for breaking into his own house?!?

I don’t know much about the incident itself, nor does anyone else at this point. But years ago, Dr. Gates spoke at my college commencement ceremony (Jesus, I am old). I had the opportunity to speak with him briefly after the ceremony. He was charming, incredibly sharp and, as I recall, impeccably dressed.

I would believe his version of events more than the police, but time will tell. Sad that this can happen in this day and age. . .

I wish him well.

Get it now, the link won’t last long. I don’t know who posted it. . . just got it via email.

If you like it, buy the albums. All are masterpieces to my ear.

I have been doing a bit of code writing and experimenting with cascading style sheets. Here are five tools I have been utilizing frequently:

1.  I have been using the Firefox Add-on Firebug.  Once installed, Firebug allows you to see the HTML and CSS code that generates the elements you find on other pages.  It is a great learning tool.

2.  I have also been using pixlr to edit and create backgrounds.  It is a great online editor for those like me without a decent editor on the hard drive.

3.  If you need a title image, or just cool fonts, go to File Cart.  They have more than 10,000 fonts.  If you take the time to search, you will certainly find one that suits your site for a banner image.  Hint: just click on “details” and type in the text you want, copy the image, and you have a 800×90 banner.  If you want it small go to #2 above.

4.  For real tutorials and great examples of best practices go to W3Schools.  They have solved most of the problems I have run into so far.

5.  Finally, Fireshot is what I have been using for screen shots of web pages that I like.  It works like a charm.

Bonus Tip. . . Use Picnik to easily crop and resize photos (like I did on the screenshot from W3Schools above).

My research led me to several data providers and to several websites that provide better data and more information than others.  Below, I describe my usual method for analyzing an opportunity, and include the sites I utilized regularly.

Basic Principles

I highly recommend Ward’s site, ForeclosureForum, for getting a basic understanding (or even a more advanced education) of the foreclosure process and the various stages of foreclosure.  This is where I started learning.

From there, I began to explore the sites providing data.

Data Providers

There are several data providers for foreclosure data in California.  The best one by far is ForeclosureRadar.com.  It is a web 2.0 site with an easy interface and timely data (updated daily).  My search criteria included zip codes, type of property, auction/reo, lot size, square feet, date of loan, amount of published bid, etc.  The variables searchable are many, and you must find what works for you.  But FR is a great value at roughly $50/month.

Other data providers include:

County Records Research – A solid provider, but more  expensive and less useful interface. One option to improve this source is to use CRRPro software, but the end result is still inferior in my opinin to FR.

RETRAN – I used this site prior to finding FR.  It has good data, but is less user-friendly.  Still, it is a good option, albeit a bit pricey.

I do not recommend (and will not link to) realtytrac.com or foreclosure.com, or any of the other sites that seem to rank well in google.  I don’t know why anyone would find these sites useful, especially considering that they are (probably) getting their data from one of the above sites, and generally are inferior in every way to the sites linked above.

Researching a Property

There are many sites that provide details about a specific property when you type in an address.  I have used Trulia, LALife, Zillow and Movoto to start my quest for more details.  I prefer LALife because I could get APN numbers, detailed information on square footage, lot size, comps in the neighborhood, sales history, and the birdseye view showing me the neighborhood and the state of the house as of the date on the satellite photo.

I also usually pull up the address on Google, and see what the first few listings are.  If there is anything about the home, the owner, or any other related information, I pull it up.  Otherwise, Iclick through to the map on Google Maps.

You may have your own preference for those sites.  But I do recommend LALife, especially if you haven’t seen it before AND you are interested in property in LA County.

Once I have seen the detailed information, I then go to government sites.  The links here are particular to LA County, but you can probably find similar links for your county.  For parcel information, go here.  For property tax information, go here (accept the terms and search using the APN).

After verifying that you are interested in the property, you can contact a title company to get a report verifying lien priority and title information, or you can research it yourself.  I went to the county building in Norwalk to do the research myself when I started.  But that was time consuming and tedious.  However, I highly recommend that you do this at first AND pay for a title report from a reputable title company.  By researching the title by hand (searching by name(s)), you learn a great deal about the foreclosure process that you really should know!

At this stage, you know enough about the property that it looks promising.  But now you need to put eyes on it.  Did it burn down?  Is it a crack house?  Is it well-maintained?  Is it occupied?

Go see the place and find out.  There is no excuse for not looking.  It is amazing what you will learn by going out and looking at the property.  If you plan to buy at auction, you have to go see the property before you go to bid.  Period.

[. . . to be continued in part II. .  .]

But the most interesting thing I have found so far are collections of links that relate to specific ideas.  One example is a group of links related to a water bottling idea I had a few years ago.  I won’t go into details, since I still think I might want to attempt to make a business around the idea at some point.  But the links included really specific details:  i.e. (1) a company selling inline filling assembly lines (I love the schematics), and (2) a link to a trade show related to the industry.

But the sheer randomness of other stashes of links is what is most intriguing.  So, for your entertainment and edification (and my convenience), I am listing below the contents of my google bookmarks before I clean it out.

(1) From Geekpreneur, an article regarding minimizing failure in a new business.

(2) a list of 50 sites to assist you in finding information on anyone, anywhere.

(3) Bizben, a site with a huge number of listings of businesses for sale in California.

(4) CookingForEngineers, a fabulous site for finding recipes that are logical and easy to follow for beginning cooks.  I love food, and I found a kick-ass ratatouille recipe there.

(5) A faxing site that allows a free fax online (I used it while in the Cayman Islands to avoid paying several dollars for each page of a 30 page real estate agreement).

(6) The Ubiquity Tutorial.  If you are not using Firefox AND Ubiquity, you are missing out.

(7) A tool to convert youTube videos to other formats.

(8) Online machine shop – allows you to design and spec just about anything and then have it made for a very reasonable price.  I truly believe that this is one of the harbingers of things to come.  Genius!

(9) Ever need a stop watch?

(10) 100 free podcasts to expand your horizons.

(11) Free summaries of business books.  They do a great job for the most part.

(12) Sun Run Solar, a different model for implementation of solar panel  technology.

(13) TED – Ideas Worth Spreading indeed.

(14) Searchengineguide.com’s web marketing guide.  Worth your time to read.

(15) TransitionCulture – a great little site about sustainability and self-reliance.

(16) Urban Permaculture Guild is a wonderful site related to permaculture, which has interested me since I lived in Taos in 1995-1996.  Beware the autoplay audio (player is in top right corner if you want to pause it).

(17) Wufoo for Forms.

Enjoy and share it if you like.  I hope this list doesn’t reveal too much about me. . .

I will reveal the idea in about a month, once I have more done.  But I got a great start today, when I found Caspio Bridge.  They have a very useful Web Database and Application tool.  I tested out their free tool today, and I am impressed by the relative simplicity of the product.  I am not an affiliate of theirs, just an impressed customer.

Anyway, I am very excited about my new idea, and look forward to implementation.

I will not be abandoning my earlier plan, just adding to it.

Cheers!

Update on Status of Business Development

I have concluded my AdWords campaign for Halloween rather unceremoniously.  I mistakenly deleted a key database in my hosting account and could not figure out how to restore the landing pages for the campaign.  After agonizing over this for an hour, I decided to abandon the site, and I completely deleted it.  Basically, my CTR and conversions stank, and I learned what I needed to learn.

I continue my PPC campaign for credit card related products, and I am currently attempting to optimize my keywords and find keywords that drive higher quality traffic.  I am completely engrossed in the SEOmoz Internet Marketing Handbook right now.  I highly recommend visiting and spending some time reading through all of the materials there if you have any interest or need to learn about SEO and Keywords.

Since I last posted, I have joined several more affiliate networks including NeverBlueAds, Commission Junction, and clickbank.  I really can’t say enough good things about NeverBlueAds!  Clayton, my affiliate manager, called me to welcome me to the network today, and he seemed friendly and professional.   I am also greatly impressed by their interface and the quality of the art that they provide.

Commission Junction is larger and much less welcoming.  I have been frustrated by their interface, but maybe that is because I am new.  I am running the Halloween adwords campaign using their links, so we will see how they pay and how the relationship develops.

However, I am least impressed by clickbank.  I haven’t found a single thing I can use through them yet.  It all seems pretty spammy and a lot of hard-sell offers.  I will keep looking though.

I remain interested in Pepperjam Network, and will continue to promote several of their campaigns.  I haven’t put enough time into their offers yet, but I am impressed with the selection!  I am most active with CardOffers.com, and I have built out several pages and many posts with their creatives and tools.  We will see how that progresses, and I will provide links once the site is built out.

I also took my first adwords campaign live today!

After searching for a costume for my son, I quickly realized how simply many people had created a site to capitalize on Halloween as affiliates of several large, online costume sellers.  So, I quickly slapped up a site focused on Discount Halloween Costumes, and then started an adwords campaign using keyword lists (which I edited in a fun, but very long night) provided by the advertisers.  My CTR seems low right now, but that may be because of my limited test budget and low bids.  I am adding some more content tonight, and will see what I can learn from my first ad campaign after 24 hours.

So, a lot is going on and I feel like I finally have gotten into the creative fun part of this.  Still lots of hard work to go, but I am beginning to feel like my hard work will be rewarded (after a lot more hard work and optimization of my sites, SEO, creatives and ad campaign techniques).

To help you, we have highlighted various options that might fit your business.

Debt Financing

The majority of new small businesses are funded with some type of debt financing via financial institutions. If you are credit-worthy, banks can provide you with a loan or line of credit.  They will look carefully at your cash flow, collateral and the liquidity of your assets. Your business must have a well written business plan, and you must know your business and market very well.  One way to increase your chances of success is to establish a relationship with your banker before you make the loan request.

This option provides money without having to give up equity.  Loans are also generally available to businesses that can’t get equity funding.  But the price you pay is interest, and depending on your situation the interest rates can be quite high.  You will also be forced to put up some collateral like your house in some situations.

To search for a loan, check out this site.  They allow a search based on your situation and have over 4,000 sources searchable.  Also, check out the SBA programs available, if you cannot get financing from a bank, the SBA may have a program that you can qualify for.  Also, as a possible last resort, you can always get a credit card to begin your business or provide some funding at a critical moment.  Just make sure that you do not spend more than you can pay back in a short time.   Enough said.

Grants

If you are in high technology, consider securing a grant through the Small Business Administration’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program.  There are also numerous state, regional and minority grant opportunities available.  By working together with a government agency in a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA), you can also optimize resources and cost-effectively perform research (thus requiring less funding). These programs are designed to help fuel the innovative fires at small businesses.  Billions of dollars of “free money” should not be overlooked.  Here are links to the USDA program, the NGA (military) program, the USGS program, and an example of an agreement between ICANN and the Department of Commerce.  Search for other programs within your niche–there are many available!

The upside of grants is that the money is free!  The downsides are that most grant programs are really very competitive and you are limited (strictly) in how you use the funds.

Equity Financing

While debt funding is by far the most common way to fund a business, there are still thousands of businesses financed each year by private or institutional investors in exchange for an equity ownership stake.  These financiers range from the less sophisticated “friends and family” type situations, to private investors known as “Angel Investors,”  and on up to the sophisticated investors called venture capitalists.

Family Financing

When you cant get debt financing (or before you even seek it out), consider asking your better off relatives for help.  Family funding typically is smaller sums without a lot of hassle or legal expense, but be wary. You must always be professional and communicate as honestly and frequently as you can.  Email updates are great for keeping Uncle Richie enthusiastic about his investment in your busines!  Also, depending upon your priorities, realize that business has risks, and you may jeopardize your relationships with friends and family if your business opportunity goes South.

The best part of family or friends investing is the convenience, lack of paperwork and the fact that you might be able to obtain the funds quickly.  The downers are that his source is likely limited and that you are risking the relationships.

Angel Investors

There are approximately a quarter million high net-worth private investors in the US who fund over 30,000 small companies each year.  Angels have earned their name by typically being friendly and patient about their investments and by providing their expertise and valuable networks with their monetary investment. They often invest in groups, with each taking a piece of the deal.

These individuals typically have more than money:  they invest their time, expertise and provide excellent networking opportunities. They are also more patient about their investments than most VCs (or even family members).  The only downside if the difficulty you will have finding them, and the potential difficulty of dealing with several of them at once, if you are dealing with a group.

Venture Capitalists

If you have good initial revenues, quality management in place, and a cgoal to eventually sell the business or go public, you could be ready to approach venture capitalists (VCs).  But because they got fleeced in the dot-com and bio-tech bubbles, VCs have higher standards now than they did in 1996.  Still, they remain serious players in the investing world, and remain the biggest fish in the investment sea.  Keep in mind that VCs look to get their money and profits out as quickly as possible. They are a great source if you have (or plan to have) meteoric growth and will likely require additionals financing in the future to maximize your potential.

VCs typically have the same benefits as Angel Investors and generally have more money available.  However, speed and growth are essential to attract these big players.  Also, you must be prepared to share control.

Strategic Investors

Strategic Investors usually come from within the industry you are entering and find your products to be complementary to their business objectives or products.  A well placed partner can overload your business with opportunities.  However, they may also seduce you into reallocating your company’s resources in a way that favors their interests and not yours, restrict you from dealing with their competitors as your customers, and/or even cancel their business relationship with you at the worst possible moment.  Be sure you know what you are getting yourself into, and for the love of God, make sure you have a solid contract that prevents them from taking advantage of you completely.

These investors can give you instant credibility in your targeted industry, and often get you a fantastic list of contacts for all aspects of your business.  Just be careful that your interests are being served as well as your investors.

I will need to build some links to get ahead of all of the financial articles!  But I will do it!

ButI am happy right now to finally be indexed. . .

The Business Idea

I plan to start affiliate marketing.  Don’t roll your eyes (or click the back arrow yet).  I have a slightly different take on the tried and true methods, which I will outline later.  But to start with, I will utilize subdomains of this site as landing pages for PPC/PPA campaigns through the major search engines.  And I will craft ad campaigns that will begin as clones of what others are doing in this space.

I can hear how exciting all of this is to you–but calm down. . . I will succeed in this mundane, played-out business by optimizing my campaigns better and analyzing data better.  I will succeed where others fail because I will optimize, optimize and optimize until the damn thing produces as well or better than other marketers in my space!

If you think about this business model, there are no major financial barriers.  Any one can set up a site or a hundred.  It costs me less that $7 a month to host this site and $10 a year to keep this domain.  The real barrier is organic traffic.  I can pay per click, and hopefully make a nice margin on that.  But the long term money is earned by ranking high in the organic search engine results.  Can I get 1,000 organic clicks per month to my affiliate links?  5,000?  10,000?  Can I achieve an above average conversion rate?  I hope to show that it can be done, and to profit from it.

I will also produce good content on a blog, to attract visitors, and get a growing number of eyeballs on my domain.  This blog will essentially document my business journey, and I hope gain readership as I move forward.  But that is not the real meat of it.  It is only the documentation of the ups and downs of the marketing business.

I have other ideas that I will work on later that originated from the research I have done for this business.  But those will have to wait.  My focus and energy will be fully devoted to the affiliate marketing for now.

Limitations:  Time and Money

I have a day job.  I have a young son.  I have a life.  So, I cannot devote the time I would like to this right now.  That being said, I have made a schedule to spend two hours working on my business every day.  I will stick to this schedule, and I will continue to tweak the plan as I learn more.  I hope to cut through the crap and accomplish what is most important, because I do not have the time to do anything else.

I am also limited in my spending at this point.  I am willing to put about $1,000 into the business, on top of the money I have already spent forming my LLC, purchasing domains, hosting and other miscellaneous expenses.  So, my initial ad campaigns will be limited tests.  Because I have limited funds, I will have to make sure my ads and landing pages are converting before I can go big.

That is my plan.  Until I change it later. . .

Currrent Status

Site Specific LLC has been formed.  I have joined several affiliate programs and the Pepperjam Network.  And, as you can see, I am building out this site and the linked subdomains.  I will open the business checking account this week, to enable processing payments and deposits.  So, I am in the process of starting this thing up as fast as I can.

If all goes well, I will run my first ad campaign this weekend, and then tweak the campaign before increasing my budget.  Wish me luck!