Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
Social media is social. Social, an adjective that one definition gives as pertaining to, devoted to, or characterized by friendly companionship or relations: a social club. That's what social network sites are - social clubs. Where people with the same interests get together and learn, teach, grow, and bond.
Hopefully you were taught social etiquette while you were growing up. You remember, elbows off the table, shake hands when you meet someone, send thank you notes, say please and thank you. Just as there are proper ways to behave in the world, there are proper ways to behave online. Here are a few ways to make your online experience a pleasure for everyone else.
Be Nice
This is the big one. Everything after this is icing on the cake. There is nothing wrong with being nice; it doesn't mean that you're weak. Making enemies on social sites gets you nowhere, so drop your hatred and e-rants. It's okay to have an opinion, even an extremely opposite opinion from everyone else. What's not okay is to call other people names. If you're trying to make a persuasive argument, use persuasive language and prove your point. It doesn't help your cause to call someone an idiot. And, if you use the Internet to rant and rave, people eventually tune you out.
Just like in real life and business, we get what we want by knowing people, networking and building quality relationships. It's the same for online relationships. And, as the old saying goes, "you can catch more flies with honey..."
You should value relationships over transactions. Gaining links from commenting on blogs should not be your main objective. Blog comments are just that - you are commenting to join the conversation. And you are joining the conversation to build a relationship.
Be Accountable
Just because you sit at your computer, anonymous, doesn't mean you are not accountable for your actions and words. Don't believe that there are no rules to social media. Don't believe that you can do or say whatever you want without consequences just because you can hide behind your computer. People are smart and if you are a shameless, self-promoting jerk, they'll figure it out and you'll be done. By being accountable for your words, people will respect you, whether they agree with you or not.
Be Respectful of the Community
You are there to add value to the community you join, not to push your agenda and make sales pitches. The thing that will bring you relationships is making sure that when you add to the community, it's with quality content. You may want to sit back and just listen for a while to learn about a community you've joined instead of just jumping in, maybe being ineffective and wasting everyone's time. Before you submit anything to a social site, ask yourself if it will add value to the community. If not, don't.
If you are commenting on someone else's blog, don't just promote yourself. If you have a post that refers to that conversation, then it's okay to post that link in your comment. However, if you do it too often, you'll get ignored or thought of as just a spammer.
Be a Listener
Yeah, sure, you think you know everything, but, if you listen to what others are saying, you might learn something. Listen to people that comment on your blog and see if you can understand where they are coming from. Your first reaction does not need to be a rant telling them how wrong they are.
Be a Giver
You know this one - you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. This saying applies to online relationships as well. If you want attention, you have to be willing to give it first. Do the people who burst onto your site or group and think that they should be at the top immediately annoy you? And how about the ones that constantly ask for your help by commenting on their blogs or always push their content on you. We all try to avoid "users." Don't be like them - you have to earn respect by giving more than you receive and by making sure that what you give is useful.
Remember to link to posts that you find interesting or informative. Chances are that if you've found it interesting and related to your group, someone else will too. This is a great way to get involved in social networking sites.
Be Nice
I know, this was the first suggestion, but it's important so it bears repeating. You can't get away from it, The Golden Rule concept can be found in cultures and religions all over the world. That's probably why it's the "golden" rule. And if we all lived by it, in real life as well as online, we'd all be a little better off.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more of Enzo F. Cesario's articles.
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I will seek to answer those questions here, as well as to provide a Day Planner to enable the new online entrepreneur to navigate the maze of building a successful online business. When I find great advice by other writers, I will include that information as well. --- Clinton Douglas IV, Founder of Vasrue.com |
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Has Your Company Name Landed You in Legal Hot Water? Renaming Tips
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
The #1 reason business owners hire my company to create a new business name within a week is they've received a cease-and-desist letter from an attorney. Often sent by certified mail, this legal document informs you that you are infringing on the registered trademark of another company, and if you do not stop using your company name after a specific date, you will be the target of legal action. I.e., you will be sued.
Such a letter means business. Never ignore it! It requires prompt action on your part.
In most cases, deciding to fight the case is foolhardy. It's best to acquiesce and look for a new company name. Here are the steps you should take.
First, read the letter carefully to determine what was objectionable about the name you have been using. For example, if they objected to you using a certain prefix or suffix, or a rhyme of their name, you'll need to make sure that factor is high on your list of criteria for the new name. Although this sounds obvious, I've seen entrepreneurs get so angry or upset about the demand to change their name that they don't proceed rationally in selecting its replacement.
Second, identify the business goals and objectives that you want the new name to meet. Who is the target market? What kind of statement do you want to make about your company? How do you want to be perceived? Should the name be cute or sedate? Trendy or conservative? Emotional or matter-of-fact?
Third, brainstorm possible names. Along with this article, you'll find a link to a free brainstorming guide for company names. Also see if you can remember or find notes on the runner-up names you considered just before you decided on the name you now have to discard. Sometimes it helps to look at lists of companies in your industry to trigger memories of important keywords or naming approaches you like and dislike.
Fourth, use the business goals and objectives you identified in Step 2 to reject names that will not work. Be ruthless in eliminating names you may like but that do not get across the proper message, don't fit your desired image or might not be understood by customers. From the names that remain, select your top three candidates.
Fifth - and please don't hate me for this! - hire an attorney to check out your top three name candidates to make sure they are legally in the clear. After all, this is the step you probably skipped the first time around. One entrepreneur I know failed to do this and had to change his company twice in one year, which made him look extremely careless.
And last, take the time to live with your top choice for a few days before finalizing it. Imagine saying it on the phone, at business meetings, seeing it on signage and so on. Is it a name you feel completely good about? If so, you're done. Congratulations! If not, repeat some of the previous steps as necessary.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
The #1 reason business owners hire my company to create a new business name within a week is they've received a cease-and-desist letter from an attorney. Often sent by certified mail, this legal document informs you that you are infringing on the registered trademark of another company, and if you do not stop using your company name after a specific date, you will be the target of legal action. I.e., you will be sued.
Such a letter means business. Never ignore it! It requires prompt action on your part.
In most cases, deciding to fight the case is foolhardy. It's best to acquiesce and look for a new company name. Here are the steps you should take.
First, read the letter carefully to determine what was objectionable about the name you have been using. For example, if they objected to you using a certain prefix or suffix, or a rhyme of their name, you'll need to make sure that factor is high on your list of criteria for the new name. Although this sounds obvious, I've seen entrepreneurs get so angry or upset about the demand to change their name that they don't proceed rationally in selecting its replacement.
Second, identify the business goals and objectives that you want the new name to meet. Who is the target market? What kind of statement do you want to make about your company? How do you want to be perceived? Should the name be cute or sedate? Trendy or conservative? Emotional or matter-of-fact?
Third, brainstorm possible names. Along with this article, you'll find a link to a free brainstorming guide for company names. Also see if you can remember or find notes on the runner-up names you considered just before you decided on the name you now have to discard. Sometimes it helps to look at lists of companies in your industry to trigger memories of important keywords or naming approaches you like and dislike.
Fourth, use the business goals and objectives you identified in Step 2 to reject names that will not work. Be ruthless in eliminating names you may like but that do not get across the proper message, don't fit your desired image or might not be understood by customers. From the names that remain, select your top three candidates.
Fifth - and please don't hate me for this! - hire an attorney to check out your top three name candidates to make sure they are legally in the clear. After all, this is the step you probably skipped the first time around. One entrepreneur I know failed to do this and had to change his company twice in one year, which made him look extremely careless.
And last, take the time to live with your top choice for a few days before finalizing it. Imagine saying it on the phone, at business meetings, seeing it on signage and so on. Is it a name you feel completely good about? If so, you're done. Congratulations! If not, repeat some of the previous steps as necessary.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
How To Find Work At Home Jobs For Work At Home Moms
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Glen OReilly
As the economy continues to tighten for many American families, more moms are looking to the Internet to find the extra money needed to help their families survive during this economically challenging time.
The good news is that there are plenty of opportunities for the mom seeking to earn money from home. The bad news is that there are a number of scams out there designed to trap the newcomers - to making money online, who simply do not know how to recognize the righteous among the wolves.
Be Very, Very Careful
Far too often, newcomers to the online job world have experiences similar to those experienced by Elmer Fudd, whenever he crossed the path of Bugs Bunny - as in the movie, "Wabbit Twouble".
Elmer Fudd: Wabbit, I came here for gold, and I'm going to get it!
Bugs Bunny: No! No! No! Not that! Not that! Anything but...
[Elmer and Bugs fight until Elmer has a gold tooth in his hands]
Elmer Fudd: Euweka! Gold at wast! He-he-he-he!
[Smiles, showing a gap where his gold tooth was]
Bugs Bunny: Euweka! Gold at wast! He-he-he-he!
[Points at his intact gold tooth]
When money is tight at home, it is important to absorb the lessons I am going to share in this article and not to be an Elmer Fudd. While spending money to operate an online enterprise may often make sense, be vewy, vewy careful. Oh - sorry... Be very, very careful...
Lessons From The Days Of Mail Order
If you go to McDonald's, Wal-Mart or any other Main Street employer, you do not have to pay money to get the job. While jobs are free... A good education is not free...
In the days of mail order, the big scam was that you could pay money to get a job "stuffing envelopes". The scam was that you would pay money to get the kit that enabled you to stuff envelopes, supposedly for pay. In the advertising, it was said that companies would pay you X dollars to stuff and mail the envelopes.
What the scammers never said was that what you were sticking in an envelope was a sales flyer, and you would only be paid if someone purchased a product as the result of a piece that you mailed.
The Internet equivalent of "stuffing envelopes" is affiliate marketing. That is not to say that you cannot make a lot of money with affiliate marketing, because you really can make a lot of money with affiliate marketing. But you should be aware that most people who undertake affiliate marketing - without first getting a good education - will fail to make any money with affiliate marketing.
Yes, affiliate marketing has a learning curve, but once you have perfected your formula for success, affiliate marketing can be very lucrative. It is true that a lot of Internet marketers are making a handsome living through affiliate marketing, but most of those people who have worked their way into "earning a living" from affiliate marketing had several months or several years of trial-and-error, before they could leave the job world behind.
If you are at all curious about affiliate marketing, the basic premise is that companies will pay you for helping them to acquire new customers. If a person that you referred to the company makes a purchase, you will earn a sales commission as a result of the purchase made.
If You Are Seeking A Job
You do not have to pay someone in order to get a job, whether offline in the real world or on the Internet. If someone offers you a job, and then asks for cash up-front in order to be able to give you that job, you should hearken back to the wise words of Elmer Fudd, "There's something screwy around here..."
For many telecommuting is just a dream, but when you know where to look for those telecommuting jobs, they are not that hard to find.
The only real telecommuting jobs on the Internet are frequently found on Freelance websites. But, you should keep in mind that these Freelance jobs are usually not long-term, and they are based on specific performance criteria.
For example, I could have hired someone to write this article for me for a fee. Many freelance opportunities are actually available in the content creation arena. Webmasters need content to fill and to promote their websites, but many of these webmasters simply do not have the skill or the time to do the work themselves. If you have the ability to write intelligible content, then there is ample opportunity to write articles for other people.
On the freelance websites, content writers are generally paid anywhere from a few dollars up to about fifteen or twenty dollars to write one article. If you are willing to put up your own website and to advertise your writing to other companies, it is not unheard of to be able to charge anywhere from $30 an article to $100 an article. But you should be forewarned that setting up your own website can be a very tough road, as there are thousands of other freelance writers competing for those more lucrative writing jobs.
If you don't consider yourself much of a writer, the good news is that there are thousands of freelance jobs offered that would enable anyone with a computer connection to participate.
For example, I know one company who pays people to write "every man" reviews of tourist destinations, motels, hotels and restaurants. The managers at this company do not want professional writers to write these reviews. Instead, the employer wants the reviews to appear as if Jane Doe, with an eighth-grade education, had written them.
Another company recently paid people to research and compile a list of all of the hotels in one metro area. This company wanted the names of the hotels, addresses, phone numbers, and it wanted to know the availability of swimming pools and other amenities. That particular job paid two dollars for every record compiled.
Other companies are willing to pay to have a list compiled of web pages that talk about a very specific topic. Manually compiled lists are popular, because we all know that the search engines don't always show the best content pages on a topic, and some webmasters feel that having such a list would be beneficial to their users.
I have even seen companies seeking freelancers to look at pictures and write a short description of what the picture contains. Others have paid to have a set of pictures reviewed and placed into their proper categories.
Interestingly, if you have a digital camera, there are hundreds of companies willing to pay you to travel around your local area and take pictures of specific homes, streets, addresses, tourism spots, and nature shots. Some of these companies are in the stock photography industry; and others are in the real estate industry.
If you are more of an artist, you will also find ample opportunities for graphic design jobs through the various freelance websites. Another graphics-related freelance job that some employers have sought is for people skilled with Photoshop to stitch together pictures to provide a panoramic picture of a particular event.
Other freelance gigs for moms include business support services, administration support, accounting, answering services, resume writing, grant writing, translators, virtual assistants, editors, fact checkers, gathering interesting quotes, and more... If you can envision an assignment that a company might need completed, chances are there is someone out there looking for someone to do those jobs from home...
Here Is Where To Find Those Freelance Jobs
There are many more Freelance Job websites than what I will mention here, but this will give you a good start towards finding jobs that any mom, in any part of the country, can use to find and earn the extra money she needs to help supplement the financial needs of her family.
General Freelancing Websites:
Elance.com Guru.com/pro iFreelance.com FreelanceJobs.org/projects/ Jobs.FreelanceSwitch.com Mturk.com (from Amazon.com) LimeExchange.com FlexJobs.com FreelanceWritingGigs.com GoFreelance.com TheFreelanceNation.com HireMyMom.com GetaFreelancer.com
Sell Your Photography:
Fotolia.com iStockPhoto.com ShutterPoint.com BigStockPhoto.com StockedPhotos.com Inmagine.com StockXpert.com CreStock.com
At the end of this road, there are many places to find jobs that can be worked from home. Many of these jobs are ideal for mom, and possibly even for dad.
If you are looking for extra money or a job you can work from home, print out this article now, so that you will have it available when you need it. If you have friends or relatives looking for work from home opportunities, print this article out and give it to them.
With this information in hand, you should have no problem finding the real work-at-home jobs that many people seek to find. At this juncture, one more quote from Elmer Fudd seems the perfect conclusion to this article:
Elmer Fudd: I finally got even with that screwy wabbit...
Keep your chin up and your mind clear, so that screwy wabbit will not clean your wallet, when you are in need of every penny you have available.
About the Author:
Glen O'Reilly lives with his wife and children in Detroit, Michigan. In good times he likes to travel with his family, and in slow times, he likes to help others through his writing. Recently, his wife was laid off from the job she had held for ten years. This opened a new chapter in their lives. His wife recently was able to find a job using http://www.jobsandpaychecks.com/ Thrilled about his wife's success, Glen signed on with the website to help get the word out about this excellent online jobs resource.
Read more Articles written by Glen OReilly.
Copyright © 2009 Glen OReilly
As the economy continues to tighten for many American families, more moms are looking to the Internet to find the extra money needed to help their families survive during this economically challenging time.
The good news is that there are plenty of opportunities for the mom seeking to earn money from home. The bad news is that there are a number of scams out there designed to trap the newcomers - to making money online, who simply do not know how to recognize the righteous among the wolves.
Be Very, Very Careful
Far too often, newcomers to the online job world have experiences similar to those experienced by Elmer Fudd, whenever he crossed the path of Bugs Bunny - as in the movie, "Wabbit Twouble".
Elmer Fudd: Wabbit, I came here for gold, and I'm going to get it!
Bugs Bunny: No! No! No! Not that! Not that! Anything but...
[Elmer and Bugs fight until Elmer has a gold tooth in his hands]
Elmer Fudd: Euweka! Gold at wast! He-he-he-he!
[Smiles, showing a gap where his gold tooth was]
Bugs Bunny: Euweka! Gold at wast! He-he-he-he!
[Points at his intact gold tooth]
When money is tight at home, it is important to absorb the lessons I am going to share in this article and not to be an Elmer Fudd. While spending money to operate an online enterprise may often make sense, be vewy, vewy careful. Oh - sorry... Be very, very careful...
Lessons From The Days Of Mail Order
If you go to McDonald's, Wal-Mart or any other Main Street employer, you do not have to pay money to get the job. While jobs are free... A good education is not free...
In the days of mail order, the big scam was that you could pay money to get a job "stuffing envelopes". The scam was that you would pay money to get the kit that enabled you to stuff envelopes, supposedly for pay. In the advertising, it was said that companies would pay you X dollars to stuff and mail the envelopes.
What the scammers never said was that what you were sticking in an envelope was a sales flyer, and you would only be paid if someone purchased a product as the result of a piece that you mailed.
The Internet equivalent of "stuffing envelopes" is affiliate marketing. That is not to say that you cannot make a lot of money with affiliate marketing, because you really can make a lot of money with affiliate marketing. But you should be aware that most people who undertake affiliate marketing - without first getting a good education - will fail to make any money with affiliate marketing.
Yes, affiliate marketing has a learning curve, but once you have perfected your formula for success, affiliate marketing can be very lucrative. It is true that a lot of Internet marketers are making a handsome living through affiliate marketing, but most of those people who have worked their way into "earning a living" from affiliate marketing had several months or several years of trial-and-error, before they could leave the job world behind.
If you are at all curious about affiliate marketing, the basic premise is that companies will pay you for helping them to acquire new customers. If a person that you referred to the company makes a purchase, you will earn a sales commission as a result of the purchase made.
If You Are Seeking A Job
You do not have to pay someone in order to get a job, whether offline in the real world or on the Internet. If someone offers you a job, and then asks for cash up-front in order to be able to give you that job, you should hearken back to the wise words of Elmer Fudd, "There's something screwy around here..."
For many telecommuting is just a dream, but when you know where to look for those telecommuting jobs, they are not that hard to find.
The only real telecommuting jobs on the Internet are frequently found on Freelance websites. But, you should keep in mind that these Freelance jobs are usually not long-term, and they are based on specific performance criteria.
For example, I could have hired someone to write this article for me for a fee. Many freelance opportunities are actually available in the content creation arena. Webmasters need content to fill and to promote their websites, but many of these webmasters simply do not have the skill or the time to do the work themselves. If you have the ability to write intelligible content, then there is ample opportunity to write articles for other people.
On the freelance websites, content writers are generally paid anywhere from a few dollars up to about fifteen or twenty dollars to write one article. If you are willing to put up your own website and to advertise your writing to other companies, it is not unheard of to be able to charge anywhere from $30 an article to $100 an article. But you should be forewarned that setting up your own website can be a very tough road, as there are thousands of other freelance writers competing for those more lucrative writing jobs.
If you don't consider yourself much of a writer, the good news is that there are thousands of freelance jobs offered that would enable anyone with a computer connection to participate.
For example, I know one company who pays people to write "every man" reviews of tourist destinations, motels, hotels and restaurants. The managers at this company do not want professional writers to write these reviews. Instead, the employer wants the reviews to appear as if Jane Doe, with an eighth-grade education, had written them.
Another company recently paid people to research and compile a list of all of the hotels in one metro area. This company wanted the names of the hotels, addresses, phone numbers, and it wanted to know the availability of swimming pools and other amenities. That particular job paid two dollars for every record compiled.
Other companies are willing to pay to have a list compiled of web pages that talk about a very specific topic. Manually compiled lists are popular, because we all know that the search engines don't always show the best content pages on a topic, and some webmasters feel that having such a list would be beneficial to their users.
I have even seen companies seeking freelancers to look at pictures and write a short description of what the picture contains. Others have paid to have a set of pictures reviewed and placed into their proper categories.
Interestingly, if you have a digital camera, there are hundreds of companies willing to pay you to travel around your local area and take pictures of specific homes, streets, addresses, tourism spots, and nature shots. Some of these companies are in the stock photography industry; and others are in the real estate industry.
If you are more of an artist, you will also find ample opportunities for graphic design jobs through the various freelance websites. Another graphics-related freelance job that some employers have sought is for people skilled with Photoshop to stitch together pictures to provide a panoramic picture of a particular event.
Other freelance gigs for moms include business support services, administration support, accounting, answering services, resume writing, grant writing, translators, virtual assistants, editors, fact checkers, gathering interesting quotes, and more... If you can envision an assignment that a company might need completed, chances are there is someone out there looking for someone to do those jobs from home...
Here Is Where To Find Those Freelance Jobs
There are many more Freelance Job websites than what I will mention here, but this will give you a good start towards finding jobs that any mom, in any part of the country, can use to find and earn the extra money she needs to help supplement the financial needs of her family.
General Freelancing Websites:
Sell Your Photography:
At the end of this road, there are many places to find jobs that can be worked from home. Many of these jobs are ideal for mom, and possibly even for dad.
If you are looking for extra money or a job you can work from home, print out this article now, so that you will have it available when you need it. If you have friends or relatives looking for work from home opportunities, print this article out and give it to them.
With this information in hand, you should have no problem finding the real work-at-home jobs that many people seek to find. At this juncture, one more quote from Elmer Fudd seems the perfect conclusion to this article:
Elmer Fudd: I finally got even with that screwy wabbit...
Keep your chin up and your mind clear, so that screwy wabbit will not clean your wallet, when you are in need of every penny you have available.
About the Author:
Glen O'Reilly lives with his wife and children in Detroit, Michigan. In good times he likes to travel with his family, and in slow times, he likes to help others through his writing. Recently, his wife was laid off from the job she had held for ten years. This opened a new chapter in their lives. His wife recently was able to find a job using http://www.jobsandpaychecks.com/ Thrilled about his wife's success, Glen signed on with the website to help get the word out about this excellent online jobs resource.
Read more Articles written by Glen OReilly.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Does Your Company Tag Line Pass These Five Crucial Tests?
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Judging from the many disastrous slogans that state tourism boards have happily paid tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for, even marketing professionals often use totally subjective criteria to select tag lines. Do we like it? Is it catchy and memorable? Does it make us feel good?
I suggest replacing the "feel-good" test with five much more grounded criteria. When you're trying to decide on the best tag line to accompany your organization's name on the web site, brochures, business cards, stationery, ads, mugs and mouse pads, make sure your winner passes these five tests.
1. Does it apply to you and not to competitors? Few people would match "Great Potatoes. Tasty Destinations." to any other state than Idaho. But there's nothing in "Worth a Visit, Worth a Lifetime" to indicate Maine any more than Minnesota, Michigan or Montana. If your tag line does not highlight something distinctive about your company, it's not making much of a difference to prospective customers, either.
2. Does it have nothing but positive connotations? I'm baffled about how "Seize the Day Off" is supposed to reflect well on Maryland. Are all the jobs in that state so horrible that everyone there lives for the weekend? Likewise, "Things Look Different Here" could equally be taken as a bad thing as a good thing about Oregon, which used that slogan for many years.
3. Does it have emotional oomph? "Greatest Snow on Earth" is certainly an energetic advertisement for Utah. Similarly, Kentucky's "Unbridled Spirit," which refers to its horse-related traditions, has emotional strength. Your tag line should convey energy rather than being flat and factual.
4. Are the tone and content appropriate for the target market? The District of Columbia has had "Taxation Without Representation" on its license plates, which functions well as an activist slogan for its own residents. But for tourists, that slogan would come across as bombastic and irrelevant. Always keep your target market firmly in mind when generating and screening tag lines. You are not writing it for yourselves but for those you want to attract.
5. Do you have good reasons for wanting to replace the previous tag line? Don't toss it in the trash just because you are tired of it. Remember that because you undoubtedly hear and see your own tag line much more than your target market does, you may get tired of it years sooner than they will. It's very rare for a state to keep a successful slogan alive for more than a decade because politicians and tourism officials get more and more itchy to put their mark on their entity's branding. That's a very bad reason to change. If the audience has stopped responding to it, or it has begun to be ridiculed - those are good reasons to look for a new tag line.
When you weigh your favorite tag lines with these five tests, you reduce the chances of choosing one that exposes your organization to ridicule. You boost the chances of coming out a winner.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Judging from the many disastrous slogans that state tourism boards have happily paid tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for, even marketing professionals often use totally subjective criteria to select tag lines. Do we like it? Is it catchy and memorable? Does it make us feel good?
I suggest replacing the "feel-good" test with five much more grounded criteria. When you're trying to decide on the best tag line to accompany your organization's name on the web site, brochures, business cards, stationery, ads, mugs and mouse pads, make sure your winner passes these five tests.
1. Does it apply to you and not to competitors? Few people would match "Great Potatoes. Tasty Destinations." to any other state than Idaho. But there's nothing in "Worth a Visit, Worth a Lifetime" to indicate Maine any more than Minnesota, Michigan or Montana. If your tag line does not highlight something distinctive about your company, it's not making much of a difference to prospective customers, either.
2. Does it have nothing but positive connotations? I'm baffled about how "Seize the Day Off" is supposed to reflect well on Maryland. Are all the jobs in that state so horrible that everyone there lives for the weekend? Likewise, "Things Look Different Here" could equally be taken as a bad thing as a good thing about Oregon, which used that slogan for many years.
3. Does it have emotional oomph? "Greatest Snow on Earth" is certainly an energetic advertisement for Utah. Similarly, Kentucky's "Unbridled Spirit," which refers to its horse-related traditions, has emotional strength. Your tag line should convey energy rather than being flat and factual.
4. Are the tone and content appropriate for the target market? The District of Columbia has had "Taxation Without Representation" on its license plates, which functions well as an activist slogan for its own residents. But for tourists, that slogan would come across as bombastic and irrelevant. Always keep your target market firmly in mind when generating and screening tag lines. You are not writing it for yourselves but for those you want to attract.
5. Do you have good reasons for wanting to replace the previous tag line? Don't toss it in the trash just because you are tired of it. Remember that because you undoubtedly hear and see your own tag line much more than your target market does, you may get tired of it years sooner than they will. It's very rare for a state to keep a successful slogan alive for more than a decade because politicians and tourism officials get more and more itchy to put their mark on their entity's branding. That's a very bad reason to change. If the audience has stopped responding to it, or it has begun to be ridiculed - those are good reasons to look for a new tag line.
When you weigh your favorite tag lines with these five tests, you reduce the chances of choosing one that exposes your organization to ridicule. You boost the chances of coming out a winner.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Monday, July 13, 2009
Create Information Products - Step by Step On Using Ghostwriting Services
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Alan Cheng
Successful online marketers create information products that are in-demand and sell them online. It's one of the most popular and effective ways to make money on the internet. An information product, or an ebook requires no inventory and the profit margins are huge.
In this article, I'll summarize the crucial steps you need follow to create your own information product by outsourcing to respectable ghostwriting services...
The reasons you would want to outsource your information product creation are:
1. You have a phobia with writing, or you just don't like the task
2. You don't have enough time
3. You don't have the expertise to create information products
If any of the above applies to you, then you can consider using special ghostwriting services to create the information product for you. This is a fast and easy way to create a quality product to sell, while you can fully concentrate on just marketing the product.
Here are 5 steps on how to create information products by hiring a professional writer.
1. Choose Your Niche
To decide the topic for your ebook, you need to do some thorough online research. You should choose a niche which many people have an interest in, and who are willing to buy the information. It will be even better, if the niche is something which you're knowledgeable in.
Go to forums that are related to the niche, and view the posts. See if there is a lot of interest on certain problems which people want to know about.
Next you can search for magazines whether online or offline, and see if there's a magazine for the niche. This is proof that there is demand for the topic. Otherwise, people would not run a magazine on it.
Never, try to create an ebook on a topic which has never been done before. Chances are that it won't sell. Try to look for similar ebooks that are already selling well and create an information product which is better.
2. List Out The Problems
Once you've decided what your information product is about, you need to list out certain problems which the market is interested in. If the subject is about PC repair, then you need to list out the common problems people would want to know about repairing PCs.
Get this information from forums and from search engines. Consolidate the list of problems and choose the best ones which you think your prospects will be interested in.
3. Hire A Ghost Writer
Your next step is to hire a ghost writer, or ghostwriting company to write your information product. There are many professional writers which you can find online, but don't choose one based on the lowest price.
You need to hire a professional writer who has experience in creating information products for their clients. This includes the ebook, website, sales copy to sell the ebook, squeeze page to capture prospects' emails and a thank you page.
Some companies offer these ghostwriting services as a whole package, but there aren't many of them. An example of such a company is 'Best Instant Sites' which offers a complete solution for creating information products.
4. Discuss The Terms
With your chosen ghostwriter, you need to discuss the terms before giving payment. Tell them your idea of the information product you want and list the subjects you want written about, from what you gathered in your research.
Ask the professional writer to research the topic in more detail when writing the ebook. Then ask when the delivery date is. Never push the writer for an earlier deadline. You want the ebook to be written professionally. Rushing a writing project seldom creates quality.
For the design of your website, tell the ghostwriter what kind of look you're looking for and the words you want shown. Give examples of website designs that you like so that the professional writer knows your preference.
5. Following Up With The Progress
A few days before the deadline of your information product, contact the ghostwriter and ask him or her for the progress. He would either tell you everything is as planned or he would tell you that there is a possible delay.
The point of following up is to tell the writer that you care and it gives him a chance to ask you any questions he can think of. You can even ask for a draft of the website design to see if it matches what you want.
Good professional writers will always contact you a few days beforehand if there's a possible delay, but just in case you hired a not-so-professional writer, it will be wise if you followed up a few times before the deadline.
Following these steps, you can create an information product of your own and start making money online like the experts. The key to success is hiring the right professional writer. You need a writer that has experience in creating information products. And of course, you also need good marketing skills to sell your product online. Some ghostwriters offer advice on marketing online. You need to ask.
About the Author:
Download the report "Build Your Own Business Using Information Products" at create information products. Alan Cheng is a professional writer at http://www.bestinstantsites.com/ If you want to outsource your information product creation, visit professional writer at Best Instant Sites.
Read more of Alan Cheng's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Alan Cheng
Successful online marketers create information products that are in-demand and sell them online. It's one of the most popular and effective ways to make money on the internet. An information product, or an ebook requires no inventory and the profit margins are huge.
In this article, I'll summarize the crucial steps you need follow to create your own information product by outsourcing to respectable ghostwriting services...
The reasons you would want to outsource your information product creation are:
1. You have a phobia with writing, or you just don't like the task
2. You don't have enough time
3. You don't have the expertise to create information products
If any of the above applies to you, then you can consider using special ghostwriting services to create the information product for you. This is a fast and easy way to create a quality product to sell, while you can fully concentrate on just marketing the product.
Here are 5 steps on how to create information products by hiring a professional writer.
1. Choose Your Niche
To decide the topic for your ebook, you need to do some thorough online research. You should choose a niche which many people have an interest in, and who are willing to buy the information. It will be even better, if the niche is something which you're knowledgeable in.
Go to forums that are related to the niche, and view the posts. See if there is a lot of interest on certain problems which people want to know about.
Next you can search for magazines whether online or offline, and see if there's a magazine for the niche. This is proof that there is demand for the topic. Otherwise, people would not run a magazine on it.
Never, try to create an ebook on a topic which has never been done before. Chances are that it won't sell. Try to look for similar ebooks that are already selling well and create an information product which is better.
2. List Out The Problems
Once you've decided what your information product is about, you need to list out certain problems which the market is interested in. If the subject is about PC repair, then you need to list out the common problems people would want to know about repairing PCs.
Get this information from forums and from search engines. Consolidate the list of problems and choose the best ones which you think your prospects will be interested in.
3. Hire A Ghost Writer
Your next step is to hire a ghost writer, or ghostwriting company to write your information product. There are many professional writers which you can find online, but don't choose one based on the lowest price.
You need to hire a professional writer who has experience in creating information products for their clients. This includes the ebook, website, sales copy to sell the ebook, squeeze page to capture prospects' emails and a thank you page.
Some companies offer these ghostwriting services as a whole package, but there aren't many of them. An example of such a company is 'Best Instant Sites' which offers a complete solution for creating information products.
4. Discuss The Terms
With your chosen ghostwriter, you need to discuss the terms before giving payment. Tell them your idea of the information product you want and list the subjects you want written about, from what you gathered in your research.
Ask the professional writer to research the topic in more detail when writing the ebook. Then ask when the delivery date is. Never push the writer for an earlier deadline. You want the ebook to be written professionally. Rushing a writing project seldom creates quality.
For the design of your website, tell the ghostwriter what kind of look you're looking for and the words you want shown. Give examples of website designs that you like so that the professional writer knows your preference.
5. Following Up With The Progress
A few days before the deadline of your information product, contact the ghostwriter and ask him or her for the progress. He would either tell you everything is as planned or he would tell you that there is a possible delay.
The point of following up is to tell the writer that you care and it gives him a chance to ask you any questions he can think of. You can even ask for a draft of the website design to see if it matches what you want.
Good professional writers will always contact you a few days beforehand if there's a possible delay, but just in case you hired a not-so-professional writer, it will be wise if you followed up a few times before the deadline.
Following these steps, you can create an information product of your own and start making money online like the experts. The key to success is hiring the right professional writer. You need a writer that has experience in creating information products. And of course, you also need good marketing skills to sell your product online. Some ghostwriters offer advice on marketing online. You need to ask.
About the Author:
Download the report "Build Your Own Business Using Information Products" at create information products. Alan Cheng is a professional writer at http://www.bestinstantsites.com/ If you want to outsource your information product creation, visit professional writer at Best Instant Sites.
Read more of Alan Cheng's articles.
Free and Easy Link Building Tips
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
Okay, you're the proud mama or papa to your brand new website. Now what? This isn't like the movies - just because you built it doesn't mean they'll come. The Internet is a huge limitless space with ever-growing numbers of websites. You are just one small website among millions. How will anybody ever find you? How do you become visible? Right now, you just exist out in the web, untethered. You need to become visible when someone searches for you and one way to become visible to people is to become visible to search engines. And one way to become visible to search engines such as Google, Yahoo, or MSN is for your site to be tethered, or linked to other sites.
If you've spent any time reading Internet marketing blogs you know that link building is a huge part of a marketing campaign. Backlinks - links that point to your website - are a major factor in determining your popularity or ranking with the search engines. And of course, just like in high school, you want to be popular.
You can buy your way into links, but here we're talking about a few free and easy ways. An obvious and natural way to build links is through content. When you start a link-building campaign for your new website, focus on attracting links that will add value for your website visitors and best represent your most important keywords too. It is invaluable to have visitors go to your site and share your content.
Here are a few easy and mostly free ways to build links for your website.
Blog-Based Link Building
One way to get natural links back to your website is by setting up a blog for your company. Make sure you network online with other blogs that complement yours. If you share industry news and have useful and relevant content, you'll attract links. Reference other bloggers in your content and link to other blogs in your industry.
For blogs, content is extremely important. Every time you add words to your blog or website, you are presenting yourself to a potentially huge audience. How does your blog's content reflect your company? This content could be the page that carries your company's name around the Internet world. Cheap content is just that - cheap. Create content that people want to read and that will make them come back again and again.
Reviewing products and services and posting those reviews on other sites is another way to build links. Your honest evaluations and smart opinions can also build your reputation as an expert in your field.
Link Building with Social Media
Another way to build natural links to your website is through social media sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace and Twitter. These sites allow you to set up a user profile where you can add information about you and your company including a link to your website.
Some sites, Facebook for example, also have a way to promote your business with a page, ad or group. Just keep in mind that there are good ways and bad ways to promote your business on social sites and you should observe proper etiquette when you do.
Link Building with Organizations and Directories
If your industry has professional organizations or associations that you belong to, check with them and see if they have an online directory with links to member sites. They may or may not charge a fee for this. If they do, it shouldn't be much.
Check with your local Chamber of Commerce or Better Business Bureau. Links from sites like these can be very helpful. Check with other local businesses and organizations that have lists of businesses and request links from them, too.
Online directories are another opportunity to look into. Yahoo! Directory is a good one. If your business is in a specific geographical area, you might also find some local directories to submit to that will boost your local visibility.
Links from Charities or Non-profits
If your company makes charitable donations to organizations and non-profits, see if they have a "donors" list on their website and ask if they will link to your website.
Links from Press Releases
Has your business just started or have you just launched a new product? A press release is a great idea to announce your news. There are quite a few press release distribution services available and some have a free first time offer.
Links from Partners
If your website offers information about other partner websites like business directories, you should make sure to use all your linking potential. You could have a badge that your partner could put on their site linking to you and one for your site that links to theirs.
If you have an RSS feed or a widget on your site that has good value to visitors, those can be taken from your website and displayed on another person's website, linking back to your site.
The Internet is constantly evolving and there are thousands of ways to build links. Look around at other websites and see what they have and how they work. Look at your business, think outside the box and you might come up with other ways to develop links. If it all seems like too much, there are many online consulting companies that can help with link building, SEO optimization and brandcasting.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more Articles written by Enzo F. Cesario.
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
Okay, you're the proud mama or papa to your brand new website. Now what? This isn't like the movies - just because you built it doesn't mean they'll come. The Internet is a huge limitless space with ever-growing numbers of websites. You are just one small website among millions. How will anybody ever find you? How do you become visible? Right now, you just exist out in the web, untethered. You need to become visible when someone searches for you and one way to become visible to people is to become visible to search engines. And one way to become visible to search engines such as Google, Yahoo, or MSN is for your site to be tethered, or linked to other sites.
If you've spent any time reading Internet marketing blogs you know that link building is a huge part of a marketing campaign. Backlinks - links that point to your website - are a major factor in determining your popularity or ranking with the search engines. And of course, just like in high school, you want to be popular.
You can buy your way into links, but here we're talking about a few free and easy ways. An obvious and natural way to build links is through content. When you start a link-building campaign for your new website, focus on attracting links that will add value for your website visitors and best represent your most important keywords too. It is invaluable to have visitors go to your site and share your content.
Here are a few easy and mostly free ways to build links for your website.
Blog-Based Link Building
One way to get natural links back to your website is by setting up a blog for your company. Make sure you network online with other blogs that complement yours. If you share industry news and have useful and relevant content, you'll attract links. Reference other bloggers in your content and link to other blogs in your industry.
For blogs, content is extremely important. Every time you add words to your blog or website, you are presenting yourself to a potentially huge audience. How does your blog's content reflect your company? This content could be the page that carries your company's name around the Internet world. Cheap content is just that - cheap. Create content that people want to read and that will make them come back again and again.
Reviewing products and services and posting those reviews on other sites is another way to build links. Your honest evaluations and smart opinions can also build your reputation as an expert in your field.
Link Building with Social Media
Another way to build natural links to your website is through social media sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace and Twitter. These sites allow you to set up a user profile where you can add information about you and your company including a link to your website.
Some sites, Facebook for example, also have a way to promote your business with a page, ad or group. Just keep in mind that there are good ways and bad ways to promote your business on social sites and you should observe proper etiquette when you do.
Link Building with Organizations and Directories
If your industry has professional organizations or associations that you belong to, check with them and see if they have an online directory with links to member sites. They may or may not charge a fee for this. If they do, it shouldn't be much.
Check with your local Chamber of Commerce or Better Business Bureau. Links from sites like these can be very helpful. Check with other local businesses and organizations that have lists of businesses and request links from them, too.
Online directories are another opportunity to look into. Yahoo! Directory is a good one. If your business is in a specific geographical area, you might also find some local directories to submit to that will boost your local visibility.
Links from Charities or Non-profits
If your company makes charitable donations to organizations and non-profits, see if they have a "donors" list on their website and ask if they will link to your website.
Links from Press Releases
Has your business just started or have you just launched a new product? A press release is a great idea to announce your news. There are quite a few press release distribution services available and some have a free first time offer.
Links from Partners
If your website offers information about other partner websites like business directories, you should make sure to use all your linking potential. You could have a badge that your partner could put on their site linking to you and one for your site that links to theirs.
If you have an RSS feed or a widget on your site that has good value to visitors, those can be taken from your website and displayed on another person's website, linking back to your site.
The Internet is constantly evolving and there are thousands of ways to build links. Look around at other websites and see what they have and how they work. Look at your business, think outside the box and you might come up with other ways to develop links. If it all seems like too much, there are many online consulting companies that can help with link building, SEO optimization and brandcasting.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more Articles written by Enzo F. Cesario.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Understanding Connotations in Tag Lines, Business Names and Monikers
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
The following closer on an email was meant to clinch my interest in an information product, but it did the opposite:
"I would love for you to experience the same kind of worldwide notoriety my clients have enjoyed for years."
As a professional word person, I knew instantly that this expert had overlooked the negative meaning of "notoriety." But before jumping on her mistake, I checked my authoritative sources - dictionaries.
For "notorious," the American Heritage dictionary provides the definition "known widely and usually unfavorably," while the American College Dictionary has as a first definition "widely but unfavorably known." As synonyms for "notoriety," dictionary.com offers "disrepute, ill-repute, shame, infamy."
For certain audiences, especially those that are young, edgy or avant-garde, one can turn established meanings upside down to create a magnetic message. It's easy to imagine rock bands, movie stars or political activists for whom "notoriety" glitters as a goal.
But clearly this expert did not intend to claim that she helps her clients achieve an unfavorable worldwide reputation or to be held in widespread disrepute. And just as clearly, the fact that she misused this word implies she can't be trusted to formulate a winning message for someone seeking acclaim.
Blunders like this can turn up in company or product names, tag lines, monikers (clever nicknames) and in marketing copy.
Very often, people crafting a marketing piece get tired of using the obvious words for their situation and reach for synonyms. To avoid writing "fame" - a simple, direct and ordinary word - this expert used (actually, misused) the more complex word "notoriety." People also get tripped up by connotation when they fall in love with the way something sounds.
For instance, I once thought up the moniker "Grand Poohbah of Publicity. " I loved its combination of sounds. However, when I looked it up, I discovered definitions like this one, in the Free Online Dictionary: "A pompous ostentatious official, especially one who, holding many offices, fulfills none of them." "Poohbah" comes from Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera, The Mikado, where Pooh-Bah was a haughty character who held the offices Lord Chief Justice, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Master of the Buckhounds, Lord High Auditor, Groom of the Back Stairs, and Lord High Everything Else. Oops, I certainly do not want to come across that way!
Whether you rely on memory or use a thesaurus to jog your consideration of related words, you must always, always take one more step and look up the official meaning of fancier or less common words. If you are aiming at a positive message and you see a negative connotation in any of the definitions, that indicates a high risk of an unintended negative message.
Even if several definitions are positive, one negative definition spoils the word's potential, the same way one rotten tomato mixed with fresh ones ruins a sauce.
The discipline of looking up words not only prevents communication disasters, over time it increases your command of the language. Instead of fighting what words mean to your audience, you increase your ability to nail a thought or idea in powerful names, sentences, nicknames or slogans.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
The following closer on an email was meant to clinch my interest in an information product, but it did the opposite:
"I would love for you to experience the same kind of worldwide notoriety my clients have enjoyed for years."
As a professional word person, I knew instantly that this expert had overlooked the negative meaning of "notoriety." But before jumping on her mistake, I checked my authoritative sources - dictionaries.
For "notorious," the American Heritage dictionary provides the definition "known widely and usually unfavorably," while the American College Dictionary has as a first definition "widely but unfavorably known." As synonyms for "notoriety," dictionary.com offers "disrepute, ill-repute, shame, infamy."
For certain audiences, especially those that are young, edgy or avant-garde, one can turn established meanings upside down to create a magnetic message. It's easy to imagine rock bands, movie stars or political activists for whom "notoriety" glitters as a goal.
But clearly this expert did not intend to claim that she helps her clients achieve an unfavorable worldwide reputation or to be held in widespread disrepute. And just as clearly, the fact that she misused this word implies she can't be trusted to formulate a winning message for someone seeking acclaim.
Blunders like this can turn up in company or product names, tag lines, monikers (clever nicknames) and in marketing copy.
Very often, people crafting a marketing piece get tired of using the obvious words for their situation and reach for synonyms. To avoid writing "fame" - a simple, direct and ordinary word - this expert used (actually, misused) the more complex word "notoriety." People also get tripped up by connotation when they fall in love with the way something sounds.
For instance, I once thought up the moniker "Grand Poohbah of Publicity. " I loved its combination of sounds. However, when I looked it up, I discovered definitions like this one, in the Free Online Dictionary: "A pompous ostentatious official, especially one who, holding many offices, fulfills none of them." "Poohbah" comes from Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera, The Mikado, where Pooh-Bah was a haughty character who held the offices Lord Chief Justice, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Master of the Buckhounds, Lord High Auditor, Groom of the Back Stairs, and Lord High Everything Else. Oops, I certainly do not want to come across that way!
Whether you rely on memory or use a thesaurus to jog your consideration of related words, you must always, always take one more step and look up the official meaning of fancier or less common words. If you are aiming at a positive message and you see a negative connotation in any of the definitions, that indicates a high risk of an unintended negative message.
Even if several definitions are positive, one negative definition spoils the word's potential, the same way one rotten tomato mixed with fresh ones ruins a sauce.
The discipline of looking up words not only prevents communication disasters, over time it increases your command of the language. Instead of fighting what words mean to your audience, you increase your ability to nail a thought or idea in powerful names, sentences, nicknames or slogans.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Changing Your Company Name: The Good, The Bad and The Unnecessary
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Wondering whether or not to change your company name? Several reasons for doing this are legitimate. Other reasons should make you stop and reconsider.
Most of the time, companies that come to my naming company frantic to find a new name for their firm or for a product do so because of legal problems. They've received a case-and-desist letter, and it's cheaper and wiser to switch than to fight.
Even those who follow corporate name games probably don't realize that Kentucky Fried Chicken falls into this category. In 1991, the company told the public that they were changing their name to KFC because health-conscious consumers were shying away from the word "fried." Since the name change coincided with the introduction of several purportedly healthier menu items, this seemed plausible.
In fact, however, in 1990 the state of Kentucky had trademarked its name and created the requirement that any business using the word Kentucky for business purposes would have to obtain permission and pay licensing fees. Kentucky Fried Chicken took umbrage at the idea of paying for a name they'd used since 1952. Their negotiations with the state broke down, and they adopted KFC as their new name.
The second most common impetus for an organizational name change is a word in the name that's gone out of favor with the industry or with the general public. For instance, the Massachusetts State House is considering legislation to rename the Department of Mental Retardation the Department of Developmental Disabilities, in keeping with altered notions of appropriate labeling.
The same goes for company names that sound old-fashioned and out of date. In 2009, a shop called Fotos and Film raises the issue of whether or not they're in step with today's digital photography.
The third good reason for changing your company name is that the name no longer fits the services you perform and the goods you sell. If you launched as Westfield Wire and now you make mainly cables, renaming is indeed in order.
Likewise, geographical growth or relocations can render a business name obsolete. If Gerard County Savings Bank expands beyond Gerard County, it should put itself in line for a name change.
Got a name that people just can't remember or that they confuse with your competitor? One company came to us for renaming because even people who'd previously bought from them couldn't remember whether they were, let's say, MyGrandPhotos.com (correct) or YourGrandPhotos.com (the competitor). Renaming makes sense for that situation, too.
If you're just plain tired of your name, however, forget about a name change. It involves a lot of expense and effort to convince the public to get on board with the new name. Don't go there for frivolous, unnecessary reasons.
The final situation, mergers and acquisitions, which often prompt renaming, depends on the situation. Restaurants that take over from a disreputable or failing establishment do well to signal their fresh start with both a name change and redecoration. However, a company that was humming along fine before the change of ownership should usually continue with the name they had before. In business, longevity and consistency inspire confidence.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Wondering whether or not to change your company name? Several reasons for doing this are legitimate. Other reasons should make you stop and reconsider.
Most of the time, companies that come to my naming company frantic to find a new name for their firm or for a product do so because of legal problems. They've received a case-and-desist letter, and it's cheaper and wiser to switch than to fight.
Even those who follow corporate name games probably don't realize that Kentucky Fried Chicken falls into this category. In 1991, the company told the public that they were changing their name to KFC because health-conscious consumers were shying away from the word "fried." Since the name change coincided with the introduction of several purportedly healthier menu items, this seemed plausible.
In fact, however, in 1990 the state of Kentucky had trademarked its name and created the requirement that any business using the word Kentucky for business purposes would have to obtain permission and pay licensing fees. Kentucky Fried Chicken took umbrage at the idea of paying for a name they'd used since 1952. Their negotiations with the state broke down, and they adopted KFC as their new name.
The second most common impetus for an organizational name change is a word in the name that's gone out of favor with the industry or with the general public. For instance, the Massachusetts State House is considering legislation to rename the Department of Mental Retardation the Department of Developmental Disabilities, in keeping with altered notions of appropriate labeling.
The same goes for company names that sound old-fashioned and out of date. In 2009, a shop called Fotos and Film raises the issue of whether or not they're in step with today's digital photography.
The third good reason for changing your company name is that the name no longer fits the services you perform and the goods you sell. If you launched as Westfield Wire and now you make mainly cables, renaming is indeed in order.
Likewise, geographical growth or relocations can render a business name obsolete. If Gerard County Savings Bank expands beyond Gerard County, it should put itself in line for a name change.
Got a name that people just can't remember or that they confuse with your competitor? One company came to us for renaming because even people who'd previously bought from them couldn't remember whether they were, let's say, MyGrandPhotos.com (correct) or YourGrandPhotos.com (the competitor). Renaming makes sense for that situation, too.
If you're just plain tired of your name, however, forget about a name change. It involves a lot of expense and effort to convince the public to get on board with the new name. Don't go there for frivolous, unnecessary reasons.
The final situation, mergers and acquisitions, which often prompt renaming, depends on the situation. Restaurants that take over from a disreputable or failing establishment do well to signal their fresh start with both a name change and redecoration. However, a company that was humming along fine before the change of ownership should usually continue with the name they had before. In business, longevity and consistency inspire confidence.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Private Label Rights (PLR) and Spamming
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Glenn Heitkoetter
PLR is material that the author gives rights to change and/or redistribute the product(s). These can be just about any product. The author can be very strict in one extreme, to all the way the other way to letting you change it completely as you want, give yourself the credit and relink any links to your own site(s).
PLR has a bad rap as spammers flood video sites, article sites, blogs, and other sites with this, usually it is going to be duplicate content as someone else has already spammed the site earlier with it. A lot of PLR is watered down filler and/or sales pitches with little or no real information.
The following methods are if the original author(s) allow it according to the documentation.
Find the best PLR with real information.
These are just a few methods that can be used with PLR saving you many hours of time coming up with your own information from scratch. PLR can also give you ideas that may only have been touched on in the material but you can expand on it to make the material original.
Combine products into unique packages that cannot be found anywhere else. Give away part of it and sell another part.
Change the format. There are services that charge to do this so this is a viable service as you can change an article into video slides or video screen capture tutorials using paid or free software. Change audio into articles or the reverse of this. Utilize live video or streaming video services using PLR that has not been done in this fashion before. People benefit from these formats as they may not be able to utilize a product easily or at all in the original format.
Avoid selling products that can be found for free as they are or sending it to sites that want original content.
Give them away as bonuses for free to make an original product more attractive as many people may not have known about this before.
Auction unique packages of PLR. Sell for next to nothing if you want and build your mailing list for your email newsletter.
Find the best PLR and give away in individual packages from your site(s) and build your mailing list.
There are free and paid PLR membership sites that bring in new original content all of the time. Be the first to utilize this content and or give away the memberships using their affiliate programs that these sites offer.
Use PLR to give answers to questions about items in question and answer forums. Run a link to the material. Selling from here is going to probably get you the boot off the forum. Give the first package away free but sell an expanded package. Stay on the exact topic of the forum or the boot is likely to happen. Your sign on signature can have a link to the free content.
Make a free "viraling" Ebook. Many Ebooks are worthless using regurgitated info scraped from help files of sites. People can tell you scraped it as it will be easy obvious information. The better it is the more viral it will go. Give real info that is combined with good PLR. Put it in pdf format using paid or free software with your live links to your site(s).
One of the best uses of PLR is to use part of it for you email newsletters combining it with your own original content to expand a subject.
About the Author:
Written by: Glenn Heitkoetter. For Free membership and 79 Ways To Make Money With PLR Products: http://www.info-soup.com/plr
Read more Articles written by Glenn Heitkoetter.
Copyright © 2009 Glenn Heitkoetter
PLR is material that the author gives rights to change and/or redistribute the product(s). These can be just about any product. The author can be very strict in one extreme, to all the way the other way to letting you change it completely as you want, give yourself the credit and relink any links to your own site(s).
PLR has a bad rap as spammers flood video sites, article sites, blogs, and other sites with this, usually it is going to be duplicate content as someone else has already spammed the site earlier with it. A lot of PLR is watered down filler and/or sales pitches with little or no real information.
The following methods are if the original author(s) allow it according to the documentation.
Find the best PLR with real information.
These are just a few methods that can be used with PLR saving you many hours of time coming up with your own information from scratch. PLR can also give you ideas that may only have been touched on in the material but you can expand on it to make the material original.
About the Author:
Written by: Glenn Heitkoetter. For Free membership and 79 Ways To Make Money With PLR Products: http://www.info-soup.com/plr
Read more Articles written by Glenn Heitkoetter.
Advertisers and Online Advertising Agencies
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Karin Gamble, All Rights Reserved
Ten years ago I founded NetMediaReps, Inc., an advertising agency for online companies, specifically online newsletter publishers trying to find advertisers for their publications. My decision to found my own company grew out of my frustration in trying to obtain agency representation for my husband's company.
After calling more than 25 ad agencies, I discovered that most agencies charged exorbitant commissions and were only interested in representing large companies with deep pockets. As a new startup, my husband's company fell under their radar and follow up was minimal to nil.
Back then, the internet was just emerging as the new frontier of business and it was apparent that small and medium-sized businessses needed effective marketing representation to compete in this new marketplace, to receive the broadest possible exposure and to find other companies which could help facilitate their growth.
My thought was that these companies had an even greater need for a marketing platform than larger companies to be competitive in the growing online commercial market. I decided to fill that niche and started by signing contracts with several online publishers who needed assistance in selling their ad inventory. The rest is history - NetMediaReps.com was born.
Knowledge of how to do business, and advertise, on the internet has grown significantly over the years and data tracking of take rates, website conversion rates and ROI have become increasingly sophisticated, helping online businesses to better target their advertising dollars in a successful and productive way.
Despite these advances in knowledge and technique, there are still a surprising number of individuals who display a remarkable naivety regarding advertising and who ask questions that indicate the lack of a well thought out marketing plan or a basic understanding of the advertising mediums available to them online. Below are some examples of not so uncommon questions we receive and our responses to them:
Question: Your publisher mails to a list of 500,000 subscribers so I should get 500,000 responses - right ?
Answer: An online publication using a mailing list is like a newspaper. Recipients don't always feel like reading or looking at the publication on a given day. They may be busy, on vacation, disinterested in the topic, or otherwise indisposed. And, like a newspaper - just because they see your ad doesn't mean they want to buy from you - at least not at that given moment. It is, however, a good idea to advertise in publications that archive past issues or editions providing advertisers with permanent or semi-permanent back links and the opportunity of receiving trickle through clicks and sales at no additional cost.
Other factors that can affect response rate are:
The number of links in a publication. Newsletters typically run 1 to 2 web pages in length and are comprised of several sections all of which contain a few to numerous links. As a result reader interest and click activity is diffused across the newsletter rather than focused on a particular ad or link.
Ad clarity. A concise, definitive statement describing what your company is selling and how it benefits buyers is essential as is an unequivocal call to action.
Ad Uniqueness. An ad that stands out generally performs better.
Spam triggers. Generally, words and phrases that are the most effective in evoking reader response are also the ones that trigger spam filters both at the ISP level and the reader's Inbox. Blatant commercial message subjects and ad copy rarely do well.
Message Subject. Shorter subject lines are usually more effective than longer ones. More imortantly, large web-based mail services like Yahoo! Mail, MSN/Hotmail and AOL truncate message subjects that are greater than 38 - 47 characters.
Question: (After receiving ad specs, including dimensions and file sizes.) Will my 700 x 300 pixel ad be accepted?
Answer: Most publishers will strive to assist you in placing your ads but are restricted by their newsletter templates from accepting ads that don't conform to the specs provided. Submitting an incorrectly sized ad simply delays the start of your ad campaign.
Question: Why should I advertise when we are obviously in a recession? Does that make any sense?
Answer: McGraw-Hill Research analyzed 600 companies and their marketing spending from 1980 to 1985. After 1985, the facts showed that the firms which had kept or increased their advertising budgets during the recession in '81-'82 boasted an average sales growth of 275% over the next five years. The companies who cut their advertising? They experienced paltry sales growth over the next five years of just 19%.
So, when is the right time to market your business? All the time.
Question: I noticed my competitor in your publications - can you tell me how they did, so I can decide if we want to use you?
Sorry. You wouldn't want the details of your campaign provided to your competitors. Our advertisers have an expectation of privacy and confidentiality in regards to performance criteria such as click-through rates, sales and ROI. Ad agencies and publishers have an ethical obligation to keep campaign results confidential.
Even if such information was made available, it would not be that useful. Campaign results can vary significantly depending on the product/service offered, price point, message subject, ad copy and numerous other variables.
Any questions?... e-me ! :)
About the Author:
Karin Gamble is the CEO of NetMediaReps, Inc. (http://www.netmediareps.com), an online advertising agency specializing in ad sales for newsletter publications and web sites targeting a webmaster audience. Karin can be reached by email at info@netmediareps.com or by telephone at (204)254-1750.
Read more Articles written by Karin Gamble.
Copyright © 2009 Karin Gamble, All Rights Reserved
Ten years ago I founded NetMediaReps, Inc., an advertising agency for online companies, specifically online newsletter publishers trying to find advertisers for their publications. My decision to found my own company grew out of my frustration in trying to obtain agency representation for my husband's company.
After calling more than 25 ad agencies, I discovered that most agencies charged exorbitant commissions and were only interested in representing large companies with deep pockets. As a new startup, my husband's company fell under their radar and follow up was minimal to nil.
Back then, the internet was just emerging as the new frontier of business and it was apparent that small and medium-sized businessses needed effective marketing representation to compete in this new marketplace, to receive the broadest possible exposure and to find other companies which could help facilitate their growth.
My thought was that these companies had an even greater need for a marketing platform than larger companies to be competitive in the growing online commercial market. I decided to fill that niche and started by signing contracts with several online publishers who needed assistance in selling their ad inventory. The rest is history - NetMediaReps.com was born.
Knowledge of how to do business, and advertise, on the internet has grown significantly over the years and data tracking of take rates, website conversion rates and ROI have become increasingly sophisticated, helping online businesses to better target their advertising dollars in a successful and productive way.
Despite these advances in knowledge and technique, there are still a surprising number of individuals who display a remarkable naivety regarding advertising and who ask questions that indicate the lack of a well thought out marketing plan or a basic understanding of the advertising mediums available to them online. Below are some examples of not so uncommon questions we receive and our responses to them:
Question: Your publisher mails to a list of 500,000 subscribers so I should get 500,000 responses - right ?
Answer: An online publication using a mailing list is like a newspaper. Recipients don't always feel like reading or looking at the publication on a given day. They may be busy, on vacation, disinterested in the topic, or otherwise indisposed. And, like a newspaper - just because they see your ad doesn't mean they want to buy from you - at least not at that given moment. It is, however, a good idea to advertise in publications that archive past issues or editions providing advertisers with permanent or semi-permanent back links and the opportunity of receiving trickle through clicks and sales at no additional cost.
Other factors that can affect response rate are:
Question: (After receiving ad specs, including dimensions and file sizes.) Will my 700 x 300 pixel ad be accepted?
Answer: Most publishers will strive to assist you in placing your ads but are restricted by their newsletter templates from accepting ads that don't conform to the specs provided. Submitting an incorrectly sized ad simply delays the start of your ad campaign.
Question: Why should I advertise when we are obviously in a recession? Does that make any sense?
Answer: McGraw-Hill Research analyzed 600 companies and their marketing spending from 1980 to 1985. After 1985, the facts showed that the firms which had kept or increased their advertising budgets during the recession in '81-'82 boasted an average sales growth of 275% over the next five years. The companies who cut their advertising? They experienced paltry sales growth over the next five years of just 19%.
So, when is the right time to market your business? All the time.
Question: I noticed my competitor in your publications - can you tell me how they did, so I can decide if we want to use you?
Sorry. You wouldn't want the details of your campaign provided to your competitors. Our advertisers have an expectation of privacy and confidentiality in regards to performance criteria such as click-through rates, sales and ROI. Ad agencies and publishers have an ethical obligation to keep campaign results confidential.
Even if such information was made available, it would not be that useful. Campaign results can vary significantly depending on the product/service offered, price point, message subject, ad copy and numerous other variables.
Any questions?... e-me ! :)
About the Author:
Karin Gamble is the CEO of NetMediaReps, Inc. (http://www.netmediareps.com), an online advertising agency specializing in ad sales for newsletter publications and web sites targeting a webmaster audience. Karin can be reached by email at info@netmediareps.com or by telephone at (204)254-1750.
Read more Articles written by Karin Gamble.
The Mystique of Numbers in Company Names
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
While visiting the House of the Seven Gables in Salem, Massachusetts two weeks ago, made famous in the 1851 book by Nathaniel Hawthorne, I mentally tried out other numbers to see if they would sound as spooky and portentous.
To my ear, House of the Five Gables sounds all too ordinary, while House of the Eight Gables lacks anything that would send a chill up someone's spine. Both the sound of "seven" and its properties as both odd and prime give it a reverberating ring.
I would go so far as to say that numbers have personalities that you need to be aware of when using them in company or product names.
Motel 6: Here, "six" comes across as routine and humdrum, very much like the rooms and prices in this chain.
Super 8: If this motel chain was trying to convey higher quality than Motel 6, it works. Note too that with two long and one short vowel sounds to its competitor's one long and two short ones, the name Super 8 commands more attention while taking up no more space.
Heinz 57: Company founder Henry John Heinz engineered the company's address at PO Box 57 in Pittsburgh in addition to using this number in the corporate slogan ("57 Varieties") and in the name of its steak sauce. I doubt it would have lasted since 1896 as Heinz 28 or Heinz 91 or even Heinz 37.
Note that you don't have to provide an explanation of a number you include in a business name. The Heinz company web site says only that the numbers "5" and "7" had a special significance for founder Henry John Heinz and his wife, not what that significance was. Likewise, the bottle of "Formula 3" shampoo that my hairdresser recently sold me says nothing about what the "3" means.
Just be mindful that certain numbers carry heavy baggage to members of some ethnic and religious groups. For instance, "four" is unlucky to many Chinese because in their language it's a homonym for death. And to Christians, the sequence "666" signifies the devil. "Thirteen" is shunned in many cultures for reasons unknown.
Be mindful also that for a local business, people don't know how to look up company names starting with numbers. If you heard the name "18 Candles" for a party products company, should you look it up in the telephone directory under "E" for "eighteen" or in the front of the book, before the A's? When the number comes after a regular word, as with Studio 54, you avoid this problem.
Finally, when it comes to web domains, most people hearing a company name with a number in it will assume it's written with the numeral rather than in words. They'd look up motel6.com rather than motelsix.com. Even so, you'd be smart to reserve both versions. Motel6.com indeed corresponds to the motel chain, but motelsix.com goes to a site for finding a cheap motel room. Likewise, the founder of fivethirtyeight.com, a political web site referring to the number of seats in the U.S. Congress, thought the written-out-words looked more elegant and neglected to reserve the domain 538.com.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
While visiting the House of the Seven Gables in Salem, Massachusetts two weeks ago, made famous in the 1851 book by Nathaniel Hawthorne, I mentally tried out other numbers to see if they would sound as spooky and portentous.
To my ear, House of the Five Gables sounds all too ordinary, while House of the Eight Gables lacks anything that would send a chill up someone's spine. Both the sound of "seven" and its properties as both odd and prime give it a reverberating ring.
I would go so far as to say that numbers have personalities that you need to be aware of when using them in company or product names.
Motel 6: Here, "six" comes across as routine and humdrum, very much like the rooms and prices in this chain.
Super 8: If this motel chain was trying to convey higher quality than Motel 6, it works. Note too that with two long and one short vowel sounds to its competitor's one long and two short ones, the name Super 8 commands more attention while taking up no more space.
Heinz 57: Company founder Henry John Heinz engineered the company's address at PO Box 57 in Pittsburgh in addition to using this number in the corporate slogan ("57 Varieties") and in the name of its steak sauce. I doubt it would have lasted since 1896 as Heinz 28 or Heinz 91 or even Heinz 37.
Note that you don't have to provide an explanation of a number you include in a business name. The Heinz company web site says only that the numbers "5" and "7" had a special significance for founder Henry John Heinz and his wife, not what that significance was. Likewise, the bottle of "Formula 3" shampoo that my hairdresser recently sold me says nothing about what the "3" means.
Just be mindful that certain numbers carry heavy baggage to members of some ethnic and religious groups. For instance, "four" is unlucky to many Chinese because in their language it's a homonym for death. And to Christians, the sequence "666" signifies the devil. "Thirteen" is shunned in many cultures for reasons unknown.
Be mindful also that for a local business, people don't know how to look up company names starting with numbers. If you heard the name "18 Candles" for a party products company, should you look it up in the telephone directory under "E" for "eighteen" or in the front of the book, before the A's? When the number comes after a regular word, as with Studio 54, you avoid this problem.
Finally, when it comes to web domains, most people hearing a company name with a number in it will assume it's written with the numeral rather than in words. They'd look up motel6.com rather than motelsix.com. Even so, you'd be smart to reserve both versions. Motel6.com indeed corresponds to the motel chain, but motelsix.com goes to a site for finding a cheap motel room. Likewise, the founder of fivethirtyeight.com, a political web site referring to the number of seats in the U.S. Congress, thought the written-out-words looked more elegant and neglected to reserve the domain 538.com.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Is a Tag Line Absolutely Necessary Along With Your Company Name?
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
In looking through Entrepreneur Magazine's most recent Franchise 500 issue, I noticed - and cut out - a number of ads for franchises that struck me as exceptionally well named. So clear and meaningful were these company names that they instantly conveyed exactly what the company did in an appealing way.
If you saw the company name flash by on a van or embroidered on an employee jacket, you'd understand the business and maybe even want to chase down the van or person and learn more. From that standpoint alone, imagine the immense advantage such a well-named company has over competitors named, say, Rayne and McFlynn or Standard Specialists.
Normally a tag line - the little phrase that follows a company name on business cards, stationery and web site headers - helps to clarify what line of business the firm is in and how it differs from competitors, as well as to lend a dash of pizzazz. In most cases, a business name and tag line belong together like salt and ___, or like cup and ___. (I'll bet you couldn't help filling in those blanks with "pepper" and "saucer.")
Yet here are five companies whose advertisements caught my eye as being able to get by without a tag line. I give them high points. See whether or not you agree.
1)Relax the Back
This store sells ergonomic products that help prevent back problems, support the back and neck, and relieve pain. Although the ad had a tag line, "The best of everything for your back," neither that nor the silhouette-style logo of a reclining figure were needed to understand what this retail store sells.
2)Anytime Fitness
Again, you don't need any brainwork to guess that this company provides you with a place to work out any time of the day or night. As a member, you gain access to the club with a keycard valid 24/7. There wasn't a tag line on the ad, and the stick figure breaking into a run beside the company name added energy but wasn't needed for comprehension.
3)American Leak Detection
Here too there is no mistaking what this company does. The tag line, "The Original Leak Specialists," doesn't really add anything helpful.
4)Computer Troubleshooters
Another self-explanatory company name. The tag line "Technology Solved" adds some psychological satisfaction to the presentation, letting us know that they don't merely try to solve computer problems, they succeed.
5)Home Instead Senior Care
My favorite of the bunch. I'm not sure anyone needs the answer to the question "instead of what?" I didn't see a tag line for this company, either in the ad or on the web site.
So many factors go into choosing a company name that I'm not proposing all companies seek names like the five above. History, the type of business, the competitive landscape, domain availability and other circumstances figure into whether or not such names make sense and are attainable.
Still, when the stars align, a perfect name can get the message across on its own. That's good to know!
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
In looking through Entrepreneur Magazine's most recent Franchise 500 issue, I noticed - and cut out - a number of ads for franchises that struck me as exceptionally well named. So clear and meaningful were these company names that they instantly conveyed exactly what the company did in an appealing way.
If you saw the company name flash by on a van or embroidered on an employee jacket, you'd understand the business and maybe even want to chase down the van or person and learn more. From that standpoint alone, imagine the immense advantage such a well-named company has over competitors named, say, Rayne and McFlynn or Standard Specialists.
Normally a tag line - the little phrase that follows a company name on business cards, stationery and web site headers - helps to clarify what line of business the firm is in and how it differs from competitors, as well as to lend a dash of pizzazz. In most cases, a business name and tag line belong together like salt and ___, or like cup and ___. (I'll bet you couldn't help filling in those blanks with "pepper" and "saucer.")
Yet here are five companies whose advertisements caught my eye as being able to get by without a tag line. I give them high points. See whether or not you agree.
1)Relax the Back
This store sells ergonomic products that help prevent back problems, support the back and neck, and relieve pain. Although the ad had a tag line, "The best of everything for your back," neither that nor the silhouette-style logo of a reclining figure were needed to understand what this retail store sells.
2)Anytime Fitness
Again, you don't need any brainwork to guess that this company provides you with a place to work out any time of the day or night. As a member, you gain access to the club with a keycard valid 24/7. There wasn't a tag line on the ad, and the stick figure breaking into a run beside the company name added energy but wasn't needed for comprehension.
3)American Leak Detection
Here too there is no mistaking what this company does. The tag line, "The Original Leak Specialists," doesn't really add anything helpful.
4)Computer Troubleshooters
Another self-explanatory company name. The tag line "Technology Solved" adds some psychological satisfaction to the presentation, letting us know that they don't merely try to solve computer problems, they succeed.
5)Home Instead Senior Care
My favorite of the bunch. I'm not sure anyone needs the answer to the question "instead of what?" I didn't see a tag line for this company, either in the ad or on the web site.
So many factors go into choosing a company name that I'm not proposing all companies seek names like the five above. History, the type of business, the competitive landscape, domain availability and other circumstances figure into whether or not such names make sense and are attainable.
Still, when the stars align, a perfect name can get the message across on its own. That's good to know!
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
For a Better New Product Name or New Company Name, Create a Scorecard
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Imagine being asked to judge a martial arts competition while never having studied karate, tai chi, judo or the like. You might latch on to a favorite whose moves you admire only to learn from people in the know that this competitor's form was actually embarrassingly and even dangerously bad. Or you might feel completely frozen in your ignorance, unable to recognize a competitor whose power and style were clearly head and shoulders above the rest.
You'd do better with a list of judging criteria, such as "posture," "balance," "presence," "power," and so on. By knowing what you're looking for, you more easily see it when it's in front of you.
This analogy applies neatly to business naming, whether for companies or products. I've seen organizations pass over a strong, winning name in favor of a weaker one when they go on nothing other than their feelings. And I've seen companies struggle to finalize a perfect name because they can't feel confident that it truly fits the bill. They have no firm criteria with which to assess competing possibilities.
For brainstorming a list of names, you don't need guidelines on what the final name must be like. Indeed, it's often best to generate possible names wildly, profusely and without censoring, and only later to winnow them.
Before attempting to narrow down your list of candidates, create a list of criteria or a scorecard. To name a new sporting goods product, for instance, the criteria might include:
Must make sense at first hearing to both basketball and soccer players.
Should be easy to say out loud and relatively easy to spell.
Must convey that the product has something to do with safety.
Needs to be trademarkable and have a matching domain name available.
Should have a fun sound and positive connotation, without being corny.
Using such a list, you'd go through the name candidates and eliminate all the ones that didn't fit the criteria.
A company in the same line of business but with a different history, goals and corporate personality might generate quite a different list of criteria.
A scorecard would be a bit more complicated than a list of criteria. Not only would you write down the qualities your ideal name should have, you would also give each quality a numerical weight so that some items on the list have more impact in determining the suitability of a name than others. Using this system, a name might turn out to be acceptable even though it didn't meet every qualification if it met the most important points.
A freelance namer for my company, in looking at the memo I created for a product naming assignment, quoted to me this saying by Charles F. Kettering: "A problem well stated is a problem half solved." I agree wholeheartedly. The scorecard enables you to know whether you've come up with a winner, you need to keep at the task longer or you should really scrap the efforts so far and make a fresh start.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Imagine being asked to judge a martial arts competition while never having studied karate, tai chi, judo or the like. You might latch on to a favorite whose moves you admire only to learn from people in the know that this competitor's form was actually embarrassingly and even dangerously bad. Or you might feel completely frozen in your ignorance, unable to recognize a competitor whose power and style were clearly head and shoulders above the rest.
You'd do better with a list of judging criteria, such as "posture," "balance," "presence," "power," and so on. By knowing what you're looking for, you more easily see it when it's in front of you.
This analogy applies neatly to business naming, whether for companies or products. I've seen organizations pass over a strong, winning name in favor of a weaker one when they go on nothing other than their feelings. And I've seen companies struggle to finalize a perfect name because they can't feel confident that it truly fits the bill. They have no firm criteria with which to assess competing possibilities.
For brainstorming a list of names, you don't need guidelines on what the final name must be like. Indeed, it's often best to generate possible names wildly, profusely and without censoring, and only later to winnow them.
Before attempting to narrow down your list of candidates, create a list of criteria or a scorecard. To name a new sporting goods product, for instance, the criteria might include:
Using such a list, you'd go through the name candidates and eliminate all the ones that didn't fit the criteria.
A company in the same line of business but with a different history, goals and corporate personality might generate quite a different list of criteria.
A scorecard would be a bit more complicated than a list of criteria. Not only would you write down the qualities your ideal name should have, you would also give each quality a numerical weight so that some items on the list have more impact in determining the suitability of a name than others. Using this system, a name might turn out to be acceptable even though it didn't meet every qualification if it met the most important points.
A freelance namer for my company, in looking at the memo I created for a product naming assignment, quoted to me this saying by Charles F. Kettering: "A problem well stated is a problem half solved." I agree wholeheartedly. The scorecard enables you to know whether you've come up with a winner, you need to keep at the task longer or you should really scrap the efforts so far and make a fresh start.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Making Money With Clickbank - Stop Getting Only Half The Story
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Brandon Weavers
Even if you've got the simplest job on the planet...
I don't care if you're washing dishes or flipping burgers.
Heck, even if you're a roadside fruit seller...
All of those jobs are much more complicated than making money from Clickbank.
I know that for a fact...
Let me tell you a story about how I found that out...
About 8 weeks ago, I decided to take the plunge into Clickbank.
I'd always heard that it was easy to get started, and I had some free time so I thought I'd finally give it a shot. I mean, I'd had some success online in the past, and I thought I was finally ready.
So I just sat down one day at my kitchen table, fired up the old laptop, and started searching the Clickbank Marketplace for products to promote...
I went through the same basic number crunching I always go through with new stuff - I mean real basic - I'm talking kindergarten math...
And after about an hour I'd found a few products with good commissions, so I decided to pull the trigger and start promoting them...
But I didn't take it seriously. I just grabbed a couple of free templates for landing pages, and fired up a couple of Adwords campaigns...
Boy, they were some ugly templates...and right then I figured I'd already blown it.
So I sat back and waited...I figured I'd put a couple hours in, may as well give it a fair shot...
It was incredible.
Everytime I hit the "refresh" button, I had another 2 or 3 sales...
I couldn't believe it...I'd heard Clickbank had some decent products ... but it's not like they were converting at 15-20% or anything...
So I tried again. Found new products. Put together new landing pages.
And guess what happened?
You got it - The money kept coming in. Floods of it. Clickbank was spraying cash like a broken fire hydrant...
So I tried again...new products, new landing page, new keywords, the whole 9 yards...
But the commissions just continued to mount up...
After a few days of watching my stats spin like a slot machine, I decided to look into things a little further.
So I began analysing my competition. The guys promoting the same products as me, the ones using the same keywords...
And man, was that an eye opener...
I found that most Clickbank affiliates are making huge mistakes...errors that drastically reduce the conversions of the vendor's site!
But That's Not Even The Worst Part...
The worst part is that almost every Clickbank affiliate is dropping the ball with their landing pages.
And they're doing it so badly that it's pushing their cost per click through the roof...
If you're using Adwords to promote Clickbank products, chances are you're paying at least double what you should be. Even right now, as you read this page.
Scary huh?
And that's what got me thinking - seeing all those guys wasting money while I massacre their ads and shut down their businesses made me realise something:
Almost everyone has the wrong idea about affiliate marketing. Think about it...
..Just about everyone gets their marketing skills from Internet Marketing (IM) products. I'll bet you've bought a few of them yourself, haven't you?
I know I have.
You've probably also realised that a lot of the time these products - especially ones put out by the so-called gurus - don't quite give you the whole story.
Sure, they'll give you some hints and a rough framework. But after that, you're on your own.
The training wheels come off, and suddenly your "business" sucks money out of your wallet like an industrial vacuum cleaner.
And man, that hurts. You'll probably need to take on a day job just to finance the business!
Really, when you think about it, everyone learning from the same gurus is the main problem.
Learn more at my website shown below...
About the Author:
Written by: Brandon Weavers. Wanna know more? Check out: http://www.ClickBankMoneyMaking.com/
Read more of Brandon Weavers's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Brandon Weavers
Even if you've got the simplest job on the planet...
I don't care if you're washing dishes or flipping burgers.
Heck, even if you're a roadside fruit seller...
All of those jobs are much more complicated than making money from Clickbank.
I know that for a fact...
Let me tell you a story about how I found that out...
About 8 weeks ago, I decided to take the plunge into Clickbank.
I'd always heard that it was easy to get started, and I had some free time so I thought I'd finally give it a shot. I mean, I'd had some success online in the past, and I thought I was finally ready.
So I just sat down one day at my kitchen table, fired up the old laptop, and started searching the Clickbank Marketplace for products to promote...
I went through the same basic number crunching I always go through with new stuff - I mean real basic - I'm talking kindergarten math...
And after about an hour I'd found a few products with good commissions, so I decided to pull the trigger and start promoting them...
But I didn't take it seriously. I just grabbed a couple of free templates for landing pages, and fired up a couple of Adwords campaigns...
Boy, they were some ugly templates...and right then I figured I'd already blown it.
So I sat back and waited...I figured I'd put a couple hours in, may as well give it a fair shot...
It was incredible.
Everytime I hit the "refresh" button, I had another 2 or 3 sales...
I couldn't believe it...I'd heard Clickbank had some decent products ... but it's not like they were converting at 15-20% or anything...
So I tried again. Found new products. Put together new landing pages.
And guess what happened?
You got it - The money kept coming in. Floods of it. Clickbank was spraying cash like a broken fire hydrant...
So I tried again...new products, new landing page, new keywords, the whole 9 yards...
But the commissions just continued to mount up...
After a few days of watching my stats spin like a slot machine, I decided to look into things a little further.
So I began analysing my competition. The guys promoting the same products as me, the ones using the same keywords...
And man, was that an eye opener...
I found that most Clickbank affiliates are making huge mistakes...errors that drastically reduce the conversions of the vendor's site!
But That's Not Even The Worst Part...
The worst part is that almost every Clickbank affiliate is dropping the ball with their landing pages.
And they're doing it so badly that it's pushing their cost per click through the roof...
If you're using Adwords to promote Clickbank products, chances are you're paying at least double what you should be. Even right now, as you read this page.
Scary huh?
And that's what got me thinking - seeing all those guys wasting money while I massacre their ads and shut down their businesses made me realise something:
Almost everyone has the wrong idea about affiliate marketing. Think about it...
..Just about everyone gets their marketing skills from Internet Marketing (IM) products. I'll bet you've bought a few of them yourself, haven't you?
I know I have.
You've probably also realised that a lot of the time these products - especially ones put out by the so-called gurus - don't quite give you the whole story.
Sure, they'll give you some hints and a rough framework. But after that, you're on your own.
The training wheels come off, and suddenly your "business" sucks money out of your wallet like an industrial vacuum cleaner.
And man, that hurts. You'll probably need to take on a day job just to finance the business!
Really, when you think about it, everyone learning from the same gurus is the main problem.
Learn more at my website shown below...
About the Author:
Written by: Brandon Weavers. Wanna know more? Check out: http://www.ClickBankMoneyMaking.com/
Read more of Brandon Weavers's articles.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Online Fax - Five Super Reasons To Fax Online
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins
Internet or Online fax has become extremely popular in the last four or five years. Countless individuals have suddenly discovered this new way of faxing and have truly embraced it. Over the same time frame, many businesses, both big and small, are switching over to this new faxing technology.
But what exactly is online faxing and why has it become so popular so quickly?
Simply put, Internet fax is using your email system and the web to send and receive all your faxes. First, you have to sign-up to an online fax service provider which acts as an intermediary to handle all your faxing. You are given your own local or Toll-Free fax number and your faxes are sent as email attachments, usually in TIFF or PDF format.
You can send your faxes in several different ways, you can logon to your fax service account (interface) where your faxes are stored and send your faxes from there. Some fax services have a desktop application for faxing or you can use your own email program. Plus you can still use a traditional fax machine to send and/or receive your faxes.
More and more individuals are dishing the old fax machine in favor of their computer and the Internet. Many faxes are now simply sent and received by computers via the web - bringing this common business task into the modern age.
Here are five super reasons why online faxing has become so popular:
1. Convenience
Online fax is very convenient to use because it is paperless and inkless. Because there are no more paper jams or messy inks to fool around with - it is quick and fast. Creating your faxes can also be more expedient because you can prepare them on your computer and then quickly send them without bothering with the old traditional fax machine.
2. Accessibility
Your faxes are accessible anywhere, anytime. Since it is web based, your faxes are available wherever you have Internet access and these days that's just about everywhere. Plus, your old faxes can be stored online or on your computer, so you can access them at any time, whether it is yesterday's fax or one from last month.
3. Security
Internet faxing is more secure than the traditional way of faxing. Your faxes can be sent encrypted over the web and only you can access them. Unlike the old fax machine, where anyone can read your faxes, online faxing does offer a great deal more privacy.
4. Easy to Use
Sending a fax is as easy as sending an email. You simply attach your fax as a TIFF or PDF file. Viewing your faxes is as easy as reading any PDF file on your computer. Plus, all your old faxes can be stored and ready for your use at any time.
5. Cost-Effective
Perhaps, one of the major reasons online faxing has become so popular, is because of the low price. Internet faxing is much cheaper than the old way of faxing - you don't need all that paper, inks and toners which you have to constantly keep in stock with a regular office machine. Plus, you don't need an extra phone line since all your transactions take place over the Internet. Online fax services are relatively inexpensive, monthly plans run for around $4 to $15 a month, depending on your faxing requirements. If your faxing is very minimum, you can get a simple plan for around $20 a year.
Some of the major online fax providers are: eFax(r), MyFax, RingCentral, TrustFax, Faxage, MetroFax, RapidFax, Send2Fax... among others. Since this is an on-going business expense, it pays to do your homework now before you sign-up so that you get the right service to perfectly match your needs. It can result in major savings, especially over the long haul.
Regardless of which service or plan you choose, perhaps another underlying reason why Internet fax has become so popular has to do with competitiveness. If your business or company depends on faxing to bring in sales, to deliver orders, to attract new clients, or just for quick business communication; then using a faxing system that's available 24/7, no matter where you're located does make any business more competitive than some one not using this service. In this present business climate and in our "dog-eat-dog" commercial environment; you do need every advantage you can muster. Can you or your company afford NOT to use online fax, that is the real question you have to ask?
It's your call!
About the Author:
For more information on Internet Fax Services use this handy online Comparison Guide to get your own: online fax service. Or if you want more detailed information on Internet Faxing try here: internet fax services.
Copyright (c) 2009 Titus Hoskins. http://www.bizwaremagic.com This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.
Read more of Titus Hoskins's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins
Internet or Online fax has become extremely popular in the last four or five years. Countless individuals have suddenly discovered this new way of faxing and have truly embraced it. Over the same time frame, many businesses, both big and small, are switching over to this new faxing technology.
But what exactly is online faxing and why has it become so popular so quickly?
Simply put, Internet fax is using your email system and the web to send and receive all your faxes. First, you have to sign-up to an online fax service provider which acts as an intermediary to handle all your faxing. You are given your own local or Toll-Free fax number and your faxes are sent as email attachments, usually in TIFF or PDF format.
You can send your faxes in several different ways, you can logon to your fax service account (interface) where your faxes are stored and send your faxes from there. Some fax services have a desktop application for faxing or you can use your own email program. Plus you can still use a traditional fax machine to send and/or receive your faxes.
More and more individuals are dishing the old fax machine in favor of their computer and the Internet. Many faxes are now simply sent and received by computers via the web - bringing this common business task into the modern age.
Here are five super reasons why online faxing has become so popular:
1. Convenience
Online fax is very convenient to use because it is paperless and inkless. Because there are no more paper jams or messy inks to fool around with - it is quick and fast. Creating your faxes can also be more expedient because you can prepare them on your computer and then quickly send them without bothering with the old traditional fax machine.
2. Accessibility
Your faxes are accessible anywhere, anytime. Since it is web based, your faxes are available wherever you have Internet access and these days that's just about everywhere. Plus, your old faxes can be stored online or on your computer, so you can access them at any time, whether it is yesterday's fax or one from last month.
3. Security
Internet faxing is more secure than the traditional way of faxing. Your faxes can be sent encrypted over the web and only you can access them. Unlike the old fax machine, where anyone can read your faxes, online faxing does offer a great deal more privacy.
4. Easy to Use
Sending a fax is as easy as sending an email. You simply attach your fax as a TIFF or PDF file. Viewing your faxes is as easy as reading any PDF file on your computer. Plus, all your old faxes can be stored and ready for your use at any time.
5. Cost-Effective
Perhaps, one of the major reasons online faxing has become so popular, is because of the low price. Internet faxing is much cheaper than the old way of faxing - you don't need all that paper, inks and toners which you have to constantly keep in stock with a regular office machine. Plus, you don't need an extra phone line since all your transactions take place over the Internet. Online fax services are relatively inexpensive, monthly plans run for around $4 to $15 a month, depending on your faxing requirements. If your faxing is very minimum, you can get a simple plan for around $20 a year.
Some of the major online fax providers are: eFax(r), MyFax, RingCentral, TrustFax, Faxage, MetroFax, RapidFax, Send2Fax... among others. Since this is an on-going business expense, it pays to do your homework now before you sign-up so that you get the right service to perfectly match your needs. It can result in major savings, especially over the long haul.
Regardless of which service or plan you choose, perhaps another underlying reason why Internet fax has become so popular has to do with competitiveness. If your business or company depends on faxing to bring in sales, to deliver orders, to attract new clients, or just for quick business communication; then using a faxing system that's available 24/7, no matter where you're located does make any business more competitive than some one not using this service. In this present business climate and in our "dog-eat-dog" commercial environment; you do need every advantage you can muster. Can you or your company afford NOT to use online fax, that is the real question you have to ask?
It's your call!
About the Author:
For more information on Internet Fax Services use this handy online Comparison Guide to get your own: online fax service. Or if you want more detailed information on Internet Faxing try here: internet fax services.
Copyright (c) 2009 Titus Hoskins. http://www.bizwaremagic.com This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.
Read more of Titus Hoskins's articles.
All The Good Domains Have Disappeared! Find Me A Good Expire Domain Name!
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 John Khu
It is becoming increasingly difficult to buy a good expired domain these days, because almost all words in a Standard English dictionary have been used to register domain names! Generic and single, two or three letter names are no longer available, unless you buy them at a hefty price. Most of the names available in an expired domain portfolio are just good enough to get you very small income. The secret key to expired domain business is buying one that possesses a flood of incoming links and traffic. If you find a domain name that has this kind of traffic, you can just go ahead and buy it depending on the price bracket.
Look at some of the following domain names that saw astronomical sums quoted by their owners!
Business.com – $7.5 millions
Altavista.com – $3.3 millions
Loans.com – $3 millions
Wallstreet.com – $1.03 millions
Most of these domains are premium. Because they are either single dictionary, word or they represent immense business value to the domain. Such names are very difficult to purchase and most of them may never see the open market in their lifetime. Thousands of them still exist in private auction sales, where an ordinary domain trader will find it very difficult to participate in the bidding process.
If other traders already purchase all the great domain names, what is left for you? How do you buy expired domain names that you can sell in the market? Can you buy domain names with at least some commercial value? It is as difficult as finding a small pin in a big pile of grass! However, there are still hopes left for you, because you can still buy some good names that you can sell for decent profits. Just remember that domain-trading business is a sum game, where you will be selling a number of expired domain names for small profits. Also, note that selling just one or two major expired domain names is not actually a lucrative proposition. You may end up in chasing for these names without any productive results and spend considerable amount of time and energy.
Good domains are those nuggets or gold that can be your invaluable assets for life! On the other hand, you can never keep those nuggets of gold forever, because they will be useless to keep with you when you speak in terms of commercial viability. Common sense dictates that you must sell them for decent profits as soon as possible. Only exception here is that you may keep those domain names that are organic and generic with one, two or three words. Such domain names are the real gems that you can preserve for selling at astronomical sums.
Before you want to buy expired domain names, you may wish to learn the techniques of detecting good expired domain names from a big pool of expired domain names. You can use a number of sophisticated and efficient tools and methods that have the ability to seek and detect excellent domain names.
About the Author:
John Khu is an author and also a seasoned professional with vast experience in expired domain name business. He is the owner of the path breaking web sites called http://www.expireddomainsecret.com/ which provides complete and up-to-date information on expired domains and their eternal secrets. -- This article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any e-zine, newsletter, blog or website as long as the resource box remain intact.
Read more Articles written by John Khu.
Copyright © 2009 John Khu
It is becoming increasingly difficult to buy a good expired domain these days, because almost all words in a Standard English dictionary have been used to register domain names! Generic and single, two or three letter names are no longer available, unless you buy them at a hefty price. Most of the names available in an expired domain portfolio are just good enough to get you very small income. The secret key to expired domain business is buying one that possesses a flood of incoming links and traffic. If you find a domain name that has this kind of traffic, you can just go ahead and buy it depending on the price bracket.
Look at some of the following domain names that saw astronomical sums quoted by their owners!
Most of these domains are premium. Because they are either single dictionary, word or they represent immense business value to the domain. Such names are very difficult to purchase and most of them may never see the open market in their lifetime. Thousands of them still exist in private auction sales, where an ordinary domain trader will find it very difficult to participate in the bidding process.
If other traders already purchase all the great domain names, what is left for you? How do you buy expired domain names that you can sell in the market? Can you buy domain names with at least some commercial value? It is as difficult as finding a small pin in a big pile of grass! However, there are still hopes left for you, because you can still buy some good names that you can sell for decent profits. Just remember that domain-trading business is a sum game, where you will be selling a number of expired domain names for small profits. Also, note that selling just one or two major expired domain names is not actually a lucrative proposition. You may end up in chasing for these names without any productive results and spend considerable amount of time and energy.
Good domains are those nuggets or gold that can be your invaluable assets for life! On the other hand, you can never keep those nuggets of gold forever, because they will be useless to keep with you when you speak in terms of commercial viability. Common sense dictates that you must sell them for decent profits as soon as possible. Only exception here is that you may keep those domain names that are organic and generic with one, two or three words. Such domain names are the real gems that you can preserve for selling at astronomical sums.
Before you want to buy expired domain names, you may wish to learn the techniques of detecting good expired domain names from a big pool of expired domain names. You can use a number of sophisticated and efficient tools and methods that have the ability to seek and detect excellent domain names.
About the Author:
John Khu is an author and also a seasoned professional with vast experience in expired domain name business. He is the owner of the path breaking web sites called http://www.expireddomainsecret.com/ which provides complete and up-to-date information on expired domains and their eternal secrets. -- This article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any e-zine, newsletter, blog or website as long as the resource box remain intact.
Read more Articles written by John Khu.
Internet Telephone Calls: VoIP Basics
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Nermine Shaker
You've seen the commercials and read the news advertisements for telephone service using your computer: very cheap monthly fees; make all the calls you want; keep your telephone number forever; and voice quality as good as a landline. You've heard the claims and you've heard the term "VoIP." Here's the scoop.
VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol and it does what the name suggests - it transmits voice data using IP packets over the Internet. It is also called Internet Telephony. It's easier to understand VoIP if you know a little about our telephone system - PSTN (the Public Switched Telephone Network) and a little about the Internet.
Your traditional landline transmits calls through copper or fiber cables in the ground or on telephone poles with a cable connected to your home. When someone makes a call, one continuous route is made between the two phones and the information flows continuously in this loop. As you know from paying your bills, the longer the route, the more expensive the call.
VoIP works a little differently. It works using the Internet, which is a packet-based network. Packet-based just means that instead of sending one continuous string of information, it sends out smaller packets of information.
With VoIP, your voice is converted into a digital signal that travels over the Internet. There are three ways that this can be done: 1) using a VoIP telephone; 2) using a computer with speakers and a microphone; or 3) using a regular telephone with a VoIP adaptor. Because the IP packets are tiny by comparison, unlike downloading files, this all happens in real time, just like your regular phone.
Advantages of VoIP
Because VoIP provides services through the Internet, once you have the equipment in place there are a number of benefits.
The main reason for VoIP's popularity is its cost advantage. With regular phone service, you usually pay a monthly flat fee for your local calls and a per-minute charge for long distance calls. Internet connections are charged using a monthly flat fee only. Because VoIP doesn't charge a per-minute fee for long distance, you wouldn't incur those charges. If you make long distance calls, VoIP most certainly will save you a lot of money. If you used the Internet for both your data traffic and voice calls, you could get rid of one monthly payment.
The other cost advantage is that since it uses a broadband Internet connection, it efficiently uses the existing infrastructure you already use with your computer. There is only minimal software and hardware to buy.
Disadvantages to VoIP
There are a few disadvantages with VoIP. A major one is QoS or Quality of Service. Since there are packets carrying your voice information instead of a continuous flow of information, there could be delay problems, weird sounds, echoes and noise. VoIP quality depends on many factors - your broadband connection, your hardware, your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and the destination of your call, just to name a few.
While VoIP has made substantial progress over the past 5 years in terms of Quality of Service, it still has a way to go.
Another disadvantage is that in the event of a power failure, you will lose the ability to make and receive calls unless you have a backup battery for your computer. With traditional phone service, the cables are directly linked to the phone lines and the phone company provides power independently of your home or company's electrical power system. Thus you normally do not lose a phone signal due to loss of power with traditional service.
Another criticism of VoIP service is its historical problems with 911 emergency services. With traditional phone service, the 911 system can identify the location and number of the call because it is connected and routed locally. With VoIP, you are calling through the Internet and the actual signal may travel substantial distances before being routed to a local 911-service center. Thus geographically, the 911 system might have trouble identifying your location. Most VoIP services today include what is known as enhanced 911 service. This is a process by which the signal traveling through the Internet carries with it a physical address for the calling location. At present VoIP equipment providers may charge an additional fee for this service.
Businesses that may want to use VoIP to save money need to consider any security issues that exist. This is because with VoIP, information is sent through the Internet. Just as with any computer connection, it is possible that a hacker can intercept the information being transmitted. It is important to investigate the VoIP equipment provider's network to determine how they route data, what firewalls or other protections are afforded for security purposes.
If you are ready to look into VoIP for your phone or fax service, you can visit electronics retailers, large discount retailers and search online for information. There are a variety of VoIP providers at present. The equipment that is used, the cost of the equipment, the cost of accessories, and the cost of any enhanced services can and should be compared.
You should purchase the system and use the provider that you feel would work best for your needs in terms of how many phones you want to connect to the system, what type of security you require and the cost of purchasing the equipment and the service.
You may want to use a telecom management service for a cost analysis to see if VoIP will be a good fit for your company.
VoIP is still a new technology and hopefully there will be more and more improvements and innovations in the coming years.
About the Author:
With more than twenty-five years of experience in planning, implementing, managing and consulting on telecommunications projects, Nermine Shaker has generated tens of millions of dollars worth of savings for her clients. She is a Partner at The Sygnal Group, a Telecommunications Management Company that offers unbiased reporting, analysis and implementation of telecom strategies to businesses of all sizes. http://www.SygnalGroup.com
Nermine Shaker has generated tens of millions of dollars worth of savings for her clients. She is a Partner at THE SYGNAL GROUP, a Telecoms Management Company that offers unbiased reporting, analysis and implementation of telecom strategies to businesses of all sizes. http://www.SygnalGroup.com
Read more Articles written by Nermine Shaker.
Copyright © 2009 Nermine Shaker
You've seen the commercials and read the news advertisements for telephone service using your computer: very cheap monthly fees; make all the calls you want; keep your telephone number forever; and voice quality as good as a landline. You've heard the claims and you've heard the term "VoIP." Here's the scoop.
VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol and it does what the name suggests - it transmits voice data using IP packets over the Internet. It is also called Internet Telephony. It's easier to understand VoIP if you know a little about our telephone system - PSTN (the Public Switched Telephone Network) and a little about the Internet.
Your traditional landline transmits calls through copper or fiber cables in the ground or on telephone poles with a cable connected to your home. When someone makes a call, one continuous route is made between the two phones and the information flows continuously in this loop. As you know from paying your bills, the longer the route, the more expensive the call.
VoIP works a little differently. It works using the Internet, which is a packet-based network. Packet-based just means that instead of sending one continuous string of information, it sends out smaller packets of information.
With VoIP, your voice is converted into a digital signal that travels over the Internet. There are three ways that this can be done: 1) using a VoIP telephone; 2) using a computer with speakers and a microphone; or 3) using a regular telephone with a VoIP adaptor. Because the IP packets are tiny by comparison, unlike downloading files, this all happens in real time, just like your regular phone.
Advantages of VoIP
Because VoIP provides services through the Internet, once you have the equipment in place there are a number of benefits.
The main reason for VoIP's popularity is its cost advantage. With regular phone service, you usually pay a monthly flat fee for your local calls and a per-minute charge for long distance calls. Internet connections are charged using a monthly flat fee only. Because VoIP doesn't charge a per-minute fee for long distance, you wouldn't incur those charges. If you make long distance calls, VoIP most certainly will save you a lot of money. If you used the Internet for both your data traffic and voice calls, you could get rid of one monthly payment.
The other cost advantage is that since it uses a broadband Internet connection, it efficiently uses the existing infrastructure you already use with your computer. There is only minimal software and hardware to buy.
Disadvantages to VoIP
There are a few disadvantages with VoIP. A major one is QoS or Quality of Service. Since there are packets carrying your voice information instead of a continuous flow of information, there could be delay problems, weird sounds, echoes and noise. VoIP quality depends on many factors - your broadband connection, your hardware, your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and the destination of your call, just to name a few.
While VoIP has made substantial progress over the past 5 years in terms of Quality of Service, it still has a way to go.
Another disadvantage is that in the event of a power failure, you will lose the ability to make and receive calls unless you have a backup battery for your computer. With traditional phone service, the cables are directly linked to the phone lines and the phone company provides power independently of your home or company's electrical power system. Thus you normally do not lose a phone signal due to loss of power with traditional service.
Another criticism of VoIP service is its historical problems with 911 emergency services. With traditional phone service, the 911 system can identify the location and number of the call because it is connected and routed locally. With VoIP, you are calling through the Internet and the actual signal may travel substantial distances before being routed to a local 911-service center. Thus geographically, the 911 system might have trouble identifying your location. Most VoIP services today include what is known as enhanced 911 service. This is a process by which the signal traveling through the Internet carries with it a physical address for the calling location. At present VoIP equipment providers may charge an additional fee for this service.
Businesses that may want to use VoIP to save money need to consider any security issues that exist. This is because with VoIP, information is sent through the Internet. Just as with any computer connection, it is possible that a hacker can intercept the information being transmitted. It is important to investigate the VoIP equipment provider's network to determine how they route data, what firewalls or other protections are afforded for security purposes.
If you are ready to look into VoIP for your phone or fax service, you can visit electronics retailers, large discount retailers and search online for information. There are a variety of VoIP providers at present. The equipment that is used, the cost of the equipment, the cost of accessories, and the cost of any enhanced services can and should be compared.
You should purchase the system and use the provider that you feel would work best for your needs in terms of how many phones you want to connect to the system, what type of security you require and the cost of purchasing the equipment and the service.
You may want to use a telecom management service for a cost analysis to see if VoIP will be a good fit for your company.
VoIP is still a new technology and hopefully there will be more and more improvements and innovations in the coming years.
About the Author:
With more than twenty-five years of experience in planning, implementing, managing and consulting on telecommunications projects, Nermine Shaker has generated tens of millions of dollars worth of savings for her clients. She is a Partner at The Sygnal Group, a Telecommunications Management Company that offers unbiased reporting, analysis and implementation of telecom strategies to businesses of all sizes. http://www.SygnalGroup.com
Nermine Shaker has generated tens of millions of dollars worth of savings for her clients. She is a Partner at THE SYGNAL GROUP, a Telecoms Management Company that offers unbiased reporting, analysis and implementation of telecom strategies to businesses of all sizes. http://www.SygnalGroup.com
Read more Articles written by Nermine Shaker.
Supercharge Your Internet Marketing Using the Improved Google Keyword Tool
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Paul Marshall
As an Internet Marketing Consultant, I know that whether using pay-per-click (PPC) or organic search engine optimization (SEO), the process begins with our research keyword.
This is true whether you're doing your work yourself or working with an SEO Consultant.
The search engine ranking for our chosen keywords consumes us, causing ecstasy when we succeed and sleepless nights when we fail.
But increased sales happen only IF:
the keywords bring enough traffic to meet our sales goals;
the competition in SEO is obtainable (and)
the keywords will actually convert -- they will actually result in increased sales.
Otherwise, it's really wasted time.
And now that Google shows an estimated number of average monthly impressions (instead of just the old green bar), the Google tool can really help with your keyword research.
And it's Free!
If you don't have an AdWords account, you can access the tool independently (just Google: Google Keyword Research Tool).
Grabbing the Best Keywords for your Website Using Google's Keyword Research Tool
Step 1 -- Put your keyword phrase or root keyword into the tool. I suggest one phrase at a time, 1-4 words in length. Click: Get Keyword ideas and wait for the results.
Another option is to click Website Content and let Google pull suggestions from your website content.
Step 2 -- IMPORTANT, change the Match Type to Phrase, which adds quotes to the keyword results. This makes the tool's impressions more closely match organic search, ignoring the "loosey-goosey" broad match phrases for AdWords.
And under the Show/Hide Columns make sure your settings display Approx Avg Search Volume. (If you're marketing a seasonal product or service you might change to a different setting.)
Step 3 -- Analyze the results. What we're all trying to find is the low hanging fruit: the best balance of traffic volume, ease to perform SEO and traffic that will likely convert.
I suggest targeting phrases that are at least 5,000 to 10,000 monthly average impressions. Conversely, keyword phrases with very high monthly impressions may prove too competitive in organic search. Find the best balance for your organic optimization skills and for your industry.
If your sales goals require 200,000 monthly organic impressions and you choose keyword search phrases with between 5,000 and 10,000 monthly impressions each, then you'll need between 20 to 40 keyword phrases to deliver you that 200,000 monthly impressions.
Of course, as you discover opportune phrases that are offer greater monthly impressions and that you're comfortable optimizing for, that will lower the number of phrases needed to reach your monthly goal.
Make your keyword list from this criteria. I like to copy and paste into my email program.
And to determine the number of monthly impressions needed, you'll need:
(1) good organic listing click-through rate data -- what percentage of searchers will click on your listing? (and)
(2) conversion rate data either from your own website or for your industry -- what percentage of your site visitors will BUY?
You will find an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant | Coach who specializes in Keyword Research can help you formulate a keyword list that will deliver BOTH the traffic and sales conversions that you need.
Step 4 -- Evaluate the competing number of pages in organic search from Google. Is this a number you're comfortable optimizing for?
While you're on the SERPs looking over the search results, look at the AdWords ads and the organic results.
Does your service or product sound like it belongs on this page, for this keyword? Or, does it sound out of place?
And for a search phrase to be good, normally you'll want to see several AdWords ads appearing for the search phrase.
Make your list from this criteria, setting aside any keyword phrases from the previous step (at least for right now) where the competition is too steep. Phrases that look good but with too much competition, save for the future.
This brings up a good point: Keep good notes! Otherwise, you'll come back for the next round of research and have to re-do things. :-(
Step 5 -- Evaluate the phrases still on your list for their likely commercial intention using the Microsoft Online Commercial Intention Tool (Google it).
If you're using an SEO Consultant, make sure they use this tool and evaluate commercial intent for the keywords you are considering.
Now, this is a Microsoft tool...I use it and am glad for the data, but I don't make decisions about any keyword phrase off data from just one tool or from just one step in my process.
Having said that, I wouldn't select 15 phrases for optimization where each of them shows there's not commercial intent.
Keep your list of phrases that still meet your criteria and move onto the next step.
Step 6 -- Evaluate your remaining list in Google's Traffic Estimator. What I look for is the relationship of average monthly impressions to estimated daily click throughs in AdWords. Do they make sense and suggest commercial intention?
If one phrase has twice the monthly impressions, but only 1/2 the daily AdWords clicks, something may be wrong. You may want to look closer.
The goal isn't just traffic, it's traffic that converts -- buys, sign up to your email list, calls or emails your company and becomes a sales lead, etc.
When you complete these steps, you should have whittled your initial keyword list down to the "lowest hanging fruit", the most opportune phrases (easiest to rank well in) COMBINED with the largest amount of quality traffic, COMBINED with traffic that should convert.
The Windows Into Your Website
Keywords are the windows into your website. If you target the wrong ones for your business, you won't have the traffic, Internet sales or sales leads that you need.
If you're using an SEO Consultant to perform your work, make sure they do it the correct way -- not the lazy way -- and oversee their work. Your site, your responsibility!
If you're doing d-i-y Keyword Research, be really educated about what you're doing OR your d-i-y effort could cost you more than hiring a qualified company.
NOTE: Another option available from some Internet Marketing Consultants today for those watching their budget is to offering Coaching services. This is sort of a hybrid between the retail price, full-service option and the go-it-alone, time consuming do-it-yourself option.
Achieving the search engine ranking for your chosen keywords doesn't have to be difficult or expensive if you follow my formula. And if performed correctly, the end results will be keywords that work for your business.
About the Author:
Marketing online since 2004, Paul Marshall can help you market on a budget. He's an Internet Marketing Consultant and an SEO Consultant offering affordable marketing services (and d-i-y Coaching). Receive your Free Introductory Consultation, just visit http://strategicwebmarketing.net/ today!
Read more Articles written by Paul Marshall.
Copyright © 2009 Paul Marshall
As an Internet Marketing Consultant, I know that whether using pay-per-click (PPC) or organic search engine optimization (SEO), the process begins with our research keyword.
This is true whether you're doing your work yourself or working with an SEO Consultant.
The search engine ranking for our chosen keywords consumes us, causing ecstasy when we succeed and sleepless nights when we fail.
But increased sales happen only IF:
Otherwise, it's really wasted time.
And now that Google shows an estimated number of average monthly impressions (instead of just the old green bar), the Google tool can really help with your keyword research.
And it's Free!
If you don't have an AdWords account, you can access the tool independently (just Google: Google Keyword Research Tool).
Grabbing the Best Keywords for your Website Using Google's Keyword Research Tool
Step 1 -- Put your keyword phrase or root keyword into the tool. I suggest one phrase at a time, 1-4 words in length. Click: Get Keyword ideas and wait for the results.
Another option is to click Website Content and let Google pull suggestions from your website content.
Step 2 -- IMPORTANT, change the Match Type to Phrase, which adds quotes to the keyword results. This makes the tool's impressions more closely match organic search, ignoring the "loosey-goosey" broad match phrases for AdWords.
And under the Show/Hide Columns make sure your settings display Approx Avg Search Volume. (If you're marketing a seasonal product or service you might change to a different setting.)
Step 3 -- Analyze the results. What we're all trying to find is the low hanging fruit: the best balance of traffic volume, ease to perform SEO and traffic that will likely convert.
I suggest targeting phrases that are at least 5,000 to 10,000 monthly average impressions. Conversely, keyword phrases with very high monthly impressions may prove too competitive in organic search. Find the best balance for your organic optimization skills and for your industry.
If your sales goals require 200,000 monthly organic impressions and you choose keyword search phrases with between 5,000 and 10,000 monthly impressions each, then you'll need between 20 to 40 keyword phrases to deliver you that 200,000 monthly impressions.
Of course, as you discover opportune phrases that are offer greater monthly impressions and that you're comfortable optimizing for, that will lower the number of phrases needed to reach your monthly goal.
Make your keyword list from this criteria. I like to copy and paste into my email program.
And to determine the number of monthly impressions needed, you'll need:
(1) good organic listing click-through rate data -- what percentage of searchers will click on your listing? (and)
(2) conversion rate data either from your own website or for your industry -- what percentage of your site visitors will BUY?
You will find an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant | Coach who specializes in Keyword Research can help you formulate a keyword list that will deliver BOTH the traffic and sales conversions that you need.
Step 4 -- Evaluate the competing number of pages in organic search from Google. Is this a number you're comfortable optimizing for?
While you're on the SERPs looking over the search results, look at the AdWords ads and the organic results.
Does your service or product sound like it belongs on this page, for this keyword? Or, does it sound out of place?
And for a search phrase to be good, normally you'll want to see several AdWords ads appearing for the search phrase.
Make your list from this criteria, setting aside any keyword phrases from the previous step (at least for right now) where the competition is too steep. Phrases that look good but with too much competition, save for the future.
This brings up a good point: Keep good notes! Otherwise, you'll come back for the next round of research and have to re-do things. :-(
Step 5 -- Evaluate the phrases still on your list for their likely commercial intention using the Microsoft Online Commercial Intention Tool (Google it).
If you're using an SEO Consultant, make sure they use this tool and evaluate commercial intent for the keywords you are considering.
Now, this is a Microsoft tool...I use it and am glad for the data, but I don't make decisions about any keyword phrase off data from just one tool or from just one step in my process.
Having said that, I wouldn't select 15 phrases for optimization where each of them shows there's not commercial intent.
Keep your list of phrases that still meet your criteria and move onto the next step.
Step 6 -- Evaluate your remaining list in Google's Traffic Estimator. What I look for is the relationship of average monthly impressions to estimated daily click throughs in AdWords. Do they make sense and suggest commercial intention?
If one phrase has twice the monthly impressions, but only 1/2 the daily AdWords clicks, something may be wrong. You may want to look closer.
The goal isn't just traffic, it's traffic that converts -- buys, sign up to your email list, calls or emails your company and becomes a sales lead, etc.
When you complete these steps, you should have whittled your initial keyword list down to the "lowest hanging fruit", the most opportune phrases (easiest to rank well in) COMBINED with the largest amount of quality traffic, COMBINED with traffic that should convert.
The Windows Into Your Website
Keywords are the windows into your website. If you target the wrong ones for your business, you won't have the traffic, Internet sales or sales leads that you need.
If you're using an SEO Consultant to perform your work, make sure they do it the correct way -- not the lazy way -- and oversee their work. Your site, your responsibility!
If you're doing d-i-y Keyword Research, be really educated about what you're doing OR your d-i-y effort could cost you more than hiring a qualified company.
NOTE: Another option available from some Internet Marketing Consultants today for those watching their budget is to offering Coaching services. This is sort of a hybrid between the retail price, full-service option and the go-it-alone, time consuming do-it-yourself option.
Achieving the search engine ranking for your chosen keywords doesn't have to be difficult or expensive if you follow my formula. And if performed correctly, the end results will be keywords that work for your business.
About the Author:
Marketing online since 2004, Paul Marshall can help you market on a budget. He's an Internet Marketing Consultant and an SEO Consultant offering affordable marketing services (and d-i-y Coaching). Receive your Free Introductory Consultation, just visit http://strategicwebmarketing.net/ today!
Read more Articles written by Paul Marshall.
Monday, July 6, 2009
How to Recognize a Bad SEO Company
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is about getting potential customers to visit your website. It is also about building a quality website full of great content. It uses keywords appropriately and gets links "naturally" because people love what you have on your site. SEO companies can provide very useful services including keyword research, site review, providing technical advice on your website development and also management of online business marketing campaigns. They can also help with content development, article marketing and article distribution. Although it's not brain surgery, it is hard to do and usually requires a lot of thought and real work.
Some unethical SEO firms attempt to manipulate search engine results in unfair ways. These practices could get your website ranked lower or even banned. When looking at SEO - either to optimize it on your own or if you are looking to hire a company, here are some things to take into account.
Be Cautious Of SEO Firms That Say They Will Get Thousands Of Links To Your Site.
It' is not the number of sites that make the difference - it's the quality of the sites. When firms promise huge numbers of links, or say that you' will become part of their "network of sites", it usually means a link farm is involved. A link farm is any group of websites that all hyperlink to every other site in the group. Search engines don't like this and it can lead to penalties. Instead, practice reciprocal linking with legitimate and related websites for better search engine ranking.
Be Wary Of SEO Firms That Guarantee A High Ranking On Google.
No one can guarantee a high ranking on Google. Some SEO companies offer a guarantee on their services. This is fine. What's not fine is guaranteeing high ranking in an incredibly short period of time. When these unrealistic results fail to happen, the company will balk at giving a refund, offer you other services instead, start to become unreachable or disappear.
Be Cautious Of SEO Firms That Send "Spammy" Emails.
These emails are unsolicited and usually begin with "We've noticed that you are not listed in some search engines..." You should be searching for a high-ranking SEO company; they will not be searching for you. Spam means scam. You don't buy your medications from spammers so why buy SEO services from them?
Be Wary Of SEO Firms That Are Secretive Or Don't Clearly Explain What They Are Going To Do.
Most reputable SEO firms are upfront with their clients and like to share their knowledge. They are confident that even if their clients understand their process, they won't leave them. If the SEO firm claims it's too complicated for you to understand, or if they say they have trade secrets and proprietary technology, it's a sign that they may not be ethical in dealing with your website.
Be Wary Of SEO Firms That Say They Will Submit Your Site To Thousands Of Top Search Engines And Directories.
Besides the small fact that there aren't that many search engines, consider that the guidelines of the search engines themselves tell you that it doesn't do any good anymore. Search Engines are good at what they do - searching for sites - and you don't need to pay someone to submit your site to a search engine. If they make this claim, they will probably use Free For All (FFA) junk sites that might damage your site's standings.
Be Cautious Of SEO Firms That Say They Can Optimize And Promote Your Site For A Low, Low Monthly Fee.
Not all monthly SEO or SEM (Search Engine Management) service contracts or monthly fees are a scam. There are real reasons to pay a monthly fee to an SEO expert. These would include conditions when you would require SEO management: when you or someone else is constantly generating new content or new features for your site; implementing link-building campaigns; implementing PPC (Pay Per Click) campaigns; or starting a brandcasting campaign. Press release distribution, email campaigns and article marketing campaigns could also require a legitimate monthly fee.
Not-so-legitimate fees could include monthly re-submitting of your site to search engines, "tweaking" your code to keep up with changes and regularly submitting your site to hundreds of useless free-for-all directories. The worthwhile companies that charge a monthly fee will usually be able to tell you exactly how much it is per month to generate blog entries or generate and distribute articles or press releases. And it won't be for the low, low price of $79.95.
Choose Your SEO Company And Services Carefully.
Do your research and don't make the decision lightly. If you were hiring a contractor to remodel your kitchen you would want to see other kitchen projects they've done and speak with the owners about the company's business practices. You should do the same thing when hiring an SEO company. Get referrals and really speak with them.
There are many online tips about choosing and hiring SEO firms that you can check out as well. Remember, SEO is a long-term strategy and you should take the time to do your research before buying or you'll probably be buying again.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more Articles written by Enzo F. Cesario.
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is about getting potential customers to visit your website. It is also about building a quality website full of great content. It uses keywords appropriately and gets links "naturally" because people love what you have on your site. SEO companies can provide very useful services including keyword research, site review, providing technical advice on your website development and also management of online business marketing campaigns. They can also help with content development, article marketing and article distribution. Although it's not brain surgery, it is hard to do and usually requires a lot of thought and real work.
Some unethical SEO firms attempt to manipulate search engine results in unfair ways. These practices could get your website ranked lower or even banned. When looking at SEO - either to optimize it on your own or if you are looking to hire a company, here are some things to take into account.
Be Cautious Of SEO Firms That Say They Will Get Thousands Of Links To Your Site.
It' is not the number of sites that make the difference - it's the quality of the sites. When firms promise huge numbers of links, or say that you' will become part of their "network of sites", it usually means a link farm is involved. A link farm is any group of websites that all hyperlink to every other site in the group. Search engines don't like this and it can lead to penalties. Instead, practice reciprocal linking with legitimate and related websites for better search engine ranking.
Be Wary Of SEO Firms That Guarantee A High Ranking On Google.
No one can guarantee a high ranking on Google. Some SEO companies offer a guarantee on their services. This is fine. What's not fine is guaranteeing high ranking in an incredibly short period of time. When these unrealistic results fail to happen, the company will balk at giving a refund, offer you other services instead, start to become unreachable or disappear.
Be Cautious Of SEO Firms That Send "Spammy" Emails.
These emails are unsolicited and usually begin with "We've noticed that you are not listed in some search engines..." You should be searching for a high-ranking SEO company; they will not be searching for you. Spam means scam. You don't buy your medications from spammers so why buy SEO services from them?
Be Wary Of SEO Firms That Are Secretive Or Don't Clearly Explain What They Are Going To Do.
Most reputable SEO firms are upfront with their clients and like to share their knowledge. They are confident that even if their clients understand their process, they won't leave them. If the SEO firm claims it's too complicated for you to understand, or if they say they have trade secrets and proprietary technology, it's a sign that they may not be ethical in dealing with your website.
Be Wary Of SEO Firms That Say They Will Submit Your Site To Thousands Of Top Search Engines And Directories.
Besides the small fact that there aren't that many search engines, consider that the guidelines of the search engines themselves tell you that it doesn't do any good anymore. Search Engines are good at what they do - searching for sites - and you don't need to pay someone to submit your site to a search engine. If they make this claim, they will probably use Free For All (FFA) junk sites that might damage your site's standings.
Be Cautious Of SEO Firms That Say They Can Optimize And Promote Your Site For A Low, Low Monthly Fee.
Not all monthly SEO or SEM (Search Engine Management) service contracts or monthly fees are a scam. There are real reasons to pay a monthly fee to an SEO expert. These would include conditions when you would require SEO management: when you or someone else is constantly generating new content or new features for your site; implementing link-building campaigns; implementing PPC (Pay Per Click) campaigns; or starting a brandcasting campaign. Press release distribution, email campaigns and article marketing campaigns could also require a legitimate monthly fee.
Not-so-legitimate fees could include monthly re-submitting of your site to search engines, "tweaking" your code to keep up with changes and regularly submitting your site to hundreds of useless free-for-all directories. The worthwhile companies that charge a monthly fee will usually be able to tell you exactly how much it is per month to generate blog entries or generate and distribute articles or press releases. And it won't be for the low, low price of $79.95.
Choose Your SEO Company And Services Carefully.
Do your research and don't make the decision lightly. If you were hiring a contractor to remodel your kitchen you would want to see other kitchen projects they've done and speak with the owners about the company's business practices. You should do the same thing when hiring an SEO company. Get referrals and really speak with them.
There are many online tips about choosing and hiring SEO firms that you can check out as well. Remember, SEO is a long-term strategy and you should take the time to do your research before buying or you'll probably be buying again.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more Articles written by Enzo F. Cesario.
For Snazzier New Product Names, Use Creative Naming Prompts
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Participants in my product development seminar recently asked me for a brainstorming session to help them come up with creative names for information product packages - multi-format products and services that might include a manual, CDs, coaching or consulting and other items.
Here are the questions I posed for this group, along with some examples illustrating product names developed from each idea.
1. What is the result your customers want?
Lose Weight Before Bikini Season
Finish Your First Marathon
The Fame and Fortune Program
Double Your Donor Base
2. Who are your customers?
Fun Fundraising for Museums
The Shy Person's Guide to Networking
Wanna Change the World? Social Entrepreneurship 101
3. What is the problem you solve?
Coach Kids' Soccer Even If You Never Played Yourself
Kicking Procrastination Out of Your Life
The "Home Depot's Coming to Town" Survival Guide for Hardware Stores
Home Study Challenges Solved
4. What do happy customers say?
"We Built a House Ourselves!" The 10-Month Action Plan
The "I Used to Be Fat" Course
The People-Recognize-Me-Everywhere Publicity Program
5. What does your product particularly have or not have?
The Lose Weight Eating Chocolate Plan
The Earth-Friendly Lawn Care Guide
The No-Discipline Method of Kicking Procrastination
No-Rules Parenting
6. What's the customer's fondest fantasy?
Getting Through Your Teen's Years Still Sane
The Tonight Show, Here You Come!
Build a Four-Generation Family Business Dynasty
Multi-millionaire by Your Tenth College Reunion
Whatever sort of product you are creating, these questions can help. Take a look at the words and ideas generated from each brainstorming prompt, then combine, recombine and tweak them further, looking for an appealing succession of words that clicks with you and has great potential to do so with customers as well.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Participants in my product development seminar recently asked me for a brainstorming session to help them come up with creative names for information product packages - multi-format products and services that might include a manual, CDs, coaching or consulting and other items.
Here are the questions I posed for this group, along with some examples illustrating product names developed from each idea.
1. What is the result your customers want?
2. Who are your customers?
3. What is the problem you solve?
4. What do happy customers say?
5. What does your product particularly have or not have?
6. What's the customer's fondest fantasy?
Whatever sort of product you are creating, these questions can help. Take a look at the words and ideas generated from each brainstorming prompt, then combine, recombine and tweak them further, looking for an appealing succession of words that clicks with you and has great potential to do so with customers as well.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Need a New Business Name? Try an Extended Metaphor
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Sometimes a business name functions simply as a name, like Constant Contact, the email service that delivers newsletters. Look at their web site and you won't easily find any images or wordplay that take off from the words "constant" or "contact."
On the other hand, Named At Last, my company, uses the idea of storks bringing clients a new name both in the images of storks flying and in phrases like "Head Stork," my title, and "Storklets," for the company's freelance namers. When images and words work together to develop one concept in several different ways, that's an extended metaphor.
Extended metaphors give readers pleasure, make a company more memorable and have unlimited creative potential to help a company stand head and shoulders above the competition.
To understand just how unlimited that potential can be, consider a tech support company, Geek Squad. On 19 pages scattered through a 44-page supplement glued into the August 2006 issue of Wired magazine, this company brilliantly riffed both verbally and pictorially on the theme of its name. You can get a sense of how they do this also at their web site, GeekSquad.com.
In the Wired supplement, extended metaphor techniques that they used to develop the Geek Squad as a techie version of the 1950s FBI include:
Consistent color scheme (burnt orange, black and white) and retro visual style in fonts, lighting, badges, people's hairdos and uniforms
Explanation of how the logo harks back to the days when "service stations" gave you a lot more than just gas
Terminology like "agents" and "force" instead of "staff" or "associates" and "team"
Sense of humor that's as geeky as the name ("...provide computer support 24/7/365. 366 in leap years.")
Timelines illustrating not only the company's development but also technical milestones in general, always humorously presented
Accessories that fit the image: ramen noodles, breath mints and wristwatches accurate to within 10 seconds
A Latin motto (Latin being a geeky language), "Cura et Celeritas" (roughly, "Care and Speed")
Games, including "official slug-bug rules" and a crossword puzzle with geeky clues like "Comes after zettabyte"
Recipes, like one for "Black Hole Upside-Down Cake," and self-rating questionnaires, like "Are you a smasher?" (Have you attempted to reboot your computer with your wingtips?")
Hobbies of the "agents," such as sci-fi, and an employee motto: "I swear I will always come to your aid even if there's a sci-fi marathon in town and they're playing the episode with the super-creegy alien vampire girl."
Tech tips, like how to retrieve data by putting a hard drive in the freezer for a certain length of time, and therapeutic advice, like how to calm yourself if you experience a computer catastrophe
Case studies, such as how Agent #41 keeps the rock group U2 technically going while on the road
Prices - well, no humor there, although the style and look remain consistent with all the rest
A group of creative aces obviously had a blast generating all these spinoffs of the central metaphor of a squad of geeks. I certainly had great fun consuming their inventiveness, and I don't think I'll soon confuse them with competitor Rent-a-Nerd.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Sometimes a business name functions simply as a name, like Constant Contact, the email service that delivers newsletters. Look at their web site and you won't easily find any images or wordplay that take off from the words "constant" or "contact."
On the other hand, Named At Last, my company, uses the idea of storks bringing clients a new name both in the images of storks flying and in phrases like "Head Stork," my title, and "Storklets," for the company's freelance namers. When images and words work together to develop one concept in several different ways, that's an extended metaphor.
Extended metaphors give readers pleasure, make a company more memorable and have unlimited creative potential to help a company stand head and shoulders above the competition.
To understand just how unlimited that potential can be, consider a tech support company, Geek Squad. On 19 pages scattered through a 44-page supplement glued into the August 2006 issue of Wired magazine, this company brilliantly riffed both verbally and pictorially on the theme of its name. You can get a sense of how they do this also at their web site, GeekSquad.com.
In the Wired supplement, extended metaphor techniques that they used to develop the Geek Squad as a techie version of the 1950s FBI include:
A group of creative aces obviously had a blast generating all these spinoffs of the central metaphor of a squad of geeks. I certainly had great fun consuming their inventiveness, and I don't think I'll soon confuse them with competitor Rent-a-Nerd.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
When (and When NOT) to Charge for Your Info Products
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Judy Murdoch
One of my clients recently asked me whether she should charge for a series of tip sheets she created for families traveling with young children. Great question.
There's quite a bit of confusion around whether you should sell or give away your information products. About half the advice I hear favors giving information away for free. The other half favors charging.
The truth is, sometimes you should give information and resources away and sometimes you should sell them. The real question is WHEN to charge and when not to.
In this article, I'll give you some guidelines around when to charge and when to give information away.
=======================================
Start with What Your Business Needs Now
=======================================
Asking where your business is at and what you need to be successful is a great place to begin.
Every business needs customers, right? So let's look at how strangers become customers. They go through three stages:
~ Stage One: Visibility (V)
To become a customer a person first needs to know your product exists. You become visible by getting your product and marketing message in front of people who fit your ideal customer description.
~ Stage Two: Credibility (C)
Knowing that your product exists is usually not enough to get someone to pay cold hard cash for it. Nope, they're thinking "well, that sounds good but how do I know it will really work?"
During the Credibility stage you need to give them information that demonstrates your product will deliver as promised.
~ Stage Three: Profitability (P)
Once your prospect is convinced that your product will, indeed, deliver the promised value, they will pay you and become a customer.
=======================================
V to C to P = Marketing Funnel
=======================================
Picture a funnel with lots of people coming in the widest part (visibility), a percentage sticking around to learn more (credibility), and a percentage of those who stick around becoming customers (profitability).
At any given time in the life of your business, there are people at different stages of becoming customers. Some are learning about you for the first time, some are checking you out to decide whether they will buy, and some are deciding to buy and paying you.
Ideally, you have a steady stream of people constantly entering and moving through the funnel. If they don't enter or don't continue through, you have a problem and it shows up in your bottom line: You don't have enough paying customers.
=======================================
When to Give Away and When to Charge
=======================================
To decide whether or not to charge for an information product, I suggest you take a look at how many people are at each of the three stages.
Your goal is to use information products as an incentive for prospects and customers to take the next step.
~ When You Need More Visibility
If you're just starting your business or you want to enter a new market, you probably need more visibility. You need people to know your product exists.
When visibility is your goal, I recommend you give something away that provides value and introduces people to your product or service.
Why? The goal for visibility is to answer the following questions:
1. What is it ("it" being your product or service)
2. Does it help someone like me?
You want to give something away that will answer these questions while asking for something minimal from the prospect.
A common example is offering a free Ezine subscription or a free report your prospects can download in exchange for their E-mail address or phone number.
~ When You Need More Credibility
Credibility is an issue when you're getting a lot of first time visitors and inquiries but not enough are coming back.
For most products and services, people need repeated demonstrations of what you can do for them. They need to trust you.
When you are building credibility, I suggest you have two information products: one that is free and one that you sell.
1. A free product that allows you to build a relationship with your prospects. Products like Ezines are great because you get a chance to connect with customers once a month or more.
2. Product you charge for which offers a higher level of customer value.
Ideally, this is a "no brainer" purchase. Something for which the value is so obvious for what you're charging that most people don't need to think too long or hard about whether to buy.
Although you will be making some money, the real purpose is to demonstrate credibility and build trust.
Warning: The biggest complaint I hear is when someone offers a free report or one-hour teleclass that turns out to be little more than a sales pitch.
Again, you are creating value and building trust. Doing both will enable you to convert more prospects to paying customers when the opportunity presents itself.
A sneaky sales pitch will undermine the trust you are trying to build.
~ If You Need More Profitability
If you have a large, loyal base of readers, subscribers, or members who have been hanging out with you for several months and like what they're getting, some of them will want to invest some serious time and money for your focused time and attention.
For example, a consultant I know sends out a free monthly Ezine to her mailing list and sells low cost Tip Sheets, Checklists, and so on.
Each month 3-5 of her subscribers contact her to learn more about her workshops and seminars costing $500+. She usually books 6 to 8 engagements this way each year.
She explained it to me like this, "I try to provide something useful that my readers can apply right away. For example, I sell a $5.00 meeting organizer they can use to have more productive meetings. Sometimes this is all they need."
"But sometimes they're in a situation that goes way beyond the DIY stage. They need someone from outside the company to step in and help them set up a new system or to help them hire a new executive."
Allowing your prospects to upgrade (or escalate) and get a higher level of support is not only profitable, it's how you can really serve your clients.
=======================================
Bottom Line
=======================================
Whether or not to charge for your information products depends on what your business needs in terms of developing customer relationships.
The less known you are to people fitting your ideal customer profile, the more important it is to offer free or low cost information products which provide something of value.
As you build trust and as your prospects learn how you can help them, you can offer more expensive, higher commitment products for those who want (and can afford) them.
About the Author:
Judy Murdoch helps small business owners create low-cost, effective marketing campaigns using word-of-mouth referrals, guerrilla marketing activities, and selected strategic alliances. To download a free copy of the workbook, "Where Does it Hurt? Marketing Solutions to the problems that Drive Your Customers Crazy!" go to http://www.judymurdoch.com/workbook.htm
You can contact Judy at 303-475-2015 or judy@judymurdoch.com
Read more Articles written by Judy Murdoch.
Copyright © 2009 Judy Murdoch
One of my clients recently asked me whether she should charge for a series of tip sheets she created for families traveling with young children. Great question.
There's quite a bit of confusion around whether you should sell or give away your information products. About half the advice I hear favors giving information away for free. The other half favors charging.
The truth is, sometimes you should give information and resources away and sometimes you should sell them. The real question is WHEN to charge and when not to.
In this article, I'll give you some guidelines around when to charge and when to give information away.
=======================================
Start with What Your Business Needs Now
=======================================
Asking where your business is at and what you need to be successful is a great place to begin.
Every business needs customers, right? So let's look at how strangers become customers. They go through three stages:
~ Stage One: Visibility (V)
To become a customer a person first needs to know your product exists. You become visible by getting your product and marketing message in front of people who fit your ideal customer description.
~ Stage Two: Credibility (C)
Knowing that your product exists is usually not enough to get someone to pay cold hard cash for it. Nope, they're thinking "well, that sounds good but how do I know it will really work?"
During the Credibility stage you need to give them information that demonstrates your product will deliver as promised.
~ Stage Three: Profitability (P)
Once your prospect is convinced that your product will, indeed, deliver the promised value, they will pay you and become a customer.
=======================================
V to C to P = Marketing Funnel
=======================================
Picture a funnel with lots of people coming in the widest part (visibility), a percentage sticking around to learn more (credibility), and a percentage of those who stick around becoming customers (profitability).
At any given time in the life of your business, there are people at different stages of becoming customers. Some are learning about you for the first time, some are checking you out to decide whether they will buy, and some are deciding to buy and paying you.
Ideally, you have a steady stream of people constantly entering and moving through the funnel. If they don't enter or don't continue through, you have a problem and it shows up in your bottom line: You don't have enough paying customers.
=======================================
When to Give Away and When to Charge
=======================================
To decide whether or not to charge for an information product, I suggest you take a look at how many people are at each of the three stages.
Your goal is to use information products as an incentive for prospects and customers to take the next step.
~ When You Need More Visibility
If you're just starting your business or you want to enter a new market, you probably need more visibility. You need people to know your product exists.
When visibility is your goal, I recommend you give something away that provides value and introduces people to your product or service.
Why? The goal for visibility is to answer the following questions:
1. What is it ("it" being your product or service)
2. Does it help someone like me?
You want to give something away that will answer these questions while asking for something minimal from the prospect.
A common example is offering a free Ezine subscription or a free report your prospects can download in exchange for their E-mail address or phone number.
~ When You Need More Credibility
Credibility is an issue when you're getting a lot of first time visitors and inquiries but not enough are coming back.
For most products and services, people need repeated demonstrations of what you can do for them. They need to trust you.
When you are building credibility, I suggest you have two information products: one that is free and one that you sell.
1. A free product that allows you to build a relationship with your prospects. Products like Ezines are great because you get a chance to connect with customers once a month or more.
2. Product you charge for which offers a higher level of customer value.
Ideally, this is a "no brainer" purchase. Something for which the value is so obvious for what you're charging that most people don't need to think too long or hard about whether to buy.
Although you will be making some money, the real purpose is to demonstrate credibility and build trust.
Warning: The biggest complaint I hear is when someone offers a free report or one-hour teleclass that turns out to be little more than a sales pitch.
Again, you are creating value and building trust. Doing both will enable you to convert more prospects to paying customers when the opportunity presents itself.
A sneaky sales pitch will undermine the trust you are trying to build.
~ If You Need More Profitability
If you have a large, loyal base of readers, subscribers, or members who have been hanging out with you for several months and like what they're getting, some of them will want to invest some serious time and money for your focused time and attention.
For example, a consultant I know sends out a free monthly Ezine to her mailing list and sells low cost Tip Sheets, Checklists, and so on.
Each month 3-5 of her subscribers contact her to learn more about her workshops and seminars costing $500+. She usually books 6 to 8 engagements this way each year.
She explained it to me like this, "I try to provide something useful that my readers can apply right away. For example, I sell a $5.00 meeting organizer they can use to have more productive meetings. Sometimes this is all they need."
"But sometimes they're in a situation that goes way beyond the DIY stage. They need someone from outside the company to step in and help them set up a new system or to help them hire a new executive."
Allowing your prospects to upgrade (or escalate) and get a higher level of support is not only profitable, it's how you can really serve your clients.
=======================================
Bottom Line
=======================================
Whether or not to charge for your information products depends on what your business needs in terms of developing customer relationships.
The less known you are to people fitting your ideal customer profile, the more important it is to offer free or low cost information products which provide something of value.
As you build trust and as your prospects learn how you can help them, you can offer more expensive, higher commitment products for those who want (and can afford) them.
About the Author:
Judy Murdoch helps small business owners create low-cost, effective marketing campaigns using word-of-mouth referrals, guerrilla marketing activities, and selected strategic alliances. To download a free copy of the workbook, "Where Does it Hurt? Marketing Solutions to the problems that Drive Your Customers Crazy!" go to http://www.judymurdoch.com/workbook.htm
You can contact Judy at 303-475-2015 or judy@judymurdoch.com
Read more Articles written by Judy Murdoch.
Why You Don't Have a Business if You Don't Have Products
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Judy Murdoch
I hope the article heading got your attention.
When a mentor said this to me a couple years ago he got my attention: I felt angry and insulted!
Actually what he said was this: "Until you have products you what I consider a have a successful practice...nothing wrong with a successful practice...but you do not have a business."
I argued, "Look at everything I've accomplished. Look at everything I've learned. I actually made a profit last year. The IRS certainly thinks I have a business!"
"Those are all amazing accomplishments," my mentor said "but if, God forbid, you got hit by a bus and couldn't do any work for six months or longer what would happen to your business?"
"I'm the business," I replied, "If I can't work there is no business."
Exactly
=======================================
A Practice Begins and Ends with You
=======================================
Even if you have an amazing assistant. Even if you have clients who LOVE you and sing your praises: no you, no business.
One year later, two years later, there isn't even a vapor trail.
Now for a lot of people, this is completely cool. You may be reading this article and thinking "Hey its enough that I take good care of my clients and my business pays the bills for me and my family."
You have a successful practice and that is something to be very proud of.
And the success of your practice depends entirely on your ability to show up and be present. If you can't show up, there is no business.
My dad was a dentist for over 40 years. He was a very good at his work and his patients adored him. When he retired he sold his practice to another dentist.
When my dad is at the grocery store or running errands people still come up to him and tell him how much they appreciated him and that they miss having him as their dentist.
I'm always impressed by the warm feelings my dad's former patients still express to him. You can't buy that kind of good will.
But the practice itself winked out of existence when my dad took his name off the door. Any special processes my dad knew, the things he said to calm nervous patients, the skills and knowledge he honed over the years; that's all gone.
=======================================
It's About Influence and Making a Difference
=======================================
This is not to belittle my dad's accomplishments. He taught me a lot about working hard and with integrity. I'm proud of my dad.
At the same time, when I close shop for my business, in addition to having contributed to my clients success, I want to have products: books, classes, software, and tools that hundreds of thousands of people can use and benefit from my skills and knowledge.
When you create products, your business no longer depends on you because in a sense, you have replicated yourself. You've duplicated what made your business yours. The reason you got customers to begin with.
With products you can influence thousands, hundreds of thousands, maybe millions of people. That's a LOT bigger than what any practice can do.
=======================================
Not that the Money isn't Nice too
=======================================
Most small business owners are attracted to creating information products because they love the idea of earning passive income from multiple sources.
It's a great reason to sell products. Not such a great reason for creating products.
Seriously. If you're into products primarily because you want multiple streams of revenue, I've got one word for you: Affiliates. Sell other people's products and make commission.
It's easy. Most of the e-commerce products I use: my web host, my email and list management, and my shopping cart all pay me a percentage when people find them through me.
And I'm an affiliate for several businesses whose programs I've used and gotten good results from including Amazon.com.
=======================================
Bottom Line
=======================================
Having a successful practice is huge accomplishment and you can make a huge difference--as long as you're around.
If you want a profitable BUSINESS whose influence goes well beyond the clients and customers you serve: then you want to create and sell information products.
It's the best way I know to take what you know and make money making a difference in the world.
About the Author:
Judy Murdoch helps small business owners create low-cost, effective marketing campaigns using word-of-mouth referrals, guerrilla marketing activities, and selected strategic alliances. To download a free copy of the workbook, "Where Does it Hurt? Marketing Solutions to the problems that Drive Your Customers Crazy!" go to http://www.judymurdoch.com/workbook.htm
You can contact Judy at 303-475-2015 or judy@judymurdoch.com
Read more of Judy Murdoch's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Judy Murdoch
I hope the article heading got your attention.
When a mentor said this to me a couple years ago he got my attention: I felt angry and insulted!
Actually what he said was this: "Until you have products you what I consider a have a successful practice...nothing wrong with a successful practice...but you do not have a business."
I argued, "Look at everything I've accomplished. Look at everything I've learned. I actually made a profit last year. The IRS certainly thinks I have a business!"
"Those are all amazing accomplishments," my mentor said "but if, God forbid, you got hit by a bus and couldn't do any work for six months or longer what would happen to your business?"
"I'm the business," I replied, "If I can't work there is no business."
Exactly
=======================================
A Practice Begins and Ends with You
=======================================
Even if you have an amazing assistant. Even if you have clients who LOVE you and sing your praises: no you, no business.
One year later, two years later, there isn't even a vapor trail.
Now for a lot of people, this is completely cool. You may be reading this article and thinking "Hey its enough that I take good care of my clients and my business pays the bills for me and my family."
You have a successful practice and that is something to be very proud of.
And the success of your practice depends entirely on your ability to show up and be present. If you can't show up, there is no business.
My dad was a dentist for over 40 years. He was a very good at his work and his patients adored him. When he retired he sold his practice to another dentist.
When my dad is at the grocery store or running errands people still come up to him and tell him how much they appreciated him and that they miss having him as their dentist.
I'm always impressed by the warm feelings my dad's former patients still express to him. You can't buy that kind of good will.
But the practice itself winked out of existence when my dad took his name off the door. Any special processes my dad knew, the things he said to calm nervous patients, the skills and knowledge he honed over the years; that's all gone.
=======================================
It's About Influence and Making a Difference
=======================================
This is not to belittle my dad's accomplishments. He taught me a lot about working hard and with integrity. I'm proud of my dad.
At the same time, when I close shop for my business, in addition to having contributed to my clients success, I want to have products: books, classes, software, and tools that hundreds of thousands of people can use and benefit from my skills and knowledge.
When you create products, your business no longer depends on you because in a sense, you have replicated yourself. You've duplicated what made your business yours. The reason you got customers to begin with.
With products you can influence thousands, hundreds of thousands, maybe millions of people. That's a LOT bigger than what any practice can do.
=======================================
Not that the Money isn't Nice too
=======================================
Most small business owners are attracted to creating information products because they love the idea of earning passive income from multiple sources.
It's a great reason to sell products. Not such a great reason for creating products.
Seriously. If you're into products primarily because you want multiple streams of revenue, I've got one word for you: Affiliates. Sell other people's products and make commission.
It's easy. Most of the e-commerce products I use: my web host, my email and list management, and my shopping cart all pay me a percentage when people find them through me.
And I'm an affiliate for several businesses whose programs I've used and gotten good results from including Amazon.com.
=======================================
Bottom Line
=======================================
Having a successful practice is huge accomplishment and you can make a huge difference--as long as you're around.
If you want a profitable BUSINESS whose influence goes well beyond the clients and customers you serve: then you want to create and sell information products.
It's the best way I know to take what you know and make money making a difference in the world.
About the Author:
Judy Murdoch helps small business owners create low-cost, effective marketing campaigns using word-of-mouth referrals, guerrilla marketing activities, and selected strategic alliances. To download a free copy of the workbook, "Where Does it Hurt? Marketing Solutions to the problems that Drive Your Customers Crazy!" go to http://www.judymurdoch.com/workbook.htm
You can contact Judy at 303-475-2015 or judy@judymurdoch.com
Read more of Judy Murdoch's articles.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Article Marketing: A Great Strategy To Promote Your Business
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
Promotion is an important part of any business; you need to let potential customers know about you and your product. Article marketing is a strategy that will increase your exposure to the people who will want to buy your product or service. Articles written about your industry will help to establish you, the author, as an expert in your field, and can be published in print media and online.
Customers have a preference for doing business with someone they are familiar with, and article marketing is an ideal way of getting your name out there. The content of your articles needs to be useful and relevant to your target market. Articles that are informative, interesting and provide solutions to your readers are tremendously helpful.
If writing is your thing, then do your own articles. If not, there are several sites online where you can connect with writers, eager for work. Choose someone who uses good grammar and spelling skills, and who can write in an informal and conversational style that is easy to read. Your name will appear as the author on these outsourced articles, promoting you as the expert.
These articles are meant to inform and add value to you and your product; they are not blatant sales letters. Online publishing sites wouldn't publish sales letters anyway, and print media would avoid them as well. To establish your credibility, you need to give something to your readers, not blast them with sales talk. Don't ever forget, the reason they are reading your articles is for the information.
Web and ezine writing is very different than writing for other off-line publications. Brief is better. Be concise and write in short paragraphs. Your main purpose is to capture their attention and to get them to visit your website. If your article is long with every piece of information, they won't see the value in clicking the link to your site.
You should always check for spelling and grammatical errors before submitting your articles to directories. These kinds of errors will reflect badly on your reputation and credibility as a quality information provider. Try to avoid technical language, but provide an explanation of terms if they need to be included.
Put the major benefit to the reader in your title. The title will determine whether or not the reader will click to read the article and possibly click to visit your site. If they aren't compelled to read the article, they will never get to see your link, or see your website.
Article directories are the sites where you submit articles for online publication. They check your articles to make sure they comply with their guidelines before they publish them. And though we won't go into it here, print media, like newspapers and magazines, are also always looking for fresh copy, so you can also submit your interesting articles to them for publication.
Make good use of the resource box under the article; this is where you can promote your product and supply contact information. What you include here should encourage readers to click to your website. The best resource box describes your website or yourself in a short sentence and includes at least one link that points back to your website or blog. When the reader clicks on the link to your site, your website visibility will increase.
Remember, a brilliant article with a bad resource box is a waste of time and money. Carefully review the rules for resource box information for each directory you submit to and try to get in as much information about yourself as you can.
If you can, place links to other articles you've written in a new article you're writing. Sometimes, if the advice is helpful, the ezines will let you do this. This cross-referencing will get you more bang for your buck. Before publishing them elsewhere, you should always add your articles to your website or your newsletter. This helps to identify you as the source of the information and is another good way to get your name out there to build relationships with potential customers.
Articles for online publication need to be written with search engines in mind. You need to use the most popular keywords that online users type into their search engine when looking for information about your topic. Use the keywords in your article, but do not saturate it with them. This ruins the readability of the article and will not add to your credibility at all.
Set up a blog to keep in contact with customers and interested contacts. You can upload your articles to your blog to give your readers a continual supply of interesting, informative articles about your area of expertise. Add new content frequently to keep the search engines interested in your articles. Use your blog as another means of promoting your product and yourself as trustworthy and interested in your customers.
Article marketing is probably one of the easiest and most effective ways of driving targeted traffic to your website and boosting your exposure on the Internet. These guidelines will help you get started in article marketing. Use them to promote your product or service and to establish yourself as an expert in your field, then watch your sales increase.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more of Enzo F. Cesario's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
Promotion is an important part of any business; you need to let potential customers know about you and your product. Article marketing is a strategy that will increase your exposure to the people who will want to buy your product or service. Articles written about your industry will help to establish you, the author, as an expert in your field, and can be published in print media and online.
Customers have a preference for doing business with someone they are familiar with, and article marketing is an ideal way of getting your name out there. The content of your articles needs to be useful and relevant to your target market. Articles that are informative, interesting and provide solutions to your readers are tremendously helpful.
If writing is your thing, then do your own articles. If not, there are several sites online where you can connect with writers, eager for work. Choose someone who uses good grammar and spelling skills, and who can write in an informal and conversational style that is easy to read. Your name will appear as the author on these outsourced articles, promoting you as the expert.
These articles are meant to inform and add value to you and your product; they are not blatant sales letters. Online publishing sites wouldn't publish sales letters anyway, and print media would avoid them as well. To establish your credibility, you need to give something to your readers, not blast them with sales talk. Don't ever forget, the reason they are reading your articles is for the information.
Web and ezine writing is very different than writing for other off-line publications. Brief is better. Be concise and write in short paragraphs. Your main purpose is to capture their attention and to get them to visit your website. If your article is long with every piece of information, they won't see the value in clicking the link to your site.
You should always check for spelling and grammatical errors before submitting your articles to directories. These kinds of errors will reflect badly on your reputation and credibility as a quality information provider. Try to avoid technical language, but provide an explanation of terms if they need to be included.
Put the major benefit to the reader in your title. The title will determine whether or not the reader will click to read the article and possibly click to visit your site. If they aren't compelled to read the article, they will never get to see your link, or see your website.
Article directories are the sites where you submit articles for online publication. They check your articles to make sure they comply with their guidelines before they publish them. And though we won't go into it here, print media, like newspapers and magazines, are also always looking for fresh copy, so you can also submit your interesting articles to them for publication.
Make good use of the resource box under the article; this is where you can promote your product and supply contact information. What you include here should encourage readers to click to your website. The best resource box describes your website or yourself in a short sentence and includes at least one link that points back to your website or blog. When the reader clicks on the link to your site, your website visibility will increase.
Remember, a brilliant article with a bad resource box is a waste of time and money. Carefully review the rules for resource box information for each directory you submit to and try to get in as much information about yourself as you can.
If you can, place links to other articles you've written in a new article you're writing. Sometimes, if the advice is helpful, the ezines will let you do this. This cross-referencing will get you more bang for your buck. Before publishing them elsewhere, you should always add your articles to your website or your newsletter. This helps to identify you as the source of the information and is another good way to get your name out there to build relationships with potential customers.
Articles for online publication need to be written with search engines in mind. You need to use the most popular keywords that online users type into their search engine when looking for information about your topic. Use the keywords in your article, but do not saturate it with them. This ruins the readability of the article and will not add to your credibility at all.
Set up a blog to keep in contact with customers and interested contacts. You can upload your articles to your blog to give your readers a continual supply of interesting, informative articles about your area of expertise. Add new content frequently to keep the search engines interested in your articles. Use your blog as another means of promoting your product and yourself as trustworthy and interested in your customers.
Article marketing is probably one of the easiest and most effective ways of driving targeted traffic to your website and boosting your exposure on the Internet. These guidelines will help you get started in article marketing. Use them to promote your product or service and to establish yourself as an expert in your field, then watch your sales increase.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more of Enzo F. Cesario's articles.
How To Use Your Race To Get Rich
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Herbert Harris
Amid recent news reports that there continues to be an ongoing and substantial gap between the net worth of Whites and other racial groups, it is easy to be distracted and overwhelmed by the raw data.
However, I am immediately reminded of a quote offered by an economic expert from the past... "There are lies, damned lies, and statistics!"
Despite the real fact that the same set of stats can be skewed to represent almost any point of view (consider elected officials, talk show hosts, those who steal in the name of God, et al), knowing this does not prevent many of us from being swayed in our thinking - and actions - by the masters of sophistry.
The ability of an individual to look at twin newborn gorillas and deem one a cover girl (cover gorilla?) and the other a repulsively ugly thing is indeed a most interesting truism concerning human behavior.
This tendency, better known as hypocrisy, is possibly the most pivotal factor leading to interpersonal, and sadly, inter-racial strife. As a student of history I always attempt to place things in historical perspective.
In the book, "The Richest Man In Babylon", the author provides economic advice that would enable any person of any color or ethnicity to acquire, maintain and indeed increase wealth by following a few time-proven principles. Bill Bennett provided similar advice with his three core admonitions... "...Graduate from high school, avoid out of wedlock childbirth and live within your means."
The most interesting thing about the advice given by these two authors, widely separated by time and culture, is the universal applicability of these basic economic principles to all individuals; in all times and all places with few exceptions.
So the bottom line becomes not what someone has done to you, but how you respond to it. Question. To the countless people who have lost jobs, homes, hopes, insurance, dreams, 401Ks, the ability to send kids to college, their dignity, and in some cases their very lives, does it matter who or what caused or created the conditions for their current situation?
Faced with foreclosure, mounting credit card debt, other financial obligations of all kinds, do you seek to place blame for your situation on someone or something that caused it all?
For sure it's prudent to understand the factors that created this now pandemic pecuniary pain. And candidates for blame are many and varied. There's the Federal Reserve, the sub-prime loans, the credit default swaps, the Wall Street greed-mongers, the naked(?) credit default swaps, the people buying houses they could not afford, the lenders who sold them the houses, self-serving politicians and the lobbyists who pimp them, the Anti-Christ and countless others who can be singled out for scorn.
Certainly there's more than enough blame to go around.
Another question. Would it help those who are jobless and possibly hopeless to know who to blame and also be able to inflict the deserved punishment upon them? Put another way, does the fact that Bernie Madoff is in prison materially help those whose fortunes and futures he stole?
I fully agree that it is paramount to expose the Bernie Madoffs of the world and erect legal barriers to the future efforts of those with similar agendas. And believe it, there will be plenty more.
The answers to the two above questions are yes and no. For those living with fear and despair due to job loss, yes it is indeed important to understand how their current situation arose and to take action to prevent it in the future. But it is no real solace that big-time CEOs get derided in the press for their golden parachutes. And "Behind Bars Bernie" still hasn't accounted for tens of billions in lucre with which he "Made-off" that will cause multi-generational financial woes.
There is a certain satisfaction in knowing that a murderer is behind bars or (preferably) pushing up daisies, but it doesn't bring his or her victim(s) back to life. Survivors must live with that fact.
At this point I'm reminded of another old saying provided by an obviously observant individual, "It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness."
If you're one of the many suffering financial displacement and possibly feeling desperate and hopeless please take a minute and watch this short video. I triple-dog challenge you to do so with dry eyes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MslbhDZoniY&feature=player_embedded
There's not too much to add to the message of that video. I'm minus a kidney as a cancer survivor. (Read my Stage -4 story at: http://whosafraidofcancer.blogspot.com/)
But I much prefer that to being armless and legless. I'd rather be a person of any color or race and in any financial condition than be totally limbless.
And whether you're Black, White, Asian, Hispanic or Native American, being jobless and hopeless feels the same. But the beauty of it all is that just like we all can suffer individually or en masse, we can all also prosper the same.
Trust me; despite the mind-boggling amount of money that's being created out of thin air by the Federal Reserve, and the relatively few well enough-connected people who will grow wealthy and wealthier when it's doled out, there is no government bail-out for you and me.
If you desire to change your current financial situation and establish a solid wall of protection against the global market forces that simultaneously render millions jobless and a relative few wealthy beyond imagination, then you must take action.
If a man with no limbs can become a worldwide inspiration for those with two arms and two legs, surely you and I can ride the coattails of a man like Lee Green, founder of the National Black Business Trade Association, the Black Business Space social network and creator of the Black Business Builders Club.
I compare this opportunity to reading a book. The author has done all the hard work of researching, writing and having it edited and published. How hard is it for me to just pick it up and read it?
If you're one who desires to prosper, I invite you to look at an excellent way to do so. But there is one irrevocable requirement. You must be a member of a particular racial group. There are no exceptions to this requirement.
Over a more than 30 year period Lee Green has learned how to fine-tune his online marketing techniques and has developed, after paying his dues to become an expert, what is in my opinion the most comprehensive program for taking the willing of any skill level and leading them to economic freedom.
Mr. Green's techniques, presented in his newly released "The Black Folks Guide To Making Big Money On The Internet", provide the opportunity to finally experience the "Holy Grail" that all home-based entrepreneurs seek - RESIDUAL INCOME!
Finally someone has created a program that actually provides the real training and resources needed for anyone willing to work a little to experience the success that many desire but never achieve. When you compare what you get to what the monthly membership costs, you will realize that almost all of the other so-called opportunities have only been over-promising and under- or never delivering. Lots of out of pocket with little or no results.
I know it sounds somewhat cliché, but the old saying is still true... If you don't already have a "Plan B" you're either already wealthy or extremely naive. Which group are you in?
So if your candle is out, let the Black Business Builders Club provide the training and tools to help you re-light it so that you can see your way to financial freedom at last. Members of the BBBC get the "Black Folks Guide" at no cost. So light your candle and get out of the rat race. And really it's not so much the race as it is the rats. Get away from them now!
If you're a member of the right racial group and are ready for your very own Economic Stimulus Plan and financial freedom, then take a look at the tremendous opportunity that Lee Green has created and provided for you to be able to do just that; at a price you won't believe!
PS: To be eligible for membership you must belong to one (or more) of the following racial groups:
1. A group that requires food
2. A group that requires clothing
3. A group that requires shelter
About the Author:
Herbert Harris is a retired (read down-sized) IT worker who now works (literally) in his pajamas. Thanks to The Black Business Builders Club. http://www.blackbusinessbuilders.com/bbb7.htm?4414 Get your copy of the red hot "Black Folks Guide To Making Big Money On The Internet": http://profitbuildersystem.com/mybfg
Read more Articles written by Herbert Harris.
Copyright © 2009 Herbert Harris
Amid recent news reports that there continues to be an ongoing and substantial gap between the net worth of Whites and other racial groups, it is easy to be distracted and overwhelmed by the raw data.
However, I am immediately reminded of a quote offered by an economic expert from the past... "There are lies, damned lies, and statistics!"
Despite the real fact that the same set of stats can be skewed to represent almost any point of view (consider elected officials, talk show hosts, those who steal in the name of God, et al), knowing this does not prevent many of us from being swayed in our thinking - and actions - by the masters of sophistry.
The ability of an individual to look at twin newborn gorillas and deem one a cover girl (cover gorilla?) and the other a repulsively ugly thing is indeed a most interesting truism concerning human behavior.
This tendency, better known as hypocrisy, is possibly the most pivotal factor leading to interpersonal, and sadly, inter-racial strife. As a student of history I always attempt to place things in historical perspective.
In the book, "The Richest Man In Babylon", the author provides economic advice that would enable any person of any color or ethnicity to acquire, maintain and indeed increase wealth by following a few time-proven principles. Bill Bennett provided similar advice with his three core admonitions... "...Graduate from high school, avoid out of wedlock childbirth and live within your means."
The most interesting thing about the advice given by these two authors, widely separated by time and culture, is the universal applicability of these basic economic principles to all individuals; in all times and all places with few exceptions.
So the bottom line becomes not what someone has done to you, but how you respond to it. Question. To the countless people who have lost jobs, homes, hopes, insurance, dreams, 401Ks, the ability to send kids to college, their dignity, and in some cases their very lives, does it matter who or what caused or created the conditions for their current situation?
Faced with foreclosure, mounting credit card debt, other financial obligations of all kinds, do you seek to place blame for your situation on someone or something that caused it all?
For sure it's prudent to understand the factors that created this now pandemic pecuniary pain. And candidates for blame are many and varied. There's the Federal Reserve, the sub-prime loans, the credit default swaps, the Wall Street greed-mongers, the naked(?) credit default swaps, the people buying houses they could not afford, the lenders who sold them the houses, self-serving politicians and the lobbyists who pimp them, the Anti-Christ and countless others who can be singled out for scorn.
Certainly there's more than enough blame to go around.
Another question. Would it help those who are jobless and possibly hopeless to know who to blame and also be able to inflict the deserved punishment upon them? Put another way, does the fact that Bernie Madoff is in prison materially help those whose fortunes and futures he stole?
I fully agree that it is paramount to expose the Bernie Madoffs of the world and erect legal barriers to the future efforts of those with similar agendas. And believe it, there will be plenty more.
The answers to the two above questions are yes and no. For those living with fear and despair due to job loss, yes it is indeed important to understand how their current situation arose and to take action to prevent it in the future. But it is no real solace that big-time CEOs get derided in the press for their golden parachutes. And "Behind Bars Bernie" still hasn't accounted for tens of billions in lucre with which he "Made-off" that will cause multi-generational financial woes.
There is a certain satisfaction in knowing that a murderer is behind bars or (preferably) pushing up daisies, but it doesn't bring his or her victim(s) back to life. Survivors must live with that fact.
At this point I'm reminded of another old saying provided by an obviously observant individual, "It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness."
If you're one of the many suffering financial displacement and possibly feeling desperate and hopeless please take a minute and watch this short video. I triple-dog challenge you to do so with dry eyes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MslbhDZoniY&feature=player_embedded
There's not too much to add to the message of that video. I'm minus a kidney as a cancer survivor. (Read my Stage -4 story at: http://whosafraidofcancer.blogspot.com/)
But I much prefer that to being armless and legless. I'd rather be a person of any color or race and in any financial condition than be totally limbless.
And whether you're Black, White, Asian, Hispanic or Native American, being jobless and hopeless feels the same. But the beauty of it all is that just like we all can suffer individually or en masse, we can all also prosper the same.
Trust me; despite the mind-boggling amount of money that's being created out of thin air by the Federal Reserve, and the relatively few well enough-connected people who will grow wealthy and wealthier when it's doled out, there is no government bail-out for you and me.
If you desire to change your current financial situation and establish a solid wall of protection against the global market forces that simultaneously render millions jobless and a relative few wealthy beyond imagination, then you must take action.
If a man with no limbs can become a worldwide inspiration for those with two arms and two legs, surely you and I can ride the coattails of a man like Lee Green, founder of the National Black Business Trade Association, the Black Business Space social network and creator of the Black Business Builders Club.
I compare this opportunity to reading a book. The author has done all the hard work of researching, writing and having it edited and published. How hard is it for me to just pick it up and read it?
If you're one who desires to prosper, I invite you to look at an excellent way to do so. But there is one irrevocable requirement. You must be a member of a particular racial group. There are no exceptions to this requirement.
Over a more than 30 year period Lee Green has learned how to fine-tune his online marketing techniques and has developed, after paying his dues to become an expert, what is in my opinion the most comprehensive program for taking the willing of any skill level and leading them to economic freedom.
Mr. Green's techniques, presented in his newly released "The Black Folks Guide To Making Big Money On The Internet", provide the opportunity to finally experience the "Holy Grail" that all home-based entrepreneurs seek - RESIDUAL INCOME!
Finally someone has created a program that actually provides the real training and resources needed for anyone willing to work a little to experience the success that many desire but never achieve. When you compare what you get to what the monthly membership costs, you will realize that almost all of the other so-called opportunities have only been over-promising and under- or never delivering. Lots of out of pocket with little or no results.
I know it sounds somewhat cliché, but the old saying is still true... If you don't already have a "Plan B" you're either already wealthy or extremely naive. Which group are you in?
So if your candle is out, let the Black Business Builders Club provide the training and tools to help you re-light it so that you can see your way to financial freedom at last. Members of the BBBC get the "Black Folks Guide" at no cost. So light your candle and get out of the rat race. And really it's not so much the race as it is the rats. Get away from them now!
If you're a member of the right racial group and are ready for your very own Economic Stimulus Plan and financial freedom, then take a look at the tremendous opportunity that Lee Green has created and provided for you to be able to do just that; at a price you won't believe!
PS: To be eligible for membership you must belong to one (or more) of the following racial groups:
1. A group that requires food
2. A group that requires clothing
3. A group that requires shelter
About the Author:
Herbert Harris is a retired (read down-sized) IT worker who now works (literally) in his pajamas. Thanks to The Black Business Builders Club. http://www.blackbusinessbuilders.com/bbb7.htm?4414 Get your copy of the red hot "Black Folks Guide To Making Big Money On The Internet": http://profitbuildersystem.com/mybfg
Read more Articles written by Herbert Harris.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Small Business Owners Who Manage Cash Flow Well Profit Tremendously
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2007-2009 Braxton Heitz
Starting a business is always a tremendous undertaking. It is the most stressful undertaking a person could ever attempt to do. Most new business owners fail to understand that running a business is a complex operation, which will require the business owner/manager to pull many hat tricks to stay afloat.
As the stress of the business grows, many new small business owners find themselves completely overwhelmed by all of the work required to keep their new business afloat.
Much of the strain of establishing and running a business is centered on successfully juggling the finances. When working as the head of a corporation or as a sole proprietor, every decision made will affect the future of the business. Having a means of relief in place in the event that a wrong decision is made can often mean the difference between success and failure of the business. When a bad financial decision creates a situation where payroll cannot be met on time, a business can quickly find itself without staff to continue operations.
Business Credit Cards For New Businesses
In many cases, start-up companies seek out a loan at the beginning of their business. For business owners who are not comfortable taking out a large loan, there are other options that can be considered as an alternative.
A credit card designed specifically for business is an option many companies will choose to pursue. This is just like a traditional credit card, but it also provides a variety of business directed incentives.
Credit card companies generally offer low interest rates to attract new business enterprises. While the credit history of the owner of a small business is going to be considered in factoring how much credit a company can receive, other factors are considered to carry greater significance.
The business plan and financial projections of a new company are going to be the most important categories available for banks to examine. Lenders and credit givers are fundamentally interested in learning about your projected financial expectations.
For companies that have been around for awhile, an in-depth look at its financial history and business projections are going to be the most vital pieces of information a credit card company will want to know.
A business credit card provider is going to be most concerned with the stability of the company. Some banks are so concerned about the stability of a business that they will not risk the investment of offering any type of credit to a start-up company, even if that company has a checking account at their bank, until the company has maintained their business checking account for at least one year.
This is by no means meant to discourage a business owner from pursuing business financing. Instead, it is simply an observation of the difficulties that many business owners face when trying to establish business credit. Each bank has their own policies on business credit cards, and some banks will prefer to be more cautious than other banks.
The Pitfalls and Advantages of Business Credit Cards
As with any credit card, the most common pitfall of owning a credit card is the potential to overspend. It is always best to limit the amount of money that is charged on a credit card, whether in personal finances or business finances. Business start-up costs can be astronomical. There are also times when a company needs a few extra dollars to keep their utilities from being disconnected. If someone is not careful, they can easily charge their way into a deep pit of debt that could ultimately destroy their business.
The truth is that cash flow is always a problem for new businesses. Small business credit cards can make it possible for a business owner to pay all of their bills on time. The danger, of using credit cards to maintain a business' cash flow, is when the owner is in a state of denial about the true health of his or her company. Unfortunately, some business owners become dependant on their line of credit and use it to prop up a business cycle that cannot sustain itself, ultimately leading to financial disaster.
On the other hand, acquiring a business credit card could also be one of the best decisions an owner could make towards the long-term stability of his or her business. When a business owner has access to additional funds to float his or her business during a short window of cash flow problems, that extra money could be just enough to keep the business alive to continue operations. An example of such a situation could be when the company's bank intends to hold a deposited check until after the next payroll date. It is one thing for an owner to decide they can wait a few more days to be paid, but it is quite another thing altogether to ask a company's employees to wait five days to be paid their wages.
Being able to access the financial means to keep a business steady and on sure footing can provide a terrific sense of security to the business owner.
The time when a credit card becomes especially handy to the business owner is when tax time comes; a business credit card can be a true asset. No one is better at finding accounting flaws than our federal government, and almost every new business is going to be audited in their first year.
If a company's transactions are all done with a business credit card, then the company will have a permanent record of all of their business transactions. Having documentation of all of your expenses is vital, when dealing with the IRS.
The most important thing that a small business credit card can do is to provide you with the means to establish a reputable credit history with banks and lending institutions, so the business can gain access to higher credit lines than what the typical start-up company is afforded.
Inspiring Examples
One of the most successful cases of a small business succeeding by the use of a business credit card can be found with Google. Some would argue that Google is the most successful search engine on the Internet. It has become such a phenomenon that the company name has morphed in to a verb for all online searches.
It is amazing to think that it all began in a dorm room. Its next home was in a garage. Eventually the founders of Google, Brin and Page, realized they needed larger equipment. They bought all of their new equipment on credit cards, because banks were not interested in lending money to a small dot-com company.
Over 380 million people in over 35 different languages regularly use Google to enhance their online experience. All of this success was made possible by the start-up funds provided to the Google founders by credit cards.
In Conclusion
Business credit cards can mean salvation for a fledgling company. Having the resources to maintain your companies financial stability can make any business owner more confident with in their decision.
A good line of credit for your business can also lead to countless openings for future growth. Establishing a strong and steady financial history can be the perfect asset in finding interested investors and development opportunities, when it is time to reach out for a bigger line of credit.
For those small business owners who know how to utilize the credit system to grow their business, the future may be greatly enhanced. For those business owners who start their journey with credit cards, the climb to greater credit availability is made that much easier.
About the Author:
Braxton Heitz writes about family finances and the struggles of the job search. If you are looking to find a job or looking to change careers in the current troubled economy, then visit the Jobs And Paychecks website at: http://www.jobsandpaychecks.com/
Read more of Braxton Heitz's articles.
Copyright © 2007-2009 Braxton Heitz
Starting a business is always a tremendous undertaking. It is the most stressful undertaking a person could ever attempt to do. Most new business owners fail to understand that running a business is a complex operation, which will require the business owner/manager to pull many hat tricks to stay afloat.
As the stress of the business grows, many new small business owners find themselves completely overwhelmed by all of the work required to keep their new business afloat.
Much of the strain of establishing and running a business is centered on successfully juggling the finances. When working as the head of a corporation or as a sole proprietor, every decision made will affect the future of the business. Having a means of relief in place in the event that a wrong decision is made can often mean the difference between success and failure of the business. When a bad financial decision creates a situation where payroll cannot be met on time, a business can quickly find itself without staff to continue operations.
Business Credit Cards For New Businesses
In many cases, start-up companies seek out a loan at the beginning of their business. For business owners who are not comfortable taking out a large loan, there are other options that can be considered as an alternative.
A credit card designed specifically for business is an option many companies will choose to pursue. This is just like a traditional credit card, but it also provides a variety of business directed incentives.
Credit card companies generally offer low interest rates to attract new business enterprises. While the credit history of the owner of a small business is going to be considered in factoring how much credit a company can receive, other factors are considered to carry greater significance.
The business plan and financial projections of a new company are going to be the most important categories available for banks to examine. Lenders and credit givers are fundamentally interested in learning about your projected financial expectations.
For companies that have been around for awhile, an in-depth look at its financial history and business projections are going to be the most vital pieces of information a credit card company will want to know.
A business credit card provider is going to be most concerned with the stability of the company. Some banks are so concerned about the stability of a business that they will not risk the investment of offering any type of credit to a start-up company, even if that company has a checking account at their bank, until the company has maintained their business checking account for at least one year.
This is by no means meant to discourage a business owner from pursuing business financing. Instead, it is simply an observation of the difficulties that many business owners face when trying to establish business credit. Each bank has their own policies on business credit cards, and some banks will prefer to be more cautious than other banks.
The Pitfalls and Advantages of Business Credit Cards
As with any credit card, the most common pitfall of owning a credit card is the potential to overspend. It is always best to limit the amount of money that is charged on a credit card, whether in personal finances or business finances. Business start-up costs can be astronomical. There are also times when a company needs a few extra dollars to keep their utilities from being disconnected. If someone is not careful, they can easily charge their way into a deep pit of debt that could ultimately destroy their business.
The truth is that cash flow is always a problem for new businesses. Small business credit cards can make it possible for a business owner to pay all of their bills on time. The danger, of using credit cards to maintain a business' cash flow, is when the owner is in a state of denial about the true health of his or her company. Unfortunately, some business owners become dependant on their line of credit and use it to prop up a business cycle that cannot sustain itself, ultimately leading to financial disaster.
On the other hand, acquiring a business credit card could also be one of the best decisions an owner could make towards the long-term stability of his or her business. When a business owner has access to additional funds to float his or her business during a short window of cash flow problems, that extra money could be just enough to keep the business alive to continue operations. An example of such a situation could be when the company's bank intends to hold a deposited check until after the next payroll date. It is one thing for an owner to decide they can wait a few more days to be paid, but it is quite another thing altogether to ask a company's employees to wait five days to be paid their wages.
Being able to access the financial means to keep a business steady and on sure footing can provide a terrific sense of security to the business owner.
The time when a credit card becomes especially handy to the business owner is when tax time comes; a business credit card can be a true asset. No one is better at finding accounting flaws than our federal government, and almost every new business is going to be audited in their first year.
If a company's transactions are all done with a business credit card, then the company will have a permanent record of all of their business transactions. Having documentation of all of your expenses is vital, when dealing with the IRS.
The most important thing that a small business credit card can do is to provide you with the means to establish a reputable credit history with banks and lending institutions, so the business can gain access to higher credit lines than what the typical start-up company is afforded.
Inspiring Examples
One of the most successful cases of a small business succeeding by the use of a business credit card can be found with Google. Some would argue that Google is the most successful search engine on the Internet. It has become such a phenomenon that the company name has morphed in to a verb for all online searches.
It is amazing to think that it all began in a dorm room. Its next home was in a garage. Eventually the founders of Google, Brin and Page, realized they needed larger equipment. They bought all of their new equipment on credit cards, because banks were not interested in lending money to a small dot-com company.
Over 380 million people in over 35 different languages regularly use Google to enhance their online experience. All of this success was made possible by the start-up funds provided to the Google founders by credit cards.
In Conclusion
Business credit cards can mean salvation for a fledgling company. Having the resources to maintain your companies financial stability can make any business owner more confident with in their decision.
A good line of credit for your business can also lead to countless openings for future growth. Establishing a strong and steady financial history can be the perfect asset in finding interested investors and development opportunities, when it is time to reach out for a bigger line of credit.
For those small business owners who know how to utilize the credit system to grow their business, the future may be greatly enhanced. For those business owners who start their journey with credit cards, the climb to greater credit availability is made that much easier.
About the Author:
Braxton Heitz writes about family finances and the struggles of the job search. If you are looking to find a job or looking to change careers in the current troubled economy, then visit the Jobs And Paychecks website at: http://www.jobsandpaychecks.com/
Read more of Braxton Heitz's articles.
Growing Your Business with Online Marketing
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
As a business owner, you know that one of the keys to a successful year is promoting your business. No matter what size your business is, marketing and promotion need to be addressed. Marketing has become a daunting task with the increasing number of online start-up businesses.
And now, along with the traditional offline marketing methods, there are many online marketing tools and methods available.
Online Marketing is also known as Internet Advertising, web marketing, web advertising or e-marketing.
There are many benefits to marketing your business online. Here are a few.
Lowering Your Costs
A recent eMarketer article (http://www.emarketer.com/Article/aspx?R=1007064) sites that "in the wake of the global economic downturn, marketers worldwide are shifting more of their budgets into cheaper, more-measurable categories. In most cases, that means online."
Your marketing budget is only so big and online marketing can stretch it even farther for you. TV and radio spots are expensive, printing costs for corporate and product brochures are expensive and traditional mailings cost not only in materials and postage, but deplete the environment as well. Why not direct potential customers to your website for information on products and services? Your website is your brochure, a marketing tool available 24 hours a day to prospective customers. Your revenue potential will increase while your costs diminish.
Offline marketing ads for newspapers, TV and radio are for a limited time and you pay for the time slot and space. In online marketing, your ads potentially can stay up longer and over time you end up paying less. Using article marketing, you could either write an article yourself or pay someone else to write it. When that article is distributed online, it stays on the Internet for many years. For a small cost, you've placed a marketing proposition that stays around indefinitely, pointing potential customers to your website and your products and services.
Compared to traditional marketing or telemarketing, email marketing costs very little. These targeted messages go directly into the homes and offices of your potential or existing customers.
Reaching a Larger Market and a Targeted Market
The Internet allows people from all over the world to do business with each other.
From another recent eMarketer article, (http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1006988) in 2009, more than 65% of Americans are Internet users. They're not only checking e-mail and Twittering, they are shopping for products and services.
With traditional media, your ads are restricted to a specific location for a limited time. When you promote your business online, you reach a larger audience than you would ever be able to reach otherwise since your marketing activity is not restricted by location. More potential customers always equal more sales opportunities.
Online marketing allows you to target specific demographics such as age, location, gender and income levels and in many cases allows you to track the behaviors of these groups as they interact with your online marketing.
It can also bring a branding campaign to life in a new way. This unique consumer interaction with your brand can leverage emotional links to your brand. Instead of a brand talking to a customer, your customer can interact with and experience your brand. This is intelligent brand marketing. You can influence people at the perfect time - their time, right when they are looking for information, comparison shopping and possibly buying.
Flexibility and Tangible Tracking
Online marketing can include email, newsletters, blogs, microblogs, podcasts, video and social media sites. All of these outlets have the ability to be flexible. An ad placed in a magazine or newspaper can't be changed until the next submission. With online marketing you'll know very quickly if a campaign is working and you can change wording or graphics and adapt product information to match changing market conditions.
The Internet also removes any guesswork from measuring campaign results. Using web analytics, you can measure the number of visitors that a campaign brings to your website, how long they stay and the average number of pages they visit. This important information along with the flexibility, allows you to improve the conversion of your campaign and to increase your return on investment.
Instant Conversion Ability
Online marketing allows you to convert a shopper to a customer instantly. A potential customer reading a traditional newspaper ad does not have the ability to click a mouse and buy your product or service immediately. Offline marketing involves more time and money to convert a shopper into a sale.
Online ads allow direct response. Consumers can click to learn more about a product, sign up for a newsletter or RSS feed, or buy right then and there. This will in turn create a database for you, which, with email marketing, will allow you to reach people who have already expressed an interest in your product or service. And online marketing allows you to sell to anyone, anywhere and at any time. You're not restricted by time, geography and location considerations.
Internet marketing includes strategies such as search engine optimization (SEO), pay per click marketing (PPC), article marketing, blog marketing, online brandcasting, social media marketing and many more interactive marketing services.
While these strategies may seem daunting at first, with a little research, you can use some of these tools to help you optimize your website and increase web traffic. Or, if you have it in your budget, there are companies that specialize in many SEO services.
There are many benefits to both online and offline marketing. A mix of the two might be just what your business needs to grow.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more of Enzo F. Cesario's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
As a business owner, you know that one of the keys to a successful year is promoting your business. No matter what size your business is, marketing and promotion need to be addressed. Marketing has become a daunting task with the increasing number of online start-up businesses.
And now, along with the traditional offline marketing methods, there are many online marketing tools and methods available.
Online Marketing is also known as Internet Advertising, web marketing, web advertising or e-marketing.
There are many benefits to marketing your business online. Here are a few.
Lowering Your Costs
A recent eMarketer article (http://www.emarketer.com/Article/aspx?R=1007064) sites that "in the wake of the global economic downturn, marketers worldwide are shifting more of their budgets into cheaper, more-measurable categories. In most cases, that means online."
Your marketing budget is only so big and online marketing can stretch it even farther for you. TV and radio spots are expensive, printing costs for corporate and product brochures are expensive and traditional mailings cost not only in materials and postage, but deplete the environment as well. Why not direct potential customers to your website for information on products and services? Your website is your brochure, a marketing tool available 24 hours a day to prospective customers. Your revenue potential will increase while your costs diminish.
Offline marketing ads for newspapers, TV and radio are for a limited time and you pay for the time slot and space. In online marketing, your ads potentially can stay up longer and over time you end up paying less. Using article marketing, you could either write an article yourself or pay someone else to write it. When that article is distributed online, it stays on the Internet for many years. For a small cost, you've placed a marketing proposition that stays around indefinitely, pointing potential customers to your website and your products and services.
Compared to traditional marketing or telemarketing, email marketing costs very little. These targeted messages go directly into the homes and offices of your potential or existing customers.
Reaching a Larger Market and a Targeted Market
The Internet allows people from all over the world to do business with each other.
From another recent eMarketer article, (http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1006988) in 2009, more than 65% of Americans are Internet users. They're not only checking e-mail and Twittering, they are shopping for products and services.
With traditional media, your ads are restricted to a specific location for a limited time. When you promote your business online, you reach a larger audience than you would ever be able to reach otherwise since your marketing activity is not restricted by location. More potential customers always equal more sales opportunities.
Online marketing allows you to target specific demographics such as age, location, gender and income levels and in many cases allows you to track the behaviors of these groups as they interact with your online marketing.
It can also bring a branding campaign to life in a new way. This unique consumer interaction with your brand can leverage emotional links to your brand. Instead of a brand talking to a customer, your customer can interact with and experience your brand. This is intelligent brand marketing. You can influence people at the perfect time - their time, right when they are looking for information, comparison shopping and possibly buying.
Flexibility and Tangible Tracking
Online marketing can include email, newsletters, blogs, microblogs, podcasts, video and social media sites. All of these outlets have the ability to be flexible. An ad placed in a magazine or newspaper can't be changed until the next submission. With online marketing you'll know very quickly if a campaign is working and you can change wording or graphics and adapt product information to match changing market conditions.
The Internet also removes any guesswork from measuring campaign results. Using web analytics, you can measure the number of visitors that a campaign brings to your website, how long they stay and the average number of pages they visit. This important information along with the flexibility, allows you to improve the conversion of your campaign and to increase your return on investment.
Instant Conversion Ability
Online marketing allows you to convert a shopper to a customer instantly. A potential customer reading a traditional newspaper ad does not have the ability to click a mouse and buy your product or service immediately. Offline marketing involves more time and money to convert a shopper into a sale.
Online ads allow direct response. Consumers can click to learn more about a product, sign up for a newsletter or RSS feed, or buy right then and there. This will in turn create a database for you, which, with email marketing, will allow you to reach people who have already expressed an interest in your product or service. And online marketing allows you to sell to anyone, anywhere and at any time. You're not restricted by time, geography and location considerations.
Internet marketing includes strategies such as search engine optimization (SEO), pay per click marketing (PPC), article marketing, blog marketing, online brandcasting, social media marketing and many more interactive marketing services.
While these strategies may seem daunting at first, with a little research, you can use some of these tools to help you optimize your website and increase web traffic. Or, if you have it in your budget, there are companies that specialize in many SEO services.
There are many benefits to both online and offline marketing. A mix of the two might be just what your business needs to grow.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat, the only online marketing and advertising company employing Brandcasting, the most effective way to brand your company on the web. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. The approach is simple, highly effective and affordable. Learn more at: http://www.Brandsplat.com/
Read more of Enzo F. Cesario's articles.
Retirement Is the Perfect Time to Fulfill Your Cherished Dream of Writing
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Charles Jacobs
The Gallup Survey Organization says 81% of mature adults long to write a book. You're probably one of them.
In a poll sponsored by the Eons.com web site, 14,000 Seniors and Boomers chose writing as one of their most cherished life dreams.
What's your choice for retirement writing? The novel you've always dreamed of crafting? Perhaps a memoir for loved ones? Maybe you'd prefer to turn out interesting magazine articles on the favorite hobby you've pursued for so many years. Like many others, you may want to maintain contact with your former career by writing articles for trade magazines or possibly a how-to book.
What's holding you back? Are you reluctant because writing seems to be so challenging? Limited to just the chosen few? That's nonsense. Don't let those myths keep you from trying what you've always dreamed of.
Retirement Writing
As a retiree you have great advantages that will help you to fulfill your dream of becoming a published author. You have time...free time at last to pursue the activities you love. You bring years of life experience and professional knowledge to the task.
Can you use those advantages to become a published author? Certainly you can. You'll probably never reach best seller status, although some late starters have accomplished that feat. But with some effort and dedication, you can see your words in print as an article or a book. And they can be distributed over the Internet for millions to see.
It's time to move beyond the starting gate. Set aside those fears of failure. No task can be completed if it isn't begun. No challenge overcome until it is tackled. So it is with writing. Once you start, you'll see your confidence build.
Lawrence Block, a prolific novelist and writing instructor, says, "Writing has this in common with most other skills; we develop it best by practicing it. Whatever writing we do helps us to become better writers."
Before You Face the Computer
The process begins well before you sit down at your computer to write the opening lines of your new gem. A bit of self-searching will put you on track. Think through your answers to several key questions:
Why do I want to write? Is my goal self-fulfillment? Do I have a message I want to deliver to others? Do I want the thrill of seeing my words in print? Am I trying to supplement my income?
What category of writing can best help me attain that goal? What category is most comfortable for me?
Do I want to write just a single piece (a memoir, for example)? Or do I hope to make writing a new career?
How much time am I willing to devote to the task?
Will I be happier writing articles or a book?
Whatever your answers may be, be absolutely certain you are comfortable with them. This is particularly important if you plan to write a full-length book, for you will be married to that task for a substantial length of time.
Making Your Choice
Beginning writers regularly ask, "Where can I find ideas?" The answer, in short, is the world around you. There are no limits to the ideas that astute observers can develop. And writers must be alert spectators.
Ideas abound right in your own home. Coping with a dear one's terminal illness. Issues that caused a divorce. Secrets of a relationship that grows stronger with every year of marriage. An unusual family heritage. Cooking or decorating ideas. Unique holiday celebrations. The list is endless.
Beyond your four walls there is an endless storehouse of ideas. You find them all around you by listening and watching and hearing what friends and relatives talk about. Stories, books and articles are built around events and emotions that people experience.
You can also find them every day in the newspaper. You can choose to follow up a factual report and expand it far beyond what a rushed reporter can do on a tight deadline. Or you can choose to take the idea and fictionalize it, adding your own twists and turns.
A book like Writer's Market, updated annually by Writer's Digest Books is a treasure trove of ideas. It offers hundreds of pages of periodical listings categorized by subject. Freelancers use it as a bible to locate publications that might use their stories. You can use it as a trigger for ideas as you flip through the 50 categories of consumer magazines and 60 categories of trade journals.
Getting Ready
Whether you're about to embark on a novel or nonfiction, an article or a full length book, you're not ready to face that blank computer monitor until you've completed all of your initial homework. That includes evaluating the responses to the question listed above..
Most fiction writers begin by drafting an outline of the plot. As each main character is fully developed-and you as the author must know those key players as well as you know yourself--changes will be necessitated in the outline. You must research the locale(s) and the time period of the book, for nothing can cause a reader to lose interest faster than discovering factual mistakes made by a careless writer.
The essence of nonfiction is fact, and you better know your facts intimately and accurately if you are to achieve success. Whether you are writing an historical piece or a how-to, do your research. Know your subject. Those of you who choose to write on your work specialty better make certain you are up to date on all the latest developments. Always remember that progress didn't end on the day you retired. Change has occurred, and you better be aware of it.
The key word here is research. Getting up to speed. Knowing your subject intimately. Without this, you run the serious risk of suffering from the author's dread disease, Writer's Block. It usually results from facing a stark white computer screen that seems to leer at you, challenging you to make the leap from brain to computer, from thought to the reality of converting those thoughts into words and placing them on the computer. Writers who have done their research well and know their subject will seldom if ever face this problem.
The one last component that you must agree to is discipline. Whether you choose to devote only two or three hours a day to your writing or anticipate making it a full-time job, it cannot be hit-or-miss. You must set a rigid schedule, and follow it. A few hours each morning leaves lots of time for other activities, yet adds a hugely enriching complement to your retirement years.
About the Author:
Do you need a support system to help jump start your writing career? See what's available free on http://www.retirement-writing.com/ - the web site of writing coach and author Charles Jacobs. His latest book "The Writer Within You" is a Best Books of 2007 honoree, a 5-star choice on Amazon, B&N and Borders and a selection of the Writer's Digest Book Club. Find detailed info and order it at a substantial discount by clicking on http://www.retirement-writing.com/the_writer_within_you.aspx
Read more Articles written by Charles Jacobs.
Copyright © 2009 Charles Jacobs
The Gallup Survey Organization says 81% of mature adults long to write a book. You're probably one of them.
In a poll sponsored by the Eons.com web site, 14,000 Seniors and Boomers chose writing as one of their most cherished life dreams.
What's your choice for retirement writing? The novel you've always dreamed of crafting? Perhaps a memoir for loved ones? Maybe you'd prefer to turn out interesting magazine articles on the favorite hobby you've pursued for so many years. Like many others, you may want to maintain contact with your former career by writing articles for trade magazines or possibly a how-to book.
What's holding you back? Are you reluctant because writing seems to be so challenging? Limited to just the chosen few? That's nonsense. Don't let those myths keep you from trying what you've always dreamed of.
Retirement Writing
As a retiree you have great advantages that will help you to fulfill your dream of becoming a published author. You have time...free time at last to pursue the activities you love. You bring years of life experience and professional knowledge to the task.
Can you use those advantages to become a published author? Certainly you can. You'll probably never reach best seller status, although some late starters have accomplished that feat. But with some effort and dedication, you can see your words in print as an article or a book. And they can be distributed over the Internet for millions to see.
It's time to move beyond the starting gate. Set aside those fears of failure. No task can be completed if it isn't begun. No challenge overcome until it is tackled. So it is with writing. Once you start, you'll see your confidence build.
Lawrence Block, a prolific novelist and writing instructor, says, "Writing has this in common with most other skills; we develop it best by practicing it. Whatever writing we do helps us to become better writers."
Before You Face the Computer
The process begins well before you sit down at your computer to write the opening lines of your new gem. A bit of self-searching will put you on track. Think through your answers to several key questions:
Whatever your answers may be, be absolutely certain you are comfortable with them. This is particularly important if you plan to write a full-length book, for you will be married to that task for a substantial length of time.
Making Your Choice
Beginning writers regularly ask, "Where can I find ideas?" The answer, in short, is the world around you. There are no limits to the ideas that astute observers can develop. And writers must be alert spectators.
Ideas abound right in your own home. Coping with a dear one's terminal illness. Issues that caused a divorce. Secrets of a relationship that grows stronger with every year of marriage. An unusual family heritage. Cooking or decorating ideas. Unique holiday celebrations. The list is endless.
Beyond your four walls there is an endless storehouse of ideas. You find them all around you by listening and watching and hearing what friends and relatives talk about. Stories, books and articles are built around events and emotions that people experience.
You can also find them every day in the newspaper. You can choose to follow up a factual report and expand it far beyond what a rushed reporter can do on a tight deadline. Or you can choose to take the idea and fictionalize it, adding your own twists and turns.
A book like Writer's Market, updated annually by Writer's Digest Books is a treasure trove of ideas. It offers hundreds of pages of periodical listings categorized by subject. Freelancers use it as a bible to locate publications that might use their stories. You can use it as a trigger for ideas as you flip through the 50 categories of consumer magazines and 60 categories of trade journals.
Getting Ready
Whether you're about to embark on a novel or nonfiction, an article or a full length book, you're not ready to face that blank computer monitor until you've completed all of your initial homework. That includes evaluating the responses to the question listed above..
Most fiction writers begin by drafting an outline of the plot. As each main character is fully developed-and you as the author must know those key players as well as you know yourself--changes will be necessitated in the outline. You must research the locale(s) and the time period of the book, for nothing can cause a reader to lose interest faster than discovering factual mistakes made by a careless writer.
The essence of nonfiction is fact, and you better know your facts intimately and accurately if you are to achieve success. Whether you are writing an historical piece or a how-to, do your research. Know your subject. Those of you who choose to write on your work specialty better make certain you are up to date on all the latest developments. Always remember that progress didn't end on the day you retired. Change has occurred, and you better be aware of it.
The key word here is research. Getting up to speed. Knowing your subject intimately. Without this, you run the serious risk of suffering from the author's dread disease, Writer's Block. It usually results from facing a stark white computer screen that seems to leer at you, challenging you to make the leap from brain to computer, from thought to the reality of converting those thoughts into words and placing them on the computer. Writers who have done their research well and know their subject will seldom if ever face this problem.
The one last component that you must agree to is discipline. Whether you choose to devote only two or three hours a day to your writing or anticipate making it a full-time job, it cannot be hit-or-miss. You must set a rigid schedule, and follow it. A few hours each morning leaves lots of time for other activities, yet adds a hugely enriching complement to your retirement years.
About the Author:
Do you need a support system to help jump start your writing career? See what's available free on http://www.retirement-writing.com/ - the web site of writing coach and author Charles Jacobs. His latest book "The Writer Within You" is a Best Books of 2007 honoree, a 5-star choice on Amazon, B&N and Borders and a selection of the Writer's Digest Book Club. Find detailed info and order it at a substantial discount by clicking on http://www.retirement-writing.com/the_writer_within_you.aspx
Read more Articles written by Charles Jacobs.
Mailers Your Powerful Message For Success
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Cathy Q
Auto responders are a powerful marketing tool, saving you time and bringing you money. Mailers are one of the ways you can use this tool to its fullest potential. Firstly choose a reliable auto responder and know that not all auto responders are the same.
What is a mailer? It is a sequence of messages set up to sell a product or service. They are a series of messages sent to your list at timed intervals. A good timed interval for information about a product or opportunity is about 7-10 days on a daily basis. This would be to leads/prospects that need more information.
Another mailer can be set up for your newsletter list (subscribers) This should be information on a certain product/service that will be useful to them. Remember your newsletter list is your most valuable one. Always make sure that you offer them information on products and services that they can really use. Treat your subscribers like the loyal readers they are. Another way of timing for this type of information is to send 1 then another 2-3 days later another after a week.
Mailers to your customer list can be very profitable. This is called backend selling. It is most important when you sell a product to follow up with your customer. Your first mailer will be your thank you note, within 24 hours of purchase. It would be thanking your customer for their purchase and asking them to contact you should they have any help. You can also refer to them to your FAQ page, for further assistance. In 1 week you can check up with your customer and this time you can include a flyer or note about a useful related product. You can also offer a special discounted price.
Who are you sending these messages to? You will be sending them to prospective clients/leads/customers. A word of caution, never send messages to anyone on a random basis. This is Spam and can get you into more trouble than you can ever imagine. Always send to your opt in list, those who have specifically asked to get information and emails from you, or your established customers.
Mailers are very effective tools for closing the sale, and getting repeat sales. They are simple to set up; save you time and can make you a lot of extra sales when set up correctly. With these points you have the means to utilize a powerful tool, which will continue to make you money.
About the Author:
Cathy Q is a professional writer and publisher of the A-Y-B Internet marketing newsletter. For more information on this tactic and many others please visit http://a-y-b.com/
You have the right to reprint this article, but please keep the byline intact and reprint in its entirety.
Read more Articles written by Cathy Q.
Copyright © 2009 Cathy Q
Auto responders are a powerful marketing tool, saving you time and bringing you money. Mailers are one of the ways you can use this tool to its fullest potential. Firstly choose a reliable auto responder and know that not all auto responders are the same.
What is a mailer? It is a sequence of messages set up to sell a product or service. They are a series of messages sent to your list at timed intervals. A good timed interval for information about a product or opportunity is about 7-10 days on a daily basis. This would be to leads/prospects that need more information.
Another mailer can be set up for your newsletter list (subscribers) This should be information on a certain product/service that will be useful to them. Remember your newsletter list is your most valuable one. Always make sure that you offer them information on products and services that they can really use. Treat your subscribers like the loyal readers they are. Another way of timing for this type of information is to send 1 then another 2-3 days later another after a week.
Mailers to your customer list can be very profitable. This is called backend selling. It is most important when you sell a product to follow up with your customer. Your first mailer will be your thank you note, within 24 hours of purchase. It would be thanking your customer for their purchase and asking them to contact you should they have any help. You can also refer to them to your FAQ page, for further assistance. In 1 week you can check up with your customer and this time you can include a flyer or note about a useful related product. You can also offer a special discounted price.
Who are you sending these messages to? You will be sending them to prospective clients/leads/customers. A word of caution, never send messages to anyone on a random basis. This is Spam and can get you into more trouble than you can ever imagine. Always send to your opt in list, those who have specifically asked to get information and emails from you, or your established customers.
Mailers are very effective tools for closing the sale, and getting repeat sales. They are simple to set up; save you time and can make you a lot of extra sales when set up correctly. With these points you have the means to utilize a powerful tool, which will continue to make you money.
About the Author:
Cathy Q is a professional writer and publisher of the A-Y-B Internet marketing newsletter. For more information on this tactic and many others please visit http://a-y-b.com/
You have the right to reprint this article, but please keep the byline intact and reprint in its entirety.
Read more Articles written by Cathy Q.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Finding More About A Potential Expired Domain Buyer
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 John Khu
Selling your expired domains to a potential buyer could be a very tricky issue. Segregating a serious buyer from a casual one is very difficult as you may deal and interact with hundreds of them. Some of them may be very dedicated expired domain traders who are looking for very good domains expired while a number of others are not too serious in their buying intentions. In fact, non-serious expired domain traders keep looking for their domain names but never buy one. Finding a potential buyer is very difficult when someone does not learn and master the techniques of domain trading. Here are five important things that you must remember before selling your stock of domain names:
1. Finding the location where your buyer lives could be a tough task. Most of them are almost anonymous when they quote their price. Most of them also send their messages through their email ID's. Hence, you will need to know from which location your prospective buyer is sending his or her e-mail. Make sure that you are checking for clues about the origin of e-mails you receive from the buyers. To find out the location from where you are getting e-mails from, you can use tracking software to check the origin of the mails. However, the sender can send e-mail from a location that is entirely different from his or her place of actual residence.
2. Most of the newbie or minor domain traders bid or buy domains on their own. However, some traders solicit the professional help of a broker or a lawyer while buying domain names. You will need to know whether the buyer who is showing an interest in your domain is using professional help. Such buyers could be very choosy and methodic as they look for every detail about the domain name, its origin, previous history, legal status and registrar details.
3. Some expired domain traders make it a point to call their buyer to talk to them about the domain and its price. When you interact with a buyer through a telephone, you can make out if they are really showing an interest in your domain. Their voice and the confidence with which they talk can provide many clues.
4. Does the potential buyer ask for precise details about your expired domains? If yes, he or she is sending a clear signal that your expired domains are good enough for buying.
Whatever the case, never sell your domain names for a price that you feel is very low for its perceived quality. If you are happy with the price offer, you can definitely sell your domains almost immediately. If possible request your buyer to chat with you about the purchase; video chatting is possibly the best and the safest way to sell your domain names. Once you strike a deal, you can ask your buyer to deposit the money in an escrow account; an escrow account can safeguard the deal for both of you with mutual guarantees.
About the Author:
John Khu is an author and also a seasoned professional with vast experience in expired domain name business. He is also the owner of the path breaking web sites called http://www.expireddomainsecret.com and http://www.expireddomaingains.com which provides complete and up-to-date information on expired domains and their eternal secrets.
Read more Articles written by John Khu.
Copyright © 2009 John Khu
Selling your expired domains to a potential buyer could be a very tricky issue. Segregating a serious buyer from a casual one is very difficult as you may deal and interact with hundreds of them. Some of them may be very dedicated expired domain traders who are looking for very good domains expired while a number of others are not too serious in their buying intentions. In fact, non-serious expired domain traders keep looking for their domain names but never buy one. Finding a potential buyer is very difficult when someone does not learn and master the techniques of domain trading. Here are five important things that you must remember before selling your stock of domain names:
1. Finding the location where your buyer lives could be a tough task. Most of them are almost anonymous when they quote their price. Most of them also send their messages through their email ID's. Hence, you will need to know from which location your prospective buyer is sending his or her e-mail. Make sure that you are checking for clues about the origin of e-mails you receive from the buyers. To find out the location from where you are getting e-mails from, you can use tracking software to check the origin of the mails. However, the sender can send e-mail from a location that is entirely different from his or her place of actual residence.
2. Most of the newbie or minor domain traders bid or buy domains on their own. However, some traders solicit the professional help of a broker or a lawyer while buying domain names. You will need to know whether the buyer who is showing an interest in your domain is using professional help. Such buyers could be very choosy and methodic as they look for every detail about the domain name, its origin, previous history, legal status and registrar details.
3. Some expired domain traders make it a point to call their buyer to talk to them about the domain and its price. When you interact with a buyer through a telephone, you can make out if they are really showing an interest in your domain. Their voice and the confidence with which they talk can provide many clues.
4. Does the potential buyer ask for precise details about your expired domains? If yes, he or she is sending a clear signal that your expired domains are good enough for buying.
Whatever the case, never sell your domain names for a price that you feel is very low for its perceived quality. If you are happy with the price offer, you can definitely sell your domains almost immediately. If possible request your buyer to chat with you about the purchase; video chatting is possibly the best and the safest way to sell your domain names. Once you strike a deal, you can ask your buyer to deposit the money in an escrow account; an escrow account can safeguard the deal for both of you with mutual guarantees.
About the Author:
John Khu is an author and also a seasoned professional with vast experience in expired domain name business. He is also the owner of the path breaking web sites called http://www.expireddomainsecret.com and http://www.expireddomaingains.com which provides complete and up-to-date information on expired domains and their eternal secrets.
Read more Articles written by John Khu.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Lessons in Business Naming from Newspaper Headlines
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Two headlines in the "Home" section of my local newspaper caught my eye the other day: "Natural floors can be knotty and nice" and "Serving cheese with ease." Both headlines involve enjoyable wordplay of the sort that could easily figure in business names or tag lines. I can imagine "KnottyandNice.com" as the domain name for a wooden items crafts shop, and "Cheese with ease" as the tag line for a cheese lovers' online community.
So I went looking for some tips on writing news headlines, thinking they might offer valuable insights for naming, too. After all, news editors need to come up with informative, catchy headers numerous times every workday.
Even more challenging, their headers need to fit the available space. They need to be able to condense or stretch an idea's expression, depending on how many columns an article spreads across.
My Google search didn't quickly turn up any such tips, though. Maybe headline writing is an art passed on in secret by grizzled, ink-stained veterans during the midnight shift.
Nevertheless, by pondering a couple of dozen headlines, I was able to observe several key points.
1. Newspaper headline writers collect short, vivid verbs, such as "mines" ("Obama mines small, red states"), "stirs," "pushes," "clings," "set," "edges," "sparks," "tosses," "sees," "OKs" and much more. Not only can headlines with verbs tell a complete story, they convey energy.
Because verbs are frequently overlooked as an element in naming, these punchy little words can help you come up with a trademarkable name or a free domain in a competitive industry.
2. Long, vivid words can also come in handy. In the headline "Super Bowl party can be gastronomical success," the word "gastronomical" rescues the line from dullness. It's a wonderful word that could be tweaked in a zillion creative ways for a company name or tag line.
The lesson: long, vivid words can help you convey a complicated idea concisely, as long as your average customer has an inkling of their meaning.
3. Short, vivid words come in useful, too. Take a look at the word "ire" in the headline "Delay in polar bear decision draws ire of Senate." This is another kind of word that most people understand yet probably wouldn't think to use.
4. Combined cleverly, ordinary words can please inordinately. Besides the rhyme in "cheese with ease" and the homonym in "knotty and nice," I also found "Hoops and hollers" atop a photo of kids cheering at a basketball game, which illustrates alliteration - the repetition of initial letters or sounds.
Another headline, "Bush comes clean with former addicts," used an expression with two meanings that both tie in with the subject matter - George W. Bush talking openly about his former drinking problem.
All in all, your newspaper can serve as a source of instruction and inspiration for naming. Just make sure you screen out bloopers like these, which have actually appeared in newspapers:
Blind Woman Gets New Kidney from Dad she Hasn't Seen in Years
Grandmother of Eight Makes Hole in One
Quarter of a Million Chinese Live on Water
Stolen Painting Found by Tree
Squad Helps Dog Bite Victim
Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges
Iraqi Head Seeks Arms
Kids Make Nutritious Snacks
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Two headlines in the "Home" section of my local newspaper caught my eye the other day: "Natural floors can be knotty and nice" and "Serving cheese with ease." Both headlines involve enjoyable wordplay of the sort that could easily figure in business names or tag lines. I can imagine "KnottyandNice.com" as the domain name for a wooden items crafts shop, and "Cheese with ease" as the tag line for a cheese lovers' online community.
So I went looking for some tips on writing news headlines, thinking they might offer valuable insights for naming, too. After all, news editors need to come up with informative, catchy headers numerous times every workday.
Even more challenging, their headers need to fit the available space. They need to be able to condense or stretch an idea's expression, depending on how many columns an article spreads across.
My Google search didn't quickly turn up any such tips, though. Maybe headline writing is an art passed on in secret by grizzled, ink-stained veterans during the midnight shift.
Nevertheless, by pondering a couple of dozen headlines, I was able to observe several key points.
1. Newspaper headline writers collect short, vivid verbs, such as "mines" ("Obama mines small, red states"), "stirs," "pushes," "clings," "set," "edges," "sparks," "tosses," "sees," "OKs" and much more. Not only can headlines with verbs tell a complete story, they convey energy.
Because verbs are frequently overlooked as an element in naming, these punchy little words can help you come up with a trademarkable name or a free domain in a competitive industry.
2. Long, vivid words can also come in handy. In the headline "Super Bowl party can be gastronomical success," the word "gastronomical" rescues the line from dullness. It's a wonderful word that could be tweaked in a zillion creative ways for a company name or tag line.
The lesson: long, vivid words can help you convey a complicated idea concisely, as long as your average customer has an inkling of their meaning.
3. Short, vivid words come in useful, too. Take a look at the word "ire" in the headline "Delay in polar bear decision draws ire of Senate." This is another kind of word that most people understand yet probably wouldn't think to use.
4. Combined cleverly, ordinary words can please inordinately. Besides the rhyme in "cheese with ease" and the homonym in "knotty and nice," I also found "Hoops and hollers" atop a photo of kids cheering at a basketball game, which illustrates alliteration - the repetition of initial letters or sounds.
Another headline, "Bush comes clean with former addicts," used an expression with two meanings that both tie in with the subject matter - George W. Bush talking openly about his former drinking problem.
All in all, your newspaper can serve as a source of instruction and inspiration for naming. Just make sure you screen out bloopers like these, which have actually appeared in newspapers:
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
For Word of Mouth Marketing, Make Sure Your New Company Name is Sayable
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Take it from someone who often has to rescue someone from mispronunciation or suffer silently when someone reads my last name out loud for the first time: There is huge value in having a name that people can look at and have no doubt about how to pronounce.
That's why I shook my head sadly when I saw the following line in a magazine ad:
"Vovici [vo-vee-see] - the future of online surveys"
For English speakers, pronouncing the company name "Vovici" is totally unintuitive. One uncertainty would be bad enough, but it actually has four trouble spots for someone seeing the name and trying to pronounce it. The "o" could be long or short, the first "i" could be long or short, the emphasis could belong on either the first or the second syllable, and the "c" could be pronounced either like an "s" or like "ch," as in Latin.
But if you instruct people how to pronounce it, as in this magazine ad, isn't that OK? No, not unless you have the budget to make that pronunciation famous through radio or television ads. You'll constantly be fighting several handicaps.
1. With a name that's hard to pronounce, fewer people will say it. Most people hate making mistakes, dislike being corrected and therefore would feel embarrassed to be tripping over pronouncing a six-letter company name. So, many will simply avoid saying it. That means fewer people will recommend the company to others in conversation. People might even go so far as to avoid situations in which they need to confront their uncertainty about the name's pronunciation - like avoiding the company's sales reps.
2. A name that's hard to pronounce is also often harder to remember. That means less impact from many of the dollars spent on marketing. It will cost more to get the same results than with a name that's easy to pronounce.
3. You need to spend considerable time and energy on the issue of pronunciation rather than on what the company does. Very often you also need to explain the derivation or meaning of the name, not just how to say it. For instance, Cuil, the name of the search engine, looks like a nonsensical and unpronounceable combination of letters to most Americans. "Cuil is an old Irish word for knowledge," says the company on its About page. Strangely, they do not say there that it should be pronounced "cool," though they do so in their press releases.
4. People won't know how to spell an unpronounceable name. And on the web, that is disastrous. If someone overhears buzz about a new search engine called "cool," they are going to look it up at cool.com or maybe at kool.com. Not one in a billion would look for it at cuil.com unless they were previously clued in.
Saddling your company with a name that you need to instruct people how to pronounce means putting it at a distinct disadvantage. Spend a little more time and selectivity in naming to give your organization the comfortable boost it deserves.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Take it from someone who often has to rescue someone from mispronunciation or suffer silently when someone reads my last name out loud for the first time: There is huge value in having a name that people can look at and have no doubt about how to pronounce.
That's why I shook my head sadly when I saw the following line in a magazine ad:
"Vovici [vo-vee-see] - the future of online surveys"
For English speakers, pronouncing the company name "Vovici" is totally unintuitive. One uncertainty would be bad enough, but it actually has four trouble spots for someone seeing the name and trying to pronounce it. The "o" could be long or short, the first "i" could be long or short, the emphasis could belong on either the first or the second syllable, and the "c" could be pronounced either like an "s" or like "ch," as in Latin.
But if you instruct people how to pronounce it, as in this magazine ad, isn't that OK? No, not unless you have the budget to make that pronunciation famous through radio or television ads. You'll constantly be fighting several handicaps.
1. With a name that's hard to pronounce, fewer people will say it. Most people hate making mistakes, dislike being corrected and therefore would feel embarrassed to be tripping over pronouncing a six-letter company name. So, many will simply avoid saying it. That means fewer people will recommend the company to others in conversation. People might even go so far as to avoid situations in which they need to confront their uncertainty about the name's pronunciation - like avoiding the company's sales reps.
2. A name that's hard to pronounce is also often harder to remember. That means less impact from many of the dollars spent on marketing. It will cost more to get the same results than with a name that's easy to pronounce.
3. You need to spend considerable time and energy on the issue of pronunciation rather than on what the company does. Very often you also need to explain the derivation or meaning of the name, not just how to say it. For instance, Cuil, the name of the search engine, looks like a nonsensical and unpronounceable combination of letters to most Americans. "Cuil is an old Irish word for knowledge," says the company on its About page. Strangely, they do not say there that it should be pronounced "cool," though they do so in their press releases.
4. People won't know how to spell an unpronounceable name. And on the web, that is disastrous. If someone overhears buzz about a new search engine called "cool," they are going to look it up at cool.com or maybe at kool.com. Not one in a billion would look for it at cuil.com unless they were previously clued in.
Saddling your company with a name that you need to instruct people how to pronounce means putting it at a distinct disadvantage. Spend a little more time and selectivity in naming to give your organization the comfortable boost it deserves.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Write a Book and Catapult Your Company to New Heights by Branding Yourself As an Expert
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Charles Jacobs
Taming the recessionary tiger is not as difficult as you think. Forget the old patterns of spending big bucks to buy advertising or blast postal mailings to thousands of possible buyers. The dollars aren't there to spend in a broken economy. Today every penny has to count, and that happens only when you define your market exactingly and tailor a message that is meaningful to it.
We are in a world of specialization. People in every niche seek information both on and off line. You can be the person to whom they turn to find that information. There is a way to brand yourself as an expert and to make your business or professional office the place customers or clients think of first. When reporters need a quote or perhaps some background material for a story they're working on, make sure they turn to you, not to one of your competitors.
Raising Your Reputation
It is almost axiomatic that your reputation rises to new heights when you write and publish a book. And in today's world, for the first time it is easy, fast and inexpensive to turn your words into print.
New printing technology has give birth to a new generation of publishers. Publishing on Demand (POD) has swept through the industry, churning out thousands of books and boosting the reputations of their authors. With this process, books can be printed in any quantity you need to use as promotional tools. They can be rapid-reading booklets of 30 or 40 pages or they can be full blown books of anywhere from 75 to 200 or more pages.
Journalism today has moved strongly into specialization. You can send the book to members of the press and to broadcast journalists who write about topics related to your product. They may review your book or simply write a blurb about it, sending hundreds of readers to your web site, office or store.
Once recognized as a leader in your field, you may well be asked to speak at various functions, adding further to your reputation. All of these possibilities are part of the program of branding yourself...identifying yourself as an expert.
Getting Assistance
Perhaps you have a talented staff member who can write the book with you. Or even for you. You certainly have the option of turning to a professional writer to ghost write the book. It is done frequently. If you don't require that degree of assistance, contact a Book Coach to help you over the occasional bumps.
It is highly likely that your business is already represented by a web site on the Internet. Add a page to the site about yourself and about your book. What a wonderful opportunity to sell your book from the site and not have to pay commissions.
You may want to piggy back on the book and write articles for distribution throughout the Web. Hundreds of thousands of people will see your piece and hopefully a percentage will respond. You can distribute these articles at no cost by using online article distributors.
Once your book has been written, you can take portions of it and either rewrite them or run them as excerpts. In either case, your workload is minimal because you are drawing on something you have already written.
Writing for Trade Journals
You undoubtedly read some of the trade journals published in your field. Editors of these publications are hungry for informative, meaningful articles. They care far less about your writing style or ability than they do about the content you can provide. Their staffs can polish what you write and turn it into quality pieces, but they must first rely on you to supply the content.
Every article you write offers a perfect opportunity to attract business. The article itself must be informative. It can't be a press release or a selling tool for you or your product. But at the end, as you have seen so many times when you read, the bio box about the author becomes a free advertisement for you.
Fill the box with information that invites your reader to visit your web site or buy your product. Provide enough information to allow the reader to trust you because of your credentials. Never forget that trust is a major factor in attracting a potential and closing a sale.
By following this approach you quickly build confidence in your expertise and as a result in your product. Print and broadcast journalists today search the Web for likely stories and for experts who can be used in those stories. A few references to you or your business in print or on the air will raise your rate of sale to unexpected heights.
If you are running a practice or a business, you are a knowledgeable professional or an informed businessperson. Harness that unique background and turn it into one of the most inexpensive, but most effective methods of branding yourself as an expert and promoting your company as one of the leaders in its field. It is an ideal way to offset the depression blues.
About the Author:
If you need help writing your book, contact award winning author and book coach Charles Jacobs at coaching(at)wisewriter.net for a free consultation. His latest book, The Writer Within You, has been named one of the Best Books of the Year by seven organizations. Axiom awarded it a gold medal in the business category. It is available at all bookstores or on the Web at http://www.retireandwrite.com/
Read more Articles written by Charles Jacobs.
Copyright © 2009 Charles Jacobs
Taming the recessionary tiger is not as difficult as you think. Forget the old patterns of spending big bucks to buy advertising or blast postal mailings to thousands of possible buyers. The dollars aren't there to spend in a broken economy. Today every penny has to count, and that happens only when you define your market exactingly and tailor a message that is meaningful to it.
We are in a world of specialization. People in every niche seek information both on and off line. You can be the person to whom they turn to find that information. There is a way to brand yourself as an expert and to make your business or professional office the place customers or clients think of first. When reporters need a quote or perhaps some background material for a story they're working on, make sure they turn to you, not to one of your competitors.
Raising Your Reputation
It is almost axiomatic that your reputation rises to new heights when you write and publish a book. And in today's world, for the first time it is easy, fast and inexpensive to turn your words into print.
New printing technology has give birth to a new generation of publishers. Publishing on Demand (POD) has swept through the industry, churning out thousands of books and boosting the reputations of their authors. With this process, books can be printed in any quantity you need to use as promotional tools. They can be rapid-reading booklets of 30 or 40 pages or they can be full blown books of anywhere from 75 to 200 or more pages.
Journalism today has moved strongly into specialization. You can send the book to members of the press and to broadcast journalists who write about topics related to your product. They may review your book or simply write a blurb about it, sending hundreds of readers to your web site, office or store.
Once recognized as a leader in your field, you may well be asked to speak at various functions, adding further to your reputation. All of these possibilities are part of the program of branding yourself...identifying yourself as an expert.
Getting Assistance
Perhaps you have a talented staff member who can write the book with you. Or even for you. You certainly have the option of turning to a professional writer to ghost write the book. It is done frequently. If you don't require that degree of assistance, contact a Book Coach to help you over the occasional bumps.
It is highly likely that your business is already represented by a web site on the Internet. Add a page to the site about yourself and about your book. What a wonderful opportunity to sell your book from the site and not have to pay commissions.
You may want to piggy back on the book and write articles for distribution throughout the Web. Hundreds of thousands of people will see your piece and hopefully a percentage will respond. You can distribute these articles at no cost by using online article distributors.
Once your book has been written, you can take portions of it and either rewrite them or run them as excerpts. In either case, your workload is minimal because you are drawing on something you have already written.
Writing for Trade Journals
You undoubtedly read some of the trade journals published in your field. Editors of these publications are hungry for informative, meaningful articles. They care far less about your writing style or ability than they do about the content you can provide. Their staffs can polish what you write and turn it into quality pieces, but they must first rely on you to supply the content.
Every article you write offers a perfect opportunity to attract business. The article itself must be informative. It can't be a press release or a selling tool for you or your product. But at the end, as you have seen so many times when you read, the bio box about the author becomes a free advertisement for you.
Fill the box with information that invites your reader to visit your web site or buy your product. Provide enough information to allow the reader to trust you because of your credentials. Never forget that trust is a major factor in attracting a potential and closing a sale.
By following this approach you quickly build confidence in your expertise and as a result in your product. Print and broadcast journalists today search the Web for likely stories and for experts who can be used in those stories. A few references to you or your business in print or on the air will raise your rate of sale to unexpected heights.
If you are running a practice or a business, you are a knowledgeable professional or an informed businessperson. Harness that unique background and turn it into one of the most inexpensive, but most effective methods of branding yourself as an expert and promoting your company as one of the leaders in its field. It is an ideal way to offset the depression blues.
About the Author:
If you need help writing your book, contact award winning author and book coach Charles Jacobs at coaching(at)wisewriter.net for a free consultation. His latest book, The Writer Within You, has been named one of the Best Books of the Year by seven organizations. Axiom awarded it a gold medal in the business category. It is available at all bookstores or on the Web at http://www.retireandwrite.com/
Read more Articles written by Charles Jacobs.
How The Internet Has Changed The World...
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2007-2009 Braxton Heitz
As most of us sit down at our computers each day, we might realize that we have begun to take this Information Age for granted. What would we do if we did not have 24/7 Internet connections to keep us connected to the world?
Online Bill Pay
When it is time to pay bills, we logon to the Internet, pull out our debit cards or credit cards, and then we get to work paying our bills online. It is no longer the case where we have to sit down at the dining room table with our checkbook, a stack of bills, and a book of stamps.
Back in those dark days of the pre-Internet existence, we were not yet done with bill paying when we licked that last stamp. Instead, we had to jump in the car and run down to the post office to get the checks in the mail. If we had paid our bills close to their deadlines, then we had to sweat whether our payment would arrive on time. If we were really worried about our payment arriving at the other end of the transaction on time, we would take time out of our lunch hour to run to the bill collector's office to make our payment just under the wire.
Mom Online
Yes, back in those old days, we used to call mom on the phone once a week to check in and catch up. Now, we can logon to our favorite Internet chat client or call her on our Internet phone and talk to mom everyday. We can even share pictures of the kids with mom through our Myspace accounts.
Online Education
Back in those grand old days, if we wanted to learn something of value to our lives, we needed to go to the library or bookstore and check out or buy a book that would answer our questions about the world around us. It was either that or we had to enroll at a nearby college and take classes relevant to our interests.
Today, it is much different. Nearly any topic that might be of interest to us can be learned, after a trip to our favorite search engines. We might have to pay to gain access to the information we want, but in many cases, information is handed out like candy on Halloween, on the Internet.
We could even go further and enroll at a major university online. We can now take classes and get a degree at our favorite university or college, even if we live one thousand miles away from the school.
Local Shopping
Back in the day, in order to find out what great sales were running at the national chains, we had to subscribe to a newspaper for the full week and take the time to review the paper everyday to make sure we did not miss those important sales.
Now, we pop open an Internet browser and navigate to the website of the chain store we are interested and click through to their sales circular page. What does Wal-Mart have on sale? Let's go to their webpage. What about Napa Auto Parts stores? Let's go their webpage. How about "Ace, the helpful hardware place"? Let's load up their website. Walgreens --- what kinds of specials do "they" have this week? We are off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz (also known as Al Gore, the guy who "invented" the Internet).
Comparison Shopping
Before the World Wide Web, if we wanted to know the "skinny" on a particular product we were interested in buying, we would need to ask friends. For an expert opinion, we would need to subscribe to Consumer Reports, or take our chances by visiting the local store that sold the product and have faith that the salesperson was not loading our brains full of commission-biased opinion.
These days, we can go online to learn all about any single product or service we might be interested in purchasing. Even better, we can look at a cross-section of products under the same classification and make an intelligent decision based on factual research. If we put our minds to it, we could even pull up customer reviews on the products we want to purchase.
The sky is the limit. We can do as little or as much research as we would like to do on a single product or service and be happy with our final decision.
Dig Up In-Depth Product Specifications
Sometimes, we can trust the Sears salesman not to lead us astray in our purchase selections. It is pretty straight forward as to which brand of wrenches will give us the best performance over many years or to find out which 27" television has the best picture.
But, with other product groups, a cursory glance will not deliver the be-all-end-all analysis that we need to make intelligent shopping decisions. Such examples include insurance products or financial products such as credit cards and loans.
If you have to ask yourself what the difference between a term-life insurance policy and a whole-life policy, then you need to get some really in-depth information to make a good purchase decision. There are insurance websites and information websites that will pass this kind of information along to you. They may even let you apply online for a new insurance policy and give you an instant approval for your new policy.
The same mindset will often accompany your interest in learning about credit card products. With so many choices and options available, it is hard to know which credit card offer or credit card rewards program will be best for your needs.
The beauty of the Internet is that the answer to all of these questions and more are right at your fingertips.
Credit card offers range from gas credit cards, student credit cards, low APR credit cards and even 0% interest credit cards. Among this range of credit card types and special offers, many banks also offer credit card points in the form of airline miles, credit card travel rewards, cash-back rewards programs, and store credit at your favorite chain stores or restaurants.
So, how do you know which credit card will be best for your needs? All you have to do is to start with a plan as to what you would like to gain from a credit card, and eliminate credit card offers that do not match your needs. Then do a side-by-side analysis of those credit card offers that remain to see which one will deliver to you the best value for your dollars.
Don't be afraid to dig in and get the facts on any product you may be interested in buying. I have learned a lot on the Internet about insurance products, credit card plans, and high-definition televisions. Even when I had questions that the Circuit City salesperson could not answer, I was able to turn up that important information on the Internet.
Longing For The Old Days
No, I don't really long for the old days anymore, except when my Internet connection is down for more than just a few hours.
If I want to add a credit card to my wallet, I only need to decide which one I want and then fill out the online credit card application. If I want to buy car insurance, I can shop around for the best policy and buy it right then online, without having to go to an agent's office. If I want to shop for a better price on my next software purchase, all I have to do is to go to a shopping website and compare prices.
The Internet has improved the experience of my life one-hundred-fold, and I do not want to ever have to return to those days before dial-up. Before I came on the Internet, I did not even know why I would want to buy more than one type of home insurance. Now, I sweat if I might miss my payment.
If you take the time to search and research the Internet for the information that will help you to make better shopping decisions, you might just find as I have that the Internet is something that you never want to live without ever again.
About the Author:
Braxton Heitz writes about family finances and the struggles of the job search. If you are looking for a job or looking to change careers in the current troubled economy, then visit the Jobs And Paychecks website at: http://www.jobsandpaychecks.com/
Read more Articles written by Braxton Heitz.
Copyright © 2007-2009 Braxton Heitz
As most of us sit down at our computers each day, we might realize that we have begun to take this Information Age for granted. What would we do if we did not have 24/7 Internet connections to keep us connected to the world?
Online Bill Pay
When it is time to pay bills, we logon to the Internet, pull out our debit cards or credit cards, and then we get to work paying our bills online. It is no longer the case where we have to sit down at the dining room table with our checkbook, a stack of bills, and a book of stamps.
Back in those dark days of the pre-Internet existence, we were not yet done with bill paying when we licked that last stamp. Instead, we had to jump in the car and run down to the post office to get the checks in the mail. If we had paid our bills close to their deadlines, then we had to sweat whether our payment would arrive on time. If we were really worried about our payment arriving at the other end of the transaction on time, we would take time out of our lunch hour to run to the bill collector's office to make our payment just under the wire.
Mom Online
Yes, back in those old days, we used to call mom on the phone once a week to check in and catch up. Now, we can logon to our favorite Internet chat client or call her on our Internet phone and talk to mom everyday. We can even share pictures of the kids with mom through our Myspace accounts.
Online Education
Back in those grand old days, if we wanted to learn something of value to our lives, we needed to go to the library or bookstore and check out or buy a book that would answer our questions about the world around us. It was either that or we had to enroll at a nearby college and take classes relevant to our interests.
Today, it is much different. Nearly any topic that might be of interest to us can be learned, after a trip to our favorite search engines. We might have to pay to gain access to the information we want, but in many cases, information is handed out like candy on Halloween, on the Internet.
We could even go further and enroll at a major university online. We can now take classes and get a degree at our favorite university or college, even if we live one thousand miles away from the school.
Local Shopping
Back in the day, in order to find out what great sales were running at the national chains, we had to subscribe to a newspaper for the full week and take the time to review the paper everyday to make sure we did not miss those important sales.
Now, we pop open an Internet browser and navigate to the website of the chain store we are interested and click through to their sales circular page. What does Wal-Mart have on sale? Let's go to their webpage. What about Napa Auto Parts stores? Let's go their webpage. How about "Ace, the helpful hardware place"? Let's load up their website. Walgreens --- what kinds of specials do "they" have this week? We are off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz (also known as Al Gore, the guy who "invented" the Internet).
Comparison Shopping
Before the World Wide Web, if we wanted to know the "skinny" on a particular product we were interested in buying, we would need to ask friends. For an expert opinion, we would need to subscribe to Consumer Reports, or take our chances by visiting the local store that sold the product and have faith that the salesperson was not loading our brains full of commission-biased opinion.
These days, we can go online to learn all about any single product or service we might be interested in purchasing. Even better, we can look at a cross-section of products under the same classification and make an intelligent decision based on factual research. If we put our minds to it, we could even pull up customer reviews on the products we want to purchase.
The sky is the limit. We can do as little or as much research as we would like to do on a single product or service and be happy with our final decision.
Dig Up In-Depth Product Specifications
Sometimes, we can trust the Sears salesman not to lead us astray in our purchase selections. It is pretty straight forward as to which brand of wrenches will give us the best performance over many years or to find out which 27" television has the best picture.
But, with other product groups, a cursory glance will not deliver the be-all-end-all analysis that we need to make intelligent shopping decisions. Such examples include insurance products or financial products such as credit cards and loans.
If you have to ask yourself what the difference between a term-life insurance policy and a whole-life policy, then you need to get some really in-depth information to make a good purchase decision. There are insurance websites and information websites that will pass this kind of information along to you. They may even let you apply online for a new insurance policy and give you an instant approval for your new policy.
The same mindset will often accompany your interest in learning about credit card products. With so many choices and options available, it is hard to know which credit card offer or credit card rewards program will be best for your needs.
The beauty of the Internet is that the answer to all of these questions and more are right at your fingertips.
Credit card offers range from gas credit cards, student credit cards, low APR credit cards and even 0% interest credit cards. Among this range of credit card types and special offers, many banks also offer credit card points in the form of airline miles, credit card travel rewards, cash-back rewards programs, and store credit at your favorite chain stores or restaurants.
So, how do you know which credit card will be best for your needs? All you have to do is to start with a plan as to what you would like to gain from a credit card, and eliminate credit card offers that do not match your needs. Then do a side-by-side analysis of those credit card offers that remain to see which one will deliver to you the best value for your dollars.
Don't be afraid to dig in and get the facts on any product you may be interested in buying. I have learned a lot on the Internet about insurance products, credit card plans, and high-definition televisions. Even when I had questions that the Circuit City salesperson could not answer, I was able to turn up that important information on the Internet.
Longing For The Old Days
No, I don't really long for the old days anymore, except when my Internet connection is down for more than just a few hours.
If I want to add a credit card to my wallet, I only need to decide which one I want and then fill out the online credit card application. If I want to buy car insurance, I can shop around for the best policy and buy it right then online, without having to go to an agent's office. If I want to shop for a better price on my next software purchase, all I have to do is to go to a shopping website and compare prices.
The Internet has improved the experience of my life one-hundred-fold, and I do not want to ever have to return to those days before dial-up. Before I came on the Internet, I did not even know why I would want to buy more than one type of home insurance. Now, I sweat if I might miss my payment.
If you take the time to search and research the Internet for the information that will help you to make better shopping decisions, you might just find as I have that the Internet is something that you never want to live without ever again.
About the Author:
Braxton Heitz writes about family finances and the struggles of the job search. If you are looking for a job or looking to change careers in the current troubled economy, then visit the Jobs And Paychecks website at: http://www.jobsandpaychecks.com/
Read more Articles written by Braxton Heitz.
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