Making the Most of Your VAF Membership: Brand EVERYTHING

Forums and online communities are the original social networks - participating in the conversation and making the most of all that your free membership at Virtual Assistant Forums has to offer is an important part of your internet marketing plan - IF you take advantage of the opportunity. Here’s how!

Brand EVERYTHING:
Your VAF membership is an extension of your company brand and message. From registering to setting up your profile, signature, avatar, blog, etc. keep the following in mind.

- Branding is much more than a logo and tagline - your brand message should impact and inform your forum posts. You're not just speaking for your business you're speaking AS your business. Brand your posts by infusing them with your professionalism, your knowledge, your skill and your dedication.

- Like everything at VAF, member profiles are optimized for the search engines - using your VA company name as your username will help with visibility online. If you prefer that your company name not turn up in search results via VAF, choose a more anonymous username. Because username changes and multiple accounts are not allowed, username selection is an important decision.

- Make good use of your forum signature by linking back to your VA business site and/or blog and including your tagline.

- Use the images in your profile. Your avatar is the image that shows up next to every post you make. Use a clear image of your face here so that fellow VAs and potential clients can readily associate you with your posts. Your profile picture is the image that shows up inside your VAF profile page - giving visitors a face and/or logo to make a connection with increases brand recognition.

- Give your VAF blog a smart title, set up the categories to reflect the professionalism of your company, and draft posts that consistently echo your business philosophy.