How much time, effort, energy and resources are you putting into stuff you just plain suck at? There are certain things we do each day in our business lives that we just plain are not good at. We work very hard every time to get good, but we start as a 2 and now maybe we are a 4. Why not get someone else to do it, or just plain dump it.

Today, identify one thing you do that you just plain suck at and find another way to get it done. Try it and see what happens. Then spend the time you would have spend doing what you are not good at, doing what you are good at. Get great at what you are good at. Get even greater at what you are all ready great at.

Stop doing what you suck at, dump it to someone else. (Outsourcing is your friend!) If you work what you suck at, you will become average. If you work at what you are good at, you will become great. If you work what you are great at - You will become a super star.

A few days ago, I posted about how important it was to choose a good domain name. Today we’re going to talk about how to go about getting a domain name that’s about to expire.

It’s fitting that I make this post now, as I’m going through this exact process right now - I’ve had an idea for another website for quite some time now, but I’ve been struggling with finding the right domain name for it. I came across a name that was taken, but it looks like the owner had long since abandoned the site. I briefly considered soliciting the owner of the domain, to see if she wanted to sell it to me. But first, I checked the domain details, and saw that the name was set to expire in about 3 weeks. Rather than tip off the owner, I decided to wait and see if she’d renew the name or not.

3 weeks go by, and it turns out that she didn’t renew the name! I jumped onto GoDaddy and tried to purchase the name. “We’re sorry, but the name you requested is already taken.”

WTF? A quick Google search on registering expired domains led me to Mike Davidson’s post on the subject. It’s a rather long read, but it explains in great detail how the whole process works, and how best to hedge your bets to ensure that you get the domain you want. If you’re after a name that’s already taken, be sure to read Mike’s post!

I showed you how to get started with Google AdSense yesterday. It’s a great program to make some extra cash, but the majority of us won’t be getting checks for $132,994 each month like Shoemoney!

If you want to make real money, you’ve got to get involved in Affiliate Marketing. People make it sound complicated, but it’s really not. Here’s how affiliate marketing works:

1. You sign up to be an affiliate for a specific vendor, either through their website, or through an affiliate network.
2. You wait for the vendor to approve your application.
3. Once approved, they will provide you with “creatives” that you can use on your website to promote them. (Creatives = Graphics, Banners, Text Links, etc.)
4. You place these creatives on your website.
5. A visitor comes to your website, and clicks on one of these creatives.
6. You earn MONEY!

Ok, maybe I made it sound a bit too easy. Note that each vendor has different terms; Some will pay you for each person that clicks on their ad, which is known as Pay Per Click (PPC). Others will pay you for each lead you generate (a person that signs up for more information, signs up for a mailing list, etc), which is known as Pay Per Lead. But the majority of vendors will do what’s known as Pay Per Action (PPA), where you’ll only get paid if the person makes a purchase from the site you referred them to. Sometimes this is a flat-rate payment, and sometimes it’s a commission.

Affiliate Marketing is a win-win for everyone. The vendor gets the sale, and the affiliate gets paid for directing that visitor to their website.

Most companies run their affiliate programs through one of the major affiliate networks. In order to get started, sign up with the following networks as an affiliate:

Commission Junction is by far the largest affiliate network out there, with 2079 merchants! However, I also use the other networks listed above, as CJ doesn’t manage the affiliate programs for a number of merchants that I wanted to promote. Since you’ll be promoting multiple products from various vendors, you should sign up with all of the networks.. There’s no cost to you, so sign up today!

Google Adsense is probably the easiest way to get started making money on your site. For those of you unfamiliar with AdSense, here’s how it works:

1. A merchant trying to generate traffic to their website signs up for Google AdWords.
2. They create their ads, and set a price-per-click (PPC) that they’re willing to pay.
3. Google starts displaying their ad on their site.
4. The ads are also displayed on any related sites running Google AdSense.

So say a ticket broker is trying to promote “Bruce Springsteen Tickets”. He would go to AdWords and create a new campaign. He specifies that he’s willing to spend up to $2 per click.

Now you decide to create a Bruce Springsteen fan site, get some inbound traffic, and throw up Google AdSense. Google is going to serve you ads that are related to Bruce Springsteen, and more than likely, a few of them will be from ticket brokers. If that’s the market you plan on targeting, including words like “tickets” and “concert” will help make sure that you’re served with those types of ads.

Then you just sit back, focus on generating more traffic to your site, and hope that some visitors click on those ads. For each ad they click on, you get paid. Some niches pay better than others, so you need to do some research to find out what the best market to target is.

It doesn’t sound very lucrative, but it costs you nothing but your time. On my first AdSense site, it took me 3 months to generate $100. But it was a learning experience, and the goal of the site wasn’t to make money. But here’s some proof that with the right planning, you can really kick some ass. ShoeMoney is a legend in the SEO community, and he’s even been featured in major publications, including Fortune Magazine. Here’s a picture of his largest check from Google:

Today, he’s making even more money than that, but he’s switched to payment by wire transfer, so no more cool pictures for us. If that’s not motivation, then I don’t know what is!

You can create the world’s best website, but if no one can find it, it’s useless. Welcome to the world of Search Engine Optimization. Far from an exact science, SEO is a must if you want visitors to find and purchase from your site. There are plenty of companies that are happy to lighten your wallet, while they promise top rankings in the Search Engines. Problem is, there are no quick-fixes to make that happen. Consider yourself warned!

So what do you do to ensure your site will be found? Read, read, and then read some more! There are thousands of books and publications out there that focus on this topic. There are hundreds of message boards and blogs that cover SEO in great detail. You have to keep current on SEO, because the search engines are constantly fine-tuning their algorithms. You may have been on Page 1 yesterday, but a little tweak on their end, and next thing you’re lost on Page 20!

Here are some of my favorite SEO forums:
Digital Point
SitePoint
Webmaster World
WebProWorld
SEO Chat

In addition, you should check out the following magazines:
Website Magazine
Search Marketing Standard Magazine
Revenue Magazine

1. Working ON your business, not IN your business.
2. You must have vision of where you are going and the passion not to let anything stop you. Much will get in your way, but nothing will stop you.
3. On your credit line, pay it down, pay it off ASAP, this is a loan not money in your account at the bank.
4. You need a business plan. Would you get in your car and just start driving without a destination and a direction in mind?
5. You cannot do it all, so focus. If you don’ define and refine, no one will know what you do.
6. Sales is not marketing. Just because you were an executive, even if you where in charge of sales, it does not mean you know how to sell.
7. Get to know other business people. It will save you time and money. Help others, it will payback 10 fold.
8. You must have a mentor and a coach that you listen to.
9. You need action and execution plans at all levels.
10. Making money is the most critical measurement you have. Don’t lose site of this. You are not in a large corporation with an everlasting cash flow.
11. Without measurement you will never be successful in the long run.
12. Make sure someone is holding you accountable- even though it is your business.
13. Friends are great, but in business you need the best person for the job. Put the right people on the bus.
14. Always try and get as much cash up front as possible.
15. If you can’t do it right, do you really think you will have time to do it again?
16. Pay your bills early or on time. If you can’t, call and let them know.
17. I do business with you; then you need to be doing business with me.
18. You need to lead.
19. Do what you do best and Delegate the rest.
20. Success comes to him who is persistent.
21. The Wait Rule, delayed gratification.
22. Test it, check it, demand proof; Don’t settle or pay for possible.
23. Keep all control, share all profits.
24. Partnerships are more risky than marriage.
25. Priorities - Get them straight before you go into business, then live by them.
26. After all your research work and planning - Double the expense, half the revenue.
27. Explain the time and commitment to your family, get their buy in; do not proceed with out it.
28. Have a budget, stick to it. Manage by it.
29. Sales projects must be justified and production costs must match them.
30. Have the right insurance - Get the right price.
31. Get organized or find someone to do it for you.
32. If you think “if this doesn’t work, I will just get another job,” it will never work.