I am honored to announce that I was featured as Colorado VA of the Month for June 2008.  To read the feature click and open the pdf file.  You may also visit the Colorado VAs Web site.

Wow!  It's amazing how time flies.  I have been busy developing my relationship with another major client.  It has been very exciting.  Virtual Harvest is approaching two years in business.

I have expanded and now offer services that involve:

• Microsoft Access data entry
• Microsoft Publisher document development
• FrontPage Web site content development
• Outbound calling

Please contact me if your project needs include these programs.  Upon request, I can also send you an information packet that includes my resume.  For more details on my other services and how I may be able to assist you, please see my article on:  "Why Hire a Virtual Assistant versus an In-House Secretary?" 

I am also building a team that can assist me in these services as needed.  Please remember that I am connected to organizations that offer an even wider range of specializations.  I would be happy to extend or find referrals for you.    

Plus... I am excited to announce that I have open and flexible business hours both day and evenings out of the Eastern Time Zone.

 

As technology advances, so do our expectations for our computer performance.  The average life a computer is only three to four years.  What can we do to maximize the speed of our computer as it ages with the speed of these advances?  The following is a troubleshooting checklist:

¨ Run disk cleanup and defragment the drive.  The disk defragmenter is located on PC's under the Control Panel.  Click on Administrative Tools then Computer Management.  The disk defragmenter is under the Storage option.  Disk cleanup can be added as a Scheduled Task.  Scheduled Tasks are located also under the Control Panel.

¨ Run a full anti-virus and anti-spyware scan.  The computer picks up changing types of viruses through the Internet.  It is vital to the computer's performance to maintain an updated anti-virus and anti-spyware scan software on the computer that serves as it's immune system.  Just like human viruses, computer viruses mutate and change to penetrate computer systems.  These viruses can cause a range of damages from simply clogging up the computer to causing a complete crash of the computer's hard drive.  For this reason, it is encouraged to backup the computer frequently for easy restoration and to minimize the loss of data.

¨ Delete old network connections.  To find out if the computer is attempting to connect to shared hard drives that may no longer exist, go to the Windows Explorer.  Click and delete on any network shares that are no longer actively used.  Also check under System Tools under Accessories in the Start menu by clicking on "Disconnect Network Drive."  This will certainly not apply if the computer has never been connected to a shared network.

¨ Stop auto-starting programs.  New computers or newly loaded programs may attempt to start up when the computer starts up.  Adobe Reader is notorious for starting up when the computer starts.  To stop these auto-start programs, click on the Start menu then Run and type "msconfig" at the prompt.  Click on the Startup tab and turn off any unnecessary programs that show will load when the PC starts.  It is important to be careful not to disable Windows system components.

¨ Reinstall Windows.  It is sometimes helpful to refresh the computer by starting over.  Be sure to backup the computer prior to starting the process of reinstallation.  It is time consuming, but easy with the recovery software that should have come with the computer.  This process can help remove unnecessary and hard to find files that are taking up room.

¨ Remove temporary Internet files.  Go to Internet Options either under the Tools button on your Internet tool bar or under the Control Panel.  Select "Delete Browsing History" and determine what can be removed.  This action will help optimize the speed of the Internet.

¨ Upgrade with additional RAM and/or a larger hard drive.  If all else fails as the computer ages, it may be necessary to load more memory and a larger hard drive onto your computer as the size of files increases.  This is a costly solution, but perhaps not as costly as a new computer.

It is helpful to schedule these maintenance tasks frequently to optimize the computer's life and performance.  Have you found other tasks helpful?

Just a Couple Other Recent and Related Articles:

~ Help for a Slow PC by Christopher Null
~ Why is My Computer Running So Slow? by AskNerd.net

Virtual Harvest is celebrating it's first year in business!

The past year has been a wonderful learning experience setting up and getting Virtual Harvest started as a virtual assistant business. As the business owner, it's been a great experience so far and I am only looking forward to growing more with Virtual Harvest. I am restructuring temporarily and only accepting short term job opportunities.

Please feel free to contact me and check my availability. If I am unable to help you, I can refer you to someone that can meet your needs. ...<< MORE >>

As small business owners and independent professionals, sometimes we get so focused on meeting the needs of our clients that our business marketing and networking needs fall to the back burner.  It is very difficult to figure out the right formula of time between the needs of clients and business development.  With an online business, it is important to stay consistent with blog entries and networking with others online.  I am learning just how easier said than done that is! 

I continue to build my online networking avenues.  It can be overwhelming to learn them all and stay active in them all.  It is taking some time to figure out which ones are the most effective and worth my time.  You can explore them with me and see which ones may help your business the best. 

The first few are very similiar in their setup and what they have to offer.  They offer free classifieds along with a networking community.  You can set up a profile and chat in online forums.  You may get bombarded with emails to connect with others in the community.  You also have to be careful as some may want to sell you their product or service, but that is why is it called networking.

• AdlandPro
• DirectMATCHES - the Business Space version of My Space.
• BizPreneur

Other networking sites:

• LinkedIn - free site to set up a profile and search for contacts.
• Elance - create a courtesy service provider profile or upgrade your membership to bid on services and other benefits for varying fees.
• HotGigs - create a profile and post your resume or upgrade your membership for greater visibility.
• WhyDoWork - a work at home forum site.
• Virtual Assistant Networking Association (VANA) - this is a wonderful place to dialogue in forums with other VAs and find a VA in their directory.

Online classifieds:

• USFreeads
• Classified Ads
• AdPost
• Craigslist - one of the most popular.

This is by no means a comprehensive list of sites.  You can also search and apply for jobs through the common job search sites like Monster Jobs.  You can do a search for more through the various search engines like Google.  You may also learn more in your networking with others.

Hiring a Virtual Assistant (VA) versus an In-House Secretary can be beneficial to you in many ways.  If you are a small business owner, independent professional, or entrepreneur, it makes perfect sense.  I have already wrote an article on "Why Hire a Virtual Assistant over a Temporary?" for your short-term, office overflow, and other occasional projects. 

The following are my list of benefits you can have to hiring me as your VA:

• You'll Save Time - You can focus on the core of your business while I can help you with the more routine tasks.
• You'll Save Money - No need to worry about paying associated payroll taxes and benefits.  Please open my Cost Comparison Spreadsheet for more details.
• You'll Save Space -  I work from a fully equipped home-based office.
• You'll Have Access - You can travel with your business anywhere and work with me using the latest telecommunications technology.  My services are available across the nation and internationally.
• You'll Get Reliability - I will work hard to meet your needs efficiently, accurately, and professionally.  If there is a task that I am not familiar with, I will either work to learn it or use my networks to find someone that can.
• You'll Get Availability - I have extended business hours for evenings and weekends for your convenience (Mountain Time Zone).  This is a benefit to you as most VAs may only offer their services to you during regular business hours.
• You'll Get Partnership - While I consider myself to be a small business owner and independent professional, I will partner with you in your business to produce a quality product.  We can work together to harvest our businesses virtually!
• You'll Get Reasonable Rates - The first 30 minutes of consultations are always free.  You will not be charged for my time off task and personal breaks.  The supplies required to complete your project will be billed and subject to a ten percent mark up.  All work is guaranteed and you will not be charged for time needed to correct production errors.

Now... you may ask... how can I function as a Secretary for you as a VA?  A VA is not always a perfect fit.  It does depend on your needs.  For example, if you need help with physical filing, greeting, and answering phones, an In-House Secretary or Receptionist may be more appropriate.  At the same time, the following can be done easily from my home-based office:

• Word Processing - type and format notes; format drafted reports and documents.
• Data Processing - enter business card information into database; track customer due dates and mail correspondence; Excel spreadsheet development, diagram, and chart production; data entry to online databases; survey or questionnaire distribution, collection, and reporting; statistical or pricing comparisons.
• Training Preparation - PowerPoint presentation development.
• Mail Distribution - snail and email sorting, domestic mailing for international companies, bulk mailing.
• Internet - company promotion by submitting written articles to electronic newsletters, ezines, and blogs; blog maintenance; online sales (i.e., EBay, Craigslist, etc.).
• Personnel Management - review, rank, and resume reporting; employee file maintenance.
• General Administration - calendar maintenance and synchronization (task reminders, due dates, birthdays, anniversaries, appointments, etc.); order office supplies; document scanning; assist with office overflow.
• Travel Arrangements - coordinate air travel, car rental, and hotel reservations; obtain and verify directions to destinations.

I can use eFax.com for faxing, SharePoint for sharing and transferring files, and other services as needed.  Please contact me for an information packet that includes a brochure, menu of services, cost comparison spreadsheet, sample work-for-hire agreement, and my resume.

In Part 2 of this series, I mentioned free services related specifically to blogging.  There are numerous other services available for free to low cost out there that are utilized by not just virtual assistants - but everyone in the business world.  I am not very experienced on most of these services, nor am I endorsing all of them.  The following are just the results of my research.  Please feel free to provide feedback in my comments section on your experiences and any other services you are aware of.

Conference Calls:  Free Conference utilizes long distance phone numbers.  1-800 numbers are available for a fee.  You may also buy recordings of the conference call for additional fees.

Press Releases:  MediaSyndicate, PRWeb  PRWeb provides you with the opportunity to make donations.  The more money, the better and more widespread the release.

Copyright:  Copyscape allows you to obtain copyright information on your Webpage, etc.

E-Newsletter:  Constant Contact is an email marketing solution that is free for up to 50 email addresses.  The fees increase to increase your email list.

Web sites:  GoDaddy.com  As you can see, GoDaddy.com is hosting my Web site for free.  I just have to put up with the banner at the top, which is perfectly reasonable for a start-up business.  It cost me less than $10.00 to register my domain for a year.  They provided template options for me to set up no more than 5 pages.  I got an email account that I can access online, plus this blog account.  I can purchase additional features for additional fees as I want and as I am ready.

Long Distance Calls:  Skype is a voice over the Internet service and is free to download.  A full year of unlimited calls in the US and Canada is $14.95.

Faxing:  eFax is an online faxing service.  They offer a package for free, but the best value for a functional home-based business looks to be the package starting at $16.95 that includes sending faxes by email, a local or toll free number, 1 year of online fax storage, 130 free incoming fax pages per month, and wireless access. 

SharePoint:  SharePoint is an online file sharing and intranet system.  My fellow Colorado VAs highly recommend the program.  Andrea Kalli is considered an expert and trainer for SharePoint.  For $19.99/month you can get 1 GB web space, 50 user accounts, 50 e-mail accounts, and secure online access from any location.  I pulled all my files for the UofVA course utilizing SharePoint.

Timekeeping:  TraxTime is for independent professionals, contractors, entrepreneuers, etc. to track their time on projects for their clients available for $39.00.

Remote Access:  LogMeIn is a secure source that allows others to remote into your computer for support.  I have heard of VAs using this to print reports directly from their client's PC to their client's printer.  There are different pricing packages depending on your needs.  You can try the basic remote access package for free for 30 days.  Then it's $19.75/month or $199.00/year for 5 PCs.

PLEASE NOTE:  All prices mentioned above are subject to change with their developers.  These are the listed prices at the time of posting the article.

Just a Few Other Recent and Related Articles:

~ "Why does anyone pay for a conference call?" by Jack Spirko with ComTech News
~ "Five Neat, Free Software Programs" by Douglas Hanna

Blogging is becoming more and more popular at explosive rates - both in business and personal worlds.  Churches and missionaries also use blogs to post reports and updates.  It is a medium that is crossing generations.  MySpace is one of the most famous and controversial sites.  It is a way of staying in touch for everyone.  There are a number of good benefits to blogging in the business realm. 

1.  Connecting with clients and customers.  Blogging provides a place to post updated information on products and current events.  It is a modern and electronic newsletter.
2.  Public relations and marketing.  Blogging is a way to provide samples of work and products.  It is an excellent area to express your expertise on topics related to your business.  It can serve as a great place to post frequently asked questions.
3.  Increasing search engine optimization (SEO) and rankings.  Search engines like Google and Yahoo gather and rank their information on sites that have current content posted.  The search engines crawl your links and URLs connecting you literally to the world in the World Wide Web.  There are a number of services that offer to "ping" the search engines to announce your update.  A couple of free services include:  Ping-o-Matic! and Pingoat.  You can fill in your blog information, check off the search engines you would like to be pinged, and bookmark the page for easy updating later as it will save your information.  For additional tips, you may also find it helpful to read my previous entry on Submitting to Search Engines.  If you do not find satisfying results, there are a number of other services you can conduct an internet search for that require varying fees to help with your SEO and rankings.
4.  Creating discussions.  It is a forum for venting and allowing feedback.  It is a place to present your thoughts on subject matters related to your business.
5.  It is informal.  Blogging is a casual communication tool that typically is "short and sweet."  While it is informal, it should be concisely written and formatted.
6.  It is FREE.  There are a number of places to start a blog and connect it to your business Website.  One is to consult your hosting and web developing company.  Another is to set it up through a number of free blog services online and link it to your Website.  A couple of examples of free blog services include:  WordPress and Blogger.  They offer templates that make it easy to set up and develop content.
7.  Networking online.  Visiting other blogs is a great networking avenue.  Politely posting comments on other blogs introduces yourself and your business to others.  Asking permission to link to their articles on your blog promotes both them and you.  It is a win-win networking solution.
8.  Source of Revenue.  Many use blogs as a place to post ads through sources like Google AdSense and make extra money.  Your blog site definitely needs to have the traffic for this to be profitable.

A well developed blog requires time and maintenance to be an effective tool.  Writing the content and articles may require research and may seem like writing a paper for school, but the benefits make it well worth the effort.  A great way to stay on top of topics that are of interest to you and your business is to set up Google Alerts.  A couple of other links to articles are:  Article City and Ezine Articles. 

If you need help starting or maintaining your blog, please let me know.  Blog maintenance is one of the virtual assistant services I offer.

Just a Few Other Recent and Related Articles:

~ How to use Blogs in the Workplace by Rod Boothby with innovation Creators
~ SEO Benefits from Blogs by Steve Terjeson with Ironvine Search Marketing
~ SEO Benefits from Blogs by Lee Odden with Top Rank Online Marketing
~ Company blogs hold benefits, pitfalls by Christopher Scribner with Oakland Business Review
~ Blogs help break business barriers by Stacy Vogel with GazetteXtra

The Virtual Assistant Networking Association (VANA) definition of a VA begins with the statement, "A Virtual Assistant (or VA) works independently at an arm's length, via the Internet, utilizing the latest technologies..."  During my University of Virtual Assistants training, I was amazed at what is out there and the advancements in technology.  I was especially surprised to learn what services are available for free.

Over the course of the next couple of months or so, I am going to explore the technology used by VAs more.  Technology is an area that is always developing.  It is an ongoing learning experience for everyone.  The speed of technology is so fast that it is hard to ever really be "up to speed" on it.  While it will take more experience for me to claim to be an expert, I will share in this series what I am learning.  The technology that VAs are using is not exclusive to the VA industry as they help many types of professionals around the world.

For some people, learning new technology can be uncomfortable as it takes them out of their comfort zone and presents weaknesses.  For others, like myself, it can be exciting learning something new as it opens up more possibilities to work with others.  As we become more and more of a global community and as our businesses expand more and more around the world, it is essential for better communication to use the latest technology available.

It does not seem long ago that few people had an e-mail address or Website.  To run a successful business today it is essential to have a Web presence and correspond via e-mail.  This is now expanding to blogging and podcasting.  Blogging and podcasting are a couple of areas that I will be learning more about in the coming weeks.  I just got an iPod a few months ago and I am just now learning how to listen to the music on it.  Apparently, it can also be a marketing tool!?! 

I will learn more and share with you all that I learn about these areas and more.  As I research, I will try to compile some of the more useful links, resources, and experts, and pass them along to you.  In my learning curve, if you know of some helpful links, resources, and experts, please "throw" them to me.  Please also feel free to add your knowledge to my blog in the comments section.  I think it would be nice and interesting to start a discussion.  We can learn from each other.  By no means will I be able to be comprehensive, but I hope to at least provide some kind of overview.