When you are using Facebook ‘AS A PAGE’, you can’t tag people in a post, on your page or any other pages, you can however tag other pages. For example, if you were talking about another brand, or someone elses business you can tag them in that post. BUT only if you have liked their page first.

You can tag people in a picture, but only your friends.

The only place you can tag them is in a comment AFTER you’ve made the initial post… how strange!

So, if you want to tag someone, the best way to do so is to create your post, THEN comment with a tag.

BUT did you know you can only tag people either way if you’re using your page as yourself.. so if you want to use the tagging feature then don’t select the ‘use facebook as feature’. Instead, make sure you have ticked the ‘always comment and post as your page as xxx’ even when using ‘Facebook as xxx’ option. This can be found by going to Manage/Edit Page/ Your Settings.

So now, when you post on your business timeline you will automatically post as your business.

The only thing to remember is if you want to interact on other pages as your business, THEN switch over to your page by clicking manage/use facebook as.

I hope that helps. But feel free to ask more questions if you’re having trouble.

So, if you’ve been watching the news, reading the papers you’ll see that David Cameron is introducing vouchers etc to use towards parenting classes. There’s been a lot of people Tweeting, talking on TV, on Facebook saying they think it’s not a good idea, can’t understand why he’s doing it, parenting won’t use it blah blah.

Well you know what, I think it’s about time he stood up and offered parents support!

When you think about having a baby, or when you’re pregnant, you read the glossy mags, see celebs on the TV all with their perfectly formed, well behaved, charming children, and you think that’s how it’s going to be.

What happens when that’s not the case? what happens when you have a child that doesn’t sleep? what happens when you have a child who has difficulty listening, aggressive behaviour? what then? where does a parent go for support?

I’ll tell you, because I’ve been there.

When I started my business back in 2007, I thought it would be great staying home with the kids, working with them in the house, listening to their laughter whilst I worked. Well wasn’t I fooled?

During 2007, my youngest son was born, my father in law passed away suddenly, and my eldest felt it hard. He lost his best friend and gained a stranger, and boy didn’t he want us to know it!

Depression sinked in, and I struggled through for nearly two years. Until I plucked up the courage to ask for help. BUT the only route was via the school and then only when I got a letter from the school would my GP listen. I then had to go through sessions with a parenting counsellor at the hospital and then referred onto a parenting course.Why is it so difficult for a parent to get help and support with their child when classes are offered freely to every pregnant woman even before the child is born?

At first I thought, a parenting course? really? I need help now! Not for a million years did I think a 12 week course would work.

But it did! we met with other parents who were in the same situation as us, so finally I wasn’t alone! We were given strategies to use to manage his behaviour and also identify areas we were going wrong. After all, we’re not perfect right?

Then a couple of years back I had the greatest pleasure of getting to know Sue Atkins who is THE best Parenting Expert! I started to work with her as her VA and I became to realise that there are so many parents out there that do need help, but have no idea where to go, who to go to and because mums are supposed to cope they feel like they shouldn’t ask.. Well I did!

Things are not perfect still, but then I think that is normal. My beautiful little boy is perfect to me, and because of the parenting course, there are boundaries, strategies and lots of fun.

So, if you’re a parent (mum or dad) and not sure if it’s the right thing for you, then head over to Sue’s site to see what parents are struggling with, talking about, because I can assure you you’re not alone.

oh and well done David Cameron for doing SOMETHING right! makes a change

I’m going to teach you all you need to know in a full comprehensive course! Ready to understand Facebook Timeline for YOUR business?

It’s here!!! ==> go on take a look

Photos.  Perhaps the easiest way to create your Timeline cover image is to choose a favorite photo.  Panoramic photos work the best, but you can crop any photo to make it the right shape and size.  Just make sure the end product is 851 X 315 pixels and the highest quality possible.  You may even opt to create a photo collage using photo editing software, which you can then easily upload to your cover using Facebook’s easy to use platform.  Remember that you also have a smaller inset where you can insert a photo, so you can get really creative here and choose two complimentary images, or even two photos that seem to interact with each other.

Premade designs.  There are numerous resources where you can find a multitude of creative, eye catching cover art designs.  Try myprofilecover.com and coverphotofinder.com, for starters.  Or, handy apps like SiteCanvas allow you to choose from a variety of pre-made templates, plug your personal pictures in, and create a one-of-a kind cover.

Your logo.  Use your Timeline cover like a billboard and keep it simple by using your logo and nothing else.  Or, you may opt to adorn your logo with related photos, using your photo editing software.  Get creative here, and put your logo and your Timeline to their best use.

As you can see, creating a dynamic Timeline image does not have to be a difficult task.  Use these suggestions to create a Timeline cover that works best for you.  If you need help getting the most out of your Timeline, feel free to contact me!

For about 3 years now I’ve been storing all kinds of tweets in my favourite section on my Twitter profile, and most recently any nice tweets clients have said about me. I knew I wanted to use them to market myself in some way and what great way to showcase your talent right?

So I had a brainwave, because Moo Cards have the ability to upload different images on each card, I took screenshots of my favoured tweets and used those!

Everyone I handed them to were impressed and they did look good!

Check them out!

My answer is always the same, if my clients are happy then I’m a success. That’s everyones aim right? It’s not about how healthy your bank balance is. If that was your only motivation you would fall flat on your face one day. Trust me.

Back in the day when I first thought about working from home, starting a business, my main objective was to bring in extra income (since childcare was so expensive), share my skills to multiple people be able to take my kids to and from school.

4 years on, those objectives are still the same but there’s more fire in my belly these days. My passion for the work that I do far outweighs the financial benefits (although money is nice to have!). When my clients tweet and tell me that they value what I do, when I get an email to say ‘thank you’, when someone over in the US Tweets and tells people ‘I’m the bomb’ , or when a prospective client calls me to ask for work to be done because someone I hadn’t even worked with had recommended me.

I feel so proud of my achievements, how far I’ve come, how far I’ve grown.

Ok, I’ve made mistakes. Haven’t we all? ( I continue to learn and grown every day) Mistakes made are mainly by working with clients that don’t fit my business, in the early days I wanted as much work as I could and I would say yes to everything, made some bad decisions and worked with people that I didn’t really like, didn’t enjoy working with. Maybe those are not mistakes, maybe those steps in my path were just a moulding me, getting me to a place where I wanted to be? who knows.

These days I do put more thought into the people I want to work with, people who share the same values as me, people who I genuinely can and want to help. It’s just as important for me to believe in my clients business as much as it is to believe in my own. Otherwise it would be so hard to get up in the morning.

Why the post?

Well this morning I got a lovely gift from one of my fabby clients (they are all amazing!).

It was a signed book by the lovely Sue Atkins. Her new book Parenting Made Easy – How to Raise Happy Children is out next week (you can pre-order on Amazon!).

I just LOVE new crispy shiny books!

So I thought ahhh I’ll sit and read it, over coffee after lunch.

Look at this:

I was so shocked! Overwhelmed isn’t the word.

This is why I do what I do! because the people I work with make it so easy.

Love you all lots!!!

Last week Pinterest issued their latest update to their T&C but they’re still a little up in the air and questions are still being asked, and users are still not sure what to do to stay within the rules.

Here’s what I’d suggest to do to ensure you’re safe, and not using material or images you don’t have permission use:

Using your own images

If you’ve taken images with your own camera you own the copyright, so you’re safe to use them. If you’ve paid a designer to design artwork, brochures, logos etc (or if you’ve done them yourself) you also own these. So you’re free to upload them and pin them to your boards. By doing this, you’re also allowing other users to re-pin your images.

Want to know what of yours has been pinned? type the following link into your browser http://pinterest.com/source/yourdomain (replace yourdomain with your own URL)

Only pin from sites that have the ‘Pin it’ button.

This will be a good indication that the owner of the site is allowing you to share their content, but if you’re not sure, you can drop them a note to ask for their permission.

Don’t pin from Google images!

Check the original source of the pin

Prior to the release of the new T&C I would happy re-pin every image that made me go ‘wow’ without checking who owned it, I just wanted to look at the picture, and I just thought that’s what Pinterest was all about. Now however, I’m checking each pin to make sure I’m pinning directly from the original source.

If I don’t have time, then I’ll just click the ‘like’ button and I can then go back at a later date to check it out.

When you’re checking it out, if it’s linked to Google, then it probably isn’t cool to use it, look for the original source and pin that.

If it has multiple links, then find the original source and make sure you re-pin that one.

Never pin images with a watermark, artist name, © or ™ . These images are copyrighted and cannot be displayed, distributed or shared.

Avoid pinning images are professional looking, such as artwork, illustrations or photography. These images were likely either purchased from a stock image website or commissioned, and licenced for use on their own site and not to be shared.

Avoid pinning images of celebrities as most celebrities have copyrighted all of their images

What am I allowed to pin

You can pin products to your board, you can pin links to books etc… why not create a board for ‘gifts’ or ‘products’ so that these are clearly identifiable and are in the right category?

And of course, your own material, products, images or artwork.

I know it’s all a bit up in the air right now, but just keep in mind, if you’re not sure, ask permission to use it, or don’t use it at all

Because Pinterest is very much a visual platform, it’s quite easy for non designer, non product based business to think it’s not for them. It isn’t necessary a platform for direct customer engagement,  it does however still offer businesses a number of ways to engage with current and potential customers.

Pinterest allows you to link other platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, and therefore you users can use these as a pathway to draw more people to their social activity, Pinterest is fast becoming an essential platform to a brand’s social media activity.

Getting started on Pinterest is just as easy as setting up any other account, you create your profile, create boards and pin images to those boards. However, it is still very important to encorporate Pinterest into your usual Marketing Strategy.

Why? Well for one, it can suck up a lot of your time, it can get very addicitive. Another reason, you need to know why you’re using it, how you’re going to use it and how you’re going to gain exposure and ultimately clients from it. What’s the point otherwise right?

But, how do you measure your success? one way is to check how much of your content is being ‘pinned’. How? use the following link (and replace ‘your domain’ with your own website url) www.pinterest.com/source/yourdomain.com

Another great one is http://www.pinreach.com it’s a nice visual analytic tool, giving you an overview of how many people are sharing your content, your pins and your boards.

There are so many great tools already out there for you to play with, but one you can’t do without is the PIN IT Tool http://pinterest.com/about/goodies/

The buzz around Pinterest is increasing at a rapid rate and as more and more businesses jump on the bandwagon to check out this new and exciting platform, the volume of content will continue to grow.

Not sure if Pinterest is for you? why not sign up to my 5 day e-course ==> Sign up now!

1- Make Deliberate Choices
Intentionally choose how to use time. Time can be used pouring out your strengths, passions, skills, and values, and not be wasted. Our choices can make it such so choose wisely.

2- Know Your Priorities- For least resistance align priorities based on who you are. What is really important to you? List 3-5 top priorities in order. Look at them daily. What goals are most important right now for long-term fulfillment?

3- Be Aware of Time Bandits- Monitor how you spend time for 24-72 hours. Notice where time is wasted or how it can be put to better use. e.g: Run errands once a week versus daily trips. Notice distracters, those things that steal your focus such as phone calls, e-mail, things breaking down, etc.

4- Set your Mind on the Ultimate Result- Thoughts guide behavior. Focus negatively, and you may get discouraged and quit. Choose your line of thought or your brain will take a shortcut and choose the thought pattern/ habit that is in place, whether or not it serves you. It is a choice! You can accept or reject a thought. Choose a positive, results-aimed mind set always!

5- Develop Great Habits and a Structure to Support Your Actions
Many people are busy, but without the structure and habits in place to get the results they crave. Know that great habits with structure support you to complete primary tasks. You then get results which lead to more freedom to do what you want (without the fear or guilt).

6- Have an Efficient Scheduling System- Whether using a smart phone, pc, ipad or a simple paper diary, it is critical to have a structure that supports your planningstyle. I love google calendar, it syncs with my mac, pc and my phone so I have my schedule wherever I go. If you’re not a fan of google there are other simple online scheduling programmes such as zoho.com , and a little more sophisticated is Liquid Planner

7- Schedule Priorities First, Block Time, and Take Action- Block time for priorities first, then follow through. Focus on how great you will feel after doing it. Block time for various roles and avoid multi-tasking to maintain focus. Do not do housework during business hours. Set yourself up for success by scheduling high energy tasks when you have energy and low energy tasks later. Stay fully focused to complete priorities with excellence. Give full attention to one activity at a time.

8- Set Time Limits- Set a time limit when you begin a task then stay focused. This takes practice. Most tasks take longer than we anticipate, but it will save time. Most of us could waste plenty of time on e-mail, but can save a lot when we set a limit.

9- Plan a Day Ahead- For most, each day is different. It helps to plan your schedule the day/evening before. Then you can jump out of bed in the morning with a smile on because you know exactly what to do. It’s easy to get overwhelemed by what you have to do, and even more so if you’re not organised.

10- Create Daily Habits that Serve You- What daily action would make the greatest positive difference? Examples: meditation, go to bed or wake up earlier, watch less tv, read, make three new contacts, drink more water, do something you love, limit time for e-mail, write, organize, plan, create, help others, etc. Make it specific. Ask which daily habits uplift you and which hold you back then make a shift.

11- Be in Action on What is Most Important
Reaching goals means taking the steps that get you there… no matter what. You are either interested or committed. Life will get in the way. Fear will want to hold you back. It is a choice to continue in action on the important stuff, and rewardscome when you do.

12- Do It, Delegate It, or Dump It- It is easier to stay in action on priorities when you leverage your strengths, passions, values, and skills. Learn in action and gain experience. Delegate what is not your cup of tea. Dump what is not that important right now. Block time to handle tolerations that drain your energy such as clutter, repairs, etc.

13- Simplify and Systematize- Put systems in place to make things easier. Consistently seek the more efficient way e.g delegate tasks to the experts and people who actually enjoy the things you don’t, run errands weekly, when you buy something get rid of something to avoid clutter, organize the office at the end of each day, give everything a home so nothing is ever lost. Strive for efficiency. Write a to-d0-list the night before, and it’s already there for when you begin your next day.

To organize life and manage yourself for peak performance you have to feel your best. This means scheduling rejuvenation time regularly to enjoy what you love and what life has to offer right now. Implement these tips and raise your quality of life… StartingNow!

BUT, NO SALES!

How is that?

Attracting visitors to your website is the easy bit, but getting them to stay is harder and what’s harder is getting people to buy from you before they leave. Especially now. People are watching their pennies and thinking about their expenditure much more than ever before.

In the Ten Reasons Internet Marketing Fails for businesses, one reason was lack of clarity, are you giving a clear message to your readers of what you are actually selling?

flip the coin… when you are looking online to buy something, the chances are you are looking for a solution to a problem right? you’ve got a date, so you need something to wear, so you look for an outfit. You don’t know what outfit, but you know you need something to wear on your night out. the same if your child doesn’t sleep through the night, you jump on the Internet looking for solutions to your babies sleep problem…

Your customers are the same!

They buy because your product/service:

• Offers a solution to a problem
• Makes them feel good
• Saves them time
• Educates them

But, 9 times out of 10 it’s because they are in search of a solution to a specific problem, ultimately they are buying your expertise.

When selling your products you are not just a coach or a VA, you are selling solutions to specific problems…

• I will add all of your business cards into a database following networking events
• I will help you to start talking to your moody teenager
• I will help you get people to read your newsletter

NOT I can help you with your admin or I can help you with your children..People need to know HOW. They don’t care that you WILL they need to know you CAN and WILL.

Does that make sense? i.e you are targeting specific individuals, business owners who network, parents with teenagers..

As soon as you start identifying your target market for your individual products then you can solve their specific problems, even if they don’t know it yet.

Other factors to take into consideration if visitors are not buying your products:

How easy is your website to navigate? if your website is hard to get around, or is too busy, people will get fed up and leave. Try this: ask a family member who is not very internet savvy to log onto your site and buy a product. Tell them what product you want them to buy.

Don’t actually get them to buy it… that’s wrong! you are family! hehe, but once they are almost ready to purchase, STOP them! and now ask them how they found it, how easy it was.

You visit your website frequently, and you know it inside out, you know your way around, sometimes you can be blinded by the obvious.

If you do have a busy website with lots of information, especially true if you’re an active blogger with sponsors etc, you could consider using sales pages, this way you have no distractions. That sales page is specifically set up to sell one product. You could use a product such as Optimizepress

Don’t forget your autoresponders and follow ups! when people buy a product from you, don’t forget to follow up afterwards, you could subtly link in other products that could be of interest to them, and ask them for feedback! if you are not selling as much as you think, maybe your products need fine tuning?

What are you doing to get people buying from you?