Musings of Erin

A cordless jump rope is an oxymoron, isn’t it? Nope.
Lester Clancey just received patent #7037243 for it. Netscape News says:

“why jump rope without a rope?

It’s perfect for the clumsy, Clancy said. If you are still jumping, you’re still using your legs as well as your arms, and getting the cardiovascular workout. You just don’t have to worry about tripping on the rope.

It is also good for mental institutions and prisons where rope is a suicide risk, said Clancy, who works as a laundry coordinator in a state prison. And low ceiling fans aren’t a hazard any more, he said.”

Doesn’t it seem rather detremental to give a mental patient a cordless jump rope? Think about it:

“Here Jim, I know you can’t have a rope, so have this cordless jump rope - it feels just like you’re jumping rope…”

“There’s no rope! How am I supposed to jump rope without a rope?”

“I know you can’t see the rope, Jim. It’s not there. It just feels like it’s there.”

“Why would you give me a jump rope with no rope? Are you trying to make me feel crazy? Don’t you think it’s enough I’m locked in here 24/7? I already know what’s going on - there’s no need to make me feel like a jackass on top of it.”

“Jim, I didn’t mean to make you feel like a jackass;I just want you to jump rope. With no rope. It’s safer, they say.”

“Ok. So the rope isn’t safe. But why give me the handles to pretend to jump rope with? Why not just ask me to pretend to jump rope?”

“Because, Jim, it will motivate you to jump rope”

“Without the rope?”

Around here is where I envision the worker being pummeled with the handles, thereby removing ’safety’ from the equation.

Link via Seth Godin

Tags: cordless jump rope, Lester Clancey, patent

When we hear some *new and improved* marketing technique, we all want to jump on the bandwagon. Technorati.com estimates that there is a blog created every second, and ProBlogger.com estimates that many of those blogs die within three months. Why do those blogs die? Maybe the owner didn’t have sufficient time to keep it up. The owner may have chosen a topic that was far too narrow and ran out of things to talk about; or they may have chosen one that was far too wide and couldn’t get focus.

Blogging is perceived as ‘easy’

Many people who choose to blog begin doing so because it’s so easy, and so cheap, to get started. Blogging is a credible marketing vehicle – it is a great way for the search engines to stay keen on looking at your website, it provides valuable information to your clients and prospects, and can even make money through affiliate income.

How do you know if blogging is right for you?

1. Will your target market respond to a blog?
   If your market doesn’t know what a blog is, doesn’t care what a blog is, or doesn’t have the time to learn – don’t even attempt a blog. Seriously. Of course we need to educate our customers, but using technology for technology’s sake is just a little too self-absorbed. Let’s keep it real.
2. Do you have the time to devote to the upkeep of a blog?
   If you can’t post at least once a week – whether it’s a long post or a short article, you won’t get return readers. Readers want to depend on your information, and if you can’t post at least once a week your ROI will suffer tremendously.
3. Can you define a blog niche for yourself?
   You need to have a content niche – and something that’s wide enough for you to be able to post on regularly, and narrow enough where your readers won’t think you’re jumping all over the place. You can’t depend on free-reprint articles for your blog – your readers want to hear from you! (Believe me, I’ve been down that road, it doesn’t work no matter how hard I wanted it to) If you can’t devote time to finding and developing great content, then blogging isn’t for you.
4. Do you know (or are you willing to learn) how to market your blog?
   As with any other venture, blogs can be very lucrative, but you need to know how to market them. While, yes, business blogs are a marketing tool, no one will be able to find a blog without proper marketing. So, learn what you need to do in order to properly market your blog to get readers.
5. Do you know (or are you willing to learn) all the technological needs of your blog?
   Chances are going into blogging you aren’t going to know what half the terms mean. If you can’t invest the time, make sure you have someone available to help you who can (or already knows it). If you’re not savvy on the platform before jumping into it, you will spend a considerable amount of time learning.

As you can see, blogging isn’t as easy as many will lead you to think. Many customers won’t respond to blogging, because it’s not part of their worldview. For those customers that will respond to it you need to ensure that you’re able to give them the content they want – or they’ll go somewhere else for it. The beauty in blogging is the possibility to inform subscribers and ‘wanderers of the internet’ about you, your expertise, and your passions – with the simple click of a button.

If you don’t have the time, or your customers aren’t ready for the world of blogging, then don’t waste your valuable energy and resources creating and maintaining a blog. Instead, you should focus your efforts on things that will bring you a high return on income – and not something as labor-intensive as a blog.

If your market will respond to a blog, then by all means go ahead and begin one. However, if you do not have the time and energy to expend in learning the various aspects of blogging, then you must either hire someone to help you or wait until it’s more feasible in your business. There are many people available (myself included) to help you in your blogging efforts – inclusive of everything from creating and maintaining to helping you write your blog. Finding help isn’t hard; but if you have a lukewarm approach to blogging, the response will be the same.

Well - I’ve won! Thanks to many of you that went and visited How Boing Boing is Changing the World, I’ve now won the top prize of the Squidoo Boing Boing contest the Gerald McBoingBoing DVD. You can see the offical winners list here on the Squid Blog.

And, to thank you all so very much for vising my Squidoo lens, I have a gift for you!

When Seth Godin released the Bootstrappers Bible, he let it float around the internet for free for a limited amount of time. For those of us who were able to snatch it up, we were able to get copies to share with the whole world. Fast forward to the present time: you can’t find the Bootstrappers Bible anywhere without a cost - except here! So please, as my thanks to you, download your complimentary copy of Bootstrappers Bible!

Until next time…

~E

Tags: Squidoo, Boing Boing, Seth Godin, Bootstrappers Bible

“The IVAD Creed: Dedication, Experience, Expertise and Determination to Succeed of professionals providing administrative and other business support services, virtually (DEEDS), exemplifies our integrity and commitment to provide superior service.”

Yes, that’s right, today is the first Official International Virtual Assistant’s Day!Take the time today to thank your VA!

I’d like to thank Jen and Jenn - without whom I’d be very lost! You guys are the best!!

~E