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As I worked on building my virtual assistant practice, I realized
early on that I didn't particularly enjoy many of the typical
"administrative" tasks that other VA's were offering -- travel
arrangements, making phone calls and appointments, keeping their
client's calendar, doing mailings, and bookkeeping.
What I always seemed to gravitate towards was anything to do with
Ezine publishing, website maintenance, helping to create and
format digital products, setting up eCourses and tele-classes,
submitting articles for online publication, and brainstorming
with my clients on how to drive more traffic to their websites
in order to build their online businesses.
It took a while to realize that I was becoming much more than
just a virtual assistant. I was becoming an online business
manager. So if you're someone who works with a virtual assistant,
or if you're a virtual assistant who would like to learn more
about how to help your clients build their online businesses,
here are some tips to help you get started.
1. View your OBM (online business manager) as a business partner.
If you treat your OBM as an employee, just delegating tasks and
not sharing information about your business, you won't receive
the full value from the relationship...you might as well hire a
part-time employee.
Your OBM is a powerful resource for your business and will bring
a wealth of ideas to the table that you might not have thought
about or have no experience with. Take the time to brainstorm so
you can create new ideas together and then lay out a plan to make
things happen.
2. Share your short-term and long-term goals with your OBM. If
s/he knows your goals it's much easier to come up with strategies
and ideas that will help your online business move forward.
I had a potential client who called to ask if I could do website
maintenance for her. I started asking questions about her
business and discovered that there was a lot more that I could
help her with besides website maintenance! By the time we were
done talking she was so amazed at the ideas I had generated for
her business, she couldn't wait to get started! She's often
commented that it would have taken her 2 years to get to the
point we're at now if she'd kept doing it all herself -- and
that was after only 2 months of working together!
3. Be open to new ideas. Your online business manager might
present you with a whole new set of ideas or a new strategy that
you might be hesitant to consider. But remember, her job is to be
an expert idea generator and brainstormer. Don't be afraid to say
no if the idea doesn't resonate with you, but don't be too quick
to say no either. Give her a chance to share her ideas and then
think about the possibilities and discuss the options.
4. Let your OBM set up systems to automate your online business.
S/he should have the experience to help you set up your shopping
cart, merchant account, autoresponders, electronic newsletters,
and affiliate programs. S/he probably isn't a website designer,
but should be able to help with basic website maintenance. That
being said, no one can possibly know how to do it all, but your
OBM should have the resources that she needs to get it all done.
5. Have your OBM help you get more exposure for your online
business. Some of the things s/he should be able to help you with
are: submit articles and press releases; publish your newsletter;
optimize your website and refresh it with new content and
articles; research potential partners for cross-promotional
purposes; research organizations and make inquiries about
speaking opportunities; create collateral materials; create a
press kit; help with creating and formatting special reports,
eCourses and other materials to sell or give away on your
website; help with creating a new tele-class or training program
and then promote it on your website.
Be prepared to pay a little more for your OBM than a typical
administrative or virtual assistant. S/he's highly specialized
and has skills, expertise, and resources that the typical VA
probably doesn't have. And remember that your online business
manager has a vested interest in your success, so see what you
can create together!
Writer's Resource Box:
Jean Hanson is a virtual assistant and online business manager
for coaches, speakers, and authors. She is also the author of
the eBook, Virtualize Your Business - Secrets to Simplifying,
Automating, and Organizing Your Virtual Business. For more tips
on learning how to virtualize your business and a FREE REPORT, go
to http://www.virtualizeyourbiz.com . To learn more about virtual
assistance, visit Jean at http://www.vaofficesolution.com .
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