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Do you wish you could be your own boss? If you’re thinking about starting a business so you can leave the nine-to-five grind in favor of being self-employed, you should know that there are both good and bad sides of being an entrepreneur.

Let’s look at some of the benefits and some of the drawbacks of being your own boss, so you can better decide if self-employment is the right option for you.

Benefits of Working for Yourself

Being your own boss gives you flexibility in where you work. - Credit: BigStockPhoto.com

Here are some of the biggest benefits of being self-employed:

• You get to set your work schedule (although some businesses will have more flexible hours than others). For example, if you run a retail store and you want to be closed on Sundays, you can be closed on Sundays. And if you offer freelance services you can choose to work in the evenings if you’re more productive then.
• You don’t need someone else’s permission to take time off. While you still have to let clients know if you’re a service provider, you don’t have to worry about strict vacation scheduling rules or getting approval from a supervisor.
• You can work from anywhere you want — from a local storefront to lounging by the pool (depending on the type of business of course).
• You get to make all of the big business decisions and directly influence the company’s growth and success. That includes deciding how profits are spent.
• You have more creative freedom than if you worked in a traditional business structure under one or more bosses.
• Your income potential is less limited. If you work for someone else, you rely on them for promotions and raises. And sometimes those raises can be very small. When you work for yourself, you get to decide when to charge more, so your income can increase more rapidly or at more frequent intervals.
• You can wear whatever you want (depending on the business). For example, if you run your business from home, you can work in anything from business attire to your pajamas. Of course there are exceptions — running a business that’s open to the public might require more professional choices.

Drawbacks of Being Self-Employed

While those are some attractive reasons to consider self-employment, there are also some downsides to being your own boss. Here are some to consider:

• Even though you don’t have a boss, you do have to answer to other people (such as your customers or clients).
• Working for yourself involves a lot of self-discipline. Since no one is looking over your shoulder to make sure work is being done, it falls on you to eliminate distractions and focus on work independently.
• In some businesses (especially early on), being your own boss can involve working longer hours than a traditional job. In those cases, you might not be able to take vacations or other time off.
• As your own boss, you’re responsible for all of the business and administrative duties. That includes filing, accounting, marketing, and much more. You can unload some of these responsibilities by hiring employees or contractors to help, but if you work alone it all falls on you.
• Income can be less reliable. You can’t rely on a steady weekly paycheck anymore when you work for yourself, at least early on. Until your business is earning steady profits, you might not have as much money coming in as you’d like.
• You won’t get any guaranteed benefits. For example, your vacation time isn’t paid time off. And you might have a hard time getting medical insurance when you’re getting started.

Being your own boss can be a wonderful experience. But it’s not for everybody. Is it for you? Make sure you consider both the pros and cons before deciding.

Can you think of other benefits or drawbacks to being self-employed? Share them with us in the comments below.

It’s no secret that WordPress is much more than a basic blog platform these days. It can serve as an all-out content management system (CMS), allowing you to run many different types of websites — blogs, static-looking corporate sites, forums, directories, and more.

WordPress can even be used to run your very own e-commerce website with the help of the right plugins or WordPress themes. Let’s take a look at five good e-commerce tools for WordPress that you can put to use to launch your next online store.

1. WP e-Commerce Plugin

This free plugin is probably the most well-known e-commerce WordPress plugin around. The basic version is free and it enables you to accept payments through Paypal, Google Checkout and other payment processors right on your WordPress site. There are also premium tools available to help you do anything from managing an affiliate program to running a paid subscription website.

Get it.

2. eStore WordPress Theme

The eStore WordPress theme is an e-commerce theme available to members of ElegantThemes.com. This is a personal favorite of mine, as it has a fresh modern feel while still looking incredibly professional. At only $39 per year for access to all of the site’s premium WordPress themes, the eStore theme is practically a steal!

eStore e-commerce WordPress theme - Credit: ElegantThemes.com

Get it.

3. ShopperPress WordPress Theme

Here is another e-commerce theme for WordPress sites. This premium theme shines due to its out-of-the-box versatility. It features 20 different style options to get you moving in the right direction for your own niche e-commerce site without heavy design customization needed.

ShopperPress e-commerce WordPress theme - Credit: ShopperPress.com

Get it.

4. eShop Plugin

If you’re looking to add shopping cart functionality to your WordPress site, the eShop plugin can help you out. It’s a free WordPress plugin that lets you calculate sales tax, feature specific items you might put on sale, accept payments through several payment gateways depending on which you prefer, and more. Want to see the plugin in action? Check out these sites using eShop.

Get it.

5. StoreBox WordPress Theme

This hot e-commerce WordPress theme is one of the latest from Templatic. What I love about StoreBox is the simplicity of the design (putting the emphasis on your products where it deserves). At the same time it still offers a good mix of functionality like the ability to highlight featured items, sales, and collect email subscribers front-and-center on the homepage. Really, what more could you want from a WordPress e-commerce solution?

StoreBox e-commerce WordPress theme - Credit: Templatic.com

Get it.

Do you know of other great e-commerce plugins or themes for WordPress that our readers should check out? Do you currently run an e-commerce site using WordPress as your platform? How is it working out for you? Leave your stories, tips, and recommendations in the comments below.

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You’ve probably heard about white papers if you work in a technology-intensive industry. But these selling powerhouses shouldn’t be ignored in other industries as well. No matter what you’re selling, if you need to sell it to high level executives or it’s a very high ticket item, white papers can be a highly effective marketing tool.

Let’s take a look at some of the basics about white papers for those who aren’t as familiar with them and how they might help your business.

What Are White Papers?

A white paper is a type of report often used to market a product or service to executive-level buyers. Because this kind of buyer might need to make a case for the purchase to a board or other supervisor who has the final say, a report makes the most sense. It lays out all of the information people would need to make an educated purchasing decision without spending the whole report on a hard sell approach.

Why White Papers Work

White papers are effective because they focus on education and problem-solving. The basic idea is this: you identify a problem or opportunity your target market has, you present them with a general solution or strategy and educate readers about that solution, and then you close the white paper with a more specific pitch for your own company’s product or service as the solution to their needs.

How to Use White Papers Effectively

After you figure out how to write a white paper, you have to get that white paper into the hands of prospects. Here are three common ways you can do that to start the sales rolling in:

1. Distribute your white papers through your own website. While you can use them to build an email list, remember that the main idea is to get your white paper into as many targeted hands as possible — not making people jump through hoops to get it.
2. Distribute them through white paper directories online.
3. Present hard copy versions of your white paper to prospects at meetings, conferences, or other in-person events.

While white papers are best known as technology marketing tools (because they can cover complex ideas and product specs with an organized presentation), you can use them to market just about anything. For example, you could use a white paper to sell your Internet marketing consulting services or just about any product targeting B2B customers. So go ahead. Search your competitors’ sites to look for examples of industry-specific white papers in action, and then give white paper writing a try.

Lastly, I blame myself.

Much easier to find fault with others, those who accept personal accountability in business and in their personal lives will find that going against the conventional and corporate climate will reap grand benefits. If one can recognize barriers to success, take accountability, define and act on solutions they will be truly successful in life and in business.

Having recently read The Oz Principle by Roger Connors, Tom Smith, and Craig Hickman I thought I would share some of my favorite highlights from the book and how you can get results through accountability.

Why the Lack of Accountability?

“Pop psychology, whether intentional or not, has often encouraged people in our society to blame all their woes and problems on a single or few experiences in their lives, thus promoting a lack of accountability for current and future behaviors, attitudes, and feelings. It is not unusual for people to explain their nightmares, eating disorders, compulsive cleanliness, anxieties, drive for self-improvement, physical ailments, financial problems, and impatience on some singular and pivotal problem or experience that occurred earlier in their lives. Blaming everything on their past wounds, the explain their vulnerability to fad diets, their awkwardness in relating to their children, or their feelings of alienation and loneliness, as if no other modern adult suffers these problems. The fact is, whether you are a true victim or a pseudo victim, you will never overcome a hurtful past until you develop a present- and future-oriented view of your own accountability for getting more out of life. To achieve such a shift in how you view things, we suggest that you start with our more powerful, more proactive definition of accountability.” – The Oz Principle

No one said it was easy. “Doing something differently about your situation often requires doing things you dislike doing, such as taking a risk you’ve been avoiding.” – The Oz Principle

Playing the Victim

“Victims never accomplish anything unless they start taking control over their own futures.” – The Oz Principle. When you stop playing the victim card it is easier to see the way to a solution. To rise above your circumstances and get the results you want, you cannot be content to blame outside forces for your failures. (And you have to admit they are your failures). People at every level of an organization need to ask, “What else can I do?”

The Downfalls of Indecision

“’Just tell me exactly what you want me to do, and I’ll do it.’ Unfortunately, such a plea, while seeming to indicate a willingness to change behavior, simply transfers accountability to a superior or someone else. Too many bosses perpetuate such an attitude by telling their people exactly what to do in difficult situations. Asking someone else to tell you exactly what to do represents nothing more than an advanced from of excuse making because it stems from the victim’s desire to prepare his or her excuse before ever taking action.” – The Oz Principle

Steps to Accountability

The Oz Principle outlines four steps. See It, Own It, Solve It, and Do It. to take the journey personally, you can find The Oz Principle on Amazon. A couple of warnings: Don’t expect the same level of accountability from others; they may not be where you are in the journey. Don’t suppress your feelings. Recognize them and let them move you. Don’t run from problems. “Unfortunately, she allowed herself to remain as confused as ever, hoping somehow that a change of scenery would clarify things. It didn’t. It seldom does.” – The Oz Principle

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Perhaps you’ve thought about writing and selling your own e-books as a new income stream. But did you know that by giving them away (or practically giving them away), you can turn e-books into incredible marketing tools?

Whether you write a completely new e-book from scratch or compile information from your blog or website into a more comprehensive resource, let’s take a look at how you can get marketing benefits from even short e-books and reports.

There is More Than One Way to Market With E-books

When people talk about using e-books as a marketing tool, they often focus on only one potential way to do that. Let’s look at that method first and then explore a couple of others.

1. Build your mailing list.  — E-books can be a great way to entice people to sign up for your newsletter or other email list. Advertise the free e-book for subscribers and have it delivered as soon as they confirm their email subscription. Why would you want to do this? You can use your email list to sell private newsletter advertisements, sell other products to subscribers, or promote other sites or products or services.
2. Promote professional services. — Short informational e-books can be great tools for service providers. For example, I used to run a small PR firm. I offered press release writing services. I gave away a 17 page e-book about how to write press releases. It brought in client leads for those writing services because they could see I knew what I was talking about, and I gave them something of value that competitors did not. These kinds of e-books work a lot like white papers.
3. Up-sell to other information products. — By giving away e-books as marketing tools, you can use them to up-sell readers. In other words, you provide a short e-book as an introduction to a topic, and then if readers like it the end of your e-book encourages them to purchase a much more advanced e-book on a similar topic.

3 Keys to Effective E-book Marketing

Credit: BigStockPhoto.com

Remember that by “e-book marketing” here we’re referring to using e-books to market other things (not marketing e-books themselves). With that in mind, here are three things that might make your e-book marketing more effective.

1. Keep e-books free or low cost. — While you should price appropriately for your market if you release e-books as a primary product or income stream, using them as marketing tools is different. They can be most effective as freebies — the free information becomes the incentive for the target readers to do something else (like sign up or purchase another product or service). If you insist on charging for them, keep marketing tool e-books much cheaper than your typical e-books or other information products.
2. Offer actionable information. – Don’t make people feel like they got nothing out of reading your e-book. The fact that it’s a marketing tool in your perspective does not mean it should have no value to the reader. Using the press release writing e-book I mentioned before as an example, rather than simply use the e-book to explain what releases are I taught readers how to write their own. First, that meant people intimidated by the process or unable to make the time for it were more likely to hire someone like me. And for the rest who tried it on their own first, quite a few still became clients for their next release because they gained a greater appreciation of the work that goes into them and they wanted a professional’s touch the next time around. Don’t be afraid to teach others to do things you can do. Hoarding knowledge doesn’t help in this case.
3. Keep the content relevant. — For example, don’t write an e-book on making money online just because you think people want to know how to do that. Each individual e-book has to not only answer a question or solve a problem for the reader, but they should each be relevant to your end marketing goal. For example, if you were selling a home pedicure package you might release a free e-book on giving yourself a home pedicure. You could entice people to sign up for your mailing list for future promotions to get that e-book, and increase the odds even more by including a coupon code for the product in the e-book itself.

Are you using e-books as effective marketing tools? What have you used them to promote? How well did it work out? If you have stories or marketing tips to share that involve e-books, please comment below to tell us about it.

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Are you struggling to make money from your blogs? Do you make some money blogging, but wish you could make more? The solution might be easier than you think, and it doesn’t always mean you have to increase your traffic dramatically. You can also find ways to increase revenue with your existing market reach by diversifying your income streams.

Let’s look at what it means to diversify your income streams, why bloggers should consider it, and some examples of income streams you might want to add to your blog.

What Does it Mean to Diversify Your Income Streams?

Diversifying your income streams is a simple concept. It means you should have several sources of income at any given time rather than just one. For example, if you only make money blogging through affiliate sales, you don’t diversify your income streams. If you use affiliate sales, your own product sales, and contextual advertising, then you do have a more diverse set of revenue streams.

Why Diversified Income Streams are a Great Idea for Bloggers

Here’s the problem with relying too heavily on just one revenue stream: when it’s disappears, all of your income disappears with it.

Members only content can be a great blog income stream. - Credit: Fotolia.com

If you get banned from a specific ad network for example, your income is gone. If you only sell one product of your own and it reaches market saturation, your income stops flowing. If your readers get tired of your constant affiliate promotions, that revenue stream might stop bringing in reliable revenue. No single income stream for bloggers is guaranteed to last forever.

When you diversify your blog income, you insulate yourself from this sudden drop-off in earnings. If one revenue stream dries up, you have other income streams bringing in money. Your earnings might decrease temporarily, but they won’t disappear completely.

5 Examples of Additional Blog Revenue Streams

Diversifying your blogging income sounds like a good idea, right? It can help you earn more than you do now, and it can prevent you from losing everything overnight. But how can you diversify your income streams? Here are five examples of blog revenue streams you might be able to add. Note that not all revenue streams are appropriate for blogs in every niche.

1. Industry directories with paid inclusion (or paid featured spots)
2. Job boards / Classifieds
3. Members-only content (advanced private content for paying members)
4. Information products (your own e-books, reports, e-courses, and other downloads)
5. Ad networks (affiliate, contextual, text links, banners, or whatever works in your niche)

There are countless ways to increase your blog income, with or without dramatic increases in traffic. Think about what members of your audience want and need. Then find a way to give it to them as a premium product, service, or feature to increase site revenue. At the same time, balance that with enough free quality blog content that you keep readers coming back. If you can’t monetize their traffic today, there’s always the chance you will tomorrow. When you put readers first and build trust within your audience, they’re often quite happy to help support your blog.

How do you diversify your blog income streams? What brings in the most money right now? Have some revenue streams failed to work in your niche? Share your own revenue stream ideas and stories about how you make money blogging in the comments below.

If you’re using Google Plus, you’ve probably heard about the controversy over Google’s “real name policy.” In the interest of transparency I’ll tell you that I have some very big problems with this policy, Google’s flip-flopping about what “real names” mean, and Eric Schmidt’s recent foot-in-mouth comments on the matter. And yes, I do use my real name on the network.

But I don’t want to talk (yet again) about why the real name policy is a terrible idea or why others think it’s great and going to lend some sort of greater credibility to the network. Instead I want to talk about the business of it all.

More importantly I want to talk about how this policy could have both good and bad repercussions for Google and businesses hoping to leverage this “identity service.”

How Eliminating Anonymity is Good Business for Google

Let’s face it. We all know Google is in the information business. They gather it. They find ways to monetize it. We, and the information Google can gather about us, are in essence the products they sell to advertisers. The more they know about their users, the more targeted ads can be, and the more valuable your eyes on an ad become. Cha-ching!

In this sense the real name policy is smart business for Google. The more information they can provide about their users, the more they can rake in from advertisers and the more they can tailor other services to your habits and interests to keep you on their site.

The Business Risks of the Google Plus Real Name Policy

On the other side, the real name policy could do some serious damage to Google’s best attempt in the social media game yet. I loved the concept of Google Plus from the start. They got some things right on the privacy front (Circles being a great example). We had control over everything we shared. But then they took control of our identities. In the end, it’s tough to have things both ways.

Google is already alienating some of their early users, myself included. It isn’t just that there are good reasons to use names other than our “real” ones. It’s the way Google still seems oblivious about how the social Web works. Platforms are created for the users — not the other way around.

If Google yet again shows people they aren’t prepared to give users what they want in a social platform, they’re going to devalue their own “product” early in the game. We won’t share all of the information they (and their advertisers) want or need. We won’t trade our time on one social media tool for Google Plus. And if they push G+ users hard enough, they risk pushing them away from other Google products as well.

After all, if you tell users they aren’t welcome to be who they are in this social context, why would they want to waste time with you in any other sense? They’ll move on. There are other search engines, other feed readers, other email providers (or means of checking Gmail accounts), and there are certainly other social networking platforms.

If Google does anything with this policy of exclusion, it might be to remind their users that all of these other options exist. That’s a risk they took when they chose to tie our beloved Google tools to this new identity service.

Personally, I hope the folks at Google get a clue before it’s too late (or at least change their tone on the subject). I’m a big fan of the platform itself, and I find some of the best conversations in my network happen within Google Plus.

Yet I’ve seen those conversations become shallower and more promotional in nature as colleagues and friends leave or cut back on information and opinions they’re willing to share. That’s even true of those already using their real names.

That’s just what I’m seeing in my own Google Plus network. Have you noticed any changes in yours recently? Whether you’re for or against the real name policy, how do you see it helping or hurting Google’s position in social media? Are they doing what’s best for their advertisers and their own business, or do you think they might be doing more harm than good? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Credit: BigStockPhoto.com

Would you like to become a “professional blogger?” Would you just like to earn enough income to support your blog — pay for hosting and a domain name for example? If you’re like a lot of people who want to make money blogging, you’ve probably thought about tossing ads up on your site to do it. But did you know that there are other, often better, ways to make money blogging?

Let’s talk about why ads aren’t always the best option when you want to make money with your blog and mention a few alternative ways you can make money blogging, no ads required.

Why You Might Not Want to Rely on Ads for Blog Monetization

There are different types of ads you might think about using to monetize a blog. For example there are ad networks (like Google’s Adsense), affiliate ads (like those through Commission Junction or Clickbank), and private ad sales where you set your ad prices and directly sell space to advertisers. Each has positive and negative aspects, but one common drawback is that they all perform better for sites with a lot of traffic (more people to click the ads). That’s fine if you already have a popular blog, but it makes ad income little more than a pipe dream for a lot of new bloggers, or even experienced bloggers who are simply launching new blogs.

When you use ad networks there’s also the issue of relying on third parties. You don’t get to control how much you charge for ad space on your own blog, and they can cut you off at any time or close down their program. An awful lot is out of your control. Depending on your niche or type of blog, ads might even be a big deterrent for readers. In certain industries it’s frowned on to put ads on your professional blog for example (as opposed to running a niche blog where it’s more expected). Or if you were a doctor giving health advice on a blog, readers might be majorly turned off by ads promoting specific products because it damages your credibility.

Are 3rd party ad networks locking up your blog's income potential? - Credit: BigStockPhoto.com

Sometimes ads just aren’t the best option when you want your blog to bring in income. But here are some other options you might want to consider.

5 Additional Ways You Can Make Money Blogging

I’ve been a professional blogger for a couple of years now. While some in similar shoes do rely heavily on ads to make money blogging, I don’t. I do use ads, but I’ve turned them into a small part of a much broader overall strategy — just like I suggest to other freelance writers that they diversify income streams, I diversify my blog income. Here are some of my favorite ideas for making money blogging without ads, including some I’ve already implemented and other ideas I have in the works for various blogs I own.

1. Sell services through your blog. I’m a freelance business writer and blogger. I also happen to blog about freelance writing. Clients often find me through that blog and others, and I make sure they have a way to contact me if they want to request my services. I’ve found this is one of the best ways to make money blogging — use your blog as a marketing tool or platform piece to attract other paying opportunities. You could do the same with any type of service from being a freelance designer to running a Web hosting company.
2. Sell e-books or other digital products of your own. Rather than advertising others’ products, create and sell your own! Blogs are excellent tools that keep your target market coming back for more, meaning you have a built-in, growing audience interested in hearing more about what you have to say. If you have something of value to offer, turn it into an e-book. Or create and sell a software program or other digital product through your blog if it’s a better fit for your readers (or at least the readers you’re working to attract).
3. Offer e-courses or webinars. If you have something to teach your readers — something they would be willing to pay for — why not turn it into a webinar or e-course? You could charge for access and use the blog to promote it. Basically your e-courses would be more advanced expansions on what you talk about on your blog anyway.
4. Consider premium content (even if just partially). Similar to running e-courses, premium content is about getting readers to pay for more advanced material. You can still be generous with free content, but if you have knowledge or expertise people are willing to pay for, consider adding a premium section to your blog that goes above and beyond your free content. This is another model that won’t work for everyone, and you have to know your target market first before assuming they’ll be willing to pay.
5. Tie your blog to another site model. A blog doesn’t have to be just a blog. It can be tied to another type of site that brings in your direct income, while the blog works to attract visitors. This site is a good example of that. DirJournal.com brings in income through directory submissions, but the site also features a whole network of blogs. The blogs provide content of interest to readers — the very visitors website owners want to ultimately reach with their submissions. The blogs are a value-added service. You can tie them to other types of sites as well — your business / service site, a product sale site, social network / forum, directories, or just about any type of site you can think of.

Don’t forget about donations. While there can be complications to accepting donations — no certain income, potential nonprofit registration issues depending on where you live, etc., they’re still an option used by many bloggers. It allows visitors to directly compensate you based on how valuable they find your material.

What's YOUR blog plan? - Credit: BigStockPhoto.com

If you want to make money blogging but you would rather not set up your own blog, there’s always the option of blogging for clients. I actually combine the two — I blog for clients (such as right now) but I also run nearly a dozen different blogs of my own. They can both be very lucrative options. There are many businesses out there today that want to get into blogging, but they aren’t sure how. Don’t be afraid to pitch them your ideas and help them get the ball rolling.

Do you have any other ideas for ways people can make money blogging without relying on ad networks, affiliate programs, and private ad sales? Feel free to leave a comment and share your experiences with the suggestions I made, or to add to the list.

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If you’re a book lover, you probably know that all Borders stores are closing. This weekend I went to the nearest store to check out the liquidation sale. And I have to say, I wasn’t that impressed. Books seemed to be selling slowly, even with 40-50% discounts. They still couldn’t seem to compete with online behemoth, Amazon.com.

As sad as it is to see physical bookstores closing, there’s hope. These big box retailers knocked down the little independent bookstores years ago, and now those indie bookstores have a chance to shine again. So let’s take a look at how the Borders failure can be a good thing for small businesses in this industry, and a few lessons those independent booksellers can learn from it.

Lesson 1: Get with the Times

Borders hung onto a comfortable business model in a rapidly-changing industry. They didn’t get with the times and give customers what they wanted. Smaller bookstores still have time to get their operations up to date. Yes, people still want hard copies of books. But they also want shopping convenience and e-books. Here are a few ways smaller booksellers can modernize their stores:

• Let customers search book availability online. That lets them avoid wasted time in stores searching for things. Let them either reserve in-stock titles for 24 hours or purchase them online for pick-up at their convenience. It’s like online shopping without paying for or waiting on shipping.
• Get involved in affiliate promotions. Encourage more authors to launch affiliate programs for online versions of their books (the bookstore earns commissions on sales). Or join existing affiliate programs through large online e-book sellers to avoid your own licensing deals. Offer in-store consoles for shoppers to browse and order the e-books. You can do the same through your website.
• Pay your own commissions. Referral sales can be big business, and the bookselling industry is no exception. Give customers a reason to refer others to your shop with affiliate programs or special loyalty rewards. Better yet, partner with libraries. They need income sources. You need more sales. Why not have referrals built into their online catalog? You deliver the books to the library and patrons can pick up orders just like they’d pick up hold items. The library gets a cut of each sale they refer. Win-win.

Lesson 2: Offer Value-Added Services

Story time can keep families coming back to your bookstore. - Credit: Shuva Rahim - Fotolia.com

A cup of java isn’t enough to keep bookstores alive. Smaller bookstores need to find new value-added services to keep customers coming in-store. Here are a few examples.

• Offer children’s story time on a regular basis.
• Host author book signings, readings, and other events.
• Launch a community book club (or several).
• Offer used books and trade-in opportunities to compete with low-priced online used book sales.
• Host contests or events like writing workshops — find new local talent to promote and get local press coverage for it.
• Host events relevant to your store (murder mystery parties for a mystery bookstore, Halloween events for one specializing in horror, period costume parties, etc.).

Lesson 3: Find Your Niche

It’s tough to compete as a generalist in an industry where one or two large retailers dominate the market. They can buy in such bulk that they can afford to offer greater discounts than a small seller can. You can’t compete with them on price. Instead, smaller sellers can compete with niche specialties (such as a mystery bookstore or one focused on children’s books). Here are some of the benefits of doing that.

• You can provide more knowledgeable staff than a general bookstore can — people passionate about a specific genre who know the authors, books, and niche inside and out.
• You can focus on highly relevant authors and books for events your customers might be interested in (rather than hosting general events where customers might only be interested once every few months).
• You can offer more obscure titles and collectibles within your niche because you don’t have to save floor space for a huge diverse collection of books.

The bookselling industry might be changing, but that doesn’t mean physical bookstores are going anywhere. Those with a creative edge will likely thrive and take things like the Borders failure as an opportunity to shine.

Do you have a favorite independent bookstore? What do they do that bigger chains don’t (or can’t)? How are they adapting to changes in book buying behavior and e-publishing? Share your thoughts, stories, and other comments below.

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Despite the fact that social media marketing seems to monopolize internet marketing conversations lately, it’s far from your only option. For example, email marketing can still be a highly effective way to communicate with an audience, drive traffic, and increase sales.

I used to use simple email newsletters to promote site features and content, but stopped years ago because I didn’t have enough products to promote. The return wasn’t there at the time. With several new e-books and a series of e-courses in the pipeline, I decided that now was a good time to get back into email marketing.

That meant I had to choose a new email marketing service. In my case, I chose Aweber. I won’t tell you to run out and sign up for their service, but I do want to share some of the issues that came up when making that decision.

By answering the following questions, you’ll have an easier time choosing the best email marketing provider for your small business.

1. Is this for a new list or are you moving an existing list?

Any email marketing service can help you start a new list. But if you already have an opt-in list, your choices might be more limited by things like import limits or rules regarding new opt-ins. Rather than potentially losing subscribers with a new opt-in for the service transfer, you might be better off asking your current provider if they can offer a different plan that better suits your needs.

2. How many subscribers do you anticipate early on? In the future?

An important consideration when choosing an email marketing service is whether or not they can handle your current subscriber count. Check their limits (which will likely vary based on pricing tiers) and make sure they can accommodate your current list size. Also consider anticipated growth of your list. Does the service you’re interested in offer scalable options that can grow with your business, or are you already maxing out their subscriber limits?

3. What will you use the email marketing service for?

Different email marketing services can offer different features. Which are most important to you? That will depend on what you plan to do with the list. For example, I mentioned e-courses earlier. So I looked for a service with good autoresponder features to deliver scheduled course materials.

What's involved in email marketing? - Credit: Danard Vincente (via Flickr)

You might want to do something similar, use it mostly to deliver RSS feeds via email, send manual newsletters, send scheduled announcements or promotions, or do some combination of these things. Even if you aren’t ready for all of these things right now, think about the foreseeable future. Choose an email marketing service that fits into your ongoing marketing strategy to avoid having to switch services again too soon.

4. How much can you afford?

Another important consideration is the affordability factor. If you can’t afford to use a paid service at all, then you might want to tailor your strategy to free options available. If you have an adequate budget you can go for premium services that offer greater reliability, no ads in your emails, and better response tracking (in addition to the primary features you want).

Did you recently choose your first email marketing service or change providers? What made you choose them? What were you looking for and what made that provider stand out? In addition to the things mentioned here, what other factors would you suggest small business owners consider? Leave your thoughts, stories, and tips in the comments below.