Allow me to introduce you to my nephew, Jordan Benker. I know him as Jordy, and he is a very talented young musician. Why am I writing about Jordan today? Obviously, I care about him and I want to see him succeed. But I've got another angle. This past week I observed something very interesting happening with Jordan while following his Facebook posts. There was a discussion saying that his name trended worldwide on Twitter... Continue Reading

"When you are through changing, you are through." - Bruce Barton Change is inevitable. Apart from death and taxes, change is the only thing in this life that we can count on. This past year has found me in the midst of much change. After a number of years as an author, speaker and entrepreneur, I have spent the last year quietly reassessing my life. Taking some time away from work, I've been tending to... Continue Reading

It was early September 2010. At over 225 pounds and sporting a size 40 waist, I decided it was time to make a change. After all, at 46-years old, I wasn't getting any younger. In order to hold myself accountable to my desire to get fit and lose weight, I went public with my goals. I wrote about the changes I would be making extensively on this blog. My first entry was posted 9/14/10. By... Continue Reading

As you know, I've been building websites since 1995. I've always been a big fan of creating content-rich sites that bring value to others. That's why I have always spoken against creating spammy sites designed to game the search engines. It's not a good model for building a long-term business. I've sold a number of my sites over the years. In 1998, Yahoo! purchased my multiplayer game site, ClassicGames.com. Today you know it as Yahoo... Continue Reading

Facebook can be very frustrating. Early on, I accepted every friend request that came my way. I was being social, right? Shortly after hitting my 5000 friend limit, my account was suspended. After creating a bit of a hullaballoo (don't get to use that word very often), my account was re-activated. Then came pages. Now I had a place to send people who wanted to follow me. The numbers quickly grew. But my Facebook stream... Continue Reading

Since 2004, I have been making money with Google AdSense. The rumors that AdSense is dead are only true for those who have tried to game the system. But for people who build content-rich sites, AdSense is very much alive. In fact, I have continued to average $500/day up until this very day! And for nearly six years, AdSense Secrets has been the definitive guide to making money with Google AdSense. Thousands of people have... Continue Reading

It's been over two years since Apple approved iFart Mobile for sale in the iTunes appstore. During that time, iFart has become the defacto novelty app. Even after all this time, iFart finds its way into headlines again and again. I recently shared that I am changing my business model. In order to focus on my new efforts, I have decided it is time to sell some of my existing properties. I have already sold... Continue Reading

"To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven." - Ecclesiastes 3:1 Nothing lasts forever. Change is inevitable. Over the past fifteen or so years I have created dozens of websites, products, services and applications that run the gamut of new media. Content sites, information products, member sites, web-based software, iPhone applications, mobile marketing platforms, entertainment sites and more. During that time I have had some tremendous successes and some... Continue Reading

A couple days ago I blogged about the lack of integrity amongst some Internet marketers. The post attracted thousands of readers and many comments were posted. Clearly, this topic is one on many people's minds. It almost feels like picking at scabs because there is a great deal of wounding in this area. While I appreciate the kind words people shared, this issue is NOT about me. This is about an industry that has been... Continue Reading

It's not entirely new and it's not entirely unique. Third-party providers like TwitterAnalyzer and Klout had already been providing some statistical feedback for Twitter for some time. CrowdBooster, a new service, promises to do even more. But the launch of Twitter's own Analytics service is going to change everything. Continue Reading

One of the perennial questions in online marketing is how to get more traffic to your site. Whether you are just starting out, having just launched your site and are now wondering who's going to read it, or have been in the business for awhile and would like to improve your numbers, there is always something you can do to get more readers and site visitors. Here is a laundry list of our favorites. Don't... Continue Reading

There is a new job description out there, one that probably wasn't around when your grandfather was crafting his career: life coach. What exactly is a life coach, and why would you need one? First of all, the term is somewhat fluid. You can call it what you will, but a life coach, mentor, personal consultant, etc. is someone who helps you with some aspect of your life that you can't quite see clearly and... Continue Reading

I recently enjoyed a meal with my daughter at Hu Hot Mongolian Grill in Fort Collins. It's our favorite place to enjoy build-your-own stir fry. Very tasty. As we were leaving the table, I heard my name called out. "Joel"... I turned around to a gentlemen looking at me. I didn't recognize him so I am scanning the recesses of my brain very rapidly to try to recall where I know him from. As it... Continue Reading

In the world of smartphones, you definitely hear the most news about the iPhone. Whether it is because of Apple's enigmatic CEO or a collective obsession with the iPhone's sleek design, for some reason, that is the phone that the media loves to talk about the most. But recent reports on Google Android's market share indicate that it in fact is in the lead, with around 32% of smartphones users using an Android. So what... Continue Reading