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Discount Summer Sale
Small Business Services

Discount Summer Sale Now on

Save on virtual assistant services for 6 months in our discount summer sale

Our discount summer sale has arrive! So much for our summer – blink and you’ll miss it! However, one good thing has come out of it for you if you’re a small business.

As a new or returning customer you can benefit from half price virtual assistant rate for 6 months which will take you to the end of March – usually £30/hour, so £15/hour saving!

A virtual assistant will help you, as a business owner, free up some of your valuable time so that you can focus on building your brand while we take care of the small stuff.

You can also take advantage of our pay as you go answer service and get 20 inclusive calls at no extra cost – usually £1/call.

An answering service gives you that freedom to get out and about to visit your customers, and ensures you don’t miss any potential sales or issues in the meantime.

Sound too good to be true? Well I can assure you it is true and is happening now!

Time to take advantage of this offer ends on 21 September so get your skates on or you’ll miss out!

We’re looking forward to welcoming our new and any returning customers (we’ve missed you).

Virtual Assistant Sale
Audio Transcription, Content Management, Live Chat, Small Business Services, Social Media Management, Telephone Answering, Virtual Assistant, Virtual Office

Virtual Assistant January Sale

Discounts across all of our services

If you haven’t used a virtual assistant before, now is the time in our January Sale!

If last year didn’t give you time to expand your business then perhaps you were just too busy. To build your business you need someone else to help with the day to day stuff.

A virtual assistant service is a good choice if you can’t afford a permanent employee. Especially in today’s ‘virtual’ ‘work from home’ trend. It’s affordable, dead handy, doesn’t eat into your pocket and does what it says on the tin!

So what can you get when you use this service? The answer is a reliable, professional, experienced virtual assistant who puts your business needs first.

Services on offer are listed below, just click on the links to read more about each one:

The above services can be combined or mixed and matched to suit your individual business needs.

Our Virtual Assistant January sale is now on. To get your discounted service simply visit the relative page and chat with us online using our chat facility. Tell us how we can help your business and what you need.

Discounts will be applied accordingly depending on the service.

Mid Wales and Shropshire Virtual and Registered Office
Small Business Services, Virtual Office

Virtual Office – Mid Wales and Shropshire

Do you run a small business in Mid Wales or Shropshire?

Mid Wales and Shropshire virtual office addresses are hard to come by. You may have found it difficult to find a virtual office address if you’re living and working in these areas, especially in Wales.

You may be a small business owner living and working in Wales or the West Midlands so it makes sense to have an address for your business in the same area.

So, due to demand, just this week we have joined forces with a well established accountancy firm to bring you 5 brand new virtual office locations in Powys and Shropshire.

Being self employed and running a business from home has its advantages but you may not wish to advertise your address to all and sundry. This is where a virtual office address comes in handy!

Our virtual office address locations offer:

  • Both registered and mailing address – no additional charge as with some companies
  • Limited company name displayed at location – as per HMRC requirements
  • Electronic mail forwarding
  • All inclusive annual fee

Choose from:

  • Knighton, Powys
  • Ludlow, Shropshire
  • Newtown, Powys
  • Oswestry, Shropshire
  • Shrewsbury, Shropshire

If you’re a small business in Mid Wales or Shropshire and want a professional business address without the need for advertising your home address, then get in touch today.

Special offer until 31 October 2023 – 10% off.

If you have had trouble finding a virtual office in other locations, please let us know.

Cyber Sale Monday
Small Business Services, Telephone Answering

Cyber Sale!

Are you ready for this year’s Cyber Sale?

Cyber Monday is nearly here again and you can benefit from great savings in our cyber sale.

It’s very important that potential customers get a professional experience when they call you. How you handle those calls alone will determine whether a customer would like to do business with you.

An answering service is a useful service to have if you’re a small business owner – especially if you don’t have a lot of time to answer the phone.

If you’re busy in meetings, or driving, or just doing day to day operational stuff, it means you could potentially be losing sales.

If you’re missing your existing customers calls too then that won’t bode well for your business reviews! Your customers should be getting a first-class customer service experience.

This is where Freelance Office Services and Virtual Assistance (FOSVA) can help. Our virtual assistant will screen your calls so you don’t have to. We can then transfer the caller to you. Or, we can simply take a message and email or WhatsApp the information to you.

In this year’s Cyber Sale you can save a massive 50% when you take out our Answering Service. This discount will remain in effect for 6 months!

Get in touch with us Monday 28 November to take advantage! It’s for one day only so don’t miss out!

Live Chat Assistant
Small Business Services, Social Media Management, Virtual Assistant

Live Chat Assistant

Live chat is extremely important when it comes to giving a great customer service experience. Especially if you have an online shop, or social media pages.

In this world of virtual working people are doing more and more shopping online. Many prefer to communicate that way too.

So, it’s a good idea to have a few different way for your customers to get in touch; after all we all know how frustrating it is when you can’t get hold of anyone if you have a problem!

Many people like to be able to speak to someone using an online chat facility such as website chat or Google messaging.

A lot of small businesses will already have Facebook shops, where customers can send you an inbox message to enquire about your products or services.

Whatever method they choose to use, it’s a good idea to make sure you have every avenue covered.

Enquiries need to be dealt with preferably within 24 hours as with email enquiries, so enabling your out of office auto replies on the relative platforms is a must.

Ideally, though, you ought to have someone available to respond quickly or you may lose out to a competitor!

Nobody likes to be kept waiting!

However, this takes man hours. So what do you do when you don’t have staff around the clock dealing with these enquiries?

Do you just leave enquiries unanswered and miss potential sales? Or, do you provide a fantastic customer service experience by getting an assistant to monitor your live chat?

I think you’d agree that the latter makes much more business sense.

Get in touch to find out how we can help.

A little love on Valentine's Day - Save 50%
Audio Transcription, Content Management, Small Business Services, Social Media Management, Telephone Answering, Virtual Assistant

A little love!

Let us give you a little love – Save 50% on Valentine’s Day 💞

A little love on Valentine’s Day goes a long way!

Valentine’s Day Special – yes we’re showing you some LURVE for ONE DAY ONLY!! 😍🥰

Chat with us here on our website on Valentine’s Day about taking out a new service and you can get a MASSIVE 50% off any of our services!

So that’s any service commencing from Valentine’s Day for half the usual price! 💷

Choose from:

And you know what else? If you continue to use the service month to month without a break, you’ll continue to save! 😮

Just come back on Valentine’s Day and chat with us to take advantage.

Remember it’s only for ONE DAY so don’t miss out! 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️

And if you’re wondering what to give your loved ones for Valentine’s Day, how about a Classic Beatles Tour with the Fab 4 Taxi Tours 🚔. Perhaps a Rom Com Tour of London with Brit Movie Tours or a George Michael Tour with Brit Music Tours floats your boat? ⛵️

Happy Valentine’s Day! 💕

January News
Small Business Services

January News

What’s new for January 2022

January is always a bit of a come down after the Christmas festivities, but with the ongoing pandemic it’s kind of been like that for a couple of years now.

Small business owners have been suffering with rising costs and lack of revenue – even more so if it’s in hospitality.

Some businesses have become unviable and have had to shut up shop, which means many people have also lost their jobs.

Those that can all but survive have had to either let go some employees, or put them on furlough.

With the continuing working from home trend, it seems the best businesses to be in are home deliveries/on line retail, and carrier services.

Working from home has its benefits to some, as it saves on childcare and the cost of commuting, but not so much if you like that personal interaction with coworkers.

Video calling has its merits, but you can’t beat that one to one personal connection you get in real life situations.

Get the help you need

We’ve been working remotely since our business inception in 2004 and we love it, but then that’s our business model and we do it very well.

Our customers, yes you, come back time and time again and some have never left in over 10 years so we must be doing something right!

We can help you get your business back on track, while we sweat the small stuff, so that you can focus on building up your business!

Our prices have remained constant for many years with only slight changes, and we will continue to keep our prices at the same rates for 2022.

So if you’re a small business owner who needs a little helping hand and you can’t afford premises or staff, then have a chat with us. Chat Now!

Keep an eye on our blog and socials (links in footer), for forthcoming discounts/promotions. Some will pop up in the chat bot when you visit a particular page.

Get your New Year off to a good start!

Cyber Monday Mega Discount Sale
Content Management, Small Business Services, Social Media Management, Virtual Assistant

Cyber Monday Explained

What is Cyber Monday?

Cyber Monday is a marketing expression for e-commerce sales on the first Monday after Thanksgiving in America. It’s basically the online equivalent of Black Friday.

Its primary function is to drive people to online shopping sites. It typically runs between 26 November to 2 December depending on the year.

The term was created by a woman called Ellen Davis from the National Retail Federation and Scott Silverman.

Its first appearance was on 28 November 2005 in a press release entitled:

“‘Cyber Monday’ Quickly Becoming One of the Biggest Online Shopping Days of the Year”

shop.org

Historically it was reported at its first inception in 2005 that 77% of retailers saw a dramatic increase in their online sales the Monday after Thanksgiving.

It’s also reported in 2017 that online sales increased to a record $6.59 billion which is substantially greater than sales of $2.65 billion in 2014!

Cyber Monday is a great way for online retailers to compete with the big stores who offer massive discounts on the High Street during Black Friday.

It’s recognised as an online marketing term not just in the United States, but now all over the globe! You’ll see many retailers advertising discounts during Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend.

The biggest online shopping day to date was on 30 November 2020 in the US. It brought in a massive $10.7 billion sales.

We’re jumping on the band wagon this year. So on on Monday 29 November come back to our website and chat to us to get your 50% discount!

Virtual Training Administrator
Small Business Services, Virtual Assistant

Training Coordinator – Training Roll-Out

Virtual Training Coordinator – what’s that all about?

Anne first started out as a training coordinator in 1997 when she was hired by Hewlett Packard.

She was very nervous in the interview. However, she had a wonderful female boss called Jill who was very encouraging over the next couple of years.

Anne was responsible for the internal NT Networking and NOS Installation & Trouble Shooting program for HP.

It entailed listing courses on the intranet (internal company portal), where the engineers would visit to enrol. It was the first time she’d used the internet and the ‘go to’ search engine was Netscape at the time!

Anne would have to do a training needs analysis for each delegate. She would then make sure that they had completed the necessary pre-requisite courses before they could attend. Then she would send out the joining instructions.

After the course completion it was time to set up the CAT testing. This was the Company’s internal certification for network administration etc.

It involved visits to the various HP offices around the UK and Ireland. Anne would have to set up the workstations ready for the engineers to take the mandatory tests. Engineers could also attend the purpose built testing room at the head office.

She thoroughly enjoyed the role, but a new manager took over and completely overhauled the department. She then moved over HP Education which was a similar role but the courses were Microsoft Office related.

The next training administrator role was for Dell Computers where she had to enrol all the new employees on to the new starter induction training and after that a few similar roles for Agilent Technologies and United Utilities.

Anne set up her virtual office services business in 2004. One of her first customers was a computer training company where she also worked as a training coordinator.

She also ran her own training business from 2008 to 2014. The types of training offered were Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite, Personal Development and Management training. This was by utilising her well earned skills from previous positions.

Virtual Training Coordinator – what’s in it for you?

Freelance Office Services and Virtual Assistance can help with all aspects of your training logisitics. The virtual training coordinator can do whatever you need.

From listing courses to getting bookings and taking payments. To sending out joining instructions and getting bums on seats. You can count on us to get it done!

Chat with us now bottom right of this page, or by clicking here for other ways of getting in touch.

E-commerce Business Owners
Content Management, Small Business Services, Social Media Management, Telephone Answering, Virtual Assistant

E-Commerce Business Owners

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E-commerce business owners – If you’re too busy to deal with the day to day administration of your business, then a Virtual assistant is a great option.

Customer Enquiries

Having a professional on the end of the phone to speak to your customers is paramount if you’re to secure sales and promote a great customer service ethic.

There are still a lot of consumers who like to talk to a human being on the phone so it’s important you can answer the calls!

The same can be said for visitors to your online store – for instance have you got a chat bot on your website? 

What happens when the website visitor needs a bit of extra help?  You’ll need to transfer them to a live operator to handle those types of enquiries on your site.

Then we mustn’t forget the other social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

It’s true that the mobile phone generation tend to use Messenger and Whatsapp to communicate via text rather than pick up a phone so you will need to have all avenues covered!  

Even Google maps has a text facility so who’s answering the queries?

Order Processing

Once you’ve dealt with an enquiry you will then need to take the payment and process the order. 

There are many payment services out there such as Sum Up, Square, Sage, PayPal etc. so you’ve probably got a payment facility set up on your site already – but what about when someone calls and wants to pay over the phone?  Can you handle this? 

After the order is in it has to be sent to the supplier (unless you manufacture your own products in house), but either way you’ll need a process for this to keep on top of your orders and deliveries including all the logistics.

If all goes well and the customer receives your product within good time and there are no issues, you can then follow up for feedback and get these good reviews put on your website and social pages.

However, what if the customer is not happy, or if the order is not fulfilled?  You’ll need someone to handle the complaint, chase up suppliers and liaise with carriers for missing consignments etc.

Only when your customer is happy will they think about purchasing from you again so good customer service and communication is imperative if you’re to gain a great reputation.

This is where a Virtual Assistant can prove very useful, especially if you can’t afford to employ a permanent member or staff or don’t have space for a staff member in your office.

So what exactly can a VA do for e-commerce business owners?

Here are a few suggestions and not limited to:

  • Deal with all enquiries be it email, on line chat, messenger, social media, whatsapp or by phone
  • Advise customers concerning your product and how it will benefit them
  • Take payments over the phone via an on line terminal
  • Process/track orders, liaise with suppliers and carriers
  • Deal with any issues such as complaints, non-deliveries
  • Follow up with the customer for feedback and gain reviews for your business

Your Virtual Assistant will become very knowledgeable about your products very quickly.

It would make sense to utilise that knowledge elsewhere don’t you think? It would be silly not to!

Social Media Management

Your Social Media Virtual Assistant can keep your social media platforms current.

They can post content, upload videos and producst to the site. The VA can also engage with followers and process in box messages and on line chat requests. Pretty much anything else pertaining to your online presence.

Content Management

If customer service and social media is not enough, then get your VA to manage the front end of your e-commerce shop too.

Your CMS Virtual Assistant can write blog posts, upload product information and other company updates. Plus anything else you need to add to your online store. 

To find out how you can keep your e-commerce business running smoothly, improve sales and gain repeat business, without spending a fortune get in touch with us. 

We can tailor the service to your personal requirements.

Watch full video here.

Customer Retention
Small Business Services, Telephone Answering, Virtual Assistant

Customer Retention – Achievable?

Customer retention is based on customer satisfaction.

Did you know that customers will base their decision about whether or not to do business with you within the first few minutes so it’s important you have a professional at the end of your phone!

Even more important is about how you handle their enquiries or even more so, their complaints!  It’s a fact that a customer is more likely to remain loyal, return, if you resolve their issues satisfactorily, regardless of how bad it was!

It’s all about a great customer service experience.  Give your customers what they want, deal with any issues quickly and promptly and they’ll keep coming back.

A virtual assistant or answering service is one way to keep your customers loyal. 

Watch the video for a few simple tips about how to give your customers a great customer service experience. This will increase customer retention.

A professional answering service will help you to keep your customer happy

Virtual Assistants Undervalued?
Small Business Services, Virtual Assistant

Are Virtual Assistants Undervalued?

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What is a Virtual Assistant ❓ Do you really know ❓

1) A self employed office based professional

2) Multi-tasker

3) Highly adaptable to your needs

4) Capable

5) Undervalued

Which of these would you agree with?

I personally think Virtual Assistants are highly underrated. You only have to look on the job sites and big companies are now recruiting for home workers due to the Covid situation, but in an employed (PAYE) capacity and they’re still only offering wages that were low 7 years ago when I left the UK to work abroad!

Why are virtual assistants undervalued when everyone knows that a PA or secretary is usually the working cogs that keeps a manager, director, team or small business going by keeping on top of their day to day tasks.

So why are the big companies still only offering to pay these talented individuals silly money in exchange for their expertise and capabilities? SMEs see our value, why don’t the corporates? We don’t need to have all these academic qualifications as our experience should be enough – after all we run our own business so why don’t you think we can help to run yours? 🤔

Thoughts and answers on a postcard, or if you prefer, comment below! I for one will be interested to hear what these companies have to say about it.