Entertainment Entrepreneur

Focus on what you’re good at, and nothing else!

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Mon, 30 May 2011 13:00:00 PDT

Focus on what you're good at, and nothing else!

Is it me or is everyone these days trying to get rich quick? Not only am I meeting more and more people who don't want to work hard to make money, but they are starting to get into new business ventures that they are clueless on.
I know the grass always looks greener on the other side, but it really isn't. Don't get me wrong, those lucrative businesses are making people millions of dollars, but it's probably doing that for less than 0.3% of the people in that industry.
So before you decide to jump ship and get into a new career, just for a second think about all the things you will be losing out on. Yes you may make some extra income in the short run, but if you put that time and energy into growing what you are already good at and love, you'll do a lot better.
If you want to make a ton of money in business, follow these principles:

Harsh Fact #1: Focus on what you know

If you are really good at something, focus on it. Don't stray away from it, but instead just do that and become the leader in your space. If you don't think you can make enough money focusing on what you are good at, then figure out what related businesses you can get into.
For example, a buddy of mine, Michael Dorausch, is a chiropractor in Los Angles. Although he does very well, he wasn't satisfied with the income he was making as a chiropractor. But instead of jumping into a whole new field, he decided to help other chiropractors get more customers from the web for a monthly fee.

Harsh Fact #2: Business development is the quickest way to grow

If you put me in a room with a thousand people and you ask me to close a deal with all of them, the chances are, I'll fail. But if you put me in a room with one person and ask me to close a deal with them, there is a good chance I'll be able to do so.
I am big believer that it is easier to convince one person to work with you than it is to convince thousands of people. The cool part about business development is that the one person you convince could have access to thousands of people or companies.
For example, my friend Andy runs a TV website called BuddyTV. One way that he could try and grow his user base is to do a business development deal with other TV related companies such as TV Guide, Comcast, Timewarner, Verizon… The reason this is powerful is because if you can close a deal with someone like TV Guide, you then get access to all of their customers.

Harsh Fact #3: Grow your network wisely

It's hard to put a value on networking, but it can really help your business as long as you have a strong network. Networking with people that can't provide any value to you or your business is fine in small doses, but it can turn into huge waste of time because those people won't provide you with a good ROI.
At first you may have to network with people who don't provide much value so you can get the hang of it, but you should shift your focus to networking with individuals who can help you grow your business.
Also, you have to realize that networking is a two way street. I don't care how many big names you have in your network, it'll be useless if you don't help them out as well. Because when you need their help, they'll be more likely to help you out if you've taken care of them in the past.

Harsh Fact #4: Build up your personal brand

Building up your business should always be your number 1 objective, but your number 2 objective should be to build your personal brand. Now granted, you can make millions without building up your personal brand, but it doesn't hurt to have a strong one.
When my business partner and I started KISSmetrics we were able to get our first paying customers by leveraging our personal brand. People knew about him and I and companies that followed us were willing to sign on for our product because they liked my business partner and I. In the long run that won't help you build a big business, but in the short it does help bring in revenue.
If you build up your personal brand, no matter what business you get into, you'll increase your odds of making money.

Harsh Fact #5: Expand when your growth rate flattens

It's always fun to start new businesses, especially if you have ADHD like me, but that doesn't mean you should. If your current business is growing at a healthy pace, there is no reason to expand your business into new verticals.
As I mentioned above, Michael decided to expand his chiropractic business by helping other chiropractors get more customers from the Internet. But he didn't start doing this until his own chiropractic business started to reach full capacity. There are only 24 hours in a day and there are only so many patients he can see in a day. Once he reached his capacity, he then decided to expand, while still maintaining his practice.
If you decide to expand your business, make sure you don't neglect your current business and customers. You have to maintain it while expanding.

Conclusion

Don't get caught up in businesses that are sexy and hot, focus on what you know. If you are passionate and knowledgeable about a specific subject, you can make money at it. You just have to get creative.
So what do you think about all these people that are trying to get into businesses that they have no clue about?

This post courtesy of Neil Patel at http://www.quicksprout.com/

Entrepreneur Spotlight: Necole Bitchie-Brand Queen

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Mon, 16 May 2011 15:29:55 PDT

Necole is plugged in to the web at all times

Blog: Necole Bitchie
Niche: Lifestyle/Entertainment/Gossip
Founder: Necole “Bitchie” Kane
Twitter: @NecoleBitchie

Blogging was supposed to be a waste of time. Out of work and with no roof over her head to call her own, Necole “Bitchie” Kane—whose parents and grandmother had passed—called her aunt’s couch home and fiddled around on the Internet as a way to keep sane. Figuring her niece was just “playing around on the computer” instead of looking for a job, auntie kicked her out of her Maryland house, and Necole Bitchie, Kane’s online persona, began to blossom.

With only $500 to her name, the enterprising go-getter made the move to Atlanta to network and wound up becoming the face and voice of NecoleBitchie.com, a popular gossip/entertainment blog that rivals many mainstream brands in terms of influence in the online space. Since launching in 2007, the site now draws upwards of 1.2 million unique visitors per month and stands as the hub of the Necole Bitchie brand, which has grown to include a web channel (Bitchie TV), lifestyle site (Bitchie Life), T-shirt line (Born Bitchie) and another online property on the horizon (IAmNecole.com). For her mastery of the digital space and branding power, Necole Bitchie joins BlackEnterprise.com’s esteemed list of online thought leaders as part of our first annual Black Blogger Month.

I started blogging because…

I wanted to create my own opportunities… [Initially] I had wanted to work in the music industry and doors kept slamming in my face. Every time I would send out resumes or get interviewed I would never get hired and it came to a point in 2007 where I said I’d never send out another resume and I haven’t.

I realized blogging was a business when…

I was doing research and I wandered on to Perez Hilton’s site. I wasn’t even into blogs like that and I just happened to land on his site and I saw the ad space and I clicked on it. At the time it was like $10,000 for a sidebar ad for like a week and I was like, “What part of the game is this?” I Googled him and I saw how he started his site like in the living room or something and how it grew and I studied his story and I felt like it was something I could possibly get into, so it started from there. Just seeing somebody was actually selling ad space for a week for $10,000. That just got my mind going like, “How could I flip this? How could I make this into a business?”

My biggest influences are…

Will Smith. I read all of Will’s old interviews and watch all of his interviews that he’s done on television and I think one of the things that really got me is that he said, “I will not be overworked. If I get on a treadmill with you and we’re running, two things will happen. I’m either going to outrun you or I’m going to die.” I think that you have to have that mentality to make it because it’s about not just getting comfortable. Once you reach a certain level you always have to think about getting to the next level. That’s also why Oprah is someone else that influenced me because she beat out everybody. So she was like, “What am I going to do? I’m going to go to the next step and that’s own my own network.” Those type of people inspire me to keep going.

The best piece of business advice I ever got was…

B is for brand

To know your target audience. Like, every time a new blogger comes to me and asks that’s one of the first things I say. You have to sit down and define your target audience. Like me I would look at a piece of paper and I would have my picture on it and I would say, “She’s a 24 year old female, African American, she goes to the nail shop twice a week, she reads Vibe magazine, she likes this movie…” I would have her whole profile down because once you know your target then you know what appeals to them like I was doing celebrity gossip at first, but then I thought my target audience was me, well I like nails and different kinds of designs, so I started posting some stuff on nails and the [audience] went crazy…. If you don’t have a target then you’ll try to appeal to everyone and that’s when you’ll get lost and it’ll be very hard for you to brand yourself and your site when you don’t have a specific person in mind that you’re appealing to.

The biggest mistakes I ever made in business have…

All been financial. Not planning. Not setting budgets. Just spending money, like if you told me, “I think you need this,” and it sounds okay I used to not even look to see if we have a budget for that. I really wasn’t money managing. You know, money would come, money would go. It’s not until you sit down and all of the numbers are pulled together and someone tells you you spent three-fourths of your money on expenses and that could’ve been cut in half that you’re like, okay, I need to get it together. So definitely the biggest mistake is not setting budgets and not money managing.

What I learned from that was…

That going through every year, even every month, you should definitely make a budget. I only want to spend this much on graphics. I want to spend this much on supplies or marketing or whatever. It’s just very hard to have a successful business and not have a good business structure and cash flow; knowing what money is coming in and going out, especially when it’s time to look into investors or other partnerships and then they want to know how have you been spending your money in the past.

I measure my success by…

How many people I inspire and motivate everyday. When I first started working with my publicist Christina one of my main things was even if I did interviews and get in magazines I don’t want to get into them just to say, “Hey, look what I did with my blog.” I really wanted the person reading to know the back story and the struggle and the obstacles I had to overcome to even get here in three years, so every time someone comes on Twitter and says, “Girl, I just read your story and you inspire and motivate me,” that’s how I measure my success, not by how much money I make or how many people read the site.

None of my success would be possible if not for…

My aunt. By kicking me out of her house she took the crutch from underneath of me that I wouldn’t get comfortable, so without her I wouldn’t be here.

Source

Move your business forward with Facebook !

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sun, 15 May 2011 20:47:00 PDT

Using Facebook to move your business forward

Amazon

Can you afford college tuition now ..?

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Fri, 20 May 2011 12:09:47 PDT

With the cost of living on the rise I’ve heard concerns about many expenses but the one expense which has seldom been discussed in my circle is college tuition for the little one. Have we forgotten this expense is also on the rise ?
The good news is you can pre-pay for college with a 529 plan. Lock in the cost of college today instead of being burdened by the cost of college tomorrow.
That sounds like a winner to me.
I’ve heard a lot of parents brag about how smart their child is and I usually wait for them to brag about their college fund only to be disappointed.
If I’m disappointed by your lack of planning just imagine how disappointed they’ll be. Having smart children is great. Having smart children with a 529 plan is much better.
Let’s face the facts leaving college with more debt then you entered isn’t a very good start on the road to success and yet this is the fate for thousands of college bound students who must rely on student loans.
This was also the case for both of my parents which leaves me to wonder how can two parents struggling with their own college debt prepare for their children’s college education. Break the cycle.
For more information on pre-paid college plans read : An Introduction to 529 Plans

Bill Payment Log for your binder

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 19:26:16 PDT

If you don't already have a binder for your bills now is the time to rush out and grab one. One binder should be enough to keep all your bills organized. You will also need a three hole, hole puncher.

Now that many people have switched to online bill payment some may think that paper is no longer needed. I believe that every online transaction or other electronic payment should be recorded in your written records. When you want to keep track of every penny you spend you can never be too thorough. I recommend you write the transaction number on the actual bill and then also record it in your payment log.

Bill Payment Log

I create custom documents for my website clients to help them stay organized and efficient. Since you are going to use a separate bill payment log for each bill you may also want to get colored dividers to place between your bills for fast and easy access.

Colored Service Chart

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 19:06:05 PDT

A price chart I created some months ago.
LDD Service and Price Sheet

Amazon

Money Matters : Sole proprietorship Vs Incorporation

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 21:23:36 PST

Business Credit is borrowed money that your company can use to purchase products or services it needs and repay the funds at an agreed upon date or time frame. It can also refer to the amount of capital your business can secure without the use of personal assets.

The good news for you is that businesses of all sizes and entity types have the ability to create its own corporate credit identity completely separate from that of its owners.

Unfortunately most entrepreneurs are not aware of this and operate as a sole proprietorship which is a form of business structure in which the individual takes on all aspects of funding, starting and operating the business.

As a sole proprietor you keep all the net profits but you’re also taxed on them too. This is why entrepreneurs often rely on the strength of their personal credit reports to determine the amount of financing they are able to obtain for their business.

Unless you incorporate the IRS will automatically default your business as a sole proprietorship leaving you personally liable for all debts and actions made by the company.

By incorporating your business it now gets to be treated as a separate legal entity like a human being created through a legal process.

Similar to a social security number which is tied to your consumer credit files your business can obtain a Federal Tax Identification Number and establish its own business credit report.

Once you begin building business credit you can obtain everything from equipment, office furniture, supplies, and inventory or even lease automobiles through corporate fleet programs.

You should limit the use of your personal credit or guarantee by applying for vendor credit and if you apply for other sources of financing like a business line of credit then you will also need to maintain a solid bank rating too.

Business credit cards are another source of credit that your company can obtain with each card containing its own approval criteria and terms and conditions. Some cards may not be a good fit especially the ones who base its approval and payment reporting on the owner’s personal credit and not the business.

Your company can also apply for business loans which are either secured or unsecured and are traditionally funded by banks.

Each of these sources of business credit can provide the short or long term capital your business needs while protecting your personal credit and personal liability.

While it does take time to build a creditworthy company you can expect to save more money and obtain much greater financing than you would ever personally

Business Credit

Source

Why Group Buying Is Leaving Local Businesses Behind

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 02:34:47 PST

Chris Treadaway is founder and CEO of Lasso, the social commerce middleware solution for brands and media companies. He is also the author of the book Facebook Marketing: An Hour a Day. He blogs at treadaway.typepad.com.

There’s no denying the appeal of LivingSocial’s half-off Amazon gift card deal. The deal for $20 in Amazon merchandise for $10 racked up over 1.3 million sales, rivaling Groupon’s recent national coup with their Gap coupon.

First of all, kudos to LivingSocial for taking full advantage of Amazon’s recent $175 million investment in the company. In an odd twist of the value proposition of group deals, it’s LivingSocial that benefits the most in offering the deal, especially as they try to claim market share against the increasingly ubiquitous Groupon.

Yet as these “retail hacking” services have leveraged their impressive investment dollars to emerge as national leaders of the space, it’s the local businesses that the companies originally celebrated and benefited that are left behind. And ironically enough, big brands that ultimately won’t need a group purchasing service to monetize great deals are the present-day beneficiary.

The Local Sell-Out

The appeal and promise of Groupon, LivingSocial and other early entries into the group purchasing game was that small brands, companies and businesses could reach potential new customers, and users received great deals on things that they may not have otherwise tried.

There was a serendipitous magic to the process. Those early deals were extremely high value for consumers, but a value of experience as much as price. The nice restaurant you’ve been wanting to try, the massage you’ve been needing but putting off, the random off-kilter adventure like skydiving — these were the things we as consumers loved to have arrive in our inboxes, and that businesses were excited to prompt.

But let’s be honest: The retail hacking secret is long out of the bag, and as more and more businesses sign up to offer deals (and more companies offer group purchasing), the consumer is the big loser. Why? Competition has made it tougher for the group purchasing providers to attract the top local advertisers in almost every market. That’s why you’ve probably noticed far more “great deals” from acupuncturists than great restaurants lately. It used to be exciting to get the Deal of the Day e-mail. It isn’t anymore.

Group purchasing has gotten much less effective at the local level, precisely where local businesses and we as local-conscious consumers originally found so much value. The leading platform providers are now seeking top national and international brands to do group purchasing deals (e.g. Gap, Amazon, etc.), while the hyperlocal promise, as delivered by group purchasing, falls by the wayside.

But Is That What Brands Need?

Consider the case of The Gap — the first international brand to experiment in the group purchasing arena. The Gap’s August experiment with Groupon sold 445,000 coupons for $11 million in revenue. The deal was very popular, but some have questioned whether or not it was actually a win for The Gap after fees, lost revenue due to sales to existing customers, and accounting of the deal in financial statements. Consider also that The Gap has almost 1.3 million fans on Facebook and countless people in e-mail lists and its rewards program. If you have those assets at your disposal, do you really need to outsource group purchasing? And do you really want to treat your existing customers the same as you treat new customers? Doubtful.

Lessons Learned

Technorati Tags: amazon gap

Kudos to Living Social and Amazon for a very well executed campaign. But I think there are three great lessons from the success story.

1. Great deals from great businesses will always be interesting to consumers whether they come from a top-notch local business or an internationally respected brand;

2. Brands that need a quick shot of cash can capture that demand with a great deal and the right social commerce middleware to support them; and

3. The local business/group purchasing honeymoon may be ending, perhaps in a messy divorce.

Big brands have discovered the opportunity in social commerce and are now looking to capitalize. As what happened with search advertising and what is happening in social advertising, it’s about to get a lot tougher for the typical local business to compete. Easy money from group purchasing is getting a lot harder to find for many local businesses. It is now the beginning of the second wave of social commerce where a variety of more sophisticated marketing approaches, tools, and tricks will be necessary for savvy local businesses to succeed. When that happens, brands will be sure to follow.

Chris Treadaway

Source

8 Tech Companies to Watch in 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 10:04:34 PST

Grab your popcorn and Twizzlers, because 2011 is already shaping up to be an exciting year to watch startups and giants do battle for market share and big ideas. If you’re not sure which companies to look out for in the coming year, our writers and editors have submitted their expert picks below.

What do you think? Did we miss any promising tech companies (new or established) that you see making a big splash in 2011? We want — nay, demand — your forecasts in the comments below.

1. Minimal, Inc.

This Chicago-based design firm finished off 2010 by completing the most successful funding campaign in Kickstarter history. Its TikTok+LunaTik iPod Nano watch conversion kits raised more than $940,000 from more than 13,500 backers and garnered the kind of attention that should help launch this company to new heights in 2011. The gadget accessories market has a new player.

~ Josh Catone, Features Editor

2. StumbleUpon ()

OK, so StumbleUpon has been around since 2001, so it’s not new to the scene. But with Digg ()’s fall this year and StumbleUpon’s planned release of premium features and publisher pages early this year, it has the potential to scale and be exposed to more users. And considering it’s a big source of traffic for many news sites, it may start investing its time into figuring out how to leverage the site further and connect with its community on the site.

~ Vadim Lavrusik, Community Manager

3. Amimon, Inc.

This Israeli company has perfected its wireless HDTV system over the past years. Imagine plugging a tiny USB device into a laptop, and then displaying its output in full 1080p HD resolution on a monitor 100 feet away, with no lag. Amimon has already introduced one of its own products, but the big deal is the presence of its superior wireless HD standard (known as WHDI, or Wireless Home Digital Interface) chips built inside numerous other products, such as laptops, projectors, TVs and set-top boxes.

~ Charlie White, Senior Editor

4. Bloom Energy

If there is any company poised to revolutionize the energy market, it’s Bloom Energy. The Bloom Energy Server (a.k.a. the “Bloom Box”) changes inputs like natural gas or oil into clean, reusable energy. It’s actually a dynamic fuel cell that creates energy through a chemical reaction. The company has raised more than $400 million to date and is testing its technology with Google (), eBay, Wal-Mart and others.

~ Ben Parr, Co-Editor

5. Skype ()

Its recent outage notwithstanding, Skype has been on an impressive run since its breakup with eBay. Usage is at record levels, and features like group video chat and deep Facebook integration have reminded us that Skype is a top tier consumer and business web company. In 2011, the company is likely to go public, and with it, face a whole new level of scrutiny and expectations. Google will also continue to gun at Skype with enhancements to Google Voice () (free U.S. calling for Gmail users through 2011 is an obvious sign of that), making the company all the more intriguing to watch.

~ Adam Ostrow, Editor-in-Chief

6. Tumblr ()

With $30 million in funding in its coffer and increasing content curation (not to mention 14 book deals born from its blogs), Tumblr could be shaping up into a much more organized — and ad-worthy — hub for entertainment. We’re interested to see if the company spends that money wisely — and how.

~ Brenna Ehrlich, News Editor

7. Clicker ()

The connected device ecosystem is still evolving, in large part because of the battle over control between content publishers, device makers and consumers. Clicker is managing to avoid the battle itself and is instead focusing on making it easy for users to find content, irrespective of what service that content might use. The company recently branched into recommendations and has mobile apps, supports Google TV and the Boxee Box and has a killer web app.

~ Christina Warren, Mobile & Apple Reporter

8. inDinero

inDinero is looking to replace much of what accountants do for small businesses, giving them a real-time financial overview of their company in the process. It changes how you track cash flows and expenses. It’s funded by Y Combinator and star angel investors and led by savvy entrepreneur Jessica Mah, who graduated from college when she was 19.

~ Ben Parr, Co-Editor

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Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 16:18:14 PST

Huffington Post recently put up a story called You're Out: 20 Things That Became Obsolete This Decade. It's a great retrospective on the technology leaps we've made since the new century began, and it got me thinking about the difference today's technology will make in the lives of tomorrow's kids.

I've used some of their ideas and added some of my own to make the list below: Do you think kids born in 2011 will recognize any of the following?

Video tape: Starting this year, the news stories we produce here at Money Talks have all been shot, edited, and distributed to TV stations without ever being on any kind of tape. Not only that, the tape-less broadcast camera we use today offers much higher quality than anything that could have been imagined 10 years ago -- and cost less than the lens on the camera we were using previously.

Travel agents: While not dead today, this profession is one of many that's been decimated by the Internet. When it's time for their honeymoon, will those born in 2011 be able to find one?

The separation of work and home: When you're carrying an email-equipped computer in your pocket, it's not just your friends who can find you -- so can your boss. For kids born this year, the wall between office and home will be blurry indeed.

Books, magazines, and newspapers: Like video tape, words written on dead trees are on their way out. Sure, there may be books -- but for those born today, stores that exist solely to sell them will be as numerous as record stores are now.

Movie rental stores: You actually got in your car and drove someplace just to rent a movie?

Watches: Maybe as quaint jewelry, but the correct time is on your smartphone, which is pretty much always in your hand.

©Will D/flickr

Paper maps: At one time these were available free at every gas station. They're practically obsolete today, and the next generation will probably have to visit a museum to find one.

Wired phones: Why would you pay $35 every month to have a phone that plugs into a wall? For those born today, this will be a silly concept.

Long distance: Thanks to the Internet, the days of paying more to talk to somebody in the next city, state, or even country are limited.

Newspaper classifieds: The days are gone when you have to buy a bunch of newsprint just to see what's for sale.

Dial-up Internet: While not everyone is on broadband, it won't be long before dial-up Internet goes the way of the plug-in phone.

Encyclopedias: Imagine a time when you had to buy expensive books that were outdated before the ink was dry. This will be a nonsense term for babies born today.

Forgotten friends: Remember when an old friend would bring up someone you went to high school with, and you'd say, "Oh yeah, I forgot about them!" The next generation will automatically be in touch with everyone they've ever known even slightly via Facebook.

Forgotten anything else: Kids born this year will never know what it was like to stand in a bar and incessantly argue the unknowable. Today the world's collective knowledge is on the computer in your pocket or purse. And since you have it with you at all times, why bother remembering anything?

The evening news: The news is on 24/7. And if you're not home to watch it, that's OK -- it's on the smartphone in your pocket.

CDs: First records, then 8-track, then cassette, then CDs -- replacing your music collection used to be an expensive pastime. Now it's cheap(er) and as close as the nearest Internet connection.

Film cameras: For the purist, perhaps, but for kids born today, the word "film" will mean nothing. In fact, even digital cameras -- both video and still -- are in danger of extinction as our pocket computers take over that function too.

[Minivans Making a Comeback]

Yellow and White Pages: Why in the world would you need a 10-pound book just to find someone?

Catalogs: There's no need to send me a book in the mail when I can see everything you have for sale anywhere, anytime. If you want to remind me to look at it, send me an email.

Fax machines: Can you say "scan," ".pdf" and "email?"

One picture to a frame: Such a waste of wall/counter/desk space to have a separate frame around each picture. Eight gigabytes of pictures and/or video in a digital frame encompassing every person you've ever met and everything you've ever done -- now, that's efficient. Especially compared to what we used to do: put our friends and relatives together in a room and force them to watch what we called a "slide show" or "home movies."

Wires: Wires connecting phones to walls? Wires connecting computers, TVs, stereos, and other electronics to each other? Wires connecting computers to the Internet? To kids born in 2011, that will make as much sense as an electric car trailing an extension cord.

Hand-written letters: For that matter, hand-written anything. When was the last time you wrote cursive? In fact, do you even know what the word "cursive" means? Kids born in 2011 won't -- but they'll put you to shame on a tiny keyboard.

Talking to one person at a time: Remember when it was rude to be with one person while talking to another on the phone? Kids born today will just assume that you're supposed to use texting to maintain contact with five or six other people while pretending to pay attention to the person you happen to be physically next to.

Retirement plans: Yes, Johnny, there was a time when all you had to do was work at the same place for 20 years and they'd send you a check every month for as long as you lived. In fact, some companies would even pay your medical bills, too!

[Watch: Toddler Can Name U.S. Presidents]

Mail: What's left when you take the mail you receive today, then subtract the bills you could be paying online, the checks you could be having direct-deposited, and the junk mail you could be receiving as junk email? Answer: A bloated bureaucracy that loses billions of taxpayer dollars annually.

Commercials on TV: They're terrifically expensive, easily avoided with DVRs, and inefficiently target mass audiences. Unless somebody comes up with a way to force you to watch them -- as with video on the Internet -- who's going to pay for them?

Commercial music radio: Smartphones with music-streaming programs like Pandora are a better solution that doesn't include ads screaming between every song.

Hiding: Not long ago, if you didn't answer your home phone, that was that -- nobody knew if you were alive or dead, much less where you might be. Now your phone is not only in your pocket, it can potentially tell everyone -- including advertisers -- exactly where you are.

Source

Flickr Tags: trends,tech,technology,2010

Re-organizing Website

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 21:56:02 PDT

You know I don't really consider myself a techie but here I am in front of the computer once again and the only thing on my mind is getting these sites better. It's always a nagging thought to make the websites better. I decided before the release of wordpress 3.0 that I would re-organize the sites I manage that run on the wonderful wordpress platform and doing that has made things easier.

I must admit though Chicago's hottest parties online has transformed into a more work for me then I anticipated. I never intended for this project to result in me doing so much. Several times I've thought about dropping it and never looking back. I think I'm still learning lesson on letting go of the vision.

If I were following my own advise I would have dropped Chicago's hottest parties online when I didn't see the fliers for them being circulated, and when I pressed play on video after video and didn't see patrons in the club rocking Chicago's hottest parties online T-shirts. Why am I blogging this..? I'm blogging this because it's time to tell it like it is.

I am responsible for website hosting, website design, website promotion, email marketing, video and photo editing. In a nutshell most of what you see and hear on the internet for Chicago's hottest parties online and with all things considered I've done more than enough, more than what was agreed upon and more than most were willing to do.

I absolutely draw the line at promoting people and companies for free. I did not take on this project to promote friends, venues and promoters that are too cheap to invest in themselves and their business and now it is written. Here it is feel free to read this as many times as you need to.

Chicago's hottest parties online is still a work in progress and it is no where near what it needs to be or what it should be. This website is all about community and it is beneficial to the community of Chicago but most beneficial to the urban nightlife community. It's also supposed to be about networking and having fun !

There are no plans to turn it into an imitation facebook. There are plans to implement several ways for bloggers to make money from their blog post and plans to allow live streaming video on venue and entertainer pages. The idea of adding classifieds, games, and greeting cards, has been dismissed.

Chicago's hottest parties online is Chicago's #1 nightlife blogging community !! Is there another nightlife blogging community..?

Sell your merchandise on Amazon

How did you get started..? The blog post version...

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 02:03:16 PDT

Image by Brande Jackson via Flickr

When I tell people that I'm an entrepreneur and a webmaster they usually have a lot of questions. I find it extremely hard to tell them about being a webmaster or an entrepreneur without also telling them about my start in adult entertainment. Sometimes I do manage to skip over talking about adult entertainment when explaining although I'd much rather tell it like it is.

My interest in computers started in one of the grammer schools I attended in the englewood community. I was placed in "gifted" glasses and we were allowed to use the computers as another way of improving our test scores in whatever areas we needed it most. While I didn't find that I enjoyed the idea of doing math anymore than before I did love the computer. I was in 4th grade when the idea of working with computers begin to grow. Computers weren't booming then facebook and myspace didn't exist. The cell phones weren't in the hand of every man, woman and child. The only way I could use the computer was at school.

I had already been exposed to the art of photography, drawing, and painting. I was attending every craft class they had after school. When asked what did I want to be when I grew up I'd reply a veterinarian, or pediatrician or an artist and sometimes I'd say all three.

By the time I reached the age of twelve years old I had decided I did not want to be a pediatrician. At the age of 14 watching the devastation that death left made me lean towards pursuing a career as a Mortician to eventually buy my own funeral home. I read as much as I could about death, dying and grieving.

So at the age of 18 while taking classes to pursue my career in Mortuary Science I could not stay off the computer. I was so addicted to it ten mins. would turn into one hour and one hour would turn into two. One day one of the staff members asked what I was taking classes for and I replied Mortuary Science and he replied "right" in a sarcastic tone. He paused and said you might want to think about that a little more. I didn't want to hear that of course. Time rolled on and life kept throwing curve balls and road blocks. I moved on working in fast food then the transportation industry before getting a second job which was seasonal and required me to work on a computer.

I was in and out of school determined to be a Mortician until 2004. That's the year I bought my second computer jumped online and begin to embrace the internet as a way of life. I had a page on blackplanet when I begin to experiment with coding before moving on to geocities. After I out grew geocities I moved on to yahoo hosting where I fell in love with phpnuke and bought my first domain lovelyd.com.

My first website was nothing more than a collection of my favorite poems and a few pictures. I didn't know anyone who knew anything about websites. I kept reading and practicing. My site evolved and as I learned more I knew I wanted my own pay site.

In 2005 I came across a website looking for models so I completed the form and got a phone call. The next thing I knew I was outside letting a stranger photograph me. I enjoyed the photoshoot so much that as soon as I got back to my computer I was looking for more websites in need of models.

I think that just about sums it all up.

Famous 3-step method of requiring likes &invites

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 03:05:34 PDT

As a new facebook addict I'm like most of you. I spend entirely too much time on facebook. I justify this by saying social networking is good for my business. That's true it is but of course I've considered other ways of expanding my facebook circle and I've come across many websites that promise to help you be more productive on facebook. I haven't found one that I've actually tired. I still believe that good old fashion online and offline interaction is the best way to raise the numbers on your fan page and personal page. And here is a post that you might want to read before you decide to try a shortcut to facebook fame.

The (In)Famous 3-step Method of Requiring Likes & Invites to Make your Facebook Fan Page Viral – Forget About It!

The legitimate, organic acquisition of fans or followers or subscribers requires patience and, more importantly, the promise of quality content, in whatever form — useful information, discounts on products or services, entertainment, etc. If you consistently publish great content to your fan page, your fan base will grow, steadily and exponentially.

This article isn't about that; it's about get-fans-quick schemes…
NOTE: Do not add any script/code to your fan page that requires users to share or invite friends in order to view content! Check out our "Facebook-legal" code…

Not long after I started posting Static FBML tutorials on our blog, I began receiving the occasional request for a "3-step" fan page script that would force visitors to not only become a "fan" to see content, but also hide that content until the visitor had actually shared the information with their friends or posted it on their profile.
I decided to investigate this further, and it turns out the people using this approach to building up their fan count are doing so primarily as a Multi-Level Marketing ("MLM") strategy. Unfortunately for those deploying this strategy, it runs afoul of Facebook's Terms of Service.

Incentivized Fanning, Yes; Incentivized Inviting/Sharing, No!

Facebook is fine with dangling the promise of quality content in front of users, requiring them to "fan" your page to gain access. What Facebook is NOT fine with is putting up additional roadblocks/requirements for those who have fanned your page, such as requiring them to invite their friends to the page or share the page on their profile.
Facebook is okay with "incentivizing fanning" and advises:

As noted in this forum thread, apps are allowed to offer rewards or incentives to get users to fan their Page or Public Profile. Fanning is not considered an application integration point for which incentivizing is restricted [emphasis added].

An Application Integration Point is:

Profile Box, Application Info Section, Application tab, Feed, requests (including invites), Publisher, inbox attachments, Chat, Bookmarks, or any other feature of a user profile or Facebook communication channel in which or through which an application can provide, display, or deliver content directed at, on behalf of, or by permission of a user.

And here are Facebooks policies regarding Application Integration Points:

You must not incentivize users to grant additional permissions or use Application Integration Points.

You must not require users to grant additional permissions or add Application Integration Points, and must only request extended permissions at reasonable times when the user engages with features that would require the use.

You must not prompt users to send invitations, requests, publish a Stream story or use other Facebook communication channels immediately after a user allows access or returns to your application.

Warning to Page Admins: Don't Violate Facebook's Terms of Service!

So other than requiring that a user fan your page to gain access to content, pages are disallowed from putting up any additional roadblocks to content. Pages that use scripts to force the sharing or publishing of content before showing content can be, and have been, disabled by Facebook. And once this happens, it's no picnic trying to get back.
No matter what the purveyor of the script promises, do not install any script on your fan page that requires users to share or invite before granting them access to content!

Investigating the 3-Step Viral Fan Page Script

Multi-Level Marketing encourages multiple tiers of resellers to build up email email lists — and, now, fan-page counts — and then sell their lists to outfits that traffic in these lists, marketing them as "opt-in" even though in most cases those opting were promised that their email address wouldn't be sold.
Most of these 3-step fan-page scripts lead finally to a "squeeze page" where the whole point is to harvest an email address. Squeeze pages are highly focused and targeted, with an offer and and opt-in form to capture the email address (and, ironically perhaps, a promise not share the email address with third parties), and no links to other pages (thus the "squeeze"). The 3-step process results in the acquisition of both fans as well as opt-in email addresses.
Here is a typical offer for such a 3-step script:

FACEBOOK Viral 3 Step Fan page Script
Go viral with your Facebook fan page with this script.
With this script, you can easily go viral with your Facebook fan pages.
Here is a rundown of the steps
1. Become a Fan
2. Suggest to Friends
3. Click on your link
Step1: They are required to become a fan to move on.
Step2. They are required to invite their friends to move on.
Step3. They are required to click to your link to see the content
This is a superb viral fan page FBML script. Your fan base will grow rapidly.
When user clicks on your link to unlock the content they need to fill a survey! , You can get account from CPAlead.com, and start earning money right away!
CLICK HERE TO SEE LIVE DEMO PAGE
PRICE: only $20

The example the above person provides is the promise of "unseen Jessica Alba pictures," a typical bait. Something where the user thinks, What the heck. Hot Jessica pics for just fanning the page. Oh, and I guess I have to invite some friends. OK. Whatever. Here's another example (If you follow the comments thread, you'll see the seller of the script eventually disappears!).
And another example, which states "This page is designed to get users to fan your page and also to invite all of their friends. Squeeze pages are designed to maximize the amount of fans and users of your particular Facebook page. Using the special code for sale here you are able to gain an increased amount of users and fans due to the interface workflow provided to the user. It's like your page marketing on auto pilot!"
If you actually visit the Jessica Alba page (or any of the linked pages in the above ads), whatever they had going there no longer works. In fact, Facebook seems to have pretty much shut down this approach to bulking up fan counts, and is quickly disabling fan pages that utilize this technique. Some of the forums offer tips to avoid getting busted by Facebook, but it's probably a losing proposition.

Cost per Action / Cost per Acquisition Marketing

And what is that CPAlead.com website in the Alba-pics ad? It is one of many websites that offer compensation based on the "Cost Per Action" or "Cost per Acquisition" ("CPA") model. Wikipedia:

An online advertising pricing model, where the advertiser pays for each specified action (a purchase, a form submission, and so on) linked to the advertisement.
Direct response advertisers consider CPA the optimal way to buy online advertising, as an advertiser only pays for the ad when the desired action has occurred. The desired action to be performed is determined by the advertiser.

Can you have a 3-step process that doesn't violate Facebook's Terms of Service?

Yes, you can. As long as you don't make the viewing of your content contingent on a user sharing your page, you can certainly offer them the opportunity to share your page with their friends before you show your content. You just can't require it.
The "illegal" TOS-violating scripts are, I believe, created as canvas applications. I have created a basic 3-step fan-page Static FBML script that doesn't violate Facebook's Terms of Service. It asks the user to publish to their profile or invite friends, but doesn't require this to access an offer.

HyperArts

ECorner: Entrepreneurship By the Book

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 03:35:14 PDT

What's New Now

Video: Collaborative Innovation and a Pull Economy [Entire Talk}

John Seely Brown, Deloitte Center for Edge Innovation - 55 min. 26 sec.
What can extreme surfing and World of Warcraft teach the enterprise? Independent Co-Chairman of the Deloitte Center for the Edge and former Xerox PARC Chief Scientist John Seely Brown holds them as examples of the power of frequent benchmarking and full industry info-share. He also uses them to show how the core ecosystem can be made stronger by sharing knowledge gathered from learning on the edge. In addition, Seely Brown touches upon his theory of a monumental economic shift from a push to a pull economy as outlaid in his 2010 book, The Power of Pull: How Small Moves, Smartly Made, Can Set Big Things in Motion.

Entrepreneurship By the Book

Even in the age of lightning-fast digital communication, the printed page still has tremendous impact on innovation and entrepreneurial theory. The following three authors have delved deeply into the modern age with very successful - and yet, old-fashioned - tomes.

Video: Are Business Plans a Work of Fiction?

Randy Komisar, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers - 2 min. 6 sec.
Can one truly develop a business plan before having a product or a customer in-hand? Not very successfully, contends KPCB partner Randy Komisar. In this clip, Komisar discusses the premise for his book, Getting to Plan B, in which he points out how often the theory of a start-up succumbs to its execution. Komisar goes on to point out that thinking of Plan B as part of the process can change the way we think about constructing and managing the start-up.

Video: Products for Life, Customers for Life

William McDonough, William McDonough + Partners - 1 min. 20 sec.
McDonough + Partners lead William McDonough points out that manufacturers can utilize the same resources repeatedly, and build a lifetime buying relationship with their customer in the process. By closing the product cycle - that is, designing goods with their deconstruction and reconstruction in mind - product developers are uniquely poised to deepen their customer relationship. McDonough cites a case study of a carpet manufacturer that employs Cradle to Cradle design. Customers "lease" the carpet, and are offered financial incentive to return it after its term of use, where the manufacturer can strip it, reuse the backing, and replenish the fibers into new design - keeping toxic chemicals out of the environment, and unwanted product from the landfill.

Video: The Rise of the Superclass

David Rothkopf, Author - 7 min. 12 sec.
We can't legislate against historical trends in the global age, but we can look more closely at the well-networked superclass - those who have broad influence across international borders on a regular basis. The Superclass has money, power, and influence - but it's woefully short on ethics in the global interest. Author David Rothkopf (Superclass: The Global Power Elite and the World They Are Making) describes this influential core of the global power structure and stresses that economic prosperity can't be the only metric of a civilization's success.

Marketing Is King

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 03:23:51 PDT

Network Email

Black Business Space - Where Networking and Money Meet

"Its not WHAT you Know or WHO you Know its WHO KNOWS YOU"

That's just the way it is ...

Marketing is king.

There are plenty of them, but let me just give you
two examples:

Case 1: Coca Cola vs Pepsi

Since 1975, Pepsi has been running "The Pepsi
Challenge" where they hand 2 unlabeled cups to
bystanders in malls – one containing Pepsi and
the other one, Coke, and then they'd ask which
tastes better.

The result? Pepsi topped the challenge.

But Coca Cola is still the number one soft drink.
Why? ....... Advertising.

Case 2: McDonalds

Let's face it.

They don't have the best tasting burgers.

They don't have the best tasting french fries.

But they do know where to put their branches.

A marketing buddy of mine once said "McDonalds
is not in the fast food business, they're in the
real estate business."

Content is just a part of marketing

The way I apply it to my businesses ... content
–
is just a part of marketing.

Marketing is everything a potential customer sees,
hears, tastes, smells, feels, experiences, learns,
believes and knows about a company.

It includes everything from the color choices in
your logo to the packaging of your products to
customer service, the way you answer the phone,
use email and company guarantees.

It is seen in your advertising, branding, content
and promotions. It is your website, blog,
stationary, business cards, product line, sales
reps and public relations.

There are a lot of people out there who are
topping the charts but are not really "the"
best or don't really posses the best skills –
but they know how to market themselves.

Another quick example: Bruce Lee, not the
strongest, not the quickest but the most popular
martial artist ever.

There are a lot of people too who have "the"
best content, but are unknown.

Of course, I'm not saying that you should just
put all your efforts into marketing – again,
content is part of marketing – you have to
deliver.

Not necessarily the best content, but "good
enough" content is necessary to keep them coming
back.

So in conclusion: Marketing is king.

For more free information:
http://www.leegreenonline.com/recommends/marketingonline

Paper Back Dreams

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 20:45:28 PDT

The birds are singing, the sun is peeping out and I am sitting on my bed with a mud mask on my face thinking of you and your future. I'm also thinking of me and my future as a successful entrepreneur who uses the internet for nearly everything !!

The internet isn't going anywhere and the sooner you claim your piece of it the better off you'll be. I believe that, I preach that and It's evident. So, I'll share with you the link to the program I just watched on wttw prime. Yes, I watch wttw prime and now that I'll be 30 in a few months I'm no longer ashamed to admit it.

You can learn a lot from wttw. WATCH !!

http://www.filmbaby.com/films/3389

Back up your files

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Wed, 26 May 2010 03:48:09 PDT

Protect what you love !

I've had to learn the hard way and I'm sure some of you have as well. When you work on the computer there is no escape from protecting your computer and protecting your work. After spending countless hours planted in front of this screen you want to have some thing to show you have been productive.

How many Hard drives can you fill up in a year...? Hmm, now I wonder how many hard drives does the average webmaster, graphic artist, photographer or blogger fill up in a year. Knowing that can probably help you and I adjust our productivity ! Maybe I'm on to something here.
But the reality is I'm just too darn busy trying fill up drives to take the time to actually conduct a study about other people filling up drives. ! If you should stumble across the answer feel free to share it.
Now back to the matter at hand. You need nearly two of everything if working online accounts for most or all of your income. Don't make the mistake of relying solely on one computer to do all that heavy lifting. It can absolutely bring you to your knees to find out that all your hard work has been wiped away and you were too darn busy working to back it up or set it for automatic backups. I do realize that everyone has their own preference I've decided to give western digital a try and I'll be sure to keep you posted with what I love and what I hate. So far the software updating seems to be a bit much. The instructions state that you must update the firmware before you update the software or you could mess something up.
Computers are computers every process should be so simple a dummy can do it. I mean there is really no need to make a computer, computer device or software anymore intimidating then it already is. GEEZ

http://astore.amazon.com/lovelydent-20/detail/B002KG2LOA

What a flight attendant taught me about business

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 19:48:46 PDT

Quick Sprout

What a flight attendant taught me about business

Posted: 25 Mar 2010 01:00 PM PDT

Over the past few years I have been traveling on airplanes a lot. So much that I started to pay attention to the flight attendants because although they are taken for granted, they are actually pretty smart.
Here is what you can learn about business from them:

Customer service is important

When you first hop on a plane, you'll notice that you are usually greeted. And when you are about to take your seat and put away your luggage, the flight attendant is there to help you if you need it.
In addition to that, once the plane takes off, they give you beverages and light snacks to keep you happy.
And if that's not enough, you can request almost anything from them without even leaving your seat. All you have to do is push the "call" button and the flight attendant will come to you and ask you how they may be of assistance.
So what's their purpose of doing this? Well if you are happy you are most likely to keep on flying on that airline, right? Happy customers means repeat customers, which means more money for the airline company.

Customers aren't that smart

Before the plane leaves the ground, what's one thing that the flight attendant does? She gives you step by step instructions on what you need to do before the plane can take off.
For example she walks you through buckling your seat belt and how to put on an oxygen mask in case the cabin pressure decreases. And just in case things get really bad, she even shows you how to put on and use a flotation device.
Now although you probably already know everything the flight attendant is telling you, you can't assume that everyone else does. With your business you need good instructions and documentation in case users are confused. This is a good way to make sure your customers are getting the most out of your product or service.

Options aren't always good

With the beverage service the flight attendant usually tells you what drinks are available. And although there are multiple options for you, typically they limit the number of them. For example if you are interested in drinking juice, your options are orange or apple.
Here are the reasons flight attendant don't give you hundreds of options:

More options equal higher costs – it's cheaper to buy a 12 pack of coke than it is to buy 12 different flavors of soda.
Time is money – if you give someone a hundred different options, it may take them a while to choose one. On the other hand if you give someone two options, it's a lot easier for them to make a choice.
Less is more – it's proven that if you give someone too many options, it won't increase their satisfaction.

If you want to increase your profit margins and have customers that are more satisfied don't give them too many options. Some of the most successful businesses like Craigslist are very simple.

Sometimes you have to be strict

If you are a geek like me, you love to check your emails on your cell phone right before the plane takes off and you probably even try to text message while you are in the air.
And to top it off, you probably don't want to wait until the plane reaches 10,000 feet before you can pull out your laptop.
If you try breaking any of these rules, the flight attendant comes over and tells you nicely that you can't do it. And if you still don't listen, they usually come back and tell you again in a stricter voice. At this point you'll probably end up listening to them because you're afraid of what's going to happen if you don't.
With your business you can't always let customers walk on you. Although you want to keep them happy, you need to understand that customers aren't always right. And if you let one walk on you, there is nothing stopping the rest from doing the same thing.

The best up sell, don't seem like an up sell

I fly on a lot of airlines, but the one that seems to be best when it comes to up selling customers is Alaska Airlines. Here are some of the things that the flight attendant up sells you on when you don't realize it.

First class – flying in first class comes with a lot of perks, but it isn't cheap. For example first class passengers on an Alaska Airlines flight get free food and a portable movie player. If you happen to fly coach like me, you can also get food and a portable TV, but you have to pay extra. So when they announce this on the loud speaker, they make sure that coach passengers know that first class passengers get a free meal and portable TV, while the coach passengers only have an option to purchase them.
Free trip – one of the most successful up sells that I have seen is a free trip in the continental US. To get this free trip all you have to do is apply for an Alaska Airlines credit card. And although Alaska is giving you a free trip, they are making money on you because the credit card companies are paying them more money for each customer that signs up.
Free can convert into paid – on Horizen flights flight attendants typically offer one type of beer and wine for free. If you want a better brand of alcohol, you have to pay 6 dollars. The flight attendant doesn't really push you to buy the higher quality alcohol, but a popular trend I have noticed is that someone will drink the free, mediocre alcohol, and when the beverage cart comes around the second time they'll pony up the 6 dollars for the "good stuff". Remember, when most people drink alcohol, they typically don't stop at 1 drink.

If you are trying to up sell your customers, be smart about it. Don't just push them into paying you more money, but instead ease them into it. There isn't anything wrong with giving your customers a trial of additional products or services you offer in hopes that they'll purchase them.

It's the small things that keep people happy

The best flight attendant I have ever met was on a JetBlue flight. From take off to touch down, he was entertaining and literally had almost every passenger smiling.
Right before the plane took off, he said all of the standard stuff that most flight attendants say, but he told us that our estimated flight time to Las Vegas, Nevada was 2 hours and 30 minutes. The problem with that was everyone on the plane was expecting to go to Los Angeles, California and not Las Vegas. People started panicking, but when he said he was kidding passengers started laughing.
To top it off, when we landed another plane was still at our gate so we had to sit in the plane for an extra 10 minutes. In most cases passengers would have been angry, but the flight attendant started asking us trivia questions, such as how many international flights leave Los Angeles every day. Passengers started to throw out random numbers and within seconds everyone started to play along.
And to make things even worse (better), right before the plane got to the gate the power turned off for no reason, so the pilot had to restart plane. Right when this happened the first thing the flight attendant said was, "I'm glad that didn't happen while we were in air" and once again everyone started laughing.
So if you want to please your customers, you also have to focus on the small things. Having a perfect product or service is great, but that personal touch really makes a big difference.

Conclusion

Reading a Harvard Business Review is a great way to learn about business, but it isn't the only way. Look around you, the things you take for granted can teach you a lot about business.
You didn't expect to learn anything from an flight attendant, right? I didn't either, but both of us did. So don't take people for granted as you can probably even learn something from a 5 year old.

Quick Sprout
neil@neilpatel.com

Enterpreneur Spotlight : Thias Mills

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:29:37 PDT

I first came across the profile of Thias Mills on myspace about two years ago and instantly I was impressed and inspired.

Thias Mills is the founder, voice, and columnist of Lipserviceink.com a hip and fresh radioshow full of exclusive celebrity interviews. She is someone that every writer, youth advocate and entrepreneur should know. Whether you are a writer, avid reader or a youth advocate with a mission take advantage of the opportunity to spread Lub and Literacy with Thia's Mills Lub (love) Literacy Campaign.

clipped from: www.lipserviceink.com

When her world was unexpectedly erased by a devastating storm, what else could fiery Columnist / Poet / Artist / Entrepreneur Thais Mills do but pick her pencil up to INK the next chapter.

Thais's first dot-com venture, Enticing Objects emerged spotlighting her hand painted crafts which today have expanded to include Office Art, Craft Magnets, Photo Clips and The Little Canvas Collections with charity beneficiaries attached. Developing her already savvy writing skills at Southern University in New Orleans, Thais began transposing her words in three prominent publications, Data News Weekly, Offline and Sisterhood Magazines in columns spanning from romance to entertainment. She now utilizes those skills on LipServiceInk.com an eclectic portal which fuses her custom column creations with innovative celebrity interviews music and literacy education.

LipServiceInk.com smartly uses bookmarks as its marketing tool and to date more than 4 million bookmarks have been distributed across the globe.

How To Know Your Old Fashioned Website is Dead

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 10:34:04 PST

I just couldn't pass up this great post. I had to repost it.

It was painstaking stuff building that website of yours. When your company finally got serious about it, the process made you think about things you never really considered. You worked with your web developer and solved all kinds of problems together – identity, interactivity, information. Nice work! (Or maybe you just slapped up a brochure and checked “build a website” off of your TODO list!)
Either way, you know something is wrong don’t you? You’re not satisfied. You’re embarrassed by your website. And your mid-size business is facing a new, larger and more powerful online world. You’re surviving the recession, but what about the competition or start-ups nipping at your heals?

Does Google Like Your Website?

Does Google even know you exist? Is your content being spoon-fed into Google? The robots that come by to collect the information you publish just aren’t very bright. Do you accommodate them so that they don’t drop anything as they run back to Google to index the contents of your site? If you haven’t thought of this, chances are your search results aren’t what they should be. It’s time to work on the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) of your site. Well configured sites built on free platforms like WordPress are immediately indexed by WordPress.

Can You Easily Update Content on the Fly, Anytime, for Free?

Most corporate solutions for web publishing are handcuffs in terms of keeping your site current, rich and relevant. If you can’t easily manage content, you need to look into moving your site into a modern Content Management System (CMS) like WordPress. Did I mention it’s 100% free?

Does Your Site Invite a Dialogue?

“Brochureware” sites stink of decay and neglect. Brochure sites talk at visitors – announcing: “We don’t get the internet as a business channel.” Modern sites are “marketing platforms”. They invite a dialogue, comments, analysis and debate. Modern websites are a multimedia content syndication engine.

Is Your Site Networked With Social Media?

Is your site wired into new media? Do you have a blog with shareable content that educates prospects? Is your content shareable? Do you have a subscription service? Do you even have presences on social media sites? Don’t miss out on the single biggest business transformation in years. LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook – these are serious commercial opportunities. And your customers know that.

Is Your Website a Measurable Marketing Platform?

Are you measuring how visitors interact with your business online? What are you doing to optimize the experience. Modern business websites measure every aspect. They orchestrate, analyze and adapt with intent and purpose. Modern living breathing sites have a purpose and measure how your market interacts – pages views, traffic patterns, time on site, subscribers, comments, posts, keywords – and yes these tools are free.

Does Your Site Generate Business Leads?

Cost Per Lead or CPL is an online advertising pricing model, where the advertiser pays for an explicit sign-up from an interested consumer interested in the advertiser. What isn’t well understood is that business websites can be a long term CPL campaigns. Modern marketing websites are purpose built and evolve based on specific lead conversion goals.
Bury that relic and upgrade your business.
Tombstone image adapted from photo by Lenore M. Edman, www.evilmadscientist.com

B2B, brochure, Business Channel, Content Management System, Content Syndication, Corporate Solutions, Decay, Dialogue, free, Free Platforms, Google, Handcuffs, Mid Size Business, modern website, Multimedia Content, Neglect, Networked, Optimization Seo, Recession, Robots, Search Engine Optimization, SEO, Spoon Fed, Start Ups, Ups, Web Developer, website, wordpress

This post was written by:

Mark Bradford - who has written 48 posts on ChirpUp.com.
Mark is a new media marketing consultant and ChirpUp co-founder. He helps your business be heard online with SEO, social media, content strategy and modern website development.

Contact the author

How To Know Your Old Fashioned Website is Dead

Business and politics

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 17:12:54 PST

Originally uploaded by shindoo2

Most of my life I've felt that there is too much politics in every thing. I don't know if that's because I live in Chicago or because I live in a very political world. For a while I told my self that I'd have nothing to do with politics but I'd most likely be more successful at walking backwards for the rest of my life. I now accept that being successful at either one of the aforementioned would be foolish.

Politics is in everything and even if you are one of the few people that want to change that you most likely won't try to.This system was put in place a very long time ago and it has work for some and they will do whatever it takes to keep things as they are.

The other day I was listening to a conversation between two older people about liquor licenses here in Chicago on the south side. It's the same type of conversation I've heard a dozen times before. You know the one in which two or more poor black people say "they don't want us to have nothing".

We must learn to use our eyes for vision and not only sight. We are missing the bigger picture. There may be some politics to obtaining and keeping a liquor license but that certainly has nothing to do with color. The only color that matters in business is green. Anywho, in regards to liquor licenses I trust that the state of Illinois is doing what needs to be done. Based on my observation we all need to learn more about the politics of our business.

WDYT ..? Ice Theaters 87th Street

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 23:44:15 PST

I realize that some may not agree with this blog post. Especially the true entrepreneurs so I've decided to ask WDYT= What Do You Think..?

Ice Theaterat 87th west of the Dan Ryan expressway is truly the theater in the hood. There is no doubt about that.

Today I went there and as soon as I stepped inside with my ticket I see a beautiful vendor table with nice looking cheap aka cosmetic jewelry. You know the kind you take pictures in and never wear anywhere. They were displayed nicely starting at $25.00 going up to $40.00.

Yes, take that in for a moment. I went for a movie, paid for a ticket, had dinner prior to and now I need snacks so where exactly does this jewelry fit in the budget..? Is this a recession product..?

I know they are making money so that's why they are there but as a patron entering the theater for a movie I feel hassled.I don't see this vendor as being any different then a guy in the parking lot with his trunk up selling socks or turkey fryers at the "theater".

So yes, I fussed and bitched about that for a moment. The only justification I can think of for this is that it's only for the holidays. Don't get me wrong here. I don't have anything against anyone's hustle. If I needed to setup a table that surely would be a great place to do so.

The women just couldn't seem to resist touching, looking and trying on the jewelry. The jewelry they most likely didn't intend to buy because it's a theater not a mall.

As much as people complain about the prices at movie theaters I'm surprised they would add another expense. A guy taking out his girlfriend for an inexpensive movie has just gotten a $25.00 -$40.00 surcharge. Wow !! That should go over well. I mean how can he say no. It's the holidays, right..?

On the other hand a women with a "shopping addiction" looking to avoid buying things is in big trouble. She may just have to avoid the theater, the mall and settle for her home theater and netflix.

What do you think...?

Congratulations !!

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 23:44:53 PST

golden applause
Originally uploaded by zen
I've always felt that I'm supposed to do something bigger then I can think of or imagine perhaps something I won't even be aware of. Instead of fighting to make it happen I just read the signs, listen and keep going. Life has taught me that having your mind set on the "Big thing" can sometimes cause you to miss all the little things you need in order to acquire the "big thing" you want.

Life is best lived and far more enjoyable when you live it with an open mind, open eyes and a guarded heart.I went out today with a goal and though it seemed for a moment the goal was unattainable I didn't stop believing. As I waited I decided to stop in to some of the nearby businesses. I was shocked to learn that one of the entrepreneurs I spoke with was actually going to let a child show her how to use her facebook page.

While that may be ok if you are using the internet for recreation it is certainly not ok for marketing, branding and social networking purposes.

I chatted with her for a moment got her business card, the business card of her co-worker and the neighboring businesses and continued on to a nearby friends house.

She asked me about my business and the services I provide and congratulated me.
I said thank you and as I was walking I thought hmmm, she is the first person to congratulate me.

I never thought it made a difference whether or not anyone ever gave me that acknowledgment but apparently it does. It's amazing what small things can do.

Motivation

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 20:43:55 PDT

Yesterday, I saw a man on the corner peddling and I knew that he wouldn't be interested in any of my services but I felt at the very least I'd get some practice with my "sales pitch".

So, being who I am and doing what I do. I stopped to talk to him and immediately noticed all the illegal activity of his business. A peddler on a city street of Chicago selling cigarettes, boot leg porn (evasive angels, black market), t-shirts, boxers, socks, and nice Coach bag knock offs for $30.00 and he had the wrong license. He said he worked for the state and he most likely wouldn't be interested in my services but he knew someone else that might be.

Aww, another "NO". I never let the No's make me feel defeated. They make me tired but never defeated. After I made it back home I sat down and thought about the moments when I had his interest and the moments when I lost his interest. He had boot legged porn "Pinky" and I asked him did he go see her at Mr's G's. Now of course I knew he didn't and No he didn't. I asked him who was his favorite porn star and he said "I don't really watch that" there is no point in watching something I can't get.

Now, that struck me as being kinda odd. But It shouldn't have because there are a lot of "businesses" that don't use or support the products they sell. They simply supply what is demanded that's it, that's all and the products sell themselves.

While I was talking to him a women walked passed talking to herself and she stopped to look at his merchandise. She picked up some socks and his eyes locked in on her but she put them back and continued on talking to herself and walking. He want over to the orange crate to straighten his merchandise out and came back complaining about how people put his stuff back any kind of way.

Wow, I just couldn't believe it. There was something way deep down in the pit of my stomach yelling dude your selling socks on a corner out side of a currency exchange on a public street with a "Junk peddlers licenses". These are the small business owners that desperately need an upgrade but are most likely to refuse one.

Should I view peddlers as business men and women or just hustlers trying to make ends meet..?

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but the fact is they are acknowledged by the city of Chicago as small business owners and their license is a business license. There are thousands of peddlers throughout the city of Chicago and some of them are making money.

Spending 5-10 mins talking to him or anyone that is out and about is important.
I walked away feeling that the whole experience was a gain he even confirmed what I was thinking about his Coach bags. He got them from the same place most people do.

He's getting a pretty good deal on them but there is a way to get them even cheaper. Had he been interested I would have discussed more affordable suppliers.

Since I've been researching merchandise suppliers I have learned so much more about business. I feel as though a veil has been removed from my eyes.

Facebook share, missing images..??

noreply@blogger.com (Lovely D) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:53:55 PDT

A problem I've had on a site for quite some time and I didn't have the time to stop and look into such a minor issue. However today, it was truly annoying me so I did what I should have done a very long time ago. I went over the documentation for sharing post on face book again.

It's very simple if you want your images to show with a description you need to include this in your site header.

< meta content=" title " name=" title ">
< meta content=" description " name=" description ">
< link href="thumbnail_image" rel=" image_src ">

http://wiki.developers.facebook.com/index.php/Connect/Implementing_Facebook_Share

http://www.facebook.com/share_partners.php

I wish I had more time and a team to really get these applications developed ahh, maybe I should put that on my Christmas wish list this year right below clients with bigger budgets or and clients that understand the value of important things like web presence, branding, online advertising, web site development and web site maintenance.

Yes, all I want for Christmas are giant leaps instead of baby steps is that too much to ask...?