What is the Most Effective Social Media Platform for Your Business?
By Warren Knight
"When it comes to social media most, brands think that they should split their time between all of the main social networks which isn’t a good way to utilise your time. As a small business, you really need to think about the kind of network suited for your business as well as where your ideal target market hangs out so here are some things you need to consider.
Looking at the content you share on social media, what is most effective for your business? Is it Images? Video’s? Articles? Or just plain text? There are some social networks that are suitable for the four types of content I just mentioned but for others, their main content source is just one of the options. Really think about the kind of content your consumers will want to see and work with the networks to give you the best outcome......."
- See more at: http://www.warrenknight.co.uk/blog/2013/08/16/what-is-the-most-effective-social-media-platform-for-your-business/#sthash.G1ifbvcF.dpuf
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Friday, September 13, 2013
Saving myself over £1000 bucks!
By OGN Okafor
It's been a hectic 5 to 6 weeks trying to complete a task I have never done before nor studied. If you are not good with numbers or very patient, then I suggest you hand your books over to a qualified accountant.
And before you do, shop around for the best in professionalism, efficiency, cost to you, easy to work with etc. Ask him or her to give you references (four or more people whom they've done their accounts before). Please (I cannot stress this enough), don't be lazy - contact all these references and be sure to find out if the accountant(s) are trustworthy (it's very important), can complete all (not some of) the tasks within the time they'd agreed, would not provide you with hidden charges at the end of task, easy to work with.
From my experience, I am also one of the directors in a company called GCA UK. We hired an accountant to register our company and everything else needed done based on one recommendation.
1: He overcharged us for everything
2: Kept all our documents and password, gave us the impression he alone was supposed to keep them
3: Was late in informing us about any emails from Company House
We found out we had to submit the company Annual Return late and were told we had to pay a fine. When we tried to submit the Annual Return, we found he had closed us down with Company House out of malice (because we told him we would not be needing his services and to hand over the documents pertaining to the company in his possession).
(Remember, it doesn't matter whom you've outsourced your business or company's work to, the bucks stops with you. And you, not the the person you've outsourced your work to, will pay/suffer the consequences of any of their (the people you've outsourced work to) mistakes. Consequences can be a fine of up to £5000 e.g. for late submission of your Annual Return, to being jailed e.g. for not paying your taxes.)
Based on this experience, I 've always done everything to do with my own company (Obygrace Publishing) myself. Here are examples of some of the tasks I undertook myself
1: registered my company with Company House
2: registered my company trademarks with the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) UK
3: registered with various affliates and put adverts in my blogs
4: created and designed all my blogs
5: created and designed all my company's marketing materials
6: completed my company's annual return and submitted my company accounts to Company House online
7: completed and submitted my company annual tax return plus company accounts to HMRConline
8: completed and submitted my self assessment online
Am not saying you should do all these yourself but it doesn't hurt to know as much as you can before you think of outsourcing specific tasks. Those are examples of tasks I had undertaken myself and not outsourced. It is very important that you understand that I am not
1: a web or creative designer
2: an accountant
3: a lawyer
So you ask, how was I able to accomplish all these.Well, by learning. I read lots of books (e.g: see my book lists)/ leaflets (e.g: IP Explained, ) & specific company's website information (eg: IPO, Company House, HMRC), viewed lots of specificYouTube videos/tutorials, attended business events (e.g: Bstartup) and business webinars (e.g Facebook, Facebook2, Warren Knight), viewed numerous HMRC recorded and live webinars (click to see examples), asked lots of question via phone calls (Mentors, specific people in different organisations), internet search engine (e.g: sitewizard) and emails to the correct people.
Advantages of taking up some of these tasks:
1: Most important, saved lots of money and gained new knowledge and skills (so later when your company is financially stable and you decide to outsource your work, you will not only have an idea of what is expected with each task, how long it should take and what the finished product should look like but also, you can will be able to know when the amount being quoted is ridiculous)
2: Hours run fast as you're doing what you love...It's so much fun you even forget what time or day it is and even to eat (you feel there aren't enough hours in the day...you wish you can add more hours), plus you get to know more about your business and grow with your business
3: New jargons learnt are important even when you later choose to outsource your work as it makes it easier to communicate with and understand whomever you've outsourced work to (saving time and money)
4: Researches broadens your horizon, open new doors and a world of opportunities you never dreamt of (takes you out of thinking too small or within a box)
5: Your excited about what you do and the new skills you've gained (like when your child takes their first step or says their first word), you want to share it. Sharing what you're doing or learnt is a free form of advertisement, can lead to finding streams of ideas to grow and expand your business from people. Talking to people helps you shed your inhibitions to talking in front of people.
Disadvantages:
1: Takes time getting specific tasks done as you have to learn it first before you can carry it out
2: Its exhausting as it takes long hours
3: Can be frustrating especially as you are constantly encountering new jargon (words specific to a particular industry, trade or skill)
4: Too much research
5:You are constantly thinking even talking about your business
It's been a hectic 5 to 6 weeks trying to complete a task I have never done before nor studied. If you are not good with numbers or very patient, then I suggest you hand your books over to a qualified accountant.
And before you do, shop around for the best in professionalism, efficiency, cost to you, easy to work with etc. Ask him or her to give you references (four or more people whom they've done their accounts before). Please (I cannot stress this enough), don't be lazy - contact all these references and be sure to find out if the accountant(s) are trustworthy (it's very important), can complete all (not some of) the tasks within the time they'd agreed, would not provide you with hidden charges at the end of task, easy to work with.
From my experience, I am also one of the directors in a company called GCA UK. We hired an accountant to register our company and everything else needed done based on one recommendation.
1: He overcharged us for everything
2: Kept all our documents and password, gave us the impression he alone was supposed to keep them
3: Was late in informing us about any emails from Company House
We found out we had to submit the company Annual Return late and were told we had to pay a fine. When we tried to submit the Annual Return, we found he had closed us down with Company House out of malice (because we told him we would not be needing his services and to hand over the documents pertaining to the company in his possession).
(Remember, it doesn't matter whom you've outsourced your business or company's work to, the bucks stops with you. And you, not the the person you've outsourced your work to, will pay/suffer the consequences of any of their (the people you've outsourced work to) mistakes. Consequences can be a fine of up to £5000 e.g. for late submission of your Annual Return, to being jailed e.g. for not paying your taxes.)
Based on this experience, I 've always done everything to do with my own company (Obygrace Publishing) myself. Here are examples of some of the tasks I undertook myself
1: registered my company with Company House
2: registered my company trademarks with the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) UK
3: registered with various affliates and put adverts in my blogs
4: created and designed all my blogs
5: created and designed all my company's marketing materials
6: completed my company's annual return and submitted my company accounts to Company House online
7: completed and submitted my company annual tax return plus company accounts to HMRConline
8: completed and submitted my self assessment online
Am not saying you should do all these yourself but it doesn't hurt to know as much as you can before you think of outsourcing specific tasks. Those are examples of tasks I had undertaken myself and not outsourced. It is very important that you understand that I am not
1: a web or creative designer
2: an accountant
3: a lawyer
So you ask, how was I able to accomplish all these.Well, by learning. I read lots of books (e.g: see my book lists)/ leaflets (e.g: IP Explained, ) & specific company's website information (eg: IPO, Company House, HMRC), viewed lots of specificYouTube videos/tutorials, attended business events (e.g: Bstartup) and business webinars (e.g Facebook, Facebook2, Warren Knight), viewed numerous HMRC recorded and live webinars (click to see examples), asked lots of question via phone calls (Mentors, specific people in different organisations), internet search engine (e.g: sitewizard) and emails to the correct people.
Advantages of taking up some of these tasks:
1: Most important, saved lots of money and gained new knowledge and skills (so later when your company is financially stable and you decide to outsource your work, you will not only have an idea of what is expected with each task, how long it should take and what the finished product should look like but also, you can will be able to know when the amount being quoted is ridiculous)
2: Hours run fast as you're doing what you love...It's so much fun you even forget what time or day it is and even to eat (you feel there aren't enough hours in the day...you wish you can add more hours), plus you get to know more about your business and grow with your business
3: New jargons learnt are important even when you later choose to outsource your work as it makes it easier to communicate with and understand whomever you've outsourced work to (saving time and money)
4: Researches broadens your horizon, open new doors and a world of opportunities you never dreamt of (takes you out of thinking too small or within a box)
5: Your excited about what you do and the new skills you've gained (like when your child takes their first step or says their first word), you want to share it. Sharing what you're doing or learnt is a free form of advertisement, can lead to finding streams of ideas to grow and expand your business from people. Talking to people helps you shed your inhibitions to talking in front of people.
Disadvantages:
1: Takes time getting specific tasks done as you have to learn it first before you can carry it out
2: Its exhausting as it takes long hours
3: Can be frustrating especially as you are constantly encountering new jargon (words specific to a particular industry, trade or skill)
4: Too much research
5:You are constantly thinking even talking about your business
Here are examples of books that can help reduce your workload. Remember "Knowledge is Power!"
OR the Kindle Book: 
11:This book is very good (for anyone doing their book-keeping for the first time): Practical Accounts and Bookkeeping In Easy Steps
Examples of sites I found very useful:
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Virtual assistants replace the office secretary
By Gina Baldassarre
Stumbled upon at Dynamic Business
Business is full of trends that come and go, but there’s one that looks like it’s here to stay: more small business owners are bringing virtual assistants on board.
The VA industry is going from strength to strength. A survey conducted by the Australian chapter of the Alliance for Virtual Businesses (A4VB) found that over 47 per cent of respondents have been in business for just two years or less.
Liz Pulo, who’s been with The Virtual Assistant since early 2012 and took over the business in December, believes SMBs are looking to virtual assistants as they realise the various cost benefits.
“Employing someone is hard. Finding a good administrator in the current market is difficult, and the talented ones are worth a lot more than what a standard small business can afford. It makes economic sense to use a virtual assistant instead. You only pay for the time worked, you don’t have to worry about taxes, superannuation or leave and you don’t have to keep them occupied if you don’t have anything on,” Pulo said.
While the industry is growing, Pulo said some SMB owners are still hesitant about handing over a share of their work to someone else.
“We work with small business owners almost exclusively, and when you’ve been the only person in your business it is so hard to hand over responsibility to someone else, especially when you have no documentation of what it is you do,” she said.
As a result, Pulo believes it’s important for a small business owner to set out exactly what it is they want from a potential VA before hiring.
“The first thing that we do is work out what the small business owner needs, and that may not be what they think they need. From there, we go about documenting the procedure with the business owner, if it’s not already, and setting up a basic responsibilities list, much like a job description,” she said.
“This gives the business owner and the VA a clear starting point. It’s clear who is responsible for what, and the way the tasks are to be completed,” Pulo added.
Kathie Thomas, head of the Virtual Assistants Association of Australia, said the role of the virtual assistant is continually expanding. For example, whereas VA tasks were once dominated by transcription services, the tide is now shifting towards social media support.
“A lot of clients know they need to have a presence on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, but they don’t know how they work – they don’t know how often they should be posting, or what they should be doing. So a VA will often set the accounts up, and teach clients how to use these tools,” Thomas said.
Despite the growth of the industry, there are still challenges virtual assistants face. For Pulo, the greatest is busting the myths behind what a VA is and what they can and can’t do.
The A4VB survey found that almost 90 per cent of virtual assistants have extensive on-the-job experience or training in employment. Some 81 per cent even decide to start their own business to gain greater flexibility in working hours.
“Virtual assistants in Australia are highly skilled, and usually come from high-responsibility jobs and are looking for a change of pace,” Pulo said, adding a client could be working with anyone from an ex-communications manager to an ex-executive assistant to a CEO.
Stumbled upon at Dynamic Business
Business is full of trends that come and go, but there’s one that looks like it’s here to stay: more small business owners are bringing virtual assistants on board.
The VA industry is going from strength to strength. A survey conducted by the Australian chapter of the Alliance for Virtual Businesses (A4VB) found that over 47 per cent of respondents have been in business for just two years or less.
Liz Pulo, who’s been with The Virtual Assistant since early 2012 and took over the business in December, believes SMBs are looking to virtual assistants as they realise the various cost benefits.
“Employing someone is hard. Finding a good administrator in the current market is difficult, and the talented ones are worth a lot more than what a standard small business can afford. It makes economic sense to use a virtual assistant instead. You only pay for the time worked, you don’t have to worry about taxes, superannuation or leave and you don’t have to keep them occupied if you don’t have anything on,” Pulo said.
While the industry is growing, Pulo said some SMB owners are still hesitant about handing over a share of their work to someone else.
“We work with small business owners almost exclusively, and when you’ve been the only person in your business it is so hard to hand over responsibility to someone else, especially when you have no documentation of what it is you do,” she said.
As a result, Pulo believes it’s important for a small business owner to set out exactly what it is they want from a potential VA before hiring.
“The first thing that we do is work out what the small business owner needs, and that may not be what they think they need. From there, we go about documenting the procedure with the business owner, if it’s not already, and setting up a basic responsibilities list, much like a job description,” she said.
“This gives the business owner and the VA a clear starting point. It’s clear who is responsible for what, and the way the tasks are to be completed,” Pulo added.
Kathie Thomas, head of the Virtual Assistants Association of Australia, said the role of the virtual assistant is continually expanding. For example, whereas VA tasks were once dominated by transcription services, the tide is now shifting towards social media support.
“A lot of clients know they need to have a presence on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, but they don’t know how they work – they don’t know how often they should be posting, or what they should be doing. So a VA will often set the accounts up, and teach clients how to use these tools,” Thomas said.
Despite the growth of the industry, there are still challenges virtual assistants face. For Pulo, the greatest is busting the myths behind what a VA is and what they can and can’t do.
The A4VB survey found that almost 90 per cent of virtual assistants have extensive on-the-job experience or training in employment. Some 81 per cent even decide to start their own business to gain greater flexibility in working hours.
“Virtual assistants in Australia are highly skilled, and usually come from high-responsibility jobs and are looking for a change of pace,” Pulo said, adding a client could be working with anyone from an ex-communications manager to an ex-executive assistant to a CEO.
Friday, August 9, 2013
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