2 The Next Level

Archive for the ‘Ecommerce’ Category

John Lawson from ColderICE.com has been recognized by StartupNation (http://www.startupnation.com) as one of the top businesses in its 2009 Home Based 100 competition under the category of Savviest in Social Media.

Many of the StartupNation Home-Based 100 submissions revealed that business owners are bucking the current economic downturn and finding business success in these tight times. Historically some of today’s most well known businesses started in a downturn, including Microsoft and General Electric.

“The 2009 ranking shows that the home-based business is more relevant than ever. The current recession has spurred a new wave of home based businesses as a response to loss of jobs, the need for supplemental income and the sheer passion for blazing your own trail and running your own show,” said Rich Sloan, co-founder of StartupNation.com, one of the leading small business networking and advice websites. “Home based businesses are the biggest block of all businesses in existence and we expect numbers to grow ever greater as extra bedrooms, kitchen tables, basements and garages become host to the innovative thinking and pursuit of success by millions of Americans.”

“This is by far one of the coolest recognitions ever for me” said John Lawson, editor of ColderICE.com, a education portal for internet business owners. “This is the first year that this category has been acknowledged and to be the first winner is truly trail blazing. Social media is officially on the map and now I get to be the first pin.”

The StartupNation Home-Based 100 highlights 10 top-ten lists making it not just your ordinary business ranking. From the wackiest, to the most innovative, to the savviest in social media – this unique and diverse list highlights the home-based businesses that usually go unrecognized, but still play a vital role in the economy today. MSN publishes the ranking as well in an editorial collaboration with StartupNation. The ten categories for 2009 include:

· Recession Busters

· Savviest in Social Media

· Most Innovative

· Boomers Back in Business

· Greenest

· Yummiest

· Wackiest

· Highest Vote-Getters

· Most Slacker-Friendly

· Most Glamorous

John Lawson was selected from among thousands of contestants by a StartupNation judging panel, which issues the ranking results annually in the November.

The full results of the Home-Based 100 ranking are available on StartupNation’s website at http://www.startupnation.com/homebased100/. The 2009 ranking was sponsored by Microsoft Office Live, Infusionsoft and FedEx Office.

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If you have not seen this video yet you are in for a treat. The creator of the video, Erik Qualman is also the author of the book Socialnomics: How social media transforms our lives and the way we do business.  Now be prepared the video goes at a fast clip and you may need to pause it or watch it more than one time like I did.  Even if  you have to watch it over and over again it is worth it because of the astounding statistics it give on the comparison of social media over traditional media.

The video stars by asking you a simple question. Is Social Media a Fad? It then goes on to inform you of some amazing figures about social media. My personal favorite: If Facebook were a country it would be the worlds 4th largest behind the United States and ahead of countries like Indonesia, Brazil and Pakistan.  Facebook’s growth rate in 9 month, more than doubles what the television did in 13 years and  the Internet did in 3 years.

So what does all this mean for Solopreneurs like you and me? Well, for one it means that we can reach more people with a viral Youtube video and a free Twitter account than all of the viewership of last years baseball World Series. By the way I watch more baseball games via the MLB TV channel on the Internet than I have watched my whole adult life as a baseball fan.

I watched today’s Yankees/Rays game and was able to connect with Yankee fans via Twitter who were watching the game and Tweeting at the same time from all over the world.

Baseball may seem boring and not as exciting as some of the other sports like Football and Basketball but they are sure using some of the social media tools in order to bring even more eyeballs to their product. I even met a new friend on Facebook who shares the same passion as I do for my beloved Yankees yet he lives farther from the Bronx than I do.  Nate is a family man with a wife and kids just like myself.  We share the adoration of our Yankees but we also share another passion in using social media and the Internet to promote ourselves and our businesses.

Nate has an online store that sells shoes and accessories for people who have a love for clogging. What is clogging you may ask? Well according to Wikipedia Clogging is a type of folk dance with roots in traditional European dancing from the British Isles, early African-American dance, and traditional Cherokee dance in which the dancer’s footwear is used musically by striking the heel, the toe, or both in unison against a floor or each other to create audible percussive rhythms. Why do I tell you all of this? Its because while Nate and I have only met and known each other through Facebook and Twitter I was fascinated by his use of social media to promote his Clogon.com store.

Nate is a true case study of how one uses and embraces Socialnomics. All Nate did was make a comment on one of my famous Facebook updates saying that the Yankees won again and now I am writing this blog post about him and his business. I currently have over 2800 friends on Facebook but it only took one comment from Nate to get me to his profile that lead me to  his website that then lead me to his blog and to my amazement lead me to the reading and viewing  of more information about clogging.

I don’t know if I will ever meet Nate in person and I am almost sure I will never put on a clogging shoe but our shared love for the Yanks and social media will keep us connected. So if you are still stuck in the rut of traditional economics I suggest you follow Erik Qualman @equalman and Nate @mollermarketing on Twitter and get with this Socialnomics program.

All the best and GO YANKEES..;-)

JB

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With General Motors going bankrupt and Chrysler about to go under, one car company is soon to unveil the next level in electric cars. I have been a fan of Telsa Motors ever since I found out that one of its owners, Elon Musk helped start PayPal. Their first car caught my eye when I saw a video of it racing a porche and leaving it in the dust. Even though I can only afford a Telsa cap at this time I am truely looking forward to seeing the the new Model S come out of development and hit the showroom floor.

I think Telsa motors will help issue in a new breed of auto manufactures sorta like how the I-Phone turned the smart phone industry upside down.  Telsa’s first car the Roadster cost 100k, this Model S cost almost 50k, maybe in a couple years they will have a vehicle in the 25k range giving most of  us the ability to afford a fully electric car that has luxury look and feel.

It took a web 2.0 mind to create a car that meets the needs for the auto industry’s future.

Bravo Telsa Motors

JB

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With the holiday season fast approaching make sure you download the PayPal Plug-in to maximize your online purchasing experience. I have written in past blog post about the advantages of having a PayPal account in order for your Solopreneurship or Small business to accept credit cards. (PayPal.com Makes Ecommerce Easy for Solopreneurs)

PayPal now has a Browser Plug-in that will make your online shopping experience easier and more secure.  

The plug-in puts PayPal right on your browser. You get exclusive plug-in features like AutoFill and Save Receipts, plus shortcuts to send money and check your PayPal balance. Secure Cards let you use PayPal online almost anywhere MasterCard is accepted – even where PayPal is not yet a payment option.

Secure Cards are MasterCard debit card numbers that you generate and control. You can use these numbers to shop online even at places that don’t yet accept PayPal.

How do Secure Cards protect me?

You generate a unique Secure Card number for that purchase only (unless you choose to create a multiple-use card). You’re 100% protected against unauthorized purchases made using your Secure Cards.

How do I use Secure Cards to pay online?

When you check out, a notifier drops down in your browser window asking if you’d like to pay using a Secure Card. You can generate a Secure Card number and pay right on the spot.

What is Fraud Site Alert?

PayPal lets you know when you land on a suspicious website. If you get a Fraud Site Alert, don’t enter any information. And please let PayPal know by emailing  plugin-fraud@paypal.com

What is AutoFill?

AutoFill saves you time by entering your billing and shipping address in one click. It uses the information you have stored in the plug-in.

How can I view my Secure Card transactions?

Go to Account Overview>Account Activity to see all your Secure Cards transactions. You can view your Secure Cards history on the Secure Cards page.

How many receipts can I save?

You can save up to 100 receipts for any rolling 30-day period. If you attempt to save more than that, you’ll be prompted to first delete some receipts from the previous 30 days before you can add any new ones.

Currently the PayPal plug-in only works with the Microsoft Internet Explorer and Mozilla FireFox browsers. Like most debit cards, there are limits on how much you can spend in a day. The Secure Cards daily limit is $1,000. You can request an increase from the PayPal’s Payment Sources page.

So if you are looking to take advantage of all the great online deals this coming Cyber Monday, make sure your browsers is equipped with the PayPal Plug-in.

All the best

JB

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I have known John Lawson for almost 4 years now.  John and I met when he was in attendance at a SCORE Atlanta seminar I was teaching. I was impressed with him then and I am even more impressed with what he has accomplished as an eBay Platinum PowerSeller.

John was most recently feature as “On Fire” in the Startup Nation Home Based 100 contest Please visit this site to help John win this contest by voting for him every day.

If you have been thinking about starting an eBay business, now is the time according to one of John’s 5 secrets he shares with our Solopreneurs. Take a listen to our one-on-one conversation and then head over to John’s Blog Colderice.com and get more insight and education on the ins and outs of running a successful eBay business.

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

[podcast]http://2thenextlevel.com/2blogs/john_lawson_eBay_secrets_tim_intro_mwhite_end.mp3[/podcast]

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