Small business owners need a great selection of Web tools and Web resources in their toolbox to help tackle a wide range of tasks. Whether you need help with small business marketing, you’re interested in intellectual and personal growth as an entrepreneur, or you’re looking for products to sell, this week’s collection of Web tools can get the job done.
Web Tools and Web Resources for Small Business
Academic Earth
Admittedly, it takes a lot to blow my socks off, but I’ve come across a site that has done just that. I can’t find my socks anywhere.
The site’s called Academic Earth and it has taken the top universities in this country — we’re talking about Berkeley, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford and Yale — and recorded actual lectures by the professors at those universities in a whole multitude of subject matter. Lecture topics range from astronomy down to religion, physics, engineering, math, history and medicine. It’s amazing.
Some of the featured lectures include Physics: Electricity & Magnetism from MIT; a study about black holes; the American novel; computer science. There’s even a talk on the origins of this financial mess that we’re in — from a professor of economics at Princeton.
They have a remarkable video collection of the actual lectures that you can watch right on the site. The listed lectures have actual ratings — A, A+, B+. You get to decide if you want to go to the very top of the list.
There’s a particular subject that may be of interest to many of us — entrepreneurship. This category offers a number of lectures, interviews, visits with famous people. Where else can you go to get a lecture on entrepreneurship — absolutely free — from a top-ranking professor from Stanford University?
I love this site. It’s a great place to learn from the top professors in the world at the top universities. Come over to Academic Earth and take a peek. It’s amazing.
Bobblehead Dolls
If you’re in the market for an affiliate program, you might want to consider bobblehead dolls from Whoopass Enterprises.
This site lets you design your very own bobblehead. In fact, you could even have a bobblehead that’s designed to look like you. If you were getting married, for instance, you could have a bobblehead that actually is made using your photograph. They’ll even put together a doll based on the clothing that you’re wearing.
This site offers all kinds of options. They have wedding and graduation dolls, and you can even customize the colors. You can design these bobbleheads any way you want from head to toe. All you need to do is submit a photograph.
Bobblehead prices range anywhere from $50 to $250, depending on how fancy they are. What a great thing to sell — and this site does have an affiliate program if you’re looking for something out of the ordinary to put out on the market.
Personal Development Blog
My next recommended resource is called the Personal Development Blog, and it’s designed for those of us who could use a little self-improvement. And frankly who couldn’t use a little help in that area? Note that the URL is www.PersonalDevelopment.ie because Gleb Reys, the site’s author, lives in Dublin, Ireland. So be sure to stick the “ie” instead of “.com” on the end of the URL.
Gleb posts frequent updates to his blog on the subject of personal development. For instance, he has sections on goal-setting and motivation, happiness, productivity, and you can get more information on each of these topics by clicking on the site’s sub-menus.
The site usually goes to quite a bit of depth. Gleb reads a lot of books, and then he summarizes the information. For instance, he posts goal-setting articles or ways to increase your productivity, such as the Top 100 Productivity and Life Hack blogs, or a free ebook on stopping procrastination. You know, I should really get that one right now. Oh, that’s okay, I’ll get it tomorrow.
Other articles include 33 time-management strategies and three rules to help you fight procrastination. Gee, Gleb seems to have a real problem with this. The topics vary, but they all focus on helping you become more productive and, frankly, to enjoy your life more. So go take a look at Gleb Reys’ blog on personal development and self-improvement.
You’ll find lots more small business marketing tips and resources from Andrew Lock in our Small Business In-Depth series, Lock in Your Marketing Resources.
Andrew Lock is a self-described maverick marketer and the creator and host of Help! My Business Sucks, a free, weekly Web TV show full of practical marketing tips, advice and resources to help small businesses “get more done and have more fun.”
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