What are the Most Effective Lead Generation Strategies for your business?

Every business depends on its high-quality prospects to generate a certain revenue. And a lead generation strategy is needed to attract new customers and make a successful bond with them. With the help of an effective lead generation strategy, your brand awareness will increase and ultimately more prospects will enter into your sales pipeline. 

A lead generation strategy is a series of marketing tricks to nurture interest in consumers to convert them into quality customers. Another important aspect of lead generation is that it addresses a fundamental question, “What is your potential customer looking for?” Usually, the strategy starts with creating a business website with all your information, services, and products on it. But there are other strategies that can create more potential leads and definitely, such customers who will buy again and again.

As an entrepreneur, you have to explore various options to find which strategy works best for your specific business. It will be wise to invest your time and energy in just a few of these strategies, rather than divide your efforts between all of them. We have penned down some of the techniques for you to evaluate and implement according to your business type.

Lead Generation Strategies

• Build Creative Landing Pages

If you click on any link of a marketing email or social media ad, you are most likely taken to a landing page of that business. These independent web pages are created merely for a marketing or promotional campaign, and these pages are the most important part of any marketer’s art. These landing pages have a particular goal to achieve, unlike other regular web pages, they are responsible to escort visitors towards a CTA, which means call-to-action.

That is how a single landing page can be used as an effective lead generation tool. This captivating copy and a strong call-to-action can convert complete strangers into potential customers, who are interested in your brand.

To create leads by using a landing page, you can use CTAs including “Sign Up”, “Book a Call” or “Register Now.” Then, you ask people, who click, to leave their contact details. After that, you have their email, now you’ll be able to follow up with them and build their interest in your products.

Pro tip: If you want to create a landing page but aren’t sure how to get started, try using our services in building a high-converting, professional page.

• Make Good use of Email Marketing

When an individual takes the time out to fill out a contact, sign up, or registration form, they are intended to learn more about your company and possibly want to buy your products or services. Moreover, using that information, you can continue interacting with them by sending out email or text messages.

Whereas, 48% of marketers believe that email marketing strategy is the most effective way of generating leads. From a weekly newsletter to a new product launch, emails convert customers into leads when the content is short, precise, and appealing, and the CTA is equitably vivid and engaging. You can send them exclusive ongoing or upcoming offers, free e-book, or invite links to your upcoming webinar, etc. You can use different suitable email marketing services to schedule automated emails anytime to the customer that is performing any action on your site.  

By using email marketing, you can also differentiate between your potential leads and the not-so interested visitors on your website. The leads will engage with your emails; it could be by just opening them or clicking on the given link. With that information in hand, you can invest your time, energy, and resources in interacting and satisfying these people.

• Promote your Brand by Connecting with Influencers

Influencer marketing has been booming over the past few years with the increase in social media personalities. This type of marketing is more vigorous than it may appear. Social media users with a large following have established a reputation as prominent figures in their respected fields.

Consumers are more inclined to listen to their opinions because of the credibility of their reviews, rather than the advertisements. By keeping in mind your business type, after analyzing, you work with these influencers to build and spread a wave of trust, about your company and its products, among audiences through their positive feedback and reviews.

While reaching out to well-known influencers from your industry, they may ask for a paid promotion and some may do it for free, but whatever happens, you will see that this lead generation strategy is a smart way to attract customers.

• Provide High-Quality Content

Content marketing is another popular lead generation strategy. It is the process of attracting your customers by publishing appealing and captivating content that provides value to your audience. They become leads while engaging with your posts or by leaving their contact information.

Having informative and helpful content on your website including blog posts, e-books, and case studies, can compel visitors towards a conversion. You can analyze it by supposing of whom will you trust if you visit a company’s website having a high level of knowledge material at the display versus one with useless content, obviously you’ll trust the one with good content, the exact same is the case with your targeted audiences.

A blog on your website where readers can find answers to their problems, not only drives traffic to the website but also motivates the audience to become leads. You can add the CTA at the end of each blog post, stating them to register for your service, book a call, check out your product, or subscribe to your newsletter, etc.

• Host a Webinar 

Whether in person or virtual, events are very helpful in generating leads and webinars can be the most powerful component of any digital marketing strategy for generating leads. They give you a close way to connect directly with your audience. A real-time presentation of engaging content with a human face and voice will increase the audience’s trust in your brand and you can also deal with their queries. 

Webinars can also provide its attendees with the convenience of joining from any location. An in-person presentation requires your attendees to travel to a specific place, but in webinars, you can have as many people as you want and from any part of the world. 

Through informative webinars, people will get to know of their related industry’s latest trends and your current offerings. Just to give them a little push, in the end, you can even provide the attendees with a discount who want to make a purchase, as it will help in creating a stronger bond.

 If you have any problem regarding website designing, marketing, social media, email, and all other related things, you can rely on our team to solve it for you and assist you in the best possible way!

You can register yourself for our special training programs, as well as book a call.

The post What are the Most Effective Lead Generation Strategies for your business? appeared first on That Helpful Chick.

Mobile Marketing: Why is it important and What are its Essential Components

We’ll be astonished if you aren’t reading this article on your mobile phone because most of today’s population turn to their mobiles for information. They visit websites, answer emails, undergo probes, and even shop online directly through mobile phones. This shows that to reach your customers you have to make good use of mobile marketing. In order to succeed in the digital marketing realm, you need to focus on building and improving your business’ mobile presence.  

What is Mobile Marketing?

Mobile marketing refers to a multi-channel, digital marketing approach which seeks to reach a specific audience on their mobile devices, IPads, and any other mobile-related device, via websites, SMS, MMS, apps, social media, and email, etc.

The omnichannel engagement approach, be it for the short-term or long-term, plays an important role in growing the potential customers’ attention and cash to the mobile world. Businesses are required to invest in high-quality strategic and personalized content if they want to earn the audience’s attention. Mobile marketing, if done correctly, designs a customized promotion for a user who is connected to their phone screen for at least three hours a day.

By creating a stronger bond between you and your customers, mobile marketing has the ability to increase your brand’s image and the value of your products. According to the eMarketer, in the United States, mobile usage in comparison to desktop usage will elevate by almost 20% by 2022. Whereas, the number of people who have good access to the internet specifically on mobile phones will increase by 10.6%. Therefore, focusing more on creating a mobile marketing strategy is likely to boost your marketing endeavors.

Why Mobile Marketing is Important?

Depending on your industry, target audience, and budget, mobile marketing can do wonders for your brand. Some of them are mentioned below:

Increase the reach and engagement

Mobile is the most suitable and easiest way to target, reach, and interact with your potential customers. It does not matter where they are or what the time is mobile marketing helps you to stay in touch with your audience all day long.

Cost-effective method

Mobile marketing is a surprisingly cost-effective method in comparison to other marketing methods including advertisements. Digital advertisers use a metric known as cost per thousand (CPM) to calculate how much money it will cost them if they reach a thousand customers. Whereas, the cheapest CPM can be attained with social media marketing and in-app marketing which saves more money than other traditional advertising strategies. Therefore, if you want your marketing campaigns to go viral and elevate revenues and ROI (Return on Investment) then, mobile is the best option.

Drive sales

Most people prefer to shop online and via one’s phones. According to the mobile e-commerce statistics from 2021, more than half of the total internet traffic is coming from people making purchases on their phones. That’s what makes it worthwhile to invest in mobile marketing and guarantee that your mobile e-Commerce experience is no less than perfect.   

Essential Components of Mobile Marketing

Mobile marketing has now surpassed text messages and mobile applications. In order to have a cohesive marketing experience, you have to consider a receptive design across the board.

Create a mobile-friendly website

Your website is the face of your business, therefore, it is essential that it simply and professionally represents your brand. It is important that your website is mobile-friendly so that potential customers who are scanning through their mobiles have the same opportunity to reach your website.

The content should be suitable for the mobile world, which means easily accessible, up-to-date, and adapted to fit smaller screens. The loading speed should be faster, with no technical errors to put off a user  You can seek That Helpful Chick’s support in creating and designing your website.

Mobile e-Commerce stats 2021 has shown that at least 84% of the users have faced difficulty in completing a mobile transaction. Therefore, mobile-friendly websites are required to ensure where to click to view the details, how to check out, and how to add payment in a secure way.

Share content through SMS and MMS

After creating a website that is mobile-friendly, you can now focus on other mobile marketing strategies that can assist you in bringing traffic to your website. There you need to start with text messages. Sending messages to your customers is an amazing way to target the audience and to show them that they are important to you. 

SMS marketing stats 2021 has shown that text messages are as high as 98%. SMS and MMS content that works particularly well includes ongoing sales offers, incentives, and special promotions that inspire readers to click on the website link and make a purchase.

Create mobile-friendly landing pages

Landing pages or self-sufficient websites that are used to promote specific campaigns play an important role in the success of the business. Designing your landing pages in a way that is both attractive and illustrative  of your brand and products is a key factor for profitability. 

Fifty-seven percent of emails are opened on mobile phones and 69% of the users delete emails that are not mobile-friendly. Whereas, if the email is mobile-friendly and the click that takes the user to the landing page is not optimized for mobile then, the visitor will likely become aggressive and click away. Take your customers’ needs into account and make sure that your landing pages are mobile-friendly.   

Create mobile-friendly apps

Nowadays, most businesses have their applications. If created accurately, mobile applications can help you interact with your customers and also drive traffic to your website. Keep your field in mind and analyze different types of apps for their productivity, commerce, user retention, and business conversions to find out whether the app in which you are going to invest in is the correct move for your brand. You can also promote your app in app stores which enables your brand to get more publicity.

The post Mobile Marketing: Why is it important and What are its Essential Components appeared first on That Helpful Chick.

Top Techniques to Optimize Your Social Media Marketing

With an increase in the number of growing businesses after the sufferings of the pandemic, content optimization has become more important than ever before and social media is the  feather in the cap. For improving your online engagement and turning your audience into paying customers you must know about social media marketing strategies.

In this article, I’ll be listing some of the techniques for successful social media marketing optimization.

Techniques for Optimizing Social Media

1. Identify Your Social Media Goals

The first step is to identify what is your utmost goal for optimizing your social media handles. If you are looking to boost your sales like most entrepreneurs are , you have to improve audience reach and engagement, generate leads, and convert leads into sales.

Having an end goal in mind will help you in finding out the smaller milestones you need to hit in order to get there. The more specific your goals, the easier it is for you to keep your focus straight and make progress.

2. Create an Up-to-date Profile

In order to reach your target audience, you have to make a profile having the features mentioned below:

Add High-Quality Profile Photo

Since your brand image matters, , you need to design and upload a high-quality profile photo through which people will recognize you as they would  a company logo. 

Add About Us

This section will let people know about what exactly you do and also an insight into who you are, what services you provide, etc.

Mention Location

Mentioning your location in your profile will help people, who are seeking your services and products, in finding you. This factor can also increase the appearance chances in local searches and google loves it.

Add Availability Hours

By adding availability hours your audience will get to know when to expect a reply from your side for their inquiry messages, and it also shows your professionalism regarding work and time.

3. Hashtag Research

One of the essential factors for optimizing social media marketing is the use of accurate hashtags. Adding hashtags in your captions increases the chances of exposure and thus, better reach. There should be proper research done for hashtags because reaching the right audience is very important, otherwise, there is no use in reaching them. Hashtags are not as effective on Facebook, as they are on Instagram and Twitter.

Instagram

It allows you to add a maximum of 30 hashtags per post, but experts say that properly researched, a maximum of 11 hashtags per post is ideal for engagement purposes.

Twitter

If you want to search for hashtags on Twitter you can do that by clicking on the hashtag option in Twitter’s search bar. For Twitter, one or two hashtags per post are best for good engagement.

4. Create a Content that Addresses the Audience’s Problems

Content is the key to your social media marketing success. It plays an important role in drawing the audience to you. People value the things that look after their problems. Therefore, your content should not be limited only to promotional content. There should be a mix of both, 80% informational content, and 20% promotional content. 

Use Infographics

Infographics are best for an engaging audience because they are informative, visually captivating, and can be shared.

5. Use Images and Videos

With the tremendous amount of content growing on social media in every users’ feed, and all the companies who are selling their services and fighting for attention, you have to design images and videos in such a way that they attract the customers in one go.

Today over 70% of the customers have shared a brand’s video and over 50% say that their confidence in online shopping increased after watching videos. 

Experts have revealed that each social media platform has a different preference when we talk about content. What may attain a better reach on Facebook may not necessarily receive the same result on Instagram. Therefore, you have to create content by keeping in mind the ongoing trends on each platform.

6. Be Active on Your Social Media Handles

Analyze the social media platforms that work best for your company and start focusing on them. Increase your brand awareness and brand promotion on these platforms.

Facebook

Facebook is undoubtedly one of the fastest-growing social media platforms, with almost 2.27 billion active users. It is profitable for every business regardless of what industry your business belongs to because search engines view Facebook as a local SEO signal. If you want to be more searchable then you have to create a Facebook business account.

Instagram

Instagram is an excellent social media platform for businesses that have much to do with visuals including food, blogging, travel, fashion, etc. More interaction and activity on this platform proves fruitful for your business’ success.

Twitter

It is the perfect social media platform for news and media companies that mainly focuses on sharing information and gossip. The more you will be active and talkative here, the more your business will grow. 

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a platform that primarily deals with Business to Business (B2B) transactions. If you want to sell your product to another company then, it is a highly recommended platform and your presence on this platform will decide the future of your company.

7. Optimize the Schedule of Your Postings

If you are posting content and still you are not receiving any profitable result, then one of the possible reasons could be the posting schedule of your social media sites. You have to schedule the posts on each platform with respect to their optimum time. It is the time when your audience is more active or online on that platform. The schedule will help you in increasing reach and interaction with your audience.

If you have any problem regarding website designing, marketing, social media, email, and all other related things, you can rely on our team to solve it for you and assist you in the best possible way!

You can register yourself for our special training programs, as well as booking a call.

The post Top Techniques to Optimize Your Social Media Marketing appeared first on That Helpful Chick.

Brand Image is your Brand’s status, which requires years to build and minutes to ruin.

For entrepreneurs, starting a new business might be an exciting venture, but it has it’s complexities too. At the beginner’s level, for branding a small business, you need to create your website, design a brand image and create marketing assets. A content marketing strategy is needed to reach your targeted audience. This is where the idea of brand image emerges. To transfer the focus of your brand from what you want it to speak for, to what your customers think of it. Analyzing your brand image is important if you want to understand if your brand and  your targeted audience are synchronized.

What is a Brand Image?

Brand image shows what customers think of their experience with your brand and how they perceive it. The customer’s point of view is affected by several factors, including the quality of your company’s product, the impression you create through brand marketing, and your level of customer service.

The cunning part of a brand image is that it is continuously changing and can be altered both positively and negatively  by  external factors like the opinion of other people about your brand.

To understand this concept better, let’s assume ourselves as a customer.

Say you decide to hire a virtual assistant, from a company, to create, design, and maintain your website. The virtual assistant has done a good job and you enjoyed working with them, and you think to yourself, “This company has good virtual assistants providing services, and you will reach out to them again when needed.” With those 18 words, you have cemented the brand image of that company.

Whereas, on the other hand, if your experience wasn’t great with the virtual assistant of that company you would’ve conjured a negative brand image. This will probably prevent you from hiring any virtual assistant from that company again and you’ll recommend the same to your friends.

An American businessman, Scott David Cook, said :  “A brand is no longer what we tell the customer it is, it is what customers tell each other it is.”

Why is Brand Image an Essential Factor for the Success of a Business?

In this section of the article we will take a closer look at the importance of brand reputation. Why is it considered the essential factor in the success of any business? Why do most creatively designed brand strategies turn into a complete waste of money if it does not take the brand image facet into account?

Makes an Impression.

Brand reputation will affect the opinion of people, regarding your brand, even before they experience your business firsthand. It could be because of word-of-mouth, social media, testimonials, or personal experiences. People will develop an impression of your business with each interaction they have.

When people reach your website and find an impeccable website design with testimonials of your clients and find all the required and relevant information, it will leave an impression on them, and they will in all probability decide  to make good use of your service. 

Creates Brand Awareness.

Brand awareness shows how well-known your brand is, and a positive brand reputation will help you in gaining popularity. By maintaining a high level of customer satisfaction, you’ll become a brand whose audience will remember and eventually, depend on it.

We can take an example of Apple, which has been successful in creating its positive brand image with the history of providing quality products, which results in the increasing customer dependence on these products.

Adds Value.

Your brand reputation depends on manifesting your value to your audience, employees, and community people. By maintaining a defined motive and showing your importance in your area of focus this will demonstrate your value and brand equity, specifically to the customers who are seeking these qualities. 

We can take an example of a company like Tesla, which displayed its commitment to the environment by making eco-friendly electric cars. This creates a strong impression on car-buyers who look forward to reducing pollution. In addition to this, other qualities of the car like appearance, price and size will add value, and people will likely purchase it. Tesla has created its brand image through these features, which helps in boosting its sales.

Increase Conversions.

A well-maintained brand image increases conversions, which means it converts the visitors to leads or customers. Whether it is through firsthand experience, or word-of-mouth, becoming a brand audience will make it simple to convert potential buyers into loyal and lifelong customers.

Best Ways to Manage Brand Image.

Managing the brand image could be a task in itself, therefore, to help you out, below are some of the proven ways to manage it.

Create a Professional Website.

A professional and up-to-date website makes a great impression on customers. It’s like a virtual hub for your brand image. A website makes it possible to inform and interact with the customers, engage with a new audience and promote the brand through a well-designed logo, home page, etc. If you invest time and money in creating a website that looks good, it will surely make a strong impact on the customers and it directly helps in the creation of a strong brand image.

Make Good Use of Marketing Strategies.

Never underestimate the power of marketing and its ability to influence the customer’s opinion about you. There are various types of marketing techniques including inbound marketing campaigns, influencer marketing, social media marketing, etc which are all in contemporary use of big brands.

Furthermore, the interaction with the brands is happening through online means, especially social media, where an average person spends over 2 hours a day. Therefore, an effective marketing strategy can create a good brand image around the world, even if you are sitting in your home.

Improve Your Customer Satisfaction.

You can have knowledge about your customer satisfaction through customer feedback. This can be done through online surveys, in-person interactions, online testimonials, or reviews in the comment section on your social media handles, etc. 

If the feedback is negative, then, that’s a hint that something needs to change. On the other hand, positive feedback indicates that you are right on track. Brands are also using different types of social media tools like Facebook messenger to interact with their customers more to manage their brand’s reputation.

 If you have any problem regarding website designing, marketing, social media, email, and all other related things, you can rely on our team to solve it for you and assist you in the best possible way!

You can register yourself for our special training programs, as well as booking a call.

The post What is Brand Image and Why it is an Essential Factor for the Success of a Business? appeared first on That Helpful Chick.

The Success of your Business is at stake without a Content Marketing Strategy

According to the recent research, of Marketing Institute (CMI) and MarketingProfs, 63% of businesses do not possess a content marketing strategy as they find it challenging to design one. Little did they know that content is everywhere. It might seem unfeasible to stand out in a never-ending ocean of information, but an efficacious content marketing strategy can make your brand reach the correct audience and rise rapidly. 

After creating your company’s website, it is high time to design a content strategy or to update the already existing one. It is never too late to strategize your content and make it more effective. 

How to Design a Content Strategy?

This guide will help you in developing and executing a content marketing plan and, for that, we will divide the method of designing a content strategy into six simple steps. It will be fruitful to skim through these steps, before generating any content, as they assist you in spending your money and time wisely on the right material. The steps are mentioned as under:

1. Decide Your Mission and Goals
2. Research  Your Audience
3. Analyze Your Current Position and Competitor
4. Find the Best Content Channels
5. Create a Content Calendar
6. Consider the Results

Decide Your Mission and Goals

To begin your content strategy process with settling of goals could be a good starting point. This brief word makes it simple for you to focus on what is important, rather than what is not. This will also help you to keep your content marketing strategy on track. Your mission also determines your targeted audience, and the type of content you want them to reach.

Each step of this strategy will assist you in achieving your goal and, therefore, your goal has to be specific, appropriate, and achievable. A distinct purpose should be affiliated to each part of the content that you share. 

A level of flexibility should also be connected to your goals because, in the future, you might find that your end goal changes. For example, when you have started a brand all you are focusing on is to increase brand awareness, when it starts getting better, your focus changes to generating more customers or leads. In that case, your goals should always guide your decisions as the business progresses.

Research Your Audience

After your goal determination process, the next step is to undergo good research on your audience. This research will help you in achieving the answers to your questions including whom do you want to reach with your content? What are the interests of your targeted audience? Or, where does your audience go to find 411? etc. With the help of these answers, you can build a buyer persona and can also  attract more clients

. 

Google Analytics is also another powerful tool for that purpose, it will help in letting you know about the interests of your audience. If you don’t have Google Analytics, you can still know about your audience through different surveys, social media like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. 

Analyze Your Current Position and Competitor

The next step is to analyze your current position in the market and look for your competitors  and what kind of content they are producing, etc. If that competitor has a high rank on search engines, then probe on what keywords they are using from which they are generating their traffic.

For more research, you can also be looking at their customer reviews and the testimonials mentioned on their website. Whereas you should pay close attention to the points that your competitor is lacking in and make those points strong for your website, you should remember that they might be good at producing content however but might not be active on social media.

Paying attention to strengths and weaknesses can create opportunities to design your way into the market through a feasible content marketing strategy.

Find the Best Content Channels

The next step is to prioritize which channel you want to focus on. In the beginning, do not overburden yourself by trying to excel in them all. You want to ace in blogging as well as on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. 

Prioritizing will save you time and it will also help  keep your attention intact. By working on one or two platforms, the results will be visible at rapid speed. Keeping your budget in mind decides the channels you want to use for marketing. Later on, with achieving success in these selected platforms you can move onto the next one.

Create a Content Calendar

To put your strategy into action, and after selecting the platforms you want to pay attention to, sit down and create a content calendar. You can do this with any efficient member of your company, primarily someone who also has something at stake in the company.

You can plan content related to important events like launch parties, special holidays, etc. This calendar will be highly  recommended for small companies when they have to post on different channels and this calendar will manage their content. Apart from that, it will help you to stay consistent and focused in terms of  content. 

Later on, this sequence, which has been developed over time, will be notified by your audience and they will start expecting content from your business. That’s how you’ll be able to make your permanent clients.

Consider the Results

The last step is to analyze the performance of your content through web analytics. Identify the areas where there is a need for improvement, take a deep look into your targeted audience, and decide if you need to re-examine your goals, etc.

This analysis can be done through the metrics like the number of clicks on the page, time, how many people stayed, and how many people have interacted with your website content, etc.

Furthermore, social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn have integrated analytics associated with them, which shows your reach, and engagement level through likes, comments, saves, and shares. After monitoring your progress, you can create a new content strategy or make amendments to  the existing ones, eventually, all these results will help you grow.

If you have any problem regarding website designing, marketing, social media, email, and all other related things, you can rely on our team to solve it for you and assist you in the best possible way!

You can register yourself for our special training programs, as well as also booking a call.

The post Content Marketing Strategy: Not a Challenge Anymore appeared first on That Helpful Chick.

If you aren’t sure about whether you can hire a virtual assistant, check out our FREE ebook HERE. You can also join our monthly training where I answer any and all questions about technology. Topics range from Facebook pages, video editing, image editing and optimization, to websites and more! Learn more about our Virtual Business Technology Training HERE!

You can also check out our article on What Does a Virtual Assistant Do?

Check out my interview below with my client and business coach, Katrina Sawa.

Ever get frustrated with your website, social media, technology, email and all the other glitches and things we have to now embrace to run our businesses more efficiently and smoothly?

Well, you want to have Angela in your “hip pocket” then I’d say… I do and boy, what a lifesaver she and her team have been for me and my husband and his business too.

Come hear some basic tips and tricks that she and I use in our businesses and you can too to help you become more productive and profitable!!

Check out all of our training here or book a FREE call HERE

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Too often I discover that my clients lack some basic understanding when it comes to their online tools. It is my goal to open your eyes to some of these basics so you can make informed decisions about your purchases that you won’t regret down the road. 

Most likely, you probably have never even heard the term domain registrar so let’s start with some definitions.

Domain Registrar:

Simply put, a domain name registrar is a service that allows you to officially register your desired website domain name so that it is unique to you, and no one else can own it. Originally, there was just one company that could register your domain name for you, but now there are literally hundreds.

Legitimate domain name registrars are accredited by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). ICANN is a private (non-government), non-profit corporation that has been given the responsibility of allocating IP addresses and managing the Domain Name System. The Domain Name System is what allows you to reach a website by typing in its name, rather than its numerical IP address. 

Website Hosting: 

Web hosting is a service that allows organizations and individuals to post a website or web page onto the Internet.

A web host, or web hosting service provider, is a business that provides the technologies and services needed for the website or webpage to be viewed on the Internet.

Websites are hosted, or stored, on special computers called servers. When Internet users want to view your website, all they need to do is type your website address or domain into their browser.

Their computer will then connect to your server and your web pages will be delivered to them through the browser.

Many website hosting companies will also register your domain but you don’t have to.

I recommend choosing one domain registrar and stick to that one for any and all domain purchases. Our preferred registrar is Namecheap and our preferred website host is Bluehost. 

You do NOT have to host your website where you purchase your domain.

In fact, we do not recommend that AT ALL. You could change website hosting many times – we’ve changed at least six times in the last 5 years – but your registrar can always stay the same.

What I have seen with our current and past clients, is they choose website hosting with GoDaddy simply because that happens to be where they bought their domain.

The problem is that GoDaddy are not WordPress friendly and they charge you for a lot of things that many website hosting companies include. For example,  your SSL certificate (the secure padlock) and your domain email (info@yourdomain.com).

Do you have any questions about registrars or hosting? We’d love to hear them. Leave a comment or schedule a free call with me at https://bookacall.pro.

The post Difference Between Web Hosting and Domain Registration appeared first on That Helpful Chick.

First let’s discuss the two different ways you can bring on help – project work and retainer work. The main difference between the two is one has a specific start and end date and the other is a monthly agreement.

Key Differences of Retainers vs. Projects

Project

• Well-defined scope & services
• Clear, short-term deliverables
• Shorter timeline (typically < 6 months)
• One-time needs (once completed, there is no more work to do)
• First-come, first-serve
• Budgetary considerations

Retainer

• Broad or unclear scope & services
• Broad range of services
• Longer timeline (typically 6+ months)
• Ongoing needs (there is always work to be done)
• Needs prioritized over projects
• Budgetary considerations

Examples of Retainer or monthly type VA work:

• Creating and sending email marketing, newsletters, promotions
• Blog posting
• Social media connecting or posting
• Website support, updates, add-ons or design
• Computer techy things like online data backups, creating ebooks, organizing files on desktop, organizing email inbox with folders and rules to sort email
• Setting up new email marketing, hosting accounts or shopping carts
• Help deciding which technologies and software or services to use in the first place so you maximize your time, are more efficient and don’t waste money on the wrong tools

A project can be a great way to start out. You can hire a virtual assistance for a project which will allow you to get to know how they work and see if they are a good fit for you for retainer work. 

In our newest Free Download, we cover all of this as well as:

• A few examples of some projects we have done in the last 90 days
• List of Delegatable Tasks
• Examples of how to sort your list into categories
• How to Choose a VA
• Some Examples of Questions to Ask when Interviewing a VA

What do YOU need help with? Do you even know what you need? Some business owners do not which is where we also come in handy…. 

Grab a copy of this FREE Download –

How to Hire & Work with a Virtual Assistant

by Project or Retainer? – here

The post Project vs. Retainer Work appeared first on That Helpful Chick.

A virtual assistant (VA) is a person (independent contractor) who provides support services to businesses from a remote location. The term originated in the 1990s as the ability to work virtually, due to technology improvements like high-speed internet and document sharing, made working remotely a reality. 

What does a virtual assistant do?

Virtual assistants are especially in demand by entrepreneurs and online businesses that need help but don’t want to bring on staff at their location. However, many small and mid-size businesses use virtual support, especially for specific tasks, such as social media management.

There are many tasks a virtual assistant can do for your business; including but not limited to: bookkeeping, data entry, social media, website maintenance, writing, travel arrangements, appointment scheduling and online file storage management.

A virtual assistant operates remotely but can easily access any necessary documents, images and calendars online. They have become more typical as businesses increase their need for an online presence and assistance. As an independent contractor, a business doesn’t have to provide the same benefits as a full-time employee.

Because of the growth in this industry, many states are recognizing a need for legally defining this position. California has already passed a law regarding worker status: employees and independent contractors. You can read a copy here and in Sec. 2 it states the 3 conditions that must be met for someone to be considered an independent contractor. I imagine other states will eventually follow suit.

Hiring a virtual assistant

Hiring a virtual assistant doesn’t have to be a monthly expense if you’re not ready for that. Look for our article on the difference between projects and retainers coming soon!

Would you like to find out more about how a virtual assistant can help your business? Schedule a free call with me at https://bookacall.pro.

The post What Does A Virtual Assistant Do appeared first on That Helpful Chick.

2010-2011: I entered into a new relationship and married a man who ended up being a most toxic person and brought nothing but pain and hardship to my life. I left a 10 year career working in corrections because of him. My first grandchild was born in August 2011 – a beautiful girl.

2012: Thankfully it did not take me long to get the courage to leave my husband even though I did not file for divorce. I was of the mind that he had taken enough money from me while we were together and I’d be damned if I was going to pay for a divorce! My second grandchild was born in August – a handsome little boy.

2013 – 2014: I worked a few menial jobs until my back pain got to the point where it was difficult to stand or sit very long and ended up quitting working. I was diagnosed with Degenerative Disc. I lived with my daughter and she supported me for a few months, which didn’t sit well with me. I searched online for ways to make money and found a training which taught me how to build websites and affiliate marketing. This is also where I met my very good friend Kathy who works with me. I began taking on the odd job building websites for others.

2015: I officially created my current business That Helpful Chick. I started working more and was making enough to cover my personal bills.

2016 – 2017: I made a lot of mistakes which taught me valuable lessons in business. I made my first trip outside the US and went to Scotland for 2 months in 2016! In 2017 my business grew and made $34K net income – my first truly profitable year.

2018: My husband, whom I never divorced, was murdered in July due to the lifestyle he was living. Towards the end of this year, I discovered a desire to change the way I look at life, business and my relationships. My business grew even more and the net income increased by nearly 25%.

2019: This year I made my 2nd trip to the UK. My business grew even more and the net income grew another 25%. We also now have a team of virtual assistants to help our clients. 2019 has been my year for personal development. I’ve learned a lot about myself and changed a lot, for the better. My third grandchild was born in May – on my mother’s birthday! He already has us all wrapped around his wee fingers. On December 28th I turned 47. I have to say, it does not feel like I thought it would. You know, when you’re in your 20’s, you think anything over 45 is old! 🙂

I feel like my life is just beginning and there are many more adventures and discoveries coming my way.
Have you ever played those FB games where you click and they give you a word for the year? I did one last year and my word was Love. It couldn’t have been more true. 2019 was all about learning to love and be loved. Not the romantic love but more on a basic level.

For 2020, I feel like my word is Hope. Now don’t confuse hope with wish. Wishing is dreams without action. Hope is more trusting in what is to come and taking action to make it happen then having faith that what you hope for will come to pass.

I also feel like moving forward, the lesson I have learned the most in 2019, that I must focus on what really matters. Stop wasting resources in life and in business. For example, worry and stress can be a massive suck on your time resource.

I plan to be a more conscious leader going forward. I plan to live ON PURPOSE for A PURPOSE.

I have a business I love, a team I love and clients I love to work with. My family is happy and I am able to help my parents who are now retired. That is the best gift anyone could ask for.

I invite you to give yourself the gift of help in 2020. I’m not selling anything. I’m not one of those pushy people who are going to get you on a call then try and pressure or scare you into handing over your hard earned money. What I am offering is a 100% free 1 hour call with me to discuss your business needs and see if we are a good fit. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. At the very least, you may just walk away knowing the best systems/tools/software for you, your business and your budget!

Also, if you know anyone who might be interested in a chat, feel free to share this message with them as well.

Just go to my calendar and schedule a call today. https://bookacall.pro/

I look forward to speaking with you 🙂

Happy New Year!

Angela

The post What has this decade taught you? appeared first on That Helpful Chick.