The Affiliate God’s 2009 Internet Marketing Predictions…
After successfull predicting the subprime crisis and market crash along with Barack Obama being elected as president I have been getting droves of request for my 2009 predictions. Here they are:
1) Google will find another decent revenue stream besides Google Adsense. They have to. They are running out of properties to stick Google Adsense and more people are wising up to the contextual deception.
2) The FTC will start to investigate some of these fake weight loss blogs and grant websites and make examples out of people.
3) “Professional” SEO’s will overtake lawyers and used car salesman in 2009 as most hated and joked about profession.
4) The market will market will bounce back to 11k+ by the end of 2009.
5) Facebook will get 2x more users then it currently has by the end of 2009.
6) Google’s Andriod operating system will be regarded as a flop and I will never even get to try it.
7) Yahoo will continue to suck at everything but flickr and delicious. It doesn’t matter if Jesus Christ comes down to be their CEO.
Competition in the SEO/Affiliate conference space will continue to drive down prices making these conferences more affordable for those who could not before attend.
9) I predict a VERY litigious year for the affiliate marketing industry as a whole. Affiliate companies are out of control turning a blind eye to what affiliates are doing.
10) My book will finally come out after 2+ years in the making but nobody will buy it and I will be sad.
![[del.icio.us]](http://moolah-moolah.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/delicious.png)
![[Digg]](http://moolah-moolah.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/digg.png)
![[Google]](http://moolah-moolah.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/google.png)
![[StumbleUpon]](http://moolah-moolah.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/stumbleupon.png)
![[Windows Live]](http://moolah-moolah.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/windowslive.png)
![[Yahoo!]](http://moolah-moolah.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/yahoo.png)
![[Email]](http://moolah-moolah.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/email.png)
The Difference Between Making Money and Having Wealth
Many people are learning a painful lesson about the difference between having “things” and having wealth.
When the economy is booming, money is easy to earn and credit is flowing freely, the urge to buy more things can be enticing. But just because you can buy a bigger house, a new car or the latest electronic gadgets doesn’t mean you can afford to own them. With each new purchase comes additional cost of ownership — expenses like taxes, licenses, maintenance and utilities.
This is a lesson many first-time home buyers have learned during the past couple of years. In 2004-05, when interest rates were at historic lows and credit was easy to obtain, many lifelong renters bought their first homes. A lot of them didn’t understand that home ownership involves much more than just making the mortgage payments.
As renters, they never had to worry about the cost of replacing a failed furnace, heat pump or a hot water heater. They didn’t have to save to replace the roof shingles or carpet. These costs were all born by the landlord, which is one reason rents are usually higher than mortgage payments.
Cars, boats, planes and resort properties all come with additional cost of ownership. The secret to increasing your standard of living is to acquire such things with income from passive investments. The order of events for a successful life is work, earn, invest and then buy. You must first work to earn money, then invest part of the money and be willing to wait until the earnings from your investments are adequate to cover the cost of ownership of the things that improve your level of comfort.
In today’s society too many people work, earn money and then spend. Because of this, they never have enough to invest and as a result never enjoy the security that comes from having an income stream for which they don’t have to work. Buying things without investments to cover the cost of ownership nearly always results in having to work harder to make ends meet and then ultimately having to reduce your lifestyle in retirement when earnings drop. It’s known as living paycheck-to-paycheck, or as some would say, “living on a treadmill.”
There’s a big difference between earning a living and building wealth. Some people earn enormous incomes but never build wealth, yet a number of modest wage earners are able to build substantial wealth. Building wealth takes patience.
As a nation, Americans have forgotten the value of patience. Many of the economic problems we are currently experiencing are the direct result of a nation bloated with excesses and unwilling to adjust its standard of living to what it could afford. Call it karma, chance, fate, destiny or any other term you want, but when common sense is replaced with greed and self-indulgence, market conditions will eventually seek balance and force a correction. That’s what we are now experiencing.
Here’s a tip: If your ox is in a ditch, you won’t get it out by whining and complaining. The same holds true if your finances are under water and you feel like you are about to drown. The only way to improve either situation is to change what you’re doing.
The start of a new year is a great time to pause and carefully analyze spending in relation to income. If you borrowed money the previous year to support your lifestyle, continuing that same lifestyle another year will more than likely to put you deeper in debt. The only way to correct the problem is to earn more or spend less.
Try living one year on 90 percent of your income and investing the other 10 percent. At the end of that year, you will feel much better because your debt will be smaller and you will have some money in the bank. Remember the recipe for success: Work, earn, invest and then buy.
Mike Summey is co-author of McGraw-Hill Publishing’s international bestselling Weekend Millionaire book series. He can be reached at successtips@aol.com or you can visit his Web site, www.weekendmillionaire.com.
Black Friday Part 2 Is Upon Us Again!!
While doing some last minute shopping a few days ago, I couldn’t believe all the stuff that was still available at many stores this year. I’ve always been a last minute shopper and during the last few christmas shopping years I could never find anything….Every item would be picked over, or you would only find one size in clothes that the average person could not fit.
Well this year is a different story because stores are basically throwing their profit margin out the window just to get a few sales. I guess that’s why many retailers are going to give even bigger discounts (estimated 50-60%) to shoppers after Christmas Day.
If you sell items on Ebay or other auctions, this maybe a good time to catch some great deals and make a small profit selling these products online.
You’ve endured Black Friday, Cyber Monday, weeks of gift wrapping, hitting stores, and checking off lists. But just when you thought it was over, retailers across the country are offering post-Christmas, year-end, and clearance sales in hopes of luring shoppers back into stores.
Make way for the new Black Friday, the day after Christmas. For many retailers, the holiday shopping season is expected to be a bust, courtesy of the recession, overall economic uncertainty, and poor weather. So consumers can expect rock-bottom prices and promotions at several retailers, which plan to sell any overstock in stores, stockrooms, and warehouses, make way for spring inventory, and boost their bottom lines.
Here’s where you can score some impressive post-holiday deals:
J.C. Penney announced it will open at 5:30 a.m. the day after Christmas–the earliest opening in the store’s history–and offer 100 door-buster specials, including 50 to 60 percent off private-label clothing for men and women, as well as 75 percent off Christmas decorations. The general merchandiser is offering a free wake-up call so that shoppers don’t miss the sale.
Target is offering clearance products and promotions of up to 75 percent off on select clothing, furniture, electronics, holiday décor, and more. Consumers can also save up to 50 to 70 percent on bath and bedding.
The savings and values at Toys “R” Us stores will stretch into the New Year. Some of the items that will be available from Dec. 26, 2008, through Jan. 3, 2009, include 75 percent off a 1.60 Scale X-Trek Pro 15′ Race Track Set; 60 percent off certain table games; 50 percent off some Hannah Montana Dolls; and 20 percent off all iPod cases and headphones.
You can get a jump on your holiday decorating for next year. Home improvement retailer Home Depot will be offering 50 percent off of all holiday décor beginning December 26.
Barnes & Noble, the nation’s largest book retailer, is offering thousands of books at 50 to 90 percent off for its “After Holiday Warehouse Clearance Sale.” Discounts are also available on music, DVDs, toys, video games, journals, calendars, and albums.
Starting this Sunday, Wal-Mart, the largest retailer in the United States, will introduce additional savings, with new values on select electronic games, $60 savings on select HDTVs, and reduced prices on home and office needs.
KB Toys announced Monday that it will be closing its doors for good and has launched a liquidation sale at all 461 of its KB Toys, KB Toy Outlet, KB Toys Holiday, and KB Toy Works stores. Sales at KB Toys stores will begin at 40 percent off regular prices.
The bath products retailer Bath and Body Works is having an after-holiday sale of up to 50 percent off on products including body lotions, shower gels, hand creams, and fragrances.
Circuit City will see the holiday shopping season extend into January. The electronics retailer will be offering big discounts on televisions, digital cameras, home theater systems, computers, computer accessories, GPS, music, movies, and games, according to company spokesperson Jim Babb.
Kohl’s is having a huge clearance of 60 to 80 percent off on men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing.
Even luxury retailer Neiman Marcus will be offering steep discounts with its After Christmas Sale. Shoppers can find sales on women’s, men’s, and children’s designer apparel, as well as designer shoes, handbags, and jewelry. Neiman Marcus will be offering an extra 40 percent off already-reduced prices.