Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2006-2008 Trey Pennewell
Most webmasters are always looking for new and inventive ways to drive traffic to their website. There are many proven methods of getting the traffic to a website, but if that new increase in traffic does not convert into sales, then is it still worth the effort that you put into getting that traffic?
I had a discussion recently with a colleague about generating traffic from outside of our target market. As a result of our discussion, we decided that we certainly could utilize various markets to get a huge boost in traffic, but since this traffic would likely not result in any conversions, that there was really no point in spending the time and effort on going after that traffic.
In a previous "experiment" on one of my websites, I started using the social networking tactic to generate traffic. I bookmarked a page of my site and submitted to many of the standard sites like, www.digg.com, www.reddit.com, www.furl.net, www.spurl.net, etc.
By doing this, I was able to get a huge increase in traffic to the site for a couple of days. The problem is, that I did not get one single conversion from this new traffic. I used a catchy headline and a good description of the article that I submitted to the social networking sites, good enough to get people to come visit the page anyway. But with the lack of getting a single conversion, it really did not seem worthwhile to me to do again in the future.
Now I know that some of you might be thinking, "Well, his sales pitch must be terrible" or that "His website is poorly designed." If this were the case, I would have no problem admitting to this, but when I compare the untargeted traffic that I received from the social book marking sites to the targeted traffic that I see from organic searches I can see a big difference in conversion rates. The targeted traffic that comes from organic searches generally results in a 5-8% conversion rate. The untargeted traffic resulted in a 0% conversion rate.
How To Talk To Prospects Who Are In Your Target Market
The above results lead me to believe that a much better use of my time would be to focus more on the targeted market and to stop wasting time on the untargeted visitors. There are many techniques that can be used to find prospects in your target market. Many of these techniques are old news to experienced webmasters.
Some of these methods include contextual marketing through programs such as AdWords, posting on relevant forums, improving your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for the organic traffic, and submitting articles to article repositories. You can also buy paid advertising in newsletters that cater to the people who are most likely to buy your products or services. These are just a handful of the methods that a Webmaster could utilize to get in touch with his or her target market.
Each of the above listed methods has their pros and cons.
Time commitment and ongoing financial commitments are two of the cons that are mentioned on a regular basis.
The pros given with all five typically represent tightly targeted traffic, suitably primed for conversion to paying customers.
The Dick Cheney Analogy
The Dick Cheney analogy has often been used to talk about this subject. Should you use the Rifle Approach or the Shotgun Approach?
The Rifle Approach lets you pinpoint your target and to hit it with great accuracy and frequency. The Shotgun Approach is sending a number or projectiles into a flock of birds and hoping you hit something. Dick Cheney proved that the shotgun sometimes hits its mark. (tongue-in-cheek people, tongue-in-cheek.)
For example, if you are selling health related products, then a media buy in WebMD would make good sense. People browsing WebMD are already interested in health and therefore are more likely to buy your health related products. People who are browsing on Myspace are not motivated to think about their own health at the time they see your ad, so your chances of success with Myspace ads are greatly diminished.
So, if you are going to expend time and money to attract visitors to your website, shouldn't you take care to primarily target people who are most likely to buy what you are selling?
Playing The Odds To Our Favor
Sure, a shotgun approach can sometimes hit its mark; we know that. But, if your cost for advertising or time expense is exactly the same, why aim for 1-2% when you know you can hit 5-8% doing something else?
We still mix-and-match our advertising approach. We aim most of our projectiles at the 5-8% conversion targets. We still aim a few projectiles at the 1-2% conversion prospects, because it allows us to reach people that we may not be able to reach otherwise. But, any method that we use that consistently turns 0% is taken off of our plate forever.
About the Author:
Trey Pennewell is a writer, who writes about online marketing. Learn more about our Pay For Ranking SEO services at: http://www.linksandtraffic.com/seo-services/search-marketing.html Trey also manages article approvals at the free article directory located at: http://www.techcentralpublishing.com
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Payday Loans - Convenience and Danger
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Fred Vanhoosen
Every now and then a financial emergency arises that you just did not have planned in your budget. Maybe you had a fender bender with the car and you need cash to get it running, but the check from the insurance company will take a week or so to get here. Or the refrigerator or washer craps out and you don't have the cash to get it repaired, but you also can't afford to be without it. You have run out of money before you ran out of month. Or, you have a once in a lifetime chance to buy something you really, really want at a spectacularly low price, but don't have the cash.
One solution to your "one time only" dilemma could be a Pay Day Loan - this is where loan companies will give you a short-term loan, just until your next payday. If you qualify, many of the companies will lend $100, to as much as $1500, for a short period of time. Mostly what you need to qualify is a job that provides you with a regular paycheck and an active checking account. You will probably need to show them a recent paycheck stub and they will probably call to confirm that you haven't just been laid off and, therefore, have no next paycheck coming.
A loan for a car or a boat, or a mortgage to buy a house, are secured loans - the value of the asset serves as security for repayment of the loan. A Pay Day Loan is an unsecured loan - there is no property to serve as security, only a contractual promise to pay. It is a signature only loan. Usually this kind of loan is for a term of not more than two weeks.
Pay Day Loans may be convenient, if you have an occasional need. But this kind of loan is very expensive. Typically the fee to borrow $100 for two weeks is over $15, more than 15%. The annual percentage rate is staggering.
If you take a Pay Day Loan, the loan company will probably require that you give them a post dated check for the full amount due (including their fees). Come pay day you are expected to show up and pay the amount due in cash - and they will then give you back the post dated check.
If you are not able to pay off the principal amount on the due date, the terms of the loan agreement may allow you the option of renewing the loan by paying just the interest due, bringing your interest cost for borrowing $100 to a total of $30 for four weeks.
If you don't show up to pay off the loan, they deposit your check. If the check bounces, for insufficient funds (possibly why you didn't show up in person), you have even greater trouble - you owe them everything you originally did plus bank fees for a returned check plus their fees for collecting the money owed. And, generally speaking, it is against the law to write a check that is a "bad check". If you do it, legal action can be taken against you - further complications, problems and costs.
If you fail to pay off the loan, as agreed, the loan company can file a lawsuit and obtain a judgment against you. With that judgment they can obtain an order to garnish your wages to collect the debt owed. Generally the contract also makes you liable to reimburse the company for all its legal costs and costs of collection, adding further to the cost of you borrowing.
The most important thing about this kind of credit is to use it only when you need some money for a truly temporary situation and where you can fix the situation very quickly.
You may have heard stories of people who used one credit card to pay off another credit card, then a third to pay off the second, then a fourth to pay off the third, etc., with their debt spiraling totally out of control.
Well, the same kind of thing can happen with Pay Day Loans if you are not careful and responsible in how you handle your finances. This is not a long term, or even intermediate term, financing method. This is a one-time-only emergency funds technique and to use it any other way could be very risky and extremely expensive.
How big is the Pay Day Loan industry? The Center for Responsible Lending (http://www.responsiblelending.org/) reported in 2006 that there were about 25,000 outlets in the U.S. making Pay Day Loans.
If you were considering a Pay Day Loan it would be worthwhile to check it out thoroughly before applying and signing those papers. The Consumer Federation of America is one place where you can get a variety of information to help you evaluate the situation. The information there explains, in detail, the mechanics of a Pay Day Loan. According to the CFA (http://www.paydayloaninfo.org/), industry analysts estimates $40 billion in Pay Day Loans are made every year in the U.S.
No matter where you live, you can probably find a company locally that will make Pay Day Loans. There are also many companies on the Internet, which make these loans. As in any business, there are reliable firms and firms who will try to twist the laws and regulations as far as possible. Companies who operate on the Internet are harder to effectively regulate than companies with a physical office right there on Main Street in your hometown.
If every week in your life is an emergency, if every payday is a panic, then using Pay Day Loans will probably only make a bad situation much worse.
On the other hand,
If it is truly a one-time emergency, and
You have a clear plan which assures timely pay off of the loan, and
You have researched the potential problems, and
You have carefully selected a reputable loan company, and
You have researched and understand all the terms and conditions of the loan
then maybe - just maybe - a Pay Day Loan is the right thing for you to do.
About the Author:
Fred Vanhoosen writes about the payday loan / cash advance industry. To learn more about these loan products, we recommend visiting: http://www.fastcash4all.net/
Copyright © 2008 Fred Vanhoosen
Every now and then a financial emergency arises that you just did not have planned in your budget. Maybe you had a fender bender with the car and you need cash to get it running, but the check from the insurance company will take a week or so to get here. Or the refrigerator or washer craps out and you don't have the cash to get it repaired, but you also can't afford to be without it. You have run out of money before you ran out of month. Or, you have a once in a lifetime chance to buy something you really, really want at a spectacularly low price, but don't have the cash.
One solution to your "one time only" dilemma could be a Pay Day Loan - this is where loan companies will give you a short-term loan, just until your next payday. If you qualify, many of the companies will lend $100, to as much as $1500, for a short period of time. Mostly what you need to qualify is a job that provides you with a regular paycheck and an active checking account. You will probably need to show them a recent paycheck stub and they will probably call to confirm that you haven't just been laid off and, therefore, have no next paycheck coming.
A loan for a car or a boat, or a mortgage to buy a house, are secured loans - the value of the asset serves as security for repayment of the loan. A Pay Day Loan is an unsecured loan - there is no property to serve as security, only a contractual promise to pay. It is a signature only loan. Usually this kind of loan is for a term of not more than two weeks.
Pay Day Loans may be convenient, if you have an occasional need. But this kind of loan is very expensive. Typically the fee to borrow $100 for two weeks is over $15, more than 15%. The annual percentage rate is staggering.
If you take a Pay Day Loan, the loan company will probably require that you give them a post dated check for the full amount due (including their fees). Come pay day you are expected to show up and pay the amount due in cash - and they will then give you back the post dated check.
If you are not able to pay off the principal amount on the due date, the terms of the loan agreement may allow you the option of renewing the loan by paying just the interest due, bringing your interest cost for borrowing $100 to a total of $30 for four weeks.
If you don't show up to pay off the loan, they deposit your check. If the check bounces, for insufficient funds (possibly why you didn't show up in person), you have even greater trouble - you owe them everything you originally did plus bank fees for a returned check plus their fees for collecting the money owed. And, generally speaking, it is against the law to write a check that is a "bad check". If you do it, legal action can be taken against you - further complications, problems and costs.
If you fail to pay off the loan, as agreed, the loan company can file a lawsuit and obtain a judgment against you. With that judgment they can obtain an order to garnish your wages to collect the debt owed. Generally the contract also makes you liable to reimburse the company for all its legal costs and costs of collection, adding further to the cost of you borrowing.
The most important thing about this kind of credit is to use it only when you need some money for a truly temporary situation and where you can fix the situation very quickly.
You may have heard stories of people who used one credit card to pay off another credit card, then a third to pay off the second, then a fourth to pay off the third, etc., with their debt spiraling totally out of control.
Well, the same kind of thing can happen with Pay Day Loans if you are not careful and responsible in how you handle your finances. This is not a long term, or even intermediate term, financing method. This is a one-time-only emergency funds technique and to use it any other way could be very risky and extremely expensive.
How big is the Pay Day Loan industry? The Center for Responsible Lending (http://www.responsiblelending.org/) reported in 2006 that there were about 25,000 outlets in the U.S. making Pay Day Loans.
If you were considering a Pay Day Loan it would be worthwhile to check it out thoroughly before applying and signing those papers. The Consumer Federation of America is one place where you can get a variety of information to help you evaluate the situation. The information there explains, in detail, the mechanics of a Pay Day Loan. According to the CFA (http://www.paydayloaninfo.org/), industry analysts estimates $40 billion in Pay Day Loans are made every year in the U.S.
No matter where you live, you can probably find a company locally that will make Pay Day Loans. There are also many companies on the Internet, which make these loans. As in any business, there are reliable firms and firms who will try to twist the laws and regulations as far as possible. Companies who operate on the Internet are harder to effectively regulate than companies with a physical office right there on Main Street in your hometown.
If every week in your life is an emergency, if every payday is a panic, then using Pay Day Loans will probably only make a bad situation much worse.
On the other hand,
then maybe - just maybe - a Pay Day Loan is the right thing for you to do.
About the Author:
Fred Vanhoosen writes about the payday loan / cash advance industry. To learn more about these loan products, we recommend visiting: http://www.fastcash4all.net/
Thursday, December 25, 2008
4 Strategies To Help You To Make Money From Your Website
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2006-2008 Trey Pennewell
People always seem to be looking for new ways to make money online. There is nothing wrong with being innovative and trying new methods to make money online. The problem comes up when people, seeking new methods, forget to pay attention to the proven methods of making money online.
What has worked in the past for successful webmasters is still working today, and will likely continue to work into the foreseeable future. There are 4 primary areas that a webmaster must focus on to be successful. These four areas are important regardless of the type of website you run or the product or service that you sell.
Conversions
Conversions are critical. You can get a million visitors to your site, but that means nothing if none of them make a purchase at your site. Conversions are calculated as the percentage of people that make a purchase at your site, compared to the number of total visitors.
The higher your conversion rate, the less traffic that you need to your site. Many webmasters struggle with getting that all-important traffic to their site. So instead of exclusively chasing traffic, also work on increasing the amount of traffic that you can convert into sales. There are a number of ways that you can do this with your online business.
Many webmasters understand that having a compelling sales letter, or sales pitch, is crucial. If you do not have the best possible sales letter, then you are losing potential customers. If you do not feel comfortable writing your own sales letter, consider hiring a copywriter to do it for you. You could also ask the copywriter to develop a few sales letters for your business, and you can do a comparitive analysis to see which ones bring the best conversion results for your business.
You can also improve your conversion ratio by paying attention to the layout of your web pages. There are a lot of different opinions on the best layouts for selling your products or services. For me there are a couple of easy ways to determine web page layouts.
The first thing that I consider is what I like and dislike about other websites. Is it hard to find the product on the page? Is the price hidden? Is a description of the product easy to find? Is the ordering information easy to find?
The other factor that I look at is what successful webmasters before me have done with their layout. There is no need to reinvent the wheel here. Instead of spending weeks trying to develop my own perfect layout, I will start with a template similar to those that are known for making high conversions.
Linking For Traffic
Now that we have covered conversions, we can talk about linking for traffic. While your conversions may be very good, it will never be 100%. So what this means is that the more of that precious traffic you get (at whatever conversion rate you are getting) will result in more sales and more money. It is known that the more links you have to your website, the more traffic that you will get. The links to your site are critical in driving traffic.
First of all, people click those links. I value a link from a high traffic website as much or more than a link from a high PageRank site, because actual humans are likely to be clicking the link to my website. I also place a very high value on having articles published in ezines and newsletters, because it always results in a nice boost in my website's traffic. The amount of traffic that comes as a result of having an article published in an ezine or newsletter will of course vary depending on the number of subscribers on the list.
A certain percentage of readers will always click the links that I have in a webpage or an ezine. And, a certain percentage of those who visit my website will convert to sales. Having my link appear in some ezines or newsletters can literally translate to thousands or tens of thousands of visitors to my website in a single day!
If you utilize article distributions, you can often get your articles published on a variety of websites and ezines. These articles will have your link in the author box, and you will also have the opportunity to discuss your web site and the products or services that you offer in your author box. This being said, the more effort you put into writing a good article and author box, the more likely you are to get some traffic as a result.
Linking Popularity
Building links for search engine placement purposes is just as important as linking for traffic. The more relevant back links that you have coming into your site, the higher your website will rank in the major search engines for your keywords. Back links are one of the best ways that you can get your online business to rank near the top of the search engines for your niche.
Be sure to use an anchor text on those links that is the same or similar to the keywords that you are targeting. Also, try to get those back links from relevant sites as much as possible. By this, I mean try to get those links from sites and webpages that have something in common with your site. A link from a webpage about bird watching will have little in common with your website about automobiles.
To illustrate the importance of back links, look at Digg.com (http://www.google.com/search?q=link%3ahttp%3a%2f%2fdigg%2ecom). They have a whopping 263,000 back links, which is why they are one of the most popular social book marking sites on the Internet.
Link Baiting
Link baiting is a great way to get those important back links, both for traffic and for link popularity. But, what is link baiting? It is when you have something so interesting / amusing / informative / useful that people will want to link to you, without you asking them to do so. Having something on your site that people will blog about, tell their friends about, or to send emails to their contacts about, is what constitutes link baiting. Your bait is so powerful that the fish will basically jump into the boat, without you ever needing to ask!
What kind of things work as link bait? This will depend a lot on the audience that you are trying to reach. In the SEO world, good link bait is placing free webmaster tools on your site. This means that people will bookmark the site; refer to it on forums, and possibly blog about what they learned by using your free webmaster tools.
If you are able to grow a reputation among your niche market as an expert, people will cite you and your website because of the quality information that you offer. If you run a humor site, people will forward the URL to their friends and tell them to check out a certain page.
Link baiting is also why the social book marking is exploding in popularity. If you have an article that gets onto the front page of Digg.com via link baiting, you will have an explosion in traffic. The same can be said for all of the major social bookmarking sites.
Link baiting is all about offering something unique that people will want to tell their friends about and that they will want to talk about. Spend some serious time thinking about what you can offer to your customer base that will result in successful link baiting for your website.
In Conclusion...
If you spend your time focusing on these 4 ways to make money with your online business, you are sure to be well ahead of most of your competitors. Optimize your site for conversions, build links for traffic, create links for popularity, and dangle some link bait for others to share, and you will find your customer base beginning to grow, and you will see your sales will start to improve.
About the Author:
Trey Pennewell is a writer, who writes about online marketing. Learn more about our Pay For Results SEO services at: http://www.linksandtraffic.com/seo-services/search-marketing.html Trey also manages article approvals at the free article directory located at: http://www.techcentralpublishing.com
Copyright © 2006-2008 Trey Pennewell
People always seem to be looking for new ways to make money online. There is nothing wrong with being innovative and trying new methods to make money online. The problem comes up when people, seeking new methods, forget to pay attention to the proven methods of making money online.
What has worked in the past for successful webmasters is still working today, and will likely continue to work into the foreseeable future. There are 4 primary areas that a webmaster must focus on to be successful. These four areas are important regardless of the type of website you run or the product or service that you sell.
Conversions
Conversions are critical. You can get a million visitors to your site, but that means nothing if none of them make a purchase at your site. Conversions are calculated as the percentage of people that make a purchase at your site, compared to the number of total visitors.
The higher your conversion rate, the less traffic that you need to your site. Many webmasters struggle with getting that all-important traffic to their site. So instead of exclusively chasing traffic, also work on increasing the amount of traffic that you can convert into sales. There are a number of ways that you can do this with your online business.
Many webmasters understand that having a compelling sales letter, or sales pitch, is crucial. If you do not have the best possible sales letter, then you are losing potential customers. If you do not feel comfortable writing your own sales letter, consider hiring a copywriter to do it for you. You could also ask the copywriter to develop a few sales letters for your business, and you can do a comparitive analysis to see which ones bring the best conversion results for your business.
You can also improve your conversion ratio by paying attention to the layout of your web pages. There are a lot of different opinions on the best layouts for selling your products or services. For me there are a couple of easy ways to determine web page layouts.
The first thing that I consider is what I like and dislike about other websites. Is it hard to find the product on the page? Is the price hidden? Is a description of the product easy to find? Is the ordering information easy to find?
The other factor that I look at is what successful webmasters before me have done with their layout. There is no need to reinvent the wheel here. Instead of spending weeks trying to develop my own perfect layout, I will start with a template similar to those that are known for making high conversions.
Linking For Traffic
Now that we have covered conversions, we can talk about linking for traffic. While your conversions may be very good, it will never be 100%. So what this means is that the more of that precious traffic you get (at whatever conversion rate you are getting) will result in more sales and more money. It is known that the more links you have to your website, the more traffic that you will get. The links to your site are critical in driving traffic.
First of all, people click those links. I value a link from a high traffic website as much or more than a link from a high PageRank site, because actual humans are likely to be clicking the link to my website. I also place a very high value on having articles published in ezines and newsletters, because it always results in a nice boost in my website's traffic. The amount of traffic that comes as a result of having an article published in an ezine or newsletter will of course vary depending on the number of subscribers on the list.
A certain percentage of readers will always click the links that I have in a webpage or an ezine. And, a certain percentage of those who visit my website will convert to sales. Having my link appear in some ezines or newsletters can literally translate to thousands or tens of thousands of visitors to my website in a single day!
If you utilize article distributions, you can often get your articles published on a variety of websites and ezines. These articles will have your link in the author box, and you will also have the opportunity to discuss your web site and the products or services that you offer in your author box. This being said, the more effort you put into writing a good article and author box, the more likely you are to get some traffic as a result.
Linking Popularity
Building links for search engine placement purposes is just as important as linking for traffic. The more relevant back links that you have coming into your site, the higher your website will rank in the major search engines for your keywords. Back links are one of the best ways that you can get your online business to rank near the top of the search engines for your niche.
Be sure to use an anchor text on those links that is the same or similar to the keywords that you are targeting. Also, try to get those back links from relevant sites as much as possible. By this, I mean try to get those links from sites and webpages that have something in common with your site. A link from a webpage about bird watching will have little in common with your website about automobiles.
To illustrate the importance of back links, look at Digg.com (http://www.google.com/search?q=link%3ahttp%3a%2f%2fdigg%2ecom). They have a whopping 263,000 back links, which is why they are one of the most popular social book marking sites on the Internet.
Link Baiting
Link baiting is a great way to get those important back links, both for traffic and for link popularity. But, what is link baiting? It is when you have something so interesting / amusing / informative / useful that people will want to link to you, without you asking them to do so. Having something on your site that people will blog about, tell their friends about, or to send emails to their contacts about, is what constitutes link baiting. Your bait is so powerful that the fish will basically jump into the boat, without you ever needing to ask!
What kind of things work as link bait? This will depend a lot on the audience that you are trying to reach. In the SEO world, good link bait is placing free webmaster tools on your site. This means that people will bookmark the site; refer to it on forums, and possibly blog about what they learned by using your free webmaster tools.
If you are able to grow a reputation among your niche market as an expert, people will cite you and your website because of the quality information that you offer. If you run a humor site, people will forward the URL to their friends and tell them to check out a certain page.
Link baiting is also why the social book marking is exploding in popularity. If you have an article that gets onto the front page of Digg.com via link baiting, you will have an explosion in traffic. The same can be said for all of the major social bookmarking sites.
Link baiting is all about offering something unique that people will want to tell their friends about and that they will want to talk about. Spend some serious time thinking about what you can offer to your customer base that will result in successful link baiting for your website.
In Conclusion...
If you spend your time focusing on these 4 ways to make money with your online business, you are sure to be well ahead of most of your competitors. Optimize your site for conversions, build links for traffic, create links for popularity, and dangle some link bait for others to share, and you will find your customer base beginning to grow, and you will see your sales will start to improve.
About the Author:
Trey Pennewell is a writer, who writes about online marketing. Learn more about our Pay For Results SEO services at: http://www.linksandtraffic.com/seo-services/search-marketing.html Trey also manages article approvals at the free article directory located at: http://www.techcentralpublishing.com
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Available Loan Products During a Credit Crunch
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Fred Vanhoosen
Businesses across the country are being forced to close their doors, due to the credit crunch that is preventing those companies from getting the credit lines that they require to maintain operating costs. Other businesses like the auto giants are suffering from lackluster sales, not because they produced a bad product, but because banks tightened the reigns on consumer auto loans, preventing consumers from buying those high-dollar products.
As we turn on the news each day or pick up our local newspaper, we are inundated with the bad news about the effects of the credit crunch on the larger economy. With so much bad news about the economy, it is easy to believe that the credit crunch is deep running and affecting every sector of the economy. But the truth of the matter is that the credit crunch is pretty much regional in nature and it is only affecting certain types of lending.
Strong Regional Economies
According to an April 2008 story by Forbes Magazine, "America's Recession-Proof Cities", some cities have shrinking unemployment, low foreclosure rates, and a growing economic base. The top ten cities were:
1. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma;
2. San Antonia, Texas;
3. Austin, Texas;
4. Houston, Texas;
5. Charlotte, N.C.;
6. Dallas, Texas;
7. San Jose, California;
8. Raleigh, N.C.;
9. Salt Lake City, Utah; and
10. Seattle, Washington.
In these strong regional economic centers, banks, savings and loans, and credit unions are still loaning money for cars and homes. I should know... I live near one of these top ten cities and we are able to go to our local credit union to get loans for anything we desire.
Strong Lenders
Banks are closing credit lines for some of America's largest corporations, and in many locations, banks are withholding money for car loans and home loans. In locations where home foreclosures and car repossessions are high, lending is light. Banks that need to shore up their finances are withholding loans, even to top-rated borrowers. Other banks in a local area might be strong financially, but that strength is offset by an overabundance of caution in a weak economy.
The lenders who have traditionally been large and strong are now weak, and the lenders who have traditionally been smaller and more conservative are tending to be much stronger financially.
The smaller finance companies that tend to loan smaller amounts of money are also strong. Since those companies typically do not loan money on the big-ticket items such as cars and homes, they have managed to retain a stronger financial position in the marketplace.
Even payday loan and cash advance loan companies remain strong in an economy where big loans are hard to find.
Finding The Right Loan Product
When you are looking for a loan, it is never recommended to figure out where you can get the money first. Instead, one should figure out exactly how much money is needed, for what purpose, and what terms are acceptable to acquire the money.
For example, if one needs money to buy a car, a payday loan company will very likely be unable to loan the amount of money needed to actually buy that car. If you are buying a used car for under $3000 or $1500, you might be able to find a payday loan company to give you the money, but you have to honestly ask yourself if you could definitely have the money available to pay that loan back within two weeks. Since payday loans are loan products for people who need emergency cash for two weeks, one should use a regular finance company, bank or credit union to acquire the loan that you need months to pay back.
You might think that the easier-to-get payday loan might be your solution for a used car loan, but once you roll that loan over a few times, the cost of that money starts to become very expensive. In states like Oklahoma, you would not even be permitted to roll that payday loan over, by state law.
When you are borrowing money for two weeks or one month, a payday loan is usually a pretty affordable option for getting that emergency cash, but once you start rolling that payday loan over several times, then the cost of the money becomes such that it will easily exceed the cost of money from a finance company or credit union.
As this example shows, more important than finding a loan is finding a loan that has payment terms that are acceptable and affordable for the borrower. Any loan that cannot be paid back on schedule is a loan that should not be taken.
Responsible Borrowing
You owe it to yourself and your family to be responsible with your personal finances. Even when you are looking to borrow money, you should take the extra effort to make sure that the decision you are getting ready to make is one that will not hurt your and your families' financial future.
This means that you should never borrow any amount of money you cannot afford to pay back on schedule. And while it might be nice to drive a new car, one of those used cars might make better financial sense to buy.
This is the reason so many families lost homes to foreclosure. People bought more house than they could afford to maintain, and they borrowed so much money that they could barely afford the monthly payments. Their homes suffered because they could not afford to keep up with repairs, and when an emergency expense came up, they found that they could not make all of their bills in that month. Once someone gets behind on payments, it is hard to get caught back up, so the homeowners' finances continued to get worse and worse.
Eventually, homeowners found themselves so far behind that the bank was threatening foreclosure, and the homeowner was so far behind that foreclosure seemed the best option to them.
Foreclosed homeowners lost all of the equity that they had managed to build up in their homes, and after struggling for years to keep their homes, they found themselves renting an apartment or a house once again, and their credit ruined.
Sadly, most foreclosed homeowners could have prevented the loss of their homes, had they only made better decisions when they bought the home. If only they had purchased smaller homes, with smaller monthly payments, they could have prevented the problem, before it became a problem.
Only borrow what you can afford to pay back, and when you are looking for a loan, make sure that you can live with the terms of that loan.
In Conclusion...
With this having been said, there are loans out there available to the consumer. So if you need money for a purchase, there is a chance that you will be able to find the money you need.
But, you should be careful to only borrow money you can afford to pay back in a timely manner, with terms you are comfortable accepting.
As the last several years have proven, the only person out there that is going to look out for your best interests is you. So don't let yourself down. Take the time to understand what you need, what you can afford, and the loan terms that are acceptable to you, and then make a responsible decision about what you can and cannot do.
Invest the effort to look out for your own best interests, and at the end of this current recession, you will find yourself in a better financial position than your neighbors who did not look out for their own best interests.
About the Author:
Fred Vanhoosen writes about the pay day loan / cash advance loan industry. To learn more about the cash advance loan products, we recommend reading the following overview of the cash advance loan concept. Learn more at: http://www.fastcash4all.net/
Copyright © 2008 Fred Vanhoosen
Businesses across the country are being forced to close their doors, due to the credit crunch that is preventing those companies from getting the credit lines that they require to maintain operating costs. Other businesses like the auto giants are suffering from lackluster sales, not because they produced a bad product, but because banks tightened the reigns on consumer auto loans, preventing consumers from buying those high-dollar products.
As we turn on the news each day or pick up our local newspaper, we are inundated with the bad news about the effects of the credit crunch on the larger economy. With so much bad news about the economy, it is easy to believe that the credit crunch is deep running and affecting every sector of the economy. But the truth of the matter is that the credit crunch is pretty much regional in nature and it is only affecting certain types of lending.
Strong Regional Economies
According to an April 2008 story by Forbes Magazine, "America's Recession-Proof Cities", some cities have shrinking unemployment, low foreclosure rates, and a growing economic base. The top ten cities were:
1. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma;
2. San Antonia, Texas;
3. Austin, Texas;
4. Houston, Texas;
5. Charlotte, N.C.;
6. Dallas, Texas;
7. San Jose, California;
8. Raleigh, N.C.;
9. Salt Lake City, Utah; and
10. Seattle, Washington.
In these strong regional economic centers, banks, savings and loans, and credit unions are still loaning money for cars and homes. I should know... I live near one of these top ten cities and we are able to go to our local credit union to get loans for anything we desire.
Strong Lenders
Banks are closing credit lines for some of America's largest corporations, and in many locations, banks are withholding money for car loans and home loans. In locations where home foreclosures and car repossessions are high, lending is light. Banks that need to shore up their finances are withholding loans, even to top-rated borrowers. Other banks in a local area might be strong financially, but that strength is offset by an overabundance of caution in a weak economy.
The lenders who have traditionally been large and strong are now weak, and the lenders who have traditionally been smaller and more conservative are tending to be much stronger financially.
The smaller finance companies that tend to loan smaller amounts of money are also strong. Since those companies typically do not loan money on the big-ticket items such as cars and homes, they have managed to retain a stronger financial position in the marketplace.
Even payday loan and cash advance loan companies remain strong in an economy where big loans are hard to find.
Finding The Right Loan Product
When you are looking for a loan, it is never recommended to figure out where you can get the money first. Instead, one should figure out exactly how much money is needed, for what purpose, and what terms are acceptable to acquire the money.
For example, if one needs money to buy a car, a payday loan company will very likely be unable to loan the amount of money needed to actually buy that car. If you are buying a used car for under $3000 or $1500, you might be able to find a payday loan company to give you the money, but you have to honestly ask yourself if you could definitely have the money available to pay that loan back within two weeks. Since payday loans are loan products for people who need emergency cash for two weeks, one should use a regular finance company, bank or credit union to acquire the loan that you need months to pay back.
You might think that the easier-to-get payday loan might be your solution for a used car loan, but once you roll that loan over a few times, the cost of that money starts to become very expensive. In states like Oklahoma, you would not even be permitted to roll that payday loan over, by state law.
When you are borrowing money for two weeks or one month, a payday loan is usually a pretty affordable option for getting that emergency cash, but once you start rolling that payday loan over several times, then the cost of the money becomes such that it will easily exceed the cost of money from a finance company or credit union.
As this example shows, more important than finding a loan is finding a loan that has payment terms that are acceptable and affordable for the borrower. Any loan that cannot be paid back on schedule is a loan that should not be taken.
Responsible Borrowing
You owe it to yourself and your family to be responsible with your personal finances. Even when you are looking to borrow money, you should take the extra effort to make sure that the decision you are getting ready to make is one that will not hurt your and your families' financial future.
This means that you should never borrow any amount of money you cannot afford to pay back on schedule. And while it might be nice to drive a new car, one of those used cars might make better financial sense to buy.
This is the reason so many families lost homes to foreclosure. People bought more house than they could afford to maintain, and they borrowed so much money that they could barely afford the monthly payments. Their homes suffered because they could not afford to keep up with repairs, and when an emergency expense came up, they found that they could not make all of their bills in that month. Once someone gets behind on payments, it is hard to get caught back up, so the homeowners' finances continued to get worse and worse.
Eventually, homeowners found themselves so far behind that the bank was threatening foreclosure, and the homeowner was so far behind that foreclosure seemed the best option to them.
Foreclosed homeowners lost all of the equity that they had managed to build up in their homes, and after struggling for years to keep their homes, they found themselves renting an apartment or a house once again, and their credit ruined.
Sadly, most foreclosed homeowners could have prevented the loss of their homes, had they only made better decisions when they bought the home. If only they had purchased smaller homes, with smaller monthly payments, they could have prevented the problem, before it became a problem.
Only borrow what you can afford to pay back, and when you are looking for a loan, make sure that you can live with the terms of that loan.
In Conclusion...
With this having been said, there are loans out there available to the consumer. So if you need money for a purchase, there is a chance that you will be able to find the money you need.
But, you should be careful to only borrow money you can afford to pay back in a timely manner, with terms you are comfortable accepting.
As the last several years have proven, the only person out there that is going to look out for your best interests is you. So don't let yourself down. Take the time to understand what you need, what you can afford, and the loan terms that are acceptable to you, and then make a responsible decision about what you can and cannot do.
Invest the effort to look out for your own best interests, and at the end of this current recession, you will find yourself in a better financial position than your neighbors who did not look out for their own best interests.
About the Author:
Fred Vanhoosen writes about the pay day loan / cash advance loan industry. To learn more about the cash advance loan products, we recommend reading the following overview of the cash advance loan concept. Learn more at: http://www.fastcash4all.net/
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Travel Tip: Ask For a Better Deal
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Anson Werner
When people go on vacation, they tend to believe they are getting their best deal, when they have shopped different hotels and different venues and found the best advertised price. If you think this way, let me tell you now - in no uncertain terms - you are spending more money than you should have to spend.
Three Questions Designed To Save You Money
1. What is the best price you can give me on this room, or whatever?
2. Is that the best you can do?
3. If the answer is No, repeat questions one and two.
Hotels Need To Fill Rooms
More so in a time of recession, like we are in right now, hotels are desperate to fill rooms. If you are at a hotel with a nearly-packed parking lot, the chances of getting a reduced rate on your hotel room is low. However, if the parking lot at the hotel is less than half full, hotel proprietors are more inclined to jump through hoops to get your business.
Be prepared for the hotel proprietor who is willing to call your bluff. If you tell the person behind the desk that you "will go elsewhere" if they do not cut the price, be prepared to walk out the door if the answer is "No." More often than not, if your request is met with a "No" at a hotel with few cars in the parking lot, and you start moving towards the door to leave, the hotel proprietor will call you back to the desk, before you reach the front door.
If the parking lot is full, chances are good that the hotel proprietor will not give you a better deal, even if you ask and threaten to leave.
The truth is that you don't even need to threaten to leave, in order to secure a better deal. All you need to do is to simply ask. What is the best price you can give me on that room? And, is that the best you can do?
Is that the best you can do, is a very important question. This is the question that determines what the lowest price really is. The worst that can happen is that you don't get a discount price... That is why you should never threaten to leave, unless you have every intention of carrying out that threat.
Better Deals Do Not Always Mean Lower Prices
Suppose your hotel proprietor is willing to give you a free breakfast, if you pay the full price on the room. Breakfast for five at McDonald's generally costs me $15-$20. So a free breakfast meal for staying at one particular hotel still adds up to money saved, so sometimes, full price for a hotel room will save me money.
One of the best lines in my book of tricks is to wait until the transaction is done, then ask for my "breakfast ticket". Almost universally, the hotel clerk will ask me "what breakfast ticket?" When I respond, I tell the clerk that I always get tickets for a free breakfast when I stay at other hotels. Nine times out of ten, the desk clerk will say "Oh, okay," and pull a breakfast ticket from under their desk. Free breakfast is good enough for me.
If you are on vacation, as opposed to a business trip, your hotel may have discount coupons available for local attractions. If you are looking to visit a specific attraction, don't be afraid to ask if your hotel has discount tickets available for that attraction. You might be surprised what you hotel might be able to offer to you.
God Gave You The Ability To Speak And Ask Questions - Don't Be Afraid To Ask
On March 4, 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States was inaugurated into office. He entered the presidency during the midst of a banking panic. In his inaugural speech, he spoke the words he is most famous for today, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."
FDR's words of wisdom are as relevant today, as they were when they were spoken in 1933. The only thing you have to fear from asking questions of hotel proprietors or other attraction venue operators is fear itself. So long as you don't make the mistake of trying to strengthen your question with a threat, you have nothing to fear and money to gain, simply by asking three really easy and simple questions.
I cannot reiterate this point enough... Don't be afraid to ask for a better price or a better deal. As Ben Franklin was so fond of saying, "A penny saved is a penny earned."
About the Author:
Anson Werner is a travel hound. In his desire to find incredible travel deals, he spends his spare time shopping travel offers and learning the rules of the road to help him save money while on vacation. Recent finds include a 3-day/2-night hotel package deal in Las Vegas for $49, and how to get a free cruise for his family. Anson's friends had always asked him about the deals he finds, so he decided to share his knowledge and discoveries in his travel blog at: http://www.shoppingtraveldeals.com/blog/ His work also appears on: http://consumer-tips.blogspot.com/
Copyright © 2008 Anson Werner
When people go on vacation, they tend to believe they are getting their best deal, when they have shopped different hotels and different venues and found the best advertised price. If you think this way, let me tell you now - in no uncertain terms - you are spending more money than you should have to spend.
Three Questions Designed To Save You Money
1. What is the best price you can give me on this room, or whatever?
2. Is that the best you can do?
3. If the answer is No, repeat questions one and two.
Hotels Need To Fill Rooms
More so in a time of recession, like we are in right now, hotels are desperate to fill rooms. If you are at a hotel with a nearly-packed parking lot, the chances of getting a reduced rate on your hotel room is low. However, if the parking lot at the hotel is less than half full, hotel proprietors are more inclined to jump through hoops to get your business.
Be prepared for the hotel proprietor who is willing to call your bluff. If you tell the person behind the desk that you "will go elsewhere" if they do not cut the price, be prepared to walk out the door if the answer is "No." More often than not, if your request is met with a "No" at a hotel with few cars in the parking lot, and you start moving towards the door to leave, the hotel proprietor will call you back to the desk, before you reach the front door.
If the parking lot is full, chances are good that the hotel proprietor will not give you a better deal, even if you ask and threaten to leave.
The truth is that you don't even need to threaten to leave, in order to secure a better deal. All you need to do is to simply ask. What is the best price you can give me on that room? And, is that the best you can do?
Is that the best you can do, is a very important question. This is the question that determines what the lowest price really is. The worst that can happen is that you don't get a discount price... That is why you should never threaten to leave, unless you have every intention of carrying out that threat.
Better Deals Do Not Always Mean Lower Prices
Suppose your hotel proprietor is willing to give you a free breakfast, if you pay the full price on the room. Breakfast for five at McDonald's generally costs me $15-$20. So a free breakfast meal for staying at one particular hotel still adds up to money saved, so sometimes, full price for a hotel room will save me money.
One of the best lines in my book of tricks is to wait until the transaction is done, then ask for my "breakfast ticket". Almost universally, the hotel clerk will ask me "what breakfast ticket?" When I respond, I tell the clerk that I always get tickets for a free breakfast when I stay at other hotels. Nine times out of ten, the desk clerk will say "Oh, okay," and pull a breakfast ticket from under their desk. Free breakfast is good enough for me.
If you are on vacation, as opposed to a business trip, your hotel may have discount coupons available for local attractions. If you are looking to visit a specific attraction, don't be afraid to ask if your hotel has discount tickets available for that attraction. You might be surprised what you hotel might be able to offer to you.
God Gave You The Ability To Speak And Ask Questions - Don't Be Afraid To Ask
On March 4, 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States was inaugurated into office. He entered the presidency during the midst of a banking panic. In his inaugural speech, he spoke the words he is most famous for today, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."
FDR's words of wisdom are as relevant today, as they were when they were spoken in 1933. The only thing you have to fear from asking questions of hotel proprietors or other attraction venue operators is fear itself. So long as you don't make the mistake of trying to strengthen your question with a threat, you have nothing to fear and money to gain, simply by asking three really easy and simple questions.
I cannot reiterate this point enough... Don't be afraid to ask for a better price or a better deal. As Ben Franklin was so fond of saying, "A penny saved is a penny earned."
About the Author:
Anson Werner is a travel hound. In his desire to find incredible travel deals, he spends his spare time shopping travel offers and learning the rules of the road to help him save money while on vacation. Recent finds include a 3-day/2-night hotel package deal in Las Vegas for $49, and how to get a free cruise for his family. Anson's friends had always asked him about the deals he finds, so he decided to share his knowledge and discoveries in his travel blog at: http://www.shoppingtraveldeals.com/blog/ His work also appears on: http://consumer-tips.blogspot.com/
Monday, December 8, 2008
Does Offshoring My Web Design Project Really Save Money?
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Kevin Kielty
A lot of people in the US are excited about getting web design and development done on the cheap, especially during a recession. Many foreign companies offer $10 - $15 per hour. Is it too good to be true? It can be. Below are some of the pitfalls of a low, low price website and how you can avoid them. Requirements Writing:
All technical projects begin with a set of requirements. Basically, web design requirements are the objectives that the project must meet. When you begin your web design project, you will most likely be speaking with some type of Project Manager. That person will ask questions about your project. They are not trying to work with you to come up with a business solution, they do not wish to explore your business problems. They expect you to lay out the requirements and tell them exactly what you want. The difficulty here is that technical requirements require a certain level of technical expertise. Most laypeople don't have the experience to properly communicate technical requirements to a technical person.
Thoroughly think through what you want to accomplish with your web design project. An offshore company won't act as a consultant and make suggestions. They will only give what you specifically ask for and nothing else. So you will need to do your own research, thoroughly think through your project and write out what you want your project to accomplish.
Language Barriers:
The second problem that can arise in offshoring a web design project, is the language barrier. If you are able to come up with your own your web design requirements, the next challenge is dealing with a web design project manager for whom English is a second language. Even if your Project Manager seems to be doing a good job, there are still many layers below him or her to which your project will be passed. Those people have even less understanding of the English language than your Project Manager does. In fact, your project will probably be passed off 2 or 3 more times to various people in various departments. With all that handing off and the communication issues, the potential for problems abound. You could end up spending countless hours of your own time doing quality assurance and still not really know what you're going to end up with.
When considering who to go with, think about weather or not the person you're talking to, really understands you. If you're having trouble communicating with the web design project manager, it's only going to get worse at the next level.
Project collaboration:
A design/development project requires a great deal of collaboration and is best done in person. If it cannot be done in person, the next best alternative is to have a very short cycle of collaboration, where the Project Manager or web designer/developer asks questions and you respond immediately. There is momentum to the discussion, followed by immediate action. When offshoring your web design project, you introduce a time delay. That delay can break all the momentum of the project. All of the stop and go can lead to 20 different broken threads or lists going back and forth and much confusion. Quick response time is imperative to project success. If there is a 24-48 hour delay in communication, it can lead to a delay in project completion as well as an increase in the budget, and the quality of the project will suffer. Plan for your project to take extra time. Start out with the assumption that the project will not be ready on time, and that you will need extra time to communicate back and forth to get it done properly. There are definite risks when working with an offshore web designer/developer.It will mean more work for you:
You will need to find the best business solution - An offshore designer/developer will not act as a consultant.
You will need to do your own research and come up with the best business solution yourself.
You will need to write your own web design requirements - You will need to plan your web design project thoroughly and communicate your plans in detail. An offshore designer/developer will only give you what you specifically ask for.
It will require more of your time:
You will need to plan additional time to ensure that your project is done correctly. Ongoing communication as well as project completion will be delayed due to the time differences and language barriers.
The quality of your project can suffer:
Communication and cultural differences - Your designer may not understand your product or service the way you assume they do. For example, if they don't have private health insurance in their country, can they build a quality website that will help you sell insurance?
You don't have any recourse if you are not happy with the results:
American laws won't protect you if you are unhappy with your website. If you are going to spend over $1,000.00 on your web design project, then you may not want to risk going with an offshore designer/developer.
About the Author:
Kevin Kielty lives in Raleigh, NC. Web Design and Search Engine Marketing are his areas of expertise. He is the owner of Internet Marketing Advantage where he utilizes his 20 years of experience in sales, marketing and web development in Raleigh NC http://www.raleighseocompany.net/category/raleigh-web-design/ to provide business owners with web design and Internet marketing solutions that increase their profits. His company serves clients in North Carolina and across the US. http://www.raleighseocompany.net/
Copyright © 2008 Kevin Kielty
A lot of people in the US are excited about getting web design and development done on the cheap, especially during a recession. Many foreign companies offer $10 - $15 per hour. Is it too good to be true? It can be. Below are some of the pitfalls of a low, low price website and how you can avoid them. Requirements Writing:
All technical projects begin with a set of requirements. Basically, web design requirements are the objectives that the project must meet. When you begin your web design project, you will most likely be speaking with some type of Project Manager. That person will ask questions about your project. They are not trying to work with you to come up with a business solution, they do not wish to explore your business problems. They expect you to lay out the requirements and tell them exactly what you want. The difficulty here is that technical requirements require a certain level of technical expertise. Most laypeople don't have the experience to properly communicate technical requirements to a technical person.
Thoroughly think through what you want to accomplish with your web design project. An offshore company won't act as a consultant and make suggestions. They will only give what you specifically ask for and nothing else. So you will need to do your own research, thoroughly think through your project and write out what you want your project to accomplish.
Language Barriers:
The second problem that can arise in offshoring a web design project, is the language barrier. If you are able to come up with your own your web design requirements, the next challenge is dealing with a web design project manager for whom English is a second language. Even if your Project Manager seems to be doing a good job, there are still many layers below him or her to which your project will be passed. Those people have even less understanding of the English language than your Project Manager does. In fact, your project will probably be passed off 2 or 3 more times to various people in various departments. With all that handing off and the communication issues, the potential for problems abound. You could end up spending countless hours of your own time doing quality assurance and still not really know what you're going to end up with.
When considering who to go with, think about weather or not the person you're talking to, really understands you. If you're having trouble communicating with the web design project manager, it's only going to get worse at the next level.
Project collaboration:
A design/development project requires a great deal of collaboration and is best done in person. If it cannot be done in person, the next best alternative is to have a very short cycle of collaboration, where the Project Manager or web designer/developer asks questions and you respond immediately. There is momentum to the discussion, followed by immediate action. When offshoring your web design project, you introduce a time delay. That delay can break all the momentum of the project. All of the stop and go can lead to 20 different broken threads or lists going back and forth and much confusion. Quick response time is imperative to project success. If there is a 24-48 hour delay in communication, it can lead to a delay in project completion as well as an increase in the budget, and the quality of the project will suffer. Plan for your project to take extra time. Start out with the assumption that the project will not be ready on time, and that you will need extra time to communicate back and forth to get it done properly. There are definite risks when working with an offshore web designer/developer.
About the Author:
Kevin Kielty lives in Raleigh, NC. Web Design and Search Engine Marketing are his areas of expertise. He is the owner of Internet Marketing Advantage where he utilizes his 20 years of experience in sales, marketing and web development in Raleigh NC http://www.raleighseocompany.net/category/raleigh-web-design/ to provide business owners with web design and Internet marketing solutions that increase their profits. His company serves clients in North Carolina and across the US. http://www.raleighseocompany.net/
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Architectural Lettering In Our Modern Age
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Morris Timlen
In these days of discount stores, we are most familiar with the lettering we can buy at the store, which can be glued to any surface. But unless you are an architect, few people think about architectural lettering as a modern-day method of adding information to a landmark.
The Historical Past
Through centuries of historical architecture, architectural letting has always been an integral part of a buildings' design. It wasn't until the modern generation where people began to put less focus on aesthetic beauty in design and more focus on the functional use of the space, within specific budget parameters.
As sheet metal began to replace brick on a storefront, the ornate architectural lettering of yesteryear started to pass away. As neon began to replace signs on the main streets of America, old-world beauty and function began to be replaced by glitz and flash.
According to the American Institute of Graphic Arts, architectural lettering began to disappear from buildings immediately after WWII, with the rise of the International Style of architecture.
Famous Architectural Lettering On Buildings
Probably the most famous architectural lettering in the world is the words "New York Stock Exchange", carved into the marble above the doorway of this world-renowned building at the corner of Wall and Broad Street. (http://www.nyc-architecture.com/LM/036H.jpg)
But, architectural lettering is not limited to Wall Street in NYC. Most post offices, court houses, and other government buildings in small towns across America, if built before the 1960's and built in the style of the Greek Acropolis, will have architectural lettering on the outside of the building, above the Greek-inspired pillars at the front of the building (see: http://www.architecturestockphotos.com/slides/ADT1173.jpg and http://www.teslasociety.com/pictures/engineers/ny_library2.jpg).
The New Style Of Signage And Architectural Lettering
Prior to WWII, the signage was engraved directly into the building. Since WWII, the physical location of the business became more transient, and businesses began renting office and retail space, rather than constructing their own buildings.
But, businesses still need to tell their customers where they are located and what the name of their business is.
In modern day, most of us tend to think about signage in terms of the plastic, backlit type signs as used by McDonald's, Burger King, and Wal-Mart.
Other companies that offer a bit more permanence prefer to utilize the modern-style of architectural lettering that is often preferred by hospitals, banks, major corporations, and municipalities around the country. (Examples: http://socalbronze.com/images/bronze1b.jpg and http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/illinois/chicago/ibm/5.jpg)
Many Styles Of Signage Lettering
Whether used indoor or outdoor, a lot of variety can be brought into the decision on how to present a message to one's potential and existing customers.
Plastic, neon, acrylic, aluminum, bronze, brass, zinc, and stainless steel can be used outside or inside a building. Indoor signage can also use glass and wood lettering.
Architects, building managers and marketers understand the importance of using signage inside and outside of a building, but more importantly, they understand the importance of making the signage match the style and prominence of the building to which the signage is affixed.
The Graphics Designer
A graphics designer is nearly as important as the choice of materials used in the architectural signage. A graphics designer, who understands the implementation of architectural lettering, can put together the right fonts, font sizes, font spacing, and coloration mixtures, to ensure that an architectural sign not only tells the story that it needs to tell, but also does so with style and elegance.
Think back to the IBM logo. The logo tells the story of the IBM in its styling, and it was so potent that we all remember the way it looks and the business it represents. That is one of the benefits of finding and hiring a good logo designer (graphics designer).
With the best display of your company name in your company's signage, your business name can stand out and still tell the message of your business. Your choice in a graphics designer will ensure that your message is told in a way that best represents your business.
A Difference In Style
Consider the signage of McDonald's restaurants. Its red message board and yellow "M" is known around the world. A great logo and signage design has that kind of power - the power to help your company to be recognized as a "stand out" in a sea of commercial signs.
Of course, the McDonald's signage is one that is pressed from one sheet of plastic to be displayed at thousands of worldwide locations. Its thousands of signs are mass-produced, just as its billions of hamburgers served have been made. The important point to make here is that even McDonald's customers realize that their signage is mass-produced.
When architectural lettering is used in signage, a business has the opportunity to show its company as having more depth than a cookie-cutter business model. Not only does architectural lettering bring a three dimensional effect to one's signage, but consumers see it as an indication that the business may bring more commitment to its customer service than what has come to be expected from cookie cutter type businesses.
Forget The Can Of Paint
When it is time to put a sign in front of your business, please forget the can of paint. Yes, a can of paint might be cheaper, but a can of paint and a hand-painted sign might leave your potential customers' with a sense of unease about the permanence of your business.
Architectural lettering will permit you to design a sign that exhibits class, style and permanence in the minds of consumers, and if you take the time to explore the possibility, you might just find that it is not nearly as expensive as you might imagine.
About the Author:
Morris Timlen maintains the Bronze Plaques Blog, which specializes in the study of the history and style of commercial signs, and the many materials used in architectural lettering, including bronze, plastic, neon, acrylic, aluminum, brass, zinc, stainless steel, wood and glass. If you are in need of commercial signage for your business, please visit Morris's website for more information: http://www.bronzeplaquesblog.com
Copyright © 2008 Morris Timlen
In these days of discount stores, we are most familiar with the lettering we can buy at the store, which can be glued to any surface. But unless you are an architect, few people think about architectural lettering as a modern-day method of adding information to a landmark.
The Historical Past
Through centuries of historical architecture, architectural letting has always been an integral part of a buildings' design. It wasn't until the modern generation where people began to put less focus on aesthetic beauty in design and more focus on the functional use of the space, within specific budget parameters.
As sheet metal began to replace brick on a storefront, the ornate architectural lettering of yesteryear started to pass away. As neon began to replace signs on the main streets of America, old-world beauty and function began to be replaced by glitz and flash.
According to the American Institute of Graphic Arts, architectural lettering began to disappear from buildings immediately after WWII, with the rise of the International Style of architecture.
Famous Architectural Lettering On Buildings
Probably the most famous architectural lettering in the world is the words "New York Stock Exchange", carved into the marble above the doorway of this world-renowned building at the corner of Wall and Broad Street. (http://www.nyc-architecture.com/LM/036H.jpg)
But, architectural lettering is not limited to Wall Street in NYC. Most post offices, court houses, and other government buildings in small towns across America, if built before the 1960's and built in the style of the Greek Acropolis, will have architectural lettering on the outside of the building, above the Greek-inspired pillars at the front of the building (see: http://www.architecturestockphotos.com/slides/ADT1173.jpg and http://www.teslasociety.com/pictures/engineers/ny_library2.jpg).
The New Style Of Signage And Architectural Lettering
Prior to WWII, the signage was engraved directly into the building. Since WWII, the physical location of the business became more transient, and businesses began renting office and retail space, rather than constructing their own buildings.
But, businesses still need to tell their customers where they are located and what the name of their business is.
In modern day, most of us tend to think about signage in terms of the plastic, backlit type signs as used by McDonald's, Burger King, and Wal-Mart.
Other companies that offer a bit more permanence prefer to utilize the modern-style of architectural lettering that is often preferred by hospitals, banks, major corporations, and municipalities around the country. (Examples: http://socalbronze.com/images/bronze1b.jpg and http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/illinois/chicago/ibm/5.jpg)
Many Styles Of Signage Lettering
Whether used indoor or outdoor, a lot of variety can be brought into the decision on how to present a message to one's potential and existing customers.
Plastic, neon, acrylic, aluminum, bronze, brass, zinc, and stainless steel can be used outside or inside a building. Indoor signage can also use glass and wood lettering.
Architects, building managers and marketers understand the importance of using signage inside and outside of a building, but more importantly, they understand the importance of making the signage match the style and prominence of the building to which the signage is affixed.
The Graphics Designer
A graphics designer is nearly as important as the choice of materials used in the architectural signage. A graphics designer, who understands the implementation of architectural lettering, can put together the right fonts, font sizes, font spacing, and coloration mixtures, to ensure that an architectural sign not only tells the story that it needs to tell, but also does so with style and elegance.
Think back to the IBM logo. The logo tells the story of the IBM in its styling, and it was so potent that we all remember the way it looks and the business it represents. That is one of the benefits of finding and hiring a good logo designer (graphics designer).
With the best display of your company name in your company's signage, your business name can stand out and still tell the message of your business. Your choice in a graphics designer will ensure that your message is told in a way that best represents your business.
A Difference In Style
Consider the signage of McDonald's restaurants. Its red message board and yellow "M" is known around the world. A great logo and signage design has that kind of power - the power to help your company to be recognized as a "stand out" in a sea of commercial signs.
Of course, the McDonald's signage is one that is pressed from one sheet of plastic to be displayed at thousands of worldwide locations. Its thousands of signs are mass-produced, just as its billions of hamburgers served have been made. The important point to make here is that even McDonald's customers realize that their signage is mass-produced.
When architectural lettering is used in signage, a business has the opportunity to show its company as having more depth than a cookie-cutter business model. Not only does architectural lettering bring a three dimensional effect to one's signage, but consumers see it as an indication that the business may bring more commitment to its customer service than what has come to be expected from cookie cutter type businesses.
Forget The Can Of Paint
When it is time to put a sign in front of your business, please forget the can of paint. Yes, a can of paint might be cheaper, but a can of paint and a hand-painted sign might leave your potential customers' with a sense of unease about the permanence of your business.
Architectural lettering will permit you to design a sign that exhibits class, style and permanence in the minds of consumers, and if you take the time to explore the possibility, you might just find that it is not nearly as expensive as you might imagine.
About the Author:
Morris Timlen maintains the Bronze Plaques Blog, which specializes in the study of the history and style of commercial signs, and the many materials used in architectural lettering, including bronze, plastic, neon, acrylic, aluminum, brass, zinc, stainless steel, wood and glass. If you are in need of commercial signage for your business, please visit Morris's website for more information: http://www.bronzeplaquesblog.com
Friday, November 28, 2008
Regaining Control Of Your Time And Your Life
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Willie Crawford
Many online marketers wake up one day to discover that what they have built it not a business but an all-consuming job. They've built an entity that totally depends upon THEM to keep it running, and it demands that they devote practically no time to family, fun, and things that make life more meaningful.
Many of them discover that they spend 2-4 hours per day just responding to emails. They spend another 1-2 hours per day responding to "customer support issues."
They often spend another 1-2 hours per day just procrastinating because they feel that they have so much to do that they don't know where to start for fear of getting side-tracked working on "the wrong thing." Like the squirrel crossing a busy highway, they freeze for fear of making the wrong decision, often with devastating results.
How do you end this insanity, and regain control of your life?
I'll tell you how I did it when I basically found myself in the EXACT situation described above.
First of all, I awoke one day to find myself spending MOST of my day just analyzing the email, and figuring out how to keep from drowning beneath over 20,000 daily emails... mostly spam.
I HAD to sift through this email because it contained important communications from customers, clients, potential joint venture partners, affiliates, assistants, family members and friends.
The problem grew to be that there was so much email that at times my email client couldn't even download it all without crashing. Just the process of downloading the email and "indexing it" would cause my email program to CRASH repeatedly.
To start regaining control, I had to begin better directing the flow of communications. My solution to that problem was a helpdesk. I set up a helpdesk and then asked clients, joint venture partners, and staff members to funnel most of their communications through that one secure, centralized node.
I use the Three Pillars Help Desk System, and set up a process where:
1) A person visits the helpdesk and submits a ticket in an appropriate category. They are not required to register, just click on "Submit Ticket," select the appropriate "Category," and explain what they need.
2) Based upon the category, I or one of several appropriately trained individuals get an email, and desktop notification, of a new ticket being filed. "Admins" are assigned specific categories of tickets.
3) The appropriate admin logs in, views each ticket, and for 90% of them, selects a pre-composed answer from a drop-down list of responses. Answers to common questions regarding urls, getting replacement products, alternative payment methods, getting a program installed, being unable to open a file, getting a refund, where to find affiliate tools, etc., are handled this way.
Most of the tickets take less than 2 minutes for admins to respond to. Others require the admin to write an individualized answer. If they don't know the answer, they create a new ticket letting me or an assistant know this is a problem that they haven't been trained to handle.
4) As we get frequently asked the same questions over and over again, where appropriate, we add the answer to those questions to an FAQ file that is accessible right from the main helpdesk screen.
Just installing that helpdesk gave me back 1-2 productive hours of each day. It gave me back roughly 12 hours per week!
I looked at perhaps 30 different help desk software, testing out approximately 10 before settling upon Three Pillars Help Desk. I liked that software so much that I even eventually BOUGHT the company :-)
After redirecting a major percentage of important communications through my helpdesk, where I didn't have to worry about having important customers communications blocked by email filters, I then turned to my biggest productivity bottle neck.
To tackle that problem, I turned to Brad Semp, a systems engineer. Brad showed me his amazing system that he had developed and refined that allowed him to go from 2 1/2 hours per day of dealing with email down to only 20 minutes per day.
Brad's system involves looking at your email flow, controlling that flow, largely unplugging from checking email every few minutes, and forcing the system to only show you emails that you really need to deal with.
I met Brad at a JV Alert Live Seminar in Las Vegas, Nevada, and when he proved to me that he honestly spent less than 1/2 hour per DAY responding to email, without missing anything important,
I set aside a little time to learn his system.
I spent about 3 hours thoroughly learning and setting up his system, which he calls Email CashMaps. After that, I was also down to spending less than 30 minutes per day responding to MY email, and I NEVER miss anything really important.
You can check out Brad's system at http://TamingTheEmailMonster.com
The final big issue that I had to deal with was information overload, leading to indecision and procrastination. I solved that problem by first of all putting a value on each hour of my time. I set that value based upon my annual income goal, and how many hours I was willing to spend to reach it.
Since I wanted to spend less time working, that meant that I had to value my time at MUCH more than the average person has the audacity to do so. As an example, if you check out http://WillieCrawford.com/mentoring.html you'll see that I actually charge $800 for a 1-hour telephone consultation.
Properly valuing your time keeps you from wasting it stuck in endless Skype chat sessions or listening to a telemarketer. If you consider your time worth $800 per hour, then you also view that telemarketer as costing you over $13 per minute. That makes it very easy to end uninvited conversations.
Regaining control of your time hinges upon identifying where you waste a lot of time and upon insisting that your time is YOUR time. That means that you choose how you spend each limited hour that you have. You can't regain control of your time until your acknowledge that you've lost control of your time, and of your life. Once you reach that realization, taking back control is fairly easy as I've just demonstrated.
About the Author:
Willie Crawford is an internationally-acclaimed speaker, author, seminar and radio show host, and leading Internet marketing expert. When not out fishing in the Gulf of Mexico, Willie can be found sharing his 12 years of online marketing experience with members of The Internet Marketing Inner Circle. Join them at: http://TheInternetMarketingInnerCircle.com
Copyright © 2008 Willie Crawford
Many online marketers wake up one day to discover that what they have built it not a business but an all-consuming job. They've built an entity that totally depends upon THEM to keep it running, and it demands that they devote practically no time to family, fun, and things that make life more meaningful.
Many of them discover that they spend 2-4 hours per day just responding to emails. They spend another 1-2 hours per day responding to "customer support issues."
They often spend another 1-2 hours per day just procrastinating because they feel that they have so much to do that they don't know where to start for fear of getting side-tracked working on "the wrong thing." Like the squirrel crossing a busy highway, they freeze for fear of making the wrong decision, often with devastating results.
How do you end this insanity, and regain control of your life?
I'll tell you how I did it when I basically found myself in the EXACT situation described above.
First of all, I awoke one day to find myself spending MOST of my day just analyzing the email, and figuring out how to keep from drowning beneath over 20,000 daily emails... mostly spam.
I HAD to sift through this email because it contained important communications from customers, clients, potential joint venture partners, affiliates, assistants, family members and friends.
The problem grew to be that there was so much email that at times my email client couldn't even download it all without crashing. Just the process of downloading the email and "indexing it" would cause my email program to CRASH repeatedly.
To start regaining control, I had to begin better directing the flow of communications. My solution to that problem was a helpdesk. I set up a helpdesk and then asked clients, joint venture partners, and staff members to funnel most of their communications through that one secure, centralized node.
I use the Three Pillars Help Desk System, and set up a process where:
1) A person visits the helpdesk and submits a ticket in an appropriate category. They are not required to register, just click on "Submit Ticket," select the appropriate "Category," and explain what they need.
2) Based upon the category, I or one of several appropriately trained individuals get an email, and desktop notification, of a new ticket being filed. "Admins" are assigned specific categories of tickets.
3) The appropriate admin logs in, views each ticket, and for 90% of them, selects a pre-composed answer from a drop-down list of responses. Answers to common questions regarding urls, getting replacement products, alternative payment methods, getting a program installed, being unable to open a file, getting a refund, where to find affiliate tools, etc., are handled this way.
Most of the tickets take less than 2 minutes for admins to respond to. Others require the admin to write an individualized answer. If they don't know the answer, they create a new ticket letting me or an assistant know this is a problem that they haven't been trained to handle.
4) As we get frequently asked the same questions over and over again, where appropriate, we add the answer to those questions to an FAQ file that is accessible right from the main helpdesk screen.
Just installing that helpdesk gave me back 1-2 productive hours of each day. It gave me back roughly 12 hours per week!
I looked at perhaps 30 different help desk software, testing out approximately 10 before settling upon Three Pillars Help Desk. I liked that software so much that I even eventually BOUGHT the company :-)
After redirecting a major percentage of important communications through my helpdesk, where I didn't have to worry about having important customers communications blocked by email filters, I then turned to my biggest productivity bottle neck.
To tackle that problem, I turned to Brad Semp, a systems engineer. Brad showed me his amazing system that he had developed and refined that allowed him to go from 2 1/2 hours per day of dealing with email down to only 20 minutes per day.
Brad's system involves looking at your email flow, controlling that flow, largely unplugging from checking email every few minutes, and forcing the system to only show you emails that you really need to deal with.
I met Brad at a JV Alert Live Seminar in Las Vegas, Nevada, and when he proved to me that he honestly spent less than 1/2 hour per DAY responding to email, without missing anything important,
I set aside a little time to learn his system.
I spent about 3 hours thoroughly learning and setting up his system, which he calls Email CashMaps. After that, I was also down to spending less than 30 minutes per day responding to MY email, and I NEVER miss anything really important.
You can check out Brad's system at http://TamingTheEmailMonster.com
The final big issue that I had to deal with was information overload, leading to indecision and procrastination. I solved that problem by first of all putting a value on each hour of my time. I set that value based upon my annual income goal, and how many hours I was willing to spend to reach it.
Since I wanted to spend less time working, that meant that I had to value my time at MUCH more than the average person has the audacity to do so. As an example, if you check out http://WillieCrawford.com/mentoring.html you'll see that I actually charge $800 for a 1-hour telephone consultation.
Properly valuing your time keeps you from wasting it stuck in endless Skype chat sessions or listening to a telemarketer. If you consider your time worth $800 per hour, then you also view that telemarketer as costing you over $13 per minute. That makes it very easy to end uninvited conversations.
Regaining control of your time hinges upon identifying where you waste a lot of time and upon insisting that your time is YOUR time. That means that you choose how you spend each limited hour that you have. You can't regain control of your time until your acknowledge that you've lost control of your time, and of your life. Once you reach that realization, taking back control is fairly easy as I've just demonstrated.
About the Author:
Willie Crawford is an internationally-acclaimed speaker, author, seminar and radio show host, and leading Internet marketing expert. When not out fishing in the Gulf of Mexico, Willie can be found sharing his 12 years of online marketing experience with members of The Internet Marketing Inner Circle. Join them at: http://TheInternetMarketingInnerCircle.com
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
The Relationship Between The NASA Space Shuttle And The Struggling Auto Industry
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Arlo Mooney
With all of the talk in the news about the potential failure of U.S. automakers, many have begun to talk about the far-reaching effects of the auto industry on the U.S. economy.
Few people realize the reach of the auto industry and how integral it is to the whole of the U.S. economy. It has been said that one-of-ten jobs in the United States are connected to automotive manufacturing, sales and maintenance.
It is hard to track down with any certainty how many U.S. cities would be directly affected by the failure of a single automobile model, let alone an entire company or industry. To put the impact of the potential failure of the auto companies into better perspective, it is easier to study the economic reach of another vehicle in which we are all familiar: NASA's space shuttle.
Manufacturing The NASA Space Shuttle
Since NASA is an enterprise of the U.S. Federal Government, its employees tend to create reams of reports and make those reports available online, for the person willing to hunt them down.
While a car is not nearly as complex as the space shuttle to build, the manufacturing base behind the space shuttle is nearly as far-reaching as the manufacturing base behind the automakers.
The space shuttle program relied upon hundreds of manufacturers, located in 165 U.S. Cities in 32 states, with one component built in Canada and one other component built in Paris, France.
These manufacturers create parts as small as the screws used to hold components together, to the parts that make wings and the shuttle fuselage. But NASA projects cannot stop with the building of the flight components, since life support systems are also essential to NASA missions.
Most space shuttle components were built in California and New York, but components were also manufactured in nearly every state in the southwestern, south-central, and southeastern U.S., including: California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida. Other states that filled out the remainder of the list include: Washington, Utah, Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Tennessee, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, North Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Delaware, New Hampshire and Vermont.
When the space shuttle building era ended in 1988, a vast number of companies had to return to the process of working in the private sector to keep workers employed.
The Coming End Of The American Automotive Manufacturing Era?
The U.S. Congress is trying hard to find ways to finance a bridge to the future for General Motors, Ford and Chrysler.
Some argue that the U.S. auto industry is handicapped by the retirement plans it had set up for employees in past decades. Whereas the U.S. automakers have large sums of money set aside for the retirement of their employees, European and Asian auto manufacturers who have set up plants in the United States do not have the same kinds of long-term financial commitments to their employees.
Financial gurus argue that the combination of retirement fund commitments and UAW contracts prevent American automakers from competing with foreign automakers on a level playing field. This is the reason why some are suggesting that the best thing that could happen to GM, Ford and Chrysler is to go under, and have other companies pick up the broken pieces of these legacy auto companies to start again from scratch.
But as shown in the NASA space shuttle example, the effects of this outcome will have far-ranging and deep effects on the stability of the U.S. economy.
Perhaps failure will be good for the auto business, but it seems likely that Congress and the soon-to-take-office President Obama will prevent this from happening.
The greater question for General Motors is whether they will be able to survive until January 20th, when Obama takes the reigns of the country from George W. Bush. It is rumored that GM only has enough cash on hand to keep them afloat until December of 2008.
Final Thoughts
My gut tells me that it may be a bad idea to let any American automotive manufacturer fail. My gut tells me that the Chrysler bailout of the 1980's proved to be a good investment that the U.S. taxpayer eventually got back with interest paid.
But my gut also tells me that it is a bad idea for the U.S. government to be in the business of bailing out every company with a hand extended to Congress. Maybe it would be best to let the carmakers fail, so that whatever company rises from the ashes could compete with foreign automakers on a level playing field.
In the end, whether Washington D.C. comes to the rescue of the automotive industry, in time or not, America will survive and eventually thrive once again.
About the Author:
Arlo Mooney has dedicated himself to helping people properly manage their personal finances, by helping them to understand the gravity of their personal financial decisions. With his background in economics, he strives to help people understand complex economic principles, by explaining conditions in ways that few people have the patience or skill to do. Read more of his work at: http://cash-advance-payday-loans.org/blog
Copyright © 2008 Arlo Mooney
With all of the talk in the news about the potential failure of U.S. automakers, many have begun to talk about the far-reaching effects of the auto industry on the U.S. economy.
Few people realize the reach of the auto industry and how integral it is to the whole of the U.S. economy. It has been said that one-of-ten jobs in the United States are connected to automotive manufacturing, sales and maintenance.
It is hard to track down with any certainty how many U.S. cities would be directly affected by the failure of a single automobile model, let alone an entire company or industry. To put the impact of the potential failure of the auto companies into better perspective, it is easier to study the economic reach of another vehicle in which we are all familiar: NASA's space shuttle.
Manufacturing The NASA Space Shuttle
Since NASA is an enterprise of the U.S. Federal Government, its employees tend to create reams of reports and make those reports available online, for the person willing to hunt them down.
While a car is not nearly as complex as the space shuttle to build, the manufacturing base behind the space shuttle is nearly as far-reaching as the manufacturing base behind the automakers.
The space shuttle program relied upon hundreds of manufacturers, located in 165 U.S. Cities in 32 states, with one component built in Canada and one other component built in Paris, France.
These manufacturers create parts as small as the screws used to hold components together, to the parts that make wings and the shuttle fuselage. But NASA projects cannot stop with the building of the flight components, since life support systems are also essential to NASA missions.
Most space shuttle components were built in California and New York, but components were also manufactured in nearly every state in the southwestern, south-central, and southeastern U.S., including: California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida. Other states that filled out the remainder of the list include: Washington, Utah, Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Tennessee, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, North Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Delaware, New Hampshire and Vermont.
When the space shuttle building era ended in 1988, a vast number of companies had to return to the process of working in the private sector to keep workers employed.
The Coming End Of The American Automotive Manufacturing Era?
The U.S. Congress is trying hard to find ways to finance a bridge to the future for General Motors, Ford and Chrysler.
Some argue that the U.S. auto industry is handicapped by the retirement plans it had set up for employees in past decades. Whereas the U.S. automakers have large sums of money set aside for the retirement of their employees, European and Asian auto manufacturers who have set up plants in the United States do not have the same kinds of long-term financial commitments to their employees.
Financial gurus argue that the combination of retirement fund commitments and UAW contracts prevent American automakers from competing with foreign automakers on a level playing field. This is the reason why some are suggesting that the best thing that could happen to GM, Ford and Chrysler is to go under, and have other companies pick up the broken pieces of these legacy auto companies to start again from scratch.
But as shown in the NASA space shuttle example, the effects of this outcome will have far-ranging and deep effects on the stability of the U.S. economy.
Perhaps failure will be good for the auto business, but it seems likely that Congress and the soon-to-take-office President Obama will prevent this from happening.
The greater question for General Motors is whether they will be able to survive until January 20th, when Obama takes the reigns of the country from George W. Bush. It is rumored that GM only has enough cash on hand to keep them afloat until December of 2008.
Final Thoughts
My gut tells me that it may be a bad idea to let any American automotive manufacturer fail. My gut tells me that the Chrysler bailout of the 1980's proved to be a good investment that the U.S. taxpayer eventually got back with interest paid.
But my gut also tells me that it is a bad idea for the U.S. government to be in the business of bailing out every company with a hand extended to Congress. Maybe it would be best to let the carmakers fail, so that whatever company rises from the ashes could compete with foreign automakers on a level playing field.
In the end, whether Washington D.C. comes to the rescue of the automotive industry, in time or not, America will survive and eventually thrive once again.
About the Author:
Arlo Mooney has dedicated himself to helping people properly manage their personal finances, by helping them to understand the gravity of their personal financial decisions. With his background in economics, he strives to help people understand complex economic principles, by explaining conditions in ways that few people have the patience or skill to do. Read more of his work at: http://cash-advance-payday-loans.org/blog
The Effect of Hotel Vacancy/Occupancy Rates on Your Travel Dollar
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Anson Werner
When times are tough, many people wonder how and if they will be able to take a family vacation. I know that because my wife and I had the same conversation just recently. But given my knack for uncovering travel deals, I was able to show my wife a way that we could take advantage of the hard times in the economy right now, to get a lot more fun for much less money.
How To Stretch Your Travel Dollars, By Paying Less For Hotel Rooms
In economic boom times, hotels typically have 95%-98% occupancy rates. When hotels are running at such capacity, the hotel's management is fat and happy with profits.
But in recessionary periods like we are experiencing right now, hotels find occupancy rates running at 60%-65%, making it hard for the hotel's management to make ends meet.
Hotels make money when they can fill their rooms, with paying customers. When running at 95%-98% occupancy rates, filling those final rooms are pure gravy on the hotel's bottom line. With high occupancy rates, hotels tend to hold empty rooms for people desperate for a room, enabling the hotel to maximize its profits.
But when occupancy rates are low, hotel managers are desperate for customers instead of customers being desperate for a room. Herein lies the secret to getting more bang for your travel dollars.
Full rooms are a sellers' market, and empty rooms create a buyers' market. When in a buyers' market, the buyer has a lot of control over the final price the customer will pay.
If you go to the front desk of the hotel and demonstrate to the satisfaction of the hotel proprietor that you may be willing to walk out the front door of the hotel and shop for another room, then you will have strengthened your hand for negotiating a better price for a room. My experience has been that many hotel proprietors believe that if you are standing in their lobby that you are more inclined to buy from them, rather than to go down the street, so the proprietor will hold more firm on his or her price. However, if you are willing to call the hotel on the phone - even from the hotel's parking lot - you will find that you have a lot more leverage to get a better deal.
The simple truth is that if hotels are struggling to fill rooms, hotel proprietors are more often willing to negotiate a better rate for their rooms, with any person willing to ask. So ask.
Not every hotel proprietor will be willing to reduce the price of a room, but frequently, proprietors who reject a lower price will offer extra amenities to sweeten the deal. So ask for the better price to see what you can get.
You have nothing to lose by asking, and you could very well negotiate a much better deal if you would only be willing to ask for a better deal. So speak up, and see if you can find a better deal than the advertised price for that room.
About the Author:
As a travel hound, Anson Werner searches for incredible travel deals and tricks to help him save money and stretch his limited travel dollars. Recent finds include a 3-day/2-night vacation for two in Las Vegas for $49, and a trick for getting a free cruise for his family. Friends and family are always asking about his new finds, so he has decided to share his knowledge and discoveries in his travel blog at: http://www.shoppingtraveldeals.com/blog/ Anson's work also appears at: http://travel-and-destinations.blogspot.com
Read this other article by Anson Werner, before traveling to Europe.
Copyright © 2008 Anson Werner
When times are tough, many people wonder how and if they will be able to take a family vacation. I know that because my wife and I had the same conversation just recently. But given my knack for uncovering travel deals, I was able to show my wife a way that we could take advantage of the hard times in the economy right now, to get a lot more fun for much less money.
How To Stretch Your Travel Dollars, By Paying Less For Hotel Rooms
In economic boom times, hotels typically have 95%-98% occupancy rates. When hotels are running at such capacity, the hotel's management is fat and happy with profits.
But in recessionary periods like we are experiencing right now, hotels find occupancy rates running at 60%-65%, making it hard for the hotel's management to make ends meet.
Hotels make money when they can fill their rooms, with paying customers. When running at 95%-98% occupancy rates, filling those final rooms are pure gravy on the hotel's bottom line. With high occupancy rates, hotels tend to hold empty rooms for people desperate for a room, enabling the hotel to maximize its profits.
But when occupancy rates are low, hotel managers are desperate for customers instead of customers being desperate for a room. Herein lies the secret to getting more bang for your travel dollars.
Full rooms are a sellers' market, and empty rooms create a buyers' market. When in a buyers' market, the buyer has a lot of control over the final price the customer will pay.
If you go to the front desk of the hotel and demonstrate to the satisfaction of the hotel proprietor that you may be willing to walk out the front door of the hotel and shop for another room, then you will have strengthened your hand for negotiating a better price for a room. My experience has been that many hotel proprietors believe that if you are standing in their lobby that you are more inclined to buy from them, rather than to go down the street, so the proprietor will hold more firm on his or her price. However, if you are willing to call the hotel on the phone - even from the hotel's parking lot - you will find that you have a lot more leverage to get a better deal.
The simple truth is that if hotels are struggling to fill rooms, hotel proprietors are more often willing to negotiate a better rate for their rooms, with any person willing to ask. So ask.
Not every hotel proprietor will be willing to reduce the price of a room, but frequently, proprietors who reject a lower price will offer extra amenities to sweeten the deal. So ask for the better price to see what you can get.
You have nothing to lose by asking, and you could very well negotiate a much better deal if you would only be willing to ask for a better deal. So speak up, and see if you can find a better deal than the advertised price for that room.
About the Author:
As a travel hound, Anson Werner searches for incredible travel deals and tricks to help him save money and stretch his limited travel dollars. Recent finds include a 3-day/2-night vacation for two in Las Vegas for $49, and a trick for getting a free cruise for his family. Friends and family are always asking about his new finds, so he has decided to share his knowledge and discoveries in his travel blog at: http://www.shoppingtraveldeals.com/blog/ Anson's work also appears at: http://travel-and-destinations.blogspot.com
Read this other article by Anson Werner, before traveling to Europe.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Getting Better Research Materials By Using Better Search Tools
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Trey Pennewell
150 years ago people who dreamed of becoming rich often went to the mountains and streams of California searching for gold. Their tools were shovels; pick axes, and metal pans. A few became rich - most did not. Today, for those seeking to discover riches, or at least a decent living, there is still gold lying around for those who can find it - but most of it exists as information accessible over the internet - and the tools you need to find it are web browsers and search engines.
In doing research of any kind you have to be able to find and access information and materials. This used to mean books, papers, etc. collected and organized in a library. Catalogers reviewed materials, classified them, assigned a number, created a "card catalog", and arranged the materials in sections containing like materials. Finding information was a slow, and often arduous, task.
You had to "look up" the subject in the card catalog. If you didn't find what you wanted under the word set you selected you had find other words - the word or words that occurred to the cataloger, might not be the ones you were considering. There was never a consistent thread of analysis that one could rely upon for finding the right books, because as you and I might think of different words to find what we want, the book catalogers all have their own personalities and therefore, they would frequently select words to describe a book through their own colored lenses of analysis.
Sometimes a thesaurus, or a reference librarian, was able to help you find the book you wanted. And the catalog cards gave only a hint of the actual contents of a book. Then you went to the shelves, found the section, and looked at what else was near your specific item of interest. Often you found "other things" nearby, which were exactly what you were looking for in the first place.
The computer allowed the development of electronic databases and automated searches. The Internet allowed access to many databases. Search Engines are able to accomplish, in seconds, what a person could not complete in a lifetime. But always we are at the mercy of what is in the database, and how the analysis tools interpret the database. Nonetheless, these Search Engines are powerful tools, which you can use to accomplish market research to find information that can help build and grow your business.
Most people today are familiar with, and spend some time on, the World Wide Web - the Internet. So we know a little about web browsers and search engines (sometimes very little). When you go looking for information, it is the search engine that does most of the work, and like other tools, they don't have the same talents and skills.
In doing a web search you first have to ask a question that contains one or more "key words", words you hope will lead you to the information you seek. Common search engines include Google, Yahoo, and MSN - and there are dozens of others. They access different databases and are optimized for different kinds of searches. Their designers create various features to find, sort, arrange and display the search results in a comprehensible fashion. When I did a Google search for "keyword research" it reported 456,000 results; Yahoo reported 20,700,000 results. Braggart! But how in the world can the program, or the user, ever find what they are after in that many results?
One method that helps people find information that is more relevant to what they need is clustering, which is simply a feature of some search engines' design, which combines different parts of the results together based on specific principles. Clustering can also provide built-in features, which provide a set of related terms, almost like a thesaurus, including in the results words related to your search keywords. Using clustered search terms will allow you to broaden the specific search and perhaps find something like that book on an adjoining shelf that is exactly what you need.
Search engines find web content using key words or phrases to locate items in databases. Both when doing market research, and when building web sites and web content, key words are extremely important. And clustering search features help you (or your potential customers) find similar terms, which will lead you to related (and possibly very important) information.
Using a search engine with clustered search features will lead you to these related items that may greatly enhance the results of your market research. Similarly, using appropriate keywords in your web materials can enhance traffic to your site or articles. One search engine that has clustering search features is http://widow.com/
Widow Search has a simple user interface. Doing a sample search by entering "keyword research" gave some interesting results. On the left side of the results page is a box displaying the results of the "clustered search feature". Below this box is a second box titled "Similar Terms", their suggestions for extended items beyond the keywords you entered. To the right of the boxes is a list of "Resources" which resulted from the search. The first 10 items found by the search are displayed, with brief descriptions, the URL and a link to the target site. Buttons between the screen header and the Results list gives access to subsequent items found.
The clustered search results for this case were as follows:
"Keyword Research":
Search Engine Analysis Services Review Worldtracker Blog Right Keywords Competition Complete Discovery
Some items have a plus sign (+) in front of the listed item and that plus sign indicates that the listed word has a sub-list, which can be displayed by clicking the (+) button. For instance, clicking "Search Engine" displays a list of 8 sub-items.
The "Similar Terms" box listed seven sub-items. This display is slightly confusing since the box uses word wrap and some links are split between two lines. Focus on the type font size - they toggle through 3 different font sizes - when the size changes, you are seeing a different link. Click on a link and it will take you to another list of items keyed to the specific similar term.
Widow Search (http://widow.com/) is a meta-search engine with significant research capabilities that produces excellent results. However, it still requires work, thought and judgment to achieve your goals. But, give it a try. You might just find that you will never have a need to go to any of the Big Three search engines ever again.
About the Author:
Trey Pennewell is a writer who assists the content creation and helps write ClickBank product reviews for: http://www.TrafficAndSubscribers.com If you are spending at least $1000 per month on PPC Advertising, please take the time to review our Pay-For-Results SEO service at: http://www.linksandtraffic.com/seo-services/search-marketing.html
Copyright © 2008 Trey Pennewell
150 years ago people who dreamed of becoming rich often went to the mountains and streams of California searching for gold. Their tools were shovels; pick axes, and metal pans. A few became rich - most did not. Today, for those seeking to discover riches, or at least a decent living, there is still gold lying around for those who can find it - but most of it exists as information accessible over the internet - and the tools you need to find it are web browsers and search engines.
In doing research of any kind you have to be able to find and access information and materials. This used to mean books, papers, etc. collected and organized in a library. Catalogers reviewed materials, classified them, assigned a number, created a "card catalog", and arranged the materials in sections containing like materials. Finding information was a slow, and often arduous, task.
You had to "look up" the subject in the card catalog. If you didn't find what you wanted under the word set you selected you had find other words - the word or words that occurred to the cataloger, might not be the ones you were considering. There was never a consistent thread of analysis that one could rely upon for finding the right books, because as you and I might think of different words to find what we want, the book catalogers all have their own personalities and therefore, they would frequently select words to describe a book through their own colored lenses of analysis.
Sometimes a thesaurus, or a reference librarian, was able to help you find the book you wanted. And the catalog cards gave only a hint of the actual contents of a book. Then you went to the shelves, found the section, and looked at what else was near your specific item of interest. Often you found "other things" nearby, which were exactly what you were looking for in the first place.
The computer allowed the development of electronic databases and automated searches. The Internet allowed access to many databases. Search Engines are able to accomplish, in seconds, what a person could not complete in a lifetime. But always we are at the mercy of what is in the database, and how the analysis tools interpret the database. Nonetheless, these Search Engines are powerful tools, which you can use to accomplish market research to find information that can help build and grow your business.
Most people today are familiar with, and spend some time on, the World Wide Web - the Internet. So we know a little about web browsers and search engines (sometimes very little). When you go looking for information, it is the search engine that does most of the work, and like other tools, they don't have the same talents and skills.
In doing a web search you first have to ask a question that contains one or more "key words", words you hope will lead you to the information you seek. Common search engines include Google, Yahoo, and MSN - and there are dozens of others. They access different databases and are optimized for different kinds of searches. Their designers create various features to find, sort, arrange and display the search results in a comprehensible fashion. When I did a Google search for "keyword research" it reported 456,000 results; Yahoo reported 20,700,000 results. Braggart! But how in the world can the program, or the user, ever find what they are after in that many results?
One method that helps people find information that is more relevant to what they need is clustering, which is simply a feature of some search engines' design, which combines different parts of the results together based on specific principles. Clustering can also provide built-in features, which provide a set of related terms, almost like a thesaurus, including in the results words related to your search keywords. Using clustered search terms will allow you to broaden the specific search and perhaps find something like that book on an adjoining shelf that is exactly what you need.
Search engines find web content using key words or phrases to locate items in databases. Both when doing market research, and when building web sites and web content, key words are extremely important. And clustering search features help you (or your potential customers) find similar terms, which will lead you to related (and possibly very important) information.
Using a search engine with clustered search features will lead you to these related items that may greatly enhance the results of your market research. Similarly, using appropriate keywords in your web materials can enhance traffic to your site or articles. One search engine that has clustering search features is http://widow.com/
Widow Search has a simple user interface. Doing a sample search by entering "keyword research" gave some interesting results. On the left side of the results page is a box displaying the results of the "clustered search feature". Below this box is a second box titled "Similar Terms", their suggestions for extended items beyond the keywords you entered. To the right of the boxes is a list of "Resources" which resulted from the search. The first 10 items found by the search are displayed, with brief descriptions, the URL and a link to the target site. Buttons between the screen header and the Results list gives access to subsequent items found.
The clustered search results for this case were as follows:
"Keyword Research":
Some items have a plus sign (+) in front of the listed item and that plus sign indicates that the listed word has a sub-list, which can be displayed by clicking the (+) button. For instance, clicking "Search Engine" displays a list of 8 sub-items.
The "Similar Terms" box listed seven sub-items. This display is slightly confusing since the box uses word wrap and some links are split between two lines. Focus on the type font size - they toggle through 3 different font sizes - when the size changes, you are seeing a different link. Click on a link and it will take you to another list of items keyed to the specific similar term.
Widow Search (http://widow.com/) is a meta-search engine with significant research capabilities that produces excellent results. However, it still requires work, thought and judgment to achieve your goals. But, give it a try. You might just find that you will never have a need to go to any of the Big Three search engines ever again.
About the Author:
Trey Pennewell is a writer who assists the content creation and helps write ClickBank product reviews for: http://www.TrafficAndSubscribers.com If you are spending at least $1000 per month on PPC Advertising, please take the time to review our Pay-For-Results SEO service at: http://www.linksandtraffic.com/seo-services/search-marketing.html
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Hopefully President Obama Will Break A Few Campaign Promises
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Arlo Mooney
Although I did not vote for President Barack Obama, I wish him well and I hope that he is as successful as President Bill Clinton. If Obama governs as a centrist as Bill Clinton did, he should not have any problem getting a second term. But if he chooses to govern to the left, he will have a troublesome and short four years as Jimmy Carter once had.
Why John McCain Failed...
John McCain failed in his quest for the presidency for a number of reasons, but primarily because he could not or would not explain the underlying problems with Obama's economic policies.
Perhaps he could not explain the problems of Obama's campaign promises regarding the economy, because he did not understand them himself. Perhaps the problems simply could not be explained in a sound bite.
But I believe that John McCain failed in his quest for the White House, because he would not accept advice from the faithful who were not part of his internal campaign team. Perhaps his people shielded him from outside input.
My wife says that the McCain team probably thought of me as a stalker in the wild. I had sent explanations of the problems of Obama's economic plans several times, but it would seem that my help never escaped the email box. ;-)
Great presidents of years past were great because they surrounded themselves with really smart people. The measure of a great president - be it Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, John F. Kennedy, Franklin D. Roosevelt and others - can be succinctly described by their ability to find and get people who best understood the needs of the nation and how to solve those problems faced by average Americans.
In the end, the American people were worried about the economy, and yet, John McCain could not show us why his approach to the economy would be better than Barack Obamas. That is why he lost his bid for the White House.
What Is In It For Me?
Barack Obama understood something else that John McCain seemingly could not. President-elect Obama understood that people vote on the premise of what is in the deal for them.
A tax cut for 95% of Americans and a tax increase for the richest Americans is something that resonated for many people.
So long as the tax payer thinks that they will gain more than they lose, they are frequently happy to hear promises of this type.
This is where the McCain campaign failed to understand the marketing of a politician. Jumping up and screaming about how the 42% who do not pay taxes now will receive a check from Obama, as if that were a bad thing, alienated the 42% who do not pay taxes. To argue that this was the equivalent of "welfare" was to stomp on the hopes and dreams of 42% of the electorate.
To have told the story to the American people in a way that could have swayed the electorate to McCain would have been to explain the underlying economy of Obama's plan. But John McCain could not or would not do so.
The rich voted on principles different than the economy, because the rich understand what I am getting ready to show you now.
Shifting The Tax Burden To Business
Under the basic structure of Obama's tax plan, he is going to eliminate most taxes paid by those who work for a living. On the surface, that seems like an awesome plan. Even I would benefit from lower taxes under Obama's plans.
But here is the problem...
The Republicans utterly failed to tell us this story, so that most of us could understand the fallacy of this plan.
Higher taxes for business will not eliminate jobs directly, as described by the Republican brand! As a business owner, I have a hand's on understanding of this scenario.
Businesses will do what is possible to bring the same amount of after-tax profits they have seen previously. Especially when the business is a sole proprietorship like mine, our profits become our incomes. So, if I need $70,000 per year to sustain my lifestyle, I will find ways to increase my business back to the level I need to be at to sustain my standard of living.
Taxing my profits only ensures that I must earn more money, so that I can maintain my standard of living. Laying off people is not an acceptable option, because fewer staff will ensure a shrinking ability to earn the money I need to keep my standard of living.
Since I am not willing to lower my standard of living and laying off people is not an option, I will have to find other ways to make the difference. The only way that I am going to be able to maintain my business is to increase my prices. And so long as the consumer feels that my products and services are necessities in their lives, my customers will pay the higher prices.
How This Affects You...
The bakery company will not cut its profits or lay off people; instead, it will increase the price of a loaf of bread.
The lumber store will not cut its profits or lay off people; instead, it will increase the cost of lumber.
The oil companies will not reduce its profits or lay off people; instead it will increase the cost of gasoline.
All in all, the prices of all products and services will increase to reflect the new tax environment.
As prices eventually increased to reflect higher fuel prices during the summer of 2008, so will all prices increase to reflect higher business taxes and the increasing prices of all raw materials, due to higher business taxes. Increasing prices for any reason will increase the rate of inflation for everything in the United States.
Amazingly, the 42% who did not pay taxes under George Bush will now be paying the new taxes on everything they buy. And you will pay those taxes, because you cannot stop eating or buying goods and services.
Whereas 42% of Americans do not pay taxes now, all Americans will soon be paying for Obama's "new taxes on the rich".
Maybe that check that Obama will send the 42% who do not pay taxes now will offset the increase in the cost of living - maybe it will not.
Will Obama's Economic Policies Reflect A Net-Gain Or A Net-Loss?
If the tax cut for the middle-income and the checks for the lower-income families are greater than the increased cost of goods and services, then this plan will be a net-gain for all middle- and lower-income families home finances.
If the tax cut fails to add enough money to the budgets of families to offset the increased cost of goods and services, then the American people's personal finances will experience a net-loss.
It is all about standard of living. Will you in four years have a better standard of living under Obama's tax cuts? Or, will you find that the increased cost of products and services have eaten away the benefit that you received from Obama under his tax cut for 95% of American taxpayers?
In Conclusion...
I am not very optimistic about middle- to lower-income families finding a net-gain under Obama's tax plans... But, I hope that I am wrong.
Many pundits suggest that Barack Obama will not be able to keep all of his campaign promises, and it is still my hope that in four years we will be able to look back to see that Obama's tax plan was one of the promises that Obama did not keep.
About the Author:
Arlo Mooney has dedicated himself to helping people properly manage their personal finances, by helping them to understand the gravity of their personal financial decisions. With his background in economics, he strives to help people understand complex economic principles, by explaining conditions in ways that few people have the patience or skill to do. Read more of Arlos' thoughts at: http://cash-advance-payday-loans.org/blog
Copyright © 2008 Arlo Mooney
Although I did not vote for President Barack Obama, I wish him well and I hope that he is as successful as President Bill Clinton. If Obama governs as a centrist as Bill Clinton did, he should not have any problem getting a second term. But if he chooses to govern to the left, he will have a troublesome and short four years as Jimmy Carter once had.
Why John McCain Failed...
John McCain failed in his quest for the presidency for a number of reasons, but primarily because he could not or would not explain the underlying problems with Obama's economic policies.
Perhaps he could not explain the problems of Obama's campaign promises regarding the economy, because he did not understand them himself. Perhaps the problems simply could not be explained in a sound bite.
But I believe that John McCain failed in his quest for the White House, because he would not accept advice from the faithful who were not part of his internal campaign team. Perhaps his people shielded him from outside input.
My wife says that the McCain team probably thought of me as a stalker in the wild. I had sent explanations of the problems of Obama's economic plans several times, but it would seem that my help never escaped the email box. ;-)
Great presidents of years past were great because they surrounded themselves with really smart people. The measure of a great president - be it Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, John F. Kennedy, Franklin D. Roosevelt and others - can be succinctly described by their ability to find and get people who best understood the needs of the nation and how to solve those problems faced by average Americans.
In the end, the American people were worried about the economy, and yet, John McCain could not show us why his approach to the economy would be better than Barack Obamas. That is why he lost his bid for the White House.
What Is In It For Me?
Barack Obama understood something else that John McCain seemingly could not. President-elect Obama understood that people vote on the premise of what is in the deal for them.
A tax cut for 95% of Americans and a tax increase for the richest Americans is something that resonated for many people.
So long as the tax payer thinks that they will gain more than they lose, they are frequently happy to hear promises of this type.
This is where the McCain campaign failed to understand the marketing of a politician. Jumping up and screaming about how the 42% who do not pay taxes now will receive a check from Obama, as if that were a bad thing, alienated the 42% who do not pay taxes. To argue that this was the equivalent of "welfare" was to stomp on the hopes and dreams of 42% of the electorate.
To have told the story to the American people in a way that could have swayed the electorate to McCain would have been to explain the underlying economy of Obama's plan. But John McCain could not or would not do so.
The rich voted on principles different than the economy, because the rich understand what I am getting ready to show you now.
Shifting The Tax Burden To Business
Under the basic structure of Obama's tax plan, he is going to eliminate most taxes paid by those who work for a living. On the surface, that seems like an awesome plan. Even I would benefit from lower taxes under Obama's plans.
But here is the problem...
The Republicans utterly failed to tell us this story, so that most of us could understand the fallacy of this plan.
Higher taxes for business will not eliminate jobs directly, as described by the Republican brand! As a business owner, I have a hand's on understanding of this scenario.
Businesses will do what is possible to bring the same amount of after-tax profits they have seen previously. Especially when the business is a sole proprietorship like mine, our profits become our incomes. So, if I need $70,000 per year to sustain my lifestyle, I will find ways to increase my business back to the level I need to be at to sustain my standard of living.
Taxing my profits only ensures that I must earn more money, so that I can maintain my standard of living. Laying off people is not an acceptable option, because fewer staff will ensure a shrinking ability to earn the money I need to keep my standard of living.
Since I am not willing to lower my standard of living and laying off people is not an option, I will have to find other ways to make the difference. The only way that I am going to be able to maintain my business is to increase my prices. And so long as the consumer feels that my products and services are necessities in their lives, my customers will pay the higher prices.
How This Affects You...
The bakery company will not cut its profits or lay off people; instead, it will increase the price of a loaf of bread.
The lumber store will not cut its profits or lay off people; instead, it will increase the cost of lumber.
The oil companies will not reduce its profits or lay off people; instead it will increase the cost of gasoline.
All in all, the prices of all products and services will increase to reflect the new tax environment.
As prices eventually increased to reflect higher fuel prices during the summer of 2008, so will all prices increase to reflect higher business taxes and the increasing prices of all raw materials, due to higher business taxes. Increasing prices for any reason will increase the rate of inflation for everything in the United States.
Amazingly, the 42% who did not pay taxes under George Bush will now be paying the new taxes on everything they buy. And you will pay those taxes, because you cannot stop eating or buying goods and services.
Whereas 42% of Americans do not pay taxes now, all Americans will soon be paying for Obama's "new taxes on the rich".
Maybe that check that Obama will send the 42% who do not pay taxes now will offset the increase in the cost of living - maybe it will not.
Will Obama's Economic Policies Reflect A Net-Gain Or A Net-Loss?
If the tax cut for the middle-income and the checks for the lower-income families are greater than the increased cost of goods and services, then this plan will be a net-gain for all middle- and lower-income families home finances.
If the tax cut fails to add enough money to the budgets of families to offset the increased cost of goods and services, then the American people's personal finances will experience a net-loss.
It is all about standard of living. Will you in four years have a better standard of living under Obama's tax cuts? Or, will you find that the increased cost of products and services have eaten away the benefit that you received from Obama under his tax cut for 95% of American taxpayers?
In Conclusion...
I am not very optimistic about middle- to lower-income families finding a net-gain under Obama's tax plans... But, I hope that I am wrong.
Many pundits suggest that Barack Obama will not be able to keep all of his campaign promises, and it is still my hope that in four years we will be able to look back to see that Obama's tax plan was one of the promises that Obama did not keep.
About the Author:
Arlo Mooney has dedicated himself to helping people properly manage their personal finances, by helping them to understand the gravity of their personal financial decisions. With his background in economics, he strives to help people understand complex economic principles, by explaining conditions in ways that few people have the patience or skill to do. Read more of Arlos' thoughts at: http://cash-advance-payday-loans.org/blog
Successful Article Marketers Help Readers Solve Problems
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Bill Platt
Every week, I have the opportunity to speak with people about the benefits and challenges of using article marketing to promote an online business. Of course, article marketing is about getting your sales message in front of potential customers and to get links to your website, from the page where an article is posted online.
Where most people get confused with article marketing is with the idea that "it is a method to promote one's website." Many interpret this to mean that an article should directly promote the writer's website within the article, but that approach is wrong and will reduce one's success using this methodology.
Understanding The Overall Article Marketing Strategy
Consider this. Television has been a successful advertising medium for more than six decades, because TV stations understand the importance of providing content to anchor the advertising. In every television hour, there are 42 minutes of content to provide an anchor for 18 minutes of advertising. People tune into the content out of a desire to receive the content, and they accept the advertising as a necessary price to pay in order to get the content for free.
Article marketing works best when the writer emulates the television-advertising model, by anchoring a sales message to content that people want to consume.
The role of article marketing is to capture an audience for the writer's website advertisement, which should be presented in the "resource box" / "about the author" information that appears in the paragraph immediately following the actual article. But, in order to capture that audience, an article needs to tell a story that publishers and webmasters desire to share with their readers.
How To Capture An Audience
When people ask me what they should write about in their articles, I always ask them a set of three questions to help them to define a successful strategy. Those three questions are as follows:
1. What do you sell?
2. Who is most likely to buy what you are selling?
3. What types of problems are common to those people that you may be able to answer?
Publishers and webmasters have a responsibility to their visitors to provide the kind of content that people actually "want" to read. I have heard publishers and webmasters state that if you want to sell to their readers, buy advertising. But if you were willing to teach something of value to their readers, then by all means, they would be happy to give you an advertisement in the "about the author" section at the end of your article, as payment for allowing them to share your information with their readers.
So, if you want an audience for your website's sales message, you should strive to give publishers the kind of information that they would like to share with their readers. If you give readers what they want, publishers will be willing to give you what you want - a chance to share the story of your business with the publishers' readers and website visitors.
Give Readers What They Want
When people go to a search engine, a website, a newsletter or blog, people are looking for information that will help them to address a problem they face. In short, people go online to find solutions for problems.
Since I desire to reach the people most likely to buy my products or services, I want to write content that will appeal directly to those people. When I sit down to write, I try to identify a problem that many people might have, and then I strive to locate and offer a solution to the problem.
When publishers and webmasters agree that the problem addressed is real and my solution is sound, my articles find huge audiences.
When my articles answer a reader's problem, my "about the author" information gets read. When my "about the author" information appeals to the reader, my website gets a new visitor. And for every new visitor my website gets, I have one more chance to sell my products and services to another potential client.
In Closing
There are certain people online, whose articles you have seen frequently on many websites and in some of your favorite newsletters. If you read those articles with an analytical eye, you will soon realize that what I tell you is true. Those people who put the focus of their articles on helping others to solve problems are the people whose articles are published most often and in the largest range of newsletters and websites.
Article marketing works well for those of us who seek to help readers solve problems.
For those who are looking to escape this tried-and-true method of article marketing, I wish you well. But I stand firm in the belief that if you put more focus on helping people solve more problems, you will benefit from article marketing in ways that other people can only dream.
About the Author:
Bill Platt has owned and operated http://www.thePhantomWriters.com article distribution service since 2001, and he has published more than 125 articles in his own name. Article marketing is the perfect advertising system for small businesses, but if you find yourself spending at least $1000 per month on PPC Advertising, then you owe it to yourself to review Bill's Pay-For-Performance Search Engine Optimization (SEO) service at: http://www.linksandtraffic.com/seo-services/search-marketing.html
Copyright © 2008 Bill Platt
Every week, I have the opportunity to speak with people about the benefits and challenges of using article marketing to promote an online business. Of course, article marketing is about getting your sales message in front of potential customers and to get links to your website, from the page where an article is posted online.
Where most people get confused with article marketing is with the idea that "it is a method to promote one's website." Many interpret this to mean that an article should directly promote the writer's website within the article, but that approach is wrong and will reduce one's success using this methodology.
Understanding The Overall Article Marketing Strategy
Consider this. Television has been a successful advertising medium for more than six decades, because TV stations understand the importance of providing content to anchor the advertising. In every television hour, there are 42 minutes of content to provide an anchor for 18 minutes of advertising. People tune into the content out of a desire to receive the content, and they accept the advertising as a necessary price to pay in order to get the content for free.
Article marketing works best when the writer emulates the television-advertising model, by anchoring a sales message to content that people want to consume.
The role of article marketing is to capture an audience for the writer's website advertisement, which should be presented in the "resource box" / "about the author" information that appears in the paragraph immediately following the actual article. But, in order to capture that audience, an article needs to tell a story that publishers and webmasters desire to share with their readers.
How To Capture An Audience
When people ask me what they should write about in their articles, I always ask them a set of three questions to help them to define a successful strategy. Those three questions are as follows:
1. What do you sell?
2. Who is most likely to buy what you are selling?
3. What types of problems are common to those people that you may be able to answer?
Publishers and webmasters have a responsibility to their visitors to provide the kind of content that people actually "want" to read. I have heard publishers and webmasters state that if you want to sell to their readers, buy advertising. But if you were willing to teach something of value to their readers, then by all means, they would be happy to give you an advertisement in the "about the author" section at the end of your article, as payment for allowing them to share your information with their readers.
So, if you want an audience for your website's sales message, you should strive to give publishers the kind of information that they would like to share with their readers. If you give readers what they want, publishers will be willing to give you what you want - a chance to share the story of your business with the publishers' readers and website visitors.
Give Readers What They Want
When people go to a search engine, a website, a newsletter or blog, people are looking for information that will help them to address a problem they face. In short, people go online to find solutions for problems.
Since I desire to reach the people most likely to buy my products or services, I want to write content that will appeal directly to those people. When I sit down to write, I try to identify a problem that many people might have, and then I strive to locate and offer a solution to the problem.
When publishers and webmasters agree that the problem addressed is real and my solution is sound, my articles find huge audiences.
When my articles answer a reader's problem, my "about the author" information gets read. When my "about the author" information appeals to the reader, my website gets a new visitor. And for every new visitor my website gets, I have one more chance to sell my products and services to another potential client.
In Closing
There are certain people online, whose articles you have seen frequently on many websites and in some of your favorite newsletters. If you read those articles with an analytical eye, you will soon realize that what I tell you is true. Those people who put the focus of their articles on helping others to solve problems are the people whose articles are published most often and in the largest range of newsletters and websites.
Article marketing works well for those of us who seek to help readers solve problems.
For those who are looking to escape this tried-and-true method of article marketing, I wish you well. But I stand firm in the belief that if you put more focus on helping people solve more problems, you will benefit from article marketing in ways that other people can only dream.
About the Author:
Bill Platt has owned and operated http://www.thePhantomWriters.com article distribution service since 2001, and he has published more than 125 articles in his own name. Article marketing is the perfect advertising system for small businesses, but if you find yourself spending at least $1000 per month on PPC Advertising, then you owe it to yourself to review Bill's Pay-For-Performance Search Engine Optimization (SEO) service at: http://www.linksandtraffic.com/seo-services/search-marketing.html
How Parents Can Save Tons of Money
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Kathy Winters
Times are tough right now especially for parents. It can be hard to know how to cover things like constantly increasing energy bills and the high cost of fuel. It can be easy to become discouraged and think there is no way I can save money right now, however there are a few changes you can make in your everyday life that will make a huge difference.
Ways To Save Money
One of the easiest things you can do to save money is to revise your grocery shopping. It has gotten more expensive than ever to buy everyday things so a person must be extra conscious of what things cost. To trim some fat off the grocery budget follow some of the tips below:
1) Make a 7-day menu before you go shopping. This will keep the weeks purchases on task for supplying your needs.
2) Use the competition matching offered by your local Wal-mart, they guarantee the lowest price and will honor any competitor ad within a specified mile range. Check with your local store for details.
3) Only use coupons on things you would by anyway, this may sound like a no brainer but the number of people who will buy a more expensive item than normal just because they have a coupon would surprise you.
4) Consolidate errands so that they can all be done on one or two days instead of three to five. This will save on fuel costs as well as streamline your schedule.
5) Cut back money spent at convenience stores and star bucks. It is much cheaper to make coffee at home and buy Coke and gum at the grocery store. You would be amazed how much money you actually spend on these items.
These are just a few tips that will save you big money on everyday items. The key is to put aside the money you have saved with these changes. Spending the savings on a new outfit is fine if that is what you were saving for, however the better idea would be to put the money into a savings account for emergencies.
Small Inexpensive Things To Do
We all want to spend time with our children doing fun things that make them smile. The problem is most activities geared toward children are not cheap. Even going to the movies can quickly shoot through fifty dollars for a family of four. Instead, take your kids back in time with a visit to a drive-in theater! This blast from the past is much cheaper than conventional theaters and the best part is you can bring your own food and drink! If you do not have a drive-in close by, make it a redbox movie night. Redboxes are cropping up all over the nation and allow you to rent a movie for one night for a $1. Where else can you get that kind of deal? As an added bonus, you can look up and reserve a movie from home then go to the location at your convenience, swipe your bankcard and receive your movie. Now take the other forty dollars you would have spent and you guessed it, put it in savings too.
Children
Children want all the latest gizmos and gadgets and as loving parents, we want to give them. Nevertheless, video games and toys have become so technologically advanced that they can be extremely expensive. So what is a parent to do? A lot depends on the age of your child, younger kids will be much more easily convinced that a trip to the library is just as good as buying the latest kids book, plus they will enjoy your time together. If you live in a rural area where fishing abounds this can be a relatively inexpensive activity you can do with your children. Many states have free days where licenses are not required while fishing with children. When you take the time to look around many activities you can do together are relatively inexpensive. Moreover, if they just have to have video games check out resell shops and eBay, the cost should be a fraction of the new price and have a short-term guarantee, and again put the difference in savings.
Discussing Things With Teens
Be honest with your kids without worrying them; with older children make this a time for teaching them about responsible spending. When they want, cell phones and gadgets show them the cost and perhaps allow them to work part time to pay for them. When my children started working and it was their money they had to spend on frivolous things attitudes changed quickly.
Teenagers will not admit to wanting to spend time with you but they do find activities you both enjoy that do not cost large amounts of money. Do you have a tent stuck in the attic? Break it out and spend some time camping, sites are generally inexpensive and lakes are a great place to have fun and get some exercise at the same time.
Young Children
Young children are much easier to please with cheaper alternatives. Instead of the latest Spiderman toy grab an inexpensive kite and got to the park. It can be wonderful fun showing a young child how a kite works and watching their eyes light up when theirs is flying high! The park is also a fun cheap activity to do with young children. Most cities and towns have free access parks with play equipment.
Conclusion
We can all find ways to save money even in tough times. It may be more of a struggle now than a few years ago but it is an achievable goal. Use your time wisely and be creative you can throw a super birthday party with items found at the dollar store, it is all going in the garbage anyway so why spend a fortune on Barbie plates? The most important aspect of all this is to approach it in a way that does not scare or worry your children. Make saving money a challenge or game with them, and who knows you could start a lifelong habit in them that will change their entire life.
About the Author:
Kathy Winters writes for ParentingFun411, a national directory of parenting-related providers such as nurseries, day care, pediatricians, colleges, summer camps, nannies and much more. ParentingFun411 also offers a wealth of information for parents including a parenting blog. If you're a parent, you ought to visit us at: http://www.ParentingFun411.com
Copyright © 2008 Kathy Winters
Times are tough right now especially for parents. It can be hard to know how to cover things like constantly increasing energy bills and the high cost of fuel. It can be easy to become discouraged and think there is no way I can save money right now, however there are a few changes you can make in your everyday life that will make a huge difference.
Ways To Save Money
One of the easiest things you can do to save money is to revise your grocery shopping. It has gotten more expensive than ever to buy everyday things so a person must be extra conscious of what things cost. To trim some fat off the grocery budget follow some of the tips below:
1) Make a 7-day menu before you go shopping. This will keep the weeks purchases on task for supplying your needs.
2) Use the competition matching offered by your local Wal-mart, they guarantee the lowest price and will honor any competitor ad within a specified mile range. Check with your local store for details.
3) Only use coupons on things you would by anyway, this may sound like a no brainer but the number of people who will buy a more expensive item than normal just because they have a coupon would surprise you.
4) Consolidate errands so that they can all be done on one or two days instead of three to five. This will save on fuel costs as well as streamline your schedule.
5) Cut back money spent at convenience stores and star bucks. It is much cheaper to make coffee at home and buy Coke and gum at the grocery store. You would be amazed how much money you actually spend on these items.
These are just a few tips that will save you big money on everyday items. The key is to put aside the money you have saved with these changes. Spending the savings on a new outfit is fine if that is what you were saving for, however the better idea would be to put the money into a savings account for emergencies.
Small Inexpensive Things To Do
We all want to spend time with our children doing fun things that make them smile. The problem is most activities geared toward children are not cheap. Even going to the movies can quickly shoot through fifty dollars for a family of four. Instead, take your kids back in time with a visit to a drive-in theater! This blast from the past is much cheaper than conventional theaters and the best part is you can bring your own food and drink! If you do not have a drive-in close by, make it a redbox movie night. Redboxes are cropping up all over the nation and allow you to rent a movie for one night for a $1. Where else can you get that kind of deal? As an added bonus, you can look up and reserve a movie from home then go to the location at your convenience, swipe your bankcard and receive your movie. Now take the other forty dollars you would have spent and you guessed it, put it in savings too.
Children
Children want all the latest gizmos and gadgets and as loving parents, we want to give them. Nevertheless, video games and toys have become so technologically advanced that they can be extremely expensive. So what is a parent to do? A lot depends on the age of your child, younger kids will be much more easily convinced that a trip to the library is just as good as buying the latest kids book, plus they will enjoy your time together. If you live in a rural area where fishing abounds this can be a relatively inexpensive activity you can do with your children. Many states have free days where licenses are not required while fishing with children. When you take the time to look around many activities you can do together are relatively inexpensive. Moreover, if they just have to have video games check out resell shops and eBay, the cost should be a fraction of the new price and have a short-term guarantee, and again put the difference in savings.
Discussing Things With Teens
Be honest with your kids without worrying them; with older children make this a time for teaching them about responsible spending. When they want, cell phones and gadgets show them the cost and perhaps allow them to work part time to pay for them. When my children started working and it was their money they had to spend on frivolous things attitudes changed quickly.
Teenagers will not admit to wanting to spend time with you but they do find activities you both enjoy that do not cost large amounts of money. Do you have a tent stuck in the attic? Break it out and spend some time camping, sites are generally inexpensive and lakes are a great place to have fun and get some exercise at the same time.
Young Children
Young children are much easier to please with cheaper alternatives. Instead of the latest Spiderman toy grab an inexpensive kite and got to the park. It can be wonderful fun showing a young child how a kite works and watching their eyes light up when theirs is flying high! The park is also a fun cheap activity to do with young children. Most cities and towns have free access parks with play equipment.
Conclusion
We can all find ways to save money even in tough times. It may be more of a struggle now than a few years ago but it is an achievable goal. Use your time wisely and be creative you can throw a super birthday party with items found at the dollar store, it is all going in the garbage anyway so why spend a fortune on Barbie plates? The most important aspect of all this is to approach it in a way that does not scare or worry your children. Make saving money a challenge or game with them, and who knows you could start a lifelong habit in them that will change their entire life.
About the Author:
Kathy Winters writes for ParentingFun411, a national directory of parenting-related providers such as nurseries, day care, pediatricians, colleges, summer camps, nannies and much more. ParentingFun411 also offers a wealth of information for parents including a parenting blog. If you're a parent, you ought to visit us at: http://www.ParentingFun411.com
The Bizarre History Of The HOLLYWOOD Sign
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Morris Timlen
The most famous sign in the history of mankind is the one that graces the side of the hill above Hollywood, California. As famous a landmark as the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio De Janeiro, the Eiffel Tower in Paris France, the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, The Church of the Savior on Blood in Saint Petersburg Russia, and the Statue Of Liberty in New York City, the Hollywood sign is known around the world as the symbol of the American movie industry.
The Early Years of Hollywood
Mrs. Daeida Wilcox, the wife of the town's founder, Harvey Wilcox gave Hollywood its name in 1887. Mrs. Wilcox had met a lady on the train, who had explained that the name of her summer home in Florida was called, "Hollywood". Mrs. Wilcox took a real fancy to that name and so Hollywood California was born.
Hollywood remained a small farming community until 1907, when a Chicago film company left Chicago due to bad weather and went to Hollywood to finish shooting its movie. Soon after, the Nestor Film Company from New Jersey moved to Hollywood and converted a barn into Hollywood's first movie studio.
Soon the word got around about Hollywood's year-around good weather and the diverse landscapes in the area, and the early players in the fledging movie industry flocked to Southern California to make movies. By 1912, there were 15 movie studios situated in Hollywood.
Between 1915 and 1920, many independent film studios started operation, and after a few cutthroat years, many of the small film companies merged to create many of the big studio names we recognize today.
Hollywoodland Is Built
Hollywood's rapid growth was fueled by the astronomical growth of its film industry and the 40 million Americans who went to the movies each week. The region also owes its existence to the Owen's Valley Aqueduct and its designer, the famous William Mullholland, head engineer of the Municipal Water Authority, who ensured that the water would continue to flow into the City of Hollywood and the Los Angeles basin.
The Los Angeles Times publisher, Harry Chandler, began to use his wealth to invest into real estate developments. In 1923, he built a development in Hollywood called Hollywoodland. In order to promote his new housing subdivision, Chandler built a sign on the side of Mount Lee in the Hollywood Hills, which read HOLLYWOODLAND, at a cost of $21,000. Even today, $21 thousand is a lot of money, but back then it was a huge amount of money.
Each of the 13 original letters of this billboard was 30-feet wide by 50-feet high. The original sign was lighted by 4,000 20-watt light bulbs, and there was a dot at the end of the word, as if the word was punctuated by a period. During the Roaring Twenties, the night sky of Hollywood was first lit by the word "HOLLY", then "WOOD", then "LAND", and punctuated by the period. Then the lighting sequence would repeat itself.
When it was originally built, the HOLLYWOODLAND sign was only intended to remain on Mount Lee for 18 months.
Ownership Transferred To The City of Hollywood
After the Roaring Twenties crashed with the stock market, the Great Depression, and the United States' entry into World War II, the Hollywoodland real estate development went bankrupt. The Hollywoodland sign that went without maintenance for most of the years of the Great Depression quietly passed its ownership to the City of Hollywood in 1944.
In 1949, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce came to the rescue of the sign. It repaired the "H" that had toppled over, removed the "LAND" and its period from the site, and restored the billboard to its current glory in the form we now know it to be.
The "Weed" Generation
During the 1960's and 1970's, the Hollywood sign nearly came to an ugly end once again.
The late 1940's and 1950's took a toll on Hollywood, as many of Hollywood's top film stars were blacklisted during the McCarthy Era. During the 1960's, many of the film studios moved operations to the San Fernando Valley. By 1970, Paramount Studios was the only major film company to still call Hollywood home.
The exodus of the film studios from Hollywood left the city in a state of decay and depression. The city simply could not afford the upkeep on its iconic sign, and the weather began to take its toll on the billboard known around the world.
In 1973, the City of Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Board got the sign declared as an official historical landmark. But this declaration did not slow the destruction of the sign.
During the 1970's, the "D" and the third "O" collapsed and fell down the mountain. Shortly thereafter, an arsonist set the second "L" on fire. Then protesters, who wanted California to loosen their marijuana laws, changed the second and third "O" to an "e". In an evening, "HOLLYWOOD" was transformed into "HOLLYWeeD".
The sign was changed one more time, in 1987, this time for the visit of Pope John Paul II. As a temporary salute to the Pope, the sign was changed for the Pope's visit to read, "HOLYWOOD".
The Revival Years
During the late 1970's, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce set out to restore the sign once again. During the exploratory period of this potential restoration, it was determined that it would take one quarter million dollars to restore the sign to its original pristine form.
Facing a seemingly insurmountable challenge, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce wondered how they would be able to raise the money. Then some of the biggest names in entertainment came to the rescue of the sign.
The rock band Fleetwood Mac started things off by offering a benefit concert. But, Fleetwood Mac was prevented from performing in Hollywood due to local residents stopping the show.
One year later in 1978, Hugh Hefner hosted a gala fundraiser at the Playboy Mansion, and raised the money by auctioning letters for $27,700 per letter. Among the contributors were Glam-Rocker Alice Cooper, singing cowboy Gene Autry, and Andy Williams.
For three months in 1978, the HOLLYWOOD sign was missing from the Los Angeles skyline, while the old sign was torn down and a new sign was built. With 194-tons of concrete, enamel and steel, the sign was reconstructed to survive well into the next century.
Entering The 21st Century
To prevent a repeat of the past, the California Attorney General assigned rights and responsibilities to three government agencies in 1992 for the sign. The City of Los Angeles owns the land where the sign stands. The City of Hollywood owns the licensing rights for the image of the sign. And the Hollywood Sign Trust was assigned to maintain, repair, and perform capital improvements to the sign for the benefit of the public.
In 2000, the Hollywood Sign Trust hired Panasonic to install a state-of-the-art security system, with a large closed circuit, Internet-based surveillance network, which can be monitored 24/7 over the Internet, to protect the sign from vandals and fire. The security system was upgraded again in 2005. Since the security system is Internet-based, anyone on the Internet can watch over the sign 24 hours a day on its live web cam, located at: http://www.hollywoodsign.org/247.html
About the Author:
Morris Timlen maintains the Bronze Plaques Blog, which specializes in the study of the history and style of commercial signs, and the many materials used in architectural lettering, including bronze, plastic, neon, acrylic, aluminum, brass, zinc, stainless steel, wood and glass. If you are in need of commercial signage for your business, please visit Morris's website for more information: http://www.bronzeplaquesblog.com
Copyright © 2008 Morris Timlen
The most famous sign in the history of mankind is the one that graces the side of the hill above Hollywood, California. As famous a landmark as the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio De Janeiro, the Eiffel Tower in Paris France, the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, The Church of the Savior on Blood in Saint Petersburg Russia, and the Statue Of Liberty in New York City, the Hollywood sign is known around the world as the symbol of the American movie industry.
The Early Years of Hollywood
Mrs. Daeida Wilcox, the wife of the town's founder, Harvey Wilcox gave Hollywood its name in 1887. Mrs. Wilcox had met a lady on the train, who had explained that the name of her summer home in Florida was called, "Hollywood". Mrs. Wilcox took a real fancy to that name and so Hollywood California was born.
Hollywood remained a small farming community until 1907, when a Chicago film company left Chicago due to bad weather and went to Hollywood to finish shooting its movie. Soon after, the Nestor Film Company from New Jersey moved to Hollywood and converted a barn into Hollywood's first movie studio.
Soon the word got around about Hollywood's year-around good weather and the diverse landscapes in the area, and the early players in the fledging movie industry flocked to Southern California to make movies. By 1912, there were 15 movie studios situated in Hollywood.
Between 1915 and 1920, many independent film studios started operation, and after a few cutthroat years, many of the small film companies merged to create many of the big studio names we recognize today.
Hollywoodland Is Built
Hollywood's rapid growth was fueled by the astronomical growth of its film industry and the 40 million Americans who went to the movies each week. The region also owes its existence to the Owen's Valley Aqueduct and its designer, the famous William Mullholland, head engineer of the Municipal Water Authority, who ensured that the water would continue to flow into the City of Hollywood and the Los Angeles basin.
The Los Angeles Times publisher, Harry Chandler, began to use his wealth to invest into real estate developments. In 1923, he built a development in Hollywood called Hollywoodland. In order to promote his new housing subdivision, Chandler built a sign on the side of Mount Lee in the Hollywood Hills, which read HOLLYWOODLAND, at a cost of $21,000. Even today, $21 thousand is a lot of money, but back then it was a huge amount of money.
Each of the 13 original letters of this billboard was 30-feet wide by 50-feet high. The original sign was lighted by 4,000 20-watt light bulbs, and there was a dot at the end of the word, as if the word was punctuated by a period. During the Roaring Twenties, the night sky of Hollywood was first lit by the word "HOLLY", then "WOOD", then "LAND", and punctuated by the period. Then the lighting sequence would repeat itself.
When it was originally built, the HOLLYWOODLAND sign was only intended to remain on Mount Lee for 18 months.
Ownership Transferred To The City of Hollywood
After the Roaring Twenties crashed with the stock market, the Great Depression, and the United States' entry into World War II, the Hollywoodland real estate development went bankrupt. The Hollywoodland sign that went without maintenance for most of the years of the Great Depression quietly passed its ownership to the City of Hollywood in 1944.
In 1949, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce came to the rescue of the sign. It repaired the "H" that had toppled over, removed the "LAND" and its period from the site, and restored the billboard to its current glory in the form we now know it to be.
The "Weed" Generation
During the 1960's and 1970's, the Hollywood sign nearly came to an ugly end once again.
The late 1940's and 1950's took a toll on Hollywood, as many of Hollywood's top film stars were blacklisted during the McCarthy Era. During the 1960's, many of the film studios moved operations to the San Fernando Valley. By 1970, Paramount Studios was the only major film company to still call Hollywood home.
The exodus of the film studios from Hollywood left the city in a state of decay and depression. The city simply could not afford the upkeep on its iconic sign, and the weather began to take its toll on the billboard known around the world.
In 1973, the City of Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Board got the sign declared as an official historical landmark. But this declaration did not slow the destruction of the sign.
During the 1970's, the "D" and the third "O" collapsed and fell down the mountain. Shortly thereafter, an arsonist set the second "L" on fire. Then protesters, who wanted California to loosen their marijuana laws, changed the second and third "O" to an "e". In an evening, "HOLLYWOOD" was transformed into "HOLLYWeeD".
The sign was changed one more time, in 1987, this time for the visit of Pope John Paul II. As a temporary salute to the Pope, the sign was changed for the Pope's visit to read, "HOLYWOOD".
The Revival Years
During the late 1970's, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce set out to restore the sign once again. During the exploratory period of this potential restoration, it was determined that it would take one quarter million dollars to restore the sign to its original pristine form.
Facing a seemingly insurmountable challenge, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce wondered how they would be able to raise the money. Then some of the biggest names in entertainment came to the rescue of the sign.
The rock band Fleetwood Mac started things off by offering a benefit concert. But, Fleetwood Mac was prevented from performing in Hollywood due to local residents stopping the show.
One year later in 1978, Hugh Hefner hosted a gala fundraiser at the Playboy Mansion, and raised the money by auctioning letters for $27,700 per letter. Among the contributors were Glam-Rocker Alice Cooper, singing cowboy Gene Autry, and Andy Williams.
For three months in 1978, the HOLLYWOOD sign was missing from the Los Angeles skyline, while the old sign was torn down and a new sign was built. With 194-tons of concrete, enamel and steel, the sign was reconstructed to survive well into the next century.
Entering The 21st Century
To prevent a repeat of the past, the California Attorney General assigned rights and responsibilities to three government agencies in 1992 for the sign. The City of Los Angeles owns the land where the sign stands. The City of Hollywood owns the licensing rights for the image of the sign. And the Hollywood Sign Trust was assigned to maintain, repair, and perform capital improvements to the sign for the benefit of the public.
In 2000, the Hollywood Sign Trust hired Panasonic to install a state-of-the-art security system, with a large closed circuit, Internet-based surveillance network, which can be monitored 24/7 over the Internet, to protect the sign from vandals and fire. The security system was upgraded again in 2005. Since the security system is Internet-based, anyone on the Internet can watch over the sign 24 hours a day on its live web cam, located at: http://www.hollywoodsign.org/247.html
About the Author:
Morris Timlen maintains the Bronze Plaques Blog, which specializes in the study of the history and style of commercial signs, and the many materials used in architectural lettering, including bronze, plastic, neon, acrylic, aluminum, brass, zinc, stainless steel, wood and glass. If you are in need of commercial signage for your business, please visit Morris's website for more information: http://www.bronzeplaquesblog.com
How You Can Benefit from All The Foreclosures
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2008 Bob Johnston
Foreclosures are at an all time high and people are getting scared. One look at the markets over the last few weeks will tell you the tale. Is it possible that a person could actually prosper in times like these? Are there opportunities in the foreclosure market that we are missing? It is possible; there have been many people who started their fortunes during tough economic times. So what are some ways to go about this and what are some things you should be wary of? Let's take a few minutes and look at some possible ways to enter real estate during an economic downturn. Disclaimer: The following is opinion only and should be followed at your own risk.
Foreclosures
Foreclosures being sold on the courthouse steps are numbering in the thousands. Latest numbers released have the figure of ten thousand foreclosures a day and counting. That is a lot of real estate hitting the market. When these properties are sold at the courthouse through auction you can be assured that, someone from the lending institution will be there to bid up to the amount they are owed on the property. Never doubt that the bank will get at least the principle left owed on a property. The myth is that you can buy homes for pennies on the dollar, which is simply not true.
There are primarily three ways you can purchase a foreclosure; at the auction like detailed above, from the homeowner before the auction or from the lending institution after the foreclosure sale.
Buying From Homeowner
This is by far the preferred avenue for buying distressed property; however, it is likely the hardest. Owners who are bitter and upset probably will not be happy to talk with you about their home. This takes great interpersonal skills and a good amount of empathy. If you can win the confidence of the homeowner and assure them, you are not there to rip them off but to save their credit from further harm you will have an inside track on a potential investment. In addition, you will get the chance to inspect a property when otherwise you might not. Put together a win/win offer, your goal is to get the property with as much instant equity as possible but temper that with a willingness to be fair. There is a middle ground to be had in this situation, one that provides you with a good profit margin and leaves the homeowner with some dignity.
Auction
As stated above many homes are ending up on the courthouse steps for sale by auction. This avenue may render you a property well below appraised or market value. When you go be prepared, have your financing firmly in place, have a predetermined bid cap, and do your homework on the property. There can be hidden costs to a foreclosure and we will discuss these further on. This can be an opportunity but remember other investors are aware of the some opportunity so at this point competition could be stiff.
After the Auction
Lending institutions have to protect their interest in a property. That is why they will attend the auctions and place bids up to their investment amount. Sometimes they end up owning the property. Move quickly and you can still get the property at a fair price.
Buyer Beware
Foreclosed property is an opportunity but for the inexperienced, they can lead to financial problems. It cannot be stressed enough that you must do homework on a property before you buy it. Here are some common pitfalls to purchasing foreclosures:
1) Check for hidden liens on the property, owners probably will not tell you about them and if it is a first loan, the bank does not have to disclose prior liens and they will survive the sale. This will mean you are responsible for paying them off, usually immediately. A full-blown title search can cost big money, however some companies will give you a quick search that yields raw data you must comb through.
2) You may also have to pay past utility bills or IRS liens on the property.
3) A few states allow a grace period for homeowners to buy back their property. This means they must pay the auction price plus a percentage to redeem the property. Be aware of anything like that in your area and the time frame it encompasses before you do extensive remodeling.
4) You may not receive access to the home for inspection before purchasing. This will have to be a judgment call on your part. I would reserve these types of purchases for well-established neighborhoods and keep the price well below comparable property. Know that you could still get burned on this deal, roof or foundation problems not to mention termites will eat away exponentially at your profit.
Financing
If you have excellent credit this may be the time to cash in on it. You could turn a fantastic profit by flipping these homes or by holding them as rentals. Be sure you are prepared for the cost of holding the property in either situation, as it will take time to see cash flow from either alternative.
The best funding source you can use is other people's money. Get all your facts together and pitch your idea to other investors. You may be turned down at first but when you find a good deal someone will recognize it.
Conclusion
Many a fortune has been made in the foreclosure market. If you are savvy and motivated you too could come away with a nice portfolio of real estate or a nice balance in your bank account. Both ways this is a buyer's market, be smart and you can walk away a winner.
About the Author:
Bob Johnston writes for HomeGuide411, a nationwide directory of home-related businesses such as plumbers, contractors, electricians, realtors, landscapers and much more. http://www.homeguide411.com
Copyright © 2008 Bob Johnston
Foreclosures are at an all time high and people are getting scared. One look at the markets over the last few weeks will tell you the tale. Is it possible that a person could actually prosper in times like these? Are there opportunities in the foreclosure market that we are missing? It is possible; there have been many people who started their fortunes during tough economic times. So what are some ways to go about this and what are some things you should be wary of? Let's take a few minutes and look at some possible ways to enter real estate during an economic downturn. Disclaimer: The following is opinion only and should be followed at your own risk.
Foreclosures
Foreclosures being sold on the courthouse steps are numbering in the thousands. Latest numbers released have the figure of ten thousand foreclosures a day and counting. That is a lot of real estate hitting the market. When these properties are sold at the courthouse through auction you can be assured that, someone from the lending institution will be there to bid up to the amount they are owed on the property. Never doubt that the bank will get at least the principle left owed on a property. The myth is that you can buy homes for pennies on the dollar, which is simply not true.
There are primarily three ways you can purchase a foreclosure; at the auction like detailed above, from the homeowner before the auction or from the lending institution after the foreclosure sale.
Buying From Homeowner
This is by far the preferred avenue for buying distressed property; however, it is likely the hardest. Owners who are bitter and upset probably will not be happy to talk with you about their home. This takes great interpersonal skills and a good amount of empathy. If you can win the confidence of the homeowner and assure them, you are not there to rip them off but to save their credit from further harm you will have an inside track on a potential investment. In addition, you will get the chance to inspect a property when otherwise you might not. Put together a win/win offer, your goal is to get the property with as much instant equity as possible but temper that with a willingness to be fair. There is a middle ground to be had in this situation, one that provides you with a good profit margin and leaves the homeowner with some dignity.
Auction
As stated above many homes are ending up on the courthouse steps for sale by auction. This avenue may render you a property well below appraised or market value. When you go be prepared, have your financing firmly in place, have a predetermined bid cap, and do your homework on the property. There can be hidden costs to a foreclosure and we will discuss these further on. This can be an opportunity but remember other investors are aware of the some opportunity so at this point competition could be stiff.
After the Auction
Lending institutions have to protect their interest in a property. That is why they will attend the auctions and place bids up to their investment amount. Sometimes they end up owning the property. Move quickly and you can still get the property at a fair price.
Buyer Beware
Foreclosed property is an opportunity but for the inexperienced, they can lead to financial problems. It cannot be stressed enough that you must do homework on a property before you buy it. Here are some common pitfalls to purchasing foreclosures:
1) Check for hidden liens on the property, owners probably will not tell you about them and if it is a first loan, the bank does not have to disclose prior liens and they will survive the sale. This will mean you are responsible for paying them off, usually immediately. A full-blown title search can cost big money, however some companies will give you a quick search that yields raw data you must comb through.
2) You may also have to pay past utility bills or IRS liens on the property.
3) A few states allow a grace period for homeowners to buy back their property. This means they must pay the auction price plus a percentage to redeem the property. Be aware of anything like that in your area and the time frame it encompasses before you do extensive remodeling.
4) You may not receive access to the home for inspection before purchasing. This will have to be a judgment call on your part. I would reserve these types of purchases for well-established neighborhoods and keep the price well below comparable property. Know that you could still get burned on this deal, roof or foundation problems not to mention termites will eat away exponentially at your profit.
Financing
If you have excellent credit this may be the time to cash in on it. You could turn a fantastic profit by flipping these homes or by holding them as rentals. Be sure you are prepared for the cost of holding the property in either situation, as it will take time to see cash flow from either alternative.
The best funding source you can use is other people's money. Get all your facts together and pitch your idea to other investors. You may be turned down at first but when you find a good deal someone will recognize it.
Conclusion
Many a fortune has been made in the foreclosure market. If you are savvy and motivated you too could come away with a nice portfolio of real estate or a nice balance in your bank account. Both ways this is a buyer's market, be smart and you can walk away a winner.
About the Author:
Bob Johnston writes for HomeGuide411, a nationwide directory of home-related businesses such as plumbers, contractors, electricians, realtors, landscapers and much more. http://www.homeguide411.com
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