Making Money on the Internet Blog

Virtual Vintage: The Insider’s Guide to Buying and Selling Fashion Online

Vintage clothing has never been more chic, with everyone from celebrity trendsetters to style-conscious professionals searching for wearable treasures from the past. Virtual Vintage is the first and only guide that helps both the novice and the fashion connoisseur evaluate and confidently participate in the thriving vintage marketplace that exists online. No other book explains how to get it, sell it, fix it, or wear it with flair. Authors Linda Lindroth and Deborah Newell Tornello equip readers from head to toe with

• more than 100 chic sites—rated and evaluated
• instructions on contacting sellers
• smart strategies for bidding in online auctions
• advice about evaluating the size, quality, and colors of a garment
• tips for cleaning and repairing vintage items

Whether you’re looking for a 1960s Rudi Gernreich knit, Gucci hipster trousers, a Claire McCardell for Townley shirtwaist, or a Chanel suit in pink wool with black patent-leather trim, Virtual Vintage will help you build a unique and sensational wardrobe.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars The Best of ANY Book of Its Kind!!
A WONDERFULLY fun book — to read, to refer to, to give as a gift to alll your girlfriends! Endless information, up-to-date resources, very knowledgeable and savvy and the only book you need about vintage on the net. I hope it gets a new edition every other year or — knowing the net — EVERY year; I’ll keep every edition, because none will ever be obsolete. These authors know their audience, know their subject, know their territory. A book you’ll read again and again and never, ever, finish. :->

5 Stars The Best On-Line Fashion Guide
Usually I don’t “read” antique guide books, but a couple of pages into this one and I was hooked. In Virtual Vintage you’ll find common sense tips on buying and selling vintage on-line, the A to Z of navigating eBay (I learned several new tricks) and lots of design and fashion tips. The book presents useful info including international size conversion charts, how to remove stains from clothing and must-see Hollywood films for clothes lovers. It was so well done I wanted to learn more about Virtual Vintage’s two women authors and how they came to write this surprisingly literary guide book.

Virtual Vintage has a section that rates many of the dot com vintage sites for content, ease of use and return policies. Virtual Vintage is considerably more user friendly than most other antique/collectible guide books that I’ve seen… I am also fond of the book because it gave my vintage site a great review! I will certainly recommend this book to my web customers.

5 Stars One of the best of its kind
Virtual Vintage stands out from most other books on the vintage-resale-thrifting topic — even though it is geared to the online market. First, the writing is both excellent and entertaining; I found the book hard to put down.

Additionally, the authors also offer some good tips — laced throughout the text — on HOW TO WEAR some of this old stuff. As much as I love vintage fashion, and have collected it for several years, I am often at a loss as to how to WEAR some of the pieces, or how to incorporate my vintage “finds” into my real-life wardrobe. So far, few books actually address this issue, and tend to focus instead on buying, selling or simply “collecting” vintage fashion.

This book is thorough and carefully put together — like a great outfit. I hope the authors write more on this topic, and maybe put together a how-to guide to vintage fashion.

Kudos!

5 Stars Informative for all levels of Vintage Buyers & Enjoyable
Virtual Vintage covers the world of online vintage fashion. If you are new to buying and selling vintage fashion online, its a great place to start. If you are not new, it still had plenty of tips that I didn’t think about before.

The book is much more than online vintage fashions. It also goes into detail about what to look for from different designers, periods, etc. It has chapters on how to repair and care for your vintage fashions. The back of the book includes a directory (with summary) of online retailers to check out.

I found this book easy and enjoyable to read cover to cover rather than just as a reference. The authors write in an informative yet enertaining way.

The only negative thing I would have to say is; when will there be an updated version??? Some of the online sites and eBay information is dated, as is to be expected in a virtual world.

5 Stars Excellent book. A must-have.
Hello:

I have been collecting vintage jewelry and clothing for many years and now intend to start an online business.

I found this book very useful. It has plenty information about how to buy and sell vintage clothing and accessories online, many tips and advice on how to list items in eBay and other auction sites plus a directory of web sites which sell this kind of stuff, rated by the quality of pages and prices. In chapter “Heroes” the authors list some of the best sellers they have found in the web and comments about them.

Another enjoyable chapter lists the movies that all vintage fashion afficionados should watch.

Written in a very friendly style, this book is a great source of information. Highly recommended to all those persons who intend to start a vintage clothing online business.

Renée

Compare Prices/More Info

Filed under: Making Money on the Internet Book Reviews | No Comments »

Socialnomics: How social media transforms the way we live and do business

A fascinating, research-based look at the impact of social media on businesses and consumers around the world, and what’s in store for the future

Social Media. You’ve heard the term, even if you don’t use the tools. But just how big has social media become? Social media has officially surpassed pornography as the top activity on the Internet. People would rather give up their e-mail than their social network. It is so powerful that it is causing a macro shift in the way we live and conduct business.

Brands can now be strengthened or destroyed by the use of social media. Online networking sites are being used as giant, free focus groups. Advertising is less effective at influencing consumers than the opinions of their peers. If you aren’t using social media in your business strategy, you are already behind your competition.

• Explores how the concept of “Socialnomics” is changing the way businesses produce, market, and sell, eliminating inefficient marketing and middlemen, and making products easier and cheaper for consumers to obtain
• Learn how successful businesses are connecting with consumers like never before via Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and other social media sites
• A must-read for anyone wanting to learn about, and harness the power of social media, rather than be squashed by it
• Author Erik Qualman is a former online marketer for several Top 100 brands and the current Global Vice President of Online Marketing for the world’s largest private education firm

Socialnomics is essential book for anyone who wants to understand the implications of social media, and how businesses can tap the power of social media to increase their sales, cut their marketing costs, and reach consumers directly.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Socialnomics Exoses The DNA of Social Marketing
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3BQ0JKTUVWMG3 My name is Troy Dooly, and over the last few months I have used Erik’s book Socialnomics to help drive my online footprint to one of most influencial in my niche market.

I share a little on my video above.

Living An Epic Adventure,

Troy Dooly

5 Stars A Must Read for Business Owners and Marketers
Facebook and Twitter are both big right now and it appears they’re only going to get bigger. With their growth, the overall reach of social media could cause a shift in how businesses market their products and services over the internet. The reach for the top spot on Google may soon be replaced by having as many fans or friends (or followers if we’re talking about Twitter) as possible. As an example, having a testominial on your Facebook fan page might mean way more then having a testimonial page on your website. This shift is one of the primary subjects covered in the book Socialnomics: How social media transforms the way we live and do business. In the book, Erik Qualman (a fellow Spartan) provides examples and case studies into why you want to jump on the social media band wagon.

Nornally I tell you my thoughts after I run down the book but this was such a great read that I might as well get to the point. I’m highlighting five books on my website that I consider required reading for any business owner. Some of these are older books (with one yet to come that was written in the early 1900s). Not all of the books have to do with marketing as much as developing a mind set for owning and operating a business. This book probably doesn’t belong with those five but it’s definitely one of the top five marketing books I’ve read (which is something for another series). If you’re a business owner right now and you want some ideas on taking your business to the next level, this book is a must read.

Here’s what you get. We start out with several answers to some very important questions. Why is there social media? Why has it gotten so big? Another underlying premise of the book is that surfing the web is going to be a thing of the past. With social media, everything is going to find you, whether it’s news, what your friends are doing or updates from the company’s related to the products you buy.

He also discusses the downfalls of social media, namely that you have to be careful what you put up on your Facebook page. Likewise, if you’re business owner, you have to be very careful about what you do or your shortcomings could go viral in the blink of an eye. It also highlights how people will now go to their friends on Facebook to get advice on making a buying decision before (or even if they do it at all) they go to google to read reviews by random people.

One of the longest case studies is a look into how President Barack Obama used social media to help win not only the presidential election but the democratic nomination over Hillary Clinton. There are also several case studies through out the book from how ESPN is getting their advertiser’s messages across on their radio shows to how television networks are adjusting to how people watch their shows (on the computer versus on the television).

The book then wraps everything up with how things might look in the future. The general message is that company’s need to adapt or see their revenues shrink. Interruption marketing could become a thing of the past and social media is here and it’s here to stay at least for a while. The sooner you can jump on the train, the better of you’ll be.

Another cool thing about the book is at the end of each chapter, there’s a summary of all of the key points. It’s great to have that so you can go back and find something you wanted to go back and read (or if you need to find something to help you write your book review). Overall, I give the book a ten (out of ten) rating and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to further their marketing efforts.

5 Stars Top Notch Book on Social Media!
Socialnomics was a great read and I would recommend it to anyone wanting to understand the basics and intricate aspects of Social Media. The stats and real life examples are what really made the book interesting to me. Thanks for the great book Erik!

5 Stars Social media changed everything
The gist of this book is that, thanks to social media and the new ways in which we use the internet, even the basic web2.0 theory goes out the window. It’s beyond consuming and producing media, it’s about community centered around those goals.

If you’re trying to make it in this brave new internet world, this is a must-read

5 Stars Must read
Whether you are new or a professed expert in social media this book is a must read. Qualman uses data and case studies to showcase how to effectively “win” today in social media. The other item that is different than other social media books is that he looks also at the long term impact of social media for business and individuals. He also uses humorous analogies for some more complex issues to make a lasting point.

Compare Prices/More Info

Filed under: Making Money on the Internet Book Reviews | No Comments »

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Growing Your Business with Google

The search engine for success.

Using the Internet to increase the visibility of a small business today is no easy task. It can take a lot of time, energy, and money—especially if you’re not a computer expert. Here, readers can get a valuable overview of how search engines, web sites, ad services, and web logs can all work together to build a business, as well as practical hands-on tips, tricks, and planning tools to help readers create and execute a plan that utilizes the Internet to its fullest.

• Google‚ is widely recognized as the world’s largest search engine—an easy-to- use free service that usually returns relevant results in a fraction of a second

• Author holds an MBA and has started and run several small businesses in addition to being a well-known technology book author

• Perfect for the entrepreneur and small business market

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars One of the best investments I’ve ever made!
I thought I knew a lot about designing an optimal website, using Google AdWords and online marketing. Then I picked up this book, and learned how much more I could be doing, and how many mistakes I had made. There are at least a half-dozen great ideas that can be implemented quickly and at little or not cost to improve your site’s placement on search engines, and to attract more relevant AdWord clicks.

4 Stars Not Bad Overall
While normally I go for books aimed at experts (i.e the ones that are 400+ pages and dry as a salt sandwich), this book had received enough positive reviews that I gave it a shot. I was not disappointed.

For someone with my background (experienced software guru and web designer, with a moderate amount of Google know-how), I was still able to gain some valuable insight. So you’re not surprised, this book is as much Marketing 101, as it is about Google (particularly the first half of the book). But it’s needed to give the book a solid grounding from which to make its Google-related recommendations.

The bottom line though, hasn’t changed from prior years: if you do the right thing and make your site rich in useful content, relative to its general audience and subject, you’re going to do well with Google. If it’s only moderately relevant or lacking in information “density” (the amount IOW), all the tricks in the world won’t make your page rank any better. First, make sure you’re really delivering the goods (the information your customers want and need and not a bunch of link farms, fluff, etc), *then* make sure your meta-tags, document names, document structure, Ad Words, and all the rest, are Google-savvy. The latter without the former, is useless. To the author’s credit, he emphasizes this in several chapters.

Overall, I felt like there was a little too much “Freshman Marketing” and some of it was rehashed unnecessarily IMO (though someone with minimal marketing background would probably find it useful). I think the first 70 pages could probably be distilled down to about 40 or 50, but who’s counting?

Recommended for anyone getting start with a business web site or who wants to make their existing site better.

5 Stars Wow! Is this complete
I have opted into online courses and even have an MBA where I studied E Business. This is by far the most complete, helpful and timely guide I have seen to succeed with an internet business. It is rare that I read a “How To” cover to cover, but this is an exception. It is certainly the first time I have had my highlighter out since Grad school. If you want to succeed in an ebusiness, this is the way to get started!!

5 Stars Keep this one next to your computer!
I definitely recommend this book. This was a very readable and approachable book. I consider myself a “non-techie / non-programmer” kind of person, but found Dave’s examples and explanations to be very straight-forward and understandable. Now, for the implementation of all this great information!!

5 Stars Should be titled “Learn how to do SEO correctly!”
Before this book I read many articles online on SEO, and it all seemed muddled, confusing, and contradictory. However, I received a college level education on SEO that made sense. Every one that builds websites must have this book on their shelf! Every college web design program should feature this book in at least one class.

My book is well marked up, and then as I read I wrote rewrote all the important data in a notebook so I could pound it into my head.

Great Book…mandatory reading!

Compare Prices/More Info

Filed under: Making Money on the Internet Book Reviews | No Comments »

Get Found Now! Local Search Secrets Exposed: Learn How to Achieve High Rankings in Google, Yahoo and Bing (Volume 1)

How can a small business owner best position their business to be found on the Internet? By using local search marketing. Google, Yahoo and Bing all allow a business to list their unique information. Business owners who know how to complete and optimize these local business listings will see their search engine positions improve dramatically. Using Local Search Secrets Exposed you will be able to; claim your local business listing, create a local business listing optimized for “findability”, use reviews to help maintain and boost your ranking in the search engines, include photos and videos in your listing and incorporate your brand identity improve visibility. Today’s marketplace is so crowded you have to stand out from the pack. A successful business today requires a real web presence. If your customers can’t find you on the web, how can they be expected to find you on the street? You CAN be the leader of the pack following the simple steps in this book.

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Straigtforward, practical, fill-in-the-blanks book
Local Search (I now know) is not rocket science. It’s just a matter of taking a series of steps so that your website appears in Local Search Results, which is that list of businesses and their locations that often appears at the top of search results. This book walks you through each step necessary. Screenshots are a bit grainy I thought, but the textual instructions were enough for me to follow the steps without a bother. Full disclosure: I know Richard Geasey through business contacts. If the potential customer base for your website is within driving distance, then this handy little book on Local Search is exactly what you need.

5 Stars Great book!
I bought this book to find out more information on how to do local search marketing. I found the content very easy to understand even for the non-technical people. I sent a couple of emails to Rich (one of the authors) and asked for his advice based on my personal situation, and I got replies within a day. I would recommend this book to whose who are thinking about doing local search marketing!

5 Stars Up To Date and very Informative
If your a small business looking to promote online this book is essential. Very easy to read and full tutorials on how to rank high in local search.

5 Stars brilliant concise “head shot” - formal review to follow, but this is the quickie
Okay - 58 minutes cover to cover with 4 pages of notes of great points and tips. Okay I read fast, but I think most should be able to read, absorb in 4 hours. My initial estimate is this book will save the average do it yourself (DIY) small business owner/marketer about 60 hours of research at the library ( I have done this without Shannon’s book) and they are in my Google library. This is a value of $3000 if the person brings $50per hour they spend on their business selling, managing, etc. I suspect they will be able to implement the sample walk thru’s in 8 hours and see results in 24-72 hours. So for a similar investment of $50 per hour, they will spend $400 in results bearing work and if they get 1 new sale per week with a net sale profit of $50, they break even in 2 months for their time, 1 more week for the book and miles ahead in profit by the end of one year. Net, net, net is no need to invest in $3000 of research, use $400 of DIY time to get $2500 back in a year minus the book and DIY time, net $2050. Yes, I like numbers that involve time and money. I will be posting a “Book review” on my site and blog by weekend, so you can see my references and why this book is such a brilliant concise “head shot” for the DIY Small business and pros of the IT community that do this day in and day out.

[...]

5 Stars Every Small Business in America Needs This Book
This book is for every small business that doesn’t have the money to hire a web/seo company or the time to learn by trial and error. I have been studying web development for about 4 years. There are even some new ideas for people like me. I would have been so much farther ahead of my competitors if I had read this book back when I started. I am going to be recommending this book to all my clients and friends who ask me about help with their websites. It’s a great resource.

Compare Prices/More Info

Filed under: Making Money on the Internet Book Reviews | No Comments »

eMillions: Behind-the-Scenes Stories of 14 Successful Internet Millionaires

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Good Collection of Interviews
In spite of Stanley being relatively young, even by Internet standards, he manages to pull some interesting and useful information from his interview subjects.

5 Stars An Exceptionally Inspiring Book for All aspiring Entrepreneurs

Stanley has put together a masterpiece with this book. It’s content rich with inspiration and strategies that all entrepreneurs could use and benefit from. Whether you are an inspiring or an established enterprising soul, you will gain a new insight, idea or tactics that will add value to your life.101 Reasons You Should Fire Your Employer & Start Your Own Business (Fire Your Employer Book Series)

5 Stars eMillions Offers Inspiration - and Golden Nuggets For Entrepreneurs
As the administrator of the Writer’s Business Academy - an online training center for writers who are tired of struggling to make a living from their writing - I get asked to read and review a lot of books. Some are good, some are not so good, and every now and then, some are destined to become great. I think eMillions is one of those.

BUT…

If you’re looking for a step-by-step guide to becoming an Internet Millionaire, this is NOT the book for you.

If, on the other hand, you’re feeling a little frustrated, you’re tired of all the hype, the half-truths and the out and out lies about what it takes to make a living from the Internet - and you’re looking for a little inspiration, a little hope and a few nuggets you can take to the bank - then you need to buy this book.

Stanley - who by the way is a 16 year old kid - wanted to know the truth about success for himself. And he didn’t let anything - or anyone - stop him from achieving his goals. (Now how’s that for inspiration?)

Before I tell you what gold I found in eMillions, let me tell you what you WON’T find:

You won’t find a bunch of blah-blah, here’s how to start making millions of dollars overnight - in your bathrobe, while someone else does all the work for you and you just push that wheelbarrow full of cash to the bank…

And you won’t find a bunch of the typical interviews - the I’m so great, and you’re not - but you can be if you buy my stuff…

And you won’t find a bunch of pie-in-the-sky, mystical “woo-woo” stuff either.

Instead, you’ll find 14 candid, one-on-one conversations from real people - who started out with nothing - and who used the Internet to build real businesses - and in the process - became real millionaires.

If you pay attention - you’ll also find real gold nuggets of information, insight and ideas - that you can turn, tweak and try in your own business right away. Because one of the biggest nuggets I found in eMillions is that it’s the little ideas that take hold and become the basis for your “overnight success.” Each person who was interviewed shared some of the things they tried that worked - and the things that didn’t. If you pay attention - what you take away from this book could help you become the next internet millionaire.

3 Stars More Inspirational Than Step-by-Step
I found this book full of inspirational stories, especially Chapter 2 that talks about Jermaine Griggs, the founder of hearandplay.com

His story is what internet marketing is all about. Making it from nothing and pursuing your dreams.

Although I found the stories inspirational, there is not one simple system that will work for all who read the book. It’s more about finding what you love and pursuing it through until you have accomplished your goals. Finding a way to turn what you love, your hobbies or work, into a business you can market online.

1 Stars Another Interview book
What is another source of making money? Interview the Gurus, create a book and sell. If Mike Litman and Jason Oman did it they knew what they are doing. They delivered a treasure of information that can be applied to life. But the problem with today’s self made authors is that they don’t know how to drill people and what questions to ask. OK I come to the point now. This book gives not much information that can be applied to today’s internet science. When the author asks questions like how did you do it, and they all answer how they started years back pre Yahoo era. Those techniques don’t apply today. There is not enough information how a newbie can start on the internet and make a decent income. I give one star for the effort and all the money going to waste in printing this book.

Compare Prices/More Info

Filed under: Making Money on the Internet Book Reviews | No Comments »