1,001 Deals and Steals: A Guide To Online Classifi

1,001 Deals and Steals: A Guide To Online Classifieds

by: Donald Lee

Some naysayers way back in the 1990s predicted that online shopping wouldn’t last. Sure, and they said television was a passing fad, too! As we all know, just the opposite has occurred. There’s a television in every household, and more than likely, the homeowner bought their television online—along with his books, music CDs, clothes, and maybe even his home.

Internet shopping is bigger than ever. You can find anything and everything for sale online. Many times, you can find it cheaper online than anywhere else. Internet shopping offers so much more than a discounted price tag, though.

Imagine a shopping mall where there are no lines, where there are no jammed parking garages, and no pushy sales clerks. This is no land of make believe. It is the Internet, where you can discover unprecedented selection, convenience, and opportunities. Online shopping gives you the luxury of browsing hundreds of stores from your living room, while saving on time and frustration. It provides you the chance to compare prices to your heart’s delight on a near limitless selection of brands and models.

For even more benefits, try your hand at classifieds and auction Web sites. These sites are like yard sales and flea markets rolled into one. Unlike retail shopping sites, they offer:

Access to super secondary markets. Take your pick of secondhand or brandnew wholesale goods at steeply discounted prices. The vendors at classifieds sites can get away with it because they aren’t paying high rent for a storefront or a warehouse. And in many cases, you’re not paying taxes.

Tools to locate unique and rare collectibles. Imagine a classifieds site to be like a sunken pirate boat, laden with cultural artifacts, hardtofind heirlooms, and priceless antiques. The Internet is your deepsea vessel, sonar, and oxygen tank all in one.

Reach beyond your neighborhood. Search through the inventory of a vendor from your home town, or if you don’t find what you’re looking for there, try that fellow in California, Texas or Canada for that matter.

Close relationships with vendors. You deal with real people—not big, impersonal corporations—when you buy on classifieds sites. They can provide more details about the product, which you can then use to bargain for a reasonable price.

Despite this bounty of benefits, you might still be hesitant to dive into Internet shopping. Don’t be embarrassed. You have good reason to take your time and weigh your choices. According to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, Internet fraud tops the list of the thousands of fraud cases that happen every year. In some ways, WWW could stand for the Wild West Web, in that anything goes. Vendors can be villains in disguise, and there aren’t any online Wyatt Earps to protect you from these bad guys. You’re on your own.

But give yourself some credit. You have the common sense it takes to survive the WWW. It is the same commonsense that helps you make the most of your money on your standard shopping trips. Become familiar and comfortable with an online vendor before jumping into a purchase. Ask questions and do a bit of research.

After doing your research, you’ll feel more confident in searching for your online booty. To refine your findings and whittle your list to only the exceptional sites, look for these additional qualities:

A focus on local shopping, so you can feel more confident buying from neighbors.

Free education and advice on safe purchasing.

Nocost and easy browsing through available merchandise.

Search tools that let you prioritize items by category, location, and distance.

A straightforward pricing system that avoids the haggling and risk of auction bidding.

Quick price comparisons among different vendors.

Unbelievably, a few trustworthy, practical, and exciting Web sites exist that have all of these features. To find these websites, simply browse through Yahoo’s directory under the classifieds category. The best of the online classified sites offer these services free to buyers such as you. Some of these sites can link you at no charge to your neighbor selling the antique lamp that you’ve been hunting for or that retiree looking to unload an incredible piece of real estate—or the cowboy looking to sell his bigscreen television.

Copyright 2004 Donald Lee

About The Author

Donald Lee is a public relations manager at BSCCOM Inc. BSCCOM Inc. provides free online advertisement services for Canadian and U.S. regions. For more information please visit: http://www.buysellcommunity.com.

This article was posted on November 25, 2004

by Donald Lee

Marketing Tips Advertising

Marketing Tips Advertising

by: Sue and Chuck DeFiore

Typical methods of advertisingnewspapers, radio and television are effective if used properly, but there are other, less expensive ways to get your companyกs name out.

Local or cable television is an inexpensive alternative to the traditional forms of advertising. Even if you have no experience advertising in this medium, there are companies who specialize in lending a helping hand. Even if finances are a concern (as they are for most of us), youกll be surprised to discover a 30 second spot television ad can cost as little as a few hundred dollars.

Many areas have public auctions on local stations that will advertise your product, if you donate up to a certain dollar amount. The number of advertising spots will depend on how much you donate.

Remember also to send press releases to your local television and radio stations. Many times they will come out and do a story on you, if it is of interest to the public.

We volunteered to do resumes for people out of work and sent releases to all the radio and television stations. One of the three major networks in our area, sent someone out to interview us, and we were on the 6 and 11 oกclock news.

As for radio advertising, check your local stations for rates. Youกll be surprised at how low some of them are. Again, if you send press releases to the stations, sometimes they will call you as an expert in your area, or for an interview. We sent releases to all the stations in our area when we started our support group, and this generated three times the number of people we expected for our first meeting.

Since most major newspapers are expensive to advertise in, check with the smaller local papers. You can advertise in many of these for as little as $25 a month. You could also offer to write a column for these publications, as an expert in the area, if appropriate.

We all need to advertise in one way or another. Which medium you choose will depend on your particular business.

Copyright DeFiore Enterprises 2000

About The Author

Interested in having your own successful, home based creative real estate investing business? Chuck and Sue have been helping folks start successful home based businesses for over 19 years, and we can help you too! To see how, visit http://www.homebusinesssolutions.com for the latest FREE tips and tricks, educational products and coaching in creative real estate investing and home based businesses. No time to visit the site? Subscribe to our กhow toก Home Business Solutions Digest, itกs like having your own personal coach: mailto:[email protected]

[email protected]

This article was posted on February 17, 2004

by Sue and Chuck DeFiore

Promoting Your Business on Cable Access TV

Promoting Your Business on Cable Access TV

by: Carolyn Moncel

กDon’t knock it until youกve tried it.ก Thatกs what I told a political opponentกs campaign manager when he laughed at me for using cable access television as part of my communications strategy. Unfortunately for him, he would learn too late what I already knew that implementing this medium into any communications strategy (political or otherwise) is a pretty good idea, and can reap tremendous benefits.

A few years ago, I took a break from public relations to work on my first local city council race. The candidate was actually my older brother, a person very active in his community but felt it was time to do more in the realm of public service. So he decided to run for office.

From the beginning we both knew that one of the biggest problems he would face, as a firsttime candidate, would be how to gain name recognition. One of the ways in which we planned to circumvent the problem was by integrating the use of cableaccess television into our communications strategy.

Yes, cableaccess television! I know it sounds strange, and the old Wayneกs World skits from Saturday Night Live must certainly come to mind. In fact, most smallbusiness owners do chuckle at the mere mention of the medium, but what they often don’t realize is that many of the same media strategies used in political campaigns can and are regularly implemented to promote smallbusiness owners and their company services. Hereกs what you should know in order to take full advantage of this often underused medium.

Respect Cable Access Hosts as Potential Customers

Sure, many cable access hosts are just ordinary citizens who want an outlet for expressing their views, but many of them also have prominent professional careers. No matter what their backgrounds happen to be, don’t they also represent potential customers? You bet, and by appearing on their shows, you get a chance to describe your business in plain speech, talk directly to your customers and also practice doing interviews.

Contact Cable Access Hosts Early

Each cable outlet is different but most only allow hosts to produce a limited amount of shows so that everyone gets an equal chance at exposure. But, did you know that you can also use this information to prevent your competitor from appearing on future shows? Hereกs an example of how we did it.

During the campaign I was able to book my candidate on five of the eight available shows devoted to political issues. By the time our opponentกs campaign manager discovered our plan, it was too late to get a booking because the production schedule had ended for the quarter a mere 60 days before the election. The cable access shows really served as an electronic billboard for us, allowing our candidate to appear on television twice per day on each access station for two solid months. Potential voters saw our candidate 112 times on television, which made him quite recognizable on the street.

Consider the Cable Access Host a Member of the Media

Research each showกs topic to make sure you and your companyกs services offer the proper fit, and then pitch story ideas. Follow up with them regularly and prove that you are a great expert to have on the show. Provide the hosts with media kits, adhere to their deadlines, answer their questions immediately, and take the time to find out how they would like to be contacted. These are all the normal steps youกd take with any other journalist.

We lost the election, but the use of cableaccess television helped to keep the race close until the very end. More importantly, wellestablished political incumbents began to take notice at what we had achieved. Appearing on cableaccess television was no longer taboo, and many of them now have their own shows. They now see the value in using cableaccess television to get their messages out to their constituents a communications medium that has always been available to them for free.

The bottom line here is this. There really aren’t very many differences between promoting a smallbusiness owner and a political candidate. Each can achieve favorable results simply by properly executing their messages. And while it is true that we are a nation of channel flippers, most people will and do stop on occasion, to listen to guests on cableaccess television. Furthermore, youกd be surprised by just how many of them do act on what they have seen.

So don’t get angry the next time a business competitor laughs at you for appearing on cable access television to promote your services. Just tell them the same thing I did, and take comfort in knowing that your competitor will likely learn too late that cableaccess television can be an excellent way of introducing smallbusiness services to potential customers in your town.

About The Author

Carolyn DavenportMoncel is president and founder of Mondave Communications, a global marketing and communications firm based in Chicago and Paris, and a subsidiary of MotionTemps, LLC. Contact her at [email protected] or by phone in the United States at 877.815.0167 or 011.331.4997.9059 in France.

This article was posted on November 02, 2003

by Carolyn Moncel

Why Most Marketing Videos Don’t Work

Why Most Marketing Videos Don’t Work

by: MarieClaire Ross

Every now and then I will meet someone who has commissioned a marketing video that did not work for their company. It is a sad state of affairs and it is avoidable.
Over the years, I have been given many failed corporate communications videos to watch and have found that they all suffer from one or more of the following problems.
1. A poorly written script
This would have to be one of the most common problems. The script provides the backbone to any video project and it must be perfect. It needs to be to the point, clear and interesting.
Often scripts get written inhouse resulting in wordy and highly detailed pieces of prose that do not translate well onto the screen. Quite frankly, they are boring. Unfortunately, pretty shots and expert editing cannot hide a tedious narrative.
Worse still, is when the script goes back and forth and the content is played out in an illogical sequence. This results in no viewer being able to quickly understand your core marketing messages, if they can understand it at all.
Ideally, a script conveys the most important pieces of information that your target market wants to know and is written with an objective in mind.
2. The video is too long
In this day and age of high speed broadband and other timesaving devices, very few of us have attention spans that can handle information for more than a few minutes.
Any video over 10 minutes is destined to lose viewers after the first few minutes.
Yet, surprisingly there are many marketing videos today that are well over 12 minutes in length.
The best marketing videos are short and succinct. Yet, it is far easier to cram everything into a video than to make a short and concise one. In the words of Blaise Pascal, ขThe present letter is a very long one, simply because I had no leisure to make it shorterข.
3. ขThe ขlook mum I’m on TVข scenario
While some of us may cringe at the thought of a camera placed in front of us, there are many people who relish the opportunity to show their face on television.
This can result in corporate heads droning on incessantly about how wonderful their company is (and what a great job they are doing). Sadly, this does nothing else but soothe corporate egos and turn viewers away.
Few people realise that talking to a camera in an appealingly manner is a skill in itself. Having a CEO spieling boring corporate fluff while looking dumbstruck and awkward in front of the camera does not a good video make.
However, a charismatic business leader who uses short, punchy (and rehearsed) sentences can add tremendous impact and clout to a marketing video.
4. Poor production values
While watching your corporate video, your customers will be left with an impression of what type of business you are and what to expect when doing business with you.
A fast way to subconsciously get across the wrong image to your viewer is to have grainy pictures, poorly framed shots and sloppy editing.
A well thought out and professionally created television program will create a positive impression in the minds of your prospects. After all, we all watch television and we are used to broadcast quality productions, not wobbly and unfocused shots that scream ‘amateurish’.
To produce a good quality television program, it must be made using an experienced Agrade cameraman, a broadcast quality camera and a fully trained editor
5. Target audience is too diverse
Many marketing videos often try to get as many messages out to a diverse audience.
It is very difficult to produce a video that is ‘all things to all people’. After all, communicating to primary school students, overseas buyers and consumers all in the one video is an extremely difficult feat to pull.
Research has found that advertising that targets a number of market segments results in higher profits than advertising that sells to a mass market.
Likewise, marketing videos that target a small audience are more successful than those aimed at a large audience. It is often wise to produce several television programs for different audiences, rather than cram all of your messages into one confusing video.
6. Let’s do a video, just because we can!
It might seem farfetched but there are companies that embark on commissioning a marketing video without really assessing if they need one.
This can be due to a number of reasons such as using up available budgets, satisfying corporate egos and employees creating work for themselves.
You are probably wondering why a video communication producer would even complain about this situation. The answer is simple.
A marketing video is an effective tool to increase sales in a company. It is actually painful and embarrassing to watch a video that is a shameless waste of company money.
Poorly produced videos might line the pockets of some video producers, but they do little to convince future clients that they are worthwhile.
If you are in the market for a marketing video, make sure you follow these simple guidelines to ensure your project is a success, rather than destined for the rubbish bin.
© MarieClaire Ross 2004. All rights reserved.

About The Author

MarieClaire Ross is one of the partners of Digicast. Digicast works with organisations who are not satisfied that their marketing and training materials are helping their business grow. She can be contacted on 0500 800 234 (Australia wide) or at [email protected]. The website is at www.digicast.com.au.

This article was posted on June 08, 2004

by MarieClaire Ross

Leverage the Power of Publicity for Your Small Bus

Leverage the Power of Publicity for Your Small Business

by: Isabel Isidro

Your business is only as good as the number of people who knows about it. For your venture to grow, you need to start spreading the word about your business. You may have the best products your field, but you cannot expect your business to breach the milliondollar mark in sales if only the people in your street know about it. Some entrepreneurs start doing promotions only when their businesses are up and running, while some market their business even before the products or services are fully launched.

There are two ways to get your business noticed: through paid advertising and through public relations. In advertising, you pay to have your message placed in a newspaper, radio or television spot, or your banners displayed in a Web site. In public relations, on the other hand, the article or show that features your story or business is not paid for. Rather, the writer may have come across your story or business through research or references. The writer or media person deems it worthy to mention you or your business to bolster his or her arguments.

Hence, publicity can oftentimes be more effective than advertising. Not only is it costeffective (oftentimes you are paying for nothing), but also people are apt to remember an article about your business rather than advertising. People find a writeup or special feature about a business more credible and objective than a paid advertising. Publicity also reaches a wider audience: if you are lucky, the national media might even pick up your story.

Even in the online world, free exposure in the traditional media television, radio or print can be far more effective than other online marketing strategies. Nina Munk of urbanhound.com wrote in Fuse Magazine that her site saw a dramatic increase in traffic when NBCกs Today show mentioned her site much more than the links from other web sites or postings from message boards. As she wrote in the article, กForget the power of the Internet: itกs television that counts.ก

Since media has a กherd mentality,ก once a program features your business or your story, expect other publications and shows to pick it up and use you for their own stories. The mention of urbanhound.com at the Today show led to mentions in Newsday, Forbes and Ladiesก Home Journal. Without paying a single cent, Munkกs site was able to reach a wider audience that his business needs.

How do you attract the journalists to use your story? Here are five ways you can do to succeed in generating free publicity for your business.

1. Carefully target journalists. Since you are courting them to use your story, don’t put them off by sending bulk emails to practically all the journalists you know, no matter how totally unrelated your story is to their beat. Identify the kinds of publication that may be interested in your story, and know who in the publication does your kind of stories. Make a list of the newspapers, TV and radio programs that would be appropriate outlets. Then identify the specific reporter or producer interested in your kind of story. If you want publicity for your bonsai business, for example, send your story pitch to a gardening publication or the home living editor of your local newspaper. Find the journalists (whether print, television or radio) who are most likely to be interested in your story. Send them personal emails or letters.

2. Invest time and energy contacting local newspapers, magazines, radio and TV stations. While avoiding becoming pushy, be persistent. Convince the journalists that you are an expert in your field or your story is newsworthy. In the event that their editorial calendar does not include a story such as yours, offer your help to them and let them know that you are available when they need your expertise. Journalists always want a good, wellresearched story and will always use every resource available to them. Remember, though, that not everyone will be interested. If your story idea is turned down, try to ask why and use that information to bolster your next story pitch.

3. Make sure that you really have a good story to tell. Do not waste a reporterกs time. Few journalists will care if you are hiring a temporary worker, or whether you bought a new modular furniture system. Make a list of story pitches that you can offer to your chosen media outlet. Brainstorm with your family, business partners or friends to help you come up with good stories about you and your business. Sometimes, what may be กnormalก for us may be inspiring for other people.

4. Have a good angle. Journalists always look for fresh, provocative story ideas. Develop story angles that you yourself would want to read in a newspaper or watch on television. If you are a caterer, for example, one angle could be the increasing number of customers who wants catered food instead of going out to restaurants. If you are a homebased travel agent, you can pitch a story on the preferences of seniors when traveling abroad.

5. Make your pitch. Write down your story angle and send it to the journalist in a กpitch letter.ก Your letter may start with a question or interesting fact about your business that could interest your target mediaกs audience. This is called your กhook.ก Then develop your story idea, stressing how it could benefit their audience. Make your sales pitch no longer than one page, and be sure to include your contact numbers.

About The Author

Isabel Isidro is the Managing Editor of PowerHomeBiz.com, a leading online resource on home business. For information on starting a small and homebased business, visit PowerHomeBiz.com at http://www.powerhomebiz.com

This article was posted on November 26, 2003

by Isabel Isidro

WARNING to Home Based and Small Business Who Want

WARNING to Home Based and Small Business Who Want to Buy Television Cable Advertising

by: Dr. Letitia S. Wright, D.C.

Most small businesses will not even try to advertise on television. It’s too expensive and the audience is too broad. The ads on television are not targeted enough. Think back to the last time your entire family was gathered around a television set. It was fun family time, but think of how different each member of your family is. The children at different ages want different things. The parents depending on their age and occupations could be concerned with wildly differing issues. Was there a grandparent or aunt or uncle there too? Each person has entirely different attitude and interests, yet the commercial was tailored for only one person out of that group. The message is wasted on the rest of the family who don’t care about the product or the problem it solves.

There are ways that a small business and even a home based business can get on television and get their message to the market they are after. First of all, know your client. Know everything you can about who you are selling to. If you think your product is for everyone, this article will not help you. If you know everything about your target market, you will know where to find them. Where they hang out, what they read, eat, wear and watch. Who influences them, who angers then, who inspires them, who informs them. That where you want to be also. On television, check out the shows and cable channels that speak to your audience. For my show, The Wright Place TV Show, Lifetime, O network and WE channel are where a lot of my viewers will also be.

Copyright 2005 Dr. Letitia Wright, D.C.

About The Author

Dr. Wright is a Stevie Award Finalist for 2004 and the host of The Wright Place ™ TV Show seen in 5 million homes in Southern California and on the internet at www.wrightplacetv.com. Get Your Free Special Report: 19 Secrets To Effective Television Advertising That Cable Companies Don’t Want You To Know by emailing [email protected]

[email protected]

This article was posted on January 08

by Dr. Letitia S. Wright, D.C.

Advertising Your Home Business on a Budget

Advertising Your Home Business on a Budget

by: Stone Evans

When you are starting out in a new home business and no one knows who you are, one of the greatest challenges you will face is how to drum up new business.

If there were not people in your community or marketplace that you knew who needed your products or services, you probably would not have started your business to begin with. But, once you have talked to those who you personally knew who needed your what you offer, then your next task is to find others who will help keep your doors open.

Many people know that they must turn to advertising at some point in the future, but they hope that day will be long down the road. For some, this utopian concept will come to fruition. But for the rest of us in the real world, we must come up with creative solutions for meeting our home business advertising needs while working within our budget.

Most people have a misconception about having to spend lots of money in order to advertise their home business. When you start out, you honestly will not have much money available for advertising, and if you do, you should still spend it wisely.

Before you jump headfirst into the world of advertising, let me share some of the lessons I have learned concerning this most important topic.

LESSON #1

It does not have to cost an arm and a leg to advertise your home business, unless you fail to plan and fail to test.

As much as is possible, you should always test your advertising. If you jump in and start dumping tons of money in to advertising without first testing your advertising, you might find yourself broke and without sales at the end of the road. Most people who commit this error write off their failure on the home business they chose or the economy or any of a hundred other excuses. But, if they are unwilling to take responsibility for their mistake, they will never learn from their mistake. Don’t let this be you.

LESSON #2

All testing should be done in blocks. If you begin to advertise simultaneously in newspapers, radio and television, how will you know which advertising is bringing people to your cash register? You won’t. All you will know that something might be working, but you will not know what is actually doing the trick.

Even if you tell people in your advertising to tell you how they found you, my experience shows that fewer than 10% of the people ever will tell you anything and those people who do may not even get the facts straight! You cannot rely on your customers to tell you what advertising is working for your home business. You must put in the extra effort to know for yourself.

LESSON #3

Only when you have a proven and solid advertising portfolio should you venture to drop big bucks in an advertising campaign. Even then, you should be careful to keep further measurements to determine how much the maximum advantage of an ad would be. Sometimes you might be able to reach ten times as many people, but depending on the kind of media and other factors, the additional exposure will only generate twice as many sales. Keep your eye attuned to situations like this to get the most from your advertising dollars.

LESSON #4

As Lesson #3 illustrates, sometimes your best advertising investment may actually cost you less money. When you are first starting out, whether you are running a home business or a business outside of your home, you need to be able to get people talking and thinking about your business.

If you are busy testing ads in mediaกs such as the newspaper, magazines, radio, and television, you need to learn ways of promoting your business that do not require large cash expenditures. A few examples are:

Word of Mouth

Business Cards

Press Releases

NonPrimetime Ads on Radio and Television

Here is more information about each type of lowcost advertising:

WORD OF MOUTH

This of course is the cheapest kind of advertising on the planet it does not cost you anything. Ask your customers if they know anyone who could also use your products or services. When they are happy with your offerings and service, they will be willing to tell you whom you can contact, and they will pass the word for you.

BUSINESS CARDS

You can usually pick up 500 business cards for about $20. When you do, hand them out. Do not give more than a couple of cards to each person. If they need more cards from you, they will ask.

Some people are known to network with others on a regular basis. Some of these people are also known to be always looking for an extra few bucks. With these people, you can suggest to them that if they write their name on the back of one of your business cards and the card is presented to you, then you will pay a referral fee to them. You do not have to offer much sometimes one dollar is enough. Look at your home business and your offerings and decide how much would be a good referral fee.

PRESS RELEASES

Press Releases are a good source for generating news about your home business. The business editor at your local newspaper is always on the lookout for a good business story to fill the business news section of the newspaper.

Of course, the business editor understands the economics of running a paper and is more inclined to run your story if you buy advertising in his/her publication, but will still print stories for special events and openings.

The important thing to remember about Press Releases is that it must be constructed in the form of a news story. Even if you are a sole proprietorship, quotes from you should be written in a third person format: John Doe said, กYour quote here.ก

A Press Release should pack the most important information at the beginning of the copy, and leave extra details towards the end.

You should always provide the reporter who gets the task a simple and easy way for him/her to contact you directly. Often the reporter will want to contact you to get details that will enhance their take on your story.

To learn more about creating Press Releases, you may check out Rusty Cawleyกs site: http://www.PRrainmaker.com/

NONPRIMETIME ADS ON RADIO AND TELEVISION

Believe it or not, some of the best rates for radio and television are on the overnight and nonprimetime venues. These target times are not a total waste as they can easily keep the infomercial people in business.

These offhours are just less populated than the primetime hours.

Don’t be afraid to check your local radio and television rates for nonprimetime hours to see what bargains may exist. With television, primetime is 7pm to 10pm. With radio, primetime is 8am to 5pm. This sure leaves a whole lot of hours available to advertise your home business at discount rates!

IN CONCLUSION

When it comes down to it, there is a lot to understand about advertising, but when you have the basic knowledge down pat, everything will fall into place and bring more dollars to your bank account.

About The Author

Stone Evans owns the Home Business Resource Directory where you can find everything youกll ever need to start, run and grow a home based business at: http://www.HomeBusiness.com

[email protected]

This article was posted on March 19, 2004

by Stone Evans

Broadband

Broadband

by: Neil Shevlin

Broadband is the name given to a highspeed Internet connection that provide large bandwidth. It is a quick connection, typically ขalwaysonข and capable of transmitting data at a much faster rate than a standard dialup modem connection. Broadband also won’t tie up your phone line, allowing you to use the internet and telephone simultaneously. Broadband can be provided from a dedicated line such as Cable or ISDN, or over the top of your phone line such as ADSL.

Lowband Internet access is typically running up to 56kbps using a dialup modem. Midband Internet is a phrase given to dialup that operates at 64kbps or 128kbps. Broadband starts at 512kbps (approximately ten times faster than typical dialup) and is also typically available at 1mbps, 1.5mbps and 2.2mbps. Some companies offer broadband at 4mbps and 8mbps. The maximum possible for cable is around 26mbps and 24mbps for ADSL although these speeds are not sold commercially due to the high cost required to upgrade telephone lines to be able to transmit at this speed.

With broadband you can quickly download or stream music and video. Many websites are designed especially for broadband users with intense integrated graphics, flash and video. Another popular use of broadband is online gaming. Xbox and PS2 consoles include broadband support, by subscribing to gaming packages from your ISP you can play Xbox and PS2 games live with other people over the internet. Online PC gaming has been around since the early days of the internet, but now with faster speeds there is less lag (slow or jerky response from the computer making it hard to play) and you are no longer keeping an eye on the time as you play, making it much more popular. Many recent games are released requiring an internet connection, without them you simply cannot play.

With users so keen on downloading music and video most broadband providers have introduced a maximum limit on the amount you can download. This can be as low as 1 GB up to 30 GB for power users, or unlimited for the extreme. Exceeding your ISP’s download cap will result in you having a limit connection for the rest of the month or none at all.

The future of broadband is the possibility of Internet Television. Currently there is not enough bandwidth (the amount of data you can send and receive down the line) to give as good an image as of a standard television. But with ever increasing internet speeds Internet Television will soon be with us. You can already legally download clips from your favourite shows, music videos and other content you would normally find on your television, just not in real time. Another use developed because of broadband is online telephony. Software that enables you to turn your computer into a telephone and talk to people from across the world without any extra cost is not only commonplace but of a higher quality recording than standard telephone lines. It seems with ever increasing Internet speeds, Broadband will be able to replace television, telephone and will soon become a welcome addition to every home. Broadband is helping the internet become an extensive resource that’s easy to access and fun to use.

About The Author

Neil Shevlin is the owner of UK Cheap Broadband which is a great place to find broadband links, resources and articles.

For more information go to: UK Cheap Broadband www.ukcheapbroadband

© Copyright 2005

Please feel free to copy and paste this article and itกs resource information.

This article was posted on August 18

by Neil Shevlin

Advertising Your Home Business on a Budget

Advertising Your Home Business on a Budget

by: Stone Evans

When you are starting out in a new home business and no one knows who you are, one of the greatest challenges you will face is how to drum up new business.

If there were not people in your community or marketplace that you knew who needed your products or services, you probably would not have started your business to begin with. But, once you have talked to those who you personally knew who needed your what you offer, then your next task is to find others who will help keep your doors open.

Many people know that they must turn to advertising at some point in the future, but they hope that day will be long down the road. For some, this utopian concept will come to fruition. But for the rest of us in the real world, we must come up with creative solutions for meeting our home business advertising needs while working within our budget.

Most people have a misconception about having to spend lots of money in order to advertise their home business. When you start out, you honestly will not have much money available for advertising, and if you do, you should still spend it wisely.

Before you jump headfirst into the world of advertising, let me share some of the lessons I have learned concerning this most important topic.

LESSON #1

It does not have to cost an arm and a leg to advertise your home business, unless you fail to plan and fail to test.

As much as is possible, you should always test your advertising. If you jump in and start dumping tons of money in to advertising without first testing your advertising, you might find yourself broke and without sales at the end of the road. Most people who commit this error write off their failure on the home business they chose or the economy or any of a hundred other excuses. But, if they are unwilling to take responsibility for their mistake, they will never learn from their mistake. Don’t let this be you.

LESSON #2

All testing should be done in blocks. If you begin to advertise simultaneously in newspapers, radio and television, how will you know which advertising is bringing people to your cash register? You won’t. All you will know that something might be working, but you will not know what is actually doing the trick.

Even if you tell people in your advertising to tell you how they found you, my experience shows that fewer than 10% of the people ever will tell you anything and those people who do may not even get the facts straight! You cannot rely on your customers to tell you what advertising is working for your home business. You must put in the extra effort to know for yourself.

LESSON #3

Only when you have a proven and solid advertising portfolio should you venture to drop big bucks in an advertising campaign. Even then, you should be careful to keep further measurements to determine how much the maximum advantage of an ad would be. Sometimes you might be able to reach ten times as many people, but depending on the kind of media and other factors, the additional exposure will only generate twice as many sales. Keep your eye attuned to situations like this to get the most from your advertising dollars.

LESSON #4

As Lesson #3 illustrates, sometimes your best advertising investment may actually cost you less money. When you are first starting out, whether you are running a home business or a business outside of your home, you need to be able to get people talking and thinking about your business.

If you are busy testing ads in mediaกs such as the newspaper, magazines, radio, and television, you need to learn ways of promoting your business that do not require large cash expenditures. A few examples are:

Word of Mouth

Business Cards

Press Releases

NonPrimetime Ads on Radio and Television

Here is more information about each type of lowcost advertising:

WORD OF MOUTH

This of course is the cheapest kind of advertising on the planet it does not cost you anything. Ask your customers if they know anyone who could also use your products or services. When they are happy with your offerings and service, they will be willing to tell you whom you can contact, and they will pass the word for you.

BUSINESS CARDS

You can usually pick up 500 business cards for about $20. When you do, hand them out. Do not give more than a couple of cards to each person. If they need more cards from you, they will ask.

Some people are known to network with others on a regular basis. Some of these people are also known to be always looking for an extra few bucks. With these people, you can suggest to them that if they write their name on the back of one of your business cards and the card is presented to you, then you will pay a referral fee to them. You do not have to offer much sometimes one dollar is enough. Look at your home business and your offerings and decide how much would be a good referral fee.

PRESS RELEASES

Press Releases are a good source for generating news about your home business. The business editor at your local newspaper is always on the lookout for a good business story to fill the business news section of the newspaper.

Of course, the business editor understands the economics of running a paper and is more inclined to run your story if you buy advertising in his/her publication, but will still print stories for special events and openings.

The important thing to remember about Press Releases is that it must be constructed in the form of a news story. Even if you are a sole proprietorship, quotes from you should be written in a third person format: John Doe said, กYour quote here.ก

A Press Release should pack the most important information at the beginning of the copy, and leave extra details towards the end.

You should always provide the reporter who gets the task a simple and easy way for him/her to contact you directly. Often the reporter will want to contact you to get details that will enhance their take on your story.

To learn more about creating Press Releases, you may check out Rusty Cawleyกs site: http://www.PRrainmaker.com/

NONPRIMETIME ADS ON RADIO AND TELEVISION

Believe it or not, some of the best rates for radio and television are on the overnight and nonprimetime venues. These target times are not a total waste as they can easily keep the infomercial people in business.

These offhours are just less populated than the primetime hours.

Don’t be afraid to check your local radio and television rates for nonprimetime hours to see what bargains may exist. With television, primetime is 7pm to 10pm. With radio, primetime is 8am to 5pm. This sure leaves a whole lot of hours available to advertise your home business at discount rates!

IN CONCLUSION

When it comes down to it, there is a lot to understand about advertising, but when you have the basic knowledge down pat, everything will fall into place and bring more dollars to your bank account.

Copyright 2004 Stone Evans

About The Author

Stone Evans Will Personally Build A Money Making Website Just For You Thatกs 100% Ready To Take Orders And Pull In Massive Residual Profits. Get Details And Signup Today At: http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com

This article was posted on September 09, 2004

by Stone Evans

How Can I Get Name Recognition?

How Can I Get Name Recognition?

by: Sue and Chuck DeFiore

Some of the ways in which to get your กname out thereก are to call your local television and radio stations, and ascertain whether there is a medium you can get your name in. A very good source are public stations that hold auctions, at which you can donate your services. Talk shows, both radio and television. Do something to get yourself noticed and send it to them. For example, we sent a fax to the television and radio stations that for anyone who was unemployed we would do a typeset resume for only $10. Channel 13 came out and interviewed us, and we were on their 6 p.m. news program.

Send press releases to television and radio stations, in addition to newspapers. Make it short, concise, and eye catching. One tip is to put your picture on the press release. Be sure all the information you want to impart is in the first paragraph.

Contact local newspapers, they love to do articles on homebased and small businesses. We have had excellent success getting both our newsletter and directory published in small local papers. In addition, these releases have also gotten us published in New Business Opportunities, Small Business Opportunities, and Income Opportunities to mention a few. Many of the businesses that we have written press releases for also have reported very good results.

Volunteer your services to nonprofit organizations. Give seminars and classes to establish yourself as an expert. In addition, if appropriate to your business, advertise on services like AOL, CompuServe, and Yahoo. We had a flood of responses for both our newsletter and consulting service, by advertising on CompuServe.

Copyright DeFiore Enterprises 2000

About The Author

Interested in having your own successful, home based creative real estate investing business? Chuck and Sue have been helping folks start successful home based businesses for over 19 years, and we can help you too! To see how, visit http://www.homebusinesssolutions.com for the latest FREE tips and tricks, educational products and coaching in creative real estate investing and home based businesses. No time to visit the site? Subscribe to our กhow toก Home Business Solutions Digest, itกs like having your own personal coach: mailto:[email protected]

[email protected]

This article was posted on February 17, 2004

by Sue and Chuck DeFiore