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Jul
12

Should you show your Categories and Archives within your sidebar?

Written by Chris on July 12, 2008 – 2:00 pm -

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I’m working on a top secret thingamajig and have a question for you all. Plus I am thinking about shortening up the sidebar for Dorm Room Biz some. So, do you feel it is necessary to show your Categories section and Archives sections on your sidebar or somewhere on the main layout of your blog?

I currently have the archives area shown because it was a requirement for a couple different paid review websites that I use, however, as month after month passes, it gets so long! I either want to get rid of it or figure out how to shorten it to say maybe the last 5 months only.

The other area I am thinking about knocking off is the categories section. Do you use it? I know for me, if I was looking for something specific I would do a search on the website rather than utilize the categories on the sidebar. Now having the categories is good for when you want to link from a post to another area of your site (say a whole topic of posts such as business ideas or monetizing websites), but this is also a long list that as time goes on, will probably only get longer.

What do you guys think? Keep them, loose them, or keep one or the other?


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Posted in Blogging, Rants / Random | 9 Comments »
Apr
28

Make Money From CashCrate. It is as easy as 1, 2, 3!

Written by Chris on April 28, 2008 – 5:38 pm -

Over the last couple months I have been involved with a great money making opportunity for students. The service is called CashCrate. I have most about CashCrate many other times on Dorm Room Biz describing the program as well as when I got my first check! Well, another check came recently and I thought I would post a little bit more about CashCrate and how easy it is to make money from surveys and different offers.

CashCrate is a great system because you can make money without even filling out the surveys. Although filling out the surveys means that you can make more money, it is time consuming and can be a bit of a pain. The problem with these surveys and offers is that to complete one you will definitely have to give up your email address and will most likely have to complete other offers for it to go through. However, there are some great ones that pay well, if you pay. For instance, I completed the Netflix offer which was a 15 day free trial and then costs like $8.99 a month after that. I joined through CashCrate and submitted it as being completed, and although they waited the 15 days to make sure that I actually joined the service and made the first monthly payment, I was then paid $15.00 - so I essentially made $6.01 for joining Netflix which I had been wanting to do anyway. If you take some of the higher paying offers that you may spend a couple bucks on, you can make even more money back. Some offers will cost you $2-$5 to complete (usually for shipping of something like a book or DVD) and then you’ll get paid say $15-$20.

However, surveys are just the tip of the iceberg with CashCrate. They have a great referral system which allows you to promote a referral link on your website or in forums. When people sign up through your link, you get paid. When the person completes their first $10 worth of offers (the minimum payout), then you as the referrer get paid $3.00, these are your first level referrals. You then also make money from your second level referrals. This means that when you refer someone to CashCrate and then they refer someone else, you make money that way. Starting out, you make 20% of what your referrals make and 15% of what their referrals make; yet as you refer more people, this percentage gets adjusted and can increase.

So, if you can continually refer people to CashCrate, or any similar service that has the same kind of referral program set up, you can be making money without even having to fill out the surveys. This is the point that I hope to get it. So far I have 13 first level referrals and a second level referral. As these people continue to refer others, I will continue to make money.

Here is the important secret though - you need to complete your first $10 worth of offers to really take advantage of the program. So, spend 30 minutes when you sign up and just keep completing offers. If you reach that $10 mark, great, but you could always keep going. For my first check, I only had one referral payment of $3 and the other $20 some was from referrals. For April so far, I am making about $10 from my referrals. So if you join and complete that first $10 mark and then refer people, you can really make some money with the CashCrate program.

Now, this is a great side income generator so, I encourage you to join CashCrate, complete the $10 worth of offers, and then promote the hell out of the program. It is great to watch your monthly earnings continue to rise and receive emails saying that you have earned more money for not doing any work.

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Are you already a member of CashCrate? How are you promoting the service and earning money? I’d love to hear other people’s success stories from using the program!


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Posted in Business Ideas, Success Stories | No Comments »
Mar
26

10 Best Ways for College Students to Make Money Online

Written by Chris on March 26, 2008 – 12:00 pm -

Money. It’s what every college student wants and what every college student lacks. You can save up all summer and it is sure to be gone by Thanksgiving. Or, more likely, Columbus Day weekend. There are tons of ways students can earn money online and keep up with the trust fund kids. Here a few:

  1. Teach the computer illiterate. Do you know your way around a computer better than you do your school’s library? Branch out your services to those who think a click of the mouse means their vermin troubles are gone.
  2. Help others set up their computers. Many people have computers but often incorrectly install their new machines or aren’t aware of the upgrades their systems offer. It can also be as easy as making sure they’ve got everything plugged into the right outlets.
  3. Join the blogosphere. Does everyone tell you have great ideas? Or maybe just you think you have great ideas. Either way start your own blog and if you’ve got something to say that people want to hear then the advertisers will be eager to be seen on your site.
  4. Create and update webpage designs. Every company now wants to and needs to be on the web hocking its wares. If you’ve got experience creating webpages then your services will be in high demand.
  5. Join an online auction. eBay is the place on the web to sell anything from your prized possessions if you’re really in a bind or maybe old baseball cards for some extra cash.
  6. Help others join the digital music age. The old record collection doesn’t have to lie in dusty heap anymore and, if you have the little equipment needed, you can help transfer these old classics to a digital library.
  7. Clean up computer messes. Computers are constantly being ground to screeching halts by viruses and spyware these days. Computer users are eager for help cleaning up their systems.
  8. Scour the internet for lost records. Scan the internet for background checks for employers or track down old classmates for clients.
  9. Sell the next hot .com name. Selling domain names may sound passé as it seems all the good ones are taken, but with new .tv or .info domains emerging the possibilities are endless.
  10. Be a photographer. With digital photos taking the place of the old family scrapbook, computer savvy individuals are in high demand to help computer illiterates in this new direction.

Heather Johnson is a freelance business, finance and economics writer, as well as a regular contributor at Business Credit Cards, a site for business credit card and best business credit card offers. Heather welcomes comments and freelancing job inquiries at her email address
heatherjohnson2323@gmail.com.


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Posted in Business Ideas, Entrepreneurship | 3 Comments »