Many companies are contemplating their goals for the new year! I know I am! What innovative ways can I market my business effectively, cost efficiently, and generate the most sales. Let’s face it…businesses do not thrive without sales! I am doing the same, wondering what it is going to take in 2010 to increase my sales revenue. As well as maintain the clients we already have long-term!
My goal this upcoming year is to network and “brand” Behind the Scenes Solutions” as THE top Virtual Assistant Company in the region! Finding out what it takes to get there is a part of the process, and I am excited about that opportunity! I’ll fill you in on what I learn, as well as give you tips for your business along the way!
Let’s “Fall” into the New Year with set goals in mind, and if Behind the Scenes Solutions can help meet some of your financial goals, administrative goals, or even marketing goals, please do not hesitate to let us know. Innovation is what it will take to make it through, and Virtual Assistance is on the cutting edge of Innovation! We have/can save businesses up to 40% of your costs! That is money you could be investing elsewhere, saving, or managing as a profit instead of a loss!
Let us handle your details!
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Posted on 21 September '09 by admin, under Owners Blog. No Comments.
I have been contemplating hard what to blog on this month…often times, I just get writers block. Typically, before a vacation 
Which I am about to embark on. However, it just dawned on me this morning that my hope is that after this “recession” is over…it will be the small businesses, the one’s that have dignity, heart, purpose, and intense perserverence, will come out on top. I say this because of course, I want to be one of those, but also, to the small businesses, we help, to the one’s that are trying to stand out in today’s economy, with almost 10% unemployment now. And, “shoppers” have no money to spend because they are just barely getting by. So, I leave you with this blog…hoping that it will help you perservere through the tough times, the slow times, and the good times. Because ultimately, it was the Tortoise who one the race!
On the path to perserverence, here are a few tips that will help put your small business on top with very little investment.
1. Invest in a LOGO UPGRADE – Typically, you don’t need an entirely new logo, but taking your existing logo, have a professional graphic designer look at it, tweak it, and update it to the current decade. Many times businesses are afraid to do this because of either their emotional attachement or they are afraid of what customers might think. I think you will be surprised, that it will not only impress your existing customers, but draw in new customers as well!
2. Update a portion of your WEBSITE – maybe an entirely new website is out of the question, but what about investing in a NEW HEADER, FOOTER, or a piece of the home page that will stand out to customers who want new and updated information. This is a great way to “spice” things up and introduce new products, services, or things going on within your business/organization.
3. Make a list of goals for your business that you have for 2010 and hire a consultant to help you accomplish these goals. It is always a good idea to tap into other’s expertise. You never know what you might learn!
4. Plan to take your staff out for coffee, or wine. Or, buy each of them a gift certificate to their favorite coffee shop, grocery store, or Target. You will be surprised how much you can boost moral by just doing something friendly!
5. Keep the interest of your customers/clients by investing in a BLOG. Now, some blogs are free, but for a small fee, you can attach your URL with a blog, improve your SEO, and write about the subjects that interest you. You will be surprised that your client’s are interested in many of the same subjects, and the response you get in comments will be rewarding for you as well. If you decide that you are not a good writer, invest in a blogger that will work with you to put your ideas on “paper”.
6. Would you like to spend more time networking? But the amount of paperwork, bookkeeping, or general administrative tasks are bogging you down in time? Invest in an assistant. Better yet, invest in a Virtual Assistant to keep costs down, have zero benefits to pay or employee taxes to owe. A typical VA will cost you 30-40% less than a regular employee, and you can only use them for “real-time” hours – so you are only spending money on the hours they use. On average, most VA’s can do 10hrs. worth of work in half the time.
7. Plan to gather e-mails from all your customers/clients if you haven’t already, and invest in a custom E-Newsletter. A graphic designer can work with you to design a template that fits your business style for a minimal charge. Once you have a template have your hosting company or find a Mass Mailing program to work with you on uploading the template so that you are able to send a Newsletter out each month or bi-weekly to update customers/clients on things going on within your business.
8. Start a Twitter and Facebook campaign to help you connect with customers, clients, and a massive national network every day! This is a great way to establish long-term relationships, new relationships, and maintain existing relationships. Seem timing consuming? Hire a VA to handle the details for you! A Marketing Virtual Specialist, is a great way to get started in this area and who can develop a clear content calendar to help you get started.
9. Ask a friend, that you trust, to give you some new ideas that would help your business grow. Nothing is better than advice from someone who is not directly “invested” in the day to day runnings of your business.
10. Last, but certainly not least, keep reminding yourself, that just because things are slow, doesn’t mean you won’t win the race in the end. It is always the steady one, the one that perserveres through the long and rigerous lengths of distances, that come out on top and end up winning the race of true success.
If you are interested in attaining any of the services mentioned or are interested in getting in touch with me to find out how to accomplish some of these. I would encourage you to check out our website at www.behindthescenessolutions.com or e-mail me at: info@behindthescenessolutions.com
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Posted on 25 July '09 by admin, under Owners Blog. No Comments.
I have had several questions lately about whether Twitter is a waste of time for businesses or if it really helps “sell” businesses. Here is my opinion, and my opinion only. It is one of those opinions that you can take out of it what you will. I had an article from the BBC sent to me yesterday with a study regarding the Twitter movement and its ability to affect what you are doing. After reading it, I would say the emphasis is also on folks who are not maintaining it like they should. My thought here is this…Twitter is an animal that needs to be fed, maintained, kept up, watered, so that it grows. So, that it thrives. It is not something that can be ignored. Imagine the impact and the emotional ties you would have to your dog…if you left it outside all the time, never taking care of it, never feeding it…etc. It would become malnourshed, and pretty much a waste of time. Another article, a 56 page article was sent to me yesterda on how to be effective when doing Social Media Marketing Campaigns and why they work…I think this article, brings to light why Social Media Marketing works because it talks about how to maintain it, the appropriate ways to maintain it and not neglect it.
I am currently reading 4 books on the process of Social Media Marketing. It is a large animal to tackle. There are blogs, micro-blogs, networks, social networks, and even applications that drive this type of marketing. It is advertising…it can be free advertising. But, let me take us back to the “old days” when the concept of word of mouth advertising was said to be the best form of advertising. Do you remember that? Well…let me just say that it still is. Asking you this question…when you have built a relationship with someone, and you now respect them; you repect their decisions, the ideas they have etc. right? My guess, is that the minute they recommend a great place for you to go to, you try it out, and if you don’t try it out, you highly consider trying it out. The same concept rests in the idea of Social Media Marketing. It is word of mouth advertising that starts with a relationship! However, with Social Media Marketing you now have the ability to build relationships with millions of people! But, like all relationships, they MUST be maintained, they must be watered, fed, taken care of…and the minute they get neglected, is the same minute they become malnourished. And, just like the malnourished dog…do you think that dog is going to trust you if you are not taking care of it? Just a thought!
Tags: Blogging, Facebook, Marketing, Media, Social, Twitter
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Posted on 10 June '09 by admin, under Owners Blog. No Comments.
“Jamie is a highly organized, creative, detail-oriented person. I always know she will give me more than 100% with anything she does for me. I hired Jamie to set up a web site/blog for me and to help me market my business. Within a week, the Behind the Scenes Solutions’s team had a six-month plan developed for me. And this wasn’t just any plan. No, this was a highly innovative, outside-the-box kind of plan that is sure to skyrocket my business nationally. Jamie and her company are second to none and I highly recommend both to anyone looking for unique, cutting edge services!”
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Posted on 6 April '09 by admin, under Client Testimonies. No Comments.
Behind the Scenes Solutions was there for me when I had no clue how to begin
a blog for my company. Jamie is so knowledgeable and really helps you
understand how it all works. She is not only a whiz with the web, but is
also creative and has the ability to help you set yourself apart from the
others! Thanks Behind the Scenes!
Tags: blog, web
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Posted on 3 April '09 by admin, under Client Testimonies. No Comments.
Behind the Scenes Solutions is gaining a reputation for being a one stop resource for the needs of small businesses. Just recently, Deana Nail with Mission 12:11 contacted us to help her market a trip that her organization was planning on taking to China. She needed to get the word out and raise enough money to pay for plane tickets, a place to stay and food. With the help of Behind the Scenes Solutions, and their strategic E-marketing campaign, Deana and her team were able to raise over $3800!
Behind the Scenes Solutions tackled this E-marketing campaign with a customized E-Newsletter, a customized E-Letter blast before the E-newsletter, and a webpage dedicated to the information Deana and her team needed to provide.
Mission 12:11 is a growing organization committed to teaching and coaching all over the world! We are proud to be affliated with such an organization and humbled that we were able to help in their efforts to raise the money they needed to reach many in China!
To check out more information about Mission 12:11 please click here
To learn more about how Behind the Scenes can help you in your marketing strategies please click here
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Posted on 1 April '09 by admin, under Owners Blog. No Comments.
Behind the Scenes Solutions will be presenting its Virtual Talents at the National Association for Women Business Owners (NAWBO) luncheon on June 2nd! We are pleased to be a part of this opportunity and cannot wait to share our Virtual Team and their Virtual Talents of Graphic Design, Web Design, Web Maintenance, Bookkeeping, Event Planning, General Administration, Marketing, PR, Blog writing and management, and real estate services!
Behind the Scenes Solutions is committed to providing professional business solutions! We are pleased to share our innovative solutions to save businesses time and money!
We are currently staffed with professional individuals who are trained to be among the best at what they do with an average of over 8 years experience in their field. As well as having Masters Degrees in some areas.
You can check out more information about this event by visiting our facebook page by clicking on http://www.behindthescenessolutions.com and clicking our “Join us on Facebook” button!
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Posted on 22 March '09 by admin, under Owners Blog. No Comments.
We are making strides! 2009 is meant to bring Behind the Scenes Solutions to the top of the charts. In the last month we started a large marketing campaign, with a vision to bring in new business, get our name out in the local and nationwide market, and strive to be the very best in client care.
Our professional VA team has been hands down the best with their skills in accounting, bookkeeping, PR/Marketing, graphic design and other great general administrative fields.
Part of this project has been to bring on an incredible Marketing force now designed with four people in mind! We have also been privledged to serve several new clients.
Lesley Dumas, with Arbonne International. Lesley decided to start an 6 month marketing project with us to help promote her new business venture. Her blog is: www.theultimatepampering.com. We are pleased to be able to help her business become a success!
Nick Connolly with Gospel Community Church has decided to expand the church planting horizons by venturing out to out source all of his church planting needs, from the initial bookkeeping to the marketing portion of church planting! Behind the Scenes Solutions is virtually moving to Boston with Nick and the gang at Gospel Community Church. Check out their blog and their new journey at: www.gospelcommunity.com
We were able to serve the Village Church this year as well with graphic design and web design. Their new website launches the first of April. You can check their website out at www.villagechurchepc.org and its final version on April 1st.
There are a lot more ventures coming through the virtual lines at Behind the Scenes Solutions for 2009! We have an annual goal to meet this year for helping businesses become good stewards of the time and money and to help families become good stewards of their families. Please let us know how we can help you with the details!
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Posted on 17 March '09 by admin, under Owners Blog. No Comments.
Behind the Scenes Solutions had a terrific first year! But, the best part of the year comes when we are able to contribute to families in need of the small things that we often take for granted.
This Christmas, the staff at Behind the Scenes Solutions chipped in to adopt a child for Christmas this year through the New Leaf Foundation. This organization allows each child to experience Christmas in a way with providing needs and a few small toys to make the children smile.
We are proud of our team this year. We have accomplished a lot. Most of the Behind the Scenes team came on board November of 2008! and I am proud that we function as one team with many talents!
2008 brings wonderful memories for me, and I know 2009 will be properous year for us all!
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Posted on 20 January '09 by admin, under Owners Blog. No Comments.
2009 is said to be a turning point in the industry. I hope it is as I know first hand how difficult the market is at the moment. Watching my parents have a house on the market for over 2yrs. now is hard and devastating. But, as the market turns around, I challenge you to think of ways to make your life easier! Have you thought about the fact that a Virtual Assistant is a great tool to help you build your team to help you succeed?
For the most part you need accountants, attorneys, property managers etc. But, what if you had a virtual assistant help you with your marketing? Your closings? Even your initial meetings with clients to help better prepare and sell your services, ultimately increasing your presence with your clients!
A virtual assistant can take on as little or as few responsibilities as you would like, and Behind the Scenes Solutions can help you work within your budget, find out exactly what you need, so you are not spending money on something you don’t need, and ultimately help your business succeed. We specialize in Client Care, making you feel like you are our only client! We disappear as well when it comes to making your materials look like you did it, so that your clients feel like a star client as well! See how it works?
We have lots of services to offer in the area of real-estate, but hiring a Virtual Assistant may be your ticket to success allowing you more “free” time to find clients and tap into the market!
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Posted on 8 January '09 by admin, under Owners Blog. No Comments.
