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Friday, January 28, 2011

How Do I Get My Website on Page 1 of Google?


There is no guarantee for getting in the top 10 of Google, but there are definitely some ways to help make that happen!

For the throngs of so-called experts advertising on the Web claiming they know the recipe to Google's secret sauce, I would have guessed by now they would have retired to their own private island to spend the millions made cracking Google's' search engine code.

Let's be clear. NO ONE can guarantee getting your website on page 1of Google. That would mean claiming control over a 3rd party as large and as fluid as Google.

Google tweaks and fine tunes their search engine applications on an hourly basis. Some tweaking routines are automatic; others are performed by a small army of master and doctoral mathematical candidates to improve Google search results, build new Google applications, run quality checks across Google data centers all over the world, and thwart the legions of spammers and hackers who seek to manipulate Google search results.

There are however, a variety of tactics and strategies you can use to achieve top 10 results in Google. I am proud to say my web development company has achieved hundred of Top 10 positions for clients and we are adding more to that list every day.

Following are some factors that will attract Google to your website and put you high in their search results.

Having a search engine friendly website

Is your website search engine friendly? Google publishes technical guidelines and suggestions for building a search engine friendly website.

Is your website easy to use?

Is your website constructed in such a way that makes it easy for human users to navigate and find information?

If your visitors can't find what they are looking for in 5 seconds or less they are going to leave your site and move onto the next website.

Google analyzes the amount of traffic a website receives, the amount of time spent on web site pages, and much more. This means Google can determine the popularity of a website by both the amount of visits and length of time spent browsing your web pages.

This would be a good time to ask yourself if your website is interesting and engaging.

Existing Competition

Is there a large amount of online competition for your business? If you have a website selling women's shoes, flowers or real estate, getting on page 1 of Google will be extremely difficult. If your website focuses on custom made duck-calls, the page 1 goal gets easier. You can get some idea for how competitive a search term is by looking at the amount of pages returned for a search query.

Go to Google and search for 'women's shoes'. The small black print just below the Google search box shows there are over 73 million references for this search term, not to mention the 1,000 lb. gorilla websites who are going after the same search phrase such as Macys, DSW, Overstock and Zappos.

Brand new website

Is your website brand new? If your website and domain name are new it may take longer for Google to come through and cache your website. Sometimes this will happen quickly and sometimes it takes weeks. Other experts agree it takes 6 to 8 months for a new website to gain any substantial ground on Google. Over the years I have seen it both ways where some new sites get fast recognition from Google and others don't.

Some businesses will buy an existing domain name to get some traffic and ranking early on in the process. But this will depend on how competitive a search criteria you are going after.

Itsy Bitsy Website

Do you have a small website, less than 10 pages? Did you know that each individual page in your website is an opportunity to explain to Google what you are all about?

You can find out approximately how many pages Google has found for your website by searching your domain name in Google. In the Google search box type the following: site:www.yourdomain.com. This is also a good way to analyze your online competition by finding out how many website pages they have and how they have formed their meta-tags.

Think of Google as a huge digital library. As you walk into the library there are so many books (websites) on Google's shelves. Each webpage in your site would be equal to the page count in a book. Is your website the thickness of a comic book, sandwiched in between War & Peace and the Webster's Dictionary?

Slow loading website

Does your website load slowly? A recent upgrade in Google has webmasters agreeing that it's advantageous to have a fast loading website. Rumor has it that Google will not downgrade or penalize a slow loading website, but others are not so sure. Factors that influence a website's loading speed that you may control include the design, development framework, and hosting platform.

Flash website

Is your website made completely in Flash? If you're using a Flash website you're not going to be found by search engines. Flash websites require expert modifications to be found by Google.

My website meets all the criteria mentioned above, how come I am not getting better search engine results?

For those of you who already have a website that employs 'best practices' for 'on-site optimization', but still not getting to the top of Google, there are steps you should take in building your websites 'off-site optimization'.

On-site optimization

On-site optimization is the work performed on your website pages and all digital assets associated with your website, domain name and website hosting server. Some best practices for on-site optimization are as follows:

1) Use unique and descriptive title meta-tags on every web page.

2) Use unique and descriptive description meta-tags on every web page.

Take a quick look in Google by searching site:www.1800Flowers.com. The results will show that every page in this website has unique title and description tags. This is of paramount importance in getting a website found on Google as it relates to search queries.

3) Demonstrate proper use of HTML text and HTML links as it relates to the subject matter of your website. A good hyperlink is descriptive. In the illustration below 'Atlanta Homes for Sale' links to a page with lots of information about homes for sale in Atlanta. Avoid using words such as 'Click Here' in your hyperlinks.

4) Be sure that your website navigation is accessible for Google to crawl. You should also submit a owner verification file and a XML site map to Google, Yahoo and Bing. This is a free service and will help communicate how to find all your web pages and associated files.

5) Demonstrate correct use of ALT tags for images and other visual assets. ALT tags are widely used in ADA compliant websites. The ALT tag is good for humans and search engines in extending the description for any digital asset displayed in your website.

6) Use of Robots.txt file in the root directory of your website. (You can take a peak at any website's robots text file, providing they have one, by typing the following in your web browser: http://www.somedomainname.com/robots.txt

7) Your site index page is live and linked at the top of your website home page.

Off- site optimization

Google and other major search engines assign a ranking score, popularity vote or other designation to a website and/or website page based on numerous factors:

a. The amount of links or quality of links linking to the website and/or webpage.

b. The power or authority of the websites in item "a". If you are linking to weak websites that have not been built correctly then you are not helping your cause. Linking to well-built websites that rank well in the search engines helps your cause.

c. The traffic to your website or the amount of visits. Think of ranking a website akin to getting found and listed in a huge digital library. Picture it this way: Google has numerous search bots or computer routines that crawl the World Wide Web at breakneck speed collecting data on websites. Google crawls, analyzes, indexes and caches data found in Websites, Blogs, Forums, Articles, Directories, other search engines and all manner of digital applications.

Google will crawl EVERYTHING that can be indexed. This includes; HTML, Txt. or text files, PDF files, Word docs, Video, Power Point, XLS spreadsheets and much more.

If you have a presentation about your company in Power Point or video then this is a digital asset that you could use to increase your exposure to search engines.

Here's how to get it done.

Step 1- Claim your local listings on Google, Yahoo and Bing.

NOTE: If you cannot find these resources, please email me and I will help you find the link resource.

Step 2 - Create a profile for yourself or business on some or all of these popular websites: Facebook, Twitter, Local.com, Super pages, Aboutus.org, Agreatertown.com, Brownbook.net, LinkedIn, You Tube, Classmates, MySpace, Flickr, Craigslist, Google Profiles, Google Products.

NOTE: Never pay for a link unless it is a well respected directory such as Find law or other similar website.

Step 3 - Find and join a Blog or Forum website related to your business or website. If your website is about "home remodeling" then join the conversation. If I were a home remodeler I would go to Google and search "How do I repair this or that" or I would search "Blogs + Forums for home remodeling". Remember, all this stuff equates to a link since your postings in Blogs or Forums are connected to your profile.

Step 4 - Research and analyze your competition. See where they have linked or listed themselves. To do this type the following in the Google search box:

(link:www.yourcompetitorsname.com)

Also do this by entering only their website name without (www) or (.com) and you will get some different results.

Take a look at some of the websites that get returned in the results. Not all of them will be a place where you can get or place a free link, but chances are you will find more than a few. For privacy reasons I cannot show the results of someone else's website link backs so I will discuss a few of my own.

In the Google search box type VISIONEFX. About 4th or 5th down the page you will see Crunch Base. This is technology based directory where I got a free link and listing and I learned about it by analyzing a local competitor.

The building of back links, linking, votes, listings and other tactics it is not rocket science. It is long, hard tedious work.

On the sunnier side of things, back links sometimes come naturally. If you have an interesting website then people are going to want to link to you and share your website with others.

Step 5 - Go back and do it all over again and again. Think of ways to grow your website pages (you can never have too many pages). Create any of the following pages or sections for your website: Case Studies, News, Articles, Announcements, Testimonials, Videos, Photo Gallery, Random Thoughts, Tips, Helpful Hints, etc.

Extend your presence on powerful third party websites.

My two favorites are You Tube and Flickr.com

You Tube is probably the most powerful 3rd party website in terms of expanding your presence in Google natural search results. You can even create your own You Tube page otherwise know as a You Tube Channel.

You want to be sure that you tag and title your You Tube videos so they have the best chance of getting found in a standard Google search query. Here is a live example. I hope you will see the same results as I, as that depends on which Google datacenter is near you (more about that in another article).

In the Google search box type aerial power ball. You should see two You Tube thumbnails for videos I posted for my client Chesapeake Bay Helicopters.

If you find these on the page, take notice how I titled the videos:

Aerial marker balls, Power line marker balls

Utility marker balls, Aerial Marker Ball

This goes a long way in helping you to leverage your marketing assets over Google.

Companies that have video or animation should leverage this kind of search engine marketing power for real estate, properties, leasing, hotel, auto sales and the like. Google Products offers some great venues for these businesses, but You Tube is also an excellent channel.

Balance your off-site and on-site work

Link backs or off- site optimization is a smart thing to do though it should not over shadow your on-site optimization tasks.

A smart webmaster strives to balance on-site and off-site tasks. Don't try to get it done all in one day, one week or one month. Growing a website into a powerful lead and sales generator as well as a brand awareness tool takes time. It is a methodical marketing process that never ends (until your business ends).








Ricardo Vidallon is company owner and creative director for Visionefx a Virginia based web design company.


Web Hosting and Domain Names - Helping You Take Control of Branding Your Business in Online Overload


Whether you are working to improve your business or have a fun and personal website about yourself, taking the initiative to host it so that you can control it is so much more critical than allowing some other person to run the format/layout of the site. Sites like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter are great formats to put your content, but until you obtain your own domain, any plans to become financially successful are dramatically diminished due to the lack of specific features and benefits on these sites.

For starters, you do not get your own personalized email with these programs. Nothing works greater than to have your own "FirstLastName@YourDomain....." It is possible if you are one of the few with a random name to get your name with an AOL, Gmail, yahoo etc. account, but these do not show the world any relevant qualities or hints about the person or what they are involved in. Often you end up with something that is a combination of letters and numbers when you use these free email accounts, which might not help in branding your business one bit! If you want to keep that special one you had many years ago when email really bloomed and you signed up for many accounts with it, there may be a benefit to keeping it. Taking the initiative to get your own site will allow you to brand yourself and get more people to read your emails as it also becomes more personal. This should allow you to get more email conversions than using info[at]_____ or support[at]______, though these accounts can be established as well when you begin to define your business better and may need them.

Next, when you get your own domain and hosting you have an option of many features and benefits that may include, but are not limited to cPanel, Fantastico (WordPress and Forums), autoresponders, opt-in forms, email forwarders, site templates, video hosting, conference rooms and more depending on the program or web hosting company you choose. Here is a little breakdown of the benefits of each feature:

1.cPanel??? This allows you total control over your website from editing to loading files through an FTP platform quickly, setting up Wordpress, email accounts and more

2.Fantastico??? Allows you to set up your WordPress blog and set up forums related to a topic of interest of the site. These can be places to put advertisements, videos, reviews of products and more.

3.Autoresponders??? when someone comes to your site, you want to keep them coming or at least be able to keep them updated to what is happening with the business of program. These programs allow you to send messages or posts to anyone who opted or signed in to your list.

4.Opt-in forms??? a fill in the blank application that brings a customer or viewer to your autoresponder and then to a site, video, program of choice. Double opt-ins are beneficial in that they guarantee you are not being spammed. When you send out a message, you may get many returned if the person did not go to their "real" email address and confirm that they were a "real" person accepting messages from you.

5.Email Forwarders??? These help to streamline your websites. You might have many sites and not want to log into every cPanel and email account each day. If you have them all forwarded to the same generic email you can save time when you do get a message from that account.

6.Site templates??? Many people do not know how to or care to use html code. Having ready made templates can save time and easily get your web site up. You can edit as needed in the html editor of cPanel in a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) method.

7.Video Hosting??? I know Youtube is popular, but a site like this forces people to see other videos that they may find offensive, which is one of the main reasons why as a Science teacher, I do not have access to this site in school. You could embed the code for the video into a premade template (see #6 above) but you still have the Youtube links there and logos. Certain plans allow for video uploading and producing.

8.Conference Rooms??? We do not have an endless flow of money to get us around the world at a moments notice to have a meeting with like minded individuals. Getting in front of a computer with a video capabilities allow you to easily meet someone from the other side of the world to host a meeting. These may range from a few seats to thousands of seats that are available for people to log into and be part of the experience. Think Webinars!

When it comes to branding, you want to get a domain name that is easy to remember or looks appealing if you send someone a link or it appears in an ad. As an example, MagneticSponsors and BasicLacrosse are easy to remember domain names compared to something with numbers and symbols like "FRD$&32PV.Program..." which might include affiliate links and are not very appealing. In addition to email forwarders, you can also forward a domain to your affiliate link. It looks more appealing to the viewer. It also prevents a viewer from modifying your link and typing in the main domain without your affiliate link which causes you to lose out on the referral like "Program..." in the above example.

There are many options out there for catchy domain names and you might want to grab it up before someone else does. Even if you do not put any effort into setting up the site, you can always do what is called Cash Parking, where the host may put ads onto your site (assuming people stumbled on it by accident and could see Pay Per Click, or PPC ads from a variety of sources.) For example, if you try to go to BadLacrosse, you might see everything from Lacrosse the sport, to Buick Lacrosse to LaCrosse Wisconsin! When people click the ad, instead of you getting charged, someone else does and you actually make a very small commission of their fee.

There are many programs and hosting companies out there and it can be very hard to choose which one is best for you and your business. I personally have gone with GoDaddy for most of my domain name purchases, though I have only set up 1 site with them. Most of my sites are hosted through GVO. I highly suggest checking out both of their offers.








AUTHOR BIO BOX
To get in touch with me, send an email to "DaveGardner@MagneticSponsors.com", I will be sure to write you back. This is what I was referring to when branding yourself above as it includes my name and an easy to remember domain name! For more information on features and benefits, you can find out more about GVO (Global Virtual Opportunities) hosting packages.


Small Business Owner on a Budget? Ready to Set Up a Website? Questions to Make the Process Easy


Ok, so you're thinking about your business growth and marketing it online with a profitable website. Now what? One question answered, seems to spit out dozens more. So what do you do? Give up due to lack of time? No - You start calling those web developers you know or have searched out online. When you do you find out that they cost more than you can afford and want lots of involvement from you. They want you to submit Content, Images, Pages, links, etc. etc. etc. And then even more questions arise from these conversations. You then think to yourself, "Oh my, what can of worms did I just open up? " There is a solution. I promise.

At this point, most people do one or two of several actions. 1) is to give up. You are busy and have too many other things on your plate. You'll get back to it in your slow time. Or 2) Throw some money at someone hoping they will take the project and just do it for you. Or 3) venture out into the world of thousands of free or low cost do it yourself website design, start the project, something comes up and suddenly you are month's down the line with a website that is STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION 3 years later.

Which one are you? Has it helped or worked to increase your sales any? Did it create a return on your investment of time and or money? I am going to bet that it is a resounding, NO! Or you wouldn't be sitting there in front of your computer reading this article. So with that in mind, I am assuming you are in the phase of looking for help with your online web development or looking to increase the sales you get from your current site. Right?

Let's get started on figuring out what it is you are stumbling over. Let's give you back the control of what is holding you up and get your site headed in the right direction, creating funds for your business. But to do that we have to back up and start over a bit. Don't worry, it won't hurt too much.

Over the past few years I have developed a few tools to help my clients to help me create a site that works to sell them online at a much higher rate than before or at all. Work books that you can do when your thinking about your marketing online. These work books have been a source of relief to many of my clients to help them when going through the arduous process that ensues when embarking upon a project such as this. They help them to stream line and accumulate the things you or your developer will need from you, when you start on the project.

Ready to get started on a few of the very first questions you need to answer before you embark on web development yourself or with a designer.

1) First and foremost you need to decide upon the "purpose" of your website. Now don't cop out and just say I want a site. Actually think about what the site's end result should be. What is the goal actions you want your clients to perform from this site. It is helpful if you are VERY descriptive here.

2) What do you expect this site to create for you in dollars and cents. And what kind of a budget have you allocated to complete those goals. Are they a reality or will you actually achieve those goals with that budget? If not, then start with one goal in mind and work progressively towards the rest of the picture. But set time lines to achieve each part of those, and the ultimate end goal. Some web developers will work with you on this, by setting in place a plan to get each goal achieved in your time frame that meets your budget. I know that is why I do what I do.

3) Are you planning to sell products online? If so

4) Are you planning to ship the products yourself or hire a company to do this for you? Do you have one in place?

5) Do you have a "shopping cart" in mind? This is your Point of Sale System (POS) for your website. If you hire a web developer they may already have one they use regularly and may require you to use it to use their development programs. Some may require extra money to use yours as it will take more time for them to gain the learning curve of your system. If you are going to develop your own site, and are planning to sell products online you may need to learn this as well. Fair warning: this may take time, and trial and error. You just need to decide if you are willing to pay someone to do it or if you would rather save money by doing it yourself. A couple of suggestions here: 1) PayPal has a great shopping cart that is pretty user friendly and 2) many of your local community colleges have a web development program where students can work on your site for you at a much reduced cost. Note: if you have LOTS and LOTS of time to wait this may work for you.

6) If you are an MLM your Company may allow you to link images of products to your Point of Sale site. (a page where your clients can buy and you get the commissions from) The down side of doing this is that you are more than likely only going to get to link to the full catalogue site and your customers will have to search once again for the products. Upside you will not have to worry about your POS system, including shipping costs, shipping and handling of the products to the customers, no shopping cart set up on your site, and you will get paid through your company. Easier yes, less effective yes. My opinion, yes.

7) Every website needs content! EVERY WEBSITE! Both, Seo and humans need to read your website. It can mean a Higher placement in the search engines as well as a much higher conversion to sales rates. So you have to think about and write a minimum of 250 words for each page. 3 Paragraphs or more. With a call to action. Meaning that every page needs to show the visitor why they should buy from you over the millions of others that do the same thing you do, how you solve their problem (what every that may be) and then how to buy it. Many people leave that up to the "contact us" page. Statistics have shown us that if you leave it up to the "contact us" page you are asking for the visitor to flip through several links to buy. Um,..... this does not work well and can break the deal. Make it EXTREMELY easy for them to buy from you by putting that call to action on every page and several places on the page. You'll be happy you did. Of this I promise you.

8) Do you want to write it yourself or hire a "content writer" Some people find it simpler, faster and cost effective to hire a content writer. Many of these are out there and some are relatively inexpensive. I have several that I use and offer out to my clients to choose from. If you would like one I would be happy to send you their contact info.

9) When thinking of Content for your site. Do not forget to add in what makes you stand out amongst the millions of others who do the very same things you do. Use this to your advantage. And use a 'testimonials' page. Many stats are showing us that a 'testimonials' page builds that trust factor as others have used your services and like what you did for them. My suggestion is always to use this page to link to their site if possible as this can help your Page Rank (PR) and your client will be appreciative to have a link from your site to theirs. Plus, it gives the testimonials credibility when your surfers can actually contact the happy client.

10) Target Audience: Who do you want to find your site? Consider this: if you are a Heating and Cooling Co. you may not want to get a contract that hundreds of miles out of your district. But if you are a Company that sells Widgets online and it does not matter if you ship hundreds of miles away then it won't matter to you that your site is being found 2 thousand miles away. But if your site is found in another country are you ready to deal with shipping across borders? All things to consider when developing the SEO (Search Engine Optimization or Placement of your site on the www.) of your site.

11) What Keywords do you believe that your Customers/Clients would search the www. For your products or services? (hint: Google AdWords is a great tool to compile this list) Don't assume you know either. Ask your network this question as well. They may have a different idea and are probably more accurate than you)

12) Where do most of your Customers/Clients come from? Think Locality.

13) Domain name: Many people believe that their business name is the best domain name for their site. Why not, many people know your business for that name right? Think about that last statement. Are you trying to get their business again or do you already have them in your client book of business? My suggestion is to yes, buy that domain name if you can and have several others that are SEO worthy. (want to know what that means? You can wait until this comes up in another article or you can contact me directly to ask about this as it would take a whole article to give you the why's of this one.) Suffice it to say it is VERY beneficial to your results to get this right.

14) Hosting: Who do you want to host the site? Your web developer probably will handle this for you if you use one. They have servers or they contract this out to a professional hosting co. and have various options according to your needs, and goals. Or are you planning to find a hosting service to utilize yourself? If you are there are things you need to consider.

a) Price for services

b) ftp access

c) down time (don't skimp here) GoDaddy has the best Customer Service available 24/7, very low prices, almost non-existent down time, and the technical help dept will talk to you on your level.

15) If you are considering hosting it yourself you should understand, a website file structure, the FTP process, and that this may take loads of time out of your day to maintain. If you are willing to put in the time to do-it-yourself, it could be a budget saver and it could also be a nightmare you may not wish to embark upon. To make this decision you may want to ask around of your network of business owners what has been their experience and weigh out your options vs time.

16) What would your site navigation look like? Make sure it is easy to use. Make everything you do on your site easy to find and utilize. (ask for a free website mapping work sheet by emailing your request to us) See Signature at bottom

It may help you to educate yourself in the definitions of at least the simplest of website terminology so that you understand what the Web Developer is saying to you. After all he is the techno geek you are hiring to create this online brochure of yours. But he is a techno geek and he knows that. But to give yourself a better understanding and a clear idea of the communications he is sending you, take a few minutes and educate yourself on what it is he is asking for so that you and he are on the same page. And Yes, I am one of those techno geeks myself. I am not just a member of the techno geeks anonymous, I could be the President.

When you get into actual development there are more things to consider for the optimum conversion rate of your project. These are just to get you started on the things you should think of when embarking upon a Profitable Website for your business.

Remember: Each step of this process is time consuming, but is a very integral step in a successful site that builds your business. These can take time to create the maximum return from your site. Don't get in a rush to just get something up as your website in today's world is your first impression. Do you want them to see "site under construction" and hope they come back sometime down the road? MOST WILL NOT> Plan carefully, integrate the best of you, and create a huge return on your investment, whether it be your time or your money. Stay involved in the project from start to end if you hire someone else to do it. And MOST OF ALL HAVE FUN WITH IT! Life can be too serious. Many people are repulsed by sites that are dry or too techie. They love fun, so give it to them even if you are a Financial Advisor or CPA. Give us all a bit of you and they will love you for it.








I always love hearing from everyone on how they found me. Drop a line letting me know how you found me.

Wishing you the highest successes possible,
Cheri J. Williams
Where your results are our business

Web Design and Internet Strategies
http://www.beneficialbusinessbuilders.com
To request the work book - send to info@beneficialbusinessbuilders.com
406-756-9151
Don't just trip over your success, grow it!


Thursday, January 27, 2011

Selecting a Good Shopping Cart Provider


If you are planning to sell products online, you'll need a shopping cart system.

What is a shopping cart system? A shopping cart typically consists of two parts - the catalog and the cart. The catalog allows the merchant to quickly and easily add new products to the Web site and displays those products to potential customers. The cart allows customers to indicate which items he or she would like to purchase and handle the checkout process.

How much does a shopping cart system cost? Pricing for shopping cart systems varies widely. The first thing to consider is whether you want to purchase software up front and just pay for hosting or pay a monthly fee for the shopping cart. In general if you are not very technically inclined the monthly fee approach is probably best. However, you should be aware that there are a number of open source (free) shopping cart systems available (see below for the list of the main one's). These systems will provider basic cart functionality, but will usually require a program for customization.

Fees for purchasing software range from free to hundreds of thousands of dollars for a completely customized cart. In general, if you decide to go this route plan to spend at least $2,000 - $8,000 for the software and customization.

Fees for the pay as you go approach also range widely. The cheapest are usually around $30 per month for a decent shopping cart system from a major provider. The fees can range up to $10,000 per month for very expensive systems. You can generally budget less than $100 per month for a very good shopping cart system that will meet the needs of most small to medium sized online stores.

Who are the major shopping cart providers? It seems that many of the brand name ecommerce companies have entered the shopping cart provider space. Two of the better entries for small to medium sized stores include Yahoo Merchant Solutions and eBay's Prostore. Fees for these start at about $30-40 per month (check their sites as they often run specials).

At the next level for monthly hosting are a number of companies that offer greater functionality and flexibility at a higher prices. Some of the better companies include Volusion, GoEcart, and MonsterCommerce. Their fees range about $50 - $500 per month.

In terms of purchasing a shopping cart system, you might want to consider one of the many open source (free) solutions. The most popular one in this space seems to be osCommerce.

If you want to pay for shopping cart software, you might consider X-cart, ShopSite, and StoreFront. These systems range in price from around $200 - $5,000. Remember, you will still need to pay a monthly fee for hosting.

What are the factors to consider when choosing a shopping cart? Obviously, price is a major factor when thinking about a shopping cart system, but it should not be the primary factor. Think about the choice as an investment. If you make the right choice, the returns will far outweigh the cost.

Some factors to consider:

1. Does the cart meet your needs? Think about how you want your site to work. Will you have many products in each category for example. If yes, then you will need to think about the cart's ability to handle multiple pages of products. Some simple carts do not do this.

2. Think about how you will communicate with suppliers and customers. If you are using a drop shipper, many carts cannot automatically send a purchase order e-mail to the supplier when an order is processed. If this functionality is important, your choices might be limited (unless you pay for some custom programming).

3. Ease of use. You need to consider ease of use, both from the merchant and the customer perspectives. As a merchant you want a system that will allow you to easily add new products and content (hint - look for carts that support importing from a spreadsheet). Look at sites that already use the cart you are considering and see how it handles things like putting items in the cart and checkout.

4. Customizability. You want your site to be unique. So choose a cart that allows for some customization. You should be able to customize the look, but you might also decide you need to customize the functionality.

Finally, take carts for a test drive. Most of the major cart providers will allow you to play with a demo. Put it through its paces and see how it performs.








Ross Malaga, Ph.D. aka Drop Ship Professor is the author of Insider Drop Ship Secrets. His blog at http://www.dropshipprofessor.com, provides drop ship tips and reviews.


Prepare for Your Thanksgiving Dinner


If you're planning to eat a traditional Thanksgiving dinner on the big day, you have five choices. They are:

1) EAT OUT. It may not seem very festive or traditional to dine out on Thanksgiving but sometimes you don't want to cook or clean up afterward. Usually only a few restaurants are open on Thanksgiving (if any in your area). So you may want to make early inquiries to find that one open restaurant serving a Thanksgiving meal, especially if you'll be bringing guests.

2) COOK. If you plan to cook this Thanksgiving then you'll definitely want to plan ahead. Know how many guests will be enjoying your home-cooked meal. That way you can shop for the right size turkey (about 1.3 pounds per person) and provide an appropriate helping of side dishes, appetizers, desserts and beverages.

3) POTLUCK. If you're hosting a potluck, you'll need to know ahead of time what dishes guests plan to bring. You'll need to be the coordinator so you can avoid duplicate food items. Plus inquire about whether they'll need to use any of your cookware and stove or oven to reheat or put any final touches on dishes.

4) HIRE A COOK. You can hire a chef who will come to your home to cook a meal. Or they might prepare something for you the day before in their kitchen and bring it to you along with directions for proper reheating and serving. Search the Web using your city name plus the phrase personal chef. Or go to personalchefsearch.com. Another option is to check with your local supermarket deli. Some will prepare and sell you Thanksgiving dinner items like a smoked turkey and a platter of side dishes. Just be sure to place your order by the deadline and pick up your meal the day before Thanksgiving (if they'll be closed that day).

5) BE SOMEONE'S GUEST. If you want to get an invite, you may have to start dropping hints early that you'll be spending the day alone this Thanksgiving (LOL). A sure way to be a guest though is to set up a system where friends or family members take turns hosting Thanksgiving dinner at their house. If you have a large, extended family you might only be cooking Thanksgiving dinner once a decade at your home and spending the other nine years as a guest for Thanksgiving dinner at a family member's home. But don't forget to bring a bottle of wine or other appropriate gift to your host.








Looking for home organization products? Karen Porter offers organization store reviews and editor's picks at http://www.organization-stores.com


The Ugly Truth About Your Beautiful Adsense Tactics


The internet is abuzz over Google's Adsense program. Fortunes are being made by those savvy enough to understand how to use it to their fullest advantage. Everyone is looking for the best ways to exploit this massive advertising program, and there are literally hundreds of Adsense "experts" willing to sell you tips and hints on how to earn a healthy income with the program.

For those unfamiliar with Adsense, a brief overview may be in order. Google allows advertisers to place bids on keywords of their choice as part of what is termed the Adwords program. The amount paid for advertising related to each keyword is determined by this bidding process and can get relatively high for fairly competitive keywords. Very competitive terms can cost a great deal of money. The advertisements appear on the top of Google search engine searches (you have probably noticed them in shaded areas and along the right side of your own search results). These advertisements are also inserted into the web pages of those who participate in Google Adsense. Every time someone clicks on the advertisement, the advertiser is charged for the click. The proceeds are then split between Google and the Adsense participant.

Basically, Google is willing to pay those with content-rich websites to host these advertisements. The site operator, known as the publisher, merely needs to insert some simple and customizable HTML code on their site and ads will "automatically appear." To make matters easier, the ads are contextual in nature. Google "reads" the publisher's page and serves up advertisements related to the subject matter of the page.

Adsense was immediately seen as a way webmasters could earn some extra money from their content-rich pages that were not otherwise producing tangible financial benefits. Any subject matter for which ads exist (and ads are available on almost every keyword) could conceivably generate some profit that otherwise would not exist.

It didn't take long for people to realize that this approach merely scratched the surface of Google Adsense's potential bounty. Soon, webmasters determined that sites rich in content directly related to the highest paying keywords could generate significant profits with each and every click. With the high cost of competitive keywords, it was possible to earn several hundred dollars from a single Adsense-carrying page from only a handful of clicks.

Other publishers determined that finding underserved keywords that still generated significant per click revenue could also produce amazing results. A quality high paying "niche" Adsense site could be a significant source of revenue.

Today, Google Adsense continues to grow in popularity. Advertisers love the arrangement, as they now have an army of webmasters designing sites that will eventually lead to pre-qualified prospects being led to their commercial endeavors. Adsense publishers love the idea of creating sites that can generate revenue without requiring a product to sell. Adsense continues to create awesome income opportunities for those who know how to best use it.

As noted, there are a variety of so-called "experts" offering tips and hints to help increase Adsense revenues. Some focus on on-page design and other similar means of increasing "click through rate (CTR)." Others focus entirely on how to produce hundreds of sites quickly and easily in hopes of creating income through volume. Sometimes there seem to be as many expert Adsense systems as there are actual sites featuring Google's ads.

Those who initially took this "spare change" opportunity and transformed it into a true moneymaker, however, uncovered the key to success with Adsense. The key to success is finding the right keywords and determining how to best exploit them.

It's not too hard to guess what kinds of keywords are generating decent payouts. Medical terms and keywords related to multi-million dollar lawsuits, for instance, are universally known to be bring high amounts per click. At one time, the internet was crackling with news of how the keyword "mesothelioma" and related terms were earning nearly a hundred dollars or more per click. That's right...Per click. Ten "mesothelioma" clicks in a day could conceivably put one thousand dollars in the pocket of a publisher.

Of course, once word leaked out, "mesothelioma" sites sprung up everywhere. Adsense experts and newbies alike engaged in heated competition for the elusive "mesothelioma" clicks and their attendant profits. Soon, it became increasingly difficult to get traffic to a "mesothelioma" site. There was simply so much competition.

The story of how a form of lung cancer took Adsense by storm is important to understand, because it teaches a fundamental lesson about the nature of succeeding with the program. You not only need to know what words are making money with each click. You need to know that information before everyone else does, too.

That is why keyword research is the most important aspect of successful Adsense use. By understanding which words are paying the most at any given time, you can position yourself in those key niches before the onslaught, allowing you to garner considerable profit in a relatively short period of time.

Adsense keyword research can be performed manually by anyone willing to invest the time. By creating a separate Adwords account, one can take on the role of an advertiser and see what it would cost to advertise for particular keywords. This will give one an idea of how much each click to an advertisement is likely worth. They can then analyze the competition for that keyword to see if the market is too saturated or not. They can also use any number of services to generate a list of related terms to check and see if there are any veins that are particularly underserved in terms of "perfect match" traffic. After they discover a high-paying word with an accessible market, they can use the information to make more money with Adsense.

There is, however, a problem or two with this technique. Initially, one may have to take hundreds of stabs at finding a keyword that matches all of the necessary prerequisites for success before they are even able to discover which keywords are really high paying. Then, they must hope that keyword is not already over-served on the net, so that they can hope to profit from their Adsense site. If it turns out that the high-paying word they discovered is already being served by hordes of other Adsense users, they must go back to square one and start the process over again.

The process is cumbersome, time-consuming and absent a stroke of luck may never produce real results. What a potentially profitable Adsense publisher really needs is a way to quickly and easily determine how much a click is worth for virtually any keyword at an instant. To make matters even more convenient, they must also be able to immediately ascertain the popularity of the term with respect to how many people are seeking information on the keyword.

Fortunately, this alternative is now available and it is really the best way to profit from Google Adsense. Adsenseadwords.com has automated the process of finding winning keywords and can provide users with all of the information they need to choose the best niches and keywords to attack. Adsenseadwords.com provides a comprehensive up-to-date look at which words are generating the most money per click. At the same time, it reveals just how many people are actually searching for the keywords in questions. Even more impressively, it takes an extra step and allows users to look for related keywords in order to find the best ways to custom tailor sites to produce maximum Adsense revenue.

This kind of information is in high demand for a reason--it is the one way to produce the best possible results. If one performs a search on a term like "high paying Adsense keywords," they will quickly understand how coveted information like this really is. You'll find forum posters begging for information on which words are hot. You will find old lists of various higher-paying words that are still relied upon by some desperate for direction even though the lists are now old and of little real utility. Everyone wants to know which words pay the most. Adsenseadwords.com answers the question with an intuitively structured system that provides both keyword values and essential search pattern information.

If you just want to put some Adsense ads up on an existing site and hope to earn a few cents per day, Adsenseadwords.com is not for you. However, if you are interested in discovering which keywords can really offer the most profit potential in order to help direct your site-building and site optimization plans, it is the perfect service. You know the big money clicks are out there somewhere. History shows us all that those who find them early and make their move can produce massive profits. You just need a tool to help you find the right terms. Adsenseadwords.com gives you the tools and makes them very easy to use.








Ben Shaffer is the owner and chief-developer of the popular site http://www.AdsenseAdwords.com . He also spends a huge amount of time managing his Adsense sites portfolio. If there is something to know about Adsense, then Ben Shaffer probably knows about it!


Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Network Marketing Strategies For 2008 - 5 Proven And Tested Steps Of "The Spider Web Effect"


Ask yourself, is signing someone up at the supreme super duper level building your network marketing business? Is making a list of every friend and family member you have building your network marketing business? How about, taking your new recruits to some out of the way meeting is this building your network marketing business?

We both know the answer is...NO!

Unfortunately, many of us are told by our "upline" support these are the ONLY ways to be successful in network marketing. Well, I'm here to tell you that's a load of bull!

The truth of the matter is; building your network marketing business should look like a spider web. You don't believe me? Want more proof? Keep on reading.

In my opinion, to build your network marketing business; your MLM company or upline group should provide a dupilcable system to help you gain success. If not, it is absolutely imperative that you create a duplicable system for yourself and for your future downline to pass on to their prospects and so on and so on.

(Hint: "the spider web effect starts with YOU!" )

Okay, let's take a look at the 5 proven and tested steps you need to help you start building your network marketing business...aka "the spider web".

1. Remember, real targeted lead generation is essential. People are always looking for people to partner with to build a business. Your website should have one main objective; capture contact information. This gives your visitors the option to sign up or leave. Your real targeted lead generating system will bring leaders who are readers. These are the people who are committed to building a business; no matter what. Therefore, the pdf or ebook you offer MUST have value. Value that is logical, realistic, educational and compelling for your online visitors.

Only talk to people who have dreams, goals and desires to be successful. You should never have to convince anyone to build a network marketing business. This is something they want to do even if your paths had never crossed. These are the people you want to build your network marketing business with into the future. These are the people you

want to target!

Working with "real targeted leads" is what makes building your network marketing business fun. And most importantly; together you are building a network marketing business that erupts with massive duplication creating results of success for all.

2. Follow up with people. Communication is key! Automated follow up is a wonderful invention; don't you agree? There is nothing like a professionally written automated follow up email system that enables you to build a relationship with a prospect. Great ad copy can answer questions or reveal a problem/solution a prospect could be having building a network marketing business. Your automated follow system creates a trust many people in the industry are seeking. Your follow up can also; get people to really start thinking about achieving their own success. They come to realize, they have found a leader that is truly here to help them succeed and if he or she can do it; so can I.

3. You may want to say this out loud; "if you build it once, if you build it right, it will be with you forever." What am I talking about,relationships. Your network marketing business is a relationship business. One-on-one sponsoring and training is extremely important for business success. People must know that you care. If possible, get your people on live daily training calls. Calls that have interaction for all who dial in on any given night. There is nothing worst than a call that has a host and/or a guest who do all the talking about how great the company product or service is and what it was like back in the day before they made their millions. That's NOT training! That's listening!

I'm talking about training that has a question and answer period. Giving you real practical, useful and cost effective information for your network marketing business. Training that doesn't care how long you have been in network marketing or doesn't make you feel like an idiot when you ask a question. Training that doesn't care what level you came in at as long as you get the support you need to succeed. That's what training is all about!.

4. Absolutely the lifeblood of your business is teaching, training, coaching & mentoring new people on how to do network marketing. Providing a step-by-step action plan helps people gain success.Don't waste your time studying about the super duper elixir drink, where the ingredients are scraped off the rock by blind leprechauns every other full moon. Don't study the ingredients. Study people. People will build your business. Learn to listen to people and you will own your business and you will own your life.

5. When I'm your sponsor, I'm your sponsor for life. Because I take YOUR success personally. My mentor told me, "Only sponsor people that you'd want to go on a 1-month cruise with."

If I'm your sponsor, that is the way it is. You & I will be in business together for the rest of our lives. Wow! How important is that? Don't just sponsor somebody who can fog a mirror. ONLY sponsor people who you really want to build a business with.

To be long-term successful, you MUST have a "Network Marketing Strategy" for your opportunity. I love ours because it offers total training in the skills of working with people, so that you get better and better... and your people can plug into exactly the same system, making it far easier for you to help them as you gain more and more experience.

Like I said before; the spider web effect starts with you!








Bea Ryals is a member of the Success Team Builders. A team dedicated to "Teaching People To Be A Mentor With A Servant's Heart."

We'll train you to build BIG in Network Marketing, with ANY MLM company. We'll train ALL your people. We'll do it all FREE!

To get more Network Marketing Strategies to:

[http://www.createpassiveresidualincome.com]

Or to watch a short video clip on MLM Secrets Exposed go to You Tube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aw0Z1WsJTc


Police Brutatlity, Abuse, and Hatred of Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Belgium


INTRODUCTION

This article is a hint about some of the past stories of abuses on asylum seekers by the Belgian police and high level of hatred exercised by the Belgian political party (Vlaams Belang) meaning Flemish Interest) against asylum seekers and foreigners in general. On several occasions Amnesty International (AI) has called on the Belgian Government to respect the human rights of asylum seekers and to put an end to the brutality and abuses faced by asylum seekers from the police force in “close center” (a detention center where rejected asylum seekers are kept for deportation) near airport. When these complaints were launched by Amnesty International, the Belgian Government always pledged to stop further police brutality and abuse of asylum seekers but nothing has been done about it. Until now the Belgian Government still forcefully deport asylum seekers coming to them for protection, back to their country of origin, which does not comply with the 1951 Geneva Convention.

Most people who seek asylum in industrialized countries are considered as economic migrants, someone who voluntarily leaves their own country of origin aiming for a better life another country (definition by Wigan Council, UK). Perhaps they are fleeing from dictatorial and corrupt regimes such as that of my country, Cameroon, which tends to affect the citizens of that country economically. In my own words I call it “economic persecution”. Fleeing from other types of persecution in my opinion must not be in conformity with the definitions of the United Nations pertaining to refugees and asylum seekers. These people should be accepted and protected in any country they seek for asylum and find refuge than to be brutalized and abused in any form. In this article, citations are given to prove the police brutality, hatred and abuse of asylum seekers and refugees as stated in the above heading.

WHO IS A REFUGEE?

Under International Law, a refugee is a person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual resident; has a well founded fear of persecution(s) of his/her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group of political opinion; and is unable to return or unwilling to avail himself of the protection of the country, or to return there, for the fear of persecution (Wikipedia-open content encyclopedia).

WHO IS AN ASYLUM SEEKER?

In 2004 the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) defines an asylum seeker is a person who flees his own country and seek sanctuary in another state, he applies for ‘asylum’-the right to be recognized as a bona fide refugee and receive legal protection and material assistance.

For many asylum seekers, for example, the Government or institutions in the country of origin do not necessarily impose persecution. Some may face violence at the hands of mafia networks, armed or dominant majority groups in connection with factors that are not directly political, such as ethnicity. Others may be threatened for having a lifestyle that involves a socially unacceptable choice of spouse, sexual orientation etc. Some people are threatened and persecuted without fully meeting the demands of the 1951 United Nations Convention relating to the status of refugees. Poverty, while a commonly factor “pushing” migration is difficult to define. Many undocumented aliens and unauthorized residents identify varying thresholds of hardship at which they where motivated to migrate. This generic term therefore covers a wider range of facts (Martiniello, 2004).

Martiniello’s point should be fast taken into consideration because, normally where there is poverty and famine, people as well as livestock are forced to leave their niche for survival, which sometimes triggers exodus. I hold his arguments because they may help to redefine the concept of refugee better than as stated by International Law. Failure to revisit these concepts under the principles and guidelines provided by Martiniello, many people will face double persecutions both in their countries of origin and in the host countries. There are many other types of persecutions that can qualify a person as a refugee, which is not mentioned in the definition of refugee itself and I think this should be addressed by the United Nations for a broader definition. For example, imagine someone in a less developed country losses his business ventures accidentally by fire, and in a highly corrupted country with poor insurance policies and slow judiciary procedures, it takes several years to get compensation from the insurance company. Meanwhile this person and the entire family depend solely on this business. In a country with a poor economic system and little or no hope of finding another job, given the opportunity to leave his country to another country for a better life, he will not hesitate.

POLICE BRUTALITIES AND ABUSES OF REFUGEES AND ASYLUM SEEKERS

Amnesty International 1999 report criticized Belgium for its maltreatment of asylum seekers inside the “close centers”. For example, for a second time, Belgium was included among the states named in Amnesty’s report. Of major concern in Belgium, the document exposes police brutality and restrictive asylum policies. One of the cases highlighted as stated by Tyler in 1999 was that of Hovhannes Karapetyan, an American refugee. After an unsuccessful attempt to deport him, he was return to Steenokkerzeel “close center” where guards assaulted him, breaking his arm causing him to lose consciousness. He was then put into solitary confinement in this condition. When he asked to see a doctor, the guards assaulted him once more. He was only taken to the hospital the next day.

On September 22, 11 gendarmes took a young Nigerian woman called Semira Adamu bound in handcuffs, to a plane at Brussels National airport to be deported. When she started shouting and trying to resist deportation, two of the officers pressed a cushion over her face. She fell unconscious and died later that evening. According to doctors, she succumbed to brain hemorrhage resulting from a contusion. The tragic fate of Semira Adamu shook the Belgian population. More than 5,000 people gathered on September 28 outside the cathedral of St. Michael in Brussels during the memorial service for the young woman. This led to the resignation of the socialist party interior minister Louis Tobbak the next day, admitting political responsibility for the violent death of the 20 year old asylum seeker (Nees, 1998).

According to the Concluding Observation Report No. 6, of the Human Rights Committee in Belgium, the committee takes note of new instructions relating to the methods and techniques under which deportations are carried out. As a follow up in Report No. 13, the committee expressed grave concern over the widespread police brutality against suspects in custody. The committee regrets the lack of transparency in conducting investigations on the part of the police authorities and difficulty in obtaining access to information.

Concordant to the Institute of Racial Relations in London, Amnesty International has expressed dismay over reports of police brutality in Belgium, often accompanied by acts of racial discrimination. Amnesty International calls for people in custody to have access to a lawyer and a medical doctor. Excessive force has been used during deportation and rejected asylum seekers have been confined for too long in transit sections of the Brussels National airport. These continuous allegations made by Amnesty International about the Belgian police brutality to refugees and asylum seekers, now qualifies the international community to openly criticize the Belgian government for doing too little in stopping these abuses, which still goes on in detention centers. One is forced to ponder for how long shall we wait for another Semira Adamu to happen before something needs be done to put an end to these brutality, hatred and prejudice?

HATRED FOR REFUGEES AND ASYLUM SEEKERS

The hatred of the radical Flemish political party (Vlaams Belang) is now noticeable to every foreigner in Belgium. This very political party was formally known as Vlaams Blok, and after a controversial racist statement made by the former president, Filip Dewinter, the party was banned and fined by the Supreme Court to pay 36,000 euros. To save its finance, they then emerged with another name Vlaams Belang. They don’t like the presence of asylum seekers and refugees in their country.

In Belgium, the issue of political parties, which resort to racist or xenophobic propaganda, is of special concern to European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI). Much remains to be done to ensure that foreigners and persons of immigrant backgrounds enjoy genuinely equal opportunities in employment. The increase in manifestation of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia calls for concerted efforts of Belgian society as a whole against these phenomena (Council of Europe, 2004).

The president of Human Right and Peace Campaign (HURPEC) wrote that the 1951 Geneva Convention clearly opposes the return and forced deportation of any refugee to that country where he/she fears persecution either he/she is living legally or illegally. But the Belgian Government is forcefully deporting refugees, giving them extreme torture and punishment, which is a violation to the Geneva Convention (Karki, 2002).

In my view, the torture given to asylum seekers in detention by the police is not only an abuse of human right, but hatred against human race no matter which race it might be. The deportation of refugees and asylum seekers is not an idea but upholding the 1951 Geneva Convention by regularizing all rejected asylum seekers, refugees and enabling them to work and pay their taxes without any discrimination. This can be supported by the statement made by the British Home Secretary, Charles Clark saying that saying that there may be a case permitting some failed asylum seekers to work in the UK, during a debate with BBC Two’s Newsnight on April 26, 2005. He was responding to a suggestion from the audience that immigrants will better integrate into the British society if they paid tax and National Insurance. In 2003, Belgium was one of the selected industrialized counties with the lowest number of asylum applications received (16,900). The applicants came from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Russian Federation, Serbia-Montenegro, Iran and Cameroon (UNHCR, 2004). Believing this low asylum application figures, there is just no need for anti asylum policies to be introduced in the parliament as wanted by Vlaams Belang in order to push all asylum seekers and refugees to limbo.

It is hard to imagine that a councilor of Vlaams Belang Sint Gilles–Waas near the city of Antwerp was arrested in connection with the shooting of two men in a café in Sint Gilles Pauwels. One of the victims died and the other was seriously wounded. (IRR News, 2004). This shows how barbaric some of their members can be. The European Roma Rights Center (ERRC) sent a letter to the Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt to express concerns at reports that Belgium plans to expels Slovak Romani asylum seekers. The ERRC called Prime Minister Verhofstadt’s attention to the fact that the collective expulsion of aliens is in contravention of Article 4, protocol 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ERRC, 2000).

We can see that sometimes even the government can organize widespread expulsion of refugees in a systematic order without the knowledge of NGOs who fight for the rights and protection of these refugees and asylum seekers. This is just an aide memoire of what refugees and asylum seekers are going through in Belgium today. Deporting a person, who has successfully fled persecution from his or her country, back to the country of origin, is like burying that person alive who is, to my view, tantamount to crime against humanity or whatever crime you might link it to.

CONCLUSION

There is still racism, discrimination and hatred of asylum seekers, refugees and foreigners in Belgium. The Belgian people and politicians should recall that their former king Badouin, son of Leopold III, joined his father in exile in 1945 in Switzerland as a refugee, while others where also refugees and internally displaced in their own country during the Second World War German (Nazi) invasion of Belgium. The military was not able to liberate their country from the German occupation. All thanks to the British and U.S soldiers for shedding their blood for the Belgian people. I urge the Vlaams Belang chairman, Frank Vanhecke with his radical views on refugees and asylum seekers to reflect history, modernize their ways of thinking, and accept the facts that things and time has changed. Belgium needs refugees and asylum seekers not only to work in their apple farms, but to be fully integrated in the society and given the permission to work if qualified for the job such as doctors, engineers, soldiers etc, as they will all abide to the laws that governs the Belgian soil. Refugees and asylum seekers can be of great importance to the state and it’s economy. Fighting against police brutality and protecting all refugees, asylum seekers and other foreigners from abuses and racism is yet to be seen in Belgian institutions before there can be equal opportunities for everyone.

It is important to note that the policies of Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) that preach hatred against refugees and asylum seekers, also frighten other foreigners who live and work legally in Belgium and worse of all tarnish the reputation of the state as racist. In my opinion, if Vlaams Belang doesn’t stop their discriminative and hatred policies on asylum seekers, refugees and foreigners, the international community should consider them as a political and terrorist organization for example Irish Republican Army (IRA) of Northern Ireland, ETA of Spain and, Hizbolla of Syria etc. Because they are trying to use democracy to kill human rights that has long been established and achieved under hard struggle.

REFERENCES

Charles Clark (statement), BBC Newsnight special debate on home affairs. April 26, 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/frontpage/4488153.stm

Council of Europe, 2004 Five New Reports on Racism, Human Rights, European Commission Against Racism And Intolerance, 27 January 2004

European Roma Rights Centre, 2004. Planned Expulsion of Roma from Belgium (ERRC press Release 2004). Publication-Advocacy Letters and Press Releases http://www.errc.org/cikk.php?cikk=223&archiv=1

Karki, Milan, 2002. Appeal: Belgian Government’s Brutality Over Nepalese Refugees, 16th December 2002. http://www.hrea.org/lists/refugee-rights/markup/msg00222.html

Martiniello Marco, 2004 Belgium undocumented held lesson for EU, Migration Information Source, 1st February 2004. http://migrationinformation.org/feature/display.cfm?ID=95

Nees, Verena, 1998: The death of Semira Adamu and Deportation Policy in Europe. Published by (ICFI) 6th October 1998. [http://www.wsws.org/news/1998/oct1998/blg-o06.shtml]

Race and Immigration Issues in Belgium, 2004.

[http://www.goacom.com/overseas-digest/ImAsy&Race] (Main source, Institute of Race Relations, London)

Refugees by Numbers, 2004 Edition. United Nation Refugee Agency (UNHCR) Page 10-11.

Some Stories. 2004 Independent Race And Refugee News Network. May 2004 http://www.irr.org.uk/2004/may

Tyler, Richard, 1999 Refugee Protest Condition in Belgium “close centers” for asylum seekers. Published by International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI), 1st September 1999. http://www.wsws.org/articles/1999/sep1999/belg-s01.shtml

University Of Minnesota, 1998 Concluding Observation of the Human Right Committee, Belgium, Human Right Library, 19 November 1998.

Wigan Council, UK, Asylum....Questions & Answers [http://www.wiganmbc.gov.uk/pub/council/asylum/asylumseekers.htm]

Wikipedia, Bamboo Web Dictionary, Open Content Encyclopedia http://www.bambooweb.com/article/r/e/refugee.html








Name: Rickcord Nakake Ngambi

Place of birth: Bota-Limbe

South West Province

Cameroon.

Resident: Rue de l'Egalité 16

1040 Etterbeek

Bruxelles-Belgique.

E-mail: rickcordngambi@yahoo.com Tel: +32484964487


Tuesday, January 25, 2011

3 Steps to the Best Web Conferencing Solution - They Are Not One-Size-Fits-All


Being charged with evaluating web conferencing solutions for your corporation, small business, or family can be quite a challenge. Sure, you could just go out and find the most popular solution or choose the first one that comes up in a Google search. But, in doing so you may be doing yourself a disservice.

There are actually a host of related - but in many significant ways very distinct - web conferencing solutions on the market today. They go by various product descriptions, such as online meeting, web meeting, webinar and web conference call software. And indeed, their features and functions differ not only due to price, but to the fact they each system was designed with a different purpose in mind.

If you are looking for the best web conferencing solution for your enterprise or small business, here are 3 steps to getting you going in the right direction:

1. Understand the web conferencing landscape:

Like any journey, you should start this one by getting a lay of the land. Each solution was made for a different purpose. Here the main categories of available conferencing solutions:

* Simple online meetings: to share voice, video and desktop views among a small group of people

* Webinars: for large, one-to-many broadcasts of words and video

* Online & IT support: designed to allow someone to remotely take control of another person's computer for troubleshooting or support purposes

* Enterprise work collaboration: enables people who are located remotely from each other to get work done via web applications, CAD, or other software

* Training & education: designed for the purposes of e-learning and at-a-distance training

2. Know the signs of the right provider for you:

Once you have decided which general area of application for which you will be using your new conferencing system, the next step is to create a shortlist of 2-3 solution providers. Each provider should satisfy these conditions:

* right price range for your budget

* has a good industry reputation

* is backed by a large company or holding corporation (to ensure product support longevity)

* has the features you need

3. Compare feature lists:

Now, for each of the 2-3 provides on your list, conduct a feature-by-feature comparison of each one. Keep track of your research in a spreadsheet. Hint: mark each feature in one of 3 ways: needed, nice-to-have, and not needed.

Take these 3 steps to find the right web conferencing solution for you or your company.








Compare top conferencing solutions at: Compare Top Web Conferencing Solutions.


Unknown Writer Gets Net Profits!


Can't get published? I have found a clever way to jump over the publishing and marketing hurdles. What do I mean by clever? How about immensely more effective, efficient, and gratifying, for starters?

A Shocking Situation

You love to write. Over the years, you have acquired a fair amount of knowledge and know-how.

One day, you get this uncontrollable urge to write a book about the subject of your passion. You want to get published. You want the world to know. And, of course, you want to get paid for the privilege, right?

Boy! Are you in for a shock!

The Publishing Wall

Writing a book is only a matter of time, discipline and, above all, passion. Oh! Of course, you do have to love to write! No problem, or so you thought!

Your problems begin when you submit your manuscript to publishers. That's when you hit a solid brick wall!

Publishers typically receive hundreds, if not thousands of manuscript every year. Most are unsolicited. Most are from unknown, never published writers.

All publishers have very good reasons for turning down your "offer". Some do not even acknowledge receipt, let alone give any explanation.

You are an unknown writer. When publishers are confronted with an unknown risk, they typically do not take it ... unless your manuscript is of such compelling quality that they are forced to accept to publish it ... because, you see, they do not consider a " sure winner" to be a commercial risk anymore! They like safe bets ... most of the time.

A known and successful writer gets published. How does one become a known and successful writer ... without getting published? How in the world are you expected to get out of this vicious circle?

The Self-Publishing Siren

You set out to search for an alternate way of publishing your book. Self-publishing suddenly looks like a way out ... or, rather, a way in.

Instead of the book publisher taking all the risks, you discover that you can take charge of them! Ah, Ha! That's it! Now you can bypass the editor. You won't have to wait (beg) for his stamp of approval.

You decide to put up the money to publish your book. Upon further research, you find that some self-publishing firms will ask for several thousand dollars, up front, and impose a first printing run of two to five hundred books.

Others will ask you to fork over $700 to over $2000, depending on the "package deal" you chose. They will supply you with a dozen books or so, and publish the rest on demand, as orders come in.

Either way, that's where you get into trouble ... again.

You are still an unknown writer, remember!

How do you get the orders to come in? How do you generate the necessary interest? How do you get people to know about the very existence, if not the value of your book? How do you prove your competence to the world? How do you acquire a reputation as a writer?

The best self-publishing firms will offer to market your book ... for an extra fee, of course. But, even then, you will only get a "burst" of marketing (press releases, magazine reviews, international catalogs, book fairs, etc.).

What happens after the few weeks that the average marketing campaign lasts? Yup! You guessed it again. You can either wait for these efforts (over which you have no control) to bear fruit. Or you can cough up some more money for yet another marketing campaign!

Some self publishing firms will be "honest" enough to (strongly) hint that you will have to devote a fair amount of your time to self-promoting activities, such as organizing signature sessions at local libraries and book stores, participating in book publishing events and shows, etc. All at your own expense, of course.

Not exactly what you had in mind, is it? You shudder at the thought of all that time you could put to better use ... such as writing. Besides you could not afford to take the time away from your day job, anyway.

Fortunately, you are a determined person. You keep searching for a solution. You are saying to yourself: "There must be a way out of this marketing dead end!"

So, you decide to put off self-publishing your book until you find a suitable solution. You resume your search.

Trouble On Marketing Hill

You have the firm intention of promoting your book yourself. You have heard that it is "possible" to do it with a Web site.

So, you forge ahead and thoroughly research this solution. You eventually find that having a Web site does not necessarily mean that it will be found by roaming Web surfers! It takes a lot of Web marketing savvy to achieve that.

Here we go again! Another dead end! You discover that you cannot count on an automatic flow of visitors just because you put up a Web site.

As it happens, you know nothing about how to build a Web site to be an effective marketing vehicle. You do not feel "comfortable" with the idea of learning all the technicalities either. And you do not have the thousands of dollars to hire specialized Webmasters to do it for you.

You are back to square one. There is more to Web site building and Web marketing than you thought. Much more.

You know next to nothing about marketing in general. Now you also know that, even if you did know a lot about traditional offline marketing, you would still be no further ahead.

Marketing within the Web environment is a different beast.

Just what you needed!

One Page At A Time

You can't believe that it can't be done. As you surf the Web, it becomes obvious to you that quite a number of people have a successful Web site. But, is it possible to do it on your own, without lots of expensive help? So, you keep roaming the Web for the solution to your Web marketing problem.

One day, you get lucky.

You stumble upon an article. It talks about writing on the "Net". In it, the author mentions that you can build a Web site for effective marketing purposes ... without any technical knowledge! Ooooh!

According to this article, there is a Web hosting firm out there that "holds your hand" throughout the Web site building process. They supply the templates, the user friendly tools, and the comprehensive user guides to go with it. They even have a large community of users that are very active and always eager to help "newbies"!

Could this be it?

The article goes on to explain that you get help in choosing a suitable theme for your site, one that has a fighting chance of attracting visitors, taking the competition into account. Then you are led through a step by step process. The Web site you build is automatically optimized for Web marketing efficiency!

Finally! You have hit pay dirt!

As you read on, you discover how you can market your knowledge and know-how without ever publishing a book ... at least not in the traditional way, yet. The author suggests that you are better off publishing ... one page at a time!

The author of the article goes on to outline how publishing on a Web site works.

1. Each article you write on a given topic becomes a page on your Web site.

2. Each page of your Web site attracts it's own visitors, because they are found through the use of keywords. Marketing is indeed different on the Web!

3. Each page becomes a revenue generator on it's own. For example, you can become a member of the Google Adsense program, and display context relevant adds on your Web site pages. You can also offer links to (topic related) suppliers, as an affiliate. You can even promote and sell your own books ... that's, if you ever feel the need to!

4. And because your Web site is automatically built to be "visible" on the Net, it attracts an increasing number of visitors every day.

Published At Last!

You finally decide to subscribe to this Web site building service. They seem to offer the just the kind of "hand holding" help you needed to pierce the marketing wall that is standing in your way.

After a few months of writing and learning, you are on your way, at last!

You are getting published, "Web style", right the on your own Web site! As a bonus, you are starting to get feedback from your Web site visitors, even as you write interesting content. You discover the intense pleasure of having people express their gratefulness for the helpful information you give them through your Web pages.

You are instructed not sell the information that you publish on each page of your Web site. You are told to give it away, most of it anyway!

Yes, you have read correctly. You learn that publishing yourself on the "Net" is a business, and that helping people solve their problems is part of the friendly give and take behind successful businesses. When you are being helpful to your visitors, they eventually reward you with their patronage (through adds placed on your pages by Google, affiliations with suppliers, your own ebooks, etc.).

You learn to publish in marketable installments ... one Web page at a time!

The author of the article goes on to tell that this works extremely well for most genres, even novels, short stories! Why not poetry? Who is going to stop you?

As a novelist, just give your readers a taste of what you have to offer. You can publish a representative chapter, or a part of it, as a teaser. If you write short stories, you can publish one or two on your Web site, as a sample of what your readers can expect if they buy your books.

You soon find that you can market yourself better than anyone else ever could!

But Is It Worth It?

With the income from your Web site, you can even afford to self-publish your books in hardcopy. You now have the marketing power your Web site is giving you. You do not need a traditional book publisher to "market" your books anymore. You do not have to settle for a meager few percent in royalties!

As your Web site gets increasingly known and traveled, a number of your visitors become customers, one way or the other. You have the physical means to diversify your offer, and, by the same token, your sources of revenue, which serves to stabilize your income.

That is a very enviable situation many writers do not generally enjoy!

Your Web site has turned the situation around in your favor. Notoriety, income, and the immense satisfaction of having beaten the system ... are your rewards.

All that, because you believed in yourself and decided to get out of a paralyzing anonymity.

You can now write to your hearts content on your Web site ... and grab your fair share of "Net profits"!








Claude Jollet is a former planning advisor to major industrial and commercial clients. He specialized in weather related operational planning issues. He holds a bachelor?s degree in applied computer science, specializing in business process analysis and automation. Mr. Jollet now devotes all his free time to the promotion of entrepreneurship on the Web. He reaches his following with his Web site http://www.top-web-entrepreneurs-plan-it.com

More on this topic here.


The Best Simple Software For The Busy Webmaster


Here are a few programs I can't do without. They're free, and make being a webmaster much easier.

CGI-Telnet http://www.rohitab.com/cgiscripts/cgitelnet.html

A cgi script that allows you to run commands on your server, even if your web host won't give you telnet access. Also good for getting at files generated by other scripts that are owned by user 'nobody', instead of your username. Ever tried deleting them? Well, now you can.

AXS Visitor Tracking System http://www.xav.com/

A very fine hit counter. Fairly simple to set up, if you use footer files on your site. Gives detailed information. Much better than the stats software that came with your web-hosting account.

Swap.pl

A Perl text replacer script. Handy if you're not familiar with Unix commands. Make sitewide changes in seconds. The original author's site doesn't list it any more. Can still be found via a search engine (hint, hint).

FTP Explorer http://www.ftpx.com

The charm of this software is that it looks a lot like the Windows shell, and thus makes FTP'ing a little less intimidating for the novice webmaster.

Putty Telnet/SSH Client http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/

A simple-looking, but sophisticated, freeware telnet and SSH client. Can be run from a floppy disk. Useful for the mobile webmaster.

Email Remover 2.4

Not currently available from the author's website, but can be found by Googling for a file named 'eremov24.zip'. This is an email account checker. It can be run from a floppy disk and can check multiple email accounts. Allows you to highlight spam and delete it, and download emails if need be. WARNING: It has a bug. Do not change the order of the emails in the software window before deleting; you'll end up deleting the wrong ones.

RFTP 32 Version 0.99

Again, not currently available from the author's website. This is a self-contained FTP client that can be, you guessed it, run from a floppy disk. Search around for a file named 'rftp.exe'.

If you don't see a pattern emerging, then let me elucidate: the last three programs can all be run from the same floppy disk. You can leave your laptop at home, and work on your your site from internet cafes.

The only thing left would be a WYSIWYG HTML editor that you can run from a floppy disk; that would be asking for a lot. However, the Mambo content management system http://mamboserver.com comes with one pre-installed. There's also a WYSIWYG plugin for the blog software WordPress http://wordpress.org/.

Either is a useful addition to any website. You can keep it updated while on the road.








T. O' Donnell ( http://www.tigertom.com ) is an ecommerce consultant and curmudgeon living in London, UK. His latest project is an ebook on conservatories, available at http://www.ttconservatories.co.uk. T. O' Donnell freeware may be downloaded at http://www.ttfreeware.co.uk.


Monday, January 24, 2011

FatCow Vs WebFusion


FatCow & WebFusion are cardinal of the stages in the website hosting business enterprise, both acquiring their begin in the former 1990s. Central office and information center for year, WebFusion built up its success in the UK and is a comparative starter to the nations. So, how do this 2 suppliers match-up? Proceed on with our compare to check.

Pricing

Apart from the user cozy tool & authentic platforms, an surprisingly low cost has always constituted the major trading guide for FatCow. Nothing has altered now as its totally in one hosting design is accessible from $58 each year. WebFusion is not to be unnoticed in the inexpensive net hosting marketplace as it provides an basic software package from $2.99 per calendar month. However, their program that is corresponding to FatCow is substantially greater at $6.99 per calendar month. If you do not prefer to dish out big bucks for a pro web hosting services, some of these companies are worth checking over.

Products & Services

WebFusion has 3 different hosting designs on Windows servers or Linux to adapt own users, small-scale business proprietors, and clients with a lot of complex demands. It is also a very booming recorder with a few of the best costs on DNSs. Apart from its amply charged web hosting design, FatCow provides URL enrollment, e-commerce and electronic mail services, selling services and web site additions. The company has a characteristic rich hosting design in micro- Moo for clients who prefer to comfort way their internet.

Web Hosting characteristics

If you are looking for high quality characteristics, rest ascertained because WebFusion & FatCow have much to provide in this section. You are able to estimate all the basic such as multiple electronic mail account, webmail and junk e-mail dribbling, as well as more innovative characteristics like Perl, Python,& PHP programing language. When both offer you with application for seeing and analyzing your internet stats, FatCow accepts its offers one snick further with the common Google Webmaster Tool. Unless your web site demands specifics, you can not loose with either companies when it concerns characteristics.

Customer Service

Service & support should not arrest later contracting for your website hosting packages. All,the time where troubles might happen and you are probably to require the assist. A 100% trouble less hosting answer is never warranted, but you are never alone when acting business with WebFusion or FatCow. Both offer you with fabulous after gross sales support by telephone, electronic mail and support tickets. You can sieve through gentle search-able internet software documentation to get hints on characteristics such as electronic mail, database and domain. It does not thing which company you select, some are there to step-up and offer with support 24/7.

Recommendations

When it goes down to it, there is no incorrect option in the subject of WebFusion vs FatCow. This societies some have the experience required to deliver authentic web hosting solution and assist you constitute your online. Possibly the best way to make a conclusion is to check up on both servers and matter their offers against your specific needs.








If you enjoy reading this, you may enjoy reading on Fatcow vs Webfusion and Fatcow Reviews.


Things to Be Considered While Selecting Email Hosting Services


Whatever view you may have, we have advice, pointers, helpful hints for you to get there. It will be incredibly easier to achieve your goal when you know what to do and what things to avoid. There are three essential tips to help you offer here. Using these guidelines your prospects much better results will probably be radically improved.

While thinking seriously about paid email hosting services to your specifications for communication through emails, it is important that you do things efficiently. If you are not, the effects tend to be contrite. You may eventually find yourself to spending more than you need, and even in fact, do not receive the services you want. So lets discuss several special ways to achieve the progress.

Purchase an e-mail hosting service from skilled hosting provider. You should receive an email hosting service provider as flexible, which helps to prevent you against the strength of your inflexible preset e-mail address contact information. The ability of this may well take control of your company brand name, because while contacting with your business partners or any correspondence using this kinds e-mail service will establish your company brand name in good manner. So do not make the mistake of neglecting this necessary hosting service.

Almost as important as finding a hosting provider, the web host who provides this service should be flexible when examining mail handling for your communication needs, e-mail hosting is balancing service which should be the value to the cost of subscription. I shall let you know, this is not something to ignore.

Finally, when considering paid hosting services for email communication you should be select safe and secure hosting provider for email hosting which is certainly worthy of trust. This can helps those organizations whose businesses correspondence required email hosting services. If they do not purchase this service, they could probably lose their confidential files and experience repeated unavailability of emails and I do not think we are able to reach an agreement that would probably not ideal.

As I mentioned at the beginning, regarding the consideration paid email hosting for your communication needs electronic mail, you desperately want to make sure you never commit blunders that finally ended pay more than what you actually need, and not even having the features you want. What you need is a little smart shopping and evaluating the various e-mail hosting providers, and you make this happen by giving attention to the strategies mentioned above.








Nathan Woods is the author of this article and writes articles on various topics that includes Email Hosting and Find out more information about UK Web Hosting here.


5 Tactics Affiliate Marketers Use to Be Successful Online


Affiliate marketers all have one goal in common: find the most successful formula that will earn them the most money online. Unfortunately there isn't a magic formula or "get rich quick" scheme that really works. Don't let anyone fool you into thinking you can be successful without any work involved.

There are tactics that have worked over the years and continue to work in the online affiliate marketing world of today. It does help to study what has made other entrepreneurs successful. Here are three top marketing tips you can use to increase your sales and reach your goals in the affiliate marketing field.

What are these five tactics?

1. Each product that you want to market should have it's own unique web page. This is not the time to try and save a few dollars by not having to pay for web hosting. It's a worthwhile investment to have a site that will focus and really be geared toward selling one individual product.

2.Always include product reviews on the website to give visitors will have an understanding on what the product can do for those who buy them. Also include testimonials from users who have already tried the product. Look for affiliate programs that offer testimonials with names and photos(to add validity).

3.Have an opt-in box on your site. You can offer a free report,newsletter, etc. Most visitors to your site won't buy on the first go round. If you use your autoresponder and capture their email addresses, you can send them a series of offers. Just be sure to include some valuable information to make it worthwhile for your customer. Remember, it takes about 7 contacts with someone before they are ready to purchase something.

If you don't have a way to capture email addresses then you can expect one of two things:closed sale or the prospect leaving the page most likely never to return again. Be sending regular emails, you will remind them of the product they thought they wanted. Be sure that the content is directed toward specific reasons to buy the product. Making your email informational will convert much better than using a blatant sales pitch.

4.Writing articles detailing the uses or advantages of your product can be used to drive traffic to your site. Spending a bit of time researching will help make you sound like an expert on the subject! Give some thought to your headlines. Use your keywords in your title and throughout your article. You might ask a question or provide "tips" on your product.If you make your article interesting enough and hint at even more useful information in the bio box at the end of your article (with your website link in it,of course)people will want to come and check out your site.

Writing articles regularly will send targeted visitors your way. After a bit of practice, article writing does get easier.

5.Do your research on the affiliate program (and product). For example, does their sales page make you want to buy the product? If the answer is no, you may want to reconsider promoting it and look for a product with a better presentation. Try to find a way to check out the reputation of the company or product. A high return rate would not be a good thing to deal with. You might send them an email with some questions and see how quickly they respond to and how well they answer you questions.

And, of course, last but not least, ask yourself if the potential profit is worth putting your time and energy into promoting a particular product?

The tactics given above can get you started down the right track to success as an affiliate marketer.








A variety of proven tips and advice on being successful in the online world are available here:http://dollarsforblogging.blogspot.com