A Series Of Small Biz Introductions

Introduction to Email Marketing

2009-05-29T06:15:00.000-07:00

Hello again! It's been a while since my last entry. How to make money with email marketing? Well, there are agencies, and there are also illegal methods which of course you should avoid at all cost. If you are a legit guy who is going to sell a legit product then I suggest getting a legit service than going to freelancing to find it. You'll need to be sure they are doing it legally.

I think this introduction is very well self-explanatory. E-mail Marketing is promoting your products through the use of electronic mails. I will list some agencies now to get you started. This is probably the ones I find most reputable.

iContact is perfect for managing your email lists, you can use tons of our features with your free trial. Get your free trial now!
Constant Contact helps you to connect with your customers and build your business. Try our no risk FREE 60-Day Trial.

I'd hope you make good use of them, farewell and wait till next introduction!

Introduction to Web Applications

2009-05-23T18:15:00.000-07:00

In the last post, I talked about introduced to you the term of freelancer. Today I'm going to be introducing you to web applications.

The internet provides you to a whole new world of options and in business free solutions are always the ones to analyze first. A budget, for any business, is not an infinite amount and therefore we should always try our best to save up. Today I will list common applications and their uses, as you read on you will redefine your focus on what type of web application provides the functions you want.

The list here is not ordered in any way, all web applications have their pros and cons.

Drupal (Content Management Framework)

Drupal is one of the powerful Content Managament System (yet it is a framework, or so they state in the handbook). It will allow your users to have pages, post comments, multilingual support, and the power to extend it with modules. Drupal has quite a learning curve, but do not fear! The community behind it is also solid; they will help you as much as they can. Who have used drupal in the world of business? One of them is Sony. Also, you might end up hiring a freelancer, when I meant learning curve— it will really drive you over the edge.

Check out their official site | View features

WordPress

WordPress IS blogging software tool, yet its built-in capabilities allow WordPress to become a powerful portal for many users. I’m sure you have heard about wordpress somewhere since they keep spreading the word. What can you do with wordpress? You can make a site with it, a blog ( web log ), a portfolio, almost any type of site.If you are thinking of creating a site like blogger.com (the ones that host this blog) Then take a look at WordPress MU.

The learning curve of WordPress is—well it actually doesn’t have that much of a learning curve. WordPress is easy to learn; even the most inexperienced users will find it easy to set up. WordPress also has the power to become extendable with the use of plug-ins. For example, there is a SEO(Search Engine Optimization) plug-in called all-in-one SEO which handles everything that has to do with SEO. So, if you are looking to start your business site,WordPress might be the key.

Check out their official site | View features

Cushy CMS

If you are going to be handling your own site due to either not wanting to pay someone to manage it then Cushy will be a solution for you. Cushy is a hosted sites service that gives you a powerful administration panel to gear up your site in any way. Cushy CMS does not require you to install anything making it flexible for the manager.

Check out their official site

I’ve tried hard to keep it in simple words, but sometimes you just need to use it and feel how the web application works. If you want to consult, please drop an e-mail at webmaster@routecafe.com

Introduction to Freelance

2009-05-17T18:27:00.000-07:00

Today we are going to be talking about freelancers, who are they, what they do and how to find them. Freelancers are hard workers that are always seeking new jobs over the internet, most of them work from home or an office and in most cases they are very talented people who can make your business flourish.

Let’s get a little deeper on the definition, there are companies who you pay and they do their thing. Of course when you think “company” the first thing that comes up most of the time is the word “expensive”. There are many companies that offer quality work with affordable prices but I won’t get there yet. A freelancer is a normal person with an expertise on a certain area; he could be a graphic artist, web developer, WordPress guru, Web Design guru and many other expertises.

Hiring a freelancer will cut your expenses drastically, let’s say you want to make a social network like Facebook, your budget is $2,500 and the company you inquired just answered your e-mail telling you that they will quote, just starting, with just $5,000. On the other hand we have a freelancer and his/her team, they put on their poker face and tell you, alright we’ll do it for just $1,500.

Don’t be mistaken, just because they are more affordable than a company doesn’t mean the

price is fair. It’s a must to be fair with whom you hire, of course I don’t know what kind of boss you are, either the one who always taunts workers or the one with tranquil atmosphere that keeps in mind how hard they work to achieve YOUR needs. My point is that if you don’t know the price of how much it would cost and how much time it would take, don’t go aggressive

demanding to low the price. Consult with your freelancer and communicate, communications is always a critical point in every business.

Where can you find freelancers? You can start looking in:

Most of them are free to sign-up.

Just for reference, I’m a freelancer. My area of expertise lies in PHP, MySQL, CSS, HTML. If you have any questions post a comment. webmaster@routecafe.com.

Introduction to Small Biz

2009-05-17T16:46:00.000-07:00

Hello there! My name is David, nice to meet you! If you have stumbled here and you are new business in the internet I will guide you through various posts and guides where you will learn how things work. The internet provides you with so many tools it’s hard to not become absorbed into it.

A few years ago I “surfed” the web where it wasn’t as powerful as it is today. It didn’t provide the technologies it had now. It evolved into such a magnificent way to promote your products, be it digital or physical products there are always people willing to pay. Now we can promote our products through Google, Yahoo, and other advertising networks. There are also agencies that take care of e-mail marketing and Press Releases.

Let’s slow down! I’m sure that if you are new to business in the internet then that means you are not familiar with some terms. Rest assured that you will learn how to put your ideas in motion. Stay tuned for more posts!