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Updating the website
Posted Sunday, August 31, 2003 by johndilbeck
After putting it off while I was tied up working on other things, I decided that it was high time that I did some updating on JohnDilbeck.com.
So, I added a bunch of new pages to my bookstore, particularly in the Country Music and Rock and Roll Music sections. Dozens of recording artists were added in these two sections.
Several more authors were added to the Success and Prosperity Books page, and I highly recommend these authors to you.
Also, the Classifieds, Directory and Shopping sections were updated.
As the site grows larger, don't forget that every page has a Google search box that allows you to search for topics on this site or on the entire web. It's the fastest way to find what you're looking for in both places.
Build on your strengths
Posted Saturday, August 30, 2003 by johndilbeck
One of the TV programs I enjoy watching is Fast Forward, produced by the Media Services department of Chattanooga State Technical Community College, and hosted by its president, Dr. Jim Catanzaro. This program is aired on channel 12 every Saturday morning at 5:00 am, and at other times (see their site for more information).
This morning, he interviewed someone from the Gallup organization, who I believe is Donald O. Clifton. The topic of discussion was Gallup's research into management and education and their discovery that businesses and individuals can progress and prosper more by identifying their strengths and working to improve and use what they do best more in their work and daily lives, rather than trying to identify their weaknesses and correct them.
Gallup has a Strengths Development Program that goes into much more detail and that can help you identify your strengths and help you use them more to your advantage.
I haven't had a chance to read much of this (since I have to be at the 3rd Annual Heritage Walk and Festival at 7:00 this morning to help vendors get organized and set up for the day, and 7:00 is quickly approaching), but I intend to look much more into this program as I have the time.
This has been something that I've been thinking a lot about over the last few years. I've come to believe strongly that we're much happier and more productive when we concentrate on discovering our strengths and doing what makes us happy, rather than focusing on what we don't do well and constantly working to fix ourselves. The Gallup research seems to indicate that I was thinking along the right paths and I look forward to reading more and learning from them.
I think this is as important in relationships as it is in work, schools, and even hobbies and volunteer work. We're much happier and do better when we're doing what we enjoy and what we do best than when we're working to fix something that's not going well.
By identifying our strengths, our personalities, and what we enjoy, we can then focus on doing even better. This has to lead to more productivity and more satisfaction. Of course, if we find that we're in the wrong relationships or careers, we may have to make some dramatic changes in our lives, but that's probably worth it if things improve as a result of the introspection and changes we undertake.
They've written a book, Now, Discover Your Strengths, that will help you discover your strengths in 34 different talent areas. I'm looking forward to reading this book.
Look for more on this in the future.
Great music collections from TimeLife
Posted Tuesday, August 26, 2003 by johndilbeck
It's hard to imagine, while it's so hot outside, that we'll be seeing our first frost in a couple of months and winter will follow closely behind.
When it gets cold outside, I like to read and listen to music. My wish list includes the following collections, some of which I'll purchase before winter sets in. I've been seeing the TimeLife ads on TV and I enjoy almost all of the songs in these collections.
My friends tell me that, musically speaking, I'm stuck in the 60s and 70s. Perhaps that's true. Perhaps it's because that's when I was young and healthy and the world was open to me. Whatever the reason, of all the music I love (not including classical music), these collections contain most of my favorites.
If you're a baby boomer, you'll probably love this music, and other collections that are available only from TimeLife.
Released today: The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers
Posted Tuesday, August 26, 2003 by johndilbeck
The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers is being released today on DVD and VHS Video.
This is your chance to own the second installation in the epic saga.
Custom Printing Online
Posted Friday, August 22, 2003 by johndilbeck
I've looked high and low to find a company that will provide easy-to-use, competitively priced, custom printing online for you.
Whether you're looking for full-color or two-color business cards, just about any type of rubber stamp, custom-printed Post-It notes, stationery, post cards, or would like to choose from hundreds of different styles and sizes of labels, this site's for you. You're also welcome to choose from magnets, buttons, bumper stickers, embroidered shirts, and more.
Choose the product, decide what you want it to say, upload art if you'd like, adjust sizes and styles for your text using their convenient templates. Then, when you're satisfied, order the product, all online.
I use products from this company and I recommend them to you.
Email is broken
Posted Friday, August 22, 2003 by johndilbeck
I'm used to getting hundreds of emails every day. I get a constant education through email messages. I subscribe to hundreds of mailing lists and look forward to emails from friends and customers.
However, I believe that email is broken and we need to find a new way to communicate.
We need something that is sent directly to the recipient, but which doesn't allow spam or email from broken programs that are susceptible to viruses. Microsoft's Outlook has to be the worst email program ever written. All of the bounce messages I'm receiving were caused by messages being sent from Outlook. I'm only involved because one or more people using this progam had my email address in their address book.
I'm getting dozens of bounces from servers that should know to dump attachments with viruses -- and not to send them back to the supposed sender. How brain-dead is that? If you run an email server, program it to dump attachments with viruses into the bit bucket. Don't return them!
I'm also getting angry letters from people who think I'm responsible for sending the original message, so I have to take the time to write and inform them that I didn't send it. That has taken hours.
Yesterday and today, I got over 300 bounce messages saying that I'd sent an email that had a virus. Of course, I didn't.
I only use a Macintosh and Eudora for my email. My system is not even susceptible to these viruses. It's obvious from the headers that the messages that were supposedly sent by me were sent by a system using Outlook.
Now, it's not enough that I refuse to use Microsoft products, I'm still being bombarded by problems because of people who do use their bug-laden software.
So, what do I get? Bounced messages with megabytes of trash attached because someone out there uses a brain-dead email program with no virus protection on the operating system that is most targeted by viruses.
Do me a favor. If you use Windows and Outlook, and you don't have current virus protection software and/or a firewall running on your system, please delete me from your address book.
According to the news, this is affecting millions of users and untold numbers of servers. It's time to put a stop to all this.
It's time for someone with the ability to do something about it to declare that the current email system is dead and to develop something that won't allow spam and virus-laden messages from software that's too stupid to protect itself.
Or we have to find a way to isolate infected systems and not let them spread their contagion to the rest of the system.
Any ideas?
FTC Warns Consumers of Do-Not-Call Scam
Posted Friday, August 22, 2003 by johndilbeck
The Federal Trade Commission issued a warning to consumers yesterday, urging them to beware of advertisements to call 1-900-DONOTCALL and pay $2.95 to be connected to the FTC's do-not-call sign-up system.
Sign up for the National Do Not Call registry is free, said the FTC, by calling 1-888-382-1222 or by going online at www.donotcall.gov.
Smart Customer Mall Opens!
Posted Tuesday, August 19, 2003 by johndilbeck
It's been years in the making, and the Smart Customer Mall is now open for business.
If you're a Smart Customer cardholder, every purchase from the mall earns cash back rebates. If you're not a Smart Customer cardholder, here's your chance to purchase a card online.
There are thousands of items in the mall with more coming.
Now, in addition to earning discounts from your local merchants who participate in the program, you can earn discounts and rebates online, too.
We're still working diligently to build the offline network of Smart Customer discount and rebate merchants in your local towns. If you'd like more information about participating, please feel free to contact me. I'm a certified Executive Sales Representative for Smart Customer.
You don't have to be a Smart Customer cardholder to purchase from the Smart Customer Mall.
Everyone is welcome.
Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride coming to Morganton, NC
Posted Monday, August 18, 2003 by johndilbeck
The Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride will make a stop in Morganton, NC in September on their way to Washington, DC.
Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride
One Dozen Who Care, Inc.
Posted Monday, August 18, 2003 by johndilbeck
Women of Far Western North Carolina Helping People.
One Dozen Who Care, Inc.
A North Carolina Community Development Corporation
One Dozen Who Care (ODWC) was founded in 1996.
Who are we?
A small group of Black women in the far western part of North Carolina realized that there was a need for an organization whose potential members had a connection in both the world of work (commonly called the White community) and with other ethnic minorities and in the church (mostly regarded as the Black community).
The purpose of ODWC is to entice potential leaders out of a group of people who may not take training on their own without extraordinary support or may not have had the opportunity to stretch their intrinsic abilities into universal use.
The major guiding principles of the group are geared to assisting with the development of self esteem in the youth and honoring the elders of the community by bringing the two groups together as much as possible. ODWC, Inc., now has an exceptional track record of service to the entire community in the far western region of North Carolina over the past four and a half years.
Our Mission
To develop ways to strengthen our leadership abilities and create community bonds through common cultural situations.
Vision
We envision a unified community of empowered, confident and knowledgeable youth, elders and leaders.
More information:
http://johndilbeck.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=92#92
Encuentro de Organizaciones Latinas - August 23, 2003
Posted Monday, August 18, 2003 by johndilbeck
COLA - Coalicion de Organizaciones Latinoamericanas - Invites you to the...
Encuentro de Organizaciones Latinas
A gathering of Latino grassroots organizations in western North Carolina.
U.S. E-commerce to See Significant Growth by 2008
Posted Monday, August 18, 2003 by johndilbeck
A report from Forrester Research, Inc. finds that a growing online consumer base, increases in new product categories, and efforts by online retailers to optimize online shopping experiences will spark significant growth in the industry over the next five years.
The report also states that, although offline retail sales continue to struggle, e-commerce sales will increase at a steady 19 percent year-over-year growth rate, rising to 229.0 billion in 2008 from $95.7 billion in 2003. Online retail sales will account for 10 percent of total U.S. retail sales by 2008.
Forrester predicts that nearly 5 million new U.S. households will shop online in each of the next five years, with the total number of U.S. online shopping households expected to reach 63 million by 2008. According to the report, a growing number of these households use broadband, resulting in the ability to research more products and shop online more than dial-up users. As further proof that online consumers are maturing and growing more comfortable with the medium, Scarborough Research announced a study that shows American adults with at-home broadband connections accounted for almost one-third (31 percent) of all consumer online spending last year, totaling 15 billion dollars.
The study also revealed that America's 23 million broadband users are twice as likely as all Internet users to have spent $2,500 or more online in the past 12 months. Representing a more affluent market, broadband users are 39 percent more likely to purchase jewelry online; 64 percent more likely to purchase toys and games online; and 64 percent more likely to purchase cars, trucks and SUVs.
Product categories that historically have seen insignificant online growth are predicted to grow the fastest, according to Forrester. For the next five years, food and beverage, sporting goods, and home goods will outpace more traditional online categories like books and travel. Books, which generated 14 percent of U.S. e-commerce sales in 2000, will fall to 3 percent of total sales over the next five years.
Online grocers like Peapod and FreshDirect will continue to make strides, as Forrester projects the most dramatic growth will be seen in the food and beverage category, with sales increasing to $17.4 billion from $3.7 billion over the next five years. Sporting goods, which have found a niche in the used goods market, are predicted to grow to $6 billion from $1.7 billion, with nearly a third of sales coming from used products.
I'm experimenting with building a portal
Posted Sunday, August 17, 2003 by johndilbeck
Over the last week or so, I've begun experimenting with building a portal using PHP-Nuke.
I'm thinking that it would be a good place for John Dilbeck Recommends.
This may be a temporary site, or, with participation, I may decide to keep it.
There are many reasons for a portal, and a free hosted PHP-Nuke site is tempting. It's different from any other site I've ever built or managed, and there are a lot of things to learn that aren't obvious on the surface.
It's potentially valuable for someone who wants to write about a hobby, small business, political activities, or your local area; to publicize activities for a club or nonprofit; or to build a news site. It invites visitor participation and manages discussions and comments for articles right out of the box.
It may be something you want to try out.
Too busy to build your small business website?
Posted Saturday, August 16, 2003 by johndilbeck
I know what it's like to own, manage, and run a small business and still try to find a little time for yourself and your family. There are only 24 hours in a day, and, no matter how much you try, you can't do everything.
One of the reasons a person starts a small business is because we have the personality that we want to do it ourself. Sometimes that means that we're really good at what we do and other times it means that we have a basic lack of trust in other people. Either way, we do as much as we can ourselves, until we reach the overload stage.
It doesn't have to be like that.
We hire others to help us do important things. Lawyers, accountants, financial advisors -- all are necessary to be successful in business, and the intelligent business owner hires these experts when needed.
More and more, small businesses need a website, and a webmaster is becoming one of those experts you may want to consider hiring.
While anyone can learn to build a website and put it on the web in a couple of weeks or a month, I can tell you from personal experience that it takes years of hard work to learn how to build a site that attracts customers on a regular basis. Then there are all of the technical aspects of search engine placement, key word optimization, advertising and marketing on the web, link sharing with good sites to build your popularity rating in the search engines, managing a mailing list or ezine, and keeping the site up-to-date with regular maintenance.
I'm lucky, because doing all of that is my business. If I were still doing consulting, I definitely wouldn't have the time to do what I do as a webmaster.
The average website is built and then it just sits there -- while the owner grows more frustrated because of the lack of traffic to the site and the absence of the flood of sales that were expected.
When I look at many of these sites, I see a lack of basic understanding of what it takes to make a site work. Incorrect keyword and key phrase selection, incorrect usage of the keywords on the page, lack of using the proper tags, a description meta tag that doesn't market your site in a search engine listing, and many other problems, including a lack of knowledge of what to do to build traffic to the site.
Then, I look at all the small business sites that are doing so well using the Site Build It! system of tools that are far more advanced than most hosting solutions. Not only are the tools important; the 601 page ebook that is included leads you through the steps that are necessary to build a site that actually sells. This combination of tools and techniques can cut your learning curve from years to just a couple of months or so.
Did you know that it is estimated by industry experts that there are about 19 million currently active websites on the Internet? And there are billions of pages on the net. How do you make your site stand out and attract the visitors you want? What does it take to optimize your site to get these folks to come to you so that you'll have the opportunity to present your products and services? Perhaps you're not selling anything and just want to present quality information to your potential readers. How do you attract them?
It could very well be that you need to think of hiring another professional in your arsenal of advisors and experts -- a webmaster who already knows how to build a successful site that attracts visitors and -- even more importantly -- repeat customers. Sure, there's some expense involved, but, when your website is built right, it will become an asset rather than a liability.
Once you have a site that works for you, you can choose to maintain and update it yourself or hire your webmaster to do regular updates for you.
So, why am I telling you this? Because, Sitesell has just announced a new service -- a directory of certified webmasters who have experience in building one or more successful sites using SBI. They've already gone through the learning curve -- much shorter with SBI -- and they can get your site online faster than you can.
I'm not suggesting that you just run out and hire someone to throw up a site. I'm suggesting that you think through what you want to say about your business, who you want to attract, and what you want your new visitor to learn about your business. Then, what do you want that person to do? You must still do your part to market and advertise your business. A website isn't a magic cure for poor marketing.
I'm sure you're wondering if this will work for you. How can it work in your business? I'm not offering my services as a webmaster, but I'd be happy to answer your questions or talk it over with you on my forum. Please, in order to help as many people as possible, let's talk on the forum rather than in email. Others will learn by reading our conversations.
In case you have specific questions about how Site Build It could be a solution for you, you're invited to ask an SBI advisor. Learn the answer to your question from someone who is already doing it. There's no obligation.
And, if you're an expert webmaster and you'd like to become a certified SBI webmaster, you might want to visit the directory link above, or go see why SBI makes your work as a webmaster more productive.
After all, the main criteria for a successful website is to draw a steady stream of visitors who are looking for what you're offering.
A website with no traffic is like a billboard on a dead-end street.
You want your site to be seen. It's the traffic that counts. And, while it won't do all the work for you, SBI makes it easier by offering a manual that leads you step-by-step through the process and by offering the tools to help you produce results.
In the next month or so, I'll be introducing the new site that I'm building using SBI. We'll all see how well it will do. I'm expecting it to be in the top 2% of all websites (an Alexa ranking of 380,000 or higher -- the lower the number, the better) and to be earning a steady flow of income from the site.
You can do the same.
Is your website listed in the search engines and directories?
Posted Thursday, August 14, 2003 by johndilbeck
One of the keys to getting traffic to your website is to be listed in the major search engines and directories. Is your site listed?
DIYWebMarketing.com offers a free tool that will help you determine this for yourself.
Try it: www.diywebmarketing.com/urlsengine/.
Jerry Chautin - SCORE volunteer - Murphy, NC and surrounding areas
Posted Thursday, August 14, 2003 by johndilbeck
Jerry Chautin, a volunteer SCORE business counselor, has offered his free counseling and mentoring services in Murphy, NC and the surrounding area.
Jerry says, "I can envision SCORE business counseling/mentoring as an important plus in starting small businesses and creating jobs in our area. We're a nonprofit, all volunteer resource partner with, and funded by, the US Small Business Administration. So our counseling is free. "
For more information, see:
johndilbeck.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=90#90
Asheville's After-hours Business Networking Event
Posted Thursday, August 14, 2003 by johndilbeck
Berkana Networking Group will host a business networking event, which is open to the public and free to attend!
Our networking event features good food, great conversation & great business contacts. Open to members and Non-Members.
Date: August 21, 2003
Time: 6:00p.m. to 8:00p.m.
Location: Artistic Ventures, Inc.
*Please call for direction*
For more information contact Cindy Sproul 828-251-1564
We hope to see you there and please bring a guest.
Upcoming activites by Appalachian Heritage Crafters members
Posted Wednesday, August 13, 2003 by johndilbeck
Upcoming events by Appalachian Heritage Crafters members:
Sat, August 16 - crafter demos at the store
Judy Peppers - wire wrapped jewelry
Lynn Whited - thread weaving
Bill Reidel - stained glass
Jean Hajek - baskets
(and possibly others)
Sunday, August 24
Art Showing and Reception at The Longhouse Restaurant, at the Cherokee Hills Golf Club, featuring AHC artists (and others). AHC artists: Bette Kaufman, Lee Stasierowski, Judy Peppers, Patti Gilley, Claire Groff. Art on display all day with a Reception from 3:00-5:00. Artists and guests are invited to remain for a special $9.99 dinner. Art will remain on display for a month and will be for sale.
Saturday, August 30
Look for the AHC booth at the 3rd Annual Heritage Walk and Festival at the L&N Depot in downtown Murphy, NC.
Tuesday, Sept 9
AHC will be hosting the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce After Hours - at the shop. 5:00 PM
Saturday& Sunday, October 4 & 5
AHC will be hosting a soup and salad booth at the John C. Campbell Folk School Fall Festival.
Look for AHC members' booths at the Fall Festival as well.
Google adds a powerful calculator to search function
Posted Wednesday, August 13, 2003 by johndilbeck
Google has recently added a calculator that can handle arithmetic, trigonometry, other math functions, and even unit conversions such as "55 mph in kph" or "100 miles in kilometers".
More details at:
www.google.com/help/features.html#calculator
Very handy.
Discover Western North Carolina
Posted Wednesday, August 13, 2003 by johndilbeck
There's a brand new website that will be covering destinations and activities in western North Carolina. Be sure to visit their calendar of events while you're there!
Discover Western North Carolina.
I've taken the plunge with Site Build It!
Posted Sunday, August 10, 2003 by johndilbeck
For months, I've been recommending Ken Evoy's ebooks and webhosting products. I've read all of the ebooks and learned a great deal from them. Last week, I found myself in the unique position of being caught up on all my other websites for a bit, and I decided to take the plunge and buy an SBI account and build a new site using Ken's expert advice and the unique set of tools they've developed for Site Build It!.
(It's a great set of tools and inexpensive hosting, but I have to admit that it's a goofy name.)
So far, SBI! is every bit as good as I thought it would be -- and then some.
It now comes with a 601 page ebook that outlines the process and how to use everything, plus Ken's expert tips on how to proceed. Before I did anything else, I read the book all the way through and then re-read several sections. Much of what this ebook says is covered in Make Your Site Sell!, but there are specific sections that talk about the tools only available in SBI. Make Your Site Sell! also has lots of information not covered here and it applies to any website, not just one built around the SBI principles. So, I find the two books to be complementary, but Make Your Site Sell! should be read by anyone who wants to sell anything through the Internet.
My main problem is that I'm interested in too many things. I find it hard to focus on a single topic. It's good, in that I learn from a lot of areas; it's difficult because I often bite off too much to chew comfortably.
I've spent the last week brainstorming keywords and topic ideas, and after doing it manually with WordTracker.com, a database, and lots of searching through the various search engines, I can tell you honestly that SBI's keyword research, ranking, and database is much easier. It's no lie that I've saved weeks of work and I'm much further along than I've ever been on starting a website, and I still haven't even identified the key concept I want to build around, registered a domain name, or even built a single page on the site.
There are two basic sets of tools included in SBI. First, there is a server-side suite of tools that are hosted on SiteSell's servers. There is also a client-side tool that is downloaded and run on your computer. You must have an internet connection in place when you use the Site Build It! Manager, because it does a lot of searching on the web while you use it. You must also have a current Site Build It! account, or it won't work.
The Site Build It! Manager (at least the Macintosh version) is built around a group of FileMaker Pro databases with custom programming. You don't need to own FileMaker Pro, because the Manager uses the runtime engine and works right after downloading -- but I gotta stress the importance of reading the ebook before starting. It may be frustrating for you, but -- in the long run -- it will save you time and keep you from making any mistakes in using the tools that Site Build It! provides. Site Build It! is unlike any other webhosting or research tool I've ever used.
This is the first time that I've taken the time to research ideas that would be profitable and actually planned what I was going to do before just jumping in and seeing what would happen.
It's a refreshing change.
All in all, the last week has been a very positive experience. I've researched lots of keywords for whatever the new site turns out to be as well as for other sites which are already in place or in the planning stages.
Ken discusses the techniques for researching and comparing keywords and site concepts in Make Your Site Sell! and in the Affiliate Masters (send a blank email to tamssellmoreonline@sitesell.net) and Service Sellers (send a blank email to tsmssellmoreonline@sitesell.net) free email courses. I've used all of those techniques in building JohnDilbeck.com, DilbeckMarketing.com, GeorgiaDragRacing.com and other sites. It takes weeks or even months doing it manually. In one week, I've done more research than I could do in several weeks using any other method I've ever tried, and it's all stored in one place for easy reference. That alone is worth the price of the yearly subscription, and I haven't even started building the actual site, yet.
So far, SBI is everything I expected -- and then some.
For more information, go visit the following resources:
SBI! is all about Profitable RESULTS. No traffic = No profits. SBI! OVERdelivers on both.
You may have noticed that all of my high-traffic sites now have Google ads running on them. They recently introduced their AdSense program. Read what Ken Evoy has to say about AdSense. I've read other views on this subject, but this is the best site to keep up with what's going on.
Already an expert Webmaster? Learn how you can save time and produce more for your clients with Site Build It!
Will I move all of my sites over to SiteBuild It? No. It's not appropriate for many of the things I do and a lot of the programming that I use on my more-traditionally-hosted sites. I use a fair amount of PHP and Perl programming on those sites and that's not available with SBI. For those sites, I'm very happy with AssortedInternet.com, and I highly recommend their service to you if you need the features they offer. They have been very reliable, their support has been outstanding, and they respond to their email with helpful and accurate answers. What a refreshing change from other hosting services I've tried. Even when they had a huge server problem last month, they worked around the clock to fix it and they were still responsive and friendly to all my support requests.
Site Build It! is quite different from traditional Unix webhosting and it offers an unmatched set of tools for marketers who want to build traffic and sell products and services. In some ways, it limits what you can do on your site, and, in other ways, it offers features not found aywhere else.
I'm very interested to seeing how my new SBI site does and I'll continue to write about it. I still haven't decided on the topic for the site, and I haven't decided on what it will look like, but I've already identified quite a few topics that I'll cover there. I'll keep you informed as I continue with this project.
You may find it much easier to get started with SBI than I do. After all, I have some habits and preconceptions that I need to unlearn if I'm going to take maximum advantage of what it offers. If you have one major interest you'd like to pursue on your site or if you want to find an effective way to promote your current business, then you'll be able to get started much more quickly than I have, because you're already focused on what you want to do.
3rd Annual Heritage Walk & Festival - Murphy, NC
Posted Monday, August 4, 2003 by johndilbeck
Schedule of Events
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Railroad Street Park
Arts & Crafts Show; County Heritage Fair; Food Vendors; Growers; Traditional Mountain Music on Stage; Children's Activities
Historic L&N Depot
Heritage Walking Tour
Silent Auction
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