Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Uses for Smartphones AND Virtual Assistants
Smartphones and VA's are an asset.
Smartphones are mobile phones, which you can use as little portable hand-held computer to stay in contact with your laptop, desktop and Virtual Assistant. I as a Virtual Assistant utilize a Smartphone to keep in contact with the information on my laptop, my clients and their information. Now, I have outlined some ways that you can utilize a Smartphone and a Virtual Assistant in order to keep your day flowing if you are away from your computer and landline.
1. Send e-mail and text messages.
Send and receive e-mail and text messages no matter where you are in the world.
Sync your smartphone with your laptop or PC and you can download e-mail from Microsoft Outlook and other mail programs.
You can text your VA to find out information for a meeting, directions or to let her/him know some last minute detail.
Access to email is critical for business users who need to respond quickly and a timesaver for everyone.
2. Schedule appointments and share calendars.
You can instantly view your calendar and schedule an appointment with someone while at a luncheon or at a meeting.
You can put your VA’s schedule on your calendar in order to keep up with when they are available to you or to schedule time for them to work with you.
If you use a computer program that allows calendar sharing, scheduling appointments or tasks is easy with a smartphone because you can have yours and your VA’s calendar in front of you.
Create an appointment on your phone and attach names from your address book.
Accept appointments from others via e-mail and sync with your computer later.
Syncing takes just a matter of seconds using a USB cable or Bluetooth with the option of deleting smartphone appointments to save data space while keeping a permanent record in your computer.
3. Stay in touch with friends and events.
Having an Internet connection at your fingertips makes it easy to stay connected to friends through social networking.
Set up alerts to let you know when someone tweets you, your team wins, or breaking news happens.
If you're traveling internationally, talk to your carrier about options to swap your SIM card with local SIM cards. You'll be able to use your smartphone to connect with people from home -- without paying enormous roaming charges.
4. Keep track of spur of the moment thoughts and ideas.
You can use the “Notes” option or if your smartphone has Windows software there is a program called “OneNote”, (I will get to that wonderful program later).
You can put down some thoughts while standing in line at the grocery store.
You can create a list of things to do for yourself at work or at home.
You can create a list of things you would like to discuss with your VA.
You can put down last minute thoughts on a meeting or seminar.
You can keep a list of websites to visit, which you can then send to your VA to put in your database of websites.
You can create a list of people to try and network with, send it to your VA to put in your database of “potential leads”.
You can put down revisions to documents to send to your VA concerning the document she/he is working on.
5. Make travel reservations and get urgent updates.
Whether you travel often or occasionally, for business or for fun, a smartphone can be useful.
Compare prices, make travel reservations, even select your seat location.
You can email or text the changes to your VA, so if she/he has a car meeting you the appropriate changes can be made for you.
Sign up to get e-mail or phone updates to learn about schedule changes and cancellations. These updates save time and stress.
6. Capture impromptu events via camera and video.
You can take advantage of unplanned moments.
You can get a snapshot of a particular color or item that you would like to use for an event, luncheon, meeting or dinner and send it to your VA.
Integrated e-mail makes it easy to share your creative efforts with family and friends immediately.
You can download the phone shots to your computer later for storing and printing.
7. Maintain your safety.
Many smartphones now include GPS making it easy to pinpoint your location.
Mapping features provide directions from where you are to where you want to go so you'll never again be lost in an unfamiliar part of town.
GPS is also handy if you become lost or disoriented because of bad weather, illness or an accident.
Emergency workers have a much better chance of finding you.
You can have software on your laptop or computer which your VA can access to help if needed.
8. Get directions.
If you don't have GPS, enable downloadable mapping programs.
You can enter your departure and arrival locations and within seconds have driving, walking and public transport instructions.
To speed up the search process, enter frequent destinations -- home, office, library, airport, and friends' homes -- as favorites.
If you are visiting a site for a meeting or seminar, you can email these directions to your VA and have her/him import them into confirmation packets for your invitees.
9. Use your smartphone as a portable modem.
With a tethering package from your service provider, your smartphone can double as a portable modem to provide full wireless Internet access to your laptop.
No longer limited to using your laptop in places that offer wireless connections, you can work from your car, a park, or anywhere your smartphone gets an Internet-compatible signal.
Then you will be able to sync up and send the information to your VA or look at a document your VA emailed you for comments.
10. Plan impromptu activities.
Search the Internet using your smartphone for movie listings at local theaters for showtimes and the option to purchase the tickets online.
Search your location by restaurant name or cuisine. Then you can identify the closest restaurants, find hours of operation and even contact them for a reservation.
Discuss with your service provider the options for utilizing downloadable mapping and search applications available for your smartphone.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones are designed to help you be more productive.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones are available to utilize “downtime” and make it “uptime”.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones have the capabilities to make your business more profitable.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones have software that is vital to your day.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones can aide in keeping stress to a minimum.
Think about this, with a Virtual Assistant and a Smartphone, you can virtually conquer the world.
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