5 Tips to Hook Your Readers with Long Copy (and keep 'em reading all the way to the end)

Like most solo professionals, you can't afford to sell yourself with hype. You want to create a friendly conversation with website visitors so you'll attract clients.

But a website that doesn't attract and hold attention tends to grow cobwebs. It looks sleepy!

And research shows, over and over, that long copy sells better than short copy.

So how you do create long messages that don't set your visitors to snoozing... or worse, clicking off to a more wide-awake website?

1. Write conversationally.

Let’s face it: web surfers get bored like everybody else. They’re sitting all alone with their computers and they want to feel somebody cares enough to talk to them. Reading pages and pages of copy should feel like getting a letter from a good friend.

Short copy (and short-short ezines) comes across more like a message left on an answering machine – not a meaningful connection.

Ever had a phone conversation with a friend or even a business relationship when you just enjoyed talking?

You were in no hurry to hang up. You were entertained. You felt affirmed. When readers feel this way, they’ll stay tuned – all the way to the bottom of the page.

2. Maintain suspense.

Whether you're writing website copy or murder mysteries (my favorite leisure reading), maintain suspense. Each sentence should motivate the reader to move to the next sentence...and the next paragraph...and the next page, chapter and even book.

I’m not sure who first applied the term “bucket brigade” to copy. But here’s the idea.

Before fire departments got organized, volunteers would fight fires by lining up and passing buckets of water from the nearest well to whatever was burning. Another line would pass empty buckets back for refills. Buckets moved from hand to hand – fast, no stops.

So think of each idea as a bucket you want to pass along, from one sentence to the next. Motivate the reader: “Keep going! Urgent! You need to reach the end before anything else happens!”

3. Ask, “Who’s reading?” rather than “How long?”

Your target market really wants to learn what you have to say. They realize they’ll learn from you, even if you’re overtly making a sales pitch. So they keep reading....and reading.

What’s your favorite personal interest? Dogs? Cats? Hiking? Basketball? Soccer? Music? Art? Real estate?

When you’re passionate, you can’t learn enough. You hope the article, book or talk will go on forever. And if you’ve targeted right, your readers will feel the same way.

4. Encourage your readers to talk back to you.

Marketing researchers know: When we read any message, we tend to talk back! Sometimes we speak aloud (and even throw a magazine across a room – doesn’t work with a computer).

But most often we engage in what psychologists call “counter-arguments.” For example, you read, “This technique will transform your cat into an obedient pet who comes when called.”

You think, “No way!” or, “You must be kidding.”

We also affirm what we read.

“That’s a great idea!” “I can save money in the long run!”

And (especially if we’re contemplating a big-ticket item) we’re seeking more and more reasons to justify our buying decision.

So...you’re probably ahead of me: Longer copy means more opportunities to say, “Yes – it’s for me!”

5. Crawl out on the edge.

What television shows become mega-hits? I should know. I’m somewhat anti-television. No cable in my home because, “There are better ways to spend my time!”

But what do I rent at the video store? You got it: the big HBO and Showtime series that go outside the networking programming box.

They’re more like indie films than television – and they attract audiences of millions. And just try to rent a DVD of past seasons: you get on a waiting list. (Desperate Housewives? A desperate imitation! Feel free to email if you disagree.)

Writing works the same way.

Whenever I take a risk with an edgy ezine article, a few readers unsubscribe and some even send a few grumpy emails. But I always get a few orders and queries about coaching, too.

When I write reviews for amazon.com, I just say what’s on my mind. And I get some of my best clients and subscribers.

One reader even said, “Do they call you Cantankerous Cathy? You never say anything nice!” But she signed up for my ezine and attended three teleclasses. At least half a dozen clients claim they hired me because, they said, “You tell it like it is!”

Edgy for me means strong opinions and ideas. Some famous copywriters use strong, colorful language. Adapt your edginess to your audience and your own style.

Bottom line: As long as you hook the reader, maintain suspense and tell a good story, your message can be as long as you want it to be.

5 Tips to Hook Your Readers with Long Copy (and keep 'em reading all the way to the end)

Like most solo professionals, you can't afford to sell yourself with hype. You want to create a friendly conversation with website visitors so you'll attract clients.

But a website that doesn't attract and hold attention tends to grow cobwebs. It looks sleepy!

And research shows, over and over, that long copy sells better than short copy.

So how you do create long messages that don't set your visitors to snoozing... or worse, clicking off to a more wide-awake website?

1. Write conversationally.

Let’s face it: web surfers get bored like everybody else. They’re sitting all alone with their computers and they want to feel somebody cares enough to talk to them. Reading pages and pages of copy should feel like getting a letter from a good friend.

Short copy (and short-short ezines) comes across more like a message left on an answering machine – not a meaningful connection.

Ever had a phone conversation with a friend or even a business relationship when you just enjoyed talking?

You were in no hurry to hang up. You were entertained. You felt affirmed. When readers feel this way, they’ll stay tuned – all the way to the bottom of the page.

2. Maintain suspense.

Whether you're writing website copy or murder mysteries (my favorite leisure reading), maintain suspense. Each sentence should motivate the reader to move to the next sentence...and the next paragraph...and the next page, chapter and even book.

I’m not sure who first applied the term “bucket brigade” to copy. But here’s the idea.

Before fire departments got organized, volunteers would fight fires by lining up and passing buckets of water from the nearest well to whatever was burning. Another line would pass empty buckets back for refills. Buckets moved from hand to hand – fast, no stops.

So think of each idea as a bucket you want to pass along, from one sentence to the next. Motivate the reader: “Keep going! Urgent! You need to reach the end before anything else happens!”

3. Ask, “Who’s reading?” rather than “How long?”

Your target market really wants to learn what you have to say. They realize they’ll learn from you, even if you’re overtly making a sales pitch. So they keep reading....and reading.

What’s your favorite personal interest? Dogs? Cats? Hiking? Basketball? Soccer? Music? Art? Real estate?

When you’re passionate, you can’t learn enough. You hope the article, book or talk will go on forever. And if you’ve targeted right, your readers will feel the same way.

4. Encourage your readers to talk back to you.

Marketing researchers know: When we read any message, we tend to talk back! Sometimes we speak aloud (and even throw a magazine across a room – doesn’t work with a computer).

But most often we engage in what psychologists call “counter-arguments.” For example, you read, “This technique will transform your cat into an obedient pet who comes when called.”

You think, “No way!” or, “You must be kidding.”

We also affirm what we read.

“That’s a great idea!” “I can save money in the long run!”

And (especially if we’re contemplating a big-ticket item) we’re seeking more and more reasons to justify our buying decision.

So...you’re probably ahead of me: Longer copy means more opportunities to say, “Yes – it’s for me!”

5. Crawl out on the edge.

What television shows become mega-hits? I should know. I’m somewhat anti-television. No cable in my home because, “There are better ways to spend my time!”

But what do I rent at the video store? You got it: the big HBO and Showtime series that go outside the networking programming box.

They’re more like indie films than television – and they attract audiences of millions. And just try to rent a DVD of past seasons: you get on a waiting list. (Desperate Housewives? A desperate imitation! Feel free to email if you disagree.)

Writing works the same way.

Whenever I take a risk with an edgy ezine article, a few readers unsubscribe and some even send a few grumpy emails. But I always get a few orders and queries about coaching, too.

When I write reviews for amazon.com, I just say what’s on my mind. And I get some of my best clients and subscribers.

One reader even said, “Do they call you Cantankerous Cathy? You never say anything nice!” But she signed up for my ezine and attended three teleclasses. At least half a dozen clients claim they hired me because, they said, “You tell it like it is!”

Edgy for me means strong opinions and ideas. Some famous copywriters use strong, colorful language. Adapt your edginess to your audience and your own style.

Bottom line: As long as you hook the reader, maintain suspense and tell a good story, your message can be as long as you want it to be.

Quick Authentic Feng Shui Advice For Your Home

During a site consultation for a department of the United Nations in Malaysia, one of its employees asked me a question that seems to be asked often: can you give me some quick guidelines for my home without having to go too much into it? And of course, still using classical Feng Shui. House consultations are usually very detailed affairs with many layers of disciplines used and time consuming as each home is unique BUT there still is general advice that can be used without accidentally creating negative effects.

It helps to know which directions should be enhanced and those that are not to be stimulated. If you are not sure of your Kua number, you can use our Kua Number Calculator to find out your Auspicious and Inauspicious directions. Inauspicious directions need remedies and more protection while Auspicious directions should be primarily enhanced. Remember, different people have different Kua numbers and directions, meaning a good direction for you to stimulate may be a bad direction for a loved one. In cases where there are multiple occupants whose good/bad directions overlap: use items that are primarily protective items with a secondary role of enhancing. That way, if an item for some reason is placed in the wrong direction, you're still protected.

The Entrance
Asides from the entrances being entry points for your home, it is also very important in Feng Shui as that's where a very large amount of chi comes in and sets the overall tone of your home. Wouldn't you rather allow good flowing chi into your home instead of negative chi entering and pulling everything down? Here, you would want to set up a filter point choosing for auspicious chi coming in or good chi. A protective item would make sure only good chi (sheng chi) comes in, whereas a wealth enhancer would transform the chi coming in to be auspicious chi. Recommendations: All Protectors (Protective), Authentic Wealth Bowl (Auspicious), Kuan Kung on Horse of Progress (Both).

The Backdoor
The backdoor or exit of your house is frequently overlooked because there is usually more importance stressed on the entrance. The importance of this part of the house increases when depending on how often you use it. For some, it is an entrance to their garden or a more convenient form of exit. If you do not use the backdoor often, focusing on protection takes priority. If it is used very often, then you can also treat it similar to an additional entrance. Recommendations: Kuan Kung God of War (Protective), Lucky Wealth Bars (Auspicious), Inscribed Dragon Tortoise (Both).

The Living/Dining Room
This is usually the place where members of the house would spend a large amount of time together. Be it entertaining guests, watching a favorite show together or just winding down after a tough day at work. This is also a place to maximise the usage of Feng Shui for you to reap the benefits it can bring. Recommendations: Fu Lu Shou Set (Protective), Prosperity Buddha (Auspicious), Lord Chung Kwei Guardian of Harmony (Both).

The Bedroom
This is a place where we rest and recuperate and thus open ourselves to negative or positive influences in our immediate surroundings. Most of the times, health related items are recommended in this section and refrain from putting enhancers that are constantly moving like windchimes. This is one of the best places to promote harmony and soak up auspicious chi. Recommendations: 8 Immortals Wu Lou (Protective), Health Wealth Pendant (Auspicious), Kuan Yin on Arowana(Both).

Well, hopefully this list has provided you with some basic knowledge of how you can use classical Feng Shui in your home properly. I'd also like to take the time to wish you and your an prosperous Lunar New Year!

For more information on remedies, don't forget to visit our website at: www.smilingbamboo.com! :)

Build Intranet using Linux Ubuntu (for idiot tobe Patriot)-Part 2

INSTALLATION UBUNTU SERVER

you computer hardware must satisfy minimum specification that needed for installatioon server, here are these minimum specification :
 Processor : better than 500 MHz
 Memori : more than 64 Mb
 Hardisk : more than5 Gb
 NIC 10/100 Mbps: 2 (if you wont make router to)

Happy Birthday to You-It's Party Time!

A birthday party doesn’t have to be a boring affair that everyone dreads coming to. Jazz it up with a theme and something memorable for all of the guests. If you want to stick with Happy Birthday as your theme, make it a famous one.

Find pictures of famous people celebrating birthdays - A movie star blowing out candles or a musician throwing their own party. Make them into posters and hang around the room or house hosting the party. Make it a game and have the guests guess who each actor and star is. Another fun game would be to find all of the TV and song clips of stars singing and make it a guessing game. Without showing who is singing, have people guess. Some famous renditions include Shirley Temple and Marilyn Monroe.

To decorate for a birthday party you need balloons and streamers. A party supply store will have every color imaginable to match your theme. Paper products like cups, napkins, silverware and tablecloths are also available for purchase to match. If you need assistance, any party planner would be glad to help.

Birthday parties can serve a meal or snacks. If you are having a small party, dinner can be planned. If it is a large party, finger foods or appetizers are cheaper and easier to provide for everyone. They make less of a mess too!

Birthday parties also require a cake! Hire a cake baker or create one yourself using pans from the party supply store. They come in large and small and have pattern books if you are looking for ideas. Candles, frosting and other cake decorations are also available.

Remember to take pictures of all your guests to include in a thank you card. Whether it is a party where they bring gifts or not, send them a note thanking them for sharing in your big day.

Happy Birthday to You-It's Party Time!

A birthday party doesn’t have to be a boring affair that everyone dreads coming to. Jazz it up with a theme and something memorable for all of the guests. If you want to stick with Happy Birthday as your theme, make it a famous one.

Find pictures of famous people celebrating birthdays - A movie star blowing out candles or a musician throwing their own party. Make them into posters and hang around the room or house hosting the party. Make it a game and have the guests guess who each actor and star is. Another fun game would be to find all of the TV and song clips of stars singing and make it a guessing game. Without showing who is singing, have people guess. Some famous renditions include Shirley Temple and Marilyn Monroe.

To decorate for a birthday party you need balloons and streamers. A party supply store will have every color imaginable to match your theme. Paper products like cups, napkins, silverware and tablecloths are also available for purchase to match. If you need assistance, any party planner would be glad to help.

Birthday parties can serve a meal or snacks. If you are having a small party, dinner can be planned. If it is a large party, finger foods or appetizers are cheaper and easier to provide for everyone. They make less of a mess too!

Birthday parties also require a cake! Hire a cake baker or create one yourself using pans from the party supply store. They come in large and small and have pattern books if you are looking for ideas. Candles, frosting and other cake decorations are also available.

Remember to take pictures of all your guests to include in a thank you card. Whether it is a party where they bring gifts or not, send them a note thanking them for sharing in your big day.

An Abundance of Plastic Bags!

Every time you go to a store you receive plastic bags. Every time you buy bread you end up with a plastic bag. Over the run of a year it is amazing how many plastic bags you can end up with! Below are some suggestions for recycling and reusing these bags:

- Another way to use up those plastic grocery bags is to use them as paint-tray liners when you're redecorating indoors. No need to buy the expensive liners---this way you just use & toss it out when you're done painting. Gone are the days of messy cleanups!

- If we are going to the store for only a few items, we take along a cloth or canvas bag, thereby reducing the need for plastic grocery bags.

- Many grocery stores in our area have bins for you to put your bags in so they can be recycled. We take our bags and put them in the recycle bin.

- For small garbage tins, rather than buying garbage bags we use the plastic grocery bags to line our smaller garbage tins.

- We have made our dog, Sheema, a pillow to lay on, we used the plastic grocery bags to stuff the pillow, makes a great cushion for her!

- We make our own bread and rolls, so we save the store bought bread bags and use them to put our bread and rolls in...much cheaper than buying bags!

- We always keep plastic grocery bags in our trunk. They are handy for wet clothes when we go to the ocean and also are great to have if Sheema (our dog) decides to use someone else's property to do her thing, make a great glove for picking up you know what!

- When we travel, we always have plastic grocery bags with us to put our dirty clothes in.

- When mailing gifts, we use the plastic grocery bags as stuffing around the gift, helps prevent damage to the gift.

- Over the past year we did a lot of renovations to our home. When painting, we would wrap our paint brush in a plastic grocery bag. The next day when we were ready to continue painting, the brush would be soft and ready to use.

- The library is always looking for plastic bags. We always take some with us to carry our books. What we don't use we leave there for others to use.

Build Intranet using Linux Ubuntu (for idiot tobe Patriot)-Part 1

In this tutorial i will show you how to build intranet ( a biggest LAN, but more small compared with Internet ) using LINUX UBUNTU as DHCP, DNS, Web, FTP, Mail, Proxy, and File servers, then all clients using windows XP as OS .

One reason why I choose Ubuntu is because Ubuntu is a free, Debian derived Linux-based operating system, available with both community and professional support.

this tutorial consist of 11 part, these are

part 1 : view word from me and configuration network

Part 2 : installation

part 3 : how-to build and setting DHCP server

part 4 : how-to build and setting DNS/ Domain Name Server

part 5 : how-to build and setting Web/MySql Server

part 6 : how-to build and setting FTP server

part 7 : how-to build and setting Mail server

part 8 : how-to build and setting Proxy server

part 9 ; how to build and setting File server

part 10 : how-to setting at all clients windows XP

Configuration Network

Ok.... you see Figure 1, here is scheme network that we will build. you can expand number the client as much as possible, because intranet is one big LAN.

FIGURE 1

Where I can get Ubuntu ???

You just click links bellow .......

Ubuntu Home Page | Ubuntu

Download

Learn more

Get Ubuntu

Get Support

Products

Server Edition

Desktop Feature Tour

Community

VOIP Telephony - The Benefits and Limitations

Previously we explored the history and technology that gaverise to VOIP Telephone service (*see footnotes). Today we will examinesome of the benefits and also the drawbacks of this new opportunity.

In previous articles we discovered that traditional "Landline" typephone service is set up much like a "Toll Highway". Billing startswhen the "Circuit" is opened, and continues until it is closed.Just like travelling down a Tollway, the longer you stay on, and thefarther you travel, the more "Toll Booths" you pass through. Thesetoll booths are the phone company's switches, and you get chargedfor every one that you pass through.

In contrast, VOIP phones use "Packet" switching. As the broadbandInternet connection is always open, digitized voice signals aresent to the receiver in discrete packets. The result is that no"dead air" exists on the line, as no traffic is sent when there isa lull or pause in the conversation. This allows several two-wayconversations to use the same "bandwidth", or space that previouslywas tied up by ONE call.

This has resulted in great economy for VOIP providers who in turnpass along the savings to the end user. Most top VOIP plans runaround 30 dollars a month, and the best include International callsto many countries worldwide within that base fee along with a hostof features like Voice Mail, Caller ID, Call Waiting, Three-wayCalling, Online Access, Etc.

While most major traditional carriers have an "all inclusive" plan,none that I know of include International calling, and most of their"basic" plans are double the cost of VOIP. In my experience, the mostcoveted features are also charged extra for. Add in the taxes and fees,and all of a sudden you're talking REAL money!

The other great benefit of VOIP is the ability to take your deviceanywhere and make calls just like you were at home. The best servicesare fully find-me, follow-me capable. This means that wherever youhappen to be, your phone number will find you and ring at THAT location.I use mine with a Laptop, a cheap cigarette lighter a/c converter,a wireless card, and an old "princess" phone in my truck parked outsideof hotspots all the time. That's huge. You can have your office inwhatever hotel or airport or Starbucks you happen to be in at the moment.

Having covered most of the benefits of VOIP, let's examine some ofthe drawbacks. The major one is spotty 911 service availability. Asthe device is portable, any call to 911 will result in emergencycrews being sent to the device's address of record, which is set upwhen you activate the VOIP device and service. Obviously this doesn'tdo you much good if you are in a hotel in Montana but live in Ohio.

One way around this is to change your address with your provider whenyou travel, and then change it back when you return home. Of course,this only works with domestic addresses, and you must remember to do it.

A better way is to ignore the issue entirely, and keep a very basic,cheap, no frills service plan with your local phone provider. This willstill be cheaper by far than a full blown plan. Also, you avoid the othermain issue with VOIP- Power Outages. If power goes out, or you lose yourInternet Connection, you lose your phone service. Of course, you runthat risk with today's cordless phones too, so it's always a good ideato have an old hardwired phone around the house, or at least a cellphone available.

An SEO Glossary - Common SEO Terms Defined

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has become an essential weapon in the arsenal of every online business. Unfortunately, for most business owners and marketing managers (and even many webmasters), it's also somewhat of an enigma. This is partly due to the fact that it's such a new and rapidly changing field, and partly due to the fact that SEO practitioners tend to speak in a language all of their own which, without translation, is virtually impenetrable to the layperson. This glossary seeks to remedy that situation, explaining specialist SEO terms in plain English...

AdWords

See Sponsored Links.

algorithm

A complex mathematical formula used by search engines to assess the relevance and importance of websites and rank them accordingly in their search results. These algorithms are kept tightly under wraps as they are the key to the objectivity of search engines (i.e. the algorithm ensures relevant results, and relevant results bring more users, which in turn brings more advertising revenue).

article PR

The submitting of free reprint articles to many article submission sites and article distribution lists in order to increase your website's search engine ranking and Google PageRank. (In this sense, the "PR" stands for PageRank.) Like traditional public relations, article PR also conveys a sense of authority because your articles are widely published. And because you're proving your expertise and freely dispensing knowledge, your readers will trust you and will be more likely to remain loyal to you. (In this sense, the "PR" stands for Public Relations.)

article submission sites

Websites which act as repositories of free reprint articles. They are sites where authors can submit their articles free of charge, and where webmasters can find articles to use on their websites free of charge. Article submission sites generate revenue by selling advertising space on their websites. See also article PR.

backlink

A text link to your website from another website. See also link.

copy

The words used on your website.

copywriter

A professional writer who specializes in the writing of advertising copy (compelling, engaging words promoting a particular product or service). See also SEO copywriter and web copywriter.

crawl

Google finds pages on the World Wide Web and records their details in its index by sending out ‘spiders’ or ‘robots’. These spiders make their way from page to page and site to site by following text links. To a spider, a text link is like a door.

domain name

The virtual address of your website (normally in the form www.yourbusinessname.com). This is what people will type when they want to visit your site. It is also what you will use as the address in any text links back to your site.

ezine

An electronic magazine. Most publishers of ezines are desperate for content and gladly publish well written, helpful articles and give you full credit as author, including a link to your website.

Flash

A technology used to create animated web pages (and page elements).

free reprint article

An article written by you and made freely available to other webmasters to publish on their websites. See also article PR.

Google

The search engine with the greatest coverage of the World Wide Web, and which is responsible for most search engine-referred traffic. Of approximately 11.5 billion pages on the World Wide Web, it is estimated that Google has indexed around 8.8 billion. This is one reason why it takes so long to increase your ranking!

Google AdWords

See Sponsored Links.

Google PageRank

How Google scores a website’s importance. It gives all sites a mark out of 10. By downloading the Google Toolbar, you can view the PR of any site you visit.

Google Toolbar

A free tool you can download. It becomes part of your browser toolbar. It’s most useful features are it’s PageRank display (which allows you to view the PR of any site you visit) and it’s AutoFill function (when you’re filling out an online form, you can click AutoFill, and it enters all the standard information automatically, including Name, Address, Zip code/Postcode, Phone Number, Email Address, Business Name, Credit Card Number (password protected), etc.) Once you’ve downloaded and installed the toolbar, you may need to set up how you’d like it to look and work by clicking Options (setup is very easy). NOTE: Google does record some information (mostly regarding sites visited).

HTML

HTML (HyperText Markup Language) is the coding language used to create much of the information on the World Wide Web. Web browsers read the HTML code and display the page that code describes.

Internet

An interconnected network of computers around the world.

JavaScript

A programming language used to create dynamic website pages (e.g. interactivity).

keyword

A word which your customers search for and which you use frequently on your site in order to be relevant to those searches. This use known as targeting a keyword. Most websites actually target ‘keyword phrases’ because single keywords are too generic and it is very difficult to rank highly for them.

keyword density

A measure of the frequency of your keyword in relation to the total wordcount of the page. So if your page has 200 words, and your keyword phrase appears 10 times, its density is 5%.

keyword phrase

A phrase which your customers search for and which you use frequently on your site in order to be relevant to those searches.

link

A word or image on a web page which the reader can click to visit another page. There are normally visual cues to indicate to the reader that the word or image is a link.

link path

Using text links to connect a series of page (i.e. page 1 connects to page 2, page 2 connects to page 3, page 3 connects to page 4, and so on). Search engine ‘spiders’ and ‘robots’ use text links to jump from page to page as they gather information about it, so it’s a good idea to allow them traverse your entire site via text links.

link partner

A webmaster who is willing to put a link to your website on their website. Quite often link partners engage in reciprocal linking.

link popularity

The number of links to your website. Link popularity is the single most important factor in a high search engine ranking. Webmasters use a number of methods to increase their site's link popularity including article PR, link exchange (link partners / reciprocal linking), link buying, and link directories.

link text

The part of a text link that is visible to the reader. When generating links to your own site, they are most effective (in terms of ranking) if they include your keyword.

meta tag

A short note within the header of the HTML of your web page which describes some aspect of that page. These meta tags are read by the search engines and used to help assess the relevance of a site to a particular search.

natural search results

The ‘real’ search results. The results that most users are looking for and which take up most of the window. For most searches, the search engine displays a long list of links to sites with content which is related to the word you searched for. These results are ranked according to how relevant and important they are.

organic search results

See natural search results.

PPC (Pay-Per-Click advertising)

See Sponsored Links.

PageRank

See Google PageRank.

rank

Your position in the search results that display when someone searches for a particular word at a search engine.

reciprocal link

A mutual agreement between two webmasters to exchange links (i.e. they both add a link to the other’s website on their own website). Most search engines (certainly Google) are sophisticated enough to detect reciprocal linking and they don’t view it very favorably because it is clearly a manufactured method of generating links. Websites with reciprocal links risk being penalized.

robot

See spider.

robots.txt file

A file which is used to inform the search engine spider which pages on a site should not be indexed. This file sits in your site’s root directory on the web server. (Alternatively, you can do a similar thing by placing tags in the header section of your HTML for search engine robots/spiders to read.

Sandbox

Many SEO experts believe that Google ‘sandboxes’ new websites. Whenever it detects a new website, it withholds its rightful ranking for a period while it determines whether your site is a genuine, credible, long term site. It does this to discourage the creation of SPAM websites (sites which serve no useful purpose other than to boost the ranking of some other site). Likewise, if Google detects a sudden increase (i.e. many hundreds or thousands) in the number of links back to your site, it may sandbox them for a period (or in fact penalize you by lowering your ranking or blacklisting your site altogether).

SEO

Search Engine Optimization. The art of making your website relevant and important so that it ranks high in the search results for a particular word.

SEO copywriter

A ‘copywriter’ who is not only proficient at web copy, but also experienced in writing copy which is optimized for search engines (and will therefore help you achieve a better search engine ranking for your website).

search engine

A search engine is an online tool which allows you to search for websites which contain a particular word or phrase. The most well known search engines are Google, Yahoo, and MSN.

site map

A single page which contains a list of text links to every page in the site (and every page contains a text link back to the site map). Think of your site map as being at the center of a spider-web.

SPAM

Generally refers to unwanted and unrequested email sent en-masse to private email addresses. Also used to refer to websites which appear high in search results without having any useful content. The creators of these sites set them up simply to cash in on their high ranking by selling advertising space, links to other sites, or by linking to other sites of their own and thereby increasing the ranking of those sites. The search engines are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and already have very efficient ways to detect SPAM websites and penalize them.

spider

Google finds pages on the World Wide Web and records their details in its index by sending out ‘spiders’ or ‘robots’. These spiders make their way from page to page and site to site by following text links.

Sponsored Links

Paid advertising which displays next to the natural search results. Customers can click on the ad to visit the advertiser’s website. This is how the search engines make their money. Advertisers set their ads up to display whenever someone searches for a word which is related to their product or service. These ads look similar to the natural search results, but are normally labeled “Sponsored Links”, and normally take up a smaller portion of the window. These ads work on a Pay-Per-Click (PPC) basis (i.e. the advertiser only pays when someone clicks on their ad).

submit

You can submit your domain name to the search engines so that their ‘spiders’ or ‘robots’ will crawl your site. You can also submit articles to ‘article submission sites’ in order to have them published on the Internet.

text link

A word on a web page which the reader can click to visit another page. Text links are normally blue and underlined. Text links are what ‘spiders’ or ‘robots’ use to jump from page to page and website to website.

URL

Uniform Resource Locator. The address of a particular page published on the Internet. Normally in the form http://www.yourbusinessname.com/AWebPage.htm.

web copy

See copy.

web copywriter

A ‘copywriter’ who understands the unique requirements of writing for an online medium.

webmaster

A person responsible for the management of a particular website.

wordcount

The number of words on a particular web page.

World Wide Web (WWW)

The vast array of documents published on the Internet. It is estimated that the World Wide Web now consists of approximately 11.5 billion pages.

Methods of Website Promotion

Methods of Website Promotion

Promoting a Website is not an easy task. New Website Developers may have the impression of building a Website and sales are generated. This is far from true. There are millions of Websites. Within those millions, there are bound to be competitors. To rise above, or obtain a portion of the market-share, developers need to utilize an effective promotion campaign.

Establishing a Website is not much different than a brick-and-mortar business. Open a Deli in the heart of a City and millions of potential customers will pass daily. In contrast, open the Deli in the suburbs, and there would be one quarter of the potential customers. Obviously, the City would be much more expensive to get started and maintain, but the revenue should provide for the added expense.

The same holds true in Website Promotion. However, the landscape is different. There are no streets and sidewalks customers have to use. Therefore, our businesses need to be found by customers in a variety of places. It needs to be brought to the potential customer, or viewable from wherever they may be lurking.

Where do we start with Website Promotion?

One of the topics sweeping the developer’s world is Optimization. The internet will naturally bring potential customers, if the site is optimized properly. Computers work hard on matching relevant information. This is a huge benefit to e-business owners.

Before promotion begins, or altering existing efforts, understand the Internet’s backbone. Why has the World Wide Web become popular? Most should agree, information retrieval rules. Internet users don’t have to sit down and watch television waiting for local weather. They don’t have to wait for news of interest. They don’t have to drive to find the best prices. They don’t have to look through cook-books to find a recipe. They don’t have to talk to salespeople for a car. Today it’s all on the, “information,” super highway.

As a developer, focus on information delivery before beginning promotion of a Website. If a page can be divided into two topics, make two separate pages. Over-use of graphics can present problems too. While it’s nice to make a Site pretty, most people don’t care. They want the information or products they are seeking. Sectors such as art could be an exception, but for the most part, lots of graphics are a waste. People read on the internet. Give people something to read, not just something to view.

Promotion Budget

If launching a new campaign, it may take time to decipher an effective budget. There are simple variables that should be considered with budgeting. Given the potential scope of a Website, advertising should be devoted to different areas of the site. For example, paying to promote the free portion of a Website is not logical. In contrast, a free forum may sell advertising. The advertising segment of the site should be exploited.

There is a simple formula to develop a budget. If a site is new, it takes some research and investment to draw an accurate conclusion. Put simply, consider the following; how many potential customers are required to make a sale? From each sale, how much profit is generated? Of the profits, how much is invested into advertising? This identifies the value of potential customers. If ten customers make one sale, and ten dollars are allocated towards advertising, each customer is potentially worth one dollar. However, room for growth could be made by reducing the value of a potential customer or increasing the advertising contribution. A competitive sector may force reduced profits rather than reduced value of potential customers.

Comprehensive budgeting could be applied to aspects of the business. Promote each aspect as a unique entity. For example, a Website that sells music and movies could have separate budgets for the segments. This could reveal vital information to the survival of a business. Implement effective models that assist in tracking expense and results. This is fairly simple with website statistics and tracking tools.

Free Traffic Promotion – Keywords and Phrases

When it comes to free traffic, it’s about information retrieval. People utilize tools that provide information accurately and quickly. These tools rely on the developer’s interpretation of a Website or page (On-Site Optimization). What is the Website or page about? What phrases are people looking for that want to use this site? Information retrieval is a complicated double-edge-sword between people surfing the web and people creating the web. When the people creating the web do not create clear and focused pages, people surfing the Web cannot find them.

Free traffic is a gift from creating user friendly pages, clearly focusing on a specific topic, and the result of promotion efforts. It stems from a good balance. While free traffic primarily comes from Search Engines, it also comes from referring sites. People will write about a Website in blogs, forums, or on their personal pages. People will add links to Sites they like.

If developers hunt for free traffic, problems can arise. Hunting for free traffic has made developers try tricks that got the site removed from Search Engines. This can present a big problem as they are a large source of free targeted traffic. Keep free traffic in mind while promoting a Website, but don’t make it the focus of promotion. It will come naturally over time. Take it as a gift and an acknowledgement that a Website has been optimized well, presents clear information, and is promoted in the right places. Although some may argue the point, don’t anticipate quality free traffic to begin immediately. It takes extensive thought, advertising, and planning for this to happen, especially within competitive sectors.

Promoting in Directories

One place to start promoting a Website is Website Directories. Most directories are organized by topic. Some are more comprehensive than others. In addition, there are, “Niche,” directories that focus on one topic. For example, there are directories for shopping, reference, art, and automotive sites. In contrast, there are general directories that provide all the niches.

Finding an appropriate place within a directory may be difficult. Directories can a large structure. However, a comprehensive structure benefits advertisers with targeting. Comprehensive directories enable developers’ to classify a Website. For example, it maybe possible to promote a site the sells speakers, for cars, but only domestic cars, and ones that are late model. In addition, some directories may implement regional indexing. Targeting an index in a directory can be complex, but it can be a great benefit too.

Don’t expect to rush from directory to directory and establish a bunch or references. Each directory is unique. Take time to understand how the directory is structured, what they expect as a title and description, and how the suggestion process works. Seek similar sites; take note of where they appear, and how they are described.

Directories are generally affordable solutions. Most Directories are indexed by search engines. They help search engines understand a sites focus. In addition, they are a reference point for some people. It may be a good idea to seek-out one or two directories a week, or as appropriate to a budget. Finding good directories will consume a lot of time. However, once a link is added, it will remain there for a long duration.

News and Media Promotion – Public Relations

Public Relations an important factor when promoting any Business. News and Media channels are the vehicles that convey information to the public. News about a business can make a huge impact on the public. Good news can make lots of people remember a business. Some developers release news about every change or added feature to a Website. Ironically, some developers never utilize this area of promotion.

There are a variety of distribution sites that will expose news releases to numerous channels, for a modest fee. In addition, most will offer free options. It may be a good idea to utilize free options for news that is not very important. For example, adding a, “Calculator,” to a Website probably will not gain much attention. However, anything that may be important to the public needs to be announced.

If it can be added to the budget, outsource public relations efforts. PR companies have knowledge of what the media likes and contacts that make them valuable. PR specialists can be found in almost every City.

Ezine Articles - Provide Rich Content

Writing articles is a powerful promotion tool. Some developers refer to this as, “Viral Marketing”. There are Websites that require content. Content brings them traffic. Traffic builds valuable ad space.

Article Distribution sites assist promoters with circulating articles. Many Ezines rely on Distribution Sites for their content. Post an article to a distribution site and the article is, “up-for-grabs,” to anyone. The article begins to circulate the internet like a virus. Everywhere it appears, reference is given to the author and their Website.

Advertising on the Web

There are a variety of reference websites. Generally, these sites consist of Forums, Article content, and Online Chats. They rely on selling ad space as the main revenue stream. While some reference developers are, “trying to rich quick,” there are sites that offer affordable solutions to promote a Website. With free traffic in mind, seek-out text link advertising venues. Look for sites that charge a flat fee. Sites that charge per click or by the impression usually mask links for tracking. This does not build good recognition with search engines.

Seek relevant opportunities for promoting the Website. If the allows people to buy tennis shoes, a sports reference and information area may be prove beneficial. Another might be a reference site about footwear. Trial and error will reveal good advertising sources for promotion. Regardless of the site being promoted, there are reference areas that are valuable promotion tools.

Promotion Summary

The internet moves fast in certain aspects. When it comes to Website promotion, it moves slowly. Modifications that are made to a Web Page are not going to be seen the next day. Significant results appear months later. The most important area of promotion, is keeping accurate records. Website promotion is complex. Developers need to consider on-site and off-site optimization, targeting, and ad construction. The right mix can provide a significant advantage over the competition.

The Plant Philanthropist

The Plant Philanthropist

One year after we moved into our new ranch-style home, the Merion Bluegrass lawn was growing well and the basic flower beds were mapped out. A new home doesn't need repairs, but a myriad of needs kept cropping up to soak up any available money. A trip to the local plant nursery put us in shock when we added up the cost of perennials, mulching and proper bricks for the borders. I would search the want ads for bargain lots of building materials, garden tools, mowers and fertilizer with much success. When people move, they don't want to weigh down the moving van with old tools and bags of fertilizer. They practically give them away.

The one thing people would never part with are their perennials. Plants and trees are quite visible to the new owners and they usually expect that they go with the house. My whole winter was spent browsing the catalogs for hosta, iris, roses, and especially day lilies. Available in mouth-watering shades, these new hybrid day lilies come in different heights and plant habit. Some are good for along a fence, other make good border plants, each clump doubling in size every year. Unlike the road side day lilies that grow to four feet tall, bloom only briefly, and send out root runners to take over the rest of the garden, the hybrids are garden friendly. Unfortunately, a grouping of three roots cost about eight dollars, sending the cost of the needed plants into the hundreds of dollars.

One day, in a conversation with a local nursery owner, he revealed the source of some of his day lilies. The farmer lived in a nearby town and grew day lilies for a living. Some intense research turned up his address and I paid him a visit. Presented with row upon row of cultivated day lilies in every imaginable shape and color, I drooled over owning just a few of them for our garden. I parted with all the money I had, fifteen dollars, and went home with three starter clumps. Before leaving, I took a few pictures of his fields and some individual blossoms he had self propagated. I later made a set for him to keep. One low growing beauty sported forty blooms on each stalk (opening one per day) in tones of deep ruby red. Another met the dawn in diamond dusted five-inch-wide flowers in ivory and shell pink, showing an apple green center. A third boasted four inch blooms in a true lemon yellow.

The following summer, I received a call from the farmer. He informed me that he had sold his farm land to a developer and had already bought ten acres twenty miles further west. He had removed all he needed to seed the new day lily farm but was forced to leave hundreds of mature plants. The bulldozers were slated to start preparing the land for the new development the following week and if I would like, I could help myself to any number of plants for my garden. I almost dropped the phone in excitement. Here was presented to me the most desirable flowering perennials I could dream of for our garden! Free!! I thanked him and spent the next three days digging, boxing, and transporting the day lilies. The next July Fourth we had a barbecue party in the back yard. Ringing the gentle curves of the brick borders bloomed forty varieties of hybrid day lilies, glorifying our new garden and warming our hearts.

The Cheapest Cell Phone PlanS

So you're in the market for a new cell phone plan. You start your cell phone search online to give you an idea on wireless phone service prices. Free cell phones, get a free cell phone, the lowest cell phone rates, compare cell phone rates. Starting to look familiar?

Free cell phone offers and low cellular rate plans are indeed enticing, but are they really the cheapest cell phone plans? To say they have the cheapest cell phone service is also to say they know your calling habits. There is more to cell phone rates than cents per minute.

Isn't the cheapest cell phone plan the one with the smallest bill at the end of each month? It makes sense to me. So how do you find the best cell phone plan with the lowest cellular rates that will leave you with the cheapest cell phone bill at the end of each month?

Cell phone plans come in two forms. Prepaid cell phones, otherwise known as pay as you go cell phone service, and regular monthly cell phone plans. When deciding which is best for you, think about how much you'll use the cellular service each month.

Prepaid cell phone plans are great if you will not be using the cell phone very often. If you use a cell phone for emergencies only, you'll benefit from pay as you go since it doesn't cost much to add minutes to your prepaid cell phone and you won't need to top up again for awhile.

Monthly cell phone plans are best if you are going to use your cellular service often, since many cell phone services offer unlimited nights and weekends, free mobile to mobile, and a healthy amount of anytime minutes. You can even get a free cell phone with a service agreement.

The secret formula to getting the cheapest cell phone plan for you is, usage, plus rates, plus incentives. Incentives being the freebies like free cell phones or free minutes. Find a healthy balance of all three factors, and you'll have your cheapest cell phone plan.

Financial Lucture Note Accounting

Hi.... this lucture create by professor burbage's in pdf format.
You can read and download, & i hope it usefull for you who want studying Financila Accounting.......................

Here this link

First Day Handout

Syllabus

Homework Assignments

Instructions for completing Qs homework assignments

Chapter 1: Concepts of Accounting

Chapter 1: Who Determines GAAP & What It Really Means

Chapter 1: Ratio Calculations

Chapter 1: Group Activity Answer Key

Chapter 2: Basic Financial Statement Format - Corporation

Chapter 2: Group Activity Question

Chapter 2: Group Activity Answer Key

Chapter 3: Calculating Simple Interest

Chapter 3: Group Activity Question

Chapter 3: Group Activity Answer Key

Chapter 4: Group Activity Answer Key P4-8A

Chapter 5: Comparison of Single-Step & Multiple-Step Income Statements

Chapter 5: Group Activity Question

Chapter 5: Group Activity Answer Key

Chapter 5: Multiple-Step Income Statement for Extra Credit Question

Chapter 5: Multiple-Step Income Statement for Extra Credit Answer Key

Chapter 6: Group Activity Answer Key

Chapter 9: Disposal of Depreciable Assets

Chapter 9: Group Activity Question

Chapter 9: Group Activity Answer Key

Chapter 10: Bonds: A Summary and Examples

Chapter 10: Group Activity Answer Key

Chapter 11: Group Activity Question

Chapter 12: Statement of Cash Flows

TVM - Time Value Money - Summary of Concepts and Techniques

TVM - Timeline Visualization and Explanation

TVM - Time Value Money Homework Problems

TVM - Answer Key to TVM Homework Problems

TVM - Present & Future Value Tables - 4 page pdf file

Several TVM Calculators by Investopedia - A Forbes Media Company

EXAM INFORMATION:

Terms to Know for Exams #1-4

Sample #1 Financial Statements and Ratio Calculations for Exams #5-7

Sample #2 Financial Statements and Ratio Calculations for Exams #5-7

Exam #5 and #6 Information

Link to AccountingCoach.com

Link to Concepts of Accounting Summary by Quick MBA

Link to Financial Accounting Summary by Quick MBA

Link to open or access Student iMail account at SCC

Link to SCC Bookstore and textbook information for all classes

Link to Accounting Scholarships

Link to Accounting Internships

Recommended Financial Calculators:
- Best: Hewlett-Packard 17bII+ Financial Business Calculator
- Good: Hewlett-Packard 12c Platinum 25th Anniversary Edition Calculator
- Good: Texas Instrument BAII Plus Professional
- HP Academic Purchase Program: HP Student Discounts

1st Day Getting Started Tutorials on Wiley Plus

Link to Wiley Plus for 9:00 a.m. class

Link to Wiley Plus for 1:00 p.m. class

What is Proxy Blind

the answer : Proxy blind is dedicated to all the people who have an interest in internet security, online privacy, and who would to stay Anonymous in the Age of Surveillance. Everything what you get from us is absolutly free. We are glad to provide you:

* Enormous list of fast and working web proxy site and web proxy server
* instruction for browser setting then education how to Hide Ip address and protect your internet privacy and internet security from prying eyes
* help to system administrators websites who has mistakenly left proxy/HTTP cache open to anyone.
* help webmasters to eliminates abuse of open proxies on their websites.
* how to defend your internet anonymity, surf anonymously and learn more about anonymous surfing along with HTTP and HTTPS or SSL proxies, useful for tunneling and bypass firewall because of CONNECT command.
* diverse textual, pictorial (see tutorials) and video guides (inside forum - need registration) how to be anonymous on the Web, how to bypass and unblock site, how to start using cgi proxy for protect your online privacy and how to Hide Ip Address on Internet, IRC (Mirc), ICQ, p2p / filesharing( Kazaa, Edonkey etc...) and the social networking sites like FaceBook, MySpace, Bebo, Orkut
* monthly up to date of suspicios IP address for your firewall (Fight against spying on you from RIAA, MPAA and other enemys of your internet privacy)
* largest base of free proxy tools and software to protect your IP Address and increase your online privacy and internet security.
* practical advice including free tools and software to protect, find and clean your pc from virus, parasite ( Data-mining, aggressive advertising, Parasites, Scumware, Keyloggers, Trojans, Dialers, Malware, Browser hijackers, and tracking components)
* the necessary information, advice and free anti-spam software on stopping spam from getting to your user's mailboxes.
* diverse online tests and checkpoints for testing your Ip address
* 7 days a week, 365 days a year support to ensure you succeed in finding the internet - online privacy

and much more...

What is Proxy server?

A proxy server is a server that retrieves Web pages for you, providing only its own identity to the sites it visits. Requesting data comes first to the proxy, and through the requested proxy, the data is transmitted to you. Usually, they are used to increase the effective network speed of your connection to the Internet because they save informations and files that are requested by many many users in a special database what is called "cache". When you retrieve pages behind proxy, then proxy server first look into "cache" and if the same information is found you will gets directly because of previosly storing in "cache".

About Anonymous Surfing

Anonymously browsing the World Wide Web with your identity hidden is primarily done through what is known as an anonymous proxy websites that will take you the website you wish to visit with information such as the location of your computer and the IP address hidden from the web page. The practice of anonymous browsing can maintain privacy of from loggers spying on the user’s connection.

Anonymous Browsing effectiveness

Since it lets the user bypass restrictions placed in the Internet connection, it is a widely used technique. It is used in schools and offices where there are heavy restrictions on web pages. Students will anonymously browse to gain access to sites classified as harmful to the students. Office workers will anonymously browse to bypass restrictions set by the employers, or not leave behind any tracks in case that the employers are monitoring their Internet browsing.

Anonymous Browsing risks

Anonymous browsing can be harmful because the anonymous proxy does not encrypt data when it is sent to the proxy server. Important information such as logins, passwords, and credit card numbers could be recorded and leaked by a proxy server administrator with has evil plans

Features to Look For

A good web proxy service will setup a TLS or SSL tunnel with the anonymous surfer to prevent network snuffers from eavesdropping. Make sure to select an anonymous proxy server which support the protocols you want to use.

In addition to hiding your IP address, an anonymous proxy server will typically remove traffic such as:

• Cookies

• Scripts

• Pop-ups

• Banners

• Referrer information

These options should be configurable to enable the proxy server to work with web sites which require cookies or pop-ups.