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Introduction
| Word of Encouragement
Customer Satisfaction
Is Your Business
The
Art of Writing Effective Web Site Sales Copy
Non-Profit Corner|
Technology Tidbits
| Fun Tidbits | Newsletter
Exchange | Disclaimer
Introduction
by Becki Jaspin-Noles
Dear Readers,
Welcome to The Accuracy
Report. We are so excited about our kick-off
after our brief hiatus. In the coming months
our readers will be brought up to speed on a
few exciting, new opportunities on the horizon.
The
New Year is bringing many changes not just for
Virtual Accuracy, but also for the
VA industry as a whole. Dale, once full-time
in the corporate arena, will now be concentrating
on Virtual Accuracy’s practice
on a full-time basis and the launch of the Alliance
for Virtual Business has been a spectacular
gift to the VA industry. If you are not a part
of the Alliance, I encourage you to extend your
support by visiting the Alliance
for Virtual Business
website.
Virtual Accuracy services
businesses of all types, but focuses on non-profit
organizations. Non-profit organizations serve
many purposes within our communities. Therefore,
every month, we will feature a non-profit whom
we believe warrants special attention. If you
have suggestions for the spotlight in the “Non-Profit
Corner”, please feel free to contact Virtual
Accuracy.
We hope that you enjoy The
Accuracy Report and will forward it on
to other businesses, VA’s and organizations
that can benefit from its content.
I heard a song recently that
said, “It’s a new season, it’s
a new day. It’s a season of power and
prosperity. It’s a new season coming to
me.” Let us claim this as our blessing
as we start out the New Year!
Best regards,
Rebecca “Becki”
Jaspin-Noles
Word
of Encouragement
by Dale Noles
I want to offer greetings to
you my friends and colleagues.
I am overly excited at the prospect
of focusing all of my time and energy on Virtual
Accuracy. It seems like only yesterday
that Virtual Accuracy was but a dream.
In a way it kind of was. The freedom that the
virtual assistant business allows to entrepreneurial
persons is a far cry from the work-a-day lifestyle
attributed to the “daily grind.”
If you are new to the virtual
lifestyle, please do not get discouraged. Your
first client is always the hardest one to find.
It can sometimes be your security blanket after
days or weeks of making nonstop cold calls and
writing e-mails until 3:47 AM every night.
But now that you whet your appetite
for a client, I want to offer a word of encouragement.
“Networking.”
I know what you are thinking,
“Networking? How is that encouraging?”
Look, it is as simple as this; we virtual assistants
are not just business associates. We are colleagues,
friends, brothers and sisters of sorts. We are
a community. Virtual Assistants offer one another
support, most of the time for free, out of professional
courtesy and with the remembrance of what it
was like when we first got started.
It should be a comforting thought
that the road only gets easier to travel because
of the pioneers that blazed the trail in front
of you. Stay on the trail but stamp down the
edges where your specialties lie and help widen
the trail for those who will follow you.
To those of you who have been
virtually blazing the trail, I want to offer
my thanks and appreciation for making the title
of ‘Virtual Assistant’ a recognized
one. It is because of you that I could taste
freedom. My thanks to you.
Warmly,
Dale Noles
Customer
Satisfaction Is Your Business
by Bob Leduc
Regardless of what business
you are in - you are really in the business
of satisfying customers. The degree of customer
satisfaction you deliver determines the level
of long-term success you will achieve in business.
Make Customer Satisfaction
Your Top Priority
Don't just make sales.
Create customers - satisfied customers. In addition
to the immediate profit they provide on the
first sale, satisfied customers help you build
your business in 2 other important ways:
1. They become a reservoir of
repeat buyers. For some businesses that means
repeat buyers for more of the same product or
service. For every business, it means buyers
for additional products and services.
2. They automatically refer
more business to you from their friends and
business contacts. This is highly profitable
business for you because it doesn't cost you
any time or money to get it.
Never Promise More Than
You Deliver
Never make any promises you can't (or won't)
keep. Nothing alienates customers faster than
getting something less than they expect from
a business transaction. They won't do business
with you again. And they will tell everybody
they know about their unhappy experience - causing
you to lose future customers.
Tip: Handle customer complaints
quickly and with a positive attitude. Strive
to preserve your relationship with the complaining
customer instead of your immediate profit from
them. They will reward you later with more sales
and referrals.
Always Give Customers
More Than They Expect
"Over deliver" on quality and service.
Always exceed your customers' expectations.
You will win their long-term loyalty. It also
makes it difficult for competitors to steal
customers from you - even if they have lower
prices. Customers will not risk an uncertain
experience with a competitor when they know
they will get more than they expect from you.
Tip: Surprise your customers
with unexpected value. If you sell products,
include an "unadvertised bonus" with
every order. If you sell services, get into
the habit of doing something extra for every
customer or client without charging for it.
Let Customers Know How
Much You Value Them
Let your customers know you are always thinking
about them. Communicate with them regularly.
For example, create some special deals just
for your existing customers. And announce new
products or services to them before you announce
them to the general market.
Tip: Convert
your customers into publicity agents. Develop
an incentive for them to tell associates and
friends about the value of your products or
services. An endorsement from them is more effective
than any amount of advertising - and it is much
cheaper.
For example, reward them each
time they refer someone who becomes a customer.
Your reward can be as simple as a credit toward
their next order from you.
You are in the business of satisfying
customers regardless of what products or services
you provide. The satisfied customers you create
will help you build your business by becoming
repeat buyers and by referring new business
to you from their friends and associates.
About the Author
Bob Leduc spent 20 years helping businesses
like yours find new customers and increase sales.
He just released a New Edition of his manual,
How To Build Your Small Business Fast With Simple
Postcards ...and launched *BizTips from Bob*,
a newsletter to help small businesses grow and
prosper. http://www.BobLeduc.com
The
Art of Writing Effective
Web Site Sales Copy
By: Shelley Lowery
If you're selling a product
or service on the Internet, your words are the
most important factor in determining your success.
High-tech web sites with fancy images won't
make sales however, many Internet entrepreneurs
spend much more time designing a professional
looking web site than writing effective sales
copy. A professional looking web site is a very
important part of making sales, but without
effective sales copy your web site will be useless.
The art of writing effective
sales copy is simply learning how to write persuasive
words specifically written for your targeted
customer. You must feel your customers needs
and write your copy with passion, excitement
and benefit.
If you've ever developed a new
product then you know that there is a certain
time when your emotions are riding high and
you're full of excitement and anticipation.
This is the best time to write your sales copy.
Your excitement will flow through your words.
Take this time to sit down and write an outline
for your sales message.
Creating A Headline
The first part of your outline will be your
headline. This is the most important part of
your entire sales copy. You must write a headline
that demands attention and forces your visitor
to read on. Most of your visitors will only
read your headline. If it doesn't instantly
grab their attention, they'll move on and never
return.
Writing an Introduction
Once you've captured your visitor's attention,
you'll now need to direct their attention to
your introduction. Keep your introduction brief
and to the point. Let them know exactly what
you have to offer them.
Use Plenty of Subheadings
Your next step in creating your outline is to
add subheadings. Subheadings are basically just
smaller headlines used to break up your text
blocks. They also provide your readers with
important highlights of your paragraphs. Use
plenty of subheadings throughout your copy,
as not all of your visitors will read your copy
word for word. They'll simply scan it and only
read what catches their attention.
Remove the Risk
You must provide a solid, no risk, money back
guarantee. Provide a limited time free trial
or download that will completely remove the
risk. This will build your potential customers
confidence and put their mind at ease. Display
your guarantee in bold text and even mention
it in your sales message and on your order page.
Call for Action
Ask for the order and provide an easy ordering
process. Continue to reassure your potential
customer and lead them to your order page.
Use a P.S.
When your visitor scans your sales message,
chances are they'll read your headline, sub-headlines
and your PostScript message. Place your most
important benefits within your P.S. message.
It will get read.
Writing Your Copy
Now, you're ready to begin filling in the spaces.
When you begin writing your paragraphs, get
straight to the point, avoid negativity and
hype, and write in small sections. Vary the
paragraph sizes and limit each paragraph to
four or five lines max. If you feel that your
paragraph will be longer than four or five lines,
try to use bullets to display important points.
Write in an everyday language that everyone
can understand.
Make sure you use plenty of
white space. White space is the empty space
between your paragraphs and around your text.
You don't want to overwhelm your visitors with
a solid page of black text. Nothing will make
them click away any faster.
Pack your sales copy with benefits
from your headline straight through to your
order form. Make sure you don't confuse features
with benefits. Features don't sell... Benefits
sell. Your visitor wants to know exactly what
your product or service can do for them.
Provide Testimonials
Testimonials provide another great way to reassure
your visitors. Blend your testimonials in with
your sales message. Avoid making your visitors
have to click to another page to view your testimonials;
chances are, they won't. By blending your testimonials
in with your sales message you can ensure they
will be read.
Selecting Fonts
Avoid using fancy fonts. Fancy fonts make text
difficult to read. In addition, your visitor
may not have that font on their computer. Select
a font that is easy to read and use black text
on a light background.
Long Copy Vs. Short
Copy
It is a proven fact that long sales copy out-sells
short sales copy, but some visitors do prefer
a short sales letter. You can give your visitors
both. For those who prefer a short sales letter
you can provide opportunities to click through
to your order page prior to ending your sales
letter.
Try to keep your sales letter
all on one page. Your visitor would much rather
have to scroll through your letter than click
through and load another page. With each additional
click, you'll lose a percentage of your potential
customers.
Your words should seamlessly
flow together from your headline through to
your order page. Keep it simple, to the point
and pack it with all of the benefits your product
has to offer. The simple, well-designed web
sites with killer sales copy make the sales.
About the Author
Shelley Lowery is the author of several successful
ebooks including Web Design Mastery - An in-depth
guide to professional web design. Ebook Starter
- A Complete Ebook Design Kit, and eZines: A
Complete Guide to Publishing for Profit. |
