One of the biggest lessons I have learned as not only a Virtual Assistant, but as a business owner, is that you can absolutely never plan as a business owner. I know that sounds absurd coming from someone who plans, plans, plans and who preaches being organized, utilizing effective time management and scheduling. However, I have learned a valuable lesson over the last few weeks … expect the unexpected.

How many of us haven’t become a “rider” in the roller coaster of business ownership? Even though I try to plan as best I can, it seems that life likes to throw little hills and valleys in my business. Just when you think you will have some extra time to work on a “secret” project that you have a great idea for, your business seems to begin the steep climb and the client work seems to come from no where. Don’t get me wrong I am absolutely not complaining, but it makes a person wonder how to effectively ride out this coaster and get the most from the ride.

I am a true idea person and every time I turn around another idea comes into my mind. I do take the time to write all these ideas down, but finding the time to implement them can sometimes be the challenge. As a business owner, the client’s needs must come first – because let’s face it without them we wouldn’t have a business nor an income, and for me my family time is just as if not more important than the success of my business. This busyness leaves little time to implement my ideas without sacrificing sleep or family time. So what is one to do?

I finally realized that I can implement these ideas without having to sacrifice my client work or my family or my sleep to get there. I just have to realize that not all my ideas have to happen now. So for those of you out there struggling to find balance remember you are not alone … you just need to learn to expect the unexpected!! Once you embrace this and decide to enjoy your roller coaster ride the ride seems a little less bumpy!!

Today’s bride is no different than the bride of years past … she is looking to create the perfect fantasy day … the one that makes all their dreams come true. However, the one thing that does set today’s bride apart from the bride of years past is their hectic schedule. We live in a society where many brides are career women, some are already mothers and many lack the time to truly focus on their wedding plans. Many are turning to Wedding Planners and Consultants, but some brides are just looking for a couple of extra hands. This is now possible thanks to the Virtual Assistant.

A Virtual Assistant makes a perfect addition to your bridal “team” and here are just some of the ways that you can put your Virtual Assistant to work for you:

1. Preliminary Research

Have a date in mind or some specific criteria for your day? A Virtual Assistant can make phone calls to churches, wedding locations, reception sites as well as photographers, videographers, caterers, florists and the list goes on. Why waste time to find out that they are unavailable or don’t meet the criteria of what you are looking for? With a Virtual Assistant, you are simply left with a “short list” with which to follow up.

2. Appointment Scheduling

Once your Virtual Assistant has created your “short list”, she/he can also phone and make appointments that meet with your schedule to meet with these professionals.

3. Invitation Creation

Many Virtual Assistants have design experience and can work with you to create customized wedding invitations.

4. Mailing List Creation

Many brides spend endless hours putting together their mailing list including verifying addresses and postal codes. A Virtual Assistant can take care of this for you and put it into a spreadsheet format that makes using it for future applications a breeze.

5. Mailing of Invitations

Once your Virtual Assistant has the database for your mailing list created, she can easily use that database to mail shower and wedding invitations as well as your Stag and Doe, Bachelor and Bachelorette Party announcements.

6. RSVP Follow Up

Even though it is good etiquette to RSVP for showers and weddings, not all people take the time. Your Virtual Assistant can make the phone calls to follow up and finalize the numbers on your behalf.

7. Follow Up with Your Wedding Team for Final Arrangements

Your Virtual Assistant can keep track of the event day and those people involved and follow up to make sure that the final plans are all coordinated.

8. Wedding Program Creation

Not only can your Virtual Assistant create your invitations, but she/he can also create other materials for that day including wedding programs, namecards and seating plans.

9. Wedding Favor Preparations

A Virtual Assistant can suggest ideas for wedding favors and arrange to have them purchased and prepared for your guests or a Virtual Assistant can arrange, on your behalf, for a charitable donation if you choose to forgo wedding favors as many brides are doing these days.

10. Travel Arrangements

A Virtual Assistant can arrange for the travel arrangements and hotel arrangements for out of town guests and even research possible honeymoon destination spots on your behalf and make the necessary arrangements.

11. Thank you Notes

Guests expect to be acknowledged and thanked, however many brides today do not send thank you notes. Your Virtual Assistant, armed with your mailing list and the gifts received by each guest, can personalize thank you notes on your behalf and take care of sending those out.

Remember that you can still have your perfect wedding, but you don’t have to do it all!! With a Virtual Assistant, we take care of the “To Do’s” so all that’s left for you to worry about is the “I Do’s”!!

For us, as entrepreneurs, it is so easy to become overwhelmed by the mounds of work that comes into our office, especially via E-mail. I know that I myself have easily fallen victim to the trap of letting my in-box become overwhelming. A great deal of our time is wasted having to empty out an overwhelming inbox. Many times we might read the same email several times thinking “I don’t have time, I’ll deal with that later” and before we know it our inbox becomes so overwhelming that it takes an entire day to sort through it. As we work our way through it we soon begin to find things that should have been dealt with or that have been overlooked and undoubtably the stress begins to build.

This quarter I am taking on a new strategy with respect to my email and I am inviting each of you to join with me. I am developing the 3 D’s strategy for keeping email messages under control: Do it, Delete it or Delegate it.

Each and every email I read from here on out will be handled in one of 3 ways:

1. DO IT - These are the emails that will require an action by me. If it isn’t something I can answer immediately or act upon immediately, I have also set up two folders and one is “To Read” and one is “To Do”. When it falls under one of these categories I will move it to those folders for later action. I have now also worked into my schedule a half hour at the end of each day and a half hour at the beginning of each day to go through the “To Do” folder and make sure that it is completed each day.

2. DELETE IT -Let’s face it we are inundated with emails, several of which are not something we ever plan to act on. We also receive several emails where a conversation is ended by the other party that should be deleted. Also, once you have answered an email and for which you are not waiting for a reply, you should delete it. By removing it from your inbox, it will tell you that it no longer requires anything to be done.

3. DELEGATE IT - Finally if I am unable to handle something in an email and it needs to be handled by someone else I “delegate it” to them and forward that email.

My final piece of advice is to create a folder entitled “Waiting for a reply”. This will be for all those emails that you have acted on and you are waiting for a response from someone else. These are those emails that you don’t want to delete just yet for fear of forgetting that you are waiting for something before being able to “Do It”, but that clutter your in-box nonetheless. By moving these from your in-box or your “To Do” files they will not clutter these spaces and cause you to read them several times. Always be sure, however, to make it a point of checking your “waiting for a reply” daily and deleting those that you have received a reply on.

I hope that by implementing these tips you will soon find that checking your emails is not taking up huge chunks of time in your day. With any luck, the next time you hear “you have mail” you will not want to jump under your desk and hide.

Many business owners would say that this statement is true without a doubt. No matter what the issue or what the expense, the client is always right and every remedy should be made to ensure that the client is always satisfied. I would love to challenge you to think about the following situations and determine if you still think the client is always right.

1. The Customer/Client that Challenges Your Boundaries. As a business owner it is important to determine boundaries for your business. These boundaries would include such things as; hours you are available to your clients, projects you are willing to undertake, pricing policies, turnaround times, etc.. When a client continually expects you to step outside these boundaries and challenges you when you stand behind your boundaries, is it necessary to allow them to be right? For example, if you stated to a client that your turnaround time was three business days and anything under that time was considered a rush job and subject to premiums, when your client insisted that a job be done within two days and then was unwilling to pay your rush premiums, would you fight to obtain those premiums?

2. The Client that is Never Satisfied. We have all dealt with one of those clients before, I am sure that you know the ones I am talking about. I call them the “suckers” … they suck everything out of you so that there isn’t much left for the other clients. This is the client that changes their mind constantly, that is always right (even when they are wrong) and that never seems happy with anything.

3. The Client that is Bad for Business. So many of us can remember that client that something just didn’t feel right, but we decided to work with them anyways. The biggest lesson that can be learned from working in a situation such as this one is to always go with your gut. Don’t ever be afraid to fire a client, especially a client that is effecting the value of our work for the other clients.

4. The Client that Makes us Unhappy. Remember the reason you started your own business was to make your own decisions and to work with who you wanted, when you wanted, doing what you wanted. The minute that a client makes you not want to answer their phone calls, not want to answer their emails or worse yet not enjoy working with them or on their file, it is time to part your ways.

Of course, each situation and answer is not cut and dry. Many times it depends on a variety of circumstances such as who the client is, what was stated in writing and verbally, how determined you are to “stick to your guns” and how much there is to lose if the situation is reversed or if you stick to your guns. Remember that when determining if the client is right, do what feels right to you and your business and don’t ever let a client “bully” you into doing something that goes against your personal and business ethics. I challenge you to answer this simple question when determining if your client is always right … What is the worst thing that they could do to you and your business if they were told they were wrong?

Although many Virtual Assistants are offering event planning services, when Virtual Assistants are able to team up with Event Planners, the events that they can produce together are phenomenal. Rather than viewing Virtual Assistants as “competition”, Event Planners need to realize what a valuable asset they can be to the success of their event planning business. By having a Virtual Assistant working on the administrative tasks, it frees the Event Planners to focus on the actual event and co-ordinating all the components necessary to make event day run smoothly. Here are samples of some of the ways that Virtual Assistants and Event Planners are able to work together:

1. Mailouts – A Virtual Assistant is able to handle all aspects of your event mailouts including creating the invitations, coordinating the printing, preparing the documents for mailing and ensuring the documents are mailed on time.

2. Database Creation and Management – A Virtual Assistant can prepare a database and maintain that database including organizing the data by event and/or by client and can also maintain your personal contacts as well as business contacts. They can input all the data in one location so that you no longer need to shuffle through several spreadsheets trying to find just the right information.

3. RSVP Tracking – Once the invitations have been sent, a Virtual Assistant can track your RSVPs and call those that do not respond so all you are left to worry about is the actual number of attendees at the event.

4. Research – A Virtual Assistant can research any and all things that you might need researched including possible locations, data for handouts, possible attendees, and the list goes on.

5. Compilation of Giveaways/Gifts – Not only can a Virtual Assistant make phone calls to collect items for you to give to your attendees, but he/she can also put those together and make them look awesome!!

6. Attracting Sponsors/Speakers – A Virtual Assistant can make calls on your behalf to potential speakers or sponsors and take care of sending them information packets about your event.

7. Preparation of Materials for the Event – From information packets to handouts and other materials, a Virtual Assistant can not only prepare the documents, but can also arrange for printing and compilation of the documents.

8. Follow Up – A Virtual Assistant can take care of following up with your attendees, speakers and sponsors with thank yous and surveys.

9. Marketing Assistance – As an Event Planner, you not only have to worry about the events you are planning, but also about your business and attracting new clients. A Virtual Assistant can help you with preparation of marketing materials such as newsletters, blogs, a web site, marketing packages, etc.. He/she can help you attract the clients so you can concentrate on impressing them and landing the next deal.

10. Writing/Editing/Formatting – A Virtual Assistant can be a second set of eyes for all the materials that will be provided to your attendees. He/she can make them look nice, check for errors and omissions and make sure that you are putting your best foot forward.

Once you begin to see a Virtual Assistant as a team member as opposed to competition, you will soon see how your business can blossom and thrive.

Okay so whoever came up with this saying? I hear it all the time, but it doesn’t get any easier to take when life comes by and kicks you!!

I have been dealing with a great deal of stress in my life lately and until today I have been letting it get the better of me, but this morning I decided that it was time to fight back. See I firmly believe that stress can kill because it is amazing the things it is doing to me right now. I have lost all my energy and have been at a standstill to find it. All I want to do is find my bed and sleep until all my problems go away!!

As an entrepreneur, energy is a huge requirement in the success of our business because it is so easy to walk away and say “I’ll deal with that later”!! So how is an entrepreneur to deal with it … the answer “look it straight int he eyes and let it know it can’t win!!”

My goal (since it’s a new month it’s a great time to set new goals) is to do everything I can to not let stress beat me out. Here are the 5 things I am going to put into place to help me cope:

• Write things out and stick to my list. When we have other things on our mind it is so easy to forget about things. I have even taken the extra step to highlight the entries in my to do list … yellow means I must tackle this today, pink can wait until the yellows are done and the blues just need to be done before the week is over.
• Set up rewards. I am going to reward myself for sticking by my new goal by enjoying something at the end of a successful day. Since for me, writing is an enjoyment, I am going to allow myself after completing 4 things on my to do list to take an hour off to write (which is what I am doing right now by writing this post!!). This gives me something to look forward to and makes it easier to get through my tasks each day
• Take breaks. So many times we get so caught up in what is going on we forget to take a second and just breathe. One of the biggest reasons we get so exhausted and tired when faced with stress is that we spend so much time worrying that we forget to give ourselves a break from the stress and just relax, take a deep breathe and enjoy the good things that are happening in our lives.
• Stop letting my stress consume me. Oh this one is going to be the hardest one since I find it so hard not to let my thoughts keep returning to the stressors in my life!! However, I am sure that this continual thinking is actually compiling the stress … and truly, if I can’t do anything to change it right at that moment is thinking about it accomplishing anything?
• Do something proactive. Okay so although I said I wasn’t going to be continually thinking about my stressors, I will be brainstorming something I can do to change it … a step (no matter how big or small) that will make a difference … instead of complaining I am going to become proactive and do one little thing each day to try to change that stress … although I know it can’t be eliminated completely, by doing one little thing to move me towards change I know that stress will slowly become a thing of the past

So now I throw it back to you … how is it that you deal with stress? When staying positive seems so hard, how do you stay positive anyways? Do you hide your stressors to the point that no one knows any different? Or does everyone know to stay clear of you?

I’d love to hear your feedback and ideas for how you are handling the stresses that life throws your way!! How are you fighting stress and allowing it to make you stronger?

One of the toughest questions to answer as an entrepreneur is and always will be “what price should I charge?” If we overprice we will turn away potential clients, but so too is the same true about underpricing. It is a fine line that we walk when we try to determine our price and many times it may be a system of trial and error before we determine just the right price. The biggest factor in determining our price is “what is the client willing to pay”, but the answer to this is much harder to determine than you realize. So too must we consider is how the way our client will conceive us based on our price even before they take a second look at what we are offering. This term is called the “psychology of pricing”.

There is a ton of information on the internet just waiting to be found on the psychology of pricing. When I googled the term “pricing psychology” there was over 460,000 sites just waiting for me to visit. These sites all pretty much said the same thing … perception is key to setting your price. Even though you only save one penny, $9.99 will always seem like a much better price than $10.00.

However, let’s keep in mind that psychology also covers other areas as well besides just saving a penny, there are a number of other psychological factors to keep in mind in setting your price:

1. What is the competition charging?

When setting your price you want to be in-line with the average that is being charged for your services/products by your competition. If your price is one of the lowest, people will wonder if you “know your stuff” or have an inferior product/service. If your price is on the higher end of the scale, people will automatically expect you to have a lot of added value for them to agree to pay that price.

2. What is your USP (unique selling proposition) or the added value?

When people are determining whether to purchase from you, they want to know that there is a good reason to go with you. A justification, if you will, for when they tell their friends about you. If you can provide them with a good reason to purchase from you, price will be secondary. If you have a specialized skill that you can provide you are more likely to be able to charge more than someone that the client feels provides a service they can “handle” on their own.

3. What’s in it for me?

Many people buy with pain in mind. They are looking for the underlying value. When you can sell them on the product or service based on appealing to solving a pain, again price will be secondary. For example, as a service provider, if your client had to do the task on their own, what would their investment of both time and money be? How do you make their life easier? With a product, why must your client have that product and what great benefit will they receive?

Sometimes it can take several attempts to find the “right” price. Don’t be afraid to “test the waters” and then try something new. Another approach is to ask your potential clients what they see as the value in the service or product you are providing. Many times we are so close to the situation that we undervalue ourselves, our services and our products.

How many times have you stared at a blank computer screen or a blank piece of paper just waiting for the words to come? One of my favourite tasks to provide for my clients is my writing services, but I am often asked what types of things I would write for my clients. Here are just 10 of the writing services I am asked to provide:

• Business Letters

Are you introducing a new sale or product or looking to let your clients in on an upcoming promotion? A Virtual Assistant can help you to find the right words for the letter and can even take care of distributing it to your clients.

• Web site copy

Web site copy can be a very involved process, especially if you want it to be search engine optimized. Creating impressive and persuasive copy takes more than just telling someone that you have a product or service. You need to answer the question “What’s in it For Me?” and you need to do so in a unique way to set your web site apart from your competition.

• Marketing materials

A Virtual Assistant can assist you in finding the right words to portray your message in all your marketing materials including brochures, information sheets and business cards. A Virtual Assistant can also assist with preparing the copy for your marketing package as well as assembling and mailing these packages to potential clients. Keep in mind that not only can your VA put together the perfect words, but he/she can also format them and add design elements that will make your marketing materials appealing as well.

• Articles

Article marketing is fast becoming a great way to prove to your potential clients that you are an expert and know your stuff. It is also an additional way to market your product or services indirectly through your article by-line. As blogging is becoming more popular, people are often looking for quality content and turn to article sites for their content. There is a potential for a well written article to reach thousands of potential clients. Not only can a Virtual Assistant assist you with writing this article, but they can also handle submitting your article to the article directory sites.

• Press Releases

Another great way to tell others about your product or service or about an upcoming event or promotion is through a press release. Keeping your press release non-adversarial can be difficult, especially when you have a personal stake. Just as with articles, a Virtual Assistant can also assist you with submitting your press release to the necessary submission sites.

• Autoresponder series

Many people are setting up autoresponders as a way for keeping in touch with their existing clients. Especially where a product has been purchased, an autoresponder can send out reminders at suggested intervals. It is great to have a Virtual Assistant not only write the autoresponders for you, but also set them up and maintain them. You can also utilize autoresponders for ecourses as a way of producing a residual income.

• Newsletters

Finding content for your newsletter can be a daunting task and as such, often our promises to send periodic newsletters become overwhelming. A Virtual Assistant can not only assist with writing valuable content on your behalf, but they can also provide the services to produce and maintain your newsletter to ensure that your promises are kept.

• Blog entries

Blogging is fast becoming a great marketing tool for business. However, many business owners are finding it hard to keep up with the demands required to maintain the blog. Just having one or two blog entries per week can mean providing enough content to establish a readership. A virtual assistant can not only write that content on your behalf, but can also prepare the entries and maintain your blog comments.

• Thank you notes

So many of us forget to take the time to say thank you. However, so many of us say that we love to receive a thank you and acknowledgment from others. A Virtual Assistant can handle writing and sending out your thank you notes so that your clients (and friends) can see that you truly do value them.

• Ghostwriting of E-Books, special reports, etc

Creating a residual income can be a great way to grow your business without having to put in more hours in a day. Many of us, as business owners, are sitting on a great deal of knowledge and expertise ~ we can come up with the ideas, but lack the time or skill to convert those ideas, knowledge and expertise into a tangible product. Working with a Virtual Assistant is a great way to do this. Utilizing your ideas, they work with you to put your thoughts into words and create a tangible product for re-sale.

Keep in mind that all Virtual Assistants come with their own skillset and services and not all will provide writing services, however the next time you are staring at that blank screen or paper, remember a Virtual Assistant can assist you to find the “write” words.

If you, like me, have several clients, how are you keeping everything separate? The system I have created works for me, but I would love to hear how you are keeping your clients organized and separate. Are you utilizing a software program, a folder system, a filing system? What systems have you tried that have or haven’t worked for you?

The system that I have found works the best is a binder that has the separators for each client. Within each separator, I have placed binder paper for note taking. The first page is a page where I have all the crucial information such as contact information, passwords, etc.. Then I follow that with a copy of my contract and the procedures and systems I use for that client to perform the tasks they require. Finally I have blank papers for note taking.

Each time the phone rings I take the binder down and turn to the appropriate clients separator. I then write the date and take notes from our phone call. If they send me an email then I print the email and insert it into the binder. As tasks are completed and instructions taken care of I write beside the date and time that the project was completed.

This system has allowed me to quickly go back and find things at a moment’s notice. It has been a great system for keeping my clients separate and myself organized. However, I am always open to hearing new ideas so please let me know what works for you.

London, Ontario, Canada - The Virtual Assistant industry is gearing up for the 3rd annual Online Virtual Assistant Convention (OIVAC), which will be held from May 15, 2008 through to May 17, 2008. The highlight of the event will be the International Virtual Assistants Day (IVAD) celebration on Friday, May 16, when the announcement of the winners of the prestigious Janet Jordan Achievement Award and the Thomas Leonard International Virtual Assistant of Distinction will occur.

Co-Authors of the book “Managing Your Thriving Business for Success”, Sally Kuhlman and Yvonne Weld, have each been recognized by their industry as nominees of these awards. Kuhlman for the Thomas Leonard International Virtual Assistant of Distinction and Weld for the Janet Jordan Achievement Award.

The OIVAC website states that the Thomas Leonard International Virtual Assistant of Distinction is to “honor a Virtual Assistant who has been in business for at least 5 years and who has contributed to the industry in such a way that it has provided a positive impact on many others and helped them to build a successful business.” The OIVAC website also states that the Janet Jordan Award is to “honor a newcomer Virtual Assistant who has been in business for less than 5 years and has reached a milestone in their short career in the industry. This milestone needs to be an accomplishment that has helped to boost their new business to an overwhelming success.”

These nominations that prove that Weld and Kuhlman truly know what they are talking about and they also give their book credibility. Many books on the market today are filled with repetitive materials that are unsubstantiated. In other words, not too many authors “practice what they preach”. The fact that these authors have been nominated for these awards goes to show that they are truly running successful businesses and are being recognized by the industry as leaders and role models.

“My goal in writing the book was to share with business owners the elements of my business that have attributed to my success such as goal setting, boundary setting and good time management”, Weld stated. “Many business owners struggle to determine why their business isn’t working without first looking at themselves and the management style they bring to their business.”

Kuhlman believes “most people can be taught good management skills and, by utilizing those skills, run a successful and thriving business.” “We don’t want others to make the same mistakes we have and wanted to provide a resource that would give entrepreneurs the tools they needed to run a successful business.” Both Kuhlman and Weld have learned their management skills through trial and error and life experience.

About Yvonne Weld
Yvonne Weld is the owner of Canadian based ABLE Virtual Assistant Services which opened in April 2004. Yvonne brings knowledge from a number of resources including personal experience (8 years in her previous employment as an Office Manager), education (graduate of several courses at the Small Business Centre, London, Ontario) and her love for information through reading and internet research. For more information visit the Web site at www.ableva.com.

About Sally Kuhlman
Sally Kuhlman is the owner of Virtual Simplicity located in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has been providing virtual support to entrepreneurs since 2002. For over 15 years she has been professionally engaged in business management and administrative work. Sally has a bachelor’s degree in Social Ecology specializing in Psychology and Human Behavior. For more information visit the Web site at www.virtualsimplicity.net.

About Managing Your Thriving Business for Success
For more information about Managing Your Thriving Business for Success and how to start organizing your time better, visit the Web site at www.thrivingbusinessmanual.com/managing.

About OIVAC
The 3rd annual OIVAC is to be held from May 15-17, 2008 and will include several training teleseminars and workshops as well as an opportunity to network with Virtual Assistants from around the world. For more information visit the Web site at www.oivac.org.