As a moderator of the Website review team, we have had sites submitted that contain "I and Me" instead of "We and Us".

So, I was thinking what is the 'right' way of setting your website, if there ether was a 'right' way of setting your site.

When I first got my site up, I was using "I" and "Me" throughout; and it wasn't until Tess, Rebecca, Dawn & Co checked out my site and mentioned it should be "we and us"....

andn now we are getting some sites that contain I and Me...

I respect everyone's decisions on how they set out their site, whether they'd like to be presenting it as a "personal" aspect or as a "business" site.

So I was wondering what everyone's opinions on this is... is it right that it should be as professional as possible, or do you prefer a personal persona on your business site?

All opinions welcomed!

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Julia Neal ...because we ♥ admin!
http://julianeal.wordpress.com

Lia~

I would say that whichever is true is correct. If you are a solopreneur, use "I" and "Me", but if you are operating as a team then use "We" and "Us". Just because you are an individual, doesn't make your site personal vs. business. Always be authentic.

My humble 2 cents.

Warmly,

Lorri

Thank you for starting this thread Lia.

I use "we" referring to myself in general conversation: meaning my other personalities...just some humor here, no disrespect intended.

On a serious note: From a personal perspective, I think it is misrepresenting yourself if you say "we" and you are the only person in your business. If you utilize another person at any time in your business, then I think it is alright to use "we".

Makes me think of The Law of Attraction, what we attract to ourselves. Not saying there is a "wrong" or "right" way of doing so, just my own personal opinion.

I am sure there are many very successful VA's who have chosen to use "we" for themselves and I respect their right to do so. In the end, I think it is just a matter of personal choice.

One more thought for consideration: When dealing with a prospective client, remember this:

If you start out using "we", it must continue in all of your conversations, emails, correspondence, etc. Which ever way you choose, I believe being consistent is imperative in running a business.

I'm using we because even though it's only me, I fully anticipate that I'll need to bring on others from time-to-time. For example, my ex is starting a tech consulting business and we'll be doing cross-referrals so I consider him to be part of my referral team, even though we're not working as partners.

Same with my designer. When I have a client who needs design work I'll outsource it to someone else under my business umbrella.

So, I think that if you never plan to work directly with someone else, I is fine but if you anticipate working with other providers then we is more appropriate.

As far as personal v. professional, I think you can have both. Mine will be a professional site but it will certainly represent my personal goals/opinions/views and personality. I think dry/corporate can be boring. A bit of personality spices it up and makes you stand out.

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Amanda Moore
Virtual Assistant
VagabondetteVA Blog

I think Amanda has summed it up perfectly. I also think it's fine to use 'we' in anticipation of having others work with you in the future and not be misrepresenting who you are.

I also agree with Wanda and feel one should be consistent in following through with whichever format you choose.

While I think that your website should be a professional reflection of your abilities and skill set, it should also allow some of your own personality to shine through. We are all individuals and it's great to see how some VAs have incorporated their personalities into their sites while still appearing as professionals.

Hope that helps!

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Kate V. Kerans
Kerans Virtual Assistance

By the way I forgot to mention, great question, thanks Lia!!

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Kate V. Kerans
Kerans Virtual Assistance

I find it so funny that we all (or at least a couple at a time) wonder about some of the same issues at the same time. I've been working on my business plan and trying to make it sound as professional as possible even though it will be for my own eyes only. Sometimes, I refer to my company as "we" and "us" and sometimes I seem to switch to first person and then back again (very inconsistent). I find that I tend to switch to the first person when I'm talking about things like my background where there's no way that I can use the "we" thing.

I'm also torn about the right way to do it. I think it sounds so much more professional to speak of my company with "we" (company, to me, implies a group) but I don't want to misrepresent myself. So, since I find myself in the same quandry, I can't really offer any advise...lol I just wanted to thank you for posting this.

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Stephanie
New VA in the research phase :daisy:

Very good point you brought up. I think it is important that whatever you decide on that you remain consistent throughout the wording of your site and not say I then We and then bounce back to I again.

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Dawn Riley
A Virtual Assistant in Paradise
Our business is about making yours better

I had originally thought that I should present as "I" and "me" since it was just me, but Amanda brought up some very good points. The way she put it has made me start to re-think using "we" and "us."

I think I'll still use "About the Owner" on my website, but will use more of the we & us throughout. I hope that won't be confusing. Perhaps if I make a point of including a phrase about how my working will often include partnering with other profressionals.

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Kimberly
Facebook Marketing Magic!

kimberly - saying about the owner isn't confusing at all!!

by the way, It's OKay, I felt that we needed a discussion on this, as it is important for the site to have a 'sense of direction', so to say.

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Julia Neal ...because we ♥ admin!
http://julianeal.wordpress.com