Pajama Mama – This is a take on at-home mom costume that mom’s never wear but admittedly I did as a costume in college. The big difference is that not only do you wear your jammies and robe, but you need to accessorize with a large cup of coffee and a laptop or Smartphone!

Twitter Maven – You can do the full deal and dress up like a blue bird. Or simply walk around with your Smartphone commenting on everything. Don’t forget, you have to talk in 140 characters or less!

Facebook Maven – Not into Twitter, then why not dress up as a Facebook Maven.  Get a big piece of card board and cut a hole big enough for your face to show through. Along one side list all the stuff you’ve been doing. Add a quiz to make it realistic. And don’t forget to add a “Facebook Me” option so others can befriend you.

What ideas do have?

1) Avoid the same old promises. “We care”, “Turnkey solutions”, “Amazing”, etc are all tired promises that are mostly met with skepticism. If these concepts are important to sales, you need to find new ways of expressing them. What does “we care” mean? Are you available 24/7 to provide support?

2) Stay grounded. Sales is about convincing people that you have the solution. Sales books encourage the use of hyped up words to help do the convincing. But people don’t buy it and if the sales copy is too over the top, they won’t believe it. There is a story about selling a drill, but the person doesn’t want a drill per se, he wants a hole. The drill is the solution to his need. Someone needs a hole from a drill doesn’t need sales copy on how the drill can make a tunnel…that’s hype. Instead the copy should focus on the hole and perhaps how quickly it can be made.

3) Be in your customers shoes. You know how you like to be talked to or what ad tactics turn you off. Be aware of that as you create your own marketing messages. If you’d roll your eyes at your claims, odds are someone else will too. Customers don’t care about you or whether you’re number 1 or are amazing. They only care about how what you have will help them. If you can stay focused on them and filling their need not with a lot of hype but through your features and the benefits they offer, then you’ll have a sale.

I’m a project and idea queen. I have so many great ideas and usually I just jump right in. The problem is, I have so many projects, that I can’t seem to manage it all. And because I jumped in, many are live and active but aren’t being cultivated. It comes to a point when I have to determine if I stick with it or let it go.

Obviously, I need to do more work before launch to figure out if a project should be pursued. But sometimes I get really excited about it and the potential of it, that I just run with it (I can’t be the only one). So I’m left with doing all the evaluating after the fact. I thought it might be helpful to share how I’ve been trying to determine whether to hold on to a project or fold it up.

1) Do I still have enthusiasm for it. You’ll notice I didn’t ask if it was making money, which is an important factor (see #2). But if I’m really excited about it, I’m willing to work with it for a time until it does make money or re-evaluate it later if it doesn’t.

2) Is it making money? New projects can take time to make money, so at least I need to see traffic or something that tells me its reaching its audience and the audience is starting to respond. After all, I do need to pay the mortgage so I don’t want to waste time on projects that won’t earn its keep.

3) Does it fit my goals? Its so easy to turn a hobby or passion into an online income stream these days. But not all my ideas work off one another and that can be harder. I have priorities and goals that include getting my book sold (which involves PR, marketing, and public speaking), I have a website that needs traffic (SEO and articles), and an information product that needs to be sold (articles, affiliates). All of these are related to working at home so much of my effort overlaps. When I get traffic to my site, they see my book and information products. But then I have some projects that are completely different. And while they can make money, they aren’t helping my goal of getting my book sold.

Even with these criteria, I’m still struggling to let some projects go. They’re like little children that I birthed and nurtured. But when too many projects makes it impossible to be efficient and effective, then something has to give.

Over at Lifehacker there is a simple script that can help you stay on track with your work projects. The scrip will provide a pop-up every 20 minutes asking you if you’re on task. While such an application could get annoying, if you find that you waste time surfing the net, Twittering, or reading about the latest celebrity gossip, it can help get you re-focused on work and thereby improve your productivity.

To learn more or get the script, visit Lifehacker

Lemmings are those creatures that follow everyone else even if its off  a cliff and to their deaths. I have found that in some cases, people are like lemmings and that they want the people around them to be lemmings too. They don’t want others to reach for the stars and break away from the pack particularly to be successful. You see it all the time when friends and family sabotage dieting efforts (they don’t want you to be thinner or prettier than them). As long as the lemmings keep everyone in the pack, they can blame their circumstance on anything but their own failure to take action.

When you break away, strive to do and be more, the pack will try to rein you in so they don’t look mediocre. Their attempts to hold people back are often disguised as concern,

“I hope you aren’t setting yourself up for disappointment.”

“I hope you know what you are doing.”

“I heard those things never work.”

Other times they might just try to beat you down by making fun of you or saying that you aren’t smart enough.

“No one is going to buy from you.”

“I can’t believe you fell for that.”

“That’ll never work.”

The sad part is that friends and family, the people who should be the most supportive, are often the first ones to question, tease and even discourage you.

But, if you really want to succeed in working at home, you need to hold firm to your dream. Do you think people thought stay-at-home mom Mrs. Fields was crazy to think she could open a store selling her chocolate chip cookies? Do you think people thought Mary Kay Ashe was nuts to think she could support her family selling her cosmetics from her kitchen table? Do you think people thought J.K. Rowling was wasting her time and not being a good mother (they were extremely poor) sitting in that cafe day after day writing about Harry Potter?

Everybody starts at the bottom with only a dream. Mrs. Fields did. Mary Kay did. JK Rowling did. I did. None of us let the lemmings in our world (and those sometimes lurking in our psyche) hold us back. So don’t be a lemming. Move away from the cliff and forge your own path!

Sparkplugging is continuing our tradition called ‘Spark an Idea Thursday’. Each week we’ll be sharing some great ideas for a topic of interest to our readers. We invite you to grab our image and carry the tradition through to your own blog! If you do, please link back to this post so we know where you were inspired!

When I first started working at home online, there was no Paypal or eBay. The word “spam” hadn’t been used yet. Blogs and YouTube had yet to be conceived. Internet marketing was about bulk mailing (spam), pop ups, and adding your URL to search engines (pre-SEO). If I was still operating under the old rules and ignoring new tools, my business would be dead and gone. Keeping your business up-to-date with the latest resources and know-how is as important as marketing and other aspects of running your business.

Keeping on top of trends you need to know about is easy. Personally I love books. In fact, I recently wrote a post here about how Leaders are Readers sharing my belief that books are a significant part of personal success. I have piles and piles of books on my desk and bed side table. They range from marketing books (The Wuffle Factor and Secrets of Social Media), book promotion (The Frugal Book Promoter), and success (Go Put Your Strengths To Work) books just to name a few. That doesn’t include the magazines such as Working Mother, Home Business, and Writers Digest.

But books and magazines aren’t the only methods to gaining the knowledge you need to stay on top in the WAHM world. Blogs and news feeds offer lots of great tips, tools and news. I love Lifehacker and WebWorkerDaily for sharing new Google Hacks and other great tools to streamline my work. I follow several WAHM and telecommuting blogs as well. And Google Alerts lets me know when topics I want to know about are posted in other places I may not find otherwise.

Seminars are another great way to gain additional skills to increase your credibility and marketability. Community centers and colleges offer a host of low cost adult education course that can help you manage your money, learn Excel or other computer programs, learn to speak in public and much more. If you don’t want to leave the house, odds are you can find similar seminars offered through the phone (teleseminars) or online (webinars).

Finally, your network is a wonderful place to find new information and learn new skills. I can’t tell you how many great resources I have found by networking with other WAHMs. Its how I found Sparkplugging!

However you do it, learning should be a daily part of your working routine. Whether its checking out the technology through a blog feed or gaining confidence by reading a motivational book or learning great software hacks through a course,  the more you learn and implement, the more you’ll earn.

Forced Registration

Sites use this tactic to get visitor’s contact information before letting them see the good stuff. While its true that building a list is an important part of a profitable online business, forcing visitors to give their information is counter intuitive to the idea of  “opt in”. Sure they give their information, but they did it to see the next page, not to continue to get emails from you. Many visitors (myself included) often simply leave a page if I have to give my email before seeing the content. Without knowing what the site has in store, how does a person know if they want email.

The reality is many people get annoyed when content is held for ransom. Instead put the list sign up form on your information page where visitors can sign up after they see your great content. If you’re going to lead with a registration page, at the very least give an option not register and yet still be able to access the information. Better to have a visitor and not get the email, than to turn a visitor away annoyed…and still not have the email.

Difficult Site Navigation

I’m sometimes surprised at how hard it can be navigate some websites. The links are hard to find or don’t make sense. One problem is poor planning of the site. Another issue is that I think some people forget that search engines index many pages of a site, so visitors may enter the site from a page other than the home page. No matter what page a visitors enters the site on, they need to be able to get to all other pages of the site. One way to really help visitors out is to have a clear navigation on each page. Even better have a site map. It makes it easy for visitors to find what they want, and search engines love them.

No or Hard to Find Contact Information

I was at a blog this morning and wanted to contact the owner about interviewing her for my podcast. There were two sources of navigation along the top, none of which said “contact”. I looked along the sidebar and the footer. No contact link. I clicked on the “About” page and found a contact form. So the information was there, but it took time to find it. Some you may be saying it should be obvious to look on the About page. But if you want to make money online, don’t make your visitors have to work to get what they want on your site. Not all visitors are willing to take the time to search your site especially when there are millions of other sites offering the same information and who have the contact info displayed on every page.

I think some people hide their contact information because they don’t want to be inundated with questions from visitors. But those visitors have money and a little contact can convince them to stay with you instead of moving on to the next site. Also potential customers are not the only ones who use the contact information.  I have had media contact me through my website for interviews that have led to great  PR.

When I first started Work-At-Home Success in 1998, there weren’t very many other work-at-home websites on the net. In fact, I can only think of one other. I could get away with a hard to use site. But today there are thousands of sites and more coming online everyday. People are looking for information…information they can trust. So having a site that is easy to enter and use is crucial. And because people need to know there is a real person behind the scenes, making it easy for them to provide feedback, ask questions, and yes, even complain, is also important.

Sparkplugging is continuing our tradition called ‘Spark an Idea Thursday’. Each week we’ll be sharing some great ideas for a topic of interest to our readers. We invite you to grab our image and carry the tradition through to your own blog! If you do, please link back to this post so we know where you were inspired!

A few months ago I wrote a post about Avoiding Work-At-Home Weight Gain which gave some tips on how to keep from gaining weight with the fridge nearby all day.While working at home gives busy moms more flexibility in their schedule to exercise and meal plan, it also uses less calories than working outside the home. The results often mean extra weight and less energy.

I have to confess here that I am an AFAA certified fitness instructor which only means that I know a lot of information about health and fitness, not that I’m tiny and tight.  I’m not your typical instructor. I’m not a fitness enthusiast. I exercise because its important to good health, like brushing my teeth. Plus I get paid to exercise which is likely the only way I’ll stick to it.  I’m not perky which I think used to be a requirement to be an aerobics instructor. And I carry about 15 pounds extra than I should.

With that said, I do try to maintain a fitness and eating plan because I sit a lot during the day and I’m getting older. The older you get the more important fitness and good health becomes to maintaining an active lifestyle. So here’s what I do…or at least try to do to be a healthy homepreneur:

I try to exercise 4-5 times a week. I’m not a morning person so I don’t hop out of bed and go for a run. But neither can I muster the energy after lunch. So I try to exercise sometime between 10 am and noon. This is one of the advantages to working at home; the flexibility to exercise at the peak time for me.

I usually run for 30-40 minutes. I don’t like running much, but it gives me the most burn for the buck. In the winter I run on a treadmill which I HATE, but I can mix things up by choosing a hill option one day and intervals another day. Good music or videos on the iPod can help…a little.

I teach two classes a week; one on core strength and another on total body toning , so that gives me my strength classes. Weight bearing exercise is very important to preserve bone density. Further the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn in everything you do!

Stretching is important as well. Its crucial to injury prevention particularly as you get older. Taking 10-15 minutes after a cardio workout to stretch is the perfect time as muscles are warm. At the very least I stretch my ham strings (the most prone to being pulled), quads, back and chest (helps with posture).

If you don’t like lifting weights or stretching, try a yoga class. Many people mistakenly think yoga is all about meditation and relaxation. Yoga people are deceptively strong. They are flexible and have great endurance. Yoga moves build over all body strength and improve balance, another important skill people should have as the get older.

Eating is really where I struggle the most. I don’t like breakfast, but studies show that people who eat it struggle less with their weight (assuming they eat a healthy breakfast). The most difficult thing for me is snacking. At 4 pm and 8 pm I get the munchies. One trick that helps keep them at bay is to keep busy. The minute I start watching tv is when the munchies attack. Another thing I try to do is to eat something every 3-4 hours so I don’t get too hungry.

As far as what I eat; I try to stick to the healthy diet of lean proteins, vegies, fruits and whole grains. There are a ton of diets on the market, but if you pull out the basics of each, it comes down to eating the right foods in the right amount of calories.When I can’t stand it and need to spurge, I’ll try to have unbuttered popcorn (I use spray oil and sprinkle with popcorn toppings for taste) or fruit as they can be filling and are good for you.

I’m a chocoholic and don’t plan to quit anytime soon. When I can afford the splurge I buy gourmet 70% chocolate (I like Lindt). Dark chocolate is good for you in moderation. I limit to about 150 calories when I eat it.

I also try to have  a sleep schedule. Studies show that people who don’t sleep at least 8 hours a night are heavier than those that do. I don’t know why, but I like to sleep and I like to be thin so I’m willing to try it:)

I get email often from people who are putting the advice of work-at-home experts to use, but aren’t finding the success. I can relate to these emails filled with frustration because I was there too…in fact, sometimes I’m still there.

If you’re struggling to find the right work-at-home option or to make it work, here are some tips to help pull you through:

1) Have realistic expectations: We live in a a society focused on instant gratification, but the odds of deciding to work at home today and actually making money at it tomorrow are slim. Depending on what you choose to do, it can take 6 months to 2 years to create a work-at-home income. Not only do you need to be realistic about the time frame in reaching work-at-home success, but you also need to choose realistic methods. People don’t pay the mortgage doing surveys or reading email, neither do they simply sign up for something and make money. Working at home takes work. Lots of it!

2) Do your research: The best way to develop a realistic expectation related to working at home is to educate yourself about telecommuting and home business. Research will teach you what it takes and how long it takes to really work at home, help you avoid scams, and keep you focused on the activities that make money.

3) Look for opportunities that fit your skills and interests: Too many people look for the fast, quick buck and end up wasting time and money as these opportunities almost always turn out to be scams or deceptive schemes. Instead, make a list of all your skills, experiences, interests and hobbies, and search for jobs or home business ideas that fit what you know how to do. You’re more likely to be successful pursuing your passion than the money.

4) Evaluate your efforts: If you aren’t getting results from a job search, have someone look over your resume, and make sure you are qualified to do the job. If you are trying to build a home business, evaluate your marketing methods to see what’s not working.  I’m told that airline pilots are off target more times than not. Its the constant evaluation and tweaking that keeps on the right path and gets them where they want to go. The same is true in working at home. Evaluate and make changes as needed to reach your goal.

5) Keep on keeping on: I haven’t met anyone that hasn’t spent a great deal of time and effort to work at home. The one thing that separates them from others who aren’t successful is that they never gave up. They kept on learning about working at home, searching and applying for the right opportunities, and evaluating their efforts until they finally reach their goal.

6) Know that frustration is part of the process. As I right this, I’m in the middle of trying to figure out the best course of action to make up for a loss I’m about to take on one of my income streams. I hate that! I like it best when everything is going to plan. But life isn’t like that. Bad things happen. Frustration and disappointment are a part of life and a part of working at home.

7) Keep your eyes on the prize! Why do you want to work at home? To be with the kids? To have financial security? When things get tough, you need to remember the whole reason you started your journey in the first place. Your “why” for working at home is the fuel that drives you to success.

There is a saying about the only certainties in life are taxes and death. In the work-at-home world, there are some certainties as well and those are that you’ll be frustrated and disappointed. But these are temporary if you are able to manage the difficult times and forge ahead towards your goal.

Sparkplugging is continuing our tradition called ‘Spark an Idea Thursday’. Each week we’ll be sharing some great ideas for a topic of interest to our readers. We invite you to grab our image and carry the tradition through to your own blog! If you do, please link back to this post so we know where you were inspired!

Up until a year and a half ago I always bought Toshiba laptops. You’d think that after owning two and having a positive experience them I’d have stuck with Toshiba. But when it came time to replace my last computer, I ended up buying an HP. Like the Toshiba the HP has functioned as expected. But not long after I bought the HP I had an issue that required tech help. The initial call went like any other tech call and ended with the suggestion that I do a re-format (I accidentally downloaded something bad). Two days later I got a call from the very same tech support person that had helped me. She called me! She asked if the reset went well or if I needed more help. Wow!

The point of this story is that I was happy with the Toshiba and the HP computers. Both worked as expected. But then HP did something Toshiba never did. It wow-ed me by offering something more than I’d expected. It called me back to make sure my issue was resolved.

When it comes time to replace my HP, I’m more likely to stay with HP because of the extra step they took to follow up with me. Had it not done that, I could have stayed with HP, gone back to Toshiba or chosen a different brand.  It shows that simply being good and providing what’s promised, isn’t enough to insure customer loyalty. Instead, consumers today are more likely to stick with you if you can wow them.

How can you create wow and set your business apart from others?

1. Offer more than what you promise. Its like the baker who throws in the extra pastry to make 13 instead of the even 12. For the customer its unexpected and appreciated. It creates a situation in which the next time the customer needs something that they think of you because you offer more.

2. Be willing to go the extra mile. Like HP, taking the one extra step to insure your customers are happy with your product or service will create that wow experience. This can be done in a variety of ways such as offering more than promised (#1).  It can also include helping customers find the right resource if you’re unable to help them.

3. Have stellar customer service. I believe customer service should be a part of a business’ marketing plan. Nothing can hurt your business faster than poor customer service. Wow customer service should have customers feeling like your company really cares about them, sort of like how HP made me feel.

With so much competition for business, the key to success is to have your customers walk away thinking WOW. The wow factor can build your business through the two best marketing efforts there are: 1) customer loyalty and 2) word-of mouth referrals.