What Happened to Customer Service?

Is it just me or have you also noticed a big increase in poor customer service (in the U.S.)?   It almost seems as if our society and culture is accepting this kind of behavior.  Here are some situations that I come across quite too often:

Cashiers or order-takers that have personal conversations on the phone or with co-workers while they have [...]

List of Affiliate Networks

Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a number of different affiliate networks.  I tried many, but most of them I’ve simply collected for future reference.  By no means is this the most comprehensive list of affiliate networks.
AcclaimNetwork.com (credit cards)
AdFish.com
AdFusion.com
AdMarketplace.com
AdReporting.com
Adteractive.com
AdValiant.com
AffiliateBot.com
AzoogleAds.com
CJ.com
ClickBank.com (digital products)
ClickBooth.com
ClickXchange.com
Collective-Media.com
CommissionSoup.com (financial)
Copeac.com
CoProsper.com
CPAEmpire.com aka Affiliate.com
CPAJunction.com
CPALead.com
CPAStorm.com
Credit.com
CyberBounty.com
DarkBlue.com
Datran.com
DirectLeads.com
DirectTrack.com
eAdvertising.com
HydraNetwork.com
iCommissions.com
IncentaClick.com
Kolimbo.com
LeadClick.com
LeadHound.com
LinkConnector.com
LinkMo.com
LinkShare.com
MarketHealth.com (health & beauty)
MarketLeverage.com
MaxBounty.com
MoreNiche.com
MotiveInteractive.com
NCSreporting.com (financial) - owned by BankRate
NetPartner.com
NeverBlue.com
OffersQuest.com
PepperjamNetwork.com
Performics.com
PrimaryAds.com
QuinStreet.com (financial)
RevenueAds.com
RevenueAllies.com
RevenueGateway.com
RocketProfit.com
SearchCactus.com
ShareASale.com
ShareResults.com
WebClients.com
WebSponsors.com
Please let me [...]

Are Directories Worth Submitting to?

This is the age-old question that never seems to go away.  I think the answer depends on a number of factors.  I always try to do some preliminary research on the directory I’m thinking about submitting to, especially if I’m spending money on it.  Here are some questions to ask yourself before deciding to submit.
How old is the directory?  [...]

Google Personal Search, SEO and Paid Advertising

Once logged in your Google account, you’ll notice that search results will look a little different vs when  you’re logged off.  This is because Google has long been working to provide a more personal search experience for the user.  This means that when you’re logged into your Google account, Google keeps track of your online [...]

Google Professional Advertising Exam

I been meaning to take the Google Professional Advertising Exam for a while now.  I finally decided to take it yesterday after having gone over some of the tutorials in the Adwords Learning Center.  Fortunately, I passed – barely.  I’m a little embarrassed to share my score, but it was less than 80% and higher than 75%.  [...]

Are Meta Tags Still Important?

I often get into heated discussions about this topic with colleagues and others in my profession.  My stance is that meta tag titles, descriptions and keywords are not as important as many make it out to be. 
I mean, think about it.  Meta tags are way too easy to manipulate.  Spammers have used it to their advantage because [...]

20 Dollar Banners

When I need logos or banners made, I usually look to forums or Elance type sites to find a candidate for the job.  Not this time.  This time, I simply ran a search on Google and came across a banner designing company called 20 Dollar Banners.  Right off the back, I had a good feeling about them.  I mean look [...]

Selling on Craigslist vs. eBay

I’ve tried selling stuff on both sites, but from my experience, I’ve had better results with eBay.  Here are the reasons why I think eBay is better for selling:

Both sites get a huge amount of traffic, but eBay seems to attract the more serious buyers.
Buyers tend to be more confident with eBay because they provide some protection for buyers.
You would think [...]