Home Business Helper

Telemarketing services

2009-08-03T05:33:00.000-07:00

In these difficult economic times, our businesses need an extra push to grow and succeed. Has anyone used a telemarketing service? I am considering using one, but there are so many bad ones out there, so many scams. Is there one that someone has used that is reputable?

A HUGE Birthday Celebration is here!

2009-03-08T06:59:00.001-07:00

My friend, Russell Brunson is celebrating his
birthday. He says he's getting old, but he only
turned 29.

Anyway, to celebrate, he's giving away tons of
products so you can make money online faster:

http://www.tinyurl.com/russellsbirthday

Simply sign up and get the scoop.

-tons of ebooks
-tons of scripts
-tons of everything you've ever wanted

Where did all these goodies come from?

I teamed up with Russell Brunson who has
called in some favors from a whole bunch of top online
marketers and convinced them all to give you TONS of
products at no cost to you.

http://www.tinyurl.com/russellsbirthday

It is our way of saying "thank you"! And Russell's way to
celebrate his 29th birthday.

These products are worth thousands and thousands of dollars
and now they're yours for nothing.

I just can't hide the excitement. This is probably the
most exciting news I've ever shared with you. Personally,
I've already downloaded a bunch of them myself!! Great
stuff...seriously.

Go get it now!

http://www.tinyurl.com/russellsbirthday

To your continued success online!

Tony Laidig
The Public Domain Expert

PS - Enjoy your Sunday full of freebie gifts...grin!

http://www.tinyurl.com/russellsbirthday

HIGH TICKET Home Study Courses For Free - Download Now!!

2009-03-08T06:57:00.000-07:00

James Jackson is giving away what has got to be
one of the most generous no cost bundles of marketing
courses that I've ever seen...

http://www.freeinternetmarketinghelpcenter.com

I mean this isn't just some over hyped package of
ebooks, ecourses or reports...

These are actual HIGH TICKET home study courses that where
originally sold as physical products containing explosive business
building strategies from millionaire marketing legends such as...

***Dan Kennedy

***Cory Rudl

***Andrew Fox

***Marlon Sanders

***Bob Serling

***Dr. Joe Vitale

Just to name a few...

Needless to say this is very high quality information that you can
really use.

In my opinion James is giving away massive value here...

http://www.freeinternetmarketinghelpcenter.com

As a matter of fact last year James packaged up these courses and
sold hundreds of them at $197 and now you can get them at absolutely
no cost.

So I highly recommend that you get over to this site right now to
get these instantly downloadable gifts...

http://www.freeinternetmarketinghelpcenter.com

Work from Home- Legitimate Companies

2009-02-01T10:10:00.000-08:00

Hope this helps someone!

1-800-Contacts - Unless noted in the Job Description, only applicants within a 50 mile radius of Draper, UT will be considered for employment.

1-800-FLOWERS – Can be seasonal. Customer Service, take orders.

24-7 In Touch – Call Center

A-1 Signing Services – Mortgage Closing Services

Accolade Support - PC Desktop Support Agents

AccuConference - Outside Sales and Call Center

Accurate Background – Court Researchers and Verification Affiliates

AccuTran Global – Transcription, Translation, Proofreading and Editing, Bookkeeping, Tax Preparation and Administrative Support

ACD Direct – Call Center

ACS – Sales and Technical

Advantis - Call Center Remote Agents

AdviseTech – Part Time Telemarketing and Sales

Affina – Call Center

Alchemic Dream – Customer Service

All Type Transcription Services - Transcription

Alpine Access – Customer Service and Sales

Amazon.com Mechanical Turks - Miscellaneous Tasks

American Airlines – Customer Service

American Express - Customer Service

American High Tech Transcription - Transcription

Ansafone – Customer Service, Telemarketing, Team Leads, Quality and Training Officers, Account Executives

Answer 1 Communications – Customer Service, Remote Receptionist Service

APAC Customer Services, Inc. – Customer Service

Applied Medical Services – Medical Transcription, Medical Billing, Medical Coding

Aria Communications – Handwritten Direct Mail Service – Training 20 hours on site in MN

Arise – Technical Support, Sales, Customer Service

ARO – Customer Service

Auto Club Renewals – Renewal Specialist, Cold Calling

Background Profiles – Court Researchers

Balance Your Books - Bookkeepers, CPAs, Outside Sales

Bateman & Company Accountants – Staff Accountants – CPA required

Beyond Marketing – Not currently hiring

Bid Ocean – Internet Researcher (Outside the US and Canada Only), Sales, Server Admin

Blogitive – Paid Blogging

Blue Zebra – Appointment Setting

Brainfuse - Tutoring

Brandon Hall – Analysts, Writers, Researchers

BRG Research Services – Research Associates

Brighten Communications – Outbound Telemarketing

Caption Colorado - Must demonstrate ability to caption real time local news at a rate of 225wpm with an accuracy rating of 98.5%.

Castle Branch – Court Researcher

Center Watch – Clinical Trials

Cherry Lane Print – Educational Authors and Editors (Music)

Clinical Connection – Account Executives, Technical Computer

Conciant – Lifestyle Concierges and Mentors

Concierge At Large - Concierge

Connect2Agent – Telemarketing B2B

Continental Promotion Group – Not currently hiring

Convergys – Home Agents

CourseBridge - Instructors

Creating Careers – Online Tutors

Cruise.com – Virtual Call Center

Customer Loyal Concepts – Call Center

Cyber Edit – Freelance Writers

Datavations - Sales

Daytipper.com – Freelance Writing, Submit Tips

Deposition Services – Legal Transcription – Experience Required

DeRosa Communications – Freelance professionals

Dialog One – Cross Cultural Communications

Diversified Reporting Services – Field Reporters

DNR Group – Handwriting Services

Do it Yourself Divorce – Document Preparation, Customer Service

Driver Guide – Database Input, Knowledge of PC Hardware and device drivers required

EBI, Inc. – Background Investigations

E-Billing Solutions – Medical Billing. Background check and knowledge of HIPAA required.

EditFast – Proofreaders, Editors, Writers

EduWriters – Freelance Writers

eJury.com – Mock Juror

Erie Insurance - Insurance

Escription - Transcription

Escriptionist - Transcription

eSylvan – Certified Teachers

eTranscriptions Solutions - Transcription

Fantastic Transcripts - Transcription

ForumBoosting. Com –Paid Forum Posting

Greene TeleServices – B2B Telemarketing

Grindstone – Outbound Cold Calling

Harvey E. Morse – Court Research

Hauser - Mail Decoy

HSPN Networks – News, Events Correspondents

Information Technologies, Inc. – Court Research, Data Collection

Intrep – Appointment Setting, Sales and Marketing Background B2B

iTelesource – Lead Generation

J.Lodge – Call Center Monitoring. Hires people on SSDI due to physical disabilities

JDS Professional Group – Accounting Firm

Jet Blue Airways – Customer Service

JHTS – Transcription, UK

Jury Insights – Site not updated since 2007

Jury Test – Mock Jurors

Jury Voice – Mock Jurors

Just Answer – Answer Questions

Just In Time Transcription Services - Transcription

Kidspan – Online Tutoring

Know Brainers – Answer Questions

LiveOps – Customer Service, Sales, Remote Agent

Lunar Pages - Customer Service

Market Makers Group – Outbound Calling

MicahTek – Inbound Call Center – Oklahoma only

Morningside Partners - Transcription

MyCEOMoms - Sales

myLot.com – Paid Posting

National Data Retrieval – Court Research

National Telecommuting Institute – Work at Home Jobs for Americans with Disabilities

NATPRO – Telephone Sales

Neal R. Gross & Co. - Transcribers

New – Customer Service

Office Details – Administrative, Concierge

Online Verdict – Mock Jurors

OPK Telemarketing Service - Telemarketing

Opuzz – Voiceover Talent

OSI Business Services - Bookkeepers

Outsourcing Solutions Inc. - Transcription

Parameds – Remote Underwriter

PartnerCentric Internet Marketing – Various positions

Playgroups USA – Area Manager

Probate.com - Transcription

Prospect Image – Production Assistant Contractor

PsychicOracle.com - Psychics

PsychicsNeeded.com - Psychics

Public Opinion Research – Telephone Interviewers

Recruit Zone – Recruit high school atheletes

RingCentral – Customer Service

Service 800 – Customer Service, Interviews

Smart Office Solutions – Customer Service

SMARTHINKING - Tutoring

SpeakWrite - Transcription

SpectraMedi - Sales

Spheris - Transcription

Suite 101 – Freelance Writing

Sunlark Research – Court Research

t.a.s.c. Business Solutions – Business Development and Outside Sales

TAD Accounting - Bookkeeper

Talk2Rep – Customer Service

TASK Transcription Services - Transcription

Teachers-Teachers.com - Teachers

Team Double-Click – Virtual Assistants

Technology Sales Resource

Telelink – Inbound and Outbound Calling

The Appointment Biz – Appointment Setting

The Cruise Line - Sales

The Natinonal Remember Our Troops Campaign - Telemarketing

The Papillon Agency - Phone Actresses

The Transcription Agency - Transcription

Transcription 2000 Services - Transcription

Trial Juries – Mock Jurors

Trial Practices, Inc. – Mock Jurors

Tutor.com - Tutor

UniversalClass – Online Teachers

US Monitor – Mail Decoy

UserTesting.com – Website Testers

Verety – Remote Order Specialists

VIPdesk – Customer Service, Concierge

Vitac – Captioners, Production Coordinators

Voice123 – Voice Talent

Weblogs, Inc. – Paid to Blog

WebTracer – Online Research

Wordfirm – Editorial Freelancing

WordsRU - Editing

Write-On Results - Writers

XAct TeleSolutions – Call Center

Zap Jury – Mock Jury

Marketing Your Small, Online Business

2009-01-15T16:20:00.003-08:00

Are you a small business owner who runs an online business? If you are, are you currently satisfied with your business’s profits? Even if you are happy with the money that you are currently making, you may be looking to make even more. If you are, you may want to examine the marketing tactics that you are using, if you are even marketing your business at all.

When it comes to marketing an online business, you will often find that it is easier to market an online business than it is a storefront business. One of the reasons for that is because of the internet. There are a number of different ways that the internet can help you with the marketing of your online business. A few of those ways are briefly touched on below.

One of the many ways that you can go about marketing your business online is by using online message boards, which are also commonly referred to as online forums. Online message boards or online forums are communities where internet users are able to come together and discuss activities or interests they may share. There are many online message boards or forums that allow participating members to have what is referred to as a signature. A signature is a block of print that always appears at the end of a member’s posts. It is not uncommon for an online message board moderator to allow signatures to include business links, like a link to your online store or online website. With using online message boards or forums, the more you post the more exposure your online store gets.

Another way that you can market your small online business is by joining a pay per click advertising program, like Google Adwords. What is nice about pay per click advertising programs is that, just as the name sounds, you only have to pay when one of your advertisements gets clicked on. This type of advertising arrangement may be able to save you a considerable about of money, when compared to paying a flat rate fee for an advertisement that may never even be seen, let alone clicked on. Also, by doing business with a well-known pay per click advertising program, like Google Adwords, you are less likely to experience problems associated with malicious clicks, as the programs tend to be carefully monitored, to ensure that you don’ t end up wasting money on the marketing for your small business.

In addition to paying for advertising, you may also be able to get free advertising by doing what is known as a link exchange. A link exchange is when one website owner, like you, agrees to display the online website link or banner for another website owner, free of charge, as long as they do the same for you. If you are looking for free or low-cost ways to market your small online business, a link exchange may be the perfect option for you. The only thing that you want to make sure you do is not exchange links with your competition. You want to try and make sure that all links can be connected or related to each other, in one way or another, but you don’t want to end up generating income for your competition.

When it comes to running a small online business, standard internet searches may also pay a large role in the traffic that you and your website receives. That is why it is important that your website, whether it is used to sell products or services, is optimized for the search engines. This process is commonly referred to as search engine optimization. When it comes to search engine optimization, content is important. Your website needs to be filled with content that the search engines will pick up, as well as content that your visitors can read. If you need assistance with this, you may want to think about hiring the services of a SEO specialist or a professional content writer.

The above mentioned marketing approaches are just a few of the many that you may want to use to help increase your small online business’s profits. For the best chance of success, you are advised to implement more than just one of the above mentioned approaches.

Pros and Cons of Starting a Business

2009-01-15T16:20:00.001-08:00

Are you interested in starting your own small business? If you are, you may already have your mind made up. If you are still toying with the idea of starting your own small business, you may be wondering whether or not your dream is one that should stay a dream or one that could actually become a profitable reality.

To get a good idea as to whether or not you should start a small business, you may want to examine the pros and cons of doing so. These pros and cons may help make it easier for you to decide whether or not a small business is right for you. A few of the most important small business pros and cons are touched on below.

Perhaps, the biggest pro or plus side to starting your own small business is the fact that you will be achieving a dream of yours. There are many individuals who have a dream to start their own business, but many rarely end up doing so. One of the reasons for that is fear. Many are afraid of failure. Yes, you and your small business venture may fail, but many say the ride was worth taking, no matter how good or bad the outcome turned out to be.

Another pro or plus side to starting your own small business is type of businesses that you could start. For instance, did you know that you could open up your craft store, run a payroll processing company, start a dog grooming salon, or start your own hair salon? When it comes to starting your own small business, you will find that the possibilities are literally endless.

In connection with the types of businesses that you can start, did you also know that those businesses can be run in different ways? For instance, if you are interested in opening up a dog grooming salon or even a hair salon, did you know that you could rent your own commercial building space or even run the business out of your home for a while? Also, depending on the type of business you run, you may even be able to have an online store. In fact, it is not uncommon for many small business owners, who sell products, to have storefront retail stores, as well as online retail stores. Once again, the possibilities are basically endless.

Although there a number of pros or plus sides to starting your own small business, you will also find that there a number of downsides or cons to doing so as well. One of those downsides is the fact that there are not really any guarantees. Sometimes even the best small business plans fail. There a lot of factors that go into determining whether or not a business can be a profitable one, like the ability to reach the targeted market, startup costs, monthly expenses, and location. While there are steps that you can take to help improve your chances of success, there are still no guarantees.

Another one of the cons or downsides to starting a small business is the startup money needed. Yes, there are some businesses that have smaller startup costs than others, but almost all small businesses do have startup costs. The good news though is that if you don’t have the required funds, you may be able to obtain financing for your small business project. The only thing is that you need to have good credit to do so. So, if your credit currently isn’t in good standing, you may want to think about working on it now. The sooner you get your credit repaired, if it needs to be, the sooner, you can start opening up your small business.

The above mentioned pros and cons are just a few of the many associated with trying to start your own small business. In all honesty, you may want to think about creating your own pros and cons list. If the pros outweigh the cons, starting your own small business may be something that you should look into doing.

Small Business Owners: Should Your Business Be Storefront, Online, or Both?

2009-01-15T16:19:00.001-08:00

Are you in the process of trying to start your own business or are you already a small business owner who would like to expand? If you are, how is your business currently being operated? Is your business in a storefront location, one where your customers can come and visit you, or is your businesses address primarily a .com one? How your business is run may have an important impact on its success and the profits that you are able to make. That is why it is extremely important that you thoroughly research all of your small business decisions, especially this one, before making them.

When it comes to deciding if you should start a storefront business or an online business, there are a number of important factors that need to be taken into consideration. One of those factors is your local economy. There are some areas of the United States, where unemployment rates are high. These are the types of areas where it may be somewhat difficult for you to start a storefront business. Of course, that doesn’t mean that you can’t try though. Other factors that should also be examined include the competition and the available commercial space; are there any affordable spaces available in or around your intended location?

In addition to examining starting a storefront business, from a local standpoint, it is also important to examine starting an online business. What you may not necessarily know is that just about anyone can create an online store, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they will end up making money with it. To have a profitable online store, you need to have a freshly designed website, particularly one that is easy to navigate. You also have to have a sellable product, particularly one that is easy to sell online and easy to transport to your customers. As with starting a storefront business, the less online competition you have, the better your chances of being successful are.

If this is your first time starting a small business, you may want to take the time to thoroughly research and examine your two above mentioned options, having your business have an online address or a physical one. This is because it is often advised that small business owners start out small and then gradually expand their business. This often reduces the likelihood of failure from trying to expand to quickly, which is actually a common mistake that many small business owners make, but it is a mistake that you will not want to make. Once you find that your small business is doing well, it may be a good idea to consider expanding your small business to the point where it is able to service more customers.

When expanding your business so that it can serve more customers, you will want to examine your current business situation. For instance, if your business is being operated out of a storefront location, you may want to think about supplementing that with an online store. If your business is solely online, you may want to think about opening up a physical store. Waiting until your business is proven to be profitable or at least successful is a great way to reduce or minimize your risks of failure.

The decision as to whether or not you want to have your small business be a storefront business or an online business or both is yours to make, but it is one that should be carefully decided on. How your business is operated will plan an important role, perhaps actually be the deciding factor, in whether or not your small business is a successful, profitable one.

Help Your Startup Home Business with Creative Marketing Strategies

2009-01-11T15:23:00.001-08:00

Your low startup home business may not have as much resources as your bigger competitors, but that doesn’t mean you can’t earn as much profit as they do. Use the creative marketing strategies below to make your business generate gigantic returns.

Take advantage of the holidays.
Holidays give people a valid reason to spend more than usual and it’s a reason that most grasp eagerly with both hands. You need to take advantage of this by offering special products, services, or promos.

Christmas, for instance, is the season of giving and as such, if your home business can offer products that make perfect Christmas gifts, your business is sure to enjoy fantastic sales during the holidays.

Valentine’s Day, on the other hand, is a time for romance so you need to focus on pleasing customers not as individuals but as couples. Your strategies will be even more effective if your low startup home business can offer products with distinctive offers for boyfriends and girlfriends, engaged couples, and married couples. Consider as well those who are still in the dating stage as well as those who are planning to get back together.

Interact with your customers.
You need to strengthen and deepen the relationship between your business and its customers.

Many businesses use blogs to interact with their customers, but you can make your blog more effective by giving it a creative layout. Creativity can also be seen in the purposes it serves. Instead of merely posting entries and encouraging readers to post comments how about including polls in your entries?

Blogs are an avenue for you and your customers to bond. Scour the news for relevant reports that will be of interest to your target market. Post them on your blog then ask them the usual if-you’re-in-their-shoes questions.

Hold contests.
Don’t be lazy and make do with raffles and the usual question-and-answer contests. Make things more creative and your readers will be excited to join them not just for the prizes alone but also for the entertainment value.

Storytelling contests are fun and wildly entertaining. If you have an online jewelry shop, for instance, you can ask your readers to create the most romantic or adventurous legend for famous gems like diamonds, rubies, and sapphires.

Design contests are just as popular. Going back to the online jewelry sample, you can ask customers to contribute their own jewelry designs.

Prizes for the competition don’t have to be exceptionally expensive. In most cases, anything would do as long as it’s free and attractive to your customers.

Make a program.
There are two ways for you to create a program for your low startup home business: firstly, you can create a show by regularly uploading videos on YouTube. Secondly, you can have your own “radio” show by regularly uploading podcasts online.

Uploading videos in YouTube is for free. Video marketing is extremely effective for all kinds of businesses because customers can see, read, and listen to your message. You must, however, make sure that your content takes advantage of the extensive AV effects offered by videos. As for podcasts, you simply need to prioritize both content and sound quality.

Talk show format is the most popular reporting style used for marketing videos and podcasts. You don’t need to invite famous personalities as guests. You just need to discuss the most interesting and popular topics and your shows can help make your low startup home business profit!

Private Investors for Startup Small Business

2009-01-11T15:21:00.002-08:00

Private investors for startup small businesses may not be a dime in a dozen these days, but if you’ve truly a worthwhile idea for business to propose then there’s nothing to worry about. Speak the right words at the right time and place to the right person and you can get yourself some takers!

How to Find Potential Private Investors for Small Businesses
When looking for potential investors, it’s important to remember how critical each and every opportunity is that comes your way. Also, don’t underestimate but don’t take unreasonable risks either. If you know you’ve got a genuine money-making opportunity in your hands, there’s no need to be desperate.

Personal Network
Your personal network is made up of family, friends, and close colleagues. All these may be able to refer a name or two so take the time to explain your situation and ask for their help. This isn’t the time for stubborn pride or inhibitions.

News
Scour the business news for mentions of well-known entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, angel investors, and the likes. The type of business you’d propose may not be in league with the kind of projects they commonly involve their selves in, but there’s no harm in trying, is there?

Advertise
If there’s no way for you to reach potential private investors then try doing it the other way around. Make them come to you instead by advertising. Of course, you’ll need to pick the right vehicles for approaching them. Mere classifieds won’t be enough. Give a hint or two to your bank manager, offer compensation in exchange for a little help, and there’s sure to be a little bird able to whisper to the right ears about your business proposal.

What to Say to Potential Private Investors for Startup Small Businesses
Getting an appointment with a potential private investor is just the beginning. The next step is harder…and more important. You need to convince them to risk their money by investing in your proposed business. To do that, you need to focus on the factors listed below.

Products or Services
To know thy product (service) is to know thy business. Ultimately, everything will come down to what you’re selling. You need to know every feature of your product or service, how it fares against the competition, what its main attraction is to your market, and what could enable your products or services to triumph.

Give them proof. Let them know why you’re convinced people will buy them and you’re sure to win them over!

Target Market
Of course, having excellent products or services to sell won’t be enough to make your business survive, much less profit. You’re sure to impress potential private investors more if you come prepared with a list of well-thought-of strategies and tactics for marketing your products and services. They want to see how well you comprehend your target market and how effective and efficient you are at applying your knowledge to generate profit for your business.

ROI
Think rate and term. Firstly, they want to know exactly how long it would take them to recoup their investment. Secondly, they want to know how much more they can earn from their investment. Approximate figures won’t do. You need to calculate the odds, provide projected figures, and tell them simply if they can become richer – or poorer – because of your startup business.

Startup Business Sample Plans

2009-01-11T15:21:00.001-08:00

Startup business sample plans are essential if it’s your first time to submit a business proposal to a bank, loan company, or future investor. There is generally no required number of pages for business plans, but they do have to comprehensive all pertinent aspects of your proposal. Use the sample and guidelines below to come up with your own startup business plan.

Introduction
Provide a brief background of your business if existing but if not then give a brief explanation as to why you intend to start up the proposed business. Make sure you mention some of your qualifications for running such a business.

Management Aspect
Potential lenders and investors are always interested in how you propose to manage your business. As such, your plan must include specific points regarding your management goals and strategies.

You need to indicate, for instance, whether you wish to set up a business as a sole proprietor or using a partnership or corporation. You also need to create an organizational chart in order to let investors or lenders know how many employees are going to work for you as well as what their job specifications and descriptions are.

Marketing Aspect
This is one of the most important parts of the business plan because it’s here you’ll have to prove the strengths and weaknesses of your business. This is where you’ll have to submit proof that your business will be profitable and able to match, if not surpass, competition.

In this part of your business plan, you’ll have to give a list of your company’s products and services. You need to compare it with those offered by your competition in terms of attractiveness, affordability, and value.

You need to do extensive research as well to indicate the size and nature of your competition in your business plan. Who are your competitors and where do you currently stand against them?

Naturally, the marketing aspect of your business plan will also include details regarding your industry and market. What industry barriers do you expect to be a problem for your business and how do you propose to overcome them? Can you create a profile for your target market? What strategies will you use in order to attract the attention of your target market?

Technical Aspect
This is where you have to indicate the pre-operational and startup costs of your proposed business. Pre-operational costs include but aren’t limited to legal expenses, down payment for rent and acquisition of the required equipment, supplies, and inventory for doing business.

If you cannot supply the necessary funds for your business, your business plan must establish the amount of money you will have to borrow as well as possible sources of external financing. You also need to list the requirements you’ll have to comply with in order to become eligible for financing.

Financial Aspect
The final part of your business plan will provide the necessary figures for your proposed business’s liquidity and profitability. Return on investment or ROI is one of the most important financial ratios that your potential investors will look for; it lets them know how soon they’ll be able to recoup their investment. Finally, you need to include projected income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements for your proposed business.

If you feel less confident about writing your business plan, consider availing the services of a professional business plan writer.

Federal Grants for Disabled Startup Business

2009-01-11T15:17:00.000-08:00

Although there are numerous funding opportunities available for helping disabled individuals to pursue their educational goals, there are unfortunately a pitiful few available that the federal government can offer to help disabled individuals startup their own businesses.

8(a) Business Development Program from the Small Business Administration (SBA)
Strictly speaking, there are no grants offered by the federal government that are specially designed to offer funding assistance for disabled individuals to start up their own businesses. The 8(a) Business Development Program, however, could be of help in certain circumstances.

The 8(a) Business Development Program, together with the Small Disadvantaged Business Certificate Program, are designed by the SBA to offer business assistance not only to disabled individuals but also to those are disadvantaged in other ways.

Benefits of 8(a) Business Development Program
If you are deemed eligible to receive assistance from this program, you can look forward to enjoy various benefits, some of which are listed below.

Improved Regulation Permits
Applicants will now find it easier to obtain startup business grants through this program thanks to its new and improved regulation permits. Now, the SBA is working with other companies as well as various federal agencies in order to expedite the application process and make funds available more quickly for grantees.

If you are not disabled, you need not worry because the new rules also allow people suffering from other types of disadvantages to apply.

Mentor-Protégé Program
The 8(a) Business Development Program will not only offer business grants to disabled individuals but it also gives you the opportunity to learn tips and tricks from the very best in the field.

The Mentor-Protégé program gives disabled individuals the rare chance to become a protégé of the most well-known and experienced mentors in their chosen fields. Thanks to the 8(a) Business Development Program, you’ll not only have the funds to start your own business but you’ll also learn the best way to make your business grow and how to maximize your profits.

Contracting and Subcontracting
When you become eligible for the 8(a) Business Development Program, the SBA will also make it a point to give you substantial advice as to how to best win federal contracts. Federal contracting is a lucrative arena that few people are aware of, much less with the knowledge, experience, and skills necessary for competing in it.

Not only that but you’ll also learn how to take advantage of other subcontracting prospects from other and bigger companies. They’ll teach you how to offset the inferior size of your company with other assets of your business.

Are You Eligible for the 8(a) Business Development Program?
Here are quick guidelines to help determine if you are eligible to join this program.

Groups with Presumed Disadvantage
The Small Business Act can make you eligible immediately to join based on your race alone. This includes but is not limited to Subcontinent Asian and Asian Pacific Americans, Native Americans, Hispanic Americans, and African Americans.

Groups Requiring Preponderance of Evidence for Disadvantage
If you do not belong to any minority group that comes with a presumed disadvantage, there are still two other ways for you to meet the program’s eligibility requirements. You need to provide substantial evidence, however, that you are suffering from either social or economic disadvantage.

Social disadvantage would encompass issues arising from your location, physical handicap, gender, ethnicity, and race. You would be considered economically disadvantaged, on the other hand, if you are earning less than $250,000 net.

Management Tips for Free Startup Home Business Success

2009-01-11T15:16:00.001-08:00

A free startup home business may seem inferior to other types of businesses at first glance but if you use the management tips below, you can prove to everyone that it’s possible to earn lots of money even if you’ve started with nothing!

Scheduling
Mixing business with pleasure is never advisable and this is true even if you have the best intentions and you’re working from home. You’ll be able to think more clearly, complete tasks more quickly, and you’ll definitely earn more money if you have an exclusive schedule for your home business.

Determine the number of hours you can afford to set aside each day for your free startup home business. Afterwards, set a schedule for the appropriate hours and stick to it!

Budgeting
Just because you started out free doesn’t mean you won’t have any expenses to worry about forever. It’s impossible for a business to stay cost-free but it is very much possible to ensure that each month your income is greater than your expenses. To do that, however, you’ll need to learn how to budget.

Start by determining your sources of income. Next, make a list of your expenses. See which ones are directly incurred by your business and are therefore unavoidable. Determine which ones are optional and see what you can do to reduce their amount. It’s important to know which expenses are fixed and variable so that you’ll know how much you need to set aside as contingency.

You must always prepare your monthly budget plans in advance. At the very least, it must be ready a week prior to the start of the month as this will give you enough time to modify your plan whenever necessary. Again, your business plan will amount to nothing if you don’t stick to it. No excuses!

Staying Legitimate
Many free startup home businesses earn less than they should be because of the many penalties they end up paying, penalties that they could have avoided if they had just paid attention to the legal requirements of their business.

Be meticulous with bookkeeping. Record each and every transaction faithfully as the IRS tends to be stricter with online businesses. File your income tax returns on time to avoid penalties. Be aware of the expiration dates of your licenses so that you can apply on time as well.

Providing Customer Service
Don’t dedicate all of your business hours to selling the products or services of your business. If you want your home business to succeed, you must remember to work on keeping them happy, too.

To do that, you need to reserve a portion of your working hours on addressing the needs of your customers. Make sure you provide them with an email address and phone number to contact to and guarantee a 24-hour response time for all their inquiries and concerns.

It’s important to evaluate your website regularly and ask constantly for feedback. The demands of your customers will change from time to time and you need to keep up with them.

Last but not the least, remember to show your appreciation not just by giving them freebies and special discounts but also by taking time to taking their wants in needs into account every time you introduce or develop new features or services.

Keep these suggestions in mind the next time you do business!

Startup Jewelry Business

2009-01-11T15:15:00.001-08:00

My husband is starting to make jewelry at home.

Starting your own jewelry business may seem an intimidating prospect but with a bit of online marketing know-how, hard work, and lots of creativity, your fledgling business can easily turn into a highly profitable venture.

Choose the right business image.
Jewels are essentially beautiful regardless of what they’re made of, what their size is, or how they’re styled. Jewelries are usually expensive and considered works of art. As such, customers tend to have higher expectations than usual from those selling them.

For the right business image, you’ll need to come up with a distinctive but stylish name, logo, and website for your jewelry business. It may be elegant, funky, or cute. Stylishness, after all, is entirely subjective. But above all things, it must be attractive to your target market.

Choose a niche.
Speaking of your target market, it’s important to choose a niche for your jewelry business. Niche marketing will require you to cater to a smaller market with specific needs. Doing so will make it unnecessary for you to go head to head against bigger jewelry businesses. You will also have an easier time making your business’s name grow.

There are many ways to determine the ideal niche for your market. You may start, for instance, with the types of jewelries you’re selling. Are they suitable for career-oriented women or do they look better on teenagers? Or perhaps they’re more suited for women in high society?

Think variety and specialty.
They can come hand in hand. Variety for your jewelry business means offering them all kinds of jewelry your target might need: earrings, necklaces, bracelets, maybe even dress watches, rings, and anklets. You can even expand to the lesser-known varieties like nose rings and stomach rings if it’s applicable.

Variety ensures that your target market won’t have to look to other shops for any jewelry preferences they may have. Specialty, on the other hand, is purely on the account of taste and style: it’s what makes you different from your competitors.

Specialty for your jewelry business can be achieved in various ways. You could, for instance, make a name for yourself by creating a unique line of jewelries made of a combination of alexandrite and onyx. Its pink and black color tandem is startling and offers lots of creative potential.

Accepting custom orders can be considered a specialty in itself. Your jewelry business could be famous with its engraved lockets, name bracelets, and personalized necklaces.

Prioritize customer service.
As mentioned earlier on, customers of jewelry businesses tend to be more demanding and meticulous than usual. Consequently, they place greater value on customer service, maybe even more than affordability and product variety.

If you want to start up your jewelry business right then you need to focus on customer service. Firstly, give your customers the assurance of secure and convenient transactions; give them all the payment options you need and make sure you employ every possible precaution to prevent them from becoming a victim of ID theft while they’re shopping in your virtual store.

Offer round-the-clock customer support. They must have an email address and hotline to contact for any inquiries they may have. Show your appreciation for their continued patronage by regularly offering special promos and discounts for loyal customers. If you treat your customers well then they’re sure to hold your jewelry business in high regard!

Optimize Your Website For Adsense Income

2008-11-14T19:44:00.003-08:00

Google Adsense is a fantastic way to monetize your website. There is no point having a website if it is earning no money when you can easily ad some Adsense ads to it and earn a good income.

Some webmasters find it hard to earn a reasonable amount of money using Adsense while others are earning a remarkable income just using Adsense alone.

The reason why some webmasters do better than others in the amount of income that they earn is the way in which they set up their website, the way they place their ads and the way they optimize their site for search engines.

To reach the highest potential of income with Adsense it is important to spend the time in setting up your website correctly and not just rushing a site and placing any Adsense ads anywhere.

It is amazing how much difference it can make to your income by tweaking your ads and your website.

The type of Adsense ad that you use can make a huge difference to the clicks you will receive. The Large Rectangle for example tends to receive much more clicks than other size ads. Your main goal is to have as many clicks as you possibly can, so it is best to use the ads that tend to perform better such as the Large Rectangle or the Medium Rectangle.

Where you place your ads can also make a big difference. Not everyone stays on a website long enough to scroll down the page, so it is vital to have ads above the fold (where they show on the page before scrolling down).

Near the link bar on the left of the page is a place where most people look and is therefore also a god place to put a block of ads.

The types of colors you use for your ads will also make a big difference to your number of clicks. It helps to have the background color of your ad the same color as the background of your site.

By setting the border color to the same as the background color will make the border disappear, making your ads look less like ads and encourage more clicks.

By having the color of the ad titles the same color as the headings on your website will also blend your ads into your webpage and make them look less like ads.

It is quite important to use of relevant keywords throughout the content of your website. If you optimize your site well with god quality keywords you will be favoured by the search engines and gain a good page ranking. The higher your page ranking the more visitors you will receive to your website.

You need to drive traffic to your website to receive enough clicks on your ads to earn a good income. Without traffic you will not get any clicks. Do some research and explore the different ways to drive traffic to your site and use as many ways as you can. The more traffic you receive the more income you will make.

It is worth it in the long run to spend the time working on your website and getting it just right. If you aren’t seeing enough clicks on your Adsense ads, then tweak your site a bit more, make some changes and see if they make a difference. Find out what works best for you and your site and stick with it.

Is Working Online Really For You?

2008-11-14T19:44:00.001-08:00

What was it that made you start looking online to earn an income?

Perhaps you know someone who makes money online or perhaps you saw a story on television of someone successfully making money online.

It doesn’t matter what brought you here, what matters now is:

Is working online really for you?

Where do you start?

How to start making money without blowing your budget?

Is working online really for you?

The first thing you need to look at is your self discipline. To make an income online and be your own boss requires a lot of self discipline.

It is very easy to get side tracked when you are working online and very easy to spend more time on your computer than you originally intend.

Spending too much time online can affect your family life as well as affect the quality of your work.

To be able to work well and achieve good results you need to stay focused and if you overwork you will lose your focus.

You need to be self disciplined enough to give yourself tasks and a time limit online and make sure you stick to it.

Taking breaks is just as important as spending time online. Taking breaks gives your mind the rest it needs to concentrate fully on your work when come back to work after your break. By not taking breaks you will easily become distracted and not be able to think clearly.

Having good self discipline and keeping on track with your goals is very important. If you can do that, then working online can very well be for you.

Where do you start?

The first thing you will need to do is research. You will need to look into the different ways to make money online and decide which one would best suit you.

There are many ways to make money online such as:

• Selling on ebay
• Selling from your own website
• Earning money from Adsense
• Writing articles
• Writing ebooks
• Promoting items for commission as an affiliate
• MLM programs

And more.

You will need to do a little research to find out how some of these work and what will be involved. Find out which one will best suit you and your needs and decide which one you wish to pursue.

How to start making money online without blowing your budget?

Many of the above ways of earning money online can be started with little or no capital.

If selling on ebay is what you would like to do long term, you can start off with no capital by selling items around the house that are no longer needed. Earn a little capital by doing this and then move on to visit some second hand shops or garage sales. You would be amazed at what you can pick up from a garage sale that can sell for much more than you pay for it.

The other way to sell on ebay without any start up capital is to dropship. With dropshipping you are selling an item that is stocked with the supplier. You don’t pay the supplier until you have received the money from the customer. Then you pay the supplier and the supplier will ship the item direct to your customer. This is a good way to sell since you don’t need to worry about storing stock and you can do it with no money upfront.

Writing articles is another good way to start earning money with no start up capital. There are companies online that will pay you to write articles for them. There are many topics to choose from to write about and you don’t need any cash at all to start. This is a great way to earn money to then invest in other online ventures.

Whatever you decide to do online, always make sure you do your research before jumping into anything and especially so before handing over any money.

Is A Full Time Income Achievable As An Affiliate?

2008-11-14T19:43:00.001-08:00

Can you really make a good income online as an affiliate or do you really need to have your own product to make a great income?

There is no doubt that having your own product can be very profitable, especially if you are making money from backend products, but it is also very possible to make a good income as an affiliate.

There are many people that make money online solely by promoting products as an affiliate and quite a few of them are making amazing amounts of income.

You can make a greater income as an affiliate marketer than you could make with an average 9 to 5 job.

Not everyone is able to make this sort of income however, and it may not always be as easy as it seems.

To make a good income as an affiliate you will need to do some research. You will need to find out which products convert well and what the best ways of promoting them are.

You need to keep up to date with changes in products and technology. The last thing you want to do is to keep advertising a product long after it has ceased to exist or has become outdated.

To make good money as an affiliate you also need to put a good deal of effort into it. As with any online business, you will only get out of it what you put into it. You will need to promote your affiliate products just as you would promote the product if it were your own product.

The advantage to promote products as an affiliate as opposed to having your own products is that you don’t have the initial setting up and creation of the product. If you are not the sort of person who can write ebooks easily or create software products, then you will be better off in promoting other people’s products as an affiliate.

Also by being an affiliate you don’t have to worry about keeping your ebook up to date. Ebook creators need to constantly keep up to date with their topic and update their ebooks regularly.

By using marketing methods such as article marketing and ebook marketing, you can be very successful at promoting products as an affiliate. Article marketing is one of the most effective ways to promote affiliate products and you are not limited to just one product, you can use article marketing to promote a number of different products.

Using Google Adwords is another popular way to promote affiliate products. There are costs involved in using Adwords for promotion however, so if choosing this method of promotion you will need to take your costs into account to make sure you will still profit from your sales.

Email marketing is another very effective way to promote products and as with most online businesses you will be much more successful if you build yourself a mailing list that you can promote to.

As long as you put the effort into promoting your chosen affiliate products then there is no reason why you can’t make a good income online doing so.

Begin To Make Money With Adsense

2008-11-14T19:42:00.000-08:00

Google Adsense can be one of the most lucrative ways to make money online. A website can be well monetized by using Google Adsense. You can generate an extremely large income if you have your website set up correctly. However, if your website is not set up correctly you could be missing out on money that could otherwise be collecting in your bank account. I’m guessing none of us want to leave any money behind.

Earning money using Adsense is very simple and you can be earning a fantastic income within a couple of months. It can take a little time and effort to get your website up and running the right way but it is well worth it in the end. Once your website is up and running and making money then it will run almost on auto pilot.

So you will want to spend the time at the beginning to get it right and make the most of your website. This way your Adsense income will reach it’s fullest potential. You will be amazed at the great results you will see in a short period of time.

The first thing you will need to do in setting up your website is to write some good quality content articles and make sure you use your keywords throughout your articles. If you have a gift of writing, then why not make that gift work in your favour and use it on a website and earn some income with it.

Don’t start to panic if you don’t have that gift for writing, even if writing doesn’t come easily to you, writing articles can still be easy. You will need to start by doing some research and find information relating to the topic of your website. You can find information on the internet, in books or at the library. Always make sure that you rewrite any information you find into your own words, never copy someone else’s information word for word.

Search engines will reward you for having good quality content on your website, so make sure you keep up with the demands of the search engines and keep your content good and unique. By doing this the search engines will love your site and will reward you with good rankings.

Build a good quality site with unique content and a good usage of keywords and this will ensure that the Adsense ads placed on your site will relate to your sites topic. This is where all that you’ve done initially will go to and this is also where they will prove their worth to you.

Where you position your ads on your site can be very important. Don’t just place your ads anywhere, make sure you position them carefully. Try to position your ads where surfers are most likely to click on them. The one place that surfers look first when they visit a website is the top left. The reason for this is because that is where your website navigation links are usually located. So by placing your Adsense ads directly under your navigation links will usually get some good clicks.

Even if you think you are doing well with your Adsense earnings, it can still pay to play around with your ads. There are techniques and styles that can help to generate more clicks and sometimes just by tweaking your ads your earnings can be doubled or even tripled. By working out what techniques work the best for your site, you can be earning much more than what many people earn through their Adsense websites.

Stay away from banner ads and skyscraper ads – they don’t tend to get as many clicks as the other ads. These ads are clearly recognized as an advert and so many internet surfers tend to ignore these types of ads. There is no point in putting ads on your website that aren’t going to get you the clicks you want, it will be more beneficial to use ad types that are more likely to receive a higher click through rate.

To really make a great income with Adsense, you should have a definite focus on what you want to achieve and how to go about achieving it. Like any business venture, you need to give it time and patience.

Keep an eye on your ads and click through rates, if you aren’t seeing enough clicks then play around with your ads a bit and keep track of which ads perform better for you.

How To Use Your Autoresponder Profitably

2008-11-14T19:41:00.000-08:00

How important is it to have an autoresponder on your website?

If you have been in internet marketing for any period of time you will know how hard it is to promote your website and achieve a decent amount of traffic coming through your site.

Imagine if you have an amazing website that converts your visitors into buyers at a good rate. But what about those sales you could be missing?

Imagine if you have a visitor who has come across your website and your product is exactly what she has been looking for. However, just as she is about to make her purchase, she hears her baby crying. Baby is awake so she leaves the computer – and your website – to attend to the baby.

There is a very likely sale gone, just like that.

But what if you have an autoresponder installed on your site and have already captured her email address. Well now you can follow up with her through your autoresponder and quite probably make the sale at a later stage when she has time to return to your site.

Not only can autoresponders be used to capture that almost lost sale, but you can also use your autoresponder to turn that casual visitor into a profitable customer.

Offering a free subscription to your newsletter when the visitor signs up to your autoresponder is a great way to capture subscribers and also to follow up with your visitor about your services or products.

Statistics show that most people will not purchase an item until they have seen it three or four times. So by using your newsletter to promote your products, you have a much higher chance of making sales if your customer is viewing your newsletter and therefore your products a few times.

If you are an affiliate for products you can offer your visitors reviews on products and ebooks and have your affiliate links within the reviews. Many people will try to read as many reviews as they can on a product before purchasing, so to read a review from a ‘trusted’ person can very likely lead to a sale.

To gain trust with your subscribers you will need to make your newsletters personal and informative without always trying to sell them something. If you try to sell something with every email you send out, they may look at you as someone just desperate to make sales. If you send personal emails, your subscribers will come to look to you as someone they can trust and as an expert in that field.

Another great way to use your autoresponder is to offer your visitors a free email course. With an email course you send out an email every day with a lesson for the day. You can set your autoresponder up to do this automatically each day.

Make your lessons good quality and not just a sales pitch, that way your content will do the selling for you. Then you can include a link to your product with perhaps a short statement showing how your product can benefit the reader.

Another very effective way to make sales through your subscribers is to offer your subscribers deals that you don’t offer anywhere else. Let them think that they are special that they are in an elite group that are the only people online that will have access to your special deal.

Give them a great price on your product or perhaps a free bonus.

These are just a few ways that autoresponders can work well for you. I’m sure once you get started you will come up with many more ideas that can make your autoresponder benefit you.

Is the Economic Recession Getting You Down?

2008-10-12T18:56:00.000-07:00

Discover the Secret to Weathering a Recession and Walking Away with Your Bank Account, Your Retirement Fund, Your Investments and Your Pride!

Exclusive Offer!

Never Before Revealed Information!

When you’re unprepared for the impact of recession on your life and your business, the consequences can take you completely by surprise.

The economic recession brought on by over eager lenders, under-prepared borrowers, and overzealous government and an economy that cares more about its bottom line than its citizens has been pummeling Americans from coast to coast, and it doesn’t show any signs of going away any time soon.

Are you sick and tired of counting your pennies? Looking for a way to be free of the constant fear that one day you’re going to walk into your office and find a pink slip sitting there waiting for you? Would you like, just once to be the once sitting back and making a profit instead of the one worrying about whether this will be the week your business is going to have to close its doors?

Let Me Show You How...

Did you know that economic recessions aren’t anything new? The lifecycle of the business world very closely resembles the lifecycle of the average insect-it circles around, and around, and around, and…well, you get the picture. There are many stages inside that circle that keep business flowing smoothly and the wheels of progress turning the way they’re meant to.

An economic recession is only one of these stages.

Economic recessions are a vital part of the well being and health of our economy, and a study into our history will show that they actually happen on a fairly regular basis-and they usually don’t leave much damage behind. Why, then, do we panic so badly at the thought that this time might be our turn to weather an economic recession?

Because we don’t know what to do about it!

Business magnates understand that economic recession, a time when consumer spending is going to decrease for one reason or another and have a negative impact on the life and health of their company, is a necessary stage of life. From the moment they step into their corner office they’re carefully grooming and preparing the company for the moment when recession is going to rear its unattractive head and take a bite out of their profits.

Those of us who haven’t finished our MBA usually aren’t that well informed.

Without being aware of the necessity and the inevitability of an economic recession, most of us don’t realize that sooner or later recession is going to happen, and it’s going to impact all of our lives. We’ve been lulled into complacency by the constant boom and growth of the American economy, and we’re so focused on finding instant gratification for our desires that we don’t see when recession starts to creep up until it is far too late.

Strings of layoffs
Dramatic dips in the profits of your company
An increase in outsourced labor
The disappearance of expendable cash
A crashing housing market
Rapidly falling stock prices
Decreasing values of 401Ks and other retirement accounts
Companies going bankrupt

Everyone knows about the negative impacts of an Economic Recession. But what about the positive ones?

When you’ve walked into an unemployment office and seen hundreds of people filling out paperwork in the hope that somehow, someway, someone in that office will be able to help them find a job, it can be hard to believe that there are actually benefits to an economic recession. They are there, however, and if you’re a savvy business person you’ll be able to figure out how to take advantage of them. How do you think so many companies manage to stay in business when recessions happen at least once a decade?

Major corporations around the globe has learned how to weather an economic recession and keep making a profit, and now you can do it too! Regardless of whether you’re an entry level janitor or the CEO of a major corporation, the recession is going to have an impact on your life personally. The question is, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to let the recession bowl you over and leave you struggling for a way to keep your job and pay your bills? Or are you going to look at it as an opportunity to expand your horizons, stretch your wings and show the world what you can really do?

That was a choice I had to make for myself not too long ago

Two years ago I was sitting pretty. I had a good government job working as a contractor for the military, a good retirement plan, a salary that more than met our needs and an insurance program that kept my kids in antibiotics and vaccines.

All in all, life was looking pretty good. Then the recession hit.

I don’t know if any of you out there were unfortunate enough to be a part of this, but over the last two years military contractors have been steadily laying off hundreds of employees in an attempt to trim the fat from their bottom line and help them stay afloat as government contracts began to be canceled left, right and sideways. Because I had just accepted a new position within the company I was considered to be the new kid on the block, even though I had been working for them for years, and my job was among the first to go.

I was devastated.

Suddenly there I was, with a family to support and no income other than what I had coming in from our investments. I’m not ashamed to say I panicked at first. I couldn’t see how, at my age, I could possibly pick up and start all over again in another job. I’d invested too much time and effort to get where I had been, and the thought of having to climb that ladder all over again was enough to make me want to lock my door and hide for a year or two.

My general fondness for eating on a semi-regular basis got me out the door soon enough, however, and it wasn’t long before I was roaming the streets looking for another job. I was fortunate. I had remained in touch with many of my old college buddies, and one of them happened to work for a firm that had just lost one of its key employees and was looking for someone qualified who would be able to fill his place-quickly.

My friend’s recommendation and my own experience had me inside a new job within a month, but over the course of that month I saw hundreds of other contractors I had worked with who weren’t as lucky. They were out of work for months, many of them taking jobs that were far below their skills, their education and their experience just to have a paycheck.

And then there were a few of them that decided to start their own companies and offer their services to the private sector. A few of them started new careers in real estate. When I first heard what they were planning I thought they were out of their minds, but it wasn’t long before they started turning a profit-a big one.

I was astonished. If the U.S. government was losing money hand over fist and having to shut down its operations, how on earth were these little start-up companies managing to not only survive, but to thrive?

They were able to do it because they figured out how to take advantage of the recession!

I would never have believed that there would have been anything about an economic recession that would allow a company or a private entrepreneur to thrive, but as I talked with my old friends I realized that there was a side of the recession that we never saw-and that side could make the difference between surviving and thriving in the middle of an economic recession.

This is the ultimate guide to showing you how to thrive when everything else seems to be falling apart!

It’s really not fair that only a small percentage of the population has the knowledge they need to hang on to their jobs, increase their net worth and help their company thrive-especially when all they really need to do is change their mindset!! That’s why I decided to write Recession Suvival - How To Proft From An Economic Recession. I figured it was high time the rest of the world had the chance to learn what the major players already knew-the secrets for surviving an economic recession without going into debt!

But don’t take my word for it…

I don’t expect you to take my word for it. Hey, a recession can be scary stuff! That’s why I’m offering Recession Suvival - How To Proft From An Economic Recession complete with a 90 day money back guarantee. Buy the book. Read it. Put the strategies I’m going to show you into play in your own life!

Give investing a try
Grow your stock portfolio exponentially
Make yourself so indispensable your boss will never fire you!
Give your company the momentum it needs to get through the recession and go into the future with a bang

The secrets I’m going to show you in this book are the same business tricks and strategies that major corporations like Macy’s and J.C. Penney have been using to survive economic recessions for decades. Don’t you wonder sometimes why these companies have been in business for years? Wouldn’t you love to know what secrets are keeping their managers in the driver’s seats when hundreds of other companies are closing their doors? Let me show you!

There’s nothing in this book that requires you to throw thousands of dollars into some strange investment opportunity that’s “guaranteed to secure your future”.

Just plain, simple, easy to use tricks and strategies to help you ride out the recession and come out on top on the other side.

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How Can Your Business Survive an Economic Recession

2008-10-12T18:55:00.000-07:00

Your business will surely be affected during an economic recession. If you don’t find ways to make it ride out the storm, chances are you will have to file for bankruptcy and close. Fortunately, there are things you can do to keep it afloat.

Remember that the heart of every business is customer service. If you give special treatment to your customers, these people will leave feeling satisfied and always come back. This is something that your employees must understand because if they don’t, these individuals will be the first one to go since you have to cut back on your expenses.

One way of doing that is to reeducate your employees. You can hold seminars on customer service or simply give them a refresher course of the products and services that you are offering because this will impress the customer the moment they walk in through the door.

You should also motivate them because good morale always achieves positive results. Being the owner of the business, you should lead by example by rendering longer hours at work. If they see you are doing whatever it takes to stay afloat, they will do the same because again, their jobs are on the line and they could be dismissed if things get worse.

Most businesses think that letting people go is always the first option. You don’t have to make the same mistake when these reductions can be made elsewhere as long as quality is not compromised. If you have to buy things, see if you can get longer credit periods or better rates so large expenses can become smaller ones making it easy to manage.

It is always nice to have customers pay in cash but during an economic recession, that is hard for the consumer so if you don’t use a credit card machine yet, now will be a good time to get one. Studies have shown that more people will be able to buy from you using a credit card especially during a time of financial downturn.

The objective of any business is to make money so part of surviving an economic recession will be also to lower your profit margins. By informing your customers of this move, they will be able to buy more at a very reasonable price. You can raise prices again when things get better since such a crisis is only temporary.

Instead of relying on people coming through your door, you can also look at other ways to promote your business. One of the most affordable ones to date is the internet so create your own website. If you can’t do this on your own, hire someone to do it and then make sure that is it both attractive and interactive.

Other businesses are also feeling the crunch and they are also doing their best to stay afloat. Ask around what they are doing and share the same information as well so you will have other ideas and options when the ones you have right now are not working.

We are not yet out of the woods in the recent economic recession. A lot of people are still losing their jobs and their homes, which is why it is important for you to take the steps mentioned rather than doing nothing and hoping for a miracle.

Telemarketing: Handling A Job

2008-10-11T17:12:00.001-07:00

This fact is beyond the realm of any doubt that telemarketing is a gargantuan or Herculean task. Everybody would be at one with the fact that one rarely wants to have a phone-call asking their preferred brand of toothbrush or asking whether they possess any desire to be endowed with a trial subscription to Redbook absolutely free. There will be a varied range of responses from the customers. Forget about the negative ones; let’s have a look on some ways to handle those who want to talk.

A particular script is always there for the telemarketers, which is supposed to be a guideline for them while marketing-process. But, what happens at times is that the scripts become so irksome for both and then, you can choose to have some words of your own. Your supervisor should be in no position to impose anything on you. If asked, you should boldly say that the change was necessary. All he needs is the sale of a product. So, do this and show it to him.

Changing oneself according to the given circumstances is of immense importance. Well, putting in your name is a part of the script and experience makes it perfect. If you are Jewish or Spanish i.e. if you belong to an ethnic background, bear in mind your targeted area. For instance, if a person namely Sam Goldberg is calling in a primarily Jewish area, it’s fine but this name wouldn’t hold water in a Christian area and there might go for a name like Stan Green which is Christian sounding or at least, unbiased sounding.

It often happens while conducting your conversation to your customer that they go on to ask you a complex question, which, you can’t answer properly. In case like this, confess it. If you want to get rid of it with a lie, it may have an adverse effect. Bear in mind that you need to say the truth and at the same time, you are in need of making your customers convinced that at least going for the product for once, would be a good idea for them. If needed, show them the way to return the product if they do not like it as it has a money back guarantee.

Being a telemarketer, if you are striving to arrange a series of questions for your customers related to their own lives or their buying habits, try to blend it with some casual chats. That would be positive for you. If it’s a discussion about a particular product that you are unaware of, say it to them in light mood. If possible, try to show them your curiosity about it prompting you to use it. Your amiable attitude will make the conversation soft and nice.

Telemarketing On Your Own

2008-10-11T17:11:00.004-07:00

Here’s some good news for you, if you are desperately looking for a job. We all know how telemarketing has become an important sector for people to join or work from home and earn some quick bucks. All you need to succeed as a telemarketer is patience and a fair bit of effort on your part. If statistics are to be believed then millions of telemarketers globally are doing a great job of earning money while working from the relaxed ambiance of their homes. So don’t loose courage and grab your opportunity instead.

Another alternative sector that is really starting to take off along side telemarketing is the telemarketing outsourcing industry. But since this sector is just starting off and there is a desire to recruit staff, you might be fooled into joining it without actually having the right qualifications. Don’t get fooled by promises of high payments at jobs which apparently need little effort or expertise. Telemarketing is a relatively specialized field where you need to have a few special skills or knowledge, and you can’t get away easily by just reading a telemarketing guidebook or manual for an hour. You have to have fairly good communication skills and a decent knowhow about the service sector that your industry carries. Say for example you are telemarketing microwaves for a company, you must then a have a basic knowledge about how the microwave business is functioning presently and what therefore is the market scenario.

You must also be able to take care of the following things:

You must know how to conduct buyer service duties
Know how to take orders
Sew sales
And be able to deal with any other unforeseen circumstances that might crop up

When you consider yourself ready to start off with telemarketing do so by finding an actual home telemarketing purpose and keeping it simple and realistic. Make whatever your are selling, sound effective as well as true, only then will you be successful. Talk about other aspects as well apart from the structural or physical elements of the product.

To look for jobs that you can do from home, try calling up telemarketing centers and ask them if they have or know of any work at property positions. Look for telemarketing techniques and tips everywhere around you. May be someone from your locality who speaks very well might be able to help you. Most importantly do not give up hope, for we all know that telemarketing jobs are out there, you only have to seek them out and grab them. Do not get disheartened listening about telemarketing scams. If you are prepared to work hard, luck will favor you too. So download a few telemarketing scripts from the internet and start working on them using your own skills. You will soon be ready for a telemarketing job.

Telemarketing Call Centers

2008-10-11T17:11:00.003-07:00

As telemarketing is gaining more importance and garnering profit in recent times, it is becoming absolutely additionally urgent to find a good telemarketing call center for your business. By searching for a good, dependent company to aid you in your business, you will be able to have a telemarketing call center that works well for your benefits and your trade. This is extremely necessary as with a good telemarketing call center you can get more business for your assembly and be more successful in the long run.

The first thing to consider when looking for a one is the price offered to you. When looking for an affordable telemarketing call center, it is sensible to consult with the center for a logical direct comprehensible price quote without any hidden costs and uncertainty. This includes quotes per minute or quotes based on the number of representatives who will be engaged. Also, note if there are any required travel expenses for the employees and keep in mind that overhead charges will be required for various expenses like preparation, training, infrastructure and setup.

Experience should be taken into account when searching for a telemarketing call center. A more experienced call center would usually have other trustworthy patrons, or it may feature a good general standing according to other groups who are using that certain center. When you find an interesting center suited to your budget, check to ensure how reputable that call center is. It is a good idea to talk with companies that use that particular call center for information on how well it works and if those companies are content with that same call center.

The workers, or sales representatives, of a telemarketing call center are highly a significant component in your choice of call center. You should talk with the exact call center you are concerned in working with for facts about how well it hires its employees and what opportunities it has. This includes looking at how the payment structure of the center works and what are the requirements for someone who will be hired by that group. After knowing these, you will get a good idea of how soundly the telemarketing call center takes care of its employees, presenting to you a fair idea of how motivated or demoralized the employees are. Apart from this, be sure to ask how long employees will stay with the call center for, as it is imperative to work with a group that is committed to the employees and what opportunities and future schemes the call center may have for them.

In summarizing the above points, check the cost, the familiarity and the reputability of the employees at a telemarketing call center so as to find more information as to which center is best and conducive to profit for your business. After finding the right call center you can be assured of more success in your line of work and expand your business advantageously and gainfully with a growing number of customers.

Telemarketing Laws

2008-10-11T17:11:00.001-07:00

A long time ago, telemarketing was a novel idea. The suggestion of people calling you up at home to sell you something was unheard of, but it rapidly became very lucrative. Suddenly telemarketing companies came up everywhere. It was unsafe to answer your phone. To sugar coat it, people were starting to get annoyed.

The congress and the telemarketing laws as we know them today rescued the harassed callers.

Congress got into the act in 1991. They passed an act conceding customers definite rights to protect themselves against these infuriating telemarketing calls (no offense the industry). Their genius was in writing an anti-telemarketing script for consumers to use when receiving a call they supposed was a telemarketer. They would ask questions like, "Are you calling to sell me something?" "Can you tell me your full name?" "Can you tell me the company’s name?" "Do they have a do not call list?" "Can you put me on that list?" If they answer negative to any of these questions, then you can legally sue them.

Congress was taking a proactive role against telemarketing calls. Apart from this script, they enforced telemarketing laws. Regrettably, congress did not control the telephones, which was an FCC matter. So the congress went to the FCC and asked their assistance, giving the FCC their proposal to set up a national database of telephone numbers of all consumers who did not wish to be called by telemarketers.

Unsurprisingly, by dropping the number of calls made, meant less money for the phone companies and this was not in the FCC's best interests as unhappy phone companies meant an unhappy FCC. Consequently, the FCC proposed a more "cost efficient" series of "company do not call lists", by which the consumer called up the company which he did not want to be bothered by. So, either you had to call the company beforehand, or you had to wait for their call first. This was FCC’s grand solution liked only by the telemarketers and the FCC.

This was short lived. Ten years later, the FTC did what the FCC wouldn't do. Due to the crash in long distance rates, overseas telemarketers called frequently, many of which were absolute scams. This is when the FTC stepped in with telemarketing laws.

Chiefly, the FTC put some severe restrictions on calls coming in from automated machines. No longer could these whole calls be mechanized. An actual operator had to enter and if the consumer wished, he could ask the operator numerous questions and be put on a do not call list which would take care of calls for all companies, not just the one calling. If the company failed this, they were held answerable.

You can see these telemarketing laws online on the FTC website. You can register to be placed on the do not call list. Telemarketing companies have to pay a fee to get this list and if you are on it, they must not call you or be subject to heavy fines.

Telemarketing: Generating Leads

2008-10-11T17:10:00.002-07:00

Of late telemarketing has become a popular method by which businesses can generate leads. Such lead generation through telemarketing usually uses prerecorded messages and is of two main kinds. Inbound telemarketing and outbound telemarketing, in the first the system dials up any number and in the second it sticks to a given list.

Telemarketing is a more effective technique of generating leads, because though mails or other forms of advertising may be ignored by the recipient, a telephone call is usually answered, thus giving the telemarketer a scope to get a lead. Also this technique is adaptable to various kinds of circumstances; the telemarketer can answer the various queries of the potential customer on spot.

In the case of inbound lead generation it is the customer who evinces interest by calling up the company, and inquiring about the goods or services they have to offer. It is obviously the preferred lead generation type. The prospective customer has shown his interest first and it is the telemarketer’s duty to answer all his questions and sustain his interest in the product or the service. Sometimes people call up to ask about discounts and other offers, here too the telemarketer has to perform the role of informant.

In case of outbound telemarketing it is more difficult. Because the telemarketer who is calling up the potential customer is doing so uninvited, so it may result in a case of cold calling. The recipient of the call is not expecting the call, so they do not always welcome such calls and behave rudely. Only the best telemarketers can deal with a cold call successfully. Outbound callers are often supplied with a list of people who might be interested in the product or service and then its their job to single out customers.

Lead generation system is an alternative for telemarketing nowadays. Thee are machines which can dial random phone numbers, and then a prerecorded message is played. These machines are cheaper though sometimes people hang up before listening to the message. If lead generating machines are provided with a list of numbers of people who might potentially be interested it might prove more effective.

Lead generation telemarketing is the field for young people who can communicate well. It is a cheap, cost effective, fast method of generating leads and increasing sales. It is also easy to adjust this type of telemarketing to various situations.

Telemarketing And Telesales

2008-10-11T17:10:00.001-07:00

Although several companies find the idea of using telemarketing or inside sales people to boost their business ridiculous, there can be no doubts about the effective nature of telemarketing in the present age, as has been proved by several big companies. Telemarketing is especially effective when it comes to increasing the sales and contributing towards the overall growth. It’s a highly productive way of doing the job when compared to employing professionals for outside sales strategies.

Telemarketing or inside sales people come in useful when it comes to filling up the fissure that forms between marketing, lead generation and people involved in field sales.

Most companies apply telesales and telemarketing techniques in the following ways:

For lead generation qualification or to follow up on the leads that are provided by the marketing programs.
For executing inside sales functions and closing deals-which can be done over the phone.
This is a model which combines the above idea. Here, companies qualify opportunities, close the appropriate deals over the phone and transfer bigger relationship based sales opportunities on to the outside sales personnel.

If you’re considering increasing sales field personnel or introducing a new sales field department, then remember that through telemarketing or inside sales, you can improve your sales efficiency without having to spend a bomb on it.

The things that you need to remember once you’ve decided to introduce inside sales or telemarketing personnel within the company are the following. If you don’t have enough experience in this area, then it would be a good idea to secure the consultation or outsourcing powers of trained individuals who can help you set this up. An outsourced pipeline or telesales development consultant with adequate experience can influence your company in a positive way, thus ensuring your success.

However, the absence of knowledge regarding this area could affect the company in a negative rather than a positive way. Many companies have realized this the hard way with the failure of their telemarketing or telesales projects, simply because those controlling these projects did not have sufficient management skills. It is thus necessary for you to hire good managers when you hire the personnel who are slated to do the actual telemarketing. An able telemarketing professional can help you with every aspect of the job, even those which you could easily discard as petty. A professional will be able to guide you through the various aspects such as the target, the way to approach individuals, and of course, the all important message and the selling proposition that can set you apart from other businesses in the same field. He/she can also guide your telemarketing force through the necessary details such as the script and the call flow.

An able professional consultant will also help you to make the right decisions when employing telemarketing professionals for the job. Thus, telemarketing can easily help you tap outside resource if you’re seeking to put additional sales resource on the job.

Telemarketing Myths

2008-10-11T17:09:00.002-07:00

Telemarketers are considered, most often these days, as people who would pest your life forcing you to listen to every word they have to utter, any time of the day. This is what telemarketing has boiled down to. And things will get worse if such myths are not busted as quickly as possible. For most part, certain telemarketers are surely to blame for creating such an impression of the entire industry as a whole. There are, however, others who practice the most ethical and genial technique of telemarketing. Their callers do not infest your life at critical moments. They respect the privacy of others. If they as asked never to call again, they simply stop.

However, in order to help bust the myth so as not to miss out on anything important, even the customers called must follow certain practices. Here are a few things they must keep in mind.

If you are being called at a wrong time, do not abruptly snap the caller away and give him or her a piece of your mind without first listening to what he has to say. For all you know, he might be offering you a good deal on something that you were really looking for. Give the caller a chance
If you are still being pestered even after you have shown no interest or the product the caller is calling for is of no interest to you, you may politely tell the caller that you are not to be disturbed and that you are not interested. Good telemarketing agencies respect the privacy of customers and pursue only those who might be interested.
Conversely, some people have a habit of appearing enthusiastic to everything giving a false impression that they are actually considering the deal, which may not be the case. The least you can do at first is just listen to what the caller says, ponder over it if it catches your attention and get back to them. Or, wait for them to call you.
You can also choose when to take a call. If you are busy you do not necessarily have to answer the call. You can choose to ignore it and take it when they call again at some later point. Ignoring these calls indefinitely is not a good idea either. You can take it when you are free, see if had anything interesting to offer you, and politely decline. They will automatically put you off their calling list!

Telemarketing: The Advantage

2008-10-11T17:09:00.001-07:00

Telemarketing is gradually becoming the most popular and the most effective way to market a product these days, so much so that it is even leaving television, radio, and newspapers far behind. The following article aims at giving you a brief introduction to what are the implications of telemarketing and what its advantages and disadvantages are.

What is telemarketing?

As the name suggests, any marketing done over the telephone can be categorized under telemarketing. What one required\s for this purpose is the telephoning resource and a staff that will make and take these calls. Telemarketing can be of two types. First is the inbound telemarketing which entails being a part of the customer care where customers can call in and clear their doubts about your product, etc. the second is the outbound telemarketing which means aggressively advertising and marketing your product by calling up people and talking about it to them.

Knowing the Advantage

The first and basic premise on which telemarketing works is the use of the telephone. This, in the sense that a ringing telephone is something that one just can’t ignore. You may miss an advertisement on television or on the radio. You may skip through an advertisement that you see in a newspaper. But if someone calls you, you listen to that person to see what he or she has to say. This can be more effective than other forms of marketing.
Telemarketing makes the potential customer’s relationship with the company more personal and interactive. An ad on TV can easily be forgotten. Plus there is a sense that it is there fore everyone to se, whereas a call is made personally to only one person at a time by one caller.
Telemarketing establishes a platform for dialogue right away. If the customer finds your product interesting, they may have a question they’d like to ask you. Your telecallers can immediately satisfy their queries, building trust with the potential customer.
Such telemarketing call centers function all through the day and also in the night. You can call a customer at a time that they prefer most so that you do not catch them in the middle of something very important or infringe on their privacy. your staff must be trained to determine the best time to call a particular customer at. If the customer is free, chances are that he will pay more attention to what the caller is telling him than when he is busy.

Telemarketing: Use It Effectively

2008-10-11T17:08:00.002-07:00

Telemarketing has grown to become the one of the most effective means of marketing if utilized in a proper way. The following are some of the ways in which telemarketing can be executed to get maximum benefit out of that or your organization

Make a list of all those things you would like to achieve using telemarketing. For instance, if you wish to increase your sales, make new clients, build on your office staff, etc, you will need to delineate these requirements to decide which of these you want the telemarketing portion to handle. Everything can basically be handled by telemarketing; you will just have to decide what exactly you want it to do.
Train your telemarketing staff well, both on voice and off voice. This is important because they must be clearly briefed about what exactly is expected of them and how they are to go about it. Your company’s motives must necessarily be reflected in how they approach the clients when they call them.
It is also a good idea to divide the telemarketing staff according to the kind of personality and age group they belong to. College students turned telecallers are more likely to strike a chord with students and youngsters rather than professionals and lawyers, for whom the more mature and concrete telecallers will be required to convince them.
You also need to make sure of the technology you are using and whether it is, at all, suited to your telecallers. This is because your staff needs to be adapted to this kind of technology so that they may successfully exploit them
You also need to constantly keep motivating your staff. You must realize answering calls all day is not an easy and exciting job. But if you manage to make it so by motivating your staff, your customer care unit, for example, can function extremely well and help you retain customers.
Try and get your staff to develop an intuition regarding the people who they are to follow up. Only the person who makes the call can judge whether the person will at all be converted to a customer. This is important because you do not want to waste time and resources pursuing someone who wouldn’t convert.
Keep a constant check on the progress you are making using this form of marketing so that you can work on the areas that are not bringing in fruitful results.
Finally, make sure the person being called is listed with either Telephone Preference Service (TPS) or Corporate Telephone Preference Service (CTPS).

Telemarketing: Hiring A Firm

2008-10-11T17:08:00.001-07:00

A professional telemarketing firm is one of the major requirements of any business that wishes to expand its client base using telemarketing techniques. For a business that has just started, the owner himself can dial up a few numbers and talk to t6hem about the product to see if they are interested. But once the business begins to roll, responsibilities and work increases in many folds and services of an agency or a firm providing telemarketing services becomes inevitable.

Here are some reasons why you will require the service of such a telemarketing firm

You, on your own, have managed to generate some leads. These leads, however, will have to be followed up and pursued with care so that you don’t lose those leads. However, you cannot do this on your own because the time you have at hand does not permit you to get into it. Hiring a telemarketing firm at this stage is what you will require.
You will also need someone to manage the large number of inbound calls that you get. If people and customers are constantly ringing you up inquiring about the product, or about the order they have placed, or about feedback, you need a staff to take those calls and see to it that everyone’s queries are answered. Sometimes, the traffic of this call is very large to be handled within the company alone. A telemarketing firm must necessarily be hired, which charges on the basis of inbound calls you anticipate within a given period of time.
If you want to pursue advertisement and marketing though the telephone ideally you would want to reach to as many people as you can in a day. Therefore, going in for a professional telemarketing firm to make these outbound calls for you, you gain the opportunity of being able to contact hundreds and thousands of persons in a day.
Since a telemarketing firm is a professional organization, their staff will know when to contact what kind of customers. People do not appreciate being rung up any odd time of the day. A telemarketing firm’s staff is trained to judge that so that potential customers are not put off by calls from your company.
Internet marketing is gaining ground to which telemarketing is losing. Telemarketing firms actually put in a lot of research into this to come up with new ways of using the telephone as an effective tool to market. Hiring such a firm is a good idea.

LEGALITIES & TAX ADVANTAGES IN A HOME BUSINESS

2008-09-13T20:27:00.000-07:00

Every year, several thousand people develop an interest in "going
into business." Many of these people have an idea, a product or a
service they hope to promote into an income producing business
which they can operate from their homes.

If you are one of these people, here are some practical thoughts
to consider before hanging out the "Open for Business" sign.

In areas zoned "Residential Only," your proposed business could
be illegal. In many areas, zoning restrictions rule out home
businesses involving the coming and going of many customers,
clients or employees. Many businesses that sell or even store
anything for sale on the premises also fall into this category.

Be sure to check with your local zoning office to see how the
ordinances in your particular area may affect your business
plans. You may need a special permit to operate your business
from your home; and you may find that making small changes in
your plan will put you into the position of meeting zoning
standards.

Many communities grant home occupation permits for businesses
involve typing, sewing, and teaching, but turn thumbs down on
requests from photographers, interior decorators and home
improvement businesses to be run from the home. And often, even
if you are permitted to use your home for a given business, there
will be restrictions that you may need to take into
consideration. By all means, work with your zoning people, and
save yourself time, trouble and dollars.

One of the requirements imposed might be off street parking for
your customers or patrons. And, signs are generally forbidden in
residential districts. If you teach, there is almost always a
limit on the number of students you may have at any one time.

Obtaining zoning approval for your business, then, could be as
simple as filling out an application, or it could involve a
public hearing. The important points the zoning officials will
consider will center around how your business will affect the
neighborhood. Will it increase the traffic noticeably on your
street? Will there be a substantial increase in noise? And how
will your neighbors feel about this business alongside their
homes?

To repeat, check into the zoning restrictions, and then check
again to determine if you will need a city license. If you're
selling something, you may need a vendor's license, and be
required to collect sales taxes on your transactions. The sale
tax requirement would result in the need for careful record
keeping.

Licensing can be an involved process, and depending upon the type
of business, it could even involve the inspection of your home to
determine if it meets with local health and building and fire
codes. Should this be the case, you will need to bring your
facilities up to the local standards. Usually this will involve
some simple repairs or adjustments that you can either do
personally, or hire out to a handyman at a nominal cost.

Still more items to consider: Will your homeowner's insurance
cover the property and liability in your new business? This must
definitely be resolved, so be sure to talk it over with your
insurance agent.

Tax deductions, which were once one of the beauties of engaging
in a home business, are not what they once were. To be eligible
for business related deductions today, you must use that part of
your home claimed EXCLUSIVELY AND REGULARLY as either the
principal location of your business, or place reserved to meet
patients, clients or customers.

An interesting case in point: if you use your den or a spare
bedroom as the principal place of business, working there from
8:00 to 5:00 every day, but permit your children to watch TV in
that room during evening hours, the IRS dictates that you cannot
claim a deduction for that room as your office or place of
business.

There are, however, a couple of exceptions to the "exclusive use"
rule. One is the storage on inventory in your home, where your
home is the location of your trade or business, and your trade or
business is the selling of products at retail or wholesale.
According to the IRS, such storage space must be used on a
REGULAR Basis, and be separately identifiable space.

Another exception applies to daycare services that are provided
for children, the elderly, or physically or mentally handicapped.
This exception applies only if the owner of the facility complies
with the state laws for licensing.

To be eligible for business deductions, your business must be an
activity undertaken with the intent of making profit. It's
presumed you meet this requirement if your business makes a
profit in any two years of a five-year period.

Once you are this far along, you can deduct business expenses
such as supplies, subscriptions to professional journals, and an
allowance for the business use of your car or truck. You can also
claim deductions for home related business expenses such as
utilities, and in some cases, even a new paint job for your home.

The IRS is going to treat the part of your home you use for
business as though it were a separate piece of property. This
means that you'll have to keep good records and take care not to
mix business and personal matters. No specific method of record
keeping is required, but your records must clearly justify and
deductions you claim.

You can begin by calculating what percentage of the house is used
for business, Either by number of rooms or by area in square
footage. Thus, if you use one of the five rooms for your
business, the business portion is 20 percent. If you run your
business out of a room that's 10 by 12 feet, and the total area
of your home is 1,200 square feet, the business space factor is
10 percent.

An extra computation is required if your business is a home day
care center. This is one of the exempted activities in which the
exclusive use rule doesn't apply. Check with your tax preparer
and the IRS for an exact determination.

If you're a renter, you can deduct the part of your rent which is
attributable to the business share of your house or apartment.
Homeowners can take a deduction based on the depreciation of the
business portion of their house.

There is a limit to the amount you can deduct. This is the amount
equal to the gross income generated by the business, minus those
home expenses you could deduct even if you weren't operating a
business from your home. As an example, real estate taxes and
mortgage interest are deductible regardless of any business
activity in your home, so you must subtract from your business
gross income the percentage that's allocable to the business
portion of your home. You thus arrive at the maximum amount for
home-related business deductions.

If you are self-employed, you claim your business deductions on
SCHEDULE C, PROFIT(or LOSS) for BUSINESS OR PROFESSION. The IRS
emphasizes that claiming business-at-home deductions does not
automatically trigger an audit on your tax return. Even so, it is
always wise to keep meticulously within the proper guidelines,
and of course keep detailed records if you claim business related
expenses when you are working out of your home. You should
discuss this aspect of your operation with your tax preparer or a
person qualified in the field of small business tax requirements.

If your business earnings aren't subject to withholding tax, and
your estimated federal taxes are $100 or more, you'll probably be
filing a Declaration of Estimated Tax, Form 1040 ES. To complete
this form, you will have to estimate your income for the coming
year and also make a computation of the income tax and
self-employed tax you will owe.

The self-employment taxes pay for Social Security coverage.
If you have a salaried job covered by Social Security, the
self-employment tax applies only to that amount of your home
business income that, when added to your salary, reaches the
current ceiling. When you file your Form 1040-ES, which is due
April 15, you must make the first of four equal installment
payments on your estimated tax bill.

Another good way to trim taxes is by setting up a Keogh plan or
an Individual Retirement Account. With either of these, you can
shelter some of your home business income from taxes by investing
it for your retirement.

Website Or No Website…That's The Question

2008-09-13T20:02:00.001-07:00

Do you want to make money through the Internet but you don't have enough experience or capital to start your own online business? You don't have to worry, for a lot of online marketing options exist for you to start with. One of these options, and shall I say the best, is affiliate marketing.

Affiliate marketing provides first time online marketers like you the chance to market something online even without having your own product to sell. All you have to do is to sign up with an affiliate marketing program, which is usually owned by an online merchant or retailer, and start picking the products you want to promote. As an affiliate, you are paid by the merchant for your services on a commission basis, that is whenever you have directed a visitor to the merchant's site and the visitor actually buys something.

Becoming an affiliate in an affiliate marketing program is often quick and easy, and for most affiliate programs, signing up is also free. But despite these and all the benefits being promised by affiliate programs, many people are still hesitant to get into affiliate marketing. One of the reasons why a lot of people remain hesitant is the lack of a website to start marketing his affiliate products with. This now leads us to the question of whether a website is required or necessary in affiliate marketing or not.

Many people say that one can do affiliate marketing even without a website to start with. Actually, one can really start promoting and marketing his affiliate products even without a website; and there exist a lot of ways on how this can be done. In fact, many affiliate marketing strategies that leads to success can exist without actually needing a website. Among these strategies are email marketing, offline promotions, writing e-books, writing ezines and engaging in online discussions like forums, chats, message boards and others.

*Email Marketing

Email marketing, or maintaining email lists, is actually the most popular affiliate marketing strategy that doesn't require the affiliate to maintain a website. In this affiliate marketing strategy, what you basically do is maintain a list of the email ads of your prospective customers and provide them with articles that are relevant with the affiliate products and programs you are promoting. Articles that you provide your contacts with need not always be promotional, for many individuals find such types of email annoying. Rather, it would be better if you provide them with something informative and just add small text ads that link to your merchant's site.

*Offline Promotion

There are many ways on how you can promote your affiliate products offline. Among the common medium used for such promotions are classified ads, brochures and flyers. Classified ads would generally work better compared to the other two because classified ads in periodicals often get a wider audience.

*Writing Free e-books

If you have a knack in writing, writing an e-book can be the best way for you to promote your affiliate products in the absence of an actual website. Just like in emails and newsletters, your readers would better appreciate your e-book if it is not too promotional but rather informative. Be sure, however, to make the contents of your e-books relative to the actual affiliate products you are promoting. And just like in email marketing, you can just place text ads or banners somewhere near the end of your e-book that links to the merchant's site.

*Writing Free Ezines

Ezines are publications or articles that aim to inform individuals about a particular topic. If you don't have a website and yet want to be an affiliate, you can well use ezines to promote your affiliate products or to insert links to your merchant's site. If you have a website, your ezine article may actually work well as content for your site. But since you have no website, you can just submit your free ezine articles to various websites that hosts ezines, like goarticles.com, ezinearticles.com and others.

*Online discussions (Forums, Chats, Message Boards, etc.)

With or without a website, you just can't ignore online discussions because they are great venues for marketing your affiliate products. In chats, forums, message boards and discussion boards with topics related to your products, you can easily find people who may be interested with the products you are promoting.

With all these strategies, it may appear that one really doesn't need to have a website to start marketing his affiliate products and promoting his affiliate programs. Well, starting in an affiliate program without a website may be easy, but getting successful in affiliate marketing without a website is another thing. While one can actually gain enormous success in affiliate marketing even without a website, it is a rare instance that "newbies" like you can reach the same levels of success.

Having a website is not really a pre-requisite in entering into an affiliate program, unless otherwise the program owner would require you to have one. But while this is so, I would still recommend that you have for yourself a website, if not now, then maybe at a later time. Having a website creates a lot of advantages in affiliate marketing. For one, it provides you a place where you can creatively promote not only one of your affiliate products but all of your affiliate products. With a website, you can also advertise your affiliate products to a wider market.

Again, having a website is not a requirement in affiliate marketing. But with the advantages that a website can provide, I'd rather have one for myself and make affiliate marketing a lot easier for me.

Search Engine Optimization for Affiliate Marketers

2008-09-13T20:01:00.001-07:00

There are no secrets on how to rank high with the major search engines because effective search engine optimizations are now immense. What is search engine optimization? Before we discuss that thing, you have to understand first how search engines work and a bit of know-how.

Search engines are into providing their users with the most relevant and up-to-date information to match the search term that was used. They are sophisticated pieces of technology which allow users to quickly find relevant websites by searching for a word or a phrase. Search engine results are useless to users if the information doesn’t relate to the search term, or if the results are old. People expect the most up-to-date and fresh information that is useful to them.

Updating your website everyday and adding some materials will help you get noticed by the search engines. So, if you are going to sell any type of product or service online, you have to optimize your website for the search engines, in order to boost traffic and sales. It is because over 90% of your business will likely come directly from search engine results. And for that reason, it is absolutely important to optimize your site for search engines for you to have the greatest deals in the entire world.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process by which webmasters or online business owners utilize strategic copy to augment their website’s status. It is certain that the internet has grown so fast over the years and the competition for the best search engine position has created an enormous market. Therefore, better understanding the fundamental elements of Search Engine Optimization is vital for an online business’ success.

Making use of effective search engine optimization techniques will improve the page rank of your website. There are many tricks that can be used to increase page rank; the most effective method is to provide high quality content consistently. This seems like a simple concept but there are many websites that fails to provide content that visitors find interesting. Sites which provide content that are interesting, well-written and regularly updated create highly engaged visitors who are more likely to return to the website in the coming days. So, if you can set your website apart from those boring, lifeless sites then do it. You’ll surely have a step closer to achieving high page rank through search engine optimization.

The next significant factor for an effective search engine optimization is to include keywords and phrases within your content. To make sure that you are properly targeting your market, you have to make sure that the keywords and phrases you have on your site are the keywords and phrase that your site is actually optimized for. The more keywords you use in your content, the more likely it is that online visitors will find your site when they do some research with those words. If you are unfailing with these techniques, then your overall search engine optimization will increase, boosting your page rank.

You should also have to develop a linking strategy as a part of your search engine optimization. Not only does this provide free advertising for your site, but it makes the impression that your site is imperative because of its affiliated links. For each link that you have pointing back to you, that is another chance for your potential customer to find you. The more inbound links that you have pointing to your site, the higher you will be ranked in the search engines.

Another is to develop a content stratagem. People who get to search from the internet are looking for information. The more information you provide for them and the more helpful it is, the more likely you will make the sale. Writing articles is the most effective way to build up content for your site. When writing articles to post on your site, make sure that you develop a clear means of arranging their content. You can do this by simply adding a new page to your site. This will allow room for extra articles to be added as you write them, and will allow you to build up an archive of articles which will maintain to draw online visitors. Make sure also that you have included your archived articles in a directory that is next to the root web of your site so that the search engines will catalog your online articles.

Always keep in mind that search engine optimization methods are important in developing your site’s status. With that thing in mind, make sure that you write high-quality, keyword rich content and link your site to and from a deliberate family of other sites. These things will help improve your site’s popularity and coerce increased business through your online business.

Autoresponders

2008-09-07T17:28:00.000-07:00

The typical example of an autoresponder is a sequence of emails sent out over time to people
in the form of a 'mini course'.
Talk about a sequence of messages e.g. a person signs up and then they get
• Message #1 immediately
• Message #2 after 1 day
• Message #3 after 3 days
• Message #4 after 7 days
• Message #5 after 10 days
• And a new message every 10 days after that
What are the benifits of sending out Autoresponder messages
Stop and think for a moment. Most people who visit your web site come once, have a look
and then move on right? (it's what you do when you're looking around).
The problem is, people often forget who you are and they forget about your product or
service. But, if you can convince people to give you their email address and then over time
contact them (automatically of course), you do achieve some very important goals:
1. You get into people's long term memory. You build up recognition for you or your brand.
2. You build up a (very large) database of prospects you can contact at any time. Imagine
having a database of 50,000 prospects who are used to receiving high quality content
from you? If ever business is ever quiet, or if you want to maximize your sales, you can
simply send out an offer to your list of potential customers and drum up new work!
3. And you can position yourself as the guru for your particular industry!
The secret to success using Autoresponders
When it comes to writing successful autoresponder messages, the most important key is
having quality content.
Unless you provide your subscribers with some valuable information in return for the time they
spend reading your autoresponder messages, then they'll quickly lose interest in reading your
messages.
It's fine to include a sales pitch, but people must always feel they're getting more value than
sales pitch.
One option is to have a defined ratio of emails that are a sales pitch (e.g. 1 sales pitch to
every 5 content emails).
Another option is to write newsletter-style e-mails which are full of great content and put a
short sales pitch at the bottom of each e-mail.
Depending on your business model, one of these strategies might suit your business better
than the other - but both have proven to be very successful for Alliance Software clients who
have used them.
The nice thing is in many businesses, if you educate, you actually create the need for your
product service at the same time.
Think about it from the perspective of a website development business (e.g. Alliance
Software). By showing our customers some of the advanced web marketing strategies used
by the most successful online businesses today, we position ourselves as the natural
suppliers. You can do the same.
Isn't this spamming people? Won't this annoy some people?
The technical definition of spam is unsolicited commercial emails. So long as people have
given their consent for you to send them e-mails (which happens when they voluntarily sign
up), then it's not spam.
However, even without breaking the spam laws, you can still be viewed as a "spammer" if you
don't have quality content in your e-mails. If the content is good, people will appreciate your
emails. (It's like a trade - you're essentially "buying" the ability to give your sales pitch to
people in return for giving them valuable information.)
Finally, Autoresponder emails allow people to unsubscribe at any time. That means, if you do
offend or annoy someone, they are able to click a link and stop receiving your e-mails.
How do I get people to sign up for my Autoresponder sequence?
In order to get someone to sign up for your autoresponder sequence, you need to "sell" them
on the idea of giving you their e-mail address.
This means showing them the benefits of signing up to your autoresponder sequence, such
as telling them about the great information they'll receive on a regular basis.
A common trick used by Alliance Software clients is to offer an enticing little bonus at the start
in return for their e-mail address.
This is often something Downloadable (such as an e-book, audio or video download), but can
also be a small gift which is cheap to manufacture and post out (such as a DVD, CD or book),
or even a discount voucher they can use next time they buy from you.
Whatever you choose to offer as your enticing bonus in return for people signing up, make
sure it's something relevant to your customers, and something they would want to receive.
The better the bonus you're offering, the more likely it is that someone will sign up to your
autoresponder sequence.
Finally, when you're writing your pitch for people to sign up to your autoresponder sequence,
make sure you gain their trust by telling them how you will keep their personal details private,
and they won't receive spam.
A lot of people are distrustful of web-sites which ask them to provide their e-mail address as
many less scrupulous sites end up selling or renting e-mail addresses to spammers.
By putting these sort of fears to rest for your web-site visitors, it's more likely that they will give
you their e-mail address and sign up to your autoresponder series.
Can I send out special offers to my Autoresponder list?
Yes, of course you can!
If you have a special offer, or an announcement, you can send it to all (or a select group) of
your subscribers at any time.
Your autoresponder list is essentially a list of potential customers who have previously
expressed interest in your company.
Communicating your special offers and announcements to these people is a great idea if you
want to boost your sales!

PING SERVICES for your blogs

2008-09-07T17:11:00.000-07:00

Copy and paste into browser window
1. http://1470.net/api/ping
2. http://api.feedster.com/ping.php
3. http://api.moreover.com/ping
4. http://api.moreover.com/RPC2
5. http://api.my.yahoo.com/RPC2
6. http://api.my.yahoo.com/rss/ping
7. http://bblog.com/ping.php
8. http://bitacoras.net/ping /
9. http://blog.goo.ne.jp/XMLRPC
10. http://blogbot.dk/io/xml-rpc.php
11. http://blogdb.jp/xmlrpc
12. http://blogmatcher.com/u.php
13. http://blogsearch.google.com/ping/RPC2
14. http://bulkfeeds.net/rpc
15. http://coreblog.org/ping /
16. http://mod-pubsub.org/kn_apps/blogchat t
17. http://ping.amagle.com /
18. http://ping.bitacoras.com
19. http://ping.blo.gs /
20. http://ping.bloggers.jp/rpc /
21. http://ping.blogmura.jp/rpc /
22. http://ping.cocolog-nifty.com/xmlrpc
23. http://ping.exblog.jp/xmlrpc
24. http://ping.fakapster.com/rpc
25. http://ping.feedburner.com
26. http://ping.myblog.jp
27. http://ping.rootblog.com/rpc.php
28. http://ping.syndic8.com/xmlrpc.php
29. http://ping.weblogalot.com/rpc.php
30. http://ping.weblogs.se /
31. http://pinger.blogflux.com/rpc
32. http://pingoat.com/goat/RPC2
33. http://rcs.datashed.net/RPC2
34. http://rpc.blogrolling.com/pinger /
35. http://rpc.britblog.com
36. http://rpc.icerocket.com:10080
37.http://rpc.pingomatic.com /
38. http://rpc.tailrank.com/feedburner/RPC2
39. http://rpc.technorati.com/rpc/ping
40. http://rpc.weblogs.com/RPC2
41. http://rpc.wpkeys.com
42. http://services.newsgator.com/ngws/xmlrpcping.aspx
43. http://thingamablog.sourceforge.net/ping.php
44. http://topicexchange.com/RPC2
45. http://trackback.bakeinu.jp/bakeping.php
46. http://www.a2b.cc/setloc/bp.a2b
47. http://www.bitacoles.net/ping.php
48. http://www.blogdigger.com/RPC2
49. http://www.blogoole.com/ping /
50. http://www.blogoon.net/ping /
51. http://www.blogpeople.net/servlet/weblogUpdates
52. http://www.blogroots.com/tb_populi.blog?id=1
53. http://www.blogshares.com/rpc.php
54. http://www.blogsnow.com/ping
55. http://www.blogstreet.com/xrbin/xmlrpc.cg i
56. http://www.lasermemory.com/lsrpc /
57. http://www.mod-pubsub.org/kn_apps/blogchatter/ping.php
58. http://www.newsisfree.com/xmlrpctest.php
59. http://www.popdex.com/addsite.php
60. http://www.snipsnap.org/RPC2
61. http://www.weblogues.com/RPC /
62. http://xmlrpc.blogg.de /
63. http://xping.pubsub.com/ping /

Affiliate Program Marketing and Management Forums

2008-09-07T17:05:00.000-07:00

1. ABestWeb Affiliate Marketing Forum
2. Affiliates4U Forum
3. Affiliate Boards Forum
4. Allan Gardyne's Associate Programs
Forum
5. Phil Wiley's Affiliate Talk Forum
6. Shawn Collins' Affiliate Manager Forum
7. Affiliates Directory Forum
8. Brad Larned's Affiliate Talk Forum
9. ClickBank Success Forum
10. CB Guide Affiliate Marketing Forum
11. Rosalind Gardner's Net Profits Today
Forum
12. RevShare Discussion Forums
13. The Top Affiliate Affiliate Program
Marketing Forum

Those Tricky Customers

2008-08-09T13:32:00.001-07:00

Internet marketing can be a cat and mouse game with you being the cat and the customer being a very wily mouse. Internet denizens are a clever sort and if they see something on your web site, they will not hesitate to sign up for a membership and even agree to receive your promotional emails. But those tricky customers have ways to dodging your email advertising so even though you think you are advertising to them, your messages are actually vanishing off the face of the earth. So we have to be just as clever as well.
Knowing how customers think is a big part of being successful in your marketing plans. Internet customers are just like customers in the old marketing model. They are curious about promotions and they want to enjoy your give aways and dodge ongoing advertising. The cat and mouse game is to get them to want your advertisements by attaching them to things they want and get them to give you their email addresses and even to add your email identification to their preferred contacts list so your marketing emails fly right through their spam filters.
Much of what goes into web site design is making a web "place" that will draw customers to register for a "membership" or otherwise provide you with their real email address. When you develop a system that is working with actual visitors on your web site, you can then build a mailing list that is of much greater value than any list of email addresses you might buy from a mass mailing email service. Your email list is pure gold because it consists of real customers who actually had an interest in your web site and your product or service and who are likely to come back if your marketing is well done. Not only is that email contact list gold to you as a business, it is of great interest to other businesses in similar lines of business as you who will pay well to get their hands on that marketing email contacts list for the same reasons you value it.
However, those tricky customers of yours even have ways of stepping around your validation schemes and it all lies in the fact that anyone can set up as many email addresses online that they want. You know from your personal use of email that you have one or two primary email accounts, probably with your ISP that go directly to your desktop email software such as Microsoft Outlook. But most of us also set up two or three or many more other email accounts with services like HotMail, Yahoo and others. Its easy to set up an account on these services to use for games or to register for contests.
Those alternate services are where tricky online customers can trap your emails and actually give you the impression that you are advertising to them when you are not. A typical ploy by internet denizens is to send any incoming emails that are not personal or of immediate value to a yahoo, hotmail or other free email service. The result is that even if you harvested their email address when they signed on for a service or became a member of your web site, your advertising emails are being "dumped" into these alternative email inboxes which the customer has no intention of keeping up with.
The customer might check those email boxes every few weeks and just hit "delete all" on the inbox knowing that they don’t want to see any of those emails. And when they do that, there goes your advertising and you may never know what happened.
One way to try to bypass this problem is to make verification of email a part of the registration process. In that way, the customer has to log onto that email box to see a verification email and hit a link in that email to validate that it is a valid email address. But the final answer is to make your marketing emails so interesting and valuable to your customers that they don't want to "dump them" into a holding tank email because they want to see what you are going to send them. And when you get to that level of relationship with a customer, you really do have a gold email list that will result in much higher sales for your online business.

Selling and Teaching via Email

2008-08-09T13:31:00.002-07:00

Probably the most reliable way to get around the problem of email delivery problems is to shift the desire for communications from the merchant, which is you, to the customer. By turning the tables so the customer wants your emails, the customer will take the steps to white list your email sending address to make sure he or she gets every single email you send. And the best way to create that desire is to give them something of value in their email each week.
People come to the internet for many things including entertainment, discussion, free stuff and diversion. But one of the most common things that people want is knowledge. Yo have a specialized knowledge you can offer to your customers that will not only benefit them but it can be used as a marketing tool to open communications to your customers email inboxes in a far more effective way than any blind email or mass mailing could ever do.
There are several ways to offer training courses online including ebooks or videos. But what is most effective for the sake of opening a long lasting communication channel to your customers is an email course in which you step by step lay out your specialized knowledge about your field of expertise over a period of twelve to fifteen installments.
Sometimes this kind of offering is called an autoresponder series because the function of an autoresponder software package can be helpful with distribution of the e-course. An autoresponder is a specialized service or type of software that either automatically responds to events or emails by sending out a response email or it can be used to generate email traffic on a schedule. So you can use an autoresponder to send the next installment of your email course to those who "subscribe" to it and know that it will go out without fail on the appointed day.
Now probably the biggest challenge of offering an autoresponder email course is how to create the course. Few of us are writers and while you may have the knowledge, you may have trouble composing that knowledge in the form of a course. There are a couple of ways to solve this problem…
. You could hire a ghostwriter to compose the course for you.. You could speak the course contents into a tape recorder and then have it transcribed into a written course that could be sent to customers in short email installments.. You could even have a friend "interview" you to draw that specialized knowledge out of you. The interviews could be fairly free form and then you could take the transcriptions of the interviews and organize them by topic into an e-course to offer your customers.
Once you have the contents laid out, don’t publish the course until you look it over to see where in the outlines you can integrate marketing messages. Many of the products or services you offer as part of your business are directly related to your specialized knowledge. So by including links to your shopping cart pages or to web pages that can lead customers to purchase decisions, the course is both instructional and useful for promoting your web site and sales as well.
The next step is to get the course into the hands of your users. The first candidates to become "students" are the active cyber citizens who spend a lot of time on your web site. So look at the regular posters on your message boards and blogs or citizens of a chat room on your site or contributors to your wiki and open conversations with them about offering a course.
You can also create multiple ways to allow your customers to subscribe to the course series. An online sign up is always a good choice because you can harvest their email address there and then open communications to their email and see to it that your business email is added to their favored contacts spam filter list so they do not see the courses disappear into their spam bucket each week.
As the customer enjoys learning from your series, the added benefit of getting them used to an active interaction with you and your web site is put in place. And the course can be viral to be passed along to friends and family members so it recruits new customers as well.

Viral Marketing Trumps Email Deliverability

2008-08-09T13:31:00.001-07:00

The internet has turned another corner in the last few years. This should come as no surprise. The one constant about the internet is change. But the changes that have become a reality in the last few years have made fundamental changes to how we view the internet, how we use it and what we expect when we go on a web site and interact with the web site owners any more.
From wiki control over web sites to YouTube to social networks, the emphasis of the internet has shifted from the operators of web sites to the users. And with this change the way those of us involved in using the internet for marketing have begun to change the way we do business as well.
The model for internet marketing that predates the shift to the WEB 2.0 methodology was heavily dependent on email as the primary line of communication with the customer. Next to online sales, email was the way customers sent in inquiries and the way customer support was handled. And other than online advertising, email was the most sophisticated method for internet marketing we had at our disposal.
Over time, however, the use of email for marketing began to see abuses in the form of spam. More and more the need to protect customers from spam communications has so dominated the world of email marketing that has become a cost burden for online merchants and customers alike and it has slowed or stopped email deliverability to the point that it is uncertain on any given business day whether you can depend on email to keep your business running or not.
As a result, a discipline and a methodology for circumventing email delivery interference points such as spam filters has imposed yet another new area of online knowledge that takes time away from running your business so you can focus on working with ISPs and learning the methods of spam control so you can carefully construct your emails so at least they will get to your customers. But the methods you have to use to jump through hoops to get your marketing emails to customers have come to dominate email marketing so heavily that the message and the communication has almost taken a back seat to just getting the email delivered.
It is interesting that the big changes in how the internet operates in some ways are going to retire this cumbersome email system before we come up with a solution to the email delivery problem. There are some very sophisticated internet marketing techniques that are showing themselves to be highly effective that never depend on email at all. And as modern internet merchants turn to these methods, the problem of email delivery may never be solved as much as it is ignored and allowed to die out on its own.
Viral marketing is one way modern internet marketers are recruiting new customers and getting the word out about products and services by tapping the power of video and the instinct internet denizens have for downloading free stuff. Viral marketing is a method where the merchant creates a download that is desirable. A funny video, a musical performance or an ebook make great viral marketing tools. But along with the free "toy", the download carries the marketing message of the merchant and is downloaded into the internet network of users quickly and with no cost to the merchant or the user.
The viral part occurs naturally as users upload the video or link to it on other web sites or share it with each other on blogs or through email. The marketing message spreads from customer to customer, like a virus spreads the flu and as it spreads, it directs new customers back to the merchant web site to become active customers.
This is a powerful marketing technique that depends on nothing more than human nature for success. And unlike the cumbersome email system, viral marketing has its own way of avoiding "spam", it is fast and it is cost free. But above all the one trait that makes viral marketing trump email marketing as the means to success for the future of internet marking is a simple principle that always attracts business people. It works.

The Only Real Email Deliverability Sure Thing

2008-08-09T13:30:00.004-07:00

If you ever looked at the hundred of spam messages that get caught in your email filter, a common reaction you might have to the ploys these marketers are trying is "They must think I am stupid." What is particularly amazing is how hard email mass merchandisers (spam artists) go to great lengths to overcome spam filter methods to get their email into your email box but how little effort they invest in to not get deleted once they get there.
I was watching spam one day and I noticed a couple tricks that the marketers were trying to use. One was to include long strings of unrelated words on the theory that some of those phrases will draw the customers attention so you will open the email. But in the process the email was gibberish and it was immediately deleted so all that hard work was for nothing. Another ploy was to use a image of the message so that it could not be scanned for flag words that would be caught by a spam filter. It didn’t make the promotion any more appealing even if it did get to my email box and it got deleted.
The reason none of those emails ever work is that those marketers have no reputation with me. And that one word "reputation" is at the heart of how to overcome the deliverability problem and assure that a greater percentage of your emails gets all the way to your customers. To make sure that happens, you have to build trust with the customer. You have to build relationship so when they see your email come in, they want to read it. That takes work and it takes ongoing effort not only to build relationship with those customers but to maintain it. But it is the only real email delivery sure thing that will work every time. A good email reputation means more delivered emails and more sales. And when that reputation is hurt, so are your sales.
Have you noticed how often when you sign up to use an online service, they boldly display a guarantee that your email will not be used for promotional purposes or sold. There is one reason they are doing that. That company wants to build trust with you so if they contact you, you will trust their email and so you will continue to give them your private information for an ongoing online commerce relationship. That "friendship" between customer and merchant is pure gold to any online business and that is the kind of relationships you must build with your customers to make email deliverability issues become a thing of the past.
Any study of the real experts who are trying to solve the email deliverability problem will focus on this one issue - email reputation, trust and authentication. Internet customers take it seriously because to have access to their real email box, you have to deserve it. And to deserve the right to sell to a customer, you have to establish trust. They have to trust you that you are "for real" and not an internet scam. They have to trust you that you will offer them value both in the product or service that is your business but even in the email you send to them regularly. And they have to trust you that you wont betray their trust by spamming them or giving them over to spam operators who will trod on that trusted relationship to try to get a cheap sale.
You probably remember as a youngster your father telling you that trust is not something you can ask for. It is something that is earned. But you don’t just earn it once, you continue to earn it over and over again every day. That is what you must make your corporate ethic when dealing with the customers you sell to online. Treat them with respect and earn their trust. And if you do that, they will reward your respect with internet traffic on your web site and with sales. And that is how to prosper in an online world.

WEB 2.0 to the Rescue

2008-08-09T13:30:00.003-07:00

You may have heard about WEB 2.0 but perhaps you thought it was some trendy new toy that would go by the wayside like lots of them do. Instead it represents a revolution in how the internet works. And to an internet retailer or merchant such as you and I, it represents a solution to one of the biggest problems we face in staying in touch with our customers and that is email deliverability problems.
The reason WEB 2.0 is going to come to the rescue in saving us from our email deliverability problems lies in how it basically changes the way people use and view the internet and internet communications in particular. Before WEB 2.0, if you wanted to communicate with your customers, you had to take the communication to them. Hence you put together an email that you sent out via a mass mailing or using a service and you hoped that you would hear back from some percentage of your customers about this most recent promotion.
To a large extent under that system, you never knew if the customer got your email or if they took advantage of what you have to offer because of the email you spent money to send out. But a bigger problem that has grown bigger and bigger with each passing year is that spam and spam filter software that is designed to protect individuals from the potentially dangerous effects of spam also have created a huge problem of email delivery verification for online merchants to contend with.
As long as the formula is that the merchant must take marketing to the customer, email delivery problems will be the bane of the internet merchant's existence. That is why WEB 2.0 is going to come to the rescue by changing the basic assumption of how we communicate to customers. With WEB 2.0, you no longer have to take marketing to the customer because the way the internet now works is customers come to you where you can interact and market to them dynamically on your web site where they might "hang out" for extended periods of time.
WEB 2.0 and how it works can be seen in some of the most explosive new internet services of the last five years including YouTube, MySpace and Wikipedia. These web sites are the first fruits of a redesign of the internet that makes cyberspace a place where the internet population create the content and how customers interact on your web site is as important or more important than what you put on the web site yourself.
WEB 2.0 has the potential to take email out of the marketing loop entirely. If you retrofit your web site to accommodate the interactive concepts you see used on Wikis, on YouTube and on MySpace, you can create an environment so driven by customers that it is an ideal environment for marketing, for customer communications and for sales. You can use this kind of online community setting to place your sales force in a cyber sales room to casually interact with customers and guide them to purchase decisions in a low key, no pressure way that is just what customers like in an online community.
One of the great innovations of the WEB 2.0 approach to web site design is that you can actually link videos or web site pages from other web sites and make them part of your own. Get familiar with the way modern web sites work and interact with your web development gurus so they can guide you in how to use WEB 2.0 methodologies to bring customers to your sales setting rather than having to go to them with email marketing campaigns. And when you have successfully made that transition, you may never have to worry about email deliverability issues again.

Making Your Customers Feel Special

2008-08-09T13:30:00.001-07:00

The idea of marketing to a specialized niche of very active customers and then using that base to recruit in a viral way is new to the internet but one that goes way back in the non internet world of marketing. It is well known that if you create an elite group of dedicated customers, they will become a recruitment army for your business and become your marketing team that works for free without even knowing they are doing so.
This approach to marketing is not as focused on email communications as many of our internet marketing efforts were ten years ago. But that is a good thing for two reasons. The first reason is that dynamic marketing, meaning selling through a relationship model is far more effective and yields a higher per sale basket total as well as a much higher incidence of repeat sales than cold call selling and it is far less frustrating.
The second reason is that using email as the backbone of your sales program has become more and more problematic because of the influence of spam and spam filters which have made the free flow of marketing emails much more difficult to manage. Because spam filtering has become so aggressive and so successful, email delivery of marketing material is harder to do and takes a greater investment of time and ongoing knowledge that pulls you away from your customers and from your businesses. So the migration to dynamic selling and away from cold call and mass marketing email techniques is a natural evolution of the internet marketing model in the new century.
So the online experience of your customer takes on a greater importance in your marketing plan. But you will find that devoting more time and money to building a web "place" that your customers participate in actively will be far more rewarding than any scattershot approach to email marketing could ever be even before the eruption of spam which made email delivery such a nightmare.
One way to give your customers the feel of being part of your organization is to build a specialized membership area of your web site that customers must make an extra effort to become part of. In fact, many online retailers actually charge a small fee to be part of this membership site. That is effective because the fee gives your members the sensation of being part of a closed community and the revenue is good for your cash flow.
Your customers who chose to become part of the membership area of your web site should get some special privileges and rewards for their elevated status. So you might create a discount card that creates a desire to spend more in your online store only for those customers who are part of the elite membership area. Your customers will think they are getting something very special when in fact, all you are doing is exchanging a small part of your mark up for greater volume of sales which is always a good trade off for you as a retailer.
One of the big values of creating a membership area is that those who populate that membership can become part of the team to make contributions about future product or service offerings. This is tremendously valuable to your development teams because the more you "pick the brains" of your customers, the more you will offer products or services that are going to be a success when they hit the market.
You will see a greater sense of brand loyalty grow out of the people who enjoy exclusive membership in your reserved area of your web site. Make it a point to make that part of the site look elegant and luxurious. Its all just graphics but in cyberspace, graphics have a reality all their own. And don't take your eye off of the goal of using the membership area for recruitment of new customers through referrals or to take marginal customers and make them devotees as well. A few gift memberships can go a long way toward accomplishing those goals.

Smart Money is On Web Site Traffic

2008-08-09T13:29:00.001-07:00

There may be nothing more frustrating when you are trying to build a strong internet marketing plan than to see your email promotions fall apart because of poor email deliverability. The formula of marketing is one that you should be able to believe in.
. You know you have a good product or service that customers will benefit from and that will bring you repeat business once customer relationships are found.. You know there is a market niche out there that are highly likely to patronize your business.. You know that there is a market need for your product or service so once the customers are aware of what you have to offer, sales potential is significant.. Marketing techniques should work to bring customers on board to get the sales moving and take your business to the next level.
Small wonder that you get frustrated because with all the elements in place, the problem is your marketing emails are not getting to the customers. So you have to spend additional money on email delivery monitoring and management services and additional time establishing relationships with ISPs just to get permission to push your emails through to the customers.
There really is no equivalent blockage in the non internet marketing world. It is as though you put a billboard up on the busiest intersection in town where customers you know can use your services drive every day only to find they closed the freeway and none of the customers will see the billboard. But you have to pay for it anyway.
Maybe it is time to rethink the equation. For one thing, email is one of the oldest forms of internet communications there is. Maybe it is too old. It is old enough that a culture of fear has been built around the whole spam problem and sophisticated tools are in use by customers, ISPs and spammers all at war about whether scam artists should be able to abuse internet customers through email.
But something has changed right under the feet of email scammers that has also altered the formula for internet marketing entirely. And that change may have made email as a less important internet marketing tool. The thing that has changed is WEB 2.0 which has changed the formula for how people use the internet and how people market on it as well. Because WEB 2.0 has changed the approach to the internet to make web site more than just online brochures but living "places" where people interact and the web visitor becomes a vital part of the web site itself, that changes how we might approach marketing to web savvy customers.
As odd as it may seem, email may be too slow as a mode of communication with your customers in this day of instant messaging, message boards and voice over internet communications. It isn't that people don’t use email any more because they do. But with the imposition of so many restrictions causing email deliverability to become a nightmare, a shift in focus to direct marketing to a very active internet community on your web site is in order.
This means that instead of throwing good money after bad trying to fix the email deliverability problem, maybe email marketing is no longer where the smart money should go. Instead the smart money might be better used to update your web site, to make your online "presence" a real place and to build and then capitalize on live and active web traffic as a far more dynamic way to conduct your marketing campaign.

Dump the Mass Mailings

2008-08-09T13:28:00.004-07:00

What if you could drop a marketing email into 100,000 email boxes in one day and have 100,000 potential new customers see your marketing message and possibly become long term customers of your internet business?
That sounds pretty enticing doesn't it? That is the basic marketing strategy that many internet marketers have tried to use to build their online business. This is a methodology commonly called "Mass Mailings",. That is the polite word for this technique. The less complimentary term that email recipients use for mass marketing emails is simply "spam".
Mass mailing marketing has been big business on the internet. And it is unfair to say that it has been used exclusively by scam artists or pyramid scheme operators. Many legitimate business have tried mass mailings to build their internet business on the promise that the companies who offer these services have harvested tens of thousands of valid email addresses that they will send your marketing message to for a small fee.
Compared to the amount of emails that will go out, the fee seems fair. The marketing formula for success is also a reasonable one. Usually the fee for the mailing can be offset by a small number of sales, perhaps less than ten. And with 100,000 emails going out, the expectation that you might get a response of 100-1000 inquiries that could result in 10 sales is not unreasonable at all.
The problem is that for every 1000 customers who may have an interest in your product or service, you will have antagonized 99,000 others who see your email as nothing more than electronic junk mail otherwise known as spam. The spam epidemic has reached a level of crisis precisely because mass mailing services and software have made it possible for good business, scam artists and even virus producers to spread their bad emails to a vast audience if the spam is left untouched.
The result is that an entire cottage industry has sprung up to fight the spam epidemic. These companies sell software to you to fight spam emails by keeping up on the most up to date spamming methods and catching bad emails and sending them to your deleted box or a spam folder for future deletion. This sets in motion a vicious cycle of one one-upmanship in which the spam operators find ways around the spam filters and the spam filter providers continue to update their software to stop the newest tricks of the spam operators.
It has become a huge mess and the worst part about it is that you as a valid internet marketer of a valid product or service only want a reliable method to communicate with new and existing customers. Mass mailing seems like one way to do that. But when you decide to try your hand at sending a mass mailing email, you get in the middle of the spam war and you are then faced with dealing with sophisticated email delivery hindrance systems that are there to fight the problem of spam.
So what can we do about trying to build our online businesses with this huge battle causing serious disruptions to email deliverability? For one thing, abandon the use of mass mailings entirely. They don't work and they put you in the distasteful company of spammers and internet criminals.
There are far better ways to communicate with customers such as web site memberships, newsletters and contests that the customer can opt in on. Build your relationships with the customer from the customer out and you will be able to avoid the entire spam deliverability wars and side step the email deliverability issues as well.

Draw Customers to You Through Web Events

2008-08-09T13:28:00.003-07:00

Email delivery problems has put an urgency to the priority of changing how we communicate with customers on the internet. At one time, you may have conducted virtually all of your marketing and customer interactions via email. Not that long ago, there was a time when email was so dominant as a form of communication that we all depended on it almost exclusively because it was the only thing that was truly interactive about the internet.
Two developments in how the internet works has changed that scenario significantly. From a negative point of view, email delivery has continued to grow as a bigger and bigger problem every year. That means that more and more online merchants have struggled with how undependable email communications has become. The problem, of course is that spam as relentlessly eroded how much anyone can depend on email except for private communications. So to avoid having to make email delivery a second career, many online merchants and retailers are looking for new and up to date modes of communication to replace email.
The second development is more positive and it is the WEB 2.0 evolution of the internet which has changed how the internet works. Whereas business web sites used to be nothing more than online brochures, all web sites are now migrating to the WEB 2.0 model which means web sites themselves are seats of customer communications which takes the emphasis off of email as a sole line of communication with customers.
These developments bode well for providing an escape for online merchants with the cumbersome overhead of trying to keep up with email delivery issues from month to month. But it doesn’t mean you will abandon email entirely. The one aspect of email that has yet to be totally replaced is its ability to remind a customer of your products and services. Just having a highly interactive web site is good but internet denizens are notoriously short in the memory department and they need a reason to come back to your web site from time to time.
A web event is a great way to create excitement and to make your customers want to come to your web site at a specified time to be part of the big event. A big sale, a special speaker, a musical performance or an interview with a notable celebrity from your field of expertise is just the thing to draw people to your web site to experience something new and interesting.
The more you can get away from using email reminders and communications, the more you get away from having to worry about deliverability issues. This is especially true with a web event. If you go to the effort and expense of scheduling a big event for your users, to have email deliverability problems stall or lose your reminders resulting in a failed event would be a disaster.
So to build your clientele for the big event, promote it interactively on your web site. You can use your blog, message boards or chat rooms for promotion and to create excitement. Then from each of those web site pages, take interested customers to a sign up page for the event and do an email verification of their sign up. That verification can be used to encourage those customers to add a specific email address to their preferred users list. Once that is in place, you have much more leverage to email your users about this and other events and drive your customers back to your web site for events, sales and for you to do your marketing dynamically and interactively, the WEB 2.0 way.

Don’t Look Like Spam

2008-08-09T13:28:00.001-07:00

There is an art to email delivery that really is not that difficult to understand when you put your private email communications in context. Most of us encounter email delivery problems when we start using email for marketing purposes and we are sending out a lot of emails to many customers. You may have noticed that very rarely do you encounter email deliverability problems with your private emails to friends or even with business emails.
That is because spam filter software has become very adept at telling the difference between a professional email that could be spam and private communications. So naturally that tells us something important about how to go about avoiding email delivery problems when constructing marketing communications. You just have to work to make sure your marketing emails do not look like spam and look more like a private email so they fly right through spam filters and get to your customers.
In addition your marketing emails must act like private emails. That means if you have a well developed mailing list of perhaps several thousand of email addresses or more, do not manage that from your private email service. For a mailing of that size, it is best to utilize the services of a professional autoresponder service. The cost is nominal and could be by the mailing. They can send out your emails in such a way as to not draw the alarms of the spam filter software guardians. And they often offer additional services such as deliverability reports, retransmits of bounced emails and reports of bad email addresses that can save you a lot of time and make you more efficient as well.
One of the ways that spam filters often identify spam is by the level of graphics that is used in the marketing email. While very attractive emails do send a message of professionalism to the customer, they don’t send that message if they end up at the bottom of a spam quarantine folder. So avoid the use of graphics altogether. Just say what you have to say to your customer and then draw them to your web site with a link where they can see your professional graphics.
Have you ever scanned a full spam filter holding folder? If you have not, you should because it will tell you a lot about how spammers write. Just by scanning twenty or thirty of these spam messages, you can get a feel for the techniques used by spammers and you can avoid those methods in writing your own marketing emails. This falls under the "know thy enemy" category of doing battle with email delivery problems because it is the spammer that is the enemy here.
When writing an email that will go out to your customers or prospective customers, think of that customer as one person whom you are writing to as a friend. Be informal and avoid a lot of marketing "hype" and hyperbole. Spam filters are good at "listening" for the language of spam artists so if you write like a person writing to a person, it is very likely your email will go right on through because it will not be flagged as marketing at all. And the other benefit of writing like this to your customers is that it is a warm and personal style that will work well in communicating to customers.
Make a hobby of keeping up with how spam emailers work and how their messages change as they learn to get around spam filters. The spam filter businesses will be changing with them so be aware of any new trends in this stange part of cyberspace communication so you can alter how you create your marketing emails so you make sure your communications with your customers never look like spam.

Customers and Their ISPs

2008-08-09T13:27:00.003-07:00

Overcoming the spam filter problem so you can get a higher assurance of email deliverability to your customers is a tricky path to walk. It would be one thing if the end user customer was simply using Microsoft Outlook spam filtering. Under those circumstances, it is the end customer who is determining how to filter emails. And to put it bluntly, the Microsoft Outlook and other local email software spam filters are just not that good. Add to that the fact that your ordinary internet citizen is not interested in becoming a full time spam security artist and the local spam filtering issue comes apart pretty fast.
But there is another level of spam filtering that is really making email deliverability a much harder road to travel if you are using cold emails and mass mailings to large groups of customers. That is spam filtering at the ISP level. ISP providers have much greater resources and a much greater motivation to provide sophisticated spam filtering to their customers. The ability to control spam is a major marketing point for any ISP and if the ISP is unable to stop spam before it even reaches the customer, the customer can be easily lured away by a competitor who can get the job done.
When you are dealing with some of the biggest ISPs in the world, if you cannot enter into a relationship with that ISP to prove you are a valid internet service and to show that they should not allow their spam blocking software to block you too, you could see hundreds or thousands of your emails die before they even have a chance to go to the customer. So to protect their customer base who for many ISP represents a huge potential marketing audience for you, ISPs will authenticate vendors to weed out the spam artists and phony operators who just want to abuse the trust customers put in their email and internet providers.
The first step to getting to a relationship of trust with the major ISPs who control access to your customers is to prove to them that you are a valid internet business. They want to know that you are selling a bona fide product or service, that you have been in business a while and that you will be in business to support your customers after the sale. These are not unreasonable requirements to be allowed to use the email box of potentially thousands of email customers.
The second level of authentication that each ISP will require has to do with your integrity in the use of email as a marketing tool. It doesn’t take a lot of examples to demonstrate that email marketing is one of the most abused forms of business communications since the carnival barker. ISPs want to know you are not going to run scams through email to its customers and that you are going to treat customers with respect in regards to how you use your marketing privileges if they are granted.
The process of gaining approval is one you can learn about by entering into a dialog with one of the major ISPs through whom you hope to send marketing emails. In general, the process will be the same for most ISPs after that. So once you have walked through the process with one ISP, not only will you know the ropes but you will have the approval of that first internet business entity to show to the rest and your reputation will begin to grow with subsequent applications. So be patient and give this process proper care and attention because the payoffs of gaining the trust of the major ISPs in the industry can be huge.

Bringing the Customers to You with a Contest

2008-08-09T13:27:00.001-07:00

Internet citizens and anyone who has used email for any length of time knows that they have to be on the alert for unwanted emails. This suspicion is one of the reasons it is difficult to use unsolicited emails for internet marketing any more. Instead a far more effective method is to create excitement in customers you already know is through some promotion that they want to hear about in their email box. And when they are excited to see your emails arrive, they will be sure to add your business email address to their favored email contacts list and you will have circumvented the spam software problem that has been the cause of your email delivery problems all along.
There are many ways to generate excitement in your customer base but perhaps no other one is so additive for your customers as a contest. For the cost of a small prize, people will work tirelessly to satisfy the terms of the contest. And by structuring the contest so the customers must get their clues via email, you are opening that door of email communications for future promotions and marketing. That alone might be worth the price of the prize.
The great thing about creating a contest is you can structure how it works to take the customers to your web site or have them collect clues that are directly related to y our products or services and the contest itself can become a big marketing "commercial" that the customers want to be part of. A contest, along with the obvious value of helping to resolve your email deliverability problems, can serve to generate web site traffic and energize a sluggish site or a function on your web site that you want to see get more attention.
Do you have a blog that isn't getting enough traffic? Hide a clue on it and challenge the contestants to come and search for that clue. Want to see a banner ad get more clicks, let the contestants know the next clue is hidden behind that banner ad and then put the clue on your affiliates page. The clicks to that banner or affiliate link will skyrocket. You can often cover the costs of the promotion and the prize through the increased traffic to your web site entirely.
An online contest can also help drive business to a brick and mortar retail operation that you may be using your web presence to support. This is a wonderful way to meet your online customers face to face by using the contest to take the customers to your store to look for a clue. As they move through the aisles of the store, in addition to eagerly looking for the next step of the contest, they will be shopping and very often, buying things which is exactly what you are looking for.
A contest that you set off via email is also a powerful viral marketing tool. Your customers will naturally tell their friends and relatives about the contest. And as more people hear about the contest, you may see a surge of requests to join in on the fun coming through your online message services. Just be sure to take those customers to an email registration so you can harvest their email addresses and get your business email placed on their favored contacts list too. In that way you cleverly expand your marketing base while drawing new customers to your web site.
You may find that once you get started having contests via email and contests that incorporate every aspect of your online presence, it might become a habit you want to repeat often. The increased traffic, sales and expansion of your customer base can be so lively that there is no reason not to use this marketing tool often.

A Good Mailing List for a Bad One.

2008-08-09T13:26:00.000-07:00

If you have ever used a mass mailing email marketing campaign, you know how they promote their services. The appeal is that, in theory, the service has collected a large amount of valid email addresses that they guarantee will go to real potential internet customers. For a fee, they will take your marketing message and broadcast it to that large customer base and the outcome will be that you will see a percentage of those customers visit your web site or respond to the email and from that percentage, a smaller percentage will become paying customers of yours.
There are two problems with this marketing model. The first one is that no matter how you dress it up, by buying into that kind of marketing program, you are becoming a spammer. Now, it is bad enough that the explosion of spam in the email world has made life difficult for the average cyber citizen and that those cyber citizens are the human beings you want to turn into your customers. But a by product of spam has also made life a lot harder for you and I, the average internet marketing business person.
Life has gotten harder for us because of spam because of the reactionary explosion of spam filtering software being used by internet citizens and ISPs as well and those filtering programs are aggressive and successful which means many of your emails never make it to the customers but disappear into spam holding tanks to eventually be deleted. So because of this fresh problem, email delivery failures have skyrocketed which has seriously harmed the value of email marketing which is what we were hoping to use to prosper our online businesses in the first place. Ironic, isn't it?
The second problem with that marketing model is that the large email mailing list that the service brags about is of dubious value. For one thing, you may or may not know how they harvested those emails. The odds that every one of those email addresses is a valid customer email are very low. You have low confidence in that mailing list and the only thing that makes up for that low confidence is the huge number of email addresses that they have on that mailing list.
A large mailing list is not a good mailing list if it results in a low percentage of new customers, customers who purchase at low basket totals and customers who do not return for repeat sales. This is why a new marketing model is called for that abandons the mass mailing approach and abandons your participation in spam which only makes you an accessory to the crime.
That new marketing model calls for you to look to your existing customer base of clients who are already active users of your products and services and begin to build a much smaller but much higher value email mailing list of customers you actually know and that you know are high volume buyers who come back again and again to buy from you. This approach to building your email list starts at the end, with customers who already fit the profile of what you are looking for and it builds out from there.
You can use that solid customer base to then build a larger customer base that will also be loyal customers who will return solid sales to you for your efforts. Through referrals, viral marketing, contests and give aways, you can excite your customer base to share their love of your products and your web site and bring in like minded friends and family members who will then become part of your high quality mailing list as well. Then you repeat the process and build your mailing list slowly over time.
This process results in a much smaller mailing list but one that you can be confident that they will respond to your emails. Whereas working with a mass marketing service, you may see a 1% response rate and a 1% sales rate from that response group, you can look for a much higher percentage of response and sales from your high quality email contact list because you already know them and you know they will come back again and again to buy from you.

Using Blogs As Sources In Articles

2008-06-06T15:59:00.005-07:00

Depending on what type of blog that you have, it might
be a good idea to advertise your blog using articles.

For example, say you know about jewelry and gemstones,
and your blog is a place where you post information
for people to read about jewelry.

Submitting an article to a website such as Associated
Content can be very instrumental in bringing people to
your blog.

An good example would be is if you wanted to talk
about the common misconceptions about the colors of
gemstones.

You could write about the fact that people assume that
gemstones such as emeralds, sapphires and rubies are
one different color, but the truth is that those
stones come in a variety of colors and hues.

Then you can use your blog as a source for your
information, as long as you have blogged about those
gemstones.

The great thing is that some places, like Associated
Content, will pay you for the articles that you write.

So if you sell jewelry on your blog, it's like being
paid twice for your knowledge. Of course, this is just
an example of the way you can use articles to
advertise your blog.

When you are writing an article, be creative. You
don't have to be an expert at what you do. If you
enjoy writing stories, you can say that posting
stories on blogs is a new and different way to share
your stories with others.

Then, post your blog link as your source and you have
people checking out your blog and your stories.

Social Bookmarking for Blog Advertising

2008-06-06T15:59:00.003-07:00

Social bookmarking sites are a growing trend and are
becoming more popular each and every day. They are a
great place to share your bookmarks with everyone and
to be able to access them from any computer. They are
also a great place that you can post a link to your
blog.

There are over fifty social bookmarking sites that you
use to submit your link to your blog. Digg, Digo, Blue
Dot, and del.ico.us are just a few of them that are
the most popular. Each site has its own guidelines and
rules for posting links, so it's important that you
want to read the rules that they have before you post
any links.

Because social bookmarking isn't as targeted as other
forms of advertising for your blog, you may find hta
tit will take longer for it to be effective. But it's
also a good way for you to get your blog noticed and
it may bring in people who may not have found your
blog another way.

Since social bookmarking doesn't always give you the
opportunity to know who it is that has seen your site,
or get to know other people, it's always a good idea
to keep track of the visitors who say they were linked
to your site through a bookmarking site. If the site
allows you to put a comment, ask people to let you
know on your blog that they found it through a social
bookmarking site and which one. That will help you
know how effective it is.

SEO Importance In Blog Advertising

2008-06-06T15:59:00.001-07:00

Having a blog on the Internet that gives people some
good informaton doens't do a lot of good if people
don't know that it's there.

If you want people to be able to find your blog,
something that is important is that you have good
Search Engine Optimization, or SEO.

Whenever you put one or more words into a search bar
to look for something, the SEO of a website is what
helps bring up those websites.

For example, if your blog is about Harry Potter, you
are going to want to be sure that your blog includes
popular terms such as Harry Pottter, JK Rowling, and
other things that are related to Harry Potter.

Think about the things that people look for when they
are interested in Harry Potter, and the kinds of
things that come up when you search.

It's always a good idea to use your own experience
when you are optimizing your blog for searching.

Think about what has worked, what hasn't worked, and
use them for your own blog SEO. This way, when someone
puts one of the terms that you put in your blog into a
search engine it will be one of the sites that comes
up.

Of course, there are other factors that come into play
that determine where your blog will come up in the
list, but everyone starts somewhere.

The more keywords that your blog uses, the more people
will come to your blog. It just takes time and
patience.

Join A Community To Advertise Your Blog

2008-06-06T15:58:00.006-07:00

Something that you will find, especially if you join
something like LiveJournal or GreatestJournal, is that
users just like you have created communities for
people with common interests.

There are communities for just about any subject, and
if you find that there isn't a community for the
subject you can create one. This is a great place to
advertise your blog.

The nice thing about communities is that there isn't
any limit as to how many communities that you can
join.

For example, say that you love blogging about books,
horseback riding, and skiing in Tahoe. All you have to
do is look through the communities for ones that have
those interests and join them.

As long as you post something related to the topic to
the chosen community, people will see you and perhaps
they will check out your personal blog.

Something to remember is that you don't want to write
a post tht is one sentence long in order to get people
to go to your blog. They will want to know that what
you write is interesting and is something worth
reading.

Joining communities can be a great way to advertise
your blog and drive traffic to it. If you are
referring to something that you posted about on your
blog, you can use a link back to your entry in your
post.

As with posting comments on someone else's blog, you d
on't want people to think that you joined a community
simply to get traffic to your blog. Otherwise, people
won't visit your blog and you may get banned from the
community as well.

Getting The Message Across

2008-06-06T15:58:00.005-07:00

If you are someone who uses chat programs such as AIM,
ICQ, Yahoo messenger, MSN, or Googletalk and have a
lot of online friends, it can be a great way to get
people to read your blog and to leave comments on it.

As it is with your signature on your email, you don't
want to just send an instant message to people
everytime you update your blog. You also don't want to
simply send a message to someone asking to read your
blog.

For someone who has been on your friends list for a
while, you can be less formal of course, but you want
to be polite when you talk to people who you may have
not talked to in a while or someone who is new.

Use your own judgement when you are chatting with
people about your blog. If it's someone that you
haven't talked to in a while, and someone asks you
what you have been up to, you can point them to your
blog so that they know what is going on with you.

Some blogs, like LiveJournal, have their own messaging
program, so that's also another good way to advertise
your blog.

Be certain that you don't send someone a message
though only to advertise your blog. It's more polite
to say something about their blog first, and then tell
them about your blog.

If you have a common interest, it's a good ice breaker
and it will give you something to talk about.

Email Groups - Hidden Treasure Troves For Advertising

2008-06-06T15:58:00.003-07:00

Something that has become increasingly popular since
the Internet has grown are the email groups that are
available through Yahoo, MSN, and other venues.

They are a great way to meet other people who have a
common interest, and are very similar to the
communities that are available through blogging sites.

There is plenty of diverse subjects and there are
communities for just about any subject.

These groups can be a great place for people who have
a blog about the subject and want to share it with
other people.

Most of the time when you join a group, you are
encouraged to take a moment and to introduce yourself.
This is a great opportunity to tell people about your
blog, but make certain that you don't overdo it.

Just like with any of the other places you will
advertise your blog, you want to make people want to
go to your blog. If you are too overbearing, you will
turn people off.

If your blog covers different subjects, you can
advertise it on the other groups that cover those
subjects as well.

Make certain that your post to the groups is
interesting and that you let people know what it is
that your blog is about. There's nothing worse than
getting taken to a blog under false pretences.

When people visit your blog, make certain that you
thank them for visiting and respond to comments that
they leave.

If they know that you appreciate the time that they
took, they are more likely to come back again.

Blogging Traffic - Give And Take

2008-06-06T15:58:00.001-07:00

Blogging traffic is a give and take relationship.
Sometimes one of the best ways to get traffic to your
blog is by visiting someone else 's blog.

Go to their blog and read one of their entries, or
read a few of them. Chances are that you are going to
find something that you have in common.

When you find something that you find truly
interesting on a blog, leave a comment so that they
know that you were there.

One of the best known blogs available is LiveJournal.
A great feature of LiveJournal is that you can search
for interests on their site and it will come up with
results of those who have that interest.

Are you interested in horseback riding? You can see
what other bloggers are interested in horseback riding
as well.

When you are commenting on someone's post, you want to
make sure that you don't leave generic comment. If you
like the post, say something about what you read in
the post.

After you have commented on the person's post, then
you can say something like, 'I really like horseback
riding too. I had a similar experience to yours.' and
then use it to link back to your journal.

But be sure that you sound sincere when you are
commenting, and don't make them feel like you're just
fishing for traffic.

If someone thinks that you are using their blog to get
more traffic to yours, they won't visit your site and
your efforts will be wasted.

Blogging Directories - Great Advertising Venues

2008-06-06T15:57:00.005-07:00

If you want to have more people visit your blog, there
are plenty of blog directories on the Internet that
you can submit your blog to so that people will come
and visit it. Most blog directories are listed by the
topics that the blogs that are submited cover.

Blog Catalog is a free blog directory that offers
categories such as career and jobs, writing, Iraq, and
many others. It has features such as featured blogs
and other things to offer those who submit their blogs
there.

Another great place to add your blog is
blog-drectory.org. Not only do they have an an
extensive list of categories with sub categories, you
can get your blog reviewed. For the most popular
blogs, it shows the amount of hits that blogs have and
if they have any reviews. As well as listing by
category, the blogs are also listed by location.

There are other blog directories on the Internet -
these are only a ouple of them. But blog directories
are a great place to advertise your blog and to make
new friends. You never know what you will find when
you browsing through the directory, and you may just
find out information that you never knew. Some of the
blog directories offer chat features as well, so that
you can meet other people easily.

As you can see, blog directories are a great place to
get your blog noticed and bring people to read your
blog and look at your pictures.

Blogger Forums - A Great Place To Advertise Your Blog

2008-06-06T15:57:00.003-07:00

No matter what type of blog that you have, one of the
best places that you can advertise your blog is to
join a blogger forum. After all, everyone who posts
there has a blog and thats the main subject.

It's a great place to meet other bloggers and to
advertise your blog.

There are quite a few blogger forums that you can sign
up for on the Internet. One is known as Bloggeries,
where you can show off your blog, get your blog
reviewed or review other blogs, and find lots of tools
that you can use for your own blog.

Another good place to go is to Blog Forum.

Blog Forum, like Bloggeries, has spots for you to
market and show off your blog,

Blogger forums are a great place to advertise because
everyone in them are of the same mind and want to make
certain that their blogs get noticed and read.

If you use your blog to advertise something that you
are selling, or you want to get a lot of traffic to
your blog in order to make money, you want to go
someplace where it can get exposure.

When you advertise on a blog forum, you know that you
are placing your advertisement in a place where
blogging is something that people enjoy.

Just remember when you are posting to a forum to read
the rules and abide by them. That way you'll get your
blog noticed and you will know that you are doing the
right thing.

Advertising Your Blog In Your Email Signature

2008-06-06T15:57:00.001-07:00

If you have a blog that you are particularly proud of,
and that you want to share with other people, there
are a lot of free ways that you can get your blog
noticed.

One of those ways is something that you do everyday,
and that you may not even consider as a way to share
your blog. Put the link to your blog in your email
signature.

Chances are that you send out emails more timese that
you can count during the day, Each time you send out
an email, you can advertise your blog by putting the
address of your blog in your email's signature.

It's always a good idea to write something catchy
like, See what I am up to now, or Read my latest
chapter of my fanfic here, depending on what type of
blog you have.

The thing to remember about putting an adveritsement
in your signature for your blog is to make it short,
but eyecatching.

You want people to be interested enough to want to
click on it, but you also don't want to scare them
off.

Just like it is with any adveritsement, you want to
give them just enough to be interested and take a
closer look at what it is that you are advertising.

Think about what it is that your blog is about. What
is really going to interest people abuot it and want
to visit? That is what you should include in your
signature, and that is what is going to get people to
go to your blog.

A Business Offer You Can't Refuse

2008-05-04T14:22:00.000-07:00

Did you know that you can convert your car or truck to a water-burning vehicle (Water Hybrid)?

Did you know that you could make money converting other peoples' cars or trucks to a water-burning vehicle (Water Hybrid)?

We are now seeking business oriented people who would like to independently manufacture and sell kits.

If you accept my offer, you will get ALL the knowledge we have on how to economically produce these kits. You'll be in business for yourself and you will owe us NOTHING: no royalties, no reports, nothing. You can sell as many as you want to whoever you want, and you will have all the information necessary to produce 100's or even 1000's of kits a month.

It is possible and fairly easy to make $10,000 net profit PER MONTH from only 30 kits/month [$60 parts cost, making a $400 kit assembled, multiply by 30 days = $10,200]. Imagine - 1 kit a day, that will take about an hour or two of your spare time to put together. Well, that's my calculation anyway.

Find out MORE about this business opportunity

Help For Women Entrepreneurs

2008-05-04T08:56:00.000-07:00

Programs to Help Women Entrepreneurs

Considering Flex-time?
Flex-Options Guide provides information on the different types of work schedules which allow your employees some flexibility from the 9-5 work week. The Guide shows you the benefits and how to establish these programs in your workplace. It also outlines issues and concerns which need to be addressed for each option. To view the guide, go to http://www.we-inc.org/flexguide.pdf. For more information you can visit the Flex-Options site at the Women Entrepreneurs Inc.: www.we-inc.org or contact the Women's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Labor at 202-693-6710; www.dol.gov/wb

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Other
Contact: For more information you can visit the Flex-Options site at the Women Entrepreneurs Inc. www.we-inc.org
Application: NA

Help From The SBA
The Office of Women's Business Ownership (OWBO) assists women achieve their dreams and improve their communities by helping them start and run successful businesses, regardless of social or financial disadvantage, race, ethnicity or business background. OWBO promotes the growth of women-owned businesses through programs that address business training and technical assistance, and provide access to credit and capital, federal contracts, and international trade opportunities. With a women's business ownership representative in every SBA district office, a nationwide network of mentoring roundtables, women's business centers in nearly every state and territory, women-owned venture capital companies, and the Online Women's Business Center, OWBO is helping unprecedented numbers of women start and build successful businesses. For more information contact Office of Women's Business Ownership, Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street SW, Sixth Floor Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6673; http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/onlinewbc/aboutus/index.html

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Loan/Service
Contact: For more information contact Office of Women's Business Ownership, Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street SW, Sixth Floor Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6673; http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/onlinewbc/aboutus/index.html
Application: NA

Business Centers Just For You
The SBA's womens business center (WBC) program is a national network of WBCs providing educational resources to help women start and grow successful small businesses. The program's mission is to level the playing field for women entrepreneurs still facing unique obstacles in the business world. There are 115 Centers throughout the country and can found at http://www.sba.gov/idc/groups/public/documents/sba_program_office/sba_pr_wbc_ed.pdf. For more information contact Office of Women's Business Ownership, Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street SW, Sixth Floor Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6673; http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/onlinewbc/aboutus/index.html

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Loan/Service
Contact: For more information contact Office of Women's Business Ownership, Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street SW, Sixth Floor Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6673; http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/onlinewbc/aboutus/index.html
Application: NA

A Person Who Understands
In addition, there are SBA representatives for women's issues and programs (WBORs) available in every SBA district office across the country. These representatives are specifically trained for assisting women entrepreneurs. The listing for these can be found here http://www.sba.gov/idc/groups/public/documents/sba_program_office/wbc_women's_bus_reps.pdf. For more information contact Office of Women's Business Ownership, Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street SW, Sixth Floor Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6673; http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/onlinewbc/aboutus/index.html

Free Online Course
The SBA provides information on the various programs that can help you position your business for contracting opportunities throughout the Federal Government. Business Opportunities: A Guide to Winning Federal Contracts reviews how the Government buys and provides an overview on regulations, policies, and best practices. In addition, it provides a step-by-step process on how to register your small business for various contracting programs including business matchmaking events and review small business certification programs. Finally, it walks you through the process of preparing your bid. To register for this free course go to: http://www.sba.gov/services/contractingopportunities/index.html

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service
Contact: To register for this free course go to http://www.sba.gov/services/contractingopportunities/index.html
Application: NA

What is the Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Procurement Program?
5% of all prime contracts should go to small business concerns owned by women according to The Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act of 1994 (P.L.103-355) (FASA). The WOSB Procurement Program has a required goal set by law, but there are no set-aside procurement programs or incentives for awarding a contract to a woman-owned small business. SBA is actively working to foster women's share of the Federal marketplace. At SBA we are implementing initiatives that will help increase women's share of the Federal procurement dollars, and we are actively searching for new and innovative methods. Because of the 5 percent procurement goal for women established by FASA, agencies have a strong incentive to look for qualified women-owned businesses when filling contractual needs. Most federal agencies have designated a point of contact for women business owners in the Offices of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBUs). These contacts, or the OSDBUs, can help you determine the appropriate procurement personnel to whom you should market. You can find a listing of these at: http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/gc/programs/GC_ADVOCATES.html. Also, you can request information on procurement fairs, agency procurement forecasts, and other research that will help you profit in the federal marketplace. SBA ON-LINE FOR LISTINGS: 1-800-697-4636.

OSDBU Womens Contacts

U. S. Department of Agriculture/ OSDBU
Director: James House
WOBREP: Sherry Cohen
VOBREP: Stella Hughes
14th Street & Independence Ave. SW, Room 1566
Washington, DC 20250-9501
202-720-7117 (office) 202-720-3001 (fax)
sherryR.Cohen@usda.gov

Air Force Department/OSDBU
Director: Joseph Diamond
WOBREP: Sara Mitcho
901 North Stuart Street
Suite 802
Arlington, VA 22203
703 696-1103 (office) 703 696-1170 (fax)
smitcho@intecs.com

Department of Army
The Pentagon
Director: Tracey L. Pinson
WOBREP: Judy Shifflett
Washington, DC 20310-0106
703-697-2868 (office) 703-693-3898 (fax)
shiffjb@hqda.army.mil

Department of Commerce / OSDBU
Director: La Juene Desmuke
WOBREP: Brenda Black
14 & Constitution Ave. NW, Room H-6411
Washington, DC 20230
202-482-1472 (office) 202-482-0501 (fax)
bblack1@doc.gov

Defense Logistics Agency / OSDBU
Director: Thomas D. Ray
WOBREP: Pat Cleveland
8725 John J. Kingman Road, DB
Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-6221
703-767-1652 (office) 703-767-1670 (fax)
patricia.cleveland@dla.mil

Department of Education/OSDBU
Director: Dr. Kristi Wilson
WOBREP: Marcella Coverson
400 Maryland Ave., SW, Room 3120, ROB-3
Washington, DC 20202-0521
202-245-6300 (office) 202-245-6304 (fax)
ma_Coverson@ed.gov

Department of Energy / OSDBU
Acting Director: Teresa Speake
WOBREP: Marcia Haynes
1000 Independence Ave., SW, Room 148
Washington, DC 20585
202-586-7377 (office) 202-586-5488 (fax)
Marcia.Haynes@hq.doe.gov

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Director: Jeanette Brown
WOBREP: Trina Porter
1200 Penn. Ave., NW, Code 1230-A
Washington, DC 20460
202-564- 4100 (office) 202-501-0756 (fax)
Porter.trina@epa.gov

GSA Office of Small Business Utilization
Associate Administrator: Felipe Mendoza
WOBREP: Liz Ivey
1800 F Street, NW Room 6029|
Washington, DC 20405
202-501-1021 (office) 202-208-5938 (fax)
Liz.Ivey@gsa.gov

Department of Health and Human Srvs./ OSDBU
Director: Debbie Ridgely
WOBREP: Angel Graves
200 Independence Ave., SW Room 517D
Washington, DC 20201
202-690-6670 (office) 202-260-4872 (fax)
Angel.Graves@hhs.gov

Department of HUD/ OSDBU
Director: Valerie T. Haye
WOBREP: Judith Stackhouse
451 7th St., SW, Room 3130
Washington, DC 20410
202-708-1428 ext. 3213 (office)
202-708-7642 (fax)
Judith_M._Stackhouse@hud.gov

Department of Homeland Security /OSDBU
Director: Kevin Boshears
WOBREP: Angela Williams
7th & D Streets, SW (Attn: OSDBU/Rm 3514)
Washington, DC 20528
202-692-4343 (office)
202-777-8467 (fax)
angela.williams@dhs.gov

Department of Interior/OSDBU
Director: Mark Oliver
WOBREP: LaVanna Stevenson-Harris
1849 C St., NW, Room 2252
Washington, DC 20240
202-208-3493 (office) 202-208-7444 (fax)
LaVanna_Stevenson@ios.doi.gov

Department of Justice / OSDBU
Director: David Sutton
WOBREP: Ramona Glover
1331 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Room 1010 National Place (The Shops)
Washington, DC 20530
202-616-0521 (office) 202-616-1717 (fax)
Ramona.M.JohnsonGlover@usdoj.gov

Department of Labor / OSDBU
Acting Director: Jose Lira
WOBREP: Elaine Murrell
200 Constitution Ave., NW, Room C2318
Washington, DC 20210
202-693-6460 (office) 202-693-6485 (fax)
murrell-elaine@dol.gov

NASA/ OSDBU
Associate Administrator: Glenn Delgado
WOBREP: Shirley Perez
300 E Street, SW, Room 9F70, Code K
Washington, DC 20546-0001
202-358-2088 (office) 202-358-3261(fax)
Shirley.Perez@hq.nasa.gov

Department of the Navy/OSDBU
Director: Nancy Tarrant
WOBREP: Linda G. Wright
Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Code FAC-00J
720 Kennon Sr., N.E.,
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20734-50165
202-685-6485 (office) 202-685-6863 (fax)
Linda.g.wright@navy.mil

Department of State/OSDBU
Director: Gregory Mayberry
WOBREP: Trish Culbreth
SA-6, Room L500
Washington, DC 20522-0602
703-875-6822 (office) 703-875-6825 (fax)
Culbrethpb@state.gov

Department of Transportation / OSDBU
Director: Denise Rodriguez-Lopez
WOBREP: Pat Hodge
400 7th Street, SW, Room 9414
Washington, DC 20590
202-366-1930 (office) 202-366-7228 (fax)
Pat.Hodge@ost.dot.gov

Department of Treasury / OSDBU
Director: Virginia Bellamy-Graham
WOBREP: Renee Fitzgerald
1300 G St., NW, Room 400 West
Washington, DC 20220
202-622-0530 (office) 202-622-4963 (fax)
Renee.Fitzgerald@do.treas.gov

Veterans Affairs/OSDBU
Director: Scott Denniston
WOBREP: Ilene Waggoner
801 I Street, NW, 00SB - Room 1221
Washington, DC 20420-0001
202 565 8124 (office) 202 565-8156 (fax)
gail.wegner@mail.va.gov

U.S. Agency for International Dev.
Ronald Reagan Building\
USAID/OSDBU/MRC
Director: Marilyn Marton
WOBREP: Rhoda Issac
1300 Penn. Ave. NW, Suite 7.8 E
Washington, DC 20523-7800
202-712-1500 (office) 202-216-3056 (fax)
risaac@usaid.gov

Defense Finance & Accounting Service
Director, Contract Services Directorate, Ed Roden
Office: (703) 607-5106
WOBREP: Lois Byrne
Code RA, CM3 Room 905 1931 Jefferson Davis Hwy
Arlington, VA 22240-5291
(703) 607-0573 (office)
lois.byrne@dfas.mil

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service
Contact: You can find a listing of these at http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/gc/programs/GC_ADVOCATES.html
Application: NA

Website to Help Sell to Government
Womenbiz.gov states that it is the gateway to selling to the federal government. The site is sponsored by the National Women's Business Council (NWBC) which is a bi-partisan federal advisory council established to advise the President, Congress, and others about issues important to women-owned businesses. The site takes you through five steps to government contracting: Meeting the Basics, Finding your Market, Getting Started, Finding Federal Contract Opportunities, and Key Contacts. Each step has links to hundreds of resources to get you on your way. Check out the website at: http://www.womenbiz.gov/

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service
Contact: Check out the website at http://www.womenbiz.gov/
Application: NA

Federal Business Opportunities
Fedbizopps.gov (well, actually, www.fob.gov) is the government's one-stop virtual marketplace. Through this single point-of-entry commercial vendors and government buyers are invited to post, search, monitor, and retrieve opportunities solicited by the entire Federal contracting community. There are user guides, search engines, news, and more to help you get your contract. Check out Fedbizopps.gov at: https://fob.gov

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service
Contact: Check out Fedbizopps.gov at https://fob.gov
Application: NA

Women Business Research
The National Women's Business Council, which is a bi-partisan federal advisory council, promotes initiatives and programs to support women's business enterprises. They conduct research, connect individual women business owners to a larger community, and more. They recently did a study on different Mentoring programs, identifying best practices and those that may be geared specifically towards women. To view the report and links to mentoring programs go to http://www.nwbc.gov/Mentoring/default.html For more information on the Council contact National Women's Business Council, 409 Third St., SW, Suite 210, Washington, DC 20024; 202-205-3850; http://www.nwbc.gov

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service
Contact: For more information on the Council contact National Women's Business Council, 409 Third St., SW, Suite 210, Washington, DC 20024; 202-205-3850; http://www.nwbc.gov
Application: NA

Do I Need To Get Certified?
The federal government does not require that your business be certified as a woman-owned business, as there are not specific set-aside programs for women. They do have a goal of giving a certain amount of government contracts to women-owned businesses, but you can "self-certify" that your company is woman-owned. But prime contractors who give out sub-contracting opportunities may require an official certification. The Women's Business Enterprise National Council is one of several non-profits that certifies a business as women-owned. They state that this certification can be an important marketing aspect for your company. Many corporations are striving for diversity in the procurement process. To become certified, your business must go through a rigorous process, and there are some fees involved. In addition the Council offers a wealth of sourcing tools, and a database of certified women's businesses for use by purchasing managers. They state that over 700 companies and government agencies rely on this certification. For more information contact Women's Business Enterprise National Council, 1120 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 950, Washington, DC 20036; 202-872-5515; http://www.wbenc.org

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service
Contact: For more information contact Women's Business Enterprise National Council, 1120 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 950, Washington, DC 20036; 202-872-5515; http://www.wbenc.org
Application: NA

Start A Business While On Unemployment
Self-Employment Assistance is designed to encourage and enable unemployed workers to create their own jobs by starting their own small businesses. States can pay a self-employed allowance, instead of regular unemployment insurance benefits, to help unemployed workers while they are establishing businesses and becoming self-employed. Participants receive weekly allowances while they are getting their businesses off the ground. This is a voluntary program for States and, to date, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Oregon and Pennsylvania have Self Employment Assistance programs. The State Workforce Agency web sites for these states can be accessed at: http://www.workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/map.asp. Generally in order to receive these benefits, an individual must first be eligible to receive regular unemployment insurance under the State law. Individuals who have been permanently laid off from their previous jobs and are identified as likely to exhaust regular unemployment benefits are eligible to participate in the program. Individuals may be eligible even if they are engaged full-time in self-employment activities - including entrepreneurial training, business counseling, and technical assistance. You should contact the State Unemployment Insurance agency as soon as possible after becoming unemployed. At the time you file your claim you should ask whether a Self Employment Assistance program operates in your State. http://workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/unemploy/self.asp

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service/Other
Contact: At the time you file your claim you should ask whether a Self Employment Assistance program operates in your State. http://workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/unemploy/self.asp
Application: NA

Help For The Small Business
A microenterprise is generally thought of as having 5 or fewer employees, and requires less than $35,000 in initial capital. According to the Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO), there 24 million microenterprises in the United States, representing 87% of all businesses. Some of these businesses provide a service, while others sell products. AEO member organizations offer programs for entrepreneurs that provide the support they need to grow and develop. Services vary from organization to organization, but they can provide business training, microloans, technical assistance, access to markets, and asset development. Some of these organizations provide these services for free while others charge a minimal fee. Many of these programs target women or low-income entrepreneurs. To find an organization near you go to: http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/index.asp?bid=282. For more information contact Association for Enterprise Opportunity, 1601 North Kent St., Suite 1101, Arlington, VA 22209; 703-841-7760; www.microenterpriseworks.org

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Loan/Other/Service
Contact: For more information contact Association for Enterprise Opportunity, 1601 North Kent St., Suite 1101, Arlington, VA 22209; 703-841-7760; www.microenterpriseworks.org
Application: NA

Help For Low-Income Business Owners
FIELD (Microenterprise Fund for Innovation, Effectiveness, Learning and Dissemination) has a mission to help identify, develop and disseminate best practices for microenterprises. They have a listing of microenterprise programs throughout the United States. Each program operates a little differently. Some charge a fee, while others are free. Some have small microlending programs, while others provide only business training and services. Check out the directory to find a program that serves your needs. Many of these programs target women or low-income entrepreneurs. Contact: The Aspen Institute, One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036; 202-736-1071; http://fieldus.org/Publications/Directory.asp

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Housing
Money Type: Loan/Other/Service
Contact: Contact The Aspen Institute, One Duport Circle, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036; 202-736-1071; http://fieldus.org/Publications/Directory.asp
Application: NA

Child Care Funding
Do you want to start a day care at home or open a day care center? There is a variety of funding opportunities available, as well as licensing and regulation information. The National Child Care Information Center just published a resource guide titled, "Starting and Operating a Child Care Business." It lists basic steps, types of centers, financial assistance, and state information to get you started. Some states may provide financing through their Child Care and Development Fund or Community Development Block Grant, which the resource guide provides links to each state. The National Child Care Information Center can also direct your local offices for more information, although check out a wealth of help in the guide first! You can contact them at National Child Care Information Center, 10530 Rosehaven St., Suite 400, Fairfax, VA 22030; 800-616-2242; www.nccic.org; for resource guide, go to: http://nccic.org/poptopics/startup.pdf

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Loan/Other
Contact: You can contact them at National Child Care Information Center, 10530 Rosehaven St., Suite 400, Fairfax, VA 22030; 800-616-2242; www.nccic.org; for resource guide http://nccic.org/poptopics/startup.pdf
Application: NA

State Child Care Funding
Some states offer special funding resources for child care centers. Some examples include Ohio and Virginia. The Community Capital Development Corporation offers a microloan of up to $25,000 for child day care anywhere in Ohio. For more information, contact: Community Capital Development Corporation, 900 Michigan Ave., Columbus, OH 43215; 888-756-CCDC; http://www.ccdcorp.org/programs.htm

Virginia Child Day Care Financing provides low-interest loans to Family Home Providers (up to $5,000) or Child Care Centers (up to $50,000). Contact the Virginia Department of Business Assistance, 707 E. Main Street, Suite 300, Richmond, VA 23219; 866-248-8814; http://www.dba.state.va.us/financing/programs/child.asp

Child Care Online provides resources and links to other loan programs for Child Care financing. Check them out at http://childcare.net/grantsfinance.shtml or contact your state Department of Economic Development which you can find at www.govengine.com

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Loans
Contact: Child Care Online provides resources and links to other loan programs for Child Care financing. Check them out at http://childcare.net/grantsfinance.shtml or contact your state Department of Economic Development which you can find at www.govengine.com
Application: NA

Money For Low-Income People To Start Business
The Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals (JOLI) is a program whose purpose is to create new jobs to be filled by low-income individuals. The ultimate goal is economic self-sufficiency. A minimum of twenty percent of the total JOLI funds must be used toward the provision of direct financial assistance to participants. Financial assistance may be provided through the use of revolving loan funds or the provision of direct cash assistance to a micro enterprise or self-employed business owner. Beneficiaries are TANF recipients and other low-income individuals whose income level does not exceed 100 percent of the official Federal poverty guidelines. Organizations receive funding for JOLI then distribute the funds to individuals. To see a list of current grantees, go to: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ocs/joli/index.html For more information contact Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals Program, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Community Services, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W., 5th Floor East, Washington, DC 20447; 202-401-5663; http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ocs/joli/index.html

Income: up to $100,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Loans/Service
Contact: For more information contact Job Opportunities for Low-Income Individuals Program, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Community Services, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W., 5th Floor East, Washington, DC 20447; 202-401-5663; http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ocs/joli/index.html
Application: NA

Training is Key
Training is the business buzzword for the year. Almost every state has money to help companies in their state train new or existing employees. Most of it is in the form of grant money that you don't have to pay back. States like Connecticut, Tennessee, and Kentucky will give grants from $3,000 to $25,000 to train your employees. Some states will pay for 50% of your costs. And in Louisiana and Iowa you can send your employees to the state's vocational schools and community colleges for free. Contact your state Office of Economic Development for information (www.govengine.com).

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Housing
Money Type: Service/Grants
Contact: Contact your state Office of Economic Development for information (www.govengine.com)
Application: NA

Join Other Women Business Owners
Roundtables are informal group discussions among professional people who voluntarily serve as information and support resources for each other. Participants meet regularly and learn from each other's experiences. Practical support and guidance from individuals with varied backgrounds who understand the ups and downs of being a business owner and know you and your business is extremely powerful. Roundtables provide an excellent, economical way to gain fresh ideas, new perspectives, and detailed answers to even your most specific business questions. Look in the Women's Network for Entrepreneurial Training (WNET) Roundtables, which are sponsored by the Small Business Administration Office of Women's Business Ownership (SBA-OWBO). WNET Roundtables stem from the SBA-OWBO's one-to-one mentoring programs, which often use groups in addition to individual mentoring. For more information, contact: Office of Women's Business Ownership, Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street SW, Sixth Floor Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6673; http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/onlinewbc/aboutus/index.html; http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/manage/lead/SERV_ROUNDTABLE.html

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Other
Contact: For more information contact Office of Women's Business Ownership, Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street SW, Sixth Floor Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6673; http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/onlinewbc/aboutus/index.html; http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/manage/lead/SERV_ROUNDTABLE.html
Application: NA

Money For Women Running A Taxi Company
Actually, the money can be used by women in almost any kind of transportation-related business. The U.S. Department of Transportation works hard at trying to help women succeed by helping them get contracts as well as offering short term working capital loans at prime interest rates while working on transportation related contracts. Businesses need to be certified as a Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE), which means a firm must be a small business owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals (including women). The Department of Transportation has a goal of 10% of all funds going to DBEs. For more information, contact: National Information Clearinghouse, U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, W56-485, Washington, DC 20590; 800-532-1169; http://osdbuweb.dot.gov

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Loan/Service
Contact: For more information contact National Information Clearinghouse, U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, W56-485, Washington, DC 20590; 800-532-1169; http://osdbuweb.dot.gov
Application: NA

NY Minority Women's Assistance
Black Women Enterprises offers free services and programs to help the minority women business owner. They have business plan workshops, and provide assistance to those enterprises seeking Minority Business Enterprise/Womens Business Enterprise Certification. They also offer one to one business counseling and a monthly program on how to do business with the federal government. Black Women Enterprises also host meeting, conferences and special interest groups. For more information, contact: Black Women Enterprises, 730 Fulton Ave., Hempstead, NY 11550; 516-485-5900; http://www.blackwomenenterprises.org/bwe-benefits.html

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: NY
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service/Other
Contact: For more information contact Black Women Enterprises, 730 Fulton Ave., Hempstead, NY 11550; 516-485-5900; http://www.blackwomenenterprises.org/bwe-benefits.html
Application: NA

Join The Largest Organization For Business Women
The Business and Professional Women/USA is one of the largest organizations that support women business issues. For a small annual fee you have access to seminars, support, and more to keep your business going strong. There are state and local organizations where you can network with other business owners, as well as scholarships, publications, and resource centers. They even have a section devoted to women leaving the military (including a free one-year membership for the vets!). To learn more, contact: Business and Professional Women/USA, 1900 M St., NW, Suite 310, Washington, DC 20036; 202-293-1100; http://www.bpwusa.org

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service/Other
Contact: To learn more contact Business and Professional Women/USA, 1900 M St., NW, Suite 310, Washington, DC 20036; 202-293-1100; http://www.bpwusa.org
Application: NA

The Latest Research
Want to know how other women are operating their businesses? Want to know the trends in benefits, and employment issues? What about the current state of minority women business owners? All these questions and more and researched and studied at the Center for Women's Business Research. You can look at the latest facts, trends, and research to see what is working and what isn't. For more information, contact: Center for Women's Business Research, 1411 K Street NW, Suite 1350, Washington, DC 20005; 202-638-3060; http://www.cfwbr.org/

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Other
Contact: For more information contact Center for Women's Business Research, 1411 K Street NW, Suite 1350, Washington, DC 20005; 202-638-3060; http://www.cfwbr.org/
Application: NA

Help For The Self-Employed
The National Association for the Self-Employed is one of the leading resources for businesses. For a minimal annual fee they offer a wide range of benefits and services to the small business owner. You get access to health, life, dental and prescription insurance, discounts on a variety of services such as travel, entertainment, and legal and accounting. They even have a Business Development Grant Program. You can get quick answers to your tax and finance questions and help with understanding your taxes. To learn more, contact: National Association for the Self-Employed, P.O. Box 612067, DFW Airport, 75261; 800-232-6273; http://www.nase.org

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service/Other
Contact: To learn more contact the National Association for the Self-Employed, P.O. Box 612067, DFW Airport, 75261; 800-232-6273; http://www.nase.org
Application: NA

The First Women Business Enterprise Certifier
The National Women Business Owners Corporation was the first organization to certify businesses as "women owned." This certification provides proof of ownership which is valuable when going after contracts and business opportunities. Most corporations and government purchasing agencies track women business contracts, so this certification could be to your advantage. To learn more about the process, contact: National Women Business Owners Corporation, 1001 W. Jasmine Drive, #G, Lake Park, FL 33403; 800-675-5066; http://www.nwboc.org/

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service
Contact: To learn more about the process contact National Women Business Owners Corporation, 1001 W. Jasmine Drive, #G, Lake Park, FL 33403; 800-675-5066; http://www.nwboc.org/
Application: NA

Grab That Government Contract
Long ago offices were established to help people get contracts from the Department of Defense. These offices have now expanded their scope and help businesses get federal, state, and local government contracts all for free or nominal cost. The offices are operated through the Defense Logistics Agency and are called Procurement Technical Assistance Program Centers (PTAP). To find an office near you, go to: http://www.dla.mil/db/procurem.htm and click on your state. To learn more, contact Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization Office, Cameron Station, Room 4B110, Defense Logistics Agency, Alexandria, VA 22304; 703-767-1661

Income: up to $1,000,000
State: All
Age: All
Subject Category: Business
Money Type: Service
Contact: To find the office nearest you, contact Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization Office, Cameron Station, Room 4B110, Defense Logistics Agency, Alexandria, VA 22304; 703-767-1661; http://www.dla.mil/db/procurem.htm
Application: NA

Procurement Technical Assistance Centers

ALABAMA
PTAC OF ALABAMA
1500 1ST AVENUE NORTH, R118
BIRMINGHAM, AL 35203-1821
Point of Contact: PAT PHILLIPS
205-307-6513
Fax: 205-307-6511
E-mail: patphill@uab.edu
http://www.asbdc.org/procurement.htm

ALASKA
UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA ANCHORAGE SBDC
430 W 7TH AVE STE 110
ANCHORAGE, AK 99501-3550
Point of Contact: MARY SHEEHAN (INTERIM)
907-456-7232
Fax: 907-456-7233
E-mail: fnmhs@uaf.edu
http://www.ptacalaska.org/

ARIZONA
THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR AMERICAN INDIAN ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT
NATIONAL CENTER HEADQUARTERS
953 E JUANITA AVENUE
MESA, AZ 85204
Point of Contact: ELAINE YOUNG
480-545-1298 x230
Fax: 480-545-4208
E-mail: elaine.young@ncaied.org
http://www.ncaied.org/

ARKANSAS
ARKANSAS PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE CENTER
UNIV. OF ARK. DIV. OF AG. COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE
127 WEST FIFTH STREET (AT THE CORNER OF LOCUST)
MALVERN, AR 72104
Point of Contact: SUE COATES
501-337-5355
Fax: 501-337-5045
E-mail: scoates@uaex.edu
http://www.arcommunities.org/APAC.htm

CALIFORNIA
LOS ANGELES COUNTY OFFICE OF SMALL BUSINESS
PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
1100 N. EASTERN AVENUE, ROOM G115
LOS ANGELES, CA 90063-3200
Point of contact: DEBBIE CABREIRA JOHNSON
323-881-3964
Fax: 323-881-1871
E-mail: dcabreira-johnson@isd.lacounty.gov
http://www.laosb.org/

THE FEDERAL TECHNOLOGY CENTER
PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
4600 ROSEVILLE ROAD, SUITE 100
SACRAMENTO, CA 95660
Point of contact: JACK TONEY
916-334-9388
866 FTC PTAC
Fax: 916-334-9078
E-mail: Jack@TheFTC.org
http://www.theftc.org/PTAC

RIVERSIDE COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT (RCCD)
PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE CENTER (PAC)
CORPORATE CONNECTION
14745 RIVERSIDE DRIVE
RIVERSIDE, CA 92518-1880
Point of Contact: DEBORAH SLAYTON
951-571-6475
Fax: 951-653-1051
E-Mail: deborah.slayton@rcc.edu
http://www.rcchelpsbusiness.com

SAN DIEGO CONTRACTING OPPORTUNITIES CENTER
4007 CAMINO DEL RIO SOUTH, SUITE 210
SAN DIEGO, CA 92108-4189
Point of Contact: J. GUNNAR SCHALIN
619-285-7020
Fax: 619-285-7030
E-mail: gschalin@ptac-sandiego.org
http://www.ptac-sandiego.org

PACIFIC AMERICAN INDIAN DEVELOPMENT
2000 EAST IMPERIAL HIGHWAY
BUILDING R1
EL SEGUNDO, CA 90245
Mailing: PO BOX 902, MAIL STATION R01/A501
EL SEGUNDO, CA 90245
Point of Contact: OSCAR PADILLA
310-563-2360 OR 310-200-8344
Fax: 310-563-2379
E-mail: oscar.padilla@p-aid.org

COLORADO
PROCUREMENT LEARNING FOR AMERICAN INDIAN NATIONS SOCIETIES
PHYSICAL LOCATION (LOCKHEED MARTIN BUILDING):
12257 SOUTH WADSWORTH BLVD
LITTLETON, CO 80125
MAILING ADDRESS:
PROCUREMENT LEARNING FOR AMERICAN INDIAN NATIONS SOCIETIES
C/O LOCKHEED MARTIN SPACE SYSTEMS COMPANY
P.O. BOX 179, BUILDING GPL L-191, MS H0191
DENVER, CO 80201-0179
Point of Contract: RICK LANDERS - PROGRAM MANAGER
303-977-3756
Fax: 303-977-8330
E-mail: rick.landers@plns.org

CONNECTICUT
CONNECTICUT PTAP
190 GOVERNOR WINTHROP BLVD, SUITE 400
NEW LONDON, CT 06320
Point of Contact: BRIEN J ROBERTSON
860-437-4659 x208
888-6-secter
Fax: 860-437-4662
E-mail: brobertson@secter.org
http://www.ctptap.org/

DELAWARE
PTAC OF DELAWARE
ONE INNOVATION WAY, SUITE 301
NEWARK, DE 19711
Point of Contact: JUANITA BEAUFORD
302-831-0780
Fax: 302-831-0771
E-mail: jbeau@udel.edu
http://www.delawarecontracts.com/

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
There is no PTAC located in the District of Columbia

FLORIDA
UNIVERSITY OF WEST FLORIDA
FLORIDA PTAC
401 EAST CHASE ST SUITE 100
PENSACOLA, FL 32502
Point of Contact: LAURA SUBEL
850-473-7806
Fax: 850-473-7813
E-mail: Lsubel@uwf.edu
http://www.fptac.org

GEORGIA
GEORGIA TECH RESEARCH CORPORATION
GEORGIA TECH PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE CENTER
505 TENTH STREET NW
ATLANTA, GA 30332-0420
Point of Contact: ZACK OSBORNE
478-953-1460
Fax: 478-953-3169
E-mail: zack.osborne@innovate.gatech.edu
www.gtpac.org

UIDA BUSINESS SERVICES
86 SOUTH COBB DRIVE, MZ0510, Col. J16
MARIETTA, GA 30063
Point of Contact: GEORGE WILLIAMS
770-494-0117
Fax: 770-494-1236
E-mail: georgew@uida.org
http://www.uida.org

HAWAII
There is no PTAC located in Hawaii

IDAHO
IDAHO DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
OFFICE OF BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY
PHYSICAL: 700 WEST STATE STREET
BOISE, ID 83720-0093
Mailing: PO BOX 83720
BOISE, ID 83720-0093
Point of Contact: JAMES A. VESTERMARK, PROGRAM MANAGER
208-334-2650 X2132
Fax: 208-334-2631
E-mail: jim.vestermark@business.idaho.gov
http://cl.idaho.gov

ILLINOIS
STATE OF ILLINOIS
ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY
620 E ADAMS ST
SPRINGFIELD, IL 62701
Point of Contact: RICHARD ALTON
217-557-7808
Fax: 217-524-0171
E-mail: richard.alton@illinois.gov
http://ienconnect.com

INDIANA
PARTNERS IN CONTRACTING CORPORATION
2646 HIGHWAY AVEHIGHLAND, IN 46322
Point of Co, , ,, ntact: MARY KACZKA
219-916-5660
Fax: 219-838-5550
E-mail: mkkaczka@piccorp.org
http://www.piccorp.org

IOWA
IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
CENTER FOR INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH & SERVICE
2272 HOWE HALL, SUITE 2620
AMES, IA 50011-2272
Point of Contact: DAVID BOGACZYK
515-289-0280
800-458-4465
Fax: 515-294-4925
E-mail: bogaczyk@iastate.edu
http://www.ciras.iastate.edu/procurement/

KANSAS
PTA services provided by:
MISSOURI SOUTHERN STATE UNIVERSITY
HEARTLAND PTAC
3950 E NEWMAN RD
JOPLIN, MO 64801-1595
Point of Contact: TERRI BENNETT
417-625-9538
Fax: 417-625-9782
E-mail: heartlandptac@mssu.edu
http://www.heartlandptac.org
http://www.mssu.edu/heartlandptac/

KENTUCKY
KENTUCKY PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
500 MERO ST
23RD FLOOR, CAPITAL PLAZA TOWER
FRANKFORT, KY 40601
Point of Contact: DEBBIE McKNIGHT
800-838-3266
Fax: 502-564-5932
E-mail: debbie.mcknight@ky.gov
http://www.thinkkentucky.com/KYEDC/proassist.aspx

LOUISIANA
UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA - LAFAYETTE
LOUISIANA PTAC
241 E LEWIS STREET
PO BOX 44172
ROOM 110
LAFAYETTE, LA 70504-4172
Point of Contact: SHERRIE MULLINS
800-206-3545
Fax: 337-482-5837
E-mail: sherlm@louisiana.edu
http://www.la-ptac.org

NORTHWEST LOUISIANA GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT CENTER
GREATER SHREVEPORT CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
400 EDWARDS ST
SHREVEPORT, LA 71101
Point of Contact: KELLY FORD
318-677-2532
Fax: 318-677-2534
E-mail: kellyford@shreveportchamber.org
http://www.lagpc.org

MAINE
MAINE PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER
40 HARLOW STREET
BANGOR, ME 04401
Point of Contact: PATRICIA RICE
207-942-6389
Fax: 207-942-3548
E-mail: price@emdc.org
http://www.maineptac.org

MARYLAND
MARYLAND PTAC
7100 BALTIMORE AVENUE, SUITE 402
COLLEGE PARK, MD 20740-3627
Point of Contact: MARY LEE KOLICH
301-403-2740 x26
Fax: 301-403-2743
E-mail: mkolich@mdptap.umd.edu
http://www.mdptap.umd.edu

MASSACHUSETTS
UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS
MSBDC/PTAC
121 PRESIDENT'S DRIVE, ROOM 227
AMHERST, MA 01003
Point of Contact: PETER J COKOTIS
413-545-6303
Fax: 415-545-1273
E-mail: ptachelp@msbdc.umass.edu
http://www.msbdc.org/ptac

MICHIGAN
GENESEE REGIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
519 SOUTH SAGINAW STREET, SUITE 210
FLINT, MI 48502
Point of Contact: DUSTIN FRIGY
810-600-1432
Fax: 810-600-1461
E-mail: dfrigy@thegrcc.org
http://www.michigantac.org

THE ENTERPRISE GROUP OF JACKSON, INC
Physical: ONE JACKSON SQUARE - SUITE 1100
JACKSON, MI 49201
Mailing: PO BOX 80
JACKSON, MI 49204
Point of Contact: PENNIE KAY SOUTHWELL
517-788-4680
Fax: 517-782-0061
E-mail: pennie@enterprisegroup.org
www.enterprisegroup.org

KALAMAZOO REGIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
346 WEST MICHIGAN AVENUE
KALAMAZOO, MI 49007-3737
Point of Contact: JANICE CAMPBELL
269-381-2977 x3243
Fax: 269-552-4435
E-mail: jcampbell@kazoochamber.com
E-mail: www.kazoochamber.com

SCHOOLCRAFT COLLEGE
18600 HAGGERTY ROAD
LIVONIA, MI 48152-2696
Point of Contact: TAMMY THOMSON
734-462-4438
Fax: 734-462-4673
E-mail: tthomson@schoolcraft.edu
http://www.schoolcraft.edu/bdc

DOWNRIVER COMMUNITY CONFERENCE
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
15100 NORTHLINE
SOUTHGATE, MI 48195
Point of Contact: PAULA BOASE
734-362-3477
Fax: 734-281-6661
E-mail: paula.boase@dccwf.org
http://www.dccwf.org/

NORTHWEST MICHIGAN COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS
PTA CENTER
Physical: 1209 SOUTH GARFIELD AVENUE
TRAVERSE CITY, MI 49686
Mailing: PO BOX 506
TRAVERSE CITY, MI 49685
Point of Contact: PATRICK BUBIN
231-929-5036
Fax: 231-929-5042
E-mail: patrickbubin@nwm.cog.mi.us
www.nwm.org

MACOMB COMMUNITY COLLEGE
PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER
7900 TANK AVENUE
WARREN, MI 48092
Point of Contact: ROSANNE OLIVER, DIRECTOR
586-498-4122
Fax: 586-498-4101
E-mail: oliverr@macomb.edu
http://www.macomb.edu/ptac

MUSKEGON AREA FIRST PROCUREMENT CENTER
900 THIRD STREET, SUITE 112
MUSKEGON, MI 49440
Point of Contact: PAMELA VANDERLAAN-POORT
231-722-7700
Fax: 231-722-6182
E-mail: psvander@wmis.net
http://www.muskegon.org

NORTHEAST MICHIGAN CONSORTIUM
Physical: 20709 STATE STREET
ONAWAY, MI 49765
Mailing: PO BOX 711
ONAWAY, MI 49765
Point of Contact: DENISE HOFFMEYER
989-733-8548
Fax: 989-733-8069
E-mail: denise@miworks-nemc.gen.mi.us
http://www.michigantac.org/region2.html

MINNESOTA
METROPOLITAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION
250 SOUTH SECOND AVE STE 106
MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55401-2214
Point of Contact: SHERRI KOMROSKY
612-259-6565
Fax: 612-317-1002
E-mail: skomrosky@meda.net
www.ptac-meda.net

MISSISSIPPI
MISSISSIPPI DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
501 N. WEST STREET
JACKSON, MS 39201
Point of Contact: CAROL HARRIS
601-359-2386
Fax: 601-359-5290
E-mail: charris@mississippi.org
http://www.mscpc.com/

MISSOURI
MISSOURI SOUTHERN STATE UNIVERSITY
HEARTLAND PTAC
3950 NEWMAN ROAD
JOPLIN, MO 64801-1512
Point of Contact: TERRI BENNETT
417-625-9538
Fax: 417-625-9782
E-mail: heartlandptac@mssu.edu
http://www.heartlandptac.org
http://www.mssu.edu/heartlandptac/

M0 PTAC
410 S. SIXTH STREET
200 ENGINEERING NORTH
COLUMBIA, MO 65211
Point of Contact: MORRIS HUDSON
573-882-3597
Fax: 573-884-4297
E-mail: hudsonm@missouri.edu
www.missouribusiness.net/ptac

MONTANA
BIG SKY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
222 NORTH, 32 STREET
BILLINGS, MT 59101-1911
Point of Contact: MAUREEN JEWELL
406-256-6871
Fax: 406-256-6877
E-mail: jewell@bigskyeda.org
http://bigskyeda.org

NEBRASKA
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA AT OMAHA
NBDC/PTAC
6001 DODGE STREET, RH-308
OMAHA, NE 68182-0072
Point of Contact: ANDREW ALEXANDER
402-554-6253
Fax: 402-554-6260
E-mail: alalexander@mail.unomaha.edu
http://ptac.unomaha.edu

NEVADA
PROCUREMENT OUTREACH PROGRAM
COMMISSION ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
555 E WASHINGTON AVENUE, SUITE 5400
LAS VEGAS, NV 89101
Point of Contact: RICK HORN
702-486-2716
Fax: 702-486-2701
E-mail: rhorn@bizopp.state.nv.us
http://www.nvoutreachcenter.com

NEW HAMPSHIRE
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
OFC OF BUS & INDUSTRIAL DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
PO BOX 1856, 172 PEMBROKE RD
CONCORD, NH 03302-1856
Point of Contact: DAVID PEASE
603-271-7581
Fax: 603-271-7583
E-mail: david.pease@dred.state.nh.us
http://www.nheconomy.com/ptac

NEW JERSEY
FOUNDATION AT NEW JERSEY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
PTA CENTER
323 MARTIN LUTHER KING BOULEVARD
490 FENSTER HALL
NEWARK, NJ 07102-1982
Point of Contact: DOLCEY CHAPLIN
973-596-3105
Fax: 973-596-5501
E-mail: chaplin@admin.njit.edu
http://www.njit.edu/DPTAC/

UNION COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
PTA PROGRAM
1085 MORRIS AVE STE 531 LIB HALL CENTER
UNION, NJ 07083
Point of Contact: MARYANN WILLIAMS
908-527-1166 X20
Fax: 908-527-1166 X21
E-mail: mwilliams@ucedc.com
http://www.ucedc.com/

NEW MEXICO
There is no PTAC located in New Mexico.
For referral information to a servicing PTAC:
Point Of Contact: MICHAEL VINYARD
505-827-0472
Fax: 505-827-2484
E-mail: michael.vinyard@state.nm.us

NEW YORK
NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF SMALL BUSINESS SERVICES
PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER
110 WILLIAM STREET, 2ND FLOOR
NEW YORK, NY 10038
Point of Contact: COLLEEN GALVIN
212-618-8935
Fax: 212-618-8899
E-mail: cgalvin@sbs.nyc.gov
http://www.nyc.gov

RESEARCH FOUNDATION CUNY
31-10 THOMSON AVENUE, C-918
LONG ISLAND CITY, NY 11101
Point of Contact: BENJAMIN HUNT
718-482-5306
Fax: 718-609-2091
E-mail: benh@lagcc.cuny.edu

ROCKLAND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION PTAC
TWO BLUE HILL PLAZA
PO BOX 1575
PEARL RIVER, NY 10965-1575
Point of Contact: HERMAN WAGNER, Acting Program Manager
845-735-7040
Fax: 845-735-5736
E-mail: hermanw@redc.org
www.redc.org

SOUTH BRONX OVERALL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
SoBRO PTAC
555 BERGEN AVENUE - 3rd Floor
BRONX, NY 10455-1368
Point of Contact: MIRIAM JOHNSON
718-732-7540
Fax: 718-292-6645
E-mail: mjohnson@sobro.org
www.sobro.org

CATTARAUGUS COUNTY
DEPT OF ECON DEVELOPMENT, PLANNING & TOUR
303 COURT ST
LITTLE VALLEY, NY 14755
Point of Contact: JOSEPH J WILLIAMS, JR
716-938-9111 x2331
Fax: 716-938-9431
E-mail: jjwilliams@cattco.org
http://www.cattco.org

COUNTY OF MONROE INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY (COMIDA)
ROCHESTER PTAC
50 WEST MAIN STREET, SUITE 8100
ROCHESTER, NY 14614
Point of contact: PAULETTE BIRCH
585-753-2015
Fax: 585-753-2028
E-mail: pbirch@monroecounty.gov
http://www.RochesterPTAC.com

NORTH CAROLINA
NORTH CAROLINA PTAC
SMALL BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT CENTER (SBTDC)
5 W HARGETT STREET, SUITE 600
RALEIGH NC 27601
Point of Contact: TOM ELAM
919-715-7272
Fax: 919-715-7777
E-mail: telam@sbtdc.org
http://www.sbtdc.org/services/gov_procurement.asp

NORTH DAKOTA
There is no PTAC located in North Dakota

OHIO
LAWRENCE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
PROCUREMENT OUTREACH CENTER
Physical: 216 COLLINS AVE
SOUTH POINT, OH 45680
Mailing: PO BOX 488
SOUTH POINT, OH 45680
Point of Contact: VIVIAN VALLANCE
800-408-1334
740-377-4550
Fax: 740-377-2091
E-mail: sppoc@zoominternet.net
http://www.lawrencecountyohio.org

OHIO DEPARTMENT OF DEVELOPMENT
PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTERS OF OHIO
77 SOUTH HIGH STREET, 26TH FLOOR
PO BOX 1001
COLUMBUS, OH 43216-1001
Point of Contact: VIRGINIA MULLENAX
614-644-1637
800-848-1300
Fax: 614-466-4172
E-mail: vmullenax@odod.state.oh.us
http://www.odod.state.oh.us/DMBA/ptac.htm

MAHONING VALLEY TECHNICAL PROCUREMENT CENTER
4319 BELMONT AVENUE
YOUNGSTOWN, OH 44505-1005
Point of Contact: STEPHEN J DANYI
330-759-3668 x24
Fax: 330-759-3686
E-mail: steve@mvedc.com
www.mvedc.com

OKLAHOMA
TRIBAL GOVERNMENT INSTITUTE
421 EAST COMANCHE, SUITE B
NORMAN, OK 73071
Point of Contact: ROY ROBERT GANN, JR.
405-329-5542
Fax: 405-329-5543
E-mail: tgi@coxinet.net
http://www.tgiok.com

OKLAHOMA DEPARTMENT OF CAREER & TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION
OKLAHOMA BID ASSISTANCE NETWORK
1500 WEST SEVENTH AVE
STILLWATER, OK 74074-4364
Point of contact: CARTER MERKLE
405-743-5592
Fax: 405-743-6821
E-mail: carter@okbid.org
http://www.okbid.org

OREGON
THE ORGANIZATION FOR ECONOMIC INITIATIVES
GOVERNMENT CONTRACT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
1144 GATEWAY LOOP SUITE 203
SPRINGFIELD, OR 97477
Point of Contact: DEE EDWARDS
541-736-1088
Fax: 541-736-1090
E-mail: dedwards@gcap.org
http://www.gcap.org

PENNSYLVANIA
NW PENNSYLVANIA REGIONAL PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
395 SENECA STREET
OIL CITY, PA 16301
Point of Contact: WAYNE WILLIAMSON
814 677-4800 X116
Fax: 814-677-7663
E-mail: waynew@nwcommission.org
http://www.nwcommission.org

CALIFORNIA UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
GOVERNMENT AGENCY COORDINATION OFFICE (GACO)
250 UNIVERSITY AVE
CALIFORNIA, PA 15419
Point of Contact: DEBORAH S WOJCIK
724-938-5881
Fax: 724-938-4575
E-mail: wojcik@cup.edu
http://www.cup.edu/advancement/gaco/

SOUTHERN ALLEGHENIES PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
541 58TH STREET
ALTOONA, PA 16602
Point of Contact: DANIEL R SHADE
814-949-6528
Fax: 814-949-6505
E-mail: shade@sapdc.org
http://www.sapdc.org

INDIANA UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (GCAP)
650 SOUTH 13TH STREET
5 ROBERT SHAW MAIN
INDIANA, PA 15705-1087
Point of Contact: RON MOREAU
724-357-7824
Fax: 724-357-3082
E-mail: rfmoreau@iup.edu
http://www.eberly.iup.edu/gcap/

JOHNSTOWN AREA REGIONAL INDUSTRIES PTAC
245 MARKET STREET, SUITE 200
JOHNSTOWN, PA 15901
Point of Contact: JAMES SCHIRF
814-539-4951
Fax: 814-535-8677
E-mail: jschirf@jari.com
http://www.jari.com/

SEDA COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS
201 FURNACE ROAD
LEWISBURG, PA 17837-8043
Point of Contact: ROBERT BROWN
570-524-4491
Fax: 570-524-9190
E-mail: rbrown@seda-cog.org
http://www.seda-cog.org/ptac

TRUSTEES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
3733 SPRUCE STREET
VANCE HALL, 4th FLOOR
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19104-3246
Point of Contact: M CLYDE STOLTZFUS
215-898-1219
Fax: 215-573-2135
E-mail: clydes@wharton.upenn.edu
http://www.pasbdc.org

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL OF NORTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA
LOCAL DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT
1151 OAK ST
PITTSTON, PA 18640
Point of Contact: DAVID KERN
570-655-5581
Fax: 570-654-5137
E-mail: dkern@nepa-alliance.org

PUERTO RICO
COMMONWEALTH OF PUERTO RICO
PUERTO RICO INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT COMPANY (PRIDCO)
Physical: 355 FD ROOSEVELT AVENUE
HATO REY, PR 00918
Mailing: PO BOX 362350
San Juan, PR 00936-2350
Point of Contact: MARCOS POLANCO (INTERIM)
787-753-6861
Fax: 787-751-6239
E-mail: mpolanco@pridco.com
http://ptacpr.com

RHODE ISLAND
RHODE ISLAND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
BUSINESS EXPANSION DIVISION
315 IRON HORSE WAY, SUITE 101
PROVIDENCE, RI 02908
Point of Contact: DOROTHY REYNOLDS
401-278-9100 x175
Fax: 401-273-8270
E-mail: dreynolds@riedc.com
http://www.riptac.com

SOUTH CAROLINA
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA
MOORE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
COLUMBIA, SC 29208
Point of Contact: FRANCIS L. HEAPE
803-777-4555
Fax: 803-777-4403
E-mail: fheape@moore.sc.edu
www.mooreschool.sc.edu

SOUTH DAKOTA
THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH DAKOTA
SOUTH DAKOTA PTAC
414 CLARK STREET
VERMILLION, SD 57069-2390
Point of Contact: KAREEN H. DOUGHERTY
605-367-5252
Fax: 605-677-5427
E-mail: kareen.dougherty@usd.edu
http://www.usd.edu/sdptac

TENNESSE
UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE (UT)
CENTER FOR INDUSTRIAL SERVICES (CIS)
193 POLK AVENUE, SUITE C
NASHVILLE, TN 37210
Point of Contact: JOE FLYNN
615-532-8885
Fax: 615-532-4937
E-mail: joe.flynn@tennessee.edu
http://www.cis.tennessee.edu/PTAC

TEXAS
SAN ANTONIO PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER
Physical: 1901 S ALAMO, SUITE 283
SAN ANTONIO, TX 78204-1605
Mailing: PO BOX 839966
SAN ANTONIO, TX 78283-3966
Point of Contact: PATRICIA TOVAR
210-207-3900
Fax: 210-207-3909
E-mail: pat.tovar@sanantonio.gov
http://www.sanantonio.gov/edd/

DEL MAR COLLEGE
WORKFORCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
101 BALDWIN, CED 146
CORPUS CHRISTI, TX 78404
Point of Contact: SEAN SMITH
361-698-2221
Fax: 361-698-1024
E-mail: spsmith@delmar.edu
http://www.delmar.edu/sbdc

ANGELINA COLLEGE PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE CENTER
PO BOX 1768
LUFKIN, TX 75902-1768
Point of Contact: JAMES R (JIM BOB) ROLLINS
936-633-5432
888-326-5223
Fax: 936-633-5478
E-mail: acpac@consolidated.net
http://www.acpactx.org

VALLEY PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT BROWNSVILLE/TSC
301 MEXICO BLVD, SUITE F6-A
BROWNSVILLE, TX 78520
Point of Contact: ROSALIE MANZANO
956-882-4107
Fax: 956-882-4109
E-mail: rosalie.o.manzano@utb.edu
http://wtce.utb.edu/vptac/

TEXAS TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY
PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE CENTER
2579 S LOOP 289, SUITE 210
LUBBOCK, TX 79423
Point of Contact: OTILO CASTELLANO
806-745-1637
Fax: 806-745-6207
E-mail: o.castellano@nwtsbdc.org
http://www.nwtsbdc.org

EL PASO COMMUNITY COLLEGE
CONTRACT OPPORTUNITIES CENTER
1359 LOMALAND, ROOM 536
EL PASO, TX 79935
Point of Contact: JOE CONWAY
915-831-7748
Fax: 915-831-7755
E-mail: josephc@epcc.edu
http://www.elpasococ.org

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT ARLINGTON
CROSS TIMBERS PROCUREMENT CENTER
7300 JACK NEWELL BLVD SOUTH
FORT WORTH, TX 76118
Point of Contact: GARY HARLIN
817-272-5978
Fax: 817-272-5992
E-mail: gharlin@arri.uta.edu
http://arri.uta.edu/crosstimbers/

PANHANDLE REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT UNIT
PHYSICAL: 415 W EIGHT AVENUE
AMARILLO, TX 79105
MAILING: P.O. Box 9257
AMARILLO, TX 79101
Point of Contact: EDMOND ESPARZA
806-372-3381
Fax: 806-373-3268
E-mail: eesparza@theprpc.org
http://www.prpc.cog.tx.us

UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON
PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER
2302 FANNIN, SUITE 200
HOUSTON, TX 77002
Point of Contact: CAREY WHITE
713-752-8466
Fax: 713-756-1515
E-mail: cwhite@uh.edu
http://www.sbdc.uh.edu

UTAH
GOVERNOR'S OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (GOED)
UTAH PTAC CENTER (UPTAC)
324 SOUTH STATE STREET
SUITE 500
SALT LAKE CITY, UT 84111
Point of Contact: FRED LANGE
801-538-8733
Fax: 801-538-8888
E-mail: fglange@utah.gov
http://www.goed.utah.gov/PTAC

VERMONT
STATE OF VERMONT
DEPT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
NATIONAL LIFE BUILDING DRAWER 20
MONTPELIER, VT 05609
Point of Contact: GREGORY MAGUIRE
802-828-5237
Fax: 802-828-3258
E-mail: greg.maguire@state.vt.us
http://www.thinkvermont.com/gmac

VIRGINA
GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY
MASON ENTERPRISE CENTER PTAP
4031 UNIVERSITY DRIVE, SUITE 200
FAIRFAX, VA 22030
Point of Contact: JAMES REGAN
703-277-7700
Fax: 703-352-8195
E-mail: ptap@gmu.edu
http://www.vaptap.org

CRATER PLANNING DISTRICT COMMISSION
CRATER PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE CENTER
1964 WAKEFIELD STREET
PO BOX 1808
PETERSBURG, VA 23805
Point of Contact: JOANNE TOMPKINS
804-861-1666
Fax: 804-732-8972
E-mail: jtompkins@cpd.state.va.us
http://www.craterpdc.state.va.us/PAC/PACmain.htm

SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA COMMUNITY COLLEGE
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIVISION
Physical: 369 COLLEGE ROAD
RICHLANDS, VA 24641-1101
Mailing: 6 MILES SOUTH OF CLAYPOOL HILL
US ROUTE 19
PO BOX SVCC
RICHLANDS, VA 24641
Point of Contact: GLENDA D CALVER
276-964-7334
Fax: 276-964-7575
E-mail: glenda.calver@sw.edu
http://www.sw.edu/ptac

WASHINGTON
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL OF SNOHOMISH COUNTY
728 134TH STREET, SW
SUITE 128
EVERETT, WA 98204-5322
Point of Contact: ERIN NIELSEN
425-743-4567
Fax: 425-745-5563
E-mail: ptac@snoedc.org
http://www.washingtonptac.org

NORTHWEST AMERICAN INDIAN DEVELOPMENT
3400 188TH STREET, SW
SUITE 310
LYNWOOD, WA 98037
Point of Contact: MEREDITH EDWARDS
425-744-0738
Fax: 425-771-6838
E-mail: meredith.edwards@nwaid.org

WEST VIRGINIA
REGIONAL CONTRACTING ASSISTANCE CENTER, INC. (RCAC)
1116 SMITH STREET
SUITE 202
CHARLESTON, WV 25301
Point of Contact: JESSICA HUDSON
304-344-2546
Fax: 304-344-2574
E-mail: jhudson@rcacwv.com
http://www.rcacwv.com

MID-OHIO VALLEY REGIONAL COUNCIL PTAC
PO BOX 5528
VIENNA, WV 26105
Point of Contact: BELINDA SHERIDAN
304-428-6889
Fax: 304-428-6891
E-mail: belinda@cssiwv.com
http://www.wvptac.org

WISCONSIN
MADISON AREA TECHNICAL COLLEGE
BUSINESS PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE CENTER
3513 ANDERSON STREET, SUITE 108
MADISON, WI 53704-2607
Point of Contact: DENISE REIMER
608-243-4484
Fax: 608-243-4486
E-mail: dmreimer@matcmadison.edu
http://matcmadison.edu/bpac

WISCONSIN PROCUREMENT INSTITUTE, INC.
756 N MILWAUKEE STREET
MILWAUKEE, WI 53202
Point of Contact: JOSEPH ENDRES
414-270-3600
Fax: 414-270-3610
E-mail: josephe@wispro.org
http://wispro.org

WYOMING
UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING
GOVERNMENT RESOURSES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR BUSINESS (GRO-BIZ)
1400 DEWAR DRIVE, SUITE 208C
ROCK SPRINGS , WY 82901
Point of Contact: PAT STILLE
307-362-2110
Fax: 307-382-3217
E-mail: stille@wyoming.com
http://www.gro-biz.com

Network Marketing Success & Web 2.0

2008-04-01T15:43:00.001-07:00

Wow! I can't believe how many of you downloaded the new ebook over the weekend! It's the Network Marketing Success & Web 2.0, in case you missed it! You can still get it along with the other goodies from last week just by clicking over to the Womensnet Newz and clicking on the "Archive" link.

It also generated more reader emails than anything in quite a while - mainly I think because the hype surrounding Web 2.0 has created a lot of skepticism among those of us that may be a little older than the average MySpace or FaceBook user ;-(

But once I started a regular Social Bookmarking campaign - the results have been nothing short of amazing - and you have to love the price.... since these sites let you get some amazing traffic at no cost....

Click Here to read more

Government Programs Help Big & Small Business

2008-03-17T08:45:00.001-07:00

This week, Bear Stearns, Wall Street's 5^th largest investment bank, is shown to be in big financial trouble because of the credit crunch caused by troubled high-risk mortgages. So Uncle Sam, thru the Federal Reserve Bank of New York is offering government backed loans to help get them through their problems. To read more, go to: http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2008/03/stocks-lose-big.html

$97.4 Million Business Giveaway May Violate State Law

2008-03-17T08:44:00.001-07:00

There are some people who say the government does not give away money to business, well here is the non-profit Goldwater Institute suing the City of Phoenix for giving away too much money to business...$97.4 million. See: http://www.goldwaterinstitute.org/AboutUs/ArticleView.aspx?id=1712

$1,500 a Month to Live on While You Start Your Own Business

2008-02-29T20:24:00.001-08:00

There are a number of states, including New York and Iowa that will allow you to collect unemployment money while you try to get your business started. It used to be that you could only receive unemployment compensation if you were actively looking for a job. Now Uncle Sam considers entrepreneuring to be a legitimate job. Contact your state unemployment labor office to see what your local rules are on entrepreneuring.
Income Eligibility: Must be unemployed or starting a business.

This Program is available for:

Income	:	60000
State	:	all
Age	:	Adults
Subject Category	:	Living Expenses
Money Type	:	Free Money
Contact Information	:	Contact your state unemployment labor office to see what your local rules are on entrepreneuring. Income Eligibility: Must be unemployed or starting a business

Loans for Low-Income Entrepreneurs

2008-02-29T20:09:00.001-08:00

Very low-income individuals can start their own businesses with the assistance of a loan from the Grameen Foundation USA. This international organization dedicated to stopping poverty administers a microcredit program for poor Americans looking to start a small or home-based commercial business. Contact Grameen Foundation USA, 1029 Vermont Ave., NW, Suite 400,Washington, DC 20005; 202-628-3560; Fax: 202-628-3880; www.gfusa.org
Income Eligibility: Determined on a case-by-case basis.

Money for Entrepreneurs with Disabilities

2008-02-29T20:05:00.001-08:00

The Abilities Fund is a nationwide developer targeted exclusively to advancing entrepreneurial opportunities for Americans with disabilities. They deliver a combination of training, technical assistance services, and advisory supports to individuals with disabilities and the organizations that support them. For more information contact The Abilities Fund, 4177 Alyssa Court SW #1, Iowa City, IA 52240; 866-720-3863 or 319-338-2521; Fax: 319-338-2528; www.abiltiesfund.org
Income Eligibility: None

Help to Start or Expand a Micro-Enterprise

2008-02-29T19:58:00.001-08:00

The PRIME program was created to help the smallest of small businesses, those with fewer than six employees. Under the Program for Investment in Micro-entrepreneurs (PRIME), the SBA provides federal funds to community based organizations that in turn offer training and technical assistance to low-income and very low-income micro-entrepreneurs. For more information on the program (59.050 Micro-Enterprise Development Grants) contact Judy Raskind, Office of Financial Assistance, Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street, SW, Washington, DC 20416; 800-UASK-SBA or 202-205-6497; www.sba.gov/INV
Income Eligibility: Determined on a case-by-case basis.

Grants to Local Organizations That Help Veterans Start Their Own Businesses

2008-02-29T19:56:00.001-08:00

This program establishes Veteran Business Outreach Centers to provide long term training, counseling, and mentoring to small businesses and potential small businesses owned and operated by eligible U.S. Veterans. For more information on this program (59.044 Veteran’s Entrepreneurial Training and Counseling) contact Reginald Teamer, Office of Veteran Affairs, Small Business Administration, 5th Floor, 409 Third Street, SW, Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6773; www.sba.gov
Income Eligibility: None

Money to Local Organizations for Small Businesses

2008-02-29T19:41:00.001-08:00

The Micro Loan program provides very small loans to start ups, newly established or growing small businesses. Its objective is to help business owners, especially women, low-income entrepreneurs, minorities, potential entrepreneurs, and those located in hardship areas lacking credit due to economic conditions. These micro-loans can only be used for working capital, supplies, furniture, fixtures, inventory, equipment and/or machinery. The SBA makes grants to participating intermediary lenders to provide marketing, management and technical assistance to micro-loan recipients. For more information on this program (59.046 Micro-loan Demonstration Program) contact the Small Business Administration, Office of Financial Assistance, Micro-Enterprise Development Branch, 409 Third Street, SW, Eighth Floor, Washington, DC 20416; 202-205-6490; www.sba.gov
Income Eligibility: None

Get $5,000 to $250,000 to Advertise Your Product Overseas

2008-02-25T05:40:00.001-08:00

Through the Branded Program you can get matching funds to support the promotion of branded food and agricultural products in foreign markets. You can receive anywhere from $5,000 to $250,000 per year and receive up to 50% back on international marketing expenses such as brochures, POS materials, in-store demos, trade shows, advertising, and labels for foreign markets. Matthew even knows someone who got money from this program to sell a product overseas, so the program really does offer help for those people with new ideas. To find out if you're eligible or for a list of reimbursable expenditures, go to: http://www.wusata.org/services/BrandedIndex.html or contact: Western United States Agricultural Trade Association, 4601 NE 77th Ave., Suite 120, Vancouver, WA 98662; 360-693-3373; Fax: 360-693-3464
Application: Applications are accepted in October each year. The first step is to pre-qualify on-line at http://www.wusata.org/services/branded/08online/PreQualWorksheet.html
Income Eligibility: None