How To Find Free Internet Arcade Games On The Internet

June 16th, 2008 DanielMillions Posted in Internet | No Comments »

Internet arcade games, like flash games have developed immensely over the past decade. This has been further encouraged by the advancement of the internet which allows the web community to participate in game development. Fast connections with larger bandwidths also allow the rapid distribution of games, enabling flash games to reach a wider market. Children, teenagers and bored employees often take advantage of these free flash games offered by online arcades.

One of the many attractions of Internet arcade games is that they are usually free. These flash games are usually played online, or you can download them on to your computer. And unless your computer has a virus, it would be pretty hard to lose or break them! Internet arcade games are not as graphically pleasing or as elaborately designed as traditional platform games. There are arrays of games to choose from, so it should not be a problem picking a game that suits you!

Certain Internet arcade games may be hard on the eyes, because of the flashy ads and pop ups that tends to decorate the site. Some people may be turned off by these ads, but these ads are essential in keeping the games free. Website owners need to generate income to keep the sites running, hence the need to rent out advertisement space to retailers and businesses. Installing a pop up blocker should help you deal with this particular problem.

Many companies that produce these Internet arcade games are creating more elaborates games for online play. Due to the amount of work that goes into these games, manufacturers will charge a fee. In short, these types of games do not come free. Fortunately, makers of these games often provide a free trial demo allowing the user to decide whether it is worth shelling out the money. A simple Google search can bring you to a lot of website that offer these online games that you can join in on the fun. Most of these games have free trials that you can try before committing to the service.

MMORPG, which stands for Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games, are the most advanced form of flash games. These games allow the game to be played by many users at one time. You will be required to pay a monthly subscription fee to enjoy the perks of this type of game. But for new users, there is usually a demo or trial version available. Some games allow free users to participate, however free users only get the most basic package. MMORPGs creators are continuously working on the game, adding new features and new story plots to keep the game interesting and its players content.

Many online arcades let you register for free. Once registered, you gain access to a range of functions. You automatically become a member of that particular online arcade community. Other users can view your profile, look at your profile picture or avatar and see how many games you have played and your high scores. You can communicate with others using forums or the PM (private message) feature.

With numerous websites available filled with countless fun, exciting free games, it is no wonder flash games are becoming increasingly popular and gaining much attention amongst internet users. All you need to join the fun is yourself, a computer and an internet connection. So let’s get playing today!

If you want to download free games or are looking for free game downloads check out All Arcade

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How Should You Use Search Engine Marketing

June 16th, 2008 JamesCopper Posted in Internet | No Comments »

What are search engines? Quite simply put, these are websites that let you find other websites. You may have a fantastic website or might be offering a fantastic product or a service that offers tremendous value to the consumer from the website, but how is the consumer going to know about your website? A search engine plays an important role as the facilitator. Research indicates that as much as 80% of web traffic to a website comes from a search engine. This means that if you are not doing ’search engine marketing’, then you are potentially not reaching out to 80% of your web consumers.

So search engine marketing can be described as marketing a website on the search engines to enhance web visibility. Popular search engines include Google, Yahoo and MSN. While there are countless others, as much as 95% of search engine traffic comes from these 3 places. Google and Yahoo together account for 90% of that.

Search Engine Marketing – Organic Results and PPC

Google, Yahoo and MSN, there are 2 ways in which you can market in all of them. The first is the organic results that appear when you type in a keyword and a result is displayed. In the organic results, rankings matter greatly because most of the visitors do not go beyond page 2 or 3 in a result page. Search engine marketing here involves ’search engine optimization’ (SEO). Its objective is to try and improve the ranks of the website in the search engine – for best results, the website should be ranked in page 1 of the results page when a visitor has typed in a targeted keyword for the business.

But the problem with SEO is that, there are countless websites competing for the same keywords, and the fact that there can be only 10 websites in page 1 means that the results are not guaranteed. Plus, it may take a long time to get results too. Search engines also change their algorithms from time to time and when this happens there is a major change in the ranks. When this happens the business suddenly sees a huge drop in the web traffic and the search engine marketer has to start almost from scratch again.

PPC or Pay Per Click is a way out of this. The biggest advantage in this is that you get results almost instantly. Just open an account, research the keywords, create the advertisements, decide the cost per click, and you are ready to go. The advertisements begin to appear in the paid column and when there is a click, you get traffic to your website. You need to pay the search engine per click, but the amount you pay varies depending on the keywords you have selected and also the position of the advertisement.

All major search engines have a PPC plan – there is Google Adwords, Yahoo Search Marketing and then there is MSN AdCenter.

Search engine marketing also involves writing articles and submitting to directories to get a link back to the website. While this often also leads to a better search engine rank, but here the idea may be to generate more Internet traffic by making the readers of the articles click on the link and visit the website.

James Copper is a writer for http://www.bigstrategies.co.uk

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How to Remove Rust From Metal Tools?

June 16th, 2008 MarkusSkupeika Posted in Home Management | No Comments »

We all use metal tools occasionally in our household works. And at the same time it is very common that they get rust when they are kept unused for a brief period. What happens next, you get annoyed with it and get out for some other less important jobs. And if you badly need that tool, you would have to clean them up.

It is not easy to keep those tools rust free and if you live in a moist area, it may seem almost impossible. And rust does not get you away from the job alone; it also harms longevity of your tools.

So, how to remove rust from metal tools?

People have different opinions and tips in this matter to share with you. Here are some ways that you may employ to make your metal tools rust free.

Properly clean up and dry all the tolls after every use. You should also apply some wax (butcher’s wax) after certain period depending on your use of the tool and moisture of the location where they are kept, to keep them rust free. Do not even think about keeping the metal portion of the tool on the wet or moist ground. If you have no other option, cover the metal part properly with plastic wrapper so that it does not come in direct and constant contact with moist ground.

If the metal tool gets rust and you need to clean them up for use, sand it well and after the use, clean and wax it properly.

You can also create a mixture of motor oil and sand. When you have finished using the tool, simply shove them into the mixture. It would not simply clean the tools; you would also get an oil coating over it. In fact, this mixture also works to sharpen the tool a little bit. But, if you use a tool with mixed elements like metal and plastic or metal and rubber, it is better not to use this method. Sand can harm the longevity of elements like rubber or plastic. This process is perfect for simple tools like shovel or axe. And it is better to avoid using this process to clean up complex tools.

You can also try using lemon juice and Morton’s salt to clean rust from a metal body. But you would need to rub the metal clean – sometimes it is too tough and hazardous to clean something in this way where you would need to depend on your rubbing strength a lot. To rub the metal body, you may use a piece of cotton, scrubber or metal wire wool (be careful while using wools).

If you are not happy with these home made solutions, you can find some rust remover for metal tools and other metal items. These often work wonders if you can find the right cleaner for the right metal. You can follow the recommendations provided in the container or user manual to find out if that rust remover is the perfect one for you or not.

If you are not sure about it or if you want to clean mixed tools (rubber, plastic, metal etc), try using non-toxic or organic rust cleaners as they will not harm the soft portions. At the same time these organic cleaners are also harmless for your health. There are some really good organic rust cleaners in the market that cleans the rust very well but does not harm the color of the metal body. To add to this, you do not need to scrub or wipe the metal body after cleaning.

Seems fun? Check out your local shop or search internet for organic rust removers.

Are you looking for rust removers to safely remove rust from metal surface? Click on the link to know more about rust treatment for metal.

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The Types and Uses of Candle Wax

June 16th, 2008 DavidH. Posted in Home Management | No Comments »

Candle wax has different types. There are cheap waxes that are made into candles and there are costly waxes that are also made into candles with slower melting rate.

There are different waxes used in candles. Some of these waxes have other uses. Listed below are the different types of waxes that are also commonly used in candle making.

Types candle wax

• Paraffin Wax:

A wax made of paraffin is a chemical preservative that is used commonly on fruits, vegetables, and candy. This is in order to create a shiny appearance, delay the moisture loss, and spoilage. Chocolate candy makers frequently use paraffin wax also. In fact, Paraffin wax is also regarded as the “baker’s wax or canning wax”.

A paraffin wax is flammable so make sure you do not overheat it. Just heat it gently on a double boiler or you can use a microwave and heat it simply up to the point where in the wax had dissolved. Paraffin wax is a white odorless, tasteless, waxy, solid component. Its usual melting point is around 48 to 65 degrees. When heated, the chemical composition of paraffin wax, especially the so-called chemical re-agents, remain unchanged but they readily burn.

Pure paraffin wax is a tremendous electrical insulator and has an electrical resistibility for about 50 to 100 degrees of temperature. A pure paraffin wax is not often utilized in order to create an original statute model or for casting metal.

• Paraffin or Mineral Oil

Liquid paraffin waxes are also known as mineral oil. This form of paraffin wax is a combination of heavier alkaline and has an amount of terms featured as nojul, alboline, adepsine oil, glymbol, saxol, and medical paraffin or USP mineral oil.

This type of wax has a thickness of around 0.8g/cm. This liquid paraffin is utilized in order to help the bowel movement of persons suffering from chronic constipation. In mechanical integration and baking, mineral oil must be applied in order to make sure that the loaves of bread, or whatsoever, are simply out when cooked. Mineral oils can be used for coating fruits as well.

• Soy wax

The Soy wax was discovered during the late period of the 19th century. It was when Michael Richards looked to find a cheaper alternative for beeswax. Therefore, Michael Richards discovered and developed the soy wax.

The beeswax products, as he understands, have an increasing demand for a natural wax candle. Michael Richards has tested dissimilar normal plant waxes and finally finished up with a vegetable and fruit wax, which was created with parts from hydrogenated mineral oil, cooking oil, palm oil and the combination of beeswax, and soy wax. The result was the creation of a cheap normal wax candle.

In late 1996, Michael Richard’s succeeded in changing the costly beeswax with palm and soy wax. The candle wax is mostly composed of hydrogenated mineral oil. Michael Richards also tested several combinations of soy wax for bottle candles and free position candles, which required a higher hot point.

• Bees Wax

Beeswax is a natural wax that was created in the beehive of the genus. Beeswax is created by young little worker bees for around 15 up to 20 days. This is in order to form the scales buried by glands. The worker bees have a somewhat protector gear on their bodies.

Worker bees have eight wax-producing mirror glands on their inner sides. The beeswax is almost white in color but sometimes it can possess the color blue or color green by incorporation of pollen oils. The beeswax scale is around 3 mm diagonally and 0.4 mm wide. Aside from this, around 1300 is required to create a honeycomb.

• Palm Wax

Palm wax is made from pure natural palm oil based on raw materials. The palm wax is unlike other waxes since they form crystal-like substances on the outer side of the candle. Palm wax burns at a much cooler and slower rate than several waxes.

Candle waxes such as palm wax is biodegradable and water-soluble. Palm wax candles have approximately 45 percent longer burn time as compared to the usual sized paraffin wax candle. The palm wax candle also releases the scent throughout the entire candle. The scent of a palm wax candle does not fade away like other candles. The palm wax has a higher yield and it is tougher than other oil seed crops. No fertilizers or chemical treatments are required for its cultivation. Palm wax is a unique crystalline figure.

For more information on Candlewax please visit our website.

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A Weed Called Bermuda Grass

June 16th, 2008 DavidH. Posted in Gardening | No Comments »

The Bermuda grass or “Cynodon Dactylon” is a type of grass native to Australia, Asia, Southern Europe and North Africa. Aside from being tough and fast growing, it can creep underneath the ground and it will root every time a node will touch the ground. With this tactic, it can then form a dense type of mat.

The Bermuda grass has the scientific and binomial name “Cynodon Dactylon”. It belongs to the Kingdom Plantae, Division Magnoliophyta, Class Liliopsida, Order Poales, Family Poaceae, Genus Cynodon and Species C. Dactylon.

Other terms for the Bermuda grass are as follows:

• Durva grass

• Dog’s Tooth grass

• Devil’s grass

• Bahama grass

• Indian Doab

• Couch grass

• Scutch grass

• Grama

The Bermuda grass is a type of grass native to Australia, Asia, Southern Europe and North Africa. Although it is called Bermuda, it got it’s named due to its abundance as a kind of invasive species in Bermuda.

The Bermuda grass’ blades feature a sort of grey-green coloration. They are generally four up to fifteen centimeters short and they have rough edges. The Bermuda grass’ erect stems have the capacity to grow from one up to thirty centimeters tall. In fact, it is very rare that you will see a Bermuda grass about 90 centimeters tall. Aside from this, its stems are somehow flattened and oftentimes showcasing a tinged purple for its coloration.

Moreover, the production of the Bermuda’s seed heads is usually in clusters of three up to seven spikes at the top portion of its stem. Every spike is measured and estimated to be about three up to six centimeters long.

Furthermore, the Bermuda grass has a deep rooted system. During drought situations, and considering that there’s a penetrable soil, its root system has the capacity to grow for more than two meters deep. This is although a large fraction of its root mass is approximately not more than 60 centimeters below the surface.

The Bermuda will creep underneath the ground and it will root every time a node will touch the ground, which then forms a dense type of mat. Aside from this, the Bermuda grass reproduces via seeds that run through rhizomes and runners. These seeds will grow starting at a temperature of more than 15 degrees Celsius. Optimum growth will also run between 24 degrees up to 37 degrees Celsius. During the winter season, the grass will become dormant and brownish in color. Only a full sunlight can promote a Bermuda grass’ growth. On the other hand, it can be retarded by a complete shade, such as a place near tree trunks.

With this, it is also a noted fact that the Bermuda grass can only be cultivated within the world’s warm climate regions. This is indicated to be thirty degrees south and about thirty degrees north in latitude. In the United States, it is only found along the country’s southern half, the regions with warm climates.

Since it is tough and fast growing, Bermuda grass is famously used for sports fields and cemeteries. Another reason is the fact that when it gets damaged, it has the ability to recover quickly, like when you cut it. In other temperate and warm climates, it is a noted desirable “turf grass”. Since it is also very aggressive and it tends to crowd out a majority of other grasses, plus invade other habitats, as already mentioned above, it is regarded as an invasive type of species. In fact, it can even grow in very poor soil. This is where gardeners derived its other name, “Devil grass”, from.

Hence, this weed, grass or Bermuda, is generally more native to the famous African Savannah. There are even instances where in fires in the Savanna area tends to destroy the Bermuda grasses there but the Bermuda was still able to recover quickly. It is even the first one to actually grow back.

Although it is a good choice of grass for dry sections, especially since it has the capability to spread very easily, it is also indicated to grow best in areas where there is heavy rainfall. This is because this region can keep the Bermuda’s leaves moist, green and having purple tips. Thus, due to its long roots, the Bermuda grass is very hard to destroy. You still need to apply herbicides to it. Plus, when it invades various other grasses, it has the tendency to develop into an “unmanageable weed”. This is actually a big problem of homeowners who already desire a different type of grass for their lawn. Moreover, it can disrupt the actual production of vegetables and low-growing fruits, such as summer squash and strawberries.

In the United States, the introduction of the Bermuda grass was from the plantings taken from Bermuda. Lawns in the United States’ southeastern regions adore this grass. Floridians, on the other hand, have a hard time growing the Bermuda due to a type of pest called Sting Nematode.

Yet, with the many wonderful inventions and discoveries in Science, the Bermuda grass is now very convenient in animal husbandry and farming. It is the best grass for cattle. It can also help stem serious land erosion brought about by over watering or excess rains.

Furthermore, the Bermuda grass has known ancient significance. The Bermuda grass is indicated to be the selected grass utilized in feeding India’s sacred cows. Ancient Romans utilized the liquid derived from the Bermuda grass’ stems as a type of diuretic.

Thus, another noted fact bout the C. Dactylon or Bermuda grass is that it has medicinal properties that are still being studied. This is although claims for this regard still lack the necessary scientific evidence up to now.

It is also noted that modern Homeopathy includes juices from the Bermuda grass for mixes that can reduce a person’s sensitivity to allergies. This is by placing small amounts of recognized allergens. Hence, it is also a fact that the Bermuda grass is an identified allergen. This is why it can lead to stuffy nose or even allergic symptoms for both people and animals. In a sense, this where the problem sinks in, the Bermuda grass may result to more problems, health wise, rather than it can actually cure illnesses.

Lastly, the Bermuda grass is noted to possibly give relief for chronic diarrhea or utilized as a type of antiseptic.

For more information on Bermuda Grass please visit our website.

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Free Standing Coat Rack

June 14th, 2008 MeganCherry Posted in Home Management | No Comments »

When people think of coat racks almost always the first thing that comes to mind are the tree like things that sit off to the side in entryways from old movies that were used to place hats, coats, umbrellas and canes. While this style of coat rack still exist free standing coat racks have evolved to take on a variety of shapes that are designed to give them versatility with any d

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It’s All About Who You Know……CRM 2.0

June 14th, 2008 PhilipRobinson Posted in Internet | No Comments »

Many UK businesses have failed to grasp the importance of social networking, seeing it only as a passing fad, with sites such as Facebook, Myspace, Bebo reportedly eating into employees’ productivity as non work-related photos, gossip etc are shared.

However, these types of activities are only one side of social networks, and as many successful businesses have come to realise, online social networks can be the hubs for the application of far more effective business practices than in the past, including marketing. At the heart of this is the fact that business is a social activity, and those involved in business are social animals, seeking to belong to communities of interest and practice, as well as geographic communities. We see examples of this traditionally in industry bodies, chambers of commerce, and trade organisations but now, with social networks, the customers can join too.

It is a given that it is far easier to do business with people you like, as friendships mean that a relationship of trust can be built and sustained. This applies equally to customers and suppliers, and underlines the importance of CRM 2.0. Nurturing relationships with those with whom you do business has always been vitally important, and now social networks offer the tools to do this more efficiently online.

Those groups of people (your potential customers) in social networks may well share photos and videos, but they also make recommendations for products and brands, where to eat, shop, stay, as well as sharing contacts. A social network can be a honeypot for finding not just customers, but also contacts who may help you run your business more efficiently, provide services you need, or expand your product range.

However, the downside of this word of mouth/mouse activity is that it can also generate the type of negative criticism of a business which can spiral into a fall in sales or brand reputation very quickly, and hence the behaviour of your business within this space must be exemplary, and any negative ‘chatter’ needs to be monitored and reacted to …fast.

There are many aspects of social networking that a business can harness to grow its’ community of contacts and customers, and to develop strong relationships with its customers. This is the new form of Customer Relationship Management, where Conversations, Relationships and Meetings are more important than the old school ways of CRM 1.0 – such as maintaining a customer database, dealing with complaints efficiently, sending a Christmas card, etc.

The most successful businesses using the social networking space are those creating communities. The members of those communities are loyal and often vociferous in their support of a brand or product they endorse, and can become an efficient sales and marketing force if encouraged. Try finding someone in Innocent’s community of Smoothie lovers who has a bad word to say about the product or company……

Metcalfe’s Law states that the power of the network is the square of the number of its members. In other words, the more people you know, the stronger is your network. So, the most vital point about social networks comes from that age old adage: it is not what you know but who you know, and the more people you know and have relationships with, the better.

Phil Robinson is an experienced online marketing consultant and Founder of ClickThrough Marketing – an international Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing agency.

ClickThrough specialise in Search Engine Optimisation, Pay Per Click Marketing, Online PR, Social Marketing & Website Conversion Strategies. We have a huge range of free internet marketing resources including ebooks, industry news and research reports - available here www.clickthrough-marketing.com/resources.php

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The Importance of Tagging

June 14th, 2008 PhilipRobinson Posted in Internet | No Comments »

Tagging documents with keywords, particularly in academia, has been around for generations, and has become mainstream on the internet in the past few years, especially with the introduction of social tagging or bookmarking, with the likes of del.icio.us.

Tags are words which allow classification of information, not just by subject, but far more deeply, and the Internet has allowed a free form of tagging to develop, not using a list of permitted terms, but allowing users to add their own tags. This means that a wide variety of tags may be used to describe one particular idea or even an image, which has both pros and cons.

For instance, you may tag a document with a certain set of keywords, whilst another person sees it entirely differently and uses different tags to describe the information given in the document. This means that the number of keywords relating to that document is higher, and hence the potential audience who will find it is broader.

Allowing users to add their own tags has meant that when you search Flickr for a photo, Youtube for a video, or even Amazon for a book, user-generated tags will be part of the mix in the results you get.

These ‘social bookmarks’ make it possible to find items that have been classified by others who may use keywords and terms you are familiar with, but which may not be included in the text of the document, or the image.

The tag ‘humour’ is an example. A joke or a funny photo may not in itself include the word ‘humour’ but it is obvious to all who read or see it that it would fall into the category ‘humour’.

Another example is when tagging is used, as was the case with academic papers, to describe content in a succinct, and therefore easily indexable manner. For instance, this article could include the tags:

Article, internet marketing, tagging, tags, keywords, social bookmarks, organic search

But you might also add:

semantic web, search engine optimisation, folksonomies

None of the latter terms are actually included in the article but all are relevant tags, and would mean that those searching on those particular keywords could then find this article.

Tagging is now used extensively on the internet, and it is worth understanding that tags develop very quickly in response to cultural changes, buzz, news items etc. Finding which tags are generating a buzz means that you can include these tags as keywords on your site and generate more organic search results.

Organic search is now extremely important as a source of traffic to any website, but it works best when you include as many keywords, or tags, as possible in a cohesive manner on your website. This does not mean randomly scattering popular keywords around your site (as used to be the case with terms such as ‘Pamela Anderson’!), but by including the popular terms relevant to your niche in your content.

These tags can be stand alone as part of your page to answer the WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) question your visitors ask as soon as they land on your site, or to categorise your content, or as an integral part of your content.

However you choose to use tags, they are an ever-growing part of the internet, of the way people search, and connect with information, and spending a little time looking at how different sites and users work with tags is a must.

Phil Robinson is an experienced online marketing consultant and Founder of ClickThrough Marketing – an international Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing agency.

ClickThrough specialise in Search Engine Optimisation, Pay Per Click Marketing, Online PR, Social Marketing & Website Conversion Strategies. We have a huge range of free internet marketing resources including ebooks, industry news and research reports - available here www.clickthrough-marketing.com/resources.php

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Content is King

June 14th, 2008 PhilipRobinson Posted in Internet | No Comments »

Take a quick look at your website now and see whether you have been neglecting your updates – what is the most recent date in your news section, or the last article you posted? If it is older than 2 months, then you need to update sooner rather than later.

If you want to put news on your site, make sure that you have the resources to keep it up to date and fresh. Many small businesses have websites which are difficult to update in-house, especially where there is a lack of IT knowledge or web wise employees. However, help is at hand for easy updates with the likes of Blogger and similar tools that allow you to type in content and be immediately visible to your visitors. This saves paying a website designer each time you want to add a snippet of information.

If you are contemplating a new website, it is always worth considering how you will keep it updated and ensuring you have an easy to use content management system so that you are in charge of all updates. Even within a very small micro business, it is worth making the time to update your site yourself and save yourself the costs of using an ‘expert’ to make the changes for you. It can take as long to explain to them what you need doing as just doing it yourself, and once you are accustomed to the content management system, site updates can become part of your daily or weekly task list.

You can also add content automatically by including RSS feeds from other sites who do have the resources to update regularly. These could include news sources and industry sites who cover stories which may be of interest to your target audience, and are nearly always free to include in your website.

The content on your website will help to shape the opinions of potential customers, and ensure you stand out from your competitors. You should not just regurgitate the same old content others have, nor copy it from elsewhere. Your content should be yours and unique.

In order to create valuable content, you need to get to know your potential customers and site visitors, and envisage what they want to read about, or are interested in. You can find this out with a poll asking what people would like to know more about, or by asking visitors what they came to the site for, or what they expected to find. This feedback can be invaluable in not only creating the right content, but also in understanding your site visitors and your target audience, as well as engaging with them.

Content should include keywords, be easy to read (even if highly technical), unique to your site, and regularly checked to ensure that what it says is still accurate. It should also be easy to link to for others who have found it valuable, so where it is an article or news item, add easy ways to bookmark it, including delicious, stumbleupon etc for social bookmarking sites.

Phil Robinson is an experienced online marketing consultant and Founder of ClickThrough Marketing

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The New World of Prosumers

June 14th, 2008 PhilipRobinson Posted in Internet | No Comments »

The advent of online communities and the huge amount of information now available through the Internet has led to the enablement of the consumer, and the development of the prosumer. No longer is the customer an easy horse to lead to water. Customers have become proactive in how and where to spend their money, often researching many different aspects of a product before making that final purchase decision.

Customers now have a far wider choice in suppliers because of websites and e-commerce, and can also look at reviews of products, compare prices, and find out from other prosumers all about the company; for instance, whether the after sales experience is good, bad or indifferent when something goes wrong.

One bad customer can start an avalanche of complaints online which, if not monitored and responded to, can lead to the biggest PR headache of all time. Prosumers do not necessarily complain directly to you, they quite often go to their favourite forum, blog or social network and type their moans there.

It is important to monitor as often as you can what is being said about your company or products. This can be done without a substantial increase in resources, using tools such as Google Alerts, which will email you when your keywords crop up in the search engines.

However, it is also important to ensure that the information on the Internet about your product is as accurate and fair as possible so that prosumers make an informed choice when making the purchase decision. Assuming that all the information about your product is on YOUR website is a bad move.

There may well be reviews, (good and bad) on the many consumer sites out there for just that purpose; there may be critical as well as positive comments on forums and social networks, in blogs; or a thumbs down on stumbleupon, and part of the marketing mix these days is to find and deal with these.

Just posting a few positive testimonials from satisfied customers on your own site will not cater for the prosumer who looks everywhere but on your site to make an informed choice. After all, the prosumer assumes that your site will only have positive comments about the product or brand, and will seek the other side of the story elsewhere on the Internet.

Eliminating unfair or negative comments may be time-consuming, but it will make all the difference to your sales ledger. Contacting those who have posted about your product is always a good idea, offer public explanations as to why a particular complaint or problem has occurred, and always apologise. You can offer a particular customer a refund, or a replacement. Make sure that the customer is dealt with in such a way that they will feel obliged to retract any negative postings, and start singing your praises instead. Be friendly, and develop a relationship with the disgruntled party.

It may be that the person you are dealing with is a serial complainer, and that you are facing an uphill struggle. You will never remove every negative comment from the Internet, so don’t worry about the odd few difficult customers. Just as a few negative reviews on Amazon have never been shown to directly affect sales of books, so the prosumer will feel that a smattering of less than complimentary remarks gives a more credible picture of how other prosumers feel.

Focus on those who are posting on high traffic sites or blogs, and engage with them. And once you have dealt with the problems online, don’t forget to work out why the problem occurred in the first place and put the systems in place in your business to ensure it cannot happen again.

ClickThrough specialise in Search Engine Optimisation, Pay Per Click Marketing, Online PR, Social Marketing & Website Conversion Strategies. We have a huge range of free internet marketing resources including ebooks, industry news and research reports - available here http://www.clickthrough-marketing.com/resources.php

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