Internet Marketing Legend Matt Bacak Bribes Over 10 Million People to Donate to Habitat for Humanity - Atlanta Chapter

Internet Marketing Legend Matt Bacak Bribes Over 10 Million
People to Donate to Habitat for Humanity Atlanta Chapter

All royalties from Bacak’s new book, The Ultimate Lead Generation Plan, to be donated directly to Habitat for Humanity by New York Publisher Morgan James. Bacak offers ethical “bribe” of over $52,127.00 in free products from hundreds of authors to encourage people to “donate.”

Suwanee, GA (PRWeb) December 29, 2005 — In what is undoubtedly the biggest and boldest move in internet marketing philanthropy, Matt Bacak known as “The Powerful Promoter” and owner of Frontier Marketing International Inc., has teamed up with dozens of other marketers to help him launch his book “ The Ultimate Lead Generation Plan” to their combined 10 million plus newsletter subscribers, with a twist.

“Everyone wants their book to be a success and so do I, but I’ve been so moved by the work that Habitat for Humanity has done around the country, particularly in the wake of Katrina, that I wanted to do something to help them. In order to do that, I identified one of the top challenges all businesses have that I could solve (getting leads and traffic to their website, something I do exceptionally well) and wrote a book instructing them in the solution to the problem.” Then Matt did something that is unheard of, he announced that he’d give 100% of his royalties to Habitat For Humanity.

But that wasn’t enough, he located dozens of other high profile internet marketers and asked them to donate a product or service he could give to anyone buying his new book. To his surprise more than 200 people responded and the gift package for buying the $14.95 book is now valued at more than $52,127.00 and growing daily. He also got the same marketers to agree to send an email to their subscribers telling them about the book and the donation to Habitat For Humanity. Virtually all agreed and the result is that beginning December 29, 2005, more than 10 million subscribers will be offered an opportunity to buy the book, support Habitat for Humanity and get the massive bonus package.

Some critics say that Bacak’s effort is just a marketing ploy to sell books but Bacak brushes their criticism aside. “I’ve been very fortunate to have created a very successful business using the very techniques I’m disclosing in the book and as a continuation of my success I want to give something back. I’ve been profoundly impacted by the work that has to be done in this country to repair the devastation that rained down on us last year. People can think what they will, but the full royalty payments will still go to Habitat,” said Bacak.

Bacak continued, “What really amazed me is the generosity of other marketers who wanted to do all they could to encourage others to buy the book in order to help with the effort to raise money for Habitat. One of the bonus products that is being given away for buying the book has sold for as much as $997.00 in the past six months, none of these marketers are going to give up profitable products that they sell as part of a “PR stunt.”

Anyone who wants to take part in the event can purchase the book at their local bookstore, BN.com or Amazon.com. For more details, visit http://theultimateleadgenerationplan.com.

About Matt Bacak: Matt Bacak is the CEO of Frontier Marketing, LLC. He has been involved in some of the largest and most visible internet marketing success stories today. His advice is regularly sought out by everyone from Entrepreneurs to the Fortune 500. A passionate philanthropist, Matt focuses on raising money for causes that “change the world for people who need it most.” For more information contact Stephanie Bunn at 770-271-1536.

Contact information:
Stephanie Bunn
2935 Horizon Park Drive, Suite D
Suwanee, GA 30024
(770) 271-1536

http://www.PowerfulPromoter.com

5 Million People Buy Books To Build Homes

5 Million People Buy Books To Build Homes

"The Ultimate Lead Generation Plan", a new book from Matt Bacak will be a best seller by giving proceed to Habitat for Humanity in a promotion reaching over 5 million readers.

(PRWEB) December 23, 2005 -- Hundreds of Internet marketers are working together this holiday season to raise money for Habitat for Humanity, using book marketing expert Warren Whitlock's proven online book promotion plan and promoting Matt Bacak's new book "The Ultimate Lead Generation Plan"

"We know Matt's book will be a best seller" said Warren Whitlock. "We've used these promotions to introduce dozens of books, allowing readers to learn about new titles with a special limited offer of free gifts and bonuses. What's different this time is Habitat For Humanity"

Whitlock is working with Matt Bacak (aka "The Powerful Promoter") to assemble a team of authors, marketers and publishers with email address lists with a combined reach of over 5 millions names. Most book promotions go to under 1 million.

Whitlock explained "This promotion is much larger than most because we've added Habitat For Humanity. Our partners are familiar with the work done by Habitat, and responded when we asked for help. Matt is giving all proceeds to the charity, setting an example for the rest of us."

Matt Bacak teaches authors, speakers and entrepreneurs about online mailing list building. His new book "The Ultimate Lead Generation Plan" will be available in bookstores in January, and online at http://theultimateleadgenerationplan.com/ Readers are invited to sign up for 101 free gifts during the promotion, with all proceeds going to Habitat for Humanity.

Warren Whitlock is a book marketing expert from Las Vegas. He has helped hundreds of authors with book marketing and promotion. A best selling author himself, Whitlock helps authors build online business with free book promotion through http://ZeroCostPromotions.com

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips
Author of "The Ultimate Lead Generation Plan"

Is there an elf in your pocket?

I hope not but...

Santa did whisper in my ear while he
was working his little elves to death and
asked me if I could give you a special
deal for Christmas.

So here it is right here:

For the next 3 days and 7 hours you can
get over $500 In bonus gifts if you buy
my Marketing Madness 2005 CD set!

http://www.marketingmadness2005.com/special.htm

Here's why see on Oct 7th, I personally held
3 of the world's top marketer's hostage for 1
Day in Atlanta and FORCED them to finally
EXPOSE their closely guarded marketing
strategies to the public!

Last time we had amazing speakers, such as
Armand Morin, who has made over 15 million
dollars marketing online; Mike Stewart , The
Internet Audio Guy; Brad Fallon, The SEO Expert
who has sold over $700,000 in wedding favors
just last month; and me.

This CD set is Jam Packed with powerful
marketing information that can turn your
current marketing campaign on it's head and
explode your results in 2006.

http://www.marketingmadness2005.com/special.htm

Plus, if you grab the Marketing Madness CD set
now You'll get over $500 in bonus gifts, including…

Fr^ee Bonus #1 (Value $200) my personal resource
section (million-dollar rolodex) that I will give
you is worth at least $200 just for peeking at it.

Fr^ee Bonus #2 (Value $100) $100 credit towards,
my exclusive "Internet Millionaire Intensive"
workshop.

Fr^ee Bonus #3 (Value $20) Fr.ee Report - "How to
Make a Boat Load of Money Even If You're Dead Broke"
Inside this special report, you will find a secret
way to make money and get new buyers.

Fr^ee Bonus #4 (Value $100) As a special bonus,
you'll be entitled to a FR.EE membership in Matt's
Internet Millionaire online newsletter called
"Secrets of Internet Millionaires" - this is
worth $100 per year

Free Bonus #5... I'm going to give you a fr.ee
45-minute 1 on 1 personal strategy session. It
will be on the phone with one of my personally
trained, hand-picked, internet marketing strategists.

Christmas special bonus (value $197) one (1)
Free ticket for you and a guest to Matt Bacak's
Marketing Madness 2006 in Atlanta!

Come join Matt and some of the worlds top marketers
and internet millionaires for a two day weekend jam
packed full of great business exploding information!

The original marked price for these audios are $197.

But if you are one of the lucky people that registers
online right now before Christmas day ends, you'll be
entitled to the special price of only $97 - a nice
discount of $100 off of the regular price.

Plus you will receive fr-ee tickets to the next
marketing Madness seminar which is Feb. 17th.

http://www.marketingmadness2005.com/special.htm

Warmest Reguards,

Matt Bacak

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips

9 Common Characteristics of Terrible Marketers

9 Common Characteristics of Terrible Marketers

Common Characteristic #1 – Terrible marketers are too scared to mail to their lists. Remember there are great marketers and there are terrible ones that are afraid to try things; such as, send out an email to their list.

Common Characteristic #2 - Terrible marketers focus on what people need. Great marketers focus on what people want.

Common Characteristic #3 - Terrible marketers focus on the process, not the reward. Focus on the results you will receive if you make things happen. When you focus on the reward it’s a lot easier.

Common Characteristic #4 – Terrible marketers focus on their products and services that they personally want to take to the market. NO! NO! NO! Focus on what your market wants. Nobody cares about you they care about themselves.

Common Characteristic #5 – Terrible marketers believe that they can do it on their own. Smart marketers find a mastermind and have a mentor that accelerates their growth. (A lot faster than on their own).

Common Characteristic #6 – Terrible marketers think fame equals fortune. Not true, fame doesn’t equal fortune. You take the fame and I’ll take the fortune.

Common Characteristic #7 - Terrible marketers believe if everyone’s doing it you should not. First thing, don’t you think those doing the marketing have a reason, such as research and the knowledge that there is money in it? Second thing, Smart marketers understand that You don't go to the bank for originality.

Common Characteristic #8 – Terrible marketers don’t know how to spell positioning. They don’t even know what it means. If you really, really want to become an outstanding marketer then you only need to know one word:P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N-I-N-G

Common Characteristic #9 – Terrible marketers make the unfortunate mistake of listening to the wrong people and never listening to their gut. Rock Star marketers follow their gut.

Remember to use your intuition and aim for the stars!

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips

The #1 Thing You *MUST* Have Before Even Thinking About Building An Opt In Email List

The #1 Thing You *MUST* Have Before Even
Thinking About Building An Opt In Email List

It's not a website.

It’s a smart autoresponder and mailing list software.

Be aware, I just said smart autoresponder. Not a cheesy one, I mean regular one.

You know what a regular autoresponder is. It's the thing that a lot of people use when they are out of the office or on vacation. It works like this.

Let's say you are emailing a friend that is out of town. You send the email and then instantly you get a reply back saying something like this, "I'm out of the office right now, I'm on vacation and won't be back until Tuesday the 21st." Well, that's a regular autoresponder.

What you want to have before you even think about building a list is a smart autoresponder. Here's how it works, when someone sends it an email it captures their first name, last name, email address, date stamp, and IP address.

That's just if they send an email, now what if you had a form on your website or a popup?

It will capture almost any information that you want and get this.It will give you the ability to run an unlimited number of follow-up email campaigns to tens of thousands of prospects on auto-pilot!

A smart autoresponder will handle thousands of simultaneous follow-up campaigns - a task that would be impossible to manage manually. (working for you 24 x 7 whether you are online or not, accepting subscriptions and sending out your follow-up messages).

They are actually three kinds of autoresponders.The first kind is software based. It's a piece of software that you install on the computer just like you would Microsoft Word, or Act!. Usually a one-time fee. The second kind is a third-party autoresponder. These all have a main website where you go to login, usually using your individual username and password. Once you are in and you are able to email your list. Your information is hosted on their server with everyone else. They usually charge monthly fee.

The third kind is a server-based. It's installed on your own web site or web server. It's not a service that runs on someone else's servers, so there are no monthly fees.

You are about to discover the right autoresponder so your email marketing marketing efforts won't get stopped in its tracks.Let's look at them in greater detail.

Definition: The first kind is software based. It's a piece of software that you install on the computer just like you would Microsoft Word or ACT! Usually a one-time fee.Problems: What would happen if you leave home without your computer? Well, you would not be able to talk to your list. Not widely used.

Definition: The second kind is a third-party autoresponder. This is when you have to go to a main website just like www.thirdpartyautoresponder.com (that's not one) and login using your username and password. You are subscribing to their service. Then you are able to send emails to your list. This one is hosted on their server with every other customer they have. They usually charge a monthly fee. Used by a lot of people.

Problems: A lot of people recommend this kind, you know why? Because they want the residual (ongoing monthly) money they get from the company or because they do not know better. Here's a few other problems, remember you are hosting your list on their server so they can and will charge you an outrageous amount of money when your list grows. Also one big thing I have found that most people are not aware of....... All of the emails are not going through to the subscriber's lists.

Why?Well, let's say you, Joe Blow and I were using this service. Joe blow is building his list wrong and spamming people. Well, Joe Blow just really devastated our business. Because... when he got in trouble for spamming they shut down his IP address and the IP address that was attached to his email is the IP address of the server and that means it is your IP address too.
In other words, even if you build you list correctly, you won't be able to get your emails through because Joe Blow just screwed it up for you and I.

So the one that I recommend is the third kind. Definition: A server-based Autoresponder. It's installed on your own web site or web server. It's not a service that runs on someone else's servers, so there are no monthly fees. All emails come from your website's IP address and the only person that could get in trouble is you.If you get stopped, it's your fault, not anyone else's.

Warmest Regards,
Matt Bacak The Powerful Promoter
#1 Best Selling Author & Trainer
Toll-Free #: 1-866-MATT-123
http://www.PowerfulPromoter.com

P.S. "If you want to get hot rabid, prospects flowing into your newsletter, ezine or email list, just go here right now: http://www.promotingtips.com

Matt Bacak Elected to Elite Entrepreneurs Only Network

Official Press Release Date: Dec 5th, 2005

The Powerful Promoter' Elected to Elite Entrepreneurs Only Network – Matt Bacak Joins Select Group of 77 EO Atlanta Chapter Members…Before Even Reaching 30

To Read the whole Release, go Here:http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/12/prweb318244.htm

Internet Marketing Tips By Matt Bacak

Generate Cold Hard Cash from Your Opt-In Email List

One Great Way To Generate A Lot Of
Cold Hard Cash From Your Opt- In Email List

I bet you want to know what that one great way is! Right?!

Well, I have found that one of the fastest ways to make a lot of money from your opt-in email list is by giving teleseminars. Many people do teleseminars but just to deliver information. (FYI: Teleseminars, telecalls, and teleclinics are all the same thing; the only difference is the name.)

What I'm talking about is doing teleseminars and selling high ticket items. You see, I view teleseminars as just another media to sell your stuff and other peoples stuff. Just like a regular seminar. Because if you don't, it’s a disservice to your listeners.

Here is step-by-step exactly how I put on my teleseminars and get 50% or more of the people that pre-registered to join the call. Pretty good compared to the average which is 1/3rd. Follow the steps that I've laid out for you and you can get a lot of people on your teleseminar and make tons of money.

These steps have brought in over 250k for me in less than 3 months.

First step, get good at selling your stuff to large groups or find someone that is a great closer and can sell a lot of their own stuff on the phone. If you do look for someone else, you want to find someone that has a high closing ratio on teleseminars. If you want to make more money, sell a higher ticket price.

Second step, create a landing page where people can register for the call and fill-out information. You want to make sure that you ask for their first name, email address and phone number on this page. The best way to capture their information is by using an autoresponder which allows you to automatically send them the pin code, phone number and other call details.

After you have the registration page up and your autoresponder is ready, start crafting your email. You want to make sure that this email only has one outcome and that is for the reader to Sign-up for your telecall.

Send the email out to your list or find other people who will send it to their lists.

People will get your email and sign-up for the telecall giving you their first name, email address and phone number. I have found that you want to send it at least two times to make sure that you get more people signed-up. Remember what's happening as they sign up, they will automatically get an email from your autoresponder.

The average person that puts on teleseminars will get about 1/3 of the people that registered to the call that night because people forget about it, get diverted, sign-up for another call, or who knows but something may happen and they wont get on the call. Now let's fix that!

I don't like being average, I want better than average results and I get them! Here's how:

30 minutes before the call email the group in your autoresponder that registered for the call and let them know that the call will start in less than 30 minutes along with the PIN code and Phone number again. Also, remember I said to ask for their phone number, well there’s a reason for that... you want to send out a voice broadcast and tell them over the phone that the call starts very soon. If you do this, you won't find average results, 1/3, you'll see 50% of the people on the call.

If you have a good sales presentation or a good closer on the call, more people on the call means more money for you. Go out and make it happen. Go try it. Test it out and see the money roll in.

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips

How to Get Targeted Search Engine Traffic Quickly

How to Get Targeted Search Engine Traffic Quickly

Here’s the “How-To-Do-It Guide” for driving search engine traffic right to your website.

I only speak about methods I have used and that worked well for my business. There are a lot of people out there who will steer you in the wrong direction because they are just regurgitating old information that might have worked years ago. I’ll help you discover what’s happening right here, right now. Let’s get started with the plan.

Your first step is to define your target market. The better you are able to define your niche, the better your future clients will be able to find you and your products or services.

Next, you want to get very specific about what you’re going to market on your webpage and make sure that it’s congruent with our next step. When a person finds you on a search engine, you have a window of only 3 to 5 seconds to convince them that you are exactly what they were looking for. Make it crystal clear what you offer. If your meaning is unclear, the prospect will jump to the next site and you’ll lose that business.

The following step is to brainstorm your keywords - keeping in mind your target audience. How would they search for me? What would they look for? Don’t focus on how you identify yourself. The closer you are to your target audience, the more hits you will get, which equates to more customer traffic. The more specifically you target, the better off you are. You’re not going to have success if you list yourself too generically, there is too much competition and you’ll be lost in the crowd.

Once you have established your target market, define what specific categories you should be linking to and add them as part of your navigation page. A linking strategy is very important for building your link reputation. Links to your page will count towards link reputation and link popularity.

There are a lot of different search engines - six in particular that give you about 90% of all web-traffic. Of those Google has the most web traffic so we’ll focus on it. Google has a link page rank feature which rates the importance of your page. You’ll want to download their toolbar http://toolbar.google.com. This will allow you to view the ranking of every site you visit and how important it is in the almighty eye of Google. This is a key ingredient in determining linking strategy. Google ranks itself as a 10 on their scale of 0 to 10 (the higher the ranking, the more important a page). This is determined essentially by who is endorsing and linking to you.

You must map out how you’re going to get Google give to you a high page rank. For Google, the most important attribute is the title tag. You want to make sure you use your most targeted key word in the beginning of your title tag. Google will typically list the first 83 characters so the title is where you put your most valued key word(s) so it can be easily accessed.

The next maneuver is to focus on your link relevancy. Link relevancy is how well the text on your pages relates to your title tag, also taking in consideration the content of neighboring web pages. The analysis of all of this data enables Google to return results that are relevant to user queries. You want to be sure you are listed in user queries so make your content match your title, match your links, and match your products and or services. Remaining consistent and obvious is your key to directing traffic to your site.

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips

Finding a Niche

Finding a Niche

Choosing a carefully pinpointed niche market should be one of the first steps that an internet business owner has to take. A very common way of describing a niche market is ‘a targeted group of individuals with very specific and similar needs or interests.’ These people engage in similar activities and hence they would most probably demand the same goods or services to cater to their needs. Online businesses that drop ship their products to their customers would thrive by focusing on a specifically targeted niche market. This article also provides you with practical steps for you to select your niche market.

If you don't find a niche market for the product or service you offer, you will have a difficult time being successful. Most newcomers who wish to do business on the Internet often market to everyone they can find with the expectation that everyone will do business with them. This is the same as throwing mud against the wall and hoping some of it will stick. They have not yet found their niche market.

What is niche marketing?
A niche market is composed of individuals and businesses that have similar interests and needs, which can be readily identified and that can be easily targeted and reached.
Finding a niche for your business means finding a great product or service for a highly targeted audience.

Here's the process to find your niche business

1. Find a niche product or service you are passionate about. This will greatly improve your chances of being successful. Why? Because it's the only way you're going to be able to devote the kind of time and effort to create a meaningful web site, build up the right traffic, generate worthwhile income, and enjoy what you're doing.

2. Choose a niche product you are knowledgeable about. Reflect on what skills, hobbies or products you know the most about. If you don't have the knowledge yet, then choose a niche product that you would love to promote, and then spend the necessary time to research it, so you can eventually become an expert in your marketing field.

3. Define your niche market - do the necessary research to see if there is a market for your niche product. To create a profitable business for your niche product, you need to ask yourself these questions:

a) Is there sufficient demand for it? - If you choose a field that is too broad it may be hard to stand out from the competition. For example, camping equipment could be your niche product. Well, unless you are a large corporation such as Sports Authority (a large retail store in my town), you won't stand out from the crowd. However, a more highly targeted niche product could be Coleman Camping Equipment.

b) Keyword research - use keyword tools such as the overture suggestion tool (http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion) or word tracker (wordtracker.com) to find how many people are searching each month on keywords related to your niche product.

Here's an example:
According to overture (at the time of writing this article), the keyword phrase "camping equipment" was searched 76164 times in one month. If you do a search on Google.com for camping equipment you will find 1,610,000 web sites show up - heck, that's too competitive.
However "Coleman camping equipment" generated 1242 searches in one month according to overture. Google.com shows 93,200 competing websites. That's much better though still somewhat competitive.

Tip: Notice there are not many web sites (even the top ones), that have "Coleman camping equipment" in their titles. This is just one of the ways to obtain a high ranking on the search engines for your newly targeted web site. This will then provide lots of targeted traffic to your site.

c) Take a survey – you may already have products or services that you selling to your customers. If so, ask questions within your survey about what product or service would help your customers business. If it can help them save time by gaining more knowledge or automating tasks, you could have a winner.

d) Create Your Own Unique Selling Position (USP) - study your competition to find out what they emphasize about the product which makes them stand out from the crowd. Then decide on something that will make your business unique from the others. It could be something unique about the product (i.e. discount Coleman camping equipment) or you could choose a more highly defined target market (i.e. Boy Scout organizations and clubs throughout the USA that use Coleman’s camping equipment).

4. Build and promote your web site - to develop a profitable web site for your niche product you need to create a number of informative pages that will not only attract visitors from the search engines, but inform and move them to purchase from your site.
Niche marketing is the key to developing a profitable business that will make you stand out from the crowd. By doing the necessary research and building an informative web site, you will become an expert in your niche marketing field.

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips

Checklist for Starting a Business

Checklist for Starting a Business


Use this comprehensive checklist to plan each step of your new business and transform your dream of entrepreneurship into reality. These steps may not necessarily be completed in the order listed; however, you can use them as a guideline for completing all of the necessary business startup tasks.
- Determine what kind of business you want to start.
- Learn about the industry for your business.
- Analyze the market for your business.
- Study your competition.
- Educate yourself on running a business.
- Join trade associations.
- Name your business.
- Perform a trademark search.
- Register a domain name.
- Design a website.
- Obtain a logo.
- Determine business structure (sole proprietor, partnership, or corporation).
- Evaluate your personal budget.
- Write a business plan.
- Write a marketing plan.
- Locate financing.
- Create a list of start-up supplies with budget.
- Set up a system for accounting and payroll.
- Apply for business license, fed tax ID, fictitious business name.
- Select a location and set up shop.
- Order signage.
- Obtain business tools (computer, printer, fax, postage, office supplies, and fixtures).
- Order business stationery (business cards, letterhead, brochures).
- Obtain inventory.
- Create an operations and employee manual.
- Hire employees.
- Set a launch date.
- Plan a grand opening event.
- Send announcements to everyone you know.
- Send press releases.
- Turn on the OPEN sign!
- Revisit your business plan and update often.
- Evaluate your marketing strategy often.
- Prepare a realistic business plan.

Think of this as your business road map. Define exactly where you want to get to with your business and then you can effectively map out your path towards achieving your goals!
By creating a detailed business plan you should cover all options and eventualities and have a clear future vision that will guide you through the rest of the start-up processes.

- Your business plan should encompass the financial considerations of starting your small or home based business:-

Do you have the capital required?
Do you need to raise additional funds?
Who are you going to approach for finance?
Who do you trust for advice?
And don’t forget to open a business bank account…

- Consider the legal implications of becoming a business owner and proprietor.
Are you better off as a sole trader, a limited company or are you considering a partnership?
Make sure you consider all the angles and protect yourself and your assets personally from the outset.

Anything you bring to the business has to be itemized, valued…even if you’re a sole trader.
And make sure you are professionally covered with the appropriate business indemnity insurances.

- Get your family and friends behind you from the get-go.

Make sure your family and friends are fully understanding and supportive of your ideas to venture into small business start-up.

Do they understand the level of commitment you will have to show for on-going and long term success?

Their belief in you and continued support of you will work wonders towards your on-going success, so don’t forget to look out for them too.

- Protect your family, protect your business.
If, God forbid, something were to happen to your health, how would your business survive, how would your family cope?

Consider insurances - from health, critical illness and income protection insurance to life insurance – and consider your pension and long term financial security.
- Face those ‘taxing’ questions from the start.

Your small or home based business has to consider its taxation situation.
Do you need to register your business for sales tax purposes; have you informed your tax office of your business’s inauguration?
Do you have a good tax professional lined up to guide and assist you?
The bottom line when it comes to taxation is that from the outset you need to make sure your papers and books are in order, this will save you time, money and heart ache in the long run.

- Prepare realistic and achievable goals and targets for your first year.
Do not expect to conquer the world with your first year’s business returns.

Starting a business is a life changing undertaking and one you must be patient with. The rewards are there, but make sure you set yourself achievable targets – when you reach them they will give you the confidence and satisfaction to set new goals and to continue building your business’ success.

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips

Applying for a Loan

Applying for a Loan

Learn the procedures involved in applying for a loan. There are many elements to be considered and preparations to be done. That still does not mean that your loan will be accepted.

The process of applying for a business loan is a stringent one as compared to the standard procedures in obtaining a home mortgage loan or a personal loan. This is probably due to the fact that business loans contain a greater risk element as compared to other loans. Therefore, lenders need to exercise greater caution and emphasis when evaluating business loan applications in order to minimize their risk exposure.

With that, lenders evaluate their applicants based on the information that are provided as well as their judgment of the viability and profitability of the business being financed. Thus, business loan applicants will be required to submit a loan proposal along with their applications with the purpose of creating a positive impression upon the lender.

The first element of a loan proposal is an executive summary, providing short descriptions of the type of business and the industry, the purpose and usage of the loan, the proposed repayment conditions as well as the intended loan period. After that, the company information is provided, enriching the reader with the nature of the business, the location of the business, company history, the products or services provided, key differentiation factors of the company or the product, the general growth of the industry, competitive information, growth potential and target customers.

It would help if you could include your company marketing strategy, detailed product information, historical information as well as projected growth plans for the company. Apart from that, if you plan to incorporate product or service extensions in the future, you should provide these descriptions within your loan proposal. If possible, geographical expansion plans will help in the proposal.

The next area that needs to be showcased in the proposal would be the credentials and experience of each member of the management team. Impressive credentials will provide assurance to the lender that the company is managed by individuals who are responsible and capable. This is important as having the wrong people managing the company could be detrimental for the business.

In any loan application, historical records are essential to be used in evaluating the performance of a company. As new companies do not yet have these records, the financial records of the owners will be used as the basis of evaluation. Income tax returns forms are also required by lenders. All of these records provided should be the latest copies less than 90 days old, with the exception of the income tax returns form.

If the loan is applied for an existing company in active operations, company financial statements, including profit and loss accounts, balance sheets and the net worth reconciliation record should be included in the loan proposal. Again, all of this information should also be the latest and less than 90 days old. Additionally, a listing of accounts receivables and other short term and long term debt should be attached.

On the other hand, if the loan application is submitted for a new business, a pro-forma balance sheet and profit and loss account should be provided. Apart from that, a cash flow projection for the upcoming year is drafted to indicate the possibility of recovering the debt. This also means that projected revenue, profits, costs incurred and expenditure should be listed out with definite explanations provided as well as a list of assumptions.

If you possess assets that you wish to use as collateral for your loan, details for this should be provided to the lender as well. It is often common for lenders to request for dual sources of repayment in the event that one source is defaulted. This means that if the business owner defaults on his repayments, the collateral can be sold in order to recover debt.

Finally, other documents normally required for a loan application would be items like the article of incorporation, lease agreements, partnership agreements, license, references, etc. As the list of required documentation, information and attachments differs between lenders, it is best to check with the individual lender on their specific information and documents required to be attached with the loan proposal.

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips

Advertising and PR

Advertising and PR

How Does Advertising and PR Add up to Success

Advertising and Public Relations (PR) are both integral to the success of any business. Without advertising and PR, few people will be able to locate your business or understand why they might need your services or products. Advertising budgets need to be used effectively to reach the potential clients, and your public relations efforts must ensure those potential clients become repeat customers.

What Is The Difference Between Advertising and PR?
Advertising and PR are two different functions, however, many business do not know the difference. Since spending your advertising budget and your PR budget effectively is crucial, how can you expect to accomplish this important goal unless you understand the difference?

When thinking of advertising, billboards, glossy spreads, quarter-page newspaper advertisements and other forms of highly visible promotional material comes to mind. This is clearly advertising. Branding or creating a well-recognized presence for your company is a clear example of effective advertising. Business cards with pizzazz are a form of advertising.

What, then, is PR? Public relations are those things that must be accomplished to let the world know who you are and what your company offers. Press releases, news conferences, professional networking and exhibitions or trade shows are examples of PR work. PR is not as flashy as advertising but it is every bit as important.
Effective Advertising and PR
In today's competitive marketplace, it is crucial to spend every bit of your advertising and PR budget strategically. Public relations can provide a mix that uses advertising but also enhances the efforts of your advertising dollar.

It has long been a "supposed fact" in business that word of mouth is the best advertising. This is not necessarily true. It is an unfortunate fact that a customer who has an exceptional experience dealing with your business will tell one or two people about their experience. A customer who has a bad experience will tell at least a dozen people and your business gets negative advertising.

Word of mouth is, however, one of the most effective PR tools available. Offering school tours, sponsoring science fairs or children's' sports teams, volunteering for public speaking opportunities, attending trade shows or presenting at conferences are rather inexpensive ways to build a wealth of good will and put your name out front.

Have you noticed that television commercials for a product often run a 15 to 30 second advertisement of a really great advertisement and within a few weeks shorten the advertisement to the most important 5 to 10 seconds? The reason is that the initial advertising is meant to brand the product or service and associate the advertisement and the product or service in your mind. It works very well – provided you have really memorable advertisements.

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips

Yahoo! Search Marketing

Yahoo! Search Marketing

Yahoo! Search Marketing is an effective online marketing tool for organizations of all shapes and sizes and this article provides you a brief overview of the various products offered by Yahoo!

Yahoo! manages to utilize its huge network of websites and portals to provide Yahoo! Search Marketing services which provides you an opportunity to advertise your business in a number of methods. The methods are sub-divided in the following categories:

Sponsored Search: Display your ad prominently in leading search engines such as Yahoo!, MSN, Altavista, CNN and Infospace

Product Submit: Get your product listed in Yahoo! Shopping and Yahoo! Buyers Guide and be found by millions of users

Travel Submit: Get your travel product or service listed in Travel Deals marketplace or Travel Deals listings and allow easy access of information to potential travelers

Directory Submit: Powered by the powerful Yahoo! Search, submit your business information in Yahoo! Directory.

Each category is defined to meet the requirement of a certain type of advertiser and you would need to first decide your category before proceeding further. Once you have decided which category suits your requirements best, you can proceed to set up your marketing campaign at Yahoo!.

Other than the above categories of advertising Yahoo! also provides the option for providing Local Advertising and Search Submit. Local Advertising is again split into two sub-categories of Local Sponsored Search and Local Listings. This is very beneficial for businesses having local presence and they can catch users who are searching for a particular service or product in a locality and the costs of advertising in this section is probably one of the most affordable for an online campaign.

Search Submit on the other hand provides Search Submit Express and Search Submit Pro both of which are purely related to getting your site put on the search results of a group of top search engines.

If you are confused with the various types of products being offered with Yahoo! Search Marketing, you can use their online tool to help you determine which product suits you the best. All you need to do is answer a few simple questions and the wizard will recommend the products which suit your requirement best. All products of Yahoo! Search Marketing provide detailed analysis of traffic coming to your website which helps you make further decisions on your online marketing campaign.

Should you have a budget of over $10,000 per month for online advertising, you can contact Yahoo! sales team for a customized package that better suit your business.

Though Yahoo! Search Marketing programme sounds a bit complicated, it has some excellent Marketing Tools to help you go through the entire programme with ease. The two components are a Marketing Console which tracks how effective your various campaigns are and provides you with detailed information on them. This is definitely a time-saving application as you can see the end results of your campaigns in a jiffy. The other application is Search Optimizer which helps you get the maximum return of investment out of a Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) campaign.

The sign up process requires you to create an account and deposit funds in the account via a credit card and choose one of the many marketing products described above.

Marketing Tips Provided to You by:
Matt Bacak, The Powerful Promoter
Author of Powerful Promoting Tips