Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Selling Products Online: Writing a Good Ad

In my years of experience in the print and advertising industry, I found that writing a good ad is one of the most important keys in advertising. If you are currently selling products on eBay, eBid, Etsy, Bid Owl or other auction websites, it is important to write a good ad. This works well especially for advertising a business, or for informational advertising. Your ad can make or break a campaign. It's important that you have good content; All of the information in the ad should give an accurate description with correct information. Get to the point and give as much detailed information as you can without making it lengthy. If you are going to sell a product, here are a few tips how you can start writing your own ad.

  1. Have a few key words to make your ad catchy.
  2. Have a good design. If you can't design a good looking ad yourself hire a professional.
  3. Keep your ad short and sweet, with good content.
  4. Give accurate and detailed information.
  5. If you're going to sell a product, more pictures are always better.
  6. List contact information in case anyone has any questions.

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Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Bailouts: First the Banks, now the Auto Industry?

Over this past year many national banks have been in trouble. This happened because of bad investments and bad judgments of people that worked for these banks that did unethical loans. Because of the giant loss of banks across the country, the Federal Government decided to step in to bail out these banks in an effort to save the economy. Unfortunately it wasn’t a very well thought out plan. There were banks that used the money to pay themselves big bonuses and pay for luxury vacations, instead of using the money for what it was intended for. Then there were banks that used the money to pay for new investments, some of these banks didn’t even need the bailout money. Now the auto industry is seeking bailout money from the Government. Should these companies be bailed out? Or should they be held accountable for their actions, and file a Chapter 11 while they clean up their act.

The Government I think is going to go about this in a smarter way this time. Some things to consider are what will happen to the economy if they give the money to the auto industry? What type of stipulations will be enforced? We as tax payers do not have a choice. When ever the Federal Government gives a large sum of money to anyone, we pay for it, and usually the money comes from one of two sources, they raise taxes to pay for it or it comes out of social security.

Here are some additional articles related to this post.

How the Feds will Govern GM and Chrysler

Potential GM Bankruptcy Catastrophic for Economy

Wallstrip: Does the Auto Industry Deserve a Bailout?


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Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Making a Difference in Your Community

We have been faced with difficult times in our economy. Especially this year. The unemployment rate is high and may only get worse with all of the companies going bankrupt these days. Even if your not unemployed many peoples finances are tighter than ever this year. I have been thinking how can I make a difference in these difficult times? Here is a website I came across for additional ideas to make a difference. Charity Guide Even if you don't have money to donate, chances are you have something in your house that you can donate. All of these organizations welcome volunteers you can donate your time.

There are a number of charities looking for things you can donate that can be used items. Some items I never would have even thought of. There are many families living in shelters or apartments that have nothing.

  • Big Brothers Big Sisters - This organization will take used clothing, bedding, books, toys, recreational items, motor vehicles, boats, motor homes, airplanes, construction equipment,
  • Local Food Bank - I have donated food from my pantry. I look at the items in there and if they have been sitting there for a few months and it's not expired than I will give it to the food bank.
  • Local Shelters - Many of the local shelters will take clothes, bedding, toys.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Money saving tips in today's economy.

With the the stock market down and the unemployment rate rising, we are now in a recession. There are many things in our future that could be uncertain, and there are many different things we can do to tighten our budget without giving up our way of living.

I have decided to share a few small things that I do that are ways you can save money. You may not all agree with these things but when you implement these things into your daily living habits, the pennies will add up and can make a big difference in the way you spend money.

  • Cleaning - Over this past year I have discovered I can make my own cleaning products much cheaper than buying them. My home made cleaners I have found that there are many other benefits as well to using them. The cleaners are organic which means less fumes and I think they work better than what I buy in the store. Some basic household products you might need are; Baking Soda, Borax, Vinegar. To make your own cleaners here is a website that has a few recipes.
  • Meal Planning - I haven't always practiced this, but when I do I find that I don't spend nearly as much at the grocery store. By making a list of the ingredients you need for meals ahead of time this will eliminate the unnecessary things that you throw into the shopping cart that you don't need. When grocery shopping I try to do enough shopping to last for a minimum of 2 weeks to eliminate the need to go to the grocery store more than 2-3 times per month.
  • Shopping - When doing any type of shopping make a list of the things you need to get and plan a budget for your trip so you don't overspend. When your shopping take a look at different brands of items and choose what is the most economically correct thing for you to buy. Most store brand items it doesn't make a difference when you compare to that name brand product. By purchasing more generic items you can often save money, but you should always do what's right for you.