Alpine Village Family November 5th, 2007
I’ve been wondering this for a while now. What to say when people ask me what I do. Usually I say something like “oh, I have several websites that I make money from in different ways”. It’s a lengthy answer though and I really wish I could think of a simpler answer.
In truth I think of myself as a writer because I spend the bulk of my day blogging. BUT, in actuality I also design websites - granted they are all for me 
- but I do a lot of that too. Hmm… I guess I’ll just stick with the long answer until someone comes up with a better answer 
Do you work from home? How do you answer that inevitable question of “so, what do you do?”???
Alpine Village Family October 27th, 2007
Shopping today was even better than I thought it would be. First off, our husbands decided that they would watch the kids so we could shop alone - yay!! This is just sooo much faster and just plain easier to do. Secondly, Judy and I both found great stuff that we LOVE. She bought a bunch of their Pax line which is fantastic for storage. I wandered around the office furniture section for quite a while until I decided for certain what I wanted but fell in love with one of the Vika combinations.
Specifically, I decided on the glass desk top that has the word LOVE (written in several ways in several languages) etched all over it, curved white metal legs and a light pink desk chair :D. I also picked up some pink shelves and a white drawer unit. All in all, I am soooo happy with it and I love my new office area!
Alpine Village Family October 24th, 2007
Many of the blogs I read and enjoy have them and they don’t phase me at all. But, as a blog owner myself I’d like to know how YOU feel about them. What they are is links to other people sites and I get paid to include them. Now, the post I write is all my own doing and I can write about whatever I choose to. They just ask that, if I use those specific words, I like them to their site. It’s the most honest form of advertising I’ve found so far because no one is telling me what to say or write about - they just want a link. Anyway, do they bother you?? You can see them in the posts before and after this one…
Alpine Village Family October 16th, 2007
I’ve written a few eBooks in my day - I suspect I’ll write a few more too - but I’m always amazed when I meet someone who’s written a REAL book. It’s not easy folks that’s for sure and sometimes it can seem impossible to get a publisher to print your book.
For some aspiring authors, the choice to Self Publish can be an excellent option. Companies like authorhouse.com help authors-to-be do just that - publish their own books.
They even have informed “author advocates” to help answer questions and provide guidance and they also offer discounts on color publishing. It’s like “one stop shopping” for authors-to-be:)
Alpine Village Family September 28th, 2007
It’s been a long time coming but I’ve finally gotten over a hurdle and I can now call the kids’ former toy-room my “office”. It feels pretty good too :) I think a huge step in making the name change has been my ability to finally earn a decent wage from home. Whatever the reason though, I’m happy to be sitting in my office
Now that I’ve made that change, it’s time to think about making it the most functional space it can be. I need a desk still and a spot for filing and I’d also like some new lighting. Not a desk lamp though, they usually bother my eyes, but this floor lamp would be nice for those times I sit back and read newspapers etc. to get my blogging ideas. What do you think?
Alpine Village Family September 23rd, 2007
Found an interesting post today called Top 10 Ways to Boost Direct Marketing Results. Although I don’t do B2B Telemarketing - they refer to it a bit - I do find a lot of their suggestions to ring true for my business as well.
Certainly there is always a need for business lead generation and nurturing. I have lists of people that I help with different things via email. I need leads to get my lists as big as possible. The bigger the list is, the better, because I need as many people as possible to visit my webpages where the info. is. The more people who visit the pages, the more likely my Adsense ads. will get clicked on and therefore, the more money I will make.
They describe, among other things, the importance of personalizing correspondence, building a relationship and offering a solution to the customer’s problem. Some things to think on further…
Alpine Village Family September 23rd, 2007
Those of us with websites, maybe you have one or seven too, dream of traffic; big, big, bunches of traffic that direct response TV could bring 
I would LOVE to have a full service television advertising agency like Hawthorne Direct produce a commercial for Happy Mommy News. I could ask them to show the audience all about our free resources and how they can benefit moms. I mean really, TV can be pretty targeted advertising. I could show the ads during “A Baby Story” and/or “The Mom Show” and just sit and wait for the traffic on my site 
Alpine Village Family September 23rd, 2007
Well, in the interest of disclosure I now have a page devoted to it - you’ll find a link in my sidebar. That page shares with you that, although I do get paid for some of my posts, I will never lie to my readers and that all posts are honest.
Those of you who know me already know this. I write as if I am writing to a friend (let’s hope, more than one LOL). So, given that I’d never recommend something to a friend that I don’t truly LOVE, I’d not lie here either
On that note, I’d better get writing!
Alpine Village Family September 21st, 2007
I came across a company today that offers Do It Yourself logos. It’s not a new company at all, in fact their PR is 6 and it is a very popular design site. There is a fee of course, but before you purchase, you can create a sample company logo to see if the process is right for you.
I gave it a go and it was pretty fun and really easy It had to be easy I think, or it wouldn’t be so popular, but the fact that it was fun too was a nice bonus I can see why they have a patent pending on their processes
Alpine Village Family September 21st, 2007
Now that my online venture is actually making money (and not just a few bucks a month ), I’m thinking it’s time to start keeping track of money in and money out. I pondered QuickBooks and SimpyAccounting but I really don’t want to spend the $200+ right now.
Instead, as of today, I have an account with bookkeeper-for-you.com. I have to say it looks pretty simple to use and just what I need. Not too fancy but I can do reports etc. Just thought I’d share
