There’s a lot of talk about disclosing about paid links and  getting payment for blogging, tweeting, or otherwise making cash from social media. First, there is no way to disclose all of this.

This issue gets really messy (read this post about conflicts of interest by Penelope Trunk, warning: the post has some overshare that can be offensive to some readers, but otherwise does a good job at illustrating the point).

For example: how do you disclose that your link on twitter is an affiliate link - in 140 characters or less? Does it really matter? Do I care if someone makes money recommending someone if it’s a recommendation from someone I trust? NO. If they’re like me they won’t recommend something just to make money or their reputation will be shot.

However, there are some accounts that the only purpose is to make money and they use affiliate links to do that. I’m surprised again and again just how much MLMers are using Twitter and how much they advertise but people still subscribe.

Same with Guy Kawasaki who I recently called out for marketing a car on his blog. Do you really think he would’ve taken the time to write a post this involved on his own? And how exactly does it change the world? Thankfully he has Prius ads on his blog to redeem himself to environmentalists. He’s quite open about marketing and we still follow him (Alltop is a great resource I recommend to find places to guest post or find bloggers to involve in your social marketing strategy). He just markets well.

I just talked to a group of affiliate marketers yesterday about techniques affiliates are using to make sales from Twitter.

I’m already promoting PRWeb and now that I’m an affiliate I can make money doing it. That’s fair. It motivates me to find time to seek out and answer questions people have about PRWeb which I would do anyway. (disclosure: the PRWeb link is an affiliate link, so is this one for my most coveted gift: an Amazon Kindle - and if you buy one using this link I’ll make $35).

Here’s an excerpt from Jeremiah Owyang who has been posting on this topic.

How to make affiliate links work on Twitter

• Make sure it lines up editorially with your personal brand, promoting a product that people don’t associate you with will raise eyebrows.
• Disclose it’s an affiliate link, perhaps with a hashtag #affilliatelink.
• Be sincere about your recommendation. If you truly love that product you’re promoting, perhaps write a review on a blog first, explaining why.
• Be fully transparent before people follow you: Create a link from your Twitter profile page that is up front about how you use Twitter, and explain your intentions when it comes to product recommendations and affiliate links.

What if you send links directly to the merchant and don’t have room for a long hashtag like #affiliatelink? What if you have no personal brand (like most affiliates I know)?

Twitter is a blog post so it shouldn’t be any different when it comes to disclosure. When I’m flat out paid for a sponsored post - I state that. I obviously got some swag for blogging about a local jeweler. I have affiliate links on my blog and they are the same as my ads.

Jeremiah’s post goes into the legal issues and you should read all of it.

Oh, and the next time you talk to me and I recommend that you attend Smart Media 2009 - remind me to disclose that I have a financial stake in the conference. I’ll be there. I’ll present with my friend Nate Moller about how to use Twitter for marketing. I hope you’ll be there.

A Bountiful, Utah steak restaurant called Mo’ Bettah Steaks has a simple web page but it has a lot of personality. Their web site is not fancy and it’s not search engine optimized. But front and center they invite you to become their friend on Facebook. And they encourage it at the restaurant too. This has paid off at a time when a lot of restaurants are hurting. They attribute 20-30% of their business to their Facebook presence. They’re planning to expand soon.

They have over 1,300 friends on Facebook which for a local business is great. They held a photo contest and gave away free food to the winners. That gave them a lot of photos to post. They also have two videos.

Another local restaurant Blue Lemon in Alpine made a group (don’t like the look as much) that has over 100 members. Local restaurants are natural fits for social media. Guru’s Cafe is on Twitter and Facebook but they don’t promote either on the home page of their web site. I haven’t been in for a while but it wasn’t mentioned at their restaurant that I could see.

When you do social media you need to integrate it into all of your marketing - and inside your store. The most successful marketing often is blending of many online and offline resources. There are so many tools (email, Twitter, Facebook, web site, blog, events, press releases, etc) to get the word out.

If you want to learn more about this, I’m part of Smart Media 2009 conference June 18-19 in Lindon, Utah. We’re looking for a Utah restaurant who wants to sponsor lunch for about 100 people. In return we’ll weave your restaurant into the training. That means we’ll create a Facebook Page for you (or a Twitter account) and show you how to market it. Contact me at grocerybike@gmail.com or the contact form on this blog if you’re interested.

Dooce (Heather Armstrong) read from her new book in Salt Lake City Utah tonight. Even though she lives in Utah and I do too I’ve never seen her in real life until today. I heard about her maybe 3 years ago when I was so obsessed with blogging that I blogged at work a lot and started getting in trouble for it. My then boss said he knew Heather and how she’s a famous blogger. 

You’d think living in Utah I’d sometimes run into Dooce at events or something but I haven’t. She doesn’t show up for blogger’s conferences or talk about how to monetize your blog. Did you know she’s been blogging for over 8 years?

I also fell for thinking that her ring was an expensive designer ring and admired it as she tucked her hair behind her ear while she talked. Here’s the story on that. I kept thinking how great it would be to make money writing about your everyday life. You’re always the expert on that topic!

Her mom and dad were there. She mentioned feeling a bit uncomfortable talking about sex in front of them (they were on the front row). So Dooce said she was going to have to censor her language. That didn’t stop her from declaring that her “vagina can’t fold sheets.” (This is the only time I’ll deliberately say these words on my blog because 1- that’s not what this is about (low shock value blog) 2- my blog has already attracted its share of viagra and x-rated links and those Google alerts still traumatize me).

I asked her which blogs she reads after she admitted she doesn’t read many books. Here are the blogs she cited (I don’t read any of them):

MetaFilter
Go Fug Yourself
Something like kota.org?? [NOTE: thanks to the comments I’ve learned it’s http://kottke.org
design blogs

I asked her to tell the story of how she got dooced, which was my favorite story because it’s what launched everything.

On negative comments: It’s a hazard of the job you learn to ignore. On writing about people in your life: “I won’t write it unless I’d say it to their faces in front of a group of people.” Pure wisdom.

What’s next for Dooce (who looks really pregnant, not fake pregnant like some have asserted). She’s going to say no to everything for the next year because in two months she’ll have a new baby. And here’s the most ironic part of the night. She actually said, after reading from a book about how tough motherhood is (which I haven’t read).

Why?

“I’m going to enjoy having a newborn in my house - that’s all I want to think about.”

I guess we’ll find out just how much she enjoys that experience on her blog this summer. Somehow I think it’ll be a mixed bag.

I applied to be a Google Local Business Rep and forgot about it until tonight when I got an email saying I got accepted. No, I’m not a Google employee (though some day I’d love to be), I’m an independent contractor.

I’m also a huge fan of local businesses. When I totaled my car a few months ago I went with the auto body shop my insurance company listed that sounded like it was a local business. They were and they were superb. They even donate cars to needy families at Christmas.

Google is impressive. They have a training module about it. Here’s the slick part - they pay for fliers and their site connects to FedExKinkos and orders them. Then you go pick them up - which I did this morning.

Here’s how it works: I go to local businesses and take a picture. I enter the businesses information into Google Local. For that I get $2 and if they get a postcard and confirm the listing I make an additional $8.

Since I’m affiliate of OrangeSoda (and you can be too) and they are interested in someone managing their PPC campaigns (easy to start, complex to manage), I can make 5% of their spend for the lifetime of their account. Note that the minimum they can sign up for is $100 a month. I wouldn’t recommend starting that small, but you can. I don’t know anyone else who will take customers with that size of a budget.

Now I have a confession: if I’m bored on a date or I amuse myself by figuring out ways to help them market their business. That includes how to put their business on Google Local (if it qualifies).

I’d do it even if I weren’t paid, but now there’s an incentive. Plus, it makes me go out of my way to patronize local businesses which I want to do anyway. No more Del Taco lunches for me. Instead, it’s another favorite - El Gallo Giro (which is now on State Street in Orem).

I laughed [out loud] when I read this quote in an article by Valley Wag’s Paul Boutin.

“Entrepreneurs You guys think money is everything. That is, you think money is some sort of universal currency into which anything can be converted, and which can be converted to anything else.”

I’ve been expressing my frustration about entrepreneurship lately. I don’t hate us though. Sometimes I just get entrepreneur overload. When I live entrepreneur can be a bad word and synonymous with starvation. I think it’s because it’s a young population, educated, and often willing to take risks. It’s also got more Inc 500 companies per capita than anywhere in the country.

I just learned a bit more about Innuity - the company that does the Internet Marketing services for Sam’s Club. They have a tie to a Utah company that became a bit infamous - 10x Media. In 2005 Innuity acquired 10x Marketing. I didn’t know that until today.
Here’s a quote from a press release about Innuity’s earnings for the first quarter of 2006:

Innuity reported “a 317% increase from $1.2 million reported during the same quarter of 2005. Contributing significantly to this substantial revenue increase were Innuity’s 2005 strategic acquisitions: the Internet marketing company, 10x Marketing, (now Innuity’s Lead Generation Services business) and the point-of-sale systems (POS) company, Jadeon (now Innuity’s In-Store Systems business).”

First, I hope Paul Allen cashed out on the sale like he did when MyFamily.com was acquired. Second, I want to set something straight. I’ve noticed how the blogosphere has blasted Sam’s Club (or WalMart) SEO or Internet Marketing services. Of course I can see why - because it brings a certain connotation - that of cheapness.

As professionals, we like to think that we are exclusive or elite, not something you can pick up at a discount retailer. But remember, though the services are being offered through Sam’s Club, the work is done by a reputable company. I will try out their services and as always, report back.

I fell in love with this entrepreneurial fairy tale. It’s the perfect screenplay for a movie. It has romance, suspense, good food, and history. I love stories and writing them is my favorite. Plus I have my own great story about this restaurant - which isn’t the story I’m going to tell here. Also, this story doesn’t keep with the theme of my blog as well, which is ok because I think most of my readers have stopped reading. So this one is for me.

This love of stories makes me want my old job back at the flower shop. If I could support myself doing it, I would. Then I’d blog about the stories people tell about their lives when they come to buy flowers. That year in college made me wish I was a columnist. Now I wish I could make a movie.

The story starts in 1920 with a successful and educated man built a cabin for his wife for their anniversary. It was built in the trees of Salt Lake’s Mill Creek Canyon and aptly named “Log Haven.” It was a place to discuss business ideas and a place to spend the hot summers.

At one point the property was turned into a restaurant. Then in the 1980s it got into such disrepair that it was condemned. And that’s where the love story picks up again - with a woman named Margo Provost. She was a newlywed and very much in love. Her husband had seen the place and suggested she should revive it. So she did. Much like many successful businesses start out, she was taken by the project. She quit her high paying executive job and without any experience in the restaurant industry, went to work.

It was more difficult than she imagined. The general contractor got hepatitis and she didn’t get financing she hoped for (sound familiar?). She sold her houses, her cars, ran up her credit cards, and spent her retirement. And in 1994 she reopened the Log Haven restaurant. And because of that, the story continues. Both the restaurant and Provost have won awards and history and romances continue to be made.

I wish every entrepreneurial story had such a fairy tale behind it. I still cringe when I meet someone in the running up all the credit cards and eating only a meal a day stage. It’s a roller coaster ride for sure. But I believe that people make it and some even love the ride to getting there. I think for me, I’m almost more comfortable cheering and reporting on these stories than living it, though I don’t totally avoid it either.

Tell me about your business and what the attraction is for you…I want to hear your stories….

UPDATE: Just to add to the drama of the place, there was a murder at the restaurant in the 90s.

Paul Louis Bouchard who owns Hunters Capital, pleaded guilty to two 2nd degree felony charges for security fraud. He’s been accused of taking $11 million from about 140 investors in a two-year real estate investment scheme.The company promised investors monthly returns of between 3 percent and 4 percent. This happened between July 2005 and May 2007. Hunters Capital never purchased any real estate. It was all pipe dreams. And for that he could spend up to 30 years in prison.

I’m writing about this because I took a financial class this summer. The professor talked about why Utah has so many investment scams. People say that it’s because people are too trusting or other reasons. One reason the professor gave is that people often go off their gut or relationship with a person rather than asking others in the industry. They don’t want to take advice and think they know best. Arrogance and narrow-mindedness at best.

In our world the best thing you can do to protect yourself from fraud is to be educated and gather information from many sources. That’s how I ended up spotting a Craig’s List scam a few weeks ago. It was classic. I didn’t fall for it. However, once when visiting Europe I did fall for a classic scheme that cost a lot of time, some croissants, some chocolate, and a little bit of cash. Later I read a guidebook that perfectly described what had happened. Wish I had read that BEFORE getting the bag stolen.

First stop before investing: see if they are licensed with the securities division. Contact them at 801-530-6600 or see www.securities.utah.gov.

Doba drop shipping CEO Jeremy Hanks announced they made $4,000 extra from Guy Kawasaki’s visit yesterday. He said he will donate the money to several people on Kiva - a site where you can loan money to entrepreneurs in developing countries. Thanks to Jeremy and Doba for bringing Guy to town. Doba’s gift fit perfectly.

Incidentally I wish I could’ve stayed around and met more of the crowd. If there was ever a whos-who in tech in Utah, this was it. All in one room. For example, I didn’t know it but I sat next to Paul Alstrom, a VC at Vspring. I met Brad Baldwin of Rocky Mountain Voices. Jeff Barson of Sendside (incredible idea - secure email system and also guts!) was there but I didn’t get a chance to say hello. I got to catch up with Pat Vaughn from First Fridays. Also Phil Windley (he said, hi Janet, on our first official meet). I met Marina Martin who has more apartments across the country than anyone I know. She’s an efficiency expert who I’m now following on Twitter. There were many others.

Utah really does have a vibrant geek culture. I wish we had more hubs or gathering places. I appreciate that we have brought speakers like Guy and Seth here. Who will be next? We really need an email list and a quarterly gathering like this. The other day I actually caught myself daydreaming about opening up a coffee shop (that sells hot chocolate too - for the benefit of my biz partner Paul Wilson) and outfitting it with all the things geeks need (wireless connection and set up so people could work the day there and perhaps a small gift shop with Guy’s recommended`books and some reference books, etc).

Most of us feel a bit isolated - that was a topic at lunch. We work alone or with one business partner. This is the biggest threat to me getting a full-time job again. I like interacting with people! Whenever we talk I realize how similar we all are. Even Guy was saying he just needs to get Truemors to make a million dollars in advertising every month and he and his business partners will be content. We can all relate to that.