For most people, the answer might be both.

As a small business owner, you probably read about the importance of social media networking in Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. You might even have a Facebook Fan Page for your business.

All these networks are wonderful to generate more contacts, to gain more visibility for your business and expand your contacts. However, many small business owners also realize that once they have all their profiles set up, participating becomes an incredible time-draining activity with no specific or direct or measurable benefit for their business.

Here are 3 key points to help you make the most out of this important social marketing activity. Make sure you:

1. Plan it!
   As with any marketing activity you perform for your business, make a plan that includes not only objectives but also an action plan. Set specific goals to ensure your social networking happens for a reason and will help you get more leads and/or clients.
2. Schedule it!
   Allocate time for your social networking activity. You don’t need to be available all the time. If you participate you must realize social media implies a two-way communications channel. You will have to respond and be active, but organizing this will ensure you make the most out of your time on these social networking sites.
3. Automatize it!
   There are many great online tools to systematize several parts of your social networking communications. Familiarize yourself with the tools available and implement the necessary ones to make your time on these networks a productive one. Better yet–hand this task over to your Virtual Assistant!

Remember the saying: “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”

RESOURCE: One of my favorite social media guides: Mashable.

Small business owners are always looking for ways to market their business. However, many struggle with the issue of being on a tight budget without realizing that there are several no-cost marketing avenues available.

Identifying those resources will help you focus and develop an action plan to make the most out of your marketing efforts.

1. Referrals: Just ask!
   Even though this source is often neglected, word-of-mouth is probably one of the most productive ways to get new clients. A satisfied client will be happy to recommend you… if you just ask them to do so. (Be sure and let them know who makes a great referral for you–they’ll be more likely to send referrals your way, more often, when they have a specific idea of who you’re looking for.)
2. Articles: Just write!
   Never before has article marketing been an easier way to promote your business. There are tons of article directories in which you can publish your articles. Writing articles will not only increase your exposure, but also present you as an expert in your field.
3. Press Releases: Just submit!
   Gaining brand recognition and communicating your products Read the rest of this entry »

I know you’ve heard this before: “To get your business to the next level, you must delegate some things.” Yes, you do need to get rid of at least one or two hats. But how? Even though you know in your heart how right this advice is, you’ve grown accustomed to going it alone.

Even delegating basic clerical tasks makes you realize there are many aspects involved in each tiny part of your puzzle. And you are right! Each and every part of your business is important. You don’t want to delegate tasks to a person who doesn’t care the same way you do about your business, do you?

Of course not. You don’t just need clerical or secretarial assistance. You need real, professional administrative assistance from someone who has been there and knows what it’s like being a solopreneur and small business owner. That someone is a Virtual Assistant.

Virtual Assistants are in the business of caring about your business and proactively supporting your needs by not only performing tasks, but also adding value to your business — the things they are expert in, they can do better than you!

Letting go — is this a “dealing with change” issue? Read the rest of this entry »

As a solopreneur, unpredicable economic conditions might make you feel uneasy. You are steadily climbing, acting proactively to reach your goals, but you definitely need a shelter or base camp to ensure you’ll reach the summit.

So what would that shelter be for solopreneurs? I strongly believe the answer is organization. There are many methods and tools that will help you reach the summit. As a solopreneur, I regularly stop by my own “Basecamp.”

Basecamp is a project collaboration tool that will make a huge difference in how you organize your projects and communicate with team members or other people working with you. They make it easy to test out the service–just go online and create your no-cost trial account so you can try this great tool out for one project. Basecamp walks you through the entire process step-by-step with video tutorials to show you how to get the most out of the service. You’ll also be able to create to-do lists within the project, define milestones, assign tasks, send email reminders and a host of other capabilities.

I use this tool with several clients. Some just Read the rest of this entry »

All Small Business Owners are invited to attend the FREE Monthly VACOC Teleseminars! Grab this wonderful opportunity!

How to Write Articles to Market Your Business, Even if You Are Not a Writer

Presented by Jan King, The Publishing Store

DATE: Thursday, July 16, 2009
TIME: 5pm PST / 6pm MST / 7pm CST / 8pm EST
DURATION: 60 minutes (call in 10 min. early to secure your seat)
COST: FREE!

WHO SHOULD ATTEND? This class is open to all Virtual Assistants, small/boutique business owners, solo professionals, solopreneurs and independent professionals. Invite your business buddies! If you know some folks who would like to attend, feel free to copy and paste the contents on this page, and post invitations on the forums, listservs and groups you participate in.

Jan King, The Publishing StoreEvery marketing book and seminar tells you that you should be writing articles to promote your expertise and your business. But if you have never written before, where do you start, and how do you know you have anything to say?

Writing articles is a great way to enhance your reputation as the go-to person who has deep expertise in the work you do every day. You may choose to write several articles at once or simply write them when new ideas come to you. Another great time to write is when a client asks you a question you can’t fully answer. If you need to research a topic, chances are others are asking the same questions and needing answers.

Jan B. King is a book publishing expert and author of numerous articles herself (just Google “Jan B. King” to see them). She says, “When I started to promote my first book, I had to find an interesting and short way of letting people know who I was and what I could do for them. Writing articles was definitely the right answer. Every week I still see that people have used articles I wrote five years ago in their new ezines. If you do it right, you have a way to market yourself for years to come.”

Jan has helped hundreds of people get their expertise out on paper as books and articles and she can help you, too. You don’t have to be a writer to write articles and in this session, Jan will share with us:

• Where to find article ideas in what you do every day.
• How to make your articles stand out and work for years.
• Where to market your articles.
• How to write and format articles, including the all-important title and resource box.
• How to make articles interesting, fun and attractive to potential clients.
• How to find the time and the motivation to write.
• How to maintain ownership of your work.

REGISTER TODAY!

All Small Business Owners are invited to attend the FREE Monthly VACOC Teleseminars! Grab this wonderful opportunity!

Target Marketing
Presented by Jim Logan, Marketing Consultant
DATE: Thursday, July 17, 2008

TIME: 5pm PST/6pm MST/7pm CST/8pm EST
DURATION: 60 minutes
(please call in 10 min. early)

COST: FREE! – REGISTER NOW!

WHO SHOULD ATTEND? This class is open to all Virtual Assistants, small/boutique business owners, solo professionals, solopreneurs and independent professionals. Invite your business buddies! If you know some folks who would like to attend, feel free to copy and paste the contents on this page, and post invitations on the forums, listservs and groups you participate in.

Target marketing is frequently misunderstood, often getting a bad rap from newer business owners who are afraid being too specific will result in lost opportunities. But that’s not how target marketing works. By getting extreme clarity and focus, you actually open your business up to more opportunities than you could ever imagine. One of our favorite consultants, Jim Logan, is back to help shed some light on the topic and answer your questions at our next VACOC Guest Expert Teleseminar on Thursday, July 17, 2008.

REGISTER NOW!

All Small Business Owners are invited to attend the FREE Monthly VACOC Teleseminars! Grab this wonderful opportunity!

Know Your Inner Consultant:
5 Steps to Learning the Art of Intuition
Presented by Intuitive Artist Jennifer Crews

 

DATE: Thursday, January 17, 2008
TIME: 5pm PST / 6pm MST / 7pm CST / 8pm EST
DURATION: 60 minutes (please call in 10 min. early)
COST: FREE!

Register Now!

 INVITE YOUR BUSINESS BUDDIES! This class is open to all Virtual Assistants and small business owners.

Everyone is blessed with intuition, and with practice and dedication to learning, one can excel and strengthen this innate gift.

Learning intuition is not any different than taking art, dance or music lessons to advance in the learning of a skill. The first of these five steps is “awareness” of your inner language. Your inner language is your own source of receiving information. You have your own personalized way to receive information—your own inner consultant.

Learn more as well as all five steps in how to master this invisible intelligence and strengthen your intuition in business and in all areas of your life.

Register Now!

As a small business owner, you might (as I am) be sometimes challenged by the transition from employee to entrepreneur.

If so, you might find this month’s VACOC Monthly Guest Expert Teleseminar interesting: Breaking Out of the Employee Mindset

Presented by Author Suzanne Mulvehill

DATE: Thursday, November 15, 2007
TIME: 5pm PST / 6pm MST / 7pm CST / 8pm EST
LENGTH: 60 minutes (please call in 10 min. early)
COST: FREE!

REGISTER NOW

This class is open to all Virtual Assistants and business owners.

“The mindset is everything; if an entrepreneur thinks wrong, the business won’t succeed,” says Suzanne Mulvehill, founder of the Emotional Endurance® Institute and author of “Employee to Entrepreneur: A Mind, Body and Spirit Transition.”

If you find yourself still thinking and acting like an employee, even though you are running your own business, you don’t want to miss this event. “Thoughts like ‘Am I going to make it?’ and ‘I don’t think I can do this anymore,’ have to go,” says Mulvehill.
New thoughts like “I’m giving it my all, no matter what,” and “If I’m making mistakes, I’m making progress” need to become automatic and be programmed into the entrepreneurial mind so success can flow.

Break out of your employee mindset, and increase your business success rate immediately! This will teleseminar will help you:

• Learn the secrets to change your employee thoughts into entrepreneurial thoughts; 
• Learn strategies for having your thoughts work for you vs. against you; 
• Understand the 7 employee mindset shifts that must take place in order to embrace entrepreneurial success.

And much more!