Michael Janzen

I continue to ask myself… why do I live in California? I don’t like bureaucracy and now California is adding even more layers that will effectively cut the income of online entrepreneurs state-wide.  ABX1 28, was just signed by Jerry Brown. Sadly he might have just said goodbye to many California-based online entrepreneurs.

You see California wants to collect sales tax on sales that include banner clicks from websites owned by people who happen to live in California. The main stream media is making it sound like the bill leves sales tax on buyers in California, but california buyers always paid sales tax on online purchases. What the bill actually says is that if someone, like an affiliate, is part of the sale… sales tax must be sent to California too.

The problem is that affiliate programs are basically advertising programs that typically pay a fee to website owners when a buyer ends up buying something from the advertiser’s online store.

In other words, in cases where the buyer and seller are no where near the borders of California, California still wants to charge sales tax because the website where the buyer saw the advertising is owned by someone who happens to live in California.

Affiliate fees are advertising fees! Affiliates don’t sell products or have anything to do with the transaction – they essentially get a commission based on the effectiveness of their advertising efforts.

So now Amazon.com is telling all of us idiots that haven’t left this sinking ship (California) that our affiliate relationships are canceled.

Now… I don’t make much money from Amazon myself – but I’m beginning to wonder how this going to effect Google Adsense and all other online advertising programs. If those get hit by boneheaded laws like this my independent online income will evaporate – so long as I stay in California.

I must say… Jerry Brown and the fools that manage California might have just given me a business reason to leave – and Oregon and Washington are looking more inviting all the time.

UPDATE October 3, 2011 – Governor Jerry Brown just signed a repeal for this legislation and we’re back in business as an Amazon Affiliate!

Today Apple announced the iPad, which is essentially a cross between a tablet computer and an iPhone. It appears to have a super easy-to-use interface and the expected sexy wrapper. It is most certainly a new class of device and should be a success; but it’s NOT the Amazon Kindle or netbook killer it was expected to be simply due to the price.

iPad Price

The price will range from $499 to $829. Kindles cost $259 and netbooks typically range in price from $300 to $500. Had Apple found a way to offer a version in the sub-$400 range I think they could have dominated this market.

Defending Apple’s Price Point

The iPad will be a far more capable device than any ebook reader or netbook for at least a year or two. So I can understand their reasoning for pricing it between low cost Macs and netbooks. My guess is that they are hoping buyers will agree that the added value justifies the added cost… but I’ll stick to my guns in saying that they could have cornered the market on this segment with a slightly lower price.

The other major competitor for them will be Google Chrome based tablets, (more here). In fact Google seems to be quickly becoming Apple’s and Microsoft’s biggest competitor on multiple fronts from hardware, to operating systems, to mobile devices.

In the end my money is on Google, not because they have a superior product, but because they have a superior business model and approach. They also seem to get that quality + low price will always beat top quality + premium pricing. Sad but true.

For those of you salivating over the prospect of owning a new Apple iPad you’ll need to get a sponge and mop up your keyboard because it will be some time before it hits store shelves.

I just finished submitting two of my busiest blogs to be published on the Amazon Kindle. It was really easy to do but there is no guarantee they will approve it. I’ll post here again and report back later on whether my blogs were approved or rejected. But in the mean time let me explain why and how to publish your blog(s) on Kindle.

Overview

What’s a Kindle? Amazon has developed a electronic tablet for reading electronic books.

A blog on Kindle? Amazon has opened Kindle up for reading blogs just like you would read an electronic book. Subscribers pay a monthly subscription fee to Amazon.

Why is there a subscription fee? There is no option to deliver the blog free on Kindle at this time. I guess Amazon is thinking that a small subscription fee is worth the convenience of reading blogs on Kindle.

Do I get paid? Blog publishers get 30% of the monthly subscription fee. The subscription rate pricing is determined by Amazon.

How To

Step 1. Create an Account: (Create your Kindle Publishing Account) You’ll need to provide your tax identification number (like Social Security Number), address, and answers to security questions like your mother’s maiden name, and other information just like you would for any affiliate account. This is not the same as your Amazon Associates account.

Step 2. Add a Blog: You’ll need to prepare the following graphic images and information before you’ll be able to complete their submission form:

Screenshot: This image must be 800×600 pixels or smaller and less than 1.0 MB. You must use GIF, JPEG, TIFF, or BMP.

Masthead: This image must be 430×50 pixels or smaller and less than 1.0 MB. You must use GIF, JPEG, TIFF, or BMP.

Blog Description: Write a concise description of your blog that surfaces the most popular features of your blog. I always refer to my Google Analytics account when trying to understand the most popular content on my blogs.

Keywords/Tags: They allow 128 characters worth of keywords/tags. Be sure to choose wisely because these are used when people search for Kindle content.

RSS Feed URL: I submitted my original WordPress generated RSS URL. I didn’t want my Kindle account to rely on my Feedburner RSS URL. If you don’t know what your RSS URL is just view source and look for a line of code that looks like this:

<link rel=”alternate” type=”application/rss+xml” title=”Tiny House Design RSS Feed” href=”http://www.tinyhousedesign.com/feed/” />

The RSS URL in this example is: http://www.tinyhousedesign.com/feed/

Submission Form: Here is a screenshot of their submission form. Just click the thumbnail to see the full size image.

Step 3. Wait for Approval: It takes up to 72 hours for Amazon to approve or reject your submission.

Conclusion

This seems like a really interesting way to monetize and promote a blog. I think it’s still too early to know if Kindle will be a big hit like the iPhone but it does make sense to jump in early and get your blog on Kindle. It takes little time and costs no money and has great potential.

The newest Kindle seems like a really nifty device. I like it mostly because it would make it easy to downsize the bulk of a library and reduce the number of possessions we own. As a simple living advocate and anti-consumerist it’s a little ironic that I’d actually see value in any consumer product but this one would actually reduce the books your have to store.

Create your Kindle Publishing Account

Update! Both blogs I submitted were approved and are now available on Amazon Kindle. Take a look:

• Tiny House Design
• Tiny House Living