Last year, I blogged about my foray into Second Life from a business standpoint. To bring you up to speed, here are my latest endeavors and how my previous ventures have morphed over time.

My Evolving Work

Last year, I was working on several things in Second Life for income (in the Second Life currency Linden which can be converted into dollars - about L$268 per $1 US). My work included:

1. Business reporter for SLNN.com
2. Virtual tshirt shop
3. Custom tshirt business
4. Real world tshirt shop through CafePress.
5. Writer-in-Residence on Elysian Isle

Today, my work is different. I still occasionally report for SLNN.com on real world companies and organizations coming into Second Life and have added SLEntrepreneur magazine to my writing roster where I publish a twice-monthly column about women business owners in Second Life. But writing is taking more of a backburner because it consumes a lot of time for little pay. Read the rest of this entry »

I get so many people asking me where they should host their web site. Should they go with a local Internet Service Provider? Should they go with one of the biggies like Earthlink? Or should they use a popular discount provider like GoDaddy? Or what about the hosting services offered by their domain registrar such as Network Solutions or Register.com?

There are so many variables to deciding the best place to host your Web site. I’ve tried to distill these issues into a nice concise checklist, and then I’ve included some recommendations of Web hosts I’ve used in the past with good results. None of this advice is cut and dry, but hopefully it gives you some food for thought on how to proceed with a Web host relationship.
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I’ve been developing, coordinating and hosting a lot of events in Second Life as part of my online consulting work, and am still honing my perfect mix of online marketing tactics to attract a steady audience, but here are the online marketing tools I’ve been using.

1. Twitter.
I can’t say enough about microblogging and how effective it is once you build a strong following. I have over 500 followers now on my Twitter page, many of whom are avid SL residents, so I have a nicely targeted audience for promos about my events. Read the rest of this entry »

For any publishers out there - whether you are publishing a newsletter or blogging, podcasting or videocasting, I’m sure you know that coming up with content can be a major challenge, especially if you are posting on a weekly or more frequent basis.

Once you establish the basic topics or themes of your content, there are lots of different ways to come up with and present that content. Here are some of my tips and prompts… Read the rest of this entry »

Are you blogging for your business? Are you thinking about letting other employees blog with you?

There are inherent risks in company-wide blogging that include employees accidentally revealing company secrets or voicing an opinion that is not in keeping with the corporate culture and guidelines. While blogging can be a useful marketing tool for your company and by adding employee voices to the mix you can create a richer resource, you need to take precautions before you add bloggers to your blog.
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Have you been toying with the idea of starting a podcast to market your business?

Podcasting, like blogging, can be a very time consuming process. Here are some things you need to consider:

1. What will you talk about? Like blogging, you are better off zeroing in on a topic area where you have an expertise. Talk about what you know. Better yet, talk about areas where you have strong opinions.

2. Who is your audience? Knowing who you want to listen to your podcast is so important. Without a focused, targeted audience in mind, your podcast will probably fail to reach the right people. Remember: If you are podcasting for business, you are doing it to achieve business goals, not simply for your own entertainment. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m always thinking of things that would make my life easier as I run my business, but the thoughts are fleeting and I never do anything about them. While I am an entrepreneur, I’m just not a computer programmer or inventor.

But there are people who are, thank goodness, and they put good ideas into action with cool Web tools that we can all use. Here are some of my favorites and a few new ones I’m thinking of trying out.





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I’m about to take two extended trips away from my well-equipped home office and am trying to be prepared for doing work - if needed - away from all my tech tools.

I think we all tend to rely so much on our perfect office or home office set up that we forget to develop a plan for remote work - particularly in remote places. This plan includes purchasing the equipment necessary to cover all the tech bases while you’re away.

Here are the things I’m thinking about before my trips. Read the rest of this entry »

I just forgot something very important this week, and I did have a strong feeling that I forgot to do something, but couldn’t quite place what it was.

I forgot to blog here on Thursday! Yes, even though I’m blogging regularly on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I somehow spaced it out and woke up this morning with the sinking feeling that my last post was on Tuesday.

So this got me thinking about ways to remind myself of things, especially as my project load gets heavier and my memory is trapped somewhere in the chaotic recesses of my “Mommy Brain.” Read the rest of this entry »

As part of my Internet consulting business, I try to stay up-to-date on all the latest and greatest social networking sites.

What is a social networking site, you ask? In non-techy English, it is a site that leverages the exponential power of connections meaning that it provides you with tools to take advantage of the “who you know” network.

If you know 10 people and they each know 10 people, the theory of social networking sites is that you now potentially know 110 people because your friends could introduce you to their friends. Another theory of social networking sites is that if you have things in common with your 10 friends, chances are you may have something in common with their 10 friends or 100 other people. Most social networking sites are based around common interests as the magnet and the glue of “friendships.”

I’m going to write several posts about social networking, particularly for work at home moms, but first I’ll give you a brief list of popular social networking sites and how they might work for you. Keep in mind that I’m only mentioning the ones that I’ve tried myself and narrowing them down to 3 in each category is tough but otherwise, this post would go on for days!

Professional Social Networks

1. LinkedIn - This is really the top professional social networking site. Once you add your professional contacts, the site provides tools for getting introductions using the theory of 6 degrees of separation although usually anyone you’d like to meet is about 3 degrees away from you. I’ve made contact with former colleagues and have been able to get introductions to people I’ve wanted to meet such as an editor at LifetimeTV.com. My LinkedIn page. Read the rest of this entry »