4 Resources Help Small Businesses Save Time, Money, Paper and Gas

Small businesses are always looking for ways to save time, money, paper, and especially in today’s economy – gas. As a virtual assistant to solo professionals, I’ve come across several resources that have helped me and my clients save time and money.

One task that can take up time and paper is getting a contract or agreement signed. Time and paper can be saved using an online resource called Echo Sign. This service makes getting a document signed by both parties as easy as sending an email – and it can be done in minutes. There’s nothing to install and a free account can get five documents signed a month. It’s been very useful in my business, making the turn around time in getting documents signed almost non-existent. Also, there’s no paper to print. Documents are stored electronically. Visit their website at EchoSign.com.

Are you always jotting yourself a note on a sticky note? Save yourself money and paper by using Jott.com. Jott converts your voice into emails, text messages, reminders, lists and appointments. Just pick up the phone and send yourself a Jott. Your Jott will be in your Inbox when you get back to the office. No more sticky notes!

Would you like to receive all your bills electronically and not deal with the hassle of paper anymore? Of course you want to sign up for any e-statements you can. Another great online resource is PayTrust.com. PayTrust allows you receive, review, pay and organize all your bills online.

Do you like going to seminars to learn more about your industry but find you can’t afford the gas anymore? Teleseminars may be the answer you’re looking for. Save gas by never leaving the comfort of your home or office. Check out Conference Call University at CCULearning.com.

Many solo professionals are saving time and money by using the services of a virtual assistant to help create and implement online marketing for their service businesses. Search for a virtual assistant in your area and see how he or she can help.

Group Coaching Preview Call for Virtual Assistants

Chief Virtual Officer’s Group Coaching Calls Program launches April 2010. Our first call is a free preview call to let you know what we are offering and will allow you an opportunity to get your questions answered so you can decide if this is the program for you.

Join us for this conference call on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 11:00 am PST. We have arranged our schedule for a 60-minute call to let you know what we intend to do and so you can ask all your questions. If we need to stay on the call for 90-minutes, we’ve left our schedule open to accommodate that so you get all your questions answered.

On this call you will learn:

  • The day and time we plan to have these calls
  • The topics that will be covered (The first topic will be: Marketing Your Services)
  • The benefits of participating in a group coaching call
  • How to get your questions answered even if you can’t make the live call

Register for the call.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Virtual Assistant Group Coaching Call Survey Results

We recently sent out a survey asking for the opinions of virtual assistants regarding a monthly group coaching call. The response was phenomenal! Thank you to each and every one of you who participated. Here’s a summary of the results:

Number of respondents: 77
% preferred individual coaching: 38%
% preferred group coaching: 68%
(Some people chose both because they felt a combination of both individual and group coaching was the best option for them)

How often should the group meet?
Weekly 26%
Monthly 39%
Twice a month 35%

86% of the respondents thought a one hour call was just the right amount of time.

Day of Week to hold call: answers were fairly even across all weekdays.

Most Popular Time of Day for calls: 9 am to 12 pm PST.

Hottest topic: Marketing Your Services

Cost at $25 per call: 68.7% thought that was just right!

There are a variety of reasons why group coaching was preferred over individual coaching and vice versa. I’ll be writing a separate blog post on that soon. Of course we’re developing this program specifically for those interested in group coaching. Those that prefer individual coaching can review our individual coaching packages at ChiefVirtualOfficer.com.

There were some specific concerns brought up about how a group coaching call would work and we will be addressing those as we develop the program.

There were 26 respondents that provided some sort of contact information and expressed interest in some sort of coaching program. I’ve already connected with quite a few of you on Skype. Thank you! Two respondents have already received a free 30-minute telephone coaching session and one of those intends to begin one of our coaching programs in April.

What’s Next?
After thoroughly reviewing all the responses, particularly of those who gave contact information and expressed interest in the program, it’s obvious a group coaching call is wanted by virtual assistants.

At this point it appears that a call twice a month would work best. Since we will be charging per call, we’ve decided to drop the cost of the calls to $20 each. You will be able to purchase each call individually. If your budget only allows one call per month, that’s fine. If you can afford both per month, you’ll benefit even more.

All calls will be recorded. So if you can’t make the live call, you’ll still have access to the recording. We’ve even made arrangements for those who can’t join the call live to get their questions answered. There will be no obligation to sign up for more than one call at a time. In fact if you sign up for one call, skip three months, sign up for another call, skip six months and then sign up for another call…well you get the idea. After the first call if you decide this isn’t the program for you, that’s fine. You’re not committed to anything.

Before we finalize the details of how this is going to work, we want to give those of you interested in participating an opportunity to tell us more about what you want from the program.

So we are arranging for a FREE conference call on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 11:00 am PST. We have arranged our schedule for a 60-minute call to let you know what we intend to do and so you can ask all your questions. If we need to stay on the call for 90-minutes, we’ve left our schedule open to accommodate that so you get all your questions answered.

We are planning some special things for the group coaching calls and we’ll talk more about that on the call April 6th. I can tell you this – everyone who purchases a group coaching call will receive a FREE 10-page Special ReportBonus Tips: Grow Your Business as a Chief Virtual Officer.

REGISTER for the FREE Conference Call on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 11:00 am PST. Tell us what you want from the group coaching calls!

Register here: http://cvogroupcoachingcall20100406.eventbrite.com/