So Tsu me

Well I did it.  I signed up for a new social network and so far so good.  You might have heard of tsu.co as the alternate Facebook where you can get a cut of the advertising revenue for producing content rather than letting the Zuckerberg boys have all the fun.  At least that is the idea and I am game for that.

Tsu takes a cut of 10% which isn't much these days and then they pay the content producer half the remaining amount with the other half going to the content producers sponsors (kind of like the upline and downline of multi level marketing).

That means you have to have a sponsor or referral to get in.  It is o.k. because you know me and I will be sure to hook you up if you want in.  My link is https://www.tsu.co/EdHWW.  If you know Facebook then you already know Tsu.  Similar if not simpler.  Where I felt lost with Facebook, Tsu comes a bit more intuitively.  I like that in a web site.

It is new and developing and I am sure there are some that think it wont last but I don't care.  It is a work in process.  If this takes off, and it looks like it may, Facebook has something that it hasn't had to worry about up to this point; competition.  Worried?  Probably not but they better not rest on their laurels and start taking care of their core customers because there now is another place to play.

Here is that invite once again.

https://www.tsu.co/EdHWW

It is kind of exciting to be on the leading edge of something.  If it doesn't work fine, but if it does just Tsu me.

This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farrwest.

Million Dollar Television Network is on the air

Update: The site is back up...hurrah.  Be aware that it is still in development and has some issues.  I am using Firefox and it seems to plug up the memory after awhile and I am forced to hard close the program and flash player add on's every once in awhile but as you see below, this is one that I really like and am hoping for great things to come from it, therefore I am willing to put up with these minor issues to get my dose of possitivity.  My you find something to profit from this site as well.  Enjoy.

More Update: the site is going through yet another evolution??? and may be changing its name once again, this time to www.grrshow.com.  It has some of the same features including the spinning meters counting up your scholarship dollars just for tuning in and as long as they are spinning there is still hope for the network to make a go of it.  I am still hoping for the best.

I talked about this one earlier but when I mentioned it before it was just an on-line radio program.  Now it has gone video and the best thing of all is the deal is still the same, you get paid to listen.  For that reason alone it is worth the time and effort to check it out.

The real reason I like it is the content.  It is positive, optimistic, and contagious.  Marshall Sylver is talking about life lessons that we could all benefit from and although I might not agree with everything he says, but there is much I do.  It is a very refreshing change from the norm.

This is such a great change from the daily grind of talk radio and network news that this becomes the perfect substitute for those trying to break that habit.  I enjoy just letting it play in the background while doing whatever it is I am doing.  And the cool thing is that by just letting it run the meter will spin and grow your balance to the tune of $50 scholarship dollars and hour.

So here is the deal; sign up using my referral link and start listening.

http://www.mdtn.com/registration/joinNow/17026

Your scholarship dollars will grow.  Then you can spend those dollars on educational programs which at first seem like they are way overpriced but remember that you are using free scholarship dollars.  In other words it isn't costing you a thing.

I hear you saying 'the programs must not be worth anything then'.  Au contraire my friend, they like many things in life are worth what we put into them and what we get out of them and I am finding them to be of great value...but there is an option to use your scholarship dollars by converting them to cash (just not at a one to one ratio).  The choice as always is yours.

The next thing to do is to find your referral link to tell others about this program and then you will earn the same amount that they are earning just for having them tune in the same way you do.  This is what is known as a win win in the truest sense.

There is a premium membership that you can add if you are so inclined but the great thing is you do not have to.  You can stay on the coattails of free as long as you like.  So far that is what I am doing.

The program is live from 12 noon to 2 pm pacific coast time.  The rest of the time it is running a continue feed of reruns so you can just tune in and let it run all day and all night if you like and keep your meter spinning.  By the way it is really fun to watch those numbers turn.  It is the closest thing I have found to my dream of making money continually like the jackpot balance on the MegaSlots in Vegas.

That link again is http://www.mdtn.com/registration/joinNow/17026 try it and see if you don't enjoy it as much as I have.

This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farrwest.

So why making a slow buck on the internet?

I spent a lot of time in casinos in my younger years.

"Are you a betting man Drebin?"  "Only when I order out."

No I am not a gambler but I found the whole thing fascinating.  The money, the action, the people, the business, the marketing, the attitude...I became a student that tried to understand all of it.  Also if I could figure it out maybe I could make it pay...but that didn't happen.

One thing I did learn one night while watching some blackjack at Ceaser's Palace is that those playing at the $100 table where playing in exactly the same way as those that were playing at the $1 table at the Frontier down the street.  In other words the game was the same, the rules were the same, the players were the same, the only difference was a matter of scale.

This was at a time when the 'morons that be' figured they could devalue the dollar and it would improve the balance of trade, but there was a lot more wrong that needed fixing before any meaningful change would happen on that front.  We wanted the Japanese to buy a Chrysler or two but it was cheaper for them to buy the Chrysler building than the car...but that is another story for another time.

The point here is that if you want to win at blackjack you need to learn the rules, tips, tricks and strategies to win at blackjack.  If that is your intent then spend whatever it takes while in the learning stage but by all means spend wisely until you have it figured out.  Remember that the beginning player at the $1 table was learning the same lessons as the beginning player at the $100 table; the final bills for that education just had different totals at the end of the day.

Once you have it figured out then you move in and prove it.  Once you have proved it then you scale up and reap the rewards of your efforts.  If you try to do this out of order it can be vary costly both in time and resources and you might run out of one or both before you reach your goal.

For those that are interested in investing in stocks or commodities or whatever, it is often suggested to the student to begin by doing paper trading.  This is where one goes through the motions of doing the activity in simulation mode first...act as if you are making the trade by recording a buy and sell on paper...no real money changing hands.  You can measure you results positive and negative and determine if your skills are sufficient to make things work in the real world.

Once you are comfortable with your paper trading and the results on paper are giving you a pretty good idea that you are actually able to trade profitably then you get an account and do it for real but at an affordable level, this will validate your efforts.  If your account grows, and not just from injections of fresh capital, then you have something that works for you and you can begin to scale up.

If it isn't working your results will tell you this to.  If it isn't working it is time to stop and go back one step, figure out why, fix it or change it and try something different, then move forward again.

So the paid to click sites I referred to is a no cost, time only effort to step into a lesson plan that can help us learn how to make a buck, internet or otherwise.  Just like the player sitting at the $1 table we can learn some of the lessons and principles that work no matter what level you are playing at.  It is these lessons that I will try to address with future post.

As there isn't a great deal of followers to this blog at this point it might just be me teaching myself but if you are willing to tag along I hope you enjoy.  A smart man learns from his mistakes while a wise man learns from the mistakes of others.  With that said there are some lessons that can be learned from others but there are many lessons that can only be learned through doing.  I can read all about running a marathon but until I actually run one I will never truly know.  That is the reason to offer up the referrals I did.

By the way, I don't intend on running a marathon at the moment but you never know.  This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farrwest.

How I do Swagbucks

It's Swagbucks turn.  So what is Swagbucks?  It is a web site where you can get paid to do some of the typical web surfing stuff like doing searches, playing games, watching videos, taking surveys, and being exposed to a boatload of advertisements while getting a small reward for doing so.  This is the one site that can really add up if you are willing to put in some effort and time.  Just be careful that it doesn't take up too much of your time as it can become far too addicting.

Like all of these sites, the first thing to do is to find and collect the easiest points, or low hanging fruit first.  Only after this is done do you start spending your time on the points that take a little more time and a little more effort.  This will help control how much time you are willing to spend as the margin of return to time spent will let you know when you have done enough for that day, and you can put it aside and work it some more on the next day.

The easiest place to start is the daily poll; one quick point and your on your way.  The next item is the NOSO or No Obligation Special Offers.  Quickly load the page and hit the skip button that moves you finally to a captcha that you enter to earn your two points.

Next pick a game to play, one that doesn't take too long to lose and then repeat as you will get one point for every two plays.  One of my favorites is the Swagasaurus Run as I can cycle through it about as quick as any of the games.  Of course if you like the games you can still enjoy them just realize that they will eat into the time that you are building your Swagbucks points count.  Unless they are doing a special day deal, there is a limit of 10 plays for 5 payouts of 2 points each for a total of 10 points per day.

Next thing to check out is the main page for any easy special offers.  Look for the small point offers as they are easy to do, don't require much effort, and they don't require you to register for anything or give a credit card to buy anything.  You will want to check out the main page every time you refresh it as some of these offers will refresh with the page and let you get paid for them multiple times.  There are different offers for different times of the day.  Also look for the Radium One tab on the Special offers page for many of the same types of things.

As you get familiar with the site you will begin to recognize which items are worth doing and which ones to avoid.  If it is an item to avoid you can hit the X in the squares upper right hand corner to delete it from appearing each time...at least for that day.

Some items will have a big point payout but that usually means you have to sign up for something even if it is a free trial something.  The trouble with free trial somethings is you forget you signed up and you get a monthly bill on your credit card for that something that you forgot to cancel.  If you can make yourself a list and keep track of when your need to cancel by dates are then you can pick up some major points this way.  I can not and I know it so I don't even bother with these.  And if you do the insurance quotes you have no one to blame but yourself if you get the occasional phone call...

Next up are the Swagbucks TV videos.  Pick a topic and go.  Watch the credit bar to see when you have earned the credit for watching that video and as soon as you have it is time to pick the next one.  Don't worry that you have just made it through the commercial and haven't actually watched the video, that is not what this is about.  It takes 10 videos to get 3 points for a total of 150 points per day unless there is a special thing going on.  I have never hit the limit if that tells you something about what this takes.  I do however use it to help build the points I need to meet my daily goal.

Oh yeah, the daily goal.  There is your own personal goal which can be whatever you want it to be but in case you can't decide let them set a goal for you.  Swagbucks sets two daily goals, kind of a level one and a level two.  Each level comes with a bonus points amount that is collected through out the month and paid in the first week of the following month.  These can add up nicely and it is a pleasant surprise when you notice your balance just took a jump and you can't remember why.

There is another points bonus that you can earn by hitting the level one daily goal several days in a row.  Seven days will get you an extra 25 points and you can get up to 300 bonus points for hitting your level one daily goal every day of the month.  Combined with the daily goal bonuses this makes for a nice bump but it can become a little stressful trying to make sure you hit it every day.  Also be ware, everyone used to have the same daily goal but now it is a moving target for each individual based on how much activity they do.  The more you do the higher the goal becomes, the less you do the lower the goal...your basic two edged sword.

Encrave is like Swagbucks TV but works slightly differently.  Some are short, some are longer combinations.  It used to pay better but it has cut back some lately, also they took off the notice of what the payout is for each viewing offer.  That means learning it by trial and error.  Look for the ones with a circle like symbol as they will go from one video to the next automatically which is nice...set it and forget it.  Sad part is you have to have your cursor on the screen to have it give you credit for viewing.  There used to be a countdown timer but they took it off.

I haven't said it out right yet but here is a good place to mention that with a little practice you can figure out how to open up and have several windows running at the same time.  This is the real way to get to the daily goals.  If you had to do this all one shot at a time you could kill off a whole day and not even realize it.  You really need to do multi tasking to make this work out well.  By the way, I am watching Swagbucks TV, playing Swagasaurus run and doing Encrave right now as I am writing all of this.

Next up is surveys.  You can be honest about who you are but be aware that if you don't meet the desired demographics you wont get in.  If you try to be who they are looking for you can get paid fairly well.  It can be like a game trying to figure out how to take on a different persona and answer survey questions in a third person in order to gain the prize.  I know one person that has been pretty successful at playing the survey game whether he needs to be a teenage game playing boy or a single hispanic mother of two.  It kind of makes you lose faith in the outcome of surveys and polls and even more in the people that pay for and act on the information that comes out of them, but don't let that hold you back from getting paid for their folly.

Last mention is the searches.  The payout is given randomly, totally hit or miss and usually pays in the 6 to 11 point range, so I don't count on it for much other than icing when I get one.  I do search and go to a site known as sc-s.com.  It stands for swag code spoilers and will let you know if any of the Swagbucks social sites like Facebook, Blog, or Twitter have a special Swag code phrase you can use for a limited time to gather some bonus points.  Quicker to use than the sites but it is all hit or miss for timing.

So when it comes to being paid (and that is the best part) just know that there are several cards to choose from where 1 point equals 1 cent and you can pick many different cards in different denominations starting from $5.  One card that can be bought at a discount is the Amazon $5 card which you can get for 450 points, up to 5 cards a month.  First place to start and the one goal you should shoot for is these 5 cards each month.  It doesn't take long to build a nice credit balance at Amazon.

Now if you think this is all small fry I must state that my friend has bought a lot of nice things through Amazon with the $1000 plus he as made in the past 10 months he has been doing this.  This is all part time outside his regular full time job.  He is driven and goal oriented and does what it takes to get where he wants to get.  Way to go.  I haven't done that well myself but I do like what I have been able to do.

If you think you would be interested in giving this a try then use my referral to try SWAGBUCKS. (or http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/c5ed) and enjoy.  It doesn't cost anything to try but your time.  I like that.  I like that.

This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farrwest.

How I do Bing

This is the second installment of the how I do the pay click sites and this one is for Bing.  Bing is the easiest to learn and easiest to do.  I like that.

Bing is part of the Microsoft group and is closely associated with the MSN web sites even though it has it's own main page site.  The pay is one point for every two searches with a limit of 15 points per day.  That is unless they have a special deal going like double points Monday where you can get 30 points total on Monday.

When you are trying to do searches you can do your own or look for the list of top current searches for the day from the pull down lists or select one of the stories of the day as a starting point.

I try to find a search that is on an individual or a place.  The search results will generally have a list of related searches on the right hand side column.  Select one of those related searches and it will give the list of related searches across the top of the next selection.  This makes for a quick list of searches to run one after the other until your limit for the day is reached.  Just make sure to wait for Bing to recognize your search and give you credit for it.  You can see this happen by looking for your point count to appear in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

The other thing to look for is the activity list that is next to your point total.  It will show how far along you are in getting your total search points for the day and it will list any extra point special searches that are available for the day.  There is usually always at least one but I have seen as many as four so take the time to take a look.  If you keep focused on the goal of reaching your daily limit you can easily get your searches done in a matter of minutes.

Bing also has a Bing Bar that you can add to your Internet Explorer that makes it easy to access a countable Bing search from wherever you are on the web.  Like I said, easy is good.

Bing has three levels, member, silver, and gold.  It is fairly easy to get to gold and there is a reason to want to get there quick and stay there...you can redeem at discounted prices.  A $5 Amazon card can be had for 475 points at the gold level.  This means that if you do this daily you can earn a $5 dollar card each month.  The nice thing is Bing pays out quickly, like next day quick.  $5 gift cards is as high as it gets, no saving up for that big ticket card.  There are sweepstakes you can enter but like a real sweepstakes, it is a gamble and just like gambling, the odds are against you so don't bother.  Besides it is the real gift cards that will get you some of the stuff you are really after.

If you have not already signed up with Bing and would like to feel free to use my referral code try BING. (or http://www.bing.com/explore/rewards?PUBL=REFERAFRIEND&CREA=RAW&rrid=_95a992a4-7aa7-0195-b0d8-087fa58f6722).

Bing is one that I have really liked and I think you will to.  This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farrwest.

How I do Irazoo

I said that I would do some follow ups on how I do my little slow buck earners on the internet.  This is the first installment on the site we call Irazoo.

Irazoo is a site that pays you to click and participate with games, watching ads and doing searches.

I have done Irazoo for quite a few years now and they have changed the rules quite a few times along the way.  Like the book says, you have to adopt when someone moves your cheese.  When Irazoo changes the rules then you have to adopt to the new rules to make it worthwhile.

As of this post Irazoo is not the easiest to rack up points on.  Where most sites have one point equal about one cent, Irazoo has six points equal that same one cent.  In other words it takes 3,000 points to cash out one $5 gift card.

Irazoo has some of the same offers as you will find on other sites and it seems like it pays more points at first but when you divide by six you notice that it might not pay as much, so if you use other sites it pays to compare before doing an offer to see if it doesn't pay higher on another site.

You can spend a lot of time trying to add up the points but when you find out you are only making $.18 an hour then you can get discourage pretty quickly.  The secret then is to only spend your time on those things that give the quick return and move on.  It takes more days to get to your goal but you spend other time working other sites and doing all the other things you want to.

So I focus on the quick points first.  After logging in, the first thing I do is go for search points.  Think of a phrase, type it into the search box and hit enter.  If it doesn't pay then delete the first letter of the phrase and hit enter again.  Repeat this process until you have a pay on searches.  This is usually good for 10 or 12 points but every now and then I will get a big payout of as much as 96...but don't count on it.

Next up is a visit to the videos page.  Don't bother watching the videos unless you are trying hard to get points as it takes two views of at least 30 seconds each to earn one point.  Remember that at best that is 60 points an hour or $.10 and hour, but that first visit to the videos page will give you one point, no waiting.

Next up is a trip to the offers page, just click on the Earn Points tab or wait for the menu to pull down and select Offers.  You just made 5 points for each of the first visits of the day.

Sometimes that is all I do in Irazoo.  If I feel like spending a little more time I will delve a little deeper to see if there are any more easy points to be had.  On the Offers page you will notice several tabs running across the page.  These look similar to stuff you will see on Swagbucks and from what I have seen most of this is all better to be done on Swagbucks so don't bother with it here.  You can explore to see what works for you if anything but right now the only place I look every view days is under Matomy and then under the sub tabs of 'Video' and '1 Click Offers'.  The sub tabs will narrow down the selection.  From these two sub tabs I can select a few easy points but it takes trial and error to see which ones actually pay (unfortunately many do not).

Once you know which kind pay you can select them and they will open up in a new Explorer tab and then go back and select another one.  That way you can have several open and running at the same time.  I like that.  Usually they just have to be open for about 30 seconds or so and then it says offer complete and you are good to go on to the next one.  That is why you can open up the next one, and the next one while you are waiting for the first one to complete.  The principle of multiple streams of income applied.

If you want to check one other possible point producer then go back to the big Earn Points tab and select 'Special Offers' to see if there is anything going on there, lately not much, but at times you can earn captchas for points and depending on your typing skills and your patience you can rack up a few points.

As for cashing out I suggest doing it as soon as you have the 3,000 points.  It takes a long time to get to 3,000 points and it takes Irazoo a long time to deliver so you might as well start the process as soon as you have enough, just pick your favorite gift card and go.

You have to be referred to join so if you don't already belong use this for IRAZOO. (or http://www.irazoo.com/ReferedNewUser.aspx?RefBy=farrwest).  You can then refer others yourself and earn up to 3,000 points for matching points from your referrals searches.

It's not great but it is something so for now this is Ed Nef with a view from the Farrwest.

Making another slow buck on the internet

If you read my last post you know that I have been surfing the internet to find ways to make a quick buck and finding that to be mostly bunk I started looking for any worthwhile ways to make any money on the internet, in particular making the slow buck on the internet.

It mostly comes from doing some of the same things you would anyway such as searching, playing games, being exposed to endless ads but with a little effort you can actual make a little pocket change for your time.  It sure beats doing it for nothing, or even worse paying for the privilege.

My latest find is one I came across a couple of years ago that was o.k. then but it has gone through some changes and came out slightly better and now worth mention.

If you are not where you want to be now, and you know it, then you will have to change.  Change is not always easy and it does take effort but if you have the desire and it is strong enough you will make the change that you are after.  Even if it means doing homework.  Are you willing to do what it takes to change into whatever it is you are seeking, be it gaining health, losing weight, building wealth, adding knowledge, changing attitudes?

If you wish to work on your wealth you may need to change some of your thought processes.  The popular book Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Richard Kiyosaki, has one major premise I really like; namely that rich people think differently than poor people.  I have found that to be true.  It doesn't take much more than a conversation with your co-workers to realize this.

If you are surrounded by the attitude that "money is evil", "I could be rich if only I compromised my principles", "rich people are lucky or cheaters", or any other like sentiment that keeps you in the "I will never, could never be..." mode, then maybe you need to change your thought patterns and attitudes.

I am not talking about having blind, misapplied optimism but having some positive optimism is not a bad place to start.  It is hard to have a positive attitude if you fill your head with normal drivel that is contained in the typical editorial pages, nightly news, and most talk radio programs.  If your thought diet consist of only these things then daily scriptures and weekly church attendance may not be enough to buoy you up.  You need to expose yourself to a lot of offsetting good to overcome all that depressing noise.

Well one of those things that helps change your thinking in a good way is to listen to others that are thinking the way you want to be thinking,  Expose yourself to others that are interested in becoming healthier, wealthier, wiser.  Those that have the traits you would like to obtain can provide an example to follow for which you can learn from.  By learning how they see the world around them and how they deal with daily problems, we may learn some new techniques that will help us deal with our daily problems.  Big fat hairy deals might just become a little smaller with an adopted change in perspective.

One site with a view on the being wealthier front is Marshal Sylver's GetRichRadio.com, and you can join using my referral at http://getrichradio.com/join/17026.  Give it a try and as with most things I recommend, it cost you nothing unless you want it to, but I like the part that cost us nothing while still can getting something worthwhile.

Marshal Sylver's GetRichRadio pays you to listen to his online radio program.  Granted they pay you in scholarship dollars and they are highly inflated.  You can save up to $250,000 and cash it out into $50 real dollars through pay pal or you can use the scholarship dollars to buy education programs that are offered on the web site.  These programs cover things like marketing, real estate investing, auctions, sales, probate, business credit, and stuff like that including one labeled what would a millionaire do?

This is where the real value is.  If you haven't been exposed to these kinds of programs it may open you to a whole new world.  If have been exposed and always wanted to try some of these programs but were not willing to pay those over the top prices...well now you can and do it all using the house's money.

You get paid $50 per hour to listen to getrichradio once you have registered and also a matching amount from those you refer.  Just let the program run in the background while you do something else, like build your swagbucks account, and soon enough you will have more than enough in your getrichradio account to get a program or two.  And through it all you will expand your knowledge and work on that change of attitude that will help you move in the desired direction.

I admit that much of what I have heard here is a regurgitation of things I have heard before but repetition has served me well, especially when it reinforces an idea from a different perspective.  Sometimes you have to go through a lot of earth to find a few nuggets but nuggets are kind of what we are after.

Sometimes you never know where your next discovery will come from so it is worth having a curious nature and a thirst for knowledge.  I love to explore and have found this site one worth spending some time on.  Give it a try.  I don't agree with everything he says but I have found some things that are worth listening to.

As always, this is Ed Nef with a view from the Farrwest.

Making a slow buck on the internet

There are get quick schemes out there on the internet and most aren’t worth the time spent reading through the hype.  There are few ways to make slow money out there, you just have to invest time and a little effort to see some results.  Be forewarned, those results won’t allow you to quite your day job anytime soon, but it will allow a little extra spending monies for some of the little things you might need or enjoy.  I will tell you about the top three that have worked for me.

All of these are some form of click to earn sites; that is you earn points for doing searches, playing games, watching videos, taking surveys, shopping or just plain watching commercials…and believe me you will be exposed to lots and lots of advertisements.  They also have referral programs which pay you a bonus if someone you refer joins so if you would like to try them out please use the links.

#3.  IRAZOO--I have mentioned this one before and have had a few payouts from it, just not consistently.  They have changed the rules frequently and the payout comes slowly but with minimal effort you can earn a $5 gift card every 2 to 3 months.  This is really making a slow buck on the internet but combining it with the others it will add up over time.  Also with this as my number 3 it should give a pretty good indication of what the rest of these types of site out there are like, in other words be careful and read all of the fine print.  You have to be referred to join so click here for IRAZOO. (or http://www.irazoo.com/ReferedNewUser.aspx?RefBy=farrwest).

#2. BING– Yes the same Bing that is part of the MSN group and trying so hard to compete as your main web browser has a program where you can earn points for your searches.  Every day you can make 30 searches which will earn you 15 points plus they have a special search or two worth a point each.  Sometimes they will have days where you can earn double the daily point limit.  15 points a day doesn’t seem like much but it can add up to a $5 gift card to Amazon about once a month.  Bing doesn’t take a lot of time or effort, is consistent, pays out quickly and has worked well for me.  I wish they would expand the program beyond just searches with other point earning offers but it is because of what they do that I do recommend them.  You can add a search bar to your Internet Explorer (which it prefers but you can also use Firefox) for extra ease.  Use this link if you would like to try BING. (or http://www.bing.com/explore/rewards?PUBL=REFERAFRIEND&CREA=RAW&rrid=_95a992a4-7aa7-0195-b0d8-087fa58f6722).

#1. SWAGBUCKS –You may have heard of them before and they seem to be the real deal.  This one doesn’t have the limits (other than running out of offers) that the others do.  You can earn as much as you are willing to spend time on but more realistically you should shoot for the daily goal which is around 100 points a day.  If you are consistent this can translate into $30 or more in gift cards a month.  If you are ambitious it can be much more.  Use this link if you would like to try SWAGBUCKS. (or http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/c5ed).  I have done a lot of looking and this seems to be the best of its kind out there and has been for several years.  I have added a couple of hundred dollars to my Amazon account with Swagbucks…very nice

If you decide to do any of these here are my top suggestions, 1. Read and follow the rules carefully.  It is their game and they make the rules and if you follow them you will be successful, if you don’t you risk getting terminated.  2. Get a new junk e-mail account and use it to sign up.  If you click on any offers at these sites use this new junk e-mail account and just expect that there will be junk mail coming.  That way you won’t plug up your regular e-mail account and we can still be friends.

Some friends from work got competitive and were really racking up the points so if you set some goals (like a new game console, Blue ray player, TV???) and invite your friends to do this also you might enjoy some building fruits from your efforts.  I must warn you though, this can be addicting and you may lose track of time and end up spending way too much time on this.  Self control is required, both for your family and your sanity.

Anyway you go at least have fun doing it.  Good luck on your way to fame and fortune.  I will follow this up with a how I do it post later but for now this is Ed Nef with a view from the Farrwest.

The tell of ForteBuilder and Cyber Incomes, Inc.

In looking at the various money making ideas that are out there somehow I have come across one called ForteBuilder with the sponsor Cyber Incomes, Inc.; or should I say they found me. I started receiving e-mail from them nearly three months ago with the latest stating that my three months of inactivity were nearly up and they were about to give up on me.

I guess it is about time for you to go ahead and give up on me ForteBuilder because I had pretty much given up on you shortly after the first e-mail, but I did try to give you the benefit of the doubt.

Speaking of e-mails, I have received 102 that I have saved (I might have thrown away a few) and all of them were roughly the same message in a computer generated form with about 6 variations. Once I had the gist of it, it took no time to go through later versions because they were all about the same, (great time saver for me). Also, by way of this repetition, it was quickly evident that they were computer generated items that were personalized the way all computers do so well, by inserting your name automatically in certain areas of the message. O.K. no biggie, seen it before, will see it again, but 102 times to someone you are wishing to build a business relationship with, gosh, I feel so important.

I think the e-mails started when in my searching I happened on to a web site that claimed a wonderful money making idea and to just enter here (I don’t know why these places always hide behind a cover web page) and the very next page that opens up is a call for all your contact information. Now why they need that before they give you any information at all is also beyond my comprehension but I was willing to play a little because the first few lines were enticing. Trouble is they wanted more information than I was willing to give and the page would not go to the next page (the one with all the information or so I hoped) without it so instead of giving anything more I cleared out what I had entered and went my merry way not realizing that they had already captured my e-mail address (one piece of information too many) and would now include me in their weekly computer generated delivery system. The only problem was, I still didn’t have any real information on them or more importantly the business.

So the e-mails came and welcomed me in to the ForteBuilder team and that I could with no obligation test drive the website and with that they issued me a temporary ID # and password. I was bestowed the honorary title of Pre-Enrollee and they were beginning to build a down line under me. It got even more exciting as I learned that whenever any of these pre-enrollees below me made the decision to “upgrade” to paid member that I would receive an e-mail notifying me that I had instantly earned a commission. In my excitement I somehow missed the part about me having to become a paid member myself to realize that commission. I found it out later with much rereading.

I followed the included web link to try to find out more about this opportunity to use the easy system and make serious money and actually see if I could learn anything about this business opportunity as I hadn’t been able to in the early attempts. Guess what?

After much time and effort I still know very, very little about this company, my supposed sponsor, the payout plan or the pay in plan, or more importantly the product itself. Now I fancy myself a pretty good detective at times and thought that I might be able to discover at the very least the product because without a real product you have nothing. Turns out they produce an Acai Juice, shake mix, calcium chewable, diet something or rather.

Sorry guys, but there are dozens of outfits in the Acai business, and the one page that talks about product doesn’t give any detail as too what yours contains let alone what makes it stand out above the rest. It only has generic statements about the benefits of Acai with the ever present disclaimer that the statements have not been approved by the FDA. Also missing from the description of the products, its ingredients or method of use is the price of the product a key component in any merchandising endeavor.

I think the reason for neglecting this information is because they are more interested in selling the MLM than the product. In fact, you cannot buy the product directly from the site, but a sample does come with your paid upgrade to full member. Now this is really pretty cheap compared to a lot of programs that charge a lot more to get your foot in the door so for just under $20 you can take a fling, tempting but again, why should I have to pay up front to see what the program is let alone the product? Why not let me know up front what the deal is then let me decide if I want to play or not.

Well if you go to the next page, the order page, or upgrade page (whatever) you will see in bright red letters “75% of all millionaires are self made”. Wait a minute, does this mean that I will have to do all the work myself if I am going to make it (the answer to this question is always yes by the way) and does that mean it isn’t going to be as easy as they say and that the automatic plan that they are using is working for them and not for me?

At the top of the order form is the request for me to give them more personal info including the all important payment method, and then the fun begins. You get to choose which plan you want to start with. Each plan is just $19.95…the first month. Then every month after that you will be charged anywhere from $75.95 to 129.95 on top of the $19.95, but this will cover your monthly buy of product and help make you eligible for your payouts and bonuses, whatever they are and however that works.

Okay they said somewhere in the prose that they would send you a sample of the product with your first months $19.95 but looking over the order sheet page, I don’t see it. I do see that after you pay this amount you will receive a welcome letter (computer generated I’m sure) as part of the “Free Business Preview Pack”. This will include a success report, a brochure of why people drink Acai and a how to make money CD. No mention of product, sample or otherwise. No mention of the program, payout or tiers only briefly brushed over in the order form. In fact the product doesn’t start to come until the next month (after the large monthly additional charge) and the billing starts going to another company, New Vision which is the supplier of the juice and commission checks.

Are you starting to get the warm fuzzies yet?

Now it is not without some computer generated effort that they have tried to get me hooked. They offered up links to a youtube testimonial which is o.k., nothing great but a homemade testimonial of what can be accomplished diet wise by a motivated individual. It does allude to the product and that there might be more than one product available and that she might be a success at this business venture. One small detail, the link on the youtube site to her personal web site is a dead link. Therefore this is a dead end.

The other offered help is from the sponsor, who offers to hold weekly conference calls to anyone willing to call long distance on your own dime. (Other outfits will often at least extend a toll free number.) I thought too much of my time and my dime to try the call as I really only expected a rah-rah session that wouldn’t really answer any questions without having a long drawn out parlay. Now they also offered to answer my questions by e-mail but aren’t they the same ones that created all the questions in the first place by not providing any details in any of their myriad of computer generated e-mails? Do I really want to open up that kind of dialogue? Besides how good are they really?

Well if you go to the leader board section of the back office at the web site that I can access because of my temporary ID and password, I found that Cyber Incomes, Inc was number 7 for the month of November with a total recruitment of 13. Is this impressive or not?

If you consider that I have a built up down line of potential members (that is they are all pre-enrollees like I am having not paid to upgrade to full member) totalizing 6,792 in the past three months as reported by their back office genealogy sheet for me, and that their ID numbers associated with my genealogy range from 9123530 to 9418148 an increase of nearly 300,000 during that same time frame, and that for the month of November, the top 35 recruiting leaders for this system only recruited a total of 250 members and that the recruiters on the list after position 12 had 2 or less recruits, and knowing that the only way to have MLM really work tremendous wonders is to gain a large following under you, I must say that I am not too impressed. It is said that a 1% – 3% response rate from a mass marketing effort is consider a success. They are slightly behind that but just think of what that means your chances are.

Not only do you have to gain a down line but you have to keep it. Without knowing what the payout is, and only just guessing what the pay in is based on the sign up order form, I would guess that there is a large rate of attrition. That is one of the unspoken truths of many MLMs.

But they will assist you, or so they claim. That is another area I would have liked to have seen more detailed information. They did refer me to another site that gave millionaire training from the hands of a millionaire. I think what this turns into is another revenue stream for the company or its sponsors as they try to promote your success by promoting their products. I have seen a fair share of companies that rope you in for level one, only to present level two for the intermediate student and the level three for the more advanced, each time providing additional product or services that you can’t live without and new prices that you can’t afford.

Lastly, if you Google New Vision and select the one that isn’t the leading newspaper of Uganda, you will finally find out a little more about the product and the program. So why didn’t I start there? Because it took me a long time to work through the noise to get to the meat of the issue. In other words, New Vision wasn’t mentioned until the order form and it was there that I found out that they are the basis for the company. Cyber Incomes, Inc. and ForteBuilder are just recruiting shells whose only function it seems is to recruit.

So did they do their job? I do not know enough about New Vision International to make that call yet but as far as Cyber Incomes Inc. and ForteBuilder are concerned no, not very well at all. I was not well informed (at least not well enough to take the step forward) and most of the information that I would like to have had to make an informed decision was masked or hidden behind hyperbole. The glammer and glitz were not enough to overcome my logical questioning nature (and it never should be), and the lack of substance kept me looking for more answers. In the end, they look like they were taking a cut off the top directly from you for their recruiting efforts and gave little more than an introduction to the real company for the trouble. You know, I could almost live with that if they were upfront about it from the beginning but I feel like the deception was deliberate and therefore no trust is established.

Did I do my job? That would be a resounding yes. I took the time and effort needed to answer any and all my questions. I looked in as many places as I had available. I tried many web searches to find out if the company I was thinking about working with was legitimate and worth creating a business alliance with. In the end, I came up with the conclusion that they were not for me.

Am I disappointed, maybe a little, but not really. I have added to my arsenal of knowledge a few more things to look for when making these evaluations. My skepticism has grown a little more but my hope is still intact, it wasn’t washed away completely as it might have been if I had suckered into a program with overly enthusiastic expectations, only to have them washed away after a few months of heavy automatic deductions with minimal rewards. That would really be disheartening.

If you are really interested in pursuing a business venture of any value, you must be willing to put forth the effort that it takes. I believe that there can be 'get rich quick' and 'get rich easy' plans that can succeed but they still take work and time and effort and knowledge. The ones that come to you on a silver platter with all the trimmings, and no effort on your part seldom if ever deliver the promised goods.

But also, just because one way failed to deliver does not mean that there are no more possibilities left for me. In fact, I think there are numerous possible ways for me out there, and I will keep looking for each and every opportunity that passes by. Many will be made just for me. And many are made just for you. Let’s keep looking together.

This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.

A quick how to evaluate MLM and other businesses

As I may have mentioned I am in the process of looking for money making opportunities on the web and somehow I have stumbled across a web site that latched onto my e-mail address and started sending me e-mails about the wonderful offer to join and make lots of money with their multi-level marketing program. I have since been studying multi level marketing or MLM and been trying to learn some of the basics as well as some of the language. It seems to come with its own set of dialect and you really need to understand it if you are contemplating entering the world of MLM. Also, I found some common themes to look out for if you are considering becoming a participant. Some of these criteria will eliminate many MLM plans before you get to involved and so that you don’t waste too much time yourself, I will share on these pages some of what I have found.

First of all my fast and friendly rules or rather questions for evaluation:

Is this a legitimate business opportunity? Having an accounting and business background the first thing I try to do is evaluate whether or not this is a viable business. All business is based on selling goods and/or services to a customer that has a need for those goods and/or services. If you are able to provide those goods and/or services to your customer at an agreed upon price you have a business. If not then you have something else.

If there is even anything remotely illegal or shady then walk away. If you are presented with a clever way of doing something to avoid taxes or protect assets in a questionable way or you are obtaining goods through other than normal channels then avoid it. There are many legal ways of making money and you want to be honest in all your dealings with your fellow man.

With that said, be fair in your evaluations. If you don’t understand a business you are looking at then keep asking questions until you do or decide right there and then that this is not for you and move on. Just because you don’t understand a business concept/plan/product does not make it illegal. Nor does a bad business plan and an overpriced product make it a scam or a pyramid scheme though because of misunderstandings and the way it is operated it might appear so. The label of scam is thrown out too easily by the many people who got involved in something that they didn’t understand. They didn’t realize just exactly what it was they were getting involved in especially in MLM type businesses generally no one was there to correct the misunderstanding.

That brings up another thing to look at, namely the people you will be dealing with, from the company itself to the network of dealers and representatives you will interface with on a regular basis. Is there integrity there and can you trust them? Can they and will they act as a support group to help you through the lean tough times that will creep up? Are they knowledgeable and are they willing to share that knowledge freely? Is there a mentor that you can look to for advice, counsel, and encouragement?

The next question then for me is to look at the product itself and ask ‘Is this something I would buy as a consumer and would I be willing to pay full retail for it?’ Notice that this is a two level question and both parts must be answered honestly. There are many products out there that I would love to enjoy but am unwilling to pay the exorbitant amounts required either on a one time or regular basis without a great change in my personal financial dynamics. (Sorry Bentley but I am staying with the Honda for now.) There are also many items that I would not be fond of whatever the price (with certain “music artist’s” that come to mind). The product has to be one that I believe in and be proud enough to let others know that I am a part of. Without that, how will you ever be able to share it with others and grow your business?

This brings up many other sub questions that relate to any business you might be contemplating a purchase of or participation in be it an MLM, a franchise, an existing business, or stock in a corporation. What does the business do? Who are the customers (demographics)? What is the business plan/model/process, in other words how do you work the business to make the business work? For an existing business or franchise the operations of the business should be pre defined with a successful method that can be easily replicated; that is how you have places like McDonalds.

Also in that light, what competition is there? Are there many others that are selling alternative products? What advantages/disadvantages does this product have compared to other products? How does it compare on price/quality/value? How informed is the consumer? Will you have to compete with others that are selling the same product, in other words, what is your territory and do you have any exclusive rights or will you have to share? In our world of information modern society has loaded us up with alternative solutions and competitive pricing. How will the product stack up, not only today but tomorrow?

We all have certain skills/knowledge that can be applied in the building of a business and we all lack certain skills/knowledge that will make the going harder at times than at others. Do we have the commitment and/or resources to obtain the skills/knowledge ourselves and do we have sources available to obtain them as needed? Are you willing to look for them when they are needed? An honest evaluation of yourself is need here to determine if you have what it takes to take on this business and if not do you have what it takes to obtain it. Are you willing to put forth the effort to obtain the reward?

Notice now please that I have come quite a long way before mentioning the one thing most business is based on and most MLMs are sold on and that is the money you can make. Theoretically, the amount of money any business can make is unlimited or relatively so as a business can be grown, expanded, merged, and so on into whatever you decide to create. Realistically, there are obstacles that must be overcome all along the way and how you deal with these will in large part determine your success…or failure. But eventually everyone wants to know, “what’s in it for me?”, and they should. Is this effort going to be worthwhile? What can I “reasonably” expect to take away from all of this? What will be the realistic expectations for my return on investment?

Unfortunately this is where most sales pitches for businesses start and sadly where most businesses end. It is easy to get the emotional glands charged up with talk of grandeur and have you salivating about mansions, hot cars, second homes, yachts and living like the stars on TV, because that is what fuels the fire in many of these businesses. Once your eyes glaze over and you are dreaming in lala land you are less likely to pay attention to the reality of the numbers. The accountant in me is always trying to look at the numbers, trying to make sense of what is being presented, and even if the simple math is correct (and many times it isn’t) are the numbers that are being used an accurate realistic portrayal of fact or are they a work of idealistic fiction? If the numbers are valid and the math is good, what is the timeframe for which they are referencing? It is easy to make a million dollars, for one it might take a year and for another it might take a lifetime, but it can be done.

Remember that you are evaluating a return on investment which should have you asking “what are the costs?” Look at all the costs, those for product, those to join, those to recruit, those to market, and those for daily operations and then ask yourself “will I have enough revenue to cover those costs and still have something leftover for me?” It is important in any scenario to have something leftover for me, and with proper money management you should. Proper money management with the aid of a legitimate business opportunity should be able to lead you down the path that will make the houses, and cars, and trips a real possibility.

Even the traditional job will get you there with proper money management but most of us are looking for a way of getting there that is a little more productive and exciting that the traditional job route hence the search for alternatives.

There is a lot to consider before putting up your hard earned money and making the commitment that goes into these decisions. Many do so on impulse without full understanding and therefore many suffer the consequences of their actions impacting those around them as they go. That is also part of the reason for the high turnover rates seen in MLM.

Many will join in the heat of the moment or for the sake of a close relative or friend without any intention of making a go of it. Many don’t understand that there is work involved and an effort of time and stepping outside their comfort zone all the things they weren’t counting on when they had the fast cars and trips dancing in their heads. Frustration then sets in as they look out the window and don’t see the fancy new sports car sitting in the driveway while the write another check for yet another box of product that they don’t even use. Then they think of the one that talked them into this in the first place and can’t remember when the last time was that they last talked and they tell themselves that it is no big loss.

I have seen this happen to friends and strangers and want to learn from the mistakes, and as always try to pass these things on to you. As I look at some of these things I run across I will share with you what I see and we will all grow wiser. Look for further entries on specific examples as I continue my search.

This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.

iRazoo do you, or do I?

Have you heard of iRazoo? In my effort to find new ways to be compensated for wasting my time on the internet and providing a second or third or even thirtieth supplemental income I happened onto a web site called iRazoo, and as all things such as these I will pass on my findings to let you know if it is worth it or just a waste of time.

iRazoo is a new search engine web site that adds a twist of earning points with each search and letting its users provide feedback on the usefulness of the site through comments and a vote of yes or no to recommend a site also earning points. These points can then be traded in for toys or gift certificates. Seems simple enough but how does it deliver.

First off you will notice that as a search engine it is kind of weak. It will pull in sites for you but it is quite a mix with many entries seeming far off target. In fact they look like plants (paid advertisements) that have little to do with the subject at hand. That means that you will not be using this site as an alternative to do your regular searches. So the real use of this site is to gain points and earn stuff.

Points are relatively easy to earn, in fact it was so easy that they changed the rules within days of my joining. It seemed that some would just hit the site, grab points and move on without any seriousness in evaluating the recommended sites, so they added a timer which means you cannot vote for a site until 30 seconds have past. That is o.k. because the site comes up in a new tab, and while you are waiting for the 30 seconds to pass, you simply go back to the search page and click on another site to open up, and another one after that.

Update: They will only let you open one searched page tab at a time now so no multi-tasking means it will take 3X as long.

Three is the limit however as you can only earn points on three sites per search term used, and that is not a daily limit, that appears to be for all time. That means you have to get tricky if you want to search on a topic you are familiar with. For example, you might look for ‘Mini 500’, ‘helicopter’, ‘mini 500 helicopter’, ‘mini helicopter’, ‘500 mini’, ‘500 helicopter’… anyway you get the picture. Also each page can only be used once for points so you will have to choose carefully. Notice I did say page and not site so each page on the site can bring you points.

The three click limit is very…well limiting. Again, as a search engine iRazoo is less than stellar for those that know there are thousands and millions of web sites out there for just about any topic and to hold yourself to just the first three is rather silly.

The next limit that you will become familiar with is the daily earning limit which is currently set at 300 points per day. Because of the way the points are paid out, 8 here and 8 there, I don’t think I have hit an exact 300 yet. 300 divided by 8 gives you 37.5 so I always have a number that leaves me short and it doesn’t look like it will pay you partial points to fulfill your max. This just means it takes you longer to reach a prize level.

So what are the prize levels, or in other words, how long will it take to get something for nothing? First thing to remember is that there is very seldom a something for nothing; you are trading your time, interest, and feedback if nothing else. Even with the layered multi opened page approach I use it takes about 20 to 30 minutes to max out my points (your mileage may vary). In the iRazoo advertisements they say that you can earn a prize in as little as 10 days but that has to be 11 now since you can’t reach a full 300 point day to make the 3,000 point minimum prize level in 10 days.

So what do you get for your 3,000 points of effort? A $5 gift certificate to Amazon. Now you will have to run the numbers for yourself and decide if 5 hours worth of effort over an 11 day period is worth a $5 gift certificate but $1 per hour hardly seems worth the time, especially if the usefulness of the search engine just isn’t there.

If you wish to accumulate your points there are higher prizes to be had such as a Nintendo Wii, Playstation 3 40gb, or Xbox 360 60gb for 100,000 points. An unlocked 16gb iPhone can be had for 600,000 points (that’s 2,000 days or 5.479 years for those that are counting). Or you good just hold out for the $25 Apple iTunes music card for 18,250 points (about 61 days work).

Can you get more points and can you get there faster? Yes, sort of. Two ways are offered, one is that there will be banners appearing for which you can take up an offer or buy product and the sponsor will credit you with points, eventually, (allow 6 to 8 weeks…you know the drill) and in the mean time you have given you info out to yet another someone on the web and possibly some hard earned dollars for a product you might not really have wanted for which there are plenty of other sites to get rebates on your purchases. If you can’t tell, I don’t think I trust the banners.

The other way to get points on iRazoo is to put a link to iRazoo on your web page about iRazoo or tell a friend about iRazoo so that they can join iRazoo and take advantage of this thrilling iRazoo search engine web site by joining iRazoo themselves and earning their own iRazoo points and iRazoo rewards, and for each person that joins iRazoo based on your sponsorship and promotion of iRazoo you will receive 50 iRazoo points and the person referred will also receive 50 iRazoo points. So feel free to click on any of the hyper linked mentions of iRazoo and you can play iRazoo also. Did I mention that only half of your points used can come from iRazoo referrals’, yet another limit placed on your iRazoo efforts at iRazoo.


Although I haven’t been on iRazoo very long, maybe a month or so, (it has been a busy month) and I certainly haven’t been on it every day, I am up to 2,418 points and am working on my first Amazon gift card. Why, I don’t know. I just want to see if it works for one thing and the pursuit of something for nothing still intrigues me. I also can’t tell you how quickly they pay out or how true to their word they are because I haven’t hit that spot yet either. They do have a promo going where you can win a search and win $5 Amazon gift certificate but I haven’t won one yet, and I’m not holding my breath.

One more suggestion for those willing to try, leave your radio or TV on in the back ground so when you are drawing a blank on what to do for the next search word just use the first word or phrase you hear coming out of the radio or TV. Do this carefully though, for it might be a word from a commercial that you really aren’t too anxious to learn more about.

Now that I have taken the ground work for you, it is up to you to decide if it is worth it for you. If I get one gift card I will be happy but I will also move on to hopefully bigger and better things. And as I continue to look for them I will continue to share my findings with you.

This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.