If you’ve been around the internet marketing world for any length of time you know what blogging is and how it can benefit a business owner. You’re probably using a blog yourself and have seen firsthand the effects it has on increasing traffic and building relationship with your readers (a.k.a clients, potential clients, someone you may be able to partner with on a joint venture, etc).

In this day and age blogging should be an essential part of every business whether it’s an online business or offline brick and mortar one. Most online marketers understand this. Many offline business owners don’t. That’s where a skilled VA comes into play.

Many VA’s look for an area of their business they can stand out from the crowd and be the go to person. If you love WordPress, enjoy letting your creative juices flow, like getting your hands ‘dirty’ behind the scenes, learn to  Become A Blog Consultant and work from home!

Your community needs someone like you, a blog consultant, to teach them about blogging and how it can be an asset to their business. You’ve got your work cut out for you. Most offline business owners don’t even know what a blog is. It’s your job to educate them and let them know the truth – blogging is smart for business:

For starters, blogs are great for a business on a tight budget. A blog will cost them far less than they’d pay if they went with a large design firm and a traditional website. Good blogging activity will help them pull in local business – which is ultimately their goal.

There are so many other reasons that blogging is smart for local business owners. You will find these reasons along with great resources to share them with potential clients within the Become a Blog Consultant course.

This course was created to take you by the ‘hand’ and walk you step by step through the process of creating a profitable business as a blog consultant. The course starts at the very beginning, explaining why your community needs you, and covers important topics like developing your brand, content for your website, customizable graphics you can use, web 2.0 strategies for local businesses and much more.

You can learn more about the course and the business by visiting this site. Watch a quick two minute video for a real life client example and sign up for a 16 minute audio that will help you decide if this is a good fit for you and your skills.

Become A Blog Consultant

It Keeps Getting Better All The Time…

I just logged into my Sweetie Saturday Report Club membership to grab my February goodies and as always, I’m impressed. If you’re not familiar with the The Report Club, it’s put together by one of my favorite and ultra-practical Internet marketing teachers, Alice Seba. The club is an incredibly affordable way to receive concise, no-fluff, no fad guidance for your online business.

This month’s report is all about creative ways for using WordPress – and was put together guest writer and tech expert, Lynette Chandler. There’s tons of information to get you set up to work at home, or start a blog for your business. The quick guide offers 40 types of sites you can build with WordPress (it’s not just for blogs anymore) and tons of suggesting for adding features and functionality to your websites.

But there is more…Alice also puts together her monthly Essential Biz Notes which are personal thoughts, ideas and strategies from her about online business. Once again, she gave me a virtual boot kicking and shares a very useful rant about breaking out of the profit-limiting mold that we can sometimes be forced into.

Anyway, I’ve got some more reading to do…and then will be getting some work done. Click here to learn more about this month’s reports and the Sweetie Saturday Report Club.

And hey, there’s also a recently added a private members-only forum where you can ask questions and share ideas – it’s another great perk to this valuable membership.

Customized Tweets!

Twitter is the hottest Social Network on the web and a prime opportunity for you to establish Networking connections and grow your exposure on the Internet.

Stand out from the rest of the Tweeple ~

Develop and promote your brand niche by taking advantage of all that background space!

If you’re looking to promote and advertise your business without spending a lot of money; have an ecommerce website, or are a Work-at-Home Mom, sell on eBay, Etsy, Bonanzle, customized Twitter Backgrounds are the way to go!

For more information, visit: TwitterWebs

Becoming a mom – it’s the most life-changing event we go through. Our children become the center of our lives, and we must make adjustments to in our schedules and priorities make sure they’re cared for. Instead of hiring nannies or using day care services, more and more moms are choosing to start their own online businesses so they can be there for their kids and still contribute to the family income.

This is especially true right now during the tough economic times we’re living in. Even if you’re comfortably existing on one income, you may find yourself on no income soon enough if your husband gets laid off, downsized, rightsized, outsourced or whatever they’re calling it these days. Do you have the recommended 6 months’ living expenses tucked away in savings in preparation for this event?

Statistics show many of us do not. This is all the more reason for mom to look for ways to make money online before the disaster strikes.

Starting an online business has a number of advantages for moms. These include:

• Start-up costs can be kept low. So even if you are not currently working outside the home, starting an online business is usually within reach with small adjustments to the budget. Setting up a website means acquiring a domain name and hosting space – and with tools like WordPress available at no cost, you can literally be up and running for around $20. You will also want to invest in some education. Learning the basics of how to market your website online are not difficult, but be careful where you get your information.

The Natural Mom Business Guide is one solid source of info. It includes an ebook with detailed information about researching your target market, the various ways to make money with a website, and how to get the traffic you need to earn income. It even has video and audio tutorials as well as printable “cheat sheets” you can keep by your computer to remind you of the essential steps you need to take in your business to build traffic and make more income.

• Doing business online doesn’t require one to keep regular hours. You can work early in the morning before the kids get up, during the baby’s nap, or late at night when everyone is in bed. And with the automation that the Internet has to offer, orders can be processed and virtual products delivered while you are sleeping or taking care of the kids.

• You can get some work done with the kids right by your side. Older children may even be able to help you with simple tasks. Did you know that the IRS allows you to deduct wages (up to a certain amount) paid to a child who is age seven or older to work in your home business from your taxes? I have even trained my oldest son to add articles to my websites. He earns a nice wage for doing so, far more than an allowance, and is providing a valuable service to me.

There are all sorts of online businesses that are great for moms. You could sell your crafts or start a recipe website, or you could start a podcast. You might offer services such as writing, transcription, web design or virtual assistance to customers around the world. Or you could create and sell information products. Even blogging offers impressive money-making potential. The possibilities are many, and there’s sure to be something out there that’s just right for any mom.

Moms make up a large portion of the people who are making money online. This allows them to take a hands-on approach to raising their children while still making money to support the household. They don’t have to count on a sitter to take care of their children’s needs, and they don’t have to make a commute part of their daily routine. It’s no wonder that the number of moms starting online businesses is growing in leaps and bounds.

If you need some assistance choosing a niche, get some coaching from an experienced online marketer. Take the leap – you’ll be glad you did!

Carrie Lauth is an internet marketing mom who loves to help other moms launch profitable websites. She created the Natural Mom Business Guide for women who want to market to the “natural family” niche. To learn about how she can give you one-on-one coaching, visit Natural Mom Business Guide today.

Do you have a product you currently market or are contemplating marketing?

We all need technology and new programs to make our online businesses run more smoothly. After all, computer technology is what allows us to sell our products online to our audiences. But sorting out all the details of new programs and determining what programs best suit our businesses and budgets can be very time consuming.

As an online product seller, one thing is true across the board: you need a shopping cart program. However, not all shopping carts include the same features nor are they priced the same. At one extreme you have free carts that may not be secure and offer no extra business features but the other extreme is the shopping cart that has many features but costs well over $100 per month.

With such disparities, it is important to do your research and price comparisons but if too much time is spent on research, then you are not able to focus on the money-making aspect of your business. Or, if you commit to a certain program and then determine it’s not right for you, you will have lost some hard earned money.

If you need a guide to explain the different features of an online shopping cart and what extra features will help your business grow, join us at the Shopping Cart FAQ teleseminar on December 17, 2008 at 9pm EST. Your personal guide is Regina Baker, your ecommerce solutions advisor who will answer all your shopping cart questions.

Over the years Regina has heard from numerous home based business owners the despair about not having $100+ per month to pay for an online shopping cart. Or feeling like they’ve wasted money on carts that had so many features their small businesses just could not use. Before you make a mistake in choosing your shopping cart, hear first hand how Regina has become the ecommerce solutions advisor overcoming some mistakes she made along the way, and her strategies for choosing the right shopping cart.

If you are new to internet marketing, you will leave the teleseminar with a full understanding of how an ecommerce website and shopping cart work in unison. Discover how to fully automate your ecommerce business so you can truly make money while you sleep.

If you are an experienced internet marketer, you might evaluate your current shopping cart and learn from Regina how you can make your ecommerce business run more smoothly and more efficiently. Improving your business automation will leave you more time to develop other money-making projects.

Don’t miss this opportunity to have access to Regina Baker’s e-commerce expertise at the Shopping Cart FAQ Teleseminar — for only $1 come and learn something new, ask your burning questions, and leave with a better understanding of how your business can grow with the right shopping cart.

To register for this informative Shopping Cart FAQ Teleseminar on December 17th at 9pm ET, simply Click here!

When I network with small business owners and online marketers, I often find myself asking them if they’ve launched their blog yet. Adding a blog has so many important benefits and it’s no wonder that huge corporations and megastores are also getting into blogging. Especially for the micropreneur however, blogs have several distinct advantages. Here are a few.

1. A blog is search engine food! Google and the other big search engines love content and a blog can help you get free search engine traffic. Recently search engines are giving more weight to blogs because they want to offer the freshest, most relevant content to Internet searchers.

2. Blogs create community. Because they are interactive, a blog draws people back to your site again and again. Your visitors will read your post then leave their comments, read comments left by others, and come back to see how the conversation is flowing. Blogs are much easier to manage than message forums too. With RSS (Real Simple Syndication), people can subscribe to your blog feed and be notified automatically when you update your blog.

3. Blogging puts you in control of your site. Posting to your blog is as easy as typing an email or a word document. Why pay a designer to add a page to your website when you can update your site whenever you like, easy as pie? You can blog as often or as rarely as you like to serve your particular needs.

4. Blogs help you grow your bottom line. There are many ways you can add additional monetization streams to your blog so you can make more money in your business without working harder.

5. Your customers love blogs. They can ask you questions, read info about your products and services, and share their opinions. A blog has a more friendly feel than a website.

6. Blogs help you know your target market. As you observe who is leaving comments on your blog, you get to know your market better. This education helps you be a smarter marketer.

7. Conduct market research. A blog is an easy way to conduct surveys and polls to help you get inside the mind of your customers. This information is invaluable to you.

8. Blogs help your customers get to know you. A blog gives your customers a chance to see your personality shine through. People buy from people they like!

9. Blogging is fun. I’ll admit it, blogging is addicting once you get going! There are so many benefits to your business. What’s not to love?

10. As a small business owner, you have a limited marketing budget. Blogging is a free marketing tactic – it only costs you a little of your time.

Get help setting up your blog, learn what you should blog about, and get marketing tips to get more blog traffic at To take advantage of this special 4 week Coaching Package, click here

The internet is an ever-evolving medium that’s here to stay.  In order to grow your business, one must keep up with the latest technology.  Web 2.0  and social networking sites are fast-becoming the preferred way to get the word out about your business.  Here’s some helpful links to get your business and name out on the web.

How to Turn Twitter Into a Powerful Marketing Tool

How to Use Twitter As an Easy Way to Gain New Clients

How to Use Twitter 5 Easy Tips to Connect With Potential Clients That Service Providers Can Use

How to Incorporate Twitter Into Your Daily Business Routine

How to Add Popular Twitter Plug-ins for WordPress Blogs

How to Set Up a Twitter Feed On Your Blog

How to Twitter On Your Cell Phone

How to Know if Someone Stops Following You on Twitter

How to Determine if the Work at Home Life is Really For You

How to Be a Work at Home Mom ~ 10 Tips for Success

How to Sign Up For eBay To Earn Extra Money For Retirement

How to Know When to Seek Help For Stress

How to Remove Fungus Gnats Bugs from Office or House Plants

As a blog author and small business owner, I often listen to Podcasters to get a heads-up and see what the latest marketing tips are all about.

Podcasters and Internet radio show hosts can use private label rights content in a variety of ways to help boost their listenership. PLR articles aren’t just for information sites and here are a few ways podcasters can put them to use on their own site.

1. Use the articles to post to a blog or website in between shows to keep your show fresh in your listener’s mind.

2. Use PLR to brainstorm future show topics.

3. Make recordings of the articles and post them as bonus or mini-podcasts.

No matter how you choose to use your PLR articles to boost your podcast, it’s extremely important that you realize you need to rework the original content to make it your own. Add your own thoughts, rewrite the content to make it fit your audience, add your own personal research and data, etc.

Looking for more tips to give your subscribers about getting the most use out of their PLR? Check out the 9 Uses for PLR Articles at Easy PLR.

Recently, in an interview, I was asked “Is it ethical to use private label rights and ghostwritten articles?”

Let me step back a moment and explain… Private label rights (or PLR) articles and ghostwritten articles are used by web owners as a method of outsourcing some of their content.

* PLR articles are packages of articles that are pre-written and sold to more than one person.

(We recommend this site for your PLR needs.)

* Ghostwritten articles are articles that are written by someone else just for you that you can put your name on and are not sold to anyone else.

In both cases, you are allowed to edit the content as much or as little as you’d like and use the articles on your website, blog, or in your newsletter.

So, back to the question. Is it ethical? My answer was, “usually, yes”.

If you’re using the articles and saying “written by me” without changing anything at all, it may bite you in the butt later, when someone else does the same thing. Does that make it unethical? Not really. It’s just not smart. Can you use the article as it is or edited slightly, without saying it was written by you? Of course!

Most PLR packs are written by ghostwriters. Ghostwriters are professional researchers and writers. If you purchase well-written, informative PLR or ghostwritten articles and share them with your
readers, don’t you all benefit? Your readers benefit by getting great information. You benefit by saving time. Is it any different than hiring a graphic designer or webmaster? Not in my opinion. Heck, most
politicians don’t write their own speeches. They leave that to people who are professional speech writers.

Of course, you’d want to only use top-notch PLR articles and not “sell-out” just to pump out blog posts or web pages quicker. We recommend you research thoroughly before choosing any ghostwriter or PLR service.

Here’s what to look for in a PLR service so you don’t waste your money:

1. Make sure the articles are written well.

2. Make sure that you know what topics you’ll receive (instead of some grab-bag of articles).

3. Be sure that the people running the program have some experience in article writing themselves, so they know what they’re doing.

There’s no point in doing everything on your own, especially if you dislike writing. All successful business people outsource the tasks they are not good at or dislike. Check it out. It might take some pressure off you and allow you to spend more time with your kids. And, that’s definitely ethical.

Author Resource -
Nicole Dean welcomes you to check out EasyPLR.com – where you’ll find high-quality PLR articles on niches sold in very limited quantities.