Posts Tagged ‘Building Online Business’

Wondering if you should hire an Online Business Manager? Here are 5 tell-tale signs that it may be time for you to add an OBM to your team.

1. Your business is growing while your own free-time is shrinking.

I’m betting you started your business to create more freedom in your life yes? Freedom of time, money and choice. Let me ask you – as your business grows are you actually working more or less time?

If you are on the ‘working more time’ side of things you certainly aren’t alone… I can’t count how many times I’ve talked to business owners who have shared how they are actually working more hours in their own business than they ever did in their ‘old job’. However it doesn’t have to be this way… as a business owner you have the ‘freedom of choice’ to be able to make changes in your business, including hiring the right help to get stuff off your plate.

This is exactly what an Online Business Manager does – their main focus is to free up the business owner so that they can focus their time and energy on the things that only THEY can do in their business.

2. You are having to turn away opportunities because you are so busy!

This is a sad by-product of the first point. Are you so busy that you can’t take advantage of the opportunities that are coming your way? Do you ever find yourself saying “I would love to do X and know it would be a great new revenue stream… but I simply don’t have the time for it right now… “

Not only can an Online Business Manager help free up your own time to be able to explore these opportunities, they can also work on bringing some of these opportunities to life for you! An Online Business Manager is very focused on implementation, and can help manage the process of creating new revenue streams in your business from concept to launch.

3. You are still doing things the same things you were doing when you started your business.

Remember when you first started your business and had to wear many hats? You were the cook, hostess, waitress and busboy (so to speak, hehe.) Now that your business is growing, are you still doing the same things as you were in the beginning? Are you still updating your own website? Are you still managing your shopping cart? Are you still answering all your customer service emails?

As your business grows your role will (and should!) change. An Online Business Manager can lovingly ’slap your wrist’ when it comes to you doing some of these things… helping you let go of some of the ‘old’ stuff taking up your time that gets in the way of you growing your business.

4. You have a great team, but find yourself frustrated by them always ‘bugging’ you.

This is actually a very common complaint from business owners – they have a great team of VAs, webmasters and such. And yet they are constantly frustrated by how much their team needs from them. They feel like someone is always tapping them on the shoulder with a question or request.

The thing is, your team does need someone to manage them. They need someone who they can turn to with questions, to get what they need to complete their projects quickly and on time. And if there is not an Online Business Manager on the team who do they turn to? You – the business owner.

As a colleague of mine so eloquently shared:

“My VAs were doing a fine job – it was ME who was unhappy managing them.”

Most business owners really don’t enjoying being managers, and i’m guessing this may be the same for you. An Online Business Manager becomes the key point of contact for your team – all questions, requests and such go to the OBM instead of you.

5. You are stuck at $X revenue and can’t seem to get past that point!

When you find yourself stuck at a certain point in revenue there is usually one thing getting in the way – you! My business partner Andrea Lee calls this the quarter million dollar speedbump (can be more or less than that of course) and a big part of the solution usually requires you removing yourself from the day-to-day of your business.

Start to ask yourself as you go about your day – do I need to be the person to do X? (with X being the many things you spend your time on each day.)

Chances are many things on your to-do list could be passed along to someone else on your team. And an Online Business Manager can help with that process by delegating and managing those tasks on your behalf.

Tina Forsyth is the author of Becoming an Online Business Manager: Playing a Bigger Game with Your Clients and Yourself. She writes and consults in advanced online marketing and business systems for business owners and their support teams. www.OnlineBusinessManager.com

Say what? Sounds like a crazy thing to say, me being a proponent of “hiring your virtual team” and such… isn’t delegation a part of that?

I actually have a bit of a different perspective on this and it is based on my belief that:

Your virtual team should be taking stuff OFF your plate, not adding work to your plate.

Delegation is actually a lot of work when you think about it. In order to delegate effectively you need to be able to decide – usually on a day to day basis – what needs to be done, who is best to do it, give specifics on how it needs to be done, set deadlines, answer any of their questions, follow up to make sure it is done, etc. Phew!

I’m actually a fan of coming at this from a slightly different but hugely significant angle – releasing instead of delegating.

I recorded a video a few weeks back that talks about the two different mindsets of virtual support professionals – the business mindset vs. the employee mindset.

In a nutshell, someone with a business mindset really gets that they are the expert, they are the specialist and are providing a valuable service to you. When you talk to someone with a business mindset they are going to say something like “here’s how I can help you” – they will TELL you what they can do for you.

Someone with an employee mindset usually has the best intention at heart and really wants to help – but they don’t yet have the understanding, experience or knowledge to approach you as an expert in their field. Instead they approach you from the perspective of “how can I help you?” – they ASK you how they can help.

If you consider this for a moment you can actually feel the difference here… if someone TELLS you how they can help that actually takes work off your plate. They are clear on what they are doing and what needs to be done – it’s like a sigh of relief!!

When someone ASKS you how they can help that actually adds work to your plate. It now becomes up to you to tell that person what to do, how to do it, when to do it, follow up to make sure it gets done, etc… this is A LOT of work for many business owners (and quite frankly something that many of us do poorly as it’s not our strength).

Most of the business owners I talk to would love to have someone with a business mindset – we are hungry to get this stuff off our plates!

Now when you have someone in place who has a business mindset your “job” is no longer about delegation… it’s now about release. You don’t have to tell them what to do – instead they are telling you! Your job then is just to learn how to let go, how to release what needs to be done so someone else can take care of it for you.

This article was written by

Tina Forsyth is the author of Becoming an Online Business Manager: Playing a Bigger Game with Your Clients and Yourself. She writes and consults in advanced online marketing and business systems for business owners and their support teams. www.OnlineBusinessManager.com

Thank you advance and I look forward to comments to this post.   Post right  here on this blog.

As you go through your day, how many projects are you working on for your business? Presently, are you the only one who can complete these projects? What if you were to turn these projects over to a project manager? How much more time would you have available? What would you do with that time? Create new products? Add new services? Take on new clients? The list is endless.

If you want to forecast your full business potential by relieving yourself of these necessary but growth blocking projects, set up a few interviews with some potential Online Business Managers. Let them suggest what might be blocking you from your success and how they can help. This will give you an excellent idea of what your business could be like, should you choose to partner with an OBM.

In addition to being your project and team manager, a good OBM will implement business strategies and resources to save you time and money.

If you would like to learn more about how partnering with an Online Business Manager to grow your online business to new heights be sure to download my new free eBook, “Grow Your Online Business To New Heights With An Online Business Manager” on this web page.

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In the partnership between online business owner and online business manager it is the business owner who determines where they want to go in their business and it’s the OBM’s role to make sure that the bus get’s there!

Online business owners are in a league of their own. It takes hard work and dedication, long hours and determination to be successful among the thousands of competing online businesses.  New products and services, email marketing, joint ventures, networking, teleclasses, and newsletters are just a handful of the various projects an online business owner must handle. Is it any wonder online business burnout is so common?

It’s not that these online business owners aren’t successful, quite the contrary.  Their hard work causes them to be very successful – but at what cost? If you are successful but unhappy then what is the point? Online business owners often take on all the tasks and projects involved in their business; administrative, marketing and technical to name just a few. This can leave little time for taking on new and exciting projects, growing the business and enjoying life outside of the business.

So how do online business owners create time for business growth and a personal life? They partner with another online business owner – more specifically – an Online Business Manager (OBM). Not to be mistaken with a Virtual Assistant, an OBM does not perform individual tasks but actually manages your business. This can be done in a variety of ways; for example, often an OBM will manage a team of online professionals who will complete the business tasks at hand.

Imagine having a team of virtual professionals dedicated to your business. Your OBM will manage and monitor all assigned projects and team members, ensuring that all tasks are being completed with excellence and on time so that your business continues to run smoothly. Imagine what you could do now with all that available time!

Partnering with an OBM is an absolute must for successful businesses that want to experience growth and whose owners want to avoid or eliminate business burnout. Some online business owners try outsourcing essential business tasks only to discover that it is even more time consuming to watch over the outsourced projects. To create the time needed for business growth and reduce burnout, there should be someone else in charge of project management – an Online Business Manager.

Online business owners who have successfully partnered with an OBM have more peace of mind and feel a better sense of control and accomplishment in their business.  For example, since your OBM has an active and comprehensive role, vacations can now be enjoyed rather than skipped or compromised by worry.  You can count on your OBM to provide continuous follow-up with their outsourced team, allowing you, the business owner to focus on creating new products or contacts which lead to increased revenue.

Therefore, it is important to choose the right OBM; someone you feel comfortable with and who you can trust. Your business is your baby, so choosing the right OBM may take some time. Be sure to have your business information, goals and needs organized along with specific interview questions. You may find that the first OBM you interview is “the one” or you may have to interview a few OBMs to get a good feel for what you’re really looking for.

Are you interested in finding out more about Online Business Managers? “Grow Your Online Business to New Heights with an Online Business Manager” is a free ebook that explains what an online business owner should know before hiring an OBM. It provides many resources such as interview questions and prep sheets to fully prepare the reader for the interviewing process.  Also, included is a 7-Day eCourse that walks you through critical questions to determine whether your business is ready for an OBM.  In summary, it is a fantastic resource for a successful business interested in growing bigger and better with the help of an OBM.

For more information please visit Brenda Violette, Your Online Business Manager at www.vbsvirtualassist.com

Copyright © 2010 COPYRIGHT BRENDA VIOLETTE, VBS VIRTUAL ASSIST, LLC. All rights reserved.

Quite simply put, an OBM succeeds when you succeed. They have a passion for working with business owners to accomplish their growth goals.  You will find that many OBM’s have a wide variety of experience; like me, many were former corporate employees who have chosen to take their vast knowledge to a new playing field – their own online business. They are naturally motivated and compelled to take not only their own business but yours to new heights of profitability and manageability!

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Are you a successful online business owner? Owning your own business is a rewarding experience, full of passion and challenge. But what happens when your business is so busy that you are no longer enjoying the fruits of your labor? Do you find that you are too busy working on maintenance tasks and can’t find the time to do more important projects that will grow your business to new heights?

If you identify with any of the above questions, you will want to download my new eBook, “Grow Your Online Business to New Heights With An Online Business Manager”.  Scheduled to be released next week!

Have you made the mistake of thinking you can do it all in your business?

Do you find that there is little time to spend on your core services?

Are you making good money, but just can’t grow your business further?

Would you love to have someone who is committed to growing your business, so that you can focus on what you so best?

COMING SOON!

Watch for my new eBook, “Grow Your Online Business to New Heights With An Online Business Manager” to learn more about partnering with an Online Business Manager.

I am having such a great time listening and sitting at the feet of the experts this week during List Attraction Week.

One of my favorite calls was yesterday with Kim De Young – How to Leap Your List by Creating a High Traffic Blog.   There were three golden nuggets that I pulled from this call that I feel is important to share with my Online Business Manager clients and audience.

Why does every business owner need a blog?

1. to get your message out
2. build your list
3. educate your audience
4. establish your credibility and your expertise

Thank you Kim DeYoung for sharing.

PS: Copyblogger.com is a great resource to come up with great headlines.

Come and join me for List Attraction Week, March 8 – March 12, 2010.