How to Earn Money from Your Blog

Blogs have become very popular nowadays. With its more casual and laid back approach, it seems that a lot of people have something to say and start a blog. Even the homeless man who took up residence in a sidewalk near Union Station in Washington DC has a blog!

The next question of course is, how can you make money from your blog?

If you look at some of the top blogs and the advertising rates they charge, you'd drool with envy. Well, they're the top and get lots of media play and significant traffic.

One of my favorites, Duct Tape Marketing, which receives 160,000 pageviews per month, charges $36 per CPM for leaderboards and skyscraper, while medium rectangle costs $40 per CPM. Assuming that the inventory for medium rectangle is sold out at $40 per CPM, then the blog stands to earn $6,400 for one ad format alone (umm ... ok, that's not much, but still, that's only for 1 ad format).

Another favorite, TechCrunch, receives about 5,360,000 pageviews per month. Their medium rectangle is also priced at $40 per CPM, so assuming that this is sold out every month, the blog earns $214,400 for one ad format alone! Add to that the earnings from their full banner ($12 CPM), wide skyscraper ($36) and leaderboard ($36). Now, that's some serious dough!

If you want to earn even a fraction of what TechCrunch and other top blogs are earning, read the article "How to Make Money from Blogs"

Questions to Ask to Understand Customers of a Business

Whether you are thinking of starting a new business, buying an existing business or a franchise, it is important to understand the customer base of the business. The most successful businesses are those who know and deeply understand their customers; afterall, the goal of every business is to get and keep customers.

Here are some questions to ask to help you understand the customers of the business:

• Does the business cater to individual customers or businesses? Or is it the government?
• If individuals, do you know the demographics of the target market?
• If businesses, how big are these companies? Are they micro, small, medium or Fortune 500 type of businesses?
• How do the customers decide to buy this type of product/service?
• If the customers are the government or businesses, what is the purchasing process in the organization?
• Is the business heavily dependent on one or few customers?
• Are the customers in a growing market, or is the market shrinking?
• Are there possible changes or shift in the industry that could affect their purchase from the business?

Hiring Family and Friends in Your Small Business

When you have a small business, should you hire your family or friends? Here are some pros and cons to consider:

Pros:

• You know them; and they know you so the getting-to-know learning curve is non existent
• You trust them
• You know what they can do and their area of expertise
• They know how important this business is to you
• They know how you work (whether you are intense, easy going or high strung)
• They know how to deal with you and they can offer you the work complement you need (e.g. your father may be a great accountant and you need the expertise while you are great with marketing)
• You may be able to get the labor and expertise at a lower rate

Cons:

• They know you and may not take you seriously when you ask them to do the work
• Relationships can be affected if you are not satisfied with their performance or they are not happy with how you are treating them
• It's harder to ask them to do something because you might be shy to ask them to do an errand and you will do the work instead
• They might not be prepared to deal with a different you -- not as the friend or family member they know but as the boss
• Difficulty in adjusting to this new relationship and dynamics

It really depends on the extent of work and your relationship with them. In my opinion, though, generally, hire your friends and family IF AND ONLY IF the two of you knows when to separate the family/friend relationship from the boss/employee relationship. And that you both understand what you expect from each other, and know that it will not always be easy.

It also helps if you know that the family member or friend you are hiring can be a positive contribution to your business (e.g. if you know your friend is extremely flighty and unreliable, you are better off hiring someone more dependable and knowledgeable).

Newspaper Interview on Business.gov's License Search

My comments on the post I wrote on "Business License Search Engine" was featured in an article today in the Long Island Business News.

The article "SBA site leans on links, search engine" discussed this new search feature at Business.gov where users can find out the business license regulations of counties and states.

More interestingly, I got an email today from the SBA’s Business Gateway Initiative, which developed this new search feature, inviting me to share my insights with them. Of course, I look forward to working with the folks at SBA.

Trait of a Successful Entrepreneur: Knowing When to Listen and Get Help

I just wrote in the Learning from Big Boys blog that one of the characteristics of PepsiCo's CEO Indra Nooyi is that she is not afraid to get help when she needs it. When named as the CEO, she went straight to her competitor for the job and ask him to stay and help her run the company. And this is the CEO of one of the top companies in the world!

So I find it a little disconcerting to see a small business entrepreneurs pretending to be know-it- alls who do not need any kind of help.

Take for example the case of these two brothers -- the older brother owns a successful online publishing business, while the younger brother operates a traditional printing press company. The younger brother always had a persistent cash flow problem, brought in large part by his policy of not requiring upfront fees from his customers (he only collects once the order is completed -- which is an awesomely bad policy).

To ease the cashflow problems of his printing press, the younger brother asked his older brother for a line of credit. For several years now, the older brother has loaned the younger brother with cash for operating expenses in the printing press, and the younger brother repays the loan in a year's time (with interest, of course), only to request for a new loan immediately after.

In one of their recent get-togethers, the older brother advised his younger brother that he needs to change his policy of not requiring a deposit when accepting printing press orders. Not only is this policy causing cashflow problems, but creates tremendous drain on company resources when the customer backs out and won't even pay -- after the order has been completed.

The reaction of the younger brother? "Don't lecture me about what I need to do. I have operated this printing press for the last 20 years and I know what to do." Quip the older brother sarcastically: "That's why you always ask me for money -- because you know what to do and you've been doing it so well to the point that you always have no money." The younger brother left.

I'm sure the younger brother in this story is not the only stubborn, hard-headed and incredibly myopic business owner out there. There are many who have the mentality of "it's my way or the highway" whether they are right or wrong. And it's unfortunate that they are unwilling to listen, as listening to the advice, wisdom and experiences of others can help provide them with better perspective and suggestions on how to improve their business

Business License Search Engine

The government website Business.gov http://www.business.gov/ has created a new search capability that will allow you to search for the business license needed to start a business at the state and county/city level.

This new search feature is very much needed. A lot of small and home-based entrepreneurs know that they have to fulfill some regulatory requirements, but they simply do not know where to begin, what do they need and who to contact. Having this type of information can ease the new entrepreneur's confusion of what to do, and avoid costly mistakes for failure to get the necessary licenses and permits. The granularity of the data at Business.gov -- from the state level to the city/county level -- is what I find the most helpful as it can allow a person to know the legal and regulatory requirements from the state level as well as the county level.

At PowerHomeBiz.com, we get a lot of questions on what are the requirements of the state if they want to start a business -- e.g. What do I need to starting a catering business in Los Angeles, California; or Do I need a license to operate an online store in New Mexico? -- questions that can be answered with this new search capability. As a response to these types of questions, we created our State by State Guide to Starting a Business .

Now, if only they promote this search capability more intensively and let people know that it exists, then this new search capability of Business.gov would be a tremendous source of valuable information to new entrepreneurs.

Resources to Help Sell Your Business

If you are planning to sell your business, one of the key questions you'll ask is: "How do I find buyers?"

One way is to use the Internet and list your business in sites that brings business buyers and sellers together. Watch out, though, as many sites are sketchy at best. The most effective and reputable sites are:

• BizBuySell.com http://www.bizbuysell.com/ = This site has the biggest traffic in this area, and cost of listing your business for sale ranges from $59.95 per month to $99.95 per month. Businesses for sale also appear in Wall Street Journal's online edition, ensuring more targeted buyers for businesses.
• BizQuest.com http://www.bizquest.com/ = Listings per month costs slightly lower at $54.95 - $74.95 per month. This site has partnered with Entrepreneur.com so listings are generate more visibility.

However, if doing it yourself is not something you'd want to do, you can enlist the help of business brokers and other intermediaries. You can find brokers at:

• Business Brokers Association http://www.ibba.org/ = This is a non profit organization of business brokers. Their site allows you to search for business brokers by state
• Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors http://www.amaaonline.org = represents buyers and sellers of businesses from "$5 to $150 million in transaction value." Their services include due diligence, buyer/seller representation, business valuation, tax planning, legal, and financial advisory.
• You can also opt to enlist the help of business broker franchises such as VR Business Brokers http://www.vrbusinessbrokers.com

Business Idea: Website Analysis and Reviews

Website owners are always faced with challenges, such as:

• Why can't I get traffic to my site?
• Why are my sales so poor?
• Why are my sales poor when I have lots of traffic coming to my site?
• Why are my advertising revenue so low?

If you have extensive knowledge about how the Web works, savvy about online marketing, and loves to analyze web metrics, you can earn money by reviewing other web sites. Think of yourself more as a consultant who is willing to look at the website as a whole and analyze why it is working or why it is not. This type of service goes beyond SEO or internet marketing, but offers a comprehensive view of the website performance and troubleshoot problems

One example of such service is SambayReviews.com, where for $95, they will review your site design, usability and marketing effectiveness. Their review outline can give you an idea of how a site review can be done.

You can also choose to simply include website review as one of the services offered by your existing business. Ediwriter.com, for example, is a professional copywriting firm with site review as one of their services.

However, it is important to note that there are forums, Q&A sites or blogs that offer website reviews for FREE. In Yahoo Answers, for example, one of the common questions in the search engine optimization section is to review the asker's website. Hence, for your paid service to succeed, you need to provide an in-depth analysis, not just cosmetic reviews that they can get from YA or other forums.

To make your PAID website review successful, here are my suggestions:

• Focus on usability analysis.from navigation architecture to credibility and flow of the site
• Analysis of web metrics such as funnel analysis to show how a person goes from one page to the goal of the site (e.g. purchase page or advertising order)
• Search engine optimization analysis focusing on on-page factors and link analysis
• Conversion analysis to help the site owner finetune elements of the site to improve sales and turn visitors to buyersIf you will give any of the above, then you can definitely charge for your review.

How Great is Your Product?

Ryan Allis, CEO of the marketing and online communications firm iContact Corp., in his book "Zero to One Million: How I Built a Company to 1 Million in Sales ... And How You Can Do" has a great section on what makes a product great.

According to Allis, the perfect product has the following attributes:

• It fulfills a need or want
• It has either niche market appeal or mass market appeal
• It has at least a 2:1 markup ratio; 5:1 or higher is optimal
• It has a high perceived value
• It must be replenished or repurchased by the consumer often
• It is easily up sold and cross-sold
• It has a related backend product

So how do you know if your product is great? To find out, you need to assess your product against two factors: inherent qualities of the product and the state of the marketplace.

Inherent Qualities of a Product

• Is the product of high quality?
• Is the product effective?
• How valuable are the benefits the product gives to the consumer?
• Does the product increase pleasure, increase utility, or reduce pain?
• Must the product be reordered?
• Can the product be developed easily?

The State of the Marketplace

• Can it be obtained or produced for a low cost so as to support a high margin?
• What is the current demand for the product?
• How many other competitors are selling the same or a similar product?
• How many serious competitors are there?
• What are the sales figures of these competitors?
• What are the product's substitutes?
• Are there any factors that might increase or decrease sales of substitutes?
• How hard will it be to differentiate the product from competing products?

The Best and Inexpensive Way to Get Top Search Engine Rankings

One question frequently asked by many small and home-based online entrepreneurs is: how will I get my website to rank well in the search engines -- without spending a fortune?

Many make the mistake of thinking that there's a magic software to get to the top of the search engine rankings. Or that there's an easy trick that can be used. Well, many resort to trickeries but search engines have become so smart and savvy that they catch up to these tricks -- and banish the offending websites from their databases.

The best and most inexpensive way is to have the BEST and MOST RELEVANT content for the search term you want.

It's all about content. With good content:

• Users will visit your site more; even spread the word about your awesome site
• Other sites will link to you without you asking them to link to you, and having more links will boost your search engine ranking
• Users clicking on your page in the search results will stay longer in your site because they find your content relevant to the keywords you searched, and that tells the search engines that your site is indeed relevant to the keyword and will rank you higher

Look at those sites currently ranking for the search terms you want. Analyze the following:

• Look at how they wrote the title of their site (metatag title)
• Look at their other metatags particularly description metatags
• Determine what content they have on their site and how they present their content
• Go to Yahoo Siteexplorer and do a search to determine how many sites are linking to top ranking sites, and what these sites are

Now ask yourself: how can I do better than these sites currently ranking for the terms I want? What type of content will set me apart from the other top sites? What metatags should I use for my site? How can I get the sites linking to them to notice my site?

Getting top rankings in the search engine is a continuous work. You continue to work on your content; continue to build links; continue to get the word out there about your site. Your competitors are not resting, so should you.

Questions to Ask When Selling a Business

Nothing is forever; even your business. There may come a time when you want out, and one way is to sell the business.

Selling a business is not easy, and you need a lot of preparation and even assistance. When thinking of selling a business, here are some questions to ask yourself:

• Why are you selling your business? Is selling the best option for you?
• Is it the right time to sell, considering the state of the economy and the industry?
• What type of business are you selling? What are the unique characteristics of this business that may come into play when selling?
• Who can help you with the process of selling your business? Do you have a lawyer, financial advisor, etc?
• Should you use a business broker?
• What type of advice do you need to establish your selling strategy?
• Where and how can you find the best qualified buyers?
• How do you put a value on your business?
• Can your financial statements withstand the scrutiny of buyers?
• What will the terms of sale specify?
• Are you willing to finance any part of the deal?
• How are you going to handle the sales proceeds?
• Do you want to be involved with the business after the sale, perhaps in a consultant or full-time manager capacity?

Young Entrepreneurs: Promoting Entrepreneurship in Universities

I envy the young would-be entrepreneurs in the universities today. A growing number of schools and universities are offering classes, mentorships and valuable support to students with entrepreneurial dreams.

First there's the business plan competition, where students' business plans are critiqued and judged and the best ones receive valuable startup capital ranging from $10,000 to $25,000. There are even stories of situations where students presenting in the business plan competition got funding for their fledging business ideas because some venture capitalists or investors heard about the business plan and want in on the action (case in point: how Jenny Lefcourt started WeddingChannel.com ).

Some schools with business plan competitions include:

• UC Berkeley http://bplan.berkeley.edu/
• Rice University http://alliance.rice.edu/alliance/RBPC.asp
• Pepperdine University http://bschool.pepperdine.edu/students/bplan/
• Johns Hopkins University http://www.jhu.edu/bpc/
• University of Texas at Austin http://www.mootcorp.org/
• University of Washington http://bschool.washington.edu/cie/bpc/
• University of San Francisco http://www.usfca.edu/sobam/nvc/bpc/index.html

Aside from business plan competitions, there's incubation assistance that some universities provide.

Belmont University , for example, runs a business hatchery program for students called Practicing Student Entrepreneur Program. Under this program, students can get access to an office space complete with desks, phones, fax machines, copier, etc. Students also get the chance to interact and get advice for seasoned entrepreneurs in the university.

The University of Central Florida offers a technology incubation program which offers mentorship and advice-giving in all aspects of business development, access to office space and office equipment, networking opportunities, marketing and PR support, among others.

The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New Year offers one of the oldest incubation programs wholly owned by a learning institution.

5 Steps to Optimizing Your Website

One asker at Yahoo Answers raised the question of why her website was not getting any traffic. The site has been live for several months, but it is nowhere to be found in the search engines. Being a newbie who knows nothing about designing and creating a web site, she spent her meager resources to hire a web designer to create her website.

And of course, she expected orders to start coming in once the site became live. Alas, that was not the case. Worse, the site was not even getting any traffic.

I looked at her site, which focuses on her consultancy business, and it was very pretty. Problem was, everything was in graphics and no text. The whole site was in .jpg -- both the text and the graphics! The only text of the site can be found in her navigation bar. No wonder she's not getting any traffic -- there's nothing for search engines to chew on.

The sad part is that she's not the only one. I've seen several websites of small business owners done by web designers that simply focused on looks, and did not consider how search engines will see the site. As a result, they wasted precious resources as their websites cannot get top rankings for their keywords.

Aside from firing those web designers, here are some basic tips to optimize your website:

• Select the keywords or key phrases yout think would best to optimize your site for, and then analyze your competition.
• Make sure that those keywords are present on the pages you want to rank for those keywords
• Create good quality content -- ranking in the search engines is all about content
• Start finding quality links to your site
• Continue building your site's reputation through quality content and links

Read full article "5 Tips to Optimizing Your Website"