Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Making Money Guide

Blogger Andrew Trench recently presented a theory on the threshold of when Internet penetration starts to matter, writing:

Social networks have also been given plenty of credit for the revolution unfolding in Egypt.

So I went and had a look at the numbers over on www.internetworldstats.com to see what they could tell us about these two scenarios. Well, fascinatingly, both Egypt and Tunisia have seen a massive growth in internet users and internet penetration over the last 10 years.

Both have now got internet penetration of over 20% and in Tunisia's case it was as high as 34%.

While it is clearly simplistic to over-state this factor and there must be many more drivers contributing to such a rapid political uprising, it is obviously a factor as evidenced by the Egyptian regime pulling the plug on the country's internet access to try and block the rising tide of revolt.

My back-of-napkin theory is this: that a rapid increase in internet penetration in a repressive regime does play an important role as it provides an unfettered channel of communication allowing disaffected citizens to share views - and more importantly - to rapidly organise and mobilise.

If Egypt and Tunisia are valid case studies, it looks like internet penetration of around 20% is the mark.

Geopolitics & Macroeconomics adds:

Internet penetration: Social networking sites were critical to sustaining the momentum in the recent protests. The internet penetration in Egypt is 16%. In Libya, it is a meagre 5% [1]. The unrest in Libya has thus far remained concentrated in regions that are geographically distant from the seat of ‘real' power (see more on this below). The dependence of momentum on internet communication is far greater in Libya than in Egypt where protests began in Cairo itself.

Taking the conversation to Pakistan, Sabene Saigol writes, on BrandRepublic:

Perhaps one reason for this is that we're still not that used to communicating via the ‘net - maybe we need greater broadband and internet penetration. Personally I think it is more to do with culture - while Pakistani internet users are savvy to using social media to connect with friends, I feel they have not yet ‘crossed over' to seeing SM as a means for professional communications - or even wider social communications that go beyond their immediate circle. Yes, there are no doubt savvy people - both within marketing and tech circles, and outside - however, these people are likely a tiny proportion of the total number of ‘net and social media users.

Another day, another honking big funding for another online start-up (and yet another broken embargo too!).

It’s like Groundhog Day in Silicon Valley as usual.

Today, Cambridge, Mass.-based HubSpot wins tech’s version of the lottery, grabbing $32 million from Sequoia Capital, Google Ventures and also Salesforce.com.

It is unclear what the valuation for HubSpot is now, although it is likely high given it has raised $65 million now.

HubSpot makes marketing software for businesses, who use it to find prospects and generate leads, along with tools to analyze the process. It claims it has “4,000 customers, over 50 percent market share, five million leads managed, and 70 million page views tracked monthly.”

The Series D financing included HubSpot’s existing venture investors–General Catalyst Partners, Matrix Partners, and Scale Venture Partners–and part of it will be used to cash out existing shareholders. In previous rounds, the start-up has raised $33 million.

Here is the official press release:

Sequoia, Google Ventures, and Salesforce.com Invest $32 Million in HubSpot

Marketing Software Company Attracts New Strategic Investors

CAMBRIDGE, MA–(Marketwire – March 8, 2011)–Today, for the first time ever, Sequoia Capital, Google Ventures and Salesforce.com all invested together in one company, providing HubSpot with a Series D round of financing through a $32 million investment. HubSpot provides all-in-one marketing software used by over 4,000 businesses to get found by more prospects, convert them into leads and sales, and analyze the entire marketing process.

“The fundamental way that people shop, learn, and buy has changed radically in the last few years. HubSpot helps transform the way businesses market from outbound marketing (cold calls, email blasts, and direct mail) to inbound marketing (Google, blogs, social media, mobile, etc.),” said Brian Halligan, co-founder and CEO of HubSpot.

Sequoia Capital has a long history of partnering with founders to help them build long-term, multi-billion dollar companies, including Google, LinkedIn, AdMob, YouTube, Yahoo!, Apple, and Oracle. “We back companies that are transforming their industries,” said Jim Goetz, General Partner at Sequoia Capital. “HubSpot is the emerging category leader in the SaaS marketing sector. Their customer base exceeds that of all the other relevant marketing software companies combined, including Eloqua, Marketo, Genius, and Manticore.”

“Today, every company needs to succeed in search, social, sales, and marketing–I can’t think of a more powerful trifecta than Google, Salesforce.com, and HubSpot. With 4,000 customers, HubSpot is already a clear marketing leader–now, with this new infusion of capital and recognition by Google’s venture arm and Salesforce.com, HubSpot has a great opportunity to separate itself from the pack and become the leading marketing platform in the small and medium business space,” said Brent Leary, co-founder of CRM Essentials.

Google Ventures Partner, Rich Miner (formerly co-founder of Android) said, “We agree with HubSpot’s belief that search engines, social media, and mobile devices have fundamentally changed how businesses should market themselves. We’re thrilled to support their efforts to help thousands of small and medium businesses reach potential customers.”

Dharmesh Shah, co-founder and CTO of HubSpot commented, “We founded the company based on a simple premise: Businesses want an easy-to-use, complete and integrated marketing platform that helps them get more leads and customers. We plan to use this new capital to further invest in this ambitious vision and further our existing lead in the marketing software category.”

Surface Encounters

Source: Detroit Red Wings' Todd Bertuzzi won't face further league discipline for hit on Ryan Johnson of Chicago Blackhawks

Red Wings forward Todd Bertuzzi won't face any further league discipline after his elbowing penalty and game misconduct against Chicago Blackhawks forward Ryan Johnson, a source told ESPN.com Tuesday morning.

Surface Encounters

Jon Stewart Calls Out NBC News For Not Reporting on GE's $0 Tax ...

On Friday, The New York Times reported that General Electric paid no U.S. federal income tax in 2010, despite earning $14.2 billion in profits. While.

Surface Encounters

LOTS OF BAD NEWS AND STOCKS STILL SURGE: Here's What You Need To Know

The news only seems to be getting worse at Fukushima. There doesn't appear to have been progress at the nuke plant in ages. TEPCO stock got crushed again, and there are even rumors of the CEO fleeing. That dragged Japanese stocks down ...

Surface Encounters

Editor’s Note: Jim Dalrymple has been writing about Apple for more than 15 years. You can follow him on Twitter @jdalrymple and on his Web site at The Loop.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs on Wednesday introduced the iPad 2 at a special event in San Francisco, taking even more momentum away from its competitors.

I’ve had a lot of people in the last 24 hours tell me that the iPad 2 isn’t as revolutionary as the first generation device. Yes, that’s true. But not every device a company releases has to be or can be revolutionary.

Apple has released three revolutionary products in the last decade alone: iPod, iPhone and iPad. I really can’t think of any products from Apple’s competitors that fit in the revolutionary category in that same time period.

People also said that Apple wasn’t very forthcoming with the specs of the iPad 2. Again, that’s true, but there’s a good reason for that—nobody cares.

Well, some people care. Those of us who are geeks care about specs. However, have you ever noticed that when you sit with your non-geek friends and start listing off specs their eyes glaze over and they rest their chin in their hand.

That’s because they couldn’t care less.

The iPad 2 is no slouch either. It lost one-third of the thickness of the previous generation, and therefore it is one-third less than the size of the iPad competitors too. It also has new technologies like a gyro built-in that will launch another round of cool apps.

Yesterday’s iPad 2 announcement wasn’t about the geeks—it was about all the other people who will buy an iPad. What those people want to know is “what can I do with it?”

If it fits into their lifestyle, most people are good with that. Apple showed many ways how the iPad 2 can fit into your lifestyle.

From the very beginning, Apple was very smart with how it marketed the iPad. The first thing it did was get the device into businesses and promote the fact that it could be used to get work done. And it was quite successful with that.

In an analyst call in October 2010, Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer said the iPad was already being used in 65 percent of Fortune 100 companies. That was four months ago and the iPad has grown since then, so we can only imagine where that number is now.

This strategy allowed Apple to do two things. If it came out with the iPad and pushed the gaming capabilities of the device, the business world would have looked at it as a toy. That would have certainly meant slower adoption. It also allowed them to work on some consumer software, two of which we saw yesterday.

In addition to the iPad 2, Jobs also unveiled iMovie and GarageBand for the iPad. This is what people want to know about—what can I do with the iPad that’s exciting and new.

Obviously, creating movies and being able to edit and share them with friends and family is a very popular thing to do these days. iMovie makes that easy.

Creating music, whether a novice or pro is also a cool thing to do. GarageBand is a great app to get that done and you can move your projects to your Mac and continue working on them.

It’s not just about the hardware. Apple delivers the whole experience that nobody else can. Jobs said yesterday that there are 65,000 apps on its App Store specifically designed for the iPad. That’s a lot of things you can do.

If you think Apple’s competitors are jumping for joy because the iPad 2 isn’t revolutionary, I believe you are wrong. I think they’re scared. Yesterday, they figured out Apple’s strategy too, but a little too late.

Editor’s Note: Jim Dalrymple has been writing about Apple for more than 15 years. You can follow him on Twitter @jdalrymple and on his Web site at The Loop.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs on Wednesday introduced the iPad 2 at a special event in San Francisco, taking even more momentum away from its competitors.

People also said that Apple wasn’t very forthcoming with the specs of the iPad 2. Again, that’s true, but there’s a good reason for that—nobody cares.

That’s because they couldn’t care less.

Yesterday’s iPad 2 announcement wasn’t about the geeks—it was about all the other people who will buy an iPad. What those people want to know is “what can I do with it?”

If it fits into their lifestyle, most people are good with that. Apple showed many ways how the iPad 2 can fit into your lifestyle.

In addition to the iPad 2, Jobs also unveiled iMovie and GarageBand for the iPad. This is what people want to know about—what can I do with the iPad that’s exciting and new.

Obviously, creating movies and being able to edit and share them with friends and family is a very popular thing to do these days. iMovie makes that easy.

Creating music, whether a novice or pro is also a cool thing to do. GarageBand is a great app to get that done and you can move your projects to your Mac and continue working on them.

Surface Encounters

Surface Encounters

What’s affecting me, my clients and other small-business owners this week.

THE QUAKE IN JAPAN, A GOOFBALL IN VENEZUELA Japanese earthquake damage is estimated at $310 billion and could be the costliest natural disaster ever. Japanese exports suffer. Kate Rogers of Fox revisits how to protect your business from catastrophe. “Small-business owners can determine if they should be seeking disaster coverage by weighing their investment in the business itself, among other factors. If the business is the sole form of income, the risk is much greater than if it is a hobby or part-time project.” Elsewhere around the world, the war industry gets a boost in Libya. And Hugo Chávez of Venezuela says capitalism may have destroyed life on Mars.

REAL ESTATE FALLS, JOBS RISE Mark Thoma says commodity prices are increasing because of world demand. A small-business owner in Georgia is trying not to pass on the cost of high gas prices. Detroit’s population declines 25 percent. Existing-home sales fall to the lowest on record. Meredith Whitney, an investment adviser, says, “Unless the government comes out with a 50-year mortgage, this market is in trouble longer term.” Gallup’s job-creation index is the highest since September 2008. Durable goods orders fall.

ANNE HATHAWAY AND WARREN BUFFETT The Fed earns $79 billion and predicts that the recovery is taking hold. Nonetheless, one of its officials warns that the United States is approaching insolvency. Meanwhile, Warren E. Buffett predicts growth but some think his company’s stock is buoyed by Anne Hathaway. Household balances sheets continue to improve. Scott Grannis says “the Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey came in very strong. It hasn’t been this strong since the economic boom times of the early 1980s. It’s very difficult to ignore the mounting evidence of a strong economic recovery.” Architect billings increased slightly in February.

DEFICIT THRILLS The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget is thrilled to see 64 senators calling for comprehensive deficit reduction. But Stan Collender, a budget expert, isn’t thrilled at all: “Does a letter that is so vanilla that it could have been written at any time over the past 40 years really indicate any movement on the current budget debate?” James Pethokoukis of Reuters says he thinks President Obama’s budget is wildly dangerous.

A NEW DEFINITION OF SMALL BUSINESS Timothy F. Geithner says that American small businesses need greater access to capital to spur innovation. The Small Business Administration, facing even more cuts, is for the first time in more than 25 years proposing to change the way it defines small businesses. JPMorgan Chase says it will cease its debit card rewards program because of new legislation that would restrict fees. Missouri gets $27 million in incentives for small-business growth. The Small Business Savings Account Act makes its way through Congress.

TAKING CREDIT The health care legislation celebrates its first anniversary and Ezra Klein defends it by saying, “Is it a perfect piece of legislation? Not even close. Will everything work as expected? Almost certainly not. But for all its flaws, it’s a good law. And it’s worth trying.” Many small businesses are still not taking advantage of the health care tax credit.

TECHNOLOGY UPGRADES A Google project manager pitches cloud computing: “Web-based software is much less costly for buyers than traditional software, and programmers can be so much more innovative, that it’s worthwhile for an entrepreneur to say, O.K., let’s start from scratch.” Paul Mah, an information technology expert, gives us eight reasons to upgrade to Internet Explorer 9. Firefox 4 is released. Microsoft jumps to second in video search and introduces a new PC tool for small business. Netflix suffers an outage. BlackBerry’s tablet is scheduled to arrive in April. AT&T buys T-Mobile but not for the reason you think. And boy. has computer technology come a long way in 10 years.

THE GROWING APPS MARKET Information Week reports that 38 percent of small- and medium-size businesses depend on mobile apps. Amazon introduces an Android app store, and Apple is not pleased. Minda Zetlin of Inc. asks if you should make a tablet app for your business: “The answer is likely a yes if one, your product or service is one where having tablet access could benefit customers; and two, your customers are the type who use tablets.” Just in time: a flood of royal wedding apps.

SPEAKING OF THE BIG WEDDING General Electric releases a much-needed William and Kate refrigerator. Jack Daniels introduces a new product — perhaps to help us forget the royal wedding. Danny Wong gives us three winning ideas to consider. A dating site features a new single man every day. Score plans an e-business learning Web site for small business. Small Business Television is rebranding itself and has introduced a new Web site. Small Business Opportunities magazine is doing the same. A small business introduces its first electric car. Sales of e-books have doubled. The group buying industry is projected to grow to $2.7 billion this year.

TWITTER’S TAX BREAKS Casey Hibbard explains how one company used social media to make $300,000 in a weekend. Robert Scoble discovers the future of work: “Just when we thought we figured out the new ’social enterprise’ market along comes Convofy.” Twitter shows San Francisco’s businesses how to save a bundle on taxes. A one-legged wrestler shows us how to become a national champ.

IT’S GOOD TO BE GREEN A woman in Canada gets a standing ovation for being green. The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce holds its green marketing event on Wednesday. The Clinton Global Initiative holds its university conference this week with a focus on entrepreneurship and a live webcast.

ADVICE FOR SXSW: HAND OUT PILLOWS The Global Entrepreneurship Congress meets in Shanghai this week. April 2 is International Pillow Fight Day. The South By Southwest conference: as seen from a bunch of social media video bloggers — which is yet another reason I won’t attend next year. American Airlines offers a big promo for California business travelers. John Jantsch wants to know the worst business advice you ever received. A third-base coach gives life advice.

SEARCHING FOR HELP WITH SEARCH An American Express survey finds that more than half of small-business owners say they need help with search-engine marketing. A video about why it’s not important to go viral goes viral. Dharmesh Shah shares a few low-cost advertising ideas for start-ups and cautions readers to “think of advertising not as a long-term traffic strategy but as a testing tool to improve your Web site and find out more about your ideal visitor.” An advertising blog discusses how to develop a relationship with the media. Lucy Thornton comes up with a few good marketing themes for April.

A 100-MILLION-MEMBER NETWORK LinkedIn officially reaches 100 million members. Seems like a good time to read the co-founder’s 10 rules for entrepreneurial success.

TRIED TALKING? Whitson Gordon of Lifehacker gives us his top 10 tricks for working while on the go. Example: “Whether it’s that old, dead iPod or the smartphone you’re already carrying with you, you probably have gigs of unused storage lying around waiting to be filled with portable apps, files and other digital travel necessities.” Melanie Brooks of Workawesome.com explains why she uses a leather day planner instead of a smartphone. Greg Schinkel warns against hiding behind our keyboards: “Before you hit ‘reply to all’ and send back a zinger to someone who maligned you, stop and go talk to the person.”

THIS WEEK’S AWARDS

BEST WAY TO GET YOUR CUSTOMERS TO LOVE YOU Ben Yoskovitz talks about the benefits of delighting your customers: “The rewards are immense. Loyal, rabid fans tweet shamelessly about how incredible you are, how valuable your Web application is and how successful your start-up will be.”

BEST WAY TO MARKET WITHOUT A BUDGET Shisha Dublin-Green explains how to market without a marketing budget: “Form an alliance: if you have a hair salon that’s mostly frequented by women with young children and elderly women, you can offer a service whereby you arrange to do their grocery shopping whilst they’re in the salon. You may decide to form an alliance with a local reputable grocer or delivery service to provide this for your customers. This could also be a way to reach out to new customers via your local grocer.”

BEST ADVICE FOR BOOTSTRAPPERS The Smart Bear says that the things money cannot buy are still the most valuable things: “Show proof of your ability to master the things money cannot buy — your ability to learn, change and improve.”

THIS WEEK’S QUESTION: How do you bring in customers without spending a lot? We do free webinars every month.

Gene Marks owns the Marks Group PC, a Bala Cynwyd, Pa., consulting firm that helps clients with customer relationship management. You can follow him on Twitter.

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Surface Encounters

Jon Stewart Calls Out NBC News For Not Reporting on GE's $0 Tax ...

On Friday, The New York Times reported that General Electric paid no U.S. federal income tax in 2010, despite earning $14.2 billion in profits. While.

Surface Encounters

Surface Encounters

Surface Encounters

Small Business News: Social Media Brand

What is your social media brand? Do you have one? Sure, many small business owners and entrepreneurs are coming around to the enormous importance of social.

Surface Encounters

Making Money Fast

While T-Mobile is soon to be called AT&T-Mobile because of the recent acquisition by AT&T they are still going to be pushing hard with new and upcoming devices. Reports are saying that it will be business as usual and they will continue to play hard-ball with the competition. Making things even better for everyone, they just announced the new G2x, a Google Experience device that is made by LG. Today is the announcement but last week we heard news of an April 20th release.

This is exciting news and I am very happy to hear they will be keeping it up. The move to AT&T will take at least 12-18 months so anyone wanting to upgrade (like me) might as well upgrade if a beautiful phone like the G2x is available. I might get it myself, and knowing me I will upgrade to something else in 4-8 months anyways so the takeover is of no concern for me.

Note that the image on T-mobile.com shows Android 2.2 FroYo on the photo-shopped image. We expect the device to ship with Android 2.3 or 2.4 when it finally is released. For those that don’t know much about the G2x (aka Optimus 2x). It is a sweet phone by LG that will feature top tier specs such as the Nvidia Tegra 2 CPU 1 Ghz dual core chip, a 8MP rear and 1.3MP front camera, 1080p HD recording, HDMI out, a 4″ Display with LG’s bright technology and more.

With T-Mobile still rolling out 4G everywhere and upgrading some locations to the HSPA+ 21 Mbps network. Places such as Chicago, NY, and Las Vegas have just got the new 42 Mbps upgrade. The G2x will be a full 4G device so expect it to be blazing fast. This phone will most definitely be a fast little bugger with 4G, Dual Core, as well as the “Pure Google” OS and I can’t wait to get my paws on it and give it a run for it’s money. We will be sure to update you all with more as it comes in.

T-Mobile and LG Mobile Phones Introduce T-Mobile G2x with Google, a Powerful Gaming and Entertainment 4G Smartphone

T-Mobile’s first smartphone to feature a dual-core processor, the G2x is the latest smartphone to join T-Mobile’s G-series lineup on America’s Largest 4G Network

BELLEVUE, Wash. and SAN DIEGO — March 22, 2011 — T-Mobile USA, Inc. and LG Mobile Phones (LG) today announced the upcoming availability of the T-Mobile® G2x™ with Google™ by LG. The latest 4G smartphone to join T-Mobile’s exclusive line of G-series devices, the G2x is made for speed and mobile entertainment, with built-in support for 4G speeds on America’s Largest 4G Network™, an NVIDIA Tegra 2 mobile processor with dual-core CPU, brilliant 4-inch capacitive touch screen display and preloaded content, such as Need For Speed™ SHIFT HD.

―More consumers than ever are turning to their smartphones to stay entertained wherever they are with access to their favorite video games, TV programs and more,‖ said Andrew Sherrard, senior vice president, marketing, T-Mobile USA. ―By combining the latest innovative hardware and preloaded content with our 4G network and the power of the dual-core processor, the G2x offers the mobile gaming and entertainment experience our customers crave.‖

―The move into dual-core technology is the next big leap forward in mobile technology creating a new superphone segment,‖ said Tim O’Brien, vice president of marketing, LG Mobile Phones. ―These super-powered processors will allow both developers and users to utilize the unmatched speed and power in multitasking, multimedia and functionality never before realized in a mobile handset.

The G2x will keep customers entertained with access to preloaded games and applications, including the following:

• Need for Speed™ SHIFT HD, developed by Electronic Arts (EA), is an award-winning, authentic racing game that combines the true driver’s experience with real-world physics, pixel-perfect car models, and a wide range of authentic race tracks.

• DTS Ultra Mobile™, which includes two innovative audio technologies – DTS Envelo™ and DTS Boost™ – for a premium surround sound experience. When listening to music or playing games on the T-Mobile G2x, customers will enjoy rich, enhanced sound that adds depth, dimension and volume levels that are robust without distortion.

• A demo of Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance – N.O.V.A., developed by Gameloft, is a fast-paced sci-fi action game in which players operate as Kal Wardin, an elite soldier established to protect humanity from alien threats.

• T-Mobile TV, offering live and on-demand TV including news, sports and full-length entertainment, plus full episodes of your favorite shows.

• Zinio eReader, the largest online newsstand, enabling customers to shop for, search inside, read, share and save digital content in new ways with more than 75,000 digital magazines from 26 countries.

• T-Mobile Video Chat powered by Qik™, enabling video conversations with friends and family through T-Mobile’s network and Wi-Fi.

Developed by graphics powerhouse NVIDIA, each CPU in the Tegra 2 processor runs at a speed of 1GHz and boasts low power consumption and high performance for playing video and audio. Combined with T-Mobile’s lightning-fast 4G network, the G2x delivers a fast Web browsing experience, smooth game play, instantaneous touch response and seamless multitasking between applications for a compelling mobile entertainment experience.

In addition, the G2x will include NVIDIA’s Tegra Zone application, which provides quick access to games optimized for the Tegra 2’s dual-core architecture, which is built to handle the performance requirements of mobile games that use PC and console quality graphics features.

The G2x comes equipped with an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera with LED flash and autofocus, and a front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera paired with the preloaded T-Mobile Video Chat application powered by Qik for staying in touch with family and friends. With the phone’s 1080p high-definition (HD) video recorder and DLNA compatibility, G2x customers can capture video and wirelessly connect to a compatible HD TV or other DLNA device for streaming full HD video content or enjoying a console-like gaming experience through HDMI mirroring, taking advantage of the phone’s accelerometer and gyro sensor.

Powered by a stock version of the Android™ 2.2 operating system, the G2x offers access to more than 150,000 applications available on Android Market™ and integration with Google services such as Google Voice™, Voice Actions™ from Google, Google Goggles™, Google Search™, Gmail™, Google Maps™ with Places and Navigation, YouTube™, Google Talk™, Google Earth™ and more.

The G2x features smartphone essentials such as easy access to personal and work e-mail, including support for Microsoft® Exchange e-mail, contacts and calendar, social networking, and instant messaging. The G2x also includes Swype® for easy text input, 8GB of internal memory with a microSD card slot with support for expandable memory up to 32GB, Stereo Bluetooth® 2.1, built-in 3.5mm headphone jack, Adobe® Flash® Player support and a music player.

The T-Mobile G2x with Google is expected to be available nationwide later this spring at T-Mobile retail stores and online at http://www.t-mobile.com.

Credit card giant Visa has announced a new payment service for U.S. consumers set to launch in the second half of 2011. The new offering closely mimics services offered by PayPal, allowing users with a Visa-branded credit, debit, or pre-paid account to transfer money amongst each other. “Consumers in the U.S. will soon be able to receive and send funds to any eligible Visa credit, debit or prepaid account, anywhere in the world,” reads the press release. “By simply entering the recipient’s 16-digit Visa account, email address or mobile phone number, consumers can send funds directly from their bank account to a recipient’s Visa account.” The company has also partnered with payment networks CashEdge and Fiserv, allowing them to integrate their person-to-person payment platforms with the new service. The personal payment program outlined by Visa is already offered outside the U.S. in dozens of different countries. The full press release is after the break.

Visa Moves Beyond the Point-of-Sale – Delivers Personal Payments to U.S. Account Holders

Critical network enhancement, new transaction type, and strategic agreements with CashEdge and Fiserv enable U.S. Visa account holders to pay each other for the first time

SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Visa Inc. (NYSE:V), the global leader in payments, today announced that consumers in the U.S. will soon be able to receive and send funds to any eligible Visa credit, debit or prepaid account, anywhere in the world. The breakthrough service extends the utility of Visa’s network from enabling payments at the point of sale, to enabling consumers to pay one another.

The new Visa personal payments service, which eliminates the inefficiencies of cash and checks for payments between individuals, was made possible through technical enhancements to VisaNet, Visa’s global payments processing network, and through the introduction of a new Visa transaction type that allows financial institutions to accept incoming funds.

Additionally, Visa today announced strategic product agreements with CashEdge Inc. and Fiserv, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV), two of the leading providers of electronic person-to-person payment, account transfer and bill payment services to U.S. financial institutions. Through the agreements, CashEdge and Fiserv will have access to VisaNet, enabling them to integrate the Visa personal payment service into their respective person-to-person platforms – Popmoney® and ZashPay®. This will allow a participating bank’s customers to send money directly to a Visa account.

“For fifty years, Visa has worked to simplify payments at the merchant point of sale; we are now evolving our network capability to make it easier for our account holders to pay one another,” said Jim McCarthy, global head of products at Visa Inc. “Through our agreements with Fiserv and CashEdge, we can accelerate the delivery of new and innovative Visa payments services, and better enable financial institutions to extend these services to customers.”

How it Works

Bank customers of participating financial institutions will have the option to select a Visa account as the destination for funds when making a personal payment. By simply entering the recipient’s 16-digit Visa account, email address or mobile phone number, consumers can send funds directly from their bank account to a recipient’s Visa account. This makes sending money to a niece for her birthday or to a son in college simpler, faster, and more convenient than before.

“Providing a variety of fast, flexible payment options and establishing a large network through which consumers and small businesses can send and receive money are essential if we want them to trade checks and stamps for electronic payments,” said Erich Litch, president of Digital Channels at Fiserv. “Partnering with Visa allows Fiserv to grow not only the number of consumers and small businesses we can reach with the ZashPay service, but the ways we can reach them.”

“We are extremely pleased to be working with Visa on this initiative and leveraging their global network, which not only will allow Popmoney users to send money to recipients around the globe, but also will provide Visa customers with improved access to the convenience and security of Popmoney,” said Neil Platt, Senior Vice President and General Manager, U.S. Banking, CashEdge Inc. “The global market is eager to adopt personal and mobile payments and by partnering with Visa we can help meet this demand.”

Visa personal payments are already offered by financial institutions outside the U.S. with more than 70 programs around the world enabling consumers to send funds to Visa accounts. Availability of the service in the U.S. marks the first time a major payment network has introduced a global requirement for account issuers to accept incoming funds and thus enable a new generation of personal payment services.

The first U.S. financial institutions are expected to make Visa personal payments available to their customers through CashEdge and Fiserv by the second half of 2011.

Tags: global, Payment, PayPal, person-to-person, Press Release, System, transfers, U.S., Visa, VisaNet

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Monday, March 28, 2011

SEO Services Vancouver For any Better Marketing Solution

When you begin your personal website there are many ways you'll have to market it and something the best way is by using Search engine optimization Vancouver if you happen to maintain that area. The SEO or search engine optimization services will be the top method of getting good traffic to your site and for that reason making more sales.

Now, you should know that you won't use SEO service if you're no online business - but then again, if you do not have an online presence if you are an offline business, then you'll not make it very far.

It is a well known proven fact that if you are planning to make it in the offline world you need to have an online presence. This is something that all people are learning the hard way. Something that you ought to also know is the fact that it is not as simple as just setting up the web site and leaving it to do its things.

You can do this in most sorts of ways, but these companies usually take advantage of multiple methods to create an ideal marketing technique online. It is possible to employ these phones write articles for you, post on forums and blogs, create meta tags and meta descriptions, clean up the code, add alt tags to the images plus much more.

It is crucial that you do this because otherwise the company you have worked so difficult for could wind up losing the money. When you have a website you want to create, then you will also use the expertise of an SEO company, which means seo company. What this company does is basically go ahead and take best parts of your website, look into the code, create keywords and write various articles and documents to ensure your website is placed near the top of the list for the major search engines like google.

By doing this the SEO company cannot only improve your traffic, but also ensure that your website is fully optimized for that search engine spiders that'll be brought to it. These spiders are used to analyze your website and put it in a few positions determined on certain keywords.

If you wish to make use of the SEO services Vancouver then all you've got to do is discover the top companies. It's through these how the SEO gets done effectively and efficiently. With so many SEO companies to choose from you need to be certain the main one you are going for is reliable. You ought to be able to request a breakdown of what you want, and the company also needs to be able to tell you know long they've been operating for. This will narrow down the list to reveal the top ones.

SEO Services Offered by Different Vancouver Web Companies

The Vancouver SEO company services are very beneficial for business growth because they provide quality services. If you are planning to create a website for your online business, then you've come to right article when i is going to be explaining below how SEO Vancouver company services can improve your website ranking making it popular.

Before that, you should know what Search Engine Optimization is. It is not that complicated and I'm sure you're going to get a grasp from it after reading my article. The primary goal of SEO is to have more traffic aimed at your website and target audience. It's a good decision to choose a Vancouver SEO company that are experts in this kind of work, which means that your website could be listed in search engines.

There isn't any point in you using a website with no website ranking at all as you won't have any business and profits to outlive. It is a very tough atmosphere available as there are so many online business people just like you, who desire their share of pie. You must be familiar with the fact that nearly 85% of web traffic can be got from web sites.

Whenever a user types inside a keyword or keywords for what he/she wants to know in different sites, these use crawlers to get web-sites using the relevant content and index them based on algorithms. You don't have to be worried about the algorithms which these sites use as that isn't important.

To look in the first page from the search result, you will have to hire professionals and experts who can perform the needful to maintain your website among the good books during these websites. These professionals can optimize your website content to ensure your site gets increased traffic.

When the traffic gets high, it is a sign that you are obtaining a service which will enable you to get more revenues. SEO Vancouver company do the next to make your site appear inside the first page of search results.

Use keywords that are popularly used on search engines like google in your website content.
Possess a website design for the website that is simple because top sites are allergic to flash and weird designs.
Submit your website to directories.
Submit your website to directory websites.
Postings on blogs and forums with back-links for your websites. This is considered as an effective method of getting increased traffic aimed at your website as numerous online users use blogs and forums.

SEO Vancouver company also perform site diagnostics that is an important part in online optimization as research and analysis on finding keywords is the way to start a SEO campaign. So, make sure you choose the best SEO Vancouver company.

Are you looking for more info regarding SEO Vancouver? Visit http://www.seo4vancouver.com/seo-services.asp today!

What to Expect Whenever Getting a Roofer

When the time comes to repair or substitute your homes roof, it's really a daunting job to locate somebody that is qualified to do the job. There are many roofers available, but the ones who'll perform a great job for a sensible cost are not frequently simple to find. If you are in the market for the service provider, use the tips below with regard to interviewing and hiring the correct one.

Interview as well as Consultation

Most roofing companies offer totally free consultation services. This is especially important, since it provides them a chance to assess exactly what your roof needs, and it provides you with an opportunity to evaluate all of them. As with all businesses, believe in intuition about the people you let up on your roofing. No issue exactly how great a contractor's status or even suggestion, he ought to start by presenting a person having a company greeting card. If the contractor occurs looking and talking in an unprofessional manner, most likely the job he is going to perform will also be less than professional. This is not to express that you ought to expect contractors to arrive within suits. They will be hiking in your roof, so the majority of will be dressed in denim jeans and work footwear or sneakers. If the actual contractor seems to be more interested in speaking upon their cell phone while on your roof compared to he's in analyzing your own roof's needs, which may be another indication that he's not the main one for the job. For the legal protection, make sure that the service provider has sufficient liability insurance coverage.

Roofing Evaluation

Anticipate the contractor is going to be going up on your roofing. In fact, any kind of service provider who does not need to increase in your roof to evaluate the issue should be instantly discounted. Those who're seriously interested in their own function may possibly make a sketching of your roof's surface area and tag trouble spots onto it as they go through their evaluation, or even they will take photos or video of the surface while they're up there. This is an extremely essential action, since it enables you to observe exactly what the troubles are and know how they will be set.

Estimation

The next phase will be the written estimate. The service provider will require away his loan calculator and come up with an itemized estimate. Some companies will go out to their vehicle or even truck and write down the suggestion, while others may crunch the amounts for the job prior to you. Once you are because of the suggestion, ensure that you comprehend exactly which products is going to be used, how long the task will require and when you will find any additional or concealed expenses that could arise throughout the restore from the roofing. The contractor should be able to answer all of these questions effortlessly as well as forewarn a person of any extra costs that could be incurred should the roof's ethics end up being damaged within.

After you have obtained a few created estimations from roofers, evaluate exactly what each organization or service provider would like to offer you for the price. Do not necessarily discount the greatest bid, because occasionally the greatest bet will actually function as the service provider who does the job properly. Additionally, be wary associated with bids that are not nearly as expensive others. They might be utilizing substandard items or perhaps be unethical concerning the possibility of hidden expenses. Above all, believe in intuition and opt for the service provider who enables you to feel most comfortable about giving more than your money.

Seven Uyghurs Sentenced to Death

2011-03-23

Critics of the sentences say China has politicized the robberies as acts of terrorism.

AFP

A Uyghur man walks past armed Chinese security forces in Urumqi, July 17, 2009.

Chinese authorities in the northwestern region of Xinjiang have ordered the executions of seven ethnic minority Uyghur men convicted of "violent" crimes, official media said on Wednesday.

The death sentences were handed down by the Supreme People's Court in recent days, according to state media in the regional capital, Urumqi.

The men were accused in connection with three separate attacks late last year in the Silk Road city of Kashgar, according to the news website Urumqi Online.

According to another website, the Xinjiang-based Tianshan news site, Aimaiti Tuheti, Yiming Dawuti, and unnamed "others" killed a security guard at a pedestrian mall as part of a failed Aug. 7 robbery attempt.

In a separate incident on Oct. 12, it said, Nuermaimaiti Aobulikasimu and 11 others broke into a house, bound and killed the couple living in it, and took their possessions.

It said the group also broke into the homes of two brothers, robbed them, and killed six people in a Nov. 11 attack in Kashgar.

The report gave no information about the victims or the schedule for the executions.

Three of the men were sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve, a sentence that is normally commuted to life imprisonment in China's judicial system.

They were convicted of deliberate homicide and armed robbery by the Kashgar Intermediate People's Court in the first instance.

'Strike hard' campaign

A Han Chinese resident of Urumqi surnamed Yang said a reference to "terrorism" in official news reports on the case showed that it was being politicized by the authorities, who have launched a series of "strike hard" campaigns in Xinjiang following deadly ethnic violence in July 2009.

"There is an implied political meaning; that they were somehow engaged in separatist activities or ethnic divisions," said Yang.

Exile Uyghur groups said the trials had been conducted behind closed doors, with scant opportunity for public scrutiny.

"The entire process against these men, from the trial through to the judgment, was opaque," said Dilxat Raxit, spokesman for the Munich-based World Uyghur Congress.

"There was also very little reasonable evidence to convict them on a legal basis, because all the evidence came from one side of the case," he said.

"We strongly condemn the Chinese government for continuing to pursue their policies of ethnic division," said Raxit.

"We are also strongly opposed to the death penalty in this case."

Earlier cases

Last month, the Supreme Court sentenced four Uyghurs to death for alleged involvement in an Aug. 19 bomb attack in Xinjiang’s western Aksu city.

The World Uyghur Congress pointed to concerns over lack of transparency in those cases too.

The Aksu blast left eight people dead, including two of the bombers, and 15 wounded after a man riding a three-wheeled vehicle threw explosives at a group of uniformed patrolmen. Four Uyghurs were arrested shortly after the attack.

State media characterized the cases as acts of terrorism and unrelated to longstanding ethnic tensions between Uyghurs and Han Chinese in the region.

Exiled Uyghur dissident Rebiya Kadeer has warned that attacks like those in Aksu will continue to occur until Beijing addresses the underlying source of tension in the region.

Millions of Uyghurs—a distinct, Turkic minority who are predominantly Muslim—populate Central Asia and Xinjiang.

Uyghurs say they have long suffered ethnic discrimination, oppressive religious controls, and continued poverty and joblessness despite China's ambitious plans to develop its vast northwestern frontier.

Those frustrations erupted in July 2009 in deadly riots that left nearly 200 people dead, by the Chinese government's tally.

At least 26 people, mostly Uyghurs, were sentenced to death in the aftermath of the riots, many of whom have been executed, according to state media.

China is believed to execute more people each year than the rest of the world’s countries combined, although the government does not publish official figures.

Rights groups say Beijing may execute as many as several thousand prisoners annually.

Chinese authorities blame Uyghur separatists for a series of deadly attacks in recent years and accuse one group in particular of maintaining ties to the al-Qaeda terrorist network.

New training scheme

China on Wednesday also announced a training scheme which places ethnic minority graduates from Xinjiang in work elsewhere in China.

Governments of the destination cities will spend 450 million yuan (U.S.$ 69 million) for the program, while Xinjiang will spend 400 million yuan (U.S.$ 61 million), the official Xinhua news agency reported.

The program targets some 60,000 jobless college graduates in Xinjiang, around 80 percent of whom are from ethnic minorities, and 60 percent of whom are women.

However, some commentators see the move as an attempt to assimilate non-Han Chinese into mainstream Chinese culture.

"From the point of view of ethnic minorities, the graduate work scheme is really taking the cream of youth from the minorities and using them to 'further cultural development,'" wrote one ethnic minority user on a popular microblogging service.

"In fact, the culture that is being advanced is Han culture, and this group of young people will have been totally brainwashed," the microblog update said.

An Urumqi resident surnamed Li agreed.

"They have run senior high school schemes like this before during the past few years," he said.

"Whether it's high-schoolers or graduate training programs, these are measures that are aimed at thought control and brainwashing, and the 'Partification' of their education," he said.

Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.

Wikileaks and also the Uyghurs

through holly upon December 20, This year
Henryk Szadziewski, Manager, Uyghur Human Rights Project

If it had been ever uncertain, info obtained by the whistleblower web site, Wikileaks, has verified Chinese government worries more than it's ongoing control of the location this calls Xinjiang, also is known as East Turkestan. The leaked wires from U.S. diplomats demonstrate the actual extent that Chinese authorities make an effort to convince governments globally to adopt it's stance upon problems affecting Uyghurs. The wires additionally display the actual United States' issues and sights concerning the ongoing repressive steps in the region.

Most illuminating of Chinese government stress would be the cables directed to Chinese frustration, or even the specter of Chinese language ire, within the discharge of Uyghur detainees in Guantánamo to 3rd countries. A December Twenty nine, 08 cable television relates exactly how Chinese language Assistant International Reverend Liu Jieyi fulfilled with the Ough.Utes. Ambassador to China to voice Beijing's powerful opposition associated with release in order to any nation other than The far east, which if the U.Utes. did indeed accede to this ask for it would "avoid injury to bilateral relations and to cooperation ‘in important areas'". In addition, a February 2009 cable television describes the way the Chinese Ambassador in order to Kyrgyzstan, Zhang Yannian, regarded the actual possible discharge of Uyghur Guantánamo detainees because "an unfriendly behave toward us" along with a "slap within the face". That the Ough.S. federal government stood firm within not releasing the detainees in order to China illustrates the degree of the politicized nature of the Chinese language judicial system. Genuine concerns over terrorism are understandable, but in the U.Utes. government's view the detainees would most likely face torture as well as delivery if they returned to The far east

Chinese language federal government stress in regard to the Uyghur Guantánamo detainees was not just applied to the actual U.S. federal government, but additionally in order to New Zealand along with a handful of Western governments which were thinking about resettlement. Albania, Indonesia and Finland, in addition to Eu fellow member states all have the symptoms of paid for the actual brunt of Chinese federal government unhappiness. Regarding Germany, that was initially prepared to think about 2 Uyghurs on solely relief reasons, Uyghur Guantánamo instances were less preferable to additional detainees due to the negative effects accepting Uyghurs might have on relations along with China. The May Eight, '09 cable relates exactly how "German Ambassador Michael Schaefer reported that Indonesia had informed China from the U.S. ask for to accept some Uighur detainees held from Guantánamo coupled with been consequently cautioned by The far east of ‘a large burden on bilateral relations' in the event that Germany were to simply accept any kind of detainees".

The actual diplomatic wires additionally discuss the unrest in Urumchi, the regional capital, in This summer '09. A This summer 13, '09 cable talking about mass incidents in The far east says:

"Ethnic riots such as those in Xinjiang July 5-7 as well as in Tibet within March associated with 2008 differ substantially within origin and character from mass incidents, XXXXXXXXXXXX emphasized to PolOff [Political Officer] on XXXXXXXXXXXX. Both present severe trouble for the actual Celebration, XXXXXXXXXXXX said, however the Party management wouldn't hesitate to open fireplace on Uighurs or Tibetans when they deemed it essential to restore order. Mass incidents present a different type of threat, he said, as the management is ‘afraid' to fireplace upon Han rioters for fear of sparking huge public outrage that would turn from the Celebration."

This can be a relaxing viewpoint, especially when 1 considers the evidence offered in two reports launched this season through the Uyghur Human Rights Task (UHRP) as well as Amnesty International that detail eyewitness company accounts from the utilization of lethal live fire towards Uyghur protestors within This summer 2009. In addition, the actual declaration that fire wouldn't be used towards Han Chinese language protestors offers resonances for the various strategy taken through Chinese language protection causes within Urumchi to Han Chinese language direct orders within September '09. During individuals direct orders, then Party Secretary, Wang Lequan, addressed demonstrators, that experienced required he inform them regarding government reactions in order to protection issues. A similar request to satisfy using the Celebration Secretary by Uyghur protesters within This summer was not met.

The broader repercussions from the unrest additionally saw a short dialogue about the effect it might possess upon Iran-China relationships, and on relations along with Sydney after Globe Uyghur Our elected representatives President, Ms. Rebiya Kadeer, talked in the Nationwide Push Club within Canberra within July '09. Within the latter case, china government "privately warn[ed] a major Aussie financial institution which sponsors the National Push Membership to make use of its impact to bar a Kadeer speech there".

The actual U . s . States' issues concerning the scenario within the Uyghur area are available via in the cables. Inside a discussion upon plan direction in Tibet, Ough.Utes. authorities explain that it will end up being not possible with regard to Chinese language frontrunners to consider a softer collection "if they look like doing so under worldwide pressure". The cable television out dated April 16, 08, 30 days following the outbreak of unrest in Tibetan regions, also relayed the observation "that domestic balance continues to be leadership's top priority above all else, meaning there'll ‘almost surely' end up being absolutely no relaxation of the current difficult line on Tibet or perhaps in locations such as Xinjiang." The information included in the cable also storage sheds light about the extreme sensitivity with which the Chinese federal government sights territorial ethics, and the possible spill more than of unrest through Tibet.

The prospect associated with solutions to tensions within Tibet as well as Xinjiang as a result of civil culture tend to be debated inside a February Twenty-four, 08 cable. Whilst suggesting which China's financial success increases it's resistance to democratic change, the cable additionally talks about how Chinese frontrunners see the usefulness of "a limited expansion of municipal society, such as improvements in the rule associated with law and a more powerful part for approved beliefs, NGOs, charities along with other stars in areas that contribute to sociable stability and don't challenge Communist Party rule." This is a significant alternation in considering, that has seen U.Utes. officials market the notion which Chinese language financial improvement, as well as economic relations along with The far east will bring about a progressively democratic society; however, much more belief appears to be put into the grassroots motion than one which begins from the top levels of the Chinese federal government. Nevertheless, the cable television concludes which "[i]n areas for example Tibet and Xinjiang, driving a car of separatism results in tight limitations about the development of civil culture." This approach can be regarded as counter-productive by the official, that shows that the actual U.Utes. federal government "should continue to express...serious issues more than Beijing's human rights report and appeal to China's growing awareness that greater regard for individual rights, spiritual freedom and the guideline associated with law will serve to promote the very improvement and sociable balance that China looks for as well as to enhance China's international image." This type of strategy might consider considerable diplomatic skills thinking about "China's weird concern the United States secretly promotes regime alter as well as ‘separatists' within Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang".

The cables offer understanding of the actual daily business associated with diplomacy that is hardly ever afforded to everyone, and it is interesting to notice the amount of work carried out nowadays upon Uyghur problems. The significance of the part of the us as a keep track of associated with Uyghur individual rights conditions within personal conversations is made obvious, and contrasts using its sensible public position. The staff of the Uyghur Individual Privileges Task is actually well aware of pressure china government exerts upon Uyghur activists; still, the facts associated with Chinese government pressure on it's counterparts is illustrative from the degree which Chinese authorities make an effort to suppress contradictory narratives. With more facts to come from Wikileaks, issues more than Uyghurs may not grab the headlines, however the wires possess get rid of new gentle on the paperwork associated with individual rights conditions within the Uyghur region.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Search Engine Optimization And Article Marketing Will Place You On Page One

Search engine marketing and article promotion are a couple of the most powerful strategies which you can use in promoting your website and get the revenue and success that you need for your internet business. Those two stuff has been around to get a really long time already nevertheless they still still be really effective. Actually, these have helped lots of people free themselves from the traditional means of money-generating options of society.

In this article, I will be showing the ways on how it is possible to properly execute search engine optimization and article marketing for the betterment of your business website. In addition, I will be also discussing the different points you need to look out for if you are using these two online marketing strategies to promote your website and get customers. Despite the fact that marketing with articles and Search engine marketing have been around for a long time already, you need to know that the trends and choices concerning how they are carried out are continually changing, and that's why you have to stay up to date with these items through the help of Search engine optimization forum sites so that you can quickly adjust and discover ways to make your strategies more efficient.

In the past submitting articles to different websites was previously so simple yet the effects that they produce for web-sites was really powerful. However, things have changed a whole lot today. Currently submitting exactly the same article to several websites is no longer a good suggestion because engines like google have now changed to some huge extent in how they rank pages. They will no longer rank contents which can be identical like they used to in the past. This really is among the best samples of changes that occur in internet marketing trends. This change has given birth to wide plethora of methods that online marketers are using today. Nearly all of internet marketers now produce articles and publish them in really popular article directory sites and watch for targeted visitors to make their pages. Perhaps that most reliable Seo strategy that can be used. Aside from being effective, and also this delivers positive outcomes regularly. The only problem with this strategy is the caliber of traffic you will get out of this will not be so good if you do not do proper keyword research beforehand and rehearse in-links. You need for attending these two things prior to deciding to submit your posts so that you won't wind up losing large amounts of targeted prospects. Because of this you have to practice good levels of diligence if you would like your advertising initiatives to work.

Apart from articles, you may also use writing a blog, that is another really powerful kind of online marketing strategy today because it is highly popular with search engines. Within this technique, you can choose to produce a single blogging site that specifically targets your selected market otherwise you can give rise to other weblogs which can be called experts inside your niche.

Learn effective Vancouver seo techniques in the Vancouver SEO website.

Roofing Companies Vancouver Washington

There are numerous things to consider when looking for a roofing contractor. Price, experience, along with referrals are a handful of the things you'll probably be concerned about. Read on for even other great ideas.

Finding a Roofers

Before looking for a roofing contractor, be sure you have a general idea of the job that you need to have inked. By no means must you be an expert. If you have a new Roof Certificate, read it completely to find the information about your current roof. If you do not have a Roof Certificate, talk about documents signed during final to locate your homes Inspection sheet. These paperwork should give you everything you need to find out about your roof. Just before contacting the roofing contractor, you ought to have a list of demands and specs to help you decide exactly who is suitable for your roofer project. Make sure you write down each potential roofer contractor's answers along with check these against one another. If you'll find any discrepancies, be sure to notice this along with take this into consideration when creating a final decision. There are no surefire ways to choose a roofing contractor, in case you take heed to the info provided, your odds of a successful roof covering project are usually greatly increased.

One of the best strategies to finding a roofing contractor is by person to person. Try requesting a friend or relative who may have had roofing work performed, and had been satisfied with the task. Get the name of the business and their particular contact info. If you have not sure of mouth area referrals, attempt first searching in the cell phone book and internet-based. A large advertisement or expensive website is not necessarily an illustration of the quality of work, but tend to be a good tool pertaining to measuring just how long and devotion they have placed in their respected profession. Additionally, try discovering current worksites and appearance at the covering work that may be done or perhaps the process of becoming finished. If you're visually satisfied, ask the home manager to the name with the roofing contractor as well as their speak to information.

Background Research

When looking for any roofing contractors, it can be imperative to initial do your current background research. Costly in the yellow pages or on the Internet is a suitable place to find a builder, finding pertinent information on these types of businesses is going to be found in many areas. 1st, check with areas like the Better Business Bureau, city, condition, and local public records, and local accreditation agencies. Inquire your roofer if they are a part of any roofer associations. These precautions may mitigate the risks. In addition ask them what sorts of roofing they will specialize in. In addition ask your current roofing contractor concerning any warranties they offer on their installed roofing. Find out what precautions they decide to use avoid injury done to other parts of the home by simply workers. Items such as gutters, home siding, and chimneys are close in proximity and therefore susceptible to unintentional damages.

Make sure all of this details are included in your composed contract. Check if you need a roofer permit and/or agreement from your house owners association in advance. These people will let you know that is responsible for getting these permits and permissions. If it is the duty of the roofer, also have the idea included as part of your contract. Whether it is your responsibility, get stated permits along with permissions collated with the estimated roof covering project and have it clearly posted or even readily available.

Certification and Recommendations

Roofing Companies are not required to be accredited in all says. Contact nearby licensing companies that govern general construction contractors for a list of demands. Once you have received the requirements, make a list of in depth questions to ask your current potential roofer. This simple list should instantly help you to weed out the qualified from the untrained roofing building contractors. Qualified building contractors should be able to quickly answer questions or tell you that they have to do further research ahead of giving any definitive response.

Even if a roofing contractor has all essential licensing, you need to ask to see pictures of completed roofer jobs as well as speak to satisfied clients. Have a very list of queries handy to inquire about recent clientele, such as the nature of the work, timeliness, and all round satisfaction. Be sure these are the latest clients and also cross reference if possible. In the matter of commercial roofing, make sure that the roofing contractor is bonded. Checking out these personal references is another added measure of safety to define the list associated with potential covering contractors.

Seo Through Article marketing

Article marketing can be a very powerful type of Search engine optimization for the company websites. Quality written articles have the ability to enhance your websites SERP and add quality to your company website. Writing informative keyword rich articles is important in gaining new backlinks for your business website. Articles can and should be written on topics which can be unique in your business or industry. The articles can discuss a multitude of issues and ideas within your industry. Articles that supply your reader which has a resource will always be probably the most popular and a lot likely forms of articles which will lead to backlinks to your website.

Focus your posts on the potential readers or customers. Seo articles should address real questions which can be asked by current or best buyers. Each article you're writing to suit your needs company should include detailed analysis and Search engine optimization keywords which can help associate your site using the content seen in the website. Focus your articles on up to 3 keywords , nor stray from their website. Consistency is essential when writing Search engine optimization articles. If you're writing about Vancouver Search engine optimization be sure your continue to come up with information strongly related the keyword.

Give each one of your Seo Articles an engaging Title that can encourage people to see and bookmark your posts. Ideally, the articles you are writing will end up as links from other websites that are much like yours. This can help increase the power of each link and will assist in your SERP. Ensure that you end each article with a keyword anchored link (see Easy Small company Seo). This link will assist you to increase your rankings on the internet and also other major engines like google for your keyword attached to the link. Submit the articles to some free article directory and Voila! Before long, your website might be on the first page of Google.

Thanks for reading. Can't wait to visit your Search engine optimization articles!

Vancouver Seo Agency Aims For Google Places With Total Achievement

When people type in looking term looking for a business in their local area, they will find that Google places and Google maps is showing listings of local businesses. It is rather eminent to allow them to be optimized and listed on this first page should they desire to generate business. Vancouver SEO companies must be educated of this type for their clients.

There appears to be a large amount of new Vancouver SEO companies starting, simply because the need is there. Finding a search engine optimization firm containing the client's best interest at heart might be tedious. The number of keywords do they optimize for? What are the keywords and the corresponding amount of searches? Do they learn how to optimize for Google places? Etc. Search engine optimization is the business of landing towards the top and Maxim Edge can get you there.

"My wife and that i started our Vancouver Search engine optimization company by accident. We've learned with the school of hard knocks and learning from mistakes how to use the web to showcase any business. We began with the website, then your competition, and then of course building quality back-links to push an internet site up in the rankings. It isn't pushing some control and watching what goes on type of business. It takes a lot of effort, plenty of research and a lot of commitment. We work hard for our clients and now we are very satisfied with a high retention rate." Randy Neale says.

For additional information on Michael, a Vancouver SEO company, please visit their site today at seo4vancouver.com

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Portraits of Uyghur People

In the middle of the desert landscapes of Taklamakan, in the north-western part of China, the land of Xinjiang is a least populated province while it covers close to a sixth of the nation's area. Having resisted while in centuries the chinese domination, Xinjiang, or Old Turkestan, fell into within the Chinese Han domination in 1949. From then, its population is mainly Uyghurs and Turkish - speaking System.

Islamic especially, the Uyghur people have a solid religious identification that, in specific, allowed them to maintain a solid difference in opposition to the Chinese invader. In fact, the Uyghur Empire of Mongolia knew a excellent civilization, until its absorption by the Mongolian Empire in the XIIIth century.

While in their own history, the Uyghur People successively adopted Shamanism, Manicheism, Buddhism and the Nestorianism before finally converting to Islam when the Arab conquerors beat the Chinese in year 751 BC., thus beginning the way to the Islamization of the entire Central Asia.

Under the influence of the beliefs which they taken, Uyghur People taken successively, and sometimes in a competing way, a great number of written forms (turco-runic, brahmi, tokharien, soghdien) before developing their own graphic system.

The arrival of Islam was a great change mainly because it was accompanied by the assimilation of the Uyghur land in the immense Turco-Mongolian and Islamic Empire. Thus, the descendants of Genghis Khan slowly replaced their writing by a Arabo-Persan alphabet, still used at present.

If their writing, their language and their religion mark a real big difference with the culture of Chinese Han, Uyghur People also differ from their characteristic, so aspect of Central Asia's people. A matt skin, eyes representing a whole pallet of colors, from black to deep blue, features directing out to the Mongolian, Turkish or Uzbek origins of these men and these women.

For a few years, China has included the proper identity of these remote people, though they represent only 9 million inhabitants - a little for this particular big country. Thus, the Uyghurs are now part of the fifty six ethnic minority groups having been well known in an official way by the People's Republic of China.

This particular statute will allow them a few rights in a country exactly where their difference is very often repressed. Thus, Uyghur people escape the "single child policy" and their language is known as the second official language in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

The integration of the Uyghur people and their culture in the People's Republic of China, however, appears really illusory. The presence of all-natural resources in Xinjiang, and its area with locations recognized as sensitive, strongly motivated the government to accelerate the sinicization of this area. Million of Han thus came to settle in this new Chinese eldorado, monopolizing the more significant responsibility job opportunities.

In reaction to this true will to assimilate the Uyghur people into the Chinese culture, an independent party like East Turkistan Islamic Movement(ETIM) was born in the early 1990.

Saying more freedom, but primarily the acceptance of their true identity, this movement was severely repressed by the power authorities in place Xinjiang.

The situations of September 11, 2001, were the perfect occasion for the Chinese government to justify true reprisals: they declared the "Uyghur freedom fighters" as dangerous terrorists linked to Al Quaida because of their Muslim origins and their proximity with Pakistan and Afghanistan... However, the terrible repression which followed did not calm down the anger. The Uyghurs population continues today to proudly maintain their identification and their tradition , though they become a minority on their own land.

For further information about Uyghur people, you can visit a Uyghur website called Uyghur News at http://www.uyghurnews.com

ation|Web optimization|Website seo|Seo optimization|Seo optimisation} Expert Advice - Getting Ahead Using SEO

In relation to success, one of several mot significant things is planning far ahead of time. Much like in whatever else, preparation is the vital thing. If you prepare with determination selecting able to get before competition, even the world of web business. Websites nowadays want to do their utmost to get in advance of competition for their targeted key words through meticulous planning. Search engine optimisation is the greatest tool which you can use in order to achieve your goals and fortunately, the Search engine optimization expert advice and tips that were discussed here will make things easier for you.

Search engine optimization is essential today

One of the primary reasons why thousands of people today are searching for Seo expert consultancy is because it's one of the few strategies that often work today online. Search engine optimization can be be extremely effective when it comes to getting a higher site ranking on search engines like yahoo, increasing the quantity of visitors on location and helping the level of profits and purchasers. Although most of the people and a bit of good Search engine optimization expert would explain how it is a lengthy and complicated process, Seo can be a skill that could be learned. In the event you employ the help of an expert or if you use tricks used by experts for his or her own sites, it would be simpler for you to understand the concept and put it to use to your website.

Taking a search engine optimization course

Several businessmen and internet based website owners today are taking Seo certification from experts today because it turns out to be quite ideal for them. There are lots of short certification courses on Search engine optimization currently available which can show you the basic concepts and supply you a grip about them. These trainings are generally given by those who find themselves experts inside field. Through training, these experts share their knowledge while using course participants, make them learn the essential methods for better optimization of internet sites which will help the crooks to promote their business. These courses can show them niche research so that they would be able to select the most beneficial keyword and acquire a better chance to position higher on the search engines.

Search engine optimization training could be very helpful

Through Search engine optimization training you will be able to learn several concepts and tips like placing keywords inside right invest the content of web sites. Another topic that may be often tackled by such courses is linking strategy mainly because it will also help you rank higher. These Search engine optimization trainings and courses may be taken either online or even in the traditional format in classrooms, determined by your own time and preferences. It will be possible to help your website and enjoy better traffic and profits using the concepts which might be taught by these courses by an Seo expert.

The author is fulltime Seo Expert, you can know more about him and services they supply on their website http://www.seo4vancouver.com/.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Money Making Websites

Consider the plight of media agency executive today: The holding company that owns the place is hell-bent on replacing your team with an automated trading desk. Your clients (when they’re not taking dinners with the shop that wants to unseat you) are holding you responsible for getting them great deals on only the best websites. In the next 18 months, many of the people on your team are going to (a) get poached by another shop, (b) take a job with a media sales organization, or (c) finally realize that grad school is where they belong. There are 14 messages on your voice mail and 62 in your e-mail inbox from reps who just want to “check in” on this or that account or brief you on their new site redesign. And all the while, friends and relatives who watch Mad Men think you’re doing nothing but gourmet dinners and courtside seats.

Madison Avenue needs a friend right about now.

The Drift is proudly underwritten this week by Krux Digital, which gives websites a platform to safeguard, manage, and make responsible use of consumer data signatures across multiple devices, sources, and formats. Find out how.

Some media sellers might think this is the perfect time to turn their backs on the agency. They would be sorely mistaken, and they’d be leaving tremendous opportunity – and money – on the table if they did. Now is the time for a new creative level of engagement with the media agency. It’s something that the sales leader and the sales rep can commit to, measure and execute. And if pursued consistently and well, it will lead to good things. Here’s the roadmap:

Focus on the Agency’s Relationship with its Clients. Every shop is trying to differentiate itself; every media exec wants a personal victory with her client. Constantly challenge your team to consider whether and how you’re making a difference in these relationships. But before you can do that, you have to…..

Cultivate Those who Actually Talk to the Client. Most digital sales teams spend countless hours and entertainment dollars currying favor with media buyers and RFP jockeys. We don’t get to see the people at agencies who really own the client relationships because we don’t….

Have a Point of View on Creating Value and Growing Budget. Face it: Most of us are simply focused on helping agencies spend budgets. We’re just a bunch of birds in the nest, all crying for the same worm. All we usually ask senior agency executives is “help us get more.” Instead we should be focused on how we can….

Give the Agency a Strategy and Resource Boost. “We want to grow our relationship with this agency, help you extend your services and help you grow the budgets you touch by generating and fostering ideas. But we can’t do that until you help us….”

Get Off the RFP Crack Pipe and Get Greater Visibility. I know, this is bitter medicine. Working the RFP machine was a good strategy for many years, but it’s just not any more. Many reps and sales teams are victims of their own past success, and can’t envision an immediate future where enterprise selling skills and long-term relationship incubation are needed. The faint ringing you hear is your wake up call.

Take responsibility for your own behavior in the agency relationship. Operate from a place of generosity and vision. Teach your people to be 70% of the relationship that they want with the agency. The shops you call on will define themselves based on how they respond. Those that reject the fresh approach I’ve outlined above may indeed not be worth the effort. But if you reject it yourself, than you’ve got no one to blame.

Leading a sales organization? Over 50 of your peers will be gathering in New York on March 16th at the Upstream Seller Forum, the only industry event just for sales leaders. Request your invitation today or call us at 802.985.2500 to reserve your spot.

The Privatization Of Public Data Sets A Bad Precedent

from the please-make-it-stop dept

Last summer we wrote about a troubling lawsuit filed by a company called Public Engines against a competitor called Report See. Each company runs their own open website that reports crime data. Public Engines runs CrimeReports.com. Report See runs SpotCrime.com. They have very different business models, however. CrimeReports is ad free. It makes its money because Public Engines signs expensive deals with local police departments around the country to take their crime data and format it for better use. SpotCrime, on the other hand, whose business model is based on advertising, collects whatever data it can from public sources, including police departments who publish the data, newspaper crime reports... and, at one point, the data it found on CrimeReports.com.

It's this bit that got CrimeReports.com so upset. It filed a lawsuit alleging a whole bunch of things, all of which seemed pretty questionable. There was a Computer Fraud and Abuse Act claim, which is the anti-hacking law that has been abused quite a lot recently. But there was no "hacking" going on here, as the data was (a) public data and (b) posted on an open website. Claiming that it's hacking to get the data is simply ridiculous. Then there was a breach of contract claim, but, of course, Public Engines has no contract with Report See, so again it's difficult to see this claim making any sense. Then things get bizarre. Public Engines claimed that SpotCrime violates a cyber-terrorism law. That one is so ridiculous it doesn't even need a response. On top of that there were false advertising and the once-again popular "hot news" claims -- again, neither of which makes any sense. There was no false advertising, and this is data, not news, so there's no hot news claim.

Unfortunately, however, it looks like the legal costs were a bit much for Report See and SpotCrime, and it finally agreed to settle the lawsuit, and drop the data, rather than get a ruling on the legality of it. While this doesn't set any sort of legal precedent, there are reasonable worries that it can and will create significant chilling effects in similar situations.

But the even larger issue is how this kind of privatization of public data is being allowed, and these kinds of ridiculous lawsuits create a path for these private companies to make such public data proprietary even though the courts have long rejected the idea of copyright on data collections. Without copyright, Public Engines was still able to break out a whole list of absolutely silly legal claims, and they were enough to get Report See to back down. This should be terrifying for anyone who believes in the importance of transparency in government and public data.

Oh, and one final point, just to ward off anyone who thinks that this data "needs" to be privatized in order to get it released to the public in the first place. That's simply ridiculous. First of all, it's entirely possible for police departments to figure out ways to release the data to the public directly, and I'm surprised that standard reporting software hasn't popped up yet, but I imagine it's only a matter of time. Second, the idea that CrimeReports.com couldn't compete against SpotCrime.com if it couldn't keep the data proprietary is simply ridiculous. First of all, if you compare the two websites directly, it's not hard to see that CrimeReports' website is simply nicer and much more user friendly. There's no reason it can't compete (and compete strongly) even if SpotCrime is copying its data.

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Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Making Money Guide

Source: Detroit Red Wings' Todd Bertuzzi won't face further league discipline for hit on Ryan Johnson of Chicago Blackhawks

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Monday, March 28, 2011

SEO Services Vancouver For any Better Marketing Solution

SEO Services Offered by Different Vancouver Web Companies

What to Expect Whenever Getting a Roofer

Interview as well as Consultation

Roofing Evaluation

Estimation

Seven Uyghurs Sentenced to Death

'Strike hard' campaign

Earlier cases

New training scheme

Wikileaks and also the Uyghurs

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Search Engine Optimization And Article Marketing Will Place You On Page One

Roofing Companies Vancouver Washington

Seo Through Article marketing

Vancouver Seo Agency Aims For Google Places With Total Achievement

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Portraits of Uyghur People

ation|Web optimization|Website seo|Seo optimization|Seo optimisation} Expert Advice - Getting Ahead Using SEO

Search engine optimization is essential today

Taking a search engine optimization course

Search engine optimization training could be very helpful

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Money Making Websites

The Privatization Of Public Data Sets A Bad Precedent

from the please-make-it-stop dept