(Written by guest contributor Tim Golen) I'm going to get up on my soapbox for a little bit here. You see... I consider myself to be a good programmer. Now, I don't mean the BEST programmer, just a good one. I know there are so many things that I have yet to learn out there. In my days I've come across both good and bad programmers, and I could probably write a decent book on... Continue Reading

(Written by guest contributor Tim Golen) This article is for three primary audiences. It's for the business owner who does his own programming and development. It's for the business owner who has hired or contracted a developer to work for him. It's for the developer doing the work. I will be discussing the single piece of software that can increase your efficiency more than any other investment. Yes, it is an investment in your business... Continue Reading

When the potential of Google AdSense became clear, it was a seminal moment. It was a revolution in entrepreneurial opportunity. You didn't need to be a programmer, a computer whiz or a venture capitalist to make money out of the Internet. All you needed to do was identify one thing that you knew a lot about, write about it, surround your content with ads and if you could bring in the traffic, you had a... Continue Reading

Perhaps it is the way creatives are wired or the difficulties of collaborative projects, but too often creatives have a file management system that is.....well, "creative." Organization is often not one of our strengths. Yet keeping advertisements, stock photography, designs, proofs, versions, illustrations, and production files organized will maximize your efficiency and your ability to collaborate with all the members of your team. Continue Reading

(Written by guest contributor Andrew Krzysiak) Part 1: Purpose & Preparation Do you have a great idea for a website? Can you already picture it in your head? Are you ready to find a designer to build it? Continue Reading

(Written by guest contributor Dan Nickerson) Everyone's heard the expression, "It takes money to make money." While the Internet has allowed many of us to bend this rule a bit, for the most part it's still very true. Continue Reading

(Written by guest contributor Dan Nickerson) If you asked someone off the street (let's call him Joe Internet) what it costs to start an online business, chances are he would say hundreds, perhaps even thousands of dollars. Those with basic Internet knowledge probably realize it's not that expensive, and most online marketers know you can get started for free. All you need is a Blogger account, AdSense, and the ability to write articles. Continue Reading

Interviewing prospective web designers is often a difficult task. Some candidates might be design rock stars but unable to develop the essential business features for your site, while other applicants will have portfolios filled with high-ranking sites that look like ghosts from the late 90s. Continue Reading

Everyone's got a good idea, and they constantly dream of finding the perfect person who will hand them a briefcase of cash in exchange for that idea. To be honest, that's just not realistic. Ideas are pretty much worthless, unless you take action on them. Continue Reading

So you have a business up and rolling. Now, how about establishing a sure-fire way to grow sales with little to no risk? If you are thinking affiliate marketing, the answer is yes! Affiliate marketing's pay-for-performance model makes it a low-risk, high-reward venture; it's a no-brainer for businesses looking to drive qualified sales or leads. The more complicated part is how to actually get affiliates to not just opt to join your program among the... Continue Reading

It's all your fault. I'm not going to beat about the bush. Nor am I going to try to save your feelings. I'm going to be brutally honest because I think direct is always the best way to go - and because you can handle it. It's all because of you. Continue Reading

Online publishers wear all sort of different hats. They have to be marketers and managers. They have to be programmers and designers. They have to be buyers and sellers. And they often have to be dog-walkers, soccer coaches, family cooks and 9-5 day workers too. But perhaps the biggest challenge is that they have to be content creators as well. That's a very specialized job and because it's at the heart of what makes a... Continue Reading

The information age really does move at the speed of light. Technology is advancing faster than we ever conceived possible. I've been online for 26 years now. In 1980, I bought my first computer, a TRS-80. This machine had 4K of RAM (not 4MB... 4K) and a cassette player that was used as a storage device. There wasn't even a floppy disc drive! I owned a 300 baud modem that I used to dial into... Continue Reading

I met Scott Hildenbrand in the WorldVillage chat room in 1996... that's an eternity in Internet time. I got to know him and found out that he was a talented young programmer with an affinity for basset hounds. Scott has since done a great deal of work for me and I am proud to have him on my team. He has launched his own site with some very interesting content. Scott discusses a variety of... Continue Reading