It is estimated that eighty percent of callers hang up when they hear a voicemail message. Will they call back... of course they won't. For very small business operators it is impossible to answer the phone all of the time. What happens when you attend a networking event or are meeting a client? Of course that all important prospective client calls and hears your voicemail message.

'Networking' seems to be a popular buzz-word amongst the business community and for good reason. Many businesses generate over 75% of their business via networking and word of mouth referrals so it makes sense to take networking seriously. But what about online networking? Should it be part of your marketing strategy? Can it save you time and what are the benefits?

Firstly online networking should never be seen as a replacement for face to face networking.

Business insurance is never straightforward particularly when you are running a business from home. There are several areas of insurance that you need to consider and even if you have been in business for many years it is worthwhile reassessing your insurance needs on a regular basis.

Your first port of call should be your existing home insurer to notify them that you are running a business from home.

Working from home is challenging enough, what happens when you also have to entertain small children at the same time? It can be incredibly stressful if children become upset or bored but there are many ways you can provide stimulation to your children while you work.

Toys - regardless of the age of your child it is important to rotate toys to provide variety.

Seven important considerations when choosing a virtual PA.

1. Experience.
How much experience do they have? Ideally a good virtual assistant should have over five years experience as a senior PA or secretary. How long have they been in business? A relatively new 'virtual' personal assistant is not a bad sign, look at their corporate experience and find out more about what they have to offer.

As you know, hiring a virtual assistant can help you grow your business. However the first time you hire one can seem somewhat daunting. The following are some tips to help you with the hiring process:

Before you hire anyone, it is important to know exactly what you are hiring them for and how much you can afford to pay them.

It is a good idea to write these things down and provide a copy to anyone who expresses interest in applying for the job.

It may seem backwards, but it's a simple fact that there are times you need to spend money to make money. Hiring a virtual assistant is one of these times. It's going to cost you up front, but the rewards will be great, no doubt.

First of all, hiring a virtual assistant will allow you to outsource the tasks you do not enjoy doing or have a hard time accomplishing.

The virtual assistance field is a very good option for people with an administrative background who want to find a way to work from home. More and more people are starting their own businesses from home and need help with administrative, marketing, accounting, and other business related tasks.

It is difficult to define what a virtual assistant is and what they do, as there are so many variations.

For people that work at home as virtual assistants, using the internet to grow your business is a great way to meet new clients and increase your profits. While you should never ignore any local opportunities to grow your business, working over the internet allows for unlimited growth.

If you would like to grow your business online, you will definitely want to set up a website.

Search engine optimization, also known as SEO, is a process of making your website 'search engine friendly'. When the search engines can find your site, you'll have a better chance of having top listings in the search results. When this happens, the search engines will literally send you free web traffic.

There are several SEO tasks that you can outsource to a virtual assistant.

When you are starting out in business, first impressions count. The best advertising you will ever find is known as "word of mouth". This happens when a current or former client recommends you to another person who is interested in your products or services. Of course, it will be hard to receive good word of mouth advertising without a good first impression.