One of the delights of celebrating Christmas in the Philippines is taking in the elaborate decors, bright lights, creative designs and the distinctive Filipino touch. From every nook and cranny, from the smallest barrio to the biggest city, from the humblest huts to the enormous mansions, every street, building, room - any space, the Filipino will find a way to make it feel like Christmas.

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Tatlong Magandang Balita!

Just as there were 3 big ICT developments recently when Google, Ebay and Paypal made their presence(s?) more felt in the Philippines, we now have three sports triumphs as early Christmas presents.

First, there was the new World Pool Champion is Ronnie Alcano, a happy addition to our growing stable of pool champs. Though Efren “Bata” Reyes and Django Bustamante are still around, it is good to know that their heir apparents are many and the succession (or “power-sharing”) has already begun. Maybe as a proof of his newfound celebrity status, the domain name ronnie-alcano.com was registered by someone capitalizing in on Alcano’s sudden fame.

Then last Sunday, Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao stunned Eric “El Terible” Morales in the third round. I didn’t watch it live as I was driving from Tarlac to Manila (which took me less than two hours because every soul was glued to their TV sets). Am not a boxing afficionado, but these little victories that lift the Filipino spirit are always welcome.

A couple of days after the three-rounder, the Philippines scored big again against Brunei to the tune of 4 goals to 1. More importantly, we have qualified for the Asean Championships set in Singapore and Bangkok from 12 January to 3 February 2007.

Christmas is definitely brighter and better this year.

A Christmas season that lasts for a little more than two months, where the Christmas spirit fills the air, no matter where you go.

Only in the Philippines.

Officially, the season starts on December 15, for the dawn masses or Misa de Gallo. Unofficially, it starts right after…

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Advertisers, Get Buzz. Bloggers, Get Cash.

There are many ways to monetize a blog. There is Google Adsense, Text-Link-Ads, Adbrite, selling ad space on your own and joining a blog network.

And now comes ReviewMe.com.

As their tagline says “Bloggers get cash.” Am willing to try this one. Get paid posting a review. Like this post is one.

I once had the opportunity to be part of a focus group discussion where we got “paid” to give feedback about a beverage. Not a bad deal for about 90 minutes of talk. Not to mention there was also food served before the discussion. But I digress.

It also feels like paid survey, though these surveys usually award points that may be converted to cash.

The question in my mind is: Will Advertisers pay? They will surely get the buzz, but they will not have control on what bloggers will say. Will they be willing to pay for a negative review?

If I were the advertiser, I would. Why? Buzz is still a Buzz, and that is what counts. I remember GoDaddy.com had created a stir with its SuperBowl commercial. Not everbody liked it, and many disliked it, but everybody remembers it. If your mind works like Seth Godin, you can still turn a bad thing (a negative review) to a good thing by listening and keeping a conversation. Once you get the conversation going, you are halfway through a sale.

Now how about the blogger? Will he mind doing a paid review?

I believe about 99% of bloggers would not mind. I won’t! Many bloggers do reviews anyway. You post and get paid. A bloggers dream come true.

On a personal level, if I get paid $30 a pop, each post would be greater that the Adsense earnings I have so far.

My verdict? I truly wish ReviewMe.com success. It just might be the answer to my dream of having an extra income of $1000.00 per month.

PS:

I really liked the interface ReviewMe.com. Easy to navigate, no frills, pleasing to the eyes, uncluttered. A good usability and aesthetics design if you ask me. The used baby colors, no flash or fancy images. Simple but it gets the work done.

And that is how it should be.

From Startupnation.com (again).

Entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, authors, radio hosts, consultants, coaches and all-around good guys, Jeff and Rich Sloan, authors of the book Startupnation give value again by continuing to help people make business.

After launching your company and business, you need to grow it. And here are the 10 steps.

Step 1: Measure and Analyze Your Current Status
Step 2: Get Efficient through Technology
Step 3: Enhance Your Customer’s Experience
Step 4: Cozy Up with Vendors
Step 5: Maximize Your Niche, Expand to a New One
Step 6: Develop New Channels
Step 7: Acquire Growth Capital
Step 8: Create a Culture
Step 9: Ramp Up Awareness and Demand
Step 10: Improve Sales Techniques
More here.

Aside from these valuable insights, the online community of StartupNation.com, nicknamed SuN provides real-life cases and experiences, free advice, lots of ideas aside from helpful and non-threatening members.

The community is vibrant, with help just coming your way unexpectedly, with wisdom and humor. It is a great place to network, to look for business ideas and most of all, to contribute, congregate and grow your business.

At the moment, Jeff posted the idea of the SuN community creating a business, where the participants will become shareholders or some other function. With all the talent flying around there, brick and mortar, online, marketing and advertising, strategic planning and just plain business savvy,

I think I’ll pitch in some ideas or two.