The Iconic Google AdSense Check and My 10 Year Journey After
This is the backstory to one of the most epic and iconic pictures in internet marketing. When I cashed this check it was accompanied by a $350 unemployment check. My
Scam or Totally Legit Business? What You Need to Know About Multi-Level Marketing
I grew up watching my mom jump from one multi-level marketing business to the next. She was a stay-at-home mom who needed a hobby. It began with blocky 90’s jewelry and ended with Longaberger Baskets. I saw various things fill my parent’s shelves from candles and stamps to useless cooking utensils. My mom recently tried to give me some Longaberger …
10 Companies That Took Off in Unexpected Ways
We constantly hear about the Microsofts and Apples of the world. The garage band companies from humble places. But those companies were a semblance of what they would eventually become. What about the companies that took a chance on something new? What about the jokes people expected to go nowhere? These are the surprising stories that continually surprise us. We’ll …
Top 3 Reasons Local SEO Should Be Your Focus
In my inaugural post on Shoemoney, I discussed SEO and why you need it for your small business. Brick and mortar shops need SEO, sure, but more than anything they need to think about what kind of SEO they need. It’s just three letters but it’s a broad term, with dozens of different strategies and methods to get the best …
Does SEO Matter for Your Company Blog?
Something I often hear from small business owners is, “Does SEO really matter for my blog? I mean, it’s just a blog, right?” The answer is: Yes. It matters quite a bit. On the off chance you’re the only show in town, it might not mean quite as much. But it still matters. Half of all businesses will fail in …
The Cloud is For More Than Just Hiding Your Porn Stash
Ask most consumers to explain the cloud and they’ll tell you about online storage. And while this is a semi-accurate description of the cloud, there is so much more to cloud computing than just a 21st century way of keeping your mom from finding your porn stash. The cloud is still a mystery to many people even today. They see it …
13 Unique Ideas for Young Entrepreneurs
Children can start learning about money as early as age three. One of the best ways to do this is by not always buying something when you go into a store. If your kid wants something, you tell them “there isn’t enough money right now for that, but if we wait patiently, we will eventually be able to buy it.” …
Screw the Naysayers. Learn From Beryl Stafford and Her Vegan Snack Success
Sometimes, having the world against you is a good thing. You realize whatever you’re trying to accomplish is bigger than what most people believe is possible. And if you were to accomplish it, the world would bow down in adoration. You wouldn’t think the world would be against a new kind of vegan cereal bar. But only 6% of U.S. …
What You Need to Consider Before Outsourcing Anything
In college, I took a course on global capitalism from a fairly liberal political science professor. Back then, globalism was a conservative idea to be eschewed by the left. Outsourcing was an evil corporate activity exploiting workers all over the globe. Now, nobody bats an eye at the word. It’s divorced from sweatshops and third world economies. The most reputable …
If Your User Experience Sux So Will Your Conversion Rate
I once got to be part of a user experience test. My friend was in grad school and he and his colleagues had created a simple game programming tool. It was one of the most confusing pieces of software I’ve ever touched. I found out later, they’d created a problematic piece of software on purpose. They were testing a user …
Is Drop Shipping Really a Good Idea?
Weebly founder David Rusenko isn’t a fan of drop shipping. He believes we’ve flooded the world with enough cheap crap. We don’t need any more middlemen flooding out Instagram feeds with knock-offs. But is he right? What’s wrong with middlemen doing the marketing legwork? I’ve been around the web a time or two and have seen drop shipping touted as …
Patent Trolls Can Ruin Your Life. Here’s How to Avoid Them
In the film “Joy,” the title character experienced patent troll torture. Joy Mangano marketed an idea. A mop that required no hands to wring out. After building a business and almost bringing her invention to full success, someone made a claim on her patent. The end of the story is a good one, but Magano went through hell proving the …
How to Deal With Entrepreneurial Debt
According to everyone around you, debt is normal. The average American household owns $139.5 thousand in debt. School and housing loans make up a large chunk of that number for each person. Even if you’re not among the highly indebted, as an entrepreneur, you’re told to spend. Even if you don’t have the money, you’re supposed to miraculously attract customers …
Three Guaranteed Ways to Boost Your Mobile eCommerce Conversion Rates
In 2017, Black Friday and Cyber Monday Shopify alone saw a 10% increase in mobile sales and 67% of sales were mobile sales. If you haven’t figured it out by now, mobile trumps desktop use by two-thirds. Are you targeting the majority? If not, you’d better get on board this very second. Every moment you spend keeping a non-mobile-friendly e-commerce …
Advanced SEO Techniques to Take Your Blog to the Next Level
Recently, during my conversations with people online, it’s been more and more common to stop and say “Google break!” We only resume once we’ve filled our conversational knowledge gaps. It’s really not surprising, then, that the two top activities online are search and e-mail. Facebook is losing out majorly on popularity. And the rest of the things you can do …
How to Sink Your Teeth into Real Estate Without Buying Property
Right now is one of the best times to get into real estate investing. Price growth is slated to slow and then pick up speed again. And we’ve seen only a marginal bump in mortgage rates. All of this spurs confidence in the market even if inventory is down. And with confidence comes increase in prices and increase in value. …