Ask Eydie - Latest Comments

Re: E-Books

CGonzalez — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:07:08 -0000

Will you offer the "Cart" option in the near future? It would be more convenient if I could purchase more than one item on a credit card transaction. Thank you! =)

CGonzalez

Re: CAN-SPAM Act: Must haves in your email marketing campaigns

EydieStumpf — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 12:08:03 -0000

Oh yeah.... gotta keep the feds happy! But, it's only good marketing sense in the first place. No one wants to do business with a spammer - so why not just do it right in the first place?

Re: Facebook Terms of Service: You will not create more than one personal profile

Cangus — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 23:33:21 -0000

Wow Eydie, how do I shut down the old account and move everyone over to the new? Do I contact everyone?

Re: CAN-SPAM Act: Must haves in your email marketing campaigns

Martha Giffen — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 15:03:16 -0000

Always, always stay up to date on what the fed want! It just makes life easier, right? LOL Great run-down of all we need in our e-mails.

Re: Social Media Overwhelm: Did Google+ push me over the edge?

Rain200 — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 19:06:49 -0000

I got rid Facebook for Twitter and LinkedIn, however I will look more into Google+ thanks Eydie!

Re: Amazon.com: Leaving California Affiliate Marketers in the Dust!

Threadsoffancy — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 17:42:34 -0000

Brown is just the scapegoat in this issue. As much as we love to criticize politicians (particularly the most visible politicians), they are just doing their elected job in this case: finding legitimate revenue sources to fund the State's activities. It's inconvenient, and certainly injurious to all the small business people who set up one stream of income from Amazon sales, but sales taxes of various sorts have been considered legitimate for a long, long time. Longer than any of us has been alive. Remember the tea tax that catalyzed the Boston Tea Party? The colonists were mad at the weight of the sales tax and the fact that political representation did not accompany the tax. They didn't protest the concept of sales tax.

So here we business people are, many decades later, feeling smug because we've collectively found a loophole in the sales tax burden: Internet commerce. The reprieve from sales taxation was sure nice, but that free ride is grinding to a halt. Did anyone really think the various State boards of taxation wouldn't notice all the untaxed transactions? Or that they wouldn't try to claim tax revenue from all that giddy commerce? That's blind optimism. Revenuers (not just the infernal ones, all of them) exist to skim taxes. Taxes fund everything that government does, and I can't comprehend how we could fundamentally change that.

Those of us who are really, really steamed at the new sales tax burden can consider going to a cash-only arrangement or a barter system, but you'd better be prepared to fly under the radar with either, because those are defined as taxable transactions too.

In this instance, I believe that Amazon.com will eventually discover that so many States have followed this path, and it's cancelled the affiliate/associate sales program in so many areas that there is a tiny, but noticeable, drop in sales. Amazon would then probably re-vamp the affiliate program to include charging sales tax and everyone can board the new train. If the drop in sales isn't noticeable, Amazon has no reason to re-start the affiliate program, and all the small-time sellers will have to figure out a way to replace that income stream.

I think it's smarter to bet on the second possibility. Figure out a replacement income stream ASAP, implement it, then imagine what could throw a monkey wrench into the new income stream and figure out how you'll replace it with yet another one. Anyone who banks on just one income stream, without anything in the pipeline as a "just in case" is probably getting a little complacent, maybe even dependent. Entrepreneurs are allegedly highly agile, able to turn on a dime, right? So ... turn on a dime and change your game plan.

Why waste any time arguing about whether the new law is fair. It exists, so we need to adapt. Paraphrasing the words of one smart cookie who happened to be in anthropology: "Crises happen, sometimes unpredictably. Each species, and each pack of beings within that species, must choose how to react to each crisis. Generally it boils down to three choices: adapt, migrate, or die." Since we are arguably the species most capable of reason, I suggest you commit to either adapting or migrating. Most of my post refers to adapting. If you'd rather not, then figure out where you'll migrate to and get moving to lead the pack.

Whatever your individual choice, I do sincerely wish each of us luck.

Re: Amazon.com: Leaving California Affiliate Marketers in the Dust!

pantomath — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 18:33:50 -0000

Dunderhead Brown is a f***ing moron! Hmmm...well that pretty much sums up Sacramento!

Re: Amazon.com: Leaving California Affiliate Marketers in the Dust!

Gracie — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 14:04:17 -0000

This must be excellent news for Overstock.com

Re: Protected: Virtual Assistant E-Course

Terri Jones — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 11:30:45 -0000

I input the password but it redirects back to this page. How do I open the e-course? Thank you.

Re: Email Marketing: Are you proofing your work?

Lynn Dorman. — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 23:03:23 -0000

I got that same email. So glad you turned it into a post. I just deleted it and almost unsubscribed as there was no mea culpa email that followed a short time later. We all make mistakes - but knowing you could not reply about it is a major mistake. I'd add advice # 3 - make sure people can reply to your emails.

Lynn

Re: Email Marketing: Are you proofing your work?

Roy A. Ackerman, Ph.D., E.A. — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 22:09:49 -0000

I am sure we all make tons.
The best advice I can ever give (and have- to my clients, to my children, and it's a requirement for our employees) is to NEVER, EVER address an eMail, until it's been proofed. That means if you are replying- you MUST use Word first. Cut and paste after you hit reply to (which opens up the eMail form)...
You won't have a big mistake to handle.

I also hold all eMail replies to clients which involve technical, financial, or managerial responses for 45 minutes. That gives me mental time to reconsider or alter the response before it vacates my outbox for the ether.

Re: Email Marketing: Are you proofing your work?

Helen Butler — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 18:47:55 -0000

Wow! That's a big faux-pas. Sure cuts down on the professionalism.

Re: Email Marketing: Are you proofing your work?

Roberta Budvietas — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 18:42:37 -0000

Great point - the example is scary and I am sure Chuck would be embarrassed if he got the email. It is often difficult because we sometimes hit send before we are really ready. It is also why you should never send an emotional email without rereading
Good points Eydie

Re: Social Media Overwhelm: Did Google+ push me over the edge?

PeggyLee Hanson — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 20:56:29 -0000

I have yet to delve into Google+.... am still catching up from my busy weekend... will Google+ help with that? Or wait, maybe that's a different type of social network ;-) I'm staying tuned with you Eydie!

Re: Social Media Overwhelm: Did Google+ push me over the edge?

Tia Bach — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 20:29:27 -0000

Thanks for this useful information. I'm feeling overwhelmed by social media. I only recently threw myself into LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook (as an author) and now Google+. It's insane, but your tips will help. Thanks for sharing. (I keep hearing about HootSuite and haven't tried it yet)

Re: Should you buy that new wallet? Use your smartphone instead!

eydie — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 15:07:43 -0000

Implanted computer chip - hmmm... I'll betcha dollars to donuts that's not far from becoming a reality! :)

Re: Should you buy that new wallet? Use your smartphone instead!

eydie — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 15:05:49 -0000

I'd probably wait until all the glitches were ironed out as well. Never do I purchase 1st generation technology - I want until all the bugs have been squashed!

Re: Should you buy that new wallet? Use your smartphone instead!

Amethyst — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 13:54:19 -0000

There's no way I would put all of that info on my IPhone. Too easy to lose, and too easy for people to hack in and take it all. Now, if they wanted to implant a computer chip in my wrist hooked to my ATM, I might consider it. :)

Re: Should you buy that new wallet? Use your smartphone instead!

Nancy Rose — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 13:48:29 -0000

While I love the idea of just one thing to carry, I don't think technology has ironed out all the glitches on security yet. Having been in IT for over 30 years, I know we need people who jump on the technology as soon as it gets out, and they can iron out the issues. I tend to wait until the major issues have been ironed out. I'm more of an early adoptor to early majority.

The adapter cycle found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T..., is

innovators - had larger farms, were more educated, more prosperous and more risk-oriented
early adopters - younger, more educated, tended to be community leaders
early majority - more conservative but open to new ideas, active in community and influence to neighbours
late majority - older, less educated, fairly conservative and less socially active
laggards - very conservative, had small farms and capital, oldest and least educated

Re: Should you buy that new wallet? Use your smartphone instead!

eydie — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 13:42:29 -0000

YES - I so hear you! I was going to mention that as well - even added a paragraph on it - but decided to write a different post to tackle that highly sensitive subject!

Glad you brought it up though, Roy! We DO have to be so careful! I think so many of use have become so unaware of the dangers - or maybe we think theft won't happen to us. It's always the other person who becomes the victim!

Thanks for your feedback!

Eydie :)

Re: Should you buy that new wallet? Use your smartphone instead!

Roy A. Ackerman, Ph.D., E.A. — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 13:35:22 -0000

Wow- you had me scared there, Eydie! Keep your wallet- secure! And, unless and until the vendors stop selling/sharing/unsecuring your phone data- don't use those smartphones when you access your bank or your credit cards... Unless, you really don't care how much you lose! (And, if that's the case, my coffers would LOVE a donation!)

Re: Is Email Marketing Yesterday’s News?

Michele Scism — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 01:06:16 -0000

Hey Eydie - Great post! I agree. I think email marketing has gotten a little more difficult but I think it is still a very effective marketing tool and I doubt it is going anywhere any time soon. I know from personal experience that I still open marketing emails and read them and click on links. Of course I don't read all of them so the trick is to figure out subject lines that your target audience will gravitate towards. Thanks for writing a great post. :) Michele

Re: Winning Strategies: Entrepreneur Magazine Conference

referral network — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 07:23:52 -0000

Great post on Business Networking Questions! I really enjoyed reading it, and my own site is about referral network so I'm not just saying so lightly. Keep up the good work!

Re: Google Slowly Rolling Out Google+

Amethyst — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 19:23:40 -0000

I think there's definitely room for Google+ to hit it big. Facebook became the thing after MySpace degraded into little more than a launchpad for people like Tila Tequila. Now Facebook changes its setting and privacy rules about every other week, and EVERYONE is getting fed up with it. So, yeah, if Google+ comes out with something as easy to interface as FB, then it could be a good thing.

Re: Google Slowly Rolling Out Google+

Robert Mitchell — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 16:11:12 -0000

Hello.

I would like to put a link to your site on my blog roll if you want to do the same for mine. It would be a good way to build up both of our readerships.

thank you.