December 2007 Welcome! Thank you for your patience as we 'revamped' our newsletter and changed service providers - I know it's been a little while since the KeyNotes Newsletter has been distributed. Thank you for sticking around. You'll notice some new changes to the format of the newsletter. Welcome, to all of our new subscribers,and to all of our new clients! Year 2007 brought 1st VA huge growth! Some quite unexpected. At one point we were even at our client maximum - we reevaluated, streamlined processes and procedures, put a project management tool into place (Basecamp), increased the hours of our team members - and here we are again - with everything running smoothly and we even openings for new clients. This month's article talks about what we did when we felt trapped by our rapid growth and success. Enjoy! ~ Donna P.S. Be sure to check out our 1st VA - Virtual Voice blog - we've had some recent fun posts! Have business growing pains? Here's what to do to cope! by Donna Toothaker When you start your business you have goals in place and you've probably outlined how you were going to reach them. One thing people often don't prepare for, however, is how they're going to handle the success when they've attained it, especially if they've attained it quickly! Business success can mean longer work hours and more stress but it doesn't have to. Here are some ideas to help take the load off your mind and your time - and still continue to grow your business. Rewrite your business plan. It's exciting to take a look at your original business plan and read all of the goals you've attained. I know, if you've reached those goals then chances are you barely have time to step back and review your original business plan however, it is important to make the time for several reasons. Reviewing your original business plan will help you determine where you really are. Take a few minutes to review your original goals. Maybe you set goals like "I want to earn $50,000 this year in net profits." Have you really attained that goal? If the answer is yes, then analyze your current income and make a new goal. Remember to make your goals specific, measurable and attainable. Here are a few questions to ask yourself when reviewing your business plan. · What are my original goals? · Have I attained these goals? · If yes, how did I achieve this success, and how can I repeat this success and apply it to future goals? · If no, how close am I to achieving your goals and what can I do to reach them? · What new goals can I set for my business and how do I plan on achieving them? · How have my increased profits affected my budget? · What are the best uses of my new income? For example, outsourcing, technology, joint ventures, education, and marketing? Outsource! Once your business reaches maximum capacity, because yes there are only 24 hours in a day and you probably don't want to spend all 24 of them doing business, it is time to consider spreading out the projects and tasks. Outsourcing is a sign of a growing business; it is an excellent way to focus your energies on tasks that you enjoy and tasks that are directly related to your bottom line. For example, answering email is often a time consuming process that can eat up as much as three hours per day. What would you do with that time if you had someone else answering your business email? There are many tasks to outsource including: · Online marketing tasks · Bookkeeping and invoicing · Scheduling · Email and voice mail management · Customer relations · Website maintenance · Editing and proofing The best way to evaluate what to outsource is to consider what your time is worth. If your time is worth $150/hour then tasks that will cost you less than $50 an hour to outsource are likely candidates. Consider outsourcing tasks that consume a significant amount of time, tasks you do not enjoy, or tasks that are complicated and will take you time to learn how to do. When you free up your time for tasks you enjoy and tasks that directly relate to your bottom line, the profits will follow. Raise your rates. This is a scary thought for many small business owners, however if your business has grown to the point where you simply cannot take on anymore, consider raising your rates. It doesn't have to be by much, just a little bit will make a huge difference. For example, in your service related business, just raising your fee by $5/hour can mean an extra $10,000 a year. Your clients anticipate your prices to go up occasionally and $5/hour isn't so significant that you'll lose clients. Enjoy the fruits of your labor! Taking the steps to go into business was quite possibly one of the
biggest decisions you've ever made, watching your business grow and prosper is
something to enjoy. Of course it can be
stressful, take a moment to congratulate yourself and enjoy the fruits of your
labor. You've accomplished something wonderful. Appreciate where you are, examine your
growth, and find ways to enjoy your business, divide the labor, and look to the
future. Congratulations on your success,
you've earned it! Resource of the Month  We highly recommend Basecamp to anyone who has multiple people working on a project. It is NOT just for VAs! Announcing! 1st VA Affiliate Program. Referrals are a steady source of new clients for us (and a huge compliment!) and we are grateful when someone raves about us. As such, we have implemented an Affiliate program to reward for these referrals. We are offering a 10% monthly commission for anyone whose referral contracts us for a retainer package - and for as long that referral remains a client. So... if your referral purchases a 10-hour retainer package ($450) - you earn $45 each month for as long as that client stays a client. No kidding! And...when that client increases hours - as they usually do - your commission increases, as well! Be sure to sign up here! You asked - we listened! We now offer a 5-hour retainer package. We've heard from clients and non-clients alike how a 5-hour retainer package would be ideal. Some folks really just need a VA for a few hours - others just want to give working with a VA a try. And this offers that opportunity! And we are pleased to now be able to offer this. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Until next month... Warmly, Donna Toothaker Quick Links....
email: donna@1stva.com
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