Thursday, August 30, 2007

Drop Shippers


Whether you're just getting started with an online store or you are an online veteran, 
dropshipping provides an easy entry point into wholesale buying.
Drop shippers are simply wholesalers who are willing to send products directly from their wholesale warehouse to your customers' homes for you, one at a time.

For online sellers, this product sourcing method offers numerous advantages: 
No inventory investment 
No storage  
No shipping issues, 
A much broader product selection.
It's also an excellent model to test new products. 

Of course, drop shipping does have its limits, two in particular: 
slimmer profit margins and occasional delivery problems.

Using drop shippers brings certain strengths to your Internet business, but that doesn't mean you should limit yourself to using only drop shipping. No single sourcing method will make you truly successful. 
 
Drop shipping provides a great complement to your other sourcing techniques and should be one part of your overall product sourcing strategy.

You will not find legitimate wholesale suppliers advertising in the search engines.
Unfortunately, locating real wholesale drop shippers isn't all that easy. 

There are a couple of different ways you can locate real, genuine wholesale drop shippers on your own:

1.Attend quality trade shows and meet with wholesalers and manufacturers who've been vetted by a trade association. Not every exhibitor at a show will drop ship, but many will, and you'll know that they're legitimate.

2.Call the manufacturer of the product you want to sell and ask for a list of their factory-authorized wholesalers. Then start calling the suppliers on that list to see which ones drop ship. 

Once you know you're looking at genuine suppliers, you can start narrowing down the list of ones you want to work with.
 

I wish You Great Success.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

More with Less

The Pareto Principle, or the 80/20 Rule.
The 80/20 Principle states that 80% of results, rewards, or outputs are generated by 20% of causes, efforts, or inputs.
In other words, when it comes to getting the results you want, only a very few things you do really matter. The rest...well, they're just a waste of your time.

Business philosophers love to talk about the 80/20 Principle, because it applies so clearly to corporate situations. You've probably heard it said that 80% of profit comes from 20% of customers, or that 20% of a company's staff generates 80% of its productivity.
But the 80/20 Principle is much, much bigger than that. It's a universal, natural fact, proven over and over again in scientific research. And it's visible in nearly every imaginable circumstance.

For instance, in the wider world, roughly:
20% of thieves account for 80% of the value of all crime.
20% of drivers cause 80% of all car accidents.
20% of any community's population utilizes 80% of its resources.

And if you look at your own personal life, you'll find that about:
20% of the time you spend at work accounts for 80% of what you achieve
20% of your clothes are worn 80% of the time
20% of your home's carpeting receives 80% of the wear

These fascinating little statistics demonstrate the truth of the 80/20 Principle —  
The secret to using it as a tool for massive life transformation — lies in finding, focusing on, and 
exploiting the most important 20% of your resources in every situation in your life.
It is about learning to identify the things that matter most to you and add the most value to your life...Shifting the majority of your energy and attention to those things and disregarding everything else.

In theory, applying the power of the 80/20 Principle is really quite simple.
You see, we've all been ingrained with 50/50 thinking. We intuitively believe that hard work will bring about equal results. That cause and effect are equally linked.

The 80/20 Principle demonstrates that just the opposite is true. The world is imbalanced. Everything isn't fair. Working really hard doesn't necessarily mean you'll be amply rewarded. 

Hardly working at all can sometimes make you a multimillionaire.
This can be a very difficult idea to get your mind around. It can be even harder to put it into practice. 

After all, we're programmed to believe that a truly productive workday must consist of eight hours at a minimum. It can feel impossible to cut that down to just one or two hours, even when the results you're generating are the same or even better.

I wish You Great Success.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Vocal Impact 2

Remember to try to 'fill down' with your breath - rather than filling up and lifting your shoulders and chest. The latter cuts you off from your breath powerhouse in your center.

Centering the breath enables you to:
  • Project without push
  • Be connected to a deeper place - thus giving you more gravitas.
  • Work freely, because you would not be supporting your voice in your throat.
  • Open up your pitch range - giving variety and interest.
  • Resonate more effectively.
Find that centered, grounded position again and try to maintain it throughout the exercises.

Place the flat of your hand between the base of your ribcage and your navel.
Breathe out fully through an open mouth; notice that little moment of 'nothingness' deep inside you as your body changes gear from breathing out to breathing in. Wait for the impulse for you next IN breath and the relax the area beneath your hand in order for the breath to replace. Repeat 6 times, 
always making sure not rush the exercise.

Breathe out fully and easily through an open mouth, letting the outgoing breath last for a mental 
count of 5. Relax the area in the center of your body, as in the previous exercise, in order for 
the breath to be drawn in. Then release the breath for six mental counts then 7, 8, 9 and 10 - always relaxing in your center, not lifting your upper chest. Think of the outgoing breath as warm quality 
and allow your throat and jaw to release and feel spacious.

Then repeat the exercise but count aloud easily to five on one breath. Send the counts to a specific 
place across the room. Repeat, gradually extending the counts as far as you can without feeling strain. 
Always stop when you feel your breath supply has been exhausted.

Repeat - this time intoning the counts. Start on a comfortable, mid register, but try going to your 
lower register and upper register, before going back to your most comfortable range. Keep the voice forwards as though the sound is leaving you on an arc of energy.

Ribs - Place the back of your hand on your ribcage. Breathe without lifting your upper chest, feeling your lower ribs expanding. Then find a point some distance away from you. Focus clearly on that place and send a stream of hissed sound on 's' to that place for 5 mental counts.
Repeat on a 'z' and a 'v' - focusing the sound across the space in a steady stream.

RESONANCE

Using your breath support, hum a very internal hum and feel all the vibrating places on your face, 
neck and skull. Turn the hum into a 'chewy' hum to get the facial muscles involved. Try to focus the hum to different surfaces, notice how the voice resonates differently in each place. Repeat as you go from 'mmm' to 'ah' then 'mmm' to 'oo'. Also, to different surfaces. Try saying the opening of a speech, feeling the vibrations of your voice coming forwards into your cheeks, lips, back of neck and top of skull. Do it on different pitches. Speak it feeling grounded with your energy filling your personal space and beyond.

ARTICULATION

First massage your face and jaw, being aware of any particular tension areas. Yawn vertically, 
horizontally and with your lips together - each time keeping your tongue tip in light contact with
 the back of your lower front teeth and programming your soft palate at the back of the roof of 
the mouth to rise.

Stretch your tongue out onto your chin to release tension from the tongue root. Speak with your 
tongue out on your chin and then with it back inside your mouth noticing how free it feels as a 
result. Say the "the sixth sheik's sixth sheep's sick" with precision and clarity, without missing out any of the sounds. When you feel it is clear, speed it up, still maintaining clarity.

Repeat on: Peggy Babcock (6 times -gradually speeding up) and Popocatepetl, Popocatepetl, 
Popocatepetl - Pop

Finally:

Always make sure you understand and believe in what you are saying. This applies equally to 
conversation as it does to presentations and speeches
Wherever necessary and possible, prepare the material to be spoken.
Most listeners want to hear you speak, they are generally on your side and want you to do well.


I wish You Great Success.

Monday, August 20, 2007

Vocal Impact 1

With just ten minutes of gentle exercise per day, you can build vocal stamina and improve the 
tone of your voice.
Always start with some gentle limbering to release excess tension from your body. Work from a 
‘centered’, grounded position, with a strong spine, but working towards releasing the muscles you are not using.
The breath is the powerhouse for the voice, so once you feel your body is released and centered, 
start to focus on your breath. Always try to breath to the base of your lungs not into the top 
or you will risk causing shoulder and chest tension.
Once you feel the breath is ‘centering’, then go onto sounds, words, sentences and whole speeches.

The Exercises:

Finding A Centered Position:
The body works at its best when it is firmly grounded and working in a state of equilibrium. 
First get the feet right, put them together, turn the toes to 'ten to the hour', turn out the heels so the feet are parallel. 
Within a short time, this will happen instinctively without you having to go through the whole process.

Close your eyes and start to part the area just below the belly button. Focus all your attention there and try to imagine the area beneath your hand as a ball of powerful energy. Imagine that energy spreading out all over your body. Feel the strong connection between your feet and the 
floor. Let your knees have a little 'give' in then- not bent and not braced back. Notice if you feel more connected in this 'centered' position.

Stretching:
First have a really good stretch. Stretch up to the ceiling, keeping your shoulders down, but 
feeling the stretch coming from your ribs and arms.
Develop into a stretch and a yawn to release the jaw and open your throat. Keep your tongue tip touching the back of your lower front teeth as you do this and consciously open the top of your throat.
Stretch up and hold the body in a tight position for a moment.
Flop down as you breath out fully.

Pushing:
To release tension around the arms and shoulders, imagine you are pushing against a wall a foot away at shoulder height. Push really hard, then gradually release the effort and allow your arms to fall easily beside you.

Head & Neck:
Then release your neck by allowing your head to fall heavily onto your chest. Raise it slowly until it feels well balanced on your shoulders. Try to use the minimum of effort and try to 
engage the muscles at the back of the neck - not the front.
Repeat this three times, imagine your head getting heavier as it falls and lighter as it rises.
Repeat the above exercise, allowing the head to fall to the back and then each side in turn.
Each time there should be no sensation of 'placing' your head, but of allowing it to find its 
resting position on its own.

Chest & Shoulders:
Lift your chest up and forward until you feel an exaggerated hollow in the centre of your back. 
Hold it there for a few mental counts and then release the chest.
Roll your shoulders forwards three times and back three times.
Then lift them up to your ears and try to move them into different shapes.
Try to speak with them up around your ears.
Then loosely shake them up, notice the contrast while you speak.

Wrist & Ankles
Shake out your wrist - trying to make them go as completely floppy.
Remember, even tension in your hands- although a long way from your voice box it affects the way you sound.
Then do the same for each foot - shake them out as though you could gently shake your foot off.
Replace on the ground and feel the connection.

I wish You Great Success.

Friday, August 17, 2007

Leverage on Ebay

Ebay is an incredibly useful tool for promoting a "regular" Internet business.
However, there is a right way to use eBay for promoting an off-eBay website -- and 
there is a wrong way.
The right way can drive huge waves of qualified visitors to your business... but the wrong 
way can get you banned from ever doing business on eBay again.

eBay DON'Ts:

DON'T include any links to your off-eBay website in your auction listings.
DON'T include any links to your website in your eBay store or custom pages.
DON'T include an opt-in offer in your auction listings.
DON'T include an opt-in offer in your eBay store.
DON'T automatically add your customers or visitors to your auctions to your opt-in list ...

In short, don't overtly try to send people off eBay or collect their information for marketing purposes on your auction listings, your eBay store, or any of your custom pages without their expressed consent. 

Your "About Me" page. And it's the most important weapon in your eBay marketing arsenal!

Here's how you use it...eBay DOs:

DO include a link to your off-eBay website on your "About Me" page, and other products.
DO include an opt-in form on your "About Me" page, with a compelling offer.
DO use every possible opportunity in your auction listings and your eBay Store to encourage people to check out your "About Me" page.

Tell them to read your FAQs on your "About Me" page.

When people buy something from you, send them ONE follow-up email and invite them to sign up for your newsletter or free report, so you can get them on your opt-in list.

If you do it right, you'll discover that eBay is an excellent customer acquisition tool for your business.

In fact, you might find it more effective NOT to sell your main product on eBay, but to sell related products for minimal profit, simply to grow your customer base so you can back-end sell your main products to them in the future.

Finally, eBay does regularly change their policies, so it's important you regularly check to make sure you're following eBay's official seller regulations, so you can stay on their good side.

I wish You Great Success.

Monday, August 13, 2007

Internet Toolbox


Running an internet business requires a variety of tools to manage different aspects efficiently. The specific tools you need can depend on your business model.

Here are six essential categories:

Email Marketing:
Mailchimp, Constant Contact, or Sendinblue: For creating and managing email marketing campaigns.

Social Media Management:
Buffer, Hootsuite, or Sprout Social: Schedule posts, track social media engagement, and manage multiple platforms.

Project Management:
Trello, Asana, or Monday.com: Organize tasks, collaborate with team members, and track project progress.

Communication and Collaboration:
Slack or Microsoft Teams: Internal communication and collaboration tools.
Zoom or Google Meet: For virtual meetings and conferences.

Payment Processing:
Stripe, PayPal, or Square: Accept online payments securely.

Backup and Security:
BackupBuddy or UpdraftPlus: Regularly back up your website.
Wordfence or Sucuri: Security plugins to protect your website from cyber threats.

Imagine you have access to every software tool you might need to get your internet marketing business started. 
Here six essential software programs that you must have. 

Open Office - You need to check this office suite out. Open Office meets your needs word processing, 
spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases. You can also create pdf documents on the fly.

Graphics Editor - Now you can create and edit graphics with ease. If you are already familiar with Photoshop(tm), then check out Gimpshop (gimpshop.com). This gimp version really looks and feels just like Photoshop(tm).

3D Box Shot Maker- This great little program combined with gimp is all you will need to start creating great product graphics.

LS Screen Capture- This program will let you capture whatever is on your 
screen. You can edit it in gimp for even better results.

Web Authoring System- similar to Frontpage(tm) and Dreamweaver(tm). Anyone can create professional looking webpages quickly and easily without knowing HTML or other technical stuff NVU (nvu.com)

A great Audio Editor- Audio and Recorder. With this program you have everything you need to record and edit podcasts Audacity (audacity.sourceforge.net)

With these programs loaded onto your computer, you will have all of the tools to build a very profitable Internet Marketing business. You now have the professional tools to bootstrap yourself to success. 

Select tools based on your specific business needs and goals. Regularly review and update your toolkit to stay current with technological advancements and industry trends.

I wish You Great Success.

Saturday, August 04, 2007

Website Review

In website review, the focus points are:
1. Your business model
2. Your keyword phrases
3. Your sales copy
I hope these tips help you get your business on the right track!

1. Your business model
Online, "something for everyone" approach simply doesn't work. I strongly urge you to set up different site to promote each of your main products (e.g., your pregnancy journal and your wedding planner).
You will have more success if you laser target your audience and speak directly to their specific needs, rather than trying to appeal to too many different people at once.
Once you start making some sales, you can stay in touch with your two main customer groups via email and promote different affiliate products to them over time.)
A good principle to follow is:
one problem + one solution = one website.
If you use one site to sell too many things to too many people, you'll end up selling to no one.

2. Your keyword phrases
One of the first things to do when checking out a website is the source code to see what keywords and phrases it's optimized for. Your keywords are the "key" to your success with the search engines.

There's no point optimizing your site for keywords that have overwhelming competition.
Instead, you need to find keywords that are far more focused and speak directly to your target market's needs.
For example, phrases like "memory problems during pregnancy" or "how to celebrate my pregnancy" should get you a far more targeted audience than simply, "pregnancy."
But are these actually phrases people type into the search engines?
Visit popular forums, blogs, and chat groups. See if people really are talking about these problems -- and if so, what language they're using to describe them. THAT'S the language you should be using in your salescopy.

3. Your Salescopy
You have to show visitors your site offers a solution to their problem. And you have to do it RIGHT AWAY.
That's why you need a large, easy-to-read, very clearly defined headline at the top of your site.
It should be the first thing people see when they arrive at your site, and it needs to present their problem -- and promise a solution -- in an attention-grabbing way.

Note that phrases should talk about your product in terms of its BENEFITS, not its FEATURES.

You have to include testimonials on your page! People need to see real words from 
real people, explaining how your product has made their lives better.
You can easily get testimonials by giving your product away for free to friends and acquaintances or people you meet online, blogs, or chat groups. Simply send them a copy and ask for some feedback in exchange.

Finally, your copy needs to include a strong call to action that compels your visitors to buy.

I hope that gives you enough to get you started.

I wish You Great Success.

Mission Statement

If you're like most people, you've probably flirted around with New Year's resolutions: You've said, "Resolutions don't work for me." Maybe you need a better approach. Instead of making a mental resolution, create a Mission Statement. 

A Mission Statement
is a handwritten or typed-out paragraph
is posted someplace you can see it regularly
is committed to memory
has specific, measurable outcomes
has a deadline — in this case, December 31st

Here's a process you can use right now to create a Mission Statement for personal success in your career or business. Get out a pen and some paper.

Step A. Write down 5 positive personality characteristics you like about yourself in your career/business. 
For example: willingness to learn, persistence, creativity, friendliness, sense of humor.

Step B. For the items you listed above, describe the way you express each positive characteristic on a regular basis in your career, using the word "by" to begin each phrase. For example, if you listed 
"Willingness to learn" above, you might write "by being committed to ongoing professional development" below. Another example: If you wrote "persistence" above, you might write "by making sure the job always gets done" below.

Step C. Write down 5 goals you’d like to achieve by one year from today. Be sure to list a specific 
financial goal separate from these 5 goals.

Step D. Look back over Steps A, B, and C, circling the 3 most important items in each column.

Step E. Now fill in the blanks of the following paragraph: "My purpose is to express my
 __________________________ ,________________________, and ______________________ 
(write in the three items you circled in Step A) by __________________________________________________,
 by ________________________________________________, and by ____________________________________________ 
(write in the three items you circled in Step B) to create ___________________________________________________,
 ___________________________________________________ and _____________________________________________, 
(write in the three items you circled in Step C) and at least ____________ (write in your financial goal)
 by ___________ (write in the date one year from today)."

When finished, you will have a short paragraph that reads something like:

"My purpose is to express my intelligence, creativity, and people skills by continually learning and applying new ideas, by finding unique solutions to my clients' problems, and by building a powerful network of contacts to create 15 new corporate accounts, a steady flow of referral and renewal business, and full technological competence, and at least $250,000 in gross commissions by this date one year from today."

I hope you give this simple exercise a try, and I encourage you to follow the guidelines above by 
posting it where you can review it and committing it to memory. Then you won't
make any more fruitless resolutions 


I wish You Great Success.

Security and Compliance 3

How to do BS7799/ISO17799 Projects

Who to Interview?
Security Management --------Sec Policy/Organization
Security Management -----------Asset Classification and Control
Typically, HR --------------------- Personnel Security
Site Security/IT manager------- Physical and Environmental Security
Business Manager/IT Manager--------------- Communications and
Operations Management
System Administration Staff---------------- Access Control
Development Staff-------------- System development
Business Continuity Manager---------- Business Continuity Management
Internal Audit/Legal-------------- Compliance
Appropriate staff/line Management----------- Business/Info Process
A Good Gap Analysis

Clearly defined scope
Clear findings against each control (good areas as well as gaps)
The ISMS
Clear practical and appropriate recommendations leading to compliance.
All recommendations reinforced and supported by findings.

Finalizing Resources

Resourcing:
Match actions with in-house resources and confirm availability.
Identify availability shortfalls.
Identify where specialist support is needed.
Obtain necessary approvals for SIP.
Ensure the group have access to the full
Gap Analysis Report for guidance
Establish the ISMS through the creation of the Information Security Forum

Risk Assessment and BS7799/ISO17799

Define a systematic approach to risk assessment.
Identify the risk.
Assess the risk.
Select control objectives and controls for the treatment of risk.
Identify and evaluate options for the treatment of risk.

Generic Steps

Identify assets.
Identify asset dependencies.
Business Impact Assessment (Asset Valuation)
Threat Assessment
Determine levels of risk (Risk Assessment)
Countermeasures Selection
Map to BS7799/ISO17799
Risk Treatment

Document Management

BS7799/ISO17799 section 4.3 calls for Distribution /Availability to staff as required.
Version/ Change control
Documents to be dated (Including previous versions)
By implications, uniquely identifiable and fully controlled.

ISO 9001 compliance is an advantage.

Appropriate change control is needed for intranet solution.

10 Tips for Success

1. Ensure senior management involvement
2. Recommend a realistic and useful scope
3. Develop a good risk assessment
4. Promote Active Risk management
5. Interpret the controls for the scope
6. Ensure early Security Forum creation
7. Ensure maximum use of the Statement of Applicability
8. Get internal third parties to sign up
9. Get audits underway to raise assurance
10. Take staff awareness seriously

I wish You Great Success.