Satellite Internet vs. Cable Internet

Cable TV versus satellite television is an old rivalry that can be seen discussed on TV at all hours of the day. The comparison seems to end however when it comes to satellite internet and cable internet access. This seems strange as cable and satellite companies are pushing packaged services over anything else. So, which is the superior Internet service provider, cable or satellite? Here we will examine both and see if we can answer the question. Cable Internet: Cable modems allow Internet access through the same lines that over 60 million Americans now receive cable TV. The infrastructure is proven and sound and more importantly already paid for. The coaxial cable allows dual band transmission, one for uploads the other for downloads. Cable Internet offers about as much bandwidth as any consumer customer would ever need boasting downloads of up to 30Mbps and uploads passing 512Kbps in some areas. Cable also offers a high degree of reliability as it has been in service in many markets for over a decade, and of course the cable companies date back to the early 1970’s. Generally 99% uptime can be expected. Bundled together, cable TV and cable Internet will cost around $90.00 per month, or around $55.00 for Internet-only. This is comparable cheap for a broadband Internet service, with DSL being a slightly less expensive option in most areas. Satellite Internet: Internet over satellite, or IoS Service, is the technology that provides Internet access via a low, geosynchronous orbiting satellite. This means that the static position of the satellite relative to Earth allows customers to maintain connections any time of day. One serious drawback to satellite Internet access is signal latency. Every data packet sent and received must travel from the consumer’s computer, through the Internet, through a transmitter, into orbital space, then return. The round trip is around 45,000 miles, and can create a great deal of lag. Although satellite ISPs offer up to 1.5 Mbps downloads speeds, the average signal speeds are closer to 512Kbps. Add latency to this and you can see how the connection can be very slow compared to cable or DSL. Satellite internet access is also far from affordable. The service typically costs around $50.00 to $120 per month. This doesn’t include the equipment investment which can cost around $300.00 to $600.00 or more, and this is most often an upfront cost. This additional cost does not bring any additional reliability. Many customers complain about slow or even no Internet access during inclement weather, and though these interruptions are generally brief they certainly don’t help justify the cost. Conclusion: It appears as if there is no competition between cable and satellite Internet access. Cable is superior in performance and pricing, as well as reliability. If this is truly the case, then how can satellite companies intend on competing with cable Internet? The answer is they don’t. Satellite has one thing cable does not, and that is the ability to send access to any dish anywhere in the country. Rural America may for the first time have a broadband solution in satellite Internet. If you can get cable, get it. If you can’t, then at least satellite provides you with a viable (but expensive) alternative to your old 56Kbps dial up Internet service.

How Blogging Impacts Mainstream Marketing

Because I’m a journalist and copywriter who also reads and writes blogs, people who don’t use the Internet as much as I do have started to ask me some searching questions of late. Some of them sound worried. They have heard a lot about blogging and the impact it could have on traditional marketing. One person even asked me (perhaps a little concerned) if PR teams will be replaced with bloggers. I don’t see it, I reassured them. PR is also about managing people and that will always be important. The mainstream media isn’t about to disappear, and the majority of the population probably couldn’t care less about blogs. For all the hype, blogging should be seen as a potential addition to a marketing portfolio. The place blogging may have its biggest impact is on areas of the trade press. There is a revolution in publishing taking place, sparked by the new forms of advertising such as Google ad sense. This has made it possible for someone running a blog site, with a staff of one and overheads of almost nothing, to start earning a living from their publishing. If the blogger can get readers, then Google places the ads (relevant to the content) – and you have a publishing business. This gives a lot of people an incentive to provide great content – so that they get more readers, and more money from ads. It’s just like the traditional press, but without the need for offices, advertising sales teams, HR departments etc. This works best in niche areas. Soon, there may not be much need for magazines about new gadgets, or mobile phones, or ride-on-lawn mowers or whatever. Because the blogs have it covered, providing more up-to-date information and readers who are ready to buy – and can simply click on the advert. The everyday bloggers have a new-found power and are not about to go away. Some blogs now get millions, even tens of millions of readers a day. They are rivalling the mainstream media – and if the US government can’t control them, what chance does a small company or even a big enterprise have? Companies and blogs It’s still pretty early days for companies using blogs, and the whole thing is evolving. It will probably settle down into one more piece in the jigsaw, another communication channel that companies can use. The style used in company blogs needs to be less “written by committee” and more personal and spontaneous. Companies that try to use too much subterfuge in the blogging world are exposing themselves to a potential backlash. There’s a great emphasis on honesty in the blogging world – for example bloggers will often end a post with a “disclosure” note which mentions any conflict of interest. At a simple level, blogging can be seen as simply another way of publishing information on the Internet. It’s useful because it is so fast and it’s easy to get a range of people involved quite quickly. However, there are real skills involved to good blogging. Not only does the writing have to be engaging, colourful, funny, informative etc, but the writer also needs to take account of search engine optimisation techniques – which basically means using the right keywords to ensure the blog shows up in the search engines. At it’s most sophisticated, blogging is being used to create “viral marketing” campaigns – to create a “buzz” around a product as though this were coming from ordinary people. This is a whole new field of marketing / advertising…

Protecting Your Identity On Social Networking Websites

Social networking websites are a great way to stay in touch with friends and family, but they can also pose a serious identity theft risk. Keep reading for great tips on how to enjoy social networking websites, while still protecting yourself from online identity theft. Because many social networking sites are viewable by anyone as a default, any information you enter into your profile could be easily searched and available to the world. Most people give little thought to posting their birthday, where they were born, and full name, but sometimes even this small amount of information can be all a professional identity thief needs to access your identity. One of the simplest ways to increase security is to set your profile page to private. Most social networking websites, like MySpace or Facebook, will allow you to control who can and can’t see your profile. By only allowing your personal friends access to your information, you’re significantly reducing the risk. Another easy way to protect your identity is simply to not include private information in your online profile. Don’t post your address and phone number where the world can see it. Consider this, if your address or city is posted and you write a post on your profile that reads “will write soon, am off to Denver for 10 days,” not only will a potential identity thief have your address, but also the knowledge that your mailbox will be unsupervised for the next 10 days. So not safe. Finally, before posting anything online, really consider whether or not its necessary. Ask yourself if you’d write that information on a bathroom wall or distribute it on a flyer. If the answer is no, then perhaps you shouldn’t be posting it at all. Remember, social networking can be fun, but make sure you’re the one in control.

Learn How To Make Money Using PLR Products

Selling private label rights digital products can be very profitable. There are a lot of people on the internet that sell these products and have a very successful business because of it. You need to find the right private label rights digital product. There are some things that you need to know about these products before you sell them. Private label rights products are the best kind of product that you can get. When you buy them you are given the rights to the entire resale rights along with the master resale rights. The added benefit to private label rights products is that you can change or rewrite the content in way that you want to. You can also put your own name on the product which will mean that you are now the sole owner, creator and seller of this product. When you purchase a private label rights product you will be given the whole product as is, which means that you want to make sure that you get the master document. You will need this in order to be able to make changes to the product. When you get these products they will cost you a little bit of money since they don’t come cheap. These products can range in price anywhere from $297.00 to $1,000 or more. The price will depend on what is included in the package you are purchasing. When you decide to sell private label rights products it will mean that you will have your own instant product and that will give you the power to control the content. The beauty of being the owner of these products is that you will be able to sell this product in individual reports or put the information on CD so that you can sell it as a physical product. You can even decide to resell the private label rights to the product you made. When you have changed the product it will make it a brand new product that you can offer different resale rights to. When you sell the private label rights for your new product you will need to make sure that you provide your customers with all of the websites, graphics, ad copy, source codes, etc. You also need to make sure that when you buy a private label rights package that you receive all of these things with the product that you buy. You can make good money when you buy private label rights products and then change it so that it is your own. When you change the product you want to make sure that you make sure that it is unique and that you expand on the original product that you bought. This will help you when you start selling private label rights digital products. When you start selling these products you will need to know how to market them so that you can get traffic to your website. Traffic is the most important thing that you will need because no matter how good your product is without people to see it you will never make any money from it. So you need to educate yourself on how to market your product. There are free marketing methods and paid marketing methods that you will need to learn about. This is not hard to do because there are all kinds of resources that you can learn from. However, you need to remember that your education on this will be an ongoing process no matter how long you are in the business. You can make good money when selling private label rights digital products if you are willing to do whatever it takes to make your dreams of success happen.

The Polite Angler

An oxymoron is when two opposing words are combined together to create an idea. Phrases like “jumbo shrimp” or “genuine imitation”, illustrate the idea. To some people, who still think of fishing as a hillbilly, redneck pastime, “fishing etiquette” may be an oxymoron. Yet more and more men, women and children are finding their involvement with the world of fishing to be more enjoyable when they use polite behavior on their angling adventure. How does one going about being a polite fisherman? Preserve the Land Make sure you know the land, pond or dock you are fishing on is acceptable to fishing and not private property. As inviting as a patch of grass by a pond may appear, if there is a sign marking it “private property”, its better to leave it alone. A fishing license will not cover you if you are caught fishing in a restricted area. Also remember if you dig for worms, to put the earth back where you got it. Don’t just leave holes in the area near the water. Be considerate of the land around you. Make sure to leave enough space between you and your neighbors. They came to the great outdoors to get away в�� just like you did! Don’t ruin their peace with your own issues and camping gear. Make sure to take trash bags with you and do not leave any litter behind. Leaving your fishing hole exactly the way you found it is a way to be good to others and to the land. Preserve the Fish Make sure to follow the fishing rules set out by the local magistrate. Follow the area’s conservation policies, particularly catch and release regulations. Make sure to use hooks with no barbs so it does less damage to the fish and is easier for you to remove. The longer a fish is out of the water, the more stress and harm it sustains. If possible remove the hook from the fish while it is still in the water and let it swim far away before casting in its general direction. Always follow the limits allowed by the fish and game department and make sure not to throw or leave anything in the water or on the shore. Polluting a fishing hole takes to fun away from everyone. Compete with Class Competition fishing has become a popular past-time of late. Be sure if you are part of a fishing competition, whether a personal one or an organized event, that you use humane ways of making a decision for a winner. The two most popular methods are measure and release where a fish is measured and points are given by the inch/cm, and weigh and release where points are given by the pound. Be sure that the fish is not out of the water for more than 30 second in either situation. Fish often hurt themselves in the struggle to get away. Use qualified people to weigh or measure the fish and record the results. Fishing is a much a sport for ladies and gentlemen as croquette or lawn tennis. With a little attention to surroundings, others and the sport itself, fisherman can feel right at home with the mannerly among us.

Learning To Follow A Budget

Learning to follow a budget can be very difficult at first. This can be a big concern if you have been use to spending money freely. First step of course is setting up your budget and some guidelines to keep within your budget. Be sure that all expenses are accounted for. Don’t forget to include fun money or entertainment funds if able. Once your budget is put together soundly you are ready to set up some guidelines to assist you in keeping on track with your budget. One of the best ways to keep you on budget is to stop carrying cash. For most of us while shopping when we see signs offering miscellaneous items for ninety-nine cents we can’t resist. It’s just a dollar here and a dollar there. Those dollars add up fast and before you know it the twenty dollars in your pocket is gone. By not carrying cash you can help stop impulse buying. If you still prefer to carry cash, your best bet is to only take what money is necessary to spend. Give yourself an estimate of what your groceries will cost you. Take only that amount with you. This will help curb the need to purchase excess items, knocking you off the budget track Always shop with a list, to help prevent unnecessary spending. If you make a weekly or biweekly grocery list, you will only be purchasing those needed food items. Or create a list of cleaning supplies and stick to those isles only. If you allow yourself to wander aimlessly around a store you are allowing yourself to be tempted for other purchases. It can be very hard to stay on budget when desired objects surround you. Become a thrifty shopper. It can’t hurt to look through coupons. Even a few saved cents per purchase can really add up on savings in the end. Searching through clearance sections in stores is another way to find items you need and save money on as well. You may be pleasantly surprised to see how much you can take home, and still have money in your pocket on your way out the door. Keeping yourself on a budget is about self-control. It’s fighting the urge to buy what is not needed. If you have a difficult time curbing your shopping habit, keep a friend or relative with you on shopping outings. Someone you can trust to steer you away from temptation. As long as you lower the temptation for purchases, make a list and stick to necessary isles you will prevent yourself from loosing track of your budget needs. Once you conquer your shopping demons, you will become proud of yourself for doing so. It’s a good feeling to be able to shop and stick to a list of items and not cave to those savings signs. You’ll feel a great sense of accomplishment as well. So don’t be overwhelmed, grab that pen and paper and keep on the budget path.

Selling Your Services Without Sounding Pushy

Selling your services without sounding pushy is the great hairbreadth that divides the successful salesperson  be it a telemarketer, mail order solicitor, or car salesperson seeking to foist an undercarriage coating  from the one who will be hung up on habitually, whose glossy brochures end up in the recycling bin, and who could not sell a big flannel towel to a beachgoer who forgot his. While there are a number of reasons why some folks simply sound pushy even when they do not mean to, there are also a few tips and tricks to overcome this problem and to rise up in the ranks of those who have the art of selling in their blood. Here are the three most important things to remember for selling your services without sounding pushy: 1. First and foremost, you must come to terms with the product and the process. Perhaps you are working at a call center and instead of being able to enter into a person conversation with the consumers  as it your personal style  you are forced to follow a specific script. This is a hard one for many people to do, and trying to sell anything when you are comfortable with the process will have you come across as being pushy and impersonal. Thus, become dedicated to using the script, memorize it so that it does not sound like you are reading something, and make every effort to find a personal approach even when using a script. Establishing personal rapport will allow you to sell without sounding pushy. 2. When someone is accused of being pushy, it is usually synonymous with someone trying to convince a potential customer of the services quality even though the customer is not sold on the concept yet. As a sales person, you have missed a crucial step in the process by failing to communicate undeniable reasons why your potential customer needs the service. This in turn requires you to listen to the customer and understand their needs  which sometimes you only will be able to do within the first two minutes of the conversation. Therefore, do not be so quick to sell your service but instead be quick to listen and then focus on the reasons why your service will be a need for the customer. 3. Selling your services without sounding pushy requires the salesperson to understand what they are selling. Sure, you may know that you are selling a widget protection plan, but just going into the money saving, how much it will cost the customer, and what great benefits there are does precious little to convince the consumer who is practiced in saying No to anyone who calls. Instead, you need to focus on the end-result your service will have for the customer. The widget protection plan is great, but if it means the customer gets to spend time with his or her family playing golf since they no longer have to worry about fixing the widget, then this is the hook on which to bait the sale. Once the customer is interested in what the service can do for them, it is the time to enter into your spiel about cost, and so on.

The Price Is Right – How To Arrive At The Best Price For Your Products

Avoiding Common Mistakes A trap many E-Biz owners fall into is trying to set their prices by simply adding a percentage or flat amount to an item’s cost — they buy a watch for $20, slap another $20 on the price tag, and pass it along to their customers. The problem with this type of pricing is that your costs aren’t fixed. For example, your wholesale costs for buying and reselling 100 blow-dryers will differ substantially from your wholesale costs for buying and reselling 10,000 of the exact same blow-dryer. Another problem with this kind of pricing is that your customers may be willing to pay more. Let’s say you added $20 to the cost of your watch and it sold well. But it may have sold just as well if you added $40, and your profits would have greatly increased. 7-Step Pricing Strategy Marlene Johnson, of http://PricingPsychology.com, recommends a 7-step approach to pricing your products: 1. Look at your competitors’ prices and get a range. According to Johnson, “Your consumer has in their mind some idea of what’s the right price to pay for your product. If your prices are going to be dramatically different, higher or lower, you’re going to have problems.” 2. Objectively compare your product to your competitors’. Compare features that a consumer would notice and value. Determine if your product is better than similar products, or if it’s lesser. Don’t be emotional when comparing — it’s not better just because it’s yours. If you can’t clearly specify what makes it better, then it’s not better. 3. Decide how you want your product to be perceived in comparison with your competitors’. Are you the “quality” brand? The “low-cost, cheap” brand? The “value-added” brand? Your web site should reflect your conclusion. Your customers won’t pay top prices for an item from a shoddy-looking web site. But if you’re going to be the budget brand, you don’t need a fancy web site either — just something simple and unelaborate. 4. Calculate your costs. What’s the cost of goods if you buy this many vs. this many? What’s the cost of shipping? Factor in the variables — any costs you forget come directly out of your profit margin. 5. Determine the quantity you need to sell to make a profit. Look at the price range you can charge and the costs of selling your products. 6. Take a reality check. Ask yourself, “Given what the market is willing to pay and what I think I can sell, can I make a profit?” If not, you did your research, thought it out, and saved yourself a lot of wasted time and money — move on. Look at something else. 7. Run tests to see at which price your product sells best. At this point, you should have reached an acceptable range of prices — find a software program that lets you perform AB split testing. This testing method will quickly show you at which price point your goods sell best. For $12 at http://www.wilsonweb.com/ebooks/splittest.htm, you can get How To Optimize Your Landing Pages Scientifically, a book that lists 13 different online software-testing programs, several of which are free. According to Johnson, there’s one more rule of thumb that sellers should always keep in mind: “If people accept your price immediately — you should charge more.”

Overachieving Your Way To Super Affiliate Stardom

Internet business is a bit confusing especially if you’re not really knowledgeable at it. You will also be left completely blank, asking yourself as to what type of online business is best for you. Why don’t you try affiliate marketing business? Affiliate marketing is defined as a revenue sharing relationship between advertisers or merchants and online publishers or affiliates. It is a low cost way for merchants to sell their products and services. In this type of online business, you don’t have to take any risk because you only have to pay the affiliate once the result is achieved. Once a customer is gained, a portion of the profit from that customer will be given to the affiliate as commission. Usually, an affiliate gets a commission for referring clicks, leads or sales to the merchant’s website. The said affiliate income can be a fixed dollar amount or a fixed percentage. From this simple commission-based referral system, some affiliates become experts on this field. In fact, some of them are gaining more than five figures every month. However, among the thousands of marketers, only 1 to 5% of them reached this level. And if you’re among the lucky ones who achieve this so-called elite level, you can now be aptly called a “super” affiliate. This means you are capable of achieving noteworthy percentage of sales or traffic on your merchant’s website. Super affiliates are not only experts on search engine optimization; they are also great in newsletter marketing, email marketing, reciprocal linkages, keyword optimization, link exchanges, advertising in forums and other methods to advertise and promote their products and services. But how does a person become a super affiliate? And how can they overachieve their way to super affiliate stardom? Making your way to super affiliate stardom is not that easy; and it surely won’t happen overnight. Bear in mind that you need to embrace some tactics, carry out effective online business strategies and of course give hefty time commitment. You can’t be a super affiliate without blood and sweat and without the following traits – patience, persistence and thirst for knowledge. Matched with efficient strategy, these three traits provide you the formula towards super affiliate stardom. Affiliate marketing strategies are a bit difficult but they are achievable; you just have to work hard on it. First, look for a unique and exceptional niche and focus in it. The reason why most people in the affiliate marketing business didn’t turn out to be very successful is that they try to offer almost everything under the sun instead of giving all their attention in a particular niche market. If you want to become a super affiliate, try not to scatter all your efforts; concentrate on your niche and make it grow by means of promoting, advertising and selling it well. The next step you must do after you have established your affiliate storehouse is to promote it. Most affiliates resort to pay-per-click engines. But what’s more advisable is to discover how to accomplish organic search results or better yet, hire a search engine marketing company. Through this, you can be saved from losing all your profits on pay-per-click engines. Then, familiarize yourself with your product and know your audience. Remember that credibility builds trust. And you can only make information that puts up your credibility if you know the products and services your site is offering. If you’re target audience don’t trust you, how could you expect them to purchase from your affiliate storehouse? Moreover, if you take time to learn the products and services you are recommending, it will be way too easy for you to establish a website that converts well, which will enhance your affiliate income in return. Try to promote and resell products from different merchants. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this strategy because it is just a way of protecting your business and broadening your horizons to be sure that you won’t experience the so-called famine effect. Aside from that, promoting different merchants on the same site provides your site visitors a handful of destinations to choose from. This strategy will also make you aware on what your visitor want to see and it can also help you find out how well various merchants perform against each other. As mentioned earlier in this page, a super affiliate wannabe should have this trait – thirst for knowledge. It is because this trait can help him or her stay updated and remain on top of the trends. If you are knowledgeable in internet marketing, then you know that what was adopted few months ago may not be applicable at present. So it is important to seek knowledge and make sure that you are updated on what’s new about affiliate marketing daily. Keep in mind that super affiliates take time to read, learn and embrace the changes in online marketing business. And what’s most important? Never, ever give up. Being engaged in affiliate marketing business is hard, that’s why you must be equipped with patience and persistence. Check your statistics and find out the things that are working and those that are not. Make changes if the situation calls for. These are just few suggestions and ideas if you want to boost your affiliate income. Let me reiterate, you have to be patience, persistence and knowledgeable. Then, follow the above mentioned strategies and you’ll surely find yourself on the road to super affiliate stardom.

Methods Of MLM Lead Generation

MLM lead generation is a skill that a person has to develop if they want to be successful in multi level marketing. Having a steady supply of leads is important if a person wants to continue to make good money. MLM lead generation is the process of getting leads. It is not enough, though, to just gather leads. A person has to be able to generate quality leads. A quality lead is a lead that will likely produce a positive result. It is a lead for a person who wants to know more and who is interested in signing up with the MLM business. Generating quality leads can be tricky. Getting any old lead is easy and that is where many people go wrong. To be successful in MLM lead generation a person needs to get leads from a reliable source. The best source is from the leads themselves. This can be done on a website. Many people put a request box on their website where a person can leave their contact information. These people are asking to be contacted in regards to the MLM opportunity. This is a great method, but the dependability is not that good since it relies mainly on people taking the time to enter their information. Another good source is high quality lead companies. These companies have a good reputation for supplying quality leads. A person has to buy the leads, though. Lead generation can also be done through writing articles and submitting them to article directories. This involves a person writing an article and filling out their bio with their website information so people can contact them. There are plenty of ways to go about MLM lead generation. Once a person finds the method or methods that work for them they can expect to have a good steady supply of MLM leads.

Tips For Making Your Ebay Business Successful

Running your own Ebay business can be a great way to work from home. This can allow you to be home with your children, and not have to worry about daycare. A successful Ebay business will take a little work on your part. Here are some tips for keeping your Ebay business successful. Have great customer service. This is the most important tip I can offer to you for a successful business. Always be kind and courteous when dealing with a customer. Even though the Ebay business is online you will have dealings through email. Answer questions quickly if someone sends you a message about an item you are selling. If you wait to long they will buy the item from someone else and you will lose a sale. Include a thank you not with the package. This will show the customer you care and might make for a repeat sale later on. People remember kindness. Be accurate when describing a product. There is nothing worse than getting your item in the mail and discovering it is not what it said it was. Maybe the item is not in good shape, or just not like you described it. Always give accurate descriptions. If an item has a few stains make that clear in the ad. This will save the headaches later on. You do not want a bad rating for your Ebay business. Bad feedback will cause you to lose sales every time. Sometimes errors will happen and mistakes will be made when describing an item. If this happens and the customer contacts you make it right. Refund the money or offer another item free of charge. This can save your Ebay business by not having negative feedback. Always double check an item before you list it. This will keep your Ebay business successful. Ship as fast as you can. Waiting on an item to ship can seem like an eternity. If you offer fast shipping you can ensure positive feedback for your Ebay business. If the customer has to wait weeks to get an item they will not be happy and most likely will ever buy from your Ebay business again. They will also mention the slow shipping when leaving feedback about your Ebay business. This can deter others from buying from you. If you know you will be out of town or unavailable when you have auctions ending be sure to include a message in the ad telling so. This can save you from getting complaints later. If something comes up and you have an emergency that delays the shipping include a letter telling the customer so. Maybe consider paying for an upgraded shipping method. This will keep the customer happy and they may return to buy from your Ebay business again. Do not charge excessive shipping fees. If the item you are selling is a five dollars and you want fifteen to ship it you will not sell it. People do not want to pay high shipping fees. They will buy elsewhere. By following a few simple tips you can make sure your Ebay business stays successful. Remember the customer will be leaving feed back about their buying experience with you. This can make or break an Ebay business.

How To Know If It Is A Link Farm Spam Page

A link farm is a network of sites that link to other sites for the sole purpose of increasing link popularity. This is when a website gets hundreds of links to unrelated sites in exchange for reciprocal links. This is termed as spamming and any website who relates to link farms is penalized by removal from a search engine’s index. Backgrounder on Link Farms Link farms were originally developed by search engine optimizers to take advantage of the Inktomi search engine’s dependence on link popularity. It was targeted for manipulation with the use of link farms because of the fact that it was used by a number of independent but popular search engines. The most popular search engines during that time – Yahoo! also used Inktomi results as a supplement to its own directory search feature. Link farms facilitated the stabilization of listings for online business websites having few natural links from more stable sites. Link popularity is used by most search engines to come up with a ranking order for search results. However, at the time link farms came to be, the Inktomi engine was maintaining two indexes. The primary index produced search results that are limited to about 100,000,000 listings thus pages with few inbound links fell out of the index on a regular basis. While the handling of link farm exchange was informal at the start, several service companies were eventually founded to handle automated registration, categorization and link page updates to member websites. The coming of the Google search engine paved the way for the use of a link weighting scheme called PageRank. The PageRank algorithm assigns more weight to links that it determines as more valuable than others. Link farming was used to help member pages to increase their PageRank. This soon became the subject of manipulation by unscrupulous webmasters who continue to receive inbound linkage but found ways to hide outbound links if not totally avoid posting any link at all to their sites. There came a need for link farm managers to implement quality controls and require member compliance to rules that were installed to ensure fairness. As a result, alternative link farm products emerged such as the link-finding software that identifies potential reciprocal link partners. This made possible the sending of template-based e-mails that offered link exchanges. Directory-like link pages were created for those websites intent on building link popularity as well as PageRank. The link farm movement was actively countered by search engines as they sought to identify specific attributes associated with link farms thus filtering those pages from indexing and search results. There were instances where entire domains had to be removed to prevent the potential influences of link farms on search results. Link farm-influenced crawling diminished as search engines increased their capacity to index more sites. It became unnecessary for link farms to help sites retain their positions in primary indexes. However, it remained a popular tool to increase PageRank or perceived equivalent values. The Inktomi technology has since become a part of Yahoo! while the term “Link Farm” is now widely considered as derogatory. There is still an ongoing debate as to the value of using PageRank in determining search results ranking. Reputable search engines are one in recommending that webmasters request for relevant links to their sites instead of participating in link farms. Sites that participate in link farms run the risk of having their search rankings penalized. Link Farm Spam Page or Not? Link farms usually refer to sites with an almost boundless list of links to other websites rather than links from page to page within a site. Relevancy to a site is not a major consideration in determining the links as the major purpose of linking is to get a high ranking among search engines. The provisions of good information to users cease to be the goal of these websites as they concentrate on attaining search popularity through the sheer number of links. When is a specific website said to be participating in a link farm? The current indication seems to be pointing at having not more than 100 links on a page as a safe measure. There are apprehensions of whether having numerous internal links will be interpreted as a link farm. A link farm is composed of a group of web pages that hyperlink to every other web page in the group. It can be manually created but is most often created through automated programs and services. It is sometimes called spamdexing as it is a form of spamming the index of a search engine. A term that is often associated with it is the “spaghetti code” which is a code with a complex and tangled control structure that uses unstructured branching constructs. The algorithmic principle that puts emphasis on the voting power of “authority sites” lies behind the manipulated processes of link farms. There is that assumption that related pages link to each other and authoritative pages tend to link to other authoritative pages. Conversely, being linked to spam sites or sites that use Black-Hat SEO degrades the reputation of any site. Association with poorly reputed sites affects a site’s search engine positioning as it stands to be categorized as an irrelevant site. As spammers continue to go around the valid purpose of linking, the value of reciprocal linking continue to decrease. Too many irrelevant links provide no value and can be seen as spam by human experts and search engines. A link directory with no clear, organized and distinct categories of links can be interpreted as a link farm especially if there are already more than 50 links on a page. TrustRank is used to counter the various techniques employed to achieve higher rankings than actually deserved in a search engine’s result. It uses a technique that manually identifies reputable seed pages and uses their link structure to discover other pages that are likely to be good as well. It aims to cut down on spam and deliver the real content that is desired by the searcher. There are a number of ways to ensure that a website’s link directory does not end up being categorized as another form of a link farm. Incorporating a link directory into a website has its own advantages but caution should be taken so as not to have too many outbound links on a page that dilutes its value. If a website’s links are very much varied and tend to be unrelated, they will need to be categorized to become relevant to each other. The use of clear, concise titles and descriptions for categories will help searchers (humans and search engines’ spiders alike) understand what a particular category is all about so that the measure of relevancy can out rightly be determined. It is not a requirement to agree to all link exchange requests especially if the requesting site cannot be considered a good representation of a site’s theme and values. It is highly recommended that regular follow-up on approved link exchanges is done to determine the status of the links and determine whether continued linkage with them is still acceptable. It is possible that although some links present themselves initially as good links have been banned, gone under, or moved. These are situations beyond anyone’s control so it is best for a website to work hard on keeping its links and contents relevant so as to bring continuous qualified traffic to itself. Link farms may be considered obsolete in a sense but it continuous to pop-up in different forms at present.

Tips For Managing Your Business Finances

Managing your business finances is extremely important and because it requires different expertise. Realistically, most business owners will require professional guidance to properly manage their business finances. The two most important associates for you to retain will be an accountant and banker. An accountant will provide assistance in a number of different key areas. He can oversee your bookkeeper, validating cash disbursements. You and your accountant will work together to develop a budget and cash flow statement. The budget will be used to ensure you have an adequate profit margin, or you’ll need to either change your pricing structure or reduce expenses. Your banker will also require a budget (along with cash flow statements) if you apply for loans. The other crucial statement will be the cash flow statement which is a forecast of your revenues and expenses by month. If you don’t have enough cash coming in each month to pay your suppliers, employees and other expenses, you will either need to have cash in the bank or arrange for other financing. It’s a good idea to have separate business checking and credit card accounts for your business expenses. It will be easier to track and justify your business costs for tax purposes. If you choose to incorporate, you can protect your personal assets from any business debt. Besides your accountant, you should consider outsourcing other finance functions such as payroll and bookkeeping. Having excess inventory on hand can also drain you cash. Outside consultants can provide financial models to more accurately predict needs. Your banker can help you with applying for both checking and credit card accounts. You may also need business loans to set up or grow your enterprise and every business should have a line of credit in case of cash shortfalls. You should see if you qualify for a low interest loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

To Bid Or Not To Bid

A person’s trash is another person’s treasure. That simple line could be the reason why auctions exist today. But what are even better are online auctions. There you will find lots of different items worthy of second looks. Plus, you can win them with just a click. Seems so easy, right? But get this, like your ordinary auctions there could be a lot of different schemes, scams and modus operandi out there waiting to trick you. Once you experience being cheated, you could forever hold grudge to all online sellers, good or bad. Now we wouldn’t want that happening, don’t we? So in order to avoid being a victim of online frauds, take time to consider these things before bidding. 1. Before going into a totally unfamiliar place, we’d check it out first, right? We’d do research. Ask around if you have friends who love to bid online. Or better yet, check the auction site for customers’ feedbacks. This is a great help especially if you are so sure of the item, except the seller. You could also check if you could “bid on approval” on the auction site. This means they will send you the item before you place your bid. 2. If you’ve finally found the most coveted thing, check the pictures and descriptions, whatever it is. 3. If you will be purchasing clothing, think of the wash and if it will just hang around your closet more than spending time outside in the daylight. Just really think about it because in auctions it may seem like you get an item at your price. For that to happen you will be bidding and the highest bidder will win. The more the bidders, the price could get higher. In this case, the sky is then the limit. Get it? 4. When you have decided that there is nothing more important in the world than that thing you want to bid on, well, you could just buy it right away (with buy now option), but at a much higher cost, of course. But you could wait and give it some more time. Try checking out stores around you. You might have missed seeing that item in the store brand-new. If you could have it brand new at a cheaper price, why bother bidding for it? If you still want to bid for the sake of bidding, then you suffer the consequences of paying the price for shipment that is if the seller is not in your area. 5. Having a good transaction is very vital. So make sure that you communicate with the seller the whole time during the transaction period. He could be cheating you, for all you know.

What You Need To Make Your Own Online Videos

Online video websites; there is a good chance that you have heard of them before. In fact, there is a good chance that you have even used them before. When it comes to using online video websites, most internet users only view the videos that are available. Did you know what you could also do more than that? A large number of online video websites will not only allow you to view videos, but make and share you own http://www.careersemployments.info Making and sharing your own videos, sounds exciting doesn’t it? If it does there is a good chance that you would like to get started right away. However, before making plans for your next online video, you are advised to think about how the process works. This is important because it will let you know what type of equipment you will need to get started. Before uploading and sharing you newly created online video, you will first have to shoot it. To do this, you will need video recording equipment. Video recording equipment can include camcorders, webcams, cell phones, and digital cameras. If you are looking to produce a quality video, you may want to think about using a camcorder or a webcam. Cell phones and digital cameras will work, but many only provide you with a limited amount of recording time. In addition to a limited amount of time, not all digital cameras and cell phones will record sounds. Although these sounds can be added in later, it may be time consuming. Once you have created your online video, you will need to find a way to get it to your computer. Most recording devices, including camcorders, webcams, digital cameras, and cell phones will come with the necessary equipment. This equipment often includes computer cables. Once you hook your recording device up to your computer, your video should begin to load. However, for this to be done you will need to have moving making software installed on your computer. When it comes to movie making software, you will likely find that your computer already has a program on it. Most computers, especially ones made within the last few years, have the software programs preinstalled. If your video does not automatically load, once your recording device is hooked up to your computer, it may be a sign that your computer does not have a movie making program. If this is the case, you will need to purchase some. Movie making software programs can easily be purchased online or from a wide variety of different retail stores. Once your video has been loaded onto your computer and recognized by movie making software, you have a number of different options. If you are satisfied with your video, as it is, you can save it and then move on. If you would like to make alterations, now would be the time to do so. Depending on the type of moving making software you have, you should easily be able to edit your video. This editing may include, but should not be limited to, deleting scenes, adding captions, and the adding of music. Once you have made all of your edits, you will need to save your movie. The final step to making an online movie is to find an online video website that you can upload your video to. Popular online video websites including YouTube and Goggle Video; however, you can find additional sites by performing a standard internet search. After you follow the directions, provided by each individual online video website, your video should be displayed for the rest of the world to see.

The Ultimate Advantage – A Simple Plan For Success

Every online business owner wants “The Ultimate Advantage”. Many explore the internet in search of the product or service or affiliate program that will give them “The Ultimate Advantage”. While there are many great products, services and affiliate programs online today, none of them is “The Ultimate Advantage”. So what is “The Ultimate Advantage” for your online business? You are! You’re probably thinking, “How am I “The Ultimate Advantage”?”. Here’s the answer; regardless of the product, service or affiliate program you choose, the only way you will be successful is if you take action. You need to answer the basic questions (Who, What, When, Where, How and Why) and then you must be willing to outwork the competition. Use this 4 Step Plan for Success: 1. Set goals. Your goals must be clear and concise. If you can’t clearly identify a goal, you’ll have a hard time achieving it. Be as specific as possible. If your goal is “I want to make more money”. How much money? What are you going to do with the money? Why it this amount important to you? When will you have this money? Answer as many of the basic questions as you can. And be realistic. Bill Gates didn’t become the richest man in the world overnight. Spend some time clearly stating your goals and giving them meaning, in doing so, you’ll create your personal motivation. 2. Create a plan. Goals are worthless if you don’t have a plan for achieving them. Grab a pen and paper and write your plan down. Think it through, focus on your goals. Create a list of tasks and then schedule those tasks for specific days of the week. Again, be clear and concise. Answer as many of the basic questions as you can. If you can’t clearly state your plans, you’ll have a hard time achieving your goals. Be as specific as possible with your plan. By establishing a clear plan, you’re setting the path for accomplishing your goals. Think about this, how many successful businesses just wing it? Not many. 3. Take action. Start carrying out your plan as soon as possible. Right now! 4. Review your plan regularly. As you accomplish each goal, review all of the basic questions and see if anything has changed. Focus on the next goal. Modify your plans as necessary to accomplish the next goal. Following this 4 Step Plan for Success will enable you to accomplish your goals. As you accomplish each goal, reward yourself and then reset your focus on the next goal. Keep doing this and as you accomplish each subsequent goal, you’ll notice that everything else takes care of itself. You’ll really start to love this business once you start seeing the results of outworking the competition.

Knockoff Handbags

We can’t help but admire designer handbags when we see them being sported around by Hollywood celebrities as well as by other rich and famous people. We go to the different shopping centers or maybe visit the online websites of the various designer brands only to find out that the handbag comes with a rather expensive price tag. While you may find other affordable brands offering one in a somewhat similar style or design, we really want the designer brand probably because of the status symbol that comes along with it. There are those people who buy knockoffs or fake handbags especially if they can’t afford the genuine or original ones. I have to admit that makers of replicas nowadays make them so like the original one that even experts have a difficult time distinguishing the genuine from the fake one. Plus it comes in a very cheap (I mean really, really cheap) price saving on you on hundreds of dollars. But have you ever thought about the consequences of buying a knockoff? While it may be true that you are not committing any crime when buying a knockoff you have to think twice before buying one. The purchase of fake items robs our government of millions of dollars because the people selling them don’t pay their taxes unlike you who do. Syndicates and gangsters profit from selling fake merchandise which they use to finance their illegal activities. The question now is how do we spot a fake for there are some people trying to pass knockoffs as originals. It used to be easy before because the knockoffs were made of materials that were of an inferior quality. But currently, the trend is that knockoffs are almost of the same quality as the original ones. It would help to have an idea of the correct price of the original item. If it normally sells for maybe more than five hundred dollars and it is being offered to you at say just a hundred bucks then the merchandise being sold to you is a knockoff. Also items like leather and apparel with a made in Taiwan tag are not genuine. If you intend to buy online, it is important that you are cautious. I would strongly advise that you go to the brand’s official website for they sell there authentic items. Some items being sold at auctions are not really the real thing.