A web agency weblog

My list of 5 blogs in this Blogday:

• The Truth about Islam published just a few posts but they are still an interesting reading.
• The No God Blog includes well written articles for clever atheists, and theists too.
• Clientcopia. Can’t live without them, can’t live with them. Wait. I could try living without them! At least without the ones this site mentions.
• The Long Tail. If you were living in a Hussein-style cave for some months then you should read Anderson’s blog to get back on track.
• Change This. Well thought manifestos. Worth taking the time to read many of them.

Google Checkout, considered by many the alternative to Paypal, was launched today June 29, 2006. Although the system doesn’t allow user to user transactions like Paypal, yet, I think is an alternative worth trying.

Sites such as Buy.com, Timberland.com, Jockey.com, Starbucks.com and Levis.com are already offering their clients the altenative to use the new system to make their purchases.

Citibank has co-partnered with Google and it’s offering rewards to their credit card clients signing up to the system.

Google Checkout allows you keep your credit card information with them and just use a password to pay in sites using the system. You can link to Gmail account with your Checkout account.

If you run a website you can create Google Checkout buttons and start receiving payments from visitors that don’t want to reveal their credit card data.

Google Checkout charges merchants US$ 0.20 and 2% per transaction (compared to Paypal’s US$ 0.30 and 1.9%) and has some added benefits for those using their Adwords pay per click program:

• You can have free transactions for sales up to ten times your monthly Adwords bill. If you are already an Adwords client and spend, for example, US$ 500 a month in ads, you can process US$ 5000 with Google Checkout and pay no comissions. A nice way of linking both services.
• Adwords ads of sites using Google Checkout will show an icon that could increase exposure and improve CTR.

I signed up for an account just a few hours ago and I’m waiting for a microdeposit from Google, similar to Paypal or Google Adsense when using ACH, to start my testing.

I’m currently using a United States based account and can’t confirm if Checkout is available to other countries, I’d like to know if some of you can tell us about it.

I’ll have more comments in a few days.

After a few weeks of designing and programming I have a new site ready: Telework People.

You will find information about my book, discussion forums for teleworkers and articles about many subjects for all of you living, and making businesses, online.

There’s an Spanish version available at Teletrabajo Hoy.

Cheers.

Well, ISBN are already registered, all the contracts signed and proofs revised. Telework People is on its way to Ingram.

What does this mean?

It means that soon, during the next two or three weeks, my first book will be available in many bookstores around the world: Amazon, Powells, Barnes & Noble, Diesel Books and a lot more.

The new web site design is almost ready and I hope to have it running when the book is launched worldwide. For now, you can register to be notified when the day comes.

Meanwhile, in my headquarters, May is now officially named the teleworking month.

Good news today: FeedBurner Email is already available. A free service that allows your readers to subscribe using just email.

Quite useful for those users not familiar with a feed reader.

Want to know how to use the Internet and your current skills to work away from the office and spend more time with your family?

In Telework People I’ll tell you how to do it.

Teleworking, or telecommuting, means doing your job away from the conventional office. It means working online. From anywhere.

You can earn much more money than you’re currently making by teleworking, but to do so you need to know a few tips and techniques I’ll share with you.

Get the book today for only US$ 22.22:

Update: You can now get the printed edition at Lulu.

disponible en español

Who’s This Book For?

Everybody can telework! No matter if you are an employee, busy manager or entrepreneur. You can start teleworking today.

You will find useful advice and ideas in this book.

Forget about rush hour, endless meetings with a stressed boss or the annoying chit chat of the guys in the next cube.

You can telework from home, a coffee shop, a bench in the park and even from a plane 35,000 feet up!

Teleworking is about people, and that’s why I’ve included cases from people I know. Friends and colleagues all over the world.

You’ll also know what I’ve learned in the last eight years, while working happily from home, including my mistakes, so you won’t repeat them.

Grab a free sample of the book

What Does The Book Contain?

In this 140 page downloadable PDF book you’ll find:

• The benefits of teleworking
• Ideas for convincing your boss to let you work from home
• What you need to telework
• Jobs suitable for teleworking
• How to start
• How to manage an online team
• How to spend more time with your family
• How to avoid becoming a workaholic
• Real cases from my friends and colleagues in many countries
• Useful resources for teleworkers

Unconditional 60 Day Money Back Guarantee

If for any reason you think this book is not for you, you can get an immediate refund. No questions asked, just contact me and let me know.

How To Buy?

Telework People costs only US$ 22.22. You can buy using any major credit card or Paypal.

You will receive an email with a link to download the PDF once you complete your order.

Get the book and start teleworking, and changing the way you live and work, today.

Update: You can now get the printed edition at Lulu.

disponible en español

An hilarious post from the guys at the Basketbawful: The Gatorade Conspiracy. Subliminal marketing?

You may already know I am writing a book, actually an ebook, it is an ebook about teleworking, or telecommuting if you prefer that term.

I will be launching a web site dedicated to the book, and all things teleworking. I already registered the domain name, and I think is a good one. My writing is progressing and I already started thinking about the best way to distribute the ebook online.

To begin with, I will use some pay per click campaigns to attract targetted traffic to the new web site, then I plan on maybe making the book available in other sites. That is why I am writing this post, I would like to know your suggestions and experiences with ebook distribution services.

I have reviewed Lulu, I like their community and the possibility of print on demand publishing and ebook distribution. They allow me to distribute a book through well known stores such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble, although it seems this is only for the printed editions.

I have also found ebook stores like eBookMall and Mobipocket that offer distribution of ebooks but I am still searching for testimonials of their customers to see how well they work.

Most of the sites I have reviewed have a non exclusive agreement, which is good, but royalties are sometimes too low and some charge additional fees.

What are your ideas on ebook publishing and distribution? Should I just sell it on my site? Will it be worth selling my ebook through other sites?

Technorati tags: ebooks | telework | telecommuting | publishing

Hello, I’ve posted a thread in Forums Ventanazul for sharing our teleworking experiences, it’s a part of my research for the book I’m writing on the subject.

I invite you all, my fellow teleworkers, to participate and be a part of the project.

I got it, I really did.

Today Freepay confirmed me that my free iPod is being shipped soon, I’m already counting the days. At the end I got 8 persons signing up as my referrals, I just needed 5 to win the gizmo.

Now I’ve started to get referrals for winning an iPod Shuffle, I only need 3 persons and guess it should be easier than the iPod (which took me a very loooong time).

The iPod Shuffle is only 1Gb but it’s so tiny, portable and good looking that I’m sure my daughter will love it, she loves all things small. She could even use it for playing with Barbie, Ken and the whole gang (they had a party at home today but with no music, sad, uh?).

Thank you all of you who helped me winning the iPod, now you can help me on getting the Shuffle. What do you think?

A shot of the family pet, Aragorn, with my little Beatriz.

What do you think?