Welcome to video #6 in the Virtual Assistant Marketing Mistakes Video Series.

This mistake is one I’ve shared lots of information about in the last several weeks.

Your website is your opportunity to connect with potential clients. To intrigue them, engage with them, and connect with them. Unfortunately, many VA websites do the opposite — they’re boring and they speak in general terms, therefore not capturing anyone’s attention.

Check out this video to learn more. And to strengthen your commitment to take action – please do leave your comments below on the specific steps you will take to avoid this mistake moving forward.

Welcome to video #5 in the Virtual Assistant Marketing Mistakes Video Series.

Today’s video is about a common challenge in marketing – trying to implement too many strategies. Any ideas on what the problem/challenge is with this mistake?

Check out the video and let me know your thoughts on the content. What will you do to better manage the marketing strategies you implement into your business?  Please include your comments/thoughts below.

Welcome to video #4 in the Virtual Assistant Marketing Mistakes video series.

Today’s video is on a topic we know too well (but often lack in) — follow-up.

Business owners in every industry know that effective marketing involves a solid follow-up strategy, yet so few people actually do it.

Today’s video speaks about follow-up and more; check it out below.

Please share your comments on ways you currently follow-up with prospects, or action steps you will implement to include follow-up in your marketing.

Welcome to Video #3 in the Virtual Assistant Marketing Mistakes Video Series.

Our topic for this mistakes video is ‘no focus and no target market’.

All too often I speak with VAs who say they’re out marketing all the time yet nothing is working. When I ask them about the kinds of events they are attending, they often mention the Chamber of Commerce, BNI etc.

When you want to connect with business owners who are within your target market, you need to go where they go. By attending the general business events, your marketing efforts lack focus and therefore are not productive.

Check out this video to learn more. And please do leave your thoughts and comments below.

Welcome to video #2 in the Virtual Assistant Marketing Mistakes video series.

Today’s mistake is one I wrote about in a recent issue of the V-Scoop ezine — Consistency and Immediate Expectations.

Consistency is a MUST when it comes to marketing your business. And Marketing is a process, not just a one time event … therefore we need to revise our expectations of immediate results.

Check out the video below to learn more. And as always, I’d love to receive your thoughts and comments below on the content covered.

Welcome to the first video in the ‘Virtual Assistant Marketing Mistakes’ video series.

In this video I ask you to consider and possibly change your perspective of marketing.

When you think about marketing your business … what comes instantly to your mind?

Too often I hear Virtual Assistants say they dislike marketing because they feels like they’re pressuring someone in to making a sale.  I’d like to squash this mindset and encourage you to think of marketing as a way to educate, share and help business owners.

Watch the video below to learn more.

What action steps you will take to eliminate this mistake from your business?  Please include your thoughts and comments below.

I’m somewhat chuckling at the title above because it seems rather harsh, but I couldn’t think of any other wording to get my point across.

It’s a conversation I want to have with the Virtual Assistant community.  Because it’s time for us, as an industry, to step it up and demonstrate that  we are professionals and offer incredible value.   Let’s start with getting our websites looking sharp.

Join me for another Livestream (live video) chat as I share:

• Why so many VA websites are useless
• What VA websites MUST include
• How you can clean up your website without requiring a big huge design overhaul

Your website may look beautiful … but if you’re missing these critical pieces I’m going to share, then it’s really no good to you.

Because we’re virtual, your website must be a great representation of you and interact on your behalf with people who visit.   Don’t let this key piece of your business give off the wrong image to people who could really use your help.

Join me on Tuesday, July 26th at 8am Pacific / 11am Eastern via LIVESTREAM (live video) to watch/hear about what you need to do to your website to ensure it’s connecting with the business owners you want to work with.

Simply fill out the details below and I’ll send you all the details you need to join me on July 26th.

Perhaps you can relate to this scenario:

You attended a single networking event and connected with all kinds of great people – some who went as far to say that they’d be contacting  you soon to learn more or to set up a time to speak about how you might be able to help them.

The next day your phone doesn’t ring, nor do you receive any emails from your new prospects.  Another day and then a week go by and  nothing.  You’re disappointed and think “networking isn’t helping me find new clients.”

or how about this one:

You create your social media accounts with Twitter, Linkedin, Facebook and even create a Facebook fan page.  You follow and friend some  people, post a few updates, even retweet a few people but nothing happens.

You’re frustrated and think “social media isn’t helping me find new clients.”

or maybe even this one:

You decide to participate in a few online discussion groups – hoping to connect with business owners who need your help.  You contribute to various discussions, make sure you include your website URL and then wait … no one from the group contacts you asking for more  information about what you do.  You figure “this strategy is a waste of time”.

I’ve heard these exact stories (and many more) from Virtual Assistants who are beyond frustrated with marketing their business.

Why is it that we expect immediate results from our marketing attempts?

Because we’ve forgotten the three main principles of marketing.  Marketing requires sharing.  Marketing requires relationship building.  Marketing
requires consistency.

It goes like this.  Consider your marketing to be about sharing information about what you do, how you help business owners and the results people can achieve from your support.  Through consistent interaction and participation, a relationship starts to grow.  Of course you assume other  strategies to support the ongoing follow up and connection to encourage additional growth of the relationship.

There are other pieces to this puzzle … but only once these items occur, do we start to see a return on the time, effort and commitment we put into the  marketing strategies.

“How long does it take, Cindy?“, is a question I often receive.  While I wish I could come up with the magic formula on how long it takes before you start  to see results … I can’t.

But I can tell you it takes more than a few tries, longer than a few days, possibly more than a few weeks or months.  But it’s all worth it and  ultimately – with consistency and sharing of value – it will benefit you and your business.

What marketing strategies have you tried and expected immediate return on?  Any stories you’d like to share (positive or learning lessons)
that others can learn from?

I’d love to hear from you — simply fill out the fields below.

It’s coming … starting Tuesday, August 23rd.

A hands-on, get-it-done program, (with some 1-1 mentoring too!) specifically to help Virtual  Assistants with marketing their business to find great clients and build their business (while making generous revenue).

The details will be released very soon, but  if you’d like to be amongst the first to know all the details, simply enter your name and email address info.  As soon as I have all the info finalized, I’ll be in touch >> promise!

Go ahead, check out the fields below and enter your name and email address now — I can’t wait to connect with you soon!

Let’s say you’ve had your first meeting with a really great potential new client – either in person or via the phone. You took inventory, you  demonstrated your business mindset and also your marketing mindset.

They were impressed by you and are now eager to get started. You are excited about working with them also (you didn’t feel the pit of the stomach feeling and didn’t have to exercise using the word No.)

How do you get started? Where do you even begin?  (Once all the contract details are looked after of course.)

Well, see the great thing is you took inventory (right??). So you have a great place to start.

If they answered your questions, then you know what some of their immediate priorities are and you also know what their long term goals are.

So here’s what I would say “in our call, you mentioned one of your biggest priorities was to do ________________. How about we start with this?”

And because you know how to apply your business and marketing mindset, you can TELL them how to get started.

You can say something like “You mentioned you want to finish your ebook. Well how about we create a deadline together. I can help with keeping you accountable to that deadline – I’ll check in with you every couple of days to see how you’re doing. If you get it to me by DATE, then I can review it, format it and get it back to you to finalize. In the mean time, why don’t I connect with a few graphic designers to have a book cover designed. And we should also confirm how you’re going to sell the ebook – and confirm you have all the technology in place to automate the process so it’s really professional.”

If you have this kind of discussion with a new client, immediately they will get excited about how you can help them. Just look what you’ve covered in a few minutes!

The other nice thing about this is you’ve given your client a ‘safe’ place to get started with you. By starting with a project like this, you’re offering to support them in finishing something they’ve been wanting to do, you’re using your initiative (rather than waiting to be delegated to) and you will not be interacting with any of their clients/customers etc. This gives them to get to know, like and trust you a bit more before you have a ‘presence’ within the business.

Another piece to this challenge is to consider other ‘starting’ projects that may attract your potential clients. Remember, business owners “don’t know what they don’t know”. Many business owners in different professions don’t even know what a Virtual Assistant is. If they have heard the term, they may not really understand what one can do. And even if they have a general idea of what a VA can do, they don’t really understand how it will help their business.

So if you know of some ‘easy’ projects that allow you to easily get started with a client – items they often struggle with, have sitting on the side of their desk (or in a big pile in their office!), then you make it even easier to connect with them and likely get started!

I’d love to hear from you … how do you get started with a new client? What has worked well for you.