When I mention to clients about how useful Twitter is for marketing and brand-building, they usually are surprised, or think I'm just a Twitter addict (guilty as charged!) trying to justify using the latest distraction. However, there are some real-life case studies of successful Twittering that can easily be observed... just by following and watching how the Twitter Masters (as I like to call them) tweet. There's a lot of great case studies I could point to, but one very famous personality stands out as a fantastic example of how best to use Twitter: physician and best-selling author Deepak Chopra ( @Deepak_Chopra ).

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Most of my clients are solopreneurs (like myself), small companies or non-profits. As such, their website development and maintenance budgets are small - so much consideration is given to "bang for the buck" - in terms of function vs. form with initial site development and ongoing maintenance. It wasn't too long ago that I did only custom designed websites - that they would have to have ongoing assistance to maintain (usually by me). However, the upside was that the client would have a truly unique site that reflects the company's brand and allow for complete design freedom, plus they could rely on me to do quick content updates as they needed them.

With all the buzz surrounding social media, RSS, video and every other online outlet... one standby that gets taken for granted is good ol' email. We all use it (and some of us love it), but it also can be a source of enormous frustration that can eat up a lot of the workday. Much of inbox-related angst is easily avoided with a few simple changes in what you use for email and how you process it. In no particular order, here's my "Top-Ten" tips for helping email help you...

**UPDATED***

Who doesn't need good press?

Imagine seeing your name in the local business newspaper and magazine, being highlighted in a local publication or TV show, your family, friends, clients and potential clients gathering calling to congratulate you on your press coverage.

If building your credibility through local public relations is appealing to you, you will want to join us as Meredith Liepelt of Rich Life Marketing shows us the exact steps she takes to secure local press coverage for herself and her clients. And how you can too!

Join us as Meredith teaches us how to get local PR on a micro budget!

You will learn:
? The #1 thing that makes up the news
? Four kinds of stories that reporters love
? The simple components of a press release
? How to know where to send your press release
? The one thing you should never say to a reporter when you call to follow up
? How to get your name in the paper next week ? really!
? The key components of your press kit

Join the LIVE Smart-Savvy Entrepreneur's BlogTalk Radio show ***UPDATED****on May 7th, at 5:00 p.m. EST: http://bit.ly/C7kR5 (or get the replay of the show on-demand).

Questions will be taken LIVE during the show at: (347) 308-8941



About the featured guest:
Meredith Liepelt, Creative Client Attraction? Strategist and President of Rich Life Marketing, is an award-winning marketing entrepreneur, coach, speaker and author of eight years. She has been featured on entrepreneur.com, MSN.com, Portfolio.com, ABC, NBC, Business First, The Columbus Dispatch, as well as a multitude of newspapers and radio shows around the country. Meredith is a featured columnist in Glow Magazine, www.ResourceNation.com and has been published in many others outlets.

Meredith is featured in the books Real You Incorporated, 8 Essentials for Women Entrepreneurs, by Kaira Rouda and Beating the Bailout Blues by Rosalind Resnick. She is a member of The National Association of Women Business Owners and eWomenNetwork where she leads the marketing committee for the Columbus, Ohio chapter. She is the author of an upcoming book on client attraction strategies for solopreneurs.

Meredith works with solopreneurs and micropreneurs around the country through her group and private coaching programs, boot camps, teleseminars, retreats and home study kits. Meredith created a 2-minute movie called www.TheRichLifeMovie.com that other women business owners have called ?brilliant? and ?a true gift to women in business.?

She publishes a very popular free bi-weekly enewsletter called Smart Marketing that is packed with client attraction advice, tools and resources. Every new subscriber receives a free e-course where she teaches her Marketing for a Truly Rich Life Formula? valued at $139.

**UPDATED***

Who doesn't need good press?

Imagine seeing your name in the local business newspaper and magazine, being highlighted in a local publication or TV show, your family, friends, clients and potential clients gathering calling to congratulate you on your press coverage.

If building your credibility through local public relations is appealing to you, you will want to join us as Meredith Liepelt of Rich Life Marketing shows us the exact steps she takes to secure local press coverage for herself and her clients. And how you can too!

Join us as Meredith teaches us how to get local PR on a micro budget!

You will learn:
? The #1 thing that makes up the news
? Four kinds of stories that reporters love
? The simple components of a press release
? How to know where to send your press release
? The one thing you should never say to a reporter when you call to follow up
? How to get your name in the paper next week ? really!
? The key components of your press kit

Join the LIVE Smart-Savvy Entrepreneur's BlogTalk Radio show ***UPDATED****on May 7th, at 5:00 p.m. EST: http://bit.ly/C7kR5 (or get the replay of the show on-demand).

Questions will be taken LIVE during the show at: (347) 308-8941



About the featured guest:
Meredith Liepelt, Creative Client Attraction? Strategist and President of Rich Life Marketing, is an award-winning marketing entrepreneur, coach, speaker and author of eight years. She has been featured on entrepreneur.com, MSN.com, Portfolio.com, ABC, NBC, Business First, The Columbus Dispatch, as well as a multitude of newspapers and radio shows around the country. Meredith is a featured columnist in Glow Magazine, www.ResourceNation.com and has been published in many others outlets.

Meredith is featured in the books Real You Incorporated, 8 Essentials for Women Entrepreneurs, by Kaira Rouda and Beating the Bailout Blues by Rosalind Resnick. She is a member of The National Association of Women Business Owners and eWomenNetwork where she leads the marketing committee for the Columbus, Ohio chapter. She is the author of an upcoming book on client attraction strategies for solopreneurs.

Meredith works with solopreneurs and micropreneurs around the country through her group and private coaching programs, boot camps, teleseminars, retreats and home study kits. Meredith created a 2-minute movie called www.TheRichLifeMovie.com that other women business owners have called ?brilliant? and ?a true gift to women in business.?

She publishes a very popular free bi-weekly enewsletter called Smart Marketing that is packed with client attraction advice, tools and resources. Every new subscriber receives a free e-course where she teaches her Marketing for a Truly Rich Life Formula? valued at $139.

I just published my April e-zine with lots of updates. If you're in the Central Ohio region, there are events you may be interested in.

If you're a Smart-Savvy Entrepreneur - then VIEW YOUR COPY HERE!

If you don't scroll through the entire e-zine, be sure to look for the BlogTalk Radio program scheduled for Thursday at 5:00 p.m. EST. You won't want to miss Meredith Liepelt!

Radio Program: How to Get Local PR on a Micro Budget - set your reminder now!
[http://www.blogtalkradio.com/smartsavvyentrepreneur]

Enjoy!

A big congratulations to the recipients of the VAccolade Business Entrepreneur Award presented in April 2009!? You might like to check out http://vanetworking.com/blog/2009/04/ for more information about the Virtual Assistants listed below. 6 April 2009 – Donna Toothaker of 1st VA 13 April 2009 – Erin Stinson of Premiere Virtual Office 20 April 2009 – Donnette Cowgill of [...]

In case you've wondered where I've been, I've been steadily working on a new blog!

I'm so excited about it. So, stay tuned and please sign up for updates here. You'll be the first to know when we go LIVE!!

In the meantime, I just had to share this little set of social media icons I found today. They are really *cute* and can help you to make a splash on the social media scene. You'll make an impression introducing your social media profiles to visitors.

Take a look, and take them for whirl! I'll be sure to add a set to my new site too!

In case you've wondered where I've been, I've been steadily working on a new blog!

I'm so excited about it. So, stay tuned and please sign up for updates here. You'll be the first to know when we go LIVE!!

In the meantime, I just had to share this little set of social media icons I found today. They are really *cute* and can help you to make a splash on the social media scene. You'll make an impression introducing your social media profiles to visitors.

Take a look, and take them for whirl! I'll be sure to add a set to my new site too!

Congratulations to? Angela Green of Virtual Assistant 3.0 who today was selected for Blog of the?Week recipient?at?VAnetworking.com! Got a few moments to spare?? You can check out Angela’s blog here – and feel free to leave your?comment below. Would like more information about Virtual Assistant 3.0?? Go to http://virtualassistant30.com/. Selected for Blog of the Week by: VAnetworking.com [...]

To give you an idea of what it means for a Virtual Assistant to qualify to display the VAccolade banner on their website I have copied and pasted some information from VAnetworking.com into the section below. You must be nominated by one of your clients, business colleagues or peers and meet any combination of the following [...]

When you logged in to Twitter, were you excited to see who responded or retweeted your avitar? Was the first place you looked your DMs or your "@replies"? If you were "@reply" happy, you may have gotten a surprise today.

The world of social media is moving faster than most can keep up with. Today Twitter announced a shift in the way we traditionally find out who's responded to our posts or referenced our avitar within a tweet.

So, if you've traditionally looked for the "at replies" listed as @replies get used to the new term "mentions" as Twitter is shifting to "@" followed by your avitar or username.

To learn more about the rationale read the Twitter blogpost: Replies Are Now Mentions.

When you logged in to Twitter, were you excited to see who responded or retweeted your avitar? Was the first place you looked your DMs or your "@replies"? If you were "@reply" happy, you may have gotten a surprise today.

The world of social media is moving faster than most can keep up with. Today Twitter announced a shift in the way we traditionally find out who's responded to our posts or referenced our avitar within a tweet.

So, if you've traditionally looked for the "at replies" listed as @replies get used to the new term "mentions" as Twitter is shifting to "@" followed by your avitar or username.

To learn more about the rationale read the Twitter blogpost: Replies Are Now Mentions.

A big congratulations to the recipients of the VAccolade Business Entrepreneur Award presented in March 2009!? You might like to check out http://vanetworking.com/blog/2009/03/ for more information about the Virtual Assistants listed below. 2 March 2009 – Lauren Ambrose of Virtual Assistant Lauren 8 March 2009 – Regina Brown of Brown?s Professional Services 22 March 2009 – Paula Belyeu [...]

I have known Ruth through VAnetworking.com since I joined back in October 2007 and have also had the pleasure of working alongside of her for several months now.? I have found Ruth to be an extremely honest, friendly, reliable and loyal person with a flair about her which is very unique to her person.? I [...]

I am so sorry for the lack of blogging here at the Virtual Rave!  We have had some techical problems with accessing the blog through no fault of WordPress at all.  Anyway, wanted to let you know that we are back on track and ready for some serious blogging.  We’ll have to do some really [...]

Congratulations to? Paula Belyeu of Integrity Virtual Solutions who was on the 20 April 2009, selected for Blog of the?Week recipient?at?VAnetworking.com! Got a few moments to spare?? You can check out Paula’s blog here.? Maybe you know Paula and think her blog really is wonderful – if so then feel free to leave your?comment below. Would like [...]

Congratulations to Marie Fitzgibbons of Deadline Met Virtual Assistance, who is the recipient of this week’s VAccolade Business Entrepreneur Award. Marie is a virtual assistant living in Irvine, CA.? She offers services such as client relationship management, as well as general administrative assistance.? She has been a valued member of VAnetworking since July 2009. Bookmark It Hide Sites $$('div.d1154').each( [...]

Diversification in business is good and shouldn?t be overlooked or taken lightly. Businesses just starting out are encouraged to find their place, or niche, in the business world. For some, that?s as easy as determining the types of services to be offered or products to be sold. The diversification comes into play with how we operate in a chosen niche.

A big congratulations to the recipients of the VAccolade Business Entrepreneur Award for February 2009!? You might like to check out http://vanetworking.com/blog/2009/02/ for more information about the Virtual Assistants listed below. 2 February 2009 – Roz Harris of Instant Assistant Virtual Office Support 9 February 2009 – Ana Mar?a Pineyra of El Teleasistente Web 15 February 2009 – [...]

Congratulations to? Melanie Borowczyk of Provirtua who was on the 7 January 2009, selected?as Blog of the?Week recipient?at?VAnetworking.com! Got a few moments to spare, read Melanie’s blog Business Solutions and Strategies.? If you know Melanie and think her blog really does rock then feel free to leave your?comment below. Would like more information about Provirtua?? Go to [...]

Congratulations to Victoria Santiago of Your Telecom Advisor who?was recipient of the VAccolade Business Entrepreneur Award for week beginning 25 January 2009!??You might like to check out the?VAnetworking Blog where Victoria and her business were also?featured. The VAnetworking’s VAccolade Business Entrepreneur banner which Victoria can now display on?her website?provides much deserved recognition?for her professional commitment to [...]

On the web, the more you add and edit and test and experiment, the better it is for you - the more you learn, the more traffic you get. Change doesn't make you look shifty, it makes you engaged in your message and encourages you to pay closer attention to your online presentation (which is where new prospects are going to go FIRST to know more about you, like it or not). I bring this up because I see many getting caught up in the "wait till I write that 31st page before we go live" thing quite a bit. However, that truth is that no one will ever notice that that 31st page isn't there. Don't wait for that last page to be written. Get your basic stuff online and add to it as you go. Your new site can't do a thing for you unless it's online.

I’ve been talking to many prospective clients this week in preparation for business planning for 2010. Not surprisingly, one of the biggest service online business owners are looking for is social media help, more specifically how to use Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Many of these soloprenurs are ready to jump into the social media circle but [...]

Over the past year, I've had the opportunity to sample a more than a few of the thousands of WordPress plugins available that expand the functionality of a WordPress blogsite. In case you're wondering, plugins are simple WordPress add-ons that are easily installed and add additional features - typically a utility (such as backups) or a bell/whistle of some sort. Depending on the WP theme you are using, some plugins are absolutely necessary and add features that, frankly, should already be part of WP (or probably will be in the near future). Some fulfill a specific requirement (such as social media or analytics needs). This list isn't intended to be comprehensive - it's just my default go-to list that I use when building a new site in WP.

I just did some redecorating at my hosting and domains sales website - now it coordinates nicely with this site.... it was long overdue. To celebrate the site makeover, I'm having a holiday sale on all our best products: All hosting plans on sale - save up to 30%: Economy hosting plans include 10GB space - only $3.99/month. Save even more on multi-year plans.

I work with a lot of virtual professionals (VPs) on a variety of different web projects. Most of my VP clients have their own team of other VAs/VPs that provide a range of services for their clients. The multiplicity of similar working environments provides a lot of experience to draw from when sizing up the effectiveness of the VA team scenario when providing client services. Inevitably, this produces a lot of water-cooler chat. One of the themes that often comes up is how to efficiently provide services to clients when the client is either brand new to working with VAs, or frankly, just not that good at it. In all the chatter one conclusion emerges: clients could save significantly on virtual services costs if they just were more effective at accurately communicating their needs.

So often I speak to business owners who say they chose those specific colours because ?they liked them?, or ?they were pretty?, or because that is what their designer chose. But the real trick in choosing colours for business is too use the hues and shades that appeal to your target audience, not to you. Think about it ? who are you trying to appeal to? Obviously you already like your business ? you are running it? We spend so much time and money on marketing, social media, and promotion, but why not use the science of colour to attract clients as well?

Marketing is easy when you have a plan. A marketing plan that is. It?s hard to showcase your business if you don?t have a clue what to do or when so let?s talk about creating a marketing calendar. The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to create your own personal marketing road map [...]

Congratulations to Deneen Wilson of Typing Bug, who is the recipient of this week’s VAccolade Business Entrepreneur Award. Deneen is a virtual assistantant living in Thomasville, GA.? She offers services such as bookkeeping and general administrative support.? She has been a valued member of VAnetworking since July 2009. Bookmark It Hide Sites $$('div.d1046').each( function(e) { e.visualEffect('slide_up',{duration:0.5}) });

Your brand can be used to differentiate you and your business. In a world characterized by ever-increasing competition, it?s important to create a memorable impression in the minds of others. And the fastest and easiest way to do that is to have a clearly defined personal brand. ...

Time is an important component in any teleseminar presentation. There?s a lot to write about when it comes to this topic, so I?ll explore it now and also in future postings. As a teleseminar presenter, we need to be cognizant of time. We need to start on ...

Over time, you?ll increase your brand presence by continuously implementing strategies that express your unique value. The continuity of the message combined with the length of time you?ve marketed or promoted your brand will significantly influence your client or customer loyalty. Think about brands like Coca-Cola? or Disney? which you may ...

Question:? How can you become the leader in your niche?? Answer:? Embark on a continuous campaign to nurture, maintain, sustain, and grow your personal brand.? Personal brand management encompasses all the activities that you undertake to promote your brand. There are a number of strategies that you can use to communicate ...

As a virtual assistant, keeping organized is at the top of your list. When you?re managing multiple clients and juggling multiple teleclasses or teleseminars, it helps to have one place where you can keep track of all the details. I especially like using Basecamp for managing all of my projects. ...

One of the most important benefits of a clearly defined personal brand is that it allows you to focus on the right things. After you?ve completed the personal branding process, defined your brand statement and drafted your brand profile, you?ll have a great deal more clarity about who you ...

As a teleseminar leader, it?s important to lay out a structure for your teleseminar. While you can call it many things, it can be referred to as your agenda or outline. Human beings tend to be more productive and focused when presented with a structure. It provides ...

Our name is an important component of defining who we are. It?s how we are differentiated from and recognized by others. I love my name and still consider it my most favorite gift from my father. Our names give us an identity and when people use them, ...

We all know what it?s like to listen to a teleseminar replay. If there?s just one speaker, then it?s not too bad. That person?s voice is probably coming through within a relatively narrow range of sound. But, when you have multiple people who are speaking, and who ...

If you want to create an online presence in less than 15 minutes and for free, go to Squidoo (http://www.Squidoo.com)? and create a lens.? What?s Squidoo and what is a lens?? The easy answer is this ? it?s a single website page. Squidoo is an environment where anyone can host a ...

Webinars have multiple uses in today?s internet world. Here are just a few: ? Webinars can simply be an informative talk or sales presentation, geared to converting interested parties into potential buyers (essentially moving them down your sales funnel) ? Recorded webinars can be a time saving and passive income generating tool for speakers, and trainers and [...]

Congratulations to Dianna Lambert of Online Virtual Office Solutions, who is the recipient of this week’s VAccolade Business Entrepreneur Award. Dianna is a virtual assistant living in Oshkosh, NE. She offers services such as admin support for the trucking industry, as well as general admin. She has been a valued member of VAnetworking since [...]

Congratulations to Janice Mitchell of Virtual Assistant, LLC, who is the recipient of this week’s VAccolade Business Entrepreneur Award. Janice is a virtual assistant living in Lake Lure, NC.? She offers services such as office and project management, as well as paralegal services and event management.? She has been a valued member of VAnetworking since November, [...]

DVVAA (Delaware Valley Virtual Assistants Association) is kicking off their 2010 Monthly Teleseminar Series on Tuesday, January 26th at 8:00pm ET. Yours truly will be presenting a complimentary webinar: Shopping Carts 101 for Coaches & VAs. This webinar event is for you if you are thinking of starting a digital info-product revenue stream, or would like to incorporate website shopping carts to sell your coaching or VA services. The focus of the webinar will be on e-commerce and digital product delivery for Coaches, Virtual Assistants and other Solopreneurs.

Entrepreneurs are no different from other people in that we all make mistakes. The difference is that when an entrepreneur makes a mistake, their business suffers. The good news is, many of these mistakes can easily be avoided. Let?s take a look at the five most common mistakes that stifle entrepreneurial success and how to [...]

If you’re thinking of kicking off 2010 with a new website look for your business – congrats!? There’s nothing like the New Year to inspire a web makeover.? Planning a web project can be a lot of fun and there are great possibilities to increase your visibility with blogsites and social media too. With that [...]