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.

Really, if you’re SEO-challenged, website-challenged in general, or simply want to know what the heck SEO is and how to make your website a bit more search engine friendly, view this free 15 minute SEO tutorial given by eBizITPA.

If you haven’t discovered one of the better social bookmarking tools out there - StumbleUpon.com, I have good news - it’s not too late.

There are two good reasons to use Stumble:

1. Find content worth reading. People “discover” web pages, thereby giving it an automatic thumbs up. That gets a web page into Stumble circulation. Then, when people “Stumble” (I’ll explain later), Stumble shows random pages that others have discovered. People either vote for the content or vote against it. Eventually, the page you “discovered” will be Stumbled upon, too.
2. Promote your stuff. On any given day, the highest number of unique hits to my blog are from posts that I’ve Stumbled. It’s almost instantaneous, too. One day (a weekend) my daily hits went from less than 20 to over 200 in a couple of hours because I Stumbled some content.
3. Get recognition and exposure. When someone has Stumble installed and they perform a Google search, next to the search result, a link to the user who discovered the page on Stumble is displayed. This is really nifty. Other Stumblers will check out your profile, and you might just get a few fans that way.

Are you “Stumbling” yet?

Hi there - I will set aside my normal banter and sarcasm for this post because it’s really important and I don’t want the message to get lost.

Do you have an internet marketing plan?

I guess It’s OK if you don’t, but I highly suggest creating one ASAP. I’ve discovered in my work that a lot of people believe that if they just put up a website, clients will just magically show up. That couldn’t be further from the truth. People will only know you exist if you or someone or something tells them that you exist. The marketing plan ensures that you or someone or something is out there, telling people about you!

There are basically two sides of the coin: you either have an internet marketing plan or you are flying by the seat of your pants.

Marketing plans don’t need to be difficult. Put the marketing plan in place and then let it work - don’t keep fuddling with your marketing plan. Just let it work.

Components of a Simplified Internet Marketing Plan

A good internet marketing plan should answer the following questions. It should also frame all of these questions with a time period. For example, create a quarterly marketing plan or a yearly marketing plan. Marketing plans are not “forever!”

1. Who are your clients? What do they do and what do they need? This is essential in any marketing plan, not just an internet marketing plan. Determining what they need is critical, because you can use this information to help you figure out where you should promote yourself.
2. What online medium do you plan to use as your BASE location, where people can find out about you and contact? The obvious is your website - but I’ll let you in on a little secret: it doesn’t have to be. You can start a blog and make that your home base, or you can have a LinkedIn profile instead, or a Biznik profile, or a Squidoo page…think outside the box. If you don’t have a LOT of time and money, you might really consider one of the alternatives to having a regular website - get that up and running first and then take your time in creating your website masterpiece.
3. How will you find your clients? An internet marketing plan assumes you are finding your clients online. But where? Layout specific details here. Will you network on sites such as StartupNation and Biznik? Don’t forget less traditional methods such as Clickbank - if you sell a product.
4. What advertising methods will you use, if any? Banner ads? Pay-per-click ads? Link swapping (be wary of this and do your homework)?
5. How will you drive visitors to your base location? Think social bookmarking and social networking as well as online PR and article marketing.
6. How often will you market and by what methods? Create a calendar and lay out your desired marketing methods and intervals.
7. When your visitors arrive at your site, what will you use to compel them to contact you? this is so overlooked, but this is one of the biggest parts of your whole marketing effort. Try to imagine a clear path of least resistance to your contact page, signup page, free consultation page, etc.
8. How will you capture your visitor’s contact information, so you can follow up? E-zines and newsletters are popular and they work. You should also TRY to make sure it’s very clear how to get in touch with you from the very first page. Burying your contact information is a sure-fire way to lose a potential lead.
9. What materials and expertise do you need to implement and support these efforts? If you’re planning to do it all by yourself, give yourself enough time to really do it well. Consider outsourcing (even VAs can outsource!)
10. How much money will that cost? YES! Promoting yourself online costs money. It doesn’t need to be ridiculous, but it does cost something. Don’t be unrealistic and DON’T be cheap. Try and find free resources where you can but don’t skimp on things like autoresponders, affiliate software or graphic design. Remember that shopping carts cost money, too. Even Paypal really isn’t “free” - they keep a hefty chunk of change for themselves when your clients pay you through Paypal.

Make sure that your marketing plan is realistic. Executing a marketing plan is like going on a diet: if it’s totally unrealistic for you it won’t work.

Here is a great internet marketing resource: http://www.cumbrowski.com/default.asp

Have you developed a brand image for your practice yet? What sets you apart from the pack and makes you different?

Have you noticed…there are what seems like a bazillion virtual assistants out there! Your clients are looking for a solution - how is it that you meet their needs as opposed to the next VA?

If you haven’t given any thought to this yet, I suggest getting out a sheet of blank paper, or a white board, and start working on it.

My company brand image is “the know-how all American virtual assistant.” I came up with the brand AFTER I started my business, not before. You don’t have to do it that way, but it does help. I decided on “know-how” after I realized that I had a lot of skills many other VAs didn’t have.

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