Alison on Zoom

Pressed for Time-what about conducting meetings virtually instead?

Pressed for Time? Would you like to cut out hassle of travel time for meetings and be in the comfort of your own home? Have you ever used Zoom the video conferencing platform? Do you have lots of client meetings during the day, committee or other types or meetings to organise? Maybe you want to do podcasts or have lots of people to interview for your dissertation? whatever your scenario the Zoom videoconferencing platform is a very easy and cheap way to make calls without even leaving the comfort of your living room! Watch my how to video on how to schedule and setup a call. I’ll do another one this month about what to wear/where to look/extra features and if you have any other questions please let me know
Keep an eye on my VirtuAli Administrative Solutions YouTube channel as well for other how to videos

http://www.youtube.com/timedtext_video?ppub_lang=en&msg=9&ar=3&nv=1&v=qXrnLJKg0Tk

 

July 11, 2019 / No Comments /  
party balloons

Checklist for organising your next workshop/seminar/social event

It’s my party and I’ll have a checklist if I want to! Do you know the one thing that doesn’t change in life whether you are an adult or a child? The complexity of who to invite to your party and where to have it! Finding a venue for your workshop/conference/anniversary can be very time consuming so I’ve compiled a checklist below to help simplify it. If you are based in Northern Ireland, Visit Belfast have a very comprehensive list of venues in Belfast with the maximum capacity theatre and banquet style.

Whether you are a freelance coach/trainer/speaker or working for a company you may often find yourself having to organise an event of some kind. I worked as a PA for 10 years so often had to book venues for Christmas parties or team away days. Now as a VA, I help small business owners research venues for Director meetings; speaking or training locations; event launches; business milestones etc. I’ve also been on the other side where I’ve been asked to speak at events about my own business. So, I’ve drawn together below a checklist of things to think about when booking an event. Keep reading if you are interested in downloading a checklist of things to tick off when you are in the middle of organising an event/conference/bootcamp

A few years ago, I had a big birthday and invited 40 of my closest friends. I had people from all aspects and periods of my life from primary school friend to friends I met while working in Luxembourg. So I wanted to find a venue and an activity that was pretty central for everyone to get to, that allowed people to mix easily and had good food. I worked in Belfast Welcome Centre for 2 years as a Tourist Advisor so I also wanted to showcase Belfast. In the end I booked Mulsanne Casinos and had a casino night at Crumlin Road Gaol with a tour beforehand. The customer service was fantastic beforehand and after. More about that at the end

Alison's 40th birthday

Cake not big enough to fit all the candles

Organising an event can be very stressful as there are so many elements to think of so I’ve compiled a list for the pre-event stage:

Researching a venue

Things to think about in researching a venue :

1.     How many people you anticipate will attend

2.      How easy it is for people to get to

2.     How easy it is to park

3.     How accessible is it if you are carrying any kind of equipment into the room

4.     Will there be staff on the day/night present to help signpost people and with registration

5.     Do you have to provide your own tea/coffee/biscuits or is there in-house catering

6.     How well ventilated or heated the room is

7.     How good is the Wi-Fi

8.     How good are the acoustics

9.     Does the venue provide an overhead projector and laptop on site if you are giving a Powerpoint presentation

10.  Is there technical support on site in case anything goes wrong

By human nature we are programmed to remember the bad things and I remember vividly venues I’ve been in for events which have been freezing or roasting, where there is no tea on arrival, where the sound is poor and where it has been difficult to park.

Booking a venue

The Fine Print-things to remember to ask about:

1.     What the cancellation policy is

2.     If prices include VAT or not

3.     If you are able to check the room in person in advance

4.     Discount if you are booking repeat slots/ if you are also booking people into the venue to stay overnight/sister discounts with other establishments etc

5.     Reconfirm everything at least 5 days in advance

And remember to get everything in writing from quote at the start to the final confirmation! Best lesson I was ever taught in a coordination role is never to assume anything. The person you confirmed the booking with on the phone, may get distracted and forget to write your booking down in their calendar or you may get the dates mixed up! Always try at least 5 working days in advance of your event contact the venue to reconfirm details and if needs be find an alternative venue if you are double booked.

Always plan for the unforeseeable

No matter what your event is, always plan or the unforeseeable ! Some elements will always be beyond your control. You can’t predict the weather/ a total powercut/bomb alerts/your keynote speaker missing their flight/rail strikes etc. but you can eat least make a Plan B or C in advance.

The Crumlin Road Gaol still sends me a birthday card every year in the post which I’m always touched by. A notification in an Excel sheet or in Mail Chimp is a very simple thing to set up but it’s the little things that sway you to go back or to recommend others!

If you are organising a training event, a workshop or a conference with several speakers and are feeling overwhelmed about the elements to organise please get in touch to see if I can help you in the lead up to it.

If you are interested in receiving an extra checklist of things to think off whilst organising an event please download it here

July 8, 2019 / No Comments /  
Alison wet pit stop at Gawleys Gate, Co. Armagh

Top 5 planning lessons you can adapt from sporting challenges to your business

Have you ever completed a sporting challenge and realised afterwards that there are so many lessons you can carry into your personal or professional life?

Back in July, I wrote about the 97mile cycling challenge I was undertaking around Lough Neagh, Northern Ireland and the focus it required. I successfully completed it on Sunday 26th August 2018 on the wettest and windiest day of the whole summer ! Preparing for it and actually doing it required an enormous amount of planning.  I had a training programme of how much time I should cycle every week, but I had to plan out for myself:

1)     When to fit training in around normal work and life commitments

2)     What to eat to make sure I was absorbing as much nutritious food as possible

3)     What to wear and when to wear it

Planning

Years of project management experience has taught me whether you are the organiser of an event or simply a participant in it there are always lessons to be learnt and to document them right away.

These are the 5 main Lessons I learnt that can apply to any situation. If you set your mind to it, you can achieve anything you can you want as long as you:

  1. Follow the advice from your peers (in my case my local bike shop owner and other cyclists who had completed it) and you listen to it!
  2. Make yourself small achievable goals
  3. Build yourself up physically slowly
  4. Get yourself the right resources and tools
  5. Don’t do it alone, join a group

Bitter Lessons

It took me all day to complete the course but I did it. As one of my clients commented I  succeeded because I had strong legs and an even stronger mind! However, I stupidly ignored points 4 and 5 above.

I didn’t heed the advice of shopkeeper who told me to buy cycling shoes when I was buying my cycling gear. Then I left it too late to get some and get comfortable in them. I cycled all summer in my trainers which was fine until the Monsoon type conditions on the day. I learnt very quickly that if you are cycling in the relentless rain with only your standard trainers on , all the water runs down your legs into your shoes and then they begin to squeak which is very uncomfortable and very distracting for you and your fellow cyclists!

Picture of Virtuali on bicycle

Alison at a very wet banana stop at Gawleys Gate 20 miles in

Growth

I also didn’t join a cycling group. I made excuses to myself why not to join a cycling club such as 1)  you are used to cycling about in Europe so you don’t need one 2) you wo’nt be fast enough to go out with a group 3) they’ll go out at times that don’t suit etc.  On the day, I was very jealous of the groups who were flying along ahead of me , chatting to each other and spurring each other on.

The Lap of the Lough made me realise that in life just as in business you need the support of others to challenge and support you. You can only grow and push yourself so far as a lone wolf. So, in September this year I signed up to Louise Brogan’s 12-week online Mastermind challenge with 5 other women at a similiar stage of business development. The difference that it makes for others to question your business logic, to hold you accountable for actions you promised to take and to challenge you is remarkable.

Quote by Aristotle

The Roots of education are bitter but the fruit is sweet

I’ve been out the grand total of 2 times on my bike since the Lap of Lough challenge because for weeks afterwards I couldn’t bear to even look at the bike. I also had an extremely sore left knee and Achilles tendon which I probably wouldn’t have had if I had adhered to points 4 & 5 above! but as Aristotle said ‘The Roots of education are bitter but the fruit is sweet’

Since early October I’ve been ‘dunking’ with the Lough Neagh Monster Dunkers and I really enjoy the social bonding of throwing yourself into the cold waters of Lough Neagh and trying to revive yourself afterwards with copious amount of tea, buns and chat! I wouldn’t proscrinate about asking for group support again. Next challenge to do an Ice KM where you swim in temperatures of 5 oc or below for 40 lengths? I’m not saying yes but I’m not saying no either so watch this space!

Throughout this month, I will be publishing posts on planning so please keep out my website LinkedIn or sign up via my email list

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 4, 2018 / No Comments /  
My Brain has too many tabs open

10 Admin tips to protect your mental sanity

10 Admin tips to protect your mental sanity

How has your 2018 been so far? Are you frazzled? Every freelancer I’ve spoken to recently say they have been flat out this quarter and they are overwhelmed! In 2015 The Guardian published an article on ‘the disease of being busy’ you can imagine how much more prevalent this with the communication we are surrounded by in 2018. In February, I attended the Digital Marketing Sanity workshop organised by Fascinating Company about digital marketing tips to keep you sane but what about admin tips?

Back in November, I wrote an article for Women in Business about not letting time rule you and how to be more productive. I’ve learnt a lot of lessons in the last 4 months about how to keep sane in an increasingly insanely busy world which I’m hoping will benefit others.

 

1) 2-minute rule

If you receive an email or message which takes less than 2 minutes to answer, answer it as soon as you see it! That way there is one less thing on your list and you won’t seem so overwhelmed.

2) Have a Strategy

I heard a great quote recently that ‘as a small business owner you should let your clients be your north star’ i.e. that listening to their demands and satisfying them is what guides you in growing your business. If you didn’t start the New Year with a strategy, it’s not too late to start. Plan a content marketing strategy, plan quarterly reviews, plan those tasks you can outsource to a VA like me!

3) Email accounts for different tasks

How many email accounts do you have? Do you have your business email, a personal one and maybe another linked to your phone? I have my business, plus several others for clients and committees I manage To prevent total email overload, I have notifications for just my business account and then I check the others at a specific time of the day or week depending on the frequency of events. Many CRM systems allow you to integrate your emails on one platform so you’re not swapping between applications all the time.

4) Create physical headspace

They say a change of scene is as good as rest and sometimes to be productive or more creative that’s exactly what we need. I’m very lucky that I live in a village with 7 independent coffee shops open  and there are also several Coworking spaces nearby. The benefit of a coworking space is that not only do such locations encourage you to be more productive that might also help you expand your business and develop new solutions as you meet new business leads and learn the problems they are encountering.

5) Create mental headspace

According to an article in Lifehacker ‘when you have to-do items constantly floating around in your head or you hear a ping or vibrate every few minutes from your phone, your brain doesn’t get a chance to fully enter creative flow or process experiences’. In order to create that mental space, you have to divide up your tasks, prioritise them and keep things in perspective!

Infographic on Work stess tips

Infographic on Work/Life Balance

6) Who is your Soundboard?

Lots of my clients will use me as a sounding board if they have a particular business issue because a) I’m also a business owner and b) I know about their business but can see it from a neutral perspective. Having a supportive network of business peers is as important as having a good circle of friends because there are different people you will approach at various times depending on the challenges you are facing.

7) Get yourself a good Accountant!

I spoke at a business start-up event this year and the most frequent question I heard asked was about tracking expenses/mileage. My advice to anyone starting out is to get yourself a good proactive accountant who will give you advice on the optimal way of recording your finances and who will advise on how to integrate your systems as you grow. This is especially important for those selling products so your e-commerce site is talking to your stock inventory system, accountancy package etc. With the imminent arrival of Making Tax Digital getting your accounts in the of cloud rather than in a paper bag is optimal!

8) Limit yourself

The disadvantage of actually liking administrative tasks and organising things when lots of people don’t, is that whatever event you attend and people find out what you do for a living they want you to be on the Committee! Experience has taught me don’t be on more than 2 committees in one year because you will exhaust yourself mentally and start to loathe the thing you had such passion for. This applies to other nerdy people such as those who love numbers and people who are natural leaders and end up as the Chairperson of everything!

9) Hit the pause button

I had a week recently when 4 out of 5 mornings I was at an event at 07:30 and 4 out of 5 evenings, I had an event that I was helping to organise and I promised myself that I would never have another week like it on purpose. My curse is that I’m naturally curious and I love learning new things but sometimes you actually have to PAUSE sit back and ask yourself is this going to benefit my business or me personally in the long term? For mental health purposes, having a night in on the sofa vegging or talking to friends can be very productive!

10) Learn to say No

Lastly but by no means, least learn to say no. I used to work in an environment where burn out was commonplace. I learnt no matter where there are often 3 reasons for this in any combination 1) You are genuinely a very nice person who wants to please everyone and you find it hard to say no 2) organisationally the company you are in as a mess with no idea of real workload its employees are under 3) you live /work in an environment with no support network so you have no-one to give you advice (see points 4,5 and 6!)

 

In order to succeed in work as in life, we have to find a balance and do things in moderation! If you have spent the last quarter of this year overwhelmed with administrative tasks take 5 mins out of your busy schedule to see how I can help you close a few of those brain tabs and take some Admin Pain Away!

March 20, 2018 / 1 Comment /  
Picture of a ticking clock

Don’t let the day run you

When you ask a freelancer, what motivated them to become freelance in the first place, 9 times out of 10 they will cite wanting more flexibility in the way they work and control over their own time. The paradox is of course when you become self-employed you will never work as hard or feel as if there are simply not enough hours in the day. The entrepreneur Jim Rohn famously said ‘Either you run the day, or the day runs you! So how can you make sure that you maximise your productivity every day?

Working with your Body Clock

If you are a night time person and are at your most productive after 14:00 don’t force yourself out of bed at 06:00 because you will just be miserable and achieve nothing!  I’m an early bird and am useless after 18:00. I’m in a swim club and 2-3 times a week I go swimming at 06:30 which means I’m ready for action by 08:00 and then Ive the whole work day in front of me with the added bonus that I’ve got some exercise in.

Greeting card by Judy Horacek

General Bewilderment Card by Judy Horacek

Discipline

Being self-employed requires a lot of discipline especially if you work from home. Every night before I go to bed I make out a list of tasks I have to achieve the next day prioritising the most time-consuming at the top. I tend to put creative tasks such as writing blogs/LinkedIn articles etc. on my list for the afternoon when I’m at my most relaxed.  I work in the Finnish school system way where I work in 45mins blocks and then take a break. In this break, I make a cup of tea, go out to water plants, do some stretching but always something away from the screen which gives me a brain nap and allows me time to think. It’s important in planning your day also to leave time for the unforeseen!

Time tracking

The best way not to lose time is to first calculate what you’re spending your time on! As I work for several different clients on different types of tasks, I use Toggl to track my time and I can also run reports from it. Harvest is also very good and integrates with several accountancy and project management tools. Every productivity guru will tell you to turn off social media notifications, so those Facebook messages or latest promotions don’t distract you. Despite rumours to the contrary, we women are not born multi-taskers and multi-tasking is proven to be very inefficient so plan out your day as best as you can and concentrate on one task at a time.

Integration

The most frequent problem I come across when helping clients who are time poor is that they are using several different tools, but nothing is integrated. So, they may have a system to track time, another for invoicing, another for storing contacts, another for capturing receipts. Think about the tools are you using, could you swap to use a smart system such as Office 365 or a CRM where you can do everything from one place? If you need advice on this subject, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Think with both sides of your brain

As humans, we tend towards using the right or the left side of our brains, but you can also learn to engage the other. If you are very organised and not creative this is something you can learn and vice versa. I once had a client who said that he didn’t like using a certain project management tool as it didn’t think like he did but maybe sometimes that’s a good thing. We are inundated with apps and tools these days, apps to count steps, apps to control your heating, apps even to apply makeup but my advice is if there are free trails test them out for a while before purchasing. I made a list of time-saving tools earlier this year which you may find useful

Outsource

You started your own business because you had a fantastic idea and the energy to make it real, didn’t you? so never let yourself get bogged down in the nitty gritty admin and suppress all your creative juices. Allen Baird from Sensei said it very well in his recent article ‘never try to perform every business function yourself’. So, if you are in business and one of your goals is to get rid of your admin pain by 2018, contact me VirtuAli today.

November 13, 2017 / No Comments /  

Relationship building forums and networking opportunities

Having worked as a PA to CEO’s for more than 7 years, there are always two periods in every year which were dedicated to sitting down to plan the year ahead – January and September! This time was spent setting objectives for staff, organising appraisal reviews and to plan SMT/Directors’ meetings. Now as a self-employed sole trader my objectives are slightly different and it’s myself I have to plan for the year ahead.

I’ve learnt since setting up my own business you can only succeed by surrounding yourself with honest experienced business owners. Fortunately, over this past year, I have had the opportunity to attend some great business events and build really good relationships with people. I know many other small business owners will be researching what business breakfast meetings are in Co.Armagh/Co.Down.Co.Antrim areas so I’m sharing this list (in alphabetical order not to be biased to one or the other). Several of these networks allow guest external speakers including Banbridge Business Network (of which I’m a member) and I’ve marked these with an asterisk. I know you need to book in advance for most as speaking slots are booked up until the end of this year already so get planning and if you are poor at planning contact me VirtuAli Admin Solutions who can do it for you!

*If you would like to speak as a guest at a business network meeting but the thought of speaking in front of an audience makes you want to run for the hills instead please check out your local Toastmasters group. Mine is Lagan Valley Toastmasters which meets 1st & 3rd Wed of every month and is a safe environment to get over your fears https://www.facebook.com/LaganValleyToastmasters/?fref=mentions&pnref=storytwitter @LIToastmasters. Guests can come x3 for free before deciding to sign up or not.

Business Networking Groups

Acordia Business Network

http://www.acordianetwork.com

Gerry Prior- connect@acordianetwork.com

Bangor -Tuesdays 08:00-09:30

Belfast-Wednesdays 08:00-09:30

Lisburn-Thursdays 08:00-09:30

Newtownabbey- Fridays 08:00-09:30

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100007173196989

*Antrim 9:15 Biznet Meetings

https://915biz.network/about.php

info@915biz.network

Antrim Enterprise Agency-Greystone Road Antrim

First and Third Friday of every month 09:15-10:30

https://www.facebook.com/915BizNet/

*Banbridge Business Network

www.thebusinessnetwork.org

Rolf Lawson-admin@thebusinessnetwork.org

Banbridge Enterprise Agency Scarva Road Banbridge

Last Thurs of every month 07:30-09:00

https://www.facebook.com/Business.Network.Banbridge/?fref=ts

*Dungannon UP For it

http://www.upforbusiness.co.uk/events/

Book via eventbrite

Ranfurly Arts & Visitor Centre, Market Square, Dungannon

First Wednesday of every month 08:00 – 10:00

https://www.facebook.com/DungannonEnterpriseCentre/

Moira Business Networking

http://www.gapcc.co.uk/

Keith Nickels

Gap Ministries Community Centre Main Street Moira

Last Friday every month 08:45-09:30

https://www.facebook.com/gapmoira/?fref=ts

*Greater Newry Business Network

Kevin McDonald

Enterprise House WIN Business Park, Newry

Every Tuesday 08:00-09:00

https://www.facebook.com/NewryBizNetwork/

 

(Published on LinkedIn 12/09/2017-https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/relationship-building-forums-alison-matthews/?published=t )

September 13, 2017 / No Comments /  

List of time-saving resources

In June, I published a post every day on my business Facebook page about productivity and as fortune would have it when I attended the 09:15 Biz NET meeting last Friday the topic for discussion was Time-Saving Tools. If you haven’t attended a 09:15 Biz Net meeting before -the clue is in the name! It’s a network for small businesses who meet at 09:15, every fortnight on a Friday at Antrim Enterprise Agency.

As the Biz Net group is made up of business owners from all sectors, a wide range of *free or payable time-saving resources were discussed from car parking apps to email management tools and I’ve made a list of these below which you can pick and choose from depending on the business needs.

*Disclaimer as pointed out by JTEC Solutions the new General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) coming into place in May 2018 will apply to any organisation anywhere in the world which processes personal data on EU citizens. For this reason, extra care has to be taken to make sure your IT systems and the way in which you save/name/store data  are as secure as possible so downloading a free app could put you in breach of that and result in a significant fine up to 10 million Euros or 2% of your global turnover which is a lot more than the £15-£20 a month you thought you were saving downloading a free app!

A large part of productivity can also be linked to the people you surround yourself with and the environment in which you work which is why it’s great that Antrim Enterprise Agency houses Hatchery NI where you have the option of hot-desking, renting a dedicated desk, utilising micro offices or a mail address/call answering service.

List of Time-saving resources:

Transferring Files

  1. FileZilla https://filezilla-project.org/

The free FTP solution for both client and server. Filezilla is open source software distributed free of charge

  1. WeTransfer https://wetransfer.com/

The simplest way to send your files around the world. Share large files up to 2GB for free

 

Downloading Images for use in social media posts

  1. Canva https://www.canva.com/

Very good for the non-creative types out there -I include myself. Free and payable downloads

  1. Unsplash https://unsplash.com/

High res photos gifted by photographers

 

Web Design/Graphic Design software

  1. Xara  http://www.xara.com/uk

Web Design/Graphic Design software with a range of features available

 

Creating video content

  1. Video block http://www.videoblocks.com/

Subscription based resource providing unlimited downloads of royalty free footage, motion backgrounds, and templates

  1. Audio block https://www.audioblocks.com

Subscription based resource providing unlimited downloads of royalty free music, sound effects and loops

 

Creating animated video

  1. Powtoon https://www.powtoon.com

Make your own website video, product video or educational video. Free and pro versions available

 

Manipulating images

  1. Paint net https://www.getpaint.net/index.html

Intuitive Photo and image editing software

 

Tracking mileage

  1. Triplog https://triplogmileage.com/

Automatically tracks car mileage and log expenses-integrated with your accountancy package -making life simple for HMRC tax returns!

 

Pre-paid parking

  1. Park Mobile http://www.parkmobile.co.uk/

Pay for parking by using your mobile phone remember to add new car registrations if you have more than 1 car!

 

Text marketing

  1. Text Marketer  https://www.textmarketer.co.uk/

Effortless way to send low-cost bulk text messages/reminders

  1. Text Anywhere http://www.textanywhere.net/

Secure way to send low-cost bulk text messages/reminders via web/email

 

Tailor made CRM systems

  1. ProAptivity CRM  http://www.proaptivity.com/

There are lots of different CRM systems out there but if you need a CRM tailored to your own company needs

 

Time tracking

  1. Toggl  https://toggl.com/features

Time tracking system for lone or teamwork from which you can run reports for Invoices

  1. Harvest https://www.getharvest.com/add-ons

Time Tracking system which integrates with Accountancy and Project Management Tools

 

Receipt Uploading

  1. ReceiptBank https://www.receipt-bank.com/

App that allows you to take photos of your receipt and automatically upload to your accountancy package

 

Email management

  1. Outlook http://www.pcworld.com/article/159204/ms_outlook_enterprise.html

Benefits of outlooks are often overlooked, you can:

– set rules so messages from certain people are directed to a certain folder

– set up tasks in the Task reminder

– set up groups to send out a message to your team for example

-send out a mail merge email to all of your contacts

Training for all features is available in your email browser under the Help icon

 

July 3, 2017 / No Comments /  

Looking for a virtual office or registered UK address?

Looking for virtual office space or a registered UK address?

Whether you are a start-up who isn’t just ready to hire out a permanent office space or a company outside the UK wishing to have a registered UK address, I’ve had more and more people contacting me about Virtual office space and wanting a registered office address in NI. I don’t offer this service but there are any many spaces in N.Ireland which do and am listing the ones that I’m aware of below.

All of the spaces named below will offer the following services for a fee (please see individual websites) :

  • Dedicated phone number
  • Call handling/forwarding, voicemail service
  • Registered office address with mailbox

Additional benefits

As a registered user, many of these spaces will also offer a discount on meeting and boardroom hire fees so you can make that all-important first impression with potential clients. Some spaces also act as co-working space where you can hot-desk or hire a dedicated desk for a week/month/year to work alongside like-minded individuals with all the benefits of an office but without the usual office politics!

Name                                                                    Location

Antrim Enterprise Agency                               Antrim

Blick Shared Studios                                          Belfast

Easy Virtual Offices                                            Belfast

The Foundry                                                         Belfast

The Mount Business & Conference Centre     Belfast

Regus                                                                      Belfast

Wellington Park Business Centre                     Belfast

The Hub Newry                                                    Newry (several locations)

The Loft                                                                  Belfast

Ormeau Baths                                                       Belfast

In a world which is becoming increasingly virtual where not only do 3d printing machines now exist but a Belgian company has pioneered even how to print edible chocolate! Vive la Belgique! virtual is definitely the way forward. If you are in need of any virtual office support please don’t hesitate to contact me via my website www.virtual.uk/services or here at LinkedIn.

May 15, 2017 / No Comments /  

Location, Location, Location

I was recently at the excellent Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council workshop delivered by Digital DNA (part of the optimise 2.0 programme) about writing web /article content and the speakers suggested always writing about topics that you have a certain amount of expertise in, so I’m writing this article on Top 10 places to meet for business outside the office. This is written from several perspectives:

  1. As a Virtual Assistant with several steady clients including one whose diary I am a managing and another for whom I’m researching coffee (variety is the spice of life for Virtual Assistants –www.virtuali.uk/services )
  2. As a freelancer who likes to meet my own regular clients at least once a month face to face to maintain a good working relationship
  3. Seeing my clients, who are also sole traders often working from their own premises, deliberating about where is the easiest place to meet prospective and existing clients

As most of my regular clients are based in a 15mile radius of where I live (Moira), I thought I would concentrate on Co. Armagh/Down area ( a lot of debate about which county Moira is actually in, that I won’t go into here!).

My research about coffee for one of my clients, unfortunately, doesn’t involve me sitting trying out lots of coffee shops around Ireland but I’ve come to realise that freelancers have at least 7 criteria when it comes to choosing a place to meet clients outside the office:

  1. How easy it is to park
  2. How good the Wi-Fi connection is*
  3. Supply of plugs (as our laptops/phones are constantly running low)
  4. Good space between tables and comfy chairs so you can talk without fear of someone overhearing your empire building conversations!
  5. How much light there is ( as we freelancers are busy running around like headless chickens and never see the light of day)
  6. How good tea/coffee is (and how many times they refill your cup for free)
  7. How good the goodies to go along with your tea/coffee are

(If anyone is organising a workshop or conference I’ve been reliably informed that tastiest savoury item available at the moment is Belfast Bap offered at Crumlin Road Gaol)

*Justin Bentley from JCB consulting has made me very paranoid about sharing documents on open Wi-Fi in coffee shops so if you want to find out more about how to protect yourself online please check out upcoming Create Digital NI workshop  Tuesday 17th May http://www.createdigitalni.com/upcoming-events/be-cybersafe-and-sound-online-security-and-marketing-workshop

The importance you place on these items, of course, varies from individual to individual, which is what us makes as unique as humans, but as Lynda Willis from Customer Sense Training and Consultancy will tell you the most important criterion wherever you choose is good customer service that will bring you back even if the other variables are missing. I used to work in a building with 1,800 employees and one of the cafeteria ladies –Ondina –knew everyone’s names, their drink of preference every morning and what’s more was able to converse in English, French & Portuguese- now that’s customer service!

These are my 10 top places to meet

Moira, if you didn’t realise already, is, of course, the epicentre of Northern Ireland (easy to reach from north, east, south or west), famous for Battle of Ireland fought here in 637 and more recently for our award winning sausages (and now also white pudding!) and you are spoilt for choice, as there are no less than 6 coffee shops (all independent no less).

I’m listing Moira meeting spots in order of entering the village from the Motorway exit, not in order of preference, as I know better than to offend my neighbours.

  1. Pimento Coffee Shop (101 Main Street, Moira) http://pimentocoffeeshop.com/
  2. Quirky Bird Tea Rooms (4 Meeting Street, Moira) http://www.thequirkybirdtearooms.com/
  3. Fat Gherkin (57 Main Street, Moira) https://www.facebook.com/thefatgherkin/?fref=ts
  4. McCartneys Bistro Deli (56 Main Street, Moira) http://www.mccartneysofmoira.com/
  5. Cairo’s Coffee Shop (1aBackwood Road, Moira) https://www.facebook.com/CairosCoffee/?fref=ts
  6. Fine Coffee Coffee (70 Main Street, Moira) https://www.facebook.com/thefinecoffeeco/
  7. Edenmore Country Club (70 Drumnabreeze Road (outside Moira/Maralin) http://www.edenmore.com/ (excellent if you are also looking for a round of golf )
  8. Ichthus Café, Lurgan (18-21 High Street, Lurgan) (car parking entrance to the side) https://www.facebook.com/Icthuslurgan/?fref=ts
  9. Quails Fine Foods, (13-15 Newry Street, Banbridge) (car parking to the rear) http://quailsfinefoods.co.uk/banbridge-cafe.php
  10. Vic Ryn is also a very handy place to stop at between Lisburn and Moira on Moira road http://thehouseofvicryn.com/
  11. And lastly, if you want to treat yourself to lunch in an award-winning restaurant check out Wine n Brine (59 Main Street, Moira) http://wineandbrine.co.uk/

I’m gluten intolerant, until a year ago I cycled or took public transport everywhere, lived abroad for 10yrs and  drink coffee occasionally so my preference for private or business is somewhere a) accessible to train halt b) has lots of light c) lots space d) does really good coffee in continental sized portions (hard in NI) & e) has savoury gluten-free snacks which are like gold dust apart from in cafés no. 4&8 mentioned above.

As this is Northern Ireland Year of Food and Drink, why not buy local and at the same time support NI economy. A lot of establishments in Moira as well as Quails Banbridge & Vic Ryn stock produce from local artisan makers such as Abernethy Butter Company & Hollah Preserving and salted caramel sauce- to die for -produced in Ballinderry by Brambleberry jams .

Location, Location, Location

Parking is always a touchy subject in Northern Ireland with our poor infrastructure so if you are entering Moira from the motorway, you can turn right into Moira Demesne and park behind the Main Street. There is also a car park opposite Boots the chemist beside Moira Library. When you are there, why not take a walk around the park and get some fresh air at the same time (circuit around the park takes a brisk 20minutes).

So as Kirsty and Phil from Channel 4 programme of the same name would say its all about the location! which is why when I decided to move back to Northern Ireland, I chose to go back to my roots and chose Moira. The aim of a Virtual Assistant is always to help their client save time so I hope this article helps you the busy entrepreneur, whatever your occupation, to do exactly that.

May 16, 2016 / No Comments /