Clever Mamma Profile: First Step Virtual Assistant

It gives me great pleasure to introduce you to brand new Clever Mamma, Anne Clark from First Step Virtual Assistant. Anne is keeping busy (but I'm hoping she is getting some R&R too) with Master 2 PLUS a new bub on the way in February. Based in Melbourne, Anne is able to support biz mums Australia-wide with social media, admin and project management plus lots more. Anyone else spending way too much time on social media? You know who to call!

1. Tell us a little about yourself and your business... My name is Anne Clark, I worked as a Corporate PA/Office Manager for 20 years before becoming a first time mum.  I am expecting my second child in early 2013, which is very exciting.
 
First Step Virtual Assistant is a support service for businesses.  I provide social media support, administration support, project management, electronic newsletters and lots more.
 
2. How did your business begin? First Step Virtual Assistant was established with the desire for me to be able to achieve a dream which is running my own business, be able to be at home with my children and continue to do what I love doing.
 
3. The bits I love... I love working with my clients, I’m very lucky as they are wonderful.  I love learning about their industries.  I take it upon myself to keep up to date on technology and services so that anything that can benefit my clients in the services I provide I can pass on to them.

4. The bits I not-so-love... The thing I don’t love is the constant ‘spam’ emails I get bombarded with and the hoax service seekers I get.  Surely they have better things to do. 

5. Any tips for other Clever Mammas? When trying to grow your business, utilise the free social media tools around such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+ and LinkedIn to attract your audience.  Take the time to understand your business direction/target audience and those social media tools.  It is important to try and get your audience onto your own database, you can’t solely rely on the social media platform because if it was gone tomorrow, you would have lost your database of potential clients and have to start all over again. 
 
6. Devonshire Tea versus Coffee & Cake??? These days I definitely prefer my coffee and cake! 

Thanks so much Anne for letting us know your biz story. Stay tuned for a bubs update early next year, but in the meantime do pop past Anne's listing on the CM directory for full contact details and see how First Step Virtual Assistant can support you and your business. Isn't it time to work "on" your business and not "in" it?