Saturday, July 15, 2017

B250 week 13

This is the next to last week of this semester.  Hard to believe.  This class has been a bit frustrating.  I only understand a portion of the stuff we have covered.  It is cool that we have had so much opportunity to explore analytics and such and I will play with these things in the future.  I really thought woorank was interesting and gave specific things I can do to improve my website.  I will definitely visit it again.  I do not know how to do some of the things it suggests but after school I will have some extra time to try to figure some of these things out.  I do appreciate the things this class has introduced me to.

Saturday, July 8, 2017

B 250 week 12

This week we learned more about optimizing our web sites and using social media effectively.  I have a hard time digesting and retaining a lot of this stuff at once.  I bookmarked some of the pages that looked particularly useful so that I can go back and use them later.

I have learned that original content is particularly helpful.  It is content not found elsewhere and any links to it will go back to my site.
I also need to add quick links to social media sites to make it super easy for users to share my site.
I also plan to come up with a survey - and more than one eventually - to find out what users most want to find on the site.

It has been a tough week because I have been pulled away from the computer and my school work too much - dealing with other people's problems.  I need to get more done on the site.

An interesting thing happened though - showing the importance of developing and not just letting things sit.  Last week I simply added an arrow pointing down so that users would scroll to find more information.  Since I did this, the conversion rate went from 2 to 32.  So, I got them to click.  Now I need to get them to stay.

Saturday, July 1, 2017

B250 week 11

Wow - only a few weeks left in this semester.  I feel bad because my website is not very developed.  I spend so much time doing school work that I have little time for the site.

This week we talked about landing pages and web site optimization and stuff like that.  I need to go in and make sure keywords are used effectively and also add original content that is shareable.  I will need to go back over my notes and make sure I do all I can to make my site easy to use and find.

One thing - I am much more interested in optimization than I am in google aps.  This is very useful information. Optimizing means to make sure that users find what they are looking for and can maneuver easily. I will have lots of work on the website to do over the break. I also have people wanting me to do sewing projects for them and I just can't do that until this semester ends.  I think the summer break will be so busy that it will seem gone before it even begins.

Thursday, June 22, 2017

B250 week 10

This week our goal was to activate an ad words campaign which I did 2 weeks ago.  Also, we are starting a project due in 2 weeks.  We have to change things in our ads and/or keywords and evaluate the changes in our results.  I have to admit that it is kind of fun to see things happen.  I am going to spend most of today working on that site.  I am starting to solidify - in my head - what I want to do.  Design-wise I just don't know.  I might talk to Renee because she is an artist and might have some helpful suggestions.

I have found this semester to be much more of a challenge than I ever expected college to be.  I always thought I was the smart one but -dang, this is hard.  Programming is kicking my butt.  I am taking less credits next semester but they are all programming classes.  I am more than a little afraid.

Thursday, June 15, 2017

B250 week 9

We learned about Google Analytics this week.  We did not actually learn about it but rather learned how to apply it.  I am not sure about the cost because the wording was vague.

I linked my AdWords and Analytics.  Analytics is tracking my website.

I checked my quality scores on my keywords and "sewing" is still the only effective one.  I will develop the site more and see what happens.

Last week I worked a lot on the site.  I liked the way it looked and then something happened and all of the pages became copies of the same.  I found out that it was because of the "footing" setting.  I turned it off and now I have to start over.  I have now got the "about" stuff on the home page and the "contact" page looks good.  Everything else is a mess and the Blog doesn't work at all.  I don't know how to fix that.

Such fun.  I thought using a host with "drag and drop" would make things easier but it is a real pain.

Thursday, June 8, 2017

250 week 8

This week I made a google ad.  That was cool.  I had to set my budget to 1 cent a day because my site is not ready to view and I don't want to throw money at it yet.  It says that I will not be billed until I spend $50 so that will means I get a bill in about 14 years.  HAHA

I am really having a hard time starting my site.  I know I am a capable writer but I am just afraid to make anything permanent.  I don't know why.  I am making myself crazy.  I have to force myself to do something this weekend.

Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Business 250 week 7 - Keywords

I understand the concept of keywords and their importance when trying to draw customers to your website.  I used to think it was all about being creative and finding a way to get your site to appear near the top of a search result.  I did not realize that you had to pay for this and it kind of makes me angry - not gonna lie.  I know it is progress and someone will find a way to monetize everything so I am not surprised - just ticked that now I am expected to pay for this.

My biggest issue with this is that they use the word "bid".  I am not 100% about this but it seems as if some really fast computer calculations are done every time a search is entered to decide who has the highest bid and who will appear at the top of every search result page.  So considering the fat that there are big businesses out there that can throw a lot of money at this ad stuff, how will my budget get me any results?  Am I throwing money away?

My daughter used to do a blog and she had a very unique name for her blog.  She would appear at the top of a search every time someone put in those words and even near the top if one or 2 of them were used.  My other daughter is an artist and uses a pseudonym when she posts art on any of her active accounts.  If you type in her Pseudonym tons of her images appear right on top because her name is unique.

The problem is that people have to be looking for them or they would not know the words to search for.  I can see the purpose of adwords because people don't look for unique names if they don't know to do so.  I just don't know if my money would be better used elsewhere because I can not afford to spend very much and my bids will always be too low.

Tuesday, May 23, 2017

B250 week 6

Thank goodness for an easy week in one class at least.  I have really been struggling lately.  Even though I am a junior in college, this is the first time I have taken what would be considered a "full load" in a semester.  I am not sure I will do it again.

This week we researched business organizations and tax and license laws.  I am a sole proprietor.  I don't know that I ever want to be big enough to ever be anything else.  My only motivation to ever be anything more would be to provide income opportunities for my children.  In that case the laws are unique.  A family business is not the same as a regular business. If this becomes a possibility, I will need to research this more and get an attorney to help me with it.

For now, I will start simple and see where it takes me.  I am doing this mostly for fun.  I love a project and an opportunity to put something productive out there into the www.
It is exciting to have my own space on the web.  I am not sure about the name but it is the first thing I typed in and it was available.  Now the hard part comes - building it up, making it useful and figuring out what to say.


Thursday, May 18, 2017

B250 week 5

This week was pretty easy in this class. Its a good thing because one of my other classes had me in tears and I still have not figured it out.  I have been wondering if this whole going back to school thing was a mistake.
So this week we visited my old friend Paypal.  I made a donation button for my website.  This, of course, meant that I actually had to start the website.  It asked for a domain name and the first thing I entered worked.  So it has a name and I had no chance to rethink it.  I am not sure how I feel about it but I hope it was inspiration.
preservecreativity.com
That's it.  I am nervous now about what comes next.

 Earlier in the week, we were asked to find websites like ours to emulate.  Honestly, I did the assignment but I wasn't really happy with anything I found.  I am sure I can learn from other sites who have done things successfully but I want to do things differently - creatively.

It was interesting reading about other ideas from my classmates.

Oh, and, I got an "A" on the big spreadsheet. That was a relief because this semester has been such a struggle so far.  Its good to see I did something right.

Thursday, May 11, 2017

B250 Week 4

My computer is still out of commission. The tech I spoke with from HP said the process would take7-9 days. Today makes 8 days and yesterday I got an email saying they should have it back to me by the 19th.  This is really frustrating because the computer is only 4 months old.

Luckily, I was able to complete the spreadsheet for choosing a product thanks to Google sheets.  It worked like a charm.  Thank you Brother Luke. 

Spreadsheets are pretty cool. Hopefully one day I will be good at using them effectively.  The ranking formula did not work for me but everything else went well this week.
I chose a web builder and host - webstarts.  I will be doing a creative blog. My biggest challenge will be to keep up with content.  I have a hard enough time getting school done every week.  I hope to find other people to help provide content.  I hope to make it a spot for creative types and for those who would like to learn new skills.

I am kind of excited but also nervous.  I am not really sure I can make it work.  This is my toughest class because I keep misunderstanding things.  On top of this I am learning html in one class, javascript in another and CSS in another. I feel like this is immersion therapy.  I hope I can actually learn this stuff.  It will be pretty cool if I can.  If not, I guess I chose the wrong path.

Thursday, May 4, 2017

B250 week 3

This week we learned a lot about wholesale suppliers and I found it very interesting checking out all sorts of suppliers. My head is reeling with ideas.

Then we compared affiliate marketing with drop-shipping.  I was appalled by the high penalties for returns with drop-shipping and also felt like the whole process was too much of a hassle for something that I didn't have a real connection with. I like the affiliate model.  I think it will become part of my final plan. I believe I can add other things to that but it is an easy way to start.

This class scares me a little. I am not afraid to admit it. Making a final decision is pretty intimidating. It is good to have the push though.  I have had ideas spinning in my head for a long time but never put anything into action. 

I am still worried about last weeks spreadsheet. Especially since my hard drive crashed this week. My computer and the programs on it are out of commission for a week or so.  I only have Chris' computer to work on and it is kind of a piece of junk.  It is really slow and he had no word processing program on it.  I tried to open word but couldn't get it to work.  I had to download Open Office.  I hope my instructors can open my files.

I could have used Hope or Renee's computers but they both have Macs and I did not want to deal with that.  Plus they are both in school and need their machines.  Chris just finished a semester and is on break.

Thursday, April 27, 2017

weekly blog for business class

This is a tough week.  I hope I have not gotten in over my head with this.  The funny thing is that I thought this class would be fun and programming would be tough.  This week programming was a breeze.

I am feeling pretty comfortable  using adwords so far but all the spreadsheets in my download folder are confusing me.  I spent more time on this class this week than on all my other classes combined and I am still not completely sure how to finish the yellow chart.

I am sooo glad I am not using a mac because my daughter is and she is having a lot of problems.  Her spreadsheets are not lining up properly at all.

So as to snowboards or chess, I think snowboards offer the best numbers - especially Burton snowboards as they have the highest number of impressions(17878.24) with low competition(0.22).



Thursday, March 23, 2017

Justice for All

It is interesting to read about the Constitution. Indeed it was inspired, but it is not scripture. Dallin H Oaks said, ”Reverence for the United States Constitution is so great that sometimes individuals speak as if its every word and phrase had the same standing as scripture. Personally, I have never considered it necessary to defend every line of the Constitution as scriptural. For example, I find nothing scriptural in the compromise on slavery or the minimum age or years of citizenship for congressmen, senators, or the president. President J. Reuben Clark, who referred to the Constitution as “part of my religion,”  also said that it was not part of his belief or the doctrine of the Church that the Constitution was a “fully grown document.” “On the contrary,” he said, “We believe it must grow and develop to meet the changing needs of an advancing world.””
While the men who gathered to established the Constitution were good, God-fearing men, they were still 18th century men and their ideals were far different from ours.  Many of them were slave owners.  They considered women to be property as well, with no rights and they had very specific ideas about what Christianity was. 
I personally believe the constitution was inspired in its language even though those who wrote it did not realize what they were writing. In its language, it provided for more in the way of liberty than even the founding fathers intended. The Declaration of Independence states that All men are created equal. This has come to mean all mankind. Those who wrote it obviously meant – wealthy, white males. However, this statement along with the purposely vague language of the constitution made it possible for greater freedom for all of God's children. It took nearly 150 years for everyone to be considered equal under the law. Those who wrote the Constitution did not really intend for blacks, women and the underprivileged to be part of the voice of America but the language they used allowed for it. I believe that was because they were inspired to use that language. They spoke of liberty but left out their own prejudices.
The preamble reads: “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. “
Words like, “people”, “Common” and “general” include all races and genders, and make it clear the intent of our constitution is to protect the liberties of all – not just the the ruling white males.
The Bill of Rights includes freedom of religion. It seems obvious that the main reason was to prevent the formation of a state-sanctioned religion. They most likely had ideas of what they thought a religion should be but once again, they did not clarify. So, when the gospel was restored, despite the fact that many people thought that talk of visions and latter day prophets and other things that challenged the notion of what Christianity was, were blasphemous, the constitution eventually protected our rights.
Wars have been fought, people have been tortured and persecuted and it has taken a long time to come to the understanding that we have today of what our Constitution means.
Despite the shortcomings of those who gathered to create this constitution, God established a nation where all of His children would be free to exercise their agency and worship according to the dictates of their own conscience.