Downsizing, rightsizing, forced retirement, layoffs, firings, outsourcing, and being made redundant.

All could mean the same thing to you: financial catastrophe.

No, you may not have to declare bankruptcy or move back in with your parents, but losing your job could put a big dent in your financial goals and even set you back several years. You may need to live on your savings or liquidate some of your investments.

If you have no savings or investments you may have to rely on credit cards and could rack up significant credit card debt. Then when you find a new job, your expenses may have increased because of the additional credit card payments.

And the job you eventually find may not pay as much as the one you lost. So you are now forced to live on less while your expenses have either continued at the same level or even gone up.

Studies show that the average worker will have six career changes in his or her lifetime. Not just job changes, but career changes.

So how can you prepare for your own financial “downtime”?

An emergency fund.

An emergency fund is really just savings. But it is not savings for a particular item or even an investment for your future or your retirement. It is your “rainy-day” fund. But unlike insurance where once you pay your premium, the money is out of your hands, your emergency fund is yours to keep.

So how much do you need? How can you build your emergency fund? And where should you keep the money?

The easiest way to figure out how large your emergency fund should be is to take your current income and multiply it by the number of months you could be out of work. If you make $3,000 each month and you want to be prepared for a 6 month “vacation”, you will need $18,000.

But obviously saving $18,000 will take some time. How quickly you want to build your emergency fund depends on how concerned you may be about your current and future employment prospects.

Saving $100 each month will take you 180 months or 15 years. Saving more each month means you will be protected sooner. Also consider that during the next 15 years your income may increase and your expenses usually rise to match your income.

Also consider inflation. (If you own your home, your house payment may not rise. If you are renting, your rent probably will.) The cost of food, utilities and taxes also rise over the years. At a 3% inflation rate after 15 years your $18,000 will only buy $11,400 worth of goods.

A good rule of thumb for saving is to try to save enough each year to supply you with one month’s income. This means you are saving 1/12 or 8.3% of your monthly income.

This will allow you to build your emergency fund by one month every year. After only six years you will have a six-month supply of emergency cash. Then you can continue to extend your “coverage-period” or you can divert the monthly payment into other savings or investments.

Most people find that “billing” themselves for savings and investments is a good way to put your savings on auto-pilot. If an amount is taken automatically from your bank account each month, it is easier to handle than if you wait until the end of the month and try to save from what you have left over. (How often do you have anything left over?)

So where is the best place to keep your emergency fund? Probably not a place where you can have easy access to it - too tempting. Definitely not as cash in the cookie jar - too unsafe (and no interest). And probably not in 5 year CDs - too restrictive. You may want to avoid CDs altogether so that you are not charged an early withdrawal penalty when you can least afford it.

Savings accounts are OK, but usually pay very little interest. If a savings account is your choice, open one at a bank that you don’t regularly use. Also don’t get a checking account to avoid the temptation to spend “just a little” bit here and there.

Or look for a money market account that pays a reasonable interest rate. You may want to consider a money market account that only invests in tax-free securities. This way you won’t have to worry about paying taxes on your interest.

Then set up an auto-withdrawal from your regular checking account or direct deposit amount from your pay check right into this new account. Adjust your budget to accommodate having less money each month and forget about it.

You can also give your emergency fund a boost now and then by putting “windfall” money into to it. You know “free-money”; birthday gifts, inheritances, insurance settlements, escrow overages, rebates, tax refunds, etc.

Your emergency fund becomes your own financial insurance policy. And if you never use it you will have that much more money to play with when you retire. Or even retire early with the extra money you have saved.

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© Simple Joe, Inc.
David Berky is president of Simple Joe, Inc. a marketing company that sells simple software under the brand name of Simple Joe. One of Simple Joe’s best selling products is Simple Joe’s Money Tools - a collection of 14 personal finance and investment calculators. This article may be freely distributed so long as the copyright, author’s information and an active link (where possible) are included.

By Casey Sung, Grace Corporate Park LLCDo you start your day at the workplace at full steam? When you get to your workplace do you have a dozen phone calls and emails to reply to? If you do, how many of those correspondences are business related that generate revenue? How many are new sales leads? Are most of your daily correspondences sales related or are they personal in nature? In other words, how much of your time is spent on critical core business activities?

Before I go on, let me tell you about my self and where I’m coming from that I can talk about this subject. I own and operate an executive office suite. My company rents office spaces and private workspaces (desks).  We also provide virtual office services to clients ranging from individual professionals to multi-billion dollar companies and everyone in between. I get to talk to a lot of people in a lot of different business. This broad exposure to many businesses let me see how they operate and see what their daily activities are like. From this, I came to realize that every business has the same core activities that are critically important but not everyone pays attention to those activities.

Every business, regardless of the industry and profession, has common core activities that are critical to the success of the business.  The core activities are Product Development, Marketing, Sales, Closing, Delivery and Follow up (repeat sales).  Whether you are a large corporation, a consulting professional or a sole proprietor selling widgets, you must maintain ongoing effort on all of these activities to ensure your business growth. If you are a startup company, you may be initially focused on product development and marketing. But eventually, you have to sell it.

Product Development

Whether you have widgets to sell or intangible services to sell, if you are selling some thing, you have a product. Successful businesses continuously spend time and energy improving their products. As a business owner and professional, how much time do you spend improving your product? For example, we have several products / services in my executive office suite business. We provide functional office spaces and workspaces and manage everything related to running an office for our clients. This includes making sure that internet connection and telephone services are working properly, maintaining appropriate level of staffing such as receptionists and cleaning crews, making sure that the copier, printer and fax machines are serviced and that we have enough toners and papers for the machines. The list goes on and on. As part of my product development process, I’m always looking for product improvement ideas. I ask my self, what else can I do to make my serviced office space a better place for my customers to conduct their business? I try to continuously improve my product to ensure that my products are up to date. For example, when I realized that many businesses and people need part-time office space with a permanent business address, we started our virtual office service.

Marketing and Advertisement

If you have the best widgets in the world to sell, would you keep it a secret?  That is effectively what you are doing if you are not actively engaged in regular marketing activity - you are effectively keeping your product a secret from your potential buyers.  If your potential customers don’t know about your product, how would they buy it from you?  Marketing is a critical activity for your business.  You must get the word out to your potential customers.   There are so many creative and cost effective marketing ideas out there.  Just search for the term “Marketing Ideas” on Google or Yahoo and you will get a long list of websites and free articles.  Taking my Executive Office Suite business as an example, I conduct a daily ritual of marketing activities both online and offline.  I advertise to newspapers and online classifieds every day.  There are many free classifieds websites on the internet and I try to take advantage of it as much as I possibly can.  Why not?  It’s free.  When I advertise, I try to be as direct as possible so that my readers will know exactly what they are getting when they call.  I avoid any vagueness so that when a person responds to my ad, there’s no mistake about what they are responding to.

For example, my ads may read like this: NYC Virtual Office - 212 phone, voicemail, prestigious business address, desk space use, conference room use included. For more information call 212-300-2000 or visit our website http://www.corporatepark.net. There’s no mistaking that the ad is for virtual office space. If the reader calls me, that person is a qualified lead looking for a virtual office space - just the person I wanted to hear from.

Selling your product

If you’ve done a good job of marketing your product, you should receive a constant stream of sales leads. But the process doesn’t stop there. You now have to sell your product to your potential customer – your qualified lead. Selling involves calling and talking to people to find out if your product is a right fit. A word about selling - selling is not trying to make your prospect buy. Selling is explaining your product so that the prospect can decide if your product is right for them. If you’re shy about talking to people, overcome your shyness fast.  It’s amazing how often a sales lead is not pursued because the sales person has a good excuse why they shouldn’t follow up on a lead.  My personal favorite excuse for not calling on a sales lead is “I sent an email.  They’ll call me if they are interested in my virtual office service.” An email message is a great way to keep in touch with people and send lengthy information. However, it is not a replacement for a live phone conversation.  You must get on that phone and make the call if you want to sell.    In my sales process, I’ve established a simple rule for may self – when I get a qualified lead about my virtual office services , I send an email containing details of my product.  It’s a great way to communicate the specifications of my product but I don’t consider that email to be an act of selling.  It’s just a product brochure.  It’s not a sales effort.  To sell, I follow up on the email with a phone call.  Think about the last time you bought something.  Did you want to talk to someone before you bought it?  You have to get on the phone and talk to your prospect if you want to have a successful sale.

Closing on your sale

Informing a prospect about the features and benefits of your product is NOT the same thing as asking them to buy the product.  You eventually have to ask your prospect to buy.  A sales lead that keeps on leading but not buying is not a lead at all.  At some point you have to close the deal by either selling or dropping the lead.  Being in the executive office suite business, I get many calls from sales people who want to sell me widgets.  The widget may be a phone service, or internet connection or paper supplies or copier toners.  An experienced sales person will spend the necessary time to explain why their widget is better and answer any questions I might have.  But eventually sales person will ask me to buy his or her widget and move on I tell them that I am not in the market for a widget.  An inexperienced sales person however will just keep on telling me more about product features hoping that they will stumble onto some magic words that will cause me to buy.  They are afraid of closing the sales process because I might say no.  But they need to realize that the magic words are “Will you buy my widget?” and if my answer is no, just move on to the next lead.  But they don’t ask and when I say that I am not interested in the widget, they keep repeating how great their widget is.   In my business, my prospects rarely make decisions on the spot after seeing the features and benefits of my virtual office service.  They need time to think things over and see other offerings before making a decision.  They are trying to make an informed decision.  Knowing this, I ask when we can talk again to see whether our virtual office service will work for the prospect.  When I call them at the agreed on time, I should know whether I should prepare a service agreement or move the lead to my “follow up in the future” folder.  I try to help my prospects to objectively sort out their options without being biased.  What ever their decision is, I should have closure on my sales lead and move on to my next qualified lead.  There’s nothing worse than pushing people to make decisions when they are not ready.

Deliver your product as promised

Once the sale is made, make sure the product is delivered as promised and on time. Buyers often get “buyer’s remorse”.  Buyer’s remorse is a period of time when buyers question the purchase for what ever reason.  They may feel that they bought the wrong widget or paid too much for the widget or what ever else a buyer’s thought process takes them.  During this period, if they experience any snags in product delivery, the “buyer’s remorse” factor will become stronger.  The snag could be anything, late delivery, defective product, or not what the buyer ordered.  The result could be a bad impression or worse, a refund.  Don’t let this happen to you after putting in so much effort in your sales process.  Deliver the product on time, on budget and in the quality and specification promised.  In my business, this is even more critical since I deal with people’s business identity and operation.  If I don’t have the office space ready on time it’s more than an inconvenience for my client.  They can’t get their work done.  So I do everything I can to make sure that every aspect of their virtual office is ready on-time.  I make sure that the telephone service is turned up correctly, the telephone number and their business address have been sent to them along with instructions on how to use the services, the internet connection is working properly, the workspace is cleaned, company sign is posted and spelled correctly, etc.  When I deliver my product I want my customers to know that they have made the right choice in selecting our virtual office service.  I try to not to leave anything to chance.

Follow up service

Delivering your product is not the end.  Even after your product has been delivered and you have been paid, your product is under constant evaluation until the buyer becomes comfortable with it.  After a few days or weeks of delivery (whichever is appropriate your product), give your new customer a call to see if they are still happy with your product.  If they are not, offer to fix the problem right away.  This kind of willingness to go the extra mile will leave a long lasting impression that you are not just about taking their money and moving on.  Your customers will appreciate the fact that you care even after you have been paid.  It might even lead to additional sales in the future or a referral to a new qualified lead.   In my executive office suites business following up on a sale is unavoidable since my product is my office suite space where I also work out of.  I see my customers every day.  I always leave my door open so that my customers can walk in a talk to me about anything.  If something is wrong I want to know about it right away so I can fix it.

Conclusion

Running a business involves many tasks and activities. It is easy to fall in the trap of the daily grind and neglect what’s really important for your business. No matter how busy you are, don’t neglect your product development, marketing, sales, closing, delivery and customer service. These are critical activities for your business. Take a step back and look at your daily routine. How much time have you spent lately on the critical things that matter for your business? Neglecting even one of these activities can have a crippling effect on your business. Incorporate them in to your daily routines and see how fast your business grows.

About the Author:
Casey Sung (csung@corporatepark.net) is a Principal of Grace Corporate Park LLC, an Executive Office Suite & Virtual Office services company in New York City. Casey’s main responsibility is Business Development including Sales and Marketing.

Online incorporation services tout easy, fast, and cheap online incorporation and limited liability company (LLC) formation services. Examples include LegalZoom.com, MyCorporation.com, and IncorporateTime.com. Storefront and virtual paralegal services such as We the People and those found in the legal services section of your local craigslist also offer similar services. Their web sites and radio and TV sales pitches indicate that forming a corporation or LLC is as quick, easy, and inexpensive as filling out an online questionnaire and paying a fee of $100-150 for the completion of the paperwork and the filing of the documents with the secretary of state. This article reviews the advantages and disadvantages of these services overall - for specific reviews of a particular provider, you should look elsewhere (and preferably to those with direct experience using the service, as well as at least a year of business operations thereafter).

No legal advice:

In the fine print, many document preparation services state they are not law firms, cannot provide legal advice, and recommend that you consult an attorney for legal advice. Here’s a word for word example from one web site: “This site is not a substitute for legal counsel…. You should consult legal counsel to determine applicable law for your situation.” And from another: “[Our document preparation service] is not a substitute for an attorney or law firm.” Only licensed attorneys can practice law and provide legal advice to clients, so these firms are wisely protecting themselves by making it clear that they are not in the business of providing legal advice; they are in the business of preparing whatever forms or filing you tell them to. Thus, the computer programmer’s old adage, Garbage In, Garbage Out, applies. If you tell them to form a Nevada LLC, when you really need a California S corporation, they will in all likelihood produce a technically sufficient LLC, but it won’t meet your actual business legal needs. Likewise, if you choose not to elect S-corporation status, and end up paying higher taxes as a C-corporation, this is not their fault; they are counting on you to know what you need, or to have consulted a lawyer and/or tax accountant before coming to them.

Many incorporation services would apparently seem to remedy this situation with lengthy FAQs and learning centers, but, frankly, a few minutes or even a few hours of research is not a substitute for a lawyer’s college degree, three years of law school, and additional on-the-job training and annual continuing legal education. Any paralegal or incorporation service whose employees do provide legal advice is engaged in the unethical practice of law without a license, a crime in most jurisdictions, and their legal advice, for more reasons than one, should be taken with a grain of salt. Better yet, terminate your relationship with any such person immediately.

Other Legal Issues:

Attorneys will focus not just on forming an entity you have ordered them to, but in taking a step back, assessing your overall business plan and goals, and making sure the legal structure takes into account your particular circumstances, rather than assuming you and your business are exactly the same as the next guy and his business. They will also at least point out, and suggest options for best addressing, legal issues that arise tangentially to forming a corporation or LLC. Such issues that the average incorporation service customer may be blissfully unaware of include securities laws compliance, promissory notes, trademark and service mark issues, and employee and independent contractor law. (Tax issues are also inherent in incorporating, so working with a CPA or accountant is something I always recommend to clients before and after incorporating.) Agreements typical of new corporations or existing business which are growing and have decided to incorporate include employment agreements, independent contractor agreements, supplier agreements, web site terms of use and privacy policies, and shareholder buy-sell agreements. All of these should be customized to your needs, not fill in the blank forms, just as corporate bylaws and LLC operating agreements should be customized, not one size fits all.

Lack of Follow-Through:

A good business attorney will also assist you in following through in the formation of your corporation or LLC. By this I mean making sure the meeting minutes are appropriately customized to your needs and the corp. or LLC’s formation documents are actually completed, signed, shares are actually issued to shareholders, and appropriate federal, state, and local filings are made. After having reviewed numerous incorporation service companies, usually a year or more later after problems have arisen, but also often times in the course of transactions such as sale of the business or part of it to a new shareholder, member, or partner, I have yet to see a company that was correctly set up. I can say the same of do-it-yourself incorporations, where the owner(s) didn’t hire anyone and did it themselves. In most cases, the articles of incorporation (for LLCs, the articles of organization) have been completed and filed in an adequate, if not optimal, manner, and the bylaws or operating agreement is likewise present. However, such documents are generally never executed - they just sit on the shelf in a binder, as they have since they were mailed out by the incorporation service, and thus without any force or effect whatsoever. Frequently, they contain numerous blanks that the owner was supposed to fill in, but didn’t because they didn’t know how to, or just never got around to it.

These defects are not the fault of the incorporation service per se, but they are indicative of the different level of service provided by such companies, in comparison to an attorney. Such lack of completion can and does lead to problem later, however, because the company’s limited liability status and good standing with the state can be jeopardized by missing or incomplete corporate documents, or by failure to create annual minuets and file initial and annual state level filings. Difficulties also occur when disputes among partners or co-owners later arise, and upon review of the bylaws or operating agreement, the parties find that the documents were never signed (and thus may not control), that they lack buyout procedures, or that they are vague or silent on how to handle disputes. It goes without saying that most of these disputes are much more costly to resolve later, once the proverbial horse of improper documentation and agreements has left the barn.

Hidden fees:

The actual fees charged by incorporation services often ends up being as much as two or three times higher as they low rates they advertise, once such “add-ons” (which in many cases are needed to achieve your legal aims) as name reservations, corporate minute books, expedited or rush service, EIN numbers, S-corp election, first meeting minutes, and initial statement of information, sales tax reseller’s permit, business license, or other state or federal filings are made. Some services offer rates so low, they do not account for the minimum level of costs that must be expended to properly set up a company! In many but not all instances, law firms offering flat fee incorporations do not have hidden fees.
In any case, incorporation service prices cannot and do not include legal advice on the incorporation process or related legal issues, hand-holding, referrals to other professionals such as accountants and insurance agents, or follow-through to ensure that the business entity is actually implemented correctly. Upon seeing all the work that goes into an incorporation or LLC organization, the most common remark from my clients is not, ‘That was easy; I should have used an incorporation service, saved your legal fees, and done it myself.’ Rather, it is, ‘I can’t believe some people try to do all this themselves!’ You should keep in mind the difference in the level or services provided when evaluating price, be on the lookout for hidden or additional fees beyond the base rate, and realize that if you are choose to select an attorney over an incorporation service, you are paying not only for that attorney’s time and end work product, but also his education, experience, skill, and legal advice and counsel for your business.

Relationship with a lawyer:

In deciding to go it alone, you should keep in mind that sooner or later, if your business grows, you will need a business attorney. It may be more prudent to establish that relationship now via an incorporation and set yourself up for future growth and success, rather than wait until a legal emergency arises, only to find you don’t know any attorneys, or that the attorney you do retain finds that there are numerous steps you could have taken in the past to avoid current fees, taxes, problems, and disputes.

The fact that these problems don’t become apparent until months or years after the company’s formation (especially if professionals such as attorneys and accountants are never hired and thereby given the opportunity to review the company and spot issues) means that many customers of incorporation services are initially well pleased with the service they have received. If you don’t know what you didn’t get, you have no reason to be unhappy about; instead focusing on the money saved now.

In my experience, rarely does money saved on legal services now pay off in long-term savings. More often, it’s the old, pay now, or pay (more) later situation. Some errors, such as choice of entity decisions that were not tax favorable, cannot be undone, they can only be changed going forward. Likewise, after a shareholder or partnership dispute has arisen, it’s usually too late for proper buy-sell provisions in the bylaws or operating agreement, a separate buy sell agreement, or an arbitration clause. If you don’t have enough money to afford an attorney at the outset, perhaps you and your partners should consider committing additional funds to the enterprise, utilizing loans or credit cards to access additional funds, or wait until more financing can be accumulated or obtained, before proceeding in a less than optimal way. Most entrepreneurs are convinced of the future growth and profit prospects of their companies; thus, it is surprising they often don’t follow in the footsteps of other successful enterprises and allocate appropriate funds for legal services. The adage, “Failing to plan is planning to fail” applies here.

Volume business:

Incorporating services are sometimes called incorporation mills. By their very nature, they are in a volume business; they cannot charge low prices and provide personalized attention or service. In general, they make their profits by selling a non-customized or a minimally customized product over and over to as many customers as possible. Law firms, on the other hand, provide customized legal advice and services to each client on an individual basis. Law firms can handle unusual capital, profit, loss, or other allocation issues that fully and correctly utilize corporations and LLCs, and advise when such use is appropriate and when it is not. Incorporation mills will, for the most part, sell you whatever you ask for; it’s your responsibility to determine whether you are ordering the right product from them.

But aren’t you, as a California incorporation lawyer, biased?:

That’s certainly a legitimate question, and it’s up to you to take to heart or disregard the opinions and advice in this article, but I would answer it this way: Because I am a business attorney, I have seen the result of using these services in a way most lay people would not, and as a result cannot recommend that most people use an incorporation service. And although incorporation legal services is part of my business law practice, I would encourage most readers to use an attorney of their choosing, in their state - it need not be me and obviously I don’t benefit from you using another attorney any more than I benefit from you using an incorporation service. In fact, incorporation services are probably in the long run good for my practice; they provide a steady stream of repair work and dispute resolution for me, that typically cost $1000s more than my flat fee incorporation services.

Summary and Conclusion:

In short, comparing incorporation services to a business lawyer is an apples to oranges comparison. The lawyer is licensed by the state to provide legal advice, is subject to numerous ethical rules, forms an attorney-client relationship with his clients, and keeps up to date on changes in the law through mandatory continuing legal education. The incorporation service simply executes on your instructions, no advice, no hand-holding, no legal review of your situation or legal needs. If your instructions do not comport with what’s best for your situation, then your result will be less than optimal. There may be a small group of people who know what they need, but just lack the time to do it, and who are thus well served by incorporation services. But, in my opinion, the vast majority of potential incorporation service customers would be better served by investing an additional $500 or so to have their entity selected, formed, and set up correctly, with all of their questions answered along the way, with due attention to related legal issues, and to establish a relationship with an attorney for ongoing or future legal services.

“0% interest* for the first six months, no annual fees** and a low fixed*** rate of only 8.9%****!”

* Unless you count the deferred interest we will charge you if you don’t pay off the full balance transfer amount when the promotional period ends.

** Except the ones we charge for “late payments****”, going over your balance, cash advances, balance transfers, membership in “rewards” programs, etc., etc., etc.

*** Fixed for the first month, but after we may change it without notice for: late payments, going over your balance, changes in the prime rate, or just cause we want more of your money.

**** Rate depends on your credit score. (Which we already checked and intend to charge you 19.8% or we wouldn’t bother sending you this great***** offer.)

***** A payment may be late if we just don’t get around to processing it in time no matter when you actually mailed it to us.

****** May not be great in all states.

Yes, folks, “the devil is in the details” and the truth is in the fine print.

While this is obviously an exaggerated and fictitious example I have seen most of these “weasel” clauses in the 100s of credit card offers I receive each year.

Some of these tricks and traps are practiced by local and national merchants with their “store credit cards” and “discount cards”.

I have seen stores and even car dealerships make “no interest for a year” type announcements and advertisements. But when you actually read the contract (and who does that - they count on you to not read the whole thing and you probably won’t understand it without your attorney) you may find that instead of the regular payments you would expect to start at the end of the no interest period, you are required to pay the full purchase price.

If you want to make installment payments, you will be required to pay the payment plus the interest (look for the rate in the fine print) and you may also be required to pay the interest that accrued during your “interest free” period. Gotcha!

Or how about the “no annual fees” bit. Look out for the contract to say “no annual fees FOR THE FIRST YEAR”. Or first two years or that a “membership” fee is required. How that differs from an “annual fee” is beyond me.

Also watch out for the “no annual fees” for the use of the card but “membership fee required” to participate the in frequent flyer miles or cash back points program (which was probably why you chose that card to begin with). Gotcha!

And how about the “fixed” rate? Read the fine print, it will actually say “subject to change without notice”. Is it just me or do I misunderstand the meaning of the word “fixed”?

Also your “fixed” rate may be raised to the “maximum allowable by state law” if you go over your credit limit (including fees that may put you over your limit before you even know it), make a late payment, miss a payment or do not pay the full amount. Gotcha!

And then there is that low “teaser rate”. Yes that’s what it is called in the industry and it is appropriately descriptive. That rate is given out, they aren’t lying about that. But it is only given to the people who have 700 or above credit scores, minimal debt, and a high paying job.

The majority of the people who are sent the ad will not get the lowest rate. But you won’t know your rate until you apply for the card. But by the time they tell you what rate you will be at they have already signed you up and issued your card.

They count on the fact that most people will just accept the rate and go from there. Gotcha!

So how can you avoid these traps?

Rule #1, read ALL of the fine print. If you are not clear on something ask someone else what they think it means. Ask an attorney friend, CPA (certified public accountant), financial planner, banker or other person in the financial industry. Chances are they will have several questions about the fine print, too.

Rule #2, don’t apply for a card unless or until they tell you what your actual rate will be. This is hard because most of them are not set up to tell you. Generally you will need to know your credit scores and have a copy of your credit report handy.

Even then you are unlikely to find someone through their telephone maze that will or can actually answer your question. Try to find a card that gives you a confirmed rate before you apply. A conscientious company will first request a copy of your credit report from one of the credit bureaus before quoting you a rate.

Look on http://www.bankrate.com for current rates offered by various credit card companies and banks. Often smaller banks and companies offer better deals and are not as strict or hard to deal with. Check with your local banks also. At least with a locally issued credit card “you know where they live”.

Rule #3, always mail your payment at least 7 days before it is due. Or try paying through the Internet. Many companies now offer that payment method. It can also save you time and stamps.

Rule #4, check your statement each month to be sure you are still at the interest rate you signed up for. If your rate has been increased, look for a late payment fee, or some other reason for the increase. Call the company and ask them why they increased your rate.

If your rate was unjustly increased (they processed the payment late or credited it to your account late, but it was not received late) then ask them to change your rate back to what it should be.

Even if you did make a late payment, most companies will reduce your rate after six months of on-time payments. But if you don’t ask, they will keep you at the higher rate as long as they can.

In the credit card business it is definitely “caveat emptor” or buyer beware!

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© Simple Joe, Inc.
David Berky is president of Simple Joe, Inc. which sells the Simple Joe’s Debt Eraser PC software. Debt Eraser can help anyone get out of debt quickly and inexpensively by creating a Rapid Debt Reduction Plan. This article may be freely distributed as long as the copyright, author’s information and an active link (where possible) are included.

Copyright ? 2005 Priya Shahhttp://www.priyashah.comBlogging is the latest buzzword in online marketing and PR.But with so many marketers jumping on the blogging bandwagon, few people are giving a thought to whether blogs are really up their alley, or taking the time to consider the best ways of going about it.If you are planning to start a business blog, ask yourself these questions before you take the final plunge.1. Do you really need a blog?Writing and maintaining a blog takes a certain degree of commitment, as well as a passion (or at least a liking) for stringing words into a decent sentence. If you don’t enjoy writing that much, you could always create an audio or video blog.But would your business objectives really be served by starting a blog? Or could other methods of online marketing - like SEO, ezine advertising or newsletter publishing work just as well, if not better?2. Whom do you want to reach with your blog?The first step to reaching your audience is understanding where they go to find information about your products.If your audience largely consists of people who live in your town or use products that they search for in the newspapers, offline advertising might be more suited to your purpose.If however, your target audience belongs to one or more of these segments, a blog might be just the thing to boost your business.- Internet usersDoes your target audience really use the internet? If not, then starting a blog (or any online activity, for that matter) will just be a huge waste of time and effort.- Blog readersDoes your target audience read blogs? Or do they prefer to get their information in their inbox? If the latter is true, then an email newsletter might be a better option than a blog.- Search engine usersA blog is an excellent way to boost your search engine rankings and get listed for a lot of your target keywords. If you know that your audience uses search engines to find information, a blog will increase your chances of getting their attention.3. What do you want to achieve with your blog?There are a lot of things that a blog can do for your business. Blogs can help you — Increase your visibility and search engine rankings- Brand yourself, your products, your services, your company- Build a community and network with people who have similar interests- Expand your reach to those outside your current sphere of influence- Establish your credibility as an expert or thought-leader in your field - Put a human face on your business- Reach out to potential customers and stakeholdersDeciding exactly what you want to achieve with your blog can help you get focused, so that you can spend your time and effort in activities that help, not hinder your business objectives.4. How much time can you spend on your blog?Serious business bloggers not only spend time writing their own blogs, but also spend a great deal of time reading up on current events and browsing other blogs in their field for information.If you are prepared to put in the time and effort required to do that sort of research, your blog will serve as a good branding tool for your business.If not, you should either hire someone to do the research or seriously rethink your decision to start a blog.5. What blogging platform will serve your needs best?Deciding your blogging platform is an important step that you should take only after becoming familiar with the features and benefits of each option.The reason it is so crucial is because it can be extremely difficult to migrate an established blog to a new platform once you have started it. Moving your blog can result in you losing your data, search engine listings and readers, so don’t take this decision lightly.Decide which platform will best meet your marketing objectives, time constraints and personal preferences before you make your first post.According to T.L. Pakii Pierce who writes at “How to Blog for Fun & Profits!” http://blogforfunandprofit.blogware.com, if you are short of time, and want to spend more time writing, then a hosted solution like Blogger, Blogware, Squarespace or Typepad might serve your purpose better.This might also prove a better option if you want to get started as soon as possible, are new to the internet, or are unfamiliar with scripts or code.If, on the other hand, you’re a control freak (like me) and don’t mind spending some time and effort to customize your blog, then a server-installed software, like Wordpress, b2Evolution or Movable Type might be just right for you.If you don’t want to install the scripts yourself, choose a hosting solution with Fantastico, which comes with a one-click install of a number of blogging software.6. How do you plan to promote your blog?Why is it good to know this before you start your blog? Because it will help you decide where best to invest your time and effort when you need to build traffic to your blog.You’ll learn more about the methods to promote your blog when you subscribe to the email course below. Some of these tasks can be outsourced, while others you would have to do yourself.Decide what you want to take on and look out for service providers to handle the other functions so you can start building traffic to your blog as soon as possible.7. How will you assess the success of your blog?To determine how successful your blog is in boosting your profile or profits you will have to measure your blog traffic and track sales or leads that have come through it.Planning this in advance will help you take more informed decisions about your blogging metrics, choice of blogging platform and degree of customization you require on your blog.Understand that blogging is not for everyone. It’s just another form of communication.Don’t get so hung up on the technology that you end up ignoring more appropriate ways of communicating your message.Some things may be easier to communicate face to face, in a conference room, or even through the good old telephone.But if you asked yourself all the questions above and decided that blogging meets all your objectives, then a blog may be just what the doctor ordered for your business. Priya Shah is a former journalist who writes on business blogging and publishes an internet marketing newsletter. Subscribe to her free eCourse on Blogging for Marketers  

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How it fits into your Internet marketing strategyIan Lurie, Portent Interactive, Seattle, WADecember 29, 2003Pay-per-click marketing is a great way to get visitors when you need traffic and you need it now. But it’s risky: You can spend a fortune, generate many visits, and end up with nothing to show for it. This article will provide you with a high-level view of pay per click marketing, provide some general strategies and provide an example of what to do, and what not to do.What is Pay-Per-Click Advertising?On its face, pay-per-click marketing, or PPC, is pretty simple: Search engines and services, such as Google or Overture, provide listings on a per-bid basis. This is in addition to their ‘natural’ search results, which are still powered by a combination of keywords found on your site, link popularity and other formulae. If you place the highest bid for a specific keyword or set of keywords, then you rank number one in these paid listings. On Google, , PPC listings show up in the Adwords column on the right-hand side of the screen. Other engines, such as MSNSearch or Yahoo, display P P C listings as ’sponsored listings’ in the same column as the natural search results.If someone clicks on your PPC listing, they arrive at your web site. And you are charged the amount you bid. So, if you bid $.15 per click on ‘widgets’, and that’s the highest bid, you’ll show up first in line. If 100 people click on your P P C listing, then the search engine or PPC service will charge you $15.00. Why PPC Advertising is BadBut PPC advertising can cost a fortune. It’s easy to get caught up in a bidding war over a particular keyphrase and end up spending far more than your potential return. Some PPC engines, such as Overture, offer convenience features such as ‘autobid’ that will automatically increase your bid amount to maintain a particular rank. That sounds great on its face, but it can get expensive in a big hurry.Also, ROI can be very hard to measure. Some PPC engines (Adwords and Overture, specifically) provide conversion measurement tools, so that you can track whether your pay-per-click campaigns are generating the desired result. But these tracking tools aren’t 100% accurate, and at the time of this writing the smaller PPC providers don’t deliver any conversion tracking.And watch out for junk traffic. Most pay-per-click services distribute a segment of their results to several search engines. While you certainly want your listing displayed on Yahoo, AOLSearch and MSN, you may not want your listings showing up and generating clicks from some of the deeper, darker corners of the Internet. The resulting traffic may look good in statistics reports but is very unlikely to generate a return.Finally, pay-per-click advertising does not scale. If you get more traffic, you pay more money in direct proportion to that traffic - your cost per click stays constant, and your overall cost increases. Compare that to natural search engine optimization, where you invest a fixed amount of time and/or money to achieve a better rank, and your cost per click goes down as you draw more traffic. Why PPC is GoodPay-per-click advertising can generate traffic right away. It’s simple: If you spend enough, you can get top placement, and potential customers will see you first. If folks are searching for the keyphrases on which you bid and you’ve placed a well-written ad, you will get clicks the moment the ad is activated.So PPC advertising is fast: With some systems, such as Google Adwords, you can generate targeted traffic within a few minutes of opening an account.PPC advertising is also nimble: Where natural search engine marketing or other forms of advertising can lag weeks or months behind changing audience behavior, you can adjust most pay-per-click campaigns in hours or days. That provides unmatched ability to adjust to market conditions.PPC can also be a bargain: Sometimes, you can find keyword ‘niches’ for which the top bid is around $.10 - in that case, PPC is a great option, because you can generate traffic to your site for a fraction of the cost of any other form of paid advertising.So, balancing the good and the bad, where does PPC fit in? As a focused advertising tool.  The Role of PPC AdvertisingMost businesses can’t afford to solely rely on PPC advertising. It’s too expensive, and bid amounts inevitably climb. But pay-per-click can fill a few important roles: Campaign- and issue-based traffic: If you have a short-term campaign for a new product, service or special issue, pay-per-click can be a great way to generate buzz. You can start a pay-per-click campaign within, at most, 24-48 hours, and you can generally change the text of your ad in mid-campaign, so adjusting your message is easy. If you need to focus attention for a finite amount of time, PPC is perfect. Direct-response business: If you sell a product or offer a service that folks can purchase the moment they arrive at your web site, pay-per-click is a great tool. Online stores are a great example: You know that each click generated is a real potential customer, so spending money to increase the number of clicks makes sense. Niche terms: If you are trying to generate traffic for a highly specific keyphrase, PPC can often provide bargains. For example, you might not want to pay the top bid for ‘bicycles’, but ‘Landshark Bicycles’ is probably a lot less expensive ($.10 per click as of this writing, actually). The overall rule of thumb? Focus, focus, focus. Natural search engine optimization is a PR-based, long-term attempt to grow your brand and image. Pay-per-click advertising, however, should be handled like any other form of paid advertising: Gingerly, and with a clear, quantifiable short- or medium-term goal in mind. In other words, concentrate on conversions, not clicks.

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What is an eBook compiler?You’ve written and revised your ebook, hired an artist who has produced outstanding graphics, and now you’re ready to actually put together your ebook. What youneed to make an ebook is software called an ebook Compiler.There are many different compilers to chose from, but first, you need to know exactly what an ebook Compiler does. Here is the simple explanation:An ebook compiler is a software program that converts either text pages or HTML text into a single executable file or an ebook.If you or someone you hired has created a file with graphics in HTML, you will need an HTML ebook Compiler. This type of compiler requires a working knowledge of the HTML tag language. You can also use software to do this for you, such as Microsoft FrontPage or Macromedia Dreamweaver.How do you choose an eBook Compiler?There are a large number of ebook Compilers available on the market, all with glowing sales copy and tekkie language. It can get very confusing and overwhelming very fast without some simple guidelines to help you figure out which compiler is right for you.Choosing an ebook Compiler depends on a number of factors:1. How did you create your pages? Did you use HTML or PDF format? There are many more compilers available for HTML, but you can find some very good compilers that will covert your PDF files into an ebook.2. Consider how easy the program is to use and the thoroughness of the software’s instruction manual. It is absolutely necessary that the compiler you buy have an instructional manual, documentation, or online “wizards.” If it doesn’t, your chances of figuring out how to correctly use the program are compromised, and the time required doing so is going to be significant. Many manufacturers of compilers offer a free trial version so you can play around with it and see if it suits your needs. Download the trial version and ascertain that it actually does what it claims to do.3. Security features. If you plan to sell your ebook, check out the security features of the compiler software carefully. Security features should include: prevention of the reader from modifying text, access only to the pages you assign or by entering a password, different ways of generating passwords such as secure passwords, user friendly, and open passwords.4. Supported scripting. Find out what scripts the software supports. Scripting allows you to create special effects, customize menus, and create and modify other user interactivity. Choose a compiler that permits you to include graphics, search windows, hyperlinks, forms, surveys, etc.5. Pricing. This is a factor that is not always easy to gauge. The highest priced compilers are not automatically your best choice. Choose your compiler based on the necessary requirements for your Ebook. That means you need to know exactly how you plan to use your Ebook and what functions you require.Let’s look at some of these factors in more detail. First of all, make sure you have the correct browser to run the compiler. The majority of HTML compilers use Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape. Check out the version that the compiler supports. Compilers that require a browser will not run on a computer that does not have the required browser installed. However, there are ebook HTML compilers that don’t require you to have any browser installed on your computer. These compilers run on any Windows system.If you choose a compiler that requires a browser, check to ascertain that the browser is installed correctly and that it is properly configured to the specifications of the compiler. Check to see if certain functions are turned off or on, and make any adjustments according to the compiler instructions.Security is an essential element of any compiler, regardless of whether you plan to sell or give away your ebook. One of the main reasons for using a compiler is to prevent the reader from modifying the contents. A secure compiler allows access only to the pages you want the user to access unless they enter a correct password.To find out how secure an ebook HTML compiler is, open an ebook on it. While it is open, check the temporary directory of your computer. This can usually be accessed by typing in C:Windows emp. If you see a bunch of files when your ebook is open or running, it means that your computer is decompressing the secure data from your ebook before showing the ebook to the viewer. This method is not secure! It means that anyone with the knowledge of how to access these temporary files can steal the secure data and then they can fiddle with your ebook to their evil heart’s desire. Remember, one of the main purposes of buying and using an HTML compiler is to protect your property.Next, let’s discuss passwords. When trying to choose an ebook Compiler, check out the type of passwords that the compiler supports. Almost all compilers offer some kind of password protection that insures that the user can only access the contents they have purchased from you. However, the best compilers offer varied ways to generate different types of passwords. Choose a compiler that gives you the options of secure, user-friendly, and open password generation.Another important factor when it comes to passwords is how the compiler generates them. A compiler that has internal password protection generation built into thesoftware is more secure than compilers that link to live Internet password control systems.Find out if the compiler generates passwords online. If it has this option, it allows you to choose any payment processing system you want or to do the payment processing yourself.Next, look into the size of ebook the compiler supports. The best compilers can create ebooks up to 2 GB in size without decompressing the HTML pages or images to your hard disk. Usually, ebooks that are 2 GB in size can easily support 6 GB of compressed data. The catch here is that only text files will generally be compressible.You do not want a compiler that decompresses this amount of data when the user attempts to open your ebook. This would mean that anyone who purchases your ebook will have to wait for all the data to decompress before they can access your ebook right after downloading it. So look for compilers that only decompress temporarily files that are NOT HTML to the local hardisk. Non-HTML files include Flash, Word, and Acrobat files. This type of compiler is more secure and certainly faster.Make sure the compiler you choose is compatible with your system software. Check out what version of Windows it requires, and make sure you have that version before buying your compiler.Support issues are extremely important. Choose a compiler that includes an installation program. This program allows your user to choose a number of different places on their computer to install the ebook, to place a shortcut on their desktop, and to add the ebook, if they choose, to the Start Programs menu.You also want excellent and accessible vendor support. Make sure you can access quick technical support! At three o’clock in the morning, this factor will be VERYimportant. Also, check to see the terms of free technical support offered. Unlimited technical support is obviously the best option.Check to see if the company that puts out the compiler software offers a service level agreement. This agreement is to assure you of their quality response to your questions or problems.A good thing to consider is how long the compiler has been on the market. Usually, the version number will give you an idea. The longer the program is on the market, the higher the version number, the more bugs have been worked out.When choosing an ebook compiler, do not be swayed by incredible promises and dazzling sales copy. Do your homework first, and then consider all the above issues and factors before choosing an ebook compiler. Brought to by Larry Strawson author of many articles  and ebooks on internet marketing.For more information on profiting on your ebook, Check out http://tinyurl.com/8wbxl

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Have you wanted to upgrade your regular cable to digital cable and then someone confused you by saying you should ditch the cable all together and go with a satellite system? Then this article was meant for you! We are going to compare some of the very basic things between cable and dish network. While satellite service is growing in demand and gaining popularity across the U.S. most people are still more apt to pick cable without realizing what they can possibly be missing out on what satellite television has to offer! Satellite VS Cable Programming: Cable television typically handles up to 260 different channels while Satellite TV and Dish Network are set up to handle many more channels. Satellite television is also more advanced in HDTV (High Definition Television). Yet another aspect of satellite that is growing in leaps and bounds. Dish Network VS Cable Equipment: A cable TV system requires the cable be installed from within the network to your home. Depending on where you live you may not even realize that there are still many areas that aren?t equipped for both Dish Network and cable television. Along with the cable wire you will need a receiver that is usually provided by the cable company. If you are upgrading from regular cable to digital you will then need an additional receiver. A Dish Network system requires a satellite dish as well as a receiver and a cable from the dish to the back of your television. The best part is, no digging in your back yard to lay wire down! Dish Network is definitely less hassle for installation! Dish Network Reception VS Cable Reception: Dish Network is digital which means you get a crisper, clearer picture. However, one downside to satellite service is very heavy rain, or snow can interrupt your reception for an unspecified time depending on the weather and how long it lasts. In most cases occurrences are rare. Overall reception is better with Dish Network. Cable television is set up of analog channels, even if you upgrade to digital you still receive analog quality which means a fuzzy picture. Dish Network Pricing VS Cable Pricing: In most areas you will find that Dish Network is less expensive than that of cable service. In part, the difference in price is related to Cable franchise fees, taxes and costs for pay per view movies and equipment costs. Dish Network programming packages start as low as only $29.99 a month with many different channel options and services! Usually Satellite TV is less expensive than Cable TV due to many additional costs that are related to Cable TV such as: franchise fees, taxes, plus costs for any pay per view services, and equipment costs. Dish Network Programming Packages start at only $29.99 per month. Dish Network Interactive Services: A definite plus and bonus to having Dish Network compared to cable television is a DVR (Digital Video Recorder) which allows you to rewind while recording (without a tape!) live broadcasts, sitcoms and your favorite movies. This isn?t yet possible with cable service. Once you go DVR you can?t go back, its simply amazing! About the Author:Troy Sapp?s passion is writing articles and educating people. His various article topics range from Dental Plans, T1, Dish Network and Cheap Long Distance. Satellite TV and Dish Network are his favorite topics!

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If you have rental property that you sometimes use for personal use, like a ski home; your expenses will be based upon the number of days the property is rented and/or used for personal use.

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Bad credit personal loans provides the financial support to the persons with poor and crippled credit history, so that they can sparingly dissolve them and restore the lost credit position. The loans are released against a slightly higher rate of interest which can be marginalised by investing a little effort from applicant’s part by collecting and comparing the quotes proffered by lenders.

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