Interview with founder Jimmy Wales about the history of Wikipedia

Added 6.8.10 - The idea that Jimmy Wales is the "founder" of Wikipedia is being challenged. (link leads to an interesting Wikipedia read)

Wikipedia is a major force on the Internet. Here is a good interview with Wikipedia's founder, Jimmy Wales.

Wikipedia had little money when it started. It ran on three servers until two of them crashed on Christmas day years ago. A fundraiser brought in $20,000 that paid for eight servers.

Since the economic meltdown Wales sees a lot of panic going on. People remember the .com crash in 2000. Don't expect Wikipedia to be sold soon or sell out to advertisers.

Greg Cryns

Scentsy wickless candles - a great product and a great opportunity

Offline customer service problem

Picture credit: verygoodservice






So, I walk into my bank on Saturday morning. It's a small bank in my small town. Somehow I think I can expect stellar customer service even though it is Saturday morning.

There is just one teller behind the counter and she is waiting on a customer. I see the customer wants to make a series of transactions. I am first in line. I stand at the wooden island and drum my fingers.

Behind me are two managers in their offices. One is on the phone. The other is using her computer showing that smile people make when they are chatting on Facebook. I wait five more minutes.

What is wrong with this picture?

One thing that is wrong for my bank is that there is a big fat chase bank literally next door in the mall. It would not be very difficult for me to change banks in a very short time.

Another thing that is wrong is when did it become OK to give phone customers preference to walk- in customers? I think that is a trend. At least that is what I have observed in many business establishments. I won't even go into how chatting on a computer hurts the bottom line.

Has it always been like this. Have phone calls always been so used to protect employees from real human interaction?

In addition, is it wrong for me to expect the managers to spring into action when they see a line growing by the minute?

I think it's time to telephone in a complaint. What do you think?

Greg Cryns
Scentsy wickless candles
Work At Home Profiles
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Scentsy home party video

Poseidon Scentsy Warmer


Here is a Scentsy party (open house) video:

Greg Cryns - Scentsy Husband/Wife Consultant with Yvonne Cryns

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Scentsy customer video

This is a Scentsy Paws Candle Warmer


Here is a video showing someone who is simply a Scentsy fan. She buys Scentsy products but she is not a consultant (yet). I learned from one Scentsy rep never to ask someone to join your team. It's just bad form, in my opinion. Just show your products. If someone wants to learn how to sell the products, he or she will make that evident to you.

Greg Cryns

Scentsy Consultant

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5 Internet Tips Every Direct Sales Consultant Should Implement

This is a California Rose, picture taken in my front yard.


Can direct sales people build a team on the Internet? I think so.

This article is written by Janette Stoll

If you're starting a new direct sales business and feeling overwhelmed with web 2.0, you're not alone. You're already busy setting up your business and now you've got to think about having an online presence too. Where do you start, right? I can relate because I was trying to implement everything at once and felt so burnt out. To be successful, you don't need to do everything i.e. pay per click, article marketing, video marketing, social media, and so forth. You can always add on. Keep it simple and implement a few things.

Keep your focus on mastering a few things like setting up a blog or web site. It's better to be an expert on a few topics rather than being a generalist and doing everything with mediocrity.

Here are 5 tips to have an online presence:

Set up a Blog

There's a ton of online resources on blogging. Whether to choose WordPress or Blogger, why blogs increase more traffic then a static web site, and so much more. You will find more info than I could offer in this short post. However, here are three tips: narrow your topic to a few "niche" ones or on topics that you have a lot of knowledge in. You cannot be an expert and cover everything! Concentrate on writing great content and continue learning copy/ad writing. Plan on adding at least 2-3 posts a week to beef up the content of your blog. Until you have enough content, some blog search engines like BlogCatalog won't accept your blog submission. Some excellent blogs to check out are: Copyblogger, Problogger.net, and Dailyblogtips. Commenting on other blogs in your niche market is a really good way to build rapport with other bloggers and learn from them too.

Syndicate Everywhere

Content is king and so is syndication! The importance of syndicating your blog will increase your search engine rankings and create more visibility for your blog. If you're not indexed by search engines i.e. Google, Yahoo, RSS directories, or blog search engines then you're not being found by your prospects, customers, and potential business partners that are looking to join your business.

Tip: think keywords and search words or phrases whenever you're writing but don't fill every single line with keywords either. Balancing strong keywords and writing in a way that's engaging to your audience. Don't write just to fill up space.

Social Networks

If you do a search for social networks, your head will spin because there are so many. Invest in building genuine relationships on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn. Facebook to me is more friend-ish and Twitter can get you spammed by a ton of peeps promoting their business opportunities and products. I'm becoming a huge of LinkedIn and the potential of LinkedIn's groups. Sometimes smaller niche social networks will give you greater visibility in reaching a more targeted audience.

Tip: Don't get sucked into socializing because it will be counter productive. You can be productive and socialize by keeping it to 30 minutes a day on social networks. With Twitter, focus on Retweeting if you find something valuable and use @reply to engage with your followers and start having conversations. Do NOT spam your followers or constantly promote your products or business opportunity.

Niche Social Networks

Niche social networks can be a great resource to meet people in your niche market. Ning offers thousands of groups and LinkedIn is excellent and has huge potential. There are forums for direct sales and network marketing entrepreneurs. Groups are also a good place to meet people that are selling similar products or share similar interests. For example, WAHM forum has thousands of members that are in direct sales and network marketing. If you're in the clothing or fashion business, you might check out Stylehive, which has a community, tags, and group for like-minded people. Social bookmarking sites are underutilized and quite effective!

Leverage a Community

Start commenting on other blogs in direct sales. Add their blogs to your Blogroll, link to their posts often, syndicate by Retweeting or share with your Facebook friends. Your direct sales pals will appreciate it if the content is relevant and valuable. Reach out to your team members and uplines that have blogs. Ask them to link your blog to theirs and network with fellow consultants. As long as your goal is to help build each other's business, the collaboration will enhance your business and you'll develop new friendships too.

Janette Stoll is a WAHM and proud member of the direct sales, network marketing business. I'm passionate about teaching home business entrepreneurs how to market their direct sales business using internet and attraction marketing techniques to attract quality prospects to their business. For more free tips, visit http://www.marketingdirectsales.com
____________________________

Greg Cryns

Scentsy wickless candles consultant (with Yvonne Cryns)

Work At Home Profiles

Direct Sales - What Does it Mean?

Found in a San Luis Obispo novelty store

Direct Sales is a method of marketing and selling goods directly to the customer away from a fixed retail location. Direct selling is now the world's largest provider of part and full time earnings and can be an ideal way of starting your own business and offers unique and rewarding opportunities.

As with any business opportunity is important to choose the right opportunity for you. Here are some considerations to make when making the decision which direct sales business opportunity to choose:

Believe in the product

It is important to choose a business with a product that appeals to you and one that is fairly priced as it is much easier to sell a product that you truly believe in.

Be realistic of your earning potential

Many companies will exaggerate earning potentials. It is important to realise that, as with any other business, a direct sales business will require time, effort and dedication to succeed. However if you are enthusiastic about the product that you are selling then your sales will be easier to achieve.

Keep investment costs low

Good earning opportunities in direct sales generally only require modest investments. It is important therefore not to succumb to invitations to invest large amounts of money into stock. Most reputable companies do not require you to buy goods before you have made any sales to customers.

Generally there are two basic types of direct sales businesses. One is a party plan which involves face to face contact selling products to customers in a party.

The other attractive direct selling business opportunities are internet based businesses. These types of businesses can be hugely successful especially with the continuing growth of the internet search engines. This can offer global opportunities which can earn an income for you even as you sleep.

If you choose an internet based sales opportunity then it is important to ensure that you do not fall prey to businesses that are not genuine direct sales opportunities. One such example is pyramid selling. These companies disguise themselves to look like a legitimate direct sales company but have the following characteristics:

They ask you to make substantial investments in stocks of goods by offering rewards to participants for getting others to do the same.

They also make little reference to direct selling and the need to achieve customer sales. Instead they claim rewards come from getting others to make substantial initial investment.

They do not offer contracts, cancellation rights nor opportunities to buy back unsold goods.

The best internet companies generally are the GPT style companies namely that you get paid today yourself for what you sell.

It is possible to earn a substantial income from direct selling and to build up a long term retirement income. However, as with any business, you will need desire, motivation and commitment to succeed.

Success in a direct sales business will rely on the relationship and trust that you build up with your customers. Once you have made a sale it is important to continue to look after that customer to ensure further sales and ongoing success.

The beauty of direct sales is that it offers the opportunity to work flexible hours and to work from home. This makes is especially attractive to women with family commitments as they can start a business on a part time basis with minimal start up capital. It is an equal opportunity and rewards according to effort and commitment and not based on gender or age. It is even possible to run this business alongside your current job thus ensuring that you continue to earn an additional income while you set up your business.

With direct sales opportunities you can either earn an additional part time income working from home or you can generate a substantial income by working full time in your business. Whatever you choose, your success in direct sales, as in any other business, will be determined by the hard work and commitment that you put into your business.

My name is Roy Derrick. I have been self employed for over 20 years and developed numerous companies. I now work full time from home operating an Online Home Based Company that enables me to share with others how to become successful and create prosperity and a lifestyle to be proud of. My advice is free. Find out how. Visit: http://www.perfectprosperity.com.
___________________________

Greg Cryns
Scentsy wickless candles consultant

Why Direct Sales Will Take You Further Than MLM

Picture found in a San Luis Obispo store


Guest post by Arthur Georges

There are some people who will try to sell you on the idea that there is little difference between a direct selling opportunity and an MLM opportunity. Nothing could be further from the truth, however. Here are some differences between the two opportunities so that you can evaluate them and make your own, informed decision about the best path for your life.

Product Quality: Direct sales companies tend to market higher-ticket items. They're normally going to be one time sales to a hot market-that is, people want and need the things that are being sold. You'll be looking at durable items, things that are valuable to the consumer. In a MLM scheme, the products are often lower quality, lower ticket items. They may speak to some manner of demand, like the health supplement craze does, but it's telling that MLM participants are sent after their family and friends-their so-called warm market-before they're sent anywhere else. A truly good product does not require a sympathy purchase from your Uncle John.

Payment Structure: In direct selling the payment structure supports being paid directly for your personal sales. It is true that there are sales managers when you do direct selling, and it's true that you might even end up one. It's even true that some direct selling opportunities make finding other reps part of the prerequisite for being a sales manager. However, the sales manager makes a far smaller percentage of the sale than the actual rep does in a direct selling business-just as in any business. The sales manager's rewards come in motivating each member of the team to do well enough for him to make a living off of, while the sales rep makes the living from the sales. In MLM, the sponsor will always make most of the money, and the sponsor's sponsor will make even more. The person who did the actual sale actually gets the crumbs that are left over.

Focus: MLM's tend to collapse under their own weight as soon as each representative realizes the money is to be made in the recruiting. If only people with downlines make money then it makes more sense to focus on building a downline than it does to sell products. That means that very few actual products get sold, and very little money is getting made. Direct sales opportunities are stable. You can work for ten years as a representative without ever touching management and still make good money as a direct marketer.

Top Tier direct marketers embrace the cutting edge of the internet to do even more than traditional direct marketers can. The best success of all can be found with a company like this. A little research will help you find them so that you can begin enjoying the opportunities and lifestyle they ultimately offer.

Arthur Georges is the founder of Home Business Australia. Learn more at http://www.homebusiness-australia.com.au.
____________________

Greg Cryns
Scentsy wickless candles consultant

Very funny commercials

I think some commercials can be funny and still promote the brand. Hope you like these!

The Toyota Swagger Minivan Rap




Bom Chicka Wah Wah - Axe Commercial




Fed Ex commercial takeoff from the movie Cast Away




I think we can learn to improve our marketing videos by including more humor.

Greg Cryns

Top 10 Tips for Using Twitter

(picture of mannequen found in a San Luis Obispo fun store)


Here is a nice guest post by my good friend Merle. I've learned to trust Merle's instincts when it comes to Internet marketing. This is more solid stuff. Read on....

"Top 10 Tips for Using Twitter"

By Merle http://MerlesWorld.com

When it comes to social media, no one "gets it" as well
as Twitter. According to Econsultancy, as of Jan 2010,
Twitter has 75 million user accounts, with about 15
million of that total being active users. See
http://tinyurl.com/yetgcru . That's a lot of people
sending a lot of Tweets. This micro-blogging service
makes it easy for small businesses and entrepreneurs
to stay in touch with those who choose to follow them,
and stay updated on new products, services, special
offers, industry news and more. It's a win-win for
both the Tweeter, and their followers.

When it comes to using Twitter, there's a right way and
a wrong way to use it. Your messages must be kept short,
under 140 characters, and they need to be helpful or
informative. Don't carry on about what you ate for
breakfast, or the fact that you just brushed your teeth.
People will unfollow you faster than they can hit
the button, even if you do have good oral habits.

I've been using Twitter for a long time now and here's
what I've found works best when participating in this
close knit community of few words.

1) Regular Postings: Now I'm not saying you need to post
every day, although that would be nice. You do need to
make an appearance on a regular basis. It's like school -
you need to show up to pass. Be a contributor that your
followers get to really know and look forward to your
Tweets. If you're the type of person who needs to plan
ahead, you can always use a service that allows you to
schedule tweets in advance, such as
http://www.socialoomph.com/

2) Retweet: If you see Tweets posted by other users that
you think your followers would like, then retweet them. It
only takes one click, and you'll also be creating goodwill
with other Twitter users at the same time. If you'd like,
you can add a personal thought or comment before sending
it. Also, make it easy for others to retweet your posts
by adding RT buttons to your website or blog. It's easy
with http://tweetmeme.com/about/retweet_button

3) Be Helpful: Keep in mind Twitter is a form of social
Media, so social interaction is key. It's not all about
you. Whenever an opportunity arises to answer a question,
participate in a survey, or help solve a problem, do so.
In this way you're participating in the community. This
also will help your brand and image when others know
they can count on you for support or feedback.

4) Don't Be A Follow CopyCat: Don't follow everyone who follows
you. This is probably my biggest pet peeve when it
comes to Twitter. So many people turn this feature on
to auto follow those who follow them. Why would you
want to do this? I'd prefer that those I follow are
people and topics I've hand-selected that interest me,
and not a mish-mash of followers who may be ranting
about things I have no interest in. Be selective in
who you follow or your Twitter stream could quickly
fill up with junk or spam. For quality people to
follow, see-http://followontwitterlists.com/

5) What to Tweet: Make sure that the tweets you post
are helpful and/or informative. Late breaking news
pertaining to your industry, as well as any specials or sales
you may have going on are always good topics. If you
find something you think your followers would like,
especially if it's free or a bargain, share the love.
Plus, if your tweets are good, it will encourage others
to retweet them. For ideas see-
http://www.artbizblog.com/2009/07/what-to-tweet.html

6) Comment: Particpate in the community by commenting
on other people's tweets. If you can answer a question,
do so. It never hurts and people really will appreciate
it when you take the time to comment on what they have
to say. It lets them know that others are actually
listening to what they have to say in the "Twitterverse".

7) Say Thank You: When someone takes the time to retweet
one of your tweets, make sure to reply to them with a
"thank you". Manners rule online as well as off, and
they'll like the fact that you noticed the retweet
and took the time to show some gratitude. It may even
inspire them to retweet more of your tweets in the
future.

8) Be Personal: Again, I don't need to know what you
ate for dinner, but every now and then you should show
your human side with a creative thought, quote, or
other statement. Let people know you're "real" and
not just a lean mean business machine. You want to
tread lightly in this area. Too personal is overkill,
but a little can help in establishing a connection with
your followers.

9) Post Pictures/Video: Remember, Twitter is not just
for text. It's easy to post short videos, and pictures
too. It's nice to mix it up a little and share content
in other formats as well. Here are some resources
http://freenuts.com/video-sharing-websites-for-twitter/

10) Talk About More Than Yourself: It's not all about
you, so please don't make all your tweets one big marketing
message, such as only tweeting about your latest press
release, blog posting, or article that was published. No one
will want to follow you if you're one big commercial. Yes,
some of this is fine in moderation, but you need to walk
a fine line and mix it up with other helpful, interesting
topics.

Now it's time to start putting these tips into action.
Social media is all about participating and listening
to what others have to say. It's all about creating and
sharing information and becoming part of the community.
If you approach Twitter in this fashion, you'll not
only have a lot more fun, but your followers will like
and respect you -and if that doesn't strengthen your
brand, nothing will.

---------------------------------------------------------
"Blah...Blah...Blog..Rantings by Merle"- The Blog that's
loaded with online marketing techniques and strategies
that will help you increase your website traffic and make
more money online. Tips and tricks for online entrepreneurs,
and marketers to grow your net biz. Visit today-
http://www.mcpromotions.blogspot.com/
Follow me http://Twitter.com/msmerle
_______________________________________

Greg Cryns
Work At Home Profiles
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Marketing yourself: The 1-2-3 Handshake

photo by shirishbendre

You never get a second chance to make a good first impression.

If your career depends on meeting people offline (and I think most of us would profit from more offline activity), the first impression is a visual event.

An important part of making that oh-so-important good first impression is the handshake.

Follow these three simple handshake rules to get started.

1. Look your prospect in the eye. Look at the pupil in his eye. Experts say that this is a great way to bond with another person and it will affect that relationship in the future. Say a few words while you are shaking hands. If you say nothing you imply that you are nervous.

2. Make your handshake firm but not too firm and definitely not too limp. Men grow up learning this but women may need more practice. It's a business world, not a coming out party.

3. Smile! Show your prospect that you are really happy to see him. Nobody enjoys a serious sourpuss.

Greg Cryns
Work At Home Profiles
Wahm Search Engine

Another type of SPAM

This morning I was spammed twice. Both used the phone to spam me.

The first was a call from a lady who immediately identified herself. I received an email from her a couple of days ago that ruffled my feathers because I received it in a jealously guarded email account. I sent her an email asking where she obtained my email address.

Her phone call provided the answer, sort of. She said she obtained my email from two friends (husband and wife?). I told her she was spamming me. She said that was not true because to spam someone you need to send a whole bunch of emails at once. I chuckled and ended the call politely.

The second call was from a person who identified himself as Michael Bianco. He asked me to write down his phone number which is 602-765-1974. He added that this was a direct line. I decided to humor this obvious spammer so I listened some more. He said he obtained my phone number from a website where I asked for info about how to make money on the internet.

Well, well. More likely, I downloaded an eBook. Come to think of it, I think I can find that eBook because I remember including my phone number on the lead capture page. This guy said, "I just need 8 minutes of your time." I told him I would give him 2 minutes since I am already happy with the income I make online.

Here's the punchline. He said, "OK. 2 minutes, just wait for the click." I started to ask about "the click" when suddenly I was on hold listening to some crappy elevator musice.

So, that is the way they handle difficult people. They put them on hold. Good idea, jerk. No wonder you have an $10 per hour job.

Readers, when you get a call from 602-765-1974 don't even answer the call if you value your time and/or sanity.

For the record, my definition of SPAM is any unsolicited business email, phone call or fax unless it is from a friend or family member. If it is from a business that wants to sell me something there is no question it is SPAM for me.

What the phone spammers need to learn is that this is a lose-lose situation. They lose time. I lose time. Time is valuable, at least to me and I assume to any other person. There are so many other ways to catch the attention of people who really need your service or product. Why waste your time?

Greg Cryns

The Mighty Mo Website Design and Promotion

Work At Home Profiles

3 talented and successful people I discovered this morning

Picture- Cat In The Hat figure found in a San Luis Obispo, CA, novelty store



1. Cindy Krum

Twitter @Suzzicks - Mobile Marketing Evangelist
Website: Mobile Marketing
and The Everywhereist (travels with hubby Rand Fishkin)

How I found Cindy: I was peeping at who @Randfish (Rand Fishkin co-founder of SEOmoz) follows. One (out of the 31 he follows, he has 16,000 followers, this ratio always intrigues me) is Cindy Krum

Why I like Cindy Krum: I do SEO and I want to learn more about mobile marketing

What I learned: sometimes the person behind the star is even more intriguing


2. Neil Patel

Twitter @neilpatel
Blog: KISSinsights
and Crazyegg: Sells visitor heat maps Bio (on website)

Bio: has helped large corporations such as AOL, General Motors, Hewlett-Packard and Viacom make more money from the web. By the age of 21 not only was Neil named a top 100 blogger by Technorati, but he was also one of the top influencers on the web according to the Wall Street Journal

How I found Neil: I was reading Daniel Scocco's fascinating post in Daily Blog Tips by about how successful bloggers work (time spent, etc) 12 Top Online Entrepreneurs Share How Hard They Work- Neil Patel is interviewed there.

Why I like Neil: Neil's post on May 3 is called "Do Business Like A Prostitute" - both the headline and the number of comments (141) grabbed me immediately

Learned: Neil makes about 2 posts a month on his blog. This demonstrates that making a lot of blog posts is not necessarily the path to blogging success


3. Dan Benjamin

Website: The Pipeline (audio interviews) http://5by5.tv/pipeline/14
Blog: Hivelogic
Twitter: @danbenjamin

How: saw Neil Patel's post that he was interviewed by Dan Benjamin (on The Pipeline)

Neil posted **You have to checkout my interview with @danbenjamin http://bit.ly/a8KiZP **

Bonus: Dan interviews Andy Ihnatko (and many others), noted author, columnist at The Chicago Sun Times and Macworld, a regular on Mac Break Weekly, frequent speaker, Apple guru, and geek extraordinaire

Why I like Dan Benjamin: I like audios and he does a great job at it

Greg Cryns
The Mighty Mo Web Design and Promotion

7 Essential First Tasks for A Web Marketing Newbie

photo by Züleyha Sucu


I always give my new customers two options to get started with Internet Marketing.

1. They can pay me to do everything for them. This can get prohibitively expensive for the small business owner.

2. They can perform tasks I think are necessary to obtain online success.

Usually the smaller businesses will decide to do as much grunt work as possible. We might spend three hours or more discussing their needs before I make the final recommendations.

I had a client in the office today. He is anxious to get his non-profit organization rolling. I told him there are things he could be doing even before we launch the website. In order of importance, we came up with these ideas:

1. Establish a presence (Profile) on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

2. Start a blog immediately with Blogger.com . I advised him to start posting on his blog immediately. Keep in mind that we might switch to Wordpress after his site launches.

3. Set up a GMail account with Google. This opens the door to other Google goodies including Blogger, website statistics, and Google Alerts.

4. Set up an account with Flickr.com so he can find good pictures to put on his website. I advised him to find a few good pictures and to contact the photographers who took them. This way he will have a reference for future photo needs.

5. Set up a YouTube account. We are planning to upload videos to his website.

6. Find out where his potential clients hang out. Do a search for "(niche name) blogs" and "(nice name) forums".

7. Sign up at Super Pages, Merchant Circle and social media review sites such as Yelp and iBegin. This will help firm up your presence in the search engines.

I emphasize that this is just the beginning of a hopefully long and profitable journey. He needs to learn to walk before he can run. He can learn the techniques for making money in the first year. He can actually make significant money in the second year. Obviously some people with lots of time can make this happen faster. Remember that this client has a full time job offline.

Greg Cryns
The Mighty Mo Website Design and Promotion

Nonpayment for service rendered - what would you do?

photo by jhhwild


One of my clients pays me $100 per month for a service I provide. She has been paying that each quarter promptly for three years.

Her husband died about seven months ago. I billed her for the first quarter of 2010 but I did not immediately receive a payment. So I sent her a Pay Pal reminder twice in January. Nothing happened during the first quarter. I did not try to contact her because I knew she was fighting off the grief for her husband.

I sent her a new billing for the second quarter at the end of March. I did not receive a payment as of the beginning of May so I sent her a reminder on May 1st.

I did receive payment for the 2nd quarter today. Thus, I have this dilemma. Should I rebill her now for the first quarter?

I am inclined to ignore the first quarter for a couple of reasons. First, the service I offer is not labor intensive. In fact it requires about 30 minutes a month of my time. Second, I am not desperate for the money and I think it may do both of us more good right now if I don't bill her. I think it is a win/win because I will not alienate a good customer.

My 12 years of experience on the web is that nearly 100% of people I do business with on the Internet are honest as the day is long. I think most experienced marketers will verify that statement.

I think we need to give people a chance to be honest before we take action.

What do you think?

Greg Cryns
Work At Home Profiles

Social network NING will soon be pay to play

Jason Rosenthal, the new CEO at Ning.com officially announced today that Ning will phase out free services in July, 2010.
Users who want to keep their position on Ning will be offered three choices:
Ning Pro ($49/month or $499/year), Ning Plus ($20/month or $199.95/ year), and Ning Mini ($3/month or $19.95/year). We are told that teachers and students will be allowed to keep their free service.

Marc Andreessen (Netscape and Oppsware) cofounded Ning in 2004. The website provided a place for people to set up their own social network for free. I didn't know there was a paid version available until this week even though I claimed my own small piece of Ning since 2006.

Rosenthal is quoted in SFgate as saying that paid users accounted for 80% of Ning's revenues. This tells me that the folks who visit Ning do not click on Adsense ads very often. I suspect this is probably true at Squidoo as well where people are encouraged to put up web pages with absolutely no need to use HTML. One wonders if Squidoo will follow the lead of Ning and start charging for its service.

Rosenthal said Ning has a $4 Billion market opportunity. This would be twice the cost of YouTube to Google and it is hard to see that kind of numbers for Ning. Having said that, nothing in the realm of Internet site value surprises me any more.

Here is an update on the Ning website.

For my money, I would rather keep my membership at Ryze.com unless Ning implements a better and much more user friendly forum area.

Greg Cryns

Work At Home Profiles

The Mighty Mo Website Design and Promotions

10 powerful small business websites

There are scores of good small business websites. Here are a few I handpicked to help you with your business.

U.S. Small Business Association
Chock full of great information

Business.gov
Shows you where to find small business agencies

BusinessOwner's Toolkit
emphasizes finances and tax information and an excellent newsletter and more!

FedStats.gov
(Marketing) Business stats from 100 Federal Agencies

Centerfor Business Planning includes Sample Business Plans, and over
600 helpful resources

AllBusiness.com
May have too much info if that is possible

Inc.com
Well written, very interesting articles, great stuff!

MyCorporation.com
Thinking of incorporating? Visit here first.

Score.org
Lots of good stuff here. Be sure to visit the Business Tools and How-To sections

Nolo.com
Legal solutions for you, your family and your business

Greg Cryns
Work At Home Profiles
Wahm Search Engine