Tools and Resources I recommend

There are so many tools and resources out there these days.  Below you'll find recommendations for tools I've personally tried, liked, and would recommend for my very best friends.  

 

Many of the links will be affiliate links. (That means I'll be paid a small commission from the seller for bringing them a new customer if you buy after clicking on the link. It does NOT mean that you are charged more.)

 

Other links just lead to awesome things that you should know about. Have fun exploring, and if you know of a tool that does a better job than the one I mention, go ahead and tell me about it!  (Write me at Jessica@BetaVirtualAssistance.com or click on the "contact" button on any page.  I'm a real person and I'd love to hear your thoughts!)

Getting Started in Business

Every new online business needs a variety of things to get going.  Start with these basics and you can't go wrong!

  • All in one Platform

    What's the first thing you need to start an online business?  How about a website?  Everyone will tell you to use Wordpress or Squarespace, but I recommend Kartra instead.  Through Kartra you can not only build your website from scratch or using their many templates, but you can manage your emails to your customers, schedule appointments through their calendar, host your own sales pages and cart checkout connected to Paypal, Stripe, and others, build a membership program, and much more.  Why bother with finding 1200 other tools when one does such a nice job?  Get started here: just $1 for your first14 days.

  • Legal Pages

    Everyone who is selling online needs to protect themselves and their business with basic legal pages.  Amira at A Self Guru has you covered.  Start with plug-and-go templates for your Privacy Policy, Disclaimers, and Terms and Conditions (all required by U.S. law), then choose other templates when you need them such as Affiliate Agreements, LLC or Partnership agreements, Independent Contractor contracts, and many more. Start with the basic package and you can be legal in just minutes if you Go Here.

  • Affiliate Programs and Mentoring

    So you want to sell things online but you don't have any products of your own yet and you don't know where to start?  Not a problem!  Affiliate Triad sells some of the best higher ticket classes in the world and comes complete with so many benefits that I can't even mention all of them, starting with unbelievable support, mentorship, lead magnets for you to promote, and so much more.  Membership is only open about once a month, so you'll have to go here if you want to learn more about the benefits, see if it's open, or be put on a notification list so I can let you know when it is.  Heads up: If you really haven't started online business before, if you buy Kartra (the all-in-one platform I mentioned before) through their link, you will qualify for reimbursement for the basic level for up to one year!

Creating a Course

Are you full of ideas and knowledge that you'd love get paid for sharing with the world? You should try creating your own online course!  Here's some resources that will help:

  • Best Course on how to Create, Market, and Sell your very own Online Course /Experience

    I've tried quite a few different courses that promised to teach me how to create and sell my own online course, but Marisa's Experience Product Masterclass is far superior to everything else.  Not only do you learn easier ways to market and sell your course after you create it, but you also learn Marisa's tips and tricks to make this course the best your customers have ever seen by including easy incentives to keep them learning and help them FINISH your course (and thereby become one of your raving fans who wants to buy more from you!)  It only opens once or twice a year (usually in October) and is pricier than those cheap little $100-$400 courses, but it is So Worth It if you're serious about creating a course to teach others your ideas.   Get notified the next time it opens by emailing me here.

  • Next Best Course on how to Create and Sell your very own Courses

    Not everyone can be patient enough to wait for the annual opening of the Experience Product Masterclass.  Product E-Class is the next best thing as it will teach you how to create and sell a basic course quickly and efficiently so you can start making money.  Six sessions (not to mention bonuses!) will teach you how you can get started creating courses by working with other experts, how to sell your courses through webinars and other methods, how to find customers, and a whole lot more. Check out the sales page with all the goodies here.

  • A place for your Course to call Home

    Once you've created your course, you'll need a place to host it.  Yes, you can host it in Kartra to keep things simple, but if you want to give your students the best experience and keep them coming back for more, you should check out Xperiencify.  Produced by the same people who created Experience Product Masterclass, this platform looks great, provides a great experience for your customers, and is filled with features you can't find elsewhere that will encourage  your students to stay engaged such as celebrations, automated re-engagement emails and texts, and more I haven't even explored yet (with more features being developed and rolled out every month!)     Find out more about Xperiencify here. 

Business Mindset

Starting a business is one thing, but succeeding at business is another.  Success only comes when you've mastered your mindsets of wealth, abundance, and business, among others.  If you need some work with your mindsets, check out these resources.

  • Best Short Book on How to be Successfully Productive

    Maybe you've read all the books on how to be productive already, but if you haven't discovered Jason Fladlien yet, you're in for a treat!  Learn Jason's methods of accomplishing more than humanly possible without sacrificing his quality of life in this short book, Double Your Productivity. Claim a copy of the first chapter for free and read more about it here.

  • Best Short Course to Examine Your Mindsets

    Sometimes life feels overwhelming and it's hard to find that elusive success. Examining your current thoughts and beliefs can often help you get unstuck.  In this seven day Unite Challenge, you will have the opportunity to explore your connections to yourself, others, a Higher Power, Wealth, Value, Vitality, Time and more.  Plus, although you can work through the challenge as quickly or slowly as you like and will have ongoing access to refer back to, anyone who completes the challenge within 12 days and submits their homework can earn back 100% of their (small) financial investment! Get started here.

  • Best Book on the Psychology of Selling

    Although this book is mainly about selling through webinars, reading it taught me even more about the psychology and best practices of sales and marketing.  One to Many is full of insights, tactics, and techniques that anyone can use to increase their sales through webinars, as Jason precisely breaks down the methods behind his madness and wild success. Claim your free copy here. 

Even more resources!

Being in Business requires a lot of tools and tech.  Here's some more tools I've found helpful and want to share (even though I'm not a big enough blogger to receive a commission from your purchase!)

  • For Graphics

    Online Business needs TONS of graphics!  Social Media posts, Pins, blog pictures, and much more.  Make it easy on yourself and try out Canva.comTheir free version give you lots of options.

  • For Contracts

    If you need to get an e-signature on a contract with a client, try out Pandadoc.comAfter trying a couple other free programs and getting very frustrated, the simplicity of Pandadoc was wonderful.  I uploaded my document, added a place to sign for myself and my client, and sent it off in a matter of minutes.  When the client signed it, I received an email and could download the contract with a nice looking official certificate.  The free version is serving my needs for now and is higly recommended.  And if you need the contract written, check out A Self Guru for templates (mentioned above).

  • For organizing your Computer Tabs

    I don't know about you, but I always have entirely too many computer tabs open at once.  If you want to organize your computer tabs (and maybe even close a few without losing them), check out Workona.com, especially the free Chrome extension.  You can create different workspaces and quickly toggle between them, save tabs for later, or even keep lots of tabs open but mostly hidden.  It's been a gamechanger!

  • For speeding up videos

    I always have a list of hundreds of videos that I want to get around to watching.  I've been able to watch a lot more videos in less time after I discovered the Video Speed Controller for Chrome or the Accelerate extension for Safari.  Grab a free extension and watch the (unimportant) parts of your videos on super high speed!

  • Check back for more!

    More tools coming soon!  Send me some ideas of things you're looking for....I've probably tried it!