Misc

Date: Thursday, September 16th at 1pm Pacific /4 pm Eastern

You’ve all heard the saying you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression. In fact, 55% of your communication skills are based on your appearance and can affect your marketing efforts both online and offline.

How you represent yourself can have a HUGE impact on your business. And it’s not just about what you look like (although that is part of it) it’s more so about how you feel about yourself – your level of confidence. This comes across in all of your communications and can make the difference in someone saying “yes” to hiring you (or not.)

How your image affects your business and income The key elements that make up your image 7 outfits that every woman needs to have on hand What you need to know about your image online Quick tips to improve your image right now Our Guest for the Month of September is Ungenita Prevost the creator of The Billion Dollar Beauty Club, an internationally known Beauty Empowerment Author & Speaker. She’s worked with some of the world’s most Glamorous and Influential celebrities during her 10+ years in the Entertainment Industry as an Actress/Dancer/Body Double including Stephen Spielberg, Jon Bon Jovi, Ashton Kutcher, Jamie Foxx, Janet Jackson & Madonna.

Call-in information for live call is on your member login page. Missed the live call? Get the audio download on your member login page within 48 hours. If you do not have your password, e-mail us at support@obmconnect.com

If you are not an IAOBM member yet, find out more about IAOBM Membership Benefits by clicking here: http://www.obmconnect.com/membership-benefits

Are you an OBM, VA or other online support professional who is looking for new clients?

Then allow me to give you a bit of “homework” – this is something that I ask of the gals in my Online Business Manager Mentorship program (if their business isn’t yet full.)

Respond to any RFP (request for proposal) that is appealing to you – with the intention of getting to have a conversation with the business owner to learn more and determine if there is a fit.

Just to clarify – an RFP is where a business owners submits their request for “help”, telling you what they need help with and giving you some insight as to their business, projects, budget and such. If you are a fit for what they need then you respond with your “proposal” letting them know how you could be a fit for their needs. There are some really great RFP services out there these days (like the one here at our OBM Association) - if you haven’t done so already be sure to join to be notified as new opportunities arise.

And yet I have to admit that i’m surprised when I see a great RFP come through our OBM Association website – and then hear from the business owner later on that they didn’t get any response. This happens alot more than you would think – what’s up with that? I KNOW there are members who are looking for new clients, and yet they aren’t responding?

I decided to dig a bit deeper and found a common theme among what was stopping people from applying:

“Tina, I’d love to apply for this but don’t have everything that they are looking for…”

If you’ve ever looked at an RFP and thought this allow me to give you a reframe. When a client submits their RFP it is essentially a “wish list” on their part – they may be listing anything and everything that they would love to have, BUT that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t settle for someone who has *most* of what they need.

I would put the 80/20 rule to work here – if you are interested in something and have 80% of what they need, then by all means apply! See the fact of the matter is that you won’t know for sure whether or not something is a fit for you until you get to have a conversation with the business owner – and you won’t get to have a conversation until you apply to the RFP. It is only in the conversation that you can really learn what they need, what is truly important to them and see if/how you can help.

As a business owner shared with me a while back (after not getting a response to her very detailed RFP):

“Tina, I don’t actually expect someone to be able to do all of this… but would love to hear where they can help me, and how they could help build the team to take care of the stuff they can’t”

Which is exactly part of the OBM role anyways right?

I also want you to keep in mind that sometimes the business owners who are submitting these RFPs don’t always know for sure what they need themselves. And so they put everything they can think of in an RFP. Again, a conversation here is vital as you can educate the business owner on how you can help, what you can (and cannot) do for them.

Remember that we are pioneers – I think sometimes we forget that not everyone knows what an OBM is (gasp!) So keep in mind that education may be necessary in this process, and could potentially lead to a really great client if you are willing to have that conversation.

Your Assignment: If you are looking for clients, proactively respond to all RFPs that could potentially be a good fit for you and your services. You won’t know for sure if it’s a fit (or not) until you have apply and have a conversation.

What to do when your new client already has a team in place
by Tiffany Johnson of Vasppro.com

Consider this scenario:

You recently started working as an OBM with your ‘ideal client’ who has a very strong but independent team in place already. You need to learn the business, assess your team and build your client’s confidence in you. Any one of these key components can be a disaster in the making and yet you need to do all 3 and preferably in the first 90 days!

Sound familiar? Well if you have ever joined a 7 figure team for an ideal client, it does. As this is the reality you face from day one. There’s the biz, the client and the team… the good news is you are likely qualified to handle the biz, the client is ready - that’s why they hired you, right? - but the team may not be quite so ready for you to come into the business.

From the team’s perspective you are essentially a ’stranger’ and they quite honestly may not welcome you with open arms. It’s not that they are purposely giving you the cold shoulder, it’s just that they don’t know you yet and your role in the company may change the flow/structure of how they work with the business owner already (and it is human nature to be resistant to change).

I have been in this situation a few times, and have put a plan together to assist you in developing team relationships for the purpose of creating a climate of lean productivity and personal gratification.

So here are my 3 key elements:

1. The old saying “folks don’t care what you know till they know you care” is a major player in developing team relationships specifically if you are the new kid on the block. Let me tell you why… if all you are concerned with is the productivity and not the personality you will likely end up with a very rigid working relationship. This type of relationship will not produce quality work, helpful attitudes or that ‘go the extra mile’ philosophy.

   I always like to start team relationships with an assessment finding out what the skill level of each team member is and finding out what they really enjoy and what they prefer to not do. After the assessment I have a conversation with them about where their business is going what they are learning or struggling with and how I can assist them with meeting their personal goals. This goes a long way in ensuring a healthy relationship with each team member.

   A small investment of time and interest but trust me has a HUGE payoff in the long run.

2. Be completely upfront with your communication. Let each team member know exactly what your expectation of their role in the business is and make sure they are completely comfortable with it. If you have a high level VA handling your social media and shopping cart for your client you may think they are happy to do billing collections or follow up phone calls when in reality that is not at all something they enjoy. When someone is expected to do what they do not enjoy they will not be as productive in that area, nor will they exert the same amount of expertise or precision.

   If you find you have team mates with tasks that do not fit their skills or likes don’t hesitate to move tasks around, even if it means hiring another team member! This is best for the business in the long run and will assist each team member in being able to trust you (you care).

3. Don’t ask anything of the team you are not willing to do yourself. If you are requesting the team keep their hours in a virtual office, keep yours in there. If you expect a team member to work through the weekend to get a project out, be accessible through that weekend for your team member.

Closing thoughts: As an OBM, you need to understand the Law of the Lid which basically means you’re your leadership ability will determine the effectiveness of the team and the business. If a leader is strong then the possibilities are limitless; if the leader is weak then you hit the LID! So be strong as an OBM, be strong in leadership for your client and your team. Make the possibilities limitless!

Comments, thoughts?