On one of the LinkedIn groups for VAs a new VA asked about getting started and landing her first client. Some had been giving her advice about her LinkedIn profile. Below is my (edited) response to her. At LinkedIn people prefer to see photos rather than an illustration. So you might want to consider changing your profile pic. Your LinkedIn profile definitely needs adding to. Have you tried Googling your name? If people knew about you and were looking for you, the results that come up should … [Read more...]
How not to post a blog post!
My sincere apologies, the post that went out this morning was not complete and was supposed to be in draft mode. But it wasn't, and so you all got something that was entirely unfinished without all the extra material I'd intended for it. Stay tuned, it will come out complete soon and please forgive me if I've ruffled some feathers. That was not my intention at all. Kathie Thomas … [Read more...]
Website histories
Sometimes it's necessary (or worthwhile) to go and check the history of a domain to find out how long a business has been online, or in operation. It's hard to tell the age of a site because technology and our age require that information is regularly updated. And if you want to verify some facts, a good way to do it would be to verify the age of the site or the domain. Plus you can have a giggle about how awful some sites were many years ago. For example, if you were to check how long my … [Read more...]
WSJ got it all wrong
It's amazing how wrong people can be about the Virtual Assistant industry. Quote from their video page: Virtual assistants are being called on to unsnarl people's lives. WSJ's Sue Shellenbarger has the pros and cons of a virtual assistant, and Profitably.com CEO Adam Neary shares how a virtual assistant helped him get his life back. The interview started off right. Yes, Virtual Assistants began as administrative support. But from there the interview went downhill. No, we don't organise … [Read more...]
How do I become a Virtual Assistant (VA)?
This is a question I see asked at VA groups and forums from those who want to enter into the industry. It's quite easy really. You simply make a decision and then start acting like a VA. But to do that, there are some things you need to have set in place: You must have a good command of the skill set you want to offer as a service. No point in offering word-processing and data entry services if you can only type 20wpm. You would need to be much faster (at least 60wpm) and have around 98% … [Read more...]
Profile or Page when using Facebook?
I know people get confused about what the difference is when creating an account with Facebook. They hear they need to get a Facebook Page for their business but then, in setting up, get confused as to which is which and what the differences are. If you plan to use Facebook for your business, then you must set up a Page, not a Profile. The two most immediate differences are this: Adding someone as a 'Friend' or allowing people to 'Like your Page'. If you use a personal profile for your … [Read more...]
Do you have a book inside you?
A few years ago I published my very first paperback. It was such an exciting feeling. Months of writing finally coming to fruition. And a nervous time too. Would others want to read the book? Would it sell? I already had a blog on the same topic that was well received and had many, many visitors every single month. Usually thousands and at May each year that easily doubles. Why? Because the topic relates to women working at home, primarily mothers. And the subject matter is searched for … [Read more...]
Warning re ‘Tell a Friend’ script
If you are getting responses to emails you haven't sent or people querying the email you just sent, you may well have hackers accessing a script on your ecommerce site without your knowledge. I've recently experienced this problem and know another person who has also. The reason for this is the spammers/hackers have accessed the 'Tell a Friend' script on your commerce site. For my part I didn't even know that script had been installed so it came as a bit of a shock as I've always been against … [Read more...]
Investing in your business
Business is so different to what it was say, 20 years ago. At that time we didn't have the Internet to promote our businesses and to buy a computer often required getting a loan if we didn't have that much cash available at the time. Not to mention purchasing a printer (colour was often out of reach), a fax machine, answer machine and a number of other items. They were all individual items and not like the multifunction items we have available to us today. However, with everything being so … [Read more...]
