Organized Assistant » branding

Blogging Tips: An Interview with Lynette Chandler

Janet — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 10:00:27 +0000

I've been a fan of Blog Energizer for quite a while now, so I was thrilled when their team leader, Lynette Chandler, offered to answer a few questions for Your Organizing Business. If you find Lynette's answers to be as helpful as I did, please vote for me at the link you'll find at the end of this post, so I can win an awesome prize - thanks! How often should a professional organizer (or other service provider) blog to effectively promote his or her services? You'll probably not get the same response for every person you ask and I've also heard recommendations all across the board. Here's what my personal choice is. If the blog is brand new, it can really benefit from more regular updates like 4 - 7 posts a week. As it matures and you start building steady traffic, you might get away with a more relaxed schedule. I aim for 2-3 a week though some weeks there's only 1-2 which to me is bare minimum. But remember, substance is more important than quantity. Also, cultivate the habit of batching and take advantage of scheduling features. 4-7 or even 2-3 a week sounds like so much content but when you do them all at once, and schedule them over the month, it really is a lot easier and doesn't seem like you're having to write every other day and that can get old really fast. Is blogging a good way for professional organizers to generate passive income? To me, a blog is no different than any other website. It is just easier to maintain. So that would really depend what you set the blog up for. If your goal is to build business for your services then use a large portion of your blog to do that. Yes, there is a place for passive income definitely. Like me, I write reviews and put up recommendations that do bring me passive income but that has been happening even before I put a blog on the site. It is a good way to supplement your income and it plays a role in your marketing mix, certainly not the only avenue. I like to view my blog as just one piece of the big marketing puzzle. Is Blog Energizer suitable for business bloggers, or is it more geared towards "mommy" bloggers? We try to accommodate bloggers in a variety of niches. If you are a free member, some weeks it seems like all we ever find is only relevant to mommy bloggers. That's just how things play out. I guess due to the size and number of mommy blogs there are, many offers and resources are geared toward that market. However, we are always on the lookout for things business bloggers can share too. If you look in our archives there's plenty of goodies for business bloggers. Premium members also enjoy 30 blog prompts a month that is focused on business. But here's the thing I really want to bring up.

It depends what you mean by business bloggers - if you are in the business of blogging to make money then the topic doesn't always have to be business related.
We always encourage people to think laterally. When we suggest an item you can put on your blog, that's a suggestion. You can always put your spin on it to make it relevant. For example, August 10th was Smores Day. Hardly something 'business' like right? But maybe you can use 'smores' in your blog title about something else, maybe "XYZ software as good as smores' or maybe you can write about good old fashioned values and product matching that go together like graham crackers, marshmallows and chocolate.

Is it possible to have too many guest bloggers? I don't think so. If you look at many of the large blogs, they are written by a slew of different people. Especially if you are in this for a business, more people make a blog very interesting. Plus, if the owner itself is not so prominent, it makes it easier to exit that business if the owner chooses to in the future. A lot of people tell us that people buy from those they like, and because we are used to being individuals, we think people have to like us the person, but I think if you are running a serious business, you should be working on getting people to like your brand. Your blog is either the brand or an extension of the brand. When you are working on the brand itself, it really doesn't matter if others are writing for the brand. As long as the guest bloggers put forth quality and relevant content for the brand, I don't see that as a problem at all. It might be a good idea to put pictures of authors on the post though so there is no confusion. What are your thoughts on using a ghost blogger? Everybody has their comfort level with this. I think a good ghost blogger who can copy your voice, your tone and style is very hard to find and if you do find him/her, you should hang on to them. I've hired bloggers before but have requested that they write or sign off under their own name or a pen name, not mine. So yeah, they were not ghost bloggers. It is not so much the control thing but there's always something I would have chosen to word differently. Of course. They aren't me and I'm not them. I do not want to be caught in a situation where something was written, and be used to nitpick against me when they weren't my words to begin with. The only exception to that is when I ask someone to write very factual posts that leave very little or no room for grey areas like a tutorial or posting up a deal/special offer. Has this interview given you some great information? Then vote for it at http://blogenergizer.com/teip-vote. I'm sure Janet will appreciate your support.

Checklists and Contracts and Agreements – Oh my!

Janet — Wed, 26 May 2010 12:50:35 +0000

It's amazing how many different forms you need in order to operate a professional organizing business! Some are just for your own use, such as client information sheets, assessment forms, and checklists. Others, such as invoices and letters of agreement, communicate important information to your clients.

Any forms you'll be using with clients must be completely error-free, easy to read, and reflect your professional image. This isn't quite as critical for those that are for internal use only, but you will still need them to be well-designed so they are easy for you to follow and so you're not stumbling over your words when you're speaking to your clients. It will be easier for you to develop an appropriate organizing plan for each of your clients by having a set of standard questions that you ask, whether this is done in person or over the telephone. Figuring out just what those questions should be can be a real challenge when you're just starting out in your business and don't really know what things are important to ask about. Writing up your first agreement can also be difficult, because until you've run into situations such as client cancellations, you may not think of addressing them in your contract. Fortunately, a lot of seasoned organizers have made their expertise available to you, so you don’t have to learn by trial and error. Here are a few resources that I recommend:

Geralin Thomas's Tools for Organizers include a detailed Client Intake, Assessment, & Activity Log, a Client Letter of Agreement, and a Client Invoice. The Invoice is a downloadable Word document, so you can customize it with your own branding and business information. The other two forms are in PDF format, so you can simply print them off and start using them right away.
When you sign up for the Comprehensive Training Program for Professional Organizers, whether you choose the in-person seminars, the on-demand webinars, or the self-study guides, you will receive fully customizable, industry-specific forms that every organizer should have, including letters of agreement, invoices, confidentiality agreements, needs analysis forms, receipts, and much more.
If you're handy with a word processor, you can create your own forms following the guidelines provided in Anne Blumer's guide for professional organizers, Get Rich Organizing.
Maria Gracia's Ultimate Guide For Professional Organizers also includes a collection of fill-in forms which you can copy and use. The Ultimate Guide is available in either PDF or print format.

Should you require assistance in customizing purchased templates or creating your own forms, you can always contact Organized Assistant. Above are samples of some of the forms we've created for our clients. Here's a question for the experienced organizers: what forms do you use most often in your business?

Do You Really Need a Blog?

Janet — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 13:15:10 +0000

Judging by the participation level in the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, a lot of professional organizers recognize the value of blogging as a marketing tool. If you haven't yet tried this fun and inexpensive way to promote your business, here are some of the ways a blog can help spark more interest in your organizing services, and ultimately generate more income for you.

A blog exhibits your expertise Because a blog is easier to update than a static website, you can continually add pictures of your successful organizing projects and even videos to show prospective clients what you can do for them. Explaining the process behind your before and after pictures gives people a deeper understanding of the work you do than a simple list of services can ever do. A blog can demonstrate how you will solve client problems It's often said that people buy solutions, not services. Although you can explain how you solve your clients' problems on a regular web page, on a blog, it all becomes more tangible, because it's more personal. A blog shows you are actively using your skills Any post you make about the work you are doing with your clients is a good testimonial. It shows that there are people who already trust you to do what you claim you will do. If your clients are willing to contribute to your blog or allow you to quote them, even better! A blog can help increase website traffic When you write and promote good, relevant content, people will take notice. When they do, they are more likely to share it on their own blogs and social networks or to email it to others - all good ways to get fresh traffic. Furthermore, when your posts include the keywords your potential clients might use when searching for your services online, you greatly increase the chance that your blog will appear in the search results. A blog can reduce the need to answer questions over and over There are questions in every business that people tend to ask again and again. When you answer these questions on your blog, you help your prospects out by giving them the information they want and eliminate the need to type your answer again and again. At the same time, you build trust and add fresh content to your website, stuff that search engines and people alike love. A blog allows your prospects to get to know you People want to do business with someone they know, like, and trust. This is particularly true when you provide a service, and especially when you will be entering their personal space. Because a blog is interactive, through the comments people can begin to experience you and get a feel of how your business treats its customers. To learn more about this subject, watch my video about Blogging to Brand Your Business. Although starting a blog can involve a big learning curve if you're new to web publishing, it can be very rewarding. If you'd like a hand getting started, contact me to set up a free consultation. On the other hand, knowing the basics isn't a bad idea, because it reduces your reliance on others when you need something simple done, and there are resources you might want to check out, like the Blogging Starter Pack. Do you have a question about blogging? Please feel free to post it in the Comments section or ask a question privately.

Does Your Website Need a Facelift?

Janet — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:21:38 +0000

Although I tend to focus a lot on the benefits of WordPress, a traditional HTML website can promote your organizing business equally well, if it is professionally designed, properly optimized for the search engines, and represents your business effectively. Otherwise, you may be wondering why your website is not generating the results you are looking for.

I was recently contacted by Nancy Quinlan, the owner of Must Get Organized in Arlington, Virginia. Nancy had already hired someone to create a website for her business, but it didn't have the polished image she wanted to convey, and it wasn't doing well in the search engines. Above is a screenshot of her original site. The site had a clean, uncluttered look, which is important for organizing professionals, but it was almost too clean and had no visual appeal. She wanted to maintain her existing logo, as she was using it on her business card and other printed materials. The first thing I did was change the background to a darker shade of blue to give the main content more impact. I also worked with Nancy to overhaul her existing content and make it more compelling. As you can see from the updated screenshot below, I also placed one of the images from her Before and After photo gallery on the home page for greater visual appeal. Click on the screenshot to see the rest of Nancy's website, which has been revamped throughout.

Because for the most part I was working with existing graphics and content, I was able to complete this project at a much lower cost than a brand new website. I was therefore able to devote additional time to optimizing the site for the search engines, and continue to perform additional search engine optimization to improve the chances that her site will be found by clients in her target market. If you're no longer in love with your website, don't despair. You don't necessarily have to spend a fortune to get a fresh new look or to expand your reach. Why not contact me for a free 30 minute consultation? What do you have to lose?

Book Review: Get Rich Organizing

Janet — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:44:44 +0000

There is a ton of information online, including this blog, to help you start or grow a professional organizing business, but spending time researching various topics and sifting through all the search results can be very time-consuming. Even if you have lots of time on your hands, if you don't know that you need to learn about a particular subject, how can you even begin to explore it?

Anne Blumer solves that problem for you with her new book, Get Rich Organizing: The Professional Organizer Survival Guide to Launch, Manage, and Grow a Profitable Business. As a seasoned professional organizer with multiple certifications and founder of the Professional Organizer Training Institute, Anne is certainly qualified to write about this subject! The book contains a wealth of up-to-date information on working in the organizing industry, including certification, membership in industry associations, professional organizer specialties, desired characteristics, and even what's involved in a typical day. In addition, it covers topics that are important for all businesses, such as writing a business plan, setting fees, legal and taxation issues, as well as marketing and branding. That in itself would make this a useful reference, but Anne does not stop there. The second part of the book is devoted to specific aspects of working with clients. Many of the books I've read do not address the organizing process, assuming that you wouldn't become a professional organizer unless you already had organizing skills, but there is a world of difference between organizing for family and friends while you hang out together and organizing for strangers who are paying you good money for your expertise! This book will help to prepare you for a wide range of organizing projects and challenging clients and help you avoid embarrassing or costly mistakes. The thorough information is supplemented by a dozen forms you can adapt as needed for your own business, for needs assessments, letters of agreement, and much more. Most chapters include exercises to encourage you to put the information into practice, and in some cases, the assignment is to prepare a workshop based on the information in the chapter. I especially like this approach, because having material already developed means you'll be able to accept when someone asks you to speak on short notice. Does the title "Get Rich Organizing" put you off? It shouldn't! Sure, running your own organizing business is all about doing what you love, but you won't be in business very long if you're not making money at it. And if you can get rich while you're doing it, wouldn't that be a good thing? I have to admit that I was shocked when I first saw the price of the book, but now that I've read it and seen how packed it is with valuable information and resources, I am confident that it will help you earn back the cover price many times over.

Do You Need a Blog, a Website, or Both?

Janet — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:30:12 +0000

One of my followers on Twitter recently asked me: If I have a blog, do I still need a website? That's a really good question, especially if you've ever heard me singing the praises of blogging as a powerful way to build your brand and promote your organizing business.

Unless you're just getting started with your business, you probably have a website already. If not, I suggest that you take a moment to read my earlier post, Do Professional Organizers Need a Website? A traditional website can be a valuable marketing tool that allows people to access information about your business 24-7, but your brand is so much more than the services you provide or the products you sell. It's more than just your logo and your tagline. Your brand is the way that people perceive you, and it's reflected in everything that you do. It's in your values, your personality, your talents and your skills. A blog allows people to understand your brand on a completely different level. By posting tips, articles, product reviews, links to other people's articles that you've read, or other information, you position yourself as an expert in your field. When you offer advice or comment on industry trends, it shows that you know your stuff, and helps you get noticed by the people that you want to attract. Blogging is also a great way to keep your name in people's minds. Posting quality content on a regular basis will bring people back again and again, so when they're ready to do business, you'll be the first one they think of. A blog can be a very powerful way to get your marketing message out, due to the fact that blogs are very search engine friendly, and because they encourage interaction with website visitors, making it more likely that they’ll return on a regular basis. If you have an existing website, you may wish to set up your blog on a completely separate site, as I did for Daisy Wright of The Wright Career, or in a separate directory of your existing website, as I recently did for Hellen Buttigieg. In either case, you'll want to take advantage of the regular traffic your blog will attract by including a prominent link to your main website. On the other hand, if you're just establishing your web presence, or you're ready to update your current website, there's no reason not to combine your blog and your business website into one. This strategy ensures that people reading your blog won't overlook the fact that you offer organizing services and/or products, while providing what webmasters call "sticky content" that gives website visitors a reason to spend more time on your site, and increases the likelihood that they'll return. There are some excellent premium WordPress themes which were created specifically to give you a professional-looking business website-blog combination without putting the main focus on the blog. This can be especially advantageous if you're unable to update your blog frequently, as this fact will not stand out as much as it will if your last post is the first thing people see when visiting your site. For an example, please see the recently revamped Golden Horseshoe Virtual Assistants Group site. These days, I recommend WordPress to all of my clients looking for a new website, even if they have no plans to start blogging. Using WordPress as a content management system for your website means that you don't need to rely on your website manager, or purchase and learn to use expensive website editing software, in order to make simple changes or additions to your website. In addition, it will be very simple to add a blog component down the road should you change your mind. If you're worried that it will look too much like a blog, check out the site I designed for More Than Admin, then tell me what you think! I do not recommend using a free blog site such as www.blogger.com or www.wordpress.com as your business website. In my opinion, sending people to a URL like myorganizingbusiness.wordpress.com is the equivalent of using a Hotmail or Yahoo address for your business. Having your own domain name is not only important for branding, but it tells the world you are serious about your business. Many people will be reluctant to deal with a business that uses these free services, as they are often associated with spammers and here-today-gone-tomorrow operations. In summary, you definitely need a professional website to promote your organizing business. If you enjoy writing, I highly recommend that you have a blog as well (but not instead). And for maximum impact, why not combine the two? I'd love to talk to you if you're thinking of starting a new website and/or blog or converting your existing site to WordPress! Feel free to drop me a line to schedule your free 30 minute consultation.