New Contraceptive Patch Leads to Concerns About Health

The Ortho Evra Patch released by Ortho McNeil has recently come under fire for the patch’s contribution to serious thrombotic problems such as heart attack and stroke.

After its approval in November 2001, the Ortho Evra Birth Control Patch revolutionized birth control by allowing women to wear a patch directly on their body giving it the nickname the “Birth Control Band-Aid.” Following its release to the public in 2002 over 5 million women have tried the Ortho Evra contraceptive.

Recently, however, the Ortho Evra Patch has been linked to an increased risk of a number of serious thrombotic problems. These problems might include heart attack, stroke, blood clots, myocardial infarction, pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis.

Those problems have been shown to be caused by the constant level of estrogen and progestin absorbed by the body while the patch is in use. Oral contraceptives, as compared with the Ortho Evra Patch, give users 35 micrograms (mcg) of estrogen in a daily dose as opposed to the patch that provides 20 mcg continuously for a week.

A British study completed in 1969 found that the body could not receive estrogen in excess of 50 mcg without the risk of inflicting the user with serious blood clots. All companies selling estrogen with more than 50 mcg had taken their products off the market by 1988.

The problem with the Ortho Evra Patch is that, although it only is a 20 mcg dosage of estrogen, it provides it for a prolonged period of time. The FDA issued a new warning in November of last year, asserting that the Ortho Evra Patch exposes users to 60% more estrogen than those on the oral contraceptive.

Essentially, the patch actually floods the users system with a 56 mcg dosage of estrogen over a longer period of time

There have also been new studies that have been released indicating that progestin, another active ingredient in the Ortho Evra Patch, also poses dangers to health. An anti-throbotic, prostegin inhibits the user’s blood from forming clots. This is the opposite of estrogen, a pro-thrombotic, which causes blood to clot. It was thought that each would cancel the other out. What everyone failed to see was that the prostegin, which was a 3rd generation version of the drug, indicating that the drug actually allows for the creation of more blood clots. This combined with the increased dosage of estrogen puts women at serious risk for many clotting-related issues such as heart attacks and strokes.

It was discovered that the Ortho Evra Patch fails to warn women adequately of the risks imposed on them by the levels estrogen and progestin exposure.

Currently, there are many attorneys that are working on a class action lawsuit against Ortho McNeil, maker of Ortho Evra. You may qualify to join this lawsuit if you:

Have been prescribed the Ortho Evra Patch

Have taken oral contraceptives for an extended period of time prior to using the Ortho Evra Patch
without incident.

Suffered from a serious thrombotic event like heart attack, stroke, pulmonary embolism, blood clot, etc.

Were forced to stay in a hospital for an extended period of time as a result of the thrombotic incident

Were forced to undergo surgery as a result of the thrombotic incident
Have to undergo coagulant therapy for at least 6 months.

Also, if you are a smoker and have had a thrombotic event after using the Ortho Evra Patch, you may still qualify to file a lawsuit. Although there is a warning against smoking while using the Ortho Evra Patch, it does not specify the severity of the consequences, or mention the risks associated with smoking while using the Ortho Evra Patch.

It is still not clear how many women the Ortho Evra Patch has injured. If you have become victim to any medical problems, including heart attack, pulmonary embolism, stroke, or blood clots after taking the Ortho Evra Patch, it is important that you contact an experienced product liability attorney near you.

Why Are Duopolies So Competitive?

A duopoly is a situation in which two firms control nearly all of the market for a product or service.

Duopolies can be surprisingly competitive. If you remember that the price of a product or service is determined solely by the highest losing bid price and the lowest losing ask price, you’ll realize why a duopoly can be so competitive. A large number of inefficient competitors will have almost no affect on prices in the long run unless someone (either a government or a group of idiotic investors) is willing to continually finance unprofitable operations in an unprofitable industry (think airlines).

Of course, there is always the fear of a price fixing scheme in a duopoly. Generally, however, that fear is unfounded. Human nature suggests a price fixing scheme is far more likely to occur in an oligopoly than a duopoly. Humans weight the fear of loss far more heavily than the greed of gain when making calculations about the future. In a duopoly, mistrust increases the fear of loss inherent to any price fixing scheme (namely, the other guy will stab you in the back). In an oligopoly, the diffusion of power and the lack of excess capacity at any one firm makes price fixing very attractive. Price fixing in an oligopoly is a much safer bet than price fixing in a duopoly.

There are, of course, other reasons why a duopoly is very unlikely to result in a price fixing scheme. In addition to a healthy does of fear, there is an often unhealthy does of hate in duopolies. There is always just one scapegoat in a duopoly. Hatred is a personal emotion; if spread over too many objects it tends to wane away. Finally, there’s the simple fact that both competitors in a duopoly are likely really big, really agile, really cutthroat players. The process leading up to a duopoly tends to be a sort of wolfing run, in which two pups are separated from the runts.

Having said all that, price fixing is possible in a duopoly. Some duopolies are not the result of competition but of nationalization and privatization, although this is relatively rare since a nationalized monopoly won’t often result in a lasting duopoly (it will either remain a monopoly once privatized or get crushed by new, private competitors).

Finally, a price fixing scheme always makes more sense in a commodity business. After all, any product differentiation limits the degree to which general demand is applicable to specific competitors’ products. For example, Coke and Pepsi are highly differentiated products, at least when purchased in their specific packaging (physical differences or similarities are immaterial here; it is only the buyer’s belief that matters). I drink Pepsi, and I can assure you (however irrational it sounds) that no drop in the price of Coke would be sufficient to get me to stop buying Pepsi. There is almost no other tangible good about which I could say the same. So, clearly Coke and Pepsi are differentiated products, and there’s very little chance of an effective price fixing scheme between them.

Geoff Gannon writes a daily value investing blog and produces a twice weekly (half hour) value investing podcast at Gannon on Investing.

Is Evolution An Outdated Theory?

The question used to be, “Can evolution be proven?” Today, a more appropriate question is, “Is evolution science?”

(The following is a condensed version of the chapter entitled “Genetics” of the book “Evolution: A Science Breakdown,” available free at EvolutionDead.com.)

To most people, science is seen as “today,” modern, up-to- date, and perhaps even the promise of futuristic wonders. A generation which possesses supersonic jets, Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM’s), space shuttles and sophisticated computers can hardly be called primitive. Or can it?

In the midst of all of this state-of-the-art technology, there seems to be a rather primitive theory which, although steadily losing credibility even among those who have adhered to it for a long time, still has many convinced that it is based on science. This theory has proven one thing beyond a shadow of a doubt: although modern technology is nearing Star Wars sophistication, modern man is still capable of some embarrassingly primitive thinking. I’m talking about the “scientific” theory of evolution. If this theory is not honest misinterpretation, it may very well be the most sophisticated hoax ever perpetrated on the human race.

The scientific concept of the origin of life on earth begins with the premise that life first appeared billions of years ago with the formation of microscopic organisms out of inanimate matter. In the billions of years which followed, small organisms evolved into higher and more complex forms of life, and one species evolved into another.

The question here is not whether this actually happened. To any human being living in the 1990’s, the question should be, is such a scenario even possible? Well, according to what we know today about genetics, the answer is an unequivocal no.

Probably the strongest thing going for evolution at the time of its inception, over a hundred years ago, was that virtually nothing was known about genetics in that era. I am convinced that if the public had had a decent understanding of genetics, and random mutation in particular, before being presented with the theory of evolution, the theory could never have been taken seriously and certainly could never have been accepted as legitimate science.

According to evolutionists, random mutation is purportedly what brought life from the one celled stage to its present complexity. That is, through a series of beneficial accidents of random mutations, they claim, simple organisms evolved over billions of years into new and more complex species.

Keep in mind that for one species to have evolved into another, massive random genetic changes would have to have occurred throughout earth’s history. But here’s how genetics–the most crucial aspect of evolution–does not only not support the theory but actually contradicts it:

Modern man has been acquainted with and acutely affected by random mutations more than any prehistoric creature. Sources of random mutations have been around us for years. What are they? Carcinogenic chemicals. Cosmic rays. Sources of radioactivity such as nuclear weapons, nuclear reactors, nuclear waste, and medical X-rays. And some of these sources of random mutations have been affecting modern man way before he even knew how they wreaked their havoc.

Let’s take radiation, for example. Here’s an idea of what it does:
Exposure of high doses of radiation to limited parts of the body can cause severe tissue damage and eventual necrosis.

Exposure of the entire body to a few hundred “rem” (rem is a unit used for measuring radiation effectiveness) can initially cause nausea. Then, in about a month, the person might begin suffering hemorrhages, anemia, tiredness, weakness, and an increased risk of infection. Although some may survive, others will die as a result of these maladies.

At about 1,000 rem, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may develop within hours of exposure. As these symptoms become worse, they are followed by fever, loss of fluids, severe infections, and finally death.

At about 10,000 rem, the dose to which a worker might be exposed during a nuclear reactor accident, vomiting and diarrhea would occur within an hour, followed by reduced blood pressure, convulsions, and unconsciousness. Death would come within one to three days.

Radiation can also have long-term genetic effects. Studies show that radiation can cause not just one, but a variety of different types of mutations. One of the effects of these
aberrations is cancer. The cancer can show up years or even decades after the organism’s exposure to radiation. If the organism does not show any signs of cancer, there is still the
possibility that cancer may show up in future generations.

Some other disorders or genetic diseases which may show up in later generations as a result of random mutations are: hemophilia, congenital cataract, spontaneous abortions, cystic fibrosis, color-blindness, and muscular dystrophy.

Still other diseases such as diabetes, heart disorders, asthma, and schizophrenia could manifest themselves in later generations as a result of random mutations combined with environmental factors.

This was just a quick glimpse of the severe effects of random changes on biological life. And it seems that the results are almost always the same: deterioration, destruction, and, in many cases, death.

Does this coincide with what evolutionists have been chewing our ears off with for years?

For years we’ve been hearing stories about how biological life underwent billions of years of random genetic changes. We’ve been hearing how by accident some of these changes resulted in beneficial mutations. We’ve been hearing how these beneficial mutations eventually resulted in new and more complex species. Yet when we look at what random genetic changes–or any other random changes, for that matter–actually do to biological life, we find nothing but disease and death. Where are all those beneficial mutations evolutionists have been talking about? Not one patient has ever developed or passed on to future generations better biceps, for example, as a result of radiotherapy. Not one of the thousands of surviving bomb victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has developed a more evolved brain, for example, as a result of exposure to radioactivity. Not one person involved in a nuclear reactor accident has developed a more sophisticated skin, for instance, which is tougher and more durable than average. In virtually every case, random mutations have resulted in havoc and destruction.

Is it possible that modern technology has actually disproven evolution rather than helped it?

Evolutionists in the past have hidden behind the “it took billions of years” routine. Before the nuclear age it may have been necessary to get into a time machine to verify whether, given enough time, random mutations would cause life to evolve. However, with the advent of modern technology’s ability to affect massive random mutations relatively quickly, there is no longer a need to dig into the past to see the contrived fallacies supporting the evolutionary powers of random mutation. The answer is right in front of us. Random mutations result in quite the opposite of what we’ve been led to believe. They result in nothing but illness and fatalities–not improvements. What’s more, the more massive and prolonged the occurrences of these mutations, the greater the havoc and destruction. So what do you suppose would happen to a planet subjected to random mutations for billions of years? Total annihilation!

When you take what we know as fact today about random mutation and try to reconstruct a scenario of those alleged billions of years of earth’s history, instead of the fairy-tale story of evolution, you come up with a picture which more and more resembles a horrible scene out of a “post-nuke” movie:

Even if earth had already been as populated in that alleged period of three and a half billion years ago as it is today, and had since been affected by billions and billions of random mutations, according to what we know today about random mutation, by now life would probably have been virtually wiped out. With random mutation being the highly destructive force that it apparently is, the process which was supposed to have caused life to evolve is precisely what would have caused, in all probability, such genetic havoc that few organisms would have survived the ordeal. Furthermore, under such circumstances, “survival of the fittest” is a totally ludicrous concept. The word “fit” would have described largely those organisms which were less disease ridden than the rest, a far cry from the “better species” of evolution. And of those “fit” survivors, many would have passed on genetic diseases to their offspring. Even if the “fit” had not been wiped out by the random mutations, their offspring still would have stood a chance of being wiped out by hereditary genetic diseases. Then, any disease-free offspring would again be threatened with annihilation when this entire mutation cycle started over again.

Thus, after billions and billions of years of random mutations, even in the unlikely event that some genes mutated in a way that might have ultimately produced some beneficial changes to an organism, an already populated planet would have been reduced to a few diseased life forms, at best. Those few beneficial genes, if they could even have existed, would have been so overwhelmed by the staggeringly high number of diseased genes necessary to produce just a few beneficial accidents, that they could never have borne any fruit. An organism would have been wiped out long before it had an iota of a chance to change or improve. In a sense, earth would have resembled a planet after a nuclear holocaust.

Now, if a planet began with relatively few life forms, as earth allegedly did, how far would life have gotten? I don’t mean how far would evolution have gotten. I mean, how far would those few organisms have gotten before being wiped out by the destructive powers of random mutation? According to what we’ve actually seen random mutations do in modern times, life never would have gotten off the ground, let alone proliferated into highly complex and healthy species. In all likelihood, earth would have turned into a desolate planet long ago.

The insanity of evolution is also apparent in the more aesthetic aspects of man. How could qualities such as artistry, abstract thinking, and appreciation of music have become traits common to an entire species? According to the mechanics (or imagery) of evolution, it would have been a great wonder if such qualities, so meaningless to the survival of purely physical and biological systems, would have evolved in only a minute fraction of a species. Yet, to be present–to one degree or another–in virtually every human being? How? This should never have happened.

The existence of such aesthetic human qualities as emotion, humor, and intellect cannot be explained biologically, no matter how ridiculous you want to get. Why, for example, did nature give us a sense of humor? How did nature even know what a sense of humor was? And how did a sense of humor render humans more “fit to survive?” There are millions of plants and animals without a sense of humor which have obviously survived. There are even humans without a sense of humor who seem to survive. How did such a quality ever evolve?

With a little serious thought, it should be at least somewhat obvious that the scenario proposed by the theory of evolution does not work and certainly could never have occurred. One may even find it puzzling how a concoction such as evolution could ever have been accepted as science in the first place. I think that if evolution can be called science, there should be several other equally qualified scientific topics included in science text books–the physics behind Superman’s X-ray vision, the story of how the power of speech evolved in Mickey Mouse, and the chemical composition of Batman’s Shark Repellent Spray. If we’re going to have fun theories, let’s really make them fun.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Josh Greenberger: A computer consultant for over two decades, the author has developed software for such organizations as NASA’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies, AT&T, Charles Schwab, Bell Laboratories and Chase Manhattan Bank. Since 1984, the author’s literary works have appeared in such periodicals as The New York Post, The Daily News, The Village Voice, The Jewish Press, and others. His articles have ranged from humor to scientific to topical events.

Visit his site ==>shopndrop.com

Get his free book on evolution ==>EvolutionDead.com

Public Relations - Defining Your Organization from the Inside Out

What do your customers say about your company?

Would you let your major competitor control your sales strategy?

Public relations is an inevitable consequence of being in business. Whether you like it or not, your corporate image evolves with every interaction with clients, investors, competitors, and even between your own employees. Thus, managing perceptions of your company is just as important to the bottom line as what you sell and who buys it. Unfortunately, many companies see PR as a reaction to external forces and lose control over market direction as a result.

As with all other corporate activities PR should be treated as a strategic process. Adopting a strategic PR campaign enables a company to not only compete better in the marketplace, but also be successful across market boundaries. Being proactive rather than reactive means establishing long-term goals that are measurable and repeatable and that will ensure longevity and achievement for the company. The setting of objectives, milestones, and metrics guarantees that any and all PR activities are aligned with the company’s objectives and will deliver real results.

By answering the following questions, a strategic process will emerge for PR that will support all of the company’s process and goals.

Who are you?

What do others say about us?

What are the corporate objectives?

How can we control the PR process?

Your Internal Identity

The reality is that good PR begins at the office: possessing a strong sense of corporate identity on all levels is key to having a consistent and credible public image. It is the responsibility of management to articulate to all employees the company’s mission statement and make it actionable. This is a message that will be repeated and demonstrated to external audiences daily through virtually every company interaction. Employees who believe in the mission statement will display the corporate image through their actions. Indecision, multiple, or conflicting messages at any level will have a negative impact and inadvertently kill any momentum that might be achieved.

By making PR a strategic process and not a reaction to external situations, a consistent message will be developed across all corporate segments. Applied correctly, it is a message that will eventually evolve into corporate attitude and culture. Actively defining the image of your company ultimately impacts the credibility obtained from all sectors: employees, investors, customers, competitors, and the general public. Actions speak louder than words and govern how all outsiders will interact with you. Establishing a mission that is accepted and adopted by every segment of your company will aid in verifying your value.

Your External Identity

Initiating a strategic PR campaign allows your company to control its place in the market by defining perceptions across all segments of the value network. It is more than just a clever marketing campaign to support your products - it is an extension of the corporate identity. Think about what others say about you - your customers, competition, shareholders, and the general public. In today’s economy the response needs to be in harmony.

A coordinated PR strategy is critical to delivering a consistent and compelling message across all of your company’s interfaces. The focus is on establishing the company image, and will impact the reception you garner from each of these audiences. Confirming the corporate message needs to practiced with all departments working in unison because conflicting signals will undermine the significance of any future efforts. For example, your marketing team cannot be contradicting what the product team asserts for product capability.

A company’s image is most important for non-customers. What do your competitors say about you? Do they take you seriously? Do your suppliers? How about industry analysts? Do potential employees want to work for your company? These impressions do count and can determine the company’s maneuverability in a dynamic market by determining access to needed resources and strategic options. Strategic PR delivers a consistent, credible message that establishes a foundation for future efforts and results.

Corporate Strategy Alignment

Knowing your company’s short-range and long-term aspirations is vital in setting the tone for any and all PR campaigns. Having a clear direction allows definition of long-term goals and short-term milestones to be set and success to be measured. As with other corporate processes, the PR campaign should be aligned with management’s objectives and reinforce the other corporate efforts. Buy-in is needed from all rows and columns in the company’s organizational table. Through strategic public relations initiatives, the necessary steps will be developed to implement the plan that will support and promote reaching desired results. Ultimately, by transmitting the company’s mission through the attitude and actions of all stakeholders, a common vision will take hold that will ensure success

Increasing Your Perceived Value

Obviously, not all of the aspects of external perception mentioned above can be controlled (i.e. competitors). This is the reason, however, that strategic PR must be implemented as a proactive process. A consistently delivered message, encompassing both words and deeds, across all facets of the corporate identity will mitigate even the worst things that others might say about your company. To ensure success, PR needs to be managed with the same seriousness as sales, product development, and marketing activities. The entire corporate team must believe in the goals (which will be infectious to all who hear the message) and the process (which will generate buy-in at all levels). Most importantly, an executive must be assigned to shape and coordinate the message across the various outlets and channels. Inclusion of an outside PR professional can be a valuable addition, to avoid group-think and maintain objectivity (which underlies credibility).

Conclusions

A strategic PR campaign is an often-neglected component in establishing a company’s market position and chances of success. It is not focused on just the marketing or sales team, but provides them with a strong foundation to leverage, built on the attitude and image of the total organization. Like all other important corporate activities, PR must be implemented as a well-defined process that is proactive instead of reactive, with short- and long-term goals as well as objective metrics. By developing this new mindset, your company can maximize its potential by controlling external perceptions.

Agnes Brousseau has more than 14 years of public relations, sales and marketing experience with emphasis on corporate communications. She joined BlabberMouth PR a Vice President of Client Services from JPMorganChase Bank, a leader in investment banking, financial services, asset and wealth management and private equity. As an Austin, Texas-based Branch Manager, she was responsible for over $7 million in sales and increasing the overall ranking for the branch to a top position. As a direct result of her expert communications strategies and sales planning, the branch assumed the number one position in Texas for portfolio growth.

The native Australian began her career in 1988 as a paramedic with Halifax County EMS /Hollister Volunteer Rescue Squad. She transitioned to public relations, where she headed the public relations initiatives for the organization. She was also an EMS, CPR and First Aid Instructor for the State of North Carolina and was the designated community spokesperson for EMS. In 1996 she received a Dedicated Service Award.

For more information, visit http://www.blabbermouthPR.com.

Best Internet Marketing Solutions Without Overspending

The Internet has made this world an open enterprise. It has become important for companies to further expand their market and their consumer targets. Engaging to Internet Marketing maybe a risk for people who wish to be involved with this type of business.

Ensure that most of your target consumers will surely acquire your product. Consider the best products which will definitely capture their interests and needs. This means that you need to identify specifically who these people are, their location and financial level in the society. Have a marketing knowledge and skill to achieve your goal in the field of Internet marketing.

At the present, you can use varied Internet Marketing Solutions that is being offered by companies which can be your tool for support to your consumers. This solution maybe email marketing, search engine optimization or creating web pages or sites. Since you need to maximize your return profit, you need to choose Internet Marketing Solutions that will help you achieve this. These marketing techniques will not cost much since they are very self-explanatory, thus, learned easily.

Email marketing is a common Internet marketing Solution. This is a cost effective way of communicating and interacting to your consumers, driving them to visit your website and check out your products. It may be in a way of marketing articles, leading them to forums or newsletters. A newsletter has an advantage of expanding your consumers as more and more sign up on it until you can have a bulk list of emails.

Another great Internet marketing solution is through websites. This is a good promotion strategy to employ since you can display all the necessary information for your target consumers. The website should capture their interest and be complete since every transaction, from inquiry to payments may take place. All correspondence that will be done online must be well-facilitated by the features of your website.

Another Internet marketing solution is search engine optimization. This is a type of service for your website that you can make use of in order to raise the number of visitors to your site. Once a consumer uses a search engine, your website will rank high in the list of searches which in return will increase your site’s traffic.

Considering these Internet Marketing Solution, there are different companies offering software products containing one or all of these solutions. It would be a great opportunity to try one of these which will match your financial capability and expected return profit.

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10 Things To Remember When Writing Articles To Market Your Website

Whatever you’re selling, writing articles to distribute freely amongst webmasters is one of the best ways of getting yourself and your service known.

Although I know nothing much about cheese, for example, I’m sure there are all sorts of ways an article could be angled. Cheese comparisons, the way various cheeses are made, where they originate from, recipes for cheese based meals are all ideas that immediately spring to mind. Some subjects will be easier to find angles for, others more difficult, but everything can be written about.

Well written articles give the reader a good impression of your business. I know I’d be much happier buying cheese from somebody I “knew” had the ability to make educated recommendations than somebody who knew nothing. Convince the reader that you’re educated in your subject. That way, when they have to choose between buying from you or your competitor, your name will be the first to spring to mind.

But what constitutes a good article? Let’s see.

* The Number One Rule - DO NOT PLAGIARISE

While it’s ok to use other material as a source of research, it is not ok to take somebody else’s work and simply re-writing it. Not only is it not ok, it’s illegal and, if caught, you can be prosecuted.

Don’t imagine that because the Net is huge, you won’t be caught. Writers have software that can help them locate their material and if they find anything that’s too similar to their own work, they may become suspicious. And quite rightly so, too.

* Use Your Introduction

The average web visitor will spend 7 seconds looking for the information they want. If they don’t find it, they’ll hit the back button.

Make your article leap out and grab them. Have those first sentences pull them in and make the rest of the article scannable. A quick glance down the page should tell them whether the information they want is likely to be there.

Use sub-headings and bullet lists. Keep paragraphs short and use bold text to make important information stand out.

* Strike The Right Balance

It isn’t always easy to know exactly how much to write but in general, try not to be too wordy whilst giving the reader the necessary information along with a smattering of your personality.

A list of dull fact probably won’t be read but neither will an article that drones on about the history of Amsterdam when the reader really wants to know about Edam cheese!

* Write Articles, Not Adverts

People want information. Anything that looks remotely like an advert will make them suspicious. Think of your own reactions. Do you trust advertisers to tell you the truth about their products? I certainly don’t!

Keep your article informative, perhaps humorous, and interesting. If you must mention your company, do it either in the opening paragraph or wait until the concluding paragraph where you might write something like “After 8 years in the cheese making industry, I know only too well just how important the rich, oaken taste is to the truth connoisseur…” This lets the reader know that you really know your cheese and leads them to look for more information, in your author bio, about your business.

Subtlety is the key!

* Keep It Simple!

When you’re an expert on your subject it’s very easy to use jargon that others won’t necessarily understand. Even if they do, they’d still be happier if you’d used an everyday word that they’re comfortable with.

New writers often make the mistake of believing that big words will impress the reader. Who said readers want to be impressed by your vocabulary? It’s your knowledge they’re interested in, and the simpler your language, the easier it is for them to identify the facts and educate themselves.

When you have a choice, go with the simple word.

One word of warning, though. Don’t be repetitive. If you find yourself using the same “little” word over and over, then you need to start looking for alternatives which may mean using some of those fancy words I’ve just said you should drop.

Nothing’s ever cast in stone!

* Proofread and Edit Your Work

If your article isn’t properly written, don’t bother to distribute it. Nobody will take you seriously if you can’t spell or use your apostrophes properly.

While the spell check facility of your word processor is useful, you can’t depend on entirely on it. “Can eye have too deserts next weak, please?” would slip through the checker because the individual words are correctly spelled. That doesn’t make them right, though, does it?

If your spelling and grammar’s a little rusty, use the web’s resources to help polish your skills. My personal recommendations are:

Dictionary.com - http://www.dictionary.com
Guide To Grammar & Writing - http://cctc.commnet.edu/grammar/

When you’ve finished writing, go through your work with a fine toothed comb and find every mistake. Then go through it again. Try to keep the writing tight by getting rid of any unnecessary padding.

Proofreading and editing are just as important and the actual writing and can often take just as long.

* Make Use of Your Resource Box

Free articles are used on the understanding that the author’s resource box is to remain intact. This is a short informative piece at the end of the article that tells the reader more about the author. Look at the bottom of this article for an example. These are sometimes called “author bios”.

Your resource box is where you advertise your service. Something like:

“Camen Bert has 7 years experience in the cheese making industry and has her own home-made for sale at www.somecheesedomain.com. Visit her store buy speciality cheeses as well as find lots more cheese related information.”

Hopefully, if the reader wants to know more, he’ll follow the link to read further articles (some of which you’ll have used exclusively on your site) and while he’s there he’ll have a wander around the shop. If he sees what he likes, BINGO! A new customer!

* Be Patient

It takes time to build up a reputation as an expert but if you syndicate your articles to enough websites, people will eventually start to recognise your name and even think of it (or your company name) whenever they think cheese.

Obviously, cheese has been used as an example in this article - the product could just as easily have been car tyres, wedding dresses or fishing rods. The product isn’t important - how you market it is!

Sharon Jacobsen is a freelance writer living in South Cheshire, England. She’s been writing for as long as she can remember and is happy to help others learn from her own experience. To contact Sharon, or learn more about her work, please visit http://www.sharon-jacobsen.co.uk

Take the next step to a stress free wedding

Brides, prepare for your Wedding Day by having a facial about a
week before. This will give your skin a chance to breathe and
clear of any impurities. You could have the facial at a spa or
salon, or choose to give yourself a home facial, for example,
using cucumber slices or whisked egg white. Steam your face with
water, and than splash with cool water to feel refreshed. There
are many other natural home facials you could do yourself.
Whatever you choose, your skin will be looking great for your
big day. Spa treatments, facials, natural facials, and spa
therapy are great ways to relax before your wedding day.

When choosing make up for your day, for that more natural look
wear a couple of light dustings of powder instead of foundation
which can look heavier. If your eyes and hair are light in color
choose an ivory foundation, golden pink blush, pastel colors for
your eye shadow and pink or red tones for lipstick. This is an
example of how a makeup chart may give advice on coloring and
makeup. Spa treatments, facials, natural facials, and spa
therapy are great ways to relax before your wedding day.

Please see the following resources to find skincare information
and makeup hints.

Choosing the Perfect Landscape Painting

Landscape paintings are a beautiful way to spruce up the decor of your home. Although you can buy cheap reproduced paintings, you may want to consider purchasing an original from an artist to reduce the risk of a friend obtaining the same one. You can even buy one from an undiscovered up-and-coming artist to get a beautiful landscape painting at half the cost.

What types of landscape paintings are usually available?

Landscape paintings come in many styles. You can get on that has a view of the rolling hills in a foreign country, you can get one of the sunset at a beach, you could get one of snow topped mountains, or one of your very own yard. This last idea is the most new and exciting in landscape paintings. It is a way to capture the essence and personality of you and your yard forever. It could be passed down to your children and theirs to become a family heirloom.

How much does a good landscape painting usually cost?
The cost of a landscape painting depends strictly on certain factors. For instance, if you want a famous landscape painting, that would logically cost more than one produced by a new artist. Size is also a factor. If you want a small painting to hang in your bathroom it is going to be a great deal less expensive than a painting that will cover most of your living room wall.

What if I’m on a budget?

If you are on a budget you still have the option of purchasing a great reproduced landscape painting. Although it won’t be on canvas, it will still bring just as much beauty and splendor into your home. Even the most famous landscape paintings are reproduced at a relatively cheap cost, so you have your pick of the litter!

If you are having trouble thinking of a new scenery to purchase, you can always go to a website such as www.thelandscapingpro.com to discover new types of landscaping ideas to seek out for your newest landscape paintings.

David Dunlap is the founder and owner of The Landscaping Pro, an online resource guide of every landscaping project. For more information, send an email to david@thelandscapingpro.com

Caution Required

Being active users of the internet, we all come across so many tempting
business offers. Most of us would love to be able to quit our mundane job
that takes all of our time and energy. Most of us think “I know there is a
way to make money on the computer, and some day I will sit down and figure
it out.”

Every time an advertisement or website catches your interest, you can not
help but wonder if it could actually work, and then you could work from home
and spend more time with your family. There is nothing wrong with that!
Sometimes change is good, or sometimes you just have to take that chance.
But since there is so much riding on any decision you may make, especially
money, shouldn’t you step back and take a second look?

First off, and very important, never ever take an ad for what it says.
There are no guarantees that advertisers tell the truth. They want to sell
to you, and they will tell you whatever it is that you want to hear to get
you interested. Now, there are many legitimate businesses that will not
steer you wrong. But, please do not take them for face value. Don’t jump in
with both feet without taking the time to investigate.

I have always felt that MarketingTrendz.com has done a good job in trying to
educate our readers as far as dealings on the internet. But the fact is,
most of the people I hear from have all learned the hard way about the
offers they find on the internet. My thinking in sitting down to write this
warning to you is- Do you need to burn your hand to know that fire is hot?
Can we not learn from other real experiences and save ourselves from a lot
of trouble?

There are many ways to verify that a person or business is what they claim
to be and believe me (and everyone who has gone through this) it is worth
the extra time and research to protect yourself. Below are some web
addresses that I personally find useful and have book marked for my easy
access.

- Check the website registration.
http://www.networksolutions.com/cgi-bin/whois/whois
Do this with all domains you are interested in buying from. Of course, they
need their OWN domain for this to work.

- Verify names, addresses and phone numbers.
http://www.infospace.com/
Not everyone comes up in these directories, but it only takes a few seconds
and can make you feel more sure.

- Look for a membership to an association for protecting consumers.
http://www.scaminator.com/cobra/directory.htm
There are solid guidelines that members must follow. Remember: Also look
for their listing in the association’s directory. That way you know they
haven’t just stolen a graphic and are pretending to be a member.

- Stay up-to-date about circulating scams.
http://www.scaminator.com
http://www.scamwatch.com/scams/sacm001.html
There are many other places to read about scams. Look around, you might save
yourself a lot of problems.

Other things you should do:

- Contact the actual people of any testimonies that are given. This can
shed a lot of light on the business in question.

- Check out the company at your local Better Business Bureau and Attorney
Generals office in your area.

- Make sure all phone numbers to the company are working numbers. Call them
or check with the local phone companies and directories to see who the phone
number is listed to.

- Look for a street address for sending payments. Never send to a PO Box.
If they refuse to give the street address to you, that is a good indication
that there is something not quite right.

These are just a few things you need to get in a habit of doing. Even if it
seems like a huge pain, it is the best action to take for yourself. No one
else will be looking out for you.
Your Caution is Required.

About the Author

Written by Sara Hardy
Owner of MarketingTrendz, and Publisher of
The OnLine Exchange Ezine.
To subscribe to her ezine goto:
http://www.online-exchange.com
This will automatically make you a member of The Profit Zone,
a FREE Members Only Club that gives you unlimited access
to FREE marketing tools, ebooks, resources and more!

Linkihg - This is it!

Linking - This Is It ! Well I find it time to speak again about
linking as I have a couple of times in the past two years. I
think I have gone the cycle and I think I have arrived. What do
we want linking to do for us and what can linking actually do
for us? Well we want it to get us traffic. Most of us think it
can get us traffic two ways. One way we hope to get traffic is
by making the search engines think we are good because of all
the links to us. We are hoping that will rank us higher in those
search engines. All the SEO companies want to help us be on the
FIRST PAGE of Google. Well with the billions of websites now and
all the keywords maxed out - can we all be on the first or
second page? Of course not! So, how much does it really matter
where you rank in Google? Let me give you an example provided by
David Notestine from Zeus link management programming. He will
provide server logs to back up stats that show: - they get
6000000 hits per month for Zeus - about 20 of those hits are
from search engines - about 3 percent result from paid adwords
(not profitable he says) - the remainder are from hits from
links on other websites What should we really expect from our
linking strategy. Let’s get hits from links on other sites.
Forget that other stuff about pleasing the Google Gods! So why
don’t we all help each other with good linking practices? If you
are going to link to me so that others can find my site, why in
the hell don’t you make it easy for those visitors to go from
your home page to your link index? WHERE IS THE DAM Text to
click on for links? If I can’t find it to verify my link, then I
know damn well that your site visitors won’t find it or even
look for it if it’s that hard to find. As you can see, this
really irks me. Secondly, for your link site to be useful to me,
visitors need to find me or my product in that huge directory
that we all are trying to develop. The best way to make it easy
for searchers to find a link to a website or product is with a
“search utility” installed and kept current on the page of that
big link directory. Visitors can then search for a product, name
or contact and get easy and immediate results. The difference we
see here is that a few little things like this will make linking
work the way it should for ALL of us and not for just ten or
twenty websites!