Saturday, December 15, 2007

The Most Important Factors for On-page Optimization

On-page optimization is nothing but techniques that you bring in, while designing the web pages, that are helpful in making the pages Search Engine Friendly. Search engines are trying to provide their users with the most relevant sites for any particular query. Maybe your website has a lot of material and is relevant to searches for your product, but it may not have been designed or written in a way that is search engine friendly. The correction of design mistakes and the rewriting of the website’s text and meta tags is what is known as on-page search engine optimization.

Most Important Factors:- Before you kick start the SEO campaign, it is important to keep in mind the following things in order to achieve on page optimization:-

1. Include your keyword in your Domain Name
It is far better to think about search engine optimization at the very beginning of the process. For example, if it is at all possible, choose a domain name that will allow you to include your most important keyword or search term in your URL.

2. Enrich your Pages with Content
Many people want to get a high ranking for various keywords or keyword phrases, but if you look at the text on their web pages you can hardly find these vital words. This is a major misunderstanding. It is true that your main keywords and key phrases should be in your title tag and your description meta tags, and even in the keywords meta tag, but they must also appear on the page itself and they must appear in some strategic places on that page. Search Engines will not recognize that your page is truly about a Product/Service unless these words appear in headlines on the page, in the opening paragraph, in the file or domain name in link text and in the body text of your page.

3. Use different Title Tags for all pages
The most important sentence on any web page is the title tag. The title tag gives the search engine a good indication as to what your page is all about. Incorporate your main keywords or search phrases into your title tag, and keep them at the very front of the sentence. These keywords are more important than your company name.

The title tags of each of the sub-pages of the site should reflect the main content of those pages. Never use the same title tag for all the pages of the site.

4. Description Tag
Just as the title tag is the most important sentence or phrase on any page, the description tag is the most important paragraph on any page. Summarize the gist of your page in two or three pages, again incorporating the keywords and search phrases for which you think people will use when searching for your site.

5. Keyword Research
Here you may need the services of an SEO Professional. Generally people make the mistake by putting lot of keywords and in a hope to attract search engine they do keyword stuffing and ultimately it goes against your seo campaign as search engines treat it as keyword spamming. It is suggested that you find 1 to 3 keywords for your content and concentrate only on these keywords. But if you choose less keywords then you have to research extensively on these keywords to find out which keyword is most crucial. Since there is no point to optimize your website on a keyword that is no one is searching for. So do a extensive research or get a help of some expert to choose the keywords.

6. Anchor Text
So far we have placed the keywords in the strategic places of the web page: the title, the description, the headlines and the body text. Now we have to see that the keywords are included in clickable link text on the page. Whenever you are linking to sub pages or other pages of your site, make sure that your keywords are included in the clickable portions of the links.

7. Webpage Naming
Instead of naming your files as if they didn’t matter, such as page1.html, page2.html, put your keywords and keyword phrases in your file names. If you do a search on Google for any particular item you will see that wherever your search keyword appears it is listed in the Google results in bold text. Usually you will see this bold text in the title that is displayed, and in the descriptive text that Google displays underneath the title.

8. Site Map
Getting all of your pages indexed is so important, that it is also prudent to take another step that will ensure that all of your pages are visited by search engine robots. A site map is a page that has text links to all of the pages of your site. A site map serves two purposes - It helps users to find what they are looking for on the site by providing an outline summary of all of your pages as well helps search engine robots to land on the interior pages. After you build your site map page, be sure to make a link to it from your home page and the other important pages of your website.

In addition to a normal site map page, you can also make an XML site map, upload it to the server and then register it with the Google site map tool. This process is easy to accomplish, and it will supply you with important statistical information from Google as well as help get all of your pages indexed.

Conclusion:-
On-Page optimization is the first step towards getting a high rank in search engines, Off-page campaign's success lies with the On-Page factors. So I suggest before running your SEO Campaign, either work on on-page factors first or include it into your plan. You will get better and fast results if your on-page factors are taken care well.

Turn Your Home PC into a Complete Recording Studio

Want to turn your home PC into a complete Recording studio to record, edit, and play back digital audio files, this article, describes how and what you need do it.

Do you possess a multimedia PC with a sound card and speaker? All you require is an inexpensive recording and editing software to your PC, with this you can produce high-quality, effective voice and music recordings. The basic prerequisite to get a level of recording are a PC, Quiet recording space, Microphone, Speakers and headphones, recording software.

Our aim is to record a clear, close voice track, so we need a Quiet recording space, which means keeping noise and the sound of the room out of the reach till the finished recording meets all our needs. Professional’s records in closet specially designed to keep noises out and make their voice sound good.

To get your voice or recordings into the computer, you need a microphone. Don't relay on the dull one that you got with your computer. Choose high-quality, inexpensive Microphone that sounds far better. Microphones are available from music or audio equipment suppliers. There are microphones for the basic voice work. Choose the microphone that best suits for female voice and male voice.

Choosing of computer speakers tends to be given importance because it impacts on getting quality output of recording. Computer speakers are adequate for recording, editing, and finishing basic recordings, but empower some decent powered speakers to get better quality output.

The net result you get in recording apparently depends on the Recording software that is being used. Choose recording software equipped with all editing features such as with best bit rate, creating special effects adding music and/or sound effects and the software should present your recordings in the formats you desire. The music software that best suits for professionals as well as beginners are FlexiMusic’s FlexiMusic Wave Editor, a software for recording and editing.

Part 1: Getting Started
Fasten up your equipment by plugging your microphone into your sound card's microphone. Be careful in this, since there are three plugs there, choose the one that Is written as “Mic”. Now launch the software that controls the sound card’s recording source (for this you can use the “Recording source” command in FlexiMusic Wave Editor). Then select your recording source (Mic) and adjust its volume at 100%.

Start your recording program (say FlexiMusic Wave Editor), choose stereo, bit rates of 16 bits, 44kHz of sampling rate and at CD-quality. Start the recording command. Adjust the volume so that Digital level meters shows 3/4th volume, if it exceeds it will sound horribly distorted.

To improve the sound of your recordings, get closer to the mic. The farther away you are from it, the more you pick up the room noise around you. Get closer and your voice is closer. Advantage of getting closer to microphone may bring out the lower frequencies in your voice and can make you sound more powerful. Obviously, locate your recording area away from noisy equipment. Some precautionary things that are to be taken care are, put a little distance between the mic and the noise source. Avoid salty foods immediately before your recording session. Have some water nearby and apply a little lip balm. These will keep your mouth and lips lubricated. When you're ready to record, speak clearly and slowly. You can always tense up your recording while editing. If an error occurs go back to the nearest sentence start and continue on again.

Part 2: Editing the recordings
“As haste makes waste”, don’t fix everything in one take. Record as many times as needed and assemble the best parts into the final recording. Calculate whether the recording done has everything that you desired. If not, don’t pamper, go back and re-record the bits you need, listen again, and repeat the process until you obtain the desired. You see a two-dimensional representation of the words as sound waveforms. You can hear the words as you play them. Cut, copy, paste is all the techniques you apply when editing sound.

Early to begin editing, make sure to turn off the mic, disconnect the headphones, and switch off speakers. Delete the unnecessary things that interrupt the output of the recording. Eliminate the junk and move further improving your performance. Never give up to until you get the best result of recording. Do carry out as many takes as needed, find the best takes out of it and build your final version from them.

Make sure of any changes you have done during editing. Analyze, if you can make it better. Check whether the volume is consistent? Are there any noises, background sounds, or other unwanted junk parts that which can be eliminated or reduce?

After editing the voice, to make it efficient better you can add music or sound effects to enhance the final version. You add the back ground effect using the same software FlexiMusic Wave Editor, open the music file in audio software, select, and copy it to the clipboard. If needed trim the music to match the length of your voice recording, then, place the cursor at the start of your voice recording, and select Edit > Paste Mix. Make sure that you can hear your voice recording clearly with the music playing in the background.

Now make the best use of your audio software's to maximize the recording's volume. Next, choose a format in which you want your recordings to be such as, Mp3, WMA, Snd, Raw, and Au. Select the recording which is in the waveform and save the file to the audio format of your choice. Using mp3 or WMA files is useful to save space on your hard drive while retaining reasonably good quality and for transmitting your work over the Internet.

Finally you have done! You can play back the file in FlexiMusic Wave Editor, or with any audio program, such as Windows Media Player or Winamp, and transliterate the recording.

Turn Your Home PC into a Complete Recording Studio

Want to turn your home PC into a complete Recording studio to record, edit, and play back digital audio files, this article, describes how and what you need do it.

Do you possess a multimedia PC with a sound card and speaker? All you require is an inexpensive recording and editing software to your PC, with this you can produce high-quality, effective voice and music recordings. The basic prerequisite to get a level of recording are a PC, Quiet recording space, Microphone, Speakers and headphones, recording software.

Our aim is to record a clear, close voice track, so we need a Quiet recording space, which means keeping noise and the sound of the room out of the reach till the finished recording meets all our needs. Professional’s records in closet specially designed to keep noises out and make their voice sound good.

To get your voice or recordings into the computer, you need a microphone. Don't relay on the dull one that you got with your computer. Choose high-quality, inexpensive Microphone that sounds far better. Microphones are available from music or audio equipment suppliers. There are microphones for the basic voice work. Choose the microphone that best suits for female voice and male voice.

Choosing of computer speakers tends to be given importance because it impacts on getting quality output of recording. Computer speakers are adequate for recording, editing, and finishing basic recordings, but empower some decent powered speakers to get better quality output.

The net result you get in recording apparently depends on the Recording software that is being used. Choose recording software equipped with all editing features such as with best bit rate, creating special effects adding music and/or sound effects and the software should present your recordings in the formats you desire. The music software that best suits for professionals as well as beginners are FlexiMusic’s FlexiMusic Wave Editor, a software for recording and editing.

Part 1: Getting Started
Fasten up your equipment by plugging your microphone into your sound card's microphone. Be careful in this, since there are three plugs there, choose the one that Is written as “Mic”. Now launch the software that controls the sound card’s recording source (for this you can use the “Recording source” command in FlexiMusic Wave Editor). Then select your recording source (Mic) and adjust its volume at 100%.

Start your recording program (say FlexiMusic Wave Editor), choose stereo, bit rates of 16 bits, 44kHz of sampling rate and at CD-quality. Start the recording command. Adjust the volume so that Digital level meters shows 3/4th volume, if it exceeds it will sound horribly distorted.

To improve the sound of your recordings, get closer to the mic. The farther away you are from it, the more you pick up the room noise around you. Get closer and your voice is closer. Advantage of getting closer to microphone may bring out the lower frequencies in your voice and can make you sound more powerful. Obviously, locate your recording area away from noisy equipment. Some precautionary things that are to be taken care are, put a little distance between the mic and the noise source. Avoid salty foods immediately before your recording session. Have some water nearby and apply a little lip balm. These will keep your mouth and lips lubricated. When you're ready to record, speak clearly and slowly. You can always tense up your recording while editing. If an error occurs go back to the nearest sentence start and continue on again.

Part 2: Editing the recordings
“As haste makes waste”, don’t fix everything in one take. Record as many times as needed and assemble the best parts into the final recording. Calculate whether the recording done has everything that you desired. If not, don’t pamper, go back and re-record the bits you need, listen again, and repeat the process until you obtain the desired. You see a two-dimensional representation of the words as sound waveforms. You can hear the words as you play them. Cut, copy, paste is all the techniques you apply when editing sound.

Early to begin editing, make sure to turn off the mic, disconnect the headphones, and switch off speakers. Delete the unnecessary things that interrupt the output of the recording. Eliminate the junk and move further improving your performance. Never give up to until you get the best result of recording. Do carry out as many takes as needed, find the best takes out of it and build your final version from them.

Make sure of any changes you have done during editing. Analyze, if you can make it better. Check whether the volume is consistent? Are there any noises, background sounds, or other unwanted junk parts that which can be eliminated or reduce?

After editing the voice, to make it efficient better you can add music or sound effects to enhance the final version. You add the back ground effect using the same software FlexiMusic Wave Editor, open the music file in audio software, select, and copy it to the clipboard. If needed trim the music to match the length of your voice recording, then, place the cursor at the start of your voice recording, and select Edit > Paste Mix. Make sure that you can hear your voice recording clearly with the music playing in the background.

Now make the best use of your audio software's to maximize the recording's volume. Next, choose a format in which you want your recordings to be such as, Mp3, WMA, Snd, Raw, and Au. Select the recording which is in the waveform and save the file to the audio format of your choice. Using mp3 or WMA files is useful to save space on your hard drive while retaining reasonably good quality and for transmitting your work over the Internet.

Finally you have done! You can play back the file in FlexiMusic Wave Editor, or with any audio program, such as Windows Media Player or Winamp, and transliterate the recording.

Cartoon Animation

Cartoon animation can make your site appear more exclusive, tremendous and interactive. It is very efficient in the conveyance of the message crossways. Funny animations and Cartoon characters can be exercised for presentations, education or as search helpers.

The design and use of a cartoon character has for all the time been an accepted way to endorse a product or even a whole company.

Benefits ---




Cartoon characters can be identified instantly.

Cartoon characters give a boost to brand awareness.

The design of a cartoon character can be easily besieged, as of a particular age group.

By doing the merchandise planning, there is a production of secondary income.

It gives the vast potential for comedy and farce fun.


Although scores of people are not going to mull over the writing for cartoon animation, in its own way it is unquestionably a form. For a cartoon to work you require loads of things-- expression, storyline, climax, and a beginning and an ending. Each picture signifies something about a story and every word is characterized by its figure and action.

Not each animated cartoon has to be comprehended in detail. It's all in relation to simplicity and holding the viewer's attention. In order to make your animated cartoon work, many strategies can be brought into a play. Many people find familiar faces and figures interesting, they can relate to. In this place, an animal figure works the best.

People wish for the enthusiasm and conflict. They yearn for clash ingredient and look for the scenes mixed with the disagreement. Violence where the characters don't get wounded makes the story going. Use of bright colors, high action, amazing feats and human qualities are to be required when applying for the cartoon animation.

In cartoon animation, a series of figures, each showing a slightly different stage in motion has to be represented and photographed separately, frame by frame. It is than projected on a screen fast enough to create the false impression of incessant movement. Hence your story is articulated by your figure's actions and you will finally have your animated cartoon.

20 Reasons Why you aren’t Getting More Traffic

1. How long does the average visitor stay on your site? If your visitors are not staying long enough to take whatever action or accept the offer you are offering, then they aren't staying long enough. This deserves immediate attention and testing.

2. What is your conversion rate? While the conversion rate depends on the industry, you should have goals in place where your conversion rate is increasing consistently. If not you need to take a serious look at why not.

3. When was the last time you checked your site for broken links? This is my pet peeve. I go to a great site and 10 of the links on the site don't work.

4. How long does it take for your site to load? Let's face it we live in a microwave generation, people want stuff right now.

5. How often is your content updated? We are all busy, true enough. But our customers and vistitors not to mention the search engines want to see fresh content consistently.

6. How many names are in your subscriber base? Is it increasing or decreasing? Set some goals and work like crazy to increase this number.

7. Do you keep up with the latest technology? What would we do without podcasting, RSS, blogging, myspace? Either you keep up with the latest technology or you go out of business.

8. How often do you check to see where you are in the top three search engines (Google, Yahoo, MSN)? Check out Alexa Toolbar. This is a great tool to use to set goals by.

9. Do you have some type of web traffic reporting or analysis in place? I use Google primarily but I am looking into some other ones.

10. Do you set goals for your business as well as your website? It goes without saying without goals how do you know when you've gotten to where you want to be.

11. Do you have a site map? Check out Site Map Doc and of course Google for exact guidelines.


12. Do you know who the top 5 bloggers are in your niche? This will help build your list and you will learn a lot as well. You have to make regular contributions and use a signature line.

13. Are you tracking your advertising? Do you know where you are getting the greatest ROI? This just makes good business sense.

14. Are you asking your customers what they want? How can you expect your customers to pay top dollar for a product or service they didn't ask for and don't need. Save yourself some time and frustration by asking your customer what they want and need.

15. Are you exercising multiple streams of income? Teleclasses, Workshops, Audio, e-books, Bootcamps, Membership Site, need I go on.

16. Are you at least reading several books concerning your niche weekly? The top paid in their field learn from others and read on a consistent basis.

17. Are you writing a lot of content and blogging weekly? Don't have time, hire someone else to keep it for you.

18. Are you using offline promotion to promote your website? Use your newspaper ad, radio ads, business cards and gift certificates to advertise your business on.

19. Are you cross selling? Everyone is cross selling so should you. If your customer buys a skirt it would make sense to offer her a shirt or jacket. If your customer buys a teleseminar offer an ebook or special report. Be sure to offer something extra every time, you never know who might buy it.

20. Are you giving away tons of free valuable content? People want free stuff they can use. Most people don't want to buy anything until they see if they like and understand you while at the same time indirectly building a relationship.

Concept of Website Promotion

Website promotion means to get and gain maximum exposure for your website. The main reason for this mission is to make people familiar with your existence and hence make them visit your website. Every webmaster hopes to increase traffic for his website. In case it is ecommerce website then expectations are to make higher amount of sales.

The concept of website promotion has changed over the years. Earlier many people used to rely just on word of mouth but now many alternatives are available. Search engines are considered as the main base for web promotion but the main challenge with these is to get high search engine ranking. Due to this the activities of link exchange and affiliate promotion came in to existence but nowadays there are many new and better methods of web promotion available. There are many advertisement rich websites. It is considered very beneficial to advertise on these websites whether it is paid or free. This helps in increasing the website traffic to a great extent.

PPC and Ad sense is the one of the method of website promotion but there are cost considerations in it and you need a credit card to set all these. The free methods of web promotion are article submissions, directory submissions. Free article writing seems easy way and the way to go. You can write article on your products and services and submit it in good article sites. This will get you the exposure and get your site indexed in search engines. This also seems as a reminder to search engines about your existence.

Apart from these there are other methods of website promotion like blogs, forums posting, link exchange, directory submissions. All these need to be implemented from time to time depending on the website requirements. The other concept that has gained importance is viral marketing, social networking, forums, discussion boards and email marketing.

Is Content or Appearance More Important For A Site?

Everyone knows that its the content that brings people to a website because most people surf the web to find information or products that they are looking for. Hence, an informative website will naturally direct a good amount of traffic. Does that mean that the aesthetic aspect of a site can be taken for granted?

I believe that the answer is no. A site has to look pleasant to its viewers. It would be boring to stare at a white background with typed words on it. A site is not like a book that it has to look that way. Hence, the web is a different form of media because it can be as colorful and art oriented as the people working on the site wants it to be. That is why individuals are hired and even outsource to provide the artistic and creative skills necessary to make a site enticing.

It is not unusual to find a graphic artist and employers who outsource banner-creation, outsource logos and headers and outsource flash animation, to name a few, to work for companies to make this endeavor possible. Time and effort are required to make sure that a site stands apart from the rest of the pack, as they say. That is why companies take everything into consideration such as the design, layout, content and overall feel/quality of their site.

Truly it is a combination of great content and amazing presentation that sets a website apart from the rest of its competitors.

How To Boost Your Site’s Traffic Through Web Directories

Many of you have probably seen web directories springing up around the web but don’t exactly know what they are for. To those of you who are utterly clueless of what a web directory is, it is a list of website links by category or subcategory.

If you are a website owner and you are looking for traffic to your site, you will find it useful to utilize a web directory in your traffic campaign and website promotion. In order for search engines to add more value to your site, it should have a lot of quality back links. One way of building back links to your site is by submitting them to web directories.

There are several kinds of web directories. Some are free of charge while others have fees in order for your site to be included in their listing. There are also web directories that require reciprocal linking, meaning you have to link back to the directory first before your site can be added to the directory. Other web directories are only focused on one region like the UK or it only caters to a specific niche like beauty, health, business and so on.

To start submitting your website to web directories, you should first create a list of web directories that are relevant to your website. Search for “web directories” on your favorite search engine and you will be presented with a long list of what’s available on the Internet. You will notice that each directory has categories that contain broader topics and beneath them are the sub-categories, which contain specific topics. If the directory contains the category where your website belongs, then you may submit your website to that web directory. If not, then you can move on to another web directory on the list.

Most web categories manually approve their submissions. A high quality web directory often reviews the content of the submitted sites first before they decide whether these sites merit an inclusion to their directory or not. One of the criteria that they consider before your site can be added is the value of your content to their visitors.

In order to boost your website traffic, it’s important that you submit to high-quality directories, among others. A high-quality web directory is one that is SEO-friendly and has a high page rank. It should also be friendly enough for users to easily navigate around the site. You can also check the sites listed on a directory. A quality listing is an indication that the directory is good. A good directory would also go beyond what usual web directories have for their features like allowing users to interact with listings like review and rate the websites listed, comment on the overall selection of included sites, and create and share bookmarked sites to others. It should also add more features that will let the visitors stay and come back from time to time like online games, trivia and even puzzles.

Being listed in a good directory will not only improve your website’s page rank, quality back links and link popularity. It will also gain the kind of exposure that it deserves.

The Difference and Importance of Promotion and Public Relations

So you really want to be known in your organization as the PR guy. The job may be prestigious but be ready to work no end to achieve every milestone in your schedule. Anyway, you'll fit right in you think, because you've been in advertising for quite some time now and you know they're the same.

NOT.

Most of us probably believe that both are the same. Maybe even the powers-that-be in our organization may also think this way. Not quite, actually. There's a totally big difference between promotion and public relations.

If promotions apply a lot of unique and more than the usual strategies to get attention, PR is the tamer version of the two. When you want to dabble in public relations, you need to have restraint in your actions.

Part of the attraction for advertising is its radical code of being bale to do and say anything you want to. Your company is paying for the ad space so you'd rather take advantage of that.

Not with public relations. You get to be the nice guy to everyone because basically, you get media attention for free. You don't pay for it and you most surely have to get the company's name out without all that jazz and pizzazz usually associated with advertising.

Don't get me wrong. Both worlds are actually very challenging. In fact, there's no limit with what you can do with public relations. And once you start to know the rhythm and all the routines, you might just want to stay in PR.

So what do you actually do in PR? For one thing, you'll write press releases – a lot. You'll organize and plan press conferences, and produce company promotional materials like the newsletters and fyers. You'll practically be the link between your company and the press.

You'll also have a lot of PR functions which include public speaking, attending seminars and conferences, getting media interviews, exhibiting at trade shows, organizing press conferences, arranging such events like opening day, special visit to the company site, managing photo sessions either in or out of the studio, and most importantly, acting as the company's spokesperson. All in all, I can say that you're the 'it' guy for the company when it comes to creating a great image to the public.

So if you think you can do all that, and become a jack-of-all-trades, able to jump and skip rope all at the same time, then public relations is definitely for you.

What characteristics do you need to have to make it in public relations, you ask?

Number 1, you need to be a sponge that absorbs everything that you come across with your seminars, workshops, on-the-job trainings. You need to learn everything.

Number 2, you need to learn to multitask. You'll be managing more than one project at once so make sure you can focus on each one without neglecting the others.

Number 3, you have to like people because you'll be dealing with them with every waking hour you have.

Number 4, be able to adapt to any situation like a chameleon, and be open to many things and situations.

Lastly, you need to have the stamina and endurance to be able to dance, entertain, and always be fresh with ideas even if you're tired and barely able to stand up.

PR is probably the busiest and the most intense work in marketing. But when you get started and got your feet wet, you probably won't want to go back.

Gain Readability Through Squeeze Pages

The Internet is a medium where people exchange ideas and information. It is a vast venue where businesses can start up, capitalizing on the constantly rising popularity of online resources to people around the world. Imagine looking through some lengthy article online. A few minutes of reading quickly becomes a drag, especially if you haven't found the information that you are looking for. For web page owners, you will need to consider the information that is being sought by your potential audience. To help a person read a particular section of your own website you should do the following: Lead them directly to where the search words are located on your website that they need to view. Then they need to ignore the rest of the paragraphs that are not important to the person you are helping. This is accomplished by personalizing your squeeze page. In order to do this you must provide section heads near the topmost area of your site and then link them to the parts of the text that they relate to. For instance, a user might be looking for a cell phone directory. The phrase they type in is highlighted across the top of the web page. The topic might actually be discussed at the bottom of the page. To increase the speed of the process, so that the searcher did not have to read the entire article, he would simply click on the phrase at the top. In a matter of seconds the squeeze page will take the person using the program to the section on mobile telephone directories. It is that user-friendly and convenient to use. Personalizing the squeeze page A personalized squeeze page would really be helpful in the part of the online user. That is because he could be given the chance to save time and effort by finding the exact subject he is seeking within the text of a Web page. A personalized squeeze page can be very beneficial also on the part of the Web owner or online business operator. That is because according to online studies, most transactions on the Internet are successfully coursed through personalized squeeze pages. How is it so? The needs of the online user are given priority when using the personalized squeeze page. The users are given the impression that the Web site was created specifically for them. An example of this is sending out emails to a number of people and referring them to the squeeze page. Your email can be personalized for the specific user by including a certain need or subject preference of the recipient. The user could then click on the specific link that matcher his or her need. This link will take the online user to the portion of the site that discusses the user's subject. Through this process, the user saves minutes. The user would, in turn, be appreciative of your effort and buy your products. Try including different designs to personalize your squeeze page. When creating your own squeeze page, you could seek the professional help of experts, especially if you want to establish special features into your squeeze page. Try asking the web designer to create your squeeze page so that the user would be addressed automatically in the headline of the Web page. This will make your squeeze page more effective and personalize it further. How does a "personalized squeeze page" work? One example would involve you sending a piece of electronic mail with a web link inside. Should the user choose to visit said link, they see a page which includes their name. Next, the site's message would follow the user's name. The web page would then appear as a letter to the user. Analysts guess that this method actually works because the online user's ego feels a boost at the personalized attention. Another important aspect of this feature the information it contains, a squeeze page should have only the information that is being sought by the user, not less, not more. The user is looking to be about their business as quickly as possible, so they need to get their information quickly. Squeeze pages can directly sell products or simply disseminate information. In the latter, earnings can be derived by accepting ad placements that would be posted at strategic locations within the Web site.

Starting Your Very Own Business

An advertising manager, tired of going to the office 8 hours a day, 6 days a week, and feeling confined in a designated space, finally decided to file for an early retirement and start her own business.

Her relatives have their own businesses, and her parents are actually owners of a small sandwich deli found at the corner of her office. Being an entrepreneur runs in her blood. She is attracted to this lifestyle through years of helping her parents and seeing her relatives run their own trade.

She likes to dabble a lot with graphic design. In fact, her birthday cards have been very popular among her relatives and lovedones that she has expanded her layouts to include other special events and holidays.

Nowadays, she earns more than her regular pay with getting design jobs for special greeting cards and postcards. Clients usually order online and can choose from her wide range of designs for all occasions. What is really interesting about her small venture is that clients can actually put their own thoughts and words to the cards. You just have to write them in the order form.

Her dream of a retail business became a reality. It took a lot of initial work, and more than enough anxiety to last her a lifetime. But with strategic planning and careful preparation, she was able to achieve her goals.

So how did she start her own retail business? Here is what you need to initially set up your own shop:

Legal Structure. The proper legal structure is the very first thing that you have to decide when starting your retail business. You need to choose the best for your business as future changes may mean more costs later on.

Retail Business Name. When you register your retail business, you will need to record a business name. This is one of the pre-requisite of having a retail business.

Employer Identification Number (EIN). This is your Federal Tax Identification Number. This is used to identify you from among the many business entities operating.

Products and Services. You cannot very well start a retail business without having a product to sell or a service to offer. Before you commit to a merchandise, think carefully of what you are interested in and what appeals to you. Consider them before you decide to resell.

Business Plan. Whatever retail business you decide on, you need to have a business plan to help you map out your steps. Your business plan will get you to where you want to go, and help you to be on track.

Permits and Licenses. Get business licenses and permits from your city, county or state governments. You need to be informed of what laws govern your retail business niche.

Location. As any experienced real estate agent would say, location matters, a lot. Your location will have a major impact on your retail business' success or failure.

Shop Rules. Establish rules and policies to handle any kind of situation in your retail business.

Marketing Campaign. You need to let your target clients know that you exist. Spread the word through flyers, postcards and even brochures. Use your marketing collaterals to reach out and draw your clients to your retail business.

Free Effective Ways to Advertise Online

As a new business owner on the Internet you need to
understand that it’s not a matter of “if you build it they
will come.” The reality is, if you don’t advertise on the
internet, your new online business will fail. Here are just
a few ways to advertise on the internet:

Traffic Exchanges- are a free way to advertise on the
Internet. Although traffic exchanges are effective, they are
a very time consuming way of getting free advertising. If
you are on a budget, they are a good option.

Blogging- is one of the most powerful ways to advertise on
the Internet—and it’s free. Using RSS feed or pinging, you
can get your new blog site listed on many search engines in
a very short period of time. The more blogs that you set up,
the more your sit will get noticed. Most blog sites are free
to use, but some do charge a fee.

Write Articles- and submit them to as many free article
submission sites as possible. This is a very effective way
of getting an unstoppable flow of traffic to your website.
Make sure that your articles are well written, and contain
information that your readers will enjoy and find useful. Be
careful not to post an advertisement that will not produce
any results. Take the time to write an impressive article
about your business, hobby, or whatever else you are trying
to promote, then attach your signature file and the link
pointing back to your site. You can find many sites that
will automatically submit your article for you.

Post in Forums- by creating a new post or by replying to
topics already in existence within forums and attaching your
signature file to them. This is another affective way to
advertise for free. In addition, offer people good ideas or
quality answers to their questions. If you are unsure of the
answers to certain questions, use the internet to find and
post your answers. This may take some time, but it is well
worth the effort. They key is to post on many different
forums on a regular basis.

Pay per Click Ads- are the best way to get targeted traffic
to your site. Google, Adwords, Yahoo, and Adcenter are the
biggest Pay per Click (PPC) engines. However, you must be
very cautious, and educate yourself on PPC engines, so that
you will maximize your results and get a lower cost per
click percentage.


Ezines- are another effective way to advertise. They are a
good way to get your ad to thousands of opt in customers
overnight. Ezines, have the same power of email marketing,
but, they are safer. People have already asked to receive
the information. Customers have solicited for more
information, and you are providing it.

Pros And Cons Of Linux. Is It Right For Your Business?

What is Linux?

Linux is an operating system, like Microsoft Windows, MacOS, or Unix. It was created as a hobby by Linus Torvalds, a student at the University of Helsinki in Finland. What most people don’t know about Linux is that its source code is available to anyone. The Linux source code is called the kernel and it is the base of the Linux operating system. Because the source code or kernel is free, it has enabled hundreds of companies and individuals to release their own operating systems based on the Linux system. These operating systems or formats are often referred to as Linux distributions.

Each distribution has its own set of features and functionality that makes it unique. While Linux is generally considered free-ware and people associate that with no cost, that is not always the case. Some distributions are available for download for free and others are available on CD or floppy disk and have a small charge associated with them. You can find a list of distributions at http://www.linux.org/ and a list of applications at http://www.Linux.org/apps/

Because if the adaptability of Linux it has been embraced and supported by a number of operating systems and software programs. For example, IBM, Hewlett-Packard and other giants of the computing world have embraced Linux and support its ongoing development and openoffice.org and Mozilla run on Linux. US retailing giant Wal-Mart began selling Linux systems back in 2002 - if Wal-Mart isn’t mainstream, nothing is.

What are the benefits of Linux?

Many people fear that Linux is going to be difficult to work with or that it will be difficult to find software that will run on Linux however Linux is a very standard operating system, compatible with just about any software you need.

Beyond being a standard operating system, Linux supports open source software which makes it a very economical operating system, especially if you program your own software. It offers many free or low cost applications which include, basic desktop applications like web browsers, email programs, word processing programs, spreadsheets, graphics programs, and file managers.

Linux can easily operate as a central server for your business. With Linux, you can serve your own web pages up for public consumption and handle your own email.

Linux doesn’t require top of the line hardware though many recommend you have at least 256 MB of RAM and at least 4 GB of space in your hard drive.

Linux is considered to be extremely stable and doesn’t need to be rebooted periodically to maintain performance levels. Think about the last time you sat at your computer and it froze. Not fun, right? That doesn’t happen with Linux if it is configured correctly.

Linux isn’t going to be replaced anytime soon and when bugs are found in the system, a developer are quickly on the job and often times a solution is offered within a matter of hours, not months or years like many other operating systems.

Linux is also fast and can handle a number of tasks at the same time.

Linux also claims to be one of the most secure operating systems isn’t plagued with the viruses that other operating systems generally deal with.

Linux is free from having to upgrade it or deal with proprietary file formats and licensing fees. You don’t have to register it due to its open source format.

You can have both Linux and windows on your computer. (You’ll have to partition them on your hard drive and you can only boot them one at a time.)

Drawbacks of Linux

There is no 1800 customer service number to call. However, most distributions offer a support number or email to call if you find a bug. They also generally come with installation instructions.

You cannot run applications for MS windows on Linux. However, there are Linux emulators or applications that enable you to run some windows applications on your Linux system. They operate like a translator. Some of these ‘translation or emulator’ products are free and others are available for a price.

Linux is not able to run some advanced financial applications or reproduce some proprietary multimedia formats.

Tips and Advice:

Choose a popular distribution has a large developer community. A large developer community means that you’ll find the programs that you need easily and you will be able to install them with the same ease. The more well-known distributions have prepared programs in ‘packages’ that are easy to install. On top of this, there are tools designed especially for a particular distribution to manage these packages to make sure that programs run correctly right away. The website Distrowatch.com maintains a comprehensive list of the most popular distributions.

Get the latest version of your chosen distribution. The newer the Linux distribution version, the better the hardware support. The number of glitches you’ll get in the installation process decreases with the newness of the version of Linux you choose.

Consider paying for your Linux distribution. It is true that you can get a full-featured Linux operating system free of charge by downloading it from any number of sources. This is an excellent alternative to an operating system like Windows, which either comes pre-loaded with a newly purchased computer (which gets figured into the cost), is bought separately or copied ‘illegally’. In most people’s experience, the popular Linux distributions are easy to install. However, if you do run into some glitch (normally hardware related), you may have a frustrating experience. Although there are a number of excellent Linux support forums out there, personalized advice on your particular problem may be hard to find.

Use an appropriate computer. if you want to use Linux to do the same things that you would with Windows XP or Mac OS X, then you’ll need the newest computer you can get your hands on. Avoiding ‘elite’ video cards and new, exotic hardware will also work in your favor because you won’t have to deal with hardware support which may be inferior to hardware support from other operating systems.

Bottom Line:

Linux is a fantastic and powerful operating system that can handle most or all of your operating needs. It is secure, fast, reliable, and generally extremely cost effective. When purchased or obtained through a reliable distributor and installed and configured correctly there are virtually no drawbacks to running Linux. Additionally, you don’t have to give up your windows if you don’t want to.

MemberSpeed Content Management software can run on any Linux Any Linux based Hosting Platform (Preferably RHEL 3 or above).

How To Be Safe When Banking Online

In today's modern world, people use every resource to make their hectic lifestyles a little easier. The World Wide Web has made many menial tasks much simpler and quicker to perform than they might otherwise be done through conventional methods. An email to Australia, for example, can be delivered in seconds whereas the same letter sent by standard mail could take several days or even weeks to arrive at its destination. Similarly, with a few clicks of your mouse it's possible to have your weekly groceries packed and delivered to your front door without you ever needing to leave the house.

However, for many World Wide Web users, online banking is a bone of contention as doubts about the security of online banking remain abundantly clear. Recent figures have revealed that 21 per cent of British internet users feared being a victim of a phishing scam or ID theft more than car theft, burglary and even mugging. However, online banking needn't be an ordeal, so how do you protect yourself from fraudsters?

Firstly, the way you set up your login details for your online banking account is vital to protecting the integrity of your account. Many people tend to choose passwords that are easily memorable, such as a child's or pet's name, but these can be easily guessed. Instead, choose a username and password consisting of a mixture of letters and numbers, and avoid using the same password for other online accounts.

Secondly, check to make sure the site you are on is secure. To do this, check that your internet browser displays a small padlock icon in the bottom of your screen. This icon indicates that any information you enter and send through the internet will be encrypted, making it much harder for internet thieves to intercept and decipher the data.

Phishing has become something of a buzzword when it comes to internet fraud, with losses due to phishing scams reaching £23 million by the end of 2006. Phishing is a method used by fraudsters to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication - most commonly via email. Phishing emails typically take the form of an official document from a bank, credit card company, or other financial institution and claims that there has been a problem with the user's account, or requests the user update their details. The email usually includes a link to follow which redirects the user to a dummy site, where users input sensitive information, including usernames, account numbers and passwords. These dummy sites resemble the authentic websites of the real institutions and can catch unsuspecting users. Remember, your bank will never send you an email asking you to update your details online, so if you receive an email like this, the best course of action is to use the 'delete' key!

Using a good antivirus software program can help provide extra protection from Trojans and other software designed to gather data from your computer. These programs are commonly disguised as common software applications and can log keystrokes made by the user, such as passwords and credit card numbers. There are also programs designed to eradicate these malicious components and preserve the integrity of your data, many of which are free to use.

Despite tales to the contrary, online banking can be quick, convenient and safe. Providing you take steps to protect your online current account, online banking needn't be an ordeal. After all, you wouldn't leave your wallet lying around - so why do the same with your bank account details?

Phishing Scams and What to Watch out for

Scam artists have come up with a new way of trying to deceive people and it’s called phishing. It is designed to steal some of your most important personal data, such as credit card numbers, passwords, account data, or other information. They then use all of this information to steal your money, identity or both.

Phishing usually involves the use of fraudulent emails and copy-cat websites trying to trick you into giving them all of your personal information which is then later used to access your financial records. They potentially can access your bank accounts, securities, mortgage, or credit accounts, your social security numbers, and the login passwords you use when accessing online financial services providers.

The con artists start a phishing campaign by sending millions of fraudulent e-mail messages which look like they are coming from trustworthy websites, such as your bank or credit card company’s website. They then ask you to provide personal information. Some recent scams were found to use official-looking logos from real organizations and other identifying information taken directly from legitimate Web sites.




Phishing scams are after your personal information. Be careful opening emails from organizations or addresses which you are not familiar with. Any email that you get from a trustworthy body such as eBay, Amazon, or perhaps your bank never ask for personal security information like your social security number or your password. Email isn’t the most secure medium for transporting sensitive information like that. There is no reason why a financial company should or would ask you those types of questions. In fact, most reputable companies state right in their privacy policy that they will never ask you to give your personal or billing information.


If you do happen to click on a phishing email, you’ll be transported to an insecure and potentially dangerous for your computer security website. Any reputable website using security encryption will always have HTTPS protocol at the beginning of the URL. It’s a great way to immediately identify a phishing scam. If a website doesn't have the HTTPS at the beginning of its URL, then it's not for real no matter how legit it may look.


Another obvious sign of a phishy website is when it has misspelled words in the URL address. If the name of the site is, such as www.gooogle.com for example, then that is a quick tip off that a phishing scam is happening.


Anytime you are asked for any personal information over the phone then there is a pretty good chance someone is trying to scam you. One very slick phishing scam occurs when a person receives an email supposedly from your banking institution, asking you to call a "secure" number in order to confirm your account number, billing address, or other personal information but only to have the person on the other line a scammer.


Sometimes you can tell a potential phishing email from its generic greeting. One of the easier ways in detecting phishing attempts is to always check if you're personally identified in the email content.


Here are two of the best ways to avoid being caught in a phishing scam:



You need to be critical - Be extremely skeptical of any all emails sent to you asking for personal information. If your bank or other financial institution really needs to get a hold of you to verify something, they'll send it in writing or via a secure email.


You need to be protected – There are plenty of virus protection programs available for you to set up on your computer. Many of these programs set up spam filters and phishing filters to help you avoid any potential problems or issues.

eScan gets the highest ranking from AV Comparatives

eScan had achieved the same rating in the last On Demand test conducted by the organization in February this year. As a test that evaluates AntiVirus solutions from various angles, AV Comparatives uses a large pool of malicious programs in its test bed. While the analysis checks how the products fare against Viruses, Macros and Scripts, it also examines how the solution detects the evasive bunch of Polymorphic Viruses.

"The channels of malware proliferation are ever increasing and the threats can quickly propagate across an enterprise network, thanks to these multiple routes. AntiVirus products should keep pace with this ever evolving threat scenario to provide round the clock protection for their users. With this recognition, eScan once again lives up to those steep standards," says Govind Rammurthy, CEO of MicroWorld Technologies.

The AntiVirus, AntiSpam and Content Security modules of eScan are rated to be the best by various independent evaluators. The AntiVirus section provides protection against a range of threats like Virus, Worm, Trojan, Backdoor, Bots, Trojan Clickers, Trojan Downloaders, Rootkits and all other malicious programs that you can possibly name. The detection is on the fly, as eScan blocks malware before they are downloaded, thanks to its unique MWL technology.

The Spam and Phishing Control of eScan combine multiple filters like Real-time Black List, SURBL Checking, X-Spam Rules Check, Sender Policy Framework and Non Intrusive Learning Patterns. This multi-layered mechanism blocks all junk and Phishing mails from entering user mail boxes.

The Web Scanning module blocks access to non-business and offensive websites in organizations. While the intelligent system works with advanced logics to accurately identify such websites, the administrators can also set the allowed web access timings for employees.

"The most important factor to be noted about AV comparatives test is that it gives rankings to various products in the present day market on their effectiveness in detecting malicious programs, which in fact is the core functionality of any AntiVirus solution. This ranking will enable security watchers, corporate decision makers and end users to make informed decisions in an otherwise complicated and ambiguous terrain," says Govind Rammurthy.

How Spyware Legally Attacks

You may have heard about spyware and if you surf the Internet a lot, you most likely have some on your computer, whether you know it or not.

Spyware does not concern itself with etiquette of asking for your permission. It simply just invades with much evil intent with no respect for your privacy, and the Internet is its pathway to your computer.

A favorite trick is to install spyware when you are installing another program. Generally spyware comes from free programs offered on the Internet. These free programs are called freeware, or shareware. Technically, the spyware company has your permission, although the legal issues are not clear.

Like most folks, you download a free program in hopes of finally receiving something free in life. Then you click to install the freebie, but there is a small stomp in your waythe license agreement. Just like any brave soldier, you click the I Agree button without actually reading the long set of words. And thus the spyware has legally invaded your home.

Usually spyware either displays advertising or it tracks what you are doing. Ever notice pop up windows suddenly appears on your computer? This is from spyware trying to get you to buy something. Other spyware tracks everything you are doing online and transmits the information to an advertising company.

Spyware can also gather email addresses in your address book, as well as passwords and other information off your computer and transmit it without your knowledge.

How do I know if I have spyware on my computer?

Here are the warning signs of spyware:

1) Pop ups even when you are not browsing the Internet

2) Icons and toolbars just magically appear

3) Web browsing seems slower and your PC appears to have inherited a turtle gene

4) Your browser goes to advertising sites unexpectedly

5) Your browser settings change supernaturally

6) Advertisement windows are everywhere

If you notice one or more of these problems, you definitely have spyware installed on your computer.

I dont want to seek any help, what can I do?

1) Get a reputable firewall program for your PC. If you have a Windows computer that was built within the last five years, then there is already a firewall built-in. Just make sure it is not disabled. Also virus protection software have firewalls integrated into the application.

2) Never click on popup advertisements. If you click, they will know that you are a real person, and you will just get more.

3) Stop downloading free porn, games and videos. If its free, its probably a trick! If you must considering downloading freeware, read the license agreements.

4) Keep your PC up-to-date. It is wise to keep your automatic update feature turned on.

5) Use a quality anti-spyware program.

Watch out for antispyware scams. These programs perpetrate themselves as legitimate software, but they are simply spyware programs. Needless to say, research to proactively guard yourself from scams such as this.

Allow the antispyware program to run on a scheduled basis, like every night when you are not usually on the computer.

How To Keep The Information On Your Site Safe

The privacy of information on your site is particularly necessary, particularly if you are in a retail operation. Your files may not seem as serious as spy documents, but they still need to be given equal care. A typical setup is that you have one or more sales pages for your product and when a prospect clicks on an order link they are redirected to PayPal, 2CheckOut or some other payment processing service. This setup is good for several reasons, the most important being the fact that you avoid having to deal with credit card numbers and other sensitive customer information. So far in 2007 there have been published reports of more than 89 million identity records exposed from data breaches. See the Identity Theft Resource Center for some really scary reading. Leaving data theft worries to companies who specialize in handling financial information is a great strategy for most small businesses. But you are not quite out of the woods yet. As a vendor of a digital "soft product" that can be bought and downloaded straight away, you have to guard against digital shoplifting. There's lots of ways that people in your position leave their website goods on display, unattended - leaving people to make off with them without paying, if they know how. Here are the 3 most common errors: 1. File identifiers simple to deduce. If the title of your e-book is 'AdWords Secrets', then don't name the file AdWordsSecrets.pdf. It is just too easy to guess that the URL for downloading your e-book might be www.example.com/AdWordsSecrets.pdf Making numbers such as a version number or date (example = AsWordsSecrets_v24.pdf, or AdwordsSecrets_20170606.pdf) as part of the filename will make the filename and corresponding URL much more difficult to figure out. 2. Indexing the product itself or the download page is the function of search engines. With an increase in efficiency of today's search engines it has become quite difficult to keep any website a secret from search engines. Even without public links accessing your product download page there are other ways for a search engine to discover it and index it. After it has been indexed anyone using that search engine will find your product download page information in their search results, making them able to download your product without charge. It is important to frequently survey what information the search engines have on your site. Most of the larger purveyors have an operator command, e.g. site: example.com, which will detail everything about that location that a web spider has crawled over and stored. 3. Improperly configured robots.txt robots.txt is a text file that you can place on your web server to guide search engines to what content they are allowed to index and what is off limits. While this may prevent most search engines from indexing your secret web pages, it opens up another vulnerability: any curious web surfer is able to view your robots.txt file. If the file explicitly forbids search engines from looking in the /downloads or /report directories, then it's very likely that's where the secret files are stored. With this knowledge the web surfer can more easily find your product and download it for free. It is important to maintain the proper balance between protection of your files and directories in robots.txt and not allowing too much information about the structure of your site out. Digital products are a great item to sell online. Be sure that you are getting paid for the items you have put the time into creating by using the guidelines listed above. These will help you be successful.

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Attracting Clients To Your Website

One of the most frequent questions I get asked is... how do I attract clients to my website? After all what good is the website if no one visits it. However getting visitors is only one part of the story. You need to attract targeted visitors! That is visitors who are interested in what you have to offer.
In contrast to TV, radio and Newspaper advertisements to attract clients, attracting clients using search engines is very targeted. It is targeted because visitors find your site by searching for something specific.
They search by entering search words/phrases into the search engine and the search engine presents them with pages/sites that best match their search phrases.
Whether or not the searcher selects a free listing or paid listing from the Search results the page that it is directed to matches the search phrase. Therefore the visitors to your site from the search engines are effectively already filtered and they are already interested in what you have to offer.
Paid Or Free
Everyone likes to get something for free. However in reality not even search engine traffic is really free. If you get visitors from the so called natural/ free listings (main part of the SERPs page) it is because your page has been optimized for the search engines, and that takes time/effort and even money.
The Good news is that once you have done the optimization and you are getting results you need to do very little to maintain it.
On the other hand paid traffic is relatively easy and fast to get but you will always have to pay.
Combining the Two
You could of course combine the two approaches; by paying initially for the visitors while you optimize the pages. Once you start getting traffic through the natural listings you can then decide whether or not to stop the paid traffic.
Of course if you are converting your visitors to clients at a reasonable cost then why not continue to use both methods
About the Author
Stephen Cope is a freelance trainer and webmaster. You can find get free SEO and PPC online training and consulting at his site dedicated to providing affordable SEO and PCC consultant/Training Services for small businesses.

Saturday, December 1, 2007

The Cool Thing About Internet Small Business

And here is the cool thing about being in an Internet small business, your competition, you can see exactly what they are doing all the time, any time you want to see what they are doing you just look. Like I said before, once the competition clicks on your ads in pay per click just to see your ad, but they want to click on it more to see what you are doing on your landing page and your lead capture page. They look to see if they need to get an edge on you or create something a little different for themselves, because you just changed what you are doing. It always pushes people forward and makes you a better person. That is how people become such good marketers because of competition. Some people would not be that good today if there was no competition. It forces you to try new things all the time, forces you to learn new things, get more courses, learn more from their mentors.
Many people pay tremendous amounts of money to their mentors to learn all the different things that make them successful. The mentor is a millionaire or a billionaire today, but you learn from them all the different tactics that can make you a millionaire or a billionaire today. It should be part of your success philosophy in any industry you want to learn something in, just find the cream of the crop in that industry, who you perceive that gives you great value as being the cream of the crop, and pay them what they want and learn everything you can from them. It will make you who you are, so other myths that are out there that you hear, I just talked about one myth now, but there are lots of myths out there. One of the myths out there is about making sales at a certain time or to recruit or sponsor, whatever you want to call it, that is a myth too.
We can prove that wrong numerous times, it is just a myth. We have told people that we continue on with business as usual and why the people that believe that myth in their head, you are out there capitalizing and making the sales that they could not make. The same thing in the months of December and November, same thing, we can debunk that myth too. The only industry that I have found so far that in the months of November and December that are absolutely slow and not worth doing business in was in the real estate industry. Other than that, we have not found any other things that we have done on and off line that is affected by the time of year. As a matter, of fact we have seen companies break sales records all year round just in December.
We have done many sales in November and December, even right on the holiday, it does not matter, right on Christmas Day, does not matter. So whenever you hear somebody say something that is potentially - - I mean they are not going to come out and say it is a myth, they are just going to say it is, instead of just believing it is a fact, either go get the facts, or prove it wrong, or ask them how or what proof they have. I want solid proof. And even if they do give you solid proof, try it yourself. There are a lot of things that are lost in the world just because a person believes what they hear. Same thing in politics and other areas and that is because people do not look into the different areas and the actual facts. So do your own research and be thorough about it.
Here is something to think about. How does someone make so many sales when other people are talking about how saturated a field is?

6 Effortless Ways To Build High Powered BackLinks

Link building is an essential promotional process for any ones internet business. If you neglect this task you will be at risk of losing a sizable amount of potential profits. SEO and Link Building is a successful affiliate marketers best friend. I've compiled together some of my most favorite linking methods that I use to achieve great rankings in the search engines.
Blog Comments
Blog comments are pretty easy to understand and use for linking purpose. It's always important to Find yourself a blog related to your niche and make a relevant comment. You can do this using google by entering the following your niches main keyword
Also, it's important to note that you should read the post and understand what you are commenting on. It's highly unlikely that the blog owner will approve the comment if its something mundane like "Good Site".
Article Marketing
Article Marketing has been my secret link gaining weapon against my competitors for years now. It's extremely important that you at some point learn to write a good and proper article. Its extremely simple for one article to result in literally hundreds of fresh backlinks.
Article Marketing is fairly basic. Write a 500-750 word article and submit away! Some websites will offer automated mass article submission services. These are a huge timesaver and will benefit you greatly.
Guestbook Comments
Guestbooks have been around since the internet was first made mainstream. Although, they are less common you can still benefit linkwise from a good guestbook backlink. There are some really old guestbooks that can provide you with a huge authority link increase fast. Google ranks old pages higher and they pass major linkjuice on to your web page.
Stay away from Guestbooks that have already been exploited massively by spammers. These can at times be penalized by search engines or marked as link farms.
Creating a Squidoo For An Easy Link Boost
Having your own Squidoo page dedicated to your website is an effortless way to gain a nice PR backlink for minimal work. It's vital that you provide useful content for your Squidoo page. Create a nice article to go on the front page and add a relevant RSS feed to it. Keep the guestbook open and reply to any comments that people may have.
Social Bookmarking
Social Bookmarking is the latest internet craze and is showing no signs of stopping. It's an excellent idea to take advantage of it and make it an easy way to gain good backlinks. Signup for a service such as OnlyWire that will automatically socially bookmark a group of the most popular social bookmark sites. Bookmark a few pages of your site and move on.
Getting EDU Links
This is kind of a shifty area of linkbuilding but if you can in someway find a .gov or .edu available to post links then you'll get a serious increase in search engine rankings.
Good Content
I saved the best for last. The best kind of backlink you can get is a free one. Providing useful content that people will want to talk about or post in forums is the single most powerful link building weapon in your arsenal.
If you can build a buzz around your content the results can be astronomical. It's harder to achieve this but very possible!
These are my favorite link building methods for marketing my home based business. It's essential that you combine one or more of these methods and diversify! Don't rely on just one method - Try more than one and perfect them all!

On Page SEO Optimization Made Easy

SEO is the one of the most important skill sets any internet marketer should have. It's one of the easiest and most profitable forms of traffic any website owner could receive. Search Engine Traffic is not the easiest to obtain however. One of the most important things a website owner should learn is how to optimize their web pages specifically for the search engines.
First things first, you should have your keyword picked out and ready to go. Once you've got that you can proceed to optimizing your web page.
It's also recommended that you have a rudimentary understanding of HTML.

Title Tags
The first thing you should do is include your keyword inside the title tags. The title tags are the first elements right after the head tags.
It's best that you include some other related text after you input the keyword. If my keyword was SEO I'd input something like SEO - Tips And Tricks For Optimizing Webpages
You can also add the title element to your outgoing links. Local links should also have keyword related title elements added on to them.

Header Tags
Header tags are in my opinion the second most important part of on page optimization right after optimized content. Header should be placed right before the content of your website. You should always place your keyword in header tags with a few other words relevant to your content. Also, always bold your keyword in your header tags.
Extra Tip: Use other relevant text related to surround your keyword with. Search Engines will sometimes penalize you for using a certain word or phrase to much.

Bold Your Keywords
It's always a good practice to add bold tags to your keyword when in your content. Your keywords should always be enclosed in bold tags whenever they come up in your content.

Image Alt Tag
If you can swing it, your keyword should be included in the alt tag of one of your images.
The ALT element can be added to an image if it isn't already. If you need help with this part of on page optimization then I suggest you look it up at htmlhelp.com. It's a great website that has taught me html from the bottom up. It's very useful to learn html when you are doing business on the internet.
Extra Tip: Try to use an image right after your header tags. It looks better in the search engines eye. Also, try to lay off the flash effects and javascript elements.

Keywords In Your Content
You should always include your keyword in your content. It's always better if you keep your keyword density around 3-6%. Keyword Density means your keyword should make up 3-6% of your content. Content should always be unique and relevant to your website.
If you follow all of these steps and techniques you should be on your way to ranking over your competitors. Remember, on page optimization isn't the deciding factor when it comes to rankings. Build your links and create good content for best results.

Creative Free Ways To Gain Backlinks

If you are a search engine marketer or website owner you know that search engines are important. You need to feed the search engine spiders with high quality unique content and authoritative relevant links back to your website. This process isn't always easy and you will constantly need to think outside of the box. Here are some strategies that I've been using to gain high quality backlinks successfully for a few months now.

Squidoo
Squidoo is a creative website that allows anyone to create a free web page easily and write on any topic they choose. They also have a unique revenue sharing program in which you can make easy money with your free web page.
What most marketers don't know is that the search engines love Squidoo. If you can get a few links back from Squidoo you can gain in the search engine rankings. I've been creating squidoo pages related to my niche for awhile now and my rankings have went through the roof! Setting up a free web page there is easy to do and can be quite fun.
It's important that when you create a lens there you create some unique content relevant to your niche. After you create your content you can configure it there with various options. It's pretty self explanatory but you should keep in mind you want a QUALITY back link. Once you've configured all of the various options you should post your content with a link back to your website.

Extra Tip: Add a link from your website back to it. This will encourage your current visitors to visit it and interact while also getting your lens rankings higher. This will give your Squidoo a much needed boost.

Free Web Hosts
Free Web Hosts have been around for a long time and most of them out there possess a lot of authority with the search engines. They spider and rank these pages regularly. I usually make one page websites with a unique article and a link back to my site.

Free Blogs
Free blog hosts like Blog Spot and Blogger are owned by google. Google constantly spiders these pages and they make for good links. If you have the time, create a blog at one of the many free blog hosts and create some good relevant content. Post every other day for a couple of weeks. Make sure to drop a link to your website in each post.

Free Forums
There are many free forum hosts out there that will let you have your very own forum. These sites usually have a high page rank and are slightly aged. These can provide good rankings and a link back from them usually does well.
There are many other creative ways to get links back to your site. Try to think outside the box and constantly reinvent your linking strategies.

Benefits of a Sitemap

Benefits of and Tips on Designing a SitemapHave you ever wondered how a search engine works? It must be fascinating figuring out how this search tool could direct you to several websites that are relevant to your keywords. Or, have you experienced instances where the link that supposedly contains your keywords is not exactly what you have in mind? You would probably think that there must be something wrong with the search engine that it generated irrelevant results.

How does a search engine work?

Two things figure greatly in making search engines work effectively and efficiently: the electronic search spider and the sitemap.

What is a sitemap?

A sitemap is basically a page or pages that serve/s as a directory by listing all the links to all documents and files found in a website. It is not merely a random listing of links, but organized in such a way that it gives the web user an idea of how all the information that can be found in the site fits into an outline or framework. It is like viewing the table of contents of a book, or viewing the "concept map" of the site's content.

What is a spider?

In SEO language, spider is not an animal found in your closet. This electronic search spider is actually a bot which collects data and copies content to be stored in the search engine's database when keywords are fed into the search dialogue box. The spider reads the content of the site and sends another bot to follow the links and copy the content contained in them.

What purpose does a sitemap serve?

A sitemap like any other map gives directions to a navigator. It primarily targets search engine spiders so that they are properly directed to your site and to the links where keywords entered in the search dialogue appears. As such, it is actually a useful tool in search engine optimization. A well organized site map would guide the spider to find the information it needs when keywords are entered during a search operation.

As an additional beneficial consequence, sitemaps have proven to be useful even to web users. Since a sitemap displays all the links to information found in a website, it helps the user to search for a particular topic in mind. Many users also use the sitemap to navigate between pages in a site.

What are the benefits of having a sitemap for my website?

1. No page would be left unturnedGoing back to the purpose of sitemaps, having one would mean faster and easier tracking and crawling of spiders all over your site. As a result, search engines would surely get to the view all the pages of your site and not just the pages containing random keywords.

2. Easier navigation for site visitorsOnce a web user has accessed your sitemap, they need not go back to the search engine page to look for what they need. If what they are looking for is in your site, then they would have an easier and faster way of locating it.

3. Potential advertising valueIf it so happens that a relevant product or service company reaches your site, then it would be easier for them to see how best they can position themselves in the different pages of your site as a paid page advertisement.

4. Encourage greater traffic to your siteIf your company website has a sitemap then potential buyers would have an easier time in accessing your latest products and services. Moreover, they would not miss out on any product that might be off future interest to them since the sitemap would display all information found the site.

How are sitemaps formatted?

There are at least three major types of sitemaps: indexed, full categorical, and restricted categorical. An indexed site map appears as an alphabetical listing or directory.A full categorical map displays all links classified into categories; while a restricted categorical sitemap displays all links listed in a chosen category at a time. The full and restricted sitemaps are very similar except that the former displays all links in all categories all at once in a page, while the latter focuses only the links under the selected category for easier and less eye-straining viewing.

The most widely used format is the full categorical. Based on the results of a 1999 SURL study on sitemap designs, the full categorical format is most preferred by users since it is easier to search for topics within the site and it allows easier comparison between and among categories.Some tips in setting up your sitemap

1. Link the sitemap only to your homepage.This is to ensure that the spider starts searching from your homepage down to all the pages listed in your sitemap. In this way, no page would be left unvisited by the spider.

2. Do not go beyond 30 pages for a sitemap.Large websites having 50 or more pages should not go beyond 30 since this adds more pages to the site, and might make search engines think that the sitemap is a link farm. Also, this prevents overcrowding of links which could be tiring to view.

3. Check all the links listed in your sitemap.It can be discouraging when you click on a link only to find out that nothing is displayed. Test your sitemap; click all links in every page to make sure that all links are indeed linked to the right page.

4. Give keyword-rich titles to sitemap links.Keyword-rich titles give your site more advantage in being searched properly under the right category. But be sure to have this sitemap link linked back to the sitemap (e.g. back to sitemap).

5. Provide a short description for the links in the sitemap.Doing so would give readers a better idea of what to find in the link and save them time on surfing.

6. Be consistent in designing your sitemap with the other pages of the site.Employ a recurring design and the same HTML template for all pages to establish identity and build character to your website.Now that you have learned basic things about sitemaps, maybe it is time for you to build one for your site.

Inside Search Engine Rankings

A problem that search engines encounter often is the design of websites that purely use advanced programming such as C++, JavaScript or CGI. If the navigation links within your site are powered by these advanced scripts alone, the search engine will not be able to fully browse your site. You need to provide links done in basic HTML so that the engine can read your website.

It takes months for a website with a new domain name (.com, .org or .edu) to show up on search engines. Google has imposed an ageing delay on new websites so that it doesn't waste time on indexing websites that don't last long. If you want to change your domain name, I suggest you rethink your plan and use what you have instead. A cosmetic facelift of your existing web pages along with several good quality SEO articles will serve you better in the long run. After all, you will be working with what you already have. If you know all the insides and outs of your website, then it would be so much easier to revise than replace because of familiarity.

Some internet marketers make the mistake of placing keyword density requirements above that of article quality. At first glance, it does make sense to optimize an article for your keywords rather than be concerned with artistic considerations or honest, from the heart writing. However, bear in mind that not everyone will buy your product or idea. You know that what you sell is sellable only to a certain target market. If you prioritize keyword optimization in your article rather than writing the article for the sake of the product you want to sell and for the information of your target audience, chances are you will attract buyers of another commodity that you do not have.

The keyword here is relevance. A person searching the internet for something he needs will filter out the search results by using the relevance criterion. My suggestion is, write the article for the sake of your product and for your target customers' information. Place the priority of keywords as a secondary consideration. It's all about relevance. I know that it would be a plus for you if you manage to pull in lots of traffic even though they don't want anything to do with your site. Believe me, misleading a person in the internet is a risky business. That person you mislead can hit back by starting-up an email brigade against your website.

Be specific with your keywords. Don't generalize. The biggest disadvantage of internet shopping is that customers are not able to scrutinize the product personally. What they usually do is find out from other sources what the product is all about, how it works, etc... When they decide to finally buy, they know what they're looking for and will mostly likely use a specific name brand as part of their search strings. Your keywords need to be able to match those strings in terms of number of words matched and how the order of those words match. Others will search for stuff by using its sub-categories. For example, when looking for bras, women need to spell out their torso and cup size.

So, the bra size can be a 36 B or a 36 C. Then there are colors to choose from like red, burgundy and black. A bit more specific is the bra classification. Is it a half-cup or a push-up, or is it a sport bra? With these factors in mind, you can conclude that a woman looking for a bra in the internet can type in "black push-up bra 36-C". Do you have key phrases to match those search strings? Are the words in your key phrases arranged in the same order? The final consideration is the literature where those keywords are embedded. If the article is just a jumble of words full of keywords, the search engine will most likely discard your website in favor of another. This will decrease the ranking of your website in the search results page. In worst case scenarios, they may actually ban your website from showing up in search results

P.S. A lot of SEO experts claim that it isn't the keyword, but the article that brings you success. Based on what is written above, I tend to agree. Do you? BandoMarketing

Internet Success With Wikipedia

Wikipedia is the most popular organic online encyclopedia, and you can use it to boost your Web site's search engine rankings! Just go to www.wikipedia.com and add your own entry about your business or nonprofit. Read on to find out more.

The easiest way to access the editable section of Wikipedia is to simply search for your organization with Wiki's internal search engine. If there is not already an entry for your organization you will have the option of creating a free account and writing the entry yourself. Be careful not to make it sound like an advertisement or it may be taken down or rewritten, but you can add your Web link, basic information about your organization, mission statement, and other important facts about your firm.

Since Wikipedia is so popular, you will most likely see a noticeable upswing in your Web site traffic soon after you post your entry. Check back to make sure that it didn't get removed or reworded, but the entry you post will go live immediately. However, if it sounds too much like an advertisement, it may get taken down. If this happens you can keep trying until you get it right.

You can also add your own personal autobiographical entry about yourself and other key employees in your firm - all with links to your company Web site. Every reputable external link puts you one step closer to Internet success!

Google rates your Web sites based on the number of external links you have coming into your site from other sites. The quality of the external links is also taken into consideration. For instance, if your site has links coming into it from one or more highly popular sites, Google will rank you higher.

In addition to Google's organic (free) rankings Call us for more information on how you can get Google Adwords working to bring you more qualified leads from your Web site for as little as pennies per click!

Social networking for opportunity seekers!

Internet millionaire Armando Montelongo of armandomontelongo.com launched a new site called Armando Montelongo.com.

This site is catered to one market, entrepreneurial people and business opportunity seekers.
"The site is there for all types of people who want to meet with other who have some of the same business interests. It caters to any type of opportunity, investment clubs, franchises, Network opportunities, Day traders, you name it and the site caters to it.

With so many filters on the internet, even legitimate subscriber email is getting blocked, which unfortunately rendering newsletters somewhat ineffective leaving opportunity seekers no valid or cost effective way to find or communicate with each other.

ArmandoMontelongo.com is very different in that it allows people to communicate in real time audio and video conferencing in a secure environment.

People can join free knowing that others on the site will enjoy hearing about their opportunities.
You can visit the site at http://viclizarraga.armandomontelongo.com

White Hat Ways To Get Tons Of Back Links

If you have been doing any form of internet marketing, then you know how important it is to get back links to your site. Google, Yahoo, and all of the other major search engines love back links. In fact that is how they index pages, by the number and quality of sites linking back to that site. So the more links that are pointing to your site from other sites, the better position you will get in the search engines, and consequently you will also get more traffic to your site.
There are people that sell links. You can buy links from them. There are also link exchange programs, that you can exchange links with other people.
So in order to get a good position in Google and Yahoo, you could just buy a ton of back links and exchange links with a hundred other people, right?

WRONG!!!

You see Google doesn't feel that sites that have "reciprocal links" (or links that point back to each other) are good indicators of a pages quality. And they also don't feel that purchased links are a good indicator of a sites quality either. So Google banishes or punishes sites that buy or do link exchanges. (Note: This isn't to say that there aren't ways to buy links without being punished, or to say that buying links is wrong. It's just that Google will give penalties to sites that do buy or sell links. But only the ones that they catch. It is also worth noting that link exchanges aren't necessarily bad, it's just that you shouldn't do it with hundreds of sites, but you should exchange links with a few sites.)

The solution

In order to get back links to your site, you will need to get people to willingly put back links to you on their site. You must figure out a way that other Bloggers and other sites will choose to put a link on their site to your site, or article.

There are multiple ways to do this. Here are some of the methods that people use.
1) Politically Incorrect - If you post on your site, or your blog, something that is politically correct, or something that many people don't agree with you will be very likely to get a ton of back links. People that agree with you will link back to you, because they agree with you and want to show other people what a good idea it is that you have. And people that disagree with you will also link back to you, because they will put a link to your article, followed by a counter argument. In either way you should be able to get tons of back links.

2) Free Stuff - People love free stuff. If you give away something for free that others want people are going to tell their friends. Some will tell there friends face to face, and others will put a link on their site. Either way you will get a ton of traffic, and will be more likely to get a good ranking in the search engines. If it is an expensive thing that you are giving away, you could have some type of contest, were only one or a couple of people get it. If it is a small prize, say an ebook, and then you could just give it away to anyone who wants it. (You can also use this method to build an opt-in list.)

3) Current News - Anything that is going on in the news you can write about. This works better for some sites than it does for others. For example celebrity sites work really well with this kind of marketing. But you can still do this with any site. Find a topic in the news related to your site, and write about it. People will often link back to that article, because they are interested in it, and so will their readers.

4) Lists - The final technique that I will talk about is lists. People love lists. They love to read them, and they love to link to them. Lists offer an easy to read, easy to follow guide that offers tips and suggestions for doing things. If you write a long list, maybe a list of a hundred or so things related to any topic, you are bound to get good results with people linking back to you. To create a list, think of something that people want to know, or something that they will often ask. And then answer them the list should be a topic like this: "How can I ...?" or "How can I ... better?"

Those are some of the ways to get other sites to link back to yours. There are many more, but this should provide a small list of them. If you just put in the work to create good valuable content, you should have no problem getting people to link to your site, as long as they get to your site in the first place.