Lily Allen's anti-piracy rant has made her notorious among copyfighters, who have subjected her site and her words to close scrutiny, discovering that Allen's website is chock-a-block with infringing scans of newspaper articles, infringing mix-tapes (even the rant she posted was lifted from Techdirt). Her all-caps responses ("I THINK ITS QUITE OVIOUS THAT I WASNT TRYING TO PASS OF THOSE WORDS AS MY OWN , HERE IS A LINK TO THE WEBSIITE I ACQUIRED THE PIECE FROM.") are the kind of nutty, defensive shouty words that chum the water online.
It's tempting to count coup here and write Allen off as a hypocrite, but there's a more important story here. Allen just hasn't thought this through. Copyright is problematic for everyone: musicians, fans, bloggers. The absence of clear affirmative rights to make personal copies, to share with your friends, to copy for the purposes of discussion and commentary (as opposed to the fuzzy and difficult-to-interpret fair use guidelines, which have been further confused by the entertainment industry's bold attempts to convince us all that they don't matter and can't be relied upon) means that we're all in a state of constant infringement.
A law that no one understands and no one abides by is no law at all. Parts of copyright -- the right to regulate how commercial licenses with industrial entities work -- are really important to me and to all working artists. But if we continue to try to expand copyright to cover everything, every interaction that involves a copy (which is every interaction these days), then the broad consensus that copyright is nonsense will continue to grow, and we'll lose the good stuff as well as the ridiculous stuff.
For the record, I am a small-time Lily Allen fan, and I bought her latest CD after hearing it for free, when a friend emailed me some tracks. If Ms Allen would prefer, I can stop buying and listening to her music, given that I discovered it through "piracy."
Also, this is not the only infringement on her blog. While she's trying to point out how much damage 'pirates' do to the music industry she blatantly infringed the copyrights of a number of newspapers by posting scanned articles.
To make things even more absurd Techdirt discovered that Lily is pirating music herself by offering some unauthorized mixtapes (tape 1 and tape 2) on her website LilyAllenMusic.com. The tracklist of one of the mixtapes reveals a list of no less than 19 unauthorized tracks. This means the RIAA can easily sue her for millions.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Build Product, Not PowerPoint (Even If You're Non-Technical)
When I hear a high-tech entrepreneur tell me, "If I can just raise $250K to build a prototype..." I know he or she is never going to make it.
You used to be able to raise venture money based on an idea and a team, but those days are long gone unless your name is Ev Williams or something similar.
It's not that VCs can't make money by investing in ideas; it's that it's so much more efficient to invest in companies with traction. Don't waste your time (and that of us angels and VCs) trying to raise money before you get traction.
(And no, this doesn't contradict my remarks from earlier today on Vivek's "VCs Harm Innovation" post; there is a lot of risk remaining in a startup, even when it has traction. Both PBworks and Ustream (the two most prominent companies I've been directly involved with) had a ton of work to do after gaining initial traction. For both companies, the initial traction enabled raising seed money to get them to a traditional VC investment.)
As for the non-technical folks who wonder how they're supposed to start a company, I feel your pain. I can't code, and that's a major disadvantage. But great code, while necessary, is not sufficient for success. Building a better mousetrap is not enough; even getting TechCrunched is insufficient (though helpful!).
To overcome your impractical choice of college major (before you flame me, I freely admit that I have a degree in Creative Writing...not at the top of most VC wishlists) requires work, but isn't impossible. Get to know brilliant coders, build long-term relationships, and demonstrate that you can add value.
EtherPad (blatant plug--another investment!) recently hired Daniel Clemens as COO. Why? Because the founders had worked with him before and trusted him.
And if you can't code, and you can't get brilliant coders to like and respect you, you probably shouldn't be a high-tech entrepreneur. There's no shame in being aware of your own abilities and steering your career accordingly.
P.S. Bear in mind that this advice only applies to high-tech startups--there are plenty of great businesses where a CS degree is not an asset!
You used to be able to raise venture money based on an idea and a team, but those days are long gone unless your name is Ev Williams or something similar.
It's not that VCs can't make money by investing in ideas; it's that it's so much more efficient to invest in companies with traction. Don't waste your time (and that of us angels and VCs) trying to raise money before you get traction.
(And no, this doesn't contradict my remarks from earlier today on Vivek's "VCs Harm Innovation" post; there is a lot of risk remaining in a startup, even when it has traction. Both PBworks and Ustream (the two most prominent companies I've been directly involved with) had a ton of work to do after gaining initial traction. For both companies, the initial traction enabled raising seed money to get them to a traditional VC investment.)
As for the non-technical folks who wonder how they're supposed to start a company, I feel your pain. I can't code, and that's a major disadvantage. But great code, while necessary, is not sufficient for success. Building a better mousetrap is not enough; even getting TechCrunched is insufficient (though helpful!).
To overcome your impractical choice of college major (before you flame me, I freely admit that I have a degree in Creative Writing...not at the top of most VC wishlists) requires work, but isn't impossible. Get to know brilliant coders, build long-term relationships, and demonstrate that you can add value.
EtherPad (blatant plug--another investment!) recently hired Daniel Clemens as COO. Why? Because the founders had worked with him before and trusted him.
And if you can't code, and you can't get brilliant coders to like and respect you, you probably shouldn't be a high-tech entrepreneur. There's no shame in being aware of your own abilities and steering your career accordingly.
P.S. Bear in mind that this advice only applies to high-tech startups--there are plenty of great businesses where a CS degree is not an asset!
Monday, September 21, 2009
How To Make Money Off Stupid People
(This post is brought to you by “I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell“. I saw the film, it’s hilarious, and I want you to go and enjoy it when it hits theaters on September 25th.)
Do you know who Heather B. Armstrong is? I was only vaguely aware of her until recently, and then I read the following gem on her about page and fell in blog-love:
“I am a Stay at Home Mom (SAHM) or a Shit Ass Ho Motherfucker. I do both equally well.”
But, that’s not the only reason I fell in blog-love with Dooce. You see, Heather has resolved a blogging conundrum that has been in existence since, well, the Internet began: How can you benefit from other people’s stupidity?
Maddox, who predates pretty much everyone online when it comes to managing hate mail, has a popular section on his website where he reprints his hate mail and rips on the letter’s author.
I wish I could do this, but I’m pretty sure every corporate partner we have for #AMHF would run in the other direction if I started ripping on idiots more frequently.
Next year, maybe.
The thing is, Maddox (in his case, intentionally) is not making any money off his hate mail and many, many websites have copied this approach. I think you should copy Dooce’s approach instead.
Why Not Make Money Off Of Stupid People?
Think about it. If you’re like me, you just delete the stupid comments and emails (unless they’re really, really good). There’s nothing better than the feeling you get when deleting something an idiot took a lot of time to create. That’s minutes, hours off their life and barely a second off yours.
But … why not re-post the emails on your blog, slap advertising around it, and insert affiliate links into the email where appropriate?
They took the time to create and share content with you, so why not share it with the world and cash in? You don’t have to comment back and can just run the comment / email as is.
What’s that old saying? Living well is the best revenge? I think, my friends, it’s time to do just that. So keep the dumb comments and the hate mail. Keep it all and re-publish it.
Who cares if they’re saying bad things about you? They’re clearly in the minority, and most hate mail authors expose themselves as either people with an axe to grind (and thus, a biased opinion regardless of what you say or do) or idiots; Both of whom you can do little to stop.
And let’s be honest, the bigger yo get online, the more these people are going to crawl out from under their desk to snipe at you. You have to get exposed to this now to build up the mental armor you’re going to need to succeed. Having a plan in place to manage and cash in off your hate mail / dumb blog comments is the healthiest thing you can do.
As an added bonus: In the event your hate mail / idiot blog comment authors upgrade themselves from trolls to ogres, the hate mail page will serve as an archive you can tap to send to their service provider if things escalate.
Do you know who Heather B. Armstrong is? I was only vaguely aware of her until recently, and then I read the following gem on her about page and fell in blog-love:
“I am a Stay at Home Mom (SAHM) or a Shit Ass Ho Motherfucker. I do both equally well.”
But, that’s not the only reason I fell in blog-love with Dooce. You see, Heather has resolved a blogging conundrum that has been in existence since, well, the Internet began: How can you benefit from other people’s stupidity?
Maddox, who predates pretty much everyone online when it comes to managing hate mail, has a popular section on his website where he reprints his hate mail and rips on the letter’s author.
I wish I could do this, but I’m pretty sure every corporate partner we have for #AMHF would run in the other direction if I started ripping on idiots more frequently.
Next year, maybe.
The thing is, Maddox (in his case, intentionally) is not making any money off his hate mail and many, many websites have copied this approach. I think you should copy Dooce’s approach instead.
Why Not Make Money Off Of Stupid People?
Think about it. If you’re like me, you just delete the stupid comments and emails (unless they’re really, really good). There’s nothing better than the feeling you get when deleting something an idiot took a lot of time to create. That’s minutes, hours off their life and barely a second off yours.
But … why not re-post the emails on your blog, slap advertising around it, and insert affiliate links into the email where appropriate?
They took the time to create and share content with you, so why not share it with the world and cash in? You don’t have to comment back and can just run the comment / email as is.
What’s that old saying? Living well is the best revenge? I think, my friends, it’s time to do just that. So keep the dumb comments and the hate mail. Keep it all and re-publish it.
Who cares if they’re saying bad things about you? They’re clearly in the minority, and most hate mail authors expose themselves as either people with an axe to grind (and thus, a biased opinion regardless of what you say or do) or idiots; Both of whom you can do little to stop.
And let’s be honest, the bigger yo get online, the more these people are going to crawl out from under their desk to snipe at you. You have to get exposed to this now to build up the mental armor you’re going to need to succeed. Having a plan in place to manage and cash in off your hate mail / dumb blog comments is the healthiest thing you can do.
As an added bonus: In the event your hate mail / idiot blog comment authors upgrade themselves from trolls to ogres, the hate mail page will serve as an archive you can tap to send to their service provider if things escalate.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
How Much Money Do We Need?
With government largess rapidly approaching infinity, it may seem naïve to raise the question of how much money an economy needs. But we need to ask, if only to assure ourselves that reasonable questions are still legal. In fact, the question itself serves as the title of a 2007 book by Hunter Lewis, How Much Money Does an Economy Need?, which followed an earlier book of his, Are the Rich Necessary? Though both are brief, their wisdom-to-word ratio is quite high.
The question of how much money an economy needs assumes we know what money is and whether we need any at all.
If I had never heard of Mises, Rothbard, and other Austrian economists, I might say money is the Ben Bernanke–issued paper I would like to have in my wallet. I want absolutely no limit on the amount. When I decide to spend, I want the money to be there so I can spend it. Don’t make me think about the supply; it should be inexhaustible. You want hard times? Make money hard to get. When I don’t have enough money, I can’t spend, and that hurts me and everyone who’s dependent on me, which is ultimately the whole world. As a general rule, we can never have too much money in the economy – the more, the better. Therefore, when we read about Bernanke shifting the printing press into high gear, we should ignore the babble accusing him of destroying the dollar, the economy, and what’s left of peace, liberty, and prosperity. We should feel comforted he’s doing the right thing. Or if he’s not doing the right thing, it’s only because he’s not creating enough money. But in fact he is – look at the Dow. Look at the staggering profits of Goldman Sachs. As the big guys go, so goes the country. Wasn’t that the rationale for Paulson’s handouts? Even the unemployment rate is slowing. We’ll soon be back in Fat City – get ready to uncork the champagne and toast the Fed.
Money in the sense used above has never been accepted by people voluntarily. It has to be forced on us through monopoly privilege and legal tender laws, along with the outlawing or restriction of alternative monies. Government money comes into existence after a market money is well-established, with government’s notes redeemable in the commodity money. Then government eliminates the commodity backing and forces people to use its fiat paper money exclusively. As Mises argued in his regression theorem, there is no way government can impose its paper money on an economy from scratch. Money arises first in a barter economy as a commodity that is commonly accepted in trade.
But why did people even use a commodity money? Was that itself a corruption of barter?
Money makes prosperity possible
Commodity money arose voluntarily as a logical extension of the direct exchange of useful goods. In a barter world, the volume of exchanges is limited to the double-coincidence of wants. Furthermore, the producer of an indivisible good, such as a chair, might find he wanted five other goods of lesser value, each from different producers. Without money, he would either have to do without or trade at a perceived loss.
Eventually people discovered they could get around the limitations of direct exchange by trading their products for goods they could trade later. Certain goods eventually proved themselves more widely accepted in trade than others, and people started acquiring them primarily to make future trades. A good widely used for such indirect exchanges became known as money. Among its various physical qualities, the money chosen was divisible into smaller homogeneous units so that the chair-maker, say, with money at his command from a previous exchange, could acquire a dozen ears of corn, for instance, without giving up a whole chair.
Commodity money, then, arises through the voluntary cooperation of market participants, meaning there is widespread support for the money without violation of anyone’s property. Over time, gold, and to a lesser extent silver and copper, became the market’s choice of monies.
As Rothbard tells us, money makes it possible for
. . . an elaborate "structure of production" [to] be formed, with land, labor services, and capital goods cooperating to advance production at each stage and receiving payment in money. [pp. 20–21]
The round-about way of trading a good for money, then trading money for some other goods, is the basis of an expanding economy and the division of labor. With commodity monies, or what Guido Hülsmann terms "natural monies," civilization developed, with people living in houses instead of caves.
In sum, money originated as a highly-marketable commodity through voluntary exchanges. It is needed for human life to flourish. But how much do we need?
Following Rothbard, we learn that the total supply of commodity money in society is equal to the total weight of the existing money-stuff. If the market has selected gold as money, then the supply will consist of the total weight of gold in society, regardless of its shape. Since the money is a commodity, its supply will be governed by market forces, such as the profitability of mining or its demand for nonmonetary uses. Because money is not used up like other commodities and its potential supply is thought to be small, changes in its supply will tend to occur slowly.
Since money as such is neither a consumer nor a capital good, increases in its supply confer no social benefits. If the supply of hammers increases, it boosts the availability of hammers to the public; if the supply of money increases, it makes the hammers more expensive and lowers their availability. More money, therefore, does not make the general public richer; it merely dilutes the purchasing power of the money unit. On the other hand, if the supply of money should decrease, each remaining monetary unit will buy more. The supply of money, therefore, does not affect the total wealth of society; it only affects the price of that wealth.
Conclusion: Any money supply will do, above a minimum threshold.
How did we wind up with Bernanke?
There will always be people who wish to live at the expense of others. Government does this through taxes and inflation – which is here used as an increase in the money supply – and in modern times, inflation, because it is generally misunderstood by the public, is a politically safer method of confiscation than taxes.
Banks generate inflation through the practice of fractional-reserve banking. Banks profit from inflation. The gold redemption requirement limited the amount of inflation banks could create.
Inflation also creates crises. In the old days when people lost confidence in their banks they made a run on their banks to get their money back. No fractional-reserve bank could meet its obligations. The government protected the banks by allowing them to default on their obligations but still keep their doors open. They were allowed to collect loan payments from debtors.
In 1913, after over a decade of promoting the idea of banking "reform," the biggest bankers got together with key politicians and got a law passed creating a central bank – the Fed. The Fed would be in charge of the money supply. The government granted its notes a monopoly privilege and legal tender status; in return, the Fed provided the government a new revenue source without the hassle of the legislative process. The year 1913 is frequently cited as the end of the American republic and the beginning of the American empire.
For the first two decades of the Fed’s existence, gold was still money, though its everyday use had been discouraged. As long as gold was still the heart of the monetary system, it could disrupt Fed plans.
Fed inflation during the 1920s brought on the depression of the 1930s. This is not the accepted explanation. The accepted explanation is there was no inflation during the 1920s because prices remained stable – and in most quarters stable prices mean no inflation. Prices remained stable because real economic growth offset Fed increases in the money supply.
The Fed’s monetary inflation caused malinvestments that had to be corrected. Unlike all previous recessions in American history, including the recession of 1920–1921, the government refused to let the correction happen, first under President Hoover, then under FDR. One of the first things President Roosevelt did was to confiscate the people’s gold. He took the country off the gold standard, announcing that Americans could no longer get Fed notes and deposits redeemed in gold coins. President Nixon did the same for the rest of the world in 1971.
The American dollar is no longer tethered to gold. Whereas money was once difficult to create, thus keeping its supply limited and protecting its value, the Fed can create fiat paper money in any amounts at the push of a button. Because of the benefits that accrue to the early users of the new money, there is pressure throughout the political system to keep the money machine printing.
Ben Bernanke is committed to monetary inflation. He claims it is healthy in boom times and will pull us out of any recession. He blames the Fed for not inflating enough once the Great Depression began. He’s determined not to make the same mistake today.
Fiat paper money regimes are not designed to promote a healthy economy. They are designed as a means of wealth distribution for the benefit of a few.
That probably doesn’t include you, and it definitely doesn’t include me.
The question of how much money an economy needs assumes we know what money is and whether we need any at all.
If I had never heard of Mises, Rothbard, and other Austrian economists, I might say money is the Ben Bernanke–issued paper I would like to have in my wallet. I want absolutely no limit on the amount. When I decide to spend, I want the money to be there so I can spend it. Don’t make me think about the supply; it should be inexhaustible. You want hard times? Make money hard to get. When I don’t have enough money, I can’t spend, and that hurts me and everyone who’s dependent on me, which is ultimately the whole world. As a general rule, we can never have too much money in the economy – the more, the better. Therefore, when we read about Bernanke shifting the printing press into high gear, we should ignore the babble accusing him of destroying the dollar, the economy, and what’s left of peace, liberty, and prosperity. We should feel comforted he’s doing the right thing. Or if he’s not doing the right thing, it’s only because he’s not creating enough money. But in fact he is – look at the Dow. Look at the staggering profits of Goldman Sachs. As the big guys go, so goes the country. Wasn’t that the rationale for Paulson’s handouts? Even the unemployment rate is slowing. We’ll soon be back in Fat City – get ready to uncork the champagne and toast the Fed.
Money in the sense used above has never been accepted by people voluntarily. It has to be forced on us through monopoly privilege and legal tender laws, along with the outlawing or restriction of alternative monies. Government money comes into existence after a market money is well-established, with government’s notes redeemable in the commodity money. Then government eliminates the commodity backing and forces people to use its fiat paper money exclusively. As Mises argued in his regression theorem, there is no way government can impose its paper money on an economy from scratch. Money arises first in a barter economy as a commodity that is commonly accepted in trade.
But why did people even use a commodity money? Was that itself a corruption of barter?
Money makes prosperity possible
Commodity money arose voluntarily as a logical extension of the direct exchange of useful goods. In a barter world, the volume of exchanges is limited to the double-coincidence of wants. Furthermore, the producer of an indivisible good, such as a chair, might find he wanted five other goods of lesser value, each from different producers. Without money, he would either have to do without or trade at a perceived loss.
Eventually people discovered they could get around the limitations of direct exchange by trading their products for goods they could trade later. Certain goods eventually proved themselves more widely accepted in trade than others, and people started acquiring them primarily to make future trades. A good widely used for such indirect exchanges became known as money. Among its various physical qualities, the money chosen was divisible into smaller homogeneous units so that the chair-maker, say, with money at his command from a previous exchange, could acquire a dozen ears of corn, for instance, without giving up a whole chair.
Commodity money, then, arises through the voluntary cooperation of market participants, meaning there is widespread support for the money without violation of anyone’s property. Over time, gold, and to a lesser extent silver and copper, became the market’s choice of monies.
As Rothbard tells us, money makes it possible for
. . . an elaborate "structure of production" [to] be formed, with land, labor services, and capital goods cooperating to advance production at each stage and receiving payment in money. [pp. 20–21]
The round-about way of trading a good for money, then trading money for some other goods, is the basis of an expanding economy and the division of labor. With commodity monies, or what Guido Hülsmann terms "natural monies," civilization developed, with people living in houses instead of caves.
In sum, money originated as a highly-marketable commodity through voluntary exchanges. It is needed for human life to flourish. But how much do we need?
Following Rothbard, we learn that the total supply of commodity money in society is equal to the total weight of the existing money-stuff. If the market has selected gold as money, then the supply will consist of the total weight of gold in society, regardless of its shape. Since the money is a commodity, its supply will be governed by market forces, such as the profitability of mining or its demand for nonmonetary uses. Because money is not used up like other commodities and its potential supply is thought to be small, changes in its supply will tend to occur slowly.
Since money as such is neither a consumer nor a capital good, increases in its supply confer no social benefits. If the supply of hammers increases, it boosts the availability of hammers to the public; if the supply of money increases, it makes the hammers more expensive and lowers their availability. More money, therefore, does not make the general public richer; it merely dilutes the purchasing power of the money unit. On the other hand, if the supply of money should decrease, each remaining monetary unit will buy more. The supply of money, therefore, does not affect the total wealth of society; it only affects the price of that wealth.
Conclusion: Any money supply will do, above a minimum threshold.
How did we wind up with Bernanke?
There will always be people who wish to live at the expense of others. Government does this through taxes and inflation – which is here used as an increase in the money supply – and in modern times, inflation, because it is generally misunderstood by the public, is a politically safer method of confiscation than taxes.
Banks generate inflation through the practice of fractional-reserve banking. Banks profit from inflation. The gold redemption requirement limited the amount of inflation banks could create.
Inflation also creates crises. In the old days when people lost confidence in their banks they made a run on their banks to get their money back. No fractional-reserve bank could meet its obligations. The government protected the banks by allowing them to default on their obligations but still keep their doors open. They were allowed to collect loan payments from debtors.
In 1913, after over a decade of promoting the idea of banking "reform," the biggest bankers got together with key politicians and got a law passed creating a central bank – the Fed. The Fed would be in charge of the money supply. The government granted its notes a monopoly privilege and legal tender status; in return, the Fed provided the government a new revenue source without the hassle of the legislative process. The year 1913 is frequently cited as the end of the American republic and the beginning of the American empire.
For the first two decades of the Fed’s existence, gold was still money, though its everyday use had been discouraged. As long as gold was still the heart of the monetary system, it could disrupt Fed plans.
Fed inflation during the 1920s brought on the depression of the 1930s. This is not the accepted explanation. The accepted explanation is there was no inflation during the 1920s because prices remained stable – and in most quarters stable prices mean no inflation. Prices remained stable because real economic growth offset Fed increases in the money supply.
The Fed’s monetary inflation caused malinvestments that had to be corrected. Unlike all previous recessions in American history, including the recession of 1920–1921, the government refused to let the correction happen, first under President Hoover, then under FDR. One of the first things President Roosevelt did was to confiscate the people’s gold. He took the country off the gold standard, announcing that Americans could no longer get Fed notes and deposits redeemed in gold coins. President Nixon did the same for the rest of the world in 1971.
The American dollar is no longer tethered to gold. Whereas money was once difficult to create, thus keeping its supply limited and protecting its value, the Fed can create fiat paper money in any amounts at the push of a button. Because of the benefits that accrue to the early users of the new money, there is pressure throughout the political system to keep the money machine printing.
Ben Bernanke is committed to monetary inflation. He claims it is healthy in boom times and will pull us out of any recession. He blames the Fed for not inflating enough once the Great Depression began. He’s determined not to make the same mistake today.
Fiat paper money regimes are not designed to promote a healthy economy. They are designed as a means of wealth distribution for the benefit of a few.
That probably doesn’t include you, and it definitely doesn’t include me.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Let’s make lots of money
Here at Missouri Western students long for an easy way to make money on the side. Currently the easiest ways for students to earn money without straying too far from campus is an on-campus job. As the number of students has greatly increased, the demand for campus work has also increased. So drop that classified newspaper page and read this article to score a job right here and only a few feet away from your classes.
If any student desires a campus job, the first thing they should do is contact student employment for assistance. Student Employment Coordinator Matthew Gregg advises students looking for work to stop by his office in the Student Employment Center, Eder 202. Gregg explains how greatly his help could guide a student in the proper direction.
“There are about 18 different campus jobs [available],” Gregg said. “The first thing [a student] should do is register with NACE Link because that’s where we house our jobs and fill out the on-campus application. And then come and see me! I talk with a lot of the supervisors on campus.”
Gregg further explains the importance of finding a job within your passion or interest. Once a student searches NACE Link, which can be found at www.missouriwestern.edu/studentemployment, a student can really focus in on a job that will help him or her in the long run.
“I think that the first thing you should do when you go look for a job is look at something in your major, something that interests you, and something you are passionate about,” Gregg said. “It benefits your school work.”
Among these 18 available jobs resides a job within the dining services. The dining services include dishwashing, cooking, as well as serving in the cafeteria, food court, Commons, and Java City. Jim Maides, Dining Service Director, explains that the dining services are very helpful to student employees because the hours are extremely flexible.
“At the beginning of the semester we employ about 40 to 50 students with very flexible hours,” Maides said. “When they say what’s available we say almost everything.”
Currently, the Dining Services had filled almost all of their positions. However, job opportunities that involve catering are still yet to be taken.
“We consider ourselves to be at full staff. We can hire caters but it requires flexibility,” Maides said. “Some weeks we might have 25 to 30 events, and other weeks we might have two. In the past we’ve used softball players as student employees and after practice they would come in and clean silverware or [condiments]. If we find the girls to be dependable, we let them come and go as they want to.”
So, a flexible catering job that you could manage along with a sport, affiliation or another activity might just be up your alley. For more information, contact Jim Maides with dining services.
“We’re looking for dependability. We want people to show up when they are suppose to and be reliable,” Maides said.
Another job opportunity that is quite popular on campus is working in a computer lab or front desk for the residence halls. For this position you do not have to be a resident assistant nor live in the actual building that you are working for. Senior Allison Frazier, computer lab assistant, explains how her job in the Scanlon computer room allows her to get her own work done and make money at the same time.
“I like working in there,” Frazier said. “It’s beneficial for extra money. It’s an easy job and it’s like your doing nothing for something.”
Frazier was able to find this job by contacting her resident director. As we have six halls on campus, finding a job within one of them could possibly not take very long at all.
Another job opportunity could possibly involve tutoring. At the Center for Academic Support, employers are often looking for math, writing and content tutors. Content tutors include science, nursing, statistics, economics, psychology, and many other areas. As math and writing tutors receive pay through a set schedule, content tutors are able to set up the tutoring sessions on their own while receiving pay hourly. Junior and math tutor Allison Smith enjoys tutoring for the ability to be able to truly help and educate others.
“I wanted to tutor because my major is in education,” Smith said. “I wanted to have some experience and I like helping people.”
Besides being smart in a particular subject, tutoring also involves understanding a student and finding a constructive way to help them.
“If you’re good at math and good at interpreting it, then you should tutor,” Smith said. “It’s fun to see the light bulb go off when a student understands.”
So, tutoring could possibly be a route to enter as well. Especially if you are looking for a job that could give you experience in the future work force. For more information call the Center for Academic Support at 816-271-4524.
All in all, when looking for a campus job, a student must find something that they enjoy and ultimately benefit from.
These jobs could possibly include catering, lab assisting or tutoring. Among these jobs lie many others as well. The process of finding a job all depends on the future employee. If he or she can carry a long-lasting impression and be dependable, understanding and reliable, a campus job could possibly be an easy thing to obtain.
If any student desires a campus job, the first thing they should do is contact student employment for assistance. Student Employment Coordinator Matthew Gregg advises students looking for work to stop by his office in the Student Employment Center, Eder 202. Gregg explains how greatly his help could guide a student in the proper direction.
“There are about 18 different campus jobs [available],” Gregg said. “The first thing [a student] should do is register with NACE Link because that’s where we house our jobs and fill out the on-campus application. And then come and see me! I talk with a lot of the supervisors on campus.”
Gregg further explains the importance of finding a job within your passion or interest. Once a student searches NACE Link, which can be found at www.missouriwestern.edu/studentemployment, a student can really focus in on a job that will help him or her in the long run.
“I think that the first thing you should do when you go look for a job is look at something in your major, something that interests you, and something you are passionate about,” Gregg said. “It benefits your school work.”
Among these 18 available jobs resides a job within the dining services. The dining services include dishwashing, cooking, as well as serving in the cafeteria, food court, Commons, and Java City. Jim Maides, Dining Service Director, explains that the dining services are very helpful to student employees because the hours are extremely flexible.
“At the beginning of the semester we employ about 40 to 50 students with very flexible hours,” Maides said. “When they say what’s available we say almost everything.”
Currently, the Dining Services had filled almost all of their positions. However, job opportunities that involve catering are still yet to be taken.
“We consider ourselves to be at full staff. We can hire caters but it requires flexibility,” Maides said. “Some weeks we might have 25 to 30 events, and other weeks we might have two. In the past we’ve used softball players as student employees and after practice they would come in and clean silverware or [condiments]. If we find the girls to be dependable, we let them come and go as they want to.”
So, a flexible catering job that you could manage along with a sport, affiliation or another activity might just be up your alley. For more information, contact Jim Maides with dining services.
“We’re looking for dependability. We want people to show up when they are suppose to and be reliable,” Maides said.
Another job opportunity that is quite popular on campus is working in a computer lab or front desk for the residence halls. For this position you do not have to be a resident assistant nor live in the actual building that you are working for. Senior Allison Frazier, computer lab assistant, explains how her job in the Scanlon computer room allows her to get her own work done and make money at the same time.
“I like working in there,” Frazier said. “It’s beneficial for extra money. It’s an easy job and it’s like your doing nothing for something.”
Frazier was able to find this job by contacting her resident director. As we have six halls on campus, finding a job within one of them could possibly not take very long at all.
Another job opportunity could possibly involve tutoring. At the Center for Academic Support, employers are often looking for math, writing and content tutors. Content tutors include science, nursing, statistics, economics, psychology, and many other areas. As math and writing tutors receive pay through a set schedule, content tutors are able to set up the tutoring sessions on their own while receiving pay hourly. Junior and math tutor Allison Smith enjoys tutoring for the ability to be able to truly help and educate others.
“I wanted to tutor because my major is in education,” Smith said. “I wanted to have some experience and I like helping people.”
Besides being smart in a particular subject, tutoring also involves understanding a student and finding a constructive way to help them.
“If you’re good at math and good at interpreting it, then you should tutor,” Smith said. “It’s fun to see the light bulb go off when a student understands.”
So, tutoring could possibly be a route to enter as well. Especially if you are looking for a job that could give you experience in the future work force. For more information call the Center for Academic Support at 816-271-4524.
All in all, when looking for a campus job, a student must find something that they enjoy and ultimately benefit from.
These jobs could possibly include catering, lab assisting or tutoring. Among these jobs lie many others as well. The process of finding a job all depends on the future employee. If he or she can carry a long-lasting impression and be dependable, understanding and reliable, a campus job could possibly be an easy thing to obtain.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Twitter Closing New Venture Round At $1 Billion Valuation
ast growing startup Twitter will soon be joining a select group of startups with private venture round valuations of $1 billion, we’ve heard from multiple sources. CEO Evan Williams disclosed the round to employees at a recent all hands meeting.
The company will raise around $50 million, we’ve heard, although the final amount of the raise is apparently not yet locked down.
Twitter raised $35+ million earlier this year in a round led by Benchmark Capital and Institutional Venture Partners. That round valued the company at $250 million.
The company has raised a total of around $55 million to date, and sources tell us they have approximately $30 million left in the bank.
Update: A source tells us that New York based Insight Venture Partners is the primary investor in this round.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
The Early Riser: Want to make money? Become a doctor
ood Morning
The headlines:
* The ongoing debate about rising health care costs not withstanding, a new study by the Kansas Department of Labor indicates that doctors are bringing in the highest wages in the state. The Wichita Eagle reports doctors made an average of of $104 per hour, far exceeding the state average of $18.10.
* Earlier this summer, officials in Lenexa thought eliminating crossing guards at seven elementary schools could be an effective way to save money in a tight budget year. But the Kansas City Star reports parents of students at those schools didn't think it was such a good idea, forcing officials to re-evaluate the concept.
* The Kansas City Business Journal finally has some good economic news. According to an economic forecast by IHS Global Insight, the Kansas City area economy will fully recover from the recession...in 2011, far better than St. Louis, which won't recover until 2014.
* Things are a little less green in Baldwin City after authorities there charged two Baker University students for growing marijuana in their home. The Lawrence Journal-World reports police found 28 marijuana plants and grow lights in the pair's house.
* In another comparative story, Kansas City isn't a great place to raise kids, but it isn't a bad place either. KSHB-TV41 reports on a ranking from Children's Health Magazine listing Kansas City at 50 out of 100 cities in the list, far better than St. Louis, which came in at 72, but not as good as Burlington, VT.
* My colleague Nick Sloan might use this as an example not to get married, but if you ever wanted to know the ins and outs of a baby shower, local blogger Carrie...On The Cheap has your back.
Another green alert air quality day today.
Have a splendid Wednesday!
The headlines:
* The ongoing debate about rising health care costs not withstanding, a new study by the Kansas Department of Labor indicates that doctors are bringing in the highest wages in the state. The Wichita Eagle reports doctors made an average of of $104 per hour, far exceeding the state average of $18.10.
* Earlier this summer, officials in Lenexa thought eliminating crossing guards at seven elementary schools could be an effective way to save money in a tight budget year. But the Kansas City Star reports parents of students at those schools didn't think it was such a good idea, forcing officials to re-evaluate the concept.
* The Kansas City Business Journal finally has some good economic news. According to an economic forecast by IHS Global Insight, the Kansas City area economy will fully recover from the recession...in 2011, far better than St. Louis, which won't recover until 2014.
* Things are a little less green in Baldwin City after authorities there charged two Baker University students for growing marijuana in their home. The Lawrence Journal-World reports police found 28 marijuana plants and grow lights in the pair's house.
* In another comparative story, Kansas City isn't a great place to raise kids, but it isn't a bad place either. KSHB-TV41 reports on a ranking from Children's Health Magazine listing Kansas City at 50 out of 100 cities in the list, far better than St. Louis, which came in at 72, but not as good as Burlington, VT.
* My colleague Nick Sloan might use this as an example not to get married, but if you ever wanted to know the ins and outs of a baby shower, local blogger Carrie...On The Cheap has your back.
Another green alert air quality day today.
Have a splendid Wednesday!
Make Money Online - Free Kit Perfect For Beginners Wanting To Make Extra Money
The ability to make money online is very real, tens of thousands of people are constantly generating revenue and income online as we speak. As more people join the Internet community Its becoming easier to take advantage of money making systems. The main reason for this is that there are so many people nowadays willing to spend money online.
Millions of dollars is constantly being traded around the world, tapping in to this is easier than you think and the average person can take a small slice of this large pie.
Making money using Google is easy once you have the right know how, the basis to many money making opportunities is Internet marketing and affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing involves promoting other peoples services/Website or products and taking a commission (this commission can sometimes be as high as 90%) on digital products like ebooks etc. The best thing about this is that you never need to handle the product yourself, basically you are acting as a middle man.
There are however more ways you can make money online, here we are barely touching the surface. Like everything though a beginner needs some kind of tutorial or guide. Lately however something better has come along and its a complete kit which shows you how to make money with Google.
Make Money With Google is a kit designed for anyone wanting to start a home Internet business, it includes instructions videos and resources how anyone can start earning their first dollars online. Once you start earning you will pick up more knowledge and before you know it you could be earning hundreds of dollars a week relatively easy.
Get your free kit today and start earning from: www.earnmoneyathomenow.com/earn-money-online/make-money-with-goo ..
Make Money With Google contains all the resources tools and information including: Where to join and how to advertise etc to gain maximum sales and commissions. At the moment you can access this kit free, this is a rare opportunity as similar guides and kits have retailed for anything up to $2000. The price is usually so expensive mainly because the experts do not like revealing there methods. For a limited time though you can access this kind of information on a free trial basis.
You can read the full review and access the free trial of Make Money With Google at this popular money making blog: www.earnmoneyathomenow.com/earn-money-online/make-money-with-goo ..
Millions of dollars is constantly being traded around the world, tapping in to this is easier than you think and the average person can take a small slice of this large pie.
Making money using Google is easy once you have the right know how, the basis to many money making opportunities is Internet marketing and affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing involves promoting other peoples services/Website or products and taking a commission (this commission can sometimes be as high as 90%) on digital products like ebooks etc. The best thing about this is that you never need to handle the product yourself, basically you are acting as a middle man.
There are however more ways you can make money online, here we are barely touching the surface. Like everything though a beginner needs some kind of tutorial or guide. Lately however something better has come along and its a complete kit which shows you how to make money with Google.
Make Money With Google is a kit designed for anyone wanting to start a home Internet business, it includes instructions videos and resources how anyone can start earning their first dollars online. Once you start earning you will pick up more knowledge and before you know it you could be earning hundreds of dollars a week relatively easy.
Get your free kit today and start earning from: www.earnmoneyathomenow.com/earn-money-online/make-money-with-goo ..
Make Money With Google contains all the resources tools and information including: Where to join and how to advertise etc to gain maximum sales and commissions. At the moment you can access this kit free, this is a rare opportunity as similar guides and kits have retailed for anything up to $2000. The price is usually so expensive mainly because the experts do not like revealing there methods. For a limited time though you can access this kind of information on a free trial basis.
You can read the full review and access the free trial of Make Money With Google at this popular money making blog: www.earnmoneyathomenow.com/earn-money-online/make-money-with-goo ..
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Make Money Online (Without Spending a Dime)
Making money online used to pretty much require you to have your own Web site, products to sell and some marketing savvy. But a new generation of dot-coms have arisen that will pay you for what you know and who you know without you having to be a web designer or a marketing genius.
But it's hard to tell hype from the real deal. I did a search on "make money online" and "making money online", and much of the information out there is just promoting various infoproducts, mostly about Internet marketing. I see why people sometimes ask, "Is anyone making money online besides Internet marketing experts?"
So I put together a list of business opportunities with legitimate companies that:
* Pay cash, not just points towards rewards or a chance to win money
* Don't require you to have your own Web domain or your own products
* Don't involve any hard-selling
* Aren't just promoting more Internet marketing
* Give a good return on your time investment
In the interest of objectivity, none of the links below are affiliate links, and none of them have paid or provided any other consideration for their presence here. These are legitimate companies with business models that allow you to get paid for a wide range of activities.
Help friends find better jobs.
Sites like ReferEarns, Zyoin, Who Do You Know For Dough?, Bohire and WiseStepp connect employers with prospective employees, many of whom are already employed and not actively job-hunting, via networking - the people who know these qualified candidates. Rewards for referring a candidate who gets hired range from $50 on up to several thousand dollars - not chump change. If you know a lot of job-seekers (and who doesn't these days?), this is a great way to break into the recruiting business with no overhead.
Connect suppliers with buyers.
Referral fees are a common practice in business, but they haven't been used much in online networking sites because there was no way to track them. Sites like Salesconx, InnerSell and uRefer now provide that. Vendors set the referral fees they're willing to pay (and for what), and when the transaction happens, you get paid. uRefer also allows merchants to set up referral programs for introductions and meetings, as well as transactions.
Write.
A growing number of sites will pay for your articles or blog posts. Associated Content and Helium will "pay for performance" based on page views for just about anything you want to write about. Articles on specific topics they're looking for can earn direct payments up to about $200. The rates are probably low for established writers, but if you're trying to break into the field and have time on your hands, they're a great way to start. Also, a lot of companies are looking for part-time bloggers. They may pay per post or on a steady contract. Our Weblogs Guide posts blogging jobs weekly in the forum.
Start your own blog.
You don't have to have your own Web site, or install blogging software, or even figure out how to set up the advertising. At Blogger you can set up a blog for free in less than five minutes without knowing a thing about web design, and Blogger even automates setting up Google AdSense so you can make money off your blog by displaying ads and getting paid when people click on the ads. To make even more money from it, set up an affiliate program (see below) for books, music, etc., and insert your affiliate links whenever you refer to those items. You'll have to get a lot of traffic to become a six-figure blogger, but pick an interesting topic, write well, tell all your friends, and you're off to a good start.
Related: Monetizing Your Blog
Create topical resource hubs.
Are you an expert on a particular niche topic? Can you put together an overview of the topic and assemble some of the best resources on the topic from around the web? Then you can create topical hubs and get paid through sites like Squidoo, HugPages and Google Knol. Payments are based on a combination of ad revenue and affiliate fees. You'll get higher rates doing it on your own, but these sites have a built-in supply of traffic and tools to make content creation easier.
Advertise other people's products.
If you already have a Web site or a blog, look for vendors that offer related but non-competing products and see if they have an affiliate program. Stick to familiar products and brands - they're easier to sell. To promote those products:
* Place simple text or graphical ads in appropriate places on your site
* Include links to purchase products you review or recommend in a blog, discussion forum or mailing list you control
* Create a dedicated sales page or Web site to promote a particular product
They all work - it just depends on how much time you have to spend on it and your level of expertise with Web design and marketing.
Related: How to Really Make Money on the Internet With an Amazon.com Affiliate Site
Microstock photography.
You don't have to be a professional photographer to sell your photos for money. People are constantly in need of stock photography for websites, presentations, brochures and so on, and are willing to pay for the right image. People generally search for images on stock photography sites by keywords, not by photographer, so you have the same chance as anyone else of having your image picked. Just be careful that you don't have images of trademarked brands, copyrighted art or people's faces that are readily identifiable (unless you have a model release), but just about anything else is fair game, and I promise - you'd be amazed what people need pictures of, so don't make any assumptions. If it's a decent photo, upload it. Some sites to get you started include Fotolia, ShutterStock, Dreamstime and iStockphoto. The great thing about this is that it's truly "set it and forget it".
The above list is by no means comprehensive, but it highlights some of the new and interesting ways to make money online without investing any money, without having a product of your own, and without having expert sales and marketing skills. Most of all, unlike taking surveys or getting paid to read e-mail, the potential return on your time investment is substantial.
But it's hard to tell hype from the real deal. I did a search on "make money online" and "making money online", and much of the information out there is just promoting various infoproducts, mostly about Internet marketing. I see why people sometimes ask, "Is anyone making money online besides Internet marketing experts?"
So I put together a list of business opportunities with legitimate companies that:
* Pay cash, not just points towards rewards or a chance to win money
* Don't require you to have your own Web domain or your own products
* Don't involve any hard-selling
* Aren't just promoting more Internet marketing
* Give a good return on your time investment
In the interest of objectivity, none of the links below are affiliate links, and none of them have paid or provided any other consideration for their presence here. These are legitimate companies with business models that allow you to get paid for a wide range of activities.
Help friends find better jobs.
Sites like ReferEarns, Zyoin, Who Do You Know For Dough?, Bohire and WiseStepp connect employers with prospective employees, many of whom are already employed and not actively job-hunting, via networking - the people who know these qualified candidates. Rewards for referring a candidate who gets hired range from $50 on up to several thousand dollars - not chump change. If you know a lot of job-seekers (and who doesn't these days?), this is a great way to break into the recruiting business with no overhead.
Connect suppliers with buyers.
Referral fees are a common practice in business, but they haven't been used much in online networking sites because there was no way to track them. Sites like Salesconx, InnerSell and uRefer now provide that. Vendors set the referral fees they're willing to pay (and for what), and when the transaction happens, you get paid. uRefer also allows merchants to set up referral programs for introductions and meetings, as well as transactions.
Write.
A growing number of sites will pay for your articles or blog posts. Associated Content and Helium will "pay for performance" based on page views for just about anything you want to write about. Articles on specific topics they're looking for can earn direct payments up to about $200. The rates are probably low for established writers, but if you're trying to break into the field and have time on your hands, they're a great way to start. Also, a lot of companies are looking for part-time bloggers. They may pay per post or on a steady contract. Our Weblogs Guide posts blogging jobs weekly in the forum.
Start your own blog.
You don't have to have your own Web site, or install blogging software, or even figure out how to set up the advertising. At Blogger you can set up a blog for free in less than five minutes without knowing a thing about web design, and Blogger even automates setting up Google AdSense so you can make money off your blog by displaying ads and getting paid when people click on the ads. To make even more money from it, set up an affiliate program (see below) for books, music, etc., and insert your affiliate links whenever you refer to those items. You'll have to get a lot of traffic to become a six-figure blogger, but pick an interesting topic, write well, tell all your friends, and you're off to a good start.
Related: Monetizing Your Blog
Create topical resource hubs.
Are you an expert on a particular niche topic? Can you put together an overview of the topic and assemble some of the best resources on the topic from around the web? Then you can create topical hubs and get paid through sites like Squidoo, HugPages and Google Knol. Payments are based on a combination of ad revenue and affiliate fees. You'll get higher rates doing it on your own, but these sites have a built-in supply of traffic and tools to make content creation easier.
Advertise other people's products.
If you already have a Web site or a blog, look for vendors that offer related but non-competing products and see if they have an affiliate program. Stick to familiar products and brands - they're easier to sell. To promote those products:
* Place simple text or graphical ads in appropriate places on your site
* Include links to purchase products you review or recommend in a blog, discussion forum or mailing list you control
* Create a dedicated sales page or Web site to promote a particular product
They all work - it just depends on how much time you have to spend on it and your level of expertise with Web design and marketing.
Related: How to Really Make Money on the Internet With an Amazon.com Affiliate Site
Microstock photography.
You don't have to be a professional photographer to sell your photos for money. People are constantly in need of stock photography for websites, presentations, brochures and so on, and are willing to pay for the right image. People generally search for images on stock photography sites by keywords, not by photographer, so you have the same chance as anyone else of having your image picked. Just be careful that you don't have images of trademarked brands, copyrighted art or people's faces that are readily identifiable (unless you have a model release), but just about anything else is fair game, and I promise - you'd be amazed what people need pictures of, so don't make any assumptions. If it's a decent photo, upload it. Some sites to get you started include Fotolia, ShutterStock, Dreamstime and iStockphoto. The great thing about this is that it's truly "set it and forget it".
The above list is by no means comprehensive, but it highlights some of the new and interesting ways to make money online without investing any money, without having a product of your own, and without having expert sales and marketing skills. Most of all, unlike taking surveys or getting paid to read e-mail, the potential return on your time investment is substantial.
San Jose Mayor Wants To Play Ball, Make Money
Today, Reed will reveal again why his city needs to take the field when it comes to building a new ballpark for the Oakland A's.
He has to sell the idea that it will pay to play in San Jose.
Responding to critics who question how much city coffers will actually benefit from a new downtown ballpark, Reed will tout a new city analysis. It claims a downtown ballpark would generate $1.5 million annually for the city, another $1.5 million for its redevelopment agency and $2 million for Santa Clara County.
"This report finds that it makes fiscal and economic sense to bring baseball to Downtown San Jose. Our residents will benefit, our Downtown businesses will benefit, and surrounding communities will benefit. I look forward to the day when the ballpark is completed and families from throughout our community can enjoy an afternoon or evening at the Downtown ballpark," Reed said.
Reed will try to seal the idea with a rare team of his own; which consists of an alliance of business and labor.
The city has set up a Website touting the pluses of a San Jose park.
Also today, the City Council will review and vote to accept the economic analysis of the proposed baseball park.
Strategies for successful Internet Marketing
These days, every business has recognized the importance and need of marketing using Internet as the platform. Appropriate marketing tools accompanied with good marketing strategies and plans can lead you towards profitable and successful business.
Some important strategies that you can undertake are listed below:
1. Owning a website does not mean that you just launch a website without considering its design and features and keep it aside. It constantly needs your supervision. You ought to keep it updated with your new products and services. But, the most important thing is that your website should be attractive and user friendly, so that clients have no problem in navigating through your website.
2. Get your site registered with various popular search engines, so that they may help in increasing potential client traffic towards your site.
3. Usage of potential and correct keywords can help a lot. Keywords can be referred to as the building blocks of a successful website. Thus, select appropriate and most searched keywords, and use them in your website’s content, so that you can be listed in the searched results when a consumer enters the keyword in the search engine.
4. Select a target market, analyze their needs and products with the help of which their needs can be satisfied and promote those products, but keeping in mind the theme of your business.
5. Try to make use of various marketing tools such as blogging, Pay-Per-Click or Email marketing to reach the mass easily that further help to increase traffic flow.
6. Make use of feedback forms. Ask the visitors on your site to fill up your form. This will help you to determine the views and thoughts of the visitors about your product and your services and will also help you to make improvements in them.
7. Introduce various schemes, offers and contests on your websites, with attractive and pleasing giveaways.
8. Indulge into an activity that creates good rapport and credibility, and try to achieve confidence of the visitors so that they don’t hesitate to re enter into your site. This can be done by giving them correct information, proper follow ups, giving appropriate solutions to their queries and many.
Internet marketing helps you build up potential buyers, but to increase your income and lead your business towards growth, it is essential to convert these potential buyers into the actual buyers of your product. Following these simple basic strategies, you can conquer half the battle of increasing your sales and profits.
Some important strategies that you can undertake are listed below:
1. Owning a website does not mean that you just launch a website without considering its design and features and keep it aside. It constantly needs your supervision. You ought to keep it updated with your new products and services. But, the most important thing is that your website should be attractive and user friendly, so that clients have no problem in navigating through your website.
2. Get your site registered with various popular search engines, so that they may help in increasing potential client traffic towards your site.
3. Usage of potential and correct keywords can help a lot. Keywords can be referred to as the building blocks of a successful website. Thus, select appropriate and most searched keywords, and use them in your website’s content, so that you can be listed in the searched results when a consumer enters the keyword in the search engine.
4. Select a target market, analyze their needs and products with the help of which their needs can be satisfied and promote those products, but keeping in mind the theme of your business.
5. Try to make use of various marketing tools such as blogging, Pay-Per-Click or Email marketing to reach the mass easily that further help to increase traffic flow.
6. Make use of feedback forms. Ask the visitors on your site to fill up your form. This will help you to determine the views and thoughts of the visitors about your product and your services and will also help you to make improvements in them.
7. Introduce various schemes, offers and contests on your websites, with attractive and pleasing giveaways.
8. Indulge into an activity that creates good rapport and credibility, and try to achieve confidence of the visitors so that they don’t hesitate to re enter into your site. This can be done by giving them correct information, proper follow ups, giving appropriate solutions to their queries and many.
Internet marketing helps you build up potential buyers, but to increase your income and lead your business towards growth, it is essential to convert these potential buyers into the actual buyers of your product. Following these simple basic strategies, you can conquer half the battle of increasing your sales and profits.
The PiggyBankin System E-book
Two week ago, I wrote about a website called PiggyBankin that offers a fast way to make money online. The owner of the site, Jeremy has also recently released a free ebook to help people understand exactly how everything works with a step-by-step guide that people can follow to get started right away.
The e-book is actually teaching about how anyone can make fast money using Incentivized Freebie Websites (IFW). I have been aware of Incentivized Freebie Websites for awhile, and realized they were a quick way to make some cash. But not until reading The PiggyBankin System, did I realize that people could realistically make several hundred to a thousand dollars a week using IFW’s.
I like to share PiggyBankin System ebook to people, because frankly I love to see people make money online:
“As I’m sure all of you know, on the internet you have to spend money if you’re looking to make money. After PiggyBankin refers you to the IFW’s, you will have to complete trial sponsor offers (pay shipping and handling) to “complete” the IFW. This will only cost anywhere from $5-$15 normally, and PiggyBankin will promptly pay you the $100 ($50 for each IFW) once you have done so. After completing the sites you will receive your own referral that you can give out to people that can make you huge cash. As a Bonus, PiggyBankin has set up deals with each IFW to give you 4 free referral links (a total of 8) which is estimated at over a $200 absolutely FREE.
Those 10 referral links will be yours to give to WHOEVER you want, and can lead to huge cash. Stage 2 of The PiggyBankin System is devoted to teaching you tips and tricks on how to refer people to the IFW’s. The best part about The PiggyBankin System is that it’s very straightforward and simple. Any person that comes across the information can easily follow the instructions and be on their way to making legitimate income online.”
3 Ways To Make Money Online For Beginners
Lots of people want to make money online. Some want to work at home full time, some want to run an online business and some just want to make some extra cash each month to pay bills. Regardless of what you want to do online, you will have to start somewhere. Being a beginner isn’t easy when it comes to making money online. There are tons of scam sites and products out there that are waiting to take advantage of beginners. When starting out, you will want to look at free opportunities first. This way you don’t have a big commitment to the program and you can leave at any time. In this post, I will give three free easy ways that beginners can use to make money online.
Writing Articles
Sites that pay you to write articles are great for beginners because they easy and to the point. How hard is it to write a 250 word article on what topic you want. Generally a user gets paid when their articles receive a specific number of views. Remember the more articles you write the more potential you have to earn money. There are a number of sites out there that will pay you to do this including Bukisa and Associated Content.
Blogging
Blogging definitely offers the most potential when it comes to making money online for beginners. Starting a blog can be a little confusing but can pay off in the long run. Blogs make money through advertisements and affiliate programs. The more traffic you get to your blog, the more successful it will be. Blogger.com offers free blogs to anyone who wants to start blogging so if you want to make money blogging, I recommend starting there.
Survey Sites
Survey sites are good for beginners because they don’t require too much effort and the surveys come to you (your email). Survey sites generally give out anywhere from 2-15 surveys a month. A lot of this depends on your demographics. These surveys pay between $.50 and $15.00 on average. When choosing a survey site make sure that it is free to sign up with.
When getting started, you will probably want to choose one of the above to try first. Each has their advantages and disadvantages. If blogging doesn’t work for you, maybe writing articles will. Remember that you won’t get rich from these methods but with the right work ethic, you will be able to make a decent amount of money online
Author Bio
Making money online for beginners can be troubling. I recommend CashCrate because that’s what I used when I first started making money online. Its a site that pays you to complete free offers and refer others. This site is 100% free to sign up with.
Writing Articles
Sites that pay you to write articles are great for beginners because they easy and to the point. How hard is it to write a 250 word article on what topic you want. Generally a user gets paid when their articles receive a specific number of views. Remember the more articles you write the more potential you have to earn money. There are a number of sites out there that will pay you to do this including Bukisa and Associated Content.
Blogging
Blogging definitely offers the most potential when it comes to making money online for beginners. Starting a blog can be a little confusing but can pay off in the long run. Blogs make money through advertisements and affiliate programs. The more traffic you get to your blog, the more successful it will be. Blogger.com offers free blogs to anyone who wants to start blogging so if you want to make money blogging, I recommend starting there.
Survey Sites
Survey sites are good for beginners because they don’t require too much effort and the surveys come to you (your email). Survey sites generally give out anywhere from 2-15 surveys a month. A lot of this depends on your demographics. These surveys pay between $.50 and $15.00 on average. When choosing a survey site make sure that it is free to sign up with.
When getting started, you will probably want to choose one of the above to try first. Each has their advantages and disadvantages. If blogging doesn’t work for you, maybe writing articles will. Remember that you won’t get rich from these methods but with the right work ethic, you will be able to make a decent amount of money online
Author Bio
Making money online for beginners can be troubling. I recommend CashCrate because that’s what I used when I first started making money online. Its a site that pays you to complete free offers and refer others. This site is 100% free to sign up with.
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