Tag Archives: social media

Remote Work Can Be Done From Anywhere

Work Can Be Done Remotely From “Virtual”ly Anywhere

Tracy Helps You, like so many small businesses, has had a really hard year. Many of my personal assistant clients were, of course, put on hold during the shelter in place guidelines.

However, I got a couple of new clients that I have been shopping for. They were referrals from clients that I used to take shopping / running errands and now currently shop for.

When so many people started using shopping services, they felt comfortable letting me shop for them because they trusted me. Being able to trust the people you are working with is so very important. They were also glad they didn’t need to download any new apps. They didn’t need to learn new software just to be able to get groceries in the house. Luckily, I love to shop for groceries, and I seem to be pretty good at picking out the best produce 😊.

This past year, we have also learned that so much work can now be done remotely (virtually). Thanks to online meeting platforms like Zoom and WebEx, and various social media platforms, many businesses can still operate. I have kept fairly busy moderating FaceBook Live Events and some Zoom calls.

Mostly I have learned that small business owners really appreciate having someone (me) they can trust to hand over some of the responsibility of posting to their social media accounts consistently. In the past, I’ve shied away from offering “Social Media Manager” type services (even though I have taken SMM training courses), because I did not want my clients to rely solely on my post suggestions as a way to increase business.

After talking to a few small business owners, I now realize that it is really important to make sure they understand the purpose of social media for businesses. Its name holds a big clue, it is to be “social”. It is a way for potential clients to get to “know” you and your business virtually.  It is a tool to help build your online presence and reputation. The business should post content that could be helpful to their potential clients. Quotes and “pick your brain” types of general info about their industry is a good way to build trust as a leader in the industry. Also, sharing the occasional personal / keeping it real type of post helps potential clients bond with you.

That being said, all a business can hope for from (free – not paying for ads) social media is to get their name / brand in front of the eyes (and top of mind) of your potential clients. I advise them that by making consistent posts that give value, your potential clients may think contacting your business when they are in need of your product or service. Social media has the potential to bring in new business, but that is not its purpose. My clients understand that I am merely taking the task of social media posting off their to-do list. They appreciate the time I am saving them – time they can then use for building their business.

To that end, I have created a basic social media posting package based on how frequently the client wants me to post their content for them. It is a basic package that we can then customize to meet their particular needs.

Call me to talk about the various ways I could save you valuable time!

Tracy Helps You would love to “help” you!

 

Y2K - A Lot Can Change in 20 Years

Y2K til Now – A Lot Can Change in 20 Years

It’s December 31, 2019 … the last day of this decade, my last blog post of this decade. Do you remember what you were doing on December 31, 1999? Do you remember the Y2K bug? Did you heed all the warnings?

In hindsight, we know that not only did all the computers continue to work, but they, and technology in general, have thrived. So many things that we take for granted today were not around (to the general public) twenty years ago. Continue reading →

Social Media

Do You Need a Social Media Manager?

Do You Need a Social Media Manager?

If you are a small business owner,the answer is most likely …YES!!!

Let me present some reasons why …

People start their own business for a variety of reasons. They want to follow their dreams. They want to work in a field they are passionate about. They want to make a difference in the world. For many (me included), they want to be in charge of their own schedule … not be told what/when/where or how to do their work. They want to be charge of their own time, and since they will be the “Boss”, they would hopefully have more “free time”.   Free time … what is that?

As a busy entrepreneur, you wear numerous “hats” on any given day. You are the head of the Marketing Department, the Accounting Department, HR, Sales … you get the drift, you are the one in charge of everything. Every business decision lands on your shoulders.

What they didn’t realize is how time consuming the “running” of the business would be. They want to spend their time doing the work they love. Sadly, many get bogged down by having to handle the administrative side of running a business.

That is where having a virtual assistant comes into play. Having a VA handle certain tasks frees up your time to concentrate on doing the things your love about running your business. Tasks that you are the best person to handle … things that grow your business and make money. One of the best business decisions you can make is to delegate / outsource certain tasks to a virtual assistant.

Well-informed small business owners know the importance of having an online presence in today’s high-tech, 24/7 world. Social Media Marketing is necessary for all types of business, large and small. The difference is the large corporations have a Marketing Department. The small business – not so much. Unfortunately for the small business owner, social media management is one of those (very) time consuming tasks. On the up side, social media management is a task that many small business owners delegate to their VA. Your VA will work with you to put together a workable strategy and schedule for posting on your various social media platforms. You will decide what content will be posted to each platform, as well as, the timing and the frequency. After you and your virtual assistant have come up with the best social media strategy for your business, you can then hand that task off to your VA, knowing your SMM is in good and capable hands.

Delegating the task of social media management (or a multitude of other tasks) to a trusted VA will free up some time that you can then use to tackle the other tasks on your to-do list ?

           Remember, “help” is just a phone call (or text, or email) away ?

 

Save Time ~ Delegate Social Media

Save Valuable Time ~ Delegate Social Media to Your Virtual Assistant

Owning your own small business is very rewarding … and, at the same time, quite exhausting! There is never enough time in the day. It is very time consuming to create relevant content for your audience and/or find inspiring quotes and tips to share. Hiring a virtual assistant to handle posting to your social media platforms is the answer to having enough time to manage all the other aspects of running your business.

Of course, you may be thinking that the VA may post something you wouldn’t like and/or you wouldn’t have posted. You may be thinking the VA wouldn’t convey your company’s “voice”. As a virtual assistant, I spend time learning my client’s personality and company “voice” via scheduled phone or Skype calls. My clients provide me with content ideas and relevant articles to use as reference for creating industry related posts.

You may be thinking it will be expensive to delegate your social media tasks. It is money well spent when you consider the time you will be saving (time that can now be devoted to growing and building your business) by taking this task off your plate every day (and you should be posting consistently/daily). It will give you peace of mind knowing that your social media posting is being taken care of by a trained professional. Tracy Helps You offers Social Media Packages that provide a certain number of posts per month, as well as, managing engagement (likes, shares, comments & messages) with your followers on your behalf. Think of it as you would any other necessary expense for running your business.

You may be wary of completely outsourcing your social media postings. The good news is that we can work together in creating and implementing your social media strategy. Tracy Helps You can create and schedule the bulk of the posts and you can add some personal content type posts. You can also respond to comments and messages. Another great idea is to post Live Streaming video. This gives your online presence a face and a voice for your followers to connect with. Interacting and building relationships is the main reason to use social media as a business tool … it’s social 🙂

Save some valuable time by delegating your social media posting to Tracy Helps You … help is just a phone call away! Call now!

Back to School at COD

Tracy Helps You is Going Back to School

It is mid August, summer is winding down … and that means it’s Back to School time 🙂

The stores are full of school supplies and backpacks/book bags. BTW, Tracy Helps You would be happy to do your Back-to-School shopping for you 🙂

Going back to school is not just for the young … more and more, adults are taking classes too. Some are finishing a degree they starting working on … some are changing careers … some are updating their skills with continuing education.

I will soon be joining the ranks of mature (part-time) students 🙂 I have an appointment scheduled with an adviser at a local college to discuss classes I should take to offer services as a Virtual Assistant. I’m also looking into training programs offered as online courses, tutorials, and webinars.

In the future, I plan to offer some Virtual Assistant services such as, Social Media Management, Online Research, Customer Service, and Email Management. These will be in addition to the Clerical / Business services that I currently offer.

Of course, this is all in the planning stages right now, but it is my hope that I will soon be able to offer some VA services 🙂

What type of services would be helpful to you ?

thankful for social media

Tracy Helps You’s Thankful Thoughts for Today ~ 11/25/14

November 25, 2014 ~ Today I am thankful for social media. Yesterday, I shared my blog post on facebook and twitter. I had blogged about feeling miserable because of cold and sinus issues. I’m feeling better and when I logged on today, I was so touched to see lots of comments saying they hoped I felt better soon. It’s nice to know that people care about you … real live friends and those you only know virtually. Birthdays are fun on facebook too … just sayin’ 🙂

That being said, social media can have a down side too. I hope I’m not alone in this when I say that facebook (and the others) can be real time stealers. Many times, I’ll think to myself, I’ll just check facebook or Pinterest really quick and before you know it, an hour or more will have passed.

I love social media – being able to keep in touch with old friends and making new ones 🙂 However, I’m trying to discipline myself by allowing myself  “X”  amount of time to browse. I actually set a timer … now if I could only sign off when the timer dings … just kidding, I do most of the time 😉

♥ Today I am thankful for social media ♥