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Archive for the ‘Online Business’ Category

So I started reading this book today called “Blog Schmog” by Robert W. Bly. The book was written in 2006 so I’m sure most of the statistics are already way off knowing how fast the internet changes. Anyways, I’m only about twenty pages in but the book is about what blogs can and can’t do for your online business. I’ll be sure to keep posting things I learn from the book.

The book so far is a pretty good read. I’ve certainly established that he really hates blogging thus far. However, he’s also brought up some interesting points and given me something to ponder about… What is my blog doing for others? Why should anyone read it? Well, I know it’s not much now but hopefully people who visit my blog will learn how to make theirs a little better.

Blogging in the world today is a lot of information copying and redistribution. The most successful bloggers have unique content and bring something new to the already overcrowded table. What is your blog bringing to the table?

Blog Schmog

I’ve found that one of the best ways to get motivated is writing down my goals. When you have something to shoot for, your more apt to do the work to get there. So, without further ado, I give to you, my goals for 2009…

1. Get Car Club Union over 1000 daily unique visitors.

2. Increase my revenue stream to an average of $3000.00 per month.

3. Turn a profit of over $500.00 on an affiliate campaign.

4. Finish and launch my first e-book.

5. Launch three more e-books.

6. Get 100 subscribers to my feed on this website.

As you can see, I’ve set some concrete goals here. There is no grey area…I will either succeed or fail on each of them. Wish me luck! What are your goals for this year?

P.S. I just upgraded to Wordpress 2.7 today. Wow! Talk about improvement!

It’s been quite some time since I opened my design business and I tell you, it has been quite the learning experience. You can read and read about how to do things but there is no better teacher than experience. One of the biggest things I’ve learned to keep customers coming back is getting to know them, what they are doing online, and how they like the work done. That is one of the premier advantages of owning a small business opposed to a larger company. People know small businesses are more about quality than quantity.

Getting personal with your customers doesn’t mean you have to know their life story. You could start by ending your e-mails with “Have a great day!” or “I hope things are going well for you!”. While these seem like simple, everyday phrases, people love to hear them. The thing is, bigger businesses don’t say things like that. That is because the businesses are paying support representatives to be robots. They are told to answer the question and ask for more, that’s it. When you own a small business and are more often than not your own customer support, take the time to write a little more. You may find customers coming back more frequently.

Here are some more business tips: Top 5 Business Tips