(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
Loading ...From the monthly archives:
July 2008
How to Find a Good Domain Name Registrar
(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5) Loading ...You have found a great domain name suited for your weblog or website. And the best of all, the dot com name is available! That’s a hard find today :)
Now, your next step is to find the right domain name registrar.
I’ve done domain name registrations with several notable registrars, and for a number of domain names, because I’m actually owning dozens of websites and dozens more of domain names.
In my humble opinion, each of registrar has its own strengths and weaknesses. I have a tip or two for you on how to find a good domain name registrar.
How to find a good domain name registrar
In choosing the right registrar for your domain name, you might want to consider the following:
- The range of services - does the registrar offer you not only domain name registration, but also other services as well, such as web hosting, SSL certificates, etc.?
- The reputation - what clients say about the registrar?
- The price tags - how competitive is the pricing and promo programmes the registrar has?
- The customer support - how well the registrar handle enquiries?
- The peace of mind - do you feel ’save’ with the regsitrar?
A recommendation for you
In my search for a registrar to add to my long list of registrar partners, I just found one that stands up above the rest - Triple.com.
No, I’m not their affiliate - yet, and this post is NOT about trying to get you join the Triple.com affiliate program through me :)
However, I honestly did recommend this registrar for two big plus - free privacy protection and visible domain secret key.
Privacy protection is important to protect you from spam and identity theft. Domain secret key is needed to transfer a domain name from one registrar to another.
Most registrars I deal with does offer those services, but they are either not free or treated as ‘hidden’ features (hidden domain secret key - perhaps to avoid customers easily transfer their domain names to another registrar?).
I register a domain with Triple.com today and all I can say is that the registration process is simple and straightforward. No double opt-in registration process, thus speeds up the process in itself.
The control panel is simple yet comprehensive - and as I mentioned above, the domain secret key is visible - easy to take note, and the privacy protection is free (my whois contact info appears as PrivacyProtect.org).
Triple.com also offer other services, such as web hosting and SSL certificates to complement it’s domain name registration services. Just give it a shot and see whether it is the right registrant for you.
Ivan Widjaya
Domaining
{ 2 comments }
Real Estate Investment Management: Refinancing Your Residential Properties for Better Cash Flow Management
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Are you investing in rental and investment properties?
If so, you might want to refinance your properties for a better cash flow management. One of the ways to achieve that is by having a lower mortgage rate.
As simple as it may sounds, a lower mortgage rates gives you more cash in hands.
Or perhaps you have other reasons? The other reasons might include:
- You want a shorter home loan repayment terms,
- You want to cash-out,
- You have a mortgage balloon payment coming due, or
- You simply want to switch to a fixed-rate home loan from an adjustable rate mortgage.
For every reason you have, you always want to look for refinancing possibilities. The first step and most crucial step you might take is to find the right refinancing companies.
With plenty of such companies, it is pretty hard to choose the right one - not only in term of mortgage rates offered, but also the reputation of the company.
Many of the refinancing companies offer competitive mortgage rates, but - with or without your knowledge - sell your information to others - which is often made in small prints in your agreement you often overlook. Your result - low mortgage rates, but with unsolicited calls going your way, and his is not the result you and I want.
How to choose the right refinancing service
Help with home refinancing is also available online. Just type ‘home refinancing’ in your favourite search engine, and you will be presented with tons of company offering home refinancing information.
In fact, my search with ‘home refinancing’ term in Google yields about 1,570,000 results!
I suggest you to be careful about the service offered and the privacy policy.
Why?
Because what goes in offline companies also goes in online companies - with amplified effects. Choosing the wrong service provider will result you in lots of unsolicited calls PLUS tons of spammy emails. I believe you don’t want that :)
However, I found one of the good refinancing companies on the Net with an informative website, RefinanceToolbox.com.
The company is claiming to offer you the lowest refinance mortgage rates. The good thing about RefinanceToolbox.com is you will only receive a single call, not 10s or 100s of calls like other refinance service providers. Moreover, it’s their job to get the lowest rate and manage your refinance needs for you with a customer satisfaction guaranteed.
I learn a great deal about refinancing (I’m pretty much a newbie in home refinancing, although I involved in investment properties business) - So, if you are searching for refinancing possibilities, I’d suggest you to visit the website.
Ivan Widjaya
Home refinancing
{ 0 comments }
Related posts other people has read:
Getting Your Way Around Recession through Refinancing Choosing the Right Web Hosting Partner for Your Web Business Building Wealth Online
Reliable Internet Connection - Key for Productive Entrepreneurs
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Internet access is paramount for my business ventures. I deal with customers and partners online much, much more than before. The boundless business environment suits me well.
Unfortunately, I always have Internet connection problems at home (I work from home). I often end up ‘renting an office space’ in a near by coffee shop - for free, in exchange for a couple of cup of coffee :D
It kills my productivity, especially in my latest journey in Internet Business. Yes, the coffee offered in the coffee shop is nice, but often I need a nice and quiet environment, which is often achievable only by working at home :)
The good news is, I found a solution - Satellite Internet.
It is apparently a great solution to have a wireless Internet ready to go with me wherever I want to go. I have used a satellite Internet service before, and to tell you the truth, the connection is AWFUL. Always on - yes. Always connected - yes. Fast - NO! Writing an article is nice, but taking 10 minutes just to get it online is oh-not-so productive.
Luckily plenty of choices are available. There are good Satellite Internet service providers out there, such as HughesNet, offering you a secure, fast, Internet access via satellite that is always on and connected - wirelessly.
Choosing the right one is paramount - Otherwise, just like my old landline Internet connection - goodbye personal Internet access, hello coffee shop Internet access :).
To talk a bit on HughesNet - with over 370,000 subscribers served all over US, is a high quality - guaranteed - Satellite Internet service provider (if not, I will write a bad review on them later! :D).
Internet connection - anywhere, anytime - heaven! Choose yours wisely.
Ivan Widjaya
Taking my business anywhere I want.
{ 0 comments }
Related posts other people has read:
Small Business Owner Must-Have Productivity Tools Madasafish Broadband Service Provider Entrepreneurs Should Play Games to Hone Their Skills
Fleet Owners - Insure and Protect Your Vehicles
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Are you running a business that relies on fleet of vehicles?
You should understand that the 2 most important factors in owning a fleet is vehicle tracking system and vehicle insurance protection.
It is undeniable that insurance is often being overlooked by fleet owners. Why? I understand one reason - tracking system directly related to company operation management, insurance don’t.
Fleet owners tend to treat insurance as a habit - if you have car, you have to insure it.
Surprisingly, not all fleet owners insuring their vehicles properly. Many of them also adopt pay-and-forget policy.
What really an eye opener is when there is an unfortunate event happens on one of your fleet vehicles - that is, when you want to file a claim to your insurance company partner.
You can tell the difference between proper insurance or not by trying to claim yours. Simply put, good insurers provide simple claim process. The bad ones don’t.
What a fleet owner should do
Simple - insure your fleet PROPERLY. Seek information on auto insurance companies regarding their reputation.
As a word of advice, an old and experienced insurance company, such as car insurance Quebec, in my experience, always command quality. No matter how attractive the offer of newer insurance companies, the older companies always offer the best value for money in term of reputation.
You should also seek insurance company that offer multi-vehicle discount - although most auto insurance company offer this, not all fleet owners actually take advantage of it.
Some would suggest you not to “put all eggs in one basket” policy on insurance to avoid protection and claim problems. I suggest you to do the other way. Pick the best of all, insure all your vehicles with them. This way, you can insure all your vehicles into one corporate account and enjoy the benefits - discounts and ease of insurance management.
Ivan Widjaya
Insure properly
{ 0 comments }
Related posts other people has read:
Small Business Owners - Protect Your Income Fleet Owners - Reduce Fuel Costs and Driver Overtime Small Business Owner - Your Health is Your Asset
Construction Business Management - Be Organised, Be Competitive
(1 votes, average: 4 out of 5) Loading ...Getting organised is paramount for every business.
In my country, construction business - at the most advanced way - incorporate the spreadsheets, while most other simply rely on pen and paper.
You know what, this gotta change!
I’m in Business and IT industries - I understand the value of software in business management. One word only to describe the importance: use software or die.
In today’s cut-throat competitive environment, staying ahead of your competitors are very, very important. Start tarrying, you will find yourself left in the dust.
Now, to compare.
I had lived in United Kingdom for 2 years, about 4 years ago. All I can say is that the construction industry there is advanced - especially if you compare UK to the country I live right now.
I enjoyed writing my thesis on Carillion, the leading infrastructure, building and business services companies in UK. I learn a great deal of it and its business in construction.
During the thesis writing, I also notice that Sage Accounting Software is THE accounting software of UK. To relate to the case study I was on, Sage is actually releasing a construction software that offer a fully integrated solution for the construction companies to be better organised.
To cut the long story short, I concluded that what make a construction company well managed is the right software it employ - in this case, Sage Construction Software.
About Construction Software
Ledger Services Ltd. is one of the authorised suppliers of the Sage software range, with one of its specialisation is on the construction software. What makes this company trusted is the fact that it uses the Sage software itself.
Browsing through the website, I notice that if a construction company should pick a solution to manage its business, the right choice would be Sage Construction Service to manage the construction-specific front-end, with Sage 50 Accounts Professional to manage the more general back-end. Having them both, in my opinion, will push your construction company ahead of your competitors. Trust your construction business management software needs to ledger Services Ltd.
Cheers to the UK construction industry!
Ivan Widjaya
Keen on construction industry
Note: I simply love the UK classic building construction system - with the red bricks and the insulation system - I wish I could applied it to my home :D
{ 0 comments }
Ready to Make Money Online? Get Yourself a Domain Name
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...I’ve started falsely before and learned the hard way about the importance of domain name for your blogging to make money online.
Like most others, I started out at Blogger.com and Wordpress.com. I love the feeling of starting out of nothing for my make money online journey by blogging - especially if I can earn money out of my blogs.
However, I finally understood that I’m not building assets.
If you blog for money, your blog is a real business - treat it like one
If you are keen to blog for money, you have to realise that, just like other businesses, you have to build both cash flow and asset.
Free-hosted blogging might be a great solution for blogging for cash flow at nothing down, but not for asset building.
Yes, your unique content is yours and it is an asset, but what would happen if your domain name is not? In fact, your domain name is belong to the free blogging service providers.
Just like in the offline world of business, your blog’s asset is not only product (in this case, content) but also brand name - a.k.a. domain name. Not having a domain name is like having a business without a unique brand name.
The proof that domain name is an important asset
Just try to list your blog for sale in online marketplace. No matter how much you make, you won’t get any offer - even you will get scolded by the marketplace visitors! I’ve seen it before, so you can trust me on this :)
One excellent article that also chime the importance of having your own domain name and host the blog yourself is Make Money Blogging: Host Your Blog on a Custom Domain Name.
The blog owner, Alan Liew, really learns the hard way by not having his own domain name. He also states that not only his blog’s domain name belong to Blogger.com, but also he can’t sell the blog if he decided to do so!
That’s really unfortunate, because in my opinion, his blog, Money Maker Info, is one of the better make money online blog out there on the Net - unique and interesting articles, with exceptional income, I suspect ;)
The only action plan - get a domain name, host the blog yourself, and start creating outstanding content
What to do now?
As suggested above - the only action plan is: get a domain name, host the blog yourself, and start creating outstanding content. The rest will eventually come to you as long as you blog consistently and resiliently :)
Ivan Widjaya
Make money online
{ 4 comments }
Intermediaries - Are They Still in Existence in Boundless Business Today?
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...I’m running an intermediary service as my side-business. I intermediate my clients’ need by referring or subcontracting projects to my list of partners.
I believe that my service is now becoming a niche in today’s boundless business.
Here’s why.
Intermediary is dead?
The Internet lacklusters the intermediary service business. If you want to buy and sell, you can DIY it. Just go to eBay or other online marketplaces and do your thing.
Does this mean that the intermediary business is obsolete and dead?
I don’t think so – I have several reasons to back my word :)
Intermediary is no longer a general business service – it is a niche
Intermediary – or brokerage – is no longer a mainstream in business service industry. In my opinion, intermediary service is a niche in today’s business.
People seeking a broker or intermediary are usually looking for these two things – efficiency and privacy.
Instead of searching by themselves, people would like to do other more important things while subcontracting the project to those who are more experienced and has a network of trusted partners.
Privacy is paramount in finding brokerage service, especially for the financial broker, simply because of the nature of the service, offering financial solutions – this is where most people are turned off.
Once you contact a financial broker, in my experience, suddenly some people calling you saying that their service is better than the one you contacted. It just happened!
How to look for trusted intermediary
I prove myself to be a trusted intermediary through time. However, the reputation doesn’t come easily. To connect to potential clients, I joined forums, job boards, and intermediary directory.
Forums and job boards work differently, but share similar trust systems. You get a positive or negative reputation by how well you complete the project.
However, the most effective of all, in my case, is joining an intermediary directory.
One of such directory is Global Broker Finder, a paid brokerage network that is acting as a meeting place that connect listed brokers with people looking for brokers.
Brokers joining such directory shout themselves “trusted” – because of the fee to join and the reputation at stake for joining the network.
In conclusion – if you are a broker, consider joining a broker network to increase your visibility and circle of trust.
Ivan Widjaya
A part-time intermediary
{ 2 comments }
Important Property Information for England and Wales Home Owners
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...
Are You an England or Wales home owner proud of your residential property?
I believe you are.
Especially if you are involved with the sales or letting of your residential properties.
You must have known that home-owners or their agent marketing a residential property in England or Wales are now under a legal requirement to provide a Home Information Pack (HIP).
I understand that it is such a hassle. You could use your time for other more important things.
But lucky you!
Whilst other home owners wandering around and busy preparing the HIP, you are smart enough to visit this blog and look for information that will actually help your business to comply legally.
HIP-Consultant.co.uk are a company based in the North-East of England that will help you preparing your Home Information Packs. They also have a network of trusted, experienced and fully licensed domestic energy assessors that will help you producing Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) - to certify your home energy efficiency - as part of Home Information Packs requirement.
This is the best part - If you are a home seller, industry professional, or landlord, HIP-Consultant.co.uk will surely brings you the peace of mind. You are free from being bothered by the HIP and EPC, and you are able to do what’s best for your properties – maintaining and marketing.
What’s more, HIP-Consutant.co.uk promises to offer you personal service - You are well taken care of by an account manager for your HIP and EPC. She will help you with anything you wish to know and need about completing your HIP and EPC.
I’d suggest you to visit HIP-Consultant’s website to learn about HIP and EPC, or their Property Information Blog to learn more about issues surrounding real estate business in the UK, especially on the energy issues.
Ivan Widjaya
On UK Property Legislation
{ 3 comments }
A Million Dollar Blogger - A Realistic You?
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...It is darn hard to create money out of blogs - that includes this blog :P
Bloggers are well known for free content providers. Bloggers are also known as being generous when it comes to providing valuable information. However, bloggers are not known for money makers.
Only a few of us that can make real money out of their blogs - Yaro Starak, John Chow, and Darren Rowse to name a few that earn the title of probloggers - that is, those that have authoritative voices in blogging world.
Bloggers - Hidden Champions?
I’ve visited blogs with excellent content, but not monetised well. But I’ve also noticed that more and more of them are trying to monetize their blogs, with a small success.
Here’s how I observe them - I observe what a blog can do financially by visiting Sitepoint Marketplace often.
There, you will find websites, which some of them are blogs, listed for sale. Some of them are mediocre, but some of them are exceptional.
The good ones I’ve seen has made anywhere from $50 to $1000 per month.
Not particularly a bad earning for a blog, but given the potentials that blogs have, I firmly believe that blogs can do more financially following the right path to go.
A million dollar blogger - good possibilities to be one?
I’ve recently stumbled upon Yaro Starak’s interview with one of the problogger in Australia’s automotive blogs, Alborz Fallah. His automotive blog is among the leading blogs in Australia, and has been valued by certified auditors for 5 million dollars. He raked in $30,000 a month about one year ago - so, go figure it yourself how much he makes nowadays :)
Just make sure you read his post and listen to the interview podcast, then you will see a simple, yet powerful, perspective of blog monetization.
Saying this, I am a total noob in blogging - I’m still at beginner’s stage of blogging. I swallow all information on make money online.
I do business online, as a noob, this past 5 months, and I learn a great deal.
One lesson that keep me faving on online businesses is that you have to take action out of what you learn. Those bloggers giving you tips for free are no rubbish! They know what they are talking about.
Perhaps not like what you are thinking of online business, make money online is actually not that complicated.
What will probably fail me and you, is our determination to stick to what we have been doing. 95% people trying to make money online fail because they stop digging right before they strike gold.
So, in conclusion, yes - being a million dollar blogger is possible, if you do the right things, keep doing them, and on the right time, at the right place. Then striking gold is suddenly not that hard anymore - if you succeed, people will go to you offering something that will only make you even more successful. This is also Alborz Fallah’s case.
The question is, do you think that being a million dollar blogger a realistic thing to achieve?
Ivan Widjaya
Aiming to be a million dollar blogger.
{ 2 comments }
Related posts other people has read:
Made for Google Noobpreneur.com Alexa Rank Climbing Up Business Bloggers Role in Blogosphere
Blink! It’s Gone!
(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5) Loading ...Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink! is a must read for anybody entering the Internet Business.
The main idea I love about the book is how people make decision in just a split second - so often, aware or unaware, that the results beat thorough decision making process.
In my opinion, Blink! has got to do with sports - basketball, football, tennis, etc. - because decision making is made in a blink, rather a well-thought decision. There are some exceptions, though - like chess.
In business world, it’s often that we decide in a blink - people working on the stock exchange floor knows this for sure.
Blink! is also true for Internet Business - this is what I’m going to share with you :)
You see, sometimes waiting for another 10 minutes online is not such a good idea - I lost a great investment simply because I need 10 more minutes to think about it.
And it’s not the only one I lose!
Many of my past deals online are gone - with no such offer emerging again, at least in the near future - because I wait another 10 minutes to think and gather courage :)
Those teach me a lesson - if you are dealing with business online, the marketplace moves so fast, that a split-second decision making is needed to get the best of it.
Yes, good offers come and go, but excellent ones are rarely found online, in my opinion.
So, if you are keen to do Internet business but haven’t read Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink!, you better start reading now before you lose your once in a lifetime deal online.
And, oh, sure you can’t always have your eyes fixed on the deals you aim, but you can ask for other people help to do so for you - a virtual assistant, perhaps?
Cheers and good luck on you online business journey.
Ivan Widjaya
Fave Blink!
{ 3 comments }
Related posts other people has read:
Relax - Slow Down and Observe Entrepreneurs Should Play Games to Hone Their Skills
