How Do You Do It All?

A lot of people ask me “How do you do it all? You have so many projects on the go.”

It’s true, there’s a lot on the go, but I’m not always on the go. I have lots of help. Of course, you know about my trusty virtual assistants, writers and other contractors I work with…but I still don’t work alone.

Partnering with another online business owner in projects is a great thing. I personally have partnered (and will continue to) with some great Internet business owners.

I combine efforts with Lynette Chandler and Kelly McCausey on a mastermind group for women in business at MomMasterminds.com.

Kelly and I co-own Mom Webs and I’m a financial contributor to WAHM Talk Radio…but Kelly does all the hard work.

Lynette and I also have some software projects in the works and the first is the free Opt-in Builder.

I also work with Mila Sidman on a growing collection of private label content projects, with the first being All Mom Content. We also have a number of content websites we work on together.

I now work with a full time affiliate manager, Heather Eagar, who manages my affiliate programs, recruits affiliates and works with my affiliates to get them active. I don’t know how I lived without her before.

…and the list goes on.

Partnering with other business owners has so many benefits for everyone involved.

- Drawing on one another’s strengths. If you are strong in one area, but lack in another important element, partnering with someone who is strong in those areas will help tremendously. For instance, I’m not a technical person, Lynette is. Therefore, she does more of that stuff, while I do more writing, etc.

- It’s a good push to move ahead…if my partner completes an aspect of the project, I know it’s my turn to move full-steam ahead.

- Drawing on each other’s resources including mailing lists, traffic, contacts, writers, assistants etc. This in turn gives your product or service more exposure that you may not have tapped into with just your own resources.

If you’ve partnered with another business owner I’d love to know what you liked about it and if you’d do it again. If you haven’t worked with someone else yet, what’s your first partnership going to be?

Haven’t Received That Big Online Shopping Rush, Yet? Have No Fear…

…because according to ClickZ:

“Holiday shoppers are expected to spend $32 billion online this season, with purchases happening well past ground shipping cutoff dates. That’s according to “Online Retail Holiday Forecast, 2006,” a report from JupiterResearch.”

Offering shipping alternatives and giving your customers as many options as possible just might help you get that last minute rush. Someone desperate for what you have doesn’t care what UPS charges to deliver it overnight…so keep your customers happy.

The full article is here.

The Gift of Work at Home - All The Cool Kids Are Doing It!

I saw this on Kelly McCausey’s blog and thought it was sooooo cool, so I stole her idea and wrote my own blog post about it!

What you see is the “Fisher Price Work-At-Home Office” perfect for the little girl (or even boy) who loves to pretend they are a really cool home business owner. It’s part of the Loving Family Dollhouse collection that includes an SUV, family nursery, kitchen and even mommy and daddy’s bedroom!

According to the manufacturer:

“Phone calls to make, e-mail to check, reports to type-oh, and a meeting with Kitty! Working at home is more fun with a cozy, well-equipped office. It’s full of important features-like a sturdy desk, sliding keyboard shelf, roomy hutch, printer cabinet with opening door, and more. For work to go, the laptop slides right into the handy carry bag!”

Very cool!

The Death of 2006

Sorry, couldn’t resist the subject line. We talked about the Death of Adsense and even the Death of Internet marketing, but here’s something eminent coming and that’s “The Death of 2006”. In just over a month, 2006 will be over.

I hope you had a great business year and are gearing up for a bigger 2007. I’d love to hear your success stories and plans for the New Year.

Come as You Are Blog Party & I’m Invited - Watch Out!

I’m a regular reader of Lynn Terry’s blog, but I completely missed my invitation to the “Come as You Are Blog Party”, so I’m accepting it now.

Here is how I am:

This is taken about 10 minutes after waking up, rushing my kids off to school before I get a couple hours of work done. I am dress and out of my pajamas, but I haven’t had a chance for a shower and clearly, have no make-up on. This is what I usually look like before I begin my work day.

Here are Lynn’s instructions for the party:

Take a photo of yourself… RIGHT NOW… and post it on your blog. Then invite/tag (ping) the next 4 bloggers that you want to see “as is”

Then tell us WHY you look that way (in your photo), and say something about the person that ‘tagged’ you with this Meme!

So I’m inviting:

• Kelly McCausey
• Martin Avis
• Kristie T
• Lynette Chandler

Can’t wait to see y’all.

“Come as you are,
as you were,
As I want you to be
As a friend,
As a friend,
As an old enemy
Take your time, hurry up
The choice is yours, don’t be late…”

Supporting Home Business

I know it’s hard to believe, but not all home business is on the Internet. I love to support home businesses and buy from them when I can. One popular business model is the home party model a lot of stay at home moms (and even men get in on the action too!) seem to like.

According to the Direct Selling Association, who monitors over 260 direct selling companies, the industry grew over 78% in 2005 with $30 billion in revenue. A large portion of that can be attributed to the home party business. More and more companies are coming on board with the home party way of selling products. Here is a huge list of direct sales companies that join the ranks of Mary Kay and Tupperware.

Home party businesses are growing in popularity for reasons such as determining your own schedule, no inventory to keep, and room for growth that the business owner controls, not someone else. If you need more money, have more parties.

If I’m invited to a home party, I always go, unless there is a prior commitment that keeps me from going. I love to support home business and to buy cool stuff from the comfort of home. In fact, I hosted my own Tupperware party with a friend yesterday. Not only did I get to get together with friends and eat some yummy snacks – I was also entitled to free products for throwing the party. It’s fun.

Now, I’m not saying you have to call your Tupperware rep and have a party…but what can you do to support home based business?

Virtual Assistants & Those Looking for a VA

The first advice I always give about outsourcing is to hire a virtual assistant for even just a few hours per week or month. A VA can do such a variety of tasks and it really is amazing what a weight it can lift. This way you can stay focused on more important things in your business.

One thing I am asked all the time is “Where can I find a VA?” It would be so much easier if I could just send everyone who asks me that question to one central place.

I know many VAs read my blog, so just shout out. If you’re a virtual assistant, post your skills and website URL in the comments section below.

Also, if you know a VA, tell him or her about this entry. They can come and post their information here as well.

Black Friday Gift Ideas - Easy & for the Internet Marketer

If you’re like me, there’s a few Internet marketers on your list that you probably want to share a bit of holiday joy with. Forget about battling the local mall.

Side note: My mother-in-law crossed the U.S. border last night to get up for 5 AM shopping today. She invited me to come along. I love spending time with my mother-in-law, but I won’t get up that early and battle those crowds just to end up paying full price for what I actually want.

But back to the Internet marketer on your list. Sure, you can send them candies and they’ll probably be eagerly gobbled up, but why not put something a little more unique together? Here’s a few ideas:

1. Keep Them from Losing Their Precious Files: Help them easily keep back-ups by giving them a USB Flash Drive. They even have personalized ones at Pexagon Technology, Inc.

2. Do They Need to Work on More Than One Computer?: A GoToMyPC subscription makes working in multiple locations/computers a snap.

3. Have They Been Toying with Starting Their Internet Business All Year, But Haven’t Started? Get them started by signing up for the Internet Based Family website builder. It’s perfect for those with minimal computer/online skills. Or choose your favorite website builder and get them started with that. No more excuses!

4. Do They Want More Content for Their Websites, But Never Get Around to It? If they market to moms, consider a subscription to All Mom Content or grab them a few article packs at Easy PLR. Or go the extra mile and get a writer working on a project on Elance or at Article Mojo.

5. Do You Really, Really Like Them And Want Them to Get Their Online Business to the Next Level? You can’t go wrong with a huge DVD / CD-Rom Traffic Secrets set. It’s transformed so many online businesses (use this link to find out how it has helped me too) and they’ll be thrilled with the big box of goodies shipped to their door.

Whatever you do, make someone’s holiday extra special!

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