I'm Liking My VA!

VMG BPO is doing a great job so far. I have given them a task that is probably as complicated as anything I will give them and they handled it well. Soon, I will confirm that they can handle the regular tasks I have set up in my Plan to Freedom.

In the plan, the primary task of the VA will be to do the necessary external SEO to get my product site to the top 3 in Google for the main phrase. Things are working in that direction. For my main two phrases I have gone from unranked to #31 for the big phrase and #23 for the second big phrase. According to the owner of the #2 spot (whose site I tried to buy), they receive between 30-50k visitors a month. That's big stuff.

I'm fighting hard to get to the first page. I have submitted several articles to distributors as well as assigning my VA to doing 30 directory submissions per week. This is just the beginning.

I'm still awaiting information on the drop shipper I found this weekend. Moving into drop shipping will allow me to dominate this niche.

I started on the second product site tonight. I have a deadline of having it complete and with a working autoresponder by 9/27. For the time being, it will focus on selling affiliate products while I develop the product.

That's all for now. In the coming weeks, I need to go talk to a mortgage lender to find out how much I can qualify for. With that information I can get my VA to weed out the properties that do not meet my qualifications (i.e. duplex with $200+/month cashflow).

Test Confirmed

The test I set up to see if dropshipping is viable has produced a result. Over the weekend someone bought $58 worth of product from the link. My cut was $8 but if I were the actual merchant, it would have probably been $20 plus. That's a good sign.

With that knowledge under my belt I purchased a membership to OneSource, the Worldwide Brands directory of dropshippers. We will see how things go from there.

Traffic is my focus. Even without having the dropshipping in place, I can get people to the affiliate program to generate revenue. I also need to get 200 unique visitors/day to each money page. I am also going to revamp the autoresponder so that there are more opportunities for people to buy. They won't necessarily "sell" but it will present the option for people to make a purchase if they need to.

So far the VA test has been interesting. Globetask is out. They were given 4 tasks and failed each one of them. One was simple data entry that they did not follow instructions on. My hopes lie with VMG BPO now. So far they have been alright with one of the tasks I set for them, but very slow on another. We will see what the results yield later today.

Choosing a VA & Tenant Resolutions

I have decided to test both GlobeTask and VMG-BPO side by side for the next week. I am waiting on their confirmation emails before I start sending them tasks. I talked to both reps over the phone and it sounds like they will be capable of the weekly tasks I throw their way. I'm looking forward to having an assistant=)

In order to refocus myself, I sat down last week and mapped out the next few months for the business. I have done this before but this time there are specific deadlines attached to everything. These deadlines are divided into traffic and money tasks. The traffic tasks are duties that will bring in the visitors. These will mostly be taken care of by the VA. Traffic tasks include directory submissions, link exchanges, forum posts and the like. The money tasks are those that directly relate to money making. These include creating products, finding affiliate products, etc.

So far the deadlines are doing great for keeping me on task. The second product for my first product site was always a future product but now the pieces are being assembled. We will see how things go.


Real Estate

Up until last night my tenants had been late with their rent. This put me in a tight spot but not as badly as them. I charge a pretty hefty late fee per day and they definitely felt it after they paid me last night. A threat of eviction posted on your front door will usually make you find the money to pay the landlord. At least it will in the state of Texas where the laws swing in favor of the landlord. I probably wouldn't have posted the letter if I had not just come home from Dallas to find the front of the duplex trashed. There were boxes, trash bags, and things everywhere. I let them know that if they didn't pay AND clean up by the following day I would start the eviction process.

30 Day Challenge Sale!

Yes, it was 11 days after the Challenge ended but one of my Web 2.0 properties made a sale yesterday. This was the verification I needed in order to jump into the market. So the plan for the end of the year:

1. Test and implement drop shipping for Product Site 1
2. Build more traffic to Product Site 1
3. Create a new product for Product Site 1
4. Build website for Product Site 2
5. Build its list and sell associated affiliate products.
6. Create my own product for Product Site 2

Things are about to get interesting. Yesterday was actually one of my best income days. $93.40 when just looking at ClickBank. Seeing sales made in two separate niches just further solidifies my belief that multiple niches is the way to get to $200/day. From now until year's end though, I will focus on just these two. No distractions.

Thanks to all of you who have offered your virtual assistant services. I decided to test out GlobeTask's free trial to see how they do with some tasks I threw their way. Hopefully it pans out because I will definitely need help dominating my markets.

Testing for Drop Shipping

I spent most of the day working on my aunt's website. It's a long story. I was able to spend a couple hours getting things ready for the big test. I created a page on my product's site dedicated to other items people would need in this niche. After completing the page, I let my list know about it and I also set up a small Adwords campaign for it.

The purpose of this is not to make money. That comes later. This is to find out if it would be worth my time to set up drop shipping on my site. Drop shipping means having my own product and that means AFFILIATES. Hopefully the test is a success.

I will be deciding on a virtual assistant this week. Stay tuned.

The Search for a Virtual Assistant (VA)

You may or may not know this but my list of heroes includes Colin Powell, Optimus Prime, my Dad, and most recently Tim Ferriss. In his book, "4-Hour Work Week", he explains the need for having a VA. That book is currently my favorite (yes, it even beats out Rich Dad, Poor Dad and the Fantastic Mr. Fox) and if you haven't read it yet go buy the book now! Seriously, its Morpheus training Neo type stuff.

Anyway, I agree. In order to grow, my business needs help. I need someone who will constantly search for partners, new products, do directory submissions, and create content. Constantly. While I'm off coming up with the marketing, they will hold down the existing forts and continue to work to make them a castle.

Empress mentioned some locations for finding someone to outsource to and they are great places to start. I have also found two companies that look like they have potential. VMG BPO and Globe Task. They seem to be a one stop shop for doing everything. I would have a single point of contact (an outsourcing manager) who would delegate tasks to his team. They charge by the hour and their rates are the most reasonable I have found so far.

Things have pretty much become too hard for me to handle on my own. It is time to let go of the reigns a bit and let my business grow.

Time to Grow

I need a virtual assistant. Someone who will be able to do the link exchanges, directory submissions, and forum posts that are needed to launch my site into the rankings. I have started to research different companies and it can be expensive. Anything from $8/hr to $45+. I may even put something on Craigslist.