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Online Shop how much should it cost. Retail Versus Online
In hard times people get a little bit more creative about making money. As there is less money to go round one wants to insure that what one has will go a long way. One might be tempted to visit markets and a sell some products or maybe open an online shop. As Owen, a friend of mine pointed out, that online businesses or websites tend to be seen a cheap option. No rent, expensive layout costs, or high setting up cost or is that so?
It is common misconception that online stores are cheap and easy. It can be best be summoned up by you get what you pay/put in. For example Ebay provides excellent e-commerce facilities the only down side it comes a cost. All our clients that use that service are trying unsuccessful to get way from it. They are tired of E-bay taking there percentage. Unfortunately building up customer trust on there own website is proving difficult.
Are You Frustrated Selling Your Expertise For Less Than What It's Worth?
While every business is based on utilising most up-to-date industry-specific knowledge, turning it into products and services, consulting firms are the ultimate embodiments of Professional Knowledge Firms. They dispense highly customised intellectual capital which can't be touched. It must be comprehended. It can't be measured. It must be judged and discerned by intelligent prospects and clients.
And this is where the problem lies. Converting that dispensed expertise into distinctive value clients are ready and willing to pay for. However, over the years many consultants, accountants and lawyers and other sellers of intellectual capital have ill-educated the market. Buyers have learnt that time is the knowledge professional's stock in trade, and what consultants sell really is their time. The common notion is that consultants have an inventory of time chunks, and in return they get paid.
Global Domain Name Statistics
Global Domain Name Statistics - The following chart represents current statistics for many of the worlds most popular domains. Updated July 2008. Not sure why I like statistics but I do, A bit of a schocker Germany at number two.
Running For Gold on Style and Grace
With the Olympics almost over I was catching up on some of the events last night. The running events always amaze me. Some of these long distance runners, in fact all of them, run with such grace. They run long distance events the same time I could do 400 meters when I was at school and I was one of the best runners in the North West aged 13. These athletes run with such grace that it almost looks like no effort at all. There is a lesson for us all there. I am sure that America and many other countries have much better resources and trainers. But it is the Africans that dominate this sport. While I am sure they train very hard I think they have something more.
Do you run your business on Style and Grace? Would you like to?
E-Mail Advertising - It’s a Legit Option
E-Mail Advertising - It’s a Legit Option -
When most people think of email advertising, SPAM is the first word to pop into their heads. The email venue of advertising is one of the oldest on the internet, and due to its age many people write it off. I say that it’s pretty foolish to give up on it, atleast at this moment. Email is one of the constant activities that everyone engages in on the internet. People may spread out to visit different sites, but no matter what someone is into they still check their email.
Social Media information with Stats
Social Media information with Stats - I have just come across a very cool site that lists all kinds of stats. Statistics although considered to be more evil than dam lies this one does a great job at putting a human face to the figures for all the main social media sites maybe www.workConnexions.com can get a mention. Where would management information be with out its stats. Enjoy
http://socialmediastatistics.wikidot.com/start
Paid Surveys - Worth Your Time?
Paid Surveys - Worth Your Time? -
Paid Surveys, they’ve been a staple in marketing for years. When you see ads on TV, radio, on internet they aren’t just randomly put there for no reason. There are so many studies being conducted in the backgrounds, you’d be amazed how much consumer information is being thrown around. With the internet, Paid Surveys are making a huge push; but is it a trend that you should get caught up in? If you’re not looking to make Paid Surveys a steady job, then they are a wonderful option to garner supplemental income. If you stick with it, you could make as much as $220/month, just for answering multiple choice questions.
Don’t Be Afriad To Follow
Just this morning I subscribed to comments from a couple of blogs. One in closed club called triiibes the other was a blog post from Dosh Dosh. Yesterday I commented on Sherrlynnes blog. Over the last couple of years some of us may feel the need to use the internet with caution. While there is some truth in this in relation to certain sites and money transfers. Most of the inter net is very safe.
Conformists Vs. Non-Conformists As Leaders Revisited
Conformists Vs. Non-Conformists As Leaders Revisited - On August 7, I posted Conformists Don't Make A Difference, where I argued my views on conformists and non-conformists and who make better leaders. On that same day, I posted the question on LinkedIn, stated thusly:
What they didn't tell you about blogging - A few more items
Not only is blogging addictive, blogging stats are addictive too... Blogging can be addictive. Checking blogging stats can be addictive too. Imagine you were fascinated with a video game. At first, it is hard to clear level one. Once you clear level one, you want to go to the next level. After that, to another level. Then to another level. Blogging game is similar but except there is no clear top level. You can keep on going for a long time - fascinated by the growth (or no growth) of the traffic on your blog. There are many things to be fascinated about blog traffic * where are the visitors coming from * what are they reading
Dissension: Good or Bad? Can You Handle It? What Drives A Great Conversation?
Dissension: Good or Bad? Can You Handle It? What Drives A Great Conversation? - Sometime last week on Twitter, a Twitterer said that the mark of an experienced blogger is that he/she can handle controversy. His comment made me think about my own style of communications, blogging or otherwise.
I often offer a personal point of view, which might not be held by a majority of my readers. I don't do so to provoke but I recognize I am being provocative. I am also being true to myself. I believe this is a communications style that can lead to better understanding through learning. Provocation can also teach us that our ideas and thinking on any subject are not universally accepted.
However, motivating dissent can create bad feelings if done crudely, in too raw and insensitive manner. Provocation is best used when built on a foundation of respect and dignity. Let me offer some real-life examples to demonstrate the different styles.
Asking for Social Media Love
Asking for Social Media Love - I've been wondering about this for a couple of years now and today I was inspired to put this question to all of you: Is it cool to ask for Digg love? Link Love? Or any other kind of love that raises your blog ranking? Within the last few days, I noticed several bloggers who I like and respect asked for Digg
love on a social networking site. Within minutes people responded by Digging the post. Now maybe the posts were worthy. Can't say. But would they have Dugg had they not been asked?
Using Forums And Online Communities To Make/Save Money
Using Forums And Online Communities To Make/Save Money -
One of the biggest hurdles for making money online be it from a website or services is getting people to notice you. Usually this problem is solved by some form of advertising; with most people buying ad space from a particular website. While this can often times provide results there is another solution that is cheaper and can often times prove more useful than traditional advertising.
Triond You Write They Publish
I Just come across this site as an advertisement on my biz devlopment site. It has come up with a novel idea. They will pay you so that they can publish your content. A bit like a book publisher. I guess if you write material they thought they could sell. You may well end up having a book deal. The site at the moment is a bit sparse and there is no affiliate deal. Having said that though navigation is logical. The advantage of this site is that it takes work out of promoting your writing. I am going to give it a go and see if i can earn a few dollars or more. http://www.triond.com/
Another Big List of Sites That Can Make You Money!
Don’t you just love giant lists of helpful sites? More specifically, don’t you just love giant lists of sites that can help you earn money? I linked to this one from Mashable a while back - 100+ Tools and Resources to make money online. Now I have stumbled across this other list from Social Media Trader - 100+ Revenue Sharing Sites. Use both of these lists as a reminder that there are many, many, many ways in which you can earn some income on the Internet with or without running your own business. Now obviously, many of them are not going to provide you with a living on their own, but even still, many can be great and even fun for earning a little extra dough. Check out the lists. You’re sure to find something that interests you.
Don't Let Blog Comments Ruin Your Reputation
logs and blog comments are great for a small business owner because they allow you to socialize with others within your niche, which can indirectly promote your business. Your Thoughts?
This is true for both your own blog and comments on others, but one thing you have to be careful of is a commenter who is out to make you look bad.
Sometimes, it is your own fault, and sometimes, they are just being out of line, but either one can be damaging to your online reputation.
It is often tempting to defend yourself in either scenario, which can end up turning into a "flame war" which is always annoying to other readers. This will also reflect poorly on your reputation.
If you feel passionately about your stance and can keep responses in a professional light, you can also keep your reputation in this light, but when your resort to insults, that is when it gets ugly.
Call Today For a Free Domain Consultation
So how do you control your reputation in such a situation?
Dogs of Oar - Charity & Company Promotion
Dogs of Oar - Charity & Company Promotion -
Having just participated in a charity event over the weekend. I can say there is no better way to raise your company profile and do some good for community.
I was part of 4 man team that participated in a raft race to raise money for RNLI Most of the teams where made up by different companies on the Isle of Man. Here is a list of some of the companies that entered:
Future Memories - Best Times Remebered.
Over the weekend I joined two clubs on face book. Both were the schools that I went to in my childhood. Now there is nothing amazing in that. There are lots of websites where you can find a lost friends on the internet. But that is not the point of this post.
Some of my younger friends who are at university have over 3oo hundred plus friends in their face book profile. As the saying goes “school is the best time of your life”. I know that I had a particular good time when I was prep school. With out doubt I would relive it all again. My point is that people who are in education having the time of there life’s will now be able to stay in touch much easier, due to social networking groups. (Facebook, My space, etc) What will be the effect of this?
Internet Advertising Will Not Be Government-Ruled (Yet)
There has been recent talk in Washington D.C. regarding regulation of Internet Advertising. This was mainly sparked by a recent advertising deal between search engine giants Google and Yahoo.
Popular belief among small online businesses who thrive on upon ads that accompany their content is that such regulation could be very damaging. If you are one of these businesses or even if you are one person trying to make money this way, this is a topic you should keep an eye out for in the news.
So far, the government (as discussed in a hearing from the U.S. House Small Business Committee yesterday) has decided that not go forward with any regulation, but some congressmen think there is room for it in the future.
Don’t Forget About Classifieds!
One way to make some quick cash online is to sell stuff via online classifieds. There are a lot of options out there besides Craigslist.
In fact you can find a good number of them here at the eBusiness Directory from WebProNews.
A few examples include:
- Oodle
- Listasaurus and
The nice part about sites like this when compared to local newspaper classifieds, is that you can reach people all over the world.
Obviously this is not a new concept, but it is one that you possibly may not have thought about.
Work Connexions Logos
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Work Connexions logo - Terms and Conditions for use
The Work Connexions logo device is a trademark of Work Connexions Limited. Correct usage of Work Connexions logo is vital. Please read the following terms and conditions before you use Work Connexions logo.
Ownership
- Is the proprietor of the Work Connexions, and any copyright subsisting in and the goodwill relating to the Work Connexions logo.
Blogging Idol
From the people over at Daily Blog Tips.
I am thinking this might be interesting. I am starting to get bored, as I am sure my readers are, (both of them) with my blog. Maybe with The Boy gone, I have lost all fodder for the blog.
Also, working at home, I don't get to interact with as many crayons as usual. I need to get out more.
I might keep my eye on this competition. Hell, I might even sign up.
Getting Your Price Right
Getting Your Price Right - Other consultants often ask me how I determine client fees. My ideal answer: I ask the client how much they have in mind (their budget) for the project or to put me on retainer and start negotiations with that information. Unfortunately, most haven't given this much thought. And that is where my preparation for initial client meetings pays off.
Before meeting with a client, I research the following:
Why is the Sky Blue?
Today, I start a new series that is just for fun and maybe a little learning as well. How many of us as we were growing up asked our moms and dads "Why is the sky blue?" Questions such as these terrify adults. Well, readers, don't worry. This series will attempt to answer these sorts of questions. The blue color of the sky is due to the scattering wavelength light. As light moves through the atmosphere, most of the longer wavelengths such as red, orange and yellow light is affected. But shorter wavelength light is absorbed by the gas molecules....
Lew
A Ton of Resources in One Place for Making Money Online
A Ton of Resources in One Place for Making Money Online -
The quest for making money online can seem never ending. If you haven’t made any yet, the struggle to do so continues. If you’ve already made some, you want to keep making more. Running an online business or “eBusiness” if you will, is the path that many cash-seekers follow, and that path just went from a dirt trail to a paved road with the launch of the eBusiness Directory from WebProNews. Unlike typical directories that serve mainly to provide sites a place to get links, this directory is here to serve the user. The user being an eBusiness professional as the WebProNews brand has always catered to.
When Is Green Really Green?
If you've been paying attention, you've likely noticed lots of companies talking about their green efforts. Even my business shared how we changed all of our lighting to energy-efficient bulbs (and then had to explain our recycling of those bulbs, as they contain mercury).
But when is green really green? It's relatively easy for a business to say it is doing what it can to protect the environment; it is much more difficult for a company to do what is necessary to invest in good environmental practices. Such things as available technology, industry practices, budgets and current manufacturing processes get in the way, often necessarily.
Get Offline Eyeballs to Look at You Online
Want to make money online? Here’s an idea: advertise your URL offline. It seems so obvious, yet many are still not doing so. Print advertising can drive a good amount of traffic to your site if you include your URL and your URL is a memorable one.
In fact, recent research by the Magazine Publishers of America shows that ads that include a URL inspire about 3 times as much web traffic to the advertisers’ sites as ads that don’t include one.
Something to think about.
If you are strictly an online business, it may not have occurred to you to do much offline advertising (even if this is just in local publications), but eyeballs are eyeballs and you need all of them that you can get to achieve maximum success.
Different URLs Can Inspire Curiosity
p>Yesterday we discussed including URLs in your offline marketing efforts, such as print ads, but what if you used a different URL for different campaigns like Helen Leggatt at BizReport suggests?
This could help you determine which campaigns were more effective. Basically, it’s a way of tracking offline advertising to your site.
Once you figure out which campaigns are more effective, you can tweak your other campaigns to hopefully match the success of the ones that work well.
Before you know it, you may have more traffic than you can handle. So make sure you are set up to handle the load. But that’s another story all together.
Sometimes a one-page Web site is all you need
Sometimes a one-page Web site is all you need - Marketing experts have preached for years the importance of businesses having a Web presence. Yet nearly half of small businesses nationally still do not have a Web site. Why is that? We know that some simply don’t believe in the power of the Web — at least as it relates to their own businesses. I won’t try to change their minds (at least not today). Instead, let’s focus on the small-business owners who do believe in the Web, but view creating a Web site as a complicated, time-consuming project that they are afraid to outsource. Yet they don’t have the time to do it themselves either.
A New Way to Stick Out on Google Maps
A New Way to Stick Out on Google Maps - I believe this is a relatively new feature, and admittedly, I haven’t used it myself yet, but it seems like a way for brick and mortar businesses to potentially use the Internet to drive more business to their stores. And these businesses should be selling online too!
Google Maps has a feature now that allows users to submit photos of their location to be placed in the corresponding location on Google Maps. From the looks of it, photos can be uploaded via panoramio.com and submitted to Google.
Increase Your Business Exponentially with an eCommerce Site
Increase Your Business Exponentially with an eCommerce Site -
This post is for the business owners who have brick and mortar stores, but are looking to increase their business online. It is not only more convenient for local customers to shop online rather than go to your store, selling your product through you website will open up all kinds of business opportunities by attracting customers from all over the world.
Marketing for Consultants on A Shoestring
Marketing for Consultants on A Shoestring - I am in San Diego presenting at Performance Technology Group Conference on May 30 and attending two conferences through June 3. Back in the office on June 4. No new posts until then.
What You’re Missing: Instant New Profit With Current Clients presented by Lewis Green, Author/Consultant, L & G Business Solutions.
Here is a taste from my presentation:
Easy Things You Can Do Today to Market and to Stay in Touch with Current Clients, to maximize leads and referrals and to get more of their work.
Design, SEO & Email Marketing: Stay Ahead of the Game
Design, SEO & Email Marketing: Stay Ahead of the Game - A recent survey has shown that most small business owners are planning on making significant investments in web design, SEO, and email marketing over the coming year.
This is just a sign that those running an online business are going to continue to see an increasing amount of competition.
This is of course, a good reason to do the same yourself, and if you’re already doing it all, then you’re ahead of the game.
But if you are already doing it, it’s a good time to evaluate how well you are doing it, and if need be to step up your efforts.
Make Money Helping Someone Else Make Money
Since we’re all about making money online here, this seems as good of place as any to mention this contest that ContestBeat is featuring from Shaded Relief.
The whole object of the contest is to help them monetize their site, and as a reward they are giving away the winner’s choice of a $500 Home Depot gift card or some free advertising.
Three runners up will also get $50 cash via PayPal.
It’s running until June 15th, so you have plenty of time to share ideas. This not only a chance to make some money online for yourself, but to share your own wisdom to help someone else do the same.
Good Luck!
The Joys Of Linking
Links make the internet, without a doubt the Internet consist of millions and millions of links. These links form the backbone of the internet and also provide a way for the major search engines to monitor which sites are more important than other ones.
How does this work?
If the main objective of your website/blog is to insure a steady stream of visitors then you are going to have to do some linking.
What are links?
Links are URLs or web addresses like this one www.workconnexions.com That can link a word to a website or the reverse.
How do you get them?
1. A visitor to your website may like what they are reading.. if they like it enough they may decide to put a link on their website or in a blog post to your website.
Pay To Read Subscribed Blogging
There is a very interesting post on Shoemoney about 1938media who are going to start a subscription service. He accepts thatt 99 percent of his visitors will not pay for the content. I think he is on to something. At least 75 percent of my reading material comes from blogs on the Internet. I do not buy a newspaper because I find bloggers more interesting and better content. I would be interested in paying a dollar per a day to read my favourite bloggers.
A Blogging Carnival Be Featured
A Blogging carnival is a world web phenomena where bloggers that are doing interesting or exceptional blogging can get free publicity within their own work sphere. It is similar to a magazine, in that it is dedicated to a particular topic, and is published on a regular schedule, often weekly or monthly. Each edition of a blog carnival is in the form of a blog article that contains permalinks links to other blog articles on a particular topic. If you would like to participate in the next Work Connexions blog carnival or synchroblog then click to read more …
Make Money Publishing an Email Newsletter
Make Money Publishing an Email Newsletter -
Last week, I talked about making money with targeted advertising in email newsletters. Well, that works two ways. You can also make money by publishing an email newsletter and selling advertising in it. Businesses want their advertising to be as targeted as possible to the audience they are going after, so if you publish a newsletter in a particular niche, go after businesses that offer products that would be of interest to the readers of said newsletter. Of course, you have to comply with the CAN-SPAM act, and build a readership before anyone will have an interest in advertising with you, but if you put enough time into marketing and promotion, you should be able to build a decent readership (it also helps if you offer quality content).
How to say No to Sales - (why it will improve your business)
How to say No to Sales - (why it will improve your business) - A lot of company time is spent on generating sales and doing the work.
I would like to pause for one moment and consider the following. I deal with all sorts of companies from one man bands to thousands of employees. I work predominately in sales. One of the most noticeable parts of my work is how some companies will evaluate the questions you are asking and give a response. There are companies that tend to think that they are above this and try to ignore all sales approaches.
Would You Like To Spend Less Money On Advertising?
How much do you spend on advertising? How much would you like to spend?
Have you ever considered what may happen if your employees kept either internal or external blogs? Do you think you could generate a whole wealth of material for marketing from the activity that blogging represents?
Not only that but you can also use the comments, with one post you are doing market research, advertising your business, and generating marketing material. (think about the possibilities this suggests) and if that is not enough to lower your advertising costs, consider for a moment what could happen if your company engages in matters that concerns its business, for example: local community events, debates about skilled workers, legislation, online or offline you will generate a profile and a talking point about your company. Try it... it is also worth considering to engage a PR Company to help you along the way.
Are You Ready For Some Shoppers?
Are You Ready For Some Shoppers? -
With the constant jacking up of fuel prices, online shopping has never been more practical. I don’t have any numbers to prove that eCommerce is on the rise, but common sense would suggest that people are going to be spending more of their shopping dollars online.
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