TaxMama.Com ... Internet Resources Courtesy of TaxMama

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Tax Information With A Mother's Touch

Published by Eva Rosenberg, MBA, EA

(This page is so far from complete, you just don't even know! I have so many more treasures to add. Come back daily to see the new additions. Eva)

ť Affiliate Software & Information ~

If you have a product or service that you sell on the Internet, you will want to develop and set up an Affiliate Program.

An Affiliate Program is the least risky, least expensive way, by far, to acquire new customers and to explode your sales in a short period of time. It sure beats the heck out of paying for advertising up front. Why not pay for advertisers only when a sale is made ... the ultimate way to advertise. This way, you can build a sales force of hundreds, even thousands of people, get your logo and brand displayed all over the web ... and you only pay – when? When a sale is made!

1AutomationWiz.com
You've got to see all the features on this! Without a lot of fuss, this tool helps you build your webpages, sell e-books, run your affiliate program, create and track all your different advertising campaigns, maintain many different autoresponders, all running on different subjects and with the ability to change tracks if your customer makes a purchase. AND it will handle several of your websites without separate charges for each one. So, while the price might look high for ALL the tools - the highest monthly fee is probably less than the value of even ONE HOUR of your own billable time. Think about it. This is one GREAT value. (We'll be using this on one of TaxMama's upcoming projects.)

My Affiliate Program by Kowabunga! -
Operate and control your own affiliate program for as little as $25.00 per month ($99 set up fee). Their program grows with you. And I am hearing that the Kowabunga folks are extremely responsive to your needs. (I've only heard good things about them...and you know how people talk!).

M-Tracker -
This is a totally free affiliate program. It's a little basic. For instance, you can't offer different commission rates to vendors of choice. But, it lets you get started without fuss and test out the concept. At least, if you have only a few people/sites you want to permit to offer your product, you won't need a full-blown program. It's so easy to set up, even I could do it.
Incidentally, Mal also offers a free Shopping Cart program that integrates into the M-Tracker.

AssocTRAC -
A popular option for in-house operation of your affiliate program. Lots of good articles and tips. Just watch out for two really annoying features - WAAAAAY too many pop-ups. And if you sign up, practically daily e-mail from Corey Rudl. If he'd limit it to weekly, it might be more bearable - and readable. But this way, it's on overload and I stopped reading them. Although, I know if I do, there's good information, with a hard-sell flair.

Commission Junction -
Not my favorite program – but if you are looking for a high volume of affiliates quickly, this is the place to go. My main objection? Their own business plan is not stable and they keep changing their costs to their merchant partners.

So, MERCHANTS - if you set up your program here, it may suddenly cost you 25% - 100% more with no warning.

AFFILIATES – if you join merchants' programs at CJ and put links on your site and invest your time promoting the program ... the merchant may suddenly shut down and be gone with little notice due to CJ's new pricing policies.

ť Domain Registration ~

RegisterWizards -
If you're familiar with the horrors people have experienced with some registrars, you'll understand how important it is to work with a registrar you can trust. I use Rob's services because he generally comes through when I need help with transfers and renewals. Prices are $15.00 per year. Not the lowest. But you don't want your registrar charging so little that they go out of business!

My other choice for domain registrations is Dotster. Why? They're about the same price as Rob. But they've got some additional tools to let me manage my domains. For instance, you don't plan to host that site yet.You've just reserved the name. Instead of having it just sit there,... you can have the domain name point to any URL you DO have live - for free. i.e. TaxVehicle.com points to http:/taxmama.com. (for $5.00 extra, they'll do it without running their ad at the bottom of the page.)

ť Hosting ~

WebWizards -
This is where TaxMama.com is hosted!

After three plus years of research, I have found this is best, most helpful, most reliable and most cost effective host for TaxMama.com! This is where I recommend you host your Web site.

“WebWizard” is Rob Marlbrough, Jr., and he's super for help and assistance. There are terrific tools in his control panel, including a good web stats and email list handler – putting you in control of much of your site.

You can register your domain names with him for only $15 per year without the bureaucratic and arbitrary practices from Network Solutions /Verisign. (See TaxMama's Article)

ť Mailing List Software ~

ť Connections – When traveling ~

Net-Roamer –
Save up to 75% on roaming Internet access from Albania to Zambia. Great tool. Essential if you travel regularly.

ť Anti-Virus Tools ~

McAfee -
... provides current online virus status reports. You can download software to ward off incoming viruses – But it only works if you keep it up to date.

ť Free and Paid Scripts and Tools ~

WillMaster -
You've seen all those websites that offer printer-friendly versions of pages, Recommend-it-type tools, forms, and lots of other freebies?

Most of them are glad to give you the free tools – but put advertisements up on your page, or on the exit page of your tools when you use them. Willmaster doesn't - William Bontrager, the owner, provides lots of free tools, but makes his living by selling some of the more sophisticated software – he's also got some excellent articles in his newsletter, Possibilities.

~ Free Resources ~

ť Hosting ~

Net Firms -
Nothing is “really” free, so they put banners on your web pages, but if you don't want their banners, you can pay $5.00 for their no-banner "premium" web hosting.

ť CGI Scripts ~

Willmaster -
As above, Will Bontrager writes clean, beautiful scripts, some are free, some fee, all are great for your Web site.

Matt's Script Archives by Matt Wright -
One of the oldies, but still among the best.

ť Web Content ~

Backwire E-Mails -
A great one-stop shop to sign up for the best the Internet has to offer.

Moreover.com -
Get FREE News Headlines for Your Site!

ť Games ~

AddictionZone -
Free Games to your site!

Gamesville (via BeFree) -

Pogo -

ť Free E-Mail Accounts ~

Netscape Webmail -

Everyone.net -
See the version I set up!
You can customize it to match your site's colors and look. In fact, you can submit your own ad link and it will display your ads half the time, so you can generate ad revenue from it.

ť Browsers ~

Netscape -
Netscape 6.2 is the first major upgrade the old stand-by, Netscape, has had in a few years. If your computer system isn't that new, the also offer their older version of Netscape Navigator 4.+.

Enigma Browser by Sutton Designs -
Enigma does all the things you expect your browser to do and more. It looks familiar enough so there is no real learning curve, and their "Gold Edition" has even more features. If you're worried about security holes, this is worth looking into.

Opera -
Opera is popular because of its small size and standards compliance.

Internet ExplorerŽ - by MicrosoftŽ -
Not my favorite browser, and there always seem to be new security holes discovered. Needs WindowsŽ to run.

ť Bulletin Boards ~

Everyone.net -
Take a look at a free bulletin board I set up using their system.

It was amazingly easy to set up. It gives you a master page with a list and subpages for other discussions. And it also permits members to chat with each other while they're there.

Willmaster Master Board -
You'll find another free board by William Botranger - Take a look at his Master Board - you have a master page with the topic headings, and sub-pages for the discussions.

ť Search Engines ~

Google -
The BEST search engine. It let's you do searches within your results, and to drill down deeper, until you find just the right resource(s). I like it so much, we use it on TaxMama.com

Ask Jeeves -
Have a Question? Ask Jeeves.

About.com –
Internet tools and search

KwMap.net - browse Keyword Maps of the Internet. Enter any site, or word you chose. A nifty tool

ť Internet Archives ~

Wayback Machine -
Were those "good ol' days" really so great?

Get a look at your own, or your favorite sites and see how they developed over the years. All the glaring errors, naive attempts at professionalism, the things they once promised ... and the direction they've taken. (It may bring back some painful memories, if you're the one who's paid for the work ...)

Oh ... goodness, it's not just about websites, there are television shows, movies, elections, more!

ť Electronic Commerce ~

Everyone.net -
A free search engine that also lets you put in your own ads 50% of the time, so you can even generate revenue.

Net Flip -
Free offers and money for your visitors. Earn over $200 with NetFlip!

Tech Support– 24/7 live -
Unlimited Toll-Free PC Tech Support $49 A Year

ť Marketing Tools ~

A Weber's Autoresponders -
A Weber's autoresponders are excellent tools to help you send follow-ups and reminders to potential clients. These tools let you send a series of messages about anything you chose. They are a perfect way to send out a series of articles, in sequence, to people who sign up at different times. You can use this to send out a weekly lesson in your class or workshop. Lots of clever uses – for repetitive material. (You can change the content whenever you like.)

ť Affiliate Programs to Join ~

DatingTech -
... creates your own dating site and pays you a commissions on all members' fees AND for fees from your 2nd Tier affiliates' sales, too.

If you like e-Bay, you'll love this! EPage.com - set up your own auction and classified site - and cash in! Brad Waller lets you not only buy and sell your own products, but also create more sites for your friends. You'll get a stream of commissions when they set up their sites, too.

When you're setting up your websites, one of THE most important things you need to do is to optimize each page so the search engines can give it the highest possible ranking. Wouldn't it make your life so much easier if you knew which words, related to your site, were searched for most often? Well, Wordtracker provides exactly that kind of data. I've been hearing lots of good things about this.