Don't put all your eggs in one basket

[nichewitch]

You read horror stories all the time in the various marketing forums. People who had their hosts disappear and their business has disappeared as well or people that had their paypal account frozen or limited. This would not happen if they didn't have all their eggs in one basket.

If your business involves multiple websites, doesn't it make more sense to spread them out over multiple hosts? At the very least, you need back up of all your files.

Same thing applies to those who make their income in only one way. What happens to your credit report or your family if that one source of income dries up? You absolutely must ensure that you have contingency plans for everything and multiple sources of income.

[Fergal]

It's always important to have disaster recovery plans that deal with various "what if" scenarios.

I've always stressed the importance of paying for a quality and reliable hosting plan. But in these turbulent times even some established and reputable companies are experiencing severe difficulties.

Have you any suggestions on how to make regular back ups of dynamic sites that would be available in the unfortunate event that your host suddenly disappears?

[msaadw21]

nichewitch, you are right. All the eggs should not be in one basket. All the businesses should have 2-3 alternative earning option so that incase there is something wrong with one, others can support and keep the earnings coming.

Even with marketing, all marketing should not be based on one market and/or one big customer, rather it is better to have few small customers.

[kingmurtaza196]

I agree with Nichwitch & msaadw21 . All the eggs shouldn't be hatched in one basket.. This is the basic rule of business. If we have sites, we should always have a back server & all 3 sites should have a separate host or if we do something locally we should not rely on 1 income, alternate income is compulsory ..

[DEADMAN]

Yes,

I always believe you should also have alternative source for your business earning.

[Nazreen]

I think that this applies to all and not just in business. It applies to work, business, trading and investing, and most aspects of life including our love life.

As regards to our finances, ask yourself this question, "If you lost your job or your business fails today, how long will you be able to live off your savings?". This is not necessarily uncommon today because of the global recession. I would believe that a lot of us would know quite a few people who have already lost their jobs because of the recession and we've also seen some businesses fail. This is closer to home than anyone can imagine. So I think that this thread is a very good one in highlighting the importance of having an alternative income - either 1 or more alternative sources of income.

[devilbatista]

Backup is something that is useful everywhere. Save things which you have and take good care of them. Money can be increased or saved by putting them in banks. So even if you loose your business / money, your backup money/property can be helpful. As, we make backups of our important files in our computer so that they won't get lost. Like this, we can make backup of our earning.

This will prevent us or help us for our future. Taking loan beyond your capacity isn't that good. It can make massive loss. So, everything should be done under limitation.

[Fergal]

There are also advantages to being a specialist so that you can be the best at what you do. Many people say that the key to success is to find out what you love doing and work hard to be the best at that.

I can see lots of advantages to not having all your eggs in one basket, but I wouldn't ignore the benefits of being a specialist either.

[kingmurtaza196]

There are also advantages to being a specialist so that you can be the best at what you do. Many people say that the key to success is to find out what you love doing and work hard to be the best at that.

I can see lots of advantages to not having all your eggs in one basket, but I wouldn't ignore the benefits of being a specialist either.

That's true. Everything have its pros & cons. We can take an example of a doctor. A doctor doesn't have any business. He is just offering services & gets a good pay but i have seen some qualified doctors doing business which isn't there occupation at all ! Service & business they both are two different things. Again i would advise not to keep all the eggs in 1 basket as the world economy isn't stable.

[nichewitch]

Have you any suggestions on how to make regular back ups of dynamic sites that would be available in the unfortunate event that your host suddenly disappears?
You should be able to set up a daily cron job that will dump your database and email the files to yourself. I save my daily backup to my local machine plus upload a copy to an offsite file storage account.


There are also advantages to being a specialist so that you can be the best at what you do.
Being a specialist can be very effective as it raises your income level proportionately. This doesn't negate having multiple sources of income, however. For instance, if you were a specialist in organic skincare, you can have a content site sharing your specialized information. That can be monetized with Adsense to begin with. You may also have your own product line or be an affiliate with a company so you can add sales revenue. You could also provide consulting services to those needing a skincare solution on a per fee basis. I'm sure there would be other ways, as well. The point is to not have only one activity providing all of your income.

[Fergal]

Thanks for that nichewitch, I'll get that cron job organized.

I do like your excellent example as to how you can have multiple streams of income from one specialist area of knowledge. I feel that many people could use that concept to their advantage.

[simplyjo]

This is truly sound advice ! I have seen people in affiliate marketing rely completly on clickbank - if clickbank is down/shows erros/if their cb account is hacked etc... they simply lose all their money/ everything they worked for. Even I used to do that but now I use various ways to earn online.

[kingmurtaza196]

This is truly sound advice ! I have seen people in affiliate marketing rely completly on clickbank - if clickbank is down/shows erros/if their cb account is hacked etc... they simply lose all their money/ everything they worked for. Even I used to do that but now I use various ways to earn online.

Well, you have given us another example.. Don't put all your eggs in one basket isn't just for business . We can benefit our selves by not relying on 1 service like I have a local transporter & I only use his services that's a but risky. I should have some other transporters too just because if there's any mishap , I won't have to run around looking for a new transporter .

This was a personal example

[Fergal]

Too true kingmurtaza196, suppliers can sometimes let you down, it is useful to have a backup plan or a second supplier in the background, ready and willing to take your business.