The question comes up from time to time:
"How long an online sales letter should be?"
People new to direct marketing are a bit reluctant to send long letters for fear of "boring" their prospective customers. And that sounds like a valid point indeed in this day and age of soundbites, short YouTube clips and extreme programming.
However, there are a lot people making money by sending really long sales letters.
Here is one I've received from the "The Daily Reckoning" group, a subsidiary of Agora Publishing from Baltimore, MD.
The letter is for selling Steve Sarnoff's option trading newsletter and it is exactly 7825 words!
Seven thousand eight hundred twenty five words, including not one (P.S.), not two (P.P.S.) but THREE (P.P.P.S.) Post Scripts!!!
So if your message is good, if you have a lot to say to convince your prospects, if you need room to display your wares and advance logical arguments that use a lot of empirical data, feel free to write as long as you want.
More people than you might believe actually do read all that to make up their minds, especially in the financial newsletter sector.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
A Good Microsite
A microsite is a single-page web site devoted to selling a single product or service. It is a direct marketing tool that is very suitable for network marketing (signing up new members for a Multi Level Marketing downstream) as well.
Here is an example that is not perfect but still does many things right in terms of design and copy:
http://www.PublishingSeminar.com
This is a microsite selling a 2-day book marketing seminar in NYC.
I'll list some of the correct elements that makes this design above-the-average:
1) A specific and somewhat unusual offer up-front. (See the screenshot below.) They are promising to double or triple your annual income after this 2-day event during which they will introduce their SYSTEM. That's rather specific and a lot to promise, isn't it?
2) Photos of 4 authors follow the promise, thus personalizing the message. Now we are looking at four guys whose faces we can see, names we can read. This already feels like a REAL event.
3) Great BLUE subheaders divide the text into digestible chunks. We are explained not only who should attend but also who should NOT. This again "shows" how serious these people must be.
4) Prominent bullets with check marks itemizing important points in easy-to-read lines.
These bullets summarize some of the FEATURES and BENEFITS of the training bootcamp although it still (for understandable reasons) does not quite gieveaway the particular features of the Streamlined System itself. Since information is what they are selling, you have to buy it first in order to get the full set of features.
5) Then comes the first set of double registration buttons with OUR UNPRECEDENTED MONEY BACK GUARANTEE in between them. We now are aware that we are reading information about an event that we can register EASILY if we want to NOW.
6) Detailed BIOs of the speakers with their photos (again!), further building up the credentials of the main participants. This seminar would be nothing if we are not sold on the credentials of the presenters. So this is an emphasis that will never go to waste and should translate into a higher conversion rate.
The fact that these presenters have such impressive biographies is of course a giant plus. (Also: check out the easy-on-the-eye blue bullets.)
7) Following the excellent bios of the four presenters, we are hit with a very visible TESTIMONIALS section. Here is the PROOF of how others benefited from this seminar. BENEFITS follow the FEATURES (author bios used as a stand-in for the features of the promised Streamlined System). Observe the FULL NAMES and towns and states fafter the testimonials. We think... "these must be real people."
8) Then we are provided another chance to click and register with PRICE GUARANTEE. The friendly but convincing and insistent copy continues to chip away at our resistance.
9) Here comes the BONUSES if we register by May 12, 2007, followed by another registration button. Does your offer also come with a DEADLINE? Does it have a built-in URGENCY?
This is the FOURTH opportunity to register since we started reading the copy from the top. There will be TWO more such buttons by the time we reach the bottom of this microsite.
Always try to give something FREE to your readers as an immediate reward for taking action.
10) There is even hotel information there, just touched upon. But unfortunately the author says the information will be provided only AFTER we register. What a letdown...
That's one obvious negative of this site. I would never hold back such crucial information from the reader especially for those who would be travelling from far away locations to attend this event. Heck, I would even include information on how to travel to the exact location of the training workshop for those out-of-town travelers. Whenever possible, make it easy for people to join you, visit you, so that they will also "buy you."
The way it is done now, a lot of readers might be wondering "well, I think I can afford this workshop but New York City is a very expensive place and I don't know if I can afford a hotel in Midtown West Manhattan!"
If I were the owner of this microsite, I'd immediately change that "we'll share the info if you register" teaser with clear information on hotels and prices, or, remove that section altogether in order not to create any unnecessary question marks in the readers' minds. Anything that would make a reader hesitate would also drop the conversion rate.
Overall, a pretty good example of what a microsite should look like, with much to learn and emulate.
Last but not least -- check out the PS, which a MUST for any successful direct mail letter.
Did you know that most people simply scroll down to the bottom of sites like this and read the Post Script FIRST?
Do not hesitate to repeat your best offer and best benefits in the PS once again.
Here is an example that is not perfect but still does many things right in terms of design and copy:
http://www.PublishingSeminar.com
This is a microsite selling a 2-day book marketing seminar in NYC.
I'll list some of the correct elements that makes this design above-the-average:
1) A specific and somewhat unusual offer up-front. (See the screenshot below.) They are promising to double or triple your annual income after this 2-day event during which they will introduce their SYSTEM. That's rather specific and a lot to promise, isn't it?
2) Photos of 4 authors follow the promise, thus personalizing the message. Now we are looking at four guys whose faces we can see, names we can read. This already feels like a REAL event.
3) Great BLUE subheaders divide the text into digestible chunks. We are explained not only who should attend but also who should NOT. This again "shows" how serious these people must be.
4) Prominent bullets with check marks itemizing important points in easy-to-read lines.
These bullets summarize some of the FEATURES and BENEFITS of the training bootcamp although it still (for understandable reasons) does not quite gieveaway the particular features of the Streamlined System itself. Since information is what they are selling, you have to buy it first in order to get the full set of features.
5) Then comes the first set of double registration buttons with OUR UNPRECEDENTED MONEY BACK GUARANTEE in between them. We now are aware that we are reading information about an event that we can register EASILY if we want to NOW.
6) Detailed BIOs of the speakers with their photos (again!), further building up the credentials of the main participants. This seminar would be nothing if we are not sold on the credentials of the presenters. So this is an emphasis that will never go to waste and should translate into a higher conversion rate.
The fact that these presenters have such impressive biographies is of course a giant plus. (Also: check out the easy-on-the-eye blue bullets.)
7) Following the excellent bios of the four presenters, we are hit with a very visible TESTIMONIALS section. Here is the PROOF of how others benefited from this seminar. BENEFITS follow the FEATURES (author bios used as a stand-in for the features of the promised Streamlined System). Observe the FULL NAMES and towns and states fafter the testimonials. We think... "these must be real people."
8) Then we are provided another chance to click and register with PRICE GUARANTEE. The friendly but convincing and insistent copy continues to chip away at our resistance.
9) Here comes the BONUSES if we register by May 12, 2007, followed by another registration button. Does your offer also come with a DEADLINE? Does it have a built-in URGENCY?
This is the FOURTH opportunity to register since we started reading the copy from the top. There will be TWO more such buttons by the time we reach the bottom of this microsite.
Always try to give something FREE to your readers as an immediate reward for taking action.
10) There is even hotel information there, just touched upon. But unfortunately the author says the information will be provided only AFTER we register. What a letdown...
That's one obvious negative of this site. I would never hold back such crucial information from the reader especially for those who would be travelling from far away locations to attend this event. Heck, I would even include information on how to travel to the exact location of the training workshop for those out-of-town travelers. Whenever possible, make it easy for people to join you, visit you, so that they will also "buy you."
The way it is done now, a lot of readers might be wondering "well, I think I can afford this workshop but New York City is a very expensive place and I don't know if I can afford a hotel in Midtown West Manhattan!"
If I were the owner of this microsite, I'd immediately change that "we'll share the info if you register" teaser with clear information on hotels and prices, or, remove that section altogether in order not to create any unnecessary question marks in the readers' minds. Anything that would make a reader hesitate would also drop the conversion rate.
Overall, a pretty good example of what a microsite should look like, with much to learn and emulate.
Last but not least -- check out the PS, which a MUST for any successful direct mail letter.
Did you know that most people simply scroll down to the bottom of sites like this and read the Post Script FIRST?
Do not hesitate to repeat your best offer and best benefits in the PS once again.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Technical Editing
“These other outputs are useful when additional prompting of the user is achieved via stored messages or indicator lamps.”
BETTER: “These other outputs are useful to prompt the user via stored messages or indicator lamps.”
------------------------------------------------
“The confirm direction specification is used to set the significance of the sensor to transaction directionality.”
BETTER: “The Confirm Direction is used to specify the transaction directionality of the sensor.”
------------------------------------------------
“A barrier usually factors into the determination of whether the user has actually moved from one location to another.”
BETTER: “A barrier helps determine whether the user has actually moved from one location to another.”
(Eliminate convoluted phrases such as “factors into the determination of” whenever possible. Simplify, simplify, simplify.)
BETTER: “These other outputs are useful to prompt the user via stored messages or indicator lamps.”
------------------------------------------------
“The confirm direction specification is used to set the significance of the sensor to transaction directionality.”
BETTER: “The Confirm Direction is used to specify the transaction directionality of the sensor.”
------------------------------------------------
“A barrier usually factors into the determination of whether the user has actually moved from one location to another.”
BETTER: “A barrier helps determine whether the user has actually moved from one location to another.”
(Eliminate convoluted phrases such as “factors into the determination of” whenever possible. Simplify, simplify, simplify.)
Facts and Metaphors
“… Facts have a way of yielding to nuance like a jury to a trial lawyer. Under the right influence, they will go along with anything. But the metaphors remain… and continue to give useful service long after the facts have changed.
What's more, metaphors help people understand the world and its workings. As Norman Mailer recently put it, "There is much more truth in a metaphor than in a fact." But the trouble with metaphors is that no matter how true they may be when they are fresh and clever, when the multitudes pick them up, they almost immediately become worn out and false. For the whole truth is always complex to the point of being unknowable, even to the world's greatest geniuses.
The world never works the way people think it does. That is not to say that every idea about how the world works is wrong, but that often particular ideas about how it works will prove to be wrong if they are held in common. For only simple ideas can be held by large groups of people. Commonly held ideas are almost always dumbed down until they are practically lies… and often dangerous ones. Once vast numbers of people have come to believe the lie, they adjust their own behavior to bring themselves into sync with it, and thereby change the world itself. The world, then, no longer resembles the one that gave rise to the original insight. Soon, a person's situation is so at odds with the world as it really is that a crisis develops, and he or she must seek a new metaphor for explanation and guidance…”
By Bill Bonner
President, Agora Publishing
What's more, metaphors help people understand the world and its workings. As Norman Mailer recently put it, "There is much more truth in a metaphor than in a fact." But the trouble with metaphors is that no matter how true they may be when they are fresh and clever, when the multitudes pick them up, they almost immediately become worn out and false. For the whole truth is always complex to the point of being unknowable, even to the world's greatest geniuses.
The world never works the way people think it does. That is not to say that every idea about how the world works is wrong, but that often particular ideas about how it works will prove to be wrong if they are held in common. For only simple ideas can be held by large groups of people. Commonly held ideas are almost always dumbed down until they are practically lies… and often dangerous ones. Once vast numbers of people have come to believe the lie, they adjust their own behavior to bring themselves into sync with it, and thereby change the world itself. The world, then, no longer resembles the one that gave rise to the original insight. Soon, a person's situation is so at odds with the world as it really is that a crisis develops, and he or she must seek a new metaphor for explanation and guidance…”
By Bill Bonner
President, Agora Publishing
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Unparallel Construction
Here is a grammar rule that I like and try to follow: “In a compound sentence with multiple clauses, the clauses should be parallel in structure.”
It’s called the “Parallel Construction” rule and I try to adhere to it in my own writing because it increases comprehension.
Complicated sentences that do not have parallel clauses are usually hard to read and comprehend. Usually there is something “not quite right” with them even if you cannot always put a finger on it.
Here is a recent example from an Associated Press news story:
“Leaving cars burned and store windows smashed in Paris” is a clause that describes what was “left behind in Paris” by the protestors after they took it to the streets.
But the conjunctive clause that follows it “as well as unrest everywhere” sounds off because it violates the “parallel construction” principle.
A true re-construction of that phrase would read “as well as leaving unrest elsewhere” ! Perhaps now the problem is more clear because in English “leaving unrest” is not a grammatically acceptable phrase.
However, a condition can “lead to unrest” or a person can “cause unrest.”
Therefore, one way to correct this malformed sentence would be:
“PARIS, France (AP) -- France's defeated Socialists called for an end to post-election violence Tuesday after anti-Sarkozy protestors took to the streets for a second night, leaving cars burned and store windows smashed in Paris as well as causing unrest elsewhere.”
To me, this new sentence reads better and is easier to understand. Don’t you agree?
It’s called the “Parallel Construction” rule and I try to adhere to it in my own writing because it increases comprehension.
Complicated sentences that do not have parallel clauses are usually hard to read and comprehend. Usually there is something “not quite right” with them even if you cannot always put a finger on it.
Here is a recent example from an Associated Press news story:
“PARIS, France (AP) -- France's defeated Socialists called for an end to post-election violence Tuesday after anti-Sarkozy protestors took to the streets for a second night, leaving cars burned and store windows smashed in Paris as well as unrest elsewhere.”
“Leaving cars burned and store windows smashed in Paris” is a clause that describes what was “left behind in Paris” by the protestors after they took it to the streets.
But the conjunctive clause that follows it “as well as unrest everywhere” sounds off because it violates the “parallel construction” principle.
A true re-construction of that phrase would read “as well as leaving unrest elsewhere” ! Perhaps now the problem is more clear because in English “leaving unrest” is not a grammatically acceptable phrase.
However, a condition can “lead to unrest” or a person can “cause unrest.”
Therefore, one way to correct this malformed sentence would be:
“PARIS, France (AP) -- France's defeated Socialists called for an end to post-election violence Tuesday after anti-Sarkozy protestors took to the streets for a second night, leaving cars burned and store windows smashed in Paris as well as causing unrest elsewhere.”
To me, this new sentence reads better and is easier to understand. Don’t you agree?
Monday, May 7, 2007
Overcoming fear of success
An interesting post on the complex psychology of success...
"May 5, 2007 11:09 PM
I deeply want to be successful, yet I seem to fear success almost as much as I fear failure. Towards that end I often find myself doing things that are somewhat self sabataging. For instance, if a job pays well or requires a lot of responsiblity, I'm usually too scared or intimidated to apply for it. I only feel that I'm "worth" the jobs that offer less status and pay.
Another example of my fear of success is a nonprofit idea I had recently. I have gotten feedback from several very knowledgable people who said that it is an excellent idea and that I should put together a business plan and consider applying for some grants. However, I'm terrified to do so! In my family, I was always seen as the immature, unsuccessful one. How could I possibly start my own business?? Even if I did not go very far, I could treat the business plan as a learning opportunity--something to include in my portfolio to show other companies the ideas I have and the type of work I could do. But of course, this would lead to expectations that I would have to meet...and nothing terrifies me more. So my idea is sitting by the wayside.
I also struggle with difficulty defining my goals. I have many, many interests, and consequently find myself expending energy in multiple career directions. Since I never seem to focus on any one thing I pursue multiple endeavors without being particularly successful at any of them. I really believe that if I had better focus and more confidence I could achieve a lot more.
Does anyone have suggestions for overcoming a deeply ingrained fear of success?"
Click here to read the responses...
"May 5, 2007 11:09 PM
I deeply want to be successful, yet I seem to fear success almost as much as I fear failure. Towards that end I often find myself doing things that are somewhat self sabataging. For instance, if a job pays well or requires a lot of responsiblity, I'm usually too scared or intimidated to apply for it. I only feel that I'm "worth" the jobs that offer less status and pay.
Another example of my fear of success is a nonprofit idea I had recently. I have gotten feedback from several very knowledgable people who said that it is an excellent idea and that I should put together a business plan and consider applying for some grants. However, I'm terrified to do so! In my family, I was always seen as the immature, unsuccessful one. How could I possibly start my own business?? Even if I did not go very far, I could treat the business plan as a learning opportunity--something to include in my portfolio to show other companies the ideas I have and the type of work I could do. But of course, this would lead to expectations that I would have to meet...and nothing terrifies me more. So my idea is sitting by the wayside.
I also struggle with difficulty defining my goals. I have many, many interests, and consequently find myself expending energy in multiple career directions. Since I never seem to focus on any one thing I pursue multiple endeavors without being particularly successful at any of them. I really believe that if I had better focus and more confidence I could achieve a lot more.
Does anyone have suggestions for overcoming a deeply ingrained fear of success?"
Click here to read the responses...
Bootstrap Your Way to Startup Success
by Michael E. Gordon, PhD
Bootstrapping is the process of conserving financial resources to the extreme during a business’s startup phase. It means pulling yourself up by your bootstraps by doing most of the work yourself.
Because you want to go into any new business enterprise with your eyes wide open, let’s take a look at some of the pluses and minuses of bootstrapping...
Click for the rest of this article
Bootstrapping is the process of conserving financial resources to the extreme during a business’s startup phase. It means pulling yourself up by your bootstraps by doing most of the work yourself.
Because you want to go into any new business enterprise with your eyes wide open, let’s take a look at some of the pluses and minuses of bootstrapping...
Click for the rest of this article
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Watch out for those tricky "Misplaced Modifiers"
Even the most polished publications are not immune to that dreaded mistake committed frequently in English -- the "misplaced modifier."
Here is a current example from the august Wall Street Journal, an excellent publication to which I'm a subscriber:
"Mr. Zagorsky studied data from 7,403 Americans who participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, a representative sample of Americans funded by the Bureau of Labor Statistics." (May 5-6, 2007, p. B4)
Here it reads as though the Bureau of Labor Statistics has funded the "Americans" who were in the "representative sample"!
But of course that's not true. We know that the study itself was the entity that was funded by the BLS.
That's why the correct sentence should read:
"Mr. Zagorsky studied data from a representative sample of 7,403 Americans who participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth funded by the Bureau of Labor Statistics."
Here is a current example from the august Wall Street Journal, an excellent publication to which I'm a subscriber:
"Mr. Zagorsky studied data from 7,403 Americans who participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, a representative sample of Americans funded by the Bureau of Labor Statistics." (May 5-6, 2007, p. B4)
Here it reads as though the Bureau of Labor Statistics has funded the "Americans" who were in the "representative sample"!
But of course that's not true. We know that the study itself was the entity that was funded by the BLS.
That's why the correct sentence should read:
"Mr. Zagorsky studied data from a representative sample of 7,403 Americans who participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth funded by the Bureau of Labor Statistics."
Rich are not Smart?
"How come you're not rich if you're so smart?" goes the popular putdown.
In general, we expect very smart people to be also very rich, don't we?
But there does not seem to be a strong correlation between IQ and income and wealth, according to a scientific study conducted by Ohio State University's Jay Zagorsky.
Zagorsky's study of 7,403 Americans who participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth between 1979 and 2004 showed that smarts and riches are very loosely connected. Each additional IQ point corresponded to only an additional $202 to $616 of income a year.
Other complicating factors: You can have high income but if you don't save, you won't be wealthy. Or, you can be wealthy on paper but if your wealth is tied up in non-liquid assets (like real estate with mortgage) then again you may not have a lot of income.
In general, we expect very smart people to be also very rich, don't we?
But there does not seem to be a strong correlation between IQ and income and wealth, according to a scientific study conducted by Ohio State University's Jay Zagorsky.
Zagorsky's study of 7,403 Americans who participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth between 1979 and 2004 showed that smarts and riches are very loosely connected. Each additional IQ point corresponded to only an additional $202 to $616 of income a year.
Other complicating factors: You can have high income but if you don't save, you won't be wealthy. Or, you can be wealthy on paper but if your wealth is tied up in non-liquid assets (like real estate with mortgage) then again you may not have a lot of income.
Friday, May 4, 2007
E-MAIL SCAM ~ “Iraqi re-construction effort”
This is a new one… Someone with an Arabic name is sending e-mails on behalf of the “Iraqi re-construction effort” and “PM Al-maliki regime” to solicit “your co-operation in a multi million dollars worth of contracts to supplies on various goods /construction…”
Notice the bad English. Usually these scam letters contain grammatical or stylistic errors since they are copied many times over before being sent out, sometimes by scam artists who can barely read or understand English. Random errors made during such replications inevitably multiply over so many copy-and-paste cycles.
All scam letters claim they are trying to give you money (and millions of dollars at that) if only you would “cooperate”… And the kind of “cooperation” they have in mind requires you (eventually) turning over all your bank account information to parties you don’t even know!
But the first letter is always a “warm-up letter” asking only for your “direct telephone numbers and exclusive e-mail and a scanned attachment of your well articulated tender/products and prices.”
And once you do that and prove to them that you will follow orders like a sheep, you will be demanded in a subsequent letter to turn over your bank information as well so that they can “transfer” your “fee” in return for your “indispensable services…” etc.
The letter usually comes from an “intermediary” who speaks “on behalf” of someone rich and powerful. This other person, the “real boss,” is either trying to transfer money out of a troubled country or has a business offer for the taking. The “Iraqi re-construction” scam is of the latter type.
Another give-away in this scam is the country-code at the end of the return e-mail – “si”, which stands not for Iraq but Slovenia.
If you can convince yourself why Prime Minister Al-Maliki’s “director general of the budget department/debt management office (DMO) of the ministry of finance” would send you a job solicitation e-mail from Slovenia, then perhaps you deserve to be parted from your savings as well.
Notice the bad English. Usually these scam letters contain grammatical or stylistic errors since they are copied many times over before being sent out, sometimes by scam artists who can barely read or understand English. Random errors made during such replications inevitably multiply over so many copy-and-paste cycles.
All scam letters claim they are trying to give you money (and millions of dollars at that) if only you would “cooperate”… And the kind of “cooperation” they have in mind requires you (eventually) turning over all your bank account information to parties you don’t even know!
But the first letter is always a “warm-up letter” asking only for your “direct telephone numbers and exclusive e-mail and a scanned attachment of your well articulated tender/products and prices.”
And once you do that and prove to them that you will follow orders like a sheep, you will be demanded in a subsequent letter to turn over your bank information as well so that they can “transfer” your “fee” in return for your “indispensable services…” etc.
The letter usually comes from an “intermediary” who speaks “on behalf” of someone rich and powerful. This other person, the “real boss,” is either trying to transfer money out of a troubled country or has a business offer for the taking. The “Iraqi re-construction” scam is of the latter type.
Another give-away in this scam is the country-code at the end of the return e-mail – “si”, which stands not for Iraq but Slovenia.
If you can convince yourself why Prime Minister Al-Maliki’s “director general of the budget department/debt management office (DMO) of the ministry of finance” would send you a job solicitation e-mail from Slovenia, then perhaps you deserve to be parted from your savings as well.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Linux or Windows?
As I'm writing these words, DELL has decided to ship some of its new models with Linux OS. They have selected UBUNTU distribution of Linux. Go DELL!
A perfect choice because I've been using UBUNTU on one of my machines for over a year now and I have nothing but qualified praise for it.
Qualified? Yes. Because I cannot run any of my Windows application (like Photoshop, Illustrator, GoLive) on Ubuntu.
GIMP comes close to doing what Photoshop can do (at least at my level of graphic comptetence) but other Windows applications do not have their Linux-copunterparts yet. There is nothing over the horizon yet, for example, to match the reliability of power of FrameMaker in a Linux environment.
So why I still like my Ubuntu? Let me count the ways:
1) It's FREE.
2) OpenOffice that comes with it is FREE as well and it can match WS Office in every category, except in mail management.
3) No viruses. Period. I have not used any anti-virus programs or firewalls with my Ubuntu system yet. Knock on wood.
4) No system crashes. And when I crash my system (a rare event) while trying to open 10 different applications or files at the same time, Ubuntu recovers beautifully, restoring each crashed file one by one when you restart the system.
5) Auto updates... when you click this great little "you have updates" button on top of the screen, UBUNTU automatically downloads (after your approval of each item) whatever updates are developed by hard-working Linux volunteers around the globe.
I do all my writing, for example, on my Linux machine. Since OpenOffice also has a free PDF conversion utility built right into its word processor, I'm writing my new book ("Copyright-Free Content for Your Web Site and Newsletters") also on my Linux machine.
Click here for a great article that compares UBUNTU with MS Vista
Monday, April 30, 2007
Circulation at the Top 20 Newspapers
By The Associated Press
Average paid weekday circulation of the nation's 20 largest newspapers for the six-month period ending in March, as reported Monday by the Audit Bureau of Circulations. The percentage changes are from the comparable year-ago period.
1. USA Today, 2,278,022, up 0.2 percent
2. The Wall Street Journal, 2,062,312, up 0.6 percent
3. The New York Times, 1,120,420, down 1.9 percent
4. Los Angeles Times, 815,723, down 4.2 percent
5. New York Post, 724,748, up 7.6 percent
6. New York Daily News, 718,174, up 1.4 percent
7. The Washington Post, 699,130, down 3.5 percent
8. Chicago Tribune, 566,827, down 2.1 percent
9. Houston Chronicle, 503,114, down 2 percent
10. The Arizona Republic, 433,731, down 1.1 percent
11. Dallas Morning News, 411,919, down 14.3 percent
12. Newsday, Long Island, 398,231, down 6.9 percent
13. San Francisco Chronicle, 386,564, down 2.9 percent
14. The Boston Globe, 382,503, down 3.7 percent
15. The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J., 372,629, down 6.1 percent
16. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 357,399, down 2.1 percent
17. The Philadelphia Inquirer, 352,593, up 0.6 percent
18. Star Tribune of Minneapolis-St. Paul, 345,252, down 4.9 percent
19. The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, 344,704, up 0.5 percent
20. Detroit Free Press, 329,989, down 4.7 percent
The Dallas Morning News is reporting for the first time since being censured in 2004 for misstating circulation figures. The Chicago Sun-Times has not yet resumed reporting.
Source: Audit Bureau of Circulations.
Average paid weekday circulation of the nation's 20 largest newspapers for the six-month period ending in March, as reported Monday by the Audit Bureau of Circulations. The percentage changes are from the comparable year-ago period.
1. USA Today, 2,278,022, up 0.2 percent
2. The Wall Street Journal, 2,062,312, up 0.6 percent
3. The New York Times, 1,120,420, down 1.9 percent
4. Los Angeles Times, 815,723, down 4.2 percent
5. New York Post, 724,748, up 7.6 percent
6. New York Daily News, 718,174, up 1.4 percent
7. The Washington Post, 699,130, down 3.5 percent
8. Chicago Tribune, 566,827, down 2.1 percent
9. Houston Chronicle, 503,114, down 2 percent
10. The Arizona Republic, 433,731, down 1.1 percent
11. Dallas Morning News, 411,919, down 14.3 percent
12. Newsday, Long Island, 398,231, down 6.9 percent
13. San Francisco Chronicle, 386,564, down 2.9 percent
14. The Boston Globe, 382,503, down 3.7 percent
15. The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J., 372,629, down 6.1 percent
16. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 357,399, down 2.1 percent
17. The Philadelphia Inquirer, 352,593, up 0.6 percent
18. Star Tribune of Minneapolis-St. Paul, 345,252, down 4.9 percent
19. The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, 344,704, up 0.5 percent
20. Detroit Free Press, 329,989, down 4.7 percent
The Dallas Morning News is reporting for the first time since being censured in 2004 for misstating circulation figures. The Chicago Sun-Times has not yet resumed reporting.
Source: Audit Bureau of Circulations.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Sales Receipt - Printing the Full Credit Card Number is Against the 2003 Law
My local Sears store may get sued one of these days because it is still printing the full credit card numbers on their sales receipts.
According to the U.S. Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003, which went into effect on December 4, 2006, the retailers are not allowed to print their customers' full credit card numbers on the sale receipts in an effort to prevent consumer fraud and identity theft.
Some claim card expiration dates should also not be printed but the law is not clear on that point.
Big merchants such as Rite-Aid, Wendy's, FedEx, TJX, and Ikea are already being sued for doing exactly that.
100 class-action lawsuits are already filed at the federal courts and district courts (in California, Pennsylvania, and Kansas) for continuing to print full credit card numbers on sales receipts.
The lawsuits contend that the retailers are "wilfully" violating the law, which carry a $1,000 penalty per transaction (not per person). So, if a consumer has bought 10 sandwiches from a store with 10 different receipts displaying the full credit card number, the penalty sought would be $10,000.
To prevent the onslaught of these new lawsuits, VISA started to demand its vendors back in 2003 to accept new machines that print only the last four digits of a credit card number. That still remains the legally accepted practice but I personally see quite a few stores still printing their sales receipts the old fashioned way.
I guess it's time to have a friendly talk with the Manager of my Sears store...
According to the U.S. Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003, which went into effect on December 4, 2006, the retailers are not allowed to print their customers' full credit card numbers on the sale receipts in an effort to prevent consumer fraud and identity theft.
Some claim card expiration dates should also not be printed but the law is not clear on that point.
Big merchants such as Rite-Aid, Wendy's, FedEx, TJX, and Ikea are already being sued for doing exactly that.
100 class-action lawsuits are already filed at the federal courts and district courts (in California, Pennsylvania, and Kansas) for continuing to print full credit card numbers on sales receipts.
The lawsuits contend that the retailers are "wilfully" violating the law, which carry a $1,000 penalty per transaction (not per person). So, if a consumer has bought 10 sandwiches from a store with 10 different receipts displaying the full credit card number, the penalty sought would be $10,000.
To prevent the onslaught of these new lawsuits, VISA started to demand its vendors back in 2003 to accept new machines that print only the last four digits of a credit card number. That still remains the legally accepted practice but I personally see quite a few stores still printing their sales receipts the old fashioned way.
I guess it's time to have a friendly talk with the Manager of my Sears store...
How to write columns and get syndicated?
by Bhumika Ghimire
http://www.helium.com/user/show/68604
April 29, 2007
Writing columns and getting syndicated can be a great career moment for freelance writers. With this you can expect a steady pay and also increased name recognition.But before I get deep into benefits of getting syndicated, lets talk about what syndication means and how it works.
Syndication means that you column will run in more than one national or local newspaper or magazine. For example: you write a column on fashion which will be carried by newspapers in your home town as well as others across the nation. Which publication carries them depends on your contract. Usually an agent shops around and gets you a syndication deal. Your pay also depends on the terms in the contract, you can either be paid a certain percentage based on circulation or have a fixed amount. About the frequency of publication, some get it weekly and some have it daily. Though it is very rare to get a daily space.
So now that you know how syndication works, lets talk about how to get syndicated.
Click here for the rest of this useful article
http://www.helium.com/user/show/68604
April 29, 2007
Writing columns and getting syndicated can be a great career moment for freelance writers. With this you can expect a steady pay and also increased name recognition.But before I get deep into benefits of getting syndicated, lets talk about what syndication means and how it works.
Syndication means that you column will run in more than one national or local newspaper or magazine. For example: you write a column on fashion which will be carried by newspapers in your home town as well as others across the nation. Which publication carries them depends on your contract. Usually an agent shops around and gets you a syndication deal. Your pay also depends on the terms in the contract, you can either be paid a certain percentage based on circulation or have a fixed amount. About the frequency of publication, some get it weekly and some have it daily. Though it is very rare to get a daily space.
So now that you know how syndication works, lets talk about how to get syndicated.
Click here for the rest of this useful article
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Lay, Lie or Lie? How to Use Them Correctly with "Visual Aid" ?
Is there anyone who is not confused with the proper usage of the verbs "lay" and "lie"? I know I am from time to time. So that's why I developed a "visual aid" to help myself remember what is what. It works for me and I hope it'll be helpful for you as well.
1) Lay means to "place," or "put" and it is a transitive verb. That is, it needs an OBJECT to make sense. You always lay SOMETHING.
VISUAL AID: Imagine the letter "a" in "Lay" as someone bending over to place a heavy object on the ground.
"Our engineers will lay the foundation of our new headquarters building."
Both the past and perfect tense of "Lay" is "Laid." Lay-Laid-Laid (1-2-2).
"Our engineers have laid the foundation of our new headquarters building."
2) Lie, an intransitive verb that does not need an object, means to "recline" or "remain."
VISUAL AID: Imagine the DOT on the letter "i" in "Lie" as the head of someone resting/reclining on a couch or bed.
But watch out -- the PAST tense of lie is also lay! That's why it can get pretty confusing.
"The puppy would not lay still even for a second!"
So when you see "lay," you have to figure out whether it is to "put/place" or "recline/remain" from the context.
However the perfect tense of "Lie" is "Lain." Lie-Lay-Lain (1-2-3).
"The overturned truck had lain in the ditch the whole night."
3) Lie has yet ANOTHER meaning, as you know – telling an untruth.
Its past and perfect tenses are "Lied" and "Lied." Lie-Lied-Lied (1-2-2). Usually it's easy to tell this form of "lie" from the other.
("Puppy lied." Correct? No. Puppies don't talk. It should be "Puppy lay.")
1) Lay means to "place," or "put" and it is a transitive verb. That is, it needs an OBJECT to make sense. You always lay SOMETHING.
VISUAL AID: Imagine the letter "a" in "Lay" as someone bending over to place a heavy object on the ground.
"Our engineers will lay the foundation of our new headquarters building."
Both the past and perfect tense of "Lay" is "Laid." Lay-Laid-Laid (1-2-2).
"Our engineers have laid the foundation of our new headquarters building."
2) Lie, an intransitive verb that does not need an object, means to "recline" or "remain."
VISUAL AID: Imagine the DOT on the letter "i" in "Lie" as the head of someone resting/reclining on a couch or bed.
But watch out -- the PAST tense of lie is also lay! That's why it can get pretty confusing.
"The puppy would not lay still even for a second!"
So when you see "lay," you have to figure out whether it is to "put/place" or "recline/remain" from the context.
However the perfect tense of "Lie" is "Lain." Lie-Lay-Lain (1-2-3).
"The overturned truck had lain in the ditch the whole night."
3) Lie has yet ANOTHER meaning, as you know – telling an untruth.
Its past and perfect tenses are "Lied" and "Lied." Lie-Lied-Lied (1-2-2). Usually it's easy to tell this form of "lie" from the other.
("Puppy lied." Correct? No. Puppies don't talk. It should be "Puppy lay.")
Friday, April 27, 2007
Is it UP or DOWN?
News Item 1:
"Bookstore Sales Continue Slide
Retail sales at bookstores in February 2007 were down as compared to the previous February, according to preliminary estimates recently released by the Bureau of the Census. In addition, the Bureau adjusted both January 2006 and January 2007 figures upward, but the end result was that bookstore sales decreased by 1.4 percent this past January..."
News Item 2:
"Did You Know...
Of the 172 bookstores that participated in both the ABACUS 2006 and ABACUS 2005 surveys, 104 stores (or 60 percent of the total) reported an increase in sales between 2005 and 2006. The average sales increase was more than 10 percent. Booksellers who would like to receive a customized set of tools that can be used to evaluate their store's financial performance can join the 2007 ABACUS survey via an enhanced web form now..."
(Source: The same issue of “Bookselling This Week,” a Publication of American Booksellers Association, April 26, 2007)
"Bookstore Sales Continue Slide
Retail sales at bookstores in February 2007 were down as compared to the previous February, according to preliminary estimates recently released by the Bureau of the Census. In addition, the Bureau adjusted both January 2006 and January 2007 figures upward, but the end result was that bookstore sales decreased by 1.4 percent this past January..."
News Item 2:
"Did You Know...
Of the 172 bookstores that participated in both the ABACUS 2006 and ABACUS 2005 surveys, 104 stores (or 60 percent of the total) reported an increase in sales between 2005 and 2006. The average sales increase was more than 10 percent. Booksellers who would like to receive a customized set of tools that can be used to evaluate their store's financial performance can join the 2007 ABACUS survey via an enhanced web form now..."
(Source: The same issue of “Bookselling This Week,” a Publication of American Booksellers Association, April 26, 2007)
Photoshop biz on NYT
New York Times ran an interesting article on folks who touch up old photos with Photoshop and offer "age progression" service -- that is, you give them your baby's photo and they let you see how he or she will look at age 70!
Cool, huh ? :-))
Click here to read the article
Cool, huh ? :-))
Click here to read the article
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Do you have to go online?
Contrary to popular belief, a lot of small businesses are not online.
Here are the official figures published by the National Small Business Association for small business that do NOT have a web site:
Service -- 57%
Retail -- 39%
Professional services -- 33%
Construction -- 67%
Manufacturing -- 32%
Here are the official figures published by the National Small Business Association for small business that do NOT have a web site:
Service -- 57%
Retail -- 39%
Professional services -- 33%
Construction -- 67%
Manufacturing -- 32%
GNC Catalog -- Weak Cover
GNC is a great company. I buy my vitamins from GNC and own a discount card as well.However, I was disappointed by their latest direct mail catalog.
Issue? Very weak lead with no urgency, no specificity, no unique message.
OUR MOST POPULAR SPECIALTY SUPPLEMENTS... (that's it?)
Why waste the precious front cover by just repeating the obvious?
(And look how static and rectangular all the graphic elements are. There is no movement here to match the "energy" we are supposed to get from these wonderful products...)
Where are the benefits?
Why should I get excited about and buy Triflex? CoQ-10? or Fish Body Oil?
This is a perfect example of a catalog cover gone to waste.
But it doesn't mean that the rest of the catalog is equally disappointing. Far from it. Here is what I really loved on page 2 -- MEET THE GNC MEDICAL ADVISORY BOARD.
This is a great idea. It immediately projects autohority and confidence in GNC products.
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