What you Need to Know about Virtual Products

Do any of these ring true to your business?

  • Space is limited
  • Staff are reducing or need to reduce
  • Must increase profits
  • Need to service a wider area
  • Need to give more to get /keep your staff
  • Wasting time due to poor efficiency

These reasons and others have brought about the rise and demand in Virtual Products. This demand is increasing at an exponential rate.

So what Products are going Virtual?

  • virtual productsSoftware

Accounting

CRM’s

Design Software

Databases

  • Banking
  • Staff
  • Communications
  • Libraries and Books
  • Advice / Education
  • Bill Payments
  • Receiving bills
  • Storage of Records
  • Photos and Memorabilia
  • Videos and Entertainment

This is a new generation for businesses. We all have to begin to go virtual. So here is a check list that may assist you.

  • Define your business processes. What of these can be improved in time, cost or efficiency by becoming virtual?
  • Do you have an internet and intranet presence?
  • Make sure you have a good SEO and good SEO processes in place to make sure your Presence is found on the internet.
  • Review all your costs.
  • Review your marketing plan. Make sure you have a good internet presence.
  • Consider your biggest costs and how can you minimise them
  • Get rid of your local server and go Virtual – major cost and time saving.

Here is a couple of personal stories that may interest you or even inspire you to consider going Virtual.

Virtual Book Keeper

virtual-productsI was employing a book keeper at $25 per hour, and she came to my office, did my books, I paid her as an employee and this work took her 16 hours per week. I found that I was spending about 2.5 hours per week answering her questions, reviewing her work etc. I found that I was not really happy with her quality of work, and so decided to that as my son was at Uni, he did a MYOB course, and then I trained him to do the MYOB work for me. My son, moved back to Canberra, and he does all my MYOB work remotely. He is paid the same $25 per hour, but finds he can do all the same work in an average of 2 hours a week. Some weeks he works 4 hours and the next none, but he gets all this work done, and I am only spending 30 mins a week going over admin questions etc. This is a huge saving. Now with Financial year coming up, I don’t need to buy him a new PC or anything.

Virtual SEO

18 months ago, my full time local SEO was just not getting me any results and the costs were not in accordance with what it cost me. So I cancelled this position. However, a good SEO is worth their weight in gold. So I began my search for a Virtual SEO, and I feel my search has now found true fruition. In fact I am sending this blog from word to my Virtual SEO who lives in the Philippines. My SEO will then clean up, add images, check keywords and post this blog in a timely manner to my web site. Her key work is to make sure our webs are current, getting good natural position on search engines, make sure I do my work on time (e.g. be regular with my blogs) and keep me posted with key words, and new trends. To date, she has brought in a new lead. It is the first time one of my SEO’s had brought in a real solid lead. This lead may or may not result in a sale. Most of our sales are by word of mouth, so the fact that this has been achieved in only 4 weeks of employment, I am really impressed about. So with my virtual SEO, I don’t need to supply a desk, or internet, or a PC. I pay her what she asks for and make sure I pay in a timely manner.

 

Cate Schafing is a successful Australian business woman in the IT field serving as CEO of Accede Holdings Pty. Ltd. makers of Ezymeetz, ICE and Virtual Gym. She develops innovative new technological products as a programmer and entrepreneur. In gratitude for her success her company supports NFP’s by donating $5000 per month in programming time for NFP’s requesting work.

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