If you’ve heard your  Virtual Assistant (VA) saying that she is changing her business model and going away from the hourly rate, you may be surprised and hit with some shock.You feel the hourly rate worked, at least more or less, and you knew exactly what you could afford monthly or weekly and now you feel the jitters of uncertainty. Will you be able to afford to pay for those packages and get the same amount of work done as before?

If you wonder why many VAs are changing to service packages, here are some reasons:

• Because VAs often experience their clients rushing them with tasks to pay less, feeling they can’t achieve a good enough result in a short timeframe 
• Because VAs feel bad when a task takes longer than expected and they know that the business owner will scrutinize their time sheets in a way that doesn’t establish trust and understanding
• Because some VAs are amazingly fast workers, some are very slow and most VAs are in the middle, meaning that it’s really hard to estimate how long a task will take, espcially when you hire a multi VA firm with different people working on the team
• Because every VA has extraordinary skills in one or two areas and is a bit weaker in others, so the weaker ones may take a bit more time, but overall she is an amazing worker, very reliable and does her best to help building her clients’ businesses
• Because sometimes out of the ordinary circumstances happen and technology breaks down (such as teleseminars or video recording troubles) and things take much longer than expected, causing upset by the paying client, who needs to pay more on an hourly rate
• VAs are always keen to make their clients happy, there is not one VA that doesn’t want to satisfy the clients’ business needs so she feels bad when doing a task is time-oriented and not result-oriented
• Because VAs often have one or two cash strapped clients who constantly pressure them into working faster, so these VAs give hours for free to make the client happy and consequently get worn out and dissatisfied with their work conditions
• Because sometimes a VA has to rush a job because the client has set a strict budget and ends up with a less then great result
• Because an hourly rate can actually create disharmony and exhaustion in both VA and client
• Because a package can be easier to manage when the VA has more than one client, the tasks are usually set and entered into the project management software and due to the outlined steps that get ticked off, nothing gets forgotten, which makes the client very happy

These are just some of the reasons. The reasons come from both sides and make it hard to develop an harmonious and equal relationship.  VA coaches have observed and heard these concerns from many exhausted VAs who work an enormous amount of hours for little reward and get more and more dissatisfied. Some even drop out of the industry because they can’t cope with the struggle anymore and their skillsets are lost, which is a real loss as there are still not enough VAs out there to serve all clients who need what they have on offer. Remember, the online industry is also growing, so demand for skilled support staff is rising.

The solution?

VAs are starting to create packages, either standard packages or customized packages, instead of offering hourly rates. Most VAs will develop standard packages with all tasks outlined for a great result for the client, estimate the time and work out the price for the package.  At first glance this package may look more expensive than the hourly rate because a number of tasks are bundled together, but realistically the client gets so much more value from a set package.

The value of VA service packages for the client

• The client gets the assurance the task will be finished, regardless of how long it takes, and no half-done things stay in the “to do list”
• The client can see what is included in the package and knows the outcome
• There is no uncertainty what a project will cost client, so the client knows exactly how to calculate their own fees for their clients, products and services to make a profit (after all we have a business to earn money, aren’t we?)
• The client knows costs upfront and can actually set their own budget much easier with less surprises (eg. the client wants to hold a teleseminar to a VIP coaching package. Looking at the VA’s package price for preparing, moderating, recording and transcribing and setting a target, the business owner can confidently set a price for the VIP coaching package to earn a decent profit, so no out of pocket virtual events for you anymore!)
• The client knows that the result of the task will be excellent and not a rushed mess
• There is so much great transparency
• Client and VA meet in the middle and as equal business partners and the relationship can nurtured without looking at the hourly rate all the time, after all results for your business will be better with a VA that knows your business well, so keeping on the same team or support person for a long time is vital to your business success

When you look at these reasons you have to admit that calculating your own profit will become so much easier for you with packages. You know what services you require per month, how much the service packages will cost you, what you will achieve with the end result and calculate the fees you need to charge to your own clients.

If you need help with determining what services you ideally require or planning out your marketing calendar, your VA, online marketing coordinator or online business manager can sit down with you and create a plan and a calendar of marketing activities that are customized to your business.

Lots of doom and gloom in the retailing sector in New Zealand and Australia, but I bet US retailers also feel the pinch of having to compete with online sellers. Looking at the recent trouble around the Rugby shirt of the New Zealand team All Blacks where local New Zealand retailers offer the official shirts of the national team for NZ$220 while online retailers in the UK and US offer the same Adidas made shirts for half the price, one has to look at what local business, regardless of where in the world they are, may want to change about their business.

How about local businesses adding some VALUE to their more expensive offering in the shops? Online marketers already know about the power of adding bonuses to their products, why are retailers so “boring” and do the same old as always. What worked in the past may not work today.

How many retailers actually think about value on top of their products? Some do, especially cosmetic outlets, when they offer brand-driven special sets of little bags with some cosmetic goodies as a thank-you for these customers who spend a certain amount of money on their brand. Or they offer the always eagerly awaited bonus samples, small versions of a perfume or a moisturizer sample.

But go to your average local shop and all you get is an often stressed looking shop assistant whose eyes follow you around the shop the whole time, as if you are a potential thief, and who doesn’t offer you a friendly smile nor an added bonus or little something when you buy.

How much time do you want to spend in an environment like that?

How different is the experience when I shop online? I do say not ALL online shops are a pleasure to visit because some shoppingcarts don’t work well, some shops don’t offer enough photos and information, but in general shopping online gives me plenty of time to cruise through the shop (imaginative) and look, think and take up any special offers or bonuses. I love looking around the online shop, see videos, imagine how things would add to my life and the whole shopping experience.

The morale of these early morning weekend ramblings about online business are:

If retail or online consultant, make it easy for your potential customers to buy from you. If you have a brick-and-mortar business, try to find an avenue to offer online offerings. The local clothing store can add an online retail component of its favorite items and the local business consultant can add some value-driven ebooks and information to their website offerings. Why only a boring website with your office’s address and phone number with the call to action: “call me”. How many people actually call you? How about getting them to know you first? Offer them more of you by adding valuable content in your blog or create some ebooks or short videos for them to purchase or have for free so they get to know, like and trust you?

Try it.

5:30 AMThursday Aug 4, 2011 New Zealand Herald

Small business are increasingly targeting customers in their local area through the internet, a senior Google executive says.

Google Australia and New Zealand managing director Nick Leeder said he was amazed new research showed small firms were more focused on winning customers nearby rather than selling to the world. “A lot of small businesses were saying, which was a bit surprising, that they are using the internet as a way of more efficiently reaching customers who might well be local,” Leeder said. “I was expecting them to say that they were reaching customers who were outside their geographic footprint.”

Leeder was speaking to reporters at the launch of “The Connected Continent: How the internet is Transforming Australia’s Economy” report in Sydney on Tuesday. The report, prepared by Deloitte Access Economics, found the internet made a direct contribution to the Australian economy of A$50 billion ($62 billion), or 3.6 per cent of gross domestic product. “This contribution is of similar value to the retail sector or Australia’s iron ore exports,” the report said.

In terms of the outlook, the report said the direct contribution to the Australian economy over the next five years would increase by A$20 billion, or 7 per cent, to A$70 billion. This growth was twice as fast as the rest of the economy, the report said.

The report found the internet yielded A$27 billion in productivity increases to business and government, which flowed through to lower prices and new products, and delivered benefits of about A$53 billion to households.

Were it not for the internet, Australia’s poor level of productivity growth in recent times would have been even worse, said Deloitte Access Economics director Ric Simes. Leeder said research had shown that for every job lost due to the internet, 2.6 new jobs were created.

“While overall it is good, a change like that does create friction,” Leeder said. – AAP

When I ask a small business owner or a mumpreneur: “Who is your target market?”, I hear “women” or “everybody”. “My services will benefit everybody.”

Sounds good, but how do you talk to “everybody”?

• Where is “everybody” so that you can find them to inform them about your services?
• What language uses “everybody”?
• What are “everybody’s” biggest fears?
• How will you address “everybody’s” problems?
• “How does “everybody” learn best to understand your teachings?
• Does “everybody” respond to the same message in the same way?

You get the gist?

So, identifying your unique target market and your ideal kind of clients is of utmost importance because only if you know who they are, you are able to customize your service and support to them and their unique needs and situations. And – you can actually find (locate) them and tell them about what you do!

What’s the Problem?

Without a problem your services are not needed in the lives of your potential clients. People don’t buy services or goods that don’t fill a need, whatever need that may be.

There is a feeling behind a purchase decision and the hope that it will give the person peace of mind, excitement, happiness, beauty, satisfaction, fulfillment, youth, love, the solution to a problem or status. These are only some of the common needs and wants people have. Which one do you help solving and fulfilling?

If you only think about what your skills are and what services you can offer without considering why anybody would want what you offer, you have no chances of succeeding in an online business.

So, make some notes of what problem you are solving for your potential clients.

• What keeps them up at night? Why do they go searching for you? Why do they look at your website?
• Why do they crave to find someone who offers your services?
• What is their problem right now?
• What exactly is your business offering to its target market? What do people gain?
• People ask this question: WHAT IS IN IT FOR ME?

Tarket (= specific target market)

Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero, an internationally renowned copywriter who teaches entrepreneurs about using the right language to target women audiences, introduced the term tarket, which is a representative PERSON (real or imagined) for your target market.

Task:

Please describe one person you imagine or know who is your ideal client/customer. Please do this in depth, including a name, age, what this person is doing professionally, how many children, where does he/she live, how and where does he/she spend his/her money, how she/he looks like, what hobbies she/he has, pets, type of household, income, troubles, needs, language used (formal, informal, slang). Find a photo of a person who fits the description and pin it on your vision board to remember your tarket when you are writing a salesletter to him/her! Once you have your TARKET, hang it on the pinboard in your office to always have it in your sight when you write a salesletter or website content.

• Consider the age of your tarket
• gender
• marital status
  

  Tarket: mum with small baby

• children
• education
• job
• pets
• fitness level
• physical appearance
• style
• religion
• what kind of home
• area/suburb they live in
• car
• type of holidays and frequency
• spending habits
• entertainment habits
• money management
• income
• recreation
• hobbies
• favorite shows
• books
• magazines
• dreams
• hopes for the future
• emotional or physical injuries
• disappointments
• experiences
• values
• health
• priorities in life
• decision making
• jargon
• language they use
• friends
• family
• technical knowledge
• what do they want out of life?

For more information about “tarket” check out Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero’s website, http://www.redhotcopy.com as Lorrie is the genius behind the term “Tarket”and the Shefactor Bootcamp – copywriting for women.

If you have questions about this article, please add them to the comment underneath.

Are you a coach? Then this article by Client Attraction specialist, Fabienne Fredrickson, is a MUST-READ:

When talking about their business, most solo-preneurs make the mistake of describing exactly what they do, in boring detail. “My company has been in business for X number of years and we use the newest technology systems. We use a complicated series of… blah blah blah.” Many coaches and consultants talk about coaching ad nauseam, “What is coaching, are you coachable, what is your coachability index, who is the coach, blah blah blah”.

I know, because I did it too in the beginning and it didn’t work.

Hate to say this, but… SO WHAT! Nobody cares!When I hear someone talk to their prospects this way, it sends up a big red flag for me: these people don’t really KNOW what they DO for clients and they’re losing potential clients every time they open their mouths and every time someone reads their materials! The problem is that they’re clearly not connected enough to their client base to see what real benefits they bring their clients.

There’s a saying that goes “People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” And until you can tell someone what’s in it for THEM to work with you, they won’t pay attention to you or what you’re saying.

Now, there’s nothing wrong with you if you’ve been doing this, but it’s something that you’ll want to work on quickly so you don’t let any more ideal prospects slip through your fingers. It just takes asking yourself what you really DO for clients, what results and benefits you get for them and then to articulate that so that a prospective client looking for that solution will want to work with YOU.

Let’s look at exactly what your ideal prospects are motivated by: The Motivators. Below is a list of the top 10 reasons, results or benefits that make people buy, according to Jim Edwards and David Garfinkel in the ebook entitled “Ebook Secrets Exposed” www.EbookSecretsExposed.com that I read a bazillion years ago:

Here, according to them, are the most powerful motivators:

1. Make money

2. Save money

3. Save time

4. Avoid effort

5. Get more comfort

6. Achieve greater cleanliness

7. Attain fuller health

8. Escape physical pain

9. Gain praise

10. Be popular

Now, not every one of these fits your business, and most likely, yours fall into the top 4 motivators, unless you’re in healthcare or image, then it usually falls within the last 6. Either way, it’s time for you to narrow yours down into motivators from the Top Ten list above.

What’s so powerful about using “motivators” in your marketing is that you position yourself as their ultimate SOLUTION, the one they would do anything and pay relatively anything to get. When you can show prospects how you can help them achieve one of them, they’ll immediately pay more attention to you.

They’ll want more. You’ll PULL them in. They’ll call YOU, as opposed to you chasing THEM. It’s such a beautiful thing to watch when that begins happening in your business.

Your Assignment:

Circle the motivators that fit your business from the list above and then list an example of how this has already happened using real client examples. Then, sprinkle this throughout all your marketing materials, your elevator speech, your website, your signature talk, etc. You’ll have people coming out of the woodwork wanting to work with you and your 1ncome will increase dramatically, in a very short time.

You may not be sure where to start with your elevator speech, signature talk, website, and everything else you need to do, and that’s OK. I was there once too. The step-by-step Client Attraction Home Study SystemTM will show you everything you need to know. Not only do you get clear on what clients you should be targeting, how to create the marketing message that will have them WANT to work with you and seek you out, but exactly WHAT to do with your marketing time and HOW. It’s everything you need to know to fill your practice quickly; no matter how long you’ve been in business. All the tools, scripts, templates, and examples are handed to you on a silver platter. So, you do step one of the system, and when you’re done with that, you move on to step two, and so on. So easy. That’s why my customers have gotten such great results from it. You can get yours at TheClientAttractionSystem.com.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System , the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time…guaranteed. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your in.come, visit www.ClientAttraction.com.

Sheri McConnell is a successful entrepreneur I admire greatly. Here I share with you her latest article:

Create a Timeless and Focused Marketing Plan for Your Business
As you probably have heard by now—you aren’t in the business of (fill in the blank here). You are in the business of marketing. Your marketing must be automated and systemized. Period.

Constantly maintaining online reputations is one of the reasons why Online Reputation Management exists. In real sense, Online Reputation Management (ORM) was created to help business owners and professionals deal with bad press.

Even a large company or a small one could not get rid of the receiving end of negative publicity. Remember that the internet never fails to forget. Everything we do online leaves a digital mark that will never go away. This gives a reason why Online Reputation Management serves as a necessity in the field of business today.

See the advantages of Online Reputation Management for companies:

• It improves customer satisfaction by gaining insights from consumers about what is good and bad about their product or services. This increases perceptions of brand/ product by creating opportunities to listen to and engage consumers.
• It helps on gaining insights about their competitors and their customers’ perceptions about their products and services. This helps in the understanding of the relationship between user generated content and traditional forms of online media, e.g. news, print, etc.
• It maintains shareholder value by mitigating risk by having ears close to the ground where opinions about a business are being formed and propagated.
• They’re likely to be engaged in more effective Public Relations by understanding who the real influencers are.
• ORM takes a role in providing early warning systems for reactive and defensive PR.
• This may also help in reducing marketing dollars by learning how to reach out to customers more cheaply.
• May reduce internal costs by employing services which save time and effort, as well as money.
• ORM helps to identify gaps for products and services which can be developed for profitable niche markets.
• It gains insight into online networks and keywords and key phrases found in user-generated content, which can help to bolster natural search results about the person, product, or business.

Tips for maximizing the efficiency of your online reputation management endeavors:

1. Set up your social networking sites with your own name.

In other words, you need to create an interlinked “web” of these powerful social networks – that all point to you. This is profoundly important because it establishes your presence in the major search engines like Google. Using aliases, pen names or otherwise will not help establish your branding effectiveness.

2. Try to get the same username set up for all of your social media engagement profiles.

3. When you add any type of content to your social networking sites, keep your online reputation management plan in mind. You should add relevant materials.

Seeing the advantages of Online Management training, I can say that it’s a mistake for companies to launch an online reputation management campaign after the damage of bad press has already spread which is a mistake. Everyone must take a preventative approach to protect  business.

This great post was contributed by Eleanor Marks Prior, WordPress Whiz and Social Media maven.

Heike Miller has successfully completed the Virtual Event Specialist Certification Program, a 4-week training program that equips Virtual Assistants and Online Professionals with the key skills and tools necessary to offer their clients important Virtual Event Management services.

In these tough economic times, more and more companies and small businesses are choosing to hold Virtual Events rather than the more expensive offline events and conferences. In fact, “Virtual Meetings and Events [will] replace 2.1 million airline seats by 2012” (Gartner, Feb. 2009).

76% of businesses say they have already begun using or plan to start using Virtual Events in 2009, while 70% of Corporate Event Organizers predict a reduction in live events in 2010 and forecast significant growth in virtual conferences and webinars. Consequently, it is vital that Virtual Assistants and Online Professionals offer skills in Virtual Event Management to fulfill their clients’ needs.

That is why Heike Miller is excited to be adding Virtual Event Specialist Services to their business, including the setting up and delivering of Tele-events featuring one or many speakers, Webinars and Webcasts, Online Radio Shows, Live Weekly Podcasts and Live Streaming TV Shows.

In VAClassroom’s Virtual Event Specialist Certification Program, Heike learned strategies, best practices, tips and techniques for efficiently and effectively creating great events for her clients using the leading technologies like Instant Teleseminar, GoToWebinar, Camtasia, Ustream and more.

Heike is pleased to announce that several of her team members have also finished the course and received the certification.

Before ramping up your marketing when sales are disappointing, take a step back and ask yourself, “Do I know what my market really, really wants?” Being able to answer that question is the key to growing your business. By focusing on what people want, rather than on what you hope to sell them, you can begin to see the kind of success you desire.

If you suspect you’re wasting time by marketing something people don’t really want, here are some principles to ponder:

People buy what they want, not what you think they need.

You’re going to get a lot of resistance to your marketing if someone thinks they’re being shoehorned into buying what they don’t want. No matter how loudly you proclaim your product’s benefits, your market won’t respond if they don’t want the product. To continue doing so is a lot like speaking a different language and shouting to be understood.

People need to feel good about what they’ve bought.

One way to zero in on what your market wants is to develop empathy with that group of people. You must connect emotionally with how they feel about purchasing. When you’ve put yourself in someone else’s shoes, you begin to understand how they feel. What are their hopes and dreams? What do they fear? What keeps them awake at night?

If you’ve done a good job of pinpointing a target market, you should be able to learn these things easily. Until you do, you’re wasting time on marketing that won’t work, because you don’t yet know what products they’ll feel good about buying.

People buy products when they feel they’ve been understood.

No matter what logical explanation someone can give for buying a product, underneath it is the belief they’ve been understood. Someone knew enough about who they were to make a product that fits them.

So, how will you know when you’ve learned what your market really, really wants? You’ll know, because that’s when it all becomes easier. There’s no need to push or shove someone into buying, because they want what you’re offering. It will be such a revelation to learn how easy selling your products can be when they’re what your market wants.

Once that happens, you’ll begin to hear from your clients how grateful they are for your products. Everything about how you do business will be transformed, because you’ve taken the time to learn what your market wants. You’ve made the effort to step into their shoes and understand what makes them tick. And that effort pays off in products that really meet the needs of your market.

So, if you’re still struggling to sell your products, or it feels as though you’re pushing people into buying what they don’t want, it’s time to take inventory. Here are five questions to answer before trying again to sell your products:

1. What is most important to the people in my target market?
2. What problems keep them awake at night?
3. What is the desired end result they’re hoping for?
4. Does my product help them solve their problems and reach their goals?
5. Do I need to change my products so that they do?

The process of stepping closer to your target market and understanding that group of people may take time and effort, but it will definitely be worth it. Once you know the people in your market very well, the products you offer them will meet their needs. And that’s what people really, really want.

Bernadette Doyle publishes her weekly Client Magnets newsletter for trainers, speakers, coaches, consultants, complementary therapists and solo professionals. If you want to get clients calling you instead of you calling them, then sign up for her weekly e-zine now at http://www.clientmagnets.com © Bernadette Doyle, 2009

Affiliate marketing is like ‘word of mouth’. If you like a product or service you tell your friends about it. Affiliate programs were invented to give people an incentive to tell other people about their positive experience with a product or services. Affiliates receive a portion or percentage of the sales price of an item as a reward.

It is recommended to only recommend products or services that you either personally use or you know the person well who offers the product and you know they always offer a good service. You need to be familiar with what you promote and happily endorse it. If you promote lower level products, your own reputation will suffer and people won’t easily believe your recommendations anymore.

I consider affiliate programs as essential online, especially when the affiliates are familiar with the product. One excellent example of a well functioning program is that of www.vaclassroom.com. Craig Cannings, the co founder, has created a large following with his quality training programs for virtual assistants and other online professionals. Craig’s customers happily spread the word about the training and earn a reward when someone signs up through their affiliate link. I would go as far as saying that VA Classroom wouldn’t be what it is today if there wasn’t an affiliate program and so many happy customers.

When you have a great program, service or product, why not ask your satisfied clients to spread the word for you? As any promotion always costs an effort, a little (or bigger) reward can work wonders in the willingness of people to refer you. Setting up an affiliate program needs some thought and shouldn’t be taken lightly, otherwise you might as well do nothing.

First of all, you need to be sure that there are happy customers who love your product or service. If you get lots of complaints you better forget it! Finetune your offerings and find happy customers first.

Once you get positive feedback, you can set up an affiliate program in a system such as 1shoppingcart. This process can be a bit difficult, so it might be advised to ask a skilled virtual assistant to help you with the set up as there is also some work on the website required. You need to create ‘thank you’ pages and affiliate centers with information for your new affiliates. Many people sign up for an affiliate program, but don’t know how to promote your services, where to promote them and how to go about it. Then they simply give up and don’t promote you.

A dedicated affiliate center will help them with these initial worries. You can give your affiliates advice on where to promote you, to which target market, which medium to use and even supply them with copy for their Twitter tweets and blog posts.  Additionally, you may wish to create attractive banners that your affiliates can use in their email signature and on their blog.

Often affiliates start strong and promote a service and then forget all about it. They are just as busy just as you are. It helps when you regularly contact your affiliates, encourage them and help them with any queries. Different promotions can also reactivate the interest of your affiliates. Craig Cannings, for example, frequently runs special promotions and offers additional prizes for his best affiliates. It works a charm and people get a renewed motivation to get the word out.

Managing the contact to your affiliates doesn’t need to be hard. You can set up autoresponders in the shoppingcart program so that your affiliates receive regular updates and reminders without you actually doing anything. All you need to do is have it all set up well right from the start.

Affiliates are valuable when you are launching bigger programs. Many entrepreneurs wouldn’t be able to fill their training classes without affiliates. When you start planning a bigger launch, make sure you set up the affiliate program early on and recruit a little army of likeminded people who mix and mingle with your target market. Social Media is a great realm to recruit affiliates because people like to sign up for programs from people they know, like and trust. Don’t forget your existing clients: send out a broadcast and ask them to sign up for your affiliate program.

Don’t be shy when it comes to affiliate programs. If you have services or products that are of good quality, ask your happy customers to help you spread the word. Many people love helping out and earn a bit of pocket money while doing it.

If you are interested about affiliate programs, talk to us. We are able to help you setting it up.