Do you ask your clients for testimonials and feedback? Why is feedback important? How do you make it easy for your clients to tell you what they think of you?
When recently working with a small business providing a trade service to commercial builders, we were putting together a Letter of Introduction for the client to reach out to potential clients. At the end of this letter, the business owner had listed a number of references for the prospect to call if the prospect chose to take the time to find out more about the service the client provides.
On suggesting attaching a flyer full of testimonials, the client indicated that they didn’t have any ‘testimonials’ as such, just a lot of clients who would recommend them in a heartbeat!
The client had never asked for feedback or a testimonial from any of the businesses they currently service but this was an extremely easy process to put into place. There are many ways to ask your client base for testimonials and it is a MUST! Once you have these, you can put them on your website and any other promotional or marketing material that you create. Testimonials make it easy for a prospect to see what others say about you.
So, what did we do? In this instance, as the business doesn’t yet have a website, they opted to create a ‘Feedback Form’ to e-mail to their clients. How did we make this easy? We created a form so that the client only had to complete the form and email it back. This didn’t take long to create and the client now has testimonials to send to prospects.
I am an avid feedback and testimonial provider as I believe that if a service is great, I want others to know about it. I must admit though, when writing this article, I thought of the businesses and services I have used recently and there are a number of them that I haven’t given feedback to simply because I have become busy and forgotten. How many of your clients may need a reminder or prompt to give you some feedback?
So, why not make it easy for them? There are a number of ways to make it easy for your clients to leave feedback for you. Here are a few ideas:
* Create a form (Word or PDF) and systematically send this out to clients to ask for feedback to better your service and ask for a testimonial.
* Connect with your clients on Linked In and ask for a recommendation.
* Create a link on your website to an online feedback form created through a Survey Provider such as Survey Monkey or Poll Daddy or through your current Email Marketing Provider such as Constant Contact who also do Survey Marketing.
The beauty of creating a form rather than just sending an email and requesting a testimonial, is that not only does it provide you with specific feedback on areas for improvement, you can tailor your questions and prompt answers. Often times it can be difficult for some to think of something to write but with a few prompts, you end up with some fantastic feedback and a great testimonial.
If it is a little daunting to set up this system yourself, we would be more than happy to assist you! After all, a Virtual Assistant is there to make it easy for you!
So, if you have any feedback for us as a client or reader, feel free to comment or connect with us on LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you!
Showing posts with label VA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label VA. Show all posts
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
How to engage a Virtual Assistant :: Online Personal Assistants, Perth
There can be a variety of reasons to partner with a Virtual Assistant, including: time savings, cost reduction and an ability to focus on building your business. Recently, I was asked, “How do I engage a Virtual Assistant?” In this post, you will find answers to this important question and discover how Online Personal Assistants may be the appropriate solution for your business.
New clients contact us through various methods, including: website, networking or current client referral. After the initial contact is made, the first step is to schedule a no-obligation consultation. Prior to that meeting, you will receive a brief questionnaire that will allow us to prepare questions for your unique business. The meeting will take approximately one hour and may be completed face-to-face or via telephone, whichever is most convenient for you. During the initial meeting, you will tell us about your business and together we will develop a plan to support your business through our Virtual Assistant services. This plan will become your Productivity & Cost Saving Audit.
Deciding to partner with a Virtual Assistant means examining your business. What tasks are you doing that could be completed by someone else? Because your business is unique, your Virtual Assistant needs are also distinctive and individualised. You can work with a Virtual Assistant to your comfort level. Some clients know where they would like assistance, whereas others need help to determine which tasks can be delegated. Online Personal Assistants can help you discover those duties you can entrust to a Virtual Assistant.
After determining your business needs, we will send a proposal for your review. Online Personal Assistants works with businesses on a per-project basis or through an ongoing support role. You may choose to seek proposals from other Virtual Assistants. When doing so, consider whether you require a Virtual Assistant in your city, state or country. If location is not a factor, you may choose to search a Virtual Assistant Directory or conduct a Google search to find another Virtual Assistant for comparison purposes. Most importantly, determine your personalised goals prior to contacting a Virtual Assistant. This will ensure you receive the information most essential to you.
When searching for a Virtual Assistant, consider the following:
• Experience: Relevant experience is a factor in determining Virtual Assistant fees. (You may pay a lower rate per hour for one Virtual Assistant; however, if the typing speed of one Virtual Assistant is half that of another, you will pay additional fees because tasks take longer.)
• Knowledge: Ask yourself if you need a Virtual Assistant that has knowledge of your industry and how to manage a business. Consider a Virtual Assistant that shows initiative and can assist you with a variety of tasks.
• Budget: Determine your budget when you review a prospective Virtual Assistant. This will help verify if your chosen Virtual Assistant can work within your budget.
• Location: Decide if it is important to have someone local or if you can broaden your search to include other geographic areas.
• Specialised Services: If your tasks are specific and concentrate in a particular subject, you may want to utilise a Virtual Assistant who specialises in that area.
• Turnaround Times: Communication is imperative when working with a Virtual Assistant. Be sure your Virtual Assistant knows your deadlines and time requirements. The majority of Virtual Assistants will have a standard lead time. For example, Online Personal Assistants requires a three-day lead time for most tasks. At times, jobs will be completed well within this timeframe. However, sometimes the full three days will be utilised. Remember to communicate your requirements for each deadline to your chosen Virtual Assistant.
• Testimonials: If you are concerned about not meeting face-to-face, check testimonials of previous clients and conduct additional research to ease your mind.
The above list illustrates several items that should be considered when engaging a Virtual Assistant. Ultimately, you must also choose a Virtual Assistant who suits your needs, personality and work style.
Contact Online Personal Assistants today to discover the Virtual Assistant services you can receive for your business. By mentioning this blog post, you will receive a FREE Productivity & Cost Saving Audit valued at $199.
New clients contact us through various methods, including: website, networking or current client referral. After the initial contact is made, the first step is to schedule a no-obligation consultation. Prior to that meeting, you will receive a brief questionnaire that will allow us to prepare questions for your unique business. The meeting will take approximately one hour and may be completed face-to-face or via telephone, whichever is most convenient for you. During the initial meeting, you will tell us about your business and together we will develop a plan to support your business through our Virtual Assistant services. This plan will become your Productivity & Cost Saving Audit.
Deciding to partner with a Virtual Assistant means examining your business. What tasks are you doing that could be completed by someone else? Because your business is unique, your Virtual Assistant needs are also distinctive and individualised. You can work with a Virtual Assistant to your comfort level. Some clients know where they would like assistance, whereas others need help to determine which tasks can be delegated. Online Personal Assistants can help you discover those duties you can entrust to a Virtual Assistant.
After determining your business needs, we will send a proposal for your review. Online Personal Assistants works with businesses on a per-project basis or through an ongoing support role. You may choose to seek proposals from other Virtual Assistants. When doing so, consider whether you require a Virtual Assistant in your city, state or country. If location is not a factor, you may choose to search a Virtual Assistant Directory or conduct a Google search to find another Virtual Assistant for comparison purposes. Most importantly, determine your personalised goals prior to contacting a Virtual Assistant. This will ensure you receive the information most essential to you.
When searching for a Virtual Assistant, consider the following:
• Experience: Relevant experience is a factor in determining Virtual Assistant fees. (You may pay a lower rate per hour for one Virtual Assistant; however, if the typing speed of one Virtual Assistant is half that of another, you will pay additional fees because tasks take longer.)
• Knowledge: Ask yourself if you need a Virtual Assistant that has knowledge of your industry and how to manage a business. Consider a Virtual Assistant that shows initiative and can assist you with a variety of tasks.
• Budget: Determine your budget when you review a prospective Virtual Assistant. This will help verify if your chosen Virtual Assistant can work within your budget.
• Location: Decide if it is important to have someone local or if you can broaden your search to include other geographic areas.
• Specialised Services: If your tasks are specific and concentrate in a particular subject, you may want to utilise a Virtual Assistant who specialises in that area.
• Turnaround Times: Communication is imperative when working with a Virtual Assistant. Be sure your Virtual Assistant knows your deadlines and time requirements. The majority of Virtual Assistants will have a standard lead time. For example, Online Personal Assistants requires a three-day lead time for most tasks. At times, jobs will be completed well within this timeframe. However, sometimes the full three days will be utilised. Remember to communicate your requirements for each deadline to your chosen Virtual Assistant.
• Testimonials: If you are concerned about not meeting face-to-face, check testimonials of previous clients and conduct additional research to ease your mind.
The above list illustrates several items that should be considered when engaging a Virtual Assistant. Ultimately, you must also choose a Virtual Assistant who suits your needs, personality and work style.
Contact Online Personal Assistants today to discover the Virtual Assistant services you can receive for your business. By mentioning this blog post, you will receive a FREE Productivity & Cost Saving Audit valued at $199.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)