Virtual Earner

Last weekend, Wordpress 2.5 was released!  Have you upgraded your Wordpress site yet?  I have not done it 100% yet, but it is something that I am still working on with my many Wordpress sites.

I am wondering, though, do you think that Wordpress is still the way to go for a website or blog?  I have been thinking about this for several months now.  I have a couple of reasons for the question:

1. Wordpress is the most popular blogging client.  No doubt.  That, though, can have positive and negative sides.  First, since it is so popular, it is the default target for people with malicious intentions.  For example, if somebody wants to hack a website, figuring out a vulnerability in Wordpress is the best way to go.  With just one vulnerability, he can hack millions of sites, if he chooses to do so.
2. Because Wordpress is a hacking target, that means that there are constant updates coming down the tunnel.  It seems like Wordpress is getting new versions on at least a monthly basis these days.  For somebody like me, who has a ton of sites, this means that doing all the upgrades can be a time consuming job.

Because of these factors, I have been considering that perhaps it is time to move to another platform.  Yes, I do believe that Wordpress is the best out there, but the considerations above make me wonder if it is the right way to go.

What do you think?  Another blog platform?  Maybe a CMS (Content Management System) site?

Let me know what you are using, I’d like to take a look and see what others have going!

When in business, or even in your daily life, if you want to be successful you need to consider those around you and make a decision about the possibility of molding yourself and your business to fit in with the local norm.  You won’t have to adapt local standards for every business, but for most you will need to do so.

Let’s face it, if you are in the business of becoming a clown at local kid’s birthday parties, you won’t want to change into the local norm.  The kids probably won’t be too excited if you come to the party in a business suit.  But, for other businesses, if you show up in a clown suit, you probably won’t get the job!

As you probably all know, I am an American, but I live in the Philippines.  If I tried to do everything the American way, most local people probably wouldn’t hire me to do local jobs.  If I try to blend a little of the Filipino way into by business, though, I am more likely to be successful.  I don’t have to be totally Filipino in my ways, as a matter of fact, if I did I probably would lose some of my value.

For instance, if I was doing business consulting locally, the local businessman might be hiring me so that he can get a bit more of American style business-practice into his business.  However, if I went totally American it might turn him off.  For example, here in the Philippines, the day is broken up between work, and three different breaks.  In the mid morning, they have “marienda” which means snacks.  Then, at noon there is lunch, followed by the afternoon marienda around mid-afternoon time.  In America, if it is a busy day, the business man might work straight through the day without even taking a lunch break.  If I consulted a business here to do that, they would be aghast and probably fire me.  If they accepted my advice, and instituted such a schedule many employees would quit. But, if I choose to adapt these important Filipino customs into my American style business methods, it might be a hit, and help the Filipino businessman make a better living.

You have probably heard the old saying - “When in Rome, do as the Romans do…” well, you don’t have to go 100%, but it is just a good idea to incorporate some of the Roman ways into the way you do business.  The results might surprise you!

What would you think if I told you that you might sell less of something if you set the price too low?  I know, a lot of you will think that I am crazy, but honestly, it is true.  I am talking about the concept of perceived value.   What does that mean?  Well, basically it means that if you set the price very low, people will perceive the item as poor, low value, etc.

One of the businesses that I am in is selling and delivering flowers in the Philippines.  I sell a lot of flowers too, you can bet on that!  Now, let’s think about something.  Let’s say that you have a girlfriend here in the Philippines, and you are deeply in love with her.  You plan to propose marriage to her.  First, though, you want to send her some very special flowers to set the scene.  OK, so then you come to my website and you see that I have two different bouquets of roses.  The first bouquet is $2.99.  The second one is $49.99.  Which one are you going to buy?  Well, if you care deeply for this girl, I have no doubt in my mind that you will be buying the $49.99 bouquet, because in my mind you are thinking that anything that is $2.99 can’t be very special.

The same thing holds true for almost any product that you can think of.  How about if I wrote an e-book about how to earn money online?  If I had it for 99 cents, I wouldn’t sell many, because people would perceive that it had little information of much value in it.  If I sold it for $99, a lot more people would be interested.

What does this all come down to?  Well, it comes down to a video that was posted last week by a Video Blogger that I enjoy following.  His name is Jim Kukral, and he is a marketing expert, particularly for online items.  Give his video a look:

Now, what do you think?  Do you price yourself too low?  I think that the tendency for most people is to set their price way too low, practically giving the stuff away.   If you set the price high, you can offer yourself another marketing capability - the ability to give a discount.  If you tell somebody that the book is $99 (true), you could say that you are willing to give them a discount and offer it to them for only $79.  They feel good, you make a nice amount of money - everybody is happy!

Push your price points up, and see if it doesn’t result in higher sales!  I bet it will!