Why Nails Blog?

I’ve used the online alias nails in some manner since the first time I laid hands on a keyboard.  ‘Nails’ made reference to my favorite band, Nine Inch Nails.  Literally, I’ve been a fan since the early 90’s and was won over by Pretty Hate Machine and later truly devoted to the NIN following with Downward Spiral. Hence, my love affair with the nails name and now my persona ‘cldnails’ continues on.

This week maybe more than ever I’m proud to bear the nails moniker.

On Monday Nine Inch Nails released their 2nd album in the past 3 months, The Slip.  Trent Reznor has managed to completely shake up the record industry with his previous release of Ghosts, which he marketed versions of as cheap as $5.  Because of Ghosts success and Reznor’s love of his fans, he released The Slip completely free and bearing a Creative Commons License.  Free of a record label he’s been able to connect with fans at a closer level than any other artist in recent history.

No DRM, high quality downloads, options for quality of download, and extras like art was included in NIN’s past 2 releases online.  Everywhere you look people who were not even formally NIN fans are starting realize the value of such an endeavor and supporting the cause.

For those interested in downloading and supporting Nine Inch Nails, head over to NIN.com to get your utterly free, DRM Free, and high quality copy of The Slip.

A Great Way To Make Money With eBay

When you hear”eBay” and “money” in the same sentence you probably think of becoming an eBay seller.

You place product listings in the eBay marketplace, buyers bid, you pay your eBay seller fees and what you have left is your profit margin.

There is, however, another way to build a business which still revolves around eBay but which doesn’t involve you selling a single thing in the eBay marketplace.

This “other way” opportunity is based on the eBay affiliate program and a great tool which makes entry into this opportunity not only possible but also super easy. This tool is called “Build A Niche Store“.

Now if you don’t know – an affiliate program enables you as an individual internet entrepreneur to promote the products of a company in exchange for a commission on all sales that you refer.

You are basically operating as an internet middleman and connecting internet browsers to particular products and companies through you own network of websites and marketing methods.

If we return to the eBay affiliate program, eBay actually invites you to promote all of the product listings in the eBay marketplace and in exchange for your efforts will pay you up to 75% of the revenue they make from each sale you refer plus up to $35 for each new active eBay member you refer.

You can have a read about the eBay.com affiliate program here

What this means is that you can earn up to three quarters of eBay’s revenue simply for connecting people to the products listed in the eBay marketplace.

Not only do you get to partner with the best branded marketplace in the world, you also get access to and control over ALL of the products listed in this marketplace. The eBay product inventory becomes YOUR product inventory and yet you do NOT have to stock items, deal with customers, organize shipping or process refunds.

You are no longer limited to selling only those products which you can buy and sell for a profit margin. You can choose ANY niche market and promote those eBay products relevant to your chosen niche outside of the eBay marketplace, funnelling targeted traffic through to eBay and into your own affiliate commissions.

Golf clubs, sewing kits, laptops, dog collars, diamond rings, Florida real estate…

If you know eBay you know how BIG it is – there are NO limits.

At this point you might be thinking - well this sounds interesting but in reality is there any money in it? Well, here’s the shocker – eBay’s top affiliates make over 1 million dollars a month. That’s right – 8 figures a year without stocking, selling or shipping a single thing!

Now eBay does provide some basic free tools to help you succeed as an eBay affiliate and build an affiliate business BUT it has been the development of a tool outside of eBay that has really opened this up as a legitimate business opportunity.

The tool, as I mentioned earlier, is called “Build A Niche Store” and what it enables you to do is build eBay affiliate websites targeted to any eBay niche you want. These act as the medium through which you funnel targeted visitors to eBay.

Here are a couple of examples, one targeting Mustangs and the other Golf Equipment:

Mustang eBay Affiliate Website
Golf Cart eBay Affiliate Website

As you can see, these are professional looking websites that contain all of those eBay products related to their target niche inside a searchable store format, each of which automatically contains your eBay affiliate id.

These stores then automatically update as new products are listed for sale and old listing expire from the eBay marketplace and the software has built in development features which enable you to create new store pages, add content to these pages, create content pages, modify your template etc etc.

Basically, in the space of about 10 minutes (once you are familiar with how the software works) you can create a fully functional eBay affiliate website targeted to the niche market of your choice.

Your store content is all search engine friendly which will provide the foundation for attracting targeted traffic from the search engines and you can then use the development features to attract more targeted visitors which will in turn mean more eBay affiliate commissions.

It really is a brilliant concept and I’ve been hearing great things about the guys behind the project and the member forum which you get lifetime access to when you purchase the product.

Build A Niche Store comes with a step by step user manual which will walk even the most technically inexperienced through setting up their eBay affiliate website, 9 professional template layouts which can be customized (from inside your admin panel) to match your target niche, lifetime member forum access, comprehensive product support and possibly most importantly – an UNLIMITED domain license which means you can build as many of these niche websites as you want for the small one time fee.

Think about how many niches eBay caters to!

How big could your eBay affiliate business be?!

This product gets my full recommendation – check it out today…

Click Here To Read More About Build A Niche Store

Free BANS Theme - Magazine

I recognize that there is a need for generic, usable, yet different enough to use BANS templates, therefore I bring you the BANS template Magazine. This BANS theme uses darker colors, with a touch of style in the header that can be used with almost any niche.

Magazine BANS Theme is free to use, distribute, whatever…I’m not greedy. Furthermore, I built my little money making empire on freebies and help from others, so enjoy. If you have any suggestions, comments, or questions in regards to this BANs theme please let me know.

Download Free BANS Theme Magazine - Click Here

Find Out What You Are Selling Through EPN

The new Ebay Partner Network has replaced the Commission Junction version of their program and the new in house method will be exclusive by the end of April. Gone with CJ is the ability to find out what products you sold your visitors on eBay and tracking your EPN affiliate sales can be difficult.

We’ve installed a script which allows you to view what items you affiliate for eBay and through the EPN program. It’s free and I encourage anyone to use it or download their own, via Tropical Web Works. Absolutely NO information will be stored from you checking your EPN affiliate sales via NailsBlog.

Click Here To Check What Products You Sold Through EPN

Steps to find out what products where purchased through your EPN affiliate referral.

1. Login to EPN.
2. Click on the ‘Reports’ tab.
3. Select ‘Transaction Download’.
4. Choose your date range.
5. Download as a Text File, saving your EPN report to your computer.
6. Visit Nails Blog EPN Affiliate Report Page.
7. Browse and upload the text version of your EPN Transaction Report.
8. Analyze report with eBay product pictures and links to items purchased on eBay by your referred visitors.

Good luck with your affiliate sales!

Read more

Global Warming Caused The Earthquake In The Midwest

…at least that’s what Todd Wellemeyer of the St. Louis Cardinals thinks.  It’s gotta be embarassing to the Global Warming crowd to think that he just represented all their ignorance in one fail swoop before the Cardinals and Giants game tonight.  I mean, Global Warming effecting the 08 Earthquake is laughable and shows the roots that Global Warming enthusiasts have.  Somehow it’s our fault every time mother nature strikes out and they use that guilt to further their platform.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge St. Louis Cardinals fan, but claiming that Global Warming, which is still not proven, caused a 5.2 Earthquake makes me want to yuke.  That puts Wellemeyer on par with that fruitcake Tom Cruise.  Furthermore, if one feels so guilty to know that Global Warming caused a 5.2 Earthquake and subsquent 4.5 tremors, do you actually take full responsibility to change?

It’s my biggest problem with the Global Warming crowd, they claim and instill guilt and fear that Global Warming is caused by humans and will bring the end of the world. Are these same individuals so entrenched in their beliefs that they quit driving to work, quit using a clothes dryer, quit using hair spray, only buy earth friendly clothing?  How about not drinking bottled water, since that’s been proven to produce more green house gases from spring to mouth than any car could. I doubt they do and it’s this blind following of a crazy Al Gore that makes my blood boil.

How about we start using a little common sense with doomsday beliefs. Let’s step back and take a look at how long humans have been on this Earth and realize that there is no way we can control mother nature, one way or another. And for Christ’s sake, let’s play ball.

No Commissions With New eBay Partner Network

I never was a big earner with CJ, being an eBay affiliate, but it was a nice way to supplement my Adsense earnings on a lot of my blogs. Starting April 1st eBay decided to move their affiliate network in house and it looks like there are a number of marketers experiencing tracking issues or no commissions at all. Personally, I think there is a little problem with both, considering the relationship eBay had with CJ and constantly needing to recoup lost sales, incorrect reporting, etc.

According to individuals in forums, whom are using 3rd scripts to market eBay products, some revenue has dropped as much as 90%, even though clicks and impressions remain the same. Because of this it’s important to make sure you are using the latest versions of BANs (Build A Niche Store) and phpBay, to work with the new EPN (eBay Partner Network). Making sure you are using the correct campaign ID helps too.

But is there a problem with the new EPN affiliate reporting? My seeing no sales on my end, where before I was earning a few dollars per day. A quick search will reveal that there a number of angry individuals sending unaccounted for visitors to ebay auctions. Check out the eBay’s official affiliate forum to see the 250+ responses to their reporting methods. There are a few official responses throughout the 7 page thread, but none that make me feel any better about my lost advertising costs.

I’m willing to give the new EPN tracking issues (if there are any) another month to settle in and possibly set right. In the past it was not unusual for eBay to have issues with their affiliate program while using CJ, but now that it’s in house there are going to be a lot of directly unhappy individuals if something isn’t addressed quickly.

Anyone else having issues or do you feel like the reporting is accurate with the new ebay partner network.

WoWMatrix and Me

If you are reading this, then you should know that a lot of my free time is spent with World of Warcraft. Furthermore, a lot of my not free time is spent with WoW as well, but it’s not as easy to admit that. There is rarely a time where I feel I should mention playing WoW with non-WoW playing friends, but this post is one such time a product deserves to be recognized.

As you know Add-Ons are a necessary evil amongst the WoW community and can both be a pleasure to find and install or contain key loggers and malicious software. A new 3rd party program has been invented called WoWMatrix, which completely alleviates any worry of downloading corrupt add-ons or unwanted virii. It’s worth mentioning to those who may not be familiar with WoW because it’s just that good of software. For those who do play WoW, YOU MUST DOWNLOAD WOWMATRIX.

nuff said.

I Have A Problem With Lying…To Myself

Well, 2008 was going to be a year for change, I’d start exercising, work in the garage more, finally remove the stump out of my front yard, and yes, do my taxes early. In every sense of the word I have been a compulsive liar to myself and the little man inside who loves procrastinating. I’m not sure I’ve done any exercising except for the occasional 12oz curl, you can’t open the man door to my garage, and today I finally mailed off my check to Federal and State Tax departments.

During the weekend I was more frustrated with myself for not doing my taxes earlier than anything else, so I began a search. One that would make doing my taxes next year easier, since I had taken no steps to make my profits online a smooth transition to paper, by not recording all of my expenses. I’ll be damned if Uncle Sam is going to take more than what he is owed! My research led me to GNUCash, which if I had had this software in 07 would have made my tax crunching almost as simple as a 1-click of the mouse and I’d no longer be whipping myself for utter procrastination.

GnuCash Review

The #1 thing that I love about GnuCash is that it’s free and it works, period. It’s open source software that is freely available for download from SourceForge and appears to be regularly updated. Sometimes it can be difficult to find good open source software for Windows, but installed and ran just fine on my XP OS, although other versions are available for Linux, Solaris, and Mac.

My online business had required me to start keeping better tabs on my expenses, since my profits had jumped up so much from the year before, deductions were in order. Well, without a nice detailed report of all the software I purchased, scripts, computer parts, utilities, and anything else I was grasping at straws for 2 weeks scared I might miss something. With GnuCash it was easy to setup an initial business account and just start filling in the ledger with expenses I had already accrued in 2008. Each category is very easily labeled with explanations of what should be recorded, such as the specific expense, checking accounts, assets, utilities, taxes, etc.

At first installment it might be a little intimidating to the first timer, but keep in mind I was able to use it fine. My experience in accounting only goes as far as Accounting 101 at the local public college, so fear not entrepreneurs you can use GnuCash too. And, if you get lost there is a detailed help section in the software along with online documentation.

Final Statement on GnuCash

With all of this being said, I know for a fact I am not using it to it’s full potential. I’m only using it for very basic daily expense tracking and account balancing, which it does perfectly, but there are features far out weighing my needs. In addition, there are built in mortgage calculators, loan payoff calculators, and other useful tools for the every day person. Also, don’t forget, it’s FREE!

After getting my feet wet with GnuCash I started checking out some other open source applications that might replace some Microsoft products, like QuickBooks and Office. What I found was OpenOffice.org, so look for a review of those programs coming soon.

ATT/Yahoo Sending Email Error

Where I work I’m the self proclaimed server administrator and most of the time it’s an ‘Easy Breezy Cover Girl’ hat to wear. Unfortunately, over the weekend ATT.net and Yahoo.com changed their outgoing server settings and requirements. Incidentally, this required updating and patching Outlook and changing everyone’s email smtp outgoing server settings.

No big deal, but would have been nice to know up front and more in depth explanations of what needed to be changed. So, I intend to cover what I did to get our office emal back up to snuff in both Outlook Express and Mozilla Thunderbird. My situation is based on having a basic business DSL and email account with ATT.Yahoo.com.

The first problem I had was that any computer other than the confirmed computer with the Att.net address was unable to send email. After a quick search I found that there were some settings that needed to be changed in our Email clients.

• Set outgoing server to use a secure connection(SSL).
• Change Port used to 465

No biggie, unfortunately this didn’t fix my problem, since my computer was not the original that verified it’s account with ATT. While researching further I found that the computer confirmed with ATT quit being able to send emails. Keep in mind we were still able to receive without any issues, sending was the only function of our email which was giving errors. Once tracked down I found that the employee was using an outdated version of Outlook, which was a partial culprit.

Outlook 2002 required a patch to be compatible with SSL connections. A quick trip to Microsoft.com and updating the program fixed the issue, obviously after adjusting the outgoing server settings. Mozilla Thunderbird comes ready to roll with the latest abilities to use SSL connections, so no update was necessary.

After getting Outlook patched and outgoing server settings changed I needed to setup separate email accounts with Yahoo mail, to allow for other computers to send email, other than the original authorized account. Through the email options section in Yahoo email I was able to add an account for myself, which they authorized all outgoing mail and no further problems were found.

Please, Yahoo, next time you do this send out a notification with detailed instructions for common fixes such as this. My Monday would have been so much nicer..

Read more

Don’t Trust Text-Link-Ads.com

I write this post with a heavy heart, because I have been with TLA since the beginning and used every tool they offer to earn revenue and advertise. However, on too many occasions I have found that the links I’ve been paying for have magically disappeared…but I keep getting billed.

Now, I’ve never had an issue with being credited, nor have I run into a lot of customer service issues, but it negates the point of using their service at all. I use TLA because I don’t have the time to monitor my own links, I pay, I play, I move on. But, if I’m constantly having to check to make sure my links are still in place, what’s the point? I pay a premium to have them look after my links, frankly they are no longer providing a service I’m interested in.

Thanks for the good times Text-Link-Ads.com, I’ll miss you. If you ever come up with a way to better monitor link placements and adjust billing accordingly I’ll happily come back.

P.S. What is up with pushing a crappy service like Shopping Ads down my throat when I log in?

Next Page →

• Teh Pages

  • About Nails
  • Contact Nails
  • Free Downloads
  • Subscribe for Free

• Yell It

  • cldnails on Global Warming Caused The Earthquake In The Midwest
  • Steve on Global Warming Caused The Earthquake In The Midwest
  • Jeffers on Find Out What You Are Selling Through EPN
  • cldnails on Don’t Trust Text-Link-Ads.com
  • Zap on Don’t Trust Text-Link-Ads.com

• Affiliate Scripts That Work

  
  
  

  
  

  
  

• Categorized

  • Blog Crap
  • Making Money
  • Misc Comp
  • Nails Contests
  • Offline
  • P2P
  • P2P Crap
  • P2P Plugins
  • Political Beliefs
  • Search Trends
  • Surf Crap
  • Technology
  • Templates
  • Throwdown
  • Trends
  • Uncategorized
  • Web Development

• Nails Projects

  • Buy HD
  • Fecal Agitator
  • G Pages
  • Mustang for Sale
  • ObsceneCaffeine MySpace
  • Styckr Image Hosting
  • The Grayline
  • Top 10 Gifts
  • Used Golf Cart

• Resources

  • Drivl
  • Marketing Experiments Blog
  • Marketing News & Opinion
  • Matt Cutts
  • P2P Foundation
  • PirateBay Blog
  • TorrentFreak
  • Who Links Here?
  • YPN Blog

• Best Of

  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007
  • May 2007
  • April 2007
  • March 2007
  • February 2007
  • January 2007
  • December 2006
  • November 2006
  • October 2006
  • September 2006
  • August 2006
  • July 2006
  • June 2006

Recently Written

• Why Nails Blog?
• A Great Way To Make Money With eBay
• Free BANS Theme - Magazine
• Find Out What You Are Selling Through EPN
• Global Warming Caused The Earthquake In The Midwest
• No Commissions With New eBay Partner Network
• WoWMatrix and Me
• I Have A Problem With Lying…To Myself
• ATT/Yahoo Sending Email Error
• Don’t Trust Text-Link-Ads.com

Monthly Archives

• May 2008
• April 2008
• February 2008
• January 2008
• December 2007
• November 2007
• October 2007
• September 2007
• July 2007
• June 2007
• May 2007
• April 2007
• March 2007
• February 2007
• January 2007
• December 2006
• November 2006
• October 2006
• September 2006
• August 2006
• July 2006
• June 2006

Find It

Admin

• Log in
• WordPress
• XHTML

Credits

Powered by Vertigo & WordPress
WordPress Themes by Brian Gardner