May 24, 2008
I hope that you will not be fooled by the unbelievable advertising on some food packages. For example, labels on ginseng tea and gingko-fortified cereal both claim they will promote sharp thinking. There is no solid evidence that either ginseng or gingko improve thinking, but for this discussion, let’s assume they do. Ginseng is a stimulant just like an amphetamine. If you were to take too much ginseng, you would get diarrhea and a headache; a massive overdose could raise your blood pressure, cause a stroke and even death. If the correct dose of ginseng is contained in one cup of the tea, that means that you are taking a drug when you drink a cupful; two cups can give you a headache and ten cups might kill you.
It’s the dose that makes a poison. If a substance is to cause a health benefit, you have to eat an exact dose. If you take less, you don’t receive any benefit. If you take too much, you can suffer unpleasant side effects or even die. Drugs and supplements specify the dose on the bottle; if you take a whole bottle-full instead of one pill and die of an overdose, the manufacturer will not be held responsible. But nobody measures exact portions of food. What happens if you drink the ginseng tea all day to quench your thirst?
The same applies to gingko-fortified cereals. How much cereal do you have to eat to improve your mind? What happens if your child likes the flavor and eats the whole box? Foods that truly contain medicines would harm you if you ate too much. Of course the food manufacturers are not stupid, so they put in so little of the substance that it cannot possibly harm you in any amount – and therefore, of course, cannot have any benefit. This is deceptive advertising at its worst. Save your money.
How to Pick a Breakfast Cereal
Dr. Gabe Mirkin has been a radio talk show host for 25 years and practicing physician for more than 40 years; he is board certified in four specialties. For more information and hundreds of fitness and health reports, visit http://www.DrMirkin.com
Free weekly newsletter on fitness, health, and nutrition.
Posted by Administrator under Nutrition Tips + More | Comments Off
May 23, 2008
As people hustle and bustle about trying to get those last
minute gift ideas ready before the big day hits, spending is
up and sales run rampant, as marketers get ready for that
special time of year. Yes, Christmas time is here again, and
every marketer drifts off to slumber with thoughts of dollar
signs running through their heads. Almost everyone wants to
increase their sales, do better than last holiday season, or
do some last minute power selling to boost this year’s sales
numbers. But what about the shoestring mom and pop companies
operating on limited budgets? How are they to compete with
the marketing gargantuan and their never-ending deep-flowing
coffers of cash? You might not believe it, but there are
closer and less expensive means to compete, and you could
find that most of the gargantuan don’t even take advantage
of them, especially if you offer goods or services limited
to a geographical area.
Does the Consumer Know your Products or Services can be
Classified as a Gift?
So, you lack the large marketing budget for radio and TV
commercials, and running additional print ads are out of the
budget too, what can you do to increase your sales while
getting your company in the minds of the consumer? The first
thing I would ask you is if you have changed your ads around
to take advantage of the giving approach. It is the season
of giving isn’t it? Then how have you changed your ads to
reflect the happiness of receiving your goods or services as
a gift? Have you even bothered to give the consumer the idea
that your goods or services CAN be given as a gift? If you
haven’t, then maybe they’ve never thought of giving your
goods or services as a gift, or that anyone could even be
happy receiving them as a gift either. If the consumer
doesn’t perceive your goods or products as a potential
“gift”, then you are going to loose out on holiday sales.
Around this time of year, most people are in “gift buying”
mode. The more you can get your goods or services perceived
as a potential “gift”, the better chances you will elevate
your sales during this giving season.
Differentiating Yourself from the Competition – Impulse
Sales, Up-Sells, Back-End Sales and Other Promotions.
Now you’ve altered your ad copy to reflect your products or
services as gifts, what benefits do you offer over your
competitors? Almost every business is running some sort of
special or discount as an enticement for shoppers to buy.
Are you doing the same? At this stage of the seasonal game,
anything you can do to set yourself apart from the
competition is going to be beneficial to your goals of
increased holiday sales. Just don’t be too greedy. Find a
happy medium of sales discount that will still provide
comparable profit cushion to what you usually enjoy during
the normal sales season. Look for creative ways to encourage
the impulse sales along with up-sells and back-end sales
promotions. Say for instance, you are going to offer a
coffee maker in your sales. You could discount coffee and
maybe offer free filters with a purchase. Take a close look
at how your products or services relate to one another, and
then offer freebies and discounts on other products or
services that compliment your sales item. All of these areas
will help you enjoy increased sales during the holiday
season.
Testimonials – Letting Past Customers Tell Others About your
Goods or Services.
Do you have customer testimonials about your goods or
services? Maybe you have testimonials about your sales or
service. These are additional tools to pull out of your
marketing arsenal, especially during this time of year. The
best ones are the ones that talk about how happy they were
when receiving your goods or services as a gift, or how
someone felt giving your goods or services as gifts, but any
others that show those goods or services in a positive way
will work. The non-solicited type of testimonial works the
best, but again, any testimonial from a previous customer to
show potential customers your goods or services values will
work. Keep these testimonials handy for sales presentations,
or you can put them out on display in your shop. Always be
sure to ask the writer’s permission before showing their
written works. Believe it or not, those are copyrighted
works owned by your customers. Although any customer suing
you over using them is less than likely, it’s always, better
to be safe than sorry.
Gaining Consumer Awareness the Economical Way – College
Campus Community Boards.
Now that you have your ad copy tweaked, and you’ve planned
your up-sells, back-end sales, and impulse buys, what are
the economical ways of gaining market share? There are many
ways to get creative here. Do you live in an area where
there is a local college? Colleges are known for their
information boards. You’ll find them around eating areas,
campus office areas, and in many dorm areas. This is a no
cost way to promote and market your company to the younger
crowd looking for gifts on this holiday of gift giving. If
you can find ways to convey the value your goods or services
can offer to their friends and loved ones and the happiness
those friends or loved ones would feel from receiving your
products or services as a gift, then you will reap increased
sales from that market. You’ll find the gargantuan
competition fairly limited in this advertisement medium.
It’s a chance for you to target your sales without competing
with the deep pockets and over-flowing coffers the
gargantuan has.
Grocery Store and Other Community Boards.
What about your local grocery store? EVERYONE has to eat
don’t they? Most of them have community boards where they
allow you to post index card sized ads. Prepare a few
attention getting index cards before you make your normal
store run. On your way out of your grocery store, take a few
moments to post your ad. If you have more than one grocery
store chain in your area, then you might consider spending
some additional time visiting the others too. You could
justify the time spent by shopping around and doing some
price comparisons between the other chains and your favorite
store. Not only could you gain increased holiday sales, but
you might also find a more economical grocery store for your
grocery needs. Be creative, honest, and sincere, and you
will enjoy increased sales through your marketing efforts.
However, it doesn’t just stop at grocery stores. Think of
the number of places you shop for your needs. How many
others have the same type of board available to their
customers? Every one of those boards is a potential gold
mine for cheap marketing needs. And with all the shopping
I’m sure you will be doing this giving season, I’ll bet
you’ll find that more places have these boards than what you
initially considered. While fulfilling your gift giving
requirements, take the time to visit shops you’ve never set
foot in. If they don’t have a board, you might get an idea
for another marketing type you can apply to your own
business. Keep your eyes and mind open. Look at the sales
while you shop, the ads, and the displays. Think of the
reasoning those marketers used when putting it all together
and see if you can’t find new and creative ways to market
your own goods or services.
Ad Material Swap with Other Local Businesses.
Christmas is a giving time of year. It’s a time to get
together, closeness, and doing things for people you might
not usually do. Everyone knows someone who runs a business.
Why not swap ad material and promote each other? Granted, if
the person is a direct competitor, this might not be so
easily done, and maybe you shouldn’t do it to begin with. If
the businesses are at different ends of the spectrum, say
one sells firewood and the other sells ice, then it might
not be so affective, but if this person runs a business that
somewhat compliments your own, then the payoff for both
businesses could be substantial. One of my brother’s runs a
Mobile DJ business. He used to team up with local caterers,
bridal shops, tuxedo rental shops, stationary shops, and the
list goes on. How many business owners do you know with
shops that compliment your own goods or services while not
directly in competition with you? It’s a win-win situation
for everyone involved. It even benefits the customers with
the names and addresses of other shops to meet their needs.
Your customers will thank you for your information to help
them meet their needs, and best of all, it requires little
effort especially if you know the other shop owner
personally.
The Joint Venture.
This next one might take some time to put together and it
relates to the swap mentioned in the last paragraph, so you
might keep this in mind for next season. Joint Ventures are
the next big marketing craze. Most often referred to as
JV’s, this is similar to the swap, but it’s usually more
permanent and better-targeted marketing. The joint venture
concept means taking a look at your products or services,
and then identifying other businesses that compliment those
products or services and entering into joint marketing
ventures. It’s kind of like a cooperative advertising type
deal that allows you to pool resources, but it’s not just
for placing ads as an ad cooperative is. The JV is used to
leverage sales for ALL businesses involved, but the most
critical point is ensuring that your JV partners businesses
COMPLIMENT your goods or services; NOT COMPETE with them.
Take my company for instance, Sanders Consultation Group
Plus. I do business consultation, digital and print media
marketing, web site design, image/graphic creation and
editing, search engine optimization and placement, and just
about anything related to business operations and marketing.
My oldest brother runs his own computer shop where he does
computer custom builds, repairs, upgrades, virus removal and
data recovery, and even offers on site computer services.
Big brother knows what I do and knows I like doing it. He
also knows I’m good, although he is probably biased as he is
my brother . Big brother decided he wanted to offer
his customers the things I provide, and asked me if I would
be willing to JV with him to offer his customers my
services. Big brother is good, and he has a stable and
growing customer base. I jumped at the opportunity because
it was a sound business opportunity. His customer base
includes local small businesses. That alone increases my
potential for new web site design and business consultation
sales. It’s a win-win situation. My brother’s customers can
get all their services under one roof, and so can mine. If I
have a customer looking for computer related services, then
I send them off to my brother. If he has a customer needing
web site design or marketing, then he sends them off to me.
We save the customer time and they get a discount on the
other brother’s services.
The concept doesn’t stop at relative business owners. We
both have a relationship with a local ISP. I’ve come to the
conclusion that there is money to be made in home based
business opportunities, since I do run one myself, and so
does my big brother. The home based business sector is
growing in leaps and bounds. Almost everyone has looked into
starting his or her own business at one time or another.
There’s too many people unhappy with their jobs. But with
all the information readily available on home based business
opportunities, there’s allot of frauds out there taking
people’s money and offering nothing of real substance in
return. What’s a way to help people realize their
self-employment dreams while decreasing the danger they will
be ripped off? Offer a FREE seminar on starting your own
home based business. That is my present JV with my big
brother and our local ISP. How do our companies benefit? We
benefit by getting out there in the minds of our local
potential customers. Start-up businesses need things like
computers, web site hosting, dial up accounts, and web site
design. By giving them this seminar to show them the
different types of home based businesses, how to find a
reputable business, and how to keep from getting ripped off
in the process, we gain a pool of potential customers to
market our products to. In giving them this information
freely and keeping them from being ripped off, who do you
think they are going to come to when they need hosting and
dial up, computers and computer services, or web site design
and marketing needs? Are you getting the picture of the
power behind JV opportunities?
Summary
This is not an all-inclusive article. There are many more
ways to leverage your holiday sales goals while spending
economically. Use this article to inspire you and get your
mind turning. Use the principles provided and see how many
other ideas you can come up with. Be creative, honest, and
set yourself apart from the competition. Show them the
benefit of using your goods or services as a gift. If you
can accomplish that task, then you will assuredly benefit
from increased sales this holiday season. Now hurry up and
get going. You only have a few more days until the big day
hits. Until next article, may your holiday season be blessed
with joy and success, and may 2005 be an even better year
for all.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
James R. Sanders is the owner of Sanders Consultation Group Plus. He has been a webmaster and web site designer since 1997, and involved in self-employment ventures since 1992. He is presently a contributing author of NewbieHangout, and has been published through WebProNews. You can email him at webmaster@sanders-consultation-group-plus.com.
Posted by Administrator under The Humorist Way | Comments Off
May 23, 2008
With Remote Network Access, your computer becomes just another citizen on the network. You can access the servers just as if you were on the local network, except the response is slower. Sometimes much, much slower. This network access can be by telephone line and modem, or by Internet through a router.
The user communities requiring Remote Network Access range from people who only need access to their e-mail and the corporate Web portal from their family PC, to the full-time telecommuters who need to use core applications from the office network wherever they are, and some customers and vendors.
Companies usually don’t have too much trouble justifying high-end solutions for the full-time telecommuters by providing them with a company-owned computer, firewall and 24×7 help desk access, since these users depend upon remote access for all their work. But sometimes it becomes difficult for them to effectively and affordably support the lower-end needs of other users, due to the security issues of the network.
One solution to prevent security threats is to implement a virtual private network (VPN). A VPN ensures a degree of security for the remote users accessing the network. There are various other emerging tools and applications, such as Cisco security agent and Trend Micro’s network virus wall, that can be used to protect the network from unwanted viruses and unsecured devices. However, implementing solutions such as this can be costly and adds another technology to the task list of the administrator.
The bottom line when it comes to Remote Network Access seems to be due diligence combined with enough knowledge and strict policy. Allowing other networks and individuals to connect to your network is virtually unavoidable. All that you need is to ensure that you exercise the appropriate level of caution and pay close attention to that back door. If all of your fingers are already in use it’s time to stick a toe in the Remote Network Access “leak in the dike.”
Remote Access provides detailed information about remote access, remote PC access, secure remote access, remote internet access and more. Remote Access is the sister site of FTP Site Hosting.
Posted by Administrator under Geeks Hardware Hub | Comments Off
May 23, 2008
Heard about online keno before, but don’t quite know what it all the hype is about?
No problem, we’ll explain it to you then! online keno is a really fun and easy to play online casino game. It is actually really very similar to bingo.
Since the emergence of online gambling and virtual casinos, Keno has really been established as one of the favoured online casino games in which you can play for real cash.
Basically it’s a game played at a virtual casino in which numbered balls are drawn at random and players mark-off the corresponding numbers on their playing cards.
You start by choosing from one to fifteen numbers out of a possible eighty numbers. The online casino software then calculates the winning odds for you.
The more numbers you select the higher your chances of getting a winning combination, but then the number matching balls required to get a profitable payout also increases.
Read more:Online Keno
About the Author
Chen Ching-feng is a successful writer and online gambling expert
providing valuable tips and advice for those interested in online keno, virtual gambling, and online keno strategies.
His numerous articles found on virtual casino web ,provide useful and factual gambling information and insight.
Posted by Administrator under Entertainment Events | Comments Off
May 23, 2008
It’s a dream for many to buy and take ownership of a home. It’s something one aspires for in their lifetime. On the other hand, when it comes to home selling, the task at hand may be little less of a sweet dream and more of a nuisance for many. Be there real estate boom or no boom, selling a home can be a quite a time-consuming process and may not be as easy as one may imagine.
Getting buyers to visit your home may not be as much of a problem as closing in on a deal with one buyer. Prospective buyers can be got through the services of a real estate agent you choose to hire or through any of the advertising mediums you’ve placed an ad in. Do note that 80% of home seekers in the U.S. begin their search for a home online, so listing your home online is an option you should seriously consider.
Ok, once you’ve got the buyers to visit your home, it’s important that you don’t lose out on them for reasons you could easily avoid. A buyer may walk in to your home, look around and walk out without a trace of interest. Next thing you know, he’s bought your neighbour’s home – a home identical to yours and which he’s seen after yours! Believe me, it’s happened to quite a few people and can be easily avoided. To avoid falling into such a scenario, a few things need to be done.
First things first, spruce up your home and make sure it’s tidy when the buyer comes to visit your place. A home buyer would want to visualise your home as a place he can see himself and his family residing in and an unkempt home is definitely not going to present a very homely picture.
Fix the repairs that have long been due. Now would you be impressed if you inspected a home only to find half the switches not working or find a leaking toilet? It doesn’t cost much to make do these long due repairs. In fact, not doing so could cost you a buyer. So, it’s time!
If possible, try and let the buyers be to themselves when inspecting your home. Your being around them may make them uncomfortable and they may end up not viewing your home as they otherwise normally would like to. Let them move around freely, talk among themselves, inspect the nooks and corners of the house. All this will only make them feel more at home to decide about your home.
So make it easy on yourself by doing these little things and you may just find that selling a home is not that difficult.
Best of luck!
Sameer S Panjwani is the CEO and Founder of ChoiceOfHomes.com – Real Estate Portal for those looking at Home Buying, Home Selling or Home Renting.
Posted by Administrator under Best Real Estate Resources | Comments Off
May 23, 2008
The original Green Giant got its name not from ancient lore,
but from unusually extra large, hence “giant,” green peas. These
“Green Giant Peas” were introduced by the Minnesota Valley
Canning Company in 1925, in contrast to their previously
marketed LeSueur baby peas, early-picked in June. Founded in
1903, this pea company was located in the valley of the
Minnesota River, the Dakota Sioux name for “cloudy water,” just
southwest of Minneapolis and St. Paul, the state capital. This
is where there’s a “confluence” with the even cloudier and
muddier Mississippi River giving the whole area, including the
surrounding towns like LeSueur, the title of “the Minnesota
Valley.” Lesueur is the name of the original explorer of the
area, a Frenchmen of the early 1700’s. By 1950, the “Jolly Green
Giant” was so popular, such an “icon” as we say today, with a
cartoon character created, etc., he became the basis of the
company’s new name. So that is where Green Giant comes from,
modern marketing, not ancient lore..
The Green Giant Arborvitae is more properly named by tree
scientists the “Thuja Plicata,” with the other common historic
names being, “giant cedar,” also “western cedar,” and “red
cedar.” There’s only one other Arborvitae specie in all of North
America, the “eastern cedar,” or “white cedar,” with “Thuja
Occidentalis,” as the tree scientist’s Latin name, the
botanist’s name. This short tree is actually what we usually
think of when the “genus” juniper is mentioned.
Funny that the eastern cedar was given the Latin name for “west”
which is “occidental.” You see? As I have observed before,
what’s in a name? Highland Hill Farm is not located in a town
called Highland Hills, or, on Highland Hill Road, etc. Scottish
Highland Hills cows that we grazed on our first property
provided our company with a distinctive name when we sold our
first trees in 1978.
Green Giant Arborvitae ranges naturally all across the United
States from Massachusetts, southwesterly to Texas and New
Mexico, through northern Arizona, up the Sierra Nevada Mountains
to the state of Washington, and British Columbia beyond.
What does arborvitae mean anyway? Now that we know about the
derivation of “Green Giant,” here’s how the Latin name
Arborvitae, or “tree of life,” came about. As the first
explorers of Canada were mapping the St. Lawrence River in 1536,
the tree was used for medicine which saved their leader and most
of the men too. Jacques Cartier explored the islands off eastern
Canada, and then sailed westward where he entered the St.
Lawrence River and found Quebec and a Royal Mountain (Mont Real,
which is now called “Montreal”). Cartier was searching for the
passage to China so many other explorers would also fail to
find. Cartier and his men had to spend a long winter inside a
little fort, away from the any sun, where they subsisted on
meat, fish, and bread, eating no fruits or vegetables. As scurvy
was killing most all of them, a friendly Huron Indian gave
Cartier’s crew tea made from the needles and bark of a tree
which looked like the white cedars of Europe. So Cartier took
some trees back to France with him, these Thuja Occidentalis
Eastern White Cedars, naming them “Arborvitae,” the tree of
life. How about that?
Arborvitae are native to the pacific northwest where they grow
to 200 feet tall, usually 50 to 70 feet is the common height,
even including here in Bucks county. Arborvitae do best in wet
forests and swamps. The Green Giant appearance is due to this
specie’s wide 15-25 foot wide base, the slightly tapering
conical shape, and the dense branches and leaves casting great
dark shadows. The Arborvitae grows in zones 6 to 8, environments
with temperatures that get as low as 10 degrees below 0
Fahrenheit, such as in Missouri or Pennsylvania, to environments
where winter temperatures get only as low as 20 degrees above 0
Fahrenheit, such as mid-Texas and northern Florida.
Green Giant Arborvitae have pretty, yet surprisingly tiny yellow
flowers. The “pine cones,” the fruit actually, of the tree,
follow the budding of the flowers and are also surprisingly
small compared to the size of a mature tree, being no more than
a half-inch in size. There are no problems with tree litter
understandably, and so few animals are attracted to the Green
Giant Arborvitae, perhaps because of this description.
The Green Giant Arborvitae is recommended for growing as a hedge
or privacy buffer along a property line, or driveway. Thuja
Plicata, Western Red Cedars are ideal “windrow” trees. In a row,
they’ll truly diminish the wind. The Green Giant Arborvitae is
justifiably considered wind resistant considering the windswept
mountains of the Pacific northwest. The wood itself is weak, but
it is very light. Green Giant Arborvitae do have better deer
resistance than most arborvitae. These trees have been planted
in high deer population areas. On our farm in Doylestown we have
lots of deer and do have damage the Emerald Green Arborvitae.
The Green Giants are eaten by deer only an occasionally, a
nibble here and there. Based on our own observations over the
years we feel that the Green Giants will only be eaten by deer
if there is no other feed available.
Now that you know all about ‘em, Highland Hill Farm has at least
50 or more Green Giant Arborvitae in our nursery ready for
pickup at any time. They will range from 1.5′ to 12′ and be
balled and burlapped or potted. We also have field liners and
seedling Green Giant available. There are many more varieties of
arborvitae available which we have in stock. If we don’t stock
the variety you want we will find it for you if possible.
See Bills other web sites at http://www.seedlingsrus.com and
http:www.zone5trees.com
Posted by Administrator under Gardening | Comments Off
May 22, 2008
EBay is a great part or full time business. An Ebay Business can be used as a way to promote your Online Home Based Business. An Ebay Business is a great resource for your Brick and Mortar Store Front. Here are 7 ways anyone can benefit from owning and Operating an Ebay Business
1 – Promote Other Business
Many people with online or offline Businesses sell on Ebay. Ebay is one of the most Popular web pages on the Internet. By having frequent EBay auctions you can build traffic to your online or offline brick and Mortar Store.
2 – Get Family Involved
What a great way to get your spouse and children involved in your business. Is there a great Copy writer or web Design Guru in your family put them to work. Teach your children the value of the Dollar and give them valuable life skills by involving them in your E-Bay Business
3 – Earn an Extra Income
You can earn few extra dollars on Ebay for that Dream Vacation, Luxary Car Payment or even just fun money. However You can also earn a very comfortable living on Ebay the choice is yours.
4 – Build a Spam Free E-Mail List
Everyone who buys from you on Ebay has to supply you their E-mail Address. Since you now have an established business relationship with them, any E-Mail you send them is not SPAM, until they request removal from your list.
5 – Brand Yourself
What better way to brand your name and company name then on one of the most popular and reputable web sites in the world.
6 – Establish Your Credibility
Ebay Positive feedback tells the world you kept your promise and it is safe to do business with you. Ebay Positive feedback are often the best testimonials you will ever receive.
7 – Clearance Sales
Do you own a store. Sell your overstock, off season or damaged and returned items on Ebay. Thinking of having a Garage sale, why not sell some or all of those garaged Sale items on E-Bay instead!
About The Author:
Mike Makler has been Marketing Online Since 2001 When he Built
an Organization of over 100,000 Members
Get Mike’s Newsletter:
http://ewguru.com/newsletter
More Articles by Mike:
http://ewguru.com/tips
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http://ewguru.com/hbiz/amazingoffer.html
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