SEO in 3 Minutes or Less.

It seems I've been waiting for this man my whole life. (ok, ok, a few months anyway!) Steffan Antonas. He's explained SEO for the ordinary person. He's explained keywords for the ordinary person. All pertaining to links. The links you use in your blog. HOW you use links. HOW you write links. And just how to use keywords in those links. And a bit about the importance of linkbacks. (Anyone care to link to me? Let's chat!)

It's helped me to turn my thinking around (and I love when I find information, or a quote, or a blog post that does that! That totally re-arranges the pathways in my brain and gets me thinking bigger, larger, grander....), and all it took was a three-minute read. The best thing? I had no idea at all how important it was to have links in your posts. Keywords, yes. Links? No. Now that I do, it will totally change the way I write posts, do business, and increase my knowledge base for my customers therefore helping them to gain an advantage as well.

Fantastic.

To read Steffan Antonas' article, pop by his SEO post and have a look!

Systematize your business

I recently read a great post over at Small Business Trends about startup lessons which really brought home the importance of something I've been working on lately.

Systematizing your business. And the importance of doing it sooner rather than later.

I'm in the process of writing my procedural manual for the business. Somewhat of a step-by-step quide on how we here at Scratchpad Secretaries do business. Our ethics. Our business practices. Our systems. How we serve our customer from beginning to end. The branding of business letters, thank you letters, surveys, how to turn a pdf into a jpeg (!)... the list goes on.

One thing I'd highly recommend is doing it as you go along. Whenever you perform a task, take a few extra seconds to make a list on the steps involved in execution. Me? I didn't do that. "I know it", I thought, "It's not rocket science."

No it's not, but if you have a new employee or sub-contractor on board, who's to say they don't do it they're own way? A different way? And just becuase something is different doesn't make it wrong, but you've got to look at the branding of it as well. Not just colours and logos, but the flow, the languaging, that sort of thing.

I started with my website, in particular the services page. I've written down the steps to each service we offer as a virtual assistant practice. And the follow up; what it takes to get the project back to the client and how we do this. Leave no stone unturned! Write it all down. Create a manual.

It will ease your mind if/when your business skyrockets overnight, or if you hit a really busy period and find yourself needing to hire some extra bodies. Just think, you have everything outlined for a smooth/smoother transition.

It will also give you a better peace of mind knowing that your values and your ethics in your business are being respected and followed and the branding will be consistent - as will your reputation!

Here's to systemization!

Five quick tips to turning Some-Day into To-Day.

Have a “Wow, that would be great someday” idea? Here are five quick pointers to turning that ever so elusive Some-day, into To-day.

1. Jot it down. Start writing. The moment you have that initial brainwave, that wonderful idea, even if it's just an inkling of what's to come, write it down! It doesn't matter if it's on your computer, a notepad, scrap of paper, or a napkin from a restaurant; just get that idea on paper somewhere, somehow, right now.

2. Research. You don't have to spend hours and hours in front of the computer, not right away, especially if you only have 15 or 20 minutes spare time at the moment, but do start researching. Even just preliminary footwork can get the excitement factor rising, and can ignite that passion you originally felt when the idea hit. And that passion is what you'll need to make this idea fly!

3. Put your plan on paper. I know, I know, this seems scary and larger than life. But it doesn't have to be. Who says your business plan has to be like everyone else's? It is what it is, to you. A bit of a critical path perhaps, a bit of a marketing plan, if you're a numbers person throw some quick projections in. Once you start writing, the ideas, information, and passion will flow. Starting to write it down is the important point.

4. Get buy in from friends and family. This is so important, especially if it's a business idea. Not only for the financial backing aspect, but from a supportive and loving aspect too. Simply put, it's easier (and much nicer) to have the support of friends and family as you build your dream, than to not have that love and support. But if you don't have it? Do it anyway!

5. Just do it. No matter what. Just do it. Start implementing. Look at your business plan/marketing plan/critical path, and dig in! Get the flow going, get that energy focused and get it rollin'!

This post has been extended to a feature-length article. To read the full text, feel free to connect with me on Biznik: http://tinyurl.com/579xqz.

Quick Tip Tuesdays

Here’s a great tip to change a pdf to a jpeg. This is especially great if you’re not a Photoshop whiz or design guru!

• Open PDF


• Open Paint


• Go back to PDF


• Press “print screen” on your keyboard


• Go to paint, Click Edit/Paste


• Save As what you want, where you want. As a jpeg or bmp or whathaveyou.


• Close down PDF and Paint


• Open the photo in whatever editor you have.


• Modify as required (crop, etc)


• File/Save As

And you’re done!

The Virtual Assistant I use for graphic design did not have the time to do this task for me, so I took a few hours and researched on the net and found out for myself. Now? I can add it to my list of services which means helping you with this sort of a task, or at least sharing the information in the form of a tip!

Subscribe to our feed at right for quick tips every Tuesday!