As your business grows, you will need to create a solid team to help nurture and increase your business success. This is a vital part of any successful business; however, it is important to note that your team is as only as good as its communication skills. This is particularly important when working with a virtual team. I don’t have to tell you that getting your point across via email or text message can be a lot harder than doing so in person. Working on communication skills is one of the best things you can do for your team and the overall success of your business. Here’s why.  

Increase Productivity

Communicating effectively means there’s less going back and forth explaining and or clarifying what needs to get done. This means that the work gets done faster. When communication is effective it also means that the work gets done right and the way you need it to be done. As a businesswoman who works with a virtual team, I am here to tell you that it starts with you. Make sure you are crystal clear about the scope of work and who is responsible for doing specific tasks.  Including a timeline of when tasks are to be completed provides clearer communication and  will help increase productivity.  Letting your team know what needs to be done, and when tasks are due will help tremendously.

READ: The Best Project Management Tools for Remote Collaboration

You Don’t Have To Play “MiddleWoman” 

How much time and mental energy do you spend each day being the “go-between” for different members of your team? It might be a lot more than you think. Encouraging your team members to talk to each other instead of going through you for everything will not only save you a lot of time, it also keeps you from having to keep mental tabs on everything that’s going on. You don’t need to be aware of every single step and every single little problem that arises -- somethings should be able to be handled by your team without your involvement.  

This is a side note example, but I recall watching an award show and one of my favorites artists, Smokey Robinson was accepting an award. During his acceptance speech he also thanked his wife and referred to her as his "goalie" -- I love that. It truly paints a picture of her standing in the gap; saving him from having to deal with every single issue or curve ball life might throw his way.  The same should be the true with your team. 

In the end, all you really need to be concerned about is getting the revenue generating product. Yes, you want to know if there are serious issues, or if something will cause a delay that might affect a launch, but you don’t need to know about all the little stuff that can be ironed out by your team.  

It Bonds and Strengthens Your Team!

All of this will of course also lead to a team that works better together and gets stuff done. And that’s the big end goal, isn’t it?  An effective team will help your business tremendously! 
So, make it easy for your team to communicate and encourage them to talk to each other; help each other and get to know each other on a more personal level as well. A team that communicates well will become more productive and able to take more tasks off your hands – allowing you to focus on exploring new ideas and growing the business.

Are you a businesswoman who has a team? Share with us your tips and experience of working with your team. How do you ensure that they are maintaining clear communication to create success in your business?

It’s becoming less and less important for us to work from the traditional office. Business women are working from home more often and so is their team.  With tons of powerful cloud storage options, video conferencing and project management tools available, we can build successful companies with people halfway across the world without ever meeting in person!

Also read: 3 Reasons Crucial For Excellent Team Communication

Below are some project management tools well suited to this kind of new age working style. So, let’s take a look at some of the best options available and if you have used or are using any of these, tell us about your experience in the comment's section below.

Sqwiggle

Sqwiggle is a project management system that incorporates video chat. They offer a free and paid option, based on your needs. This lets team members and business owners see photos of their team working throughout the day, and when they want to chat, it’s just a quick click to do so.

Google Docs

Google Docs is fantastic for project management, as it allows you to edit documents in real-time and to see what others are doing. Also a free option. You can see who is viewing a given file at any given time as well, to ensure that you’re not all making changes and undoing each other’s hard work! Throw in the office suite and impressive storage, and this is a very capable piece of software.

Asana

Asana is one of the biggest and best known project management tools, and it has a number of great features that make it perfect for remote working. Again, teams can create and organize tasks, assign responsibilities, and set goals.

Trello

Trello is a collaboration tool that organizes your projects into boards. In one glance, Trello tells you what's being worked on, who's working on what, and where something is in a process.   

Slack

Slack is sometimes referred to as a ‘team chat’ app, but really, it goes beyond this and is almost a ‘remote office’. As well as letting you chat to your team members, this also allows you to see feeds from various online tools, including Trello and more.

Now, over to you... do you use a project management tool? What's your experience?

Ladies, there are so many benefits to time management. They include advantages like: reducing stress, gaining more quality time, reducing procrastination, while promoting reviews and eliminating cramming. How many of us mastered the art of cramming... waiting last-minute to do things and trying to do everything all at once! Another advantage of excellent time management is that it helps us to stay motivated.

The skill to successful time management is setting up goals that work, while having an awareness of those goals and prioritizing your list of goals. When you set up an effective time management plan, you are growing and upholding a personal commitment to yourself, with the ability to be more flexible. Successful businesswomen hold their integrity in high esteem.
When you have an adequate time management plan in place, you are gifting yourself a chance to effectively work through all the important task on a timetable that works to suit your personal style. When you create a good plan, you will soon find time to do all the things that matter most to you in life. Having a good time management plan, helps your mood, health and motivation, all the way around!
Plans have a scheduled time.Your MACs-iMized schedule should include all the most important activities you are responsible for handling that will help you grow yourself and your business. It is important that you modify this schedule according to your optimal lifestyle. When you set up a MACs-iMized schedule, you will need to list the priorities first, and work your way down to the least important tasks.
Now, I am fully aware that it is sometime difficult to tackle those “hard-to-do” things on your list; however, once you get those things completed first, your list becomes a fun breeze. You feel more accomplished, motivated and ready for the “next” thing on that list!

How time has flown! Twitter turns 10 years old today and all the world's a buzz! 

To help celebrate its birthday, Twitter sent out personalized emails to its users thanking them for all the tweets shared over the years with the hashtag #Twitterlove.  

Are you using Twitter for business? Did you receive an email? Tell us below. 

If you are interested in learning more about how to maximize Twitter, we'd love to help you! 

Here are a few articles to help you MACs-iMize Twitter: 

How to Optimize Your Twitter Profile 
Social Media for the Small Business Owner
​How to Create a Twitter List

If you read our blog often, you know by now that I am always beating the "social media" drum to help MACs-iMize your marketing.  These days it is only longer just about search engines but using sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. to increase exposure, build a strong following, etc.

Social media is extremely powerful and when used correctly, can make a huge difference to your business. {Click to Tweet}

At the moment, Instagram has over 400 million users that login at least one time a month, says the company itself. That's a lot of eyeballs ready and willing to take a look at your marketing message. There are many ways to promote your business and build a brand following using strategic Instagram marketing.

Here are 3 ways to consider using Instagram:

• MACs-iMize your reach by creating your own hashtag. We use #MACsWomen. Use this hashtag along with popular hashtags to boost your visibility.  This is a tip for you to use in building a following for your business. Your unique business hashtag also allows you to monitor those followers actively engaging with your brand and using your hashtag. Those followers who use your hashtag, particularly in a positive way, are like sending a "yes" vote about your business which builds your brand and can increase your customer base.

MACs-iMized Tip: Thank followers for posting or reposting with your hashtag. Always add in that "human" element to your social media marketing. Show your fans that they are appreciated! 

• Share interesting and engaging images and videos. Posting behind the scenes photos is a great way to engage your audience. Encourage your team members and clients to post photos of your business as well. This not only frees up your time but shares the community element of your of your brand. With that said, ensure that you have posting guideline as to what is appropriate for your brand. Don't let people post whatever they want, instead provide them with simple,  best practices for posting.

• Geotagging is also another great way to target potential clients from certain parts of the world.  Geotagging can be a wonderful feature on the internet because it allows people to know where you took a picture of an event, a client lunch meeting, or even allows you to locate your own past memories in a few clicks. Such information can make it easier for you to arrange photos, let customers know where they can have a similar experience and share with the world the types of things you like doing and where.  A word of caution to all business women; use Geotagging wisely. Tag strategically.  

MACs-iMized Tip: Every smartphone has the geotagging feature automatically set to operate, so you need to know how to disable your cell phone's or camera's geotagging feature. 

Try these simple and easy tips for using Instagram to help market your business.  We invite you to follow us at www.instagram.com/macswomen and share a bit about your business. If you found these tips helpful, please leave a comment below, we'd love to hear from you.