Roboform is a password manager that I could not (easily) run my business without. It keeps all of my passwords and my clients’ passwords a click away, so I can jump from task to task easily, no matter which of my devices I am using. Visit Roboform here!
I wrote a post last year about GQueues as a business resource, and I thought I would take an opportunity to give you a few tips on how to use it well in your business. GQueues is a simple task management system I came upon that integrates with Google Calendar – a tool I already use to keep track of many things in my business and personal schedule. I have a queue set up for each of my clients, and also for each of my business – so that I can track projects and tasks and other things like invoice, payments, production calls and so on. The system is quick to set up, and easy to manage. Here’s a screenshot… Read More »Favourite Tools for Virtual Assistants: GQueues – Helping Me Stay Organized
I often talk with people who are very new to the Virtual Assistant business, or are thinking about getting into it. One concern is that you will need to spend a lot of money at startup getting all of the necessary pieces in place – software, training, and many other things come up for people when they are starting a business. I always tell them that it’s possible to get going with really solid tools, without spending a lot of money. Don’t get me wrong. It’s important to have good resources and things in place – but it’s important not to spend money that you haven’t made yet. When I started my work as a VA, I looked long and… Read More »20+ Cheap or Free Resources to Boost Your VA Business
Express Scribe is a transcription software that I have been using for many years. It’s a free software that operates like a transcription machine. You load the audio you want to transcribe, and then you can stop it and start it as you type. You can also control the speed at which you listen, so you can slow the audio down and keep up with it more easily. I highly recommend Express Scribe as a tool to manage any kind of transcription you need to do. The basic software is free. You can purchase a foot pedal to go with it, or you can use keyboard shortcut/hot keys (that’s what I do!). There is a professional version and other add… Read More »Favourite Tools for Virtual Assistants: Express Scribe
Coffee Cup Software is one of my favourite things I use in my business. They have an entire suite of website design products developed to make your website look amazing and have fantastic functionality. The two products I use every day are their HTML Editor and the FTP Client. I also have a number of other products of theirs as well, but I really think I could not do my job as a VA without the two items above. The HTML Editor is easy to use and really helps me to build great looking pages for myself and my clients. The FTP client is invaluable to upload and keep track of server files, again, for myself or for my clients.… Read More »Favourite Tools for Virtual Assistants: Coffee Cup Software
Evernote is a cool (free!) way to keep track of things you find on the Internet. I am a big fan of keeping a ‘swipe’ file, which is basically when you grab someone else’s information in some form, and save it so you can model* something on it later on. That could be a website page layout, a format of a program or service package, or even some wording from an email campaign. Whatever it is, you liked the way it was presented and you want to be able to do something of your own that is put together the same way. Evernote helps you organize that type of thing easily. You ‘clip’ web page addresses or other bits of… Read More »Favourite Tools for Virtual Assistants: Evernote
WP eStore is a WordPress plugin that is a great alternative to paying for a monthly shopping cart. It’s a one-time purchase for around $50, and it integrates with your WordPress website pretty seamlessly, so you can set up products to sell online. You can use it with Paypal and also with a couple of payment gateways like Authorize.net and 2Checkout.com. I have used it with a client for a while now and I also have it set up on my website. It really is easy to set up and use. It also interacts well with several other plugins from the same developer (tipsandtricks-hq.com) so that is great too. Because it’s a one time purchase it can be a really… Read More »Favourite Tools for Virtual Assistants: WP eStore
Instant Teleseminar is a great virtual event presentation platform. What I love about Instant Teleseminar is that it’s easy to use, and it’s really reliable. Your attendees can access the calls a few different ways: by telephone (with an option for local dial in numbers as well), by webcast or even by Skype. So you have a greater chance of people attending your event with these options. You can show powerpoint presentations, and you can even play pre-recording music or recordings into your presentation, to make them really dynamic. The calls record automatically so no worries about missed recordings. And my favourite feature is the Autopilot – so you can pre-record and the call will play back at your scheduled… Read More »Favourite Tools for Virtual Assistants: Instant Teleseminar