NTW 25 – Succeeding Virtually with Suzie Poirier

Networker for Business Women with Lourdes Welhaven

I have been looking “everywhere” for the perfect Virtual Assistant to interview for this podcast. I wanted to find someone for you that was professional, had been in the industry for many years, and was making her living from being a Virtual Assistant. I’m proud to say that I found her. Suzie Poirier is not just “a” Virtual Assistant, she is “the” Virtual Assistant. I dare say she knows more about the industry than anyone else I know. In fact, she has Virtual Assistants of her own!

I’m a big fan of using VA’s because I think it makes for a happier and more productive team. It’s also a very affordable and efficient way of getting the help you need. With a VA you can also leverage time and keep your company projects moving forward, even while you sleep!

Take Away Points:

1. Suzie has clients everywhere. Technology has increased her potential client base infinitely as she can work for clients all over the world. Just think, you too can have a complete collaborative team working remotely for you. Suzie shows us how working in different time zones is not a hinderance. Instead, working across different time zones has helped her to serve her clients better through time leveraging.

2. Suzie’s VA Business is a “lifestyle” business. After going through the life-changing experience of caring for her mother and sister as they battled breast cancer, Suzie searched for an alternate way of working where she could help people and live on her own terms. She took what she was good at and figured out how to do it “virtually.” With her Internet hotspot she’s set up for business everywhere.

3. I found it rather intriguing that Suzie went 100% virtual after getting on Twitter. She networks “online.” The nature of networking has changed to expand to online efforts. I talk about this all of the time. It is important to meet face-to-face. Nothing takes the place of meeting and networking in-person, but it is time to expand your horizons to meet people everywhere through social networking. You can also bolster those local relationships through online networking.

4. I loved Suzie’s calendar tip – – she has helped her clients take advantage of a cloud-based calendar even if they love Outlook through the use of gmail and a Google calendar. She simply has them invite their “gmail” address in order to have online access to their calendar. Brilliant!

5. There are some barriers to using a VA. For example, some people may find it challenging to delegate. But it’s not easy to delegate to in-house employees either. You must learn to delegate regardless to be successful in business.

6. Suzie’s retainer packages are very interesting. Her clients purchase a number of labor hours rather than a pay a month-to-month fee. It’s an interesting business model and one that I’m considering for my business.

7. I love that she does NOT handle accounting for her clients. I appreciate that she knows her preferences and limitations. Suzie shows us that it is ok to say “no I don’t do that” and refer the work to another trusted industry partner.

8. If you are considering a career as a VA, Suzie says to look within yourself: you must keep your mind on organization, time management and self-discipline.

Some of the tools that Suzie uses in her Virtual Assistant Business:

Skype

IFTT

Buffer

Teambox

Considering being a VA or hiring a VA? Here are some resources for you.

Virtual Assistant Ville

Virtual Assistant Forums

V A Networking

Suzie also suggested that you can find limitless resources online about Virtual Assistants. Just Google!

To Connect with Suzie:

Suzie’s Website
Suzie’s Email
Suzie on Twitter
Suzie on Facebook

Lourdes’ essential tool for working virtually (whether with a team or alone).

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Business Tip of the Week

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Final Thoughts

We have listener voicemail from Susan Somerset Webb. She mentioned that she loved the episode with Patricia Tillman Ragan. I love that episode too. If you haven’t listened to it yet, here is the link!

If you’ve been listening for a while, you might note that I actually interviewed Susan here. Also you can access her website here. She’s someone you must know! Thank you Susan, for your message, that was a great surprise!

Question of the Week

(you can answer below or on the voicemail)
What’s your favorite technology tool to use in business?

Related posts:

1. Working Virtually
2. Podcast Episode 6 – Getting “Unstuck” with Susan Somerset Webb
3. NTW 029 – Pricing and Positioning for Success with Isabel Azalia Sam