Publish Your Blog to Kindle for Extra Cash is a post from: Small Business Expert Denise O'Berry

I love it when emails pop into my email box telling me that cold, hard cash has been deposited into my bank account.

That’s what happened (again!) today. I had no clue why Amazon Digital Publishing had sent me money, so I started digging to find out where that passive income came from.

Here’s what I discovered. A couple months ago I added this blog and a couple of others to the Kindle Blog store. I’d heard about it from the chatter across the web and decided hey, why not? And then I promptly forgot about it. Until now.

If you publish a blog, you should publish your blog to the Kindle Store. Amazon charges .99 cents a month for most blog subscriptions and does a 70/30 split on the revenue — you get .30 cents a month per subscription.

Here’s what you’ll need to get started.

>>> Your blog’s RSS feed. For self hosted Wordpress blogs, the feed address is normally http://www.yourblogname.com/feed, however in case it’s something different you can find the instructions here.

>>> A screen shot of your blog. People like to see what they are subscribing to, so adding a small picture to your page will go a long way in helping “sell” your subscription to visitors. You might also want to add a masthead (your header) to the description so have that ready too.

>>> Log in (or create an account). You’ll enter your blog feed, blog title, blog description and keywords to get started along with uploading your screen shot and masthead image files.

>>> Save and publish to the Kindle store. Once you’re all set, press the publish button. Your blog will need to be approved by Amazon which will take a few days.

That’s it! Do it now and maybe you’ll be surprised with a “you’ve got cash” email real soon.

And if you’d like to take my blogs with you wherever you take your Kindle, just click the links below to subscribe.

>>> Subscribe to Just for Small Business on your Kindle.
>>> Subscribe to Small Business Cash Flow on your Kindle.
>>> Subscribe to Ask Team Doc — Team Building Tips on your Kindle.

P.S. A big THANK YOU to you if you are reading this on your Kindle. I appreciate you!

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3. A Business Blog – Where Do I Start?

Back Up Regularly or Lose Your Business is a post from: Small Business Expert Denise O'Berry

What would you do if you turned on your computer and nothing happened?

If you had a reliable back up system, you’d breathe a sigh of relief, get a new computer and restore all your critical business files. If you didn’t have a good back up system, you’d — well — be in deep trouble and could be at risk of losing your entire business.

It’s a disaster to lose your computer without back ups when your company is small. GoodSync is an easy to use, reasonably priced product to help you do that. They have a free version, but I’ve purchased the Pro. I have a license (only $30) for each of my computers (and even bought it for my family members!)

As your business grows, you’ll want to look at a more sophisticated system for backing up your critical business data. I checked in with Siber Systems (the makers of GoodSync) to find out what tactics they recommend for bigger companies — especially if your team is in different locations. Here’s what they had to say.

File synchronization is the process of ensuring that the same, up-to-date files are accessible from multiple storage locations. If a user adds, changes, or deletes a file from one location, the synchronization process will add, change, or delete the same file at all other locations. Files are copied in both directions, keeping two or more locations in sync with each other.

>>>When two or more locations are synchronized, the most current version of a file is available at all locations, regardless of where it was last modified. Although it is possible to synchronize files and directories manually, using a software tool is faster and less prone to error. As technology progresses and we become more dependent on computers, file synchronization becomes even more important – especially for people who work from multiple locations or from more than one computer.

>>>Business data needs to be available at all times. Corporate data has to be current and accessible to all workers, wherever they are, and it has to be protected from loss. A modern data plan therefore involves both synchronization and backup.

>>>File backup is the last line of defense against data loss. It involves making a one-way copy of files from a source to a backup location. Backing up corporate data is a necessity in today’s business environment. Loss of important images, spreadsheets, MP3 files, financial documents or emails can have a significant impact on a business.

>>>Technology improvements. Advancements in disk storage capacity have made disk backup an inexpensive, reliable, faster and more convenient strategy than tape backup. Relying on data written to tapes in a warehouse is simply not acceptable in a modern corporate environment.

GoodSync Enterprise has advanced features and flexibility that offer a dramatic improvement over traditional backup, or the use of backup services. It is designed as the ideal solution for anyone to ensure that your files are backed up, secure and accessible.

For smaller organizations, GoodSync may be just the ticket to make you feel safe and secure in your business. Are you taking chances with your business by not having a back up? Tell me why?

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1. Manage Your Files Better To Save Time And Energy
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Five Tips to Work More Effectively From Home is a post from: Small Business Expert Denise O'Berry

Please enjoy this guest post from the helpful folks at Office Suites Plus, a virtual office company.

Through recent advances in technology, the number of people working from home offices has greatly increased in the past decade. And for good reason. When you take the proper steps, a home office allows you to work from the comfort and convenience of home without sacrificing productivity. Here are five helpful tips to make your “home office” time more productive.

1. Adhere to a schedule: People who work from home have the luxury of creating their own schedule, but it is still important to treat your day like a regular work day. That means waking up early, allotting a reasonable amount of time for lunch, and making yourself available to coworkers and clients at the same hours each day. This not only helps make you more productive, but it also ensures that you aren’t wasting your coworker’s or client’s time.

2. Eliminate Distractions: A home office is an easy place to get distracted. Televisions, the Internet, spouses, and children can all contribute to a decrease in work productivity. While computers and the Internet are almost essential to perform any job in this digital age and therefore impossible to do without, utmost care should be taken to remove all other distractions from the working environment. You should choose an environment that is most relaxing to you. This could mean the peace and quiet of a basement or the beauty and radiance of a sun room.

3. Keep in touch: The modern employee uses a variety of technologies to stay in touch with coworkers. Email, instant messengers, text messages, and phone calls are absolutely vital to communicate effectively with coworkers and clients. Keeping them up-to-date with progress on projects will help everyone work at an optimal level. As mentioned previously, making yourself available between predefined hours is a great way to stay productive.

4. Take Breaks: A Gallup Poll conducted in 2000 showed that 80% of workers feel stress on the job and over half said they need help managing it. Working from home may help alleviate some of the stresses that come from a regular 9-5, but it may also create some new ones. After all, it is hard to escape the stresses of the office when you live in one. A great way to avoid “burning out” is to pace yourself throughout the work day. Short breaks every couple of hours can go a long way to reducing stress. Lastly, don’t be afraid to close your laptop and turn off your work phone when 5pm rolls around. You obviously need to finish all work-related responsibilities, but you are not obligated to be on call 24/7.

5. Stay Organized: Clutter kills productivity! Excess clutter is a distraction and can make it awfully difficult to find what you need amongst a mess of paper. The solution, go paperless! Throw away all sticky-notes, calendars, and to-do list and opt for their electronic equivalent. Removing all non-work related materials from your desk will help you stay focused on the job at hand. If you aren’t the type to continually maintain a clean working environment, dedicate a day in the week to tidying up.

Using these five tips, your home office productivity should greatly improve.

Guest post by Office Suites PLUS , a Leading Provider of Full-Service Office Suites and Virtual Offices. Pay them a visit for more information on how Office Suites PLUS cam help your business grow.

P.S. One critical part of your home office is phone service. I use RingCentral for my office phone service. Hop over and read my RingCentral review. You’ll also want to take a look at my online fax review.

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These 10 Keys are Vital to Your Business Success is a post from: Small Business Expert Denise O'Berry

If you haven’t yet had an opportunity to get my free Success Strategies Guide, take four minutes and watch the video below.

No matter what size business you own, these strategies will help you keep it on track.

Don’t forget to pick up your free printed version. You can get it by entering your name and email address in the box to the right.

Got comments on the video? Let’s talk.

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Pay Attention! You Can’t Ignore the Internet Anymore is a post from: Small Business Expert Denise O'Berry

If your small business doesn’t have a presence all over the Internet, you are making a huge mistake. And, believe it or not, there are still many small businesses who don’t see the need for an Internet presence. I’ve maintained for a long time that every small business should be online. If you’re not, do it now. Take three quick minutes to watch this revealing video on the state of the Internet. Hat tip to Mashable for sharing.

JESS3 / The State of The Internet from Jesse Thomas on Vimeo.

So, what do you think?

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