As the owner of a fledgling business, I am quickly coming to appreciate the value of Networking.

Recently I had the opportunity to travel to Perth and meet up with other Virtual Assistants. We had a very enjoyable morning tea, and an added bonus was getting to meet Kathie Thomas who started “A Clayton’s Secretary” back in 1994. http://www.asecretary.com.au/

The information on Kathie’s site, and the VA Information Group she moderates has been invaluable to me as I’ve begun my journey as a VA. http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/vaig/

I recently became a member of “A Clayton’s Secretary” and now proudly display their logo on my website.

As a result of my visit to Perth, one of the VA’s I met contacted me to ask if I would be interested in doing some transcription work for a client of hers who needed more transcriptionists. Of course I said yes, and her client called me later in the week. We chatted; he sent me some files to work on over the weekend; he was happy with my resulting work; and so a new business partnership was formed. Thank goodness for networking and meeting this VA who was kind enough to recommend me to her client.

This coming week I am going to attend my first Business After Hours Function which is held by the local Chamber of Commerce. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to network with other business owners in Geraldton. http://www.mwcci.com.au/default.asp

If you own your own business, I would encourage you to get out and about and network. It’s all about making contacts, and being willing to talk about your business in terms of what you can do to help others. Word-of-mouth is an important aspect too. If people are happy with your service, they will recommend you to friends and acquantainces. Going the extra mile, and service with a smile, will always pay off.