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

Over the past couple years, information marketers have come under greater scrutiny by the United States Federal Trade Commission. The FTC has taken several companies and individuals to task for deceptive Internet marketing practices. As the largest seller of information products online, Clickbank.com is now issuing clearer guidelines for the types of products and/or marketing practices that will be more closely scrutinized going forward. In other words, they are going to be working harder to... Continue Reading

Twitter is powerful. Facebook is a force to be reckoned with. Both are great sources for generating new business. But there is one site that gets the short end of the stick when it comes to social media influence. And if you know how to use it right, you can generate tons of targeted leads for your business. I'm talking about LinkedIn.com. Continue Reading

On September 1st, 2010, I weighed in at over 225 pounds. I didn't step on the scale often because it wasn't very good news. My energy levels were low. My blood pressure was high. And I was moody. I didn't want to feel that way anymore. I had lost weight in the past, but I wasn't sure I could do it again. After all, I DID balloon back to my previous weight AND put on... Continue Reading

While I have been doing business online since 1995, I entered the Internet marketing arena in 2005. When I began selling an ebook detailing my strategies for making money with websites using Google AdSense, I found myself at the forefront of the marketplace. In the years that followed, I was sucked into a swirling vortex of product launches, live events and teleseminars. I met many other Internet marketers and developed relationships with some. Over the... Continue Reading

It's a new year and more than likely you have new ideas, goals, and plans for your life. And if you're reading this right now, you probably have more than a few goals for your online business. But where are they in terms of importance? Have you prioritized them to take precedence over your goal to lose weight or embark on international travel? Not to take anything away from your desire to be healthy or... 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

Whether or not your online business plans include you writing anything, there is a lot to be said for developing a consistent journaling habit. Many, many people (especially those who have to be creative on a daily basis) attest to the fact that doing a morning "brain dump" of all of your worries, ideas, plans, etc. by writing them down helps to clear you out to do your best work later in the day. This... Continue Reading

Consumerism has a way of telling us what we want without really knowing who we are. It's safe to assume that most of us want to be healthy, have significant relationships and not carry any debt. But that doesn't mean we all want to have a six-pack, bed as many people as we can or be incredibly wealthy. You would think that those are the ultimate goals for life, according to Madison Avenue. It's just... Continue Reading

Starting your own online business is a lot like a long journey. You will need perseverance, stamina, and some faith, and you will reach your goals. But lots of people burn up all of their energy right out of the starting gate. Have you ever gotten really excited about a business idea or an online mentor, thrown a lot of money at it, and then never done anything or really learned anything from it? There... Continue Reading

If you have been following this blog for any time, you probably know that it is not like other blogs. I don't have a template or formula for this blog. It is mine and I use it however I want. When I started blogging in 2003, my first entries were about my dog, my family and my travels. I blogged about my political views, current events and films I had recently seen. Then it happened... Continue Reading

There is a counter-intuitive truth to monetizing websites and online businesses: the more you give away for free, the more money you tend to make. Sounds crazy, but it has proven to be true time and time again. The reason is that through giving away your knowledge and possibly even products for free, you build customer trust and loyalty and you solidify your brand. Since your readers and fans don't have to worry about you... Continue Reading

It's not uncommon for marketers to use upsells and downsells in order to gain a new customer and make a sale. Downsells typically offer the same product or some derivative of that product at a discounted price. Upsells will usually come after a sale has been made, and offer extra goods or services for an additional fee. There's nothing wrong with upselling or downselling in theory. But I do believe there are cases where integrity... Continue Reading

Dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge. Those are the the five rules of dodgeball according to Patches O'Houlihan. But if you've ever played a Prince of Persia game, you may find those same rules apply. I never cared much for the original Prince of Persia side-scrollers made famous on the Apple IIe computer. (Though I DO have a copy of the original in my collection!) A failed attempt to go 3D by RedOrb in 1999... Continue Reading