Want to get more visitors to your site? Dig your information
Social media sites are what 2007 will be all about. The more connected you can get online, the more your business will grow.
I've been playing around with Digg
http://digg.com/ and will be trying to work my way up in ranking in the future. One of the fun tools to watch is at
http://digg.com/spy There you can watch real time what others are reading. It's interesting to see how fast it changes, and exactly what people are reading. Give it a try.
Lori
A Place To Get New Ideas
As many of you know, I write bi-monthly for the Denver Business Journal. So I do head over to the business journal's website quite a bit.
If you haven't been to their sites, you may want to take a look around.
http://www.bizjournals.com/ From this one portal site, you can access and of the major city's papers and complete sites. You can read a wealth of information. And you also have access to the events and networking section, which will provide you with everything that's happening around your town in the coming weeks.
I also use the business journal's website to gain access on potential customers, and use it for a variety of research. The more you know about people and businesses, the easier your business gets!
Lori
Book Review - The Automatic Millionaire
I just finished The Automatic Millionaire by David Bach. I've read several of his other books, and decided it was time to read this one when I found it on the shelves of my local library.
The thing I enjoy about David's writing style is how simple he makes things. He has a unique perspective of looking at finances, and relaying them in an easy to use fashion.
One of the biggest things I walked away with from this book is how to think rich, and how to share that knowledge with your children. He tells a story about a couple in their early 50's ready to retire because of what their parents had taught them about money.
We Inherited Knowledge
is what the couple told David.
Basically, to retire rich at an early age, you need to:
1. Pay yourself first. Always put money away for yourself first before you pay the bills. Automate the process if possible.
2. Save a few dollars a day. They called it the cigarette factor - basically the latte factor - and you should eliminate one habit from your system, and use the money to pay yourself.
3. Buy a house and make two 1/2 payments every month instead of one big one. You pay off the house much quicker this way.
4. Don't buy things on credit, minus your house. If you can't pay for it, don't buy it.
Pretty simple rules, and they make a lot of sense to me.
It's a great book if your new to the whole finance/savings idea, or if you want a refresher on great ideas. (I never get bored reading simliar items - I alway pick up one or two new nuggets along the way!)
Lori
Labels: book review
New Site I'm Contributing To
Exciting news! I'm a new contributing expert for Rat Race Rebellion!
As a photographer with 20 years of experience, they've decided to make me their expert on starting a photography business. I have an incredible profile up:
http://www.ratracerebellion.com/EC_photographer.htmAnd starting in April I will be moderating the bulletin board on photography.
I'm excited to be a part of this growing community!
Lori
Labels: photography, writing
What a great marketing promotion
So you think you need to spend a lot on promotions to bring in the sales?
Think again.
I just found a great idea at Moosejaw.com
For a limited time, you can get a free invisible cup with the purchase of boardshorts or a bikini. You simply add your free invisible cup to your order, and it will be processed when you make your purchase.
If you have a fun business where your clients have a sense of humor, this is a perfect way to get people talking.
Lori
Labels: direct marketing, promotion
Finding Data for Your Newsletter
People ask me all the time how to come up with data for their ezines.
Check out this site I found today.
http://swivel.com/Swivel is a site where anyone can post data. You can graph it, showcase it, and use it. I spent a few minutes on the site looking around at the charts and graphs, and found some very interesting data.
If you like to use stats and data in your ezine - Swivel is the perfect place for you.
Lori
Labels: ezine, ezine marketing
Plug In America
I watched an incredible movie tonight with my family. It's called "Who Killed The Electric Car?" It's definitely worth watching - everyone in America should make it required viewing. I've even heard some schools are having their kids watch it, and discussing the implications afterward.
This movie sparked an interesting discussion with my own daughter. Questions like:
Why can people hate something, and actually stop its production, when its obvious its a good thing?
How can you take action and get your point across that this is something we need as a country?
12 years olds are very astute in their analysis.
So I did a little research, based on comments from the film. Check out
http://www.pluginamerica.com/and discover ways you can demand new technology, and not give the auto dealers and big oil companies what they want the most.
Lori
