How do I Increase My Google Page Rank?

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Google has become the gold standard by which an Internet surfer searches for something on the world wide web. By entering in a few words into their search box, you instantaneously are shown thousands if not hundred of thousands of results for the words entered.

If you have ever wondered how they can return those results so quickly, the answer is very simply the Google algorithm. It is this algorithm in which Google uses to index every webpage on the Internet. This indexing then ranks the pages based on importance on a scale of 1 to 10, with one being the lowest and ten of course being the highest.

This importance is tracked by the number of of other web pages that link back to it. The algorithm goes into more depth than that, but basically that is how it works. Your goal to build up your website or blog should be to increase its rank. Increasing its rank will invariably display your information higher on the list during a Google search for keywords that your site includes.

Below are a few ways to assist in achieving that higher rank.

Exchange Links. You want to exchange links with other websites or blogs that have similar content as yours. You contact a site and ask if they would like to display your link information, and in exchange you will display theirs. We have done this on our site with over 3,500 different sites and it was worked wonderfully for us. We basically exchange with everybody, but that is because our site handles a variety of topics. Find sites to exchange links with and contact them. The more links you have, the better off you will.

One Way Links. Unlike a link exchange where two sites link to each other, a one way link is just what it sounds like. It is a link from a web site or blog that only links to you, however you are not required to link back to them. A good way to achieve this is to create them. There are a number of advertising websites out there that allow you to post an ad for free. Craigslist, AdPost and Indocquent are just a few Post your link information to them all. These are your one way links. One way links carry more weight in the Google algorithm them swapped links. However, combining the two will increase it that much more.

More One Way Links. Another great way to get one way links is to partake in online discussions. For instance we publish all kinds of articles related to a variety of topics on our website. A feature that we recently implemented was allowing readers to comment on the article. This is a great area to comment on the article and leave a link to your website or blog. The comment never expires and if what you write is well thought out and helpful to other readers, they may just click on it to visit what you are promoting.

Father Time. Time is your best friend and your enemy here. Although it has never been confirmed, rumor has it that the Google algorithm includes a system check in there for the length of time your web site or blog has been around. With good reason if you think about it. Thousands of website are created daily, many disappear after a month. It would be a strain on Google`s indexing system to constantly weed out these sites that never make it. Therefore, the longer a site has been around the favorably it is looked upon. So as you can see time is your friend if your site has been around awhile, and your enemy if it is fairly new.

So there you have it four different ways you can hel increase the Google page rank for your site or blog.

By: Bruce A. Tucker


About the Author:
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource that allows businesses and individuals to post their products and services for sale in 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource that allows businesses and individuals to promote their business, products and services in over 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

Online Marketing Tips for Small Businesses

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As a small business owner, I have always been conscious of the importance of marketing and advertising. What I didn`t realize was how different marketing and advertising strategy can be in the online world. Over the past year, I have put more effort into building a true online presence. It`s been challenging to find the time to apply the things I have learned, but my efforts have certainly paid off. I have increased sales by 250% over the past twelve months, with most of my leads coming through my website. To make things a little bit simpler for other small business owners, I would like to share some of the things I have learned along the way. By following these steps, you can gain the search engine visibility that your business deserves. Most small businesses service a relatively small geographical area. In order to capture search engine rankings for your business, you have to make an effort to associate your business with your location. While this can be a time-consuming process, it is well worth the effort. Remember, when it comes to local search, your location is your brand.

1. Build a decent website.

In order to convey trust and authority in your industry, your website must have a clean design with meaningful content. Be sure your site is not built in Flash, as search engine crawlers cannot understand and interpret Flash. A simple html site will do the trick. Use a normalized address format, and be sure to include it on your site in plain text. The format should be the same as a typical mailing address. Include your address on every page of your website, preferably in a position that is prominent on each page. Be sure to use unique content, as opposed to marketing materials provided to you by your suppliers. The search engines do not like duplicate content. Try to create a website that will provide a valuable, informative experience for your users. Have a clear and concise contact page with directions to your office. You can even embed Google Maps in your page.

2. Optimize your content.

With billions of websites on the internet today, you have to find a way to make your website stand apart from the others. This is especially important for small business owners with a focus on a particular geographic location. There are literally thousands of websites about mortgage insurance, but very few that focus on mortgage insurance in your-city-name. Be sure to include your location in your page titles, along with your other business-related keywords. For example, your homepage should be titled "City Name Mortgage Insurance" as opposed to "Company Name Insurance". Be sure to give each page of your site a unique title and meta description.

3. Get local links.

This is the cornerstone of search engine rankings. It`s all about the links! To start, go out and purchase some quality directory links. Yahoo Directory, Best of the Web, and Business.com are good starting points. Then go out and ask all of your suppliers and partners to link to your site. Try to have them link to you with the terms you would like to rank for. The clickable part of a link is called anchor text, and anchor text is one way that the search engines associate a website with a particular search term. If you are a plumbing contractor in Dearborn, Michigan, ask your partners link to you with those words as opposed to your business name. Register your site with Google Local. This will ensure that a Google Maps listing shows up when somebody searches for your business. You can also create coupons with Google Local, so why not offer your customers a discount for discovering your business online? Don`t forget about traditional Yellow Pages directory advertising!

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4. Try Pay-Per-Click Advertising.

Organic search engine optimization requires real dedication. In order to achieve meaningful results, you have to invest time and effort into your website. If you are looking for immediate and quantifiable results, Pay Per Click advertising may be right for you. Google Adwords, Yahoo Sponsored Search, and MSN Adcenter are excellent places to advertise your products and services online. In order to avoid spending more than you have to, be sure to target your ad campaigns to your specific geographic area. Start with a small list of keywords, and set a small daily budget until you get the hang of PPC. Google also offers a Click-to-Call advertising solution that will connect users with your business via the telephone.

by Jacob Davidson

Jacob Davidson is happy to share his new found knowledge of search engine marketing with other small business owners. When he is not trying to stay abreast of the latest marketing and advertising techniques, he spends his time exploring the business yellow pages looking for new online advertising solutions. Nobody said being an entrepreneur is easy :)

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource that allows businesses and individuals to promote their business, products and services in over 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

How to Market Your Autoparts With These 5 Great Tips

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I do not know much about cars, engines or pretty much anything else that goes into a car, accept for gas. I do know how to fill my gas tank. Paying for it, at the high prices today, well that is another story. I have an older truck I like to tinker with and learn on. It is a white extended cab, 1992 Ford F250. It is fairly beat up, but it runs like a champ. When something goes wrong I will at least attempt to try and fix it first, before handing it over to the profressionals.

I went to an auto parts store to pick up something I needed for the truck, and when I walk into one of those stores I get overwhelmed. There are so many items to choose from, where to start looking and so on. Lucky for me the person behind the counter is an expert.

What I lack in auto expertise I make up for in business know-how. I do hold a creative knack for the ability to find better ways to advertise, market, sell and promote products, businesses and services. So an idea hit me to combine my creative skill in advertising and promotions, with the sale of auto parts.

If you own an auto parts store, or work for one, implementing these 5 tips below could help increase and build your customer base.

Start a blog. Blogging is all the rage right now and will be for many years to come. A blog is a great way for someone to get the word out about who they are and what they do. There are many free blogging tools out there such as blogger, Wordpress and LiveJournal. Start your blog today and begin writing to your blog about different auto parts. You can write about new parts, old parts, etc. I know this is a type of blog I would find very useful, especially if it came from an auto parts store that was local to my house. People that are interested in what you do, want to hear from you, because you are invariably an expert in the field.

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Write a press release. Local newspapers are always hungry for news, especially about what is going on in the community. A well written press release is a great way to get the word out on your auto parts store. Your press release should be 400 to 600 words in length and answer the who, what, when, where, why and how of your business. If you are not a very good writer, do not worry, hire a local high school student who works on the school paper to write it for you. They are always looking for experience and here you go, being the nice person that you are, handing it to them. Once written, submit your press release to your local newspapers, and editors to magazines that cover auto parts, cars, trucks, etc. Do not forget to put your blog URL, email address and a phone number somewhere in the press release so the readers can get in touch with you.

Start a newsletter. Now that you have a blog set up, you want to capture information from anybody and everyone who visits it. The best way to do that is to start a newsletter. You can easily set this up by visiting feedblitz on the web. It is a free service that is easy to use and implement. Your blog visitors will subscribe to your newsletter by entering their email address. Then once a week, month, etc., depending on how often you want to send it, your newsletter will be distributed to your subscribers. Your newsletter will include your expert information that you post on your blog, as well as a means for your readers to view your latest products to make a purchase. As your newsletter begins to grow, so will your sales.

Advertise online. A no brainer as you will need to generate even more visitors to your blog. A good way of doing this is to advertise. The best part is there are a variety of sites out there where you can advertise for free. Craigslist, Adpost, and Indocquent are great places to start. Advertise with the free version at first to help generate more customers before you dive into paying for it.

Build up your Google page rank through exchanging links. Without going into scientific details, the Google page rank is the means by which google and other search engines rank your blog. The higher your rank, the closer to the top of search engines your blog will appear. A great way to increase your google page rank is through exchanging links. You want to exchange links with websites that are similar in content to yours, and try to exchange links that have an equal or higher rank than your site, although exchanging with a site that is lower than yours will not bring you down, you will just need more of them. We use LinkMarket to exchange links for our website. It is free service and they have over 80,000 other websites to exchange with.

So there you have it. Five great ways to get you going in selling your autoparts. It doesn`t matter whether it is your hobby or something you do full-time, implementing these five tips will help you along your way to a successful auto parts business.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.indocquent.com/, an online resource that allows auto parts dealers, manufacturers and businesses post their products and services for sale in 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource that allows businesses and individuals to promote their business, products and services in over 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

How to Market Your Arts And Crafts With These 5 Great Tips

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My wife and I went to the grocery store the other day. While she was in there loading up on what we needed for the week, I decided to visit the local arts and crafts store next door. I was always fascinated with arts and crafts. The ability to create something genuine out of small pieces of wood, yarn, string, fabric, you name it, was very intriguing to me. Intriguing, because my creative mindset to do something like that, just wasn`t there.

But what I do hold a creative knack for is the ability to find better ways to advertise, market, sell and promote products, businesses and services. So an idea hit me to combine my creative skill in advertising and promotions, with that of those items in arts and crafts.

If you create arts and crafts as a way to generate some income, or even as a hobby, practice these five tips below to increase and build your customer base.

Start a blog. Blogging is all the rage right now and will be for many years to come. A blog is a great way for someone to get the word out about who they are and what they do. There are many free blogging tools out there such as blogger, Wordpress and LiveJournal. Start your blog today and begin writing to your blog about the pieces of arts and crafts that you create. People that are interested in what you do, want to hear from you, because you are invariably an expert in the field.
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Write a press release. Local newspapers are always hungry for news, especially about what is going on in the community. A well written press release is a great way to get the word out on your arts and crafts. Your press release should be 400 to 600 words in length and answer the who, what, when, where, why and how of your business. If you are not a very good writer, do not worry, hire a local high school student who works on the school paper to write it for you. They are always looking for experience and here you go, being the nice person that you are, handing it to them. Once written, submit your press release to your local newspapers, and editors to magazines that cover what you are trying to sell. Don`t forget to put your blog URL, email address and a phone number somewhere in the press release so the readers can get in touch with you to order your products.

Start a newsletter. Now that you have a blog set up, you want to capture information from anybody and everyone who visits it. The best way to do that is to start a newsletter. You can easily set this up by visiting feedblitz on the web. It is a free service that is easy to use and implement. Your blog visitors will subscribe to your newsletter by entering their email address. Then once a week, month, etc., depending on how often you want to send it, your newsletter will be distributed to your subscribers. Your newsletter will include your expert information that you post on your blog, as well as a means for your readers to view your latest products to make a purchase. As your newsletter begins to grow, so will your sales.

Advertise online. A no brainer as you will need to generate even more visitors to your blog. A good way of doing this is to advertise. The best part is there are a variety of sites out there where you can advertise for free. Craigslist, Adpost, and our website are great places to start. Advertise with the free version at first to help generate more customers before you dive into paying for it.

Build up your Google page rank through exchanging links. Without going into scientific details, the Google page rank is the means by which google and other search engines rank your blog. The higher your rank, the closer to the top of search engines your blog will appear. A great way to increase your google page rank is through exchanging links. You want to exchange links with websites that are similar in content to yours, and try to exchange links that have an equal or higher rank than your site, although exchanging with a site that is lower than yours will not bring you down, you will just need more of them. We use LinkMarket to exchange links for our website. It is free service and they have over 80,000 other websites to exchange with.

So there you have it. Five great ways to get you started in selling your arts and crafts. It doesn`t matter whether it is your hobby or something you do full-time, implementing these five tips will help you along your way to a successful arts and crafts business.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.indocquent.com/, an online resource that allows businesses and individuals to post their products and services for sale in 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

The Open Brand Framework

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If so, we`ve put together a strategic framework that capitalizes on both the social web`s traits and technologies and the icitizenry`s power to be both medium and message.

Two trends in particular anchor the open brand framework:

The first is the emergence of consumer notoriety through the increased visibility of individuals -- as data, as consumer profiles, as artists or entrepreneurs no longer reliant upon paid third parties to be "known" to the world. This is in contrast to what historically has been relative consumer anonymity with regard to brands and the world.

The second is the emergence of creative production, the opposite of simple, uncritical consumption. This is evidenced by the dazzling array of engaging online activities that few twentieth century consumers enjoyed.

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These two trends are on their way to becoming macrotrends whose impact will be felt beyond the digital universe. When we cast them as x- and y-axes on a grid, they frame four types of essential and interconnected consumer experiences -- on-demand, personal, engaging and networked. Optimizing these consumer experiences in alignment with a brand`s business objectives constitutes the way to open up to a web-made world.

Mapping this quartet of consumer experiences across the landscape of the social web also helps brands move away from the single, all-things-to-all-consumers "consumer experience" that makes brands seem closed and boxed in by their own rigid, often analog standards.

The On-Demand Experience is inspired by the digital competence-seeking icitizen -- that time-starved consumer who views the internet as a life management tool and prefers relative anonymity as she seeks speed to information and task completion. This experience is characterized by efficiency, ease, control, findability and instantaneousness.

The Personal Experience takes its inspiration from the more celebrity-minded icitizen, who would expect a brand to foster a relationship with her. Within this experience, the brand enables individualized interaction, caters to her preferences and boosts her ability to influence others -- and be recognized for doing so. This experience is characterized by acknowledgement, dialogue, customization, privilege and popularity.

The Engaging Experience takes its cues from the collectively-motivated icitizens who want to be diverted and engrossed, and who develop an emotional attachment to brands that provide the means and occasions to shore up their social identities. An engaging experience satisfies consumers` desires to do more than acquire or observe. This experience is characterized by participation, belonging, immersion, entertainment and inspiration.

The Networked Experience is inspired by icitizens driven to effect cultural change, and who would expect a brand to do the same, primarily by engaging the social web`s nodes of sharing and its seemingly limitless, unencumbered and portable paths to opportunity and innovation. The networked experience is valuable to those seeking creative and influential interactions, and would appeal to both the individual icitizen and icitizen communities. It also recognizes those icitizens` sense of entitlement about cocreating the brand`s messages and offerings. The earmarks of the networked experience are self-expression, ego gratification, portability, community and meaningful change.

While the networked and personal experiences are shaped by the motivations of the elite icitizens, who are in fact a small portion of the icitizenry, the influence of these individuals is relatively greater because they`re the new tastemakers -- opinionated, passionate and iconoclastic. They shape improved experiences for everyday icitizens and even the rest of the online population because they`re the de facto standard-bearers for open branding.

Copyright © 2008 by Resource Interactive

The above is an excerpt from the book The Open Brand

by Kelly Mooney and Nita Rollins, Ph.D.

Published by New Riders Press; March 2008;$24.99US/$26.99CAN; 978-0-321-54423-0

Copyright © 2008 by Resource Interactive

Authors

Kelly Mooney has been a consumer-centric marketing innovator for 20 years, and is President of Resource Interactive. She co-authored The Ten Demandments: Rules to Live by in the Age of the Demanding Consumer (McGrawHill, 2002) -- one of the first marketing books to showcase the consumer`s perspective. A popular blogger, frequent keynote speaker and expert commentator, her perspectives have been covered by media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Fortune, Inc., Fast Company, USA Today, Time Digital, People, CNN, CNBC, CNET, CBS`s "The Early Show," Nikkei Business (Japan), Vente à Distance (France), and Capital (Dubai).

Dr. Nita Rollins is a multidisciplinary thinker and Innovation Consultant in the Resource Interactive R&D Lab. She is the author of Cinaesthetics: The Beautiful, the Ugly, the Sublime and the Kitsch in Post-Metaphysical Film (2008), and of articles for Design Management Journal, New Design (UK), Innovation: The IDSA Quarterly, Internet Retailer, Cinema Journal and Wide Angle. She earned her Ph.D. in Critical Studies from UCLA`s Department of Theater, Film & TV, and has served as Research Fellow at the University of California Humanities Research Institute and the University of Paris III.

For more information, please visit www.resource.com.


Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource that allows businesses and individuals to promote their business, products and services in over 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

To Pay or Not to Pay for Advertising

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When you are looking for the best way to market your home business there are tons of possibilities, but some may end up costing you more than others. Whether you want to market yourself through the internet or through the mailbox there are certainly some methods of marketing that will be more cost-effective. We`ll take a look at some of these marketing strategies and see if they could be right for your business.

If you have just begun your home business it probably isn`t reasonable to expect to advertise yourself on a local billboard. However, it is much more reasonable to post an advertisement in a local newspaper or church bulletin. Or you could print fliers or postcards at home. You could also post links to your website on certain forums online. Free advertising exists on the internet; you just need to find it. Search for certain keywords that will bring up sites for free advertising. Advertising on some of these sites could be time consuming in the beginning. But in the end, you could find some good prospects and some good customers this way.

The only way you will really find free advertising is through word-of-mouth and some online posts. Every other form of marketing has small costs that must be allowed for. To print fliers you must purchase the paper and printer cartridges. To send postcards you must purchase the cards first and then pay for shipping. To post an ad in a newspaper or bulletin you much pay for the ad space. Even online, some sites will charge you to post your ad. Depending on the return, paying for some online ads may not be so bad. Determine first how potential customers will see your ad. Will it be visible among the hundreds of other business opportunity ads? How will yours stand out among the other ads? How will they be able to contact you? What type of traffic does this site have? These are many key questions to consider.

Depending on how much you are willing to pay for advertising, your sources for marketing may be limited. However, it is important to try multiple methods of advertising before deciding on the first one that shows a return. Most importantly is to remember that if the return you are earning from an ad is not enough to pay for the cost of the ad itself, it isn`t worthwhile.
You can save yourself some money by cutting down on the advertisements that are not showing such a high return. The money you are saving can then be reallocated to marketing strategies that you know are working well. If you market online, many companies can track your ad hits and you will be able to tell how many visitors saw your ad, and that can determine if it is cost effective.

It will take some time to find the best marketing solution for your home business. Ultimately the best return may come from a combination of methods, so it is very important never to limit yourself to a single avenue for advertisement. The best solution will be the one that that brings in the most revenue at the lowest cost to you. To get an idea of which advertisements are helping you the most, take a poll from your customers of how they found you. This will really show you how to manage your advertisement costs.

By: William Drapcho


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William Drapcho is owner of WilliamDrapcho.com and writes on a variety of subjects. To learn more about this topic and others William recommends visiting http://www.williamdrapcho.com/blog/ to sign up for a free newsletter on ideas for home business opportunities or go to http://www.pluginprofitsite.com/main-19493

Published by http://www.Indocquent.com an online resource where you can advertise your business, products or services throughout 20,000 cities around the world.

8 Reasons Why Your Prints are Cheap and Getting Cheaper

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Mention discount printing and a person may think twice about quality, especially with something as critical as working on your marketing materials. Rest assured though that most of these fears are baseless, and larger printing companies with more professional machinery provide prints cheaper.

In printing, a change in the way prints are done can spell the difference of as much as 50% of the price cost. Just compare the printing cost of online printing as against a small local printing company to get a clear picture of the price difference. There are several factors that affect the price of your printing.

Here are a few tidbits about how big companies can afford to sell cheap:

• Economies of Scale:

In simple terms, an increase in the scale of production brings down the cost to produce individual units. There are several reasons why the overall cost per print goes down as the output of a printer increases.

1) Printing companies order their supplies like paper and ink from third party suppliers. The large volume can be used as leverage to get bigger wholesale discounts from these third party suppliers.

2) Large businesses have to maintain an efficient work flow to keep up with the printing demands. They have to train their employees, and with repetitive work, they gain more experience and skill in their specialized area. This minimizes wastage and maximizes productivity.

3) Fixed overhead costs are spread over a larger volume of print jobs. Overhead costs are sometimes unrelated to the print job itself, but should nonetheless be recovered by the business. The rent of the factory for instance, or the cost to hire management is spread over more print jobs.

• New Technology:

4) Investing in new equipment allows printing companies to automate many tedious and laborious processes that cut additional costs. The computer to plate technology for instance cuts a big portion of the prepress process that used to involve manually developing plates, stripping the negative to plate, etc.

5) With the lighter plastic parts, the printing equipment is easier to manage and to set up cutting down related fixed costs.

6) Globalization allows a faster transport of goods and services across borders. Printers can simply outsource their customer service to call centers, or their design templates to graphic artists in other countries.

• Gang Run Printing:

7) Gang-run printing combines different print jobs into a large plate and is run as one job so that the setup and plating costs is shared. And because a big part of the printing process is taken up by plating and setup costs, it gives customers bigger savings.

• Competition:

8) As the prices of printing companies become more accessible and easy to compare, printing companies make sure they keep their prices competitive. They keep their overhead costs low, streamline their production line, and keep their profit margins minimal.

The small profit margin on each printing project is made up for in volume. These discount printing companies rely on providing the cheapest services to get the best value for customers. Next time you hear discount, be sure to take advantage of the cheaper costs.

This article aims to inform readers how to avail quality prints through discount printing jobs. For more related topics and tips please feel free to visit Color Printing Wholesale

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource that allows businesses and individuals to promote their business, products and services in over 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

Basics About Team Building At Work

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A simple group of people is not a team; a team is more complicated than that. Because you work with a group of people does not necessarily mean you are in a team. Let’s take sports for example, we cheer, we feel, we get involved why not do the same at work? Yes at work, wound not be more exciting that way?

Think about it, everybody working for the same purpose, to get “price”, to meet the same goals. That would really be called team work but to get into that there are is some team building to do.

Some reasons why team building does not work are:

Not having the same objective: you all have to have the same goal, be involved, share the feelings and put emotional commitment to what your team is doing.

Focus: team building is not about individuals its about a whole becoming one you all have to be focus on what you do, thinking as one, it seems impossible, but it really does come to be true with some practice and experience.

Sharing experiences: Not everybody in your team has the same knowledge; you all have to share your experiences. Remember you are a team and team building is all about helping each other to be on the same page. The more knowledgeable you all become the more productive you will be.

Lack of communication: sharing is not enough you have to communicate and make sure they understand it. That is your job! Do not think that because you shared your information or knowledge; everybody else understood it. Remember team building is a process and you are part of it.

So let’s try to work on this kind of situations and make them the best we can, remember we all work to meet the same goals.

In addition to all these, here are some suggestions to accomplish the whole team building process in a very effective manner:

Schedule constant meetings: At the begging is best to have several meetings per week in order to check up on the process. Prepare the meetings well, give it the importance that it deserves, make everybody to feel involve on them.

Every meeting should have an outline with the topics of discussion. What the problem is and how to solve it or how to find a way to solve the problem if any, always try to have a constructive and positive conclusion.

Everybody should take notes, and give their own opinions about the meeting; the whole process should be reviewed and improved frequently.

Be clear: focus on the main point, make sure everybody understands what the meeting is about. Everybody has to be focus, let them know why every team member is important and how big the contribution of their work is for the team.

Brainstorming is a very good method to come up with the best ideas. No idea is wrong, or stupid, it might sound that way but that could trigger a better idea to someone else it is very important for all team members to participate and be involve in the process.

Finally identify a team leader, a leader is not always the one that is best at what they do, the one that is best at what they do should stay doing it, he is the best at it. Team leaders should be able to identify other leaders or leadership skills among the team members and work together to improve their own methods and reach the goals successfully.

Celtic Team Building is a company that provides tailor made team building and sales incentives events for groups of 5-500. They have a wide range of fun and exciting activities to choose from.

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource that allows businesses and individuals to promote their business, products and services in over 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

Paper, plastic, or reusable canvas? Now’s the time to join the tote bag revolution

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“Paper or plastic?” “Neither!” It’s becoming a popular catch phrase since all of the major grocery stores have started selling reusable canvas totes with their logo on the front. What makes them brilliant from a marketing perspective is that buying and using these bags makes customers feel good. Unless you’re Coca-Cola, it’s not often that you can get a customer to shell out cash to carry something with your logo on it.

In fact, most customers don’t really consider the marketing angle at all. The point is to do their part to help the environment and to appreciate the company’s efforts to do the same.

Then there’s the obvious benefit. As with any promotional tote bag, visibility is high. There’s also the potential for a long life. Promotional pens can run out in a couple of months, and pencils are eventually sharpened down into oblivion. A quality tote bag, on the other hand, can be used for years. A good example is the Heavy Cotton Canvas Boat Tote. When you purchase a sturdily-constructed bag, you could be getting years’ worth of advertising out of a modest one-time investment.

Here’s the great thing about this trend: you don’t have to own a brick-and-mortar retail store in order to take advantage of the canvas tote bag as a marketing tool. Service-oriented businesses, such as beauty salons and auto repairs, can also benefit from this approach, and so can retailers who don’t sell directly to the public.

There’s no rule that says a customer can only use a bag sold by Grocery Store X when they’re shopping at Grocery Store X. Every individual that currently opts for canvas bags, or has plans to do so in the future, could just as easily be carrying a bag featuring your company’s logo.

You can even go one better than Grocery Store X. Instead of selling the canvas bags for 99 cents at the checkout, you can give yours away for free. Free always trumps even the lowest of prices. You won’t have to break the bank to do it. For instance, the Classic Cotton Meeting Tote is available for just over a buck and a half.

Another way to top the grocery stores and mass merchandisers is to take eco-friendly to the next level with bags made from recycled material. Believe it or not, promotional tote bags made from recycled materials are actually out there and easy to get your hands on. For instance, you can order the Eco 51% Recycled Convention Tote, which is also a standout for its sophisticated black color in place of the traditional green. Should you find yourself in need of bag that’s more upscale and gift-appropriate, there is actually a stylish, full-size tote bag out there called the 100% Post Consumer Recycled Deluxe Tote Bag.

Next time a customer answers “neither” to the age old question of “paper or plastic,” make sure it’s a bag with your logo on it that they hoist onto the counter.

Brian Cerra is a recognized industry expert on promotional marketing with promotional products, and is Vice President of Sales for Best Promotions http://www.bestpromotions.com. Get the best deals on promotional products by calling Brian directly at 1-866-881-2378.

Published By: Indocquent.com- An online resource that allows businesses and individuals to promote their business, products and services in over 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

How to Sell Your New Gadget Electronic

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I am walking through the store the other day with my wife and notice a little blast from the past, specifically from my childhood. It was a handheld electronic football game. They had one on display to test out, so me being the curious consumer that I am, I want to make sure the game was ok, before I decided to buy it.
So I turned it on, and the game started beeping and playing a tune in that old eighties style of electronic sound my generation got used to. Just like the game I remember, there wasn’t much to it, when you compare it games of today. It has basic functionality with limited playing ability, but boy was it fun.

Kids today wouldn’t even look at that game, but for a whole generation of people that at one time were kids, namely my generation, it is an electronic gadget that I immediately gravitated towards.

Maybe you have an idea for a hot new electronic gadget, or to reinvent one from yester year. Whatever the goal may be there are a variety of ways you can sell them. You should however write down specific steps on what exactly you are trying to accomplish.

Write down your specific target market that your game appeals to. In my experience above, that game appealed to young boys from ages 10 to about 13.

Find out where your target market frequents. This is where you want to concentrate your advertising and marketing efforts. You do not want to waste your time putting your electronic gadget up for sale in a store where very few of your target market members visit, or post online in a category that is not relevant to what the gadget is.

Define what attracts your target market to the product you’re selling. For me it was the fact that the electronic gadget was a way to relive the past. That is exactly how they presented it. It was a game to relive days gone by, and conjure up some good old memories.

Create your promotion, advertising, marketing campaign, and sales pitch around what you have already written above. Whether you are posting an online advertisement, or trying to pitch your idea to a store, you need a clear, professional presentation of what you are selling, and what you are trying accomplish.

Post your online advertisements, set up your displays in the stores and sit back and start taking orders. Well you really won’t sit back, you will be a bit more outgoing and aggressive to get the product out there, but the point is you can now concentrate on selling your product to your target market that you already defined.

There are thousands of electronic gadgets and gizmos on the market today. Some are very helpful and some are fairly worthless. If you have a good product, that is useful for the purpose it was intended, you should have no problems, making lots of sales.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.indocquent.com/, an online resource where you can post products and services for sale and hire.

You can read their "how to create your free indocquent account" at http://www.ehow.com/how_2185566_account-indocquentcom.html.

7 Handy Tips to Keep Your Store Fronts Trendy and Updated

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Why is everyone so busy with advertising and branding? It’s because these large companies know that they sell their businesses image first, and their products second. And for small shop owners, a sale starts with window shopping. Make sure your store looks like a success with trendy window signs and sell your business image.

You may be a store-around- the- corner that market the fact that you are a familiar neighborhood business, but try updating the look of your store and see even more business come in. People are always intrigued and drawn to novelty, and a little face lift to reinvent your look might give your sales a lift as well.

1. When you are unsure about a drastic change, use a static cling for your new look. This is a non-adhesive material and as the name indicates attaches itself to the glass surface using static. With its non-adhesive back that is easy to mount on to your glass surface, and is even easier to remove without the messy residue.

2. Get the perfect fit. The window sign can be printed from your large format printing company and comes in the size specification you choose from anywhere between 8x8inches to as big as 51x100 inches with a half inch size increment. You can have a small design at one corner of the window, a frame or measure the full area of your store window and the entire space for your design.

3. You can have your window sign printed on an opaque material to have full solid colors, or if you don’t want to block your store window with your window sign, have it printed on a clear material. This gives your print the translucency you need to let your customers see through.

4. Remember that commercial design is designing to attract your customers. Good commercial design is always updated with the trends, in tune with the context, and blends with its environment. Its one thing to produce striking designs, but it’s always quite another to find your store design completely out-of-place.

Remember to keep your designs in context with the following suggestions:

5. Use the prevalent color scheme.

• Spring colors – Mostly pastel colors

• Summer colors – Bright primary colors

• Fall colors – Deep Reds, Brown, Burnt Orange

• Winter colors – Gray, Blue, Black, Silver

• Christmas Colors – Red, Green, Gold, and Silver

• Halloween Colors – work around black and orange colors

6. Use popular themes

• Spring: Easter, Floral designs,

• Summer: Sun, Sea, and Sand

• Fall: Leaves, Leaves, Leaves

• Winter: Snowflakes, Snowman, snow angels

• Christmas: Nativity, Santa Claus, Reindeers,

• Halloween: Witches, Pumpkins, Bats,

7. Advertise New Events

• Draw Customers with SALE signs

• Use big bold letters to let your people know your seasons promos

• Announce New Product Arrivals

• Introduce New Services

Use window signs to create a variety of designs for your store fronts at minimal cost. Better yet, because they are non-adhesive, you can simply store them for future use. Add a little window trimming and make window shopping an experience for your customers.

More on window signs tips and guides can be found at Large Format Posters

7 Easy But Essential Steps To Making An Infomercial

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Looking for an innovative way to sell a product? Use an infomercial that is realistic and captures the imagination of viewers. Infomercials drive products successful as they convince viewers on television or radio of their use and efficacy.

With Google indexing online videos a person does not need to spend tons of money to make an infomercial. A product promotion can now be done effectively on television or online.

To make an infomercial all you need is:

1. A product with an attractive name and packaging.

2. A fast moving attention grabbing script. Make sure a human element exists. Introduce transparency and credibility.

3. An efficient and affordable producer who will make the thirty minute film. Or an infomercial tool kit to make the infomercial video yourself.

4. A well known model or personality who will endorse the product convincingly.

5. Booked air time on television or through the broadband.

6. Effective pricing of product and a gateway through which buyer can order or buy the product.

7. Since infomercials are a direct response marketing exercise the film must be such that it gets an immediate response from viewers. Studies show that 85% of sales are done before the infomercial ends. This indicates that the infomercial should be convincing and truthful to elicit an immediate response.

Infomercials are not cheap and so must be made with great thought. According to T Hawthorne one of the largest producers of infomercials “ to be successful an infomercial must have hard sell.” A successful infomercial must convince people about the effectiveness of a product.

An infomercial must have a core theme and the whole infomercial must prove the theme or promote the point. Its about “magical transformation,” according to T Hawthorne. The keys to success are testimonials, product demos, and the right pricing.

There are established marketing and advertising protocols for infomercials called AIDA. Where A represents attention; I, interest; D, is for desire; and A is action. So a WOW infomercial must capture the attention of the viewer, the interest must grow and the viewer must be convinced about the product and feel the desire to buy one.

According to the experts a product is ideal for an infomercial if:

• It has appeal.
• Costs under USD 100.
• Can be demonstrated during the infomercial.
• The mark up is 4:1 or 5:1.
• Has a market potential like utensils, hair slaves, slimming tonics, or beauty aids.

A success infomercial can move a product faster than any other marketing promotion.

Timothy Rudon is a writer for Infomercials , the premier website to find infomercial, infomercial product, infomercial review, fitness infomercial review, infomercial product endors, infomercial company, infomercial list and many more.

Beautiful Canvas printing is a masterpiece

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Printing is the job of a creative mind. Only an imaginary mind can think and portray beautiful designs. A beautiful canvas attracts one and all. Canvas printing requires hard work and dedication. People print various types of images on it. Color combination, design and picture play a major role in printing. Different canvas depicts different symbols and meanings. An attractive piece appeals all. The message of some canvases is very difficult to understand. Only a creative mind can understand its various symbols and meanings. A beautiful canvas has the capability to make a person stop and stare at it at least for a second.

Canvas printing is a tough job and various companies offer the service of canvas printing. Those companies create stunning canvas prints by printing your photos on canvas. Sometime, people want their own photo to get framed and sometime they canvass the photo of their family members. A reputed canvas printer can turn slides, negatives and even children’s drawings into stunning prints. The rates of the service vary from company to company. Some reputed company even offers door to door delivery. To get the idea of various printing companies, one can search on the internet. A beautiful canvas is a masterpiece and people decorate their house and office with those pictures.

Any beautiful canvas printing is priceless and people hang on their walls. It enhances the beauty of a house and office. A beautiful print can speak many things. Only a creative mind can understood those words. It is an outcome of one’s thought and feeling. Some canvas depicts social happenings while some depict personal feelings. Today, many graphics are used in designing a canvas. It is also considered as an effective tool of marketing. Various advertising firms hire the service of canvas making and effectively advertise their product, services and ideas. Artists search many sites to get idea of various designs. Care should be taken that the designs do not hurt the sentiments of the general public. Printing has undergone a sea change. Earlier, people got the idea of printing from books and now they are taking the ideas from the internet. There are various websites of designing and pictures and artists are taking help from this medium.

Many individuals are taking canvas printing as their profession. Many fine arts school has also come up to train the interested candidates. It is a highly paid job and many people are seeking their service for professional and personal reasons. It is the most popular form of art media. One opts for canvas print services for promotional events, trade show display, galleries, retail environments as well as interior design. Digital canvas print is flourishing day by day and many experienced professionals are involved in this service. High quality and a high resolution canvas print is the outcome of digital printing. Some unique canvases are sold at whopping price. Many famous canvases are auctioned and rich, interested people are purchasing them at any cost. A beautiful canvas catches one’s eye.

Chris Broad has a special liking for a variety of posters. Collecting different kinds of posters is his hobby. He is very dedicated towards his work. If you want to know more about Banners,large posters,Banner stands,Canvas printing,Retractable banner stands and Custom banners visit www.postersigns.com.

Build Your Business Presence In Your Community

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I have lived in the same area for over 30 years. I stay because I like it, it is convenient to a lot of life`s necessities, has seasonal change and the list goes on and on.

I have volunteered for a number of years in various community activities for the sake of lending a helping hand and making the community a better place.

Not all people enjoy this or think that way, but if you are a business owner, and your business success relies heavily on your surrounding community, you should consider building a presence there.

Now this does not mean you should run out and work at the soup kitchen 12 hours a day, or coach every sports team, but you should get to know the people in your town, what they like, dislike and so on.

Your first step is to create a community hearing group from your customer base. This group is responsible for listening to and creating ideas on how the business could help benefit the community. Once established, publicize the group through press releases.

If you do not have a newsletter, you should definitely start one. A newsletter is a great way to keep people reminded of your business as well as inform them of other events you may be partaking in. Post your newsletter on your website, email it to customers who asked to receive it via email and send it regular mail to those on your customer list who do not have email.

Give back to the community. That does not mean donate thousands of dollars unless that is what you choose. Make donations that represent your business. If you own a sporting goods store, consider donating some equipment to a local sports league.

Finally, get your face and name out there by volunteering to help your town. Not only is this a great feel good type of activity it is also a great way to network with others who also volunteer. Encourage employees to volunteer with you.

Above are a variety of ways to help build your business in your community. Use all of them and you are sure to be on your way to being the talk of the town.

By: Bruce A. Tucker


About the Author:
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource that allows businesses and individuals to post their products and services for sale in 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

Build Your Business With These 5 Tips

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I recently took a walk through my local Target store. Doing some normal shopping, I was enamored by all the products available for sale. What made it more impressive was just by briely looking at a product I knew who the company was and what they sold.


Can potential customers or even in some cases, current customers look at what you sell or offer and know it is you? More importantly, when they see your business name, do they get a good feeling or one that is not so good?


Whether you are looking to start a new business or increase a current one, if you follow these five steps, you are sure to get it going.


What does Nike, Dell, Microsoft, the NFL and Fisher Price all have in common? Regardless of what they sell, you know who they are, and what they have to offer. In other words they have embedded their brands into society`s minds.


According to S.C.O.R.E. you should "Spend a little money to create a professional logo, business card and stationery. Present a professional image." This could not be more true. The previously mentioned companies literally spend millions to embed that branding. Now you do not need to spend that much, but you need to get your name out there and let people know who you are and what your business is all about.

Whether you fix homes, sell electronics, or are a business consultant, make sure you belong to the 21st century business world. If you do not have a website make it a top priority in creating a Web site. Your web site is today’s calling card. You really shouldn’t do business without a web site. You can create one for literally pennies, and even get your local high school student to do it for almost nothing. Give customers a place to go to learn about your business in their spare time.


This next tip applies more to new businesses but for existing ones you can use this to keep your momentum going. That is, make your first sale. Even if your first sale is at a discounted rate or to a relative or friend, for peace of mind and to get the ball rolling, it is key to get that first sale out of the way.


Next you want to get some testimonials. Testimonials are customer accounts as to why they liked your product or would recommend your service. Whether you are new to business or not, you need to get testimonials. Once you make that first sale, do a follow up call, email, snail mail or whatever and ask the customer to give you some feedback. Anything positive that they respond with can be used as a customer account to further strengthen your business.


Finally, build a buzz around your business. S.C.O.R.E. says you should, "look for a special promotion, big event, email campaign or something out of the norm for your business to get people talking about you, your product or service."


Whatever your business is, whatever you sell or provide, use these 5 tips above and you can get the ball rolling for a successful business.


By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource that allows businesses and individuals to post their products and services for sale in 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

Avoid Misleading Advertising In Business

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I have been in the market for one of those new flat panel LCD screens recently. You know the one I am talking about. A picture so clear you feel like you are there. I started doing my homework on the products, reading the reviews and looking to catch a sale.



Low and behold, I am going through the Sunday ads, and I see the one I wanted at a great price. It has everything I could ask for, digital, high def, 1080px resolution, I can hang it on a wall, you name it, and it has it.



I get to the store, walk up to the counter and show them the ad, and the retailer says “sorry we sold out of them, but let me show you some others”. I think to myself, ‘sold out? How is that possible, when the ad ran this morning’? So now, are they not only sold out, but the sales person wants to show me some others that were more expensive and had less features…what a shocker.



This has happened to almost everyone I have ever talked to. It is a sales technique used by a lot of mom and pop stores called the bait and switch. They run a small ad in a circular for the most popular product at a price that is incredible. This gets the consumer into the store. Once in the store, they tell the shopper they are sold out, but they have other models there for sale.



Not only is this tactic, and it is a tactic, deceptive and unethical, in most states in America, it is highly illegal. I have seen businesses try this and literally get shut down by law enforcement officials.

If you are in business now, or thinking of going into business, do not engage in false, misleading or deceptive advertising. Make sure your claims are accurate. Nothing is more horrible then trying to deceive a customer. All it takes is for you to deceive one customer and that bad news will spread like wildfire. You will soon be begging people to buy from your business, should it withstand the negative press.



A family friend of mine was caught almost victim to this. He was buying a computer, responded to an ad, and then when he got there, they didn’t have any left. They then tried to sell him some cheap rip off of the same product. Lucky for him he called them on it, because he is an attorney and knows the law. He asked to see a sales receipt of the last one sold of the product he was looking for. They refused saying they don’t share that information. A couple days later he got the BBB in on it and the store was shut down.



It really is that big of a deal. Do not partake in those practices. You may get away with it for a little bit, but eventually it will catch up to you, and you could find yourself out of business, in court, owing lots of money or even worse in jail.



Eventually you will anger the wrong customer. The last thing you want as a business is angry customers who spread bad press.



By: Bruce A. Tucker


About the Author:
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource that allows businesses and individuals to post their products and services for sale in 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.

Network Marketing Ads And Newsletter Subscribers

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Do you know the number one reason why visitors to your website may not sign up for your free newsletter? They have been burnt before! Either their email address was abused for endless mailings, or the newsletter was so boring, usually because it was nothing more than one big ad directly cut and pasted from the advertisement brochures or, that it was hardly worth their while to even read it only once.

Make sure you direct network marketing advertisements to newsletter subscribers in small doses and do it carefully, judiciously, and respectfully. While some network marketers will outsource this aspect of the business, fledgling marketers will not have the resources to do this step. Do not despair if this is you! Instead, take heart in the fact that it is incredibly easy to draft a well thought out newsletter, insert your product information, and make it so interesting that you will have consumers signing up for it even if initially they are not at all interested in your product, or the company you are representing.

As you direct network marketing advertisement to newsletter subscribers, keep in mind that a reader of your newsletter is not reading it to be polite but because you should be giving them something of value. Perhaps not surprisingly, the ads for your product or business are not the item of value they have in mind. Instead, the average reader will look for general content, such as gardening advice, cooking tips, exercise help, internet guidance, or marketing help. Depending on the product you represent, ad text and general content can flow together seamlessly and actually support one another, rather than being almost mutually exclusive.

The best tip for the fledgling marketer is to create a basic newsletter that has the business or product in mind, but does not make reference to it in any way. You might design a trivia section, a word puzzle, a give away, and include a number of general content articles, poems, and other items. Stay away from politics and religion! Not only was mom right when she suggested not discussing these topics in polite company, but for the sake of marketing they can be the kiss of death if your readers are not on the same side of the political aisle or worship the same deity! If everyone online can be your potential customer, why cut it in half by mentioning these topics! Keep it neutral, but informative.

Once your initial draft is complete, look for spots where you can include information about your business or product in such a way that it will flow naturally rather than being a contrived commercial break; after all, as you direct network marketing advertisement to the reader of your newsletter, you want to make the experience enjoyable and also valuable! Commercial breaks detract from value while integrated product information ads value! Maybe a light hearted remark or story will do the trick.

In the same vein, those who may not like the idea of signing up for anything that requires an email address, design a special page for newsletter signups and include your privacy policy which unequivocally states your intent for the use of any information you are gathering during sign up. Similarly, post a sample newsletter for visitors to read. This will increase interest and may overcome the objection of those who may still be teetering on the fence whether or not to entrust you with their email information. Remember to have value in the message. By gaining subscribers who trust you from the beginning, you build long lasting business relationships as well as financial prosperity.

About the Author
William Drapcho is owner of http://www.williamdrapcho.com and writes on a number of different subjects. To learn more about this subject and others William recommends you visit http://www.workathomeideasandopportunities.blogspot.com/ or go to http://www.pluginprofitsite.com/main-19493.

Why A Well Presented Business Card Is Better Than Advertising

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Advertising is a very costly business and many small businesses find that money spent doesn’t necessarily turn into profitable business growth.

When I first started my first business I didn’t have much money to spare so I really had to challenge myself to find the best ways to market my business without parting with lots of cash. I happened to stumble upon business networking and the rest “as they say is history”. I’ve generated thousands of pounds from business networking and all for the small price of sign up fees to a number of group networking events.

Having said that, and contrary to many of the get rich quick schemes you see advertised, attending a business networking event doesn’t guarantee you overnight success. You have to work at it and there are many business networking techniques that you can apply to increase your hit rate for referral generation.

Don’t underestimate the value of a well presented business card, let me explain:-

Have a think about your business cards and what they are designed to do. They are the one and only thing that anyone has to remember you by when a networking event is over and inevitably it’ll be one of many so how do you make it stand out?

Your business card must achieve three essential things:-

1. It must explain accurately and concisely what your business is about and the service that you after.

2. It must provide all the information needed to get in contact with you after the event

3. It must ensure that you are remembered

Look at your business card. Does it truly do all these three things?

Critique it carefully to ensure that it includes the minimum essential contact details such as your name, your company name, your address, telephone number and e-mail address.

Does it accurately convey your service details? Have you really used those keywords that convey the basic message about what you do? Don’t forget that a business card has two sides, only printing on one side is a waste of valuable advertising space so use both sides. You may want to consider putting a photograph of you on the card – a sure fire way to make it stand out as someone flicks through cards trying to remember who they met. What better way to ensure someone can put a name to a face?

Now consider how your business card looks. From an image point of view does it accurately reflect the type of business that your are in/ is it eye catching? It’s worth considering using a graphic designer to really make it stand out from the run of the mill business card.

Having said that, don’t get carried away with the graphic design. Many business people (especially the really good networkers) will use your card to make notes on so always keep the background colour light. There’s nothing worse that trying to make notes on a black card with a black pen!

You don’t have to spend the earth on business cards, there are some great deals on the internet but just be cause you don’t spend a lot of money doesn’t mean that you can’t make the most of it. It’s as close to free advertising as you can get so just like any advertising space, use it wisely.

Louise Yates shares business networking tips and advice for word of mouth marketing, generating referrals and free sales leads together with executive coaching information for your business performance, life and career development.

B2B Portals Emerge As Holistic and Universal Trading Solution

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Ever-since Information Technology came into existence, it endured to get out of its abstract self. By understanding the nuances of tangibles, which ultimately rules one’s life, the IT endured to make a cross over. It initiated the process by providing general information services, net messaging services, social networking, etc., to the global masses. But it was able to accomplish certain degree of acceptance towards this end is only through Business to Consumer (B2C) portals. It arrived with the punch line "one does not have to leave one`s shelter to survive". Unfortunately, B2C online services were confined to end users of particular region and were not able to translate the services cost effectively to far away places due to various factors.

While B2C provided ease of getting things being in one’s home, Business to Business (B2B) websites provided services cost effectively by overcoming international trade barriers and through volume. World Trade Organization’s aim of offering multilateral trading system in the world, is best responded by B2B portals. The goal of B2B websites is to provide not just multilateral rather an universal trading system, that which will in turn allow each player, the freedom to showcase or source one’s product or service with utmost ease of doing business.

B2B websites have evolved over a period of time to address the comprehensive needs of the trading community around the globe. The innovative concept has enabled each and every business house to advertise one`s company with minimum expenditure. Most of the B2B’s provide free membership, and the premium membership comes with a price tag. But the free version is basically a trial service made available to the clients to accustom with the functions of the site in particular and to encourage them to become premium members in general. Further all the popular B2B portals empower every exporter and importer to establish a business relationship among one another by spending less time and money. Some companies use these portals even for their domestic trade.

If a trader is looking at an option of doing business through any B2B portal, it would be ideal for his or her company to register primarily as a free member and then get upgraded, once he or she is comfortable with the functions. The best recommended membership is the premium membership of any leading portals which comes with a host of ingenious features. The premium status can increase one’s company’s chances of getting genuine trade inquiries. To gain maximum exposure, one should register as a premium member of all the leading B2B portals.

The major feature of a B2B portal is that it helps one to search whatever products or services one is looking forward to sell or buy through “Trade leads”. A Trade lead is nothing but a description of the product or service which one extends to the market with an intention of selling or buying. A Trade lead further enables one to minimize the time spend on business exploration through its product or company specific search. Thus B2Bs literally help a trader to interact with businesses across the world by just sitting in one’s office chamber and keying in some words of communication.

Want Free Trade Leads for your import or export business? Take a look at Toboc, an International B2B Portal which caters the needs of importer, exporters and other businesses all over the world. Visit us at http://www.toboc.com/.

Improving Company Logos For Promotional Use

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In the realm of company or corporate graphic design there is a fine line between art and design. Art is free-flowing, more exploratory and allows for endless creativity that is easily tapped into. Design, on the other hand, is a more specific and tailored art form more centralized where objectives are set and expected to be met, both in terms of business and aesthetics.

When logos are brought into such parameters design methods are always selected over art expressions. Most companies seek design elements rather than tinges of art when constructing their logos simply because there are professional goals to be reached.

The reasoning behind preferring design over art when formulating a company`s logo is solely to establish a business`s identity. Keeping this in mind and by meshing such a mindset within promotional item and trade show tactics will yield any and all companies that much more success.

Where A Logo Goes, So Does It`s Company

When promotional items are given away at trade shows a multitude of diverse peoples obtain and take these items they receive with them to wherever. Most of these items, if designed well and specifically for all-encompassing purposes, will be carried around most everywhere or placed in a spot where heavy traffic of peoples is common. This in mind, it`s important to design a company logo that is clear, concise and recognizable, especially if it will be stamped on a promo item.

When tailoring a company logo there are a few aesthetic qualities that need considering, especially if one is attempting to optimize company identity and/or weave such information into promotional uses:

Catching Eyes

Obviously, for any company`s logo to be successful it must be attractive and therefore should prove eye-catching to onlookers. This attractive quality though should not be intrusive through the aid of overly bold colors or special effects. Simplicity is best, as it meets and even exceeds objectives, maintains professionalism and yet, still impresses company association into those within viewing distance. Even more, with attractive qualities weaved into logo designs, a satisfaction or pleasing mood hits viewers and leaves an impact on them.

Company Recognizability

Leaving an impact through logo aesthetics creates an ongoing, yet beneficial cycle. This cyclical process spurs company recognition. A viewer of an enjoyable company logo will associate those positive feelings to the actual company itself. Aesthetically speaking and likewise, if a company`s logo is displeasing or poorly designed, those acquired negative feelings will then be transferred over and associated with that particular company, instilling ill-feelings, which is something any company tries to avoid.

Universal Quality

With aesthetic pleasing and logo to company recognizability, an additional quality is guaranteed to take any company logo to heightened levels of success. This attribute is adaptability. Designing and utilizing a logo that can play a universal role and satisfy the maintaining of company composure is essential. A logo that is capable of withstanding being presented on a plethora of promotional items, in various formats and during any time of year is all too beneficial.

If your company logo is drab and not pushing your business forward it`s probably because it lacks some of the above qualities that are essential in pushing a business ahead. Polish that company logo with the above elements and in turn, one will establish snazzy promotional items by mere logo addition and impression. Doing this and distributing promo items well and methodically will spread good word of one`s company, it`s a guarantee.



After an optimal company logo is had, consider stamping and imprinting it onto various promotional products to better position one`s company on top.

Video Games May Be Your Ticket To Successful Marketing

I remember the days of yester year when I was younger and video games were all the rage for the young and old alike. Our corner store found space for Asteroids and Space Invaders, and then it wasn’t too much long after when Pac-Man entered the scene.

Everyone knows or at least heard of Pac-Man. It was the video game where a pie shaped figure would be navigated around the screen eating small dots to rack up the points. While this would go on, the little yellow creature is being chased by ghosts of various colors. The object of the game was to eat all of the dots without the ghosts catching you.

Obviously video games have evolved into an unbelievable business, where gamers spend literally billions of dollars every year. Because of video games combined with the Internet, it has created a new revolution of advertising.

The hot term is called viral marketing. It is a type of advertising where people forward your advertising information to their friends and colleagues. They do it, and may or may not know they are doing it.

Many companies today are using online games as a source of viral marketing. It works this way. The company who is advertising has a small game created, something very simple, yet fun. In the background of the game you will see some sort of advertising with the company’s name on it. Such items would include a billboard, maybe a sign sticking out of the ground, or even a link to a website.

The person playing the game obviously enjoys it so he or she sends it out to everyone in their inbox. Then they send it out to everyone and so one. Before you know thousands upon thousands of people are playing this game with the company’s advertising right in front of them.

You have probably seen this in the non video game format where video hosting sites have videos of companies who create these ridiculous commercials that you can only see online. The videos are so funny or so bad they get passed on to millions of people. If you are the company that is advertising in the video or game, you just hit a homerun because you just advertised to millions of people for literally pennies.

You as a business owner need to take advantage of this type of advertising. The money you will spend to create the game or video will be far less than if you have tried to reach millions of customers around the world.

Create something that is relevant to your business, make it interesting, funny and enjoyable to those would view it or play it, and then post it everywhere you can think. Also, do not forget to send it to friends, relatives and colleagues as to where they can find it on the internet. They’ll probably get the ball rolling for you.

It is called viral marketing, and if you aren’t taking advantage of it, you are really missing out.

By: Bruce A. Tucker

About the Author:
Bruce A. Tucker is the Associate Director of http://www.Indocquent.com, an online resource that allows businesses and individuals to post their products and services for sale in 20,000 cities throughout 200 countries around the world.