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Have you ever wondered what the purpose of networking groups online are? We all know they are for getting to know others with the hopes of someday obtaining a client or referral. But don’t they have more of a purpose? Aren’t they for finding other people to build relationships with to benefit your business, your clients’ businesses, and their businesses? I think underlying to networking groups is also finding lasting relationships and friendships. Working virtually we spend most of the day in our own offices, with no contact to the outside world. While there are many blessings to this, it can be lonely. So how can you get the most benefit from a networking group online?

First, you can remember the etiquette of online communication. We all know the basics. Don’t use all capitals; that is considered yelling. Use proper punctuation and capital letters, otherwise your lack of grammar will take away from your message. What I am talking about is the etiquette of respect. I see “arguments” break out in groups because of miscommunication or someone overstepping the boundaries and trying to force their opinion on someone else. What happens to the parties involved? Most of the time, they lose the respect of the other group members. How sad is that when they spent all this time building their reputation, and in one moment, they blow it!

So, how can you avoid this happening to you? Stay out of arguments. Don’t get involved in the “office” politics online! I know that sometimes this is difficult when you see someone being unfairly torn down. Know that if you do try to step in, you are opening yourself up to being drug down. Unfortunately, there are unprofessional people on the online networking groups. You have to rise above those. Don’t let them draw you in. By showing that you are the bigger person, you are taking another step in building your reputation.

Remember there are boundaries to each networking group. Each one has established the rules they expect everyone on the group to follow. Be sure to follow what they have set up. Each group has their own purpose, and you will join each one for the purpose it serves. I know that on a lot of my virtual assistance groups, there isn’t a lot of room for debate on topics. They are established to help assist each other and ask questions about running a virtual assistance business. Because of this, someone else established a group that was for debating topics and issues that come up in the virtual assistance industry. Look at each group and see what purpose it would fulfill, and then be sure to follow their boundaries.

Networking online has a great purpose and can really help you to be successful in your business. By maintaining your integrity, following the boundaries of the group, and supporting others, you can get amazing satisfaction from a group and create some lasting friendships!

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Patty Benton is the owner of JERPAT Virtual Assistants and JERPAT Web Design, www.moretime4u.org, which provides affordable administrative and web design support to coaches, small businesses, religious organizations, and realtors. Additionally, Patty is a coach for new entrepreneurs interested in venturing into the virtual assistance industry that is affordable to all, and she has also written an e-book that takes virtual assistants through the process of setting up their business. Visit her coaching site at www.virtualvacoach.com for program details and great business resources. She has also partnered to establish the ministry Acknowledging Christ Together at Work www.actatwork.com. If you would like to receive Patty's articles and other tips in your mailbox every month, you can sign up at www.mortime4u.org/home.html.

Virtual Assistants (or VAs) perform many different tasks for their clients. They do everything from proofreading to helping their clients provide great customer service to web site design and web site maintenance to setting up teleclasses and sending out newsletters to many more.

Since virtual assistants perform all these tasks from their own offices, a virtual assistant business is a perfect business to promote online. I have taught online marketing to many virtual assistants, and here are top 5 tips I have for you, whether you are just starting a new virtual assistant practice or you are a seasoned VA:

- Find A Target Market For Your Virtual Assistant Business. I have seen too many virtual assistants who are just starting their own businesses take on everyone as their target market. While it might be tempting to say that everyone is your target market, finding a smaller target market will help you create a better marketing message, get clients faster, and ultimately, succeed with your business.

- Have A Professional Web Site. Since you are offering professional virtual assistance services, it is only fitting that your web site has a professional image.

Make sure that your web site has a professional look and feel and creates a good first impression for your potential customers.

- Explain What You Do. Not everyone is familiar with the term virtual assistant. Make sure that you explain what it is, and what services you provide. Telling your prospective clients about your services will make it easier for them to understand what you do.

- Drive Traffic To Your Web Site Using Article Marketing. Article marketing is a great way to show your expertise and promote your virtual assistant business. When you publish articles, each one of your articles comes with a Resource Box. The Resource Box contains information about you and your business. However, the most important thing that the Resource Box contains is a link back to your web site. Web sites and blog owners who reprint your article include your Resource Box with a "live" link back to your web site. Thus, your articles help you generate a unidirectional (one-way) links to your web site. These unidirectional links are great for driving more traffic to your web site.

- Get a Blog and Start Blogging. A business blog is an excellent tool to toot your own horn, let the world know about your virtual assistance business, as well as your services, and tell your target customers why they should do business with you, rather than your competitor. A business blog is also a great tool for attracting potential customers to your blog and your web site.

Use these five tips to take your virtual assistance business to the next level. Internet is a great place to promote your business and find clients – make sure your use Internet marketing techniques to promote your virtual assistant business.

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Biana Babinsky is the online business consultant, expert and author who teaches virtual assistants how to get more clients online and make more money. Learn how to make more money with your virtual assistant business by getting her free report, How To Get More Clients For Your Business Online at http://www.EffectiveOnlineMarketing.com/report.

Virtual Assistants (or VAs) perform many different tasks for their clients. They do everything from proofreading to helping their clients provide great customer service to web site design and web site maintenance to setting up teleclasses and sending out newsletters to many more.

Since virtual assistants perform all these tasks from their own offices, a virtual assistant business is a perfect business to promote online. I have taught online marketing to many virtual assistants, and here are top 5 tips I have for you, whether you are just starting a new virtual assistant practice or you are a seasoned VA:

- Find A Target Market For Your Virtual Assistant Business. I have seen too many virtual assistants who are just starting their own businesses take on everyone as their target market. While it might be tempting to say that everyone is your target market, finding a smaller target market will help you create a better marketing message, get clients faster, and ultimately, succeed with your business.

- Have A Professional Web Site. Since you are offering professional virtual assistance services, it is only fitting that your web site has a professional image.

Make sure that your web site has a professional look and feel and creates a good first impression for your potential customers.

- Explain What You Do. Not everyone is familiar with the term virtual assistant. Make sure that you explain what it is, and what services you provide. Telling your prospective clients about your services will make it easier for them to understand what you do.

- Drive Traffic To Your Web Site Using Article Marketing. Article marketing is a great way to show your expertise and promote your virtual assistant business. When you publish articles, each one of your articles comes with a Resource Box. The Resource Box contains information about you and your business. However, the most important thing that the Resource Box contains is a link back to your web site. Web sites and blog owners who reprint your article include your Resource Box with a "live" link back to your web site. Thus, your articles help you generate a unidirectional (one-way) links to your web site. These unidirectional links are great for driving more traffic to your web site.

- Get a Blog and Start Blogging. A business blog is an excellent tool to toot your own horn, let the world know about your virtual assistance business, as well as your services, and tell your target customers why they should do business with you, rather than your competitor. A business blog is also a great tool for attracting potential customers to your blog and your web site.

Use these five tips to take your virtual assistance business to the next level. Internet is a great place to promote your business and find clients – make sure your use Internet marketing techniques to promote your virtual assistant business.

****

Biana Babinsky is the online business consultant, expert and author who teaches virtual assistants how to get better known online, get more clients and make more money. Learn how to make more money with your virtual assistant business by subscribing to her free newsletter at http://www.avocadoconsulting.com/free_newsletter.html.

One of the most common complaints for most Virtual Assistants is that it’s hard to network, and get to know others in the same field. Maybe you stopped working in an office because there were too many stresses there, but now you find that working all day on your own can get kinda ... lonely. Unless you have children or a pet, this is a condition we all share at some time or another.

Spending too much time on Friendster or MySpace can be kind of like taking crack -- not very productive. You can get lost in chatting with others about weekend plans, but what good is it doing you? We prefer a social networking experience that serves two purposes. Blogging has been around since the early days of the Internet (you know, when Al Gore invented it), but has only recently become very popular. It seems that almost everybody has something to say, and as long as you have a platform, you can, too. Blogs serve the dual purposes of marketing your business, if you want to get the word out, and inviting others to comment on what you’ve said. In this way, you invent a "conversation" nearly every day you post. Soon, your sad and lonely blues will melt away as you meet new friends you never even knew you had.

Another great way to avoid the lonelies is to invest in a web cam. I know, it sounds kind of perverted, but these days, web cams are used to keep distant families together, by sharing images of children as they grow up across the country from their grandparents. Web cams can even be used to stay in touch with other VAs, or "talk" to your clients in other parts of the U.S. The personal connection can’t be beat when you’re trying to network. Logitech makes our favorite web cam.

We find that VoIP is another great way to have the feeling of staying in touch, without disrupting your work flow. VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, is a hardware/software combination that allows you to talk over the Internet. This saves on long-distance charges, because the call is conducted over your Internet connection. With this adapter from Hello Direct, you can use your own phone to start talking, without a lot of fuss. In just a few minutes, you could be chatting to those people you "chat" with all day long.

And the last, best way we know of to feel connected while working at home is to join a club or network. The Spiritual Cinema Club is one we adore. For $21 a month, we get four new films every month on DVD (the tapes don’t have to be returned). They might be shorts, features or documentaries, but they all share a certain spiritual quality. The films are not overbearing, or hell-bent on converting you to anything, just open-minded meditations on what it means to be conscious and human on this planet. And the best part of all is that the first month of membership is free if you click on the link below!

Now that you’re feeling a bit less isolated, get back to work!

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Copyright 2006 AssistantGirls.com

Patty McFeeney is part of the team at http://www.AssistantGirls.com She’s spent the past twelve years honing her graphic design skills at magazines such as Discover, SPIN, Blender, and Virtually Alternative, among others.