Online calendars seem to be "of the moment" here in the UK. Our US buddies have been into calendaring for years and I could never understand why they get so excited, after all its just diary appointments, isn't it?
Perhaps the US is obsessed about meetings and time in general, but we too are finding that how you manage your time and organise yourself can make a huge difference to your productivity and success.
In the world of Virtual PA services, online calendars are vital for managing a client's diary, booking appointments and organising meetings. If you use a paper diary, it's just not possible to share it sensibly with your VA - you have to go online. Increasingly, business people use smart phones (eg. iPhone, Blackberry, etc) that synchronise to their Microsoft Outlook calendar so they're always connected and up to date. This is ideal for your PA to support you virtually.
So what are the main online calendars people are using and why?
Google Calendar: is increasingly popular because its part of Google's suite of online productivity tools, because it works well (with easy sync'ing to Outlook and mobile devices) and because its free. VAs like it because they can stack client shared calendars in their Google Calendar, so everything is in the one place. We like the colour coding, but not the usability and it doesn't allow searching across users for scheduling meetings.
iCal: is Apple's calendar for Mac users. iCal can be shared with non-Mac users in a variety of ways - our clients use iCal Exchange (www.icalx.com) which is a free service - and your VA can view it via a web browser or via Outlook, where they mainly work, with multiple client files stacked in their Outlook Calendar. Not being Mac users, we're not hooked on iCal, but it works just fine as a shared calendar.
WebOffice: There are many web office tools around that synchronise to Outlook. They are ideal for bringing the calendars of individuals into one place so they can be accessed and shared just as if everyone were on Microsoft Exchange Server system. Your VA can be invited in as one of the team to manage your diary. We like our WebOffice which has meeting scheduling and integrated Email Reminders, Tasks and WebMeetings.
At the end of the day, it comes down to personal preference, but choosing a commonly used tool like Google Calendar will help if you are looking to share it with others. In fact, you'll find some VAs specifying what they want their clients to use, otherwise they end up with too many tools to manage.
What's your favourite online calendar and how do you find sharing it with your VA?
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