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After July 8, Pay This Amount...
You undoubtedly go through this, too. A few times a month you gather up the bills coming due and write checks or pay them online.
As I was doing some bill payments recently, I noticed the tactic one company uses to get its customers to pay by...
How MLM Leads Brokers Compare: A Review of 20 Websites
To survive in the changing world of direct selling or network marketing, you know how critical it is that you maintain a consistent flow of leads into your business. Without this flow, some network marketers' businesses fail within their first few...
Planning Is The First Step
Starting a home based business is less complicated and takes less preparations than most off home business need. No search for an office or a shop, no money you need to pay in advance to rent or buy a place. Not need to order a stock to be able...
Practical Money-Saving Tips For Small Businesses
One of the primary concerns all small businesses have is saving money. When it's time to trim the fat, most look for one giant expense to decrease or eliminate in order to stay within budget. More often than not, it doesn't work that way. Most...
Small Business Q & A: Investing In Son's Business Could Cause A Real Family Feud
Q: My youngest son wants to borrow $5,000 to start his own business. My wife is afraid to tell him no. She thinks we should just give him the money and not expect anything in return. I disagree. He doesn't have a very good track record with...
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A "Cyber" Staffing Solution for Small Businesses
Consultants, entrepreneurs, and other independent professionals often find themselves performing a juggling act: providing their products and services while also carrying out tasks related to marketing, customer service, and day-to-day operations. As important as these activities are to business survival, they don't directly contribute to the bottom line and, more importantly, they divert attention away from those that do.
While that can be said for a company of any size, small office/home office businesses (SOHOs) typically have fewer options than larger firms for addressing these concerns. A SOHO's needs are likely to be varied and ongoing, but traditional temps and contractors are usually best-suited for assignments of limited scope and duration. Additionally, workload fluctuations might prohibit the hiring of a permanent employee, even on a part-time basis, and many SOHOs don't have the space or equipment to accommodate on-site workers.
Fortunately, advancements in technology have spawned a new industry, called "Virtual Assistance," that provides SOHOs with the relief that they need.
Virtual Assistants (VAs) are experienced office professionals who provide administrative and other support services remotely. Because these activities can be handled effectively via telephone, fax, email, and the Internet, physical location is irrelevant. A skilled VA can benefit your business whether he or she lives across the street or across the globe.
Typical VA tasks include word processing, database management, customer contact and follow-up, bookkeeping, and event and travel planning.
While most VAs are generalists, some provide niche services as well. Bonnie Jo Davis, for example, also designs and manages websites, handles search engine submissions, and contributes articles to online directories and databases. In other words, she uses her advanced Internet skills to create and sustain a powerful Web presence for Davis Virtual Assistance ( http://www.davisvirtualassistance.com ) clients who desire it.
VAs with limited time or creative abilities often partner with other companies (such as mine, Affinity Business Communications, http://www.affinitybizcomm.com ) that specialize in writing, graphic design, or other services outside their own area of expertise. These affiliations offer the convenience of "one-stop shopping" and strengthen the value that both firms provide to their clients.
VAs typically charge between $30 and $75 per hour. While this may seem costly at first, remember that - as independent contractors - they do not generate expenses related to payroll, benefits, equipment and supplies, downtime, and, in most cases, training. Rather, VAs are highly-skilled business professionals who (a) have fully-equipped home offices, (b) are ready to "hit the ground running," (c) only get paid for time worked, and (d) enable you to focus your energies on the income-generating activities that you enjoy.
Delegating administrative details is only one of the many rewards of aligning yourself with a VA. VAs strives for long-term, collaborative, and goal-oriented partnerships with their clients and work closely with them to grow and manage their businesses. As entrepreneurs themselves, they understand the unique needs and challenges of SOHOs.
Bottom line: A talented and enterprising VA recognizes that he or she has a vested interest in your success. Working within the context of that strategic relationship, he or she is always mindful of the "big picture" and committed to outstanding results!
Copyright 2002 Christina Morfeld and Affinity Business Communications, LLC.
All rights reserved.
About the Author
Christina Morfeld is president of Affinity Business Communications, a provider of high-quality instructional design, technical writing, and content development solutions. Whether writing to instruct, inform, or persuade, our work is reader-focused, benefits-oriented, and results-driven. Visit our website at http://www.affinitybizcomm.com to learn how we can increase your firm's sales and effectiveness!
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| United States Small Business Administration |
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| Business & Small Business |
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| Microsoft Small Business Center |
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| Small Business and Self-Employed One-Stop Resource |
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| BC Business Services offers assistance and resources for those running or starting a business in British Columbia and Vancouver. |
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| Small Business Service | Home |
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| www.sbs.gov.uk |
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| NSW Small Business |
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| Microsoft bCentral Small Business Directory |
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