Archive for March, 2010

 

As a small business owner, finding good help can be a challenge. Qualified candidates are more likely to be attracted to large companies than small businesses because of their high profile and better pay. If you are very small or just getting started, you probably can't afford to hire someone even part-time but, having office help would free you from the busywork and tasks that get in the way of the stuff that needs to get done to bring in the revenue. One way that you can get good help is by creating your own free powerful support team by capitalizing on the power of academic internships.

 

Who Are They?

Most interns are college students (though there are some high school students looking for internships) who need more school credits for graduation, or simply want to get work experience. But some are past students or displaced workers who would like to either build skills and experience or try to break into a new field. Both of these groups can be a key asset to your business. And they are often open to working for little or no pay, so they are less costly than bringing on a regular employee.

 

Interns Can Help With Everyday Tasks

Most interns have little or no actual experience in their field, so they're best suited to small tasks initially. But, don't relegate them to the role of gopher. They'll just need to work their way up to the more complicated tasks. Interns can start out doing the busywork and paperwork you dislike Or maybe it's the administrative and clerical work you may put off or ignore. Once they've mastered that, they can grow into tasks that are more complicated. The timing will depend on the intern's skill level and your needs.

 

Here’s just a short list of what my interns do for me:

• They manage my email and answer my phones
• Keep my calendar organized and confirm my appointments
• Update my website and manage my social networking
• Help me publish my ezine and post articles to my blog
• Keep my database and email list updated and growing
• Develop processes for running my business smarter

 

Oh, yeah, and did I mention they do it for free? They need and want experience, skill building, and knowledge for the next stage of their career. I get help. They get another resume entry, everyone wins!

 

Interns Can Help With Short-Term Projects

If you have a short-term project that you need extra help on, or if your company gets seasonal boosts of business, having interns is a super way to acquire the support you need at a low or no cost. They are often willing to put in extra effort to get a good reference or letter of recommendation from you. And because you don't have an employment agreement, they can stay on with you only as long as you need them.

 

Here are some projects an intern could help with:

• Preparing receipts and records for tax time
• Organizing a file cabinet or creating filing system
• Scanning important documents or photos
• Direct mail campaigns
• Moving or organizing your office

 

Interns are great for businesses, and small businesses, including solo-business owners, can benefit from hiring them. Whether you need a temporary extra hand around the office or someone to help with a small project, hiring an intern could be just the solution you're looking for. It's a cost-effective way to help others in your community get much-needed career experience and you get the help you need to stay focused on what's most important in your business.

 

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Deanna Maio , Business Coach & Consultant, teaches women business owners how to attract more clients, make more sales, stop wasting time, and create a business that acts as a vehicle for living the life they desire and deserve. For FREE tips on how to increase your income and client base in your business, visit http://www.savvygals.com/

At this point, most people have heard of social networking sites such as Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, and a host of other sites. They have been accepted as a great way to connect with friends and as a business networking platform. But if you want to use social networking sites to propel your business to the next level, your best bet is a lesser known site called LinkedIn. It’s a social networking site that is designed just for business-minded individuals like you who don’t want to be bothered with all the useless frills and apps that come with other networking sites.

 

Taking Care of Business

Not only is LinkedIn preferable for business users because you don’t have to worry about all the junk, but you also don’t have to worry about all the people that are not relevant to your business. It may be a smaller site, but when it comes to your business contacts and clients, quality is far more important than quantity. Plus, if people are talking to you through LinkedIn, they’re more likely to think you’re a quality contact too. If you’re starting a viral marketing campaign, LinkedIn can be just the ticket you need to get things going. The best viral products work on already existing networks. LinkedIn is a great network to start your campaign on, especially if your products serve people in business rather than the general public.

 

Search Engine Happiness

LinkedIn can help get you noticed on search engines. These pages actually get pretty high SEO rankings, so taking advantage of that can put you at the top of search engines. When you sign up on LinkedIn, use a name based on your own name, or even keywords that pertain to your business. That way, if someone searches that term, your page will come up.

 

Find Customers

If your clients are regular everyday people, then you might not have huge success using LinkedIn to find customers. But if you cater to people who are in business themselves, then this network is a great place to find new customers. Just check your contact’s networks for people that might be interested in your services and send them a message or a contact request. Just try not to compete with the contacts you’re finding them through; that’s likely to lose you more clients than you make.

 

Manage Customer Relationships

In today’s market, customer service is key, particularly if you do business online. If you don’t provide people with the kind of relationship they want, they can find ten other people who are willing to. LinkedIn is a great way to communicate with your customers and help keep them happy. If they’re happy, you’ll not only keep their business, but they may just recommend it to their friends and business associates.

 

Promoting Your Business

When using social networks to promote your business, it helps to only use one or two instead of spreading yourself too thin. If you only pick one, LinkedIn is a great choice.

 

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Deanna Maio, Business Coach & Consultant, teaches women business owners how to attract more clients, make more sales, stop wasting time, and create a business that acts as a vehicle for living the life they desire and deserve. For FREE tips on how to increase your income and client base in your business, visit http://www.savvygals.com/

 

Being able to connect online with your target market is a powerful marketing strategy. Using the internet as a way to reach your customers is the tactic with the shortest history, but it is a growing industry with an amazing amount of promise. Recently, Pepsi pulled out of Superbowl Sunday and opted instead to spend its money on social media advertising. However, simply writing a blog or creating a facebook status update for your business doesn’t necessarily mean you're going to be able to really reach your audience. So, instead of wasting time and resources, focus your efforts by creating an online presence that is genuine.

 

Step One: Determine where your patrons hang out

What websites do they visit? What magazines are they buying? What gender are they? What age range, income status or household size are your preferred customers? These are just some of the questions you should ask yourself help pinpoint your clients’ likes and dislikes. Creating an online presence is no longer just about creating a “cool” website. It’s about creating a relationship that is sincere and lasting. This sort of relationship, like any relationship, takes time but is well worth the effort.

 

As you stare at a blank computer screen, these questions can seem daunting, but have no fear. There are many free resources available to help you. One easy way to keep your ear to ground is to read blogs. There is a blog on just about every topic under the sun. Analyze your audience by determining what blogs they frequent and then search for advertising guidelines. What verbiage is the most effective? Do they use stories to connect to the audience? What online contests or surveys seem to have the most "curb appeal" to readers? It is important to find a blog that:

• Speaks on a relevant topic
• Has a fair amount of readers
• Doesn’t have too many competing ads

 

Social Networking Sites

Social media has become an unstoppable force in our personal and professional lives. Many of us have facebook sites, have "tweeted" and established connections through Linkdn. If any of this sounds unfamiliar, then start there. These social media platforms are free to use and extremely user-friendly. Creating profiles on these sites will aid you tremendously in creating a greater presence online. This will allow your customers to connect with you in a more personal way, while still promoting your business, product or services. You can post links from your facebook profile to your business profile or website. The link below will show you how to create links, import video and transform your facebook presence for your business use.

http://mashable.com/2009/09/18/facebook-newsroom/

 

Linkedn is an amazing networking resource and Twitter allows you to share resources, stories and establish a more tangible presence because of its informal nature.

 

Once you've exhausted your free resources, and have a more concrete idea of "how" to relate to your customers, you should research different websites to link to. By creating links to your website, you’re creating new veins that lead customers to your business. You should only create links to websites that will give your website greater credibility. For instance, you can join your local Better Business Bureau and create a link from their website to yours. That is just one idea but there are myriad of different techniques that will increase traffic on your site. The link listed below gives a thorough overview of "who" you should build links with:

www.seobook.com/archives/001792.shtml

 

Everyone uses search engines to find a business

These search engines capture the questions that your customers are asking. Google, Yahoo, MSN and a whole slew of other search engines offer many free ways to understand that data and learn how to capitalize on it. In order to receive that data from Google, you must have a Google account. Creating an account is free and super easy. Once you have an account, you can publish and register your site with Google. By registering your site, you are asking Google to include you in its index. Once your site is indexed, you will be more easily found by customers searching for information on your business products or services.

 

Email

Enewsletters and email marketing messages are a great way to reach a targeted audience and make sure the name of your business is being splashed all over the internet. Enewsletters are cost effective, and recipients subscribed to them, are generally looking forward to receiving them and therefore more receptive to the content. Writing for your target audience is easier if you visit sites they visit, consider what they need, and write content that will appeal to them. For instance, if most of your clients are female business owners, write about the struggles they might face in the personal and professional arena. Post gender-specific resources on your website such as programs that offer funding for women business owners. If you offer relevant and interesting information on your website or through your ezine, you will be viewed as more credible. Your target audience will see you as an advocate for their needs and you will gain their trust. A consumer's trust is one of the most valuable things a business can earn.

 

While you want your business name mentioned as many time as it can be on the internet, maintaining your integrity is paramount. If you’re really stuck for ideas on how to create a greater online presence, research what your competition is doing. While you may not want to link to the same website, blog, or social networking site, you can at least use those ideas to get the creative juices flowing.

 

To create a more effective and larger presence online, track everything from the effectiveness of an article, to the color of the ad, the font, the keywords you've used in your website, the amount of friends you have on facebook, the number of people reading your "tweets" and so on. Data collection programs like Google analytics and basic split testing tactics often provide all the information you need to create and perfect the online ways you use to reach your target audience. Testing and tracking optimizes your efforts and helps you hone in on those messages which have the most influence. But only you can create the material that your readers will find genuine, sincere and trustworthy.

 

So be the speaker they are craving to hear and create an online presence that they want to hang out with. Do this through humor, sincerity and a genuine love for your customers.

 

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Presented by: Deanna Maio, Business Coach & Consultant, teaches women business owners how to attract more clients, make more sales, stop wasting time, and create a business that acts as a vehicle for living the life they desire and deserve. For FREE tips on how to increase your income and client base in your business, visit http://www.savvygals.com/

I'm so super excited to announce my newest program, Creating Your Free Powerful Support Team.
Learn More and Enroll Now

I put together a little video for you about it. Check it out here:

I hope to see you there!
Deanna

 

Have you ever procrastinated on something? Of course you have; we all do it at one time or another and some of us suffer from procrastination more than others. If you’re an entrepreneur, procrastination can have some detrimental effects on both you and your organization. Not to worry, there are several straightforward strategies to reduce and eliminate procrastination.

 

How Procrastination Affects You

We procrastinate for a variety of reasons. Several of them include:

• Fear – we’re worried that the task is going to be complex, we’re going to fail at it, it’s going to be disagreeable, and so on.
• Disinterest – it’s easy to procrastinate when you’re faced with doing something that you simply don’t feel like doing. However, if everyone did that, the dishes would always be dirty and the laundry would pile up.
• Expectations – this parallels fear. When someone is expecting something from us and we’re nervous about not meeting their expectations, it can cause procrastination.

 

Regardless of the reasons we procrastinate, the conclusion is always the same. We end up in nail biting, sweat inducing crunch time. Now, instead of a week or a month to get something accomplished, we’ve left only a day or even an hour. This creates incredible amounts of unnecessary stress. The stress that procrastination creates is bad for our physical and emotional wellbeing. We can become drained because we don’t take care of ourselves, and some major consequences can be insomnia, depression, and binge eating.

 

Burn, Baby, Burn

Procrastination also creates burnout. It becomes a vicious circle. You procrastinate because you’re burned out and exhausted and then when you’re under pressure it only prolongs that feeling. The final result is that you’re no longer finding pleasure in what you’re doing and you don’t want to do it. You don’t have the same sense of excitement or enjoyment in your activities and you’re no longer enthusiastic and positive.

 

Productivity Dwindles

Procrastination also diminishes productivity. When you procrastinate and then are forced to finish the job quickly, the task usually takes much longer to complete because you’re not focusing on it with energy and enthusiasm. You are only focused on completing the task. It becomes a mad dash for the finish line. This uncomfortable scurry usually leads to mistakes which can damage your reputation and ultimately your business.

 

 

Effects of Procrastination

Procrastination, as we’ve already talked about, can cause a lack of productivity, burnout and stress. It can also lead to a second-rate final product. If you don’t take pleasure in what you’re doing, you’re troubled about the outcome or you have to hustle through it, the end result can be something you’re just not proud of. And procrastination can also make you lose enthusiasm for an occupation you once loved.

 

Digging Deep

Procrastination can be reduced and/or eliminated by digging deep and discovering the reasons behind your procrastinating. If it’s due to fear, then you’ll need to determine if it’s a legitimate fear and how you are going to tackle it. If you’re procrastinating because you dislike the task, create a solution. You could:

• Outsource the task to a coworker
• Construct a system that eliminates the task, or
• Find a way to embrace the task and get it done

 

Procrastination is something that everyone has to deal with from time to time. Learn to understand and control your procrastination tendencies and you will eliminate its effect on you and your business.

 

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Deanna Maio, Business Coach & Consultant, teaches women business owners how to attract more clients, make more sales, stop wasting time, and create a business that acts as a vehicle for living the life they desire and deserve. For FREE tips on how to increase your income and client base in your business, visit http://www.savvygals.com/

 

I really believe in the process of referrals, so part of the service I provide is to be sure to refer my clients, networking partners, and associates to other qualified businesspeople in the community. Below is a list of areas in which I know very credible, ethical and outstanding professionals. If you’re looking for a professional in a specific area I’ve listed, please feel free to contact me. I will be glad to put you in touch with the people I know who provide these services.

 

Business & Marketing Services:

• Business Insurance
• Computer Networking
• Computer Sales & Services
• Copier/Printer
• Sales Data Storage
• Graphic Designer
• Internet Marketing
• Merchant Services
• Office Equipment
• Office Furniture
• Office Supply
• Company Printer Sign
• Company Staffing Services
• Telecommunications
• Web Design
• Web Designer
• Web Hosting

 

Financial Services:

• Accountant
• Bookkeeper
• Commercial Banker
• Disability Insurance
• Estate Planning Attorney
• Financial Advisor
• Life Insurance
• Long Term Care Insurance
• Merchant Services
• Payroll Services
• Personal Banker

 

Home & Real Estate Services:

• Auto Insurance
• Carpet Cleaner
• Cleaning Services
• Commercial Realtor
• Floor Coverings
• General Contractor
• Handyman
• Home Insurance
• Landscape Services
• Life Insurance
• Mortgage Broker
• Painter
• Pest Control
• Property Manager
• Real Estate Attorney
• Residential Realtor

 

Health Care Services:

• Acupuncturist
• Chiropractor
• Gift Baskets
• Hairstylist
• Health Coach
• Home Health Care
• Massage Therapist
• Naturopath
• Nutritional Products
• Optometrist
• Personal Injury Attorney
• Physical Therapist
• Psychotherapist/Counselor
• Weight Loss Coach

 

Personal Services:

• Family Law Attorney
• House Cleaner
• Image Consultant
• Life Coach
• Personal Chef
• Personal Injury Attorney
• Professional Organizer
• Spiritual Coach/Teacher

 

Event & Wedding Services:

• Cruise/Travel Agent
• Disc Jockey
• Florist
• Hairstylst
• Music Entertainment / Bands
• Photographer
• Printer

 

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Deanna Maio, Business Coach & Consultant, teaches women business owners how to attract more clients, make more sales, stop wasting time, and create a business that acts as a vehicle for living the life they desire and deserve. For FREE tips on how to increase your income and client base in your business, visit http://www.savvygals.com/