Marketing is all psychology. It is that plain and simple. Think about why you buy the brands you do. Why is it that you prefer one brand of pop (soda for all of "youse guys" not in Chicago or Minnesota) over another? Why do you shop for the same item at one store but not another? It is all in the the way they write/print/speak their ads and the words they use. Think about it as you mull over these 10 words.
1. Use the word "fast" in your ad. People want fast results, fast delivery, fast ordering, etc. Nowadays,
we usually value our time more than our money.
2. Use the word "guaranteed" in your ad. People want to be assured they are not risking their hard
earned money buying your product.
3. Use the word "limited" in your ad. People want to own or receive things that are exclusive or rare
because they are considered to be more valuable.
4. Use the word "easy/simple" in your ad. People want easy ordering, easy instructions, easy to use,
easy payments, etc.
5. Use the word "testimonial" in your ad. People want to see believable proof before they buy your
product. It should be reputable and specific proof.
6. Use the word "discount/sale " in your ad. People want to find bargains. They could be rebates, one
time sales, percentage offers, get one free offers, etc.
7. Use the word "free" in your ad. People want free incentives before they do business with you. They
could be free books, accessories, services, etc.
8. Use the word "you/your" in your ad. People want to know that you are talking them. This'll make them feel important and attract them to read the whole ad.
9. Use the word "important" in your ad. People do not want to miss important information that could
effect their life. People will stop and take notice.
10. Use the word "new" in your ad. People want new products or services that will improve their life
like new information, tastes, technology, results, etc.
These are just a few of the tips available in my "Inquisitive Explorer's Internet Marketing Quick Guide"and "Another Inquisitive Explorer's Internet Marketing Quick Guide" that you will find at http://www.renspubhouse.com. (Order either one today for fast and easy downloading delivery. Free bonus books if you act fast).
Mahalo.
********************************************************************8
STOP SEARCHING. YOU'VE FOUND IT.
Discover your web site's true potential.
My new book:
Inquisitive Explorer's Internet Marketing Primer,
shows you the way to online profits. Your choice. Do nothing or visit
http://www.renspubhouse.com/ieimp.html
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
Fast easy resources to help you with your marketing and have some fun to boot!
********************************************************************
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
Want To Get To The Top Of Search Engines? Here Are 10 Indirect Ways
There are millions of web sites trying to get listed in the top 20 spots of the major search engines. That amounts to a lot of competition! I say if you can't get listed at the top, indirectly get to the top.
How do you do this? Look up the top 20 web sites on the major search engines under the keywords and phrases people would find your web site. The key would be to then advertise on those web sites.
The most expensive way would be to buy ad space on those web sites. If you don't want to spend any
money, you could use the ten strategies below. These strategies may not apply to every web site.
1. Participate on their discussion boards. You could post questions, answer other peoples questions, and
join in on conversations. Just include your signature file and link at the end of your messages.
2. Ask the web site owner if they would like a free ebook to giveaway to their visitors. You could have
them link to your web site or include your ad in the free ebook.
3. Submit content to their web site. You could write articles for their web site and include your resource
box and link at the end of the article. If they publish it, you'll indirectly be at the top of the search engines.
4. Write an excellent article review of their web site, products or services. Then publish the review on your web site. E-mail the web site owner and tell him or her about it. They may link to your web site so their visitors read it.
5. Ask the owner of the web site if they would want to trade advertising. If you don't get as much traffic
as they do, you could throw in some extra incentives.
6. Propose a cross promotion deal with the web site. You both could promote each others products or
services together in one package deal. This means a mention and link back to your web site.
7. Give the web site a testimonial for their product or service. Include a little text link for your web site with the testimonial. You never know; it could end up on their ad copy.
8. Post your advertisement on their free classified ad section on their web site. You want to be sure you
have an attractive headline so they will read your ad.
9. Post your text link on their free-for-all links page. You want to go back and post your link regularly so it stays towards the top.
10. Sign their guest books. You could leave a short compliment about their web site on their guest book. Just include your signature file and link at the end of your message.
These are just a few ways to help you get your marketing on track.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
How do you do this? Look up the top 20 web sites on the major search engines under the keywords and phrases people would find your web site. The key would be to then advertise on those web sites.
The most expensive way would be to buy ad space on those web sites. If you don't want to spend any
money, you could use the ten strategies below. These strategies may not apply to every web site.
1. Participate on their discussion boards. You could post questions, answer other peoples questions, and
join in on conversations. Just include your signature file and link at the end of your messages.
2. Ask the web site owner if they would like a free ebook to giveaway to their visitors. You could have
them link to your web site or include your ad in the free ebook.
3. Submit content to their web site. You could write articles for their web site and include your resource
box and link at the end of the article. If they publish it, you'll indirectly be at the top of the search engines.
4. Write an excellent article review of their web site, products or services. Then publish the review on your web site. E-mail the web site owner and tell him or her about it. They may link to your web site so their visitors read it.
5. Ask the owner of the web site if they would want to trade advertising. If you don't get as much traffic
as they do, you could throw in some extra incentives.
6. Propose a cross promotion deal with the web site. You both could promote each others products or
services together in one package deal. This means a mention and link back to your web site.
7. Give the web site a testimonial for their product or service. Include a little text link for your web site with the testimonial. You never know; it could end up on their ad copy.
8. Post your advertisement on their free classified ad section on their web site. You want to be sure you
have an attractive headline so they will read your ad.
9. Post your text link on their free-for-all links page. You want to go back and post your link regularly so it stays towards the top.
10. Sign their guest books. You could leave a short compliment about their web site on their guest book. Just include your signature file and link at the end of your message.
These are just a few ways to help you get your marketing on track.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Friday, May 02, 2008
Need To Create An Order-Pulling Niche? Here are 12 Killer Ways
A niche is something that sets your business apart from your competitors. To compete with other businesses nowadays, especially online, you need a unique niche. Just make sure your competitors are
not using the same niche. Below are twelve ideas you could use to create an order pulling niche.
1. Your niche could be that you offer free delivery. This may cost a little money, but, you will gain the extra customers to make up for it.
2. Your niche could be that you offer a lower price. If you can't afford to offer a lower price you could always hold the occasional discount sale.
3. Your niche could be that your product achieves results faster. This niche is very effective because
people are becoming more and more impatient and want results fast.
4. Your niche could be you've been in business for a longer period of time. People think if you've been
in business longer you have more credibility.
5. Your niche could be that your product tastes, smells sounds, looks, or feels better. When you
target the the senses you're triggering basic human attractions.
6. Your niche could be your product is light or compact. People may want to take the product
on a trip or don't have much room where they live.
7. Your niche could be that you've won a business reward. When you win a reward tell your customers
or visitors about it. This increases their trust in your business.
8. Your niche could be that your product lasts longer. People don't like taking the time and spending
more money buying replacement products all the time.
9. Your niche could be that your product is easy to use. People don't want to buy a product that they
have to read a 200 page hard-to-understand instruction manual.
10. You niche could be that your product has better safety features. People want to feel safe when they use your products.
11. Your niche could be that your product was made by hand. Most people believe that products made
by hand have better quality.
12. Your niche could be that you stand behind all your products. People want to know that you back-
up any claims you make about your product with either guarantees, warranties and free replacements.
Controlling your niche is where the money is, so use these techniques so you can "Live Long and Prosper" as my favorite Vulcan might say.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
not using the same niche. Below are twelve ideas you could use to create an order pulling niche.
1. Your niche could be that you offer free delivery. This may cost a little money, but, you will gain the extra customers to make up for it.
2. Your niche could be that you offer a lower price. If you can't afford to offer a lower price you could always hold the occasional discount sale.
3. Your niche could be that your product achieves results faster. This niche is very effective because
people are becoming more and more impatient and want results fast.
4. Your niche could be you've been in business for a longer period of time. People think if you've been
in business longer you have more credibility.
5. Your niche could be that your product tastes, smells sounds, looks, or feels better. When you
target the the senses you're triggering basic human attractions.
6. Your niche could be your product is light or compact. People may want to take the product
on a trip or don't have much room where they live.
7. Your niche could be that you've won a business reward. When you win a reward tell your customers
or visitors about it. This increases their trust in your business.
8. Your niche could be that your product lasts longer. People don't like taking the time and spending
more money buying replacement products all the time.
9. Your niche could be that your product is easy to use. People don't want to buy a product that they
have to read a 200 page hard-to-understand instruction manual.
10. You niche could be that your product has better safety features. People want to feel safe when they use your products.
11. Your niche could be that your product was made by hand. Most people believe that products made
by hand have better quality.
12. Your niche could be that you stand behind all your products. People want to know that you back-
up any claims you make about your product with either guarantees, warranties and free replacements.
Controlling your niche is where the money is, so use these techniques so you can "Live Long and Prosper" as my favorite Vulcan might say.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Creating A Popular Online Community To Increase Sales
An online community could be a chat room, e-mail discussion list, discussion forum or other technologies that allow groups of people to communicate at your web site. When you have a popular online community it will increase your traffic and sales. Below are ten ways to attract people to participate in your online community.
1. Tell your visitors that you post a new, free offer every day, week or month in your online community. The free offers should be attractive to your target audience.
2. Regularly schedule experts or famous guests to participate in your online community. You could design it to be a virtual class or a question/answer session.
3. Post testimonials on your web site from people that have participated in your online community. The testimonials could be about what people have learned or liked while participating in it.
4. Don't allow blatant ads in your online communities. If people decide to visit your online community and see a ton of ads they most likely won't be back.
5. Post all the benefits of participating in your online community on your web site. You could write it like you're writing an ad for a product you're selling.
6. Submit your chat room, e-mail discussion list or discussion board to online community directories. You can find them by typing " the community type" with the word "directory" in any search engine.
7. Create an e-zine just for people who participate in your online community. Allow them to subscribe for free. When they receive each issue, it will remind them to come back and participate in your community.
8. You (the owner of the online community) should participate regularly. Post information that will benefit the other people. This will show them you care about your online community members.
9. Have plenty of people to monitor your online community. They could remove postings that turn away people like profanity, spam and other off-subject postings.
10. Your online community should contain user friendly features, like a search option for archived discussions, easy posting or chatting options, email updates or digests, etc.
Setting up a community gives your users a sense of belonging and make them feel like your site is theirs. If they feel comfortable in your community they will gladly but your products.
Mahalo
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
1. Tell your visitors that you post a new, free offer every day, week or month in your online community. The free offers should be attractive to your target audience.
2. Regularly schedule experts or famous guests to participate in your online community. You could design it to be a virtual class or a question/answer session.
3. Post testimonials on your web site from people that have participated in your online community. The testimonials could be about what people have learned or liked while participating in it.
4. Don't allow blatant ads in your online communities. If people decide to visit your online community and see a ton of ads they most likely won't be back.
5. Post all the benefits of participating in your online community on your web site. You could write it like you're writing an ad for a product you're selling.
6. Submit your chat room, e-mail discussion list or discussion board to online community directories. You can find them by typing " the community type" with the word "directory" in any search engine.
7. Create an e-zine just for people who participate in your online community. Allow them to subscribe for free. When they receive each issue, it will remind them to come back and participate in your community.
8. You (the owner of the online community) should participate regularly. Post information that will benefit the other people. This will show them you care about your online community members.
9. Have plenty of people to monitor your online community. They could remove postings that turn away people like profanity, spam and other off-subject postings.
10. Your online community should contain user friendly features, like a search option for archived discussions, easy posting or chatting options, email updates or digests, etc.
Setting up a community gives your users a sense of belonging and make them feel like your site is theirs. If they feel comfortable in your community they will gladly but your products.
Mahalo
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
More Traffic By Submitting Articles To E-zines - 10 Benefits
Another great way to build up traffic is to write articles and distribute them through ezines. You can easily find ezines by going to your favorite search engine and search on "ezines directories". You will get a list of ezines and from there you could email the publisher and offer your wares. Here's 10 benefits you will receive by do this.
1. You'll brand your web site, business and yourself by submitting articles to e-zines. You could include your name, business name, your credentials, web site address and e-mail address in your resource box.
2. You will become known as an expert on the topics you write about. This will give you and your business extra credibility which will help you compete against your competition.
3. Your article might also be placed on the publisher's home page. If they publish each issue on their home page this will give you some extra exposure.
4. You might get extra exposure if the e-zine publisher archives their e-zine on their site. People might want to read the back issues before they make the decision to subscribe.
5. You will get free advertising. This will allow you to spend your profits on other forms of advertising. You could buy advertisements in other e-zines that don't publish your articles.
6. You might get extra income from people wanting to hire you to write other articles, books, or even ask to speak at seminars. This is a great way to multiply your income.
7. You could allow e-zine publishers to publish your articles in their free e-books. Since people give them away, your advertising could multiply all over the internet.
8. You will get your article published all over the web when you submit it to an e-zine publisher that has a free content directory on their web site. They'll allow their visitors to republish your article.
9. You'll gain people's trust. If they read your article and like it, they won't be as hesitant to buy your
product or service. You will then be able to increase your profits.
10. You could get your article guaranteed to run in an e-zine. You could agree to run one of their articles in your e-zine if, in exchange, they run yours in their e-zine. It's a win/win situation.
With the plethora of ezines, they are always looking for content. SO write your articles, submit them for publication, repeat and enjoy the benefits. Of course as with all the other tips you read here, they won't work if you don't.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
1. You'll brand your web site, business and yourself by submitting articles to e-zines. You could include your name, business name, your credentials, web site address and e-mail address in your resource box.
2. You will become known as an expert on the topics you write about. This will give you and your business extra credibility which will help you compete against your competition.
3. Your article might also be placed on the publisher's home page. If they publish each issue on their home page this will give you some extra exposure.
4. You might get extra exposure if the e-zine publisher archives their e-zine on their site. People might want to read the back issues before they make the decision to subscribe.
5. You will get free advertising. This will allow you to spend your profits on other forms of advertising. You could buy advertisements in other e-zines that don't publish your articles.
6. You might get extra income from people wanting to hire you to write other articles, books, or even ask to speak at seminars. This is a great way to multiply your income.
7. You could allow e-zine publishers to publish your articles in their free e-books. Since people give them away, your advertising could multiply all over the internet.
8. You will get your article published all over the web when you submit it to an e-zine publisher that has a free content directory on their web site. They'll allow their visitors to republish your article.
9. You'll gain people's trust. If they read your article and like it, they won't be as hesitant to buy your
product or service. You will then be able to increase your profits.
10. You could get your article guaranteed to run in an e-zine. You could agree to run one of their articles in your e-zine if, in exchange, they run yours in their e-zine. It's a win/win situation.
With the plethora of ezines, they are always looking for content. SO write your articles, submit them for publication, repeat and enjoy the benefits. Of course as with all the other tips you read here, they won't work if you don't.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Can't Do it Yourself? Here's 10 Reasons To Consider Outsourcing.
Outsourcing is when you hire outside professionals or services to take on part of your business workload. You may want to outsource part of your work because you don't have the room, you need an expert, you have periodic busy periods, or you need more production to get orders out on time, etc. The following are ten ways outsourcing can save your business time and money.
1. You won't have to take the time to train employees. This will allow you to spend more time working on your marketing and advertising campaign.
2. You won't have to do time consuming tasks like adding on new equipment or learning new software to complete certain tasks. This will allow you to spend more time testing your advertisements.
3. You won't have to interview employee candidates. This will allow you to spend more time improving your customer service, in return you will get more repeat purchases.
4. You won't have to fill out all the employee paper work like tax forms, scheduling, retirement plans, etc. This will allow you to spend more time developing new products.
5. You won't have to buy extra office or work space to complete certain tasks. You can use all the money you save on other business expenses.
6. You won't have spend money on employee costs like taxes, medical, vacation time, holidays, workers comp., unemployment costs, etc. (These may vary depending on which country you do business in.)
7. You can speed up you order and delivery system with the extra help. Your customers will appreciate the fast service and you'll have a higher chance that they will buy from you again.
8. You could expand your market share by becoming a middleman and offering your subcontractors products or services. This will increase your business profits and give you multiple income streams.
9. You can take on extra or large orders your business couldn't handle before. This will expand your market share and you could also offer to take the work your competition can't handle.
10. You could get end up receiving orders from your subcontractors. Your subcontractors may also tell other people about your business.
As with anything you need to be careful when choosing outsourcing partners. When you do find one, treat them right and they will treat you right.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
1. You won't have to take the time to train employees. This will allow you to spend more time working on your marketing and advertising campaign.
2. You won't have to do time consuming tasks like adding on new equipment or learning new software to complete certain tasks. This will allow you to spend more time testing your advertisements.
3. You won't have to interview employee candidates. This will allow you to spend more time improving your customer service, in return you will get more repeat purchases.
4. You won't have to fill out all the employee paper work like tax forms, scheduling, retirement plans, etc. This will allow you to spend more time developing new products.
5. You won't have to buy extra office or work space to complete certain tasks. You can use all the money you save on other business expenses.
6. You won't have spend money on employee costs like taxes, medical, vacation time, holidays, workers comp., unemployment costs, etc. (These may vary depending on which country you do business in.)
7. You can speed up you order and delivery system with the extra help. Your customers will appreciate the fast service and you'll have a higher chance that they will buy from you again.
8. You could expand your market share by becoming a middleman and offering your subcontractors products or services. This will increase your business profits and give you multiple income streams.
9. You can take on extra or large orders your business couldn't handle before. This will expand your market share and you could also offer to take the work your competition can't handle.
10. You could get end up receiving orders from your subcontractors. Your subcontractors may also tell other people about your business.
As with anything you need to be careful when choosing outsourcing partners. When you do find one, treat them right and they will treat you right.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Have A Product That Doesn't Sell? Here's 10 Resourceful Things You Can Try
We all have them. Products that are good, innovative, sexy, and just won't sell. Who knows why, maybe too much competition, or maybe it is just a bit ahead of its time. Whatever the reason there is something you can try to recover your costs and make money off even the turkiest turkey.
Here are 10 things you can try:
1. Sell the reprint/reproduction rights to the product. You could make money selling other people the rights to reproduce and sell the product. People are always looking for new products to sell.
2. Giveaway the product for free from your web site. Just because it won't sell doesn't mean people won't visit your web site to get it for free. They may see another product you sell and buy that one.
3. Try auctioning off the product at an online auction. You may make part of your investment back. If you're lucky, you may even make a profit because people sometimes get into bidding wars and will bid a higher price than the product is worth.
4. Use the product as a free bonus for another product you sell. This will increase the perceived value of the product you're selling. People will feel they're receiving more for less.
5. Contact businesses with the same target market and see if they would be interested in using your product as a free bonus for their product. You could place your ad on the product and get free advertising.
6. Sell your product to businesses at wholesale cost as a promotional product. Businesses are always looking for products they can giveaway to their customers with their advertising on the product. You could make part of your investment back.
7. Barter your product to other businesses for things you need for your own business. You could trade for their products or services. This will save you money and help make up for your profit loss.
8. You could create an online contest so people could win your product. This will attract traffic to your web site. You also could get free advertising by listing it on online contest directories.
9. If you decide to giveaway the product for free, allow other people to giveaway the product for free. Place your web site ad on the product. This will spread your advertising and attract even more people to your site.
10. Ask businesses with the same target audience if they would be interested in combining your product with their product. You could then sell them together as a package deal and split the profits. You may have better results selling your product this way.
It is always better to recover some of the costs than to lose everything, besides it might just be bad timing, and maybe 6 months down the line your product will be the hottest thing? One can never tell.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Here are 10 things you can try:
1. Sell the reprint/reproduction rights to the product. You could make money selling other people the rights to reproduce and sell the product. People are always looking for new products to sell.
2. Giveaway the product for free from your web site. Just because it won't sell doesn't mean people won't visit your web site to get it for free. They may see another product you sell and buy that one.
3. Try auctioning off the product at an online auction. You may make part of your investment back. If you're lucky, you may even make a profit because people sometimes get into bidding wars and will bid a higher price than the product is worth.
4. Use the product as a free bonus for another product you sell. This will increase the perceived value of the product you're selling. People will feel they're receiving more for less.
5. Contact businesses with the same target market and see if they would be interested in using your product as a free bonus for their product. You could place your ad on the product and get free advertising.
6. Sell your product to businesses at wholesale cost as a promotional product. Businesses are always looking for products they can giveaway to their customers with their advertising on the product. You could make part of your investment back.
7. Barter your product to other businesses for things you need for your own business. You could trade for their products or services. This will save you money and help make up for your profit loss.
8. You could create an online contest so people could win your product. This will attract traffic to your web site. You also could get free advertising by listing it on online contest directories.
9. If you decide to giveaway the product for free, allow other people to giveaway the product for free. Place your web site ad on the product. This will spread your advertising and attract even more people to your site.
10. Ask businesses with the same target audience if they would be interested in combining your product with their product. You could then sell them together as a package deal and split the profits. You may have better results selling your product this way.
It is always better to recover some of the costs than to lose everything, besides it might just be bad timing, and maybe 6 months down the line your product will be the hottest thing? One can never tell.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Want To Sell Your Products Now? Here are 10 Incredible Ways
We all would love to have our customers buy right away, but there are so many options that people aren't always going to buy on the first visit or two or ten. However there are ways you can increase teh likelihood that they will buy.
Here are 10 ways you can try:
1. Make an emotional connection. Make your reader visualize they have already bought your product in your ad. Bring them into the action by telling them what results they have gotten and how it makes them feel. They'll already become emotionally attached before they buy.
2. Turn your ad into an article. It could be a story, or how-to article. This will lead them into your ad
without them knowing it's an ad. They'll already be interested when they get to your sales pitch.
3. Make sure you show your reader that they are getting a bargain. Tell them the usual price you sell
your product for is $99. Then tell them if they order today they can buy it for $69.95. However you better give them a deadline and keep to that deadline (say withing so many hours/days/weeks etc.) or else they will ignore any "deals" from you in the future and you lose credibility.
4. Focus on who your customers are. Direct your ad headline to your target audience. Your readers will feel important and belong to a select group of people who buy your product. For example; "Attention! Accountants, Discover A New Way To Increase Your Client Base!"
5. Brag upon your shipping department. Tell your reader how fast they can receive your product or service in your ad. Their buying decision may be based on how fast they can receive your product. They may need it by a certain deadline.
6. Summarize by using bullets to highlight your product or services benefits. Benefits are the key to selling anything, make them standout in your ad. You can use dots, dashes, or circles to highlight them.
7. Give a money back guarantee that surpasses a normal one. Instead of the normal timed guarantee,
give them extra back. Tell them they can keep the free bonus or give them double their money back.
8. Give them a gift! Tell your reader they'll receive surprise bonuses. This'll raise your reader's curiosity and make them want to buy so they can find out what the surprise bonuses are.
9. Let your reader know this specific package will not be offered again. You must create urgency so
people buy now. You may always sell the same product but not with the same bonuses or price. Again stick to the deadlines or you lose all credibility with the customer base.
10. Show how you are part of the solution, not part of the problem. Give them a couple tips in your ad that will help them with their problem. This will give your business credibility and gain your readers trust to buy your products or services.
These are just a few ways to help increase your sales. Mix and match, as you improve on these to fit your specific situation. Check back again next week for more tips and techniques.
Mahalo
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Here are 10 ways you can try:
1. Make an emotional connection. Make your reader visualize they have already bought your product in your ad. Bring them into the action by telling them what results they have gotten and how it makes them feel. They'll already become emotionally attached before they buy.
2. Turn your ad into an article. It could be a story, or how-to article. This will lead them into your ad
without them knowing it's an ad. They'll already be interested when they get to your sales pitch.
3. Make sure you show your reader that they are getting a bargain. Tell them the usual price you sell
your product for is $99. Then tell them if they order today they can buy it for $69.95. However you better give them a deadline and keep to that deadline (say withing so many hours/days/weeks etc.) or else they will ignore any "deals" from you in the future and you lose credibility.
4. Focus on who your customers are. Direct your ad headline to your target audience. Your readers will feel important and belong to a select group of people who buy your product. For example; "Attention! Accountants, Discover A New Way To Increase Your Client Base!"
5. Brag upon your shipping department. Tell your reader how fast they can receive your product or service in your ad. Their buying decision may be based on how fast they can receive your product. They may need it by a certain deadline.
6. Summarize by using bullets to highlight your product or services benefits. Benefits are the key to selling anything, make them standout in your ad. You can use dots, dashes, or circles to highlight them.
7. Give a money back guarantee that surpasses a normal one. Instead of the normal timed guarantee,
give them extra back. Tell them they can keep the free bonus or give them double their money back.
8. Give them a gift! Tell your reader they'll receive surprise bonuses. This'll raise your reader's curiosity and make them want to buy so they can find out what the surprise bonuses are.
9. Let your reader know this specific package will not be offered again. You must create urgency so
people buy now. You may always sell the same product but not with the same bonuses or price. Again stick to the deadlines or you lose all credibility with the customer base.
10. Show how you are part of the solution, not part of the problem. Give them a couple tips in your ad that will help them with their problem. This will give your business credibility and gain your readers trust to buy your products or services.
These are just a few ways to help increase your sales. Mix and match, as you improve on these to fit your specific situation. Check back again next week for more tips and techniques.
Mahalo
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
10 Ways To Increase Sales By Promoting Yourself
People will feel more comfortable purchasing your products if you give them a little information about
yourself or business. The information could be your profile, employee profiles, overall business history, education credentials, awards you've won, etc.
Below are 10 ways you can use to promote yourself.
1. Hold a free chat room class on a subject related to your business. You could install a chat room on
your web site or use a free one from another web site. Before the class starts tell them a little about yourself.
2. Publish a free e-zine. Use some of the extra space in your e-zine to write about yourself or business. This could be called "A Note From the Editor".
3. Publish a section on your web site called "About Us". With your information you could also include
pictures. This shows people your not hiding behind your business.
4. Write an article on your area of expertise. Include a resource box at the end of the article. You can add information about yourself in the resource box. E-mail the article to web sites or e-zines that accept article submissions.
5. Create and giveaway a free ebook. In the ebook include a section called "About The Author". Also,
include an advertisement for your business.
6. Participate in online communities like newsgroups, discussion boards, e-mail discussion lists and chat rooms. You will meet many people and in return they will get to know you.
7. Donate your time, products, or services to charities. You can list the charities you've contributed to on your web site. This will show visitors that you and your business care about others.
8. Promote yourself offline; teach a free class offline, speak at business seminars, join a business club or association. Assemble fundraisers for charity. These are just few ideas to promote yourself offline.
9. Offer free consulting to your visitors. You could do it via e-mail or phone. They will get to know you and feel more comfortable buying your products.
10. Publish information about yourself and business history in your ad copy. While people are reading it they begin to trust you and your business. Don't over do it though, you want to keep them interested in your product.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
yourself or business. The information could be your profile, employee profiles, overall business history, education credentials, awards you've won, etc.
Below are 10 ways you can use to promote yourself.
1. Hold a free chat room class on a subject related to your business. You could install a chat room on
your web site or use a free one from another web site. Before the class starts tell them a little about yourself.
2. Publish a free e-zine. Use some of the extra space in your e-zine to write about yourself or business. This could be called "A Note From the Editor".
3. Publish a section on your web site called "About Us". With your information you could also include
pictures. This shows people your not hiding behind your business.
4. Write an article on your area of expertise. Include a resource box at the end of the article. You can add information about yourself in the resource box. E-mail the article to web sites or e-zines that accept article submissions.
5. Create and giveaway a free ebook. In the ebook include a section called "About The Author". Also,
include an advertisement for your business.
6. Participate in online communities like newsgroups, discussion boards, e-mail discussion lists and chat rooms. You will meet many people and in return they will get to know you.
7. Donate your time, products, or services to charities. You can list the charities you've contributed to on your web site. This will show visitors that you and your business care about others.
8. Promote yourself offline; teach a free class offline, speak at business seminars, join a business club or association. Assemble fundraisers for charity. These are just few ideas to promote yourself offline.
9. Offer free consulting to your visitors. You could do it via e-mail or phone. They will get to know you and feel more comfortable buying your products.
10. Publish information about yourself and business history in your ad copy. While people are reading it they begin to trust you and your business. Don't over do it though, you want to keep them interested in your product.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Do You Need To Attract People To Your Web Site ? 10 Fun and Cool Ways
Traffic is the key to sales in the online world. No traffic, no sales. No sales, no money. No money, no reason to be in business. So if you need fun ideas to draw traffic here are a few ideas you can try:
1. Offer people a free subscription to your newsletter or e-zine. Almost everyone is publishing a e-zine nowadays so it's important to give something extra with the free subscription. You could offer a free report , ebook, gift or advertising links when people subscribe.
2. Provide your visitors with free content like articles . Your content will be more attractive to your visitors if it's up-to-date or original. You could also offer people the option to reprint the content in their e-zine or web site.
3. Create a free online directory. The directory could be full of interesting ebooks, e-zines, web
sites etc. If people find your directory to be a valuable resource they will visit it over and over.
4. Give your visitors a free ebook. You could also include your own ad in the ebook and allow
other people to give it away. If you don't want to take the time to write one, you could ask other
writers permission to use their articles.
5. Hold free online classes or seminars. They could be held in your web site's chat room. The
idea of "live" information will definitely entice people to visit your web site. You will become
known as an expert on the topic.
6.Hold a free contest or sweepstakes. Offer prizes that are of interest or value to your visitors, like reports, ebooks or software. Most people who enter will continually revisit your web site to get the results.
7. Offer visitors an area where they can download free software. It could be freeware, shareware, demos etc. You could even turn part of your site into a free software directory. If you created the software, include your ad inside and let other people give it away. Open Source Software is good for this.
8. Offer free online services or utilities from your web site. They could be search engine submitting,
copy writing proofreading etc. The service or utility should be helpful to your target audience.
9. Offer a limited time free consulting to people who visit your web site. You could offer your knowledge via e-mail or by telephone. People will consider this a huge value because consulting fees can be very expensive. You could always offer products that are related to your service.
10. Create a free membership area to your online club on your site. People want to belong to something, why not your online club. You could also give away a free e-zine, discount products, advice for club members only.
Once people get used to coming to your site for your services, products etc., they will make it a habit. Keep it fresh, keep it interesting and keep it going.
Mahalo.
1. Offer people a free subscription to your newsletter or e-zine. Almost everyone is publishing a e-zine nowadays so it's important to give something extra with the free subscription. You could offer a free report , ebook, gift or advertising links when people subscribe.
2. Provide your visitors with free content like articles . Your content will be more attractive to your visitors if it's up-to-date or original. You could also offer people the option to reprint the content in their e-zine or web site.
3. Create a free online directory. The directory could be full of interesting ebooks, e-zines, web
sites etc. If people find your directory to be a valuable resource they will visit it over and over.
4. Give your visitors a free ebook. You could also include your own ad in the ebook and allow
other people to give it away. If you don't want to take the time to write one, you could ask other
writers permission to use their articles.
5. Hold free online classes or seminars. They could be held in your web site's chat room. The
idea of "live" information will definitely entice people to visit your web site. You will become
known as an expert on the topic.
6.Hold a free contest or sweepstakes. Offer prizes that are of interest or value to your visitors, like reports, ebooks or software. Most people who enter will continually revisit your web site to get the results.
7. Offer visitors an area where they can download free software. It could be freeware, shareware, demos etc. You could even turn part of your site into a free software directory. If you created the software, include your ad inside and let other people give it away. Open Source Software is good for this.
8. Offer free online services or utilities from your web site. They could be search engine submitting,
copy writing proofreading etc. The service or utility should be helpful to your target audience.
9. Offer a limited time free consulting to people who visit your web site. You could offer your knowledge via e-mail or by telephone. People will consider this a huge value because consulting fees can be very expensive. You could always offer products that are related to your service.
10. Create a free membership area to your online club on your site. People want to belong to something, why not your online club. You could also give away a free e-zine, discount products, advice for club members only.
Once people get used to coming to your site for your services, products etc., they will make it a habit. Keep it fresh, keep it interesting and keep it going.
Mahalo.
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Going, Going, Gone to My Site! Using Online Auctions To Generate Web Traffic
There is a very sneaky, yet totally legal and ethical way to increase traffic to your web site. Using an online auction site to sell your products. As you may know, there are numerous online auction sites all the internet. Just go to your favorite search engine and type in "Online Auction" and you would be surprised at the results. People love these sites because they feel that they can usually find great bargains. For others it is just the thrill of the hunt and chase. The good news is if you have an online business, you can use them to increase traffic to your web site.
One way is that you could create an electronic book or report that relates to your online business, then auction it off at an online auction. This way you could increase traffic to your web site by placing an ad for your web site in the electronic publication. Some online auctions will even allow you to link directly to your web site if you enroll in their extended plans, usually for a monthly or annual fee. Once you get rolling, this can be an option you should explore. After you see what kind of traffic the site sends your way.
Electronic publications don't cost you anything to ship, as they are virtual assets. You send them via e-mail or allow people to download them directly from your web site. If you send it via email, make sure you have your web site address in your signature and direct them there if they need to contact you. Also if you have a newsletter, this is a good time to mention it in the email. If you have them download the item, make sure you have a way for them to sign up for your newsletter/announcement sheet on the download page. One way some people set up their auctions is to offer their products for a lower price. When they visit the web site you could offer them a higher priced product or a related back end product.
Did you know you could also get traffic from people who don't bid or don't get the winning bid? You could offer them what is known as a "Second Chance Offer" and then direct them to your web site after they have agree to purchase the item. You could also direct potential bidders to your site and allow them to download and read a free sample of the ebook or report before they bid. If they want more detailed information about the ebook or report, and they didn't bid/won, you could also direct them to your web site for a purchase.
You don't have a digital product? Well don't worry as you can also get traffic to your web site by auctioning a physical product, such as whatever widget your company sells. Print out your web site advertisement on a flyer or brochure then insert it into each product package you ship. You should also place your web address on the packing slip/receipt. Make sure you draw attention to it by asking for comments, or to contact you if they have any questions or complaints. Of course direct them to your site's "Contact Us" page for contact info.
It is very important that before you start auctioning any product on an online auction site, you should read the terms and conditions of the site usage. There are some auction sites that may not allow the auctioning of electronic products or directly linking to your web site where you have other products for sale. It does you no good to generate bad publicity by being banned from a popular auction site just because you didn't understand the rules.
All in all this is a great way to augment your other marketing methods. After all they have just bought from you in a trusted environment, so why wouldn't they trust you in the future? It may be a sneaky way to get people to visit your site, but if you take care of your customers, they won't mind at all.
So find something and list today!
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
One way is that you could create an electronic book or report that relates to your online business, then auction it off at an online auction. This way you could increase traffic to your web site by placing an ad for your web site in the electronic publication. Some online auctions will even allow you to link directly to your web site if you enroll in their extended plans, usually for a monthly or annual fee. Once you get rolling, this can be an option you should explore. After you see what kind of traffic the site sends your way.
Electronic publications don't cost you anything to ship, as they are virtual assets. You send them via e-mail or allow people to download them directly from your web site. If you send it via email, make sure you have your web site address in your signature and direct them there if they need to contact you. Also if you have a newsletter, this is a good time to mention it in the email. If you have them download the item, make sure you have a way for them to sign up for your newsletter/announcement sheet on the download page. One way some people set up their auctions is to offer their products for a lower price. When they visit the web site you could offer them a higher priced product or a related back end product.
Did you know you could also get traffic from people who don't bid or don't get the winning bid? You could offer them what is known as a "Second Chance Offer" and then direct them to your web site after they have agree to purchase the item. You could also direct potential bidders to your site and allow them to download and read a free sample of the ebook or report before they bid. If they want more detailed information about the ebook or report, and they didn't bid/won, you could also direct them to your web site for a purchase.
You don't have a digital product? Well don't worry as you can also get traffic to your web site by auctioning a physical product, such as whatever widget your company sells. Print out your web site advertisement on a flyer or brochure then insert it into each product package you ship. You should also place your web address on the packing slip/receipt. Make sure you draw attention to it by asking for comments, or to contact you if they have any questions or complaints. Of course direct them to your site's "Contact Us" page for contact info.
It is very important that before you start auctioning any product on an online auction site, you should read the terms and conditions of the site usage. There are some auction sites that may not allow the auctioning of electronic products or directly linking to your web site where you have other products for sale. It does you no good to generate bad publicity by being banned from a popular auction site just because you didn't understand the rules.
All in all this is a great way to augment your other marketing methods. After all they have just bought from you in a trusted environment, so why wouldn't they trust you in the future? It may be a sneaky way to get people to visit your site, but if you take care of your customers, they won't mind at all.
So find something and list today!
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/business.html
********************************************************************
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Ethical SEO is The Only Way To Go!
It is amazing that even in this day and age there are still some search engine optimization companies and software developers use unethical tricks and techniques to artificially boost the search engine rankings of a web site. This dilutes the quality of search results and the accuracy of search results becomes questionable. Once this happens then searchers stop trusting the Search Engines, get frustrated and everyone loses.
The searchers lose as they don't get good, honest results. The web sites lose as they don't get visitors to their sites and their sales and profits plunge. The Search Engines lose as people stop trusting them and then go off to try something else. Why do you suppose there are so many search engines that have disappeared over the years? People stopped trusting the results, plain and simple. Why does Google keep it's top position regardless of the competition? Because people trust their results and they work hard to keep that trust.
For this reason, the search engines are continuously trying to trace out the spam techniques which webmasters might be using and penalize or ban them. They continue to reconstruct their algorithms to prevent spammers from flooding the results page with irrelevant or low quality content.
If you use a web site promotion tool that uses these unethical tricks and techniques, you'll put your web business at severe risk. Unethical tricks (“Black Hat Techniques”), might work for some time but they are not a good idea if you want lasting results.
For best and consistent results, use only ethical search engine optimization methods (“White Hat Techniques”), that use only techniques that produce lasting results and that don't offend search engines.
Search engines consider the following search engine optimization techniques as SPAM (DO NOT use or promote these methods):
automatically generated doorway pages
cloaking and false redirects
keyword stuffing
hidden text or hidden links
pages loaded with irrelevant words
duplicated content on multiple pages
misspelling of well-known web sites
unrelated and centralized link farms
other methods that try to trick search engines
You might get short term results with these techniques but it's very likely that your site will be banned from search engines if you use one of these techniques. You'll put your web business at severe risk if you use one of these methods.
Ethical webmasters use only ethical search engine optimization techniques that produce lasting results:
optimization of existing web pages, HTML code and web page contents
organic link building with related web sites
building a win-win-win relationship between webmasters, web surfers and search engines
Search engines want to find the web sites that offer the most value to web surfers. Our tools help you to build such a web site.
Ethical search engine optimization is about everyone winning.
Ethical search engine optimization leads to a symbiotic relationship:
Search engines: They win as they are provided with pages that are easy to understand and that contain the quality information that their visitors search for.
Searchers: They win as they are getting what they ask for from the search engines. They search for "green widgets" and get a page about green widgets.
Web site owners: They win as they are getting quality visitors who are interested in what their web site has to offer.
Follow the White Hat techniques, there are no shortcuts to lasting success.
Remember (to paraphrase anti drug messages): “Black Hat Users are Losers”.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/marketing.html
********************************************************************
The searchers lose as they don't get good, honest results. The web sites lose as they don't get visitors to their sites and their sales and profits plunge. The Search Engines lose as people stop trusting them and then go off to try something else. Why do you suppose there are so many search engines that have disappeared over the years? People stopped trusting the results, plain and simple. Why does Google keep it's top position regardless of the competition? Because people trust their results and they work hard to keep that trust.
For this reason, the search engines are continuously trying to trace out the spam techniques which webmasters might be using and penalize or ban them. They continue to reconstruct their algorithms to prevent spammers from flooding the results page with irrelevant or low quality content.
If you use a web site promotion tool that uses these unethical tricks and techniques, you'll put your web business at severe risk. Unethical tricks (“Black Hat Techniques”), might work for some time but they are not a good idea if you want lasting results.
For best and consistent results, use only ethical search engine optimization methods (“White Hat Techniques”), that use only techniques that produce lasting results and that don't offend search engines.
Search engines consider the following search engine optimization techniques as SPAM (DO NOT use or promote these methods):
automatically generated doorway pages
cloaking and false redirects
keyword stuffing
hidden text or hidden links
pages loaded with irrelevant words
duplicated content on multiple pages
misspelling of well-known web sites
unrelated and centralized link farms
other methods that try to trick search engines
You might get short term results with these techniques but it's very likely that your site will be banned from search engines if you use one of these techniques. You'll put your web business at severe risk if you use one of these methods.
Ethical webmasters use only ethical search engine optimization techniques that produce lasting results:
optimization of existing web pages, HTML code and web page contents
organic link building with related web sites
building a win-win-win relationship between webmasters, web surfers and search engines
Search engines want to find the web sites that offer the most value to web surfers. Our tools help you to build such a web site.
Ethical search engine optimization is about everyone winning.
Ethical search engine optimization leads to a symbiotic relationship:
Search engines: They win as they are provided with pages that are easy to understand and that contain the quality information that their visitors search for.
Searchers: They win as they are getting what they ask for from the search engines. They search for "green widgets" and get a page about green widgets.
Web site owners: They win as they are getting quality visitors who are interested in what their web site has to offer.
Follow the White Hat techniques, there are no shortcuts to lasting success.
Remember (to paraphrase anti drug messages): “Black Hat Users are Losers”.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/marketing.html
********************************************************************
Thursday, February 07, 2008
The Smoking Gun (er..Needle)
So Brian MacNemee has bloody gauze, needles, syringes and vials that he claimed he used to shoot up Roger Clemens with HGH back in 2000-01. WOW! What a revelation!It is amazing that after all this time he has come forward with this evidence after he has been sued by the Clemens camp. Coincidence or a desperate act from a cowardly failed blackmailer?
Why didn't he come forward to Clemens with this stuff before all the shouting, claims, counter-claims etc. started? Why wasn't any of this offered to the Mitchell group as proof of his statements? Why didn't he say something before Congress got involved? These are good questions that he needs to answer, but I think the number one question he needs to answer is:
Why did you keep all of this stuff back before steroids/HGH was in the public eye and was basically a non-issue? Let's face it unless he was clairvoyant or psychic he couldn't possibly see that he would need it for a court case. There was no one hounding anyone about steroids back then. There was no Mitchell investigation, no testing, no one paying much attention. So why keep a bunch of stuff like this unless maybe the issue was possible blackmail? That is the only reason.
Brian says he kept it because he was worried that Clemens would deny use in the future, but why would he need to worry about that back then? Also did he keep the same material from the other players he injected?
This case gets fishier and fishier all the time. I mean it is as if there is a bunch of stuff coming up to prove that baseball wasn't only after Barry Bonds. It gives the racists something to crow about, and of course all the people who claimed racism when Bonds was being disposed, are now rushing to the same judgment as those who convicted Bonds. The exception is that Bonds is tied to a steroid lab through his trainer that refuses to talk (plus the testimony from Gary Sheffield and a Former Mistress) whereas Clemens only accuser is someone who was basically told “Give us Clemens or go to jail”. He admitted as much from the infamous phone conversation, yet the haters tend to ignore this and go on with their blind bigotry.
Oh by the way where is Bud Selig in all this mess? He can't be happy with what is happening. Here it is a few weeks before the start of Spring training, the good old “Rites of Spring”, when he should be gearing up the old Marketing Machine for the opening of the season.
“Opening Day” used to be the most magical words of the year when growing up, now because of all the scandals and over exposure of the players private lives and gossip sheets like ESPN and espn.com the sports world have sunk to soap opera levels.
Bud and his marketing group need to get on their high horses and grab the headlines with some positive images soon lest the season be known more for this episode than anything else.
Let's face it the “Mitchell Report” has been one of the greatest Marketing blunders since “New Coke”. It was supposed to be a fair and balanced report, yet it only focused on two informants so the report actually is skewed to people these two knew. It was supposed to prove MLB cared, but all it showed that they are so out of touch with their players and fans, as well as have no control over the sport. All it did was skew the perception that a low percentage of players were cheating, to one of a rampant underground drug culture that is so persuasive that no one is above suspicion anymore.
It is a shame that since Bud has taken over as commissioner that all we have is bad images of the sport. We have the Strike in 1994, and then the whole 1998 home run race which they marketed heavily, but now is a joke as it was the year that steroids took over baseball and now look at where we are today.
It is definitely a marketing and image problem and the fault starts at the top in the commissioner's office. Not that the player's Union or the owners are any less culpable, but it could have been avoided and now look where we are today.
Can baseball survive this as they have previous scandals? We'll have to see as there are too many entertainment choices these days, too many alternates to the “National Pastime” to think that it is invulnerable. A shame that this slick talking ex-used car salesman has destroyed the sport of our youth.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/marketing.html
********************************************************************
Why didn't he come forward to Clemens with this stuff before all the shouting, claims, counter-claims etc. started? Why wasn't any of this offered to the Mitchell group as proof of his statements? Why didn't he say something before Congress got involved? These are good questions that he needs to answer, but I think the number one question he needs to answer is:
Why did you keep all of this stuff back before steroids/HGH was in the public eye and was basically a non-issue? Let's face it unless he was clairvoyant or psychic he couldn't possibly see that he would need it for a court case. There was no one hounding anyone about steroids back then. There was no Mitchell investigation, no testing, no one paying much attention. So why keep a bunch of stuff like this unless maybe the issue was possible blackmail? That is the only reason.
Brian says he kept it because he was worried that Clemens would deny use in the future, but why would he need to worry about that back then? Also did he keep the same material from the other players he injected?
This case gets fishier and fishier all the time. I mean it is as if there is a bunch of stuff coming up to prove that baseball wasn't only after Barry Bonds. It gives the racists something to crow about, and of course all the people who claimed racism when Bonds was being disposed, are now rushing to the same judgment as those who convicted Bonds. The exception is that Bonds is tied to a steroid lab through his trainer that refuses to talk (plus the testimony from Gary Sheffield and a Former Mistress) whereas Clemens only accuser is someone who was basically told “Give us Clemens or go to jail”. He admitted as much from the infamous phone conversation, yet the haters tend to ignore this and go on with their blind bigotry.
Oh by the way where is Bud Selig in all this mess? He can't be happy with what is happening. Here it is a few weeks before the start of Spring training, the good old “Rites of Spring”, when he should be gearing up the old Marketing Machine for the opening of the season.
“Opening Day” used to be the most magical words of the year when growing up, now because of all the scandals and over exposure of the players private lives and gossip sheets like ESPN and espn.com the sports world have sunk to soap opera levels.
Bud and his marketing group need to get on their high horses and grab the headlines with some positive images soon lest the season be known more for this episode than anything else.
Let's face it the “Mitchell Report” has been one of the greatest Marketing blunders since “New Coke”. It was supposed to be a fair and balanced report, yet it only focused on two informants so the report actually is skewed to people these two knew. It was supposed to prove MLB cared, but all it showed that they are so out of touch with their players and fans, as well as have no control over the sport. All it did was skew the perception that a low percentage of players were cheating, to one of a rampant underground drug culture that is so persuasive that no one is above suspicion anymore.
It is a shame that since Bud has taken over as commissioner that all we have is bad images of the sport. We have the Strike in 1994, and then the whole 1998 home run race which they marketed heavily, but now is a joke as it was the year that steroids took over baseball and now look at where we are today.
It is definitely a marketing and image problem and the fault starts at the top in the commissioner's office. Not that the player's Union or the owners are any less culpable, but it could have been avoided and now look where we are today.
Can baseball survive this as they have previous scandals? We'll have to see as there are too many entertainment choices these days, too many alternates to the “National Pastime” to think that it is invulnerable. A shame that this slick talking ex-used car salesman has destroyed the sport of our youth.
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/marketing.html
********************************************************************
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
How to Buy Business Items From Online Auction Sites
- 10 Things You Should Know Before You Bid
So you have decided to enter the domain of Online Auctions to supplement your business supplies or there are items that are just too unique to find them in the local strip mall. Well the good news is that Online Auction Sites have matured enough as marketplaces that one can find business items along side the consumer products that made them famous. To protect yourself there is a few things that you need to know so you don't end up a victim of scammers, or overpay for items.
Here are your 10 Tips to help you have a pleasant successful auction experience:
1. Know the going price and value of the item before you bid. If the item is new to you or brand new, check to see what price others are charging for it. This can be done online by a quick check of your favorite search engine, look into catalogs, and/or a visit to your favorite store/merchant if convenient. If the product is used or reconditioned, of course you will want, and expect to pay way less than the retail value. This will give you a leg up and make sure you don't overpay, a common malady on these sites.
2. If the item's description or picture isn't detailed enough for you, contact the seller to get more
information or a better picture before you bid. You don't want to take a chance to waste your hard earned money on the wrong item, or something different than what you wanted. Yes this does happen often where bids are placed and items won, only to have the buyer realize that what they got wasn't what they thought they were getting. Ask before you bid.
3. Know the highest price you will bid for the item and stick with it. Don't get caught up in a bidding war; you may end up paying more than the item's worth. Don't forget to add in the shipping price when determining how much you are going to bid. Of course if you are looking at other Online sites to compare prices, you need to consider their rates for shipping and handling as well. Naturally if comparing prices from offline sites, factor in your travel time fuel costs, and if the item needs to be delivered or you can carry it out yourself.
4. Visit a few online auctions before bidding because some sellers auction the same or similar items in many auctions. Also if the seller has more than one of the items in stock, they might have more than one listing. Look at all the listings you might find a better price from the same seller if you are patient and do your homework. You usually can purchase the item for a lower price in a unpopular auction because there are less bidders.
5. Be knowledgeable about the time the auction ends. You also want to know how long it will take to ship the item to you. A lot of times sellers will specify that they may take a certain number of days before the can ship the item. If you need the item by a certain date, you'll want to estimate the time it will take to receive it. Of course you can always contact the seller during the auction to see if they offer different shipping rates for overnight service. The worse they can say is no, but many times they will accommodate you.
6. Read the payment options the seller accepts before you bid on their item. If they only accept
checks or money orders, it may take even longer to get the item because the payment has to clear. Steer clear if the only payment option is International Money Order and the seller is overseas. This is usually an indication of a possible scam. Try to protect yourself with either credit card orders through secure servers or other online payment services like PayPal. This way you are protected against fraud.
7. Look to see if the seller offers a warranty or money back guarantee before bidding on a product. You don't want to get stuck with a item that does not work, is broken or you're not satisfied with for other reasons (the old bait and switch is not as common, but does happen from time to time). Most have time frames for returns, and other conditions, but generally most will allow returns for legitimate reasons.
8. Online auctions will, sometimes, allow you to check the sellers' auction history. Check to see what other people's experience has been with the seller. Have other people complained about the their items, services or business practices? How have the complaints been resolved? You do have a right to know before you decide to bid. Also of those that have complained, what is their history, are they chronic whiners?
9. It's important to place a bid early in the auction to show other bidders you are interested in the item. If someone does out bid you, don't be afraid to out bid them. Remember not to go over your maximum
bid price. Of course almost all the auction sites do allow for what they call “Proxy Bids” which allow you to place your maximum bid up front, then the bid is incremented up as others join in the bidding. It is a tool that allows you to set your max bid, but sees that you pay the lowest possible winning bid. This way you don't have to continuously look at the auctions to see how you are doing.
10.Another reason to know when the auction ends; you can place a last minute bid. There is software that allows you to place last minute bids. This is discouraged, but not illegal. It is a process called “Sniping”. So if the item has more watchers than bidders, then perhaps a few “snipers” are lurking to come in at the last minute and grab the item. There may however be other bidders that may not be keeping track of when the auction ends or may not have the time to bid again. These are the best type of competition if you must have any.
Following these tips will help ease you through the process and hopefully keep you from being a victim of overpaying or worse. It is amazing how many items are actually up for auction, and who knows maybe you will start putting your products or services up for bis as well (yes it is being done, but that is the subject for another article).
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/marketing.html
********************************************************************
So you have decided to enter the domain of Online Auctions to supplement your business supplies or there are items that are just too unique to find them in the local strip mall. Well the good news is that Online Auction Sites have matured enough as marketplaces that one can find business items along side the consumer products that made them famous. To protect yourself there is a few things that you need to know so you don't end up a victim of scammers, or overpay for items.
Here are your 10 Tips to help you have a pleasant successful auction experience:
1. Know the going price and value of the item before you bid. If the item is new to you or brand new, check to see what price others are charging for it. This can be done online by a quick check of your favorite search engine, look into catalogs, and/or a visit to your favorite store/merchant if convenient. If the product is used or reconditioned, of course you will want, and expect to pay way less than the retail value. This will give you a leg up and make sure you don't overpay, a common malady on these sites.
2. If the item's description or picture isn't detailed enough for you, contact the seller to get more
information or a better picture before you bid. You don't want to take a chance to waste your hard earned money on the wrong item, or something different than what you wanted. Yes this does happen often where bids are placed and items won, only to have the buyer realize that what they got wasn't what they thought they were getting. Ask before you bid.
3. Know the highest price you will bid for the item and stick with it. Don't get caught up in a bidding war; you may end up paying more than the item's worth. Don't forget to add in the shipping price when determining how much you are going to bid. Of course if you are looking at other Online sites to compare prices, you need to consider their rates for shipping and handling as well. Naturally if comparing prices from offline sites, factor in your travel time fuel costs, and if the item needs to be delivered or you can carry it out yourself.
4. Visit a few online auctions before bidding because some sellers auction the same or similar items in many auctions. Also if the seller has more than one of the items in stock, they might have more than one listing. Look at all the listings you might find a better price from the same seller if you are patient and do your homework. You usually can purchase the item for a lower price in a unpopular auction because there are less bidders.
5. Be knowledgeable about the time the auction ends. You also want to know how long it will take to ship the item to you. A lot of times sellers will specify that they may take a certain number of days before the can ship the item. If you need the item by a certain date, you'll want to estimate the time it will take to receive it. Of course you can always contact the seller during the auction to see if they offer different shipping rates for overnight service. The worse they can say is no, but many times they will accommodate you.
6. Read the payment options the seller accepts before you bid on their item. If they only accept
checks or money orders, it may take even longer to get the item because the payment has to clear. Steer clear if the only payment option is International Money Order and the seller is overseas. This is usually an indication of a possible scam. Try to protect yourself with either credit card orders through secure servers or other online payment services like PayPal. This way you are protected against fraud.
7. Look to see if the seller offers a warranty or money back guarantee before bidding on a product. You don't want to get stuck with a item that does not work, is broken or you're not satisfied with for other reasons (the old bait and switch is not as common, but does happen from time to time). Most have time frames for returns, and other conditions, but generally most will allow returns for legitimate reasons.
8. Online auctions will, sometimes, allow you to check the sellers' auction history. Check to see what other people's experience has been with the seller. Have other people complained about the their items, services or business practices? How have the complaints been resolved? You do have a right to know before you decide to bid. Also of those that have complained, what is their history, are they chronic whiners?
9. It's important to place a bid early in the auction to show other bidders you are interested in the item. If someone does out bid you, don't be afraid to out bid them. Remember not to go over your maximum
bid price. Of course almost all the auction sites do allow for what they call “Proxy Bids” which allow you to place your maximum bid up front, then the bid is incremented up as others join in the bidding. It is a tool that allows you to set your max bid, but sees that you pay the lowest possible winning bid. This way you don't have to continuously look at the auctions to see how you are doing.
10.Another reason to know when the auction ends; you can place a last minute bid. There is software that allows you to place last minute bids. This is discouraged, but not illegal. It is a process called “Sniping”. So if the item has more watchers than bidders, then perhaps a few “snipers” are lurking to come in at the last minute and grab the item. There may however be other bidders that may not be keeping track of when the auction ends or may not have the time to bid again. These are the best type of competition if you must have any.
Following these tips will help ease you through the process and hopefully keep you from being a victim of overpaying or worse. It is amazing how many items are actually up for auction, and who knows maybe you will start putting your products or services up for bis as well (yes it is being done, but that is the subject for another article).
Mahalo.
********************************************************************
For more resources to help you with your Online Marketing check out
http://www.renspubhouse.com/marketing.html
********************************************************************
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
How to Buy Business Items From Online Auction Sites - 10 Things You Should Know Before You Bid
How to Buy Business Items From Online Auction Sites - 10 Things You Should Know Before You Bid
So you have decided to enter the domain of Online Auctions to supplement your business supplies or there are items that are just too unique to find them in the local strip mall. Well the good news is that Online Auction Sites have matured enough as marketplaces that one can find business items along side the consumer products that made them famous. To protect yourself there is a few things that you need to know so you don't end up a victim of scammers, or overpay for items.
Here are your 10 Tips to help you have a pleasant successful auction experience:
1. Know the going price and value of the item before you bid. If the item is new to you or brand new, check to see what price others are charging for it. This can be done online by a quick check of your favorite search engine, look into catalogs, and/or a visit to your favorite store/merchant if convenient. If the product is used or reconditioned, of course you will want, and expect to pay way less than the retail value. This will give you a leg up and make sure you don't overpay, a common malady on these sites.
2. If the item's description or picture isn't detailed enough for you, contact the seller to get more
information or a better picture before you bid. You don't want to take a chance to waste your hard earned money on the wrong item, or something different than what you wanted. Yes this does happen often where bids are placed and items won, only to have the buyer realize that what they got wasn't what they thought they were getting. Ask before you bid.
3. Know the highest price you will bid for the item and stick with it. Don't get caught up in a bidding war; you may end up paying more than the item's worth. Don't forget to add in the shipping price when determining how much you are going to bid. Of course if you are looking at other Online sites to compare prices, you need to consider their rates for shipping and handling as well. Naturally if comparing prices from offline sites, factor in your travel time fuel costs, and if the item needs to be delivered or you can carry it out yourself.
4. Visit a few online auctions before bidding because some sellers auction the same or similar items in many auctions. Also if the seller has more than one of the items in stock, they might have more than one listing. Look at all the listings you might find a better price from the same seller if you are patient and do your homework. You usually can purchase the item for a lower price in a unpopular auction because there are less bidders.
5. Be knowledgeable about the time the auction ends. You also want to know how long it will take to ship the item to you. A lot of times sellers will specify that they may take a certain number of days before the can ship the item. If you need the item by a certain date, you'll want to estimate the time it will take to receive it. Of course you can always contact the seller during the auction to see if they offer different shipping rates for overnight service. The worse they can say is no, but many times they will accommodate you.
6. Read the payment options the seller accepts before you bid on their item. If they only accept
checks or money orders, it may take even longer to get the item because the payment has to clear. Steer clear if the only payment option is International Money Order and the seller is overseas. This is usually an indication of a possible scam. Try to protect yourself with either credit card orders through secure servers or other online payment services like PayPal. This way you are protected against fraud.
7. Look to see if the seller offers a warranty or money back guarantee before bidding on a product. You don't want to get stuck with a item that does not work, is broken or you're not satisfied with for other reasons (the old bait and switch is not as common, but does happen from time to time). Most have time frames for returns, and other conditions, but generally most will allow returns for legitimate reasons.
8. Online auctions will, sometimes, allow you to check the sellers' auction history. Check to see what other people's experience has been with the seller. Have other people complained about the their items, services or business practices? How have the complaints been resolved? You do have a right to know before you decide to bid. Also of those that have complained, what is their history, are they chronic whiners?
9. It's important to place a bid early in the auction to show other bidders you are interested in the item. If someone does out bid you, don't be afraid to out bid them. Remember not to go over your maximum
bid price. Of course almost all the auction sites do allow for what they call “Proxy Bids” which allow you to place your maximum bid up front, then the bid is incremented up as others join in the bidding. It is a tool that allows you to set your max bid, but sees that you pay the lowest possible winning bid. This way you don't have to continuously look at the auctions to see how you are doing.
10.Another reason to know when the auction ends; you can place a last minute bid. There is software that allows you to place last minute bids. This is discouraged, but not illegal. It is a process called “Sniping”. So if the item has more watchers than bidders, then perhaps a few “snipers” are lurking to come in at the last minute and grab the item. There may however be other bidders that may not be keeping track of when the auction ends or may not have the time to bid again. These are the best type of competition if you must have any.
Following these tips will help ease you through the process and hopefully keep you from being a victim of overpaying or worse. It is amazing how many items are actually up for auction, and who knows maybe you will start putting your products or services up for bis as well (yes it is being done, but that is the subject for another article).
Mahalo.
So you have decided to enter the domain of Online Auctions to supplement your business supplies or there are items that are just too unique to find them in the local strip mall. Well the good news is that Online Auction Sites have matured enough as marketplaces that one can find business items along side the consumer products that made them famous. To protect yourself there is a few things that you need to know so you don't end up a victim of scammers, or overpay for items.
Here are your 10 Tips to help you have a pleasant successful auction experience:
1. Know the going price and value of the item before you bid. If the item is new to you or brand new, check to see what price others are charging for it. This can be done online by a quick check of your favorite search engine, look into catalogs, and/or a visit to your favorite store/merchant if convenient. If the product is used or reconditioned, of course you will want, and expect to pay way less than the retail value. This will give you a leg up and make sure you don't overpay, a common malady on these sites.
2. If the item's description or picture isn't detailed enough for you, contact the seller to get more
information or a better picture before you bid. You don't want to take a chance to waste your hard earned money on the wrong item, or something different than what you wanted. Yes this does happen often where bids are placed and items won, only to have the buyer realize that what they got wasn't what they thought they were getting. Ask before you bid.
3. Know the highest price you will bid for the item and stick with it. Don't get caught up in a bidding war; you may end up paying more than the item's worth. Don't forget to add in the shipping price when determining how much you are going to bid. Of course if you are looking at other Online sites to compare prices, you need to consider their rates for shipping and handling as well. Naturally if comparing prices from offline sites, factor in your travel time fuel costs, and if the item needs to be delivered or you can carry it out yourself.
4. Visit a few online auctions before bidding because some sellers auction the same or similar items in many auctions. Also if the seller has more than one of the items in stock, they might have more than one listing. Look at all the listings you might find a better price from the same seller if you are patient and do your homework. You usually can purchase the item for a lower price in a unpopular auction because there are less bidders.
5. Be knowledgeable about the time the auction ends. You also want to know how long it will take to ship the item to you. A lot of times sellers will specify that they may take a certain number of days before the can ship the item. If you need the item by a certain date, you'll want to estimate the time it will take to receive it. Of course you can always contact the seller during the auction to see if they offer different shipping rates for overnight service. The worse they can say is no, but many times they will accommodate you.
6. Read the payment options the seller accepts before you bid on their item. If they only accept
checks or money orders, it may take even longer to get the item because the payment has to clear. Steer clear if the only payment option is International Money Order and the seller is overseas. This is usually an indication of a possible scam. Try to protect yourself with either credit card orders through secure servers or other online payment services like PayPal. This way you are protected against fraud.
7. Look to see if the seller offers a warranty or money back guarantee before bidding on a product. You don't want to get stuck with a item that does not work, is broken or you're not satisfied with for other reasons (the old bait and switch is not as common, but does happen from time to time). Most have time frames for returns, and other conditions, but generally most will allow returns for legitimate reasons.
8. Online auctions will, sometimes, allow you to check the sellers' auction history. Check to see what other people's experience has been with the seller. Have other people complained about the their items, services or business practices? How have the complaints been resolved? You do have a right to know before you decide to bid. Also of those that have complained, what is their history, are they chronic whiners?
9. It's important to place a bid early in the auction to show other bidders you are interested in the item. If someone does out bid you, don't be afraid to out bid them. Remember not to go over your maximum
bid price. Of course almost all the auction sites do allow for what they call “Proxy Bids” which allow you to place your maximum bid up front, then the bid is incremented up as others join in the bidding. It is a tool that allows you to set your max bid, but sees that you pay the lowest possible winning bid. This way you don't have to continuously look at the auctions to see how you are doing.
10.Another reason to know when the auction ends; you can place a last minute bid. There is software that allows you to place last minute bids. This is discouraged, but not illegal. It is a process called “Sniping”. So if the item has more watchers than bidders, then perhaps a few “snipers” are lurking to come in at the last minute and grab the item. There may however be other bidders that may not be keeping track of when the auction ends or may not have the time to bid again. These are the best type of competition if you must have any.
Following these tips will help ease you through the process and hopefully keep you from being a victim of overpaying or worse. It is amazing how many items are actually up for auction, and who knows maybe you will start putting your products or services up for bis as well (yes it is being done, but that is the subject for another article).
Mahalo.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
We Are in The Midst of a “Lack of A Crisis” Crisis!
We Are in The Midst of a “Lack of A Crisis” Crisis!
(or Crisis, Crisis, Who Stole My Crisis?)
Once upon a time television news, especially the major networks, were a trusted source of news and considered “must see TV” to find out what is going on in the world. Then of course came Cable TV and we were introduced to the concept of 24 hours news telecasts (but in truth they stopped the new news at midnight and picked up again around 6 A.M. Figuring nothing much happens during that time frame, and most people would be asleep anyway, so it really wasn't 24 hours). For the longest time these telecasts were of good quality, but then for some unknown reason, the heads of these networks decided that news should be entertaining. This was the beginning of the downward slide we see today. They dumbed down the newscasts and forced peppy preppy cheerleader newsreaders upon us. Luckily this came about the same time as the Internet was opened to the rest of us (originally it was the domain of researchers and academics) and we found we didn't have to put up with the brain dead newsreaders anymore. So ratings were falling off, advertisers were leaving the stations (or at least demanding to pay less for there advertising), and people were finding new ways of getting their news.
So how did these stations react? Easy make every little problem into a CRISIS!
Have you ever noticed how almost everyday we are involved, according to the nightly news readers, in a brand new crisis that threatens to end life as we know it? Only to have these stories being one off, and not only not the end of civilization, but just an isolated incident? How can these so-called “purveyors of truth” keep their jobs after all their lies? Why do people take it and not demand more truth in reporting of the news? Or is it no one is really watching anymore and so it all falls on deaf ears?
Of course when one station (they seem to rotate the announcing), announces a crisis, they all immediately follow suit (like lemmings to the seas) so as not to look like they are not “on the ball”. Then they all take turns trotting out the various “experts”, who for the most part sound as brain dead as the newsreaders interviewing them. Very little insight is ever given and each crisis seems to last about 4-7 days before the next one crops up without the previous one being solved, and mostly forgotten (until maybe next year if it is something cyclical like weather or price of gasoline/food/school supplies) by the stations ans for some reason, totally out of the blue the crisis seems to solve itself, as we find that the world is still here and life goes on.
Whew, I thought the lack of Okra crisis was going to get us for sure this time around.
Oh but it may be the snow crisis in Minnesota in January that will end civilization for ever. No? How about the er...uhm... what's next on the agenda?
Mahalo
(or Crisis, Crisis, Who Stole My Crisis?)
Once upon a time television news, especially the major networks, were a trusted source of news and considered “must see TV” to find out what is going on in the world. Then of course came Cable TV and we were introduced to the concept of 24 hours news telecasts (but in truth they stopped the new news at midnight and picked up again around 6 A.M. Figuring nothing much happens during that time frame, and most people would be asleep anyway, so it really wasn't 24 hours). For the longest time these telecasts were of good quality, but then for some unknown reason, the heads of these networks decided that news should be entertaining. This was the beginning of the downward slide we see today. They dumbed down the newscasts and forced peppy preppy cheerleader newsreaders upon us. Luckily this came about the same time as the Internet was opened to the rest of us (originally it was the domain of researchers and academics) and we found we didn't have to put up with the brain dead newsreaders anymore. So ratings were falling off, advertisers were leaving the stations (or at least demanding to pay less for there advertising), and people were finding new ways of getting their news.
So how did these stations react? Easy make every little problem into a CRISIS!
Have you ever noticed how almost everyday we are involved, according to the nightly news readers, in a brand new crisis that threatens to end life as we know it? Only to have these stories being one off, and not only not the end of civilization, but just an isolated incident? How can these so-called “purveyors of truth” keep their jobs after all their lies? Why do people take it and not demand more truth in reporting of the news? Or is it no one is really watching anymore and so it all falls on deaf ears?
Of course when one station (they seem to rotate the announcing), announces a crisis, they all immediately follow suit (like lemmings to the seas) so as not to look like they are not “on the ball”. Then they all take turns trotting out the various “experts”, who for the most part sound as brain dead as the newsreaders interviewing them. Very little insight is ever given and each crisis seems to last about 4-7 days before the next one crops up without the previous one being solved, and mostly forgotten (until maybe next year if it is something cyclical like weather or price of gasoline/food/school supplies) by the stations ans for some reason, totally out of the blue the crisis seems to solve itself, as we find that the world is still here and life goes on.
Whew, I thought the lack of Okra crisis was going to get us for sure this time around.
Oh but it may be the snow crisis in Minnesota in January that will end civilization for ever. No? How about the er...uhm... what's next on the agenda?
Mahalo
Friday, January 04, 2008
Hockey Played “Old School”
Hockey is my sport of choice to watch once the temperatures fall below a certain point that causes discomfort and freezing of body parts. Of course growing up in Chicago we always had the Blackhawks to watch and cheer for, despite their constant disappointment via a deficit of championships.
Yet there we were religiously going out every night to the flooded area of the park and play until time to go home and sleep. In act one year when the teachers were on strike (they seemed to always strike in early January almost as if extending their Christmas vacation) we played from early morning until late at night and I got frostbite on my toes. Still it didn't bother me as I just became a goalie while wearing rubber boots after that for the rest of the season while mending. Ah the joys and fond memories of youth.
Yet here it is January 2008 and the NHL is putting on an outside game between real professional teams! I am of course referring to the game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres played in Ralph Wilson Stadium and televised on NBC. Yes it was a sight to see as Buffalo was enduring one of their typical January snow storms at the same time. It did provide for an interesting game and also triggered memories of times past.
It was of course a Marketing ploy and a good one at that as they did garner a lot of interest, over 71,000 paid to see the game live and braved the elements, and it did great ratings on TV. Now some might remember a couple of years ago that hockey was shown regularly on ESPN and ABC (both being Disney Corp properties) until the players were “Locked Out” for a year by management and they didn't play for a season. Of course at the time the interest in the US seemed to be waning, as the league kept expanding into “Non-Traditional Markets”. These included a couple of teams in Florida, one in Atlanta, and Phoenix.
This strike caused ESPN to cancel their contract and when the NHL tried to come back , only NBC came calling to give them a TV contract. NBC-Universal proceeded to exile the NHL to their sports station Outdoor Life Network (OLN). This of course had the sportswriters and commentators laughing and making fun out of this move as most people never heard of OLN. In fact most of the programming on OLN consisted of Bike Races like the “Tour De France” and Bull Riding. Of course us die hards found the station and enjoyed our Hockey. Though OLN and the NHL did a weird thing. They put the games on Monday and Tuesday nights. On ESPN they were on Wednesday and Thursday nights and that is what we were used to. On top of that NBC Universal didn't really market the games very much. It was as if they were ashamed to admit that they showed them.
Last year OLN changed it's name to Versus and still shows the NHL. Still the marketing of the NHL is very weak and even something as special as an outside game received very little notice. In fact during the Sunday Night Football game on NBC, they mentioned the game, but not the time! Even though the anchor, Bob Costas, was presenting the game. Talk about bad marketing, it is no wonder that they suffer at the ratings game. Even their best regular show (30 Rock) is flailing away because of their poor marketing. Hey NBC you've got intelligent wonderful exciting programming, yet you fail to let anyone know!
Hockey is a wonderful and exciting game, and it deserves better. Between the NHL and NBC they need lots of help getting the word out that it is being shown. It is a Catch-22 where they promote because they don't think enough people are watching, yet people don't know to watch because they don't promote. Instead they try to promote copy-cat, me-too types of shows that nobody really watches and yet they keep dumbing down to get a certain demographic that doesn't seem to be able to comprehend the brilliance and intricacies of intelligent programming (but that is another article).
Such a shame that the suits just don't get it and don't realize what a goldmine they are sitting on because of their short-sightedness and total lack of vision.
Hey NBC Universal, promote the intelligent stuff and the ratings will come back, keep marketing the crap and stay a “me-too, copy-cat network”.
Mahalo.
Yet there we were religiously going out every night to the flooded area of the park and play until time to go home and sleep. In act one year when the teachers were on strike (they seemed to always strike in early January almost as if extending their Christmas vacation) we played from early morning until late at night and I got frostbite on my toes. Still it didn't bother me as I just became a goalie while wearing rubber boots after that for the rest of the season while mending. Ah the joys and fond memories of youth.
Yet here it is January 2008 and the NHL is putting on an outside game between real professional teams! I am of course referring to the game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres played in Ralph Wilson Stadium and televised on NBC. Yes it was a sight to see as Buffalo was enduring one of their typical January snow storms at the same time. It did provide for an interesting game and also triggered memories of times past.
It was of course a Marketing ploy and a good one at that as they did garner a lot of interest, over 71,000 paid to see the game live and braved the elements, and it did great ratings on TV. Now some might remember a couple of years ago that hockey was shown regularly on ESPN and ABC (both being Disney Corp properties) until the players were “Locked Out” for a year by management and they didn't play for a season. Of course at the time the interest in the US seemed to be waning, as the league kept expanding into “Non-Traditional Markets”. These included a couple of teams in Florida, one in Atlanta, and Phoenix.
This strike caused ESPN to cancel their contract and when the NHL tried to come back , only NBC came calling to give them a TV contract. NBC-Universal proceeded to exile the NHL to their sports station Outdoor Life Network (OLN). This of course had the sportswriters and commentators laughing and making fun out of this move as most people never heard of OLN. In fact most of the programming on OLN consisted of Bike Races like the “Tour De France” and Bull Riding. Of course us die hards found the station and enjoyed our Hockey. Though OLN and the NHL did a weird thing. They put the games on Monday and Tuesday nights. On ESPN they were on Wednesday and Thursday nights and that is what we were used to. On top of that NBC Universal didn't really market the games very much. It was as if they were ashamed to admit that they showed them.
Last year OLN changed it's name to Versus and still shows the NHL. Still the marketing of the NHL is very weak and even something as special as an outside game received very little notice. In fact during the Sunday Night Football game on NBC, they mentioned the game, but not the time! Even though the anchor, Bob Costas, was presenting the game. Talk about bad marketing, it is no wonder that they suffer at the ratings game. Even their best regular show (30 Rock) is flailing away because of their poor marketing. Hey NBC you've got intelligent wonderful exciting programming, yet you fail to let anyone know!
Hockey is a wonderful and exciting game, and it deserves better. Between the NHL and NBC they need lots of help getting the word out that it is being shown. It is a Catch-22 where they promote because they don't think enough people are watching, yet people don't know to watch because they don't promote. Instead they try to promote copy-cat, me-too types of shows that nobody really watches and yet they keep dumbing down to get a certain demographic that doesn't seem to be able to comprehend the brilliance and intricacies of intelligent programming (but that is another article).
Such a shame that the suits just don't get it and don't realize what a goldmine they are sitting on because of their short-sightedness and total lack of vision.
Hey NBC Universal, promote the intelligent stuff and the ratings will come back, keep marketing the crap and stay a “me-too, copy-cat network”.
Mahalo.
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
E-Voting and the End of Democracy
Another election year is upon us and once again we hear about the wonders and ease of E-Voting.
Of course we always want to try to find ways to make our lives easier and anything that decreases work or actually using our brains seems to be considered advantageous to society as a whole. Yes machines are wonderful, and they really do enrich our lives if we do use them correctly and don't abuse their power.
But amazingly the more we seem to progress, the worse we seem to feel about it. I think it is mainly because the more we let machines do the work and thinking for us, the less we feel in control of our daily lives. Too often we hear that someone can't do their job because “The Computer is Down”, when all we want is change for a dollar. Too many people are too lazy to understand the why they do something and just accept things as a given, yet when an emergency arises can't function as they are just ignorant as can be wen faced with technology.
Luckily I was blessed with being born with an insatiable curiosity about how things work, and a very inquiring mindset. I studied science and economics and have seen enough behind the scenes to understand how to read between the lines. I also seem to be a bit of a cynic, yet I like to give people the benefit of the doubt.
But I regress....
The issue of using Computers to register and count votes (AKA E-Voting) has been coming up the last few elections. It is a hot topic as proponents see it as a panacea to stop all fraud and get quick and accurate counts without worrying about uncounted ballots or ballot box rigging, so they can have the results NOW and get back to their mind-numbing “reality” TV shows. Yet the opponents to E-Voting tend to look at all the negative press computers get about viruses other attacks and use that as reasons to ever trust computers.
The truth as always falls somewhere in between these two extremes.
Yes computers are wonderful tools and yes they can be made to be safe and secure, regardless of what you hear in the press, computers are safe and secure. However there are those times when security is breached, but it is usually found to be linked back to some sort of avoidable human error that can be avoided in the future with smarter humans.
The main question one should be asking is who is coding the program for these machines, and who is verifying that the programs work as they are advertised. It is very easy to make it so that the user sees one result, yet when the selection is tallied the result the machine registers is totally different. Take a simple survey on a web site for instance. How difficult do you think it would be to offer up a menu of choices, accept the user input, show the user what they chose, along with cumulative results, yet the back end database actually registers a different choice? How would one know that the cumulative results are actually what has been recorded and not just something the programmer coded in to show? It is surprisingly easy to do , and unless one is trained very hard to catch. What makes you think it isn't being done now at your favorite site now? You don't and it is impossible for you to prove.
Now just think about that and project that to a National or Local election. It can be easy to turn in a “Test Box” with the correct program that actually runs honestly and everything in it is above board. Yet when the machines are mass produced for distribution, the code is altered ever so slightly and in such a way as to fool a comparison program looking for changes. Heck the only thing that has to really change is the code in the collected database that can say, strip out every so many votes for candidate “A” and divert them to candidate “B”. Again it is way to easy to disguise this code from sloppy inspectors and you only need to alter a few key districts to manipulate the outcome. And who would know after the fact, since all the voters saw the results they were expecting pop up on the screen, yet in the back end hanky-panky was running amok.
This is how easy it is to steal an election in the computer age.
And of course we haven't even talked about outsourcing the work and how a foreign government can control the election though their own software and back doors into the systems, but that is a worry for another day.
Yet not all is doom and gloom. There are ways to control the chaos. For one, the database designers and coders should not be from the same company so there can be no collusion between the two. Collection techniques could be made so that a third company can write a program that collects what appears on the voter's screen and is recorded into a different database. Have random collection of data throughout the day at the different precincts by bonded representatives of all interested parties. They come to the polling places and check up on the Election Judges anyway (Yes I have been an Election Judge may times in the past). Right now we rely on these people to go over paper ballots and counts if there is a discrepancy so why not train them on electronic means, or get younger people in who understand the technology and retire the fuddy-duddy Luddites.
E-Voting is coming, but it doesn't have to be the end of Democracy if we do it smart and don't leave it up to the political parties to design the systems.
Chin up America, there is always hope.
Mahalo.
Of course we always want to try to find ways to make our lives easier and anything that decreases work or actually using our brains seems to be considered advantageous to society as a whole. Yes machines are wonderful, and they really do enrich our lives if we do use them correctly and don't abuse their power.
But amazingly the more we seem to progress, the worse we seem to feel about it. I think it is mainly because the more we let machines do the work and thinking for us, the less we feel in control of our daily lives. Too often we hear that someone can't do their job because “The Computer is Down”, when all we want is change for a dollar. Too many people are too lazy to understand the why they do something and just accept things as a given, yet when an emergency arises can't function as they are just ignorant as can be wen faced with technology.
Luckily I was blessed with being born with an insatiable curiosity about how things work, and a very inquiring mindset. I studied science and economics and have seen enough behind the scenes to understand how to read between the lines. I also seem to be a bit of a cynic, yet I like to give people the benefit of the doubt.
But I regress....
The issue of using Computers to register and count votes (AKA E-Voting) has been coming up the last few elections. It is a hot topic as proponents see it as a panacea to stop all fraud and get quick and accurate counts without worrying about uncounted ballots or ballot box rigging, so they can have the results NOW and get back to their mind-numbing “reality” TV shows. Yet the opponents to E-Voting tend to look at all the negative press computers get about viruses other attacks and use that as reasons to ever trust computers.
The truth as always falls somewhere in between these two extremes.
Yes computers are wonderful tools and yes they can be made to be safe and secure, regardless of what you hear in the press, computers are safe and secure. However there are those times when security is breached, but it is usually found to be linked back to some sort of avoidable human error that can be avoided in the future with smarter humans.
The main question one should be asking is who is coding the program for these machines, and who is verifying that the programs work as they are advertised. It is very easy to make it so that the user sees one result, yet when the selection is tallied the result the machine registers is totally different. Take a simple survey on a web site for instance. How difficult do you think it would be to offer up a menu of choices, accept the user input, show the user what they chose, along with cumulative results, yet the back end database actually registers a different choice? How would one know that the cumulative results are actually what has been recorded and not just something the programmer coded in to show? It is surprisingly easy to do , and unless one is trained very hard to catch. What makes you think it isn't being done now at your favorite site now? You don't and it is impossible for you to prove.
Now just think about that and project that to a National or Local election. It can be easy to turn in a “Test Box” with the correct program that actually runs honestly and everything in it is above board. Yet when the machines are mass produced for distribution, the code is altered ever so slightly and in such a way as to fool a comparison program looking for changes. Heck the only thing that has to really change is the code in the collected database that can say, strip out every so many votes for candidate “A” and divert them to candidate “B”. Again it is way to easy to disguise this code from sloppy inspectors and you only need to alter a few key districts to manipulate the outcome. And who would know after the fact, since all the voters saw the results they were expecting pop up on the screen, yet in the back end hanky-panky was running amok.
This is how easy it is to steal an election in the computer age.
And of course we haven't even talked about outsourcing the work and how a foreign government can control the election though their own software and back doors into the systems, but that is a worry for another day.
Yet not all is doom and gloom. There are ways to control the chaos. For one, the database designers and coders should not be from the same company so there can be no collusion between the two. Collection techniques could be made so that a third company can write a program that collects what appears on the voter's screen and is recorded into a different database. Have random collection of data throughout the day at the different precincts by bonded representatives of all interested parties. They come to the polling places and check up on the Election Judges anyway (Yes I have been an Election Judge may times in the past). Right now we rely on these people to go over paper ballots and counts if there is a discrepancy so why not train them on electronic means, or get younger people in who understand the technology and retire the fuddy-duddy Luddites.
E-Voting is coming, but it doesn't have to be the end of Democracy if we do it smart and don't leave it up to the political parties to design the systems.
Chin up America, there is always hope.
Mahalo.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Inflated Numbers, Inflated Egos
The New England Patriots are the best team ever in the history of the NFL!
Or so say all the pundits and talking heads and other no-life sports writers. Why do they say this? It is because they have gone the entire regular season without losing a game. They are 16-0 and that is the first time in history that a team has gone 16-0 in the regular season so they have won the most regular season games, ergo the “Best Ever”.
Or are they? Did they really do something historic (as in never been done) or are the numbers just artificially inflated ?
Are they the first team in NFL history to win all their regular season games? Well actually they are the fourth. So as historic as the 4th person to fly the Atlantic Ocean solo (who was that? nobody knows or cares).
Back in 1934 the Chicago Bears went 13-0 in the regular season before losing in the championship game in the famous “Sneaker Bowl” to the New York Giants (so called because one of the Giants assistants went and broke into a gymnasium and stole a bunch of sneakers because the cleats were slipping in the icy Polo Grounds field).
The 1942 Bears went 11-0 (again winning all the games in the regular season, shortened because of World War II) but again lost in the Championship game (back then they didn't have three rounds of playoffs before the championship game hence no chance at becoming 16-0).
The 1972 Miami Dolphins went 14-0 in the regular season and 3-0 in the playoffs to include the NFL Championship Super Bowl. They are therefore the first team to go all the way to the end undefeated. So they are basically the Charles Lindbergh of the NFL, and the Patriots are down there on the list.
So why are they making such a hoopla over this? Well there is first of all the egotistical notion that the men and women reporting sports wanting to be part of history as if because of the Patriots achievement, they themselves become important. They are living vicariously through the Patriots as some parents who force their kids into doing things that they failed to do in their youth.
Of course we all talk about the numbers, but again the teams in the past didn't have the chance to win that many games, so one can never really say who is the best ever just because we inflate the season and dilute the talent. There are many more teams today and of course some think there seems to be enough talent to field them. However there is definitely a big drop off in talent between the good teams and the average and bad ones. Plus the rosters of teams have expanded so more players suit up for games then in the past. Free agency does help as well as teams can stockpile talent and take the disgruntled players from other teams and rent them for a year to make a “Super Team” and then let them all go for salary cap reasons.
The game has also evolved as rule changes and equipment have changed the game for better or worse depending upon one's point of view (they changed a lot of rules to allow for more offense and therefore making more interesting and wide open games, in theory).
Also there are way too many improvements in conditioning, diet, supplements (legal and otherwise) and lifestyles today. For instance the athletes of old had to work other type of jobs in the off season and didn't have access to the wonderful exercise equipment that athletes have today.
Lets face it players that were considered “huge” in the 30's, 40's and even the 70's are considered way too undersized today. So it is tough to compare eras and decades in any sports. But that doesn't stop these sportscasters as that would require research and that is too much work for the so-called “journalists” of this day.
None of this is of course New England's fault, and I am not taking anything away from their achievement. They earned their success and should be proud of it and celebrate appropriately. They are the best team of this era and if they go on to win it all, more power to them.
Let's just not go overboard and disrespect history and what came first. Appreciate the past, live in the present and embrace future growth.
Mahalo.
Or so say all the pundits and talking heads and other no-life sports writers. Why do they say this? It is because they have gone the entire regular season without losing a game. They are 16-0 and that is the first time in history that a team has gone 16-0 in the regular season so they have won the most regular season games, ergo the “Best Ever”.
Or are they? Did they really do something historic (as in never been done) or are the numbers just artificially inflated ?
Are they the first team in NFL history to win all their regular season games? Well actually they are the fourth. So as historic as the 4th person to fly the Atlantic Ocean solo (who was that? nobody knows or cares).
Back in 1934 the Chicago Bears went 13-0 in the regular season before losing in the championship game in the famous “Sneaker Bowl” to the New York Giants (so called because one of the Giants assistants went and broke into a gymnasium and stole a bunch of sneakers because the cleats were slipping in the icy Polo Grounds field).
The 1942 Bears went 11-0 (again winning all the games in the regular season, shortened because of World War II) but again lost in the Championship game (back then they didn't have three rounds of playoffs before the championship game hence no chance at becoming 16-0).
The 1972 Miami Dolphins went 14-0 in the regular season and 3-0 in the playoffs to include the NFL Championship Super Bowl. They are therefore the first team to go all the way to the end undefeated. So they are basically the Charles Lindbergh of the NFL, and the Patriots are down there on the list.
So why are they making such a hoopla over this? Well there is first of all the egotistical notion that the men and women reporting sports wanting to be part of history as if because of the Patriots achievement, they themselves become important. They are living vicariously through the Patriots as some parents who force their kids into doing things that they failed to do in their youth.
Of course we all talk about the numbers, but again the teams in the past didn't have the chance to win that many games, so one can never really say who is the best ever just because we inflate the season and dilute the talent. There are many more teams today and of course some think there seems to be enough talent to field them. However there is definitely a big drop off in talent between the good teams and the average and bad ones. Plus the rosters of teams have expanded so more players suit up for games then in the past. Free agency does help as well as teams can stockpile talent and take the disgruntled players from other teams and rent them for a year to make a “Super Team” and then let them all go for salary cap reasons.
The game has also evolved as rule changes and equipment have changed the game for better or worse depending upon one's point of view (they changed a lot of rules to allow for more offense and therefore making more interesting and wide open games, in theory).
Also there are way too many improvements in conditioning, diet, supplements (legal and otherwise) and lifestyles today. For instance the athletes of old had to work other type of jobs in the off season and didn't have access to the wonderful exercise equipment that athletes have today.
Lets face it players that were considered “huge” in the 30's, 40's and even the 70's are considered way too undersized today. So it is tough to compare eras and decades in any sports. But that doesn't stop these sportscasters as that would require research and that is too much work for the so-called “journalists” of this day.
None of this is of course New England's fault, and I am not taking anything away from their achievement. They earned their success and should be proud of it and celebrate appropriately. They are the best team of this era and if they go on to win it all, more power to them.
Let's just not go overboard and disrespect history and what came first. Appreciate the past, live in the present and embrace future growth.
Mahalo.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Cheater's Proof
Well the Mitchell report has finally come out, and guess what? Yes there is cheating in baseball after all. Also Barry Bonds didn't cheat in a vacuum, he was just better at it then other players were.
Of course Barry's legal problems stem from the fact he allegedly lied to a Federal Grand Jury when they were trying to close down illegal labs like BALCO, not just from his use of the substances. There is a big difference between that and if he was just a steroid user. But enough time, energy and bandwidth has been wasted on this cretin so that's all I'll say about him for now.
The juicy part of the report has to deal with the other big names mentioned. There was Roger Clemens, Andy Pettite, Miguel Tejada (maybe Rafael Palmerio was telling the truth when he said he got the stuff from Tejada after all) amongst the active players. I man wow, who would have guessed it? Except of course rumors have been floating around earlier this summer about these three, so I guess the old saying “Wheres there's smoke there's fire”, rings true in this case.
Of course all the players on the list who would have been considered for the Hall of Fame, need to get the same treatment as Barry Bonds, and Mark McGuire are getting now. If there is an asterisk besides Barry's home run record, there there should be one next to Clemen's win and strikeout totals as well. If Barry's MVP's are tainted, then so is Clemen's Cy Young awards. Fair is fair and we all want to be fair.
The reason for the lack of outcry for these other players is mainly because they don't act like cretins to the public and press. Yes there will be gnashing of teeth and rending of garments for a week or so, but it will go away and become background noise until Spring Training. Then of course the media will storm the camps and besiege these players with ridiculous questions and try to trip them up. Then of course it will die down and the regular season will go along until June/July when the boring part of the season is upon us and a little mention will be made, then go away for the stretch runs.
Baring of course any major busts or a rash of failed tests show up.
The whole problem with this scenario is that it all hinges on the testimony of one person, an ex Club House worker from Shea Stadium. He was caught dealing in HGH and steroids, and part of his plea agreement was to give evidence to the Mitchell panel. It is known that players give money to club house personnel to run errands for them, (washing cars, filling up gas tanks, getting food and drink, etc.) and pay them with cash and checks. The canceled checks are one of the main pieces of evidence he has produced against the players. But one can never really know what he really got the money for, (and of course there is the chance that he is telling the truth).
The next few days are going to be fun and the “Talking Heads” are going to be wagging their tongues and making excuses for some players while trashing others. Ah yes these “Holier than thou” commentators really crack me up and I get a good laugh at them trying to justify their bogus indignation, bias and bigotry (especially ESPN anchors and talk show hosts both on TV and Radio).
Let's all sit back and enjoy the ride and join me for a laugh.
Mahalo.
Of course Barry's legal problems stem from the fact he allegedly lied to a Federal Grand Jury when they were trying to close down illegal labs like BALCO, not just from his use of the substances. There is a big difference between that and if he was just a steroid user. But enough time, energy and bandwidth has been wasted on this cretin so that's all I'll say about him for now.
The juicy part of the report has to deal with the other big names mentioned. There was Roger Clemens, Andy Pettite, Miguel Tejada (maybe Rafael Palmerio was telling the truth when he said he got the stuff from Tejada after all) amongst the active players. I man wow, who would have guessed it? Except of course rumors have been floating around earlier this summer about these three, so I guess the old saying “Wheres there's smoke there's fire”, rings true in this case.
Of course all the players on the list who would have been considered for the Hall of Fame, need to get the same treatment as Barry Bonds, and Mark McGuire are getting now. If there is an asterisk besides Barry's home run record, there there should be one next to Clemen's win and strikeout totals as well. If Barry's MVP's are tainted, then so is Clemen's Cy Young awards. Fair is fair and we all want to be fair.
The reason for the lack of outcry for these other players is mainly because they don't act like cretins to the public and press. Yes there will be gnashing of teeth and rending of garments for a week or so, but it will go away and become background noise until Spring Training. Then of course the media will storm the camps and besiege these players with ridiculous questions and try to trip them up. Then of course it will die down and the regular season will go along until June/July when the boring part of the season is upon us and a little mention will be made, then go away for the stretch runs.
Baring of course any major busts or a rash of failed tests show up.
The whole problem with this scenario is that it all hinges on the testimony of one person, an ex Club House worker from Shea Stadium. He was caught dealing in HGH and steroids, and part of his plea agreement was to give evidence to the Mitchell panel. It is known that players give money to club house personnel to run errands for them, (washing cars, filling up gas tanks, getting food and drink, etc.) and pay them with cash and checks. The canceled checks are one of the main pieces of evidence he has produced against the players. But one can never really know what he really got the money for, (and of course there is the chance that he is telling the truth).
The next few days are going to be fun and the “Talking Heads” are going to be wagging their tongues and making excuses for some players while trashing others. Ah yes these “Holier than thou” commentators really crack me up and I get a good laugh at them trying to justify their bogus indignation, bias and bigotry (especially ESPN anchors and talk show hosts both on TV and Radio).
Let's all sit back and enjoy the ride and join me for a laugh.
Mahalo.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)