Interview with George Elliot from Frameyourpets.com

frameyourpets.blogspot.com is a blog that is an offshoot from  frameyourpets.com website.

Interview with W. George Elliott — President of Bengel Publishing Inc. Owner and Publisher, Similkameen News Leader

The premise behind Frame Your Pets is ‘Where Humans Learn Tricks’ and the concept revolves around Eddie the Dalmatian and Magnum the Cat discussing simple steps to taking better pet photos. The program is called the Paws ‘n’ Claws Pet Photo guide and is a 13-part sent direct to your e-mail inbox text program. The blog allows for photos and links and hopefully revenue generation. The target market is specifically pet owners, but hopefully pet owners with cameras. Since everyone pretty much owns a digital camera, it’s a no-brainer. The helping people/offer is a humourous approach to learning how to take better pet photos taught by the pets themselves.
 

 WJ: How would you describe your profession?

I’m the owner/publisher of a small town weekly newspaper. I’m attempting to expand into the internet with a variety of target driven products.
 
 WJ: How did you get into New Media/Online publishing/Online communications? Did you see yourself getting into this field early on? What did you used to do “in an earlier life” (prior career, if any)?

Well, I got ‘talked into’ posting some of our printed product online by a webmaster friend of mine a few years ago. We launched www.thenewsleader.ca at that time. I never put much thought into the potential online until that website started raking up numbers in the 800-1000 unique visits per day mark. It took me at least another year to figure out how to ‘grab’ some of that traffic. In November 2007 I got involved with the Global Cash Flow Network, which actually taught me quite a bit. I launched www.bengelonlinestore.com from there. Once I figured out affiliates I started to do other things with them online.
 
 WJ: What do you think are the turning points that helped make webmastering/online publishing/online marketing a lucrative business field?

Well, the fact that there’s an extremely large population base to draw from it very hard to ignore. With my newspaper, I have a limited market. Online there appears to be no  boundaries.
 
 WJ: In your opinion, what is the most exciting recent development in online publishing?

I think, since I’m still pretty new to this, the blog is probably one of the most exciting  developments. Free website hosting allows just about anyone the means to get into their own business at minimal cost. Those a huge developments versus setting up a storefront business.
 
 WJ: What do you think are the essential skills to become a successful webmaster?

Off the top of my head I think the Golden Rule must apply. After that, being helpful and willing to coach newbies are important.
 
 WJ: Being a webmaster has gone from being a one-person job to a field that allows specialization. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for your business?

I’m still pretty much a one-man show, but I hope to see this online division of my business grow to where I have to add more staff. It’s just part of the growth curve.
 
 WJ: Do you think the industry is regulated enough? Have the authorities or the Net’s relevant governing bodies become too restrictive? Which areas of online activity do you  think NEED further regulation?

I’m pleased to see many blog sites and communities (and affiliates) have strict guidelines related to adult and other questionable content. We need to keep those forms of control present.
 
 WJ: What are the challenges the industry is facing today?

I’d hate to see the day when free hosting, free web tools and what not are gone. Greed will determine the direction those things will go.
 
 WJ: What would your advice be to someone who is just getting his or her feet wet in online business?

Simple. Be patient. Don’t give up. Link, blog and advertise.
 
My latest website is www.frameyourpets.com and it was launched February 2008. I’ve since added a network of blogs to my ’stable’ of products.

Interview with Guy Patterson who maintains Security Blog Nullamatix.com

Guy Patterson maintains Nullamatix.com , a technology, development and security related blog. Nullamatix offers the latest news and commentary on trends in network technology, site development, and network security.
 
 WJ: How would you describe your profession?
 
I’m currently a System Administrator that’s responsible for just over fifteen thousand users, hundreds of servers, and a portion of security and network related issues. The fast pace, demanding environment forces me to stay current as technologies continues to progress. I love it.
 
 WJ: How did you get into New Media/Online publishing/Online communications? Did you see yourself getting into this field early on? What did you used to do “in an earlier life” (prior career, if any)?
 
Prior to creating Nullamatix.com and really getting back into the online community, I decided a career in marketing and sales was what I wanted to do. After establishing a secure position with a successful telco company (Sprint), my long time friends convinced me my talents, skills, and abilities were being put to waste. A week later, I quit my job as a sales representative and started focusing on my true passion, computer security, systems, and information technology.
 
 WJ: What do you think are the turning points that helped make webmastering/online publishing/online marketing a lucrative business field?
 
The exponential growth of Internet users during the 90’s, and still today, sure helped. More users mean more available consumers; more available consumers mean greater potential to sell products and services. People, although an obvious gross generalization, realized at one point the Internet would become as common as the telephone, television, and even electricity.
 
 WJ: In your opinion, what is the most exciting recent development in online publishing?
 
There are so many I’m unable to choose a specific at this time. I’m really interested in seeing Automattic’s continued development, that’s a start-up definitely worth watching.
 
 WJ: What do you think are the essential skills to become a successful webmaster?
 
This depends on a variety of conditions, including your definition of success. A set of skills every successful webmaster should possess, in my opinion, are: fluency in some form of server side scripting, basic organization skills, creativity, imagination, diligent work ethic, among others. Just as a side note, I recently read the term webmaster is no longer considered a reputable title, but should instead read web developer. Web development has become so expansive that becoming masterful at every aspect of modern web development is nearly impossible. When was the last time you spoke to a webmaster fluent in Photoshop, PHP, Coldfusion, .Net, Ajax, Java, javascript, database design and integration, XHTML, RSS, load balancing, query optimization, user interface design, etc?
 
 WJ: Being a webmaster has gone from being a one-person job to a field that allows specialization. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for your business?
 
Web development specialization is a huge advancement, not only for businesses, but for end users, too. The old saying, “two heads are better than one” comes to mind. When a group of specialized individuals collaborate as a team on a project, the end result is usually fantastic. Take a look at some of the amazing products Google’s released over the last few years. GMail, Google Reader, Adsense, all of which where brought to life by a group of specialized individuals working as a team. I’d say if this worked for Google, there’s a decent chance it’ll work for my business.
 
 WJ: Do you think the industry is regulated enough? Have the authorities or the Net’s relevant governing bodies become too restrictive? Which areas of online activity do you think NEED further regulation?
 
Yes, the industry is currently suffering an abundance of restriction. With the ongoing Comcast & Sandvine issues, the United States Government able to grant immunity to telephone companies charged with warrantless wiretapping, net neutrality at risk, where does it end? The United States Government has no business regulating any forms of communication, including the Internet. For organization purposes, I still like the idea of migrating pornographic sites to the .xxx TLD. The idea behind .com (commercial), .net (network), and .org (non-profit organization), which isn’t strictly enforced, makes sense to a certain degree. Perhaps the Internet would progress with greater efficiency, providing a new level of beneficial enhancements in a variety of areas: productivity, speed, ability to exchange information, interaction, and more. Anything’s possible, right?
 
 WJ: What are the challenges the industry is facing today?
 
I would like to see an increase in support and implantation of standardization. Web development standards and information technology best practices are in place, and they’ve worked; why not increase the effort toward ensuring everyone’s on the same page, no matter the subject? For example, if a set of Linux standards existed, I wouldn’t need to know whether to use emerge, yum, apt-get, YaST, apt-rpm, or urpmi depending on which distribution I’m on.
 
 WJ: What would your advice be to someone who is just getting his or her feet wet in online business?
 
Read, study, design, implement, test. Read, study, design, implement, test. Some of the most successful Internet marketers share their success daily through ebooks, blogs, mailing lists, and forums. Find the real marketers and read anything and everything they’ve ever made available. I personally recommend Darren from ProBlogger, Daily Blog Tips, Courtney Tuttle, and Alan from Affiliate Confession. Go crazy and never think an idea doesn’t have potential to generate revenue. Go ahead and experiment with blackhat techniques (nothing illegal or against any TOS, of course), dip into the overly saturated ringtones market, start a mailing list, write a blog, find something you’re comfortable with, and more importantly, enjoy. You never know unless you try. The more you try, the more you learn. The more you learn, the more you know. If these processes are consistently executed, you’re guaranteed to eventually generate revenue, which will only continue to snowball.

Interview with Dustin Verley , 19 year old internet marketer

Dustin Verley (also know as the Wealthy Hustler) is a 19 year old internet marketer and  entrepreneur. In 2000, he began messing with websites and now 8 years later he is running his own website and making money through internet marketing. His blog, Wealthy Hustler, was released in February 2008 and is now gaining quick momentum. The Wealthy Hustler blog documents how to make money online and earn freebie gifts as well. At the same time, it tracks Dustin’s lifestyle change from a small time internet marketer to a big time internet marketer (the level before Super Affiliate.)
 
 
 
  WJ:  How would you describe your profession?
 
My profession consists of two different careers if you will. Internet marketing and  entrepreneur. My entrepreneurial side emerges in the form of operating a website blog and a few more sites to be released in the future. My internet marketing side comes from promoting and marketing both online and offline products and services.
 

  WJ:  How did you get into New Media/Online publishing/Online communications?  Did you see yourself getting into this field early on?  What did you used to do “in an earlier life” (prior career, if any)?
   
I’ve had a few jobs prior to turning towards a internet career. Between 2004 and 2007 I had around 4 different jobs. My first job in 2004 I cut short and mutually terminated the job since I was in my freshman year of high school and wasn’t doing too good academically. The other 3 were jobs that helped me get through a few financial discrepancies.
 
I started website designing at the age of 12 (2000). Around 2005 is when I realized I was built to do internet marketing and although it took me almost a year and a half to two years, I finally put forth the effort in January 2008 and successfully made $402.95 (exact) on my first commission check. So yeah, I did see myself getting into the field early on but patiently studied internet marketing to keep from any issues.
 

  WJ:  What do you think are the turning points that helped make webmastering/online publishing/online marketing a lucrative business field?
 
I believe that the turning point is finding a problem and a solution when it comes to  internet marketing. The internet is called the “information highway” for a reason and if you discover a problem that you feel could solve many issues consumers suffer from, you’ve found yourself a winner. Its all about providing the consumer with something that will benefit them in the end.
 
An example would be a auto mechanic who has their own shop but needs to leverage the work by hiring another mechanic. Most likely, that auto mechanic is going to turn towards career sites like CareerBuilder, Monster, HotJobs, etc. He has a problem (needs another mechanic) and one of those three listed sites could be his solution.
 
 WJ: In your opinion, what is the most exciting recent development in online publishing?
   
The internet is always evolving with new concepts and ideas so I couldn’t really say. It  seems like every day a new idea emerges and becomes the new big hit. The most exciting  development came back in the 1990’s with the finding of internet marketing, or at least in my opinion.
 

 WJ:  What do you think are the essential skills to become a successful webmaster?

The determination has got to be the biggest. I’ll be real, I seen many people fail in the  long run because they couldn’t comprehend anything that has to do with websites. No matter whether its basic’s like HTML or CSS all the way to managing a website. You need the determination and patience. If you have neither one then websites isn’t for you.
 
As a side note, you don’t need to learn everything in website managing to operate a website. Although you can’t promote internet products through social media sites, you can always find a social networking site and get your little piece of the web.
 

 WJ:  Being a webmaster has gone from being a one-person job to a field that allows
specialization. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for your business?

As of this interview I only operate one website which is the online money making blog at http://www.wealthyhustler.com and the work load really isn’t as heavy compared to a E-Commerce site. Although when I begin adding new sites, the work load may pick up so it may need 1 or 2 additional people to maintain. But I’m about passive income so I’ll most likely find a way to set them on auto pilot where little to no work is required.
 
 WJ:  Do you think the industry is regulated enough?  Have the authorities or the Net’s relevant governing bodies become too restrictive?  Which areas of online activity do you think NEED further regulation?

I used to run a very small (5-10 listeners at a time) internet radio station. The one thing I discovered was the many un-licensed radio stations. The station I was running was for Indie (or Independent) artists. If your operating an internet radio station without the proper licensing that is NOT playing Indie artists, you may want to look into one. I’ve heard fines could be as high as $150k for EACH UNAUTHORIZED song played.
 
One other sector is internet taxes. I believe the U.S. government should make up some more laws that put internet taxes at ease. Right now, the only taxes I’m aware of is  self-employment tax. The great thing is though that things like your website hosting, your domain, your internet, etc. Simply whatever is required to operate your website business is TAX DEDUCTIBLE. That means you don’t pay taxes on that specific item. But don’t let it fool you, if your internet is used for both business and personal, only half of the bills is TAX DEDUCTIBLE.
 
 WJ: What are the challenges the industry is facing today?
   
Many people are providing fraudulent leads and sales. This gives internet marketing  (and blogging combined) a bad name because it turns advertisers off or requires them to put strict regulations in that is unsatisfactory to the legit performers. I believe that needs  to be corrected ASAP to help construct a better module for the legitimate performers and weed out the bad (or fraudulent) performers.
 

  WJ:  What would your advice be to someone who is just getting his or her feet wet in  online business?
   
Be Patient… I couldn’t say it anymore then that. Don’t believe those late night infomercials promising internet millions overnight. It could be possible to make internet millions, but not without the proper research, time, and patience. These are your 3 key factors you’ll want to keep in mind. If your interested in learning about how to make money online and receive free gifts, then subscribe to the RSS feed on WealthyHustler.com
    
Please keep in mind that until April 01, 2008 there is a $50 RSS contest going on. All  subscribers will be entered to win $50 cash. Good luck in getting your internet hustle on,  and as the slogan implies, Work Smart. Get Paid!

Interview with interface designer and entrepreneur Mike — co-founder of 9rules.com

Mike is an interface designer and entrepreneur who has been designing for the web since 1996. He is the co-founder of 9rules , a site showcasing great independent content from around the web. Previously he’s done work for a variety of clients including Northrop Grumman, Nike, Mozilla, Fox Corporation, as well as numerous startups and well-known weblogs.  He’s been blogging since 2003 and lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.

 WJ: How would you describe your profession ?
 
Well first that would involve picking a job title, and when you’re on a small team, titles become less meaningful since you have far more responsibilities than a simple job title would suggest.  At 9rules, I do all the design work, so I’m responsible for the visual look and feel of the website.  Beyond just visual design, I figure out the best ways for users to accomplish their goals while at the site, and that typically involves more than just design — it’s a combination of design, usability, and development.  I’d say my profession is still in the realm of crafting the user experience, but it straddles both the design and the programming world.
 
 WJ: How did you get into New Media/Online publishing/Online communications?  Did you see yourself getting into this field early on?  What did you used to do ” in an earlier life ” (prior career, if any) ?
 
I designed and published my first website when I was 13, on a free Tripod account, and then moved up from there.  I didn’t really get into designing and programming for the web until a few years later, and then once I got to college I started learning more specific web technologies like CSS, Javascript, Perl, PHP, Java, XML, and I tried to learn as much as I could.  Before I headed to college I knew I was going to be working on the web in some capacity, either as a designer or developer, and that’s pretty much where I ended up.
 
 WJ: What do you think are the turning points that helped make webmastering/online publishing/online marketing a lucrative business field ?
 
Paying attention to what users want and how you present information to them is a big deal in the user experience and usability fields, but when everyday publishers and marketers started thinking more about those concepts, that’s when I really noticed things taking off.  Good design isn’t just about visual design, it’s about anticipating a user’s movements and giving them what they want, right when they need it.  When this is combined with marketing and user research, you begin to see the larger picture about what people want on the web, and then you’re in a better position to create a business that caters to those needs.
 
 WJ: In your opinion, what is the most exciting recent development in online publishing ?
 
Now that weblogs are ubiquitous, people are really thinking about how to use blogs and micro-publishing to their advantage, rather than just saying, “I’ve got a blog, here it is!” and expecting the money or traffic to pile up.  It’s actually not even fashionable to use the term blog anymore, now what you’ve got is just called a website.  You might have the homepage pull in your latest blog entries, your sidebar has Flickr photos, your footer has Twitter updates, but they all work together to create an overall image of what your website is about.  Online publishing is becoming less about the technology and more about the content (in any way, shape, or form) and that’s a very good thing.
 
 WJ: What do you think are the essential skills to become a successful webmaster ?
 
Off the bat, the term “webmaster” connotes having skills spanning multiple areas of expertise, but exactly what knowledge areas are crucial to being a good webmaster are still up for debate.  In my neck of the woods (the design and development side of the web) people are expected to wear many hats, because creating and maintaining websites isn’t about “just” web design or “just” server administration, it’s about all things that go into producing a website.  If that means designers should be learning solid object-oriented development techniques, or developers learning that every pixel counts in a layout, then that’s how it should be because it helps the industry as a whole.
 
 WJ:  Being a webmaster has gone from being a one-person job to a field that allows specialization. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for your business ?
 
Even though there are now a handful of job titles for the same type of position — e.g. Information Architect, User Experience Designer, Interaction Designer for someone who crafts user interfaces — it’s still valuable to have multiple skills on the web.  This doesn’t mean you should have 70% knowledge in one area, 70% knowledge in another, and 70% knowledge in a third, and call yourself a master of all three, it means you should be hardcore in one aspect of your profession, then learn and become hardcore in other aspects.  If you’re a designer then you should strive to be a great designer, and that means having knowledge about usability, accessibility, business goals, all of which impact the design.  Once you’re proficient as a designer, then you should branch out and learn object-oriented programming methodologies, how relational databases work, how to develop applications with the MVC model.  The reverse is true for developers — put yourself in a designer’s shoes and learn about color theory, typography, etc.  Someone who has 100% of one skill will always be beaten out by someone who has 100% of two or more skills, any day of the week.  Forget specialization, learn all that you can, as much as you can, about everything that surrounds you on the web.  Be hungry to pick up new skills and dive in as much as you can.
 
 WJ:  Do you think the industry is regulated enough?  Have the authorities or the Net’s relevant governing bodies become too restrictive?  Which areas of online activity do you think NEED further regulation ?
 
I think the web and the industry is regulated too much, and absolutely no further regulation is needed.  Net Neutrality is a big deal right now, and it’s extremely important that access to the web remain open for all and not restricted by any corporations.  The telecom companies are upset that they’re providing all this bandwidth but reaping none of the rewards that companies who use their bandwidth are receiving.  Boo hoo, gimme a break.  Like AT&T, Alcatel, and 3M need any more money in their pockets.  The very last thing I want to do is have to pay extra money per month to visit certain websites, and if the companies who oppose Net Neutrality get their way, that is just what will happen.
 
 WJ:  What are the challenges the industry is facing today ?
 
I think the current challenges are more on the business side of the web, specifically within the “Web 2.0″ industry.  Starting a project or a website today is so incredibly cheap, it really borderlines on free if you’re the one designing and coding it.  The problem is that not every one of these projects makes sense to be turned into a company, but because people see gold at the end of the rainbow, that’s just what they do.  They spend months developing a web application that does something interesting and useful, they give it away for free, and then…. there’s nothing left to make money from!  People are building their competitive advantage up then just giving it away to anybody who wants it and hoping to recoup money on the backend by monetizing eyeballs because they see someone holding up a $100k Adsense check from Google.  There are many things wrong with that, and to make matters worse, investors are pouring millions of dollars into these “side project” companies with the same rose-colored glasses as the founders, and now they’re digging the hole even deeper. I have little respect for web companies who raise $5 million, hire a ton of new people, can never manage to make it profitable, and then turn around and raise another $5 million to repeat the process.  I have a great deal of respect for people who bootstrap projects until they’re profitable and then create a business out of it.  Taking millions of dollars in funding and not being able to create a worthwhile business is a catastrophe, no matter how people spin failure as being a learning process.  The greatest challenge facing our industry today is teaching entrepreneurs about the difference between a company and a hobby, between a side project and a piece of software that makes money, and between being frugal with expenses versus blowing millions of dollars of someone else’s money.
 
 WJ:  What would your advice be to someone who is just getting his or her feet wet in online business ?
 
I’d tell them to be everywhere at once.  Be on every social site reading the daily industry news, subscribe to as many good blogs as you can find, say worthwhile things in the comment sections of those blogs as often as you can, and always strive to learn as much as possible.

Interview with Web Producer and Designer Sean Tice

Sean Tice is a web producer and designer for daily video shows Wallstrip  and the forthcoming Moblogic.tv , which launches Friday, March 7. He lives in Brooklyn and spends his free time silk screening and blogging on web trends.
 

1. How would you describe your profession?
      
Constantly evolving. This is an exciting time for the web - more and more people are turning to the Internet to find premium video content you can’t find anywhere else.
 

2. How did you get into New Media/Online publishing/Online communications?  Did you see yourself getting into this field early on?  What did you used to do “in an earlier life” (prior career, if any)?
 
I’ve been using computers from a young age and am mostly self-taught in front end development and design. I’ve also always had a strong interest in graphic design and how images, words, and layout tie in to usability, whether it’s an ATM machine interface or a subway station. I considered architecture for a while, but found that web design and community management is incredibly similar in terms of employing creativity and organizational skills. The web is all about sorting and organizing information into an easy to consume, enjoyable experience, and I enjoy contributing to that space.
 

3. What do you think are the turning points that helped make webmastering/online publishing/online marketing a lucrative business field?
      
Strong open source publishing tools are key to legitimizing online publishing as something you can monetize. Automattic’s WordPress is a great example - here you have a robust publishing tool that encourages developers to build plugins to suit almost any need. The end result is a product that can operate as a personal blog or a destination for tremendous amounts of information (i.e. a newspaper or television network). With a strong tool in place, the audience comes in and the money follows.
 

4. In your opinion, what is the most exciting recent development in online publishing/website development/web production?
 
How the dots are being connected. Web 2.0 is all about social interactivity and, to a large extent, short form video content. The next step? Web 3.0, and something we’re starting to see right now - take all of that content and information and organize it for user consumption. We can syndicate anything, but what do we do with all of those RSS feeds? It’s all just information floating around, and you need a way to connect the dots between ideas, products, videos, whatever, for the user. Products like NetVibes, Adaptive Blue’s SmartLinks , and to some extent Facebook are heading in the right direction.
 

5. What do you think are the essential skills to become a successful webmaster/website developer/producer?
 
There’s a need for custom management.  That is to say, you can’t just have someone with little programming knowledge moderating a site. It’s crucial to be responsive to evolving wants and needs, and you need a webmaster on hand who can deliver those custom goods.
 

6. Being a webmaster has gone from being a one-person job to a field that allows specialization. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for your business?
 
It’s an excellent thing. It’s good to be a jack of all trades, but a fresh set of eyes can  only improve how you manage and present information. To that end, partnering with individuals and companies who specialize in any number of niche areas -relevancy indexing (i.e. Sphere), video distribution (i.e. TubeMogul), etc. helps you deploy a better experience.
 

7.  Do you think the industry is regulated enough?  Have the authorities or the Net’s relevant governing bodies become too restrictive?  Which areas of online activity do you think NEED further regulation?
 
Regulation stems from two motives:  morals/ethics and corporate fear. The former is always a touchy area, but it’s important to respect the values of people, i.e. whether a parent wants to limit their child’s access to questionable content. Ultimately it’s the responsibility of the user to make sound decisions about what they want to see and not see, but I also question the actions taken by governments who seek to stifle the flow of information (i.e. the Pakistan/YouTube debacle that led to a global shutdown of the site last Sunday).
On the other hand, the web has leveled the playing field and changed the rules for publicly traded companies that thrive on controlling how information disseminates. This is particularly true for the record labels and increasingly for networks and studios. Many are adapting, but some still cry fowl when they can’t monetize their content. Like anything else - planes replacing trains, cells taking over land lines - companies need to accept that information on the web flows the way it does, and adapt their tactics accordingly.
 

8. What are the challenges the industry is facing today?
 
How to monetize content. While companies like Google have nailed down text ads, we’re still in an experimentation period with video content. It’s hard to retain eyeballs when users are programmed to expect online content without charge or commercial interruption. We’re also seeing a bubble of tremendous stupidity. A lot of people in the industry have long forgotten the fallout of the dot com burst, and all of a sudden sites like Facebook are valued in the billions while their books are still in the red. Again, we need to rethink how we’re going to make money off of things users perceive as being free.
 

9. What would your advice be to someone who is just getting his or her feet wet in online business?
      
Keep content fresh and take user comments seriously. You need a reason for users to keep coming back, and while they’re there you want to make their experience as intuitive and enjoyable as possible. Users have a lot to say about how sites function so make sure you encourage their feedback

Interview with adult webmaster Johnny

Johnny is the owner of Ragingbucks.com - a fast-rising adult entertainment network. 
In this interview, he shares his experiences with online business in general. 
His experiences can help webmasters across the board whether they are in adult,
gambling, or mainstream fields.

1. How would you describe your job?
 
To sum it up in one word, unpredictable! Most of my days run smoothly but some days
can be pure chaos. I have to deal with server issues, unhappy affiliates, missed
deadlines, and customer support questions. However, I would never trade this job for
anything else. It feels great to know that your hard work has paid off and feels
great to see the profits that you have earned.

2. How did you get into this kind of business?  Did you really see yourself getting into this kind of business?

I believe being at the right place at the right time is the key to success. I was
a high school drop out who worked for an A/C company for over five years.  After
putting in over 60 hours a day and never getting ahead, I decided to look for other
opportunities. I spoke with a local buddy of mine in a Yahoo chat room to discuss if
there was any work available. While I was chatting, I came across a woman’s profile
that stated “Want to make money in the adult industry click here.”  I followed the
instructions and made my first million within three years.

3. What do you think are the turning points that helped make webmastering a money-making business?

Definitely, it has to be technology. Today, there are many opportunities to advertise
and communicate with online surfers as compared to a few years ago. Bandwidth, hardware,  software and url prices have also decreased. These factors have opened the doors for  smaller companies. I still believe it is easier to profit in the adult industry than in  the mainstream industry.

4. What is the most exciting industry-related development of late?

  Currently, I do not see anything that really stands out from the adult industry side.
I do notice the mainstream taking the lead in trend setting.  But in prior years,
the adult industry was setting the trends. But with new technology coming out, trends
also tend to fade. Right now, Web 2.0 social-networking sites are the hottest trends  in the adult industry.

5. What do you think are the essential skills to become a successful webmaster?

Webmasters must be patient, passionate, persistent, and willing to take risks.
The good old days of making BIG money the easy way on the Internet are long gone.
You have to come with a game plan and stick with it. You have to follow that game plan
until you have exhausted all other possibilities. You also have to be willing to accept
criticism, have the ability to network, think outside the box, and be able to push on
through rough times.

6. Webmastering has gone from being a one-person job to a field that allows specialization. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for the business?

For me, it has been a horrible thing. Unfortunately, it has limited my time to what I
can do on a daily basis. You need to have a solid team to run a successful business.
Don’t expect to run a multi-million dollar company all by yourself. You need programmers,  web designers, and customer service representatives that you trust to be successful.  All these additional expenses can cut into your profits. On the other hand, having those  much needed people allows you to focus on maximizing your abilities.

7.  Do you think the industry is regulated enough?  Should the authorities or the
    governing bodies become more strict or less strict?

These days, it doesn’t seem like the online industry can police itself so I have no
problem with the governing bodies intervening. They must do so within reasonable bounds,  without violating my constitutional rights. There are definitely some gray areas that  need to be addressed legally.

8. What are the challenges the industry is facing today?
 
I would say adware and spyware. There are many hard working webmasters who are not  receiving proper credit for the work and time they put in. You have adware which is  doing pop-ups over webmasters’ websites and interfering with potential sales that an  honest webmaster has worked for. Even though most adware is legal, it is very unethical  for me. I think Congressional intervention is needed to solve some of these issues.
These adware companies have BIG money behind them and this will be a tough fight for
the smaller guys to take on.

9. What do you think are the challenges that lie ahead for online businesses?

I would have to say saturation. Online businesses are popping up everywhere these days.  Anyone with basic computer skills and a little capital can start an online business.  The problem with this is, with more new webmasters and fewer new surfers on the Internet,  we are all fighting for the same traffic. Therefore, you need to make your product stand  out even more to catch the attention of the surfer. I still feel that it is easier to  generate profit in the adult industry than in the mainstream. Online security and identity  theft are some of the other challenges. The online industry needs to educate the surfer  on what to look for and how to protect themselves. Once we lose the confidence of the  surfers who enter personal information and discourage them from using credit cards online  for purchases, the whole online business model is busted.

10. What do you think are the new and exciting things ahead for online businesses?

 It is difficult for me to say as I sit back every year and figure out ways to excel.
Only time can tell but I am hoping I can spot the next trend so I can capitalize on it.
Everything moves quickly these days and the windows of opportunity are getting fewer.

Interview with Web Marketer Will76

Will76 is one of the Net’s leading marketers of webcam and streaming media sites.  He has been in the business for over 11 years and his business continues to expand every year.  His latest online offerings seek to help webmasters make the right decisions in picking the right sponsors and provide them with industry information. His websites are http://www.referralmatrix.com and http://www.viraldiscussions.com.

1. How would you describe your job?

I work about 80 hours a week. I go to work around 10 am and sign off at about 3 am. I manage my business and spend most of the day monitoring its progress and going over new projects. I still do some tasks but I try to delegate as much as possible. Explaining what needs to be done and supervising work have become full time jobs as well. In addition to my online business, I am also involved in a real-estate business that builds and sells new houses.

2. How did you get into this kind of business?  Did you really see yourself getting into this kind of business?

I got into the business by chance. I had been online since 1996 but spent most of my time meeting girls. I didn’t envision making money online until I discovered ifriends.com in 1999. I set up a webcam and suddenly started making money. I was working as a bartender at the time and I was in my last year of college. I started making more money on webcam a few hours a week than I was making from bartending 25 hours a week. I saved up money and made an investment of about $4,000 which went towards new computer equipment and a designer to create my first membership site. I started making good money from my first website so I put my career on hold and expanded my online company.

3. What do you think are the turning points that helped make webmastering a money-making business?

The keys to my success were investing what I made and never getting comfortable. In the first couple of years, I put all the profit back into my online business. After a few years of doing that, I started investing into real-estate to diversify. I didn’t buy all the toys and nice houses like most people. Instead, I paid off credit card debts, lived very modestly, and kept investing. I also never got satisfied. A lot of people will hit a certain point where they feel that they are making good money and then work less and waste money. I wouldn’t say there were any turning points for me; understanding those two principles from the beginning kept me in the right direction. I also try to stay one step ahead. As soon as you are making money from something, other people will try to copy you so you have to evolve and improve your product. Keep your competition one step behind you. The hardest part isn’t making money but to keep making money. 

4. What is the most exciting industry-related development of late? 

MySpace, YouTube, and Facebook; because of the type of value those sites were able to obtain in a short period of time. It is exciting to me that I could start something now and in a few years, it could be worth over one billion dollars. It is exciting trying to come up with the next Facebook or MySpace. I am working on some new projects that I hope can come close to achieving that type of success. I love the challenge and the money would be nice too.

5. What do you think are the essential skills to become a successful webmaster?

You need to learn and observe. Every “know-it-all” is broke for a reason. I learn something new everything day. You have to know what you are selling; what works and what doesn’t work. Know your customers and your market. You also need to have motivation and goals. Invest smart when you do make money and then make your money work for you. You need to be creative, think outside the box, and find something that someone else is doing and make it better.

6. Webmastering has gone from being a one-person job to a field that allows specialization. Is that a good thing or a bad thing for the business?  

One person cannot do everything. Sometimes it is better to hire someone else to do a job if it saves you time. Your time is worth money. If you can design and it would take you 20 hours to do the job, if you hire someone to do it and it would only cost you $200, which is the better way to go? That was the hardest thing for me to learn; to not try to do everything myself.

7. Do you think the industry is regulated enough?  Should the authorities or the governing bodies be more strict or less strict? 

I believe the industry needs to step up and regulate itself. I think that a line needs to be drawn that separates “good” business from “bad” business.  If you want to use spyware and help support sites that steal copyrighted content or if you cheat your partners or other companies, then you should be held accountable. The problem right now is someone can do all these bad things and are not being held accountable. If we can’t regulate ourselves then at some point things could deteriorate if the government intervenes.

8. What are the challenges the industry is facing today?

I think spyware is a huge problem that is going to get worse. Companies like Zango allow anyone to target your urls and basically hijack your traffic. There are other non-visible spyware programs that steal your joins behind the scenes.  Torrent sites and copyrighted content being stolen and given away for free are other issues. The traditional picture and video membership site model will have to change drastically in the near future if torrent sites are not shut down.

Interview with Thomas Suh

Books, articles, journals, and newspapers—you can get all of these with just a click of your computer mouse. Truly, the arrival of the Internet has made it possible for us to access an almost limitless amount of information that was once impossible due to location restrictions. Because of this, it can be said that, the Internet is one of the most brilliant inventions man has ever made.

But, even if the Internet provides us the means to acquire information, do you know that you would never acquire information from the Internet if it weren’t for webmasters?  Webmasters are the ones responsible for maintaining and updating websites. They are also the ones you have to thank for in keeping you supplied with fresh and steaming news and gossip.

In honor of webmasters and the Internet,  our feature successful online business man today is Mr. Thomas Suh.

A graduate of the University of California and an American Bar Association and California State Bar member, Mr. Thomas Suh has been founding, managing, running, and selling Internet businesses for almost a decade now. He is the co-founder of SB Suite and has worked as the Chief Operations Officer of DestinationRx.com. He is also the managing partner of the number one website that provides academic application essays, AdmissionEssays.com (link to:
http://www.admissionsessays.com/about_us/success_stories.html ). Currently residing in Orange County, California, Mr. Suh is also working as an attorney and has given consulting services to a lot of small businesses in the management and legal department. Aside from these, he also has experience in making legal, operational, business development, and legal plans for companies. 

WJ:  How would you describe your job?

A: My job involves general management of the website, marketing,
operations, etc.  I also spend most of my time looking for
new marketing venues and streamlining our order
processing.

WJ: How did you get into this kind of business?  Just a few years back, did you really see yourself getting into this kind of business?

A:  AdmissionsEssays.com was actually started by a
good friend of mine. I just joined in to help my friend in redeveloping the website and making grow. If it hadn’t been for my buddy’s vision to launch the premier (and only one of its kind) admission essay and personal
statement development service on the web, I don’t know if I would be doing this because I certainly did not see myself getting into this kind of business. Today,
AdmissionsEssays.com has helped thousands of applicants in college and in post-graduate programs achieve their educational goals.

WJ: What do you think are the turning points that
helped you in making webmastering a money-making business?

A: I think the continuous development of the web both in the marketing and operational aspect has helped me in making webmastering a money-making business. The web has evolved tremendously ever since I started in 1998 that running a web-based business today is so much more
efficient, cost-effective, and rewarding.

WJ: What, for you, is the most exciting industry-related development of late?

A: The most exciting industry-related development as of late for me is the continuous improvement in marketing channels. Blogs have now become a huge marketing venue, for instance. I also believe that we are going to see further developments in intelligent search, which will make
web searches even more targeted, thereby further
improving ROI on marketing efforts. This semantic-web
approach, or making search more of a guide than a catalog, will undoubtedly lead to incredible opportunities for webmasters and web-based businesses and it will improve customer and consumer satisfaction as well.
 

WJ: What do you think are the essential skills to
have to become a successful webmaster?

A:  ONE WORD:  Adaptation. Webmasters need to continually
adapt to the ever changing web. Successful webmasters will be those that remain flexible and are on top of changing environments.

WJ:  Webmastering has gone from being a one-person job
to a field that allows specialization, is that a good thing or a bad thing for the business?

A:  It’s a good thing. Specialization is just an evidence of how large this business has become. As industries grow, you need specialization to keep up with growth
and make things more efficient. At some point, the “one-man” shop hits its limitations.

WJ:  Do you think the industry is regulated enough? Should the authorities or the governing bodies become more strict or should they become less strict?

A:  It depends on the industry. Certain key areas should definitely be more regulated, such as anything dealing with children or other potentially
exploited groups. Freedom of expression and speech as granted by the First Amendment is well protected, but it does not mean anything goes. Authorities have the role and duty to regulate certain webmastering areas such as the adult industry, any environment that deals with children, and any group that needs the help of higher authorities.

WJ:  What are the challenges the industry is facing today?

A:  The marketing challenges, competition– the constant changing environment of the web overall are the challenges that the industry is facing today. While constant evolution of the web brings with it tremendous opportunities, it also bring tremendous challenges.

WJ: What do you think are the challenges that lie ahead for online businesses?

A: It is much the same as above.  But in particular, fraud is the biggest challenge. While most of us are online to make money ethically, the very nature of the Web attracts unscrupulous folks. This in turn leads to consumer suspicion and hesitancy to conduct business online.  This, of course, hurts the little guy on the web who has not built a reputation for himself.

WJ:  What do you think are the new and exciting things ahead for online businesses?

A:   As mentioned above, Web 3.0 will bring with it incredible opportunities. At the end of the day, the web is about one thing: information and the availability of it at your fingertips. As Web 3.0 becomes a reality, the web will be much more
 efficient, thereby leading to greater opportunities for webmasters.

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