Time To say "hello" again. Was on my way out of here but realized my Strictly Content blog is missing...wish Google folks would ask me before making changes to my stuff! If you're looking for a title..here it is "Arrrrgh!". About like me, huh? Until I get this new change sorted out, I'll leave you with this. "If everybody is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking."~General George S. Patton

Posted on: 10 December 2012 | 12:06 am

Time To Say Good Bye

Hello All. As you can see Blogger has gone through another change. Ah well, that's life - change. PLEASE DO NOT BOOKMARK THIS BLOG. AS OF OCTOBER 24, 2012 All Posts Can Be Found On: Micro Business Owner It's been fun. Thank you all for hanging in here with me for six years.

Posted on: 25 October 2012 | 12:06 am

Becoming A Solo Entrepreneur

I've been reading quite a few blogs lately and confused is half the problem. On one hand are those who swear money is tight, no one is buying and everything is in the toilet...then there are those who swear they are growing despite themselves, have found new clients and customers are easier to please. Since December, I've reinvented my business to focus more on writing content for solo entrepreneurs. Here's the interesting thing for me: When I went from trying to 'learn everything there is to know' about professional writing, the clients found me. Here's what I mean. You know how you're supposed to learn copywriting, marketing, blah, blah, whatever? Well I crashed and burned trying to learn all that stuff. Sure, selling something is part of having your own business. But you don't have to be an expert copywriter (or hire one if you have deeper pockets than sense) nor do you have to know it all. I remembered something Frank Kern said John Carlton told him about selling his first product and it was a 3 step process: 1. Here's what I got...whatever you're selling. 2. Here's what it will do for you....why a customer/client/prospect/patient will get from using/tasting/trying what you're selling. 3. Here's what I want you to do next...order it/taste it/try it or give me a way to tell you more about it. That sounded good to me! Here's exactly what is on my content writing blog: 1. Article, blog or report writing available for your business from someone who is easy to work with. 2. Increase your search engine rankings organically with articles, build your brand expertise with custom reports and keep targeted leads coming back for more with relevant blog posts. 3. Here's my contact information or fill out the contact form about your writing project. Thank you Does it work? Time will tell. Currently out of 10 reviews of onsite writing samples, three prospects requested the 30-minute consultation and 7 raised their hands as targeted leads by accepting to be on my network list for future followup. How many people slid through looking for $5/1000 word reports? About 100. But that's awful! Not really when you consider my hourly rate is a bit north of $100US. What do I send them as follow-up emails? Glad you asked because it's the same thing I do here - give them information to help them do their jobs better. And when you operate as a solo, you do have things to do - no matter what you call them...projects, tasks or navel gazing.

Posted on: 6 March 2012 | 12:00 am

Time For A Change?

Working hard on my freelance writing site. Not ready for prime time as yet, but then neither was this blog in 1995. It's been a learning experience. Funny monetizing this blog was not one of my goals for writing...I was either being altruistic or very, very naive. Likely both. This blog has been on the first page of Google (it's not hard to do, so stop worrying about it) and has had up to 100 readers in one day....that was weird, even for me. And during all that time, maybe 3 people commented. Guess because it's Blogger and Blogspot..no "professional" would use such a thing. Especially now that there's paid themes, WP, Drupal, Joomla and only God knows what else. Know what? I don't care. Really. Blogger and the Google team have been very accommodating to my fledgling writing endeavors. There have been times when it seemed my posts were pushing the limits, but the blog wasn't deleted. That's my idea of tolerance! I'm back, let's hope a bit wiser. This is still a journey. Thank you for being brave (or crazy) enough to come along. Until next time, I leave you with this - Tough times never last, but tough people do.~Robert H. Schuller

Posted on: 30 October 2011 | 11:58 pm

Return of a Mensch

Hey Folks... It's been some time since my last post. If you've wondered where I went... all over the map, dropped the ball on my business and starting over. One thing about good advice - you rarely listen to your own. Thanks to a few ghost-mentors online, I'm back on track. Enough about that. Let's move on, shall we. First up I'm on Twitter. Yeah, yeah I know in my post last year my opinion was to wait 5 years. I still think some of you should. Here's why: 1. Tweeting Irrelevant Posts Come on now. Do you really think that telling everyone on earth that you have warts makes you more human? It makes you a schmuck. No one cares except maybe your S.O., physician and family. Share that on Facebook where it belongs. Not where your colleagues and people you want to do business with are viewing it. 2. Following Any and Everybody Do you really want to try and keep up with 1,000+ people. Who are they anyway? Are they people who you can honestly say are prospective clients or customers you want to do work with? My take on Twitter is to follow those people who have something to say that either: A. Make me a better person B. Help me be a better entrepreneur C. Help me accomplish my goals (experience and common sense required.) Other than that, I don't want you to follow me expecting me to follow you. I've seen too many internet marketers (their term,not mine) whose sole Tweets are shortened links to bland, do nothing, who cares land. Well, that's it for today and I leave you with this: Have the courage to be ignorant of a great number of things, in order to avoid the calamity of being ignorant of everything ~Sydney Smith

Posted on: 13 October 2011 | 11:33 am

Twitter For Solo Entrepreneurs? Maybe 5 Years From Now.

Hey Guys, Just read this post from GigaOm, Twitter Used By 8 Percent of American Internet Users. And unless your customers are 18-24 year old, urban youth - you may want to take another look at how you're using Twitter. I've said it in prior posts: Know your customers and clients, but don't spend stupid money playing follow-the-hype. When you are an independent small business, income does not equate to "getting the word out". Either the people who have an interest in what you sell and money to pay you are where your small marketing budget is spent, or you're "spraying and praying". For those of you who are wondering when I'll start giving you these nifty tips again - have no fear, 2011 is a brand new year for TSG! We're going to go down rabbit holes to increase your business income, market smarter and get more qualified prospects coming to your business. And yes - there will be more sources for you to ramp up your Solo Entrepreneur Business like never before. Screw the economy!

Posted on: 13 December 2010 | 4:14 pm

Solo Entrepreneur's Professional Identity

I'm winding down one 2010 early and wanted to stop in and give you another of those famous resources I'm always finding. Keyword Localizer Trey Smith makes software, and this one might help you out with those keywords for your sites. Here's the thing I like - it's easy to use and doesn't only stop with Google. You also get the results from Yahoo and Bing. Here's what may be confusing, it's for those who use Adwords ads. I don't use Adwords or any paid ads at the moment, but what it can work for is classified ad sites like Craigslist or Ebay ads. Click the link, watch the short video (you'll be asked for your email address to get it) but it may be useful if the Google keyword tool changes aren't working for you. Oh, and yes it's free:) Do you consider yourself a solo entrepreneur, small business owner, consultant...or something else? I've noticed quite a number of online marketers calling themselves "consultants" lately. It's as if they are having an identity crisis and want to down play their independent business status. The reason I'm asking you to think about this? It affects your marketing, how you come across to prospective clients and your credibility. Now more than ever, it's important to be who you say you are in everything you do related to your business. Because it's too easy for clients, customers and prospects to "peep behind the curtain". The last thing you want is for prospective customers or clients to wonder what else you may be 'fudgeing the truth' about in your business. Many of you have never worked in the cut-throat environment of a corporate office, trust me when I say it's the last image you want people to connect you with. Lacing your blog, brochures, and marketing with "we, us and our", thinking it projects a professional image is misguided. What it does is give your prospects the impression they will not get the personal attention entrepreneurs are famous for offering their customers. My clients know I'm a one-woman show and 90% of my clients are solo entrepreneurs who happen to be independent consultants. None of us are starving because we're solo, so why should you allow it to bother you in your business? Here's a suggestion: Send a short email to your customer or prospect list, and ask if you were an independent entrepreneur would they still use your service? That's it for today and I leave you with this - Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it.~ Colin Powell

Posted on: 14 November 2010 | 11:35 pm

Tax Workshop - Entrepreneurs Update

Hey folks, Dropped by to tell you the IRS has their small business online tax workshop portal active. With all the politicing going on here in the U.S....best to get ahead of the game straight from the horses mouth (Auntie IRS) - than the horse's asses making unfounded promises. Here's where to go: Small Business Taxes Rant Coming I have nothing against good government (the less of it the better it seems), but when it's bad from the top it can only mean sludge at the bottom:) For those of you who think I'm bashing the US, that isn't the case. What we have for the moment and yes, it could be much worse. What gripes my butt is in the US, there are so many hard-working, intelligent, educated people out of work the numbers rival the population of a small country. Whatever happened to Leadership? Stewardship? Having a pair?! And somebody please explain to me what the hell does 'thought leader' mean? I've read 1984, and a thought leader to me means "I'll tell you what to think" - not a good start in my book. For those of you going to the polls - it's time we sent a message that Bull-Shit is not on the ballot. Tea Party, Garden Party, Republican Pelican, Democrat, Ass Scratch - it's all the same crap warmed over. Sarah Palin? Puhleeze - chick is one downstroke away from raising her 25 cent hooker status. Americans are so demoralized over street level bad economic news (while big companies are showing record profits) even this piece of work is being promoted as the second coming of Christ. Barak Obama? Give us a break Puhleeze - he was the poster boy for global PR and "Keeping Hope Alive". As far as leadership ability, he can't tell bad advisors from a ham sandwich and it shows in every word he utters (yells). Cliches, mis-quotes, uhms and talking louder doesn't give you credibility. Makes you just another loud mouthed idiot dressed up in your Sunday clothes. Rant Over:) That's it for today and I leave you with this - Until they become conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot become conscious - 1984 (Nineteen Eighty-Four)

Posted on: 27 October 2010 | 1:09 pm

Late as usual BUT - the Best Solo Freelancers Conference

This will be quick, but signup now for this conference. If you write your own blogs, website content or like me you're a freelance writer - this is the "Don't Miss" conference of 2010. Dan Poynter, Bob Bly, Nick Usborne - Yes! I'm getting in the groove again and ramping up my posting here, so look out for some great Solo Entrepreneur content to come FOR TODAY - Get on the email list for this conference. It started today and runs through Saturday - September 25, 2010. For those on the email list, there there will be a replay. Get listed. I'll be on the conference all day Saturday, phones are off. And to my loyal readers and overworked clients - Take Saturday off:)

Posted on: 24 September 2010 | 5:17 pm

Working For A Living

I've decided to limit my online activities and stick with my fellow small business owners locally. Since I owned a small business before venturing (and losing) online, this seems to be where this solo entrepreneur is strongest. Small business owners are a different breed from your run-of-the-mill internet opportunity junkie. Most of them have seen and heard what you are trying to sell them in one form or another over the years. Likely back in the day some entrepreneurial guy or gal told them the hot new thing was e-mail systems, or voice mail, or self-publishing, or Voip, or e-fax or free ads on late night cable. When it comes to the internet, you can bet your last dollar they have heard about it in one form or another from their neighbor, their spouse, their kids, their employees ad nauseum. Yes, there will be some who are brain-dead stupid enough to pay $5,000 or more for someone to build them a website. There may even be a few who will think the Yellow Pages is deader than Elvis - but not all. The Yellow Pages isn't dead, it's online. And sales reps are selling online marketing as a bundled service right along with the regular tree-built version. One little thing that's interesting about these 'Mom & Pop' business owners: they are easy to piss off! With running a business, watching their elected officials vote for changes that steal their money before they can get it and employees haul-assing out the back door with the merchandise. They might not be happy to see you. As far as they are concerned you are just somebody else with a hand in their pocket. Listen up: If you live in East Podunk County just down the road a-piece from Hoot 'n' Holler junction making thousands selling a website isn't going to happen. Nice to wish for but don't bet paying your bills on it. What does this have to do with you? Simply this: If you have sold to a small business owner in your town prior to this run of the bull, you might have something to offer them because of that relationship. But if you are chasing what you think is a quick easy sale because "everybody" needs to be online - get ready to have your head handed to you. Some of these folks can be really, brutally blunt. So what you know a little search engine optimization (or read a book, watched a video or attended a webinar on it) and you have a Get Response email list you built giving away a free ebook? That and $1.25 will get you a large cup of coffee at McDonald's and will mean diddly-squat to most local small business owners. They want to know why if you're so good - You don't have your own business listed on Google Places? I'm not joking here. I've been in forums where the person that claims to be making thousands a day doesn't have a website nor do they have their own Google or Yahoo map. They want to know why if you do what the yellow pages can't - You show up with the same Power Point presentation the last guy/gal had and spewing the same gibberish. They want to know how you can grow their customer base - But you don't ask questions about the kinds of customers they currently have. See a pattern here? I'm not telling you not to try and help local business owners with their online efforts. Just don't be an idiot. Start small by offering a simple service they can get their minds around with little cash outlay. Kyle Tully offers a simple system to help you get started locally and build a relationship with small business owners. Here's an example of the kind of small business owner his system is designed for you to offer real help: Joe the plumber has been in business 15 years in Ashland Ohio. Recently he put an ad on Angie's List because one of his best customers told him about it. Once in a while he gets a call from someone who sees it. How are you going to convince him you can get him a better response from more qualified prospects? He's in a city of at most 25,000 people. Sell him a website?! Good luck with that. As far as he's concerned he knows his customers by name from his invoices. And that's free to boot! He also knows which ones refer him business with a good likelihood of making some money. Some of you are going to jump in blind, no matter if I recommend something or not. Before you do and make an ass of yourself, take a look at Kyle's Course. It's not the fanciest, or most expensive service to offer out there. But it is simple for a solo entrepreneur and opens doors for you in your local business community.

Posted on: 27 August 2010 | 3:39 am

Entrepreneur Update Status

Have quite a few things to share with you upon my return. As solo entrepreneurs, you are likely thinking about the rest of the year and how to increase your revenues. Those of you in retail, or wanting to explore this avenue should have your plans together for the upcoming holiday season. I've been seeing more junk emails promoting Halloween - don't fall for it. I'm not trying to imply it's not a profitable time of the year for some, it can be. But it's also seasonal. Remember - evergreen, evergreen, evergreen. Christmas and Thanksgiving in some form are the primary holiday seasons in many countries around the globe. Follow the money. Halloween may bring in a few hundred bucks, but Thanksgiving and Christmas can bring in a few thousand with - business or religious gift giving, meal planning, travel, clothing, and trends being talked about in the online shopping forums. Major retailers are definitely paying attention, so should you. I'd rather focus my attention on multiple sales opportunities than simply hoping to get a few scraps from a "Johnny One Note" that's celebrated in at most 2 countries. Think about it this way - Cinco de Mayo was celebrated this year all over Central, South and North America. Can you say the same thing for Halloween? That's it for today and I leave you with this - Early to bed and early to rise - till you get enough money to do otherwise ~Peter's Almanac

Posted on: 2 August 2010 | 5:04 am

Proof Working For The Government Makes You Stupid

For those of you who are in fear of losing your job or home and becoming a part of the 14 million unemployed who are no longer receiving unemployment because it ran out - this guy thinks you are stupid for questioning the economic mess we're in. Normally I stay away from politics, but I've about had it with those who are blaming the victims for this shit sandwich we are all being forced to eat through no fault of our own. Evidently, it was fine to have jobs sent out of the country beginning in late 1985 because it was cheap labor and then pillaging the treasury for corrupt car company executives when they needed to keep their pensions with bailout money. But for those who had the common sense to live within their means and were laid off anyway when they either hit 50 or weren't in a government protected industry (pharmaceutical, banking, auto, aviation), screw you! Go live on the street for all your elected officials care, afterall if your unemployment benefits run out - screw you, I got mine! If your job disappeared because the banks called loans on the small businesses trying to keep people employed during the economic downturn - screw you, I got mine! For the rest of you now suffering from continued stupidity by your elected officials - screw you, We got ours! Simon makes an excellent point on his blog about this Phd Federal Reserve of Richmond Idiot. If this is the advanced degree required idiots the government has working for us, it explains a lot. One final rant on this topic and I'm going back to trying to eak-out a living with my weight loss blog. For those self-proclaimed experts who point fingers saying it's your own damned fault because you did what you believed was right (showed up and did your job to the best of your ability) but are now facing living on the street: Kiss our collective asses! You have not stopped sending your crap to our inboxes trying to sell your crap (crap is about as politically correct as I'm going to get because it's not the word I want to use) in the hundreds or even thousands of dollars. What that tells me is this - You are part of the problem too. In fact, the next expert/guru/ass-wipe/shit weasel that sends you anything about their hot new 'Beat the recession by making money offline/online/on Mars' crap - unsubscribe. Seriously. You will feel better and can focus on what's important - living indoors and finding money from somewhere to stay alive. That's your priority now. The truth is this: It's all about hanging on for one more day. It's no joke that those of us in the United States are teetering on the brink, and I still believe it's not the economy. No word has created this problem, it's the bucket-heads that we trusted and elected that have put us in this position. This administration with it's entitlement mentality is almost as bad as what Communism was claimed to have been in the 50's.

Posted on: 20 July 2010 | 2:19 pm

Website Flipping -

Found this video on flipping small websites for profit and thought it might help start making some money online. If you have an affiliate site or blog you no longer want - this might be a good option. At worst you get something for the time you spent creating it, and at best you make a tidy profit from something you like to do. There's a niche in itself made up of people who do no more than buy and sell websites. Hope you like the video - If the video disappears in your email, click here to watch it.

Posted on: 21 June 2010 | 9:00 pm

Solo Entrepreneurs On Local Networking

Stopped in to share this local networking tip for you. BNI is one of the longest running small business networks globally. Here's The Latest News - Straight from the site. This will auto-update for those who subscribe to my feed, you'll get the updates. Where have I been since March? More on that later:) Until next time, I leave you with this- “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.”~Eleanor Roosevelt

Posted on: 6 June 2010 | 11:05 pm

Twitter and Other Social Networks

Busy working on the Natural Weight Loss Newsletter blog and setting up the paid subscribers section, so this post will be brief. Those of you operating a business online (or off), how are you tracking the effectiveness of your social media marketing efforts? I asked this before and half of my readers ran for the hills...or gave me the 'party-line: "Everybody is doing it and it's the thing for the future of online marketing". Don't be an idiot. I know everyone is 'trying' to use it, what I want to know is are any of you tracking your results using it. Let's be specific: Has the traffic converted into sales? Is it more effective than other marketing methods you are using? Even the newest online denizen can build a list of freebie seekers and tire kickers. Traffic isn't hard to get, targeted-credit card carrying-ready to buy prospects is the problem. That's it for today and I leave you with this - A leader must have the courage to act against an expert's advice.~James Callaghan

Posted on: 4 May 2010 | 2:31 am

Why Do You Want To Be Rich?

Everywhere you look online, somebody is trying to sell you the latest shiny box and they always tack on - 'make millions' you just have to buy the shiny box they are selling. So today I have a video (with commercials no less) that may help you realize something I've been preaching forever - it ain't the shiny box that's going to make you a millionaire. Enjoy.

Posted on: 21 April 2010 | 2:02 pm

Work From Home: Find The Fit

I've been reading quite a bit these past 6 months about ideas for creating a home-based business. During that time, the "internet opportunities" and "work-at-home scams" have exploded. This overload has also created a lot of very frustrated and broken spirit entrepreneurs. Here's what I mean - Not everyone is cut-out to work online nor want to create a business that requires sitting at their computer everyday. Some of you would prefer to get outside in nature, others want to work with their hands (and not on a keyboard!) and still others want something but have no idea what that something will be. What I've done in the past with TSG was give you marketing and business tips heavily swayed towards using the internet. Most were on the various options for you to consider working from home as an affiliate or information marketer. I missed the mark totally and for that I apologize. In my last survey, I asked what made you start your home-based business. 2 of you responded to that survey and I thank you because it helped me make a decision about TSG. This survey is going to be a bit different. The 5 questions are right here that I'd like you to answer for me! Simply post a comment with the question number, can't get any easier than that:) what I want to know: 1. What is the #1 question you have about starting your own business? 2. Where would you prefer to grow your home business, locally in your area or strictly on the internet? 3. When you think of business ideas, which ones interest you the most? For example import/export or running a laundromat or having a little vending machine route. Think about it. 4. How many "business opportunities" have you tried to make work in the past 3 years and what were they? 5. How do you choose a good work at home opportunity? How did you choose the last one.5 Easy Little Questions. Some of you haven't been to the archives in a while, so let me give you this tip before you answer those questions: Take money out the picture. Yes, your business must make a profit (profit=money in the bank). But it is not how you make a decision on what business to start. I can make my business profitable, I'd suck running Microsoft. Bill Gates would likely suck at running my business too, so we're even:). Here's why I'm asking for your feedback. I've been writing this little newsletter offline for my coaching clients (yeah I do that too). What I've learned working with them is - I may have not helped quite a few of you really create the work at home business you want with this blog. The only way to know going forward is to ask. What more would you like to see on this blog? No there's no money in answering the questions?! I might send you a sample of my paid newsletter or a product that I own you can have rights to - but no money will be changing hands here:) That's it for today and I leave you with this - Ideas are the beginning points of all fortunes~Napoleon Hill

Posted on: 9 April 2010 | 12:16 am

Entrepreneur or Social Butterfly?

I was totally emersed at the Warrior Forum last night and it was well worth the time spent. Insights gleened on working with local offline clients was phenomenal and found 4 people I really admire (Tim Castleman, Gordon Alexander, Lynn Terry, Leanne King) are members of the War Room. Why am I telling you about my foray into WF? Because some of you are also on the same forum and you can either waste time whining that no one will help you or use it to shorten your learning curve as a Solo. There are forums like Warrior that really are worth the time for getting your questions answered by more experienced business owners. Doesn't matter if you run your business out of a hut on the beach or while sitting in the bathroom on the throne. (That's one of the perks of being a Solo Entrepreneur and running your own show. You get to work wherever and whenever you want.) Don't misunderstand, the Warrior Forum isn't the subject of my rant. It's the others that could take the best ideas from WF and make their forum better and won't do it! I can bet you are definitely on one or two you consider a brain dead, time sucking waste of space. You know the ones...everyone is hustling the same "latest hot widget" or having a "mental meltdown" because their personal life is in a shambles and everyone must want to know about it. I've been on those too over the years. They left me feeling depressed and of course, gave me an extreme dislike of the people on them. Why would I leave a job that paid the bills to surround myself with the very 'walking dead' I needed to get away from? No Thank You! My next rant is the drive to hop on the "Social Butterfly" bandwagon. Maybe it's me but doesn't these things remind you of speed dating? 140 characters or less to 'build your brand' or 'make new friends'. What?! At least with speed dating you get 10 minutes to Hit-N-Run on a living, breathing person. As a Solo Entrepreneur, your time is limited from the get go. Sure there are tools you can use to quickly 'hit' whichever social networking site you like but how effective are you being really? Here's where I'm going with this: Getting targeted and ready-to-buy eyeballs to your sites, including blogs is your goal. But that's only step one in the process of building long term wealth and marketing what you sell. Let's be blunt for a moment: Who is going to be interested in 'marrying' you simply because they passed you on the street? These drive-by shooters from the social networks are those strangers passing you on the street. And some of them you pray don't visit your sites at all! The spikes in traffic to your site might make your hosting company happy and that little thingy that counts visitors spin like a propeller, but how much of that is putting money in your bank account? Think about how many people you're following or that are following you. How many of those 'friends' have spent money with you. 10,000 friends and you're still working a job to pay for your hosting and broadband account? What's wrong with that picture? Can you do a better job of targeting who visits your site? Of course and you should have a solid marketing plan to do that. Does posting on forums just because you can mean somewhere in there someone might buy something you're selling? Maybe not. It comes back to deciding why you are doing something, and not simply doing anything because someone you don't know told you it was the best way to do it. Your time is limited, your funds are limited and so is your energy level. Pick your own battles. If you get 1 out of 100 visitors from social networking sites buying what you sell, work out how you can increase sales with the same amount of visitors. If you visit one forum regularly that brings in highly targeted visitors who signup for your newsletter, then that's the forum that's paying for your time. That's if for today and I leave you with this - Business is the art of extracting money from another man's pocket without resorting to violence~ Max Amsterdam

Posted on: 29 March 2010 | 12:59 pm

A Bit of Fun For All Solo Entrepreneurs

This post is for you to get out of your chair and do a Happy Dance! Why? Because you've taken the steps to move your life and income forward. THAT deserves acting crazy today. Enjoy Artist: Bruce Sprinsteen Title: Dancing In The Dark Album: Born In The USA I get my music from: Songza.org. Where do you get yours?

Posted on: 19 March 2010 | 8:13 pm

Solo Entrepreneurs: Offline or Online?

As solo entrepreneurs you may have been convinced the internet was going to change the way business is done, and in some ways it has - 1. Faster market research 2. Easier to target niches with more profit potential 3. Wider audience for your offerings... and more. But I've noticed a trend lately of more guru marketers moving offline. Wonder why that is? Here's my opinion (then you knew I had one, right?) Because no matter how many affiliate networks, ebooks, webinars and so forth there are, people do not spend their lives online. Unless they had no life to begin with or their idea of living is playing games. Here's where I'm going with this: Really rethink the business you're in long term. If you are spending 90% of your time trying to get people interested in what you're selling, being a whore to the search engines for traffic or stressing over trying to keep up with every affiliate "new shiny box" - you are working a job, no matter what you call it for less than someone will pay. I'll admit when I first started out, every guru or wannabe had me on their list. In fact I spent more money trying to make money than actually making any, which is a bad business decision in anyone's book. This past few weeks while deciding to overhaul The Solo Gazette, I went to visit some of the local businesses in my area. Guess what I found? 1. Most didn't have a website and could care less about getting one. 2. There were many that have been in business 10+ years or longer and didn't fire, layoff or reduce any staff. Yes, they all have fewer than 20 employees but the fact is they haven't missed a payroll. 3. The internet is for entertainment maybe a couple hours at night, or on weekends but none feel they are at starvation's door because they have no "web presence". All knew I "do something" on the internet and a couple had even visited a site or two of mine. Know what the one thing they all wanted to know. I'm embarrassed by this but here's the question: How stable is your income from it. See we forget that marketing our services or products on the internet may be fun, but if it's the only revenue stream you have then you are in the same position as someone with a job. At anytime the search engines, affiliate networks, or payment processor can change the rules to suit them and your business will be affected. Period. I'm not telling you to jump on the "offline marketing" band wagon, far from it. What I am telling you is to consider diversifying your business. You may think network marketing is a pyramid scheme (which tells me you have never been in the job market) or that affiliate marketing is here to stay (Hydra just dropped 15,000 affiliates who aren't going to be happy this morning). As a solo entrepreneur, you might want to start thinking: What if? That's it for today and I leave you with this - Nobody talks about entrepreneurship as survival, but that's exactly what it is and what nurtures creative thinking. Running that first shop taught me business is not financial science; it's about trading: buying and selling~ Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop

Posted on: 13 March 2010 | 4:07 pm

Solo Dilemma: Mentor or Coach

With the "on again-off again" news you keep hearing about the economy, you may be rethinking if starting your business was a good idea. Before you throw your hard work away and consider how to explain the gap on your resume, consider getting a mentor or hiring a coach. It just might be what you and your business need to keep going. When I lived in Nevada, I lucked up on a coach to business executives. At the time, I was neither a business exec nor had any clue what to do except quit being an accountant. (I'm too short to be a showgirl and inept as a blackjack dealer.) His advice then is the same as it is for me now, ask the hard questions and take action on the answers. Before you get 'caught up' in the knee-jerk reaction to unemployment that many of you may be feeling right now, especially if the income isn't flowing - figure out where you may be stuck. If sales aren't coming in or the business isn't what you envisioned it to be by now, it's time to get an objective and knowledgeable mentor or coach on your side. Ideally, you want a mentor who currently or has been a solo entrepreneur and can relate to the same path of doing everything alone. Someone who understands the fear you may be feeling about slow or no sales and can take an objective view of your business to help you move forward. The primary question you need to answer before you get a mentor is: Where am I trying to go? Please don't be an idiot. "No one is going to tell you what business you should start or how to make a million dollars without any work on your part". Some of you may do better with a coach, who will draw out your original vision of your business and can help you clear your thinking about how you are operating. What's the difference? A mentor can help you avoid or diffuse the landmines in your business and locate those resources you need. A coach monitors your progress and suggests course corrections. Whichever you choose to work with honest communication is critical. Both will check in with you from time to time, but more importantly you should check in with them. Finding a mentor or coach you can work with comes down to first knowing yourself. It may sound artsy-fartsy, but if you think you're social and are not then working with anyone who pushes "going social" on you defeats the purpose. How much bluntness can you handle? My coaching clients know they can whine to family and friends, but with me it's "5 minutes, once a quarter!". They don't pay my fee to join the Pity Party. They come to me because I ask questions that may be uncomfortable and that helps them move forward. How much coddling do you need? Your mentor and coach need to know that you may want a bit more handholding, depends where you are in your business. Be honest about what you are going to need. Is your problem technical or financial or something else? It makes no sense and wastes your time if the mentor you choose is an expert in affiliate marketing when you operate a detailing shop. Get the focused help you need in your business, whether that's someone to find the landmines you are stepping on or someone to keep you accountable to completing what you need to do in your business.

Posted on: 9 March 2010 | 3:58 pm

Still Crazy After All These Years

You've heard or read it all over the net, you have to switch to all the new changes and adapt to the new thing or go out of business. Bullsh**! In the past couple hours, I did a copy and paste of all the blog posts on this from 2006 through 2008. Here's what I learned: 1. Technology may have changed, but the needs of small business owners and especially Solo Entrepreneurs has not. Business is still business. 2. Most of the tools and sites I referenced are still available. A few have changed their business model, but they haven't gone anywhere. 3. Static websites, ezines, building links and getting targeted traffic is still the order of the day for marketing online. The emergence of the current options to market a product or service are nice and may in time prove to be evergreen. But they haven't replaced anything. Does that mean you can remain unaware of the changes? No, but it also means you must make the business decision if using any of them will matter whether you have a profitable venture or not. No matter what comes out of the current or future bright shiny package, it will still come down to planning, adjusting and taking action that moves you forward in your business. Period, no arguments. I've beaten this horse since 2005, and from what I see in 2010 it's pretty much the same view. There will always be people willing to suck on that illusion of 'something for nothing'...there will always remain the 'get rich quick junkies' living in the fog and there's nothing any of us can do about it. That's my little history lesson for today and I leave you with this: Early to bed and early to rise - till you get enough money to do otherwise. ~Peter's Almanac

Posted on: 20 February 2010 | 3:13 pm

Solo Traffic Observation: Blogs, Articles, Social Or Other?

As I begin to rearrange some of my scattered projects, I've made some observations that many of you may be wondering about and some of you already know: Depending on the topic, blogs may work in some instances better than other ways of getting targeted traffic. This post came about due to an observation from my own traffic testing numbers. As I only check them once a month, it was interesting. In the past 30 days, here's what I see: Blog A = 3 months old: 1,043 visitors - health topic Static Site A = 5 months old: 98 visitors - information product Blog B = 6 weeks old: 104 visitors - food topic Static Site B = 4 months old: 30 visitors - business topic Every bit of the traffic for these came from only two things I do weekly: Ping and comment on blogs I find interesting. I have a lot of interests, so I may not be commenting on a blog that relates to my sites. Do I always include one of my site links? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Then how does this help in search engine rankings or getting traffic? Beats me. I don't gauge my sites profitability by traffic or page rank. Here are a few steps I'm considering for my static sites: Static site A: Simple Information Reports Create a retail store type theme on the front end and subdomain the information products on static stand alone sales pages. Static site B: Wholesale Information Have someone convert the entire site to a blog using pages only, no posts or comments. This is an affiliate site built for a wholesale dropship merchant. Many of you know how I like the idea of article marketing, and it is a viable option for getting passive traffic for your business. Over the next couple months, I'm testing article marketing with a focus on conversions and not traffic. Conversions for me = $$$$. The idea of writing tons of articles to increase page rank or simply to get traffic but not have any sales to show for it is plain dumb to me. Here are a few steps I'm testing for my blog sites: Blog Site A: Natural Weight Loss Submit one article a day for 1 week on a targeted food related article directory or health related site. Blog Site B:Espresso Coffee Drinker Submit one article a day for 1 week on a targeted coffee or ask a targeted question on one of the "Q/A" sites - think YahooAnswers or Ask.com. (I'm new to espresso, so this helps me with content for the blog too. Why would I test something everyone and their dog just know is the best way to get massive traffic to your sites and make sales? Because until I test and have my own numbers as proof, it's guessing.

Posted on: 15 February 2010 | 4:53 pm

The Solo Gazette Announcement

As you know, the site has been left stagnant since December due to my lack of time to update it or add any new content. There have been challenges with this blog, one of which was my wanting to focus on the business side of being a Solo Entrepreneur. I've shared with you many things over the past few years, resources, tips, rants and raves about "doing business" in a way that would allow you to make money but also sleep well at night:) At one time I considered making this blog into a members only site, which still is on the drawing board. None of you seemed to care one way or the other, and that may be because what I've written hasn't been either flashy enough or entertaining. If that's the case for you, then this wasn't the site for you. I make no apologies for attempting to help those who had never operated a business before think like "business owners", instead of an employee or opportunity junkie. With that said, this site won't be going away completely. Over the next few months a final decision on the transformation of The Solo Gazette will be made. It will likely move to my hosting account as a wordpress blog...Never could get the hang of making Blogger show my domain:) I wanted to say Thank You to everyone who signed up to receive my infrequent ramblings from Solo Gazette and for your continued support. I wouldn't be where I am now if it wasn't for you. This blog will remain here for the next couple months for those tired of reading the next "make $300,000 in 5 hours" mega-watt, super video-licious, fork over your credit card launch". My hope is it leads one person to take action on starting their own micro-business. Again, thank all of you for 5 years of fun. Georjina Sinese

Posted on: 8 February 2010 | 4:55 pm

Expired Micro-Niche Domains

Hey all, Up to my eyebrows in alligators completing projects for 2009, but thought I'd give you a heads up on some expired domains I found at the end of November (yeah, better late than never.) Before you get your knickers in a twist, remember these were expired and on the open market as of December 1st. Some are still available (I checked for some projects I'm doing in 2010), so hustle your buns over to the links below to check. Here's The Expired List: ZEN-COMMUNICATION.COM YOURPROSPECTREPORT.COM YOURINFORMATIONDIRECT.COM YESTOGETHER.COM YESCLEANINGSERVICES.COM WHITETEETHBRIGHTERSMILES.COM WHEELDOLLYS.COM WEBGREATCOFFEE.COM WAXBEANPRESS.COM WATERCRAFTMAGAZINE.COM WASTEAMERICA.COM WASHERDRYERSTACKABLE.COM WARRIORSSPIRITS.COM WALLPAPERTECH.COM WALKINGSHOESWOMEN.COM WALKBEHINDBRUSHMOWER.COM WAKEUPTOYOURDREAM.COM VIDEOLEARNINGSTORE.COM VETERANSKILLS.COM VERIFYANYBODY.COM VEGGIESFORDINNER.COM VEGANSDIET.COM VALUEBOOKSELLERS.COM VALENTINEFLOWERSSHOP.COM VABUSINESSADVISOR.COM UTILITYANDPOWER.COM UTILITYSMARTSOLUTIONS.COM USFASHIONBLOG.COM USEDTREADMILLSALE.COM USEDMOBILECRANES.COM USBSTORAGEMEDIA.COM USATTORNERYFINDER.COM USAREALTYREFERRALS.COM UNUSUALPHONES.COM UNIVERSALTOWELS.COM UNIFORMCLIPS.COM UNARMEDGUARDTRAINING.COM ULTRAWELLNESSOPPORTUNITY.COM ULTIMATEFARMINGTOOL.COM TWOWEEKMORTGAGE.COM TWITTERANDTWEETER.COM TVSHOWSDVDCOLLECT.COM TUTORSTART.COM TURKEYORGANIC.COM TUMMYSTUFFERS.COM TRYBALLET.COM TRUSTEDTEMP.COM TRUELIGHTCANDLES.COM TRUEBLUEBOOKKEEPING.COM TRUCKFOGLIGHTS.COM TROPICALLATINSOUND.COM TRICITYWINDOWCLEANERS.COM TREKKINGDIARY.COM TRAVELMARKETINSIGHTS.COM TRAVELLOYALTYPROGRAMS.COM TRAVELGEARMAGAZINE.COM TRAILRUNNERSPORTS.COM TRADITIONALHEALTHINSURANCE.COM TRACTORANTIQUE.COM TOYRESALE.COM TOYCLAY.COM TOWABLEAIRCOMPRESSOR.COM TOTALNUTRITIONBLOG.COM TOPCAMERASREVIEWS.COM MINDBODYFITNESSONLINE.COM MINDBODYSPIRITBOOKS.COM MINDSETMASTERYINSTITUTE.COM MYCATSHOP.COM MYCLUTTERBUSTERS.COM MYCREDITSCORERESTORED.COM PERSONALBANKRUPTCYFAQ.COM PERSONALCREDITSOLUTION.COM INVOICESFORCASH.COM Here's where you can go to find more or see if these are still available to register. I register my domains at Namecheap and they are good to me. Here's where to go check if they are still available or to find some new ones: Snapnames Enom - domain reseller Pool Name Jet One Domain Tool. This is pretty slick if you want to check the domains without visiting all the auctions Domain State Toolbar There you have it and I'll be back with some more great resources in a week or so. These will be the tools I use. BTW, Natural Weight Loss Newsletter finally went live last week. It's a simple blog, original content and has a back-end paid newsletter. Take a peek, let me know what you think. I may be flipping it after the first of the year - yes, I have a year's worth of content to pass along to the new owner! Sheesh, why would I leave someone hanging. Anyway, that's it for today and I leave you with this - The economy depends about as much on economists as the weather does on weather forecasters~Jean-Paul Kauffmann

Posted on: 17 December 2009 | 9:11 pm