Congratulations to The Help!

An A+ accreditation from the Better Business Bureau for The Help! The rating is one more achievement among many, giving the company prominence. Clients are certainly assured that the firm operates at a high level of excellence.

What is the Better Business Bureau?

The BBB, as it is commonly referred to, is a nonprofit organization whose primary mission is to foster trust between businesses and clients. It was established in 1912 and is not associated with nor created by any government arm despite having the word “bureau” in its official name. It regulates itself and does not endorse products or services.

What is the function of the BBB?

Two important functions are the collation of reviews on businesses across the country, and the mediation of conflicts between companies and patrons. According to Wikipedia, 78% of over 885,000 disagreements between business and customers were resolved in 2013.

It is usual for customers to provide feedback in the form of surveys or face-to-face dialogue. With the rise of online commerce, reviews of businesses – service and product quality evaluation – have become the norm. Disputes over price, product/service promotions, and discounts can be settled amicably with the help of BBB.

What’s in it for businesses?

BBB accredited and registered companies are more credible and clients are confident because there is adherence to local and international standards of excellent business practices. An accredited entity shows its level of commitment thru abiding with the BBB’s standards for trust, as follows: “building trust, advertising honestly, telling the truth, being transparent, honoring promises, being responsive, safeguarding privacy and embodying integrity.”

Through the nine years since The Help took its first steps into the virtual industry arena, it has pursued its mission, namely: to enhance operational functions and to boost the competitive edge of businesses by providing professional, efficient, and conscientious administrative assistance. Growing by leaps and bounds, The Help more than deserve the BBB accreditation.

Check us out at The Help’s BBB Business Review!

Written by Yoli P. – The Help

Quality. In layman’s language, it is that “something” in a product or service which makes clients return for more of the same. Many businesses aspire to have this almost effervescent factor so as to thrive and make a profit.

It can, however, be achieved. Knowing and understanding clients’ as well as identifying new markets are all part of quality management. But the presence of a Quality Manager’s watchful eye ensures that high performing products and services get to the customers’ hands.

What is the quality manager’s relevance to business today? As the buying public continues its demand for improved goods and services, high performing products became the norm. Quality control evolved, integrating itself into business operations.

The importance of Quality Managers cannot be underestimated. The role covers a gamut of functions: responsibility for benchmarks and project management, precise definition of clients’ expectations, and human resource management

Values or standards, whether in-house or government required, must be complied with. Because the quality manager is organized and can prioritize, projects are certain to be delivered on time. It is also the manager’s responsibility to clearly communicate company expectations to employees. At the same time, the manager identifies potential clients for the company’s services.

People, or human resource, management is possibly the most important function of a quality manager. Aside from communicating well, a manager is a problem solver who can discern when situations involving management and staff conflicts need mediation. Quality managers are sometimes requested to orient new employees to make certain that company policies are clear and complied with in all aspects. They are also the “go-to” person for all types of questions that line managers and staff encounter in business transactions.

Quality, however, must be consistent for buyers to take notice. For example, an editing job will have correct grammar and substantive changes, where needed. Quality must also manifest in employee’s attitudes when dealing with tasks and clients. In essence, quality is the result of excellent and committed work, evident in both business and employees production of high-performance goods and services.

Written by Yoli P. – The Help

Marketing involves two important features – focus on clients and creating a formula containing the product, its price, and selling point. Selling or promoting products and services are, perhaps, the most difficult aspect of any business. Its been said that marketing is the foundation of a successful enterprise. An example is Facebook. It is focused on clients plus its formula of connection (product), cost free (price), and the blend of connection and no cost to users (selling point) resonated worldwide.

The marketing of a business takes creativity and hard work. In the virtual industry, administrative specialists may partner with another virtual company specializing in legal documentation thus complementing one another services. Dialogue and careful planning can make the partnership increase client base for both as doors open to similar markets.

Marketing could be done by launching a service or conducting a webinar to generate new business. Offering a discounted service such as editing for new clients allows a foot in the door for future work. Even without the promise of future work, referrals can come from a good relationship with current clients.

Because marketing is basically a persuasive undertaking, traditional and interactive methods are applied. Traditional would mean the use of brochures while interactive refers to social media. Everyone has become familiar with the use of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, allowing businesses a better reach to many audience types.

Perhaps the more important aspect of marketing comes from employees talking about company products to their online network such as professional organizations. Seasonal campaigns can be effective. For example, a month’s service free of charge in exchange for two months of paid work could very well entice clients. In this scenario efficient and punctual delivery of contracted work is crucial.

Noting that marketing does not produce overnight results, companies must plan on sustainable activities. One way is to try a mix of ideas like advertising on Facebook and blogging about the company’s product until a certain combination brings in results. Impact happens when a marketing plan is both persistent and constant in engaging its audience, i.e. prospective clients, getting the desired results in the long term.

Written by Yoli P. – The Help

Workshops are the places where small steps in new inventions happen, through experimentation then testing of a prototype. Creativity, the fuel for any goal, plays a major role in the process. An example is the use of fax machines in offices, common not too long ago. It was the best way to transmit documents to many parts of the world. With computer use and advent of many new applications, scanning documents is now the common practice.

A workshop, as defined by the online Miriam-Webster Dictionary, can refer to a place where stuff is repaired or made. It also means a class or a series of classes in which a small group of people learn the methods and skills used in doing something. Usually, a workshop becomes the “testing ground,” so to speak. A passing interest in baking may be sparked to greater heights because an engaging facilitator has written a recipe book on the various ways of cooking rice. Online work may have been unchartered grounds for laid off employees  but having participated in a workshop on virtual careers an Internet business venture is born. Workshops are fertile grounds for nurturing budding interests in crafts such as glass painting, knitting, and sewing. It is also a place to check if an idea such as event planning can be a part-time job.

Students at workshops are fun; they are highly motivated to learn, thus generating positive energy for everyone in the class. Some join at a one-time event or persist in a series that build on one another.  It is recommended that  acquisition of a second language require several workshop sessions.

A change in career will take time and a corresponding change in someone’s personal budget. Prior to investing time and cash in any skill acquisition, a workshop is an inexpensive way to explore, to see if the activity is sustainable, in its time and financial aspects.

A doorway to rekindle old interests in hobbies, the workshop’s best reason for its continued use as a tool is the possibility it offers. Participating in one requires little or no background in a given workshop topic.

Noting that no employment is forever, someone who wishes to continue working as a professional must acquire and continuously hone skills. Check out the workshops in the area if only for curiosity, there might be a surprise waiting to be discovered.

Written by Yoli P. – The Help

Whenever career progress is the goal, self-evaluation becomes a must for professionals. It is the best method by which one or two skill sets, even talents, can be improved through training or by partnering with a peer where both are complementary to one another. For example, flexibility can be a tremendous asset. It’s been said, “change is the only thing that is constant.” Someone who is flexible or adaptable can respond easily to shifts in work priorities, new supervisors, and even budget cuts. Productivity remains constant despite company reorganization.

Sometimes flexibility can be seen as lack of goals while focus is misconstrued as tunnel vision. However, when someone flexible teams up with a focused colleague, they can help each other grow in both professional and personal levels. The focus provided to someone flexible can lead to the creation of short-term plans while adaptability in a focused worker may result in paying more attention to colleagues’ suggestions.

Self-evaluation provides a “before status” and a current status. One gets a sense of progress, if any has been made. For example, someone who used to be always late for work now arrives on time.

Managing a project or being the team lead in developing concepts for research are occasions to showcase talents. Nowhere is this more important than in the workplace. It sounds almost impossible, especially if opportunities to display talents are not frequent. However, awareness of one’s strength and weakness would help in creating situations wherein management would sit up and take notice of staff.

When writing a professional self-evaluation, it is important to objectively highlight accomplishments. Equally important is to propose steps where work performance can be improved such as teamwork. If an Individual work plan is not in place, create the SMART one (Specific, Measurable, Accountable, Realistic, Time) to stay in congruence with company mission and core value.

Remember: Change is the only thing that is constant and self evaluation keeps an employee ready for challenges and change at all times.

Written by Yoli P. – The Help