When lawmakers introduce a bill that aims to stamp out piracy, musicians and other players from the entertainment industry are usually onboard. It is no secret that all the internet resources that allow users to illegally obtain copyrighted material has ate into a huge chunk of industry profits. To no surprise, support is exactly what lawmakers are getting from members in the entertainment biz with the controversial PROTECT-IP bill. However, critics of the bill are arguing that the power it grants goes way beyond protecting copyrights and eliminating online piracy.

Big Brother Going Too Far?

Passing a law that combats piracy in today’s day in age is completely understandable with the multitude of torrent programs and illegal streaming sites online. The problem is that the PROTECT-IP Act appears to put too much power in the hands of the copyright owner and the government. Although the language is a bit vague, it has been gathered that if passed, the bill would give musicians, movie studios, and content owners in general the ability to shut down a given website by merely accusing them of infringement. In addition, any third-party that is connected to the accused site by way of linking could suffer legal ramifications as well.

Who’s Affected?

The PROTECT-IP bill obviously puts the spotlight on sites involved in the growing problem of piracy. On the other hand, it could have repercussions for independent third-party companies that are completely innocent of any crimes. The act would require any business supplies these sites with their services to cut off ties or bear the consequences for failing to comply. According to the original draft, this includes service providers such as payment processors, advertising companies, and search engine players like Google. Thanks to a recent change to the bill, even more internet-based businesses could be affected.

It has been reported that the PROTECT-IP Act has now officially become the Enforcing and Protecting American Rights Against Sites Intent on Theft and Exploitation Act or simply E-PARASITE. According to online sources, the new version is even more controversial because if passed, it could hold popular online destinations such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube liable for infringement over the copyrighted material posted by their users. The good thing for the email marketing community in general is that neither version appears to have any implications for marketing practices. As long as your initiatives do not play a role in online pirating, whether directly or indirectly, there should be nothing to worry about.

Summary

The PROTECT-IP turned PARASITE bill is one of the most controversial internet-related bills to come around in some time. Some are standing up for it, but many are calling it flat out ridiculous. The fact of that matter is that if it becomes official, it could very well result in significant changes for parties who are guilty of nothing but running their business. For that reason alone, this hot topic of a bill deserves attention from those who might potentially be affected.

Google Adwords is one of the most well-known PPC marketing systems available today.  Google Adwords can be used by businesses of any size to increase their traffic and grow their customer base.

How Does Adwords Work?

Google Adwords allows you to effectively buy your way to the top of the page for certain search results.  You’ve probably seen the “Sponsored Result” links at the top of the list of search results.  Those results are placed there by webmasters that have purchased placement for the key word or phrase that you searched on.  If you click on the sponsored result, then the webmaster will have to pay Google for that click.

Google AdWords campaigns, if well managed, are a great way to get targeted visitors.  Learning the intricacies of Adwords can be challenging, however, so many people opt to hire an Adwords consultant, instead of attempting the task themselves.  The initial outlay of hiring an Adwords consultant may look like just “another expense”, but it is a good investment if you are not confident in the world of PPC.

AdWords vs SEO

Using AdWords can provide similar results to SEO, in that you will see an increase in traffic from a well-run AdWords campaign, however AdWords is not the same as SEO.  An AdWords campaign is a short term measure – when you stop funding your AdWords account, the traffic will stop.  SEO is a long-term investment.  SEO involves building links and improving the quality of your website so that it ranks highly in the search engines for organic search results – ones that you aren’t paying for.  The work that a good SEO agency does should continue to serve you, in a subtle way at least, for a fair while after the campaign ends.

Getting Started

It’s easy to get started with both SEO and Adwords.  The first thing any serious webmaster should do is set up a Google Webmaster Tools account.  This can be used to track a lot of different things to do with your website, and is invaluable for both SEO and PPC marketing.

Tracking and testing are vital parts of PPC marketing, and AdWords.  Before you can judge the effectiveness of your campaigns, you need to have a baseline idea of your traffic and your conversion rate.  It’s a good idea to keep a spreadsheet with information about your traffic, conversion rates, incoming links, keywords, and other details on a month-by-month basis so that you can see how your campaigns are going.

You can test the waters with a small budget, but you should be prepared to invest a steady amount over a period of a few weeks or months to see how well a campaign is going to perform.

If you have the time and inclination, you can achieve a lot doing SEO yourself.  However, SEO work can be time consuming.  Hiring an SEO agency can save you a lot of time.  Working together with an adwords consultant will allow you to build sustainable long-term traffic, whilst also running seasonal or topical short term PPC campaigns to take advantage of openings in the market.

Many of my regular readers know that I advocate for computer security, home security, and privacy on a regular basis.  Attached to that is my aggressive passion to encourage everyone everywhere to have a fireproof safe in their homes.  Not only is a home safe a wise investment for protecting valuables, but also for key personal documents such as passports, mortgage papers, insurance policies, family photos etc.

If you don’t yet have a fireproof safe in your home, then I want to encourage you to make 2012 the year you purchase and install a safe.  Whether your focus is anti-theft, or protecting documents from fire or flood there is a fireproof safe for you.  There are literally dozens of types of safes offering all sorts of levels and types of protection so take the time to research which safe would be right for you (An informative read is this article on home safes, a buyers guide to fireproof safes).

A Trustworthy and Affordable Safe

For the purpose of this article however I am going to personally review a safe that is both trustworthy and affordable. the SentrySafe DS3410.

The SentrySafe DS3410 has been a long time best seller at Amazon, and has been consistently rated 5 stars because it fits the basic needs of consumers who want peace of mind, anti-theft and fire protection at an affordable price.  I recently purchased the SentrySafe DS3410 from Amazon, the experience was positive and easy.  A key element I was looking for in a fireproof safe was the ability to bolt it down.  Since a thief will not take the time to fiddle with a safe in your house their logical course of action is to take the safe with them.

The DS3410 offers UL classified 1 hour proven fire-protection.  (Essentially meaning that a fire can burn at incredibly hot temperatures right around the safe for up to 1 hour and the items inside will remain protected, since most fires pass through an area rapidly and temperatures drop off, 1 hour is considered reliable protection).  This safe is also rated for storage of CDs, DVDs, USB keys and other items for data storage (Rated up to 1700 degrees!)  The safe is accessed via a 3 number combination and tubular key lock.  The key and dial have been user friendly to me, and work every time without any problems.

Sentry Safe DS3410 review, why I bought it

The main reason I purchased this safe was the combination of both FIRE and THEFT protection and the ability to bolt it down.  A lot of fireproof safes do not really offer any anti-theft protection (especially the smaller SentrySafes which could easily be picked up and run off with).  At the same time a fair amount of anti-theft safes do not really offer any fire protection.  Though there is a large variety of safes available that offer both the majority of them come in at a price point far above the SentrySafe DS3410.  For what it offers this is the best safe for the money.  If you want to know more you can read some details and see some pictures here, Sentry Safe DS3410 or just go straight to Amazon and buy it now (aff. link).

Are you using a fireproof or anti-theft safe yet?

I’d be curious to hear your experiences with a safe.  I’ve heard too many stories from people who only got a safe after they experienced disaster or theft.  Don’t let that happen to you.  Have you been proactive and purchased a safe for your home yet?

The world of marketing and promotions is always changing and evolving. With the introduction of new technologies and new methods for communication, marketing is in a state of constant motion. No doubt, social media has played a huge role in the evolution of marketing in to what it has become today. Much of basic marketing has become the mastering of social media marketing. Interestingly, some of the basics of Tweeting are key aspects of successful and profitable marketing. Use these three lessons taught by Twitter to better market your product or company to its specific audience.

Be Concise

There are plenty of voices out there condemning social media and text messaging for limiting our thoughts and conversations to 140 characters. While this is a legitimate complaint for some areas of life, many lessons can be learned from limited character length conversations. With marketing it is essential to be clear and concise. In this way, Twitter teaches an important marketing skill. By limiting your space, you are forced to make clear points that are specific and grabbing. This is key to successful marketing. If you are unable to express your marketing pitch in less than 140 characters, it is not likely that many people will stick around to read your entire pitch. Keep your marketing slogans short and to the point. As with Tweets, you want to find something that is interesting and unique among the masses while at the same time clear and concise.

Know Your Audience

Though we may not think of it often, a lot of social media use (particularly Twitter) involves reading and understanding your audience. Before a person puts something up on their Twitter account, they thoroughly evaluate who they are talking to. Just as you would not necessarily Tweet the same thing to your boss and parents as you would your friends and siblings, marketers must also read their audience carefully. Twitter demonstrates the importance of reading your audience. Marketing professionals must read their various audience demographics and develop marketing strategies for each group. Appeal is created by knowing how to sell something to the right individuals. Determine who your most successful customer base is and target towards them carefully.

Be Accessible

One major thing that social media and Twitter have introduced to us is the need to be constantly accessible and connected. While this can be trying for your every day social self, it is key to successful marketing. Tweeting is all about getting your message out there as much as possible. While viral marketing can be annoying at times for the consumer, it really does work for getting your product, brand, or company in the public view. Work to be always present in your consumers mind. By becoming an ever present entity in your audiences’ life, you are sure to better represent your product. Much of successful marketing is about connecting with your audience in a way that is honest and sincere while also being professional and persuasive. Create a marketing approach that encompasses all of these aspects of Tweeting for ultimate success.

[Editor's note:] To learn more, get some books into your hands.  The books below I have personally selected offer you real value and can help you find success with your twitter marketing campaigns.  (Aff. links below)

Google Plus has made quite a splash ever since it made its debut last year, however it was mostly and still is mostly adopted by the tech savvy crowd among us. Here’s one thing to keep in mind though about Google Plus, when Facebook first came out it was only available to college students and it wasn’t till quite some time after it had been around that it very slowly…became the phenomenon it is today. It was definitely not an overnight sensation or success. Yet look how powerful and omni-present it is now. We believe the exact same thing is going to take place with the Google Plus social network.  So with that in mind, if you run an offline business or an online venture, we think it’s a smart idea to get on board and join Google Plus and use it to promote your content, site and or business.

Let’s take a look below at a few beginner tips for new Google + users. You.

Fill Out Your Profile Tab -

One of the most important things you can do with your Plus page is to fill out the profile tab which includes information about you and your websites or blogs. You can include a link to these in the About area and as of this writing they are do follow links. You can add a photo, details about your business and more. All for free.

Update Regularly -

If you can update daily, then that is great. If not, shoot at least for a few times a week. Your circle will look to you for info, tricks, tips and more on whatever niche you’re in. You can also outsource this if you find yourself short on time. Look in places like eLance and or ask your social network directly. Types of things you can post on your Google + page include quotes, photos, videos, tips, and or links to articles you’ve written or links to articles from others in your circle.

Plus Others -

As you grow your following, do share freely and often. When someone in your Circle has something great to say, share it on your page by Plusing it. When you’re perusing the web and come across a fantastic article or other item that you think your market might be interested in, share this as well. In other words, Plus often and it will become something that your Circle will come to eagerly expect of you.

Take Advantage Of The Free Tools Provided -

There are loads of widgets, buttons and badges available from various sources and Google itself to install on your website or blog, to bookmark items of interest and or to make it easy for others to join your Circle. Feel free to use these tools and take advantage of the many benefits found on Google’s hot new social network.

Let us know what tips you have for Google + beginners?  Tell me below in the comment area.

This guest article was contributed by Rachel who writes for an online car hire San Francisco service provider and also runs a fun site dedicated to online marketing.

Blogging has become a very popular activity; at one end blogging is a means of sharing personal opinions and ideas with people who might be interested in them and at another, it’s a means of marketing certain products and services; and it can also be a steady source of income. Whatever the purpose of the blog, it cannot be achieved if the blog post is not up to the mark.

So, here are five tips that can help you write a blog post that is not only interesting but also effective in ensuring a loyal readership.

Choose the Right Topic

Every blog caters to a specific niche. The fact that you are writing a blog post means you have already determined the niche that you want to target. So, your blog post must be about the niche, for e.g. if your blog is about SEO then the topic must be related to SEO. You can’t talk about website designing. Also, before you choose a blog topic, you must try and understand what your readers want. Say Google has come up with a new update in its search algorithm. There is a good chance that your target audience wants more information on the same. Your topic could be something that addresses this specific need. Such topics have a better chance of success.

Choose the Right Title

You might have written the best blog post of your life as a blogger, but if its title is unable to draw the readers in, the blog post will end up a failure. If you want readers to start reading your blog, then a great title is crucial.  The difference between a popular blog post and a post that is hardly noticed is the title. Blog titles are important because it is the titles that appear on the search engine results, RSS feeds, social media sites etc. A person searching for information on a particular topic, only comes across the title and not the content. So, it must be such that it grabs attention and intrigues and captivates enough, to get readers to go through the post content.

Make the post useful

Don’t offer information that numerous others before you have already offered. That’s just going to put readers off. Even if you are tackling the same topic that somebody else has already written on, it’s important to give your own take on the same. Also, the focus of the post must always be on giving your readers a useful takeaway. After putting in the time to go through your post, they must feel that they now know something that they didn’t or something that is going to help them make the right decision, or improve certain activity, or even optimize the use of a certain product or service. Blog content that doesn’t come across as being useful is never successful.

Write with clarity and correct grammar

To ensure the credibility of your blog and to improve its chances of getting noticed, you must focus on clarity. Share your thoughts in as clear and concise manner as possible. Don’t stretch the blog content just because you think the post is not long enough. It’s important to remember that the length of the blog doesn’t matter as long as you are able to make your point. More importantly, keep your sentences short and use only those words that are easily understood. By keeping the length of your sentences in check, you are minimizing your chances of making errors.

Answer the Comments

If your blog is well written or strikes a chord amongst your readers, it’s going to attract comments. The comments can be critical of your write up or could also be complimentary. Whatever the nature of the comments, if they strike you as sensible, you must answer them – this not helps your post become more popular, but also your blog as a whole. You can enter into a healthy debate with commentators, in order to defend your post or you could even agree with some of their criticisms.  This goes a long way in enhancing your credibility and helps establish your reputation as a blogger whose posts need to be followed.

These are just five tips, but enough to get your blog writing into high gear. As can be imagined, it’s easy to read these tips, but very difficult to implement them. So, it’s important to take your time, and keep perfecting your blog posts by keeping these tips in mind. If you do that, you will be a master of writing highly effective blog posts in less time than you think.

Online Marketing is the new place to be for love or money. Unfortunately, the Internet is still very much the Wild West of Marketing. Anything goes and for the most part Cornel G is the only authority on the Web and honestly, that is pretty scary.

Branding a new blog starts by taking charge of your online reputation. Actively controlling what is known and said about you and your blog online will protect the Baby and it is like building a house. Build it well, and maintain it, and you and your blog are on your way to a comfortable life and a bright future. Branding your blog actually comes before building your blog and it will clarify your intent and prevent a multitude of errors before you invest time and money into the project. Here are the bare essentials for branding the Baby.

 Branding in essence means defining your target market, the niche group of people that you are trying to reach through your website, blog and social media sites. Spend some time using the variety of free to cheap online tools that are available to help you define your niche.

1. Then choose a domain/blog name. Imagine you are naming a real baby. This takes time, thought, and it definitely takes more than an afternoon. Whenever possible try to choose a domain name with SEO keywords in mind. Wordtracker is the tool of choice for keywords but there are others. Moreover, spend some time finding something that is descriptive, funny, to the point and easy to spell.   One of my favorites is: http://www.uglycable.com.au, one of the top HDMI cable suppliers in Australia. Choosing the right domain and blog name is the foundation for everything else. You won’t have the luxury of going back and changing it without losing substantial ground in the rankings. Once you have your name it’s time to build the mote.
2. Building the mote means that you want to sign up for as many free similar spellings connected to free email accounts and social media sites as you can. Most should be available and if you have done your domain name research properly you will already know what is and isn’t available. If some are taken don’t worry- that’s good. The main purpose in building the mote is to prevent Wild West web outlaws from snagging these names so that they can use them to impersonate you or your business down the road. To build the mote you can and should think about using all of the following:

• Create a simple website even if you are intent only on blogging using WordPress. It’s just an opinion but starting with WordPress.org rather than the free WordPress.com lets you start your blog without the heartache of later needing to switch if it becomes popular. You can also imbed your blog into your website. Paying for a good hosting service is worth every penny. It puts an investment into the project which will make you much more likely to follow through. In addition, put some thought into languages and servers. Both directly impact SEO and site speed. PHP, (front and back end) and Apache Servers offer speed and security but there are a variety of others.
• Create a Google Profile.
• Open Social Media accounts. The service Namechk will let you check and do all the social media names at once.
• Link to affiliated organizations within your niche market. Create links between all of your sites.
• After identifying your keywords spread them around throughout your blog and social media sites. Make sure to fill out all of the information requests for each site and make it SEO friendly with keywords.

4. Find a designer to design a logo. The better your name the easier it will be to decide on a fantastic logo. Why do you need a logo? Well, if your blog catches on and it starts to take off you will want to brand it further. Logos can capture the essence of your blog quickly and simply in a way that the written word just can’t master. In addition, once you have a logo you can start investing in everything from promotional gifts to online advertising to attract viewers to your site.
5. Be patient and keep at it. Real babies take years to grow. Really successful websites and blogs are often the same way. Throwing tons of money at it will not ensure success but steadfast doggedness, care and constant attention can pay off handsomely once your little baby has become a rock star.

Whether you are talented in graphic design, article writing, blogging, web design or programming, you can make money as a freelancer. If you market yourself properly, there will always be plenty of work available. There are many ways of promoting yourself both offline and online. You need to know what exactly your talents are so that you can promote yourself to the right audience. To appear professional, a personal website is very important.

So how do you go about getting work?

There are a number of credible websites which enable service providers to link up with buyers. Most of these sites are global, meaning that you can work remotely for clients in other countries of the world. Once you register with any of these websites, you need to build an impressive profile of yourself. This profile will be read by potential clients, thus influencing your chances of getting work. Make sure it is professional and convincing, even if you have no experience in doing any professional work.

When it comes to offline marketing, you can promote yourself by designing high quality business cards which can be distributed to people interested in your services. You could also use pamphlets and tri-fold brochures.

When getting started, it is advisable to network with other freelancers to find out how they operate and how they get work. Many people are very willing to share their secrets of success.      By reading other people’s blogs, you could learn some tips which will help you succeed. Learn from their experiences and make the most of it. Some bloggers even share job openings regularly on their blogs. Watch out for such blogs and make sure you bookmark them. You can then check them daily for any jobs which match with your skills and talents.

Freelancing is not a get-rich-quick scheme. However, if you perfect your skills and are persistent, you can build a business which will bring in huge incomes. In freelancing, your main aim should be to satisfy any client that comes your way. This will increase the chances of them returning to you in future when they need more work done. Regular clients mean regular income. With time, you might find yourself leaving your regular job and freelancing on a full-time basis.

People are meeting even now in convention centers in Manhattan, in downtown Chicago hotels and in far-off meeting rooms in Hong Kong and Japan to discuss the emerging tech trends of 2012.  I happened to be staying in Chicago this weekend to talk to some people that I know who are putting together a start-up there. I got to visit a few of my favorite sites in the morning–the Art Institute, the Field Museum–while taking care of business in the afternoon.  Tech-hype is high in Chicago.  In the city where Groupon was founded, I talked to my friend, Kent Story, about what we could expect within the next year. Our musings led us to discuss a few riveting technologies coming down the pipeline this year, including new interfaces with our products, digital payments with physical devices, and an increased importance of mobile computing as tablets and smartphones get faster and we begin to see a greater variety of choices.

Interface Revolutions

Q:  It seems like we’re starting to move away from the standard desktop model of computing: monitor, keyboard, mouse.  That’s starting to change. What do you think, Kent?

A: Part of the Cloud Computing revolution will be an evolutionary leap in the kind of hardware that’s available and useful.  For too long we’ve been held back by the mouse and keyboard. The rest of our world isn’t dominated by just pressing buttons so why should our computing experience be? We slide, twist, shove, speak and shout and we need computers that allow us to do as many of those things as possible if we want our experiences to be natural. That’s coming, though, with the increasing importance of tablets and their multi-touch interfaces and voice commands like the features built into Google’s Android operating system and Apple’s recent addition of Siri to their iPhones. In 2012 we’re going to see an increased importance on alternative interfaces, with touch and voice dominating the field.

NFC Payments

Q: With the introduction of square and Google wallet, people say that the way that currency flows is going to change.  There will be almost no need for cash.  What are your thoughts on this development.

A:  Google Wallet was the first major foray into using near field communication (NFC) technology in phones to authorize payment transactions at physical retail locations, but it’s definitely not going to be the last. Currency has driven–and been driven by–technological innovation since man first learned to refine metals. We’re constantly in search of a more compact, convenient way to carry the money we need to conduct our daily transactions. Smartphones have already combined phones, cameras, media players and Internet devices so why not include your wallet in that bunch? Apple and Microsoft are already working on their own NFC-integrated phone solutions so they can enter the game. We’re sure to see more NFC payment options cropping up in the next year.

Mobile Computing

Q:  As per the theme that we started in the above-question, mobile has continued the phenomenal growth that started in 2010, and there is no sign that it will be slowing down.  What can we expect from mobile in 2012?

A:  Computers keep getting smaller and smaller. Today’s laptops have orders of magnitude more computing power than the most expensive mainframe computers from the 70s and the development rate shows no signs of stopping. As we’re able to cram more capabilities into smaller form factors we’ll see a continuing trend of smaller devices becoming more commonplace in our world. Tablet computers are a perfect example. A few years ago no company had successfully driven widespread adoption of tablets, but Apple has done just that with the iPad. In the next year, though, Apple will start seeing more serious competition as everyone tries to get in on the action. Phones are getting more complex, too. The latest iPhone, the 4S, has a dual-core processor that can handle stunning 3D graphics processing the likes of which weren’t even available on console game systems 10 years ago. Some smartphones even come with dedicated graphics processors that allow them to calculate real-time lighting and reflections.

Internet Business Marketing – Introduction of Social Media

Social Media is a must use for anyone on the internet. Twitter by itself now has in excess of 100 million people accessing its platform and Facebook has over 750 million active members.  YouTube is way ahead of the rest with website hits of up to 1.5 million per day, 100 million video streams per day and 63 million visitors each month.  The best thing about all of this is that all these sites are free to use and just imagine how you could get a nice slice out of that pie of people. Imagine how you get your business noticed on any or all of these. You could really get a boost in your search engine ranking while using these and other websites and tools for giving your business more exposure.

But you say you are always busy and don’t have the time to use social media no matter how successful it is. Let me help you out with that.  What you need to do is to make a schedule for Social Media. The three steps in this process are:

1. Create your presence by creating an account on the website or websites you want to make use of.
2. Next you will need to get used to the idea of providing information on a daily or weekly basis to any of these websites you choose, ensuring that your information is search engine optimized.
3. Develop websites ensuring you’re linking and back linking is being done successfully.

Looks easy right? – Wrong it can be a bit daunting and if you are working alone it can take hours to get just one website done up. But let me give you some more advice to help you along.

Internet Business Marketing with Social Media - Focus on the Essentials

Devote a set amount of time each day to perform your social media tasks. Say an hour or two. Update one website at a time ensuring you have completed your work for one before you get to the next one.  It is a bit hard to do all of this yourself especially if you want to use multiple websites. What you can do is get some of your employees to help you out if you have employees. If not you can get any teenagers in your household to help out if you are lucky enough to have them. If you have your own business you can create a position for someone who will specifically handle your social media management each and every day.

If none of the above are options for you, then you could hire a service that offers social media management along with internet marketing. They will take everything off your hands from setting up the website to generating and disseminating the information that you will use for posting to the websites.  There are experts at what they do and they know just how to develop your social media presence to get you the best results.  You can find these services at affordable prices giving your enough discounts for contracts that run over a year so it can be affordable. There are those that don’t require you to sign a contract which allows you to stay with them as long as you need.

It doesn’t really matter how you do it but that you do it. Social media marketing can open a lot of doors for your internet business. If you are not making use of this tool then you probably aren’t seeing your full potential as a business.

Internet Business Marketing with Social Media

If you find that you cannot find the time to do it yourself then hire someone to do it for you. In no time you will be able to break even making more than you are paying for getting it done while creating a source of income for somebody else.  It will all pay off in the long run just be patient and you will see the results you need to be successful.

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