Author: Akiko Design

With less than a month to go till the European Referendum the debate is heating up on a number of key areas – including the impact on SMEs.  Could leaving the European Union decrease red tape for SMEs, giving business owners more freedom and independence?  Or could it make trading with our key European partners much harder?

Pro-European campaigners are trying to convince the electorate to vote ‘Remain’ by highlighting quotes from key business and economic figures.  The Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, recently warned that a majority vote to “leave” in next month’s European Union referendum carried the risk of a “technical recession” for the UK.  Billionaire businessman Richard Branson warned back in March that leaving the European Union would be “the worst decision the British public ever made”.

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Here at Get Ahead VA we have experts in a huge variety of fields.  From Accounting to Admin, Hootsuite to Holiday cover, Email Marketing to Excel, our experts can add value to many aspects of your business.  In our current Expert Showcase series our VAs are delivering some of this expertise to you, with a series of ‘How to’ guides to help you get the best ‘bang for your buck’ in your business.

In this month’s guide Vanessa, one of our marketing experts, evaluates two alternative tools for social media scheduling – Hootsuite and Buffer, discussing which might be the best solution for you and your business.

“For many businesses, social media is a key part of their marketing strategy but it can be time consuming.  With a variety of platforms to work on, all requiring regular and relevant content, many people turn to social media scheduling tools to assist the process”

Hootsuite claims to be the ‘leading social media dashboard’ and has been around for nearly 10 years.  It enables you to schedule activity on most major social media platforms including Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, Instagram and Google+.  The dashboard allows you to view full activity on all your accounts – mentions, retweets, live feed etc.  Its ‘Pro’ package for Entrepreneurs and business owners includes up to 50 social media profiles, enhanced analytics reports, bulk message scheduling, up to 10 team members and a number of useful Apps and at £6.99 a month on an annual plan, it provides good value when compared to alternative providers.  (more…)

How outsourcing can benefit your business 

There are so many great benefits of outsourcing! Get Ahead VA founder and owner Rebecca Newenham presented a seminar at The Business Show in Excel, London which discussed how outsourcing could benefit your business.

Her fact-packed presentation highlighted the growth and importance of the outsourcing industry, which delivers £21bn to the UK economy in added value.

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April is Stress Awareness month which has been held every April since 1992.  The American-led initiative is designed to increase public awareness about both the causes and cures for our modern stress epidemic.

Many of our clients are all too familiar with stress.  Managing your own business can be hugely empowering but it can also lead to significant levels of stress.  Everything falls directly on your shoulders.  You must be sales person, accountant, marketer, inventor, customer service, production – everything at once.  Your personal wealth and wellbeing rests directly with you and if you employ others theirs does too.  Salaries and bills must be paid out every month – regardless of what income has come in.

Here are our top tips for managing stress and restoring a healthy balance at work and home: (more…)

Whether you are looking to start your own business, or expand into new markets, sources of finance are a subject never far from a business owner’s mind.  Though start-up costs vary by industry, all businesses need some funding to get them started and that requirement for funding can continue as the business grows and new opportunities are unlocked.

For many people branching out on their own, personal savings or redundancy payments can be the first port of call for business funding.  Bank and personal loans are also options, as well as government grants and even crowdfunding.  Here is our guide to some of the top sources of funding for your business: (more…)

Here at Get Ahead VA we have experts in a huge variety of fields.  From Accounting to Admin, Hootsuite to Holiday cover, Email Marketing to Excel, our experts can add value to many aspects of your business.  In our current Expert Showcase series our VAs are delivering some of this expertise to you, with a series of ‘How to’ guides to help you get the best ‘bang for your buck’ in your business.

In this month’s guide Clare, one of our marketing experts, talks about how to select the best Content Management System (CMS) for your website, evaluating the benefits of two key alternatives – WordPress and Umbraco. 

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Love is certainly in the air as Valentine’s Day approaches this weekend.  The shops are full of roses and hearts and inspiration for all the different ways we can show our husbands, wives, boyfriends and friends … and even the dog how much we care.  But are you showing your business enough love?

Sometimes as a small business owner it can feel like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders.  If you work alone, then you are responsible for everything – bookkeeper, sales person, admin, marketing as well as delivering your products and services.  If you employ others then there is the added pressure of paying wages and other people depending on you.  Your business can start to feel like a burden and a constant source of stress.

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Tuesday 9th February is Safer Internet Day – a global event designed to help promote the safe, responsible and positive use of digital technology for children and young people.  But staying safe online isn’t just about children and young people – it is vitally important for businesses too.

There are regular headlines about businesses large and small being targeted and threatened by hackers.  From Apple to Ebay, Talk Talk to Lincolnshire Council, companies and organisations are being attacked every day, with vital pieces of private data being put at risk.

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Here at Get Ahead VA we are delighted to be launching what we call our ‘virtual marketing agency’.  But what does that actually mean and does it matter to you?

Sometimes the words ‘marketing agency’ can create fear in the eyes of a small business owner.  You immediately see pound signs and something you don’t feel you could afford.  But as we all know, ways of working in the 21stcentury have changed.  Virtual and flexible working are much more commonplace.  Look at how our high streets have changed and the way we shop.  Gone are some of the expensive, bricks and mortar shops with high rental overheads and nimble, dynamic online alternatives have arrived, offering similar or better services at a fraction of the cost and in a flexible format to suit you. (more…)

Here at Get Ahead VA we have experts in a huge variety of fields.  From Accounting to Admin, Hootsuite to Holiday cover, Email Marketing to Excel, our experts can add value to many aspects of your business.  In our current Expert Showcase series our VAs are delivering some of this expertise to you, with a series of ‘How to’ guides to help you get the best ‘bang for your buck’ in your business.

In this month’s guide Jenny, one of our social media experts, talks about how to measure the success of your social media activity. (more…)