Archive for October, 2006
Hope that you are having a great weekend? If you are in the UK I hope that you also remembered to put your clocks back an hour! Although I know there are other countries for whom the clocks change as well I must admit I get confused as to which ones and didn’t want to confuse you and make you early for work!
A couple of Free Programmes that are worth checking out!
I downloaded a programme called Picasa the other day which is excellent. I have trouble organising all of the photos I have so I decided to check it. It’s definitely the best photo organiser I have come across and it’s 100% free for life!
I am now using Picasa to organize my photos! Take a look at it by going to this article I have added about Google’s Photo Software.
The other free programme that I love is Google Earth with which you can zoom in on both your ancestors towns and villages as well as current locations. You can read about that at Google Earth and download it.
An Unusual Week
This week has been a little different than normal as we have had to adjust to my partner recovering from last week’s knee operation - however we are getting there! We have also been kept busy with the continuing development of sites that we have identified as meeting the needs of our visitors. There has been a tremendous reaction to the launch of our Hobbies and Home eBook Store and if you want to take a look then just click on the link.
Alongside that we have also launched The Hobbies Blog again which you can take a look at by clicking on the link. You will find it packed with information on a whole range of Home and Hobby subjects and I am sure you will enjoy it!
Time For The Ancestors
GenMates continues to grow and grow and we are continuing to get tremendous publicity for it. if you haven’t visited recently then you can do so just by clicking on GenMates! If you haven’t joined yet then click on GenMates and sign up today!
We are also currently investigating establishing another Genealogy Membership site which will have some additional resources and information available. More news on that as it becomes available.
Watch Out On Ebay!
A couple of subscribers emailed me recently having purchased Adsense/Amazon or TurnKey Membership Sites from sellers on eBay. Despite bing promised instructions on how to operate the sites they had not been forthcoming and the people were struggling to see how they could make the sites work. They asked me to take a look at them and see if I could offer any advice.
As soon as I took a look at them it became obvious what the problems were. On the Adsense/Amazon sites the seller had left their own account details deeply embedded within the sites so that all the efforts at promoting them were lining the pockets of the sellers! In terms of the Turnkey Membership site the MySQL database had not been set up and all the members that were joining were in effect joining the seller’s lists!
I would strongly caution against anyone buying any website through eBay unless they are 100% confident that the seller is above board. You will want to be absolutely certain that they will provide the details of how to change publisher and affiliate information or set up the MySQL Database for you.
It really disgusts me that there are sellers out there who will treat their customers like this. On top of all of that many of them also tie you into expensive hosting packages and apply heavy if not to say extortionate fees if you want to move your hosting.
My VIP Site
Turning now to happier things! The development of the Internet Marketing Coaching site that those of you who are subscribed through Internet Business Creators will be aware of is going ahead at great speed.
Essentially I will be running a subscriber site/Blog where I will share exactly what I do to earn a very comfortable living which gives me freedom of choice. Price point set at something like $19.97 per month (reduced by 50% for subscribers).
The aim is to launch by 1st December 2006 - so November is going to be a busy month!
Finally….
Later in the month Santa will be making a welcome reappearance at his Advice Blog so make sure you stop by now and add him to your Favourites: Santa’s Advice Blog.
Oh by the way did I mention the great deal that is available if you like to watch Movies On Your iPod? Just click on that link!
Have a great week!
October 29th, 2006
I am pleased to be able to announce that we have relaunched PK eBooks - Your eBook Store during the last 10 days with a completely new look and a fresh stock of reasonably priced Information Products.
Our aim at Pk eBooks is to provide you with information which will help you at home and with your family and hobbies. We provide quality information on a range of subjects but always at affordable prices.
One of the reasons I first started to look at providing information over the internet was because I found it so frustrating trying to find the information I needed. Since then we have developed a wide range of sites and PK eBooks is one the latest to be updated. I hope that you will find information there to help you at home and with your family and hobby or indeed hobbies. Here’s a few samples of what you can find:
How to become a Scrapbooker
The Beginner’s Guide to Stamp Collecting!
Help Your Child Reach their Maximum Potential
The Beginner’s Guide to Coin Collecting!
The Beginner’s Guide to Woodworking!
The Dog Owner’s Handbook
The Ultimate How to Photography Guide!
Home Improvement Tips & Money Savers!
Interior Design on a Budget – How to Tips and Tricks
How to Learn Magic and Become a Successful Magician for Fun or Profit!
Hope you enjoy them! Oh and don’t forget to collect a copy of Identity Theft Prevention for Free - just scroll down to the bottom of the first page of Pk eBooks
October 28th, 2006
Hope that your week has gone well and that you have had a great weekend?
I know for us it’s been a little mad to put it mildly. As some of you will be aware my partner had a knee operation early in the week and I have been running back and too trying to look after them! Anyway things are slowly getting on the mend. So that is good news!
It’s that period of the year when Internet Marketing products appear to be launched left, right and centre. One of the things that seems to be happening is that the pricing of some of these products appears to be losing touch with reality! They are becoming more and more adept at marketing these products and playing on every concievable emotion - witness the latest email from the people behind the 6M Profit Method - essentially you must buy our $3,000 product aimed at newcomers to Internet Marketing in case you get sick! I am sorry I will not be recommending this over-priced product to anyone.
What worries me about this sort of stuff is that it is drawing people into chasing a dream which is out of touch with their real desires. Ask anyone if they want to be a multi-millionaire and I suspect their initial response will be “Yes Please!” Then sit down with them and talk to them about their real desires (as I do many times when I am coaching people at all levels) and their desires will start to come out. You will hear phrases like “I want to earn a comfortable living” or “I want to be able to look after my loved ones” or even ” I want to have a freedom of choice.”
Notice in there the phrase “comfortable living” and how many of us wouldn’t want that? How many of us would like to be able to make choices and decisions in our lives? The decision to go on holiday? The freedom of choice to decide whether we want to work for ourselves or want to build up a nest egg for the future? Does that sound a little more routed in reality than the day dreaming of being a multi-millionaire which some internet marketers hold out to us with their multi-thousand pound “offers of enlightenment” on a regular basis?
Don’t get me wrong I believe in aspiring to great things, indeed that is what so much of my work in coaching is about, but that is always rooted in reality and in the real and achievable aspirations of the individuals concerned. None of us should beholden to the aspirations of other people especially those that like to post pictures of their houses (with the spotless kitchens with no pans and plates in them!) or their boats which have never touched water.
Now I firmly believe that the Internet Marketing arena can offer many people the opportunity to achiev thir true aspirations without making them broke along the way! It is something I have managed to do over the past 12 months or so with some degree of success.
Those of you who have subscribed to my updates on the Internet Business Creators page will have received my recent email. In it outlined how my original idea of developing a series of eBooks outlining my approach to developing an Internet Business has developed in response to the people the project was aimed at. The feedback was that people want a more intereactive opportunity where they gain the information in a different way. So essentially I will be running a subscriber site/Blog where I will share exactly what I do to earn a very comfortable living which gives me freedom of choice. Price point set at something like $19.97 per month (reduced by 50% for subscribers).
It’s a project that is really exciting me and there will be more details in the next few weeks! If you haven’t signed up and want to then go to Internet Business Creators!
Now turning to other matters GenMates is continuing to grow at an amazing rate. We are seeing so many new members joining and taking advantage of the facilities on offer and it’s great to know that we are providing something that genealogists clearly want. We already have plans for a number of other sites in associated niches (areas of interest) so watch out for the news on those. If you are a member of the Warrior Forum and are looking at getting a Social Networking site launched in your Niche(s) my WSO offer is still available!
The events of the last week have delayed some of our activity but we are rapidly catching up! The Genealogy Audio Articles and The Scrapbooking Audio Articles are getting there and as someone said to me the other day they will be great to listen to on the colder winter nights. Talking of winter nights I don’t know about you but it doesn’t feel like autum yet does it! Well certainly not here in the Uk where the trees are still looking very green and leaf laden! Oh that reminds me the other thing I was asked about the Audio articles was whether the audio files will be available as MP3 downloads so that people can listen to them on the move. I am working on that at the moment and seeing how we can make them available at a nominal charge for the lot - so again watch out for news on that.
During the week I made a special offer available of The Genealogy Guide and literally dozens of people took advantage of the offer. It’s still available if you want to grab a copy for yourself and I will probably leave it available for just a couple more days at The Genealogy Guide.
We also received quit a few emails asking if we could make other offers such as that one and I am pleased to say we are doing at PK eBooks - Your eBook Store! The site specialises in home and hobby quality eBooks and you will find eBooks on Scrapbooking Ideas, Coin Collecting, Stamp Collecting, Amateur Photography and much more besides! Do take a look at the site as you will find a lot of eBooks and there is even a free download which I think you will find interesting!
So there you have it a very busy week!
October 22nd, 2006
MySpace is an exciting online community where members can make new friends, reconnect with old friends, network or even find potential romantic partners. While there are some MySpace members who join the community simply for the ability to stay in touch with their old friends and are not looking to make new friends. These members may keep their websites private to not allow other users to view their personal information and may not spend a great deal of time visiting public websites of other members. However, most MySpace members are interested in making a great deal of friends online and are always looking to generate more traffic to their website.
Create an Interesting MySpace Website
One of the simplest ways MySpace members can generate increased traffic to their website is to create a website which is both aesthetically appealing and interesting to others. The aesthetic appeal of a website can greatly influence the amount of repeat traffic a MySpace website receives. For example members who use garish colors and fonts which are too small or otherwise difficult to read may not receive repeat traffic even if the content of their website is very interesting and engaging. This is because other members may lose interest in the website quickly.
The other part of an excellent website design is interesting and intriguing content. A website which is aesthetically appealing may entice visitors to peruse the content but if it is simply not interesting and engaging the visitors are not likely to spend much time on the website and are also not likely to return. However, MySpace members who fill their website with exciting content are likely to keep visitors interested. When visitors are interested in the content they are likely to return and also to encourage others to visit the website as well.
Visit Members Websites
Another way to generate increased traffic to your MySpace website is by visiting the websites of other members. You can use the search feature to find other members who share your interests. By visiting their websites you will get a better idea of whether or not you are interested in being friends with these members. When you encounter other members you might be interested in meeting you can sent them an email or instant message commenting on their website and asking to be added to their network of friends. You can also suggest they visit your website as well. Those who make an effort to meet other members are likely to increase their own web site traffic.
Invite Friends to Your MySpace Website
Finally, MySpace members can generate additional traffic to their website by inviting others to visit them. They can speak directly to friends and family members and encourage them to view their website. Also, those who participate in other online communities such as message boards may include a link to their MySpace website in their signature so those who want to learn more about them can visit their MySpace profile.
MySpace also has an invite feature which enables members to send messages to others to encourage them to start a MySpace account. Members who have friends or family members who do not belong to the MySpace community can send them one of these invitations to encourage them to participate. The invitation can include a link to the members MySpace website to give the others an idea of what MySpace really is.
October 13th, 2006
Believe it or not, it is entirely possible for savvy individuals to earn their living through Craigslist. More and more individuals with an entrepreneurial spirit are realizing there are a host of opportunities for those who are willing to work hard to earn a living through hard work, learning about online communities such as Craigslist and effectively marketing themselves and their skills or products to those who might be in the market to invest in services or products the individual has to offer. Unlike conventional jobs where there is a set salary for services rendered and an unofficial cap on the earning potential those who offer their services online as an independent contractor have no such cap on their earning potential. However, there are also no guarantees on the amount which will be earned.
In general there are two ways to make a living with Craigslist. This may include offering services as an independent contractor on a contract basis or offering products or services as a small business owner. Alternately, individuals can utilize Craigslist to secure a permanent full time job through the job posting section on Craigslist. However, for the purposes of this article we will discuss the possibilities open to independent contractors and small business owners on Craigslist.
Craigslist for Independent Contractors
Those who offer their services as independent contractors on a contract basis are finding Craigslist to be an excellent location to offer their services or respond to advertisements from those seeking services. An increase in the amount of work being outsourced by both small businesses and large corporations has prompted many savvy individuals to realize there is a market for them to take advantage of these outsourcing opportunities. They can use Craigslist in their effort to do this by placing advertisements for services offered as well as by responding to advertisements seeking contract employees.
There is a section on Craigslist specifically for services offered. Under the topic of services offered there are a number of different categories. The contractor can place a posting under the most appropriate category to reach their target audience. There is also a category for small business advertisements which may be used if there are no appropriate categories for the type of services offered. However, it might be more difficult to reach a target audience by placing an advertisement in such a general category.
Independent contractors can also gain business opportunities by responding to advertisements seeking contract employees. In searching for a job on Craigslist individuals can begin with a location and then browse through different types of job by category. The easiest way to find a contract position is to use the search feature and check the contract box to include this term as a part of the search criteria. This will ensure the search results returned include only contract positions.
Craigslist for Small Business Owners
Small business owners can utilize Craigslist to reach a larger audience and grow their business. Those who have a small business have a couple of opportunities to use Craigslist to their advantage. The most obvious way to promote a business on Craigslist is by posting an advertisement in the appropriate category under the for sale or services sections of the community. This can be very effective because Craigslist receives more than four billion page views per month meaning there is a large potential audience using Craigslist.
Small business owners can also use the discussion forums portion of the Craigslist community to generate greater profit for their business. However, small business owners should use a great deal of caution to ensure their promotional postings are not viewed as spam. There is a distinct difference between posting information related to your business in a way that is informative to the reader and spamming the boards with useless posts intended solely to promote your business. Spamming is not only likely to be overlooked by readers but also runs the risk that the Craigslist moderators will delete your posts or take more severe actions against you.
October 13th, 2006
My weekly update is a little earlier than usual this week as my partner is due to have an operation on their knee very early next Monday. As you can imagine we will be a little busy getting ready this weekend!
GenMates and Social Networking
Our Social Networking site for Genealogists continue to attract massive publicity with yet another interview being featured in the press. As a result membership continues to grow at a tremedous rate and we are seeing over 600 unique visitors per day! If you haven’t checked out GenMates yet then we look forward to seeing you there soon!
Talking of Social Networking we have a number of new sites planned for the coming year which I think you will find of interest - so as they say “watch this space” for more news!
Blogging
As you may be aware I have a number of very successful Niche Blogs and various subscribers have asked me recently if I have any information on how to Blog. If you go to Blogging for All you can find free report covering some of the basics of blogging. If you are interested in looking at how to Earn Money From Blogging you just need to click on that link to look at a very interesting package that will really help you. Finally if you have mastered making money from blogs but are interested in really increasing your readership then you need to take a look at Increasing Your Blog Readership.
Did You See The News?
If you are in the UK then you cannot fail to have seen the news items on Obesity which is an increasing problem both here and in the US. Childhood Obesity in particular appears to be increasing massivly and is a real cause for concern for any parent. Given the issues that this is clearly causing we wanted to make our very popular Childhood Obesity ebook available to as many people as possible so have massively reduced the price for a limited time. Just click on Childhood Obesity and you can see what is covered and the advice it gives in dealing with the problem. I hope the limited time price reduction will help anyone who needs help with this problem the opportunity to grab a copy.
1911 Census Petition
Again we have been getting massive publicity for the 1911 Census Petition and in a short time we have well over a 1,000 signatures!
Our Genealogy and Scrapbooking Audio Articles are currently being developed as well as the informative Scrapbooking Blog! Add to that the Squidoo Lens that we have created at Scrapbooking Ideas and you can see that we are continuing to develop a while range of sites that meet your needs! if you have any ideas for new sites or additions that you would like to see then just drop me a line or leave a comment here!
See you again soon!
October 12th, 2006
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