The Management Consulting Group

A web directory is cyber yellow pages. It has different categories under which one can locate relevant information. Online businesses increase profitability, web traffic, and search engine ranking by submitting websites to directories.

Submitting to web directories is to broaden your horizons.

There are many benefits:

• Most directories attract considerable traffic. Surfers access specific categories of interest to them and open websites within the category. By default, the website submitted by you will get “click through traffic.”

• Spiders released by search engines will add your site to search engine indexes. And, links from directory pages are automatically indexed.

• Higher rankings on the search engine page for key words optimizing the website. Ensure that the anchor text linking the directory to your website has a phrase that identifies or states clearly the functions offered by your website. This will provide: higher click through ratings; better rankings in search engines; a greater number of links enabled by variations in key phrases.

• Increased number of links to your web page. Surfers will find links to your website, as being in a directory means receiving many back links. The more the number of links the higher a search engine ranking and the greater the number of viewers or users or clients.

• Enhanced credibility. Being a part of a quality directory means that you website has been through stringent vetting standards and reviews. Internet surfers are aware that only websites of high standards are listed in a directory. Websites listed in directories with credibility means these are the sites of choice and, they are guaranteed excellent content as well as services.

• A niche directory that is specific to your business will direct potential customers quickly and efficiently. The cost of submission can be quickly recovered.

• Provide simple links with a high PR category pages and few or minimal outgoing links. This ensures maximized popularity links to your site, boosting rankings.

Be prudent in your choices:

• Limit the number of directory submissions.

• Submit to all established free niche directories and just a few selected paid submission directories.

• Make use of sponsored links to jump start traffic to your site.

• Find out whether the directory uses keywords or uses an editorial approach using editorial ratings.

• Discover what sponsored listings signify. These are always listed first.

• Figure out whether the directory has alphabetical ordering or a first come basis.

• After inclusion in directories of standing, get listings in search engines with site rankings.

Do your homework, make wise choices. Experts recommend selecting niche sites as well as giants like Yahoo and DMOZ. Study thoroughly the comprehensive guidelines provided by directories. Think out and plan your marketing strategy and targets. Random submissions must never be made. You must achieve a ROI, return of investment.

Paul Wilson is a freelance writer for www.1866WebDirectory.com<www.1866webdirectory.com/>, the premier website directory provides human edited categorized website listings including business websites, news websites, gaming websites, shopping websites, travel websites and more. He also freelances for www.1888PressRelease.com<www.1888PressRelease.com/>.

If you’re a fundraising consultant, you know that now is the
prime time of year that groups begin to plan their holiday
fundraisers. If you’re new to landing fundraisers, or if you’re
experienced with fundraisers but haven’t yet delved into direct
mail as a means of landing fundraisers, read on for tips that
will help you this fundraising season.

Gathering a List

There are a ton of groups that fundraise throughout the year to
raise money. Try focusing on a single type of group in your
local area to begin with. A few groups that regularly try to
raise funds include:

Daycares Preschools Public schools Private schools Sports Teams
School Bands Cheerleading Teams Booster Clubs Youth Leagues
Civic Clubs Churches And plenty more.

To find the groups local to you, you can hit the yellow pages or
use an local search engine
to find a list of names, addresses and phone numbers. Call each
of the groups you’d like to send information to and use the
following script (or adapt it to your needs):

“Hi. I’m sending you some fundraising information and I’d like
to know who in your office to address it to.”

Write down the person’s name and now you know who to ask for
when you call to follow up on the information you send out (this
allows you to get past the “gatekeepers”.

Sending the Letter

Craft a one page letter (not a flyer) that simplifies your
program, and most importantly, how using your program can
benefit their group. These letters should always be one page.
You want it to give them a useful overview without being so long
that they don’t read it.

Mail the letters to the organizations on your list, with an
“Attention to:” the person whose name you got from the prior
phone call. Include with the letter a sample brochure.

Following Up

This is extremely important. If you do not plan to follow up,
then it will be a waste of your time to send out the letters.
About a week after you’ve sent them, start calling the
organizations you sent them to - ask directly for the contact
person as if they are expecting your call. Then, tell them you
had sent them information, ask if they have had a chance to look
at it and if you can answer any questions.

At that point, it is up to you to pitch the sale. If the group
says they won’t now, but would be interested in the future, add
them to a future call list to re-contact in about three months.
Good luck!

One of the early participants in contextual advertising was
Google, with its AdSense program. With this program, Google
shares pay per click revenue with a huge number of individual
partner websites that carry a few pay per click ads that are
distributed by Google. In essence, this creates a whole bunch
of little pay per click locations (websites) throughout the
Internet. Yahoo has a similar program called Yahoo Publisher
Network and there will be many more contextual advertising
programs in the future.

Conceptually, programs like Google AdSense and Yahoo Publisher
Network are similar to what the computer hardware folks refer
to as distributed processing. Instead of trying to draw everyone
to a large pay per click search engine site, little groups of pay
per click ads are spread widely across thousands of locations
(websites) distributed all over the Internet.

Actually, this distributed processing or propagation technique is
not limited to pay per click advertising. For example, Amazon
uses a similar arrangement (called Amazon Associates) to sell the
products it carries on amazon.com and ClickBank has a sales
program called CBAdwords which operates in a similar fashion.

According my trusty Ouija board, it seems likely that most
commercial hubs on the Internet will be shifting to this
propagation concept as time progresses…all of those individual
partner websites that carry the message/proposition will
constitute the vast army of worker ants that keep the queen ant
alive and healthy.

From a pay per click marketing perspective, these programs make
brilliant use of leverage while providing highly targeted
prospects for the paying advertiser.

There are, of course, some interesting things that occur as a
result of all of this stuff. For example, consider what I call
the “cross fertilization effect”: Suppose a person goes to
yahoo.com and performs a search that leads them to one of my
websites that happens carry Google AdSense ads and that visitor
then clicks on one of those ads…the net result is that Yahoo
natural search provided Google pay per click with some revenue!
Aren’t these fun times that we’re living in?

As these programs continue to proliferate, the individual
webmaster needs to exercise a little restraint and avoid the
temptation to go overboard by plastering these ads all over your

website and thereby diluting your own primary message/proposition
and confusing your hard earned visitor. When properly used,
these ads are just ancillary or complementary content that you
are providing to enhance the information and opportunities that
you are providing to your visitor…if something happens to
strike a responsive chord with your visitor, you might make a
little pay per click money.

If properly used, these propagation programs can result in the
classical “win-win” situation. However, if you over do it, this
can quickly turn into a loss for you (the individual webmaster)
and a win for your pay per click partners that are distributing
the ads. As in many things, moderation is important.

It’s a constant sea of change, but the good things just keep on
getting better! Stay alert, and light on your feet, and the
opportunities will just keep on coming your way.

The above are just some observations from “the peanut gallery”,
but I don’t think I’m far off the mark about where things are
heading. With that, I’m off the soapbox and wishing you
success in whatever you do online!

Kirk Bannerman operates a successful home based business and
coaches others seeking to start their own home based business.
Visit his website at Legitimate Home Based Business for more details.

As you read this book you will have to suspend the disbelief you feel when confronted with my assertions that for at least 5000 years man has been in close contact all over the world. If you have read my other books you will know I have made the case better than any and that there are lots of good scholars who agree with me.

Puma Puncu and Lake Titicaca may provide the proof as a recent research team finally checks out the spires of ancient buildings that fishermen have tied their boats to for millennia. Here high in the Andes we know there were astronomers who also were in Central America where the Earth Energy Grid allowed something fantastic to dovetail with other places including Giza. The Cosmic energy and earth energy in concert with their soulful energy was able to build psycho-spiritual attunements that have only recently been sublimated by most nations or our leaders. Yet these leaders are members of cults or Christian Mystery Schools like the Rosicrucians who use this occult knowledge against us.

I think there is a great chance that it was well understood 15,000 years ago by Andean astronomers who were Kelts and later became Chachapoyas and leaders of the Incas in a time when much of the real knowledge had diminished. High above the clouds they could see the Milky Way formation that looks like a serpent without the glass lenses that they got from the slow moving lava flows and that have been found at La Venta in Mexico and in modern day Ecuador by archaeologists. Quetzalcoatl, Kukulcan, Viracocha, Xolotl and others are the ‘travelers’ who I think I have proven are Druids through many sources in other books. Here is a little of the Theosophist viewpoint on the serpent or Dragon wisdom that led Central America and included people boarding their kid’s heads to look like serpents.

“We read in The Secret Doctrine that fohat, divine messenger, intelligent cosmic electricity, who at the Divine Word proceeds forth to create worlds and the beings thereon, moves in a serpentine course, generates spirals; and this spiral plan of evolution is imitated throughout nature, from the nebulae to the spiral growth of plants. The serpent means divine wisdom, creative intelligence; and Masters of Wisdom are called serpents — which gives a new meaning to the injunction “Be ye wise as Serpents.” Hermes or Mercury carries the caduceus, a wand with two serpents entwined on a staff; the Chinese made the serpent the emblem of their emperors; the Druids called themselves snakes; serpent-emblems called Dracontia once covered the globe and are still found; Quetzalcohuatl was the snake-deity of the ancient Mexicans; dragons are found throughout ancient symbology with the same sense. But we also hear of evil serpents. The Gnostics spoke of an Agathodaimon and a Kakodaimon, or a good and an evil divinity, represented as serpents; Hercules slays Python; Apollo at birth overcomes a serpent, but does it by means of another serpent — the higher wisdom in man overcoming the lower. The two nodes of the moon, Rahu and Ketu, are called the Dragon’s head and tail. So the serpent can represent the duality of human nature — which is but a copy of the duality in cosmos. A dual geometry may be based on the right and left helical curves. There is the serpent of spirit and the serpent of matter, the heavenly wisdom from above and the earthly wisdom from below, of which Paul speaks so often.” (1)

There are many books that Adrian Gilbert, Robert Bauval, Robert Schoch and others have done which show the correspondences between Egyptian and Mayan prophecy. I regard a lot of this as mere rationalization of Armageddon type fear-mongering and ‘miss’-story. Inevitably they draw alien influences into the game and often they see it going from Egypt to the Sarmoung Brotherhood rather than having an earth-based prior culture in places such as archaeology does now prove. I have documented these things in books starting with Diverse Druids. The chances of my work getting a real publisher are minimal as a result. Archaeologists do not integrate all the discoveries throughout the world and the media in the US refuses to report on finds such as Yonaguni or tell us why Kennewick Man’s site was destroyed. I know 60 Minutes asked that pointed question but I have yet to find an answer as to who did this or allowed it to happen the day before Congressional Bills were set to take effect.

The correspondences of the Mayan calendar with Egypt are real in some ways and I do not throw away the information provided. I do however look for the science to explain these things rather than take the easy answer which fits a paradigm that has fed excrement to us about Elohim or other alien influences for the last five thousand years.

About the Author

World-Mysteries.com guest expert
Regular columnist for The ES Press Magazine
Author of Diverse Druids

Laser hair removal has come a long way since the first laser for hair removal received FDA clearance in the mid 1990’s. Older generation lasers were slow, very painful and worked only on individuals with very dark hair and very light skin. Today, lasers can work on all skin colors and some lasers are even safe for treating tanned skinned.

When considering a hair removal laser treatment, consumers should ask the following questions:

1) Is this laser FDA approved for hair removal on my skin type and hair color?

There are several lasers for hair removal available. No one laser is ideal for every individual. Depending on your skin color and hair color, some lasers will be more effective than others.

The Ruby Laser:
This is the “original ” hair removal laser. Its deep red color at 694nm is very well absorbed by the melanin pigment in hair, making it an excellent choice for fine and light hair. However, because melanin is present in the skin as well, the Ruby laser cannot be used on patients with skin that is not very light, including tanned skin. Because of this limitation, slow repetition rate, and relatively small spot size, Ruby lasers have become less popular for laser hair removal in recent years.

The Alexandrite Laser:
This laser produces reddish light. With its large (up to 18mm) spot size and high repetition rate, the Alexandrite laser is the fastest hair removal laser, and is suitable for rapid treatment of large body areas in patient with light to olive complexion. An entire back can be treated in less than 30 minutes.

The Diode Laser:
This laser, consists of a high power laser diode emitting infrared (invisible) light at ~800-808nm. The longer wavelength allows deep penetration into the skin and safety for darker skin types, but with less efficacy for lighter and finer hair.

The long pulse Nd:YAG:
This laser can be used on all skin types, including tanned skin. Large spot sizes and fast repetition rates allow large areas to be treated quickly. Disadvantages include more discomfort during treatment and less effective clearance for fine and light hairs than the other hair removal lasers.

IPL devices are not lasers, because they emit non-coherent light of many different wavelengths. However, because most of the light energy is in the shorter wavelengths, treatment of darker skin types is less effective than with the appropriate laser.

2) What is the spot size of the laser?
A larger spot size offers not only the advantage of faster treatment, but also additional safety and efficacy. As spot size increases, a lower percentage of the delivered light energy scatters outside of the treatment area, increasing the depth of pentration, and allowing a lower energy setting to be used for treatment.

3) What type of cooling system is the laser equipped with?
It is important that a laser have consistent cooling in order to ensure patient safety and comfort.

4) Is there a board-certified physician on site?
Although complications with new lasers for hair removal are rare, in the event of a complication, you need to know who will provide medical attention.

5) Are treatments sold in a package or one at a time?
Because every person will respond at a slightly different rate, and some individuals will require more treatments than others for complete clearance, most laser centers will offer individual sessions.

6) Are complimentary consultations and spot tests available? You should be able to meet the technician and experience a pulse or two before committing to a treatment.

Kile Law owns Blue Water Spa, http://www.bluewaterspa.com a plastic surgery medical spa and laser center with her husband, Dr. Michael Law. Blue Water Spa was voted one of the top four medical spas in America 2005 by American Spa Magazine.
Kile was appointed to the 2005 advisory board of the Day Spa association. She is the winner of the 2004 ABBIES Award for best editorial feature in a spa publication and she was honored as humanitarian of the year in the Spa Industry 2005 by the Southern Spa Conference.

Aside replacement and ornamental purposes, mobile phone accessories boost or enhance the use of our cellular devices. There are several types of accessories when it comes to mobile phones. We have operational accessories that helps users to safeguard their phones or enhance their operations. These include battery chargers, hands free kits antenna boosters and batteries.

Some accessories come in the form of attachment which are devices that enable you extend your phone to some other object. An example is speaker phone kits that enable you to drive whilst receiving calls and car phone holders that serve as carrying cases for drivers.

Cases form another category of accessories and are purchased to hold the phones. They come in various shapes and there are some that can be worn around the belt.

Then come the technical accessories like games, radiation shields, antenna boosters and ringtone downloads which have more to do with the technical functionality of the device.

Next comes the most common of all accessories – phone covers and face plates which can be found in various fancy designs.

That said, do we really need phone accessories? Yes we do – whether for fun or for protection of our mobile phones.

A Bluetooth device enables you to receive calls with just a small piece of cordless device in your ear. Will you risk driving by trying to reach your phone from the dashboard of you got a call?

While traveling, a travel charger may be needed in addition to the regular one. If you are hard pressed for time to charge the phone but still need to keep it running, you can plug the phone to the car charger whilst on the road to save time and to get the capacity to make and receive calls.

You need that case to protect your phone from scratches. Tech people are in constant interaction with hard objects like tools which can scratch their phones. So getting a case to protect the phone can save you the headache of buying a new phone too soon because of scratches.
If you make or receive a lot of calls, you may wish to keep a spare battery in case you lose power from the current one and not in a position to immediately recharge.
Lastly, if your mates have the same kind of phone as yours, you may want to get a customized ringtone to differentiate yourself. You can’t always be reaching for your phone when you hear that ringtone – it may be someone else’s ringing.

Accessories can be fun or a necessity depending on who is buying. Nevertheless, we should be very careful to buy right. Before you make a purchase, you have to triple check to make sure that the product or service is compatible with your phone. It should fit the phone with ease and if the accessory is electronic in nature, refer to the owner’s manual to check if that’s the right thing you are putting inside the phone.

For more more information about cell phone accessories please visit http://www.cell-phone-accessory-search.com

Copyright 2006 Peter Dobler

Every internet marketer wants to make as money as possible. But
how much money do you really need? What are the financial goals
you want to achieve with your online business? These are the
fundamental questions you have to answer when you start an
online business.

Like many others you probably stumbled into the demanding task
of managing an online business by accident. You bought some
ebooks, signed up for multiple affiliate programs, set up your
own website, subscribed to several membership sites and at the
end of the day you realized that this all costs a lot of money.

You are in desperate need of more income from your business.
Common sense tells you that you need to advertise for your
business. So you go out there and buy any kind of advertising.
This leaves you with even more expenses and like many others not
much to show for.

Now you are at the turning point. You have substantial expenses,
but not enough earnings to support these expenses. The foolish
continue what they are doing and hope for the best. There’s a
better way to get your business finances under control. The
following 7 steps should give you an idea how to straighten out
your business finances and how you can prevent a financial
Waterloo for your business.

1. Create a business plan.

This sounds like a broken record, but without a clear business
plan you are setting yourself up for disaster. A business plan
can be as simple as a few pages describing what you want to do,
how you want to do it, how much profit you plan to make, how
much money you have to begin with and how long you can survive
before you run out of money or you break even with income and
expenses.

The idea of a business plan is not to predict the future, but to
create a roadmap for yourself, in case you get lost on your
journey and need directions to save your business.

2. Separate your finances

It doesn’t matter if you operate your online business as a real
incorporated business or if you just want to test the waters.
Mixing your business finances with your personal finances is a
bad idea period. Create a separate checking account. Use it to
deposit the checks you will receive and as the linked account
for your business PayPal account. Yes, a separate PayPal account
is necessary to track your business finances and to provide a
more polished, professional image for your business.

If you don’t have a separate credit card for your business, use
one of your personal credit cards and use it for your business
expenses only. This way you can easily track your expenses.
Knowing the exact financial situation of your business is vital
for your survival. If you’re loosing money you need to know
right away to make necessary adjustments and if you’re making
money you don’t want to wait until tax time to get a rude
awakening.

3. Reinvest

A rule of thumb is to reinvest 75% of your earnings back into
advertising for your business. In the beginning it can be as
high as 100%, because you need to get the word out. Without
customers you are not making any money. You do know that an
online business is by definition a sales business? You are
selling either a product or a service. If you don’t, you don’t
have an online business.

Of course a startup online business has no income to be
reinvested. However the same rules apply to the startup capital
that every new business needs to get started. A new computer and
a fancy new car won’t get you any new customers, but good
advertising will.

4. Keep track

You need to know where you spend your money at all times. In
order to do this, a simple spreadsheet will get you started.
Later you need a little bit more help from a professional
finance program. Either way this will keep you on track with
your spending and you will know how well you’re doing at all
times.

Keep track of your advertising. You need to know if your
advertising is working or not. Like a real store you need to
know why a visitor entered your store and if they don’t buy get
at least their contact information. Hardly anybody sells to
first time visitors. Repeat business from visitors and customers
are the bread and butter for any online business.

5. Organize

This is not only for tax purposes, but you need to organize
everything you’re doing with your business. Nothing kills your
business faster than not knowing what pays your bills and to
whom you owe money. Imagine you forget to renew your domain name
registration. A few bucks could cost you a million dollar
business. So do yourself a big favor and get organized with your
business.

6. Repeat

Readjust non working advertising immediately. If it is not
working, dump it. On the other hand repeat a profitable
advertising campaign. Rule of thumb, if it brings in more money
than it costs to run, keep doing it. This seems to be a simple
rule, but many online business owners simply ignore this rule.
Instead they are chasing the white elephant and end up with
nothing to show for.

If you have a successful advertising campaign, keep it running
and build a new campaign next to it. Never drop a profitable
campaign, always expand. This is your safety net. In case the
new campaign fails. In marketing there’s never a guarantee. Be
creative, track and repeat. That’s the only way to get something
going.

7. Expand

If your business is not growing your business is dieing.
Unfortunately this is reality in today’s business world. This
means that you need to adjust your financial goals for your
business to allow for expansion. Consult your business plan to
determine what went well and what went wrong. Whatever you do,
always aim higher.

There you have it, 7 steps to set the financial goals of your
online business. I know that it takes more than filling out a
membership application to run a successful online business, but
you can do it if you keep these steps in mind.

Every so often, I enjoy browsing through Christian Book Stores
just to read their wall hangings. It draws me to worship. Yet,
no matter how beautiful, either the color or wood tone doesn’t
coordinate with my home furnishings. Thus, coming home empty
handed is the norm.

Through the course of conversation, a friend gave me the idea
to frame my poetry. What a Godsend! There is a way to decorate
my house as a testimony for God after all!

For the next few months, every piece of paper caught my
attention - from cards with framed messages (making beautiful
borders) to designed stationery (for backgrounds) to picture
posters (creating otherwise more expensive large wall hangings).
Each and every creation is one of a kind. There’s even a
grouping of family photos, with one frame out in front that
says, “Our God Reigns”. My house is growing to be a visible
expression of my heart. Isn’t God wonderful!?!

However, there was just one snag (an object lesson, if you
will).

In purchasing a picture of a temple garden with doves; no
verse, poem, or saying had been included. It needed something
more to mark its’ religious significance. Not having before
realized; doves are no longer easy to find in the stores. My
husband helped search until we found enough pieces to complete a
wall, shelf, and table grouping.

A poem was to set in the midst, to tie this grouping together.
More than a half dozen changes in the framed poem occurred
before I was satisfied with its’ wording. Then, the materials
used in the frame changed more times than I can count. It was a
chore ever coming to the place that poem, fonts, paper, ink,
color, background, and frame all worked together like it should.
Eventually, the right combination came together that left that
feeling of ‘awe, perfect’. Concluding that this framed creation
was never going to get any better than that, I vowed to never
touch it again. Finally!!! I was glad that was over!

Then one day, while on vacation, I came across a gorgeous
handcrafted Canadian resin dove frame. It was twice what I
wanted to pay. How could I be sure if it were a perfect match,
being several states away? After having labored over the
decision, I concluded that I might not get another chance for a
frame like this again.

Once home, I set the frame with the grouping to see how it
might look. Still uncertain, after hesitation, I took apart my
framed work, transferred it to the new frame, then set it in
place of the original. Awe! PERFECT! It was BEAUTIFUL!!! How
could that be!?! I always thought the feeling of ‘awe, perfect’
was God’s way of saying something is just right/complete/as it
was meant to be.

“How could that be, God?”

He answered, “See. My ‘PERFECT’ is even better than yours.”
And, yes, I did ’see’ the difference.

I think God gave me that object lesson as a way of sharing with
people something I’d already learned, Except the Lord build the
house, those who build are laboring in vain (Ps.127:1). His
‘PERFECT’ is better than the very best we can do. All our
righteousness is as filthy rags until God begins to live through
us; trading in our knowledge, thoughts, beliefs, talents,
abilities, creativity for His. ‘Awe’ to know Him! His ways are
always ‘PERFECT’!!! And, if we’d just let God build our house
and His, they’d both be ‘PERFECT’, too.

© by Joyce C. Lock
http://my.homewithgod.com/blessingsandlessons/
http://www.aspecialplace.net/ChristianityMadeSimple/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HeavenlyInspirations-originalwritin
gs/
http://our.homewithgod.com/heavenlyinspirations/heavenlyinspirati
ons-intro.htm This writing may be used in its entirety, with
credits in tact, for non-profit ministering purposes.

Anyone who has ever studied economics is quite familiar with the concept of opportunity-cost. Let me restate that. Anyone who has ever attended day one of an introductory economics course may recall hearing something about opportunity-cost. The idea suggests there is always a unique cost associated with each opportunity we are presented, and we will always favor a situation in which opportunity outweighs cost.

Common sense, right?

Well let’s consider opportunity-cost beyond the realm of business and finance for just a moment. Instead let’s think about the most seemingly insignificant day-to-day social situation and apply opportunity-cost. When was the last time you held the door for somebody as you were either leaving or going into a store? Do you always? Do you never? Or would you be more inclined to hold the door for an elderly woman but not a teenager? My point is this: In nearly every situation, we constantly are weighing the question of “what’s in it for me?” against “what’s it going to cost?”.

In the previous scenario, you would probably be more likely to hold the door for the elderly woman because you perceive a need for that door to be held. So there’s an opportunity for you to feel good about yourself by helping someone else, and it only cost an extra second or two of your time. But you may be more inclined to hold the door for the teenager. Why? Perhaps you identify with that age group. The opportunity then would be added esteem in the presence of a peer, and the cost would be just a moment of your time.

But some people never hold doors for anyone. What about them? Maybe they don’t care about esteem. Maybe they don’t care about the perceived needs of others. In those situations, cost outweighs opportunity. After all, not everyone shares the same values.

Now let’s get back to business. How can you apply opportunity-cost to your online business? Aside from just knowing your product and your market, you absolutely have to know the specific opportunity that your product provides each individual consumer within your market. Forget about everything you think the opportunity is. Frankly, what you think doesn’t matter. It’s not about you. It’s about them, and it’s about their opportunity. Survey a group of your customers, and include the opinions of unsatisfied customers too. Find out from them what the opportunity is. Gather a broad base of opinions, analyze them, and make necessary adjustments.

Now let’s look at cost. First of all, it doesn’t matter how great the opportunity is if the cost is too high, and cost isn’t just about money. It’s about aesthetics, accessibility, and a wide range of other elements. If your website looks bland or unprofessional, then the cost of doing business with you goes up. If it’s difficult to navigate, the cost goes way up. If your customer service is sub-par or, if visitors question their security of information at your site, your costs will sky rocket. Remember to address those issues because, if you can lower the cost of doing business by those means, then you’ve automatically increased the opportunity you present others without having to fiddle around with the dollars and cents side of the opportunity-cost equation.

And one more thing: Never ever rely on the opinions of friends when it comes to the design of your website. Their opportunity is to improve their personal rank within your circle of friends, and their cost is a potentially damaged friendship.

Nick Famiano is a former radio broadcast personality and copywriter who now helps websites be noticed and profit through his Link Pushers and Million Link Club web directories.

http://www.linkpushers.com
http://www.millionlinkclub.com

Today’s business marketing rules are different than they were in years past. Those rules that once focused predominantly on local and regional business marketing have now gone global, thanks in large part to the creation of the Internet. Internet technology has brought the business world closer together and nowadays, it’s just as easy to conduct business across the globe as it is to conduct business across town.

If you want your business to stay afloat in today’s highly competitive business environment, you’ve got to understand these changes and bring your business marketing strategies into the twenty-first century.

Every business owner knows that it’s imperative to have a company web site, but what many don’t fully understand is how to use this tool to maximize the company’s exposure. You know your web site is out there on the Internet, but do others? If they don’t, your web site won’t do you or them any good. You’ve got to let others know it exists. That’s right - business marketing rule #1 is to advertise your web site address using all available resources. Put the URL on every piece of promotional material you publish - on your company stationery, on every employee’s business card, on your signature line - include it everywhere you mention your company name.

Another way to increase your company’s web site exposure is to take steps to increase its ranking within the various search engines. Creating useful keyword-rich content with links to your website is a great way to accomplish this goal. If you don’t understand keywords and search engines, hire someone who does. It will be business marketing money well-spent.

While you’re taking steps to build and promote a powerful web site, be sure what you do and say on the web site remains consistent with the business marketing efforts already in place. Also, your web site should be another tool that new and existing customers can use to communicate with your company. Not only will this facilitate communication between various time zones, it’s a more cost-effective way to communicate.

One business marketing rule that has not changed is the importance of knowing what your competitors are up to. Visit your competitors’ web sites regularly and if they’re good at keeping its content current, you’ll be able to keep abreast of their latest developments and other news-worthy items.

In many ways, the Internet has made business marketing easier. Understanding how to use it to your company’s advantage is good business advice.

Learn more about Internet marketing at http://www.nycsolutions.net.

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