Do You Have Synergy?

March 22, 2012 By 1 Comment

Earlier this week I was transcribing a church sermon from last Sunday.  The pastor told a story about a Canadian breed of horse (yes, that caught my attention!).  It went like this:  Several years ago in Canada a new breed of horse was produced.  After these horses had grown to maturity they wanted to test the strength of the horses.  They took a horse and found that he could pull an 8-ton force.  Then they paired this horse with another horse and figured together they could pull 16 tons, maybe 18 tons.  However, they were amazed that the two horses together could pull a 30-ton force.

How can two horses pull 30 tons when one horse could pull only 8 tons?  It makes sense according to the scientific law called synergism.  Synergism is defined by dictionary.com as “the interaction of elements that when combined produce a total effect that is greater than the sum of the individual elements, contributions, etc.”  So two things (or people) working together produce a far greater result than those things (or people) working independently.

Are you working alone in your business?  Are you spending too much time trying to get an ezine done?  Are you trying to update your website and searching for just the right plugin?  Are you bewildered by Infusionsoft’s many capabilities?  Are you struggling to stay focused?  Are you starting projects that never get finished?  Are you moving from one shiny object to the next?

We all need help.  We cannot go it alone.  We need people beside us who can help guide us and teach us.  We need people who can help execute our projects.  And we need people who can cheer us on.
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Filed Under: Business Building Tips, Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , , , , ,

Is Your Spelling A Pet Peeve To Your Readers?

March 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment

In my last article I posted a photograph of a word puzzle that had an incorrectly-spelled word. I purposely did not share which word was wrong just to see how many people might have caught it. Of the people who contacted me… none of them spotted it.

That’s okay! It just reinforces my point that we all should utilize spell check before sending any email or letter… and if it’s really important, we should have another human being proofread it before it goes out.

By the way, if you’re curious, the word was together, which is the correct spelling.

I’d like to share with you some of the other spelling errors that are pet peeves of mine. These are the words I most often spot as being incorrect. Spell check will question them if only you take the time to run it.

Your vs. you’re

Your is a possessive word, belonging to somebody. I like the color of your shirt.

You’re replaces you are. As a hint: when you combine two words (called a contraction), you basically replace the space with an apostrophe. You’re on the schedule to work tomorrow.

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Filed Under: Productivity, Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Videos On Your Website – Do You Need Them?

February 16, 2012 By 2 Comments

I said I wouldn’t do it…I had all the excuses in the world of why I wouldn’t do it, too, but I recently started.  “It” is videos.  I’ve only done three, but each one I do gets easier and easier.  It is becoming a very important part of any business with an online presence.

How many times do you visit a website and there’s a video?  That number continues to grow, and there are some pretty significant reasons for that.  I recently watched a webinar hosted by Lou Bortone, Online Branding Specialist, Video Pro, and Visibility Expert.  He shared some interesting statistics with us.

  •     YouTube is the second biggest search engine
  •     60% (and rising) of all web traffic is video (by 2013 Cisco reports that this number will be 90%)
  •     Websites with videos are 53 times more likely to appear on the first page of a search
  •     Visitors stay two minutes longer on average on sites with videos
  •     Visitors are 64% more likely to purchase on sites with videos
  •     Websites with videos sell 45% more

With these numbers how can you afford NOT to have a video on your site?  Videos help set you apart from your competitors.  Videos also increase your credibility and visibility.   We all do business with people we know, like, and trust.  Videos are a great way to help that process along.  Have you ever watched a video and felt a connection with that person?

You can use videos to attract clients, open new opportunities such as joint venture partners, any number of things.  Videos also increase your social media exposure.

You don’t need to spend a fortune to create your videos.  Using your laptop webcam or purchasing a separate webcam for your desktop will work.  The software comes with your webcam.  You install it and then can use any type of video editor to add captions at the bottom, if you want.
Your videos can be short — 1 to 2 minutes is fine.  If you want to do a longer one, break it up into different sections.  Don’t try to record too much at one time!  And remember, it doesn’t have to be perfect.  It’s okay if you stumble over a word or have to look at a note while you’re talking.

Here are a few ideas for recording your video:

  •     Series of tips
  •     Welcome message on your home page
  •     Explanation of specific service or product
  •     Motivating people to sign up for your teleseminar or webinar
  •     Thank you message to clients
  •     Drive traffic from Facebook or YouTube to your site

Still not comfortable being in front of the camera?  Then consider doing a slide presentation and narrating it.

If you’d like to check out my YouTube channel, click here!  If you have some other ideas how to use videos, I’d love to hear them!

Filed Under: Business Building Tips, Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , , , , ,

8 Tips For A Better Landing Page

January 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Did you see the interview with Madonna on 20/20 Friday night?  I’ve always been a big Madonna fan (even dressed like her for Halloween one year in the ’80s), so I definitely watched it and wasn’t disappointed.  There was a conversation about Lady Gaga’s Born This Way sounding a lot like Madonna’s Express Yourself.  20/20 interviewer Cynthia McFadden asked Madonna if she found it annoying.  Madonna replied, “It felt reductive.”  McFadden asked, “Is that good or bad?”  Madonna replied, “Look it up.”

There are several definitions for reductive, but this is the one I’m going with for purposes of today’s article.  Reductive is an adjective that means:  Tending to present a subject or problem in a simplified form, especially one viewed as crude.  So is your landing page reductive?

Not sure what a landing page is?  According to Wikipedia, a landing page, sometimes known as a lead capture page, is a single web page that appears in response to clicking on an advertisement. The landing page will usually display directed sales copy that is a logical extension of the advertisement or link.  Landing pages are often linked to from social media, email campaigns or search engine marketing campaigns in order to enhance the effectiveness of the advertisements. The general goal of a landing page is to convert site visitors into sales leads.

So what should your landing page look like?  You have an average of 8 seconds to capture the visitor’s attention.  In bull riding, this seems like an eternity; but when it’s a visitor to your website, it feels like a blink of the eye! Here are a few key elements you want to follow. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Business Building Tips, Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , , , ,

Infusionsoft Changes Coming

January 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Wow!  Last night I was on the Infusionsoft webinar highlighting their Winter Release 2012…some awesome changes are coming!  I’ll touch on a few this morning, in case you haven’t heard.

First, they’re updating the ecommerce area, organizing it in a much friendlier, easier to use way.  Subscriptions will be considered products and you’ll be able to start charging shipping on subscriptions, as well.  Speaking of shipping…all shipping options will be in one central location instead of the one area for order forms and the other area for the shopping cart.  Tip: Before they make the change, you may want to go in and update the name of the shipping options you have for your order forms.  Just add “Order form” in front of your current shipping so you’ll be able to distinguish which options are which.

You’ll be able to share your emails and webforms through social media.  I’ve got one client for which this change will come in handy!  Currently whenever she has an email she wants to share through social media, I post it as a blog and share it that way.  This will be one step eliminated and we’ll be able to quickly and easily share the email through Twitter and Facebook!  LinkedIn currently isn’t an option, but hopefully that will be coming soon.  People who receive your email will also be able to share it through social media, and you’ll be able to track shares and views.

Ever wish you could easily have a simple webform which then took the prospect to a more complicated webform seamlessly?  You know, your first webform asks for first name and email address, and then it takes them to the next page which asks for shipping information so they can get the free DVD shipped to them.  After the update you’ll be able to easily do that!  And I say easily because while it was possible before the upgrade, there was some extra coding involved.

That’s it for now!  More changes are coming in the spring.  Can’t wait to see what they come up with next!

Filed Under: Infusionsoft Tips, Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , , , ,

Mindset for Success (The Final 3 Questions to Ask Yourself)

December 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Last week I posted the first two questions you should be asking yourself.  You can read them here.

Question #3 To Ask Yourself: What is blocking me right now?

Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers. Voltaire

Knowing what you need to do and doing it are two very different things, just as having a map for running a marathon and actually making it to the finish line are miles (26.2 miles, to be exact) apart.

The gap between knowing and doing can be the result of many things:

  • Skill. You know what to do, but you don’t know HOW to do it. For instance, you know the next step in your business is to create a website opt-in form so people can easily join your mailing list, but you have no idea how to do that. You’ve got a SKILL problem.
  • Mindset. You know what to do and how to do it, but you don’t think you can. You’re stuck because you lack confidence in yourself, or there’s some other mental block. You’ve got a MINDSET problem.
  • Emotion. You know what to do and how to do it, and you even know you can do it, but you don’t want to do it. You avoid making the phone call for fear you’ll be rejected, or you don’t tackle your taxes because you’re afraid you’ll owe money. You’ve got an EMOTION problem.

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Filed Under: Productivity, Self Improvement, Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , , , , ,

Mindset for Success (2 of 5 Questions to Ask Yourself)

December 7, 2011 By 1 Comment

To raise new questions, new possibilities, to regard old problems from a new angle, requires creative imagination and marks real advance in science. Albert Einstein

Questions help us frame our thinking and define our problems. We can rarely think of an answer outside of the way we’ve framed the question, so it stands to reason that the questions we ask – particularly those we ask ourselves – will drive our thinking and our behavior.

If we’re looking to take our lives – professional, personal, spiritual, physical – to the next level, we need to change the types of questions we ask ourselves. Over the next few weeks, I’ll help you take a look at the way you speak to yourself and make some changes along the way. There are five questions you should be asking yourself to broaden your thinking and make you more successful, and five more to STOP asking yourself because of their limiting influence.

The questions I ask you over the next few weeks will help you define your path and remove obstacles that are holding you back!  Whether you want to compete in an Ironman triathlon, start your own business, or find a way to move your family to the country and live in a log house you made with your own two hands, the encouragement and suggestions I provide will help you get there!

Question #1 to Ask Yourself: What Are My Highest Value Activities?

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Filed Under: Productivity, Self Improvement, Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , , , , ,

There’s Just Not Enough Time: 7 Tips To Get It Done

November 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment

How often have you thought “there’s just not enough time”?  As entrepreneurs, we’ve got tons of ideas swimming around in our heads.  We’ve also got tons of things we need to be doing to build successful businesses.  We have clients we’re working with.  How in the world do we ever accomplish it all, while still sleeping, still making money with our clients, and still enjoying our personal lives? 

  1. Create systems for those everyday tasks.  Automate where you can.  Simplify the things that can be simplified.  Doing these things will free up some time. 
  2. Get help.  Hire professionals who do what they do best, leaving you time to do what you do best!  Don’t struggle with website changes, hire a Virtual Assistant.  Don’t spend hours trying to set up a webform in Infusionsoft, hire a Virtual Assistant.  Don’t change the oil in your car just because you can, hire a mechanic.  Don’t try to fix your computer, hire a computer tech.  Make good use of your time by hiring people who can help you. [Read more...]
Filed Under: Business Building Tips, Infusionsoft Support, Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Hire a VA Private Investigator for Twitter Success

November 10, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Magnum PIIf you were around in the ’80s you might remember Tom Selleck in Magnum, PI, the cool, calm and collected private investigator who collected all the facts, uncovered the clues and solved the mysteries. Well I like to think of Virtual Assistants as the Magnum PI’s of the internet marketing world delving behind the scenes to find new tools that can enhance the way you market on the web. Does the analogy fit? Read on and find examples of how a Virtual Assistant can enhance your Twitter marketing and more.

A Twitter Newbie: So you’ve finally made it to Twitter, but you’d really like to connect with like-minded people but don’t know how to find them. Twello and WeFollow are two great sites for your VA to investigate first. By using specific keywords, it’s simple to find people with something in common.  Within no time flat, and with your VA’s help, you’ll have a good base of people to follow on Twitter.

Network in Your Community: Twitter is not just about connecting with friends and colleagues at a distance; it’s useful for backyard networking as well. TwelloHood is the “Google maps” of Twitter allowing you to pinpoint Twitter users by topic or name. Give your VA some parameters to search like relevant keywords or a specific niche and she/he can create a great list of individuals to follow. You never know, these local “tweeters” may turn into joint venture partners, colleagues or clients; all due to your VA’s keen insights.

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Filed Under: Virtual Assistants/Assistance Tagged With: , ,

Get that entrepreneurial spirit back and dream big!

October 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Have an Entrepreneurial SpiritIf you delegated some of your office tasks or projects, it would allow you more time to do what you do best — talking with your clients, running your business, and making money! You’ll also be free to continue expanding your horizons, your knowledge, and your offerings by constantly learning and growing.

Teaming with a Virtual Assistant will open the doors to maintaining a balance between your personal life and your business life by allowing you to take time for yourself. You know being frazzled isn’t good for you, your business, your clients, or your family!

Do you still have that entrepreneurial spirit? Think back to the reasons and feelings that drove you to start your own business to begin with. What were you hoping to achieve? How big did you want your company to be? What were you hoping to find in starting and running your own business?

Let yourself dream…again.

Filed Under: Virtual Assistants/Assistance
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