Affili What II

ExposeYourBlog !: Contests !

2012-02-08T11:16:00.000Z

I’m going to be boring and post this on all of my blogs. As we approach the second birthday of ExposeYourblog!, we’ve re-launched both the surfing and referral contests. All you need to do to win credits surfing is to be amongst the top five surfers of the day. Credits awarded are based on the percentage of blogs surfed, so the more you surf the more you can win – daily and weekly!The referral contest means that you can win credits for referring more members than anyone else daily and weekly. New members must activate their account by surfing and adding their blog.To get links, go to your “Tools” page and click on “My Downline”, scroll down and you’ll find banners and links that you can use to promote ExposeYourBlog!. Or you could write a post about why you enjoy surfing on EYB! and include a link in your post – just like I have.

Don and I are really proud of the blogs on ExposeYourBlog! There are blogs to suit all tastes and you’ll find excellent writing, art and pictures as well as members who interact with each other. We’re building a very special blogging community and hopefully members feel as it EYB! Is being run by real people who care about their members – which is true.

As always Don and I can be contacted via a PM in the forums (don = “Admin”, to contact me “Anji”), via a support ticket or email; forumadmin@exposeyourblog.com . We’d love to hear from you, feedback and ideas are always useful.

Latest problem on eBay

2012-01-22T10:41:00.002Z

As we are selling vintage postcards we take a lot of care to describe the condition of the postcards we sell. It's very rare to find a postcard nearly 100 years old in 'new' condition - though they do exist. We also use the description tool provided.

I don't know if eBay have been tweaking their program recently, but the automatic description seems to return to default (one of them being 'new' condition) choices which will pose us a lot of problems. We can't go clicking boxes on nearly 4500 items in our store evry day. Before long our ratings from buyers will descend as buyers start to complain that out description was misleading...

If you are an eBay user, have you had the same problem in your country?

Free Traffic Lotto winner! Me!

2012-01-15T15:59:00.000Z

I've been using FTL traffic exchange for several years and written about it here before. As you surf you win lottery tickets. Every week the numbers from the Indiana Hoosier Pick 6/48 are used to decide who has won. As I surf quite a lot during the week, I usually win two numbers a draw, the prize being credits, banner exposures and text exposures. This week was different. I've won $10! I had to claim my prize and it was in my paypal account within minutes. As well as money I won lots of credits, banner and text exposures. Needless to say, I've already started surfing for next week's tickets.

Hostage ware

2012-01-02T17:38:00.000Z

I heard an interesting report on the radio about a virus that holds your computer hostage. The particular one I heard about pretends to be the police and they freeze your computer because (they say) you are doing or looking at something illegal. They will release your computer if you pay a price. The amount they ask for is reasonably small and most people seem to be paying it. One of the reasons being that, as you are being accused of having something illegal on your computer, you are less likely to report them or check the accusation out with the real authorities. This can be fixed by going to a professional, but again people are worried about what might be found on their computer. Keep your antivirus updated!

Round up of 2011

2011-12-28T20:50:00.000Z

I bought this blog out of semi retirement and started sharing some of my eBay experiences. Not always nice ones, but we've learnt to adapt. Generally I'd say that things have improved for sellers here in France, but it hasn't been an easy road.

The worst news this year as far as online earning was concerned was my being banned by Google AdWords. As it happens, it wasn't the end of the world for me. I missed the thrills and spills of the run up to Christmas - more to do with finding new products to promote that making money. Being registered with the local Chamber of Commerce, I still receive invitations from Google France. They go straight into the bin.

As always, time goes too quickly to fit everything in that I'd like to. I was surprised to find out that I'd only written 15 posts on this blog so far this year. That's under two a month! I'll try to do better next year.

May 2012 be happy and prosperous.

Just my two cents

2011-11-22T17:38:00.001Z

For the first time in several years I don't feel involved in the mad weekend online that surrounds Thanksgiving. However, I am going to present some online products which I've promoted in the past:

If you'd really like to send a gift which is different, how about a Message in a Bottle? Messages and bottles to suit all budgets!

A gift basket is a pleasant way of offering lots of different goodies. Presents to fit every taste and budget.Christmas Gift Baskets from just $20!

How about a bit of "oh la la"? Hips and Curves.com - Sexy plus size lingerie for women with curves . If you hurry you'll catch the Black Friday sale. There are all sorts of accesories too - stocking fillers?? (sorry)

All About Gifts and Baskets

2011-11-01T20:54:00.000Z

One of my favourite companies; All About Gifts and Baskets, is offering Free Shipping on select Gift Baskets! in the continental United States at the moment. There are baskets to suit every taste, pocket and occasion: Get Well baskets, Coffee Lovers, Thank You, Sweets and Treats… Now is the time to start thinking about gifts for the holiday season – not long until Christmas!

The right keywords

2011-10-16T16:46:00.001+01:00

Choosing the right keywords is very important. A glance at a few announcements proves that not everyone gets it. It’s very important to sit down and think. ‘If I was looking for this object what words would I use to search for it? ‘ With postcards the name of the town is a good place to start. What about for other goods. What is it? Computer, what make? Year? Serial number ?... What do people need to know? Careful, your characters are limited. Search for similar objects, see which words more experienced sellers are using for maximum impact.

"The cruelest system of marking known to man"

2011-10-01T16:52:00.002+01:00

We soon discovered the ‘joys ‘of the ebay marking system. I once heard someone* say that it is the cruelest system of marking known to man. The problem is, like school, there are some who will give generous marks and others whom you will never please. The worst is being marked down because of delayed post due to a postal strike. The eBayer is at the mercy of all. It’s also very disappointing to run round in circles trying to please a customer only to receive a casual ‘no problems’.

*I think that it might have been Andy Hamilton

Back to ebay...

2011-09-14T17:13:00.001+01:00

We started to learn more about the postcards that we were selling. This helped us to describe them. The description of an article for sale online is very important. Our customers can’t examine the postcards before buying:

Depending on the shade of green on the back, you could roughly date a postcard between 1916 and 1930. I presume a green back would have saved on the bleaching process – cheaper during the war years and afterwards when times were hard. From time to time, we’d come across older, non-divided back cards which were obviously before that period with green backs, perhaps again to save on the bleaching process.

Sometimes, but not often, correspondence can be a selling point. Postcards were used to pass on news. Babies being born, marriages, floods, disasters and war. ‘Meet me tomorrow at the station at 4 o’clock’ – knowing that the postcard would arrive in time!. Words of love, hope, despair all on the back of a postcard. Everyone wrote something, some more articulate than others. The wealthy with ink, poorer people in pencil.

Okay ; so where did I do wrong ?

2011-08-26T17:50:00.000+01:00

This post is more to help future advertisers not get banned.

Copyright policy: Meaning that one of my campaigns was for a company and that was distributing films, TV shows etc. to download without proper permission. I didn’t know that.

Harvesting: (long time since I did one of these) The campaigns were for sites which gave prizes, toolbars, free downloads or entry into a competition in exchange for an email. We all know what happens to email lists…

Badware/Malware: sites that might serve nasties to visitors. It was a screen saver site that caused the trouble.

Inaccurate display URL: what it says. This was a little unfair I feel, as some of my campaigns were 7 years old (and no longer used or deleted) and sites change hands, move on etc.

Parked Domain: One of the first campaigns I tried out way back, the link doesn’t go anywhere now

Bridge page: directs users to another page. This is usually used when you are not allowed to advertise using search engines. I’ve never done this, but could have been using an ad that was using another ad… etc

Sites not working: Yes, these were old sites that closed down years ago. They don’t work today.

Get Rick Quick: Well, we all know there is no such thing as being able to get rich quick. Unfortunately, real beginners like I was fall for all sorts of things: Remember “I’m rich and you’re not!”? This was unfair in one case as I’m personally involved in one of the sites and I know that it is not a get rich quick site.

I do remember being very impressed with one affiliate guru. Just until the day when she made a video of her home office. This millionaire with a huge car had a real dump of a garden when she accidently filmed so that we could see out of a window. I think that her campaign was probably one of the ones included in the list.

I hope this all helps anyone interested avoid the pitfalls. I certainly didn’t intend to swindle, cause problems, break the law or infest anyone’s computers with unpleasant surprises….

Slapped? – beaten up!

2011-08-13T21:05:00.000+01:00

A couple of days ago I received an email from Google AdWords informing me that my account has been blocked – forever. (Does that mean if I’m reincarnated I still can’t open a new account?)

I started using AdWords to advertise back in 2005. I joined various networks as an affiliate and actually made money, thanks to the launch of a new Xbox. I made some mistakes, joined the wrong programs and sometimes fell for the spiel. I always carried out any changes AdWords asked me to do and quickly learnt what not to touch. Unfortunately I discovered that AdWords has taken my past history into consideration. They even told me that some URLs were nonexistent. They were, the sites probably closed down 5 years ago!

Looking online I find that there is a growing army of people like me. I think that I probably broke even over the past 6 years. I’m okay; I can make money in other ways. Unfortunately, some people have based their business on traffic that comes from their advertising on AdWords. They have lost everything.

I have a bitter taste in my mouth; I feel that I’ve been accused of being underhand and dishonest.

Keeping the customer satisfied

2011-07-25T13:33:00.001+01:00

Satisfying the customers caused a few problems at first. The secret is to listen to your customers and learn. Rob collected postcards of the famous port where we live. We thought that all we needed to do was choose keywords and roughly describe the condition of the postcards. Wrong. collectors needed to know the publishers of the cards. The card number. If the card had been used. The colour of the back of the card. Did the card have a divided back?

We started to learn all about the backs of cards. In France up until the end of 1903 the cards had non-divided backs (1907 in the USA). It was forbidden to write anything other than the address on the back of the card (which in fact was the front as far as the post office was concerned). Correspondence (if any) was written on the front of the card. On some older cards there was plenty of white space by the image to allow for this.

Thanks for the service – not

2011-06-18T16:43:00.000+01:00

We started getting bad marks for communication on eBay. We couldn’t understand why, as we always let people know when we receive their payments and when we post out their postcards. Apparently eBay changed some of the services and you have to opt out if you don’t want them. What was happening ? After four days our customers were getting reminders to pay up or else. One woman was upset as she’d written to ask if we could wait a few days. Rob managed to find all of these services which had been added and deleted them. He also managed to alter a message he‘d wanted to change for a long time.

The moral of the story is: Don’t ignore emails from sites where you’ve signed up for services.

Whoops!

2011-04-22T11:33:00.000+01:00

In my previous post I forgot to put a link to our store. Thank you to those who pointed out my omission. A good opportunity for me to give the advice; make sure you leave the link to your website whenever you can.

Our store

We open our store

2011-04-04T17:52:00.000+01:00

At first we were wary of opening a store. After a while we could see more and more advantages. Rather than withdrawing a card that received no bids we could place it in our store, permanently on show until it sold. It was fun designing our store and choosing a logo; a beautifully coloured postcard of the port of La Rochelle. We were rather proud of ourselves. We created different categories for the postcards. Each card would appear in two sections, usually geographical and then theme.

A recent blip

2011-03-20T09:12:00.000Z

Something strange happened this past week or so; I’d be interested to know what everyone thinks about my theory. While I’m preparing a postcard to put on sale I prepare my keywords and then check with Google to see if the card is for sale anywhere else – and for how much. For a few days at the top of the search I was finding the page of a site with a list of postcards with similar keywords linked to ebay. Usually the links led to my own postcards listed on ebay. In one case there were images, many of which I recognized as my own. At the bottom of the page it was marked’ ebay affiliate’ – affiliate was wrongly spelt . Occasionally several these sites took up the first four or five places of the search. During this period our sales were down. these sites have disappeared and the sales are back to normal.

The pages weren’t very attractive and I can only image that anyone looking for postcards wouldn’t have bothered to click on them

Has anyone else had this problem?

Learning from mistakes

2011-03-02T14:16:00.002Z

We made some mistakes. Sometimes we bought cards because they were pretty. It’s not enough. When the postcards were originally issued the prettiest ones sold like hot cakes. They weren’t rare enough to be of any value. As time went by we learnt which cards sold and which ones didn’t. We learnt how to price them – not too cheap and not too expensive. By the time April 1st 2007 came around we had tested the market enough to know that we could do it. I’d made a business plan, thanks to my course, which proved that I could make the minimum wage. The important part was that I, we, enjoyed ourselves and were interested in what we were doing.

What to sell?

2011-02-27T10:02:00.000Z

In the beginning we knew that we could make a living online and we wanted to sell something on eBay, but what? Something that took little storage space, easy to pack up and post and that people wanted to buy. Something that we were interested in and knew something about. Rob, my husband already collected postcards of the department where we live. He was finding a lot of new cards on eBay. He noticed that as his collection grew, he had more than one of the same postcard. He started to sell the swaps on ebay... it wasn’t long before we realized that we could do this!

Before you start

2011-02-24T16:05:00.000Z

Before anyone starts up a business in our region in France they have to go on a ‘setting up a business course’. It’s a way of checking that would be entrepreneurs realise how difficult running a business can be. There are taxes and bills to pay, laws to abide, accounts to be kept, problems to avoid and so on. No one at the center where I took my course at the end of 2006 had ever heard of anyone setting up an eBay business before. The girl running the course was surprised to see how much information existed online. I wasn’t such an eccentric English woman after all….

Then of course there is the hard work involved that no one else can do but you. If you want to succeed you can’t start by taking the day off because you don’t feel like working. Support from family and friends is also very important. Forget 9 to 5. Anyway, that doesn’t matter if you’re doing something that you really want to do.

Thanksgiving Weekend

2010-11-24T20:33:00.000Z

This is my round up of gift ideas for Christmas

Christmasdepot.com: Sell Christmas lights all the year round, indoor and outdoor, lots of imaginative designs. Accessories and other decorations too Their artificial Christmas trees are made in America. Don’t Ship outside the U.S.

Abernook: lots of ideas for imaginative gifts for all of the family – all occasions. Now ship abroad

Timeless Message

Romantic,Intriguing, and Mysterious

Timeless Message In A Bottle: These are unique ‘Message in a Bottle’ gifts. For shipping outside the US you need to email them

AGiftPersonalized.com: Thousands of personalized gifts for every occasion you can imagine, especially Christmas. From Friday 26th to Monday 30th; Cyber Monday - Deal 25% off at A Gift Personalized, code 25offall

All About Gifts & Baskets: Amazing Gift Baskets and cookies galore,some for under $25! Only ship to mainland US

HipsandCurves.com: Oh la la lingerie for the larger lady – why should the slim ones have all the fun? Ship Internationally

www.AfterglowCosmetics.com: Natural and Organic beauty products. Get ready for the party season. FREE Priority Mail Shipping over $100, Ship to US and Canada only

Strapya Inc All the little bits and pieces to make your cell phone complete as well as anime. Look out for special offer codes. Ship worldwide

OrnamentShop: Choose from over 3000 personalised decorations for every occasion, especially Christmas; This is also the website where you will find real Piggy banks. Shipping to US only as far as I can see.

Time Flies!

2010-09-01T16:53:00.000+01:00

It’s already been four and a half years since I started up this blog. Unfortunately I haven’t posted as regularly as I should. It’s still interesting to look back and see what I was up to. Some of the companies I signed up for have gone now. We started selling Vintage French Postcards on ebay. I’ve also been paid to write about various products and websites. I wonder how much I’ve earnt over the years?

One of the best parts has been contact with other people who like me are trying to make a living on the internet. Hopefully I’ll find the time to write more regularly here and build up a better readership!

Investing in Gold Coins

2010-09-01T16:38:00.002+01:00

If you decide to invest in gold coins you have possession of your investment. As with any type of collection there are certain gold coins which are rarer than others. A coin is considered rare according to how many were produced, regardless of how long ago. Rare gold coins should be certified.

There are several sorts of gold coins all of varying prices; Gold American Eagle, Gold Vienna Philharmonics, Gold American Buffalos, Gold Canadian Maple Leafs and so on. Not only do they have value, they are also beautiful to look at.

If you’re considering investing in gold or any other precious metal it is important to seek the advice of a reputable dealer. The United States Gold Bureau has been in the business for decades so investors can be assured that their experts are qualified to give the best advice. Their highly valued clients come from all around the world.

Starting a collection

2010-08-25T20:05:00.002+01:00

As regular readers know, I now make my living by selling vintage French postcards. We get a lot of pleasure from finding new cards to put into our store on ebay. Unfortunately some cards aren’t that rare or aren’t in perfect condition. It’s hard to know what to do with them. A year or so ago we had the idea of putting them into groups of 50 and selling them, bidding starting at a euro. We didn’t expect to make a lot of money from them, but were amazed at how many people were interested in buying our groups of postcards. I try to include cards from different towns and villages with different views, i.e.; mountains, the sea, buildings, views of towns, bridges etc. They are ideal for people who want to start a collection.

I’ve also made other groups with fewer cards dnd different themes. This is the selection we have in our store at the moment. Sometimes they are used as gift tags or to make an interesting card for a special occasion, they could even be framed. Of course more expensive postcards make the ideal present for collectors. I also started a gift store using some of the cards.

Radio ExposeYourBlog!

2010-08-07T15:53:00.002+01:00

Did you know that ExposeYourBlog! now has it’s own radio station? All you need to do to listen is click on the link of your choice.

WinAmp/iTunes
Windows Media
Real Player
All others

This week you might catch DJ Don interviewing me about blogging and how I came to be involved with the new blog exchange ExposeYourBlog!

ExposeYourBlog.com

Buy Gold Coins

2010-07-29T15:10:00.001+01:00

Most investors have probably had close shaves over the last year or so because of problems with the international banking system. Now is a good time to go back to the values of old and consider buying gold. Not only does gold retain and even grow in value, it is beautiful to look at.

If you are looking for a way of protecting your personal wealth, with the help of the United States Gold Bureau, you can safely steer your way around the gold market. They may well advise you to buy gold coins. For as little as $10 you can start investing in a piece of gold. Coins come in a variety of designs such as American eagle coins, Gold American Buffalos or Gold Vienna Philharmonics.

The United States Gold Bureau are highly regarded by their clients from around the world. Staff at the United States Gold Bureau are experienced and can help and advise you in your investment choices. You can contact them via the website if you have questions or wish to place an order.

Working from home and family life

2010-07-29T15:06:00.001+01:00

Working from home sounds a very good idea to someone observing from the outside. There are disadvantages; as I’m finding this week. My grown-up daughter has come to stay for a while and it’s so difficult not to be distracted. It’s all too easy to start a conversation and find that most of the morning has slipped away and no work done. If I worked out side the home there would not be this problem. I would go out and see her when I came back again in the evening. It’s very important to establish family rules when you start working from home.

Time marches on

2010-07-28T18:13:00.000+01:00

Finding time to blog has to be put to one side at times. However I have been looking after my ‘private life’ blogs. My main news is that I’ve been involved in setting up a brand new blog exchange. Just about the only surviving blog exchange that was left was BlogExplosion Unfortunately it had been sold on the a mega enterprise and left to fend for itself. Their was no administration to fix problems and most of the site is not working properly; Some of the people I met in the forums over there set up ExposeYourBlog! at the beginning of June. Since then, membership has been growing slowly but surely. There is an excellent admin staff (including me) and between us we can offer just about 24 hour support. ExposeYourBlog is for blogs, not business sites so if you’re interested why not come and have a look?
ExposeYourBlog!

Buy Gold Bars

2010-05-01T15:08:00.002+01:00

Most people are aware that since very early times gold has always been valuable. It certainly makes good sense to invest in something that will hold its value.

Today, more than ever, there are two good reasons to invest in gold. Firstly countries like China are developing at a rapid rate which means that their demand for commodities such as gold and silver will grow rapidly too. Demand raises the price. The second reason is that since the economy began having its recent troubles more investors are looking for a safe investment. Gold is there, you can see it and touch it. Many investors are watching the gold market very closely at the moment, looking for opportunities.

Gold is best bought in the form of bullion. The United States Gold Bureau is an excellent place to start finding out about gold. You can also buy gold bars and coins as well as silver and platinum and other rare coins from them. All done safe in the knowledge that you are buying from a trusted authority.

Three years already?

2010-05-01T14:41:00.003+01:00

The 1st April marked the third anniversary of my setting up my own business selling vintage postcards on eBay. I feel that it is pretty good going that I’m still alive and kicking after so long. In France half of the businesses set up don’t make the 5 year mark.

The main contributer, to who I’m really thankful, is my husband. Without all of his help and encouragement I wouldn’t be writing about this today. I remember when I was on the course set up for new entrepreneurs It was stressed that support from the family and friends is a very important factor - and they weren’t talking about money!

We now have over 3000 postcards in our shop - look!

Afterglow Cosmetics

2010-05-01T14:36:00.001+01:00

It’s with pleasure that I’m writing about the recent changes to the website of Afterglow Cosmetics. A click on the “What’s new” link is proof that it’s not just the website that has been refreshed. New products for the summer of 2010 are aptly entitled “Sun-Drenched”. There is also a new range or creamy under-eye concealers.

Afterglow products don’t contain parabens, bismuth, soy, petro-chemicals….and other products which could be harmful or irritate the skin. They can be used by vegans and vegetarians and are certified cruelty free. Afterglow Cosmetics are natural, fashionable products which respect the women who use them as well as the environment

Investing in Silver Coin

2009-10-21T19:41:00.001+01:00

Monaco Rare Coin specialise in the market of rare silver coins. Monaco is part of the Monex Group so that you can rest assured of the quality and availability of the types of silver coin offered for sale. Monex specialise in the investment of gold, silver and platinum coins and other bullion products

Monaco staff are highly trained and experienced so give the best investment advice available anywhere. What else could you expect after nearly 40 years in the rare coin market?

Ask today for your free trail subscription, to “The Rare Coin Insider”. With this and the aid of your Monaco Account representative you will have access to opportunities, advice and information which you will not find online. A reassuring start to your future investments.

5 months later...

2009-10-21T19:16:00.001+01:00

Unfortunately for this blog I’ve been working hard on my ebay business. This has included a couple of business/pleasure trips which were appreciate as we haven’t had a holiday for a few years. We’ve managed to improve the quality of the vintage postcards we’ve been selling and, after two and a half years, feel that we are building up a regular client base. It’s still hard work and we daren’t stop now that the momentum is going. Fortunately we can run our business from anywhere there is an internet connection.

A little rant

2009-05-01T19:39:00.001+01:00

It seems a lot of younger bloggers are agreeing amongst themselves to click on each others AdSense ads. This is considered as fraud and your account will be closed. Reread the rules. You did read them the first time round when you signed up, didn’t you? One of the reasons why I feel strongly about this is as I run Adwords ads myself I’m the one who’s footing the bill for this practise, I have to pay every time that one of my ads is clicked on. Though Google do adjust costs now and then to compensate. The idea of AdSense is to provide ads which are relevant to the blog posts appearing at the time so that advertisers are confident that their ads are being seen by a public who are interested in their products.

If you do get banned from AdSense you can appeal. Be careful to keep your appeal within the limits of the word allowance or your unfinished appeal will automatically launch itself. You lose any money owed to you as well – as explained in the rules when you sign up (see above).

Tempted by gold?

2009-05-01T16:29:00.001+01:00

For centuries gold has been recognised as a safe way of preserving wealth. Today, more than ever before, it is important to invest carefully so that savings retain their value. Gold really comes into it’s own for this purpose, as well as being beautiful to look at. Gold can be bought on the forms of ingots or coins. American eagle gold coins are one of the most popular coins for buying gold as an investment. These coins are in fact, legal tender and have a face value of $50. Gold bars can be bought 10-ounce, 32.15 troy ounce and the 10-ounce gold bullion ingot, all are hallmarked which is a way of certifying the weight and purity of each bar.

Where to buy your gold? It is best to buy though an experienced company like Monex with a specially trained staff in the field who are there to help guide you through your choices, organise delivery and safe storage. Their representatives are always available to discuss the addition of gold to your investments.

How to get things done (Short and sweet version)

2009-04-07T09:08:00.001+01:00

I'm very good at not getting things done.

I suddenly realised where I’m blocked . At the beginning of a task I see a long chain of events which need carrying out. This always seems overwhelming to me. I must remind myself; once a task is started it’s not long before you’re half way through - and once you’re halfway through you’re almost finished!

Now I must sit down and try to work out why I got blocked in the first place….

BlogExplosion - It worked!

2009-03-05T15:16:00.000Z

Thank you to everyone who took the time to write to the owners. I don’t think we’ll ever know how many letters there were. It’s good to know that people can pull together and obtain results.

We now have a new administrator who has been given powers to clean up the forums. The spam has gone so if you have a question it is more likely to be seen and answered by someone. Why not pop by and say hello.

The administrator has many tasks to catch up on. Hopefully soon we’ll be able to allow more volunteers help with approvals, both of blogs and banners. There is a huge a pile of unanswered tickets to deal with and information to be updated. All of this will take time. For more details see the forums.

Blogexplosion: The time has come

2009-02-15T18:29:00.001Z

A letter has been composed for everyone to send out to the company that owns Blogexplosion on 20th February, you can copy the letter from here.

Or you might prefer to go here for more instructions and access to a rich text format of the letter. I think anyone outside the US would probably like to send their letters a little earlier. The addresses are supplied. Just pick who you would like to address your letter to.

There is no reason why you shouldn’t compose your own letter if you want to. Please be polite. A lot of effort has gone into this project by people who care about the blogging community. If you belong to BlogExplosion, please help.

And yes, you will be seeing this post on all of my blogs

Thanks to thewatchlist, MJTaylor Spicybugz, bokonon, kelson, SelinaKimsey, sightlydrunk, bluegrassBloggo, McSpazz, lando411 and others I have surely missed for keeping the forums looking like forums. A special thanks to thewatchlist and MJTaylor who have put in all of the work for the letter.

What happened next

2008-11-07T06:59:00.001Z

Continuing the eBay story. As you may know from previous posts I declared myself as a professional eBayer and started up a business of my own in April 2007. We were encouraged to do this by eBay and Paypal and I was at the end of unemployment benefit. This year eBay announced that they didn’t expect sellers to become professionals until they were earning 2000€ a month! If you are earning that kind of money that is considered as a reasonable salary here. Do we assume that people are earning that in their spare time? As well as a salary from another job? I know that we have to work hard to earn our money, which is nowhere near 2000€ a month. My advice to anyone thinking of taking up eBay as a way of life is sell expensive items. It’s very hard to make a living on low price articles. Fortunately Rob and I are passionate about the postcards we sell

Update on the shop

2008-10-01T20:42:00.001+01:00

In May we opened our eBay shop as there had been some changes to the eBay system of charges. The charging system changed back and we kept the shop on. In August we had reached our 1000th postcard in the shop. We are selling postcards in the shop at a steady trickle and covering our costs. We’re still waiting for feedback on the May experiment with the charges. It certainly saved us some money. I’ll be writing in a later post about what happened next…

Sex and the City Contest

2008-09-18T20:22:00.000+01:00

If you’re a fan of the show Sex and the City and you live in the UK, you could be the lucky winner of a DVD box set and two tickets to see the film. All you need to do is click on the link here and enter your email address. Good luck!

Rare and beautiful

2008-07-24T17:36:00.002+01:00

Collectors of rare coins might be interested in one of the Monex companies; Monaco Rare Coin. Not only will you find an exceptional collection of rare coins but you will also benefit from the usual expertise of Monex’s highly trained experienced staff. For those who have never thought of collecting rare coins it is an excellent way of investing and with the help of a company like Monaco Rare Coin you can build a portfolio with confidence.

Beautiful rare gold coins are amongst the most popular items which you will find on the website. Coins struck many years ago with a short history of how they came into being. Fascinating as well as beautiful. You can also apply for a free trial subscription to “The Rare Coin Insider” which gives invaluable advice on the market.

A year ago already?

2008-07-24T17:24:00.001+01:00

Looking through my archives for inspiration I discovered that it is just a year ago that the computer blew up. Fortunately we didn’t lose anything that was in the memory but it was a close call. We’ve also learnt to make sure that the ventilation system is kept clear of dust etc. I now own a USB key and have learnt how to use it. Every cloud has a silver lining

Too many emails

2008-07-24T17:10:00.000+01:00

Whenever I’m really busy, which I have been recently. I notice that my emails suddenly become very busy too. If I’m up straight with nothing to do, you can bet your bottom dollar that there will be no emails to read at all. Over that last couple of years I’ve leant how to appreciate the unsubscribe facility at the bottom of an email. It’s all too easy to sign up with what seems like good ideas at the time.

Drug guide software

2008-07-23T15:17:00.001+01:00

Have you ever thought about how complicated the process of prescribing the right drugs for the right patient must be? Today there are so many drugs and treatments in use that it is very easy indeed to have interactions amongst various drugs which could be dangerous to the patient. Physicians cannot be expected to memorise every drug with every interaction and anyway new drugs are coming into use all the time. This is where Epocrates comes in.

Epocrates drug guide software is indispensable for health care professionals. The free medical PDA download is formatted to be used with Palm, Win Mobile, iPhone, Win Smartphone and now Blackberry devices. Also included are free updates and the latest medical news which are simple to download. A visit to the website enables users to check the compatibility of different mobile devices.

This announcement was paid for by Epocrates.

Shareasale

2008-07-23T15:10:00.002+01:00

My favourite advertising Network has to be Shareasale. Every month there are lots of new products to promote and they are also one of the networks available on Popshops. Statistics and information on sales are clear and easy to find. Payments are made every month on the dot. There are lots of links to follow for stats, tools, widgets and information plus a forum and a blog. I’m very satisfied with the last 18 or so months that I’ve been with shareasale.com.

Real Estate

2008-07-23T15:01:00.000+01:00

R is for Real Estate. A very topical subject throughout the Western world at the moment. I expect you’ve noticed lots of real estate schemes and products springing up everywhere on the internet and elsewhere. As always be careful, there are a lot of unscrupulous people out there ready to take advantage of the financial climate as it is at the moment.

If it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

School of Cosmetology

2008-06-28T13:02:00.001+01:00

Graduates from the Regency Beauty Institute are recognised for their high quality training and are sought after all over the United States! Regency was founded in Minneapolis over 50 years ago and now has over 30 campuses with beauty schools across nine states and is still growing.

During their training, Regency’s students provide salon services to the public under careful supervision. Creativity, self confidence and excellence are the three important qualities Regency instil into their program. When students have finished their training, the Regency Careers Services team can help place them in many different high quality salons thanks to Regency’s unique relationship with industry partners.

R is for Right

2008-06-28T13:00:00.001+01:00

I needed some inspiration for the continuation of the Alphabet Challenge, already at ‘R’! As usual I turned to Google for help and advice (what did I do in the old days? – I wonder). I came up with ‘R’ is for Right. This is very true. When you are promoting someone else’s products it’s very important to feel right about what you are doing.

As it happens I’ve already written about the subject here.

How many units?

2008-06-28T12:47:00.002+01:00

During the last few months I've been helping out approving blogs for BlogExplosion. This blog doesn’t appear there because affiliate blogs aren’t allowed. I’ve recently noticed a lot of blogs with far too many advertisements – again not allowed - and many of them include a lot of AdSense units. I’d be interested to know if any of these last very long with AdSense as they are pretty hot on over exposure. Has anyone ever been contacted by AdSense over this?

You can read here why I don’t have AdSense on my blogs.

Wedding help

2008-06-28T12:20:00.001+01:00

Everyone knows how important it is to get the most important day, the wedding, just right. There is so much planning ahead to be done it’s difficult to know whether every detail has been remembered. It’s not as if most people get much practise at planning their own weddings (hopefully!).

Brides and Grooms have been using the WeddingChannel.com website to find Wedding Ideas and guidance since 1997. There are free to use interactive, planning tools, which combined with expert advice help to make planning a wedding as easy and stress free as possible.

The site is designed so that you can easily find what you are looking for whether it be help with calculating a budget, finding the wedding dress of your dreams, how to word invitations correctly, gifts for bridesmaids, honeymoon destinations and much more. There is a celebrity wedding blog and a peek at ‘real’ weddings if you are looking for inspiration. In fact everything you need to create a wedding day to be enjoyed and remembered forever.

Kind Cosmetics

2008-06-28T12:18:00.000+01:00

Now that summer has come around it’s a good idea to look at new cosmetics. A suntan means a chance to wear and try out new colours and textures. This could be just the right time to visit Afterglow Cosmetics and look at their pure organic, natural and mineral products free from the nasty additives you find elsewhere. Not only are they kind to the skin but they come in a range of beautiful colours – just right for the summer!

Stickman where are you?

2008-06-20T15:22:00.000+01:00

I can’t be the only one in the whole world who misses Stickman Hits. I’ve tried Google and they seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth. Does anyone know why they disappeared? Were they the victims of hackers? It’s a pity to see a traffic exchange go, especially one that was so smooth and well organised.

I miss that little man waving at me and telling me I’d won bonus credits.

Silver; not just jewelry.

2008-06-20T14:34:00.001+01:00

Most silver is actually produced as a by product of the mining of minerals like copper, gold, lead and zinc. silver has the highest electrical conductivity of any of the elements and the highest thermal conductivity of any known metal which is why it is used to make electrical contacts and conductors. Silver compounds are used in photographic film and silver nitrate and compounds are used as disinfectants and are today used to fight the antibiotic-resistant micro organisms which cause .MRSA The major world producers of silver are Peru and Mexico.

As well as being used to make jewelry, silverware (tableware) and ornaments, silver is a popular form of investment. Now is a good time to invest in silver as demand exceeds production. You can purchase silver in the form of ingots or coins from Monex Precious Metals. Monex have been dealing in precious metals for over 30 years now and the staff are experienced and dedicated to helping investors meet their investment needs.

Artscow

2008-06-11T15:03:00.001+01:00

Summer is coming and it’s traditionally the time when we take the most photos of our families and places we visit on vacation. Artscow is a site where you can create loads of goodies from your digital photos. Create mouse pads, clocks, shirts, mugs, buttons magnets and a whole lot more - great ideas for gifts.

If you join now you can receive 400 Free Photo Prints, including 200 4x6s and 200 5x7s, PLUS 1 free 8x8 custom cover photo book, that is for new registrans only. There are also extra 120 Free 8x10 prints if you use the coupon code: 120FREE8X10, you need to claim/validate in the "Credit & Discount" after login.

The plagiarism checker!

2008-05-25T15:08:00.002+01:00

I saw a request for an article the other day which asked that you ran your writing through a plagiarism checker before submitting it! Well I wondered about this. I know that universities use this as students can easily buy ready written articles off the net these days. I was pleasantly surprised to see that you could do this for free and so tried out the beginning of this post. I was limited to how many words I could check in one go and found – nothing. The checker I used came up with similar ideas on Google so I then I copied the words from one of the other articles that came up. Low and behold, it showed that the words had been copied. This was quite a simple way of checking and of course will only work on words published online. You can do this straight onto Google but there is a limit to the number of words you can fit in. Occasionally I write for companies that I have written for in the past, this could be useful to check that I am not duplicating my own ideas – word for word!

Hmmm - another one for the letter 'P'

Paintball

2008-05-25T15:04:00.001+01:00

Since 2003, Zephyr Sports have been suppliers of paintball equipment. In the form of ZephyrPaintball.com, well known as the leading online specialists who can supply everything paintballers need such as guns, paintballs, field gear, goggles, hats, jerseys, safety gear and other accessories from brands such as Dye, JT USA, Kingman, PMI, Empire,Zap, Nelson, Maddog Designz, Proto… Zephyr strive to give customers a trouble free and smooth online buying experience. Prices are low and certain products even have free shipping!

Some of the best equipment is to be found in the tippmann range, whether you are a beginner looking for a starter package or a professional paintball player, Tippmann have a gun for you. Check out the website to find out more product information or look at new items in stock

Start with the shell and bulk it out!

2008-05-25T14:40:00.000+01:00

I came across an article a while ago about how to write articles. The main advice was to look at any information you have been given and then write out the first ideas you have. After that examine more closely anything else you can find on the subject. Once you’ve done that you should be able to fill out your ideas into a decent sized article. This was what I had been doing anyway. If a sentence or idea comes to me I get it down straight away. I can move it to the beginning or end, make it shorter or longer later on. I look things up, Google to see what angles other people have used on the same subject (but never copy), see what unusual ideas I can come up with. I enjoy myself finding out. Depending on how many words you’re asked to write, tailor your research. It’s no use having pages and pages of notes if you’re only expected to write a couple of hundred words!

My Top Five

2008-05-24T20:14:00.002+01:00

As I mentioned in my previous post about Paypal, I have a great idea for this post. My top five internet inventions. The first two or three are easy but then it gets a little harder.

1. Emails: Can you remember what life was like before you could send an email? If you have children who have just left home it’s the ideal way of keeping in touch, even if they are brief. E mails don’t have to be formal in the way that a normal business letter does, though spelling and grammar should always be correct.

2. Paypal: A great way to pay out and receive money on line, a must for anyone running a business who has a website. You can trade with people all over the world

3. eBay: Now that the environment is regarded with more respect what better way to recycle that by selling on eBay? Place your advertisement sit back and wait for the bids to come in. Well, it’s not exactly as simple as that, but you get the idea. Like me, many people are now running eBay businesses. If you are shy about having a go there are very good step by step instructions. If you are thinking of selling it’s recommended you buy first in order to get those points which indicate you are serious. You get a point for every successful purchase or sale.

4. Google: In my line of business I often need historical or geographical information as quickly as possible. It would be impossible to own all of the reference books I have at my fingertips when I type in Google’s address. I can also check up how popular my own sites are, find lost friends, learn, look at images and just play games!

5. Blogging: I can’t tell you how many friends I’ve made over the last five years since I’ve been blogging. A blog is a great way to express yourself how ever old or young you are. You can show off pictures, write poetry, rant and rave, share a particular interest or just talk about your own country, town or village. The introduction of comment boxes has opened up a whole new way of communicating with like minded people and friends.

What about you? What would be your top five? If you decide to write a post about them please let me know.

Medical supplies online

2008-05-24T20:11:00.001+01:00

Allegro Medical remains in the forefront of online retailers of medical supplies. The company launched its first website as long ago as 1998 and has expanded over the years in order to add many new product ranges and services.

Recently RSS feed has been added together with blogs so that customers have the most up to date information on products and ideas. There are facilities for the set up of Auto reorder for customers who need regular supplies. As there are 50 categories of goods which means 55,000 products to choose from, clients have the choice to shop by medical condition, brand, featured products, well being and there are even gift ideas…all with speedy delivery.

On the front page of the website you will always find featured products and at the time of writing, sale prices

Payments part II

2008-05-24T20:10:00.001+01:00

We have a growing international clientele and there is non better that Paypal as far as we’re concerned. The main part being that Paypal coverts different currencies from all over the world, at a reasonable rate. Then there is the speed. We often receive payments within seconds of an auction finishing on eBay. Normally goods are posted out within 24 hours on working days. Everyone is happy that way. Paypal has been one of the better internet inventions to my mind.

Which gives me a great idea for another post…!

Payments

2008-05-24T18:12:00.001+01:00

P is an excellent letter to arrive at in the Alphabet Challenge because then you can write about the word ‘payment’. Isn’t that what it’s all about? We get a lot of payments by cheque, sometimes postage stamps and occasionally cash. Can anyone explain to me why people wrap banknotes in aluminium foil before posting them off? Those methods are all fine for local and national sales. There is a slight risk of post being lost but it is very rare.

To be continued...

Personal Injuries

2008-05-24T18:07:00.001+01:00

For those who live in Nebraska it’s a comforting thought that if ever you are involved in an accident, whether it be a motor accident of any kind, or farm, construction or workplace, even an accident which occurs in leisure hours; there is a home grown personal injury lawyer available. Larry R. Dermerath left Nebraska to serve in Vietnam as a member of the US Air force in his youth. Other than that he studied at Wayne State College and the Univerity of Nebraska and has practised as an Omaha Accident Attorney for the last 35 years with the Demerath Law Office.

Larry is an experienced and effective claim negotiator who keeps his clients fully informed on the progress of their case. As he is highly esteemed for his skill in the courtroom, settlements are quickly resolved. If you require help with a personal injury campaign you can have a free consultation when you contact Larry’s office.

Tempus Fugit

2008-05-24T14:20:00.000+01:00

I can’t believe how fast the time is going at the moment. Already heading towards the end of May and what sounds like a tropical storm raining down on us at the moment. There are so many things to be dome and so many projects to follow up. As I’m supervising exams at the local school of commerce at the moment my daily routine is all to shot. The school of commerce has expanded so much in recent years, the exams now cover a period of two months instead of a fortnight 8 years ago. I’ve just had to lower my expectations of what I get done. In June we have a local auction to attend which I’m really looking forward to even though it will take up a whole day when the morning is spent on viewing.

eBay Shop now open!

2008-05-22T14:12:00.001+01:00

Anyone who reads any of my four blogs on Blogspot for the next day or so will see this identical post. After humming and ha-ing for several months Rob and I have decided to open an eBay Shop for our postcards. A lot of people have asked why we haven’t done it before. The simple reason is that we sell small price items and a shop isn’t always viable in that case. As there have been recent changes to charging on ebay accounts for professionals in France we thought we’d give it a go.

If you have a moment could you please have a look and tell me what you think of the colour scheme etc. I know it’s in French, that’s our main market, although we do sell all over the world. Please leave a comment if you have anything to say or a question on any of the cards.

Thanks

Very special timepieces

2008-05-14T16:30:00.001+01:00

Chopard is the name of a company which was founded in Switzerland in 1860 by Louis-Ulysse Chopard when he was 24 years old. His timepieces were made with his motto “Quality with the maximum possible work by hand.” In mind. His watches soon acquired an excellent reputation for precision.

Today a visit to the Chopard site reveals a selection of beautiful watches for men and women and for every occasion. There are watches designed for sporting activities, elegant classic watches and Happy Watches with very different and unique designs. The Haute Joaillerie watches are gem set and breathtakingly beautiful. There is a chopard watch to fit every occasion and taste.

In recent years there have been changes at Chopard. Karl Scheufele took over the business in the 60s which meant innovations leading to success and notoriety in recent years and a more extensive choice for the connoisseur watch buyer and collector. Today’s watches are crafted to the same technically rigorous standards.

Chopard is present at many glittering events such as official partner at the annual Cannes Film festival. Who else could be the official timekeeper of the Grand Prix de Monaco? Chopard have associated themselves with Elton John to create The Chopard Elton John Aids Foundation watch collection. When a watch is purchased in this collection a portion of the proceeds is donated towards the foundation’s work.

May 2006, 2007

2008-05-14T15:46:00.001+01:00

This blog is over two years old now. I’ve been having a look into the past. Two years ago my husband Rob started selling a few vintage postcards on ebay. A year later I created my own business. Our printer got clogged up with paper; HP sorted it out really quickly and we haven’t had a problem since.

A year later I’d just attended an incredible auction with some very interesting odds and ends – including post cards. France was at the beginning of life with a new president. A man who is more dynamic than the previous president but he’s finding it very hard indeed to make any sorts of changes.

Life continues more or less the same….

Google yourself!

2008-05-14T15:35:00.000+01:00

Have you ever tried putting your own name into Google? It’s interesting to see what comes out and sometimes who is talking about you! I try using my name Anji plus my surname. Then Angela plus my surname then my maiden name. To be more precise it’s better to put your name into quotation marks – if you use keywords a lot you’ll know that already. This information can sometimes be useful, you can see in what direction you are headed, what kind of sites are interested enough in yours to link or mention.

Don't lose out again

2008-05-08T13:57:00.001+01:00

Many people have had financial problems recently because of the housing market and banks over-lending. These people have always been careful and thoughtful about financial affairs and yet they have still lost out. For those that have had their fingers burnt there is still an option of investment which is sure and indeed has always been a sure way to protect wealth – gold.

If you own gold you have something which is internationally recognised and can be bought and sold worldwide. Different sizes of bullion bars can be bought, but many investors choose to buy gold in the form of American Eagle gold coins. Eagle coins were the first gold coins produced in America. Today’s gold coins are available through Monex in four different sizes. Monex have a professional staff ready to advise and arrange the buying, delivery and storage of gold purchased though them.

Something very different

2008-05-08T13:52:00.002+01:00

Perpetual Kid is where you can go to entertain you inner child and at the moment they are holding the spring sale, with many interesting price reductions. If you’re still looking around for a mother’s day gift, this might just be the place to look: There are Heart Egg Molders, Play-Doh Cologne Spray, Understand Your Mother Breath Spray and Yes Dear Mugs to name a few

If you’re into politics what about a Hillary Clinton nutcracker! Bush doggie treats, Bacon Wallets, Dum Gum and Create a Commie kits amongst others are all available now. What a way to impress your friends! – Whether or not you’d keep them afterwards is for you to know.

Posting

2008-05-08T11:31:00.000+01:00

Something I haven’t done much of recently on this blog I'm afraid. Fits in nicely with the alphabet challenge. Yes, ‘P’ is for posting. You can do all sorts of things, even spend money, in order to make your blog popular, but it all boils down to regular posting. Visitors drop off like dead flies if you can’t keep them coming regularly because they know that there is something fresh to read. Some writers who have had breaks in their blogging due to circumstances beyond their control find that they have to let people know that they are back and running again. I’ll try harder in future….

Medical supplies and other services

2008-04-15T15:27:00.000+01:00

For many people who require long term medical care a reliable and safe supplier is very important. Since 1996 Allegro Medical have been providing medical supplies and life enhancing services.

Today their website has been designed to help customers find their way through the thousands of products now available, which also include Exercise and fitness equipment, dietary supplements, maternity and baby supplies as well as outdoor gear. Shopping can be done by category, for example Children/paediatric, diabetic supplies, daily living aids, treatment furniture and so on. Or you can choose to search by condition; i.e. Asthma, headache, stroke, weight gain, Knee Pain, Obesity, to name but a few. The home page always shows a selection of featured products. RSS feed helps customers to keep up with changes as well as the Allegro news section. There is plenty of help on the site in the form of product guides and Auto Re-Order can be implemented for products which are regularly required.

Another 'O'

2008-04-15T14:52:00.001+01:00

I was really pleased to come up with another ‘o’ when checking through my campaigns. I’d had some success with this one and I think I’ll give it another run. Ornament Shop offer personalised ornaments and gifts for all occasions. My favourite category is the Piggy Bank section with Piggy Banks especially for babies first Piggy Banks amongst others. An excellent gift for a new baby which is different - though not to play with!

O is next

2008-04-15T14:34:00.002+01:00

Omnistar Interactive is the next company I’m going to feature as part of my Alphabet challenge.

Omnistar provide affordable PHP software solutions used by many web based businesses. They are easy to install and include a wide number of features needed by companies in order to remain competitive in today’s market. Customisable products include; email software for managing campaigns and auto responders, help desk softwear for live chat, ticket support etc., job recruiter software, shopping cart, management of web based affiliate programs, domain name registration services and much more. Everything you need to run a web based business successfully and possibly some features you probably hadn’t though of.

Recycled engines and transmissions

2008-04-14T18:13:00.001+01:00

I think that you would have to have slept like old Rip Van Winkle did if you aren’t aware how important recycling is today. With a little imagination most things can be re used or recycled. One of the items taking over the planet faster that anyone could ever have imagined is cars, so doesn’t it make sense to recycle and re use as much of them as possible?

midwest auto recycling are a company which specialises in recycling car engines and transmissions. All of the work carried out by this company is thoroughly checked, cleaned and tested and miles are Carfax verified There are many engines and transmissions for all types of cars listed, most with a standard 12 month warranty. New stock is being added to the inventory all of the time.

Tattoo care

2008-04-14T17:49:00.002+01:00

Tattoos are popular for everyone nowadays and there are some beautiful designs. If you have a tattoo, have you thought about how to look after it? Biker Skin Care Products have a product called Tattoo Boost in their spring sale at the moment. Tattoo Boost is especially designed to make your tattoo look brand new again. When used on new tattoos it helps to preserve them. Tattoo Boost is so effective that care must be taken if using on cover up tattoos. It may bring out parts of the older tattoo!

Biker Skin Care Products also include a special SPF30 sunscreen for bikers. Kaboom foot Powder and Boot Blast help to prevent food odor and keep feet more comfortable.

Up to date

2008-04-14T17:36:00.000+01:00

It’s been a while since I posted which isn’t good for my blog but it’s a good sign for me. I’ve been busy. We’ve got another postcard auction coming up in June and I’ve got 7 weeks of exam supervising coming up. The local school of commerce has expanded so much in the last ten years. Exams have to be spread over a longer period in order to fit everyone in. Students come and go all over the world; perhaps you might have met one!

Business communications problems solved

2008-04-02T15:02:00.000+01:00

For any business, whether big or small, good communications are of the utmost importance. Nimbus VoIP Phone Systems and web based voice services are user friendly business phone systems which operate via broadband connection . This gives user companies control over how they use their phone systems and where they use them, anywhere in the world. Costs are lowered as call pass via internet connection. There are non of the problems associated with regular phone systems and the systems and services are said to be hurricane proof!

The systems are provided by Xpander Communications a company with over 20 years experience in telecommunications. They take pride in providing solutions for each clients communications needs.

A visit to the website will answer and questions regarding this system and you can see yourself the problems which were overcome by other companies when using Nimbus VoIp phone systems.

Are you aiming for the right target?

2008-04-02T14:35:00.001+01:00

It’s no use trying to sell to the wrong audience!

I volunteered recently to help with the backlog of blogs waiting for approval on Blog Explosion. It’s a long job and it’s not helped at all by around 60% of blogs waiting in the queue not being suitable – indeed some of them have already closed down. A lot of blogs are money making blogs which aren't allowed there. It’s funny that their owners are asking to be approved at Blog Explosion when there are in fact many more traffic exchanges for online entrepreneurs and it’s also an excellent way of finding out what’s happening on the internet. If you search this blog you’ll find information and links on my favourites.

Birthday Month

2008-03-14T10:44:00.001Z

Recipe Clicks is celebrating it’s first birthday throughout the month of March. Coupled with that it’s also the birthday of Recipe clicks owner , Katrina on the 31st!

Throughout the month there are a lot of specials being offered, special draws with great prizes, bonus credits and banner impressions to be won, prizes when surfing, referral contest with generous prizes and there is even a Daily Special. On top of this you can see some interesting site when surfing which is what traffic exchanges are all about

I almost forgot the recipes, to keep the party mood there are recipes for finger foods and dips. Why not check it all out?

silver

2008-03-14T10:28:00.000Z

As well as being beautiful to look at, silver has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal. Silver has been used since ancient times for making jewelry, tableware and ornaments. Silver today is also used in all sorts of industries and even has powers to disinfect!

Silver is a metal which makes good investment sense, demand is now exceeding production and stockpiles are low. Silver is available for investment in the form of coins or ingots which can be purchased through Monex Precious Metals. The staff at Monex are especially experienced in the field of aiding clients investment needs. They can even arrange the delivery and storage of silver whenever required.

Not that trashy!

2008-03-14T10:06:00.000Z

Keywords help us to sell and customers to find. For a while now I’ve been selling lingerie for larger ladies. I think that the products are tasteful and cater for all. I was checking up on a sale the other day and was surprised to find the keywords “trashy underwear for larger women” had been used. I hadn’t selected ‘trashy’ as a keyword myself so I was a little surprised.

Anyway the products they purchased couldn’t have been that trashy or they wouldn’t have purchased them…

The Straight Talking Man

2008-02-21T14:57:00.001Z

Another way that I make money is by giving English lessons (not so much a stream of income as a trickle). One of the book extracts I like to use is from “Talking Straight” by Lee Iacocca; Lee Iacocca is the man who revived the Chrysler Corporation in the 80s. In the extract from the book he predicts that the use of computers will come to nothing. I have to remind my students that in the late 80s computers in the home were used a lot of the time for playing games. Mr. Iacocca was very keen that young people read in order to be able to form opinions and communicate.

Computers have certainly changed since he wrote his book. I hope that he approves of the way that children and young people use computers for research and finding out about a wide variety of subjects which before would have required access to a good library. As for reading and writing. Just look at the wealth of blogs and forums where young people exchange ideas and opinions. True, spelling and grammar sometimes take a backseat, you can’t have everything…..

I was impressed when reading about Lee Iacocca on Wikipedia by the amount of work he has done actively supporting research into diabetes after the death of his first wife, Mary. He’s also appeared and is sometimes referred to, in many films.

How about a used car from Used Cars Austin, Texas?

2008-02-21T14:50:00.002Z

Have you ever considered all of the advantages of buying a used car? The car market in the US is booming at the moment so more people are trading in their cars sooner for new models. This means that there are excellent cars which are nearly new on the market. A used car doesn’t depreciate in the way a new one does. Buyers can also afford a better model with more extras than they would have if choosing a new car. Used cars cost less to insure. Sometimes the car is new enough for the original warranty to be transferred.

The Quality Auto Group has a website which specialises in Used Cars Austin, Texas where you can browse thousands and thousands of used cars. With a few clicks of the mouse you can choose types of vehicle, make, model and year. All of Quality Auto Group’s used cars are thoroughly inspected by certified mechanics so that you can be assured of the best quality service.

I have a question...

2008-02-12T20:23:00.000Z

Can someone please explain to me what has happened? When I started to advertise on AdWords there were no problems about display URLs or bidding on names as keywords. I had some successful campaigns going and I presume the companies were pleased with the leads or sales I got for them.

Looking for campaigns nowadays is very different, there are keyword restrictions, instructions about not going directly through to the website, sometimes you aren’t allowed to use ‘search’ at all. Occasionally I’ve had emails saying that the campaign has been withdrawn from ‘search’. I always thought that the idea of advertising was to sell.

Have we been too successful for our own good? Are we getting through advertising budgets too quickly?

Free Coffee!

2008-02-08T20:25:00.000Z

If you love coffee you’ll love the latest offer from Boca Java. Try 4 complimentary bags of coffee, just pay for shipping Yes, the coffee is free! Don’t hesitate as I’m sure this offer won’t be up for long. Boca Java sell an excellent range of teas, coffees and cocoas online.

The test of time

2008-02-06T19:39:00.000Z

Recent events throughout the world have confirmed to a lot of people interested in investment that it is difficult to find a ‘sure fire’ way of investing hard earned money. Fortunately there still exists the option of investing in gold.

Throughout time gold has always been admired for its beauty and used as a form of investment which holds its value well. The Monex Deposit Company (MDC) have been helping investors choose the right form of gold to buy to suit their investment needs for over 30 years. Monex staff are highly trained professionals dedicated to giving the best advice on investing, buying and storage of gold in the forms currently available.

What's on my desk?

2008-02-06T10:00:00.000Z

I spend most of the day using the computer so I like it to be reasonably clear when I’m working. Papers always seem to gravitate to where I’m working. I’m very good at noting a number or keyword down on whatever comes to hand. There are two pieces of paper in front of me as I write

Our computer screen stands on the top of 6 books. Rob took part in a heath and safety course last year and decided that the screen was too low. I wonder myself if three more volumes might not help too. The AOL box is on the left of me as I write – handy if I need to use the phone; I can chat and surf at the same time. There are pens, pencils a rubber and a stick of glue. I don’t know why the glue is here. Often there is the CD that I am listening to as I write, today the music is on the computer; Aretha Franklin (The best Of).

There is a telephone notepad, Robs watch with the broken strap, Midtown Madness 2, A piece of card to be used as packaging with Tom Sellack as Magnum smiling at me (I’ll probably keep that one), post-its, our super magnifying glass for studying details on postcards, two postcards in the process of preparation, 1 speaker.

On the top shelf besides the lamp there are three replicas of the towers of La Rochelle. I can’t stand them!!! – I don’t have it all my own way…

Till the end of the month...

2008-02-02T15:25:00.000Z

Sometimes you need to borrow money just to tide your over till the end of the month in a emergency situation. For this purpose a payday loan is ideal. Payday loans are quick and easy to apply for and once you are approved the money is put straight into you bank account. If you’ve been in regular employment for at least three months, you earn at least $1000 per month and have a valid checking account, you are the ideal applicant for one of these types of cash advance loans. All you need to do is fill in an online application form. No need to leave the comfort of your own home, no one else needs to know that you have applied for the loan.

The website Cash Advance and Payday loans is the ideal place to start. From the site you can visit and read reviews of the different companies offering cash advance facilities. This way you can make an informed choice on the best way to borrow money for you. For example you could just need a little extra cash to tide you over until next payday, perhaps you are a woman, there exists a loan company especially tailored to your needs! There are sites especially dedicated to confidentiality, others specialise in emergency money for when the car needs urgent repairs, or for medical emergencies. You can also rate the products featured on the site and help others with their choice of loan.

Newbie offer

2008-01-13T14:51:00.000Z

Afterglow cosmetics are organic, mineral and pure. They are ideal for sensitive skins and are also gluten free.They have never been tested on animals. I think you will be amazed by the range of these excellent and special products. Afterglow have just released their new vegan makeup brushes. These brushes are beautifully soft and easy to clean and contain no animal hair.

If you are a first time customerExperience the difference of mineral make-up with organic botanicals. Natural organic infused lip gloss and lip sticks. Synthetic, paraben, dye, gluten and bismuth oxychloride free. ,there is a special $5 off newbie discount code – just enter the code newbie in the coupon code box during checkout.

How to eat cornflakes

2008-01-10T13:22:00.000Z

Advertisements have to aimed at specific audiences and can vary a great deal from country to country. I remember when I came to France over 20 years ago, advertisements for cornflakes in the UK were inventing new moments of the day to eat them. Whereas the advertisements for cornflakes in France were still explaining HOW to eat them. Breakfast cereals have caught up here now and I imagine the advertisements in both countries are similar if not the same. I think it’s a useful point to bear in mind when you are thinking of advertising in different countries.

This is a good site to visit if you’d like to see amusing advertisements from all over the world

Never give up

2008-01-08T09:39:00.000Z

Another ‘N’ for the alphabet challenge. If you want to be successful in anything you must put in the effort and not give up at the first hurdle you must Never Give Up! It does sound hard but there is lots of help and inspiration.

I draw my positive attitude from a magician who was called Al Koran (It wasn’t his real name). He is the author of “Bring Out The Magic In Your Mind”, which he wrote in the early 60s. At the time people must have thought him most odd, he talks about drinking pure water and eating what we would call today organic food. In the book he explains that anyone can have anything they want if they want it enough. It’s very important to believe in yourself. I love his style of writing, he writes as he thinks and has lots of advice. I recommend that you look for the book on Amazon, you won’t regret it.

Online University

2008-01-08T09:35:00.000Z

The following blog post is based on information provided by Blogitive. For more information, please visit Blogitive.com.

Did you know that the average age of a Capella University student is Forty? The reason for this is that capella university is the first completely online University. Students come from all walks of life. They are people who want to advance in their careers and study while continuing to work and live a family life. With 66% of students being female this is the ideal solution for women wanting to further their careers after starting a family.

The University is organised into 5 disciplines; Business and Technology, Education,
Human Services, the Harold Abel School of Psychology and Undergraduate Studies. So there is something to satisfy the needs of most people wishing to study online in order to advance in the important professional fields of today.

Networking

2008-01-08T09:20:00.000Z

‘N’ is also for Networking. Build up a list of contacts. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, make suggestions and be in touch with as many like minded people that you can. It’s amazing what you can learn and they are useful sometimes if you are in doubt about a campaign or new program that is going around. Join in on forums too, people will come and look at your site if they find your contribution interesting.

People love to share their knowledge. There really are some nice people who are into affiliate advertising, traffic exchanges and so on, you’ll be amazed!

'N' is for...

2008-01-08T09:17:00.000Z

I wanted to find some campaigns beginning with ‘N’. As it happens I haven’t got many that I’m running myself, but I did find one any way on the Neverblue Network (two more ‘N’s for you).

New Way of Thinking; this looks like a recruitment form but they say they don’t employ people. Interestingly enough because I’m looking at the site from France it is in French. I wonder how many other languages will turn up.

Wedding flowers

2008-01-08T07:37:00.000Z

Flowers are an important part of any wedding and it’s important that they are at their best for the big day. They can also be a very expensive item. One way to cut costs is to order flowers directly from FiftyFlowers.com. The reason why you can save up to 75% of the cost is that by using FiftyFlowers.com you cut out the wholesalers and retailers from the flower supply chain. The cost of shipping is also calculated into the price so that future brides know exactly how much to allow for in their budget .

wholesale calla lilies are amongst the popular flowers which make interesting bouquets for brides and there is an amazing choice of colours. You can rest assured that the expert team at FiftyFlowers.com are there to help you choose and will arrange for you to have the very best flowers for your special day.

Stickman Hits

2008-01-08T07:18:00.000Z

While surfing the other day I discovered Stickman hits; whoever thought of the idea of using a little stickman waving knew what they were doing. I just had to find out what he was representing. He also jumps for joy if you get bonus credits! This is what you get for joining:

“All active members get free banner impressions!
1000 Credits Awarded Upon Validation (surf 50 sites)
1500 Credits Awarded for Every Referral
1:1 Base Ratio (1 credit per 1 sites visited)
Progressive Surf Ratio! The more you surf the more you earn!
Earn increased surf ratio for the next day!
Daily, weekly & monthly surf contests!
Free members can promote up to 10 sites & 10 banners!
Free members enjoy a 10 second surf timer!”

Not bad. I joined up and am a very happy surfer. The sight runs really smoothly and the pages load quickly.

My day continued: Afternoon

2008-01-08T07:09:00.000Z

You can read a typical morning too if you would like...

1.30 Back to the computer. Continue to write any articles that I get paid for. If I haven’t got any to write I update my blogs, read my emails and surf the traffic exchanges. I might even just write for pleasure, if time allows.

4.00 Time for a cup of tea. I’ll continue scanning cards and writing descriptions of them until Rob comes home from work. If I’ve finished he takes over the main computer, if not he uses his laptop.

6.30 Make something to eat while feeding Olivier with snacks (he’s always hungry…)

8.0 Time to cut out cardboard for packaging. I’ve recently treated myself to a super new
cutter so it’s an easier job than it used to be. Every postcard we send out is protected by a neat piece of card cut out by my own fair hands. When I’ve finished that there are always postcards to sort into order (I prefer alphabetical, some prefer regions), file away or groups to be made up which is easy because of my mania with alphabetical order.

9.30 Rob and I go out for a walk round the block, we’re usually out for 30 minutes in the evenings; I don’t watch much TV because I just fall asleep

10.00 Bed, especially in term time.

Rob continues for an hour or so correcting my French and checking that I haven’t missed any faults with the cards.

What makes you think that I’m a morning person?

Online medical supplies

2008-01-06T14:46:00.000Z

Most people have probably heard of Allegro Medical. It is one of the largest independently owned online retailers of medical supplies and life enhancing products in the US. The website is designed to help customers find their way through the thousands of products now available. You can shop by category; Children/Paediatric, Diabetic Supplies, Maternity Care, Exercise/Fitness. Shop by Condition i.e. Asthma, Knee Pain, Obesity and so on, shop by brand or use the search facility at the top of the page.

Then there are the special offers, discounts and featured products at the moment include Kinesio tape, Carpel Tunnel Computer Glove, Shower Chair, Heartstart Home AED defibrillator to name but a few. There is plenty of help on the site with product guides and a blog, there is RSS feed to keep up with changes. You can use the Auto Re-Order for products which are regularly required.

Looking for a Nanny?

2008-01-06T14:42:00.000Z

Nannies4Hire is a website where you can make contact with Nannies and babysitters for your children in complete security. With over 15 years experience in the field they know a lot about matching nannies and families in the US and Canada and have a large database. Nannies and babysitters looking for families will also find Nannies4Hire an excellent place to find the ideal family.

They have an excellent affiliate program run through Shareasale.com with 14% commission on sales and from time to time great bonus schemes.