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Entrepreneurs struggle to hang on in the U.S.



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John Jobbagy, partner in a meat supplier for New York City restaurants, says business has been down as much as 20% since the start of the year.
 
Entrepreneurs struggle to hang on in the U.S.
By Mindy Fetterman, USA TODAY
TURMOIL: Economic anxiety circles the globe
WALL STREET: Stock has dropped in world’s eyes
JOBS: Unemployment’s depth is anyone’s guess
CREDIT: Companies can’t get the cash to keep going strong
 

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Entrepreneurs struggle to hang on across the USA
By Mindy Fetterman, USA TODAY

Wall Street’s stock has dropped in world’s eyes
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Companies can’t get the cash to keep going strong
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Home Entrepreneur



 

 

Home Entrepreneur Newsletter

Grow your business, improve your finances

 

09/28/08 issue:   SEO Firms, Strategic Planning

Home Entrepreneur Newsletter for Mel
Publisher: David Riklan - http://www.SelfGrowth.com


In This Issue:
Recommended Product of the Day: Join SelfGrowth.com
Inspirational Quote for Home Entrepreneurs: Theodore Roosevelt
Article: The Benefits of a SEO Firm – How to Get Visibility and Traffic for Your Website - By Sarah Folgea
Article: What is a Strategic Planning System? - By Jim McCarthy
Subscription and Contact Information

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** Recommended Product of the Day **


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** Inspirational Quote for Home Entrepreneurs **
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Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.
- Theodore Roosevelt

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** Article: The Benefits of a SEO Firm – How to Get Visibility and Traffic for Your Website - By Sarah Folgea **
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When it comes to your SEO (search engine optimization) needs for your website, do you know where to go for some professional guidance? More and more website owners are beginning to realize the benefits of having a professional SEO firm help them write content for their websites and boost their rankings on search engines.

SEO firms have become a hot commodity in the world of website promotion. The competition has been escalating between SEO experts because of the high demand. There are also many different types and methods of optimization that SEO firms are using to help promote your website and drive traffic to your site. They can help you get the high rankings from search engines that you need to get noticed and provide your website with good, quality content to keep the interest of the users who visit your site.

What exactly can an SEO firm do for your website? One of the best benefits of finding a good SEO firm is that you can get a good return on your investment. By increasing brand visibility, getting more traffic targeted to your website, and higher sales off of the products and services you are offering, you can really reap the benefits SEO experts use to promote and sell your website. There are very cost effective means that SEO firms use for promoting your website and one of the best ways for you to increase your marketing and visibility is to use SEO.

Other benefits of using SEO firms to promote your website are the broad range of services that are now being offered with SEO. When these SEO services are done right, they can be very effective and show a very large increase in the amount of traffic your website will see. They can also greatly increase your rankings with search engines which will get you the visibility that you need to be profitable and successful with your website.

SEO experts know how to effectively use SEO keywords and can provide the best quality of content that you need on your website. They are also capable of producing fresh and up to date information for you to use on your website, which gets noticed by users and search engines. An SEO firm can provide your website with articles, ads, banners, e-newsletters and many other sources of SEO promotion that can help you get off of the ground.

If you are not sure if paying an SEO firm to promote your website is the right way to go, keep in mind that the money you spend initially to get the SEO services from the firm, will make a huge difference in the success and profitability of your website and it should be something you should be thinking of as an investment and not an expense. If you are ready to help your website become successful, consider finding and hiring a good SEO firm to help you succeed.

About the Author:

Sarah Folgea is an expert consultant on SEO, Internet Marketing, and Link Building. Follow these links to find the best tips and tricks for: SEO services and Website promotion.

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** Article: What is a Strategic Planning System? - By Jim McCarthy **
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What is a Strategic Planning “System”?

A Strategic Planning System takes into account a great number of variables such as:
-A market analysis
-The strengths and weaknesses of your business
-The products and services you offer
-The resources that are available
-The goals, objectives and measures that you have established for your business, etc.

The “system” then shows you how to develop a set of strategies and action plans – and to arrange them in such a way that vastly increases your chances of having a sustainable, profitable long term business.

At its most basic level, strategy has four simple components:
I. Knowing where you want to end up
II. Knowing what to put your energy against
III. Knowing the methodology of applying your energy
IV. Knowing parameters for the inevitable end games

Any strategic system that does not deal with all four of these elements is deficient, and not likely to lead to sustained success.

The major activities in any good strategic planning system include:

Strategic Analysis - Typically includes conducting some sort of scan, or review, of your business environment – and doing that on an ongoing basis.

Setting Strategic Direction
- Coming to conclusions about what you must do as a result of the major issues and opportunities facing your business. These conclusions include what overall accomplishments you want to achieve, how you will measure progress, and the high-level methods you will use to achieve the accomplishments.

Action Planning - Carefully laying out how your strategic goals will be accomplished. Each goal should be associated with a tactic(s), which is / are the methods needed to reach the goal. Action planning also includes specifying responsibilities and timelines with each objective, or who needs to do what, and by when. It should also include methods to monitor and evaluate the plan.

Creating Reserves – Reserves are a way to help you deal with the unexpected. Reserves can be time allotted to deal with new opportunities, outsourcing partners available as needed, joint venture or affiliate partners, extra money, flexible work processes, etc. The point is, you need to be able to respond to events as well as plan for them. Strategy should be a roadmap but allow for the possibility of detours.

Most of us entrepreneurs and business owners are “doers,” not “planners.” In one sense, being a doer is perhaps the ultimate mark of a successful person. It’s what makes us a rare breed. Rather than thinking or wishing, we get out there and make it happen.

In and of itself, that is fine, but any strength carried to excess can rapidly become a weakness. I have encountered many small business owners who get into trouble “doing” the wrong marketing activities the right way or “doing” the right marketing activities the wrong way. If you want to “do” the right marketing activities the right way you must start with a strategic plan.

If you are in business, you hopefully already have a strategy. These range from some vague sense of the desires of the business owner, to massive, overly sophisticated master plans. So the question is not whether every company needs a strategy, but rather whether your company’s strategy needs to be well-thought-out, sound, appropriate and do-able. The answer is self-evident.

A good strategic planning system helps keep your business venture on track from the get-go without allowing for distractions that are inherent in poor planning.

Focus, accountability, and realistic requirements are what good business planning systems offer anyone who is considering starting or working in an online business. For success in on-line or off-line marketing, every aspect of your business venture must be itemized and planned, consistent with your strategic plans.

About the Author:

Certified Professional Management Consultant Jim McCarthy currently works in Oceanside, CA with his wife, Career Consultant Barbara McCarthy.For information on a complete Strategic Planning System, please go here.

 
 

 

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Self Improvement Online, Inc.
34 North Main Street
Marlboro, NJ 07746

http://www.SelfGrowth.com
732-761-9930

 

Copyright (C) 2008 by Self Improvement Online, Inc.
Permission is granted to reproduce or distribute this newsletter only in its entirety and provided copyright is acknowledged.

 

Home Entrepreneur



 

 

Home Entrepreneur Newsletter

Grow your business, improve your finances

 

09/26/08 issue:   Cutting Insurance Costs, Placing an Ad

Home Entrepreneur Newsletter for Mel
Publisher: David Riklan - http://www.SelfGrowth.com


In This Issue:
Recommended Product of the Day: Join SelfGrowth.com
Inspirational Quote for Home Entrepreneurs: John Ruskin
Article: 7 Ways to Reduce Small Business Insurance Costs - By Matthew Pawlina
Article: What You Need to Know Before Placing an Ad in Your Local Newspaper (or ANY Other Publication!) - By Connie Scholl
Subscription and Contact Information

————————————————–
** Recommended Product of the Day **


—————————————————
** Inspirational Quote for Home Entrepreneurs **
—————————————————

In order that people may be happy in their work, these three things are needed: They must be fit for it. They must not do too much of it. And they must have a sense of success in it.
- John Ruskin

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** Article: 7 Ways to Reduce Small Business Insurance Costs - By Matthew Pawlina **
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Insurance is a part of business expenditure. Insurance plays a significant role when the business is an at home enterprise or small business, and insurance premiums can increase by as much as 30% in a year.

Every small business owner needs insurance to protect his or her interests. The Internet is a valuable resource that will serve as a guide to business owners and help them determine their insurance needs and ways in which to get the most comprehensive small business insurance coverage. As a small business owner it is important to make informed decisions about business insurance.

Instead of struggling to pay business insurance premiums, you need to find ways to reduce intelligently your business insurance costs.

1. Educate yourself on aspects of business insurance, and study your coverage to determine where you can make savings. Think about aspects like higher deductibles or umbrella insurance coverage.

2. Many professional organizations and associations strike deals with insurance companies for group rates. Find out whether the Chamber of Commerce or other organization of which you have a membership has insurance plans on offer at competitive rates. Determine costs of membership of such organizations against benefits on insurance and other business related aspects.

3. Study your business organization and find out ways in which you could reduce insurance costs. Often, simple methods like regular machinery maintenance, installation of alarm /security systems, enrolling fleet drivers in defensive driving courses, and so on can reduce your insurance liability.

4. Know what insurers consider as risks in your line of business, and find ways to reduce/eliminate risks. Business insurance premiums are based on risk calculations among other aspects.

5. Study insurance norms and find out how business liability premiums are calculated. Often, changing the location of your business or warehouse can reduce premiums.

6. Buy small business insurance from reliable insurance companies by doing a comparison of costs and products. Online insurance websites have tools that provide multiple quotes and enable instantaneous comparison of business insurance costs and coverage.

7. Check with the insurance company about business insurance packages. Many leaders in the field offer a business insurance policy that combines property, liability, loss of income, records insurance policies, business vehicle insurance, and more.

Before insuring your business, check your options with organizations like the Better Business Bureau and SOHO which offer business insurance discounts. Also, check what the laws are regarding business insurance. In case of doubt, check out options with an insurance agent.

Every small business owner will need property insurance; contents insurance; liability insurance and employee benefit plans; disability insurance; business interruption insurance, buy-sell insurance; and key person insurance.

About the Author:

Matthew Pawlina is a writer for http://www.1866smallbusinessinsurance.com, the premier website to find small business insurance, small business insurance quote, small business health insurance, insurance for small business and many more.

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** Article: What You Need to Know Before Placing an Ad in Your Local Newspaper (or ANY Other Publication!) - By Connie Scholl **
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Have you been considering placing an advertisement in your local newspaper in hopes of drumming up some new business?

Wait! Before you whip out your wallet, take a moment to familiarize yourself with the following four “rules of the road” to help you improve your chances of getting the response you’re seeking.

Rule #1: You’ve Got to Choose the RIGHT Publication
For example, if you’re targeting affluent clients and offering a high-end service (such as in-home personal training, massage, dog walking, etc), don’t make the mistake of wasting your advertising dollars by placing an ad in the bargain news. Do your homework and find out what your target market is actually READING (you never know, maybe they ARE reading the bargain news!), and then apply your marketing dollars where there is the greatest opportunity.

The success of any advertising or direct mail campaign can very often be attributed to the following:
* 50% of your “success” at advertising will depend on targeting the right publication;
* 25% of your “success” at advertising will depend on the copy in the ad; and
* 25% of your “success” at advertising will depend on the actual offer.

Rule #2: Get Yourself a Traffic-Stopping HEADLINE!
Your headline must quickly tap into the reader’s problem, need or desire, and instantly prompt them to read further. Take your time with the headline. It needs to quickly create interest and intrigue in your reader. In fact, when I’m writing ads for clients, I’ll spend 75% of my time on the headline alone! (If they don’t read the headline, the rest of the ad is useless!)

Rule #3: Don’t Ever Forget, the Ad is NOT about YOU
How many times have you seen the “all about me” ads from other professionals in your industry? You know the ones I’m referring to — the business owner’s name takes up 50% of the ad, while the other half is filled with a laundry list of credentials and other self-centered copy. (This is the biggest mistake I see professionals make.) I’m not saying this information shouldn’t be included, it just shouldn’t take up the “prime marketing real estate” section in your advertisement.

Remember, your objective is to tap into your prospects’ problem or need, and get an immediate response — right then and there — before recycling day comes around and your expensive ad takes a one-way trip to the dump.

How do you do this? By offering them what they want. (For example, a free trial session or consultation, a report or article containing tips on how to solve their particular challenge, a no-appointment-necessary policy, etc.) Essentially, use this advertisement as a way to generate hot leads for your services. Plan on running your ad at least 7-10 times before getting a regular stream of calls from it.

Rule #4: Understand the Power of Your Words
Pay close attention to the WORDS you select for your ad. (Here’s where knowing your target market inside and out really comes in handy!) While ad writing is a skill that takes time to master, you can jump-start the learning process by closely studying other ads that move YOU to take action, or you can simply hire someone to write a compelling ad for you. Here’s a simple formula I use to keep me on track when I’m writing for my clients:

YOUR AD SHOULD DO THE FOLLOWING:
1. Get their ATTENTION Quickly
2. Maintain INTEREST
3. Create a Burning DESIRE for What You’re OFFERING
4. Finally, the ad should move your reader to TAKE A SPECIFIC ACTION!

About the Author:

Connie has always had a gift for marketing, communication and understanding how to generate new business. She’s a quintessential entrepreneur, respected professional and a seasoned business owner. Over the last fifteen years she has started and filled two lucrative service businesses with well over 3,000+ clients. For more information, please go here.

 
 

 

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** Subscription and Contact Information **
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Self Improvement Online, Inc.
34 North Main Street
Marlboro, NJ 07746

http://www.SelfGrowth.com
732-761-9930

 

Copyright (C) 2008 by Self Improvement Online, Inc.
Permission is granted to reproduce or distribute this newsletter only in its entirety and provided copyright is acknowledged.

 

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The Ten-year NapYour Price $24.95
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The Ten-year Nap
by Meg Wolitzer

Gail’s Comments:

“[A] beautifully written book….Meg Wolitzer covers friendship, motherhood, working and not working, marriage and girl crushes.”

Publisher Comments

From the bestselling author of The Wife and The Position, a feverishly smart novel about female ambition, money, class, motherhood, and marriage — and what happens in one community when a group of educated women chooses not to work.For a group of four New York friends, the past decade has been largely defined by marriage and motherhood. Educated and reared to believe that they would conquer the world, they then left jobs as corporate lawyers, investment bankers, and film scouts to stay home with their babies. What was meant to be a temporary leave of absence has lasted a decade. Now, at age forty, with the halcyon days of young motherhood behind them and without professions to define them, Amy, Jill, Roberta, and Karen face a life that is not what they were brought up to expect but seems to be the one they have chosen.

But when Amy gets to know a charismatic and successful working mother of three who appears to have fulfilled the classic women’s dream of having it all — work, love, family — without having to give anything up, a lifetime’s worth of concerns, both practical and existential, opens up. As Amy’s obsession with this woman’s bustling life grows, it forces the four friends to confront the choices they’ve made in opting out of their careers — until a series of startling events shatters the peace and, for some of them, changes the landscape entirely.

Written in Meg Wolitzer’s inimitable, glittering style, The Ten-Year Nap is wickedly observant, knowing, provocative, surprising, and always entertaining, as it explores the lives of these women with candor, wit, and generosity.

PW Review

“In her latest novel, Wolitzer (The Wife ; etc.) takes a close look at the ‘opt out’ generation: her cast of primary characters have all abandoned promising careers (in art, law and academia) in favor of full-time motherhood. When their children were babies, that decision was defensible to themselves and others; 10 years on, all of these women, whose interconnected stories merge during their regular breakfasts at a Manhattan restaurant, harbor hidden doubts. Do their mundane daily routines and ever-more tenuous connections to increasingly independent children compensate for all that lost promise? Wolitzer centers her narrative on comparisons between her smart but bored modern-day New York and suburban mommies and the women of the generation preceding them, who fought for women’s liberation and equality. Contemporary chapters, most of which focus on a single character in this small circle of friends, alternate with vignettes from earlier eras, placing her characters’ crises in the context of the women, famous and anonymous, who came before. Wolitzer’s novel offers a hopeful, if not exactly optimistic, vision of women’s (and men’s) capacity for reinvention and the discovery of new purpose.” Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Review

“Wolitzer’s great ear for dialogue and for insinuating humor into seriousness make this novel a thought-provoking pleasure to read.” Seattle Times

Review

“A perceptive, highly pleasurable novel.” Kirkus Reviews

Review

“Wolitzer…brings an amused, sympathetic but beady eye to bear on the convoluted, restless, privileged yet endlessly perplexing lives of her New York wives.” Miami Herald

Review

Its a rare novelist who cant ransform domestic fiction into a sustained, smart, and funny inquiry into the price of ambition, the value of work, issues of class, and the meaning of motherhood — Wolitzer is that novelist.” Booklist

Review

“The tartly funny Wolitzer is a miniaturist who can nail a contemporary type, scene or artifact with deadeye accuracy.” New York Times

About the Author

Meg Wolitzer is the author of seven previous novels, including The Position, The Wife, and Surrender, Dorothy. Her short fiction has appeared in The Best American Short Stories 1998 and The Pushcart Prize.
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