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How to Protect Website Content

June 30, 2010 By 9 Comments

As an online business owner, chances are you produce written content for your own site or for article marketing. Protecting your online content is a real concern these days, as many lazy traffic-seekers are more than willing to pass off your work as their own.

In the past few weeks, I have seen a big spike in my content being plagiarized. I have had to send out quite a few emails in recent days, and in one case even have another blog shut down for copyright infringement. As this is something that really ruffles my feathers, I thought I would share some ways to protect intellectual property you produce.

1. Google Alerts – Many online business owners are familiar with Google Alerts as a way to keep up with news in our chosen industries. It is also a great free tool for catching copyright infringement.

Next time you publish an article or amazing SEO piece, grab a sentence or two and set up an alert. An exact phrase is more effective than a title, and be sure to put it in parentheses so you will only be alerted to exact matches. Google will email you when that exact phrase has been indexed elsewhere.

2. Contacting the Culprit – Now that you found them, what do you do? Look for contact information on the website or blog. Send them an email detailing your demands: removal of the content, proper linking to its original source, purchase of the piece, etc. Don’t forget to include a deadline. A few days is plenty of time.

If the piece was published on a content website, like EzineArticles, Associated Content, or several of the other ones popping up, send them an email as well. They won’t tolerate paying or driving traffic for stolen content.

3. Contacting the Host – If you receive no response, the next step is to contact the offenders host. Many fly-by-night bloggers won’t take your demands seriously, but their web host can shut them down entirely. If they have a WordPress blog or website, WP is happy to deal with the situation. My last experience with them got me a response within a few hours. You can find WP’s contact info and required information here.

4. Last Resorts – Still no response? Contact the search engines. Plagiarism Today provides some great stock letters to use during each step. If nothing has worked, you can always contact a copyright attorney to pursue the matter through legal channels.

Thus far, I have not had to go beyond Step 2 to have my issues resolved. In our online world, copyright infringement is taken very seriously and the big guys seem more than willing to help out us lowly business owners. Keep your content and your traffic yours alone by using the above steps.

Have you dealt with plagiarism? Leave a comment with your story or tips.

Filed Under: Blogging Advice, Running an Online Business Tagged With: , , , ,

10 Skills in 10 Weeks: VAClassroom Summer Skill Camp

June 25, 2010 By Leave a Comment

You know I am a huge fan of VAClassroom. They have a new program coming up and I just received this very important 18-minute video for you from Craig at VAClassroom entitled: “Ten Ways to Create Ten Income Building Opportunities for Your Virtual Business in 2010″. This video will give you some keen insights and ideas on how to expand your skills and the services you are currently offering in your business. Plus, it will also give you a nice preview on the types of skills we will be covering in the upcoming VAClassroom Summer Skill Camp starting on July 6!

In business, it is important to have an edge or some relevant, in-demand skills that set you apart and enable you to play a bigger role with your clients. I think this video will definitely stimulate some ideas on how you can grow your business and income opportunities for the last half of 2010!

Check out the 18-minute video here:

VAClassroom Summer Skill Camp starts July 6. Click here to get more details and check out the early-bird registration special.

Filed Under: Internet Business Training Tagged With: , , ,

What is an Online Community and Why Do I Need One?

June 23, 2010 By 2 Comments

What is an Online Community and Why Do I Need One?
Yesteryear’s networking mantra has since been replaced by “online communities.” A lot of confusion still surrounds this term.
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Filed Under: Blogging Advice, Running an Online Business Tagged With: ,

Ensuring Payment as an Online Professional

June 19, 2010 By 1 Comment

Big news! After a relatively short amount of time writing for Associated Content, I was recently approved as a Featured Business & Finance Contributor. That means higher paying assignments and more promotion of my articles. It also means I have to submit a certain amount of business-related articles each month to keep my new title.

Since my articles relate to small business and online business, they may be of interest to some of you. Therefore, I will provide a link to new business articles a few times per month like the one below. Feel free to hop over and learn something new. If you have any questions or comments, you can leave them here or on the comment form below the article.

Ensuring Payment as an Online Professional
As an online professional, there are occasionally clients who try to skate out of paying. These potential problems are easy to address to ensure payment as an online professional.
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Filed Under: Running an Online Business Tagged With: , ,

Work at Home Terms: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

June 16, 2010 By 4 Comments

Working at home introduced me to a whole new vocabulary. At first, it seemed like everyone was speaking a secret language. A lot of acronyms get thrown around. “Experts” seemed to be speaking foreign tongues at times. Almost three years down the road, some of these terms now drive me crazy. Today’s “work at home terms” editorial is for the newbies and seasoned online professionals alike.

The Good:

Independent Contractor (IC) – I’m independent for sure. I think most of us are. This one can stay.

Contractors – This one makes me think of construction workers. In a way, we are builders. We are building businesses, for ourselves and others.

Newbie (noob) – I know some people don’t like it, but I never minded being a newbie. I think it’s cute.

Online Professional – Some time last year some Virtual Assistant decided if everyone was going to be a VA they needed to make themselves stand out somehow. Suddenly all the VAs were now “online professionals,” not Virtual Assistants. I like the term, but don’t think I will jump on the bandwagon. Everyone that owns an online business is an “online professional” to me. Using that term gives me no distinction from virtual coaches, web cam wardrobe consultants, or webinar tutors. I’ll stick with VA.

The Bad:

Work at Home Moms (WAHMs) – This one I am indifferent about. I don’t mind the term, but the connotation it brings about. For some reason, certain people thing only moms can work at home. I have even been asked over the years, “If you’re not a mom, why are you working from home?” Why not?

Freelance – Lance can work for free if he wants. I prefer to be a paidlucy.

Client – Don’t ask me why, maybe it is too much crime TV. Sometimes when work-at-homers refer to “their clients,” it sounds a bit dirty. I even went through spell where I called my clients “my people.” That sounded like I was running a cult. I’m not sure what else we are going to call them, though. So, client it is.

Telecommuter – This one seems to cause great confusion. Some people use it refer to wah contractors, but standard definitions usually include the term “employer.” When I think of telecommuters, I think of those with a 9-5 employer who enjoy the perk of not having to commute to the office.

Networking – For a time, it was all about the networking. Networking has since been replaced by “relationship building,” so I won’t beat it up too much.

Experts – When I first started working from home, I was really intrigued by what the “experts” had to say. Now? Everybody is an expert, the term is pretty much irrelevant.

The Ugly:

Niche – OMG! I was sick of this word the 3,000th time I saw it in my first week of researching working from home. Three years later, I still see it at least a dozen times a day. Makes me nuts. It is the most overused word in the work at home world.

Branding – Though I have learned to accept this term, for awhile it was being abused as much as “niche.” For a period of time, that is all we heard. Brand, Brand, BRAND! In fact, Tori Spelling is on the Today Show right now talking about how SHE is a brand. Oy!

There’s your WAHW commentary for the day. WAHW, as in Work at Home Wife. That’s your new work at home term for today, and it is pronounced like ‘”wow.” :) Feel free to comment with your favorite (or not) work at home terms.

Filed Under: Working at Home Tagged With: , ,

The Sad Side of Telecommuting

June 14, 2010 By 4 Comments

It didn’t take long as an Independent Contractor to realize there are drawbacks to being a faceless member of a team. When working in an office, if there is a problem you get up from your desk, walk over to the boss and get some answers. Working virtually, you often wait and wait for responses when things go awry. If a client is suffering business- or personal-wise, you are often left in the dark as to what is going on until the dreaded “sorry” email comes. In my early days, I questioned if this would happen if I was an employee as opposed to an IC. Apparently, things can be much worse.

UC Davis released results from a telecommuting study this month. The study focused on employees who are allowed to telecommute for their jobs and how they are perceived by their peers and managers. The results are not good.

Those that are not visible in the workplace are often scored lower on evaluations than their in-house co-workers. It is believed this is often an unconscious result having nothing to do with the telecommuter’s work ethic. Their absence, in a way, makes them appear less like a team member or leader.

I find the study quite sad knowing those taking advantage of company telecommuting perks have to work twice as hard to be seen as an equal amongst their peers. Especially knowing the telecommuters I do. They work longer hours, put in time on weekends and holidays and overall go above and beyond what is expected when they are actually in the office.

For the time being, I will consider myself lucky to be an Independent Contractor and on an equal playing field with my fellow contracted freelancers.

Does your employer allow you to telecommute? Do you feel like an outsider among your in-house co-workers?

Filed Under: Working at Home Tagged With: ,

When You Can’t Write, Read

June 7, 2010 By 6 Comments

Most bloggers I have spoken with over time readily admit to going through “slumps.” You can’t think of anything to write. Everything has already been said. You just don’t feel inspired.

I have been in a slump myself lately. Maybe I was getting a little burnt out from all the writing I have been doing lately. Maybe it is just because I haven’t seen anything new in some time. Maybe it was simply my personal life being all-consuming lately. Whatever it was, I needed to get out.

I started thinking about when my last writing burst had been. You know, when something strikes you and you can’t stop writing. That was right after I read The Referral Engine: Teaching Your Business to Market Itself. It inspired me. If reading a good book worked once, surely it could work again.

I started digging through Amazon and found several books from Julia Cameron. Julia is a Creativity Teacher and artist. She has published several books on the art of writing. At first I had a hard time with making a connection between blogging and art, but really it makes sense. We create. We inspire. Why not? So I picked The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life. For less than $10, I figured I couldn’t lose.

It’s a luxury to be in the mood to write. It’s a blessing but it’s not a necessity.

I love that quote from the book. I am going to hang it by my computer screen. I have a tendency to sit around and wait to be “in the mood.” Sometimes I feel like I could wait forever if I did that. Julia’s methodology helps to overcome that cycle. She inspired me through her teachings to get out of the ideal of perfection and make writing part of your life. Allow yourself to be a bad writer before you expect yourself to be a great one.

This is another one for the bookshelf, whether you are a blogger or an aspiring published writer. She gives you writing exercises or tools at the end of each chapter to get into the creative mindset. She reminds you that writing isn’t work. It’s fun. It’s uplifting. It’s a release.

If you are finding yourself in a slump, or think one is coming on, I recommend The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life. It’s a great reminder as to why we do what we do.

Filed Under: Internet Business Training Tagged With: , , ,

Digging Out When You’re Down

June 4, 2010 By 1 Comment

Things have been crazy around here lately. Not “crazy busy,” but “these people are nuts” kind of crazy. I hate drama unlike a lot of people. When the drama starts, I turn into the proverbial ostrich with its head in the sand. I detach from it and everyone involved.

Working from home, it has become apparent over the last couple weeks that it is also pretty easy to detach myself from everything. As a business owner, I am able to sit at my desk a few hours a day to get the essentials done, then walk away. Allowing myself all this free time really isn’t helping my situation at all. I simply have more time to dwell on the negativity and self-doubt that surrounds me. So today, I’m going to start trying to dig myself out.

I would love to hear how you handle things when you have the unique work at home opportunity to let things slide. Do you find it easier working from home to let life’s trivial matters  overwhelm you? Do you immerse yourself in work to get away from the outside world, or does everything come to a halt?

Filed Under: Working at Home

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