You Are Responsible For Due Diligence

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Catherine

Due Diligence – An Online Necessity

In this vast world of online marketing, there are hundreds of companies which come and go on a daily basis which is why it is more important than ever to perform due diligence. The only person responsible for the decisions you make and the companies you promote is you. This part of online marketing is not easy or fun, but it is a required evil if you want to promote solid products. The only way to know which companies are legit and in business for the long haul is to perform due diligence.

Step 1 To Due Diligence

Find out the company owner. If this information is not readily available, this should be an immediate red flag. You should be able to find out the owners name and if the company is incorporated, or a sole proprietorship, very easily. In most instances, you will find a phone number available which gives you the opportunity to explore even further.

Step 2 To Due Diligence

Find out where the company is located and how long they have been in business. How long have they been at this location and, if they produce a product, find out where is production housed. This will ensure you can put a tangible address with the business.

Step 3 To Due Diligence

Find out as much information as you can from other sources. Ask people who you know, who may be involved with the company, what they think or how have they fared. Find online reviews about the company and the product. Search for any customer complaints and see if these complaints were resolved.

These are a few steps to performing due diligence before joining any company or business. These steps do NOT ensure your success but, by increasing your knowledge, give you a better chance of making an informed decision. There is never a guarantee but, if you perform your due diligence, the odds will be stacked in your favor for success.

“Diligence is the mother of good fortune.” ~Benjamin Disraeli

Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

Keeping A Schedule is Important

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Catherine

Schedule a Good Work Day

For me, the ability to accomplish a good work day is enhanced by keeping a schedule. I’m not talking about about a minute by minute regimen but a more relaxed – get this accomplished today – type schedule. Some might even call it a “to-do list”. By keeping a daily schedule, you can keep yourself on track to accomplish your yearly goals.

Create A Monthly Schedule

This is a simple idea of creating a list of things to do each day. I actually go as far as filling out a monthly calendar which allows me to schedule the tasks I want to accomplish on a certain day. This allows me to plan out certain tasks which I know I want to accomplish weekly. For example – writing a blog post once a week. If I pencil that in for Wednesday, then I will see it on my schedule all month long. This allows me to plan that day around the major thing I want to accomplish. Plus, it keeps it plastered in front of my face all month long.

Stick to the Schedule

Hey, life happens. What is important is you play catch up as soon as possible. We are all human so, if you get behind, put in the extra effort to get back on schedule. I find it particularly rewarding when I can check an item off my “to-do list”.

In conclusion, I find keeping a schedule of daily, weekly, and monthly tasks a rewarding way to keep myself on track. By viewing my daily schedule, I know I can accomplish my monthly tasks which can help my accomplish my yearly goals.

Posted in Blog, General, Marketing Tips | Tagged Goals, schedule, to-do list | 3 Comments

Scrambling To Survive In The Business World

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Catherine

To survive in the business world, you must continually adapt and provide value for your customers. This fact holds true whether your business is online or offline. Recently my offline business, a video rental store, was slapped in the face with circumstances which call for some drastic scrambling to survive.

The ability to provide customers with a service of value can make or break a business. When the value to your service is compromised, this is the time when a business owner must fight to survive. There are a variety of ways to change your business to provide a better value to the end consumer.

1. Enhance your current service.

The video rental business has changed drastically over the last 20 years. There have been continual enhancements to the service we provide. We went from renting vhs only to including dvds and now blu ray discs. With each development of technology, there was a need to decide which items would bring value to our consumer base. Enhancement of service is a constant balance to achieve satisfied customers.

2. Expand the services you provide.

If the income you receive from your current services decrease, then it may be time to expand your services. To fight the decline in movie rentals, do to the establishment of Netflix and Redbox, we have brought in arcade games. This expands our business as an entertainment center while continuing to keep our family friendly status.

3. Create an alliance which will provide a stronger customer base.

The ability to create an alliance with another brand is a way to increase your customer base. The possibility of bringing in fresh eyes to view your product is important to sustain business growth. We recently created an alliance with Alltel wireless phone service. Customers can now add minutes to their cell phones at our store. This is just another way of expanding the services we provide.

Business owners should constantly be on the look out for ways to enhance their products or services. In our every changing society, it is a constant battle to survive in the business world.

Posted in Blog, General, Rants | Tagged business, business world, customer base, customer services | 11 Comments

Take Advantage of Free Training

Posted on March 11, 2012 by Catherine

Free Training is Available

If you search online, you will find there is free training available in a variety of places. I believe it is advantageous to participate in as much free training as you can fit in to your schedule. Much of this free training is being brought to you by 6 figure income earners. When Gary Vaynerchuk, author, video blogger, wine guru, was asked why he shared valuable tips and business information, his response was “Because most people will never act on the information”. Business people, like Gary Vaynerchuk, openly share business concepts and valuable information on a daily basis with different free training methods.

Schedule Free Training In To Your Week

In a previous post, “Are You Taking Daily Action Steps”, we discussed the value of setting up a daily schedule. It is important to add training in to your schedule. With all the free training available, you could be attending some sort of training every hour of the day. You need to selectively choose which free training you wish to attend and add it to your weekly schedule.

Use Free Training From A Variety Of People

There is a vast amount of free training available. You can find millionaires like Gary Vaynerchuk, to some one just starting out and opening their first online business, openly discussing what it takes to succeed. You can find specific trainings on individual items from “How to set up an auto responder campaign” to “the correct way to use Twitter for business”. I believe you can learn from a variety of people. You can learn what to do and you can learn what NOT to do. Just attend these free training events and listen to the information. Here is a list of scheduled training events which I participate in weekly. Free Training List

Free training is available at all hours of the day and night. Search it out. Take advantage of free training events to help you improve your business skills.

Posted in Blog, free training, Marketing Tips, Marketing Tools | Tagged Action Steps, Advantage, Auto Responder, business, Business Concepts, Business Information, Business Skills, Catherine D. White, Daily Basis, daily schedule, Figure Income Earners, Free Training, Gary Vaynerchuk, Information Business, Millionaires, Night Search, People, Share Business, Training Day, Twitter, Variety, Wine Guru | 14 Comments

Fusion Cash Is A Totally Free Program

Posted on March 4, 2012 by Catherine

I have been using Fusion Cash, a totally free program, since July of 2009. There is absolutely no place to upgrade on this website. When Fusion Cash says free, they mean FREE. Fusion Cash is available in the USA & Canada only.

Over 2 Million Fusion Cash Members

Fusion Cash launched in June of 2005. Since that time, over 2 million members have been paid $2,171,807.56. That is pretty impressive numbers by any standard. Not only do they pay, they are given an A rating by the BBB.

Why I Use Fusion Cash

There are two main reasons I personally use Fusion Cash. First, it is a totally free program which pays. I am able to spend under 5 minutes a day and earn a little extra cash each month. I use this extra cash, which I like to call seed money, to invest in my online business. The second reason is the ability to communicate with other like minded individuals in the Fusion Cash forum. This is a great place to network with other people who are, also, looking to earn extra income online.

How Does Fusion Cash Pay

Advertisers pay Fusion Cash to bring offers in front of their large membership base. This is a new way of marketing products online and many companies are adding programs like Fusion Cash to their advertising budgets. Fusion Cash currently offers payments through: PayPal (US & CA), Direct Deposit (US Only), and Check (US Only). No matter which method you choose, there are no fees or costs.

Fusion Cash has generated free cash for members since 2005. If you are looking for a free program to earn a little extra cash, look over the terms of service and the FAQ section. Fusion Cash could be a good fit for you.

Posted in General, Marketing Tips, Social Media | Tagged Advertisers, Advertising Budgets, Affiliate Income, Amp, Bbb, Direct Deposit, Earn Cash, Earn Income, Extra Cash, Extra Income, Faq Section, Fit, free income, Free Members, free money, Free Program, Fusion, fusion cash, Impressive Numbers, Like Minded Individuals, Marketing Products, Membership Base, Nbsp, Reason, Seed Money, Usa Amp Canada | Leave a comment

Learning SEO to Increase Website Traffic

Posted on February 27, 2012 by Catherine

In a never ending attempt to increase website traffic, I have decided to start learning a little bit about SEO. For those of you who don’t know, SEO stands for search engine optimization. Luckily, I have a friend who has studied the subject and is guiding me along the way. As I learn the correct way to flag content, you may see a change in format to my posts over the next few weeks.

Use Headlines To Increase Website Traffic

I have always thought the use of bullet points was important for increasing a readers comprehension. Now, I am learning the correct use of headlines to increase website traffic. I didn’t realize the bots which scan the articles or posts would flag the headlines as valuable content.

Keywords will Increase Website Traffic

I knew the use of keywords was important when trying to grab the attention and climb the rankings. I did not realize I needed to use the keywords in specific places in the post. Learning this new technique is making me more aware of the content I am presenting to the readers.

Use Italics, Bold, and Underline To Increase Website Traffic

The norm, for me, has been to write a post and push publish. Now I am learning if I go back through my post and use italics, bold and underline the keywords this will help increase the visibility of the words. By increasing the visibility of the words, the likelihood these words will be picked up by those scanning the website.

Pictures, Internal Links and so much more.

There is a lot to learn about SEO. This is going to be an ongoing process as I learn to write and improve results at the same time. It reminds me of my post about Developing a Memorable Marketing Campaign where I discuss the key components of a good campaign. Now I am learning the key components of a good keyword filled article which will help increase traffic to the website.

I am excited about this new challenge. The ability to write a solid article, where I can still convey my message in a nice flow to the reader, is something I hope I can learn rather quickly. The goal is to increase the readership base by developing the ability to increase website traffic.

Posted in Marketing Tips | Tagged Attempt, Bullet Points, Comprehension, Content Keywords, Headlines, Increase Traffic, Italics, Likelihood, Little Bit, Lot, Marketing Campaign, Memorable Marketing, New Challenge, Norm, Scanning Pictures, Search Engine Optimization, Seo, Traffic Website, Visibility, Website Traffic | 3 Comments

Attitude Is Everything In Marketing

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Catherine

An important key to achieving success while marketing is interacting with other people. A simple interaction will leave a first impression, whether you want it to or not, so it is vital to remember “attitude is everything”.

I find it to be nearly impossible to fake a good attitude. When chatting with others, I can usually get a sense of the person by how they respond to questions or just the general interaction. If I feel a person gives off a negative attitude, I will do my best to steer clear of this person in the future. If this is not possible, then I will try to bring the conversation to a more positive tone.

Here are a couple of examples of poor attitude which I witnessed over the last couple of weeks.

1. While surf chatting at Hot Flash Hits, there was a conversation going on where Member X was conveying a negative message. Member Y typed in chat – “Here goes Mr. Negative again”. It was obvious the reputation of Member X was that of being negative and had been noted.

2. I received several reports from members that Member Z was using disgusting and inappropriate language in chat. I personally contacted Member Z, at which time Member Z told me the behavior was inappropriate and had been an attempt to blow off some steam. It is unfortunate that this attempt will forever be embedded in the minds of the members who witnessed the interaction. No amount of apologizing will erase that memory.

These are just two examples of poor attitude which will forever affect the marketing efforts these members.

On the reverse side, a good attitude will leave people wanting to speak with you in the future. If you watch the chat rooms, like I do, you will notice when a well received member enters the room to say “Hello”, what seemed like a quiet chat will have people popping in to join the conversation, all because they want to interact with this member.

Interaction is a key to success but the type of interaction you have may be even more important to your marketing efforts.

Posted in Blog, Marketing Tips | 8 Comments

The Carpet Cleaning Saga Continues

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Catherine

A few weeks backs a wrote a post about customer service, or the lack there of, from the company I used to get my home carpets cleaned. I was pleasantly surprised when they called to see if I was satisfied with the job. Since my carpets were not clean, I promptly informed them that I was not satisfied. The gal on the phone was quite pleasant and said they would be happy to come out and do the job over, as long as it was within 30 days. We set an appointment on a Saturday between 10am and noon. I truly dislike the window of opportunity appointment time setting. I’m not sure who started this idea but they should be tarred and feathered. But, I digress.

Saturday rolled around and, to my surprise, the cleaning van pulled up around 10:30am. Two guys came in and inspected my complaints and agreed a redo was in order. While one of the guys actually did the cleaning, I guess it was the other ones job to try and sell me some product. He explained to me on a redo job they don’t make anything would I mind looking at their products. Nice gal that I am, I said sure I would take a look. Here is where the story gets interesting. The sales guy brought in a rug and a bottle of cleaner. Long story short- the rug was too expensive but I was interested in the cleaner. The guy told me it was $16.00 with FREE refills. I was intrigued by the thought of a lifetime of carpet cleaner for sixteen bucks. I asked how did it work? He explained you just take your bottle over to the office in a town which is located 10 miles from me. Since I am over that way quite often, I still thought this sounded like a good deal. I finished talking to the sales guy and went back to watch the other guy as he just finished up. I had rounded up some cash and was planning on making a purchase but, as I quizzed the worker guy about the product his story was quite different. I said “So the other guy says I can get FREE refills if I purchase a bottle of your carpet cleaner?” He looked stunned…he said “No, you get discounted refills.” Oh really????? Turns out the discounted refills were $9.99. Seriously????

As you can probably guess, I did NOT make a purchase from them. As they packed up their equipment, I was wondering if we are in such desperate times people feel the need to lie to customers to try and make a $20 sale. It was obvious the sales guy did not respect the company he works for or the other employee on this job. My first experience with this carpet cleaning company left me a tad bit angry. My second experience with them has left me feeling sad. It’s a sad world when people will lie to make a quick buck. I sure hope they do another follow up call cause I have a lot to say.

Posted in General, Rants | Tagged Appointment Time, Carp, Carpet Cleaner, Carpet Cleaning, Carpets, Customer Service, Free Refills, Guess, Job, Lifetime, Nice Gal, One Of The Guys, Other Ones, Saga, Surprise, Two Guys, Window Of Opportunity | 2 Comments

I Love a Good Challenge

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Catherine

I am a loyal reader of Patrick Griffin, this British guy who likes to ramble about a little of everything, including Internet marketing. Note my surprise when Patrick nominated me for the Seven Link Challenge. It seems blogger, Sergio Felix, created this challenge as a way to:

“unite bloggers (from all sectors) in a joint endeavor to share lessons learned and create a bank of long but not forgotten blog posts that deserve to see the light of day again.”
What a brilliant idea! The Challenge itself is quite simple.
1. Get nominated by another blogger and take part
2. Publish seven links on my blog in the seven categories Sergio listed
3. Nominate up to five other people to take part in the Challenge.

This actually proved to be quite a challenge for me but it was fun looking back over my old posts. I don’t really consider myself a blogger, especially not like Patrick or Sergio, but I am happy to participate. So here are my seven posts:

1. Your Most Beautiful post – For me, family and friends are important.
Take Time for Family and Friend

2. Your most popular post – I pick this as most popular as it is the post with the most comments. This post was an interview with program owner Mike Chaundy. Please note the amendment at the top of the post, to date Mike Chaundy is still MIA.
Meet Mike Chaundy – List Building Expert

3. Your Most Controversial post – Do you find value in traffic exchange marketing?
Some people do, some people don’t.
The Value of Traffic Exchange Marketing

4. Your Most Helpful post – New or Experienced, there are some great pointers in here.
Developing a Memorable Marketing Campaign

5. A post whose success surprised you- I am still overwhelmed by the response when my mother became ill.
Things Change In An Instant

6. A post you feel didn’t get the attention it deserved- I picked this post because, although written in May of 2011, the points made are still valid today.
Social Interaction Will Increase Results

7. The post you are most proud of- I pick this post because it is a side of marketing which is not discussed very often, the clean up after a program fails.
Clean Up On Aisle 5

The third part of the challenge – nominating five more bloggers has proven to be even harder. You see I am supposed to nominate bloggers who have not yet been mentioned. Since most of the bloggers I read regularly have all ready been nominated, I will limit my nominations to three.
1. Carol Walczak
2. Jennifer Ledbetter
3. Mark Hodgetts

To participate in the Challenge check out the rules Sergio has set up.
You may reveal your post to others in the blogging community by tweeting to #My7Links.
Thank you for the fantastic Challenge idea, Sergio. And thank you for the nomination, Patrick.

Posted in Blog, General, Uncategorized | Tagged Blogger, Brilliant Idea, Endeavor, Expert 3, Family And Friends, Felix, Internet Marketing, Love, Loyal Reader, Marketing Campaign, Memorable Marketing, Patrick Griffin, Pointers, Sectors, Share Lessons, Simple 1, Social Interaction, Success, Surprise, Traffic Exchange | 4 Comments