<$Monday, July 7, 2008$>
I signed up for Social Spark!
 It's no secret that I sometimes use this blog to pull in some extra income, mainly via paid posts. The idea of accepting compensation to blog about something is a bit controversial for some; mainly, I think, for those who confuse personal blogging with professional journalism. But being that this is a personal blog, and a blog about personal finance (among other, related things), which includes finding extra streams of income, I think paid blogging fits right in. I only do it part time, because I only have a limited amount of time to devote to it, and also because I can get a little burned out on blogging as a whole if I do too much of it at someone else's pace. But the money is good. As an established, if not wildly (or even just kinda) popular, blogger, I pull in an average of $30/hour. Considering I only devote about an hour a week to it, for me that's also an extra $30/week. That may look like chump change, but you'd be amazed at how much progress I've made paying down my credit cards already just by applying these little weekly paid blogging "debt snowflakes" to my balance. Of course, those who devote more time to it make significantly more. I started out doing it through PayPerPost, where last year I made over a thousand dollars--a teensy fraction of what some of the full-time Posties pulled in. So it's only natural that I signed up for SocialSpark, the newest venture from Izea, Inc., the people behind PayPerPost. SocialSpark is Izea's attempt to once again revolutionize the paid blogging market by turning it into a social network, thereby gaining even more exposure both for bloggers and the products they advertise.   What I like most about this new network is that, unlike PPP, I don't have to keep refreshing the opportunities page all day long in the hopes of grabbing a good one before it's snapped up by my competition. With SocialSpark, I just reserve a slot, and they e-mail me to let me know when they're ready for me to write my post--after which I have twelve hours to get it written and posted. And if I see an opportunity I like that doesn't have any openings, with SocialSpark I can contact the advertiser and request that they open a new slot just for me. This is my first post for SocialSpark, so it remains to be seen if it will work out as well for me as its predecessor did; but I have high hopes for it, and high expectations for how it will change the paid blogging biz.  Labels: disclosure, extra income, PPP |
<$Monday, January 28, 2008$>
Slowly but surely...but not as slowly as I thought!
| A while back, I mentioned that I had gotten my biggest credit card balance below $4,500, and I wanted to try to get it below $4,000 by the end of the year. That didn't happen, but I got close. As of my next payment, I'll break the $4,000 mark, making my previous goal only a little more than a month off target. This blog has been a huge help toward paying off my debts. Since I got back into a routine in the last couple of weeks, I've already earned about $150 through ad blogging alone. That's all going straight to the credit card. If I can keep up that raste of earning, I'll be able to get that card very close to paid off by the end of this year. That's pretty awesome. I'm working on setting up and establishing a couple more blogs to help increase my earnings. Ideally, that income will also go directly to my credit cards to help pay them down even faster, but of course, I don't yet know how moving into our own house will affect our budget. As I've said, it all looks doable on paper, but I can't shake the fear that I've missed somethig or forgotten to take something into account. So it will give me peace of mind to know I've got a way to earn extra if we need it to live on. This blogging has basically become my second job. Done right, it takes about as much of my time as a part time job would, and it pays a lot better than minimum wage. It's also something I enjoy doing. Maybe someday, if I can keep growing my blog network, it will bring in enough to allow me to quit my job and do this full time; but that's getting way ahead of myself. For now, it's helping me learn about finances as it simultaneously provides me with the means to get out from under debt. There are definitely worse things I could be doing with my spare time. Labels: debt reduction, extra income, PPP |
<$Tuesday, January 22, 2008$>
Good Deals on Dental Care
| *Sponsored Post* My husband hasn't been to the dentist in years. He knows he needs to go get his teeth cleaned and checked, and that he'll probably have cavities that need to be dealt with. He also needs to eventually have his wisdom teeth removed. So when the open enrollment period for my employer's benefits came around at the end of 2007, I enrolled him in the company's dental plan. I didn't like it; at $35 per paycheck--$70 per month--that seemed kind of steep to me, especially when a month's worth of premiums would almost cover the cost of a cleaning. But not knowing what kind of work he'll need done to his teeth, and not wanting to be caught with our pants down if he needed something major, we bit the bullet and signed him up anyway. That's what I get for not doing my research first. Instead of expensive insurance that only pays a percentage of most procedures anyway, we probably should have checked into discount dental plans. These are different from dental insurance in that instead of premiums and copay, you simply pay a one time annual fee to receive steeply discounted services for the entire year. Annual fees run as low as $79.95 for individuals--that's a heck of a bargain compared to my $75 monthly premium--and $129.95 for entire families, regardless of how many children you have. That particular dental plan also covers prescriptions, vision and chiropractic care, and includes three extra months of coverage for the first year. It's pretty frustrating to find out about this after we committed to a year of expensive insurance, let me tell you. I'm bookmarking this site, and when open enrollment comes back around for 2009, we're going to seriously consider switching over to this. Labels: bargains, disclosure, frugality, healthy living, insurance, PPP |
Cititec
| *Sponsored Post* One of the best ways to get out of debt and get ahead in your finances is to increase your income. Sometimes the best way to increase your income is simply to find a better job. Financial IT Jobs can be a pretty lucrative career choice. If you've got the relevant education and training already, you might consider placing yourself with an Investment Banking IT Recruitment firm. In such a niche market, it seems like it would be an excellent idea to have someone who knows the job market and the industry do your job searching for you. Cititec recruits globally, so registering with them could open the door not just for a more prosperous future, but a more adventurous one as well. Labels: disclosure, extra income, PPP |
<$Monday, January 21, 2008$>
Discount Blinds
| *Sponsored post* I can't stop myself from mentally dressing my hypothetical future house. As such, I waste a lot of spare time "window shopping" on the web for good decorating and furniture bargains. Even though I suspect our decorating style will be primarily "Second-hand Chic," at least for the first few years, it's still fun to dream. One thing I must have when we move is good window coverings. Ever since my cat tore down the mini blinds in my current apartment, I haven't bothered to replace them. Well, I did once, when I made curtains--she destroyed those, too. Cats are jerks. I think by now, though, she's old enough and fat enough that we can safely hang blinds in our hypothetical future house. Although they're a bit pricier than the mini blinds, I really like the look of these basswood wood blinds. If I were buying them today, I'd get 25% off the regular price, and they would actually be pretty affordable. I also like the fact that Select Blinds has donated products to Extreme Home Makeover; sure, it's good for them in the way of exposure and publicity, but it also goes to a good cause, and I like to support businesses that give generously to those in need. Labels: charity, disclosure, house-hunt, PPP, shopping |
Pets Allowed
| *Sponsored Post* Having pets can sometimes make it difficult to plan a trip. What do you do with them while you're gone? Do you hire someone to walk and feed them, or do you board them with a kennel? Cats tend to be less of a worry--put out clean litter and a week's worth of kibble and water and get a neighbor to check in once in a while to make sure they haven't managed to somehow burn the house down while you're gone, and they'll be fine. Dogs, though, tend to need more maintenance, not to mention more company. I've always had portable dogs, so whenever feasible my favorite option has been to take them with me. Pet Friendly Hotels can be hard to come by, so I've got plenty of stories of sneaking my chihuahua into hotel rooms by hiding her in my purse. If your dog weighs more than five pounds, though, chances are you'll need to find a hotel that welcomes pets. Taking them with you can be a bit of a hassle, but you'll save on kennel and/or dog sitter fees, plus have the peace of mind of knowing your dog has the best caretaker available while you're gone -- it has you. Labels: disclosure, pets, PPP, travel |
<$Thursday, January 17, 2008$>
New Resource: Credit Exchange
| *Sponsored Post* If you have a lot of different debts, of course one of the more ideal ways to deal with it all is to consolidate them so that you only have a single payment each month. This can be easier said than done, though, especially if you have a low credit score. Credit Counseling is an attractive option for some, but those waters can be pretty murky, hiding a lot of sharks. The Credit Exchange seems more like a rescue dolphin -- okay, "murky" is starting to describe this metaphor. Anyway, they're not a debt management company, but a credit counseling and referral service. Their web site has a lot of educational tools and resources, too. I'm making pretty good progress paying off my cards with my "debt snowflake" method, but if my situation was more dire, I'd be tempted to put these folks to work for me. Labels: credit cards, debt consolidation, debt reduction, disclosure, PPP, reviews, tools |
Good News for Busty Gals
| *Sponsored Post* I'm a busty gal. That usually ends up being more of a curse than a blessing. It can be pretty hard to find full busted lingerie, for one thing. I once tried shopping at Victoria's Secret for wedding lingerie, and they didn't have a single thing in my cup size. I usually have to go to specialty stores to find things that fit, and even then, it's hard to find one-piece or paired items that fit both my top and my bottom properly. Luckily, I just discovered Biggerbras.com, where I should have no problem finding things that fit. Not only do they have sexy lingerie in my size (which I'm sure will please my husband to no end), but they also sell tops and bottoms separately--great news for anyone with ample bosoms whose ever tried shopping for swimwear that fits. They even have vintage-looking swimsuits in my size! These things aren't cheap, but I've found that lingerie--especially bras--are one thing where you usually get what you pay for. I'd rather shell out money for a quality, well-fitted bra that will last a couple of years than have to buy a new cheap bra every few months because it wears out and stops doing its job. Cheap has a way of being expensive. This is one area where quality definitely counts. Labels: disclosure, PPP, reviews, shopping |
<$Wednesday, January 16, 2008$>
Green Light
| *Sponsored post* I love the fact that going green and being environmentally conscious fits in so well with being frugal. So many things that are better for the environment are also better for my bank account. LED lights are a pretty good example of this. Inexpensive to begin with, this decorative rope light burns cooler, uses less energy and lasts longer than decorative incandescent light strings--better for the planet, better for my bank account. It's pretty awesome the way those two things tend to go hand-in-hand. Now if only I could get my mom to switch. She uses white incandescent Christmas lights to illuminate the top of her kitchen cabinets and all of the knick-knacks she keeps up there. I like the idea, but once I get my own house I plan to duplicate it using warm white LED rope lights. So far my attempts to get my mom to change out ANY of her light bulbs have met with nothing but failure. My bet is that once my husband and I get settled in our own house and we can compare energy bills, Mom will finally come around. Labels: disclosure, frugality, green, PPP |
Free Money Files: Pepperjam Network
| *Sponsored Post* Affiliate Marketing can be a great source of passive income, if you use the right tools and find the right companies with which to affiliate your blog. Unfortunately, this is harder than it sounds, which can be pretty frustrating. Most Affiliate Marketing networks are flawed in one way or another, which can make it really hard to find the right affiliate match. Even when you do, sometimes you have to go through so many hoops that it doesn't seem worth it, or sometimes you just can't keep up with all of the changes that get made to your service agreement. But there's a new sheriff in town that promises to fix all of that, or at least come really close. Pepperjam Network is a new affiliate marketing network with big advertisers along the lines of Blockbuster, among others, which promises better communication, advertiser transparency, and a clean Web 2.0 interface--and that's just a few of the improved benefits they offer. I'm willing to try them out. Take a look at their press release below to judge for yourself. Pepperjam Announces Launch of Next Generation Affiliate Marketing Network Labels: affiliates, disclosure, extra income, free money, PPP, tools |
<$Tuesday, January 15, 2008$>
Business Resources: Fastteks
| *Sponsored Post* Starting an online business is a popular way to earn extra income, but the logistics of setting up a home office aren't always easy, especially if you have a staff. Be they hired help or family members, chances are they'll need their own work stations, which means network installation might become a high priority on the to do list. There are DIY tools available for this; however, I don't know about you, but I wouldn't trust myself to get such a technical task done right the first--or second, or third, or etc.--time. I would much rather save my time for actually running my business, and hire professionals to do the job. Fastteks specializes in getting small businesses up and running on their own networks. If you have a need to share a high-speed internet connection with your employees and/or volunteers, they might be just the resource you're looking for. Labels: disclosure, entrepreneurship, extra income, PPP, tools |
The Perils of Bad Credit
| *Sponsored Post* I've struggled for years with bad credit, mainly because of mistakes made in my youth. I remember my first day of university, when I thought I was all grown up but in reality was WAY too immature to handle having my own credit card, stepping into the student union and being inundated with credit offers. I applied for my first credit card just to get a free tee-shirt, and ended up with hundreds of dollars' worth of debt that I didn't know what to do with. From there it snowballed--I applied for more credit to stretch my budget, and ended up even deeper in debt. Add to that my ADD and my then-inability to remember to make timely payments, and I don't think I need to tell you that I was, essentially, screwed. Over the last few years, though, I've finally gotten my financial act together. I learned how to manage my money, how to budget, how to automate my payments or set reminders so they always get paid on time. Now I'm slowly but surely paying off my consumer debt. My biggest card balance (which, incidentally, is also the card with the highest interest rate) is one payment away from hitting a milestone of falling under $4,000. It's been a struggle to get on top of my finances, but it's paid off. My credit score has risen drastically over the last couple of years. I'm excited because I know how many doors finally having good credit will open for me and my husband--namely, finally being able to buy a house. Bad credit is an easy trap to get into, but once you're in it feels impossible to get out. But it is possible, and it's worth the struggle. Of course, the best thing to do is not fall into that trap in the first place. Get educated before you apply for credit, and be confident that you'll be able to refrain from misusing it. Labels: credit cards, disclosure, PPP |
<$Monday, January 14, 2008$>
Affordable Prescriptions: DrugDelivery.ca
| *Sponsored Post* With all of the medications I've been taking since I started seeing a doctor regularly again--not to mention my two trips to the emergency room and subsequent prescriptions late last year--I'm so very grateful that I have good health insurance. Between antibiotics, painkillers, allergy medication and thyroid pills, I'd be spending a monthly fortune on medication otherwise. Actually, the truth is that I wouldn't be having any of these things treated because I wouldn't be able to afford it. As it is, I pay nothing for my prescriptions as long as I get generic. That's about as good as it gets right there. There are plenty of people in this country who aren't so fortunate. My mom had to be taken to the hospital with a ruptured blood vessel last year because she couldn't afford her high-priced blood pressure medication--and she actually had insurance. There are hundreds of thousands in this country who don't even have insurance to offset the cost of medication. No wonder people look to Canada and Mexico to provide affordable medication. If you're one of those people, you'll likely be interested in this Online Canadian Pharmacy, a reputable site that can not only deliver mail-order prescriptions but can also connect you to great drug discounts at pharmacies world-wide. Even if you can afford to pay for your medication, why pay more than you have to? You can shop here for the best deals to save some money and make your health easier to fit into your budget. Labels: disclosure, frugality, healthy living, PPP |
<$Wednesday, October 31, 2007$>
Product Love: LED Christmas Lights
| As October comes to a close, it's looking less and less likely to happen, but I'm still holding out hope that Husband and I will be in our own place by Christmas. Whether or not our Christmas wish comes true, I want us to aim to have an environmentally-conscious holiday season. There's a lot of talk in the personal finance blogosphere about switching out incandescent lightbulbs to CFLs in order to reduce both energy costs and environmental impact. So it makes sense to also look at alternatives to incandescent Christmas lights. One such alternative is LED Christmas lights, which look just as pretty while using 90% less energy than incandescents. They're safer, too, seeing as they don't get nearly as hot as the old-fashioned variety. Growing up, artificial trees were de rigueur in my family, so one thing I'm definitely looking forward to is the day I have space for a real, live Christmas tree. I love the suggestion in this article, 9 Things You Can Do To Make Your Holidays Greener, to use a live tree that you can re-plant in your yard come spring. It has some other great suggestions, too, some of which I've already been doing for years--more for frugality's sake than that of the planet--like skipping cards or tags and just writing names directly on the package. Here I thought I was just being cheap; turns out I was also reducing waste. I really, really hope we can celebrate the holiday in our very own house this year; but even if we're stuck spending another Christmas in our two-room attic, we can enjoy the challenge of having ourselves a Green Christmas. Labels: disclosure, green, PPP |
<$Wednesday, October 10, 2007$>
BP Decathlon
I've been pretty impressed with BP's efforts lately to be more responsible and environmentally conscious. They seem to be honestly committed to the effort to find and develop alternative sources of energy and to promoting environmental awareness. The latest example of such is the BP Solar Decathlon, a semi-annual event hosted by the Department of Energy that pits 20 university teams against each other in the quest to design and build the most livable, efficient and entirely solar-powered house. This year's event takes place in Washing, D.C., starting tomorrow and running through next Friday. If you're in the DC area, it sounds like it could be a lot of fun to stop by and check out. I'll be following updates in the hopes of getting ideas for when we finally have a house of our own—when that happens I'd love for us to go solar-powered as much as possible. I think it's both commendable and a sad commentary on the industry that BP is the only energy company sponsoring this event. It makes me wish BP stations were more widespread and accessible in my part of the country. I'd be happy to give my gas money to them instead of to the greedy oil giants who seem to be parked on every corner here. Labels: disclosure, green, PPP |
<$Tuesday, September 25, 2007$>
Networking for the Fearful
If you read my post on being held back by fear, then you can probably guess how much I suck at things like networking and marketing. I'm never short on home-based business ideas, but they never seem to get off the ground because of that whole "too shy to go out and tell people about it" thing I've got going. I figure internet marketing is my best bet--I get to hide all safe behind my computer screen, and my writing skills are MUCH better than my verbal skills. So I'm thinking about signing up with Direct Matches. It's like LinkedIn for small business owners, a way to network with other business and get your name out there, safely, without having to deal with all the scary face-to-face or phone phobia. Their free membership looks like it has everything I need to help get the word out, and they even provide opportunities to get paid for advertising your own business--which means more cash in the debt-reduction kitty. I might as well go ahead and sign up my knitting shop--what have I got to lose? Labels: disclosure, entrepreneurship, marketing, PPP |
<$Wednesday, September 12, 2007$>
Free Sporting Lessons
| *Sponsored* I've never been much for sports, as either a spectator or a participant, but with four nephews (and a fifth on the way!), you can be sure that I've attended my fair share of Little League games, and I can recognize the positive impact that involvement in team sports has had on each my nephews' development. I also understand the desire parents' have to do everything they can to give their kids a leg up in the game and help them go as far as they can in their chosen sport (and with things like possible college scholarships and potential multi-million dollar professional sports careers in the offing, who can really blame them?). Parents who can't afford private lessons might feel that their kids are at a disadvantage, but now the playing field is a bit more level. Play Sports TV is an instructional guide for sports that offers hundreds of free videos and other instructional content, including a blog with even more tips, interviews with coaches and athletes, and other kid-friendly content. They emphasize character and sportsmanship, and even offer sportsmanship training for parents, who often tend to have more at stake emotionally in each game than their kids do. All in all, this looks like a great resource for parents and young athletes alike, and the best part is, it's FREE. Labels: disclosure, freebies, PPP |
<$Monday, September 10, 2007$>
Stupid interest rates, stop sucking up all my money!
| *Sponsored Post* We've got our debt down to two credit cards, one of which is a 0% rewards card that I use to buy our gasoline (this amounts to the occasional free tank of gas, which is pretty nice). Last time I did my financial housecleaning I managed to get the interest lowered on my other card--the one with the biggest balance, naturally--but it's still an uncomfortably high rate. My attempt to get my 0% card to raise my balance high enough to transfer my balance over was a complete failure, too. I'm still determined to get that interest rate down somehow. I need to compare credit cards to find good offers on 0% credit cards, preferably ones that also offer 0% balance transfers. I don't want to make the mistake of just applying for whatever and crossing my fingers, like I've done in the past, since that won't do my credit score any favors. But if Citibank won't lower my interest rate any further, then I think it's time to start looking for someone who's willing to take my money at a lower rate. There's got to be somebody out there who'd be happy to do that. Time to explore my options. Labels: credit cards, debt consolidation, disclosure, PPP |
<$Thursday, September 6, 2007$>
Affordable Web Hosting For Your Small Business
| *Sponsored* A lot of people on the debt-reduction and financial improvement trail run small businesses on the side in order to bring in extra income. For a lot of people it's either that, or get a second job. I know for me, after putting in long, exhausting hours at my full-time job, the last thing I want to do is go stand on my feet for several more hours flipping burgers or hawking somebody else's merchandise, so I've found online business endeavors to be ideal for bringing home that extra that lets us get ahead. Of course, the thing about running an online business is that it can get expensive, which pretty much defeats the purpose. It can be a challenge to find small business web hosting at prices that don't cut into your profits; but it can be done. Concentric offers a basic web hosting plan that has everything I could possibly need if I decide to move my knitting shop off of Etsy, for an affordable monthly fee. They even offer a free domain name with every hosting account--AND they let you have up to ten domain aliases, which means you could feasibly run up to ten different business off of a single account. That's handy, especially if you're ADD like me and have about ten different business ideas a week. I'm bookmarking these guys for future reference. Labels: disclosure, entrepreneurship, extra income, PPP, tools |
<$Tuesday, September 4, 2007$>
Energy Policy TV
| *Sponsored Post* I have a confession. Throughout most of my adult life, I haven't been very politically-minded, nor have I made it much of a point to stay informed on what's going on in the world around me. I've always been pretty content to keep to my own little corner of the world, and it's hard enough for me to keep up with that, let alone with a global conscience. But all of that seems to be changing as I get older. On a selfish note, much of that has to do with my position among the indebted and indentured middle class, and looking to help effect changes that will improve my class condition. I've been making an effort toward going green, but a big incentive is that "going green" often lines up nicely with "being frugal." That it's also better for the planet is just a side bonus. I am making attempts to be more proactive, though, and to be aware of the bigger picture and ways that I can help to change it for the better. Energy Policy TV is helping me out with that by hosting video footage of press conferences, senate and congressional hearings, board meetings, and other gatherings of politicians and other people in power discussing climate change and what they're trying to do about it. This is information that will come in handy come election time. Right now I'm watching a video of the CEO of the Electric Power Research Institute giving an economic analysis of alternative energy resources. It's interesting stuff, and is helping to ignite an interest that sparked in me a few weeks ago, that being the possibility of going solar once Husband and I get our own home. It seems like it might be a costly investment up front, but one that would pay dividends in the long run, not only by cutting our energy bill, but also by helping reduce strain on resources. It would be great if discussions like this helped to make solar generators and other alternate-power sources more readily available to the general public. Labels: disclosure, green, PPP |
<$Wednesday, August 29, 2007$>
Eeeeee! Puppies!
| *Sponsored Post* My mom is constantly saying she'd like to get a Yorkie puppy some day, after both of her current dogs have passed on. When the time comes, I intend to point her toward Salt Creek Kennel, a local breeding kennel with a pretty good pedigree. I'm always suspicious of any place that specializes in breeding puppies, but this kennel's web site doesn't raise any Evil Puppy Mill red flags. On the contrary, they're AKC certified, they have a local veterinarian inspect both their parent dogs and puppies on a regular basis, their puppies come with a one-year health warranty, and they post customer feedback on their site. What really impresses me is that they want to get to know their customers so that they can be sure their puppies are going to good homes, and to keep in touch to make sure they can answer any questions that might arise after the puppies get settled in their new homes. They specialize in small, AKC-certified breeds which can be a bit pricey, but with the health guarantees, paying extra for quality breeding might be worth it. I love Fizzgigg with all my heart, and wouldn't trade him for the world, but his health problems this year alone have cost us as much as buying one of these puppies would have. Some vet bills are going to be inevitable no matter what, but getting a dog whose history and parentage you're certain of could really cut down on veterinary costs over the dog's lifetime. Warning: clicking on those links could lead to squealing, intense desire to hold and cuddle puppies, and cuteness overload. We're not in the market for a new dog right now, but I've been thinking I'd like to eventually consider English bulldogs. These French bulldog puppies, however, have me leaning more in their direction. Eee! So cute! Labels: disclosure, pets, PPP |
<$Tuesday, August 28, 2007$>
Major Change
| *Sponsored Post* Husband is a criminal justice major. He chose his major when he first started college, half his lifetime ago (man, that's some depressing math right there), when he had two good legs and ambitions toward law enforcement. When he went back to school this year he pretty much automatically went back into criminal justice, but we've both been wondering what, exactly, he's going to do with that degree now that being any kind of cop is out of the picture (and I can't honestly say I'm sad about that). Since going back, though, he's realized he has a knack for writing, as well as a passion for films and everything that goes into making them. Now we're beginning to wonder if he shouldn't switch his major to film studies, even if it means he has to change schools (his current university is fairly new and doesn't have many arts degree programs in place yet). So I'm searching for college information for him, to find a school with a good film studies program. There are a couple in our state, but of course the best are going to be in New York or California. I don't know how we'd pull that off, but I told him if that's something he'd really like to pursue, we'll find a way. Fortunately, he makes good grades, so scholarships aren't out of the question. Now if we could only get a scholarship that would cover housing, moving costs, all our bills if I need to relocate my job.... It's a scary prospect. At least its not one we have to make a decision on until he finishes his core studies, and that's still at least a couple of semesters away. Labels: disclosure, goals, PPP |
<$Wednesday, August 22, 2007$>
Marketing Strategies
| *Sponsored Post* I know that, like me, a lot of pfbloggers are relying on ad revenue as a means of creating extra income that can be applied to debt or savings. That usually means a lot of time and effort goes into marketing our blogs--often more time and effort than what goes into actual blogging. Those whose revenue streams are large enough might consider investing in Apogee Search's Online Media Planning program to increase your marketing efforts and take advantage of Search Engine Marketing to drive traffic to your blog and increase your revenues. They offer Pay Per Click advertising as well as Natural SEO Marketing. If I was in a position to divert my funds away from debt reduction and invest in marketing my blogs, I know it would be terribly tempting to hand over some money to let someone else do all that work for me. Labels: disclosure, marketing, PPP |
Stupid debt. Smart (er) me.
| *Sponsored Post* Things aren't really quite as bad as I indicated in yesterday's payday report. While it's true (and sucky) that our savings has been cut in half, it's also true that the remainder of Husband's student loans for this semester should be enough (even after we purchase a computer) to replenish our savings and even bump it up to the goal I was aiming for before we had to start dipping into it. What's really frustrating me is the fact that I took our focus off of our debt and have only been making the minimum payments on our credit cards for the last couple of months so that we could beef up our savings, and now it feels like that was all for naught. The good news is, with Husband's SL funds filling in the emergency fund gap, I can get re-focused on debt management and come at my credit cards with renewed vigor. Vigor, I say! *shakes tiny angry fist at creditors* So I'll be going over my options, and reading up on the topic in hopes of lighting an inspirational fire under myself. I've previously considered debt consolidation--either by taking out a loan (I even tried to, through Prosper) or doing a balance transfer--but now that we're down to the two credit cards, with one having 0 interest and a low minimum payment, that seems pretty pointless. Once we get this big one paid off, the other will be a cinch to knock out by comparison. It's hard when things get tight, though, and the bugger about the big card is its huge minimum payment, which makes adding enough to it to make a difference in the balance a challenge. It makes me wish that the US had an equivalent to the UK's IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement), that provided an option for repaying your debts on your own terms that could make life enjoyable while you still meet your obligations. That would probably keep a lot more people from declaring bankruptcy to get out of having to repay their debts at all. So anyway, that's where I stand: getting re-inspired to tackle my debts and re-educated on ways to go about doing so. I'll keep you posted on my progress and any good info I come across. Labels: credit cards, debt consolidation, disclosure, goals, money management, PPP |
<$Monday, August 20, 2007$>
Thoof! ... is not the sound a lispy dog makes.
| *Sponsored Post* My internet habits—and limited time in which to indulge them—don't leave me a lot of time for reading the news these days. I have a pretty short attention span when it comes to that stuff, anyway, and I've got my RSS feed reader pared down to only that which can hold my attention, or that which I can breeze through quickly. It doesn't include much in the way of news. I recently discovered Thoof, though, and it's feeding my need to feel more informed and politically aware, what with the election year approaching and all. It's a personalized news aggregator, which means that I can personalize it to show me only headlines covering topics that interest me. Their business tag, for example, brings up a page of finance-related headlines. Nifty. From a marketing standpoint, I really should also start using them as a marketing tool and submitting some of my own posts. Getting my posts out there will do more for my traffic, which will ultimately do more for my bottom line (and for my debt elimination). The Thoof ranking badge could be a great way to track the popularity of my posts. Now all I have to do is come up with something legitimately news-worthy to post about, and I'll be all set. Labels: disclosure, finance+blogs, PPP, self-promotion |
How (Not) To Sell Gift Baskets
*Sponsored Post* A couple of years ago I started my own gift basket company. I had about $400 in savings—an amount which at the time felt huge to me—and I was working a temp job with only a few months left to go until the gig ended. I also had previous experience putting together gift baskets for charity, and everybody said I had a knack for it. I bought a book on how to start your own gift basket business, read it front to back, made a list of potential clients, another list of basket ideas, sunk the majority of my savings into supplies, and got to work. I sold not a single basket, and my "business" tanked inside a month. Completely sucktastic self-marketing skills aside, looking back I can see that my biggest mistake was spending all of my money on holiday baskets (I launched my business just in time for the Christmas season). At least when Christmas rolled around I had ready-made gifts for the folks on my Christmas shopping list; but if I had gone more generic with my baskets, I could have kept trying to sell them after the holidays were over, and my business would have stood a chance of survival. This was a pretty stupid mistake. The book even told me not to do this, but I did it anyway, believing my baskets would be so adorable that they couldn't NOT sell. I couldn't have been more wrong. Here's a company who got it right. The Fruit Company sells gift baskets that are appropriate for any occasion, and they've been doing it since 1942. Their baskets are elegant and festive without being tied to a specific occasion. They're also healthy and versatile. Even if a recipient hates fruit, any of these baskets can still work as a gorgeous centerpiece. This is how to supply a successful gift basket business. I wish I'd used these folks as a model back when I so obviously had no idea what I was doing. Labels: disclosure, entrepreneurship, PPP |
<$Wednesday, August 15, 2007$>
Payday Loan Problems: Who's Responsible?
| Note: the following is a sponsored post. I have a nephew who got himself into a load of trouble--not to mention a load of debt--a few years ago by becoming dependent on advanced check cashing plac |