Melinda Hamby Communications

Virtual Assistants, What They Can Do For You

Jul 12th, 2010 by melinda

Are you looking to hire a VA now or sometime in the future? Congratulations! You are now going down a path to freedom.

As a business owner, there will always be something you either hate doing or you just don’t have the time or knowledge to do. In these cases, delegation to a VA will free you up to concentrate on the things you love doing for your business. Let’s say you love going out and meeting potential new clients, but you absolutely hate to pull up the lead generator site and enter in all your prospect’s information. Simple scan the business card and your notes to a VA and they will enter the information for you.

VAs are a varied bunch. You can hire one for full time work, or part time for a few hours per day, or you can hire them on a one time only basis. Are your databases a mess, but you just don’t have the time to in and sort, one by one, each entry and correct them? Hire a VA just for this task. Hate going into Quickbooks and reconciling entries with your bank statement? Hire a VA or Virtual Bookkeeper (some VAs do bookkeeping, too) for just this task. They will go in once a day and make sure all entries are logged in correctly and then, once a month, reconcile the program with your bank statement. It is less than half an hour per day, but it is something you can pay them on a weekly or monthly basis and never have to worry about it being a mess again. You can also hire a VA for a few hours per day, so you can forward your business phone while you are out to lunch or at a client meeting.

“But, Melinda, what tasks can I hand over to a VA? I need to to do everything, because no one else knows how to do these things.”

I hear you. But, a good VA will do an initial interview with you and take good notes along the way. They will learn your business and learn how to do the task(s) you assign to your satisfaction. Remember, the things you are able to release control of and give to your VA means more time to spend on other things with your business. Have you wanted to do video marketing but just couldn’t find the time because you are always fighting with keeping spreadsheets and leads updated? The time free from giving over those tasks to a VA will allow you to do what you really want to do with your business.

Remember, anything you would give to a personal assistant or a secretary who would sit outside your office door is something you can give to a VA. Yes, including dictation. You can scan and use the telephone (or Skype) to give your VA any duty with which you need help.

Posted in Virtual Assistant | 11 Comments »

Backing Up Data – Points for Small Businesses

Jul 7th, 2010 by melinda

Photo Courtesy of John Boston www.flickr.com/photos/roadhunter/68017710/

One of the most important things you can do as a business owner is to devise a Business Disaster Plan. We are currently in the midst of hurricane season, and there are always year round floods and tornadoes and earthquakes to deal with, as well as the more mundane, but no less disastrous, house fires or electrical surges which will wipe out your computer. What would you do if something happened to your office and your computer, and all of your data, was destroyed? (Besides, of course, fall to your knees and wail, as I would.)

One of the most important aspects of your disaster plan is to create a backup of all of your data. There are optional things and critical thing to backup. You can backup your operating system but that may or may not help depending upon if you have the same hardware to restore to. If you have to buy a new computer after lighting fries your old one, the backed up operating system won’t do you any good. But, you must backup your applications and data so you can restore to a new computer, if needed. You can backup locally or to an external server, and, really, you should do both. If you have a house fire, the backups in the house may not be any good. My preferred method is to backup to an external hard drive. There are backup methods which use CDs or DVDs, but they become complicated and you have to keep track of a lot of media. Just buy an external drive large enough to copy your entire hard drive in your computer, so you can do a complete backup of your system. If you buy a large enough external drive you can make multiple backups which can be very useful.

When doing backups, it’s hard not to backup too much and it can become expensive. A perfect backup system requires a lot of hardware, switching it in and out, which takes up a lot of time and paying for various services. If you can do nothing else buy an external hard drive or USB thumb drive and backup critical files to it and then add onto your backup system as time and money allow. Although USB flash drives may not seem like the best option, I like them; they are small, cheap, portable and very reliable. You can buy two or three of them easily and even carry one with you as a portable emergency access to files. I recommend backing up your system AT LEAST once a week. However, if you do a lot of updates to your data files on a daily basis then I would suggest incorporating a daily backup task at the end of your business day. Also, don’t forget to test your backups, Murphy’s Law and all.

You could, of course, compress and backup to a CD, but an external hard drive is simpler and less prone to error (and you don’t have to hassle with things like compression). As hard drives have continued to get bigger and bigger, CDs have already become too small for complete backups, and DVDs won’t do much good either. You’ll have to think about your backup schedule. If you do nightly backups, you’ll want to keep the drive hooked up to your computer so you don’t forget it. Setting it up to backup automatically is common, it can work while you sleep so that it doesn’t interfere with your work schedule. However, while plugged in it can also be damaged – exposed to the same damage as your home. So, when not in use, unplug it and keep it in a fire proof, water proof safe with all of your important documents. If you can, buy two external drives and alternate them – one in the safe while the other is in use. If something ever happens, you can be assured you are covered – at least as far as what was on your computer, your computer itself may be a total loss. Yes, with an external server you don’t have to worry about keeping your driver safe, but you have no control if something happens to THEM. Yes, I have control issues…don’t judge. So, keep an external hard drive in your safe and then use a pen drive (or an external server like Drop Box) to keep in your briefcase or laptop bag.

So far we’ve mainly talked about local backups of files – things you can put your hands on. However, a good backup service a good investment. A good online storage service that allows automated backups and remote access to files allows you can recover files no matter what happens to your house, business or briefcase and have scalable rates. Drop Box is particularly well known for also having access to your files on nearly any kind of device and allowing collaborative sharing – yes, there’s an app for that!).

Ok, I hear you out there. Not everyone is tech savvy and compress and transfer backup items from their computer to a backup system on their own. Or, they have the knowledge, just not the time. There is software out there which can make this whole process easier for you.

As we have covered previously, I love open source software. It works just as well as the paid stuff, and well-supported open source projects can be just as good or better than commercial software without the expense. An easy one to use is Cobian Backup 10. You can download Cobian here. Cobian Backup downloads your files and compresses them to be transferred to your backup hardware of choice. There is a great demo video of how to do all of this on YouTube.

Another backup system I have heard recommended to others is SyncBack. You can download this software here. This is also a freeware option.

If I have not yet convinced you of the wonderfulness of freeware and you want a paid option, there is always GoodSync. This is a very affordable option for your business.

If you want an automated backup program, you can use Handy Backup. This is also an affordable option, plus you can program automatic backups and not have to worry about forgetting.

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Social Media and Why You Need It

Jun 27th, 2010 by melinda

Social media sites: Twitter, FaceBook, Digg, Disqus, Blogging, BlogTalk Radio, Stumble Upon, Yahoo Buzz, LinkedIn, YouTube, even Four Square. You know about all of these sites, maybe even use some of these in your personal life. But what about social media and business?

According to an article in Inc., one in five small businesses are using social media. Think about it. One in five of your small business competitors are using social media to advertise their business. Yes, I said advertise. Where can you advertise your business now a days? Yellow pages? No one uses those anymore, they use Google searches. Newspaper ad? Newspapers are going bankrupt because no one buys them, people read news sites online now. Radio? Most people listen to Pandora or satellite radio. Plus, if you do use those platforms to advertise your business, you are paying for them. Social media marketing is FREE!!!

Want someone to absolutely rave about your company and recommend you to all of their friends? Find someone who has written a good review of one of your products. Read the article. Read the comments. Then, positive or negative, contact each and every one of those posters. Thank them, or let them know you are sorry about any troubles they are having. Give them coupons or gift certificates and, if they are having problems, offer to fix those problems free of charge. Don’t talk AT them, talk TO them. Let them know there is a real person behind your company, and that you care about your customers.
SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCE

I am going to tell you a story about a woman who uses Twitter. This woman has hundreds of thousands of followers. Last year, she purchased a household appliance. Within days this appliance stopped working. So, she called customer service. She did not have a good experience. She logged onto Twitter and vented her frustration – to her hundreds of thousands of followers. Yes, she named the company. Yes, she told all of her follwers how they were not helping her. Her followers called for a boycott of the company. Said company found out days later, maybe as much as a week, and gave her a new appliance, free of charge.

Do you see where I’m going here? If this company had done better with their social media monitoring they very likely would have never ended up in a PR nightmare. Social media tracking can be a very important part of your business day. You HAVE to learn how to use social media to the benefit of your company. You have to know what people are saying about you, the good and the bad. And you have to respond to those people! (Yes, even the good posts you have to respond to, that is what will gain you a good internet reputation.)

These days, social media and marketing go hand in hand with other, too. As I said at the top of the page, social media is FREE advertising. But, you can’t just go out there and sign up for a bunch of accounts and spam them with links to your webpage. You have to interact with the people on the sites. You have to post more than links to your website.

YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA

I can hear you out there now. “But, Melinda, how do I get started? Where do I go? Where do I find the time?”

I know, I know. You have todo lists a mile long. Even if you take out a few hours in the day, that is a few hours away from running your business. Or is it?

Can you really afford to ignore the benefits of social media? Sure, you might not lose business because you don’t have a FaceBook account; but you also are not going to gain business because of that FaceBook account.

Let me tell you another story, this one about a Fortune 500 business. This company has created social media contacts for every faucet of their business. Computers, Printers, Laptops, etc. They have hired social media management to help them run their social media marketing. You know what? Their reputation has skyrocketed! Their Twitter accounts alone show customers how much this company cares about their products and their customers. The employees running these accounts interact with others on Twitter. They track who is talking about them and they respond. They hold real conversations with these people, people who are either considering a purchase or who are already customers. They have earned a good internet reputation. And good internet reputations, though they cannot be tracked with ROI, earn you new customers. And new customers mean a better bottom line. Because customer loyalty is determined from the experiences your customers have when they contact your company.

“Ok, Melinda. You’ve convinced me to climb up on this platform. But, I still have the problem of finding time to do all of this!”

I have the solution for you:

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING SERVICES

Just like the company in the example above, you can hire a social media manager. Sure, you can hire your cousin, Bobby, to run your YouTube account. But, remember, people comment on these videos. How well does Bobby know your business? Does he really care about it, other than getting a paycheck from you for doing this? Does he care if you succeed at building a good reputation on the site? Does he know how to handle negative comments and help people who have had problems?

A good social media manager will be able to run your accounts effectively, give them a personality and a caring attitude. They will be passionate about helping you and will care about your business’s reputation. They will learn your business and your products. They will earn you that good reputation on the internet. They will care about customer’s problems and will help heal the wounds that a bad experience may have caused.

“But, Melinda, I’m a small business. I can’t afford all of that! Bobby only wants a lifetime supply of the chocolates I make to run YouTube.”

Well, let me assure you, social media managers aren’t a one size fits all model. You can hire them to set up your accounts and then run them all themselves, with input and training from you. You can hire one to simply set up the accounts and then train you how to maintain them yourself. Or, if you already have accounts set up, you can hire them on a one shot basis to look them over and advise you what is and isn’t working and to teach you how to improve your performance.

Regardless of what you are hiring them to do for you, you must make sure they are the correct fit for your needs. The person you hire should be passionate about helping you succeed and they must be passionate about what they do. Social media is a growing market field. Just because someone uses Twitter doesn’t mean they know how to market on Twitter.

See you on Twitter!!

© Photographer: | Agency: Dreamstime.com

Posted in Social Media | 2 Comments »

Peachtree Accounting Software

Jun 8th, 2010 by melinda

If you are looking for an alternative to QuickBooks or Quicken, and do not want the hassle of working with open source software, look no further than Sage Peachtree. I remember Peachtree from the early 90s, during my administrative days. It is still around and it is running with the times.

There are a variety of different options you can purchase with Peachtree, and you are able to purchase and download all the versions online. From small business accounting to Peachtree business products geared specifically toward your industry (construction, distribution, manufacturing, accounting or nonprofit). And, to give in to my “freebie” nature, you can download free Peachtree packages to try out before you buy. AND they offer a 60 day money back guarantee for all new users.

Already use QuickBooks or Quicken? There is an online conversion wizard to make your import from QuickBooks as painless as possible. If you use Quicken, however, you will have to manually switch over your files.

Only drawback I can find? You can only run this software on Windows operating systems. Is anything in the works for Mac users? We will have to wait and see.

Now, which product is right for your business? Peachtree software offers you a diverse array of options for accounting software.

Sage Peachtree Pro

This option is perfect for small businesses who are running a single company and only needs one user login. This option starts at $199.99 USD. You get a complete small business package: accounting, inventory management, business analytics, payroll and 80 customizable reports. Plus, you can upload your reports into Excel.

Worried that you’ll spend money on the first option, only to find out a few months down the line you need a more comprehensive package? No worries. You can easily upgrade packages as your business grows.

Sage Peachtree Complete

This software supports 1-5 users and starts at $299.99 USD. You get all the features of the Pro version, plus in depth inventory and job costing, online banking and reconciliation, electronic bill pay, plus 100+ customizable reports.

Sage Peachtree Premium

This is also for 1-5 users, and the packages start at $499.99 USD. You can purchase an all encompassing version, or you can get custom versions for construction, distribution, manufacturing or nonprofit businesses. This package is perfect if you run multiple companies.

In addition to the Pro basic features, you also get advanced filtering on your financial statements, consolidation for your financial statements if you run multiple companies, employee compensation tracking, serialized inventory and reported analysis of your company data.

Sage Peachtree Quantum

This package is the Indy 500 of the Sage lineup. You can assign up to 40 users and the package starts at $2950.00 USD.

You may be thinking this is a little steep in price. But, if you have multiple companies and need advanced security and tracking options, you will want to look at all the specs for this package.

You get double entry account, internal accounting reviews, audit trail reports and cash flow reports, plus it has ACT integration and industry specific features.

There are also, of course, multiple add ons you can use with your package, but you will have to go to their site for all the information.

Overall, I think Peachtree accounting software is a viable competitor for QuickBooks and Quicken.

Tags: accounting software, free peachtree, peachtree, peachtree review, small business accounting

Posted in Bookkeeping | 8 Comments »

OpenERP Bookkeeping Software

May 26th, 2010 by melinda

Remember last week I told you I love free software? Well, if you are the same, look into something called Open Source. These are programs which work just as well as the big boys, but are totally free. Now, some of them may take a little more involvement than the big boys, but I personally believe Open Source is wonderful.

OpenERP, formerly known as TinyERP, is one I am currently looking at trying out myself. This program has the whole shebang. It’s not just bookkeeping software, oh, no. This also includes inventory management, sales and purchase management, tasks, HR management, marketing, point of sale, charts, shared calendars, work flow editor, and also integrates with software from www.openoffice.org.

Don’t use Windows? No problem. This is also available for Mac OS X, Linux GTK+ – as well as on a web interface.

OpenERP is geared toward mid-market businesses. But that doesn’t mean small businesses cannot also use it. There are online demo trainings, so you can choose what works for your business and what will not work.

I know what you’re thinking. This is free, so it has to be some fly-by-night organization and this software will never work correctly for you.

I will be honest with you. There are some open software organization who are like this. As with any software you are looking to purchase, you must do the research and decide if it is a fit for your business.

Look at the features and see if they are what you are looking for in your bookkeeping software (and if there are any additional features you can use in other aspects of your business, as the inventory management specs with OpenERP).

OpenERP installs like any other software, plus you can download it directly from their website:

Once you have downloaded the software, you must create your database.

I went with the accounting only profile (you chose your profile after your database has been created). And I decided to use it directly from the website, as I am not good with the nitty gritty of IT work. As you can see, it looks like any other software.

Now, I’m not saying this is going to be a simple software, after all, none of the accounting software available out there is really easy. This will take some effort to learn, just as all of the others will. But now you have an overview of the software and you can make an informed decision on whether or not to try it. And, unlike the big boys, if you decide you don’t like the product and delete the software, it hasn’t cost you a thing.

Tags: accounting, accounting software, Bookkeeping, online accounting software, open office, open source software, OpenERP, small business accounting software, software small business

Posted in Bookkeeping | No Comments »

QuickBooks Software for Small Business Use

May 18th, 2010 by melinda

Let’s begin our series on Bookkeeping with a look at QuickBooks software. I chose to begin with this software as it seems everyone I speak to uses one form or another from this company. It is easy to install and can be very simple to use (depending upon which version you use and how many features you need for your business).

You can find a selection of their products here.

As you can see, they have a solution for almost anyone running a small business – and they work with PCs as well as Macs. I admit, I currently use the online and the Simple Start versions and find them to be wonderfully easy to work with for my bookkeeping needs (the online version I use for a company with which I work).

Today, let’s start out going over the Simple Start software.

This is the most affordable of the software packages. Simple Start, as with all of their software, can be purchased online and immediately downloaded onto your computer or laptop. I will forewarn you, I love downloadable purchases! Simple Start offers you three different levels of the package, there is a free version (I am always excited when software has a free version, it allows you to play with it before you decide if it will work for your needs), there is also the regular and a pro version.

If you try the free version first, and like it, there is no worries about purchasing an upgrade. All of your files you have so painstakingly entered are all transferable to the new version.

The only thing I have found so far with this software which I did not like was the banking input. You have to manually enter all of your transactions onto the bank register, there is also an option to go to your online bank account and download the information into a spreadsheet and then upload it to your bookkeeping software. That said, I might just be spoiled. As I said earlier, I use QuickBooks Online for another company, their banking information is linked directly to your bank account. When new items come in, they are placed in a box below your register and not entered into your records until you approve them. I love simple. I love automated.

If your primary computer is not a PC, there is also a Mac version of QuickBooks. It allows you to syn with your Mobile Me, iCal and address books. It has all of the functions of the PC version.

Now, QuickBooks Online has a free trial offer (remember, I love free!). After your trial ends, the website says your cost is as low as $9.95 USD per month for the basic version.

Even better, you can access your accounts from anywhere – even from your smart phone!

So, now you know a little bit more about QuickBooks software and online bookkeeping. Please, visit their website for more information. And, please, feel free to leave comments or suggestions about these products below. Knowledge is power. If you don’t know the options available, or the ins and outs of your software, the less power over your bookkeeping you have.

And remember, keeping daily tabs on your books can save you hours of headaches down the road.

Tags: accounting software, accounts software, Bookkeeping, online accounting software, QuickBooks, small business accounting software, software small business

Posted in Bookkeeping | 7 Comments »

Bookkeeping Software for Your Business Needs

May 11th, 2010 by melinda

In chats with small business owners I have discovered one universal truth: Everyone hates bookkeeping. They want to be creative, sell and market. Ask them about the books and they all will say it’s the bane of their (work) existence.

I have used several different financial bookkeeping software packages over the years. Like businesses, they come in all shapes and sizes for your needs. There are software and internet based programs. If you do all of your work at your desk, installing the software on your computer is simple. If you travel and have multiple users updating the accounts, then you might want to look at internet based programs.

I will be going over several of the more popular programs in the next few weeks. I will take you through the installation, setup and usage.

Bookkeeping really needs not be something to be feared. Embrace the green cap and the virtual ledger. Download the software, keep it updated and you will save several hours per week of sitting in front of your computer.

Tags: accounting, accounting software, Bookkeeping, bookkeeping software, small business accounting software, software small business

Posted in Bookkeeping | 10 Comments »

Hello world!

May 6th, 2010 by melinda

Welcome to MelindaHamby.com. Please excuse the dust, as we are under new construction. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, or simply comment below.

In the meantime, let me introduce myself.

My name is, naturally, Melinda Hamby. I live in the PeeDee area of South Carolina and stay at home with my three children. I work as a freelance writer and virtual assistant. I am able, on a small scale, to help you with the unglamorous side of the administrative needs of your business.

In my talks with business owners one thing stands out: Everyone hates bookkeeping. As a former corporate accountant this is my specialty. I can tidy your books and put procedures in place for your employees to follow, which will result in a smoother upkeep for the future.

I am also able help with scheduling, research for upcoming projects, writing assignments, some web administration and special project administration. Other jobs we can negotiate on a case by case basis. I am available for long term assignments, as well as one time only assignments. You tell me: What can I do for you?

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »