Viral Marketing 101 - Not Using It Could Kill Your Business!

Creativity.

This is one virtue a site must possess to lead the race in the ruthless competition in the Internet based business. Because competition and rivalry abounds, every method of marketing must be employed and utilized.

It doesnt matter if you have a killer product or a professionally designed website, if people dont know that you exist, it doesnt matter, and you are not going to make it big. Worst of all, your business could just get killed.

While there are so many methods and schemes used by e-commerce sites today, there are still some of those that can help you with an extra boost in the popularity ratings. One of these is the so called Viral Marketing.

While the term Viral easily depicts a virus, a word very much dreaded by all computer owners, it is not what it seems. You do not actually use a computer virus to spread your business; not only is that illegal, you would probably tick off all of your customers (so much for return sales). Besides, everyone has had enough of all those pop up ads and spyware anyways.

Viral Marketing Overview

Viral Marketing, also known otherwise as Viral Advertising, is a marketing technique used to build public awareness of a product or company. It employs many forms of media to reach out to the public without actually promoting the product as would a traditional advertisement. Viral Advertising is much more elegant and stealthy in its means. By taking on other forms of communication, your marketing piece could get a person hooked and be obliged or amused to actually pass it on, with the product or company advertisement along with it.

In a nutshell, companies ride on the idea that if people like the content of media they will pass it on to their friends and family. They sponsor the certain media, such as a cool flash game, funny video, amusing story and such, which one may pass on to another with the company brand or logo or the products description or any other content to help promote the company or its product.

Viral marketing has become a popular means of advertising and marketing because they are relatively low cost. To avoid being tagged as spam mail, viral marketing counts on the eagerness of one person to pass the product along. If a person sees the name of the person they know as the sender, it most likely will not end up in junk mail and, even better still, may even get read.

Using Viral Marketing to your advantage

The main and foremost advantage of Viral Marketing is that you get a lot of publicity and public awareness about your site and your company. You get to generate a flow of traffic that are potential customers. With a little ingenuity and imagination, plus some incentives or prizes, you can reach out to a great number of people and announce your existence. All of this can be done for free (or darn near close to it!).

Most every company and website is catching on to the efficacy of Viral Marketing and Advertising. Not using it could kill your business. Along with other schemes and methods in promoting your site, like Search Engine Optimization and such, Viral Marketing could easily push you ahead in the ratings game.

Viral Marketing is a stealthy way to get people to know about you and your company. You get them to pass your advertisement along. It is so inexpensive that not doing it could be downright business suicide. All it takes is a great idea, a good addicting game, a funny story; many ideas are still out there. Create a gossip or a buzz, many movies are promoted by using scandals and gossips to make them more popular. Remember the movie The Blair Witch Project? Compare that with Blair Witch 2 this time with traditional advertising as opposed to word of mouth - it was a failure in comparison.

Now its your turn to use viral marketing to work wonders for you. Act now and reap the benefits Viral Marketing will provide for you and your sales figures.

Mathew Butka is a stay at home dad of 2 boys, small business owner, and entrepreneur. One of Mathew's current projects is on business funding, non-profit & charity fund raising can be found at http://www.WhyFundraiser.comKori Blog61542
Kelli Blog91659

What Happens When Associations Goes Wrong?

File extensions are the data that tells the operating system what program to associate with the file. If the association goes wrong the operating system will not open the file. You need a registry cleaner to solve this problem.

Here we are discussing a very strange yet important use of registry cleaner. Every file is saved with its file extension. This extension will follow a period such as .doc, which means that it is a MS word document. Or an .xls extension that means it is meant to open in Microsoft Excel. Microsoft Windows uses these extensions to associate programs with the file and automatically launches the program when the file is selected for viewing. Here is where the technicality of association can go wrong. There are two scenarios. One when the program is not loaded to run the file and the other when the extension or association is wrong. All this information is entered in the registry of the system and if the extension or association is wrong or the program does not exist the data or file is redundant and will not load. This will remain in the registry, as it is not automatically deleted. What you need is a registry cleaner to do the job for you.

Registry cleaners are available all over the Internet. A search in any search engine with the appropriate keywords such as windows registry cleaner or free registry cleaner will bring you to a, usually free, download. This is software that takes a few seconds, maybe a couple of minutes to download on your system. It is easier to run. There are two stages to running the program. One stage, the first, is to scan your registry for redundant entries such as bad associations or extensions. This process may take two or three minutes. Then the second stage is to clean the registry with the free registry cleaner software. This takes a split second. Because the registry cleaner has already scanned the system and selected the files that need to be deleted from the system.

There are number of free registry cleaners that can be downloaded for free. Some of the popular ones are free windows xp registry cleaner, registry tweaknow cleaner and abexo registry cleaner. All these registry cleaners can remove redundant associations such as files that are inoperable because the associated programs are not loaded. If such a file exists, the system will spend a lot of time looking for the associated program in the background and slow the system down. In the end the association program will display that the file cannot be opened because the associated program could not be found.

It is always advisable to run registry cleaner software on your system to maintain the efficiency of the system and have a tension free PC.

Arvind Singh is admin and technical expert associated with development of computer security and performance enhancing software like Registry Cleaner, Window Cleaner, Anti Spam Filter etc. More information can be found at http://www.pcmantra.comKalindi Blog91144
Kristen Blog7326

The Harsh Reality Of Starting Your Internet Marketing Business

Im guessing that if you had a food franchise business offline, you would treat it as if your life depended on it. You would probably even be willing to work 12-16 hours a day to keep your franchise running smoothly!

What you need to realize when starting an internet marketing business is that it is still a real business. Since you already invested up to a million dollars to start up your franchise, it makes perfect sense that you would do whatever it takes to first break even.

And after breaking even you would then wait a few years before you see a positive return on your million dollar investment. Most of you have a realistic mindset when it comes to a real million dollar business like that.

But what happens when most of you start a home based internet business? For most of you, the first thing to come to mind is fast money and get rich quick and effortless cash. Thats okay, thats what I thought when I first started in internet marketing.

However, this kind of mindset leads you into thinking that all you need to do throw up a fancy website, watch TV, hang out with friends, and play in your local sports league and you would be rich!

The reality is, to make decent money over the internet it takes time and effort, just like a real business. The only difference is that you are running a business over the internet and it also requires time and commitment.

You already know that an advantage of an internet marketing business is that it has virtually no overhead compared to a traditional franchise. BUT because its so cheap to start up, that is also internet marketings disadvantage.

Naturally, you and I tend to treat an internet marketing business more like a hobby than a real cash flow generating business because its easy to get in and easy to get out. Your life would not dramatically change if you started and did nothing with it and failed.

But in a traditional fast food franchise, you would starve if you had that kind of mindset. But because you put down everything you possess (home, life savings, etc) into your franchise; your focus, determination, and sacrifice to perform and treat it seriously is an absolute must.

You understand that about a franchise, so let me ask you what would happen if you treated your franchise like a hobby? What if you treated your fast food franchise like you treated your internet marketing hobby?

If you have a J-O-B, what will happen if you didnt feel like showing up to work for a week because your friends were coming to visit?

What if you decided to close your franchise a little early because you must watch that new episode of Sex In The City? With that kind of attitude and lack of discipline, you would get fired and your franchise will close down.

Before starting an internet business, or if you havent given your internet business the attention it deserves, ingrain in your mind right now that you need to treat your internet marketing business as seriously as your job or business.

Like your job and business, expect to put in the time and effort into building your foundation with internet marketing. Only then will you be able to see the rewards and lifestyle that your internet business can give you.

Alan Quan is a certified Internet Coaching Empire coach and specializes in helping people build their own successful internet marketing business. Visit his website at http://e-bizcoachalan.com/success.htm and find out how he can help you to quickly accomplish your goals and boost your internet profits.Keren Blog64659
Katuscha Blog16966

DNA Analysis and Intra-Agency Databases

In the 1990s DNA testing started to become popular particularly in the area of Law Enforcement. Old pieces of evidence to include hair, blood and semen which were once not able to provide evidence now were able to be processed and evidence and a DNA profile could be extracted from the materials. Thanks to DNA many unsolved cased were able to be solved and many suspects of crimes were finally able to be charged. DNA has also helped the innocent from wrongful incarceration. DNA evidence is becoming mandatory in states in terms of death row inmates and proving that the right person is behind bars. In 2000, Illinois Governor George Ryan announced his plan to suspend all of the states executions indefinitely. Governor Ryans made this landmark statement after DNA testing showed that 13 Illinois death-row prisoners could not have committed the capital crimes of which they were convicted.

DNA is not just putting people in prison; it is also ensuring that those in prison should be there. DNA is being used to confirm the conviction and ensure that the right person is serving time for the crime. In what is bring described as the first effort of its kind San Diego prosecutors are reviewing hundreds of old cases to see if longtime prison inmates can be cleared by DNA evidence. If evidence is found, the San Diego County District Attorneys office will have it tested for free if an inmate agrees. Not only does this get innoscent people out of prison it also helps to build out the national DNA database. Part of the DNA testing of inmates is that the inmates DNA will end up in a national database where it may be used to solve other cases which have gone unsolved. San Diego Country Prosecutors are looking at a total of 560 criminal cases.

Since DNA has been introduced thousands of suspects and prison inmates have been cleared and released as a result of DNA evidence showing they could not have been responsible for the crime. A popular case that outlined this is the Larry Youngblood case. Larry Youngblood was convicted in 1985 of child molestation, sexual assault, and kidnapping. He was sentenced to ten years and six months in prison. In October 1983, a ten year old boy was abducted from a carnival in Pima County, Arizona, and molested and sodomized repeatedly for over an hour by a middle aged man. The victim was taken to a hospital, where the staff collected semen samples from his rectum as well as the clothing he was wearing at the time of the assault.

Based on the boy's description of the assailant as a man with one disfigured eye, Youngblood was charged with the crime. He maintained his innocence at trial, but the jury convicted him, based largely on the eyewitness identification of the victim. No serological tests were conducted before trial, as the police improperly stored the evidence and it had degraded. Expert witnesses at trial stated that, had the evidence been stored correctly, test results might have demonstrated conclusively Youngblood's innocence.

Larry Youngblood appealed his conviction, claiming the destruction of potentially exculpatory evidence violated his due process rights, and the Arizona Court of Appeals set aside his conviction. He was released from prison, three years into his sentence, but in 1988, the Supreme Court reversed the lower court's ruling, and his conviction was reinstated (Arizona v. Youngblood, 488 U.S. 51). Youngblood remained free as the case made its way through the Arizona appellate court system a second time, but returned to prison in 1993, when the Arizona Supreme Court reinstated his conviction.

In 1998, Youngblood was released on parole, but was sent back to prison in 1999 for failing to register his new address, as required by Arizona sex offender laws. In 2000, upon request from his attorneys, the police department tested the degraded evidence using new, sophisticated DNA technology. Those results exonerated Youngblood, and he was released from prison in August 2000. The district attorney's office dismissed the charges against Larry Youngblood that year.

In 1990, the FBI established its database containing genetic profiles from unsolved crimes and from convicted offenders. In October 1998, the FBI's National DNA Index System (NDIS) became operational. The database is the (CODIS) Combined DNA Index System, a computerized forensic database of DNA profiles of offenders convicted of serious crimes (such as rape, other sexual assaults, murder, and certain crimes against children), as well as DNA profiles from unknown offenders. CODIS generates investigative leads in crimes where biological evidence is recovered from the crime scene using two indexes: the forensic and offender indexes. By 1998, every state had enacted legislation establishing a CODIS database and requiring that DNA from offenders convicted of certain serious crimes be entered into the system.

Today, the CODIS database contains about 400,000 DNA profiles, and the number is growing. CODIS is implemented as a circulated database with three tiers - local, state, and national. NDIS is the highest level in the CODIS hierarchy, and enables the laboratories participating in the CODIS Program to exchange and compare DNA profiles on a national level. All DNA profiles originate at the local level (LDIS), then flow to the state (SDIS) and national levels. SDIS allows laboratories within states to exchange DNA profiles. The tiered approach allows state and local agencies to operate their databases according to their specific legislative or legal requirements. It is being enhanced daily through the work of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies who take DNA samples from biological evidence gathered at crime scenes and from offenders themselves. The computerized CODIS system can rapidly identify a perpetrator when it finds a match between an evidence sample and a stored profile. As of 2003, the database had profiled approxminaly 66,000 unsolved cases and more than 1.5 million convicted offenders.

Matches made among profiles in the Forensic Index can link crime scenes together; and even identifying serial offenders. Based on a match, police in multiple jurisdictions can coordinate their respective investigations, and share the leads they developed independently. Matches made between the Forensic and Offender indexes provide investigators with the identity of the perpetrator(s). After CODIS identifies a potential match, qualified DNA analysts in the laboratories contact each other to validate or refute the match.

Everyone benefits from having a national DNA database and DNA information has helped many victims, families and people who were either the victim of a crime or victimized by the criminal justice system and wrongfully convicted. The DNA database provides a very large resource which provides a conclusive way to show whether or not someone had anything to do with a crime. The database has also closed thousands of cases which would have otherwise gone unsolved indefinitely.

Kenneth R Tapscott is a Criminal Justice major currently working in the law enforcement field. More information can be obtained at http://www.tapscott.info.Kee Blog38008
Lanette Blog43339

Spanish Translation Software: Reach more, Expand more

Spanish is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. In fact, Spanish is spoken by almost 400 million people in 21 different countries. While it is the official language of Spain and many Latin American countries, Spanish is understood across the world. Therefore, whether its business, social welfare or any other pursuit, Spanish holds the potential of taking your communication across the world.

In the compressed global world of today, when communication has gained the status of all importance, you can hardly afford to ignore such a sizable segment of world population. This is part of the reason why companies and websites offering translation services have multiplied like never before. But the services of companies or human translators might prove to be too expensive if you have frequent and recurrent need for Spanish translations.

Websites that offer free translating service, on the other hand, are appropriate for short and non-elaborate translations. In fact these websites are ideal to learn new words in a different language or supplement other modes of translation.

So what choice do you have if you need Spanish translation on a day to day basis? As would be the case if you receive business queries in and corporate communications Spanish; or you have a website which receives significant amount of Spanish-speaking visitors; or you are a student who needs to understand Spanish documents. In all these cases you will require a mode of translation which is easy, hassle free and totally affordable.

This is where Spanish translation software comes in. Translation software is not only of the easiest and affordable ways of language translation, it is also one of the most efficient ones. The software works 24/7 and has the lowest costs per translation.

What can Spanish translation software do for you?

1. Convert any text into a foreign language
2. Translates e-mail message to/from a foreign language
3. Translates letters, reports, and memos in a foreign language
4. Translates training manuals and employee handbooks in a foreign language
5. Perfect tool for converting web pages, Excel files, Microsoft Word and Power Point presentations and PDF files.

Truly Versatile

No matter what your requirements are, so long as it is Spanish translation, there is software that perfectly suits your needs. Spanish translation software is unparalleled when it comes to translating web pages, faxes, e-mail, spreadsheets, correspondence, business documents and letters too. It is also remarkably easy to use. You can work with the software inside Microsoft Office. All you have to do is open the document, choose the language and click the translate button. The document is translated to the preferred language almost instantly.

Highly accurate and fast too

The software translators work within fraction of seconds and can be trained for high levels of accuracy. Generally, translation software can deliver high levels of gisting which means that the document may not be 100% accurately translated but you can make out what it is all about and spend little time editing and proofing. That is why training the software is one of the crucial determinants which differentiate a good from average software.

The speed of the software can be judged from the fact that it can translate a 250 word document in 30 minutes.

Getting around Spanish dialects

If you are looking for Spanish translation software, you will also have to get the issues related to Spanish dialects clarified. There are numerous dialects in Spanish, such as Mexican Spanish, Cuban Spanish, Puerto Rican Spanish and Latin American Spanish. There are also other dialects as Andalusian, Murcian, Aragonese, Navarrese, Leonese, and Canary Islands Spanish.

However the one dialect that is mostly used by Spanish translation software is Castillian Spanish, otherwise known as Neutral Spanish. This is the dialect that all official communication are created in, books, movies and radio programs are also created in this dialect. If you choose good translation software, you can train it to recognize different words from other dialects by building your own customized dictionaries and by building translation memory etc. Need a Mexican Spanish Translation? Just create an additional dictionary of those specific terms to localize the document.

Karen Force makes it easy and provides a Spanish Translation Software which converts any text into an foreign language. To recieve the free part minicourse visit the http://www.translationsoftware4u.com.

Karen Force is a translation specialist at Translation Software 4u. Translation Software 4u is trusted by people from world over for Spanish translation software offering software which combines affordability with accuracy; their products are well distinguished from hundreds of other software on offer.Kippie Blog57723
Kristan Blog82772

Online Sports Betting V/S Offline Sports Betting

There is an interesting aspect to most sporting events, besides being convenient and inexpensive form of entertainment. The demand for different sports has resulted in increase in demand for Sports betting line all over the world. Many people are considering wagering on their favorite sports game not just to make money but also to add excitement to the game.

Online sports' betting is an organized form of gambling. It is more convenient and inexpensive as compared to land-based sports betting. Online sports' betting is an adaptation that makes wagering on different sports game more convenient and profitable.

Initially people had to move to land based places just to wager on the outcome of a particular sports activity. However today with the development of the Internet sports betting is become far more convenient and easy as you can wager on any sports activity right from your own house 24/7. Online sports betting has seen a steady rise as more and more people are finding it convenient to bet from their homes any time of the day.

Online sports betting also gives you an option to bet on different sports book. It is unlike offline sports betting where you do not have multiple sports book options.

Starting with online sports betting

Here are some useful tips that can make your sports betting venture more convenient and simple:

Signup with multiple online sports book websites

Always read the terms and conditions of different sports book before betting on a particular sports activity.

Do not get addicted to online sports betting. You need to know your limits and avoid unnecessary losses.

Satisfy yourself about the processes followed by the bookmaker. Do not fall prey to unscrupulous or fraudulent operators.

Online sports betting can be enjoyable provided you play your odds right. You can learn but you must also resist the temptation of becoming a compulsive gambler.

Fransis Rodrigues is the author of this article. Visit to today http://www.superiorbook.com and http://www.onlinesportsbooks.co.uk for more information on the subject. Kippie Blog57723
Katharine Blog19145

All Grown Up: Why You Don't Need a Website

Why Your Small Business Needs a Web Solution Not a Website

Raise your hand if you have a website for your small business. Now keep it raised if it is generating a significant volume of prospects or sales. Not holding your hand up anymore? You are not alone.

Just a few years ago, small companies flocked to the web in droves, rushing to post their first website, anxious at the prospect of low-cost instant exposure. The web was going to be the great equalizer, putting small business on par with the big brand names, dangling the promise of visitors flocking to a company's site to purchase its wares or partake in its services. Sound familiar? Unfortunately, for most small businesses and organizations, the promise fell short and company sales did not skyrocket from an unending march of site visitors.

So, what happened? For one, the web quickly became ultra competitive. Millions of sites sprang up in every business category making it virtually impossible to be found in the search engines. What little bit of traffic the businesses may have enjoyed when the site was first launched began to dry up. Also, as the web evolved to become a more interactive user experience, it became more technologically complex and many small business websites did not keep up. The other part of the problem was in the approach; not understanding that just putting together a website, even a pretty one, and finding some faceless company offering cheap web hosting services is not likely to make you the next great success story.

A large hurdle that many small business owners and managers face is the tendency to compartmentalize the web into a few oversimplified tasks: grab a cheap domain name, find a budget small business website design and development person, look for some impossibly low-priced website hosting, and then expect their website to magically appear on page one of Google. Unfortunately, this ends up being a waste of time and money.

A Solutions-Based Approach with Professional Guidance

To create an effective web presence requires a solutions-based approach with clear ideas about what you want to accomplish and who the audience is you are targeting. The right elements have to be present; a well orchestrated website design with cohesive branding, solid technical acumen, clearly defined objectives for the organization, reliable small business web hosting services and some method of marketing your site and tracking the results. The web is constantly evolving and search engine competition is fierce. Being successful on the web requires consistently evaluating the site's effectiveness based on your objectives, understanding the latest technologies and trends, having a dynamic website marketing plan and constantly fine tuning.

While you don't have to spend a fortune to create real value on the web, you should also be realistic. Understand that being successful will require an investment that you should plan for and a clear vision of how your website fits into the goals and objectives of the organization. If you don't have the experience and technical resources in-house, working with a professional web solutions provider, preferably one specializing in small business web design and development can provide great benefits. A good starting point in the process is to have an understanding of the core elements that are part of a successful website strategy and how they fit together.

The Elements of a Web Solution

1) Domain names - Choosing the right domain name is an important branding decision which impacts how your organization is perceived and also how it is found in the search engines. Purchasing from a cheap bulk registrar or choosing can spell trouble.

2) Website Design & Development Services> - Find a provider that specializes in small business web design and development. An organization that offers a solutions-based approach can assist your company in doing thorough needs analysis and in designing all of the elements to work well together. First impressions count!

3) E-mail Management - E-mail is a key communication tool for your business. The right system will help you maximize communications within the company, on the road and with your customers.

4) Social Media - Social media such as blogging, Podcasting and other web 2.0 tools can greatly enhance customer communications. Your web services company should be able to help you evaluate how social media tools can best benefit your web presence and business objects.

5) Small Business Website Hosting Services - All web hosting is NOT created equal. There are many nuances and technical consideration involved with hosting solutions. It is best to stay away from budget hosting companies. Look for a managed hosting provider who can help you select the right plan for your web solution goals, get your website up and running and support you as it grows and evolves.

6) Website Maintenance - How will your site be maintained and updated? Having both small business web development and managed web site hosting as a package is immensely helpful for maximizing web server resources, identifying problems and keeping the site maintained and updated.

7) E-Commerce - Will you be actually selling on your site or using it for lead generation or information dissemination? If you are selling products, who will create and maintain your product database. How will transactions be handled? What about web server requirements? Working with a professional can help ensure you make the right choices for your e-commerce site.

8) Business Process Interaction (database development, customer relationship management, integration with your business management systems) - A website needs to be more than just an ad on the Internet to be effective as a business tool. There are many ways the web can be used to improve your business processes and integrate with your existing systems such as accounting or contact management.

9) Website Marketing - How will people find you on the web? Will you optimize your site for organic search or employ paid marketing techniques or a combination? What directories should you list your site in? Search engine marketing has evolved to be a complex specialty. It's critical that you understand the tools available for driving traffic to your site and if needed, know how to evaluate and engage a web marketing specialist.

10) Website Analytics and Conversion - Having a great site isn't enough if your visitors aren't doing what you intended; buying something, contacting your company or using your site for an information source. Does your site have usability issues? What kind of reporting will you use to track site visitors? What do you need to know and do to convert your visitors into action-takers?

It's a Process and a Work in Progress

While there is certainly a lot to think about, creating the best possible website solution for your business doesn't have to be overwhelming. Your website can and should be a work in progress, evolving as your business grows.Because most small businesses do not have an internal IT staff to handle the technical elements of web development and planning, working with a web solutions provider that specializes in small business website hosting services and small business web design and development is a good start. Such an organization can help you identify your goals, manage the technical aspects of your site and guide you in your marketing efforts. They can also help you work within your budget to develop a plan that combines all the elements into a cohesive whole for creating and maintaining a successful web presence.

Conclusion

The web has grown up to be a terrific marketing medium for small businesses and organizations. Done right, it can be the most cost effective and powerful marketing and communication tool in your arsenal. The promise is still there. However, to truly leverage the power of the web, it is important to take a good, hard look at the website you currently have or the one you are thinking about creating. The elements of a successful web presence: small business web hosting, website design and development and web marketing are only the framework for a well thought-out web solution designed to reach your customers and truly benefit your business.

Ilene Rosoff is the president and founder of The Launch Pad, a 15-year-old Florida-based technology services company specializing in small business web hosting services, small business web design and development, and business information technology solutions for local and national clients with zero to sixty employees. Visit http://www.launchpadonline.com to request ano-cost technology or web assessment for your organization.Kathryn Blog78511
Karrie Blog90474

Free Image Hosting Service

Image hosting is a part of most web hosting services, providing hosting solutions for images instead of words. Most web hosts that host web pages do allow image hosting as well, but most times you have to pay for those services, or of those that are offered with no charges, you are limited to the size or quality of images you can submit. Free image hosting however is not a faux promise, neither is it too good to be true.

Why may image hosting be necessary? Sometimes a person might wish to publish a web page, but may find that his server at home or at the point of production is not adequate enough to keep the page running on the internet in order that the published web page is to be continuously displayed, the server through which it is published must also run continuously on the internet. Also, a server also has to be able to support high traffic flowing to the websites that it connects to the Internet what would be the point of publishing a page without the intension of having people visit the page? If the server is shut off, then the page also goes offline and becomes inaccessible to the public. Web hosting is the service provided to persons who wish to have their web pages up on the internet at all times but who do not have the means or support to do so on their own. Web hosting services may be offered free of charge or they may require a service fee, but almost all web hosting packages include free image hosting services.

Image hosting is a big industry today, drawing almost 90% of the audience market. In fact, almost every site wants to publish a video advertisement or a music introduction in an attempt to increase his market size. Most sites that provide free image hosting services however will limit the amount or size of images that you can post. For example, if you have a site that is dedicated to providing ring tones, music videos, large amounts of photographs or any other image in very large amounts or with very big file attachments, you will not be allowed to publish via the free image hosting service. On the other hand, if you wish to post images on a blog site or any other site with size restrictions, then free image hosting is your solution.

Russell Hawkins is the author of this article on Free Image Hosting. Find more information of the subject at http://www.yourhostedimages.comKai Blog2332
Kassandra Blog24738

How to Put Video on Your Website

Maverick Marketing Series

Do you want to increase your website sales, web-traffic, or start your own online TV talk show? Would you like to broadcast your newsletter articles or videos over the Internet to others? Has this seemed impractical because video loads too slow, takes to much web space or just seems to hard to understand. Well welcome to the NEW world of instant loading, user friendly web video.

You may have noticed that a large number of websites are now featuring videos, everything from music videos, to online training. News is a popular use for presenting website video. Youve probably heard a lot about RSS (Really Simple Syndication), a format designed for sharing web content like news headlines. RSS will be covered in a future article.

Did you know?

That there are so many new advancements in online video and audio in the last year, almost anyone can have their own online radio or TV talk show, radio or television station without high fees, advanced technical knowledge, and no FCC (Federal Communications Commission) intervention or regulation. Just build a website, install your audio and/or video files, advertise, and youre in business. You can even broadcast your audio and video files through RSS feeds (well explain in a moment) to websites worldwide and Joint Venture (JV) with other website owners to include your video on their websites.

Why would you want to put video and audio on your website?

There are many reasons. We are now in the 21st Century and 2006 is said to be the year of online video. Video is a premier sales tool. Youve heard that a picture is worth a thousand words. How many words is a video with audio worth? A LOT! More than ever, people today are in a hurry and easily distracted, and even sensitively attuned to watching television many hours a day. TV is losing some of its ground to web-surfing.

Give the people what they want, video. Entertain, inform and educate them the way they are already trained for. Now its easier than ever to do this. Here, we are focusing on adding video / audio to your website for various purposes such as, marketing, training, V-Blogging, video sharing and etc. New technology has made it easy to add fast loading (called Streaming) video content to your website.

Until recently, between slow dial-up Internet connections and older technology, adding video wasn't practical for general website usage. But since over 60% of individuals online now have broadband access, and the new streaming technology, audio and video files can now be viewed online with little or no buffering. Buffering means to make the video viewable to your computer (the simple explanation). Therefore, video is now a feature that can be efficiently used online. There are still size and quality limitations to consider, but the industry is making progress in this arena almost daily.

The other problem hindering website video use was its complicated installation process. Its been very difficult for the average individual to add video files to their websites. Windows Player simplified this process but still had limitations. It played a few formats, but not the streaming .swf (Flash) files and you had to know how to install their player on your website to play the video. You needed to know html webpage code or have a program like Microsofts FrontPage to install the player and video on a webpage.

Now there are a few new solutions that make it easy for the average person to install video on a website without needing too much computer or webpage knowledge. If a person knows how to cut and paste a simple code into a webpage, they can ad existing video files to their site. The tutorials even teach how to do this for the absolute beginner.

The latest software is an integration of several individual modules assembled as one user friendly software package that permits anyone to convert most of the existing video formats into fast loading, high quality, and streaming website videos. This software even enables you to customize your video player, video size, and quality. There is no player or software for your website visitor to download since the player is built into your webpage and loads almost instantly.

There are many software programs available that claim its easy to install video on your website. Most dont work as promised. One good suite is Camtasia, but it is complex to use and cost several hundred dollars. A good user friendly, beginners level, feature-rich software should cost less than $100.

Video Content

Making video for a website is very easy today. A mass amount of people now have low cost digital video cameras. Many have video still cameras. New software makes it easy for non-technical individuals to create automatic training videos and presentation from still pictures. Well cover this feature in the next article in this web-video series.

Digital video and still cameras easily connect to your computer to upload the pictures from your camera to your computer in a digital format. One simple conversion to the new streaming format, making a video or audio player, and pasting the new code onto your webpage and youre in business.

Windows XP even includes Windows Movie Maker for editing your videos in your computer. This is beginner level software but makes high quality edits. Your video cam can give you the ability to immediately create training videos, have your own TV talk show and etc. You simply record your video on your computer, edit it if necessary, and save it in the new streaming video format. Do a series of these and you have prerecorded videos viewable by anyone with Internet access. If you would like additional information on this subject, visit my website or email me as referenced in my signature line below.

Bob Dean StanfordKarla Blog118
Kelcy Blog36599

Liseys Story By Stephen King: A Romance Just In Time For Halloween

Stephen King has published a new book that is supposed to be a romance. But it turns out to be a romance that should might best take place during Halloween. He has not only written about two characters who loved each other; he has reverted to character.

While based somewhat touchingly on his relationship with his wife, recently deceased, the story turns things around a bit. Now, the lead character is the wife, Lisey, who is going through the papers of her well-known writer-husband, recently deceased.

You guessed it. She discovers scary things.

While most of the story is about their marriage, Scott lives on in her minds eye (where the past is always present). And Scott lives on in the haunting sense that he has left his beloved Lisey hints and warnings, not just in the natural world but in a fantasy world they visited together.

So what we have is a novel with enough romance to give Mr. King and his fans a break from his usual scare-you-into-an-early-grave antics, but with enough frightening matter to invite the curiosity of his usual readers.

We continue to wonder what the entertainment value of being frightened is, especially in a real world, as we noted in our Dreadline, thats so frightening it makes Halloween night seem downright safe.

Given such a spooky everyday reality, youd think people would pay more for novels that make them feel, not more, but less spooked.

Tom Attea, humorist and creator of http://NewsLaugh.com, has had six shows produced Off-Broadway. Critics have called his writing "delightfully funny," "witty," with "good, genuine laughs" and "great humor and ebullience."Laraine Blog8707
Larisa Blog16531

My Own Prison?

I heard a story on the radio recently about two interesting men. One was the king and was extremely obese. He ate continually and was so fat that he couldnt even get through a door. He was deposed by the second man, who had a room built around the former king, with normal windows and a door that wasnt locked. He told the large man that he could leave anytime he wished, but at the same time he supplied him with four huge meals every day. Of course, the fatty couldnt resist the food, so he never escaped his own prison.

In our world today of Sugar and Spice and Everything Thrice, self-discipline and frugality are seldom found. We complicate our lives, create prisons of debt and illness and miss out on the finer things of life. My wife Rika, and I were walking along the beach at Indian Arm on a lovely summer day when we saw some kids lying on a huge blanket, playing with their hand-held Game Boy computer games. They could have been talking, swimming, boating, fishing, playing ball or just enjoying natures incredible beauty. The Game Boys captivated them.

My prison guard could be television, food, drugs but it is my own choice to be in jail. Simplify, cut back and get back to basics, lean and mean, sober and clean. Anything that you think you NEED, controls you and imprisons you. Set yourself free and use your resources to create a happy, healthy and contributing lifestyle. Take stock of your choices and project the consequences. Enough small choices lead to great consequences. Enough spider webs can be as strong as steel cables. We always have a choice, and its never too late to change. Try this: Set a goal to get up 20 minutes earlier every day and exercise, read a self development book, pray, meditate, or just take a brisk walk. In a few weeks you will see a difference. Create success habits.

Norman Lear said, Life is made up of small pleasures. Happiness is made up of those tiny successes. The big ones come too infrequently. And if you dont collect all these tiny successes, the big ones dont really mean anything.

For more than 19 years, Robin J. Elliott has worked with thousands of businesses in over 49 industries across the United States, Canada, and Africa. He specializes in helping small business entrepreneurs build wealth and gain access to new markets and profit centers through Joint Ventures. Through his Joint venture Seminars across North America he has thought thousands how to create increasing, multiple streams of income without cost or risk and very little time.Korie Blog85759
Katherina Blog49226

Engines Of Creation (Book Reviews)

Despite a massive assault by its critics, Engines of Creation is a truly revolutionary work, and Eric Drexler should be commended for launching a worldwide discussion on the topic of molecular manufacturing (MM), or molecular nanotechnology (MNT), as some refer to it. First of all, this is a book that needs to be updated, as the opening chapters deal in-depth with protein design and a later chapter tries to paint a picture of a future network of information known as "the Internet". But the remainder of the book is timeless. (Update: Since this review, Engines of Creation has been updated and replaced by Engines of Creation 2.0)

The true merit of Engines of Creation comes not from the argument of whether or not manipulation of individual molecules is possible. We already know that it is. Our bodies are filled with nature's own molecular machines. But the true worth of this book stems from its assumption that such technology will develop into a worldwide enterprise and will have enormous consequences for the human experience. The importance of the examination and study of those consequences cannot be overstated, and Drexler formed the Foresight Institute in an attempt to grapple with many of these issues. (Although personally, I recommend The Center for Responsible Nanotechnology as the best "think-tank" on molecular manufacturing's benefits and dangers).

The power to thoroughly and inexpensively control the structure of matter will effect every aspect of the human experience, and although it is a worthy endeavor to speculate on the implications for medicine, space exploration, ending poverty, etc., none of these benefits will be realized if we fail to work out a reasonable system of governance once molecular manufacturing becomes reality. The development of this technology will lead to the creation of new weapons of destructive power, possibly give rise to demagogues, and provide the conditions necessary to precipitate a dangerous, and possibly world-threatening, arms race between competing MM-enabled nation states. Although we have faced these concerns since the dawn of the Nuclear Age, it remains unclear as to whether or not the same principles of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) will still apply. Engines of Creation sparks the debate on how we will deal with the new problems that arise from man's ability to manipulate molecules, and in doing so, it provides an invaluable service to the human race.

Those concerned about our future and the world in which we live should read this book, because molecular manufacturing will define our future.

Britt GilletteKatuscha Blog52320
Kee Blog25532

Dealing With Criticism And Difference In Opinion

Why this is important

We often become emotionally disturbed during a disagreement, or an argument, or when someone criticizes us or disagrees with us. In such cases our personality usually feels hurt, demeaned and in danger.

When we feel this way, we destroy our own happiness, clarity and health and often behave in ways which we later regret.

A simple technique for gaining clarity is to:

1. Remember that concerning criticism, there are two possibilities:

a. The other person might be correct in his or her observations and criticism. In this case we would benefit by admitting it and making the proper adjustment in our behavior. We have everything to gain by listening and evolving through others comments.

What prevents us is the belief that we are not lovable if we are not perfect. Thus, we do not want to see or admit our faults. When we realize that we are worthy of love and respect even when we are not perfect or right, then we will be able to look at our faults.

b. The other person might be wrong. In this case, it is his or her projection, and we need not be affected by these misconceptions or projections. We have in this case the lesson of loving ourselves and also the others even when they perceive us in distorted and negative ways.

2. One solution would be simply not to react one way or the other at first, but to reflect upon what has been said for some time so as to evaluate whether or not it is true.

We can establish a space in our minds where we can store such questions about our personality structure or actions so as to observe objectively for ourselves if they are true. If they are not, then we simply continue on in the way we were.

We need not feel hurt, angry, defend ourselves, prove ourselves, or attack. When we feel inner security and self-worth, we do not need to react in these ways.

3. We can simply thank the other for this feedback and tell him or her that we will think about this observation and will gradually come to our conclusions, and if necessary, make changes.

We do not need to live our lives in accordance with others perceptions. We can listen to all, but follow ourselves.

Note:

A "thank you" is enough.

(Adapted from the "The Psychology of Happiness" by Robert Najemy)

Robert Elias Najemy, a life coach with 30 years of experience, is the author of over 20 books, 600 articles and 400 lectures on Human Harmony. Download wonderful ebooks, 100's of free articles, courses, and mp3 audio lectures at http://www.HolisticHarmony.com. Find 8 of his books at http://www.Amazon.comLaina Blog22895
Kimberley Blog58703

Use Web Directories Submission For Web Site Promotion

Sooner or later you realize that you need to do something with your web site promotion to get more visitors or generate more sales. You know that search engines bring huge traffic, and you start doing SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and promotion work for your site. You know that quality text content and correct meta tags are very important, and more important are links which lead to your site from other websites.

Submission to web directories is one of the main ways to get links for your site.

Web directory is a web site that includes categories and sub-categories where categorized websites listings are posted. When you submit listing to web directory, a link to your site is added. As you know, Google Page Rank (further PR for short) and link popularity are important factors of high search engines rankings. When your link is placed on a page with good PR is a plus to your link popularity, because your site gets piece of the pages PR. The more links your site gets the higher its rankings in search engines.

Few years ago for high rankings in search engines it was enough just to exchange links with other sites. Now Google recognizes such things and considering these links not natural discounts them in website popularity and PR calculation. Reciprocal link exchange can still be used as way to get visitors to your site if you exchange links with good high traffic sites, but for building ranking many one-way natural links are needed.

The links must be SEO-friendly: static, direct, and without "nofollow" attribute; they must be on a page that has some PR, surrounded by text content related to your site theme and not more than 30 other sites links. More links on a page will devaluate piece of PR your site gets from the page.

Web directory that offers such links is called SEO friendly web directory and is really worth even paying some small amount for submission because your link will be found and indexed by search engines in just a couple of days and it will be a "plus" to your site link popularity.

Usually web directory listing consists of linked title, URL, and description, and also can display site home page thumbnail, Page Rank, detailed description, reviews by visitors, and other. Listings can be free, free with reciprocal, regular paid, and paid premium.

Free listing is a regular listing, its plus that you pay nothing for inclusion, but this type of listings doesn't guarantee permanent place for your link because newly submitted links will move it to the further pages with lower PR.

Option of free with reciprocal link listing you can select in a paid directory if you don't want to pay but still want to add your site. Some web directories consider this type of listings as a kind of premium, and give benefits of placement to your link until you keep their reciprocal link alive.

Regular paid listing you may pay for inclusion to a really good web directory, which is SEO friendly and will really give positive results to your site promotion.

Premium paid listing is always placed above regular listings and can be added to top categories pages with good PR. Such type of listing guarantees permanent top place until payment expiration, which can be monthly or yearly. Often premium listing allows deep links submission, i.e. link to internal pages or subdirectories of your site.

How to find good web directories? To save your time on searches better use lists of reviewed and rated web directories at sites like http://www.criticdirectory.com, http://www.directorycritic.com, http://www.addurl.nu/, http://info.vilesilencer.com/ where the directories are reviewed by hundreds of webmasters so you dont waste your time on submission to useless directories.

Julia RamyalgKesley Blog92281
Kassey Blog76487

Non Profit and Open Source Collaboration

Open source is a software license for products developed by groups of individuals who want to collaborate to achieve a common goal. New projects are started daily within the open source community. A developer may need the functionality of a specific piece of software for his website. But in reluctance to buy the software, and the obvious need to develop it himself (most often for a client)he will find other developers who need the same functionality. They will then as a team begin developing the new software with an Open Source license. All the members of the team benefit from the experiences and work of the others. The development community as a whole then benefits from this new creation. Members of the development team will often come and go as they work on their own projects and careers, but very quickly the new software will often develop further. New improvements, upgrades, and bug fixes will result from the group effort, and as long as there is a need for the software, it will continue to evolve.

Fortune 500 companies such as Novel have seen the power of the open source development model and have latched on as a result. Novel for instance develops a product called SUSE Linux. Now you may have heard the term Linux from some tech head, most people still don't know what it is. Linux is an Operating System like Windows or Mac OS. The difference is that Linux is developed Open Source and is light years ahead of microsoft when it comes to functionality, stability, and security. The website your reading now is probably hosted on a computer running Linux. Most of the internet is hosted on machines that use Linux.

Back to the story, SUSE is Novel's version of Linux. They work with the open source community and help to develop a very good version of Linux. The software receives fortune 500 level testing and development, and the open source community benefits as a whole. Novel then offers its SUSE for free as a download, or you can purchase support from novel while using its product and receive a DVD with the software. Novel sells a lot of SUSE, and the open source community benefits by working with such a reputable and stable company.

So now that you understand what open source is, it may be dawning on you how it fits with the Non-Profit community.

Open Source is for the benefit of the community as a whole. No one person makes all of the profit from the product, but thousands of people make a living helping people save money using open source products.

Non Profits are similar in that they have a community vision or mission that does not directly correspond to a bottom line. Unlike Microsoft, who does help the community by developing the economy. Open Source and Non-Profit ventures directly impact the community by their very nature.

Open Source is a viable option for Non Profit organizations.

Aaron Mills is currently working for Integrity Services in Washington DC as a technology consultant. He helps to better equip non-profit organizations to use technology. Lari Blog96981
Lacey Blog3693

How to Sell T-shirts Online

This article is intended as a guide for those who are looking for answers about selling t-shirts on-line. This guide is by no means perfect. It is written by me, based ONLY on my personal experiences. Forums, blogs, as well as, the printing company in question's home page are great places to start getting additional information.

What is my experience with selling t-shirts?

In 1999 my first son, Brandon, was born. Long before he could actually talk, he began the "baby talk." Mostly goos and such. He was a perfect baby. He slept all night, was NEVER sick., always happy., and always smiling. Anyway, when he began this baby talk, he would (as most babies do) say, what sounded like, "I Good." The good was a bit long drawn out. My wife, Laurie, and I would always respond with something like "I know youre good." And that was absolutely the truth, as I said before he was a perfect baby. I soon came up with the idea that it would be cute to have a little t-shirt for him that said "I good." Laurie agreed. We soon went to Wal-Mart and bought iron-on t-shirt transfers. I made a simple blue phrase using Microsoft Paint, "I Goood." I added the extra o to make the word more drawn out like he was saying it. By the end of the night he had a t-shirt that said I Goood. My wife and I made ourselves one with his picture on it. Laurie loved the shirt. She still has it. It's 6+ years later, it's a bit worn, but she still has it. I was hooked on the idea of making t-shirts. I very soon began thinking, "I wander how I could sell these. They're cute, and every baby says I goood. I know this would sell, if I could just market it. But how do I market something that only exists in my brain." My wife and I were not wealthy. We had only been married a couple years. She didn't work, and I was making just enough to pay bills. We had no money or experience. I soon gave up the idea. It was a hopeless dream.

Four years later, our lives had changed a little. We were living in a new house. I had a new job. My wife had a new job. She was pregnant with our second son. We both had returned to school. I had recently bought a new laptop for school. It was late January 2003. One slow Saturday at work, two co-workers, and myself, were sitting around bored. It was me (I'm a clinic nurse), the receptionist, and the doctor. We 3 have a great time at work. We are always playing pranks, telling jokes, and generally having a good time. I was flipping through a magazine when I say an article title that said "Football takes balls." It was a pun, and I love puns. I was thinking "that's a great line." A lot of things could take balls. I took a sticky note and quickly sketched a few little pictures, each complete with a little slogan. One had a football and goal post; it said "It takes BALLS." Another had a prisoner with his striped cloths, and two balls attached to his ankles with chains. It said "prison takes BALLS." Another had a canon. It said "It takes BALLS." I showed my pictures to my two co-workers hoping for a mere laugh, after all I drew 5 or 6 of these in a matter of 10 minutes, so I didn't put that much work into them. Like I said, all I wanted was a little laugh. What I got was unexpected. They both really liked the pictures. They both began telling me I should try and sell these ideas or try to get someone to put these on t-shirts. I just blew it off, I already went down that road with "I Good," and it is a dead end street. I don't have the means or know how to do such a thing.

Where do I go to sell t-shirts

When I was thinking about selling t-shirts, I was thinking about selling a design to someone who could make a shirt with the design on it, and then they could sell the t-shirt. I would make money selling the design to the t-shirt company. I began surfing the net, on my lap top, looking for someone who would buy my designs. This was almost hopeless. It was nearly impossible to find a trustworthy company who would buy designs. That's when I stumbled upon CafPress. They didn't actually buy designs, but they would allow you to upload designs and then sell those designed t-shirts in a CafeShop, absolutely free. That's right, at no cost. At that time, CafPress offered a few items to sell. White t-shirts, thongs, lunch box, coffee mugs, as well as a few other items.

CafPress, Too good to be true?

I joined CafPress on February 6, 2003. I started with a few basic shops.

Was CafPress too good to be true? Did I get rich quick? Was this an easy way to make money? Well lets just say I didn't quit my day job. I uploaded all my designs, put them on shirts, and then waited for them to sale. And waited some more. Then I waited a bit longer. After that I waited a little more. Eleven month of waiting had gone past, not one single sale. My wife said I was wasting my time "playing on the computer." I was starting to think so too. I just didn't want to give up. I thought my ideas and designs could sale if I could figure out how to market them.

In January 2004, my wife decided she wanted to get one of my "Wanna Monkey Around t-shirts." We ordered one, and I was shocked. The shirt itself was OK, but my designed sucked. It was very pixilated. It was blurry, and looked very unprofessional. I was glad that none had sold. To my horror, my sister ordered one of these awful shirts before I had the time to fix it. I spent weeks redoing my images. I ended up profiting $9.49 in 2004. What a great year right? I think it was. It gave me the chance to make mistakes and learn how to make better designs.

Time to get serious.

In late 2004 I knew if I wanted to sell t-shirts, I need to have a way to drive traffic to my CafeShop, but how? Part of the solution was to get my own domain name. I chose web hosting through Yahoo. I then registered TshirtManiacs.com. I also began paying for a premium CafPress shop. Over the next year I made new designs and CafPress added new items to put my designs on. Again I didn't get rich, but I did make a $505.17. That is a 53 times increase from last year. Now I'm not going to say what I've made in 2006, but I will say I'm expecting to make a few thousand this year. So it's a little improvement in last two years. I only do this part time, and I put NO money into it. If I were to invest in ads, and other forms of advertisement who knows what the profit potential is. For now, I am happy with where I am at.

CafPress and it's competitors.

CafPress is a great service. It is very easy to use. Very inexpensive (basic shops are free). CafPress offers a large selection of products to sell, including the best selling t-shirt. They are an award winning service with great customer service, great products, shopkeeper forums, and much, much more. They do their best to offer great products and service to both their customers and shopkeepers. Currently they have more than 22,000,000 products available by their shopkeepers. They have search system that is beyond compare. It is very easy for shoppers to find the product and design they want. They also have a wonderful affiliate plan too.

What does CafPress offer?

You can sell: Merchandise you design including t-shirts, posters, mugs, bumper stickers and much more Books printed on-demand Audio and Data CDs

What CafePress.com does

Gives you a FREE online shop to promote your products
Produces each item when ordered using there unique print-on-demand technology
Handles all payment transactions including major credit cards
Ships your products worldwide
Manages all returns/exchanges
Offers customer service via toll-free phone and email
Sends you a monthly check for your earnings on sales!

Can I really make money?

Yes! Some of the shopkeepers earn over $100,000 a year. Premium Shops earn 10X more than Basic shops on average. Plus thousands of members earn a steady stream of income through their CafePress.com shop.

How it works:

Each product has a Base Price that includes all fees associated with selling. You simply set your retail price above the Base Price. When you sell an item, we keep the base price and we send you the markup.

For example:

Value T-Shirt has a base price of $8.99
You decide to markup the price to $13.99
When you sell one shirt, you generate earnings of $5.00.
CafPress sends you a commission check for your total markups once per month.

How much does it cost?

With a CafPress Basic Shop, you can start selling for free. And, there are no inventory costs associated with selling products through either a Basic or Premium Shop.

Each item you sell has a base price. You simply markup the base price by the amount you wish to earn for each product you sell. When you sell a product, we keep the base price and you earn the markup.

If you are serious about making money on CafePress.com, check out the Premium Shops service. Premium Shops cost $6.95 at the monthly rate, or as little as $4.99 per month at the yearly rate. There are additional benefits associated with a Premium Shop to help you sell more.

How much time will it take to get my shop online?
Once your digital content is ready, you can create and launch your online shop in minutes. All you need to do is upload your content, choose the products you wish to sell and set your prices. If you don't have your images or content prepared. By spending a little time to optimize your images, you can ensure your products will look their best.

How can people find my products on CafPress?
There are two ways people will find your products:

1. You will have your own online shop.

For example: http://www.cafepress.com/ShopID

When you open your shop, you will choose a Shop ID that will become part of your shop's URL (see above). With your own URL
you can:

Promote your shop on your web site
Email your shop link/URL to friends and family
Buy ads on Google and other search engines

2. The CafePress.com Marketplace
Shopkeepers will be able to purchase your products directly from the CafePress.com Marketplace, which is visited by millions of
people each month.

The Competitors
Now in the mid-summer of 2005 I tried one of CafPress' competitors because they had black t-shirts. At the time CafPress didn't offer this service. The competitor was mediocre compared with CafPress. They offered a few items that CafPress did not. But they just didn't have the same level of search that CafPress offers. The profits were not as good as with CafPress either. Now, don't get me wrong, they were a fine company. Nothing was wrong with the service they offered. It was simply that CafPress offered a better service.

Now am I dead set on using CafPress? The answer is no. I really like CafPress. But if a competitor comes out with a service better than that of CafPress, I may begin using that. They thing is, I don't think CafPress will ever lag behind. They are the print on demand industry leader, and I think they always will be.

What do I need to sell t-shirts online?

First, and foremost, you need creativity and a imagination. Hope is another good thing. You also must have determination and a strong will to succeed. You need to have thick skin and the ability to take an criticism in a constructive way. (Yes, you will have those who criticize you.) Those are all traits that are needed by the person who are wanting to sell t-shirts online. One trait that is maybe the most important is patience. Selling t-shirts online is no get rich thing.

Other things needed are a good computer, good Internet access, and available time to invest in your new business. I would suggest a domain name of your own and a premium CafPress shop also. You can start your ad campaigns with the use of a credit card, but spend wisely.

That is all the startup you need.

Conclusion

Can you make money selling t-shirts online. YES! Is it easy? YES! Does it require a lot of work? YES. Selling t-shirts online is no get rich quick scheme. Heck, you will most likely never get filthy rich doing it. You can, however, make extra spending money easily and have a good time. You could make a good living at selling t-shirts if you wanted too. It is entirely left up to you, your wants, your needs, and your dreams.

Robin Goff is the owner/ creator of http://tshirtmaniacs.com as well as several CafPress basic shops. Krista Blog86596
Karlie Blog35302

Gerrymandering The Google Search Results

Every few months, you will see posts by many people declaring that Google has it in for their website. Often, you see threats about how the webmaster plans to sue Google for hurting their business' profits. On and on it goes... Every webmaster who was dropped from Google's top search result pages wants to believe that Google singled out their website and their business for punishment and extinction.

How The Google Search Results Is Related To Gerrymandering

According to Wikipedia.com, "Gerrymandering is a form of redistricting in which electoral district or constituency boundaries are manipulated for an electoral advantage."

Most states in the US redraw their electoral districts at least every decade. In 36 of the states, the state legislature is responsible for drawing the new districts -- in principle to account for shifts in population -- and the governor is required to approve those changes.

With nearly every redistricting, the party who is out-of-power generally screams foul. The argument is always that the political party in power adjusted the lines to improve their ability to win elections and control the electoral power structure.

The entire process of redistricting is a good analogy for the Google algorithm changes. The people in power (Google) redraw the lines, and the party out-of-power (the webmasters who dropped in ranking) cry foul, threatening lawsuits and other actions.

Something Right And Something Wrong

Of course, the same webmasters screaming about having dropped in Google's search results did not have a problem when Google allowed them to climb in the search results previously.

People only moan about things when they are on the way down. When they were on the way up, they danced on the coffins of their competitors without a care in the world.

The truly funny thing about it is that when people were on their way up in the Google search results, they told all of their friends that "they" did something right. When they are on their way down, "Google" did something wrong.

Shaky Foundations For Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

PROBLEM: If the website dropped out of Google's top 1000 results, then I am willing to bet that in nearly every situation of this type, the webmaster had done something wrong in the last few years, and Google has just now caught on to this infraction.

For example, in years past, link farms were utilized by webmasters and accepted by Google. Then Google began to consider link farms to be "bad neighborhoods."

Link farms are the kind of thing that can be easily recognized by human and search engine alike. So, the link farms were tagged as "bad neighborhoods" and their values were discounted to zero, and the websites linked from link farms got a minus points for their participation in the link farms.

It was a bad practice that the webmaster had participated, and Google finally got around to penalizing the websites whose rankings were supported by these shaky foundations.

SOLUTION: If you try to put yourself into the shoes of the experts at Google, and you wanted to improve the Google search results, what would YOU do? Before you answer this question, remember that you work for Google and not for yourself. What would you do? What would you do different?

"White hat" and "black hat" SEO methods are an analogy of Search Engine Optimization techniques that refers back to the old cowboy classics, where the "good guy" always wore a "white hat" and the 'bad guy" always wore a "black hat".

While you are working for Google, take a look at the SEO technique you are thinking about using for your own website. Chances are that if you deem a SEO technique to be "gray hat" (something in between ethical SEO and unethical SEO), then chances are that someday that technique will be deemed "black hat" by the Google engineers. And if the SEO technique is "black hat," it will likely be targeted for discount by Google at some time in the future.

If you delve into "gray hat" or "black hat" SEO, you may be able to rocket to the top of the Google search results quickly, but you will not be able to hold that position for long. Google will eventually get wise to your gimmick.

If you can "white hat" your website to the top of the search results, your future ranking will likely hold its ground for many years to come.

Your Competition Out-Played You

PROBLEM: If a website dropped a few positions in the Google search results, I am willing to bet that in nearly every situation, one of the website's major competitors out-performed them in the search results.

There are certain things that you can do correctly, to elevate your own listings in the search engine results. Because you have the capability to do these things, your competitors also have the capability to do these things.

Well guess what? Your competitor did what you should have done. They set up marketing systems to ensure that they could climb in the search results, and they climbed enough to pass you by.

SOLUTION: Do those things that you know you should be doing. And more importantly, do them consistently. Your competitor wants your placement in the search results, and they are going to do what it takes for them to get there.

So, it is imperative for you to keep moving forward in the process of building your ranking in the search engines. When you stand still, resting in the comfort zone of where you reside today, then you are bound to be overtaken by someone who wants to be where you are, a little bit more than you do.

Stir That Pot

PROBLEM: If a website dropped a few pages in the search results, the cause for the drop may have been caused by a combination of the two above-mentioned problems: shaky SEO foundations, and hungry competitors.

SOLUTION: Keep your eye on the big picture. You know what you have done to strengthen your website in the past. Keep learning and keep growing.

If you find that something you had done in the past may affect your website negatively in the future, implement "white hat" SEO techniques to strengthen your position, and make plans to eliminate your reliance on "black hat" SEO systems before Google does it for you.

Don't Make The Mess And You Won't Have To Clean It Up

Some may think my approach to housecleaning is an indication of laziness. I consider it to be an indication of good time management. I prefer to reserve my time for things that are more enjoyable.

My theory towards housework -- and I try to teach this to my kids often -- is that if you don't want to clean up the mess, don't make the mess in the first place. If the house is not messy, you don't have to clean it. So, don't make the house messy.

I utilize the same approach to my websites. If I do it "white hat" and above-reproach the first time, then I won't have to go in and fix my rankings everytime Google changes their algorithms.

Stop Standing Still

Do remember that for most every search term you compete to rank for, there are probably another one million web pages competing to rank for the same keyword phrase. Getting to the top of the search engine results is a process, not a destination. You must keep competing to maintain your spot at the top of the search results.

If you want to get to the top of the search results, you will have to take positive steps to get there. And, if you want to maintain your top position in the search engines, you need to keep doing the things that put you in that top spot in the first place.

Bill Platt is President of Platt Services, Inc. and owner of Links And Traffic. He has been involved in article marketing and link building since 1999. If you are looking to have someone build anchor text links to your website, using targeted and interesting content as the foundation, then Bill's team can help you: http://www.LinksAndTraffic.com - If you would prefer to talk to Bill by phone, he can be reached at 405-780-7745 between 9am-6pm CST, Monday thru Friday. http://www.PlattServicesInc.comKizzee Blog56502
Kynthia Blog43355

Newborns Trauma Transforms into Help for Families - Children with tracheostomies benefit from innovative new web resource

Orlando, FL (July 5, 2007) Late one night, after only one month of life, Elizabeth Dragovits had severe obstructive sleep apnea and nearly died in her fathers arms. Her underlying medical condition was unknown to her parents at the time. All they knew as they raced to the hospital was that her tiny body needed oxygen in order to survive.

The doctors performed a tracheostomy to maintain her airway. Her parents were terrified about what had happened and what the future might hold for their infant girl. But they learned a very important fact along the way; with proper instruction and dedication, a parent can rise above the stress, fear, and anxiety. The couple decided to turn their frightening experience into a positive one. As Executive Producers at Creative Force Video Productions Matt and Melanie Dragovits created the first comprehensive online video focusing on pediatric tracheostomy care.

It is our hope, that by providing this educational resource to families facing tracheostomies that the fears and frustrations of parents will be diminished while their confidence in caring for their child is enhanced said Mr. Dragovits, CEO at Creative Force.

Cynthia Bissell, RN is owner of Tracheostomy.com, the webs leading destination for trach-related information. Together with Creative Force, Bissell is helping to raise awareness for this newly launched online resource.

I am very excited that Matt and Melanie have made this excellent tracheostomy care video, titled "Breath of Life" and that its available to everyone online for free. If a picture speaks a thousand words, than a video can speak a million words. I know this video tutorial will be helpful not only to parents of children with tracheostomies, but to anyone involved in the care of children with tracheostomies, including nurses, respiratory therapists, and caregivers. stated Cynthia.

During the course of the half-hour program parents learn about the most critical topics related to daily tracheostomy care including suctioning, humidity, tracheostomy ties, cleaning the stoma, tracheostomy change, warning signs, travel kit, and other day to day tips. Timothy Myers, Director, Asthma & Diagnostic Centers & Pediatric Respiratory Care - University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Childrens Hospital had the following to say.

This video takes a very fundamental approach to tracheostomy care and management by the caregiver in the home setting. The detail and description is clinically accurate and up-to-date, yet very practical for the non-healthcare practitioner to provide this care accurately and safely. This video is of very high quality and very professional in its presentation, and I would recommend it as supplemental viewing (in addition to the professional instruction received) to families of children with tracheostomies that are being transitioned home. It would also serve as an excellent review for those families with children already in the home setting as it includes the current concepts of best practice for tracheostomy care and management.

For families and healthcare providers that wish to view Breath of Life A Caregivers Guide to Pediatric Tracheostomy Care please visit: www.patienteducation.tv/trach_video.php

Creative Force is an award-winning producer of patient education programming. From disease information and treatment to medical procedures and patient instruction, their comprehensive programs deliver a clear message to their target audience. The educational features are often part of national campaigns that increase knowledge on specific disease states and new treatment options. The programs are recorded at both local and national locations with supporting content presented by leading medical experts within the healthcare field. (http://www.creativeforce.tv & http://www.patienteducation.tv)Karla Blog118
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7 High Effective Method for Internet Marketing

We all know that traffic is the most essential thing for a successful Internet business company. There are a lot of reliable ways to jumpstart your traffic flows, though most of them would cost some money. In this article I'd like to tell you about my favorite web promotion tactics, which wouldn't cost you a single cent. Moreover, some of them will save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars. The first tactic alone can generate you over $2,000 equivalent of free targeted traffic.

Well, here are the seven surefire technics capable of skyrocketing your traffic starting from today.

1) Free Pay Per Click (PPC) Advertising That Works

The Adwords by Google, Yahoo's Overture and many other PPC search engines provide great sources of targeted Internet. They are very truly popular among web marketers. However, as the PPC search engine managers wish to expand their customer base so they need to convince people like you that pay per click advertising really works.

Here are the good news, there are dozens of PPC search engines who will give you up to $100 in free credits to prove that pay per click advertising will work for you. To claim your credits all you need do is visit the various engines and web directories and sign-up. There are no catches and it won't cost you anything except your time.

It couldn't be simpler to obtain such free PPC advertising. The table at this page: http://www.affiliated-business.com/promotion/Pay-Per-Click5.html lists over 60 Pay Per Click Search Engines offering in excess of $2,000 of free web promotion credits. One after another select the PPC search engines form the list, click on the links to open the corresponding sign-up pages and sign up for your free adverising accounts.

2) Use Profitable Keywords Or Keyword Niches For Your Site's Content

Generally, internet users use search engines to find what they are looking for. Search engines in return use keyword rankings to give away relevant search results. If you'd like your site to appear at the top lines of search engine results, you must use proper keywords and keyword phrases.

Try to employ the most profitable (of higher demand) keywords at your site content. You could write your own content or you could hire someone to do it for you. If you're writing content on yourself you have to make it more entertaining as well as informative.

In doing so, you can get high rankings in search engine results and strong incoming traffic without any costs.

3) Exchange Links With Partner Sites

Another great idea is trading links with partner (or even competitor) sites. This works well especially when both sites feature the same niche.

Exchanging or trading links with other sites, both of them could benefit. When one site features another sites link, they will provide one another with the traffic they both generate.

The efforts are doubly beneficial because it seems like both sides are working to generate doubly enhanced traffic. The more links exchanged with more sites the more traffic could be expected.

And again, you don't have to spend a cent. All you have to do is to communicate to another webmaster and to reach with him an agreement.

4) Write Articles And Publish Them Across The Internet

There are a lot of sites that offer free submission and posting of your articles. You'd better to s ubmit articles to sites containing the same subject that your site deals in. If you sell computers write press releases and articles about computers and computer parts. Try to provide helpful tips guides and good advice. Writing articles that contain good service and knowledge would bring the necessary mileage your traffic flow needs.

When people find in your article something of interest, you have good chances of following the track by finding out where the article originated. It lasts for you just to a ttach a brief description of your site or service at the end of the article and to include a link.

5) Join Forums, Blogs And Other Online Communities

You can take advantage of online forums, blogs and web communities. The great thing about forums and online communities is that you can target a certain group that fits the certain demographic that you are looking for. You can discuss about lots of things about the goodsor services that you represent or offer.

With online communities and forums you can build a reputation for your company. You must capture the market niche you represent and show your expertise and credibility. When you created a good foundation for your site, people will trust you and your web business. Your customers will pass on their trust and credibility to many people all over the Internet. Traffic will certainly increase because they know that you can provide what they need.

6) Offer Newsletters Or eZines

You can also make use of newsletters. Provide people with a catalog of your products and interesting useful articles. If your texts are really interesting and entertaining, more people will sign up for your newsletter and recommend it to other people. The more people who signs up for your newsletter, the more people there will be willing to visit your site. So, if you arouse the curiosity of your customers they would be pushed to help you growing your traffic.

7) Use Advantages Of Viral Marketing

Viral marketing is a promotional method that allows you to spread the word about your company and product without any costs. All it takes is to bring a great idea, a good addicting game, a funny story; many ideas are still out there. Create a gossip or a buzz, many web projects are advertised by using scandals and rumors to make them more popular.

Also you can provide your web site visitors with content they wouldn't read anywhere else. People will stay longer at your web site to read the original content. With this method, people get infected with the creativity and entertainment of the website content and they will pass it on to many people.

Each of the above mentioned methods can drive streams of free traffic to your website. All it takes is a bit of effort and extended man hours. Learn all you can about the techniques depicted here and you will soon have a site with a great traffic flow without the usual costs that come with it.

Kitty Chuk is a Internet marketing expert. She is an chief online marketing consultants in ad1945.com. AD1945.com provides web hosting, 3 step site builder. Ad1945.com is focus on Internet marketing integration service. Kaile Blog37832
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The Biggest Mistake Men Make in Relationships

"I don't understand," said Don. "My business is going well. I'm a good provider. I give my wife and the children everything they want. We live in a beautiful house and we drive expensive cars. Last winter I took the whole family on a trip to Mexico. I don't fool around with other women. I do play golf every Sunday with the guys. But a man needs some recreation. I don't understand why I seem to do so well at work, but when I come home I feel like a failure!

My wife, Sue, is always nagging me. She either has a headache or is too tired to be sexual. Sue spends outrageous amounts of money at her favorite sport, shopping. That woman finds more things to buy than I or she can ever get to use.

When I met Sue she was slim and attractive. She has put on at least twenty-five pounds and doesn't seem to take care of herself. Nor does she want to do anything for me. She won't iron my shirts anymore or get up early enough to make my breakfast. I'm lucky if I get a decent dinner once in a while. I'm sick and tired of not feeling good enough for her. No matter what I do, Sue is not happy.

My kids are disappointing too. They have so much more than I ever did. Do you think they're happy and grateful? No way. All they do is whine for more, watch television, or fight with each other. Their grades are nothing to rave about, and I know that they are bright. I talk to the other guys and they seem to have a similar scenario.

When Sue told me that she had called you, Helene, for an appointment I asked her why. She said that she was depressed. I asked Sue to talk to me about her problems but she wouldn't. She told me that I'm not hearing her. I think I do hear Sue. I hear her nag, nag, nag. Now she has threatened to leave me if I don't come to therapy too. There is nothing wrong with me. I'm a very successful man. Many people respect and admire me. I want you to know that I'm here but I only came because Sue made me, and I resent it."

"Don," I replied, "thank you for coming in and sharing all your frustrations. If it is any consolation, I want you to know that I have heard these same complaints hundreds of times before with the many couples I have counseled. You are unique, but your problem is not. You see, Don, you probably have been brought up like most men by your parents and society to believe that your role as a husband and as a father is to be the provider. From what you told me, you have learned your job well and are a success.

However, Don, a relationship requires much more than financial success. A relationship needs feelings expressed. It is interesting Don, that you never mentioned how much you love your wife and children."

"Of course, I love my family!" Don exclaimed. "They know that. I don't need to keep telling them."

"Don," I continued, "quite the contrary. They need to hear that you love them and they need to experience your caring by the things you say and do, and not just by what you give to them."

For example, Don, when was the last time you and Sue spent time talking or cuddling? Sue told me that you were romantic when you were dating but stopped after you were married. Keeping the romance alive is very important to most women. Send her flowers and cards, leave her loving notes, hug her when you come home, tell her you love her daily. Ask Sue how her day was, and listen to her. Don't try to solve her problems, just be supportive and let her know that her feelings are valid even if they are not logical.

Don, also be attentive to the children. Spend quality time with them, and be playful and loving. Let them know how much you care and appreciate them for who they are. Tell them to be their unique selves. Take the time to tuck them into bed and kiss them good-night.

You see, Don, you can't buy love. You have generously given them your money but what they want and need even more than that is you. What makes a difference in their lives is the quality of love they feel from you. That takes your time, your attention, and your willingness to express your feelings."

Don looked perplexed. He didn't realize that he was making the biggest mistake men make in relationships. He didn't realize that he wasn't giving himself. From Don's left brain (logical) perspective, he was doing everything right. It's true that he wasn't doing anything wrong. It was just that Don was missing a big piece of the puzzle.

To help Don really understand what I was expressing to him, I asked him to close his eyes and to imagine that his parents and he and Sue were standing in front of him. Don noticed the similarities in the two relationships, and the same problems. He realized that he had learned from his father how to be a husband, who had learned from his father and down through the generations. Unfortunately, Don had no feeling male models. Even his grandfather was always busy making a living, and rarely spent time with the family.

In the process, Don realized how much he missed feeling his grandfather's and father's love when he was growing up, and how much he needed it. Don also noticed that he never saw his father being affectionate and loving to his mother. He had no role model of how to express love to his wife and children.

Don continued to work with me and succeeded in healing his inner child and learning more loving ways to be and to communicate with his family. Sue also did the same. Don and Sue are now in a loving relationship with each other and the children. They were amazed how well the children responded to the expression of caring to each other and to them. The children started to do better in school and there were a lot less fights. In fact, Sue and Don pride themselves as a happy loving family.

Helene Rothschild, MS, MA, MFT, is a Marriage, Family Therapist, intuitive counselor, and author. Her new book, All You Need Is HART! Create Love, Joy, and Abundance-Now!" is a unique guide to Holistic And Rapid Transformation. She offers phone sessions, teleclasses, a self-help on-line program, inspirational books, e-books, MP3 audios, tapes, cards, posters, independent studies, and a free newsletter. http://www.lovetopeace.com , 1-888-639-6390.Kathe Blog80243
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