Constant Contact is my first choice in newsletter services and email marketing programs. I’ve been using Constant Contact’s service since January 2008. I originally signed up for their free 60-day trial in order to become familiar with their tool so I could assist a client with their Constant Contact newsletter. After the 60-day trial I was hooked and signed up for their $15 per month version and have since upgraded.

My virtual assistant business Awesome Assistant received a 2009 Constant Contact All–Star Award for commitment to best practices in email marketing.

Constant Contact is affordable and easy to use, provides a wide variety of templates to choose from, and has great customer service. They are continually improving their product and adding new features. After attending a local free seminar hosted by Constant Contacts I became even more familiar with the product and how best to use it effectively in my marketing strategies.

They also have autoresponders, online survey features, event marketing, stock images, the ability to create several lists in your account and much more. If you’re looking for an affordable, easy to use newsletter service and email marketing tool, give it a free 60-day trial. Just click on “Try it Free for 60 Days” below and use my referral account. Once you become a paying customer, we both get a $30 credit – which is like you getting your first 2 months free!

When I first started working as a virtual assistant and had just the one client, time management wasn’t much of an issue. When the client clled or emailed requesting a task to be done, I could immediately jump right on it and within minutes or an hour, depending on the task, I could let the client know the task was complete.

As my client base grew to two, three and more, it was still fairly easy to immediately handle an incoming task. Not only were clients impressed by the quick turn around time, they now had the expectation that anytime they called or emailed, their task would get done – immediately.

Now, I do want each of my clients to feel special and important. They need to know that when they send me a task it will get done in a timely manner. But is it realistic that each task will always be done immediately? Of course not! The expectations I set at the beginning of my business were not realistic and did not allow for the growth to 20 plus clients. Time management now became an issue. Imagine if even six clients called or emailed within a fifteen-minute period and requested a task and they each needed it within the hour! What if I was already in the middle of handling an urgent task needed within the hour? It just is not feasible to think that each client could get their task handled immediately.

As my business has grown, I’ve adjusted my work flow procedures and my client’s expectations. They still expect a timely response and quick turn around. It’s just a more realistic expectation. Instead of having to learn this the hard way for yourselves, here are suggestions, based on my experience, for effective time management and setting realistic expectations.

1. Decide early on what your working hours will be and include the information in your contract. Recently my clients were informed that my working hours are 10-12 am and 1-4 pm (PST) Monday through Thursday and that Fridays are for administrative tasks. This allows me one day to handling billing and bookkeeping and prepare the plan for the following week. This helps me be more productive.

2. Create an email policy and inform your clients. I just instituted a new email policy as follows: Another step in effectively managing my time is to respond to emails at 10 am, 1 pm and 3:30 pm. Should your matter require more immediate attention, please call my cell (XXX) xxx-xxxx. Thank you for your understanding.

3. Make sure you clearly inform your clients of your turn around time. My clients know I will respond within 24 hours to their request, excluding weekends. My response will indicate when I expect their project or task to be completed. If for any reason it becomes necessary to extend the timeframe, let the client know as soon as possible.

I recently informed my clients of my new work flow procedures and timely responses to emails and other requests. Each has responded in a positive manner, understanding the need for managing time effectively and still promptly handling their projects.  Some of their responses are:  ”Love the new schedule!  Thanks for letting me know.” “I certainly will honor your new schedule and hours.”

What have you done to manage your time effectively and how do you set realistic expectations?

To effectively market by email you need permission to contact your readers. This can be done by having a sign-up box on your website or even a sign-up sheet at your location. It is very important to comply with the federal laws. If you don’t have permission, don’t send an email.

Some of the US Federal requirements when sending commercial emails are:

1. A real, clearly identified “From” address
2. A real, working “Reply To” address
3. Clearly defined content
4. A real, working unsubscribe link
5. A clearly identified address

Using an email campaign program such as Constant Contact can help you stay spam-compliant.

As a small business, you know the value of using email to keep in contact with your clients. As a professional, you’ve set up your website. But is your email address still name@yahoo.com? Wouldn’t it look more professional if it were name@yourwebsitename.com?

If you use a generic email such as name@yahoo.com, others may not view your business as stable. They may wonder if you’re just starting out and how long your business will be around. Also, some corporate spam filters block email addresses from hotmail.com or yahoo.com.

Your email address should look professional and be part of your overall branding and image. Just as there’s a tendency to be cautious with a company using a P.O. Box (you may wonder if the business is legitimate), there’s the same tendency to be cautious with a company using a generic email address.

Small businesses that have both a web presence and the same domain for their email have a professional edge on those who do not. But maybe you aren’t very computer savvy and aren’t sure how to do this. That’s okay. There are digital coaches who can help you and are very affordable.

Some of the younger generation seem to think that communicating the old fashioned way will soon be a thing of the past. With texting and instant messaging, email and face-to-face contact seems to be going extinct. Some younger ones think email is too formal and less convenient. They are using social networking sites and blogs to catch up with what their friends are doing.

Even some not-so-young are getting tired of the hundreds of spam emails received daily and are using other forms of communication. Some even view email as a last resort.

Email does have advantages, though. It can be ignored. It is an office mainstay. It can be easily saved, stored, and searched. It provides a record of communication that is considered as good as paper in business.

Whatever happened to communicating the old fashioned way? How much time do you save emailing your colleague in the next cubicle when you could just walk over and tell him or her in person? Are we losing the personal touch by texting instead of picking up the phone and making a short call? Is there value in sending a hand written letter instead of a lengthy, formal email?