With the price of gasoline hiking up to astronomic proportions, a lot of motorists are resorting to different ways to save on fuel. Some of them use alternative diesel. Others resort to using bikes, which can also contribute to the clean air program.
Some who cannot do away with their rides, however, chose to buy hybrid vehicles.
What exactly is a hybrid car?
Primarily, a gasoline-electric hybrid car is a combination of an electric car and a gasoline-run vehicle. To make things clearer, it is first necessary to distinguish the characteristics of those two kinds.
A gas-powered vehicle is equipped with fuel tanks, which gives gasoline to the engine. The engine operates the transmission, and the transmission operates the wheels.
Meanwhile, an electric car is equipped with a set of batteries which gives electric power to a motor. The motor then operates the transmission and the wheels.
Now the hybrid car is a mix of the two. The reputation of hybrids is that they add to the car's mileage with fewer emissions usually coming from cars run by gasoline, while eliminating more or less the disadvantages that comes with electric cars.
Motorists usually take three considerations in mind when judging the usability of a vehicle. These are:
-it should run at three-hundred miles at least between fuel stops.
-Should be easily refueled, in the minimum amount of time.
-It should catch up with the other vehicles zooming on the road.
The thing is, a gasoline-powered car has all these features, but it produces lots of emission plus the mileage is poor. On the other hand, an electric car gives off almost zero pollution, but the speed is relatively slow, and can only run 50-100 miles between battery charges.
What are the parts of hybrid cars?
1. Gasoline engine
Compared to the engine of other cars, hybrids use smaller ones and is more technically advanced in order to maximize fuel and lessen emissions.
2. Fuel tank
This serves as the device for hybrids to store energy for the gasoline engine.
3. Electric motor
The motor present in hybrids is a study in sophistication. It can serve as both generator and motor.
4. Generator
Much like an electric motor, but its only purpose is to provide electrical power.
5. Batteries
Acts as the storage device of energy for electric motors. The advantage of hybrid car motors is that they can charge the batteries with energy as well as get energy supply from them.
6. Transmission
Acts the same as conventional car transmissions.
There are two ways in combining the energy sources found in hybrid cars. The first one is the parallel hybrid, which is equipped with a fuel tank that provides gasoline to an engine, and a battery set that supplied energy to the electric motor.
The second one is the series hybrid. In contrast, the generator is powered by the gasoline engine, and the generator is capable of either energizing the batteries or provide power to the electric motor that starts up the transmission.
For more articles on this topic Click Here
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Guide to Selling Real Estate
Must Read Tips on Buying A Home
The home buying process can seem complicated, but if you take things step-by-step, you will soon be holding the keys to your own home!
But before going into the buying process you should first ask yourself if your are already ready for home buying.
Do you prefer or even enjoy moving into different places. Do you prefer using your savings for things like vacations, appliances, retirement or having your own business? Do you like to enjoy not having so much trouble with regular maintenance and repairs?
If your answers to these queries are yes, then you may not be ready to delve into the home buying experience. You may have a lot of good reasons for buying a home but you should also have to consider your reasons for not wanting to.
Remember than buying home is not just the biggest financial decision you will ever make but also the strongest emotional choice in your life, so be prepared to make wise decisions when you are in this process.
Buying home always seems to be a great idea, but it is important that ownership of a certain property comes with a great deal of responsibilities too.
Of course, being a homeowner is something to be proud of but it also means having to invest money, time and energy and take on added responsibilities. So, before you decide to buy a home, make sure you're ready.
The first things that comes into our mind when we think about home owning, is the wonderful things that is connected to it. It is true that there are a lot of good reasons for buying a home. So here are some of the good advantages of home buying.
Financial security is a very great deal of advantage when it comes to owning your own home. If the housing prices would go up, your home can provide you with some financial security due to capital appreciation.
Flexibility is another thing, when owning your house you will be able to decide all the aspects that comes with it. You can decorate or renovate your home to meet your own family's personal tastes and needs.
And of course stability, having your own home will make you feel at ease and less burden than renting one.
Although it is really nice to think about the positive aspects of owning a home, it is also a crucial part to consider the downsides as well. Here are some of the disadvantages on home buying.
Financial Stress is a very common problem in home buying. Coming up with the down payment, meeting regular mortgage payments and other ongoing costs will tie up a lot of your cash, and can put considerable stress on your finances.
Maintenance and Higher Costs are also a big problem. Keeping your home in good shape requires time and money.
You may pay more each month for housing than you did as a renter. There are also extra costs for maintenance and property taxes.
So, you've decided that homeownership is right for you. Now you need to determine if you are financially ready to buy a house.
To avoid any future surprises, you can do some financial exercises to see where you stand. They include: calculating your net worth, your current monthly expenses and your current monthly debt payments.
Knowing your net worth is important because you will need this information when you discuss a mortgage with your lender.
Your net worth is the amount left over once you've subtracted your total liabilities from your total assets. It will also give you a snapshot of your current financial situation and show you how much you can afford to put as a down payment.
Just remember all this notes and surely you will be able to arrive at some very good decisions in home buying. Do not rush into home buying, take some time to think and view the property first before closing a deal.
Closing day is the when you finally have bought your home; you now take legal possession and finally get to call your new home your own. You are sure to feel great relief and satisfaction but remember that the home buying process isn't over just yet. There are quite a few things that need to be done on closing day.
Make sure that your lender will provide the mortgage money to your lawyer. You must provide the balance of the purchase price to your lawyer along with the closing costs. Your lawyer pays the vendor, registers the home in your name, and provides you with a deed and the keys to your new home.
For more articles on this topic Click Here
The home buying process can seem complicated, but if you take things step-by-step, you will soon be holding the keys to your own home!
But before going into the buying process you should first ask yourself if your are already ready for home buying.
Do you prefer or even enjoy moving into different places. Do you prefer using your savings for things like vacations, appliances, retirement or having your own business? Do you like to enjoy not having so much trouble with regular maintenance and repairs?
If your answers to these queries are yes, then you may not be ready to delve into the home buying experience. You may have a lot of good reasons for buying a home but you should also have to consider your reasons for not wanting to.
Remember than buying home is not just the biggest financial decision you will ever make but also the strongest emotional choice in your life, so be prepared to make wise decisions when you are in this process.
Buying home always seems to be a great idea, but it is important that ownership of a certain property comes with a great deal of responsibilities too.
Of course, being a homeowner is something to be proud of but it also means having to invest money, time and energy and take on added responsibilities. So, before you decide to buy a home, make sure you're ready.
The first things that comes into our mind when we think about home owning, is the wonderful things that is connected to it. It is true that there are a lot of good reasons for buying a home. So here are some of the good advantages of home buying.
Financial security is a very great deal of advantage when it comes to owning your own home. If the housing prices would go up, your home can provide you with some financial security due to capital appreciation.
Flexibility is another thing, when owning your house you will be able to decide all the aspects that comes with it. You can decorate or renovate your home to meet your own family's personal tastes and needs.
And of course stability, having your own home will make you feel at ease and less burden than renting one.
Although it is really nice to think about the positive aspects of owning a home, it is also a crucial part to consider the downsides as well. Here are some of the disadvantages on home buying.
Financial Stress is a very common problem in home buying. Coming up with the down payment, meeting regular mortgage payments and other ongoing costs will tie up a lot of your cash, and can put considerable stress on your finances.
Maintenance and Higher Costs are also a big problem. Keeping your home in good shape requires time and money.
You may pay more each month for housing than you did as a renter. There are also extra costs for maintenance and property taxes.
So, you've decided that homeownership is right for you. Now you need to determine if you are financially ready to buy a house.
To avoid any future surprises, you can do some financial exercises to see where you stand. They include: calculating your net worth, your current monthly expenses and your current monthly debt payments.
Knowing your net worth is important because you will need this information when you discuss a mortgage with your lender.
Your net worth is the amount left over once you've subtracted your total liabilities from your total assets. It will also give you a snapshot of your current financial situation and show you how much you can afford to put as a down payment.
Just remember all this notes and surely you will be able to arrive at some very good decisions in home buying. Do not rush into home buying, take some time to think and view the property first before closing a deal.
Closing day is the when you finally have bought your home; you now take legal possession and finally get to call your new home your own. You are sure to feel great relief and satisfaction but remember that the home buying process isn't over just yet. There are quite a few things that need to be done on closing day.
Make sure that your lender will provide the mortgage money to your lawyer. You must provide the balance of the purchase price to your lawyer along with the closing costs. Your lawyer pays the vendor, registers the home in your name, and provides you with a deed and the keys to your new home.
For more articles on this topic Click Here
eBay Power Selling
Your Ultimate Secret Weapon: Having the Best Products to Sell on EBay
Planning to become an eBay seller? Do you know that your secret weapon on making more money in the eBay business depends on what items to put up for sale? Yes, indeed! Knowing how to have the best products to sell on eBay may be the edge you need to profit more.
There are several things to consider in order for you to get the best products to sell on eBay. You may have a particular product line already focused on or are still wondering about what items you can sell. Here are several tips and ideas to perk up your mind and help you arrive at a decision.
1. The best products to sell on eBay can be items that you are familiar with and have considerable experience with. But don’t just rely on the latest, trendiest or coolest items. The best products to sell on eBay which would bring you the profit you desire should be those items which people really buy.
2. Know how much the products will cost you. This may cover the price for purchasing the items, shipping and repair or restoration. Find great bargains as you look for the best products to sell on eBay.
3. While waiting for the products to sell, find a good storage space where they can be safely and adequately stored.
4. Once the products are sold to a customer, consider the expenses and preparations involved in shipping them to the costumer. Special considerations should be made regarding the products’ size, weigh, shape and fragility.
5. Have an adequate knowledge on the product’s life cycle. The best products to sell on eBay are items which have a longer life cycle. Know which products are constantly in demand. Some products may become very saleable for only a certain period of time like fad collectibles or high-tech items. Usually, after a time, people lost interest in them or a more advanced product is introduced. These products are not the best products to sell on eBay.
6. The best products to sell on eBay are those which are according to the demands of the season. Winter goes with it the demands for heavy coats, sweaters, warmers, blankets, etc. Along with summer comes the demand for cool clothes, sporting goods & accessories, garden equipment, picnic or beach apparel & accessories. Take advantage of the needs for every season in order to have the best products to sell on eBay.
You may have decided what products to sell, but where do you get these items? Well, if you know where to look and are resourceful enough, the best products to sell on eBay can be found just anywhere!
Your house is a very likely source of the best products to sell on eBay. Most eBay sellers started out by selling stuff from their house which they do not need anymore. These items, especially if in good condition, are guaranteed to generate more profit in eBay selling rather than by putting them up on a garage sale. As such, the best products to sell on eBay may just be lying around your house, things already outgrown or replaced. By starting out with selling these products, no risks are involved.
Announce to your friends and family that you are on the look-out for the best products to sell on eBay. They may have items no longer needed but are still in good condition.
Not interested in selling your own possessions? Start looking for the best products to sell on eBay through other sources. Find the best products to sell on eBay for great bargains, by purchasing them from the following:
Flea markets – here are vast bargain-priced merchandise that’s likely to sell.
Yard and garage sales – haunting for products in these kinds of sale is never difficult. More likely than not, you’ll fetch multiple profits by using this as source to get the best products to sell on eBay.
Estate sales – you can get the best products to sell on eBay through these, too. Unlike flea markets and garage sales though, you may not get a great bargain on them.
Also, look up in established retailers for non-moving merchandise and overstocked items and also clearance items from discount stores to get the best products to sell on eBay. Try wholesalers
Once you decide to be an eBay seller, these tips on how to get the best products to sell on eBay will help you to succeed.
For more articles on this topic Click Here
Planning to become an eBay seller? Do you know that your secret weapon on making more money in the eBay business depends on what items to put up for sale? Yes, indeed! Knowing how to have the best products to sell on eBay may be the edge you need to profit more.
There are several things to consider in order for you to get the best products to sell on eBay. You may have a particular product line already focused on or are still wondering about what items you can sell. Here are several tips and ideas to perk up your mind and help you arrive at a decision.
1. The best products to sell on eBay can be items that you are familiar with and have considerable experience with. But don’t just rely on the latest, trendiest or coolest items. The best products to sell on eBay which would bring you the profit you desire should be those items which people really buy.
2. Know how much the products will cost you. This may cover the price for purchasing the items, shipping and repair or restoration. Find great bargains as you look for the best products to sell on eBay.
3. While waiting for the products to sell, find a good storage space where they can be safely and adequately stored.
4. Once the products are sold to a customer, consider the expenses and preparations involved in shipping them to the costumer. Special considerations should be made regarding the products’ size, weigh, shape and fragility.
5. Have an adequate knowledge on the product’s life cycle. The best products to sell on eBay are items which have a longer life cycle. Know which products are constantly in demand. Some products may become very saleable for only a certain period of time like fad collectibles or high-tech items. Usually, after a time, people lost interest in them or a more advanced product is introduced. These products are not the best products to sell on eBay.
6. The best products to sell on eBay are those which are according to the demands of the season. Winter goes with it the demands for heavy coats, sweaters, warmers, blankets, etc. Along with summer comes the demand for cool clothes, sporting goods & accessories, garden equipment, picnic or beach apparel & accessories. Take advantage of the needs for every season in order to have the best products to sell on eBay.
You may have decided what products to sell, but where do you get these items? Well, if you know where to look and are resourceful enough, the best products to sell on eBay can be found just anywhere!
Your house is a very likely source of the best products to sell on eBay. Most eBay sellers started out by selling stuff from their house which they do not need anymore. These items, especially if in good condition, are guaranteed to generate more profit in eBay selling rather than by putting them up on a garage sale. As such, the best products to sell on eBay may just be lying around your house, things already outgrown or replaced. By starting out with selling these products, no risks are involved.
Announce to your friends and family that you are on the look-out for the best products to sell on eBay. They may have items no longer needed but are still in good condition.
Not interested in selling your own possessions? Start looking for the best products to sell on eBay through other sources. Find the best products to sell on eBay for great bargains, by purchasing them from the following:
Flea markets – here are vast bargain-priced merchandise that’s likely to sell.
Yard and garage sales – haunting for products in these kinds of sale is never difficult. More likely than not, you’ll fetch multiple profits by using this as source to get the best products to sell on eBay.
Estate sales – you can get the best products to sell on eBay through these, too. Unlike flea markets and garage sales though, you may not get a great bargain on them.
Also, look up in established retailers for non-moving merchandise and overstocked items and also clearance items from discount stores to get the best products to sell on eBay. Try wholesalers
Once you decide to be an eBay seller, these tips on how to get the best products to sell on eBay will help you to succeed.
For more articles on this topic Click Here
Beginners Guide To Yoga
Benefits of Yoga
Yoga through meditation works remarkably to achieve harmony and helps the mind
work in synchronization with the body. How often do we find that we are unable to
perform our activities properly and in a satisfying manner because of the confusions
and conflicts in our mind weigh down heavily upon us?
Stress is the number one suspect affecting all parts of our physical, endocrinal and
emotional system. And with the help of yoga this things can be corrected.
At the physical level, yoga and its cleansing practices have proven to be extremely
effective for various disorders.
Listed below are just some of the benefits of yoga that you can get.
Benefits of Yoga 1: Yoga is known to increase flexibility; yoga has postures that
trigger the different joints of the body. Including those joints that are not acted upon
with regular exercises routines.
Benefits of Yoga 2: Yoga also increases the lubrication of joints, ligament and
tendons. The well-researched yoga positions exercise the different tendons and
ligaments of the body.
It has also been found that the body which may have started doing yoga being a
rigid one may experience a quite remarkable flexibility in the end on those parts of
the body which have not been consciously worked upon.
Benefits of Yoga 3: yoga also massages all organs of the body. Yoga is perhaps the
only exercise that can work on through your internal organs in a thorough manner,
including those that hardly get externally stimulated during our entire lifetime.
Benefits of Yoga 4: Yoga acts in a wholesome manner on the various body parts.
This stimulation and massage of the organs in turn benefits us by keeping away
disease and providing a forewarning at the first possible instance of a likely onset of
disease or disorder.
One of the far-reaching benefits of yoga is the uncanny sense of awareness that it
develops in the practitioner of an impending health disorder or infection.
This in turn enables the person to take pre-emptive corrective action
Benefits of Yoga 5: yoga offers a complete detoxification of the body. It gently
stretches the muscles and joints as we;; as massaging the various organs, yoga
ensures the optimum blood supply to various parts of the body.
This helps in the flushing out of toxins from every nook and cranny of your body as
well as providing nourishment up to the last point. This leads to benefits such as
delayed ageing, energy and a remarkable zest for life.
Benefits of Yoga 6: yoga is also an excellent way to tone your muscles. Muscles
which have been flaccid and weak are stimulated repeatedly to shed excess fats and
flaccidity.
But these enormous physical benefits are just a “side effect” of this powerful
practice. What yoga does is harmonize the mind with the body and these results in
real quantum benefits.
It is now an open secret that the will of the mind has enabled people to achieve
extraordinary physical feats, which proves beyond doubt the mind and body
connection.
In fact yoga = meditation, because both work together in achieving the common
goal of unity of mind, body and spirit which can lead to an experience of eternal bliss
that you can only feel through yoga.
The meditative practices through yoga help in achieving an emotional balance
through detachment.
This in turn creates a remarkable calmness and a positive outlook, which also has
tremendous benefits on the physical health of the body.
For lots more articles on Yoga Click Here
This article is just one of many published on my website Eiretco.com
Yoga through meditation works remarkably to achieve harmony and helps the mind
work in synchronization with the body. How often do we find that we are unable to
perform our activities properly and in a satisfying manner because of the confusions
and conflicts in our mind weigh down heavily upon us?
Stress is the number one suspect affecting all parts of our physical, endocrinal and
emotional system. And with the help of yoga this things can be corrected.
At the physical level, yoga and its cleansing practices have proven to be extremely
effective for various disorders.
Listed below are just some of the benefits of yoga that you can get.
Benefits of Yoga 1: Yoga is known to increase flexibility; yoga has postures that
trigger the different joints of the body. Including those joints that are not acted upon
with regular exercises routines.
Benefits of Yoga 2: Yoga also increases the lubrication of joints, ligament and
tendons. The well-researched yoga positions exercise the different tendons and
ligaments of the body.
It has also been found that the body which may have started doing yoga being a
rigid one may experience a quite remarkable flexibility in the end on those parts of
the body which have not been consciously worked upon.
Benefits of Yoga 3: yoga also massages all organs of the body. Yoga is perhaps the
only exercise that can work on through your internal organs in a thorough manner,
including those that hardly get externally stimulated during our entire lifetime.
Benefits of Yoga 4: Yoga acts in a wholesome manner on the various body parts.
This stimulation and massage of the organs in turn benefits us by keeping away
disease and providing a forewarning at the first possible instance of a likely onset of
disease or disorder.
One of the far-reaching benefits of yoga is the uncanny sense of awareness that it
develops in the practitioner of an impending health disorder or infection.
This in turn enables the person to take pre-emptive corrective action
Benefits of Yoga 5: yoga offers a complete detoxification of the body. It gently
stretches the muscles and joints as we;; as massaging the various organs, yoga
ensures the optimum blood supply to various parts of the body.
This helps in the flushing out of toxins from every nook and cranny of your body as
well as providing nourishment up to the last point. This leads to benefits such as
delayed ageing, energy and a remarkable zest for life.
Benefits of Yoga 6: yoga is also an excellent way to tone your muscles. Muscles
which have been flaccid and weak are stimulated repeatedly to shed excess fats and
flaccidity.
But these enormous physical benefits are just a “side effect” of this powerful
practice. What yoga does is harmonize the mind with the body and these results in
real quantum benefits.
It is now an open secret that the will of the mind has enabled people to achieve
extraordinary physical feats, which proves beyond doubt the mind and body
connection.
In fact yoga = meditation, because both work together in achieving the common
goal of unity of mind, body and spirit which can lead to an experience of eternal bliss
that you can only feel through yoga.
The meditative practices through yoga help in achieving an emotional balance
through detachment.
This in turn creates a remarkable calmness and a positive outlook, which also has
tremendous benefits on the physical health of the body.
For lots more articles on Yoga Click Here
This article is just one of many published on my website Eiretco.com
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette
A wedding of an acquaintance is going to be held some time soon. You are now thinking of what gift you should give the newly wed. But do you know that there are gift giving wedding etiquette? Yes, there is such a thing. If you are contemplating on giving cash as a gift, read on first the gift giving cash wedding etiquette before you do such a move.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 1:
If a guest who receive an invitation can't make it to the wedding, they are not obligated to send gifts and much more cash gifts. Wedding etiquette dictates, however, that those who are unable to attend should send a congratulatory card for the groom or for both couples or a simple best wishes note to the bride.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 2:
Cash gifts or any gift items may be sent to the bride or groom's home before the wedding or to the couple's new home one year afterwards. This is a way of guests to lessen the burden to the newlyweds, such as how would they transport heavy gift items. Couple need not worry about renting a truct to transport the gifts to their new home. Also, your cash gift will be a great help to couples within their first year of marriage who are still in the stage of raising their own savings.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 3:
Giving cash gifts are not a violation of wedding etiquette. Couples need cash as a start up money for them. They need to rent a new apartment, bigger than their bachelor pad, if any of them has one, buy toiletries and groceries for the two of them, buy appliances and furniture that the two of them needs. These are just few among the many expenses that a couple would face in the first few months of their marriage which is why gift giving cash is a good idea to do and does not violate any wedding etiquette.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 4:
So how much should you give if you decide to give the couple cash as a gift?
It is a horrible idea that the amount or price of one’s wedding gift should equate to what the couples had spent on your dinner at the wedding reception. It is untrue. You can give as much as you want and as less as you want, if your budget is really tight. But in gift giving cash wedding etiquette, a guest's transportation does not count as a cash gift to the couple.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 5:
Also, don't stop yourself from giving cash gifts if the couple has listed their preferred wedding gifts in registry. Buying gifts from the wedding registry list are optional; you can either give the couple the gift of their choice or don't.
So, the gift giving cash wedding etiquette fact # 5 is that you can give cash gifts eventhough the couples have a wedding registry.
Here are gift giving cash wedding etiquette for couples:
Wedding registries are gaining popularity these days. But there are limitations on how much the bride and groom may direct gift giving. Gift giving cash is a wedding etiquette violation. You should not tell your guests that you prefer cash than gift items or request donations in cash to pay up a mortgage or ask them to give you cash to fund your honeymoon or that gift giving cash is preferred because you will send the money to charity.
Whether you like it or don't asking for gift giving in cash will make you look greedy, even if you claim that the money will go to charity. Also, your guests will fell less generous.
Gift giving of cash is an option to guests. They may opt to give cash as a wedding gift but wedding etiquette tells that you should not, ever, ask them for gift giving of cash. You may use the cash gifts in anyway you want.
If the bride and groom receive cash from guests, accept it and say your thanks, write them a thank you note the way you would do after opening a gift item.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
For lots more articles on Wedding Etiquette Click Here
A wedding of an acquaintance is going to be held some time soon. You are now thinking of what gift you should give the newly wed. But do you know that there are gift giving wedding etiquette? Yes, there is such a thing. If you are contemplating on giving cash as a gift, read on first the gift giving cash wedding etiquette before you do such a move.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 1:
If a guest who receive an invitation can't make it to the wedding, they are not obligated to send gifts and much more cash gifts. Wedding etiquette dictates, however, that those who are unable to attend should send a congratulatory card for the groom or for both couples or a simple best wishes note to the bride.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 2:
Cash gifts or any gift items may be sent to the bride or groom's home before the wedding or to the couple's new home one year afterwards. This is a way of guests to lessen the burden to the newlyweds, such as how would they transport heavy gift items. Couple need not worry about renting a truct to transport the gifts to their new home. Also, your cash gift will be a great help to couples within their first year of marriage who are still in the stage of raising their own savings.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 3:
Giving cash gifts are not a violation of wedding etiquette. Couples need cash as a start up money for them. They need to rent a new apartment, bigger than their bachelor pad, if any of them has one, buy toiletries and groceries for the two of them, buy appliances and furniture that the two of them needs. These are just few among the many expenses that a couple would face in the first few months of their marriage which is why gift giving cash is a good idea to do and does not violate any wedding etiquette.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 4:
So how much should you give if you decide to give the couple cash as a gift?
It is a horrible idea that the amount or price of one’s wedding gift should equate to what the couples had spent on your dinner at the wedding reception. It is untrue. You can give as much as you want and as less as you want, if your budget is really tight. But in gift giving cash wedding etiquette, a guest's transportation does not count as a cash gift to the couple.
Gift Giving Cash Wedding Etiquette Fact 5:
Also, don't stop yourself from giving cash gifts if the couple has listed their preferred wedding gifts in registry. Buying gifts from the wedding registry list are optional; you can either give the couple the gift of their choice or don't.
So, the gift giving cash wedding etiquette fact # 5 is that you can give cash gifts eventhough the couples have a wedding registry.
Here are gift giving cash wedding etiquette for couples:
Wedding registries are gaining popularity these days. But there are limitations on how much the bride and groom may direct gift giving. Gift giving cash is a wedding etiquette violation. You should not tell your guests that you prefer cash than gift items or request donations in cash to pay up a mortgage or ask them to give you cash to fund your honeymoon or that gift giving cash is preferred because you will send the money to charity.
Whether you like it or don't asking for gift giving in cash will make you look greedy, even if you claim that the money will go to charity. Also, your guests will fell less generous.
Gift giving of cash is an option to guests. They may opt to give cash as a wedding gift but wedding etiquette tells that you should not, ever, ask them for gift giving of cash. You may use the cash gifts in anyway you want.
If the bride and groom receive cash from guests, accept it and say your thanks, write them a thank you note the way you would do after opening a gift item.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
For lots more articles on Wedding Etiquette Click Here
How To Get Celebrities To Endorse YOUR Product
How To Get Celebrities To Endorse YOUR Product
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
How would you like celebrities to endorse your product?
Perhaps that sounds crazy. Well, here's the info...
But before anything else - let me stress that when I say "celebrities", I'm not talking about Tiger Woods or Tom Cruise!
Who I'm talking about is celebrities in YOUR market. People who are very highly thought of and well known in the market you're selling to. People who your target market look up to.
Take this real life example:
An online publisher named Alex was just about to launch an information product revealing psychological sales tactics.
However, even though his product was of the very highest quality, Alex was looking for something "extra" that would increase sales of the product even more.
What Alex wanted to achieve is to boost *credibility* in the sales message presenting the product. So visitors to his site would actually believe what they read, and therefore be a lot more likely to buy.
Now, since the product Alex was selling was revealing sales and marketing tactics, it would of course be purchased by people interested in selling more online.
So who better to give Alex a testimonial than a world famous marketing expert?...
Alex managed to get a testimonial from none other than Joe Sugarman - hugely successful direct marketer and famous for his BluBlocker sun glasses infomercials.
So - how do YOU go about boosting your own sales with testimonials from celebrities?
Well, let me firstly stress that unless you already have a relationship with the person (you know each other), there's a strong chance they won't reply to you. They may, or they may not. So be prepared for that.
Sending them an email is quick, but I get 200+ emails a day at the moment (spam included), and that's on the low end compared to the number of emails some people I know get.
So email may work if you're looking for a testimonial from a celebrity in your market, but don't hold your breath.
How about a phone call? It's worth a chance, but then again the person you're trying to reach may have a secretary, and what are your chances of getting past them with a testimonial request?
Or of course you could always send them a good ole fashioned "snail mail" letter, preferably including a complimentary copy of your product.
Will this work? Well, it will definitely help get their attention. You may want to contact them via email initially asking them for their postal address so you can send them a review copy of the product.
By doing that initially you're sure to get the right address, and it helps put a mental note in the person's mind that they're going to receive a package from you soon.
Or here's an almost fool proof way: why not buy time from them? Especially if they offer consulting already. It doesn't guarantee they'll offer a testimonial, but if your product's great, chances are they will.
So let's say you've got the product in their hands, and they like it. Here's the last step:
Make it as easy as possible for them. The people you contact are very busy, since that's how they got to where they are.
So what you need to do is write the testimonial for them. And once you've done that, send it over saying "I've included a potential testimonial outline for you. If you would be happy to offer a testimonial for the product, please feel free to change this draft testimonial as you would like to."
Now I can't guarantee you'll get testimonials every time you try, especially if you're not well known in the market or don't have a relationship with the person already. But if you don't try, you'll never know. And just one or two celebrity testimonials can make a real positive impact on your sales for the long term.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer. He recently revealed a system that can help you create best-selling products practically on demand: http://www.createoffers.com
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
How would you like celebrities to endorse your product?
Perhaps that sounds crazy. Well, here's the info...
But before anything else - let me stress that when I say "celebrities", I'm not talking about Tiger Woods or Tom Cruise!
Who I'm talking about is celebrities in YOUR market. People who are very highly thought of and well known in the market you're selling to. People who your target market look up to.
Take this real life example:
An online publisher named Alex was just about to launch an information product revealing psychological sales tactics.
However, even though his product was of the very highest quality, Alex was looking for something "extra" that would increase sales of the product even more.
What Alex wanted to achieve is to boost *credibility* in the sales message presenting the product. So visitors to his site would actually believe what they read, and therefore be a lot more likely to buy.
Now, since the product Alex was selling was revealing sales and marketing tactics, it would of course be purchased by people interested in selling more online.
So who better to give Alex a testimonial than a world famous marketing expert?...
Alex managed to get a testimonial from none other than Joe Sugarman - hugely successful direct marketer and famous for his BluBlocker sun glasses infomercials.
So - how do YOU go about boosting your own sales with testimonials from celebrities?
Well, let me firstly stress that unless you already have a relationship with the person (you know each other), there's a strong chance they won't reply to you. They may, or they may not. So be prepared for that.
Sending them an email is quick, but I get 200+ emails a day at the moment (spam included), and that's on the low end compared to the number of emails some people I know get.
So email may work if you're looking for a testimonial from a celebrity in your market, but don't hold your breath.
How about a phone call? It's worth a chance, but then again the person you're trying to reach may have a secretary, and what are your chances of getting past them with a testimonial request?
Or of course you could always send them a good ole fashioned "snail mail" letter, preferably including a complimentary copy of your product.
Will this work? Well, it will definitely help get their attention. You may want to contact them via email initially asking them for their postal address so you can send them a review copy of the product.
By doing that initially you're sure to get the right address, and it helps put a mental note in the person's mind that they're going to receive a package from you soon.
Or here's an almost fool proof way: why not buy time from them? Especially if they offer consulting already. It doesn't guarantee they'll offer a testimonial, but if your product's great, chances are they will.
So let's say you've got the product in their hands, and they like it. Here's the last step:
Make it as easy as possible for them. The people you contact are very busy, since that's how they got to where they are.
So what you need to do is write the testimonial for them. And once you've done that, send it over saying "I've included a potential testimonial outline for you. If you would be happy to offer a testimonial for the product, please feel free to change this draft testimonial as you would like to."
Now I can't guarantee you'll get testimonials every time you try, especially if you're not well known in the market or don't have a relationship with the person already. But if you don't try, you'll never know. And just one or two celebrity testimonials can make a real positive impact on your sales for the long term.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer. He recently revealed a system that can help you create best-selling products practically on demand: http://www.createoffers.com
Why Publishing MP3 Can Cost You A Fortune
Why Publishing MP3 Can Cost You A Fortune
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
This was news to me. It might be news to you too:
MP3 is NOT free to use if you're an online publisher. BUT - let me be clear - there are some opt-outs. It appears you don't have to pay any license fees if:
It's for personal use or non commercial reasons (not generating income). OR - if your company revenue is below $100,000 a year.
Now, these rules might change of course. Make sure to check these yourself and ensure you're up to date by visiting mp3licensing.com for full details.
However, when there's alternatives I don't see why anyone publishing audio online would want to or should publish in MP3 format.
So what's the best alternative? Well - it's all about OGG.
Okay, a slightly strange name. Here are the facts:
OGG is just as high quality as MP3.
OGG is just as quick to download as MP3.
OGG is open source - this means no fees due, ever (for full details on OGG visit vorbis.com).
The only current downside of OGG is that it isn't as widely supported by audio players as MP3.
BUT - I'm convinced this will change. As more and more online publishers say "No!" to paying hefty and unnecessary licensing fees, more and more audio will be published online in OGG format, meaning more and more audio players will support OGG.
So if you're currently publishing audio online in MP3 format, what does this mean for you?
Well, my advice is to convert your audio from MP3 format to OGG format, without delay.
Now I'll admit it can be a little bit time consuming, but once it's done, it's done. And would you rather make a little effort to convert your audio, or pay licensing fees year after year?
So how do you convert MP3 to OGG? Easy - use an audio converter. You'll find a ton of high quality free ones by searching download.com and also sourceforge.net. My personal favorite is WinLAME (awful name, great software) from winlame.sourceforge.net.
So use WinLAME to convert your MP3 to OGG. Pay attention to keeping the MP3 and OGG files around the same size (I've actually found OGG files to be slightly smaller). And then compare the audio quality. I'll be surprised if you can find any difference between them.
Now this conversion process might take a while. For about six hours of audio it took my computer at least a couple of hours of processing time. But I just left the computer to it and came back when it was done. You can even leave this process running overnight if you have a lot of audio to convert.
Now here's an extra snippet you need to pay attention to:
Some OGG audio has "Tags". Tags are extra information inside the audio file which often includes the name of the song for example.
At this time (this will probably change) some audio players have trouble playing OGG with "Tag" information in them. So take the tag information out. It's easy and doesn't affect the audio in any way - here's how you do it:
Download "MP3Tag" from mp3tag.de/en/. Install the software, and start it up. Then just choose to "Remove All Tags" from your OGG files. This process takes literally two minutes but is very important.
Now after you've converted and de-tagged the OGG audio, you'll need to upload it to your server of course.
Then you'll have to change all your download links. This is fiddly, but needs to be done. For example - you would need to change all your links from:
www.domain.com/folder/audio.mp3
To:
www.domain.com/folder/audio.ogg
Then test every download link to make sure it's working correctly.
Important Note: Don't forget about the audio you've got in Zip files too. You'll need to recreate those Zip files with OGG audio instead of MP3 audio and re-upload them.
If you're not sure where all the MP3 and Zip files are on your websites, here's an easy way to list them:
Now, this only works on Unix-based servers (which covers Linux servers, FreeBSD...etc - ask your web host if you're not sure)...
This is pretty advanced so don't do this if you're not comfortable with the process. Or ask your web host to do it for you if they're happy to do that:
You need to Telnet into your server and then type the following:
find . | grep mp3 > allmp3
Then type:
find . | grep zip > allzip
This will then give you two files on your server: allmp3 & allzip
Download these files and take a look at them in a text editor. They'll show you the path of every MP3 and Zip file on your server so that you can quickly and easily find which files you need to convert to OGG. Dead handy.
Okay - so after you've converted and uploaded the audio, you'll need to change the text around the download links. You'll need to take out any mention of "MP3" from your website.
I don't suggest replacing it with "OGG" on a sales page for example since that will probably confuse people. Just replace "MP3" with "downloadable audio" or "high quality downloadable audio".
And then on your download pages mention that the audio is in OGG format which is just as high quality as MP3 and just as quick to download. Then link to a couple of audio players that you know for a fact support OGG.
The audio players I personally mention are Winamp from winamp.com and Quintessential Player from quinnware.com.
Important Note About Winamp: As I write this only the Full version (not the Lite version) of Winamp supports OGG successfully. So make sure to tell your visitors to download and install that version. It's still free though so your visitors won't have to spend any extra money just to listen to your audio.
And that's pretty much all the steps needed to convert your published audio from MP3 to OGG, which can save you a small fortune in licensing fees without compromising audio quality or speed of download.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer. He recently revealed a system that can help you create best-selling products practically on demand: http://www.createoffers.com
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
This was news to me. It might be news to you too:
MP3 is NOT free to use if you're an online publisher. BUT - let me be clear - there are some opt-outs. It appears you don't have to pay any license fees if:
It's for personal use or non commercial reasons (not generating income). OR - if your company revenue is below $100,000 a year.
Now, these rules might change of course. Make sure to check these yourself and ensure you're up to date by visiting mp3licensing.com for full details.
However, when there's alternatives I don't see why anyone publishing audio online would want to or should publish in MP3 format.
So what's the best alternative? Well - it's all about OGG.
Okay, a slightly strange name. Here are the facts:
OGG is just as high quality as MP3.
OGG is just as quick to download as MP3.
OGG is open source - this means no fees due, ever (for full details on OGG visit vorbis.com).
The only current downside of OGG is that it isn't as widely supported by audio players as MP3.
BUT - I'm convinced this will change. As more and more online publishers say "No!" to paying hefty and unnecessary licensing fees, more and more audio will be published online in OGG format, meaning more and more audio players will support OGG.
So if you're currently publishing audio online in MP3 format, what does this mean for you?
Well, my advice is to convert your audio from MP3 format to OGG format, without delay.
Now I'll admit it can be a little bit time consuming, but once it's done, it's done. And would you rather make a little effort to convert your audio, or pay licensing fees year after year?
So how do you convert MP3 to OGG? Easy - use an audio converter. You'll find a ton of high quality free ones by searching download.com and also sourceforge.net. My personal favorite is WinLAME (awful name, great software) from winlame.sourceforge.net.
So use WinLAME to convert your MP3 to OGG. Pay attention to keeping the MP3 and OGG files around the same size (I've actually found OGG files to be slightly smaller). And then compare the audio quality. I'll be surprised if you can find any difference between them.
Now this conversion process might take a while. For about six hours of audio it took my computer at least a couple of hours of processing time. But I just left the computer to it and came back when it was done. You can even leave this process running overnight if you have a lot of audio to convert.
Now here's an extra snippet you need to pay attention to:
Some OGG audio has "Tags". Tags are extra information inside the audio file which often includes the name of the song for example.
At this time (this will probably change) some audio players have trouble playing OGG with "Tag" information in them. So take the tag information out. It's easy and doesn't affect the audio in any way - here's how you do it:
Download "MP3Tag" from mp3tag.de/en/. Install the software, and start it up. Then just choose to "Remove All Tags" from your OGG files. This process takes literally two minutes but is very important.
Now after you've converted and de-tagged the OGG audio, you'll need to upload it to your server of course.
Then you'll have to change all your download links. This is fiddly, but needs to be done. For example - you would need to change all your links from:
www.domain.com/folder/audio.mp3
To:
www.domain.com/folder/audio.ogg
Then test every download link to make sure it's working correctly.
Important Note: Don't forget about the audio you've got in Zip files too. You'll need to recreate those Zip files with OGG audio instead of MP3 audio and re-upload them.
If you're not sure where all the MP3 and Zip files are on your websites, here's an easy way to list them:
Now, this only works on Unix-based servers (which covers Linux servers, FreeBSD...etc - ask your web host if you're not sure)...
This is pretty advanced so don't do this if you're not comfortable with the process. Or ask your web host to do it for you if they're happy to do that:
You need to Telnet into your server and then type the following:
find . | grep mp3 > allmp3
Then type:
find . | grep zip > allzip
This will then give you two files on your server: allmp3 & allzip
Download these files and take a look at them in a text editor. They'll show you the path of every MP3 and Zip file on your server so that you can quickly and easily find which files you need to convert to OGG. Dead handy.
Okay - so after you've converted and uploaded the audio, you'll need to change the text around the download links. You'll need to take out any mention of "MP3" from your website.
I don't suggest replacing it with "OGG" on a sales page for example since that will probably confuse people. Just replace "MP3" with "downloadable audio" or "high quality downloadable audio".
And then on your download pages mention that the audio is in OGG format which is just as high quality as MP3 and just as quick to download. Then link to a couple of audio players that you know for a fact support OGG.
The audio players I personally mention are Winamp from winamp.com and Quintessential Player from quinnware.com.
Important Note About Winamp: As I write this only the Full version (not the Lite version) of Winamp supports OGG successfully. So make sure to tell your visitors to download and install that version. It's still free though so your visitors won't have to spend any extra money just to listen to your audio.
And that's pretty much all the steps needed to convert your published audio from MP3 to OGG, which can save you a small fortune in licensing fees without compromising audio quality or speed of download.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer. He recently revealed a system that can help you create best-selling products practically on demand: http://www.createoffers.com
How To Track All Your Website Traffic For Free
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
Do you know:
* Exactly how many people are visiting your website?
* How long they're staying on your site before they move on?
* Exactly where those visitors are coming from, each day?
* How much of your website traffic is repeat visitors?
* The exact paths people take as they click their way through your website?
Here's what I'm getting at:
If you don't know your visitors, it makes it *very* difficult for you to improve the performance of your website and turn more visitors into customers - AND - get more quality traffic. For the simple reason that you're effectively working blind.
Without knowing how people visit your site and what they do on your site, any attempts at growing your traffic and improving the profitability of your website is working with one armed tied behind your back, at least.
And unfortunately - the web stats that come with your web-hosting are generally not enough these days.
Depending on your web host, chances are you've either got Webalizer, Analog Stats, or AWStats installed on your server. Here's how that software works:
It takes the "raw" (unreadable to the human eye) information your web server stores of everyone that visits and presents this in an easy to understand way.
Unfortunately, due to a number of technical reasons, this information is often presented in quite an inaccurate way.
And in my personal experience, these software packages don't present this information in a particularly helpful way either for someone trying to improve the conversion ratios and profitability of their website.
What I personally do, and what I would suggest you do is use a "Tracking Solution" that accurately tracks and reports all your visitors in an easy to read and understand way. These solutions come in two forms: Software & Services
Both these options have their pros and cons, but what they both do very well is present exactly what's happening on your website right up to the minute, and in a way that's very helpful to you for making good (and profitable) decisions for your business.
To start with here's a software solution you can install and use for free on your website:
Now before you go and install it, you should of course be familiar with installing software on your server. If you're not comfortable installing software on your website, a tracking service (which I'll come to in a moment) would probably be best for you.
And it's also important to note that installing software on your website can often put more strain on the server. This is particularly true if you're on shared hosting.
I've personally used the following free tracking software and it works well. See what you think. Go to http://www.curve2.com and look for "TrackPro". As I write this, version 2 is in Beta and is downloadable from the site at the following address: http://www.curve2.com/trackpro.php
You'll also find many further free tracking software solutions at http://www.hotscripts.com.
But personally speaking, what I've found works very well and avoids putting any increased strain on my existing websites is using a third party tracking service.
The only things really to worry about when using a third party service are:
* How long will this service be around? (If they stop their service after a year, you wouldn't be able to access your past data and will have to change all your tracking codes on your pages too.)
* What is their privacy policy regarding my web stats? (Are they honest and trustworthy in other words. You don't want the service owners studying and then duplicating your successful business plan.)
Over the past month I've been using ecommStats (http://www.ecommstats.com). Now, this service isn't free, but at this time they give you 50,000 free page views per domain, and depending how busy your site is those page views can last you a very long time.
The service works great and is very easy to add to your pages -- simply add three lines of code at the bottom of each of your pages (you can easily do this with Server Side Includes if you're comfortable with that) and all your visitors get tracked accurately and in great detail.
Alternatively - an entirely free (at this time) and very established service is StatCounter (http://statcounter.com). It even has a rave review from Tucows.com (one of the largest download sites on the internet) which speaks for itself and adds a lot of credibility to the service.
And just in case you're wondering how a free service like StatCounter makes money, well - since it's such a popular service with many webmasters logging in every day (and many I'm sure even more than once a day just like me) that it's made it very easy for them to sell a lot of advertising on their site. They also offer an upgrade to their advanced paid service.
But thinking beyond free services, as your business grows you may choose to upgrade to high end paid services that provide even more in depth information about your visitors...
Services like Urchin (Urchin.com - owned by Google) or Deep Metrix (DeepMetix.com). However, to help you grow your business to that point you need to keep a close eye on what your visitors are doing and where they're coming from, and free tracking software and services is a great way for you to start to do this.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer. He recently revealed a system that can help you create best-selling products practically on demand: http://www.createoffers.com
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
Do you know:
* Exactly how many people are visiting your website?
* How long they're staying on your site before they move on?
* Exactly where those visitors are coming from, each day?
* How much of your website traffic is repeat visitors?
* The exact paths people take as they click their way through your website?
Here's what I'm getting at:
If you don't know your visitors, it makes it *very* difficult for you to improve the performance of your website and turn more visitors into customers - AND - get more quality traffic. For the simple reason that you're effectively working blind.
Without knowing how people visit your site and what they do on your site, any attempts at growing your traffic and improving the profitability of your website is working with one armed tied behind your back, at least.
And unfortunately - the web stats that come with your web-hosting are generally not enough these days.
Depending on your web host, chances are you've either got Webalizer, Analog Stats, or AWStats installed on your server. Here's how that software works:
It takes the "raw" (unreadable to the human eye) information your web server stores of everyone that visits and presents this in an easy to understand way.
Unfortunately, due to a number of technical reasons, this information is often presented in quite an inaccurate way.
And in my personal experience, these software packages don't present this information in a particularly helpful way either for someone trying to improve the conversion ratios and profitability of their website.
What I personally do, and what I would suggest you do is use a "Tracking Solution" that accurately tracks and reports all your visitors in an easy to read and understand way. These solutions come in two forms: Software & Services
Both these options have their pros and cons, but what they both do very well is present exactly what's happening on your website right up to the minute, and in a way that's very helpful to you for making good (and profitable) decisions for your business.
To start with here's a software solution you can install and use for free on your website:
Now before you go and install it, you should of course be familiar with installing software on your server. If you're not comfortable installing software on your website, a tracking service (which I'll come to in a moment) would probably be best for you.
And it's also important to note that installing software on your website can often put more strain on the server. This is particularly true if you're on shared hosting.
I've personally used the following free tracking software and it works well. See what you think. Go to http://www.curve2.com and look for "TrackPro". As I write this, version 2 is in Beta and is downloadable from the site at the following address: http://www.curve2.com/trackpro.php
You'll also find many further free tracking software solutions at http://www.hotscripts.com.
But personally speaking, what I've found works very well and avoids putting any increased strain on my existing websites is using a third party tracking service.
The only things really to worry about when using a third party service are:
* How long will this service be around? (If they stop their service after a year, you wouldn't be able to access your past data and will have to change all your tracking codes on your pages too.)
* What is their privacy policy regarding my web stats? (Are they honest and trustworthy in other words. You don't want the service owners studying and then duplicating your successful business plan.)
Over the past month I've been using ecommStats (http://www.ecommstats.com). Now, this service isn't free, but at this time they give you 50,000 free page views per domain, and depending how busy your site is those page views can last you a very long time.
The service works great and is very easy to add to your pages -- simply add three lines of code at the bottom of each of your pages (you can easily do this with Server Side Includes if you're comfortable with that) and all your visitors get tracked accurately and in great detail.
Alternatively - an entirely free (at this time) and very established service is StatCounter (http://statcounter.com). It even has a rave review from Tucows.com (one of the largest download sites on the internet) which speaks for itself and adds a lot of credibility to the service.
And just in case you're wondering how a free service like StatCounter makes money, well - since it's such a popular service with many webmasters logging in every day (and many I'm sure even more than once a day just like me) that it's made it very easy for them to sell a lot of advertising on their site. They also offer an upgrade to their advanced paid service.
But thinking beyond free services, as your business grows you may choose to upgrade to high end paid services that provide even more in depth information about your visitors...
Services like Urchin (Urchin.com - owned by Google) or Deep Metrix (DeepMetix.com). However, to help you grow your business to that point you need to keep a close eye on what your visitors are doing and where they're coming from, and free tracking software and services is a great way for you to start to do this.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer. He recently revealed a system that can help you create best-selling products practically on demand: http://www.createoffers.com
5 Internet Business Myths
5 Internet Business Myths That Keep Success At Bay
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
Interested in making a full time income running an internet business?
Well, one of the first things you need to do is forget a lot of the "myths" that keep being repeated online. Let's go through five of them here:
Myth 1: "Running a successful online business is easy".
No it isn't. No business success comes easy.
If money was really that easy to make, word would spread and everyone would jump on it, including investors!
Business doesn't work like that - it's competitive, and because of this requires hard work and vigilance.
If you treat your internet business like a job, and always do your very best for your boss (you), then you're off to a great start.
That said - if you're only looking to make $200 extra a month, or even $500 extra a month, that IS easy. Just sell some odds and ends on eBay. A part time income is not particularly difficult to achieve online with online auctions and other outlets like Amazon Marketplace.
But - if you're looking for a full time income, you need to work at it. There is no "secret formula", never was and never will be.
Myth 2: "Running an internet business costs next to nothing".
Well, somewhat true, but it misses the point.
You can run an online business very cheaply (my basic running costs are around $150 a month - hosting, autoresponders...etc) but if you want your business to grow at very low cost, you'll have to do all the promotions for free.
Free online marketing tactics generally take time to work, and require a lot of elbow-grease: writing articles to distribute, writing pages to get search engine traffic, creating products, building up an affiliate program, getting links in to your sites...
Alternatively - if you want to speed things up, you can advertise. And depending on how well your site converts visitors into customers, and how targeted your advertising is, you can grow very quickly that way.
If you're interested in putting a few hundred dollars aside into an "advertising fund" and trying to build your business quickly that way, pay-per-click advertising would probably be the best way to start.
Focus on Google Adwords & Yahoo Search Marketing (formerly Overture) for starters since they have the most traffic, as well as the most responsive traffic.
But before diving in headfirst and potentially throwing good money after bad on inefficient advertising, it's strongly recommended you fully understand the subject, or get the advice of a professional.
Either consult with one (if you can find a reputable one), or devour eBooks on the subject.
Recommended eBooks are anything by Andrew Goodman or Perry Marshall. Make sure the information is up to date though as the pay-per-click field changes incredibly quickly. Twelve months is a lifetime when it comes to the search engines.
Also recommended is spending time absorbing the Google Adwords training site and also the Yahoo Search Marketing training site.
Both these companies want you to succeed with your advertising (since you'll advertise with them for longer) and so have a lot of great information to help you get started and build a successful advertising campaign.
Myth 3: "All traffic is the same".
This myth often presents itself as "Buy 10,000 visitors from us for $9.95 and you'll make lots of sales!" (or something along those lines).
Ignore such sales pitches - they're complete rubbish. And here's why:
Bulk traffic like this is completely untargeted and a complete waste of your time and money.
Just think - if you were selling a book through direct mail on "How To Get Rich In Real Estate" and you had to choose a mailing list to promote to, would you rather:
1) Mail your offer to a list of people who had already expressed an interest in the subject by purchasing similar products?
2) Or would you feel it was better to instead pick names at random out of the phone book and make that list the offer?
Silly question, right?
Well, it's the same online - all traffic is not identical. People surfing have different interests and motivations, just like they do offline.
To maximize your chances of making money, you want to target the visitors most likely to convert to customers for you and get them to your site.
Myth 4: "Opt-in email doesn't work anymore".
From my own personal experience:
Opt-in mail does work, but not as well as it used it. Many spam and email filters are over-zealous these days and delete mail people have asked to receive (opt-in mail) at the same time as unsolicited email (spam).
Plus - people are very worried about phishing emails these days (emails that try to fool you into typing in your private details) and often delete emails out of fear if they don't recognize who sent it.
But these points aside, opt in email can still work - so don't discount it before you try it.
Myth 5: "You don't need any technical skills"
Let's be frank - without technical skills you're going to struggle big time.
If you're going to run an internet business, for starters you want to be comfortable with computers and familiar with the internet.
And you really want to get to grips with HTML and FTP. Those seven letters are the building blocks of creating any kind of website and getting it live online. If you don't know them, get to know them. There's plenty of great tutorials online.
Or even just for starters - you can easily create web pages visually (without messing around with HTML code) by using a visual web page editor. There's plenty to be found by searching download.com.
So put these internet business myths out of your mind and get cracking on building your business into a success.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer. He recently revealed a system that can help you create best-selling products practically on demand: http://www.createoffers.com
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
Interested in making a full time income running an internet business?
Well, one of the first things you need to do is forget a lot of the "myths" that keep being repeated online. Let's go through five of them here:
Myth 1: "Running a successful online business is easy".
No it isn't. No business success comes easy.
If money was really that easy to make, word would spread and everyone would jump on it, including investors!
Business doesn't work like that - it's competitive, and because of this requires hard work and vigilance.
If you treat your internet business like a job, and always do your very best for your boss (you), then you're off to a great start.
That said - if you're only looking to make $200 extra a month, or even $500 extra a month, that IS easy. Just sell some odds and ends on eBay. A part time income is not particularly difficult to achieve online with online auctions and other outlets like Amazon Marketplace.
But - if you're looking for a full time income, you need to work at it. There is no "secret formula", never was and never will be.
Myth 2: "Running an internet business costs next to nothing".
Well, somewhat true, but it misses the point.
You can run an online business very cheaply (my basic running costs are around $150 a month - hosting, autoresponders...etc) but if you want your business to grow at very low cost, you'll have to do all the promotions for free.
Free online marketing tactics generally take time to work, and require a lot of elbow-grease: writing articles to distribute, writing pages to get search engine traffic, creating products, building up an affiliate program, getting links in to your sites...
Alternatively - if you want to speed things up, you can advertise. And depending on how well your site converts visitors into customers, and how targeted your advertising is, you can grow very quickly that way.
If you're interested in putting a few hundred dollars aside into an "advertising fund" and trying to build your business quickly that way, pay-per-click advertising would probably be the best way to start.
Focus on Google Adwords & Yahoo Search Marketing (formerly Overture) for starters since they have the most traffic, as well as the most responsive traffic.
But before diving in headfirst and potentially throwing good money after bad on inefficient advertising, it's strongly recommended you fully understand the subject, or get the advice of a professional.
Either consult with one (if you can find a reputable one), or devour eBooks on the subject.
Recommended eBooks are anything by Andrew Goodman or Perry Marshall. Make sure the information is up to date though as the pay-per-click field changes incredibly quickly. Twelve months is a lifetime when it comes to the search engines.
Also recommended is spending time absorbing the Google Adwords training site and also the Yahoo Search Marketing training site.
Both these companies want you to succeed with your advertising (since you'll advertise with them for longer) and so have a lot of great information to help you get started and build a successful advertising campaign.
Myth 3: "All traffic is the same".
This myth often presents itself as "Buy 10,000 visitors from us for $9.95 and you'll make lots of sales!" (or something along those lines).
Ignore such sales pitches - they're complete rubbish. And here's why:
Bulk traffic like this is completely untargeted and a complete waste of your time and money.
Just think - if you were selling a book through direct mail on "How To Get Rich In Real Estate" and you had to choose a mailing list to promote to, would you rather:
1) Mail your offer to a list of people who had already expressed an interest in the subject by purchasing similar products?
2) Or would you feel it was better to instead pick names at random out of the phone book and make that list the offer?
Silly question, right?
Well, it's the same online - all traffic is not identical. People surfing have different interests and motivations, just like they do offline.
To maximize your chances of making money, you want to target the visitors most likely to convert to customers for you and get them to your site.
Myth 4: "Opt-in email doesn't work anymore".
From my own personal experience:
Opt-in mail does work, but not as well as it used it. Many spam and email filters are over-zealous these days and delete mail people have asked to receive (opt-in mail) at the same time as unsolicited email (spam).
Plus - people are very worried about phishing emails these days (emails that try to fool you into typing in your private details) and often delete emails out of fear if they don't recognize who sent it.
But these points aside, opt in email can still work - so don't discount it before you try it.
Myth 5: "You don't need any technical skills"
Let's be frank - without technical skills you're going to struggle big time.
If you're going to run an internet business, for starters you want to be comfortable with computers and familiar with the internet.
And you really want to get to grips with HTML and FTP. Those seven letters are the building blocks of creating any kind of website and getting it live online. If you don't know them, get to know them. There's plenty of great tutorials online.
Or even just for starters - you can easily create web pages visually (without messing around with HTML code) by using a visual web page editor. There's plenty to be found by searching download.com.
So put these internet business myths out of your mind and get cracking on building your business into a success.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer. He recently revealed a system that can help you create best-selling products practically on demand: http://www.createoffers.com
How To Get Hundreds Of Daily Website Visitors For Free
How I Get Hundreds Of Daily Website Visitors For Free
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
Know about "Viral eBooks"?
It's not a new concept I'll admit, but it works like
absolute gangbusters. In fact, over the past three years it
has personally been responsible for bringing me hundreds of
thousands of visitors to just one of my websites. AND -
100% for free.
Getting traffic with Viral eBooks is a "free traffic
tactic", which means you're not paying for advertising.
But, because you're not paying for this exposure, you need
to instead create content that people WANT to pass on.
This takes effort, but if you do it right, it can pay you
back hugely. Let's go through it:
Okay - for starters you can create Viral eBooks in two
formats:
EXE (executable) format - which means it only works on PC's.
This type of eBook looks like a website packaged together.
These types of eBooks look great, and all someone has to do
to view it is download and double-click it. But, as
mentioned it does only work on PC's, and generally the
software to create these types of eBooks isn't free,
although it is very affordable. (I personally use the
software from eBookCompiler.com which as I write this
retails for around $30.)
Alternatively - you can create and distribute Viral eBooks
in the hugely popular PDF format. The advantage of PDF is
that everyone can read them successfully whether they're
viewing your eBook on PC, Mac or "other".
To read PDF successfully, the person who downloaded the
eBook needs to have the free Adobe Reader installed on their
computer. Most people do, and if they don’t it's a quick
download from Adobe.com, so this isn't an issue.
Although PDF’s can be more widely read that EXE style
eBooks, they’re not quite as flexible. With EXE's for
example you can actually embed video and audio into the
eBook. This isn't possible with PDF. With PDF you would
need to instead include a link to where the reader can view
or download the audio/video online.
So with this in mind, you need to decide what's most
important to you and make your choice accordingly for eBook
format. I personally don't recommended you create your
eBook in both formats, since that just complicates the
distribution process in my experience. Stick with one or
the other.
For creating Viral PDF's - there's a wide array of software
that allows you to create PDF's. Some of this software is
free, some mind-bogglingly expensive. To view many
available options, simply search Download.com or Tucows.com.
For creating Viral PDF's, I personally use software that I
had specially created. And the advantage of my software is
that it allows you to easily create fully *brandable* PDF's.
This means that people can customize your PDF with their own
affiliate or website details.
The benefit of this feature is that it makes it much more
likely the PDF will spread far and wide for you as it gives
the reader a strong incentive to pass the PDF on as they can
now directly profit from it's distribution.
You can get this PDF branding software for free at
BrandPDF.com
So those are your two options for eBook formats. Now - how
do you make it truly viral?
Well, first of all, decide what kind of visitors you want to
your website, and create an eBook on a subject that would
interest those people.
Your eBook has to be truly useful, interesting, and
credible. Don't create a poor quality eBook since no one
will read it, which means of course that no one will visit
your site.
You can even include multi-media links within your eBook to
related audio and video if you like, making your product
even more interesting and unique. These download links lead
back to your site of course, which naturally gets you more
visitors.
If you're not familiar with a subject matter that would
allow you to reach your target audience, you could perhaps
have an eBook ghostwritten. There's plenty of Ghostwriters
who would bid on a project you list for free at eLance.com.
(Ghostwriters are professional writers who create unique
content for you on a subject of your choice, and give you
all the rights to it, so you can use it as you choose. Many
ghostwriters offer their services very affordably.)
Alternatively - an information-rich interview with an expert
in the field could be a good solution. The person you
interview gets free advertising that way too of course, so
they may well be happy to spend the time.
Such an interview can be done either by email or by phone.
The audio of a phone interview would be edited (to remove
any mistakes) and then transcribed. Both the audio and
transcript can then be offered in the eBook.
In my personal experience, longer interviews (more than just
a few simple questions) don't work well by email since it
can take the person being interviewed quite a lot of typing,
and I find the momentum of the process quickly fades this
way with every question asked, which can lead to significant
delays.
For this reason, and to keep things quick and easy for the
person being interviewed, I have generally gone with phone
interviews in the past - one hour of interview generally
creates from around 7,000 to 10,000 words of content.
Then after finalizing the recording and tidying the
transcript, pass the product by the interviewee before
publication to confirm their approval.
And let me stress again - your eBook must be high quality
and credible. The higher the quality the further it will
spread.
If it's free to give away, maybe aim for an eBook that could
sell for $20 comfortably - IF - it was being sold.
Use this as a rough guide to the kind of value you want to
aim for with your eBook. The more value you offer in a
subject your target market is interested in, the more people
will pay attention to it. It's as simple as that.
So finally - how do you make the eBook as viral as possible?
One important point already mentioned more than once is to
make the eBook very high quality.
The next important point also touched on is that it is very
good to give people strong incentives to pass the eBook on,
rather than simply hoping they do. To do this, give them
benefits for passing it on. Particularly - by making it
brandable so that the person passing it on can add their
affiliate links, or even their "home page" address to it.
For example:
"This eBook is brought to you by JoeBloggs.com"
If it's a free to sell eBook (which means: if you have a
copy of the eBook, you have the automatic right to sell it
yourself. In a sense these are resale rights that
automatically roll from one eBook owner to the next) - have
a ready-made and professional website and sales page linked
to from within the eBook, so that it's easy for people to
start selling it.
And if the offer, sales copy, website and product are all
high quality, the eBook should sell well for everyone who
resells it, which means it quickly spreads far and wide for
you.
If you give everyone who gets a copy of the eBook a way to
profit it will just keep on spreading for years to come.
This has been my experience. Search for my name in Google
to see this first hand.
And pay attention to the rights you give the eBook - loose
rights for an eBook will help it spread far and wide
quickly. Specify the rights within the first page or two of
the eBook so there's no confusion. And don't just say
"Master Rights". Explain the rights in an easy to
understand way.
And let me also say that the more eBooks you create, the
larger the "Viral Net" you'll have out there working for you
to bring you visitors every single day.
I've personally been creating viral eBooks for around three
years as I write this, and have over thirty eBooks out there
on thousands upon thousands of web sites. AND - on tens of
thousands (even hundreds of thousands) of personal computers
around the world. And all these eBooks are working
automatically every day to bring traffic back to my site.
Starting your own Viral eBook library can do the same for
you.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer.
He recently revealed a system that can help you create
best-selling products practically on demand:
http://www.createoffers.com
Copyright © 2005 Louis Allport
Know about "Viral eBooks"?
It's not a new concept I'll admit, but it works like
absolute gangbusters. In fact, over the past three years it
has personally been responsible for bringing me hundreds of
thousands of visitors to just one of my websites. AND -
100% for free.
Getting traffic with Viral eBooks is a "free traffic
tactic", which means you're not paying for advertising.
But, because you're not paying for this exposure, you need
to instead create content that people WANT to pass on.
This takes effort, but if you do it right, it can pay you
back hugely. Let's go through it:
Okay - for starters you can create Viral eBooks in two
formats:
EXE (executable) format - which means it only works on PC's.
This type of eBook looks like a website packaged together.
These types of eBooks look great, and all someone has to do
to view it is download and double-click it. But, as
mentioned it does only work on PC's, and generally the
software to create these types of eBooks isn't free,
although it is very affordable. (I personally use the
software from eBookCompiler.com which as I write this
retails for around $30.)
Alternatively - you can create and distribute Viral eBooks
in the hugely popular PDF format. The advantage of PDF is
that everyone can read them successfully whether they're
viewing your eBook on PC, Mac or "other".
To read PDF successfully, the person who downloaded the
eBook needs to have the free Adobe Reader installed on their
computer. Most people do, and if they don’t it's a quick
download from Adobe.com, so this isn't an issue.
Although PDF’s can be more widely read that EXE style
eBooks, they’re not quite as flexible. With EXE's for
example you can actually embed video and audio into the
eBook. This isn't possible with PDF. With PDF you would
need to instead include a link to where the reader can view
or download the audio/video online.
So with this in mind, you need to decide what's most
important to you and make your choice accordingly for eBook
format. I personally don't recommended you create your
eBook in both formats, since that just complicates the
distribution process in my experience. Stick with one or
the other.
For creating Viral PDF's - there's a wide array of software
that allows you to create PDF's. Some of this software is
free, some mind-bogglingly expensive. To view many
available options, simply search Download.com or Tucows.com.
For creating Viral PDF's, I personally use software that I
had specially created. And the advantage of my software is
that it allows you to easily create fully *brandable* PDF's.
This means that people can customize your PDF with their own
affiliate or website details.
The benefit of this feature is that it makes it much more
likely the PDF will spread far and wide for you as it gives
the reader a strong incentive to pass the PDF on as they can
now directly profit from it's distribution.
You can get this PDF branding software for free at
BrandPDF.com
So those are your two options for eBook formats. Now - how
do you make it truly viral?
Well, first of all, decide what kind of visitors you want to
your website, and create an eBook on a subject that would
interest those people.
Your eBook has to be truly useful, interesting, and
credible. Don't create a poor quality eBook since no one
will read it, which means of course that no one will visit
your site.
You can even include multi-media links within your eBook to
related audio and video if you like, making your product
even more interesting and unique. These download links lead
back to your site of course, which naturally gets you more
visitors.
If you're not familiar with a subject matter that would
allow you to reach your target audience, you could perhaps
have an eBook ghostwritten. There's plenty of Ghostwriters
who would bid on a project you list for free at eLance.com.
(Ghostwriters are professional writers who create unique
content for you on a subject of your choice, and give you
all the rights to it, so you can use it as you choose. Many
ghostwriters offer their services very affordably.)
Alternatively - an information-rich interview with an expert
in the field could be a good solution. The person you
interview gets free advertising that way too of course, so
they may well be happy to spend the time.
Such an interview can be done either by email or by phone.
The audio of a phone interview would be edited (to remove
any mistakes) and then transcribed. Both the audio and
transcript can then be offered in the eBook.
In my personal experience, longer interviews (more than just
a few simple questions) don't work well by email since it
can take the person being interviewed quite a lot of typing,
and I find the momentum of the process quickly fades this
way with every question asked, which can lead to significant
delays.
For this reason, and to keep things quick and easy for the
person being interviewed, I have generally gone with phone
interviews in the past - one hour of interview generally
creates from around 7,000 to 10,000 words of content.
Then after finalizing the recording and tidying the
transcript, pass the product by the interviewee before
publication to confirm their approval.
And let me stress again - your eBook must be high quality
and credible. The higher the quality the further it will
spread.
If it's free to give away, maybe aim for an eBook that could
sell for $20 comfortably - IF - it was being sold.
Use this as a rough guide to the kind of value you want to
aim for with your eBook. The more value you offer in a
subject your target market is interested in, the more people
will pay attention to it. It's as simple as that.
So finally - how do you make the eBook as viral as possible?
One important point already mentioned more than once is to
make the eBook very high quality.
The next important point also touched on is that it is very
good to give people strong incentives to pass the eBook on,
rather than simply hoping they do. To do this, give them
benefits for passing it on. Particularly - by making it
brandable so that the person passing it on can add their
affiliate links, or even their "home page" address to it.
For example:
"This eBook is brought to you by JoeBloggs.com"
If it's a free to sell eBook (which means: if you have a
copy of the eBook, you have the automatic right to sell it
yourself. In a sense these are resale rights that
automatically roll from one eBook owner to the next) - have
a ready-made and professional website and sales page linked
to from within the eBook, so that it's easy for people to
start selling it.
And if the offer, sales copy, website and product are all
high quality, the eBook should sell well for everyone who
resells it, which means it quickly spreads far and wide for
you.
If you give everyone who gets a copy of the eBook a way to
profit it will just keep on spreading for years to come.
This has been my experience. Search for my name in Google
to see this first hand.
And pay attention to the rights you give the eBook - loose
rights for an eBook will help it spread far and wide
quickly. Specify the rights within the first page or two of
the eBook so there's no confusion. And don't just say
"Master Rights". Explain the rights in an easy to
understand way.
And let me also say that the more eBooks you create, the
larger the "Viral Net" you'll have out there working for you
to bring you visitors every single day.
I've personally been creating viral eBooks for around three
years as I write this, and have over thirty eBooks out there
on thousands upon thousands of web sites. AND - on tens of
thousands (even hundreds of thousands) of personal computers
around the world. And all these eBooks are working
automatically every day to bring traffic back to my site.
Starting your own Viral eBook library can do the same for
you.
--------------------
Louis Allport is an online product developer and marketer.
He recently revealed a system that can help you create
best-selling products practically on demand:
http://www.createoffers.com
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