What You’re Not Getting From Your Virtual Assistant and Why

Chances are, if you have ever worked with (or are currently working with) a Virtual Assistant, you have had moments of concern about whether or not you are getting your money’s worth. It’s a legitimate concern and one that is easily measured. Why? Because working with a V.A. involves 3 things:

 
1. What you want
2. What you need
3. What you get
 
It is that simple! Let’s take a look…
 
You seek out a Virtual Assistant or V.A. Team, because you want more. You either want more time, more customers or clients, more sales, more notice, more opportunities…more of whatever it is that you feel you aren’t getting, doing, or accomplishing in your business.
 
In your goal for more – comes the realization of need. To get what you want, you need help, information, guidance, knowledge, wisdom, answers, another set of eyes, another pair of hands…whatever the need, you have it and seek to fill it.
 
Finally, what you get will either be MORE or just more-of-the-same and your NEED will either be neglected, satisfied or (ideally) surpassed. See! It’s not that difficult to measure what you’re getting – or not getting – from your Virtual Assistant or V.A. Team. The “Why” can be a little harder to pinpoint, though. “Why” often requires a deeper look and involves honest answers by you to some or all of the following questions:
 
What does your V.A. or V.A. Team know that you don’t?
What tools are you missing that your V.A. or V.A. Team readily provides you?
What questions are you being asked by your V.A. or V.A. Team?
What answers are you being given when you have questions of your V.A. or V.A. Team?
What differences are you able to note since beginning work with your V.A. or V.A. Team?
How much are you spending on V.A. services?
How much are you saving in money, time, effort, frustration, etc.?
How do you get along with your V.A. or V.A. Team?
How do you communicate – and how often do you communicate with each other?
 
Ultimately, why you succeed or fail to succeed in online marketing will always be on you. So, if you are not getting what you want and need from your Virtual Assistant or Virtual Assistant Team, it’s time to ask yourself, “Why do I continue in this relationship?” Because, that is what you either have or do not have with your V.A. – a relationship – and, of course, a great relationship is built on trust and by meeting one another’s needs. If you are seldom getting what you want or need from your Virtual Assistant or Virtual Assistant Team, the relationship is already over. And now…you know “why”
 
If you are getting what you want and need, if your V.A. or V.A. Team is helping you to make the most of your online marketing, be sure to thank them for keeping up their part of the relationship, and making a noticeable difference in how you do business!

Knowing Your Product Must Include Understanding the Benefits

by Charlotte L. Hanna CMO/Director of PMR/CMBS Global

Knowing your product is key to selling. Any good salesperson knows that to sell a product, they must know as much as possible about it and to sell consistently they must also be able to communicate the benefits of that product to potential buyers. Knowing your product MUST include understanding how it benefits others, because benefits – not features – sell.

While this is not news to an experienced salesperson…it may be news to the online entrepreneur who is single-handedly working to build a business and wondering why all of their hard work and time consuming efforts don’t seem to be paying off.

Many entrepreneurs involved in building an online business are missing out on sales because they are overlooking the benefits their products and services provide. Today’s online entrepreneurs are usually a one-man or one-woman enterprise. Chances are they came up with the idea for their business and they are the sole marketer, content writer, product or service creator, salesperson, spokesperson, manager – and more.

Whew! That’s enough to make even a SUPER HERO’S head spin!

[Read more...]

The B2B Market – 5 Basic Online B2B Practices to Put Your Business Where It Should Be

 

by Charlotte L. Hanna CMO/Director of PMR/CMBS Global

Just what is B2B marketing? Business-to-Business refers to companies that sell things to other companies.There can be many B2B practices or processes that lead up to a sale online and put your business where it should be…positioned for sales.

For example, when you buy a blender from your local Walmart store that is a “Business-to-Consumer” sale – otherwise known as B2C. But, what happened before that blender ever made it to the shelf in the store would be known as the B2B transactions.

®    There was probably a fabrication company that supplied a particular machine to the company making the blender for the stamping out and shaping of whatever material would be used to make the appliance.

®    Then, perhaps a printing machine company that created and sold the print product necessary for the company to be able to print its name on the finished blender. [Read more...]

Married to My Work – Stop Breaking Promises, Prolong the Honeymoon and Keep Clients

 

By Charlotte L. Hanna CMO/Director of PMR/CMBS Global

June is the month of promises…promises of longer days, vacation time away from the daily grind, romance. Traditionally, it is the favorite month for getting married, of promising each other the moon under a hot summer sun. January is reported to be the month for divorcing.

Unfortunately, promises easily made are also too often broken in life, love and business.

In times past, a person’s word was all it took to ‘seal the deal’. Legal documents were seldom necessary between friends and family and rarely even considered among those doing business. Your word and a handshake were all that were needed to buy and sell – even settle a dispute. But those days are far behind us and not only do people regularly promise one another more than they can deliver, it is becoming the acceptable norm to expect that promises will not be kept. Thankfully, there are still those in business who believe that promises made are worth keeping whenever possible, as much as possible. [Read more...]

How Do You Communicate and Market Your Online Business to the World Marketplace?

 

By Charlotte L. Hanna CMO & Director of PMR for CMBS Global

 

Do you know how to market your business online? Do you know WHO your market really is? Do you communicate well with your market? Are you visible in the world marketplace?

Do questions like these make your head spin?                     

How you communicate and market your business is vital to your online success, but it need not make you dizzy. My hunch is that you are one of those entrepreneurs who realize the importance of communicating and marketing online – but have trouble finding the time to do it consistently and effectively. That may be GOOD news. I mean, if you are that busy – then you must be doing something right – right?

Unfortunately, small business owners are seldom too busy to give their needed attention to such an important aspect of their online enterprise because business is booming. More often than not, failure to communicate what they do and market what they offer to the world marketplace is simply a lack of organization and focus on their part. It may sound harsh, but your head may be spinning because you are in need of help and have ignored your need, thinking that you can do it all by yourself. [Read more...]

Are Your Marketing and Advertising Integrated for Maximum Effect?

 

By Charlotte L. Hanna CMO/CMBS Global

 

What does the term “integrated advertising and marketing” really mean? And why should you be aware of the potential maximum effect it can have on your business?

According to Rochelle Reiter, agency principal at Orange Label Art + Advertising, “It is the coordination and integration of all of a company’s advertising and marketing communications into a cohesive plan that maximizes the impact on customers and prospects. An integrated plan is designed to make all aspects of marketing communications (e.g., advertising, sales, marketing, PR and online) work together as a unified and integrated force, rather than allowing each component to function independently.”

Wes Phillips, also an agency principal at Orange Label Art + Advertising, noted in a recent online article that, “It is important that a company’s leaders understand and comprehend the goals and objectives of an integrated campaign and are aligned on the strategy and messaging.” He believes that the support of management, sufficient time, and budget resources are important to the perception of the strategy as a priority.

But what does this all mean to the entrepreneur? [Read more...]

Reading, Writing, And Making Money Online With Virtual Assistants While Working From Home

by Charlotte L. Hanna, CMO/CMBS Global

 

It goes without saying that you can do a lot online these days. You can read about virtually most any topic you can think of – or write and blog about your opinions,Virtual Assistants provide virtual assistance passions, hobbies, business, or life. Many are making money online as Virtual Assistants – without leaving the comforts of home – doing work they love and helping others.

Every day, more and more people are taking advantage of these opportunities. Many of us get the majority of our information via the Internet and spend a good deal of time telling the world our political and social views – even our most personal dreams – via blogging, Twitter and Facebook. Collectively, we spend millions of dollars per year shopping online for our favorite “must-haves”, yet the one thing too many are NOT doing, is actually making money. In fact, those who have online businesses too often find themselves losing money when it comes to Internet sales. [Read more...]

The World Is Your Marketplace – Are You Ready And Set To Go?

 

by Charlotte L. Hanna CMO/CMBS GLOBAL

CMBS GLOBAL believes that “The World Is Your Marketplace!” If you have often consideredCMBSGlobal.com expanding your market, and understand the value of being able to reach your niche audience – anywhere in the world at any time – then you believe it, too.

Are you READY to do whatever it takes to reach the world with your message?

Are you SET to launch a new and innovative product?

Do you know where to GO – and how to make online marketing work most effectively for you?

There is no end in sight to the explosion of the entrepreneurial spirit and the growth the Internet has afforded small businesses. Yet, despite compelling numbers, many small businesses have not yet realized the importance of the global marketplace.

Hesitation to take advantage of the many benefits associated with doing business internationally is sometimes linked to a lack of knowledge and understanding. However, it is the need for assistance with those processes necessary for unleashing the unlimited potential for growth and profit, which more often causes entrepreneurs to delay taking further action. [Read more...]

The State Of Your Business – Where Will You Invest Yourself?

by Charlotte L. Hanna CMO/CMBS GLOBAL

My husband works for the world’s largest and most recognizable maker of mining equipment used underground. He has invested 37 years of his 56 years here on this earth in helping to keep this company the successful and productive player that it is in the world market.

Though only one of about 1300 people employed at this facility, he is very good at what he does, and as such, is respected for his abilities by those with whom and for whom he works, day in and day out, week after week, month after month, year after year. He has been consistently committed to doing a great job and has always retained a certain level of pride in the products he helps to create and in the company that has played such an important role in the economy of the area in which we live.

He considers himself blessed to have found a job that he could “sink his teeth into”, hold onto for so long, and maintain earning a decent living while doing something he genuinely enjoys.

Much has changed over the past 37 years. [Read more...]

Entrepreneurs With Building Skills Required To Avert Foundational Issues

by Charlotte L. Hanna CMO/CMBS GLOBAL

A sound and firm foundation is crucial to any structure. Whether building a house or a business, the first level is always what the rest of the structure relies upon for support. The ability to remain standing in the midst of a variety of storms, the ability to remain strong and unshaken, will depend on how well the foundation was constructed.

A strong, well-laid foundation has never been more needed than it is today, both in the physical and business realms. Catastrophic weather conditions have rocked the earth and catastrophic financial conditions have rocked our economy over the past several years. People have lost what they could see and touch and hold with their own hands, as well as the investments they had made in a future yet to come.

Now is the time to consider all of your options, while there are still some options to be considered. But don’t let a cracked foundation cause you to move on or abandon your efforts – take a closer look and see if repairing the structural damage may be more cost effective in today’s market. [Read more...]