#BoatsThatTweet

January 31, 2012

Narrowboat Wife Clients, Social Media 1 Comment

Yes, I too was one of those people who asked, “What is the point of Twitter?” I had already wasted hours on Facebook keeping in touch with my friends’ status updates, and I didn’t need a whole other social world on line to mysteriously suck away my time and energy. But as I got more into blogging and ‘met’ other bloggers on line I kept hearing that tweeting was the thing to do. I find Twitter to be a lot faster and busier experience than Facebook, it is a constantly moving conversation, like walking into a bar where everyone is talking at once: That makes it sound awful! But it’s a quick and easy way of sharing news, links and information. It’s a place to socialise, network and meet new people. To get people ‘following’ you on Twitter you need a short and interesting bio, saying what you’re about. Advertise your Twitter ID on your email signature, blog, other social network profiles, and website if you have one. Follow other people and companies with similar interests, and follow people that you would like to follow you. Whenever you see something interesting ‘retweet’ it, and that person will thank you. On Twitter I’ve discovered people that I would never have randomly met or spoken to in real life. Last week I discovered a campaign to stop the government closing 50% of coastguard stations that is tweeted by @CoastalJoe1. I heard that a 74 year old man who fell into the Coventry Canal at Tamworth is seeking the girl who saved him via @unofficialNBW and I heard that British Waterways are looking for volunteer lock keepers via @waterscape_com. It’s also useful to follow @BWcomms. Boats I’ve tweeted with recently include @hotelboats (Snipe and Taurus) @b0atg1rl, @nbchalford, @workinboatwoman and @albiondumsday (Granny Buttons narrowboat blog). I’ve even discovered a boating hairdresser @FloatingSalon. @workboatpug is an Oxford based marine engineer who publishes a daily online paper called ‘Tweets from the Fleet’, sharing boating articles and information. The # symbol, called a hashtag, is used to mark keywords or topics in a Tweet. It is a way for people to search for tweets that have a common topic. Hash tags allow you to create communities of people interested in the same topic by making it easier for them to find and share information related to it. Try following the hash tag #BoatsThatTweet and easily discover so much more about canals and narrowboating! This week I will be taking over the Boatshed Grand Union Twitter account so why not follow me @BoatshedGU for regular news updates from this blog and information about buying and selling narrowboats? You can also follow my personal account @Boat_Wife for blog updates from http://www.narrowboatwife.blogspot.com and any other random things I might tweet about. I look forward to ‘meeting’ you on Twitter!

Peggy

Disclosure: I wrote this post for Boatshed Grand Union but thought the social media aspect was relevant to this blog :-)

Do You Want a Widget?

January 24, 2012

Narrowboat Wife Blogging, Social Media Comments Off

I want a widget, and yes, a widget is an actual blogging thing, but I suppose the thing that I really want is an email gadget. I’m happy to have begun working with Paul from the popular website Living on a Narrowboat. I’ll be providing some content for Paul and he has featured me in an interview on the site. When Paul emails me he has this great email signature that includes his photo, social media and blog feeds, so you can see his latest tweet and article title. It looks great and I want one! So I signed up to Wise Stamp and was told that the more people I recommend the faster they will give me my widget! If you would like one please click on my referral link here

Great for bloggers and businesses.

Featured Mumpreneur

January 17, 2012

Narrowboat Wife Uncategorized Comments Off

 Today I am excited to be the featured mumpreneur on Antonia Chitty’s website  http://www.familyfriendlyworking.co.uk/

Antonia is an inspiring writer and mumpreneur who combines writing non fiction books with running her own PR Agency, ACPR which specialises in PR training for entrepreneurs. 

Family Friendly Working is for you if:

 ■~ you have a job, but feel fed up with trying to do too much in too little time 

■~ feel torn between work and spending time with your children

 ■~ dream of being a mumpreneur 

■~ would you love to find work that fits in with the family

 ■~ are running your own business and want resources and support

 Thanks to Antonia and Kizzy for featuring me today.

 Become a Mumpreneur (Affiliate link)

Why I Work for Boatshed

January 16, 2012

Narrowboat Wife Clients Comments Off

Peggy MelmothOn Valentine’s day last year my husband and I were in a pub talking about getting a bigger boat. I said that my perfect boat would be a 70 foot narrowboat, green, with side hatches and a ‘boatman’s cabin’. I’ve always fancied having the living room at the front of the boat with glass doors to the front deck so that you can look out at the glistening water up ahead. Way back when I was looking for my first boat I feasted my eyes on glossy waterways magazines and caught trains all over England to boatyards full of gleaming paintwork and tongue and groove interiors. More than ten years later things have changed and so much of the searching can be done on the internet. After a couple of weeks of casual browsing, my husband sent me an email with no words, just a link to an online boat brokerage. At Boatshed Grand Union there are up to eighty photos of each second hand boat for sale so you can get a really good idea of what a boat is like before going to view it. There, before my eyes was a 70 foot narrowboat, green, with side hatches and a boatman’s cabin. The living room was at the front of the boat with double glass doors to the front deck so that you could look out at the glistening water up ahead. Phil, the boat broker said that I could come up to see it the next day. So while my husband went to work I took the kids on the train to Hertfordshire to see the boat. It was a golden sunshiney day: The boat was perfect. We put in an offer and I told Phil that I was moving to Hertfordshire and looking for work. ‘Do you need any help at Boatshed?’ The next day the vendor accepted our offer. I know that we were lucky, but it seemed like such an efficient way to buy a boat. The photos had shown us so much of the boat; the good bits and the bad bits, that we knew it was just what we were looking for. After we’d bought the boat and moved on board I chased Phil up about helping him at Boatshed and after an eventful interview on his boat where I drank his wine and he broke his leg (another story) he agreed to let me become a part of Boatshed Grand Union! So that is how and why I came to work for Boatshed, the world’s number one yacht brokerage: Global reach and local knowledge.

More Boatshed blogs at: http://grandunion.boatshed.com/news.php

8 Great Ways to Use a Virtual Assistant in 2012

January 10, 2012

Narrowboat Wife Uncategorized , , Comments Off

1.      Business Blog Set up

Great information raises your profile as an expert and a good business to ‘follow’ online. A freelance professional blogger can research topics; subscribe to relevant online news sources and undertake keyword research for search engine optimisation.

  1. 2.      Ongoing Blogging

A pro blogger can research and write posts, source images, and publish with links and images. Keywords in your blog allow your site to rise up the search engine rankings; Google is looking for fresh content every 30-45 days. This is where all of the unique and interesting information for your Facebook updates and Tweets will come from. At least one post a week is recommended.

 

  1. 3.      Twitter

Create the right balance between messages that motivate people to visit your site and ones that provide interesting items to attract more followers. Employ a VA to reply to people who tweet to your business and thank those who retweet your messages. Schedule tweets, check Twitter regularly and interact with your audience. You could also add reduced products and new products to Facebook and Twitter. Join in with #FollowFriday to recommend other Twitter users, making sure your followers know that you’re there and that you care. Devise a Twitter campaign that shares news and offers.

  1. 4.      Facebook

Get your VA to set up a business page with your logo and details. Syndicate your blog to your Facebook page and Twitter account. Once you have a few fans for your page your updates will be seen by them and by their friends who visit their profiles. Your news then spreads to the contacts of your contacts. Add exclusive offers for Facebook followers to encourage people to sign up.

  1. 5.      Create a daily online newspaper for Facebook and/or Twitter

Share interesting content with people interested in your business and provide valuable and fun information to your online community. Create awareness around local events or news and promote your business. This is simpler and more affordable than it sounds!

  1. 6.      Administration

A virtual assistant can respond to enquiries, send customer welcome emails, create documents, do copytyping, audiotyping and help with other administration.

  1. 7.      Ebooks

A virtual assistant could ghost write, format and publish an ebook to distribute on Kindle and showcase your expertise. Alternatively give away a complimentary ebook to encourage people to sign up for your mailing list.

  1. 8.      Mailing List

Have your assistant set up a mailing list and write your monthly newsletter, encouraging people to revisit your website.

Choose one and take action today! With a virtual assistant you only pay for the few hours work that you need. Reach out and build relationships with new and potential customers.

Choose something small and make a change to your business this year.

January Sale – enjoy introductory rates!

January 3, 2012

Narrowboat Wife Uncategorized Comments Off

It’s the New Year; perhaps for your small business you’ve made a resolution to bring in more business, start a blog, sort out that back log of admin or dip your toe into the world of social media. Let me help, and enjoy these introductory rates for three months!

Virtual Assistant £10 per hour

Respond to enquiries, send customer welcome emails, create documents, copytyping, transcription and help with other administration.

Freelance Writing and Guest Posts

Fees on request.

Set Up Packages

Blog – content research, keyword research and SEO. Price varies depending on requirements.

Twitter – set up includes tweeting to build followers £45

Facebook – set up includes a succession of informative status updates £45

Monthly

Twitter – £25

Facebook – £25

Weekly blog post

Fresh, relevant, interesting content with links and images. £25 per post (300 – 400 words).

See Boatshed Grand Union as an example of quality content. See interesting blog posts being retweeted by ‘followers’ on Twitter. Keywords in your blog allow your site to rise up the search engine rankings; Google is looking for fresh content every 30-45 days. This is where all of the unique and interesting information for your Facebook updates and Tweets will come from. At least one post a week is recommended.

 

Why not choose one service and add others later?

To see a full range of services click on the page tabs at the top of the website.

 

I’m so full of enthusiasm to get new projects started this year!

What are your plans for your business?

 

Image credit: Web Design Hot!

Creative Commons Attribution 3.0

 

Happy New Year!

January 1, 2012

Narrowboat Wife Uncategorized Comments Off

Welcome to my new business blog covering the freelance writing, business blogging and virtual assistant side of life! I could include blogging and social media tips, answer FAQs, showcase my writing, review relevant books, tell you about my experience and history or give you an insight into working from home on a narrowboat. Who knows what could be coming next? This is the view of Sutton Harbour in Plymouth at dawn this morning, where I began this futuristic sounding “twenty-twelve”. What does the future hold?

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.