Paying It Forward

My coaching web site, VAstartup was asked to participate in the Connecting2Give event with Virtual Assistant Forums which highlights Virtual Assistant week in March.

Part of this event is the giveaways! And you could win!

As a part of this event, VAstartup has donated 2 copies of our Boot Camp for Virtual Assistants ebook to the event. You could win a copy of my ebook or one of the other ebooks being given away by other industry leaders.

Don't miss a chance to win one of these fabulous ebooks that gives you insight into the virtual assistant industry and how to start your own business!

But it gets better than that...

As a Virtual Assistant who's been in business for 12 years now, I thought "What more can I do?" and that's when it hit me.

I'm finding a newbie to mentor for 30 days!! :) That's right - and it's more than just coaching!

The winner of this giveaway will receive:

* One free copy of my Boot Camp for Virtual Assistants ebook
* Daily Virtual Assistant coaching and mentoring via email and phone as needed
* A free 5 page web site designed by me
* A free blog template to match your web site
* A free logo
* A free business card design

The winner will be announced on April 1st.

For those of you who do not win, there can only be one winner, be sure to follow the progress of the future virtual assistant as she blogs and vlogs about her start-up process.

If you've been thinking about becoming a Virtual Assistant - or know someone who is - now's the time to make that leap! Visit VAstartup for additional information.

VA Classroom

I frequently get inquiries by other virtual assistants looking to niche in Internet marketing. I often get asked where someone can go to learn more about training as an Internet marketing Virtual Assistant. Previously, I've just given them links to the most popular web sites and blogs out there that can explain Internet marketing to these individuals.

Now I'm happy to be able to recommend VA Classroom. VA Classroom is now offering Internet marketing certification. Their training programs are top notch and packed full of good information to help you specialize in Internet marketing.

I've also had the pleasure of getting to know Craig Cannings, the owner of VA Classroom and he's a pretty stand-up guy.

So go and check out VA Classroom if you're looking to learn more about Internet marketing.

Start a Virtual Assistant Business

I get several inquiries each week on how to start a virtual assistant business. Many of those who contact me have been burned by work at home scams previously and many think that virtual assistants are yet another scam...well, it's not!

Check out the IVAA - International Virtual Assistant Association. There are hundreds of virtual assistants, both newbies and established VAs who belong to this organization. Also, Google for virtual assistant articles. You'll find that reputable print and online magazines are touting the value of working with virtual assistants...places such as ABC news, Business Week, Inc.com, Microtimes, MSNBC, Realty Times, USA today and more! In fact Good Morning America and other television shows have interviewed virtual assistants. It's not a scam nor is it a gimmick.

But, let's keep it real. Not everyone is cut out to be a virtual assistant. The success of your business is based solely on your drive to be successful. When you become a virtual assistant, not only do you have to setup your business, you are also responsible for marketing it, keeping the books, networking, etc. It's not easy - but it IS doable!

There are many services that a virtual assistant can offer, you have to search to find what you like to do and figure out what industry your services are a good match for.

For instance, I have over 10 years of in-house experience supporting executives, so naturally I launched my business The Virtual Secretary offering administrative assistance. This included screening voicemails/emails, basic correspondence, working on presentations and proposals and planning conferences/meetings.

As my business developed, I found that I really enjoy providing services as a marketing virtual assistant, therefore I launched The Virtual Link to focus on marketing services. At TVL, I offer services as an Internet marketing specialist, and work as a Virtual Assistant for Coaches Virtual Assistant for Speakers, and most notably as a real estate virtual assistant.

Other virtual assistants specialize offering services in areas such as database management, podcasting, paralegal, transcriptionists, etc.

The point is to do what you like to do - and to do it well.

If you're considering starting a virtual assistant business, you may want to consider reading my ebook, Boot Camp for Virtual Assistants to guide you through the steps of starting your own virtual assistant business. In addition this ebook also provides you with a list of services that clients are looking for assistance with to help you determine if you have any skills to launch your business with.

Additionally, I also provide virtual assistant coaching services by the hour so that you can ask me questions about starting your business, get help with determining the services you should offer.

And on a side note, as many companies are laying off employees, those same companies are turning to outsourcing work - while the economy and job security is crashing, virtual assistants are getting more inquiries and clients than ever before!

If you're interested in becoming a virtual assistant or need help marketing your business, contact me, let's chat!

MessageSave for Outlook

I often get frustrated with my Outlook due to the staggering number of client folders and the number of messages in each folder.

Quite often the messages that I receive have large file attachments with pictures, brochures and information which leaves my Outlook file quite large. I like to have the email messages for future reference. I never delete old messages because it's a kind of a CYA (cover your bootie) for me.

I recently ran across a fabulous little program called MessageSave from TechHit. With MessageSave I am able to archive the entire Outlook folder with attachments to my client file on my hard drive. The process was so easy it was a little scary!

Now I'm able to easily archive any client folders over 6 month old and my Outlook program isn't quite as large any more! Check out MessageSave from TechHit.

Tying Up the Loose Ends

Right now I'm sitting here sipping on my addiction, a venti caramel macchiato w/ 4 shots and extra caramel from Starbucks. And can I just say, it's damn tasty!

I'm sending a special thank you to my virtual assistant buddy, Katie Baird over at Loose Ends. Katie, an avid stalker of my blogs (and I say that with all the love in the world) read my blog from yesterday on Getting Distracted, Getting Focused and not only did she send some virtual support, but the lady sent me some love through PayPal to go buy a cup of coffee...and that's just what I did this morning!

Being the GeekGyrls that we are, I've asked Katie to help out with one of my projects that I'll be announcing soon - and she agreed! Thanks Katie girl...

And for all you other VA buds of mine that called to get into my business...don't. :) Send me some PayPal love instead to keep me stocked up on the carmel macchiato's so I can spend more time on my projects and less time on the phone.

Oh, and if you think you're a GeekGyrl, drop me an e-mail and let me know...maybe I'll let you help me out on my latest project.

On Your Toes VA launches new web site!

Meet Lori Cain of On Your Toes VA! Lori is a Virtual Assistant with 15 years experience who has decided to focus her niche on providing real estate virtual assistant services.

Lori specializes in Lead Management, Transaction Coordination and Listing Coordination.

We worked with Lori developing her web site and she is a real pleasure to work with. If you need a Virtual Assistant, contact Lori for additional information.

SearchMe: SEO takes a new twist

Not many people have heard of SearchMe yet, but this Real Estate Virtual Assistant thinks it could quite possibly change the entire way we all view search engines.

SearchMe is a visual search engine. Type in your keyphrase and instead of results with catchy descriptions as you currently find displayed in Google, Yahoo and the others, SearchMe instead shows you a snapshot of the web site. Don't like the first view, click on the next, it's like a book of results that you flip through. Watch the video, it's really coool! It's amazing even!



Originally a web site thrived on cool design. Then it became good SEO which killed killer foo-foo designs...but now with SearchMe, it will be a delicate blend of awesome design and fabulous SEO to get good results.

I've just signed up as a beta user because I can't wait to try this tool out. If it's half as amazing as I'm thinking it is, Google better buy this company out quick!

VAstartup - How to start a virtual assistant business...

www.VAstartup.com has been my virtual assistant coaching web site since 2002. Recently I revamped the site to include an ebook for Virtual Assistants called Boot Camp for Virtual Assistants.

Additionally I've created some low cost Virtual Assistant marketing materials for newbies looking to enter the industry. I offer low cost Virtual Assistant web sites and more. Check it out!

And of course, I still offer Virtual Assistant coaching to help you with your questions about starting a Virtual Assistant business.

If you're new to the VA industry, check out VAstartup!