Friday, October 03, 2008

Saving money in your home-based business

Here are some tips for saving money in starting and operating your home-based business

1. Any tips/advice for saving a services (e.g. Internet)? Are "unlimited" capabilities for things like long distance a good idea? How about "bundled" services (such as cable TV, Internet and long distance on one bill)?

Having unlimited capabilities is very beneficial for entrepreneurs. For example, with unlimited phone services, you can talk freely and don't have to worry about being on the phone too long with potential clients and even your regular clients. Plus when you have unlimited services you find you have more ways to use your services, such as offering coaching. Unlimited Internet is almost always a necessity. Not only do you need the Internet for connecting with clients, but you also do research, marketing, networking, etc. You want to be able to have access to this freely.

You can often save money by getting services bundled. For example check to see if you can get a lower rate on combining services such as long distance phone service, Internet service, etc. It's important though to check your bill monthly and make sure that you are getting what you signed up for and nothing additional. Also, if you are unsure if you have a package added, call and find out before you utilize the service to make sure you are covered. For example, if you aren't sure if your calls to Canada are covered, call and find out. Don't just assume they are and make a call. You don’t want one large unexpected phone bill to negate the savings you receive.

One point that Kelly Poelker, my co-author of VA the Series points out is when bundling have a back-up plan in place as one down side to bundled services is if one service goes down, typically they all do. Use caution in selecting a provider and get the most reliable one.

#2 – Any tips/advice for saving on regularly purchased office supplies, such as toner and paper? Are generic versions usually acceptable quality? Where can home business owners find wholesalers or suppliers at wholesale prices?

Always buy in bulk whenever you can and shop until you find the best prices. Also shopping at wholesale or non-office supply stores can save you money. Today, I purchase most of my office supplies, including toners, at Walmart. I also find places such as Costco or Sams Club can save a bundle. However, I will still look to the sale ads at places such as Office Depot to see their sales. Once in a while their sale price will be cheaper. Also, Office Depot and many places offer Rewards cards. By using your rewards card, at the end of the quarter you can get a gift card back that you can use for purchases. The amount is dependent on how much you spend. Shop online as well. Often you will then get email notices of sales.

Generic versions do work for some products, but I’ve found for toners, etc for quality I want to go with name brand. What you can do is try out one to see if it works for you. It’s worth the experiment if it works and you save monthly from then on. And it’s not a large investment if it doesn’t. But always keep in mind, professional image for entrepreneurs is the most important factor in determining price.

3. Any tips/advice for determine which services are necessary and which can be cut?

Focus on your particular business and what needs relate directly to that keeping in mind that your business is unique. Even though some businesses might need some services, you might not.
Now consider what services you used in the past year and how often you used that service.




4. Any tips/advice for comparison shopping and/or negotiating?

There are times of the year that certain items routinely go on sale. Take note of these times and plan accordingly. Also, be aggressive and ask sales personnel when they routinely have discounts. For example, when new computer models come out, you can get cheaper prices on the older models.

Buy bulk and go for volume discounts with vendors you purchase from routinely. Also check into a commercial accounts for contract pricing. Share the costs with your colleagues and save even more.

Any other tips/advice

Write out a budget for your business and prioritize what your needs are. This is invaluable. Many add this to their business plan when starting a business, but a separate budget can be a real asset. It helps to see things in black and white.

Also, stick with products that you trust and look for the best prices on them. For example, I normally purchase Hewlett Packard computers. I keep an eye on their products and always look for the best prices before I need to make a purchase.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Marketing Success Begins with a New Business Image

Many of you are already established in business with your website in place, your business cards tucked away securely awaiting the next networking opportunity, and your promotional materials printed and filed away. You are set -- Or are you?

Think back, when was the last time you revisited this area? When was the last time you recreated your promotional materials and added a new image? Have you actually read your website lately from the prospective of a potential client? If so, did it portray you in the best light and did it convince you to utilize your services? Did it have all your latest PR successes and latest services? If not, it’s time to jumpstart your marketing. The results, more clients and a new and improved you.

Here are just a few ideas:

Your Web Site

When doing your website or reviewing your website, take your time. This isn’t a race to the finish. Take it a page at a time and give it your all. Ask yourself:

Would it hold their interest? You need to make sure they aren’t bored with long paragraphs or unnecessary long wordy descriptions. They want to find what they came for quickly.

Is it personalized? When people come to your site, do they get to know you and your business or do they hear the same ole’ same ole’ that’s on all the websites in your Industry. It’s important to have you in there.

Get to the point. Go back and cut out unnecessary words, paragraphs, graphics, anything that just isn’t essential to the bottom line of providing the benefits of what you provide.

Is it understandable? Sounds simple, right? Go back over your site and make sure that you’ve clearly spelled out what you do. You know you’re the best, but have you adequately described this to your potential clients?

Can you add a few new graphics or colors or something to jazz it up? A change of your website’s theme colors can make a big difference in adding to a fresh new look.

Press Releases & Articles

How often do you write a press release and submit it out? Or better yet, when was the last time you did send one out? Ouch-that long. If you want to fine tune and bump up your marketing, then you absolutely need to write a good press release and get it out there. The main point in that sentence is -- write a good one. How do you do that? Easy, make it something that informs and inspires. Make it newsworthy. Tie it into what is happening in today’s times and then connect your business to how you can make a difference. Did you remember the “call to action” paragraph, where you are telling them what you want them to do? And finally, just having a release isn’t enough. You need to actively submit it out and post it on your website, blogs, social networking sites, etc. Email us at diana@virtualwordpublishing.com for our free PR informational package for tips and places you can submit your press release for free.


Social Networking

You need to do this. Actually you will want to do this. Once you get started you’ll love it too. So go ahead and do it. Most businesses will tell you that doing this makes a considerable difference in their business. Don’t have time to, hire a virtual assistant to do it for you.

Now, find the sites that interest you and get active and involved. Remember to succeed you need to be committed. You can’t just show up once every few months and expect it to work.

Your Promotional Materials

Just think how impressed your clients or even more important, those potential new clients, will be when they receive a letter on your new letterhead, with your new business card, a matching brochure, and maybe even a matching magnet with your business information on it. It’s time to jazz it up a bit and recreate a new image. You have so many more years experience in your business, let it show with your new promotions.

How about changing your slogan? When you think about it, it goes out with every e-mail, it’s on your website, all your marketing, etc. My slogan has always been “Virtual Assisting At Its Best.” I recently changed it to, “Our Commitment to Excellence is Our Finest Achievement.” My clients noticed the difference right away.

Your clients have probably seen your slogan over and over and over—Give Them Something New.

You’ll see how great you’ll feel with your new marketing image. Make it a goal to do this often. You and your pocketbook will be glad you did.

***************************************
Diana Ennen specializes in publicity and marketing and helping businesses get the most out of their publicity efforts. She’s the President of Virtual Word Publishing, http://www.virtualwordpublishing.com and author of numerous books including Virtual Assistant the Series: Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA. Stop by for free information on starting a virtual assistant business and our free PR Informational package. Article is free to be reprinted as long as bio remains intact.

Friday, September 12, 2008

Disaster Preparedness - Are our schools ready?

We were recently quoted in an article in the Associated Press on Disaster Preparedness. It's a very interesting article on whether the schools are prepared in case of a disaster. It talks about how reports show that most people would run to pick up their kids from school if they were evacuated. As a mom, what would you do? Here's what I offered.


http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i6IPHHS-60qW_lML1GzjRZW7roMwD935307O0 Diana Ennen, of Margate, Fla., is the author of "The Home Office Recovery Plan: Disaster
Preparedness for Your Home-Based Business" and a mother of three. "As a mom, you wouldn't be able to keep me away from picking up my children," she said in an e-mail. "My first instinct would be to get them at all costs. I would literally run the entire distance to get them. I believe most parents would feel the same." Our prayers go to all in Texas! Diana Ennen, Virtual Word Publishing, www.virtualwordpublishing.com

Thanks!

Diana Ennen

Moms and Fall Morning Stress

Moms and Fall Morning Stress

Ever wonder where the morning went? From the second you wake up, your mind is ticking off an impossible to do list as you wander through your dark house to get that first load of laundry in, answer early morning emails, and maybe even log a work out. By the time your kids are up, you are way ahead of the game, calmly drinking coffee, fully dressed and making a healthy breakfast for all to enjoy with time to spare for a nice little chat.

Okay—rewind—whose life is that??? While it might be the goal, this is often not the case. So what's a busy mom to do now that the school year is underway and Fall is fast approaching? While it’s true breakfast is the most important meal of the day, for some families, including mine, it’s even more important to make sure we get out the door with the least amount of mayhem and the greatest amount of kindness and consideration. In order to do this, you have to put in a system for people to follow, even better when they are half asleep, including yourself. So use this short list of tools to start each day in neutral instead of overdrive and take note most anything you need to do gets done the night before. That single step is your secret weapon to a smoother day.

Family Calendar: Single most important tool to keep you all on track as to where you need to be and when, thus telling you what you need to do. Hang it on the wall in a highly visible place and consider choosing a family mantra, such as the popular Live, Laugh, Love to hang nearby to keep it all in perspective as you whip in and out the door each day. As kids grow, you will add school social events, projects, and test days too—keeping you all in the loop as a team effort for a balanced and fun childhood focused on the fun.

Clothes Organizer: Labeled by day to layout clothes for the entire week. Do it together on the weekend and worst case scenario if your child wants to mix things up, tomorrow's outfit is already there for the taking. Really helpful side effect of this tool is how it makes sure gym clothes or special clothing requests get laid out well ahead of time and sent in when needed. Better yet, it acts as a dirty laundry barometer letting you know exactly when you are in the final 24 hours for clean underwear options.

Nightly Homework: Left to the morning opens the door for a lifetime of procrastination. No matter how calm the morning might be, anything more than recreational reading isn't a fair expectation of either your child or yourself.Papers Packed: This includes agendas signed, books loaded, and backpacks ready to go. The best way to make this happen is to have a designated spot for coats/backpacks, etc. Near the door, but out of the main traffic path is best.Gear Bags: Specific to each activity for each family member, such as Ella Soccer, Ella Music, Ella Softball, making it a snap to grab the bag and go. Key to making it work is unpacking and restocking each time you come in and out from the event. Lunch is in the bag—and dinner is in the oven: If you've heard it once, you've heard it a thousand times to make those lunches the night before. In fact, just after you clean up the kitchen is a great time to knock it out. Mix up bagged lunch with school lunch favorites—show me a kid who won't eat the pizza! Dinner is all about the crock pot—use it often and use it well. This is the one thing I encourage you to assemble each morning because on the busiest days, its the only way I know how to make sure that a warm, healthy, balanced meal is waiting for me that doesn't involve tacos, spaghetti, or pizza.

House: Don't leave it like a twister hit without your knowledge. If your kids are old enough, share low maintenance tasks like walking the dog or simply loading up the lunches. But always load the dishwasher—run it if needed—clear the table, and use every quick cleaning tool on the market to make it a no excuses accepted when it comes to helping out. Think Swiffer Wet-Jets for floors, Clorox wipes for kitchen and bathroom counters alike, and leave the rest of your cleaning for another time during the week.

Car: Same as the house, don't let a bomb launch inside during afternoon car pool only to return the next morning to a pile of sticky trash. Make sure everyone takes their things as outlined above, and keep a stash of small trash bags, window wipes, and wet ones on hand to make keeping it clean a snap. Fill up on your way home from work at night to make sure you don't cut it too close and do your best to notice which service stations close to home are offering the best prices. If you are all over town, use your local news station websites to look for gas price updates—they are plentiful and useful if you don’t have to go out of your way to make the most of a great deal.

Family organization is a snap when you follow these simple guidelines. Give yourself eight days and with each one, tackle a new process one day at a time. You’ll have a complete morning madness makeover before you know it and your entire family enjoys the calm that comes with starting their days with your love and gentle direction.

********
GO MOM!® INC Founder, Molly Gold, is a 42-year-old mother of three and the creator of The GO MOM!® product line, http://www.gomominc.com. Gold is known for her keen insights into Family Scheduling and has been featured both in print and on air media alike. She is a Family Balance Contributor and Blogger at www.PreciousMoms.com as well as Family Scheduling Expert at www.BlueSuitMom.com.

Monday, September 08, 2008

Ready for a great read? Online Bookstore Offers the Best in Ebooks, Fiction and How-To Books

Margate, FL, (September, 2008) Eager to read a great book, but no time to run to the bookstore? Then focus your sights on Virtual Word Publishing’s Online Bookstore at www.virtualwordpublishing.com. From sci-fi greats like Sledgehammer to business powerhouses like Virtual Assistant - The Series: Become a Highly Successful Sought After VA, you’ll find exactly what you are looking for here and with a quick click of the mouse, you can be reading away. What did we ever do before ebooks?

Ebooks are growing in popularity today, primarily because of the easy access. Who doesn’t want to order a book and have it within minutes? But most online bookstores agree that it is best to offer customers a combination of ebooks and regular books to meet everyone preferences.
What will you find at Virtual Word Publishing? Well, our fiction category features the highly acclaimed Sledgehammer, a gripping medical fiction thriller. This book sets theme in a Los Angeles emergency room where a patient is discovered to have symptoms consistent with smallpox. It is soon discovered that this is just the icing on the cake as a terrorist plot unfolds and the ER must act fast to stop the deadly attack. An awesome plot and characters you grow to love, make you eagerly await every page. This book has received numerous five star reviews and begs to ask the question, “What if?”

Our Children’s book category features the beautifully illustrated Children’s book, Zip, Burp and Hula. This book is an inspiring story of a trio of friends who meet, learn the value of friendship, and also find that together anything is possible. Sure to become a bedtime favorite and the best part is that it is accompanied by a paint-by-number and coloring book so kids can enjoy the characters even more. Oh, speaking of characters, did we mention the characters consist of a Chameleon, a burping bullfrog, and a dancing dragonfly? What kid wouldn’t want to connect with that trio?

Words From Home: Start Run and Profit from a Home-Based Word Processing Business takes you step by step through the process of starting your own home-based word processing business or secretarial service, including typing, medical or legal transcription. Updated regularly, this book has assisted thousands in turning their administrative skills into a profitable home-based business.

The Book of the Month is Virtual Assistant the Series, Become a Highly Successful Sought After VA; a complete reference guide that will lead you on your journey to running a successful virtual assistant business. What is a virtual assistant? Virtual Assistants are highly skilled professionals, working as independent contractors, who provide publicity, administrative support and other specialized services to authors, businesses, entrepreneurs, executives and sales professionals to name a few. Virtual Assistant the Series is considered one of the leading books in the VA Industry.

All this and more can be found here. Just stop by the bookstore at http://www.virtualwordpublishing.com and start on your reading adventure. You are guaranteed to experience some entertaining and informative reading. Plus, check out the many free books available including a sample of a cookbook for busy moms.

About Virtual Word Publishing: Offering a complete online bookstore with a great selection of business and how-to books, children’s books and CDs, fiction books, etc. Virtual Word Publishing specializes in books on how to start a virtual assistant business. Also, Virtual Word Publishing offers marketing and publicity, and partners with clients to get the best results from their marketing campaigns. From writing press releases, to establishing a complete media campaign, Virtual Word Publishing gets the publicity your products/services deserve. http://www.virtualwordpublishing.com

Ready for a great read? Online Bookstore Offers the Best in Ebooks, Fiction and How-To Books

Ready for a great read? Online Bookstore Offers the Best in Ebooks, Fiction and How-To Books

Margate, FL, (September, 2008) Eager to read a great book, but no time to run to the bookstore? Then focus your sights on Virtual Word Publishing’s Online Bookstore at www.virtualwordpublishing.com. From sci-fi greats like Sledgehammer to business powerhouses like Virtual Assistant - The Series: Become a Highly Successful Sought After VA, you’ll find exactly what you are looking for here and with a quick click of the mouse, you can be reading away. What did we ever do before ebooks?

Ebooks are growing in popularity today, primarily because of the easy access. Who doesn’t want to order a book and have it within minutes? But most online bookstores agree that it is best to offer customers a combination of ebooks and regular books to meet everyone preferences.
What will you find at Virtual Word Publishing? Well, our fiction category features the highly acclaimed Sledgehammer, a gripping medical fiction thriller. This book sets theme in a Los Angeles emergency room where a patient is discovered to have symptoms consistent with smallpox. It is soon discovered that this is just the icing on the cake as a terrorist plot unfolds and the ER must act fast to stop the deadly attack. An awesome plot and characters you grow to love, make you eagerly await every page. This book has received numerous five star reviews and begs to ask the question, “What if?”

Our Children’s book category features the beautifully illustrated Children’s book, Zip, Burp and Hula. This book is an inspiring story of a trio of friends who meet, learn the value of friendship, and also find that together anything is possible. Sure to become a bedtime favorite and the best part is that it is accompanied by a paint-by-number and coloring book so kids can enjoy the characters even more. Oh, speaking of characters, did we mention the characters consist of a Chameleon, a burping bullfrog, and a dancing dragonfly? What kid wouldn’t want to connect with that trio?

Words From Home: Start Run and Profit from a Home-Based Word Processing Business takes you step by step through the process of starting your own home-based word processing business or secretarial service, including typing, medical or legal transcription. Updated regularly, this book has assisted thousands in turning their administrative skills into a profitable home-based business.

The Book of the Month is Virtual Assistant the Series, Become a Highly Successful Sought After VA; a complete reference guide that will lead you on your journey to running a successful virtual assistant business. What is a virtual assistant? Virtual Assistants are highly skilled professionals, working as independent contractors, who provide publicity, administrative support and other specialized services to authors, businesses, entrepreneurs, executives and sales professionals to name a few. Virtual Assistant the Series is considered one of the leading books in the VA Industry.

All this and more can be found here. Just stop by the bookstore at http://www.virtualwordpublishing.com and start on your reading adventure. You are guaranteed to experience some entertaining and informative reading. Plus, check out the many free books available including a sample of a cookbook for busy moms.

About Virtual Word Publishing: Offering a complete online bookstore with a great selection of business and how-to books, children’s books and CDs, fiction books, etc. Virtual Word Publishing specializes in books on how to start a virtual assistant business. Also, Virtual Word Publishing offers marketing and publicity, and partners with clients to get the best results from their marketing campaigns. From writing press releases, to establishing a complete media campaign, Virtual Word Publishing gets the publicity your products/services deserve. http://www.virtualwordpublishing.com