Standing Out

I first became aware of Joe Hage on Biznik (which I’ve talked about many times on this blog before and if you’re still not joining me, well…) and he’s now a client of mine.

He’s a Marketing Guy. That’s not his official title, of course, but he knows his stuff. Just look at his resume or testimonials to figure that out.

But I’m writing because I was reading a marketing article of his and I am compelled to share it! Never mind that it says Seattle Marketing Strategy - the advice is actually completely independent of Seattle (he probably did that for SEO purposes - learn it!).

Virtual assistants, marketing assistants, etc - we’re as in demand now as it’s ever going to get, so if you’re not getting business, you really need to re-think your marketing strategy.

Read Joe’s article here and if you’re brave and/or smart, you really should join me on Biznik and follow my lead so you can get clients (good paying ones), too. I am a paid member but didn’t start out that way. A Biznik membership is completely free. Even if you just want to learn from some experienced folks, you need to be networking.

What would happen if you

1. Declared your intention to be successful (or to get X new clients next month or to make $$ money this year),
2. Actually believed that it is already yours,
3. and then set yourself up to receive it - feeling the way you will feel when you finally receive…but feeling that way right now?

Per Mel Robbins, in an article submitted on “The Big Idea Blog” by Donnie Deutsch:

You must stop defining success as something that happens in the future.

I challenge you to harness your thoughts, turn them into positive feelings and then step into your success as a right-now reality, and not a dream or a goal or a mission.

I’m on vacation tomorrow through Tuesday night. Have a wonderful, successful weekend!

*Tia*

In life and in business you get what you pay for, right? If you believe that to be true, and you pay for nothing, what would you get?

Zero.

Correct. If you believe that you get what you pay for and then you turn around and pay for nothing you ultimately get nothing (there are always exceptions to the rule). In order to grow your business, you’ve got to sow seeds of time & money into it.

I believe that you have to put money into your business in order to get money out of it, but it seems that a lot of startups and entrepreneurs hold onto their wallets for dear life. They’ll spend money on gimmicks like memberships to this and that, but skimp on essentials like websites and business cards. Read my good friend Xan’s latest post - You have to spend money to make money - for his real life example of the situation.

As VAs, we fit into the entrepreneur group. We, like everyone else, have to put something into the business so that we can see the results.

No businesses, even those with extremely low overhead, succeed without sowing a little “seed.”

I put money into my business in the following ways and I have seen the benefits time and again:

• Business website hosted by a reputable, reliable web hosting company called Siteground (cost: $6.00/month - paid in advance)
• My own domain name (that’s the URL) (cost: included with my hosting package when I paid in advance)
• Upgraded monthly membership to Biznik, where I connect with other VAs, publish my blog and network with potential clients (cost: $10.00/month)
• Upgraded monthly subscription to Elance - IMPORTANT (cost: $19.95/month)
• E-books and other training material that I find useful, or that I can use as an inspiration for my own (cost: approx. $50.00/month)
• Business cards (cost: approx. $6.00, only for shipping - from VistaPrint - earn 25% off by using that link)
• Use of cell phone for business (cost: approx. $50.00/month)
• Use of Skype call-to-phone feature, so I can listen in on client teleclasses without using my cell phone (cost: $2.00/month)
• A bit of advertising in various places (cost: approx. $30.00/month)

There are of course many other ways in which I sow seed into the business and there are probably some items I’m forgetting here. The lesson is that you get what you pay for, or rather, you get out an amount that is directly proportionate to what you put in. Just remember, you reap what you sow!

–Tia

I posted this earlier and it magically disappeared!

I just wanted to let you know about a free, 5-day e-course being offered on IndieBizChicks.com. On each of the five days, you will receive a part of the course by email.

I truly believe in publicity and PR (I need to get on the ball). Your businesses ARE newsworthy. You now just need to figure out how to make the most of it.

To find out more, visit http://www.indiebizpublicity.com/ecourse.html.

When I first joined Biznik, I read an article by Kristen Marie Schuerlein about creating a mastermind group. I wholeheartedly admit that I had absolutely no clue what she was talking about when she said mastermind, even though I actually have owned Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill who first came up with the concept. (Obviously I owned it but never really read it - I tried, though).

If you don’t know what a Mastermind Group is, Karyn Greenstreet’s article on the subject is very informative. You may even be convinced enough to buy her $12 e-book on how to create a for-profit mastermind group (I did). What I really like about the concept of a Mastermind is that it puts into practice the real “two heads are better than one” theory. Running your own business is tough stuff, so taking an hour a month to talk it out with some others who are in the same boat will be cathartic personally and professionally.

Well, if my interest was kindled by Kristen Marie Schuerlein’s article, it was definitely solidified by Karyn Greenstreet’s. I am not starting a for-profit one at this time (although a VA-centric mastermind group is coming down the pike). But I would like to start a “Self-Employed Moms Mastermind Group” - totally free - as a way to develop a team of like-minded moms that can build, grow, and succeed together. I’d like to limit the group number to five-seven moms at this time but I’m willing to facilitate the formation of additional groups if the demand is there.

This group will meet monthly over the phone. This is TRUE mastermind in that the group members set the agenda, spend almost the entire time sharing, swapping ideas, playing devil’s advocate and helping each other succeed. This is not a club masked as a mastermind, where you pay membership dues and listen to someone talk. The point of a mastermind is to participate! I’d like to keep it that way and give our wallets a break for a minute.

So, if you are interested in participating with me, please let me know and I’ll share the details. You can contact me via the contact form on this blog or by going to my website’s contact form.

Cheers,

Tia