“Just for a day, given endless possibilities to act without limit and control and with no rule and boundaries I could be!

I could be a chemist; I see water that provide us life, yet its abundances and importance still in trivial stage.

I could be an educator; I see myself, years from now reenacted once again as a reward for my service, yet it’s from the lives of other.

I could be a writer; I see event with no reference to time, a marriage of time and collaborative thinking to write without rules and boundaries, yet find aspiration from my readers.

I could be a doctor; I see lives in abundance; yet find it as unique in any aspect at any form.

I could be a Scientist; I see the nakedness of the atom, yet it is invisible in its natural state.

I could be a Leader; I see my self-alone, yet when I look back, others are walking to the trail of my path.

I could be a potter; I see clay as an object in its dynamic form, yet its unique and static when subjected to fire.

I could be an artist; I see changes of character without hesitation, yet retain the identity of their owner.

I could be a painter; I see color in my hand, yet find inspiration from my subject

I could be an explorer; I see the straightness of the horizon from the level ground and darkness of the deep sea, yet reaching the peek of the mountain reveal the curvature and at the deepest sea a life with light in unbelievable panorama.

I could be a coach; lifting the life of others, yet find inspiration from other world.

I could be a master key maker; opening the doors of opportunities for my self and others yet find simplicity through accessibility.

I could be a navigator; venturing to unfamiliar and yet to be discovered places and territories that other man will be willing to give the remainder of their lives just to conquest their search, yet the searched are with endless possibilities.

I could be a farmer; I see sand as a grain of rice and I could turn desert to a planting field, yet my tools are hands and shovel.

I could be a physicist; I see greatness at full magnitude from the bending of Starlight, yet am able to appreciate the color of the rainbow.

I could be a sword man; I see the outcome of my action through the sharpness of the blade, yet my action is only a focused collaboration of potential thought.

I could be a racecar driver; I see my soul driven apart from my body as I accelerate; yet my whole being is well intact.

I could be a Diamond miner; I see the stone in their rough fess form, yet it has an estimable value.

I could be a Pilot; I see path of line in the sky, I break speed and barrier; yet I have to plummet on ground to fly once again.

I could be a Tactician; I see result of the battle on hand in the core of my collaborative mind, yet everything is virtually and in the state perception and assumption.

I could be a child; I see and seek the warmth embrace of a mother’s arm, yet I will be ages up by time and seek no more, my childhood existence will be forgotten but the memories will still remain until I die.

I could be myself; I see life as dynamic changes with no direct pattern and reference to follows, yet were living as miraculous machines with embedded life instruction manual.

I could be an architect; I see the limitless design through my hand, yet its lay down with steel, concrete, glass, wood, marble and stone.

I could be a Bad Boy; I see and seek trouble through my roughness and arrogance; yet the warrior is just a boy, an oversize kid waiting to be accepted.

I could be a Monk; I see holiness through isolation and discipline in its outmost extend, yet my body is mortal to embrace the crown of life.

I could be a black smith; I see sharpness through reflection of the tough fess sword, yet find contentment through the result of the battle.

I could be a soldier; I see battle as an act of two methods of attack, the direct and indirect approached to win; yet its combination makes an endless maneuver.

Every one can reach their highest potential yet it resides in its normal stage in a kinetic form. The approach of thinking is somewhat define within the box. And outside the realm of possibility is not in the normal stage of recognition. Nor it has reached the view from business perspective and remains a Pandora’s box that no one had tried to open. Through my searched for the business phantom, it seems its identities might be in number that will exceed more than one.

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Tags: ethical, implications, moral, internet, information

“It used to be the stolen kisses in the cleaning closet and the joint business trips, but today’s tracking of illicit employee behavior has reached a new level of surveillance. Almost every communication and every message is tracked, recorded and cataloged by a company’s IT department. Here are three things to watch out for if you are personalizing your work communications:

Email – In the US, organizations own the email that their employees use to conduct work. They own all the communication, even email flagged as private. Routinely companies are being required to capture and store all electronic emails in the case of litigation and discovery.

This means that if you are using the company’s email system to send notes and messages to your lover while at work, there is an extremely high likelihood that it is being captured, stored, and indexed for later retrieval. There is third-party software on the market that is able to actively monitor internal email within a corporation.

Two examples are Mimesweeper for Microsoft Exchange from Clearswift and Reveal for Novell GroupWise from GWAVA. And don’t think you are being sneaky by deleting those emails right after you send them. Today, most email systems allow the employee to delete the email from their local storage, but retain a copy on the corporate email server that is later backed up.

A rule of thumb with email…life is short, email is forever.

Instant Messaging – Relatively new in the corporate space, IM has been around a long time amongst teens, now referred to as Chat. Instant messaging allows instantaneous communication between two computers. One person writes something which appears instantly on the other person’s computer. The other recipient is able to instantly respond back in real-time.

Instant Messaging used to be considered a fairly safe means of communicating something in secret, but today many companies track the ports through the company’s firewall that allows chat. This monitoring oftentimes includes capturing of all chat messages for storage as part of the electronic communication of the organization.

Chat also allows the sending of live video feed as well as documents. Chat messages oftentimes pass through a third-party server and can be captured and stored; also, most Chat software today has automatic archiving built in. Even if you believe it is being deleted on your side, the other side might be capturing everything.

Dateline’s To Catch a Predator is an excellent example of people who thought they were chatting in private only to have their secret messages read aloud on national television. A company delivering Instant Messaging Monitoring is Pearl Software with their IM Echo product.

Texting – With the advent of mobile devices, texting has gained popularity in the US, especially within companies deploying BlackBerry devices. Texting is the ability to send a text message between devices similar to the manner that Instant Messaging sends messages between computers.

Referred to as SMS, or Texting, these devices can send short or long messages straight to the recipient without using an email client or email server. More and more companies are now using software Retain for BlackBerry Enterprise Server from GWAVA to track the communication of their employees using texting devices.

One company deployed BlackBerry SMS and PIN tracking software with a sampling of their corporate log files. Within the first hour a Senior Executive was identified as having an affair with another employee simply from the content of the text messages.

In the good old days you could avoid getting caught at work having an affair by being discreet and not showing any outward signs, but today, a short email, an errant instant message, or a quick indiscreet text can get you tracked, caught, and exposed almost as fast as you sent the message in the first place. A word of advice, don’t leave an e-trail. Stick to love notes passed under the desk. Your career may just thank you.

Richard Bliss is VP of Marketing with with worldwide BlackBerry text monitoring software provider GWAVA. Visit them online for the latest in GroupWise email monitoring software and see why GWAVA is the #1 software provider to the Novell GroupWise community of users

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Tags: internet, ethical, ethics, business, information

Today’s MLM or Direct Marketing carries the weight of many ill conceived notions and negative connotations. Much of this bad press in the MLM industry comes from within the industry itself.

How can that be? We all remember our parents telling us that our Actions speak louder than words and that is the main way that we have created this negative view from the general population in regard to direct marketing.

Perception

Perception is everything in our industry. How we portray ourselves and our industry is the key to everyone else’s perception of not only our products, but also the MLM industry.

When you promise the sun and moon and deliver an asteroid it tells a lot about who you are as an individual and it also delivers a message about the industry you are involved with.

Market your product line with honesty and integrity. Its easy to fall into the trap of misleading your site visitors into believing that what you offer is more than what it is.

This happens when you misrepresent what your product is and what it offers.

Certainly play up the qualities of your products, but do not exaggerate or be misleading about what you offer.

In addition when you are sharing information about your business opportunity, its important to be real. Provide accurate information about the history of the company as well as the residual structure set up by the company.

When you provide information in a clear and accurate way, your prospects and customers will be able to draw their own conclusions and make their decision based on facts not hype.

Deliver what you promise

Direct Marketing has huge potential to provide an affordable way for people from all walks of life to realize their dreams. It also has the one of the highest failure rates estimated at 95%! How can this be when we are supposed to be in control of our own future and success?

Many who sign up in an MLM quickly become disillusioned when the support and tools provided to them fail. This is also because of the lack of true leadership within our industry.

Our industry is filled with the empty promises of our sponsors and uplines. Its up to us to educate ourselves on what works and doesn’t work and then to pass that information and training along to our downline.

We promised to help them and we can’t do that when we don’t answer our phones or use double speak when answering their questions. Its important to make ourselves available to our downline and provide them with accurate information and usable tools.

Realizing that deviating from the standard tools is not a practice that is smiled upon in our industry, how can we continue to promote these tools knowing that they don’t work. I know I got pretty tired of hearing, don’t reinvent the wheel, but if the wheel is broken, someone needs to fix it.

Back to Basics

Somehow we have gotten away from the products in our business and started focusing only on the opportunity, and our dropout rate continues to climb.

You can combat this by teaching your team to build a strong foundation. Pay attention to keeping your training focused on the products. Allow your team members to develop their own individuality when it comes to marketing, remember they got into this because they didn’t want a JOB or a BOSS.

The ability to break down the different aspects of what we do in their simplest form and relay that information to our team will help us to help them start building their dream and ensure that we continue on the path to achieving our own dreams.

Its up to us to keep focused and consistently provide what we promise. Our ability to do this will do volumes in rebuilding the reputation of our fast growing industry. It will also do wonders in our own retention rates and start a trend of lowering the percentage of folks that quit out of frustration.

With a background in Human Resources and Retail, Cherrie Fishlowitz uses a common sense approach to internet marketing and training that comes from her personal experiences both online and offline.

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Tags: ethical, implications, moral, internet, information

Very simple: Be a source of integrity. Don’t be phony, people will know and not come to visit your site again. Even worse, they will post a bad review somewhere on the web and others will not even come to see for themselves. If you don’t know about something, don’t pretend that you do. Respect your customers, or prospective customers, and offer them something of value. Give good information that will draw your customers’ attention and this will help to build trust. It also gives them a reason to stay or come back again for more. Follow-up with your customers, but don’t be a pest. Basically, don’t spam, don’t steal, and don’t lie.

Just as in an offline business, there are ethics and standards that should be followed. If you are starting an online business, you’ve probably spent some time online already and can see that there are hundreds of thousands of businesses trying to sell their products and information and services to you. Study how they do it. Spend some time visiting the websites of your competitors, much like you would when preparing a business plan for an offline business. Look for and evaluate the following characteristics to determine the integrity of the business as a whole:

What are they selling? When you first come to their index page, can you quickly and easily figure out what they are selling? Is it a real product, an information product, a membership or a service? Do they offer something of real value right off the bat for free such as informative content or a related ebook? If you cannot determine within the first 30 seconds what they are selling or why they are in business, chances are that they are just a hodgepodge of links put together to make the owner affiliate revenue. However, if you do see something of value, stay a bit longer and evaluate further.

Can you contact them directly? Look on the main page. Contact information could be in the top nav bar, on the side nav bar or at the bottom of the page. Also, look for a direct link such as Contact Us. Click this link and see where it takes you. Do they provide a physical address, a contact name or email, and a phone number? These three things are a must for a legitimate business. If an owner is not confident in his business enough to put an address and contact phone number on his site, he must be hiding something. The final test is to send an email to the company and see who responds and how long it takes to get a response. Most one-person web businesses should be able to answer your email within 1-2 business days.

Is the content valuable and correct? One of my biggest pet peeves is spelling and grammar. If the owner has done his research and knows what he is talking about, this should show in the quality of the information on his site. A professional image depends on attention to details. Presentation is everything. If you are going to put out information, it has to be presented in an organized fashion with no mistakes. When I see more than one misspelled word or grammar mistake on a website or page, I move on. If the owner has not proofread his own material or verified the information on his site is correct and presented professionally, I won’t be trusting that his products are much higher in quality.

Is there a free trial or guarantee on the products and services being offered? Those businesses that have developed a quality product or service and are confident in it will not hesitate to put a guarantee on it. They will stand behind it 100%. Even better are those companies that let you try the product or service for free. This way you can test it out to see if it is indeed what you need and meets the quality standards of a legitimate business.

How do they advertise? Look at the other links on the website. Visit some of them to see the quality of partners associated with the first business. Do the links take you somewhere valuable and helpful? Is the business partnered with other legitimate businesses? Also, how did you find out about the website in the first place and what in their ad drew you in? Did the ad lie to you? Make sure that when you advertise that you don’t misrepresent what you are offering. In addition, don’t be a spammer. Make sure to develop a double opt-in email list that you can use to send valuable follow up information to your customers. This will help to build loyalty as well as word of mouth referrals. Visit forums and pay-per-click sites to see the companies who are advertising the same products and services that you are to find out what promotion methods they are using. Use them as a starting point and try to set your standards of quality and honesty a step above when developing your ads.

The bottom line is, there is good karma and bad. Even though we all know those people in life whose bad karma hasn’t caught up with them yet, don’t join the crowd. Be a leader, be a source of integrity, and provide a quality product or service that you can stand behind. In the long run, this will help you build a profitable, long-standing business rather than a fly-by-night get rich quick scheme.

Ruth Harris is a real entrepreneur who has helped many others promote their business online. Visit his blog here to learn more about setting up your online business.

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Although, from a consumer’s point of view, the internet marketplace is much like a super-mall – a place where you can get just about anything if you browse or search long enough – the businesses behind these store fronts have their own stories to tell. While they enjoy satisfying each customer’s needs and making sales, these businesses also share the usual customer issues and have a few challenges unique to online business.

One of the hallmarks of online marketing is the novelty that any customer anywhere can make a purchase at any time of day. But the average customer doesn’t always understand, and may not always be patient or understanding, regarding the safeguards and concessions businesses must make to balance quick-and-easy checkout with fraud-prevention. Some of these issues include: different billing and shipping addresses, wrongly entered data, security code errors, address verification mismatches – and biggest of all, remote card entry with no signature verification.

And, for real accountability, the merchant would ideally require the signature of the card holder upon receipt of merchandise, a difficult standard to achieve. Not only do UPS and FedEx charge extra now for a required signature, but there is also no guarantee that the specified recipient will be the actual signatory. And, in case you haven’t heard, claims made by businesses against some carriers, for damage, loss, or non-delivery, are more difficult than ever to get, not to mention time consuming. Unfortunately, many customers could care less about the logistics – “Where’s my damned order; are you guys a real business or what?!”

All About the Bottom Line

In the end, each business is constantly juggling and weighing all of the different facets of internet sales to strike a profitable balance. Profitable? Indeed, with costs of goods and transportation increasing dramatically, customers are likely to consider purchasing online even more favorably … yet they, too, will have to weigh the increasing prices that internet businesses will have to charge to stay in business as wholesale costs shift and adjust.

But what about this ‘bottom line’ mentality that seems to be the endless mantra of the wealthy and successful businessmen and women? Clearly, a business does have to be realistic about maintaining profitability; yet, the business dynamics behind that can be as different as night and day. To be profitable doesn’t mean that one has to run a business as if the CEO were Attila the Hun himself, though we do seem to have a few who might fit that category these days….

Other Ways

Naturally, there are probably as many opinions about this situation and its merits and de-merits as there are people who would write or talk about it. Nevertheless, one interesting word that sums up the true responsibility of every organizer in society – from businessmen and politicians to the ever-important workforce – and includes multiple factors at once, is sustainability.

Sustainable (business) practices involve a whole different set of logistics aimed at maintaining sustainability on every level of individual, social and ecological life, while yet running a profitable business. And, if you think it is a big challenge to become a multi-millionaire or billionaire CEO, or to carry some other prominent title, try running a truly sustainable operation. Of course, you aren’t likely to get the same 6 or 7-figure income or stock options, but are we humans still so shallow and naïve that we still think that as long as we have as much money as possible, the rest of the world can sink or swim as it will?

What pathetic and immature thinking that would be; yet, it would seem that some of these people would be just as happy to move to another continent if the US economy were to fail, as would a parasite whose host no longer satisfies its hunger. Indeed, people need to stop pretending to be the authoritative experts about money, business and everything else, and start thinking about the earth we live on, the ecosystem we live within, and the well-being of future generations of mankind and all life on the planet.

And the irony of the situation, which has also faced the greatest of past civilizations, is that all of this is based upon one essential thing: individual choice; what each individual, and particularly the most influential individuals, chooses for himself and others. Perhaps underrated here is the contribution of: family values, educational perspectives, social programming, religious training, personal experience, and ambition, upon a person’s vision of possibilities and means of realizing whatever goals he or she sets out to accomplish.

So, we can individually and collectively claim that the world is ‘going to hell in a hand basket’ and behave that way; or we can choose to open our mental horizons, suspend the intellect trained to doubt anything not ‘approved’ by our personal and social authorities, and instead work together to create a brighter and more hopeful and healthy future for mankind. And, since the future will be lived by our own descendants, indeed we should not be in a hurry to abdicate such critical choices and then whine about it all.

Brian Haring has been with Absolute Comfort on Sale for over five years, and has successfully brought natural and organic bedding products into the store to complement the extensive line of memory foam products which have been the company’s hallmark. Our store is here and a summary of green products is available at Absolute Comfort on Sale: Go Green. Our fabulous Organic Wool Topper is also available here Organic Wool Mattress Topper.

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Tags: ethics, individual, business, personal, internet

Along with the growth of business opportunities, unethical practices to fleece the customer have also crept in. Fighting single handedly against the might of corporate leaders or the government for getting grievances addressed is often a cumbersome and losing prospect. However, some forums and Internet portals have come up where people who are cheated can register their complaints free of cost.

Here an aggravated individual can post his complaint about a company that failed to provide proper service or fleeced you in any manner. You can even make a complaint against your employer, or any private individual, if required.

Internet has become one of the most powerful mediums these days. The website help spread your message throughout the country by means of social networking and the media, subjecting the company or individual to shame on a national level.

Companies would usually rush to you to redress your pain as your negative message posted in the internet deters others to do business with them and this can be very damaging to the future business prospects of the company. You can get justice in a swift and free of cost manner. After getting your grievances redressed to your satisfaction, you can remove your post from the site.

The advent of such websites is a boon to the customer or any individual nursing a grievance. Just post your grievances, the results are bound to come. These sites also work as a deterrent to unethical business practices, and a warning to businesses who fail to provide adequate after sales services too.

If you want to have more information then feel free to visit Complaints and CYTT

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Tags: internet, complain, ethics, ethical, business

The other day someone emailed me to inquire about helping them build a website for a new business venture. I responded to the inquiry a day late because I didn’t notice it in my inbox right away. The automated subject header (“Internet marketing inquiry”) was missing and in its place was the phrase “not human.” Normally I would have deleted the message without reading any further as I get a lot of spam. But something made me stop and read further.

Turns out this person could not get past a troublesome captchca code on my website’s contact form. Yet she still took the time to email me directly and let me know that she was not able to successfully “verify her humanity.”

As someone who offers usability consulting, I felt a bit silly, and embarrassed to say the least. But I was also incredibly thankful. This person could have clicked away to another consulting site in seconds. Instead, she took the time to not only explain the very poor usability of my contact page but then asked about possibly utilizing my services.

To me this anecdote could apply to numerous scenarios in business. Too often we feel hurt or even maimed by the words of others in a cyber world where words are all we really have. But this is totally unnecessary, and often causes us to miss important opportunities for both new clients and the better operation of our business.

When someone takes the time to be honest with you, it usually means they care. And they care about at least one of the following:

1. about helping you be more successful

2. about looking smarter than you

3. about getting something they need from you

4. about expending energy for no good reason at all

Number 4 is not common but it does happen (hey, we all need a hobby). Number 1 is quite common and generally brings good karma in a networking situation. (Just don’t ask for anything in return. Be nice. Say “You’re welcome.” And go home.)

Number 2 is darned annoying, but you must let it go as soon as it happens. There’s work to be done, and it’s the kind of child’s play that will wear you down fast. In the meantime though, be on the lookout for Number 3. For when honesty happens in this context, a rare business opportunity has just come a knocking. Ask yourself:

1. Is this person representative of my target market?

2. Does he or she have connections to my target market?

3. Is he or she is a potential ally?

More often than not, those who take the time to give honest-and unsolicited-advice or feedback are people who can benefit you or your business in some way. And when you think about it like that, you’ve just been given pure market intelligence. For free.

Lap it up. Forget about your feelings for a moment. And trip over yourself to address whatever business problem or issue this person has just helped you to uncover. This, of course, is after thanking them profusely for their thoughtful input.

Just remember to close the deal! You’ve got the hottest kind of prospect on your hands. Attentive. Thoughtful. Honest. And, looking for a fair trade.

That’s what I call a golden opportunity.

Snap! Virtual Associates provides internet marketing services for the progressive entrepreneur as well as search engine optimization (SEO), website copywriting and editing, website audits and more. Subscribe for the Outsmart newsletter and get a free Marketing & Usability Checklist. Visit the website

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Tags: business, ethics, ethical, internet, online

The internet presents an enormous diversity of people. There are so many different people from different backgrounds, countries, religions, etc. it’s astounding. All in one place called the World Wide Web.

With those differences comes something else that we will never escape. Since the fall of Adam in Eden, man has struggled with the forces of good and evil. And with that comes the difficulty to define the line that separates the two.

Where do we draw the line when it comes to ethical uses of technology, programming and marketing… Where do we draw the line when making a decision if manipulating something or using a resource to bend the rules is wrong.

To pin point it directly: People are selfish creatures. Many of us think of our selves before anyone else… some of us take into consideration others… some of us don’t at all.

You want money and will do anything to get it.

Pursuing online opportunities can sometimes seem like a solitaire journey with not many people being effected by your efforts. I think that is very much opposite of the truth. The truth is the World Wide Web is spun tight and one flick of a thread can shake the whole web and cause effects… like a ripple in a pond.

Let’s expand this thought of the internet as a web. A place where everybody is an example for each other. We learn from each other – the amount of inspiration across the internet is enormous. You are responsible for your actions and ways of doing things, and if your website is at all exposed I bet your ideas and ways of doing things will be duplicated – for good or bad.

All in all the internet is a culture building phenomenon – a society beyond societies, countries, ethnic groups, time and place. The cultures of the individuals give impression to the internet cultures and the cultures that build up in the internet give impression to the cultures we are living.

Many people just think of themselves. And that I guess is understandable. The internet draws people that are looking to make a fortune, to make a quick buck, to do whatever it takes to bring in the dough. These people have vision I’m sure, but it is directed in a very narrow path with blinders and does not take into consideration the ripple it is causing…

I’m a believer that one needs to have this sort of vision to a degree. That’s how we reach our goals. To have a burning desire and to focus all our energy to attain it… BUT we cannot lose site of the entire web…

When you run into something that seems like it might be a little spammy or just doesn’t sound ethical or right, you should ask yourself some questions:

1) Can I live with myself… or don’t I care because I just want the money? What about my integrity?

2) How does this effect my neighbors online? (everyone is your neighbor; one click away).

3) Is this something that promotes the good of the internet and will create an environment that promotes a better web? Does this have a negative impact?

4) Do I understand what the internet is and where my place in it is? You may not… figure it out. It is a web. It is a place to hold & find information, to buy products and services, to communicate – to imitate and build up culture. Will I disrupt that purpose?

5) Will this short term gain be worth the long term price? Am I building for today or for my future? Will doing what I’m doing now actually destroy opportunities to make money elsewhere down the road?

You see… let’s take search engines for instance. You have to admit they play a vital role online… What if we do something that makes that piece of the puzzle problematic? Do you not think that will have an impact…

I always try and think of myself as the surfer (and that’s not to hard, because I am one… what would I want?)
Let us be part of the solution… Let’s not work against the system and instead help it… Let’s make decisions that are good for the public & business online…

…Won’t it provide you MORE opportunity?

Ethics will be ignored because the internet is populated by humans. And there will always be humans that will want to do things the hard way, manipulate and cheat the system…

At the same time, maybe if enough of us cared… We could make the internet a better place for us all and in the long run create better technology and more opportunity!

Imagine what the Search Engines could do if they took all the energy they use fighting unethical webmasters to create a better engine and experience for us!

I want to make money too. But I also have sight. I see the potential if we all work together for the common good.

Will I walk that fine line myself. To my very best knowledge… And I will ask myself those questions…I am not alone in the internet. I am responsible to myself, to my fellow surfers and siteowners and to God in Heaven.

Please give it a thought….

Lars Krogholt is an online entrepreneur from Denmark. Visit her here.

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Tags: ethics, internet, morality, global, good

Most of the frauds people are aware of in e-currencies is that whereby the scammer, pays for an item from a reversible e-currency such as paypal, stormpay e.t.c with a legitimate account, obtains the item and initiates a chargeback on receipt of the goods, thereby stealing the item and recouping his cash.

However e-gold at the moment is irreversible (and I congratulate the CEO of e-gold for trying to clean up the system). Currently one of the highest areas of fraud is in currency exchanges.
One of the ways fraudsters attempt to defraud ignorant individuals is by insisting on a currency exchange with the same bank.

Let me give an example, you might receive a typical message that goes something like this:

“”I need e-gold, and I am willing to pay from my Wells Fargo account…”"

The scammer will also insist that his/her potential victim also has a Wells Fargo account/or same bank/

The reason why is since e-gold is irreversible, i.e you cannot initiate a chargeback, all the scammer has to do is retrieve the funds, because of the reversibility associated with e-currencies such as paypal, stormpay e.t.c it is not so lucrative to scammers, as any unauthorized withdrawals from these accounts would be flagged and reversed.

Due to this there is a very large underground movement, where scammers trade in , stormpay and paypal accounts e.t.c, many from phishing emails, or which they obtain for a trifle due to the difficulty in cashing out these accounts; then look for unsuspecting individuals who are willing to exchange e-gold for a bank wire with the same bank, it should be clear now that anybody requesting an e-gold currency exchange with a bank wire to the same bank, has stolen bank details and is trying to defraud you of your money, as the fraud will be traced to the victim who received the bank wire, while the scammer cashes out with e-gold.

Mr Dan Stevens is one of the admins on this site

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Something happened to me this week that really took me by surprise but made me stop and think. An online networking acquaintance of mine “borrowed” an article I had written and posted it on her blog as her own. Needless to say, I was shocked to see my article on her site with no credit given to me, and I felt violated, not unlike how I felt when my home was robbed many years ago. To top it off, her business is directly competitive with mine, so I felt a double “slap in the face”. I’m certain that I was not meant to see that blog, but alas, the online community is really not as vast as it appears to be!

I feel compelled to write about this because I have a feeling my situation is all too common. Articles are a dime-a-dozen on the net, and what’s stopping anyone from taking something they did not write and posting it on their site or blog as their own? Nothing! Nothing but integrity.

Those of us who own our own businesses work hard to promote them and the competition is fierce. Writing does not come easily to everyone, and those of us to do write do so with effort and time invested. So please, if you see something that you love and you want to use it, please, please ask for permission. Very often, writers are willing to allow their work to be used if proper credit is given. Just ask. Or better yet, write your own article and allow others to read and re-print (with permission, of course!).

About the author:

Ellen Gaver lives on the Central Coast of California with her husband and their teenage son. Ellen is the founder of Slo County Moms, an organization dedicated to promoting health and wellness through education, and to mentoring men and women who desire to work from home. Committed to family balance and a healthy lifestyle, Ellen is passionate and helping others create the life they’ve imagined. You can check her site.

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Tags: ethics, internet, marketing, privacy, copyright

Sales training and marketing tips based on reality selling becomes almost obselete when you enter the world of online marketing and selling. The average marketing person stands amazed at the millions of advertisments, listings, promises of success and money.

This is something every online marketeer will experience. Be careful of the undercurrents of being drawn in to such excitement, if you do not keep your wits about you. I am not going to scare you away. but I do want you to listen. This can prevent you losing a lot of money because the REST of the package seems geniune.

After spending lots of time and money, seeing some results but not having the time or patience that is needed to drive a proper marketing project for business or product, one tends to turn to the one that says: I am a millionnaire and I will show you the shortcuts to get there.

Very easy writing, very clever words, lots of things that make sense. Nothing wrong with that.
I am even able to identify that it is similar to doing magic.

You visualize, you use tools, you get manifestation into reality. Watching the results are really exciting, when you see that this different strategy makes your hard work visible to the millions using search engines.

Tempted further, you make use of the massmailing program underwritten by such an advertising guru. They too seem very geniune. Speaking of legal opt in e-mails etc.

And you make the mistake to sit back and relax. And Believe. Nothing wrong with that either, except never to let your guard down. You are afterall a “protege” of this big, sucessful man with his empire.

Let your alarmbells go off when the phone rings. You had to submit your telephone information when you made the purchase for the book, or when you subscribed to the program.

Listen, LISTEN when that call comes. At first your heart races, when you are told that this is the time to act NOW. Not tomorrow, not waiting for the hardcopy document. Careful, clever questions are asked about your budget, how much money you would have available on your cards, whether they via/mastercard. You are smoothly being told that you will be assisted by a professional to drive your business to ultimate sucess. Brilliant initial sales pitch.

The executive will be insistant. Grab your creditcard and give out the information over the phone! Along with the little 3 digit key at the back. Yes, now over the phone! And to agree to give away thousands of the big US dollar because unless you act NOW, this chance will be gone forever!

DO NOT do that. Ever. This is when your alarmbells should be ringing so loud, that you make an excuse. You play for time. You get a reprieve for delay from the executive of this marketing giant.

This is the time surf the Web and use the right keywords. They are : Scam + the Company name.

Dear marketeer, so eager and so keen, be prepared for the shock when you see tens, even hundreds of listings of people who have been caught. Because nine out of ten times, THAT phone call IS a scam.

You can report it, you can mail the relevant company and ask for an explanation. Chances are that you will get an automated reply telling you that they will come back in 24 hours. Which they do not.

Suddenly all the companies that are so heavily promoted by the guru, this saviour of online advertising and marketing, send out urgent emails that they not in any way associated with this company. They agree that you should NEVER give out this information on the phone!

Your emails from the mother company will remain unanswered. The phone number will be different.

You came away from a huge scam. Scared out of your wits perhaps, but intact. Never, NEVER work with a company that calls and just asks for your credit details over the phone. Do not think that just because the owner shows off his new car, and pictures with his boat and throws around huge names, that they are 100% geniune.

For if you do, you are easy prey to scam.

The emails to you will stop after your queries, no more advertising emails sent to you. And no, even if you insist, you will not even get a remote explanation of why they need to do this.

I have been a sales and marketing manager for many years. I am not blind to opportunity and chances to grow. I am not adverse to new strategy. I give motivational talks to business people and it works. The reason for this warning is clear. If they can ALMOST get me, would they succeed in taking your money?

Listen to your instinct. ASK for more detail, whether by fax or email. Request references.

Search the internet and check if maybe, just maybe this is a scam.

Just a word of warning.

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It’s a great tool to be in touch and to widen your business. However be wary of the fine line between spamming and being persistent when sending mails.

Spamming is frowned upon in most countries. If it is found by your e-mail account provider that you are guilty of this sacrilege, your account could be suspended and your outgoing e-mails could be blocked out by the the recipient’s mail server, making your efforts futile.

Tip
No matter how rude someone may be to you, or how offended may be by another’s opinion, don’t lower yourself to their level by stooping to obsceneties, threats or claims of self-importance. Always state your opinion clearly and concisely, without personalising an issue or resorting to name-calling.

A good definition of spamming would be-the use of any electronic communication medium to send unsolicited messages in bulk. But the term ‘spam’ means any commercially-oriented, unsolicited bulk mailing that is excessive in nature, and more importantly, undesired.

To the popular perception, the most common form of spam is the one delivered in e-mail as a form of commercial advertising. Nevertheless, things comparable to spamming for non-commercial purposes in media other than e-mail have also been recorded.

The spammers have developed have developed a variety of spamming techniques over the years. This can happen in each of the medias: e-mail spam, IM spam, Usenet newsgroup scam, Web search engine spam, weblogs spam, and mobile phone messaging spam.

It is imperative that you desist from all the above forms, and understand what could be termed as spamming before you decide to send out a mass mailer announcing to the world about your business-or even your landing on the WWW.

There is no entry barrier as far as spamming is concerned, but the volume of unsolicited e-mail produce other costs which are actually borne by the public in terms of lost productivity and fraud. And it is a burden for Internet service providers, which must add extra capacity to cope with the deluge.

Spamming is generally dealt with strictly by the internet authorities, and has been the subject of legislation in a number of jurisdictions, including the United States’ CAN-SPAM Act of 2003.

Fact
The term Spamming derives its name from the Monty Python Spam sketch about SPAM brand processed meat, is economically viable because advertisers have effectively no operating costs beyond the management of their mailing list.

Somnath Mitra

Somnath Mitra is a blogger writing about the various aspects of netprenureship on his two blogs mentioned in the write-up. Visit here.

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Tags: internet, reseach, ethics, online, business

Occupational Fraud: The use of one’s occupation for personal enrichment through the deliberate misuse or misapplication of the employing organization’s resources or assets.
-The key to occupational fraud is that the activity:

a. Is clandestine

b. Violates the employee’s fiduciary duties to the organization

c. Is committed for the purpose of direct or indirect financial benefit to the employee

1. Employee Embezzlement

-Most common type of occupational fraud (more than 80% of frauds)

-Employees deceive their employer by taking company assets.

-Cash most targeted asset, taken 90% of the time

Occupational Fraud can be either direct or indirect

-Direct Fraud: employee steals company cash, inventory, tools, supplies, or other assets, or establishes dummy companies and have employers pay for goods that are not actually delivered Does not use a 3rd party, the money goes straight to perpetrator’s pockets.

-Indirect Fraud: employees take bribes or kickbacks from vendors, customers, or others outside the company to allow for lower sales prices, higher purchase prices, nondelivery of goods, or the delivery of inferior goods. Usually payment to employees is made by organizations that deal with the perpetrator’s employer, not the employer itself.

2. Management Fraud

-Usually fraud by top management’s deceptive manipulation of financial statements

3. Investment Fraud

-Closely related to management fraud

-Fraudulent and usually worthless investments are sold to unsuspecting investors.

-Charles Ponzi is father of investment scams

-In 2000, more than $5 billion lost from telemarketing fraud

-Recent mutual fund frauds were investment scams using market timing and late trading

-Illegal market timing is an investment technique that involves short term in-and-out trading of mutual fund shares. This technique has caused losses to long term mutual fund investors of approximately $5 billion per year.

-Late trading allowed selected investors to purchase mutual funds after 4 pm using that days Net Asset Value (NAV) rather than the next day’s NAV that is required under law. Investors would capitalize on positive earnings news and then were allowed to immediately reap the benefit of the stocks upward movement the following day.

4. Vendor Fraud – 2 types

a. Fraud perpetrated by vendors acting alone

b. Fraud perpetrated through collusion between buyers and vendors

Usually results in either overcharge for purchased goods,
shipment of inferior goods, or nonshipment of goods even though
payment is made

5. Customer Fraud

-Customers either do not pay full price for goods purchased, they get something for nothing, or they deceive organizations into giving them something they should not have.

6. Miscellaneous Fraud

-Fraud that doesn’t fit into first five types and may have been committed for reasons other than financial gain

Executive Fraud

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In 2004, IDC estimated that each day there are more than 30 billion E-Mail messages crossing the Internet. The Radicati Group estimated that in 2004 there were nearly 900 million active mailboxes on the Internet with approximately half of these being used for business purposes.

Bearing in mind that these statistics were taken 2 years ago, it is certain that the numbers are much higher today. Clearly, E-Mail communication has become extremely pervasive in Internet business environments as a result of the ease with which information can quickly and easily be delivered to one or many people anywhere in the world. 74 percent of business people surveyed recently believed that losing E-Mail service presents more of a hardship than losing telephone service.

Unfortunately, the standard method of E-Mail communication over the Internet uses the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). This protocol was designed to transmit 7-bit ASCII character data between two IP hosts using the simplest and most efficient method possible. Security was an afterthought and security systems are almost never implemented by default in an SMTP-based mail system. Threats against an E-Mail system and its users have emerged just as quickly as the growth of the number of mailboxes. That brings us to a well-known E-Mail topic called “Phishing”.

Phishing schemes have emerged as one of the biggest threats to users personally. Phishing comes from the idea that you toss out a line and see who will grab it. The messages usually look reasonably legitimate and may actually appear to come from an organization from which you do business.

Often, phishing schemes can be exposed because you will receive a message from a bank or organization with which you do not do business with, or there could be typographical errors in the message. Depending on circumstances, one could believe that such a message is legitimate. However, since we know that no bank or payment processor will ask you for personal account data via an E-Mail, that is the final clue that the message is a fraud.

One good way to tell is that several good E-Mail programs will allow you to view the HTML code in the E-Mail. If it does not point to the intended URL, simply don’t use it. Another way is that some E-Mail programs reveal the URL by just placing your mouse cursor over the link. When you do this in Outlook, the true link will appear in a yellow balloon. One look at the URL will tell you if it is legitimate.

In any event, the general rule of thumb is this. If you receive an E-Mail from ANY bank or payment processor asking you to log in and validate your account information, you must assume it is a fraud…period! If your situation leads you to believe that there may be some legitimacy to the message, do not log in using the URL provided in the E-Mail. Go directly to the bank or payment processors website using your bookmark or their known URL. Practicing this rule may save you from falling victim to a phishing scheme.

The I-Scam Report is a regular installment that appears in the Dakota E-Times ezine. The information contained is designed to assist online marketers in avoiding scams before they fall victim. If you feel you have been scammed, or would like us to investigate a particular situation, or would just like to read more, please visit the Dakota E-Times here.

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Tags:ethical, implications, moral, internet, information

Your reputation is an important part of your business success. Companies and individuals want the public to notice and remember them for the positive aspects of their operations.

In an offline businesses setting you have a little bit of control over the opinion that is being expressed about you. A simple strategy such as leaving comment cards for your customers will help you to gauge what their impression of your products and services are. It is also easier to monitor customer satisfaction in a face to face meeting, where you can simply ask them if they were pleased with your product or service.

When you conduct business online, it becomes a little harder to monitor what customers are saying about your business. Given the shear vastness of the internet it becomes an overwhelming task to monitor customer response.

The internet also offers a veil of protection to many people, some people would never say in public the types of comments they express on their blog or web page. The internet can also be a place where individual members of your company may be scrutinized. It is hard to know if an individual with whom a customer has come into contact with will be subject to backlash on the web.

This too can paint your company in an unflattering light. With the increase in social media sites and the large number of people who can now easily create a website in mere minutes, comments or poor reviews could be located in any number of formats.

How then do you protect your business from these types of online activities? With reputation management and by working with a company who has a firm grip on how to protect you from the people on the net who want to paint your business in a negative light.

Careful monitoring through specialized systems will help to alert you of when these instances occur. It is also important to create positive information about your company through the same mediums that your customers frequent.

This is best achieved through a strategic, optimized plan to use social media, blogs, forums and community sites to publish company information that enhances your reputation. Being proactive is a very important part of this complex puzzle; by doing this alone your chances of being negatively impacted are far less.

Can your business benefit from social networking and social media marketing? To find out, visit us here.

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Tags: public, relation, internet, business

The quickest way to internet riches is through some kind of lead generation system. What I mean by that is, you need to create a way to capture qualified leads, maintain them as a captive audience and sell them exactly what they want.

Whether you’re marketing a print book, an ebook, or any information product, becoming a guest on radio talk shows can mean lots of sales. Getting booked as an expert in your field becomes simple once you’ve been published. After all, you’re an author, you must know what you’re talking about. And doing several phone interviews a day becomes an easy way to make sales.

You might be wondering where to start. As with anything, you first need to determine what you want to accomplish. For the sake of this article we’ll assume that you’re looking to make sales. But if it’s blatantly apparent to the host and listeners that selling your book is all you’re after, you’ll have a short career as a radio guest. You’ve got to provide great value for both your host and the listeners.

This is actually pretty easy. First, prepare a list of questions for your host. This list should actually be a part of your media kit. Once you’ve got the questions, practice your replies so you can answer each question in short concise sound bytes. Avoid answers like, “in the book I talk about…” and, on page so and so of my book…” This will always come across as self-serving – which will be the kiss of death for you as a guest.

Keep this in mind: It’s up to you to make the host look like a genius in the eyes of his/her listeners for having you on. You do this by offering lots of great information. Many guests make the mistake of holding back with their knowledge. You can’t afford to be stingy. The more information you can deliver in a clear, crisp, intelligent manner, the more the listeners will respect you and want to buy your book.

Another aspect of being a great guest who is invited to return is to be familiar with the show and the host. When you’re familiar with your host and the type of show s/he produces, you will be that much more prepared for anything s/he might throw your way.

You might not feel this is easily accomplished, as many of your bookings will be phone interviews and a great distances from your home. However, in many cases it will be possible for you to listen to your host before your appearance as a guest. More and more radio stations are now broadcasting both over the airwaves and online, so it shouldn’t be difficult to study your host’s show. For a comprehensive list of online stations and the ability to listen to them on your computer, do a search on radio station directories.

Assuming you’re not yet a media professional, you’ll want to become a student of talk shows, both radio and TV. Notice how the great guests behave. You might also want to record several shows where the guest does a good job and refer back to them as you prepare. You’ll notice that good guests talk in a conversational tone as though they are discussing the topic with a friend.

To sum it up, remember:

* Your goal is to sell your book
* You do this by first making your host look good
* Offer short, crisp and concise bits of information
* Offer lots of information
* Relax and speak in a conversational tone as though you were talking to a friend.

Here’s to your success in broadcasting!

With nearly 15 years as a healthcare professional and another 10 years as a successful real estate entrepreneur, Charles took to the pen. He’s written four books, several ebooks and numerous articles for publication. He’s now enjoying life in Southwest Florida and working as a freelance writer. Click here for more information

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Tags: radio, online, music, internet, stations

If you’re about to launch a new business venture, here are some tips for getting it some attention.

Press Release

A press release is one of the most effective ways to tell the world about your new business. A well written and compelling press release can attract inquiries from TV media, TV shows, magazines, newspapers, bloggers and other journalists. A press release can also attract buyers, build links to your website and gain potential partners and networking opportunities.

A press release should announce the launch of your business and promote your website. A good press release will include details like information about your company and how it began, information about the owners, a mission statement, as well as the all important contact details. Contact details should include the website URL, business address, a contact email address and a particular person to contact along with their contact details, including a phone number, email and/or fax number.

When it comes to distributing the press release, there are many options. For businesses with a big budget, consider announcing on the largest newswires like Marketwire, BusinessWire or PR Newswire. These are expensive options however, ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars depending on the options you choose. A step lower is the online press release distribution services like PRWeb and eReleases. These services give you a good range of release options at more affordable prices. Lastly, there are free press release services like PRLog and PRFree. These services are excellent for businesses starting with a very low budget, but be aware that third party advertising and banner ads may be included with your release on these services.

Social Media

If you are already on MySpace, FaceBook, Twitter or any of the other social network sites, consider announcing your new business on those sites, to your friends and followers. You can also create special profiles on each service specifically for your business. In addition, you can leverage the many niche networks. For example, a new business selling clothing made from recycled materials would do well to create profiles on niche social networking sites like Care2 and Gaia. Both of these networks cater to an audience that would be more interested in recycling and caring for the earth than your average Myspace or Facebook user. For other businesses, creating a profile on business networking sites like Ryze and LinkedIn would also be beneficial.

Advertising Campaign

There are many ways to advertise to your prospective customers or business partners. Pay per click search engines offer a quick way to reach search engine users that are typing in keyword phrases related to your product or service. Examples of these include Google AdWords, MSN AdCenter and Yahoo Search Marketing.

In addition to pay per click marketing, you can advertise to precisely where your potential customers gather. Consider running banner and/or text link ad campaigns at websites, forums, portals and blogs that your audience tends to visit.

Marketing With Content

Writing helpful tips, articles and guides and then posting this content to your website or blog, then submitting this content to social news networks like Digg, Mixx, Reddit and Propeller is also an excellent way to get attention for your new business.

Lydia Quinn writes for Best ITV Team, a business opportunity which makes use of infomercial marketing. Visit us at this site

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Tags: online, interactive, pr, internet, marketing

Many publicity do-it-yourselfers believe that a great press release is the key to getting media coverage. They make the mistake of sending their press release to a handful of non-specific emails or fax machines and think that magically their story will appear on the front page of the morning paper.

Nothing could be further from the truth!

No matter how compelling your press releases; no matter how well you come across on air thanks to good media training; no matter how thorough your media list, your PR efforts will not be effective in the long run if you do not have good media relationships!

What’s the benefit of building relationships with journalists, producers, bookers and on-air talent? Well, there are many. As you develop a reputation for promoting compelling, fresh, thought-provoking, controversial or entertaining news ideas, reporters and producers will look forward to receiving your press releases and willingly take your pitch calls. If your track record is good, they’ll even add you to their rolodex.

You want the media to see you as a partner who understands news and knows how to help them fill their news cycle. By doing this, you not only gain media access, you also gain their respect.
This is not something that happens overnight but it can be done in a fairly reasonable amount of time by doing a few simple things:

:: Only send press releases on stories that are truly newsworthy. Ask yourself: “how does my event, press conference or story idea impact the broader community?” What problem does my announcement help solve for all? What overall need does my announcement fulfill?

:: Think in pictures and video. How visually appealing is your story? If a camera crew came out to cover it, would they be able to get great photos and footage?

:: When appropriate, offer a reporter exclusivity on major stories, breaking news, special interviews or other opportunities. He or she will appreciate that they are the only ones covering the story, especially if it’s a really big one.

:: Even when you’re not pitching stories or distributing press releases, send reporters who do exceptional work personal notes to sincerely compliment them. Remember, media professionals (though they may seem intimidating at times) are human and naturally, they are more likely to recall the nice note you sent about the story they worked so hard on if you go to them later to pitch a story.

Likewise, if you see something you take exception to, write a letter to the editor and use it as an opportunity to offer a different perspective. Often times these letters wind up on the editorial pages of newspapers-thus another publicity opportunity!

:: Always Remember:
If you do get publicity for your event or cause, always follow up with a written thank you. Your card or letter might also recommend other topics, guests or story ideas to that reporter. I always made a mental note of those who sent notes of thanks after I featured them on my show. This showed me that they really appreciated the experience and I always looked for opportunities to invite them back.

These are just a few suggestions on building rapport with the media. Begin applying these strategies immediately and in no time, you’ll see significant results in all your PR efforts.

Monique Caradine is a Chicago-based broadcast media professional and President of Momentum Media Group, Inc. A former radio host and currently the host of “Perspective,” a community affairs TV program, her specialties include program development, media training and publicity consulting. Monique also writes a blog and hosts a podcast on how to get publicity. Her e-book entitled “Successful Media Relations Strategies” is a must have for beginner publicity seekers. Download two free chapters of the book instantly when you sign up at this site

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Tags: media, publicity, social, internet, marketing

Whether you are an entrepreneur or an employee, you can now create higher levels of credibility to impress your peers, potential customers, associates or employers.

You can do this by creating a powerful online digital presence.

Your digital presence can be anything from websites, EzineArticles, blogs, ebooks, special reports, online courses, social websites to an online newsletter. You will eventually want to be thinking of most to all of the above. But one step at a time!

You As An Expert Or Authority Figure

“But what makes me an expert, and on what?”

That’s a question many people ask themselves. And it’s a good question.

For the purpose of your online presence, there are two levels of expertise:

Acknowledged Expert – This claim may be substantiated by any one or a combination of; one or more formal (legitimate) degrees, occupation, authorship, peer or community recognition, activities, such as an officer of a non-profit group, teaching, etc. In other words, it’s usually through some form of third-party recognition.

Authority Figure – Your participation in any niche can contribute to your authority figure status. From gardening to nuclear proliferation to marketing. And you don’t even need a degree.

You can be on your way to authority figure status by the end of the day.

Any writer of a particular subject is an authority figure. Napoleon Hill was not wealthy when he wrote, “Think And Grow Rich,” he was a reporter. So, he was an authority but not an expert . . . then.

Today, from ezines, to websites, you can be recognized as an authority figure by your interest, hobbies, occupation or education. Even if you serve as an information portal that presents experts, you can be seen as an authority on that subject by being the presenter of the information.

So, an expert is titled by accomplishment and an authority figure is by acclaim.

For example, If you knew nothing about Internet videos and interviewed several acknowledged experts on the topic, then put it together as a product, you would be seen as an authority figure.

Creating digital products or a digital presence, once you learn the steps, can be highly rewarding. As I mentioned earlier, this is true for both entrepreneurs and employees.

Here are some quick ideas:

For Entrepreneurs – Start a business related blog an make frequent entries. Concentrate on a single niche for each blog. Write articles and submit them to Ezine Articles Comment on other’s blogs. Attend live events such as luncheons and seminars. Write special reports and post them on your blog or create a PDF file and offer them for free on your website. Attend live events such as luncheons and seminars, have business cards with your email and web/blog address.

TIP: When you give away anything do it in exchange for their name and email address.

For Employees – Start an occupation related blog. This would focus on your type of work and the positive elements including tips, reference sources and even interviews with experts. You can also do all the same things that an entrepreneur does. If you do a website, it can be less formal with your blog listing, articles, etc., on the front page, along with your bio. But your blog can easily substitute for a website, in fact, it’s easier and more efficient, especially at the beginning.

It doesn’t matter if your a data entry clerk or in high level management, the principles will be the same.

Your potential audience will be your peers and those in related fields and even your current and potential future employers.

The difference for employees is that you have to be more cautious. for example, you may not want to mention your current employer by name. Keep it positive or at least instructuctional when, even without naming names. This is about positioning yourself professionaly, not about a gripe fest.

Each blog post, special report, newsletter, comment or public presence of any kind will help to boost your authority status and maybe even move you up to expert one day.

WARNING: All Internet postings, whether on social networking sites or wherever, will be subject to scrutiny for anyone wanting to check you out. Even teen-agers applying for summer jobs are being Googled by potential employers to see what kinds of things they are saying on MySpace and other social sites. Imagine what happens when some of these young people go out into the full-time job market. This is true for all of us. From a blog comment to a letter to your local newspaper editor, it’s all most likely to come up in a search. So, make your digital presence positive.

THE MONEY – While this all about your professional or business standing, you can monetize much of this. You can create your own digital products or services and market them online. For example, I have several courses, ebooks, etc., that have dedicated websites and/or blogs. They can be downloaded and paid for while I sleep. Others I do live. The ones done live become digitized products too.

You can also offer other people’s products. These are called affiliate relationships. While you can do this through individual producers like myself, then earn a commission on every referral you send, often 50% or higher, there are two sites where you can get hundreds to thousands of affiliate relationships. www.CJ.com and ClickBank.com They oversee and administrate the products and pay you directly for any commissions earned.

You can place affiliate links on your blog or websites, within your newsletter (see above) and in other appropriate locations.

If you look to the columns on each side of this post, you will see banners. Most of these are affiliate related products that I’m proud to share from proven publishers. For each sale, I’m paid a commission. You can do the same exact thing too. Just make sure you know the product or the provider well enough to feel comfortable in your recommendation.

Obviously the intricacies of how to do many of these things will be more difficult if you have little or no experience online. Many of the basics of set up and applications are listed on the blog sites and ezine publication pages.

The free blog sites most used are WordPress and Blogger.

WordPress has become most popular among marketers. I use that and Typepad, a paid site.

TIP: Blog addressees can be quite long. You can get a URL that is easy to say and remember from GoDaddy for about $10.00. You can then redirect to your site or blog by using that feature within Godaddy.

You can do one small item daily to boost the power of your presence online. Why not start today?

You can create an international web presence by following some simple guidelines.

Whether you want to sell products or promote your business, everyone with a website should understand these simple principles. Find out more here: http://tinyurl.com/5aacgv

Tom Justin is an Internet and marketing strategist, coach and consultant. His clients range from Fortune 100 to entrepreneurial coaching clients from around the world.

He is also the author of numerous articles and two books, including “How To Take NO For An Answer And Still Succeed,” (now in digital form), and a long time professional speaker. For Tom’s free special reports and newsletter, please visit this Website.

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Tags: internet, pr, marketing, agency, online

Press releases offer a great deal of marketing power, both online and offline. Through them you can get free website traffic in just hours, because they are so widely distributed. But even with their popularity, you need to make sure you’re doing things properly. This article will explain how.

First, you need to learn how to write a press release. If you’re not familiar with the typical press release format, you can get samples off of the Internet or through a book. Or, alternatively, you can hire a press release writer to do it for you. However, be aware that if you don’t have much money, you may want to use Getafreelancer.com, Elance.com or even Craigslist.com to outsource your work. When doing this, make sure you clearly state the prices you’re willing to pay. This will help save you time from having to sift through responses where writers are demanding more.

After your press release is complete, you may want to use PRWebDirect.com to ensure your article will drive more website traffic to your site. Why are so effective in this area? Well, they will look at your press release and determine which highly-searched keywords would best fit in its content. From there, they will distribute your press release to over 100,000 media outlets. You’re bound to get free website traffic just from this process alone, though do know that it will cost you money. PRWebDirect.com’s prices range from $129 to $460.

If you don’t have this type of money to spend, you can opt to use a cheaper press release distribution service. PRWeb.com is one of the best. You’ll have to pay $80, but you will still get top-notch distribution. You will even get some SEO assistance, since PRWeb.com offers a variety of SEO tools in their member account area. Of course, this means slightly more work for you, but it could save you hundreds of dollars.

In conclusion, any webmaster who is serious about Internet marketing needs to use press releases for increasing their Website traffic. Not only are they quick, easy and fun to write, but they allow for a type of visibility that even the best SEO-optimized sites can’t offer. Why? Well, if things are done correctly, press releases can lead to free airtime on a television or radio news program. SEO-optimized websites can’t do that, because they aren’t being exposed to the right people editors, journalists and producers.

The 12 part E-course walks you through step by step on how to get the traffic coming to your site. This is traffic that you just put your time into, you don’t have to spend any money for it. Find out more here

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Tags: internet, pr, marketing, agency, online

A press release is a great method for informing the public about your business, whether you are just opening, expanding, or have other important news. An effective press release will catch the attention of readers and spread the word about your business. As with any other type of business writing, there are certain things you should do and certain things you should avoid when writing your press release to make the best impression and effectively convey your message.

The following tips will help your press releases-and your business-stand out.

1. Start with Your Contact Information

Because your press release serves to publicize your company, you should include your logo and contact information prominently at the top of your press release. Make it obvious what business is being announced and give readers a reason to look further.

2. Include a Compelling Title

Your press release should also have a compelling title that clearly states its purpose and catches the reader’s attention. If you want your press release to get noticed you have to give readers a reason to look and a great title can do just that.

3. Provide the Most Important Information in the Introduction

As with any type of business writing your press release needs to be concise as well as interesting. Make sure the first paragraph grabs the reader’s attention and gives them a reason to stay interested. You should include as much information as possible in the first paragraph without overwhelming the reader by using technical language or lengthy sentences.

4. Keep it Short

You should also try to keep the rest of the press release short and to the point by including one idea per paragraph and expanding enough to get your point across without rambling. Readers are more likely to read a press release in its entirety if it is short, even if a lengthy one contains more information.

5. Emphasize Information, Not Promotion

A press release needs to be factual and informative-and while you should try to portray your business in the best light possible-a press release should always be accurate and not include any misleading information. Even though one of the purposes of a press release is to promote your business, it should not read like an ad. Rather it should provide unbiased information in a more news-oriented manner so readers get information to draw their own conclusions.

6. Make Your Business Stand Out

You should not try to promote one specific product in your press release; rather announce your business news in general. A good way to get readers interested in your products or business is to include information on how your business strives to provide a quality product to customers and include positive information, such as community involvement.

Making Media Headlines

A press release is a great way to get the word out about your new business or business expansion. If you are starting a new business a press release can be one of the most effective advertising methods available, if you write one that is effective and that reaches a wide audience.

Remember to be clear about the reason for your press release and to stay concise. Use simple language that is easy to understand and keep your press release factual and informative. When you use these tips for crafting compelling press releases, your business will attract the media attention it deserves!

Melinda Copp is a writing coach, book editor, and ghostwriter who specializes in helping aspiring authors achieve their writing goals. She is also the creator of the FINALLY Write Your Book E-Course. Click here to sign up for Melinda’s free e-zine, and get a free special report!

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Tags: consumer, public, relations, internet, marketing

The best PR (Public Relations) events are the ones which yield warm leads. PR includes a wide range of things, from communications to a champagne toast. Some public relations are directed at reaping warm prospects and can take on big importance in a marketing-for-leads program. Publications outreach is the most widely-used lead generating public relations method, and the goal is to receive a mention of your business, services, or staff members in spots published in a magazine – or have something written by one of your managers published.

This type of press placement can have an important influence on the amount and type of leads generated. However true that this coverage is inexpensive compared to paid ads, still editorial coverage takes committed time and effort in order to develop rapport with influential press people in your field. A complete press campaign is preferable to divided and disparate efforts to attain publication. A public relations campaign is best when utilizing the following:

- release with email and other advisory activity

- kit with background, biographies, photos of products, press release and reprinted article content

- relationships with editorial staff

- features ghost-written for or by management staff

- media coverage of management staff as expert industry insiders

- success testimonials from customers

Research and compile publications and read them. Remember the readership when making this list – is this your audience? If the answer is ‘no,’ the magazine may not be the right one to concentrate on. Think about the info that the magazine is publishing; does it hone in on industry product news? If so, your one sheet to introduce the new Chief Executive Officer may not really be appropriate.

Converse with editorial staff after reading the magazine and visiting the website. Next, decide who is the right person to speak with. Phone the editor to inquire about their guidelines and what they prefer to publish. Look for an editorial calendar which shows the articles and stories which are running each month – this is often located in the ad section at the back page or at the company website. Once checking out the calender, it’s time to determine just what story you will offer, and which months to enter expert-written articles for publication.

With persistence you can develop a rapport and begin to speak with editorial staff on the telephone or face-to-face. By mentioning relevant development to the publication’s editors, you may be supplying just the sort of info that staff remembers upon receiving an assignment. Do you have an idea to pitch? Call your editor. Tell them how your story is relevant to the editorial calendar, and offer to supply an outline and synopsis immediately upon request, remembering that editorial deadlines are most often separate from the ad deadlines. Often, it is preferable to have your article written by a pro ghost writer. These writers are familiar with working with magazine and are able to sculpt the article so that it doesn’t appear overtly promotional. By hiring a third-party writer who takes responsibility to complete the article on time, the time of your tech or management staff is freed, allowing them to work within their specialties.

Press Release

Be certain that your press releases actually announce news. An editor seeks info that the readership would like to know, often about products and services which solve business problems in an innovative or efficient new way. Address the topic from the reader’s viewpoint when announcing your news-worthy info.

A good release answers some key questions:

- what’s the unsolved problem?

- what does it accomplish?

- what’s the benefit?

- is the solution a product or a service, and how does it work?

- how is it able to do this?

- what will cause the readership to take interest in your service?

- what’s the cost?

- what are the top features?

- what capabilities are provided?

- when is the product available?

- what are the most important features?

Avoid praising oneself or one’s company. Remove over-used words such as ‘revolutionary,’ ‘the best,’ and ‘unique.’ Editorial staff people prefer customer testimonials rather than self-praise from an employee. Don’t use lingo that a layperson would not understand. Is it accessible to the readership? Keep in mind that even the editorial staff don’t really have a deep understanding of your products and services. Write in a clear and simple style. Remember to put contact info at the top or bottom of your submission, including company name, the titles of relevant employees, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses. Include photos if the magazine prints them, and inquire about the file format preferred. Digital photos are preferred by most – use literal descriptions in the file names so editorial staff can easily identify and find them. It is best to send your release to a list of individual editors; however some mass distribution press services are found on the ‘net. These services distribute your releases to editors for you, for a fee. You may consider prnewswire.com, prweb.com, and send2press.com, among others.

Public relations can also be used for better SEO (Search Engine Optimization) campaigns. Wire services are excellent ways to attain better SEO results. Once sent, the release will be findable by search engine news wire services such as Googlenews, news syndicates and traditional publications, all of which will have the ability to visit your website via a link. The link network is key for Search Engine Optimization as the number of links directing to your website improves your rank and puts your company nearer to the top of the list in search results for certain words. By sending your release in to wire services you may help writers locate info about you and your services. A recent Middleburg/Ross survey indicated that almost all journalists access the web on a daily basis – almost three quarters of them search for press releases. For a free news wire about your field, visit: google.com/alerts and subscribe for free. For more about marketing for lead generation, see: ‘Business-to-Business Lead Generation Tactics : A Recipe for Success.’

M. H. “Mac” McIntosh is described by many as one of America’s leading business-to-business marketing and sales consultants and an expert on sales leads. He is president of Mac McIntosh Inc., a sales and marketing consulting firm that helps companies get more high-quality sales leads and turn them into sales. More tips at Mac’s Sales Lead Insights: B2B Marketing Blog.

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What is press release writing?

Publicity is key to your marketing strategy. You have to induce the customers to have faith in you and convince them that you can do better than others. Press release writing can achieve this.

Press releases are news reporting. It can be done either through online publication or traditional media. It is good for promotion as well as advertising. A good news format is powerful. It can boost your profits and sales. Press release will keep your company in limelight while increasing your sales and profit.

Points you must pay attention to for quality press release writing

If you follow a few simple rules you should be able to write good press releases in a short time. These are as follows:

You should be clear what is the purpose of your press release, merely to convey news, to update the readers or to boost your business.

You should know who is the targeted party. It is important when and where you release it.

The opening line of the press release has to attractive and powerful

The language of press release should be simple and easy to understand. Do not use too many adjectives.

Be concise and grammatically correct.

Put helpful and newsworthy information in the press release.

Good press release writing should point out how your company and product / service is beneficial to the people.

Be truthful. Include factual information only, this way you will gain trust. If you have to make subjective statements such as describing the benefits be sober whilst praising a product or a service.

Give the press release a twist to attract attention while being accurate. It should be different and distinct from other press releases.

The order of contents is important. The news first and after that its source. Give all information to enable the targeted party to contact you. It should not be more than one or two pages.It better be black and white, or sober colors in clear and readable fonts.

Press releases need not be a put off

The language used in press release writing has to be simple, clear cut and precise and not to show of your knowledge of vocabulary and adjectives.

It is possible to generate interest of the reader even for an otherwise not so exciting subject. However in a press release you have to generate interest whilst still being sober and not going over the top. One way to achieve this is to aim to present the facts in an interesting way rather than as boring numbers or statements.

Another method is to generate curiosity by asking a question at the start of the release and then give the answer towards the end. However this needs to be done carefully and should not appear to insult the intelligence of the reader.

To learn more successful internet marketing strategies from Maury Wilks, visit this site.

For more information on creating a successful Internet Business, visit this site.

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Tags: marketing, strategies, global, online, internet

* Speaker opportunities – just like handling press and media interviews, many people don’t feel comfortable speaking in public unless they have done it many times. For some it may always seem daunting but it is worth getting coaching to overcome any anxieties. Speaker opportunities build your reputation and your credibility.

* Securing a stand at an exhibition – this can give you great direct exposure to your target market. It’s important to have a strategy in place when attending an exhibition so that you can maximise your appearance i.e. linking it up with news announcements, speaker opportunities, information giveaways and competitions.

* Hosting free seminars or taster sessions – this is a useful way for prospects to get a flavour of who you are, what you offer and how you might be able to help them.

* Sponsorship – supporting particular interest areas or local groups can help to support your communications activity. It demonstrates that you are committed to giving back to the community but also helps you to reach a specific group of people – people who will tell others about your involvement. That type of goodwill can be hugely beneficial.

There are, of course, many other tools you can use to get your messages across: promotional materials, website, newsletters, blogs, charity involvement etc. A solid PR campaign should consider which of these, and the many other tools available, are most appropriate and how they can be threaded together to achieve the desired outcome – whether that is creating perception, enhancing it or changing it.

Using PR to build your profile and protect your reputation can help you influence the audiences that are important to you – I invite you to access more free articles, tips and information on this, and other subjects related to public relations, by visiting this site

Debbie Leven – Profile Matters Ltd PR Consultants UK

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Tags: pr, online, internet, marketing, advertising