The Power of Two!
November 14, 2008
Have you heard of Joint Venture (a.k.a JV)? If not here is a brief description:
a business enterprise in which two or more companies enter a temporary partnership. Abbreviation: JV, J.V. (source cited below)
Joint Ventures can take on different forms such as creating and publishing e-books, create contests and even hold online seminars, as well as other partnership opportunities.
Now on to my story…about 2 weeks ago Kelly McCausey posted a “Barter To Success” blog post inviting business owners to barter their goods or/and services. So I jumped in with both feet and sought after an experienced freelance writer.
That’s where I found Teresa Hall owner of Write About Everything, so far our relationship has worked well. Here is her take on the new found relationship on her blog post
American Psychological Association (APA):
joint venture. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Retrieved November 10, 2008, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/joint venture
Chicago Manual Style (CMS):
joint venture. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/joint venture (accessed: November 10, 2008).
Modern Language Association (MLA):
“joint venture.” Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 10 Nov. 2008. .
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Feeling The Holiday Stress Already?
October 31, 2008
The recent snow flurries reminded me that winter is upon us and that means added stress, particularly due to the fact that the Holidays are right around the corner. Can you believe that November 1 means that Christmas is only 8 Saturdays away!
When I start to count down the weeks until Christmas I start to feel over-whelmed and that can cause anyone to get lost in the chaos and loose focus of their business goals.
Right around this time of year, business owners start to take on added stress. They may have to deal with the stress of meeting end-of-the-year deadlines, clients and customers added demands (after all, they are feeling the stress from their clients and customers) and not to forget, the stress of pre-planning for the upcoming new year!
Whew! That’s enough stress to throw even the most calm business owner into a tizzy! By outsourcing just one task, such as article marketing, you can save yourself up to 10 hours in one months time. Just think what you could do with those “unspoken” for 10 hours?
While you’re here sign-up for my newsletter and learn about the “Top 15 Outsourced Tasks” www.buckeyeva.com
God Bless!
P.S. Don’t forget to vote!
Need a Press Release?
August 26, 2008
If you want to beat out your competition, or at least be running next to them; then you need to write and submit press releases.
Your marketing plan needs to include press release submissions, as a virtual assistant I tell my clients you must have a marketing plan (btw, I can help draw one up for your business). If you are scratching your head wondering “what’s a press release” or “where in the world do I get that information!” then I have 2 great resources for you today!
Goody #1: YouTube Video:
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Goody #2: Template: http://docs.google.com/View?docid=dd8nn97m_14dtwrtxgx&hl=en&pageview=1&hgd=1
Article Marketing…Ghost Writer and More!
August 1, 2008
You can find your perfect ghostwriter by looking for a lot of the same things your clients look for when they need a virtual assistant.
One of the most important things to look for is how well you and the ghostwriter communicate with each other. Someone may be a good writer, but that won’t matter if the end result is all wrong because they didn’t understand what you wanted.
A good ghostwriter will ask questions about your project, your business, who’ll be reading the article, and what you’ll be doing with the content.
These types of questions show that the writer wants to know what you need the content to do.
Here are some other things you’ll want to consider when you’re looking for a ghostwriter.
Writer vs. writing service. If it’s just one writer working alone, what happens to your project when she gets sick, or falls behind? A writing service is usually a team of writers and might be more reliable.
Ask for writing samples. When you’re looking over the samples, you’ll want to check the writer’s spelling and grammar. Ask a friend to review the samples with you if you’re not sure.
You also want to look for a writer who writes in short chunks or paragraphs. These are easier to read online.
Does the writer offer revisions? At WAHM Articles, we offer up to two revisions on each piece of content, but not everyone does. If it’s not stated anywhere, ask.
Does the writer require payment up front? It’s common for writers to ask for at least part of the payment before they’ll begin a project. You can protect yourself by paying through a third party, like PayPal.
It’s also a good idea to “try out” a ghostwriter by contracting them to write a short article or blog post, before outsourcing a bigger project like your e-book.
If you and the ghostwriter don’t work well together, you’ve only lost a few dollars. And if you turn out to be a good fit for each other, you’ve just made a wise investment!
Question 2: How often should a business owner submit articles?
As often as you can.:)
How consistently you submit articles is far more important than how often you submit articles.
For example, let’s say you decide to submit an article every day (which would be fantastic, by the way) but after 30 days you’re burned out and can’t stand the thought of writing another article ever again. You have 30 articles out there, and you might never write another one.
On the other hand, let’s say you’ve decided to go at a more comfortable pace and submit one article a week. After 30 days, you will have submitted only 4 articles.
But, if you can keep up that pace consistently, in a year you will have 52 articles in circulation. If you can keep going, in five years you’ll have 260
articles. As long as you’re writing and submitting articles at a pace that’s comfortable for you, you will continue indefinitely, and that number will keep growing.
The more frequently you can write and submit articles, the sooner you’ll see results. But you need to balance that with creating a momentum you can maintain.
And here is a short bio you can publish with the post:
Denise Willms is the head writer of WAHM Articles, a ghostwriting service that helps online business owners reach the “mom market.” She is also owner of http://www.WAHM-Articles.com, a directory of free reprint articles for moms.
Overwhelmed By Success? Learn To Outsource
June 29, 2008
As a virtual assistant for online physical product sellers I see a reoccuring question:
”Do I really need to outsource?” The only way I can answer this is by asking you a few questions.
1. Have you seen a growth in your business?
2. Do you feel you are stuck-in-a-rut?
3. Are you so consumed with fulfilling orders that you don’t have time to restock your online photos, grow your social network or get publicity?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then you need to learn “how” to outsource and “what” to outsource.
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Stephanie Fish is the owner of Buckeye V.A. virtual assistance for the physical product seller. I invite you to take advantage of my free 30 minute consultation to see if my services will compliment your business. If you are serious about building your business without sacrificing your summer, please contact me at buckeyeva@gmail.com
Free Publicity? What?
April 23, 2008
As a virtual assistant for small online businesses there is one thing that is the same for every business owner and that is “You need customers”! In order to get customers you have to get your website “seen” by these prospective customers and that is called “publicity”
Let’s start with “what exactly is publicity?”
According to dictionary.com publicity is:
| 1. | extensive mention in the news media or by word of mouth or other means of communication. |
| 2. | public notice so gained. |
| 3. | the measures, process, or business of securing public notice. |
| 4. | information, articles, or advertisements issued to secure public notice or attention. |
| 5. | the state of being public, or open to general observation or knowledge. |
Now that you know what publicity is, come back tomorrow to learn some specific ways to get publicity for your small business.
Polite comments are welcome!
If you would like to see if Buckeye VA is the right partner for your business, please contact me at buckeyeva@gmail.com for your free 30 minute consultation!
Citations:
American Psychological Association (APA):
publicity. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Retrieved April 18, 2008, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/publicity
Chicago Manual Style (CMS):
publicity. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/publicity (accessed: April 18, 2008).
Modern Language Association (MLA):
“publicity.” Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 18 Apr. 2008. <Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/publicity>.
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