Posts Tagged ‘home business tips’

5 Powerful Google Services That Can Build Your Business

Thursday, July 23rd, 2009

If you’re a freelancer or a small business owner, it is important to know what business-building resources are available to you with little or no budget at all.

If you don’t know where to start, here are some recommendations…

Besides the homepage gadgets, Google offers free services that can help boost your company’s productivity and grow your business.

Here are some free Google services…

1. Google Alerts

If you can’t afford to get your own researcher for the meantime, this is really a convenient service to have.

alert

Google Alerts can help you monitor news, blog articles, videos or any other web published materials about your product, your competitor or your industry.

You can also stay on top of the latest events and keep tabs on your personal interests like sports, celebrity news etc.

Alerts can be sent through your email or posted on your feeds tab in your homepage.

2. Google Analytics

Through this free Google service, you can optimize your website, conduct split tests and boost your sales.
analytics

The service provides advanced segmentation or analytical interpretation of your website’s traffic with an interactive segment builder.

You can also generate custom reports by using the drag and drop interface to view all the information the way you want to.

Simply put, this web analytics solution gives you accurate information on your website traffic and marketing effectiveness.

Google Analytics is a really powerful tool that is easy-to-use. Its features can help analyze traffic data in different ways. It can help guide you in creating better-targeted ads to increase your sales and ultimately give you a higher converting website.

3. Gmail

If you haven’t tried Gmail and you’re interested in using Google Analytics or Google Alerts, then you need to sign up for Gmail ☺

You can set up your Gmail to be as functional as your Outlook or whatever email software you use. Here are some cool Gmail features that you can check out.

email12

• Email management

If you have a Gmail account, you can make use of that account to manage several email accounts. Here’s how…

Click on Settings > Accounts > Get mail from other accounts (then add the email account/s)

Also you can set it up so you’re able to reply to emails using your other accounts. Just follow these steps…

Settings > Account > Send mail as (then add the email account/s)

• Google Calendar

This feature serves the same functions as your email software calendars. You can set up appointments, manage invites and even share your calendar simply by adding emails that would have access to the calendar.

You can sync your Google calendar to your Outlook or if you’re using a Mac, you can sync it to your iCal.

• Google Labs

email21

Inside Gmail are some really cool features that you can enable on your account.

Just a couple of brilliant tools you can add are text messaging through Gtalk for free (available to US numbers only) and offline access.

4. Google Reader

This service allows you to keep up with your favorite websites by accessing and reading them in one place, making it as easy as checking your email.

reader

You can spend less time browsing for updates; instead you can scan through them on one page and just read through the important stuff.

5. Google Docs

The Documents feature on Gmail is also very handy. When you create documents here, you can:

docs

• Share the documents and do edits simultaneously with other people you have shared the document with. Edits are shown in real time.

• You can also email the document as an attachment.

• And publish it as a webpage

I’m sure you can’t wait to explore these Google services and see how it can help build your business. ☺

Are You Making These 5 Work-at-Home Mistakes?

Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

Networking has never been as easy now with the proliferation of Twitter, Facebook and the like.

Networking has never been as easy now with the proliferation of Twitter, Facebook and the like.


A home business offers the ultimate in a flexible lifestyle where you can pursue your dreams and passions while balancing a happy home life.

For all the merits of a work-at-home arrangement, it has its challenges, too. It’s important to steer clear of these five mistakes, each of which can take you back a step on your road to work-at-home success.

Here are five mistakes to avoid in your home-based business.

1. Falling for scams.

Make sure to do a lot of research before you fork out any of your hard-earned money. The internet, and the home business market, in particular, is ripe with fraud because would-be scammers know the exceptionally broad appeal of a home-based business. Be especially wary of online ads that are overhyped, that rely heavily on vague testimonials (which may or may not be real), and anything that requires an outlay of money on your part. Also beware of any opportunity that promises quick riches. There are many ways to build a legitimate home-based business, but they each take time, energy, dedication and persistence.

2. Not investing in education.

While you want to be careful to not fall for scams, you can save yourself a lot of time by learning as much as you can about your chosen industry. Check amazon for the best books on the subject. Spend time reading legitimate and trusted industry journals, blogs, and websites.

3.Researching too much.

Yes, it’s important to research opportunities and ideas in your home-based business, but it’s just as important to take action at some point. A lot of your success in your home-based business is going to come from jumping in and learning from your mistakes. Take time at the end of each month to look over all of the business activities and decide what you would do differently next time.

4. Isolating yourself.

When you work from home, it’s pretty tempting to zone in on your computer screen and not emerge again until it’s time to go to bed or cook dinner or pick up the kids. But, just as with any business, you’ll benefit from networking with other entrepreneurs in your industry, as well as with potential clients and customers. It’s never been easier to connect with like-minded people through such social networking communities as Facebook and Twitter, not to mention the blogs, forums, and communities set up around your particular industry. Carve out a bit of time each day to make new connections.

5. Expecting too much, too soon.

Starting and growing a home-based business will be one of the most challenging, but also most rewarding, processes you ever take part in. It often takes longer to achieve success than many people budget for, whether it’s time or money. It’s important to keep at it, though, whether that means keeping your day job or minimizing your other needs so that you can persistently grow your home based business. If you learn enough about your chosen industry and give it enough time and attention, you will start to achieve success. The most essential part is to not get discouraged too soon.

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