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Domain Name Registry Scam

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The bastards are on the loose again.  You know, the CREEPS  who send you a very official looking “invoice” regarding your domain name registration.   Obviously a LOT of people fill in the form because it looks so damned official.  I’m a “professional” and I have to admit, if I didn’t know better… I’d sign it as well.

It’s bad enough that you have to worry about security online… now you have to guard yourself off line as well.  It’s a form of snail mail domain name phishing.

In case you don’t know, here’s the scoop.   In the fine print it is written that by signing this form you’re authorizing the  transfer of your domain name to THEIR service.  Want to point your DNS to another hosting program.  TOO BAD!  You can’t.  Want to transfer your domain name… can’t do that either… you signed away those rights.

I’ve gotten two emails this week from clients asking about the letters they’ve received via snail mail regarding this scam.

“But I thought my domain name was registered through you?”

My reply, “It is and will be unless you fill out that form and send it in.  Then all bets are off.”

In case you can’t tell, one of my clients made that mistake a few years back.  I don’t think we ever got control of the domain name back.

It INFURIATES me when some slimy bastard tries to use FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt) to make a buck.

Well, obviously the scam isn’t working so well anymore, so the slimy bastards have hired a call center to telemarket their service.

I got just such a call this morning.  “Hello.  I’m from Domain Name Registration Services and you will be getting a notice in the mail about changes to your domain name account.”

“Why will I be getting that?” I asked.

“Uh, because there are changes in your domain name registration account,” she replied.

“Why?” I asked again because I can be a horse’s ass sometimes.

She started stumbling so badly it was literally incoherent jibberish.  I began thinking of the dear, sweet woman who wrote to me earlier this week and thought about how different this phone call would be if she were in my place.   That visualization set me off and with that,  I let loose on that poor telemarketer.

You know you’ve reached a new low when a telemarketer hangs up on you.

IF YOU DON’T KNOW ALREADY:

  • Don’t click on links in emails regarding your domain name .  Go to  the web site where you registered your domain name and renew it.
  • If you didn’t register your domain name via snail mail, don’t respond to snail mail messages regarding your domain name.
  • Your domain name registrar will NOT be phoning you about your domain name… even if you haven’t paid the bill.

By the way, these rules apply to your CREDIT CARD, YOUR BANK and YOUR PAYPAL accounts as well!!!

It’s only classified as paranoia if they ARE NOT out to get you.

Finding Time to Blog

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One of the most common laments I hear from clients is that they don’t have the “time” to create content for their blog.

Long ago, when I was involved in selling an ad agency’s services, I learned that one must “overcome” objections.  So, when I began hearing the “I don’t have time” objection from clients, I would reply with a “We always find time to do what’s important.”

After all, I didn’t have TIME to write my book… and I too don’t have “time” to post to my blog.  However, I MAKE the time.  For me, to find that time means I don’t get to watch a lot of television.  When the discussion turns to who has been voted off American Idol, I have to shrug.  When a character named “McDreamy” was mentioned one day in a conversation… I seriously thought it was the name of a character on some parody skit.  If I were blogging about the entertainment industry, then this would put a serious crimp in my content, but I don’t so it rarely comes up except in casual conversation with people I don’t know well.

But what if you’re not willing to give up television viewing?  Or…worse yet, what if you’re secretly not sure of your writing skills.  I’ve had clients who chose to hire a professional editor to review the content they create.  Is it possible that my clients are “freezing” up when it comes to writing content for their blogs?

If you find you’re freezing up when it comes to creating blog content, there is a solution which is probably more palatable than giving up watching television…. hire a ghostwriter.

For many, it’s an idea that represents the best of “out of the box” thinking.   However, you may share a sentiment echo’d on the Men with Pens’ FAQ:

Anyone can write. Why should I work with you guys?

Actually, not everyone can write. And not everyone can write well. Think of it this way: Almost everyone can run around the block. But not everyone will become an Olympic athlete. That athlete trains every day, learns new techniques and strategies, and pushes the limits of the human body to achieve the ultimate goal of a winning victory.

Professional writers are the Olympic athletes of the written word. Our goal is your success – and we’re ready to help you win the race against your competition.

Hiring a ghostwriter may be a new thought for you and your blog.  There are those who don’t feel blog ghostwriting is practical or ethical.  However, I don’t think it’s any LESS ethical than hiring a copy writer to compose your direct mail or sales letter.

By the way, the best ghostwriters will take your thoughts and ideas and return to you something that, if you didn’t know better, you’d say you had written yourself.

Rates for ghostwriters vary… and that doesn’t mean that the most expensive are necessarily the best.  A great goal is to find a ghostwriter who can compose in YOUR voice.

I have a client who spent several months “auditioning” writers.  The writer my client found can truly write in my client’s voice.  Whether the ghostwriter was the “cheapest”… I’ll never know.  My client won’t even share her email address with me.  Yes, she’s found a treasure and she wants to make sure her ghostwriter doesn’t get busy with other people’s work.  (Probably a good choice… I’ve been known to “close” more than on Virtual Assistant’s practice through referrals.)

Oh, there’s a difference between ghostwriting for a blog and blog management services.

How Badly Do You Want Success?

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How badly do you want success? It’s a question that is easily answered for most of us…. with a resounding “OF COURSE I WANT SUCCESS!”  While our WORDS may say we want success, are those words backed up by our actions?

That’s a question asked by Ed Roach over at the Small Business Branding Blog.  He writes:

I had breakfast with a friend recently who wanted to discuss personal branding. They felt that if they determined what their brand was or could be, it would change everything. But the truth is the real problem wasn’t necessarily their personal brand but their passion.

In summary…. the post outlines how Ed’s friend asks “How much?” and Ed replies, “$5 grand.”  Friend reacts: “WHOA! That’s too much!”  Ed then points out that friend recently dropped a similar amount of money on a state if the art massive television.  It’s a matter of perspective.  $5g’s is too much for the friend to spend on crafting a direction for his business but it’s just right for the television of his dreams.

Ed goes on to point out that his friend’s choices clearly illustrate where his passion lies.

Where does your passion lie?  How badly do you want success?

Do you want it badly enough to postpone the purchase of [insert toy obsession here].

I know of a business person who is an AVID boater.  Every free moment is spent on the boat with family or friends.  It took MONTHS for this business owner to “find the time” to launch a web presence.  (An appointment with  me was actually canceled because the weather changed suddenly and this business owner HAD to get the boat out on the lake!)

It took almost three months for that business person to create an About page on the blog.   For that business owner, boating time is a priority… posting content to the blog is not.  This business owner’s words will tell you that success is a high priority… but watching this business owner in action tells you another story.  Just like Ed and his friend in the post above.

Which again brings up the question, “How badly do you want success?”  Do you want it badly enough to give up some time doing something you love?

How about this… do your actions DEMONSTRATE your commitment to success?

By the way, my behavior in the past week is definitely speaking a big fat “NO” to the question above.  I’ve gotten “off track”.  So if this post isn’t hitting you squarely between the eyes… know that it is for me.

How does that saying go…. something about bullshit walking…..

What’s up with Amazon? Why Bigger Isn’t Always Better…

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Great comment on my last post about Alexa from PhilB of Phishbait where he reports:

“The rumor here in Austin is that Alexa is on the market. So perhaps this is just getting fresh lipstick on the pig.”

It made me chuckle… the thought of the “mighty” Amazon being depicted as a pig sporting lipstick.

My love for Amazon is evidenced by my previous post An Important Lesson from Amazon on How NOT to Treat Your Customers, so you can see why such a comment would make me smile.

So know that:

a) rumor has it that Amazon is trying to sell Alexa

b) Amazon is resorting to bullying tactics to try to prop up another Amazon property, BookSurge.

It’s Monday and I’m not spending too much time focusing my thoughts on the two points above. Instead, I’m working to clear my inbox of the pile up from the weekend.

Later on in the day, I checked my email and found an interesting email from Amazon. I get these emails because I’m a customer. In the email, they tell me that I’m getting this email because as a customer who has purchased baby related items in the past….

SCREECH!!! HOLD THE PHONE, I’VE GOTTA DRIVE!!!!

I am CERTAIN that I have NEVER purchased baby related items from Amazon. I can be REALLy certain because it’s been more than a decade since I’ve purchased baby related items PERIOD!!! Back in 1994, which was the last time I was in the “baby supply” market, Amazon was just a recently registered domain name and was barely a glimmer Jeff Bezo’s eye!!!

With the exception of the occasional baby shower I’ve attended over the past 13 years, I’ve moved WELL beyond the “baby related items” phase of my life. When invited to said showers, I usually show up in person, thereby negating any benefit from shopping online.

In other words, I usually make such a purchase whilst on my way TO said shower. I rarely plan in advance for such purchases and FREQUENTLY purchase the gift, the card and the gift bag at a store which is directly in my path to said shower. More times than I want to admit have I been in the situation of LUNGING at said gift recipient as she removes my gift from the bag as I remember that I forgot to take the price tag off of the gift as I stuffed it into the gift bag in the car.

Today’s email informs me that Amazon thinks I need to pre-order the Bugaboo Stroller, a stroller that retails for $899!!!

Unless one of my oldest daughter announces that she is expecting to give birth to an NBA or NFL star player’s offspring, I most definitely WILL NOT be in the market for a $900 stroller any time in the near future. (If my 20 year old daughter who is completing her sophomore year in college with the hopes of entering Pharmacy school next year announces she is expecting a baby from anyone LESS than an NBA or NFL star, then I’ll be expecting to spend my money on support and not wasting it on a super deluxe fleece lined stroller!)

So what’s up with Amazon?

First Amazon put on the bully hat and try to strong arm POD publishers into using Booksurge… then they begin putting lipstick on a pig in an effort to make Alexa a “better” traffic tool … and as such, one that’s more “marketable”. Now, they issue a customer alert that is so off target that I seriously have to consider hitting the “Mark as Spam and Report”.

What’s wild is my observations are in DIRECT conflict with “official” reports on Amazon. From the AWs Blog

In a new Business Week cover story, Amazon.com founder and CEO Jeff Bezos discusses his approach to innovation, thinking for the long term, our focus on the needs of customers, and our company culture.

Um… Jeff…. this is your FORMER customer speaking….. I’m sensing that you not only don’t know who I am, you don’t even know I’ve left the building. That’s the problem when you become the 900 lb gorilla as Amazon has grown to be in the online retailing world.

Alexa’s New Ranking System Hurts Some and Helps Some

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Alexa is a “traffic spying tool” used almost exclusively by web savvy tech professionals to see how much traffic a particular site is receiving.  Until recently, Alexa gathered their data exclusively from an optional toolbar which at first could only be installed in Microsoft’s Browser, Internet Explorer.

So, when a web savvy tech professional would visit a web site, the firs thing they would do is look in their Alexa toolbar to see how the web site was doing.  The problem with this is that the toolbar would only measure traffic to the site with toolbar installed.     So, if your audience wasn’t tech savvy and didn’t have the toolbar installed, your Alexa ranking suffered… sometimes greatly.

So this morning, Darren Rowse over at ProBlogger announced the change in the way Alexa computes  its rankings. You can read the Alexa Press Release here.

Amit Bhawani did some research to find out how the change has affected some of the big blogs on the internet and found many blogs rankings dropped dramatically.  According to ShaMoneyMaker, the impact will be felt most by those who do paid reviews.

For those of us who write for a non-technical audience, we have seen a drop (which is good) in our Alexa rankings.   For those whose focus is on the technical web audience, there is no joy in this anouncement.

I have to wonder what the REAL reason is behind the switch at Alexa.  Could it be that Compete.com is putting pressure on Alexa?  Then again, Alexa is an Amazon creation… and things have been pretty messed up over at Amazon.

Maybe this is evidence that things aren’t going well inside the hallowed halls at Amazon….