Virtual Assistant Forums

#1 (**permalink**) 08-29-2012

As a virtual assistant I consider myself a 'virtual business professional' which means the internet is my virtual office of sorts. There are wonderful social media outlets that can be used to communicate with and market to new and existing clients as well as potential affiliates and others in the business community. As an IT specialist, I really do support and understand how beneficial things like blogging can be. My question is this, in addition to having a facebook page and a webpage, how many VAs find Blogging helps them promote and maintain a reputable business/professional presence?

I only ask because when it comes to content, it wouldn't be challenging for me to make updates to a blog. What I get caught on, especially when using Word Press, is how complicated the theme customization is. My own website wasn't created from a template, but I did the coding and programming myself. The Wordpress style sheets are long enough to make me go cross eyed. How important is customization of a blog when it comes to representing yourself as a business professional, especially when linked to your main business website? Does it speak to your professionalism to use a template that was made by somebody else and to just change the header of the site, or do you think people appreciate it more if you take time to handle the very detailed process of customizing the template, line by line?

#2 (**permalink**) 08-29-2012

IMHO, your blog is JUST as important if not more so than your website. Branding is paramount and customization to give you unique branding is important. It is worth your money or time to pay or learn it! Just my .02 for today! Good luck!

#3 (**permalink**) 08-29-2012

Blogging can be important if you keep up with it and it is relevant to your services. I blog on and off and while I have seen an increase in traffic I still get my clients from referrals.

With that said...it is important the your branding is consistent across the board. Whether it be your website, social media, blog or brochure. Not everyone can customize a site so getting outside help is just fine and it shows that you are up to practicing what you preach by getting help with your business.

#4 (**permalink**) 08-29-2012

I'm kind of in Lee's court, as I blog a bit (about one a month), but haven't seen anything come directly from that. I did create my blog so that it looks VERY similar to my website, even though it's not actually located on my website. It's very hard for me to find the time to blog because of how picky I am about my writing, and it's hard for me to pick a topic.

#5 (**permalink**) 08-29-2012

Thank you for your feedback. I have to agree that branding is very very important. For me, if I pick a theme, I could most probably have something to write about on a weekly basis. (Networking opportunities, Tips and Tricks to make connections, What not to wear when physically networking...etc) My major issue, has been design. I did find a wonderful framework that I am working off of these days, and I hope to one day publish the blog and invite people to read but there...is the next question: How do you get readers?

#6 (**permalink**) 08-30-2012

Getting readers will involve a mix of good SEO and cross promotion. Write about subjects that your target market want to read and then make sure to post it on social networking sites. In addition, make sure readers know where to sign up. Place buttons on your site and FB page.

#7 (**permalink**) 08-30-2012

I agree a good blog is important. I work with WordPress. My website and blog are both on WordPress, and I have done sites for clients. I personally love WordPress I think it is fairly easy for the most part. There are some complicated parts when you dive into the customization, but for the most part it's not. I don't think you will find it as difficult as it looks once you get in there, but if you are not comfortable with making those changes yourself then of course you can always ask for help. There are many VA's here on the site that work with WordPress and are quite good at it.

There is a good site that I find helpful with the WordPress coding. It's called w3schools.com. You might want to check it out. Often though if you pick the right theme you don't have to dive to much into the code as the theme itself is made in such a way the makes customization as simple as selecting options.

I really like WordPress and I think you will too if you decide to do a blog. I take it your website now does not offer a blog that is on your website? I highly recommend whenever possible to have your website and blog on the same site. Having a blog on your actual website allows you to get greater miles from your SEO and allows you to keep fresh content moving through your site which the search engines really like.

#8 (**permalink**) 08-30-2012

Thank you both for your feedback. Because I am still working on customizing my wordpress blog, I don't have it linked from my main website as of yet. This being said, because I did do all the design and coding of my website from hand, it doesn't reflect the framework I am using on my blog. What I am doing is showing the two are cohesive by using the same basic colors. I found a plugin called the layout-engine that has made customization far easier. I do think there's a distinct difference between my blog and my website and at first it made me uneasy...I see so many VAs who have blogs set up in such a way that you click *blog* and you wouldn't know you were on a different 'site' due to how it just seems to be another page on their website. I am assuming many of these pages are actually websites created by wordpress and I've found in most cases I am correct. So there will always be uncertainty there I believe for new bloggers. What is the 'right' way and what is the 'wrong' way. I am aiming to help shape my internet blogging personality when I publish my blog...and it will be on the same server/site domain as my website...but when you click the 'blog' link, it will be more than noticeable that you are now reading the blog. So many decisions to make!

#9 (**permalink**) 08-30-2012

Utilizing a blog is fine however it can hurt you more than it helps if you do not manage it correctly.
People like to "read" a blog and look forward to new posts. Blog posts must be made 1) Consistently, 2) Professionally and 3) Add value.
If you do this regularly you will get consistent traffic and reads.
My blog: www.AssistanceForAgents.com/blog has these components and even more....it has a specific target! Real Estate Agents!
A couple tricks:
1) Post at least twice a week. No exceptions (then post on your social media avenues that you have a new blog post)
2) Find your target audience so you can post info they want to read about (again, this is like a niche)
3) Post something of value. Do not post about your services each week. Post tips, tricks, websites of value.
4) Reference other articles (DO NOT COPY THESE ARTICLES), but it is ok to reference one line, give credit and then write your own article.
5) Add graphics that correlate to the post to "brighten" it up. Pay for all images used unless they are your own.

Consistency is key.Using the correct format for posting, Utilizing keywords, and tags will help as well.

Good luck to you!

#10 (**permalink**) 08-30-2012

Thank you very much for your feedback, this has all helped me shape and tweak my blog to where I want it to be. I still cannot stand my wordpress template but one day I hope to change it.