The Nine Warning Signs that You need a Sales Video

The Nine Warning Signs that You need a Sales Video

by: MarieClaire Ross

Corporate videos are an important sales tool that can often be overlooked in marketing budgets.

We look at the top nine telltale signs that indicate whether your company is in need of an innovative and effective way to promote itself.

1. No strong corporate ขlook and feelข

You’re in a highly competitive industry. Yet, what makes you really stand apart from your competitors is your people and the look and feel of your company.

So how do you show your stateoftheart factory in action or your professional staff working in your appealing office?

And what about your idyllic location? What’s the best way to show picturesque vision of rolling hills, clean and green countryside or waterside views?

The solution is to create a marketing video that paints an appealing picture of those indefinable qualities that make your company unique.

2. Unique Presentations

You need to do a sales presentation and your company is up against some tough competitors.

How do you present your company in a way that is different to your opponents?

A proven method is to play your corporate video within your PowerPoint presentation.

Playing your marketing video at the start of a sales presentation is a great way to relax your audience. Interesting vision and upbeat music can make your audience feel more positive, even before you’ve spoken a word.

It’s an ideal way to show the look and feel of your company in a convincing and enjoyable manner.

3. Trade Shows/Exhibitions

Your organisation is always exhibiting at trade shows and needs a way to stand out from the crowd.

Setting up a television screen and a DVD/VHS player in your stand with your continually repeating corporate video is an easy way to get people to stop and stare. Moving vision and music easily stops people in their tracks.

Parents quickly learn that it is easy to distract a child by leaving them in front of a television. Adults are usually no different. It is easy to grab the attention of participants who may feel uncomfortable (or bored) walking around a trade show.

Continually playing your corporate video is an easy way for passersby to learn about you without having to go to the effort of reading through brochures.

4. Increasing Export Sales

Travelling overseas to market your products or services to international buyers is risky business. Not just for your company, but also for your prospects.

Can they really trust you when you tell them how large and reputable you business is and that you have the right quality procedures in place? How can they get a real feel for your company that is located thousands of miles away?

Presenting your location, factory or office, production process and your dedicated staff at work is highly regarded by international buyers. It provides an extra a look and feel about your company that is often lacking from brochures and photos.

A concise marketing video that gives an interesting overview of your company is a proven method to increasing international sales.

5. Showing your Product or Service in Action

Sometimes you cannot actually demonstrate your product or service to a client because it is too large to lug around, it is located on the other side of the world or there is only one prototype that cannot be used.

New products or services that are suitable for use in a range of different scenarios are also difficult to demonstrate.

Using a marketing video that can exhibit how your product works and under what circumstances is a great way for prospects to understand what you are trying to sell.

This is a much better alternative than taking the prospect through lengthy operational manuals or worse still, having them rely on their imagination.

6. Extensive Product Range

Your product list is extensive. Not only do your clients not know all of the products that you sell, but even your staff have trouble remembering!

Studies have found that we are more likely to remember information if it is shown with pictures. The best way to inform people about your product range (and for them to remember) is to show scenarios in which the product can be used.

7. Your Production Process

Your product is made in a timehonoured tradition that takes hours of dedication. Or your product is made from the finest quality materials that are only obtainable from a scenic, rural location. Alternatively, your service was developed from years of research by experienced technicians.

Showing your product being made in a manner that is different to your competitors gives you a distinct competitive advantage.

This is one area that you do not want to leave to nice words and pretty pictures in a brochure. To do your company justice, showcasing your production process is an extremely important message to convey.

8. Believable Testimonials

There is nothing more potent than having your happy customers raving on about how wonderful you are to camera.

Written testimonials are often read suspiciously. We’re all guilty of reading through testimonials and laughing about their dubious authenticity.

Having a real client talking about you on camera is like having that person tell your prospects facetoface about how highly they think of you. Of course, the testimonial has to look real. Uncomfortable clients poorly reading from an autocue fools nobody!

When done correctly, this is an extremely effective way to promote your business and one that has been used since televisions first appeared in our lounge rooms.

9. Winning Awards

Many savvy businesses know that entering awards can be a great way to cost effectively promote their company.

Submitting your corporate video in an award submission is also a clever technique to distinguish your company from the pack.

An added bonus is that your video material may also be included during any awards ceremony stretching your promotional opportunities even further.

About The Author

MarieClaire Ross is from Digicast Television Production. Digicast Television Production has helped many businesses win big contracts and projects by increasing more awareness and knowledge of their products and services. To get the FREE Digicast Ezine with marketing tips and the latest information on technology to help busy business professionals visit (www.digicast.com.au) to subscribe.

(c) MarieClaire Ross 2003. All rights reserved

[email protected]

This article was posted on December 21, 2003

by MarieClaire Ross

The Most Profitable Internet Marketing Strategy Ev

The Most Profitable Internet Marketing Strategy Ever

by: Houa Yang

So whatกs the most profitable internet marketing strategy you can apply to your business right now and start profiting from it for years to come?

Itกs having your own responsive mailing list.

Hereกs how it works:

You CAN start today by collecting the names and email addresses of people whoกs interested in what you’re selling. And start selling it to them.

There is no doubt about it, owning a responsive mailing list is THE most profitable thing you can do online. Itกs more profitable than …

Writing eBooks or reports.

Getting thousands of visitors to your site.

Having the hottest sales copy on the Internet.

Having a ‘top 1%ก Alexa rating.

Being the smartest person on the planet.

Itกs even more profitable that having an army of affiliates!

Or ANY other ONE thing that you can do online.

Having your own responsive mailing list means that you can make offers week after week for YEARS, and your list will faithfully buy what you recommend. Now THATกS marketing power!

If that sounds good to you … keep reading.

The only way to reliably have a mailing list that is HIGHLY responsive is to build it yourself. The good news is that building a list of your own is actually VERY easy when you know how.

In fact, you probably have the seeds of a small list right now, even though you might not know it.

Let me be 100% clear. You do NOT need an advanced degree in marketing, need a big time กguruก reputation, have to spend thousands of dollars, or a huge mailing list.

All you need is to have something to say, and to learn HOW (and when) to say it in a way that gets subscribers to take action now!

To help you get started building your own profitable list hereกs a few marketing tips that you can apply today:

You can work together with other site owners. The idea here is that you get traffic that Iกll never see, and I get traffic youกll never see. So, we make an agreement that allows us each to benefit from the otherกs traffic.

The most common form of this is what is called a ‘thank you page private coregistrationก. Thatกs a fancy way of saying that Iกll show your subscription form on the thank you page of my website, and youกll show my subscription form on the thank you page of your site.

The thank you pages involved here can be found in a variety of places. Each one has the common denominator that they are viewed after a visitor takes action. This is good, because studies show that visitors who take one action are likely to take another action.

Here are some common thank you pages where you can place your subscription form:

After a sale is made.

After someone subscribes to an ezine.

After they download a free gift.

After they complete a survey.

The possibilities are endless, and this is one of the most underused marketing methods around.

So if you can find a site that compliments your site, these arrangements can be a powerful list building method.

About The Author

Houa Yang

YES YOU CAN build a powerful mailing list! Having your own mailing list is THE most profitable thing you can do online. Don’t put it off … begin building your list today. Itกs easy! Just visit: http://www.emailmarketingstrategy.com.

This article was posted on September 10

by Houa Yang

My Own Online Business After A Divorce and Almost

My Own Online Business After A Divorce and Almost Bankruptcy

by: Maria Estarellas

When I got divorced, I didn’t know how I was going to be able to cope with my financial responsibilities which included mortgage, car, my kidsกs private school plus all the other expenses related to having a family without a husbandกs salary.

I had recently lost my fulltime job, had managed to find a parttime job, and wasn’t receiving any child support because we had joined custody.

With all this happening at once, I was desperate to find some kind of work that I could do from home so I could pay the bills.

Thatกs when I decided to look on the Internet. I looked for information on how to start an online business, web design, how to find products to sell and everything related to having a home based business. But guess what, most of the free information available talked about getting a product, promoting it and making money but they actually didn’t say how and where to find products, where or how to promote your web site and I was so frustrated that for a moment I thought about forgetting the whole thing and look for a fulltime job somewhere else.

At this point I knew that I only had one last chance at it so I decided to spend one more day looking for stepbystep information on how to set up your own home business. Luckily, I came across a very impressive stepbystep manual that taught me how to start my business online.

If you plan to start your own online business, keep in mind that you have to invest a little money. But hey, the investment is a lot less than starting any other business.

My initial investment (after having spent previously around $250 in information that wasn’t worth a penny) was $296.90. This included the stepbystep manual, autoresponder, domain, web hosting and search engines.

The basic steps to start your own business are:

1. What to look for first?…A Niche Market

Some people think that they should look for a product first and then look for customers but in reality, itกs the other way around.

One of the tools that I use for this is http://www.content.overture.com/d/USm/ac/index.jhtml and look in the กSearch Term Suggestion Toolก.

All you have to do is type a keyword and it will give you a list of related keywords that people have looked for during the previous month.

You may be asking, how do I know what keywords to type? Well, I recommend you start by writing on a piece of paper the answer to these questions.

What are my hobbies?

What are my interests?

What talents do I have?

Don’t leave anything out. Why things you’re interested in? Because having a home based business is not only about making money but also about having fun in the process. If you’re passionate about what you do, you will suceed.

Once you have your keywords, then you go to Google and start writing each keyword in กsearchก. You will notice numbers underneath the กsearchก box.

Just to give you an example, if you type the word กhome based businessก you will see ‘results 110 of about 13,900,000ก. To see if you found a niche market, all you have to do is do the following calculation.

Supply/Demand = Supply/Demand Ratio

In other words:

Google Results/Overture Count = Supply/Demand Ratio

Letกs say that when you looked for กhome based businessก in Overture the count was 415461 so the result is:

13,900,000/415461 = 33.45681063

The lower the Supply/Demand Ratio number is, the better because it tells you that there is more demand than supply and you will make more money with this niche market.

2. Looking for a Product

Once you identify your niche market, itกs time to look for a product.

In my case, since I don’t want to get involved in shipping products, I look for companies that once I sell the product, they will ship it to the customer allowing me to save on shipping charges and time.

Nowadays, people are looking for information on various topics. Most of internet sales are on info products that the customer can download immediately, once they pay for it with a credit card. It doesn’t involve any shipping charge and the customer doesn’t have to wait 23 weeks to receive it.

There are suppliers that have over 10,000 digital products on every topic and the best thing is that they deliver the products, and pay you commission. They issue checks twice a month.

3. Building a Web Site

Once you have your niche market and products, you need to build a web site. Since I didn’t know any HTML and didn’t have money, I looked for companies that would allow you to build your own web site at a very low price and that included some type of HTML program so all I had to do was type the information and the system would convert it to HTML.

In terms of the design of your web site, make it as simple as possible. Make sure the navigation is easy for your customers and don’t use too many pictures. Less is more. The background should be white with black letters to make it easier to read.

Don’t have too many pages. Don’t give your customer an excuse to leave your web site because it is too long or have too many pages.

Have a กsubscribe formก built in your web site. Itกs very important that you collect as many email addresses as you can because those will be your customers. Provide a free newsletter every month with useful information to your customers.

4. Writing your Sales Letter

When I read about writing a sales letter, I wasn’t sure I could write anything. To tell you the truth, Iกm not a good writer. What I learned was that if your going to write something for your web site, write as if you were writing to a friend of yours.

Be honest, write the proกs and conกs of your products. That way you establish credibility and your customers will be more inclined to buy from you.

5. Choosing a Web Hosting Company

Look for a company that gives you enough bandwidth, email accounts, and support. Look for their reliability because you don’t want to choose one that have frequent problems with their system.

6. Autoresponder

You need to set up an autoresponder because if you’re going to send information to your costumers, you don’t want to spend time writing every month and sending it to them. With an autoresponder, you can type or even copy and paste articles in advance that will be automatically sent to your customers every week or every month.

This may take you 12 hours to do but once you do it, you can forget about it for a whole year.

7. Promote Your Web Site

Iกve found that the most difficult thing to do is this, promoting. Know why? Because there are lots of companies that supposedly กguaranteeก that you’re going to get lots of hits for a fee. Most are scams. I personally don’t spend a cent buying กguaranteed leadsก.

Another thing that doesn’t work for me is กfree adsก. Most of the time, people don’t read them and because they are free, these ads are not sent to anyone.

The only ads that have worked for me are the one in Google Adwords. These are based on a กpayperclickก basis. You have to make sure that if your are going to use this method of advertising, that you set up the parameters. What I mean by this is, establish the amount of money you will spend on a daily basis so you don’t spend more than you can afford to.

During my first month doing business on the Internet, I generated $532.16 working only 2 hours a week.

The feeling of checking my account every day and discovering that I had made money was so great that I decided to look for other ways to make a bigger income.

Iกll be honest with you, it hasn’t been easy and Iกm not going to tell you that I became a millionaire in 6 months because I would be lying, but every day I search for more information and ways to make money and it feels great to be able to pay my bills and still have money to do whatever I want.

Final Thought

Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t make it. Believe in yourself.

The advantages of having an online business is that the expenses a very low, you get to have the flexibility of working the hours you want and the days you want, allowing you more time with your family and friends.

One important thing is to keep up to date on everything related to having a home based business. The Internet is changing every day and if you’re serious about having an online business, make sure you read and educate yourself.

About The Author

Maria Estarellas is a former airline manager and mother of two teenage sons. Her website was created with the modern family in mind. She provides a variety of information and fun things to do for the whole family in just one place. Upon request, she also helps people find information when they don’t have time to do it themselves. http://www.meg2.citymaker.com

[email protected]

This article was posted on September 21, 2004

by Maria Estarellas

Virus Spreaders

Virus Spreaders

by: Ed Williams

Sometimes I wonder just what the world’s coming to…

For some among y’all out there who read this column each week, you might’ve noticed a little while back that it didn’t run for a week or so. As a result, I’ve had some people write and/or call and ask me just what was going on? Some thought I had decided to stop writing the column, some speculated that I had signed some kind of deal with ขa big city newspaperข which meant that I couldn’t write for my current ones anymore, and one person asked if I’d just ขhad enough?ข For the record, the answer to each of those questions is a definitive ขno.ข

I have a great time writing this column each week. It allows me to write about almost anything that pops into my mind, and I love having that kind of freedom. As a result, I seldom have a clue each week as to what I’m going to write about until I sit down in my chair and get to work. So, with that having been said, let me get right into the reason that ขFree Wheelin’ข went missing for a week or so. It vanished for a while due to the fact that some sweetheart out there in internet land sent me a virus.

That’s right, a computer virus. One of those malicious little programs that’s designed to wreak havoc on your computer. Viruses cost businesses and individuals tons of money each year, and for what? It makes no sense at all unless I give some thought as to just what type person sends out these viruses. It must be some super sloppy, maladjusted eighteen year old haint times three computer whiz whose closest contact with a woman comes through the serving line at his school’s cafeteria, or some supernerdy, pocket protector wearing geek who’s mad at world because he doesn’t yet possess a working personality. And, because these people would rather be antisocial than take a good, long look in the mirror we all have to pay for it. No one ever said that life would be fair, huh?

Fortunately, I’m pleased to report that I got out of my situation without too much damage. I did have to pay someone to reformat my hard drive, but I kept backup copies of most of my stuff so I really didn’t get hurt too badly. I also went out and bought some better antivirus software, which hopefully will screen most of these cyber pests in the future. In the end, though, almost anyone can get nailed with a computer virus, and I’ve been far luckier than most the people that fixed my computer told me that a lady brought in one a week earlier that had over two thousand viruses on it! It’s a wonder that the ขOnข switch on her computer even worked with all that mischief lurking around on her hard drive.

In the end, I guess there are just some people out there who are sort of like walking cases of jock itch, they contribute nothing to the world and try and tear down those of us that do. People like the woman who walked up to my son recently at his job as a cashier at a wellknown supermarket chain and presented him with over six hundred dollars worth of live lobsters and steaks. And what did she attempt to pay for all that food with? Food stamps. I kid you not, food stamps. Fortunately, the two food stamp cards she presented for payment had both expired, but, even with that happening, she proceeded to put down a dollar and some change in the hope that Will would be stupid enough to accept that for full payment. He politely told the lady that she was about six hundred some odd dollars short, to which she replied, ขWell, I’ll go someplace else and check my luck there.ข

So, for all you deadbeats, virus spreaders, bad check writers, child support nonpayers, and the like, if I had my way I’d put you all in jail cells with Perry Como music playing in the background twenty four hours a day, serve you Spam sandwiches for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and then assign guards to sit outside your cells who’ve just eaten large Mexican dinners. And that’s just for starters don‘t even ask me what y’alls daily recreational program would consist of. The way I see it, every dog has his day, and it’s more than time for some of you bottom feeders out there to stop having yours…

About The Author

Ed’s latest book, ขRough As A Cob,ข can be ordered by calling River City Publishing tollfree at: 8774087078. He’s also a popular after dinner speaker, and his column runs in a number of Southeastern publications. You can contact him via email at: [email protected], or through his web site address at: www.edwilliams.com.

This article was posted on March 21

by Ed Williams

Computer Traumas

Computer Traumas

by: Ieuan Dolby

It has happened! Computer games have started to control my life on and off the screen. No complicated games like Age of Empires, just the simple one of Tetris. You know the one, where different shaped and colored bricks fall out of the sky and you have to arrange them in nice lines at the bottom? Hopefully with the end result of all colors matching in straight lines so that they can be removed and point gained.

Crazy really, it first happened many years ago when I had this stupid bet that I could get more points than the next guy. What that really means is that, กI am going to be up all night playing this game and will be totally incapable of staying awake in the office tomorrow, unless of course I play the game in the office as wellก. That’s what computer games do to us. We become machines where food and sleep are secondary items to all else. Just keep on playing………….till you drop.

I managed to get through that episode with only a slight increase in my weight and a damaged back from not having moved anything else except my two fingers for a sustained period of time. The latest episode though has created havoc with my life in more ways than one and I am getting seriously worried about it.

I had been playing that game in the evening for around three hours and had then gone to bed early for a dreamless and normal sleep. All okay and expected you say? Well, the sleep was but when I drove to the office the next day things started to happen that rapidly woke me up to the danger that I was in. There I was in my blue car approaching the traffic lights when all of a sudden I swerved into the other lane thus ending up stopped neatly behind this other blue car. Behind me, confused and irritated drivers with green and red cars tooted their horns angrily wandering what this maniac was doing. But I? I was happy in that I had managed to get the colors arranged and all I needed was another blue car and then we could have a full line…………….oh, no, what is happening to me? I sat there for a while shivering as it dawned on me that I had entered the game itself, it had taken me over………I was a brick!

Yeah, and that was not all. I found myself one afternoon staring inanely at a house wall and following the line of bricks along trying to sort out in my mind which pattern was best and which was not. And at my desk I found that I had arranged all files and papers in a neat pattern according to color and size having totally disregarded any format associated with the importance of ingoing, outgoing, urgency, etc. Extremely worrying to say the least!

I have withdrawn from playing Tetris and other games of that sort hoping that I will stop having these off the screen episodes in real life. In the hope that I can return to a normal existence without having offthescreen battles. Do other people suffer from this or is it just me?

The other game that I played to have a break from Tetris was กPrairie Dogก. One of those annoying games where you have a choice of guns and dogs keep on appearing on the screen. Aim and fire being the next step. Bang, Bang, Bang, another dog bites the dust. Yes, I know, pathetic really, but great fun. Volume up full, there I would be furiously firing at any movement, reloading and starting again and the dogs would make a strangled sound as I hit them. But once again I one day realized that all was not well with me, as I used to sit on my balcony and take imaginary potshots at cars as they appeared on the road. Or in a busy street I would say กbang, bangก and pretend that I had cleared a path for myself through the crowds.

I played that other game Age of Empires many times to. Love that game as it takes s kill and thought as well as two fingers and rapid movement and I became extremely proficient at it as time went by. My computer often struggled to cope with the size of my army and the enemies that I faced. I would sit there for hours on end, maneuvering, shifting, attacking and withdrawing till the sun started to come up on the horizon. It would be then that I would force myself away and climb into bed only to resurface two hours later, make a large urn of coffee and reattack with a vengeance. Although this game never caused me to start charging at other cars on the highways or lobbing screwed up notes at others in the office it did cause me to take a good look at myself. What would happen if suddenly I started to do this sort of thing in real life? If I started to make deals with my neighbors to attack next door offices or ping elastic bands at the mail delivery boy? I’ve stopped playing games now and have become a serious and boring กbeen there, done that and cured myselfก type of person. I do have long and empty hours where I feel the urge to take up where I left off and I get extremely jealous when others talk about games or I see others playing them but I resist. I think it must be like smoking where one never loses the urge to light up and take a draw – just the one! No, No, I cannot! I now sit there and lecture others on the dangers of playing games and that they should stop before it is too late. And they? They just nod politely and then disappear to talk amongst themselves………….กmust be and explayerก, whisper, whisper, whisper.

About The Author

Ieuan Dolby, from Scotland is an Engineering Officer in the Merchant Navy. He has been travelling the world for 15yrs on an endless tour of cultural diversification. Currently based in Singapore he writes various articles for magazines and newspapers and is working on a marine glossary.

[email protected]

This article was posted on January 08, 2004

by Ieuan Dolby

The Best Of The Best In Postcards

The Best Of The Best In Postcards

by: Florie Lyn Masarate

There are some learning in life that people have to go through with in order to learn the lessons that come with it. This may sound dramatic but it really helps people in getting things right and knowing the best of the best.

This is also true in printing. People getting printing materials that tend to be informational or is into marketing certain products and services are clearly becoming an expert on what they consider the best not just in presentation but also in contents.

Take, for example, small printing materials like postcards. People receiving them have always been amazed at the development that these cards have undergone through the years. They started simply with the just some words and contact details, but now even graphic designs are being put into them. These cards are becoming marketing tools also, as they are handy and easy to give out to potential clients. Not only that, postcards is now sent through emails. Just look at what postcards have become. Other than these things what are the highlights that postcards must have?

Postcards are better off without an envelope. You know why? Because people being busy bodies always on the run, are likely not to have time to open these envelopes to look at what it contain. There are a lot of things that people have to do in a day, letters to read and reading your postcards will just add to the trash mails that people ignore most of the time. The tendency is for them to throw it away without even bothering to read what it says. So giving them postcards sans the envelope, you get assured that somehow, and even in a fraction of a second, they have seen and read what your postcards say. Having seen them first, before throwing them away is something that you cannot have done with an envelope. And the next time you send them that same card again, they will remember having received one before throwing it away again.

Promoting one thing at a time in your postcards and sending them time and time again helps, a lot. This is making them aware of what you are marketing, may it be a product or s service. Having them sent over again to potential customers is not necessarily wasting time and money. It is making them aware of what they are missing and what they should know about. Do not mind raising some tempers, at least they remembered you having sent them more than once. Repetition and persistence works, in time.

For comments and inquiries about the article visit http://www.ucreative.com

About The Author

Florie Lyn Masarate got the flair for reading and writing when she received a subscription of the school newsletter in kindergarten. She got her first article published on that same newsletter in the third grade.

[email protected]

This article was posted on August 03

by Florie Lyn Masarate

Working At Home While Caring For A Loved One

Working At Home While Caring For A Loved One

by: Debbie Reyes

I often sit and wonder กwhere did the day go?ก I know there are 24 hours in the day, 8 of which I spend sleeping. So that still leaves me 16 hours to get my daily activities done. Funny, how 16 hours sure does seem like 6.
But after going through a month of not knowing if I was coming or going and swearing I got cheated some hours from my day, because well, I didn’t know where they had gone. I decided to sit down and make a plan. This way I would be more organized. I have always been pretty detail oriented, until I was faced with having to take care of my husband who is ill. Something I was not prepared to do at age 37. But I guess this is how is was suppose to be, so instead of becoming depressed I decided, I would just accept my fate and make the best of it.
Although my husband is very dependent on me, I have found ways for him to depend more on himself. I have done this by making everything easier and more accessible for him. Making him feel like he could still do things for himself so that he wouldn’t feel helpless. And of course easier on me. Taking care of a sick loved one can be very demanding and can easily drain all your energy. But I have come up with my own plan of attack, so that we both can benefit from it.
So this is my plan that I came up with to make my life a little easier and so that I would still have time to pursue my Home Based Business.
Anyone caring for a loved one, can benefit from some of these ideas, so please use them to your advantage.
Make sure any and all doctor appointments are scheduled as early as possible, this way you have the rest of the day to do other things. I find that afternoon doctor appointments take up most of your day and leaves you feeling like you lost time somewhere.
My favorite thing to do so that I don’t feel pressed for time, is to cook meals ahead of time. I pick Sundays as my day to cook all my meals for the week. I buy my groceries on Saturday night, then Sunday morning I get up and start cooking, I cook about 8 different meals on this day. I let them all cool down, then I put a serving amount in a ziploc baggy and freeze it. This way during the week, when my family is hungry, they can get out a pack of the entree they choose and microwave it, and presto dinner is served. No mess, no hassle, and keeps you out of the kitchen.
Also another time saver I do for my husband is, I have five sets of clothes folded all together and set up for him in a special shelf in the bathroom. It has his underwear, pants, shirt and socks. All folded together. This way when he goes to shower, he has everything he needs there. No calling out to me, that he forgot something, or can’t find this or that. This keeps me from having to run around getting his clothes together. Works very well
On his side of the bed, I have put both night stands there, on one he has all his meds, creams and lotions. On the other night table I invested in a mini fridge, I keep bottled water and a few snacks. This in itself is a big help, because him being a diabetic he is always thirsty, so I was always having to go fill his glass with water. Now he reaches over and gets his own bottled water. (I love those people that invented the mini fridge.)
I also keep his cane, his crutches and his wheelchair close by the bed. We never know what kind of day it will be for him. Some days, he can get by with just the cane, other days he needs the crutches and some days its the wheelchair. But with them being close by, he has access to them on his own, and doesn’t have the need to wake me up as often.
Now with all these short cuts I have taken not only have I helped him to help himself, but I have cut my workload in half. This way I can now spend more time on my home based business. My home based business is now more important to me than ever, with him not working I know our future will depend on my success in my business. I have confidence that I will succeed, just as anyone else who starts their own home business will, as long as they are as determined as I am to succeed.
If you find yourself in the same situation as mine, having to care for a loved one while starting your own business then please follow all or some of my advice, it has worked for me and know it will work for you.
Also, if you are not caring for a loved one, but find yourself pressed for time, then I do recommend my tip of precooking your meals this alone will save you time in the kitchen. You will be grateful you did that when your family asks, กwhatกs for dinnerก.

About The Author

This article was written by Debbie Reyes, you can visit my website at http://www.extraincomeworkathomemom.com

[email protected]

This article was posted on June 03, 2004

by Debbie Reyes

Having a Domain Name And Web Site Gives Your Busin

Having a Domain Name And Web Site Gives Your Business The Key To The Door

by: M6.net

Just like all things in life, the ways to run a business are rapidly changing and evolving. The potential involved with having a domain name/web site is staggering to say the least. A web site gives the consumer a ‘shop front’ that is not only open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, but is also situated right on their desktop. Instead of being locked into only the immediate area, the whole world’s marketplace becomes your sphere of interaction.

Customers can access information on all your products, no more salesperson with limited knowledge trying to explain something they no little about. No more waiting in lines for help, all people have access immediately.

The domain name of the website gives great freedom to the business process. Having your own name is like having an address, then infinite emails can be added to the name so different departments within the company can be reached without having to wait at reception. For example, sales@ Mary’s Plants.com will put the shopper in direct contact with Mary’s sales section.

As a business, the domain name adds professional authenticity, as your address is not affiliated with other companies. In the area of communication, the email system opens up many avenues. Instead of having to put clients on hold because of limited personnel, innumerable emails can arrive at once, even when there’s no one in the office. Then you can pick and choose which one’s to reply to first (the most urgent), while people browsing can wait till later. First come, first serve becomes obsolete as necessary customers automatically reach the front of the line.

Getting a website and domain name is an easy, simple, costeffective process. You can register your name through web domain registrars like DomRegM6.Net for as low as $15.00 U.S. per year. That is definitely a very limited risk compared to opening a store, renting a location, and the thousands of dollars involved in overhead costs. How can this be true? A key to the door for anyone who wants to enter a megamall that is as big as the Earth. Let’s hope you’ve got something special to share and trade with the global community!

By Jesse S. Somer,

M6. Net.

http://www.m6.net

About The Author

Mr. Somer is a human analyzing the positive aspects of the information era, and sharing the facts with the technological novice. And currently he is writing for M6.net

[email protected]

This article was posted on December 10, 2003

by M6.net

4 Reasons Why Having Your Own Product is Essential

4 Reasons Why Having Your Own Product is Essential for Serious Marketers

by: Paul Kleinmeulman

I know what you’re thinking, กWhy is having your own product essential?ก Quite simple really, without your own product you will never market to your full potential. We all want to make as much money as possible. That is the nature of business and because of this I have listed below my favourite and most powerful reasons why you need your own product to promote as opposed to be an affiliate for somebody else’s product.

Please read and understand these reasons because they make a whole lot of sense.

1. Affiliate Program Without your own product it is impossible to have your own affiliate program. Big deal, what’s so fancy about having your own affiliate program? I’m glad you asked because it is a BIG DEAL. When you sell online you are only one person and your results depend completely on you but when you have your own affiliate program other people do the work for you. They make you sales and your sales are muliplied expontially without any additional effort on your behalf. The best part is they only get paid when they have made a sale. Having an affiliate program is more than a good idea, I would go so far as to say, it’s essential. The best and only affilate software that I would recommend is JVManager (http://www.PrivateRights.com/JVManager.html), so flexible and worth every penny.

2. Product Packaging I would like to see you package together a whole lot of products via an affiliate link. The word, impossible, comes to mind because normal affiliate programs just don’t work that way, you have very limited contol. But why would you want to do that anyway? Primarily because people love a bargain, and in addition to that your product/offer will have a lot more impact when it is combined with related items/bonuses. More about this later in another post.

3. Special Offers One of my personal favourites that is only possible with your own product (unless you have very good relationships with a product owner and you have some major clot as an affiliate), is the ability to offer people a lower/special price. If you own your own product, you control the price so you decide whether you want to reward your customers for their loyalty or just infuse your cash flow if it is a little low with a firesale.

4. Joint Venture Partnerships Only with your own product is it possible to wheel and deal with other product owners and put together a joint venture deal that will knock people’s socks off. Joint ventures or JV’s can allow you to reach a target market that will only be possible with other partners. I’ll spend more time on this in another post.

I could keep on going but these are my favourite benefits of having your own product and why I strongly suggest you do everything possible to get your own product.

You don’t have to spend a fortune or a lot of time creating your own product Private Label Resell Rights are the easiest and cheapest solution to this problem.

About The Author

Paul Kleinmeulman makes it dead easy to own niche information products instantly. To discover 10 reasons why private label resell rights are 10 times better than ordinary resell rights simply visit: http://www.PrivateRights.com

This article was posted on August 12

by Paul Kleinmeulman

Things That You May Want To Know Again About Your

Things That You May Want To Know Again About Your Site

by: Florie Lyn Masarate

Before starting to write anything for your site, you should have a definite concept on what you want to achieve with your site. Everybody has one, why not you is not a reason enough. In case you do not know, websites are quite expensive to build much less to maintain. Although it surely says a lot about your company and people can access them easily if they with computers part of the households and businesses nowadays. Having known what you want to achieve, it should be the solid structure that your site should reflect.

Do not use more than one designer or studio to design your site. You would think it wonderful having many creative minds pouring out their ideas for your site alone. But then, one factor of a website is its consistency. Having these different designers trying to put their own mark would make your site looking as if it is in shambles, with no single theme at all. Imagine the confusion it would give your readers. You may not want to be in their shoes in this case.

Site maintenance can be as expensive as its development, even more. It is always best to save some money for the rainy days, as they say. In this case rainy days would be maintenance that your site would require from time to time. This is the upgrading, expansion and editing of graphic designs or texts to keep up with the needs and the changing times. Money is a consideration even after you already have your site.

Take into account that what you have in your printed media should not always be the same as the ones on your site. If people have already read your print materials likes brochures and catalogs, chances are they would not want to read the same things when they connect to your site. As these same people are already tired of the numerous words they encounter in prints, they would prefer having them less in your site. This will bring a small relief if they are not thankful first. It would be best to develop a content exclusively for your site and not copy paste the things already in your printed materials.

And speaking of printed materials, never forget to include the address of your site into them. Having paid already for these prints, why not make the most of the good it can offer. By putting your site on these prints, you are paving the way for the readers to access some additional information that they did not yet read from your printing materials. Just think how disappointed they would be, taking some time to visit your site, and finding the same things that they have seen already.

For comments and inquiries about the article visit http://www.ucreative.com

About The Author

Florie Lyn Masarate got a flair for reading and writing when she got her first subscription of the school newsletter in kindergarten. She had her first article published on that same newsletter in the third grade.

This article was posted on August 11

by Florie Lyn Masarate

Are We Having Fun Yet?

Are We Having Fun Yet?

by: Judith Kallos

Youกd better be!

If you want your online business to survive and thrive, you need to be having fun! At least several times each week, potential clients call me for business ideas or suggestions for ‘things to sellก online. They don’t have a business concept or a product they believe in. They are just looking for some way to jump on the online bandwagon and get their hands on the supposed riches everyone else is making.

When asked this question, I tell them my story about how I got into the whole Web/Internet thing in the first place. Back in early 1994 when most folks hadn’t heard of กonlineก and there were things like IRC, bulletin boards and very slow modems, I got hooked on CompuServe.

I remember telling anyone who would listen how much fun it was to use (the speed of connectivity wasn’t an issue back then) and how I just knew that this technology would change business and our world forever. I got used to the กdeer in the headlightsก look that came over their faces.

Needless to say my family, friends and most of the folks on the block thought I was nuts! Their eyes would glaze over after 10 seconds of me trying to explain how it worked and what the potential was. I didn’t care, it was so much fun, I could burst! My better half at the time and to this day was the only one who recognized that sparkle in my eye to know that I was on to something.

So, I opened my little studio in a small rural townกs downtown district in December of 1994. They didn’t want me there. They thought the Internet was กevilก and I was about hooking up children with pedophiles, credit card fraud and creating adult Web sites. But I didn’t care I was having fun! You name the stereotype and I was confronted with it. Regardless of the resistance I couldn’t wait to get up and get to the office and enjoy each moment of every day.

Even if it meant dealing with those who would stop by with comments such as กyou really think this fad is going to last?ก To which I would reply กFad? Iกll catch you in 10 years when this technology has changed the world as you know it!ก The time flew by and each day was a blur. My better half would have to give me a call around 78pm reminding me it was time to come home.

Starting my business, growing it and keeping it healthy in an online arena saturated with experts and gurus hasn’t been easy. But I am having fun! Incorporating and filling out all those legal documents and quarterly returns for the past 10 years has been a real pain. But it doesn’t matter; Iกm having fun! Dealing with skeptics, criticism and the ongoing challenges that having any business will entail are all there. Who cares? Iกm having fun!

If you want to start an online business, you simply cannot do it for the monetary gain alone. Yes, we all strive to make a good income but if you’re not having fun, youกll never see the money. See, it is the having fun part that gives you the courage and wherewithal to ride the waves of good and bad, ups and downs and inconsistent income when you first start out.

If you are not having fun, you simply will not have the passion to get through the tough times and decisions that will have to be made. Your customers and clients will come to rely on your enthusiasm (which comes from having fun) for the confidence and encouragement they need to do business with you.

What is your hobby?

What do you enjoy doing?

Have you invented a better way to do something?

Are you passionate about a solution that solves problems?

Is there a product youกve used yourself and love?

Do you have valuable experience to share?

Then build a business on that and youกll thrive because you will have the emotional and principled commitment to make things happen. Think about what you have fun doing and think of a way to turn that into a business. Now you’re thinking! Look, you’re having fun already!

The Web is filled with folks trying to make a buck who aren’t having any fun. You can tell by their poor presentations, their lack of decent service levels and commitment to quality. The ones who aren’t having any fun and are just going for the bucks cut corners every chance they get and complain about the latest challenge technology offers because they don’t enjoy or believe in what they are doing. Just show them the money! Within a short time their site is shutdown and theyกve wasted a lot of time and expense.

For those who are having fun, you know what I mean. You’re on the other side of this screen with that smirk on your face because youกve been there, done that. You know that when you are having fun you are working harder, learning daily and more focused on your goals than anyone you know. You also happened to be happier, more grounded and a more enjoyable person to be around. Your customers love you and your business thrives because you are having fun!

Iกm having fun! Actually, after over 10 years Iกm still having a blast! How about you?

About The Author

Judith Kallos is an authoritative and goodhumored Technology Muse.

Check out her popular Netiquette site @: http://www.NetManners.com

This article was posted on April 21

by Judith Kallos

20 Extra Hous Per Week: What Would You Do?

20 Extra Hous Per Week: What Would You Do?

by: Daniel Tangredi

While I was in college, if you would have asked me what I would do if I had an extra 20 hours to spend in a week, the first thing I would have told you is that I would definitely NOT spend it studying. I actually would have gone down a long list of hobbies and activities I would like to do if I had the time. So when my coworkers asked me to find out what owners/managers of sign companies would do if they had an extra 20 hours per week, I was very interested in hearing the responses. What types of activities are sign shop owners doing with their spare time? Was there a common activity or hobby in the sign & graphics industry? Or would I hear several different responses?

The Results

The results were unexpected to say the least. By my fourth call I started to hear a common trend forming among sign shop owners. None were used to having leisure time, or so it seemed. In fact Marion Ward, the owner of AWC Signs, told me he hasn’t had 20 extra hours in twenty years. ขI wouldn’t know what to doข he said about having time off from the shop. Marion explained that he has been in this industry for quite a long time, and was soon going to retire. Just the thought of having extra time on his hands was completely foreign to him. Does Marion represent sign shop owners as a whole? Is the sign & graphics industry really so busy that owners/managers don’t even have time to think about leisure activities? Or, are shop owners unaware of how easy it is in this day and age to save time?

The next person I talked with was also surprised by the question. Randy from Bama Signs told me he ขnever thought about itข. Never thought about saving time I asked ขCan you think about it now and tell me what you would do?ข After a little probing and a little time to think about the question, Randy said he would most likely ขspend the time fixing up housesข which he liked to do on the side to make a little extra money. This was getting interesting. Already two people who never thought about having a couple extra hours or even the ability to save time for that matter. Two people who were surprised simply by the question itself.

Increasing Productivity

Being the GenXer and fresh out of college guy that I am, I have always looked for ways to make things easier. Isn’t that what we do in college, look for ways to spend less time but get the same or even better results? At one time, my goal was to figure out how to work less but get paid more (I hope my boss isn’t reading this) without cheating of course. This is what most owners or business graduates call ขIncreasing Productivityข. Well, in this day and age with so many advances in technology, there is always a way to work less and get paid more, therefore increasing your productivity. In fact I now work for a company that helps shops do just that.

Software – It’s amazing!

SOFTWARE! The amazing world of mouse clicks, GUI interfaces, pricing screens and automation. A brain, or what techies call a processor, that thinks even when the power is turned off, or so some of us think. A world where you don’t have to be the only one estimating jobs, because your pricing is built into the software. Where you can fill out customer information one time and never have to reenter it again. Where you have the ability to duplicate information and go from estimates to orders, easily and effectively by simply converting and cloning. A world where you can set automatic reminders that tell you who needs to be called, what needs to be done, and when to do it. Where it’s possible to truly, never again be in ขmanagement overloadข, so you can actually relax and enjoy your cup of coffee in the morning. A world where you can search through hundreds, thousands, even millions of customer records/information in a matter of seconds, rather then hours or days. Imagine the p!

ower and control given to you in this world. This is the world I have come to know and this is the world I have come to love. The world where we all can work less, take advantage of technology, and still increase revenue and productivity.

The Scared Stigma

So why aren’t more business owners jumping onto the ขsoftware trainข. Could it be that computer software and new technology scares them? It seemed to scare Marion Ward when I spoke with him. Is there some stigma behind software that leaves the nonGen Xer’s afraid? If so, to those people I say ขDo not be afraidข. These advancements in technology will make it easier for people such as Karen Bouknight of A Plus Signs & Graphix to ขRelax and just chillข as she easily put it when I spoke with her. It will give Mike Bayliss of Bayliss Signs Plus more time to ขPlay Golfข as he stated he would like to do more. It will give us all a chance to ขTake a vacation and take offข along side of Bill from Grafx Sign & Design.

Whether it be estimating and business management software like Cyrious Software, or some other software package that helps you save time, my only question is what would you do if you had an extra 20 hours per week?

About The Author

Daniel Tangredi

For more infomation on Cyrious Software go to http://www.cyrious.net or call 18005521418

This article was posted on November 22, 2004

by Daniel Tangredi