When it comes to registering a domain name I always suggest to any business or individual to do register their domain them self. When I suggest this to someone I always here, “I was hoping you could just take care of everything for me.” Many companies or individuals will do this for you, often not even suggest you do it yourself, however please don’t allow them to and do it yourself.

Let me explain.

By you registering your domain by yourself you can be assured that the domain is actually owned by you or your company.  If you let someone else register the domain for you they will actually be the owner of the domain. You don’t want Joe Blow to be the owner of yourdomain.com, do you?

I’ve encountered many companies that have wanted to leave their current web developer or host and come to me.  I’ll explain that we simply need to make a change at where their domain is registered and we’ll be good to go. 
Well, many times the domain is registered to their old web development company or someone that they have lost contact with over the years.  In cases like this we need to go through a lot of extra headache and steps just to be able to  get the site moved and updated. 
Best case scenario the company or individual just goes in and unlocks the domain to allow it to be transferred into your name (still a bit of extra hassle that could have been avoided). 
Worst case scenario: you can’t get a hold of the company or individual to unlock the domain so it can be transferred to you.  You then have to contact the domain registrar and send them documentation proving you actually are the rightful owner of the domain or even worse the company or individual claims it is their domain and holds it hostage not allowing you to move anywhere else. You then have to get legal involved, nightmare.

So please, if you are thinking about hiring someone to build a website for you, do yourself a favor and register the domain yourself first.  Head over to GoDaddy search for you domain and then purchase it.  No need to buy any of the extra stuff they pitch you, just get the domain in your name. You’ll thank yourself in the future.

Does anyone have any horror stories or cases they have ran into where the domain was not registered in the rightful owners name?

For my business phone I use Skype. I’ve used it for over two years now.  For the money I can’t  beat it. For under $100 a year here’s what I get  :

• My own phone number that can be called from any phone whether it be mobile or land line.
• Calls to any number in the U.S.
• Voicemail. Email alert when i receive new voicemail.
• Video conferencing
• Conference calling
• Call forwarding to my cell when I am not at my desk
• IM with anyone else on Skype
• All my contacts in a list that I can just click on to call.
• Contacts synched with Outlook
• Phone numbers in my browser can be clicked on and called through Skype
• Skype button for my website that users can click to Skype me

I use Skype daily. i initially got it because my cell phone wouldn’t come in that clear in my office.  I’ve never had an issue with clarity on Skype.  I use a headset when I am on the phone and the webcam for video & audio when video conferencing. I have heard good things about an actual phone for Skype.

Skype works great for what I use it for. However, I have ran into a few issues with it.
When i first got setup with Skype I paid to have my number for 3 months.  After my 3 months were up I needed to renew the number.  I had some major issues trying to renew it.  I couldn’t figure out how to pay for it.  It turned out I kept adding Skype credits to my personal account when I was needing to add them to my business account.  I ended up losing my number for a few days before I got it all straightened.
Skype doesn’t have a support number that you can call, it all had to be done through email and their forums.  The response time was about a few days too.

Enough of the bad, more good things you can do with Skype.

• If you have a business with employees you can manage all phone numbers in your business account online.
• Call recording add-on
• Fax add-on
• File Sharing add-on
• Screen Sharing add-on

See more extras here.

Everyone knows how import communication is for business.  Skype can work for all sized businesses for the self employed up to large companies spread about the world.

For me I love having a business number that people can call.  When I am not in the office I can decide if I want to continue to get calls by the call-forwarding option or let them go to v-mail.

Here is a another review of Skype and a Skype phone I mentioned earlier, http://www.anywhereman.com/2009/07/can-you-hear-me-now/

Skype users, how are you using Skype for your business?
Google Voice users, is it time I switch?
Does anyone use an add-on that they can’t live without?

I want to hear about how you’re using it or what you have found works better than Skype.

2009

It was a great year for me. I had the opportunity to work with a lot of great new individuals and companies.  I learned some new technologies and became even more organized.  Most importantly with the economy the way it has been, I’ve been fortunate enough to stay busy.  Thank you everyone who I’ve done business with in 2009.  I really appreciate it.

Some of the new companies and projects I got to work with this year were:

• Anagram
• NewCore Wireless
• House of Pizza
• Amscan
• Experian – internal coupon management application
• Fidelity – internal home reporting request and fulfillment application
• Open Preferences
• Trek – Ascend Analytics
• About You Photography

This past year I was more engaged in Twitter where I met a few great people:

• Dave Yankoviak -  @daveyank, aka “The Anywhere Man”
• Micah Iverson – @zebb, Krazier Designs
• Jeremy Lattimore – @jeremylattimore, Refocusing Technology

What I like about these guys is I learn so much from them just by following them and conversing with them over Twitter.  There are a lot more people out there that I learn a lot from too, but these are the ones that really stand out to me that I met over the past year.
It was great getting to know you guys this past year, I hope to continue to learn from you guys and return the knowledge.

I unwittingly met Brenda Cronquist of Mustang Graphics.  She is a great person that has given me some good advice and referred me some great projects.  Thank you Brenda.

I finally learned asp.net MVC, Linq-to-Sql and WordPress this past year.  3 excellent technologies I am glad I learned.

2010

Enough about the past though, what’s in store for 2010?  I have so many ideas and initiatives that I want to do.

First off, I want to contribute more to this blog.  I have so many blog posts that I have already started, I want to finish those up and get them out to you.  I also want to start a new series going into detail on all the services and tools I use to run my business. I’ve enlisted in a challenge called Project52. I am challenging myself to contribute to this blog on a weekly basis.

I want to read more.  I am going to try and read at least one book a month.  That may not sound like a lot to some of you, but for me that is quite ambitious.  There really is a lot of great information out there in print.  Two good books I read last year were:

• The Art of The Start ~ Guy Kawasaki
• Crush It! ~ Gary Vaynerchuk

Already in queue for this year is:

• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People ~ Stephen Covey
• Trust Agents ~ Chris Brogan
• Rework ~ Jason Fried
• The 4-Hour Workweek ~ Timothy Ferris
• Why AC/DC Matters ~ Anthony Bozza

Does anyone have any suggestions?

I hope to meet more great new people and clients in this new year.

Well enough about what I am going to do.  Time to start doing!

When I first signed up on twitter I choose my common online username.  This was back when I was employed by someone else. I was only testing the waters of twitter then.  It was still pretty small back then and not many people even know what it was. I really didn’t think much of it.

Fast forward 2 years later. I am now working on my own as a freelance web developer. So my name really means a lot more now. I didn’t realize how important personal branding was until much later (another blog post about that later).

Originally I was thinking I would create two handles, one for business and one for personal, but I think by choosing my name it covers both and makes it much easier to maintain.

By choosing my name it is a handle everyone can recognize. My old handle was only known by my personal friends. I want something that everyone will know me by and remember me by. I’ve started to get into a few video chats with twitter followers and they really don’t know what the heck to call me.  When I go to code camps, developer conferences, etc people can now put the name to the face.  Before they would have no idea I was the person behind my old handle.

It’s a good thing twitter makes it so easy to change your username.  I made sure to create a new account with my old handle just to point people to my new handle just in case.  Remember to do this if you change your handle.

If you’re thinking of changing your twitter handle here are a few other good posts that I read thanks to @philmontero.

Why You Should Use Your Real Name On Twitter
3 keys to un-branding…and why I changed my twitter name
Should I Use My Personal Name or My Website Name on Twitter?

Now I need to get on the phone with my designer and get some new biz cards made up. Oh yeah, and update the links on my website.

UPDATE: I originally wrote this post before I actually made the switch.  When I went to do it I found out the name @joeldahlin was already taken.  Lesson learned, get your name right away.

I’ve been on Twitter for about a year now and had an account even longer. I’ve always used Twitter as my techie community. Posting cool tips and links and asking questions when I’ve been stumped. I can always be sure to know what the latest tech buzz is by using Twitter.

Lately with so many more people coming on board it’s actually turn into a business lead avenue. Here are some things that I’ve done to help me get the most out of it.

1. Follow people in your industry. Follow people that are in your industry and start to communicate with everyone, get active in it.
2. Get Tweetdeck. This really turns Twitter into an entirely different form of communication. It is a desktop application written in Adobe Air that is always running in the background aggregating all the updates of the tweeple you are following. The great thing is you don’t have to constantly open up twitter.com in a browser, in fact I don’t think I’ve gone to twitter in a browser for about a month now. You get everything through TweetDeck.
   Another powerful feature in TweetDeck is the ability to have a filtered “Search”. For example I do a lot of development work using the Kentico CMS. So in TweetDeck I have a search column for “Kentico”. Anytime anyone tweets with the keyword “Kentico” in it I see it. I then can reply to their tweet if I want. It helps me network within this niche and make my known as an active developer in this community. Bonus with Tweetdeck it now integrates with Facebook. You can post directly to Facebook using this and see your all your friends updates about how they wish it would stop snowing, if you want to.
3. Synch Twitter on your phone. Now if you want you can get every update of your friends as a text message on your phone. I tried this for about a week but found it became way too much. I do however allow any Direct Message to me to go through to my phone. A Direct Message is well just that, someone writing a message directly to you. Others don’t see these tweets. You know someone really wants to get a hold of you when they Direct Message you. I’ve had people DM about my hosting packages, help with Kentico, and new contracts. Being able to be contacted easily and respond quickly is huge now a days.
4. Add your info to your Twitterback. You can’t design your Twitter page anyway you want, but you can style it a bit and add a background image to it. I’ve themed mine to match my site, made sure to add my business logo and contact info. Just another way to let people know what I do and how to get a hold of me. If you need help there are many sites out there with backgrounds already created that you can use.
5. Tweet. You have to be active yourself on Twitter. Anytime you find something that you think others would find useful or read a good blog post tweet it. If you can answer someones question quickly respond. It helps build your reputation as someone who is knowledgeable in your industry. People will start to recognize you and remember you.

Now that is just a short overview of how I use Twitter to help business. Lets hear how you use Twitter for business. Here is a great post on how Twitter has helped a coffee shop.

Update:
I found this video thanks to chirpup on “How to Use Twitter for Marketing & RP.