I'm getting ready for 2013 here at GetCalhoun.com with a new advertising outlook for my customers.
The stated mission of GetCalhoun.com has been to provide affordable web advertising that sells for all, no matter the size of the business. I consider that the above prices are fair for me and thee.
However, due to circumstances out of our control, we find ourselves at the mercy of our own government in the form of higher taxes and lowered sales. It's a man made crisis, wholly fixable. Be that as it may, it's not fixed.
Therefore I decided to lower my charging threshold well below what I think it's worth to the both of us to earn new business. It is a FACT that every time I add an advertising page, it helps all other advertisers.
So, did I lower my price by $50? $100?
No, my page price for 2013 is $50. Same great service. Same great offer of not one, but two pages, plus space on the front (index) page, and all the rest. Everything is the same, except for the price. A full year with GC is now $50. That's 1/6th the price of last year!
Of course, I run the risk, at this price, of some potential customers thinking that at this price they're not paying enough. In other words, of not charging what the service is worth. However, this could not be further from the truth.
GC at my old prices is a tremendous value, but at the new price is a virtual no brainer. No matter if you already have a website, or spend the megabucks elsewhere, there are MANY reasons to take a page here with GC. I will only be too happy to explain why, if you'll just give me a chance.
Just contact me, Norm, the owner and editor of GetCalhoun.com since 2002. 256-405-9713 or GetCalhoun@GetCalhoun.com. You'll be surprised and delighted with what you'll learn about the benefits of coming on with us. Benefits far beyond what you'll pay.
Now, at the risk of going too low with my Anniston advertising prices, I'll see what comes of my new strategy. I require the help and support of you, the local business owner in Calhoun County and the surrounding areas of Jacksonville AL, Talladega AL, Heflin AL, and Randolph County AL to make a go of it. Working together, we can whip this man made disaster we're facing!
Norman Morrison
Owner/Editor GetCalhoun.com
Length: 26,000 words. (A complete evening of fine reading!)
Rating: PG
Then, as luck would have it he discovers a world beating deposit of copper near Cowchip. He sets out to grab it, rooking the rightful owners in the process. This makes him a little happier, but drives not only his employees but the whole town of Cowchip away from him which makes him more miserable.
GetCalhoun.com, the Website of Calhoun County (and surrounding counties) Alabama has been around since 2002 serving the local interests.
In that time I, as the editor and owner have seen several "local" sites come and go. Mostly go.
GetCalhoun.com has had its share of challenges but it remains.
But the reason for this post is that I have had my challenges as well. Times are hard!
Hard times was part of the reason I developed GC like I did. Many smaller businesses can't afford so called mainstream media advertising. Ads on GC have ALWAYS been affordable as well as a good investment as far as the Internet goes anyway
Most companies can't afford television ads. Radio ads are always risky, because there are so darn many stations. You can drop a bundle very quickly with radio without seeing your money come back.
Likewise, newspaper advertising is gone in a day and is VERY expensive. Most folks simply don't have the capital.
All forms of advertising that you can get locally have their place. But mostly, it works only if you have a hot item that will show profit that you need to get the word out about.
The good news about GC is that for a small payment you get a page or two of advertising that lasts a year and is almost guaranteed to outdo your own website, if you have one.
Of course, I build complete sites as well.
Something else. Over the last few years I have also put in a lot of time in national and global Internet marketing. As Internet Marketers (IM) folks go, I'm in the upper echelon as far as experience and training. I have done so much of it that eventually, I got to the point that I even teach it to others.
But, with experience, sometimes comes wisdom. What I have learned...the hard way...is that very few IM folks ever "strike it rich." And of those, only a small percentage are actually able to make a dependable income
In short, Internet marketing should be approached as a really fun hobby, and not as a way to make a living.
The ONLY thing that I EVER found that works EVERY time its tried is a website like GetCalhoun.com...and I invented it! All that other stuff is just a colossal waste of time. Take that from a pro.
Therefore, if you're still reading, note that I have taken most of the information and links to my other IM work from GetCalhoun.com. I'm about 90% done with that stuff!
GC is much more like it was before my detour into the larger world of marketing. Now it nearly all local once again.
I confess that I never tire of visiting GC. Not working it...just visiting it. I love see the stats, make search engine experiments, and all of that web guy stuff. But mostly, I love to see the pages succeed in the search results for me and my clients.
GC is as much a part of the community as the Anniston Star, your favorite radio stations, your favorite television and cable channels. Even after a decade it is still loaded with potential, limited only by drive and interest to promote it to the county. GC is a UNIQUE website idea and model. That's saying something when you consider the millions of websites you can find to visit. Jeez!
Ok. Even as I'm getting out of outside Internet marketing, and getting rid of all the thousands of distractions those pursuits cause, it just so happens that I'm working my way back to my first love, and that is writing.
Thanks to the Amazon Kindle program I have several "books" published. For curiosity sake, perhaps you might be interested in taking a look at one of Calhoun County's oldest new authors..
See my books here... The Cowchip/AL Series
As of this writing I have five books in print with more in the works. They are all set in Alabama. Sorry, chances are fairly excellent that you won't find yourself in them. But you may recognize some of the locales. You will also recognize some of the characters in the aggregate, because they are us!
If you should purchase one or all, and you like them, I hope you'll leave a kindly review on Amazon.
So, thanks for your continuing interest and support of GetCalhoun.com. Be sure to visit my advertisers and tell them that GC sent you!
Thanks!
Norman Morrison
Editor/Owner GetCalhoun.com since 2002
Three questions to ask before you decide to write a book:
1. Who and where is my audience?
2. How do I publish a book?
3. Am I writing for love of writing or MONEY?
The Answer:
The answer to the first question is that whoever your audience is, you'll find them on Amazon Kindle Books.
Second question: You can use the time tested methods of relying on yourself, an agent, or the vanity press. Or, you can publish to the Kindle platform.
Thirdly: The ONLY reason to write is for some form of remuneration. That is validation for the writer. Getting paid means that your words means something. Else, stick to your diary.
Kindle book publishing is the answer authors have been seeking since the days of the clay tablet model. Only Amazon could have brought it off. It takes a company that big.
Once you decide to write, and to publish to Kindle, then what?
At this point you have two choices.
1. Do a ton of research to learn how to do it from free sources on the net. Normally, I'd pick this one, but having gone that route already, I can tell you from my experience...forget it.
2. Pay reasonable money for the best Kindle course on the market so that you don't end up laying down a faulty foundation before you write your first word.
Expanding a bit. There is free information on the net about how to publish on Kindle starting with Kindle itself.
The Kindle folks will get you so far, but then you MUST go further. After this, there is plenty of publishing information, but no so much as you might think.
What I learned is that much of it is out of date, and nearly all of it is misleading. You CAN publish using what you learn from free tutorials, but more likely you will wind up disoriented, confused, and miserable. More, if you do put it all together, you're going to end up doing MUCH more than you have to, to get your book on Kindle.
If you're skeptical, try it. Go free info, then pro info. You'll find, in the end, that I shot straight with you.
The Solution
I learned early on about Geoff Shaw's Kindling course, but being hard headed went all over the place trying to get the info I needed for free. But I kept going back to his sales page. Finally, I amassed enough education to get published...I thought. After I had pieced everything together I said to myself there MUST be a better way! Then I bought Geoff's course. It took all of about five minutes of studying to see that I had made the right decision.
I urge you to visit my Kindle Publishing Review to learn the whole story and then go on and purchase Geoff's course.
Even if you are already published, it's in your best interest. The fact is that there is MORE to being a success on Amazon Kindle than simply throwing up a story or book. You get ALL the right information with Geoff's course. I use it. So should you!