“What IS that smell?!” I exclaimed.

Aghast by a strange, strong odor; my olfactory senses deemed this to be a combination of locker room sweat, cheap men’s cologne and something else indefinably carnal. I swiftly grabbed a nearby towel to cover my nose so that I could breathe!

I walked into my 14-year old’s media game room after his friend had left from spending the night expecting the more familiar ‘teen spirit’ aroma of stale popcorn and dirty socks. Appreciating that both pubescent boys had played physically interactive video games and watched ‘Ghost Adventure’ reruns until the wee hours of the morning, the over-offensive odor on this day was much more than I expected.

My son explained, “Mom, that’s Axe’s body spray. Everybody uses it.” I replied, “You mean people actually buy this product?” He nodded with a sly smirk.

It took several washings of the bed sheets and airing out the room with windows wide-open for a few hours until the odor finally subsided. Once my head and sinuses were clear, I decided to do a little research about this product that so appealed to teens. I was intrigued.

Who would spend money on this primal body spray? Why was it so appealing to teenagers? What is the name of this company who hit upon such a sure hit? It behooved me that teen boys were even using a body spray.

A little Googling and I found out that coincidently CBS Sunday News was running a report that weekend about the phenomenon of Unilever Company’s multi-billion dollar personal hygiene products, so I threw on the DVR to watch and record for later.

In the report, Axe brand manager Mike Dwyer explained, “Our target market is really 18-24.” He said that this age group is thinking about, “…gears and gadgets; sports and girls.” Even though my own son and his teen friends were classified in a younger age group, I was well-aware that 14-year old boys were thinking about the same topics as the adult young men; particularly girls, which explained why these products were equally as enticing to the younger crowd. Sales of men’s hygiene products, although marketed to 18-24 year olds now found its place for the 13-17 year olds simply by appealing to similar needs.

Hmmm….So Unilever found a niche market and then found a subset niche market for the same products! Clever! I find this particularly interesting because this subset (13-17) has largely been ignored by personal product manufactures until now. Further, body sprays are typically marketed toward women and girls! (I have never known a man to spray anything other than deodorant.)

As a marketing virtual assistant, I am intrigued when companies open-up products to new markets and shake up the status quo. I recall a line of garden tools for women was presented in the 1980’s which were designed for the softer, smaller hand; I thought then as I do now, that this was ingenious.

I am reminded of a humorous niche marketing situation on a Seinfeld episode; Kramer and Frank Costanza disagree over the name of a brassiere for men. (Kramer wants to call it the “Bro”, Frank Costanza wants to call it the “Manziere”) Both men want to market a traditionally female product to the male population albeit, unsuccessfully. But the same concept was applied. Market a product and then find more markets interested in the same item. Eventually, the item becomes so popular that it become its own brand name.

So what does Axe body spray for teens have to do with being a virtual assistant?

It has everything to do with niche marketing and branding. The Axe body spray is referred to as simply ‘Axe’ much the same that Kleenex is synonymous with the word tissue and the Jell-O name with gelatin dessert. When the name brand is used as the title of item itself, branding has reached its pinnacle.

A marketer’s dream!

“Please hand me a Kleenex” or “I’ll have the green Jell-O” are often the norm rather than the exception.

And this means that specific consumers will go directly to that product name when they need it.

That is what every business owner wants, including virtual assistants.

When the time is right and a client needs a marketing virtual assistant, I want to hear, “I’ll call Janine from Your Virtual Wizard.”

So I asked myself two questions, “Could my own target market be honed down to appeal to specific group of people much the same as the Axe body products appeal to the 13-17 year old market?” Could my company name then become the ‘go-to words’ once that target market is reached?

I want to be just like Axe body spray for the teen subset.

So I drew a simple bubble graph. Much the same as most virtual assistant companies, my market are small business owners. From that group, I offer my services exclusively to coaches. But even that market is quite broad. So I dug my heels in and sought out types of coaches; my subset. Life coaches, career coaches, healthcare coaches, nutritional coaches, marriage coaches, relationship coaches…and then suddenly my clientele became wide-open. I hit upon my own section of my target market much the same as Axe did with their body spray product.

But Axe body spray is not the only player in the competitive personal product division anymore. According to the report, Old Spice and others also offer body sprays to young men. But Axe has held strong to 80 percent of the share as they were the first company out of the gate.

“Could I offer a virtual assistant service which was so unique that my competition would scramble to imitate?” I’m not first out the gate. That would be difficult.

Tough question but the answer is rather simple. I am the unique product. There are other virtual assistant companies but it is I who cannot be duplicated. I may not be the ‘first’ and I am definitely not that last VA company to open but I am one-of-a-kind.

It is up to me to market my personality, my accuracy, my creativity, my skills and my tenacity…all the things which make my business stand apart from all others.

This exercise helped met to decipher my subset target market which now opened up to a much wider audience than I had before. I came to understand further what it is that makes my company its own brand. That would be me. I am the brand. I am Your Virtual Wizard.

Do I smell more business?

I was in the supermarket the other day and avocados were on sale for one dollar each.  Deep in thought as to what I could make with this delightful fruit, I saw a woman lurking from the corner of my eye who was pressing several avocados for firmness and then bagged or discarded as needed. I looked up and then moved over to make room so we both could share in the bounty without stretching across each other.

She seemed to appreciate that gesture and then said to me, “It is hard to tell which ones are too ripe just by pinching them.” So I said, “The lighter ones seem to be less ripe.” I continued, “Sometimes I get them home and in less than a day they are too ripe to use.”  She smiled and said, “Yes, that’s why I buy the light greens ones.  If you put them in a brown bag with a banana they will ripen when you need them.”

I knew about that ripening tip but acted as if I didn’t know so as not to be rude. She seemed delighted to share that tidbit with me so I didn’t want to ruin a sweet moment amongst strangers.

So from there we struck up a conversation. She asked me what I did for a living and I said I was a virtual assistant helping small businesses promote their products and services through online marketing methods such as newsletters, articles and email.

She told me about her line of work and as it turned out, the woman owned a real estate agency and contracted me (on the spot) to work on her email marketing campaign.

When I got home, I thought about what could have happened. I might not have stopped to buy the avocados if they hadn’t been on sale.  If I hadn’t showed courtesy in ‘sharing’ the space in front of the avocado display, she might not have said anything to me.  If I hadn’t acted appreciative of her banana-in-the-paper-bag tip (even though I knew about that tip), she might not have continued to chat with me.  We both might have just moved on and continued our shopping.

So I never dismiss small talk. I’m much more aware of my surroundings in public places. I smile more often and look approachable.  And when the stars align, I’m ready with a business card and a quick elevator speech should someone ask.  You never know who you will meet. Now that’s really what I define to be true social networking!

I celebrated that night with the best guacamole ever!

Sue L Canfield recently released her book, The Commonsense Virtual Assistant – Becoming an Entrepreneur, Not an Employee. Today, she’s stopped by my blog. 

 

 

 

Janine:  Sue, why did you write this book?

Sue:  My husband, Joel D Canfield, and I co-authored the book to help newer and aspiring virtual assistants understand what it takes to run a successful business. Over the last two years, I found that many newer and aspiring virtual assistants were asking for and following my advice on how to run their business. Though they had the skills to be a virtual assistant, many had no idea how to run a business, write a business or marketing plan, how to market, and other basic business skills. Since my husband had already written a book for small business owners on how to be the best foundation for their business, we decided to add to the material and focus on the virtual assistant industry in our new book. 

Janine:  Sue, Please tell me about yourself

Sue:  I’ve worked as an administrative assistant for over 25 years and began my virtual assistant business in 2005 before I even knew there was such a thing. This past year I added virtual assistant coaching to my services to help newer virtual assistants succeed in their businesses. My husband and I work together from home along with our five-year old daughter in Roseville, California. 

Janine:  What qualifies you to write this book?

Sue:  Joel and I have more than 50 years of combined experience supporting and operating small businesses. My success as a virtual assistant is in large part due to the advice I received from Joel. Our success in our businesses provides testimony to our qualifications. 

Janine:  What is the book about?

Sue:  The book helps virtual assistants to understand that they are now business owners, entrepreneurs, no longer employees. Successful business owners need good business sense and a good understanding of what it takes to run a successful business. The book provides basic, commonsense information every entrepreneur needs to know along with advice specific to virtual assistants. 

Janine: What do you want the readers to get out of the book?

Sue:  The most important concept I would like my readers to understand is that they are now business owners and what that means. After reading the book, readers will have a clear understanding of how to set rates, manage their time, and market their business. 

Janine:  How can the readers contact you if they want further information?

Sue:  Joel and I can be reached toll-free at 877.771.7746 or by email at Contact@BizBa6.com. They can also visit our website athttp://www.bizba6.com. 

Janine:  How much does your book cost?
$19.95.

Janine:  Where can the readers purchase your e-book?
Sue:  They can visit our website at www.bizba6.com.

JanineL  Sue, thank you for stopping by my blog.
Sue: You are very welcome. Thank you for having me. 

About the Authors:

Joel and Sue have more than 50 years of combined experience supporting and operating small businesses. They operate BizBa6 Small Business Support Services and love not only their work but the life it allows them to live. This book (Joel’s third business book, Sue’s first) shares how they think about business–it’s a ‘why to’, not a ‘how-to’ because it focuses on how people think and what they want–not just your clients, but you, too. 

 

 

Book Summary:

So, you want to be a virtual assistant. The virtual assistant industry is growing rapidly. Just about anyone can say they are a virtual assistant. You have a computer, internet access, and the desire to work from home. Voila! You’re a virtual assistant. But is that enough to succeed as a virtual assistant? Do you have what it takes to run a business? Yes, a virtual assistant is a business owner. Successful business owners need to have good business sense. As a business owner, you, the virtual assistant, need to understand what it takes to run a business. Pick up your copy for $19.95 at http://www.bizba6.com.

It’s the VA in me…always seeking ways to simply improve my virtual-ness… searching for virtual resources to assist in my clients’ businesses and for new ways to improve my own methodology.

I look for plug-ins and free programs to allow me to run faster, jump higher and improve creativity. Here are five of my most recently used free resources I recommend.

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1) Xobni – (Inbox spelled backwards) For Outlook users, I believe this plug-in has become one of the most powerful email tools ever created, really! Xobni is easily downloaded. All emails are automatically categorized by conversation. Viewable in a separate frame, one email is selected from my Inbox and then all emails pertaining to that particular sender or topic are listed by date and categorized together.

When I need to find an email or an attachment, I just click on the sender’s name and all emails line up. A brief synopsis of those emails appear in a separate frame so it is an at-a-glance set-up which allows viewing and sorting in far less time than finding and searching myself. I am particularly impressed with Xobni when I have several emails from a client which need to be sorted by topic. So if I am working on a newsletter, all the emails pertaining only to that newsletter are grouped together.

The greatest time saver has been the ease in finding attachments sent via email. Connected to Facebook and other social networking sites (optional selection) the sender’s social networking info and Facebook photo appear in the heading. Additionally…any connections I may have with the sender appear in another column as well (under the Facebook photo) so I am able to see who I have in common with the sender of the email. Clever, clever.

Oh, and one more feature…if I click on a sender’s Xobni frame, I can view a chart which offers a line graph when the sender replies to the most email. This is a great tool for deciding when someone might open my email and to send it at a time when the recipient is most likely to answer the email.

2) If you are looking for a list of contacts to use for your next project or direct mailing, I recommend a site called Jigsaw which is an online directory of free, downloadable Company information and more than 12 million business Contacts. Copied from the company site: “Think of it as an exchange of Contacts you have for Contacts you need. The more you contribute, the more you earn. That’s it. This makes the Jigsaw system self-correcting, rewarding you for doing what you would do on your own. Points are also awarded when you update incorrect Contacts or challenge bad Contacts, keeping the system timely and accurate.” Easy sign up and a great option to buying mailing lists.

3) If you are looking for a way to make a website page printer friendly so that I can add as a pdf to my website or blog, Print Friendly is the way to go. When I find a page I think will be helpful for my blog readers, I insert the URL into the program and Print Friendly copies the document for you to edit to a readable format. You can remove images and make edits, while any edits can also be undone.

4) Remote access to my own computer and my client’s computers has been useful on many levels. I have used Logmein for about 3 years now. I use the free version for my home use but I have used the Pro version for client use. The main difference between the two versions is that the Pro version allows me to print from a client’s screen to my own printer. Once Logmein is downloaded, I can access my computer using any other computer from any location. In my case, I access my desktop located in my office which holds most of client programs and files doing so via my laptop from anywhere I go. If I want to step into another room with my laptop or take this with me to the library to work, I can easily access my desktop and work with all the programs I need from wherever I am! I collaborated with a real estate client in California using her ACT! database and did so from my location in Florida. Great for the time spent waiting in a doctor’s office. And…I recently read that Logmein is available as an iPhone application, which was the clincher for me to purchase an iPhone this fall.

5) www.Openoffice.org If you do not have Microsoft Office, you can use this program which is an open source program to open and save any document using the Office extensions such as .xls, .doc and .ppt. (Excel, Word or PowerPoint documents). The only program that Open Office does not work with is Microsoft Publisher. Email me if you want the link for an open source desktop publishing program.

Bonus Links: Did you ever want to take a screen shot of something on your computer an convert it to pdf to send as an attachment to someone or post to your blog or website? If so, then I recommend Screenhunter 5 and PDF995 . Once you have the image you want to take a snapshot, click Screenhunter 5 and it will save the document to wherever you indicated. The free program even allows for some editing and saving as a jpg file. Once you have that image, PDF995 easily converts any documents to pdf format to use as you wish. I have used both of these for years and have never looked for an alternative.

Next week I will post an additional 5 free resources (maybe more!) to help you grow your business. Please subscribe to my blog here for updates. For even more tips and resources, subscribe to my newsletter.

Please feel free to email me with any questions.

Thanks,

Janine

There is a lovely home in my neighborhood which recently went on the market ‘For Sale’. The problem is that one cannot read any of the details in the sign. I had my camera with me this morning, so I snapped a quick video to give folks a view of what it is that drive-bys can actually see from across the street. 

 

 

This home is poorly signed by the homeowner, no doubt. Further, the second sign located at the entrance to the home indicates, “Open House” which I find to be quite odd.  It seems that the Open House is perpetually OPEN.  Is someone there all the time to take knocks on the door from looky-loos?  I wonder.

[caption id="attachment_148" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Open House Sign"][/caption]

 

There are several other homes available in this neighborhood and my guess is that this one will just be a drive-by…in other words…buyers will just continue to drive-by.

Even though the home is a FSBO (for sale by owner), there is so much more an owner can do to advertise simply from the front lawn.

If you have not signed on with a real estate agent (recommended by this virtual assistant!) to take advantage of all of the benefits, such as good signage, I would suggest to FSBOs to at least do this much:

1)  Place the signs closer to the street and sidewalk where people can actually view them without straining their eyes. This may mean using two signs:  one at the far end of the lawn at the property line to gain attention from folks driving one way and using a second sign in the front of the property reasonably close to the sidewalk to stand out to drive-bys who do stop.

2)  Buy a double-sided For Sale Sign or make your own and take into account that folks might be coming toward the property from more than one direction.

3)  Use a thick black Sharpie marker to write your home’s stats.  This homeowner used a thin Sharpie that one would need a magnifying glass to view.  People will not want to get out of their car to run over to see how much the home is priced or how many bedrooms it contains. 

 

 

 

 

4)  Create a website and post photos of the home.  Microsoft Office Live is a free hosting site with templates that can be used to create a site in just a few minutes.  Buy a domain at GoDaddy featuring the site’s address (about $7.00) and connect that address to the site. By all means, advertise that website address on the sign in a clear fashion.

5)  Make a few flyers and buy a tube at a local hardware store.  Microsoft Publisher and Word feature easy-to-use templates for making flyers.  Go to Kinkos to have them printed in quantity. 

 Janine

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