The Home Biz Blog

E-commerce solutions for home business

E-commerce solutions for home business
Copyright © Hannes Johnson
http://www.WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net

When you have a small home-based business, and are basically just starting there are many ways to make a large leap ahead. One of these great methods is to sell online merchandise. An online store can be set up relatively easily and e-commerce has been proven to be quite successful. There are many sites online these days that make e-commerce an excellent decision for your business.

Microsoft now offers a great service known as Bcentral, and is offering great deals on server and hosting packages that run on a monthly scale, or basis. This is a great tool for the individual that is looking to delve into the e-commerce field. If you have an idea for a catalog, and need tools to get it up and running such as templates, and logo creators this could be your solution you’ve been waiting for. Not only will you receive the templates and the graphic creators, but also you will receive the quaint shopping cart in the top right hand side of the page. Having the opportunity to track and control orders and sales is made very easy as you will receive automated conformation through e-mail. Being able to become a member in the PayPal system is also a good idea, as you can never have enough payment options attached to your site. This just increases your chances of sales. You will also be given the opportunity to keep track of customer traffic to your site as well. This makes for a very handy service indeed.

Another great service is provided by eBay, the stores offer a very popular alternative and have a sliding fee scale to fit most businesses needs and budget. The basis service is for the smaller of the businesses that have a smaller volume of traffic. This does not mean that you will not have access to some great tools for your site. You will not be able to keep track of the flow of traffic or sales with this service and there is a very limited directory, yet it is still a good service for someone who is just starting out. The next level of the ebay service will provide more for the business that may be needed as time goes on. It places your priorities in relation to the product you are trying to sell; knowing exactly what the consumer is looking for makes it easy for them to adjust your targeted areas. You will get some traffic reports and sales figures, but not many. The third and final level of the ebay store program is exactly where you want your business to be placed. This is the premier spot or the center stage. This is the place where the bulk of the strongest traffic will be located. This will give you a much stronger shot at making those sales.

*** About The Author ***

Hannes Johnson publishes the Home Business Tips Newsletter which you can join for free by clicking here. You'll even get a free copy of the popular book "30 Days to Success" as well as other bonuses.
( http://www.workathomemadeeasy.net/homebusinesstips.html )

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Top affiliate programs

Top affiliate programs
Copyright © Hannes Johnson
http://www.WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net

When it comes to Internet based business, one the best methods of generating traffic and sales is to go with an affiliate program. This is a very strong way to keep up on the market place and carve your spot into the field. It is no secret that the best way to start affiliate marketing is to go with a topic that you are very familiar with. This does not imply that you are going to immediately strike it rich, it does however; give you the means to building a great site. Knowing what you are selling or promoting is the easiest way to ensure people look to you for information.

This in turn allows for you to add little pieces of information that you may find pertinent to the product, you can add personal flare and even have unbiased opinions thrown in for good measure. When setting up an affiliate site, the first thing to avoid is the temptation of banners. People steer clear away from banners, and quite frankly they make a site look truly unprofessional. If you are going to go with a merchant on your site, it is extremely important to have one that is directly related to what you are promoting. Have more than one can surely not harm either. Just make sure you realize that this is not the beginning of a fortune either. Affiliate programs are not a guarantee to riches; they are a guarantee that your site will be seen more often. This is what you are truly striving for; it’s all about the traffic.

More and more sites these days are focused around content, this is the information and education aspect of a promoting a product or service. This has become a successful endeavor, and is far easier to establish than a product based affiliate program or general website. When ever you are building one of these sites, it must be kept in mind that the entire goal is to ensure that people are actually clicking on the merchant’s link in order to generate sales that you will receive commission or percentage from. If you cannot generate traffic to your affiliate’s site the entire premise has now been a waste of time and money making it moot. Another site that can be successful is the data driven web sites, or data product info sites. These sites have no information on them that one could muse through it is the basic goods. Cost, description, images the basic showroom. What you want in turn from one of these sites is to force feed the affiliate site or the merchant’s goods to the viewer, making them go immediately to the affiliate site for purchases. This generates income in your pocket by advertising the merchant’s goods, and promoting them.

These are my top affiliate programs:

• Plug-In Profit Site
• SFI Marketing Group
• Internet Marketing Center
• Traffic Swarm
• ClickBank
• Host4Profit

*** About The Author ***

Hannes Johnson runs the site AffiliateBoobyTraps.com where you can learn how to increase your affiliate income by giving away or selling these "affiliate booby traps". Get a big fat affiliate check next month - go here:
http://www.AffiliateBoobyTraps.com

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Card sending home business

Card sending home business
Copyright © Hannes Johnson
http://www.WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net

So you have decided that you want to try your luck working from home, you are tired of working for the big corporations and feel you can benefit greatly from being your own boss. This is not a new theory as people all across the globe have the same vision and dreams that come with it. The truth is there is not many home based businesses that pay off in the long run. Another problem with this is that it really doesn’t pay off short term either. So why do people keep going back to this type of home business endeavors? The answer is simple they are not experienced with the whole home based business scheme to begin with.

There are not many people who can pick out a fraudulent business, and even less people can pass on the whole premise of getting rich quick. This is where the scam artist comes into play; they have a way of finding the weak and exploiting their will for a change. Case in point, the credit card sending home based business. When someone delves into the home-based credit card business, they generally have no idea what they are getting themselves into. They hear of great opportunities and fast income. This is wonderful in theory, yet the idea is not very sound. Why would someone set out to employ people that they do not know or never have run a background check on to sell credit cards.

The use of fraudulent credit cards seems to be a problem that is not going to slow down, when you are in this business, what you are doing is unwittingly cheating someone who is looking for a service. This is not a very decent way of making a living, and furthermore it is illegal. This will not generate the income that you think you will receive. When you are running this business from home you will receive loads of personal information from the potential clientele, this information is recorded and many times can easily be misused. The person is sending their information have no idea what actually can happen with the information provided for the service. Many times the card is apparently approved only to have this card number recorded, and then distributed throughout the World Wide Web for the best price.

There are a great number of home based businesses out there, finding the right one for you may or may not take some time. There is however the intention of others to make money very quickly and in a not so legal fashion. These scams are not new, and they pull many people into the fold on a daily basis. This is due to the dream of having your own hours and being in control of your own destiny. For every 10 people in America, 8 of those people are continuously trying to follow that dream of having self-made wealth. This should not be done at someone else's expense.

About the Author:
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To find the best home based business ideas and
opportunities so you can work at home visit:
http://www.WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net
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Web Site Promotion For Your Brand New Website

Web Site Promotion For Your Brand New Website
Copyright © Hannes Johnson
http://www.WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net

What do you do when you have a brand new shiny web site, and no way of promoting it? Well for starters you could hold an online press conference. This is actually a very simple process. You will either hire a professional to write out a web press release and have it reviewed by an editor, or you can be bold and take you chances by writing it yourself.

There are other ways of promoting your new web site however; you could always go the route of affiliation. This is a good method of not only promoting your new site, but an easy fashion of making some quick money as well. How this works is you sign up for an affiliation to a site, generally you will want to find a site that has some relevance to the site you are trying to promote. When ever someone goes to the site you are affiliated with, and they link on to your site by pay per click method it takes them to your site and right into the thick of your content. This is the unfortunate part, whenever someone clicks onto your site from your affiliate; you end up paying the affiliate for the transfer of sites. Although this could easily be a very small fee to the affiliate, the point to remember is if they come and you pay the affiliate, there is no guarantee that they will buy from you.

This could easily become a very costly endeavor if you are getting many tire kickers, and no buyers. This is where you will be paying for people to view but not pay. As you know this is no way to conduct business. Sometime people go to the extent of hiring an outside service. This service states that they can increase traffic to your site, or generate hits if you will. The problem with this theory however, is that you cannot guarantee anything, you can never be sure that you will ever generate traffic, let alone sales. This is in no way to impede the program that they offer, it is just that absolutely no organization or single person alike can truly guarantee that they can generate traffic for you to the point that you will see successful results on your site.

Which leads back to the first mentioned thought, is it not worth the time, money, and effort, to ensure that you are getting the best exposure for your site? Don’t waste your money, time, and sanity wondering whether or not you will receive this exposure to your site. Go get it yourself.

*** About The Author ***

Hannes Johnson is author of the book "Residual Website Traffic - Get Quality, Targeted Visitors To Your Website Again And Again Without Your Constant Effort!". You can find more about it here: http://www.residual-traffic.com/

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Writing press releases

Writing press releases
Copyright © Hannes Johnson
http://www.WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net

So you have a new and bright web site that you will be putting in circulation very soon, you will need advertising for this site to make a big splash on the market. How does one go about writing a big press release for an impending site introduction? You are not alone if you are unsure on this, but there are a few pointers to get you started, and are successful at it at the same time.

Keeping in mind that you are going to need the public’s attention, on this media release it is important to remember the fact that the news sells. What you need is very persuasive communication to get your point across. If an editor finds material that makes false promise of nonsense claims that are just not reasonably accepted, they will trash the media release. Some of the most common are one of a kind, changing the face of the planet, or everyone wins. The entire premise is to act and think like a reporter to get the word out in that media format. If the release is not in a journalistic format, it will not be taken seriously.

A good measure would be to make the title around ten words, keep it short to grab attention. Brief summary or the information should be in the headline, and should be dynamic and bold. You are trying to reach mass public; it should be as broad as a roadside sign or billboard. The best way to get a good review is to have the editor notice your release above all others, this can be done in just a few words. Just like all good journalists know the most potent and important part of the release is always the opening paragraph. This can be referred to as the summary lead. It is always the most important facet of any release that you incorporate the common 5 w’s of journalism, not excluding the single and ever important h. who, what, when, where, and the single how are the mainstay in quality information that everyone truly looks for when reading a release. It is imperative on this note to include them.

This is the beef of the information with the introduction and the closing statements surrounding this bulk. It is the introduction that leads the readers down the path of craving more on the subject it must be powerful. This opening paragraph is what is known as the hook. This hook not only has to grab the audience’s attention but the press and the editor as well. Not always an easy task. The hook in every sense of the word is strictly fact and not a method of persuasion to the masses.

*** About The Author ***

Hannes Johnson is author of the book "Residual Website Traffic - Get Quality, Targeted Visitors To Your Website Again And Again Without Your Constant Effort!". You can find more about it here: http://www.residual-traffic.com/

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Writing profitable e-books

Writing profitable e-books
Copyright © Hannes Johnson
http://www.WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net

Have you ever wondered what it takes to write an e-book? Or how you can use one to promote your new business? Well the truth is many people have no idea what an e-book even is, let alone know how to use one to advertise the better of their business. The object of this so-called e-book, is to somehow attract a good portion of the over one billion global Internet users. Having yourself noticed is what is going to give you the business you strive for.

There are countless things on the Internet that people are looking for on a daily basis, from medical advice to education to financial services. With all these alone there is reason for an information package to be put in place, to sell what you know they want. Any way you slice it, the hottest product on the Internet is information. After the initial cost is over with when setting up an e-book, you will have no further cost to get the word out as sending e-books is free. All income brought in will then is profit gained. E-books are not like a traditional textbook par say, as the primary core of the book being words and if you are lucky a few simple charts and graphs. An e-book can indeed be much more productive in it’s presentations, allowing for streaming video and audio codes to be installed. This will heighten the overall effect of the book.

It would be a very good idea for you to use this sort of streaming video in an e-book, this will allow for the best pitch on the sale of the product to reach a much broader demographic in a whole. Knowing about a product before you buy it seems to be a way of life these days. This would be a great way to demonstrate just how the product works and what the perks are. Buy chaining this video on an e-book to a contact email list, you then can go back later and do follow-ups on the people that have viewed the book and its video. One the strongest assets of an e-book is the easy to use chapter previews, this is an extremely powerful tool in the marketing strategy. It will allow for the simple needs to be addressed or the full-fledged read for the newbie. This will allow people to view small segments of the book, and then if need be or they desire they can download the rest at a cost. This is known as unlock able content.

If people can be convinced that the service is valuable by reading some of the e-book, you can be sure that you have gained their attention.

*** About The Author ***

Hannes Johnson is currently using the Plug-In Profit Site (PIPS) system to build his online home business. Hannes highly recommends the PIPS system to anyone interested in starting a successful home business - click for more information: http://www.workathomemadeeasy.net/pips.html

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My first webpage to get a PageRank 5

Google recently updated their "PageRank database" - so the Google Toolbar displayed some new stats when I was visiting my websites.

The home page of one of the first websites I set up, WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net is now PR5! Which makes it the first webpage that I own to get a PageRank 5. This site was created for me when I joined the Plug-In Profit Site system over 3 years ago.

So it has taken me some time to reach that level. But I haven't been working that hard on increasing my PageRank. I've just gradually been doing some article marketing (submitting my articles to directories, etc.), exchanging links and providing good content.

Having a PageRank 5 webpage has its benefits. All the other pages on the domain that I'm linking to will increase a little bit in the PageRank scale - as well as my other websites and other link partners that I'm linking to. It should also be easier for me to exchange links with high-quality pages now because many look at the PageRank of a webpage when considering swapping links (although PageRank isn't the be all and end all when evaluating the quality of a website). I should also be able to charge more if I decided to sell links on my site (although I probably won't because Google frowns upon that).

Increasing your PageRank is actually exponentially harder the higher your PageRank is - it's much harder to go from PR3 to PR4 than it is to go from PR2 to PR3.

• Getting a PageRank 1 is easy - you only need a few links from sites that are already indexed by Google


• Getting a PR2 is pretty easy - a few more links and/or 1 or 2 links from quality pages (PR4+).


• PR3 shouldn't be that hard - a few dozen links from good webpages.


• To get PR4 you need at least 100+ links (preferably from PR2+ pages) or a few links from high-quality pages (PR5+).

So, my next goal is to get a PageRank 6 webpage ;) But I'll need some serious amount of links (or a few high-quality links) to reach that level.

By the way, I just set up a new reciprocal links directory that people are welcome to add their link to if they want to increase their PageRank.

Related tools:
Article Showroom - submit your articles and get links to your websites.
Article submission service - easily submit your articles to hundreds of directories, websites, etc.
Reciprocal Manager - they just released version 3.31 - great tool to manage your links.
SEO Tool - great software to help you find high-quality link partners.

Google might buy YouTube for $2.1 Billion

I just read on the ShoeMoney blog that Google has made an offer of $2.1 Billion to aquire the popular video website YouTube.

Very interesting... They apparently think that YouTube is nice virtual real estate - Google recently made a $900 million deal to display AdSense ads on YouTube. So they'll be saving some money if the deal goes through.

If Google aquires YouTube they'll definitely replace the video player with the player from Google Video.

But is YouTube really that good for AdSense ads? Since the majority of the content is video (and a short description + some comments from users) it's hard to get related ads - usually when I'm on YouTube I don't see any highly targeted ads. It's often just some general entertainment ads or "AdSense arbitrage / click flipping" ads. But I don't doubt that Google knows what they're doing - they have all the stats...

I'm just wondering if the people that visit YouTube will just click any link that looks slightly interesting - and then just back out if the landing page doesn't grab them? Is that good for AdWords advertisers? Does YouTube bring you good prospects or do AdWords advertisers just have to create better targeted ad campaigns and better landing pages?

Update: It's official - Google To Acquire YouTube for $1.65 Billion in Stock

Tags: Google, YouTube, AdWords, AdSense, advertising

E-commerce for Small Businesses

E-commerce for Small Businesses
Copyright © Hannes Johnson
http://www.WorkAtHomeMadeEasy.net

Several small businesses are looking at starting up through selling online merchandise. E-commerce has proven to be relatively inexpensive to set up and many businesses have found that an online store is quite effective. If this is something that you are considering, take a look at some of the following e-commerce businesses and see if you are ready to venture into the new realm of e-commerce.

bCentral is through Microsoft Corporation and they offer several types of hosting packages on a monthly basis at different price ranges for the individual interested in e-commerce. The packages allow you to start with an assortment of templates and tools that give you the ability to add logos and create catalogs for the products you wish to sell. This is a great tool because you can customize your website according to your preferences. This package also provides you with that cute little shopping cart you see on other web pages, which does much more than hold the customers items they are searching for and the ability to track you sales and orders that come in as well as automatic e-mail order confirmations. Other important features you will appreciate are the ability to monitor customer traffic to your site and access to the Pay Pal Merchant Services.

eBay Stores are very popular today and have three different price levels for you business goals. The first level offers basic service and limited directory listings this may be appropriate if you are just starting out and your products are limited. With this service, you will not have access to sales or traffic report. The next level gives you priority placement in relations to the products you are selling and what the consumer wants. You will also have access to a few sales or traffic reports. The final level is where you want to be this will place your store in the “showcase” directory pages and will be in the premium section for those who are searching for your products.

Homestead Storefront offers hosting for your e-commerce store and wizards that will help you set everything in order. This product comes with SiteBuilder software, an assortment of templates, and a store manager. You can organize different products and assign them points according to your preferences.

ISP Web Site in a Box you can find this through many reputable Internet service providers (ISP) at affordable prices. You will find that you will receive more options than other solutions but they are not as easy to establish as the smaller versions are.

Yahoo Stores offer a low-cost e-commerce solution. You receive a domain name registration with your purchase price. Receive daily sales and tracking statistics. You can apply for a merchant account with Yahoo along with accessing their database or product.

*** About The Author ***

Hannes Johnson publishes the Home Business Tips Newsletter which you can join for free by clicking here. You'll even get a free copy of the popular book "30 Days to Success" as well as other bonuses.
( http://www.workathomemadeeasy.net/homebusinesstips.html )

NOTE: You have full permission to reprint this
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