My 2¢ Worth

 have an addiction. It's not as dangerous nor as costly as alcoholism or drug addiction. But it's just as powerful.

any is the time friends have said, "Ed, why don't you seek help for your problem? You need to get a life!

he problem specifically is I am on the Internet 24/7. Withdrawal symptoms usually begin within fours hours without the Internet. Sure, Web design is my business, so it stands to reason that the Internet would be important to me. But you would certainly think I could live four hours without going into panic mode!

aybe I'll start a support group called Weboholics Anonymous. Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Ed. I'm a Weboholic...

Feature Article

Short Term Vs Long Term Marketing Efforts

by: Sharon Housley NotePage, Inc.

In order to create consistent sales cycles and a positive growth trend businesses usually engage in both short and long term marketing efforts.

Short-term marketing efforts tend to cause sudden sales spikes which rarely last. These sharp sales increases are usually the result of a targeted marketing campaign or time limited offer. While short-term marketing produces sales, long-term marketing efforts must be mixed in to sustain sales.

Short Term Online Marketing:

Mentions Positive product mentions in forums, newsgroups or within trade organizations can result in a traffic or sales surge. Product endorsements and newsgroup conversations are difficult for marketers to control and time, so while product mentions in forums are short-term marketing, they lack the organized exposure necessary to maintain sales momentum.

Discounts Marketing campaigns that involve coupons, discounts or time-limited offers can also generate product interest. It is important to use promotional offers sparingly or long-term sales could be jeopardized by having customers "wait" for the next offer to purchase.

PPC / Advertising The easiest and fastest way to generate product interest is, of course, to pay for it. Pay-per-click campaigns are known to drive significant targeted traffic. Sadly, when the campaign funding ends, the traffic and sales generally do, too. Regardless, it is important for marketers to realize that with short-term marketing, sellers can often control sales and infuse cash into a fledgling product, service or business.

Short-term marketing is also useful for test-marketing new products or split-testing to find the appropriate price point. With pay-per-click advertising marketers can control the ebb and flow of site visitors and make a determination about what banners, keywords, text copy and graphics convert at the highest rate. The lessons learned in short-term marketing can then be implemented in the long-term marketing strategy. Marketers can determine the effectiveness of sales copy and landing pages, implementing them in a long range of marketing activities.

Long Term Online Marketing:

Search Engine Optimization Undoubtedly the most time consuming, yet important aspect of long-term marketing involves preparing and optimizing a website for search engines. Currently the majority of Internet surfers seeking a product or information look to search engines. Most Internet surfers use keywords to search for the product, service or information that they are looking for. Knowing your audience and optimizing a site for keywords and phrases that potential consumers would use in their search for a product or service is critical to being found on the Internet.

Search engine optimization pays long-term dividends, but is an ongoing process, as the search engines themselves are constantly evolving their algorithms. The goal of search engines is to provide web surfers the best sites suited to the web surfers' search terms.

Often, changes implemented will not be "seen" by search engines for several months. It is important to follow search engine guidelines and be patient.

Fresh Content & Communication A stream of fresh content like newsletters, tips or blog posts will result in long-term quality traffic. Fresh content that is posted and updated on a regular basis will encourage visitors to return. Archived content will build a base for a variety of related keywords.

Syndicated Articles Related industry articles will result in genuine interest from a very targeted audience. Providing related content articles that are available for syndication will result in links back from websites that contain similar content. Over time, articles can define a company's expertise on a subject area. Ultimately, syndicated articles can build confidence with prospective customers and a level of trust.

When designing a marketing campaign, consider threading long-term and short-term marketing efforts so that sales are stable and consistent. By implementing a marketing plan that involves both short and long-term efforts, sales success can be achieved.

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Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll www.feedforall.com software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for NotePage www.notepage.net a wireless text messaging software company.

Kill JavaScript Errors

Have you ever put some JavaScript on your web page just to have an error message displayed in your browser's status bar, even though the JavaScript works? This happens occasionally and nobody knows why. Well, I'm going to show you how to keep your JavaScript and get rid of the error message so your visitors won't think you're a dork.

Simply paste the following code into the <head> of your document.

<script language="JavaScript"> <!-- Hide me from lame browsers //create a function that will return true function killErrors() { return true; } //use the onError event handler as a property and //make it equal to the KillErrors function which returns true window.onerror = killErrors; // --> </script>

* Get these syndicated tip feeds for your web site, free. *

Second Article

How to select a printer

by: Carla Inchiostrona FTP Printer

It is a daunting task to choose a printer without deciding what type you really require. You have to choose between an ink jet and a laser printer. After that you have to decide on the printer size essential for the tasks you require it to accomplish. You have to consider factors such as printer type, size, running costs and price and service availability.

There are mainly two types of printers in the market. The laser printers and inkjet printers are the only two choices available in the market. In the laser printer a laser beam is used to print the picture on the drum which is then transferred on to the paper. In the inkjet printer, however, ink is sprayed through tiny jets on to the page forming the image on the page. The difference between the two types of printers is the basic difference in the technology involved in them.

As far as utility is concerned inkjet printers can do only small jobs whereas laser printers can take heavy loads of work. Inkjet printers can do a variety of jobs such as printing anything from spreadsheets to brochures to word documents to photos. They are ideal for printing business and professional documents that are not so expensive, on a small quantity. These printers are made to take small print volumes. Hence, they are not costly and can be easily accommodated in every budget.

In terms of size ink jet printers are usually small and lightweight and some come with carry cases for portability. This makes them ideal partners for laptops and PDAs and any other devices that require printing facilities.

But, in case your requirement is for more advanced print jobs then you should think of buying a laser printer. Laser printers are made to take voluminous workloads and print at a much faster speed. And the quality of the print is far superior to that of the inkjet printer. That is why not only the laser printers cost more but even the consumables of the laser printer are more expensive. Laser printers are portable and can be carried from one place to another. Sometimes they come with their own hard cover carry cases for convenience in shifting them around.

If you own a laptop, you would be well advised to consider purchasing an all in one solution. These systems have the advantage of being lightweight, small and would answer all your printing, scanning and photocopying needs. That is, all in one device. These low cost all in one systems are usually ink jet printers, hence their running costs is quite low as compared to the laser printers. They usually come with their own hard carry cases, so you could carry them wherever you travel. Keeping these factors in mind, you could surely find a printer suitable for yourself.

**************

Carla Inchiostrona is the owner and operator of FTP Printer, a leading Internet directory for printer information. For more printer information and resources, please stop by: www.ftpprinter.com

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