I have been thinking for a while now that poker could still be a really good network to get into..
My poker site has done pretty well so far and the ROI is very good.
I am considering doing a lot of poker sites and making them part of a network, all under DeuceAce.com
Two site genres are doing well for my lately, poker and directories.
WebmasterForums could do VERY well but I don't think I have the time or the drive to work on it enough really..What should I do about it?
Its a large site with a lot of members and a great domain, if I saw it for sale myself I would think of selling most of what I have just to get it, but now that I have it I just can't get the drive to work on it myself...
I think if I could get some long term advertisers it would give me a good drive to keep working on it and improving it, right now it isn't giving a good ROI for me.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Monday, February 27, 2006
I'm back from Dublin!
Got back yesterday from Dublin but I didn't do much work, just replied to some emails and forum posts.
It wasn't too bad but it was freezing down there and there was a big riot in the main street on Saturday, 3 cars burnt out and there was a full riot squad out in most streets in the city centre.
I was on the news worldwide in the news clips! Makes me wish I had a T-Shirt/jumper with the name of one of my sites ;-)
The amount of money you spend on the small breaks really mounts up...I went to Dublin because I'm planning on taking a bigger holiday not too long time from so I could save some money, I spent over £600 (Around $1050) in 2 nights away!
If I didn't go to Dublin and Belfast the last few times I could have had a nice little holiday in one of the Spanish Island for at least a week! Its still good to break up the months and workload by getting away though, you do work a lot better after getting away from things, even if its just a few days.
It wasn't too bad but it was freezing down there and there was a big riot in the main street on Saturday, 3 cars burnt out and there was a full riot squad out in most streets in the city centre.
I was on the news worldwide in the news clips! Makes me wish I had a T-Shirt/jumper with the name of one of my sites ;-)
The amount of money you spend on the small breaks really mounts up...I went to Dublin because I'm planning on taking a bigger holiday not too long time from so I could save some money, I spent over £600 (Around $1050) in 2 nights away!
If I didn't go to Dublin and Belfast the last few times I could have had a nice little holiday in one of the Spanish Island for at least a week! Its still good to break up the months and workload by getting away though, you do work a lot better after getting away from things, even if its just a few days.
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
This months break
For anyone that hasn't read all my blogs, I am going to go away to another city or country at least once every month.
I have already been to
I think I might be going to
I was planning on going further but I'm going to wait a few months and save up a bit more cash and go somewhere really nice.
I need to buy a new laptop though, there’s two problems with my own.
The charger wont work and I bought a new one for £75 and that worked for about a month and has stopped now too.
I can't find the charger for my model of laptop (Got it last year) and its going to be around the same £60-£80.
Second problem is I spilled water on it about 5 months ago and took the keys off to dry it out, laptop is working fine but I have lost a few bits that goes between the laptop and keys...grrrrr.
I don't need anything powerful because I will just be using it to check emails and fix any urgent problems on my sites when I'm away.
Monday, February 20, 2006
New monitor came!
Monitor came today!
Didn't think it would come so quickly with the postal strike going on here.
I didn't think it would make so much difference, there's a lot more space on the screen than I thought.
I will get a pic of it soon, sounds weird but I think I have more space on my desk now than when I had the 15", I think its because of the way the bottom/stand is.
The new speakers I got last week look nice beside it too :)
Time to go watch a DVD (The Business) to see what its like!
Didn't think it would come so quickly with the postal strike going on here.
I didn't think it would make so much difference, there's a lot more space on the screen than I thought.
I will get a pic of it soon, sounds weird but I think I have more space on my desk now than when I had the 15", I think its because of the way the bottom/stand is.
The new speakers I got last week look nice beside it too :)
Time to go watch a DVD (The Business) to see what its like!
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Advertising sales
I sold a lot of ad space today, its been a great day overall with directory submission and ad sales.
I sold space on AllDotNet and DeuceAce.
Both are now fully sold out and most spaces have been reserved for a few months.
I will be removing adsense from the header of AllDotNet and changing it to private advertisers - adsense has been REALLY bad for me this whole month - Earnings are down a lot more than I expected even with the large increase in traffic.
A coder has really let me down on a custom script I am having developed to help me manage and sell my available space on all my sites.
The script looks like its 90% complete but I just can't get in contact with him.
I might just work on it and finish it off myself - Not happy about it though because my project specs included that I needed it complete ASAP - I.e. no more than a week, never mind around 6 weeks which its been now.
Once that is done it will make ad management really easy and a lot less work for me, everything will be automated so advertisers can see what's available, buy any space they want and reserve space that's already sold out!
I will be starting to put up my prices soon, especially on the DeuceAce left navigation, that's selling like mad and I never have an available space for more than a few days.
A lot of advertisers are wanting to reserve it for up to 4 month, I put a limit of 4 months max because I know I will be putting prices up, its really low at $29.95/month for a sitewide button link.
I sold space on AllDotNet and DeuceAce.
Both are now fully sold out and most spaces have been reserved for a few months.
I will be removing adsense from the header of AllDotNet and changing it to private advertisers - adsense has been REALLY bad for me this whole month - Earnings are down a lot more than I expected even with the large increase in traffic.
A coder has really let me down on a custom script I am having developed to help me manage and sell my available space on all my sites.
The script looks like its 90% complete but I just can't get in contact with him.
I might just work on it and finish it off myself - Not happy about it though because my project specs included that I needed it complete ASAP - I.e. no more than a week, never mind around 6 weeks which its been now.
Once that is done it will make ad management really easy and a lot less work for me, everything will be automated so advertisers can see what's available, buy any space they want and reserve space that's already sold out!
I will be starting to put up my prices soon, especially on the DeuceAce left navigation, that's selling like mad and I never have an available space for more than a few days.
A lot of advertisers are wanting to reserve it for up to 4 month, I put a limit of 4 months max because I know I will be putting prices up, its really low at $29.95/month for a sitewide button link.
Hungover!
I went out last night and I have been paying for it the whole day!
I am still feeling bad and its 2.40am
I took it easy today and I was just lying on my bed watching TV and doing a bit of work most of the time.
AllDotNet has been doing really well lately, I think it might be down to the new design.
I just started doing a special offer for one week, buy two listings and get one free!
If anyone has been thinking about listing on AllDotNet now is the time!
Just submit your site here (It takes less than a minute) and you will get your third listing free.
I just started this today and I have got a lot from it already!
Anyway...whats the real hangover cure :D
I am still feeling bad and its 2.40am
I took it easy today and I was just lying on my bed watching TV and doing a bit of work most of the time.
AllDotNet has been doing really well lately, I think it might be down to the new design.
I just started doing a special offer for one week, buy two listings and get one free!
If anyone has been thinking about listing on AllDotNet now is the time!
Just submit your site here (It takes less than a minute) and you will get your third listing free.
I just started this today and I have got a lot from it already!
Anyway...whats the real hangover cure :D
Saturday, February 18, 2006
Increasing traffic on my sites
I have done a lot of work on my sites in the last 3-4 months to try get them ready for a good level of traffic, i.e. to start large advertising campaigns.
I think AllDotNet is at that level now, I have changed a lot and the site seems solid, I think if I can get more traffic I wont have a lot of extra work and the revenue will be better.
My other sites still aren't ready I don't think, I think DeuceAce is close enough, its basic but its still serves its purpose.
WebmasterForums on the other hand needs quite a bit of work I think, I have a lot of plans but just don't have the time to work on them.
Now you might be asking why I'm starting a new project if I don't have time for my current sites...Well once the new project is setup it will be very minimal work, it wont need a lot of updates so I don't mind.
Now....What are my plans for increasing traffic?
AllDotNet.com
I have two markets to target with AllDotNet, my general directory.
The site is large enough to give good results to visitors searching for sites with over 12,000 sites currently listed so I would like to advertise general web users and market on the fact that sites in the AllDotNet directory have been manually approved and reviewed before being listed, unlike the major search engines that can often give a lot of results that don't include sites they want.
I need to come up with more selling points for this market...have any ideas? Post a comment :)
The other market is site owners to get their sites listed, this is where I make most of my revenue from but I am still going to advertise 50% of my budget on it.
I want to sell on the strong points that AllDotNet is established, (Over a year old now!) and their money is well spent as they know we will be around for long to come.
The directory is also very large and it does attract a lot of general visitors searching for sites.
The other factor is I charge a LOT less than most premium directories the same size, I only charge $4.95 for permanent submission and permanent featured links (Above all others in the same category) for $19.95.
I think I have good selling points to both markets so now I just have to find some good sites to advertise on!
DeuceAce.com
I only have one market I want to advertise to, poker players!
This one is very simple, I have advertising space covered really so I just want to get the general traffic levels up, I am going to advertise on other poker related sites, poker directories and if possible buy signature space of people that post in other poker or gambling forums.
I want to get some other ideas though, maybe try get some pro players to come on and answer questions from the members, do a partnership with some rooms to get good deals for my members and a few other things.
Again, if anyone has any ideas, post a comment and let me know!
WebmasterForums.NET
I just started paying for posters on WebmasterForums.net
I'm not going to get a lot, its just to spark a bit of interest.
I have done it in the past and it can work well but you have to have people that are interested in the subject, not just people that are trying to get a few extra bucks..
I don't think webmasterforums is ready for a large advertising campaign, it needs to get more active members, some more sections added to the site and a few other things.
I think I will be working on it for at least another 2 weeks before I start anything big.
I'm still losing money on the forum every month, I really want to get a sponsor that will sponsor the site long term - If anyone is interested in this please let me know!
I think AllDotNet is at that level now, I have changed a lot and the site seems solid, I think if I can get more traffic I wont have a lot of extra work and the revenue will be better.
My other sites still aren't ready I don't think, I think DeuceAce is close enough, its basic but its still serves its purpose.
WebmasterForums on the other hand needs quite a bit of work I think, I have a lot of plans but just don't have the time to work on them.
Now you might be asking why I'm starting a new project if I don't have time for my current sites...Well once the new project is setup it will be very minimal work, it wont need a lot of updates so I don't mind.
Now....What are my plans for increasing traffic?
AllDotNet.com
I have two markets to target with AllDotNet, my general directory.
The site is large enough to give good results to visitors searching for sites with over 12,000 sites currently listed so I would like to advertise general web users and market on the fact that sites in the AllDotNet directory have been manually approved and reviewed before being listed, unlike the major search engines that can often give a lot of results that don't include sites they want.
I need to come up with more selling points for this market...have any ideas? Post a comment :)
The other market is site owners to get their sites listed, this is where I make most of my revenue from but I am still going to advertise 50% of my budget on it.
I want to sell on the strong points that AllDotNet is established, (Over a year old now!) and their money is well spent as they know we will be around for long to come.
The directory is also very large and it does attract a lot of general visitors searching for sites.
The other factor is I charge a LOT less than most premium directories the same size, I only charge $4.95 for permanent submission and permanent featured links (Above all others in the same category) for $19.95.
I think I have good selling points to both markets so now I just have to find some good sites to advertise on!
DeuceAce.com
I only have one market I want to advertise to, poker players!
This one is very simple, I have advertising space covered really so I just want to get the general traffic levels up, I am going to advertise on other poker related sites, poker directories and if possible buy signature space of people that post in other poker or gambling forums.
I want to get some other ideas though, maybe try get some pro players to come on and answer questions from the members, do a partnership with some rooms to get good deals for my members and a few other things.
Again, if anyone has any ideas, post a comment and let me know!
WebmasterForums.NET
I just started paying for posters on WebmasterForums.net
I'm not going to get a lot, its just to spark a bit of interest.
I have done it in the past and it can work well but you have to have people that are interested in the subject, not just people that are trying to get a few extra bucks..
I don't think webmasterforums is ready for a large advertising campaign, it needs to get more active members, some more sections added to the site and a few other things.
I think I will be working on it for at least another 2 weeks before I start anything big.
I'm still losing money on the forum every month, I really want to get a sponsor that will sponsor the site long term - If anyone is interested in this please let me know!
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
New monitor! 19 inch Digimate with DVI
I just got a new monitor today, been looking for a few weeks.
I'm using a 15" now and since I'm working more than full time I think it will be better to have a bigger screen.
I wasn't sure if I would get two 17" monitors or one 19" but the 19 will take up less space on my desk and hopefully will be enough, if not I will just need a bigger desk and buy another 19" ;)
I will post a pic when it arrives, hoping to have it by Friday!
I'm using a 15" now and since I'm working more than full time I think it will be better to have a bigger screen.
I wasn't sure if I would get two 17" monitors or one 19" but the 19 will take up less space on my desk and hopefully will be enough, if not I will just need a bigger desk and buy another 19" ;)
I will post a pic when it arrives, hoping to have it by Friday!
New project update - Going well!
I posted a few days ago about starting up a new site, its the first new site I have worked on in months.
I am paying people to do what I need to run the site/business and most of the work is complete, I think it will take another two weeks until its fully complete and online.
My costs for startup are getting bigger though but that's only because I'm trying to get something great quality, I know it will pay off in the long term anyway :)
I am paying people to do what I need to run the site/business and most of the work is complete, I think it will take another two weeks until its fully complete and online.
My costs for startup are getting bigger though but that's only because I'm trying to get something great quality, I know it will pay off in the long term anyway :)
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
SoapForum sold for £1200! (Around $2000)
Hey all
Just sold www.SoapForum.co.uk to Martin from www.JustChat.co.uk for £1200 which is around $2000!
Most of this will be spending money for myself and a small part will be going towards the new site I posted about.
I'm hoping to get everything transferred quickly, the money has already been sent through paypal.
Anyone else hate paypal? The fees are a bitch..it cost me over £40 for the transfer!!
Just sold www.SoapForum.co.uk to Martin from www.JustChat.co.uk for £1200 which is around $2000!
Most of this will be spending money for myself and a small part will be going towards the new site I posted about.
I'm hoping to get everything transferred quickly, the money has already been sent through paypal.
Anyone else hate paypal? The fees are a bitch..it cost me over £40 for the transfer!!
Sunday, February 12, 2006
AllDotNet is booming!!
Third post tonight, just an update for one of my sites, AllDotNet.com
The site stats are up TEN TIMES the normal, which is a lot because I have had a steady flow of traffic for around 4 months.
I had a look at the stats but I really can't find where its coming from.
Over 85% of my traffic is coming from direct access and bookmarks so I can't work out how it has gone up so much.
I have been getting quite a few submissions on AllDotNet lately and yesterday I got a lot from a regular submitter that has spent a lot in the directory, so I offered him free submission to my three directories, I like giving something back to people that are supporting me and try to do it as much as possible with my advertisers especially.
I have done a lot of work on AllDotNet lately and I will be doing a lot of hours on improving the script/site tomorrow - I think after doing a good bit of work and getting steady traffic of both submitters and visitors searching for sites I can start advertising the site offline and getting even more quality traffic.
The site stats are up TEN TIMES the normal, which is a lot because I have had a steady flow of traffic for around 4 months.
I had a look at the stats but I really can't find where its coming from.
Over 85% of my traffic is coming from direct access and bookmarks so I can't work out how it has gone up so much.
I have been getting quite a few submissions on AllDotNet lately and yesterday I got a lot from a regular submitter that has spent a lot in the directory, so I offered him free submission to my three directories, I like giving something back to people that are supporting me and try to do it as much as possible with my advertisers especially.
I have done a lot of work on AllDotNet lately and I will be doing a lot of hours on improving the script/site tomorrow - I think after doing a good bit of work and getting steady traffic of both submitters and visitors searching for sites I can start advertising the site offline and getting even more quality traffic.
SoapForum.co.uk up for sale again
Well I haven't heard back from the last buyer about the SoapForum sale so I have put it back up for sale.
The current stats of the forum are:
Our members have made a total of 33,567 posts
We have 1,554 registered members
The newest member is GlasgowDancer
Most users ever online was 374 on Jul 13 2005, 03:24 AM
It is a pretty large forum so I'm sure it will sell, the current offer is $1200 on DigitalPoint.
I have the BIN set at $2500 which is what I was offered by a few people the last time I had it for sale, so hopefully it will reach that, although I am willing to take a little lower (Don't tell anyone else though).
If anyone is interested in the site please let me know by posting a comment or emailing john [ at ] global eire . com - Take out the space and [ ] of course :)
The current stats of the forum are:
Our members have made a total of 33,567 posts
We have 1,554 registered members
The newest member is GlasgowDancer
Most users ever online was 374 on Jul 13 2005, 03:24 AM
It is a pretty large forum so I'm sure it will sell, the current offer is $1200 on DigitalPoint.
I have the BIN set at $2500 which is what I was offered by a few people the last time I had it for sale, so hopefully it will reach that, although I am willing to take a little lower (Don't tell anyone else though).
If anyone is interested in the site please let me know by posting a comment or emailing john [ at ] global eire . com - Take out the space and [ ] of course :)
Back after a break
Hey all,
Well after finally getting the problem with my sites fixed I decided to take a few days away with my other half.
That's the best thing with running the sites I have, as long as there isn't a problem with the hosting, the sites can run themselves and I don't have to worry about them at all while I go away.
I had a great time and hopefully I will be having another short break this month.
I made a promise that I would get at least one quick holiday each month, last month I went to
Isn't it great not having a boss :D
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
Problem with the new host and vBulletin
Well I still dont have my sites up.... :(
I have made close to nothin in the first week because of my server being offline and it looks like it might be a problem because mysql is different from my server and the new host - Whatever it is its causing a database error on all my forums.
I have got over 2000 emails from people visiting my sites in the last 24 hours.
The sites are working fine on my own server (Which is back online) so I want to get the DNS to forward to my own server (This just means if anyone gets the settings to go to the new host, it will forward them to my own server).
I'm going to have to do something to start getting my revenue up again..I thought after I made the move that would be everything sorted and I could go back to normal.
My fingers are starting to hurt from crossing them so much, one last time, hope the forums are back on ASAP so I can get back to my work...
I have made close to nothin in the first week because of my server being offline and it looks like it might be a problem because mysql is different from my server and the new host - Whatever it is its causing a database error on all my forums.
I have got over 2000 emails from people visiting my sites in the last 24 hours.
The sites are working fine on my own server (Which is back online) so I want to get the DNS to forward to my own server (This just means if anyone gets the settings to go to the new host, it will forward them to my own server).
I'm going to have to do something to start getting my revenue up again..I thought after I made the move that would be everything sorted and I could go back to normal.
My fingers are starting to hurt from crossing them so much, one last time, hope the forums are back on ASAP so I can get back to my work...
Sunday, February 05, 2006
New project
I have been planning to start a new project for some time now but I haven't had enough time between my other sites.
Since my host is down and I can't work on my sites I thought it would be a good time to get started on the new site.
I'm not going to say what it is yet but I think it could do well.
It won't be something I will be working on full time, just a little thing on the side.
My plans are to develop it with minimum work and money and trying to get the highest ROI.
I'm doing something I don't like doing..I will be providing something close to a service..I don't like dealing with customers, its too much like working for someone.
I don't think I will have to offer too much support so it won't be too bad, I think it will be worth the effort and if it does get too much, I would be more than happy to sell it.
Setup will be very quick so I will be posting something about this soon :)
Since my host is down and I can't work on my sites I thought it would be a good time to get started on the new site.
I'm not going to say what it is yet but I think it could do well.
It won't be something I will be working on full time, just a little thing on the side.
My plans are to develop it with minimum work and money and trying to get the highest ROI.
I'm doing something I don't like doing..I will be providing something close to a service..I don't like dealing with customers, its too much like working for someone.
I don't think I will have to offer too much support so it won't be too bad, I think it will be worth the effort and if it does get too much, I would be more than happy to sell it.
Setup will be very quick so I will be posting something about this soon :)
Webhosts....
Hey,
Badddddd weekend this weekend.
My host hasn't been paying my server bills (I pay them every month and they resell the server for a datacentre, so they have to pay the bill at the DC).
I got a payment request on Friday from the host and that night the server was offline.
I emailed the datacentre to get a reboot and they told me there was a bill of around $380 on the server.
Obviously I'm really not happy but I'm not going to pay the $380 after already paying for the server every month.
I moved to a new host and just went with a reseller account this time, there was no need for the dedicated and the reseller will save me a bit of money - I was paying $100/month for the dedicated but the reseller is only $35/month.
I went with Http://www.a2b2.com - They are a sponsor on Http://www.WebmasterForums.net (One of my sites) and I have known the company owner for a good bit so I am sure they are a good choice.
I'm getting the account setup now but I have to wait for the DNS to propagate and change all my DNS - I'm crossing my fingers that there wont be any problems with restoring the backups.
I was doing daily backups to a backup server through cPanel, the WHM restore should restore them without any problems - * FINGERS CROSSED *
Badddddd weekend this weekend.
My host hasn't been paying my server bills (I pay them every month and they resell the server for a datacentre, so they have to pay the bill at the DC).
I got a payment request on Friday from the host and that night the server was offline.
I emailed the datacentre to get a reboot and they told me there was a bill of around $380 on the server.
Obviously I'm really not happy but I'm not going to pay the $380 after already paying for the server every month.
I moved to a new host and just went with a reseller account this time, there was no need for the dedicated and the reseller will save me a bit of money - I was paying $100/month for the dedicated but the reseller is only $35/month.
I went with Http://www.a2b2.com - They are a sponsor on Http://www.WebmasterForums.net (One of my sites) and I have known the company owner for a good bit so I am sure they are a good choice.
I'm getting the account setup now but I have to wait for the DNS to propagate and change all my DNS - I'm crossing my fingers that there wont be any problems with restoring the backups.
I was doing daily backups to a backup server through cPanel, the WHM restore should restore them without any problems - * FINGERS CROSSED *
Thursday, February 02, 2006
Lazy Day
I had a really lazy day yesterday (Wednesday).
I was waiting for my PDA/phone to come but it didn't come and I was waiting about the house most of the day because I knew I had to sign for it.
I wrote out a long list of things I am going to do for AllDotNet but didn't get around to doing anything.
I'm starting to think that I work a LOT harder when I know I haven't sold a site or don't have a sale coming up and have to work for advertising revenue.
After and before a site sale I normally take a bit of a break to reward myself - Bad move because it makes it harder getting into the work routine again.
Phone came today
Phone came this morning :)
I'm impressed with it but I think I will have to spend more money and get just a phone.
This thing is really a phonebox..not sure if I want to carry it about everywhere with me but I'm going to have a think.
Decided to get a gold phone number
Posted a few days ago that I was thinking about getting a gold number but wasn't sure, decided to go for it and got a nice little number, it will make it easier for me and other people to remember anyway :)
Starts with 07999 then has 6 other VERY easy to remember numbers, no, I won't post it here ;-)
I want to hire someone!
I'm looking to get someone that can take on some of my work load, I think if I get someone to do the backend work I will have more time improving the site content and promotion/marketing.
If anyone is interested let me know, you must be able to design and work with HTML/PHP.
DeuceAce
I'm going to start doing room reviews for DeuceAce.com - I haven't had time to write out any but I really need to start.
The one thing though is that I really don't want to add funds to every room I play at just to do a review - Any ideas? Post a comment if you do.
Enough for now :)
C'mon people, I still haven't seen any comments :)
I was waiting for my PDA/phone to come but it didn't come and I was waiting about the house most of the day because I knew I had to sign for it.
I wrote out a long list of things I am going to do for AllDotNet but didn't get around to doing anything.
I'm starting to think that I work a LOT harder when I know I haven't sold a site or don't have a sale coming up and have to work for advertising revenue.
After and before a site sale I normally take a bit of a break to reward myself - Bad move because it makes it harder getting into the work routine again.
Phone came today
Phone came this morning :)
I'm impressed with it but I think I will have to spend more money and get just a phone.
This thing is really a phonebox..not sure if I want to carry it about everywhere with me but I'm going to have a think.
Decided to get a gold phone number
Posted a few days ago that I was thinking about getting a gold number but wasn't sure, decided to go for it and got a nice little number, it will make it easier for me and other people to remember anyway :)
Starts with 07999 then has 6 other VERY easy to remember numbers, no, I won't post it here ;-)
I want to hire someone!
I'm looking to get someone that can take on some of my work load, I think if I get someone to do the backend work I will have more time improving the site content and promotion/marketing.
If anyone is interested let me know, you must be able to design and work with HTML/PHP.
DeuceAce
I'm going to start doing room reviews for DeuceAce.com - I haven't had time to write out any but I really need to start.
The one thing though is that I really don't want to add funds to every room I play at just to do a review - Any ideas? Post a comment if you do.
Enough for now :)
C'mon people, I still haven't seen any comments :)
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