Social Media Do's and Don'ts

I will admit being a relative late-comer to the social media scene. As such, I have learned many lessons over the past several years through formal study, by reading what others have to say and working at it day and night. Also in my early efforts, I made some mistakes. These mistakes seem to be common among those who try to dip their toes into the social media water through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and other social/business networking platforms. In the spirit of “Givers Gain” this blog post is an attempt to pass on a summary of do’s and don’ts for the benefit of those who come after.

On the popular topic of social media do’s and don’ts… here are some excerpts and useful comments from

Quotes from CNN.com: “How to gracefully promote yourself online.” (Credit goes to Authors: Brenna Ehrlich and Andrea Bartz, who are the sarcastic brains behind humor blog and book Stuff Hipsters Hate)

Story highlights:

• It’s a fine line between tooting your own horn online and spamming everyone with tweets
• Try introducing your website to family members and close friends first
• Once you develop fans of your venture, use a public forum to THANK them personally

Are you on any online mailing lists? And how do you feel about their happy little droppings in your inbox? Gmail’s new Priority Inbox even sifts out those non-urgent newsletters from actual missives. But a funny thing happens when you yourself are thinking about starting a newsletter. “It’ll be the best thing in everyone’s mailbox!” - “It will be clever and fresh and interesting. Everyone will love it!” – Face slap from reality…

Self-promotion is an art, not a science, because it takes a bit of instinct and talent to tiptoe across the tightrope between tooting your own horn and sprinting down the street at 6 a.m. with an air horn blaring whilst your soon-to-be-former friends roll their eyes and plug their ears and discuss behind your back how desperately they wish you’d just shut … up!

To summarize what this writer learned over a couple of years and also from this referenced article:

Start with the low-hanging fruit - Your family and friends who actually care about your success.Only reach out when you have something to say – Please don’t send out weekly newsletters full of too much wordy prose. Attach interesting links, be entertaining and informative or don’t bother at all.

Thank your fans – Making them feel special will keep them coming back. I like to send them cards when I have contact information, or pick up the phone and just say “Hi” nice to hear your voice!

Let’s not let Social Media interaction take the place of real human interaction.

Want to be a HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL LinkedIn Member?

Note: The origin of this post is from LinkedIn Success Strategies group. I highly recommend it to all. Join this group! 

So what makes a highly successful Linkedin member? Here is what I have discovered as not only habits, but also “secrets” of the treasure chest on Linkedin.

1. They invest their time strategically by putting fresh content on Linkedin when it’s the best time to do so. Let me explain, for me weekends are times to prepare Linkedin content, but as you will notice most collaboration does not take place on weekends. So hold the great Q/A’s, the awesome discussion topics, or the great status updates until Monday and never late Friday. Think about what your audience is doing and be strategic.

2. They use their status update to post something new every 24 to 48 hours and 80% of those updates include a link that gives a call to action. Such as signing up for your next webinar, promotions to visit your blog, or visiting your corporate website etc.

3. They answer target specific questions that are related to their target market. This is great exposure for your business that Linkedin Pros are doing everyday!

4. They change their Picture profile every two months. This creates dialogue and interaction with your network. This is another way to keep your brand in front of everyone. Pictures are worth a thousand _ _ _ _ _ (fill in the blank)

5. They answer every Linkedin email/inmail. Maybe not timely, but they never waste an opportunity!

6. They post their company events on the events application provided by Linkedin and use this as a way to measure interest and involvement for such things as conferences, webinars, or seminars. The events application has only been recently used by Linkedin Elite, but many are beginning to wise up to its amazing potential.

7. These highly successful members have identified their target markets on Linkedin, their goals on Linkedin, and are executing their plan every single work day. Social Media can be measured, but most don’t understand how to begin measuring their Social Media efforts because they have never identified their goals for using the Linkedin space. Once you have identified your goals then you can build a measurable matrix to analyze your efforts.

Independent Contractor or employee in disguise?

Many new business owners and some who are not-so-new are attracted to the idea of using independent contractors instead of employees.  There are a lot of people in my profession for example who tout themselves as independent contractors. 

Advantages of independent conttractors
There are advantages to using independent contractors such as the employer saves on FICA, Unemployment, and other taxes.  They are also not obligated to pay workers compensation and other insurance benefits.  They are not subject to FMLA or other employment related legislation.

Disadvantages of independent contractors. The main disadvantage to using independents is that you must keep on top of exactly what qualifies someone as an independent contractor. If you misclassify someone as an independent contractor who isn't, the penalties can be extremely costly.

Not only that, but there are two different sets of "tests" for independent contractors — one under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and a 20-point test administered by the IRS. While the tests differ, they both focus on how much control the employer has over the employee's work.  See also the official site:  http://www.dol.gov/compliance/laws/comp-flsa.htm

One safe way to assure that you are not penalized for misuse of an employee as a contractor, is to use someone who has formed a corporation.  As an example my company is incorporated and licensed to do business.  For other advantages, see my cost comparison table at: http://www.apvirtual.com/Cost_Comparison.html.

Branding your business on social media sites

I have a client (a most excellent electrician) for whom I handle bookkeeping and other assorted tasks. He's been thinking about “dipping his toes” into social media - mostly on his own. I suggested to him that if he does not feel comfortable with a photo to ID himself, then a picture would work too. Lots of people use logos if they have them and if not then a picture which could relate to his identify and that people would recognize as they continue to see posts from him on various platforms.

Of course my ultimate goal is to give him a real presence but for now I wait in the wings while cheering him on in his efforts.

What are your thoughts on this subject? Those of you who specialize in this niche what have you done or not as the case may be, while you watch some of your contacts in this same situation. They have budget challenges of course and some of them just want to know how to do it themselves… they see it as a new challenge.

I feel that as the pressure of their every day business grows, they will slack off or hopefully go the other way – seeing the value of using a VA to assist with social media and things like branding and continued posts of information relative to their business. We all know that social media will keep them on the top of the minds of their contacts whenever an opportunity presents itself for a referral.

Can and should you outsource your social media tasks?

I read with interest a recent blog post on the subject of what a marketing virtual assistant can do to assist clients to maximize their online presence.  Here are some excerpts and suggestions:

• Edit and upload Facebook, LinkedIn, blog posts or other network updates;
• complete profiles and account information on relevant sites;
• edit and distribute articles;
• monitor alerts for your key words and participate appropriately;
• manage social media groups and comments;
• build pages on Facebook, Plaxo, etc.

I have the following additional suggestions:

• Write and/or write and distribute e-newsletters;
• go "mining" for contacts in your target market, i.e. LinkedIn;
• create a database of contacts to assist with all of the above functions.

You would not want your VA to try to fake your personal relationships and respond to friend's posts... only create content relative to your business.

As the blog pointed out - social media is so much about being consistently there.  Sort of like the brick and mortar imperative:  the store has got to be open 7 to 11.  In social media, the time requirement is not so strict, but it's there.  Sporadic updates, long unexplained absences and extended vacations deflate your efforts like an old balloon.

Your social media marketing assistant assures your presence is solid online. For more info visit my website or email me.

I have taken some of the key points in the blog that relate to my services.  For the entire post, please visit Sydni Craig-Hart's guest blog on My Miss Assist blog.  http://mymissassist.com/tag/sydni-craig-hart/

Looking for new ways to increase referrals?

This year many of us are looking for new ways to:

- Acknowledge your clients on special events like birthdays and milestones

- Increase referrals

- Have a regular follow up plan for prospects and thank you cards

- Create a passive stream of income

If this is you, then read on! I've been using SendOutCards (SOC) for about 8 months. I have so much fun and it increases my business too. This is an ingenious greeting card referral system. When I was first introduced to SendOutCards, I did not think it was my cup of tea. BOY, was I wrong!!! I received several phone calls and return cards from friends and business contacts after sending my Christmas cards this year. They all loved the personalization of the card (it even had my own handwriting inside it and photos I took myself). One of my clients has now become a distributor herself using SOC to promote her e-commerce website. What does that mean for me? It means money in my bank account just for sending her a Christmas card. My client ended up signing up under me as a distributor plus I handle some clients campaigns as a VA which is more hours for me on monthly retainer. You can't beat that! Everyone loves receiving a personalized card in the mail.

Test it out for yourself...I would like to offer each and every one of you a FREE GIFT ACCOUNT which will allow you to send greeting cards at my expense using an incredible referral system called SendOutCards.

Try it today: http://SendOutCards.com/apvirtual

While there, please watch the two videos to learn more about how Send Out Cards can help your business make more money

No budget for marketing your small business?

Small businesses often have no budget for a marketing department. In fact both owners and staff are stretched to the max just keeping up with the day to day business and doing what directly affects their bottom line. Therefore as a small business owner, you can choose to hire a virtual assistant to help you with your marketing tasks, especially if you intend to use social media for marketing.

Online marketing can be very cost-effective although it requires creativity and time. Once you get the hang of it and really put in the effort, online marketing can bring your business great referrals and increase your profits. There are many techniques and tools available.

Here are some of the things a virtual assistant can do to help you with online marketing:

• Manage website or blog- the company’s website or blog can be one of the most important sources of information about the company and its products online. Whenever someone needs information about your business or your products online, the person can simply visit your blog or website to get information. The virtual assistant can help you with all of the tasks related to managing a website or blog. The VA can create content related to your website or update products in your shopping cart.

• Do article marketing- the virtual assistant can write and submit articles so that more people can find your website through the articles. Publishing 2-5 articles per week can have a major effect on your website traffic and can also help you build a good reputation in your niche market.

• Your virtual assistant can be your representative posting information and engaging other people through online forums.

• Create interesting videos: You can hire the VA to create scripts and gather materials for your video.

• Email marketing - can be effective in business if done properly.

• Create and maintain social media presence on networks such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

A competent virtual assistant becomes fully immersed in your business and can quickly become familiar with topics of interest to your target audience. Also we know the tricks and tips to finding good material online to add value for your clients and engage them in your subject matter.

DO NOT RISK LOSING YOUR DOMAIN NAME

1. Do you know when your domain name expires?

2. Do you know who gets notified?

3. Who has control over your domain registration?

You might not give this enough thought, but it can happen to you. Please read the tips below which should help you avoid the loss of your domain name. The loss of domain can be difficult or impossible to regain which can have devastating effects on your business and your branding efforts. I have seen it happen to those who were unaware.

• If you have another party register the domain on your behalf, make sure the contract specifies that you own the domain and will be listed as the registrant.

• If you're not sure how this was handled for an existing domain, check. Look up the registrant using a service like whois.domaintools.com.

• If you want the registration to be anonymous, work with a reputable firm that will ensure your control over the domain even while listing itself as the registrant.

• The best solution is to take direct control over the domain account. If you didn't do so to start with, have it transferred into your name now.

Consider having the main e-mail address associated with the record forwarded to multiple people. You don't want your organization's domain to lapse because expiration notices were going to the personal e-mail of the former employee who set up the account.

As a virtual assistant, when I assist a client in setting up their domain name, I make sure to calendar reminders and to have myself listed as one of the persons to be notified. Clients will sometimes change email accounts and over the course of time emails may not get forwarded to their current address.

For additional information and assistance, please visit our website: http://www.apvirtual.com/

Email marketing can give you an edge in a tough market

The key to turning your first-time customers into repeat customers is by building relationships. Through scheduled eblasts the customer expects to receive updated information on your company's products and services. What  better way to build a relationship than to provide useful information right to their email inbox?


Providing helpful hints or coupons in email form with photos and other graphics is a great way for recipients to want to continue receiving your email, and coupons will motivate action on the part of the consumer, providing you a way to instantly obtain feedback on your campaign. A+ Virtual will create some of the most effective and entertaining announcements or e-newsletters for your marketing information. These anouncements are easy to read and remember.  Links to your website and "join our mailing list" are easily included.  You can keep your customer informed and also make them likely to remember and recommend your products or services to their friends.


Email marketing gives your brand an edge in a tough market. Daily, weekly, or even monthly eblasts will keep your brand in your target consumers mind. As more and more of the population begins to use email, email marketing will become a standard in the marketing industry. Finding another marketing method that comes close to all the benefits that email marketing offers is nearly impossible.

10 Ways a Facebook Fan Page helps your business

Here is a link to an excellent article at Entreprneur.com on how you can promote your business using Facebook Fan Page.  Some Highlights: 

A Facebook Fan Page:

1. Establishes another outpost for your business on the web. 
2. Drives Traffic to Your Website (You can also create cross traffic by adding a Facebook widget linking your site to your Fan Page.)
3. Allows you to engage with your community easily and for free.
4. Strengthens customer relations
5. Allows you to keep pace with the competition free of charge.

For complete text, see the article link below. The article is by Mikail Belicove (who co-authored The Complete Idiot's Guide to Facebook). 

http://tinyurl.com/yf7jsu6

Ten of the Best New Year's Resolutions You Can Make Without Letting Yourself Down

1. Resolve to Stay Brutally Optimistic. See the opportunity in every difficulty and anticipate the most a favorite outcome out of every situation. Whatever you look for, that's what you'll find. We can get better or we can get bitter. It all depends on the lessons we draw from each experience. Optimism is like electricity - very little happens without it. Know this truth. You have all the resources you'll ever need to handle all the challenges you'll ever have. In true emergencies the true you will emerge.

2. Resolve to identify the most powerful benefit you offer to the people around you and then deliver it. "The Purpose Of Life", said George Bernard Shaw, "Is a Life Of Purpose". What's your? Where are you investing your personal energy, self preservation or adding value to others? Here's the well-being paradox: If you're only concerned about yourself, you cannot take care of yourself. Only by helping others, can you succeed.

3. Resolve to pump up your personal vitality. In the game of life, it's not about who's right, its about who's left. Over 60 percent of us are more than 36 years old. The real currency of the new century is not cash, It's vitality! It's the ability to keep going every day of every week of every month of the year with vigor and verve. All you are to the people around you is a source of energy, and you cannot give what you don't have. Ninety percent of all adults do no physical exercise at all. More than half of us are overweight. A third of us still smoke. So, this year, resolve to enhance your physical, emotional and mental vitality. Take just a small step. First you'll amaze yourself, and then you'll amaze everybody else.


4. Resolve to be habitually generous. Success is not something you pursue. It's something you attract by what you become. The more you give of yourself, the more favors you attract from others. People have a deep-rooted drive to give back. So resolve to search for ways to contribute to others. Heres an interesting aphorism: Live life above the line. If the line represents others' expectations of you, consistently surpass those expectations. You'll develop what author Ken Blanchard calls "raving fans", people who become walking billboards for you.

5. Resolve to go on a mental diet. Sticks and stones can break your bones, but words can scar you for life. It is humans, not elephants, who never forget. So resolve to use language of conciliation, not the language of confrontation. Avoid the temptation to vent your negativity on others. Instead, use words that express your joie de vivre and connection with others.

6. Resolve to be a global citizen, fully open to the cultures and influences of others. There is a direct correlation between personal well being and openness to other peoples' ideas and cultures. If someone has a different point of view, they're probably right as well. There are no absolutes anymore, so welcome different opinions. Become a one-person champion of plurality. Not only will you make lots of new friends, but you'll also gather multiple reference points to help you resolve personal challenges.

7. Resolve to take control of your destiny! Don't be so busy trying to make a living that you forget to make a life. Decide who you want to be and what you want to achieve and then stride boldly toward your vision. The most precious human commodity today is confidence.

8. Resolve to increase your human connectedness. The person with the best connections wins. The wider your network, the more opportunities you generate. It's all about trust. And it's all about profile - your presence of minds of the people who matter. So invest at least 10 percent of your time broadening your sphere of influence. Connect other people to the opportunities within your network: cross-pollinate their potential. When you are with others, make every encounter a pleasureable one. When you listen, truly listen. And burn your fear of rejection.

9. Resolve to increase your creativity by letting go of the familiar. Nothing is as far away as yesterday. Try to see the world through fresh eyes every day. As Salman Rushdie writes, every year is the Stone Age to the year that follows it. Listen to your intuition and follow your instincts. They'll tell you what to do before your head has had a chance to figure it out. You are a Picasso or Einstein at something. Discover what it is and then develop it to the maximum.

10. Resolve to be you because others are already taken. You and I are at our best when we're being authentic. We're at our best when we're being positively spontaneous, because that's when all our energy is being invested in the task at hand or with the person in front of us. In a hyper competitive world, we cannot afford to second guess ourselves. Success in the new century is all about speed ... Speed Wins. So act now, because if not now, when?

Source: Can you believe its that time of year already? Ten of the Best New Year Resolutions you can make, without letting yourself down. By Mike Lipkin First published in December 2001

You can always use an extra pair of hands...

No matter what size your organization is, we have programs designed to assist you and your staff, so you can keep your business running smoothly.

• Looking for someone to handle legal pleadings? Look no further!
• Need some help setting up and implementing mail or e-mail campaigns? We do that!
• Need your audio tapes or digital dictation transcribed fast & accurate? Give us a call.
• Need help with Quickbooks? Organize your records for tax season? We can do that. We have a Certified Quickbooks Advisor on our team.
• Can’t keep up with the maintenance of your client database? Check out our competitive rates
• Want to start a regular mailing program of thank you cards, seasonal cards - Or newsletters?
• How about E-newsletters, announcements & Email Drip Campaigns? We can do all that or just the parts that keep you and your staff from completing other vital company functions.
• Want to get on Facebook, LinkedIn and other social media marketing sites in a BIG WAY! We can save you lots of time and effort as we know all the tips and tricks. (Certified in Social Media Marketing.)
• Don’t see it here? Just ask!

Rose-Anne Raies, President 561-795-2672

A+ Virtual Assistant, Inc. cell 561-307-6986

Royal Palm Beach, FL

See Us on Facebook: https:/www.facebook.com/APVirtual  

Linked In Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/roseanneraies

http://www.apvirtual.com/

Tis the Season - to love technology

A good friend sent an article from You magazine with lots of tips on how to use technology during the holiday season. Here are some great excerpts. The full article follows:

Sharing the Holidays
In these challenging economic times, it may be harder to travel during the holiday season. But that doesn't mean you can't be together, virtually, with your family. Sites like http://www.dropshots.com/ make it easy for friends and relatives to view photos and videos of all your holiday events.

DropShots is a free site where you can easily upload photos and videos to share with a specified group of people. And one of the best parts about DropShots is that it is private.

Great Technology that will help you shop for bargains:

For comparison shopping online, check out http://www.pricegrabber.com/  (rated the top price comparison site by SmartMoney.com). PriceGrabber includes large, national chains as well as smaller merchants. You can search for products or browse through categories. PriceGrabber even includes a separate area for environmentally-friendly products called Shop Green.

If you're not near a computer and still want to find the best prices, just pick up your smartphone. For iPhone users, try the Save Benjis application. For a one-time application charge of 99 cents, Save Benjis allows you to search by product name, manufacturer or by the numbers on the product's bar code. Save Benjis displays multiple locations where you can purchase your product – listed from lowest to highest price.

For the BlackBerry and other Internet-enabled phones, check out Frugalytics. This free app (available from the BlackBerry store) allows you to search by product name or browse products by category.

While all of these comparison sites will show you the online price, many stores' websites include a place to enter a zip code and check the in-store availability for locations near you. And if you're just not sure what gifts to give this holiday season, check out Giftbee. On this site you can search for gifts by category (such as sports) or by a trait (such as pet lover). Giftbee also includes a list of all the hot toys for the holidays.
 
http://tinyurl.com/yjpqot6

Testing out a free blogging course

I'm evaluating a multi-media course on blogging from the folks at Simpleology. For a while, they're letting you snag it for free if you post about it on your blog.

It covers:

• The best blogging techniques.
• How to get traffic to your blog.
• How to turn your blog into money.

I'll let you know what I think once I've had a chance to check it out. Meanwhile, go grab yours while it's still free.

HOW YOU VIEW YOUR BLOG DIRECTLY AFFECTS THE BUSINESS YOU GAIN THROUGH IT

Service professionals – especially women - view their blog as an outlet for sharing their thoughts and their knowledge. And that’s it. If the way you view your blog is an outlet for your thoughts and your knowledge, than this is what it is going to be.

But if you also want to attract clients with your blog, you need to start viewing your blog and your blog posts differently. You want to view your blog as a tool that you use for both sharing your thoughts and your knowledge AND for inviting potential clients to learn more about your business.

To do that, first, use your blog to share – you share your knowledge, you share information, you share your expertise. However if you do not share information about your products and services, You are not doing a good job sharing EVERYTHING that your target market needs, When someone comes to your blog and reads your blog post, there are two possible outcomes:

1) Your blog post has helped them solve the problem they were having, and they are happy about that. This is great, this is one of the reasons you are blogging, you want to help your target market solve their problems!

2) But more often than that your target market wants more. After people in your target market have read your blog post, they want to know how what you are sharing and teaching can apply to them, to their lives, to their businesses, to solving their problems. And in order to learn that, they will start looking for help from you, which means they will start looking for your products and services.

Now, what if they are looking for how you can help them, but your blog does not list any of this information? In this case it is actually a DISSERVICE that you are doing to your target market by not providing information about your newsletter and your products and services on your blog.

So revolutionize how you are thinking about your blog. Once you start using your blog to both SHARE information and SHARE your products and services, you are going to create much more awareness about your business. And awareness leads to more engagement from your blog readers and engagement leads to more clients. When your blog readers know you and when they know what you offerings are, they are much more likely to do business with you.

Concierge Services of A+ Virtual Assistant, Inc.

As indicated in a recent newsletter, A+ Virtual Assistant, Inc. also offers concierge services of varying types.

One that most people would not think of is party planning, catering for dinner parties, etc.
Being married to a classically trained chef for 20 years, I naturally gravitate to food and the functions associated. Plus we love to have our own parties for friends, family and business associates.

Here is a great recipe, courtesy of Giada DeLaurentis of The Food Network:

ISRAELI COUSCOUS SALAD WITH APPLES, CRANBERRIES AND HERBS.

OF COURSE I TAKE A LITTLE TWIST OF MY OWN ON THE VINAIGRETTE. (SORRY NOT SHARING THAT ONE! ;-))

Ingredients
Couscous:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups Israeli couscous (or barley or orzo)
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 medium green apple, diced
1 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted, see Cook's Note

Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

Directions
For the couscous: In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil on medium-high heat. Add the couscous and cook, stirring occasionally until slightly browned and aromatic, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 to12 minutes or until the liquid has evaporated. Transfer the cooked couscous to a large bowl and set aside to cool. Add the parsley, rosemary, thyme, apple, dried cranberries, and almonds.

For the vinaigrette: In a small bowl, combine the vinegar, maple syrup, salt, and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil until smooth. Pour the vinaigrette over the couscous and toss to coat evenly.

Cook's Note: To toast the almonds, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Arrange the almonds in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes

Still unsure if LinkedIn is a good for your business?

Here is an ineresting post/article:  3 little known ways to use linked in to grow your target market, generate leads, & secure expert advise at no cost...… Excellent information for the beginner to intermediate LinkedIn user.  You may have to  have a LinkedIn account and/or paste the link to your browser.  Not like some of the fluff we get - some good meaty info here. 

http://www.linkedin.com/news?viewArticle=&articleID=78315154&gid=1829230&articleURL=http%3A%2F%2Fmycorporatemedia%2Ecom%2F2009%2F10%2F17%2Fthree-little-known-ways-to-use-linkedin%2F&urlhash=sVRT&trk=news_discuss

JUST SAY THANK YOU AND WATCH YOUR BUSINESS GROW!

Say you  made two major purchases this year. You were very pleased with both companies. Both of the sales people from Company A wrote thank you notes after your purchase. You never heard back from Company B.

Then a few weeks later, a neighbor approached us asking for a referral. They were interested in the product purchased from Company B. You were happy to supply the neighbor with the information but had forgotten the company's name and did not have the contact information readily available. 
After a couple of days, you found the Company B info...Here's the problem, the neighbor could not wait and had found another company to service their needs.  What is the lesson in all of this? Send a thank you note!
If you are like me you never throw away thank you cards. Had your neighbor asked for Company A's product, you could have produced the information in a matter of minutes.  A little thank you note would have doubled Company B's sale.
When your customers purchase a product or service from you, take the time to show your appreciation by sending a card in the mail. Give your client a tangible object to hold on to! If you don't think you have time, try using www.Sendoutcards.com/apvirtual ... you can try this service cost free and send two cards "on me."  See  how you like it.  You simply choose a card, type your message and click send. We do the rest.
Afterwards should you decide you want to use the product contact me.  The cost can be as little as $.62 plus postage.  No trips to the store, no hassle.  I can even help you upload your contacts from your computer.
Had Company B sent me a thank you note, they may have sold a second project for $2000. Let's see, spend $1.00 and make $2000. Looks like a good return on their investment.

Rose-Anne Raies, President, A+ Virtual Assistant, Inc. http://www.apvirtual.com/
http://www.sendoutcards.com/apvirtual
We are on Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/APVirtual

Business Networking Blog: Business Networking Groups

I enjoyed this post about whether you should pass cards at networking group functions.  Thought my readers might too.  Interesting food for thought.  Comments welcome.

Business Networking Blog: Business Networking Groups

Read how to increase your bottom line in challenging times.

Many successful entrepreneurs and business owners are discovering a way to increase both their quality of life and their bottom line by utilizing the services of Virtual Assistants. 

A Virtual Assistant is an independent entrepreneur providing administrative, creative, and/or technical services. Utilizing advanced technological modes of communication and data delivery, a professional VA assists clients in their area of expertise from their own offices on a contractual basis.

Why should you hire a VA?

Growing a successful business takes time, commitment, and effort. When your business is doing well and your bank account is growing, other things grow as well - such as administrative tasks. By hiring a VA, you will lessen your burden without spending a small fortune for administrative support. Think of it this way:

If you charge, on average, $100 an hour for your services your time is better spent on revenue generating tasks.  Does it make good economic sense for you to be the one updating your website, readying a direct mail campaign for launch, or coordinating advertising copy? Of course not! With a VA, you can have all of these tasks completed - and more - for a fraction of your cost, or the cost of a full-time employee. By outsourcing to a VA, you give yourself the ability to create new business opportunities and focus on the things you love doing.

As a busy professional, your time is money. If you are spending your valuable time on tasks that do not generate income, allow A+ Virtual Assistant, Inc. to support you. Let us take on those projects that slow you down, distract you from more important things, and don't ever seem to get done. In addition, we can offer you value-added services that help your business grow - from marketing campaigns, to bookkeeping, to transcription, customer data base management social media networking, e-mail drip campaigns, e-newsletters and word processing support.

Visit our website and see "contact us"  http://www.apvirtual.com