A Hawaii writer's resource: Hawaii Publishers Association

For everyone living here in Hawaii, one of the things we're experts at is what it's like to live in Hawaii. We are experts about where the best place is to buy groceries, to get gas, to watch movies, to go for a hike. Name it, we're Hawaii experts of one sort or another.

Just think if we all had the gumption to write about our experiences. What stories we would tell.

And if at this moment you have a hankering to write about your Hawaii experience and perhaps make a buck or three for it, there are potential markets for your work.

A nice collection of links to Hawaii-based, Hawaii-centered publications has been provided by the Hawaii Publishers Association. I counted three dozen links to Hawaii-based magazines, 11 newspapers, 2 book publishers, and 9 "multi-title publishers."

Photo credit: www.hawaiipublishersassociation.com

PTR email for bucks--Do Your Homework First

If you grew up in Hawaii and are old enough, you might remember the TV show "Checkers and Pogo." Well, I grew up in Hawaii and am old enough, so not only do I remember C&P, I was even on their show.

One of my favorite parts of the Checkers and Pogo show was when they celebrated the birthday of one of the kids on the show. And one of my favorite parts of a birthday celebration was when the kid had a chance to reach into the penny jar to grab as many pennies as he or she could. Man, did I dream of having a chance to stick my big mitts into that jar to grab a whole bunch of pennies. Well, I never did have that chance when I was on the show but I did win a game that I entered, but that is another story.

Anyway, the point of this as it ties into to work-at-home is that those paid-to-read (PTR) email companies on the web are just like those pennies in the penny jar: there are so many PTR companies out there, many more than I imagined.

Currently, I am enrolled in three, and have earned about $70 from the three combined in about a month of occasional email reading for bucks. What gets me is that after checking this blog, the three PTR sites I have chosen are not even in the top 20 of the most favored sites.

What this tells me is that if I had done my homework beforehand, I might have made much more than $70.

So what I recommend is that you do your homework before sticking your hand into the PTR email penny jar. If you do, you stand to make some bucks, potentially a lot.

Photo credit: iolani88.blogspot.com

In-Home Childcare Business

I don't have the stats, but my guess is the number of parents who have to work to make ends meet and thus need childcare assistance is likely to grow.

As such, the demand for childcare providers is likely to grow. If you are considering establishing a childcare business in Hawaii, one place to look is PatchHawaii.org. Their website is very comprehensive and is worth a look.

On Marketing

Marketing is an important aspect of developing and growing an at-home business, and, for that matter, any business.

I will admit I'm a neophyte at marketing, but I hope to learn and apply.

One of things I hope to develop at some point is an eZine to spread the word about at-home business ideas and opportunities.

I found this blog post that has some ideas to consider.

Thanks, Mrs. Turner

My wife came home this morning and handed me a copy of a magazine titled "Start Your Own Business" (Winter Edition). I didn't ask here where she bought it, probably at Longs Drug in Kaneohe.

Whatever the case, I browsed through the mag and found some interesting articles, including ones titled "75 Boom Businesses to Run from Home For Under $500" and "Lowcost Launch" which listed 20 work-from-home business opportunites that could get off the ground for under $100.

The mag has a website for those interested: http://www.sbomag.com/

One of the many suggestions is to sell things online via ebay.com. I know of a couple people--my former officemate at work and my niece--who have done this as a way to make some extra cash and they had success. Even if ebay selling isn't for you, you might consider taking a look at magazine.

Thanks, Mrs. Turner. Appreciate the magazine.

What are the Top 100 At-Home Businesses for 2007?

I've been kind of slacking on staying up to date here. I have two other blogs that I devote my time to, but that's a poor excuse.

Anyway, guilt or responsibility compelled me to get to work here. In my continual wanderings, what I came across is a site called startupnation.com, which listed the top 100 home-based business in the United States. The winner in the "most lucrative" category: Medical Solutions International where Robert Woltz has grown a business that connects nurses on short-term contracts to medical facilities. The company grossed $11.2 million in 2006.

MSI has a network of more than 10,000 registered nurses with more than 500 actively placed at any given time in hospitals in the U.S. and internationally. Nurses get benefits, incentive programs, flexible work schedules, and long-term stability.

Startupnation.com has categorized the best home businesses in a variety of categories including most innovative, wackiest, grungiest, most wordly, and, my favorite, most slacker friendly.

To see the Top 100 list, go here.

Go check out what other people are doing.

Swollen Pickles and Goal Setting

Goal setting is a good idea. And it's an especially good idea for us work-at-home folks trying to make a go of things online.

I came across a site called Swollen Pickles. Can't recall how or why I came across the site. In any case, the bloggist here has kept track of his online earnings for 2007. He has set specific goals regarding the amount of money he wanted to make from his blogs and the number of site visitors he was hoping for. He also set a goal for his body weight. He then month by month posted updates on this progress toward his goals.

This got me thinking that I should set some goals, post them here, and update my progress. Not a unique idea in the blogoshphere but worth a try.

Even if you're not interested in goals, check out Swollen Pickles for some ideas on how he made money online in his own work-from-home scenario.