Social Networking
Below you will find a list of popular social networking sites that you might considering joining and becoming active in to help get the word out about your business! Please note that we are not responsible for your experience with or any content included on any of these external sites. Please use your judgement when sharing information about your person, family or business.
The Switchboards
Indie Public
Ekaweeka
Hybrid Mom
LinkedIn
Facebook
Moli
Twitter
WAHM Interview: Valerie of Valerie’s Virtual Services
1. Introduce yourself… Where are you from? Are you married? Have kids? Pets? What are your hobbies and interests?
My name is Valerie Serio and I live in Turlock, California, with my husband Jason and our son Ozzie who is 7 and our daughter Ivy who is 4. We have a tiny 95 year old house with a huge backyard which we share with our cat Sunny (whose name is no indication of his personality) and 5 chickens. My main hobbies are sewing… clothes, quilts, curtains, purses and anything else I can dream up… gardening, cooking & reading. I usually read 3-4 books at the same time and I’m a huge fantasy geek.
2. What is your company name and what do you do?
I operate Valerie’s Virtual Services. I provide business writing services and dabble in design. I specialize in writing content for e-commerce businesses.
3. What made you want to get into your particular field?
I’ve always loved writing and particularly editing… I love taking the bare bones of someone’s idea and turning it into something spectacular! Remember in school when the teacher would have you pass your paper to the next person and you got to correct each others work? I was the dorky kid who took that way too seriously! Truth be told, I feel like I kind of fell into my current profession and it was the sort of landing that made me realize “This is what I want to be when I grow up!”. It meets several requirements that make me a happy girl: a.) I can work as an independent contractor, at my own pace from home (I work at a really fast pace… I’ve just never done well with the whole 9-5 thing!) b.) It gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling when I finish a job and have a happy client! and c.) The variety of different projects I get to work on means I am never bored… there is always something new to learn! The idea for my services came from talking with web designer friends and seeing the quality of the content on the sites I came across. I got the feeling that some people think that all you need to do to have a successful business online is to throw up a website with some products on it, when actually there is a lot more to consider. Creating a product description that is search engine optimized, fits well within the style of the site and still manages to engage and entertain potential customers takes a little bit of finesse and it’s a challenge I thoroughly enjoy!
4. What did you do before launching your company? What kind of experience, education or training do you have?
I’ve been a fry cook, a maid, an English tutor, a newspaper delivery person, a lab tech for a canine blood bank, a squab ranch helper, a diet clerk, an administrative assistant, a receptionist and a database manager. I went to community college and got a certificate in Culinary Arts and took several English, composition & marketing classes. I’m mainly self taught, and am lucky to have the support and patience of several key people who have helped me to develop my skills along the way. Remember how I said I’m not really a 9-5 type of gal? Well, I’m not really a formal education kind of gal either. I’m hoping my kids and I might go to college at the same time, maybe by then I’ll be ready! However, when I take an interest in something, I read about it, study it, talk about it incessantly and sometimes dream about it, so I consider myself fairly well educated on a few chosen subjects.
5. What sets your company apart?
I’m not a cookie cutter copy service and I’m not interested in running a cut & paste kind of operation… I work one on one with my clients and really try to get a feel for the message they want to get across. I tend to gravitate toward indie, women run businesses and I’m very passionate about doing everything I can to help my clients succeed. It’s not completely altruistic… the more successful my clients are, the better it reflects on me! But I really do love a good success story and I like to think I can help make that happen.
6. What/Who are your influences? What do you turn to when you need inspiration?
The Thesaurus! My friends and family are always willing to listen and offer an idea when I’m stuck. My husband is an excellent writer himself and is often my go-to for an awkward phrase that I can’t seem to get past. My best friend and I can tear up a brainstorming session… we’ve nearly figured out world peace after a bottle of Muscato a few times! Music, art and nature are always a good place to turn to. And as someone who tends to be oversensitive to criticism, I’ve learned there is absolutely no better teacher than seeing through the unbiased eyes of others. Even if it hurts, there is always a nugget of truth and lesson to be learned if you can put your ego aside! (I’m working on that… baby steps…)
7. Do you have any long term goals or upcoming additions to your services/products that you are excited about?
I’m excited to be learning all about web design… I have a lot to learn, but it is so much fun and I’m lucky to have a lot of good support! Another area I really want to focus on in the coming year is gaining more local clients. Our area is a bit behind the times for some reason and I want to help change that!
8. Do you work from home or outside of your home? How do you balance the responsibility of running a business with the rest of your life?
I work from home, from my desk in the corner of my dining room. I know when I tell most people that I work from home they immediately say “How great! You can work in your PJ’s!” and yes, I can. More importantly, if my morning gets taken over with housework or childcare, I have the lovely option of a power nap and an afternoon of work instead! Still, maintaining a balance is difficult sometimes. It’s hard to talk on the phone with clients with my kid’s version of WWF going on in the next room. And there have been plenty of times where I just want to scream “Leave me alone!! I’m working!!” What works for me is spacing projects out, giving myself enough time to make deadlines (something I had to learn along the way) and not get burned out and not working weekends! I’m not great at sticking to a schedule, but I am pretty good at turning work off when I need to relax.
9. It’s Saturday, you have no one but yourself to look after, an endless supply of money and 48 hrs to do whatever you want… what would you do?
I would rent an extremely expensive cabin on the beach and spend the entire weekend tide pooling, hiking, eating delicious meals at expensive restaurants and reading. I know… I’m totally boring.
10. What is your secret for handling a difficult client/customer?
Don’t respond right away! (Obviously you may not be able to do this in person.) When you have been working on a project and someone wants changes or has a different direction or a new idea it can be really, really frustrating. It helps to step back and get some room to breathe, and come back to it when you can think objectively. Also, know that you have the right to choose your clients. If you cannot seem to work well with someone, if they are abusive or you can’t give them what they need for whatever reason, there is no shame in wishing them the best of luck and recommending some other service providers to work with.
11. What networking strategies have been the most beneficial to you? What have you done to “get your name out there”? Has it worked?
I joined The Switchboards, which is a great place to connect with other women business owners and has so much information! Most of my business comes from word of mouth and referrals, so I’m really still trying to figure this one out.
12. What is the hardest part of running a business for you?
Selling myself and figuring out pricing. In the beginning I was charging way too little, and getting really frustrated with it. It’s hard to find a happy medium!
13. What do you love the most?
I’ll admit it… I love seeing my words out there! I’m still a little shell shocked that people will actually pay me to do something that 9 times out of 10 doesn’t really feel like work at all!
14. When you first started your company… did you have the support of friends and family? Did you have any sacrifices you had to make in order to pursue running your own business?
I have been lucky to always have support. My husband recently started his own company, and I think we have a pretty good understanding of the lifestyle it takes to achieve our goals. Income can be spotty during slow times, so fancy vacations and eating out and new toys are pretty much out of the question, but, I am confident it will be worth it! We try pretty hard to lead a less materialistic lifestyle (although that is really big challenge for me at times… I love to thrift shop and always have a craft project that needs funding!) so it actually fits in pretty well for us.
15. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? Where do you see your business?
I would love to still be working from home, doing a variety of different jobs! I really want to build a house in the country, where I can raise livestock and farm on a small scale and still be able to run my business. I want to be able to have my kids help me out and be a good example of carving out your own niche in this crazy world! I think in ten years I might be ready to start thinking about opening my next business… someday I want to open a tea room & a steak house/bar (separately… not together!) here in my area.
Valerie
Valerie’s Virtual Services
How to work from home with kids in tow (and survive the madness)!
Most people’s idea of a normal workday might involve commutes, coffee breaks & office gossip around the water cooler. For a work at home mom or dad, the workday (or night) looks much, much different. A mad dash to the grocery store, peanut butter & jelly lunch dates and trying to work around a cranky toddler’s post naptime meltdown are much more likely to occur during the average work day than a business lunch with sparkling adult conversation. While the fantasy of working in your PJ’s might actually make up for the hectic reality of working from home, we all know the act of successfully running a business in your PJ’s often requires the balance of a tightrope walker! Here are some tips for keeping things on a (mostly!) even keel:
1. Let the Kids Entertain Themselves
Mom’s (and Dad’s) today have swallowed the idea that they need to spend large amounts of time playing with their kids or organizing activities for them. Chances are your kids have plenty of toys, arts and crafts materials, books, games & dirt to dig in. So… let ‘em at it! Through trial and error we’ve found that our children can spend an entire afternoon playing with a shoebox quite happily and chances are yours can too. By no means do we advocate ignoring your kids, yet we believe it is healthy for them to recognize that Mom or Dad has their own interests and needs, and teaching them to be self sufficient helps develop their creativity and imagination. If your kids are used to being constantly directed in their playtime this will take some getting used to, but the intricacies in their play when left to their own devices will usually far surpass anything you could have dreamt up for them.
2. Time It Right
It’s hard to get anything done when you constantly have to stop and take care of household chores, errands and taxi time. Try to plan your day accordingly. Set aside an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening to tidy the house rather than constantly picking up messes made by little (and big) kids. Insist that everyone pitch in. Children as young as 2 can learn to pick up their toys and older children can do dishes, vacuum & sweep floors. We believe that work ethic and teamwork is something you must begin to instill early. Plan to run errands after you drop older children off at school so you can give yourself a nice chunk of uninterrupted work time.
3. Plan, Plot & Schedule
Get a good desk calendar and spend a week or three journaling your daily routine. This will help you identify blocks of time that you can utilize working that won’t take away from family time or leave you frazzled. Be certain to leave yourself some free time though, as ambitious women we know that it’s all too easy to push ourselves to the limits- and that’s not good for your sanity, the people you love or your business. If you over schedule you’ll find yourself burned out before you even begin!
4. Smell the Roses!
No matter how often you might wish for superpowers, chances are it’s not going to happen. You are a fabulous, wonderful human requiring food, exercise, rest, quiet and fun. Make all of those things a priority! Listen to your mama and eat three square’s a day… and no, Twinkies at your desk don’t count. Take a walk, dance with the kids or get out and dig in the dirt for awhile. Make it a priority to veg out a little each day… ESPECIALLY days when you are really feeling the pressure. Get dressed & throw on a little mascara every day. Even if your clients cannot see that you are wearing a wrinkly t-shirt and frayed pajama pants you can, and even a little self-indulgence can put a spring in your step and make you feel more confident in yourself. Pretend you are the boss of your work self… is my work self frazzled? Stressed and unproductive? Insist that poor woman take a break!! You’ll thank yourself later when you get back to work and dazzle everyone with your brilliant new ideas.
5. Talk About It
Working from home can get lonely. You may have a 5 year old to bounce ideas off, but they may not be especially versed in business or as of yet talented at making professional quality product. Joining a local business group or participating in a forum for business women can give you fresh perspective & let you connect with others who are in the same boat. Problems can seem much smaller when you have a resourceful, supportive group of people to turn to when things get rough.
This brought to you by our very own copy writing guru Valerie, also of Valerie’s Virtual Services.
Work from home!
You’ve always dreamed of owning your own business and working on your terms. Calling the shots and making your own hours. We do it… if you have something that your passionate about and good at, you can do it too! We can help get you started down the path to career success.
Do you have a hobby or interest that you are passionate and knowledgable about? Can you provide a necessary service? The first step in working from home is to perfect your product. Take what you are good at, what you love to do, and prepare it for market. The key is to do what you love to do, because if you don’t love it- your potential customers won’t either! And what’s the point of another dead end job, right?
Now you have a product or service you want to sell. What’s next? Planning. That simple eight letter word can really take the wind out of your sails. But it’s imperative if you want to succeed in business. You have to know where you are going if you want to get there.
Think: Market Research. The first thing you might do when you are planning to start your own business is to find out as much about your market as possible. Get the answers you need to important questions before you get started: How much does it cost to create your product? Where can you get the materials you need? Who are your competitors? How much do they charge for similar products? How are you going to stand out in the crowd? Who are your customers? What does your market want from you?
In this informational age, Google is your best friend. You can find out the answers to all of your questions at the speed of light. Or, maybe not. You may find that there are 135,232,023 returns for your search term and feel frustrated. If you need help with your market research, we highly recommend that you contact our good friend Valerie of Valerie’s Virtual Services.
Reaching your target customer is very important. If you are selling handmade hemp cloth grocery bags, you will want to market your product in a very different way than if you are retailing brand name jewelry. Having a product to sell is just the beginning of your journey towards self made success. Get to know your customer so that you can provide an atmosphere they will enjoy, and apply a marketing strategy that works for you and your business. Need help deciding how best to market your product? That’s what we’re here for.
Once you have a product to sell and a strategy in place to market your product, you will want to craft a business plan. If you are the DIY type, we recommend buying one of the numerous workbooks on the subject. We purchased Business Plan in a Day by Rhonda Abrams.
Your business plan should incorporate your vision for your business, your marketing research, a financial strategy and an operations plan. This detailed document will be invaluable to you if your business model requires that you seek financial investment from a bank or an investor. But it also helps you prioritize your goals and strategize.
So, you’re not a writer. It’s no big deal! There are some amazing writers out there who can do the job for you at a price you can afford. Once again, check out Valerie’s Virtual Services!
The next thing you need to do before you set up shop is to get legal. If you haven’t already, it’s time to contact your local city or government business office. They can help you complete the appropriate paperwork for your business type and location. When you communicate with your local business office you may want to inquire about support services available to you that will help you grow your business. Many cities, counties and private agencies provide some sort of free/low cost assistance to new businesses. Our county provided a business consultant and set us up with a lawyer for free.
So now, you’re ready to be in business! But you need a place to sell your wares. Whether you open a brick and mortar location or plan to operate strictly as an e-business, you need a web site. And not just any web site. You need a unique web site that is going to get the attention of your target market and hold it. You need a web site that can be found in the major search engines. You need a web site that is easy to update and grow. You need a web site you can afford. And we’re here to provide for those needs.
If you have questions about how we can help you start your own business and grow it, contact us today!
Creating Web Site Content
Offering your visitors quality content should be your first priority if you are in e-business. Your customers don’t get to enjoy the tangible manipulation of your product or see your bold display in 3D like they would if they stumbled into your shop in the mall. Your web site is flat, so your content should be anything but flat! You should mix colorful descriptions and vibrant product photography with a user friendly navigation to implore your customer to stay and look more. Information should not be scarce or hard to find.
What kind of information you need to provide on your web site really depends upon your specific message or product. You may want to start compiling your content by determining all of the pages you will need to have on your new site. From there you can make a list of topics that you will need to cover on each page. If you are the DIY type you might then begin writing your content. If you are not, this framework you have created will be the basic framework of information for a marketing writer to work with. Phaedra Web Design is proud to offer you writing services if you should require them.
If you want to write your own content but need a hand, we can make your content shine with a “content polish” to eliminate grammar and punctuation errors or increase readability and relevence.
In almost any case you will need to be sure to include the following articles on your site:
- Contact Information
- Return Policy
- Privacy Policy
- Terms of Service
(*Please consult with your lawyer when preparing your legal documents!)
And you very likely will want to include:
- Product & Category Pages/Descriptions (think 2-3 paragraphs, at least!)
- An “About Me” page
- Frequently Asked Questions or Knowledgebase
The more information you provide, and the easier you make it for your customers to find, the less time you will spend answering emails and phone calls, and the more likely your customer is to purchase your product.
All about Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
The term “search engine optimization” refers to the techniques used by web designers or SEO professionals to improve the ranking of your web site in natural (not paid) search engine results. You can learn alot more about Search Engine Optimization here.
Being listed and ranked well by the major search engines is important to many of our customers. Which is why we strive to stay abreast of the newest information about Search Engine Optimization and utilize best practice techniques when designing a web site. We always make sure that the web sites we develop are accessible to users with disabilities, include appropriate and useful meta tags, are light on code (when possible) and easy for you to update with lots of fresh, relevent content.
Which does not mean that we can guarantee you any results at all for our efforts. We have little control over whether you will be indexed and how well you will be placed. But we know how YOU can have some control over how well your new site is indexed by the big search engines! Ready? I have to shout! I hate to do it, but it’s so important- one word, said thrice…
CONTENT, CONTENT, CONTENT!
It’s all about your content! Well, mostly!
The more unique content you provide your user, the better informed and entertained your visitors will be. And the more likely your web site will be listed by major search engines, and possibly well. But please note: the trick is to write the content for the user and not the search engine! You don’t want to bore your visitors with repetitive or irrelevent content. And search engines don’t really like repetitive content (like has so often been used in the past to trick them into indexing a site well for a particular search term). Keywords are out, fresh descriptive content is in!
One way we like to encourage our customers to provide updated content to their visitors is the ever-popular blog. Blogging your product updates, events and business news keeps your customers informed and builds not only your content base, but consumer interest. It’s been our experience that when a blog is installed as a part of any e-commerce web site it quickly becomes the most popular area of the site overall. Your customers want to get to know you. Tell them all about it.
We know how busy entrepreneurs are, and blogging may not sound like the best idea to you if you don’t like to write. And that’s fine. Just please be aware, concentrating on providing high quality content to your visitors on your web site can boost your overall search engine performance! You must prioritize it. If you do not intend to blog, you still want to be certain to frequently update your web site and include lot’s of unique, relevent content to your visitors. Good product descriptions, plenty of graphics, a privacy policy statement, return policy, and secure environment are all imperitive to any e-commerce web site.
But of course, great content is not the end of the efforts you should make to increase the value of your web site to the search engines. There are other things you can do to increase your search engine worthiness. For instance, networking can make a big difference in getting indexed better by search engines. Links in from other web sites can be viewed as a vote of confidence in your site and product. The more valid, appropriate links in to your site, the more valuable your site becomes.
Now, I’m not telling you to leap into some smarmy link-swapping campaign. I’m really talking about good, old fashioned networking.
There is simply not enough that can be said about networking. Would you feel more comfortable purchasing a product from a random store you pulled up in a search engine, or a store referred to you by a friend or another company/organization? You will do better both in the eyes of your potential customers and in the view of the search engines if other web sites link to you.
It is going to take work to get noticed, you are going to have to make your product and web site known to the public by executing a marketing campaign. It always drives me nuts when I see the informercials that say, “you too can own a custom internet business and make millions with little or no effort!” because that just isn’t how it goes. There are mazillions of stores out there, and likely quite a few who offer a product or service very similar to yours. You need to stand out in a crowd, you need to get the attention of your target audience. You aren’t going to get it just because you have a shiny new website that is super search engine optimized. You must pound the (virtual) pavement!
Here are some links to SEO resources for you to check out:
Submit Your Site to Yahoo Search
Submit Your Site To Google
Search Engine Watch – How To Use HTML Meta Tags
Organic SEO
What is a blog, and why do I need one?
blog (blog)
n.
A weblog.
intr.v., blogged, blog-ging, blogs.
To write entries in, add material to, or maintain a weblog.
(Thanks, Answers.com!)
Your blog is a public journal that you can utilize to present fresh, interesting content and business or personal news to your potential readers. Your potential customers will enjoy learning more about you and your business, and the content you present will boost your credibility with search engines.
In addition to being SEO Friendly and fun/informative for your visitors, your blog can also help you network with other business owners or customers to grow your business. Swap links with your friends and watch your site stats grow! You may even consider offering ad space on your blog to generate additional income for your business.
Your blog is an important tool for your business. But it can also be therapeutic! Post new ideas, talk about difficulties in your business or personal life, share your best moments, tell your story. It feels great to get that stuff off your chest without spending a fortune!
You can’t live without a blog. If you have a business web site but no blog, you are missing the boat! Connect with your visitors, provide up-to-date news, increase your search engine worthiness and save your sanity- what a deal, right? 
My name is Phaedra
Hello, Phaedra- formerly of Phaedra Web Design, here! I’ve done it again. I’ve decided to expand my horizons, or to acknowledge my already expansive horizons with a brand new website that will showcase all of my work (play) and available services.
For quite some time I’ve been working from home as a web designer slash graphic designer slash photographer slash crafter.. and for a while I’ve felt limited by my now “old” business name, Phaedra Web Design. I’ve also been thinking really hard on how I want to operate my business and what is most important to me, which is my health and my family first- and my business and helping others start their own businesses second. How to balance it all (and do it extremely well)?!
I intend to take charge of my destiny with this new site- selling whatever it is I’m into ‘now’, and offering lot’s of information and fun stuff to my fellow geeks or geeks-in-training.. in lieu of my old fashioned and more expensive (and time consuming and demanding) custom website design services.
I hope you will check back in to see what I have to offer in the weeks and months to come… I’m pretty sure that you will find information and inspiration that will be useful in your quest to be a more creative and productive person!
Thanks for stopping by rhodescreative.com!
What I Want
