Donna's Business Tips

Getting Traffic To Your Site

2011-05-16T12:26:00.000-07:00

Have you had a site up for months maybe even years? Are you getting discouraged because you get so little traffic or the traffic you get doesn't purchase? There is no miracle remedy to this situation. However, here are a few suggestions I can think of to help you get more traffic. I hope some of these suggestions help.

1. Try running a contest and give something away. You can make a list of different things to do to get entries into the contest. One of those entries could be for a critique of your website. Would you buy. what would prevent you from buying. those could be some of your questions. Have as many sites as possible run an ad on your contest. This should not cost you. The best way I have found to run a contest is using a blog. I have one running right now if you want to check it and see how I have done it. Also, on one of my websites I list contests for free. That would be a way to start but you will need to find as many people to list your contest as possible.

2. Offer a free gift with purchase. It can be something small that doesn't count too much money for you. Incentives to buy are always nice.

3. Try starting a newsletter. Create one that consists of information you are good at. Then start building a mailing list. There are some free services you can use to help with this. Of course, the free ones aren't usually as good as the ones you pay for.

4. Check the meta tags on your website. Make sure they are relevant to what you are selling. Google has a free Keyword Tool you can use that helps at this. You put in what you consider a key word and then it will show you the number of searches relevant to that word and other similar phrases. Pick keywords from that list that have a high search rate and are relevant to your store.

5. Make sure your site is easy to navigate. If someone is frustrated trying to find what they want, they will leave your site and are not likely to return.

6. The number one reason why people cancel their order before completing it: The cost of shipping. While we may not have control over the shipping costs, I have found there are several things I can do to minimize this problem.

a. If I know how much it will cost to ship something, I will add that to the cost of the item and then list it as free shipping or Shipping included. This works because people want to know that when they are ready to check out there wouldn't be any surprises.

b. If you don't know what cost of shipping will be, are you willing to offer free shipping for a certain amount of order, say $50 or $75. If someone is about to order and their total is $45 and they learn they will get free shipping for a $50 order, they are likely to add another item to get the free shipping. To help offset the cost to you, add $1 or $2 to the cost of your item.

It can be challenging to get that much wanted traffic but the rewards are well worth it once it gets going.

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Permission is granted to reprint this article, online only, as long as the following paragraph is included in the posting. Reprinting this article online without including the following paragraph is strictly forbidden.

Donna is an online instructor for two colleges and she received both her B.S. and M.B.A. via online classes. Donna also owns her own business as a Tupperware Director.

Ten Rules of Email Netiquette

2011-05-09T00:21:00.000-07:00

As our society becomes more and more fascinated with social networking, I have begun to see even more abuses of Netiquette. Just as in our everyday lives we try to life by proper etiquette, we must also learn proper etiquette for the computer world. This type of etiquette is known by computer savvy people at “Netiquette”. There have been entire books written on this subject and most individuals who use computers for fun and business aren’t going to take the time to read a book on this subject. Hence, my reason for developing a list of Netiquette Principles that I feel most people using the internet should be aware of. If we can follow these basic principles of netiquette we can avoid offending someone without even realizing we have done so.

Principle One:

Do not type in all CAPS. This conveys the idea of shouting. If you want to emphasize a point put your words in between *asterisks*.

Good example: *Do not type in all caps when sending a message via any electronic means.*

Bad example: DO NOT TYPE IN ALL CAPS WHEN SENDING A MESSAGE VIA ANY ELECTRONIC MEANS.

Principle Two:

Do not type in Red letters. This also conveys the idea of shouting.

Principle Three:

Always include a subject line and make sure it is appropriate to your message.

Good example: Meeting Tonight on Proper Email Netiquette

Bad example: Important message from Donna

Principle Four:

Always include your name. Not including it is like making a phone call and never identifying who you.

Principle Five:

Check your spelling before you send your message. Bad spelling and grammar causes your message to be lost by the reader.

Principle Six:

Acknowledge you have received an email even if you cannot answer it right away. A simple “I will get back to you on your question before the end of the day” will work wonders for someone waiting on an answer to a question they have emailed you.

Principle Seven:

Don’t wander off the subject or *over talk* your message. Messages should be short and to the point. If you want to write a story, then write one and post it on a blog, not in an email or networking group.

Principle Eight:

Remember the difference between Reply to Sender and Reply to All. The only thing more annoying then spam is to have someone reply to the sender of a message and everyone in the group gets it.

If you want to reply to the group select “Reply to All”.

If you just want to reply to the sender select “Reply to Sender”.

Principle Nine:

Once you click the send button you cannot take your message back. Don’t send emotional messages until you have had time to think about the subject.

Principle Ten:

Don’t forward chain letters and hoaxes. This is a good way to get your email banned by the receiver. People today, especially in the business world don’t want to have their time wasted by these types of messages.

I hope this helps everyone understand proper netiquette a little better. The next time you post a message on a board, social group, or send an email I hope you will keep these principles in mind.

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Permission is granted to reprint this article, online only, as long as the following paragraph is included in the posting. Reprinting this article online without including the following paragraph is strictly forbidden.

Donna is an online instructor for two colleges and she received both her B.S. and M.B.A. via online classes. Donna also owns her own business as a Tupperware Director.

Is Direct Sales Difficult?

2011-05-02T05:08:00.000-07:00

The following article is an excerpt from a speech given by a direct seller at a local meeting. We are told she was asked to speak on how direct sales compares to working a "regular" job. It was submitted to us, and although the original author is unknown, we wish to thank her for her thoughts and insights. We have edited it to share with you as you embark on a brand new year, with new opportunities to count the many blessings we have in this business.

Lately, I have heard so many people say how difficult direct sales is. "It's hard." "I can't get bookings." "This just isn't for me." "I didn't know how difficult it would be."

Well, I am a single mom of three who, before joining the direct sales family, held down two jobs. I would get up at 4:00 in the morning and not get to bed until midnight most nights, after returning from my part-time retail job, packing lunches, checking homework and relieving my mother, who helped out with the kids.
That, my friends, is difficult.

It is difficult always having to lower your dreams to meet your means. It is difficult to miss your son's football game because you have to work. It is difficult knowing the rust bucket you call a car is eating you alive in maintenance, but you can't afford a new one. It is difficult to realize that someone else is going to watch your daughter take her first step or have your son say mama to the preschool teacher.

It is difficult knowing that you have spent 40 years of your life working for someone else, only to realize that you will be retiring on one-third of what you can live on today. Or, worse yet, it is difficult knowing that you have diligently worked all your life, only to be given an early retirement and replaced by someone younger, more capable. I will tell you what is difficult. It is difficult waking up one morning and realizing that your children, the most precious things imaginable, no longer need bottles, diapers, have tea parties, or are shorter than the baseball bat they are trying to swing. It is difficult realizing it is too late and that the time frittered away can never be retrieved. It slips through our fingers one second at a time.

It is also difficult watching the spark in your partner's eyes fade because both of you realize the house you have been wanting is just a Dream because someone else is controlling your finances.

We have nasty habits about rationalizing, procrastination and skirting important things, rather than facing the issues. Too often we allow others who do not pay our bills, who do not share our dreams, to direct our futures.

As children we have absolutely no freedom; we rebel in our teens and scream for freedom. We reach adulthood and are finally free, only to relinquish that freedom because we think it is too difficult. We do not want to take responsibility. We do not want to make a wrong decision, so we obligingly give that awesome power to someone else. We wake up too late. We hear ourselves uttering phrases like: "I wish I had only . " And "If I could do it over again."

You have no one but yourself to blame. You had the chance. Perhaps the Opportunity was presented many times and each time you elevated the trivial to a higher priority than yourself.

Let me ask you: Is direct sales really difficult?

Is it so traumatic to show someone an exciting product or idea? Is it so difficult to understand that if you work this marketing idea for three to five years, you just might finally be able to send your children to a college chosen by excellence, rather than one chosen by price? That you could finally put your family in the home of their dreams? Would you work really hard for eight to ten years, so you could mold a lifestyle of your choosing, so your family could live a lifestyle of their Dreams, rather than trying to live how someone else thinks you should live?

How difficult is it to pick up the phone and call your hostess? How difficult is it to pack up your kit and meet some new friends? How difficult is it, really, to share what you love with others? Think about it. Realize the awesome power you have in your hands with direct sales. There are people out there working three jobs. There are people drowning in debt; or agonizing through bankruptcy, realizing they only needed a couple hundred more dollars per month. That is difficult!

This business you have chosen has the ability to change lives. Direct sales cannot do anything. But YOU can change lives with it. You are the one with the life-changing ability. What are you waiting for?

There is difficulty and pain in success, and there is difficulty and pain in failure. Difficulty and pain in success will last a short period of time; but pain in failure lasts a lifetime. Which one is really more difficult?

You will pay a price for your actions, and your choices.

Which choice will you make?

Placing Banner Ads

2011-04-25T03:00:00.000-07:00

Placing banner ads can be a highly effective way to market your business on the Internet. Banner ads are essentially advertisements which appear on a website, usually in the form of a combination of graphics and text, to encourage Internet users to click through these advertisements to your website. The most common form of banner ads is an advertisement which appears on the top of a website and spans the width of the webpage. These advertisements derived their name from the similarity to a banner but technically banner ads can come in a variety of shapes and sizes. This article will take a look at the effectiveness of banner as well as methods for placing these banner ads.

Banner ads can be highly effective if used properly. However, placing your banner ad all over the Internet with very little consideration to whether or not the location is likely to be beneficial to your business is not a good idea and can be a tremendous waste of money as well as other resources such as time and effort. Therefore business owners who are considering using banner ads to promote their business should spend some time to learn how to use banner ads effectively and to find ideal locations for placing their banner ads.

The most ideal location for a banner ad is prominently displayed on a website which receives a great deal of website traffic and also complements your products and services without providing direct competition for your products or services. As an example, consider a business owner who specializes in selling athletic shoes specifically for runners. Buying banner ad space on a website which offers advice on training for running events and provides information on upcoming races would be an excellent idea. This website attracts visitors who have an interest in running and are likely to purchase athletic shoes but does not sell running shoes directly. This means the website attracts members of your target audience but does not compete for your business.

In addition to purchasing banner ad space, some business owners opt to join banner ad exchange groups. This is an alternative in which the business owner does not pay for their banner ad to be placed on another website but in exchange they agree to post one or more advertisements on their own website. This is a very affordable option for placing banner ads but it is not always the best strategy. This is because the business owner often has little input into where their banner ad appears and has limited input into the banner ads which appear on his website in return. In most cases, business owners have the ability to decline to host advertisements which they deem to be offensive but cannot specifically choose the banner ads they must post.

Finally, when posting banner ads, business owners should be aware of the effectiveness of the ads they place. They may choose to post different designs for their banner ad on different websites but they should monitor the results of their advertising to determine if one style is more effective than another. This information can be very important. If one style is enjoying a great deal of success while the other style is not, the business owner may wish to use the more successful style for all of their banner ads or to redesign the less successful style to make it more appealing to Internet users.

Brought to you by
Donna Rivera-Loudon
Tupperware Director and College Instructor in Management and Business
http://www.TWplastics.com

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only. Though we have made every attempt to provide accurate information, neither the author nor the distributors of this report assume any responsibility for errors or omissions. If we have slighted any people or organizations, this was completely unintentional. This article has been distributed with the understanding that we are not engaged in rendering technical, legal, accounting or other professional advice. We do not give any kind of guarantee about the accuracy of information provided. In no event will the author and/or distributor be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential or other loss or damage rising out of the use of this document by any person, regardless of whether or not informed of the possibility of damages in advance.

Happy New Year

2011-01-01T05:52:00.000-08:00

I wish you all a very successful 2011. Thank you for supporting me in my business during 2010. I look forward to working with all of your in 2011.

Donna Loudon

Tupperware Director

Visit my website

Cost Free Ads

2010-07-05T03:00:00.000-07:00

Cost-Free Ways to Advertise Your Online Business

You started your dream business and created your website. Now all you need is for people to visit your website and you just know you will make money. There are several factors to consider when designing a website, but that is another article. In this article, I will be sharing some ideas with you on how you can advertise your website and not spend a lot of money. The options I provide here are actually cost-free.

When I say cost-free, I am referring to money. There are other costs to consider though. As we get busy time can be more valuable than money and these options will take up some of your time. You must decide what you value more: your time or your money.

Method One: Yahoo Groups
There are several Yahoo Groups that you can join that are designed for posting ads. These can work and I have gotten results in certain areas. It depends on the group and what you are trying to sell.
Pros: It doesn’t cost any money to join these groups and post your ads.
Cons: Everyone who joins these groups is doing so to post ads. Although the unspoken rule is if you post ads you also read the ads others posts, my experience is that most don’t read many ads. Hence, there is no guarantee that anyone is actually reading the ads you post

Method Two: Directories
You can submit your website to the directories. Eventually they will probably post your website in their directory. There is no guarantee though.
Pros: It doesn’t cost any money.
Cons: It can take months for your site to get listed and there is no guarantee it ever will.

Method Three: Write Articles
You can write articles and post them in article directories. When writing an article make sure your name and website are in the author bylines.
Pros: Any time another site’s owner, blog owner, or webmaster uses your article; your link is posted on their website. This is free advertising and free links to your site on their sites.
Cons: It can be time consuming to write articles and they must be related to your product to be effective. I recommend writing an article that stresses the need for your product but does not border on being a sales letter.

Method Four: Start a Blog
Blogs are a good way to advertise your website especially if you are listed in blog directories. When people read your blog, they will see a link to your website. I like to make my blog available by email. The more people see my name and website, they more likely they are to click that link.
Pros: Free blog programs are available such as blogger.com
Cons: You must post regularly if you want to keep your subscribers. Content should be unique and fresh. This means brushing up on your writing skills. Content should also be related to your product to truly be effective.
So that’s four methods you can use that don’t cost any money. There are other ways too, but we can talk about them in another article. Hope you found something in this one that will help you with your business.

This article was written by Donna Rivera-Loudon
Tupperware Director and College Instructor in Management and Business
http://www.TWplastics.com and http://www.countryheartsllc.com
Permission is granted to reprint this article on your blog, website, or ezine as long as you keep the above author information and website links in tact. Removing this information nullifies the permission to use this article.
Copyright 2010 * Country Hearts LLC * All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only. Though we have made every attempt to provide accurate information, neither the author nor the distributors of this report assume any responsibility for errors or omissions. If we have slighted any people or organizations, this was completely unintentional. This article has been distributed with the understanding that we are not engaged in rendering technical, legal, accounting or other professional advice. We do not give any kind of guarantee about the accuracy of information provided. In no event will the author and/or distributor be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential or other loss or damage rising out of the use of this document by any person, regardless of whether or not informed of the possibility of damages in advance.

Social Media - 3 Easy Ways to Quickly Promote Your Business

2010-06-27T18:51:00.000-07:00

Are you confused about how best you can use social media
sites Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to grow your
business? These social networking gems have evolved into
sophisticated lead generation and branding tools, and with
the right approach, using them is a fast and inexpensive
way to promote your business.

Following are some quick and easy tips you can use to get
the most out of these social media sites.

Facebook

Don't have a large advertising budget? Facebook offers
several solutions for promoting your business, and most are
free!

For starters, you can create a Facebook page that serves as
your "launch pad." From there you can expand your business
promotion activities by using the "connect" feature (on the
advertising page) to connect your website to your Facebook
account.

You can also create an online group about your business
topic, and invite members to join. The content is created
by members, which is a fantastic soft-sell tool, as well as
a great way to build an online community of people who want
to "see" and hear more from you. As members interact with
your page, they can send links and stories to their
friends, so news about your business can go viral.

Facebook also offers paid-for premium advertising, which
allows you to target individuals who are a match for your
brand. To find out more, click the advertising link at the
bottom of any Facebook page.

Twitter

Twitter is a "mini blog," where posts are limited to 140
characters. Members share with followers what they're
doing right now. Each post or "tweet" can be done by
computer, cell phone or desktop application like Seesmic
(seesmic.com).

Tweets have an extremely short shelf life, so don't expect
them to drive sales like a website or blog. But, Twitter
is perfect for posting announcements (like the launch of a
new product), advertising promotions that link to your
sales pages, sharing useful information about your topic,
or conducting polls of followers.

Always include a strong call to action in your Tweets. To
get started with Twitter visit Twitter.com. To add a
Twitter button to your website that links to your Twitter
URL, Google "twitter button" to find a good selection!

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a more traditional business-to-business
platform for networking. It is best used to develop
business relationships, and companies use it to seek and
harvest new talent. Individuals can also use LinkedIn to
find the "right companies to work for" and "do business
with," as well as connect with others who already have a
connection within those desired companies.

Action Steps to Make Social Media Work Better for You

From these three social media and business promotion tools,
decide:

1. Which one(s) you want to use

2. What type of information you will post

3. How often will you interact with your audience (post)

Doing these steps will put you on the fast track to quickly
and easily promote your business!

Copyright 2009, Bonita Richter

About the Author:

Bonita L. Richter, MBA, teaches coaches, consultants, and
solo professionals how to market their businesses to
increase sales , income, and generate wealth. To download
her popular and *FREE* Money and Marketing spreadsheet
tools, and BONUS gifts visit ===>
http://www.Profit-Strategies.biz/Templates.html

Why You Simply Must Begin A Blog

2010-06-20T18:46:00.000-07:00

Blogging has become the latest and most loved marketing
tool of the day.

But, if you've yet to start one of your own, perhaps you
figure that you are the last person on earth that doesn't
have one, now you may think that this is true, you are
going to be shocked that not everyone has a blog, and most
of those that do, have them for internet blog marketing
purposes

Internet blog marketing is all the rage just as much as
blogs are, when you talk about internet blog marketing, you
mean you're using the internet to market things through the
medium of your blog.

This is perhaps the easiest definition.

Marketing, no matter what it is you're marketing simply
isn't as easy as it was on the internet as it was a few
years ago...

Why, simple everyone is getting into marketing online
because it's so easy and with pay per click programs
everyone is able to get guaranteed traffic. As a result the
competition is very strong.

In order to market things online effectively and as a
result become successful at it, you need to choose a market.

You can't use one single blog to market a number of
different things unless they are all relevant. If you
tried, you'd get no where fast and at the same time
alienate your entire following

Even choosing your market can be hard to do, some people
will tell you to opt for low competition markets to begin
with, but ones that have many searches.

However, other people will tell you to choose something
that you know and love, and that you are passionate about,
as that will be easier to promote and your sincerity will
come through in your marketing allowing you to be known as
an expert about it.

Doing this will gain trust in the internet world, and many
people will know you for your market and your views on it.
This in return will make you successful and allow you to
build a good following of readers, you can later market to.

If this is going to be your chosen angle then you must
truly know what you are talking about, or you will be found
out.

It's been known for people to choose a topic to become an
expert on, learning all that they can about it before they
begin to promote it. Despite perhaps not knowing anything
about it before.

Internet blog marketing is easier for some than others and
becomes easier the sooner you get started for the simple
reason the internet changes every day and things are not
all ways the same, the faster you learn the best marketing
techniques and tools, the easier it will be for you once
they change and start to become more complicated.

The interent change rapidly, and so do the criteria for
search engines, heres an example, Google changes its own
criteria approximately four times per year.

When it does go through a change of criteria and update
it's rules, its likely your page ranks will change, so will
your search rankings.

Where you may have been in the number two spot on Google
search for 3 months, after they go through a change you
just might find yourself on page three.

Internet blog marketing is about becoming familiar with the
internet and the best and most powerful ways to promote you
business.

The more you know about it the better your blogs will be.

If you're new to internet blog marketing it won't take long
to get the hang of creating a great blog that attracts many
readers and as a result if you want it to a successful
business!

About the Author:

Pete Craig - Marketer

Blog Marketing's effective and popular method of marketing
and can be a very good tool for building credibility in
your chosen niche
.
Credibility to your readership will allow you to market
relevant products to your list with less resistance.

Achieving levels of success with blogging you want is much
easier if you model someone whose already achieved the
success you want.

Http://www.bloggingforcash.cjb.net

Top Ten Ways to Use Twitter for Marketing

2010-06-13T18:42:00.000-07:00

Copyright (c) 2009 Jason OConnor
The Net Gazette

Twitter is a micro-blogging site that asks you a basic question,
"What are you doing?" It allows anyone with an account to write
up to 140 characters in a text field as a means to update,
comment, promote or communicate to others who are "following"
you. When people follow you, they see what you've recently
contributed when they login. They see your "tweets", which are
the messages you leave.

And of course you can follow others who tweet about the things
that interest you. As an Internet marketer you may want to follow
other Internet marketers, for example.

Like anything, and this is especially true of working with social
media, the more you give, the more you get. In other words, the
more often you tweet the more activity you'll generate. Some
suggest that you tweet a few times a day, every day. Not every
tweet needs to be profound. But they should all be useful.

It's important that you don't abuse Twitter for marketing and
promoting your products, services or affiliate links. Most of
your tweets ought to be about offering your followers useful and
valuable information. Only once in a while should you try to use
Twitter to promote something. Otherwise you'll be perceived as a
spammer, and no one wants that tag.

Imagine if you had a large number of people following your
tweets? Some people have tens of thousands following them. If you
had something to promote and you had a large following, you could
quickly and efficiently alert a lot of people of your promotion.
It acts sort of like an opt-in mass emailing blast to your house
email list, but it's a heck of a lot easier and faster. This is
the power of Twitter.

One thing that I've noticed with Twitter is that it can seem
overwhelming at times. The sheer information on Twitter, the
'how-to's', tutorials and all the other ubiquitous advice on
how to use and take advantage of it can seem hard to understand
and implement. So here's an easy-to-understand list of the top
ten ways in which you can use Twitter to market yourself, your
business and your website.

The Top 10 Ways To Use Twitter for Marketing:

1. Use it to promote new pieces of content you or your company
create to drive traffic to your site. From online articles to
blog posts or from videos to webinars, each time you add
something to the Web that is of value, tweet about it and include
a link. (Most people on Twitter use www.TinyURL.com to take a
long URL and make it short.)

2. Use it for learning new marketing ideas, strategies and
techniques. If you follow the right people, and you have to be
picky about who you follow, you'll get pointed to a good amount
of useful tutorials, videos, e-zines and other things that teach
you about marketing.

3. Use it to get new customers. Use Twitter's search to find
people who may be interested in your product or service. There
are many ingenious ways to search for people on Twitter. For
example, if you sell red widgets you could go to
http://search.twitter.com and find people who have tweeted
specifically looking for red widgets. To do this, type the
following into the search box: red widgets?

* You'll notice a lot of the results will be of others selling
red widgets. These ones will all obviously have links in them to
direct people to the site they're selling red widgets on. To
weed these people/tweets out, use the negative sign like this:
-http red widgets?

* Since every link has 'http' in it, using the negative sign
in front of it will cause your search results to not include any
tweets with links in them.

4. Use it to build your email list. Use Twitter's search to find
people who may be interested in the monthly newsletter you send
out to your opt-in house email list. Invite these people to join.

5. Utilize Twitter plugins or add-ons such as TweetMyBlog or The
Twitter Updater, which both automatically make tweets of every
new blog post you publish. Also check out TwitThis. When visitors
to your website click on the TwitThis button or link, it takes
the URL of the Web page and creates a shorter URL using TinyURL.
Then visitors can send this shortened URL and a description of
the web page to all of their followers on Twitter. Finally, look
at TweetLater, a service that allows you to write lots of tweets
at once and then schedule them to go out over time.

6. Use it to build buzz about an upcoming product or website
launch.

7. Use it to better brand yourself or your business. Remember,
when someone wants to learn more about you or your company, they
are increasingly using sites like Twitter for research. You could
easily use Twitter to establish yourself as an authority in your
field.

8. Use it to update followers on breaking news regarding your
company. If your company is mentioned in a new article, tweet
about it and include a link to the article. Or if you're at a
conference or trade show, you could tweet what you're doing and
invite people to visit you in person.

9. Use it for business networking, master-mind groups (see
Napoleon Hill), and getting yourself seen by high-profile people
in your industry.

10. Use it as an instant messaging system to keep your and your
team on the same page during projects. This is especially useful
for those who work with teams spread out in different cities or
countries.

You should note that this top 10 list is not in order of
importance or in any particular order. I suggest that you give
Twitter a try if you haven't already. See if you can apply a few
of these techniques and tactics to help you take advantage of
Twitter as a marketing tool.

And one more important thing to remember is that there is no
silver bullet in marketing. You should always be trying and
implementing numerous tactics when marketing your business.
Don't only rely on Twitter or any other one thing. Instead, use
Twitter (or any other Web 2.0 site) as simply one more tool in
your entire social media and marketing toolbox.

Copyright 2009 TheNetGazette.net

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Jason OConnor is an Web consultant http://www.jasonoconnor.com/
He writes for The Net Gazette, a Web marketing newsletter, and owns Oak Web Works, LLC, a Web design and marketing company

Blog Mistakes

2010-06-06T18:40:00.000-07:00

By Sharon Housley

Blogging has quickly become very common place, and while blogs may be plentiful, many bloggers still make a number of mistakes when it comes to managing their blogs. Presented here are the most common blog mistakes, in hopes that you can avoid making them yourself...

Mistake #1 - Failure To Provide Search Functionality

Blogs should be searchable. Include a search function on the blog so that website visitors can easily search your blog content for the things they are interested in or looking for.

Mistake #2 - Failure To Offer Syndication

Failure to provide an RSS feed for blog content is a common mistake. RSS feeds will significantly increase the number of blog followers. Many blogging platforms will automatically create an RSS feed for the content -- if your current content management system does not have that ability, you can manually create the RSS feeds yourself, or use software like FeedForAll ( http://www.feedforall.com ) to create the feeds. RSS feeds will increase your blogs exposure and readership.

Mistake #3 - Failure To Personalize

Blogs are meant to be personal. Blogs that consist mostly of impersonal, factual news clips will not attract as much interest as a blog with a distinct personality. Add character and personality to your blog by personalizing your blog posts. Readers tend to enjoy blogs that contain personality and character.

Mistake #4 - Failure To Subscribe To Your Own Blog

Be sure to subscribe to your own blog and RSS feed, so that you can see exactly what your readers are seeing. Click through the blog posts to ensure that your linking schemes are functioning properly. Sometimes you might be surprised by how your blog content is being displayed to your readers, so be sure to subscribe to your own blog in order to quickly correct any errors.

Mistake #5 - Poor Navigation To Archives

It is important that you provide clear navigation to older blog posts. You can often categorize blog posts or list related blog posts beneath your main blog posts, which gives the reader access to additional related material if they found your blog post interesting.

Mistake #6 - Lack Of Consistency

Blog postings should be consistent, both in frequency and in tone. Blog readers will expect consistency in blog posts, and straying too far from the established and expected frequency or tone could sour some readers.

Mistake #7 - Lack Of Theme

Blog posts should be united by a common theme, simply because subscribers will follow blogs that contain an ongoing topic they are interested in. If the blog is simply a collection of random and unrelated posts, your subscribers may lose interest and wander away.

Mistake # 8 - Failure To Use Stable Hosting

Hosting should be reliable and stable. Nothing is more frustrating to a reader than being unable to click through on a blog post they are interested in. Use a stable web host and platform, even if it means you have to spend a little more money.

Mistake #9 - Changing Half-Way

Many people will try blogging initially, using a 3rd-party for hosting, and once they realize it is successful they decide to host and manage their blog locally. This means that any followers they've managed to obtain prior to that point must then resubscribe to the RSS feed or go to a different URL for the most recent blog posts. If you are going to blog, don't do it half-way and then change things in mid-stream. As they say: go big or go home -- meaning that you should do it the right way from the beginning, or not bother.

Mistake #10 - Lack Of Monitoring Metrics

View your blog logs on a regular basis, so you know which articles your viewers enjoy the most. Then you'll know how to give your readers more of what has already been of interest to them. Analytics are critical in determining what people like and dislike, so don't rely on assumptions... rely on numbers.

About the Author:
Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for RecordForAll audio recording and editing software.

Effective Internet Home Based Business Tips On Article Marketing

2010-05-29T18:39:00.000-07:00

by Pasi Kaarakainen

If you have a home based business on the internet chances
are you are either doing article marketing or considering
it. In this article we will give you a handful of effective
internet home based business tips using the power of
article marketing.

1. Even though, it is important to write for your readers,
you do not want to forget the search engines either. You
can offer something useful information both for your
readers and for the search engines at the same time
targeting the right keyword phrases within your article
body.

However, you should mostly concentrate on long term keyword
phrases (more than two words) because of the intensive
competition with short phrases. This gives you a better
chance of ranking high on a search engine for that keyword
phrase from the article you write.

2. Think in terms of volume and not necessarily on quality.
You want to provide helpful articles that a person feels
like they've gotten something from when they read it.

However, to really benefit from article marketing in terms
of traffic for your home based business, you must get a lot
of articles on the internet. This can be done by yourself
or alternatively you can hire someone to write articles for
you.

Your marketing efforts are useless if you spend too much
time with one article while trying to make it "too
perfect". You should be able to get hundreds of articles to
the thousands of different article directories and blogs
that are related to your niche. This is how you brand
yourself as an expert on the topic and generate more
website visitors.

3. Make your resource box as attractive as possible and
keep it limited. It is a common mistake that people make
their resource box too long.

Your goal in the resource box is to provide something
enticing to your reader to get them to click on the URL to
your website. If you look at expert authors in the article
directory Ezinearticles.com you'll see most of them use
short resource boxes that offer something to make a person
click on their website URL.

4. Create unique versions of your articles and post them in
a blog. Your goal is to get as much mileage of one article
as you possibly can. There is not that much work if you
modify your article a little bit and post it on your blog.
Not only your blog visitors but also search engines always
like new content.

Here was some of the best ways to use article marketing to
promote your internet home based business. Using this as
part of your advertising and promotion mix makes sense
because increasing number of readers and other resources
equals increasing traffic for your business.

About the Author:

Pasi Kaarakainen is helping average people from all over
the world to start their own internet home based business.
Visit his site at http://www.WealthatHomer.com and find out
how you can do that too.

How To Twitter

2010-05-22T06:37:00.000-07:00

By Sharon Housley

Twitter, the latest social networking craze, is a micro-blogging platform where participants post "tweets" which are short comments limited to 140 characters or less.

Getting setup on Twitter is not terribly difficult. There is a slight learning curve in regard to Twitter's culture and tweeting practices, so it is a good idea to monitor the posts for a few days before you jump in and begin tweeting, just to get a feel for the community. Many Twitter participants monitor the posts (tweets) of other people they find interesting, which is called "following". Twitter is interactive, and allows others on Twitter to reply to tweets and engage in a conversation with the original poster or others who add comments to the original posts/tweets.

Here are the setup steps for both Business and Personal usage...

For Business Use:

1. Choose A Name
Select a name for your Twitter account. If the Twitter account is going to be for company use, you should use your brand name as your account name.

2. Create A Profile
Write a business profile that includes a description of your company, products, and services.

3. Add An Icon/Avatar
Upload a customized avatar that will reinforce your company brand, such as a version of your company logo. Twitter icons that are eye-catching will draw more attention to your posts.

4. Customize A Landing Page
Customize a landing page for your profile, and reinforce your brand and company message there. Use the profile space to provide additional information.

5. Follow
Follow friends or others with similar interests, products, or company focus. You can also follow industry leaders.

For Personal Use:

1. Choose A Name
Select a name for your Twitter account. This can be a nickname or your real name.

2. Create A Profile
Write a profile that reflects your personal interests. This will help people with common interests to locate you.

3. Add An Icon/Avatar
Upload a Twitter icon/avatar. Eye-catching Twitter icons will draw more attention to your posts. You can use a photo of yourself, or another image that reflects your personality.

4. Customize A Landing Page
Customize a landing page that reflects your personal interests or passions.

5. Follow Friends
Follow friends or others with similar interests, media personalities, or just about anyone you are interested in.

Engage
Keep in mind that Twitter is not about shouting your message -- it is about engaging in a two-way (or more) dialogue. Begin tweeting by interacting with those that you are following.

About the Author:
Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for RecordForAll audio recording and editing software.

What is Your Why? Succeeding in Network Marketing

2010-05-15T13:50:00.000-07:00

By William Bell, Jr.

Why do some people have a network marketing business? There are perhaps as many reasons as there are people. But, we can narrow this down to a few basic or common reasons that everyone shares. What are those reasons? Today we're going to talk about one of those why's, --freedom.

People Want To Be Free of A Job

They want the freedom of time. And they want the freedom of movement. A job or J.O.B. means that someone other than you calls the shots. That's not necessarily a bad thing.

Here's what I mean. Not everyone wants to pay the price to be in business or to be an entrepreneur. That means they more than likely will fail trying to make it on their own.

For those people, a job is a very good thing. It provides some stability, consistency of income and a structured financial environment to build a lifestyle.
However, as we know, we live in such a dynamic economy that job today can mean unemployment line tomorrow.

People Want Time Freedom

On a job one is restricted. The time belongs to the employer. You cannot decided to put your work off later, till next week or next month because you want to chill, take your family on a special vacation.

It's a tough scenario when repeated day in and day out, year after year. And let's face it; the weekend is just too short. Saturday is filled with trying to do all the things you cannot do during the week, and Sunday flies by like a jet on steroids.
You're always watching the clock, and dreaming about ways you can live with more free time. But it's just a fantasy because you can't leave the job with all your debt, and fear of making it in business.

People Want Financial Freedom

This is the freedom which comes from having enough income that covers all your living expenses and provides the opportunity to enjoy a comfortable or even incredible lifestyle, without worrying about whether your money will run out.
You stop the madness of living paycheck to paycheck. You experience residual income. You begin to invest your money into the stock market, real estate or other assets which produce more income. You are debt free.

That's what network marketing can offer you. We're not saying network marketing is the only way to be successful. Of course it isn't. It's not for everyone and you needn't worry.

Not everyone is going to do it. But, if you haven't tried it, don't assume that it doesn't work.

So decide what kind of freedom you really want. Is it more freedom from a restrictive job you hate or have become to love less than when you began years ago?
Is it freedom of time, to do the things you want when you want (within reason of course)?

Or is it financial freedom that provides you the lifestyle you deserve and want. Whatever it is, it's your choice.

William Bell, is an independent marketing executive. To learn more tips and strategies on succeeding in network marketing visit: Recruiting with Twitter
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=William_Bell,_Jr.

Why You Could Fail With Your MLM Opportunity

2010-05-08T13:46:00.000-07:00

There are people who still fail even though the success ratio in network marketing is improving. This doesn't have to be the case, so we want to give you a few reasons why you could fail with your MLM marketing opportunity if you are not careful.

1. No products are moved because people do not treat it like a business. Today MLM marketing is referred to as network marketing and many people concentrate on networking and not actually working their business like a business.

In a real business products are sold and are consumed personally. If you do not have products moving through your downline on a consistent basis you probably will fail.

2. Lack of upline support could be a problem. No one is a born MLM marketer and having the support of an upline is important.

Even when being able to contact people online it's nice to have someone you can contact directly if you have a problem. If your upline is non responsive it can lead to negative opinions of the business and more people quitting and not sticking with it.

3. Is the system easy to duplicate? This is one thing that really has not changed about network marketing. The chances of them succeeding are much better if you have a system that people can plug into. Thankfully the Internet is helping in these regards.

4. Generating leads is extremely important! By leads we mean new prospects for your network marketing business.

If you do not have a system in place to generate leads you are going to fail. Finding one good way to get new prospects that you like doing can be the difference between becoming successful or quitting in the future.

Today you want to use the Internet to your advantage in ways that you can develop leads. This means using an autoresponder and doing email marketing.

It also means understanding search engine optimization and promoting via article marketing, video marketing, and blogging. All of these can be taught to new distributors and should be.

5. Set realistic goals. This could be something as simple as making one new contact or getting one new customer. It's easy to focus on the big picture of quitting your job and earning a six-figure income.

However the realities with MLM businesses is they are built one step at a time. If you do not have realistic goals you will give up and quit and this is a failure that did not have to happen.

In summary these are a few reasons why you could fail with your MLM marketing opportunity if you are not careful.

Louis Martel is the owner of one of the most popular mlm business websites online today. To learn secrets most home mlm opportunity seekers will never know visit it right now. http://www.7FigureMLMBusiness.com

Source: http://www.submityourarticle.com

Permalink: http://www.submityourarticle.com/a.php?a=94815

Considerations When Conducting Business Internationally

2010-04-18T01:07:00.000-07:00

There will be many aspects to consider if you are doing business internationally. Firstly if you’re travelling overseas on business regularly, you’ll have to get used to adjusting your body clock constantly and in certain countries, the likes of Spain being the most obvious example, you’ll soon become familiar with the concept of ‘siesta’ when many businesses shut down between around 1pm and 4pm in the afternoon and public holidays will be different to those which we have in the UK too. However, there will be many more complex issues to have to take into account which will be predominantly connected to local culture, customs, traditions and law.

Preparation
The best way to conduct business in any part of the world is to find out about the place you’re travelling to before you go. In addition to doing your research about the company you’re visiting, you should take some time to get to know a bit more about the cultural, economic and political background of the place you’re visiting. In having more of an understanding about these areas, you’re less likely to commit any faux pas when you’re there. Chances are that you may have colleagues who have been there before you so if you can, ask them about things such as how to greet people, how to behave accordingly, how to dress and, perhaps most importantly, try to find out about things that might offend local people that you might not have been aware of. Here are some of the main considerations you should be thinking about.

Use of Language
No foreign businessperson is going to expect you to learn their language overnight but it’s useful to get yourself a basic phrase book so that you’re able to show courtesy to your host. Even just learning how to say the likes of ‘please’ ‘thank you’, hello’, ‘goodbye’ and a few other simple phrases will always go a long way in determining a person’s perspective of you. Also, be aware of your own use of English. Speak more slowly than normal if your host hasn’t got a great grasp of English and don’t use slang expressions or industry/business acronyms or jargon which they might not understand. Don’t be too ambitious in trying to say too much in their language either. Literal translations can often come out very differently unless you know what you’re talking about and you could be entirely interpreted in a totally different way than how you intended so keep it simple.

Be Businesslike
You’ll want to establish trust with your host so act businesslike. Make sure you turn up for any scheduled meetings on time (in fact, better to get there a little early) and be dressed appropriately and make sure that you know the exact location of the meeting and that this has been verified by your host. It may well turn out that they might have a casual approach to timekeeping and turn up late, but better not to take any chances yourself. Also, find out any local customs with regard to how they conduct business lunches in case you’re invited to one.

Avoid Being too Familiar
You’ll obviously want to make a good impression on your host but it’s important not to become too familiar too soon as what you may perceive as acceptable behaviour may be viewed very differently by your host. For example, American businessmen can show a tendency to be eager to touch people, the old pat on the back or hand on the shoulder type thing and to call people by their first names. However, doing that in somewhere like Asia could make your host feel very uncomfortable indeed so be very careful how you relate to people as many cultures adopt very formal attitudes towards meals, conversation and meetings.

Cultural Considerations
Make sure you understand the basic aspects of the culture of the country you are visiting. You should get familiarised with the different attitudes that might be held in relation to gender, education and religion, in particular.

It can be totally different doing business with people from overseas from doing business with people from your own country so no matter how good you are at your job and how well you relate to people here, don’t leave anything to chance and find out more about a country and its culture and background before you head out there if you want to ensure that you leave only good impressions behind.

Reproduced courtesy of www.WorkEtiquette.co.uk - how to behave in the workplace

Top Home Based Business: Tips to Boost Your Internet Marketing Success Rate

2010-01-08T10:47:00.000-08:00

In order to develop your internet marketing skills, you
need to become really proficient at promoting your products
online. Whether you sell a products or services there are
millions of potential customers looking for information on
the Internet at any one time and you need to find ways of
attracting their attention.

Online advertising is far more cost effective than the
traditional methods of print, radio, direct mail, and
television. However to become really slick at Internet
marketing you must still master the basic techniques, and
the following are amongst some of the most effective
marketing methods you can use:

Setting up as many backlinks as possible is one of the
vital fundamentals to put in place for long term Internet
success. You create a backlink by placing your own website
address on another web page. Although the process of
setting up backlinks is slow and time consuming, you can
build up your links using a variety of methods.

The most commonly used methods of doing this are by
reciprocal linking, blogging and social bookmarking.
Participating in forum marketing is also becoming an
increasingly effective method of building links, but it is
important to ensure that your posts include your online
signature containing those all important links to your
site. You can also build backlinks by posting comments on
other people's blogs, again remembering to include your
online signature.

You can begin branding yourself as a professional internet
marketer, by regular participation in discussion forums. By
participating in these discussions you establish your own
credibility as an expert in your own particular business
area. It will take time to master the skills required to
become a professional forum marketer, but once you master
these, you will be amazed at the revenues this can bring to
your Internet business.

Internet marketing professionals focus heavily on building
opt-in email marketing lists. An email list of qualified
subscribers is worth thousands of dollars to you in
revenues over time. You should try to build your e-mail
list in as many ways as possible. Some ideas to achieve
this are by promoting splash pages and by giving away free
reports and ebooks in exchange for each visitor's name and
email address.

To take your online business to even greater heights you
will also need to utilise some paid advertising methods.You
can do this by instituting a pay per click advertising
campaign with with one of the major search engines. You may
also purchase text-link and banner ads, along with ezine
advertising.

Truly professional Internet marketing is a constant process
of growth and improvement in all aspects of Internet
business. This takes a good deal of time, effort and
dedication but the monetary rewards will be well worth the
effort in the long run.

About the Author:

About the Author: Mike Muir writes informative articles
aimed at assisting new home business owners. For more
useful information please visit his Blog at:
http://www.mikeshomebiz.com/blog
Want more information about genuine online business
opportunities?
Please go to http://www.mikeshomebiz.com

Setting Effective Goals

2010-01-01T07:41:00.000-08:00

This is an article someone in one of my business groups sent me. It is an excellent article on Effective Goals. I don’t know who wrote the article, but it sure is a good one.

Donna

How can you achieve your goals without a plan? Most people know what they want but have no plan to achieve it except by sheer hard work. Your yearly plan should be reviewed daily and reset as your achievements are met. Successful people make lists constantly. It enables them to stay on top of priorities and remain flexible to changing priorities. This should be done for both personal and business goals.

Problems will sometimes occur. A good plan anticipates potential problems and seeks out solutions. Good time management enables you to measure progress towards your goals because that which you can measure, you can control.

Effective Goals Are:

WRITTEN

a. Increases conscious and subconscious awareness.

b. You'll notice more people, resources, information and opportunities that are available to achieve your goal. (Don't reinvent the wheel, use the help available to you.)

c. Only written goals tend to be met. Keep track of the steps in your plan with To Do lists, vision statements, etc.

Stated in the PRESENT TENSE

a. Enables brain to visualize goal and start seeing it as real.

b. Rather than "I will," state goals in the present tense so they pull you forward.

c. What's more powerful? "I will work toward increasing profits" or "I operate with an X% profit"

STATED POSITIVELY

a. We think in pictures.

b. The mind focuses on what you think about.

Using a sports analogy such as golf, if you think "I'm not going to hit the ball in the water," guess where the ball goes? In the water! It's best to picture that hole in one!

KEY: Focus on where you want to go or what you want to do. (Outcome Based Thinking)

SPECIFIC & QUANTIFIABLE

a. Clarity attracts. Ambiguous goals produce diluted results.

b. There must be a compelling reason for this goal.

c. Don't say, "I want to be happy or have more money." (If you find a dollar on the ground you suddenly have more money – is that what you really want?) d. Get specific… what does more money or happiness look like for you?

TIMEBOUND

a. It's human nature to put things off… we get comfortable or busy or let fear seep in.

b. Most people work best with a deadline.

c. Give yourself a reasonable timeline.
d. Consider tying it to some external even
t (i.e.: launch website by industry conference).

Proper balance of CHALLENGE & REASONABLE

a. Needs to cause you to stretch, grow and get out of your comfort zone.

b. Must also have some degree of believability. (Don't expect to lost 40 lbs in a week.)

WELL PLANNED

Plan your day each morning or the night before and set daily priorities.
Review your progress at the end of the day.

Look ahead in your day/month/year to anticipate what is going to happen so you can better schedule your time.

Source: Unknown
If you are the author of this article please let me know and provide me with the address where you article is listed so I can add it to this page.

The Role of a Manager

2009-12-22T02:27:00.000-08:00

The primary role of management is to make it possible for teams to work together and to provide guidance and direction to workers. This role is purely a functional one. It is not a role that is more prestigious than other roles in an organization. It is similar to the difference between office personnel and shipping personnel. The main difference in management is likely to be accountability and responsibility. When things don't go well shareholders and company founders are likely to scrutinize management rather than non-management personnel.

Function of Management

It is a manager's responsibility to:

Establish a plan that workers can follow to accomplish company goals

Resolve disputes that arise when workers attempt to work together.

Ensure that work projects are be completed with efficiency

Track resources and report costs to higher levels of management, shareholders, and company founders.

Track progress and make revisions or adjustments where needed.

Handle problem situations so that workers can concentrate on the job at hand.

One important thing to remember when making decisions as a manager is that these decisions affect workers either in a positive or negative way.

Skills of a Good Manager

A good manager is a good communicator. He or she must learn to listen and observe.

A good manager usually has a broad area of experience similar to those he or she is managing.

A good manager must be a good leader. Such a leader is willing to do the same work as other employees and get their hands dirty when required.

A good manager must be willing to delegate certain tasks. This means they must develop trust in their staff.

A good manager must be able to organize teams and projects. This doesn't mean a manager is expected to have a clean desk. (If it did I would be in serious trouble), but it does mean that we are able to organize our teams and projects in a manner that will benefit both our company and our staff.

If you don't have each of these skills that does not necessarily mean you are not manager material. It simply means that these are some areas you may want to work on as you work through the educational aspect of management. Keep in mind that not every manager has every skill in abundance. There are, however, two things that every successful manager must be able to do and that is communicate with others and get along with others.

Donna Loudon
College Professor
Management, Business, and Computer Technology

Selecting Keywords for Internet Strategy

2009-07-30T02:02:00.000-07:00

Copyright (c) 2009 Ajay Prasad

If you are starting your site from scratch, selecting
keywords at this stage is a time and money saver. If you
are redesigning your website, this is the time to outdo
your previous mistakes.

Zeroing On the Right Keywords

If you are wondering what keyword has to do with website
design think again. It determines whether your website
architecture will have a folder or linear structure. If it
is a folder structure then how many levels?

Let's take a hypothetical example. Suppose you are a
company selling confections. You are designing an
e-commerce website. You may have two or more options for
website architecture.

Option 1: confectionary company displaying products by type
e.g. cakes, candies, cookies, chocolates etc.
Option 2: confectionary company displaying products by
occasions e.g. birthdays, weddings, thanksgiving, baby
showers etc.
Option 3: This option is a tad expensive because it
involves more complex programming at the database level.
You can let the visitor decide how he or she wants to view
the website product wise or occasion wise.

Which structure will be more appropriate?
Before deciding we need to find the online search behavior
of our future customers. Using a keyword tool we find out
that the search phrases customers use to find the - cakes'
are for specific types of cakes like wedding cakes,
birthday cakes, diaper cakes and so on. Same stand true for
candy.

Naturally the second option is a better website
architecture structure. It can grow both laterally and
longitudinally. It's more suitable for search patterns
hence later it will be easier to optimize.

The best way to do a keyword search is to write down the
phrases that describe your website's purpose. Start with:
5 one-word phrases
10 two-word phrases
5 three-word phrases

Run them in a keyword tool. You will be amazed at the
results.
Save them in a spreadsheet.

Selecting the Right Keywords

Your spreadsheet probably has a thousand keywords. It's
best to have a base keyword in mind around which your site
will evolve. Keep these in mind before you start selection.
- One word phrases are the hardest to rank for because they
require a high number of backlinks which is difficult for a
new site.
- Their conversions are also the worst because people are
not searching for that product or information. They realize
it as soon as they type it and see 44 million websites for
'cakes'.
- Two phrase keywords are good to optimize for as they have
more searches and hence more conversions. But they are
difficult to do so especially for a new website.
- Three phrase keywords may be few but are relatively easy
to optimize for. It's best to start with three word
keywords.

Select the 3 word phrases most suitable for your site. Make
them top priority for now...But do not ignore the 2 phrase
or single word keywords. With time you will be able to
drive traffic to your website using these keywords too and
they most probably will have more search traffic.

The other factors that matter are
- The number of competing sites
- The strength of those competing sites

Select a long string for 3 word phrases whose searches rank
more than 5 per day. This is the starting list for keywords
for your site. Repeat the same procedure for two word
phrases.

At this stage it may be suitable for you to leave out 1
word phrases not in the website design but in the
optimization process..

Integrating the Keywords in your Website Design

All efforts at selection are useless if keywords are not
properly integrated in design.

2 tips before starting:
Do not optimize for more than 3 keywords on one page
Preferably optimize for related keywords
Example:
Virtual Offices in Irvine Orange County (keyword)
-Virtual Offices
-Virtual Offices Irvine
-Virtual Offices Orange County

Get your website designer to use these search phrases in
the page in Title tags, Keyword tags, Header tags and Alt
tags. While writing the content for the page make sure you
use the phrase at least twice in 350 words of content. Use
synonyms of the keywords.

About the Author:

Ajay Prasad is founder of Global Marketing Resources LLC
that runs a number of ecommerce websites under it's
umbrella. Ajay's functional expertise includes website
strategy, marketing management, business development,
consumer research, market analysis and strategic planning.
GMRWebTeam is an company that
aims to develop an overall strategy for your site.

Leadership: Five Steps to Success

2009-07-16T11:35:00.000-07:00

What makes a successful leader? That is a difficult question to answer since we all have our own degrees of success. In this article I approach success as the achievement of a dream. What can a leader do to ensure that their team is actually part of that dream’s achievement?

Set the Example

It is often said that actions speak louder than words. This is so true. A leader earns the right to lead by being involved, setting the example, and showing a willingness to do everything that he or she asks their team to do.

Make Your Vision Their Vision

As leaders we cannot demand commitment to our vision and dream. We need to paint a picture of our vision or dream. Let them see what that vision is. It may be hard for them to visualize what we have visualized. Remember, we cannot demand commitment from anyone. However, we can inspire it.

Always Look For Ways to Improve

There is always a way to improve for no leader is perfect. A good leader learns from their mistakes and failures. Don’t be afraid to try. If we succeed; awesome. If we fail, we can learn from that failure. Hence, the only true failure is to never try at all.

Give Others the Change to Bloom

A leader cannot achieve a vision or dream alone. He or she must give their team the tools they need to succeed and give them room to grow and learn. Teams are more effective when everyone on the team feels like they are part of the team. There are no barriers in a true team. While there must be a leader, a truly successful team is one of equals.

Lead From the Heart

Show appreciation for even the smallest of acts. A simple Thank You note can go a long way in encouraging team members to work towards your vision or dream. It lets every team member know that they are valued and they are important for the team to achieve its long term goals. Sometimes it can take a long time to achieve a vision or dream. By leading from the heart, a leader gets their team to buy into their vision or dream. Once the team has done that, they are more willing to stick with it for the long haul.

Conclusion

It has always been my belief that leaders are not born, but they are made. A leader is a leader because they choose to lead. A follower is a follower because they choose to follow. Why does one choose to follow us? We tend to follow those who have enthusiasm; who motivate and inspire us.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: "Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be."

Written by Donna Loudon
Tupperware Director
Visit her Websites: Tupperware, Information Portal for Women

Article Resources

James M. Kouzes, B. Z. (2009). The Leadership Challenge. Hoboken: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Email Netiquette: Principle Eleven

2009-07-06T10:39:00.000-07:00

In March I wrote an article with my list of the ten Principle of Netiquette. To read the March article in full click here.

In this article I cover my 11th principle.

Principle Eleven

When sending an email to a group make sure to use the BCC option rather than the CC option.

Why? When you use the CC option, all receivers can see the email addresses of everyone you sent the email to. This can cause some serious problems for you because emails are private and many individuals don't want their
emails moving about freely. This could cause them to reply to you a little upset or even cause them to ask to be removed from your list.

I am sure most of us are aware that spam is a big issue with email. People fear that if the wrong person gets a hold of their email address, they will start sending spam. Hence, they have reason to be upset when they see that your entire list is seeing their address.

Solution: Use the BCC option. The "B" in BCC means blind. That means that everyone who receives your email will see only your email address and their own email address.

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Author: Donna Rivera-Loudon

Bio: Donna is an online college professor. She teaches courses in Business, Management, and Computers. Donna is also a Tupperware Director.

Donna grants permission for you to reprint this article on your blogs and ezines. However, all links and the author bio must be left as it is in the article. If anything, including the links, are removed form this article or changed, permission to reuse is withdrawn.

The Leaders Persona

2009-07-01T02:00:00.000-07:00

Recently I encountered a situation where I felt my team was being treated unfairly and made it a point to let others know that I did not appreciate it. I was criticized by other team leaders because they felt a good leader should always be bubbly and cheerful in front of their team.

While it is important that we show a good face to others, it is naive to think that one will always be able to be bubbly and perky. Leaders who portray that public image may not be reaping the results they are hoping for. Let me explain.

Leaders live stressful lives. Often a true leader is at work an average of ten hours a day. Then they must go home and deal with other issues. (We all have them) It is not realistic that a leader would be bubbly and perky all the time. I like to think that those whom I lead are smart enough to know that the 'bubbly all the time' persona is not realistic. To the contrary it can cause others to think we are fake, and it is difficult to trust someone that we think is putting on a false front.

It is also important for leaders to stand up for their team. We can tell our team we are standing up for them, but nothing is quite as effective as them seeing it for themselves. It is much easier to follow someone who you know will stand up for you and back you when you are being treated unfairly.

This is not meant to be an excuse for always being in a bad mood. Certainly a strong leader portrays a positive image most of the time. If one does, then those who follow will understand when we are having a 'bad day'. But certainly let's not make that a habit.

Now, having an argument among leaders in front of our teams is a totally different situation. As leaders we must set an example for our teams and an example of cooperation and getting along is a prime characteristic for a team to be successful.

So my conclusions are:

Being a leader doesn't mean being Miss Bubbly Perky all the time

A good caring leader must allow their team to see them standing up for their rights and what they deserve

A good leader cannot use stress and problems as an excuse to be in a bad mood all the time, but that doesn't mean a bad mood is never allowed.

My final analysis: No leader is perfect. I read an article recently at

http://www.academicleadership.org/ideas_worth_merit/A_Follower_s_View_of_Leadership.shtml

It stated, and I quote

"Leadership is mostly learned, and it is a life-long learning and teaching endeavor. We should all accept that we will never be the fully actualized leader. There will always be requirements for change, which means there will always be opportunities to learn."

Article written by Donna Loudon
Tupperware Director
Tupperware Website

Permission is granted to reuse this article as long as the author's name, position, and website link are kept in tact. If the links are removed, permission to reprint is withdraw.

Thirty Creative Ways to Use Business Cards

2009-06-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

©2002 Linda Elizabeth Alexander

On the Back

1. Print a team's sports schedule on the back. Fans will keep them handy and keep your name in front of them

2. Print a special discount offer or coupon on the back. People will keep it because they intend to use the coupon.

3. If you do seminars, print key principals on the back. Your attendees will refer to them later and think of you.

4. Hand write on the back your "unlisted" 800 number. This adds value to your card, making people keep it longer because they don't want to lose the special number.

Ad Specialties

5. Make the business card the ad specialty: Print your company information on letter openers, CD openers, magnets, pens, highlighters, keychains, mousepads, mugs,
luggage tags, and other items that people will keep because they are useful.

6. Attach a business card to an ad specialty: For example, give business card holders as a thank you gift and place your business card in as the first one. Or, have your card designed as a Rolodex card

7. If you routinely give out seasonal gifts or specialties, attach your business card. Examples: candy canes at Christmas, heart shaped containers filled with candy for Valentine's Day, or even a sandwich bag of candy with a card stapled to it.

Unique Places to Put Them

8. Tuck them into the product before delivery: If you are a florist, cut a hole in it and tie a ribbon around the flowers and through the business card. If you sell gift baskets, Tuck one inside the basket before delivering it to your customer. The same goes for Mary Kay or Avon Cosmetics - place your card in the bag. You've seen how some restaurants staple a menu to their bags for takeout; if you use bags, staple your card to the outside of the bag.

9. Send a business card in every piece of correspondence - letters, invoices, even your electric bill. Sooner or later, those cards will be used.

10. If you are crafty, incorporate them into your designs: embellish them with rubber stamps, or blend them with other art projects. You can also mount them to greeting cards you create and send to customers and prospects.

11.When mailing out information: Take a number 10 envelope, facing you and upside down. Fold the envelope in thirds. When you turn it around, there is a little pocket to tuck your card in. Include it in the mailing. Using a colored envelope makes the presentation even more dramatic.

12. Scan your card in and use it as a graphic for when you exchange links with other websites. The other site can use your graphic as the link.

13. Place them in library books as if you used them as bookmarks. Visit bookstores place them in books related to your business.

Keeping Them Handy:

14. Use them as bookmarks so you'll always have some readily available if you meet someone at school, in the library, on the bus, or at the park where you like to read.

15. Have your spouse, family, and friends carry some of your cards with them in case they meet someone who might be interested in your product or service.

16. Wear them! Use them as nametags at meetings and conferences instead of the "Hello, my name is ..." type of tags.

17. Keep a stack of cards everywhere you might need them - in your car, your jacket pocket, your briefcase, your purse or wallet, in your planner, at home, anywhere you can think of. Then you'll always have some on hand when you meet a prospect.

When to Use Them:

18. Give them out during your personal meetings when you meet someone new: at your church, your children's soccer games, at lunch with your friends when someone brings a guest. To be more polite, you could have a personal "calling card" printed up with your information to use in these situations.

19. If you do seminars, have your participants exchange cards with each other. Have them write a compliment about the person on the back before they hand them out. Everyone will have a wealth of contacts; they will remember each other and it will also give participants a boost of confidence.

20. Ask neighborhood businesses if you may display your cards near their registers.

21. Tack them to bulletin boards at supermarkets, restaurants, retail stores and the library - anyplace that has a bulletin board.

22. Give out two cards at a time - one for your prospect or client, and one for her/him to give away.

23. Place some on the table when you leave a restaurant.

24. Agree to mail the cards of other businesspeople in the mailings you do, if they will do the same for you. Your networking circle will grow as your cards are passed around.

How Not to Use Business Cards:

25. Don't give them to a member of the opposite sex in the hopes that s/he will call you. I have a friend who was told this wouldn't work. He did an experiment for six months to prove it, and his friend was right! Sadly, not one woman called him. Although he does have a girlfriend now!

26. Some people don't give out business cards when they meet a prospective client. Instead, they send a follow-up note later with their card enclosed.

Other Types of Business Cards to Have

27. Business card CD-ROM. If you haven't seen these yet, they are a mini-sized CD that plays in any CD player and has your contact information on it, as well as an introduction to your business.

28. Email Signature. Put your contact information into a signature file for email, along with a link to your website (be sure to include the "http" in order to make it "clickable.")

29. Vcard. These are electronic business cards that recipients can click on and automatically add to their address books. Do a web search for "vcard" to find software that supports this technology. Then use it in all your emails!

30. One consulting company, which works with designers of products for people with disabilities, prints their cards in Braille. It reminds their clients how they can help them comply with disability laws. It also gets people asking for information.

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Linda Elizabeth Alexander is a business writer and marketing consultant specializing in web and sales copy. Contact her today to get your free consultation! www.write2thepointcom.com
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Setting Goals

2009-06-05T20:11:00.001-07:00

Each one of us has what it takes to live our life to its full potential. Today is your starting point. You choose the direction you want to go. Once you have determined the direction you want to take then set some goals to get you there

Is it really that simple? Actually, it is.

Once you set your goals, the next step is to follow thru on those goals.

Goals are nice but they mean nothing if you don't follow thru

Setting Goals is an important component to motivation and success.

While it is possible to be successful when someone else is providing the motivation for you, frankly motivation is best when it comes from within.

So be honest with yourself. Are you geniunely interested in being successful in your business? If so, set realistic goals for yourself. And remember, setting the goals is only the beginning. You must take steps to reach those goals.

Try it this week. Set a couple small goals that you would like to achieve this week. Take the necessary steps to achieve those goals. You may be surprised at the results.

Then you will see what goals can do for you. Before you know it, setting goals will be a regularly part of your weekly routine.

3 Steps to Getting Organized in Your Online Home Business

2009-05-29T09:40:00.000-07:00

by Andrew Jones
No matter what size your online home business is, whether part-time or full-time, it’s essential to operate it just like any other business (online or offline). You must ensure that certain systems and routines are in-place, otherwise it all becomes disorganized, hard work and possibly destined to fail.

When I first started out in my online home business, I joined up for a lot of different programs, subscriptions, memberships and products and before I knew it I had emails galore in my inbox, receipt numbers, passwords, usernames, and account numbers. I quickly become overwhelmed and in total disarray, so right then and there I decided to systematize everything.

The first thing I did was to create a simple database that I called “Account Manager”. Here I listed all the company names, dates joined, invoice numbers, usernames, passwords, website, email, whether a once-off or monthly fee, and any relevant comments. What a HUGE difference this made… freeing up much of my time and energy. It certainly made life a lot easier and more disciplined.

Second thing that I set up was a spreadsheet to track income and expenses. Obviously this is very important for tax purposes. But just as important I think, is to constantly monitor your profit and loss situation at any given time… to keep measuring your progress. If you don’t monitor the performance of your business, how will you know if it’s getting off-track? How will you know what is working and what needs changing? You need to see if you are getting a return on all the time and money you are investing in your business. The spreadsheet that I have set-up is pretty basic and straightforward but I might find later on as the business expands, that an accounting software program is more appropriate… such as Quicken, Quick Books or MYOB (Mind Your Own Business).

The last system that I put into place was a spreadsheet that summarized my entire ad tracking results for advertising campaigns. Now ad tracking, I believe, is extremely important to the overall success of your business. Without the ability to test and measure all of your advertising, you might as well just wear a blindfold. You absolutely MUST KNOW what is working and what is not working so that you can dump the useless ads and keep running the ones that bring you profits. Otherwise you are flushing your hard-earned cash down the drain.

This spreadsheet includes ad cost, number of subscribers (in an ezine), number of clicks, number of sales, cost per sale and ROI (return on investment). This is so simple and yet so effective (and so profitable). At a glance I can see which are my most effective ads and the most effective advertising medium as well. Well worth the effort I feel.

These things take a little bit of effort to set up initially and to get into the routine, but once done it’s easy to keep going. The benefits are certainly worth it. I just wish I had set all of this up BEFORE I started. Ah well, hindsight is a wonderful thing.

Andrew Jones has been a business owner for the past 10 years, and is now an Internet Marketer and Plug-In Profit Site owner.