Condemned To Google Hell

Beginning in September 2006, Skyfacet no longer showed up on the first few pages of Google's results when users typed in search terms like "diamonds" and "engagement ring." The site's traffic vanished, and Sanar says his sales dropped $500,000 in three months.

What happened? Sanar isn't completely sure. But he does know that his site has been condemned to the supplemental index, a dreaded backwater region of Google search results that goes by another name in online marketing circles: Google Hell.

Google Hell is the worst fear of the untold numbers of companies that depend on search results to keep their business visible online. Getting stuck there means most users will never see the site, or at least many of the site's pages, when they enter certain keywords. And getting out can be next to impossible--because site operators often don't know what they did to get placed there.

Google's programmers appear to have created the supplemental index with the best intentions. It's designed to lighten the workload of Google's "spider," the algorithm that constantly combs and categorizes the Web's pages. Google uses the index as a holding pen for pages it deems to be of low quality or designed to appear artificially high in search results.

Those pages are scanned far less frequently than those in the main index, meaning that once a page is marked for Google Hell, it can languish there for as long as a year before Google even deigns it worthy of a reappraisal. And as Google tries to manage an explosively growing Web, more and more sites are finding themselves thrown into the search engine's digital dungeon.

If that makes the world's leading Web-crawler sound judgmental, consider Google's difficult position. The search juggernaut is faced with the endless task of reading and ranking the ever-expanding Web's billions of pages, the equivalent of putting the Earth's population in order from tallest to shortest every few minutes. Meanwhile there are growing numbers of pages filled only with junk text and advertising, designed solely to fool the engine. It's Google's task to sort out the trash from the worthwhile, and to do it better and faster than competitors like Yahoo! (nasdaq: YHOO - news - people ), Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people ), or InterActiveCorp's (nasdaq: IACI - news - people ) Ask.com

The Success Formula

Every year, hundreds of thousands of businesses are started. Most will fail, some will muddle along, and a few will thrive. Which ones thrive, and why? The reason some businesses experience spectacular sales and profit growth from the start isn't because they had a lot of money at the beginning. Their fast growth can be attributed to the fact that they were put together the right way.

In every instance, the founders either had or acquired the experience and knowledge they needed to start up and run the business. They recognized what their weak points were, subsequently nurtured alliances, and acquired the skills they needed to start their company off right. They also understood how the various parts of the business fit together to form a total structure and knew that if one part was missing, the total structure would break. For example, they knew that a successful sales plan is directly dependent upon support from the marketing and promotional plans, and that the strategic business plan acts as the glue that holds all the sub plans together so that they work in concert.

DEVELOPING IDEAS
Clever product and service ideas are a dime a dozen. Everybody has one, and most of them never get implemented. The successful entrepreneur starts with a basic idea. This idea is first tested to staying power. Can it be used to grow a customer base, and will it be profitable? The pseudo-entrepreneurial itch often ends before the basic idea gets tested. Studies show that a high percentage of people who open new businesses do so because they are frustrated with their current job. They'll jump into any business venture that comes along without first checking it out. Ninety percent of this group will go out of business in their first year.

Those that make it are smart enough to recognize the symptoms of their emotional state. They are acutely aware that they may be in a vulnerable position. As a result, they may hang on to the security of their current job and start a business on the side. They'll make the move to become a full-time entrepreneur when the time is right for them and after they have thoroughly checked out their business venture ideas. There are three basic concepts to keep in mind as you develop and refine your business start-up ideas.

Be Creative
The opposite of creativity is rigidity. Entrepreneurs are not rigid in their thinking. If you cling to the old ways of doing things because "that's the way we have always done it," you'll never come up with the new solutions that are demanded by today's small businesses. To test your creative ability, practice finding ways to tie together seemingly unrelated ideas.

Resolve Problems
You must have a clear understanding of what it is you are trying to achieve and be able to identify the obstacles that stand in your way. Break each problem down so that you understand it and know what you need to do to eliminate it. For example, the problem may be that you need more space. Why do you need more space, and what are the alternatives? An alternative may pose a new set of problems, but if they reduce the magnitude of the original problem, the alternative may be a more viable option.

Brainstorming
When you come up with a solution to a problem, brainstorm the solution with as many qualified people as you can find to avoid judging your own answer. Accept modifications that make sense, and be prepared to replace the solution with a totally new and better alternative. The key to the brainstorming process is to be objective. Brainstorming is an excellent way to come up with a new set of ideas for new products, services, or improvements that could accelerate the growth of your business.

The Most Expensive Movie Ever Made Spider Man 3

Even before filming began in January 2006, Sam Raimi promised to pull out all the stops for his third Spidey film (likely the last he'll direct in the series). He wasn't kidding. As production dragged on into late summer—it had been scheduled to conclude in June—stories about the project's ballooning budget started popping up all over town. But in the end, even the most hyperbolic of observers may have underestimated the final tab. Industry insiders claim that Sony spent $350 million or more on production alone. With marketing and promotion factored in, the total price tag will approach half a billion dollars—positioning Spider-Man 3 as the most expensive movie of all time.

Get The Word Out On Your Home Business

Are you ready for a year of guerrilla marketing?

Podcasts
Never before has the online community had such an opportunity to reach its audience offline. On top of that, the spammers and hackers haven't yet found a way to infiltrate podcasting. (They probably will, but not like they've done with e-mail.)

Podcasts, like any information you put out, should be of interest and value to your target market. What do they need to help their businesses or their personal lives? What solutions do you have that they would like to hear more about? These are the things people find interesting in podcasts. A once-a-month delivery promoted through all your other marketing channels will give a real synergistic boost to your marketing.
Blogs
There are 100 times more blogs than there were three years ago, according Sifry's Alerts' August post on the State of the Blogosphere. At first, it was only the most tech-savvy businesses that had blogs. Now blogging is on the increase with all types of businesses because it's a cost-effective way to create marketing buzz and communities of support.

Blogging is like having a conversation with your target market. It also provides an interactive forum for your target market to talk back to you. And a blog done in conjunction with your website gives you one more way to reach your prospects.

The best part is, many blog programs allow you to set everything up yourself with little or no technical know-how. If you're not sure you'll be able to support a blog on your own, contribute to someone else's. This'll help you gain exposure and position you as an expert in your field.

Online Advertising
Ad dollars are continuing to shift to the internet and will continue to do so as new opportunities such as video open up. Online ad spending increases have been driven by the growing ability to measure campaigns effectively and a relatively high ROI. As a result, for many businesses, the question isn't whether to advertise online or even where or when, but rather how to stretch every dollar spent.

For the everyday entrepreneur and guerrilla marketer, this translates into a focused pay-per-click campaign on Yahoo! or Google AdWords. You can focus on a particular target market searching particular keywords and test your campaign instantly, all for fewer dollars than the old mass-market banner ads and certainly for a lot less than the cost of print ads.

Expanding to Global Markets
Borders are being removed in the business world because international labor rates and talent levels make location irrelevant on the Internet. No longer is going global just for large corporations; Sally’s e-commerce bead shop that's operating from a home office can now do business in as many countries as have Internet access.

For the aggressive entrepreneur, marketing globally is done mostly online. Using pay-per-click campaigns, a focused opt-in e-mail campaign or other traffic-generation techniques, a local entrepreneur can easily reach a global market.

The Internet has also greatly reduced language barriers. A lot of e-commerce is done in English, so there's not necessarily a huge need to translate. However, translated websites do open up new opportunities.

Expanding to global markets can be done with your e-commerce website or as an affiliate of the many thousands of retail portals available online, like Amazon.com and eBay.

Direct Marketing
No longer are awareness ads or even branding ads generating enough results to justify their use. Today's consumers want to know what’s in it for them. They want a deal, a discount or something special. These all have implications for increased direct marketing. In addition, with all the technology available to us for managing databases, target markets can be more tightly defined, segregated, sorted, compiled and marketed to, providing a higher return to those employing direct marketing.

Work-At-Home Moms

The ability of at-home moms to earn an income is also being driven by technology such as high-speed Internet access, the increase in home computers and a greater willingness by cost-conscious companies to rely on free agents rather than hiring full-time staff.

The work-at-home moms might work irregular hours, after their husbands come home from work or when their children are in school. They often work as independent contractors; most don't get health benefits.

Networking services for this labor pool are also growing. Home-based working moms are organizing their own business conferences, and many glean business tips from others through Web sites devoted to making money while staying at home with children.

How Couples Run a Home Business Without Running Each Other Down

Combining marriage and business is not an endeavor to be taken lightly. It requires serious consideration and answers to some tough questions. Here are 10 tips for running a successful home-based business with your spouse:

-- Determine if you can work side by side. Ask yourself honestly if you can work patiently alongside your spouse day in and day out, and then go from business partner to life partner after work. If you can't picture yourself making this transition, then you probably should not run a business together.

-- Discuss your goals. Are your visions for the business the same as those of your spouse? Even the strongest marriage will be tested if you are working at cross-purposes.

-- Write a business plan and solicit feedback. Once you detail your vision, show it to a consultant for an objective opinion. There is tremendous value in feedback from an unbiased source.

-- Define each person's role. The roles can be flexible (and will likely have to change over time) but must at least address the basics: who will keep the books, who will do the shipping, etc.

-- Keep the lines of communication open. Don't be critical of one another -- and don't be dismissive or contemptuous of your partner. Confront the challenges of the business, not one another.

-- Be circumspect when talking with clients. Your customers don't need to know that your partner in business is also your partner in life. Confiding in a client about your relationship with your partner can poison your relationship with your customer as well as your marriage.

-- Form a united front. Do not allow employees or customers to pit one of you against the other. Never put a sale or a customer ahead of your spouse.

-- Set firm boundaries and honor them. Set up your office in a space that doesn't disrupt the entire family.

-- Hope for the best, but plan for the worst. Draw up legal agreements detailing how the business will be divided if you split up or if one of you decides to opt out of the business. Also, have a contingency plan in place in the event that your spouse falls short of his or her business obligations.

-- Don't deal with family matters during business hours. Running a small business and being a good partner and parent are each difficult on their own. To do both concurrently will almost ensure that you fail at both. Set specific times outside of business hours for discussing family business.

Article By Allbusiness

Russell Simmons And His New Book 12 Laws to Access the Power in You to Achieve Happiness and Success

Living legend Russell Simmons shares his experiences and beliefs on how to be successful. Blending business insight, universal spiritual truths and an inspired sense of purpose DO YOU crosses the lines of age, race and background with wisdom that will lift you up and motivate you to pursue your vision. Russell Simmons, the original and eternal Hip-Hop Mogul, is one of the most innovative and influential figures in modern American business and culture.

How Do You Look Online?

Today on the Web, there are literally thousands of reviews on small businesses that range from restaurants to health spas, retail stores, and real estate agents. More and more consumers are searching for positive referrals before they use a product or service. To take advantage of this growing trend, you need to get the word out about what your business does and utilize your existing customers.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Make sure you're listed. Get your business listed in major search engines and the online directories, such as maps.google.com, local.yahoo.com, city.ask.com, local.live.com, cityguide.aol.com, and citysearch.com. In most cases, getting your business listed is as simple as filling out a free online form.

• Understand your buzz. Determine what others are saying about your business. Start by going online to a search engine and searching on your business name.

• Spread the word. Create your own buzz by encouraging your customers to go online and write positive reviews about your business and service. Depending on the business, consumers can post reviews on sites like InsiderPages, Yahoo Local, and CitySearch. Don't sit back waiting for others to do it for you. Market yourself through your satisfied customers.

The Entrepreneur: Mentors Are A Must-Have

Article By The Bulletin
One of the biggest influences on my business career has been my mentors, and I have had a handful of them. I can say without question that I wouldn't have achieved a quarter of what I have accomplished without their guidance and support.There are plenty of quality mentors available, and people are usually honored that someone would respect them enough to ask. Mentors are people who:
* Share their experiences
* Listen to problems without solving them, but help their protégés think through problems so they can solve them on their own
* Ask the tough questions
* Point out mistakes
* Rebuke their charges when they are out of line
* Provide guidance on how to methodically nurture a career
* Make introductions to people who bring different skill sets that will improve the protégé
* Rebuild broken psyches

If you are launching a new business, a division of a company, entering the management ranks or aspire to be a leader, a mentor is invaluable. A good mentor can be an incredible boost to your career, and you are never too old to seek out people more experienced than yourself who can teach you the ropes, provide constructive feedback and encouragement.

Yahoo Makes 1 Billion Offer

Article By Fast Company.com

Mark Zuckerberg’s life so far is like a movie script. A super smart kid invents a tech phenomenon while attending an Ivy League school and launches it to rave reviews. Big shots circle his dorm to make his acquaintance; he drops out of college to grow his baby and Change The World As We Know It.
Just three years in, Facebook which started as a networking site for college students has become a go-to tool for 19 million registered users, including employees of government agencies and Fortune 500 companies.
According to comScore Media Metrix, which tracks Web activity, it is now the sixth most-trafficked site in the United States–1% of all Internet time is spent on Facebook. ComScore also rates it the number-one photo-sharing site on the Web, with 6 million pictures uploaded daily. And it is starting to compete with Google and other tech titans as a destination for top young engineering talent in Silicon Valley. Debra Aho Williamson, a senior analyst at eMarketer, says it is on track to bring in $100 million in revenue this year–serious money indeed.
The New York Times and others reported that Yahoo had made a $1 billion offer to buy Facebook and Zuckerberg and his partners had turned it down.
“I’m here to build something for the long term,” Zuckerberg says. “Anything else is a distraction.”

Who Is Dr. Joe Vitale?

Dr. Vitale currently lives in the Hill Country outside of Austin, Texas with his pets and his love, Nerissa. To browse an online catalog of his books and tapes, to read dozens of free articles by him, or to sign up for his popular free e-newsletter, see his main website at http://www.mrfire.com/.

DOUBLECLICK UNVEILS ONLINE MARKETPLACE

Article By Doubleclick Digital Advertising

• The DoubleClick Advertising Exchange service solves both problems by providing advertisers, agencies, publishers and ad networks with a dynamic marketplace where they can buy and sell online display advertising - impression by impression - with greater efficiency, transparency and control.

Video on the Internet has become increasingly sophisticated thanks to advances in technology that have enriched the experience for consumers. Additionally, online video provides advertisers the opportunity to interact with their audiences in a way that is increasingly dynamic—with live, streaming video taking this new media even one step further in advancement. Read More

Strategies: Faith, doubt, effort go a long way

Article By Rhonda Abrams, USA TODAY

1. Great Faith: To build a business — or start anything new — you have to believe in yourself and your ideas. You can envision something that others cannot. You think up a new business, process, design or technology that hasn't existed before.
It is not only the quality of your ideas, but the strength of your faith in your ideas that will help you succeed. Moreover, it is your faith in yourself that attracts others to work with you, invest in your vision and support you as you pursue your dreams.
Great faith is exhilarating. But it is also exhausting. It's impossible to stay on an emotional high, even if things continually go well. And the reality is they will not always go well. When your business encounters the inevitable pitfalls, detours and slowdowns, you will be the one others will look to for reassurance.

Retire Young, Then What?

Article From CNN Money:

You may be ready to quit your day job - but that doesn't mean you want to sit around all day. These places, selected by Money Magazine with Bert Sperling of BestPlaces.net, all offer thriving economies and plenty to do.

Are you on track to retire early? Take the test and find out!

Get The Most Out Of Home Tax Advantage

Being a homeowner means you are entitled to a number of tax breaks.
Article By Gerri Willis, CNN

One of the most important tax advantages of home ownership is the deduction of your mortgage interest. But there are also plenty of tax benefits for people who just bought a home. For example, you should be able to deduct points, or costs, that your lender charged you when you took out your mortgage. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount borrowed.

Oprah Wants To Know : How Happy Are You?

Are you truly happy? If you were presented with a group of people you've never met, could you determine who was really satisfied with their life? A panel of five people took a test to see how happy they really are. See if you can tell who is the happiest, and then take the test yourself!

Happiness is in the mind of the beholder.

Daily Quotes

The Universe does not know whether the vibration that you're offering is because of something you're observing or something you're remembering or something that you are imagining. It just receives the vibration and answers it with things that match it.

The Jar System by T. Harv Ecker

T. Harv Ecker is a famous author, public speaker, and personal development leader. We attended his "Millionaire Mind" seminar, and learned a good deal of information. This one topic of the Jar System was repeated at a different seminar we put on, by Myron Golden, with different names and titles. Both speakers felt it one of the central principles for achieving financial freedom. We do as well, and have begun adopting it into our life.

The Jars

This is a system of jars - but it can be bank accounts, envelopes, or anything else that segregates one amount of money from another. We use different bank accounts, plus a single jar for our loose change, which goes into a bank account.

There are six jars altogether, five of 10% each, and one of 50% each. You can vary the percentages as you need to, but not the categories. All six should stay in place.

Jar 1: FFA - Financial Freedom Account

The most important jar.
10% of your after tax income.
Paid BEFORE anything else, including bills. This is the "pay yourself first" jar.
It is for passive income streams, such as laundromats, parking lots, positive cash flow managed real estate, stocks, and some types of internet businesses. Start out with mutual funds, then stocks, and when you have enough money, buy into passive businesses.
This money can NEVER be spent on anything else.
It must be transfered to the next generation when you die.

Jar 2: GIV - Charity

Amount varies from 5% to 10%, depending on your opinion of charitable giving.
If reduced to 5%, Necessities account increases to 55%.
This is intended for true charities, not Christmas and birthday gifts to friends and family.
Jar 3: EDU - Education

10% of your after tax income.
This is YOUR OWN personal development and career advancement education, not your children's college education. They should have their own account, and work to save for it. Use them to help you in your home based business, and pay them as a contractor for this purpose.

Jar 4: LTSS - Long Term Saving and Spending

10% of your after tax income.
Save for cars, college tuition, room additions, or expensive trips. Don't buy these luxuries on a credit card. Pay with cash that you've saved. You can put this in a money market account, CD's, or other interest-bearing vehicle while you're saving up.

Jar 5: FUN - Fun Account

10% of your after tax income.
This money MUST BE BLOWN COMPLETELY every month. If you have some great plan, you can save up and blow it in a second month, but the idea is to drain it regularly.
Come up with special events, spectacular things, that you'll enjoy and remember.

Jar 6: NEC - Necessity

50% to 55% (depending on your GIV account) of your after tax income.
This is the money you pay your bills with.
Pay your credit cards with checks from different check books, as you identify which items are fun, education, necessity, etc.
If you can't make ends meet with 55% of your after tax income, change your habits! Sell or get rid of whatever is draining you. Simplify. Cut back. Get so you can get by with your necessities paid out of no more than 55% of your after tax income.
Pay off your highest interest rate credit card completely before you pay more than the minimum payment on any other credit cards. Pay off credit cards before other liabilities.
As your income increases, your necessities can increase also, but only in proportion.
These money management principles can turn your life around, and whip them into shape.

I've added to them one more principle, which has to do with TIME.

The FFA (Financial Freedom Account) TIME Principle

"Pay yourself first" with 1/2 HOUR A DAY devoted to actually DOING the things that your IDEAL WORKING SELF would do. (In other words, I don't mean relax for 1/2 hour a day - I mean work at what you love.)
For example, if, in your "heart of hearts" you really want to be an inventor, but you earn a living doing something else, BE that inventor for 1/2 hour a day. DO what that inventor would do.
Also, this doesn't mean "prepare" for that eventuality, by going back to school or something significantly delayed. It means IMMERSING yourself IMMEDIATELY in the REALITY of BEING that eventual person. DO exactly what that person would do.

What Is Podcasting?

Podcasting is a simple way for us to distribute MP3 files and for you to receive them. By subscribing to our podcast using a podcast reader, you'll receive automatic updates of our new shows. Podcasting's initial appeal was to allow individuals to distribute their own "radio shows," but the system quickly became used in a wide variety of other ways, including distribution of school lessons, official and unofficial audio tours of museums, conference meeting alerts and updates, and by police departments to distribute public safety messages.

I've never used podcasts for marketing but I know that all the "BIG" dogs are doing it. They're relatively easy way to get friendly with your prospects.

Want to listen to your favorite radio shows and audio and video programs anytime? The iTunes Store offers tens of thousands of podcasts, from both big names and independent creators.

The Automatic Millionaire by David Bach

Article By David Bach;
What makes you happy at work?
What makes you happy at home?
What makes you happy with your friends and family?
What makes you happy when you're by yourself?
What do you love to do?
What would you do with your life today if you weren't afraid of failure?
What's not working in your life?
What are you currently doing that prevents you from experiencing joy?
What's working in your life?
Who's not working in your life?
Who in your life is subtracting value from and adding misery to it?
Can you fix any of these relationships, or should you let them go from your life?
What relationships are working in your life?
If we were getting together one year from today, what would have to happen for you to be able to tell me that you now have more joy in your life?
What's the single most important thing you've learned about yourself as a result of answering these questions?