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In your home business marketing efforts, is your ezine newsletter providing you a steady stream of income? There are people on the Internet today who are earning a full time income just publishing their own ezine newsletter! Let’s take a look at five ways you can get more out of your ezine than you may currently be getting.

1. First of all if you are not currently selling advertising you should offer it. There are Internet marketers who currently do not have a list of their own to mail to and are willing to pay ezine publishers to get their products in front of people in a legitimate way. Selling ezine advertising is one way that you can make money while providing a valuable service.

2. Do not over mail your ezine newsletter, but do be consistent in how you do it. Some of the most successful ezine newsletters are published on a consistent basis without over mailing.

For example you may set a goal to send your newsletter out every week. One thing you can do is send it on the same day so that people get used to receiving it. You might even go so far as to send it at the same time of every day once a week.

3. Offering useful information and valuable content and you will be rewarded for it. People will stay subscribed to ezine newsletters if they feel there is a value to them. These subscribers become loyal readers which in turn can become customers for products you sell.

4. Your ezine is an excellent home business marketing tool for you to promote products that you make money selling. A recommendation from you can be like money in the bank as people begin to trust what you have to say. You do this by only recommending quality products and ones that you have first hand knowledge of.

5. The final way we want to talk about getting more from your e-zine newsletter is turning it into a viral home business marketing machine. An easy way to do that is to ask for referrals right up front on every issue.

You might even turn it into a contest and offer prizes for people who refer the most number of new subscribers to it. People love contests and this is an actual way for you to build a large subscriber base without doing all the work yourself.

These are a few of our home business marketing tips to get more from your ezine newsletter. If you follow our suggestions, it will help increase your income and number of subscribers as well!

Originally posted 2009-11-11 13:07:52.

Skis, shoes, weights, helmets and other equipment all come with a high price tag, but you don’t have to let the cost of sporting equipment keep you from enjoying the activities that you love. If you’re passionate about a sport, there are plenty of ways that you can get the items that you need for low cost or no cost at all.

The first way to save money on sporting goods is to borrow it from friends or family. If you need skis for a weekend, see if you can borrow them from someone you know. Borrowing equipment works best if you are trying out an activity that you’ve never tried before or that you do infrequently. It can get annoying if you are constantly borrowing someone else’s equipment, but it’s an option if you really need some equipment in the short term.

If you decide that you need equipment too frequently to be able to borrow it, you can look at yard sales, Craigslist or online auctions to find equipment for low prices. When you go this route, you can sometimes find high quality equipment for bargain basement prices.

When you are buying used equipment, make sure to put it through its paces. Get on a treadmill and run on it. Assemble and disassemble each combination on a set of dumbbells. Bounce on the trampoline. Make sure that the equipment you are buying can stand up to normal wear and tear. This way you won’t have any surprises when you get home and try to use the equipment.

Your other option for inexpensive sporting equipment is to be a smart shopper and look for equipment at discount stores. If you aren’t a professional and only take part in activities casually, you can get by with cheaper brands with less quality construction.

Most mega-mart discount type stores carry good basic equipment for whatever activity you’re interested in. But if you’re an avid fisherman or bowler, for example, you’ll want to pay more for higher quality equipment. You can do so without spending a whole lot of money by watching for sales at sporting goods stores. You can often find good deals at the beginning or end of the season. Watch for markdowns on your favorite items and snatch them up when you get the chance.

Sometimes the best way to save money on sporting goods is by investing in quality equipment. As counter-intuitive as that sounds, you’ll pay less in the long run if you buy equipment that will last a long time. You can research and save for a major purchase, and then buy it only when it’s offered in the store at a discount or online with a coupon code. When you buy something that will last you years (instead of equipment that will break in a few months) you’re actually saving yourself money.

You should never let money stop you from trying something new or taking part in your favorite activity. By shopping carefully, paying attention to sales or saving up to purchase high-quality equipment, you can save money on sporting equipment of all kinds.

Originally posted 2009-10-23 17:53:22.

A solid knowledge of your customers is vital to succeed in today’s modern information driven business world. Small businesses are widely considered to provide a better customer service because the decision makers are closer to their clients than in much larger companies. Managing customer relations has grown increasingly complicated as market forces and trends change at a much faster rate than in the past, and with the internet revolution, that is set to continue and accelerate.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0 Small Business Edition is designed to work with other Microsoft applications such as Microsoft Small Business Server 2003, Outlook, Word, Excel and Publisher. Working together, the Microsoft Dynamics Suite greatly helps your staff to build closer customer relationships and achieve new levels of productivity and profitability.

Here are 5 ways Microsoft Dynamics Suite can help your small business save time and money:

1. Centralize all your customer information

Microsoft Dynamics Suite captures all customer contact information from your sales, marketing and support sections of your business and houses the information in a central repository. Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 provides instant access to whoever needs the information, wherever they are and when they need it. This reduces costs by minimizing non-productive time wasted, increases profitability by maximizing cross-selling opportunities and enhances customer relations with a more personalized approach from all staff in contact with customers.

2. Protect your customer information

Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 has built-in security features to ensure your customer information is protected and kept confidential. Employees are only given access to that information on a customer that is required for the role they need to perform. By combining Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 with Small Business Server, a powerful firewall is provided that allows mobile employees and remote locations to have secure and enhanced access to customer information while out of the office. The ability for mobile and remote workers to access customer information out of the office allows them to continue to be supported and productive as well as spend more time where they need to be – with customers and prospects.

3. Integrate with Microsoft Office Outlook

Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 has been designed with Outlook in mind, and can be enabled to let your employees work directly from their Outlook email client. This close integration with Outlook and other Microsoft applications such as Word and Excel means that all staff with client contact can look up customer information, manage email communications, arrange appointments, record customer and prospect contacts from within Outlook and share this across the business with the Microsoft Dynamics Suite. This makes staff more productive, generating greater revenues and reducing time wastage dealing with administrative customer affairs.

4. Tailor Microsoft Dynamics Suite to your small business

The Microsoft Dynamics Suite contains a configuration wizard so you can tailor the customer relationship software solution to meet the particular needs of your business. You can customize and modify forms, construct your own data entry fields and arrange how information is to be presented while an intuitive engine allows for automation of repetitive tasks. An alert system raises flags when you need to perform a task so nothing need ever fall down between the cracks.

Microsoft Dynamics Suite is an out-of-the-box solution that is quickly and cheaply implemented while maintenance costs are also minimal. The Microsoft Dynamics Suite is also scaleable to meet the future demands of your business with additional features that can be added as and when the need arises.

5. Fast and simple implementation gets you up and running quickly

Microsoft Dynamics CRM v3.0 has a very fast and simple set-up to speed up productivity and profitability, this minimizes business disruption. For existing users of Microsoft Office applications, the customer relationship software solution is readily adopted by your staff as it has been designed to look and feel like all other Office applications so use is intuitive.
This minimizes the costs of implementation and user adoption while at the same time increases productivity with minimal business disruption and faster adoption by employees.

Originally posted 2009-11-13 12:52:06.

Whether you are a new entrepreneur or a more experienced business owner, taking control of your finances can feel like a part-time job. Some simple tips can help you streamline your time, organize your finances and reduce the stress of business money matters.

1. Keep Your Bills in One Place

When the mail comes, make sure it goes in one place. Misplaced bills can be the cause of unwanted late fees and can damage your credit rating. Whether it’s a drawer, a box, or a file, be consistent. Size is also important. If you get a lot of mail, use an area that won’t get filled up too quickly.

2. Pay Your Bills on Schedule

Bill paying can be simplified if it’s done at scheduled times during the month. Depending on how many bills you receive, you can establish set times each month when none of your bills will be late. If you’re paying bills as you receive them, chances are you’re spending too much time in front of the checkbook. Although bills may state “Payable Upon Receipt”, there’s always a grace period. Call the creditor to find out when they need to receive payment before the bill is considered late.

3. Read Your Credit Card Statements

Most people take advantage of low interest credit card offers but never read their statements when paying the bill. Credit cards are notorious for using low interest as bait for new customers then switching to higher rates after a few months. Make a habit of looking at your statement carefully to see what interest rate you are paying each month and if any transaction fees have been applied. If the rate increases or a transaction fee appears on your statement, a simple call to the credit card company can oftentimes be beneficial in resolving the matter. If not, try to switch your money to a more favorable rate.

4. Take Advantage of Automatic Payments

Most banks offer a way to automatically deduct money from your account to pay creditors. In addition, the creditors usually offer a lower interest rate when you sign up for this payment option because they get their money faster and on-time. Consider it as one fewer check to write, envelope to lick and stamp to buy. Just make sure you record the deduction when the automatic payment is scheduled or you run the risk of bouncing other checks.

5. Computerize Your Checkbook

Using a software program is a handy way to organize your finances. Whether it’s Quicken(r), Microsoft Money(r) or another package, these easy-to-use programs make bill paying and bank reconciliation a cinch. Computer checks can be ordered almost anywhere and fit right into most printers. Once the checks are printed, all of the information is automatically recorded in your electronic checkbook. Furthermore, many banks have direct downloads into these software packages so when money is deposited or withdrawn, the transaction is entered immediately onto your computer. And, when it comes time to do taxes, it couldn’t be easier.

6. Get Overdraft Protection

Most banks have a service where, if you run the risk of bouncing a check, the money will come from another source. For a nominal fee, the bank will link your checking account to either a savings, money market, or credit card so the embarrassment of bouncing a check will be avoided. Call or visit your bank to learn about this convenient feature.

7. Cancel Unused Accounts

Whether it’s a credit card or bank account, write a letter requesting that the account is formally closed. Not only will this improve your credit score, it is a useful way to avoid money from being scattered all over the place. Don’t let department stores and credit card companies lure you into opening new accounts by offering favorable interest rates and purchase discounts. It’s easy for credit to get out of hand by taking advantage of every credit offer that comes your way.

8. Consolidate Your Accounts

If you have several credit card accounts with outstanding balances, try to consolidate them into one. Be careful and check the balance transfer interest rates and one-time fees. Also, make a list of all your open Money Markets, Savings, CDs, IRAs, Mutual Funds, and other accounts to see if any consolidation can be done. Keeping your money in fewer places eliminates all of the guesswork involved and reduces errors.

9. Establish Automatic Savings

Create a link from your checking account into a savings account that will not be touched. This can usually be done through the banks and automatic amounts will be transferred over each month. Most people will not put money into a savings account on a regular basis. They may wait until a large tax refund check arrives or some other event to actually deposit money into savings, retirement or other accounts. If you establish an automatic savings deposit every month, your accounts will begin accumulating money faster than you think.

10. Clean up Your Files

Make sure your paid bills are organized in a filing cabinet. Keep individual files for paid bills. Go through your files at the end of each year and throw out bills and receipts no longer needed for auditing purposes. Contact your local IRS office to see how long records need to be kept for audits. Usually federal tax return audits can be done three years back but cancelled checks may need to be kept for seven. Consult the Internet for auditing and records-keeping procedures for your state or region.

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A free friendship dating site is a blessing in disguise for many people who have not found any success with speed dating sites or romantic dating sites or other varieties of internet dating sites.

Free of Cost Friendship Website

The main advantage of hooking up with a free friendship dating site is that firstly, the registration process is free and you can create your account and search through the data base absolutely free of cost.

In a reputed friendship site where registration is 100% free (though you have to upgrade and become a paid member to send messages) you can create a peppy profile, interact with a huge member base and take a look at their profiles, indulge in blogging sessions, send emails and chats and instant messages etc. In short you will get to enjoy all the features of a paid online dating service or friendship site without having to pay anything!

Set Your Own Pace for Relaxed Friendship Dating

A free friendship dating site will allow you to proceed in the dating game at your own comfortable pace without hurrying you on. And these friendship websites are very easy to use and won’t leave you confused through intricacies that are difficult to comprehend.

All that you need to do to meet men online or meet ladies online and make friends online free is to sign up, create your profile, search through or browse through hundreds of member profiles, send friend requests to those you like or accept friend requests from members if you like their profile and you can simply start scrapping them or leave behind comments in their diaries or scrapbooks to carry on with the friendship. You can use smileys or graphics or instant messages as conversation starters.

And these friendship websites are pretty flexible with time. You don’t run the fear of getting unsubscribed after 3 months or 6 months due to non payment of fees. There is no membership deadline as such and most people remain loyal subscribers of a good and trusted friendship site for years and years, taking their own time to judge people or meet more new people. There is no attached rider like expiry of membership period and you can make as many new friends as you like for 4 years or 10 years.

Wider Scope and Larger Database to Choose Friends from

In a free friendship site, it is possible to meet people from all walks of life, from all ethnicities, from all religious or communal groups and you have the scope to explore your options from a larger database of members as maximum numbers of people prefer to join a free friendship site.

Originally posted 2009-11-05 17:39:53.

Technology is in a continuous change, it evolves every day. With the help of the Internet, various new and innovating technologies are now accessible to everyone and provide new solutions to the old problems. One of them is the desire to communicate more, cheaper and over longer distances than usual. The solution for this need is the VoIP technology which replaces the traditional telephone landlines. This technology works best on a high-speed connection to the Internet. The dial-up connection is too slow for a real-time voice or data transfer, so it is not recommended. The program used in this type of communication resembles a telephone keypad and works in the same way. It is called ‘Softphone’, which means ‘Software Phone’.

The main advantage of this brilliant technology is its low costs. Every VoIP provider has its own rates, but generally, all rates are lower than most of the traditional telecommunication systems. The VoIP technology transforms analog signals into digital data packets, which are then compressed and sent over the Internet at high speed. When the data reaches the destination, it goes through a reverse process of decompression and conversion to an analog signal. It Even if it seems complicated, it is a real-time process, and that means there will be no delay between the two speakers. There are two ways of calling through VoIP: PC to PC or PC to regular phone. The first alternative is completely free, while the second is charged. The rates of any VoIP provider are displayed on its website, generally at a section called ‘call shop rates’.

Every call shop customer can take advantage of a free online billing system, which detects all the booths that have made calls in the last three hours. The call in progress and the calls that have been completed can be accessed just by clicking on the booth link and the “end-of-day” cash accounting is assisted by daily reports. For this system there are available two levels of access, which means that only the administrator can configure the system, and the day to day billing system procedures can only be attended by the staff in the call shop. The billing procedure is completely self-configuring. You just need to sign up, set the currency that your callers will be charged and in the end set the rates that you wish to charge your customers. For the special call shop rates, you must visit the VoIP provider’s website.

You can use VoIP applications with a simple microphone and computer speakers, but many VoIP manufacturers are designing phones which are specially created to work with this technology, called SIP phones. If you don’t have a SIP-phone you can use the softphone which can be found on the VoIP provider’s website and which perfectly emulates a standalone VoIP SIP-phone and runs on any windows operating system. It is free, easy to install and to use.

Through this new technology, people from all over the world can talk and change data almost for free, no matter the distance between them. Another advantage is the great mobility offered by this service. You can travel all over the world and still make and receive phone calls, because your number remains the same whether you are in Europe or in USA.

Originally posted 2009-11-16 19:09:53.

Investing in invoice automation can save your business a significant amount of money. Working out where you could make these savings will help you persuade the managers who hold the purse strings that they will see results on the bottom line.

The main areas that invoice automation could save you money are:

Staff costs Speedier payments More accurate payments Reduced storage costs Reduced operations costs

Ten ways to save money

1.    Reduced cost of invoice processing – Research from the Institute of Management and Administration (IOMA) suggests that it costs companies with a low level of invoice automation £7 to process each invoice payment. However, accounts departments with a high level of automation report reducing this to around £4.20. This represents a saving of almost 60%.

2.    Reduced staff costs – With invoice automation, your accounts staff will be able to deal with invoices more quickly and accurately. This means you may require less members of staff. You shouldn’t need to hire any extra workers and the need for temps will be reduced.

3.    Fast Return on Investment (ROI) - Many companies report reducing their accounts costs by 50% within nine months of implementing a purchase to pay solution.

4.    Early payment incentives – Invoice automation gives you much tighter control over when your invoices are paid. You will be in a much better position to take advantage of early payment discounts. These are typically a 2% discount for payment within ten days. On a £5,000 invoice this would represent a saving of £100 so you can see how these savings add up.

5.    No late fees – Legally, if you pay late, your clients can charge you extra. Under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, if an invoice is not paid on time, clients are entitled to charge you interest calculated at the Bank of England base rate plus 8%.

6.    Improved cash flow – If no early payment incentive is offered, automated invoicing gives you the control and accuracy to pay bills on time but not early, thus improving your cashflow.

7.    Greater accuracy – Invoice automation mean that it’s simple and quick to find invoices, meaning you’ll avoid the problems associated with errors such as duplicate payments. According to IOMA’s findings, 17% of businesses have a duplicate invoice payment rate of 0.1 to 0.5%. If your firm’s duplicate invoice payment rate was 0.3% and your accounts payable team processed £300 million worth of invoices each year this would represent an overpayment of £900,000 annually. Of course, you should be able to retrieve this cash (as long as your system alerted you to the overpayment). However, this could involve paying a third party. Recovery companies charge, on average, a third of the outstanding invoice amount, which in this case would be £300,000.

8.    Lower storage costs – Research suggests that it costs businesses around £11 to file each document. Lots of potential productive working time is also wasted looking for lost or misfiled documents.

Invoice automation slashes the costs of storing documents because you’ll no longer have to find somewhere to put a growing body of paper documents. Nor will you have to buy additional equipment such as filing cabinets to keep all the paper in.

9.    Working with paper documents means a lot of printing, faxing, posting and copying. The costs of these processes all add up. Invoice automation means that many of these processes are no longer necessary and therefore reduces costs, especially those associated with postage and other shipping services.

10.  Business continuity – If there was a disaster such as a flood or fire, losing all your paper files would be a catastrophe. With invoice automation, files are stored electronically and backed up – the risk is minimised.

Product Description
Researchers and facilitators Susan Kurliak and Aaron Johannes have met with many people with disabilities and their families, and generated with them a list of useful tips for making, keeping and deepening relationships. Ideas with graphics about how folks with disabilities can and do create and foster relationships with friends, family and their communities. Plain language, easy to read, graphic format. “With research showing the power of networks and relationships, this little book is very timely. Not only does it capture the essence and importance of friendship, but it provides concrete strategies for people with disabilities, their families, and people who provide support.” John Lord Researcher and Author Pathways to Inclusion: Building a New Story with People and Communities

101 Ways To Make Friends

Originally posted 2010-03-04 17:00:25.

At last, you are moving in to your new home. You are more than excited because you feel like you are also moving forward to a new, bright life. You started your day by decorating your new home with your equally new furniture and home accessories. In fact, you have spent two and a half days to complete everything. What is more important to you, though, is that you and your family are finally settled. But, you are forgetting something – what about the neighborhood? Coming along with your new home is a new community, where you are currently a total stranger. As a new arrival, it is a best gesture if you will be the one to approach them, introduce yourself and offer friendship. However, if you have no idea what are the best ways to do this, consider this list:

Invite them to your housewarming party.
Being in your new home gives you the opportunity to host a housewarming party. Instead of inviting just your friends and relatives, invite also your new neighbors. In this way, you are already extending your family to them.

Offer them your food.
Grill barbecue in your front yard. Set a table for you and your family. But, make sure you have aplenty of barbecue, so when you see neighbors around, you will be able to offer each of them with a stick of barbeque. Just a stick, but it will mark a new beginning of friendship.

Propose a handshake to people you meet along the neighborhood.
When you are walking along the area, offer a handshake to people outside of their homes. Introduce yourself and your family. This gesture will enable them to understand that you are opening your doors to them.

Attend community events.
If you receive invitation for a community event, do not have a second thought in attending. Grace the occasion. In this way, you will be introduced to majority of your neighbors. You can easily make friends with them.

Join community organizations.
Involve yourself in community organizations. By becoming a member of one or two organizations, you will engage in activities that will require your regular attendance; hence, it will be too soon that you will gain friends.

Offer your help to those who are in need.
In time of emergencies, your neighbors, aside from your house members, are the closest to you. If you feel like they need your help, offer them one. For instance, if one of them requires assistance in gardening, offer your help.

Take a walk.
Each morning, try to take a walk, along with your family, if possible. By seeing you every day, they will take notice of you and they will offer a smile. It will become the start of a new life in the neighborhood.

By following one if not all of these tips, you will realize, meeting and making friends with your new neighbors is not a difficult task to do. In fact, it is an enjoyable and a funny thing to look back on after you have already tied your friendship with them.

Originally posted 2009-11-03 17:33:31.

iBwave Goes Social, Brings Community of Wireless Experts Together
A LinkedIn User Group, a Technical Forum and an idea Generation tool to Connect and Share with the In-Building Wireless Community

Read more on PRWeb via Yahoo! News

5 Ways We’ll Interface With Future Computers
Since the dawn of personal computing, the mouse has served as the link between human and machine. As computers have become ever more powerful and portable, this basic interface of point-and-click has remained tried, true and little changed.

Read more on LiveScience.com via Yahoo! News