REMEMBER THIS MY FRIENDS WORK IS A FOUR LETTER WORD

     When we were young someone taught us not to use bad words, you know FOUR LETTER words.  They forgot some of the worst......WORK......LOVE.....WIFE....  Ok so I am just kidding, but WORK can be a real bear.  Working from home has taken more of my free time than any other career.  It is not just the writing of this blog, it also includes many hours of research on the topics for the blog and for the strategies to get exposure for the blog.  I am finding that one of the hardest things is having the patience to see results.  

     I am trying to get traffic to this blog in a variety of ways.  You may remember, the first way I tried was to advertise on Facebook.  Facebook took several hours while the "bots" scanned my work, then refused to allow me to advertise my page because my topic is about working from home.  To Facebook, the only POSSIBLE way to make money from the web is to SCAM people.   WAIT  doesn't FACEBOOK  make money from the internet???  By their own logic then Facebook is a scam!!  I am not really suggesting that Facebook is a scam, but My blog is not a scam either.  I would just like the same chance that Facebook affords others.  Facebook does allow for an appeal but evidently does not respond to those appeals.  I must say that I was VERY surprised that Facebook does allow "dating" sites and other questionable products to be SOLD from their pages, but seems to be prejudiced against sites that want to help you avoid scams. So, I ask you to show Facebook what you think but liking these posts on your page and asking ALL your friends to do the same. Lets show Facebook who the real bosses are

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NO ONE CAN UNDERSTAND THE TRUTH UNTIL HE DRINKS OF COFFEE'S FROTHY GOODNESS.

SHEIK ABD-AL-KADIR

     Sales is nothing more than offering your customer what they want at a price they will spend.  Figuring out what the customer wants is the BIG TRICK.  Just don't become so focused on your market that you lose sight of all associated markets that are available

     I like coffee.   Regular coffee.  I remember a few years ago a friend and I traveled from Orlando to Los Angeles.   With all the security regulations, we had to be at the airport HOURS before our flight left.  We were and are both coffee drinkers so after getting through the security process, we went to find a simple cup of coffee. Many of you are fans of the "coffee boutiques" and can spend several minutes ordering a cup of coffee and that is what they cater to.  My friend and I could be best described as two old cowboys and we drink our COFFEE plain.  We waited in the line, and when our turn came, the young man behind the couter couldn't understand.  He was not prepared for the simple order of a "large black coffee", he kept asking "is that vente or grande????"  Fortunately, a young lady was working who was fluent in "cowboy" and she brewed us a pot of plain unflavored coffee. The coffee shops of today cater to a "specific" client and I no longer am that client.

     As you build your pages think of the customer base you are trying to reach, and provide what they want.  You may also want to set up areas for sub groups of your audience to capitalize on all aspects of your market.

MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR WORK TO ALLOW YOU TO PLAY

     It is not wise to spend ALL your life working.  Those of you who know me know that I am not a TV addict.  I have been just as happy with antenna TV as I would be with cable or satellite TV.  

     When I moved to my current residence I only received  very minimal antenna reception.  My sister and her daughter had the same problem and between the three of us we have tried a few different solutions.  

     The first solution was a more powerful antenna.  $30 later and the reception was no better than with a bargain antenna.  

     Next, the girls started using a Wii console to stream online content.  The Wii retails new for $280 and you can find used units for around $50.  That worked reasonably well but some of us found the "remote" a bit of a challenge to use.  

     After the Wii,   the girls tried a Roku and found the remote more familiar.  The Roku retails for $98.  I found the navigation of the "channels" confusing and add to the fact that it is another remote to keep up with.  The girls spend a lot of time trying to find the remote so they can enjoy a program.  

     My family gave me a Google Chromecast unit for Christmas.  The Chromecast retails for $35 or less and is very portable.  With it you can stream content from Netflix, Hulu+, Pandora, Youtube and others.The Chromecast unit does not have a separate remote, instead it is controlled by your laptop, tablet, or smartphone. Compared to the cost of the other units I would recommend the Chromecast.  The Chromecast device is simple enough for even a tech challenged person(me) to use.

MAKE MONEY FROM THE COMFORT OF YOUR OWN HOME

     There are many was to make money on the internet.  Until now I have focused on just one way.  Today I will introduce another.  

     When I was a boy, my mother started a home based business creating arts and crafts and selling them at craft shows and fairs around the region.  She spent many hours every day creating her products so that once or twice a month she could load it all in her car and travel to a mall somewhere for a three day chance to SELL her products.  Most of her products were very popular and her sales revenues were usually good but the time spent travelling and set up selling kept her from producing more products.  

     People who are creative or can make something out of nothing can open up "stores" in a variety of online marketplaces. Unlike the old craft fairs theses shops are open 24 hours a day 7 days a week and can reach a far greater number of potential buyers for the products.  Sites like Ebay and Amazon offer advertising and name recognition for new vendor.  For the more crafty there is also Etsy a relatively new venue for handmade products.  All these sites offer your a place to sell your wares and reach a wide variety of customers.  

     My sister and her daughter have recently started creating handmade products.  The first step after making the products was listing the on Ebay.   The products were not right for the Ebay marketplace.  Her next try was Etsy a marketplace designed for handmade products.   As of now she has just started on Etsy and I invite all of you to check out her site and look at her products at www.etsy.com/shop/AislingsNeedfulThing?ref=search_shop_redirect

     Let me know what you think......I will keep you posted.

       UPDATE

     My sister is still waiting for her first sale on Etsy.  She is getting a lot of looks and we are hopeful that it is only a matter of time till that first sale comes in.  Go by the shop and pick up your favorite.  Prices cannot stay this low forever.

TO SUCCEED IN SALES, SIMPLY TALK TO LOTS OF PEOPLE EVERY DAY. AND HERE'S  WHATS EXCITING -- THERE ARE LOTS OF PEOPLE!

JIM ROHN

     Sales is a numbers game.  Whether you sell cars, houses, or paperclips. it boils down to the number of people you reach versus the number of people that will buy your product.  In the "lingo" this is called you closing ratio.  When I sold used cars my closing ratio averaged 20 to 30 percent.  In other words, I sold 2 to 3 cars to roughly every 10 people I worked with.  Your online closing ratio will most likely be MUCH lower. somewhere in the 1 to 5 percent range.  This means you will need to reach greater numbers of potential customers to make your sales.  

  " How do I do THAT????"  you ask?

ADVERTISE!!!

     Promote you blog/website in a variety of ways to "drive traffic" or draw those potential customers to your site.  Begin by using social media like Facebook, Twitter and the others.  Tell all your friends and relative about what you are doing.  Those things will bring SOME visitors your way.  Remember, only 1 to 5 percent of your visitors will ACTUALLY buy the products you advertise, so unless you have 100s of thousands of friends in your network your rewards will be very low.  So what now??? How do you reach all those people?  

     The first way I promoted this blog was on Facebook.. I started a "fan" page for this blog and Facebook will advertise it on the Sidebar for 5 to 20 dollars a day to expose you to more people anywhere from an estimated 6 to 100 "likes" per day.  You get to decide how many days you advertise and by spending more per day you reach more people.

     We will cover other ways in later posts.  See you next time

I COULDN'T WAIT FOR SUCCESS, SO I WENT AHEAD WITHOUT IT.

JONATHON WINTERS

     The main goal of this blog is to record my successes and failures at making money online.  As I noted in a previous post, the first way is taking online surveys.  The second way is this blog.  I do not mean that I am selling the content of this blog, simply that I am making space available on my blog to advertisers who will pay me a commission if any of the readers of my blog chose to purchase the product(s) advertised there.  

     I have read of several ways to sell the ad space on my blog and as I go along I will try several and post my experiences here.  

     The first one I tried was Google Adsense.  It is supposed to be very easy to use.  In the descriptions it seems that you just sign up and google chooses the ads and you make money.  In practice it was easy to sign up.  As of this post Adsense still says that I dont have enough content for them to place ads here.

     Since I am trying a variety of ads, I decided to try another source.  I have now joined with Amazon as an affiliate marketer.  The sign up was relatively simple, and painless.  I did not have to spend one cent to become a part of the Amazon network, and Amazon provides ample tutorials and tools to make it possible to advertise for them.  Amazon offers a variety of "widgets" which are placed on the site to catch attention.  If a reader is interested in the product they simply click on the "widget" to make the purchase.  The referring site is then credited with the sale and a commission is paid.  

     I will be keeping you updated with the results.  Stay tuned

"WHETHER YO THINK YOU CAN. OR THAT YOU CAN'T YOU ARE USUALLY RIGHT"

HENRY FORD

     Henry Ford has always been a hero of mine.  He did not invent the automobile or assembly lines, but saw a way to merge the two together and bring us affordable transportation.  Look at us now nearly every household has at least one car,  Ford opened up an entirely new market.  He took the "novelty" automobile from being a toy of the wealthy to an affordable mode of transportation for everyone.  

     Keeping a good mental attitude is key.  Making money online is not easy nor will you "get rich quick".  It will be easy to lose sight of  your goals if you let negativity in.  

     The first way I tried making money online was taking surveys.  There are several sites out there that will pay you money for answering questions on any number of topics.  I tried a variety of these sites and preferred the ones that told you how much money you were earning as opposed to "reward points".

       I made a decision to use ONLY money I made online to make this business work.  So I joined a couple of online survey sites.  It took a couple of weeks and LOTS of surveys to get my first payout. I will continue to use surveys as a way to finance my web adventures.

     Most of the surveys I have taken paid from 25 cents to a dollar and took 20 to 45 minutes to complete.  I know, I know most of you are like me and feel your time is worth A LOT more than that. When I started the surveys I had NOTHING but time and SOME money is better than NO money.  As I stated, it is also a "risk free" way to finance online activities.

     The survey route is also teaching me to be patient.  Patience is a virtue I have always struggled with.  Some of you will want to bypass this step and move on to the next step, and that is ok.  Some of you have a similarly tight budget and will want to go this way.  Just remember, this Blog is a record of how I did it and what works best for me.  For me, the surveys also made me look into the more profitable ways to earn my money.

     Feel free to share your successes or failures in the comments section.  Others may learn from them

  COVER YOUR ASSets

Work at home or making money on the internet can leave you exposed if you are not careful.

 Lets talk about some practices to safeguard you on the web.

     First thing I did was set up an email address just for my online activities.  I chose Yahoo mail for the spam filter and BELIEVE me when I say you will get TONS of spam.

     The second thing I did was to get a prepaid debit card so that should the BAD GUYS get access to my account they would not get very much from me.  Netspend and WalMart both offer reasonable prepaids. Both are relatively easy to load money onto, and both offer ways to track spending.

     The third thing I did was to set up a Google Voice account.  Many of these sites want a phone number and I was not comfortable giving my home or cell number.  Judging from the times I  received some calls I am glad they didn't get my number.

     Finally, be very careful how much personal information you put on the web.  I cannot think of a good reason ANYONE on the web needs my Social Security number. I also am very careful about answering questions about the number of children under 18 are in my household.   Just use common sense and ask yourself WHY someone would need the info.  Protect yourself.

"DEVELOP SUCCESS FROM FAILURES.  DISCOURAGEMENT AND FAILURE ARE TWO OF THE SUREST STEPPING STONES TO SUCCESS.'

Dale Carnegie

     Some of the readers of this already know my story, most who read this do not.  

     At the time of this writing, I am in my late late 40's, male and unemployed.  Over the course of my life I have worked in restaurants,  as an apartment maintenance man, as a plumber, and in a variety of sales positions (including real estate and used cars).  I was moderately successful at most of these jobs and careers.  In all of these I was working for someone else.  In other words I am just like a lot of you out there.  I feel it is time for me to try to be my own BOSS.

     This will serve as a record of my successes and FAILURES in the work from home/ money from the internet world.  I invite your feedback and questions.  I also invite you to follow this blog so you don't miss a post.  If you have a blog you would like me to follow, send me a link.

I believe that together we can figure it out!

    MAKE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS A MONTH DOING NOTHING

     Wouldn't that be GREAT???   There are lots of "systems" out there claiming to do just that.  The "Secret" is available to you for a limited time for the low price of.......?????

     Hmmmm    I don't know about you but I am a little suspicious of anyone offering to teach me to be their competitor for  marginal sums of money.   Do you think Steve Jobs called Bill Gates and said "Bill  I will tell you how to make Windows  more like Macintosh for a limited time for $97"????

     So is there a way to make money, and I mean a LIVING on the Internet? I believe there is.  Unlike most of the "get rich quick" crowd I believe you can work from home and make a living.  I do believe that the operative word in "Work From Home" is WORK.   This Blog will be a real time Journal of what I try and what works and honestly what does not work. So I will invite you to follow along and Learn as I do what all is involved in working from the comfort of your own home.  

     Maybe together we can crack the "Secret"