Gasoline Prices Breaking the Bank? Internet Expert Helps Others Work Virtually and Save $$ on Transportation Costs

Donna Gunter of The Online Business Coaching Company works daily with clients from Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Mexico, Texas, California, and Canada, but doesn't spend a single dime on gasoline or travel costs. How does she manage this? As a business coach for companies with an online presence as well as a business manager for virtual companies, Gunter's ability to work with her clients virtually via phone, email, and fax from her home office has freed her from the standard morning commute that's costing workers more and more each day, as gasoline prices continue to soar.

"In light of what's happened to fuel prices in the last 6 months," Gunter states, "I'm more and more grateful each day for my 30-second commute to my home office."

Decreasing prices for high-speed Internet service, whether it's DSL or cable broadband, are making it easier and easier for workers to telecommute to their jobs, or for displaced and downsized employees to begin their own companies from home, providing services similar to those they provided while employed for someone else.

"More and more people are overcoming their resistance to doing business online," notes Gunter. "Online businesses are relative easy to start without a great deal of capital, and by using a combination of strategic online and off-line marketing techniques, companies can create an online presence as an initial business venture, or supplement their current brick-and-mortar operation using their website as an additional profit center."

Gunter adds, "Even if you have a local service business, like a fence installation company, there are products you can develop and strategies you can employ to make the entire U.S. your customer base, instead of just your local geographic area. Many local companies want to do business the way they've always done it and rely on people walking through their door to be the customers that pay the bills. With the advent of the Internet, no longer do you have to rely on local service providers to meet your needs."

Entire companies can also be built virtually. "I've been involved with a few companies in which the major players of the company have been located around the country, literally from one coast to another, without a physical office or home base of any type. Using online collaboration tools keeps all members of a company in touch and keeps everyone up-to-date. I've never met the majority of my clients and prospective clients face-to-face, but I have managed to create strong virtual alliances through email and phone communication. It turns out not to be that different from working with someone in another building."

To help small businesses create a buzz online, Gunter offers a free ebook, TurboCharge Your Online Marketing Toolkit, that is available from her website, http://www.GetMoreClientsOnline.com. This toolkit provides 7 strategies and and more than 50 resources to help service business owners get more clients online.

Online Business Business Coach and Internet Marketing Consultant Donna Gunter coaches, consults and trains self-employed service professionals in 8 key strategies to get more clients online. For more information, please contact us at 409-883-2148.