Nuffnang 68 bloggers contest update

Thanks to LJ and ice's comments on my Nuffnang 68 entry post, I found out that I was one of the 68 winners. I checked the Nuffnang site last week but they haven't revealed the winners yet and I forgot to check again this week. So I checked again today and indeed my site's url (linked to the entry post) was there. Thank you Nuffnang for choosing me as one of the winners! Now, how about that P500 cash prize? :D

Nuffnang wants 68 bloggers

So, I signed up in Nuffnang last week and now they already have a promo for their members. How cool is that! Bloggers just need to satisfy 5 requirements and be one of the lucky 68 who will be declared winners to receive P500 prize money:

1. Add an ad unit to your site for one whole month so people can distinguish that you’re not just a blogger but a Nuffnanger. - Check! Aside from the skyscraper unit on my right sidebar, I added a rectangle ad unit on my home page just above the blog section for extra visibility ;-)

2. You need to be an exclusive member of Nuffnang. - Check! I know that I'm an exclusive member of Nuffnang because I haven't signed up with any other ad network that originates from South East Asia (Seriously, is there any other blog ad network created by and for South East Asian people? Only Nuffnang comes to mind.)

3. Post an entry describing one feature of Nuffnang that you like best. - So here's the best thing I like about Nuffnang, being part of the Nuffnang Glitterati. Being an exclusive member of Nuffnang, I was automatically included in the Glitterati after only 48 hours from initial sign-up. What are the benefits of being in the Glitterati you ask? Better payment rates, shorter payment terms, advertorial opportunities that are not available to non-exclusive Nuffnangers, more seats in Community Events, higher priority prize allocation in Contests and eligibility to the use of Innit, a tool developed and hosted by Nuffnang to add the additional service of driving traffic to any Nuffnang blog. Nuffnang Glitterati, the best. Check!

4. Share to your readers the experiences in signing-up at Nuffnang, like on how to register, be an exclusive member and how to post an ad unit. - Check! I've already told you about where to sign-up in my first post about Nuffnang, but just in case you've missed it, it's at http://www.nuffnang.com.ph/blogger-registration. Just complete the registration, add your blog to the "Blog Manager" then post an ad unit to your blog by getting the scripts from "Add Ad". Make sure you're not connected to any other local blog ad network and after 48 hours, you'll be an exclusive Nuffnanger. Easy, ain't it?

5. Send the link of your entry to email address nuffnang68@gmail.com - I'll do this right after I publish this post. Check!

Nuffnang is here!

Nuffnang is Asia's first blog advertising community which was first set up in Malaysia and Singapore. Now, Filipino bloggers can enjoy the benefits of being part of the Nuffnang community because there's already Nuffnang in the Philippines! It was launched last week and now I'm a proud member! Can't wait to see the ads they have and can't wait to start earning! If you're a blogger residing here in the Philippines, join Nuffnang now!

(Just a little trivia, the headgear of the stickman in the Nuffnang Philippines logo is called a 'salakot'.)

Please hold

Looks like I forgot to put a payment hold order on another one of my online revenue accounts, Google Adsense. They sent me an email the other day with the following excerpt:

"We've recently sent you a Personal Identification Number (PIN) via standard mail. You should expect to receive it within about 2-4 weeks. Once you receive your PIN, you will need to enter it into your account in order to become eligible to receive AdSense payments. To enter your PIN, simply follow the instructions included with your PIN mailer."

Got check. Now what?

I received my Clixsense check yesterday! I set my ClixSense account to send me the check once I reach minimum payout, just so I can make sure that they really do pay out. Minimum amount is $10, and I did reach that. Maybe they just had to deduct a processing fee that's why the amount on the check is only $7.33. So there I was, so excited to have received my payment until I realized I don't know how I'm going to encash this. I went to my bank to find out if I can deposit it in my savings account. The bank representative told me that unfortunately, they only accept a minimum of $150 check for it to be deposited to a Peso account. Now if only I had a Dollar account then I won't have any problem depositing this check even if it's just a small amount. So I thought, why don't I open a Dollar account? I asked the bank rep how much I need to open a Dollar account. "$500, that's also the minimum maintaining balance", was her reply. Sadly, I didn't have that kind of money so I just left.

Good Tidings

Today I am going to count my blessings just because finally, I feel that my prayers are being heard. The first quarter of the year has passed by so quickly and as I reflect back, I realize that I have so much to be thankful for already in the past three months.

1. Career. Take a look at the update I've made at this post (striked through items 1 & 2) and you'll know what I'm thankful about with regards to my career. Yes, I've been promoted, and although I don't have my own parking space, it's as good as having one already coz I can now reimburse my parking fees. After 8 years in the IT industry, I am finally at the senior level. I could have reached this level sooner but by jumping companies almost every year for several years, I missed out on my promotions. Well no regrets; I have learned from all the companies I have been to and I'm happy where I am now. It's just too bad that my promotion didn't translate to a substantial increase (last year's merit increase was even higher in terms of percentage, compared to what I got now) because upper management changed (thus budget policies also changed). But I did get an additional benefit of insurance coverage so that's still something to be thankful about. Also, our bonuses will be given out next payday so that gives me peace of mind about my upcoming condo annual payment. It's still short of what I need but I'm sure I'll be able to find ways to procure the remaining amount.

Postcards Galore!

I've finally come around to scanning my postcards over the weekend. These are just the postcards which I've received as member of the great Postcard Crossing Project, Postcrossing; so they're not my complete collection yet. But it's a start. Can't wait to upload my coin and stamp collection as well; just need to find the time.

PayPal Now Allows You to Withdraw Funds to Your Philippine Bank Account

This is an answered prayer for all Filipinos who have been trying their hand at making money online. Just last year, PayPal opened up receiving funds for Philippine-based PayPal users and enabled withdrawal to credit card accounts but this new addition to the PayPal services available for Filipinos is way much better. More good news is that there is no charge for withdrawal amounts over P7000 while withdrawal amounts less than P7000 will incur a nominal (and very minimal, I may say) fee of P50. For more information and step-by-step instructions, click here.

Receive Google Adsense earnings via Western Union

Another good news for bloggers in the Philippines: Google Adsense Payment by Western Union Quick Cash is now available. Instead of check payments, one can opt for Western Union. No more waiting for that check to arrive; no more praying that your check will not get lost in the mail, no more bank fees and other hassles that go along with encashing your check. Just cold hard cash when you go to your nearest Wester Union branch to receive your Adsense payments. Life is good!

Click here for more information.

Send and receive funds via Paypal now supported for Philippine accounts

I logged into my PayPal account this morning and saw a wonderful surprise: receiving and withdrawing funds in PayPal is now available for Philippine-based accounts! It used to be that we were only allowed to send payments through PayPal but now, they've made receiving funds possible as well. This is very exciting news for all Filipinos engaged in online trading and for bloggers like me who are trying to earn a little money online. Too bad, my PayPerPost and ClickSalary earnings got lost somewhere in cyberspace; they funded my account 2 weeks ago and they said that when they did that, they received a message from PayPal saying that receiving funds is not yet supported for Philippine-based accounts. But PayPal kept the money anyway and PPP and ClickSalary said they have no way of retrieving. I emailed PayPal about it and they said nothing shows in my History log. So who do I believe? I believe PPP and ClickSalary so I'm still pestering PayPal to find my lost money. Hope they find it 'coz $21 can go a long way in this country ;-)

Postie blogs, Postie earns

I have long wondered how some people are able to become professional bloggers. I've been maintaining this blog for some time now and honestly, my earnings from the ads haven't even reached minimum payout. I guess those people who earn a substantial amount from blogging maintain lots of blogs and/or join group blogs where the revenues are divided by the members. But I don't have the time and resources to maintain lots of blogs. So I guess that's not for me.

Website Monetizers Evaluation

So I've been finding ways to monetize my site by signing up with programmes offering ad placements. Hands down, Google Adsense is the easiest to set-up and use. Of course it also has its cons. Read on for the list of what I've tried and my evaluation of each.