Free Webinars for Entrepreneurs

Sramana Mitra, entrepreneur and Forbes columnist will be offering a free webinar on sales strategies June 9, 2009 10:00 AM. Visit her website http://www.sramanamitra.com/

http://www.insideview.com/WEBINAR/SRAMANA/

Visit her website: http://www.sramanamitra.com/ for other free webinars.


This website is intended for informational purposes only. Comments are open to the public and not endorsed by the author.

Nancy Miller, M.S., Career Management Consultant
Copyright Center for LifeWork Design © 2007
Reprint by permission only – www.centerforlifeworkdesign.org

Affiliates

I have been hearing a lot about affiliate programs lately, and I've been thinking about adding advertisers that I use or that seem to fit with the content of this blog. At a recent conference, one of the presenters discussed the money earning power of Google AdSense. I'd been avoiding such open advertising, but decided to try it out on this blog first since it is related to doing business. After spending about an hour and half reading about the program and feeling like I was probably wasting my time, I signed up. Even though I was skeptical, I didn't want to sign up without some clue about what I was signing up for. I was surprised to find that Google had some good policies such as not allowing their ads to go into popups, unsolicited emails, or adult content. Google allows you to put the code for your ads anywhere on your website or you can use their simple process. Obviously if the ads are not very visible, you won't get the pay per click revenue.

After taking the plunge and signing up for AdSense ads that were supposed to be related to this website, I found a list of ads that were unrelated such as earn big $ to work at home and templates for $335..and up (at least they said up front that they were charging.) I deleted the ads and added "monetize" again. I'm not completely happy with the ads since one ad didn't spell "custom business plans" correctly. Another advertiser claims you can become a successful Life Coach in 30 days by listening to his CD's at home. Typically certification from reputable coaching programs involves home study, coach training, supervised coaching, and a test. While a person with a graduate degree in a psychology or counseling could step into coaching through self-study, not everyone has the training and background to be a coach without going through a rigorous program. While I would not endorse any of these ads, they don't appear inappropriate for a business website.

Since Blogger is part of Google, they make it very easy to "monetize" your blog. I like the fact that it is also very easy to delete the ads if I don't like them. I will continue with AdSense and see how I like it. I don't think I will have these ads visible enough to make them very profitable. It's easy to insert the ads after every post and on the sidebar. The options are simple to apply and change. I chose to put the ads on the sidebar after all of my links and blogroll. Less intrusive, but also less profitable. You can take a moment to click on the ads and see how AdSense works. Google policy asks that the publisher not click on their ads, so I will go to each site to see what I am advertising. Let me know if you should have any problems after clicking on the ads. Just post a comment.

I will be soon begin adding affiliates that I use and/or am familiar with. I will also report on the different ads posted on this site. Let me know your experience with affiliates. Are you finding them profitable, intrusive or both?


This website is intended for informational purposes only. Comments are open to the public and not endorsed by the author. Contact us for more information.

Nancy Miller, M.S., Career Management Consultant
Copyright Center for LifeWork Design © 2007
Reprint by permission only – www.centerforlifeworkdesign.org

Social Entrepreneurship is growing

The concept of Social Entrepreneurship is growing. Entrepreneurs who are able to earn a living while improving the economy or working conditions of people all over the world. Seeing products, colors, and styles from Africa, the Middle East, and Asia brings us closer to the people and cultures who made them. Social Entrepreneurs are bringing Artisan's crafts from developing countries with rich culture and tradition to the United States. Other social entrepreneurs such as Tom's Shoes and One Laptop per Child give a product each time you buy one. Social entrepreneurs are going all over the world to use their business expertise to build positive relationships while helping to economies one person at a time.

In the United States we don't have the mass poverty that is seen in developing countries but we have a growing number of people who are poor and disenfranchised. Social entrepreneurs have an opportunity to teach people the skills they need to end the cycle of poverty and give them a place in their communities. Teaching people Gardening, Crafts, and Business Skills empower them to use their talents and gain much needed economic opportunities.

While teaching an entrepreneurship through gardening class, I found that the women in the group were very enthusiastic about growing vegetables and having healthy produce for their families. Gardening takes work and responsibility, but it is a healthy way to de-stress.

What opportunities do you see for doing business while helping your community and the planet?

This website is intended for informational purposes only. Comments are open to the public and not endorsed by the author.

Nancy Miller, M.S., Career Management Consultant
Copyright Center for LifeWork Design © 2007
Reprint by permission only – www.centerforlifeworkdesign.org