Search Ads on Etsy

I tried the new Search Ads feature for a week just to see if it would be effective at all. I didn't really think it would make a huge difference, but I wanted to try it anyway.

I spent $4.95 and I ran my ads for 7 days. I got 5,244 impressions, but only 34 views and 0 favorites/orders. This brought in no revenue. Overall, I don't think it was worth it and probably wouldn't do it again. I think Search Ads can be effective for some people, but I feel like I'd get more views posting on Twitter or the Etsy forums for free.

What do you think? Have you used the Search Ads fetaure on Etsy?

Favorite Recipe YouTube Channels

I've been trying to eat mostly vegan lately, which means I'm trying to avoid consuming animal products. I thought I'd share some of my favorite vegan YouTube channels. Even if you're not vegetarian or vegan, these channels have a lot of good healthy cooking and nutrition ideas that anyone could try:

Healthy Vegan Recipes

This was the first vegan YouTube channel I found. It's focused on making healthy meals and has a lot of nutrition tips.



EcoVegan Gal

This channel is similar to Healthy Vegan Recipes. It's mostly focused on health, but has a lot of great recipes and tips for vegans. I really like her cleanse series:



Cooking with the Vegan Zombie

This channel uses humor and storytelling in their videos which I really like. The theme of the videos is that there is a zombie invasion in a post apocalyptic world. The videos tell stories while giving good vegan recipe ideas:



By the way, I'm part of the EtsyVeg team on Etsy. If you're vegetarian or vegan and have an Etsy shop, you should join the team.

More Paid to Click Websites

Last week, I did a blog post on paid to click websites. Paid to Click websites are sites that pay you money just for clicking on links, usually a couple of cents per website. Here are some more Paid to Click websites you can try out to make some money:

WordLinx
WordLinx is set up very similar to NeoBux. You click on ads to earn money, but you can also buy referrals which will help you make even more money.

YouData
YouData lets you fill out surveys to determine your interest and then gives you revelant ads. You click on the ads and get a little money. I got paid from this site right away. I just wish they showed more ads.

Clicksia
You can earn money on Clicksia by clicking ads, referring people and signing up for offers.

Have you ever used any of these websites? Did you find them effective?

St. Patrick's Day Items

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Here are some holiday inspired items on Etsy:

St. Patrick's Day Owl Greeting Card



St. Patrick's Day Green Shamrock Four Leaf Clover



St. Patrick's Day Cat Bow Tie



St. Patrick's Day Felt Flower Wreath




What are you doing to celebrate St. Patrick's Day?

Some of my Journal Entries

I uploaded some new journaling pages from my journal:









You can see more on my Flickr. Do you art journal?

Happy Pi Day!

Happy Pi Day! Pi Day is a holiday celebrated on March 14th to celebrate the number Pi (which is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, approximately 3.14). Here are some items for math lovers:

Mini Math Journal



Math Lover's Congratulations Greeting Card



Rounded Pi Day Math Script Collage Greeting Card



You can see more math related items in my shop. Do you celebrate Pi Day?

Paid to Click Websites

Paid to Click websites are sites that pay you money just for clicking on links, usually a couple of cents per website. Here are some Paid to Click websites I've been using to make a little extra money:

ClixSense

Installing the ClixSense toolbar makes it easier to know when new ads are up. You can make about $1/a day clicking ads. You can also sign up for a pro account which gives you more ads.

NeoBux

NeoBux is set up very similarly to ClixSense. I don't think there's a tool bar you can install so you'll have to go on the website each time.

SnapDollars

SnapDollars emails you every day with an advertisement. All you have to do is click the ad and you'll be credited up to 10 cents. You can also refer friends, try out products and complete surveys.

Hits4Pay


The way Hits4Pay is set up is like an email account. You view new "emails" which are ads you click. Like the other websites, you get a couple of cents per ad. You don't get as many ads as ClixSense, but you can still make a little extra money.

If you use PTC websites, I suggest making sure to spend a couple minutes clicking each day. It doesn't take long and money can add up. Also, earning referrals for the websites will help increase your money. You can also consider advertising on the websites if you want to promote a website. I notice most of the links you click are about making money, but I think you can advertise any website. I think I might try to advertise this blog or referral links to other sites (e.g. put my referral link for Hits4Pay on ClixSense).

Have you ever used any of these websites? Did you find them effective?

TV Shows I've Been Loving Lately

I thought I'd do a different type of blog post today and do a series of some of my favorite things I've been loving lately. If you have any ideas for this series, let me know. Here are some of my recent television shows. I don't watch a whole lot of TV, but these are some shows I've recently discovered.

The Lying Game

"The Lying Game" is based on the book series by Sara Shepard who also wrote "Pretty Little Liars" (which is also a popular TV show). The show follows Emma, a foster kid who finds out she has an identical twin, Sutton. Sutton talks Emma in to taking her place for a few days. However, things get more complicated when Emma realizes Sutton has a lot of secrets and the twins try to learn more about their birth mother. I enjoy watching this show and I like trying to figure out the mystery.

Dance Moms

I don't watch a lot of reality shows, but I love this show. It follows the Abby Lee Dance Company which trains children to become professional dancers. The teacher, Abby Lee, is really tough and it's interesting to see how much parents will go through to get their kids trained to dance. Besides the drama on the show, I love watching the dancing and performances the dancers do.

Cupcake Wars

I've been addicted to the Food Network lately. My favorite shows are probably "Cupcake Wars" and "Restaurant: Impossible". On "Cupcake Wars", four cupcake bakers compete to win $10,000 and the opportunity to showcase their cupcakes at a gig. The ingredients they use on the show are really interesting and I like seeing how creative people can be with their cupcakes.

That 70's Show

I love watching sitcoms to just unwind or have the TV on in the background when I'm working. It seems like "That 70's Show" is always on. I never really got in to the show before, but I started watching it and I think I've seen almost every episode now.

What are your current favorite TV shows?

Making Money on InboxDollars and SendEarnings

I've been trying different ways to make money on the internet lately. I thought it might be helpful to post reviews on different websites I try.

Two sites that allow you to make a little extra money that I use every day are SendEarnings and InboxDollars.

SendEarnings

You can earn money on SendEarnings by reading emails, taking surveys, signing up for other websites, referring people and doing other tasks. I think the best way to make money is through their free offers and doing the surveys every day. I've made $20 on the website sofar. You can request cash when you reach $30.

InboxDollars

InboxDollars is set almost exactly the same way as SendEarnings. There are a few different features though such as getting 5 cents each day for using their "Search" feature and earning cash watching videos. If you want to earn money, I'd recommend using both websites.

Here are some tips for using these two websites:
*Set up a separate account to get emails from these websites. You can use this account so gin up for offers so you don't have to use your regular email address.
*Refer as many people as you can. Referrals help you earn extra money.
*Spend a few minutes every day just doing tasks on the websites. Money can add up.

Have you ever used these websites? Were you able to make money?

Selling on Amazon

I started selling some extra items I have on Amazon because I thought the fees on EBay we're getting kind of high. Amazon is a great way to sell used items and I like that they only charge you if something sells. I've made a few sales already. Here are some items I sold:

Mallrats DVD



Panorama Textbook



Italy Travel Book



Have you ever sold on Amazon?

Some Favorites on Flickr

I love looking at photos that inspire me. Here are some of my recent favorite photos I found on Flickr:











Do you use Flickr? What photos inspire you?

365 Food Project (Finished!)

I finished my 365 Food Project. I took a photo of something I ate every day for a year. Here are some photos from it:

This was the first photo I took. It's of cauliflower with turmeric (which is like aloo gobi without potatoes):



This was the last photo I took of spinach burgers:



And some in betweens:







It was fun to do a 365 project, but I don't think I'll do another one any time soon. It's hard to remind yourself to take a photo of every day, but it helps you take more photos. Have you ever done a 365 Project?