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Happy New Year!

It's hard to believe it's already the third week of January! Wow. How are you progressing on your goals for 2007?

Our Massachusetts weather has been unseasonably warm, without one inch of snowfall. We had an ice storm thrown in there, but until this week it sure hasn't felt much like winter.

The first part of January brought a challenge to which I couldn't refuse. I have accepted a blogging challenge. I committed to making 30 posts in 30 days! It's been fun. Check it out at www.1stVA.com/blog. And I challenge you to join me! What do you say?

One of the questions I get asked most by my clients and in my consultations is, "which newsletter service should I go with?". There are so many options, with vast differences, it makes it quite challenging to wade through all of the information to make the right decision. In this month's article I discuss some things to consider as you decide and offer some thoughts on services I use for my own clients.

As many business owners understand, creating a business email newsletter (ezine) to capture their website visitors’ information and stay in touch with their target market is an absolute must today. But with so many options out there, it’s difficult to know which one is right for your business. There are 3 keys to consider as you start your search for the perfect newsletter service.

1. How tech savvy are you? Do you know html? Are you comfortable using most online programs? Some services offer template designs that you can customize simply, with your colors and branding. Constant Contact has a substantial selection of templates which are very easy to customize. Aweber has templates as well. However, the selection isn’t as broad, they aren’t as easy to manipulate, and the service itself isn’t as user-friendly. Take into account how much time you want to spend on the learning curve or whether you would, ideally, prefer the most user-friendly service. If you're happy sending a plain text newsletter, consider ones that have a text only option.

2. Will you need other services such as a shopping cart and/or autoresponders? Some newsletter services are just that – simply a newsletter service. Constant Contact is one of these. They are solely an ezine service. Aweber has autoresponder capabilities but not a shopping cart. Others, such as 1 Shopping Cart offer all three services. However, creating an html newsletter through 1Shopping cart requires vast html knowledge; there are no templates available. There's nothing that says you can't use a different service for your ezine than for your shopping cart. However, I personally find it is sometimes easiest to have your subscribers and customers in one place.

3. How important is pricing and customer service? Several services have a free-trial, and some are even free to use until you reach a certain number of subscribers. Typically, fees can range from $15 per month to over $50 per month, depending on other services you might require, and the number of subscribers you have.

If having quality customer support is important, be sure to investigate that aspect of the company. In my experiences, Aweber has fantastic customer support, as does Constant Contact. Others - not so much.

Do your research. Ask what your colleagues are using. Note which newsletters you like that you receive yourself, and check out that company’s service. Other services worth mentioning here are EZEzine, Intellicontact and Ezine Director.

Donna Toothaker is an expert Virtual Assistant and founder of www.1stVA.com. Donna specializes in providing marketing and administrative support and services to Professional Speakers and Life and Business Coaches. To discover how 1st VA can help your business – visit http://www.1stva.com .

I was on the Send Out Cards proverbial 'fence' for quite a while. For a long time I thought it was just a smidge higher on the greeting card plane than eCards. As a former employee of good old Hallmark - it was difficult for me to understand how anyone could send a card that they haven't 'really' signed and haven't really mailed themselves.

Then I began to get them in the mail. I thought, hey, they aren't so bad. I never was offended that someone didn't physically mail me the greeting card themselves, but instead thought, wow, I'm honored they thought of me.

Then clients began to ask me to manage their Send Out Cards accounts and campaigns. Sure, why not? I've learned of all the functionality, ease of the site, fantastic quality of the cards, and the great customer service Send Out Cards has.

Guess what? I'm now a Send Out Cards customer. I anticipate becoming a distributor at some point in time. But for now, I'm sending cards to folks I might not have sent anything to. What's worse - sending a Send Out Cards card, or sending nothing at all?

Want to see how for yourself how great the quality is? I would love to send you a card. Contact me and let me know!

Business Building Article of the Month
Resolving to be More Organized in 2007?
by Christine Rice

Whether they proclaim it formally or not, people often make “becoming better organized”, one of their New Year’s resolutions. But the truth is, it is such a broad goal that many people often consider themselves failures at this lofty idea by the time the end of the year rolls around. If this is something you’ve found typical, instead of stating simply that you want to be more organized, consider these points when setting your goal this year: