business side: June 2009

Small Business Networking
Small business networking should become second nature for the home based business owner. Business networking should be fun and easy. These networking tips will get you results fast.

Start a Corporation for Your Home Based Business
Should you start a corporation or run a DBA for your home based business? Are their different corporate structure types? Before you form a corporation get the facts.

Someone keyed my Karma
photo credit: jonmatthew photography Month before last during a coaching session, I had a pretty frank conversation with a client about freedom. Not the Constitutional kind of freedom, but freedom from the ball and chain that a business can become. I don’t mean that in a bad way, just that it can become a restriction to [...]

photo credit: jonmatthew photography

Month before last during a coaching session, I had a pretty frank conversation with a client about freedom.

Not the Constitutional kind of freedom, but freedom from the ball and chain that a business can become. I don’t mean that in a bad way, just that it can become a restriction to your freedom.

Not only that, but it’s common for small family-owned businesses to almost not be a business if the family isn’t there. If you aren’t there. Needless to say, this isn’t an ideal situation when unexpected events occur.

During that conversation, we talked about configuring the business so that it could stand an unexpected, required trip out of town for a month (or 3).

A month went by.

In last month’s session, we were talking about their retail business and once again, we talked (among other things) about how I felt they needed to spend some serious effort on figuring out how to grow and insulate the business from unexpected turns in life.

I gave them a few examples of things to work on, knowing that we’d need to revisit it and fine tune the strategy as we move forward.

And here comes Al.

Then I mentioned that I was getting to take my own advice, as I had just discovered that an immediate family member has been diagnosed with the early stages of Alzheimer’s.

Result: Recent efforts to move a portion of my client base a little closer to home were going to have to be reversed.

My business is going to be changing because – as I advised my client – I don’t know when I will need to disappear for a few months. Not completely disappear or be disconnected from the net, but just not be home for an unknown period of time.

A few weeks went by, and I was hoping that the owner’s thought and effort was going into that project. I’m sure it is, but it’s not an immediate change to do this to your business – particularly if you are in retail, restaurant or hospitality (ie: hotel, motel, b&b).

Another month goes by.

Last week, we talked again to schedule our next call and it turned out that the very thing I had advised preparing for was happening.

Family responsibilities requiring out of town travel on little notice for an unknown period of time. Really sad.

Meanwhile, I look in the mirror and remind myself that my business is changing for the same reasons and that I need to accelerate the pace.

Are you prepared for that sort of thing? Depending on your age and your parents age, it might be more apparent to you – but it can happen to you even if you are a 26 year old entrepreneur.

If you don’t ask for help, you aren’t likely to get it.

“In 70% of small business failures, a key factor was the owner not recognizing or ignoring weaknesses, and then not seeking help.” – SCORE / US Bank survey of failed small businesses

Do you have someone in your corner who will ask you the tough questions?

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Aflac Health Insurance Rating
Aflac Health Insurance Rating

Website - http://www.aflac.com
Located - Columbus, GA
Phone - 1-800-992-3522
Employees - 8,292
Revenue (bil.) - $16.6
Description - Aflac’s clients may not welcome accidents and illness any more than a visit from Gilbert Gottfried, but at least their coverage will keep them from financial ruin. Aflac (whose popular ads feature a valiant duck voiced by comedian Gottfried) sells supplemental health and life insurance policies that cover special conditions, primarily cancer. It is one of the largest sellers of supplemental insurance in the US and is an industry leader in Japan’s cancer-insurance market (with 14 million policies in force). Aflac, which is marketed through and is an acronym for American Family Life Assurance Company, sells policies that pay cash benefits for hospital confinement, emergency treatment, and medical appliances.

Source: http://www.hoovers.com

Reviews & Ratings

jasyjen’s Full Review of Aflac Health Insurance Company

If I had given this review two years ago, it would have been very negative. I’ve had Aflac for about ten years and my representative was just horrible. He was never around to service the account, and I’d simply forgotten all about it.

But, my new representative is wonderful!!! She reminded me of my policy and actually assisted me in getting two claims processed. They were very minor accident claims, but within a week I received two checks totalling over $ 500.00!!!! I was so pleased, so THRILLED, that I sent my rep flowers! I would never have seen that money if it wasn’t for her! I wuv her.

If you’re not familiar with Aflac, it is a insurance policy that is in addition to your normal policy. They offer many different ones, but I have the accident/wellness policy. Every year, they send me a check for $ 60.00 just for getting my annual physical. EASY MONEY. Plus, if we get injured on the job or off the job, we can file a claim to receive money. I actually received more money than I paid out when my son broke his finger!! You can’t beat that.

I have the premium automatically deducted from my paycheck at work, so I never even miss the money. And they remove what I owe BEFORE they take out taxes, so it actually helps me pay less to the taxman. Works for me!

jgogo’s Full Review of Aflac Health Insurance Company

AFLAC has very good programs that are affordable and they can tailor things to meet your specific needs. The representatives are friendly and helpful in choosing a plan best suited for your needs. What plans do they have? Well they have extended insurance plans if you are sick and need to take time off from work, all at reasonable monthly premiums.

I was having a baby and my policy covered two weeks with full pay and an additional two weeks since I had a C-section. Great coverage, and they paid it out promptly.

The representatives are knowledgeable about their products and do not try to sell you something you do not need,and they explain everything in detail.

Quack Quack for AFLAC!

JonsGirl’s Full Review of Aflac Health Insurance Company

Aflac, the insurance company no one should live without. The insurance company that pays you and not your doctors or hospital. For about a dollar a day you can have the peace of mind in knowing that if something should happen……such as an accident that keeps you from working you will have money to pay your bills, buy groceries…………live. If you are diagnosed with cancer you will receive cash to take care of your family when you are too sick to work……………an insurance company that will make sure you are taken care of when you can’t do it for yourself. Aflac………the insurance company no one should live with out.

Source: http://www.viewpoints.com

2:34 AM | | 0 Comments

Filing your income tax returns

When the time has come to file your income tax returns, it means shuffling your schedule to fit in a tax appointment, plus the number of hours needed to complete it comfortably. This whole process will consume a great amount of your time. So why not make things easier on yourself and let a tax professional handle it to make the job easier for you? If you want some serious help in filing your income tax returns without any difficulty, Cirimelli Pyle and Associates LLP will help you do the job effectively. This CPA in Sunnyvale is a professional organization dedicated in providing you the highest quality of service possible, in a timely manner.

Being an enrolled agent in the field of taxation, the tax professional is empowered by the US Department of Treasury to represent taxpayers before all administrative levels of the IRS for audits, collections, and appeals. This CPA in Sunnyvale keeps track of tax changes throughout the year so that you can take advantage of all tax incentives. Apart from providing tax ideas for individuals and business owners, they give several interesting ideas and suggestions on Capital gains and losses, Business Assets, Charitable donations, Medical expenses, Tax penalties, Business Travel, Splitting of Family Income and Kiddies tax.

For tax help in Sunnyvale, contact Cirimelli Pyle and Associates to file your tax returns and educate you on additional tax benefits throughout the year. They can be reached at: 408-879-9990. If you would like a free consultation or any other tax help, visit their website at: www.incometaxbayarea.com and register with them.

How to keep the cash flowing

Any kind of profit making business will encounter cash flow problems once in a while. Business Accountants can assess the financial condition of any business, track cash flow, cash requirements and estimate financial requirements. They will prepare cash flow statements which eventually becomes an invaluable management tool and the company’s financial master plan. Business Accountants will develop cash flow plans including setting up payment schedules, establishing credit policies, exercising inventory controls and maintaining payroll accounts. To get the right guidance and help in regard to maintaining your cash flow and payment schedules, contact Cirimelli Pyle and Associates in San Jose, California.

Tax Professionals to help maintain your financial stability

Cirimelli Pyle and Associates based in San Jose is a Certified Public Accounting Company which offers in depth service in business expertise and professional skills to a variety of organizations. Tax professionals will help you monitor and update your annual cash flow plan. Proper cash-flow statements will help the business owner to determine whether he will need a bank overdraft or make the necessary arrangements to increase extra capital into the business. This Certified Public Accounting Company will make sure your cash flow plan is in place and will also monitor the planned figures against the actuals, at the end of each month.

To contact these CPA professionals, call 408-879-9990 or Fax them at 408-879-0992. Visit www.cpasllp.com for more information on other services. Whether you need a CPA professional in Campbell, Cupertino, Los Altos or Santa Clara, you could contact Cirimelli, Pyle and Associates LLP .

2:34 AM | | 0 Comments

Adventure!Post Pt. 2

The first fake!Adventure!Post Pt. 2 has been deleted to make way for the real one! Now that my finals are all over, I finally have time to post pics and vids of the rest of the con! Enjoy! :D

Saturday Night

After a late lunch, we headed back to the hotel for the Lis Sladen panel. I hadn't been to the con before, and I was surprised with the question format of the panel. If we had a question, we were all given a chance to line up in the aisle and would pass the microphone they gave us down the line as we went. I thought that was wonderfully (and somewhat) personal to nearly be face-to-face when we were asking the questions instead of staying in our seats and just standing up.

I can't remember every question, but there are some that stick out in my mind. One man asked about balancing family life with acting. Lis said her family always came first and that she stopped a lot of her acting when her daughter was born. She also said that she always thought people saw her as Sarah Jane with regards to acting. She said she felt like she was behind others sometimes because there was so much time between acting jobs in her career.

There was also a question about her nearly dying on the "Revenge of the Cybermen" set. Lis asked how many people hadn't heard this story before because she wasn't going to tell it if most of us had. A suprisingly large number of people hadn't heard the story, so she said she'd tell it and those who heard it could "put up and shut up."

Lis said that they were filming in a cave that was supposedly cursed. One day her and Ian Marter (Harry Sullivan) were on the set reading over this page of script that seemed strange to the both of them. Lis made a red arrow on her script to remind her to ask the director about the strange scene. The next day they were wrapping up filming for the day and they still hadn't done the strange scene. Lis asked the director about it, and he didn't know what she was talking about. Both her and Ian went back to look at that part of the script, and it was gone! There was the red arrow still on the page from where she'd marked it, but there were no typed lines. She said it was extremely weird and she still didn't know what that was to this day.

It was later in the filming when she nearly died. In the cave, there was a small body of water on which they were filming. Lis had to float across it on this plank of wood, and they flimed her paddling on it. When they looked back at the footage, they realized they had no film of her pushing off of the bank and starting to paddle across. Lis said that she was nervous, and she thought that the raft would be carried away by the current of the water. The man who designed the raft assured her that this would not happen. It did, and she was either going to get caught on a group of rocks down the little stream or be caught under the current of the water. During all of this, they were still filming! She said that she was terrified of going under because she's terrified of being submerged in water in general. She can't even put her face under the shower! :( Finally, one of the crew dove in to save her. She didn't want to swear, so she said she was really "p-ed off" when this happened.

After the story, there were several questions about the Sarah Jane Adventures. One girl asked if K-9 was ever coming back to the show. Lis said sorry, but not in this series. She was hopeful for the next series, though. :) Lis also made mention of how mischievous the kids are on the set of the show, especially Daniel (Clyde Langer). She has a lot of fun filming with them. She talked about how in the old series, when she was with Jon Pertwee, you can always see him turning to her and speaking to her. He was always telling her to slow down and not get in front of him when they were running. Now, she said that she does that to the kids on her show. (Awww.) :)

The best piece of discussion about the show that Lis brought up was how the show is really a comforting escape for children or anyone who is too overwhelmed with the state of the world today. Sometimes all the bad and horribleness is too much, and children need somewhere they can see that good wins and everything will be okay. Lis said that she thought this was a very important message to send out. This is just another amazing statement that shows how Lis is so wonderful (and adorable)!

There was a man who had his turn to ask a question right before me. He started off complimenting Lis, incredibly, about her appearance and her work. He then finished his question with: "Then when does one become such a diva to charge for photographs and autographs?" It seemed like chaos erupted then. The moderator of the sesson stood up and started yelling at the man, telling him that Lis was NOT charging for photos and autographs, but it was the con that WAS. Every (or so we thought) attendee knew it was the con that was charging, and NOT Lis. Lis didn't hear anything beyond "diva", so she asked that he finish what he said. The moderator repeated the question for him. Lis wasn't mad. She was very serious about it. She said it was a fair question, but it wasn't the time or the place to ask it. He could have taken someone aside and asked them anytime while he was attending the con.

It was finally my turn. Trying to recover from my embarrassment over the last question, I tried to gather my thoughts. Lis told me to "lift us up" with my question. I made sure I thanked her first then when on to ask my question. You can see the vid of it just below that mrsdrtennant so generously taped for me:

Here are some of the end of the panel including Lis doing "Eldred must live"...:

After Lis' panel, it was time to line up for the Women of Big Finish photos, which included India Fisher, Lisa Bowerman, Ciara Janson, and Laura Doddington. I was really there to see India Fisher who I LOVE in the Eighth Doctor, and now Sixth Doctor, audios. This line turned out to be the longest one that we would wait in all day. At this point, they were taking their time sine the lines weren't as long anymore. We sat, played card games, and swapped stories with fellow con-goers while waiting.

It was in this line that I found out why Lis Sladen's photograph session had been moved from 11 to 1. Apparently, Lis' handlers (the assistants assigned to take her from place to place at the con) had gotten the schedule mixed up. The handlers and Lis had gone over to JCPenny in the mall to look around. The handlers didn't realize they had to leave for photos before 11, so they stayed too long. After hearing this story, I had images of unwitting fans who had no idea there was a con going on and spotting her in JCPenny, being terribly confused.

P1010001tardis26.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Alex trying to jump rope with his Fourth Doctor scarf. :)

P1010001tardis27.jpg picture by ElleKnight

mrsdrtennant trying her hand at jumping rope. :)

P1010001tardis29.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Me jumping rope. :) Best facial expression EVER!

The Big Finish photos went smoothly. While I was in line, I met this woman who was a self-admitted Lisa Bowerman stalker. She wasn't weird or anything. She was just making fun of her fangirliness. She mentioned that she was going to wait around later to try to get a picture and have a brief chat with just Lisa. I wasn't aware I'd get that opportunity, and I mentioned to her that I'd like to do that with India. When I finally got up to take my Women of Big Finish picture, I couldn't figure out how to tell India how much I enjoyed the audios without excluding the others. Instead, I said nothing! I look a bit awkward in the pic, but it went well otherwise. :)

P1010001tardis32.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Because it was about 6:30 when we were finished with the Big Finish pictures, we decided just to wander around until it was time for the Masquerade. Somewhere in all the waiting, we spotted India Fisher talking to a small group of people in the lobby. I was really hesitant to approach her because I didn't want to seem like a crazy fan. I just wanted to say how much I appreciate her work. Slowly, I wormed my way into the group. A really wonderful and nice fellow fan assured me it was okay just to jump in and say hi. As soon as I was about to do this, India told the group (which included Jason Haigh-Ellery) that she was going to run some things up to her room and come right back down. This left Alex,

mrsdrtennant , and I talking to Jason Haigh Ellery. Let me say that he is AMAZING. We talked about several of the Big Finish audios, and he asked

mrsdrtennant if she listened. She said no, and he joked with her that "he couldn't talk to her anymore", and then tried to fake push her away from the group. It was great!

India was soon back, and left talking to these two awkward fan boys. I think she was somewhat grateful that mrsdrtennant and I joined in the conversation. I told her how much I just loved the audios, and then we somehow got into life and travelling and randomness. She was just adorable, girly, and amazing. :) She was sipping a martini and kept correcting her Britishism to American terms so we could understand her. We assured her we could understand anyway, but she kept on with it. She asked us to describe what Match Game was like because she was doing the intermission for the Masquerade and didn't know what she was doing! After we described it to her, she said it sounded like a British game show they had, so she thought she'd be all right. Then, she was gushing about her cranberry Coach bag that she'd recently got in the Florida Keys because she'd just never seen anything like it before and HAD to splurge on it. Apparently, they don't have Coach in England. o_O. I did not know this. The conversation ended up with me getting invited to have a drink with her in the bar, and I said I couldn't. She asked, "Why? Are you 16 or something?" I said, no, I was 20. :( She was sad, but I told her I'd see her later at the Match Game intermission in the Masquerade. She gave us BIG hugs before she left, and called Alex the "little quiet one in the corner". :D

Apparently, when I was caught up in talking with India Fisher, Alex and mrsdrtennant spotted Lis Sladen in the elevator. The doors opened, she waved to everyone, and the doors closed again. Random!

P1010001tardis37.jpg picture by ElleKnight

India Fisher and I! :D Isn't she wearing cute shoes? I just love her now. She may be my new favorite person...

After this, we just waited around outside the Ballroom for the Masquerade to start. We chatted with a few fellow fans. As we were about to go in, we ran into India again. She was running terribly late for the Match Game panel meeting, so we were trying to help her squeeze through. She asked us if we thought she could cut through all the people, and we said we didn't see why not. I told her to "use her celebrity" because everyone should know that she was doing the panel and needed to get up there quickly. "My celebrity," she giggled. "Oh, I love you." Eventually, she was able to get through everyone, and we found our seats for the show.

The Masquerade was AMAZING! There were quite a few participants, and they were, for the most part, BRILLIANT.

dw_cosplay</lj> has a great report on the Masquerade show as a whole.

P1010001tardis11.jpg picture by ElleKnight

The Match Game was HILARIOUS! India had no idea about a lot of the old Doctor who facts, and had to ask Nicholas Briggs, who was sitting next to her, for a lot of the information. At one point, she just answered "Rhino" for several of the questions. Great stuff. :D

P1010001tardis47.jpg picture by ElleKnight

P1010001tardis54.jpg picture by ElleKnight

P1010001tardis46.jpg picture by ElleKnight

P1010001tardis63.jpg picture by ElleKnight

I have a TON of panel pics, so if you're interested in more, I'm happy to give or post. :)

After the Masquerade was Mysterious Theater 337 in which they poked fun at "Terror of the Vervoids" it was hysterical. :)

It was about 11:30 when we left the con and stopped at Burger King for some well-deserved junk food. The night was quite amazing, and I'm looking forward to next year's con! :D

Here's some random pics of silliness and TARDIS awesomeness:

P1010001tardis74.jpg picture by ElleKnight

TARDIS!love. :D

P1010001tardis38.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Sonic Water... Well, it was funny at the time... :)

P1010001tardis33.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Someone designed and built this Dalek themselves. AMAZING! It won a Masquerade award, and the award was given to the builder by Nicholas Briggs himself.

P1010001tardis34.jpg picture by ElleKnight

The TARDIS in all of it's glory. Excitement!

And... My swag from the con:

A shaky pic of my autographed program by Lis and Colin. :) I'm gong to try to get a better pic of this later...

A nice, old pic signed by Lis. :D

My nametag and one of the con's trademark guest buttons.

If you want to check out

mrsdrtennant 's story of the con, you can go to her journal. There's even more silly pics and randomness over there. :D

Thanks for reading everyone! See you at TARDIS '09!

P.S. Does anyone know who the man was dressed at the Masquerade as the First Doctor? Him and his wife were really nice people, and I regret not asking to get a picture with him because he loved my costume. Thanks all. :)

Because kawaii_spinel told me to...

1. Stop talking about politics for a moment or two.
2. Post a reasonably-sized picture in your LJ, NOT under a cut tag, of something pleasant, such as an adorable kitten, or a fluffy white cloud, or a bottle of booze. Something that has NOTHING TO DO WITH POLITICS. Something that makes you happy.
3. Include these instructions, and share the love.

Because I was just searching Converse.com for Christmasy-themed Chucks, and for the reason that I can't look at this picture without thinking "Ooh! Shiny!". (I really need a break from CNN...)

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

As the Portfolio Unfolds (humor)
One day a nice Jewish Family girl named Emily stopped for a Minute to check out some Superior Sheds. She had the Ways & Means* from her Scholarships & College Planning, in fact she was Beyond Rubies*! In a Spirit-to-Spirit meeting with Life Coach Sheila Pearl, she rediscovered her Sophistication & Abundant Life. This Lucid [...]

One day a nice Jewish Family girl named stopped for a Minute to check out some Superior Sheds. She had the Ways & Means* from her Scholarships & College Planning, in fact she was Beyond Rubies*! In a Spirit-to-Spirit meeting with Life Coach Sheila Pearl, she rediscovered her Sophistication & Abundant Life. This Lucid PEP talk revealed that every cloud has a Silva Lining, and was Simply Flawless. After the delivery of the Savvy Structures, she hopped on the Great Hudson River Water Quilt, powered by New York Solar Energy, and flew from Pine Island for her Luxury Sun Vacation. All this Independent Living made Emily homesick, so she hopped into a Newburgh Envelope and mailed herself to Weinert t-Shirts, a well-known Middletown Business. She got there Just In Time to SCORE 4.0 on her exams.

* website pending

So, can you come up with an interesting story based on YOUR client’s business names? My apologies to clients who were left out. I’ll try to come up with revisions that add more clients in!

Are we causing our nightmares?
“Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. And lo, no one was there.” — unknown May I coach you? As individuals we have no control over our national or worldwide economy. Anything causing us to feel out of control is a source of anxiety to us. And anxiety is a perpetual level of fear. I hear [...]

“Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. And lo, no one was there.” — unknown

May I coach you?

As individuals we have no control over our national or worldwide economy. Anything causing us to feel out of control is a source of anxiety to us. And anxiety is a perpetual level of fear.

I hear about people afraid to open their statements for investments. I hear about people afraid to part with their money. I hear about people living in fear of the economy.

Fear is an unsubstantial prison warden. When we fear, we shrink into ourselves. We no longer are self-actualized, although we continue to be self-determined. Look at those words, because hidden in them is the crux of the situation.

Actualization is the act of bringing dreams to reality, or in this particular moment, the act of facing reality. Self-Actualization is the realization of the basic human drive to become who and what we want to become, or the act of facing reality in this very moment and being at peace with it. As long as you are running away from your financial reality, you cannot be self-actualized.

Self-determined — we are all self-determined whether we like it or not. This is the act of determining or causing our own reality. “To be the decisive factor in…” is the dictionary definition I’d like to focus on. We are all the final deciding factor in our own realities. We each have the last say about who and what we are. Are we fearful? Or are we faithful?

So let me say this again: When we fear we are no longer self-actualized, although we continue to be self-determined. When we fear, we impose limitations on our ability to dream & grow. When we fear, we are making ourselves into something fearful. Often, even worse, when we fear we make ourselves into something to be feared. When we fear, we are bringing our fear into reality, but it is the reality of our nightmares, not the reality of our dreams.

I listened to an interview of a financial coach the other day who said (to paraphrase) that running away from our financial reality is only going to attract more financial uncertainty. We can’t get money unless we face the current reality of how much money we have. Guilty as accused, I immediately did as he suggested and made my financial map. I split a page into 4 boxes. In one, I put my current debts. In another, I put my current liquid assets & immediate accounts receivable (checks in the mail). In another I put my accounts payable (and in some cases a due date). In the 4th quadrant, where most people would put their investments & large assets (perhaps a home, retirement accounts), I jotted down decisions of where to move my liquid assets to cover bills. My whole financial picture fit on one page. My payables & debts far outweigh my income, but facing that reality is the important part. I’m not going to get out of my current financial conundrum from hiding from it or being afraid to pay the bills. The financial coach in the interview says that people who face their finances every week find that their finances correct themselves within 6 months. I’m prepared to do that, and I am prepared to remove fear from my life.

Another piece of the puzzle fell into place last night. I purchased a book last night: “To Sell is Not to Sell” by Greta Schulz. One small section stands so apart from the others I flipped through so far. It’s about our civic duty in the midst of wars, famines, financial hardship. It is the duty of our soldiers to fight. It is the duty of our firefighters to protect. They face overwhelming decisions in-the-moment and simply have to plow ahead and do what they do — they cannot allow fear to immobilize them. They work to protect, to make secure. And they do not ask a leave of absence simply because they are fighting overwhelming odds, or because they may not live to see it through. In the aftermath of 9/11 Greta was immobilized. To paraphrase: How can business go on when the firefighters are digging through the ashes for survivors (I add, “or breathing toxic fumes that will haunt them for years….”), and our soldiers are being deployed? she asked. How can we do “business as usual” when our country is under attack?

Then a realization came to Greta — she realized that it is the duty of a firefighter to find the survivors, to fight the blaze. It is the duty of the soldiers to fight for our freedom & to protect our country. Surely they have a healthy fear, but — to get patriotic and pragmatic both — it is the duty of the business owner to go back to business as usual, to protect the economy that funds those soldiers, to contribute to the tax base that feeds those firefighters. I will take it one step further: It’s the duty of the consumer to continue to purchase services and products (no matter how much more choosy they will be about it) to complete that cycle.

Business must go on. We have a terrific country, and if you’re running from financial reality through fear, you are in the way of both the progress of yourself and others. You are contributing to the financial instability of our country. It is your civic duty to purchase goods & services, to provide goods & services, to give this country economic stability. And since we’re all self-determined, we must start with ourselves. We each can only change our own outcomes — that is self-determination. I refuse to buy into the recession: I continue to purchase goods & services.

To allow the fear to control us is a lack of faith. We have a “Chinese menu” of whom we are committing our lack of faith against: God or higher powers, our President, our country, our economic system, our state, county or town, even our children’s future employability. To quit spending money is a selfish act against our neighbors, it is entirely about thinking of ourselves and our family first before thinking of the needs of others. And lastly, spend it now because the value of your liquid assets may dwindle further if you don’t: what good is holding on to the money? If the money isn’t flowing, if people are holding on to their money, there is nothing that can stop the spiral. The only way for our money to keep its value is to keep it circulating, otherwise it’s a pile of empty promises & the bad debt our money is backed with, rather than a means of economic exchange.

I face my financial reality, that frees me up to be self-actualized, because to live out my dreams, I must not fear.

I have lived my life by this memorized chant by Frank Herbert, from Dune: “I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn my inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”

Maximize Networking Results in any venue
How can networking events work for you if attendance is still dwindling? If you’re not looking at them as a small trade-show where you’ll get tons of leads, are they still worth attending? Here’s 3 quick tips to use individualized invitations to markedly increase the value of any event you attend: Invite referral partners: [...]

How can networking events work for you if attendance is still dwindling? If you’re not looking at them as a small trade-show where you’ll get tons of leads, are they still worth attending?

Here’s 3 quick tips to use individualized invitations to markedly increase the value of any event you attend:

Invite referral partners: Stack the room. Your referral partner(s!) will get a little more face-time with you, which puts you at the top of their mind. If they’re a networkaholic, they’ll appreciate meeting a new group, and on the selfish side you get more kudos so they’ll want to do you a favor in-turn. If you received a referral from them, invite them AND pay for their fee to come to the networking event. How’s that for a “thank you!” gift? Note, you’re not taking them out to lunch — ask your accountant if you can tag it as an incentive gift for taxes.

Invite prospects: Suddenly you have a reason to reach out to a prospect without giving a sales pitch! This is for them — right? You can introduce them to your network, and they might get business from it. For you, the networking event becomes an opportunity for a high-touch contact with low pressure. Don’t talk about your services unless they mention their interest in your products, but do allow them a chance to get to know you and your other referral partners better. If you have clients or referral partners in the room, someone else may talk them into closing the sale! You have increased your value to the client without doing anything you wouldn’t have been doing anyway.

Invite clients: Another opportunity for a high-touch contact, which is excellent customer service and maintains top-of-mind awareness with someone who has already paid you. Talk them up to others, and play matchmaker for them. They’re living, walking, breathing proof that you do your work, and do it well. They’re an on-the-spot testimonial for your services. They may evangelize you to the group. If you do your 30 second or 1 minute presentation on a service they did NOT purchase (yet) or maybe don’t even know you offer, you may just be able to up-sell it to them later.

Work on making it a habit to invite one person to every networking event you attend — or invite 3 people to the QED luncheons to get $15 off your next luncheon. Shuffle these invites into your normal sales calls, schedule dance cards with referral partners before or after a networking event, and make these invitations a normal part of your ongoing customer service.

Let everyone know how it works out for you–I’ve been applying these techniques and I like how it has been working out.

For local networking venues see NetworkaholicsAnonymous.org — and make sure you join us at the QED Networking Luncheons and QED Hudson Valley Business Edge Conference events!

Mr. President (parody)
I apologize. I had to do it. I saw the photos, and this parody immediately came to mind. I was careful not to make too much fun of our new most honorable President, but I had to do this at the expense of (former) President Bush. Please laugh! Please. Don’t cart [...]

I apologize. I had to do it. I saw the photos, and this parody immediately came to mind. I was careful not to make too much fun of our new most honorable President, but I had to do this at the expense of (former) President Bush.

Please laugh! Please. Don’t cart me away. LOL!!!

JPEG (below) & PDF versions available. Feel free to print it, pass it around the office, have a good laugh.

Apologies to the Chicago Tribune, but your excellent photos inspired this parody. Click the thumbnail for the full-sized version.

Parody of the coverage of the Inauguration of President Obama

Boycott the Recession
I've decided to boycott the recession. I refuse to buy into it. It's like the guest you really wish you didn't have to invite to your potluck -- they don't bring a dish and they eat for 20. And they pick the best dishes to eat. Nothing left for anyone else. Well, I've decided I don't care if I piss off Uncle Sam, this person ain't coming to my bar-b-que.

Click for images to spark the imagination on how to think differently about the so-called recession.

I don’t know about you, but I didn’t ask for a recession (or depression, or whatever….). It wasn’t on my list of “things to do” this year. It’s not on my resolution list. And it’s not even on my bucket list.

I’ve decided to boycott the recession. I refuse to buy into it. It’s like the guest you really wish you didn’t have to invite to your potluck — they don’t bring a dish and they eat for 20. And they pick the best dishes to eat. Nothing left for anyone else. Well, I’ve decided I don’t care if I piss off Uncle Sam, this person ain’t coming to my bar-b-que.

Maybe you’d like to join me. I have created a group of images, badges, stickers, funny sayings — stick them wherever you want as long as you keep to the “by” attribution requirement. Put them at the bottom of your email, on your blog, on a card in your wallet. Or don’t. If you find them offensive or silly, then move along. I don’t know what colors people need them in, so I didn’t get fancy with colors. It’s a boycott, not a Gala.

I’m especially fond of “While you were out griping…”

I’ve been saying it for a while, but avid networker Dr. Ivan Misner inspired me (in this YouTube video) about buying in to the recession. He met someone with a “I ABSOLUTELY refuse to participate in this recession” button. That’s what did it. Criss on inspiration. That means “Watch Out!” to anyone who knows me. If anyone is actually interested in my hastily-designed buttonfest, I’ll make this one easier on you and actually slice up the images so that you can post them individually on your website with a transparent background where warranted….but if no one wants the images, I won’t bother.

Keep working, keep thinking, keep dreaming big, keep your head above water, and don’t stop doing the doggy paddle. You know, all that law of attraction stuff, right? Don’t think fear. Don’t feed the mental commiseration going on. You’re running a business! Think of sales closing the way they should. Think of checks in your mailbox. Think of how much your business is going to grow. If your business is growing double this year, you have a lot of work to do — “Sorry guys, no time to gripe….” or, as one of my images says:

“While you were out griping ….you could have picked up a client.”

Someone Gets It
This is a combination of beautiful insight & well thought-out graphic design. It gets the message across to our left & right brains through the choice of terrific affirmations and the graphical play-on-words. Watch it once for the beauty, then watch it again to really listen to the message. It’s the secret [...]

This is a combination of beautiful insight & well thought-out graphic design. It gets the message across to our left & right brains through the choice of terrific affirmations and the graphical play-on-words. Watch it once for the beauty, then watch it again to really listen to the message. It’s the secret to wealth and happiness.

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Networking Telesummit:20 Leading Networking Experts to Speak March 9-13th
I will be speaking next week at the extraordinary Networking Telesummit along with 19 other leading experts on business networking and relationship marketing. Let’s face it, in the world of business - any business, it’s not who you know, it’s who knows you. Ask any successful business owner how they got to be so successful and right [...]

The Millionaire League Review

Step 3 - Setup Google Analytics

Video Shows How To Make $3 - Seven Hundred Times A Day!
Did you ever go to a football game or large sporting event and wish that everyone around you would give you a dollar? I know that’s kind of a silly thing to think about, but admit it… I’m sure at some point in your life you have dreamed the same thing! Here is a guy [...]

HyperVRE Review

Ewen Chia’s Secret Affiliate Weapon Review

Beginner's Guide to Article marketing

The Power of Viral Marketing

Step 1 - Select a host and domain name

Clickbank Product Review

2:35 AM | | 0 Comments

Past Music Reviews
http://www.jambase.com/Articles/1758/KARL-DENSON-12.01.01-MINNEAPOLIS http://www.jambase.com/Articles/2313/STEVE-KIMOCK-BAND-04.19.02-MINNEAPOLIS http://www.jambase.com/Articles/2024/VIC-WOOTEN-02.11.02-MINNEAPOLIS http://www.jambase.com/Articles/1451/FLECKTACULAR-TIMES-IN-MINNEAPOLIS http://www.jambase.com/Articles/1585/SOUND-TRIBE-SECTOR-9-10.06-HOB-CHICAGO http://www.jambase.com/Articles/865/MINNESOTA-IN-FEBRUARY http://www.jambase.com/Articles/919/MIGHTIER-THAN-THOU http://www.jambase.com/Articles/938/HOUSE-OF-WUNDER http://www.jambase.com/Articles/1191/THE-BIG-WU-FAMILY-REUNION-A-POEM

7 Critical Components to Running Business Online
Major lessons you can learn in just 3 hours! Last night, in a major miscommunication, a sales page for one of my client’s biggest yearly promotion was not properly equipped for the traffic we were about to send it and SHTF. So Skype messages started firing off and we teamed up and from 9pm [...]

Major lessons you can learn in just 3 hours!

Last night, in a major miscommunication, a sales page for one of my client’s biggest yearly promotion was not properly equipped for the traffic we were about to send it and SHTF. So Skype messages started firing off and we teamed up and from 9pm to midnight we were plugging away at code and testing (with many snags along the way). Here are the ‘critical components’ to the success of this project:

1) Rapid response. When you have peoples’ attention online, most things can’t wait.
2) Vigilance. The issue was caught “in the nick of time”; maybe an hour earlier would have helped.
3) Don’t give up. We were personally coding and fixing code for 3 hours straight – 9pm to Midnight. Even after a help desk submission to Experts Exchange, I refused to give up and with that resolve remedied a 2 hour long problem.
4) Stay calm. The business owner, who discovered the problem, while adamant about a fix, stayed incredibly calm and well-mannered, which allowed everyone else working on it to be less stressed and more focused on just getting it done.
5) Be proactive. We could have spent way too much time discussing who should do what we probably wouldn’t have been done until 2am or later. We identified the problem, who was responsible for each task in fixing it and started work. All in about 15 minutes time.
6) Don’t blame. Another major time waster. Cut through the confusion and “should haves” and move on. Customers are being lost by the minute if your busy blaming and not responding.
7) Remember what you did. I’m not going to forget why Internet Explorer wasn’t working correctly for this particular project. A bonus way I like to remember is to post the solution to a forum where someone was having the same problem and it was not resolved. This also helps future researchers have a quick solution.

So, we need 1) quick action 2) a watchful eye 3) perserverance, 4) calmness 5) proactive response 6) no blame and 7) a good memory, AT MINIMUM, to have a good chance at succeeding in online business.

Protected: OUMembers Training Videos
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New Client in Boulder
Happy to be working with Steve Higgins, “Boulder Loan Ranger”, on his custom Wordpress design, using some really smart plugins to for premium content and delivery, supporting the fsbo boulder market and more! Those looking to do for sale by owner in Boulder should really check out Steve’s site because he’s got some great information for [...]

Happy to be working with Steve Higgins, “Boulder Loan Ranger”, on his custom Wordpress design, using some really smart plugins to for premium content and delivery, supporting the fsbo boulder market and more!

Those looking to do for sale by owner in Boulder should really check out Steve’s site because he’s got some great information for you.

He also publishes articles and videos regularly on a variety of mortgage topics.

Definitely looking forward to working more closely with him once getting to Boulder, but our remote work thus far has been very successful.

“Invaluable to Our Business”
I would like to send you a note of my deepest gratitude for your knowledge, expertise, creativity & willingness to do whatever it takes for our website. Since you redesigned our site, I have received countless compliments on the look, feel & ease of navigation. My clients are able to access information at the click [...]

I would like to send you a note of my deepest gratitude for your knowledge, expertise, creativity & willingness to do whatever it takes for our website. Since you redesigned our site, I have received countless compliments on the look, feel & ease of navigation. My clients are able to access information at the click of a button and are drawn into areas that they weren’t navigating before. Our search engine rankings have gone from page 5 to the first page and often we appear in the Top 3! This is invaluable for our business. Additionally, you have been more than helpful in your willingness to change, update and adjust information on a continual basis. We always know that if we need something, you are just an email away often responding to us within minutes. I am so very grateful that we found you and the service you are providing for us impacts our bottom line probably more than anything else we can do. This is an honest and sincere thank you from all of us!

Aimee McBride
Owner, Ananda Shala LLC

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Upcoming Move
Net_Experienced is very excited for its upcoming move to Boulder, Colorado! We’re also excited to announce the discovery and partnership of an incredible Flash Designer in Boulder – Nick Jones of Narrow Design. Actually, Nick isn’t in Boulder, yet, either – but that’s what makes this so interesting. Net_Experienced owner, Michael Shearer [...]

Net_Experienced is very excited for its upcoming move to Boulder, Colorado! We’re also excited to announce the discovery and partnership of an incredible Flash Designer in Boulder – Nick Jones of Narrow Design. Actually, Nick isn’t in Boulder, yet, either – but that’s what makes this so interesting.

Net_Experienced owner, Michael Shearer and Nick graduated the same year from Wayzata High School and recently re-connected because of our common web development businesses. In the discussion, both Mike and Nick discovered that the other was planning a move to Boulder County this summer.

Long story short, Net_Experienced is happy to recommend Nick and Narrow Design as its professional flash designer – a perfect addition to our web development services.

So look for some incredible Flash Design in Boulder, accompanied by high performing internet marketing, SEO and custom web development support.

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Custom Millwork Manufacturing - Priced $1,100,000 - Sales $4,200,000
The company is specialized in high end and luxury architectural millwork for corporate head offices, hotels and restaurants [...]

Small Promotional Products Manufacturing Business - Priced $150,000 - Sales $174,000 - Profits $89,000
Screen Printing, Engraving, Pad Printing, Sand Blasting and Embroidery, large format Digital Printing [...]

Congrats to Joe and AirBed & Breakfast!
My pal Joe Gebbia’s got a really cool site called AirBed & Breakfast… it’s sort of like an up-market version of Couchsurfing. It lets users rent their apartment to people traveling to their city, and travelers get a cheaper stay than a hotel, and some local flavor. I wrote about them back in March and am [...]

My pal Joe Gebbia’s got a really cool site called AirBed & Breakfast… it’s sort of like an up-market version of Couchsurfing. It lets users rent their apartment to people traveling to their city, and travelers get a cheaper stay than a hotel, and some local flavor.

I wrote about them back in March and am thrilled to see ‘em getting more and more attention. Just in the past few days, they got a plug in the Wall Street Journal and a post in TechCrunch!

Their marketing strategy for the site, by the way, is spot-on. Instead of trying to attack the entire world at once (and spreading themselves too thin, with cities upon cities with no listings) or concentrating on one city at a time (slow), they’re latching onto popular events and conferences.

By creating campaigns around design and political conferences and major events, they make it temporal, and relevant. In one stroke, the site is worth talking about and blogging about for anyone who’s talking or blogging about that event. Smart.

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Microsoft enters PC retailing market
“Microsoft crafted their empire with software. Operating systems, office suites, desktop productivity – it made them one of the most successful companies in the world. They are no stranger to hardware, either, crafting Microsoft-branded keyboards, mice, gamepads and a slim variety of other hardware. However, it has long been a more bit part of their [...]

“Microsoft crafted their empire with software. Operating systems, office suites, desktop productivity – it made them one of the most successful companies in the world. They are no stranger to hardware, either, crafting Microsoft-branded keyboards, mice, gamepads and a slim variety of other hardware. However, it has long been a more bit part of their business – until now. Microsoft is for the first time ever going to be selling desktop computers. Launching initially in India, their PCs are part of their Unlimited Potential program, which intends to foster technology growth in developing nations…” (Read full article here)

Sun Life Financial names Melody Powell Assistant Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion
“The U.S. division of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF, TSX:SLF) announced the appointment of Melody Powell to Assistant Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion. As Assistant Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion, of Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (U.S.), Powell will be responsible for developing and implementing Sun Life’s diversity initiatives strategy. Additionally, Powell will research [...]

“The U.S. division of Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF, TSX:SLF) announced the appointment of Melody Powell to Assistant Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion. As Assistant Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion, of Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (U.S.), Powell will be responsible for developing and implementing Sun Life’s diversity initiatives strategy. Additionally, Powell will research best practice and benchmarking information to share across the enterprise on topics ranging from recruitment, retention and work-life issues to career development and educational practices….” (Read full article here)

Sun Life Financial Inc more share bought by Capstone Asset Management Co
“Capstone Asset Management Co added additional 11,260 (147.47 %) shares of Sun Life Financial Inc (SLF), bringing their current holdings to 18,895 shares as shown by filings made public on 2008-04-18. The stock is currently owned by 192 funds/institutions with a total activity score of 0.14. With 45.50 % of owning funds reported recently buying [...]

“Capstone Asset Management Co added additional 11,260 (147.47 %) shares of Sun Life Financial Inc (SLF), bringing their current holdings to 18,895 shares as shown by filings made public on 2008-04-18. The stock is currently owned by 192 funds/institutions with a total activity score of 0.14. With 45.50 % of owning funds reported recently buying shares, 20.22 % maintaining existing share level and 34.26 % selling shares…” (Full details for Sun Life Financial Inc available at here)

D-Link gets first 802.11n certification
“The wait for the first 802.11n draft 2.0 products is over. D-Link announced Friday that it was the first company to have its products certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance, which controls standards for wireless networking. The D-Link Extreme N Router and Xtreme N Notebook Adapter were the first products to get the stamp of approval [...]

“The wait for the first 802.11n draft 2.0 products is over. D-Link announced Friday that it was the first company to have its products certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance, which controls standards for wireless networking. The D-Link Extreme N Router and Xtreme N Notebook Adapter were the first products to get the stamp of approval from the Alliance, although many other competing products are in the chute to follow. Both products are based on Atheros’ XSPAN WLAN technology…” (Read full article here)

Sun Life Financial marketing campaign wins two AMA Mark of Excellence Awards
“The U.S. division of Sun Life Financial, Inc. (NYSE:SLF, TSX:SLF) has been honored by the American Marketing Association (AMA) for its Income ON DemandSM marketing campaign. The award-winning campaign was honored in both the “integrated campaign” and “collateral sales kit” categories at the AMA Connecticut chapter’s 2008 Mark of Excellence Award Ceremony held on March [...]

“The U.S. division of Sun Life Financial, Inc. (NYSE:SLF, TSX:SLF) has been honored by the American Marketing Association (AMA) for its Income ON DemandSM marketing campaign. The award-winning campaign was honored in both the “integrated campaign” and “collateral sales kit” categories at the AMA Connecticut chapter’s 2008 Mark of Excellence Award Ceremony held on March 27…” (Read full article here)

Apple launches the iPhone
“Apple’s already famous iPhone is set to go on sale at Apple retail outlets and AT&T corporate stores in the U.S. at 6:30 PM local time. The iPhone has been the subject of a steadily building media frenzy, but was even being heralded as an industry-shifting device back in January when Apple announced it at [...]

“Apple’s already famous iPhone is set to go on sale at Apple retail outlets and AT&T corporate stores in the U.S. at 6:30 PM local time. The iPhone has been the subject of a steadily building media frenzy, but was even being heralded as an industry-shifting device back in January when Apple announced it at the Macworld Expo in San Francisco. Pundits and prognosticators are full of opinions about whether the iPhone will succeed or fail in the marketplace, but one thing’s for sure: Apple has certainly managed to capture the attention of the mobile industry worldwide…” (Read full article here)

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Have Fun for Better Work
May is such a busy month with many special occasions including Mother's Day and graduations. A special wedding trip is added to our family's month as well. This is a good time to be planning how you will have some...

May is such a busy month with many special occasions including Mother's Day and graduations. A special wedding trip is added to our family's month as well.

This is a good time to be planning how you will have some fun this summer. Whether you have a get-away vacation or a stay-at-home vacation, plan special activities or at least a change of scenery. When you return to work you will be energized and better able to focus on your priorities.

Don't forget to have fun! Even though this picture was taken years ago on a family vacation, I still remember the photographer telling the guys to look very stern while the girls were to smile. It's a great reminder of the fun we had that day in borrowed attire.

How does fun help you be more productive? I would like to hear from you.

Secrets of Saying No
Interesting people are often interested in many things. When asked or invited to participate in an activity the automatic response may be "Yes, I would love to do that." Moments later regret steals the excitement. The next thought may be...

Interesting people are often interested in many things. When asked or invited to participate in an activity the automatic response may be "Yes, I would love to do that." Moments later regret steals the excitement. The next thought may be "I wish I had said No!"

You'll find some useful techniques for saying no in The Simple Life: Eight Strategies to Keep Our Wonderful Enthusiasm in Check by Sandy Maynard. You'll even find a way to gracefully change your mind!

What is your secret of saying No?

The Mighty Binder Clip
Have you discovered the wonders of binder clips? Since they were invented nearly a century ago, binder clips have been used primarily for clipping together bundles of paper. Here's a few more ideas for your binder clips: Corral cords. Remove...

Have you discovered the wonders of binder clips? Since they were invented nearly a century ago, binder clips have been used primarily for clipping together bundles of paper. Here's a few more ideas for your binder clips:

Corral cords. Remove one of the wires from the metal clip. Arrange it around unsightly computer or phone cords and replace it on the metal clip. Attach the clip to an out of sight portion of the desk or other convenient place for an effective cord corral.Check this demonstration video.
Bundle your to-do's. Affix a printed or handwritten label on the black metal area. Some examples are To Call, To Do, Day Off Dreams, or other topics for which you have multiple pieces of paper. Use the labeled clip to bundle all items that fit in that category. The benefit is fewer lost papers and clearer direction on what needs to be done.
Focus on important things. Clip the agenda, calendar, goals or whatever needs to be kept front and center to your planner or notebook. You can keep it more visible on the front or place it discreetly just inside the front cover.
Complete your outfit. Larger clips can be used on clothes hangers to hold scarves, undergarments, or pieces of jewelry to complete a special look.

The possibilities are endless for uses for these handy binder clips. How have you used binder clips to increase your productivity and organization? We would like to hear your ideas!

Shopping Outcomes Different for Collectors, Compulisve Shoppers and Hoarders
Two shopping bags full of new-found treasures can result in uniquely different outcomes for Collectors, Compulsive Shoppers and Hoarders. Lynne Gilberg, CPO-CD, a Los Angeles, CA, professional organizer suggests how these three kinds of individuals respond to shopping and acquiring...

Two shopping bags full of new-found treasures can result in uniquely different outcomes for Collectors, Compulsive Shoppers and Hoarders. Lynne Gilberg, CPO-CD, a Los Angeles, CA, professional organizer suggests how these three kinds of individuals respond to shopping and acquiring in a National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization subscriber publication.

Collectors purchase items with the intention of adding them to an existing group of similar items. The collection is often displayed in the collector's home and space is usually available for additional pieces as purchased.

Compulsive Shoppers intend to integrate newly purchased items into their closets, kitchens or workbenches. However, the new item may languish in a bag in the car or somewhere on the floor. A compulsive shopper may intend to return an item but lacks the receipt, the time, the energy, or the interest to make the return happen.

Hoarders may acquire items without realistic expectations of using or storing the material. An individual with hoarding tendencies may find it difficult to decide where the item belongs in their living space. Consequently, a large mass of material can compromise the individual's health and safety.

Today many Americans are reviewing their shopping habits with budget counselors and financial planners. Professional organizers can be part of the team that helps individuals plan and assimilate purchases in a way that supports their goals and dreams for the future.

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Avoid This Entrepreneurial Mistake: 5 Biggest Wastes of Marketing Money
I remember when we first met... Read more...

How To Create a Landing Page With Viral Potential
If you’re going to consider yourself a PROblogger, it won’t take long for you to realize that sometimes the blog isn’t the best place to make an offer. Inevitably, you’re going to find yourself using a landing page. A well-designed landing page that asks for an opt-in (for example) is going to have a MUCH higher [...] If you enjoyed this article, you might also like...

If you’re going to consider yourself a PROblogger, it won’t take long for you to realize that sometimes the blog isn’t the best place to make an offer. Inevitably, you’re going to find yourself using a landing page.

A well-designed landing page that asks for an opt-in (for example) is going to have a MUCH higher conversion rate than a blog. Period. But, it is still just a page that you need to somehow send traffic to.

You can either do all the traffic generation yourself, or you can set the mini-site up such that it has viral component built right into it. Here’s how…

Landing Page 1.0

You create a simple opt-in page. As usual, you include some copy designed to entice interest. You draw attention to the opt-in. You will usually bribe them for the opt-in by giving them something of value for free.

So, you send traffic to this page and the page converts. Then, once the person confirms their address, you give them the free bribe and you’re done with it. Case closed. That person is now on your list and that’s what you wanted.

Here is a chart of this setup:

This is very workable. The only problem is that all the traffic generation to this landing page is from external sources. Your blog. Perhaps PPC advertising.

Let’s look at a better way.

Landing Page 2.0

Let’s take the sale concept and build a viral traffic generation system right into it.

So, right after the opt-in, the next page will have a viral component. My favorite so far is Viral Tweets. Each new subscriber can simply enter their Twitter username/password and automatically retweet a message of your choosing to all of their followers. In exchange for doing that, they get access to a SECOND bribe – more free content.

But, what’s happening here? Well, you’re exposing your message to their followers on Twitter. And this, in turn, draws in new blood to your opt-in page.

If you make that tweet compelling, this setup and work wonders.

Viral Tweets is my personal favorite, but the idea is simply to engineer a viral component into your landing page so that the traffic generation takes place automatically. You can still pile on some external traffic sources, but the viral component will only magnify the effects.

Oh, BTW, Viral Tweets also has a checkbox so that everybody who retweets from the form will also auto-follow you on Twitter. So, you’ll add them to your follower list at the same time.

Check out Viral Tweets. It is free, with an upgrade option you can check out.

If you enjoyed this article, you might also like...

Significance of Technology to Business Strategy
Business Activity Monitoring (BAM) is being adopted by managers in the Business Service Management (BSM) Market and business executives for Business Process Monitoring (BPM) to increase business efficiency. Systar provides BAM solutions to business and managers that need real-time access to critical enterprise performance information, and need to reduce the latency between when information is measured and decisions are made to ensure business activities unfold as expected. Read more...

Failing Business - In Llc bankruptcy you'll work with a guardian
In Llc bankruptcy you'll work with a guardian to reorganize your company to repay your creditors. (...)

In Llc bankruptcy you'll work with a guardian to reorganize your company to repay your creditors. Compounding troubles, I've had serious uninsured health troubles related to the stress of my current financial circumstances. So, we must center our business on a cash and profit producing core function. Once a month, as part of your senior executive team meeting, you should review the previous month's results versus your objectives. Corporate officers want to be ever hence vigil in upholding the highest ethical standards to hold off chapter 11 bankruptcy. Therefore, fewer financiers would lose their capital, more personnel would keep their jobs, and more people you owe would be paid in full.

As with all your worker interviews, attempt to put the senior manager at ease as much as possible. The best leaders understand how to distill all of their projections into one, single overarching target for the firm that everyone can purchase into and rally behind. Step 6: Evaluate and carry out insolvency options. My personal belief is that all memberships are a waste of time and money. The owner agreed to pay the bondholders interest and to return the principal before entering Dallas corporation bankruptcy. They will welcome your questions because, too regularly, enterprise leaders ignore their professional recommendation. This includes your conversations in the break room, in team meetings and especially in your company-wide employee meetings. The bank stands to lose nothing, consequently why must they pursue you? Compare your list of wants and concessions with those of your merchant's and landlord's.

Stressful Workplace? Time To Take The Responsibility To Change Things
With 25% of all prescription drugs provided to patients used for psychotherapy; more than 11% of all occupational disease claims related to stress (and rising); and 42% of all absence citing stress as the major cause, workplace tensions have never been worse. Read more...

I explained the drastic (Turnaround Business Plans) immediate actions that we
I explained the drastic immediate actions that we needed to take to fix his enterprise. (...)

I explained the drastic immediate actions that we needed to take to fix his enterprise. Since you're closer to the action, you will be aware of more fires that need your attention, and these will take up much of your time during the early rebuild phase. Others are going to show surprise, hurt, calm, angry, sad, happy, matter-of-fact or relieved. But what must you do if you're already in trouble? They understand that they can get jobs elsewhere, and they don't want the stain of you laying them off on their resumes. For the most part, the savings will not be more than your current losses, in consequence you won't need extra money to pay taxes. In this section, let me list the best ways to stay clear of a personal bankruptcy filing. This alternative to bankruptcy isn't for those looking for a less hasslechoice. Primary causes for limited liability company bankruptcy and its effects.

Remember that your business partnersonly worry your lack of payment means that they will loses their jobs and possibly their corporations. Chapter eleven is a reorganization insolvency. As part of the turnaround planning, our expert interviewed key managers and personnel, the financial institution, merchants and clients. In consequence, you must diversify your customer base as much as possible. Few capitalists are going to desire to invest or lend you cash now. However, prepare for your top performers to leave you immediately and for overall esprit de corps to decline.

Your Problem Isn’t Traffic, It’s You
When I ask bloggers about their chief issue they need help with, traffic usually ends up at or near the top of the list. And it seems obvious. After all, you can’t make any money if you don’t have anybody looking at your blog, right? However, I’m hear to tell you that, most of the time, [...] If you enjoyed this article, you might also like...

When I ask bloggers about their chief issue they need help with, traffic usually ends up at or near the top of the list. And it seems obvious. After all, you can’t make any money if you don’t have anybody looking at your blog, right?

However, I’m hear to tell you that, most of the time, your problem isn’t traffic. Traffic strategies aren’t the solution. Usually, there is some constraint holding you back that supersedes traffic. In other words, low traffic might be the symptom.

Myself As An Example

To illustrate what I mean by a constraint, let’s take a look at myself. As any entrepreneur, I want to grow my business and make more money. However, even though I am doing well, I’m not satisfied. So, I look for constraints.

What I found was that my constraint was ME. I found that I was single-handedly responsible for my business not growing to the point that I want it to be. If I take my ideal scene (what I want my business to look like) and compare it to reality, I see that there aren’t really any external factors holding me back. So, the problem is me.

When I look further, I realized that my primary constraint was a decision I had been operating on that I should be the one performing most of the various tasks in my business. For various reasons (or excuses), I found myself doing work that I’d be better off having somebody else do. So, I had become a huge bottleneck.

With that constraint spotted, I work to remove it. I immediately start looking for good people to do more of my work for me. This will allow me to focus on what I enjoy and what I’m good at, and let others do the rest.

An Inconvenient Truth

To steal a title from Al Gore, this is an inconvenient truth. That truth is:

Usually, your biggest constraint will be found when you look inward.

When I talk to people who say they need more traffic, I give them suggestions. Build the list. Give away free content. The usual suspects. But, does that solve the problem? Usually, no. Because being told the solution (which is plainly obvious) doesn’t solve the underlying constraint.

Here are some possible constraints that might be a little closer to reality:

Information overload and resulting total confusion. The solution is to pick a single tactic you have learned and apply that one, forgetting about the rest of them. Simply do one thing at a time.
No time to blog. Solution: bite the bullet and schedule in time where you will use self-discipline to sit down and work on your blog. You know that building a successful blog takes time and work, but if you don’t actually put the time there to work on it, nothing will happen. Pretty obvious.
You Don’t Take Action. This is HUGE. A lot of people like to think about what they need to do, but don’t actually do it. The constraint here is the person and a real lack of decision to actually succeed.
Lack of Interest. Some people just want the money, but they really don’t have the passion for their market to do the work which is necessary. That’s a constraint, and one where the solution is usually to pick a different market or to, instead, spend some time on personal development so that you are a person who can create interest in things. Interest in anything comes from the inside, not the outside.

You can begin to see why the overall market of “internet business” so often gets intertwined with personal development. Most of the savvy entrepreneurs spend time on themselves in addition to their business.

What To Do Next?

If you have certain things which you know need help with your internet business, then spend some time and peel back the layers and see if you can arrive at the true constraint. Usually that constraint will be something involving yourself. Perhaps a decision you have made which you are operating on (even if it wasn’t the right decision), or perhaps a lack of honesty with yourself as to what your true strengths and weaknesses are.

I’m not going to sit here and tell you what your constraint is. I have no earthly clue. Only you can decide that.

We all have them. It is up to each of us to figure out what we are personally doing to hold ourselves back and fix that. Because, when you get right down to it, we are the only people who can hold ourselves back.

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Tips for Dealing with Difficult People: Part 1
Friendly, welcoming, and good communicators are great people to converse with. They emotionally lift up people and if there is conflict or some other problem, it is easily worked through. Unfortunately, the world is not filled with great communicators and is more dominated by difficult people. Dealing with difficult people is a must to be happy, successful, and develop fulfilling relationships. Here are list of tips for dealing with difficult people to transform their attitude and keep your relationship from declining: Read more...

Hiring an ethical and competent legal counsellor makes (Turnaround Consulting)
Hiring an ethical and competent legal counsellor makes the different between whether you emerge from receivership with your expected result or just end up with huge legal fees and a giant mess. (...)

Hiring an ethical and competent legal counsellor makes the different between whether you emerge from receivership with your expected result or just end up with huge legal fees and a giant mess. So, don't be afraid to renegotiate with your land lord. (C) no part of the liability under the alternative repayment schedule is. An external certified public accountant can right away aid you in numerous ways. Marketing your dream will go a long way to bringing the salesperson onboard your business. Likely, you will have approved any checks awaiting your signature during the money Forecast Meeting(See lesson 3). Once your business has survived and stabilized, you must review your loan. The Sba (Small business administration) is a good place to start. Don't forget, both your broker and legal defender do not have much to lose if your side leaves something on the table. If the corporation walks into the courthouse with no preparation, then the results could be the judge transfers the enterprise to the largest people you owe. * Reactions of the press, competitors, purchasers and the merchants are never as bad as you fear.

For smaller firms, a Chapter vii s mostly means the firm goes out of business, sells all available resources and personnel lose their jobs. A money budget for your enterprise does not must be hard. For the bankruptcy attorney-at-law, everything looks like a receivership petitioning. Number 5 - Be sure the buildings are sound and the equipment works.

2:35 AM | | 0 Comments

GE Lamps
Fluorescent lamps emit such a bright glow without getting scalding hot like an ordinary light bulb. They come in many shapes and sizes. They are more efficient because a greater proportion of the power used is converted to usable light and a smaller proportion is converted to heat, allowing fluorescent lamps to run cooler

GE Lighting Fixtures
More than a century of research and development has produced a wide range of GE incandescent lamps or bulbs, representing state-of-the-art bulbs for commercial and residential use, as well as special purpose lamps for decorative or display applications

Electrical Distributor
Compact Fluorescent (CFL) Bulbs use up to 75% less energy and last up to 10 times longer than standard bulbs. The initial cost of a fluorescent lamp is usually more but is compensated by lower energy consumption over its life. The longer life may also reduce lamp replacement costs, providing additional saving especially where labour is costly. Therefore they are widely used by businesses worldwide.

Hubbell Killark
Concerned about rising energy costs? Use GE family energy saving products. They are made in a wide range of sizes and voltages from 1.5 volts to about 300 volts. They require no external regulating equipment and have a low manufacturing cost, and work well on either alternating current or direct current. As a result the incandescent lamp is widely used in household and commercial lighting

GE Authorized Distributor
GE Authorized electrical,lighting and lamps Distributor.Based in New Jersey (NJ)

2:35 AM | | 0 Comments

The best of rivals
The Irish Sun: PAT FENLON and Alan Mathews worked together on Tuesday to guide the Republic of Ireland Under 23s to victory over Northern Ireland. But, straight after the game, they shook hands on a job well done and started plotting the others demise. The pair lock horns as rivals on Sunday when Fenlon’s Bohemians [...]

Murphy: Westwood call-up a piss-take
Setanta Sports: Bohemians keeper Brian Murphy has expressed his bewilderment at Giovanni Trapattoni’s decision to call-up Kieren Westwood to the Ireland squad. The 25-year-old has been terrific for The Gypsies this season with only six goals conceded in eleven league games and was tipped by many to make Trapattoni’s original 40-man selection. Murphy was one of many [...]

VOSS Wins Global Telecoms Business Innovation Award
VOSS, nominated a Cool Vendor in Unified Communications (UC) by Gartner, and a leader in UC service delivery software, today announced that its Middle East customer, UAE’s integrated telecom service provider ‘du’, has won the prestigious 2009 Global Telecoms Business Innovation Award, for the implementation of a state of the art UC service delivery platform [...] Related news:

VOSS, nominated a Cool Vendor in Unified Communications (UC) by Gartner, and a leader in UC service delivery software, today announced that its Middle East customer, UAE’s integrated telecom service provider ‘du’, has won the prestigious 2009 Global Telecoms Business Innovation Award, for the implementation of a state of the art UC service delivery platform (UC SDP). The award was received by Samer Geissah, Vice President, Core Network, on behalf of du.

Global Telecoms Business (GTB) magazine, which is read by industry leaders in the telecommunications industry worldwide, launched the Innovation Awards in 2007. Award winners are selected by a judging panel, from hundreds of nominations for the industry’s most innovative projects involving telecoms operators and service providers around the world, in association with their vendors and suppliers.

In recent years, du has established itself as the new telecommunications company of the UAE, offering fixed and mobile telephony, broadband connectivity and IPTV services to individuals, homes and businesses, and carrier services for businesses. As a rapidly growing enterprise, du chose to replace its Cisco IPT platform with a Cisco Hosted Unified Communications solution, which included the VOSS advanced, pre-integrated UC service delivery platform (UC SDP). GTB awarded du, VOSS and Cisco the esteemed innovation award in recognition of their industry-leading solution, with its ability to scale in line with du’s aggressive growth strategy and enable du to satisfy evolving customer demand by providing new and improved UC services, quickly and seamlessly, as and when the customer requires.
The benefits that the VOSS UC SDP brings to du include:

– A fully automated, centralized management platform enabling non-technical staff at du to add new customers and carry out maintenance and changes in real-time; leading to radical cost and time savings
– VOSS provides du with an fully outsourced, centrally managed IP communications environment, providing its customers with a rich voice, video and web experience, with business-ready UC features
– New advanced UC services can now be created in a matter of days and delivered to customers on-demand, with little systems integration
– du is able to actively promote its managed service offering, with full confidence that there are no longer any issues with capacity or a limited service offering

Farid Faraidooni, EVP Commercial, du, commented; “du has a much valued relationship with Cisco and supports VOSS in its mission on service delivery. VOSS gives du a meaningful competitive edge, to introduce new UC features seamlessly, removing deployment blockers, improving customer satisfaction and maximizing revenues.”

Mike Frayne, CEO VOSS, added; “the work that VOSS and Cisco has carried out at du is at the forefront of UC technology, and showcases how powerful a managed UC solution can be to carriers and end users alike. We look forward to continuing to push the boundaries with du, to ensure that it continues to lead the way in providing next generation UC services”.

VOSS, a leader in service delivery software, helps organizations meet their complex and rapidly changing Unified Communications (UC) and IP telephony requirements. Uniquely, VOSS delivers Unified Communications services and systems integration, over large networks that use disparate technologies, vendors and operating systems, in multiple locations and countries.
The company’s real-time, automated and centralized service delivery platform cuts costs while speeding and simplifying the deployment of Unified Communications services. VOSS gives users and providers unprecedented operational efficiency, letting them reap savings, performance gains and the confidence that their Unified Communications environment is agile and flexible enough to change as business demands.

Based in Berkshire, UK and Herndon, VA, VOSS is funded by UK early-stage venture capital firm Eden Ventures, XAnge Private Equity and PE Investments. Founded as VisionOSS, the company is now called VOSS. Its solutions have been deployed by prominent service providers, large enterprises and partners such as Cisco Systems across Europe and North America. For more information, visit www.visionoss.com.

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Keely backing Nutsy
The Irish Sun (Dermot Keely column): AS a lot of people will know, I would not have an awful lot of time for Pat Scully. It goes back to when he was a player at Shelbourne and we had a falling-out over my handling of an incident involving some of his team-mates. They had behaved in a [...]

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Finding out if a girl likes you

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Liliane Bettencourt
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Sheldon Adelson
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Michael Dell
Michael Michael Saul Dell the famous CEO of Dell Inc was born on 23 February 1965, in Houston, Texas. His fascination for computers developed right since he was a child. When he was 15 years old he broke down a computer and reassembled it.

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Karl Hans Albrecht
Karl Hans Albrecht was born in Germany on 20 February 1920. He and his brother Theo were brought up in humble background by their mother in Essen, Germany. Theo worked as an apprentice in the mother’s store and Karl joined the German Army in World War II.

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Great Evening Out
Luxury dinner plus a shopping spree for a great time!

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Clube '07 Yılbaşı

Paylaşım

IT Works

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Web Pay Per Click Advertising
Is web pay per click advertising helping you make money at home? Get the most from your work from home advertising budget. See how your home based business can profit.

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Budget Planning, Financial Budget Planning Worksheets
Get budget planning services, financial budget planning & prepare budget planning worksheets at affordable rates. We offer online long term financial budget planning services.

Accounting Outsourcing Services | Accounting Financial Services | Accounting Software
Accounting Outsourcing Services has provided that accounting financial services, accounting software support accounting assistance and expertise for a various scope of requirements.

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Affordable Accounting Outsourcing Services for Your Business
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Sitemap: Financial Accounting Outsourcing Services
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Interesing debate on business process and decisions
I have posted a couple of times recently on the interaction of decisions and processes - Another way decision management and process interact, More on keeping decisions and processes separate and Here's how decision management simplifies process management. This last...

Friday end of week almost

I worked at Annie Harts place todsay complete waste of time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Women

Loz (big hugs and kisses for her) did paperwork...gettin on top of it now (nearly paid everyone).

Dinner"oh my God the best steak n chips ever" my wonderful Lozzy pops!!

Collected cash from andy crook and neil roland £350.00 nice.

Mothers Day

Well it's pissing down blowing a gale and we're delivering 10 flower orders. Why does it always rain and blow on Mothers Day!!!!

Open Source Enterprise Business Rules Arrive
Today is the official release day for the new release of JBoss Enterprise BRMS - Drools 5.0 as was. Key features in this release are the repository/repository management tools and the new features that let business users and business analysts...

2:32 AM | | 0 Comments

I’m in Vegas at PMA this week (& we’re doing an HP/Photojojo Photo Safari)
I’m in Vegas for PMA this week. I’ll be speaking on Sunday, looking for new products for the Photojojo store with Jen (our new store manager) during the week, helping with the HP+Photojojo Photo Safari at the Neon Boneyard on Wednesday, and hanging out with Jen, Steph, and Katherine and Cari from SF on Wednesday [...]

I’m in Vegas for PMA this week. I’ll be speaking on Sunday, looking for new products for the Photojojo store with Jen (our new store manager) during the week, helping with the HP+Photojojo Photo Safari at the Neon Boneyard on Wednesday, and hanging out with Jen, Steph, and Katherine and Cari from SF on Wednesday night and Thursday.

If you’re in town and want to meet up, drop me a line!

My Year in Cities – 2008
One or more nights were spent in each city. Per Kottke’s specifications, * indicates cities visited multiple times on non-consecutive days. San Francisco, CA* New York, NY* Brooklyn, NY* Chicago, IL Düsseldorf, Germany Cologne, Germany New Delhi, India* Nainital, India South Lake Tahoe, CA Brookline, MA Edison, NJ Woodbridge, CT* North Bennington, VT A quick look on Dopplr revealed that I spent a whopping 31 days in New York [...]

One or more nights were spent in each city. Per Kottke’s specifications, * indicates cities visited multiple times on non-consecutive days.

San Francisco, CA*
New York, NY*
Brooklyn, NY*
Chicago, IL
Düsseldorf, Germany
Cologne, Germany
New Delhi, India*
Nainital, India
South Lake Tahoe, CA
Brookline, MA
Edison, NJ
Woodbridge, CT*
North Bennington, VT

A quick look on Dopplr revealed that I spent a whopping 31 days in New York this year, burnt 12,281 kg of CO₂, and had no travel in March or June.

See also: Katherine’s list and Chrysanthe’s list

SeaSources.net - Online Training For Mariners
The first with online study for the Maritime Industry. Multiple choice quizzes with illustrations for home study and United_States Coast Guard license exam preparation assistance on deck and engineering subjects. Use our online study feature or purchase programs to download & install.

KiloPak.com
KiloPak designs and builds the finest marine generator set for the yachting industry. Our generators offer the best features, build quality and warranty in the yachting business. Kilo-Pak is a product line of Reagan Equipment Co., Inc. Reagan Equipment, a family owned business, has produced and serviced thousands of generator sets for the offshore petroleum and marine markets.

An idea for Yelp, Menupages, and their brethren
Allow people to review, fave, or star individual menu items. Here in San Francisco, Yelp is indispensable. In NYC, I used Menupages all the time. Both are great for simple, honest, user-generated feedback of places to eat. Often, I’m visiting the page for a restaurant I’ve already tried, just to skim through the reviews and decide what [...]

Ike's Place - Castro - San Francisco, CA

Allow people to review, fave, or star individual menu items.

Here in San Francisco, Yelp is indispensable. In NYC, I used Menupages all the time. Both are great for simple, honest, user-generated feedback of places to eat.

Often, I’m visiting the page for a restaurant I’ve already tried, just to skim through the reviews and decide what to order. Case in point, my favorite sammy shop in the whole wide world, Ike’s Place, has a ton of amazing vegetarian sandwiches on the menu. My favorite is their “Going Home For Thanksgiving” sandwich, but sometimes I want to try something new.

Wouldn’t it be neat-o if you could just look at the menu and see reviews for each item? Maybe even sort by popularity or rating? I think it would.

Room available in my apartment (San Francisco)
UPDATE: Room now taken! One of the rooms in my apartment just opened up, and we’re looking to fill it by November 1st or sooner. We’ll start interviewing this week. The apartment is a three bedroom in San Francisco that I share with two other people, and one of them (Jenny) started grad school and moved into [...]

UPDATE: Room now taken!

One of the rooms in my apartment just opened up, and we’re looking to fill it by November 1st or sooner. We’ll start interviewing this week.

The apartment is a three bedroom in San Francisco that I share with two other people, and one of them (Jenny) started grad school and moved into school housing*.

The room is small (12′ x 13′), has a window, a large closet, and is quiet. The rent is very cheap ($550/month + utilities) and the lease is month-to-month.

In Duboce Triangle (seriously great, super walkable neighborhood with tree-lined streets, and lots of places to eat.) A quick walk to the Lower Haight or Castro. 2 blocks from Duboce Park (swell dog park — and the apt itself is dog-friendly.)
Within 3 blocks, you’ll find burritos, burgers, vietnamese and chinese, bars, a gym, and a 24-hour Safeway (grocery store)
Washer and Dryer in unit.
Bike parking in back.
Shared Kitchen + living room + bathroom
2 blocks from the Church St. MUNI (K,M,T) and N-Judah, J-Church, F-Market, and 22.
Available 11/1 or sooner.
$550/month. (Yes, really. It’s rent controlled because my other roommate has been here for a while.)

We might be picky, but if you are awesome and are interested, email me. And if you know someone who might be interested, pass it on. Thanks!

* Jenny was going to move out a few months ago but she decided she didn’t want to give up the room and stayed on a bit longer. In the end, paying for a room she wasn’t using didn’t seem like the best idea, so now we’re looking again!

International Yachtmaster Training
Internationally accredited Maritime Training Facility offering modular courses worldwide from introduction to boating through to MCA Yachtmaster Ocean.

Social Serendipity
I’ve been noticing something happening to me more and more often recently: serendipitous social connections being made between me and old friends, strangers, or even between two people I barely know, as a result of some data I put up publicly on the net. Here’s three examples over just the past few days: I twittered a meeting [...]

I’ve been noticing something happening to me more and more often recently: serendipitous social connections being made between me and old friends, strangers, or even between two people I barely know, as a result of some data I put up publicly on the net.

Here’s three examples over just the past few days:

I twittered a meeting I was having earlier week with Lisa Congdon at Rare Device, who I met through my pal Kate Bingaman-Burt, and as a result, someone I don’t even know named Beth, was reconnected with Lisa. Beth and I don’t know each other, Lisa and I just met this week, and Kate and I have only communicated through digital means… we’ve never met in person.
I posted a photo of a dollar bill I had that reminded me of a side project of a guy that used to work for me… seven years ago. As a result, I got an email from him the next day.
I posted this photo of a special bottle of Dr. Pepper I bought back in February. Yesterday, I got this email through Facebook from a gal I don’t know looking for the soda in the Bay Area for a friend who’s obsessed with the drink and has a birthday coming up.

Of course, none of these events are truly serendipitous, they’re all indicative of the incredibly interconnected fabric of social connection we’re weaving online with every piece of information we put out there. The more we open ourselves up, the more we’re weaved into the social fabric, with each piece of information we release becoming a possible point of connection (or re-connection) with old and new friends.

I’m hiring for Photojojo (San Francisco, CA)
We have a really cool new full-time position open at Photojojo, working with me, Susan, and Kelly in our San Francisco office in SOMA. Briefly, we’re looking for someone entrepreneurial, smart, and savvy to take charge of our online store business. We started the store two years ago and have seen impressive growth despite it being [...]

We have a really cool new full-time position open at Photojojo, working with me, Susan, and Kelly in our San Francisco office in SOMA.

Briefly, we’re looking for someone entrepreneurial, smart, and savvy to take charge of our online store business. We started the store two years ago and have seen impressive growth despite it being a sideline until now. We’re aiming to put a lot more time into the store, and we’re looking for a perfect someone to take over buying, marketing, promotions, and overall direction. You’ll have a good deal of responsibility, lots of flexibility to be creative, and the opportunity to learn and grow a ton.

Please pass it on to your photo-happy San Francisco friends!

Details: Photojojo Jobs: Entrepreneurial online store manager wanted

2:32 AM | | 0 Comments

Native America
Harmon Percy Marble was an Indian Agent between 1911 and 1926. During this time he made hundreds of images of Navajo, Menominee and Sioux Native Americans. While lacking the artistic sense and quality of the work of some of his better known contemporaries, Marble’s photographs probably provide the most honest and uncontrived portrayal of Native [...]

Harmon Percy Marble was an Indian Agent between 1911 and 1926. During this time he made hundreds of images of Navajo, Menominee and Sioux Native Americans. While lacking the artistic sense and quality of the work of some of his better known contemporaries, Marble’s photographs probably provide the most honest and uncontrived portrayal of Native American life available to us.

The Trouble with Talent
Psychologist Carol Dweck has shown that people who believe intelligence is static struggle to overcome adversity, while those who see achievement as a product of effort shrug off setbacks and keep climbing. What are the implications for school, business and society? This is one of those whap-up-side-of-the-head articles I love; it changed my understanding of motivation [...]

Psychologist Carol Dweck has shown that people who believe intelligence is static struggle to overcome adversity, while those who see achievement as a product of effort shrug off setbacks and keep climbing. What are the implications for school, business and society?

This is one of those whap-up-side-of-the-head articles I love; it changed my understanding of motivation and ability.

10 Rules for Blogging
Here’s a link to “The Value of SMO: How to Get Subscribers While You Sleep” which includes a great list of 10 things to remember in order to increase online readability.

Here’s a link to “The Value of SMO: How to Get Subscribers While You Sleep” which includes a great list of 10 things to remember in order to increase online readability.

What gives with you Americans?
You know why they call it the American dream? Do you? George Carlin knows and so do I. It’s because you have to be asleep to believe it. Why do you seem not to care? Is it because you’re asleep? Is it? Are you? Wake up America and shake off the gangsters who think they own you. You are not Republicans. You are not Democrats. You [...]

You know why they call it the American dream?

Do you?

George Carlin knows and so do I.

It’s because you have to be asleep to believe it.

Why do you seem not to care?

Is it because you’re asleep?

Is it?

Are you?

Wake up America and shake off the gangsters who think they own you.

You are not Republicans.

You are not Democrats.

You are not Independents.

YOU ARE AMERICANS.

Are you not?

Or is it too late already?

Fascist America: Student tazered as Kerry looks on
If there are still those among my American friends who believe that they live in a free and democratic society, I strongly suggest that they watch the following video. Filmed by students at a John Kerry speech on September 17, Constitution Day, it shows 21-year old journalism student Andrew Meyer being denied his rights to free [...]

If there are still those among my American friends who believe that they live in a free and democratic society, I strongly suggest that they watch the following video.

Filmed by students at a John Kerry speech on September 17, Constitution Day, it shows 21-year old journalism student Andrew Meyer being denied his rights to free speech and constitutional protection at the hands of police stormtroopers, while a United States Senator looks on.

Be afraid, be very afraid.

Read article by Paul Craig Roberts

Change This
“ChangeThis is a new kind of media. It’s calm and thoughtful and direct and transparent. And unlike almost every other form of media, it reaches people through community. If an idea is a good one, it’ll spread, because people like you will send it to their friends. Unlike a broadcaster, we’re not using FCC [...]

“ChangeThis is a new kind of media. It’s calm and thoughtful and direct and transparent. And unlike almost every other form of media, it reaches people through community. If an idea is a good one, it’ll spread, because people like you will send it to their friends. Unlike a broadcaster, we’re not using FCC frequencies to send our ideas to people who don’t want to hear them.

“Unlike a book or a newspaper, it’s free. And there are no ads.

“Unlike a web site, we’re not a place you go to. You’re more likely to get a manifesto from a friend or find one on a blog. (But if you want them before anyone else, sign up for our once-every-two-weeks newsletter.)”

Homeless in Vermont
I must apologise for my lack of input recently. This is mostly because I’ve been spending most of my time and energy on my novel. I’ve posted the first three short chapters here and will add chapters from time to time. Check it out. In the meantime I’ve decided to feature some posts that strike me [...]

I must apologise for my lack of input recently. This is mostly because I’ve been spending most of my time and energy on my novel. I’ve posted the first three short chapters here and will add chapters from time to time. Check it out.

In the meantime I’ve decided to feature some posts that strike me as worthy from friends’ blogs. The first is this great piece, written by my good friend Mike E at the Open Container Speedway.

ONE STINKING DOLLAR

“I’m sorry sir,” I respectfully informed the bus driver. “but I don’t have a dollar.”

My next line was well rehearsed. I’d gone over it time & again in my mind. Not so much to memorize it as to talk myself through a crisis of confidence. How would I get on the bus with no dollar? I panicked. Then reassured myself thus:

When I see one I know it – I’m a connoisseur of these things – and I happened to have handy a smashingly good excuse.

“I’m homeless,” I explained, “and literally on my way to church.

How ’bout it? I ask you, Is that a good reason to ride the bus for free?”

“No,” said the bus driver.

Maybe he thought I was lying. I admittedly didn’t look like I was on my way to church. I looked homeless, I smelled, and probably came off a bit crazily.

But Quakers – the self-anointed Religious Society of Friends — are exceptionally good people. I trusted them to accept me, as I came, as a friend in need.

I had a pitch, also well rehearsed, that I wanted to make them. Quakers have an admirably deep sense of service; they are a people devoted to peace. They’ve worked tirelessly to end the Iraq War. That is tireless work I admire. Alas, for all their tireless work the war rages on unabated.

I know how it feels when one’s benevolently tireless efforts fail. I’ve had no success in my own quest to stop another, equally frightful, injustice: homelessness. Specifically, my own.

Now, maybe it was a long shot but I thought the Northampton Quakers – do- gooders that they are – would want to do a bit about the homeless problem in their own community. I genuinely believed they’d appreciate the unforeseen chance to help me.

And thus gain a boost in confidence, from one problem well solved, that may help them bring more peace.

If not – no matter. The hour of communal silence that is a Quaker Meeting for Worship would be reward enough for my journey, providing me with the strength of spirit required to contend with my plight. Because in the midst of their silence, at least, I am not homeless. Not hungry. I am among friends.

And friends don’t let friends go homeless & hungry.

I asked the bus driver: “Please?”

I aimed admirably to better myself. Was mine not a compelling case of need?

The bus driver said no. Fair enough. This is America after all. Where nobody rides for free.

“I know,” I tenaciously proposed, “I’ll ask someone at church for $2 bucks and pay you for the round trip when I ride back to Amherst.”

Maybe the Northampton Quakers couldn’t help me not be homeless that particular Sunday, but pay my bus fare? I personally guarantee it!

Again the bus driver said no.

I grew flustered. But quickly regained my composure. I am after all a professional journalist. And if this jerk wouldn’t let me ride a near-empty municipal bus to church – I suppose that’s the Story.

I tapped the lap top computer – my one worldly possession since I lost track of my clothes – that was slung in a bag over my shoulder. And informed him that I was writing an article about homelessness for the Valley Advocate (local free/leftist weekly).

“Look,” I proffered smartly, “we can do this the easy way or the other way.”

The other way, I promised, would be hard for us both, because I’d have to hitch hike to church, and he’d have to deal with what I say about him in the article I suspect he did not believe would be written.

I pointed my thumb to Northampton. I thought I should seriously thank my new bus driver friend, because writers need dumb-snot-butt-wipes like him, To excentuate our point, prove us right, and help us sell stories.

No one picked me up hitch hiking.

I struggled beneath the awkwardly gravitated weight of my lap top computer. Slung in a one-strap bag. First across a painfully slumped shoulder. Then across my other. All the way to Northampton on foot.

It hurt.

I’d not slept. Nor could I remember the last time I’d eaten. The no food thing worried me. I grew aware that I lacked the recent caloric intake required to comfortably fuel the demands I placed on my body. I’m very skinny. And not as young as I used to be.

About the same age, I realized, as Neil Cassidy – when he died in mid-step on a long walk after some nights of no sleep and who knew how long since he’d eaten.

But there was no turning back. No time to rest. Not even a sip of water to drink. There was only me & the Story. And to sell the story I’d need proof, a witness, one who would verify my unavoidably late arrival at Quaker Meeting that day.

I had to show up before the last Quaker straggler closed & locked their Meetinghouse door.

To professionally cover the story.

The last straggler was friendly. Gave me apple juice & a snack & patiently heard my tale of woe. I’m certain she would have gladly tossed me a buck for bus fare, as well, but I forgot to ask.

Somewhere along that 10 mile walk back to Amherst I decided not to thank the bus driver after all. Because every homeless person who can’t ride the bus will not write an article about it. And the article may not sell.

But every homeless person has somewhere better to go.

The Northampton Quakers may have helped me. Who knows? But for my lack of one stinking dollar I might be already home.

The Art of Genius
“If you hold opposites together in your mind, you will suspend your normal thinking process and allow an intelligence beyond rational thought to create a new form.” – Niels Bohr, physicist, quoted in “The Art of Genius,” The Utne Reader Issn 8750-0256 (August 1998), p 76.

“If you hold opposites together in your mind, you will suspend your normal thinking process and allow an intelligence beyond rational thought to create a new form.”

– Niels Bohr, physicist, quoted in “The Art of Genius,” The Utne Reader Issn 8750-0256 (August 1998), p 76.

San Francisco Zoo Capital Campaign
Raised $24,000,000.00+ Situation: Circumstances beyond the Zoo’s control delayed voter-approved construction for several years, during which time costs increased substantially. The Zoo needed to raise millions of dollars quickly in order to avoid falling even further behind in construction of the “New Zoo.” Strategy: We developed a multi-piece mailing, which was supplemented with personal phone calls from Zoo board [...]

Raised $24,000,000.00+

Situation:
Circumstances beyond the Zoo’s control delayed voter-approved construction for several years, during which time costs increased substantially. The Zoo needed to raise millions of dollars quickly in order to avoid falling even further behind in construction of the “New Zoo.”

Strategy:
We developed a multi-piece mailing, which was supplemented with personal phone calls from Zoo board members. The upscale brochure:

Included a map and architectural renderings of the “New Zoo” to help create a sense of immediacy, even though construction had not yet begun.
Emphasized the personal connection people feel with the Zoo, and the ways in which it affects individuals.
Offered opportunities for permanent recognition (such as personalized plaques) for high-value donors.

Tangible results:
The capital campaign raised more than $24,000,000 for the San Francisco Zoo in only a few months.

‘You don’t know what they do to you when they know you can’t walk.’
I’ve been damned by some as an unbeliever, an anti-christ. It pleases me, therefore, and reinforces my self esteem, to know that to others I’m the cool atheist across the street. My youngest daughter calls me daddy and my mother insists that I was brought up a good catholic kid and on the right track. So I [...]

I’ve been damned by some as an unbeliever, an anti-christ. It pleases me, therefore, and reinforces my self esteem, to know that to others I’m the cool atheist across the street.

My youngest daughter calls me daddy and my mother insists that I was brought up a good catholic kid and on the right track.

So I drink a lot of whisky. So did my grandfather. Who doesn’t? It’s a family thing. At the age of fifteen I was a good father to three kids, and I always went to confession.

Now, suddenly, I’m an apostate Jew. I wake up one morning and that’s it.

Corner shop proprietor Anita Devi — I knew her father, he was like a Rabbi to me, although he was an apostate Sikh — told local reporters: ‘I’m sorting the papers for the delivery wallahs, you know, like it’s 5am, and in walks Dustin Hoffman. “It’s not safe,” he says, “but I’m a very good driver, Mrs Robinson.” I ask you, do I look like a Nazi dentist?’

No comment, no jazz.

However, Kafka told me this sort of thing was a possibility and, hey, Anita, he gave me a couple of other clues too: like, until this beard grew overnight I was Al Pacino a la Godfather 2, like an old dead uncle always insisted I should be. And Bukowski told me once that when I realised I’d failed as a writer I could maybe scratch a living as an Ernesto Guevara lookalike. Now I’m a 55 year old Ratso Rizzo.

Life’s a bitch. Forget about it. Just learn the lesson: never judge a close relative by his cover.

2:31 AM | | 0 Comments

Very High-End Millwork, Woodworking and Cabinetry Company for Sale west of GTA.
Manufactures millwork for very upscale private clients. Imports and distributes millwork related products. [...]

Two profitable Florists for Sale in Sudbury with Sofisticated Proprietary Flower Distribution Technology
Sudbury, Flower shops for sale. Higly sofisticated proprietary ordering system. High trafic ecommerce website. [...]

2:31 AM | | 0 Comments

Microsoft Dynamics hängt SAP&Co bei Gartner ab
Das Marktforschungs- und Analystenhaus Gartner ordnet IT-Hersteller in die Quadranten Leaders, Challengers, Visioniaries und Niche Players ihres Koordinatensystems Magic Quadrant ein, das auf der X-Achse die Zukunftsfähigkeit und auf der Y-Achse die funktionale Eignung abbildet. Im Marksegment ERP-Systeme für mittelständische...

Das Marktforschungs- und Analystenhaus Gartner ordnet IT-Hersteller in die Quadranten Leaders, Challengers, Visioniaries und Niche Players ihres Koordinatensystems Magic Quadrant ein, das auf der X-Achse die Zukunftsfähigkeit und auf der Y-Achse die funktionale Eignung abbildet. Im Marksegment ERP-Systeme für mittelständische Product Centric Companies mit 100 bis 1000 Mitarbeitern sowie Konzernniederlassungen und -abteilungen hängte die Micosoft Produktlinie…

…Dynamics AX ihre Wettbewerber ab. Die als Axapta bekannt gewordene ERP-Suite platzierte Gartner als einzige Softwarelösung im Leaders-Quadranten. Das für Branchen vorkonfigurierte SAP All-in-one landete allerdings nur sehr knapp unterhalb der Trennlinie im Visionaries-Quadranten.

Nur internationale Anbieter berücksichtigt
Gartner nahm in dieser Studie nur international tätige Anbieter auf, deren Produktlinien weltweit verfügbar sind. Deshalb sind beispielsweise nationale Anbieter wie proALPHA oder PSI Penta nicht dabei.

Oracle E-Business Suite nur im Nischen-Quadranten
Dazu gehört aber die E-Business Suite von Oracle, die von den Gartner-Analysten – wenn auch weit oben – nur im Nischenanbieter-Quadranten zugeordnet wurde. Dort landete auch die Microsoft Produktlinie Dynamics NAV, ehemals Navision, die vor allem in Deutschland viele Kunden hat. Die durch die Übernahme von J.D. Edwards zu Oracle gekommene Produktlinie Enterprise One schaffte es dagegen in den Quadranten der Herausforderer. Einen ausführlichen Bericht über die Gartner-Studie zu ERP-Herstellern im Mittelstand lesen Sie morgen auf www.isreport.de

Gartner-Analysten der Studie: Christian Hestermann, Robert P. Anderson, Chris Pang

Business Guide Enterprise Resource Planning 2009

Zum 5. Mal: Die umfassendste Standardreferenz zum
deutschsprachigen Markt für ERP-Software
Buchen Sie noch heute den Katalogeintrag
Ihres Firmenprofils inklusive Online-Präsenz
und platzieren Sie Ihre Case Studies.

Buchung und Fragen zu Anzeigen
Stefan Raupach, sRaupach@oxygon.de
Tel. 089/90 48 62-30, Fax -55
Elke Schuder, eSchuder@oxygon.de
Tel. 089/90 48 62-23

CRM braucht Dokumente – VOI präsentiert sich auf der CRM-expo
Der VOI - Verband Organisations- und Informationssysteme e. V. präsentiert sich erstmals auf der CRM-expo 2009 mit einem Gemeinschaftsstand und einem eigenen Forum. „Ein erfolgreiches Kundenbeziehungsmanagement ist… …ohne Dokumente nicht vorstellbar“, erläutert Doris Störtzer stellvertretende Vorstandsvorsitzende des VOI, und fügt...

Der VOI - Verband Organisations- und Informationssysteme e. V. präsentiert sich erstmals auf der CRM-expo 2009 mit einem Gemeinschaftsstand und einem eigenen Forum. „Ein erfolgreiches Kundenbeziehungsmanagement ist…

…ohne Dokumente nicht vorstellbar“, erläutert Doris Störtzer stellvertretende Vorstandsvorsitzende des VOI, und fügt hinzu: „In diesem Umfeld gewinnen Themen wie das Erschließen von Inhalten, rechtssichere Speicherung, Signierung oder Auswertung von Inhalten aus Dokumenten zunehmend an Bedeutung und werden zu einem wesentlichen Erfolgsfaktor für Unternehmen.“

Seit dem vergangenen Jahr engagiere sich der VOI verstärkt im Bereich Customer Relationship Management (CRM) und hat dazu das themaspezifische Competence Center CC CRM gegründet. Die CRM-expo findet vom 8. bis 9. Oktober 2009 im Messezentrum Nürnberg statt.

SAP bewegt sich mit Business ByDesign in Richtung Multi Tenancy
Bislang hat die SAP jeden Kunden ihrer neuen On-Demand-Lösung Business ByDesign ein eigenes Blade für ihre Softwareinstanz spendiert. Das wird sich ändern. Nicht weil... ...die Blades zu teuer sind, sondern die Administrierung jedes Kunden pro Blade. "Wir bewegen uns Richtung...

Bislang hat die SAP jeden Kunden ihrer neuen On-Demand-Lösung Business ByDesign ein eigenes Blade für ihre Softwareinstanz spendiert. Das wird sich ändern. Nicht weil...

...die Blades zu teuer sind, sondern die Administrierung jedes Kunden pro Blade. "Wir bewegen uns Richtung Multi Tenancy", bestätigt Rainer Zinow (Bild unten), Senior Vice President ByD Innovation bei SAP, auf der SAP World Tour, die heute in Mannheim Station macht. Das Core der Mittelstandssoftware würde dann für alle ByD-Kunden stabil bleiben, individuelle Codestrecken der Kunden aber separat vorgehalten werden. Wie die SAP diese Nuss knacken will, verriet Zinow allerdings nicht. Am Ziel spätestens Ende 2010 mit einer für den Massenmarkt tauglichen Lösung, sprich für SAP zu vertretbaren TCOs vermarktbaren Lösung, an den Markt zu gehen, halte die SAP aber fest.

Datenhaltung im Hauptspeicher
Die durchschnittliche Antwortzeit von SAP Business ByDesign beträgt laut SAP-Manager Zinow (Foto links) 1,6 Sekunden bei Kunden, die die Lösung produktiv einsetzen. Der ERP-Hersteller ist also noch ein ganzes Stück weit entfernt, von den anvisierten Reaktionszeiten von unter 1 Sekunde, und noch ziemlich weit von der von dem SAP-Mitgründer und –Aufsichtsratsvorsitzendem Hasso Plattner angestrebten Anwendung ohne Antwortzeiten. Eine mögliche Lösung ist laut dem SAP-Grandseigneur eine Umstellung auf eine spaltenorientierte Datenverarbeitung im Hauptspeicher.

Spaltenorientierter Datenbankzugriff

ByD würden dann mit der TREX genannten Search-Engine bei Abfragen spaltenorientiert auf die im Hauptspeicher vorgehaltenen Daten zugreifen. In der für Juli avisierten Version ByD 2.0 sei die neue Abfrage-Technologie schon teilweise enthalten, aber Plattner will mehr: „Wenn die SAP mit zieht, könnte ByD in einer Version nach 2.5 nur noch TREX-basierend sein“, deutet Plattner in Mannheim an. Aber daran glauben noch nicht alle bei der SAP: „Eine physikalische Repräsentanz, eine Persistence auf eine relationale Datenbank werden wir brauchen“, erklärt ByD-Manager Rainer Zinow. Das sei beispielsweise notwendig, bei einem nicht vollständig auszuschließenden Stromausfall, um die Daten zu sichern.

Infor besetzt Posten von Ex-Varial-Vorstand Stehlik neu
Mit Edwin Willems ist ab sofort ein neuer Vice President für Infors Field Marketing in EMEA verantwortlich. Edwin Willems kam im Mai 2009 zum ERP-Anbieter Infor und ersetzt den ehemaligen Varial-Vorstand Hermann Stehlik, der… …in die Rolle des Vice President...

Mit Edwin Willems ist ab sofort ein neuer Vice President für Infors Field Marketing in EMEA verantwortlich. Edwin Willems kam im Mai 2009 zum ERP-Anbieter Infor und ersetzt den ehemaligen Varial-Vorstand Hermann Stehlik, der…

…in die Rolle des Vice President EMEA Sales Extended Solutions gewechselt ist.

Von Brüssel aus will Willems das Infors Field Marketing und die Verbreitung der Infor-Lösungen weiter vorantreiben. Er werde direkt an Jeff Abbott, Vice President Solutions and Field Marketing bei Infor berichten.

Zuvor war Edwin Willems den Angaben zufolge in einer Reihe von Vertriebs- und Marketing-Positionen in der Software-Industrie – unter anderem bei Oracle Belgium als Marketing Director – tätig. Weitere Stationen seiner Laufbahn umfassen Positionen bei Business Objects, inzwischen aufgekauft von SAP, unter anderem als Vice President Marketing EMEA.

Edwin Willems hält ein Mathematik- und Informatik-Diplom der Universität von Louvain, ein Marketing-Diplom der Universität von Brüssel und ein Management-Diplom der Universität von Gent.

Business Guide Enterprise Resource Planning 2009

Buchung und Fragen zu Anzeigen
Stefan Raupach, sRaupach@oxygon.de
Tel. 089/90 48 62-30, Fax -55
Elke Schuder, eSchuder@oxygon.de
Tel. 089/90 48 62-23

Infor erweitert Funktionen für die Prozessindustrie
ERP-Anbieter Infor hat die Verfügbarkeit von Infor ERP Blending 6.1 angekündigt. Das neue Release für Unternehmen der chemischen und pharmazeutischen Industrie sei… …insbesondere um vier Kernfunktionen erweitert worden: ein integrierter Wiegedialog zur Rezepturverwiegung und für Lagerbuchungen, ein Event Monitor sowie...

ERP-Anbieter Infor hat die Verfügbarkeit von Infor ERP Blending 6.1 angekündigt. Das neue Release für Unternehmen der chemischen und pharmazeutischen Industrie sei…

…insbesondere um vier Kernfunktionen erweitert worden: ein integrierter Wiegedialog zur Rezepturverwiegung und für Lagerbuchungen, ein Event Monitor sowie Funktionen zur Reklamationsverwaltung und zum mobilen Kommissionieren. Infor ERP Blending ist laut Hersteller in deutscher Sprache ab sofort verfügbar, Ende Juni 2009 sollen Versionen in Englisch und Französisch folgen.

Wiegedialog für Rezepturverwiegungen
Infor ERP Blending 6.1 biete einen integrierten Wiegedialog für Rezepturverwiegungen und Lagerbuchungen. Damit erübrige sich der Einsatz eines weiteren separaten Systems, der redundante Datenhaltung und zusätzliche Kosten bedeuten würde. Der Wiegedialog lasse sich direkt aus den Buchungsprogrammen aufrufen und biete unter anderem Funktionen wie Waagenstammverwaltung und Überwachung, Brutto-/Netto-Entnahmeverwiegung oder Etikettendruck.

Event Monitor ermittelt Datenkonstellationen
Der neu integrierte Event Monitor helfe, Datenkonstellationen zu ermitteln, die eine zuvor frei definierte Ausnahmesituation darstellen – wenn etwa der Wareneingangstermin bereits überschritten, die Charge verfallen oder ein Prüfmittel nicht kalibriert ist. Der Event Monitor generiere dann Benachrichtigungen, die sofort in den zugehörigen Programmen aufgerufen und nach Aufgabenstellung, Terminen oder Prioritäten bearbeitet oder delegiert werden könnten.

Mobiles Kommissionieren
Die im neuen Release enthaltene Reklamationsverwaltung könne auftragsbezogen oder anonym angelegt werden. In Bezug zur jeweiligen Charge ermögliche sie die Definition von Folgeaktivitäten, wie Prüfauftragserstellungen, Gutschriften oder die Überwachung von Terminen, sowie generelle Auswertungen.
Mit dem Modul ‚Mobiles Kommissionieren’ könnten jetzt alle Warenbewegungen in der Materialwirtschaft von der Einlagerung über die Materialbereitstellung bis zur Rückmeldung eines Produktionsauftrags und der Auslieferung per Scanner im Online-Verfahren gebucht werden. Statt Picklisten separat bearbeiten zu lassen, biete Infor auch die Möglichkeit, die gesamte reservierte Ware für den Tag erst in einen so genannten Kommissionierungs-Pool umzulagern, um dann in einem zweiten Schritt die Picklisten abzuarbeiten. Diese doppelte Form der Kommissionierung stelle für Unternehmen, die über mehrere Lagerorte verfügen, eine erhöhte Sicherheit bei den Warenbewegungen dar.
Zu den Kunden, die Infor ERP Blending einsetzen, gehören den Angaben zufolge unter anderem Unternehmen der chemischen und pharmazeutischen Industrie wie Paca, Bollig & Kemper, Holopack, bene Arzneimittel oder Bärbel Drexel.

Business Guide Enterprise Resource Planning 2009

Buchung und Fragen zu Anzeigen
Stefan Raupach, sRaupach@oxygon.de
Tel. 089/90 48 62-30, Fax -55
Elke Schuder, eSchuder@oxygon.de
Tel. 089/90 48 62-23

SAP NetWeaver - Gemächlich zum Standard
Einschätzung von RAAD Research anhand der der RAAD-Studie "SAP-Bestandskunden: Themen und Potenziale 2009": Die SAP AG hat ihre Version einer service-orientierten Architektur mit der ESOA explizit... ...vorgezeichnet. Zentrale Komponente der Enterprise Service Oriented Architecture ist der SAP NetWeaver, der als...

Einschätzung von RAAD Research anhand der der RAAD-Studie "SAP-Bestandskunden: Themen und Potenziale 2009": Die SAP AG hat ihre Version einer service-orientierten Architektur mit der ESOA explizit...

...vorgezeichnet. Zentrale Komponente der Enterprise Service Oriented Architecture ist der SAP NetWeaver, der als integraler Bestandteil dient. Dieser ist laut SAP weltweit für das Unternehmen eine wahre Erfolgsgeschichte. Aber wie sieht das Bild für Deutschland genauer aus? Hierzu beobachtet RAAD in halbjährlichen Befragungen von mehr als 2500 SAP-Bestandskunden die Entwicklung des SAP NetWeavers.

Technologische Betriebsumgebung für SAP ERP

Der SAP NetWeaver dient als technologische Betriebsumgebung für SAP ERP. Jeder SAP ERP-Kunde nutzt daher auf die eine oder andere Weise den SAP-Netweaver sozusagen in-built als Infrastruktur. Darüber hinaus besteht der SAP NetWeaver allerdings auch noch aus verschiedenen complementary applications. In den Befragungen wird daher unterschieden, ob der SAP Netweaver, bzw. einzelne Komponenten und Funktionalitäten daraus, produktiv genutzt wird oder ob er allein als Infrastruktur für ERP zum Einsatz kommt.

Es zeigt sich, dass insgesamt 65% der aktuellen SAP-Bestandskundschaft den SAP NetWeaver in unterschiedlichen Rahmenbedingungen einsetzen.

24% der SAP-Bestandskunden nutzen den Netweaver nur passiv

24% nutzen den Netweaver allerdings nur passiv als in-built-Infrastruktur von SAP ERP. Bedingt durch viele Migrationen von R/3 zu SAP ERP hat sich diese Quote innerhalb eines halben Jahres um zehn Prozentpunkte erhöht. Weitere 8% haben den SAP Netweaver aktuell alleine im Einsatz, ohne bisher auf SAP ERP migriert zu sein. 33% der SAP-Bestandskunden nutzen parallel SAP ERP und einzelne Komponenten des Netweavers produktiv. Zusammengenommen haben somit 41% der SAP-Bestandskunden den SAP Netweaver im produktiven Einsatz. Dies entspricht einem Plus von fünf Prozentpunkten innerhalb eines halben Jahres. Dies ist kein schlechtes Ergebnis im Vergleich zur Nutzung der Business Suite. Aber im Vergleich zu den deutlich zweistelligen Migrationsraten von R/3 zu SAP ERP verläuft die Entwicklung doch verhältnismäßig gemächlich.

Weitere Details zum Einsatz von SAP NetWeaver finden Sie in der RAAD-Studie
"SAP-Bestandskunden - Themen und Potenziale 2009".
Autor:

Dr. Cristian Wieland ist Senior-Analyst bei der RAAD Research GmbH und verantwortet dort den gesamten Bereich der Marktanalyse und Studienerstellung.

Infor kauft SAP-Partner und holt damit Tochter Infra heim
In Deutschland konnte der ERP-Hersteller und SAP-Partner Softbrands nicht Fuß fassen, in den USA ist das Softwarehaus dagegen schon lange eine größere Nummer. Die heftet sich jetzt das ERP-Schwergewicht Infor neben den zahlreichen anderen Akquisitionen im ERP-Markt für... ...den Angaben...

In Deutschland konnte der ERP-Hersteller und SAP-Partner Softbrands nicht Fuß fassen, in den USA ist das Softwarehaus dagegen schon lange eine größere Nummer. Die heftet sich jetzt das ERP-Schwergewicht Infor neben den zahlreichen anderen Akquisitionen im ERP-Markt für...

...den Angaben zufolge rund 80 Millionen Dollar an das Revers. „Aufgrund unserer sich gegenseitig ergänzenden Lösungen, unserer Wurzeln in der Produktionsindustrie und unseres Fokus’ auf den Mittelstand bietet die Partnerschaft offensichtliche Vorteile für unsere Kunden”, erklärt Jim Schaper, Chairman und CEO von Infor.

Tochter infra business solutions GmbH kehrt heim

Nicht ganz unbedeutend bei der Übernahme könnte auch sein, dass Softbrands im Oktober 2005 die infra business solutions GmbH übernommen hat. Die infor business solutions AG hatte sich im Juni 2006 entschlossen, ihre Tochtergesellschaft infra:business solutions GmbH im Rahmen eines Management Buy-Out zu 100 Prozent an deren Geschäftsführer Rainer Frantzen zu verkaufen. infor begründete diesen Schritt mit der Ansprache unterschiedlicher Zielmärkte. Die Kunden von infor seien oberhalb des Marktsegments angesiedelt, für das infra mit seinem bisherigen und zukünftigen Produktangebot steht. Frantzen hatte nach den Verkauf an Softbrands mit Variatec ein Unternehmen gegründet, das sich ebenfalls auf die SAP-Produktlinie Business One für den unteren Mittelstand fokussiert.

Abschluss in drei Monaten

Der Abschluss der Transaktion wird in 60 bis 90 Tagen erwartet. Die seit 1984 im ERP-Markt tätige Softbrands hat nach eigenen Angaben weltweit rund 5000 Kunden.

Business Guide Enterprise Resource Planning 2009

Buchung und Fragen zu Anzeigen
Stefan Raupach, sRaupach@oxygon.de
Tel. 089/90 48 62-30, Fax -55
Elke Schuder, eSchuder@oxygon.de
Tel. 089/90 48 62-23

Lizenzkostenfreie Anwendungssoftware etabliert sich
Die Ergebnisse einer IDC-Umfrage unter 515 IT-Entscheidern in West-Europa bei Unternehmen mit mehr als 50 Mitarbeitern zeige laut den Marktforschern einen überraschend… …hohen Anteil von Anwendungen auf Opensource-Basis. Neun Prozent der Befragten würden eine Open-Source Back-Office Application nutzen und 7...

Die Ergebnisse einer IDC-Umfrage unter 515 IT-Entscheidern in West-Europa bei Unternehmen mit mehr als 50 Mitarbeitern zeige laut den Marktforschern einen überraschend…

…hohen Anteil von Anwendungen auf Opensource-Basis. Neun Prozent der Befragten würden eine Open-Source Back-Office Application nutzen und 7 Prozent eine Open Source CRM Application. Ursächlich dafür sei, dass keine Zahlungen für Softwarelizenzen vorab gezahlt werden müssten und die Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) niedriger seien. Bedenken bezüglich des Supports und der Qualität von Open Source Software würden den Einsatz lizenzkostenfreier Anwendungssoftware aber noch einschränken.

2:49 AM | | 0 Comments

Don't forget the premier rules/decisioning event of 2009!
The International Business Rules Forum™ is the premier Conference dedicated to Business Rules, where the future of Business Rules, Decisioning, Compliance & Enterprise Design is taking shape! This year's event covers Business Rules, Decision Management, Business Process, Governance and Compliance....

A new book on open source business rules
With Drools 5, JBoss and the open source community have delivered a true business rules management system for the first time. Using Drools, organizations can take control of the logic that drives their operational decisions using an open source platform....

Using business rules to add decision transparency
Jim Sinur had a short post on The Power of Visibility with BPM Enabled Processes that made me think about another kind of visibility - visibility of decisions. One of the most powerful benefits of adopting business rules to manage...

Lesson from GM: Decisions > Processes
Gary Comerford posted about Bex Huff's identification of How one bad business process doomed GM. Like Gary I appreciated the analysis. However, the title is all wrong. This is not about a business process - I am prepared to bet...

Free webinar on bringing agility to mainframe systems
I am presenting, with Claye Greene of technologyblue, on the path to business agility and lower costs: Mainframes, SOA and Decision Management. The webinar is on June 2nd at 7:30am Pacific time (scheduled specifically for folks in Pittsburgh and vicinity)...

Here's how to prevent mistakes in analytic projects with decision management
Robert Grossman had a nice post - Five Common Mistakes in Analytic Projects that made me think about the role of decision management in putting predictive analytics to work. Of Robert's 5 mistakes, 3 are directly addressed by decision management:There...

Interesing debate on business process and decisions
I have posted a couple of times recently on the interaction of decisions and processes - Another way decision management and process interact, More on keeping decisions and processes separate and Here's how decision management simplifies process management. This last...

Nice report on the value of end-user developers
Mike Gualtieri of Forrester Research recently wrote a nice piece called Deputize End-User Developers To Deliver Business Agility And Reduce Costs. The report is available from Forrester (for subscribers and for those who purchase it) but the summary is on...

Are there unwritten rules in your processes?
I got a newsletter over the weekend with a very pertinent comment: In our last newsletter, the Facilities Team announced that we were in negotiations for a facility. Unfortunately, undocumented rules in the city's building code were discovered which put...

Business rules for more effective development
Noam Tamarkin had a post recently on Efficient or Effective in software development in which he asked an important question - would you rather be more efficient or more effective when it came to developing software. Most would, like Noam,...

2:49 AM | | 0 Comments

Ã‚ after upgrading wordpress fantastico
I updated my wordpress blog with fantastico and got loads of character set errors for example Ã‚ etc.. The way to get rid of them is to comment out these lines in your wp-config.php file which should be in your home directory of your blog. //define('DB_CHARSET', 'utf8'); //define('DB_COLLATE', ''); addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.webbrander.com%2Fa-after-upgrading-wordpress-fantastico%2F'; addthis_title [...]

I updated my wordpress blog with fantastico and got loads of character set errors for example Ã‚ etc.. The way to get rid of them is to comment out these lines in your wp-config.php file which should be in your home directory of your blog. //define('DB_CHARSET', 'utf8'); //define('DB_COLLATE', '');

cobian backup software
My hard drive failed so it’s set me back a bit.Â I’ve installed the cobian backup software to help me make backups automaticallyÂ in the future you can get itÂ for free atÂ www.cobian.se . addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.webbrander.com%2Fcobian-backup-software%2F'; addthis_title = 'cobian+backup+software'; addthis_pub = '';

My hard drive failed so it’s set me back a bit.Â I’ve installed the cobian backup software to help me make backups automaticallyÂ in the future you can get itÂ for free atÂ www.cobian.se .

Help stop people stealing your website images
Put this on your image tag oncontextmenu=”return false” to help stop people from stealing your images. For example:

addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.webbrander.com%2Fhelp-stop-people-stealing-your-website-images%2F'; addthis_title = 'Help+stop+people+stealing+your+website+images'; addthis_pub = '';

Put this on your image tag oncontextmenu=”return false” to help stop people from stealing your images. For example:

Get a new keyboard and mouse to improve your comfort and efficiency
In the work environment and at home a lot of people give little thought to their keyboard and mouse even though they use them most of the time. Most people buy a cheap keyboard and mouse for around £10-£15($20-$30) or just keep the one supplied with the computer. This seems a bit stupid if you [...]

In the work environment and at home a lot of people give little thought to their keyboard and mouse even though they use them most of the time. Most people buy a cheap keyboard and mouse for around £10-£15($20-$30) or just keep the one supplied with the computer.

This seems a bit stupid if you work on the computer doing coding/graphic or web work because a good keyboard and mouse can save you a lot of time and also increase your comfort levels.

The mouse that I use is the Logitech Mx Revolution, it has a scrolling feature that makes going through forums and through pages very easy it also has a search button that makes it quick to search for something, just highlight the text and click the search button.Â It also has a document flip button and that easily helps you to flip through open programs. It also has backwards and forward buttons. The Logitech keyboard I use saves me a lot of time it has zoom in and out buttons vol and media player control and also programmable keys. See the links below:

Web Hosting Review
I found a good site that helps you decide which web host is the best. I personally use hostgator but this site lists the web hosts in an easy to read format with what you get from them. Web Hosting Review addthis_url = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.webbrander.com%2Fweb-hosting-review%2F'; addthis_title = 'Web+Hosting+Review'; addthis_pub [...]

I found a good site that helps you decide which web host is the best. I personally use hostgator but this site lists the web hosts in an easy to read format with what you get from them.

Web Hosting Review

2:41 AM | | 0 Comments

Stock Funds Drew Inflow In January (Investor's Business Daily)

2:41 AM | | 0 Comments

In the spirit of the season...
I know this is coming between Adventure!Posts one and two, but I was running a bit behind on all of the Christmas business this year and decided it was time to post my mix. The file is zipped on Sendspace. Cover art is included. The link to the file is HERE. I know it's a bit eclectic, but that's the fun of it. :)

Track Listing:

1. "The Perfect Christmas" - S Club 7
2. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" - Coldplay
3. "It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas" - Bing Crosby
4. "Last Christmas" - Billie Piper
5. "Christmas at Hogwarts" - Harry and the Potters
6. "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24" - Trans-Siberian Orchestra
7. "The Christmas Song" - Josh Groban
8. "Winter Wonderland" - Jason Mraz
9. "Christmas Don't Be Late" - Alvin and the Chipmunks
10. "Baby It's Cold Outside" - Selma Blair & Rainn Wilson
11. "Please Come Home for Christmas" - The Eagles
12. "Love is All Around" - Billy Mack (Love Actually Soundtrack)
13. "Spotlight on Christmas" - Rufus Wainwright
14. "The Greatest Time of Year" - Aly & AJ
15. "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" - Rufus Wainwright
16 "White Christmas" - John Barrowman
17. "Celebrate Me Home" - Kenny Loggins

Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays for whichever holiday you celebrate this season! May it be magical and wonderful!

Adventure!Post 2 is coming up shortly!

EDIT: The new link is now up on Sendspace. :)

Google’s U.S. Trademark Policy: Another controversial change announced
So, who will it affect and how? The new policy now allows resellers, component sellers and information providers to use the brand term in their ads, thus bringing Google’s policy in line with Yahoo & MSN. This will largely help resellers within the retail sector as well as finance comparison sites who may have previously been [...]

So, who will it affect and how?

The new policy now allows resellers, component sellers and information providers to use the brand term in their ads, thus bringing Google’s policy in line with Yahoo & MSN. This will largely help resellers within the retail sector as well as finance comparison sites who may have previously been prevented from advertising products they are authorised to sell.

Will it help the user? While it does provide the searcher with more choice, it could present a more confusing marketplace with little differentiation between ads:

Big brand owners are expected to see a negative impact on their brand performance, with a loss of CTR to competitors who will now have equally compelling ads. Brand owner CPCs could rise as their quality score decreases within an inflated marketplace as brand owners are forced to ensure they do not lose traffic on their own brand term.

This is of course good news for Google since 85% of searches on the search engine are brand related but brand owners were not happy with the last trademark policy change which resulted in a four year legal battle with luxury goods manufacturer, Louis Vuitton.

Will we see the changes in the UK market?

Trademark bidding was allowed in the UK 4 years after the change in the US policy, if that follows suit we will see a change 2013. Realistically we would expect the change within next year if the impact on Google revenues is positive.

mrsdrtennant so generously taped for me:

Here are some of the end of the panel including Lis doing "Eldred must live"...:

After Lis' panel, it was time to line up for the Women of Big Finish photos, which included India Fisher, Lisa Bowerman, Ciara Janson, and Laura Doddington. I was really there to see India Fisher who I LOVE in the Eighth Doctor, and now Sixth Doctor, audios. This line turned out to be the longest one that we would wait in all day. At this point, they were taking their time sine the lines weren't as long anymore. We sat, played card games, and swapped stories with fellow con-goers while waiting.

It was in this line that I found out why Lis Sladen's photograph session had been moved from 11 to 1. Apparently, Lis' handlers (the assistants assigned to take her from place to place at the con) had gotten the schedule mixed up. The handlers and Lis had gone over to JCPenny in the mall to look around. The handlers didn't realize they had to leave for photos before 11, so they stayed too long. After hearing this story, I had images of unwitting fans who had no idea there was a con going on and spotting her in JCPenny, being terribly confused.

P1010001tardis26.jpg picture by ElleKnight

P1010001tardis26.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Alex trying to jump rope with his Fourth Doctor scarf. :)

P1010001tardis27.jpg picture by ElleKnight

mrsdrtennant trying her hand at jumping rope. :)

P1010001tardis29.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Me jumping rope. :) Best facial expression EVER!

mrsdrtennant , and I talking to Jason Haigh Ellery. Let me say that he is AMAZING. We talked about several of the Big Finish audios, and he asked

mrsdrtennant if she listened. She said no, and he joked with her that "he couldn't talk to her anymore", and then tried to fake push her away from the group. It was great!

dw_cosplay</lj> has a great report on the Masquerade show as a whole.

TARDIS!love. :D

P1010001tardis38.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Sonic Water... Well, it was funny at the time... :)

P1010001tardis33.jpg picture by ElleKnight

Someone designed and built this Dalek themselves. AMAZING! It won a Masquerade award, and the award was given to the builder by Nicholas Briggs himself.

P1010001tardis34.jpg picture by ElleKnight

The TARDIS in all of it's glory. Excitement!

And... My swag from the con:

P1010094-1.jpg picture by ElleKnight

A shaky pic of my autographed program by Lis and Colin. :) I'm gong to try to get a better pic of this later...

P1010085.jpg picture by ElleKnight

A nice, old pic signed by Lis. :D

P1010083-1.jpg picture by ElleKnight

My nametag and one of the con's trademark guest buttons.

If you want to check out

mrsdrtennant 's story of the con, you can go to her journal. There's even more silly pics and randomness over there. :D

Thanks for reading everyone! See you at TARDIS '09!

P.S. Does anyone know who the man was dressed at the Masquerade as the First Doctor? Him and his wife were really nice people, and I regret not asking to get a picture with him because he loved my costume. Thanks all. :)

Google barely flinch as Microsoft announce Bing
Whilst Microsoft released the name of their new search engine, Google barely flinched as it continued to make improvements for its users and advertisers. Below are some examples of releases Google has made throughout May, which come on top of the releases at the recent Google Searchology event: For the user Google Suggest updates: As you [...]

Whilst Microsoft released the name of their new search engine, Google barely flinched as it continued to make improvements for its users and advertisers. Below are some examples of releases Google has made throughout May, which come on top of the releases at the recent Google Searchology event:

For the user

Google Suggest updates: As you may have experienced already, Google has introduced Google Suggest, which automatically suggests search results for users when typing in the search suggestion box. This month they introduced more features around this function to improve the suggested searches displayed to the user (ie, relevancy), making the experience faster.

It is touching on semantic search in some instances, understanding the language of the user and what their intent is, before displaying relevant results. One could argue that this approach is an attempt to counter MSN’s new approach with Bing, which they claim provides users with what they are looking for at the first attempt. The new Google Suggest features are out in the US and have yet to hit the UK market.

For the advertiser

Google Ad Planner: This tool was released in June last year to give advertisers more control in selecting sites to target throughout Google’s content network. This month they launched the “Google Ad Planner Publisher Center” which improves the accuracy of the site data seen within the Ad Planner tool.

Enhanced Search Query Performance Reports: A frustration with the search query report has often been the number of “other unique queries”, limiting the number of visible keywords that your ad campaign triggered. This month Google have expanded the functionally of the report to open up these previously unseen keywords which will allow for better keyword optimisation.

Updates to Display Ad builder: Google developed this tool to allow advertisers to create professional-looking display ads in Adwords. It was released to the US market in October last year and is now available globally with over 90 customisable templates. Google is evidently keen to assist advertisers in pushing more volume through their content network.

New Adwords UI: The release of the new Adwords interface is another evolution to make advertisers more efficient. Tools such as the display ad builder and the search query report are easily accessible from the new dashboard. Google know that by continuing to develop their suite of advertising tools and the UI, they will be ensuring advertisers spend more time optimising accounts through their traffic channels and less time using the competition.

Because kawaii_spinel told me to...

1. Stop talking about politics for a moment or two.
2. Post a reasonably-sized picture in your LJ, NOT under a cut tag, of something pleasant, such as an adorable kitten, or a fluffy white cloud, or a bottle of booze. Something that has NOTHING TO DO WITH POLITICS. Something that makes you happy.
3. Include these instructions, and share the love.

Because I was just searching Converse.com for Christmasy-themed Chucks, and for the reason that I can't look at this picture without thinking "Ooh! Shiny!". (I really need a break from CNN...)

Common Tag: as useless as Meta Keywords?
For as long as I can remember, the semantic web has been like strong AI, nuclear fusion, or the Moller Flying Car – always a year or two away, but never actually here. Despite the best efforts of some of the brightest people on the planet, universally understandable information is always just out of reach. [...]

For as long as I can remember, the semantic web has been like strong AI, nuclear fusion, or the Moller Flying Car – always a year or two away, but never actually here. Despite the best efforts of some of the brightest people on the planet, universally understandable information is always just out of reach. Machines and the algorithms that they run are simply not advanced enough to understand the nuances of language.

Getting the point across…

The problem is always context. In a binary world, there is no simple way to differentiate between what a word like “bass” relates to. In isolation, “Bass” could mean the guitar, the fish, the British Alpine Ski School, the musical register, or the brewer. Within a web page there are clues to meaning. If the page includes the word “beer” then the chances are that “bass” refers to the brewer; however there is still a chance that the subject is an alcoholic fish.

While there is no doubt that search engines are getting smarter at “understanding” the meanings of web pages based on their content, this is not an exact science. We often see results cropping up in Google that defy logic. We are still some way from machines that can read at anything above the most basic level.

Things are getting better. Google recently announced that they would be starting to incorporate the richer information delivered by using microformats such as the vCard standard into their results so that an address or phone number could be extracted from a web page and displayed in the results. This is helpful when trying to find a business or using a mobile device to browse the web; however the technology is inelegant and takes time – which means it is expensive and people don’t use it.

A better solution on the horizon?

Yahoo and some of their partners have released an alternative solution for general content. Common Tagging is designed to be used at a page level rather than highlighting specific data, and essentially requires the addition of a few lines of code into a web page that link to information about the subject in Freebase. Going back to our “bass” example, if I wanted to indicate that my page was about the fish, I would need to use the following code to surround the content on the page:

resource="http://rdf.freebase.com/ns/en.fish" property="ctag:label" content="Bass"/> CONTENT ABOUT THE BASS FISH GOES HERE

Despite the fact that the technology has been led by Yahoo with their small and dwindling market share, it shows promise. Ease of implementation is essential if a new technology is going to have any real impact, and adding a couple of lines of code is much easier than the kind of complex mark up required for a vCard. It can even be integrated into publishing platforms like Wordpress, which takes almost all the effort out of the process.

In theory, common tagging should make it easier for search engines to categorize content, and provide users with more relevant results based on an authority source.

Haven’t we seen this before?

Search marketers have been doing something similar for a long time using Meta Keywords to provide information about a page. The problem is that SEOs have been abusing it for years to the point where it is barely considered by the major search engines.

In fact, you name pretty much any development from the search engines over the last decade, and the SEO community has found a way to exploit it fairly quickly in order to make websites rank.

So, will it work?

The Common Tag, like all the other RFDa tags and microformat protocols is doomed to the same fate as the Meta Tag. It relies on a webmaster’s good behaviour for implementation, so it’s open to abuse. Soon enough, it will be discovered that by adding content about Vanessa Hudgens to a page tagged “High School Musical” it is possible to rank adult material quickly in Yahoo. That’s when it all goes wrong.

The Common Tag like all xml formatting of data is no more than a step on the way to genuine semantic indexing of content. That will require computers with a processing power an order of magnitude above what is currently available. I for one forecast that the technology for this is still a year or two away :-).

Popular travel destinations for 2009, as Google see it
As we all once again sit and hope good weather is ahead for the upcoming bank holiday, there is no guaranteeing the British weather these days. Therefore every year we travel in our millions to the sunnier climates of mainland Europe with Spain and the Greek islands often the most popular destinations. This year however, with [...]

As we all once again sit and hope good weather is ahead for the upcoming bank holiday, there is no guaranteeing the British weather these days. Therefore every year we travel in our millions to the sunnier climates of mainland Europe with Spain and the Greek islands often the most popular destinations.

This year however, with many people on smaller budgets and the Pound weakened, Google has seen large increases in searches for the North African and Eastern European destinations.

So far in 2009 YTD, searches relating to holidays in Turkey and Croatia have seen a growth of 78% and 54% respectively. Indeed Google expect search growth for these two locations to rise further; in 2008 search volume for Turkey reached a peak in August, while most searches for Croatia took place in June.

Searches for the more traditional British holiday destinations have been relatively modest. Not surprising since the value of the Pound has fallen 11% against the Euro in the last 6 months. Greece has seen 29% YoY growth, whilst Spain’s 19% YoY search query growth is still strong and means it still dominates the top locations on SkyScanner’s Top Travel destinations. But the larger uplifts in search query growth for the non-Eurozone destinations are likely to be an upshot of consumers seeking greater value for their money.

This time last year, when the Dollar to Pound ratio was around 2:1, search query volume for holidays in the USA was exceptionally high. Since then however, the US Dollar has strengthened 37% against the Pound, and consequently Google has experienced fewer searches for holidays in the US. In Q2 2008 Google saw an 18% increase in searches for Florida over a 10 week period from the beginning of April to the middle of June, but we feel that it is unlikely to experience such a sharp growth this year.

Whilst search query growth for holidays to the US is seeing relatively low growth, compared with previous years, other long haul destinations are experiencing YoY growth of around 40% in 2009. Unsurprisingly Dubai has experienced a very high 55% YoY search query growth. Out of the four long haul destinations shown in the above table Dubai is the closest, offers the cheapest flights and guarantees sun all year round.

For those smaller travel operators who specialise in these destinations the outlook for 2009 looks good, as being a specialist in something tends to be a good USP to have. For the big operators, it means a potential budget allocation rethink with more destinations to fight over and therefore more keywords to bid on.

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Check Out Virgin’s First Class Lounge At Lime Street
Liverpool Chamber went along to the recent opening of Virgin’s new First Class Lounge up at Lime Street Station. The Lounge was formally opened by Barry McGuire and Paul Cunningham, members of the Virgin Trains’ station team at Lime Street station. The lounge, which has seating for over 50 customers provides a quiet and relaxing atmosphere for [...]

virgin_lounge_exterior Liverpool Chamber went along to the recent opening of Virgin’s new First Class Lounge up at Lime Street Station.

The Lounge was formally opened by Barry McGuire and Paul Cunningham, members of the Virgin Trains’ station team at Lime Street station.

The lounge, which has seating for over 50 customers provides a quiet and relaxing atmosphere for customers to wait for their train, or to catch up on work after arriving back from the City. Wireless internet (WiFi) is also being installed and will be available free of charge for users of the lounge. A self-service facility for hot and cold drinks and light snacks is also provided. The lounge offers full access for the mobility impaired. The lounge has been provided in partnership with Network Rail and Merseytravel.

Virgin Trains Station Manager Keith Millard said: “Since last December we have had a high quality train service, using state-of-the-art tilting Pendolino trains from Liverpool to London, and now we have a high quality station facility to complement the trains. We are confident that the improved facilities at the station will encourage more environmentally-conscious motorists to ditch the car and take the train.”

First Class customers using the Liverpool to London route are also able to take advantage of a completely refurbished lounge at Euston station, which opened at the end of April.

Jack Stopforth and Tony Collins

Liverpool Chamber’s CEO Jack Stopforth went along to the launch. He’s pictured here with Virgin Rail CEO Tony Collins.

Of the opening, Jack said “It is vital that Liverpool maintains and continues to improve upon its links with capital. Liverpool Chamber is pleased to see this new lounge opening at Lime street, a sign of Virgin Rail’s committment to helping Liverpool and London do business.”

You can keep up to date with what Virgin Trains are up to on the Liverpool - London route, and give them your feedback and suggestions by following Richard Baker, the line’s general manager on Twitter.

Fenlon accuses Jeffrey of gamesmanship
Eleven-a-side.com: Republic of Ireland under-23 manager Pat Fenlon accused Northern Ireland counterpart David Jeffrey of gamesmanship during the sock-shock stand-off in Lurgan on Tuesday night. The International Challenge Trophy clash at Mourneview Park was delayed for almost half an hour after a dispute over the colours of socks to be worn by either side. And Fenlon, who [...]

Beat Business Stress With Our Free One Hour Seminar
Friday, June 19, 2009 9:00am - 10:00am Liverpool Chamber of Commerce & Industry Sixty Really Useful Minutes To Beat Business Stress Elaine Hanzak author and inspirational speaker will present this weeks 60 Really useful Minutes. With all the doom and gloom around us in the current economic climate do you need a boost to your outlook? Are you feeling [...]

kitten_new Friday, June 19, 2009
9:00am - 10:00am
Liverpool Chamber of Commerce & Industry

Sixty Really Useful Minutes To Beat Business Stress

Elaine Hanzak author and inspirational speaker will present this weeks 60 Really useful Minutes. With all the doom and gloom around us in the current economic climate do you need a boost to your outlook? Are you feeling like a hamster in a wheel that daren’t or can’t get out of it?

One in 4fourof us are likely to suffer a mental health problem which requires treatment at some point in our adult life. Look around at your friends and colleagues – if they appear okay then could it be you?! Do you know what to look out for and what to do to help yourself or others?

Elaine will share some really useful tips to identify the dangers of ignoring symptoms of stress and give members a tool-kit to encourage positive mental health and well-being.

Happy and healthy businesses will be the ones to go from strength to strength, so come along and spend 60 Really Useful Minutes to increase your chances of being one!

Full details of Elaine Hanzak can be found at www.hanzak.com

Our Sixty Really Useful Minute seminars are FREE to attend and are a great way to start your Friday

To book just email your company name address and contact details together with the names of your delegates to events@liverpoolchamber.org.uk or call us on 0151 227 1234.

Join Liverpool Chamber’s Free Environment Club
Liverpool Chamber is working with Liverpool City Council to mark 2009 as Year of the Environment. Businesses in the city are set to face increasing costs from climate change - not just from more severe and unpredictable weather conditions, but also from a raft of new government legislation which obliges the UK to reduce its carbon [...]

penguins Liverpool Chamber is working with Liverpool City Council to mark 2009 as Year of the Environment.

Businesses in the city are set to face increasing costs from climate change - not just from more severe and unpredictable weather conditions, but also from a raft of new government legislation which obliges the UK to reduce its carbon emissions by 80% before 2050.

The Chamber believes that businesses will benefit from early action to examine and de-carbonise their operations and facilities. We have therefore launched a new Environment Club - a group of forward-thinking businesses who are committed to reducing carbon emissions arising from their day-to-day activities.

Club members will benefit from discounted access to training on implementing environmental management systems within their companies. This will substantially reduce the cost, time and effort for firms wishing to achieve professionally accredited standards such as the BS 8555 and ISO 14001.

Skillworks funding (up to 60%) may also be available to members subject to a successful assessment of eligibility.

The Environment Club also intends to host a range of events in order to provide members with opportunities for networking and sharing best practice.

Joining is completely FREE – please email thegreenedge@liverpoolchamber.org.uk to join or to find out more about the Environment Club.

Article on Bettii from eGaming Review
“New affiliate to pit bookie’s probabilities against real sports stats A new affiliate site is being launched that will pit scientific predictions on sports outcomes based on real statistics against those from bookmakers Bettii.com seeks to differentiate itself from other betting affiliates by providing football punters with a scientific alternative to the opinions of tipsters found [...]

“New affiliate to pit bookie’s probabilities against real sports stats

A new affiliate site is being launched that will pit scientific predictions on sports outcomes based on real statistics against those from bookmakers

Bettii.com seeks to differentiate itself from other betting affiliates by providing football punters with a scientific alternative to the opinions of tipsters found on existing betting affiliate sites, closing the knowledge gap between them and online bookies.

Founder Oscar Lashley told eGaming Review:…”

Click here for the rest of the story.

Free Event To Help You Do Your VAT Online
Tuesday 14 July 2009, 1pm – 5pm Holiday Inn Liverpool, Lime Street, Liverpool, L1 1NQ Big changes are on the way and you need to start preparing now … under Government proposals it will become compulsory, from April 2010, for VAT registered businesses with an annual VAT exclusive turnover of £100,000 or more and all newly registered businesses [...]

Tuesday 14 July 2009, 1pm – 5pm
Holiday Inn Liverpool, Lime Street, Liverpool, L1 1NQ

Big changes are on the way and you need to start preparing now …

under Government proposals it will become compulsory, from April 2010, for VAT registered businesses with an annual VAT exclusive turnover of £100,000 or more and all newly registered businesses to file their VAT returns online and make payment electronically. Paper returns will still be an option for the remaining VAT registered businesses, but this will be reviewed in the run up to 2012.

We are inviting you to a free event where we will show you:

how to get started with VAT Online and other online services
how it will benefit your business
a demonstration of some of our online services
what is available now, including information about paying electronically
what is planned for the future.

This event will be interactive and you will have opportunity to ask us questions. We will also be giving a 45 minute online services presentation at various times during the event, so why not call in at a time convenient to you? (Please see the booking form attached for presentation times).

We will also let you know where to get further help and support if you need it.

Booking
You can obtain an electronic booking form by emailing us at marketing.online@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk

Please mark your request “Liverpool VAT Online Event” as the subject heading.

We will process bookings on a first-come, first-served basis until Monday 6 July 2009.

If you are unable to come along on the day, please visit our website for further information.

IMPORTANT please note: If you would like us to help you to register and enrol for VAT Online, you will need to bring the following information along with you:

VAT Registration Number
Principal place of business postcode
Date of registration (ie. DD/MM/YYYY)
Final month of last VAT return submitted
The Box 5 figure on your last submitted VAT return

The first three facts are on your certificate of VAT Registration (VAT 4); the other two facts are on your last filed VAT return.

If you are already enrolled for other HMRC Online Services please also bring along your User ID and Password.

If you cannot attend an event and want to get started now, please follow the steps below to register and enrol. If you need help during this process, please contact the Online Services Helpdesk on 0845 6055 999.

To find the right section of our website:

1.     Visit www.hmrc.gov.uk
2.     Under ’do it online’ which is on the left hand side of the page, select ’VAT Online’
3.     You’ll arrive at ’Online Services Login’.

First time online user should select ‘new users’ and then move to step 4, below.
If you are already enrolled for other HMRC Online Services, enter your existing User ID and Password where prompted and from the Online Services Main Menu, select the service ‘VAT Online’. Under the ‘Manage Your VAT’ section of the page, select to ‘Enrol for this service’, then move to step 10 as below.
4. Select ‘Individual’ or ’Organisation’
5. Select ’VAT’

Then, to register and enrol you’ll need to:

6.     Read and accept the terms and conditions.
7.     Enter your full name and an optional email address.
8.     Create a password.
9.     Write down the User ID displayed on the screen – you’ll need this as well as your password, every time you log onto the VAT Online service. We will post you confirmation of the User ID.
10.     Type in the five facts about your business (see above) so we can be sure who you are. Once your online account is set up you can immediately complete and send us your VAT return online.
11.     We’ll still send you an Activation Code (sometimes called a PIN) that allows you to notify us about any changes to your business details along with full details on how to use it.

You only need to go through this registration process once then you can access all the features and functions of VAT Online.

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Because I haven't done much speculating lately...
How about that Children in Need sneak peak yesterday?

Let me first say that I LOVE David Morissey as an actor and would love for him to play Eleven. I just don't think all of the hype and (obviously) the title of the Christmas special would be so blantantly obvious to point him out to be the next Doctor if he really was going to step into the role. There are a few other reasons why I think this whole thing is a red herring:

* Introducing the next incarnation would sort of ruin the suspense of it for viewers. We enjoy watching the Doctor regenerate and seeing the teeth-grinding, edge-of-your-seat moment in which this occurs. To take that away from the viewer would be almost anticlimactic. *shrug*

* David Morrissey's "Doctor" has similar mannerisms to Ten. All Doctors are unique. To have both Eleven and Ten saying Allonz-y (sp?) and other similar behaviors is odd. All Doctors have their own personalities and own random traits. I think that there's a valid reason for this copying of behavior, which I'll go into in a moment.

* The "new" Doctor comments that "this is new" when referring to a creature with a Cyberman's mask on emerging from the door. It could be debatable what he is referring to: the creature or the Cyberman's mask. If it is in fact the Cyberman's mask, then being the Doctor he would know what a Cyberman was...

* The fact that David Morrisey's "Doctor" is in period dress also sends up a red flag to me. The Doctor seldom changes his wardrobe for the time period he is in, in ANY incarnation. He does not mind "not blending in" as long as you "act like you blend in". I'm not saying he NEVER changes to fit in, just that I don't think 1851 warrants a drastic change of wardrobe in his book.

Who I think this "new" Doctor really is: A con artist/someone who feels they themselves are not good enough who has heard of the Doctor and all that he can do. He's taken on this girl (who's probably fallen on hard times/ is in a hard situation/maybe is even of our time or the future) and promised her a better life as long as she "travels" with him. He throws terms around that the Doctor (Ten) spouts off commonly that could have been told to him by anyone, and the Sonic Screwdriver just looks...I don't know. Not real. It looks like a regular screwdriver or tool to me. I really can't tell, though.

I'm really excited for the Christmas Special! Again, not saying anything against anyone. I'm just offering some healthy, silly theories about the show. :)

New Media and New Information Paradigms
I have been hearing about the demise of the newspapers, the rise of search/social networking/new media and the internet fragmentation concept for years now. (almost a decade?) And I just read about it again today with the newspapers secretly meeting to try and sort out monetization methods to save their business. At the same time [...]

2:37 AM | | 0 Comments

Video: How To Use Rentacoder
Step-by-step guide on how to outsource your website development projects using Rentacoder.com

What Is Outsourcing?
"Outsourcing is not just a financial decision. It’s a commitment. It’s an attitude." - Source What is Outsourcing? By any other name (contracting, sourcing, subcontracting, farming it out, offshoring, or freelancing), outsourcing uses third-party resources to provide services and/or increase production. The question is why outsource when you can do things on your own? [...]

Video: Sample Project Outsourced Through Rentacoder (Part I)
Preview of a project outsourced to Rent-A-Coder (RAC).

Guide To Outsourcing
"The more advanced planning you do, the more affordable the job will be." - Source If you’re thinking about outsourcing portions of your work, but you’re feeling overwhelmed and hesitant about relying on someone outside the company, read this informative guide. Here, you’ll learn how to select qualified candidates, establish project requirements, enforce deadlines, and more. 1. [...]

Understanding Outsourcing
"You don’t need to be a giant company to enjoy the benefits of outsourcing." - Source Outsourcing Defined Despite outsourcing’s increasing trend, there are still some companies that don’t clearly understand what it means. In its most basic terms, outsourcing is when a company delegates certain tasks to a resource that isn’t employed by the company. This [...]

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Don’t Be a Judge
We are all inclined to judge ourselves by our ideals; others, by their acts.” - Harold Nicolson First let me say none of us knows everything and none of us are right all of the time. Next time you find yourself looking at someone and making an actual judgment ask yourself if you’ve ever experienced something that [...]

We are all inclined to judge ourselves by our ideals; others, by their acts.”
- Harold Nicolson

First let me say none of us knows everything and none of us are right all of the time. Next time you find yourself looking at someone and making an actual judgment ask yourself if you’ve ever experienced something that you hoped you were not judged for and then ask yourself if you have the right to judge another!

I think we can have an opinion without making judgment. A lot of the time it’s all in the way we voice the opinion. The words we use and the tone of voice. If we are disdainful and putting people down it’s judging. You may know the old saying “each to his own” and that’s what life is about; everyone does things differently. We may not agree but we can accept. If we can’t find acceptance within us then we have the problem.

Are You Making Success too Complicated?
In this column, I will be musing about different things that impact our ability to be peaceful entrepreneurs. As human beings, we tend to make things a lot more complicated than they need to be. I’d actually go a step farther and say that we tend to undervalue things unless they are complex, hard or take [...]

In this column, I will be musing about different things that impact our ability to be peaceful entrepreneurs.

As human beings, we tend to make things a lot more complicated than they need to be. I’d actually go a step farther and say that we tend to undervalue things unless they are complex, hard or take lots of effort. This certainly will detract from being a Peaceful Entrepreneur ™

I am taking a class right now with Kristen and David Morelli. And the energy technique they are using is so simple, that my first thoughts were to dismiss it. I found myself thinking “I hope this is not the only tool they are going to teach us.” And for the first couple of times using this tool, I did not see great results. But when I let go of the resistance and the thought that this could not work, the impact it has had on me has been incredibly powerful.

The same is true for our businesses. Where in your business are you making things too complicated or dismissing a simple idea or tool?

Take a minute now and do The One Minute Meditation ™ to get some clarity. This is another very simple tool that is very powerful. So be careful not to dismiss it.

Consider it a gateway to increased clarity, creativity and intuition. Could any of that help in your business? And remember, according to Law of Attraction, you will attract more of what you desire from that place of allowing. And to allow we must be relaxed. So take a minute to relax now.

If you’ve never done The One Minute Meditation ™, I teach you how to do it in this short video. Set the intention to get clarity on where you are making things too complicated before doing it. Then let go and allow. The answer will show up now or later. You have set the wheels in motion with your intention and you let go when you take the time to get centered in your body and be still.

Be sure to do this s -l-o-w-l-y to get the results you desire.

Don’t Park It
“The road to success is lined with many tempting parking spaces.” - Anonymous. Never a truer word! I see this quote to mean procrastination which is the downfall of much success. I know it’s true because it’s exactly what I used to do. I’d find so many excuses each day to stop me moving forward. [...]

“The road to success is lined with many tempting parking spaces.” - Anonymous.

Never a truer word! I see this quote to mean procrastination which is the downfall of much success. I know it’s true because it’s exactly what I used to do. I’d find so many excuses each day to stop me moving forward. I didn’t even have to put a quarter in the meter I could just stop and park and do anything rather than what actually needed to be done to succeed.

It’s quite a common occurrence for solo/entrepreneurs/small business owners if they’re having doubt about reaching their goals or what they should be doing or where they need to go.

Remember it’s better to take some kind of action than to just park and sit still!

Mother's day coming - Send flowers to China.

Mothers Day is a special day for honoring Mothers through out the world. The Mother's Day holds great significance for all of us. As usual, the Mothers Day 2009 will be celebrated on May 10th, 2009 in the U. S. whereas the U. K. will celebrate the Mothering Sunday (Mother's Day) , 2009 on date March, 22nd.
...

4 Easy Steps to Leveraging Your Articles
Writing valuable content-rich articles for your target market and submitting them to article directories and other publishers is one of the best ways to market your business, become known as an expert in your field, and add subscribers to your list. For example, if you regularly write an article for your ezine, you can get a [...]

Writing valuable content-rich articles for your target market and submitting them to article directories and other publishers is one of the best ways to market your business, become known as an expert in your field, and add subscribers to your list.

For example, if you regularly write an article for your ezine, you can get a lot more mileage out of it if you submit it to article directories and other online publishing services. And making every piece you write work more than once for you is one way to work smarter and not harder. That’s called leverage.

There are several reasons why you want to do this. One is to get your name and your business out there so people will learn who you are and what you do, and it helps to position you as an expert. No more keeping yourself a secret and hiding behind your computer!

Another reason is that your articles give people a taste of your style, what it is that you offer, and it gives them an opportunity to get to know you a bit without risking anything.

At the end of each article include a resource box so if people want to find out more about you and your business, they have that information at their fingertips. Once someone reads your article, if they like your stuff, they will likely visit your website and sign up for your Free Taste (your free offering that gets people on your list). And writing articles is one of the fastest (and FREE) ways to get lots of exposure, especially if a publisher with a large list picks it up!

Want to get started? Here are the 4 easy steps:

1. Write the article or recycle one you’ve already written, giving it a fresh edit (it never hurts).

Write or revise an article targeted at your niche that is full of valuable content. A couple of tips: Articles can be anywhere from 400-800 words in length for the best chance of being picked up (if you have a longer article, consider chopping it in half and making it two shorter articles). Also, articles with lists, steps, or mini-chunks of information seem to be the most read.

2. Add your copyright.

Don’t forget to protect your work by adding a copyright. At the end of each article, put a copyright notice with the date of when you first published the article. For example, Copyright 2009 Alicia M Forest.

3. Write the copy for your author’s box.

After your copyright notice comes what’s usually referred to as the “resource box” or “author’s box.” In order for others to publish your work, ask that they include this information at the end of your article, keeping what you provide in it whole and intact. As this is standard practice, you’ll find most publishers will honor this request.

Write 3-5 lines that entice people to find out more about you by providing the web address to the sign-up page for your Free Taste. Using this space to encourage people to join your list by signing up for your ezine or other free offering is another way to leverage your article.

A tip: Again, don’t send your article readers to your home page. Send them to a page set up specifically to add them to your list. For example, say “for more articles like this, please visit www.yourezinepage.com to sign up!”

4. Submit your article.

Although this is one of the most time-consuming marketing tasks, it can be made much simplier by either hiring a Virtual Assistant to do it for you, or by using an article submission service.

There are literally hundreds of websites that offer free content for publishers who are in need of quality articles for their own publications or websites. Here are some of the best ones:

www.ezinearticles.com
www.ideamarketers.com
www.goarticles.com
www.article-host.com
www.articlecity.com

Bonus step:

If you want to see stronger results from submitting your articles, contact directly those publishers of ezines and websites in your niche. Google publishers of ezines in your target market and then send a query to the editor/owner about submitting an article. Present yourself as a professional and offer your article for their use, provided the resource box remains intact. Paste your article under your message (attachments can get blocked, and if the receiver doesn’t know you it’s unlikely they will open and read it anyway).

Writing and submitting articles is one of the tried-and-true, if slow-and-steady, ways to build your list, become known as an expert, and offer value to your target market.

Relaaaax…You Deserve It!
“Accomplishment - like life - will prove to be a journey, not a destination.” ~ Unknown The key to consistent accomplishment lies in your ability to take frequent breaks and to take really great care of yourself. By establishing 10 Daily Habits, you will find that taking care of yourself comes naturally and is a very sacred part [...]

“Accomplishment - like life - will prove to be a journey, not a destination.”
~ Unknown

The key to consistent accomplishment lies in your ability to take frequent breaks and to take really great care of yourself.

By establishing 10 Daily Habits, you will find that taking care of yourself comes naturally and is a very sacred part of your day. Some examples of daily habits may include:

1. Taking a daily walk in nature.

2. Taking a bubble bath.

3. Spending 30 minutes in quiet meditation.

4. Talking for 20 minutes daily with a supportive and trusted friend.

5. Reading the comics in the newspaper. Laughter is an amazing stress reducer.

6. Listening to relaxing music.

7. Receiving a massage.

8. Spending time gardening.

9. Buying fresh flowers for your home or office.

10. Treating yourself to a luxurious foot soak (we recommend Johnson’s foot soap…it’s fabulous!).

11. Preparing a fruit smoothie or refreshing fruit drink in the mid-afternoon.

Consider today what ten habits you are willing to incorporate in your life every day in order to take care of the best thing about your business…YOU!

Secret gifts in China

Gifts should consider specific circumstances and occasions. Private to private banquet in general, should Minor mistress with gifts such as flowers, fruits, and other native products...

China celebrates traditional Lantern Festival with lamps and flowers

A U.S. citizen (L) learns the brush calligraphy of Chinese characters, literally, "Happy Lantern Festival", during a get-together party of local residents and foreigners living on Dongsisitiao Hutong (Alley), inside a quadrangle courtyard, the typical residential rectangular compound, to live a jovial Chinese lunar Lantern Festival, in Beijing, Feb. 8, 2009. (Xinhua/Hao Fei)

Diary Of a Delegator - How I Gave Feedback to my New Virtual Assistant to Ensure Success
Giving feedback to your team members is critical to your delegation and virtual team building success. You need give clear, specific feedback and establish frequent check in and feedback methods to manage the process. The type of feedback that you give will vary according to the level of delegated authority you use for each situation [...]

Giving feedback to your team members is critical to your delegation and virtual team building success. You need give clear, specific feedback and establish frequent check in and feedback methods to manage the process. The type of feedback that you give will vary according to the level of delegated authority you use for each situation (you’d never guess there are 8!) and when you’re just beginning to delegate, your check-ins and feedback should be more frequent and very specific.

I just hired a new Virtual Assistant to help me with marketing. I already have an experienced VA who does this for me but decided it was best to leverage her expertise for other marketing tasks. I could have hired an experienced VA who can hit the ground running, which is what I recommend to my clients. However, because I used to do article marketing and I evaluated my new VA as an ‘A player’, I decided to invest in training her.

Below is my feedback I emailed to her this morning about her first task. The level of delegated authority I am using as I train her is the lowest level of delegated freedom: ‘wait to be told/ do exactly as I say/follow these instructions precisely is’. Here’s why this feedback will result in a successful outcome :

1. Gives clear, specific details
2. Reinforces what she is doing right, will motivate her
3. Asks for her feedback
4. Reinforces check-ins
5. Improves systems

“Marie, for author resource box, you are correct in entering the default standard version for the GoArticles.com site since we can’t enter a different resource box for each article - great job! However, please note that you should have entered the HTML version since this site accepts html resource boxes. I forgot to mention to you when we spoke that when opening a new article marketing account, you should look in the Publisher Guidelines to see if there are any specific instructions re submitting articles (apart from those I gave you). The guidelines for this site said ‘URLs in the resource box should be set as hyperlinks.’ so you need to enter the HTML version.

Also, please update the submission process document with this step: “When opening a new article marketing account, check Publisher guidelines first before submitting article, to ensure that we comply.’ And as we discussed, if there are no instructions re html resource boxes, always enter the html version first and if it isn’t accepted , use the plain text version. If you have any questions, as usual, let me know and continue to email me updates daily. We are making great progress, thanks!”

So now, I can move on to other tasks, knowing that my VA has everything she needs to move forward. I don’t need to think about this anymore until I hear from her.

Feedback, feedback, feedback - VERY important when delegating! It’s one of the key components of my Business My Way Delegation Success Formula tm that ensures you get the results you want every time.

Delegate your way to success! Find out how at : www.BizSuccessPartner.com

2:36 AM | | 0 Comments

Do You Suffer From This Disease?
One of the most common traits of people who make little to no money online, almost across the board, is lack of action. It is a disease rampant among people who’d like to make some money with their blogs. But, while it is a disease, the cure is so simplistic. The Symptoms You have an idea for a [...] If you enjoyed this article, you might also like...

One of the most common traits of people who make little to no money online, almost across the board, is lack of action. It is a disease rampant among people who’d like to make some money with their blogs.

But, while it is a disease, the cure is so simplistic.

The Symptoms

You have an idea for a blog or something to offer online. You think it has a chance to make some decent money for you. You’re excited, but you’re not quite sure how to go about it.

So, you start reading blogs. You start learning. You might even buy an info product or two to learn the ropes.

But, is that enough? You don’t want to do it wrong. You fear failure. You’re afraid that moving forward and having it not work is far worse than having an unfulfilled idea. So, you keep on absorbing more information. You tell yourself that you’ll launch your idea “when the time is right”.

You fall into an endless cycle of self-questioning. You keep looking for some missing x-factor. You think everything needs to be perfect before you do anything. And all your launch ideas continue being postponed.

What happens? Exactly nothing. You remain in the ranks of the aspiring entrepreneurs. You read about those who have found success, but you continue to remain in the shadows.

[As an aside, can you tell I've been there before? ]

The Cure

Is there a magic pill for this disease? No. But, there is a cure. In fact, you already have the cure in your possession. The problem is that you’re not permitting yourself to USE the cure.

The Cure is simple: STOP OVERTHINKING.

It is just a decision.

Nobody is keeping you from finding success online. There is no “right time” to start making money. There is no secret combination.

At the end of the day, it is a simple decision.

You either decide to continue doing nothing, or you say “Dammit, enough of this. I’m going to take action NOW.” And you know what? If you make that decision and follow through, you’re there! Because that’s really all it takes. A decision.

Fear of failure is a big reason people fall into this disease. But, really, what’s the worse that can happen? You launch your new product and nobody buys it? What’s going to happen to you if that happens? It isn’t as if you’re going to die or lose everything you have. So, what’s the big deal? If you launch a site or product and it doesn’t go the way you wanted, then you just look it over, learn from it, then have another go at it in a different way.

Having multiple failures is part of the road to success. When something you do doesn’t work out the first time, just grin and say “Well, I’m that much closer to really making it now!”.

Seriously.

So, stop overthinking things. Determine what it is you want to do. A new blog? A new product? Then, do it. Set a deadline. Get it done right away. Don’t say “I’ll launch my new blog this summer”. What?! It is a blog! You can have it up and running within a day – TOPS!

So, get to it.

If you enjoyed this article, you might also like...

2:32 AM | | 0 Comments

100% Linen Tropical Shirts

Get your hip Guayabera!

Blow out Sale in Florida!

CheapOair.com

2:38 AM | | 0 Comments

WORK AT HOME JOB
One of the best work at home jobs. Why not check the website and see it for yourself. Earn atleast $250-$500 per week. http://urlkick.com/2309

Home Based Business Opportunity
Still Reading Commercial Emails For Free? Receive Emails On Topics That Interests You And Get Paid For It! If you have access to your own email account, you can get paid. Refer others and get paid up to two levels. Hits4Pay is one of very few highest paying advertising program in the industry. Signup for free and receive $10 as a Free Reward: http://tinyurl.com/29xrh5

Sumilon Island Day Tour
Mon- Fri cost 1,200 Sat and Sun

What's the Catch?
AGLOCO: The Internet's First Economic Network AGLOCO makes money for its Members in many ways: Search: Every time you use the Viewbar™ to do an Internet search, AGLOCO earns money from the search engine providers. (For example, Google pays as much as $0.10 on average for each search that is directed to its search engine.) Advertising: The Viewbar™ itself displays ads that are targeted based upon the websites you’re visiting. When you click on an ad and make a purchase, AGLOCO receives a referral fee, which we pass on to our Members. (Please note: Individual members do not receive any compensation for clicking on ads in the Viewbar™, and the Viewbar™ can detect if someone is clicking ads in a fraudulent manner.) Transaction commissions: Many major retailers pay commissions when you refer customers who make a purchase. AGLOCO collects that commission and passes it on to our members. (For example, Amazon pays an 8.5% commission to most websites who refer customers...

Western Wats Wire 10 Pics
At BOHOL and OFFICe

2:38 AM | | 0 Comments

Dancing with the Stars Winner Shawn Johnson
I am thinking with Shawn Johnson winning the Dancing with the Stars finale they might need to stop allowing gold medal winners from competing. I think anyone who has done a physical activity at that level that involves both art and skill like in Gymnastics and Figure Skating will likley win. Kristi Yamaguchi won and [...]

Can ordinary people manage the risk in the stock market for their retirement?
I am beginning to think there is no way an average American can invest in the market and make any money for their retirement in a 401K. I was reading this morning that 5 and 10 year returns in the portfolios of most mutual funds are negative now when they calculated in the huge losses from recessions in [...]

Smoothies Paradise
Opportunity: Healthy Fast Food Restaurant We’ve been talking about food quite a lot… Anca , Sara, AlexÂ approached in several postsÂ the healthy food restaurants topic. And so I am. This time, it is about a fresh and healthy fast food - Juice Zone - that we have just discovered close to our office (close to Piata Victoriei). A [...]

Opportunity: Healthy Fast Food Restaurant

We’ve been talking about food quite a lot… Anca , Sara, AlexÂ approached in several postsÂ the healthy food restaurants topic. And so I am.

This time, it is about a fresh and healthy fast food - Juice Zone - that we have just discovered close to our office (close to Piata Victoriei). A wide variety of freshly made smoothies, fruit & vegetables squeezes and energy drinks, and a nice assortment of salads, wraps and panninis made our day today. Although the shop is mostly dedicated to take away orders, there are a few seats available if you wish to enjoy your lunch at the Juice Zone. Moreover, they have a nice offering for vegetarians, too.

I hope they’ll introduce home delivery, also.

Enjoy!

How about a free version of everything?
Opportunity: Offering customers advertiser sponsored free services Browsing the web for new cool business ideas I found out, via Springwise, about Tadacopy - a Japanese company offering free photocopies for students. Well, they are not exactly free, as on the back of each copy paper they print ads that pay for the freely offered service. The idea [...]

Opportunity: Offering customers advertiser sponsored free services

Browsing the web for new cool business ideas I found out, via Springwise, about Tadacopy - a Japanese company offering free photocopies for students. Well, they are not exactly free, as on the back of each copy paper they print ads that pay for the freely offered service.

The idea reached Europe, and a group of students in the Netherlands started StudyPrint . Students must register with their university email address and then they can either upload the desired documents, bring them on a USB flash drive or email them to a dedicated email address. The free printed copies have horizontal banners placed at the top and bottom of several pages and a few full page ads.

Romanian students are probably printing and photocopying more than any other students in the world - according to my personal subjective statistics. And knowing that once the exams have passed all that printed or photocopied material wonn’t be of much use, most of them would definitely prefer a few ads, here and there, to clean, but expensive copies.

Moreover, an automatic system would reduce the current costs of employing personnel to handle the equipments.

Would you find such a service useful? What other products or services do you think could be offerend in a similar free version?

Let me get to my sandwich!
I got a sandwich at a Princess store this morning - and spent about 3 frustrated minutes trying to get the very thick plastic to tear, so I could actually eat my sandwich! Guess what? I’m not getting a sandwich there again. If it’s convenience food, I shouldn’t need scissors to get to my food. Every [...]

I got a sandwich at a Princess store this morning - and spent about 3 frustrated minutes trying to get the very thick plastic to tear, so I could actually eat my sandwich! Guess what? I’m not getting a sandwich there again. If it’s convenience food, I shouldn’t need scissors to get to my food.

Every other business out there - make it easy for people to actually get to whatever goodies you have to offer. Are you a restaurant or a cafe and you’re not on Metropotam? I may really want to get to you (I’m continuously searching for nice, quiet places, non-smoker and vegetarian-friendly), but I never will, because I can’t break through the plastic wrapper. Do you have a gym and you’ve just sold me a membership? If I don’t know how to use the equipment, I’m not going to come back, nor renew my membership.

When you start your new business, do think about how easy it will be for people to access your product once they have purchased it.

Thriving on sandwiches and smoothies
Our team recently participated in the EcoBuild exhibition in London. On an earlier business trip there, I had enjoyed the sandwiches and smoothies widely available. Now, less than one year later, I was happy to see that, if anything, this is even more of a thriving business. In fact, within the Earls Court location where [...]

Our team recently participated in the EcoBuild exhibition in London. On an earlier business trip there, I had enjoyed the sandwiches and smoothies widely available. Now, less than one year later, I was happy to see that, if anything, this is even more of a thriving business. In fact, within the Earls Court location where EcoBuild was hosted, most of the cafes or fast food places sported sandwiches, salads, smoothies and thickies along with coffee or tea. These health food stands seem to be ubiquitous in London by now.

Who else thinks they’d be a good business in Bucharest as well? Based on my earlier experience with a very crowded health food diner in Victoriei square, I believe I’m not the only one.

New Media and New Information Paradigms
I have been hearing about the demise of the newspapers, the rise of search/social networking/new media and the internet fragmentation concept for years now. (almost a decade?) And I just read about it again today with the newspapers secretly meeting to try and sort out monetization methods to save their business. At the same time [...]

Build Green CEE: Energy Efficient and Ecological Design for the Region
Upcoming International Event Green buildings and energy efficiency have been some our our preferred topics on the blog. We’ve been telling you stories of green, recommending blogs and websites… and now…. We are pleased to announce you our upcoming event: Build Green CEE: Energy Effcient and Ecological Design for the Region! Discover the growing demand for [...]

Upcoming International Event

Green buildings and energy efficiency have been some our our preferred topics on the blog. We’ve been telling you stories of green, recommending blogs and websites… and now…. We are pleased to announce you our upcoming event: Build Green CEE: Energy Effcient and Ecological Design for the Region! Discover the growing demand for energy efficient and ecological construction techniques, design expertise, technologies, materials andÂ services in Europe’s most promising construction region - Central and Eastern Europe. The confence will explore the improving business case for eco-efficientÂ design and sustainable construction in an environment of rising energy prices, more stringent building codes, newly available technology and specialized financial products.

If you want to be part of a visionary group of investors, real estate developers, construction companies, architects, engineers, technology and service providers, building management companies, real estate agencies, students and professors, and if you’re eager to explore and benefit from the opportunities of building green, join us for:

WHAT: The first comprehensive regional Green Building Conference
WHEN: 23rd-24th April, 2008
WHERE: Bucharest
MORE INFORMATION: BuildGreenCEE.com

Register and pay by 24 March to get a 30% discount for the registration fee. Limited number of scholarships is available for interested professors and students.

We sincerely hope you can join us for this exciting event!

Build Green CEE: history in the making!
With over 200 participants and an impressive display of interest and support for building greener buildings, the “Build Green CEE” conference was a great success. The two days of presentations and discussions brought specialists and practitioners in green building techniques, applications, financing and the regulatory environment. We have heard from Sonae Sierra about their quick financial [...]

With over 200 participants and an impressive display of interest and support for building greener buildings, the “Build Green CEE” conference was a great success.

The two days of presentations and discussions brought specialists and practitioners in green building techniques, applications, financing and the regulatory environment. We have heard from Sonae Sierra about their quick financial returns from energy and resource efficient developments, from AIG Lincoln about their upcoming green project in Romania and the region and from F&C Property Asset Management and EcoNavitas about the financing and valuation of green buildings. Innovative products and technologies for greater energy efficiency and ecological design were revealed by Philips, DuPont and Lafarge, while government representatives and the Association for Energy Auditors discussed about the regulatory framework and actions necessary for the promotion of this sector.

Selected video presentations and photos from “Build Green CEE” will be available on the conference website - www.BuildGreenCEE.com - after May 15.

Building upon the momentum created by this conference, EcoNavitas announced the foundation of a Romanian Green Building Council, a non-profit organization modeled after the various chapters of the World Green Building Council.Â It aims at becoming a forum for discussion and actions towards transforming the construction market toward greener technologies, materials,Â services,Â and techniques.

2:32 AM | | 0 Comments

Sir Li Ka-shing
He is the Don of Hong Kong. His business covers almost every walk of life in Hong Kong. At an assessed wealth close to $26.5 billion he is one of the richest men in the world and the most powerful men in Asia.

He is the Don of Hong Kong. His business covers almost every walk of life in Hong Kong. At an assessed wealth close to $26.5 billion he is one of the richest men in the world and the most powerful men in Asia.

(more…)

Kenneth Thomson
He is Canada’s richest man and one of the richest men in the world.

He is Canada’s richest man and one of the richest men in the world. (more…)

Roman Abramovich
Roman Abramovich This Russian has dared the richest of the world to be amongst them. Roman Abramovich, is the well known owner of Chelsea Football Club. Despite being known all over the world he has maintained a low profile.

Roman Abramovich

This Russian has dared the richest of the world to be amongst them. Roman Abramovich, is the well known owner of Chelsea Football Club. Despite being known all over the world he has maintained a low profile. (more…)

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What's the Catch?
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ABOUT Ur SELF ESTEEN

What is self esteem?

Self esteem does not mean seeing yourself as the greatest person in the world.
I

business side

Blog Archive

stc

And here comes Al.

Another month goes by.

If you don’t ask for help, you aren’t likely to get it.

Major lessons you can learn in just 3 hours!

Landing Page 1.0

Landing Page 2.0

Myself As An Example

An Inconvenient Truth

What To Do Next?

So, who will it affect and how?

Will we see the changes in the UK market?

Getting the point across…

A better solution on the horizon?

Haven’t we seen this before?

So, will it work?

“New affiliate to pit bookie’s probabilities against real sports stats

The Symptoms

The Cure

What is self esteem?