Archive for the ‘business advice’ Category

WWLD: Become an Apprentice

Tuesday, September 9th, 2008

Good morning!

Today’s edition of What Would Lori Do? has your name written all over it if you’re thinking of launching your own Virtual Assistant business. If you’ve been doing your research, you know just how tough living and breathing the “virtual lifestyle” is, and more important how dramatically different it is from working in Corporate Cubicle Monkey Land.

If you really want your own VA business, you need to stuff that gorgeous brain of yours with best practices, virtual tools of the trade, and lots of hardcore and time-tested information. You need to buddy up with someone who’s going through what you’re going through, plus you need to get advice, support and mentoring from a very successful Virtual Assistant. You need to learn how to market yourself and your business, as well as acquire those skills which business owners need to outsource.

What Would Lori Do? Well, I’ll tell ya! I would consider becoming an apprentice to another Virtual Assistant who’s been in business for a significant amount of time. I would investigate DavisVA.com’s Virtual Assistant Apprentice program and see if it’s a good fit for me, my style and my budget. I would set my plans in motion and not wait for tomorrow …

Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda? I don’t think so, campers. When you want something, you don’t put off until next Friday, next month, or the new year. You start right here and right now, and move forward. You investigate my Virtual Assistant Mastermind offerings, and determine if what I bring to the table matches up with what you need. You contact me for a VA consultation and discuss my apprentice program. You don’t sit around, pick the lint out of your belly button, and wait for things to fall in your lap. Carpe VA, my Killer Sharks, Carpe VA!

What Would Lori Do? I’d shake a tail-feather and call one of the most successful Virtual Assistants in business today, and let her know I want what she’s got. 866.611.LORI.

Be vewwy vewwy quiet … I’m hunting Guppies.

Monday, September 8th, 2008

Good morning!

Who can ever forget Elmer Fudd’s quest for wabbits? I sure can’t! Elmer and Bugs Bunny trading tit for tat as the hunter of all hunters tries to find his prey which is directly in his sights.

Today, I’m hunting for all my Guppies who are ready to jump out of that confining fishbowl and into the deep end of the business pool. Just like a gerbil gets nowhere fast as he runs on that spinning wheel, you’re exhibiting the same bit of nonsense as you swim around and around … and around … that 10″ diameter fishbowl.

Success comes when you build a team of professionals who have your very best interests at heart. You’ve got the legal and accounting houses of your business in order, and you’ve brought on an amazing PR person. The website and blog are up and running and fully-branded. What, do tell, are you missing? (Wait for it ….) That’s right … you’re missing the administrative support member of your team. No matter the business model — university professor, attorney, bookkeeper, coach, web developer, internet marketer, [fill in the blank with your business model] — that business model has some level of “paper-pushing” which must be accomplished each day in order to keep the business in business. Indeed, when YOU’RE handling all the paper-pushing aspects of your business, you’re doing yourself a great disservice because you’re not focusing on your money making activities.

You folks know me well enough by now to know I look at business owners in one of two ways: Guppies or Sharks. It’s the former I’m targeting today, and I’m comin’ to get you! I want you to understand your lack of action regarding administrative team building is bringing you down even lower than a Guppy on the business food chain. You’re losing money (and doing so daily), you’re not creating new info products, and you’re not giving prospects (and dare I say your clients!) the face and phone time they desperately need and deserve. You’re returning the phone calls and booking the appointments and managing your calendar and posting your articles and updating your blog and [fill in the blank with other administrative stuff you shouldn't be doing]. Your Sharky competition, on the other fin, has outsourced her administrative back office, plus she’s got her 2009 marketing activities all set and ready to go. Sharks got game, Sharks have a team, and Sharks are getting the very best of you. It’s time to change that, right here and right now.

I want you to begin to graduate from the fishbowl-dwelling Guppy to the Killer Shark that lives deep inside you. You can do this, and the good, sassy and geeky folks at Davis Virtual Assistants will be with you with every stroke of your fins. Look, I know outsourcing seems a bit scary and possibly outside your budget. The truth is it’s not scary when you partner with a professional and well-known Virtual Assistant company. Your budget? That’s the easy part and I’ll show you how to devise and stick to yours!

Today (not next Tuesday and not next month) is your day to break free from the Guppy pack and launch your outsourcing activities. I’ll hold your fins and together we’ll jump into the big business owners end of the pool. Contact the Virtual Assistant, right now, and I’ll show you the power and wonder of outsourcing!

DavisVA.com hosts 3 Webinars in August

Friday, August 1st, 2008

Good morning, campers!

August is generally a slow time of the year, what with the President relaxing at the Western White House and Congress away for its recess. Instead of staring at your belly button lint and wondering what to do during this month, check out the must-attend Webinars DavisVA.com will be hosting:

Learn How to Become a Virtual Assistant

Thinking about doing what I do for a living but don’t know how to start the process? DavisVA.com’s Ask the Virtual Assistant Webinar has your name written all over it. The next Webinar is scheduled for Wednesday, August 20, 2008, so secure your spot today! Sixty-minutes of an information packed and fun Webinar where I’ll dispense up-to-date information on the Virtual Assistance field, how I got started and the one thing you should never do when you partner with a new client. At the end of my presentation, I’ll open the floor for a Q&A session, so hit me with your best shot! Attendees receive an MP3 recording of the call, all notes in PDF format, and the chance to win a complimentary coaching call with me, Lori Davis, Virtual Assistant Coach.

Register now for the Ask the VA Webinar.


Join a Virtual Assistant Team

You know me, you love me, and you wanna ride on my coattails. Bring it on, my fellow Virtual Assistants! Join me on Tuesday, August 12, 2008, for DavisVA.com’s Associates Webinar. All the information you need about joining my team, including my highly-competitive payout structure, and your questions and thoughts to round out the Webinar. If you need to get your feet wet prior to launching your own VA practice, this is the place to be.

A favor? Google “Virtual Assistant” and tell me what you see. Who’s on page 1 and the first Virtual Assistant Company that’s actually in business? Exactly. Now do you understand the level of inquiries I’m receiving on a daily basis regarding Virtual Assistant services? Good … ;-)

Are you still here? Silly goose you are! Scamper on over to DavisVA.com and grab your spot for the VA Team Webinar.


HTML Training

Sometimes you folks make me feel like a broken record! I’ve said it a thousand times and I’ll say it once more: All Virtual Assistants must know HTML Basics. I’m taking your clients because you haven’t acquired this most basic of skills, and I’ll continue to do so until you get with the program. HTML is super easy to learn and it’s a skill you can sell to your clients. They need you to code their articles and blogs posts, along with their Backpage and Craig’s List ads. Knowing the basics of HTML can earn you hundreds or thousands of dollars during the course of your career, but only after you add this bit of knowledge to your brain.

DavisVA.com’s HTML Training is coming up on Thursday, August 21, 2008, and it’s 2-hours of fun with you, me and other students who are also petrified about learning to code. Let go of those fears, take my hand and I’ll show you way!

Register now for DavisVA.com’s Online HTML Training.



Learn how to become a Virtual Assistant

Tuesday, July 29th, 2008

A fine good morning to you, my Killer Sharks, and fins up to my Guppies who’ve finally decided to pull the trigger and “go virtual.” Keep on doing what you do, stay focused, and kick some ass today!

So, I hear you want to become a Virtual Assistant. That’s exciting stuff, my friend! Before you pop the cork on that expensive bottle of champagne, stop and think about how you’re going to launch your new business. Do you know any other Virtual Assistants, or are you being coached or mentored by a successful VA? Do you know about the latest systems clients need, are you up to speed on article marketing and shopping carts, and do you have your web presence live? Do you know how you’re going to market your business, and have you planned out your services and your Rate Sheet? No on all counts, huh? Silly goose you are …

Let’s take this one step beyond: You’re not a silly goose for not having the things I listed above in place, you’re a Dork! That’s right and you read that correctly … You are a Dork. We’re cool though, because your Dorkdom can be flipped like a hot pancake, and you can come around to the correct way of thinking and working.

Living, breathing and eating the “virtual lifestyle” is one of the toughest things you’ll ever attempt. Doing what I do for a living is nothing like working in Corporate Cubicle Monkey Land, and you’ve got to be prepped to the gills to take on this challenge. It ain’t easy being a Virtual Assistant, and you need to approach this next adventure in your life, and the life of your family, with eyes wide open.

I invite you to spend 60-minutes with me next month, on Wednesday, August 20, 2008, for DavisVA’s next Ask the Virtual Assistant Webinar. One hour jam-packed with news you can use, hardcore information you must know about the Virtual Assistance field and of course, your most pressing questions. Nothing is off limits during our discussion, and you’re calling the shots during the Q&A session. We’ll discuss marketing, VA “certifications,” your web presence, filling your pipeline with prospects, and so much more. My goal is to stuff that gorgeous brain of yours with up-to-date and relevant information, and for you to begin steering your own course to success. If you want what I’ve got, I’m willing to give you a leg up and show you how I’ve become a hyper-successful Virtual Assistant.

Need to learn how to become a Virtual Assistant? You’ve come to the right place! Register now for the next Ask the VA Webinar, hosted and sponsored by DavisVA.com. Call me at 866.611.LORI if you’ve got any questions prior to registration.

Here’s to your success!