Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
Although the most common reason clients come to my company for a new business name is a stern warning letter they've received from a law firm charging trademark infringement, the second most common reason for renaming is that the company has outgrown its original name in some way. If this applies to you, here's how to proceed so you end up with a company name you can live and grow with for many years.
Perhaps you've outgrown your original name geographically. If you were River Valley Plumbing and now your service area extends far beyond River Valley in two directions, that is indeed a valid reason for finding a new name. Just remember that the new name does not also have to be a geographical name. Think about whether there's something you particularly want your company to be known for, such as environmentally friendly supplies or fast emergency service. If so, those can be the themes around which you build your new name.
Or perhaps you've outgrown the specialty indicated in your original company name. For instance, you launched the business as Senior At-Home Care, but now you serve all ages and run errands in addition to providing personal care assistance. Here too, don't assume your new name has to focus on exactly what your company does. Instead, you might look for a name that evokes the benefit of your work - that you eliminate the frustrations of daily life, that you promote independence for frail or disabled people, and so on.
To get started with your renaming, identify the business goals and objectives that you want the new name to meet. Who is the target market? How can you best position yourselves vis-à-vis present and future competitors? What qualities do your ideal customers tend to appreciate most when they find you? Are new clients typically looking for you in the Yellow Pages (where it would be good to be near the beginning of the alphabet), online (where you need a name that's easy to spell and remember), or through word of mouth (where memorability is most important)?
Second, what kind of statement do you want to make about your company? How do you want to be perceived? Would a cute name help or hinder you? Would a practical, matter-of-fact name be better than a humorous, attention-getting one?
Third, brainstorm a couple of dozen possible names. Along with this article, you'll find a link to a free brainstorming guide for company names. Keep the brainstorming going for several days, because each time you come back to your list after being away from it, you'll get additional ideas.
Fourth, go back to the business goals and objectives you identified and use them to screen your list of possible names. Cross off those that are off target, and highlight the ones that get across your desired message best. Select your top three company name candidates.
Last, perform a legal check with the assistance of an attorney to find out whether your top three choices are legally okay. Very often, this step reveals that one or more of the names you were excited about would make you legally vulnerable for one reason or another and have to be eliminated from your list.
Now you're in a position to make a final decision. Make sure the name you choose contains room for further growth, since that's the reason you were looking for a new company name to begin with!
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more Articles written by Marcia Yudkin.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Is Business VoIP For You?
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Nermine Shaker
As with anything new, Voice Over Internet Protocol has gotten a lot of attention. It has been touted as being the wave of the future. It can save money and simplify your business operations. But VoIP isn't for every company. And does it deliver on its promises?
First, what is VoIP? Simply, it's Voice over Internet Protocol Ð using the Internet as a voice phone line and more. Second, why is it becoming so popular, and could your company use it? This answer is much less simple, because there are in fact a great many things that could influence your decision. Ask a business why they use the service and they will cite its features packages, and low costs, and very possibly its reliability. Let's take a look at just some of the reasons this service is used and a few pros and cons.
One reason it's popular has to do with the ease of installation. So long as a business has an Internet connection and computers - and they almost always will - the set up and use of this advanced technology shouldn't be at all difficult. Having regular phone service would mean a company would have to pay for phone lines and all the other lines connected to and within the business. With business VoIP, this is no longer a requirement. Most companies already have a broadband connection, and when using VoIP, they will use their broadband connection without paying the fees for another installed system. This is not always the case, though. When you put voice and data on the same network, it can be a complex situation.
Before you do anything, you have to make sure your infrastructure is up to the task of supporting IP based voice and data. If it isn't, going with VoIP will be a nightmare. If you are seriously thinking about VoIP, your company should do a pre-deployment assessment. If you have older or inadequate infrastructure, you may have to upgrade your network, which might cancel out any savings you might receive.
Another factor to take into consideration is the fact that with switching to VoIP service, your telecom personnel will need to become IT proficient and/or your IT personnel will need to become more familiar with the intricacies of telecom.
Probably the biggest single reason that providers promote for any company to switch over from their typical phone service to VoIP is the lower overall costs. They pitch that while small businesses might have to pay more for their scale than large ones comparatively, business VoIP leaves its predecessors in the dust.
However, these huge cost savings were more common in the initial days of VoIP solutions. Then, the service wasn't as reliable but the cost was much cheaper than traditional phone service. Today, the service offered by VoIP is nearly as good as basic phone service, but the price difference is not nearly as wide. If your company is looking at VoIP as a primary way to cut costs, you should take a hard look at all the costs involved to make sure it's right for you.
One last item that providers publicize about their VoIP service is the customization that was not previously available to them. No matter how big or small a business might be, VoIP providers are almost always willing to work with them on an individual basis, finding them the plan that works best for their size and all of their employees.
VoIP providers are also big fans of the perks companies can get, the number of which has grown hugely in recent years. Providers offer all sorts of things that might cost extra with traditional phone lines, including multi-line services, call waiting, caller ID, call return, call block and more - and with VoIP you can have them all.
It all comes down to figuring out why your company wants VoIP. Switching can be an expensive proposition. Not only in buying or upgrading equipment, but also with re-educating employees and time spent making the system work correctly. It has great potential and will provide some advantages to nearly any company, but not everyone should make the switch.
To truly take advantage of VoIP and the multimedia applications that come with it, your workforce should be distributed with branch offices or satellite offices, telecommuters and personnel out in the field.
As you can see, there are reasons for a company to consider getting rid of landlines in favor of VoIP phones. There are also reasons not to. With an economy where companies are looking to cut corners, it's not surprising that they are looking at switching to VoIP. VoIP can be a great thing, but it might not be a great thing for your company.
The reality is that if your organization is thinking about making the switch to VoIP, you should do your homework. You should know why you are switching and make sure to get a detailed costs/benefits analysis before making your decision.
About the Author:
Nermine Shaker is a Partner at THE SYGNAL GROUP, a telecom consulting firm that offers telecom expense management, telecom auditing and VoIP management to businesses of all sizes. Find out how to lower your telecom expenses at http://www.SygnalGroup.com/ or visit our blog at http://www.TelecomExpertise.com/
Read more Articles written by Nermine Shaker.
Copyright © 2009 Nermine Shaker
As with anything new, Voice Over Internet Protocol has gotten a lot of attention. It has been touted as being the wave of the future. It can save money and simplify your business operations. But VoIP isn't for every company. And does it deliver on its promises?
First, what is VoIP? Simply, it's Voice over Internet Protocol Ð using the Internet as a voice phone line and more. Second, why is it becoming so popular, and could your company use it? This answer is much less simple, because there are in fact a great many things that could influence your decision. Ask a business why they use the service and they will cite its features packages, and low costs, and very possibly its reliability. Let's take a look at just some of the reasons this service is used and a few pros and cons.
One reason it's popular has to do with the ease of installation. So long as a business has an Internet connection and computers - and they almost always will - the set up and use of this advanced technology shouldn't be at all difficult. Having regular phone service would mean a company would have to pay for phone lines and all the other lines connected to and within the business. With business VoIP, this is no longer a requirement. Most companies already have a broadband connection, and when using VoIP, they will use their broadband connection without paying the fees for another installed system. This is not always the case, though. When you put voice and data on the same network, it can be a complex situation.
Before you do anything, you have to make sure your infrastructure is up to the task of supporting IP based voice and data. If it isn't, going with VoIP will be a nightmare. If you are seriously thinking about VoIP, your company should do a pre-deployment assessment. If you have older or inadequate infrastructure, you may have to upgrade your network, which might cancel out any savings you might receive.
Another factor to take into consideration is the fact that with switching to VoIP service, your telecom personnel will need to become IT proficient and/or your IT personnel will need to become more familiar with the intricacies of telecom.
Probably the biggest single reason that providers promote for any company to switch over from their typical phone service to VoIP is the lower overall costs. They pitch that while small businesses might have to pay more for their scale than large ones comparatively, business VoIP leaves its predecessors in the dust.
However, these huge cost savings were more common in the initial days of VoIP solutions. Then, the service wasn't as reliable but the cost was much cheaper than traditional phone service. Today, the service offered by VoIP is nearly as good as basic phone service, but the price difference is not nearly as wide. If your company is looking at VoIP as a primary way to cut costs, you should take a hard look at all the costs involved to make sure it's right for you.
One last item that providers publicize about their VoIP service is the customization that was not previously available to them. No matter how big or small a business might be, VoIP providers are almost always willing to work with them on an individual basis, finding them the plan that works best for their size and all of their employees.
VoIP providers are also big fans of the perks companies can get, the number of which has grown hugely in recent years. Providers offer all sorts of things that might cost extra with traditional phone lines, including multi-line services, call waiting, caller ID, call return, call block and more - and with VoIP you can have them all.
It all comes down to figuring out why your company wants VoIP. Switching can be an expensive proposition. Not only in buying or upgrading equipment, but also with re-educating employees and time spent making the system work correctly. It has great potential and will provide some advantages to nearly any company, but not everyone should make the switch.
To truly take advantage of VoIP and the multimedia applications that come with it, your workforce should be distributed with branch offices or satellite offices, telecommuters and personnel out in the field.
As you can see, there are reasons for a company to consider getting rid of landlines in favor of VoIP phones. There are also reasons not to. With an economy where companies are looking to cut corners, it's not surprising that they are looking at switching to VoIP. VoIP can be a great thing, but it might not be a great thing for your company.
The reality is that if your organization is thinking about making the switch to VoIP, you should do your homework. You should know why you are switching and make sure to get a detailed costs/benefits analysis before making your decision.
About the Author:
Nermine Shaker is a Partner at THE SYGNAL GROUP, a telecom consulting firm that offers telecom expense management, telecom auditing and VoIP management to businesses of all sizes. Find out how to lower your telecom expenses at http://www.SygnalGroup.com/ or visit our blog at http://www.TelecomExpertise.com/
Read more Articles written by Nermine Shaker.
New Search Engines - Can Anyone Beat Google?
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins
Can any new search engine beat Google, probably not, mainly because Google isn't going anywhere but up. It is the dominant search engine with around 72 percent of U.S. online searches and its percentages are much higher in other parts of the world. (Source: Hitwise) However, there are some serious new competitors that may just take a bite out of Google's rosy search numbers. Never know, one or several of them, may just give Google a run for those all important search engine dollars.
Recently, there has been a whole army of new search engines debuting on the web. If you're a full-time online marketer like me, you really have to keep your eyes open to what is happening on the web, especially relating to search engines which deliver most of your quality traffic. Also keep in mind, this piece may be fairly biased since Google is directly or indirectly responsible for around 80% of my online revenue, so any opinions may be slanted in Google's favor, not that they need any favors from me or anyone.
But as an online marketer you have to try to remain objective and examine all angles in regards to these new search engines. Despite this, in marketing and webmaster circles, everyone will know even if you have the number one ranking for a certain keyword in all three major engines Google, Yahoo! and MSN - Google supplies the most traffic, hands down.
Despite its obvious dominance, Google is still basically the new kid on the block. We have to remember, there have been many search engines before Google and there will be many more search engines after Google. Every entity has its day and then hands the torch along to whatever comes next. It's one of those subtle facts of life we all learn eventually.
Everybody has their day - empires, countries, leaders, companies... or even search engines. Are Google's days as top dog really numbered? Probably not in the immediate future, but there are some new kids on the block that could definitely kick some sand in the face of Google and stir things up, we might even see a few serious squabbles here and there.
In a recent article on CNN, by John D. Sutter, entitled "New Search Engines Aspire To Supplement Google" the author examines some recent new search engines. The author discusses: Twine, Hakia, Searchme, Cuil, Kosmix, Wolfram Alpha, Topsy, TweetMeme and OneRiot. Each of these are different, making your web search more personal, more visual, or connecting your search to new social networks like FaceBook and Twitter.
Some experts say Wolfram Alpha is the most likely candidate to give Google some serious competition because Wolfram can do something Google can't; it can create information rather than just reading/presenting content already on the web. Will it present a solid threat to Google's dominance?
Perhaps, a more fitting sparring partner will come from an old rival with very deep, deep pockets. We are talking about the new search engine from Microsoft called Bing, which is very similar to Google in many ways, yet different. Bing's results are very similar to Google in a lot of ways, yet Bing serves up the results in a very pleasing arrangement, with a nice preview button for each listing and giving you related searches and your search history on the left hand side. Only time will tell if everyone would rather be binging instead of googling. To Bing or not to Bing, that is the question? There's a very informative article on Bing by Farhad Manjoo on Slate entitled: "Beware Google: Microsoft's New Search Engine Isn't Half-bad." Just Bing or Google to find it!
I personally like this search engine much better than MSN mainly because the home page of Bing is very appealing and only has the search box on it so you're not distracted with other news listings like on MSN and Yahoo! One of the main reasons for Google's success, besides the superior search results, has been its simplicity. Keep it simple and you may just be able to compete.
Then again, this is a bit of a biased judgment, since many of my own keywords and sites rank high in Bing; some even higher than they are listed in Google. I routinely monitor countless keyword phrases in all the search engines and lately Google has been favoring big Brand Name listings on their first page results. We are also seeing more Product Listings (Old Froogle), more video and more news listings... competition for Google's first page has become multi-layered and extremely competitive. What's a poor small online marketer to do when Google goes corporate?
Actually, Bing is not my favorite search engine of the new ones forcing their way into the spotlight.
For me, the one that shows the most promise and may give Google some competition is Searchme, which is a visual search (much like the iTunes interface) where you can shuffle through screenshots of webpages instead of a list of links. Searchme, which touts itself as the first multimedia search engine, has been around for a few years but is not widely known to web users. Performing a search on Searchme with a 24 inch monitor and 64-bit Windows is a hundred times more enjoyable than using Google Search or Bing for that matter. It is a hundred times faster than Google mainly because you can generally find your information without clicking through to the sites displayed.
Searchme is truly an eye opener but can it give Google some serious competition. The jury is still out, but I believe over time as web users upgrade their computers, operating systems, and their graphics... Searchme will be more accessible to more web users. Never know, with the right backing and marketing, any of these search engines, especially Searchme and Bing could blossom into a formidable opponent even for the mighty Google.
Here's why: Human Nature!
Whether we admit it or not, most of us (Humans) are lazy, we want the fastest and easiest route to solving any question or problem. Searchme gives us the answer much quicker than Google and in a much nicer way. Mainly because we are also visual creatures, given the choice between receiving pages of text and viewing images of sites/answers, most of us will take the visual route - we will choose TV over radio, music videos over records... video enhanced content over just plain static HTML. As the web turns into more of an interactive multimedia operation; visual search will always win out over text search any day of the year.
Most humans also have a need for speed, in our fast paced life styles, we all want a speedy solution to our problems. Search is no different, we want quick answers now, we want instant solutions and immediate gratification. Nature of the beast. If Searchme, Bing or any of the other search engines becomes faster than Google at giving the right answer, then it's a whole new ballgame.
Google must obviously know there are challenges to its search engine dominance. Otherwise, why would they be offering many new features in their SERPs; we are seeing more images and videos. Plus, Google has just introduced the "show options" link at the top of their SERPs, which presents their search results in many different ways. They even have introduced the "Wonder Wheel" as another viewing option, which gives a whole new way of using Google's search results.
Google's Achilles' Heel may just be the thing that gives it all its revenue: text ads. There may be a backlash on all those Google ads littered across the web, especially among the younger computer savvy crowd using such sites like the Google owned YouTube, where Google has nearly obliterated the videos with its ads. Everyone dislikes advertising, no matter what form it takes.
However, any news of Google's demise will be greatly exaggerated, because Google, like any smart company with tons of resources, has kept morphing and changing with the times, quickly adapting to new features as our usage of the web keeps changing. Google has perfected the art of staying one step ahead of the competition. This is one champion that won't go down without a fight to the finish. Top dogs rarely do.
If they ever present a serious challenge to Google, Searchme, Bing or any of the above search engines, will have a formidable opponent in the opposing corner, one that has gained almost insurmountable prestige and brand recognition around the world. Any major battle will instantly have a "David vs Goliath" scenario attached to it. And we all know how that one played out!
About the Author:
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous niche sites. These 10 SEO Tactics Bring Me Over 2000 Visitors Daily: SEO Tips. To learn more Internet Marketing Tactics try: Marketing Tools. Copyright (c) 2009 Titus Hoskins. http://www.bizwaremagic.com This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.
Read more Articles written by Titus Hoskins.
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins
Can any new search engine beat Google, probably not, mainly because Google isn't going anywhere but up. It is the dominant search engine with around 72 percent of U.S. online searches and its percentages are much higher in other parts of the world. (Source: Hitwise) However, there are some serious new competitors that may just take a bite out of Google's rosy search numbers. Never know, one or several of them, may just give Google a run for those all important search engine dollars.
Recently, there has been a whole army of new search engines debuting on the web. If you're a full-time online marketer like me, you really have to keep your eyes open to what is happening on the web, especially relating to search engines which deliver most of your quality traffic. Also keep in mind, this piece may be fairly biased since Google is directly or indirectly responsible for around 80% of my online revenue, so any opinions may be slanted in Google's favor, not that they need any favors from me or anyone.
But as an online marketer you have to try to remain objective and examine all angles in regards to these new search engines. Despite this, in marketing and webmaster circles, everyone will know even if you have the number one ranking for a certain keyword in all three major engines Google, Yahoo! and MSN - Google supplies the most traffic, hands down.
Despite its obvious dominance, Google is still basically the new kid on the block. We have to remember, there have been many search engines before Google and there will be many more search engines after Google. Every entity has its day and then hands the torch along to whatever comes next. It's one of those subtle facts of life we all learn eventually.
Everybody has their day - empires, countries, leaders, companies... or even search engines. Are Google's days as top dog really numbered? Probably not in the immediate future, but there are some new kids on the block that could definitely kick some sand in the face of Google and stir things up, we might even see a few serious squabbles here and there.
In a recent article on CNN, by John D. Sutter, entitled "New Search Engines Aspire To Supplement Google" the author examines some recent new search engines. The author discusses: Twine, Hakia, Searchme, Cuil, Kosmix, Wolfram Alpha, Topsy, TweetMeme and OneRiot. Each of these are different, making your web search more personal, more visual, or connecting your search to new social networks like FaceBook and Twitter.
Some experts say Wolfram Alpha is the most likely candidate to give Google some serious competition because Wolfram can do something Google can't; it can create information rather than just reading/presenting content already on the web. Will it present a solid threat to Google's dominance?
Perhaps, a more fitting sparring partner will come from an old rival with very deep, deep pockets. We are talking about the new search engine from Microsoft called Bing, which is very similar to Google in many ways, yet different. Bing's results are very similar to Google in a lot of ways, yet Bing serves up the results in a very pleasing arrangement, with a nice preview button for each listing and giving you related searches and your search history on the left hand side. Only time will tell if everyone would rather be binging instead of googling. To Bing or not to Bing, that is the question? There's a very informative article on Bing by Farhad Manjoo on Slate entitled: "Beware Google: Microsoft's New Search Engine Isn't Half-bad." Just Bing or Google to find it!
I personally like this search engine much better than MSN mainly because the home page of Bing is very appealing and only has the search box on it so you're not distracted with other news listings like on MSN and Yahoo! One of the main reasons for Google's success, besides the superior search results, has been its simplicity. Keep it simple and you may just be able to compete.
Then again, this is a bit of a biased judgment, since many of my own keywords and sites rank high in Bing; some even higher than they are listed in Google. I routinely monitor countless keyword phrases in all the search engines and lately Google has been favoring big Brand Name listings on their first page results. We are also seeing more Product Listings (Old Froogle), more video and more news listings... competition for Google's first page has become multi-layered and extremely competitive. What's a poor small online marketer to do when Google goes corporate?
Actually, Bing is not my favorite search engine of the new ones forcing their way into the spotlight.
For me, the one that shows the most promise and may give Google some competition is Searchme, which is a visual search (much like the iTunes interface) where you can shuffle through screenshots of webpages instead of a list of links. Searchme, which touts itself as the first multimedia search engine, has been around for a few years but is not widely known to web users. Performing a search on Searchme with a 24 inch monitor and 64-bit Windows is a hundred times more enjoyable than using Google Search or Bing for that matter. It is a hundred times faster than Google mainly because you can generally find your information without clicking through to the sites displayed.
Searchme is truly an eye opener but can it give Google some serious competition. The jury is still out, but I believe over time as web users upgrade their computers, operating systems, and their graphics... Searchme will be more accessible to more web users. Never know, with the right backing and marketing, any of these search engines, especially Searchme and Bing could blossom into a formidable opponent even for the mighty Google.
Here's why: Human Nature!
Whether we admit it or not, most of us (Humans) are lazy, we want the fastest and easiest route to solving any question or problem. Searchme gives us the answer much quicker than Google and in a much nicer way. Mainly because we are also visual creatures, given the choice between receiving pages of text and viewing images of sites/answers, most of us will take the visual route - we will choose TV over radio, music videos over records... video enhanced content over just plain static HTML. As the web turns into more of an interactive multimedia operation; visual search will always win out over text search any day of the year.
Most humans also have a need for speed, in our fast paced life styles, we all want a speedy solution to our problems. Search is no different, we want quick answers now, we want instant solutions and immediate gratification. Nature of the beast. If Searchme, Bing or any of the other search engines becomes faster than Google at giving the right answer, then it's a whole new ballgame.
Google must obviously know there are challenges to its search engine dominance. Otherwise, why would they be offering many new features in their SERPs; we are seeing more images and videos. Plus, Google has just introduced the "show options" link at the top of their SERPs, which presents their search results in many different ways. They even have introduced the "Wonder Wheel" as another viewing option, which gives a whole new way of using Google's search results.
Google's Achilles' Heel may just be the thing that gives it all its revenue: text ads. There may be a backlash on all those Google ads littered across the web, especially among the younger computer savvy crowd using such sites like the Google owned YouTube, where Google has nearly obliterated the videos with its ads. Everyone dislikes advertising, no matter what form it takes.
However, any news of Google's demise will be greatly exaggerated, because Google, like any smart company with tons of resources, has kept morphing and changing with the times, quickly adapting to new features as our usage of the web keeps changing. Google has perfected the art of staying one step ahead of the competition. This is one champion that won't go down without a fight to the finish. Top dogs rarely do.
If they ever present a serious challenge to Google, Searchme, Bing or any of the above search engines, will have a formidable opponent in the opposing corner, one that has gained almost insurmountable prestige and brand recognition around the world. Any major battle will instantly have a "David vs Goliath" scenario attached to it. And we all know how that one played out!
About the Author:
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous niche sites. These 10 SEO Tactics Bring Me Over 2000 Visitors Daily: SEO Tips. To learn more Internet Marketing Tactics try: Marketing Tools. Copyright (c) 2009 Titus Hoskins. http://www.bizwaremagic.com This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.
Read more Articles written by Titus Hoskins.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Has Your Company Name Landed You in Legal Hot Water? Renaming Tips
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
The #1 reason business owners hire my company to create a new business name within a week is they've received a cease-and-desist letter from an attorney. Often sent by certified mail, this legal document informs you that you are infringing on the registered trademark of another company, and if you do not stop using your company name after a specific date, you will be the target of legal action. I.e., you will be sued.
Such a letter means business. Never ignore it! It requires prompt action on your part.
In most cases, deciding to fight the case is foolhardy. It's best to acquiesce and look for a new company name. Here are the steps you should take.
First, read the letter carefully to determine what was objectionable about the name you have been using. For example, if they objected to you using a certain prefix or suffix, or a rhyme of their name, you'll need to make sure that factor is high on your list of criteria for the new name. Although this sounds obvious, I've seen entrepreneurs get so angry or upset about the demand to change their name that they don't proceed rationally in selecting its replacement.
Second, identify the business goals and objectives that you want the new name to meet. Who is the target market? What kind of statement do you want to make about your company? How do you want to be perceived? Should the name be cute or sedate? Trendy or conservative? Emotional or matter-of-fact?
Third, brainstorm possible names. Along with this article, you'll find a link to a free brainstorming guide for company names. Also see if you can remember or find notes on the runner-up names you considered just before you decided on the name you now have to discard. Sometimes it helps to look at lists of companies in your industry to trigger memories of important keywords or naming approaches you like and dislike.
Fourth, use the business goals and objectives you identified in Step 2 to reject names that will not work. Be ruthless in eliminating names you may like but that do not get across the proper message, don't fit your desired image or might not be understood by customers. From the names that remain, select your top three candidates.
Fifth - and please don't hate me for this! - hire an attorney to check out your top three name candidates to make sure they are legally in the clear. After all, this is the step you probably skipped the first time around. One entrepreneur I know failed to do this and had to change his company twice in one year, which made him look extremely careless.
And last, take the time to live with your top choice for a few days before finalizing it. Imagine saying it on the phone, at business meetings, seeing it on signage and so on. Is it a name you feel completely good about? If so, you're done. Congratulations! If not, repeat some of the previous steps as necessary.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Marcia Yudkin
The #1 reason business owners hire my company to create a new business name within a week is they've received a cease-and-desist letter from an attorney. Often sent by certified mail, this legal document informs you that you are infringing on the registered trademark of another company, and if you do not stop using your company name after a specific date, you will be the target of legal action. I.e., you will be sued.
Such a letter means business. Never ignore it! It requires prompt action on your part.
In most cases, deciding to fight the case is foolhardy. It's best to acquiesce and look for a new company name. Here are the steps you should take.
First, read the letter carefully to determine what was objectionable about the name you have been using. For example, if they objected to you using a certain prefix or suffix, or a rhyme of their name, you'll need to make sure that factor is high on your list of criteria for the new name. Although this sounds obvious, I've seen entrepreneurs get so angry or upset about the demand to change their name that they don't proceed rationally in selecting its replacement.
Second, identify the business goals and objectives that you want the new name to meet. Who is the target market? What kind of statement do you want to make about your company? How do you want to be perceived? Should the name be cute or sedate? Trendy or conservative? Emotional or matter-of-fact?
Third, brainstorm possible names. Along with this article, you'll find a link to a free brainstorming guide for company names. Also see if you can remember or find notes on the runner-up names you considered just before you decided on the name you now have to discard. Sometimes it helps to look at lists of companies in your industry to trigger memories of important keywords or naming approaches you like and dislike.
Fourth, use the business goals and objectives you identified in Step 2 to reject names that will not work. Be ruthless in eliminating names you may like but that do not get across the proper message, don't fit your desired image or might not be understood by customers. From the names that remain, select your top three candidates.
Fifth - and please don't hate me for this! - hire an attorney to check out your top three name candidates to make sure they are legally in the clear. After all, this is the step you probably skipped the first time around. One entrepreneur I know failed to do this and had to change his company twice in one year, which made him look extremely careless.
And last, take the time to live with your top choice for a few days before finalizing it. Imagine saying it on the phone, at business meetings, seeing it on signage and so on. Is it a name you feel completely good about? If so, you're done. Congratulations! If not, repeat some of the previous steps as necessary.
About the Author:
Marcia Yudkin is Head Stork of Named At Last, a company that brainstorms creative business names, product names and tag lines for clients. For a systematic process of coming up with an appealing and effective name or tag line, download a free copy of "19 Steps to the Perfect Company Name, Product Name or Tag Line" at http://www.namedatlast.com/19steps.htm
Read more of Marcia Yudkin's articles.
Expired Domains with Traffic - Buying Tips
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 John Khu
Buying an expired domain with inbuilt traffic could be a risky proposition. Spending your hard-earned money on an expired domain without any meaningful incoming traffic could also be a big wastage of money. Once you decide that you want to invest your money in buying an expired domain with traffic, you will need to be very careful in selecting a domain that assuredly contains incoming traffic. You may face a number of risks and challenges while selecting and buying a domain expired with supposedly full of incoming links and traffic.
Most of the sellers who sell their traffic enriched domains by providing a number of screen shots or an excel sheet containing the traffic statistics or even a detailed spreadsheet containing details about the traffic. Some intelligent domain sellers even provide a link to a parking account for you to check the detail of the traffic. The main purpose of these actions is to provide you guarantee that the domains-expired you are going to buy indeed contains lot of traffic.
However, there are two important issues here that you must pay your attention before buying that domain name:
a) You will ensure that the statistics provided by the seller are not fictitious.
b) You will also need to confirm whether the statistics provided are sustainable over longer durations
Some domain traders advertise their domains to generate some amount of traffic. Once they ascertain that traffic is coming to the domain, they will sell off the domain at a very high price. Soon after receiving the money from the buyer, they will stop the domain promotion program to save their money on advertisement. This may eventually lead to loss of traffic and a situation where the domain may even start losing its earlier traffic.
These domains are actually useless as the incoming traffic is just momentary and non-organic.
Never ever, fall in to this kind of trap! Never buy those expired domains that their original owner manipulated just for the sake of getting an inflated price. The traffic that comes with these kinds of domains is never sustainable and you will be paying for the traffic hype surrounding the domain. Here are some basic rules of buying traffic rich expired domain names:
i) When the domain seller has integrity then the statistics provided by him or her will also be right.
ii) Never ever, feel that the deal is very good. Do not jump into the conclusion that you will be losing your money if you do not buy that domain. You may be burning your fingers in the process.
iii) Trust your intuition and instinct. If you have doubts about their numbers, ask the seller for all possible details. Confirm that they are not promoting the domains just for the sale of selling them.
You may never be sure of what you are buying in the guise of an expired domain with lot of incoming traffic. When you are careful, you can easily buy a very good domain that actually contains real type of traffic.
About the Author:
John Khu is an author and also a seasoned professional with vast experience in expired domain name business. He is also the owner of the path breaking web sites called http://www.expireddomainsecret.com and http://www.expireddomaingains.com which provides complete and up-to-date information on expired domains and their eternal secrets.
Read more articles.
Copyright © 2009 John Khu
Buying an expired domain with inbuilt traffic could be a risky proposition. Spending your hard-earned money on an expired domain without any meaningful incoming traffic could also be a big wastage of money. Once you decide that you want to invest your money in buying an expired domain with traffic, you will need to be very careful in selecting a domain that assuredly contains incoming traffic. You may face a number of risks and challenges while selecting and buying a domain expired with supposedly full of incoming links and traffic.
Most of the sellers who sell their traffic enriched domains by providing a number of screen shots or an excel sheet containing the traffic statistics or even a detailed spreadsheet containing details about the traffic. Some intelligent domain sellers even provide a link to a parking account for you to check the detail of the traffic. The main purpose of these actions is to provide you guarantee that the domains-expired you are going to buy indeed contains lot of traffic.
However, there are two important issues here that you must pay your attention before buying that domain name:
a) You will ensure that the statistics provided by the seller are not fictitious.
b) You will also need to confirm whether the statistics provided are sustainable over longer durations
Some domain traders advertise their domains to generate some amount of traffic. Once they ascertain that traffic is coming to the domain, they will sell off the domain at a very high price. Soon after receiving the money from the buyer, they will stop the domain promotion program to save their money on advertisement. This may eventually lead to loss of traffic and a situation where the domain may even start losing its earlier traffic.
These domains are actually useless as the incoming traffic is just momentary and non-organic.
Never ever, fall in to this kind of trap! Never buy those expired domains that their original owner manipulated just for the sake of getting an inflated price. The traffic that comes with these kinds of domains is never sustainable and you will be paying for the traffic hype surrounding the domain. Here are some basic rules of buying traffic rich expired domain names:
i) When the domain seller has integrity then the statistics provided by him or her will also be right.
ii) Never ever, feel that the deal is very good. Do not jump into the conclusion that you will be losing your money if you do not buy that domain. You may be burning your fingers in the process.
iii) Trust your intuition and instinct. If you have doubts about their numbers, ask the seller for all possible details. Confirm that they are not promoting the domains just for the sale of selling them.
You may never be sure of what you are buying in the guise of an expired domain with lot of incoming traffic. When you are careful, you can easily buy a very good domain that actually contains real type of traffic.
About the Author:
John Khu is an author and also a seasoned professional with vast experience in expired domain name business. He is also the owner of the path breaking web sites called http://www.expireddomainsecret.com and http://www.expireddomaingains.com which provides complete and up-to-date information on expired domains and their eternal secrets.
Read more articles.
Protection of Your Hard-Earned Retirement
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Irene A. Majchrzak
Many articles discuss debt, what it is, how to get out and stay out, how to learn to spend cash instead of using credit cards and how to give up the bad debt habits developed over a lifetime. More articles discuss your retirement accounts, what the mutual funds really look like internally, how to choose investments based on your tolerance for risk and different strategies for investing in today's economy.
What is only lightly touched on is protection of your lifestyle today and in Retirement. In the recent past, one year ago, I would have recommended today's protection begin with a cash reserve of 3-6 months of cash to carry your debts of mortgage, taxes, utility bills, food, and gas for your car. Added up this amount may total $10,000. The economy may be coming back or it may be a bubble that could burst into a new down market or bear market therefore, saving in a cash reserve today doubles the amount of money you need to protect your lifestyle for 6-9 months.
Obviously, if you don't have a cash reserve trying to get thousands of dollars into a cash reserve fund may be really difficult. In financial planning programs, I usually encourage my clients to consider 60 months of saving to come up with the money. Does not having the time to save mean you should not start to save? Absolutely not! Primarily, because you may not lose your job or have emergency expenses that will drain your savings.
You need to start somewhere to protect your lifestyle. So while you are paying down any credit card debt try to save some money in a bank account. Increase the savings as your debt decreases always keeping in mind that purchases must be managed as well to keep from being overburdened again, with debt. If necessary save some money into another account for those items you feel are essential to buy.
This is also a good time to review your life insurance or disability insurance available through your employer. You are probably aware of your health insurance benefits and may not have decided to take advantage of the insurance opportunities that are yours for very little money through your employer. Talk to your Human Resources department or your benefit manager to find out what your costs are, what coverage you will have and the possibility of covering your spouse and children. Protection of your lifestyle depends on making sure you will not go into debt through the use of credit cards to manage your bills while you are unable to work.
If you are retired or soon to be retired, you may want to evaluate your benefit package to see how it is impacted once you are retired. Start with your health insurance. Medicare does not become available until you are 65. You will need to have coverage until then. Check with your employer based program. Understand the benefits and consider changing your health benefits to two single plans instead of a family plan as long as there are no dependents. College-age students may benefit from their School Health Plan and save you money as well.
Once you quit working disability benefits, through your employer, may not be necessary. Private plans may give you coverage until age 65. If you are considering working a part-time job, consulting, etc. you may want to call your agent and discuss continuing your plan. Understand exactly what your coverage will be, when it will start, how much you will receive and the taxable nature of your coverage.
For all of you looking to protect your lifestyle in retirement reviewing your life insurance and discussing long-term care insurance with an advisor would be very beneficial. Make sure any term life insurance held by your employer will still be a benefit for you after retirement. It usually decreases and becomes a nominal amount of coverage. Know it ahead of time. Make sure the amount will cover any existing debt, mortgage included.
Long Term Care is nursing home coverage. Do not confuse this with the health care benefit of coverage for acute illnesses, often found in many health insurance benefits. Few companies include this new benefit for their employees, You will need to purchase these plans, privately. Many people feel that the expense for nursing home coverage is way too expensive. Unless you are on Medicaid, you could lose your home, your social security benefits, your pension and your income from annuities and retirement funds without Long Term Care Coverage. Protection of your lifestyle for yourself and your family are most important.
There are Long Term Care benefits available through many agents and insurance companies. The New York State Partnership is one plan to consider because it initially, covers your admission to nursing homes, assisted living programs and many begin with home care coverage. The most important part of these plans is to make sure that the decisions for coverage begin with your doctor and not with the insurance company or their case managers. Nursing home costs today in our area average about $60-75,000 per year. Policies covering these costs usually include a 5% cost of living increase to keep pace with the growing inflationary costs of coverage.
About the Author:
Irene A. Majchrzak helps people retire debt-free with a sense of well-being and the freedom to have the things they want. Get her free ebook, Debt Free to Retire, by going to http://debtfreetoretire.com
Read more of Irene A. Majchrzak's articles.
Copyright © 2009 Irene A. Majchrzak
Many articles discuss debt, what it is, how to get out and stay out, how to learn to spend cash instead of using credit cards and how to give up the bad debt habits developed over a lifetime. More articles discuss your retirement accounts, what the mutual funds really look like internally, how to choose investments based on your tolerance for risk and different strategies for investing in today's economy.
What is only lightly touched on is protection of your lifestyle today and in Retirement. In the recent past, one year ago, I would have recommended today's protection begin with a cash reserve of 3-6 months of cash to carry your debts of mortgage, taxes, utility bills, food, and gas for your car. Added up this amount may total $10,000. The economy may be coming back or it may be a bubble that could burst into a new down market or bear market therefore, saving in a cash reserve today doubles the amount of money you need to protect your lifestyle for 6-9 months.
Obviously, if you don't have a cash reserve trying to get thousands of dollars into a cash reserve fund may be really difficult. In financial planning programs, I usually encourage my clients to consider 60 months of saving to come up with the money. Does not having the time to save mean you should not start to save? Absolutely not! Primarily, because you may not lose your job or have emergency expenses that will drain your savings.
You need to start somewhere to protect your lifestyle. So while you are paying down any credit card debt try to save some money in a bank account. Increase the savings as your debt decreases always keeping in mind that purchases must be managed as well to keep from being overburdened again, with debt. If necessary save some money into another account for those items you feel are essential to buy.
This is also a good time to review your life insurance or disability insurance available through your employer. You are probably aware of your health insurance benefits and may not have decided to take advantage of the insurance opportunities that are yours for very little money through your employer. Talk to your Human Resources department or your benefit manager to find out what your costs are, what coverage you will have and the possibility of covering your spouse and children. Protection of your lifestyle depends on making sure you will not go into debt through the use of credit cards to manage your bills while you are unable to work.
If you are retired or soon to be retired, you may want to evaluate your benefit package to see how it is impacted once you are retired. Start with your health insurance. Medicare does not become available until you are 65. You will need to have coverage until then. Check with your employer based program. Understand the benefits and consider changing your health benefits to two single plans instead of a family plan as long as there are no dependents. College-age students may benefit from their School Health Plan and save you money as well.
Once you quit working disability benefits, through your employer, may not be necessary. Private plans may give you coverage until age 65. If you are considering working a part-time job, consulting, etc. you may want to call your agent and discuss continuing your plan. Understand exactly what your coverage will be, when it will start, how much you will receive and the taxable nature of your coverage.
For all of you looking to protect your lifestyle in retirement reviewing your life insurance and discussing long-term care insurance with an advisor would be very beneficial. Make sure any term life insurance held by your employer will still be a benefit for you after retirement. It usually decreases and becomes a nominal amount of coverage. Know it ahead of time. Make sure the amount will cover any existing debt, mortgage included.
Long Term Care is nursing home coverage. Do not confuse this with the health care benefit of coverage for acute illnesses, often found in many health insurance benefits. Few companies include this new benefit for their employees, You will need to purchase these plans, privately. Many people feel that the expense for nursing home coverage is way too expensive. Unless you are on Medicaid, you could lose your home, your social security benefits, your pension and your income from annuities and retirement funds without Long Term Care Coverage. Protection of your lifestyle for yourself and your family are most important.
There are Long Term Care benefits available through many agents and insurance companies. The New York State Partnership is one plan to consider because it initially, covers your admission to nursing homes, assisted living programs and many begin with home care coverage. The most important part of these plans is to make sure that the decisions for coverage begin with your doctor and not with the insurance company or their case managers. Nursing home costs today in our area average about $60-75,000 per year. Policies covering these costs usually include a 5% cost of living increase to keep pace with the growing inflationary costs of coverage.
About the Author:
Irene A. Majchrzak helps people retire debt-free with a sense of well-being and the freedom to have the things they want. Get her free ebook, Debt Free to Retire, by going to http://debtfreetoretire.com
Read more of Irene A. Majchrzak's articles.
Brand Awareness and the Fundamentals of Brandcasting
Article Presented by:
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
For a company to become well known in the online world, you might think that they would have to spend a large amount of money. While marketing budgets of leading companies are extensive, many effective online branding strategies can easily be achieved with nothing more than creativity and determination.
You have a good brand if people can recall your product or service from memory. You want them to trust you and think of you and your website before they think about any competitors. Branding isnÕt just for big businesses; small businesses, especially those with an online presence, canÕt afford not to start some kind of brand awareness campaign.
There is no shortcut to branding success. If you take a look at some of the sales promises made today, you would think that all you need to do to make millions is to launch a website and use free search engine submission services. These kinds of tactics donÕt give you the whole truth.
Brand awareness, or brandcasting, is a strategy that will define a company, show how it is unique, while creating a comfort level in the potential customer. A large part of branding is being consistent in everything about your company. This includes the companyÕs message and vision, the website, the employees, and even the packaging. Who are you and what are your values? All this takes time and vision.
Before even starting to get your brand out there, you should develop a winning slogan and logo. These will be the first things remembered by the public. If you hear the word McDonaldÕs, you will see the Golden Arches in your mind; if you hear KFC, the Colonel will present himself, if MSN is mentioned, it is reasonable to see the fluttering of a butterfly. Defining a simple, two or three tone image that can be inexorably linked with your company can be extremely powerful.
While this is fundamental to both successful offline and online branding strategies, it is important not to forget the actual development of your brand. You might have an excellent logo, but consistent failure in delivery of customer service can take its toll. Your brand and your message should focus on your clients and not on you. Customer benefits that are consistent with your marketing message will get you increased sales.
Your website should be an integral part of your brand as well. It should incorporate the promise you are making to your customers. Remember that customers make their decisions to purchase based on friend and family recommendations,advertising and experience. Building a brand is like building a reputation. Companies interested in long-term success must invest in creating a targeted brand experience for their customers.
While providing great customer service will help your reputation, customer service does not always have to be in the form of responding well to queries. Be proactive; FAQs and well-targeted, well-researched help guides on your website are immensely powerful in garnering a strong reputation. Use article marketing to its fullest advantage to leverage your position as an expert in your field.
Beware of online gimmicks, though. Many companies have seen a surge in business through competitions and contests. But these numbers are impossible to maintain once the offer is over. Use them sparingly, and tie them in with press releases and long lasting deals.
Whether large or small, local or global, social networking can be your key to the successful implementation of online branding strategies. If you have something to say, be it a product launch or exciting development, put a teaser on your social page. People will take the bait.
In much the same way, you can create a blog for your company. Twitter can also be a great way to use a short, snappy sentence to announce a new online initiative.
Many companies have made the mistake of trying to differentiate between their online marketing campaigns, and their offline equivalents. This couldn't be more wrong. Your customers exist in the Real World. Use the reliable marketing double-hitter (where online and offline branding strategies are in complete unison). Indeed, offline advertising can drive your online commerce significantly, if tailored well.
Long before the economic crash of late 2008 hit us; competition in the world of e-commerce was becoming ever more ruthless. However, as a result of the global recession, many companies are looking to the net to not only push forward, but also to survive the storm. Online shopping is actually on the increase, as people rein themselves in and limit their impulse purchases. They do this by not visiting the malls, and keeping away from temptation. Take advantage of this by creating an online brandcasting strategy so you can see more traffic on your website.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. Go to http://www.Brandsplat.com/ or visit our blog at: http://www.brandsplatblog.com/
Read more Articles written by Enzo F. Cesario.
Copyright © 2009 Enzo F. Cesario
For a company to become well known in the online world, you might think that they would have to spend a large amount of money. While marketing budgets of leading companies are extensive, many effective online branding strategies can easily be achieved with nothing more than creativity and determination.
You have a good brand if people can recall your product or service from memory. You want them to trust you and think of you and your website before they think about any competitors. Branding isnÕt just for big businesses; small businesses, especially those with an online presence, canÕt afford not to start some kind of brand awareness campaign.
There is no shortcut to branding success. If you take a look at some of the sales promises made today, you would think that all you need to do to make millions is to launch a website and use free search engine submission services. These kinds of tactics donÕt give you the whole truth.
Brand awareness, or brandcasting, is a strategy that will define a company, show how it is unique, while creating a comfort level in the potential customer. A large part of branding is being consistent in everything about your company. This includes the companyÕs message and vision, the website, the employees, and even the packaging. Who are you and what are your values? All this takes time and vision.
Before even starting to get your brand out there, you should develop a winning slogan and logo. These will be the first things remembered by the public. If you hear the word McDonaldÕs, you will see the Golden Arches in your mind; if you hear KFC, the Colonel will present himself, if MSN is mentioned, it is reasonable to see the fluttering of a butterfly. Defining a simple, two or three tone image that can be inexorably linked with your company can be extremely powerful.
While this is fundamental to both successful offline and online branding strategies, it is important not to forget the actual development of your brand. You might have an excellent logo, but consistent failure in delivery of customer service can take its toll. Your brand and your message should focus on your clients and not on you. Customer benefits that are consistent with your marketing message will get you increased sales.
Your website should be an integral part of your brand as well. It should incorporate the promise you are making to your customers. Remember that customers make their decisions to purchase based on friend and family recommendations,advertising and experience. Building a brand is like building a reputation. Companies interested in long-term success must invest in creating a targeted brand experience for their customers.
While providing great customer service will help your reputation, customer service does not always have to be in the form of responding well to queries. Be proactive; FAQs and well-targeted, well-researched help guides on your website are immensely powerful in garnering a strong reputation. Use article marketing to its fullest advantage to leverage your position as an expert in your field.
Beware of online gimmicks, though. Many companies have seen a surge in business through competitions and contests. But these numbers are impossible to maintain once the offer is over. Use them sparingly, and tie them in with press releases and long lasting deals.
Whether large or small, local or global, social networking can be your key to the successful implementation of online branding strategies. If you have something to say, be it a product launch or exciting development, put a teaser on your social page. People will take the bait.
In much the same way, you can create a blog for your company. Twitter can also be a great way to use a short, snappy sentence to announce a new online initiative.
Many companies have made the mistake of trying to differentiate between their online marketing campaigns, and their offline equivalents. This couldn't be more wrong. Your customers exist in the Real World. Use the reliable marketing double-hitter (where online and offline branding strategies are in complete unison). Indeed, offline advertising can drive your online commerce significantly, if tailored well.
Long before the economic crash of late 2008 hit us; competition in the world of e-commerce was becoming ever more ruthless. However, as a result of the global recession, many companies are looking to the net to not only push forward, but also to survive the storm. Online shopping is actually on the increase, as people rein themselves in and limit their impulse purchases. They do this by not visiting the malls, and keeping away from temptation. Take advantage of this by creating an online brandcasting strategy so you can see more traffic on your website.
About the Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. Go to http://www.Brandsplat.com/ or visit our blog at: http://www.brandsplatblog.com/
Read more Articles written by Enzo F. Cesario.
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