Personal Involvement with Your Social Networking

Posted on by December 18, 2008

I was having a conference call with one of my client’s today and we discussed the importance of personal involvement in your social networking sites.

I maintain the pages of several of my client’s social networking sites, but there comes a point where, as a VA, I can only do so much. That is where the client has to be an active participant.

I have many clients that travel quite a bit and just don’t have time to check every day or even every other day. That is where I come in. I can check their pages, send out postings, answer generic emails, but that is where it ends.

There are times when someone is asking a very specific question or sometimes it is personal. From that point, I will contact my client and let them know of these things.

LinkedIn is a perfect example of that. There is a Q & A section that is extremely useful in establishing yourself as an expert and increasing your exposure to potential connections. That is where the client has to be active. I can’t do that on their behalf.

When I hear that time is an issue with all the traveling, the perfect time to address these things is when you are sitting in an airport, have a moment or two between conferences. Perhaps, stay in for the night rather than go out with the group.

It is the client’s responsibility to manage this aspect of their social networking pages.

I participated in a 2 day Webinar this week that was given my Nancy Marmolejo of VIVA Visibility. She actually listed a weekly planner on maintaining your pages without becoming overwhelmed.

There were other VA’s on the call and I know from listening to them, that they have the same concerns.

Twitter and Me

Posted on by November 20, 2008

I have spent the last couple of days editing a teleseminar (now a transcript) that Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound conducted with BL Ochman of Whatsnextonnline on social networking.

One of the tasks that I perform when editing a transcript is to make sure that all the hyper-links work in both the word document and the PDF that I create.

As a result of reading this document I get very distracted with all the new information and websites that I can use.

One of them is called TweetDeck which you can find at http://www.tweetdeck.com/beta/. I have installed on my computer now and have it on for parts of the day. I do like it as I can now get the tweets whenever someone I follow posts a new tweet.

One word of warning though. It can be very distracting. I can multi-task with the best of them, but at some point I do have to turn it off.

It is a great tool and will continue to use it.

BTW, you can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/serenityva

The Success of Blogging

Posted on by November 1, 2008

One of the many things that I have learned over the last few years is the importance of blogging.

I have not been the most diligent in this department, but I do try to do it whenever I think of it. I know that may not sound very professional, but it’s sometimes the best I can do.

Now, I would like to share a success story to the importance of blogging.

The other day I received and email from a potential client who was interested in my services as a virtual assistant. I responded to his inquiry and we set up a time to chat.

At the appointed time, he called and we did chat and he did in fact hire me.

I then asked him how he found me and he told me that he had Google Alerts set up for Virtual Assistants and my latest blog posting showed up. He then went to my website, read all about me and contacted me.

I have become a successful VA, partially due to the quality of work that I do, but also because I have another wonderful client and mentor, Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound. She has been instrumental in my success.

I also get a daily alert from The Blog Squad as well and I read and learn from what they teach as well.

I have clients that I have been hounding for some time to blog. Blog, blog, blog. The common response is “I don’t have time.”

I argue that it only takes 15 minutes to post a blog entry and that it doesn’t have to be a tome. It could be something they read or that they are promoting. I can’t seem to get the message across the importance of it. It’s not overnight success, it just takes diligence.

Set up a reminder to yourself to blog at least once a week. Once you get in the habit, increase it to twice a week and so one. It is a trickle-down effect and eventually you will have success as well.

The Publicity Hound’s Updated Special Report

Posted on by October 28, 2008

Yes indeed, it is that time of year.

Joan Stewart, aka, The Publicity Hound has published her updated version of her widely popular Special Report #29: Fly High with Publicity in In-Flight Magazines. In this you will learn:

  • Why these magazines are publicity goldmines if you want to target business travelers
  • Types of stories the editors want…don’t assume they all want the same stories!
  • The most important thing you must do before you start pitching
  • How each publication wants to receive your pitch…you must know this so you don’t alienate editors
  • Tips for working with freelance writers who have good working relationships with the magazines
  • Tips for freelancers who want to sell their articles
  • The editors’ pet peeves…don’t get caught making these mistakes
  • The one magazine that targets only the top CEOs
  • 10 success story from other Publicity Hounds or ideas, hooks and angles you can use.

    …..BONUS! Contact information for 49 in-flight magazines, updated October 2008

Emotional Intelligence for College Students

Posted on by October 27, 2008

A US News & World Report Survey has found that 90% of people are fired because of attitudinal or relationship problems. Only 10% of people lose their jobs because of lack of ability or skill. The #1 skill that young people need as they venture into the workforce is Emotional Intelligence. It can determine your success at work and at home.

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