Monday, June 30th, 2008
I cannot stress enough the importance of registering and maintaining your own domain name. I just got a call from a client that had let a previous host register his domain name for him, and every year it has been a huge headache and far more expensive than it should be.
This year he finally is transferring it to his own oversight, but he waited until the last day and now it is stuck in limbo because he cannot access his email, which is tied to the domain (he should have used a different email that would not go down if the domain did.)
I know many people are not technical and they just want someone to take care of it for them, but this is kind of like letting someone else manage your telephone number. It is better to just pay that bill on your own because your phone is too important.
You can register and manage your own domain name at www.outstandahosting.com – and you will get 100% control of either hosting it there or hosting it elsewhere. So when you are no longer happy with your website host, they cannot hold you ransom – you just log into your domain management account and chance where it points.
Here are 5 tips to keep your domain safe.
- Use One Account
You may register a domain in one place, then find another place that is $1 per year less. Don’t do it. Just keep all your domains in the same place so you can manage them well. Any price $10 per year or under is fair.
- Never Use the Domain Email
If you use the domain email and the domain goes down, you are stuck because you cannot approve changes that come via email. Set up a gmail account or use different emails in the different contact areas.
- Register for Multiple Years
Google likes to see that you register your domain for more than one year. It is also easier to manage if you just pay for a few years up front, and will often save you a little money.
- Multiple MX Records
Your email gets forwarded to an email server by the MX Record. You can have multiple MX Records as a failsafe for your email. I have never seen an email host without at least two options.
- A Record
Your A record is where everything gets sent that is not otherwise specified. In many cases, you only have to set up your A Record and your MX Record, and your hosts will take care of the rest. Then if you later chance hosts, you just change these addresses – they cannot hold your domain hostage and overcharge you for changing.
I am writing this because it really is important that you take the 1/2 hour or so to understand it and do it yourself. Even if it is a free add-on from your service provider, go straight to a registrar like www.outstandahosting.com and do it yourself. Then things will just stay simple and you will never experience the frustration of transferring a domain.
Posted in Internet Marketing, Small Business, Tech | No Comments »
Friday, June 27th, 2008
Blogs are the best networking tool I know. Better than conferences, clubs, etc. Not because of volume of business cards, but because of strength of relationship.
I do not expect my blog to help me reach a lot of CEO’s, but neither do I expect that from BNI, IRN or other networking groups.
Five of us showed up for the Akron Bloggers Community (ABC) yesterday. Here is a picture. Blogging starts on line, but spills to real life all the time. People meet you in person for the first time but already feel like they know you.
The picture above, left to right – Ron (me) McDaniel, Stephen Hopson, Chris Brown, Norma Rist and Deborah Chaddock Brown.
With no real agenda we were all shooting ideas back and forth on Blogging, Podcasting, Monitizing Blogs and tools that help enhance the audience experience. I could have stayed for hours, but I think some of them have real businesses.
Deborah is currently a member of our Virtual Buzz Assistant network where she is a freelance writer.
Posted in Buzz | No Comments »
Thursday, June 19th, 2008
Blogging is hard work. The technology is not hard, but the daily commitment to creating quality content is hard work.
And it does not stop there. If you produce great content but do not get your blog linked to, talked about and visible, your excellent content will probably still go unnoticed.
Virtual Buzz Assistants are people that are certified in online buzz marketing and can help create buzz for a blog.
Virtual Buzz Assistants work just like other virtual assistants, but they have chosen to specialize in Internet Marketing. They work at building great relationships and they become experts in the tools that you can use to create more buzz and visibility.
Bloggers that want to be successful have to have a great niche, interesting content and they have to either spend a lot of time promoting the blog, or hire a Virtual Buzz Assistant to help them. The assistant could be hired to keep fresh content on the blog, and this is especially important for businesses that may get busy and let their blog effort slip. The assistant can also promote your blog by using the many tools available online to grow your audience.
Here are 5 ways a Virtual Buzz Assistant can help you on a monthly basis.
- Email people about your article – By emailing people to point out an interesting article on your blog to people that run similar blogs, you can generate links and more traffic.
- Upload blog information into Blog Catalog and other blog directories, and link to people there.
- Use micro-blogging solutions like Twitter or Tumblr to highlight your blog posts each week.
- Social Bookmarks – Virtual Buzz Assistants can bookmark your blog posts to get them more inbound links and traffic.
- Interview opportunities – Your Virtual Buzz Assistant can look for opportunities for you to be interviewed on other blogs or podcasts, and they can conduct interviews to add more interesting content for your blog.
These are just some of the areas that a Virtual Buzz Assistant can help you be a more successful blogger with less of your time going towards promotion. To request a Virtual Buzz Assistant, click here.
Posted in Blog Traffic, Internet Marketing, Marketing, Small Business | No Comments »
