All about SEO or SFO?

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First let's start with definitions:SEO:Search Engine Optimization, SFO: Search Friendly Optimization.These two things are what most webmasters have trouble balancing. These things seem to always be on opposite ends. On one hand you have to make sure search engines can crawll your website without any problems. On the other you have to keep the site looking good to keep your visitors.These are all based on what kind of site you plan on making. A corporate website selling shoes in the real world might focus on keeping the site looking good to visitors. And maybe pack it up with flash and all kinds of descriptive images. On the other side a site about online products, e-commerce, might cut back on the images and focus on seo. I will go into both of these just in case.Let's start with seo. The first thing you need if you choose seo is to meta tags. Now there many meta tags generators out there for a quicker way to make them. But I suggest like me you make them yourself according to the search engines you want your site to better perform at. In short you have to study those search engines and find out how they get their content and what meta tags they require or may find usefull. Mine is based on goole so check out the source of the blog and those are the tags that google uses. Also a site that may help you out with your seo is:http://sitesubmit.ca/ they require you to be a member to ue their tools but it's worth plus it's free. They have many seo tips and tools. In your reaserch of the search engine don't forget ranking. Find out what they base their search results on and how they decide which results show up first when a user queries. Like google uses google googlerank and overall page rank. But you may hav eto increase your content on a subject in order to increase your keyword density and such.Second sfo. SFO is fairly easy to accomplish once you have the right info. Like many sites they host regular polls and surveys about what users like and their personnal opinions. It's an effective way of knowing your audience. Once you know most of your visitors like certain kinds of things you start providing them. Therefore pleasing your users and making a successful site. But never forget about the stalistics the users don't need to tell you. Like what browsers usually visit your site and what operatinf systems they use. And as many webmasters know firefox and internet exploer(leading browsers) have different rendering engines. So find out which most of your users use and customize your site to it. Also if the stalistics show that they have just about equal users use what we a splash page. To allow the user to show which version of the site they want to view. Two versions of your site may be hard to keep up but remember it's worth it. In one case one of my friends had to do four different versions. And keep them updated at the same time.But also you may hav eto balance the two together if you want them both. Though it is hard it may be for the best. About the Author Owner of http://allaboutadsense.blogspot.com/.I enjoy writting articles of the knowledge I've aquired through my experiences as a webmaster.

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Conducting Business through B2B E-marketplaces

Businesses, which are still sitting on sidelines and not doing business on the Internet, should think seriously about their position! If you are one of them, chances are there, that you have to pay dearly for your indecision as you might lose significant market share to your more proactive competitors in a very short period of time.Apart from the fact that e-commerce is growing at the rate of more than 25 percent a year, the use of online features can bring efficiency to virtually every aspect of business process, be it supply chain management or customer support management.But, how can you build an e-commerce business and take advantages of all these great possibilities? After all, you are pretty sure that anything to do with new technology is complicated, time-consuming, and expensive.Believe it or not, this is just a misconception that most business owners have about the Internet technology. The truth is – in order to run a business online and reap profits, like any new effort, you need to do a little homework, have patience and determination, and get going.Take the following steps seriously and in no time you will be able to embrace fascinating world of online business.Take your products onlineGetting your product online does not simply mean - having a nice picture and a product narration to go with it. Effective use of the Internet is based on standards. Standards, as you know, are created to facilitate common use of a technology. If you ever imported or exported a product or service, or if you registered your product with some kind of authorities ever; you certainly know that each product falls under certain subcategory according to the classification system that you encountered. Internet is the same thing. Since the emergence of Internet, several classification systems have been developed.If you think long term and would like to use same catalog with multiple e-marketplaces, you should adopt one of the prevailing classification system in the Internet. The best online catalog classification available from my point of view is UNSPSC. For one thing, many prominent e-marketplaces adopted this particular system, which allows you to post your products on multiple e-procurement systems and e-marketplaces.How do you do this? I would suggest you to become a member of one of the e-marketplaces, where you can aggregate your products using some kind of simple wizards or forms. E-marketplaces based on Commerce One’s the largest B2B e-marketplace enabler, have this facility.Our own Rusbiz e-catalog system, which is also based on UNSPSC, also allows you to integrate your products using a very simple but sophisticated form. If you do not have time to do it by your own, you can use the service of a B2B exchange. Rusbiz also provides with similar service.Get an online presenceWhat should be your next step once you have all your products transformed into e-catalog? Naturally, you need to have an online presence to sell the products. There are number of options how to do this.Become a member of an e-marketplaceThis could be a large geography oriented fairly large horizontal market or a vertical e-marketplace specific to your industry. The membership fees are in most of the cases not so expensive. But many of them charge some percentage on your transactions, usually, from 1 to 3 percent. If you expect big sales volume, you may think this might not be the best choice for you. However, if you get new customers, thanks to your mere presence in an e-marketplace, the percentage that you have to pay on the transaction you should consider as customer acquiring cost. Under any circumstances, it is good to become a member of at least one e-marketplace as you -automatically get exposed to thousands of new prospective customers.Build a websiteThere are several ways you can construct an e-commerce site to your need.You can build a website in house by employing developers or you can hire a web development company to do this for you. The advantage is you can have a website with the look, feel and functionality according to your given specification.However, both of these methods could be way costly for a small business. Average cost of building an e-commerce website runs starting from US$ 600 plus hosting and maintenance charges for a miniscule site with limited features to several hundred thousand US Dollars for a powerful e-commerce website.Another option that you have as a small business is to build an e-commerce site from prefabricated templates. While this is affordable and easy, you considerably lose flexibility and customization possibilities in comparison to building a site from scratch.Build a web storeAll these above mentioned cases do not allow you to have the potentials and advantages that come with an e-business website integrated with a B2B exchange. Which means, whether you are a business to consumer company with occasional sales to businesses or you are a pure play B2B company, a Web Store merged into an e-marketplace is what you need.A web store from a B2B exchange gives you the best of both worlds. You are having a professional e-commerce site which incorporates all the features that an e-marketplace has to offer. And you build a site from simple and easy to edit templates.For a detailed information about the features that come with a web store and benefits that you can get from them, follow this link: Powerful E-business Store About the Author Nowshade Kabir, Ph.D., is the founder, primary developer and presentCEO, of Rusbiz.com, a global business to business e-commerce portal withfeature like storefronts, aggregated catalog, e-marketplace, tradeleads, internal messaging system supply chain solutions, etc. With adoctorate in Information Technology, Dr. Kabir has worked an advisor togovernment projects and has over 12 years experience in InternationalTrade.

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101 Things To Do With a Slow Cooker

At this time of year there is so much to do and even just driving around takes more time. How can you get back some of that time? Try cooking hearty meals while you are at work, out on the slopes or just ralaxing and reading a book. With your trusty slow cooker and the 101 Things To Do With a Slow Cooker cookbook you can spend the day cooking a terrific meal without spending the day in the kitchen. This handy little book has over one hundred recipes for assemble and go crockery cooking along with some terrific Helpful Hints for crock pot cooking and to even help you create your own crock pot recipes from your oven favourites. With categories like Beverages, Dips and Fondues, Soups and Stews, Beef, Chicken, Pork and Desserts you will find a recipe for every need.Try this recipe for Unbelievably Simple Brisket so you can enjoy a special meal without spending the day cooking it.Unbelievably Simple Brisket4 - 5 pounds fresh beef brisket1 envelope dry onion soup mix1 can (4 ounces) mushrooms, with liquidTrim all excess fat from meat.Combine soup mix with mushrooms and mushroom liquid.Place meat in greased 4 1/2 to 6 quart slow cooker, cutting to fit if necessary. Spread onion soup mixture over brisket, moistening well.Cover and cook on low heat for 10 - 14 hours.Remove meat and cut across the grain into thin slices. Serve with meat juices poured over top slices.Makes 6 - 8 ServingsServe with baked sweek potatoes sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. About the Author Chris WebAdmin is Owner and WebAdmin of The 1001Recipes2Send.comRecipes Database. Become a member to recieve the weeklynewsletter alert: http://www.1001Recipes2Send.comDownload FREE eBooks at: http://www.1001Recipes2Send.com/Free

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A simple 7-step checklist to test your ads

Imagine if you had in your hand a simple,bullet-proof, 7-step checklist to test your ads andsales letters.Well, here’s a simple 7-step checklist that Joe usesevery time he writes copy. Every marketing piece ofhis that passes the test has gone on to generatesales.In one of his lesser known books, "Making Ads Pay,"legendary ad man John Caples reveals a 7 step formulafor successful advertising. He wrote:"This check list is based on the results of hundredsof advertising tests. It is based on millions ofdollars spent in experiments designed to find out whatkind of advertising sells and what kind doesn't sell.The next time your prepare an ad or a commercial, putthis check list alongside of it."Use Caples’ checklist to give your ad the final test.You can even use the following list to check any ad,whether it is for radio, television, print, or evenfor the Internet.1. Does your ad attract the RIGHT AUDIENCE?Does your ad STOP the right people---the ones mostlikely to be interested in your product or service?Does your headline, photo or opening grab theattention of your most likely prospects?2. Does your ad HOLD the audience?Does your ad maintain the attention it achieved? Youmay have stopped them, but does your ad make themSTAY? Does your ad or commercial speak to his or herinterests, needs, hopes or dreams?3. Does your copy CREATE DESIRE?Do you promise benefits to the reader? Do you revealwhat the customer WILL GET? Do you tell them what's init for them? Do you clearly explain the advantages ofyour product or service? Does your ad make them feeland want your service?4. Do you prove it is a BARGAIN?Is your price lower than usual? Are you giving moreservice or adding more value than your competitors?Are you offering something no one else has?5. Do you establish CONFIDENCE?Or to put it the way Caples said it: "Prove it is nota gyp." You may have people interested in your ad. Butnow they're wondering if what you claim is reallytrue. Dissolve their fears with testimonials, aguarantee, or any other PROOF you have.6. Do you make it EASY TO ACT?If you want your prospects to do something, have youTOLD THEM what to do? Have you given them theinformation they need so they can do it? Have you maderesponding to your ad or commercial simple and easy?7. Do you give your prospects a reason to ACT AT ONCE?Your potential customers may be ready to buy---butthey won't unless you give them a GOOD REASON to actnow. If your price is going up, say so. If suppliesare limited, say so. If this is a limited time offer,say so. Have you given people a logical and believablereason to take you up on your offer right now, thisminute?So if you ever need a quick, proven checklist to testyour ads or sales letters, just ask yourself these 7questions and your ads and sales letter will becomecash-generating machines.Best riches, Andrew ClacyP.S. If you haven’t grabbed a copy of Joe Vitale’s new12-part course guaranteed to turn your business into amillion dollar money-sucking machine, I highly suggestyou take another look.In my honest opinion, any person who owns that packagewill become a profit generating, recession-proofbusiness.Read all about it: www.explosivecopycourse.com About the Author Hi there,I'm a fulltime Internet Marketer ,webdeveloper and Entrepeneur from Albury, Australia. Owner of popular website www.explosivecopycourse.com

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7 Keys to Writing a Children's Book that Sells Like Hotcake

There are seven fundamental reasons that some books succeed and others collect dust on the author's bookshelf. These seven keys to success as an author are simple, obvious even, and yet in the midst of our writing many of us forget them. We get so focused on the idea of the book that we forget the mechanics. Here is the strategy that award winning authors use: 1) Create a hero that your audience can relate to. Examine your target market honestly. Who will be reading your book? Just because you think that your main character is funny, charming and brilliant doesn't mean that they will or even that that is what they care about. 2) Write for your audience, not your highschool English professor. There has already been a Shakespeare. Most genres do not require you to write like him. You will just turn your audience off if you write at a level beyond their comprehension. 3) Give your reader a problem that he or she can empathize with. Ex. Are you writing for teenage girls? Then something to do with the pains of adolescent romance, or lack thereof, might be a good start. 4) Provide a nemesis that makes sense. The antagonist in your story should appear to be everything that your main character is not. Then go back in and give him or her some good qualities as well. People are not good or evil. Your characters should have the same character traits, as the rest of humanity. Ex. A Thief with a Conscience or who hates everyone except his little sister, who he has taken care of since their mom died. Give all your characters depth. 5) Provide obstacles for your main characters. Both your hero and antagonist need to have a few bumps in the road. Life isn't smooth. Let them both screw up and figure their way out of their messes. 6) Your hero, at the very least, must learn a lesson about himself or herself. Is he braver than he thought he was? Is her nerdiness actually an asset? Your characters should have some type of self-realization. It can be subtle. You do not have to go into a five chapter monologue on it, just give the readers some clues that he or she has changed. 7) Begin and end your story with a bang. Grab your reader's attention in the beginning and have them hoping for a sequel in the end. The rest, no matter how much work you put into it, will probably be skimmed until they hit the next seat gripping scene. Your job is to make that skim time as short as possible. About the Author Caterina Christakos is the author of How to Write a Children's Book in 30 Days or Less. For more information about her book and writing tips go to:http://www.howtowriteachildrensbook.com

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Men in Tights......and garters"

Sitting comfortably against the cushioned interior of my seat, I listened as the conversation about my friend's cousin passed over my ears. However, when he started talking about her idea's for the fashion world. "She's decided that if she's going to break into the fashion industry, she's gotta have a niche. She's got two already. The first is lingerie for men-" "What?" the voice from the back of the car said, expressing all the surprise in my head. "Lingerie for men- she thinks men should have lingerie too." "Um. I'd have to agree-" the voice said, "I would want my man to wear lingerie..." Lingerie for men. Humm, let me think. Yes, yes, O.K.. There is no way I would want my guy wearing lingerie. Joe Boxers, of course. Silk, even. But lingerie, the word itself implies femininity. Especially because I have a soft spot for men who work out, I think "The Game" in a pink baby doll with white ruffles. For some, that might do it. But, somehow, that just doesn't work for me. Though I'm sure she's got something different in mind, I think she'll lose a majority of this gender oriented society in the sales pitch. Of course, all for social change. I suppose I could see how having a man in linger could be, empowering. Letting the man look his best, setting the mood. Still, somehow, with the gender roles so affixed in my head, I can't see desiring to see a man in much of anything, remotely..."nightly fashionable", beyond silk pajamas. I have little problem in seeing a man in a skirt. As a columnist for my school's paper pointed out, logistically, it makes more sense for men to wear the freer skirts, and let the woman wear the pants, so to speak. However, if we start wanting men in lingerie, we have to ask ourselves, what next? Tummy tucking pantyhose? Perhaps this is because I've never had a relationship where I would was in the position of trying to make myself sexually appealing, or wanting the other person to oblige me. Still, maybe if I was, I could see it. I did find Kevin Costner hot as Robin Hood, in those cute little green leggings.... ********************************* Wonderbra Girl is one of the unique writers of SAonline. She is the faceless young female. If you would like to recieve more of her pieces, please subscribe! cultureshocker-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Wonderbra Girl is one of the unique writers of SAonline. She is the faceless young female. If you would like to recieve more of her pieces, please subscribe! cultureshocker-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

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Carnival Pride Review cruise ship

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Have you ever considered taking a vacation with no driving, no hassle and no worries for 7, 10, 14 days or more? How about a cruise? If you've never been to one and not sure whether it would be right for you, read on. With all the cruise lines, cruise destinations and various range of price available, there is a cruise for just about everyone.We were a group of 4 from Canada. We booked a 7-day Mexican Riviera cruise with Carnival Pride departing from LA, USA. We made arrangements to stay a few days in LA where we visited Hollywood and the famous Venus Beach. It was the perfect start of our vacation.On the day of our cruise departure, we head over to the pier and upon our arrival, we were immediately struck by the awesome sight of the Queen Mary, and our cruise ship was absolutely enormous as it sat there waiting for us.It took about 45 minutes to check our luggage in and board the ship. Once on the Pride, we found our beautiful stateroom with private balcony, met our room steward, and our luggage magically appeared in our cabin. It's true that Carnival ships remind many people of newer Las Vegas resorts. We unpacked at once and made ourselves feel at home for the duration of the cruise. After watching the ship set sail from our balcony, we went for walks to get our bearings. We discovered a spa, overlooking a fitness centre filled with exercise equipments, and a hot tub in the middle of the work-out area separated by a glass wall from the rest of the room.The first two days were sea days. We ate everything in sight, and just acted like people on vacation. The crew members are some of the friendliest and most entertaining folks I've ever met. The second day was nice and warm, we lounged around on the deck. They have plenty of deck chairs at the centre lido pool, we never have problem finding seats.The cruise vessel has activities for the whole family 24 hours a day. A state-of-the-art theatre for quality shows and entertainment, which are all included in the cruise price. Different entertainment are featured in the theatre every evening of the cruise. They also have a number of theme bars, lounges and a disco with live music that are open into the early morning hours.If nightlife isn't your style, you can enjoy the onboard pool, spa, library, fitness centre, shopping and other amenities. If you have children on the cruise, they have play areas and programs geared to different age groups.All meals are "world class cuisine" and "gourmet meals", and combined with impeccable service to insure that the onboard dining experience is truly memorable. It is all included in the price of your cruise. The Pride take into account the modern casual lifestyle and provide a variety of restaurants and snack bars on board. There is a varied and plentiful breakfast and lunch buffet similar to what you would find in Las Vegas. Or you can eat breakfast or lunch in one of the ship's restaurants, order exactly what you want from the menu. Restaurants are usually open for meals for extended hours and buffets are generally open all day and into the night. Not the mention their 24-hour pizza parlour!Cruises typically stop at a different port of call each day or every other day, depending upon distances and sailing time between points of interest. You may stay aboard the ship all day or disembark at any stop. You are free to explore each destination on your own as long as you return to the ship by the designated time. Our ports of calls were Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Los Cabos.Puerto Vallarta:We made arrangements to take the city tour. Riding in the comfort of a big, air-conditioned tour bus, Puerto Vallarta was a beautiful sight. Our highlight of the day was swimming with the dolphins. We literally got inside the dolphin pool, touched and kissed the dolphins. It was an experience of our lifetime.Mazatlan:We booked the city tour with tour-guide Frank. He gave us a private tour, took us to many places. We shopped, explored, ate, relaxed, and we had a fabulous time.Cabo San Lucas:There are the standard cruise shops, a marketplace of crafts and clothing, and some random street vendors doing the "braid your hair", "take a ride on my water taxi" thing. The trip on the water taxi was really nice and redeemed the Cabo experience for me. We rode around the Land's End, went up to the pelican colony, not nearly the number the pelicans living at the fishing pier in Mazatlan, went to look at the sea lions, and checked out the Pacific side of the peninsula.Our last day on the cruise was a sad day. We had early disembarkation due to early flights (12:30). The ship was very organized and we were able to get off the ship very quickly.All in all it was an excellent vacation. I'm very pleased with Carnival cruise.With all these great services available at a reasonable cost, why not take a cruise vacation? About the Author Carnival Pride review is published by Yvon Marier Looking for information about cruises? Go to: http://www.easytraveling.netTravel Articles: http://easytraveling.blogspot.com
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Planning your next Trip?

Currency movements can affect the cost of a trip. For example, a favorable rate of exchange means that your local currency is worth more and will provide you with more buying power. In fact, travelers whose local currency has appreciated dramatically will find that they will be able to afford much more on their vacation this year. On the other hand, a less favorable exchange rate of exchange means that your currency will be worth less resulting in less buying power overseas. If your domestic currency has depreciated significantly you may find your options more limited. As a traveler, your main concern should be to get the most favorable rate possible. In order to do this, however, one must first understand the foreign exchange market. In the foreign exchange market, the currency of one country is exchanged for an equivalent amount of the currency of another. Foreign exchange rates are not static, but change dynamically-sometimes many times within a single minute. At this point, however, most of you might be asking, why does it take more dollars to buy a euro this week than it did last week? Why would it cost you more today to buy a cup of coffee in another country than it did before, even though the price has remained the same there? The answer has to do with the value of a country's currency relative to the price of another currency.Currencies, just like any other commodity that can be bought or sold, are subject to the laws of supply and demand. When more people want a particular currency, the cost of the currency in terms of other currencies will go up. When demand decreases or people do not want to hold a country's currency, the value will go down. One factor that directly affects demand for a currency is international trade. For instance, if I buy a Japanese car in the US, I give dollars to my dealer, who gave dollars to his distributor, and so on. But before the profits are banked by the carmaker in Japan, they are converted into Yen. There is a surge of buying of Japanese cars this month, the result is going to be increased demand for Yen-which will in turn cause an appreciation in the Yen's value. An increase in international investment into Japan would have the same effect, since more money is being converted into Yen to purchase Japanese assets.As a traveler, understanding currency fluctuations will help you to take advantage of favorable rates of exchange and spot a deal when you see one. For example let's look at the EUR/USD (Euro vs. US dollar) currency pair did over the last three years and how any changes might have affected tourism in each of them.Currency pairYear Rate of exchange (highest)Rate of exchange (Lowest)EUR/USD 2003$1.2646$1.0333 2004$1.3666$1.1758 2005$1.3579$1.1864 From looking at the table taken from www.dailyfx.com, we can see that in less than 3 years, the euro steadily rose in value against the US dollar going from $1.2646 to a high of $1.3579. This favorable rate of exchange for Euros vs. US dollars made traveling to the United States a much better deal in 2005 than in both 2003 and 2004. For the traveler who noticed this long term upward trend early could have probably delayed his 2004 trip to the United States knowing that his hard earned cash would go further in 2005.When planning a trip to another country all individuals should keep in mind that the major currencies tend to move +/- 1% in a given day, which is a relatively minor move unless you are changing thousands at a time. This means that visiting smaller countries with less developed economies should warrant more research and planning since, these countries' currency would prove more volatile to rate changes. A great way to find out about the current state of exchange rates is to visit GoCurrency.com, a currency conversion site that covers over 150 currencies worldwide.To sum up, whether it's a business trip or a second honeymoon, a working knowledge of the foreign exchange market can and will make any international journey a more relaxed one. About the Author None Total Views : 162 Word Count Appx. : 692 See All articles From Author

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Benefits Of Submitting Articles To E-zines

1. You'll brand your web site, business and yourselfby submitting articles to e-zines. You could includeyour name, business name, your credentials, web siteaddress and e-mail address in your resource box.2. You will become known as an expert on the topicsyou write about. This will give you and your businessextra credibility which will help you compete againstyour competition.3. Your article might also be placed on the publisher'shome page. If they publish each issue on their homepage this will give you some extra exposure.4. You might get extra exposure if the e-zine publisherarchives their e-zine on their site. People might wantto read the back issues before they make the decisionto subscribe.5. You will get free advertising. This will allow you tospend your profits on other forms of advertising. Youcould buy advertisements in other e-zines that don'tpublish your articles.6. You might get extra income from people wanting tohire you to write other articles, books, or even ask tospeak at seminars. This is a great way to multiply yourincome.7. You could allow e-zine publishers to publish yourarticles

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8 Procedures to Take Control of Sales and Marketing

The Cash to Cash CyclePart Three of SeriesPart One: InventoryPart Two: Accounts ReceivableNext Week: Accounts PayableWe’re sprinting toward that million dollar mark...and we’re only a couple strides away…Decreasing inventory carried us over the first hurdle, and last week reducing Accounts Receivable sped us through the half-way mark. We’re making great time, so let’s bring on the next mile marker – marketing and sales.Increasing Overall Sales and Marketing EffectivenessIf you are an organization spending $500,000 or more on marketing expenses (e.g. advertising, trade shows, print materials, direct mail, etc.) then STOP! We found it again. Why you ask…? Because marketing has the greatest potential of being very unproductive. In fact, many marketing programs struggle to break even, and actually frequently lose money. So if we increase the overall effectiveness, then we can eliminate 50% or more of your wasted marketing efforts, which translates into $250,000 in cash. So now, let’s see how this actually works in a real-life scenario. Sales and Marketing Company Policy Case StudyAn organization with $500,000 in marketing expenses needed assistance. We examined their sales and marketing process to understand and quantify the lead flow, follow-up, and demand forecasting issues. Then we designed and implemented a process to improve their sales cycle efficiency and tie it closer to their customer’s buying cycles. After the marketing reductions, we then reinvested $100,000 back into new processes for public relations and Customer Relationship Management (CRM), both of which were suffering badly. The metrics we developed reduced their marketing expenses by 60% overall and increased their sales cycle efficiency from 40% to 60% within 6 months of implementing the new procedures. With these new processes and reports, the company now tracks sales cycle efficiency and life-time value rather than just sales quota achievement, as the measure of their sales & marketing effectiveness. The result: an extra $300,000 in cash plus a 50% increase in process capability (capacity). As we have seen time and time again, time can be our best friend, if only we let it. Methods to Design the New Sales & Marketing Process•Improve Follow-up. Only about two percent (2%) of sales occur on the first contact. Eighty percent (80%) of sales will require five to eight contacts before the sale closes. This means that if you are contacting the prospect less than five times or more than eight times, then you could have a problem with follow-up.•Sales Cycle Efficiency. Time kills deals. The speed at which a prospect is converted into a customer and the number of prospects required to make that conversion determines your sales cycle efficiency. So ask yourself, are you taking the right steps to measure and reduce lost sales?•Life-Time Value. How profitable a given customer is over time defines your LTV or Life-Time Value. Companies spend ten times more to acquire a customer than to keep a customer. However, existing customers are more likely to purchase again, spend more money, and therefore become more profitable. If you don’t know your LTV, then how do you know how much money to spend and on which customer segment?•Demand Forecasting. Every customer buys on a cycle. So this means that you should track cycle times and variance to increase the accuracy of your forecasting and the loyalty of the customer. Do you know when your customers need to reorder? •Improve Lead Quality. Do you have methods in place to measure the conversion potential of each lead? Lead generation activities (i.e. forms) should pre-qualify every new lead so that you can take the right follow-up actions for the marketing offer. Strong leads produce strong sales.•Increase Awareness. To keep the sales pipeline full of good quality leads you must continuously increase the awareness of your company and the solutions that it provides. Public relations is more efficient at building awareness than advertising, yet many companies spend wildly on advertising and trade shows while neglecting to fund public relations efforts much at all. Increase your name recognition, not your budget. •Reduce Discounting. Discounts represent deficiencies in the sales & marketing processes, which means that you should use them sparingly. Instead, determine the root cause and then fix the process that’s causing the need to discount. Show customers the added value, and they won’t focus on price.•Train Personnel. Provide your sales & marketing personnel with regular formal training. This will arm them with better product knowledge, as well as presentation, negotiating and selling skills that will improve effectiveness. This will boost both employee morale and the bottom line – a win-win. Control of Sales and Marketing Policy and Procedures Improve your sales cycle efficiency. Reduce your marketing expenses. Tie it closer to your customer’s buying cycles. And take control of your sales and marketing program to let it work for you.Improvement with Well-defined Policies and ProceduresWith well-defined processes and procedures in place, you will increase efficiency by reducing ineffective sales and marketing programs. And, again, we make such improvements to create more cash on hand – all toward that million dollar goal and to cross the finish line.Next week, we will hurdle the final $250,000 mark with the Accounting Payables function – so close you can see it. About the Author Chris Anderson is currently the managing director of Bizmanualz, Inc. and co-author of policies and procedures manuals, producing the layout, process design and implementation to increase performance. To learn how to increase your business performance, visit: Bizmanualz, Inc.
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"Know Your Telephone Calling Habits"

Getting to know and understand your own calling habits, or patterns, can pay handsome dividends when selecting your telephone carriers. Do you make a lot of lang distance or international calls? Do you make most of your telephone calls during the day or night? Do you make your long distance calls throughout the week or wait for the weekend?Knowing the answer to these questions, and following a few simple rules which we will share with you, will help you to get the best value from your carrier and your calling plan. So where do you start? Read on and we'll try to shed a little light on what you need to be aware of when selecting your long distance carrier or other telecommunications providers.1. Ask if there are any special promotions:Don't be afraid to ask your long distance provider if they have any special promotions available. Many times they have unadvertised specials available for the asking. You can also ask other providers if they have any special switching promotions or benefits available.2. Buyer beware - read the fine print:All providers have special restrictions and offerings regarding their calling plans. Many times these restrictions or offerings will be different between their various offerings. Make sure that you read and understand these restrictions and offerings before you accept. If you don't understand something in the fine print then be sure to ask. Reputable providers will answer all of your questions simply and directly so you will understand. If a provider fails to give you clear answers then move on to someone else.3. Watch out for the added charges:The per minute cost is not the only way providers make money. Check to see if there are monthly minimum charges or per-call charges in addition to the per-minute rates. For instance, if a provider charges a $5 minimum and you only make one 10-minute phone call, you will be charged for the $5 minimum - that's $0.50 per minute!4. Comparison rates in advertising can be misleading:You should be aware that some advertising showing comparison rates, such as 50% off normal rates, may be misleading because the "normal" rates may not be the lowest rate available from that provider. It’s the same as getting a 50% discount from a hotel's rack rate (normal room rate). In this case the "rack rate" is their full 100% price that they seldom, if ever, get from customers.5. Check out the provider’s web site:The provider should have detailed information concerning their calling plans, options and promotions on their web site. You might also be able to find support facilities, live help, FAQ's or more as well.6. Strategic partner tie-ins and other promotions:Some providers make strategic alliances with other companies in order to cross promote their products and services. Some providers make frequent miles from airlines available when using their services. You may also be able to find promotional tie-ins between credit card companies, hotels and more.7. Check and double-check:Get in the habit of regularly reviewing your monthly telephone bill. Even the best providers make mistakes and if you suspect that you have been charged in error then call your provider and ask for an explanation.8. Commit your "10-10" codes to memory:If you use a 10-10 service, then you owe it to yourself to become familiar with the specifics of their plan. They all have restrictions that define their service and abiding by these will save you money. I have a terrible memory so I make a little cheat sheet for each service I use that I carry with me. It's saved me on several occasions.9. Time for wireless?:There are many wireless plans from many different wireless providers available in the market today. This industry has matured vary rapidly and many of these plans may fit your calling needs quite nicely.10. Limited or few long distance calls:If your long distance calling is vary limited then you may want to consider not enrolling with a long distance provider. In this case it may be better to simply select a 10-10 dialaround service or use a long distance calling card instead. Make sure you select a carrier or card with no monthly fee and low per-minute rates. If you select one of these options make sure to call your local service provider and tell them that you do not want to have a long distance carrier.Following these simple rules will ensure that you get the best value for your money. About the Author About Global Value Connect:Global Value Connect ( http://www.globalvalueconnect.com ) has been providing the best value in telecommunication products and services for the home or office since 1995. If you want to cut your telephone bill in half register today for our free eBook entitled "Telephone Bill Saving Tips for Home and Office" and is available at: http://www.globalvalueconnect.com/Saving_Tips.htm
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