Do you wish you could be your own boss? If you’re thinking about starting a business so you can leave the nine-to-five grind in favor of being self-employed, you should know that there are both good and bad sides of being an entrepreneur.
Let’s look at some of the benefits and some of the drawbacks of being your own boss, so you can better decide if self-employment is the right option for you.
Benefits of Working for Yourself
Here are some of the biggest benefits of being self-employed:
You get to set your work schedule (although some businesses will have more flexible hours than others). For example, if you run a retail store and you want to be closed on [...]
It’s no secret that WordPress is much more than a basic blog platform these days. It can serve as an all-out content management system (CMS), allowing you to run many different types of websites — blogs, static-looking corporate sites, forums, directories, and more.
WordPress can even be used to run your very own e-commerce website with the help of the right plugins or WordPress themes. Let’s take a look at five good e-commerce tools for WordPress that you can put to use to launch your next online store.
1. WP e-Commerce Plugin
This free plugin is probably the most well-known e-commerce WordPress plugin around. The basic version is free and it enables you to accept payments through Paypal, Google [...]
You’ve probably heard about white papers if you work in a technology-intensive industry. But these selling powerhouses shouldn’t be ignored in other industries as well. No matter what you’re selling, if you need to sell it to high level executives or it’s a very high ticket item, white papers can be a highly effective marketing tool.
Let’s take a look at some of the basics about white papers for those who aren’t as familiar with them and how they might help your business.
What Are White Papers?
A white paper is a type of report often used to market a product or service to executive-level buyers. Because this kind of buyer might need to make a case for the [...]
Lastly, I blame myself.
Much easier to find fault with others, those who accept personal accountability in business and in their personal lives will find that going against the conventional and corporate climate will reap grand benefits. If one can recognize barriers to success, take accountability, define and act on solutions they will be truly successful in life and in business.
Having recently read The Oz Principle by Roger Connors, Tom Smith, and Craig Hickman I thought I would share some of my favorite highlights from the book and how you can get results through accountability.
Why the Lack of Accountability?
“Pop psychology, whether intentional or not, has often encouraged people in our society to blame all their woes and [...]
Perhaps you’ve thought about writing and selling your own e-books as a new income stream. But did you know that by giving them away (or practically giving them away), you can turn e-books into incredible marketing tools?
Whether you write a completely new e-book from scratch or compile information from your blog or website into a more comprehensive resource, let’s take a look at how you can get marketing benefits from even short e-books and reports.
There is More Than One Way to Market With E-books
When people talk about using e-books as a marketing tool, they often focus on only one potential way to do that. Let’s look at that method first and then explore a couple of [...]
Are you struggling to make money from your blogs? Do you make some money blogging, but wish you could make more? The solution might be easier than you think, and it doesn’t always mean you have to increase your traffic dramatically. You can also find ways to increase revenue with your existing market reach by diversifying your income streams.
Let’s look at what it means to diversify your income streams, why bloggers should consider it, and some examples of income streams you might want to add to your blog.
What Does it Mean to Diversify Your Income Streams?
Diversifying your income streams is a simple concept. It means you should have several sources of income at any given time rather [...]
If you’re using Google Plus, you’ve probably heard about the controversy over Google’s “real name policy.” In the interest of transparency I’ll tell you that I have some very big problems with this policy, Google’s flip-flopping about what “real names” mean, and Eric Schmidt’s recent foot-in-mouth comments on the matter. And yes, I do use my real name on the network.
But I don’t want to talk (yet again) about why the real name policy is a terrible idea or why others think it’s great and going to lend some sort of greater credibility to the network. Instead I want to talk about the business of it all.
More importantly I want to talk about how this policy could [...]
Would you like to become a “professional blogger?” Would you just like to earn enough income to support your blog — pay for hosting and a domain name for example? If you’re like a lot of people who want to make money blogging, you’ve probably thought about tossing ads up on your site to do it. But did you know that there are other, often better, ways to make money blogging?
Let’s talk about why ads aren’t always the best option when you want to make money with your blog and mention a few alternative ways you can make money blogging, no ads required.
Why You Might Not Want to Rely on Ads for Blog Monetization
There are different [...]
If you’re a book lover, you probably know that all Borders stores are closing. This weekend I went to the nearest store to check out the liquidation sale. And I have to say, I wasn’t that impressed. Books seemed to be selling slowly, even with 40-50% discounts. They still couldn’t seem to compete with online behemoth, Amazon.com.
As sad as it is to see physical bookstores closing, there’s hope. These big box retailers knocked down the little independent bookstores years ago, and now those indie bookstores have a chance to shine again. So let’s take a look at how the Borders failure can be a good thing for small businesses in this industry, and a few lessons those independent booksellers can [...]
Despite the fact that social media marketing seems to monopolize internet marketing conversations lately, it’s far from your only option. For example, email marketing can still be a highly effective way to communicate with an audience, drive traffic, and increase sales.
I used to use simple email newsletters to promote site features and content, but stopped years ago because I didn’t have enough products to promote. The return wasn’t there at the time. With several new e-books and a series of e-courses in the pipeline, I decided that now was a good time to get back into email marketing.
That meant I had to choose a new email marketing service. In my case, I chose Aweber. I won’t tell you [...]
How Outsourcing Affects The U.S. Economy!
Paypal to Report User Earnings to the IRS: What it Means for Your Business
The World’s Youngest Self-Made Billionaires!
How to Write a White Paper
How Colors May Affect Your Productivity and Success
Benefits and Drawbacks of Being Your Own Boss
5 E-commerce Resources for Wordpress Sites
How to Use White Papers to Market Your Business
Getting Results through Accountability
How to Effectively Use E-books as Marketing Tools
Benefits and Drawbacks of Being Your Own Boss
5 E-commerce Resources for Wordpress Sites
How to Use White Papers to Market Your Business
How to Effectively Use E-books as Marketing Tools
Bloggers: Why You Should Diversify Your Income Streams