The Ramblings of an Entrepreneur

Appologies

2006-03-09T04:58:00.000-08:00

For the slow running of the blog/newsletter atm. We hope to resume shortly...

The PWB Team

Other Internet Business Ideas

2006-03-06T06:48:00.000-08:00

There is often much repetition in the world of Internet business. However, a neat twist has appeared in one over at Gindis.com

Gindis run an online game. Nothing particularly new in that. And they charge for it, and there's nothing new in that either.

However, they've taken the idea to a new level, by introducing buy-able items in game. You can either get things buy playing the game, or physically buy them with paypal. And judging from the sucess of the game and it's way or working, I'd guess that they're turning a tidy profit from this.

The "bolt on" concept is not particularly well used in business. In essence, it's just a back end sale. But it's the method that's interesting. Get people to do something cheaply, and they're more willing to buy things to help them at greater cost later on.

Always remember: no-one got rich selling 1,000 books for £5 each. A lot of people got very rich selling 1,000 software units at £250 each.

Know how to sell to your market. And sell to them over and over again.
Pete

MicroPod?

2006-03-01T06:48:00.000-08:00

Microsoft, late in the game as ever, has decided to move in, and step up to the plate. Yes, it's true: They're planning to launch a product to compete with the iPod.

Now, this won't surprise anyone. It was only a matter of time until they did. However, they're not just gunning for Apple. Oh no, not content with taking on the almighty iPod, they're going after the PSP too. With the same product.

Called the Origami, Microsoft has confirmed it has been developing a product to play games, mp3s, sync wirelessly with hi-fi systems, and, presumably wash you car and floss your cat at the same time.

With the xBox and xBox 360, Mr Gates proved conclusively that Microsoft can do things properly and play with the best of them. But can they REALLY take on the PSP, as they took on the PS2, AND go after the iPod at the same time and make it work? Time will tell.

My advice? Sign up to The Register, and see what happens...
Pete

More Million Dollar Style Things

2006-02-22T17:57:00.000-08:00

So, what can you do with a "One Off" idea, like Million Dollar Homepage, to adapt it and make it work again.

Well, Russel McGurk has come up with a rather clever idea: The Media Experiment. Rather than selling, he's giving money away. $100 for every 10,000 hits to his site, to be exact. The aim of the site? Well, I'll let him explain...

Russ: "I've recently become aware that my resume is looking a little bare! So i spent a few sleepless nights trying to think of a unique idea, something that has never been tried before. The internet plays a big part in my course and so i thought why not create some media of my own to study! I came up with this web site. The first global online experiment! I believe that it is possible for me, a penniless student to achieve 1,000,000 unique hits! No page refreshes. You are probably thinking i'm insane but with a little help from you, the media and a little bit of luck I think it's very possible! So if you find yourself feeling bored, why not help prove my theory and be a part of internet history!"

Another interesting thing is the interactive nature of the site. "This week I am holding a challenge for anyone of you to design The Multimedia Experiment logo! This is an amazing opportunity to have your work seen around the world via the net, newspapers, online magazines and any other forms of media where this site receives coverage!" says Russ. So, naturally, we're having a crack at it too, with the PWB in-house team (Dogs Ate My Designs) creating what we believe to be a rather spiffing logo. So watch this space for how it does.

Will this work? Will he reach the million? Yes. It's just a matter of time. With coverage already popping up all over the place, it can only be a matter of time before the big 1x10 to the 6 is reached. So best of luck to you Russ.
Pete

Worrying News...

2006-02-19T09:00:00.000-08:00

"There was a very important news story last week that was not covered on most news bulletins - but it certainly should have been.

In fact, this story could mark the beginning of the end of Email as we currently know it.

Here's what happened.....

AOL and Yahoo quietly announced that they want to charge businesses for delivering their emails.

That's right ..... if AOL and Yahoo get their way, when you send an email to your customers in the future, they'll be sending you a bill.

It amounts to the launch of 'Email Stamps.' In the same way that you buy stamps at the moment for normal mail, you and I could have to buy 'Email Stamps' to send emails to our customers.

It'll be a lot cheaper than normal stamps, probably less than one cent per person - but the implications are obviously significant.

The first thing that strikes me about this announcement is that it is so disarmingly obvious and simple - it's bound to take off.... just like the day some bright spark had the idea of putting ads on search engine results.

At the moment, when you or I send an email to our list, the companies that our customers have email accounts with deliver our messages - and it's all included in their hosting or email package.

The new concept is very simple. Those companies want to start charging you and I for the emails we send to their customers.

Their justification is that it will help combat spam. It probably will. Of course, it will also make AOL and Yahoo (and others who are bound to follow) an absolute fortune.

They're going to roll this out over the next few months. They won't force you to pay for email delivery but if you do, your messages will be guaranteed to go directly to the customer and by-pass spam filters. If you don't pay, your messages will join what will probably become a very long queue. (AOL recently took five days to deliver an announcement about one of my Telephone Seminars to AOL users.)

I don't view things like this as good or bad. As the Dalai Lama says: "What is, is." All that matters as business professionals is that we're up to date with what's going on - and most importantly - we're prepared. There could well be an upside to all of this. If people are receiving more targeted emails, yours may have more impact. Plus, if you're smart at Marketing, you and I may need to just adjust to allocating some funds to email, which your competitors may feel they can't afford."

Taken from the email newsletter published by Chris Cardell. Worrying news indeed. I will keep you updated as and when the situation develops.
Pete

Niche Markets...

2006-02-17T17:52:00.000-08:00

So, what can be classed as a niche market? And how do you sell to one?

Well, today, I'm going to show you my American Motto Rule (AMR). The American motto, when translated, means "Out of many, one. What's this got to do with anything?

Well, it applies to niche markets. Out of one product, you can get many different markets. For instance, if you take the Anthony Robbins Personal Power course, you see that this is a product that appeals to more than just the "Self Help" market. It appeals to business people too, along with students of human nature, psychologists, marketers and so on. That course has aspects in itself, and around it that appeal to a great many people.

Someone with whom I cannot claim aquaintance (sadly - I think she'd be a great person to share a coffee with) is Belle de Jour. I must admit to being an avid fan of anyone who'll be open and frank about themselves, and Belle is no exception. I came across her via browsing in Waterstones (I'm a bookworm), and must admit that I loved the idea of what she was doing, in the business sense. She had the good sense to realise that there was some serious potential to make real money from selling a book on her day to day life. And such is the case with anyone who has an extra-ordinary life.

So today, I'm trying to get across two points. Firstly, don't limit yourself. Odds are that anything you are doing/promoting/etc can be marketed to people you aren't seeing yet. Second, make your life interesting. If you do amazing things, people will want to know how you did it and find out about it.

Be spectacular.
Pete

Sorry...

2006-02-16T07:47:00.000-08:00

You will undoubtedly have noticed that I haven't been updating for a while. However, I'm pleased to inform you that I'm now back on top of things, and updates have recommenced, with several posts that I've found interesting recently. Read them, and enjoy :)
Pete

9 Secret Ways To Boost Your Business With Teleseminars

2006-02-16T07:46:00.000-08:00

Teleseminars are a great way to prospect, sell, stay in touch with current customers and clients, build your list, and so much more. Here are just some of the ways you can use teleseminars to boost your business!

Introduce a new product or service:

Product launches are one of the most common ways to use teleseminars. This is a great way to explain all about what your product can do and how it can help your customers. This is especially useful for informational products, because the teleseminar can be mostly high impact content, with only a little bit of selling. There is no way in one hour to tell everything in a book, or even an ebook, so you can give as much as possible to the audience and still leave them wanting more.

If you are in a service industry and have a new service, you can give a teleseminar on it to introduce it to your current and prospective customers. If you are a mortgage broker and there is a new First Time Buyer program, use a teleseminar to explain it to all of your prospects at once. You can even have a question and answer time if you want to get them really excited.

Re-Launch a product or service:

If you have a product or service that hasn’t been getting enough attention lately, re-launch it. Add a bonus or two or limited time offer and do a teleseminar to highlight this month’s special. One of the things you can do with a re-launch is have a couple of happy customers as guest speakers. Since they have already had time to use what you have to offer, they can give your prospects some good information from a customer point of view.

Teach your customers how to use your product or service:

Most products and services are not completely self explanatory. Having a teleseminar to tell all about special features or extra services you provide allows them to get the most out of your product or service. Not only is does this make for great customer relations, but it is unusual enough to get your customers talking to their friends about how wonderful you are. You can even ask for referrals during the teleseminar.

Establish yourself as the Expert:

Have someone interview you about your product or service during the teleseminar. This is a great way to establish yourself as an expert in your field. Who gets interviewed? Stars, celebrities, Nobel Prize winners. In other words, Experts. People we want to listen to.

Build Rapport:

People buy from people they know, like, and trust. Tell your audience a little bit about how you came to be a lion tamer, or a teacher, or an insurance agent. Don’t just try to sell them something. Let them get to know you from the comfort of their own living room. Give them something before you ask for something back.

Tell the embarrassing story about when you got your 4X4 stuck in the mud and a Volkswagen Beetle pulled you out. Then when you tell about the towing service you created called “Beetle’s Towing” they will laugh with you, and think about you when they get stuck, too.

Informative Prospecting:

If you are in a service industry, you can help people understand your field of expertise. A real estate agent might hold a teleseminar on buying investment property. You could talk about the tax breaks, appreciation, and having professional management so you don’t have to get up in the middle of the night to deal with tenants. You can also talk about some of the ways deals can go bad if you don’t have a licensed agent involved, like buying a building without checking what other liens might be held against the property. Give as much information as possible, while showing why it is a good idea to have an expert help you at the same time.

You can do the same thing with a product. Don’t just tell how great your product is, though. Tel all about the problems your product is designed to deal with, and some possible solutions. Then tell how your product provides the most solutions at a reasonable price.

Preview calls:

A preview call is a call advertising a later, larger event. It is usually free, thought you can also have a paid preview call. For this type of teleseminar you want to give as much good information as possible, If you are previewing a weekend event, you can’t possibly give everything you are going to cover in one hour. So choose a few topics and give some great information, then tell them about the upcoming event. Don’t make this an infomercial about how great the event will be- show them how great it will be by giving them a great call.

One of my products is the Teleseminar Nuts and Bolts classes, where we teach people how to do al of the back-end, technical side of teleseminars. So my preview teleseminars will be answering the ten biggest questions my listeners have about the problems that can happen while planning and creating a teleseminar. I might tell them three ways out of ten to use autoresponders. I’ll talk for two minutes about the different kinds of websites you might have, then just mention we take an hour in class to go over them in detail. So I give as much as time allows, then let them know there is much more that I go over in class. I don’t need to tell them to take the class. If they have found my 3 out of 10 tips useful, they will want the other 7.

Make an FAQ or whole new product:

One of my mentors said, “If you hear the same question three times, it’s time to make a product for it.” So while you are telling people all about your great products and services, you can be recording them, too. When your teleseminar is done, you can have the recording transcribed, and now you have an FAQ sheet you can use as a bonus to anyone who buys from you. You can put the recording on your website so people can listen to it. Have them give you’re their email and name in order to get access to it and now you have a mailing list.

Mix and Match:

Many teleseminars can use several of these ideas. You can launch a product, build rapport, and have an interviewer asking you all the right questions to make you look good. You can find out what your customers most want to know and tell it to them on a Customer Service call, then tape it and put it on your website. The possibilities are endless.

So think of three ways your might build your business with Teleseminars. Which one are you going to try first?

About The Author

Tania Baildon is a Personal Coach and Teleseminar Leader. Her coaching specialties are life changes and growth, and small business creation and promotion.

Coaching: http://www.extraordinary101.com

Tania also does professional teleseminar interviews and teaches tele-classes. She is co-creator of The Teleseminar Nuts and Bolts series. Teleseminars: http://www.teleseminartechs.com

tbaildon@extraordinary101.com

What’s With All The Fuss? Google is Making SEO Easier!

2006-02-16T07:45:00.000-08:00

I’m an SEO professional. I spend every morning reading a few newsletters, checking out some hand-picked sites and reading through a sampling of threads at my favorite forums. Then I forget everything I’ve read and get to work. The fact is, everyone is this industry panics when anything changes as if they’ll wake up one morning and find that Google has banned half of it’s index. Instead, the SEO’s that will last are the ones that embrace Google’s algorithm improvements. Besides, is anyone going to miss the tedious outgoing SEO techniques?

If you take the X’s and Y’s out of Google’s algorithm, and look purely at their motivation, it is not hard to see what they are trying to do. They are sick of websites that do not offer the most relevant information for a given query being manipulated to the top of the search engines through “man-made” links. They are continually trying to differentiate between “natural” links and “man-made” ones. Naturally, the masses of SEO’s read this and run for their computers, trying to imitate a natural pattern of links. However, the algorithm will continue to improve and make this harder to imitate. All the while there is a much easier way to rank well under Google’s ever improving algorithm.

I have to profess that there is one webpage I read every morning that I don’t forget, and that is Rand Fishkin’s Blog at SEOmoz.org. He made an excellent point when discussing his questioning of prospective clients. One of the first things Rand asks his potential client is why they feel they “deserve” to be at the top of the search rankings. This is definitely the single most overlooked question in the history of internet marketing, and unfortunately most internet marketing professionals always fail to look at our industry at different angles like this.

Us SEO’s, were a technical group. We love theories and algorithms. We love to speculate and converse based on countless hours of internet manipulation. Sometimes we need to leave those avenues behind and think in a different way. If you forget about all this stuff, you will quickly realize Google wants the best information at the top of their results! THAT’S IT! So instead of trying to imitate the backlink patterns of highly regarded websites, why don’t we simply make a highly regarded website? Of course we will have to tell people about the site. We will have to look at all of the site’s on-page factors. But if this website truly deserves to be at the top of the search rankings, it eventually will be. If it isn’t today or tomorrow, you can rest assured that Google is working on it.

Scan back up through this article. Do you notice a link in there anywhere? Yup, there’s a link to Rand Fishkin’s Blog. I don’t know Rand at all. He didn’t ask me for a link to his blog, I simply find it very useful and used one of his ideas in my article. You know what? If you go there I’ll bet you’ll find it very useful too. You will most likely visit his website more than once. If you have a website or a blog or participate in forums, I’m fairly certain you will end up making a reference (“linking” in today’s internet world) to something on his site. Now do you see the benefit of creating a website that deserves to be at the top of the search rankings?

Bobby Heard is a Managing Director of Abalone Designs, Inc., a search engine optimization company based in Vancouver, Canada. You can see their site at: http://www.abalone.ca/searchengineoptimization.html.

bheard@abalone.ca

Make 2006 Your Most Profitable Year Ever: 5 Crucial Steps for Every Entrepreneur

2006-02-16T07:43:00.000-08:00

Many of us maintain the tradition of making New Year's resolutions for our personal lives. The New Year has just as special significance for our businesses too.

Whether you're an experienced business owner or are just starting out (or thinking about starting a business), there are 5 crucial steps you need to take at the beginning of the year to assure the 2006 is your most prosperous year ever.

1. If you have not done so yet, take advantage of the greatest tax shelter available today: the opportunity to start a small business and organize your business activities to generate multiple streams of income for you.

If you have been thinking about starting your own business but are still sitting on the fence, resolve to take action today! With the internet making getting into business for yourself easier and more cost-effective than ever, there's no excuse for not taking that crucial first step.

2. If you already own your own business make sure that you're generating income from more than once source.

This way, if changing economic conditions exercise a negative effect on one stream of income, you are not left high and dry (so to speak!). If you're involved in network marketing, you'll have to make a point of ignoring those who would have you focus exclusively on a single company (often start up) that might not be around 5 years from now). You can and should diversify (within reason, of course!).

3. Make sure that you are using the most advantageous structure for operating your business.

This applies to you whether you have a traditional bricks-and-mortar business, operate a UPS Store franchise, or are operating an e-business doing affiliate marketing.

If you're operating your business as a sole proprietor, as most small business owners do, your business is not in the most advantageous position to reap the fruits of the generous tax deductions available to small businesses. More important, you are placing all your personal assets, including your home, your vehicle, your personal savings, and your family's future at risk.

Today, it's no longer as cumbersome as it used to be to establish an alternative business structure that will protect you from such risk. And with all the resources now readily available to the average person at minimal cost, you don't have to incur massive legal fees just to get started.

4. Resolve to learn the information you need to know to operate your business in the most profitable manner.

Continuing education about structuring and operating your business is an absolute necessity for the entrepreneur. Even if you have an accountant or attorney on your mastermind team, how do you know if she has the knowledge and sophistication to handle this for you properly? Unfortunately, too many, do not, and their lack of expertise can cost you thousands of dollars. If your accountant or attorney tells you, for example, that you "don't need" an LLC or corporation to do business, you'll know to run--do not walk--out of their office as quickly as possible and search elsewhere for competent advice.

In addition, even if you have compentent counsel, it is your responsibility as a business owner to operate your company in accordance with governent requirements governing corporations, partnerships and LLCs.

5. Adopt a Mindset that Focuses on Tax Reduction as a Way of Life

The largest single expense of most Americans is taxes. To optimize your bottom line, you must be up to date on which expenses are tax deductible for your business and keep proper records to document them. Using a credit card--even a personal card dedicated to your business--and an accounting program that is specifically for businesses--we recommend QuickBooks by Intuit--will help you immensely in keeping track of your expenses. It can be bought at a substantial discount on eBay.

Implementing these 5 steps might sound complicated at first, but they are well worth the trouble. Remember that in running your business, "Keep it simple" can be costly advice. What simplest--setting up shop as a sole proprietor, operating on a cash basis, using your personal bank account instead of a separate business account for your business, and failing to track and document expenses using appropriate business accounting software--can hazardous to your financial future.

Take advantage of the fresh start spirit of the New Year to implement these 5 tasks, and you'll be on your way to making this year your most profitable ever.

Germaine A. Hoston, Ph.D. is a political economist, President of Azur Pacific Associates, and small business consultant. With over 20 years of experience, she has operated successful consulting, translation, and internet marketing businesses in the United States and France with clients worldwide. Receive a free special report when you sign up for her free eNewsletter for small business and home business entrepreneurs at: http://www.wealthstrategies202.com.

germaine@wealthstrategies202.com

It's quiet...

2006-02-09T17:40:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of updates recently... I've been a little busy with various things.

However, with that out of the way, what are we on today?
Well, this week, we're going to look at the music industry. Those who know me, may well know that I have a deep love of music, and actually am a very qualified guitarist. Anyway, I was on the phone to a great bass player friend of mine, and I had a brainwave:
Online promotion for a band.

Now, this is nothing new, true. But I'm thinking about this on a whole new scale. Could a band be promoted through PPC advertising? Or how about with viral marketing? What kinds of marketing tools could you use to get noticed?

Which brings in one simple question: What can't be marketed with the Internet. Is there anything you can't promote? Well, we're going to find out...

So, that's going to be (hopefully) my next project. Stay tuned for more news.
Pete

Ways to Save for Your Retirement

2006-02-07T05:59:00.000-08:00

Retirement is supposed to be a golden time in your life… a time when you can stop working and do the things that you've always wanted to do but have never had the time. Unfortunately, doing the things that you've always wanted to do takes money.

In many cases, individuals who haven't made plans for their retirement end up having to live off of government funds that are very limited; instead of simply accepting this as inevitable, though, you can take the initiative now and begin saving for your golden years so that you'll be able to do as you wish.

Below are several ideas to get you started on the road to retirement savings, so that the best years of your life can really be the best years of your life.

Common Savings

One of the easiest ways to start saving money for your retirement is to make use of common savings accounts. The accounts pay interest on the balance contained within, and as you add money to the account over the years the amount of interest paid will continue to increase. Some banks even offer specialized savings accounts to assist with retirement planning, which pay higher interest rates so long as certain deposit conditions are met.

Certificates of Deposit

Another way to put aside money for your retirement is to purchase certificates of deposit. These certificates pay interest over time until the certificate matures, at which time the entire amount built up within the certificate can be collected. Some certificates of deposit have a very short term, but others can last for years… these should be utilized as part of your retirement plans because relatively small investments can yield large returns when left to collect interest for several years.

Investment Plans

A variety of investment plans, both private and employer-sponsored, can be a great way to help put money aside for your retirement. Common investment plans such as 401(k) plans and IRA's can be used to invest money in the stock market for collection upon retirement… though the stocks chosen for investment should be carefully considered so as to avoid losing money in the process. Some companies offer investment plans and stock options where the investments are chosen by the employee themself, though others require that the money for the plan is invested in stocks chosen by the company.

Pension Plans

Though they are becoming less common in favor of investment plans, pension plans are another way that money can be set aside for retirement. With a pension plan the employee pays into the plan over the course of their employment, during which time the employer pays an additional amount (usually matching) into the plan. The money may be placed in a savings-type account, or held in escrow or as part of a money market account. Upon retirement, the employee is paid their pension either as a lump sum or as regular payments for years after they have retired from the company.

Other Options

A variety of other savings and investment options exist, all of which should be explored and considered in order to help you to find the best option that meets your retirement funding needs. By taking the time to explore your retirement savings options, you can stay a step ahead and make sure that when the time comes for you to retire you're not empty handed and relying on loved ones or the government just to get by.

John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help homeowners find the best available loans via the www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.

Affiliate Marketing...

2006-02-05T09:01:00.000-08:00

Ok, today we're talking about A.M. So first of all, I'm going to tell you a little about this a man, and give you a couple of links...

Affiliate Classroom
THE place to learn about being an affiliate, affiliate marketing, running programs etc...
The Affiliate Classroom Blog
The site's blog. Check it out...

Ok, so about this man. His name is Anik Singal. You may or may not know of him, but if you don't, trust me, you want to. Anik officially launched The Affiliate Classroom in 2004. He also happens to be CEO of The Kurma Group. So how old is Anik?
40's? Nope.
30's? Guess again...
Early 20's? Yup. He's almost the same age as me (he's the older...) and he's doing very well for himself too. In fact, he's one of the big guns behind the Affiliate Summit, which I highly recommend you go to (although you'll have to wait till next year... it's fully booked up for '06!) What he said recently that I found most interesting though, and want to pass on to you, is this...

"Far too many companies are preoccupied with attracting super-affiliates away from competitors - as opposed to developing their new or average affiliates into top earners."

This goes back to Internet business in general. I've said it before, and I've no doubt I'll say it again:
You don't want a business that makes £100,000 a year.

You want 10 that make £10,000 a year.

Don't try and make one business that's going to earn you millions. Try and make lots, that will earn a little. It all adds up.

The other thing I want to share is this idea. You are trying to promote your business. You do it with PPC, and with SEO. But odds are that you're ignoring a whole load of other ways. So look around at how people find out about businesses, and advertise in those places too. Again, it's the "lots of little" approach. Market in lots of places and get a few customers from each.

Hope this gives you some ideas.
Pete

Welcome to China. Please Leave Your Rights at Passport Control...

2006-02-02T05:09:00.000-08:00

Shock Horror! Not all the world believes in freedom of speech!

Well, so it seems. As I'm sure you've all seen, Google, and Microsoft now as well, have kow towed to China, and given in. Google.cn is due to launch very soon now, and no doubt that many other companies will follow suit. "There has been a string of disturbing incidents in which US-based Internet companies have bowed to pressure from Beijing," said Tom Lantos, who is the top Democrat on the House International Relations Committee.

For those of you who haven't heard, a little background... China censors a lot of what it's people can and can't see. Freedom of information is something that we have in the west, but the east sees it as inappropriate. In all honesty, I can see why. There are certain things that people should be protected from. However, debate could be had over the topics that China chooses to bar, and the reasons why. However, this is neither the time nor the place...

This sets a disturbing precedent. Is it right to go half way, and give the Chinese government a sanitized Internet for their populace? Who knows? We can only wait and see who hops on this bandwagon, and where it takes them.

Pete

Press Releases

2006-02-01T05:41:00.000-08:00

Recently, I've been running an experiment. Well, that experiment is now starting to come to the point of wrapping up. So I've been turning my attention to the subject of writing a press release, which is how I came across the following article. You may well want to take a look...

Getting Free Publicity - How To Write A Press Release

© Karon Thackston 2003
Marketing Words, Inc.
www.marketingwords.com

There is a nasty rumor that press releases don't work. Not true! Press releases can be a fabulous tool for business promotion ... IF they are properly written and presented. A problem occurs because most people are not aware of the special requirements of press releases.

A press release is not a page-long advertisement. A press release is not a novel. A press release is not a tell-all promotional piece that is full of detail. So what IS a press release and how do you write one that will actually get placed? Let's go over a few basics that will help you in your press campaign.

A CHANGE IN TARGET AUDIENCE

The first mistake commonly made is writing a press release with your business target audience in mind. Unlike advertising copy, which is written to appeal to your customer, a press release is written to appeal to a journalist.

The journalist is not someone who is seeking to buy your product or service. A journalist is looking to fill a news need. When writing a press release, you must meet that need by filling the reporter's requirements.

Rather than answering the question, "What's in it for me," answer the question, "Why would ABC magazine's readers care?"

The headline also takes on a new focus. Rather than using a headline proclaiming the benefits of your product, use a headline that proclaims its newsworthiness.

DO YOUR HOMEWORK

One common error is submitting a press release without first reading the publication. It is virtually impossible to provide timely, news-oriented information to a site or magazine if you have no idea what interests their readers have.

Do a little homework before submitting. Visit the Web and look at the stories the site offers. Buy a copy of the magazine or newspaper and review the common interests of its readers. By understanding what the publication is looking for, you will be able to fulfill the need and thus get a much better response from your press release.

DON'T CALL US, WE'LL CALL YOU

The biggest irritant reporters have is receiving calls from writers asking if the press release was received. Worse yet, asking if it was read. Journalists are very busy people. They get hundreds of press releases a day. I have actually heard reporters say that they throw away the releases of those people who call them.

Resist the urge to phone. Once you submit your press release, rest assured you will be contacted if there is an interest.

PUT IT IN THE RIGHT HANDS

Just like advertisements, press releases must be placed in strategic areas. Search the Web for outlets to run your release. A few I have gotten good response from are:

http://www.businesswire.com
http://www.internet.com
http://www.prnewswire.com

Also, email your release to the appropriate person at individual magazines, newspapers and Web sites. Target those that would be read by your customers. Be sure to find the correct name and email address for the reporter who handles stories related to your business. Releases that are sent to incorrect contacts are most likely thrown away... not forwarded on to someone else.

KISS

Keep it short silly! Press releases are not meant to tell the whole story. They are meant to give the reporter an idea of what's happening in your business that their readers need to know about. If the journalist would like additional information or would like to arrange for an interview, he/she will call.

Press releases should be approximately 400 words - 500 maximum.

Internet Marketing 2.0

2006-01-31T06:57:00.000-08:00

Firstly, I need to inform you all of a few things. The first is Chris C's Ultimate Marketing course, which there are only a few spaces left for. To sign up, go to http://www.Ultimate2006.com

Secondly, you may want to look up Oliver Groehler, who has made a lot of money from eBay, and publishes a newsletter that I think you would all find useful to subscribe to.

A short while ago, I think I talked about Steve Dobson, of The Marketing Medic. Steve came up with an awesome way to get your business cards out to people, which I'd like to share with you today, and which will hopefully give you some ideas.

Ever noticed how many products come with cardboard backing? Normally with something printed on it. Well, Steve had a load of gizmo's made, which had this backing on it. The card in question was small and rectangular. So Steve said to the company that were manufacturing them for him "Could you change the size a bit, and print graphics that I give you on them?"

They said yes. So what do you suppose he had them print? Yup, that's right. His business card.

If you are dealing with anything that has packaging with graphics on it, look into getting your name, company and contact details on it. A little reinforcement of who you are never hurt. And if it's a small enough thing, get them sent out whenever someone orders something. As people who've bought things from me will know, we send a little bonus gift free with everything we send out.

Hope this is of some help.
Best wishes,
Pete

2006-01-27T05:02:00.000-08:00

This morning I recieved an email from Chris Cardell (I STRONGLY recommend you check this guy out) with several points that he will be going in to in his Ultimate Marketing course. I just thought I'd share these with you as things to think on, and if you need help, go check this guy out, and sign up for his newsletter.

1 Of the 20 main ways to bring in new customers, how many are you using? If you added just five to your list this year, what would that do to your profits?

2 Is your website a stunning source of new business, or significantly underperforming? How much will it cost you if you go another few months without taking serious action? How do the most successful websites achieve ongoing success?

3 Is your Advertising highly successful? Do you know precisely how to continually run ads that will bring you a constant stream of new customers? Do you know the words you should use in your ads and the ones you should definitely avoid? How much money will you lose this year if you don't become highly effective at advertising?

4 Do you think it's possible to launch or run a highly successful business, without becoming really, really good at Marketing? Is it just the quality of your product or service that will determine your success, or is it your ability to communicate the benefits powerfully to potential and existing customers?

Have a think about those things. And sign up for his newsletter. He's one of the best marketers around, so check him out.
Pete

Offline Marketing for Online Business

2006-01-26T09:09:00.000-08:00

I have often been asked what's the method behind when I send my newsletter out. People have often been confused.
"It's not the same day of the week"
"It's not the dates each month" and so on...

To answer this, I send this out every 10 days. Mystery cleared up, I hope : )

Now, on to this weeks issue. Offline Marketing for Online Businesses

Most people who have an online or Internet-based business are concerned with one thing only: SEM (Search Engine Marketing). Now, don't get me wrong, I can see why this is. It's because 1) everyone tells you "Internet business? Oh, you need a great PPC (Pay Per Click) campaign. And you need to be at the top of Google. And you need to have a high Google PageRank etc.." Well, yes, those things will help. But they are not the be all and end all of Internet business. I love the quote "Money isn't everything - there's also diamonds." It's a great way of illustrating this point. The fact that your BUSINESS is online, doesn't mean that your MARKETING has to be online. I'll give you an example...

One of my mentors, a guy called Andrew Reynolds, got started in the Internet business sector about eight years ago. In that time, only selling in the UK, he's made over twenty million pounds. How? By marketing offline. You want a more recent example? Look at Alex Tew, founder of the Million Dollar Homepage. When did he make his money? When he advertised offline. Yes, there is a lot of traffic online. But how many MORE people can you reach by getting into the magazines and newspapers that people read? Or being on the radio? Or on TV? When I first got started, I started out by advertising with classified ads, and my next product release is having a press release in many major publications. This isn't a particularly hard thing. You want to know how easy it is? Listen to this...

When Andrew launched one of his products, he sent a press release to a major publication. He the proceeded to get lots of sales, and lots of phonecalls asking why people would want a picture of him. Somewhat bemused by the latter, he looked at the publication, and saw that they'd even printed the notes that he gave to the editor! They didn't even bother to read what it was they were printing!

Moral of the story? Getting publishing space isn't hard. Write a great press release (or get one written if you don't know how) and get it published. If you can't do that for some reason, get some classified ad space. If you can't do that, then write a mini-article. Chances are you can do at least one of these three things. And that's how to get noticed in the real world.

More next week. Take care,
Pete W

The Powers That Are...

2006-01-25T07:16:00.000-08:00

Ok, so you've heard of the powers that be. They are the one's that you can't change - Prime Minister/President, family, God etc... But what about the Powers That Are (PTA)?

Firstly, what are they? They are the things that make in impact on your daily life, and condition you into being who and what you are. Things like the music you listen to, the TV shows you watch, the people you talk to and listen to. All these things have a huge impact on you. There's a great Indian proverb which says:
"If you sow a thought, you reap an act. If you sow an act, you reap a habit. If you sow a habit, you reap your character. And if you sow your character, you reap your destiny."

What does this mean? What you focus on, what you spend your time doing, what you let into your life, will affect how your life is going to turn out. And to change the course of your life, you need to make changes. How can you expect to end up somewhere different from where you are now, if you're not aiming to get there? You have to point yourself in the right direction, to get yourself where you want to go.

So right now, I want you to right down 5 things that you're going to change.

1) I am going to change
2) I am going to change
3) I am going to change
4) I am going to change
5) I am going to change

Copy that into Notepad, or write it in your journal or diary, and make those changes. It might be I am going to change my level of fitness, by exercising for 20 minutes each day. Or I am going to change the way I eat, and be more healthy. But whatever they are, come up with just 5 things, and take action on them. Start changing yourself for the better today.

Sow your thoughts today. Reap your destiny tomorrow.
Pete

6 Needs of People

2006-01-24T14:51:00.000-08:00

Today, we're going to talk about what it is that drives people to be who, and what they are. In the book "Think and Grow Rich", Napoleon Hill explores the minds of wealthy people, and discovers that there are 17 characteristics inherent to them.

We're going to talk about something similar today. Not the 17 characteristics, but the 6 NEEDS, that drive everyone on the planet, and they are as follows...
1) the need for knowledge of how to avoid pain and gain pleasure
2) the need for uncertainty, to give life variety and ensure a large amount of stimuli
3) the need to be unique and individual, and recognized as significant because of that
4) the need for connection with others and to be loved
5) the need to grow as a person, and to be more than you are
6) the need to contribute to the lives of others

These are built in to everyone, on our most basic levels. And they lay a foundation for happiness. When all the six things are being fulfilled, then we are at our most happy. So take a long hard look at these, and each day, write down ten things related to each one. I'll start you off with two for today:
1) The need to know what is good and healthy in personal relationships.
2) The need to know how to avoid pain in fiscal matters.

The rest, I leave to you.
Pete

RSS and Javascript

2006-01-24T07:17:00.000-08:00

Many people, like myself, are keeping a blog, and having it feed to their webpage. One of the advantages of this, as I have discussed in the past is the fact that it means that you get a stream of updated, fresh content, which the search engines love, and will boost your rankings.

HOWEVER, it won't work if you use the last method I suggested (iframes). It was misinterpreted by some people. I wasn't suggesting that it was a great way to display your blog (because it ISN'T SEO), but that it was a last resort, if you had no other options. This is also the case with Javascript. A search engine will not *see* what is on the page, displayed by the script. It will only see the script itself.

Personally, I recommend Carp. Carp is a php script that works by taking your RSS feed and putting it into a php page which you can display.

Hopefully, this sets the record straight.
Pete

v7ndotcom elursrebmem

2006-01-23T05:00:00.000-08:00

No, I haven't forgotten how to spell. This is the latest SEM challenge, open to all comers. Allow me to explain...

Firstly the name. That bit is simple. The contest is being organised by V7N, and elursrebmem spelt backwards is membersrule. Hey, we all want a little ego boost now and then, don't we?

Now, the competition itself. Basically, the whole idea is to get the number 1 position on Google, in the natural listings, for the search term "v7ndotcom elursrebmem". When the competition started, there were (quite obviously) no pages at all listed for this term. As of this moment in time (1.00pm 23/01/06 exactly) the Google results are...

Results 1 - 10 of about 754,000 for v7ndotcom elursrebmem. (0.08 seconds)

and there are already AdWords listings for this. Strange? You have NO idea...

So what are the rules? Well, for this I'll quote the rules as set down by V7N...

"The rules from VTN:

1. In order to win the first prize, you must place first in Google (organic rankings) for the search term on May 15, 2006, noon, Pacific standard time.
2. Prizes for 2nd place through 5th place will be awarded based on web page placing in the corresponding positions in Google on May 15, 2006, noon, Pacific standard time.
3. For the purpose of this competition, indented listings in the SERPs will not be counted.
4. In order to qualify for the prize, a web page must include one of the following:
a. A link back to the V7N home page.
The link can be in any manner you wish, any anchor text you wish, with nofollow, without nofollow, JavaScript, cloaked or fried up and served with potatoes.
b. One of these Official V7n SEO Contest banners:

The banners may link to V7N, or not link to V7N. Linking the banner to any domain other than v7n will disqualify the contestant.
Just to make this very clear, the banner may be unlinked. You do not need to link the banner graphic to v7n. For those who do not speak English: you do not need to link el-banner-o to v7n-o.
c. The following text:
We support v7n.com
Please remember, in order for the web page to be compliant, it must contain at least one of the elements listed above."

Simple as that. Am I entering? No. However, it'll be interesting to see where this page ends up :)

Take care, and good luck to all you who DO enter!
Pete

Blogging Your Progress...

2006-01-21T12:08:00.000-08:00

Now, this seems like common sense to me, but apparently it isn't.

Having said that, I didn't do what I'm about to say until around a year after I'd started... But hey!

Keeping a diary of how you're doing is a GOOD idea. It lets you see where you've been, how far you've come, and keep a track of how you're doing on goals/targets.

Keeping a BLOG of how you're doing is an even better idea. Such as Mathew Patterson's blog. The other advantage is it means that people who are more experienced can see where you are at, and lend advice, and those who are newer to the game can learn from your experiences. Also, it's a great (and free) way to get publicity, as Mr Patterson is doing now. See?

So keep a blog. Update it often (preferably every day) and write articles about people and tell them about them. Because then YOU get publicity too. How else do you expect to ever get noticed?

I hope you've been taking notes kiddies, because that's all for today... Bye
Pete

A Whale of a Business...

2006-01-21T10:29:00.000-08:00

No prizes for guessing the inspiration behind today's post...

As you are no doubt aware, A whale swam up the Thames, and is now on it's way back down, on the back of a large boat. Which is all well and good, but many people were annoyed that things didn't happen faster. What they didn't know was that the tide was in, and whilst it WAS in, there was no point in taking the whale on board, as they wouldn't fit under the bridges.

Taking action NOW, isn't always the best plan. They had to do research first. Finding out if they could go, consulting specialists, looking at the best ways to move the whale, and when. These were all important factors, which they needed to know about. And the same is true for business life. We need to look at what we are planning to do, before we do it. How many times have you spent money on something that doesn't work, that people have said doesn't work, but you haven't listened? Or you've not even bothered to research in the first place?

Do your homework. Ask questions. And THEN act. But DO act. Had the people done nothing, that whale would still be there. Take action, but do so wisely.

Here endeth todays lesson.
Pete

Long Term Thinking...

2006-01-20T10:30:00.000-08:00

It never ceases to amaze me how many people think short term on their businesses. Take, for example, the current trend of creating sites built solely to take advantage of Google AdSense. The theory goes thus...

1) Find a keyword that has a high price bid on it.
2) Make a page rich in content for that keyword.
3) Put AdSense on it and drive traffic to it.

One problem though... How long until people realize that they're being scammed? It's the same problem as with long copy sales pages as landing pages. People are wising up to it. They take one look, and then leave. People new to Internet business constantly fall for things designed to give instant results, which 99.9% of the time, aren't going to work.

There is only one way to build a good customer base - give good customer service and sell quality products. There is only one way to increase the customer lifetime value to you: repeat sales. And there's only one way to ensure that you keep making money long term: Get the above two right. Driving traffic isn't that hard. Coming up with a unique way to do it, is. I have come up with a new one myself, which will come out in about eight weeks. Suffice to say, it will (hopefully) be big news.

Today's message? Innovate, and don't cut corners. Innovation is the ONLY way to distinguish yourself from your competition. You MUST have a USP (Unique Selling Point) or no-one is going to know you even exist. And cutting corners will only hurt you in the long term. Never sacrifice your future prosperity for a quick buck.

Think ahead.

Pete

Marketing Power of RSS Content Syndication

2006-01-19T06:01:00.000-08:00

RSS content syndication is relatively new legitimate practice in the world of search engine optimization (SEO). Marketing professionals specializing in SEO techniques are beginning to recognize the value of RSS content syndication however, and it seems that the more popular this technique becomes the more effective the results.

The value of RSS content syndication lies in the links contained within the content. This is because the big search engines like Google and Yahoo! pay a whole lot more attention to incoming links to a website than they did in the past. We’ll get to content a little later, because it still counts, but it is so important to understand why syndicating content to RSS feeds across the web may make you more money and cost you LESS!

RSS feeds are appearing on websites across the internet in order to keep people up to date with the latest news or information on a particular topic quickly. And we all know that users expect quality content, but even more so they expect that content to appear immediately! And, they want to see the content. They do not want to look for the content. They do not want to link to the content. They want the content to jump off of the screen and into their brains in 10 seconds or less!

Perhaps this is why Really Simple Syndication, or RSS, came about in the first place. It’s great news for web site owners too, however. Taking advantage of the huge variety and sheer number of RSS feeds that accept submissions from other websites provides a very cheap and simple way to develop more web site traffic and higher income.

Did I mention cheap? A minimal amount of time invested will allow you to not only provide a way for your loyal visitors to stay aware of your newest updates, but also to expand the awareness of the world about your services or products. I did mention cheap, right? Well, RSS content and article syndication allows you to spend some time preparing content in the standard XML RSS format and then to make it available to many free RSS feeds across the world.

If you have ever spent a large amount of money on an online marketing program – you already know the drawbacks of traditional internet marketing. Mass emails are no longer effective due to the increasing power of spam filters. Directory listing services are finding that their clients are removing their links due to retribution by the major search engine algorithms. And, Pay Per Click… well it’s just really expensive if you intend to see real results.

With RSS syndication, you are never going to face any of these issues. If you can write an html file for your website, you can syndicate your own RSS content. The basic process is quite simple to master, and as you become more familiar your skills will expand quickly as well.

What’s even better news for web site owners? The major search engines are not only approving of RSS syndication, they are providing RSS feeds open for submission in a huge array of topic areas like sports, entertainment, world news, travel, health and technology. There is a topic for every web site owner willing to put in a little effort! And people use their sites already, so what a better place to syndicate your content?

When you place content in an RSS feed, a link appears to your web site. This is noticed by the major search engines, and helps to increase your link popularity among the search engines. Link popularity will potentially move your site up in the search engine results pages (SERPS). Combine these two facts, and you will see that no matter how you look at it, RSS syndication will get you more traffic.

It doesn’t really matter whether your additional visitors found you through an RSS feed, or if your visibility and increased link popularity allowed them to find you through a major search engine! Think about that, and you are sure to see the true benefit of RSS content.

There’s that word again… “Content.” RSS content is different from what you might normally expect in an SEO campaign. The reason that most web sites containing RSS feeds put them there in the first place is to provide extra information for their visitors.

Think about it, if you publish a web site geared towards IT professionals you might be providing content that is of a fairly specific nature. You may be giving information, tutorials or even advertising for a certain software package. Although this information is important to a large majority of the visitors who click on your link, some visitors may be more interested in a different area of the IT field.

Providing an RSS feed that displays the latest in the world of IT news may be a great answer. If the information found in your RSS feed is quality and relative to your visitors’ interests, they will bookmark your site. Then they will COME BACK!

But what does that mean to you as the RSS syndicated content provider? It means that you will need to produce quality content – because it’s your content that keeps the users coming back to the original site. As long as your content is quality, and you remain a part of that RSS feed, you will see increased new and return visitors.

And generating traffic is the largest goal of an SEO campaign, so why wouldn’t you want to syndicate quality content for RSS feeds? This simple and inexpensive method of marketing your website is gaining popularity, and becoming visible now as a content provider will only mean greater returns in the future.

Michelle McClory is an online marketing expert with 5 years of experience who is proud to be a member of the eByro team. If you would like to explore more Internet Marketing techniques visit eByro - the Vertical Portal for Internet Entrepreneurs

3G or not 3G, That Is The Question...

2006-01-19T05:47:00.000-08:00

With all the hype surrounding 3G mobile broadband, you'd think that (and probably be right) all the mobile companies would be flaoting round in a state of bliss...

Well, someone might just have taken a shot at busting their little bubble.

Rather than watching TV or downloading movies, Dr Andrew Viterbi thinks "Users are more likely to download pictures from phones onto their PC at home and distribute them using Wi-Fi networks." And this is what he told delegates during a speach at the IEEE Radio and Wireless Symposium in San Diego on Tuesday. He then later went on to say how mobile operators in Europe paid around ten times more than they should have done for 3G licences, and that they'd now have to chase customers. Which is all very nice for Dr Andrew Viterbi. But who is this man?

Viterbi was the co-founder and retired vice-chairman of Qualcomm, who developed the "Viterbi" algorithm used in most mobile phone and digital satellite receivers. So this is a man who should know his beans.

And indeed, it looks like he might be right, from a certain point of view. But never underestimate the power of persuasion. Head over to eBay, and you'll see V3 Razr phones going for well upwards of £100. You'll see new Nokia's going for the same kind of prices. People, bizarrely, WILL pay this kind of money for options that they don't really need. Do people *need* to watch TV or films on their phones? No. But I'm betting that in a few years, it'll be fairly commonplace.

Is 3G dead before it's born? Only time will tell...

Real Estate Business Power...

2006-01-18T03:49:00.000-08:00

8 out of 10 millionairres made their name in real estate
There are several million real estate owners in the UK
There are very few real estate millionairres in the UK

Clearly some people don't know how to leverage what they've got. Real estate isn't a hugely complex thing. In the last artice, we covered (in brief) second mortgages. These are a gerat way to get finance for business startup, real estate investment, or other such ventures. The trick though, is making sure that money works FOR you. If you're not making it work for you, all you're doing is digging a nice big hole for yourself called Debt. Make sure you find someone who knows what they're doing in whatever you choose to use that money for.

Mentoring.

It's the daddy, as far as learning "how to" goes.
Pete

Commercial Second Mortgage

2006-01-18T03:47:00.000-08:00

Second mortgages are important real estate tools that have been used for many years. A particular type of second mortgage is called a commercial second mortgage. These are used in combination with a first loan and as a main difference a second commercial mortgage will have a term much less than the first one (usually this new one is a 5 year loan).

In many situations, such a second mortgage is required, but the possibility to repay it must be taken into account and assessed properly. Borrowers must be sure that the money acquired will make a good investment for their commercial business or that they can pay their first loan and second loans at the same time.

Several qualified people are able to help borrowers find a good second mortgage. Also, whenever people apply for a commercial second mortgage a free assessment of their financials will be done. This is routine and is very helpful, as the borrower will then know exactly what they can afford, and their picture about their business and financial power will be up to date. With this information in hand, borrowers can then decide if taking the loan is a good solution or not.

People who are not approved will at least know their exact financial state and can risk it by applying somewhere else where they will be approved. The risks are higher but the rewards can be high if the borrower is careful in choosing the amount borrowed and the terms of the loan.

Taking a commercial second mortgage is a very big step and should be very well thought out. The repayment rates are higher than with a first loan and they must be paid on a shorter term. It is advisable to consult a financial professional before taking a commercial second mortgage in order to fully know and understand all of the available options.

Second Mortgages provides detailed information about second mortgages, second home mortgages, second mortgage brokers and more. Second Mortgages is affiliated with Mortgage Loans Dallas.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marcus_Peterson

Improving Your Financial Situation With Investments and Business Ideas

2006-01-17T15:16:00.000-08:00

With financial information and virtual business transactions just a click away, people are finding themselves more financially savvy and in the know on how to fatten up their financial portfolios.

While most people rely on banks and properties to secure their retirement days, others who are smart enough and worldly enough with the affairs of the green buck opt for more lucrative financing opportunities. They do not just let their money sit idly inside a bank vault and wait for the interest to add up. A few actually roll their money and invest them in the high stakes of stocks, bonds and currency.

Stocks can be very risky but if you start small and give yourself time to get the hang of it, you may enjoy it and may even discover that you have the gift of foresight. Watch for stocks that are just on the rise. These are often companies that are very promising. Their value will still be relatively small compared to blue chips so you really don’t have to shell out much. If you want to risk more, you can actually buy blue chips or those stocks that established companies offer to the public. Examples are Microsoft and Dell.

Bonds on the other hand may have modest returns but they are probably the best and most secure of financial investments. Bonds come highly recommended and should not be absent in any financial portfolio.

Currencies are trickier to deal with as their value are affected by so many forces, local or within the country involved, regional and global. Though banks also offer currencies, most have high exchange rates. Others just buy but they do not sell, choosing to keep the currencies within the financing institution.

Debt is perhaps the single worst thing that you can do to damage your financial portfolio. Do not get the wrong idea, debt can be good when used the right way. In fact, successful businessmen have debts too. This is because they have their money tied up in other ventures that have a higher return of investments than the interest of the loans. After all, you cannot make money without having some money to begin with. So, if you feel that you can yield more money using the money that you got from a loan, then by all means, get a loan!

What should be avoided are debts that come from credit cards. Credit cards hold the highest interest rates in debts perhaps because the whole debt business is risky. Getting into deep credit card debt can mean paying a lifetime for the interest without even touching the principal. It is important that when you use the credit card, make sure that you pay on time and that you pay for the whole amount. Otherwise, you would find yourself slowly falling into a financial trap.

It will be risky but the fastest way you can earn big money is to venture on a business. Even something as small as operating a cafeteria in a factory or school or engage in buying and selling of goods over the Internet, can be a great start. With the advent of technology, it is even easier now than before, not to mention faster, to conduct financing and business transactions. You don’t even have to meet face to face. You just have to learn to communicate through emails and mobile phones.

This is not intended to give financial advice and professional advice is suggested before investing.

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com

David Arnold Livingston is an entrepreneur with many years
of successful business experience. He recommends you visit:
Financing Options and Resources

Veteran Entrepreneurs Are Growing In Ranks

2006-01-17T15:13:00.000-08:00

When I’m not running my own business, writing articles about business, speaking to groups and organizations about business, or consulting with companies who want my advice about the running of their business, I teach a weekly class on the subject of (care to guess?) starting and running a business.

To quote my frequently-mentioned and wise-beyond-her-years teenage daughter, Chelsea, “Dad, you really need to get a life.” This advice coming from a child who believes all roads lead to the mall.

What my eldest offspring doesn’t understand is I have a great life. In fact, I am living the life I have always dreamed of living. My life just happens to revolve around Planet Business. I am an entrepreneurial addict, a business junkie. Business is my chocolate, my Krispy Kreme donut, my nicotine, my caffeine, my crack. Maybe I’ll start a 12 step program for entrepreneurs who want to kick the habit and charge a cover to get in. Hi, my name is Tim, and I’m an entrepreneur... Sounds like a great business idea to me.

Out of everything I do I get the most enjoyment from speaking and teaching. Maybe it’s the old stand up comedian in me, but nothing feeds my addiction like standing in front of a room of entrepreneurs talking about the ups and downs, the ins and outs, the do’s and don’ts of business.

My latest class of eager entrepreneurs is a special one in that it is made up almost entirely of U.S. Military Veterans: nearly two dozen men and women of all ages who either have a business idea in mind or are in the process of actually starting and running a business.

Going around the room, I asked each student to stand up, introduce themselves, and talk a little about their business idea and what they expect to get from the class. As I listened to each Vet speak, I was impressed at the passion the entire group exuded. Most new entrepreneurs love to talk about their business idea, but this group was somehow different. They were more precise in their thinking, more intense, more passionate than the average entrepreneur. This group was not only excited at the prospect of starting their own business. They were downright zealous about it.

As each Vet stood to talk about their idea and their expectations, the rest of the group hung on every word and was truly interested in what was being said. The typical entrepreneur is only interested in his own venture and has a hard time feigning interest in anyone else’s. That was not the case here. Each Vet not only listened intently, but empathized with the speaker, as if they were taking a vested interest in the speaker’s idea and were eager to help the speaker succeed. It was as if the group who had never met before, had come together as a single cohesive unit with one mission in mind: to succeed in business.

The theme became: No man (or woman) left behind, in battle and in business.

I supposed I should not have been too surprised. These were, after all, highly-trained, highly-disciplined individuals who have spent time in every corner of the globe in conditions most of us can only imagine. One young entrepreneur in particular was so freshly back from the Middle East that you could almost imagine sand on the floor beneath his boots.

They are an impressive group, indeed, and it is my privilege to serve as their leader for the next six weeks. I am learning far more from them about the human spirit than they are learning from me about business. I hope they see it as a fair trade.

Veteran entrepreneurs are emerging as one of the fastest growing segments of new entrepreneurs. According to a recent Small Business Administration (SBA) study there are approximately 4.2 to 5.5 million veteran-owned businesses in the United States. The study further revealed that 22% of veterans are either considering starting or purchasing a business in the near future or are in the business start up or purchase phase now.

The SBA study was done as a result of The Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act of 1999, which required the SBA’s Office of Advocacy to develop information on the various programs designed to assist veteran and service-disabled veterans succeed in business.

The SBA study found that:

More than one-third of “new veteran-entrepreneurs” and current veteran business owners had obtained skills from their active duty service that were directly relevant to business ownership. This should come as no surprise when you consider the intensity of the training and the emphasis on discipline that comes with military training.

Over the course of their career the typical longer-term Veteran receives at least cursory training in everything from time management to employee relations to supervisory techniques to dealing with subordinates (employees) to budgeting and accounting to supply chain management and so on and so on.

One organization that is working hard to promote entrepreneurship among Veterans is the Veteran’s Corporation. Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, the Veteran’s Corporation bills itself as “the complete business source for current and prospective Veterans and Service-Disabled Veteran business owners, and for companies interested in working with Veteran-owned businesses.” The Veterans Corporation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation that was created in 1999 by Public Law 106-50, which also set a 3 percent goal for federal procurement to Veterans including Service Disabled Veteran-owned businesses.

The Veterans Corporation serves transitioning military personnel and all Veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces, National Guard and Reserve, seeking to link them with partners and purchasing agents in both the public and private sectors.

Membership to the Veterans Corporation is free and available to all transitioning military personnel and all Veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces, National Guard and Reserve. Members will find assistance in securing capital for a business, entrepreneurial education, access to markets and services, and business networking.

For more information or to apply for membership visit the Veterans Corporation online at http://www.veteranscorp.org/

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com

Tim serves is the founder of DropshipWholesale.net, an online organization dedicated to the success of online and eBay entrepreneurs. Related Links: www.prosperityandprofits.com www.smallbusinessqa.com www.dropshipwholesale.net www.timknox.com

Ladies and Gentlemen, Lay Your Bets Please...

2006-01-16T09:14:00.000-08:00

As you may or may not be aware, the UK Government is planning to hold talks later this year on the subject of online gambling. Essentially, it wishes to seek support to regulate the industry and help protect children from gaining access to the businesses' Web sites. What brought this about was no secret: 2005 saw three huge Internet gambling stock market floats, which have turned multi-billion dollar revenues.

"We want to initiate a discussion about problem areas which include protectionof children, advertising, money laundering and criminal infiltration,"said Anthony Wright, a spokesman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

The online casino and poker marketplace currently turns over around 6.8 billion pounds per anum; a figure that looks set only to rise in the next year.

"We became the first industrialised nation to legalise online gaming ... The reason we introduced the act was to regulate the new forms of gambling. We can only get so far on our own," Wright told Reuters..

So what does this mean to us? A few things. Firstly, if you're a stock market investor, now would be a good time to capitalize on the Internet gambling market, as no-one really knows for sure what kind of effect this new legislation, if and when it's passed, will bring. And secondly, there's a huge oppertunity to capitalize on people who wish to get started with this, but don't know how. Oppertunities, anyone?

Pete

Semper Fi Like a Limpet

2006-01-14T05:17:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, something comes along, that is so useful, so groundbreaking, so radical, that everyone immediatly either copies it, or makes bolt on accessories for it. For today's example, lets look at the iPod...

How many brands of mp3 player are there? Hundreds. Literally. When the iPod came out initially, it wasn't brilliant. But by refining the design and the iTunes software, Apple has got it right. And they realised there was more money in making it into a fashion accessory than in making it do what the ruddy thing was supposed to. Just like the mobile phone, they went smaller and cuter, attracting the younger croud, whilst people who have a music collection of any real kind of size will still go straight to the iPod for their needs. 4 gig, and even 6 just isn't enough for an adult who's had 20 odd years to buy cd's. That's a hell of a lot of music, and it just wont fit on the smaller ones. But they weren't the only ones who realised where the money was...

Step up Griffin Technology, and all the other people who jumped on the accessories bandwagon. There's no doubt that if you want the best, you go to Griffin. They have the largest range, and have become "The Daddy" as far as iPod accessories go. But do you see hordes of accessories for the other mp3 players? Ummm... That would be a no.

Why?

Ironically, it worked both ways. Apple were the first, and were (and still are) very well priced. And everyone knows the iPod. At the same time, everyone was designing gizmos for it, because it was the only one around. So when everyone else came along, it was already too late. Add to that the fact that if you've bought anything from the iTunes store, you can't play that music on anything other than an iPod, and your options become limited for what you'll buy in the future.

So where do I think the future is headed?

I think the iPod can, and will be toppled. BUT, it will only happen when someone creates an mp3 player that can play Protected AAC files, AND Protected WMA files. Why? Because this would mean that you would be able to use files bought from any of the major music PPD (Pay Per Download) services.

Cry "Invent" and let slip the mp3 players of war...

Pete

You DON'T Have to Solve the World's Problems

2006-01-10T18:33:00.000-08:00

For a very long time, I surrounded myself with people in dire need of attention and caring. These people fell into two categories:
1) Those who wanted to be helped, and wanted to better themselves
2) Those who didn't want to be helped, and wanted to wallow

The first were great. They were a constant source of inspiration to me. The second however, became like a cancer. Being around them had some very bad consequences, in terms of my mental health. For a very long time, I slid down a very slippery slope. If you hang around with those kinds of people for long enough, it begins to rub off on you.

I got to a state, where I honestly felt I was completely worthless. I had the biggest inferiority complex you could imagine, and compensated for it by building a vast superiority complex over it. Needless to say, it didn't work. It was only recently that I culled the list of people who can freely contact me online. A huge number of people went out the door, because I'd reached the point where I actually hated myself.

I have always been a perfectionist, but known that no matter how good what I do is, it could be done better. This has created a certain kind of friction for doing things anyway, but coupled with what these people were saying and doing... It was very negative, to say the least.

So what made the difference? What turned me around? I realized two things. Firstly, I am a worthwhile human being. A very close personal friend talked to me for a long time, and gave me a chance to sit and get everything off my chest, which I'd been bottling up for a long time. The other thing was I stopped talking to a lot of people. This meant stopping talking to a lot of people who actually, I'd become very close to. I knew they were poisoning my mind, but still I didn't want to just leave them. However, for the sake of my own sanity, I did it.

I've never looked back. What's the point in today's message? Simple. No matter how bad things get, no matter how far away help might seem, there's always someone who cares about you, and it's never too late to turn it around.

You can't save everyone, because not everyone wants to be saved.

Live well,
Pete

Common Sense as Rare as Gold!

2006-01-09T05:44:00.000-08:00

Now, when I first got the idea for the 101 Tips eBooks, I knew there'd be people who'd rubbish the idea. People who'd say "But I already know all this stuff. I don't need to be told it..."

A while ago, I was talking to one of them. A good friend of mine called Beth, had a copy of the relationships one. Earlier that day, we'd been talking and she'd said it was silly, it wasn't anything new, and it didn't help her. Pretty soon, we got on the the subject of her and guys. Almost immediately, she said that she'd stopped seeing a guy she'd been with for about a week, and was trying to date a guy who she'd just met, but it was really hard because he found it really hard to talk to her.

Now, call me a cynic, but I'd rather date someone I know well, know that I'm suited to, and can actually hold a conversation with. One of the points in the 101 Tips eBook on dating and relationships is about only dating people that you know, and another is writing down what a person who you'll date MUST be, and what they absolutely MUST NOT be. So I said to Beth, that maybe she was being a little bit silly. Sure, she'd read the book with her eyes, but she'd already decided before reading it that she wasn't going to learn anything and that she knew it all. Shockingly enough, she didn't know it all. We talked a while longer, and she's now much happier with her relationships with all her male friends.

Moral of the tale? If someone gives you advice, listen to it. Don't think you know everything. And act on it.

Take care and take action.
Pete

Today's Lesson Children...

2006-01-08T14:31:00.000-08:00

What do you want from life? Most people are unhappy with most of what they have. And don't some of them just HATE it when they meet someone who's ACTUALLY happy? "God forbid that YOU are happy with your life! What makes you so great? I can't be like that..." and so on and so forth. Don't you just hate attitudes like that? You probably aren't that extreme. Odds are you're happy for them, but there's reasons why you couldn't be like that. Well, if you want to get what you want out of life, here's what you need to do. Don't be a little bit unhappy. Be a HUGE bit unhappy! What makes the difference between them and you? What makes the difference between success and failure? One thing, and one thing only my friend:
When you DECIDE to succeed, you will. When you say "No, I WILL NOT put up with these things any more. I am worth MORE than this. I deserve MORE than this." That's when your life will change.
So here's what I want you to do. Right now, write down 5 things you WILL NOT put up with any more. Print this off.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
And now write down here, "I WILL NOT settle for these things again. I am worth more."

Now, I want you to take action on these things. I've built my life around those two words: Take Action. So much so I made it my company tagline. Because that's how you make lasting change. You don't do it later, you act NOW! So write down those five things if you haven't done so, and make that commitment. Do yourself justice.
Take care, and best wishes.
Pete W

Yey though I walk in the valley of the shadow of Google...

2006-01-07T05:55:00.000-08:00

Google appears to have world domination on it's mind these days. Not content with just going after Microsoft, it's not actually pre-empting it.

With mp3 and file sharing, it was only a matter of time before people started sending video every which way. And indeed, it came along a few years back. And with iTunes, Rhapsody and other such things came PPD (Pay Per Download) and legal song downloads became reality. So what about video?

Well, Google has stepped up to bat. They're currently in the midst of doing a deal with television companies to offer video PPD services. Which makes one question leap to mind...

Where's Microsoft?

The world's computer software supergiant seems to be starting to rest on it's laurels a little of late. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it needs a bigger share of the pie; it's got more money than pretty much anything else. But you have to wonder what it is that it's R&D department are doing these days. For sure, the Xbox and Xbox 360 are awsome, but... If they're holding some cards that we don't know about, maybe it's time that they started playing them, before Google and Apple sneak up on the inside and overtake them.

Pete

Google and the Lizard Army...

2006-01-04T06:55:00.000-08:00

As you may or may not know, there has been a conspiracy theory around for some time, the basic jist of which is that the British Royal Family are all shapeshifting lizards bent on domination of the Earth. Well, they'd better look out, because Google are coming gunning for them...

Safa Rashtchy thinks the share price for Google will rise as far as to the $600 mark. Is this unbridled optimism, or is there a chance that actually this is attainable for the search engine supergiant?

Some of you may remember the predictions made about six years ago that Yahoo! would hit the $600 per share mark. This was no pipedream either; at the time it was capping at $500 a share.

So how are they planning to pull this off? Quite simply, by diversifying. Google has already moved into advertising with their AdSense and AdWords programs, and by expanding their search capabilities. But now they're gunning after the real big boy of the block...

Microsoft

Yes, you read that right. Google are hoping to release a PC through the vast Wal-Mart chain, running it's own operating system. Or so claims the Los Angeles Times. The big point on this though, is that it won't be running Windows. It'll run Google's own OS. The people at The Register suggest that this is likely to be an overhauled Linux, which I personally agree with. It'd make sense, certainly. Will any of this come to fruition though? Well, we'll find out on Friday when Larry Page makes his keynote speach in Vegas. Watch this space...

Pete

Monetizing a Site...

2006-01-03T06:44:00.000-08:00

I have been on holiday for the past week, and whilst making my way back home, stopped off to visit a good friend, who runs Unusual Hotels of the World. As often happens, we got on to the topic of business. We talked for a while, discussed how things were going, and I went home. Earlier today, I went on his website and noticed something that he seemed to have missed.

AdSense.

As far as I'm concerned, AdSense is THE simplest way to monetize any website, and lets face it, who wouldn't like their site to make them some money? So I got on the phone to him and pointed out that this might be a good idea. To cut a long story short, he was gobsmacked at how simple it was to do, and at what it could do for him. Put simply, if you have traffic, then you can make money from PPC advertising.

As a final point, I'd just like to say a quick "Hi" to all the guys I saw over the past week, and I hope you all have a great year!
Pete

Happy New Year

2006-01-03T05:03:00.000-08:00

This is just a quick letter to say hello and happy new year to you all. I hope that 2006 brings you sucess, joy and happyness. May God bless and keep you all.
Pete

Welcome to 2006

2006-01-02T14:47:00.000-08:00

This is just a quick post to say hello to you all, and welcome you to 2006. Whatever it holds, I wish you all the best, and may God bless you.

With blessings and joy,
Pete

Three Things For Christmas

2005-12-25T11:51:00.000-08:00

Firstly, I wish you all a very merry Christmas, and the very best of luck to you for all you do in the new year.

What will this new year hold for you? Maybe you're planning to start a business. Maybe you already run one and your want to improving it. Maybe you want to take a year out and travel the world. Maybe you want to move house. Whatever it is you do, I want you to promise to do one thing for me.

Buy a notebook. And at the end of every day, write down three things you've accomplished, and three things to do the next day, to make your life, or yourself better. And follow through. Take Action. Do the things you write down. They needn't be big things. But by doing them, you'll start to train yourself to take action on things that are important, and that my friends, is the most powerful tool I can ever give to you.

Here's wishing you all the best, and may God bless and keep you all in '06.
Much love.
Peter J. C. Wailes

It's Not What You Know...

2005-12-23T18:23:00.000-08:00

So I'm sitting talking to my friend Kelly at stupid o'clock in the morning about various extremely rare CD's I've got, and she poses the question:
kelly says:
seriously, how?

Meaning, how do I get hold of them. Well the answer was simple. I was in the right place at the right time, and knew the right people. But there's a little more to it than that, and the principles apply to business too...

"Well, I was just the right person in the right place at the right time..." How many times have you heard that? Well, chances are that that person wasn't there by accident. Let me explain...

Everything in life comes down to who you know. Most of the things that I've been privalidged to do, I was able to do because I knew someone who needed a service I could offer. As a result, they remembered my name, and next time they needed something similar, I got the offer. And I reaped the benefits of it too.

But knowing the right people is only half the game. That's why networking only works for a small number of people. Because it doesn't matter who you know if you don't ACT on the information those people give you. How many times have you known someone was looking for something that you could do for them, but you didn't offer? Or you've had a great talant for something, but not let people know about it, so when they want someone for it, they don't think of you? Make sure people know about you. Who you are. What you're about. Make sure they think of you when they need something done that you can do.

Rick Wakeman, on the Journey to the Centre of the Earth tour needed a narrator, because at the last minute the guy they were going to have pulled out. At the same time, they were being managed by a famous actor, with a great speaking voice, who was available to do it. He got the job. Why? They didn't even think of using him. But he got the job because he knew it was something he could do, and he pointed this out to them.

Be up front. Get in people's faces a bit. And be a bit cheeky. PUT yourself in the right place at the right time, and KNOW the right people, and you've got half the fight won already.

Like we say at PWB, Take Action.
Until next time...
Pete

Blogging WITHOUT RSS or Atom

2005-12-22T06:20:00.000-08:00

I was sitting the other day, trying to find a way to incorporate my blog into my site, without using RSS or Atom feeds. Basically, I've never found them to be that great, for various reasons which I won't go into here. Anyway, with a good and trusty mouse at my side, and armed with my keyboard, I went out into the wilderness of the Internet, seeking a wise bearded person to help me...

Didn'th find one.

However, what I DID get was an idea. I remembered that a site I'd seen had used some kind of frame to do the kind of thing I wanted. However, it wasn't a normal kind of frame. To cut a long story short, I was introduced to the wonderful world of the "iframe". Suffice to say, these little frames are like a picture frame, in which you can *hang* another site. You can change the size of the frame, what you put in it, where you want it and everything else.

However, blogging isn't the only use for this. If you want to (and get permission to), this lets you do a whole load of new things, such as sending traffic from your site to others, without having them ever leave your page. And THAT is a powerful thing.

I hope this has given you something to think about, and hopefully a new toy to play with.
Take care and see you all in my next post...
Pete

What Do YOU Want?

2005-12-20T08:44:00.000-08:00

Today's topic is going to seem slightly strange in some ways, but please bear with me...

I have always been a huge fan of wrestling. And one of my biggest heros from the arena, is Eddie Guerrero. Tragically, Eddie passed away in October. As I sit here, I've been looking at the videos of several of his fellow wrestling stars sharing their feelings and leaving their condolences. And there are one or two things that shine out. Firstly, he was never afraid to be real with people. He kept his heart open to everyone, and was a constant source of warmth and compassion to all he worked with.
The other thing was that he was not perfect, and was not ashamed to admit it. He struggled with his demons, and didn't always win. But he always fought for what was right, even fighting against himself, and battling with the sides of himself that he didn't like, to make himself a better man.

I wonder, how many of us approach our lives, our jobs, with that same passion. How many of us get up and are thrilled with the fact that we're alive.

What makes a man exceptional? Is it his money? No. Is it his material possesions? No. the measure of a man, is how he lives his life. Does he live it with passion for what he does? Does he have the love and respect of those around him? Is he a good family man? And most importantly, how does he tackle his problems. It's all too easy to give in to hardship, but I believe that a person can be weighed by how hard they will fight for their convictions. How far will they go to achieve their dreams.

Eddie gave everything he had, every single day, and acheived more in his 38 years than most people could do in a hundred. How did he achieve it? He NEVER gave up. He NEVER stopped trying, until he got what he wanted. How do we get what we want from life? Dedication and action. You keep going, until you get to where you want to be.

I hope this inspires you in some way.
Pete

In memory of Eddie Guerrero, 1967-2005. RIP

Viral Marketing

2005-12-17T10:16:00.000-08:00

You may remember how, in my last post, I talked about an idea that had serious "WOW" factor. Well, we're going to build on that today.

Firstly, what is a viral marketing campaign? It's when something spreads like wildfire, purely through word of mouth. Normally, this happens because the product or idea has "WOW" factor. Well, as you may or may not know, Jennifer Laycock (of www.searchengineguide.com) set herself a challange: In 30 days, start a business from scratch, using no capital. Well, as of day 22, here's where she's at...

Traffic Since Stats Put in Place: 4512 unique visitors

Blog Traffic Since Stats Put in Place: 956 unique visitors

Total Shirt Sales: $338.74

Profit from Shirt Sales: $74.00

Profit from Affiliate Sales: $72.34

Total AdSense Revenue: $59.26

Total Chitika Revenue: $3.23

Ebay Sales Profit: $3.00

Total Revenue: $211.83

-----------------------------------------------

Donations to Milk Bank: $4.00

Ebay Listing Fee: $2.15

PayPal Fees: $1.02

Hosting Expenses: $4.96

Yahoo! Search Marketing Fee: $5.00

cpshop Purchase: $19.77

Total Business Expenses: $36.90

-----------------------------------------------

Total Profit: $174.93

(stats taken from http://www.searchengineguide.com/laycock/006396.html)

Now, I find this pretty phenomenal. However, is it a fair test?
Well, the answer is part yes, part no.
On the "YES" side, we have the following:
1) She really didn't use any capital other than what she'd brought in.
2) She got to where she is now, without using (as far as I'm aware) any marketing through anything she already did.
On the "NO" side, we have these:
1) She already knew people in the industry (though not everyone, and hey, you only get contacts one way - by doing things like this and getting out and meeting them)
2) She already knew what was involved in starting an Internet business, which a complete newcomer probably wouldn't.
3) She used a Google AdWords voucher, which a newbie probably wouldn't have.

So, the answer is kinda part yes, and part no. However, what it does prove is the effect of viral marketing. How has she driven SO much traffic to the site SO fast?
She posted the challange on forums, and sent press releases to various media people. That meant that she IMMEDIATELY got into the spotlight, so IMMEDIATELY got traffic. She also used Google AdWords to capture traffic.
But more than that, the fact that she gave it a time limit, and has been posting updates, in addition to running the darn thing, has turned a random forum post into a small media sensation. And, all credit to her, it was a great idea, which I'm sure will be greatly copied.

So how can we apply this to ourselves? Simple. Find the WOW factor in what you do. And then exploit that to the fullest. Make people sit up and take notice, and you're going to sell.
Hopefully this will inspire in some way. I know my hat's off to her...
Pete
How to start an Internet business
Internet Business Solutions

Wow

2005-12-14T07:21:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I'm sitting here looking through some websites I've been recommended, and I come across this one:
Million Dollar Homepage

Now, anyone who knows me personally will be more than happy to tell you that I'm not an easy person to impress. However, I must admit that this idea is pure genius.

For anyone who doesn't know, this guy has essentially made a page with 1000 by 1000 pixels, and is selling each pixel for a dollar. So you can by a 10*10 box to advertise in for $100. Now, it doesn't take a great leap of mathematical genius to see that 1,000*1,000 is 1,000,000. So he's got the potential for $1,000,000 here.

Not only that, but it's worked. The guy gets more hits than you'd believe (tens of thousands of unique visitors a day), and has managed to sell over 800,000 of the pixels. So, for the cost of putting up some blank space, he's made himself over $800,000. Sound nice?

Well, some people obviously think so. It's a page that's now been copied several times, sometimes with a new twist, sometimes they've just nicked the page, copied it word for word and put it up. Flattering but annoying would be my guess.

Moral of the tale? Well, it's this...

I've always said when I speak to people that making a million is simple. You find something you can sell a make $1 profit, and you sell a million units of it. This guy's taken the piss slightly, and literally done exactly that, but fair play to him, he's made a whole lot of money from it. Now, I'm not suggesting that you go out copy him, but what I do advise is think of some way of selling something for very little, that you can deliver digitally. Digital downloading is free, it's easy and it's the single easiest method of delivering product.

Now go make some money!
Pete
Check out our Internet Marketing Course and Internet Business Course at PWB Solutions.com

Mentors

2005-12-13T09:16:00.001-08:00

Ok, so earlier this week I'm on the phone to Ryan from Donald Trump's University, and we're talking about the real estate business (duh!), and about how I'm thinking of expanding into it. Anyway, we got onto the subject of how they teach it, and what they show you and such forth. To cut a long story short, they make great use of mentors. So that's what I'm going to talk about today.

Personally, I think mentors are a great way of learning. A lot of what I know, I learned from guys like Andrew Reynolds, Armand Morin, Steven Pierce and Tony Robbins. So I'd say that I'm qualified, having been mentored, and now mentoring myself, to talk on the subject. A mentor is by far, the single best method to learn., and that's because:
1) You get all their experience within their field, without having to go out and make all the mistakes yourself
2) You get someone who knows the terrain, and can point out problems or difficulties that are coming and
3) They have already (if they're worth listening to) done what you're trying to do.
I once heard the example of the Indiana Jones type films. The guy wants to get across a minefield to some mystical treasure. So he sends a hundred guys out across the field, and one of the makes it. Now, he wants to get across. What does he do? Well, he can do one of three things:
1) Go his own way, and hope that he makes it. It's possible it works, but it's more likely he has his legs blown off.
2) Follow in the footsteps of someone who didn't make it. This is a REALLY bad idea.
3) Follow in the exact footsteps of the guy who already did it, and have him call out anything he did that helped him get across. Now, call me boring, but if I were him, I'd go with number three. And that's exactly what I've done in my professional life. I've sought out people who know more than me, who've already done what I want to do, and asked them how they did it and to show me what I need to do to get the same results. If you don't have a mentor, you're like the guy ambling through the minefield on his own. Find a mentor, and listen to what he or she has to say. They can help you get where you want to go much faster, and much more efficiently than you will on your own.

I hope this is of some help and inspiration to all you people out there. Take care, and see you soon.
Pete

Check out our Internet Marketing Course and Internet Business Course at PWB Solutions.com

Introduction

2005-12-11T04:16:00.000-08:00

^{I'm Pete Wailes, founder and MD of PWB Solutions, an Internet Marketing and Internet Business Solutions company. Fair enough, but there are others out there. What makes us different?

Quite simply, we don't believe in doing work for you. We'd much rather teach you, and give the tools to do it, so when you get a problem, you don't have to spend money outsourcing to get it fixed. You can do it yourself. Don't get me wrong, outsourcing can be a great thing. But the digital marketplace changes and expands so fast, you really can't afford to be relying on other people for everything. So we give you the tools and information you need to make your business run more smoothly.

But what qualifies me to endorse the products, or to tell you anything in the first place? Well, the fact that I run a business that uses the very methods and tools that I'm going to give you for one. And secondly, if you go to any of several of the top ranked small business forums, such as http://www.teneric.co.uk/forums/ and http://www.smallbusinessbrief.com/forum/ amongst several others, you'll see that I'm a regular contributor, and that my advice is well respected and backed up. I'm not going to give any advice that isn't something I'd be willing to personally do myself.

Anyway, that's me introduced... Check the other posts for my goings on...}Check out our Internet Marketing Course and Internet Business Course at PWB Solutions.com