| Tomorrow: How I Accidentally Became a Professional Blogger Posted: 02 May 2011 03:42 PM PDT Tomorrow I’m going to be posting a very long piece about how I accidentally became a professional blogger in 2001. In it, I’ll reveal for the first time how I started this website. I hope that you’ll return to read it. It’ll be live on the site tomorrow morning. I look forward to your comments. 
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| Making Money Helping Others Save Posted: 02 May 2011 11:00 AM PDT 
Whitney Zimet’s friends joked that she was a “maven.” Whenever they needed to know about the local deals before shopping, they would give her a call. After a while, so many people reached out to her that she decided to put it all in one place. According to South Florida Parenting, that place is a website called I am the Maven. In 2008 she founded I Am the Maven, a marketing company that promotes businesses, primarily in the south Miami-Dade area, to South Florida moms and dads. The Coral Gables mom of Ava, 8, and Henry, 4, works from home managing her website, which offers coupons, contests and giveaways. Twice a year she distributes her signature black-and-pink coupon-stocked maven bags to Miami-Dade schools. Zimet also emails a weekly newsletter to almost 7,000 subscribers. With a background in corporate marketing for Redken in New York City, Zimet said she wanted to start a home-based business that would combine her strengths. Coming up with a name was the easy part. “A maven is a go-to girl, someone who always has the best recommendations and the compulsion to share it,” she said. Start-up costs totaled about $10,000 for her initial website design in 2008, then a redesign in 2010 that added contests, promotions and videos. Her first distribution of maven bags, which included a die-cut sheet of 10 coupons, went to 1,000 recipients in six schools. Since then, more than 30,000 bags have been distributed. Zimet now gives out bags twice a year in March and September. The core of her business is the “maven-approved” companies that receive her stamp of approval. Though local businesses pay her a promotional fee, Zimet said she is extremely picky about whom she promotes.
Is there a need for a “maven” in your community? Screenshot from I am the Maven 
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| Little Impact From Social Media On Sales Posted: 02 May 2011 10:00 AM PDT 
It is often argued that social media helps companies reach out to their customers. The more they reach out, the more money there is to be made. However, USA Today says a new study is arguing that social media has no real effect at all. The report, a collaboration between Forrester Research and GSI Commerce, analyzed data captured from online retailers between November 12 and December 20, 2010. The research shows that social media rarely leads directly to purchases online — data indicates that less than 2% of orders were the result of shoppers coming from a social network. The report found email and search advertising were much more effective vehicles for turning browsers into buyers. “The best analogy is in the South, a lot of people go to church on Sunday,” says Fiona Dias, executive vice president of strategy and marketing for GSI Commerce. “If you go with the theory that you should market where the people are, then you should be running off to market during church services. Facebook has the same analogy. Buying things from retailers is maybe 10th on the list of things they want to do on Facebook.” Dias says social media outreach is somewhat effective for distributing news about short-term deals. In that case, 5% to 7% of purchases are influenced by social media activity.
Photo by Kevin Krejci 
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| What To Know About Angel Investors Posted: 02 May 2011 09:00 AM PDT 
Looking for an angel investor? Forbes has pulled together a list of things you should know about angel investors before you get started. Angels invest in people, more often than they invest in ideas. That means they need to know you, or someone they trust who does know you (warm introduction). For maximum credibility, start networking for potential investors to build relationships a few months before you start asking for money. A complete business plan is always required. Maybe friends and family will give you money with no plan, but angel investors expect a real plan. All professional investors know that entrepreneurs who start a business without a written plan almost always fail. A complete business plan is always required. Maybe friends and family will give you money with no plan, but angel investors expect a real plan. All professional investors know that entrepreneurs who start a business without a written plan almost always fail.
Photo by Steven Depolo 
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| 400th Anniversary of the King James Bible Posted: 02 May 2011 06:29 AM PDT Four hundred years ago, on May 2, 1611 the Church of England published the King James Bible. The translation took forty-seven men seven years to complete. During the 14th – 16th centuries, the idea that the common man should be able to read the Bible in his own language was incredibly controversial. The idea was so radical that some people were killed for their translation efforts. While the KJV was not the first translation of God's Word into English, it has been one of the most influential in making Scripture widely available to everyday people in their own language. The original book was very large: approximately 17” tall, 30” wide when opened, and it weighed up to 30 pounds! 
Full size here. 
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