Oct 11
20
American Hoggers on Prime Time TV
New A&E Television Show
A lot of interesting shows coming on television this Fall. One that has already been on for a few episodes is American Hoggers. This is a pretty wild show and one that is easy to get addicted to. If you love to see dogs chasing wild boars and gang tackling them; while residents from Texas follow closely behind to capture these wild beasts. The state of Texas does have a serious problem with these boars or wild pigs.
Our domesticated pigs can turn wild in as little as 2 to 3 months. If a tame pig escapes the hog pen, it will become wild in a short amount of time. This means its hair will grow longer and the tusks will begin to grow out. These wild pig tusks can get up to 5 inches long. No one is safe around a wild boar, which can run up to speeds of 30 miles per hour. A man has an average speed of around 20 to 25 miles per hour. So as you can see, out running these wild pigs is not an option. This is where the gun-toting folks of American Hoggers come in and try to remove these wild pigs, in areas they are causing problems. The overall population of wild boars in Texas, is in that is out of control. Each week on TV, we watch a Texas family try to round up these wild pigs. Most commonly, they turn the dogs loose on them and its the dogs that locate these wild beasts in Texas. They gang tackle the pig with about 3 to 5 hunting dogs; while the family races in to hog-tie the critter. After the pig has its feet securely tied, they throw it on the truck and take it to a food bank i the Texas area, so they can slaughter the pig and eat it. This is one way to solve the starvation problems in America. What do you think about these wild pigs on television? Have you ever watched this show on A & E TV called American Hoggers?
Popularity: 4% [?]
Posted in Animals by .
Oct 11
17
Making your site user friendly
Part of your planning process should be deciding what you want to accomplish with your web site. Will you be using it for networking, obtaining new customers, for a local market, for a foreign market, public relations, advertising, and product support?If you already have a client base, it is a good idea to make your web site beneficial to these people. These are people who have dealt with you in the past and are more likely to purchase or use your services again and again. It is always easier to keep an old customer than get a new one. You can place special discounts and coupons on-line for past customers to help entice them to communicate with you and your web site via the Internet. It is far less expensive to send newsletters via e-mail than it is to send them by postal mail. You can get your computer business cards customized with your brand and product logos to help customers know how to reach you and where they can shop and save. Include them in all your mailings and offer special discount codes on the back for those that visit your website or Facebook page and make a purchase or “like” you.
Your business cards, will help you brand your website.
Popularity: 2% [?]
Posted in Marketing by .
Oct 11
1
Getting your blog listed
An internet business or ways to generate money online come in a variety of ways. It’s just like life in the real world where there are several ways you can earn money. Most people get the majority of their income by an offline job, but people earn money in other ways. You may have a 2nd job or something you do on the side for extra cash, you may earn interest from an investment, or you may be lucky and win money from the lottery from time to time. You can now find some of the best business opportunities with a little research.
Most would not think of a blog as an eBusiness and some bloggers may choose not to make money with their blogs. A blog is an excellent way to earn a little extra cash on the Net and more people should be creating blogs. Getting your blog in a directory listing is a great way to start building natural traffic. A blog is a great way to vent about something or some people are good at using their blog as a marketing tool. These things are all fine and you can continue to do these things; while also earning money in other ways.
The best way to earn money from your blog is by having ads or getting people to pay for links on your blog. There is a high demand for a business link on blogs and advertisers will pay big money in some cases. You can consult with a link building agency like linkbuildingagency.com. Your blog’s ranking usually determines how much a blogger can earn with ads and links on their blog. They offer some great ways to help your blog or website grow through different channel and help drive traffic which means more money.
You can seek your own online advertisers and write up posts for their online interests or add links in the sidebar that lead back to their sites. There are a lot of businesses and individuals that will pay money to use a small part of your blog. It can be a lot of fun working with advertisers and if you do a good job, they may do more business with your blog in the future.
Your blog can be an eBusiness, but you do need to find the time to write non paid posts too. A blog with too much advertising can be bad and lead to lower rankings. You need to make sure and find SEO friendly websites and blogs to help boost your own search rankings.Try to find the right balance that keeps your blog ranked as high as possible; while taking the most paid blogging jobs possible. You can earn a substantial income from blogging and many different ways to earn an income with a blog.
Popularity: 16% [?]
For those who already have health insurance, either through work or as an individual plan, they can access medical services knowing that they are covered to at least some extent, depending on their choice of plan.
However for many groups of people, health insurance is either unavailable to them or unaffordable, especially with rising costs. These include the disabled, those with pre-existing health conditions, low-income families, and some ethnic and racial minorities amongst other groups. The Affordable Care Act is attempting to eliminate some of these disparities by making quality health care fairer and more equitable for all people in American society.
When people are not insured they tend to avoid using medical services, which increases the level of disease and pushes up health care costs. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, chronic diseases which cause about 70% of deaths each year are largely preventable.
Reforms to health care include:
- Funding for more health centers across all states over a 5 year period.
- Measures to improve accessibility to health insurance for those previously shut out from health coverage.
- More preventive health screenings availability at no extra cost.
- Steps to prevent unreasonable price increases of health plans.
These reforms aim at reducing the cost and improving the quality of medical care and health coverage generally, and of course improving the nation’s health into the bargain. This could well prove to be good news to those who are currently enrolled in the California savings plus program or those seeking to enter into one.
Popularity: 2% [?]
Posted in Library by .
What began as a few crazy videos over at YouTube, has quickly became a popular fad for these two advertising geniuses. Their names are Rhett and Link and many who go to You Tube a lot will know their names. Both of these guys have been teaming up to make some crazy videos online. They even begin to get real customers in the California area and would make small business commercials for them. Rhett and Link have a lot of creative ideas and their commercial videos became an instant hit over at YouTube.
In fact, these two guys did so well with online advertising, they have made the big jump up to television. They are still producing their advertising videos the same, with one big exception. And that would be, that they are now on television! The IFC TV Channel or Independent Film Channel has picked up Rhett and Link and has given these two marketing guys a 30 minute spot each week. Every Friday night, you can watch Rhett and Link make their advertising commercials for real clients they find. Customers will hire Rhet and Link to do a video ad for them. They come up with all kinds of wild and crazy ideas, but at the end of the day, it has a way of all working out. Their 30 minute television show on IFC, shows both men meeting the customer and going over a few basic things with them. So the two commercial kings of advertising, can get an idea, on what their customer wants for their business. Once Rhett and Link come up with a plan, they quickly move into action and begin producing their TV commercial for their advertising customers. The TV show allows viewers at home to see their commercial-making process, as they go through the steps. Finally at the end of every television epidsode of Rhett & Link, the folks tuning in get to see the full length video, being shown from a laptop computer. The viewers at home get a chance to watch the finished product, as the small business owner gets to see their own TV commercial for the first time. It’s fun to watch these unique commercials and to see the happy faces of their advertising clients; when they show them the final versions of these remarkable TV commercials.
You can look online and find advertising information for Rhett and Link TV Commercials or search for their work over at YouTube. Also, tune-in to the IFC channel on your satellite or cable TV and you can watch the newest episodes every Friday night. IFC will usually re-air the Rhett and Link TV Show a few times through the week. So if you ever miss the show on Friday nights, you can watch replays; which will come on several times during the weekend and even the weekdays too. Rhet and Link Commercial Kings is probably one of my top 3 television shows to be watching on TV right now. Please let me know what you think about these two guys and how they go about producing these TV ads and online videos for their customers. I believe it’s a smart way to advertise for any small business. I do view these guys as very smart, but I could also understand, if someone was to classify them as a couple of clowns, in the advertising world. What do you think?
Popularity: unranked [?]
Posted in Marketing Source by .
Guest post written by Chelsea Mirek
My daughter is just starting high school now and she’s really starting to get interested in fashion. I’m pretty interested in it too and am really glad that I have a willing shopping partner now! I’ve always been into shopping, but that also means finding some really good bargains. I’m basically an expert at thrift store shopping, which has really come in handy when you have a couple of growing kids.
I also frequent our local flea market and am always on the look out for other ones in the area that are worth checking out. I was online a few weeks ago trying to find a good new one and while I was looking I saw a Clear 4G Review. After I read through it a little bit I decided to change over our home internet service to one of the packages.
Some of our flea market finds that we’ve found together on just a few of our trips together so far include a really cute bookshelf for her room and some neat looking costume jewelry. My guess is that thsi stuff lasts longer than those necklaces she loves to get at Forever 21.
Popularity: 2% [?]
Posted in Technology by .
Sep 11
20
5 Online Ways to Find a Blogger
With all the online search engines, directories, and social media networks circulating the internet, it’s hard to think of every possibility, on the internet that could be a great starting point to find you next strong writer. And although it could be easier to use one search technique to find all your writers all of the time or to post positions on your blog or another website, using a combination of various online techniques and not being afraid to use one over another more frequently could help find and keep the best bloggers to write about a certain subject matter.
Here are five online techniques to find bloggers fast:
1. Start with finding a phone number!
Using the search engine of your choice, any blog owner can look-up both residential, personal, and business numbers with ever opening a phone book or going to the library. All that a blog owner needs to do is type in the person or business name using quotation marks to quantify the search. This is the easiest technique, but probably one bloggers will not rely on most often in conducting hiring searches.
2. Think backwards with reverse phone lookup!
If you already have the phone number, then use the phone number that you have available to find out more information connected with the phone number. Some of the information generated using phone number lookup directories and search engines like reverse phone lookup include names, addresses, and businesses. Phone lookups allow bloggers to connect with people using the smallest, but most invasive piece of information, which is pretty sweet.
3. Use names to find people!
Believe it or not, if all you have is a name, you can place the name within quotations through various search engines and come up with different but usable information to connect to potential new writers that are employable. Other pieces of information that are excellent to include outside of the name (in parentheses), would include hobbies, clubs, organizations, or places of residence that might be associated with the name.
4. Analyze maps to get more specific!
Various map search engines allow a blogger to type in an address and view pictorial and written information. Such information that might be helpful in finding a new blog-writer would include names, addresses, phone numbers, neighborhood views, satellite, aerial, and hybrid views of addresses and even street-side views. Because the information is so specific, the blog owner would know they have the right person or not most quickly.
5. Group images that connect writers!
There are various image search databases coming out that allow users to find images associated with a person whether via social media houses or various websites. A person trying to find a great blog writer could group their photos according to a certain subject matter or search for people based on photos that match the subject content of the majority of their blogs. Sorting photos according to relevancy, type, subject matter, or even size make image lookup probably the most innovative and growing techniques available to bloggers (right now).
Popularity: 2% [?]
Posted in Marketing User Generated Media by .
Google Surf Team – NOW HIRING!
If you like to spend your days online and playing with the computer all day long; then I got a Grand New opportunity for you! It’s not a “brand new” thing I am telling you about, but it is indeed a GRAND NEW way to start spending your time on the World Wide Web. Every single day there is someone online, who wants to spend money on advertising. Every single day of the year, there is someone out there willing to pay you for your opinion about a product or service. Also, every 24 hours there is someone willing to pay folks over the Internet, for clicking online ads or viewing other people’s websites. And when it comes to shopping online, there is always someone who comes online to buy a new product or service. By any chance have you noticed a pattern to what I am saying? If you did, you may see that our computers is acting like a big magnet for money. There is so much money being exchanged over the Internet and in every case, our computers have a front row seat for all these financial transactions.
Google Newbies Learn Fast
Most treasure seekers who come to their computers with the hopes of making big bucks online, will fail or give up within the first year. In fact, 6 out of every 10 people will quit within 90 days and never receive a cent in payment. I know these 6 online workers would have loved a Grand New opportunity to come their way. However, after the 90 days are over, we will see 3 more quit the online game out of our 10 person example. These last 3 managed to receive some form of payment online, but usually they spent more than they made or their time lost was a lot more valuable. So if 9 out of every 10 people who try to make money on the Internet fail, why in the world would anyone try to start a new business or even attempt this automatic failure? Most of us know that starting a new restaurant is hard to do and most of these food lovers go out of business in their first year too. Even though the restaurant facts are widely known; starting up a new food place is still the number 1 business people want to try. So what gives? Does this make sense to you?
For us to be successful in the restaurant industry or making money over the Internet, we must learn why others fail, so we can avoid these financial pitfalls. While at the same time, trying to figure out why so many others continue to try these money-making-avenues; where so many others have failed.
I know we all have to eat each day to survive. We all have foods that we like and don’t like. At some point, we get hungry enough to fiddle around in the kitchen, so we end up learning how to cook a few things. Maybe so many folks try the food business, because it is something that is common to them and they understand how it works. For instance, you buy 1 pound of ground beef for 3 dollars; while the 5 pound pack of ground beef sells for 10 dollars. We learn a valuable business skill here. The more we buy or buying in bulk, is actually cheaper in the long run, than buying the smaller packaged items. We can’t buy the 5 pounds of ground beef for our family, because it would spoil before we would eat it. So buying food for our family costs us more money in a sense, right? I hope your still with me here and I didn’t lose you there. Because the next logical step, is for someone to think of the restaurant idea and instead of buying 5 pounds of ground beef to serve hamburgers, they can buy 50 or 100 pounds of ground beef and get even a better deal than the 5 pound package price. The person who learns this knowledge, is the one who starts up a restaurant, cause they know how many hamburgers they can make out of the bigger packs of ground beef and they know the prices the other hamburger joints are selling them for.
It seems to me, that failing has nothing to do with it, when it comes to the restaurant business. It is the fact, we know how to cook a hamburger and where to buy our ground beef at, is what makes us start up restaurants. I believe so many people start up a food business, because it is one that is familiar to them and it doesn’t take a lot of new skills or having to learn something new, for you to open the doors up and begin selling your cheap ground beef hamburgers.
Now that we figured that out, does the Net work the same way? We start food businesses up, because of what we already know; so when we go to the online side of things, we travel into the “unknown“. Most of us don’t know how we will make our money, but since it is possible for us to make money, we will learn it. And a lot of the things we don’t know, we will just learn that on the fly, while we go toward our millionaire’s lifestyle. The truth is, we try these online money makers for a different reason. Do you know what that reason is? What is the number 1 thing out there, that makes people try to make money from their computers at home? Is it lack of finances? Being poor? The reason so many try it, is because so many computer users out there need some extra cash? Well, that is partly the reason, but its still not the main thing.
The reason so many choose to try and make money; when others before them have failed by the millions, is because it is easy. Not necessarily easy in the way you choose to make money online, but it’s easy because you can work your own hours, you can choose how long you work for, and a lot of other things going down that path. Really it comes down to being “convenient” and not so much easy. The fact we can go to our desk at home and turn on the computer and generate some real online cash earnings, is the number 1 reason, why so many want to try and make a little extra cash online.
Let’s say you can’t drive a car. The reason really isn’t important. It doesn’t matter if you are too young or too old to drive. Or if you had some trouble and the law took your driver’s license away from you. Or maybe you just had a bad accident and you can’t drive because you’re physically unable to or you don’t have a car that is operational. If a person doesn’t have a car or can’t drive; then they have a tough time trying to find a real job. For these folks who can’t drive a car, their computers can become their best friends. The computer can save the non-driver, so everyone who can’t drive a car, is more than likely going to try and earn a living from their computers at home.
If you notice these two patterns with the restaurant and us trying to make money online and how so many people fail, you can begin incrasing your odds of making it work. Why is McDonalds so famous? Is it the Big Mac? A lot of folks would say the hamburger or the Big Mac sandwich, but they would be wrong. So if McDonalds didn’t get famous from their hamburgers, it must have been the Happy Meals for kids, right? Nope. It wasn’t the Happy Meal, the toy, or even the playground that made McDonalds so famous. If I allow you one more guess, now you will say the right answer. Yes, it was the tasty french fries that made McDonalds restaurants famous. If you ask the higher brass at McDonalds, they will all tell you, the french fry is their main weapon.
It did start off with tasty burgers. Soon things begin to grow and when the fry came out, it was the thing that really propelled the guys to burger heaven. On the flip side, why is Bill Gates rich? His Microsoft product, right? Yes, it was Microsoft and his great software that put home computers on the map for every American family and soon would wrap around the entire world. In both cases with Ronald McDonald and Bill Gates, each man had a great idea, a great product, and became a marketing genius too. It was a combination of things and this is what made these 2 men so famous today.
For us to make money online and be successful at it, we have to have our reasons in order. Saying that you are poor or need money, doesn’t help you earn 1 extra cent. Regardless of how bad you need it, money doesn’t play fair or gives itself up in equal shares to all people. Just because you own a computer and it is right next to your bed at home, this doesn’t mean you will earn tons of money either. So please remember both of these 2 points.
1. Convenient
2. Poor
Neither one of these things will help us be successful online entrepreneurers. Perhaps 1 or both of these things will give you the drive and motivation, but they don’t actually help you to earn money online. Once you understand this and I mean REALLY understand this, you can then focus on what is really important. The fact that you need a good, unique, or quality idea on how to get money flowing your way. Coming up with a game plan is the whole trick to making money online. You must first have a plan of attack, a map, or some insight into a good way to make a buck, before you can begin any big dreams or fantasies of being rich. Does this make sense?
Well here in Google Land we understand this problem and we work on solving it daily. We don’t have 1 or 2 good ideas for making money online. We are in the process of working a lot of different online angles, to see which one will pay the most. We have dozens of other new and hot ideas, which are just waiting to touch the light of day.
As we create and brand new Internet Marketers in the professional sense, we grow a little thin at our home base. This is where we have new openings available and we are looking for those individuals who don’t have a real job or don’t have a car that works. If you can’t drive or have a way to drive, but you’re willing to work an 8 hour day online; then the Google Ranked Us Surfing Team is the answer. We are working on a team now, where we hope to have 25 online workers, who can spend 8 hours or more per day online. By staying online this much, you will earn a lot of valuable things and the best part of all, is each and every person on our team has a bright future. The Google Team is in the business of hading out bright futures and we have been handing them out for almost 3 years now. Would you like to be awarded the next bright future on our team? If so, it is really easy to join our gang of hard and dedicated online workers.
Our home base is over at Trafficera.com. This is a manual traffic exchange online, that also features a social networking aspect. You have the best of both worlds with this one online program. A place where you can do all of your social networking, while surfing a manual TE and earning valuable time credits, so you can show other members your websites, referral pages, and affiliate programs.
Does the sound of $300 per week sound good? It’s not easy work and it does take time to build your self up, but for those who take the time, they can make it happen with the Google Team of Surfers. For the lucky few, who get a chance to work with us online. You will be able to learn new tricks, new strategies, new marketing plans, and a new agenda especially for you. Like I said earlier, this is a GRAND NEW opportunity and our open slots will fill up fast. I’m not trying to rush anyone, cause we will always need quality help. Now is a good time to throw your name in the hat and get recognized by us. After you meet us and begin to work with us, it is all up to you, on how much of a weekly or monthly income you can have sent to your Pay Pal account or your AlertPay account. I know most are already members of PayPal, but if you haven’t signed up for Alert Pay yet; then please sign up now.
Once you or anyone else becomes a member of the Google Team online. You can begin learning new ways to market and advertise your interests online. Also, you will learn all the different ways you can make money and how it is important to make money from each sector of the market online:
*Paid To Click Internet Ads and View Websites
*Take Online Surveys
*Money from Traffic Exchanges
*Affiliate Programs
*Online Matrix Programs
*Get Paid for Skills and Services
*Put Referrals to Work
*Monetizing Traffic
*Quick Downline Builders
*Blogs
*Video Marketing
*Paid Emails
*Unique Business or Service
*Automatic Background Money Makers
*Sweepstakes, Contests, Challenges, Etc…
*Plus More…
It’s not hard figuring out how to turn each step and Internet phase into a profitable online income. Getting it set up and being at the right place at the right time, is the tricky part to this money-making game we all like to strive for online. If your ready to step it up and take a serious step in the right direction; then please look us up online. We are the Google Ranked Us surfing team. We are not that hard to find and if you join Traffic Era today. You can begin sending me private messages through the system over there, so we can learn more about each other. If you promise to join our active surfing team online and work hard; I promise to put you in all the right programs and position your online earnings, so they can make the maximum amount of interest. And at some point down the road, we will brand you into our newest $300 a week earner online!
Popularity: 4% [?]
Posted in eBusiness by .
Sep 11
7
Heading West for Gold
We have our fair share of gold back in the eastern sections of America. However, we don’t have some of the large gold nuggets that prospectors find all the time out west. I know a lot of people think about “gold” and “heading west” and they quickly think of California. I believe I could save a little money on my trip, by stopping in at Arizona. The gold there is just as good (in my opinion) and it would save a few dollars off the air fare rates. Some folks may not agree with me, but check out this gold mining site I found online.
I was searching for various gold related websites; when I came across a place called Goldfied Ghost Town. Seeing the words “gold” and “ghost” struck a double interest in me. I do love a lot of the old ghost towns and some of the ghost tours I have been on, in various U.S. cities. I noticed this old ghost town also had a gold mine with it and it was open to the public for tours. You could even do a little gold panning at this old western ghost town, according to the information on the Arizona Lodging Experts website. They also had a wealth of knowledge of other great places to stay at in Arizona, if I do plan to take a trip there with my gold sniffing dog (Buddy), who likes to travel with me. I noticed there are tons of az pet friendly rentals to choose from. Even if I don’t choose to visit this old western ghost town, I know there are other open areas for gold prospectors and dog lovers to have some outdoor fun.
I don’t mind the guided tours at the places designated for visitors and tourists. I do like to venture out on my own and try to dig up some ground, where no one has been before. I figure my best chance for finding big nuggets out west, is to find these hidden destinations, where no tourists ever visit. If you currently live in Arizona, I would love some feedback on different areas of the state; which you feel could be holding a big golden nugget. I would be happy to split my findings, for anyone that did point me in the right direction. Thanks in advance and I guess for now, I will continue to dream about heading out west to find my golden treasures.
Popularity: 2% [?]
Sep 11
5
Dr Lisa and Her New Book
For those who are lucky enough to watch daytime television, when most people are at work, has probably seen Doctor Lisa Masterson on The Drs television show. It comes on every weekday morning and they really offer a lot of good health tips and some great eating tips on their 1 hour doctors medical TV show each day. Dr Lisa is only one of the 4 doctors who make up the panel. The other doctors include Dr. Travis Stork from the bachelor, Dr. Jim Sears the kids doctor, and the famous plastic surgeon Dr. Andrew Ordon. These 3 doctors team up with the doctor for pregnant women; which is Doctor Masterson and she is the only female doc on the show.
Paper Dollhouse: A Memoir is the name of the newest book and fans of the Doctors can now order Dr. Lisa’s book online. It is available at Amazon Books; for those who would like to order a copy. This book, a Paper Dollhouse is not really a medical book. It is actually the life story, of one of America’s favorite women doctors. She isn’t only a lady doctor, but she is also a black doctor. Her book will talk about a little girl struggling to grow up and how much of a fantasy it would seem, for a poor black girl, to ever become a doctor. We all know how the story ends for Doctor Lisa Masterson, but how does the story begin? A lot of us don’t know anything about her. Once we read her latest book, we will have a better understanding to the troubles and know all the fights she had along the way, for her dream to come true. I believe this will be a great story and I can’t wait to get my copy of her newest book release. The Dr TV Show has released books in the past. Most of these books are about medical situations and things we can do, to begin living a healthier life. As far as I know, this is the first book, for any of the four regular doctors, that have created a personal book. The name of Dr. Lisa’s new book is Paper Dollhouse: A Memoir. Please be sure to leave an online review, after you have read this newest book from the Doctors TV Program.
Popularity: unranked [?]
Posted in Blog Source by .
As the full scope of the financial collapse that occurred in 2008 came into greater focus, market analysts were saying that America should have seen the writing on the wall. Millions of people were living beyond their means and had become addicted to credit. It seems that “keeping up with the Jones’” just wasn’t an option anymore. Homes were repossessed, people filed for bankruptcy and foreclosure, and many jobs were lost. Here we are, almost four years later, and things are still pretty rough and the unemployment rate as remained around 9 percent.
Even though things don’t seem to have gotten better, many things have changed. It seems that Americans, in general, have become far more economically aware and better at balancing their budget. Through spending records, Online survey software, and watching the stock market, people taking a wait-and-see approach. Now, the private sector is complaining that Americans have gotten too good at saving and that it’s hurting the economy.
In a report that appeared on Public Radio, delinquent credit card payments have hit a 17 year low. It seems that consumers are far more focused at keeping their debt accounts in good standing and are paying off their debt. This decline was expected, but not at the rate that it’s happening.
People are scaling back their lives and following the advice of the last few years to get their financial house in order. There are a lot of people without jobs and living with reduced incomes. An entire generation of Americans are learning hard economic lessons for the first time in their lives. This is a stark contrast from the decades of the past where people practically lived on credit. Some are saying that this isn’t necessarily a good thing and that this new found thrift is doing a lot of harm.
In order to stimulate the economy, people need to save a certain amount, but borrow at the same time. This is all a part of the confusing dynamics of a market economy. You don’t want to spend what you don’t have, but spending is also like an investment in a market system. The private sector is very cautious right now about making any plans towards expansion or spending. One interesting fact is that the private sector isn’t following its own advice.
Some of the largest companies in the country are a little gun shy right now at the idea of investing and spending. This is because of the stagnant market growth and high unemployment figures. It seems that some of the biggest companies are telling Americans that they need to get out and spend when they’re not willing to take any similar risk. The top corporate income tax level in the U.S. rose 35 percent this year. Companies have gotten better at saving as well and all of their profits have been focused on balancing their books and keeping vast reserves of cash. They’re as nervous as everyone else and they’re not expanding, at least in America.
Whether or not the average consumer is at fault for the lack of progress in the overall market is up for debate. It depends on which side of the isle you land on. It’s true that consumer spending does have an effect on market growth and stability. When people are spending more, the market feels more secure and is likely to grow, which, in turn, creates more jobs. It all spirals from there, but it seems a little strange that the private sector complained that people were living beyond their means and needed to stop spending what they didn’t have, and then later complain that people aren’t spending.
Either way, the bright side of this economic trail we’re all living through has had some bright spots. It has given Americans a reality check and forced them to take a hard look at the way they consume. Blind and compulsive spending without the thought of consequence is what got us into the current predicament. Maybe, in the long run, we’ll be better off. A little self-introspection never hurt anyone.
Popularity: 2% [?]
Posted in Marketing User Generated Media by .
Over in Europe, the youth are keeping governments on their toes through threats of riots. Over in the Middle-East, Syrian students continue to protest their government, while those in Egypt are still trying to make sense out of their successful ousting of Mubarak.
Meanwhile in the United States, rambunctious kids are engaging in what are known as “flash mobs.” These once harmless activities, wherein people spontaneously appear in public places to perform choreographed dances and other displays, have evolved into coordinated criminal acts that are plaguing American cities such as Philadelphia and New York. It’s even making its way into suburbia: a convenience store in Maryland was recently robbed by nearly 30 individuals at once in what police are certain was planned via a social networking site.
While American youth are engaging in relatively benign anti-establishment behavior, the reasons behind flash mobs are likely the same reasons why the youth of Europe and parts of Asia are taking to the streets in more serious engagements. Mainly, there just isn’t much else for them to do.
Once upon a time, we told our kids that as long as they enrolled in nursing schools, business schools, law schools, et cetera, they’d succeed in life. Employment limitations were never much of a concern. Then the economic calamity of 2008 started, and suddenly even part-time labor that has been historically a guarantee for young adults started to fizzle out of existence.
Currently, teenage Americans are seeing an unemployment rate of over 50 percent. While it seems silly to expect the teenage population to be employed, part-time work has been a staple in the lives of older teens for years. However, these days, less than half of willing-to-work teenagers are able to find a part-time job. This means less fun time if parents don’t have the purse power to fund trips to the movies.
But it doesn’t stop with teenagers. Young adults age 18-25 are seeing unemployment levels nearly as devastating. Not only that, but even college graduates within this age range are having an incredibly hard time finding work. In the United States, it’s been projected that 85 percent of college graduates will be moving back in with their parents after their stint at school is finished.
This is an unprecedented amount of young people with nothing to do. Historically, hordes of unproductive youth with few job prospects has been a sign of serious trouble ahead. The anxiety builds up to a breaking point, and that’s when you start to see police stations getting firebombed.
Those troubled by increased instances of young adult deviancy need to know that many of these kids would much rather be flipping burgers right now. The problem is that even burger-flipping is a competitive market these days. The solution? Fix the jobs crisis, and the mischief will fix itself.
Popularity: 3% [?]
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Advertisers and companies have always been bent on getting as much attention to their product or service as possible. This can be dated for as far back as the birth of commerce, but in more recent times, through the proliferation of mass media, it seems to have taken on a life of its own. Others argue that this was simply the natural evolution of the process, yet the fact remains that anywhere the eye can look these days, we see an advertisement for something. This has led to many changes in advertising as companies try increasingly harder to get our collective attention and our business.
There was a time, back around the birth of the television, when a single advertiser would be showcased on a television or radio show. At some points, the products or company was even worked into the plot of the story. With the creation of more programming came more advertisers and it came to be what we know today: many advertisers buying commercial slots during the break. The natural evolution of this process has led to an overwhelming amount of advertising. This was made infinitely worse with newer forms of media like the Internet and mobile technology. Now we can become inundated with products and ads everywhere we turn, no matter what we’re doing, or where we are. Instead of ads becoming more selective, the advertising industry deciding the best way to reach consumers is by saturating the market with blanket ad campaigns but instead of turning on, consumers are turning off and it has advertisers very very concerned.
Vice President of marketing and sales at Universal Orland Resort recently stated, “What all marketers are dealing with is an absolute sensory overload.” In the face of so much media and images, it seems, that the average person is developing a sort of immunity to advertising. We’re becoming better at ignoring the ads that are supposed to be getting through to us. It’s, in a way, the chicken or the egg question. As advertisers become more desperate to get in touch with consumers, they buy more ad space. As they buy more ad space, consumers get better at ignoring them. The cycle continues on to a point where it has many concerned that, if they don’t get better at delivering their message, there won’t be anything but advertisements to look at anymore.
This has led to some changes in the industry where some companies are thinking a bit outside the box to solve this growing issue. Sometimes it’s best to ask the consumer what they’re interested in seeing through online surveys and forums. Other companies have decided to take a creative approach by developing viral videos that have huge user appeal. These advertisements are always cleaver and funny and rarely have anything to do with the product at all, yet they’ve proven wildly successful.
We’re going to see big shifts in the way advertisements are made and the lines between product and entertainment are going to blur to such a degree that it’s likely the two will become synonymous. There’s just too many ways for people to not watch an ad or commercial. Eventually consumers won’t be able to ignore the product anymore and there might come a time when we’re tuning in to watch the latest Tide Laundry Detergent sitcom.
Popularity: 3% [?]
I really love it when I have a little free time and can just go over to You Tube and browse through all of the videos they have over there. I like to watch and play most sports. If I’m in the sporty mood, I could go watch a few basketball players from high school to the pros. Watch some full and half court shots being made or check out a few of the players doing some high above the rim dunking. Who doesn’t like to watch slam dunks?
If you like music or want to see some of those old music videos from the 1980′s, then You Tube is a great place for that. I like seeing the music videos I grew up watching on TV. Like for instance, do you remember a group called Culture Club? They were led by a very interesting character known as Boy George. I never was much of a Culture Club fan and I don’t think anyone would admit being a Boy George fan. I can’t embed the actual Karma Chameleon video; which Boy George and Culture Club was most famous for in the 1980′s decade. Here is them singing the song and you can find the actual video, if you hop on over to the website YouTube.
Karma Chameleon by Culture Club
Another popular group from the 80′s generation was Duran Duran. I’m not really sure if they have a “Karma Chameleon” song that you can quickly identify as their number 1 hit or the best song. I would have to say The Reflex by Duran Duran was their biggest hit ever. A close 2nd on the list would be the song called Hungry Like the Wolf. The wolf song by Duran Duran was a really good song and I don’t think anyone disliked that song. I do remember a true story movie, which had the late actress Farrah Fawcett in it and her character in the movie, actually played the Duran Duran song Hungry Like the Wolf; while she was attempting to kill her kids. Yes, this was based on a true story. She was in love with a man, but felt like her kids were preventing him to be with her, so she felt like she could have him, if the kids were out of the way. Here is that song, which even got brought up in her trial; which she did get convicted for.
Hungry Like the Wolf by Duran Duran
The Reflex by Duran Duran
There is just a ton of these 80′s songs and videos at You Tube and other places that allow users to upload their own media and videos online. You could spend a whole day there just looking at videos from the great 1980′s generation and would only be scratching the surface, since they have just about any song you can think of. Here are some more notable songs just off the top of my head you could check out from the decade of the 80′s.
1. Toto – Africa
2. Dire Strait – Money For Nothing
3. ZZ Top – Sharp Dressed Man
4. UB40 – Red Red Wine
5. Alice Cooper – Poison
6. Scorpions – Wind of Change
7. Mike and the Mechanics – The Living Years or All I Need is a Miracle
8. Prince – Little Red Corvette
Do you know some of these songs? I could go on all day naming those classics from the 1980′s. I consider this decade mine and I love the movies, TV shows, trends, video games, and everything else the 1980 – 1989 years brought us. If you like to take trips down memory lane every now and then. Just go over to You Tube to help you out some. I even found an old TV show called Space Giants I use to watch as a kid and did a blog post about it on another one of my blogs. I was pretty excited when I found out the name and even got to see some small clips at You Tube from this TV show; which hasn’t been on the air in over 30 years now.
Old Japanese TV Show – Space Giants with Goldar the 50 Foot Giant
Do you have a favorite singer or group from the 1980′s? Please let me know some of the music you was listening to in this magical decade. It’s also the decade where a little known TV channel called MTV made its debut. Back then, MTV played videos 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. It was super popular at the time. Later on, a couple of new music channels came out called CMT (Country Music Television) and VH1. As you know, both of these music channels along with a few of the new MTV channels and a VHI Classic Channel can be found on the tube today. And that would be the “TV Tube” and not “You Tube“! You may also discover an old TV sit com or program you use to watch as a kid growing up in a specific year or generation.
Popularity: 13% [?]
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Aug 11
12
Disney Channel Diva
Guest post written by Bethany Eller
A few years ago I was thankful that my pre-teen daughter wanted to watch the Disney Channel instead of mature, age-inappropriate TV shows. Now I guess it still was better, it’s just that she owns 10 times her weight in Hannah Montana and Jonas Brothers merchandise.
But perhaps the biggest impact is that I have to take her to Jonas Brothers concerts, which isn’t an easy task to say the least. Tickets normally sell out as soon as they go on sale, so I make sure that I use my wildblue satellite connection to order them online because satellite internet compared to dial-up is so much faster.
I also always order any tour merchandise with my satellite internet portland online so that we won’t have to wait in long lines at the concert to buy at $50 T-shirt that will shrink as soon as we put it in the washing machine.
As far as the music goes, I guess it could be much, much worse. Besides, the venues they perform at have seats so at least I don’t have to stand at the back of the mosh pit and make sure that my daughter doesn’t break her arm or something like other moms I know with young teenagers.
Popularity: 13% [?]
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