Finding the right supplier

Having a good industrial equipment supplier is the key to making a good job both in the workplace and in the home. I spend a lot of time in the 'off-line' world sourcing all sorts of equipment for different purposes, and I extensively use the internet to find suppliers.
I have found that there is a distinct knack to using Google to find what you need and have built up some good working relationships with suppliers originally found via search engines.
Often a little research is needed to find the equipment that you need, then the ideal scenario is to locate a local supplier and establish a working relationship.

New Survey from dNeero

Another survey to keep the cents trickling in...
This one is on endurance athletics and the possibilities of long-term benefits or long-term dangers. I think it is possible to go too far, but for the majority, any exercise has to be a good thing.

Update

I am happy with my new (secret) SEO project so far, I still have quite a lot of content to put on the site, but is getting search results already and a couple of ad clicks have been generated. I have monetised with eBay partnership and some affiliates, this will hopefully yield something in the long-term. I will also try registering some of the URLs with fixed advert providers to see if I can get some regular income from that direction. Right now, I would be happy if I could show that the site will break even - if I can reach that goal, I will invest in another similar site and see if I can use the good results from the first project to generate some PageRank for the scond project and so on... I think I can repeat this about four or five times from slightly different angles. Just getting the site accepted for some fixed adverts would be enough to show a decent profit.
This month I have been lucky enough to pick up another sponsored review for one of my sites and this time I should get paid $26, which is a pretty good rate for a single review. There are a few other opps coming in from blogsvertise and PayU2blog, so this month should be reasonable although in this climate, you can never be sure where your next opp is coming from...

Preparing for the Sun...

It is this time of year in the UK when we start to look at the sorry state of the garden furniture and wonder if there is enough money in the kitty to start afresh with a new patio set.
So far this year, I have already put some new planters around the patio, repaired some broken patio slabs, attempted to repair our 'spare' patio table (the 'best' one got damaged and I chopped it up for firewood in the Winter...) and even refurbished our outside toilet. The next job on the list is to fix the broken security light which provides some light on the patio for warmer evenings...
When all the repairs have been effected, I would really like to look around for a new table, the 'old' chairs are OK and may just need some treatment although I have been tempted by outdoor chaise lounges and some more exotic plants and planters. Our parasol also falls apart on a regular basis so I am hoping to find a bargain set including a decent sized table and parasol.

Car Insurance

Everyone surely knows by now that Comparison sites can take a lot of the leg-work out of searching for comparative quotes for insurance. I heard someone say recently 'Where do we go to compare the best comparison sites?' so maybe the next phase of web sites to come along will include sites that can compare the comparison sites, and the next phase can compare the.... well you get the idea...
Comparison sites can of course get us the best auto insurance quotes or home insurance quotes or travel insurance quotes. My strategy is to find the best deal from the comparison sites and then double-check by trying some insurers direct. The comparison sites have often worked out a deal so that they can offer at least the same rate as if you go direct, but it's always worth checking. In these financially sensitive times, the best deals need to be hunted down...

New Survey

I am losing interest in surveys as a way of earning, however dNeero surveys are fun to complete and you can post them in your blog, like this one...
The latest survey is another music one, click the widget to join up and take part:

Software Solutions

Once a small company has outgrown the limitations of MS Outlook and Excel/Access as tools for keeping track of business, they will need to focus on some serious software not only for datafile financial systems, but also for customer tracking and enquiry-tracking. I recently spoke to a retailer who was selling CRM software and he told me a story which admittedly was designed to put his product in a good light, but even so is probably true.. He was looking for a specific item and emailed three suppliers whilst browsing the internet. Two of the three did not even acknowledge his email, the third (and successful) supplier whilst in conversation revealed that he used one of the more professional CRM tools such as 'Goldmine' or act 6. This is the tool which enabled him to successfully keep track of incoming enquiries.

One of the most required functions of CRM & financial system nowadays is intergration between packages. For instance ACT is now marketed by 'SAGE' who are most well-known for their accounting software, Goldmine and other CRM's can also be cajoled into interfacing with SAGE through SQL database queries. Some programs are designed to work together or can liaise via a third-party software interface.
Interestingly, Microsoft have also come up with a microsoft crm which of course integrates with MS Office products. There are a host of soultions out there and it is worth sitting down with a retailer who knows a lot about their products. I have seen CRMs come and go in my place of work - we had three in about five years, and the best advice I can give is try and get it right first time by working out exactly what your existing and future requirements are likley to be...then talk to a company that can offer you the perfect solution.

Slow start

Last month started at breakneck speed with lots of opps completed in the first week, but opps have been few and far between so far in June, early days admittedly...
Other projects have been more successful and I have another 'keyword' success to report. The success in getting my new site (sorry still a 'hush hush' project) a decent SERP for it's main search term was compounded by another success, this time for my much older Beckham News blog.
I was checking Google analytics for visitor stats by search term and noticed the term 'Beckham News' had sent me some visitors. I googled and sure enough, my blog comes up as fifth position at the moment. I don't know how long I have been ranked for this phrase, but it came as a big surprise to me.. I must be doing something right! I am not sure if I can improve on the SERP thatI am getting for my new project, but if the longevity of my Beckham blog is the reason for my high position, then it could take me about two years to get higher than position six...
This has been a good reminder to keep checking the analytics on sites that you don't expect to perform well just in case Google suddenly decides that you are OK after all..

Keeping active

Even though I am some way past what might be considered my physical prime, I do keep fairly active playing sports. I play football (soccer) twice a week with friends and the action is usually fairly frenetic and often reasonably painful.
Despite the negative effects, I am banking on the positive effects outweighing them, although I have to acknowledge that at some point, the balance will be tipped and I will have to pack it in and find something less painful to keep fitness levels up. I am fairly competitive and do not respond to gym-related exercise or jogging/running, I am more interested in team sports or one-on-one sports that help to bring out my competitive nature. My long term plan is to think about taking golf lessons when I am too old for football and though I don't expect to be winning any golf trophies, I think I will be competitive especially if my wife also joins in as she has threatened to do... When we are retired or at least semi-retired, we have this plan to join a golf-club and get some lessons. Whether we will ever get round to it is an entirely different matter.

Weight loss ideas

If you want to look your best on the beach this Summer, you may be thinking about starting a new fitness regime popping some diet pills or having some surgery...
Of those choices, I think the one with the most beneficial side effects is the one to go for, and without a doubt the side effects of getting fit are far and away the most desirable.
Fitness breeds self-confidence and gives you a healthy glow and releases natural feel-good chemicals into the brain. Whereas surgery and medication can have some pretty unpleasant unexpected results if proper research is not done beforehand. There is a recklessness which drives us towards 'quick-fix' solutions rather than the hard graft of push ups, bench presses and running hard miles.
If the quick fix is your chosen route, then make sure you get as much information about the process via an independent review of surgeons or a weight loss pills review before you embark on a idealistic solution that may turn out to be less than ideal.

Results for May 2009

This month has been a truly puzzling month for me. I had plenty of PU2Blog bonus opps at the start of the month, but they have quickly dried up - when that happens you think you are in for a good month, then nothing comes in for a few weeks and the average earnings start to drop. A few opps have dropped into my lap from other sources and I thought I had some link sales, but nothing came of it. All-in-all a month of expectations more than actual results. On the 'up' side, I enjoyed doing the 'intenet money makers' feature and have been fairly successful in getting a new website ranked for it's main keyword - all I need to do now is sort out how I am going to monetise it...
This new project is hopefully going to be a site that I can set up and leave - I am hoping that a combination of Adsense and eBay affiliate ads will provide enough to justify it's upkeep - If it works out I may well be building several other sites on the same model. The last thing I need is a host of extra sites that need constant updating though...
Earnings for May 2009 have been just over $65 with about $136 being paid into my Paypal account from previous months. The drop in blogging earnings seems set to continue which is why other projects are becoming more important - I hope I have opened up a new stream of revenue, but the monetisation is the key, and it remains to be seen whether I can convert SERP into traffic, and then traffic into revenue.