Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Monday, July 7, 2008
Shopping and Advertising Small Businesses on Craigslist
A very smart, very professional, very successful woman I know recently told me that when she went to hire a lawn care service this spring, she went to Craigslist to find one. She contacted several advertisers, spoke with a few, and hired the guy(s) who made her feel most at ease.
Craigslist, as you may or may not know, is *THE* place to find whatever you need—be it a job, a girlfriend, a new house, or a babysitter. It’s also *THE* free place to advertise your services or products or anything else you have that other people might want.
Recent headlines in the newspaper remind us that it’s also *THE* place to find stolen goods being sold for cheap, prostitutes posing as bored co-eds, and a whole assortment of other arrangements that you may not even have known existed.
Some of the advertisements on Craigslist and discussions in the forums are shocking and graphic, so it should come as no surprise that some of the people who regularly use Craigslist to find or advertise services may not be…shall we say, top-tier individuals?
I advertise my copywriting services on Craigslist and it’s a choice I made with the understanding that there would be some risks involved (i.e., spammers, scammers, lower budget clients, portraying my business image as low-cost and therefore less professional).
As a new business, I simply wanted to see what I could get for free. Does it work? Yes.
I have found some fantastic clients through Craigslist and I’m confident that I can control my business image and communicate the quality of my work by the type of ads I write. That said, I’ve also received some unwelcome and/or strange e-mails, and had the occasional not-so-fantastic client—including the one who taught me the lesson that I really need to be paid up front for projects.
If you’re considering advertising on Craigslist, keep in mind the disadvantages and seek to maximize the advantages as fully as you can.
And if you’re a small business owner or entrepreneur looking for services on Craigslist, be smart! Remember that you get what you pay for. Don’t take advertisers’ claims at face value. Ask for references and investigate potential service providers a little more than you might feel is necessary.
Last week, I saw a guy marketing to small businesses on Craigslist who said he had extensive experience in search engine optimization, web development and web design. In his ad, he listed 12 websites as examples of his work. I clicked on them. One of them had expired and wasn’t even active. Another was a local business specializing in custom paint and body work. Since the guy claimed to know SEO, I went to Google and searched for “Portland custom paint body work.” The website didn’t come up anywhere on the top three pages! And when the business’s name and URL includes the word “custom” and the tagline of the business is “custom paint and body work,” there’s no reason that site shouldn’t rank top page from a local search. Is this a guy I’d want to recommend to my clients? No way.
What are your Craigslist business experiences? Met a great designer or hired a fantastic employee from Craigslist? Do you use CL to get new business? Post your CL stories in comments.
Craigslist, as you may or may not know, is *THE* place to find whatever you need—be it a job, a girlfriend, a new house, or a babysitter. It’s also *THE* free place to advertise your services or products or anything else you have that other people might want.
Recent headlines in the newspaper remind us that it’s also *THE* place to find stolen goods being sold for cheap, prostitutes posing as bored co-eds, and a whole assortment of other arrangements that you may not even have known existed.
Some of the advertisements on Craigslist and discussions in the forums are shocking and graphic, so it should come as no surprise that some of the people who regularly use Craigslist to find or advertise services may not be…shall we say, top-tier individuals?
I advertise my copywriting services on Craigslist and it’s a choice I made with the understanding that there would be some risks involved (i.e., spammers, scammers, lower budget clients, portraying my business image as low-cost and therefore less professional).
As a new business, I simply wanted to see what I could get for free. Does it work? Yes.
I have found some fantastic clients through Craigslist and I’m confident that I can control my business image and communicate the quality of my work by the type of ads I write. That said, I’ve also received some unwelcome and/or strange e-mails, and had the occasional not-so-fantastic client—including the one who taught me the lesson that I really need to be paid up front for projects.
If you’re considering advertising on Craigslist, keep in mind the disadvantages and seek to maximize the advantages as fully as you can.
And if you’re a small business owner or entrepreneur looking for services on Craigslist, be smart! Remember that you get what you pay for. Don’t take advertisers’ claims at face value. Ask for references and investigate potential service providers a little more than you might feel is necessary.
Last week, I saw a guy marketing to small businesses on Craigslist who said he had extensive experience in search engine optimization, web development and web design. In his ad, he listed 12 websites as examples of his work. I clicked on them. One of them had expired and wasn’t even active. Another was a local business specializing in custom paint and body work. Since the guy claimed to know SEO, I went to Google and searched for “Portland custom paint body work.” The website didn’t come up anywhere on the top three pages! And when the business’s name and URL includes the word “custom” and the tagline of the business is “custom paint and body work,” there’s no reason that site shouldn’t rank top page from a local search. Is this a guy I’d want to recommend to my clients? No way.
What are your Craigslist business experiences? Met a great designer or hired a fantastic employee from Craigslist? Do you use CL to get new business? Post your CL stories in comments.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Don’t Sneer. Do.
Sneering at something is an admission of failure. You are claiming superior talent or insight…but declining to use it. The best way to sneer at something, if you must, is to improve it or outdo it.
--Spider Robinson, science fiction author
Many would-be entrepreneurs get stuck in our own fears of presumed failure and sneer at the successes of those for whom we work instead of having the courage to see if we really CAN do better.
Friday, July 4, 2008
If They Can Do It, So Can You
I eat flaxseed.
Mixed with plain yogurt, a few shakes of cinnamon and a handful of raw nuts (when I’m feeling particularly indulgent, I add some organic blueberries and a teaspoon of honey), flaxseed meal provides a nutritious, low-carb snack that’s surprisingly yummy.
And that flaxseed meal comes from Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods in Milwaukie, Oregon.
In this month’s issue of Oregon Business magazine, there’s a short profile of Bob Moore, the founder and owner of Bob’s Red Mill.
According to the profile, Moore stumbled upon the milling idea after owning, operating and losing his shirt in the business of service stations. Following his financial ruin, Moore discovered a book that changed his life: John Goffe’s Mill by George Woodbury. The memoir told the story of Woodbury’s successful restoration and operation of the grain mill that had been in his family’s possession since the Revolutionary War. In the article, Moore says of Woodbury's undertaking:
And so he has. After nearly 30 years, his mill has recently doubled its manufacturing capacity to keep up with 25% annual growth.
That one phrase—“If she can do it, I can”—repeated in my head for years while worked for my last employer. As I watched how my boss ran her company, I kept looking for some mysterious characteristic she possessed that was the reason for her success. What was it that she had that I didn’t? After more than four years of searching, I realized there wasn’t anything. The only difference is that she took the risk to begin.
When I asked another entrepreneur I know how she came to start her own day spa, she told a similar story. While she worked for a spa owner, she constantly bumped up against the limitations of being an employee, especially as she peppered her boss with ideas. Tired of hearing the young upstart’s suggestions about how to improve spa services, her employer said, “If you think you can do a better job, go start your own spa.” So she did. This month, she celebrates five years of owning her own successful business.
Have you ever had an idea for a business or product and looked at others who have taken theirs to market and wondered, “How did they do that? How can they do it, and I can’t?”
You can. But you have to be willing to take the first step.
For inspiration, go have an amazingly delicous, whole grain breakfast at the Bob's Red Mill Whole Grain Store and Visitors Center at 5000 SE International Way, Portland, OR 97222.
And in the meantime, Happy Independence Day!
Mixed with plain yogurt, a few shakes of cinnamon and a handful of raw nuts (when I’m feeling particularly indulgent, I add some organic blueberries and a teaspoon of honey), flaxseed meal provides a nutritious, low-carb snack that’s surprisingly yummy.
And that flaxseed meal comes from Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods in Milwaukie, Oregon.
In this month’s issue of Oregon Business magazine, there’s a short profile of Bob Moore, the founder and owner of Bob’s Red Mill.
According to the profile, Moore stumbled upon the milling idea after owning, operating and losing his shirt in the business of service stations. Following his financial ruin, Moore discovered a book that changed his life: John Goffe’s Mill by George Woodbury. The memoir told the story of Woodbury’s successful restoration and operation of the grain mill that had been in his family’s possession since the Revolutionary War. In the article, Moore says of Woodbury's undertaking:
“I thought this guy didn’t know beans about milling when he started, and if he did it, I can do it.”
And so he has. After nearly 30 years, his mill has recently doubled its manufacturing capacity to keep up with 25% annual growth.
That one phrase—“If she can do it, I can”—repeated in my head for years while worked for my last employer. As I watched how my boss ran her company, I kept looking for some mysterious characteristic she possessed that was the reason for her success. What was it that she had that I didn’t? After more than four years of searching, I realized there wasn’t anything. The only difference is that she took the risk to begin.
When I asked another entrepreneur I know how she came to start her own day spa, she told a similar story. While she worked for a spa owner, she constantly bumped up against the limitations of being an employee, especially as she peppered her boss with ideas. Tired of hearing the young upstart’s suggestions about how to improve spa services, her employer said, “If you think you can do a better job, go start your own spa.” So she did. This month, she celebrates five years of owning her own successful business.
Have you ever had an idea for a business or product and looked at others who have taken theirs to market and wondered, “How did they do that? How can they do it, and I can’t?”
You can. But you have to be willing to take the first step.
For inspiration, go have an amazingly delicous, whole grain breakfast at the Bob's Red Mill Whole Grain Store and Visitors Center at 5000 SE International Way, Portland, OR 97222.
And in the meantime, Happy Independence Day!
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Learn Everyday: Buy More Books
As I mentioned in "How Do You Define Success?", I learn everyday.
Building two companies requires me to improve my skills, challenge my assumptions and keep abreast of new developments in the worlds of technology, business and marketing. In personal development terms, I'm learning how to negotiate better, manage money better, compensate for my weaknesses, achieve work-life balance as an entrepreneur and mother, capitalize on my strengths, and ask for help.
In practical terms, I'm learning systems, software, invoicing, setting rates, managing cash flow, trademark registration requirements and processes, tax laws, the legal duties of an S-corp, and more.
While I read LOTS of articles online, subscribe to Entrepreneur, read The Portland Business Journal and Oregon Business, pick up the occasional issue of Fast Company, receive e-mail newsletters from The New York Times and The Financial Post (Canadian) as well as others, I also find books—and increasingly, ebooks—to be an invaluable source for the information I need.
If an entrepreneur I admire recommends a book to me, I go get it. No questions asked.
Because if there's anything I've learned so far, it's that other entrepreneurs and business owners have all encountered the same questions, problems and anxieties that I have. If they tell me of a resource that can make my life better, easier or help me solve an issue that they struggled with, too, then I get it.
So far, they've always been right.
And that, my friends, is why I started my own online Dusty Widget Bookshelf at Powell's Bookstore.
The books that have helped me can help you, too.
And, the books that help me to help you help me even more when you buy them from here. Yes, I do make a generous commission on the sale of each and every book (even the latest by Stephenie Meyer), CD, DVD, ebook, magazine and journal that you buy from Powell's when you link to the online store from "Ditch the Dusty Widget."
It's my favorite kind of relationship: a win-win-win. You benefit with knowledge, the best bookstore on Earth gets a sale, and I get a commission.
So, please do us all a favor and grab yourself some summer reading material here.
Building two companies requires me to improve my skills, challenge my assumptions and keep abreast of new developments in the worlds of technology, business and marketing. In personal development terms, I'm learning how to negotiate better, manage money better, compensate for my weaknesses, achieve work-life balance as an entrepreneur and mother, capitalize on my strengths, and ask for help.
In practical terms, I'm learning systems, software, invoicing, setting rates, managing cash flow, trademark registration requirements and processes, tax laws, the legal duties of an S-corp, and more.
While I read LOTS of articles online, subscribe to Entrepreneur, read The Portland Business Journal and Oregon Business, pick up the occasional issue of Fast Company, receive e-mail newsletters from The New York Times and The Financial Post (Canadian) as well as others, I also find books—and increasingly, ebooks—to be an invaluable source for the information I need.
If an entrepreneur I admire recommends a book to me, I go get it. No questions asked.
Because if there's anything I've learned so far, it's that other entrepreneurs and business owners have all encountered the same questions, problems and anxieties that I have. If they tell me of a resource that can make my life better, easier or help me solve an issue that they struggled with, too, then I get it.
So far, they've always been right.
And that, my friends, is why I started my own online Dusty Widget Bookshelf at Powell's Bookstore.
The books that have helped me can help you, too.
And, the books that help me to help you help me even more when you buy them from here. Yes, I do make a generous commission on the sale of each and every book (even the latest by Stephenie Meyer), CD, DVD, ebook, magazine and journal that you buy from Powell's when you link to the online store from "Ditch the Dusty Widget."
It's my favorite kind of relationship: a win-win-win. You benefit with knowledge, the best bookstore on Earth gets a sale, and I get a commission.
So, please do us all a favor and grab yourself some summer reading material here.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
Do-It-Yourself PR: The All-Important Press Release
I *was* going to go through the trouble of breaking down for you how to write your own press releases. In fact "Anatomy of the Press Release" as a post title has been on my editorial calendar for several months now.
BUT...in following up on a NYT story this morning—"Need Press? Repeat: 'Green,' 'Sex,' 'Cancer,' 'Secret,' 'Fat'"—I ended up at the website for PR Newswire and discovered that my brilliant idea has not only already been done, albeit named as "Anatomy of a News Release," but also done in a full-color PDF with actual diagramming, no less.
I'm sure I can still add more value to this topic, especially in how to how to use keywords in the body of your release and why to keep your quotes short and to-the-point, but I'll attempt it at a future date when I'm done licking the wounds of my bruised ego.
In the meantime, get started generating ideas for your business's press releases on your own. Each of the words on this list was cited in the NYT article as useful in getting editors' attention, so brainstorm headlines and subheads with the following:
toxic
long-term health risks
safe
easy
trick
breaking
green
environment
foreclosure
breakthrough
And, in addition to subscribing to "Ditch the Dusty Widget" and getting small business advice, stories, resources and inspiration via email, you can also sign up for PR Newswire's "Small Biz PR 101" newsletter.
BUT...in following up on a NYT story this morning—"Need Press? Repeat: 'Green,' 'Sex,' 'Cancer,' 'Secret,' 'Fat'"—I ended up at the website for PR Newswire and discovered that my brilliant idea has not only already been done, albeit named as "Anatomy of a News Release," but also done in a full-color PDF with actual diagramming, no less.
I'm sure I can still add more value to this topic, especially in how to how to use keywords in the body of your release and why to keep your quotes short and to-the-point, but I'll attempt it at a future date when I'm done licking the wounds of my bruised ego.
In the meantime, get started generating ideas for your business's press releases on your own. Each of the words on this list was cited in the NYT article as useful in getting editors' attention, so brainstorm headlines and subheads with the following:
toxic
long-term health risks
safe
easy
trick
breaking
green
environment
foreclosure
breakthrough
And, in addition to subscribing to "Ditch the Dusty Widget" and getting small business advice, stories, resources and inspiration via email, you can also sign up for PR Newswire's "Small Biz PR 101" newsletter.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
How Do You Define Success?
A headline in this morning’s NY Times caught my eye: “Why Some Succeed Wildly.”
The article is about the book Outliers: Why Some People Succeed and Some Don’t by Malcom Gladwell, author of The Tipping Point and Blink. In an excerpted paragraph quoted in 800ceoread.com, he says, “I want to convince you that the way we think about success is all wrong.”
Instead of looking at only the people themselves, he suggests, we need to consider their backgrounds and circumstances, as well as the contexts from which they emerged. As suggested the by NYT article’s author, Gladwell hints that it’s not so much the people who create success, as it is the necessity of the idea itself. If the timing is right, the wildly successful maverick is merely the most adept opportunist, able to take the ripe idea to its fullest potential.
As the book isn’t due out until November, the details of what Mr. Gladwell suggests will have to wait until later. But for now, the premise of the book and its title alone are enough to generate questions and thoughts from me about success.
Why do some of us reach for success and others find contentment where they are? What is it that makes some of us so damned dissatisfied with what we have and what we’re doing? Why is it that some of us always want more?
How do we know when we get THERE? Where exactly is success located? How is it that no matter where you set the bar for your own success—when you get there, or even come close to getting there, it always seems to move?
What exactly is success? How do I define my own success? What do I need to say I’m successful?
With just more than one year of self-employment to my credit, I still own my home. With no second income, no partner or husband or pick up the slack from my lost salary and no public assistance, I’m still afloat. I pay my bills on-time (at least as on-time as I ever did) and put healthy food on the table for me and my daughter.
I help small business owners reach more customers, convert more sales and lay the foundation on which they’ll grow and build their businesses. I earn money for my talents, skills and experience—and my ability to connect those with people who need them. My own belief in my value enables me to create mutually rewarding relationships and transactions.
I have friends who love me and help me. When I need a shoulder to cry on, when I’m scared, confused or not sure what to do next, I have a number of amazing women and men who are there to lift me and bolster me with their care and support. Whether they take me to lunch and listen to me vent, come help me work, or show up with wine and chocolates to just laugh together, they are the roaring, cheering fans who energize and excite me to push ahead.
I have a life that I share with my child. I am able to be both physically and emotionally present with her, creating and enjoying shared experiences—even the mundane ones such as making dinner together. I am also exposing her to the lessons of incremental success. When I reach my monetary goals and I’m taking her on trips around the world, she will know how it happened.
My daughter is not growing up with a mom who says “I wish I had done…” or "If only..." I’m teaching her that if you want something, you have to work hard and focus to get it. She watched me first try and fail to buy the business I wanted, then hang out my shingle as a copywriter, then work for my first clients, then form an S-corp and open an online store, then figure out how to juggle all of those endeavors. And she saw me do it all while still being there to pick her up at school on time (more or less). She knows that even as important as my own dreams and goals are to me, she is the most important part of my life. While together we may set a course for bigger, better things, the unit of “she & me” is the orbit around which those dreams revolve.
My skills are improving. I learn every day.
I am getting better at trusting myself. I am getting better at trusting other people, and knowing how to protect myself.
I have dreams to which I aspire and in which I believe.
No, I cannot afford a new car; I can barely afford the one I have. No, I cannot afford to landscape my yard or hire a full-time assistant. I cannot afford to begin my travels yet.
But that is not how I define success.
By my definition, I am already wildly successful.
How about you?
The article is about the book Outliers: Why Some People Succeed and Some Don’t by Malcom Gladwell, author of The Tipping Point and Blink. In an excerpted paragraph quoted in 800ceoread.com, he says, “I want to convince you that the way we think about success is all wrong.”
Instead of looking at only the people themselves, he suggests, we need to consider their backgrounds and circumstances, as well as the contexts from which they emerged. As suggested the by NYT article’s author, Gladwell hints that it’s not so much the people who create success, as it is the necessity of the idea itself. If the timing is right, the wildly successful maverick is merely the most adept opportunist, able to take the ripe idea to its fullest potential.
As the book isn’t due out until November, the details of what Mr. Gladwell suggests will have to wait until later. But for now, the premise of the book and its title alone are enough to generate questions and thoughts from me about success.
Why do some of us reach for success and others find contentment where they are? What is it that makes some of us so damned dissatisfied with what we have and what we’re doing? Why is it that some of us always want more?
How do we know when we get THERE? Where exactly is success located? How is it that no matter where you set the bar for your own success—when you get there, or even come close to getting there, it always seems to move?
What exactly is success? How do I define my own success? What do I need to say I’m successful?
With just more than one year of self-employment to my credit, I still own my home. With no second income, no partner or husband or pick up the slack from my lost salary and no public assistance, I’m still afloat. I pay my bills on-time (at least as on-time as I ever did) and put healthy food on the table for me and my daughter.
I help small business owners reach more customers, convert more sales and lay the foundation on which they’ll grow and build their businesses. I earn money for my talents, skills and experience—and my ability to connect those with people who need them. My own belief in my value enables me to create mutually rewarding relationships and transactions.
I have friends who love me and help me. When I need a shoulder to cry on, when I’m scared, confused or not sure what to do next, I have a number of amazing women and men who are there to lift me and bolster me with their care and support. Whether they take me to lunch and listen to me vent, come help me work, or show up with wine and chocolates to just laugh together, they are the roaring, cheering fans who energize and excite me to push ahead.
I have a life that I share with my child. I am able to be both physically and emotionally present with her, creating and enjoying shared experiences—even the mundane ones such as making dinner together. I am also exposing her to the lessons of incremental success. When I reach my monetary goals and I’m taking her on trips around the world, she will know how it happened.
My daughter is not growing up with a mom who says “I wish I had done…” or "If only..." I’m teaching her that if you want something, you have to work hard and focus to get it. She watched me first try and fail to buy the business I wanted, then hang out my shingle as a copywriter, then work for my first clients, then form an S-corp and open an online store, then figure out how to juggle all of those endeavors. And she saw me do it all while still being there to pick her up at school on time (more or less). She knows that even as important as my own dreams and goals are to me, she is the most important part of my life. While together we may set a course for bigger, better things, the unit of “she & me” is the orbit around which those dreams revolve.
My skills are improving. I learn every day.
I am getting better at trusting myself. I am getting better at trusting other people, and knowing how to protect myself.
I have dreams to which I aspire and in which I believe.
No, I cannot afford a new car; I can barely afford the one I have. No, I cannot afford to landscape my yard or hire a full-time assistant. I cannot afford to begin my travels yet.
But that is not how I define success.
By my definition, I am already wildly successful.
How about you?
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
The Power of Humor, or, Goodbye Mr. Carlin
I laugh at myself every day. I usually try to laugh at other people just as often.
And as I've ventured into so much unfamiliar territory over the last year—new business relationships, new responsibilities, new mistakes, new opportunities, new situations—humor has been essential to keeping me sane through it all.
Some situations, like the time I spent almost $6,000 on a customer acquisition campaign that was poorly conceived and yielded nothing, have been so painful and tough to swallow that it was hard to know whether I should laugh or cry. But given the choice, I almost always prefer laughing.
And when it comes to healing my self-doubt and rebuilding trust in my own decision-making, humor is a magical balm. Taking myself less seriously is a necessary step to forgiving myself when I screw up.
Humor is also a fantastic antidote to fear. Consider the moment in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban when Professor Lupin shows the students how to disable the Boggart, a dark creature that appears to each victim as her greatest fear. The spell that defeats the Boggart turns it into something comical. By putting roller skates on a giant, blood-thirsty spider, you can laugh at it. The thing of which you were most afraid loses its power; you regain control.
Starting up a business is a journey rife with moments of stark terror. I use humor often to shore up my courage so I may conquer my fear.
The news yesterday of George Carlin's death made me pause to consider how much I value humor in my life. Knowing he isn't here anymore to skewer hypocrisy, play with language, mock our sacred cows and dismantle the power of obscenity makes me sad. But that he left us to much to laugh about is a rich legacy indeed.
Mr. Carlin, you will be missed.
Following are some of George Carlin's jokes to help you keep laughing along your entrepreneurial journey:
If you try to fail, and succeed, which have you done?
Some people see things that are and ask, Why?
Some people dream of things that never were and ask, Why not?
Some people have to go to work and don't have time for all that shit.
Most people work just hard enough not to get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit.
Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.
The very existence of flame-throwers proves that some time, somewhere, someone said to themselves, You know, I want to set those people over there on fire, but I'm just not close enough to get the job done.
And as I've ventured into so much unfamiliar territory over the last year—new business relationships, new responsibilities, new mistakes, new opportunities, new situations—humor has been essential to keeping me sane through it all.
Some situations, like the time I spent almost $6,000 on a customer acquisition campaign that was poorly conceived and yielded nothing, have been so painful and tough to swallow that it was hard to know whether I should laugh or cry. But given the choice, I almost always prefer laughing.
And when it comes to healing my self-doubt and rebuilding trust in my own decision-making, humor is a magical balm. Taking myself less seriously is a necessary step to forgiving myself when I screw up.
Humor is also a fantastic antidote to fear. Consider the moment in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban when Professor Lupin shows the students how to disable the Boggart, a dark creature that appears to each victim as her greatest fear. The spell that defeats the Boggart turns it into something comical. By putting roller skates on a giant, blood-thirsty spider, you can laugh at it. The thing of which you were most afraid loses its power; you regain control.
Starting up a business is a journey rife with moments of stark terror. I use humor often to shore up my courage so I may conquer my fear.
The news yesterday of George Carlin's death made me pause to consider how much I value humor in my life. Knowing he isn't here anymore to skewer hypocrisy, play with language, mock our sacred cows and dismantle the power of obscenity makes me sad. But that he left us to much to laugh about is a rich legacy indeed.
Mr. Carlin, you will be missed.
Following are some of George Carlin's jokes to help you keep laughing along your entrepreneurial journey:
If you try to fail, and succeed, which have you done?
Some people see things that are and ask, Why?
Some people dream of things that never were and ask, Why not?
Some people have to go to work and don't have time for all that shit.
Most people work just hard enough not to get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit.
Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.
The very existence of flame-throwers proves that some time, somewhere, someone said to themselves, You know, I want to set those people over there on fire, but I'm just not close enough to get the job done.
Weekly Affirmations for the Self-Employed
I am at the helm of my business. I am captain of this ship.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Google AdWords Instruction: Coming Soon to a City Near You
If you've thought about advertising your company, services or products in the sponsored search results of Google (the largest search engine in the world and source of the majority of Internet traffic), but weren't sure how to get started, consider attending an upcoming Beginner course in AdWords, presented by Google.
The Beginner & Intermediate course includes all the basics in the morning—opening an account, creating campaigns, selecting keywords, modifying settings—plus a full afternoon of optimization techniques and instruction on how to track ad performance.
If you already know the ropes, the Advanced course might be for you.
The advance seminar explores more complex ways to manage and optimize your sponsored search advertising programs, including:
Click here to view the calendar and registration information for Google's AdWords and Analytics Seminars for Success.
The Beginner & Intermediate course includes all the basics in the morning—opening an account, creating campaigns, selecting keywords, modifying settings—plus a full afternoon of optimization techniques and instruction on how to track ad performance.
If you already know the ropes, the Advanced course might be for you.
The advance seminar explores more complex ways to manage and optimize your sponsored search advertising programs, including:
- Introductions to My Client Center and the AdWords API
- Sorting and viewing statistics
- Copying or moving between campaigns, ad groups, and accounts
- Location targeting
Demographic bidding - Using the Website Optimizer
- Dynamic Keyword Insertion
- Goal setting and analyzing reports with Google Analytics
Click here to view the calendar and registration information for Google's AdWords and Analytics Seminars for Success.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Amazing Women, Amazing Businesses, Amazing Kids: Who Says You Can't Have It All?
This winter, I became a member of Mamapreneurs, Inc. (formerly Portland Mamas Inc.), a business networking and support organization for entrepreneurs who share a common trait: first and foremost, we're mothers.
How I failed, until now, to mention this fantastic organization, encourage Portland-area mamapreneurs to join, and pass on any of the opportunities presented by PMI is a mystery to me. To my fellow PMI members: I'm sorry to have neglected to mention you. To those of you Portland-area mothers who have your own businesses, are thinking of starting your own business, or who are looking to work for a mother-owned business...check us out.
There are lots of active, vibrant business groups in Portland, and plenty of strong, quality associations for women both here and nationally. But PMI has some of the most engaged, creative, attention-getting, talented, smart, ambitious women I've had the pleasure to meet. That so many of the members can achieve so much, work so hard, and still have so much fun—while also raising our kids, being pregnant, and fitting it all in between school hours—amazes and inspires me.
It's been an honor to be welcomed so warmly into the group and to be supported by other members.
Visit the PMI website and check out upcoming events, read the articles that range from tips to launch a product to believing in yourself as a mother, and support the mama-owned businesses listed in the membership directory.
And if you're a mamapreneur with five years experience or less in running your business, check out the upcoming two-day conference just for you: "The Makings of a Mamapreneur." It runs September 23 & 24 from 8:30 am - 12 pm (we *do* have kids after all) at Design Within Reach, located in Bridgeport Village, Tigard.
How I failed, until now, to mention this fantastic organization, encourage Portland-area mamapreneurs to join, and pass on any of the opportunities presented by PMI is a mystery to me. To my fellow PMI members: I'm sorry to have neglected to mention you. To those of you Portland-area mothers who have your own businesses, are thinking of starting your own business, or who are looking to work for a mother-owned business...check us out.
There are lots of active, vibrant business groups in Portland, and plenty of strong, quality associations for women both here and nationally. But PMI has some of the most engaged, creative, attention-getting, talented, smart, ambitious women I've had the pleasure to meet. That so many of the members can achieve so much, work so hard, and still have so much fun—while also raising our kids, being pregnant, and fitting it all in between school hours—amazes and inspires me.
It's been an honor to be welcomed so warmly into the group and to be supported by other members.
Visit the PMI website and check out upcoming events, read the articles that range from tips to launch a product to believing in yourself as a mother, and support the mama-owned businesses listed in the membership directory.
And if you're a mamapreneur with five years experience or less in running your business, check out the upcoming two-day conference just for you: "The Makings of a Mamapreneur." It runs September 23 & 24 from 8:30 am - 12 pm (we *do* have kids after all) at Design Within Reach, located in Bridgeport Village, Tigard.
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