Someone at Yahoo Answers posted the question if the user generated content will end traditional media. The Web was said to end print publication when it started. That did not happen. In the same way that I don’t think user-generated content will end traditional media/publishers. User generated content has a different purpose from traditional media and publishers. It is to harness the community. It is using the web as a social gathering. As Newsweek said in a frontpage article in April, user generated content is putting the “WE” in the word “web”. Sure, it is the hottest business model on

The project I was working with another organization was finally completed, and the final product was launched on the Web. I asked their PR Department to issue a press release announcing the availability of this new product. This organization has extensive media contacts and is extremely good in tapping the print, TV and radio media. Unfortunately, they’re not savvy with the workings of the Web. I waited for the press release to appear both in Google News and Yahoo News – to no avail. Finally I checked how they sent out the release, only to find that they sent it

Should you quit your job to start a business? This is one of the most common dilemma faced by those who want to start a business. Once they’ve decided they want to be an entrepreneur, they don’t know whether they should just quit their jobs or hang on until the business is on a more solid footing. In my opinion, it depends on several factors: 1. How is your tolerance for risk? Some people love to take risks and live on the edge, while others are very risk averse. If taking risk is in your nature, you would love the

A reader sent in a question through our Consult Your Guides service asking us for advice on the best approach for starting an online store. Should he create his own website, or go open a store at eBay? With eBay’s popularity on the Web, many small and home business owners face the question: why should they open a store when they can just go to eBay? In fact, this is one of the most common questions I see over at Yahoo Answers. My stand is that this is a neither-nor situation: in fact you can do both. It will depend

People sometimes think of crazy things — that’s a given. I’m sure you know someone who constantly cooks up loony ideas. The show “American Inventor” is full of these “what the heck were you thinking” ideas. But do you know that you can apply for a patent even for the craziest ideas? Just look at the following patents granted by the US government; you’d think that someone at the US Patents and Trademark Office would use some common sense. But they didn’t, and these “inventors” were awarded patents: System and method for providing reservations for airline restroom use (Patent #

You wake up one day and decide you want to become a business owner. Great! Welcome to the American dream of entrepreneurship. A growing number of people want to eschew the corporate life and become their own boss. But the question is – how do you become an entrepreneur? What exactly do you need to start your own business? And succeed. Deciding on becoming an entrepreneur is only the first step of a long journey. There are lots of planning involved, preparations, and in some cases, even red tape. Here are ten things you need to know when starting your

I just attended the Book Expo America held in Washington DC, and it is definitely one of the biggest and busiest expos ever. Even taxi cabs in DC are wary of going over to the convention center because of the sheer number of attendees and the traffic it brings. But if you are in the book business, or would like to start a bookstore, this is definitely a MUST-ATTEND show. I met with executives of Hatchett Books (formerly Time Warner Books), which has been a very generous partner to PowerHomeBiz.com giving us a steady supply of books to giveaway to

Mention the word “cold calling” and people often get cold feet. Even for me, the prospect of calling up someone and pitching you to them something is too daunting of a task. It typically requires a lot of courage — and a script that I’ve practiced several times. Cold calling goes beyond phone calls; it also includes email or in-person visits. Email I do so much better because I don’t have to talk to the person and find the right words to explain myself. Rejection also seems softer through email; not receiving a response is much better than hearing the

While we haven’t done any radio advertising, I always find myself taking note of some of the things I hear on radio ads. I have attended trade shows because I heard it on the radio, and watched concerts because of the radio ad. So I got curious as to how effective radio ads actually are in the real world. I did some research and found a study on the effectiveness of radio ads. There is an organization called Radio Ad Effectiveness Lab that does an annual study looking at the response rates to radio ads. Their latest study found that