Google's CEO, Eric Schmidt did an interview with the "Wall Street Journal" and suggested that in the future folks will need to change their names to protect their reputation. What??? Sounds a litle crazy to me, how about you? I mean if it's that bad why are you posting it online? Watch the video then let me know what you think.
Image via Wikipedia
I love my Droid!! That is until recently. About a week ago Verizon updated everyone to the highly anticipated Froyo 2.2 software update. Having read much about the new enhancements that were included I eagerly powered off and on my phone to accept the upgrade. What a mistake that was.
Ever since this update my phone has taken on the personality of a possessed person. It randomly locksup, loses calls, my battery life has become so dismal I'm afraid to actually use it, apps no longer would close with the use of the "Task Kiler and running really slow, like a dog.
At first I thought it was me, but after talking to a few Droid friends who were having similar problems, I did a little research. What I found was highly discouraging. Apparently, there's a lot of people in the world having similar problems, who also want to rip their hair out over this latest and greatest update. Be afraid my friends, be very afraid <grin>
For Example: One of the first headlines I ran across.
"Motorola Droid owners reporting issues with Android 2.2 update"
http://www.examiner.com/gadgets-in-san-francisco/motorola-droid-owners-reporting-issues-with-android-2-2-update
As I browsed and read more the problem with task killer not working became readily apparent. I wasn't insane after all. Well, maybe I am....but that's talk for another day.
"Problems with Task Killer and Froyo 2.2 Update on Droid"
http://www.cnet.com/8301-17918_1-20013247-85.html
"Froyo update kills Android task killer apps"
http://www.worldtech24.com/phones/froyo-update-kills-android-task-killer-apps
When I first bought my Droid the Verizon rep put Task Killer on it for me stating you had to have it in order to kill all the running apps to save your battery life. Now, the killer has apparently been killed. Aggghhhhh!!
Moving onto the battery drainage problem it appears they're trying to blame this one on Facebook's app but I'm not sure I'm buying that this is the whole cause. I found information that said to make sure you update to the latest version in order to solve this problem.
"Android 2.2 Froyo Battery Drainage Apparently Caused By Facebook App"
http://erictric.com/2010/08/05/android-2-2-froyo-battery-drainage-apparently-caused-by-facebook-app/
So after spending a few hours growing increasingly disappointed over what I was reading. I did pick up a few tips and pointers that you might want to try if you're falling out of love with your Droid with the inclusion of Froyo in your relationship.
1) Delete Task Killer- According to the "experts" Froyo knows when to launch and kill apps on its own and will run much better with this app gone. Again, true or not just what I've been reading. I myself, uninstalled it.
2) Add the Android power management widget to your phone to help shut things down when not needed and preserve battery life. Just long press on your screen and pick add widget the look for "Power Management". Just make sure you have enough open space on your home screen before trying to place it there as it needs 3 rows across to fit.
3) Uninstall Facebook app....then redownload it. You can't really take it out completely but you can go to apps management and remove what you can then go and re-download the latest version.
4) Take out your battery, then put it back in. (not sure what this does)
5) Factory Reset: Last but not least if Froyo still isn't playing nice on your phone do a factory reset. I haven't been brave enough to do this one and am saving it as a last resort but the research I've read seems to suggest this will fix all of your problems and things will go back to normal. Of course, you'll wipe out everything on your phone and will need to start over, but that's the cost of a buggy update. It's similar to formating your hard drive and gives you a clean slate. If anyone has done this, and life is better now, please let me know. I refuse to go there unless I absolutely
have to.
After reading through hundreds of comments on forums and discussion boards I picked up a few other random tips that may help.
Download Juice Defender- Helps preserve battery life
http://latedroid.com/juicedefender/
And to really see what's going on with your phone's battery type this into your handset.
*#*#4636#*#*
You'll be amazed at the phone info, battery info, and usage stats it reveals.
So there you have it. My own little private hell in a nutshell. No, I'm not taking back my phone, and I do still think that the Droid is the slickest phone ever. I'll just sit back in my corner and wait for Verizon to come up with an update to this update to kill all of these crazy bugs. I'm sure it's just a matter of time. Right?? Any suggestions?
I’ve always been impressed with those who seem to always be ahead of the pack when it comes to new ideas. When I first started publishing
information products online, I thought that certain people had a crystal ball they gazed into. Or some top-secret contact who was providing them with inside information. Over time, I realized that it wasn’t magic that allowed these people to come up with red-hot ideas on demand. It was simply that they knew where to look.
I soon discovered many places where ideas seemed to always be found. I call these places “idea hangouts”. Here are three of my favorites where you can find ideas for your next ebook anytime you want. Almost like a genie granting you three wishes...
1. GOOGLE.COM. Google is the ultimate “idea hangout”. There are so many ways to mine the gold in Google’s amazing search database that it would take another article to graze the surface of this enormous iceberg.
What I want to mention are just two quick ways to find ideas by searching Google.
- Identify Listings. Search for a broad topic related to your area of interest or expertise. (I.E. “Tennis”, “Weight loss”, “Homeschooling”.) Look at all of the web sites listed in the index of returned results. You’ll likely find some ideas for information products right there in the first couple of pages.
- Identify Advertisers. You’ll probably notice small ads either at the top of the page or to the right of the page (or both!). These advertisers represent your competition. They also represent your thermometer for taking the temperature of your market and gauging interest in specific topics. Chances are, what they’re selling you should be selling. In both of these examples, you can click through to the web pages of the sites listed and study their respective sales pages. Look specifically at the “bullet points”. Each of these represents a potential idea for your next ebook.
2. AMAZON.COM. From the world’s largest search engine we move to the world’s largest bookstore. At Amazon.com you’ll really get your creative juices fired up. Again, you’ll want to search the listings by entering a keyword or keyphrase into the search box on the main page at Amazon.com. You’ll get a returned listing of numerous books, courses and other periodicals. Search these listed items for ideas for your own ebook
. --- Example --- If you were to search for “Homeschooling”, you’d find a variety of ideas just waiting in the listing of books available, including: homeschooling for special needs children, getting starting in homeschooling, choosing curriculum, homeschooling field trips, homeschooling support groups, homeschooling for various ages (I.E. Pre-K, Elementary, Junior High, High School, etc.), homeschooling for Christians, etc.) Any of these listings (and the dozens of others listed) would be great ideas for the topic of your next ebook.
--- Example --- Pay particular attention to the first page of the listing. Amazon ranks their listings based on popularity of actual sales volume. In other words, #1 is a better seller than #50. This is a ready-made indicator of demand!
3. MAGAZINES.COM. After visiting the world’s largest search engine and the world’s largest bookstore, it’s time to take a quick stop at the world’s largest periodical store, Magazines.com. You’ll find every imaginable magazine listed at this site. The interesting part (and useful to you as a research tool) is this: you’ll also find the COVER of usually a recent copy of each magazine. That is, you can search for “Parenting” and the engine will return a listing of magazines related to that topic. You can then click on the image of the magazine cover and you’ll be shown a larger copy of that cover where you can read the contents.
(I.E. “How To Raise A Stubborn Child”, “27 Ways Discipline In Public” and “The Real Key To Your Child Getting Better Grades”.) Each of these “cover stories” represents an idea for your next ebook. The best part about it is this: the publishers of these magazines have done the research for you! They’ve measured the level of interest for these ideas and found it high enough to warrant not only writing content about them, but referencing that content on the cover of the magazine! That’s your hint. People want this information.
So, there you have it, 3 “idea hangouts” where you can find ready-made, in-demand, red-hot topics for your next ebook. Happy hunting!
There must be some reason why certain ebook writers are successful and others are not. In other words, why do some authors make high six-figure incomes (even seven-figures!) and others barely make enough to cover their hosting fees? There must be some reason for the difference in level of success, right? There is. In fact, there are three “reasons” why that I want to share with you now. 
I’ve used the word “K.E.Y.” as an acronym to reveal these three elements of successful ebook publishing. 1. K = KEEP it concise. One of the biggest mistakes ebook writers make is starting their project with the idea in mind that their ebook must be a certain number of pages in length. That is, they assume the ebook should be 50 pages or 100 pages or even 200 pages in order to be desirable to consumers. Wrong. Ding. Thanks for playing. Much more important than QUANTITY is QUALITY.
Almost every potential customer in your target market is considerably more interested in learning something useful than they are reading a bunch of commentary that has little or no real value to them. The ability to concisely (yet comprehensively) share content that is practical is a must if you want to be successful in the information business. No fluff. No filler. No fat. Just the meat. That’s what consumers want. Especially today in our fast- paced, instant, I-want-it-now society. And chances are you are much more likely to write a 30 page manual and get it done than you are to slave over trying to measure up to a 200 page masterpiece.
Your first key to success is “keep it concise”. Share what you need to share in the least amount of pages as possible. It doesn’t have to be the great American novel. This isn’t Hemingway. 2. E = ENJOY yourself. I simply must mention that if you enjoy your “work” then you are exponentially more likely to complete your ebooks than those who reluctantly or grudgingly write. Seriously, don’t underestimate what I’m saying here. You’ll get much more done as a writer by having fun with your subject matter.
That’s the beauty of information publishing. YOU get to pick the topic. A topic of interest – of passion – to you as the author. Something you find enjoyable, even exhilarating. To be sure, you want to choose topics that are in demand and have a ready-made audience awaiting who are willing to purchase them. But, at the same time, you can look for those marketable topics that appeal to your interests and expertise. I don’t care
how “profitable” a subject may be, I’d never take it on as a project of mine unless I got some sense of satisfaction or enjoyment in writing about it. Instead, look for those things that you are already talking about anyway. And then write what you’ve been talking about. 3. Y = YIELD results.
Finally, I must exhort you to “yield results”. That is, you simply must stick to it and finish the job. I cannot tell you how many people that I’ve met online who struggle with the affliction “short-of-the-finish-line-it is”. They begin running the race with gusto. They pick their topic like it was a Nike outfit. They outline their ebook like they just heard the starting gun fire. They come up with ideas to include in their work like they were sprinting down the track. And when they round the first corner, they start slowing down. Before they know it, they’re up in the stands watching others cross the finish line. That’s why I am adamant about telling you the golden rule of ebook content:
Never start something you can’t finish in 30 days. With any new ebook you are planning on writing, choose the topic and outline it in such a way that you can complete the content within one calendar month. Anything that goes beyond that period of time is likely going to be discarded somewhere past the starting gate and before the finish line.
It’s important that you set for your goal a reasonable, reachable amount of pages for your ebook ... such as 30 pages. Then, divide that goal number of pages into your 30 days. In this example, it would mean writing just ONE page per day (very realistic!) for 30 days and your ebook will be completed. Victory! The finish line!
Certainly there are a wide variety of other “keys” to being successful as an ebook writer (choosing the right topics, learning to outline well, brainstorming ideas, marketing, etc.) but these three form a solid foundation for you to build upon as you continue to learn more about information publishing. K = KEEP it concise. E = ENJOY yourself. Y = YIELD results. See you on your victory lap!
"Some people are under the impression that blogs are good for SEO only if they're updated frequently. How much does frequency play into PageRank for blogs and other dynamic sites? "
Image via Wikipedia
There are limitless topics that you could write about. But to make the biggest positive impact on your business, the articles that work the best are those that match the interests of your niche market.
If your business is selling information products to stay-at-home moms who want to start their own at-home business, then you want to write articles that demonstrate your expertise in that area. When those readers get to your resource box at the end of your article, they’ll click on the link expecting more of the same great content. Writing articles for dog lovers, for instance, when your target market is aspiring work-at-home moms just doesn’t make sense.
The best explanation I've ever heard of this was by Jimmy D. Brown who coined the term “useful but incomplete”. What he meant was that your articles should be “useful” to your target audience, but “incomplete” in that they should lead the reader hungrily to seek more information from you. They'll turn to your resource box in search of more.
Quality is also a key ingredient to successful articles. While anyone can throw together a few sentences, combine a few paragraphs, paste on a resource box and call it an article, this slap-dash method is not likely to produce the results you desire. Quite simply, quality content is the key for any kind of success in article marketing.
Online article directories are filled with articles written by non-native language writers who don’t understand grammar or sentence structure, or by those who have simply copied what someone else wrote and plugged it into an article spinner without thought for the value of the finished article. Using such shoddy marketing methods will never help your article marketing efforts, and will likely brand you as unprofessional and harm your reputation as a business owner.
Most editors in search of content would rather find an expert on EzineArticles.com or LadyPens.com with 10 high-quality articles, than one with 500 junk articles. When editors and readers see junk articles, they assume that everything that person does is junk. Not a great way to build a business!
When you offer well-written, relevant content that helps your reader answer a question or gain new knowledge and understanding of a subject matter they're interested in, you'll establish yourself as an expert and advance your article marketing efforts and, ultimately, your business.
Helpful Resources:
Article Marketer
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Article marketing is one of the most popular methods of promoting a business online. Not only is it easy and low-cost, it works and anyone can do it! I’ve been doing it for years, and it’s my number one way of increasing page rank to my websites, and increasing traffic. 
By writing articles on your areas of expertise and offering this content free of charge to online and offline publishers, you can:
spread the word to your target market
demonstrate your professional know-how, and
create a body of work that continues to "sell" you and your website long after the initial article creation
Other website owners, bloggers, and newsletter publishers are constantly looking for quality content to provide to their readers. You help them out by providing your well-written, targeted articles. In return they include a plug about you and your business, called the "author resource box," at the bottom of the piece. The resource box includes a link to your site. So, they get free content, and you get free publicity. It's a win-win!
When writing your resource box try to entice people to click by offering something of value if they stop by for a visit. Use good copy writing skills to get the reader to take action.
You may be wondering if article marketing will work for your niche or industry. The short answer is yes! There are blogs and newsletters and ezines and websites on just about every topic under the sun, from accounting to Zoroastrianism.
Here's a short list of businesses that can benefit from article marketing:
Service providers.
Bloggers.
Affiliate marketers.
Ebook Authors.
Infoproduct sellers.
Online Store owners.
Coaches and consultants.
Realtors.
Podcasters.
Membership site owners.
Authors.
Speakers.
Network marketers.
In short, if you're selling something or trying to drive traffic to your website or blog, article marketing is for you. It's one of the most efficient ways to attract targeted visitors, to build trust among your readers, and to gain new customers or clients.
Here are some broad examples:
Bloggers can use article marketing to attract readers to their blogs and increase their subscriber base.
Webmasters can use article marketing to create valuable backlinks, and increase website traffic.
Writers can use article marketing to exhibit their writing skills, educate readers, and attract clients.
Hairstylists can use article marketing to share hair care tips, showcase their expertise, and attract business to their salons.
Dog trainers can use article marketing to share dog training lessons, and inform the public about the needs at a local shelter.
Whatever your passion, article marketing can benefit you and your business. When used correctly, it can successfully attract targeted traffic to your website or blog, grow your mailing list, help you become an expert in your field, build trust with your readers, make your website more popular, spread your name and website across the Web, add backlinks to your site, allow you to "advertise" free, brand yourself and your business, and generate sales.
As you can see, the benefits of article marketing are numerous.
Who can benefit from article marketing? You! And, it starts with just one article. So what are you waiting for, get busy!
Additional Resources to help:
Create Video for your articles with voiceover, animations, all the graphics and submit it to 17+ top video sites in 3 minutes flat- Click here to find out how http://www.articlevideorobot.com/specialoffer/msmerle
Ghostwriting: http://www.justaddsweat.com/ezGaffurl.php?offer=dakota6969&pid=1
You can now take all of your articles and turn them into
web pages instantly. All you need to do is create a
template for your articles, determine where the text of the
article will go, and use this easy to use software to turn
them into a complete website.
http://www.mikesteup.com/x.cgi?a=r&id=1&aid=6172&p=9
Hey Gang,
If you like Private Label Rights, this ones for you.
Ronnie Nijmeh from PLR.me just released an incredible PLR package.
It's a personal finance info product empire-in-a-box called: "Common Cents" – Click Here to check it out.
Here's what you get:
* 80+ Page, Never-Before-Released, Exclusive Book
* Exclusive Audio Interviews with Finance, Credit,
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* Private Label "Fixed Term Membership" with 16 Modules
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* 50 Personal Finance Articles from the PLR.me Back Catalog
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Here's the table of contents:
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Chapter 2: Staying Within Your Budget
Chapter 3: Reducing Expenses Without Affecting Your Lifestyle
Chapter 4: Saving Money on a Day to Day Basis
Chapter 5: Short Term Savings
Chapter 6: Long Term Savings
Chapter 7: Using Your Credit Cards Wisely
Chapter 8: Getting Out of Debt
Chapter 9: Ways to Bring in Extra Cash
Chapter 10: Should You Refinance Your Mortgage?
Chapter 11: Checking Your Credit Report Regularly
Chapter 12: Why a High Credit Score is Important
Chapter 13: How to Raise Your Credit Score
Chapter 14: International Credit Systems
Chapter 15: Protecting Your Identity
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Only 250 licenses are available, then it's gone for good.
"Can your videos be found on Google? Learn about Video Sitemaps, which help make your video content easier for users to search on Google."Everyone is telling you that video marketing is where it's at but what good are all those videos you're uploading if no one can find them. Listen in.
Hey Gang
I want you to be the first to know about the opening of a fantastic event... => http://giantgiveaway.com/go/787
It's called the "Giant Giveaway" and it just went live.
Inside, there are hundreds of freebies that you can download including marketing software, ebooks, MP3s, videos and more.
This is the type of stuff that's going to save you time, help you to make more money and REALLY allow you to enjoy life!
Go check it out. => http://giantgiveaway.com/go/787
You'll love what you find inside – I guarantee it!
Talk soon,
Merle
P.S. This is expected to be the biggest giveaway
event of the summer – but it's only around for a
limited time, so get over there asap:
Daniel Scocco of Blog Tips has released a new website and along with that, a free ebook. If you’ve been dying to build your own website but don’t know how or where to start this new site is for you. It’s called http://www.HowtoMakeAWebsite.net – It contains complete tutorials that will guide anyone, even a dummy, not you of course, on how to get it done.
Topics covered include how to chose a domain, picking a hosting plan, installing Wordpress and picking out a nice template. Make sure you subscribe to his newsletter while there and in exchange for subscribing you can download his new ebook “50 Mistakes to Avoid When Making Your Website” FREE. It is geared towards beginners, so if you already know the basics it’s not for you.
Daniel puts out excellent stuff, so if you have a minute go and check out his new website now at http://www.HowToMakeAWebsite.net and download your free ebook. Tell him “Merle” sent ya!
So you're not a technical or audio/video whiz, or you're so busy with your other business management tasks that you know you need to outsource your videos if it's ever going to get done. It is possible to outsource your video successfully. But like any outsourcing you do, you need to prepare and be aware of who you are hiring. 
Here's what you need to keep in mind when hiring a freelancer for your video marketing:
Know What You Need: If you don't know what you need from your assistant or your marketing, how can you expect anyone else to know? If you can describe exactly what you need from your assistant then you will have a great chance for getting just that back from them when the project is completed.
Check Their Video Portfolio: Check the abilities of the person you're considering hiring to see if their style suits your needs. Ask for references – and check them!
Prepare Materials and Logins: If there are specific materials and login information your assistant will need, it will save you a lot of time if you prepare everything ahead of time. If your assistant needs to email you every time they need something, you'll hold up the process while they wait for you to respond.
Find Reference Examples: Locate a few videos with the look and feel you like and forward those to your assistant. This will help your assistant make sure they're clear about what you're looking for.
Ask For Referrals: Asking for referrals is a great way to find qualified contractors. If you see a video online that you particularly like, contact the site owner to ask who created it. You'll know what kind of quality you'll be getting when you hire this way.
Be Open to Suggestions: Your contractor is an expert, so be open to suggestions from him or her. Explain your high-level goals, and then let them do their stuff.
Having a great team member or even a full team to handle your videos can be a real load off your mind. Just remember that successful outsourcing requires a careful blend of preparation and clarity on your goals, and willingness to let go and let the experts take over. Once you hit that sweet spot, you can cross one more thing off your To-Do list.
Additional Resources:
Article Video Robot: Turn your articles into video for just 0.97 cents. It’s a quick and easy way to dip your toes into video marketing.
A handy ebook loaded with resources for outsourcing just about anything an online entrepreneur can think of.
It's sad but true: There are literally billions of other videos, audios, images, and articles competing for your target market's attention. If your video is boring, nobody (except maybe you mother) is going to want to watch it. When creating a video for your business audience you must engage them or your efforts will fall completely flat. 
Creating effective, engaging videos may take you time and practice, especially if you don't feel particularly at ease in front of the camera. These tips can help you on your way to effective video marketing:
Engaging Video Tip #1: Know Your Market
Your target market has similar interests, issues and problems. By knowing, understanding and listening to your target market, you're automatically speaking in their language and appealing to their interests. That makes you engaging!
Engaging Video Tip #2: Keep Your Energy High
If someone is an energetic, charismatic speaker, they could read the phone book aloud and make it sound good. People respond to excitement, so make sure yours is high. You don't want to over-hype it, but imagine you're talking to a group of kindergarteners and have to work extra-hard to keep their attention. Our ears are trained to pick up on change, so give your voice inflection and enthusiasm, varying its pitch and loudness.
Engaging Video Tip #3: Using Effects
Our eyes are drawn to bright colors, beautiful images and motion. See how you can incorporate these elements in your intro and closing. Watch a few videos on Youtube.com to see what captures your attention, and model what works for you.
Engaging Video Tip #4: Eye Contact
One of the most important aspects of person-to-person presentation is eye contact. Talk to the camera like it's a person, a valuable potential client or a friend. Be natural, be real and be yourself. Again, this may take some practice but you'll get it. When you get good at making eye contact you will be well on your way to establishing valuable relationships with your potential audience.
Engaging Video Tip #5: Prepare
You might be one of those rare people with the gift of gab, shooting off a polished presentation with no preparation. If you are, great. If not, then you'll need to prepare to make sure you say what you want to say in your video and get you key messages across. Don't forget to include your call to action so your audience knows exactly what to do after they've finished watching the video.
Creating an engaging video takes work. However, it's well worth the effort as your video will be working for you twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week for many, many years to come.
If you've ever wondered if using Google Analytics on your website will hurt you in the rankings department, give a listen in as Matt Cutts explains.
Do you use Google Analytics? Why or why not? Please leave your comments below:
There is a lot to know with online business. You can find out what you
need to know if you are willing to put in the time. One way to expand your knowledge base and your business is through affiliate programs.
What are Affiliate Programs?
Affiliate programs are a marketing tool used by business owners and companies to promote their products and/or services with help from other business people. The program owner creates tools in the form of graphics, copy, and more for their affiliates to use to promote those products and services. They provide specially coded links that affiliates use to send their own customers or readers to the program owner’s website. The affiliate gets credit for each person that performs the agreed upon action (a sale, a referral, a click, etc.) in the form of commissions.
Affiliate programs work well for two reasons.
The business owner has a product or service already created and needs more people to help spread the word about it.
The affiliate (that’s you) makes money through marketing, but they don’t have to develop any of the tools or products of their own to do it.
Benefits of Becoming an Affiliate
All affiliate programs are not created equal. It is best to research them to see which holds the most promise for you. Part of that “promise” is a toolbox full of online goodies to help you promote the product. As an affiliate you get to learn how to use these tools.
Many affiliate programs also offer training courses. They provide not only the tools but also articles, eBooks and reports on how to conduct Internet marketing, search engine optimization and other marketing strategies. For the entrepreneur who wants to grow their business but needs additional knowledge to do it, you can get it here for free. And, you can test out what you learn by promoting affiliate products.
Affiliate owners also provide support for their affiliates. They answer questions, publish newsletters and offer incentives to help you grow both as an affiliate and as a businessperson.
This offers you the opportunity of a lifetime for your business. Instead of investing in courses that cost you money that you may not have to spare right now (you can go back and pay for a course later as you increase your business skillset) you can learn from affiliate owners who are perfecting their own business craft and helping you do the same.
Now, the affiliate owner doesn’t want to spend unnecessary money either since they are also in the business of making money. So, they will show you ways to market their products that get the job done with minimum expense and time.
Online businesses can come with a steep learning curve. Offset the cost of learning by getting some “on the job training” through a good affiliate program. As you are earning money, you are also learning skills to grow your business without the high cost.
Looking Ahead in Your Business
Once you get your business to the point you’re ready to grow it, think about starting your own affiliate program too. Harness the power of other business owners to get yourself and you business noticed by more people.
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Choosing Affiliate Programs to Promote with Your Blog (brighthub.com)
Remember, the old days of Google Answers? I do as I actually was one of their editors and answered questions for pay. Google closed up show awhile ago but Yahoo Answers is still alive and kicking at http://answers.yahoo.com/ . It’s a site where people post their burning questions and then hope that someone with deep wisdom will come along and shine some light on it. Sounds easy, right?
Well, it appears that Facebook may want a piece of that action. They’ve posted a “help wanted” form for writers’ over at http://www.facebook.com/product_application/ You simply answer three questions to the best of your ability and submit for Facebook’s approval. It doesn’t appear that there’s any money involved but if you’re selected you could get a trip to California to tour their headquarters. So, if you’ve got plenty of free time on your hands and don’t care about money, you might want to apply.
Image via Wikipedia
By Merle
If you sell products from your website, you've no doubt experienced "shopping cart abandonment". What's that? Never heard of it? Let me clarify. This is what happens when someone comes to your website, browses, and actually clicks on products to purchase, adds them to their cartbut never completes the checkout process.
So why does this happen and what can you do about it? I'm so glad you asked. There actually have been studies done that show some of the reasons why people leave in such a rush. By avoiding these things in your check-out process you can help plug the leak, avoid abandonment, and rack up more sales.
Here we go: 
1) Make it Clear: Ever bought something online and wondered where you were in the checkout process? Make sure you give crystal clear instructions as to what information is needed and why, and exactly where the customer is in the buying process. I've even seen some shopping cart systems that label the screens during checkout as "step 1 of 3", "step 2 of 3". Avoid confusion for a more confident assured buyer.
2) Shipping Charges and Method of Delivery: Don't hide the amount you charge for shipping. Nothing will make someone run away faster than waitinguntil the last screen and revealing inflated shipping charges. Tell them exactly how much it will be, don't make them guess or search for it. Also, if you offer multiple shipping methods show them their options. Options on a website are always good. Shoppers like options not surprises.
3) Saving Carts: How many times have you been in the process of buying something online and the phone rings or someone knocks on the door? Offering a "save cart for later" function is a wonderful way to get distracted shoppers to come back later and complete their purchase. Isn't that better then having the session time out and losing them completely?
4) Errors: If the buyer makes an error during the checkout process, make sure to clearly point out what is missing or wrong on the page and what theyneed to do to correct it. Nothing infuriates a buyer faster than to have a step of the checkout process fail and not be shown exactly what it is. Also, if they have to go back and correct something, make sure the information they already entered is still intact, usually done by using cookies. As an added step, you may want to offer a phone number or some sort of online help for those having ordering problems.
5) Guarantee Policy: Reassure the buyer with your return policy, privacy policy and that their credit card information is safe. Provide a secure feeling for their personal information by using logos and securing trust seals if you can. Your job is to instill confidence in your website so people feel confident in doing business with you.
6) Too Many Hoops: Don't make buyers jump through too many hoops by limiting the number of steps in the checkout process. If you don't need certain information, don't ask for it. Simple and Sweet is better then long and tedious. K.I.S.S (Keep it simple stupid)
7) Payment Options: When it comes to the web, options are a good thing. Try to offer a number of different payment options such as mail-in, fax or even a phone option if you can take orders that way. There are still some people who don't feel safe entering their credit card information online.
8) Registration: Ever been to a website and wanted to make a purchase but couldn't until you registered, set up a user ID and password? How frustrating is that? Try not to force people to register before purchasing. It's annoying and adds an extra unnecessary step to the checkout process.
If they must register, make sure you point out the many benefits they'll receive if they do. For example, advance notice of any specials or sales.
9) Delivery Time: Unfortunately we live in an "instant society" where everyone wants everything "yesterday". Make it clear when products are added to the shopping cart exactly how long until they arrive at the customer's door. If it's 4 to 6 days, say so, don't make them wait every day with their nose pressed against the glass for "Mr. Mailman" or the UPS driver. Not a positive experience.
10) Load Time: Make sure your website pages aren't overly bloated and don't take too long to load. Waiting for the hourglass to disappear is sure to send shoppers clicking for their back button.
So there you have it,ten simple ways you can improve your visitor's shopping experience when visiting your website. These tips will not only put more money in your pocket, but make for a happier customer all the way around.
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Social media is a great way to spread the word about your website. If you've been to any webpage that displays a "like" button and have always wondered how to do this on your own site watch this video and learn how easy it really is. This is a great way to let Facebook users share your content.
