how to manage personal finances

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting verse from Proverbs 13:20:

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

Let me put a personal finance spin on this:

He who associates with and listens to those who are doing well financially becomes wealthy. But someone who follows the advice of those who can't handle their money is destined for the poor house.

Ok, so I'm not a wordsmith (but you already knew that, didn't you?), but you get the idea. If you hang around people who follow the solid financial principles that can make you wealthy, then it's likely those principles will rub off on you and you'll do well too. But if you associate with people who continually make bad money mistakes, you'll probably do the same -- and thus kill your finances.

I'm not talking about having only friends who have it all together financially. But I am saying that it's wise to have friends, on average, who are doing fairly well or at least making good financial choices. And I'm not saying the friends have to be experts on everything. But I learn something from almost all of my friends -- how to save money from one, how to manage retirement from another, how to network for another, and so on.

If I spent most of my time with people who shopped for enjoyment, I'd probably want to do the same. If my friends spent every penny they had on "stuff" to fill up their houses, I'd probably follow suit. And if my friends all had boats and cottages, it probably wouldn't be long before I needed one (or both) too.
Let's face it, you're influenced by who you hang out with. So who do you want influencing you?

I once heard a speaker say that the person you'll be in five years will be determined by the people you know and the books you read. So choose your friends (and your books) wisely!!!

This guest post is by Kiesha of WeBlogBetter.

Have you ever wondered how some bloggers never seem to run out of post ideas? They always manage to escape the dreaded writer’s block unscathed; they’re always full of inspiration. Ideas overflow and pour onto the page as they type feverishly. They’ve tapped into a mystical stream of never-ending stories.

What if I told you that you could tap into the same power?

Everything you’ve already learned and experienced can be used to create infinite and original ideas for your blog. If you can turn on the analytical and creative juices in your brain, you’ll never run out of ideas.

Almost anything you’ve learned in school, on the job—even life’s lessons in general—can be turned into useful analogies or comparisons. Music, television shows, movies, or videos can also be used as fuel for unique and engaging blog posts.

There are almost no limits to this technique. In fact, the more unlikely and unusual the comparisons you make, the better.

Using my personal experience to blog better

Whenever something evokes an “Aha!” moment for me, I immediately think about how I can use that principle for blogging.

For example, late one night, I was watching The Karate Kid. At the point when young Dre finally realizes that all those days and weeks spent picking up his jacket had really been preparing and strengthening him, my mind immediately connected that experience to blogging.

When Mr. Han said, “Kung Fu lives in everything we do … Everything is Kung Fu”, I jumped up like a hot coal had landed in my lap. I grabbed a pen and wrote:

“Blogging lives in everything we do … Everything is blogging! Every experience is potential blogging material!”

My husband thought I was going mad as I frantically scribbled this on an already over-filled piece of paper. It was a major “Aha!” moment!

Yes, everything in my life — even those experiences that I thought were useless wastes of time — had been preparing me for blogging.

You might not be able to see the similarities between blogging and manicuring nails, but what I learned years ago as a nail technician helps me blog better today. I was known for my creative airbrush designs and 3D nail art. I had more customers than I had time. It sounds like I should be rich by now, right?

Here’s the problem: I loved the design/art part of the process, but I hated the chemical aspects of the job. I also hate feet, which wasn’t the best of news for customers who wanted their toes to match their fingers. I suffer from the exact opposite of a “foot fetish.” Would that be a foot phobia? What I learned is that no amount of money justifies doing (or smelling) things you hate.

How does that translate to blogging?

Nothing, not even money, should be the reason for blogging about something you’re not passionate about.

I can see many parallels between applying acrylic nails and blogging.

They both require preparation

When applying acrylic nails, the surface must be adequately prepared. Skimping on this step creates the prime condition for the growth of fungus or other harmful pathogens that, if left untreated, could create medical problems for the customer.

With blogging, if you don’t take adequate time to prepare with research and fact checking, you could potentially steer a reader in the wrong direction. They may not be physically harmed, but advice you offer on your blog could harm a person’s business or their blogging efforts—and maybe even adversely impact their finances.

They Both Require Good Design

If I tried to put a beautiful design on a malformed nail, it only made the malformation more apparent. On the other hand, a well-formed nail with an ugly or bland design would be a waste of sculpting efforts. In other words, the nail had to be both well formed and display a beautiful design.

The same is true for a blog. You can have the most beautiful blog design, but if your site lacks valuable content, no one’s going to want to return. You need both good design and great content.

So you see, yes there is much to learn about blogging from doing nails. There is much to learn about blogging from everything—from all of your experiences.

Over to you

Have you ever thought about how your own abundance of personal experiences relates to your own niche? And how you can use that to create a blog unlike any other?

1. Start by listing some of the most vivid experiences you’ve had, or lessons you’ve learned over the years.


2. Then instead of thinking about how different they are from blogging, think about how similar they are.


3. Use those points of intersection to highlight those similarities.


4. Then mesh those ideas together to create something new.

What you’ll get is something totally unpredictable and extremely insightful.

Which pieces of your personal experience and life lessons could you use to create an interesting analogy or comparison in a blog post? Which could you use to help you improve your blogging in general?

Kiesha blogs at WeBlogBetter, offering blogging tips and tricks. She’s a technical writer, writing instructor, and blog consultant for small business owners. Connect with her on Twitter @weblogbetter.

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting verse from Proverbs 13:20:

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

Let me put a personal finance spin on this:

He who associates with and listens to those who are doing well financially becomes wealthy. But someone who follows the advice of those who can't handle their money is destined for the poor house.

Ok, so I'm not a wordsmith (but you already knew that, didn't you?), but you get the idea. If you hang around people who follow the solid financial principles that can make you wealthy, then it's likely those principles will rub off on you and you'll do well too. But if you associate with people who continually make bad money mistakes, you'll probably do the same -- and thus kill your finances.

I'm not talking about having only friends who have it all together financially. But I am saying that it's wise to have friends, on average, who are doing fairly well or at least making good financial choices. And I'm not saying the friends have to be experts on everything. But I learn something from almost all of my friends -- how to save money from one, how to manage retirement from another, how to network for another, and so on.

If I spent most of my time with people who shopped for enjoyment, I'd probably want to do the same. If my friends spent every penny they had on "stuff" to fill up their houses, I'd probably follow suit. And if my friends all had boats and cottages, it probably wouldn't be long before I needed one (or both) too.
Let's face it, you're influenced by who you hang out with. So who do you want influencing you?

I once heard a speaker say that the person you'll be in five years will be determined by the people you know and the books you read. So choose your friends (and your books) wisely!!!

This guest post is by Kiesha of WeBlogBetter.

Have you ever wondered how some bloggers never seem to run out of post ideas? They always manage to escape the dreaded writer’s block unscathed; they’re always full of inspiration. Ideas overflow and pour onto the page as they type feverishly. They’ve tapped into a mystical stream of never-ending stories.

What if I told you that you could tap into the same power?

Everything you’ve already learned and experienced can be used to create infinite and original ideas for your blog. If you can turn on the analytical and creative juices in your brain, you’ll never run out of ideas.

Almost anything you’ve learned in school, on the job—even life’s lessons in general—can be turned into useful analogies or comparisons. Music, television shows, movies, or videos can also be used as fuel for unique and engaging blog posts.

There are almost no limits to this technique. In fact, the more unlikely and unusual the comparisons you make, the better.

Using my personal experience to blog better

Whenever something evokes an “Aha!” moment for me, I immediately think about how I can use that principle for blogging.

For example, late one night, I was watching The Karate Kid. At the point when young Dre finally realizes that all those days and weeks spent picking up his jacket had really been preparing and strengthening him, my mind immediately connected that experience to blogging.

When Mr. Han said, “Kung Fu lives in everything we do … Everything is Kung Fu”, I jumped up like a hot coal had landed in my lap. I grabbed a pen and wrote:

“Blogging lives in everything we do … Everything is blogging! Every experience is potential blogging material!”

My husband thought I was going mad as I frantically scribbled this on an already over-filled piece of paper. It was a major “Aha!” moment!

Yes, everything in my life — even those experiences that I thought were useless wastes of time — had been preparing me for blogging.

You might not be able to see the similarities between blogging and manicuring nails, but what I learned years ago as a nail technician helps me blog better today. I was known for my creative airbrush designs and 3D nail art. I had more customers than I had time. It sounds like I should be rich by now, right?

Here’s the problem: I loved the design/art part of the process, but I hated the chemical aspects of the job. I also hate feet, which wasn’t the best of news for customers who wanted their toes to match their fingers. I suffer from the exact opposite of a “foot fetish.” Would that be a foot phobia? What I learned is that no amount of money justifies doing (or smelling) things you hate.

How does that translate to blogging?

Nothing, not even money, should be the reason for blogging about something you’re not passionate about.

I can see many parallels between applying acrylic nails and blogging.

They both require preparation

When applying acrylic nails, the surface must be adequately prepared. Skimping on this step creates the prime condition for the growth of fungus or other harmful pathogens that, if left untreated, could create medical problems for the customer.

With blogging, if you don’t take adequate time to prepare with research and fact checking, you could potentially steer a reader in the wrong direction. They may not be physically harmed, but advice you offer on your blog could harm a person’s business or their blogging efforts—and maybe even adversely impact their finances.

They Both Require Good Design

If I tried to put a beautiful design on a malformed nail, it only made the malformation more apparent. On the other hand, a well-formed nail with an ugly or bland design would be a waste of sculpting efforts. In other words, the nail had to be both well formed and display a beautiful design.

The same is true for a blog. You can have the most beautiful blog design, but if your site lacks valuable content, no one’s going to want to return. You need both good design and great content.

So you see, yes there is much to learn about blogging from doing nails. There is much to learn about blogging from everything—from all of your experiences.

Over to you

Have you ever thought about how your own abundance of personal experiences relates to your own niche? And how you can use that to create a blog unlike any other?

1. Start by listing some of the most vivid experiences you’ve had, or lessons you’ve learned over the years.


2. Then instead of thinking about how different they are from blogging, think about how similar they are.


3. Use those points of intersection to highlight those similarities.


4. Then mesh those ideas together to create something new.

What you’ll get is something totally unpredictable and extremely insightful.

Which pieces of your personal experience and life lessons could you use to create an interesting analogy or comparison in a blog post? Which could you use to help you improve your blogging in general?

Kiesha blogs at WeBlogBetter, offering blogging tips and tricks. She’s a technical writer, writing instructor, and blog consultant for small business owners. Connect with her on Twitter @weblogbetter.

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

eric seiger

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting verse from Proverbs 13:20:

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

Let me put a personal finance spin on this:

He who associates with and listens to those who are doing well financially becomes wealthy. But someone who follows the advice of those who can't handle their money is destined for the poor house.

Ok, so I'm not a wordsmith (but you already knew that, didn't you?), but you get the idea. If you hang around people who follow the solid financial principles that can make you wealthy, then it's likely those principles will rub off on you and you'll do well too. But if you associate with people who continually make bad money mistakes, you'll probably do the same -- and thus kill your finances.

I'm not talking about having only friends who have it all together financially. But I am saying that it's wise to have friends, on average, who are doing fairly well or at least making good financial choices. And I'm not saying the friends have to be experts on everything. But I learn something from almost all of my friends -- how to save money from one, how to manage retirement from another, how to network for another, and so on.

If I spent most of my time with people who shopped for enjoyment, I'd probably want to do the same. If my friends spent every penny they had on "stuff" to fill up their houses, I'd probably follow suit. And if my friends all had boats and cottages, it probably wouldn't be long before I needed one (or both) too.
Let's face it, you're influenced by who you hang out with. So who do you want influencing you?

I once heard a speaker say that the person you'll be in five years will be determined by the people you know and the books you read. So choose your friends (and your books) wisely!!!

This guest post is by Kiesha of WeBlogBetter.

Have you ever wondered how some bloggers never seem to run out of post ideas? They always manage to escape the dreaded writer’s block unscathed; they’re always full of inspiration. Ideas overflow and pour onto the page as they type feverishly. They’ve tapped into a mystical stream of never-ending stories.

What if I told you that you could tap into the same power?

Everything you’ve already learned and experienced can be used to create infinite and original ideas for your blog. If you can turn on the analytical and creative juices in your brain, you’ll never run out of ideas.

Almost anything you’ve learned in school, on the job—even life’s lessons in general—can be turned into useful analogies or comparisons. Music, television shows, movies, or videos can also be used as fuel for unique and engaging blog posts.

There are almost no limits to this technique. In fact, the more unlikely and unusual the comparisons you make, the better.

Using my personal experience to blog better

Whenever something evokes an “Aha!” moment for me, I immediately think about how I can use that principle for blogging.

For example, late one night, I was watching The Karate Kid. At the point when young Dre finally realizes that all those days and weeks spent picking up his jacket had really been preparing and strengthening him, my mind immediately connected that experience to blogging.

When Mr. Han said, “Kung Fu lives in everything we do … Everything is Kung Fu”, I jumped up like a hot coal had landed in my lap. I grabbed a pen and wrote:

“Blogging lives in everything we do … Everything is blogging! Every experience is potential blogging material!”

My husband thought I was going mad as I frantically scribbled this on an already over-filled piece of paper. It was a major “Aha!” moment!

Yes, everything in my life — even those experiences that I thought were useless wastes of time — had been preparing me for blogging.

You might not be able to see the similarities between blogging and manicuring nails, but what I learned years ago as a nail technician helps me blog better today. I was known for my creative airbrush designs and 3D nail art. I had more customers than I had time. It sounds like I should be rich by now, right?

Here’s the problem: I loved the design/art part of the process, but I hated the chemical aspects of the job. I also hate feet, which wasn’t the best of news for customers who wanted their toes to match their fingers. I suffer from the exact opposite of a “foot fetish.” Would that be a foot phobia? What I learned is that no amount of money justifies doing (or smelling) things you hate.

How does that translate to blogging?

Nothing, not even money, should be the reason for blogging about something you’re not passionate about.

I can see many parallels between applying acrylic nails and blogging.

They both require preparation

When applying acrylic nails, the surface must be adequately prepared. Skimping on this step creates the prime condition for the growth of fungus or other harmful pathogens that, if left untreated, could create medical problems for the customer.

With blogging, if you don’t take adequate time to prepare with research and fact checking, you could potentially steer a reader in the wrong direction. They may not be physically harmed, but advice you offer on your blog could harm a person’s business or their blogging efforts—and maybe even adversely impact their finances.

They Both Require Good Design

If I tried to put a beautiful design on a malformed nail, it only made the malformation more apparent. On the other hand, a well-formed nail with an ugly or bland design would be a waste of sculpting efforts. In other words, the nail had to be both well formed and display a beautiful design.

The same is true for a blog. You can have the most beautiful blog design, but if your site lacks valuable content, no one’s going to want to return. You need both good design and great content.

So you see, yes there is much to learn about blogging from doing nails. There is much to learn about blogging from everything—from all of your experiences.

Over to you

Have you ever thought about how your own abundance of personal experiences relates to your own niche? And how you can use that to create a blog unlike any other?

1. Start by listing some of the most vivid experiences you’ve had, or lessons you’ve learned over the years.


2. Then instead of thinking about how different they are from blogging, think about how similar they are.


3. Use those points of intersection to highlight those similarities.


4. Then mesh those ideas together to create something new.

What you’ll get is something totally unpredictable and extremely insightful.

Which pieces of your personal experience and life lessons could you use to create an interesting analogy or comparison in a blog post? Which could you use to help you improve your blogging in general?

Kiesha blogs at WeBlogBetter, offering blogging tips and tricks. She’s a technical writer, writing instructor, and blog consultant for small business owners. Connect with her on Twitter @weblogbetter.

eric seiger

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger eric seiger
eric seiger

eric seiger
eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

Pulse <b>News</b> Now Free to Download | Android Phone Fans

Pulse News has announced that they're making their application free to download on the Android market following a desire to pull in a bigger userbase. They'll.

Pulse Brings You <b>News</b> and RSS in an Elegant Flow

Android/iOS: Blogs and news sites put all that effort into making their posts graphically appealing, so why not see what they've got? Pulse, a nicely different kind of news reader, pulls your news in through side-scrolling, ...

David A. Love: Fox <b>News</b> Must Fire Glenn Beck for Mocking a <b>...</b>

All of us should be concerned about Glenn Beck's verbal assault on George Soros and his mocking of the Holocaust. Yet, this is more than a Jewish issue.

eric seiger

Professional SEO: Hand Off to Bob or Outsource the Job

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Chicago-based Groupon is certainly one heck of a startup. Like Zynga it sort of came out of nowhere in 2009. Even last December I was sort of only vaguely aware of how fast it was growing.

But it was clear by early 2010 to the whole world that Groupon was on a tear. First a round valuing it at $250 million. Then just a couple of months later it raised new money at a $1.35 billion valuation.

And then in the last few weeks Yahoo offered something even higher for the company – between $1.7 billion on the low side and probably $4 billion on the high side. And Groupon passed.

Revenues are in the $50 million per month range, and the company has roughly 50% gross margins. By some measures, Groupon is the fastest growing company, ever.

Groupon is often said to be the next eBay at Silicon Valley insider dinners and events. But Groupon isn’t going to have the same success eBay has had.

At first blush it seems like a valid comparison. Groupon’s revenues and profits blow the early Ebay results out of the water. When eBay was three years old and going public in 1998 it had revenues of just $4.7 million. Groupon does that much in revenue every three days or so right now.

Today eBay has revenues of a little over $2 billion every three months and is worth around $30 billion. It’s not at all unreasonable to think that Groupon could eventually grow its revenues way beyond $2 billion/quarter – the local products and services category would easily bear that kind of fruit.

But there’s a couple of problems with Groupon. The first is how it scales – it needs a lot of sales people for each market it handles and already probably has more than 2,000 of them on payroll. But the real problem is the complete lack of a network effect to protect its business.

Ebay is expensive. And it has a horrible user interface. Buying stuff is a pain compared with sites like Amazon that have put real effort into making buying painless. It’s also expensive. Everyone would love a better eBay, but after ten years of people trying to kill it, it just keeps going.

Why? Because everyone’s already on eBay. And every new buyer or seller makes eBay more valuable than it was before. Anyone competing with them has to find a way to counter that, and it’s nearly impossible. Even free listings from big companies like Amazon and Yahoo flailed dramatically.

In other words, eBay would have to really work at it to destroy its core business. And since it dominates the market it can continue to charge exorbitant fees and not worry about the user experience.

Groupon has none of that. When Groupon gets a new user that’s great. But that user will quickly leave to Living Social or One Kings Lane or any of thousands of other competing sites for better deals. And when Groupon gets a new “seller,” there’s no reason why that seller won’t also go try out the competitors, too.

There’s just no network effect in Groupon’s business model. Which means competitors can flourish and margins will get crushed.

At TechCrunch Disrupt, Benchmark Capital’s Matt Cohler said he wasn’t sure if Groupon would succeed over the long term. I asked him if he wished he was an investor in Groupon:

That question keeps me up at night. the question for me is…if you look at it from a purely academic point of view, there are neither barriers to entry nor are there switching costs in that product. Typically when a product has those characteristics margins tend to collapse over time. In theory the only thing stopping that from happening is Groupon’s brand…It may turn out that daily deals are ad units, and lots of different products can apply that ad unit.

What can Groupon do to avoid having their margins crushed by competitors? Establish generous revenue sharing relationships with distribution partners, fast. And that appears to be exactly what they’re doing. In the next several weeks the company will likely announce partnerships with Yahoo and CitySearch, we’ve learned.

Oh, and one more partner, too. And that partner will be…eBay.

Update: Great email comment from Alex Rampell:

I actually think Groupon is a “winner take most” market and not winner take all. Amazon has a plurality yet a distinct minority of ecommerce share ($25B in 2009 revenue out of WW ecommerce rev of $600B) yet has a market cap of $74B, 2.5X that of eBay. No barriers to entry.

There are no barriers to entry for online commerce companies — yet Amazon keeps decimating the competition. There are, however, economies of scale. I think Groupon can be the Amazon of Online2Offline commerce, and there’s no reason they can’t get to $25B in annualized revenue like Amazon, but at a much higher margin.

Whether they’ll command the same kind of earnings multiple as Amazon is another story.

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The question comes up often. Many people have been burned by SEO Services, but many have also been rewarded by SEO Services. Like any business transaction or purchase you should only spend your money when you feel comfortable. Your comfort zone should pull from various dependencies, such as how well do you know this business, how long have you been doing business with this person or entity, what is your first impression, how do you personally feel about this person or entity ability to provide this service, and how well have you done your homework.

The truth about SEO services is that it is normally not hard work, but that doesn't mean its easy. It still takes time, dedication, effort, strategy, technique, method, skill, and experience to perform quality SEO services. Anyone can use SEO services because it is within your reach to learn, but not everyone can apply sensible strategy to make SEO work. That is why SEO engineers are needed to accomplish the almost impossible, but the question is how do you know you are making the right choice and not overpaying for SEO services?

I can honestly say for the most part SEO service providers are on the up and up who want nothing more than to do professional business and provide quality SEO services. Identifying every shady SEO service may not be possible, but I have some recommended advice which should help anyone get a fair and quality rate for SEO services.

- Set yourself a "realistic" marketing budget and goal

- Shop around

- Don't buy until you feel comfortable

- Remember "cheap does not always mean better"

- Ask for references / referrals / portfolio

- Verify references / referrals / portfolio

- Ask for statistical growth and progress reports

Set Yourself a Realistic Marketing Budget and Goal

This simply mean do not kid yourself and think you can pay $200 and overnight you will make thousands. Instead, create a budget depending on your marketing needs, competitive industry, projected outcome, and length of time. If you are looking for your website to rank in the Top 10 search engine result page for a particular keyword or keywords then expect to pay in the thousands, often times tens of thousands, for quality, professional, and reliable SEO services, almost always depending on the competitiveness of the keyword. If you want to rank in the top 10 for the keyword "Google", this in most cases impossible, but I am sure there are some SEO companies who will accept the challenge, but will charge in the thousands if not millions to attempt this insane marketing goal.

Shop Around

Find the most appealing SEO services and compare those to other competitive SEO services. Don't settle for "cheap" or "inexpensive", but settle for "effective" and "strategy". Anyone can do SEO work, but not everyone can improve results using SEO services. This is because, SEO is about technique and strategy. It's not about just throwing thousands a links around the web and sitting back waiting for the explosion. Its actually a lot more complicated than that, as it is about having strategy, technique, and competitive edge. You must find SEO services which live by this principle and can offer you the strategic road map you need for success.

Don't Buy Until You Feel Comfortable

You should always feel comfortable with entrusting your money into an SEO service provider paws. If you have special needs such as you want to sign a contract, you want a specific pay schedule, or you have any questions, make sure you get answers and are comfortable with the projected outcome then move forward. I personally suggest getting a contract which outlines the projected outcome and any other bullet points, then also exploring the consequences or possibilities if the projected outcome is not met.

Remember "Cheap Does Not Always Mean Better"

This is a buyer beware notice. When someone offers $20 SEO services or even $200 SEO services, I would say "buyer beware". There may be a handful of highly skilled SEO providers who can offer you SEO services at a discount or for extremely low rates, but most of the time these providers either do not know their service worth or know exactly what they are doing, but may have had a lucky streak. You will have to pay top dollar or aggressively, yet still affordable for quality, strategic, and experienced SEO services. SEO engineers is what I like to call them. These are SEO's who understand the SEO concept, who pioneer SEO methods, and who don't always follow the trend, but know the trends.

Most of the SEO engineers are not going to be cheap, but well worth every dollar spent. If you take into consideration other marketing and advertising platforms, such as television broadcast advertising, print advertising, large tradeshow/fair booth advertising, etc. internet marketing and search engine optimization cost peanuts compared to these other advertising methods and have a farther audience reach. SEO services can easily cost between $5,000-$25,000, it can even be much more than this, depending on your needs, but this is far more inexpensive and cheaper than other advertising platforms. So, next time you think that SEO service cost too much, think about the other methods of advertising and their rates, along with return on investment (ROI). SEO services come out on top every time when compared against these other advertising platforms.

Ask for References / Referrals / Portfolio

Any SEO service provider should be able to point you to their qualifying work. SEO service providers should be able to present you with affectionate websites which they have performed SEO work on. This can even be the SEO service provider personal website, they should be able to point you to their rankings in the search engine as well as some result driven SEO work within the site or across the web.

Verify References / Referrals / Portfolio

Verifying information is not always easy or accomplishable. You should attempt to reach out and verify what you can. If a shady SEO business was going to scam, then I am sure this is where they would start, with testimonials. I suggest verifying what you can, but don't get overwhelmed with referrals because it may be the shady SEO business giving self praise. I actually have some good verification tips, but that's another article all within itself.

Ask for Statistical Growth & Progress Reports

The SEO service campaign should include periodic progress/performance reports so you can track your website progress. Tracking your website progress is important in many ways. First, it tells if the SEO engineer is doing their job. Second, it tells you if the SEO methods, strategy, and technique is working or not. Third, it tells you how well the search engines are reciprocating your SEO efforts. And lastly, it tells you how much progress is being made and at what rate. All of this advanced reporting information and trend tracking can give you an overview of your website potential while giving you the opportunity to design or redesign your landing pages to increase your return on investment (ROI).

Okay, to wrap it up, just be sure you stay out of shabby internet neighborhoods and when making any online transaction, do your homework first. Also, remember "cheap does not equal better". Think about it, would you rather pay in the thousands to one SEO company for quality SEO work, which will produce results and increase your website overall performance or would you rather pay cheap $200 to many different SEO's who don't ever really give you the results you deserve. If an SEO engineer can increase your website sales and exposure by 80% without your site ever reaching the top 10 search results then you still got a good deal. This is the effect of skilled and experienced SEO services. The only difference between your website and the websites in the top 10, is those websites have SEO engineers working for them who understand SEO.

About the Author Ant Onaf is the owner & founder of AntOnaf.com (http://www.antonaf.com), a provider of professional and quality SEO services. AntOnaf.com offers affordable SEO services as well as custom SEO packages to fit your marketing needs. Ant Onaf ingenuity, dedication, and passion for internet marketing & technology has made him an monumental icon across the World Wide Web. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ant_Onaf

Making Money Ebay

Predictability is one of the most important attributes of any business. Owners, investors, and acquirers all want to be able to see a reliable stream of profits well into the future.

But almost by definition, predictability can be boring. Those same owners, investors, and acquirers want to see growth, which comes from selling new products and services and/or winning new customers.

So can you be predictable and innovative at the same time?

I put the question to Toronto-based Jeremy Gutsche, author of Exploiting Chaos and founder of TrendHunter.com, a business that tracks emerging trends for customers like Google, Pepsi, and Cadbury.

Based on my conversation with Gutsche, here are five ways to make sure your company doesn’t become boring on the journey to becoming valuable:

1. Set up a gambling fund.

Put aside some money to gamble on new ideas. When the BBC, the U.K.’s national broadcaster, was stuck in a programming rut, it set up a gambling fund for ideas that failed the usual new-program screening process. Producers could apply for gambling funds if their idea was cut, which is how The Office, one of the BBC’s most successful programs of all time, was funded.

2. Think like a portfolio manager.

Like a money manager, envision your business as a portfolio of investments balanced to generate the best risk-adjusted reward over the long term. Gutsche recommends having some areas of your business that are reliable and predictable while reserving part of your portfolio for trying new things.

3. Reward sound decisions.

Most companies pay their employees based on results and outcomes, which means the best employees want to work in the mature area of the business that is most likely to generate good results in a predictable way. It also means your best employees stop taking risks. Instead, Gutsche recommends you reward good decisions rather than outcomes. If you reward based on decisions, you can still incent employees to try things that may be risky as long as their decision-making is sound.

4. If you’re small, act big; if you’re big, act small.

Small companies often have lots of ideas, but customers can be hesitant to be the first one to try them. Gutsche recommends small companies merchandise their client list and media hits to build credibility. Gutsche himself projects a larger-than-life image. If you go to TrendHunter.com, you’ll see a “who’s who” list of marketers, from eBay to Microsoft, which Gutsche says gives visitors confidence to take a flyer on his business that’s only been around since 2006.

Likewise, Gutsche suggests the big guys act small by carving off new products into separate companies. Similar to the way RBC and BMO launched their credit card processing joint venture under the Moneris moniker, have a separate brand and stand-alone workspace to give your new business units an entrepreneurial feel.

5. Give your employees playtime.

Set aside some company time each week or month for employees to use to work on pet projects. 3M, of Post-It note fame, popularized this technique, which has since been adopted by companies like Google and Amazon, who give their engineers time to tinker.

By following Gutsche’s advice, you may just be able to create a predictable-growth company, which is the most valuable company of all.

John Warrillow is a writer, speaker, and angel investor in a number of start-up companies. He writes a blog about building a sellable company at http://www.BuiltToSell.com/blog. You can also follow him on Twitter at @JohnWarrillow.

As Om shared earlier this month, New York’s tech scene is getting a flood of venture capital for Internet deals, rivaling San Francisco. It’s validation for a city that has built a formidable base of companies and is now becoming a hotbed of start-ups, particularly web-based and software-driven companies.

I sat down with Fred Wilson, venture capitalist with Union Square Ventures to discuss the New York renaissance, how it came about and where it’s headed. Wilson said New York’s tech scene, which grew out of the mid-90s, is in the equivalent of its late teens: just growing into itself as a major player. He said he doesn’t expect to see any slow-up, just as Silicon Valley took off after two decades in the late 1970s. “New York is not only sustainable, but it will grow an order of magnitude from here,” he said.

Wilson obviously has a stake in New York’s stature as a tech center. More than half the companies in his New York-based fund hail from New York, though he wrote recently that’s he’s open to branching out. However, the local growth is real, including start-ups like portfolio companies Etsy, Foursquare and Tumblr, as well as companies like Gilt GroupE and the Ladders.

The growth in the New York scene is largely built on the Internet, which as it’s developed and become more mature, increasingly taps into the expertise of New York, he said. As web start-ups incorporate more data and business logic and work to refine user experiences through design, he said, they’re able to draw on  talent from the local finance, media, fashion and design industries. Companies like Banksimple and My City Way were built by former Wall Street employees, while Gilt Groupe was formed by a trio including Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, a former executive at Bulgari and Louis Vuitton. Several New York entrepreneurs have said something similar to me, saying the city provides an interesting intersection between technology and various industries that both benefit from technology and also influence it.

New York’s place in the tech start-up world often gets short shrift, Wilson said, because the start-ups are of the largely capital-efficient variety. When the figures of VC deals are compiled, they often don’t reflect fully how many smaller companies are starting in New York, making do with less money. In essence, he said there are two VC industries.  “New York doesn’t participate in capital-intensive business. There’s no biotech or hardware here. But if you look at New York’s place in the software business, New York is a huge player.”

What New York lacks at this point is a standout performer on the order of a Google, Apple or eBay, said Wilson. Having a large tech success story would feed the pipeline of entrepreneurs, give some start-ups a chance at getting acquired, and serve as a role model.

“We haven’t had that,” said Wilson. “People look at Wall Street and figure they can sell, so they sell.”

Plus, Wall Street is still an issue for start-ups, trying to convince talented employees to leave better paying jobs in finance, media or advertising to try out the start-up life. But as some of those industries contract, it’s providing more incentive for talent to sign on with start-ups.

“Media, Wall Street, fashion, they’re not growing very much,” he said. “Tech can pick up the slack.”

Related GigaOM Pro content (sub req’d):

• Did We Really Learn Anything From the Dotcom Crash?


• Lessons From Twitter: How to Play Nice With Ecosystem Partners


• Why Google Should Fear the Social Web

eric seiger

Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

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Predictability is one of the most important attributes of any business. Owners, investors, and acquirers all want to be able to see a reliable stream of profits well into the future.

But almost by definition, predictability can be boring. Those same owners, investors, and acquirers want to see growth, which comes from selling new products and services and/or winning new customers.

So can you be predictable and innovative at the same time?

I put the question to Toronto-based Jeremy Gutsche, author of Exploiting Chaos and founder of TrendHunter.com, a business that tracks emerging trends for customers like Google, Pepsi, and Cadbury.

Based on my conversation with Gutsche, here are five ways to make sure your company doesn’t become boring on the journey to becoming valuable:

1. Set up a gambling fund.

Put aside some money to gamble on new ideas. When the BBC, the U.K.’s national broadcaster, was stuck in a programming rut, it set up a gambling fund for ideas that failed the usual new-program screening process. Producers could apply for gambling funds if their idea was cut, which is how The Office, one of the BBC’s most successful programs of all time, was funded.

2. Think like a portfolio manager.

Like a money manager, envision your business as a portfolio of investments balanced to generate the best risk-adjusted reward over the long term. Gutsche recommends having some areas of your business that are reliable and predictable while reserving part of your portfolio for trying new things.

3. Reward sound decisions.

Most companies pay their employees based on results and outcomes, which means the best employees want to work in the mature area of the business that is most likely to generate good results in a predictable way. It also means your best employees stop taking risks. Instead, Gutsche recommends you reward good decisions rather than outcomes. If you reward based on decisions, you can still incent employees to try things that may be risky as long as their decision-making is sound.

4. If you’re small, act big; if you’re big, act small.

Small companies often have lots of ideas, but customers can be hesitant to be the first one to try them. Gutsche recommends small companies merchandise their client list and media hits to build credibility. Gutsche himself projects a larger-than-life image. If you go to TrendHunter.com, you’ll see a “who’s who” list of marketers, from eBay to Microsoft, which Gutsche says gives visitors confidence to take a flyer on his business that’s only been around since 2006.

Likewise, Gutsche suggests the big guys act small by carving off new products into separate companies. Similar to the way RBC and BMO launched their credit card processing joint venture under the Moneris moniker, have a separate brand and stand-alone workspace to give your new business units an entrepreneurial feel.

5. Give your employees playtime.

Set aside some company time each week or month for employees to use to work on pet projects. 3M, of Post-It note fame, popularized this technique, which has since been adopted by companies like Google and Amazon, who give their engineers time to tinker.

By following Gutsche’s advice, you may just be able to create a predictable-growth company, which is the most valuable company of all.

John Warrillow is a writer, speaker, and angel investor in a number of start-up companies. He writes a blog about building a sellable company at http://www.BuiltToSell.com/blog. You can also follow him on Twitter at @JohnWarrillow.

As Om shared earlier this month, New York’s tech scene is getting a flood of venture capital for Internet deals, rivaling San Francisco. It’s validation for a city that has built a formidable base of companies and is now becoming a hotbed of start-ups, particularly web-based and software-driven companies.

I sat down with Fred Wilson, venture capitalist with Union Square Ventures to discuss the New York renaissance, how it came about and where it’s headed. Wilson said New York’s tech scene, which grew out of the mid-90s, is in the equivalent of its late teens: just growing into itself as a major player. He said he doesn’t expect to see any slow-up, just as Silicon Valley took off after two decades in the late 1970s. “New York is not only sustainable, but it will grow an order of magnitude from here,” he said.

Wilson obviously has a stake in New York’s stature as a tech center. More than half the companies in his New York-based fund hail from New York, though he wrote recently that’s he’s open to branching out. However, the local growth is real, including start-ups like portfolio companies Etsy, Foursquare and Tumblr, as well as companies like Gilt GroupE and the Ladders.

The growth in the New York scene is largely built on the Internet, which as it’s developed and become more mature, increasingly taps into the expertise of New York, he said. As web start-ups incorporate more data and business logic and work to refine user experiences through design, he said, they’re able to draw on  talent from the local finance, media, fashion and design industries. Companies like Banksimple and My City Way were built by former Wall Street employees, while Gilt Groupe was formed by a trio including Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, a former executive at Bulgari and Louis Vuitton. Several New York entrepreneurs have said something similar to me, saying the city provides an interesting intersection between technology and various industries that both benefit from technology and also influence it.

New York’s place in the tech start-up world often gets short shrift, Wilson said, because the start-ups are of the largely capital-efficient variety. When the figures of VC deals are compiled, they often don’t reflect fully how many smaller companies are starting in New York, making do with less money. In essence, he said there are two VC industries.  “New York doesn’t participate in capital-intensive business. There’s no biotech or hardware here. But if you look at New York’s place in the software business, New York is a huge player.”

What New York lacks at this point is a standout performer on the order of a Google, Apple or eBay, said Wilson. Having a large tech success story would feed the pipeline of entrepreneurs, give some start-ups a chance at getting acquired, and serve as a role model.

“We haven’t had that,” said Wilson. “People look at Wall Street and figure they can sell, so they sell.”

Plus, Wall Street is still an issue for start-ups, trying to convince talented employees to leave better paying jobs in finance, media or advertising to try out the start-up life. But as some of those industries contract, it’s providing more incentive for talent to sign on with start-ups.

“Media, Wall Street, fashion, they’re not growing very much,” he said. “Tech can pick up the slack.”

Related GigaOM Pro content (sub req’d):

• Did We Really Learn Anything From the Dotcom Crash?


• Lessons From Twitter: How to Play Nice With Ecosystem Partners


• Why Google Should Fear the Social Web

eric seiger

Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

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Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

eric seiger

Predictability is one of the most important attributes of any business. Owners, investors, and acquirers all want to be able to see a reliable stream of profits well into the future.

But almost by definition, predictability can be boring. Those same owners, investors, and acquirers want to see growth, which comes from selling new products and services and/or winning new customers.

So can you be predictable and innovative at the same time?

I put the question to Toronto-based Jeremy Gutsche, author of Exploiting Chaos and founder of TrendHunter.com, a business that tracks emerging trends for customers like Google, Pepsi, and Cadbury.

Based on my conversation with Gutsche, here are five ways to make sure your company doesn’t become boring on the journey to becoming valuable:

1. Set up a gambling fund.

Put aside some money to gamble on new ideas. When the BBC, the U.K.’s national broadcaster, was stuck in a programming rut, it set up a gambling fund for ideas that failed the usual new-program screening process. Producers could apply for gambling funds if their idea was cut, which is how The Office, one of the BBC’s most successful programs of all time, was funded.

2. Think like a portfolio manager.

Like a money manager, envision your business as a portfolio of investments balanced to generate the best risk-adjusted reward over the long term. Gutsche recommends having some areas of your business that are reliable and predictable while reserving part of your portfolio for trying new things.

3. Reward sound decisions.

Most companies pay their employees based on results and outcomes, which means the best employees want to work in the mature area of the business that is most likely to generate good results in a predictable way. It also means your best employees stop taking risks. Instead, Gutsche recommends you reward good decisions rather than outcomes. If you reward based on decisions, you can still incent employees to try things that may be risky as long as their decision-making is sound.

4. If you’re small, act big; if you’re big, act small.

Small companies often have lots of ideas, but customers can be hesitant to be the first one to try them. Gutsche recommends small companies merchandise their client list and media hits to build credibility. Gutsche himself projects a larger-than-life image. If you go to TrendHunter.com, you’ll see a “who’s who” list of marketers, from eBay to Microsoft, which Gutsche says gives visitors confidence to take a flyer on his business that’s only been around since 2006.

Likewise, Gutsche suggests the big guys act small by carving off new products into separate companies. Similar to the way RBC and BMO launched their credit card processing joint venture under the Moneris moniker, have a separate brand and stand-alone workspace to give your new business units an entrepreneurial feel.

5. Give your employees playtime.

Set aside some company time each week or month for employees to use to work on pet projects. 3M, of Post-It note fame, popularized this technique, which has since been adopted by companies like Google and Amazon, who give their engineers time to tinker.

By following Gutsche’s advice, you may just be able to create a predictable-growth company, which is the most valuable company of all.

John Warrillow is a writer, speaker, and angel investor in a number of start-up companies. He writes a blog about building a sellable company at http://www.BuiltToSell.com/blog. You can also follow him on Twitter at @JohnWarrillow.

As Om shared earlier this month, New York’s tech scene is getting a flood of venture capital for Internet deals, rivaling San Francisco. It’s validation for a city that has built a formidable base of companies and is now becoming a hotbed of start-ups, particularly web-based and software-driven companies.

I sat down with Fred Wilson, venture capitalist with Union Square Ventures to discuss the New York renaissance, how it came about and where it’s headed. Wilson said New York’s tech scene, which grew out of the mid-90s, is in the equivalent of its late teens: just growing into itself as a major player. He said he doesn’t expect to see any slow-up, just as Silicon Valley took off after two decades in the late 1970s. “New York is not only sustainable, but it will grow an order of magnitude from here,” he said.

Wilson obviously has a stake in New York’s stature as a tech center. More than half the companies in his New York-based fund hail from New York, though he wrote recently that’s he’s open to branching out. However, the local growth is real, including start-ups like portfolio companies Etsy, Foursquare and Tumblr, as well as companies like Gilt GroupE and the Ladders.

The growth in the New York scene is largely built on the Internet, which as it’s developed and become more mature, increasingly taps into the expertise of New York, he said. As web start-ups incorporate more data and business logic and work to refine user experiences through design, he said, they’re able to draw on  talent from the local finance, media, fashion and design industries. Companies like Banksimple and My City Way were built by former Wall Street employees, while Gilt Groupe was formed by a trio including Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, a former executive at Bulgari and Louis Vuitton. Several New York entrepreneurs have said something similar to me, saying the city provides an interesting intersection between technology and various industries that both benefit from technology and also influence it.

New York’s place in the tech start-up world often gets short shrift, Wilson said, because the start-ups are of the largely capital-efficient variety. When the figures of VC deals are compiled, they often don’t reflect fully how many smaller companies are starting in New York, making do with less money. In essence, he said there are two VC industries.  “New York doesn’t participate in capital-intensive business. There’s no biotech or hardware here. But if you look at New York’s place in the software business, New York is a huge player.”

What New York lacks at this point is a standout performer on the order of a Google, Apple or eBay, said Wilson. Having a large tech success story would feed the pipeline of entrepreneurs, give some start-ups a chance at getting acquired, and serve as a role model.

“We haven’t had that,” said Wilson. “People look at Wall Street and figure they can sell, so they sell.”

Plus, Wall Street is still an issue for start-ups, trying to convince talented employees to leave better paying jobs in finance, media or advertising to try out the start-up life. But as some of those industries contract, it’s providing more incentive for talent to sign on with start-ups.

“Media, Wall Street, fashion, they’re not growing very much,” he said. “Tech can pick up the slack.”

Related GigaOM Pro content (sub req’d):

• Did We Really Learn Anything From the Dotcom Crash?


• Lessons From Twitter: How to Play Nice With Ecosystem Partners


• Why Google Should Fear the Social Web

eric seiger

eric seiger

Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

eric seiger

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Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

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Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

eric seiger

Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

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Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

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In today's recessionary economy when disposable income is no longer keeping up with the cost of living, more and more are searching for alternative source of income.

It doesn't come as a surprise that blogging has become one of the most pervasive ways of making money online that has come a long way since the birth of eBay. Blogging may not be the easiest way of making money online but it is certainly not the hardest either.

The latest trend is with children under the age of 17 blogging for money. Not just pocket change either. These kids are making money hand over fist. Some are already making millions with just their online business.

Kids are much more technically advanced than we want to give them credit for. They embrace the internet quickly and aren't afraid to explore and use them.

They have no inhibitions or worries about trying something new. And the start-up cost is almost zero or low enough that they may not have to even use their entire allowance to get started.

One of the most difficult parts of blogging is the daily maintenance and up keep along with finding the advertising and affiliating to make money. Once you have overcome these obstacles there is nothing to it.

Children as young as 8 are doing it with great success. It's their parents that are dumbfounded that it could be that easy.

Kids Prove Us Wrong

As adults we have been taught that "anything worth having is worth working for" and that "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is" but our children seem to be proving those old adages wrong.

With the use of the internet, making money online has become easier than ever. It just seems to the adults that it can't be true. We are always looking for the catch to these simple ways of making money.

We believe that it's a "zero sum game". They aren't just going to give it to us for nothing. We in fact over-complicate what seems to be "simple things in life".

Maybe it is time for us to start looking at the world in a different way. This is, after all, the internet generation. We need to start realizing that the computer on our desk can be useful for something other than checking e-mail and sending jokes to our friends. Our children already know this and we just need to catch up.

It's time for us to change and be open to seeing this new generation and the changes in our world. Instead of being upset with our children for spending so much time on their computers we need to understand and be supportive of what they are doing.

And look into new and revolutionary ways of making money the smartest way instead of hard labor - the internet.

This is a new world and the kids seem to be taking the upper hand in it. We as adults have been so resistant to these new advancements that we have cut ourselves off from some of the best sources of income.

Children from 10 years old right on up are doing what we seem to find impossible in this economy. They are making money and having no trouble doing it. Maybe the only adage that we need to be concerned with is "and a child shall lead them".

That is certainly what is happening when it comes to making money on the internet.


eric seiger

Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

eric seiger

Domain Name Wire » <b>News</b> » Confirmed: Facebook Acquires FB.com <b>...</b>

Facebook acquires FB.com domain name. Ending months of speculation, it's now confirmed that Facebook has acquired the FB.com domain name. The whois record for the domain name just updated to show Facebook's name and nameservers for the ...

Supreme Court Ruling Keeps Ban on Gays From Openly Serving in the <b>...</b>

FOX News covers politics on America's Election Headquarters. FOX News political coverage on elections, races, foreign policy, candidates, and national security.

Peggle bounces onto PSP next week PSP <b>News</b> - Page 1 | Eurogamer.net

Read our PSP news of Peggle bounces onto PSP next week.

eric seiger

Online Money Making Opportunities

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Fantasy Football <b>News</b> Roundup, Week 10: Ranking The Falcons And <b>...</b>

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Small Business <b>News</b>: Rules To Live By

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Steele Under Increasing Pressure to Step Aside in 2011 | Foxnews.com

Washington – Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele is finding himself under increasing pressure to step aside when his term ends in January 2011. Fox News has learned a small group within Steele's inner circle has warned ...

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Steele Under Increasing Pressure to Step Aside in 2011 | Foxnews.com

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With these tough times, many people are willing to start a home-based business to supplement their income. Using a reliable computer with an Internet connection will enable you to find out about making money online from home.

Let us search out a few ways to make money online. The first one is to sell other people's products by becoming an affiliate marketer. Believing in a product and learning the "chain of command" and keywords such as upline, downline will help in making this particular job a success. By recruiting or sponsoring new affiliates (downlines), a commission is paid to you (upline) on their sales which is a wonderful way to make money without even turning on your computer, at least for a while.

Selling products on eBay is another approach to make money online. You can initially do this on a part time basis and once you see how easy this is, can turn this business into a full time money making production.

Amway or Avon offer network marketing online jobs. These are just two companies and there are many more network marketing companies who have been successful in their online business opportunities.

Making money online can be done by taking online surveys or doing data entry. Consumers are paid for their opinions and for testing products, which will eventually be sold to buyers world wide.

Are you an excellent writer? Blogging is coming into a world of its own. People love to read and search engines love to "search" out new blogs because of their unique contents. Everybody has something to talk about that anybody will want to read. Starting your own blog and selling a product will enable you to earn money online. You can also write blogs or articles for other webmasters. Unique contents are always needed and income can be made, especially when you join a writing site that enables you to bid on projects provided by professionals in need of your writing abilities.

Selling membership earns residual income as long as the account is maintained by a hosting website. Becoming a virtual assistant, offering sound advice or services such as typing, answering phones, and bookkeeping is a preferred means by employers hiring telecommuting employees instead of them working in an office.

These are some of the ways in making money online and doing so from the comfort of your home. You are your own boss; you are doing something you love, either part time or full time and the best part, you get to call the shots and set your own working hours. What more could anyone ask for? All it takes is the desire to make money online, and finding unique opportunities that will allow you to take advantage of online income.


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Checking in on the fantasy news of the day for Week 10. Get your early rankings of Falcons and Ravens players for tonight's game.

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What are your small business rules to live by? We're willing to bet everyone has their own. Yet, it is always helpful to interact with others and to develop new.

Steele Under Increasing Pressure to Step Aside in 2011 | Foxnews.com

Washington – Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele is finding himself under increasing pressure to step aside when his term ends in January 2011. Fox News has learned a small group within Steele's inner circle has warned ...

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Fantasy Football <b>News</b> Roundup, Week 10: Ranking The Falcons And <b>...</b>

Checking in on the fantasy news of the day for Week 10. Get your early rankings of Falcons and Ravens players for tonight's game.

Small Business <b>News</b>: Rules To Live By

What are your small business rules to live by? We're willing to bet everyone has their own. Yet, it is always helpful to interact with others and to develop new.

Steele Under Increasing Pressure to Step Aside in 2011 | Foxnews.com

Washington – Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele is finding himself under increasing pressure to step aside when his term ends in January 2011. Fox News has learned a small group within Steele's inner circle has warned ...

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