Over the last month I’ve been busy finding guest speakers for a online conference I’m hosting in May for Virtual Assistants. If you haven’t heard about it yet, check it out here. (We are almost sold out and it is still two weeks away!)

I thought I’d share with you some of the ways I went about finding 20 guest speakers to speak at my conference in a very short time.

Online conferences or webinars are excellent vehicles for establishing yourself as an expert in your field. But that doesn’t mean that you have to do all of the talking. Sharing the floor with a guest speaker can add to your credibility and give your audience the benefit of a different perspective.

Some people are intimidated at the prospect of finding guest speakers. Maybe they are afraid that they will have to pay huge fees, or perhaps they worry about being rejected. But many people are willing to speak at webinars at little or no cost since they will gain exposure by doing it so its a win/win for both parties involved!

Here are some tips for finding guest speakers for your next online conference or webinar:

1) Use your social networks. One of the best ways to make connections these days is through social networks such as Facebook, Google+ and Twitter. Why not use them to put the word out that you’re looking for a guest speaker for your webinar? One of your followers might be interested, or maybe your followers will pass the word along to help you find someone. LinkedIn is another good source for potential presenters since it is focused mainly on business networking.

2) Send an email. If you have a particular speaker in mind, go ahead and shoot him or her an email. Those you’ve done business with previously are often happy to oblige. And even if it’s someone with whom you’ve never made contact before, there’s no harm in trying. Just introduce yourself, explain why you think they would make a good guest speaker, and ask if they would be interested. You might be surprised.

3) Ask readers of your blog or newsletter for help. Ask them who they would like to see as a guest speaker for your webinar, or if they would be interested in doing it themselves. Let them know exactly what you’re looking for and what kind of expertise is needed, and you should get some helpful responses.

4) Offer something in return. While many speakers are willing to help you out in exchange for added exposure, it never hurts to offer something in return. If you’re charging for admission to your conference or webinar, it’s only fair to offer guest speakers a free ticket to the event. For free webinars, you could offer to return the favor at their next webinar or write a guest post for their blog.

A great guest speaker for your webinar could be just an email or tweet away. Don’t be afraid to put the word out and see what happens!

Got Your VA Online Conference Ticket Yet?

Have you got a seat yet to the VA Online Conference? It starts in just 2 weeks.

Whether you are a newbie or a veteran VA I guarantee you your business will benefit from attending. We have over 20 speakers lined up to present to you 20 educational webinars all focused on you, the Virtual Assistant to help you grow your VA business. It will be held over a period of 5 days between May 6th-10th daily from 9am to 4pm PDT (-7 UTC/GMT – Vancouver, Canada timezone).

Right now we have sold 89/100 seats and you can get yours for just $27 if you act quickly before we sell out like always!

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

New Video Tutorial For VAinsider Club Members

For those in our VAinsiders Club my VA did a really cool video tutorial for you to learn how to get around your member area. Check it out: CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

If you are not a member yet, give us a try with this one month FR-EE trial valued at $37

GRAB YOUR FREE TRIAL HERE

Do Your Really Clients Trust You?

It’s almost 2013! Show credibility to your clients in your VA business this coming year by getting your VA certification.

Be the “right VA” every time with a VAcertified Seal just for demonstrating the talent and know-how you already have TODAY. Successful entrepreneurs have proven again and again that it’s not what you know but how you bring that knowledge and experience together in one, synergistic benefit package for clients.

When you display the VAcertified Seal on your website and in your other marketing materials, it says to prospective clients that you are the VA you say you are. Virtual Assistants who display the VAcertified seal have demonstrated to an elite peer group that they possess a unique combination of:

• Professional work experience
• Education and training
• Demonstrated contributions to the VA industry
• Think you have what it takes to become VAcertified?

Think you have what it takes to become VAcertified? APPLY TODAY

Want to be seen by more prospective clients? 

We feature a VA Spotlight twice a month at our VA Client Blog. Our website ranks high in the search engines and has tens of thousands of hits every month from prospective clients wanting to learn more about outsourcing to a VA or download our free guide on hiring a VA. Our client blog is the most popular one online for clients to visit to learn more about virtual assistance. Why not be a spotlight while they are there?

Our VA Spotlight this month is Ruth Martin

All Virtual Assistants at our free network may apply to be spotlighted. However, we do have a waiting list and we will fill available slots up first with our VAinsiders.com Club members. Increase your chances of being spotlighted by signing up to our VAinsider Club today. Upon acceptance you’ll be able to sport our Spotlight VA Badge and link it to your interview at your website.

So what are you waiting for? Go get spotlighted and be seen by prospecting clients visiting our website.

Your VAmotiVAtor from VAinsiders.com

Poor communication can be very detrimental to both your personal and business relationships. Good communication is a skill that can easily be learned, but takes a great deal of practice to master. Try instituting these two key factors and you will begin to see your communication improving. Start by removing all outside attractions and allowing yourself to be wholly in the conversation. Finally take the time to listen carefully and avoid interrupting the other person when they are talking. Good luck and happy communicating.

Receive more motiVAtional moments plus business strategies by Becoming a VAinsider Club member today!

Your VAinsider Club membership starts at only $7/mth. Not much to pay nowadays to help your business get the upper hand in the virtual service world. What are you waiting for?

JOIN TODAY at www.VAinsiders.com

FREE Training Webinars

Keep yourself notified our our FREE VA Training webinars at our network by signing up to our newsletter.

NEXT FREE WEBINAR: VAjot Virtual Assistant Social Time

DATE/TIME: April 25th, 2013 at 1PM PDT (Vancouver, Canada)

At our VAjot Socials we come together as Virtual Assistants, business colleagues and as friends to connect, share and discuss our accomplishments the past week.

It’s a social networking evening to JOT down everything on our minds, from introducing new members to discussing positive flows within our businesses. We guarantee it will be a fun and informative social night for all to hang with their peers in the VA industry!

All Virtual Assistants (or wanna-bees?) welcomed and please bring your URL with you to promote to us.

Make sure you are signed up here to stay notified about upcoming speakers at our network.

NEXT VAinsider Club Webinar…

DATE: Tuesday, April 23rd, 2013 at 1PM PDT
LEVEL: Supercharge Only
SERIES: Clicks into Cash Series

TOPIC: It’s Website Review Time!

DESCRIPTION: Tawnya will offer live hands-on website reviews/critiques (with added constructive criticisms to think about applying to your website to turn your clicks into cash) on VA websites submitted by our VAinsider Supercharge members. She will offer her Internet Marketing knowledge with regards to the following performance factors:

• User friendly design and navigation.
• Search engine optimization and spider-friendly coding.
• Color and aesthetics geared to your target market.
• Writing sales copy that coverts traffic into sales.
• HTML and CSS tips.
• Online marketing tips to explore

And of course, any wacky or wonderful features your site may already boast will surely get the praise they deserve!

Learn more about upcoming VAinsider Club webinars and how you can join to be a part of them by clicking here

If you haven’t joined our FREE Virtual Assistant Networking Forum you are sorely missing out on a huge resource for your business. With over 15,000 registered members and over 134,000 topics and posts, you’ll find the answers to every question imaginable about virtual assistance. And if you don’t find the answer, then just post your question and within minutes someone will kindly help you out.

Our Motto: No question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

HOT DISCUSSIONS THIS WEEK:

**You must be logged into the forum to view these else you will receive a message saying “Sorry, we couldn’t find that! Maybe you need to login first” Membership is FR-EE so signup and learn from each other

Attacks on GoDaddy & Hostgator – Change Your Passwords

Google Your Name

Headset Reviews

Follow our #VAforum hashtag on Twitter for new topics daily at our forum

NEW VA BLOG POSTS

Are YOU Unleashing the Power of Your Email Signature? … READ MORE

10 Ways a Virtual Assistant Can REVOLUTIONIZE Your Business! … READ MORE

Building a VA Business that Works! … READ MORE

10 Ways to Work Full-time While Managing Your Virtual Assistant Business Part-time … READ MORE

ALSO don’t forget to be seen by getting “IN THE FACE” of your target market >>> Potential clients and VAs looking to outsource!

Comment today at “The VA Blog”

Facebook Resource

Have you noticed that Facebook is always changing their themes which means we have to continually be up to date with all the sizes of the images on our Facebook pages? Well fret no more, here’s a FR-EE download that my VA put together. This short ebook has all the size dimensions for the images that Facebook requires for your timeline explained easily with diagrams. It also has some cool resources listed in it for your Facebook page. I highly recommend you popping over to my VAs website to download her “Facebook4Brands Timeline Fan Page Resource” ebook.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD IT

To your $uccess!

Tawnya Sutherland, VA Market Leader
Certified Internet Marketing Business Strategist

PS: A warm welcome to all our new subscribers this week. I look forward to helping you answer all the questions you may have in your virtual business. Remember no question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

Do you have an iPhone yet?

If you’re like many owners, you most likely access your iPhone for a variety of personal and even some business uses. You probably use the GPS to find your way to appointments. I know I’d be lost downtown Vancouver if it wasn’t for my Maps App! Maybe you use a financial application like Mint to stick to your budget. You might even use a note-taking application  to track ideas. However, chances are your iPhone is underutilized.

Here are some innovative and fun ways to use your iPhone to help grow your business.

#1 PayPal

PayPal offers an iPhone application that lets you not only receive instant notification that you’ve received a payment, you can also request payments. Speedier cash flow helps you make faster business decisions. A client pays and you can immediately get to work communicating with them and providing your product or service. Better customer service grows business.

#2 Financial Planning and Organization

Applications like Roambi Analytics can help you stay on track of traffic and sales and provide real time information. It integrates with Salesforce, Google Docs, Excel and so much more. Numbers and MicroStrategy are two other applications that help business owners stay on top of their business information.

#3 Project Management

There are a myriad of project management applications that can help you keep all of your communications and files in one secure location. OmniFocus, Teambox, and Podio are just three of the dozens of top-rated project management tools. The applications aren’t free; OmniFocus costs $19.99. However, unlike most online project management services you don’t have to pay a monthly fee to use them.

#4 Business Meetings

Fusebox, FaceTime, Skype, Adobe Connect and Cisco WebEx Meetings are all applications that you can use to hold business meetings on the go. You can chat in your car, on the beach, or from the top of a mountain – as long as there is a Wi-Fi or cellular data connection, you’re able to hold a face-to-face meeting with clients and prospects.

#5 Content

You can use your iPhone to create podcasts, videos, and even written content. With a few adjustments to your WordPress settings you can even blog from your iPhone. And if you don’t blog, you can use applications like iWriter and PlainText to create documents. Use Dropbox, a cloud computing and file sharing application, to send the documents to your other devices and computers.

If you’d rather dictate, check out Dragon NaturallySpeaking and create your content with your voice. You can email the recorded and transcribed documents to yourself and use them when you’re ready. FrameArtists lets you make infographics to share on social media sites.

Finally, let’s not forget about the power of research and organization. Applications like OneNote and Evernote help you organize your research and take notes on your abundant business ideas. Your iPhone is a veritable business bonanza. It can help you stay abreast of new information, keep tabs on your company, pay bills, send invoices, create content and stay organized – all this fun in the palm of your hand.

To find any of the apps I’ve talked about, just visit the App Store.

I’m sure the Androids and other new cell phones coming out are cool too. I can only speak about iPhones because I own one. ;)

Share with us what you own and how you use it to grow your business.

Every Virtual Assistant that has created files and documents on their computer has at one time or another experienced the frustration involved when they lose an important file. It’s even more aggravating when it’s a really important client file that you have spent endless hours working on.

Let’s start by taking a quick look at Dropbox and how it can ease your frustration of losing files.

First and foremost, you can download Dropbox for free on any Windows, Mac, Linux or Mobile operating systems. No matter how great your computer system is or how faithful it’s been to you in the past, it is a smart decision to back up files.

Dropbox allows you to:

* Store all of your documents, photos and videos
* Share your documents with others
* Protect your precious documents

With Dropbox, you can access your files from anywhere at anytime and don’t have to worry about your files being lost or damaged.

That’s enough to ease the worry and frustration that goes along with file storage and potential loss.

Sharing any of your documents with others is easy. All you have to do is send them an invitation to folders in your Dropbox and they can view those files on any computer just as if the file is actually saved on that computer. It’s a great option when it comes to having to share files with clients, co-workers, family members or others.

If your computer should crash and burn, your stuff is still going to be safe because Dropbox can be restored really fast. You can reverse mistakes and it allows you to remove files from the trash that you may have moved there and didn’t intend to.

Dropbox is fast and easy to set up. Storage for up to 2GB is totally free but you do have the option to purchase a storage package that will allow 50GB of storage for $9.99 per month.

Knowing there are options like Dropbox can definitely ease your fears of losing valuable files that you store on your computer. Added to that is the convenience of being able to access your files from anywhere, share your files with others and recover those files if you need to.

Other important benefits of Dropbox are the fact that it actually works with smart phones, iPads and other devices that connect to the internet. Accessing your saved files can be done from anywhere in the world.

The convenience, ease of use and security of knowing your files are ok is probably the biggest reason more people are turning to Dropbox for help with file storage.

If you are one of those computer users that have never suffered the frustration of losing one or more important files, consider yourself lucky. It’s better to be one step ahead and make sure you have a method of storing backup files. You could be the next one to lose a file that cannot be recovered. Starting all over isn’t always the only option.

DOWNLOAD DROPBOX HERE for Free!

We’d love to hear your thoughts on using Dropbox so please post your comments below.

I love that TV series “Love it or List it” where homeowners have to make a decision to keep their current home and upgrade it or just buy a new house.

Reminded me of comments I’ve been hearing both positive and negative on the new operating system Windows 8.

Windows 8 is getting a lot of bad press and frankly I don’t understand why.

(Actually, that’s not true, I do know why folks are upset, I just think it doesn’t have to be an issue as you’ll see later on in this article.)

What people seem to be most concerned about is it looks ‘different’ and if it looks ‘different’ well, it can’t be good, can it?

When Windows 8 first starts you see a “Welcome Screen” and after putting in your user name and password you are greeted with a bunch of tiles. This seems to be where the ‘problem’ lies. “There’s no ‘Start’ button is a common refrain. It’s true, there is no ‘Start’ button. I don’t think this is cause for gnashing of teeth or the wringing of hands.

It’s really not that bad.

Windows 8 is a very good operating system. Actually, it is two operating systems. There is the touch system (tiles) and there is the familiar desktop system (w/o the ‘Start’ button).

Let’s get rid of the fear of the unknown, the ‘Start’ button. Several companies have developed programs to put your ‘Start’ button back where you want it, most are free though the best one is $4.99 (it’s made by Stardock Software). Installing any of these programs will cause Windows 8 to boot to what you want to see, the desktop.

Now that that is over with, why do I think Windows 8 is worthwhile? Well, I took this question to my Computer Guy and asked him to give me his top reasons to keep it:

1. It works on older systems really well. What is an older system? Any dual core system, some Pentium 4’s, some Athlon 64’s, basically, anything less than seven years old. 
2. It works with every older piece of hardware I’ve thrown at it, sound cards, video cards, tv tuners, etc..
3. It works with older programs. I love a program called Microsoft Image Composer, it is over 10 years old. It works perfectly in Windows 8 with the exception of the ‘help’ files for which there is a work-around.
4. It installs quickly.
5. It’s faster than XP, Vista or Windows 7 at start up and shutdown.
6. Microsoft’s anti-virus program is built right into it.
7. It’s safer and more secure than previous versions of Windows.
8. If you take 15 minutes to learn a couple of shortcuts, you’ll learn to love it.
9. The search function is outstanding and extremely quick.
10.  Windows 8 Pro is priced at $39.99 if you own Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7, which is 1/6 of the retail price if you purchase before Jan. 31, 2013.

Download Windows 8 Pro here and save $160!

If you have an older system and want to extend your computers life, you should take advantageof this offer today, you’ll be kicking yourself later on if you don’t.

If you don’t want to do the upgrade yourself, my Computer Guy can do it for you remotely so email him.

Micheal also offers monthly computer upkeep remote maintenance plans which I wouldn’t be caught working without in my business!

Have a look at remote service packages here

Knowing Michael is just a click away all month maintaining my computers takes the stress off of me trying to remember to upgrade my virus programs, do regular malware scans, staying on top of software up-dates or keeping my backups running consistently. I know my business is always safe and secure from viruses and backup meltdowns because Michael does it all for me.

So, what’s this about a ‘Start’ button?

January 50% OFF Kick Start Your VA Sale!

Our 50% OFF January Kick Start Your Virtual Assistant Business SALE is still on if you are looking for training to either get your VA started or are looking for monthly training through our VAinsider Club.

Do Your Really Clients Trust You?

It’s almost 2013! Show credibility to your clients in your VA business this coming year by getting your VA certification.

Be the “right VA” every time with a VAcertified Seal just for demonstrating the talent and know-how you already have TODAY. Successful entrepreneurs have proven again and again that it’s not what you know but how you bring that knowledge and experience together in one, synergistic benefit package for clients.

When you display the VAcertified Seal on your website and in your other marketing materials, it says to prospective clients that you are the VA you say you are. Virtual Assistants who display the VAcertified seal have demonstrated to an elite peer group that they possess a unique combination of:

• Professional work experience
• Education and training
• Demonstrated contributions to the VA industry
• Think you have what it takes to become VAcertified?

Think you have what it takes to become VAcertified? APPLY TODAY

Want to be seen by more prospective clients? 

We feature a VA Spotlight twice a month at our VA Client Blog. Our website ranks high in the search engines and has tens of thousands of hits every month from prospective clients wanting to learn more about outsourcing to a VA or download our free guide on hiring a VA. Our client blog is the most popular one online for clients to visit to learn more about virtual assistance. Why not be a spotlight while they are there?

To start this program off the spotlight is on my VA, Danielle Beauchemin and you can view her in the VA Spotlight by clicking here.

All Virtual Assistants at our free network may apply to be spotlighted. However, we do have a waiting list and we will fill available slots up first with our VAinsiders.com Club members. Increase your chances of being spotlighted by signing up to our VAinsider Club today. Upon acceptance you’ll be able to sport our Spotlight VA Badge and link it to your interview at your website.

So what are you waiting for? Go get spotlighted and be seen by prospecting clients visiting our website.

 Are You Attending the VA Retreat?

We are sponsoring a VA Retreat in February and I really recommend you have a look at attending it.

One of our long time Moderators (Candy Beauchamp) here at VAnetworking.com is putting it on and you can bet it will be an event you won’t want to miss. Here’s more info on it…The Virtual Assistance League is holding a retreat on February 6 – 8, 2013 in Orlando, Florida. This is not a conference but an intense, results-oriented retreat. The website describes it as a casual “down and dirty working retreat for VAs looking to make a positive change”.

It doesn’t matter how long you have been in the business, you come with a certain goal in mind and get the one-on-one guidance to help you bring that goal to fruition. Morning sessions will consist of guided discussions and brainstorming. Each individual will also be allowed time in the “hot seat” if she wishes. The hot seat will allow you to explain your situation and ideas and to get feedback and suggestions from the group. Afternoons will be for working on your ideas with scheduled check-in times to talk about accomplishments or ask questions.The retreat will have a small group of attendees and is being held in a house, not a hotel. This will allow participants to be comfortable while they work. You can go to another room or relax by the pool while you work on your ideas. You can even stay in your pajamas all day if you want!

Go to http://valretreat.com to register.

Your VAmotiVAtor from VAinsiders.com

Are you doing what you love? Many of us fall into the trap of doing what others expect us to. We take a training course on social media and then start offering the service because we think we should. We offer bookkeeping because that is what we did for 15 years in our last job. Just because you have training or expertise in an area if it isn’t what you love than don’t do it. Find a passion and follow through. When you follow your heart and do what you love, it no longer feels like work.

Receive more motiVAtional moments plus business strategies by Becoming a VAinsider Club member today!

Your VAinsider Club membership starts at only $7/mth. Not much to pay nowadays to help your business get the upper hand in the virtual service world. What are you waiting for?

JOIN TODAY at www.VAinsiders.com

FREE Training Webinars

Keep yourself notified our our FR-EE VA Training webinars at our network by signing up to our newsletter.

DATE: Jan. 24th, 2013 at 1PM PST
Webinar Room Link: http://vanetworking.adobeconnect.com/vatraining

NEXT TOPIC: Starting Out in the VA Business

During this information-rich session based on Tawnya’s own experience as a Virtual Assistant, you will learn the steps to take to become a successful Virtual Assistant with the potential to earn an above average income, including:

* Why there is increasing demand for Virtual Assistants, and how to take advantage of this market
* The best way to train to become a successful Virtual Assistant
* The most important thing you need to do if you want to earn a 6-figure income from home as a Virtual Assistant
* Common myths that might be holding you back from creating the career of your dreams
* Which personality trait is a must-have for anyone who wants to be a successful business owner
* The five things you can do to gain instant credibility for your Virtual Assistant business
* Where to find clients for your new Virtual Assistant business

Tawnya will stick around after the webinar to answer any of your questions about becoming a Virtual Assistant.

Make sure you are signed up here to stay notified about upcoming speakers at our network.

NEXT VAinsider Club Webinar…

DATE: Tuesday, January 22nd, 2013 at 1PM PST
LEVEL: Supercharge Only
SERIES: Thriving Business Series
TOPIC: Industry Standards

Using industry standards in business can be a great way for providing your business with a successful advantage. When we first start our business and lack the experience, pricing using industry standards can provide potential clients with a new found confidence. As our business grows and we become more efficient we will be “penalized” for our efficiency if we are not using industry standards to price projects. This class will look at how others are using industry standards and exactly how you can determine industry standards to give your business that successful advantage.

Learn more about upcoming VAinsider Club webinars and how you can join to be a part of them by clicking here

If you haven’t joined our FREE Virtual Assistant Networking Forum you are sorely missing out on a huge resource for your business. With over 15,000 registered members and over 134,000 topics and posts, you’ll find the answers to every question imaginable about virtual assistance. And if you don’t find the answer, then just post your question and within minutes someone will kindly help you out.

Our Motto: No question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

HOT DISCUSSIONS THIS WEEK:

**You must be logged into the forum to view these else you will receive a message saying “Sorry, we couldn’t find that! Maybe you need to login first” Membership is FR-EE so signup and learn from each other

New Years Resolutions – What’s Yours & More Important Have You Started Them?

What have been the greatest challenges of owning your own business?

oDESK – Have Your Tried This Yet and What Were Your Results?

Follow our #VAforum hashtag on Twitter for new topics daily at our forum

NEW VA BLOG POSTS

Getting Started as a Virtual Assistant … READ MORE

Kick Start Your Virtual Assistant Business in 2013!… READ MORE

Looking for a Retreat From Your Virtual Assistant Business?… READ MORE

ALSO don’t forget to be seen by getting “IN THE FACE” of your target market >>> Potential clients and VAs looking to outsource!

Comment today at “The VA Blog”

Twitter Twips!

Been thinking about getting on Twitter but haven’t step onto this social media cruise yet? These 10 Twitter Twips will start your motor running so you can gracefully sail out to the Twitter sea quickly and easily.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD IT NOW 

To your $uccess!

Tawnya Sutherland, VA Market Leader
Certified Internet Marketing Business Strategist

PS: A warm welcome to all our new subscribers this week. I look forward to helping you answer all the questions you may have in your virtual business. Remember no question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” – Napoleon Hill

Ask any successful person or professional coach how to achieve your goals and the first piece of advice is likely to be, “think positively.”

Positive thoughts are your key to achieving your dreams and goals in 2013. While being positive isn’t the only ingredient and characteristic necessary, it is an essential one.

Positive thinking starts with you.

Often we look at what we want to achieve and we’re able to think positively about the goal or the process but we’re unable to think positively about our abilities. What do you do well? Rather than focus on what you’re not so good at, spend time focusing on what you are good at. Enjoy and relish your strengths. These strengths are what will catapult you to your success. Instead of thinking “I can’t or I won’t be able to,” think “I can, I will, I am able to.”

Don’t put limits on your dreams. The only limit to your success are your thoughts, fears and limiting beliefs. When you can clear these, you leave room to make the once impossible, possible.

Surround yourself with like minded people at our Virtual Assistant Networking Forum in 2013. Participate (quit lurking) by sharing your knowledge about what you know. In exchange you’ll not only learn from these people but make some good friends which will lead to new clients.

Surrounding yourself with positive people who too are pursuing their dreams of success will help you attain your own goals. The trick however is that you must first be a positive thinker to attract these same people. Mastermind groups are an excellent example of the power of positive thoughts and action. Benjamin Franklin had a mastermind group, Henry Ford had a mastermind group and many of our historical and notable success figures found power and by surrounding themselves with like minded people.

Our VAinsiders Club has a mastermind group, so go ahead join it (only $7/mth) for 2013.

Create affirmations for success. Affirmations are positive statements that motivate you, inspire you, and keep your spirits and confidence high. Affirmations are personal and can only be written by you. Spend some time thinking about fears, limiting beliefs and areas where you lack confidence and write affirmations to help you change those limits into positive thoughts and positive action.

Most importantly, never give up.

Changing your mindset to think positively will help you persevere. One of the common characteristics of successful people is their ability to fail, pick themselves up, fail, pick themselves up and continue this process until they succeed. There’s no way you can suffer failures without a positive attitude. Mistakes and setbacks will happen. Will you be able to handle them and forge ahead? You will if you have the right attitude.

Success comes to those who focus on the good, who think positively about themselves and the world and who are able to persevere. If you think positive about your dreams and goals until they become part of who you are then you will be on your way to achieving the success you desire in 2013.

Do Your Really Clients Trust You?

It’s almost 2013! Show credibility to your clients in your VA business this coming year by getting your VA certification.

Be the “right VA” every time with a VAcertified Seal just for demonstrating the talent and know-how you already have TODAY. Successful entrepreneurs have proven again and again that it’s not what you know but how you bring that knowledge and experience together in one, synergistic benefit package for clients.

When you display the VAcertified Seal on your website and in your other marketing materials, it says to prospective clients that you are the VA you say you are. Virtual Assistants who display the VAcertified seal have demonstrated to an elite peer group that they possess a unique combination of:

• Professional work experience
• Education and training
• Demonstrated contributions to the VA industry
• Think you have what it takes to become VAcertified?

Think you have what it takes to become VAcertified? APPLY TODAY

December Daily Business Deals!

Want a cool business deal every day this month? Look no further than my friend David Perdew. He is offering you really affordable (I mean cheap – YAY!) deals every day for the month of December. From downloadable royalty free images to training to teach you how to give you some new HTML skills. He has a bag full of business holiday goodies that will change daily so it each and every day in December.

Here’s the link to bookmark and check daily during December:

www.vajot.com/namsdecdeal

Want to be seen by more prospective clients? 

We feature a VA Spotlight twice a month at our VA Client Blog. Our website ranks high in the search engines and has tens of thousands of hits every month from prospective clients wanting to learn more about outsourcing to a VA or download our fr-ee guide on hiring a VA. Our client blog is the most popular one online for clients to visit to learn more about virtual assistance. Why not be a spotlight while they are there?

To start this program off the spotlight is on my VA, Danielle Beauchemin and you can view her in the VA Spotlight by clicking here.

All Virtual Assistants at our free network may apply to be spotlighted. However, we do have a waiting list and we will fill available slots up first with our VAinsiders.com Club members. Increase your chances of being spotlighted by signing up to our VAinsider Club today. Upon acceptance you’ll be able to sport our Spotlight VA Badge and link it to your interview at your website.

So what are you waiting for? Go get spotlighted and be seen by prospecting clients visiting our website.

Looking for Affordable Seasonal Greeting Cards With Your Logo?

With the holiday season right around the corner learn how you can send out 10 professional, personalized, glossy greeting cards for under $10 (plus postage) right from the convenience of your home/office computer, iPad or iPhone! If you follow the link below, you can even send one card for FR-EE which I will even pay for.

Click here to send a greeting card today to your client to say thanks

Your VAmotiVAtor from VAinsiders.com

Do you set yourself up for success? When you allow yourself to take on tasks and work towards projects that are sure to be a success it can be a huge confidence booster. Many of us do not set ourselves up for success. We take on tasks that are bigger than our capabilities, we establish timelines and deadlines that are next to impossible to achieve and we set goals for ourselves we know are way too big. When you do these things it can be a huge draw on our self-confidence and self-esteem. Starting today begin setting yourself up for success … you will be amazed at how the increase in self-confidence and self-esteem will turn into a new-found enthusiasm for your business.

Receive more motiVAtional moments plus business strategies by Becoming a VAinsider Club member today!

Your VAinsider Club membership starts at only $7/mth. Not much to pay nowadays to help your business get the upper hand in the virtual service world. What are you waiting for?

JOIN TODAY at www.VAinsiders.com

VAjot Social FREE Webinar

Join Tawnya Sutherland and fellow Virtual Assistants for our popular VAjot Socials. It’s a social networking webinar for Virtual Assistants to get together and JOT down everything on our minds, from introducing new members to discussing positive flows within our businesses. It’s a very laid back time to socialize with others in the VA business just like you. We guarantee it will be a fun and informative social night for all to hang with their peers in the VA industry! All Virtual Assistants (or wanna-bees?) welcomed. Please hook up your microphone for more interaction between members.

DATE: Dec. 20th, 2012 at 1PM PST
Webinar Room Link: http://vanetworking.adobeconnect.com/vatraining

Make sure you are signed up here to stay notified about upcoming speakers at our network.

NEXT VAinsider Club Webinar…

DATE: Tuesday, December 18th, 2012
LEVEL: Supercharge Only
SERIES: Thriving Business Series
TOPIC: Contracts, Data Maintenance & Storage & Business Resources

This class will first cover contracts and what aspects you should be considering with respect to contracts for your business. We will also cover best practices for maintaining data on your computer, backing that data up and retrieval of information. Finally we will cover business resources that every business owner should consider using. Once this section of your manual is complete anyone should be able to find important documents in your business.

Learn more about upcoming VAinsider Club webinars and how you can join to be a part of them by clicking here

If you haven’t joined our FREE Virtual Assistant Networking Forumyou are sorely missing out on a huge resource for your business. With over 15,000 registered members and over 134,000 topics and posts, you’ll find the answers to every question imaginable about virtual assistance. And if you don’t find the answer, then just post your question and within minutes someone will kindly help you out.

Our Motto: No question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

HOT DISCUSSIONS THIS WEEK:

**You must be logged into the forum to view these else you will receive a message saying “Sorry, we couldn’t find that! Maybe you need to login first” Membership is FR-EE so signup and learn from each other

What are everyone’s plans for the holidays?

How can I give access to my social media accounts?

How did you start out as a VA?

Follow our #VAforum hashtag on Twitter for new topics daily at our forum

NEW VA BLOG POSTS

Getting Started as a Virtual Assistant … READ MORE

Succeeding as an Affiliate Marketer… READ MORE

Steps to Protecting Your Business Information Online… READ MORE

ALSO don’t forget to be seen by getting “IN THE FACE” of your target market >>> Potential clients and VAs looking to outsource!

Comment today at “The VA Blog”

FREE eBook for your Kindle!

Get Karon Thackston’s Kindle book at Amazon for free. The ebook is called “How Correcting 3 Common Website Mistakes Increased Sales 86%”. It’s only fr-ee for December 16th so get it while you can!   CLICK HERE TO GET IT FOR FREE!  

To your $uccess!

Tawnya Sutherland, VA Market Leader
Certified Internet Marketing Business Strategist

PS: A warm welcome to all our new subscribers this week. I look forward to helping you answer all the questions you may have in your virtual business. Remember no question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

People like identity thieves and hackers can cause all sorts of trouble.

The following are some steps you should take to protect your online information.

#1)  Install, update and use Anit-Virus software like Microsoft Security Essentials which is free so no excuses. And for only a few bucks a month you can secure your business information even more by adding additional spyware to keep your surfing safe like Malwarebytes.

Personally I don’t have time to do this so I outsource it to an computer expert who keeps my computer virus free.

#2)  Don’t access important websites or accounts when using a public computer at internet cafés, libraries, and other public sites. You run the risk of your information being copied and re-entered after you leave.

#3) If you text chat to communicate with your clients make sure you are aware of the many ways viruses can filter through to your computer just from texting. Read more about how to avoid viruses using Skype here.

#4)  Be aware that there are misleading and scammer websites designed to trick you and collect your personal information. It’s generally called phishing and it’s when someone sends you to a fake website made to look like a real financial institution or facility. Instead of clicking on a link from an email, simply type the business into your browser to make sure you’re using the real web address.

#5)  Buy from well-known companies – and only provide bank or credit card information in secure sessions. Look for the https in your browser and look for the padlock icon usually found in the URL  to signal it’s a secure session. You can also look for the VeriSign or other security certificate.

#6)  Don’t share your passwords with others and don’t write them down. Create a system of changing your password on a regular basis. Avoid using the same password for all your accounts – if someone figures out one, they’ve got them all.  Try to create a unique, non-personal password that would be difficult to guess. It’s recommended to use 8 characters in your password using at least one capital letter, one numeral and one character like 4Ut*39Yr.

#7)  Be wary of files without file extensions, for example .doc or .jpg because it makes it easy for viruses to hide in them. And don’t open a file with a double extension because it probably contains a virus.

#8)  Don’t open emails from people you don’t know and don’t open attachments if you are suspicious or don’t know the sender. Attachments and emails can easily contain viruses and your computer and the information it contains can be at risk. Don’t open an e-mail attachment that contains a file ending .exe, .pif, or .vbs as these are commonly used with viruses – unless you absolutely know who the file is from and trust them.

#9)  Review your ISP, Internet Service Provider, and see what protections they offer you as a customer. Do they offer virus protection services?

#10)  Read your bank and credit card statements. Make sure all of the charges and transactions are legitimate. If not, call the institution immediately.

#11)  Back up your information with an online back-up service and/or with an external hard drive. How often should you back up? Some experts recommend daily back-ups, others weekly or monthly. It depends on how often you add new information and how valuable that information is to you. You should also back up your website, because a hacker can get in there in a blink and mess everything up. If you have your website backed up, repairing the damage is relatively painless.

#12) Last but not least, invest in a postal box for your business.  You don’t want your home address out there for everyone to see.

In this age of technology we have wonderful tools and freedoms. However, with this technology also come risks: risks of identity theft, risks of theft in general, and hackers and viruses which can destroy computers and years of hard work. You can mitigate these risks by taking a few simple, but savvy, steps to protect your online information.

How to Persuade and Influence Others For Your Gain

A highly coveted skill to learn as a Virtual Assistant is the ability to influence and persuade others. When you can accomplish this, you’re more likely to build your business quickly with new clients, work better with your virtual colleagues and attain your business goals with less struggle. And the good news is that influencing and persuading others is actually less complicated than you may think. Let’s take a look at the basic steps to learn how to persuade and influence others for your gain.

#1 Learn to Empathize - One of the most important steps to be able to persuade others is to first understand where they’re coming from. For example, let’s say you sell cars and someone comes to your lot looking for a car. They’re looking at the minivans and you assume it’s because they have children and start to talk about all the benefits of minivans for families. If they’re looking at minivans because they like car camping, well then you’ve completely missed the mark and all your persuasive talk is going to fall flat.

So the very first thing to do is to understand your audience (target market) but more importantly, to be able to put yourself in their shoes. What do they want, need and hope for? What are their struggles and how can you solve them?

#2 Learn to listen - Listening is more than half of the persuasion equation. Everyone wants to be heard and understood, and that begins by simply asking a few questions and actually listening to the answers. In fact, give it a try. The next time you are introduced to someone new, ask them a question or two and then sit back and listen. People love to talk so you’ll learn a ton about them. And they’ll be so darned pleased that you cared enough to engage them in conversation and actually listen to them that they’ll be happy to listen to you when you have something to say or something to ask for.

#3 Always know what you’re talking about - People have a tremendous respect for experts, people skilled and knowledgeable in their industry or niche topic. When you know what you’re talking about and can communicate that effectively, people will be open to listening to how you can solve their problems.

#4 Reciprocity - Reciprocity is a buying trigger. It says that when we get something from someone, we’re more inclined to give them something. For example, when you get a free ebook from someone, you’re more inclined to give them your email address. Reciprocity also helps you persuade and influence others.

#5 Timing - Finally, sometimes you have to wait for the right moment. They say timing is everything and it’s why internet marketers spend so much time building a list and contacting customers regularly – eventually hoping that the timing will be right. This again goes back to knowing your audience and understanding or empathizing with them. When you know your audience, you can better predict the right time to sell to them.

Persuasion and influence, like many other skills, are improved by practice. Practice empathizing, listening and the other tips I’ve offered with your family first and notice what works for you and what areas you could use some work on. It’s worth the effort! Who knows? Maybe you won’t ever have to do the dishes again if you can persuade one your kids to take over that duty.

Now take your practice a step further and imagine what being better able to persuade and influence others could do for your business life!

The Kickstart Your VA Business Guide

Want to get your Virtual Assistant business moving forward but don’t know where to start? Let us help you kick start your business starting this minute!

An easy to read fun guide to the largest global network online today (VAnetworking.com) for successful and aspiring Virtual Assistants.

Download your F.R.E.E. Kickstart Your VA Business Guide here.  No signup required!

Looking for Affordable Seasonal Greeting Cards With Your Logo?

With the holiday season right around the corner learn how you can send out 10 professional, personalized, glossy greeting cards for under $10 (plus postage) right from the convenience of your home/office computer, iPad or iPhone! If you follow the link below, you can even send one card for FR-EE which I will even pay for.

Click here to send a greeting card today to your client to say thanks

FR-EE WordPress Webinar Series Just in Time!

My friends at WP Academy have done it again — produced yet another extraordinarily informative and FR-EE webinar series on WordPress web design and web marketing for WordPress. WP Academy training is simply the best WordPress training out there. If you are planning on creating or developing a website this year, they are the go-to people. Check out our freebie today at the end of this email to watch them in action.

This FR-EE Training series starts on Tuesday Dec. 11 and you can sign-up from this link

Your VAmotiVAtor from VAinsiders.com

Many successful people are avid readers. Allowing yourself to grow personally and professionally through the knowledge of others is only one advantage to reading. Perhaps the bigger advantage is the mental break you allow yourself to take when you can get wrapped up in the adventure, the story or the challenges faced by a character. When the story comes to life and you immerse yourself into the character’s “life” you are actually allowing yourself a break from all the stresses and challenges of your own life. This can be an excellent way to allow yourself to achieve a healthy balance and reduce stress.

Receive more motiVAtional moments plus business strategies by Becoming a VAinsider Club member today!

Your VAinsider Club membership starts at only $7/mth. Not much to pay nowadays to help your business get the upper hand in the virtual service world. What are you waiting for?

JOIN TODAY at www.VAinsiders.com

FREE TRAINING WEBINAR…

Make sure you are signed up here to receive news about upcoming speakers at our network.

NEXT VAinsider Club Webinar…

DATE: Tuesday, December 11th, 2012
LEVEL: Getting Clients & Supercharge Only
SERIES: Getting Clients Series
TOPIC: Sprucing Up Your Marketing Kit

Your marketing kit is your client’s first introduction to your business. In this class we will discuss what should be included in your marketing kit and when that marketing kit should be provided to a potential client. We will also discuss some dos and don’ts for your marketing materials.

DATE: Wednesday, December 12th, 2012
LEVEL: All VAinsiders
SERIES: Turning Clicks into Cash Series
TOPIC: Developing Your Internet Marketing Plan for 2013 (Part 1 & 2)

Start the year out steps ahead of your competition by developing an online marketing plan for the New Year. Tawnya Sutherland, Certified Internet Marketing Specialist will walk you through the process in this hands on webinar. A hands-on-workshop to get your online marketing plan in place this month..

Learn more about upcoming VAinsider Club webinars and how you can join to be a part of them by clicking here

If you haven’t joined our FREE Virtual Assistant Networking Forumyou are sorely missing out on a huge resource for your business. With over 15,000 registered members and over 134,000 topics and posts, you’ll find the answers to every question imaginable about virtual assistance. And if you don’t find the answer, then just post your question and within minutes someone will kindly help you out.

Our Motto: No question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

HOT DISCUSSIONS THIS WEEK:

**You must be logged into the forum to view these else you will receive a message saying “Sorry, we couldn’t find that! Maybe you need to login first” Membership is FR-EE so signup and learn from each other

My First Networking Event

Holidays: Clients & your Subcontractors

Printing or E-File? 1099s and W2s, Oh My!

Follow our #VAforum hashtag on Twitter for new topics daily at our forum

NEW VA BLOG POSTS

Is Your Business Prepared For the Holiday Marketing Push? … READ MORE

Top 10 Reasons Why a Virtual Assistant (VA) is Better than Hiring an In-House Office Assistant … READ MORE

ALSO don’t forget to be seen by getting “IN THE FACE” of your target market >>> Potential clients and VAs looking to outsource!

Comment today at “The VA Blog”

FREE 1 Hour Training Video

For your freebie this week here is the link to a one hour business training video by Marc Beneteau we recently held on creating a small business website in just 1 hour.

Watch it here

Starting from an empty hosting account, Marc will create a professional WordPress website, using the Weaver theme (very professional and flexible free theme). Watch how easy it is to create your website in just 1 hour.

To your $uccess!

Tawnya Sutherland, VA Market Leader
Certified Internet Marketing Business Strategist

PS: A warm welcome to all our new subscribers this week. I look forward to helping you answer all the questions you may have in your virtual business. Remember no question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

I use Skype on a regular basis to communicate not only with friends, but also clients and important business connections.

But what happens when you realize that one of your business associates, or even a family member sends you a link that infects your computer? That’s exactly what is happening. On October 8, 2012 a new virus affecting Skype users was discovered and it’s being reported all over the Web, including CNET, and Mashable.

Don’t believe for a second that your legitimate contacts are sending those links to you on purpose. It is very likely they they have been infected, and that they have no control whatsoever over their system. In fact, it’s possible that their computer is even being held under virtual lock-and-key for monetary ransom.

Read on to learn more about this unsettling Botnet Scam…

Last year:

Beginning on or around March 15, 2011, numerous people reported that they were receiving virus scam calls on Skype from a robotic voice telling them that their computer is infected and to go to a website to buy a Fake Anti-Virus program to fix it.

Now:

Similarly, as of October 8th 2012, people have been allegedly receiving automated messages from what appear to be automated bots (Dorkbot Worm) with the socially-engineered message: ” Lol is this your new profile pic?” with a link to what might appear to be a legitimate zipped image to the layman.

This bot is very clever and spreads through a few computers to begin with, and then automatically targeted contacts in the infected user’s Skype contact list. As these contacts receive the automated messages, many of them wouldn’t think twice about opening the link because they are receiving the message and link from an established (possible credible) contact on their “friend” list.

If one were to click the provided link, they would download a .zip file. Upon extraction, an executable file could infect your computer. To many people, this would be a sign that something is wrong; however if they have extracted the file and their Anti-Virus system hasn’t kicked in and blocked the file, or it is a zero-day attack (no cure has been discovered yet), it is likely too late.

This virus is commonly known as “ransomware.” It essentially holds the victim’s computer hostage until the victim agrees to pay a fee of $200 to access his/her (now locked) filesystem within 48 hours.

Obviously this means that the perpetrator has full access to not only the victim’s personal files, but also any saved passwords the victim may have stored in their system. The malware (Worm Virus) has a multi-tasking feature designed to specifically steal usernames and passwords to social networking sites and PayPal accounts.

And to take it even further, this multi-tasking virus turns infected servers into “botnet” servers to perform DOS (denial of service) attacks on targeted websites, and continues to downloading further viruses on the (already infected) computer.

All Skype has said about this infection so far is that users need to keep Skype updated, along with computer system updates that one should be regularly maintaining. They also said not to click on any links that may look suspicious, even coming from your established contacts.

Once a user is infected, the virus will not only hijack the user’s system and hold the files for ransom while stealing the user’s passwords but will also begin to send similar messages over Skype to all people on the user’s contact list in order to keep the virus circulating.

The link being circulated is also socially-engineered to fool users into thinking that it is legitimate. The structure is as follows:

goo.gl/B463c?img=johnsmith – (link not clickable for your protection.)

Looking at the structure of the link, we first see that the URL appears to be a Google shortlink. Then we see some random numbers and letters in an alphanumeric format, which is characteristic of any typical link. The most socially-engineered part of the link is that the final portion appears to be an image (img), and also implies that the image (img) has something to do with the user in question (in this case, John Smith). This can easily fool even the most seasoned user into thinking that the link is legitimate.

Skype Security and Computer Rescue Kit

Are you worried about getting infected? Not 100% sure that your security is in place and ready to kick any hacker zombie attacks? I know some people that have already received this instant message from some of their contacts.

If you’re unsure whether your Skype installation, your computer, or your network is secure, don’t take any chances.

Want to ramp up your security in general to prevent these things from affecting you?

WPSecurityClub (a subdivision of www.WPSecurityLock.com) has prepared a kit featuring details on how to keep Skype, your computer, and your network secure. As a bonus, included is a document on emergency computer restoration in case anyone has already been infected. Additionally, a resource sheet will be provided with some key tools referenced in the documents and on the WPSecurityLock website.

Here’s what’s included in the Skype Security and Computer Rescue Kit:

• Computer Security Essentials: 7 Steps You Must Take to Protect Your Computer from Malicious Attacks
• Printable Emergency Virus Recover Plan for Windows Computers (Hang this by your computer in case of emergency.)
• Skype™ Safety Plan – Keeping your Skype Installation Secure

Here’s your VA Report to keep you “IN THE KNOW” with informative and entertaining resources for your virtual service business success this coming week!

Marketing Essentials to Gain Maximum Benefit

You know the importance of marketing your business. You may even have written a marketing plan and are now implementing it. But is simply marketing your business going to bring you the results you need? Do you have a way to measure the success of your marketing? If your marketing isn’t successful, do you know how to find out where you went wrong?

These questions are some of the important reasons why you need a properly set-up marketing strategy plan. A marketing strategy plan will help you gain maximum benefit from your marketing. It goes a step beyond a marketing plan.

A marketing plan describes the activities you are going to do to promote your product or service. A marketing strategy plan establishes the basis for your marketing and provides the goals for all your marketing activities. It gives you a tool you can use to define your market, position yourself, and increase your sales.

Here are some of the things a well thought-out marketing strategy will tell you. This information will help you gain maximum results from all of your marketing efforts.

1. Describe your business and your objectives. This is where you will write down what your business does and what product or service it provides. You will also consider what the goal of your business is. When you have established your goals, you will be able to choose marketing activities to help you reach those objectives.

2. Describe your products or services. This describes what you do and how you provide your product or service. It is important to understand exactly what service your business provides so you can tell others about it effectively. This may seem obvious, but many business owners can’t describe exactly what it is they do. Including this in your marketing strategy plan will ensure that you understand what you do and why it’s important, and can relay that information to others.

3. Profile your target market. Who are you providing your product or service for? This will tell you who you should be marketing to. Research your market to find out what appeals to them about your product. This will help you market it to them effectively. Learn everything you can about your market so you can speak their language and make sure your marketing is appropriate.

4. Know your business’s role in relation to your competition. This will help you understand your unique position in the marketplace. Find out how you’re different than your competitors, whether it be stronger or weaker. You can use this in your marketing to make yourself stand out from the competition.

Your marketing strategy plan will provide the goals for all your marketing activities and help you reach them. It will also simplify your marketing because you have done your research ahead of time. For these reasons, a marketing strategy plan helps ensure that you gain maximum benefit from your marketing.

Under the freebies section this week I’m giving an online marketing plan template to get you started on working on your marketing plan.

Looking for Seasonal Greeting Cards With Your Logo?

With the holiday season right around the corner learn how YOU can send out 10 professional, personalized, glossy greeting cards for under $10 (plus postage) right from the convenience of your home/office computer, iPad or iPhone! You can’t even jump in the car, head to Walmart and buy greeting cards that cheap by the time you add in the cost of gas, your time and a minimum of $3-4 per card. Not to mention, these cards you can personalize with your own logo!

If you follow the link below, you can even have a FR-EE Trial and send one card at no cost to show someone you care.

What are you waiting for? Send a greeting card today to your client to say thanks

Click here to send a greeting card today to your client to say thanks

Do you want to stay in business online making money without the interruptions?

If you said YES then computer upkeep is a necessity for your business.

You go to your doctor regularly for checkups don’t you? Well our business computers require upkeep as well!

Every computer needs maintenance on a regular basis in order to keep it working the way you want it to with minimum “down time”.

Most of us don’t do it for all sorts of reasons. Like we didn’t know we how to maintain our computer, we procrastinate just waiting for our computer to fail or we just don’t have the time to keep our computers running smoothly without “crashes” that could affect our business sales.

Because of that, we’ve come up with a NEW program for Virtual Assistants and businesses everywhere to have their computers remotely serviced and kept up to date no matter where you live.

Learn more about our VA Computer Upkeep Plans by CLICKING HERE.

Have You Entered our Contest to WIN a VAinsider Club Membership?

Our RAFFLE CONTEST CLOSES October 31st so only a few days left to enter!

Find out how you can get 75+ entries today with more entries each day if you really want to win a VAinsiders.com Club Yearly Membership valued at $333.

Enter today by clicking here

Your VAmotiVAtor from VAinsiders.com

A successful VA is someone that not only knows how to listen, but also knows how to hear. When people speak many times it isn’t what they are saying that is the most important, but rather what they aren’t saying. Reading between the lines and being able to completely understand what someone has to say, even when they can’t find the words, is a skill that every VA must learn. When you can understand every need of your client even before it is spoken and know just what they need even when they don’t, that is when you will truly find the success with your clients that you are looking for.

Receive more motiVAtional moments plus business strategies by Becoming a VAinsider Club member today!

Your VAinsider Club membership starts at only $7/mth. Not much to pay nowadays to help your business get the upper hand in the virtual service world. What are you waiting for?

JOIN TODAY at www.VAinsiders.com

NEXT FREE TRAINING WEBINAR…

DATE: Thursday, October 18th, 2012 at 1PM PDT

COST: Free to attend!

SPEAKER:  Lynette Chandler

TOPIC: Construct a Solid Affiliate System For Your Client

While a majority of a good affiliate program stems from solid management, it can also be hindered by bad technology and its setup.

Join us as we go through elements of a good affiliate system, where to find them and how to pull it all together.

WEBINAR ROOM URL HERE
(Just enter as a Guest using your Full Name)

Make sure you are signed up here to receive news about upcoming speakers at our network.

NEXT VAinsider Club Webinar…

DATE: Tuesday, October 16th, 2012 at 1PM PDT
LEVEL: Supercharge Only
SERIES: Thriving Business Accountability Series
TOPIC: Production and Marketing Protocols

In the second of our “how tos” classes, we will be talking about production and marketing protocols. The production protocols are the step by step instructions you follow in getting your product completed. Even in service industries it is important to know step by step how we perform these services. Secondly we will look at how we market our business and what strategies we are and are not presently using. We will also provide you with the tools for preparing a marketing plan.

Learn more about upcoming VAinsider Club webinars by clicking here

If you haven’t joined our FREE Virtual Assistant Networking Forumyou are sorely missing out on a huge resource for your business. With over 15,000 registered members and over 134,000 topics and posts, you’ll find the answers to every question imaginable about virtual assistance. And if you don’t find the answer, then just post your question and within minutes someone will kindly help you out.

Our Motto: No question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

HOT DISCUSSIONS THIS WEEK:

**You must be logged into the forum to view these else you will receive a message saying “Sorry, we couldn’t find that! Maybe you need to login first” Membership is FR-EE so signup and learn from each other

What’s in your website header?

Royalty FR-EE Background Music Resources

Have You Ever Used Fiverr?

Follow our #VAforum hashtag on Twitter for new topics daily at our forum

NEW VA BLOG POSTS

Is Your Business Prepared For the Holiday Marketing Push? … READ MORE

Common Mistakes Working From Home in a Virtual Assistant’s Office … READ MORE

ALSO don’t forget to be seen by getting “IN THE FACE” of your target market >>> Potential clients and VAs looking to outsource!

Comment today at “The VA Blog”

FREE 1 Hour Training Video

Start the year out steps ahead of your competition by developing an online marketing plan for the New Year. As promised above here is your MSword template to develop your own Online Marketing Plan.

Download it here

To your $uccess!

Tawnya Sutherland, VA Market Leader
Certified Internet Marketing Business Strategist

PS: A warm welcome to all our new subscribers this week. I look forward to helping you answer all the questions you may have in your virtual business. Remember no question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

Here’s your VA Report to keep you “IN THE KNOW” with informative and entertaining resources for your virtual service business success this coming week!

How do you get more subscribers to your blog? 

That’s a topic a lot of people struggle with. The truth is, it’s really not that difficult.

You first need traffic, and then you have to convert that traffic to subscribers.

Here are six tips to make it happen:

#1) Focus on SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Getting ranked in the search engines will probably be your best source of long-term traffic. Just don’t have unrealistic expectations.

It will take some time to start seeing results with SEO. A lot of people get frustrated when they aren’t ranking immediately for their chosen keywords, and give up. However, if you are patient and diligent, you will reap the rewards.

What keywords should you target? It all depends on how much time you want to devote to your blog. If it’s going to be a smaller site, you will want to go after longer tail keywords. However, if you want a bigger site, then more popular keywords will work fine.

If you have questions about SEO, pop by our Internet Marketing Forum area and just ask away:

#2) Leave comments

This is one of the oldest strategies for getting more blog traffic, but it still works. All you do is make intelligent comments on forums and blogs related to your niche.

Just make sure you do this at places that allow you to leave a backlink to your site which will help you get ranked higher in the search engines.

Also make sure to make a useful comment. Many people take the “spammer approach”. This is where they leave a similar comment on every blog and forum that allows a do-follow link. This may help some for SEO, but it won’t give you any traffic.

The better strategy is to get known at a few popular blogs and forums, and establish yourself as an expert. This proves you are there to provide meaningful content, and therefore people are going to be more inclined to listen to you.

When your goal is to genuinely help people instead of just getting backlinks, you will build yourself as an expert. This in turn will increase your traffic.

Our VA Blog for clients is a great place to comment at because clients frequent our blog regularly to learn more about working with a VA. Commenting at blogs where your target market hangs out is a superb way of possibly getting hired by a new client. Visit and comment at our VA Client Blog.

#3) Guest posts.

This is where you contribute to other people’s blogs, and get a link to your site in return. If you happen to find a popular blog that you can become a regular contributor of, this can provide you a good long-term source of traffic.

Simply email the owner of a blog that interests you and ask if they’d like a guest post. Chances are they will love the content contribution (they won’t have to blog that week either LOL) and say SURE!

#4) Make it easy to subscribe

Getting traffic is only half the battle. The other half is to get them to sign up for your list. Fortunately this isn’t that hard.

First, make it simple to subscribe. One of the best strategies is to put a subscribe link at the bottom and side of every post. You can test different areas, but these will often produce the most subscribers.

#5) Write great content

This is the most important tip of all. If your free content is good, people are going to be much more inclined to sign up for your newsletter.

Don’t just rewrite some public domain articles. Instead, aim to help people based on your personal experience in your niche. Telling your story is how to get the best results.

#6) Give incentives to sign up

Give people an incentive to subscribe by offering them something of value to download for fr-ee like a tip sheet, ebook, audio or e-course when they signup. People love freebies!

The bottom line is, getting more sign-ups isn’t that difficult. None of these strategies are terribly hard, but they work well. Just be patient, and you will soon have a sizable list of subscribers you can market to again and again.

Do you want to stay in business online making money without the interruptions?

If you said YES then computer upkeep is a necessity for your business.

You go to your doctor regularly for checkups don’t you? Well our business computers require upkeep as well!

Every computer needs maintenance on a regular basis in order to keep it working the way you want it to with minimum “down time”.

Most of us don’t do it for all sorts of reasons. Like we didn’t know we how to maintain our computer, we procrastinate just waiting for our computer to fail or we just don’t have the time to keep our computers running smoothly without “crashes” that could affect our business sales.

Because of that, we’ve come up with a NEW program for Virtual Assistants and businesses everywhere to have their computers remotely serviced and kept up to date no matter where you live.

Learn more about our VA Computer Upkeep Plans by CLICKING HERE.

Looking for Seasonal Greeting Cards With Your Logo?

With the holiday season right around the corner learn how you can send out 10 professional, personalized, glossy greeting cards for under $10 (plus postage) right from the convenience of your home/office computer, iPad or iPhone! If you follow the link below, you can even send one card for FR-EE which I will pay for.

What are you waiting for? Click here to send a greeting card today to your client to say thanks

Have You Entered our Contest to WIN a VAinsider Club Membership?

Our RAFFLE CONTEST CLOSES October 15th so only a few days left to enter!

Find out how you can get 75+ entries today with more entries each day if you really want to win a VAinsiders.com Club Yearly Membership valued at $333.

Enter today by clicking here

Your VAmotiVAtor from VAinsiders.com

Most people procrastinate because it is a job they do not like or lack the skills to finish. Now is the time to think about all those things you procrastinate about and delete them from your plate. Find someone to help out (perhaps an exchange of services), find ways to eliminate the need for that task or do some research to find easier or perhaps more exciting approaches to completing these tasks. When you stop procrastinating and face these tasks head on the feelings of accomplishment can be very rewarding.

Receive more motiVAtional moments plus business strategies by Becoming a VAinsider Club member today!

Your VAinsider Club membership starts at only $7/mth. Not much to pay nowadays to help your business get the upper hand in the virtual service world. What are you waiting for?

JOIN TODAY at www.VAinsiders.com

NEXT FREE TRAINING WEBINAR…

DATE: Thursday, October 11th, 2012 at 1PM PDT

TOPIC: VAjot Socials

At our VAjot Socials we come together as Virtual Assistants, business colleagues and as friends to connect, share and discuss our accomplishments the past week.

It’s a social networking webinar for VAs to JOT down everything on our minds, from introducing new members to discussing positive flows within our businesses. We guarantee it will be a fun and informative social night for all to hang with their peers in the VA industry!

ENTER VAjot room here 
(Just enter as a Guest using your Full Name)

Make sure you are signed up here to receive news about upcoming speakers at our network.

NEXT VAinsider Club Webinar…

DATE: Tuesday, October 9th, 2012 at 1PM PDT
LEVEL: Getting Clients & Supercharge Only
SERIES: Getting Clients Series
TOPIC: Effective Sales Letters

Writing a sales letter that gets noticed can be harder than expected. In today’s society of endless junk mail and spam it can be difficult to ensure your letter is getting noticed. We will provide you with some strategies for getting your sales letter noticed and also provide you with ideas for determining recipients of that letter.

Learn more about upcoming VAinsider Club webinars by clicking here

If you haven’t joined our FREE Virtual Assistant Networking Forumyou are sorely missing out on a huge resource for your business. With over 15,000 registered members and over 134,000 topics and posts, you’ll find the answers to every question imaginable about virtual assistance. And if you don’t find the answer, then just post your question and within minutes someone will kindly help you out.

Our Motto: No question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.

HOT DISCUSSIONS THIS WEEK:

**You must be logged into the forum to view these else you will receive a message saying “Sorry, we couldn’t find that! Maybe you need to login first” Membership is FR-EE so signup and learn from each other

Client Q & As

Another Major Google Update

What is your favorite time scheduling app?

Follow our #VAforum hashtag on Twitter for new topics daily at our forum

NEW VA BLOG POSTS

Is Your Business Prepared For the Holiday Marketing Push? … READ MORE

CAN-SPAM Laws for Affiliate Marketers … READ MORE

ALSO don’t forget to be seen by getting “IN THE FACE” of your target market >>> Potential clients and VAs looking to outsource!

Comment today at “The VA Blog”

FREE 1 Hour Training Video

For your freebie this week here is the link to a one hour business training video by Trish Robichaud on: How to Develop, Promote and Deliver a Webinar Without Spending a Dime!

WATCH VIDEO HERE

It’s an informative webinar on how to set-up and integrate a select handful of free online services to deliver your own webinar without draining your wallet or stressing your brain! Use webinars to generate a consistent flow of warm leads by delivering a routine number of webinars per month.

Visit Trish’s website to take advantage of her special offer of her 5-Week WOW Series Program. Regular Price is $297 but if you use our coupon code you can get it for $147. Coupon Code: VANETWORKING

And here are the webinar notes she said she’d give you.

To your $uccess!

Tawnya Sutherland, VA Market Leader
Certified Internet Marketing Business Strategist

PS: A warm welcome to all our new subscribers this week. I look forward to helping you answer all the questions you may have in your virtual business. Remember no question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (VAnetworking.com) to do so.