Shukaitis honored by League of Women Voters Nancy Shukaitis was honored for her service to both the community and to the environment at a recent League of Women Voters dinner held recently at the Inn at Pocono Manor. [...]
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الجمعة، 16 يونيو 2017
Ground broken on Blakeslee project
Officials broke ground Friday, June 16, 2017 on a project to widen the intersection and add a traffic light at the New Ventures Commercial Park site entrance. Planned to bring new business and employment to the area as part of the Tobyhanna Township Village Improvement Project, the New Ventures site is on Route 115 in Blakeslee, just north of Interstate 80. From left: Mark Sincavage of the Monroe County Conservation District, state Rep. Jack Rader, state Sen. Mario Scavello, Chuck Leonard of [...]
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Source Business - poconorecord.com http://ift.tt/2sk1vg6
Traditional Grocery Store Threat: Amazon Buys Whole Foods
Online giant Amazon buys organic grocery store Whole Foods, threatening brick and mortar grocery stores.
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Source CBNNews.com http://ift.tt/2rF7z0U
How to buy investment property
There are a lot of pluses to owning rental real estate: diversifying from the usual investments of stocks and bonds; offering an alternative stream of income; and creating a potentially scalable business. But there are challenges, too — it requires capital, a time commitment and dealing with tenants. “Real estate investing is not for the faint of heart,” said Robert Dolan, owner of mortgage broker Capital Financial Group in Winnetka, Illinois. [...]
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Source Business - poconorecord.com http://ift.tt/2sBZQp8
More and More People Say Cable is Too Pricy — So They’re Cutting the Cord
More and more people are bidding farewell to cable, because apparently nobody has time to pay for the high costs.
Nearly half of cable or satellite users surveyed said they were planning to or open to getting rid of service, Consumerist reported, citing TiVo’s latest Video Trends report.
And about 80% of cable or satellite users who have cut the cord said they did so because of the price.
Leichtman Research Group found that 82% of Americans households watching television had a pay-TV service last year, paying an average of $103.10 a month.
Moving On to Something Better
Luckily, those fed up with cable don’t have to miss out on their favorite shows.
TiVo’s report found about 60% of people surveyed said they didn’t need cable because they used online streaming services. Over 54% had Netflix, 27% used Amazon Prime and just under 12% watched TV with Hulu.
Each streaming service has its own pros and cons, and if you’re wondering which would be best for you, we’ve got you covered. You can compare costs, the type of content, the number of available titles and more.
Live TV Is Possible Without Cable
Another argument for cutting the cord is that you don’t necessarily have to miss out on live TV.
In February, YouTube announced its new YouTube TV service, which we wrote about here. You need a Google Chromecast or a TV with built-in Chromecast, but the monthly cost may still beat your cable bill.
And for those fearing they’ll miss out on live sports — here are five ways to watch NFL games without cable. Maybe some of the money you’d save by not having cable could go towards buying tickets to a live game.
Nicole Dow is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She doesn’t have cable service or own a TV.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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University of Michigan Has a Plan to Help Students from Low-Income Homes
There’s a trend in the U.S. that just keeps gaining steam, and we’re loving it.
Earlier this year, five states and a couple of major cities announced that they will offer free college tuition to residents.
Of course, a few individual colleges were already providing their students with the extra help — but those are primarily private institutions.
Now, however, the trend is evolving, and a public university system has jumped on board.
The University of Michigan’s Tuition Guarantee
On Thursday, the University of Michigan announced its new tuition guarantee initiative, the “Go Blue Guarantee.”
For students with a family income below $65,000, which is roughly the state’s median income, the University of Michigan will provide up to four years of free tuition.
Students may also be eligible for additional assistance that would help cover non-tuition costs, such as housing and textbooks.
Although there’s already been some controversy surrounding this announcement, the university insists this initiative will not reduce any need-based aid for students from families who make more than $65,000 annually.
“In fact, many in-state students from families earning up to $125,000 a year are awarded scholarships and grants that pay half their tuition,” university officials said in a news release.
The Big Picture
The “Go Blue Guarantee” comes on the heels of promising first-year results of the HAIL (High Achieving Involved Leader) effort, which found that “targeted communication and simplifying the aid application process for high-achieving, low-income students markedly increased the number of those students enrolling at U-M.”
The HAIL pilot program is part of the university’s larger plan to bring more diversity, equity and inclusion to the school.
U-M President Mark Schlissel seems optimistic about the initiative.
“The ‘Go Blue Guarantee’ cuts through the complexities of financial aid to help us reach talented students from all communities in our state,” he said. “I have always believed that talent is ubiquitous in our society, but opportunity most certainly is not. The ‘Go Blue Guarantee’ helps us ensure wider opportunity.”
The program will launch in January of 2018, and we’re excited to see the results — and to see more schools implement similar programs in the future.
Grace Schweizer is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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The Gig Economy is Growing — But Is It All It’s Cracked Up to Be?
We’re firm believers at here at The Penny Hoarder that side gigs are a great way to earn solid money for bills or a few extra bucks for mad money.
It’s tough to know how many gig workers there are, but the Bureau of Labor Statistics is busy trying to collect those statistics right now.
Some researchers estimate it to be “about 34% of the workforce and [is] expected to be 43% by the year 2020.”
In other words, there are a whole lot of people out there working as independent contractors and freelancers.
In the job market, however, popular jobs aren’t always lucrative ones.
Analysts over at Priceonomics combed through a massive amount of anonymized data from loan applicants to find out just how much money people in the gig economy were raking in (or scraping together).
The results aren’t pretty.
Researchers found that 85% of gig workers make less than $500 per month.
Apparently Airbnb is where the money is. The room-sharing service ranked number one on Priceonomics’ list of top companies in the side gig market. Renters make an average of $924 per month.
Number nine on the list is social car-sharing service Getaround where people make an average of $98 per month.
That’s right — the average monthly income gap between the top and the ninth-ranked company is a staggering 90%.
If you love numbers, be sure to check out all the interesting ways Priceonomics sliced and diced the data it collected.
Where Have We Heard This Before?
The idea that the sharing economy so many of us rely on may not be all it’s cracked up to be sounds familiar.
Oh, right. NPR recently interviewed ridesharing service drivers and found the idea that gig workers can be their own boss doesn’t always square with reality.
Seth F. Is one of several gig workers chronicled by the New Yorker earlier this year. “The gig economy is such a lonely economy,” he said, despite earning $55 per hour as an independent contractor with a popular service platform.
But Wait! Here’s the Other Side of the Story
Whether you’re an hourly worker, salaried employee or independent contractor, every type of employment has its pros and cons.
For many, the benefits of the sharing economy far outweigh the drawbacks of an industry that’s just beginning to get it’s legs.
Entrepreneurs and workers with specialized skills can make serious bank in the gig economy by “moving from good jobs to great work,” according to Harvard Business Review’s Diane Mulcahy.
“Most important, the absence of job security opens up new possibilities for a portfolio of gigs to provide a more meaningful and robust sense of income security than any full-time job can,” she said.
With the sharing economy here to stay, some lawmakers are doing what they can to improve the worker experience. The U.S. House of Representatives and Senate are now considering a bill that would bring portable job benefits to American workers in the gig economy.
As the sharing economy gets its act together, one way to succeed is to treat your gigs with the same seriousness you would any other type of work.
- Do your research
- Think outside the box
- Pay attention to trends
- Use the right tools
Let’s be real. A career in the sharing economy may not be a glorious bucket of flowers every single minute but, really, what kind of career is? (Okay, maybe this one.)
Remember, if things don’t work out there are a record number of jobs open right now. The traditional workforce would love to have you back.
Lisa McGreevy is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She’s been a part of the gig economy for almost 20 years and knows it’s not easy — but it is worth it.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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This Site Actually Got Cheaper as We Added More Things to Our Cart
When I heard about a website calling itself “the ultimate shopping hack,” I had to investigate.
The site in question?
Jet, a “smart shopping platform” boasting that it turns “built-in costs into opportunities to save you money.”
Here’s how it works: When you add items to your cart on Jet, other products’ prices get even lower.
The more you buy, the more you save.
Plus, Jet offers free shipping on orders over $35 and free two-day shipping and free returns.
Sounds pretty good, huh?
I wanted to check it out myself, so I made my shopping list — and compared Jet’s prices on a dozen popular food and household items to those at my neighborhood grocery store.
(Spoiler alert: Jet was cheaper… but just wait until you see the final price.)
Because Jet sells many products in larger sizes, I sometimes had to use the grocery store’s unit price to determine a comparable price.
I figured I’d start with two of the essentials: cereal and coffee. Because, really, who can live without either of those?
1. Cereal
Cheerios (18 ounces)
Local Grocery Store: $4.99
Jet Starting Price: $2.98
2. Coffee
Folgers Ground Coffee (48 ounces)
Local Grocery Store: $16.82
Jet Starting Price: $10.68
3. Granola Bars
Nature Valley Crunchy Granola Bars (98 count)
Local Grocery Store: $25.68
Jet Starting Price: $14.23
As I continued down my list, I realized Jet has a ton of grocery items I buy on a regular basis, which made it pretty easy to hit the free shipping minimum of $35.
4. Soup
Campbell’s Soup (10.5 ounces; 12-pack)
Local Grocery Store: $21
Jet Starting Price: $24.46
5. Pasta
Barilla Spaghetti (32 ounces)
Local Grocery Store: $3.38
Jet Starting Price: $2.90
6. Vinegar
Great Value Distilled White Vinegar (1 gallon)
Local Grocery Store: $2.99
Jet Starting Price: $3.91
If you’re in need of household or family goods, Jet has those, too — so I surfed over to those sections next.
7. Diapers
Pampers Cruisers (Size 3; 174-count)
Local Grocery Store: $51.05
Jet Starting Price: $41.41
8. Laundry Detergent
Tide Pods (81-count)
Local Grocery Store: $21.93
Jet Starting Price: $18.99
9. Toilet Paper
Charmin Ultra Soft (18 mega rolls)
Local Grocery Store: $13.99
Jet Starting Price: $17.96
10. Dish Soap
Dawn Hand Renewal With Olay (18 ounces)
Local Grocery Store: $2.57
Jet Starting Price: $4.17
Last stop? Toiletries. Let’s see how Jet checks out.
11. Shampoo/Conditioner
Head & Shoulders 2-in-1 Dandruff Shampoo & Conditioner (32.1 ounces)
Local Grocery Store: $10.49
Jet Starting Price: $10.79
12. Toothpaste
Crest 3D White Luxe Glamorous (4.1 ounces)
Local Grocery Store: $3.41
Jet Starting Price: $4.24
How Much You Could Save With Jet
All right, here’s what you’ve been waiting for… the totals.
Local grocery store: $178.30
Jet subtotal: $157.48
Though that’s already looking pretty impressive (plus that extra $7.54 I saved when adding more items to my cart), there are still three more discounts to add.
Watch how they stack on top of each other…
- First-time shopper discount: Jet offers 15% off your first three orders (a maximum of $20 per order).
- Debit-card discount: Since it has lower transaction fees than credit cards, paying with a debit card saves you an extra 0.8% on each item, though some items might not be eligible.
- No-return discount: If you agree to not return certain non-perishable items, Jet will give you an additional discount.
Taking all of those into account (except the no-return discount), the TOTAL Jet price, excluding taxes, comes out to $129.22 — a $49.08 savings, over 30% less than the grocery store.
Holy what?!
Of course, you have to consider you won’t always have the 15% new customer discount; it’s only valid for your first three orders. But even without it, you can still save a significant amount.
And, you don’t have to go fight crowds, stand in line or even look for parking.
Want to give Jet a shot? Use code SAVE15 to get 15% off your first three orders!
Sponsorship Disclosure: A huge thanks to Jet for working with us to bring you this content. It’s rare that we have the opportunity to share something so awesome and get paid for it!
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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What Amazon’s Whole Foods Buyout Could Mean for Grocery Shopping’s Future
Whole Foods, the high-end grocer frequently referred to as “Whole Paycheck” by fans and foes alike, has a new owner: Amazon.
Amazon will pay $13.7 billion for the grocery chain, the largest purchase the company has made in its history, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Whole Foods hasn’t been stellar in the past few years, perhaps a side effect of an intense price competition across the grocery industry. The brand recently announced leadership changes, plans to finally implement a customer-loyalty program and increased efforts to cut costs.
Whole Foods, which has more than 400 locations across the United States, will retain its name.
A New Chapter in the Grocery Wars
The announcement could throw a wrench in the battle for grocery stores to gain and retain customers.
Walmart has been going head-to-head with Amazon, recently initiating two-day shipping on a boatload of items, offering discounts for ship-to-store orders, and even testing a last-mile delivery program. Walmart also bought up Jet.com and online apparel retailers like MooseJaw, Modcloth and, most recently, Bonobos.
Meanwhile, Amazon has taken over Shopbop, Audible, Zappos, Twitch and Woot!, among others during its tenure. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos also bought the Washington Post in 2013.
Amazon recently announced a discounted Prime membership for people on government assistance, likely a play to attract one of Walmart’s key audiences: low-income populations.
It wouldn’t be surprising for the Amazon takeover to mean lower prices for Whole Foods shoppers. The store had recently contemplated pulling back on its regional approach that diversifies product offerings, in exchange for stabilized prices across its stores.
Amazon as Retail Big Brother
When Amazon launched more than 20 years ago as a bookseller, could anyone have predicted its eventual reach?
Now, it’s getting harder to tell where Amazon’s reach stops and the rest of your consumer life begins.
Amazon Fresh, the company’s grocery-delivery service (a $14.99/month add-on for Prime members), stretches delivery beyond 24-packs of toilet paper to fresh produce, prepared food, and even products from local food brands — essentially absolving you from ever having to set foot in a grocery store.
Amazon Prime Now offers two-hour delivery on a variety of gadgets alongside restaurant delivery in more than a dozen cities.
Its private-label brands, including AmazonBasics and AmazonElements, are providing serious competition for some mainstay brands, and it’s pushing hard on its apparel sales by launching its own clothing brands — eight so far.
But its budding brick-and-mortar operations indicate the company’s willingness to meet customers where they are — just about everywhere. It has seven physical bookstores so far, opening them long after most chain bookstores moved out. It’s testing Amazon Go, a grocery and convenience store that doesn’t have checkout lines — your Amazon mobile app knows what you’ve picked up and when you’re leaving the store.
So you can stay home and shop or venture out into the world to spend your cash. Amazon’s ubiquity equals your convenience.
Amazon says it won’t lay off Whole Foods employees and doesn’t intend to replace cashiers with automated checkout, but that’s the news today. Next week could be a different story, or next year.
It’s not that Amazon is evil for trying to make shopping better, faster or easier. It’s just that Amazon has this way of sneaking into your life that’s hard to shake.
Longtime Prime customers have a hard time remembering what shopping was like before two-day shipping was the norm. Calling around to local stores to find the specialty item you need? Those days are gone, replaced by one-click checkout. And those delivery trucks clogging up your local bike lane? You know what they’re filled with.
What the average shopper doesn’t know is the risk of Amazon’s growing power. For every new project or innovative idea it presents to the public, the company has dozens more under wraps, getting poked and prodded to near perfection.
Amazon has a way of knowing what you want before you want it. And when it gives it to you fast and cheap, it’s hard to imagine wanting anything else.
Lisa Rowan is a writer and producer at The Penny Hoarder.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Having LuLaWoes? Here’s How You Can Make the Return Process Easier
When Karen Schmauss first starting buying clothing from LuLaRoe retailers, it was like an adrenaline rush.
She was a hunter, and her prey of choice were leggings and dresses and skirts with wild patterns she saw during live online sales. It was possible for dozens and sometimes hundreds of other people watch live sales broadcasts showing the newest patterns, but only the first person to type “SOLD” could purchase items.
“It was fun at first,” Schmauss said. “Thrill of the hunt, looking for pretty patterns, being first to type ‘sold.’ Now, not so much.”
That’s because after spending thousands of dollars, she had a pile of clothing she couldn’t wear.
She ended up with six pairs of defective leggings. Some ripped or developed small holes. Others were several inches smaller than others, even though the tags all said the same size.
And that wasn’t all.
Two of Schmauss’ T-shirts were fading and pilling — developing tiny balls of fluff on the surface of the fabric — and unfinished seams on a cardigan, a kimono and a skirt were all unravelling.
Schmauss was one of the customers who participated in LuLaRoe’s “Make Good” program, a return policy put in place shortly after a class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of customers who were dissatisfied with the quality of the clothing and the inconsistent return policy.
She has received a check for $212 and is expecting another check for more soon.
How LuLaRoe is “Making Good”
Schmauss was not the only person having problems with the clothing sold by the multilevel marketing company.
That’s why the Make Good program was created in the first place.
The program promised that customers would be able to get their money back if poor craftsmanship — not normal wear — was behind their wardrobe malfunctions.
At first, it sounded great to us — that was, until we saw the details.
LuLaRoe wanted receipts or bank statement screenshots — some more than a year old — to prove your purchase. It wanted customers to track down the original retailer who sold them the items or find a new retailer if the original had since quit the business. It even asked customers to send back old clothing so employees could inspect it for damage and determine if the problem was truly poor manufacturing. (How would they determine this? We have no idea.)
And even still, that didn’t guarantee that the company would approve the return and grant a refund.
The full process was so cumbersome that one of our Penny Hoarding employees said she didn’t even want to try to make a return. The possibility of getting $25 back just wasn’t worth the trouble.
Making the “Make Good” Process as Painless as Possible
We don’t want you to be like our coworker. We want you to get rid of crap clothing and get the cash you deserve.
That’s why we reached out to Schmauss and two other women who successfully completed the process and got their money back. We want you to know exactly what the process was like and what corners you can cut to make it as easy as possible to get your money.
You’ve only got six weeks left to file. So here we go.
1. Don’t Go Through Your Retailer If You Don’t Want To
The directions on the Make Good page on LuLaRoe’s website really want you to go through your original retailer. If that person has shut down their store or can’t be reached, LuLaRoe would really love it if you would let them find a new retailer to help you.
This was the part of the process that gave us the most pause, so we’re happy to say that you can totally ignore that and just file your return directly through the company.
Schmauss and the two other women we spoke with — Jessi Mae Benkelman, who got back $298 so far, and Shelby Lee Terebesi, who received $147 — all skipped the retailers and filed directly with the company.
If your retailer is your bestie, I guess you can go through them if you want. But you definitely don’t have to.
2. Don’t Send Your Items Back Until You Get Your Money
Benkelman chose this option.
She returned one dress with a zipper that was falling apart before she could take the tags off. A skirt she bought made it only from her bedroom to her living room before her floor was covered in sequins. Other items were full of threads that were pulling and bunching, and of course, she too was a victim of leggings that were ripping and developing tiny holes on the first wear.
She said she printed her shipping labels and sent back her clothing only after she got her checks in the mail to make sure she actually got paid before sending anything back.
She sent back most of her items, but the company still owes her a $50 check for two pairs of leggings. She’ll send them off once the check arrives.
3. Filed For a Return But Haven’t Heard Back? Try Complaining on Twitter
This is what Terebesi did after filing for a return on May 9 and hearing nothing back for almost two weeks although other people had already gotten checks.
She tweeted the company to ask how long it would take to get her money back. LuLaRoe responded within a couple of days, and, after a bit of back and forth, the company approved her claim. Her check arrived on June 5.
If you’ve filed a claim and haven’t heard back, try prodding them on Twitter. No one likes bad publicity.
4. Grab a Glass of Wine and Settle In — This Could Take a While
The time it will take to file your return really just depends on the kind of person you were before now.
For Benkelman, who says she is generally pretty organized, it only took a few minutes because she already had all the receipts she needed in a LuLaRoe folder in her email inbox.
If you’re less organized (like me) it could take hours to dig up all the information you need. If that’s you, grab a glass of wine and think about all the extra cash you could get back with just an hour or two of searching and picture-taking.
Hopefully those tips cut down on the annoyance of the return process and help you get some cash in your pockets soon. Remember, you have to file your claim by July 31 to qualify for the Make Good program.
Desiree Stennett (@desi_stennett) is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. For the disorganized among us, Desiree would suggest heading to Trader Joe’s and picking up a bottle of Malbec. You’ll be able to afford it with your LuLaWoe cash.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Here’s How to Get Up to $32 Back When You Sign Up for Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime is a lifesaver.
No, I can’t tell you an inspirational story about how it delivers diapers to my door or gives me access to thousands of books that I read nonstop.
I mean it could. But my favorite part of Prime is the free two-hour, same-day and two-day shipping options.
Because when I impulsively order something online, I want it now.
I also get access to video streaming (I binged “Good Girls Revolt”), millions of songs and thousands of books. It also offers free unlimited photo storage, which is convenient when my phone constantly says I’m out of space. I also get early-bird access to the “Lightning Deals.”
If you don’t have Prime and are an avid Amazon shopper, you’re missing out on tons of savings. However, you’ll have to pay a membership fee.
If you’re too thrifty to indulge in a Prime membership, or have been waiting for an excuse, here you go: You can get $20 back when you sign up for Amazon Prime through Ibotta.
How to Get a $20 Amazon Prime Discount
On any given day, you can snag a free, 30-day trial to Prime. After that, it’ll cost you $10.99 a month — or you can opt to pay $99 for the year.
But when you sign up for Prime through Ibotta, our go-to cash-back app, you’ll score a $20 Amazon gift card.
That knocks your yearly price down to $79. Or you can get (almost) two months for free.
Use that $20 to stock up on a pack of 252 diapers, nab a pair of our favorite headphones or score some essential oils.
Signing up for Ibotta is easy. Plus, click here and you’ll get a $10 welcome bonus.
In addition to the $20 off Prime deal, Ibotta also just launched a slew of Amazon shopping rebates.
Once you’re in Ibotta, you’ll navigate to “Find Rebates” then select mobile shopping. There, you’ll see all the Amazon rebates, including:
- 5% cash back on home services
- 3% cash back on home, kitchen and garden items
- 3% cash back on fashion
- 3% cash back on pet supplies
- 3% cash back on luggage
- 3% cash back on devices, including Kindles, Fire Tablets and Fire TV.
You’ll just need to launch Ibotta and shop through the app to score these rebates.
Bonus: Once you redeem one mobile shopping rebate (anything on Amazon), you’ll get a $2 bonus. That offer ends July 6, 2017.
So, really, if you sign up for Ibotta and purchase a Prime membership, you can bank up to $32!
Disclosure: Here’s a toast to the affiliate links in this post. May we all be just a little richer today.
Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder. She’s kind of ticked she already has a Prime membership because she’d love to score $32 in Ibotta rebates. And increase her saving rankings amongst her co-workers…
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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The Marketer’s Checklist for Establishing a Personal Brand
I remember when having a personal brand was reserved solely for big-name celebrities.
Back in the 90s, you had to be an Oprah-level figure to have your own discernible brand.
But the Internet has changed that.
It’s made personal branding viable for pretty much everyone, provided you put in the time and energy.
That’s why you see people go from relative obscurity to borderline celebrities quite frequently.
A good example of that is Pat Flynn of Smart Passive Income.
I remember the time when he was blogging about basic online money-making techniques and had only a tiny following.
Now, he’s crushing it.
He’s writing books, giving lectures, running a podcast and has a massive following.
Of course, he creates great content, but I’d say his success is largely due to his rock-solid personal branding.
And when you get right down to it, the Internet is your vessel for establishing a personal brand.
You just need to know how to properly utilize it.
In this post, I provide you with an essential checklist for establishing your personal brand.
I’m going to point out specific platforms you can leverage to build your presence and get noticed.
I’m also going to outline the correct sequence you should follow to build your brand step by step.
Let’s get to it.
Establish a brand identity
Before you can do anything else, you need to know what you’re trying to achieve.
How do you want people to perceive you?
What do you want people to associate your personal brand with?
You’ll want to give plenty of consideration to this because it will shape your entire approach.
My entire brand identity is based around online marketing.
My personal brand revolves around helping other businesses grow.
I suggest pinpointing a few specific areas you want your name to be synonymous with and focusing on them.
Choose your niche
Seldom do you see individuals with huge personal brands having their hands in everything.
If I’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that spreading yourself too thin is often a recipe for disaster.
Instead, you’re better off focusing on a specific niche.
“Niching down” enables you to develop a close association between your name and a certain topic.
Take Marie Kondo for instance.
She’s known for her unique method of organizing and tidying—the KonMari Method.
She’s written books about these topics, created an app and is a consultant.
Marie has a very precise niche, and she doesn’t deviate from it.
I recommend taking the same approach.
If you want to branch out later on, that’s fine.
But initially, you want to zero in on a specific niche.
And ideally, it will be something you’re passionate about because this will help sustain you in the long run.
Find your unique voice
Let me preface this by saying it takes time to establish your voice.
I find it’s an organic process that unfolds over time.
But you’ll want to have a basic idea of what you’re going for right out of the gate.
Do you want to sound kind, compassionate and enlightened?
That’s pretty much the voice of Leo Babauta of Zen Habits:
Or are you naturally a little snarky and cynical and prefer to keep things a bit edgy?
That’s how I would define Ashley Ambirge of The Middle Finger Project:
I find you’re usually better off sticking with your true personality and letting that define your voice.
This makes it much easier to be authentic, which is one of the top things people look for in a brand.
It doesn’t really matter what type of voice you go for, just stick with it, cultivating it over time.
Design a logo
Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty.
Your logo is huge and one of the most vital branding elements.
I prefer to keep mine simple, like this:
But go with whatever makes sense for your brand.
If design isn’t your thing, you may want to find a professional designer.
Or use a free platform, like Canva, to create your own design from scratch.
You can choose from pre-made templates or set your own custom dimensions.
I also recommend reading this post from Creative Bloq for logo design tips.
Create a website
A professional, functional website is integral to your personal brand.
Don’t skimp on this.
Some people are reluctant to pay for hosting because they can create a basic website with WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr or a similar platform.
But I highly suggest you get your own domain.
After all, would you take me seriously if my website URL was neilpatel.wordpress.com rather than neilpatel.com?
Probably not.
Besides, you’ll have limited functionality.
For more on building your first website, check out this post I wrote.
Also, be sure your site incorporates the same color scheme as your logo.
Like this:
It typically takes five to seven impressions for someone to remember a brand, so it’s crucial that you keep it consistent and make yourself recognizable.
Choose your content mediums
I don’t need to tell you how much I love content marketing.
It’s easily the greatest marketing strategy of the 21st century!
It also “costs 62% less than traditional marketing and generates about three times as many leads.”
One of the best ways to establish yourself as an expert in your niche (or at least as someone worth paying attention to) is to create quality content.
That’s how I got to where I’m today.
I got into the habit of creating quality content—and a high volume of it.
But with so many mediums available, you need to pick and choose which ones you want to focus on.
For me, long-form blog content has become my bread and butter.
Seth Godin opts for short blurbs:
A big part of Tim Ferriss’ success (besides his books) has been his podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show.
His podcast is one of the top-rated in the world and has helped him solidify his personal brand.
What I’m trying to say here is you should choose a few different content mediums to focus your attention on.
If you’re not sure where to start, take a look at some of the top content marketing trends of 2017.
Consistently creating great content kills two birds with one stone:
- it brings exposure to your personal brand and
- it helps create a strong association between your name and a particular area.
Choose your social platforms
Then, there’s the issue of social.
Of course, you’ll want to be active on at least a couple of networks to bring attention to your brand and to network with others in your niche.
However, you don’t want to be active on so many networks that you end up spreading yourself too thin.
Just be sure you choose networks that your target audience is most active on.
For instance, Pinterest would probably be a good choice if you’re in the fashion or culinary niche.
If you’re not sure which social sites are worth your time, here are a couple of graphs that show which networks have been most popular in 2017:
I’d also like to point out how powerful Quora can be in helping you build credibility and authority.
At the moment, it’s not as big as the juggernauts listed above, but I’ve found it to be extremely helpful.
And it’s absolutely perfect for attracting referral traffic.
I suggest checking out Quora and getting in the habit of providing high level answers to people’s questions.
Choose your social handles
There’s another small but crucial aspect of social you shouldn’t overlook.
Choosing uniform handles.
Ideally, they’ll be exactly the same across every single network so that there’s zero deviation.
Unfortunately, I had to use slightly different handles for my Twitter and Facebook.
For Twitter, it’s @neilpatel.
And for Facebook, it’s @neilkpatel.
I understand it might not be easy to have exactly the same handle across several different networks.
But strive to make them as uniform as possible so you can create uniformity and avoid confusing your audience.
Use a killer head shot
As I mentioned before, consistency is key.
This is why I can’t stress enough just how important it is to have a high-quality, professional head shot.
You’ll want to feature it on your website, your social profiles, email, etc. so that people can recognize you instantly.
Here’s the head shot I’ve been using recently:
That’s from my Twitter profile.
And here it is on my Facebook page:
Notice it’s nothing fancy.
It’s just my picture against a plain, white background.
Once again, I recommend keeping it simple.
For tips on getting a great head shot, check out this post.
Select a branded email address
There’s one last thing I would like to point out.
Your email address should include your name.
One option is to simply include it like this:
neilpatel@gmail.com
The other (and better option) is to use your name in the email domain.
It would look like this:
neil@neilpatel.com
This looks extremely professional and will help reinforce your brand identity.
Check out this article from ProBlogger to learn how to set up an email account that uses your domain name.
Conclusion
Let me just say that effective brand building is a process.
There is no magic bullet, and it’s going to take time.
Sometimes, it even takes years, depending on the level you’re trying to reach.
But you can streamline things considerably by understanding the formula behind personal brand building and following it.
The checklist I covered here includes the essentials and should serve as a blueprint.
It’s not the be-all and end-all guide, but it will definitely get things going.
What do you think the most important aspect of building a personal brand is?
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How Cognitive Loading Undermines Your Good Financial Decisions
One of the earliest posts on The Simple Dollar was centered around a trip to the grocery store that I took with my then-one year old son. The focus of the post was on comparing prices on various items and using the actual cost per serving to decide what to buy, as well as making sure you were actually looking at all the options. Here, take a look.
When I look at that post, other than being struck by the fact that my child actually used to be that little, I’m reminded of a concept called cognitive loading.
Several times in the past, I’ve discussed the idea of decision fatigue on The Simple Dollar. For those new to the concept, decision fatigue refers to the idea that people tend to make worse decisions after having made a lot of decisions.
This is why it makes good financial sense to make your financial decisions earlier in the day rather than later. If you’re going shopping, do it earlier. If you’re prone to online impulse buying, stay off of ecommerce sites in the evening. It makes sense, right?
Cognitive loading is a very similar concept. Cognitive loading simply means that the more things you have to focus on at a given time, the worse your overall decisions are going to be regarding each of those things. This is why it’s often considered a really good idea to use to-do lists, because if you instead try to keep the tasks you need to accomplish in your head, you’re adding to your cognitive load and thus you’re splitting your focus away from the task at hand and not doing it quite as well. (Plus, you’re likely adding to your decision fatigue, because you’re loading yourself up with little decisions about what to pay attention to.)
So, let’s jump back to my trip to the grocery store with my one year old.
It may seem like I’m focused on one thing in that picture – shopping for groceries – but the truth is that I actually had three major things I was focusing on during that trip, and my attention was jumping back and forth between them. I was focusing on groceries, obviously, but I was also focusing on my one year old and I was also focusing on taking lots of pictures and deciding what to write about for that article.
In short, during that grocery shopping trip, I was under a fairly high cognitive load.
You can actually see the result of that cognitive load right there in that article. I ended up handing a package of goldfish crackers to my son without even really looking to see if it was the best buy or considering whether we even wanted to buy him crackers. Because I was switching back and forth between three things I was thinking about, I was under a higher than normal cognitive load and it caused me to make a suboptimal decision.
What would I have done normally without that cognitive load? For one, I wouldn’t have been shopping with my son, so I would have never had any reason to impulsively consider buying goldfish crackers. If they did happen to be on my list, I would have stopped and compared brands and sizes and likely bought a large container of store brand goldfish crackers, which would have cost about half as much per cracker.
So, without that cognitive load, I would have either skipped that purchase entirely or else spent half as much on it.
Let’s step back and look at a more general definition of cognitive load: In cognitive psychology, cognitive load refers to the total amount of mental effort being used in the working memory. In other words, the more things you have to keep in your working memory at once, the more taxing it is and the more focus you have to apply to that.
When you’re in the grocery store with a list in your hand, no children to watch, and no article to worry about, your cognitive load is low. You have very little that you need to keep in your working memory.
Add a child to that, and you have to remember to keep track of your child. Where is your child? What are they doing? You’ve got to remember to pay attention to that child very frequently!
Add more demands to that, like the need to remember to keep working on an article, or the need to remember additional items that aren’t on your list, and more and more of your focus is devoted to maintaining a fairly complex state in your working memory. That means less and less of your focus is applied to actual grocery shopping.
What happens then? You’re prone to make progressively worse buying decisions in the store. You’re more prone to marketing techniques, from in-store advertising to how products are arranged on the shelves. You’re more prone to have to backtrack repeatedly during your shopping trip. You’re more prone to throwing unplanned things in the cart. All of those things cost you money and time.
These things don’t just happen at the grocery store. They happen at work, pulling your focus away from the task at hand and reducing the quality of your output. They happen when you’re paying bills or making an investment decision. They happen all the time in modern life.
You try to keep several thoughts in working memory at once so often that you often don’t even realize how much it’s affecting your ability to focus, and a reduced ability to focus means worse decisions.
How do you fight that? Here are four very effective simple strategies I’ve learned to utilize over the years.
Shop alone, or only with people who are focused on a frugal shopping trip. I try as hard as humanly possible to not take my children to the grocery store with me unless the intent is to buy a very small number of items and to use the experience as a teaching tool. If I’m there just to shop for groceries or for other things, I prefer to shop alone or to shop with Sarah when we’re both on focus with the task.
Why? Other people are a distraction. Children are definitely a cognitive load, as you have to keep track of them, but other adults can be, too. Minimize those distractions.
Use lists whenever possible. One of the biggest cognitive loads that people burden themselves with when shopping is trying to remember the stuff they need to buy in their head rather than writing it down on a piece of paper. If you’ve ever walked into a grocery store trying to remember seven things you need to buy and then wandering through the aisles only finding four or five of them but winding up with six other things in your basket or cart, you’ve seen the dangers of cognitive loading at work.
Make a grocery list before you go. Think it through and make sure everything you really need is on that list before you ever leave. That way, you can fully trust that list and simply follow it, reducing your cognitive load and enabling you to focus more on each purchasing decision, which means that you’re more likely to end up with the best bargain for each product in your cart and less likely to wind up with unplanned items in your cart, both of which will save you money.
Keep a pocket notebook or a smartphone note taking app with you at all times, jot down things in it, and review it a couple of times a day. Sometimes, life is going to throw tasks at you that you’re going to need to remember later. Sometimes, pieces of information are going to pop up that you’re going to want to recall later. Simply trying to hold them in your memory for the time being introduces cognitive load in everything you do until you take action on that item.
This is why a pocket notebook or a note-taking app is so handy. Just pull out that notebook and jot down whatever it is that came to mind and then let it drop from your mind. Just make it a habit to review that notebook at least once a day, if not more often, and then you can completely trust it as an extension of your memory, reducing your cognitive load and enabling you to focus on your decisions.
Handle financial decisions in a calm and non-distracting environment. If you’re going to be doing things like filing taxes or studying investment options or making a budget or reading through a bill, do it in an environment with few distractions and with a notepad on the table in front of you to jot down notes as you go. You want the fewest possible mental distractions or things on your mind when making important decisions like this, so make an effort to put yourself in a place with almost no distractions or things to remember so you can really focus on the task.
Reducing your cognitive load whenever you’re making a spending decision is a great way to improve all of your financial choices, and when you do that, you’re going to gradually improve your overall financial state. Take charge of your financial load and you’ll find that everything simply clicks into place much better than before! Good luck!
The post How Cognitive Loading Undermines Your Good Financial Decisions appeared first on The Simple Dollar.
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Kalahari expanding Poconos convention center
Kalahari Resorts and Conventions in Pocono Manor will more than double the space of its already large convention center in its newest expansion.The facility now covers 100,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, with dividers that can join or separate rooms depending on the size of the event. Once completed, the convention center will cover 234,000 square feet and be able to accommodate larger groups.The expansion will feature 21 new meeting rooms, resulting in 39 total [...]
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Stay-At-Home Dads Need to Put These Resources in Their Parenting Arsenals
Before coming to work for The Penny Hoarder, I was a stay-at-home mom for about two years.
I initially went back to work following my daughter’s birth (and after taking 12 weeks of unpaid time off via the Family And Medical Leave Act), but I ended up quitting that position, moving up north and spending my days as my child’s 24/7 primary caregiver.
And though I’m incredibly grateful for having that time, and I treasure all the memories we made along the way, I’ll be honest: Being a stay-at-home parent is not an easy job.
For those who question what a stay-at-home parent does all day, the short answer is: a lot. The real answer would require me writing an entire novella.
It’s sort of like being in a secret society. You don’t completely get it until you’re a member.
And while I could rest on the fact I wasn’t alone and there was this great camaraderie of stay-at-home moms out there (though I wasn’t the type to join the different mommy groups that exist), the life of a stay-at-home dad is even more obscured from society at-large.
More Men Are Becoming Stay-at-Home Dads
Only 4% of American fathers living with their kids in 1989 were stay-at-home dads, according to the Pew Research Center. Fathers made up only 10% of all stay-at-home parents back then.
But as more women become breadwinners and the restrictive grasp of traditional gender roles loosens, more and more men are taking on the stay-at-home dad role.
About two million — or 7% — of fathers living with their children were stay-at-home dads in 2012, according to the Pew Research Center.
Fathers who took on the primary caregiver role increased in representation to 16% of stay-at-home parents as a whole.
These Resources Are Aimed at Helping Stay-at-Home Dads
So in honor of Father’s Day, I’d like to recognize all the dads out there serving as diaper changers, bottle feeders, spit-up wipers, toddler wranglers, play-date arrangers and more — on the clock all day long from sun up to sun down (and multiple times during the night).
Here are a few resources to help you make it through.
1. Read and Learn
Fatherly is a website geared to helping dads win at parenting. Dads can read articles offering advice and tips for multiple stages of parenting, from conception to dealing with tweens.
Recent posts cover topics like using a backpack over a diaper bag and paternity leave. Be sure to check out this fun story on hide-and-seek tips from a Navy SEAL.
2. Connect Online
The National At-Home Dad Network provides community and connections for stay-at-home dads while addressing the challenges they face through their parenting journey. The network hosts an annual At-Home Dads Convention. This year’s will be Sept. 14-16 in Portland.
The network has a listing of dads groups across the country or you could start your own.
3. Meet Other Dads
City Dads Group is an organization dedicated to helping all fathers (not just those that stay-at-home) connect with each other. Fathers can join local dads groups for various meetups scheduled throughout the year — or create their own group if one isn’t close.
The organization also hosts New Dad Bootcamps in New York City to help new or soon-to-be fathers prepare and adjust to parenthood.
Dads can visit the site to read relevant parenting articles or listen to a father-focused podcast.
4. Relate Through Blogs
Vicariously join in camaraderie with other dads by following father-focused blogs. DadNCharge, Dads Who Change Diapers, Dad and Buried, Dad Or Alive and Mr. Dad are just a few.
And if you want to start your own dad blog and create a community for others who can relate to your journey, check out this ultimate guide to getting started by The Penny Hoarder CEO Kyle Taylor.
Nicole Dow is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She thinks stay-at-home parents don’t get enough credit, even though they’re awesome.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Keep your finances strong and stable post election
After the shock result of the General Election, which saw the Conservatives ‘win’ but without the majority they needed, the economic and political outlook for the UK is looking anything but ‘strong and stable’.
In the week that followed – with Theresa May trying to forge an alliance with the DUP – the publication of key economic indicators did little to reassure households.
Rising costs, shrinking earnings
Inflation in May hit a four-year high of 2.9% - attributed to the rising cost of food, electricity, and toys and games.
Wage growth however is not keeping pace. Despite unemployment being at a record low of 4.6%, earnings only grew by 2.1% in the three months to April, and this figure drops to 1.7% when bonuses are excluded.
Ben Brettell, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, believes the data paints a depressing picture. He says: “The UK economy faces a dangerous cocktail of political uncertainty, slowing growth and shrinking real wages.”
He adds: “Households are being squeezed from both directions, with inflation rising faster than expected and wages rising more slowly. This doesn’t bode well for economic growth.”
So how can consumers protect themselves in the current climate?
Savings
The combination of low interest rates and rising inflation is a nightmare for savers. Unless your account pays a rate equivalent to or above the rate of inflation, your money will lose value in real terms.
Currently there are no universally available savings accounts which pay a rate in excess of 2.9% - the rate savers need to beat inflation.
However, you may be able to achieve that with a regular saving account from a high street bank – Nationwide, First Direct, HSBC, M&S Bank and Santander are all paying 5%. However, these accounts are only available to current account holders and savings limits are capped.
A good current account may also be a savvy choice – Tesco Bank and TSB both pay 3% - the former up to £3,000, the latter up to £1,000. Nationwide pays 5% on its Flexx Direct account but only for the first year (after which it drops to 1%).
Investments
Equity based investments offer a better hedge against inflation than cash. Yet with the economy looking shaky and increasing uncertainty around the form Brexit will take, markets are likely to be volatile.
Tom Stevenson, investment director for personal investing at Fidelity International says the election result provided a sage reminder of the need for good diversification. “Markets will likely remain on the back-foot while the difficult job of putting together a workable government is undertaken,” he says. “This is when a well-diversified portfolio, comes into play. The case for a well-balanced portfolio, geographically and by asset class, has never been stronger.”
Maike Currie, a fellow director at Fidelity adds that there may be specific assets classes that could make useful shields against inflation. “Real assets such as gold, agriculture and property are all good protectors against the wealth eroding effects of rising prices,” she says.
Breakout/ or tapped on end?
Pensions
Most people would benefit from setting more money aside for retirement, but as Moneywise went to press, one day ahead of the Queen’s speech, the policies that impact on retirement planning remained uncertain.
Question marks hung over key Tory proposals on the triple lock, state pension age, social care and the winter fuel allowance. Pension savers were also seeking clarification on rules that determine how much you can pay into your pot each year after you’ve accessed it (known as the Money Purchase Annual Allowance).
Steven Cameron, pensions director at Aegon says: “Without a clear majority the government is walking on egg shells as decides how to pursue manifesto policies.” Check Moneywise.co.uk for the latest updates.
Breakout:
The Brexit Bond:
Family Building Society is giving savers the opportunity to take a punt on the outcome of Brexit with two new Brexit bonds.
Brexiteers can select the optimist bond, which pays a 2% bonus if the pound strengthens against the Euro after the UK leaves the EU.
Remainers can opt for the pessimist bond which pays a 2% bonus if the pound weakens against the Euro.
With either bond no bonus is paid if the exchange rate doesn’t change and a 1% fixed rate is guaranteed for the term which finishes on 2nd May 2019.
The Moneywise verdict:
It’s a fun idea, but a bit of a gimmick. If you did make the right punt and earn the 2% bonus you’ll end up with a total of 3% which you won’t match anywhere else at the moment.
However, the minimum investment is high at £10,000 and if you pick the wrong bond 1% isn’t much to show for your money. Savers with Atom Bank could get a guaranteed 2% with its new two-year fixed account.
It’s also worth pointing out that many factors other than ‘Brexit’ will impact on exchange rates so you aren’t just taking a punt on the impact of the UK leaving the EU.
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Community rallies to build Morey pavillion
The playground at B.F. Morey Elementary School will look a bit different when schools starts up again in the fall thanks to the help of a couple local businesses.ESSA Bank and Charitable Trust Foundation is providing funds for a new pavilion on school property, while RKA Construction is providing the school on West Main Street in Stroudsburg with free labor.“It’s great, it speaks a lot to the Stroudsburg community how involved people are in stuff like that, just [...]
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