These days, it’s easier than ever to operate an online store. Ecommerce is a huge industry with incredible growth potential, so if you’ve got something to sell, there’s no reason to keep waiting on the sidelines any longer.

Before you get started, however, there are a number of important decisions you need to make, such as what kind of ecommerce software you’re going to use to power your site. There are lots of different options available to you, but I recommend checking out AshopCommerce.com, as they provide one of the most comprehensive, full-featured, and affordable software packages around.

When you buy ecommerce software from AshopCommerce.com, you get much more than just basic shopping cart capabilities. You actually get all the tools you need in order to set up and run a fully operational online store. From a single web-based admin panel, you’ll not only be able to handle checkout, payments, and shipping, but you’ll also be able to manage all other information related to your webstore, including homepage design, inventory, and even SEO.

All of these features, plus free upgrades and knowledgeable tech support, are available for a very affordable monthly fee, so there’s no reason to put off this purchase. Check out AshopCommerce.com today, and get your online store up and running in minutes!

The Christmas shopping season is almost here, which means that it’s time for me to finalize my holiday budget. I try to take stock of my finances before Thanksgiving each year in order to get a better idea of how much I can comfortably spend on presents, cards, charitable donations, and travel. Of course, just because I have a budget in mind doesn’t mean I actually stick to it — which is why I’m looking for a new credit card as a backup resource.

I’m only interested in new cards that offer cash back or other rewards for each purchase, so I went to CreditCardSearchEngine.com to see what’s available out there. That site lists the Best Reward Credit Cards in a table for quick comparison, which makes it much easier for me to find what I need.

I discovered two promising rewards cards from that site and will apply for one (or both of them) in the coming weeks!

One of the things my husband and I have been working on for the last seven years or so is getting our finances in order. Back when we first got married, we had a lot of joint debt to contend with (school loans, credit cards), which made our dream of buying a home seem like a virtual impossibility. Add to this mountain of debt the fact that I already had a bad credit rating, and you can see that we had an uphill battle on our hands.

But we were eventually able to work things out through a combination of credit counseling, debt consolidation loans, and reformed spending habits. It was a painful experience, but we really did learn a lesson from it. Now, we’re very responsible with our money and will not be traveling down that road again anytime soon!

However, I know that some people might need more time or assistance in recovering from debt, which is why I want to let you know that there are services out there to help you maintain a comfortable standard of living while you pay down your bills. I’m talking about places such as BadCreditOffers.com, which is a website that serves as an online guide for people with bad credit ratings. With the help of this site, you can easily find the best bad credit offers around, thus saving you a lot of time and trouble.

What, exactly, is a bad credit offer? Well, it can be a home loan, personal loan, auto loan, or credit card from lenders that specialize in working with consumers saddled with bad credit ratings. BadCreditOffers.com routinely combs through these types of offers to highlight the ones with optimal features, such as ease of approval or competitive interest rates. All you have to do is read the offers, apply for the ones you’re interested in, and wait for a response. This service is completely free, making BadCreditOffers.com an invaluable resource to consumers.

The bottom line here is that you shouldn’t let bad credit prevent you from buying a home or a new car. Just because you’ve made financial mistakes in the past, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get a second chance. With BadCreditOffers.com, it’s easier than ever to find lenders that are willing to give you that second chance, so check out the site today!

I occasionally do consulting work for a friend of mine who operates a small business related to the education industry. He has eight branch offices scattered throughout the Western suburbs, all within about a 100-mile radius of each other. You’d think that this proximity would allow him to save money on certain services, such as calling plans, but that’s not the case at all. I guess because the offices are in different area codes or something he doesn’t get as many perks as he expected.

So it’s really no surprise that he’s looking to find a more affordable small business phone system that takes into account the specific needs of his business. Although I’m not signed on as a consultant for this particular project, I decided to weigh in with my opinion anyway.

I think that my friend’s best option would be to get set up with a VoIP (Voice over IP) system from a telecommunications company that understands the unique ways small businesses operate. Packet8 is one such company, so I spent some time reviewing the various small business VoIP equipment and service plans they currently offer.

First of all, the complete broadband phone system would definitely be in order. This system comes with a feature-packed business class telephone and a broadband phone adapter — which is all that’s necessary to get started with IP telephony. We’d need to get a system for each branch and would probably want to pay extra to have it professionally installed.

Choosing a service plan is more difficult since I’m not privy to the company’s monthly call volume or anything like that. I do know that there’s a lot of phone work and faxing involved, so I took that into consideration when looking over the different plans. I think the Business 2000 plan, along with the Fax Metered Extension service ought to cover calls and faxes to a sufficient degree.

But really, Packet8 has so many great options to choose from that I had a tough time making that decision. For example, they offer everything from multiple location overhead paging to a complete contact center, and numerous plans in between. All of Packet8′s plans come with top-of-the-line feature, are backed by unparalleled support, and best of all, are priced for small businesses.

I’m going to forward these findings to my friend to see if he wants to take advantage of any of these deals. If you’re looking for affordable VoIP solutions for your small business, I recommend checking out the Packet8 website today!

One thing that I’ve always liked about checking baseball player stats on ESPN.com is that everyone’s annual salary is listed right there with their other vitals, such as college team, experience, height, weight, birthday, etc. That means, for example, whenever I check out the Atlanta Braves roster, I can see that Mike Hampton, perhaps the most overpaid pitcher ever to play the game, is getting a whopping $15.4 million for sitting on the DL all season. Don’t forget, this comes on top of sitting out the entire 2006 season as well, also due to injuries. What a joke!

I tell you what, I wish the NFL would start using the same kind of financial reporting software that MLB does so we can see the player salaries for that league too. I’d love to see how much David Carr is earning as a second- or third-stringer in Carolina or how much Edgerrin James got for his 72 YPG, 6 TD performance in ’06.

It seems like all you have to do in pro sports anymore is have one good season (it can even come in college, as Carr’s career shows us) and you’ll get a cushy contract that will set you up for life!