I have never won the lottery, any random contest or sweepstakes, but I am lucky. The universe often adjusts to bring me exactly what I need at the right time.
For example, several years ago my previous business was on shaky ground. My largest client had a pile of unpaid invoices, and they were avoiding my calls. I had made the rookie mistake of not building a business, instead I had a permalancership. I was working long hours and wearing out fast. The big client with the unpaid invoices called to tell me they were broke, closing their doors and filing for bankruptcy. I was panicked and stunned. However, later the same day I received an offer from another service company to buy my business. Like I ...Continue Reading
When visitors to your website or blog subscribe to your RSS feed they will be notified of new articles or posts. A subscriber is worth more than a visitor. The subscriber will see new content and most often return to your website to comment or share your content. A visitor has to remember to check back and see if there are any new articles or posts.
Having a website is great, but it is even better when your website is getting targeted traffic and the visitors are being converted into customers or donors. Keyword research is the first step in considering how you want to receive traffic from search engines. The results of your research will dictate which keywords you optimize your content around.
To begin, write down all of the keywords you associate with your business or organization. For example, if I had a business where I train dogs I might write down keywords such as dog training and dog obedience.
I was attending a networking event where the moderator of the event had given us instructions to stand up and introduce ourselves by stating:
who we are
why we are special
One by one, we went through giving introductions of ourselves. After the introductions, those that had the crowds around them focused on explaining why they are special and then lead us to a next action.
As I watched this realizing how badly I had blown my introduction, I remembered that this is exactly what I tell my clients to do with their website homepage content.
I don’t read magazine or newspaper articles much anymore. After I read an article that gets my blood boiling or provokes another thought, I have no avenue for venting or sharing.
I favor reading blogs online. A blog post doesn’t stop when then the post is published. The reactions and opinions of original post continue in the comments. When I read a blog post that invokes a reaction, I comment. My message is for the writer of the blog post and other readers, I want to be part of the discussion.
I am a (very) small business owner, so I appreciate how valuable time can be to other business owners. For an upcoming speaking engagement I was asked to compile the top five applications I use to run my business smarter and faster. After compiling the list, I realized that this is something I should be sharing with everyone.
Here are the top five applications I use to make my small business run smarter:
I have a lot of tasks floating around in my head. I think about projects for my consulting business, the Chicago Nerd Social Club, and personal items. I found many years ago that the only way I could be productive was to come up with a system for keeping track of my todo items.
BarCamp Chicago 2010 is coming Saturday and Sunday, August 21st and 22nd. BarCamp is an unconference unlike any other because it brings hackers, entrepreneurs, tech students, and business folk together to share ideas and industry developments. It takes you out of your comfort zone to encourage learning and discussion in an open forum.
A BARcamp is an ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and learn in an open environment. It is an intense event with discussions, ...Continue Reading
I came across a post on SCORE Women’s Blog where they give results from a recent CitiBank survey on small business usage of online tools. There was one statistic that shocked and appalled me:
40% of small businesses don’t have a web site
Every small business or non-profit needs to have a website. Your website makes it easier for customers, vendors, potential employees, and the media find out about your business. Not having ...Continue Reading
With each day we do more and more online, from banking to social networking. When it comes to troubleshooting websites, web applications, or browser issues the more information available the easier it is to find a resolution.
The website Support Details (http://www.supportdetails.com/) will display important information about your browser, browser settings and internet connection. Support Details doesn’t just make finding this information easy, they also make ...Continue Reading
