O F F L I N EM A G A Z I N EMOBILE BUSINESS-GO!

THE SOCIAL NETWORK REVIEWS

MOBILE MARKETING

CONTStuff we put load of effort into

Thoughts on Securing a Bad Loan

Assets and Liability BAsics

How Millionaires Get to be Millionaires

Why Mobile Marketing is Important

7 Mobile Marketing Things

Strategies For Social Marketing

Social Marketing Ideas

Online and Offline Business Coaching

Making Money through Online and Offline Business

Raising Your Perceived Value

Creative Marketing, More Customers

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CONTStuff we put load of effort into

Promote Your Business

5 Marketing Blunders to Avoid

Mobile Marketing Tools

The3 Mobile Marketing Trends

How to Market Your Website Using Social Marketing

Get People’s Attention with Online Social Marketing

Practical Social Marketing Tips

Offline Business Promoting is Often Overloked

Offline Business-What to consider

Ofline Business Consulting

Take Your Offline Business Online

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Editor’s Note

A Few Thoughts on Securing a Bad Credit Mortgage Loan

Over spending, the endless nights of partying, eating out and more or less buying everything on a whim, has most likely put a dent in your financial situation and will affect how you live your life for years to come. Clearly, the best option is to dampen your lavish lifestyle sooner than later.

Alleviating yourself from huge credit card, as well as other head-spinning debts by assessing your options now, before all those debs start blowing up in your face is one way to right your financial ship. One plausible option is a bad credit mortgage loan, and it's a good first step towards a more financially disciplined lifestyle. In other words, a financial second chance.

Unfortunately, many people have a hard time facing the reality of their current financial situation and they foolishly think they can go it alone. Fortunately, today's credit markets have geared many of their programs for people just like you and they are more than happy to assist you with your financial woes by doing anything and everything possible to assist you in securing that much needed mortgage refinance to get you back to financial solvency.

First, be honest, how bad is your current financial condition. And remember, you need to face the facts honestly and stop playing games and don't let the possible embarrassment of having other's poking through your financial records deter you. You current financial situation if water over the dam, there's nothing you can do about the past so put it behind you and start making the right decisions from this point forward.

Rest-assured the individuals you will be working with are professionals who want nothing more but help you because it's in their financial interest as well since most loan officers work on commission if they can't find a way to help you they don't get paid. The system is built around vested interest and so if it's possible to help you they'll find a way.

First, don't be intimidated by the process, it's really not that complicated. More often than not, people allow themselves to get overwhelmed, so take a deep breath, do a little research on what's available and don't be afraid to ask questions or to simply walk away from a deal that you feel isn't right and go down the street or apply online at another lender.

Bad credit mortgage loans are readily available but only if you are willing to get out there and put forth a little effort to dig around and find the right lender with the right program for you. Be will to have your financials thoroughly assessed by your creditors and lenders so they have the information they need to do their job, which is clearly to come up with a bad credit mortgage loan that is well suited to your means and capabilities.

Just remember that just because you may qualify for a bad credit mortgage loan, does not necessarily equate with you being off the hook. That's simply the beginning to changing your spending habits and approach to money so that a few years from now you can look back at your current financial situation as learning experience that propelled you to a higher level of financial responsibility. Approach this situation correctly by making the necessary changes and you should also be able to look back and realize that it was the wakeup call you needed and possibly one of the best things that's ever happened to you.

ASSET AND LIABILITY BASICSKnowledge of accounts can make life much easy. If you are to invest in a new business or joining your forefather’s business, planning to take some loan, looking for job in any marketing company, desire to be the manager of a multinational company or have the onus to manage your own assets and liabilities, knowing some basics of accounts becomes mandatory.

Broadly, accounting is bifurcated into two categories-

Cash Bases Accounting

Accrual Accounting

The Cash Based accounting pertains to the management of an individual’s personal monetary transactions. In this case, he keeps a track of the money he withdrew, deposited, gave or received from someone etc. This accounting comes to life when actual cash transactions take place.

The Accrual Accounting requires an accountant who notes the transactions even if no money has been actually exchanged. This method works on the principle of comparing or seeing the ratio of the expenses to expenditure. If the expenditure is more, you need to cut down your luxuries, if not then it’s always good to have some savings for future. This type of accounting tells you the amount that you owed; this might not match with the figure of your bank balance.

In the language of accounting there are several key terms that one needs to be familiar with. Some of the crucial ones are discussed below-

The Assets- the assets are generally those possessions of an individual that have a good market value or are quite valuable. Assets are mainly classified into three types- Current Asset- the cash is the most basic asset of any individual. The money that is being held in accounts like the checking and savings accounts is also included in the cash. Also inclusive are the marketable securities in the form of bonds, stocks, shares etc. The money lent or payments due from clients, even form a part of it.

Fixed Asset- comprises of all the tangible valuable things like property, machines, equipments, land and the like that are not meant to be sold.

Intangible Asset- incorporates all the untouchable things like copyrights, patents, trademarks etc. that have tremendous monetary significance.

The law of opposites governs the nature; where there are assets, there will be liabilities. These are the debts that you have to pay back to your creditors. This can be done through giving cash or any other asset like jewelry, some other goods etc. Liabilities again are of two kinds-

1. The Current Liabilities- the liabilities that are to be paid back within a certain time limit and most often through your current assets. These include the accounts payable i.e. type of bill that you have to monthly, the Notes Payable-loans taken from banks meant to be repaid within 30 days and the Accrued Expenses- the compulsory expenses like taxes, wages, interests etc. where the bills are not received but the balances of each must be repaid.

2. Long Term Liabilities- those debts that can be repaid at ease for the tenure is more then a month.

The Financial Capital- is the economic capital. It is any liquid medium or merchandise that stands for wealth or other styles or capital. There are four ways to manage and display the financial capital. First, this capital is needed when a contract is made with any sort of capital asset. The financial instruments work in the form of currency in case of sale, purchase or trade of goods i.e. the medium exchanges. Second, it works as a settled medium or mode like gold for the Standard of Deferred Payment. Third, The Unit of Account has a market value attached to it which in turn varies with the economy of the country. Fourth, The Source of Value is concerned with financial capital that needs to be saved and recovered. It is a collection of things like gold, real estate, collectibles etc.

Petty Cash is an important factor in business. It is the smallest account within a business setting or the cash in bills and coinage required to pay little expenses.

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HOW MILLIONAIRES GET TO BE

MILLIONAIRESMoney is not just a necessity nowadays; it has become a supplement for sustaining wealth and luxury. Anybody of practical reason who’s being asked will have to say that riches should provide for the next generations. Having this thought in mind, everyone are craving for millions even teenagers earn and work out to look forward the future having a house with a large open space, elegant façade and wheels in the garage. Yet there are only few steps, hints of answers revealed by these millionaires global wide.

Before you can manage a large amount of money learn to handle the coins in your hand. Lisa Van Duesen, a Vietnamese now a mini mogul at US was once sunk in debt and penniless. She sold her house and mortgages an amount of $ 200,000, paid her debt and move to settle in the green pasture of US. They sacrifice from eating lavish foods and satiated in rice and soy sauce as their everyday meal. She worked hard as a real estate broker after college and invested her money to real estate properties that soon earned her 40% equity. Learning fro her work, she buys and sells using the bank's money wisely placing them according to her needs. She purchase whatever that has value and can be sold with interest and plan it financially. She recovered from having sky-high debts to rising assets using only what she has into a profitable cause.

Follow your parent’s advice, earn a degree.

Education is a key factor in understanding how money talks and that are by having one potential, being knowledgeable. Invest in your mind. Acquiring a degree is gearing yourself with skill that can be used and valuable in the market. Arturo Gonzalez, son of the Mexican railroad worker dreamt of making it on top. He has promised himself of two possibilities in his life, Harvard or Bust. Later on he was accepted and pulled himself with ambition to Harvard Law School. He then land a job in San Francisco based law firm and has an income about $ 740,000 in 2003, according to the American Lawyer Magazine. This undeniable manifest how education could earn you a living.

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Positive attitude towards life spiced with perseverance.

Behavior towards work and the optimism that boost up your moral after you tried hart. Starting a small business is already hard enough, to most of people especially when the resources is scarce and debts is high, study shows 20% are struggling small enterprise, according to SBA ( Small Business Administration office of Advocacy).

Rossie Herman, 42 and a resident of Tomball, Texas had experience a lot of struggle just to get her she is now. She took all the risk even placing her in $ 75,000 debt going form one credit card to another which normally happens to about 46% of small business as of 1998, SBA says. She is a manicurist who has two daughters to raise and convicted herself to get out from debt. Often people slam their door in her face during her marketing strategy of house to house delivery." It was frustrating and tough", she admitted. Yet willingness to succeed paid off. The key there is not by quitting but pursuing.

Invest and Save.

The problem of the most entrepreneurs are recognizing only on what goes in the pocket but not knowing what goes out. Spend only what is not more than your budget and compromise from it. Save, save and play out to invest it when the economy is not shaky. One of Oprah’s best advices during her talk show is that a good financial planner must always sign their own checks. This is to monitor what is left and what needs to be saved or else you’ll end up bankrupt without even knowing it.

Time is always essential.

Multi tasking is the best way of achieving your goals in a short time, this means use your potential in dividing the task to others while focusing on what needs to be done. Most of us try to do a lot of things in a short amount of time and end up finishing nothing at all. Always get your priorities straight and focused baring in mind that investing on it will profit you in the end.

Why Mobile Marketing Is

What exactly is Mobile Marketing?

Mobile marketing advertising can be all types of advertising and marketing that use cell phone. Many individuals are convinced mobile marketing centers on text messaging, however it can also utilize voice messaging. In many cases it also involves mobile landing pages, applications, and mobile websites that present coupons and discounts.

Utilizing mobile devices as marketing targets needs a little more thought than traditional email marketing. Text messages have a smaller character limit which requires more refined copywriting skills. Mobile messages need to be short and to the point.

The Value of Mobile Marketing

There is no dispute about effectiveness of mobile marketing, many have discovered mobile marketing has a lot of benefits that at first are not obvious. Text messages are more personal and because of that people check and read them more often.

In most cases people only open their email once a day. As a matter of fact many people have given up their email address. However, the reality is 90% of Americans carry a cell phone.

Utilizing mobile marketing it is possible to get in touch with people nearly instantly. So, instead of hoping people log in to their email and somehow find your message as more important than the other hundreds of emails, you deliver a text message to their text messaging system. Which means there is a high probability they'll see your message within several minutes.

Text Messaging for some - Voice Marketing for others

Voice marketing and text marketing can each be used effectively. One is not necessarily better than the other and each has merits depending on the intended population.

Using Voice Marketing

Using voice marketing utilizes recorded messages that are directed specifically to a person who picks up the phone or if nobody answers the phone, a voicemail message is left.

Its effectiveness is particularly useful for people who are over fifty, primarily because this age group has demonstrated they don't use texting and prefer not to.

When your target market clearly does not use texting technology, voice marketing is the tool of choice. Now, instead of asking someone to access a website you invite them to come to you business or pick up the phone anal you. For the less technical savvy or for those who simple do not want to use texting voice marketing still reminds them to do business with your company.

SMS Text Messaging

Younger people tend to be more receptive to text messaging. If you are under forty there is a high probability you use text messaging, and even if you don't use it day-to-day your phone still receives it and it's easy for you to read it when it lands in the inbox.

SMS text messaging because of it ease of use and cost effectiveness is the marketing tool of choice for younger, forty-five and below tech enabled consumers and many business have found that using it gives them direct access to their customers and potential customers.

7 Mobile Marketing Things to Watch in 2012

As I write this article there are 39 days to go before we usher in the next leap year. The year 2011 has been a tremendous year in mobile marketing. We saw an increase in the use of smart phones, text messages, mobile money transfers and advertising. The number of business people paying a keen

attention to mobile marketing saw a sharp rise. In addition, this was the year legendary founder of Apple Steve Jobs passed on. As we prepare to enter 2012, here are seven things mobile marketers can

expect.

1. Mobile text messages. According to Portio Research 6.9 trillion SMS were sent in 2010 while this is expected to rise to 8 trillion in 2011. The year 2012 will see consumers showing strong demand for SMS in addition to MMS and mobile instant messages (IM).

2. Mobile smartphones. According to IDC 302 million mobile handsets were shipped in 2010 which represents 21.8% of total mobile shipments. In 2012 the number of smartphones will sharply rise. In addition, smartphones that come to the market will get smarter with more functionality and ease of use.

3. Mobile advertising expenditure. According to Gartner mobile advertising expenditure was $1.6 billion in 2010 and this number is expected to rise to $3.3 billion in 2011. The year 2012 will certainly see a sharp rise in mobile advertising, possibly double the 2011 figure. And as expected Asia will continue to dominate the global ad spending; a whopping 77% of mobile users, according to the International Telecommunication Union, are in this region.

4. Google moves. Google earns in excess of a billion dollars in a year from mobile advertising. It is expected that in 2012 the company will position itself to generate more revenue from this source. Key adjustments are expected in the mobile search results, and localization of mobile searches. Apparently, locally targeted ads constitute 51% of total US ad spending.

5. Mobile money transfers. According to Gartner there will be 141.1 million m-payments with a total value of $86.1 billion in 2011. The year 2012 will see global giants like EBay, Google, PayPal, and Skype enhancing their mobile payment systems. In addition, developing countries where there is a low banking penetration will witness a bigger reliance on mobile payments.

6. Mobile handsets. Mobile subscribers will grow from the current 5.3 billion. We expect the USA to come closer to 100% penetration rate as more people get connected especially in Africa where penetration averages 50%.

7. Facebook access. According to Facebook official page, there are currently 350 million active users that access Facebook on their mobile phones. My prediction is that in the year 2012 this number is expected to rise. In addition, Facebook use is expected to spread to other parts of the developing countries that currently have low mobile penetration.

Final thought...

As the Google CEO, Eric Schmidt said in 2010 the future is mobile. And any marketer, business owner out there who hasn't yet though of mobile marketing should reconsider his position. This mobile marketing wave is not about to stop.

STRATEGIES FOR SOCIAL MARKETING - IS SOCIAL MEDIA JUST A FAD OR A REAL LIVE GAME CHANGER?Q: Is Social Marketing and Social Media just a passing fad or a here to stay real life game changer?

A: While it is amazing to me that in spite of all the proof of the power of Social Marketing we have now, there are still those asking this question, I do understand it.

The first time of heard about Twitter and got my account, I did wonder "who cares what I had for lunch?" Then I began to here rumblings from trusted colleagues that there Twitter List was becoming more responsive than their email list.

That got my attention, and leads to the first of three powerful reasons Social Marketing is a game changer on the Internet.

1. The first reason is that each one of your SM sights

is a list just as powerful and often times more powerful

than an email list.

I want you to really think about and get the power of

what you about to read: Imagine if you could go in and

invite everyone on someone else's list, let's say a

leader in your niche or even a competitor, and you

could actually go in and invite their list to join your list.

That's exactly what you can do with the list building

capabilities of Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

Are you getting excited yet?

2. The second reason is that anyone, with the current

tools and a little time and elbow grease, can create a

massive online presence. It no longer matters if you

have an advertising budget in the millions or in your

change in your desk drawer. Either way you can build

a huge online presence.

Here's a business visibility principle that works online

and offline: When you are seen all over the place by

the people in your niche, making sense and being

helpful, you are seen as the go-to expert. When this

happens prospects are much more likely to do

business with you.

3. And the third reason is you can greatly extend your

reach with SM tools. You can reach more people in

your niche who want to learn from and buy from you.

You can also reach the big names in your niche and

begin to develop relationships with them.

You can reach out and connect with like minded

people all over the world, find out what they want to

know, and then provide your answers to their biggest

questions.

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Social Marketing Ideas For the Travel Business

Travel agents, or anyone involved in associated businesses, have recently been handed a gift on a golden platter: online social networking. The travel business has long been driven by good word of mouth and similar forms of personal interaction. Facebook, Twitter, and the many other new venues raise those methods - and their benefits - to new heights.

In days past, travel agencies relied chiefly on newspaper ads and the recommendations of a relatively small network of existing customers. The old "she tells two people, and they tell two people, making four, sixteen..." and so forth, could really only go so far. The problem is that the threads of the 'people web' got broken in too many places, crippling the spread.

Today, that amplification effect is, well, amplified many times over. There are millions of people on MySpace, Facebook, and the rest. That ups the odds quite a bit that word of mouth will continue in one direction, even if it stops in another.

Facebook is an excellent example. Create a Facebook Business Page that perform multiple tasks for you and you'll soon see. You have an opportunity to "soft sell" your travel business in myriad ways. Here are just a few...

The travel business frequently offers advice on places to go, things to do. But it's easy for travelers to get information overload. It's like drinking from a firehose. The travel agent provides a service by sifting through that gold mine, panning for the gold and discarding the stones.

Using Facebook, it's possible to become the go-to guru in your niche. Announce a series of online seminars. Think about using sites like BlogTalkRadio to do a weekly travel show and post your upcoming topics on your Wall. Create some audios and direct your potential customers to a place they can learn how to get the most out of travel at the least cost or hassle. Use your 'Wall' in your Page to post great photos, newsfeeds, and links to articles from a variety of travel experts (including you, of course).

You could let them in on the secrets experienced travelers know about how to find the cleanest, safest hotels. You can direct them to helpful information on relatively quiet hostels. Fill them in on places that offer the best opportunities for getting to know an international crowd.

Twitter offers still more chances to target your audience and create a unique brand in double-quick time.

Since the travel business is filled with exciting one-time events, you have a golden opportunity to pass them on to your followers in real-time. That gets the buzz going in your direction. No need to pump it with a hard sell. This is one place where "build it and they'll come" really works.

You can provide wary travelers with lots of advice on places to avoid in otherwise exciting and desirable countries like Mexico or Egypt. Such places sometimes get an undeserved bad reputation as countries to skip, when there are really only a few easy-to-bypass cities or regions that are risky.

The travel business is, maybe not quite unique, but certainly distinctive in depending so strongly on trust. You gain your customer's trust by providing reliable information on places to go and how to get there. The casual, friendly nature of the travel business syncs perfectly with Twitter for building that trust.

Extend that genial atmosphere as you share your personal passion for travel. All kinds of people travel with all kinds of interests. Share some of your other passions besides travel and you'll find they'll become inclined to come to you first for all things travel related, too. Let them get to know you in multiple ways.

Online and Offline Business

After you start a business, you should seek the guidance and advice of someone respectable who has already treaded your path. A majority of business owners will watch their purse feeling that they cannot fund for the business mentoring and coaching and that it is unnecessary. During a recession, most businesses give up on mentoring which is a bad decision, implying the deterioration of their results. By mentoring and educating your staff, you can ensure superior results and a better balance sheet too. If your business is struggling to maintain sales, obtain fresh customers and retain them, you should opt for mentoring and coaching.

Even if you have been in the business for decades, it does not mean that you know everything. You might feel as if people have different views, even when their theme is the same. Once this happens, you start acting on the theme and end up making money. This is the element on which mentoring operates. Zig Ziglar said that something worse than training the staff and seeing them leave is not getting them trained and having them to stay! This is so true. Companies that spend resources to teach, train and mentor staff outperform the ones which do not.

If your business goes online, you can access a global audience. Online marketing can alter your business immensely. If the goods and services are put online, the business is open round the clock. Many businesses do not want to adapt to the process since they are a bit awestruck by this concept of round the clock functionality. With the host of business mentoring and coaching companies out there, you need not worry about learning about the marketing of your business. What most of the businesses are not aware of is the fact that there are 51 ways of marketing your business.

The different aspects in which your business may be appropriately coached include setting up an effective and functional website with the help of payment processors; online marketing using different techniques and concepts; monitoring successful campaigns for email marketing; creating successful SEO strategies; tapping into effective affiliate marketing; and teaching of blogging to generate revenue and more. This can considerably increase your bottom line and all the credit goes to you and your business. Remember that it is always important to train and mentor the business than staying in ignorance. This is how you can ensure future growth and help in the process of expansion.

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Making Money Through an Online Vs

Offline Business

In today's current economic times, many people are looking to start a business in order to gain financial freedom and free themselves from the uncertainty of a day job. There are many choices to make when starting a new business and every business is different, each taking a different path towards accomplishing their goals.

Before you can move forward on your entrepreneurial journey, you must first decide whether your business will be an online or offline venture. There are many benefits to each operational structure, but your model and access to capital will play a critical role in determining which structure to use for your business.

Historically, most new businesses start by opening a physical location where customers and clients can interact with the business and purchase the businesses products and services. In this age of the internet, physical businesses are considered "Brick and Mortar" because they are housed in physical buildings. The benefit with offline businesses is that an entrepreneur can build trust and credibility by showcasing their store, office, or other place of business. Having a central business location gives customers the impression that a business in credit worthy, stable, and credible.

Building trust with an online venture tends to be more difficult to accomplish simply because there is no exclusivity in the online world. Everyone has the ability to create a website instantly, and consequently, anyone can portray themselves as a legitimate business providing goods and services. There is less accountability for online businesses because the business may not have a physical location and therefore there is no "offline" jurisdiction that can mediate a customer's complaint or issue toward a company. This lack of accountability can make some potential customers leery to conduct business with a company that is strictly online and it will take more effort by the entrepreneur to ensure that credibility and trust are consistently being built with potential customers.

Although offline businesses can build credibility with customers, this comes at a steep price. Offline businesses usually operate with a large overhead costs including rent, staff, phone, internet, office furniture and supplies. Payroll costs associated with hiring a staff and rent costs can increase the pressure on an offline business to operate profitably because of these overhead costs. These overhead costs remain constant regardless of whether the business is performing well or not.

Online businesses can relieve the stresses caused by high overhead costs. Unlike offline businesses, a virtual business has very little start-up and on-going costs. All one would need to start a business online is a computer and internet access. There are numerous websites that allow for you to create your own online stores for free; all you need to do is supply the product.

The inexpensive cost of starting a business online also carries over to marketing costs. Offline businesses generally have to market using offline marketing strategies in order to generate customers to their business. These marketing channels are typically Television, Radio, Newspaper, Phone Book, and Billboard advertising. All of these marketing channels are effective but they are expensive and generally are not well targeted towards a businesses ideal prospect. However, marketing on the internet to promote and online business can be done quickly and inexpensively. Potential customers are all over the internet and all savvy online businesses have to do is position their business directly in front of their ideal prospects using a variety of traffic generation strategies.

Raising Your Perceived ValuePlease believe me when I tell you one of the greatest factors in acquiring and retaining patients is not price; it is delivering high-perceived value.

Perceived value is what the patient perceives they are receiving for the fee they are paying. Therefore if you continually look for ways you can serve your patients better - you will be able to charge more for that service!

Ask yourself the following questions (or ask some of your ideal patients for their opinions or install a suggestions box; well, they can leave anonymous feedback if you feel uncomfortable broaching this subject with them):

1, "What do my patients really want?

2, "What can I give my patients better

than anyone else can?"

3, "Why are they going to other

practitioners and how can I get them to

come to me?"

These questions will help you improve the quality of your clinic, your treatment and service. If you ask these questions and implement the suggestions, I can guarantee you will find the amount of success you have in practice is directly proportional to the amount of service and care you give your patients above and beyond what they already expect.

If you always go the extra mile for your patients they will notice it, appreciate it and refer more people to you. Remember, it is never crowded along the extra mile and one small improvement in the way you look after them today can be a major factor in your success tomorrow - so never stop looking for ways to treat and serve your patients better because your competition will be happy just to plod on doing the same old, same old.

If you do this then the least that will

happen is you have all these people thinking nice

thoughts about you but, more likely, they will want to

actively start helping you expand and promote your

practice. When you do something nice for someone they feel the need to

reciprocate as they don't want to feel

obligated to you, and

Creative Marketing, More Customers

The days of big television ads and full page newspaper ads that drive thousands of customers to your booming business are over (Unless you have an unlimited amount of funding). The Internet and our socially connected world have changed business and marketing forever and it makes me so happy! It has never been easier to get the word out about your business and show people why they should become your customers. And for little to no money if you get creative enough.

I got my first life lesson about marketing the day I opened my first business. Finding funds, setting up the business structure, filing legal documents, getting adequate insurance and all the other logistical things involved in starting this business were easy. But when I found myself with open doors but sitting on only $400 in my bank and business bills coming due, "nervous" doesn't come close to what I was feeling. I knew that marketing was important so I took the first $1000 that I made and paid an "advertising expert" to put our money to good use. This generated Zero customers. So hey, marketing takes time right? So the second $1000 went to an advertising piece that went out to 10,000 subscribers. It too produced Zero customers. Funds were now getting very low. We did have customers from word of mouth but not enough to sustain the business. At this point I did the only thing I thought I could, I spend an hour designing a flyer and got 200 of them printed off. I spent the next few hours woefully passing them out in a small college town. Numbers skyrocketed a few days later and I was completely amazed. A cheap flyer got us customers?! $2000 dollars.... Zero Customers. But, $10 worth of a creative marketing piece,that some "experts" would laugh at, produced dozens of customers. I estimate that we earned around $1000 from those first flyers.

The flyers themselves were not what produced the customers. It was the way that they were passed out. I knocked on each door, talked with each person that answered the door and invited them to come to our business and check it out. That, is Creative Marketing. We do many types of advertising in our companies now but the best way, that we have found, to market that first business is still passing out flyers. Getting creative in your advertising will go a long way. You can find low cost, fun and easy to do methods to bring tens of thousands of dollars to your bottom line. This is where you have to understand your business and experiment. Some marketing books and gurus will tell you specific things to do in order to get customers. I am a little different. I have had and have run multiple companies and each one has to be treated differently. Each one has a different type of customer and it is different to get the word out to different people. This is where the fun comes in! How can you market to the most people for the least amount of money? Figure it out!

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Promote Your Business Off the Top of Your Head

Business promotional items like headwear hit customers right in the noggin. Whether they are wearing bandanas, caps, or toques, these folks are walking advertisements for a company. Many of them forget about the corporate logo emblazoned on their headwear, but those viewing it do not. They notice the name of the company, even if just as an afterthought. This subliminal message may not seem like much, but it can make all the difference in the world.

Some people wear caps, hats, or bandanas throughout the year, while others reserve this headwear for very hot or cold days. A bandana can be worn alone or under a baseball cap or wide-brimmed hat. There is an art to tying a bandana in ways suitable for men, women, and children. Some women prefer to use these as scarves, tying them around their neck or around the strap of their handbag. Bandanas can even be seen displayed without a frame on the wall, especially when they feature a unique design.

An interesting aspect of using bandanas for promotion is the ability to incorporate many colors. There is often no charge for the first color and then a separate charge for each additional color. Direct screen-printing ensures that the design is there to stay. Customers can often request a paper proof at no charge to view the artwork before production. A rally flag is a smaller version of a bandana used at sporting events and corporate kick-offs to generate excitement amongst fans and employees

Baseball caps are popular with men, women, and children. Many styles and colors are available and brushed cotton is a featured material. Some caps feature a different color or piped brim. A two-toned brim is even available, similar to popular NFL caps. An embroidered corporate logo adorns the front of the cap. This embroidery is now combined with fiber optic technology that lights up the logo. Up to 60 flashing, bright points of light can be included and various light colors are available.

PGA Tour caps are available for corporate co-branding purposes. Companies that sponsor or support the PGA Tour often select these caps due to their high quality. In addition to a standard baseball cap, corporate clients can also find a magnet head cover designed for protection from the elements. Both can be embroidered with a logo placed prominently on the front of the headwear.

5 Mobile Marketing Blunders

OM 17

Mobile marketing has unlimited marketing business opportunities. Restaurants, schools chiropractors, supermarkets, travel agents and many other types of businesses can use it with equal measure of success. Indeed, we are headed to a 100% penetration rate and this spells even more opportunities. Despite the immense power of this sector, surprisingly not many business people are truly aware of the strategies to employ to achieve maximum results. They make blunders that alienate them from their intended customers. Here are some you must avoid at all cost.

Blunder no 1. Sending garbage to customers

The mobile phone is a cherished device. People use it to communicate with friends relatives and close family members. That's why they eagerly open messages, on average within 4 minutes. If you send inappropriate messages targeting the wrong people, there is no doubt you are going to annoy them.

What needs to be done is to carefully choose the people who will receive your messages. Write them in a friendly manner and send them at the correct time. Sending a college boy an invitation to a $3000 per plate dinner is clearly garbage to him. On the other hand, sending a corporate executive a $5 restaurant coupon may be insulting, but could be welcomed by a college girl.

Blunder no 2. Spammimg

Spammimg is simply sending text messages to people who have not consented to receiving them. Everyone on your list who receives your emails must accept to receive them. If otherwise, you may end up paying $16,000 fine per message.

The right way to received consent is simply by asking for it. Tell your customers that occasionally you do have great offers meant for customers only and the quickest way to inform them is by text. Ask them to accept to receive these offers by signing a consent form.

Blunder no 3. Sending text inappropriate times.

It may surprise you to know that some marketer send text messages in the middle of the night. Others send back-to-school offers after schools are open. It is annoying to the recipients and could provoke people to opt out or black list you at the very least.

The appropriate thing to do is to send text at the correct times. Rule of thumb is to send text during working hours. In addition, one must avoid missteps of sending offers meant for Christmas in January.

Blunder no 4. Using deception

It is common for some marketer to allow customers to sign in for certain promotion but along the way the offers change. Some business owners also send massages for offers that are none existent.

Your integrity is far bigger than the shortcut you may want to take. Pay the full price of acquiring customers on your list and be honest all the time.

Blunder no 5. Allowing security lapses

Your customers list is a treasured asset and should be handled carefully. At no time should your customer details be released to the public without their consent.

Your data should only be accessed by the right personnel with a sense of responsibility. In addition, one needs to secure the company security system to thwart any security threats.

Mobile Marketing ToolsModern consumers in dozens of countries across the globe have come to expect enormous amounts of information from businesses of all kinds, ranging from athletic shoe manufacturers and fast food vendors to real estate agents and mobile application developers, not to mention the myriad of companies which fall somewhere in-between. SMS messages, email, Twitter and Facebook updates are all streams of information that tech savvy consumers tap into for help making decisions about how and what to spend their limited disposable income.

Using social media sites to communicate to customers is not an entirely brand new idea. But now that some companies have amassed large groups of friends and/or followers, they need to decide what to do with them. The more appropriate question to ask might be; what should companies do "for" their fans? Sending coupons or incorporating real world rewards with online activity are some avenues companies have used to translate their online presence into increased sales.

Applications for smartphones and tablets are another way businesses have been establishing brand awareness and loyalty. Sometimes the apps are simple ways to communicate sales or new services, while more advanced solutions take aim at users who need to be connected to server-side processes. Either way the power of the "marketing through apps" strategy lies in the ability to connect a given application, regardless of it level of sophistication, to a long-term marketing strategy.

As an alternative to the mobile application marketing strategy, some businesses develop a mobile web presence by leveraging HTML5 to develop robust mobile web sites for their consumers. Many companies have found success by first establishing an online presence before investing in native mobile applications.

Mobile coupons have been powerful marketing tools for many companies. Sending printable coupons can translate directly into store traffic or unique online visitors which in-turn translates into increased sales. Mobile coupons mean a return on investment companies can rely on in ways apps and even the most interactive website cannot guarantee. With coupons it's also much easier for companies to monitor how well their investments are paying off and how to get better return next time. Their traceability is one of the many reasons that they've been a successful marketing ploy as mobile continues to expand.

As the size of the landscape of mobile marketing expands, more tools and strategies for getting your message out to customers will continue to emerge. By taking calculated advantage of some or all of the tools at your disposal, your brand can increase awareness, build a customer base and grow sales in an environment where companies of all shapes and sizes need every advantage available.

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The Mobile Marketing Trends That Are Changing

EcommerceWith a saturation of smartphones on the market more and more businesses are using a mobile marketing strategy for new innovative ways to reach customers. Smartphones have the high-end advanced functions required for mobile marketing. Smartphones can run third-party applications including merchant applications and GPS location applications. Combining smart new applications like QR Codes, mobile coupons with location-based applications are allowing the consumer to research, retrieve texts from businesses and receive local discount offers.

One of the popular mobile marketing trends is the use of QR Codes. QR Codes are an instantly recognizable code which when scanned with a smart mobile takes the user to a website which can provide videos, coupons, promotions and reviews on a particular product or merchant. Many smart mobiles like the Apple iPhone, Google's Android and the RIM BlackBerry, have the capacity to download a QR Code application which allows accessibility to the information stored in the QR Code.

Through the use of loyalty programs, merchants can send interested users mobile coupons, texts of last-minute deals, promotions and weekly ads. In a recent mobile marketing strategy merchants keep many deals under wraps until after loyalty customers have been texted the information first.

Location based services on smart mobiles allow users to receive local discount offers along with local merchant information close to the area of the user. Smartphones have GPS navigation units and also feature many GPS location applications. This was the last piece of the puzzle required for location marketing as the user shares this information.

More mobile users than ever before are texting and sharing photos through smartphone applications. First only used by business executives now smartphones have reached a younger audience which are introducing an older generation to the benefits of smartphone use. Smartphones have opened new venues for consumers. They are also reviewing and buying products, checking out coupons and group deals through their mobiles by using an enhanced shopping experience and taking advantage of mobile marketing trends. Worldwide more than half of all mobile users are smart mobile users and in the US approximately forty-three percent of all mobile users have a smartphone. There is a growing dependence on the smartphone due to its capability to perform office tasks, check email, mobile banking, make purchases, along with countless online web services and third-party applications. Along with the increased use of smartphones mobile marketing trends are continuing to be developed for smartphone users.

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How to Market Your Website Using Social Marketing

Social marketing is a low cost or free approach to marketing online. It is the most popular method of creating hype for businesses across the web. If you are ready to begin a social marketing campaign there are many steps you must take in order to be successful. These steps include defining your audience, goals, and implementing the methods of marketing.

The first step you will have when you start a social marketing campaign is to define the audience. It needs to be clear who you are targeting for sales, revenues, and more. Having a clear definition of your audience will help you better understand which methods of social marketing will work best. While younger crowds respond to these techniques through sites like MySpace and Facebook, older crowds may desire be more responsive through email campaigns and newsletters. Understanding your audience will help you begin planning the social marketing campaign.

The next step to social marketing is setting goals for your campaign. Are you primarily concerned with driving traffic to your site? Do you want to create returning customers? Goals differ based on the type of site people own. For example, plenty of affiliate sites have one goal in mind and that is to drive as much traffic to their sites as possible to get as many clicks from web surfers they can. They make money through clicks. Their goal will be to get people to go to the site. If you have a retail site you will want to market your products and create hype about the products offered on your online business. Write down a list of all of your goals. This will help you choose the best methods for your campaign.

Social marketing works by driving traffic to sites, improving site rank which improves credibility and it can also have the potential to increase sales. Choosing the best methods for your endeavors is very important. An email campaign can be used to send out massive amounts of emails to visitors and leads to your site. Blogs can add inbound links and bring in relevant traffic to a site. Social networks are a great way to create hype and loyal customers also. Article writing and press releases get the word out about who you are. Determine the methods you would like to use for your social marketing campaign. Some people like to use a mix of all of each of these.

The final step to your plan is to put the methods to work. Whether you are writing press releases, blogging, or designing emails for a campaign, each of these will help you drive traffic to your site. Social marketing is the most effective way to bring in more customers to an online business and improve online credibility. These methods are free but if you do not know how to do them yourself you can hire writers to accomplish the tasks for you.

GET PEOPLE'S ATTENTION WITH ONLINE SOCIAL

MARKETINGAre you interested in driving clients toward your online business? What are ways that you use attract people? Perhaps this so-called "social marketing" would be particularly helpful for you.

Communication processes have continually evolved through the course of time. Communication is an essential tool in business and marketing. Nowadays, innovations of communication mediums arise to cater the needs of clients and to improve a business. Companies always seek ways to improve their business and their organization.

However, the focus should not only be on the products. It would also be hugely beneficial if business companies give importance to clients or target groups.

Social marketing is one method used by commercial marketers to identify clients' needs and have a better perspective on how to manage a business better. It deals with the application of marketing ideas and techniques. It does not focus on the organization, but rather focuses on the consumers. Instead of selling the product itself to consumers, helps sell ideas, attitudes, and behaviors. It works to influence social behaviors for the benefit of the clients and society, rather than the marketers.

Examples are the notices about avoidance of smoking in public

places, and the reminder of speed limits seen along the road. The

World Wide Web is an immensely helpful tool in social marketing.

Online-based marketing schemes have also developed. One

example of which is the Social Media Optimization (SMO). This method uses the discipline of

social marketing. It implements changes to enhance web sites so

that visitors can link to them easily. This is visible in search engines like Technorati, and in

some blogs, vlogs, and podcasts. The SMO drives online visitors to

go to a certain website.

Social marketing is a useful method of getting the attention of

clients and consumers.

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Practical Social Marketing Tips - 3 Little Known Twitter Tips That Have

Nothing to Do With Tweeting

3 Little Known Yet Powerful Twitter Tips

Twitter Tip #1 - In the upper right hand corner of your Twitter page is the profile area, or information about you. One choice you have is what website you want to include a link to after the space marked "web." Most people just send folks to their main website. The problem is most people's main website has no opt-in page so there is no way to capture the prospects email address.

So what you want to do is include a link to an opt-in page, or at least a page that has an opt-in box somewhere. While your followers on Twitter are a list, you also want to add them to your email list.

Also make sure you change the link every now and then to provide some variety.

Twitter Tip #2 - Also in the profile area in the upper right hand corner is a space to create your bio in 71 characters or less.

Most people include things like "mother, father, internet marketer, CSI fan, love buttered popcorn" or some other way in which to be cute or funny.

As is often the case, don't do what most people do.

Instead, use the 71 characters in the bio to let your follower and prospect know what you can do for them. After all, your follower and prospect is looking at your Twitter page and asking "what's in it for me?" So show them.

Mine currently reads: "Article Marketing for more prospects, publicity, products, profits and a whole lotta fun!" Though I do like to change it around a bit from time to time, so it might be different when you check it out. Whatever it says, it will answer your question of "what's in it for me?"

Twitter Tip #3 - Included in your profile section is a category called "favorites." What most people do is link to their favorite tweets.

Again, don't do what most people do.

Instead favorite the positive things people are saying about you. Maritza Parra calls these "Tweetimonials." Then when someone comes to your Twitter page and clicks on your Favorites, they can see all these "mini-testimonials" about you!

Twitter is a great source of traffic when you use it properly. By now most online marketers now this to be true.

But what most online marketers don't know are 3 little know tips that bring your more traffic without ever sending a single "tweet." (And let me just take this moment to say that I never thought I would be typing the word "tweet" in an article).

Offline Business

Promoting

There is much buzz regarding the importance of promoting your business online, advice on this topic is offered everywhere. Some say the best way to increase sales is to have a website for your business. Some stress the importance of using social media, while others say the best method for promoting your business is the use of article marketing.

Without exception; every business should have a website. It's a must. I also know that article marketing absolutely will give almost any business a huge competitive advantage. The avenues for promoting a business online are almost endless, and most should seriously be considered. While there are many excellent opportunities to promote online, business owners need to be very careful not to focus all their sales generating efforts toward the Internet.

Many business owners make the mistake of investing way to much energy toward an online presence, and overlook the powerful effectiveness of offline promoting. It's essential to have a well planed offline business promoting strategy in place, one that utilizes simplicity and clarity at it's core.

The best return on investment for almost any business is offline promoting. When you present your business offline in the most professional way possible and in a manner that's completely acceptable to your potential customer, all of your online efforts are sure to produce much better results.

Contrary to popular belief, it doesn't take a huge marketing budget in order to get potential customers to want to do business with you. What really attracts customers are the little things, the simple things that business owners often overlook.

Many times an excellent outcome can be achieved by simply going back and fine tuning these little things. There are so many overlooked opportunities to put your business in front of your potential customers eyes that cost very little or nothing at all.

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Consumers are very intuitive, they pay close attention to every little detail about a business. All a business owner needs to do in order to achieve excellent sales results is to view their business exclusively through a potential customers eyes; 24/7/365.

Today's consumer demands simplicity and clarity before, during and after the sale. They have many choices when it comes to patronizing any business. They decide if they want to do business with you; or not! They are the boss.

Offline Business - What to Consider When Creating an Online Presence

Marketing your business online will give your company a competitive edge and wider access to your target audience - without spending a ton of ineffective advertising dollars.

Today, most people will search the Internet first, even when they want to find a nearby shop or restaurant - so it's important that local businesses increase their online marketing to reach these people.

A website is a logical place to begin your online marketing. Your domain name (the words that make up your web address) should tell customers what your business does rather than trying to create a brand name - as this will aid being found in the internet Search Engine Results. Websites should look professional, be easy to navigate and all of the links should work.

When marketing your business online, you should describe the products and services you offer and your company, provide contact information and make it easy to purchase online. Optimizing your writing to use keywords will ensure that your website appears in the search engine results.

Many business owners are challenged by the concept of marketing online, as they believe they are unable to give a free sample or demo. However, you can offer free samples and you would be surprised at the level of customer loyalty that can built in doing so. Examples of free samples / offers on some websites include:

Square footage calculators (for freight companies);

Cost analysis calculators; Color mixing examples (for paint or design

organisations); A blog that provides useful tips and insights from

you, the expert; Use the tips from your blogs to create downloable

fact sheets; A video demonstrating the steps in a project -

imagine being able to give your 'instore' demonstrations, 'in home' whenever your customer wants them;

A podcast, a recorded audio program like a radio talk show, that can be downloaded to your website visitors computer or portable device...

Web marketing is about ensuring that your Target Audience recognizes your company's name, giving people a reason to return to your website and helping your prospects (website visitors) make a buying decision that includes you!Building name recognition (branding) online can be done by using Social networking (twitter, facebook, linked in etc), paid search engine advertising (pay per click), banner advertising on other websites, submitting your information to online trade organization directories and even by registering with web map services as a local business that will be displayed on maps searched in your area.

Email marketing is a tried and testing online marketing method. After ensuring that you have your customers or prospects permission to send email, spend time creating emails that are unique enough to make them stand out from all the other mail in your customer's email box. When using email marketing, it is best to send a newsletter that has useful information and / or a coupon or discount voucher. It is important that you follow all government regulations regarding email marketing, which includes removing customers from your list promptly when requested.

Some of the best information for online marketing has not changed in many years and follows the same basic principles as marketing your business offline. Marketing your business online requires you to have a clear plan, research your market, product and competition and, of course, excellent customer service.

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Your expertise in lead generation and email campaigns can be put to good use for offline businesses. The purpose of having a website is making a profit. Before a business can profit, they need the leads. Again, this is another area or service that you can provide an offline business. Running email campaigns is most likely a second-nature to an internet marketer, but offline businesses don't know the first thing about running a successful email campaign. Again, this is another viable income source for your business.

Creating a blog for an offline business can also be very profitable for you. Blogs assure customers that there is a person behind the website. It's a venue to communicate with the target market. Blogs are very effective in promoting new products and informing the public of future sales.

These are only a few ideas and suggestions on how to use your skills as an internet marketer and turn it into more profit. If you can start out with these, there will be no more need for you to keep on searching

Offline Business Consulting The Current Best

Among Free Work From Home JobsOffline business consulting is currently the newest business idea that's causing quite an excitement among internet marketers. Consider this: if you are already proficient in internet marketing, that means you have already learned a valuable set of skills while growing your business. You don't need to go very far to search for other free work from home jobs; you only need to look at yourself. Take into account the skills that you have learned while growing your own business.

Haven't you learned to design your own website? What about your experience in article writing and press releases? Or in lead generation and email campaigns? These skills and many more are the very ones that you can offer to offline businesses to take their business online. Statistics say that about 50% of offline businesses have no online presence. This is a large market and a very lucrative opportunity.

Small businesses who want to get themselves online either have no idea about designing their own website or have a very small budget for this. Some businesses may already have their own website but it is not keyword optimized. Therefore a search for the products or service they sell may show up on Google, but they may be on the 15th page. We all know that only those search results on the first page of Google or Yahoo usually get the traffic. By offering to fix their website or creating a keyword optimized website, you are opening up another avenue of income for yourself as a consultant.

You may already be writing articles online which pay you from $5 - $12 per article, but article writing for offline businesses pay more, sometimes even as much as $25 per article. This may seem like it's too much for you, if you're used to being paid a pittance. But for these small businesses, they know that having a professional article writer who can write good quality, keyword-optimized articles will give them a handsome return for the cost.

Taking Your Offline Business Online

When people make the decision to take their business online, they believe the first step they should take would be to set up an ordinary website. For a conventional business this would be a good assumption, but as a network marketer coming online this is not the case.

A typical website will not be sufficient to develop the kind of relationships that network marketing thrives on. Your goal is for people to find you and ultimately buy from you online. One of the main things you need to learn is how to make your business easy to get to online, and how to set yourself apart from the rest.

In order to build relationships with prospects, familiarize yourself with a phenomenon known as social marketing. By gaining knowledge of the internet's new phase known as Web 2.0, and the characteristics of these sites, you can discover the ability to interact with the site's producer or author's of its content.

Potential customers will be able to find you more easily, because search engines like newly updated information. A variety of media is now accessible to make developing these relationships possible, such as EzineArticles, and content sharing like Squidoo and HubPages. Everyone has heard of YouTube, for video sharing, and then there are blogs, and microblogs such as Twitter.

Focusing on all these different forms of media would be impossible, but they are all available at little or no cost to you. You can establish a presence online to become a valuable source of information in your area of expertise.

Creating a website is important, but obtaining a flow of customer traffic is more essential to the survival of your new online business. If you are going to succeed online another vital concept to launch would be attraction marketing.

You can start by answering a few questions like:

Who are you trying to target? You are looking for business opportunity seekers; someone who wants to make money at home, but doesn't yet recognize the prospect of joining a network marketing business. Possibly it could be someone who already has an affiliation with this type of business, or someone who has done research for your specific type of opportunity.

What are they looking for, thinking about, or talking about? These opportunity seekers are looking for any information to help them overcome their network marketing situation and ultimately succeed. Additionally, they are researching product information, different compensation plans, how to manage a company, and anything to help them further their development.

Do they have problems that you can help them solve?

Are they looking mostly to gain prospects that can teach them how to use the internet to help them achieve their business goals? Maybe they need to know how to spend less money on leads, or how different compensation plans compare.

1. Use this information to arrange your attraction marketing system, and produce a web of content.

2. Create and position your content online where prospective opportunity seeker will find you. The content you generate is the lure you need to gain these prospects. You do not need a website to start building content on the web. A website or blog will only advance your results.