Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Twitter Promoted Tweets - Advertising With or Without Them
Chris Crum | Staff Writer
Twitter Launches Long-Awaited Ad Platform - Promoted Tweets
Twitter has finally unveiled its business model in the form of "Promoted Tweets". The company refers to this as a "non-traditional" and "easy" strategy that "makes a ton of sense for Twitter." Promoted Tweets are described as ordinary tweets that businesses and organizations want to highlight to a wider group of users.
Would you pay to promote a tweet?
Promoted tweets are clearly labeled as "promoted" when they are paid for by advertisers. However, in many cases, they will simply begin as regular tweets that are organically sent to the timelines of those who follow the account. When a tweet is promoted, it will still have the functionality of any other tweet, such as replying, retweeting, etc. This sounds similar to status promotion tests we've seen from Facebook.
To start out, Promoted tweets are appearing in Twitter search results. Twitter Co-founder Biz Stone says the company wants to make sure they're useful to users so they'll attempt to measure whether they "resonate" with users. Indications of resonation include engagement activities like replying, retweeting, and favoriting. If a promoted tweet doesn't resonate, they'll stop showing it.
Stone calls the launch the "first phase" of the Promoted Tweets platform, indicating that there will be improvements made as time goes on (and more partners added). So far, Best Buy, Bravo, Red Bull, Sony Pictures, Starbucks, and Virgin America are using Promoted Tweets.
"Before we roll out more phases, we want to get a better understanding of the resonance of Promoted Tweets, user experience and advertiser value," says Stone. "Once this is done, we plan to allow Promoted Tweets to be shown by Twitter clients and other ecosystem partners and to expand beyond Twitter search, including displaying relevant Promoted Tweets in your timelines in a way that is useful to you."
"Since all Promoted Tweets are organic Tweets, there is not a single "ad" in our Promoted Tweets platform that isn't already an organic part of Twitter," says Stone. "This is distinct from both traditional search advertising and more recent social advertising. Promoted Tweets will also be timely. Like any other Tweet, the connection between you and a Promoted Tweet in real-time provides a powerful means of delivering information relevant to you at the moment."
"There is one big difference between a Promoted Tweet and a regular Tweet, he adds. "Promoted Tweets must meet a higher bar--they must resonate with users." This sounds kind of like Digg's ad strategy.
If Twitter's own promoted tweets don't strike a chord with you, there are other options for advertising on Twitter. Sponsored tweets, for example, has been around for quite a while. Earlier this week, TweetUp was launched as an AdWords-like concept for Twitter. These are just a couple examples.
Of course Twitter also offers businesses plenty of ways to reach and interact with their audiences just by using Twitter in general. Here are a few tips:
1. Get in front of journalists. More of them are using Twitter and Facebook according to a recent study.
2. Use things like Twitter share buttons on content to promote sharing of content (once it's been tweeted, it may get retweeted repeatedly).
3. Remember that brands on Facebook and Twitter are favored by consumers.
4. You can learn some things about audience engagement from Justin Bieber. Seriously.
5. Get found in real-time search (here are some tips for that).
More details about Promoted Tweets are expected to be shared by the company this week at an AdAge conference, and at Twitter's own developer conference, Chirp.
Twitter Launches Long-Awaited Ad Platform - Promoted Tweets
Twitter has finally unveiled its business model in the form of "Promoted Tweets". The company refers to this as a "non-traditional" and "easy" strategy that "makes a ton of sense for Twitter." Promoted Tweets are described as ordinary tweets that businesses and organizations want to highlight to a wider group of users.
Would you pay to promote a tweet?
Promoted tweets are clearly labeled as "promoted" when they are paid for by advertisers. However, in many cases, they will simply begin as regular tweets that are organically sent to the timelines of those who follow the account. When a tweet is promoted, it will still have the functionality of any other tweet, such as replying, retweeting, etc. This sounds similar to status promotion tests we've seen from Facebook.
To start out, Promoted tweets are appearing in Twitter search results. Twitter Co-founder Biz Stone says the company wants to make sure they're useful to users so they'll attempt to measure whether they "resonate" with users. Indications of resonation include engagement activities like replying, retweeting, and favoriting. If a promoted tweet doesn't resonate, they'll stop showing it.
Stone calls the launch the "first phase" of the Promoted Tweets platform, indicating that there will be improvements made as time goes on (and more partners added). So far, Best Buy, Bravo, Red Bull, Sony Pictures, Starbucks, and Virgin America are using Promoted Tweets.
"Before we roll out more phases, we want to get a better understanding of the resonance of Promoted Tweets, user experience and advertiser value," says Stone. "Once this is done, we plan to allow Promoted Tweets to be shown by Twitter clients and other ecosystem partners and to expand beyond Twitter search, including displaying relevant Promoted Tweets in your timelines in a way that is useful to you."
"Since all Promoted Tweets are organic Tweets, there is not a single "ad" in our Promoted Tweets platform that isn't already an organic part of Twitter," says Stone. "This is distinct from both traditional search advertising and more recent social advertising. Promoted Tweets will also be timely. Like any other Tweet, the connection between you and a Promoted Tweet in real-time provides a powerful means of delivering information relevant to you at the moment."
"There is one big difference between a Promoted Tweet and a regular Tweet, he adds. "Promoted Tweets must meet a higher bar--they must resonate with users." This sounds kind of like Digg's ad strategy.
If Twitter's own promoted tweets don't strike a chord with you, there are other options for advertising on Twitter. Sponsored tweets, for example, has been around for quite a while. Earlier this week, TweetUp was launched as an AdWords-like concept for Twitter. These are just a couple examples.
Of course Twitter also offers businesses plenty of ways to reach and interact with their audiences just by using Twitter in general. Here are a few tips:
1. Get in front of journalists. More of them are using Twitter and Facebook according to a recent study.
2. Use things like Twitter share buttons on content to promote sharing of content (once it's been tweeted, it may get retweeted repeatedly).
3. Remember that brands on Facebook and Twitter are favored by consumers.
4. You can learn some things about audience engagement from Justin Bieber. Seriously.
5. Get found in real-time search (here are some tips for that).
More details about Promoted Tweets are expected to be shared by the company this week at an AdAge conference, and at Twitter's own developer conference, Chirp.
Facebook "Likes" Mean More to Businesses Than Just Traffic
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
It's been nearly a week since Facebook rocked the world with its Open Graph announcements, and many of us are still wrapping our heads around all of the implications they have. I don't think there's any dispute that it's a huge move, and that it's important to pay attention to from a business perspective, but just what it means for businesses is still up in the air in some regards. Like Facebook itself, or even social media in general, we're going to see more benefits (and possibly negatives) as time goes on, and more sites and applications harness the power of said Open Graph.
As those wheels turn in our heads, there is plenty of discussion already happening around the subject - not just the Open Graph and the issues related to it (open web ramifications, privacy, etc), but how we can indeed take advantage of it.
Traffic
In a recent article we talked about why Facebook's Open Graph and particularly its social plug-ins will be good to drive traffic. It's pretty straightforward. The like and recommendation buttons are essentially different versions of the share buttons that people have been using to drive traffic for quite some time. The main difference is that instead of only showing up in the news feed only disappear shortly thereafter, they will remain on the user's profile page for people to see in the future - a fixed link to your content.
Have you seen more traffic from Facebook's buttons since they've launched?
Search/SEO
Search Engine Land contributing editor Greg Sterling makes some interesting points about the search implications of the whole thing:
However, the vision here is a network of discovery tools and information that operate higher up in the funnel than search: what are my friends doing, where are they eating, what do they recommend? This clearly doesn’t eliminate the need for search. But it does represent an alternative way in many cases to discover information.
Yet the mountains of data that Facebook will gain could improve Facebook search results and potentially the coming, new and improved Bing integration. At a simple level, if Facebook knows the most Liked sushi restaurants in New York and those liked by my social network it can show me that information in search results. That hypothetically makes Facebook search much more social and more of a recommendations engine than Google at this point.
Nobody's saying Facebook is poised to replace Google, but the whole thing falls inline with the diversification of search we've been talking about a lot lately. Search is getting more diversified, meaning that people are using more and more applications to find the information they're looking for. Facebook obviously plays a huge role in this. Also consider that Facebook's search market share has been on the rise, and it stands to reason that will continue as more and more data becomes available as this Open Graph expands.
Do you see Facebook's own search becoming more of a go-to place for finding information? Comment here.
Local
Assuming that every business rushes to get like/recommend buttons from Facebook in the way that they would rush to claim a listing in Google's Local Business Center (Now named Google Places), Facebook may become a very valuable place to find out the best businesses to go to for any given category.
As Sterling says on his Screenwerk blog, "It could do nothing in particular or it could build the single most effective local directory and search site that exists. This data will be more valuable than anything Google has or any individual local publisher-partner possesses. That includes Yelp, YPG or anyone else that joins the Open Graph and implements these new Facebook platform tools."
This is mostly forward thinking, and we don't know what Facebook is going to do. It's definitely something to keep eye on. Either way, local businesses are likely to attract fans from their areas with more friends from that area, who may in turn pass it to their friends in the area. Facebook has already been a great marketing tool for local businesses, and the Open Graph will only help in that regard.
Do you think Facebook is going to become increasingly important for local businesses? Share your thoughts.
Reputation
Facebook's latest changes have plenty of implications for reputation management. Likes and recommendations are potentially great for building a good reputation, but even while there is no dislike button (at least yet), a lack of likes/recommendations may reflect poorly on your brand, particularly when your competition is getting all kinds of love from Facebook users.
On the other side of things, you may want to be careful what you like and recommend yourself. Wording of likes and recommendations can come off as inappropriate, but the bigger issue may be liking and recommending stuff that that paints you in a non-professional light. Depending on what you do and the image you are trying to portray, this may or many not be a problem, but for those who wish to be careful about how others perceive them, this is something to think about.
Should you be concerned about likes/recommendations from a reputation standpoint?
Another thing worth mentioning about all of this is that Facebook is showing suggestions for things to like and recommend to new users. Facebook has posted something of an FAQ for the new features that aims to clarify how it all works for users.
It's been nearly a week since Facebook rocked the world with its Open Graph announcements, and many of us are still wrapping our heads around all of the implications they have. I don't think there's any dispute that it's a huge move, and that it's important to pay attention to from a business perspective, but just what it means for businesses is still up in the air in some regards. Like Facebook itself, or even social media in general, we're going to see more benefits (and possibly negatives) as time goes on, and more sites and applications harness the power of said Open Graph.
As those wheels turn in our heads, there is plenty of discussion already happening around the subject - not just the Open Graph and the issues related to it (open web ramifications, privacy, etc), but how we can indeed take advantage of it.
Traffic
In a recent article we talked about why Facebook's Open Graph and particularly its social plug-ins will be good to drive traffic. It's pretty straightforward. The like and recommendation buttons are essentially different versions of the share buttons that people have been using to drive traffic for quite some time. The main difference is that instead of only showing up in the news feed only disappear shortly thereafter, they will remain on the user's profile page for people to see in the future - a fixed link to your content.
Have you seen more traffic from Facebook's buttons since they've launched?
Search/SEO
Search Engine Land contributing editor Greg Sterling makes some interesting points about the search implications of the whole thing:
However, the vision here is a network of discovery tools and information that operate higher up in the funnel than search: what are my friends doing, where are they eating, what do they recommend? This clearly doesn’t eliminate the need for search. But it does represent an alternative way in many cases to discover information.
Yet the mountains of data that Facebook will gain could improve Facebook search results and potentially the coming, new and improved Bing integration. At a simple level, if Facebook knows the most Liked sushi restaurants in New York and those liked by my social network it can show me that information in search results. That hypothetically makes Facebook search much more social and more of a recommendations engine than Google at this point.
Nobody's saying Facebook is poised to replace Google, but the whole thing falls inline with the diversification of search we've been talking about a lot lately. Search is getting more diversified, meaning that people are using more and more applications to find the information they're looking for. Facebook obviously plays a huge role in this. Also consider that Facebook's search market share has been on the rise, and it stands to reason that will continue as more and more data becomes available as this Open Graph expands.
Do you see Facebook's own search becoming more of a go-to place for finding information? Comment here.
Local
Assuming that every business rushes to get like/recommend buttons from Facebook in the way that they would rush to claim a listing in Google's Local Business Center (Now named Google Places), Facebook may become a very valuable place to find out the best businesses to go to for any given category.
As Sterling says on his Screenwerk blog, "It could do nothing in particular or it could build the single most effective local directory and search site that exists. This data will be more valuable than anything Google has or any individual local publisher-partner possesses. That includes Yelp, YPG or anyone else that joins the Open Graph and implements these new Facebook platform tools."
This is mostly forward thinking, and we don't know what Facebook is going to do. It's definitely something to keep eye on. Either way, local businesses are likely to attract fans from their areas with more friends from that area, who may in turn pass it to their friends in the area. Facebook has already been a great marketing tool for local businesses, and the Open Graph will only help in that regard.
Do you think Facebook is going to become increasingly important for local businesses? Share your thoughts.
Reputation
Facebook's latest changes have plenty of implications for reputation management. Likes and recommendations are potentially great for building a good reputation, but even while there is no dislike button (at least yet), a lack of likes/recommendations may reflect poorly on your brand, particularly when your competition is getting all kinds of love from Facebook users.
On the other side of things, you may want to be careful what you like and recommend yourself. Wording of likes and recommendations can come off as inappropriate, but the bigger issue may be liking and recommending stuff that that paints you in a non-professional light. Depending on what you do and the image you are trying to portray, this may or many not be a problem, but for those who wish to be careful about how others perceive them, this is something to think about.
Should you be concerned about likes/recommendations from a reputation standpoint?
Another thing worth mentioning about all of this is that Facebook is showing suggestions for things to like and recommend to new users. Facebook has posted something of an FAQ for the new features that aims to clarify how it all works for users.
LinkedIn Has New Ways to Drive Targeted Traffic to Your Site
Chris Crum | Staff Writer
Some Count LinkedIn as Top 5 Traffic Source
When you think about traffic-driving social networks, LinkedIn may not be the first thing that comes to your mind, and truth be told, there's a good chance it will not drive the kind of traffic Twitter or Facebook will for your site. However, some sites have found it to be a quite valuable traffic tool, and the company seems to want to further cement its status as such.
LinkedIn reportedly has about 65 million members. That may not seem like much compared to Facebooks 400 million (likely well over that by now in reality), but LinkedIn can bring a different brand of relevance to the table.
Has LinkedIn become an integral part to your marketing?
Earlier this year, we talked to entrepreneur Lewis Howes (who claims that LinkedIn is one of the top traffic sources to his blogs) about how powerful LinkedIn can be for driving traffic. He had written on the subject previously at Darren Rowse's ProBlogger. "You need to take into consideration that LinkedIn has the highest average household income per user over any other social networking site (even NYTimes.com and BusinessWeek.com readers)," Howes told us. "That being said, these are business decision makers you are targeting with your traffic from LinkedIn. The network is for real, and it will only continue to grow in time..."
What's New
LinkedIn has announced some changes to its news sharing options, and some of them just may help content spread more like it would on Twitter. Notable changes include:
1. Public vs. Private - Users now get complete control over who sees what they're sharing (everyone, connections, a group, or one person).
2. Images and article excerpt - Facebook-style images/excerpts that can increase clickthrough potential.
3. See and delete your own posts - preview, edit, and delete options for status updates to prevent typos.
4. Easily re-share - LinkedIn's version of the retweet - just click a button and share content with connections, groups or individuals. This could be a huge factor for traffic. Retweets are great for making content go viral.
5. Improved off-site sharing experience - Now content sites will be able to offer a similar sharing process for LinkedIn to its own internal re-share feature.
6. The URL shortener (Lnkd.in) - LinkedIn calls this a companion to its Twitter integration.
7. Attribution - Re-shared articles give "via-style" credit by attributing something you re-share to the person who shared it with you.
8. Shared items on your profile - If a user chooses to make shared items public, they will appear on their profile.
Howes told us that people don't generally associate LinkedIn with driving traffic, and that their perception of it is more like a resume or a way to get a job. "They don't see all of the powerful tools within LinkedIn that allow you to drive traffic back to your site," he said.
LinkedIn has recently launched some new integrations that can only help with a user's traffic strategy - notably, integrations with Twitter and Microsoft Outlook. "The Outlook integration is a way to connect more with your current LinkedIn contacts, and also help you grow you network as well," Howes noted. The Twitter integration obviously lets you tap into the following you already have on Twitter, which has already proven to be a significant traffic-driving tool.
Some Count LinkedIn as Top 5 Traffic Source
When you think about traffic-driving social networks, LinkedIn may not be the first thing that comes to your mind, and truth be told, there's a good chance it will not drive the kind of traffic Twitter or Facebook will for your site. However, some sites have found it to be a quite valuable traffic tool, and the company seems to want to further cement its status as such.
LinkedIn reportedly has about 65 million members. That may not seem like much compared to Facebooks 400 million (likely well over that by now in reality), but LinkedIn can bring a different brand of relevance to the table.
Has LinkedIn become an integral part to your marketing?
Earlier this year, we talked to entrepreneur Lewis Howes (who claims that LinkedIn is one of the top traffic sources to his blogs) about how powerful LinkedIn can be for driving traffic. He had written on the subject previously at Darren Rowse's ProBlogger. "You need to take into consideration that LinkedIn has the highest average household income per user over any other social networking site (even NYTimes.com and BusinessWeek.com readers)," Howes told us. "That being said, these are business decision makers you are targeting with your traffic from LinkedIn. The network is for real, and it will only continue to grow in time..."
What's New
LinkedIn has announced some changes to its news sharing options, and some of them just may help content spread more like it would on Twitter. Notable changes include:
1. Public vs. Private - Users now get complete control over who sees what they're sharing (everyone, connections, a group, or one person).
2. Images and article excerpt - Facebook-style images/excerpts that can increase clickthrough potential.
3. See and delete your own posts - preview, edit, and delete options for status updates to prevent typos.
4. Easily re-share - LinkedIn's version of the retweet - just click a button and share content with connections, groups or individuals. This could be a huge factor for traffic. Retweets are great for making content go viral.
5. Improved off-site sharing experience - Now content sites will be able to offer a similar sharing process for LinkedIn to its own internal re-share feature.
6. The URL shortener (Lnkd.in) - LinkedIn calls this a companion to its Twitter integration.
7. Attribution - Re-shared articles give "via-style" credit by attributing something you re-share to the person who shared it with you.
8. Shared items on your profile - If a user chooses to make shared items public, they will appear on their profile.
Howes told us that people don't generally associate LinkedIn with driving traffic, and that their perception of it is more like a resume or a way to get a job. "They don't see all of the powerful tools within LinkedIn that allow you to drive traffic back to your site," he said.
LinkedIn has recently launched some new integrations that can only help with a user's traffic strategy - notably, integrations with Twitter and Microsoft Outlook. "The Outlook integration is a way to connect more with your current LinkedIn contacts, and also help you grow you network as well," Howes noted. The Twitter integration obviously lets you tap into the following you already have on Twitter, which has already proven to be a significant traffic-driving tool.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Get All The Help You Need— Virtually
By Coeli Carr
Virtual assistants offer business owners much-needed administrative and financial relief.
When David Goldsmith started The Goldsmith Group, a strategy consultancy business in Santa Fe, NM, he hired an assistant to handle routine office tasks like making travel arrangements, helping prepare presentations and conducting research. The assistant can’t, however, greet visitors or run out for coffee. This right-hand helper works from her own home office in Michigan.
The trade-off of having an off-site assistant is well worth it in savings alone, says Goldsmith. He estimates that a full-time office employee would cost around $30,000 annually. Instead, he pays his assistant only for “time on task,” which averages about 5 to 10 hours a week, and totals an estimated $15,000 a year. Savings are even greater after factoring in employee expenses like recruitment and administrative costs, taxes, insurance, benefits, bonuses, furnishings and equipment.
Goldsmith is one of many small business owners who are finding new efficiencies in outsourcing office tasks to an estimated 8,000 virtual assistants worldwide, according to Danielle Keister, a Tacoma, WA-based VA, and founder of The Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce (www.virtualassistantnetworking.com), a volunteer organization which helps small business owners connect with qualified VAs. These professionals can handle everything from basic administrative functions to more specialized work such as bookkeeping tasks, data processing, human resources and graphic arts. Tapping this virtual resource enables you to hand off time-consuming tasks, or fills a void in office capabilities such as creating PowerPoint presentations or designing marketing materials in Photoshop.
VA fees increase proportionately depending on areas of expertise. Hourly rates typically range from $30 to $100, according to Stacy Brice, president and founder of Assist University (http://www.assistu.com), a Baltimore, MD-based company, which offers professional VA training. Keister, whose clients are primarily attorneys, works only on retainer, and offers various packages ranging up to $1,200 for 20 hours.
Although the fees stun some prospective clients, others don’t blink an eye, because they realize the value of having someone who’s highly skilled and can get things done, says Keister.
For Jeffrey Korn, owner of Jeffrey Korn \ Creative (http://www.jeffreykorn.com), a Belmont, MA-based Internet strategy and design firm, mining the VA pool offers him the flexibility to bring on board people with different skills, and pay them accordingly. One relieves him of mundane tasks, such as buying office supplies and inputting business card information into his database. The other is a more skilled professional who coordinates usability and focus group research.
Why Not Hire a Temp?
Many small business owners use temps when they are in a crunch. But temps are just that, temporary. They're here today and gone tomorrow. Most VAs, on the other hand, prefer working on a contractual basis.
Goldsmith enjoys the stability a VA offers. He likes throwing off 20 task-requesting e-mails at a time, when the ideas strike him, knowing his VA is taking care of it all.
Most VAs want “long-term, collaborative relationships,” says Brice. The idea of having an assistant who can be more of a partner rather than employing someone who is just collecting a paycheck is appealing, adds Keister.
More importantly, VAs are small business owners, too, and understand that their success depends on their ability to service their clients. If they do a good job, they get more work and/or referrals.
Finding the Right VA
Unfortunately, the VA industry is unregulated and fractured, says Brice. Anyone with a PC and phone line who works remotely can call themselves a VA. If you’re considering hiring a VA, Brice suggests the following:
Hire certified VAs. Organizations like Assist University and others offer professional or certified training programs. VAs are generally professionals who have had many years of experience out in the workforce. Members of professional VA organizations— like the VA Chamber of Commerce— pledge to abide by an established code of ethics requiring integrity, honesty and due diligence.
Finding a certified VA is easy. AssistU helps business owners locate VAs who meet various criteria such as skills, time availability and accessible technologies. Other organizations offer user-friendly VA directories, including The Alliance for Virtual Businesses, International Virtual Assistants Association, The Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce, and Virtual Assistance Certification.
Start small. “Hiring a VA for a short-term project is a good option for business owners who want to play it cautious,” says Brice. You’ll soon see if you are comfortable working with someone who is out of eyesight, and if you complement each other's personality and skills.
Build trust. If a VA is going to be doing bookkeeping or other work that involves your finances, “finding a person you can trust is key,” says Brice. “Don’t just walk into a virtual relationship and say, ‘Here are my passwords.’”
Don’t be a “virtual hoverer.” If you are a micromanager and need someone at your beck and call you will surely need to adapt your management style. Don’t be a “virtual hoverer who barrages their VA with e-mails to check the status of their work,” warns Brice. Instead implement policies and standards to make sure they are fulfilling their job requirements.
Virtual assistants offer business owners much-needed administrative and financial relief.
When David Goldsmith started The Goldsmith Group, a strategy consultancy business in Santa Fe, NM, he hired an assistant to handle routine office tasks like making travel arrangements, helping prepare presentations and conducting research. The assistant can’t, however, greet visitors or run out for coffee. This right-hand helper works from her own home office in Michigan.
The trade-off of having an off-site assistant is well worth it in savings alone, says Goldsmith. He estimates that a full-time office employee would cost around $30,000 annually. Instead, he pays his assistant only for “time on task,” which averages about 5 to 10 hours a week, and totals an estimated $15,000 a year. Savings are even greater after factoring in employee expenses like recruitment and administrative costs, taxes, insurance, benefits, bonuses, furnishings and equipment.
Goldsmith is one of many small business owners who are finding new efficiencies in outsourcing office tasks to an estimated 8,000 virtual assistants worldwide, according to Danielle Keister, a Tacoma, WA-based VA, and founder of The Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce (www.virtualassistantnetworking.com), a volunteer organization which helps small business owners connect with qualified VAs. These professionals can handle everything from basic administrative functions to more specialized work such as bookkeeping tasks, data processing, human resources and graphic arts. Tapping this virtual resource enables you to hand off time-consuming tasks, or fills a void in office capabilities such as creating PowerPoint presentations or designing marketing materials in Photoshop.
VA fees increase proportionately depending on areas of expertise. Hourly rates typically range from $30 to $100, according to Stacy Brice, president and founder of Assist University (http://www.assistu.com), a Baltimore, MD-based company, which offers professional VA training. Keister, whose clients are primarily attorneys, works only on retainer, and offers various packages ranging up to $1,200 for 20 hours.
Although the fees stun some prospective clients, others don’t blink an eye, because they realize the value of having someone who’s highly skilled and can get things done, says Keister.
For Jeffrey Korn, owner of Jeffrey Korn \ Creative (http://www.jeffreykorn.com), a Belmont, MA-based Internet strategy and design firm, mining the VA pool offers him the flexibility to bring on board people with different skills, and pay them accordingly. One relieves him of mundane tasks, such as buying office supplies and inputting business card information into his database. The other is a more skilled professional who coordinates usability and focus group research.
Why Not Hire a Temp?
Many small business owners use temps when they are in a crunch. But temps are just that, temporary. They're here today and gone tomorrow. Most VAs, on the other hand, prefer working on a contractual basis.
Goldsmith enjoys the stability a VA offers. He likes throwing off 20 task-requesting e-mails at a time, when the ideas strike him, knowing his VA is taking care of it all.
Most VAs want “long-term, collaborative relationships,” says Brice. The idea of having an assistant who can be more of a partner rather than employing someone who is just collecting a paycheck is appealing, adds Keister.
More importantly, VAs are small business owners, too, and understand that their success depends on their ability to service their clients. If they do a good job, they get more work and/or referrals.
Finding the Right VA
Unfortunately, the VA industry is unregulated and fractured, says Brice. Anyone with a PC and phone line who works remotely can call themselves a VA. If you’re considering hiring a VA, Brice suggests the following:
Hire certified VAs. Organizations like Assist University and others offer professional or certified training programs. VAs are generally professionals who have had many years of experience out in the workforce. Members of professional VA organizations— like the VA Chamber of Commerce— pledge to abide by an established code of ethics requiring integrity, honesty and due diligence.
Finding a certified VA is easy. AssistU helps business owners locate VAs who meet various criteria such as skills, time availability and accessible technologies. Other organizations offer user-friendly VA directories, including The Alliance for Virtual Businesses, International Virtual Assistants Association, The Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce, and Virtual Assistance Certification.
Start small. “Hiring a VA for a short-term project is a good option for business owners who want to play it cautious,” says Brice. You’ll soon see if you are comfortable working with someone who is out of eyesight, and if you complement each other's personality and skills.
Build trust. If a VA is going to be doing bookkeeping or other work that involves your finances, “finding a person you can trust is key,” says Brice. “Don’t just walk into a virtual relationship and say, ‘Here are my passwords.’”
Don’t be a “virtual hoverer.” If you are a micromanager and need someone at your beck and call you will surely need to adapt your management style. Don’t be a “virtual hoverer who barrages their VA with e-mails to check the status of their work,” warns Brice. Instead implement policies and standards to make sure they are fulfilling their job requirements.
The Difference Between A Virtual Assistant And A Staff Member
Guest Post)
Written by Jay Fleischman
By Danielle Keister, The Relief Virtual Assistance
Administrative Support for Attorneys & Consultants
The other day I heard from an attorney who was looking for a Virtual Assistant to help him in his bankruptcy practice. It became immediately clear he was operating under several misconceptions, but primarily that Virtual Assistants are a form of cheap employee labor you don’t have to pay taxes on.
He about had a heart attack when I informed him that the average rate range of Virtual Assistants was between $35-$70 per hour. When I inquired as to what his expectation was, he explained that even at $35 per hour, he wasn’t in any position to afford $72,000 a year for someone to assist him 40 hours a week.
Whoa! Hang on there! Let me clear up this medical emergency.
When you work with a Virtual Assistant, you are working with an independent service provider-not an employee. Therefore, how and when you work together isn’t going to look anything like the way you work with an employee. You aren’t “employing” us for a part-time or full-time work week. Rather, Virtual Assistants offer strategic support delivered on a monthly basis.
Virtual Assistance is the best fit for solo and small practice attorneys who don’t have the time, space, budget or a large enough workload to warrant hiring an in-house assistant. Unlike project-oriented secretarial services and freelancers, Virtual Assistants work with clients in ongoing, collaborative relationship, with a typical commitment from the client of between 10-30 hours per month.
A Virtual Assistant’s services will allow you to focus your efforts on your main income-generating activities-client work and marketing. Using average figures, let’s say you decide to retain a Virtual Assistant for 20 hours a month. If paying a simple $900 retainer each month allowed you to be more focused, get more efficient, increase the number of billable hours you have available, and at a minimum could potentially increase your revenue by even $50,000 a year, wouldn’t you think that was a pretty worthwhile investment?
So how can solo and small practice attorneys afford to have the help they need? I say-how can they afford not to? Because mark my words, your practice will never grow beyond where it is today by trying to do it all yourself.
Written by Jay Fleischman
By Danielle Keister, The Relief Virtual Assistance
Administrative Support for Attorneys & Consultants
The other day I heard from an attorney who was looking for a Virtual Assistant to help him in his bankruptcy practice. It became immediately clear he was operating under several misconceptions, but primarily that Virtual Assistants are a form of cheap employee labor you don’t have to pay taxes on.
He about had a heart attack when I informed him that the average rate range of Virtual Assistants was between $35-$70 per hour. When I inquired as to what his expectation was, he explained that even at $35 per hour, he wasn’t in any position to afford $72,000 a year for someone to assist him 40 hours a week.
Whoa! Hang on there! Let me clear up this medical emergency.
When you work with a Virtual Assistant, you are working with an independent service provider-not an employee. Therefore, how and when you work together isn’t going to look anything like the way you work with an employee. You aren’t “employing” us for a part-time or full-time work week. Rather, Virtual Assistants offer strategic support delivered on a monthly basis.
Virtual Assistance is the best fit for solo and small practice attorneys who don’t have the time, space, budget or a large enough workload to warrant hiring an in-house assistant. Unlike project-oriented secretarial services and freelancers, Virtual Assistants work with clients in ongoing, collaborative relationship, with a typical commitment from the client of between 10-30 hours per month.
A Virtual Assistant’s services will allow you to focus your efforts on your main income-generating activities-client work and marketing. Using average figures, let’s say you decide to retain a Virtual Assistant for 20 hours a month. If paying a simple $900 retainer each month allowed you to be more focused, get more efficient, increase the number of billable hours you have available, and at a minimum could potentially increase your revenue by even $50,000 a year, wouldn’t you think that was a pretty worthwhile investment?
So how can solo and small practice attorneys afford to have the help they need? I say-how can they afford not to? Because mark my words, your practice will never grow beyond where it is today by trying to do it all yourself.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
7 Simple Secrets to Turning Prospects Into Customers
By Kellie D'Andrea
Turning prospects into customers is a big challenge many business owners face, especially when they are not skilled in the selling process. But having customers is necessary to grow your business, so here are seven simple secrets to turning prospects into customers.
1. Attract the right prospect to your funnel
It is very easy to think that everyone is a prospect but the reality is that not everyone is right for you. You know your true value and what you can do for your customers. Use marketing strategies that attract your ideal prospect to you. For example, if your product is geared towards the wealthy and is priced accordingly, you want to attract prospects who can afford your offering.
2. Be willing to give
Sometimes people need to experience you first before they are willing to engage your services. Be willing to share your knowledge, your expertise and yourself for free to attract prospects. Don't hold back, put out your best and most powerful stuff. If people like what they experience, they will seek you out when they need your services.
3. Stop talking and start listening
Stop trying to sell your prospects and start looking for ways to serve. The best way to do this is by simply listening. Get your prospect to talk about themselves and from your heart, offer your services to help them. Be creative and think out of the box.
4. Look for ways you can truly serve
When you are really listening, you should be able to open your mind and be creative. If you are truly coming from a place that is authentic, you will be able to find ways that you can truly serve the needs of your prospect.
5. Be authentic and real
Business is based upon relationships so open yourself up to relate with people. Be authentic and be real. If you follow all of the above steps and you are true and come from a place of high integrity, your prospects will pick up that quality.
6. Show them it's an investment, not an expense
Banish the word budget from your vocabulary. Really focus on the benefits and the outcomes and talk to your prospect about making an investment that is going to yield a return, versus an expense.
7. Eliminate the risk
Some people will still be uncertain so remove the risk. Offer them a guarantee of some sort so they can test you out before they commit. Sometimes people need this safety net, so make it easy for your prospect to do business with you.
About the Author: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST Marketing System and teaches Marketing Mondays, a FREE Teleclass on Sales, Marketing and Business strategies to build your brand from the inside out. To sign up for this class or to subscribe to her FREE ezine The Marketing Edge, go to http://kelliedandrea.com/blog.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kellie_D'Andrea
http://EzineArticles.com/?7-Simple-Secrets-to-Turning-Prospects-Into-Customers&id=3740971
Turning prospects into customers is a big challenge many business owners face, especially when they are not skilled in the selling process. But having customers is necessary to grow your business, so here are seven simple secrets to turning prospects into customers.
1. Attract the right prospect to your funnel
It is very easy to think that everyone is a prospect but the reality is that not everyone is right for you. You know your true value and what you can do for your customers. Use marketing strategies that attract your ideal prospect to you. For example, if your product is geared towards the wealthy and is priced accordingly, you want to attract prospects who can afford your offering.
2. Be willing to give
Sometimes people need to experience you first before they are willing to engage your services. Be willing to share your knowledge, your expertise and yourself for free to attract prospects. Don't hold back, put out your best and most powerful stuff. If people like what they experience, they will seek you out when they need your services.
3. Stop talking and start listening
Stop trying to sell your prospects and start looking for ways to serve. The best way to do this is by simply listening. Get your prospect to talk about themselves and from your heart, offer your services to help them. Be creative and think out of the box.
4. Look for ways you can truly serve
When you are really listening, you should be able to open your mind and be creative. If you are truly coming from a place that is authentic, you will be able to find ways that you can truly serve the needs of your prospect.
5. Be authentic and real
Business is based upon relationships so open yourself up to relate with people. Be authentic and be real. If you follow all of the above steps and you are true and come from a place of high integrity, your prospects will pick up that quality.
6. Show them it's an investment, not an expense
Banish the word budget from your vocabulary. Really focus on the benefits and the outcomes and talk to your prospect about making an investment that is going to yield a return, versus an expense.
7. Eliminate the risk
Some people will still be uncertain so remove the risk. Offer them a guarantee of some sort so they can test you out before they commit. Sometimes people need this safety net, so make it easy for your prospect to do business with you.
About the Author: Kellie D'Andrea is the creator of the BLAST Marketing System and teaches Marketing Mondays, a FREE Teleclass on Sales, Marketing and Business strategies to build your brand from the inside out. To sign up for this class or to subscribe to her FREE ezine The Marketing Edge, go to http://kelliedandrea.com/blog.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kellie_D'Andrea
http://EzineArticles.com/?7-Simple-Secrets-to-Turning-Prospects-Into-Customers&id=3740971
Common Challenges of a Virtual Team
Author
Alyssa Gregory
Department
Web Pro Business
I work virtually; it’s a primary part of my business model. This arrangement suits my work process (and personality) perfectly. Not to say I don’t enjoy meeting clients and colleagues face-to-face, of course. In fact, when I’ve had an opportunity to meet a colleague in person, it has always made the working relationship better. It’s just not logistically realistic in every situation.
I love most things about the virtual team atmosphere – no travel, ramped up productivity, no geographic boundaries, a focus on collaboration, enhanced creativity, autonomy. But as much as I love working virtually, it’s certainly not without its challenges.
Whether I’m working with clients or divvying up tasks among my own team members, there are moments when I wish I could jump into my laptop and pop out in front of a colleague for a much needed face-to-face. Some things are just harder virtually. Or, more accurately, some things just need to be done differently when you work with a team spread out around the world.
I am a member of several virtual teams – leader of a few – and in my experience, there are a number of common stumbling blocks. These obstacles can stop the forward progress of any virtual team, and it can be hard to get back into the groove. Some of the biggest challenges of virtual teams that I’ve seen include:
* Misunderstanding from poor communication
* Incompatible communication preferences
* Differences in work ethic
* Lack of clarity and direction
* Frequent second-guessing
* Deficient sense of ownership and commitment
* Inability to ask the right questions
* Difficulty with delegation
* Hidden incompetence
* Mismatched skills/needs
* Distrust and suspicion
* Diminished productivity
* Lack of empathy and personal connection
That’s quite a list, isn’t it! Not all of these challenges come into play for all virtual teams, but if even just one hits the team in a significant way, it can be detrimental.
Look at poor communication, for example. The inability to communicate effectively can make it impossible to accomplish anything when you work virtually. Or take communication preferences. If one person is a phone-only communicator and one is an email-only communicator, then it can be nearly impossible to work together unless someone is willing to change.
Despite the challenges, however, I have been a part of many successful virtual teams, and when you get the right mix of ingredients, the potential is unlimited. Building a productive and efficient virtual team requires foresight, planning, dedication and hard work. But it’s possible.
Stay tuned for my next post, outlining the 10 most important actions to take when creating a virtual team that thrives.
Thumbnail credit: leocub
Alyssa Gregory
Department
Web Pro Business
I work virtually; it’s a primary part of my business model. This arrangement suits my work process (and personality) perfectly. Not to say I don’t enjoy meeting clients and colleagues face-to-face, of course. In fact, when I’ve had an opportunity to meet a colleague in person, it has always made the working relationship better. It’s just not logistically realistic in every situation.
I love most things about the virtual team atmosphere – no travel, ramped up productivity, no geographic boundaries, a focus on collaboration, enhanced creativity, autonomy. But as much as I love working virtually, it’s certainly not without its challenges.
Whether I’m working with clients or divvying up tasks among my own team members, there are moments when I wish I could jump into my laptop and pop out in front of a colleague for a much needed face-to-face. Some things are just harder virtually. Or, more accurately, some things just need to be done differently when you work with a team spread out around the world.
I am a member of several virtual teams – leader of a few – and in my experience, there are a number of common stumbling blocks. These obstacles can stop the forward progress of any virtual team, and it can be hard to get back into the groove. Some of the biggest challenges of virtual teams that I’ve seen include:
* Misunderstanding from poor communication
* Incompatible communication preferences
* Differences in work ethic
* Lack of clarity and direction
* Frequent second-guessing
* Deficient sense of ownership and commitment
* Inability to ask the right questions
* Difficulty with delegation
* Hidden incompetence
* Mismatched skills/needs
* Distrust and suspicion
* Diminished productivity
* Lack of empathy and personal connection
That’s quite a list, isn’t it! Not all of these challenges come into play for all virtual teams, but if even just one hits the team in a significant way, it can be detrimental.
Look at poor communication, for example. The inability to communicate effectively can make it impossible to accomplish anything when you work virtually. Or take communication preferences. If one person is a phone-only communicator and one is an email-only communicator, then it can be nearly impossible to work together unless someone is willing to change.
Despite the challenges, however, I have been a part of many successful virtual teams, and when you get the right mix of ingredients, the potential is unlimited. Building a productive and efficient virtual team requires foresight, planning, dedication and hard work. But it’s possible.
Stay tuned for my next post, outlining the 10 most important actions to take when creating a virtual team that thrives.
Thumbnail credit: leocub
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