Archive for November, 2008
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Looking around for COUPON CODES can get tiring! So we found the perfect site that has several hundred of the LARGEST online retailers. This site has all the latest coupon codes, free shipping deals, discounts, overstocks, clearance items. The best part is that there are NO "memberships"!!! You don’t have to fill out any long forms, or supply any personal info. Just click on the link for the deal you are interested in! We will take you right to it. Simple as that.
Make sure to share this site with all your friends! No reason why everyon can’t save a little money! They are always adding more coupon codes, percent off deals, and free shipping… so check back often!
Tags: gourmet gifts, discounts, retail, amazon, retail sales, shopping news, gifts
November 17th, 2008
Get this long sleeve lift up double opening nursing top $48.00 at Mothers Work.
Get more Savings…
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Looking around for COUPON CODES can get tiring! So we found the perfect site that has several hundred of the LARGEST online retailers. This site has all the latest coupon codes, free shipping deals, discounts, overstocks, clearance items. The best part is that there are NO "memberships"!!! You don’t have to fill out any long forms, or supply any personal info. Just click on the link for the deal you are interested in! We will take you right to it. Simple as that.
Make sure to share this site with all your friends! No reason why everyon can’t save a little money! They are always adding more coupon codes, percent off deals, and free shipping… so check back often!
Tags: shopping news, online shoes, discount codes, daily deals, military surplus, free shipping, rosetta stone
November 17th, 2008
Furnish Your Vision, Fulfill Your Desire
Home! Sweet home. What else could be the connotation of this seemingly simple word? For many, home is not where you live but where you yearn to be at the end of a long grueling day, it is not a dream but a vision, it is not a part of your life but an addendum of who you are rather than what you are, it does not vindicate your existence but expound your entity and hence it is imperative to us that we meticulously plan and execute the search and furnishing of the same.
Now, that can be a task too many. Comfort is not bestowed on but earned and pleasure is not a prerogative but a return in lieu of what you gave to this world. Making your home a utopia of pleasure and comfort is a process that demands honesty and willingness. The colour you have chosen to adorn your house with, the furniture you have picked to meet needs and fit space available, the gadgets you have selected to make tasks easier, from a pin to a pen, an amalgam of aesthetic and pragmatic approach works better towards making this process more effective.
These days the term Cash back Portal is heard more often than not and I see no harm in giving this buzzword a try when it comes to shop online and make the process more convenient and yielding. Subject to your priorities you can opt for one of the innumerable portals offering anything and everything you need. Catch is, go through their policies and offers mentioned there and make the most out of it. I would personally go for portals with a more user friendly website and a rather uncomplicated policies and offers. They still have way to go and that�s where I could gauge an opportunity to get associated with them, as they would be willing to project themselves as more customer-centric than revenue generators.
Read more on online home shopping
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November 16th, 2008
Holiday Planning Tips For Parents
Ahhh, the Holidays�� The Thanksgiving turkey comes out of the oven golden brown, with an enticing aroma that fills the entire house. All the china is in pristine condition and not a single piece in the set is missing. The family is gathered for holiday pictures, the children are poised perfectly; hands to themselves, not a hair out of place and their smiles are shining brightly for the camera. Then just as the photographer is about to capture the shot� you wake up! Let’s be realistic ladies. Without proper planning, the holidays are anything but a holiday. Just look at the list of things that need to be done: Shopping, cooking, cleaning, decorating, sending holiday mail, the list goes on and on.
Let me clue you all in on a few key questions that you should ask yourself in order to have a holiday season free of stress and worry, and instead filled with fun and laughter:
What types of holiday celebrations do you want? For example: Do you want to have an immediate family only holiday affair or an extravaganza including immediate and extended family plus a few friends? Once you’ve thought everything through and decided on the type of holiday gathering you would like, you can then start making your plans.
If you are ready to get a head start on organizing yourself, your family and your holiday check lists, then keep reading:
Holiday Cards: Start early! I use a holiday card list that I derive from saving names and addresses from holiday cards my family has received in past years. I created a simple, computerized list that is easy to edit and print onto address labels. Be sure to stock up on stamps so that when you have your cards signed, stuffed and addressed you can affix a stamp to them and make one, simple trip to the Post Office.
Holiday Gifts: There’s nothing like getting a HUGE credit card bill in the mail at the start of the New Year. Many of us tend to want to be generous when shopping for holiday gifts. While your generosity will be appreciated at gift giving time, keep in mind that it is very easy to succumb to “impulse buying” and go all out on your holiday shopping. While your intentions may be good, your pocketbook may be singing a different song. Set a budget and stick to it � your bank account will thank you for it after the start of the New Year.
Wrap it up: Wrap your gifts and place nametags on them immediately after you bring them home, then store the gifts in a secure spot. This will cut down on those late night wrapping sessions that I am sure we ALL have experienced a few times, if not every year.
Baking & cooking: If you will be cooking during the holidays, it is important to plan your meals ahead of time. Be sure to stock up ahead of time on all the necessary non-perishable baking ingredients such as flour, sugar and spices. Create a list of your holiday menus and a list of the ingredients you will need to prepare each of those meals. Also, try to think of a few dishes that can be prepared ahead of time and then frozen as an extra timesaving measure
Delegate: This is one of my favorite tips. Be sure to enlist the help of your family or friends. Sit down and discuss what needs to be done then ask for volunteers. If no hands are raised, simply assign small tasks to each of them. Whether it is arranging for a babysitter so that you can escape for a child free day of shopping, passing the shopping list onto another family member or friend so that they can pick up the items for you, or letting the children decorate your home. Be sure to get the whole family involved in the holiday preparations so that you will not be overwhelmed.
Enjoy: Whatever you decide to do, remember to relax and enjoy yourself. You and your family will have much fonder memories of this holiday season if you are not spending it pulling your hair out.
About The Author
Aurelia Williams, certified Personal Life Coach and owner of Real Life Coaching who offers free consultations and Real Life Solutions, a Family Resource site that helps you lead an emotionally & physically healthier, more productive and less stressful life. You can visit her site at http://www.reallifesolutions.net.
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November 16th, 2008
How Long Can I Consider a Job Offer?
A few weeks ago, a young man I was representing almost lost a job. He had interviewed with the firm on Thursday afternoon and received a job offer that day. He wanted to consider the offer until the close of business the following Friday . . . and almost lost the opportunity he ultimately accepted by insisting that he had �a right� to �consider it� until then.
From my client�s perspective, they understood that he was comparison shopping, had actually hired three people from the firm he was waiting for an offer from, were interviewing more people from there and didn�t want to risk losing everyone.
This situation offers an opportunity to examine how long you have to consider a job offer once you receive one.
The correct answer is that you have as long as they will give you.
Most firms would like an immediate or almost immediate response. I don�t mean an answer in 10 minutes. I mean an answer where you sleep on it. After all, in most cases, you�ve interviewed there several times, why haven�t you been thinking about it before now and able to make a decision?
And delaying for too long gives a message to the hiring firm of how you make decisions . . . or that you are shopping for another option . . . or just aren�t that interested.
The fact is everything you do on an interview is a reflection of you and how you will work with your new employer. A day to think is OK (truthfully, now, you�re not going to take a day off from work, sit in a chair in isolation and contemplate the job offer, are you), two days is often OK and more gives the employer reason to feel hesitant about you and your thought process.
Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter, is Managing Director with Concepts in Staffing, a New York search firm, He has successfully assisted many corporations identify management leaders and staff in technology, accounting, finance, sales, marketing and other disciplines since 1971. He is a certified leader of the ManKind Project, a not for profit organization that assists men with life issues, and a practicing psychotherapist.
To receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you or Jeff’s free job search ezine, Head Hunt Your Next Job, go to http://www.jeffaltman.com For information about Jeff’s personal search agent service, go to http://vippersonalsearch.com
If you would like Jeff and his firm to assist you with hiring staff, or if you would like help with a strategic job change, send an email to him at jeffaltman@cisny.com (If you�re looking for a new position, include your resume).
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November 9th, 2008
Skin the Cat
Skin the Cat
by Bob Osgoodby
No we’re not talking about upcoming “Yo-Yo” events, but rather different ways of doing business. Those with a “brick and mortar” business, quickly learn that there are two types of people they will meet in their store. Those who can afford to pay for the goods and services, and those who can’t. Now that seems simple enough.
Someone who leaves the store without buying, because they couldn’t pay now, will seldom be seen again. Sure, some go to an ATM, withdraw the cash and return, but they are the exception rather than the rule. Others will write a check, but there are people who can’t afford, at this moment, to write a check either. If you can’t close a sale when they are ready to buy, they have time to cool off, and you will most likely lose the opportunity.
The same holds true on the web. If you can’t close when someone has made up their mind to buy, you will probably lose the sale. Now there are several methods of accepting payment on the web. One is to have them send you a check or money order. They have to write out the check or get a money order, and time passes - in other words you have lost the immediacy of the moment.
Many people buy on impulse, and if you provide a convenient way for them to pay for the purchase, you have a better chance of making the sale. This can take several forms on the web, and let’s talk about just two.
Many online business barely make expenses when starting out. As you get known, it will increase, but after awhile will level out. You are losing the impulse purchases. Once you install online checks, your business should immediately increase.
Obviously the online check submission has an effect. But, you can then expect your business to level off again, even though it will be at a higher level than before. Realize that people will not submit a check online if they are tight on funds.
Some people will write a check or submit one online knowing they don’t have sufficient funds to cover it. Yes this is illegal, but there are those who will do it, hoping to get the merchandise. Those that do are fairly comfortable in the fact that it is usually not worth the merchants time and effort to prosecute, and they will simply write it off as a bad debt.
It is then time to take the next step. Acquire merchant status and be able to accept credit cards. People can now make the purchase knowing they have 30 days to make payment. If they were financially tight at that point, they could make a minimum payment, but still have the advantage of making their purchase now. At that point, your business should take a huge jump.
If you are doing business on the web, and selling either a product or a service, and feel you just can’t afford to get a merchant account, it is costing you lost sales. Sure, it costs about a 700 - 800 dollars to become fully operational with online checks and a merchant account, but you will recover that very quickly.
But I have to have a “secure site” to accept these you might think, and you are right. You can do this in one of two ways that make sense. You can contract with a company that provides web space and get a “secure site” from them, but this requires a knowledge of HTML coding. You also have to manually enter the credit card information, and you have little defense against a disputed claim, and may have “charge backs”.
A second way is to set up a shopping cart. This is probably the best way to do business online. You don’t need a secure site of your own as the company providing the shopping cart does. An added benefit is that the customers enter the information themselves and their “IP” address is automatically captured. If the credit card is declined, they can immediately enter another. You are only notified when there is a successful transaction. The customer is automatically sent a receipt, so the chances of a charge back are significantly reduced.
If you don’t have merchant status, you should at least consider “Paypal” which is probably the easiest and cheapest way for small businesses and websites to accept payments online. There is also a shopping cart available, but does require basic knowledge of HTML. “Paypal” is a viable solution for a small business. The only drawback is that your potential customer has to sign-up with “Paypal”, and “jump through a few hoops”. This does risk “cooling off”..
There are many ways to “skin the cat” and if you find one that works for you, your online business will prosper.
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Did you know that subscribers to Bob Osgoodby’s Free Ezine the “Tip of the Day” get a Free Ad for their Business at his Web Site? Great Business and Computer Tips - Monday thru Friday. Instructions on how to place your ad are in the Newsletter. Subscribe at: http://adv-marketing.com/business/subscribe2.htm
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November 9th, 2008