Saturday, June 8, 2013

BEST CHEAP SONY DSC-WX300/B 18 MP DIGITAL CAMERA WITH 20X OPTICAL IMAGE STABILIZED ZOOM AND 3-INCH LCD (BLACK)

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Copywriting - The Top Ten Benefits That Copywriting Clients Can't Get From Content Mills

First-time buyers of copywriting often find themselves drawn to so-called 'content mills' such as Examiner, Suite101, Associated Content, eHow, and DemandStudio. These sites hold out the promise of cheap, no-frills copywriting, with the reassurance of paying for your copywriting by the word. Unfortunately, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Here are the top ten things you won't get if you decide to get your copywriting from a content mill.

· Ability. Sounds painfully obvious, but there's such a thing as copywriting skill, and people have varying levels of it. If you're a white-collar professional using a content mill, you could be delegating your copywriting to someone with abilities only as good as (or worse than) your own. So what have you really gained?

· Experience. One or two cents per word does not stretch to a seasoned copywriter. But why should you pay for copywriting experience? All I can say is that the 'broad but shallow' knowledge picked up during my career has served my copywriting clients very well. Ideas from copywriting clients in other industries. Print techniques that work online, and vice versa. Ideas on ecommerce, SEO, social media and more. Ideas on improving value propositions. Ways to save time - and money. It all adds up - and you get a professional manner, calm demeanor and sense of humor thrown in.

Copywriting - The Top Ten Benefits That Copywriting Clients Can't Get From Content Mills

· The right price. If you need to spend more, you should spend it. If my plasterer discovers rising damp, I want him to tell me, not just cover it up. Let's say I'm working on a fixed-price copywriting job for a content mill. The client has directed me towards out-of-date sources. Halfway through, I realise this, but have no incentive to raise it since there's no way to renegotiate the fee for the copywriting. So I just cut and run, having fulfilled the letter of the contract. The copywriting is inaccurate, and some valuable learning is lost.

· Enough time. Closely allied to cost is the need for adequate time. Many copywriting projects throw up unforeseen issues. 'The subject is more complicated than we thought.' 'There's more to say.' 'Our structure needs work.' 'We need to rethink terminology.' 'Our industry jargon won't work for SEO copywriting.' 'We've identified a new market segment.' The professional copywriter works with the client to address these problems - with a time implication, yes, but what's the point in rushing to the wrong destination?

· Reassurance. So you've chosen to use a content mill. Presumably you're completely confident about factual accuracy, grammar and spelling, copyright and fair use, trade marks, US/UK language conventions, Google penalties, duplicate content and the legal implications of publication. If not, why not work with a professional whose reputation is on the line with every single copywriting job they take on?

· Flexibility. Inspired by The E-Myth Revisited, I once dreamt of creating a one-size-fits-all 'system' for handling copywriting and design projects. I soon gave up. No one needed it, or wanted it. Marketing should be a bespoke suit, not a T-shirt from Wal-Mart. Smart clients appreciate that copywriting service and expertise pay for themselves.

· Rapport. Clients who tender copywriting job by job never realise the benefits of working long-term with a copywriter who truly understands them. For them, every step is the first - every piece slightly off the mark, lacking sparkle, bringing nothing extra. They'll never feel the thrill of receiving text from their regular copywriter that absolutely nails everything they wanted to say, and more - first time. (For a regular client, I recently wrote the president's introduction to a brochure with no brief. He approved it without change.)

· Creativity. The fixed-price deal actively discourages discussion, consideration and indeed active thought. The copywriter's only hope is to bang that copy out quickly and pray she doesn't get RSI. She certainly has absolutely no incentive to put forward anything creative, inventive or alternative, even if it could help the client. The risk is just too great that it will be rejected - leading to a rewrite, obliterated profits and aching wrists.

· Intelligent SEO. Even basic SEO copywriting is an art - hitting keyword density targets for multiple terms without grammar and sense collapsing completely. But competent SEO copywriters take it to the next level, offering content that actually appeals to humans too. In other words, a landing page that isn't a bouncing page.

· Motivation. When prospects ask what I'd charge for 'an hour's graft copywriting', they are perhaps puzzled as to why their enquiry fails to excite my interest. The reason is that I prefer to strike a civilized, mutually beneficial deal in an atmosphere of respect, friendship and dignity. With that in place, I'm motivated to give my very best to the copywriting project. Without it, you'll get 'good enough', but no more.

Now, the most likely objection to all this is that it's completely irrelevant to copywriting for article marketing, or the creation of banks of SEO pages. I beg to differ. For articles posted at EzineArticles and similar sites, your best chances of republication (propagating your backlinks across multiple domains) come with a compelling, high-quality article. Better to have one killer piece than five embarrassing duds. And for SEO, as I've argued, you need your landing pages to convert the reader, not just attract traffic.

I also feel there's a big cloud hanging over the in-vogue strategy of gaming the search engines by posting huge amounts of nominally relevant content, hoping to boost link velocity and backlink numbers. Google's business model depends on search results that are relevant and deliver genuine value to users. Historically, it's never failed to weed out any attempt to reduce quality to a formula, or mere gruntwork. Would you bet against it now?

Copywriting - The Top Ten Benefits That Copywriting Clients Can't Get From Content Mills
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Tom Albrighton is a freelance copywriter and founder/director of ABC Copywriting. ABC, based in Norwich, provides professional and creative copywriting services to businesses and agencies throughout the UK and Europe. Specialities include B2B marketing, SEO copywriting, website writing, articles and academic copywriting.

Monday, February 25, 2013

Self Employment Ideas With Low Start-Up Costs

Stress, boredom, low-pay, or having an entrepreneurial spirit may all be causes for wanting to leave a 9 to 5 job and become self-employed. Having a goal to become self-employed starts with figuring out what it is you can do to start your own business. Not everyone who wants to work for themselves know exactly what to do and where to start. Below are some low-cost start-up ideas that may get your creative juices flowing.

Freelance Work - If you have a skill such as web programming, copywriting, or other technical skill, then freelance work will be an easy transition. You can simply market yourself and as you get more clients, word of mouth will soon work in your favor. Sooner or later, you will have more work than you can handle - this of course depends on the level of service you provide and the quality of your work. Start-up costs should remain low as you will need at the most: business cards, a web site, software (depending on your skills), hardware (computer), and office supplies.

Drop shipping - I'm sure you have heard of drop shipping before. If not, it is a very low-cost way of selling physical goods without having to buy a ton of stock up front. Most people who use drop shipping have online stores, collect payments from customers, and forward on the orders to the drop ship company which fulfills and ships the products directly to the customer. Most businesses utilize eBay to take advantage of their huge customer base. The costs for this remain relatively low since there is no up front stock to buy. You may have to purchase shopping cart software for your web site, a merchant account, or pay fees if you go with eBay.

Self Employment Ideas With Low Start-Up Costs

Self-publishing on the Internet - Do you have a love for writing? Do you have a skill or talent that you can turn into a how-to guide? You can begin self-publishing your own information products and market them over the internet. What makes this low-cost is because the most you would need to purchase is a web site, web hosting, and possibly some advertising. You could begin this business around 0 or so.

Out of the above examples of low-cost self-employment ideas, my favorite remains self-publishing. Information will never run dry and as long as you are able to help solve someone's problems, there will be a customer base ready to purchase your products.

Self Employment Ideas With Low Start-Up Costs
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Are you seeking ideas for self employment [http://leavingthecube.com/] and the steps to take to become self-employed? Download my FREE report by visiting LeavingTheCube.com [http://leavingthecube.com/] and discover the essential steps needed for this important decision.

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

How To Create An Effective Business Development Strategy

The Business Development Strategy is used to underpin your main Business Plan and essentially it sets out a standard approach for developing new opportunities, either from within existing accounts or by proactively targeting brand new potential accounts and then working to close them.

This document highlights the key issues you should consider prior to compiling your own plan and will hopefully guide you logically through a proven framework.

The key word is 'Strategy', because you are creating a workable and achievable set of objectives in order to exceed your annual target.

How To Create An Effective Business Development Strategy

Your Starting Point:

The key words are Who? What? Where? When? Which? Why? How?

For example:

Who - are you going to target?

What - do you want to sell them?

Where - are they located?

When - will you approach them?

Which - are the appropriate target personnel?

Why - would they want to meet with you?

How - will you reach them?

If you have conducted regular account reviews with your key accounts during the previous twelve months, you should be aware of any new opportunities that will surface during the next twelve months. You will also, when assessing what percentage of your annual target usually comes from existing accounts, need to review data over the last two or three years. (It is likely that you can apply Pareto i.e. 80% of your business will probably come from existing accounts and in fact 80% of your total revenue will come from just 20% of your customers/clients)

You will be left with a balance - i.e. "20% of my business next year will come from new opportunities" - therefore you can then begin to allocate your selling time accordingly.

Ideal Customer Profiling:

Pro-active business development demands that we create an ideal target at the front end - i.e. an "Ideal Customer Profile." The essential characteristics you will need to consider are:

- Industrial Sector

- Geographical Location (Demographics)

- Size of organizations (Turnover, number of employees etc)

- Financial Trends

- Psychographics - i.e. Philosophical compatibility

Many strategic sales professionals merely profile their best existing clients and try to replicate them - there's nothing wrong with doing this but we should always remember that we are seeking an IDEAL and we can always improve on what we already have.

'New' Opportunities From Within 'Old' Accounts:

Because it costs approximately ten times as much, to first locate and then sell to a new customer as it does an existing one (although these costs are rarely reflected in the cost of sales), it is essential that we fully develop our existing accounts working upwards, downwards and sideways, thus making the most of the (hopefully) excellent reputation we have developed already.

Most corporate accounts have several divisions, departments, sites, even country offices and you must satisfy yourself that you have exhausted every possible avenue. Don't be afraid to ask the question "Who else should I be talking to in your organization"?

This is an extract from my FREE eBook - "How to Construct an Effective Business Development Strategy" which is available for download - please see details below.

Copyright © 2012 Jonathan Farrington. All rights reserved

How To Create An Effective Business Development Strategy
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

To download my new revised FREE eBook "How to Construct an Achievable Business Development Strategy" please visit my personal site The JF Consultancy, - www.jonathanfarrington.com

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Copywriting - The Power of a Story

Every good story has a beginning, a middle and an end. Producing sales writing follows exactly the same pattern and this article will show you how.

Headline

This is where it all starts. Your headline has to capture your readers' imagination and therefore should contain or be lead by a benefit:

Copywriting - The Power of a Story

"Miracle White gets stains out first time - and that's a promise!"

When starting a piece like this, it is essential that the beginning of your copy continues the same theme as your heading:

"Tired of washing and re-washing clothes because of stubborn stains? Well, now's the time to take action..."

That is a very cheesy example, but I think it gets the point across.

Beginning

The beginning is where you'll state a problem that needs solving. It will highlight the topic of the writing and gives it purpose. You can also start with something pleasurable - this works well when selling a product that has a desirable effect on the user (i.e. makes them more attractive etc.)

Middle

This is where you have to convince your reader your product is right for them.

You will introduce the product which will solve the problem you highlighted at the beginning of your copy. So continuing the washing power theme, it could go something like:

"Now you can remove all stains first time with Miracle White. Re-washed and extra products will be a thing of the past. Now you just need one product for incredibly clean washing every time."

End

Up to now, we've just been talking about the product and the problem it will solve. Now you can bring in your reader. This section is the call to action - where you tell your reader what to do next:

"Get your free sample now by calling xxxxxxxxx"

So, as you can see, being a copywriter is like being a story teller. Just follow the traditional format for a story and you'll create great copy.

Copywriting - The Power of a Story
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Sally Ormond, Briar Copywriting, is a professional freelance copywriter, SEO website copywriter and advertising copywriting with extensive experience in both B2B and B2C markets.

To have a chat about how she can help you send an email to sally@briarcopywriting.com or call +44(0)1449 779605.

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Copywriting - Make Money When You're a Brand New Copywriter

Do you know that it's a strength, not a weakness, to be new to copywriting? As a new copywriter, you'll charge less, and this makes you appealing to clients with a low budget.

Here's how to make money when you're a brand new copywriter.

1. Glory in Your Inexperience - You Can Be More Creative Than the Pros

Copywriting - Make Money When You're a Brand New Copywriter

Copywriting is salesmanship in words, but it's also a creative art. As their experience grows, copywriters struggle to maintain "beginner's mind" because their experience gets in the way.

As a newcomer, you've got beginner's mind built-in. You'll find that not only do clients with low budgets want to hire you, large companies with big marketing budgets want you too - you've got freshness the old pros lack.

However, your beginner's mind is only a plus if you realize that it is. This means, that when you're new, promote yourself that way.

2. Promote Yourself As a Newcomer

"I haven't got any experience!" is the #1 complaint I hear from my copywriting students. Here's what I tell them. Your lack of experience is a plus. You need to promote yourself as a newcomer; don't fudge and claim experience you don't have.

Many clients will want to work with you, not only because your fees are lower, but also because you can focus on their projects. You don't have a huge stable of clients, and you're not juggling ten projects at a time, so you can give your clients your undivided attention.

3. Keep Studying: Get a Mentor

Copywriting is a huge field. As you gain experience, you'll specialize. You may specialize in direct response, audio visual copywriting, or copywriting for the Web - or something else entirely.

When you're new, it's vital that you keep studying, and also that you have a mentor. A mentor will gauge your strengths, encourage you, and will help you to build your client list.

A mentor is gold; get one any way you can.

4. Testimonials Are Worth Money

In your first year as a copywriter, focus on getting testimonials from your clients. Ask for them. Most clients will happily comply - they're business people, so they know what it's like to be starting a new business.

5. Focus on Marketing Yourself

Get into the habit of doing at least one marketing task every day, even when you're booked solid with projects. Marketing yourself is vital. These days, copywriters are in huge demand, so if you're not turning away clients the only possible reason is that you're not marketing yourself.

Keep marketing. This means: get a Web site and blog. Send out news releases. Network. Marketing is fun, once you get into the swing of it. The better you get at marketing, the higher your income.

I hope I've convinced you that being a fresh, new copywriter is a great thing to be - start your career with confidence.

Copywriting - Make Money When You're a Brand New Copywriter
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Want guidance as you learn copywriting? Angela's "Copywriting Master Class - Ten Weeks to Copywriting Genius" at http://angelaswritingclasses.com/Class/copywriting.html helps you to start and run your own copywriting services business under the guidance of a top copywriter.

Angela Booth's ebook "Seven Days To Easy Money: Copywriting Success" at http://abmagic.com/Copywriting/copywriting.html takes you from novice to pro copywriter in just seven days. Packed with information, the ebook includes exercises which become your copywriter's marketing processes and portfolio. You could be writing your own copy, and signing up your first copywriting clients within two days.

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Adjective Order - Teach Your Students the Correct Order of Adjectives

Did you know that when more than one adjective is used in a sentence, that they need to be written in a specific order?

Most English speakers, including your students do this automatically. When they speak or write they use what sounds correct to guide the order of adjectives. They know that "the brick last house" sounds odd and can quickly and confidently adjust it to "the last brick house". This is fine for commonly used adjectives.

However, if your students need to use adjectives that are not as common, especially ones that are not used in everyday conversation, it can be very difficult for them to determine what the correct adjective placement is.

Adjective Order - Teach Your Students the Correct Order of Adjectives

Give your students opportunities to explore and practice how adjectives should be placed in a sentence and their skills and confidence will increase.

Here is the correct order for adjectives.

1) OPINION (lovely, useful)

2) SIZE (big, enormous)

3) AGE (mature, ancient)

4) SHAPE (square, oval)

5) COLOR (red, burgandy)

6) ORIGIN (American, English)

7) MATERIAL (wooden, cotton)

8) PURPOSE (typing, sun)

Use these exercises to get your students practicing adjective placement.

1) Write the order of adjectives on the board and ask your students to suggest examples. Write two examples for each type of adjective.

2) Ask your students to copy what you have written on the board and include two more examples for each adjective type.

3) Write 3 or 4 adjectives on the board and ask your students to use all of them in a sentence. Here are some adjectives that you could use (hairy, big, yellow), (cold, silver, English), (roasted, salty, chilli), (fluffy, young, white). This activity could be done a few times.

4) Write 3 or 4 adjectives on the board. Include one or two words that your students will not know. Here are some examples (re-hydrated, orange, African), (dusty, brown, marsupial), (acidic, salty, Greek). Ask your students to look the words that they don't know up in a dictionary and then use all the words in one sentence.

5) Ask you students to find three examples of adjective order in books that they have been exploring in class.

6) Write a sentence on the board that includes at least three adjectives. Ask your students to write the opposite of that sentence. When they do this it will become clear that even though the meaning of the adjectives can change dramatically the order of adjectives stays the same.

For example, "The boy saw the long, dusty, dirt road" becomes "The boy saw the short, clean, concrete road".

Adjective Order - Teach Your Students the Correct Order of Adjectives
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Print out an adjective order worksheet and link to other adjective resources for the classroom at
http://www.free-teacher-worksheets.com/adjective-order.html

Find a wide range of free printable classroom resources at
http://www.free-teacher-worksheets.com/

Friday, January 25, 2013

Article Writing & Copywriting Secret - How To Make Your Article TITLE Sell

Most authors are wasting their time producing dozens to hundreds of high quality articles that never reach a fraction of their traffic potential. It's a darn shame.

When I review the behind-the-scenes traffic statistics on millions of articles that have produced millions of monthly page views in my article content lab...ONE thing is clear: All articles are not created equal even when everything about them is identical except for the TITLE.

The reason is probably not what you think.

Article Writing & Copywriting Secret - How To Make Your Article TITLE Sell

If you've been schooled on traditional copywriting, you know that in the offline world, the headline determines as much as 95% of the success of the book or article. This statistic takes into consideration what makes the book title successful: Whether a human buys it or not.

Article Writing on the Internet is a whole different story because of the way your articles reach humans who have an interest in them.

MYTH: Most people will read your articles because they came to a website and started browsing just like they do if they were to have gone to a local book store to find a book of personal interest.

FACT: Wrong! Most people will search the Internet using one of the major search engines and they will be putting in between 1 to 5 keywords that are related to the topic of the article or information they are looking to locate. The search engines will then deliver results that best match the human's interest.

YOUR GOAL: To have your articles show up in the search engine results for the keywords and topics that are most related to the content of your article.

HOW?

You must embrace this TITLE creation & traffic-building truth:

The first 3-5 words of your TITLE determine the success of your article in terms of how much traffic your article will generate back to your website. Success can only be had when you create keyword rich titles for your articles that match the most commonly searched keywords for your topic.

How to determine which keywords are rich and the right ones to use for your article?

You'll need a keyword research tool. Some are free and some are fee-based. Overture.com has a popular keyword research tool that shows you the most common search results from the Yahoo search engines directory. If you want to see what's on "Google's Mind" you can try one of their current beta tools called "Google Suggest":
http://www.google.com/webhp?hl=en&complete=1

Whether you use a web-based keyword research tool or invest in one of the more advanced application level software keyword research tools, it's critical that you learn know how to do keyword research.

A "Good" vs. "Bad" TITLE Example:

Here is an example of the difference between a non-keyword rich TITLE vs. a very keyword rich TITLE that is proven to perform better in terms of traffic creation:

Bad TITLE Example:

"Top 9 Ways You Can Acquire Fractional Jet Ownership"

Excellent Keyword Rich Title Example:

Fractional Jet Ownership - 9 Strategies to Help You Acquire Your Private Jet

Why is it more effective?

Because it does not waste the first 3 words of the title with meaningless garbage words like "top" or the number "9" or "ways"...and gets right to the important words that might be found when someone is using a search engine to research a topic related to your article.

You'll also notice in my example that I included the word "Private" Jet. Why? Because my keyword research said that people who search for fractional jet also search for the word "private jet" and therefore I wanted to boost the chances that my title would be found by a larger number of potential visitors to the article.

Two recommendations on what NOT to do:

1) Don't include garbage characters in your TITLE such as quotes, tildes, asterisks or anything else that a search engines has to work hard to discard in order to understand the TITLE of your article.

2) Do not engage in any search engine spam technique by having keyword rich TITLES that have nothing to do with the topic of your article. You'll only be hurting yourself as the search engines already aggressively filter out bad behavior like this.

YOUR INTELLIGENT KEYWORD RICH TITLE COPYWRITING CONCLUSION:

If you want to maximize your results from any article writing strategy, you must master keyword research so that you can create keyword rich and intelligent article TITLES. Your pay off will be massive amounts of traffic to your articles and website thanks to the search engines who love smart keyword rich TITLES!

Article Writing & Copywriting Secret - How To Make Your Article TITLE Sell
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Christopher M. Knight invites you to submit your best quality original articles for massive exposure to the high-traffic http://EzineArticles.com/ expert author community. When you submit your articles to EzineArticles.com, your articles will be picked up by ezine publishers who will reprint your articles with your content and links intact giving you traffic surges to help you increase your sales. To submit your article, setup a membership account today: http://EzineArticles.com/submit/

(c) Copyright - Christopher M. Knight. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Top Ten Tips for Writing a Professional Overview or Biography

A professional biography or overview, showcasing your background, experience and expertise, is a necessity for every business owner. This often overlooked marketing tool is an excellent way to introduce you and your business to potential clients and possible strategic business partners. Potentially, it might open up opportunities for speaking engagements, radio or television interviews, or a feature print article. While any information about you and your business is helpful, information that is presented in a professional, well-polished manner can make all the difference in how others perceive you. Consider these important points as you craft your own professional biography.

1. One page wonder.

Your professional biography should be a few paragraphs and kept to one page or less. One page is perfect for copying on the reverse side of a handout or flyer. Several paragraphs, left justified make it easier to read and skim.

Top Ten Tips for Writing a Professional Overview or Biography

2. First, second, or third person?

Always write your biography in the third person. That is, refer to yourself by your name or she/he as appropriate. It sounds more professional as it appears that a third party wrote the text. For example, "Alexandra has been featured in the New York Times, Forbes, Newsweek, and Time magazines."

3. Business in brief.

Not only do readers want to know what you do, but also they want to know who you work with - because they might want to work with you! A professional biography should include a sentence or two about your business niche (or niches) as well as the types of clients you serve. A modified version of your 30-second elevator pitch might be perfect.

4. And the winner is....

Make sure that you include a list of awards that you have received. Readers are interested in knowing about your talents and the organizations that recognize you for them.

5. Organizations.

Include names of the organizations, clubs, or associations to which you belong. A reader's interest might be highlighted at seeing that you belong to the same alumni association or professional business group. Again, these connections might possibly lead to some interesting and exciting business opportunities.

6. Certifications and designations.

Include any professional certifications or designations you hold. Make sure you write out their names in full, rather than use abbreviations. Not everyone might know that CMA stands for Certified Management Accountant. And, perhaps, in a different discipline, it might represent something else - like a Certified Materials Analyst. If you no longer hold a particular designation, but it has played a major role in who you are and what you do, don't hesitate to make a reference to it. For example, "Ann is a former Certified Data Processor and spent the last decade as an adjunct faculty member teaching higher mathematics at the University of Colorado, Boulder." Don't include abbreviations of college degrees, like MBAs as it looks unprofessional. The only exception to this would be for a Ph.D. designation.

7. Published?

Have you written any articles, books, e-courses or e-books? Self-published or not, your works add to your level of professionalism and credibility. Showcase them in your biography and you might earn additional royalties in terms of new clients or other opportunities.

8. Did I mention the media?

Have you been a guest on talk radio or television? Were you or your business featured or even mentioned in a newspaper article? If so, readers want to know. Again, these types of "mentions" add to your credibility and presence.

9. Call me any time.

People who want to know about you will read your biography for just that reason. And, if its compelling, rich, and includes the information they're interested, in, they'll want to contact you. Include complete contact information like your title (if any), name, address, telephone, fax, email, and website address. Make it easy to find this information by including it in the last paragraph of your professional overview.

10. Write, rewrite, and do it again.

After you have written your biography, edit, edit, and edit again. You may need to do a dozen or so revisions before you get it just right. Eliminate extra words, use descriptive words, keep the sentences short but varied in length, and write in the third person. Ask some friends to provide input as well. Make sure to revise your biography regularly to keep it up-to-date and refreshed.

Copyright 2004 by Tara Alexandra Kachaturoff.

Top Ten Tips for Writing a Professional Overview or Biography
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Tara Alexandra Kachaturoff is a business consultant, writer, speaker, Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach and producer/host of Michigan Entrepreneur Television. Drawing on over 15 years of corporate experience, she coaches executives, professionals, and entrepreneurs on business and lifestyle issues and has been featured in print, radio and television. Her websites include http://www.virtualleverage.com, http://www.tarakachaturoff.com, and http://www.michiganentrepreneurtv.com

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Sales Titles For Business Cards - A Matter of Choice Or Necessity?

To differentiate yourself begins with your business card. From the weight of the card, to the color, to the font, to the graphics and to the actual message being displayed is the first opportunity to separate yourself from all those other Gray Suits and truly be the Red Jacket. So right now, grab your card and look at your title. What does it say?

Are you:

CEO? COO? CFO? CIO? CTO Owner? Principal? Customer Service Representative? Business Development Representative? Government and Public Affairs Officer? Creative Designer? Office Manager? Sales Representative? Product Manager? Regional Vice President Or...?

Sales Titles For Business Cards - A Matter of Choice Or Necessity?

Regardless of your title, the question to be asked is how does your title connect to the results that your organizations delivers? The title is truly a limiting differentiator and becomes even less so if the entire business card fails to follow these 4 simple marketing guides.

Attract Attention
How many times does a business card fail to attract attention. It is one of many instead of being one of the few. Some savvy marketing entrepreneurs will spend up to .00 a card to showcase their unique and truly stand out in the crow. Of course, it probably took them years of testing and re-testing until they finally go it right. From a color standpoint, the colors of the card should consciously attract the other person. Research has proven that colors are connected to emotional receptors in our brain. Given that the sales process is all about emotions, make sure your colors are attracting positive attention and not "turning off" potential customers (a.k.a. prospects).

Incite Interest
Does that small piece of paper incite interest? Possibly it is the graphic or maybe the card was one of the few that have been die cut. Color is important within all four guides. However, within this specific guide, the impact of color should be both conscious and subconscious. You want the card to stay with the person even when they are throwing out all the other cards they have collected over the years.

Develop Desire
Now how much desire are you developing within those typical seven (7) square inches? Here once again color is important as well as your overall message. When you can link the results your products or service deliver, then you have a competitive advantage not to mention potentially a unique selling proposition.

Create an Action commitment
The final step is to create a call to action and preferable a commitment to take action. One easy way is to use the back of the card to schedule an appointment because it makes sense to strike when the iron is hot so to speak. Cold calling sales research suggests that you have no more than 20 minutes before a lead becomes ice cold.

The title on your business card can be a choice or a matter of necessity because it all depends upon the overall big picture. There are not hard or fast rules as to whether to include or not include your title. If you are unsure, return to your overall marketing executive summary, your marketing plan and sales goals. Make sure there is alignment between all of these critical elements necessary for business success and not to mention to increase sales.

Sales Titles For Business Cards - A Matter of Choice Or Necessity?
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

Absolutely free sales skills assessment by Chicago Sales Coach Leanne Hoagland Smith who helps with sales coaching, leadership to sales management development.

Are the sales behaviors of your team or even yourself where you want them to be? If not, then you may discover an easy read on how to increase sales in this book, Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, the Keys to Unlocking Sales Success including looking at your individual behaviors.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Jobs For People With Criminal Records - Because Your Record Doesn't Matter!

Having a criminal record to your name will be a great disadvantage on your part when it comes to finding honest employment. Not many employers will put you on an interview list once they find out that you have a criminal record, no matter how long ago it might have been. You can't blame them, however, as they are merely protecting their and their company's interests. However, this does not mean that you will end up a total failure on the job market. There are a lot of avenues to explore when looking for a job, especially if you have a criminal record.

There are various jobs for people with criminal records, you just need to look for them. One is getting hired in a military capacity. The government is apt to waive any criminal record on your part if you apply for and get hired by the military. Some restaurants looking for staff are also willing to overlook a criminal record if you are honest and forthright enough about it.

You will also be surprised at the number of jobs you can get over the Internet these days. You can work from home or an Internet cafe by freelancing in an area you are an expert in, whether it be website design, transcription, copywriting, or bookkeeping, among many others. All you need is an email address and Internet access.

Jobs For People With Criminal Records - Because Your Record Doesn't Matter!

"Get paid to" or GPT sites that offer payment for your opinions in answering surveys or questionnaires, and participating in market research programs, will hire you without putting you through an interview or grilling you about your criminal record.

These jobs for people with criminal records will enable you to make an honest living without going through the hoops that job applicants usually go through in the job market.

Jobs For People With Criminal Records - Because Your Record Doesn't Matter!
Check For The New Release in Health, Fitness & Dieting Category of Books NOW!
Check What Are The Top Cooking Books in Last 90 Days Best Cheap Deal!
Check For Cookbooks Best Sellers 2012 Discount OFFER!
Check for Top 100 Most Popular Books People Are Buying Daily Price Update!
Check For 100 New Release & BestSeller Books For Your Collection

To learn more about a popular GPT site, Click Here