The Debt Sentence

JUST what does the statement “Crime does not pay” mean?

“Crime doesn’t pay” is focused on the risk involved in “crime.” If you involve yourself in criminal activity, there is an inherent risk in getting caught. The higher the payout of the crime, the higher the risk of getting caught. Consequently, the higher the sentence.

Therefore if you get caught “crime doesn’t pay.” Simply put, lawbreakers do not benefit from their actions, and they always suffer the consequences later. In fact, most of the criminals get caught at the time they are nearing their golden years. The ironical thing is that due to the degree of the crime they committed, they are given life imprisonment (reclusion perpetua) or even worse, the maximum penalty which is the death sentence. Examples of heinous crimes that are punishable by death are illegal drugs trafficking, and murder,

What if the crime of a person is non payment of his debt? Is there a punishment? Sad to say there is none as of now. There is no one who has been imprisoned for not paying his debt. There are stories of people getting killed over unpaid debt. There is truth to the adage, “Debt is death to those who mismanage it.” Once I overheard one statement that goes like this, “Debt sounds like death. It might be the cause of your death.” Actually, the Bible has this to say:

Psalm 37:21 “T he wicked borrows and does not pay back, but the righteous is gracious and gives.”

If there is a death sentence for heinous crime against a fellow human being, there is also an equivalent penalty for no payment of debt to the creditor. It is the debt sentence.  The most accurate description of a penalty of being a debtor is found in Proverbs 22:7 “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower becomes the lender’s slave.”

This makes sense. Years ago, a friend in need approached me and borrowed money. When it was time to pay, he was always nowhere to be found. He mysteriously disappeared. Then I realized I had power over him. He was afraid to see me face to face. Even if he is not physically my slave, mentally, he has become a slave not to me but to money. His fear of facing me has become his punishment. Worse, he just destroyed in just a short period of time the credibility he has built over the years.  The consequence of his action exceeds the value of the money he owed.

One of the most common personal finance crimes is to use the credit card and pay the minimum amount due. Credit card is a good financial tool. Used properly, it can be your slave. Abused properly, it can be your biggest problem. It is highly possible that majority does not know how credit cards can work against them. Innocence of the law excuses no one. The same holds true for personal finance.

Let us say the debt is P10,000. The minimum amount payable is P500 and interest pegged at 3.5 percent per month on the balance. Without considering other fees, it will take 33 months and P16,400 to pay off the original debt. Including the other hidden fees will result to a lifetime payment (like life imprisonment) and a never-ending accumulation of debt due to it’s compounding effect.

Most of the time, when people borrow money, they have a bad habit of using their home as collateral. According to Proverbs 22:26-27 “Do not be a man who strikes hands in pledge or puts up security for debts; if you lack the means to pay, your very bed will be snatched from under you”.

This verse makes perfect sense. I had a friend who loans out money in exchange for real estate property as collateral. Often times, the borrower would default on his payment. Then later, the borrower will be ejected  after the court judged in favor of the lender. The borrower has no choice but give up his property and look for house for rent. Instead of saving more money, he will be renting his shelter for the rest of his life, which is also equivalent to life imprisonment.

The penalty for committing a crime depends on its degree. The higher the degree, the bigger the punishment. However, all of the penalties translate to one thing: loss of freedom. With debt, one also loses his financial freedom. He will always be running after money to pay his debtors. He will, apparently be the perpetual slave of money and also of his debtors. If innocence of the law excuses no one, then the only solution to avoid the debt sentence is not to be financially innocent . If crime does not pay, then it pays to invest in financial education!

Edmund Lao is a Registered Financial Planner of RFP Philippines. To learn more about personal financial planning, attend the RFP program Batch 29 on October 13 to December 8. For more details, please e-mailinfo@rfp.ph or visit www.rfp.ph.

source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/home/banking-a-finance/31896-the-debt-sentence

7 Money Mindset Myths That Are Keeping You Poor

by VINCENT KING
source: http://moneyning.com/money-beliefs/7-money-mindset-myths-that-are-keeping-you-poor/

Budgeting and managing your money is never a happy experience – IF you’re in the red. Yet, if you’re like most people, there are 7 common money mindset myths that are keeping you that way.

Change your mind and change your numbers. This sounds simple, but it works.

Money Mindset Myth #1 – A Penny Saved Is A Penny Earned

Not losing that penny by saving it is helpful, but it takes so much more than not giving that penny to the cashier to create meaningful wealth. In addition to saving, you must also multiply that those cents that you are saving to truly feel the effects. Even if the adage is accurate, it is also incomplete, and certainly not something you can base your future fortune around. Saving pennies is good, but you also need to earn more.

Money Mindset Myth #2 – I Don’t Need Money Help

Paying for people to coach you in precision pilates is a want, but if you have zero experience straightening your finances, then shooting from the hip while going solo will likely only set you right back where you started from.

Investing in a money coach will lead you down a safer road lined with superior choices, better decisions, and ultimately a finish line you’ll likely never reach alone.

Invest in a coach and train for financial success.

Money Mindset Myth #3 – Budgeting Saves Me Money

As noble as that might be, it isn’t accurate. Write everything you earn, subtract everything you spend, and allot a certain amount toward your saving. Then you’re gold, right?

No, not really. You can record your pluses and minuses all day, but if you’re not acting on what you wrote, your budget means nothing.

Carefully plot and plan, then follow through by making improvements to see optimum success.

Money Mindset Myth #4 – If I Earn More, I Can Spend More

You worked 60 hours last week. Dog tired, you came home and collapsed into bed. The exhaustion is fine, at least your paycheck will be fat.

When it’s time to reap the rewards, you happily head out, paycheck in hand to shop.

“Look at all this overtime! I deserve a ‘little’ something for working so hard!”

That’s why you’ll stay right where you are in your finances.

That “little” something extra is called overtime pay, and THAT is your reward. Stick all your “extra” earnings in a special fund or savings account, then leave it there so you can watch it grow, rather than disappear.

Money Mindset Myth #5 – If I Don’t Risk It, I Can’t Lose It

Playing a smart financial game means taking intelligent risks. You will never make a mint if you don’t make smart investments. Fail to take SMART risks with your money, and you will keep the blooms from blossoming on the branches of your money tree.

Stock valuations are volatile, but individual investors can still profit on the expansion of the economy by buying into a broadly diversified index fund that tracks the total market as long as they have a long term vision.

Know a good investment when you see it, and be smart enough to make it.

Money Mindset Myth #6 – I Make Enough

You bring home your check every two weeks. Your house payment is always made on time. And your bills are current. Yet, you have nothing left for savings, and little if any for life’s extras. You might make enough, but you’ll never reach financial independence if you can’t get ahead. You don’t want to be 50 without any retirement assets.

Assets determine your worth, and if you want to grow your financial portfolio, you must find a way to start saving while you invest to increase your assets at the same time.

Money Mindset Myth #7 – My Today Is Taken Care Of

Too many people live in the moment. In today’s economy, it’s difficult to look past now to see the promise of tomorrow. Yet, right now is when it’s essential to plan ahead. What will your reserves be like as you head into retirement? Not putting away what you can now is a near guarantee that you’ll not have enough when you need it in the future.

Start saving into a retirement fund today so you can start planning for future success.

What money mindsets are holding you back?

The Socratic Method - Most Powerful Sales Technique of All Time

By Stephen Bucaro

Socrates was a great ancient Greek philosopher who invented the most powerful sales technique of all time. His "Socratic Method" involved asking questions which would eventually compel an individual to agree with him. In this article, you'll learn how to use the powerful Socratic Method to almost force people to buy your product or service.

When you come into contact with a potential customer, you have one point of view or position (e.g. they should buy your product or service now), and they have a different position (e.g. they should NOT buy your product or service). With the Socratic Method you bring the potential customer over to your position by simply asking them questions.

Each question that you ask is designed such that the only logical answer brings the potential customer a step closer to your position. Start out with high-level questions where the answer is obvious. For example, you're a new car salesman and a potential customer walks into the showroom. You ask; "looking for a new car?". The obvious answer is yes, why else would they come to a new car showroom?

You ask; "what kind of car are you looking to buy?" The customer responds; "I'm looking for something that gets good gas mileage and has a sporty look." You show him a Toyota Yaris (assume you're a Toyota salesman). The customer responds; "I wouldn't be comfortable in such a small car". You ask; "You want a car that gets 32 miles per gallon don't you?"

The customer responds; "Yes, but I want something with a sporty look." You ask; "You like the look of the Yaris sporty front end and sporty lift-back don't you?" The customer responds; "Yes, it's very sporty, but I was thinking of shopping around a little more." You ask; "Socrates Toyota has the largest inventory and the best service department, getting the style and color that you want and having a great service department is important to you, isn't it?"

The customer responds; "For sure, getting the car I want at a dealer with a great service department is very important, but I'm not sure I'm ready to buy right this minute. You ask; "You want to buy before the best cars are gone and before prices go up don't you?" The customer responds; "Yes, I need to buy now to make sure I get the style and color I want at a good price."

Bingo! Sale made!

Another example; you're contacted by a potential customer interested in buying your business opportunity. You ask; "Are you interested in earning a substantial income?". The customer responds; "I want to earn a substantial income, but how do I know I can make money with your business opportunity?" You ask; "I provide complete step-by-step instructions. You want everything laid out step-by-step so you can't fail don't you?"

The customer responds; "Yes, but can I make substantial income with your business opportunity?" You ask; "The income you earn depends upon the effort you make. You are going to make a serious effort to achieve success, aren't you?" The customer responds; "Yes, I'm serious, but I fear it won't work out and I'll lose money".

You ask; "My business opportunity is 100 percent guaranteed, you want to buy an opportunity with zero risk of losing money don't you?" The customer responds; "If I get step-by-step instructions and no risk of losing money, it sounds like what I want, but I need to think about it a while." You ask; "You want to start earning money right away, don't you?" The customer responds; "Yes, I need to start earning money right away so I need to buy now."

Bingo! Sale made!

With the Socratic Method you convince the potential customer that they should buy your product or service by simply asking them questions. In this article, you learned how to use this powerful method to almost force people to buy your product or service.

Using his powerful method, Socrates was able to win every debate he participated in. In many debates he argued that Athens was wasting too much money and too many lives by getting involved in unnecessary wars. In 415 BC the Athenians sent an army of 27000 troops to attack Sicily. That army was never heard from again.

A few years later a traveler arrived in Athens from Sicily. He described the complete and humiliating defeat of the Greek army in Sicily. Because Socrates had debated so aggressively against the war, the defeat was blamed on him. He was convicted of being a traitor. The death sentence was carried out by Socrates drinking hemlock.

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Copyright(C) Bucaro TecHelp. Permission is granted to reprint this article as long as no changes are made and the link below is included.
Visit Bucaro TecHelp http://bucarotechelp.com to learn how to maintain your computer and use it more effectively to design a Web site and make money on the Web.

30-Second Tip That Can Triple Your Profits

By Grady Smith

Everyone from pizza chains to video stores have used the principals of positioning to explode their business. And now, you too can use this strategy -- regardless of the size of your business -- to catapult sales.

Remember the pizza chain that had franchises cropping up like weeds because they offered to have a pie at your door in 30 minutes or less? That’s the power of positioning, and the reason this pizza chain experienced such fast growth. And in a moment I’m going to detail how you can use positioning to sell more of your product.

But first I want you to understand what positioning is...

Positioning is looking at your competition and deciding how you’re different than them. It’s finding one strong benefit that your product has that’s not available anywhere else and that your prospects will view as something desirable.

Take the pizza franchise...

When people are hungry, they don’t want to wait to get their food. Sure, they might like the corner pizza shop that makes a great pie, but if they’re really hungry they might not want to wait 45 minutes to an hour.

So in walks a pizza chain that guarantees they’ll get you your pizza in 30 minutes or less or you don’t pay. Business explodes.

And take a look at the video chain that offers guaranteed available rentals. Instead of heading down to the corner video store on a busy Friday night praying the movie you want will be available, you can drive to the place where you know it’s going to be ready for you to rent.

The question is, if you’re really hungry, or want to assure you’re getting the movie you want, where will you go?

Now before you say this can’t be applied to your business, I want you to think again. It can work, and it will work if you do it right.

Everyone has competition. Even someone offering a truly unique ebook about a business opportunity has strong competition from all the other ebooks with different business opportunities. But the smart marketer will create a unique position so that their business opportunity ebook is the obvious choice.

Let me give you an example...

I own a copywriting business where I write sales letters and ads for clients. And the competition in this market is pretty strong. But, by creating my own unique position I’ve been able to do quite well.

My unique position is being able to write copy that’s effective and gets results for about 1/4th the price of my competition. And a deeper look at my position points out that people don’t need to spend more to get the same results.

So, how do you come up with your own unique position that will let you make more sales?

Think about how your product or service is different than your competition. And think in terms of a strong benefit that your prospects will find desirable, but is only available through you. You want to be able to say, "If you want ______, then this is the only place to get it." And if you can fill in the blank with a strong benefit your prospects want then I can guarantee you’ll realize more profits because of it.

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Sales Letters, Classifieds, and Autoresponder Series at prices you can afford and guaranteed to pull a strong response. Visitwww.cheap-copy.com for more copywriting tips and details of how you can pull more profits now.

The Most Powerful Marketing Method Ever Invented

By Marc Goldman

I want to talk about one of the quickest and smartest ways I know of to make money both on and off the net. It is called Joint Venture Marketing. Some of you may already have experience with this marketing method while to others it may be completely foreign.

For those of you who are familiar with it, bear with me, I am not going to simply recite the same facts over and over again; and for those of you with no prior knowledge of this concept, I think that you are going to be very, very pleased with what you learn today.

Joint Venture Marketing just may be the most powerful marketing method ever invented. It is the strategic use of a companies underutilized assets to make profits that they did not make before. Underutilized assets are those assets that a company has and yet does not use, the most common of which is a companies customer database or their list.

You see, most companies (if they are smart) maintain a list of the people who have bought from them. This list could also be of potential customers, those individuals who have expressed some interest in the company's products and/or services in the past.

This makes them stand out from someone who has never contacted the company before. In the Direct Marketing Business, we call these people, PQL's or pre-qualified leads. They have raised their hands and said in effect: "I am interested in what you have to offer; tell me more".

Most companies do not realize the value of "the list". It is a golden rule in marketing that once a prospect becomes a customer they should be considered a customer for life. You can sell to those customers over and over again because you have already established trust. (This is assuming that you only sell quality products, if you sell quality products and provide great customer service you will go a long way in creating a lasting relationship with your customers).

This trust is a key element in Joint Venture Marketing. JV Marketing involves the recommendation or endorsement (keyword remember that) of another marketer or their product to your customer list. Assuming that I own a list and another marketer contacts me and asks if I will endorse their new product to my customer list, we arrange a deal where I send a mailing to my list endorsing this person or their product.

This endorsement contains two key elements:

1. The trust between the list owner and their previous customers⁄prospects.

2. The product/service of the other party.

The list owner is recommending the new product⁄product owner to their list. Referrals are everything. I have seen and read examples of this kind of endorsement marketing bringing in unheard of sales percentages for the product owner.

The reason for the high sales percentage is based on the fact that this is a warm list. What that means is that the list owner has already established a relationship with the people on his/her mailing list. They trust the list owner. In contrast, you have a "cold list".

This is one that has never heard of the person mailing to the list. Most likely that person rented a list of names from a list broker and is just mailing blindly to a list that neither knows nor trusts him.

Can this endorsement really make that much of a difference? How about going from 2 percent of sales to 24 percent.

Let's explain it like this:

You rent a list of 1000 names and send them a sales letter selling a product for $40 dollars and you receive back $800 dollars (20 sales). That is a 2 percent return. That is the industry average for returns on cold lists.
You get endorsed by the person who owns that same list and has a relationship with that audience, and you receive $9600 dollars (240 sales). That is a 24 percent return. Can this happen? Oh yes, it depends on the list, the owner, the sales letter and how targeted a market the list members were.
Can you see the difference between an endorsed mailing and a cold mailing. This is extremely powerful stuff. You are leveraging the power of the list owners relationship with his mailing list to bring in insane profit margins.
Even more important, the list members who bought from you are now your customers and you have every right to add them to your own very powerful list. This is a way to grow your own customer and prospect list very quickly.

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Would you like to know how to bring your own products, services (or even your ideas) to market even if you have no money, no contacts and no resources of your own? Joint Venture Secrets Revealed 2.0 will give you the blueprint you must have.

Ten Ways to Grow Your Business With Facebook

By Laurel R. Lindsay

As a business, you are always looking for ways to reach new markets. Bigger markets. Markets full of people who will sit up and take note or your message or product. Well, Facebook is just that market. With over 600 million active users and counting, it is open for business 24⁄7 so user can play, share, network, shop and research businesses like yours. So how do you harness the potential of this huge social network? Easy. Start with these ten tips.

1. Create a Fan Page for your Business

Step one for growing your business on Facebook is getting a interesting and targeted fan page up and running. It doesn't have to be gimmicky or over the top. It just has to speak to your audience and be there. Facebook isn't about big publicity stunts; it's about using the right way.

2. Be Active on your Fan Page

Once you start getting fans, they want to see your presence on your Facebook page. Generate lots of content, make announcements, comment on their pages or posts. Let them know you're there and interested in them.

3. Offer Exclusive Offers, Discounts or Loyalty Cards to Facebook Fans

If you want people to like your page, give them a little incentive. Free swag, great contests, valuable coupons or loyalty cards that are exclusive to fans of your page will keep them searching for you in their newsfeed.

4. Generate Useful, Timely and/or Controversial Content

To grow your network, generate content that your audience will want to share with all of their friends. Whether it's a hilarious video, fascinating news article, exciting press release or controversial product, content that your fans find valuable will go viral and make your business a Facebook sensation.

5. Develop Games or Apps for your Business

Does the word Farmville mean anything to you? How about Word Scramble? A lot of Facebook users are playing the thousands of games and apps available to them as a way to beat boredom. If your business has a branded game, quiz or app that focuses on your messaging and provides a little fun, it's a unique marketing vehicle that will help grow your fan base.

6. Facebook Advertising

It's surprisingly affordable and extremely targeted. Just set your budget, pick your audience and enjoy the pay-per-click advertising that will only show up for people who may have an interest in your product or service.

7. Cozy Up to your Competition

Social networks are surprisingly friendly. It's a great opportunity for your to make friends with your competition, use them as a sounding board and have open communication with them on neutral ground. Don't worry about creating an alias to check them out. Friend them, like them and message them. They're a great place to learn what works and what doesn't on Facebook in your industry.

8. Facebook SEO Tactics

Use your Info and About pages to create keyword-rich content that will help drive web traffic to your Facebook page as well as your webpage. It's the only two places you have an opportunity to do this- make it count!

9. Give Back to your Fans

Link to and promote others that fit well with your business or messaging. It shows you are an engaged and giving member of the Facebook community, builds trust and credibility and ultimately increases your fans.

10. Use Facebook Insight for Valuable Metrics

If you're using the tool, you should be measuring it's impact. Use Facebook Insight to gain information such as who is following you, where they're from, what they're habits are and other helpful information for learning to target your messaging. It's like Google Analytics for Facebook.

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Learn how to grow your business online: Internet Marketing Calgary Learn how to get a website that works Calgary Web Design

Ten Free Things You Can Do to Start Your Online Marketing Business

By Lisa Kneller

The main hindrance to beginning an online marketing strategy is distraction. The distraction comes from a lack of knowing what to do in this crazy internet world. If you knew exactly what steps to take, it wouldn't be so difficult. You can spend a fortune buying e-books and "how to make a million" replicated websites. It can be daunting to your mind and your pocketbook to begin the process of learning without having some guidance. Here are ten free things you can do to start your online marketing business. If you do these without spending a penny, you will be working smarter and be more grounded in your daily business. Resist the urge to buy for at least 30 days.

1. Think. That's right. Thinking is free and all it takes is a dedication of time to sort through your thoughts about what it is that you want to accomplish through internet marketing. Do you want to make a lot of money? Fine; but determine what exactly you will do with it and why you chose this method to earn it. What are your gifts and talents? What can you bring to the table that will help others? What is meaningful to you? Are you willing to put a lot of work and money up front to see your results? Most people who start a traditional business need capital and a lot of planning to get started. Ask yourself if you think this is different.

2. Research - Plug this topic into the search engines and see if you find about a million different options for learning this craft. Spend time reading and absorbing the information without spending a dime. Narrow your searches to the specific topics you need to learn about how to make online marketing a success. For example, you might research how to be a good copywriter or how to write email marketing campaigns or how to understand analytics. There are many sub-topics associated with internet marketing.

3. Planning - Planning is crucial in determining how you are going to go about building your online business. Would you go on vacation without a plan? Would you build a building without a plan? This is time well spent and doesn't cost you anything. Decide if you will have a website, a blog, or both. Decide if you will incorporate social media and which social media sites you will participate in. Decide if you are willing to write articles. Decide if you are able to provide valuable information for people. Know who your target market is and how you will reach them. Create a strategy for gaining credibility and a following.

4. Study - Studying is free. There are many really good marketers out there who offer free video training series on internet marketing. It's worth signing up for them if you are "attracted" to the type of person who is making the free offer. The trainers have to resonate with you. Be choosy. Spend 20-30 minutes per day studying what they have to say. Take notes. Start identifying how you want to come across to your target market.

5. Blog - There are free blogs out there which are really great for practicing your craft. I started two blogs before my current one and practiced on them for about a year. You can build your writing and technical skills a little at a time with a blog. It's an amazing tool. I recommend using the Word Press.com blog site as your free blog. That way, when you are ready to spend some money, you can easily transfer the technical knowledge you learned there to the paid site, Word Press.org. Know your skill level. If you are not into website design, focus your efforts on what interests you, such as writing. Eventually, you can pay to have someone design a great, professional looking site.

6. Facebook - Set up a Facebook page and begin to learn how to utilize it. As popular as the site is, there are still many people who resist joining because they just don't get it. But you cannot be successful in online marketing if you don't know how to work the social media sites, so get a Facebook page, upload your picture and start sharing.

7. Join Twitter - Twitter is a social networking tool that is also referred to as a micro blog. Short bursts of information are sent out to be helpful. When I signed up for Twitter, I had no idea how to use it. I just signed up, created my profile, uploaded my picture and watched people start to follow me. Eventually, I bought a book (okay this costs money), but there is a lot of free information online about how to use Twitter, so again, you don't have to spend any money for this. There is Twitter Etiquette and techniques that you should learn about, so keep researching on the best way to utilize this free tool.

8. Start networking - I love this one. There are people all over the world who are joining social networks like Ning. Ning allows creators to set up communities of like-minded people. They are free to join and you get to load your profile, picture and make friends, pick brains and learn from some of the best. Many are new to online marketing, so you won't feel alone if you are practicing your skills there. Everyone is practicing every day. As a yoga
teacher, I like to emphasize that yoga is a practice. We never stop practicing.

9. Article Writing - This is a skill that can be developed by simply writing what you know about. If you know a lot about photography, horses, parenting, health care, motorcycles, then you can begin writing about those things. It doesn't have to be about online marketing. But you will want to start researching and writing about what you are learning in this field, because so many other people want to know how to work it.

10. Join Squidoo or Hub Pages - Squidoo is a place where you can write about what you know and actually make money! You can add your affiliate programs, pictures and all kinds of information. Joining is free and starting your first "lens" is pretty simple. Hub Pages is similar and really easy to navigate.
There you have it. Ten free things. It may seem elementary, but it makes sense. My hope is that you avoid spending money on all kinds of reports and things without knowing specifically what you are looking for. Be smart. Learn first, and then spend when you can afford to spend.

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Lisa Kneller is a writer, professional online marketer, yoga teacher and trainer. You can find her website at Lisa Kneller

The Fallacy of Free Advertising

By Angela Wu

The temptation to turn towards free marketing resources can be an irresistable call, particularly to beginners on tight budgets. However, 'free' isn't a good bargain if it doesn't give youresults! You still 'pay' for free advertising in terms of wasted time and effort.

There are many effective ways to promote your business free. However, let's start with a brief look at a few of the less-effective methods. Although the rare person might get results that justify their continued use, most people find them to be a waste of time. These include:

 Free classifieds in newsletters. Some editors offer a free ad to new subscribers in an effort to build their lists. Unfortunately, if they're getting a lot of new subscribers, they're probably also getting a lot of free ad requests -- which means your ad is likely going to get crammed alongside several others. As you can imagine, readers often ignore 'classified ad' sections such as these.

 Free classifieds on websites, or 'Free-For-All' (FFA) sites where you can post your link. Most people go to post ads, not read them. How often do YOU go to these sites to read ads? Enough said.

 Free banner or link exchanges. You know the type: you place a snippet of HTML on your website, and the links or banners are automatically rotated through everyone in the network. These are not usually targeted enough to give good results.

 Traffic-generating programs. You join a 'network' and 'share' traffic -- on your site, typically a popup or popunder window (advertising another member's site) is displayed as your visitor enters or leaves your site. Other members display your ad in a similar way. A popular example are the 'start page' or 'exit page' programs. Sure, this can give you traffic... but the most important thing is, does it give you results -- subscriptions to your newsletter, for example, or sales? The conversion rate is typically negligible or low for these types of programs.

Now onto the good stuff... here are several excellent free marketing methods that have the potential to yield great results:

 Targeted Link Exchanges.

Place a link to another related site on your own, and in return, ask them to reciprocate. Do it consistently and you will eventually have a wide-ranging network of targeted, relevant sites on which you are linked.

Your 'link popularity', as it's called, is used by many of the major search engines to help determine how well your site is positioned in the results. Plus the more links you have, the more places people can find you. You essentially 'share' another site's traffic.

 Build and Use Your Own Opt-In List.
There's nothing like your own newsletter to develop a relationship with your visitors. Make it your goal to provide quality content and you'll have loyal subscribers who trust you.

Granted, hosting the list isn't usually free (although there are still a few free list hosts such as Yahoo! Groups,groups.yahoo.com). Still, once you have your own list of targeted, interested readers, you also have your very own marketing tool -- you can promote your products or services to this list, plus use it as 'leverage' for potential joint ventures (see below). It does take time to build a quality list, but it can be extremely profitable in the long run.

 Search Engines and Major Indexes.

Web surfers regularly use search engines and indexes to pinpoint exactly what they're looking for. Although more and more search engines and major indexes are now charging for reviews and/or listings, some of them (such as Google,www.google.com) are still free.

It takes time and effort to learn how to properly optimize your site for the search engines. It's no good to be #138475 out of 1437593 search results; no one will ever find you! Learn more about search engine optimization atwww.searchenginewatch.com.
It's well worth the time and trouble to get properly positioned -- if you get a good listing, it could mean a steady stream of targeted traffic.

 Free Publicity.
Imagine getting a radio or TV interview, or a write-up in a popular magazine whose readers are your target market. It's great exposure, and best of all, it's free! Many small busineses simply can't afford the advertising rates... and even if you could, publicity is even better because the radio show, TV show, or magazine provides credibility to your offer.

An excellent site to learn about free publicity iswww.prprofits.com.

 Referral Marketing.
Encourage happy customers to tell their friends about your business. This is a great way to build your customer base, year after year, through the power of the 'snowball' effect -- a happy customer tells a friend, who tells a friend, who tells a friend...

Referrals also tend to be easier to convert into paying customers because your product has been 'endorsed' by someone they know and trust.

You can offer incentives such as discounts or a free gift to encourage referrals. Regardless of whether or not the referred party makes a purchase, be sure to thank your customer for the referral -- reward his behavior and he'll be more inclined to repeat it.


 Write and Distribute Articles, Reports, eBooks...
Create useful free content and include a brief blurb about your product along with a URL. Encourage people to pass it around. Indicate that websites and newsletter editors are welcome to offer it as a gift, bonus, or premium to their vistors, subject to your publishing guidelines.

If you do this consistently, you can eventually have thousands of links back to your business all over the web! And the more people pass it around, the more exposure you'll get.

You can do this with practically anything: articles, columns, lists, reports, eBooks, software, worksheets... use your imagination!

 Joint Ventures.
Approach complementary businesses with win-win proposals. A simple and common 'JV' is an ad swap: you each publish one another's solo ads to your respective lists. You both avoid paying out-of-pocket expenses and have the opportunity to reach a new group of targeted prospects.

Another 'twist' to this common JV is to send endorsed ads to one another's lists. Review each other's products and, if it's worthy, mail an endorsed message to your readers. Endorsements usually outperform 'regular' ads because it comes from someone the readers trust (the editor).

The beauty of the Internet is that it allows you to run a business with very little money. The 'secret' is knowing which of the available free resources are worth your time!

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Angela is the editor of Online Business Basics, a practical guide to building an Internet business on a shoestring budget. If you're tired of hype and just want solid, down-to-earth information, then visit us now -- and in moments you can have access to loads of instantly useable tips, specifically chosen for beginners!onlinebusinessbasics.com/article.html

17 Killer Ways to Increase Your Twitter Following

By Cody Wheeler

Ok, so I might be a little radical here, but I'm going to go ahead and argue that Twitter is more of a quantity game than it is a quality game. That's not to say that you don't want targeted Twitter followers. I wouldn't have written this post otherwise.


In any case, I can't think of any negative effects to having a whole bunch of followers on Twitter. It doesn't cost you anything to have more followers like it does to have a larger email list. Just make sure you follow back the people you want to connect with so they can DM you. Otherwise you're missing out on a big advantage of Twitter.


With that being said you'll still want to go try to get targeted followers so I'm not going to talk about followback lists or auto adding tools or anything like that. I'm talking about getting legit followers that want to listen to you. Many of them will happen naturally, but some you will have to seek out.


Keep in mind throughout this list that according to Dan Zarrella of Hubspot, and the author of the Social Media Marketing Book you want to try to keep your follower count higher than your following count. Data shows that people are less likely to follow you if you have more than a 1:1 following to follower ratio.


Typically people won't follow you back after three days. To find the people who aren't following you check out Twitter Karma. It's a free tool that works legally (right now) with the Twitter API.


With that being said. Here's the list of how to get more targeted twitter followers.


1. Find the most influential people in your market and check out their followers. Follow their followers. These are likely people who would like to follow you (Tip: If you @mention their name before you follow them you will increase the chance that they will follow you back). Careful not to follow too many people at once or you'll violate the 1:1 rule and appear spammy. Try to make this a natural process. Keep it to 20 a day or so. This is a great task for a VA to do for you.


2. Make use of hashtags when posting updates. This will allow people that are searching that term find you easier. Don't spam hashtags. Try to keep it to a max of two per update and make sure you throw in hashtagless (yes, I made that a word) updates from time to time. 


3. Use search.twitter.com or the twitter search box to find people who are tweeting about your specific search terms.For example if you like to Tweet about health you might search, diet, exercise, fitness, biggest loser, etc. Follow these people and hope for a follow back. Most Twitter management tools such as TweetDeck have a search feature built in that does the same thing.


4. Participate in events that make us of Twitter hashtags- Many webinars and even live events such as #IMS (Inbound Marketing Summit) in the social media and internet marketing space will use hashtags that allow users to comment on Twitter about their experiences. You can get the attention of a lot of new followers this way, not to mention learn a lot.


5. Get a custom bumper sticker or t-shirt made with @Yourtwittername on it (Caution: Only do this if you're comfortable with being recognized as a complete geek)


6. Use a Twitter scheduling tool to tweet throughout the day. The more you use Twitter (and provide quality tweets), the more followers you are going to have, plain and simple. Different people are on Twitter at different times, usually quite randomly. Most people can't be on Twitter all day, nor do they want to be. It can be one hell of a distraction.
Scheduling tweets in advance will allow you to be at least somewhat active all day instead of in 10 minute Tweet bursts. There are a ton of tools out there that let you schedule Tweets. I prefer TweetDeck for its simplicity. Just get up a few minutes early, schedule 10 tweets or so and hit the road.



7. Be visible! Put your @username on your business cards, email signature, Linkedin profile, Facebook page, blog, coffee mug, lunchbox, mousepad, forehead tattoo, etc. Obviously I'm being a little over the top here, but you get the idea. Just make your @username visible in a lot of places.


8. Speak at an event or host a Webinar - Any time you are visible in the public eye you should be throwing your Twitter name out there. If not actively, just post it somewhere where people can see it (like as a watermark on your slides). Following someone on Twitter is the easiest thing in the world to do. Don't just put up a sign that says follow me on Twitter though. This is a mistake a lot of people make. Actually write our your @username. Make it easy for people to find you!


9. Become Verified - So this one only works for highly recognizable figures or people who are in danger of being impersonated, but if you are in this special interest group this is a way to one, protect yourself against being impersonated, and two, get a ton of new followers. People gravitate to verified accounts so if you're a big name and you're not verified go here to Verify Your Twitter Account.


10. Get retweeted and mentioned - This one is a bit more tricky because it involves being good at Tweeting, but basically if you put out good useful content and you are kind in @mentioning others you are going to get mentions and tweets yourself. Once you've built up some Twitter relationships you can send messages to your followers asking that they @mention you to their followers to follow you.


Check out DanZarrella's Science of Retweets report on danzarrella.com if you want to learn more about getting retweeted.


11. Create a cool background - If you know a designer or if you're good at design yourself make sure your Twitter background is sleek, cool, and professional looking (note the clever use of subjective terminology). There are many custom background services online that will do this for you for a few bucks. Just Google "custom twitter background" to find more.


At the very least use a sleek default background so you don't look like you just hashed something together. The default background is better than a poorly done custom background.


12. Make following you valuable - Make it so people HAVE to follow you on Twitter to get some sort of deal about your service. Twitter only coupon codes and discounts. Twitter only blog updates. Twitter only secret low down info. Provide a unique value. This works well for retailers. Anyone can apply this however.


For instance you can tweet a keyword rich hashtagged tweet and say all new followers before the end of the day get something free.


13. Go to a Tweetup - Man I may have jumped off the geek deep end here, but this is actually a great way to not only get more Twitter followers, but also meet a lot of cool people. For those who don't know Tweetups are real-life in person (gasp) meetings of Twitter users. You could go bowling, do karaoke, or whatever. Some people even wear @username nametags. Odds are you're not going to be connected with everyone there. You're bound to get a few new followers out of the deal.


Take a notepad and make a list of people to follow.


14. Hold a Random Contest - People like free stuff, especially when they don't have to do anything to get it. A good example is to offer a cool and inexpensive prize that will appeal to your target audience to a random new follower over the period of a week. Tweet about this a few times a day with different keywords and hashtags, post it on your blog, email signature, LinkedIn status, Facebook status, etc. You'll get some people who just want the goodies, but if you target your bribe (prize) well you'll also grab a bunch of new followers.


This works best when can recruit some people to Retweet your contest for you. Think strategically when you're doing this one, and don't spend TOO much on your bribe.



15. Post a real picture of yourself - Unless you're in the business of deceiving your followers it helps to have a picture of yourself that depicts you for who you are. Spend a few minutes getting all prettied up take a picture specifically for your Twitter profile. Don't crop a friend out of a picture. Don't use your company logo, and don't use the default icon. Post a real picture of you!


16. Fill out your profile completely - Probably the best way to get someone not to follow you is by having an incomplete profile. If you don't list anything in your profile people don't know what you do. All you have to do is fill out 160 characters. Fill that sucker out and make sure it appeals to your target audience. This will have a large effect on your follower count.


17. Guest Blog for Your Followers - This one can actually be really powerful. If you create content for people you follow you not only develop relationship with them on Twitter, but you can also get a backlink to your website, and benefit from the retweeting of your article. Just make sure you get your Twitter name added to the post with a link to follow you if you're going to do it for free.


Maybe down the road they will guest blog for you in return.


Follow these 17 tips (or at least a few of them) and you'll be sure to have tons of targeted twitter followers than love to read your content. Knowing how to leverage social media to get traffic to your website is an incredible advantage over your competitors.

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For more free tips about how to get more targeted twitter followers as well as all other things social media related check out my website at Official Blog of Cody B Wheeler Also be sure to follow me on Twitter @CodyBWheeler

Which Stage of Internet Marketing Are You In?

By Joe Bingham

After having been marketing on the Internet for over a year, and having been turning a profit for a while now, I've come to realize something.


Each new person as they get involved in Internet marketing goes through certain stages. Naturally, there are those that bow out of the game at each stage and those that persevere. Plus, there are those lucky few that run into the right piece of advice at the right time and are able to catapult ahead, skipping some of the non-profitable early stages.


Today is your chance to hear that right piece of advice. It's up to you to take it and move yourself ahead. As you read through the stages listed below, I'm sure you'll identify with them. Try to picture where you are now, and then you'll be able to see your way further ahead.


To make it more personable, I'll use the term I.M (internet marketer) as a name in the following descriptions.


STAGE 1 - Wow!


Getting on the Internet in the first place is like opening a great big new door to another world. Couple that with the fact that money can be made simply by working the Internet, and a typical, brand new I.M. can be seen floating through cyber la-la land for quite some time.


During this stage, I.M. is a reader. As a reader, I.M. see countless ads describing how easy it is to gain riches by working at home simply because of the huge numbers of people flocking to every bit of information the Internet provides. This is easy to believe at this point because I.M. is indeed constantly looking for information himself.


STAGE 2 - I Want In!


Having believed in the ideal of selling information to a waiting public, I.M. finds a good piece of sales copy and buys in. Notice I said finds a good piece of "sales copy". In other words, I.M. buys in to the possibility of selling information, based on the sales pitch he reads, and NOT into the idea of providing a valuable service or product. Expecting immediate results, I.M. blasts out ads similar to those he read as a STAGE 1 individual.


STAGE 3 - So Where's All The Money?!


At this point, I.M. is upset. He's been promised instant wealth, and easy profits, but they just aren't happening. He's promoting an affiliate program just like the affiliate program tells him to, but nothing is resulting from it. Disgusted, I.M. either blames the advertising services he's used, which at this point most likely include free classified sites, ffa pages, and banner sites, OR he blames the affiliate program he joined.


Many people are lost at this stage because they are offended and feeling misled.



STAGE 4 - Discovery of Ezines (content that is)


I.M. has bopped from classified ad to web site to super promoter to email, and has read a 1000 things, BUT he has never really bothered to really READ any decent ezines. Up until now, I.M. has been too focused on headlines such as "Profit INSTANTLY from the Information Super Age!" and completely ignored seemingly complicated topics such as "How To Properly Use Ezine Advertising".


However, eventually a more sensible article title, not ad title, will seem to hint at an answer to the current problem he is having and he will read it. And I mean REALLY read it! From here one of three things will happen. Either I.M will start to glimpse what is really needed to succeed on the Internet and he will start to search for more on real topics that he needs real help with. OR he will decide the whole thing is way more complicated than he first imagined and quit. OR he will sense there has to be real work involved and recoil in fear to the more easily digested topics claiming big, instant riches and try it again that way.


STAGE 5 - Rekindling


If at this point, after realizing there will be more work involved than he first thought, I.M decides to continue, he has just tripled his chances of actually making money online all the way up to about 5%. However, if I.M decides to continue learning, be patient, and find out what it really takes to succeed, his odds continue to improve from here on out.


STAGE 6 - Well, Duh!


This is where I.M starts to see things in a different light. He's been around a while to where he starts to recognize the names of some of the more successful authors, marketers, and business owners. Then, not only does I.M start to listen more to their words than others, he also starts to watch their actions and analyze what it is they are actually doing.
Now simple things that should have been clear to anyone wanting to start their own business begin popping out at him left and right.


 You MUST sell items of value, not just the dream of riches.
 You HAVE to create your own Internet presence and differentiate yourself among all the others blindly promoting the same things.
 You NEED to build a solid reputation and as many working relationships with others as possible.
 You MUST promote continually and consistently, not hit and miss.
 You WILL NOT succeed in competition with 2 million other affiliates by using the same promotion methods, ads, and sites.
 You NEED a unique product or service of your own, or a unique presentation of other's products or services.
 You HAVE to promote using methods that actually get your ad in front of real people that are engaged in actual reading. And most importantly...
 You MUST realize it will take WORK and will not happen instantly.



STAGE 7 - Ok, But Now I How Do I Do It?


It's one thing to realize what needs done, but quite another to actually accomplish it. This is where it gets difficult as well because the answers are different for everyone. A good writer can promote through submitting his articles around, but not everyone is a good writer. Someone who learns and is persistent can work the search engines, but others may become too easily frustrated with the system. If investing money is not a problem, I.M. can hire the services of other professionals or buy needed software, however, for many that's not feasible.


I.M now has to answer certain questions for himself.


 What product or service will be my main focus?
 What other affiliate programs can I correlate to my main product or service to use as secondary income streams?
 What promotion methods am I interested in and comfortable doing?
 How much do I have to invest?
 How much time do I have to invest?


From here, I.M. finds the best sources of continual education for himself and constructs a legitimate business plan for the first time. He sets goals, identifies the way he wants to proceed and begins.


STAGE 8 - Slow But Steady


I.M. gets his plan underway and proceeds. It takes time, but his business relationships start to grow, he learns more, he gets things running as planned, and slowly but steadily he starts to see his income rise. Naturally, there are problems and setbacks, but I.M. now knows what he needs to do so it's simply a matter of getting things done and giving them time to bear fruit.


STAGE 9 - Continuing


Even at this stage I.M. may decide to quit, it's happened before. There are no guaranteed results, no sure-fire methods that always work, and no reason that I.M. may not just up and change his mind as to what he wants to do.
It takes effort to continue and keep your business growing. You will continually have to learn and adjust to your market, and it will take continual promotion.


Determination is an easily disgruntled human trait. However, if you can keep it alive and continue to work, THEN and only then is the potential of building a sizeable income and even a lifetime residual income a real possibility.
These stages are not absolute, nor does everyone move smoothly from one to the next, nor does everyone go through each and every stage. There's nothing to stop people from going back and forth between them either.


However, the sooner you realize the cold, hard facts of the latter stages, the sooner you can start to realize the goals you originally set. It only takes minutes to imagine the world you want to be living in, but that doesn't mean it can be made a reality just as quickly.

You can't escape reality by entering into your own.Dreams bring forth images, persistence brings them home.

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Written by Joe Bingham, Editor NetPlay Newsletterswww.netplaynewsletters.com Want to start your own ezine? Afraid you don't have time, know how, or writing skills? Discover the NetPlay Publisher Program. Problem Solved. You CAN publish your own ezine - See how!www.netplaynewsletters.com/publisher.html

Creating a Small Business Marketing Plan

By Karen Scharf

It is imperative that, as a small business owner, you create a marketing plan. It's also imperative that you realize your marketing plan is going to be a work in progress. Your plan (and you!) must be flexible enough to change and adapt to the current market conditions, changes in the economy, advances in technology and so on.


Here are six great tips to keep in mind when you begin creating your own small business marketing plan:


1. Establish Goals


Your small business marketing plan should be very goal oriented. Being able to visually see what your intentions are for your business can often help you plan and organize in a way that will help you reach your goals quicker and more efficiently. Before beginning your marketing plan you should sit down and write out exactly what goals you intend to reach.


Next, figure out a rough idea of how you plan to reach these goals. Be as specific as possible; include exact numbers (number of clients, number of products, number of websites, etc), exact dollar amounts (amount of sales, amount of profit, amount of affiliate commissions, etc) and exact dates (when your website will be completed, when your sales calls will be made, when your products will be released, etc.) There is no way you can draft an outline of what you plan to do with your business unless you really know what you want out of your business.


2. Identify Yourself


Though many small business owners do not see the point in creating a brand for themselves, you are creating a brand whether you realize it or not. So why not do it deliberately? Include in your marketing plan exactly what you want your customers' and the market's perception of your business to be. What personality will your business take on? What do you want to be known for? What do you want the "gossip" about you to be about? This should be spelled out in your marketing plan and should be something that you actively strive for on a day to day basis.


3. Develop a Budget


Be sure to include in your yearly marketing plan the budget for the year as well as your plan for achieving this budget. Though there will always be additional financial documentation separate from the marketing plan, it helps to include exactly what your goals are for spending, budget, and earning. This way you have a perfect example to look at; and remember to always leave room for flexibility and editing of your marketing plan.


4. Describe Your Product or Service


One of the greatest things about your small business marketing plan is that it will come in very useful as your business grows. You'll be able to hand it off to your new team members and they'll have a perfect sense of where the business is going and how it's going to get there.


But one of the funniest things I encounter in working with small businesses is that many of the ancillary team members can't exactly tell me what the business they work for does. Since they're only involved in a small portion of the business, they're not familiar (or have never been told) the big picture. This is especially true with consulting businesses and service providers.


So be sure to describe in detail your product or service and how it will improve the lives of your customers. Many small business owners skip this step, thinking they already know exactly what they do. But remember, you'll have a larger audience than just yourself for your small business marketing plan - and you might be pleasantly surprised at useful this step is to you and how you view your future marketing activities.



5. Describe Your Target Consumer


You should make it abundantly clear within your marketing plan who your business is aimed at and how you plan to market to that particular group. Clearly targeted customers are vital to a business or marketing plan. Your plan is all about articulating who, what, when, where, and why. This is the "who" and it helps to make it clear to everyone in the business (especially you) what sort of person you are targeting as a potential customer or client.


By having a very clear description of your target customer, when you set out to advertise, promote, or change a product, you'll know exactly where and when to do that. You'll know where to spend your advertising dollars, you'll know how to phrase your messages, you'll know what type of graphics to use, and on and on. Don't be tempted to skip this either - again, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at a useful it is to get your target market profile down on paper.


6. Tell What Makes You Unique?


Being able to set yourself apart from all of your competitors is a huge part your small business marketing challenge. You need to clearly separate yourself from the crowd. This is called your "unique selling proposition". What makes you different? How do you stand out from other businesses that are selling the same product or offering the same services? Create a clear and coherent statement on this differentiation within your marketing plan. Not only does this help to improve confidence in your product, but if a prospect asks why he should do business with you, you'll have a clear answer to give him.


Can't find anything that sets you apart? Be sure to spend the time creating something! Schedule a brainstorming session with your staff members, your best clients, even your family and friends. Often times, these people already know what sets you apart, and it's usually something that you've taken for granted all along. And one last word of warning: avoid using Price as your unique selling proposition. There is always someone willing to undercut you or use your product as a loss leader, trapping you in a never-ending game of sales and price reductions.


A small business marketing plan is essential to your business. It doesn't have to be something large and cumbersome; you'll get more use out of a marketing plan that is flexible and easy to follow. So I challenge you to set aside a few hours over this upcoming weekend and begin drafting your small business marketing plan. You'll be amazed at how helpful this step is to the growth of your business.

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For more small business marketing tips visit Karen Scharf's website at Modern Image Communications.