What Does a Remote Writer Do?

Electroneum Mobile Mining App working just fine 5/2018

2018-05-05T00:05:00.001+02:00

Hi, Cryptofriends!

It's been some time that I had so much fun on my laptop and my smartphone. In fact, generally there is nothing funny about doing research and more research, going shopping and more shopping and reading some online newspaper. Maybe I'm not creative enough!

Anyway, along came Electroneum! And the Android mobile mining app is now working continuously and when I've accumulated 10 ETNs, they get automatically transferred into the Electroneum wallet.

BTW: The Electroneum mining app is available on Google Play. It's so easy, in fact, totally automatic to install. I had created an account on their website first (not sure if this is required if you start on your smartphone first), but anyway, after hitting the big blue "Start mining" bar, off it went and we were in business.

Some weeks have passed by and I've now mined 325 ETNs. My smartphone is not overheating at all, but just to be on the safe side, I placed it on a piece of marble as we are expecting a very hot summer here in Andalucia/Spain again. And no, I'm not wearing out the battery as the smartphone is connected to mains unless I go out and take it with me which is not often the case.

Meanwhile, I think I'm listed on the Electroneum Market Place as a Remote Writer who writes blog posts and articles for ETNs and I also offer translations to and from English - German - Spanish. If you would like me to write a blog post or article or do a translation, please contact me at antjecobbett@gmail.com. Thank you.

And the super good news now is that I can spend my ETNs in an online shop called MGX as they accept ETNs as payment amongst other cryptos as well as their own token.

Scolling down their store front, one can find the announcement for ETNs:

I was tickled pink when I read that the Megaxstore caters especially for Millennials and I'm a pre-babyboomer really, a post war child. Gosh, I am getting older, but I don't see why only the Millennials should have all the crypto fun!

Anyway, I hope you'll have as much fun as I do with Electroneum and Megaxstore!

Sunny greetings from Spain!

Will write blog posts and articles for ETNs - will buy heritage seeds with ETNs

2018-04-24T18:03:00.000+02:00

Hi, Cryptofriends!

I've been mining Electroneums on my smartphone for just over a month now and have accumulated 216 ETNs as per today.

As I've written before, the app was easy to download onto my smartphone and there were a few technical glitches, but the Electroneum team sorted them out pretty fast!

Now I'm itching to try out the "Send" and "Receive" buttons. I can either use the online wallet that's installed on my laptop or I can use the app on my smartphone.

Obviously, as a remote writer I'm in the business of writing blog posts and articles for people around the world and so I would like to offer today to write a blog post of 300 words for 50 ETNs. That's right. I already value Electroneums higher than the market value actually is, because I just know that this cryptocurrency will go up a lot. Meanwhile, you are getting a good deal! ;)

Electroneum Symbol

That is measuring the value of ETNs in US dollars. And we all know that the purchasing power of all FIAT currencies is basically next to nothing and depends on us, the people, how much trust we put into those dying currencies to keep them going. Personally, I prefer from now on to buy and sell in cryptocurrencies and Electroneum is the ideal first cryptocurrency for anybody who wants to get to know how they work.

I also grow vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers organically. Therefore I would love to buy heritage seeds with Electroneums. Ok, so far I haven't got very many ETNs, but the content of my ETN wallet keeps growing and growing and an envelope with a few seeds in them sent through the mail is not very costly and my terrace garden will also grow and grow.

Our terrace garden in April 2018

Please get in touch with me via antjecobbett @ gmail.com for trading with Electroneums now and in future!

Sunny greetings from Spain!

Antje

Electroneum Mobile Mining now faster and more reliable

2018-04-09T09:53:00.000+02:00

Hi, Cryptofriends!

This is an update again on my experience with mining Electroneum on my smartphone (HUAWEI P6).

I'm pleased to report that the connection is now relatively stable and so I can mine about 10 Electroneums at 30 H/s in about 24 to 36 hours.

My wallet today shows that I've mined 90 ETNs and even the price is going up slowly again:

Screenshot of Electroneum price on Coinranking.com today

The number of participants mining Electroneum has also gone up from about 65000 to about 75000 miners these days. I view that as a very good sign! More and more people seem to get online to work with cryptocurrencies as an alternative to FIAT.

In the past mining any cryptocurrency required a lot of computer knowledge and big mining setups, so this concept was not for the general public. This has changed now with Electroneum. It is easy to participate with the mining app for smartphones which can be downloaded from Google Play.

Now we can all use ETNs for buying, selling, exchanging, saving ... in the crypto space without having to go to an exchange to buy ETNs or Bitcoin etc. first!

How I would like to exchange a few ETNs with another Electroneum miner! Just by way of trying it out. So here is what I'd like to suggest:

You send me a couple of ETNs and I send them back to you immediately! Here is my public key:

etnk1gzwEgo9Sv8vE8cuZNeshmV9nKXjWFrmapqKGLho3pbLySMQzxJLVKjKDeAkivWD26kn1YyeK36goWZrrHuK2pSDP2Jd2C

And if somebody out there has gardening things, especially seeds to sell, I will gladly pay with ETNs.

I would also like to accept ETNs for articles or blog posts somebody might require.

You can get in touch with me at antjecobbett @ gmail . com

Greetings from sunny Spain!

Antje

The Electroneum Mobile Miner Is Working Just Fine

2018-03-23T11:22:00.000+01:00

As promised, here is the update on mining the cryptocurrency Electroneum from my mobile phone.

My cellphone is a HUAWEI P6 and the Electroneum Mining App (available via Google Play) was so easy to install and the setup for the miner was easy and seemingly very secure, too.

I've been mining Electroneums (ETNs) since March 3 and so far I've received 30 ETNs.

Every so often the app stops and I have to restart it. I don't know why this is. We live in a remote village in Andalucia/Spain, we have a mobile Vodafone internet connection and we live in a modernized cave house with very thick walls. Really I can't say if the app just stops or if it's our connection.

Now let's see what those ETNs are worth in FIAT money.

Seems as if the cryptocurrency market has taken a beating over the last few days. I started off on March 3, 2018 when 1 ETN was worth $ 0,03 and now it's worth $ 0.02.

I'm not worried about the fluctuations in the cryptocurrency market, because I want to spend or transfer my ETNs within the cryptomarket. I really do not see any point in "cashing out" into worthless FIAT money.

It also occurred to me that one can barter any cryptocurrency for whatever price one would like to set as long as there is a buyer for that price. It seems we are in the same position as with gold and silver. Both are severely undervalued and if we want to trade in real physical gold/silver, then we just have to see what the market pays.

Since my smartphone is occupied mining ETNs, I thought I'd try to mine a few more on our various laptops. Yes, older laptops and laptops people gave us because they bought a new one.

I must say that my laptop mining efforts were more than underwhelming! Why?

First, we tried the Minergate mining software which was easy to install and easy to set up, but we never got anything mined within 4 weeks. Meanwhile, I've also read blogposts of people who confirm that there is not a lot or even NO cryptocurrency to be earned with that outfit. At the time I was mining Monero on 4 laptops and I would have been happy with just a fraction of a Monero every so often, but nothing in 4 weeks is not good enough. So we deleted the software again.

We also tried the Electroneum PC/laptop miner and I couldn't get it to work.

Then there was a hype about various other mining programs and they seemingly were difficult to set up and now they've got a bad press, I can't remember the reason though.

Finally I found WinMiner which is also easy to install and easy to set up and there are various cryptocurrencies to mine via various pool miners and one option was ETN, so I went with that. 24 hours later, still no ETNs mined.

I think the management of Electroneum is on to something here. They really managed to enable us to mine via mobile phone, the app works, we get rewarded and can participate in the cryptocurrency space. Thank you Electroneum!

Greetings from sunny Spain!

Antje

First day of mining for Electroneum (ETN) - mobile phone mining of cryptocurrency

2018-03-13T20:21:00.001+01:00

Hi, cryptocurrency friends!

I've been watching www.electroneum.com (UK) since December 2017 and I thought it was a good concept, so it's worthwhile waiting for it.

Basically, if you have a smartphone (Android or iOS), then you can download the Electroneum app and start mining their cryptocurrency.

Is it difficult, I hear you say? All those long numbers? And what about those different "keys"? What do I have to do???

Well, I started getting interested in cryptocurrencies last year in summer and to be sure, it wasn't easy. Finally I found a website that explains everything about cryptocurrencies on their website and they also provide a free video course about the subject and it was excellent. Check it out here:
https://99bitcoins.com/

99 Bitcoins beginner's course screen grab

This video course is absolutely free and ideal for beginners in the field of cryptocurrencies, blockchains and distributed ledger technology.

As I watched Bitcoin go up to almost $ 20.000, I thought I'd take a closer look. It seemed to me that suddenly everybody in the crypto space got into a Bitcoin fever and sure enough, speculation was on and nowadays you can even trade in Bitcoin futures. For me all that was far too volatile, so I kept searching for a more sensible ride and I found it in Electroneum and it's mobile mining facilities.

If you are a complete beginner, you have to know that cryptocurrencies are created by "mining" which is a simple term for millions of computers around the world creating cryptocurrencies and later on then processing transactions on the blockchains.

My first experience with mining was signing up with a German cryptocurrency mobile miner and they pretended that everybody in this mining pool gets a bit of cryptocurrency for "lending" them the processing power of my mobile. Unfortunately, nothing happened, no cryptocurrency earned, so I deleted the app and put it down to experience.

Then I found Electroneum which was supposed to go live with their mobile miner in January, but only went live last week. So today I dug up my password, pin and wallet number, downloaded the latest version of the Electroneum app for Android on Google Play and within a very short time I was online on their website on my laptop and then online mining for Electroneums (ETNs) on my Android smartphone.

The company had promised to make the sign up easy and I can confirm that it was reasonably easy. I'm 63 and if I can do it, well, probably most people can, too.

I had placed my smartphone on a marble slab and that seems to be enough to keep it cool.

We live in Spain and although it's winter here now and I probably won't have to worry about overheating my smartphone, in summer it gets really, really hot here, but the marble slap keeps it nice and cool even if I run it 24 hours a day.

1 ETN today is worth $ 0.04 which doesn't seem a lot, but look what happened to Bitcoin and other currencies in the past. Of course, ETNs can go up in price as did so many other cryptocurrencies, but I'm in this for the long run, I don't like to speculate to make a lot of fiatcurrency, I just want to buy and sell online with ETNs.

Every so often I checked what my Electroneum miner was doing and then suddenly I saw that I had already mined 0.16 of an Electroneum. It seems I'm mining at 20 H/s which seems very little, but I'm ok with that. Then we had lunch, I checked again and I had mined 0.66 of an ETN. Last time I checked I was on 0.99 of an ETN. Not bad going I thought, so in a day I could possibly mine 1 ETN at the moment and that's fine with me.

Ahh, just checked again, we are at 1.15 ETN.

In the morning there were about 55.500 people mining and now there are over 60.000. Early days yet and the best time to get started!

Electroneum is listed on 2 cryptocurrency exchanges in case you wanted to convert what you mined into fiatcurrency. I think I won't do that. I'll rather wait until I can spend my Electroneums online with people who accept them as payment.

I will also accept ETNs as payment for writing blog posts and doing translations from and to English, German and Spanish or for the cute Amigurumi crochet animals I make.

Well, thanks for reading and sharing this blogpost! I'm so looking forward to Electroneums being available world-wide! The management of this company is great and has far reaching goals.

More of my experience with Electroneum next week!

Greetings from sunny Spain!

Antje

I love AdBlock Plus

2016-01-23T21:01:00.000+01:00

There we have it!

A stupid little German crocheting site and the almighty "Forbes" website have actually noticed that I'm running an Adblocker software. Big deal!

Arriving at their respective homepage, both sites hurled a pop-up window into my face, threatening, pleading ..... to turn off my adblocker software. Or else ...

Excuse me? Or else .... Guess what?

Suddenly I don't want to read your site anymore! I don't need your site! There are countless others that will give me exactly the same information! Nobody really needs you, Ribblemonster and Forbes!

Oh, you need the income from your advertising? Begging for views and clicks? How despicable! There are so many opportunities on how you can make money on the internet, are you just too lazy to find them?

How dare anybody on this so-called free internet wants to tell me off or punish me for running an adblocker software? The fault is really yours! Why do you run ads that I'm not interested in and that slow down my loading times? Run ads I'm interested in (ask Google, they know precisely what I'm interested in) and show me my tailor made ads. I will look at them and click on them.

Ahhhh, it would be different if the advertisers paid for my internet connection, so I could have it for free and all I'd have to do is wait for the adverts to download and eventually I could enjoy the information presented - somewhere at the bottom or inbetween.

But as long as I (little me!) is paying for all those advertising Gigas to download, I will reserve the right to block them.

I repeat: You, the advertiser pay for my internet connection and I will let you download your mindless adverts onto my laptop or smartphone - no problem. But while I'm paying, I decide what I want to download, see and read. Are you with me?

Just in case you are not an advertiser and you are browsing the web in search for real information and are equally annoyed about being bombarded with ads sitting peacefully at home and not wanting to buy anything, well, here is the link to the free Adblock Plus. I've downloaded it and it installed itself, end of story, erm ... end of ads on my screen:

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/adblock-plus/cfhdojbkjhnklbpkdaibdccddilifddb

10.000.000+ users can't be wrong!

And here's a screenshot of the free AdBlock Plus software, I bet you'll love it as much as I do!

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Not just a number anymore ... ! :)

2013-12-12T21:03:00.002+01:00

I'm really, really pleased that Google approved of my new Google+ URL. I had applied for it some time ago, but hadn't qualified, because I didn't have enough subscribers. So thanks to you all who follow me on my Google+ page, I finally got approved!

The old Google+ page was the URL with this very long number and now it's simply:

google.com/+WhatdoesaremotewriterdoBlogspot

And my Google+ profile is also brand new with my name instead of a long number:

https://plus.google.com/+AntjeCobbett

I'm a happy bunny now! :)

And what else have I been up to? Well, in spring and summer I was extremely busy with my new circle garden as I grow my own fruit and vegetables and I also helped a neighbor in the fields, lots to learn, hard work, but I love it!

With much disappointment I have also noticed that for us non-US writers it is very difficult to make any money at all on the various writing platforms. Or is it that the visitors to those platforms simply don't click on those boring ads? Who cares, but I really do write 100% original articles about various subjects and not a penny for it? But, of course the effort was not lost entirely as I could build up a nice link wheel from all those platforms to my various blogs.

My income with Google Adsense notches up and I also get a small amount transferred to my PayPal account from Wikinut. They are based in the UK and they do actually pay out! Here's my account with them:

http://www.wikinut.com/author~zchj/chrysolite/

My pen name there is Chrysolite, I've been writing for them since 2009 and still loving it!

I'm also working for a client who sends good online work my way on quite a regular basis also since 2009.

What else? Yes, I cancelled my Facebook and Twitter accounts, they don't do anything for my online writing business, but Google+ is going strong and LinkedIn is also worth participating.

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbett on

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Content is not king

2013-01-02T00:06:00.000+01:00

I may be wrong, but I'm just pondering about why it is that certain good content on the net brings in money, but most good content simply doesn't.

It looks to me that the only good content is what the masses want to read and on the way they can be enticed to spend yet more money they haven't got with their credit cards.

So what exactly is it that the masses want to read? Football, celebrities, games, recipes, violence, ticket sales? Anything to forget their miserable industry slave lifestyle with taxes, bills and mortgage to pay at the end of the month with no money left over for some fun. Well, there is the credit card.

From childhood onwards we are required to perform to reach the carrot dangling in front of us and only the very lucky ones will get a tiny bite of this sweet carrot which again and again produces hope where there is none.

It also seems to me that the masses of people are lazy by default falling for every advertising promise that makes life easier and fun and sexy - if you pay with your credit card, of course!

And now politicians and industry leaders haven taken to ignore the demands of the masses, the very people who pay their salaries. And the masses don't even mind!

Drugged up with chemicals the masses carry on to "perform" to whatever little standard can be performed to by the demands through advertising, soap operas and talk shows.

I personally don't even mind the state of current mass psychology, because I've said good-bye to society a long time ago by simply studying the truth behind each subject and the hundreds and hundreds of lies that we are fed daily. They only serve to confuse most people.

So what exactly is it that bugs me into writing this blog post?

I will state it clearly and in writing here for the year 2013 and beyond that I'm not willing any longer to listen to all the negativity that the masses spew like poison. Relentlessly I'm told about their self-inflicted illnesses, their self-inflicted unemployment with all the moaning and raving against their particular government, the boss, the spouse, the kids. I can take no more!

As Dr. Joseph Murphy stated in one of his books:

"Poverty is a mental illness that needs to be eradicated!"

I say:

"Ignorance is a mental illness that needs to be eradicated!"

A healthy body, mind and spirit is normal, an unhealthy body, mind and spirit is abnormal!

Humans still are and always will be part of nature and nature supports the strong and eliminates the weak - an eternal fact. And since this is so, I will not listen to all this negativity anymore, because it is our first duty in life to keep ourselves healthy as not to be a burden to our loved ones and society.

Or the masses, my friends and neighbors, etc. adjust their lifestyle to love, health, wealth and happiness or they won't.

All I ask is that people won't bore me with the same worries and problems over and over again, since the solutions for all those problems exist and are not even hidden! Too lazy to learn and study? Prefer games and TV? Suit yourself.

Are we now asked to be compassionate with stupidity, laziness and general mental abnormality? - Sorry, not me anymore. I'm off walking over the rainbow into the light of love and happiness. I deserve it.

Happy content will be king with me and on my blogs in future! Ok, it won't make headline news, won't be in any way interesting and certainly won't make any money.

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Where do all the data go?

2012-11-23T20:40:00.002+01:00

The other day I couldn't help thinking about data storage and cloud applications. Of course, there are data intensive applications, let's say for example Google Maps, Amazon.com, YouTube videos and there are many, many more. A lot of data that have to be stored in a way that internet users can access them almost instantly.

But then again, and I know that from my own computer/internet experience, there are data one thinks ob might need again, but generally life moves on and new and better information come in so rapidly that all those "old" data are virtually outdated and fairly useless.

Very old tax data, very old company data, old "free" and forgotten websites or blogs. All sitting in some cloud server clogging up valuable space. It seems to me as if people hold on to their data like they hold on to photos! But somehow, eventually photos get sorted, tidied up, thrown out, etc.

Not so with old data. Yes, I see Google regularly "tidying up", but other companies seem to hold on to their old data for dear life! Why?

One thing, of course, is clear: Nobody likes cleaning up data or anything else. Human nature, I guess. And physical garbage, we have learned by now, must be disposed of, or else ...

But data garbage doesn't do much except clogging up server space in the clouds. Cloud providers don't mind either, they get paid for storing data garbage. Might there be a little money saving tip here? - I.e. save money by regularly cleaning up your old cloud data?

Or do I even feel a new service coming on? The word sounds nice: "The Cloud Cleaning Service".

I can imagine professional people who are training to spot "old" data and might even use software to help them do the job quickly and efficiently. First they "phase out" the old data and after a certain period of time it's decision making time. They pack a garbage data packet and hit: Delete!

I would find this deleting stage very satisfying indeed!

Oh well, just a thought, I'm off now to do a bit of old data deleting on my own computer.

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Finally - a new laptop!

2012-10-28T17:19:00.000+01:00

As things are going forward and upward, finally I could buy a nice new laptop and I was surprised how the prices for laptops had fallen. They are now just a bit more expensive than netbooks here in Spain. Fair enough, working on the internet becomes even more affordable and no excuse anymore for not doing so!

Strange, how a new laptop or computer is somehow a stranger at first! Windows 7 now and all those new pre-loaded programs to look at and then finally downloading one's own software ... or not.

If you've read one of my last blog posts, I actually wanted the Google Chromebook which would do me just fine as I only use Google programs, but I think it's still not out in the 4 GB Ram version here in Spain. But I haven't forgotten it, I will have it one day as a second computer as it really is all I need.

So I immediately made a system backup of my new laptop, labelled it and then proceeded to delete all the software I don't want. No, I don't want a virus protection program, why should I? I'm working only with Google apps and I trust Google explicitly since 2009 to protect my online endeavors and I shall trust in their online security always.

How can I be sure though? Well, I only use this computer to work. Not for gaming or visiting dubious sites or downloading programs. This is, in my opinion, where all those viruses and malware come from. In fact, I can only remember years ago the "I love you"-virus. You had to click on a link in your email to activate the virus. We saw it both, my husband and I. We looked at each other and decided that nobody would send us a message that says: "I love you!" So common sense whispered that it had to be something bad. And so it was.

It's been a couple of weeks now since I got my new laptop, I'm happy that I finally got a CD/DVD drive and maybe I'll even push the boat out now and buy a printer. Then my home office will be complete. I feel comfortable again with the bigger keys on the keyboard and generally I feel at home with this new machine. My eyes are grateful for the bigger screen, too! Strange how we get used to things ...

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Website Review: The CIO Collaboration Network

2012-09-18T15:46:00.001+02:00

Just in case you wanted to know how proper web design and proper networking is done, just have a look at the website of The CIO Collaboration Network on http://www.ciocollaborationnetwork.com/

I'm working as a remote writer and blogger these days, but years ago I was a web designer and I still know what a perfect website looks like! Compact and attractive design, all the elements including the elegant sign-up procedure are working and we find a wealth of solution-orientated articles, tips and forward thinking for the modern business owner or business manager.

The tone of the website is framed positively and after you've signed up you are encouraged to participate and contribute by writing a blog, by voting and many more actions to include the visitor's opinion on the website.

Clean design and clean programming is still possible, a perfect website is a must if we want to compete with billions of other sites. The CIO Collaboration Network will get visitors, Google's search algorithms know when they come across a great site!

How did I get to know about this great website? Well, I received a comment on my last blog post from them, a nice, friendly comment, just that - networking. So I had a look at the provided link and with one glance I could take in what the site was all about, i.e. business collaboration, mobile collaboration, video collaboration, customer experience collaboration, collaborative cloud. Yes, that's it, I read more and signed up to receive their weekly newsletter. In my mind words like "interesting", "future", "business" seemed to form.

And, of course, there is a video on YouTube, you would expect that of any modern company now:

I dare say, if they can make me notice them and inspire me to write a blog post about The CIO Collaboration Network, then they will be noticed by a lot more people out there as well. Guaranteed!

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Is Google ChromeBook a good deal in Spain?

2012-09-09T18:15:00.001+02:00

Ok, I do want to buy the Google ChromeBook. I have decided to only use Google apps and programs, so it is a logical step to go and buy it.

But, I live in Spain. So I did a bit of research to see what's on offer in the US, in the UK, in Germany and in Spain.

To cut a long story and big disappointment short, the Google ChromeBook is sold only as the 2 GB RAM version in Spain to the tune of €460 and an offer of 2 months gratis connection with Telefonica. The 4 GB RAM version is not even available here.

For $500 I'd get the 4 GB RAM version in the US plus a free offer connecting to Verizon.

I really do feel cheated. There is no other word for it. My experience over the last few years online is also that the Google Nexus is not supported and neither are other popular brands of smartphones. They are a glorified and overpriced pieces of mobile phones in Spain and no more.

I don't know what to think or what to do. I want to buy the the Google Chromebook 4 GB RAM supported by a mobile provider like Vodaphone, for example, who is the only provider who cares to put up a service in rural areas. So thank you Vodaphone for that.

Meanwhile, I guess I have to carry on with my boring and slow Windows XP netbook.

I was hoping so much for something new and fast and the Google Chromebook is! Can anyone of the younger generation imagine what it's like to work with Windows since version 3.1? - I did. The same tune every day at least twice!

No, I'm not bitter or anything and don't want to criticize, just stating what I would really, really like to do. I want to work as a remote writer using all things Google: Blogger, Google Docs (Drive), Google Search, Gmail, GoogleTalk, Google+, Google Adsense, Google AdWords, Google URL shortener, YouTube etc., etc. And I want a fast machine to process my data instead of hanging about waiting for data to upload and download.

I'm also dreaming about a Google internet connection here in Spain. Fast, reliable, compatible with all things Google. Will my dreams come true? We have the technology, so why can't we use it worldwide?

Any advice on the matter is very, very welcome!

P.S.: I finally found a Google Chromebook 4 GB 3G for €850, not sure about the maths here. I still want the Chromebook, but unfortunately I will have to wait until the prices will be more reasonable here in Spain.

Thanks for calling in!

Antje Cobbett
Remote Writer
Chrysolite's Article Desk

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Thank you, Google!

2012-09-03T17:08:00.000+02:00

You know how it is every day. One writes yet another article, yet another blog post, one uploads a video to YouTube and sends pictures here and there, networking, round and round it goes until - bang! Computer (in my case netbook) was dead.

Yes, I had tried to download CamStudio for free and apparently they want you to download the Babylon toolbar with it, but didn't give me the option not to! I don't like Babylon, I speak 4 languages fluently myself and a netbook screen is not big enough for an extra toolbar! The download started automatically without the option to stop it.

So first I pulled the cable of the netbook's power supply and then I took the battery of the netbook out to stop this download! Maybe I shouldn't have done that!

On powering up, the screen informed me that the "config.sys" is damaged and I need to put the Windows CD in to repair it. Well, netbooks come with an OEM version of Windows and certainly don't have a CD player! Oh well, I thought, I'm sure it was all my fault, let's go to plan B.

Living so far out in the sticks, I have doubled up on everything here. 2 netbooks, 2 mobile phones, 2 sources of power (solar and generator) and 2 internet connections (satellite and mobile). And so I unplugged the satellite cable and put it into the spare netbook.

Screen coming up, Windows theme - fine, double click on the Google Chrome icon and there it was all again!

Blogger, Sites, Picasa, YouTube, Adsense, Google+, Gmail, GoogleTalk, all came up one by one as I had left them on my other netbook!

I think that this is the first time in 30 years of working with computers that I had practically lost no data in the crash. The Google programs had always and silently saved everything - brilliant!

Often we take all the work that is going on behind the Google programs for granted, but when our computer crashes and little sweat beads are appearing on the forehead ..., well, not this time, so here it is, a heartfelt

Thank you to everybody at Google!

Oh yes, some time ago I had started to use Google Docs, but somehow hadn't gotten round to making using it a daily habit, so I did lose a few texts that I had written, nothing important though.

Before I did anything else I called up Google Docs to keep the program in a tab, so I wouldn't forget again!

Ahhhh, Google Docs is becoming Google Drive now. Fair enough, so I downloaded the application and it seems that it does actually sync with the documents on my computer. Even better, but I will have to try this out still. 5GB of free space? Ideal!

I took out some notes and started typing them up in Google Drive. The little sentence near the top of the screen "All changes saved" is very popular with me these days, I can assure everybody! ;)

And all those programs and many apps are provided by Google for free! So thank you again everybody at Google,

"All changes saved" - saved my day!

P.S.: Will I replace the netbook to have a spare again? Yes, I need another spare without doubt. The internet is my source of income and my lifeline to civilization, but I will probably get the Google Nexus, because it will be smaller to carry around and a lot faster. I'm quite looking forward to it!

Thanks for calling in!

Antje Cobbett
Remote Writer
Chrysolite's Article Desk

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Free Fast File Conversion Online With Zamzar.com

2012-07-30T12:49:00.001+02:00

Have you ever wanted to convert a document, a picture or a video from one file format to another? My lastest endeavor was to convert a video from .3gp to .avi.

Ok, I only got a netbook, a cheap film camera and a cheap smartphone and each does their own file formats which Windows XP will not recognize unless I buy the upgrade pack. I won't.

That is because we got Zamzar.com:

That's a screenshot I made from their homepage.

You call up their website, choose which file you want to upload, choose which file format you want them to convert it to and within minutes you get an email with a link where you can download your new file again. Couldn't be easier and of course, it's free!

That's a screenshot I made of the email I received with the download link.

Here's a video I found to tell you more about file conversion with Zamzar.com:

So finally I'm free from all those different file format problems that the manufacturers produce who love their clients. But then again, there is always another way: Zamzar.com.

Thanks for calling in!

Antje Cobbett
Remote Writer
Chrysolite's Article Desk

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Free Blog Post Marketing With Animoto.com

2012-07-17T13:49:00.000+02:00

Everybody who writes articles and blog posts simply has to market, advertise, publicize each blog post. How else would others know about it?

So every time I've finished a blog post here on Blogger.com, I copy the title and the link and post it to Google+, Facebook, Redgage and Tabzi. That generally gets the first clicks in if the title is appealing and well, I really do try my best with the title!

I've always been wondering how I could make a video of my blogs and finally I found a way that is free and makes brilliant videos of the screenshots I make from my best blog posts. A friend of mine had told me of Animoto.com and so I gave it a try.

My netbook has some blue writing on some of the keys and there is a blue "fn" key at the bottom left of the keyboard and if I hold that down and press the "ins" button which also has some blue writing "impr scr" underneath, then this action copies what is visible on the screen at this very moment, i.e. one of the blog posts I had called up.

I then call up Hornil Stylepix, which is a free graphics program and call up a new file. Into this file I then copy with "ctrl v" what I had just copied before with "fn"/"impr scr". I then save the file as .jpg into a folder where I can find it again. I then carry on making another few screenshots of some blog posts.

When finished, I go to Animoto.com to make my free 30 second video, following the dead-easy instructions:

1. Choose a theme
2. Choose the music
3. Upload the screenshots
4. Add some text
5. Click on "Make Video"

There are a few tools one can use and also a preview option. You can then use the upload option to YouTube in the free version and if you want more options, then you simply upgrade.

For me, this is the fastest way to produce a little video of each of my blogs and in the end, I will also monetize them, if YouTube/Adsense gives me the option to do so.

Like this, networking is really fun for me, I love all the possibilities to network here and there and everywhere for free!

Now here is my first little video advertising my blog on water:

Water - Elixir of Life - Latest Info!

The video preview for my blog: http://buywaterinplasticorglassbottles.blogspot.com

Watch the video here: http://animoto.com/play/ZTaYKsPR6OOlzkdUKGzSgQ

And here's another one I made with a few photos when I was working at medieval markets spinning angora wool. Just goes to show what one can do with this nifty program!

Thanks for calling in!

Antje Cobbett
Remote Writer
Chrysolite's Article Desk

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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I'm active at The 10K Challenge (build up multiple income streams)
Join me at The 10K Challenge!

I'm active on bizoppers.com (the social network that pays!)
Join me at Bizoppers!

I'm active on Tabzi.com (Social Network PLUS Traffic Exchange PLUS FREE advertising) Join me at Tabzi!

What might be "The 10K Challenge"?

2012-06-23T20:29:00.001+02:00

Maybe we can agree on one thing today: Unless we do massive advertising for our products, services, websites, blogs or articles etc., we will get absolutely nowhere fast! At least that's my experience as I've been working in marketing all my life.

Then there is good and bad advertising and marketing. Both can come for free, a reasonable amount or for a lot of money. And in a time where consumer behavior is definitely changing and is often very unpredictable, a lot of advertising and marketing money goes down the drain. On the internet we have the added hazard of "scams" from advertisers and online marketers alike.

Now I've spent my time to build up a few blogs on Blogger, I've signed up with Adsense and I'm doing my social networking and my linkwheel, all a lot of work to build up my online business of which I eventually want to live off and one day retire on.

And maybe I'm stating the obvious here, but I think it's totally clear that you can only make money on the internet if you got massive traffic coming to your website or blog. Lucky you, if you have a product that everybody wants or a niche blog that is fantastically successful, but chances are that it's not unless there is a lot of background work done in marketing and advertising.

Of course, you've done all your networking on Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and certainly on your own favorite social networks, too numerous to list them all. Constantly, as time allows, you are commenting on other people's blogs leaving a backlink and you've even tried software programs that automatically submit your links to the various big and small search engines. Maybe you've even made a lovely YouTube video to drive traffic to your site and now you sit exhausted thinking what else can be done to get this massive traffic to your business! So far, that was my daily work.

Another leg, another opportunity to get my links to people. Let it be free or very low cost, but I need more traffic, more, more, more! I know there are people out there who want my products or want to read my articles, how can I get my links to all those people who might be interested?

Google+ is really my favorite networking place to create opportunities - no more no less. Mostly I get a bloke on the Chat: "Hi, what are you doing sweety?" - Sigh, but then I reply: "I'm busy writing an article, would you mind looking at it? http://www...... Problem solved and another link sent.

But then, there was another message on the Google+ chat: "Hi, I'm Catherine, how are you doing?" - "Fine, just writing another article on http://www ...., and you, what are you doing?" - "I'm trying to get to grips with the 10K challenge." - "Excuse my ignorance, what is the 10K challenge?"

We soon switched to a more private chat and Catherine explained the concept of "The 10K Challenge" to me. Yep, online marketing with multiple streams of income. I had never tried such a concept before! You know, my brain immediately signaled red: "Beware Scam!" But Catherine and I somehow clicked. I thought I had nothing to lose and signed up at http://bit.ly/N4mzu8 to see what it was all about.

Yes, step by step instructions, well done the concept and then the new (for me) word: "Safelist". Immediately I looked up what that means and wow! That is where everybody markets and advertises totally legit and fun to do as well (at least for me, I like it). I still have nothing to lose, I follow the steps and make money and at the same time, I will advertise my blogs and articles through this massive system of safelists. Yes, free advertising for me with some of my earned credits.

A total win-win situation if you ask me!

Catherine and I had the emails flying back and forward, business mixed with friendly chat and today came the magic sentence from her: "You know, I could earn a lot more money here if the people in my downline would work and they could, too! But they are lazy and don't want to work for 35 minutes a day!"

Well, I ask you, my esteemed reader, what is the point in that??? Either I commit to something and do it or I don't sign up in the first place. But maybe there are still people out there that want the "make-a-million-online" concept to function without work!

For those that don't want to work, dream on, dreaming is free of charge, but also generally doesn't create an income, but for the others who want an online income, why not join me in my quest to earn a bit of money using The 10K Challenge and at the same time learn to use "safelists" to drive traffic to my own sites. Or maybe you just want a plan that works and spend a bit of time each day to build up your business. Either way, you know you are welcome if you want to become another hard working team member in our line on

And please don't sign up if you just want to see if you can get away with making this million without working! Please, don't!

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

P.S.: I'm now on Day 9 of "The 10K Challenge" and I'm getting the hang of using safelists also for advertising my own articles, I've already prepared a nice, friendly text and tomorrow I will start promoting "The Best of ..." - my very own articles, of course. I will update this blog post if I see the traffic to my articles increasing significantly! So stay tuned!

P.S.: I'm now on Day 20 of "The 10K Challenge", learning yet more about internet marketing and loving it. I have also sent out some free emails with some links to my articles and I'm so pleased that there is a good upward trend in the number of clicks I receive on my articles, which, of course, brings me more money. So now I will step up my article marketing with my free credits on the various free to join safelists I'm subscribed to.

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Roundup: Blogging For 1 Year

2012-04-15T13:47:00.001+02:00

April last year I decided to start blogging. I had worked out small business plan and opted to use Blogger and all the other free Google products. They are easy to understand and easy to work with - no problem.

Soon I had 14 niche blogs on different subject of my interest going, wrote diligently one or two blog posts a day and I obviously also had a look round what other bloggers had experienced, which ones were the successful blogs with the most hits and income via Adsense and affiliate ads. I also read much advice on how to blog successfully, SEO, commenting, backlinks, driving traffic to my blogs, social networking and much more.

Advice from Google:

"At Google, we grow our business with the notion “Focus on the users, and all else will follow,” and we hope you can also grow your business with us by following the same principle."

I adhered to it 100%. I blog and write for my readers and not necessarily for money, but nobody can work for free either. And this is where the successful bloggers' advice comes in to apply Google Analytics and Google Adwords and write and write blog posts on what people search for.

Just a moment! So thousands of bloggers write on the same keywords just to please the public with blog entries that are not necessarily of contextual value!

I'm afraid, that's not me and it's not what Google wants, but it certainly brings in the money!

Which is why I think that I'm now at the cross roads having to decide after 1 year whether I will write for content or for money. It is a difficult decision, because it seems that the attention span of most people on the internet is very short, blog posts and articles are not read in its entirety, but speed read from top left to bottom right. I fail to see what the point of that is.

I also don't really care whether other bloggers admit it or not. The internet public does not click on the ads displayed as much as they used to which means no income for bloggers. This may be a seasonal thing, but I think most people are trying to save, save, save and not spend, spend, spend. I may be wrong here.

Money, money, money. Well, I have found a few online income sources that pay immediately on submitting an article or blog post and I make sufficient money as a ghost writer and guest blogger to make ends meet on a daily basis and apart from blogging I have also found a few sites where I can build up residual income. This income is very small and probably always will be, but it's there, same as niche blogging with Adsense, it's there and it will not go away and it can be augmented as and when the daily income needs are fulfilled. Ideal really!

So for the next year of my blogging endeavor, I will still write for my readers, but it will have to be a few less blog entries of the highest quality I can manage - AFTER I've done my daily writing for my immediate money requirements.

Please keep commenting and subscribing to my blogs if you like the subject, I'll make sure it'll be worth your while!

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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How Did I Find My Clients?

2012-03-18T22:17:00.001+01:00

Actually, I still haven't got the foggiest idea on how I got my clients in the past. Recommendation? Networking? Luck?

Obviously I can't mention names, but I try to remember how it all began. First I got a recommendation from a friend and got into a question & answer site and I'm still writing for them now on various projects for nearly 2 years.

I had also signed up with Fiverr.com and had quite a few clients there, but somehow I didn't feel that I got paid enough, so I closed my account. Unfortunately one can't contact clients directly on Fiverr, so I lost contact with my favorite client. She found me shortly afterwards on LinkedIn, we agreed on a new price and I wrote for her again for a while until her company was taken over.

I also got some translation jobs via fiverr like companies, one of which is a German outfit, but their site wasn't working properly and they didn't reply to my email, so I cancelled my account.

There is one more client I write blog posts for quite regularly and that again was a recommendation.

I've never advertised directly so far, neither on social networks or otherwise, but I subscribed to a few websites where online writing jobs are offered, but there were no contacts from them so far.

If I've got some time, I might try iwriter.com as my friend is fairly successful there. They pay very little to start off, but when one has become a top writer there, the pay is fairly acceptable.

I have a small income from Wikinut.com and Redgage.com, so I continue to contribute there and although I have a few articles up on various online writing platforms, I have no income from them so far, but I write on them on and off a few small relevant articles to create links to my blogs.

The thing is that I really do have enough to write everyday, but I think it's good business practice to always look out for more clients. There is no such thing as "too much work"! ;)

So in my experience, it's really recommendation that works best, but is it enough? Well, until I'll get a better idea I shall proactively do a lot of networking and looking out for the opportunities that networking online and offline presents.

What is your experience? How do you find new clients?

Well, ok, you might be my new client, too, so here's the brag I generally use online and offline:

Experienced blogger offers to write 300 word posts for your blog or website in English, German or Spanish for € 12.00. Payable via PayPal on receipt. Please check out http://whatdoesaremotewriterdo.blogspot.com and contact antjecobbett@gmail.com for your requirements.

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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What's right blogging - what's wrong blogging?

2012-03-07T01:38:00.000+01:00

I'm only blogging since April 2011 and obviously I had a look round what other bloggers do and also had a look at all the "how to blog" blogs and by the time I was finished I was not only totally confused (and ready to phone my attorney to clear things up), but there were also a few things that didn't seem logical to me, like 30% keyword density (???), for example.

Right, I thought, and went off to search the Blogger helpfiles on how to write a good blog and found this:

"When creating a site, make the focal point about your users, not about search engine rankings or generating more clicks on ads. At Google, we grow our business with the notion “Focus on the users, and all else will follow,” and we hope you can also grow your business with us by following the same principle."

Now this made a lot more sense to me, so until the end of 2011 I made this my mantra: "Focus on the users, and all else will follow".

Focus on the user, yes, indeed, who else could we focus on. I'm not writing for myself, I already know the stuff I'm writing about, but I want to share my experience with people who are interested in the same subjects I'm interested in and I want to make sure that they find my blogs and so I waded through another online drama - SEO. Are there actually 2 bloggers that can agree on what good SEO is? - No.

Back to Blogger helpfiles. Ok, I will admit that it took quite some time to study everything about Google's own advice on SEO, but hey! They are the only ones that really do know! Ok, I just about followed every relevant Google blog and simply did as I was told. To the letter! Was it a lot of work? I can assure everybody that it was, because I'm not running just one blog out there. Then came all the new updates and yet more changes, I liked them - more work still. Result? I'm with all the main keywords for my blogs on Google search result page 1.

Would I care if I wasn't? - No. Because I trust my readers to find my pages just like I find pages if I'm interested in a subject. Why should my readers not be as competent in researching as I am? - Exactly.

Today then, I got the latest blog post from Seth Godin into my Inbox and now the sun is really shining on my self-confidence again! :) Here is the post:

"Doing it wrong, relentlessly

According to this post by Neil Patel, I blog incorrectly--missing on at least 7 of his twelve rules.

On purpose.

I'm not writing to maximize my SEO or conversion or even my readership. I'm writing to do justice to the things I notice, to the ideas in my head and to the people who choose to read my work.

The interesting lesson: One way to work the system is to work the system. The other way is to refuse to work it."

There we have it again: "..... to the people who choose to read my work."

Focus on the reader!

There comes my little voice saying: "Yes, but ... he's already a very famous and successful man ..." Little voice trailing of, thoughts fixed on my own inadequacies ...."

No buts. Everybody is different in this world, everybody has special knowledge or a special gift to share and that's what I want to read about! And I'm probably not the only one.

I don't think anybody wants to read a blog post that complies to any standard! Although, coming to think of it, the good thing about standards is that there are so many to choose from! ;)

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Translation - A Source of Income?

2012-03-06T00:01:00.000+01:00

Well, this confusion of tongues happened some time ago, meanwhile they even invented a universal language called Esperanto, but it seems people don't really like to adopt it. I reckon it would make things easier in any aspired global economy if we had a common language to converse in.

Yet, English seems to have been adopted as the internet language and so a few different types of translators emerged.

1. The University Degree Translator

The good ones are immediately snapped up by the industry and many are sworn in translators or even become simultaneous translators who command the highest hourly rate.

2. The Experienced Translator (me)

I was able to learn a few languages and I'm popular amongst my friends and acquaintances to "help" translating documents or book passages or websites and make sense of official letters here in Spain. Somehow there is a consensus that I do this for free. I happened to ask for money a few times and was met with incredulous expressions in the faces.

Just to come to the point, it does cost, one way or another, about € 3000 Euros to learn a language well, not counting the hours of studying one has to put in oneself.

3. The Translator Using an Online Translating Program

It's fun and always popular for a good laugh, you get the gist, but it can give rise to severe misunderstandings.

So having established myself as an article and blog post writer, I thought it was time to get another leg on the market as an experienced translator.

Shyly I offered on fiverr.com:

"I will translate 300 words from English to German or vice versa for $5."

That's how the program works, you offer a so-called gig and wait for customers to pour in. Nothing at first, then a couple of fairly involved translations which, if you include the time you write back and forth with the client, might take a couple of hours to complete the job - for $5.00, of which Fiverr gets a cut of $1.00 and within 14 days you get your $4.00 via PayPal.

Living in Europe, PayPal converts from $ to € at a conversion rate of 0.64 to 0.74 according to the latest rates. Arrive at my bank account in the worst case: €2.56 for 3 hours of work.

I think it is understandable that this pays neither my food nor electricity, internet service provider or anything else if I were to work for an hourly rate of 2 to 3 Euros. Yet, it's nobody's fault really. Nobody can be blamed if two clients that meet on Fiverr.com live on different continents with different currencies.

This means, of course, we are far from living in a global community, the people like the global idea, but there are still mechanisms in place which we have to overcome to make the global community worthwhile.

So can a translation service be a source of income for an experienced translator on the internet? Probably not yet. I have deleted my accounts with Fiverr and Fiverr like companies, not because I don't like the idea, no, I think the idea is brilliant, maybe in a few years time the following generations will adopt this idea with a workable solution.

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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All about SEO - Keyword Density

2012-02-19T23:17:00.000+01:00

I wrote this article originally on Squidoo, but since there were more people asking about the subject, I thought I'd put it on my blog as well:

Have you seen the words "Keyword Density" on the internet, but are not sure what it really, really means? Here is my experience on how to deal with keywords in my articles and texts and how it's not the only criteria that has to be met if you want your article to appear on the first page of Google Search.

There are probably not many SEO tactics that are seemingly more misunderstood, misinterpreted and misused than "keyword density". Maybe we can shed some light on the issue today:

So you've written your article or website/blog text and have added all the keywords and long keywords in the appropriate places and the search engines give you a brownie point for having done so. Yet, you are not on page one of Google search. Why?

First of all, keywords are only one criteria that search engine crawler programs will evaluate and there are more than 300 and they are varying and changing criteria over time as well, so that if you meet a certain top number of positive points, you will land on first page of a keyword related search on Google.

Unless, of course, you've "cheated" or tried to "trick" the crawler into evaluating something that isn't quite right. If you were a programmer, you'd know that there are many possibilities to limit or show minimum or maximum criteria and if you "overshoot", the program can be set to "punish" you for wrong doing.

That's spelled it out in a very simple form, why we should not over-use our keywords when writing our texts for online use.

The other great disadvantage of overusing your keywords is that the text becomes ridiculously difficult to read, the facts may have been even distorted to fit the scheme and your visitor or reader of your online text will click off. Mission failed and you have lost twice.

Yes, there are even free online programs available where you can copy in your text and instantly it will tell you so and so many percent of keyword density.

If you are a content writer like me, it can happen that a client specifies a keyword density of 3% on a word count of 500 words and that would mean the mention of the keyword(s) 15 times approximately.

A readable and search engine friendly text would only sport about max. 1% keyword density, so if a client specifies 3%, I will have to decline to write, because this text will never be successful with anybody.

And since I always walk my talk, I'm happy to report that I'm on page 1 of Google Search with very many of my keywords although I'm only blogging since April 2011. Does that mean I've found the magic secret?

Not at all really. I just chose the niche markets I wanted to write about, wrote sensible and 100% original blog posts, studied and applied everything I could find in the Google and Adsense help files and subscribed to their blogs to get the latest information on suggested changes to implement, which I did and it was a lot of work!

I spend about 3 - 5 hours networking my blogs and ideas per day on Google+, Twitter and Facebook. I comment on at least 3 relevant do-follow blogs of other people and I at least try to write one article a day on the writing platforms Wikinut.com, Redgage.com, Squidoo.com, Weebly.com and Triond.com as well as others if I have the time.

Finally, where ever I sign up with a social network or writing platform, I meticulously fill in my profile page, upload my picture and leave the links to my blogs if possible.

Yes, I do think it's a lot of work to maintain 14 blogs with the above principles, but hey! If that gets me on page 1 on Google Search without "cheats" and "tricks", I'm a very happy bunny indeed.

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Horizontal Marketing - What's In It For Me?

2012-02-10T00:16:00.000+01:00

On my travels searching the internet for the work I do for my clients, the words "Horizontal Marketing" crept up a few times and since I wasn't sure what "vertical" or "horizontal" marketing means, I did a bit of research on it. Seems as if there are varying definitions on it and I couldn't particularly say that I understood the concept in a way that might be useful for my work or for a future concept. But something kept nagging me ...

As per definition of various online dictionaries, horizontal marketing involves two or more companies getting together to share resources and thus create more profit with less cost. At least that is what I understood. See the definitions for yourself:
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/horizontalmarket.asp#axzz1lvQ8DDDW
http://www.answers.com/topic/horizontal-marketing-system-hms
http://business.yourdictionary.com/horizontal-marketing

But then, wait! There was another link with Seth Godin's idea of horizontal marketing and that really appealed to me, so first the quote and maybe we can then figure out what's in it for you and me.

Quote from: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2012/02/horizontal-marketing-isnt-a-new-idea.html :

"Horizontal marketing isn't a new idea

But it is the new reality for just about every organization.

Vertical marketing means the marketer (the one with money) is in charge. Vertical marketing starts at the top and involves running ads, sending out direct mail and pushing hype through the media. Your money, your plans, your control. It might not work, but generally the worst outcome is that you will be ignored and need to spend more money.

Horizonal marketing, on the other hand, means creating a remarkable product and story and setting it up to spread from person to person. It's out of your control, because all the interactions are by passionate outsiders, not paid agents.

Most marketers instinctively want control. We reach for the budget and the ad and the press release and most of all, the powerful media middleman. We buy SuperBowl ads or shmooze the reporter.

Horizontal marketing, though, requires giving up control. We spend all of our time and money on a great story and a great service and a remarkable offering. The rest is up to the market itself. You can't control this, and you can no longer ignore it either."

What stung me really was the last sentence: "..... you can no longer ignore it either."

So I won't. It's as simple as that. Thank you, Seth!

But what does that mean for you and me? I'm not too sure, but the instructions are crystal clear:

create a remarkable product or service
create a great story
set it up to spread from person to person

I'm a remote writer and mobile blogger, so what I sell is my name and my words and advertising on my blogs. Quite frankly to me that doesn't sound exactly like a remarkable or great anything to do any horizontal marketing with, but I can't ignore it!

Maybe I've got a remarkable service with my infomercial offer "For Advertisers". Setting it up to spread is quite easy, networking, creating a "Link Wheel", commenting on other blogs and writing guest posts, fine, now all I need is a great story! Should come easy to me as a writer, so I shall be working on it, I haven't got the story yet!

Just wondering what you think about horizontal marketing. Is it the future? Is it for you? I'd love to hear from you on this!

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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Small Review of Seth Godin's Latest Blog Posts

2012-01-22T01:15:00.000+01:00

"Seth Godin's Blog contains daily riffs on growth, marketing, storytelling, ideas that spread and work worth doing."

That's what it says on the blog. So I read a few blog entries and a few things started resonating with me as a remote writer and mobile blogger. So I read on ... and finally subscribed to his blog http://sethgodin.typepad.com/

Actually I liked all his posts, if you could have seen me reading them, you would have seen my head nodding again and again and then I really asked myself, why I couldn't write just like he did! There I read at least 15 of my own thoughts, yet, he wrote it and I didn't. You want to know why? - Fear. I think I'm not suffering wildly of any fears, but I do have this little voice called "intuition" and it sometimes interferes. I really must have a word with it! A serious word.

The post that resonated most with me was http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2012/01/when-the-world-changes.html

I'm sure he won't mind if I quote it here:

"It's painful, expensive, time-consuming, stressful and ultimately pointless to work overtime to preserve your dying business model.

All the lobbying, the lawsuits, the ad campaigns and most of all, the hand-wringing, aren't going to change anything at all. In fact, instead of postponing the outcome you fear, they probably accelerate it.

The history of media and technology is an endless series of failed rearguard actions as industry leaders attempt to solidify their positions on a bed of quicksand.

Again and again the winners are individuals and organizations that spot opportunities in the next thing, as opposed to those that would demonize, marginalize or illegalize (is that a word?) it. Breaking systems that benefit your customers is dumb. Taking money from lobbyists to break those systems is dumber still."

I think I will learn this post by heart. Why? - It's not only because I totally agree with it, but I feel a need to explain that to some individuals around me that simply won't get the drift on the year 2012! The year of changes and new opportunities!

I also wanted to share another thought on those lines:

I've always been a person that likes to listen to advice from people who are cleverer than myself or have more experience. One might get the idea that I'm lazy maybe, but this is not so. I just don't feel the need to constantly repeat my own or other people's boring mistakes if there are others (the more clever ones) who have solved the problem already! So I research, recognize and copy. Why not? I'm sure it's not illegal to copy good advice to my little lizard brain! ;)

No, if I want to make a mistake, I like to make a big one. A big failure, a big adventurous disaster that I can share with others knowing that it is MINE. God knows, I've tried often enough, it just never happened!

Oh well, patience then to wait for those industry leaders that are still sitting on quicksand to catch up with reality and the opportunities of change.

Thank you, Seth, for letting us look over your shoulder. I will certainly learn a lot from you! :)

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

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I Got a Lego Bucket for Christmas!

2012-01-01T20:08:00.003+01:00

Well, first I thought that this post might be totally off-topic, but then again ... judge for yourself!

My German friends had spent Christmas in Germany with their family and came to Spain just in time to celebrate New Year's Eve together. I had cooked a nice dinner and after the table was cleared we exchanged the gifts.

I had given them an antique Chinese bronze horse, because I knew they liked antiques and liked horses. And when I opened my present, I couldn't believe my eyes! A bucket full of LEGO pieces!

I raised an eyebrow and looked at them with a smile. Was this supposed to be a joke? They smiled back expectantly and so I opened the Lego bucket and spread the pieces on the table. It had been 45 years ago since I had last played with Lego!

Now the three of us were laughing and were putting the pieces together just like when we were kids and we really had so much fun with it now!

Suddenly I jumped up and fetched my notebook and pen to jot down 3 ideas for my internet work for 2012 and then I remembered. It had been like that even when I was a kid! Somehow it seems that playing with Lego pieces creates a direct wire to my creativity!

Well, I think I will keep the Lego bucket on my desk now for the times when I need "instant inspiration"!

Anyway, a good time was had by all here on New Year's Eve and we decided that Lego still rocks!

Happy New Year and thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

For further reading:
Christmas Time in Germany

Another Advantage of Working from Home

2011-12-18T21:31:00.000+01:00

Being a Remote Writer and working from home has another distinct advantage for me which I would like to share with you today.

I had been an office worker for decades and no amount of medical or alternative therapies could actually cure my backache!

Too many hours daily working on an office chair that simply didn't suit me and a desk that didn't have the right height for me, took its toll on my back and shoulder muscles.

It never even occurred to me that it might be the "standard" height of all the furniture in offices and in my home that put a strain on my back!

It was quite by accident I discovered that sitting on a chair I had borrowed from the lounge actually kept me free from backache even when I worked 10 hours + on the internet.

To cut a long story short, I got myself a small desk now ajusted to "my" right height and my comfy lounge chair stayed in my home office!

In the end we even adjusted the height of all our kitchen furniture, because I cook twice a day - no more backache!

They say that backaches get worse as one gets older, but I'm 56 now and with my newly adjusted furniture and some simple and easy stretching exercises during the day I'm now totally free of backache.

Maybe we can't arrange for "special" furniture in an office environment, but in a home office I can certainly arrange for the absolutely best working environment - another great advantage for every home worker!

This blog post is certainly not meant to give medical advice, all I want to say is that my back is generally o.k., it was just the constant muscle strain that seemed to have caused my backaches and I was able to solve the problem.

Thanks for calling in!

Google+ Page - Antje Cobbetton

For further reading:
From Unemployed to Selfemployed: 8 steps to get it right first time round
Three little steps and stories for a healthier You!