others might feel that it's not appropriate to do so on lists that aren't moderated or owned by them - personally I'm in the … [Read more...]
Archives for October 2006
Developing Your Niche
During a class session last night I was asked how do you develop a niche market for your VA business? My own particular specialities had happened almost by accident but it is about knowing what you like doing and keeping your eyes and ears open. In 1997 I was offered a role to run the secretariat for a membership based group. I'd never done that type of work before but I knew I liked working on databases, organising events, and being in my own office. I met with the chairperson of the … [Read more...]
There’s Value in Writing Articles
I periodically get clients (new and existing) ask for assistance in getting exposure for their website and their business. There are a number of things you can do such as Google Adwords or any of the other click through advert programs available, make sure your site is listed with search engines and so on, but one of the best value items you can do, is write articles on your niche topic. How many others know your topic as well as you do? And how many others are writing about it? If you are … [Read more...]
Seeking free training?
I see a lot of people who are starting out in the virtual assistant or homebased secretary industry across a number of forums looking for as much free stuff as they can get, but the reality is that if it's really worthwhile, and it's going to help build and develop your skills, then it should be paid for. Bear in mind that any expense incurred in operating or developing your business is a tax expense and as you start out, it's probably best to plan what you need to do now and what you'd like to … [Read more...]
What a Week!
Those who know me well but didn't hear from me in the past week were getting worried - I don't usually not respond to emails and phone calls. But it was all for good reason. A week ago our youngest daughter got married and I had notified my team and all my regular clients that I'd be 'out of action' for a few days. I had family members here from interstate and country areas - not exactly easy to sit down and concentrate on work when you have guests in the house. By Tuesday evening we had our … [Read more...]