We Have Moved!

OK, I give up!


I have been experiencing a number of issues with Blogger. Visitors unable to comment, insufficient flexibility with layout and features, so I've spent the past 3 hours transferring my blog - to WordPress.com.


There were other matters which I won't bore you with.
I apologise for the inconvenience of asking you to follow me there, but I'd love to know that you still love me.


I'll have a bit of setting up to do, and housekeeping, but I hope you'll be there soon.
Please say Hi if you make it.


The new blog is at  http://fortyplusmakemoneyonline.wordpress.com/  or


 http://tinyurl.com/2ww2evl  if your tiny.




It's 05.22 in the morning so I'm off to bed . . . oops, Sofa.

Quickie Mini Tip 2 - Domain Names

Over the next few posts I will outline creating an online presence, and costs.

One of the most likely investments you will incur at some time will be a Domain Name.
This can be for:
Yourself. People can visit a website "yourownname.com" to check you're real, and to get an idea of who they're dealing with;
A Trading Name. Something catchy that customers will become familiar with, and trust;
A Product Name. (If you have one). Even if you don't have a product, you could investigate exciting/interesting/fun names for the future. But don't buy now.

TO DO LIST

When you next take a break (remember those?), sit down with pen and paper. Just go to the site and put in some names, starting with your own. It will show you what's available to buy, be it; .com, .biz, .co.uk, whatever you like. Take a note, or use Note Pad (PC) or Text Edit(Mac) of those you like, and what's available. Do not click to buy there, as you don't get to choose your domain name supplier and may pay more than you need to.

WARNING
This is an incredible time waster, but it does get your creative juices flowing - and it's fun. (Does that make me sad).
Do Not Buy, and don't get carried away, it could melt your credit card. I made a list of 87 possibilities, then 3 days later, a better one popped into my head. (You'll love it, but I can't tell you yet).
Remember, if you find some you really really like - keep schtum (secret). People steal good ideas, and certainly good domain names).

OK kiddies, here's the link, so go and play when you're ready.

The address is at the bottom.

There, see how helpful I am?

PS. It's FREE.

The address: http://domainsbot.com/

"Believe you can and you're half way there."

~ Theodore Roosevelt

It's a warm Summer's night here in Blighty, and even at 1.40 in the morning I've got the door open. 


There I was tapping away at the keyboard, when something black and huge whizzed past my head. EEK! Not a sound could I hear, but there was definitely something moving at high speed through the manor cottage shack. Oo Mum.
Still, had to go and investigate, and as we don't have guns here in the UK, took the next best thing - a wooden spoon! (Don't know whether I planned to hit it or cook it, but it gave me a temporary sense of security).
I rounded the corner, and something black shot past my head into the lounge, still absolutely silent.
I followed, and looking around, found the invader - hung up on the top of the door. A Bat! 
There it was, a cute little Pipistrelle bat.
Now - I had a choice. Do you know what a lose lose situation is?
If I let it out, in the morning the children would give me hell if they found out, and I'm a gas bag and love sharing nice things with them. This qualified a s a nice thing.
So I crept upstairs (remember it's the middle of the night) and tried to gently wake them up, yes all three of them. Dreary and Grumpy, the two older girls, were up for a cuddle (they always are), but not much else - until they heard the word BAT! Talk about pandemonium. All hell broke loose!
You've never seen three little girls out of bed and halfway down the stairs, so fast, the littlest one, Sleepy in the lead. Although I had said, "Come down quietly", the noise was deafening.
After calming them down, I led them into the lounge, to see (and stroke) the bat. After lots of "Oohs, Aahs, and Can I Keep Hims", we made our way to the door, stepped outside, and let him free. It took some time to calm the girls, and get them back to bed. See - I told you it was a nice thing.
However, in the ruckuss that they'd created, they'd woken their mum up, and I still got hell.
Sleeping on the sofa tonight then.
(She snores, anyway).

Quickie Mini Tip 1 - Tiny URL

Sorry, had to repost this (Brain malfunction)

Just popped in to give you nice little link to a piece of FREE software that I use regularly - Tiny URL.

They can explain it better than me, but the software simply converts those
l o n g  a d d r e s s e s into tiny ones.

This will be particularly useful if you want to include a url in an ebook, or when email marketing to your customers, you can disguise the product*, link* or hoplink* with a nice neat tinyurl. Should you venture into using You Tube in your advertising, you can add a tiny url, which is quicker for interested potential customers to jot down, and gives you the option to keep the address discreet.
More people are likely to click on a tinyurl address than one in which they can easily read where it takes them.

You can also add their address to your browser's toolbar, making it quick to access.

To get the FREE software, or take a look simply click here, or go to:  http://tinyurl.com/

I hope that made some sense.
* More about these later.

The Night Shift

I've been asked why I post so late at night (early hours)?
Dedication.   No, didn't think you'd believe it either)!
The truth is, this house (where I work) is in a permanent state of chaos. It's the school holidays here, and with three little girls tearing up the place, I can't think straight. My lovely 24" screen Mac (boast), is situated in the hub of the house, near the kitchen, and it's like b****y Piccadilly Circus. We've got a two acre garden, so when the sun's shining they stay in (of course), cruising around the house with their iPods, making unreasonable demands on my good nature constantly. Things like, "Can I have some food please", or "The cat's gotta vole/shrew in the lounge, and it's still alive", (a regular occurrence).

So, when they're tucked up, and 'She Who Must Be Obeyed' is snoring sleeping, I have the place and piece to myself to 'create' (I use the term loosely). The only traffic in these parts are the sheep, deer (who ate all my vegetables in the garden), and the wild boars.   Really, we have wild boars here. . . 

Gerald, our local scrounger. He likes chocolate and baguettes. Hates dogs.
He has two wives, and at the time of writing, 20 hoglets.

My laptop is a bit elderly to use for my work (like me), so I have to use the one in the house. The other advantage is that when I'm working, the USA is waking up, and it's daytime is Australia, making calls and contacts easier.

Now I really AM off to bed.



"When you feel like giving up, remember why you held on for so long in the first place."
~ Unknown

The Website (and HTML)

A few people have asked when the website will be up. Well, due to technical difficulty (mainly, me messing up the management system in Dreamweaver), there may be a delay. I'm a total rookie (read idiot) at web design, so I have to double and triple check everything I do. Only trouble is, when I find a fault, I break down in a babbling heap, coz I don't know what's wrong, or how to fix it!

On the subject of Web Design, if you fancy having a crack at it yourself, I could add a short list of freebie web design software packages for both PC and Mac, to the Tools Page, p'raps? I don't have time for reviews, but I would only list some that I've tried, and recommend. You could always research on the web, before downloading the package. If you don't have experience with graphics packages, there will be a long uphill learning curve, although some of these free applications are brilliant at avoiding the techie stuff.

While I'm here, and blathering about web design, I would strongly recommend that you do a little studying of HTML. Although much of the software today is Drag 'n' Drop, or WISIWYG, knowing a little HTML will probably come in handy later. That's exactly what I know - a little, very little!

Wait for It! I'm actually thinking of doing two sites (Is the boy stark raving bonkers?). Yes, probably, but I have a plan . . . actually it's a doodle on a sheet of Tinkerbell paper (don't even ask).

I have located an excellent free resource for getting a list of HTML code, and a lot of other subject related information and tips. I have contacted them for permission to link to their site (at the correct pages).
Until I receive the OK, I cannot link yet. Then I will ad it to a post, and on the Reference Page (still under construction).

OK. it's time to don the nightshirt and sleeping cap, grab the candle, and off to the four-poster (yes, really, and it's got curtains and ropes and stuff, but that's probably too much information).
Nighty night.

3. Where Do I Start?

There are many ways to make money online, some of which are:

Blogging

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

Selling Your Own Products (Website or Clickbank)

Selling Other People's Products (Affiliate Marketing)

Private Label Rights (PLR)

Article Marketing

Multi Level Marketing (MLM)

Social Network Marketing (ie. Facebook, Twitter, You Tube etc.)

Mobile Phone/Cellphone Marketing (NEW)

EBay Marketing

Amazon
Google Adsense

I make no pretensions to being an expert in all of these, but have gained enough knowledge to help anyone new to internet marketing in quite a few of these subjects.

Action Plan - Part One

(These will be added to an Action Plan page as the list is added to)

Take Some Actions Now. These will not cost you anything, and you will feel like you've achieved something, and taken the first tentative steps to a new beginning.

Email. Set up at least one, better still two totally new email accounts.

I prefer to use GoogleMail as I have for some time, and I think Google is a better service, offering more flexibility and control.

Why Two Accounts? - Organisation.
I have a number of email accounts. The first one is the one I give product vendors when I take one of their free or introductory offers, and thereby register to accept information from them (usually a requirement) to avoid spamming.

My No.1 account has received over 7000, yes 7000(!) emails in about 4 months! It's often difficult to separate the chaff from the wheat, but at least it keeps 'enquiries' apart from . . . my No.2 account, which only has about 40 messages in it over the same period. The only people who communicate through this account are from organisations I have ACTUALLY PURCHASED (A Product or System) FROM. I also have a 3rd separate account for financial reasons, such as Clickbank & Paypal receipts etc., but you could always use your second account for this.

Keep a note of the account names and passwords straight away, you can always add them to a spreadsheet later.

Note: If you do register for something, say free ebook, I recommend you only enter your FIRST NAME on the form, plus your chosen new 'primary' email address.


DO NOT enter your home/family/personal email address. You will start receiving so much stuff, it'll give you a headache! (And fill up your computer). Remember, an email registered with, say, Gmail is known as webmail, meaning that it doesn't take space on your PC or Mac, and also can be accessed from anywhere, even an internet cafe.

PS. I will not make any money from these.


There will be more soon. In the meantime, why not comment on the posts? You don't have to stay "on post". If there's something you'd like to see in this blog, just let me know.

Back to Basics 1 - Make Money Working from Home

When you've been employed in a daily job, working for someone else, the culture shock when it all stops can be alarming, particularly if you're in the 'older' age bracket.


The Downsides

• You will not be picking up a pay packet at the end of each week or month.
• You will probably miss the daily interaction with your colleagues

But now's the time to be positive.
If you think you are merely unemployed, rethink it to being SELF EMPLOYED!
You are now the CEO,  Chairman/woman, MD and President of YOU Co., a fresh, dynamic business on a new path in the worldwide marketplace. You are not alone, and you know it, but it sometimes feels that way.
But along the way, you have picked up knowledge and skills that make you unique. They can be put to use as you tread into the new waters of Internet Marketing.

The Upsides

• No More Commuting
• No More Travel Costs
• No More Depending on Someone Else for Your Income
• You Can Spend More Time With Your Family
• You Can Take Lunch Breaks at Your Time
• You Now Have Time To Stop - and Reassess

While others wait for the economy to 'pick up', or a job application to be selected from the many, this is your opportunity to make a real change, and one that could secure your future.
Someone once said, "You'll Never Get Rich Working For Someone Else".
Someone else once said, "Some People Are Born Great, and Others Have Greatness Thrust Upon Them".

I believe both.

You Will Need

• A Quiet Place Where You Can Study and Work Without Distraction. These days a great deal of the information is via Video. I recommend that you either rig up your computer with headphones, or find a space where you can work without distraction, the spare room, conservatory, even the garden shed. Many successful people have started this way.
• A Computer. I use Apple Macs, which I love, but you will find a lot of information and software you will need is easier if you have a PC.
• Access To The Internet. Seems obvious, but you will be building a new income online, so you will need access.
• A Note Pad and Pen. You will be receiving a lot of information, much of it new, so you need to be organised, and take lots of notes for yourself.
• Time. Set time aside when you can work and study without distraction. In the beginning, you will need a considerable amount of time. When you start to become successful, you may need less and less time.
• A Budget. Whatever you hear and read, nothing is free. You could buy tons and tons of Internet Marketing information packages, but they all cost. I will be giving you access to free resources and information about making money online as we go along. I will also be guiding you in ways to save you from spending more than you need to, but beware. A great deal of what you discover will need money. Even the low cost packages can add up. Yes, you can start without spending money right away, but sooner or later you will need to invest, particularly as you grow.

Next: What's It All About? 

Back To Basics 2 - What Is Internet Marketing?

Please excuse me if some of this is stating the obvious, but this information is based on assuming that my followers are either totally new to this thinking, or simply want me to 'follow the logic' to discover how people are making (in some cases very healthy) incomes online.

What Is The Internet, How Is It Used, and How Can You Start To Make Money Online?

Ask yourself, "What Do People Mainly Use The Internet For?"
Ask yourself, "Why Am I Surfing The Internet Right Now?"
Is it:

1. Shopping?
2. Entertainment?
3. Information?

It's the third item, Information, which I'll start on today.
For any of the above activities on the internet, we're still looking for information, aren't we?
Shopping. You want a 10mp camera, so - you look for brands, prices, reviews and specifications - INFORMATION. You buy your new camera, and maybe the manual doesn't quite give you all the information you'd like, to get the best out of it, or you'd like some accessories for it. Back to the web and look it up - INFORMATION again. Entertainment. You fancy seeing a film, and maybe a bite afterwards. On the web you can check what films are around your area, reviews and prices, then follow through with checking out eating establishments. All looking for INFORMATION.

New Pages

I've started adding some pages to this blog.
They will be added to as time allows, and will offer quick reference, information and tips.

It's 4 o'clock in the morning - I'm going to bed Good night.