December 28, 2006

AGLOCO - The Internet's First Economic Network...

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The Internet's First Economic Network

Today’s hottest Internet businesses are all about the power of social networks. Companies like MySpace, Facebook, and YouTube are worth billions because businesses see that these social networks are generating huge advertising and marketing opportunities.

As these social networks grow, the economic potential for its owners – and the advertisers who target the site’s users – is remarkable.

At AGLOCO, they asked a simple question: The users created the community, so where’s their share of the profit?

It was from this question that AGLOCO set out to create the Internet’s very first Economic Network, harnessing the power of Internet-based social networks to directly benefit the members who help to create the community.

Becoming a member of AGLOCO is as simple as completing a brief sign-up page (name, age, location and email address.). And it's free. Once you’re a member you can get the Viewbar™. Note: the Viewbar™ is currently unavailable as it's in closed testing. It will be ready for public download shortly, and members will be notified when it's available.

AGLOCO Makes Money For You

Search: Every time you use the Viewbar™ to do an Internet search, AGLOCO earns money from the search engine providers. (For example, Google pays as much as $0.10 on average for each search that is directed to its search engine.)

Advertising: The Viewbar™ itself displays ads that are targeted based upon the websites you’re visiting. When people click on an ad and make a purchase, AGLOCO receives a referral fee, which it will pass on to the AGLOCO members.

Transaction commissions: Many major retailers pay commissions when you refer customers who make a purchase. AGLOCO collects those commissions and pass them on to the AGLOCO members. (For example, Amazon pays an 8.5% commission to most websites who refer customers, and has cut deals for even larger percentages. The bigger the AGLOCO community, the better commission AGLOCO can negotiate for the members.)

Software distribution: Numerous software companies pay websites to encourage the download of new software releases (Adobe Flash and Acrobat Reader, for example) and trial versions of new programs. AGLOCO members not only get access to the latest and coolest software, they get paid for it!

Service distribution: Many online service providers will look to the AGLOCO community as a source of new and active users for their services. For example, many companies like eBay, Skype, and PayPal all pay money to people who help them get new users and customers.

Product distribution: When AGLOCO members agree to use products (such as: cell phones, high-tech gadgets, office supplies, new credit cards or financial services), AGLOCO can collect referral fees. Some companies even offer special rebate and cash-back programs.

AGLOCO - Much to Offer

As you see, AGLOCO definitely has a lot to offer. So much so, that it's created quite a large buzz in the blogosphere recently.

And quite simply, here's why: You get paid simply for browsing the web (which you do already). Refer others to AGLOCO and you also get paid for a portion of their browsing as well - all the way down to 5 levels.

So don't sit and wait on this one. Be a part of the Internet's first-ever member-owned economic community and join AGLOCO for free. Start spreading the word and start earning money.

If you want to check out the AGLOCO calculator to calculate how much AGLOCO will pay you for browsing, as well as learn more about AGLOCO, go to my AGLOCO money calculator post.

AGLOCO - Own the Internet!

More AGLOCO Posts And Info.

December 26, 2006

Home Business Today Quote of the Week...

Home Business Today Quote of the Week:

"If you are not too long, I will wait here for you all my life."
Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)

December 25, 2006

Home Business Today Featured On Godin's SQUIDOO Lens...

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Home Business Today Featured On
Seth Godin's Squidoo Lens

Some very cool news on this early Christmas morn...

The Home Business Today blog was recently featured on the Squidoo Lens of world-renowned author, Seth Godin.

Holy Cow!

I'm not sure which readers actually submitted Home Business Today (thanks!), but nonetheless, it's currently holding out at #19 worldwide. Holy Bovinae again!

I do, however, expect this high ranking to drop significantly since many of the blogs are now asking their blog readers to vote for them. Plus, I'm sure they have way more readers than I do anyway.

So if you'd like to see the list, and put in your own vote for your favorite blog or blogs, go here: http://www.squidoo.com/zlist.

And if you're looking for the Home Business Today blog, I believe it's currently listed as The HBT Blog. But I notice someone has also submitted it as "Home Business Today by Aaron Cook."

Who is Seth Godin?

Well, in 1995 Seth Godin founded one of the first online marketing companies, Yoyodyne. In 1998 he sold the company to Yahoo!. As a part of the sale to Yahoo!, Seth Godin became Vice-President of permission marketing at Yahoo!.

In late 2005, Seth Godin founded the "recommendation network" website known as SQUIDOO. And the rest, as they say, history.

December 24, 2006

Merry Christmas from Home Business Today!

Merry Christmas Everyone!


Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a safe and prosperous New Year. May the best things come to you and yours this season.

Cheers,
Aaron

Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Christmas In Sarajevo



Enjoy another Christmas lights show...

December 22, 2006

The Rollerman - Jean-Yves Blondeau...

Here's a great video of an interesting individual who not only built himself his very own full-body Buggy Rollin' suit, but invented the Buggy Rollin' sport as well.

His name is Jean-Yves Blondeau (a.k.a. The Rollerman) and I think his Buggy Rollin' suit invention is damn cool. Even reminds a little bit of RoboCop!

31 wheels and up to 60 miles per hour. Ouh là!

The Rollerman - Jean-Yves Blondeau

December 21, 2006

AGLOCO Official Update #1

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A Global Community
Owned By Its Members

Here's some great information from a brief update I received from AGLOCO. And I must say, this thing is really taking off.

AGLOCO Update #1

AGLOCO is four weeks old and has already signed up tens of thousands of Members, created an enormous 'buzz' (over 700,000 pages in Google's search results talk about AGLOCO) and established a website more popular than Toyota's, Ford's, Bloomingdale's and Kmart's. It took YouTube 8 months to do that!

In addition to building the AGLOCO network, we've been working on the AGLOCO Viewbar, which is now scheduled for release in seven to ten weeks.

You may know that we started a campaign to sign up 10,000,000 Members by July 1st, 2007.

While we know this is an ambitious goal, we also know the power of an Internet-based network as several Members already have over a 1,000 referrals!

Double Your AGLOCO Income

Every five new referrals you get (whether direct or extended) DOUBLES your AGLOCO income!

And over 90% of our Members join through a referral email from an existing AGLOCO Member. So we've provided a sample email for you.

To get the AGLOCO sample email, just sign up here.

More AGLOCO Information

If you're just now learning of AGLOCO and would like some more detailed information on it, id est (i.e.), how it works, how you get paid, etc., here are three very helpful posts I wrote about it:

December 17, 2006

Home Business Today Quote of the Week...

Home Business Today Quote of the Week:

"Life does not cease to be funny when people die any more than it ceases to be serious when people laugh."
George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

December 16, 2006

Special AGLOCO Money Calculator...

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A Global Community
Owned By Its Members

I've spent some time this week posting about AGLOCO - and for good reason. I've even been featured on the popular MLM Blog for it. Thanks Ty!

Just in case you're not totally clued-in regarding the amazing AGLOCO, which is getting a lot of attention in the blogosphere recently, here are a couple of the latest HBT posts on it:

Today's post, however, covers the actual earnings aspect - how much money ($$$) you can make each month just by surfing the web with AGLOCO. And to show that, I've found this neat little AGLOCO money calculator...

AGLOCO Money Calculator

To use the AGLOCO calculator, just follow these quick steps:

1. Go to AGLOCO and sign up for free.
2. Log in to your AGLOCO member area.
3. Click on the Member Calculator button.
4. Input whatever numbers you choose & calculate!

You'll be pleasantly surprised at how much AGLOCO is willing to pay you each month just for surfing the web like you always have.

The AGLOCO Buzz

AGLOCO is very straight forward and has the obvious potential to be extremely lucrative. All in all, it definitely has a lot to offer - so much so that it's created a huge buzz in the blogosphere recently (which isn't easy to do).

And here's why there's such a buzz: AGLOCO pays you simply for surfing the web (which you already do). Refer others to AGLOCO and you also get paid for a portion of their browsing as well - all the way down to 5 levels.That, and it's totally free to join. Cool.

AGLOCO - A global community owned by the members. Earn your share today!

December 15, 2006

Home Business Today Has Been Aglocoed...

MLM Blog:

Home Business Today - You've Been Aglocoed

Aaron Cook's Home Business Today blog has a couple of posts about AGLOCO.

Why not cruise on over to Aaron' s blog, see how it works and sign up.

Aaron's AGLOCO Link.

Wow, thanks Ty. I appreciate the mention very much!

BTW, if you haven't yet checked out either of Ty's blogs (MLM Blog and MultiLeveler), be sure that you do. Very informative stuff he has there.

December 14, 2006

AGLOCO - How Does AGLOCO Work?

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A Global Community
Owned By Its Members

In my previous post I talked briefly about a new and promising company called AGLOCO - a company that believes that its members should also benefit and profit by being its owners.

And why should members benefit by being owners? In AGLOCO's words, "The Members who are the source of value for an internet company should own that company. This brings transparency and rewards the right people who contribute to developing the company."

I agree. And I also agree with AGLOCO about this...

"The internet currently generates value from nearly everything a user does online. From a simple internet search, to clicking on an ad, to making a purchase, someone is making money from these activities. Our job, as stewards of a large community, is to ensure a fair part of that value is returned to our Members."

How Does AGLOCO Work?

Here's a simple pictorial breakdown
that easily explains it...

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Some AGLOCO FAQ's

1. What is AGLOCO™ all about?
AGLOCO is the first Internet-based economic network, which enables you as a Member to ‘Get your share of the internet.’ Advertisers, search companies, online merchants and other businesses currently pay lots of companies to deliver people like you to them to get your attention and sell goods. With AGLOCO they will be paying YOU.

AGLOCO is also a global community of Internet users whose active Members can be paid for all their online activity. By downloading our proprietary Viewbar™ technology, members benefit from engaging and unobtrusive content tailored to their interests. AGLOCO also pays its members to refer others to the communitty, and it pays through 4 levels of extended referrals!

2. How do I earn cash and shares?
Just sign up, use the web as usuals and earn cash and shares. It's really that simple. Once you install the Viewbar™ software it automatically records the time you're actively online, and we pay you for it. But the first step is to sign up and become a member. It's fast and it's free. If you refer your friends and family we'll pay you even more cash and shares.

3. Why is AGLOCO giving 100% of its stock to its Members?
We believe the Internet should be a platform for people to benefit from, and if anyone generates money from their normal online activities, it should be the people themselves.

4. How do referrals work?
AGLOCO pays you an hourly rate when the friends and family you refer (“direct referrals”) use the web with the Viewbar™ running, as well as for the people your referrals recruit (“extended referrals”). Extended referrals continue for 4 levels past your original referral, and there's no limit to the number of referrals you can accumulate.

More Posts On AGLOCO

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AGLOCO - Own the Internet...

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A Global Community
Owned By Its Memebrs

I recently heard about AGLOCO from an email my friend Ty Tribble of MultiLeveler sent me. And after spending some time to review AGLOCO, I signed up.

What is AGLOCO? Well, I can easily say that AGLOCO is not a crazy Attorney General if that's what you were wondering. :P

And all in all it looks like it's going to be pretty popular. If you haven't checked out AGLOCO yet, you can do so here. Anyway, here's some of what Ty had to say about it...

"It's hard to come up with good a good analogy to explain AGLOCO, but I'll try...

Imagine if Google said that they would pay you with pre-IPO shares of the company for making sure that Google Adsense ads were displayed on your blog and on top of that, they will pay you additional pre-IPO shares for anyone you refer and those that they refer down 4 levels.

The Google analogy is not perfect because Google had a nice revenue stream before going public, but the concept is similar. AGLOCO pays you with pre-IPO shares to download their Viewbar and surf the web for 5 hours a month with the Viewbar on. You surf for 5 hours a month with the Viewbar, you get 5 shares. Then you get another .25 shares for anyone in your network that has surfed for 5 hours with the AGLOCO Viewbar on.

The Viewbar creates revenue by supplying relevant affiliate ads as you surf. That revenue is shared with the networkers and every day people that use the service."

"Here is the deal, I am going to use the web WAY more than 5 hours a month and it is not a big deal to make sure that I have the Viewbar on for at least 5 hours and I am going to be blogging about Network Marketing companies that people are interested in, so it is a natural for me to check this out."

Bottom line, if you spend any amount of time online (and who doesn't!) then you should at least check it out as well.

More On AGLOCO
Want to learn more about AGLOCO and how it'll make you money? Here are some AGLOCO-specific posts:

December 12, 2006

December 11, 2006

AddThis.com Simplifies Blog and Website Content Sharing...

Buttons To Help Your Visitors Collect
And Promote Your Site Content

If you're not already using AddThis on your blog or website, then you might want to start using it as soon as possible. And here are several good reasons why...

1. AddThis makes it very easy for your site visitors to bookmark your blog or website, and subscribe to your web feeds.

2. It makes it easy for your visitors to promote your website or blog to the social bookmark services, which will increase your website traffïc.

3. AddThis saves you real-estate on your website. You can use just ONE button for all the bookmarking services and for all feed readers.

The social bookmarking buttons for your blog posts are available now and they'll work for TypePad, Movable Type, Blogger, Blogger Beta and WordPress. Bookmark buttons for MySpace are available as well.

Basically, AddThis will help you promote your blog and website content (web pages, feeds, podcasts, products, etc.) online by making it easier for your visitors to collect, save and distribute your content across the Internet.

In addition, the AddThis Browser Button will allow you to collect information online with a single click, and then send it to your favorite bookmarking service, feed reader, podcast service or shopping service.

Bottom line, I highly recommend using AddThis on your blog or website.

December 9, 2006

New Password Spam - A New Spam Tactic

Just a quick note to inform all of the Home Business Today readers of a new email spam tactic. It's what I call the Password Spam Scam, and it's fairly simple...

Spammers are sending countless spam emails with the words "New Password" (or any variation, thereof) in the subject line. And as always, the emails are designed to "trick" you into opening them.

So, (and as you probably already guessed) do not open these emails! They're pure spam and could also contain viruses and/or spyware as well.

How you can I avoid spyware? Easy. Here are the Top 5 Ways To Avoid Spyware.

December 4, 2006

Home Business Today Quote of the Week...

Home Business Today Quote of the Week:

"If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

December 2, 2006

Amateur - Lasse Gjertsen

Yep, this is about the coolest video I've ever seen...

Amateur - Lasse Gjertsen

BTW, all the sounds are the actual audio from the original video. No alterations were made other than basic timeline editing. Lasse can't really play the drums or the piano!

And notice his attire? A tuxedo for drumming and shorts and a T-shirt for playing piano. Too funny!

7 Components of a Well-Rounded SEO Program...

Keep Those Spiders Happy!

How can you ensure the viability of your SEO program well into the future? How can you reduce the impact of search engine algorithm changes and enjoy long-term visibility and ranking?

The answer to both questíons involves having a well-rounded SEO program.

Website owners who put too much emphasis on a single element of SEO are more vulnerable to changes in search engine algorithms. If you look at the history of search engine optimization, you'll see a pattern of this:

Back in the day, a lot of webmasters relied heavily on keyword tags to drive their visibility and ranking. But the search engines demoted the importance of the keyword tag, and many websites suffered as a result.

Link exchange networks are a more recent version of this scenario. Search engines are now devaluing links that are part of link farms and obvious reciprocation schemes. And once again, some websites are suffering from it.

But how is it that some websites coast right along, largely unaffected by search engine updates? What's the difference between these unaffected websites and those that are negatively impacted?

Sure, the age of the domain plays a part. But another key difference is the well-rounded nature of a website's SEO program. Instead of focusing on the hottest SEO "trend," websites with long-term SEO success focus on a variety of strategies with equal emphasis.

In that sense, SEO is similar to financial investments. The more you diversify, the less likely you are to suffer across the board when uncontrollable factors fluctuate.

So how do you diversify your search engine optimization? By using a variety of tactics in conjunction with each other. Here are some of the tactics you might use.

7 Components of a Well-Rounded SEO Program:

1. Create quality content
2. Create web-based resources or tools
3. Start a blog
4. Publish press releases online
5. Publish articles online
6. Add your site to quality directories
7. Acquire links from relevant websites


1. Create Quality Content

Good, original content helps your SEO efforts in three ways. First, quality content will make your link-building efforts much easier. Think about the kinds of websites you would link to. I'm willing to bet they all have one thing in common -- relevant and useful content.

Quality content will also increase the number of page views you get per visitor. Again, consider your own behavior for a moment. What do you do when you come across a site that might be relevant to your needs but offers very little content? You probably bail out, don't you? Well guess what. Search engines can track that if you find the site through their results pages. When you conduct a Google search and clíck through one of the listings on the results page, Google can track your immediate actions upon reaching the site. Did you immediately back out, or did you stay a while? "Sticky" websites make your readers happy, increase your salës, and improve your search engine perförmance.

The third way content helps you is by telling the search engine what your site is about in the first place. The more content you have, the more you can use titles, links and page copy to educate readers and search engines alike.

2. Create Web-Based Resources or Tools

Web-based resources and tools are an extension of the last point, quality content. But now we're taking the content idea to a higher level. The goal here is three-fold. We want to give our visitors useful information, we want to increase our website's "buzz" factor, and we want to pave the way for our linking campaign (item 7 below).

Some SEO websites are really good at this strategy. Look at the variety of useful tools located at WeBuildPages.com and see what I mean. Jim Boykin, the owner of the site, knows quality content and useful tools will make people more inclined to (A) stay on his site longer, (B) recommend it to others, and (C) link to it from their own sites.

The key here is to create content and resources that are truly useful (not just marginally useful). For instance, let's consider a mörtgage-related website. Having a mörtgage calculator onsite is helpful, but it's not going to generate much buzz or linking. Those calculators are everywhere. But if the site builds a mörtgage learning center with step-by-step instructions for first-time home buyers, it will more easily acquire links and retain visitors.

3. Start a Blog

You may already know this, but if not here it goes. A blog is not a magical SEO device like some people seem to think. Blogs are chronological content-management tools that convert normal text into HTML. That's all.

With that said, blogs can play a major role in search engine optimization because they make web publishing quick and easy. Because they're so easy to use, site owners are more likely to create new content on a regular basis. Blogs also add an element of freshness to a website -- always a good thing for SEO.

Blogs also help your SEO program by social means. The most popular blogs in a given industry usually have a strong sense of personality. Don't use your blog as another channel for dull corporate speak. Use it to have a frank discussion with your audience. Share your true ideas in your true voice, and other bloggers in your niche community will link to you soon enough (especially if you're an authority).

4. Publish Press Releases Online

Do you have news about your business? If so, publish it online through a site like PRWeb.com. A good news release will go far online, often being picked up by respectable news sites, RSS feeds, blogs and more. If you upgrade your release, you'll be able to hyerplink some of your key phrases. Suddenly, all those sites and blogs are pointing toward you with key phrase hyperlinks!
I've published press releases online for clients and had them picked up by highly ranked authority sites. Sometimes, these sites will use the release to write a story of their own (linking to the source website). In fact, I had a press release spawn a story on a popular website that drove 30% of my client's website traffíc for that week! This direct traffíc is in addition to the long-term SEO benefits of having the story archived.

5. Publish Articles Online

Ah yes, the power of articles. Now we're getting to one of my favorite web marketing strategies. The benefits of article marketing are so great that I've written an entire book on the subject (and made it part of my real estate SEO learning kit). But for now, let's summarize these benefits.

By publishing articles over the web, you extend your communication reach and increase your search engine ranking (by way of relevant backlinks to your website). Using websites like EzineArticles.com and SearchWarp.com, you can tap into a large distribution network. You can also find dozens of niche websites who are hungry for quality content and would gladly publish your articles.

Here's a shortcut to finding these niche websites. Do a search for your key phrase plus the words "submit article." For me, this might be: "real estate marketing +submit article." I can also find niche directories this way by using "real estate marketing +add URL."

And speaking of directories...

6. Add Your Site to Quality Directories

As a matter of course, I always recommend to clients that they add their websites to one or two general directories (like JoeAnt or Best of the Web) and as many niche directories as they can find. Such directories strengthen your link popularity and make you less susceptible to wild ranking fluctuations caused by search engine updates.

For example, one of my websites is related to real estate marketing, so I would do well to get it listed at Reals.com, IRED.com and similar sites. These sites are high-ranked, well-trusted, and relevant to the topic of real estate.

7. Acquire Links From Relevant Websites

I saved link-building for last for a couple of reasons. First, you want to make sure your website is worth linking to in the first place. That's why quality content, resources and blogs were steps 1, 2 and 3. Having a "link-worthy" website will make your link-building efforts much easier. Trust me on this one.

Secondly, I put link-building last because I want you to think bígger than just going out and harvesting links. By illustrating the benefits of press release, articles and directories (all key components of a link-building campaign), I hope to open your eyes to the broader benefits of web publishing in general.

Remember, it 's not just about people finding your site. It's about how they find your site, and what they find when they get there. If somebody finds you through a trusted source (like a news site), and they find quality content and interesting resources when they arrive, you've earned their trust right from the start.

Don't think of link-building as an isolated component of your SEO program. Think of it as an inseparable part of everything you do online.

Conclusion

Each of these topics deserves an article of its own (and then some). But I hope this prompts you to take the next step -- learning about each facet of a well-rounded search engine optimization program.

Does this approach work? I can say it does from firsthand experience. I have sites that rank well for highly competitive phrases, and they have sailed smoothly through all search engine updates over the last few years. They were all built using well-rounded SEO practices.

About The Author: Brandon Cornett is a full-time SEO professional and the author of "The Agent's Guide to Search Engine Visibility." Through his books, articles and blogs, Brandon teaches real estate agents how to optimize their websites to attract more qualified traffíc.

December 1, 2006

How To Generate Referrals...

If you really want to generate referrals for your business, don't ask for them. Instead, do something nice that people will notice. Do something that they will appreciate and remember!

Not only will you generate more referrals this way, you'll also see an increase in customer interest and loyalty. And that's priceless.

So if you truly care, then for goodness sakes take the time to do it. It's not hard.

Seth Godin's Blog:

This Must Be Hard

The reason it must be hard is that so few people do it.

"How was your dinner last night?"

Follow up. Not follow up to sell something, just to know. Just to ask. Just to set things right if they were wrong.

The fancy restaurant knows my phone number. Why not have the owner call me the next day just to ask?

The doctor knows my number. Why not call a week later to see how that broken arm is mending?

The accountant knows my number. Why not check in to see if the taxes went out the door okay?

If you really want to generate those referrals, don't ask for a referral, ask if everything was great. Offer to help. Do it in a gentle way, with no strings, no additional addons, no sales pitch.

November 27, 2006

Home Business Today Quote of the Week...

Home Business Today Quote of the Week:

"The strongest principle of growth lies in human choice."
George Eliot (1819-1880)

November 26, 2006

How To Enhance Your Blog...

The AWeber Blog:

Why should you publish a blog?

Blogs are a great, easy way to publish information in a timely manner. As a result, their popularity has skyrocketed.

However, to make blogs a really useful tool, you have to get people to come back and read regularly.

It’s just as true for your blog as it is your website that someone may take a look at what you’ve published and say to themselves, “This is interesting,” only to disappear, never to visit again.

Prevent this from happening to your blog by letting people know when you’ve published something new.






Keep Your Blog Readers Coming Back

RSS is offered by many blogging services as a way to syndicate information, but currently RSS is still a little too advanced for most web users.






We offer our RSS Feed Broadcaster to help our customers to syndicate their blog articles to nearly anyone interested. This feature converts your articles from a standard RSS feed into an e-mail template to send to your subscribers as your blog is updated.

All your subscribers need is an e-mail address. You just need to add a standard AWeber sign up form to your blog and set up your feed broadcaster.

How to set up this feature:

First, you can review the video tutorial we offer...

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Bush Is The Decider - Koo-Koo-Ka-Choo...

I am the Egghead, I'm the Commander,
I'm the Decider, Koo-Koo-Ka-Choo!

George Bush meets the Beatles. Funny, funny stuff. Just go here to listen to it. It's classic.

And many thanks to Paul for sharing. Your songs and lyrics are great, my friend!

I'm The Decider (Koo-Koo-Ka-Choo)

I am me and Rummy's he, Iraq is free and we are all together.
See the world run when Dick shoots his gun, see how I lie.
I'm Lying...

Sitting on my own brain, waiting for the end of days.
Corporation profits, Bloody oil money.
I'm above the law and I'll decide what's right or wrong.

I am the egg head, I'm the Commander, I'm the Decider.
Koo-Koo-Kachoo.

Baghdad city policeman sitting
Pretty little targets in a row.
See how they die when the shrapnel flies see mothers cry.
I'm Lying...I'm Ly-ing...I'm Lying...I'm Ly-ing

Yellow cake uranium, imaginary WMD's.
Declassifying facts, exposing secret agents,
Tax cuts for the wealthy leaving all the poor behind.

CHORUS

Sitting in the White house garden talking to the Lord.
My thoughts would be busy busy hatching,
If I only had a brain.

Great Email Signature Files...

Great Email Signature Files

Adding a signature file to your outgoing emails can be an easy (and free!) way to grow your business. It's definitely a great way to generate more web traffic to your website or blog.

In addition to generating more web traffic, signature files are also very useful for building brand awareness/brand recognition - especially if your site is a good information source.

Many people bookmark websites they find from signature files. They're also more likely to buy from you if they've bookmarked your site, as it means that they generally trust your information.

Basically, signature files are a free and easy way to promote your online business or home business without offending those who read your emails!

Want a good email signature that will aid in your home business marketing? Here's some good stuff from Tom Schreiter (Big Al) that can help you out in that area.

Great Signature Files...

A cheap and easy way to send people to your home page is to use attention-getting signature files. Don't use boring signature files such as:

The world's best home-based business opportunity with lifestyle enhancement features. Go to
http://www.boringopportunitypage.com/1234/id=j2kt4

Now, that's bad.

Instead, use your imagination. Make a signature file that creates curiosity and interest. Here are some examples:

  • Click here to see a picture of my wife's stomach.
  • Click here to see a picture of my boss' face when
    I told him I quit.
  • Click here to see a picture of the new car I won.
  • Click here to see the strange check I got in the
    mail.
  • Click here to see why my neighbors think I am weird.
  • Click here to see what I do on Tuesday afternoons.
  • Click here to see why jobs stink.
  • Click here to see why my neighbor is jealous.
  • Click here to see my "before" and "after" picture.

See the difference? And all this is free. Yet, of all the emails that I personally receive, only 50% use a signature file. Time to make a signature file or improve the current signature file, right?

Can Viral Videos Grow Your List?

Can Viral Videos Grow Your List?

The AWeber Blog:

Viral videos are watched by millions of people. While many are created purely for fun, interest in their use as a marketing tool is alive and growing.

The question is, can viral videos work for marketers? And if so, how well do they perform compared to other list building tactics?

The team over at Marketing Experiments put viral videos to the test. They created 28 videos, published them to YouTube and Google Video, and measured views, clickthroughs and subscribers generated.

Take a look at the report.

They also give a couple examples of videos that they created for the test.

The testers conclude that viral videos can be an effective addition to marketing efforts, and provide some guidelines for implementing viral videos in your marketing mix.

November 21, 2006

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

I want to wish everyone a very safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday. I'll be out of town on vacation (woo hoo!) until Sunday, so I may not have any time to post anything new here until after I get back.

So until then, here's a funny Thanksgiving clip from Mad TV. Enjoy!
And have a happy Thanksgiving!!! :)

Mad TV - Thanksgiving Phone Call

November 17, 2006

Home Business Today Quote of the Week...

Home Business Today Quote of the Week:

"Ambition is the germ from which all growth of nobleness proceeds."
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

November 15, 2006

Voicemail And Answering Machine Marketing Tips

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
Voicemail & Answering Machine
Marketing Tips That Work

Want more prospects to actually leave their contact information for you? Here are some good and simple marketing tips from Tom Schreiter (Big Al) that can help you accomplish just that...

To encourage prospects to leave their name AND telephone
number, include this phrase as part of your message:

"Please leave a telephone number and the best time
to call you back. I'll call back and ask you which
free samples you would prefer from our product line."

On your personal voice mail, you can leave this message
to get more prospects from your friends and relatives
who call you:

"Hi, I'm not home right now. Please leave your name
and phone number and I will call you back. OR, if
you are calling to get a copy of the free book, "How
To Get Rich Without Winning The Lottery" -- please
leave your mailing address also."

If it is the right time in your friends and relatives'
lives, they will ask you for the book. Now, that creates
hot prospects.

November 11, 2006

405 The Movie

I came across this rather entertaining clip on my friend Dave Robison's blog, On the Road with Dave. Dave's got a cool blog, so you might just want to check it out if you haven't already!


BTW, Dave, how was the driver safety course? ;)

405 - The Movie

November 6, 2006

Home Business Today Quote of the Week...

Home Business Today Quote of the Week:

A man said to the universe: "Sir, I exist!" "However," replied the universe, "That fact has not created in me a sense of obligation."
Stephen Crane (1871-1900)

November 4, 2006

How To Fix A Wet Cell Phone...

Got A Wet Cell Phone?
Here's How To Fix It...


If you've ever accidentally (or even purposefully) gotten your cell phone wet, or dropped it into a liquid (one of the main phases of matter whose shape is usually determined by the container it fills) and would like to fix it, then you're in luck. Thanks to WikiHow, a wet cell phone doesn't necessarily mean a dead cell phone.

Here are some great tips on how to fix your cell phone if it ever gets wet or water-logged.

How To Fix A Wet Cell Phone

1. Remove the cell phone battery - Removing the battery is is one of the most important steps. Electricity and water do not mix, and cutting power to your cell phone is the crucial first step in saving it. Next, remove the SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card; some or all of your contacts could be stored on your SIM card, along with other important data.

This could be more worth saving than the cell phone itself. SIM cards survive water damage fairly well, but some of the following steps are unnecessary. For example, don't heat a SIM card. Just dry it off and set it aside until you need to connect your cell phone to your cellular network.

2. Dry your cell phone - Obviously, you need to remove as much of the liquid as soon as possible in order to prevent it from getting deep into the phone and damaging it. Use a towel or a paper towel to remove as much as liquid possible.


3. Allow your cell phone to dry out - Of course you don't want to ruin your cellular phone or lose the phone numbers stored in your phone book, so you need to let the cell phone dry out completely.

Don't try to put the battery back in until you're sure the phone is completely dried out. Doing so would risk damaging the cell phone with a short circuit.

To expedite moisture evaporation, you can leave your cell phone in a bowl of dry rice. The rice will draw any moisture to itself, and thus, greatly aid in the drying process.

4. Heat your cell phone - Apply enough heat to your cell phone to cause the water to evaporate without water-logging your digital screen. One of the best things you can do to save a cell phone is to set it on the back of your computer monitor or TV screen (over the heat vents). This is usually the perfect temperature needed to dry and fix your wet cell phone, and the convection action of the heat vents will help carry away the moisture in your cell phone.

Just leave the phone on the heat for at least 2-3 days. Another option is to leave it overnight in the oven on the "warm" setting.

NOTE: make sure to remove the cell phone battery first!

5. Test your cell phone - After you've waited 3 days, make sure that everything is clean and dry. Then, reattach the battery to the cell phone to see if it works. If your cell phone does not work, repeat step 4. If it still doesn't work, take your cell phone to an authorized cellular dealer as sometimes they can fix it.

Alternative: The Alcohol Soak
To save a wet cell phone, you can also soak your cell phone in alcohol. Alcohol is hygroscopic (absorbs water from its surroundings). This process will dissolve the water in the cell phone. The water will then flow out of the cell phone, and any remaining alcohol will evaporate.

NOTE: Alcohol will not harm your cell phone, but may disrupt glue (from stickers and such). Use 95% alcohol, NOT rubbing alcohol, which is 50% - 70% alcohol by volume. And use it outside! Also, be sure to remove the battery first. After you've soaked it in the alcohol, leave your cell phone outside for a day or two to dry.

How To Fix A Wet Cell Phone
Additional Tips and Warnings

Additional Tips:
• Don’t put the cell phone battery on for at least 3 days or longer if your digital screen is foggy.
• The best way to dry out your wet cell phone is to place it in front of an air conditioner or air conditioning vent. Cold air won’t damage your cell phone (hot air can warp, or in extreme cases, even melt plastic), and air from an air conditioner will evaporate water quickly.
• Warm air from a reverse-cycle air conditioner works even better. If you dry your cell phone in this way overnight, it should be fine by morning.
• Use a hairdryer set on "warm" - it doesn't melt your head, so your cell phone should be safe as well.
• Use a food dehydrator to dry out the cell phone.

Warnings:
• Don’t heat the cell phone battery or it could leak battery acid! If you use an oven or hairdryer, make sure to remove the battery first!
• If you use alcohol, be sure to do so outside, and do not apply heat in any form - not even the gentle heat of a monitor. Do not hook up the cell phone battery until the alcohol smell dissipates.
• Do not apply heat to your cell phone other than mentioned above. You don’t want to melt or burn your phone.
• Even if all these steps are followed, minerals dissolved in the water can precipitate on solder and cell phone component pins, causing corrosion or shorting. The component pins are packed so closely together in a modern cell phone that even minor corrosion can create a short circuit, rendering your cell phone inoperable.

How to Create Superstars In Your Downline...

It's Not Easy Bein' Green

As Kermit the Frog is known for singing:

It's not easy bein' green
Having to spend each day the color of the leaves
When I think it could be nicer bein' red or yellow or gold
Or something much more colorful like that.

And while that may be true - that being green may not be so easy, making green, on the other hand, can be. Just read this from Tim Sales...

How to Create Superstars In Your Downline

"I am new to MLM - and I already feel like I am spread too thin. My downline (small as it may be now) will continue to grow and I will not be able to give them each unlimited access to my time as is the case now. However, I want my downline to feel fully supported. How do I focus my training & maximize my time?"

The real underlying question I see is, "How do I train my downline so I can retire?"

Pretend you have a young son. He doesn't yet know how to tie his shoes. You are taking him somewhere and as you're gathering up your items to leave you look down and see that his shoes are untied. What do you do?

You see, if you tie his shoes, the job will be done and you'll be on your way out the door quickly. But you will have to continue to tie his shoes every time they're untied. Why? Because you didn't invest your time in training the boy how - you expended your time by doing it for him.

In the Brilliant Compensation DVD I make a statement that is the secret to wealth - and the answer to this person's question:

Wealth is hidden from those who must do it all themselves. Wealth exposes itself to those patient enough to train others.

With that thought fresh in your mind, I'll finish the story of the boy who needs his shoes tied.

If instead of tying the boy's shoes you teach him to tie his own shoes; he will not learn it immediately, so the immediate result is that it will take longer. But in a few days (or weeks) he will learn how to tie his shoes. Then, he will be able to do it on his own and you won't have to.

So, if every time your down line calls you with their shoes untied...and you tie them - you've only expended your time and will continue to spread yourself too thin. Instead, invest your time and train them so that they will never have to come to you with that question again.

The second part of the answer is, don't answer people's questions below your front line. Every person you help below your front line is like inheriting a new front line because you will teach everyone in your downline that you have answers that the people in between you and them don't have! If you do this you will never have "time" and you'll NEVER retire.

October 31, 2006

Domain Registry of America Scam?

Important Home Business Today Consumer Alert:

Domain Name Scam

Here's a company you'll definitely want to watch out for...

It's called Domain Registry of America (DROA) and they send letters in the mail that "appear" to be real invoices for domain name renewals. But please don't fall for this scheme.

If you own a domain name, don't let DROA trick you into transferring it to them - you'll end up being quite ripped off on the renewal fee.

For example, they state on their website that "the industry standard price" for the registration of a domain name is, "$70.00 for a two year registration."

That's a grossly exaggerated and inaccurate figure. There are many better deals out there, my friends. One can easily buy a domain name for $7 or $8 bucks per year from several respectable domain registrars.

Unfortunately, and for several years now, countless people have fallen victim to the domain name renewal scam of Domain Registry of America (DROA). And over the course of time, I've discovered that even some of my own business associates have been preyed upon as well.

So what's the good news?

Well, thanks to the Federal Trade Commission, you definitely have a way to fight back - and more importantly, a way in which to get your money back!

How Does the Scam Work?

Domain Registry of America (droa.com) mails you a letter requesting that you renew your domain name (before it expires) by returning a payment (by check or by credit card) for the desired renewal term.

(NOTE: Never pay attention to snail mail regarding domain renewal notices. ALL renewals are automatically handled through your online domain account.)


The letter is meant to appear as an official renewal notice - however, it is not. It is actually a solicitation to register your domain name with DROA instead, and leave your current and trusted registrar.

When the transfer away from your current registrar occurs, your nameservers may also be changed. This means that your website may not be live on the Internet - of course DROA fails to inform you of this.

One of the other things Domain Registration of America (DROA) "conveniently" fails to tell you is that if you fall for their scam, and then realize afterward that you've fallen for it, and try to stop the transfer, that you'll still owe them $4.50. AND, you'll also owe them $4.50 IF the transfer fails (through no fault of your own), whether because of a registrar lock, or due to their own error!

By the way, DROA has also been accused of agreeing to credit consumers upon request, but NOT issuing those credits in a timely manner.

How Do I Fight Back?

If you receive one of these letters, file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission - even if you've never made a payment to DROA. The notice will be reviewed and it will be judged to see if DROA is meeting the requirements of the FTC’s ruling.

How Do I Get My Money Back?

The Federal Trade Commission stipulated that, upon consumer request, DROA must refund any payment remitted to them, and compensate eligible consumers an additional $6.00 per domain name transfer to assist with fees incurred when transferring back to their original registrar.

Additional Redress

If you file a complaint with the FTC you may be entitled to ADDITIONAL redress if you experienced any loss of business or business expenses due to DROA’s scam.

To contact Domain Registry of America directly, call: (866) 434-0212 or Email: support@droa.com.

According to the ‘Truth In Lending Act’ (TILA) Domain Registry of America (DROA) MUST credit your credit card within seven (7) business days.

October 27, 2006

Overture's Keyword Selector Tool...

Overture's Keyword Selector Tool
A Valuable Tool To Have

If you're marketing online, then here's a great (free) tool you'll want to have in your e-tool belt at all times...

It's the Overture Keyword Selector Tool - and it'll let you know exactly "what" people are searching for in the search engines.

Having this kind of information at your fingertips is priceless for many reasons - but mainly because it can help you:

  • Get more visitors to your website
  • Get more visitors to your blog
  • Rank higher in the search engines
  • Target your market
  • Increase you ROI (Return on Investment)

It can also help you:

  • Streamline your PPC (Pay-Per-Click) Campaigns
  • Increase your sales and conversion rates
  • Improve your ad's effectiveness
  • Spend less money on advertising
  • Improve your golf swing (OK, maybe not :P)

But no matter what you're marketing online, this tool can be very beneficial - especially if you're running Pay-Per-Click advertising campaigns.

It'll give you an idea of which keywords to bid on by showing you which keywords are being searched for in the search engines. And just as importantly, it also tells you "how many times" they've been searched for.

All in all it's a very worthwhile tool to have in your marketing arsenal. That, and it's a free one - so be sure to add it to your favorites menu!

Common home business keyword misspelling: home buisness

October 24, 2006

Home Business Today Quote of the Week...

Home Business Today Quote of the Week:

"Ah, people often grudge others what they cannot enjoy themselves."
Aesop (620 BC-560 BC)

October 21, 2006

Saturday Fun - Crazy Cats...

Here's a funny clip of some wild and crazy cats. I especially like when the cat chases off an actual black bear - just watch and you'll see. Good stuff.

Using the "Kitty" song by The Presidents of the United States of America is a nice touch as well.

Saturday Fun - Crazy Cats!

October 19, 2006

How To Easily Overcome "No Time, No Money" Excuses...

Tick Tock, Tick Tock
WATCH For These Excuses...

No Time, No Money

Here are some good tips from Network Marketing great, Tim Sales...

Is "No time" or "No money" the real objection?

The following question was sent to Tim Sales of Brilliant Exchange. It's a very important question that is asked all too often these days it seems...

A problem I face is: "How would you handle an objection based on not having enough money or time? These are the two I seem to get over and over. Thank you."

You are not the first to hear these objections!

Absolutely everyone who has ever done MLM has had to answer these objections from many prospects! These objections are what I call "common objections." Meaning you'll get them frequently. The reason they are common is because they are an "escape" for the prospect.

"Escape" from what?

Getting what they want. I know that seems odd - but it's the truth.

Let me explain this better.

By the way, this is fully explained with examples in my Professional Inviter 8 CD set. I highly recommend you study the section on handling objections. You are at such a disadvantage if you don't fully know this information.

Envision this... your prospect has something they want or need - more time, more money, a boat, a plane, new golf clubs, etc. Why is it a "want" or a "need" to them? Because they don't have it yet. Why don't they have it? Because they can't get it on their own - obviously so, otherwise they'd have it! They need someone to help them get it.

The Interesting Escape

This is where it gets very interesting... read closely!

The "escape" they've used before (to themselves and others) is "I don't have ______." The blank is filled in with some "phrase" that has always given them an escape because truthfully they don't believe they can GET WHAT THEY WANT.

Since this seems a little weird, let me give you an example (unrelated to MLM).

I was helping a company write a post card ad for their personal fitness training business. They were trying to get new clients. I asked several questions and finally came up with this ad:

"Sure you can get in shape on your own... but why haven't you? Admit you need help! Whether its knowledge or discipline, something is obviously missing otherwise you'd have the body you want. Let me help you."

You see, a person who "wants" to get in shape "pretends they don't need help." But they OBVIOUSLY DO! A person "getting" in shape is at the gym!

Now let me bring it back to MLM. A prospect says (in her mind as well as to you) that she wants a brand new car. Truthfully she doesn't really believe she can get it and she has proof she can't get it - because THERE'S NO NEW CAR IN THE DRIVE WAY!

This lack of belief is what causes prospects to state something like, "I don't have time."

When I was brand new in my MLM business, I brought a prospect to an opportunity meeting where the speaker was making $40,000 per month. After the meeting I asked Jim if he was ready to get started and he said, "I don't have the time." That was the strangest thing I'd ever heard. Why was it that he HAD time to make $1500 a month, but he DIDN'T HAVE the time to make $40,000 a month?

That mystery is what caused me to realize that "no time" or "no money" are not the real objections. Because if a person really believed they could make $40,000 a month they would ATTACK THE BUSINESS.

At a Live Event

I was recently at a live event when someone came up to talk to me after I spoke and told me why she couldn't make the business work. All her problems had to do with not being able to properly talk with her prospects. I gave her some verbal solutions and she replied, "Wow that makes a lot of sense." I then told her about Professional Inviter, which teaches network marketers exactly how to effectively talk with prospects. Guess what she said to me? "I don't have the money."

Now, does she really believe she can learn to do the business? No! For the cost of a shirt or two in her closet she could solve the reason she's failing in MLM. Instead, she would rather use her escape.

See how it works?

So, the way you REALLY handle the objection is follow the objection handling remedy in Professional Inviter:

  • 1. Listen completely through the question/objection
  • 2. Confirm understanding
  • 3. Make the question or objection valid to the prospect
  • 4. Handle or facilitate handling Questions and/or Objections.
  • 5. Complete the handling and return to the previous step of the Inviting formula

The absolute key is step 4.

Facilitate Handling Objections

You do everything you can to FACILITATE handling an objection; instead of handling it for them. The prospect is one who decided on their escape - only they can remove it.

If you want to hear exactly how this is done, listen to the live call I did with the lady named Tish (in Professional Inviter). She has the objection of Time and I handle the objection - then facilitate her getting over the objections by asking her key questions.

Thank you for sending me your question; I consider it quite a compliment!

Who Is Tim Sales?

Just in case you're not familiar with Tim Sales, here's a quick rundown - Tim Sales is well known for his MLMBrilliance website, which is home to the widely-celebrated Brilliant Compensation® video and the killer training system known as Professional Inviter.


Over the years Tim has gained the respect and admiration of thousands of marketers worldwide. In short, Tim Sales is one of the best out there - which is why I'm happy to share this very helpful home business advice from him.

Click Fraud - Google, Yahoo, Third Parties and You...

Click Fraud Level 1
Google, Yahoo, Third Parties and You

Some call it click fraud and some call it invalid click activity, but nobody questions that questionable clicks do happen. How they happen and to what degree might be up for debate, but the existence of industrial-level skullduggery is a widely known but poorly recognized secret of the search marketing industry.

This dirty little secret is made up of hundreds of millions of dollars, which are unevenly split between tens of thousands of participants. Some astute observers might suggest that this constitutes a conspiracy to commit fraud and is therefore illegal behavior. In that, they would be half right. Click fraud isn't actually illegal, at least not in a criminal sense. Not yet anyway.

Google knows about issues associated with click fraud, though it doesn't like using the term "fraud". The popularity of AdWords and ease of access to Google's lucrative AdSense distribution system gave online scammers the two essential elements, motive and opportunity. Google has been playing catch-up ever since.

Yahoo knows a lot about click fraud as well. Extremely credible allegations have been made about Yahoo's commercial connections with click fraud artists. Many in the shadier side of the search marketing industry are in on the click fraud secret as well, so much so that they publish how-to guides and self-congratulatory blogs. Frighteningly, spyware and malware makers are also in on the secret, often benefiting by becoming unwanted content-delivery partners.

Everyone's making a lot of money and, like the great insurance scams of yesteryear, the costs to the ultimate victims are so widely distributed they often seem negligible to individuals affected. Negligible is, of course, a relative term. Is $10 negligible to you? How about $100 or $1000 or more?

Another group of people who've learned a great deal about click fraud are the victims, which tend to be small online businesses. Unfortunately, it is harder to track the impact on smaller businesses because they often lack the resources to properly police their own web and account logs. SEO-News.com editor, Kim Roach, wrote a strong piece titled, "Going Broke on Google AdWords" in SiteProNews last week.

Victims of Click Fraud come in all sizes. While Kim's article addressed damage done to smaller businesses, a July 2006 report by online industry research firm Outsell estimated click fraud accounted for $800 million of a total of $5.5 billion spent on search engine advertising in 2005. Outsell reached these figures by studying 407 online advertisers that collectively controlled about $1 billion in ad spending.

Google disputes these figures along with other figures reported by San Antonio based PPC-auditing firm Click Forensics in their monthly Click Fraud Index, questioning the methodology used in determining incidents of billed click fraud.

In an August 8, 2006 report (PDF file) titled, "How Fictitious Clicks Occur in Third-Party Click Fraud Audit Reports" Google's Click Quality Team found two serious issues served to consistently inflate incidents of "fictitious clicks" recorded in third-party analysis.

According to their findings, "The major root causes for fictitious clicks falls into the two following categories: detection of page reloads as ad-clicks," and, "conflation across advertisers and ad networks, or the counting of one advertiser's traffic in another advertiser's reports."

The first cause of "fictitious clicks" noted by Google's team suggests that sometimes users reload pages; use their back buttons, or open landing pages in new windows. Each action could be interpreted as a second, third or fourth click where only one should have actually been recorded.

The second cause of "fictitious clicks" is a bit more confusing, stemming from the massive AdSense system Google uses to distribute AdWords advertising. Google has thousands, (perhaps millions) of AdSense distribution partners. Some of these partners are extremely large corporations, though most are independent webmasters.

The largest of these partners often have complicated advertising systems that mix and match different types of ads (banners, AdWords, text-links, etc...) from different advertising platforms. They have their own internal system for measuring the effectiveness of these ads and sometimes those internal systems cause subtle incongruities in tracking ad-impressions. One such weirdness is the way some hits from the AOL network are grouped together under a single block of IP addresses.

Google's business product manager for trust and safety, Shuman Ghosemajumder, wrote a long post "About Invalid Clicks" to the Inside AdWords blog in early August. In it, Ghosemajumder suggests that surveys and reports from many click-analysts, including Click Forensics, do not give a full view of factors as seen by Google, or in some cases, by the analysts' own clients.

Ghosemajumder says Google's internal filters catch and cancel charges for the vast majority of invalid clicks, even though evidence of those clicks might be reflected in advertisers' log files.

"If an advertiser is monitoring click activity, these automatically filtered clicks may show up in an advertiser's logs, but not in their bills. When invalid clicks are detected after an advertiser is charged, we reimburse for them. Because of our detection efforts, losses to advertisers from invalid clicks are very small," Ghosemajumder's comments.

"Moreover", he continues, "the study does not indicate whether the advertiser was actually charged for any of the clicks, only that the traffic analysis suggested that the clicks may have been invalid."

It isn't just the number of billed clicks that have advertisers and analysts concerned. Another report produced by Click Forensics showed that of 170 advertisers in the financial services sector, over 6% reported recorded visits from sites clearly identified as parked domains.

Dozens of third-party firms engage in ad-stuffing documents on parked domains. If the general consensus that an invalid click is one that is reasonably unlikely to lead to a potential conversion, then counted clicks from parked domains are assumed by many analysts to be invalid.

Parked domains are housed at URLs that, while owned, are not really operating as most Internet users might expect. A page at parked domain is generally one containing very limited information and a number of PPC Ads. The page is basically a placeholder being used as a billboard.

Believe it or not, parked domains are said to drive a significant amount of traffic, especially under highly searched terms relating to health, travel and financial services. Given the number of click-throughs found in a report covering 170 financial services companies, 6% represents a huge number of clicks, each costing advertisers ten cents or more.

Jessie Stricchiola is considered one of the leading experts in click fraud detection and analysis. On the website of her firm, Alchemist Media, Sticchiola writes about an automated form of third-party click fraud that was publicly associated with Yahoo by click fraud researcher Ben Edelman.

"Another method of fraudulent clicking is initiated through automated click generation methods, using "hitbots" - software applications specifically designed to click on paid listings. This kind of activity is also initiated by both competitors and by search engine partners and/or affiliates, the latter often instituting extensive technology arrangements to enable their fraudulent click traffic to slip past the internal filtering methods used by the CPC engines.

For CPC affiliates, there is a vested interest in generating as much traffic as possible to increase their portion of the shared revenue generated by paid listings. This is an often overlooked source of fraudulent click activity."


The examples cited in this article are only some of the ways used by the unscrupulous to scam unsuspecting advertisers in an environment that is extremely difficult to police properly. Indeed, in the absence of any external oversight, the only real watchdogs are the search engines themselves. Click auditors working with advertisers are, apparently, not privy to information used by Google and Yahoo to examine the issue and, therefore, are unable to effectively create reports recognized by the two largest search advertising providers.

While Google and Yahoo both claim to be working on finding solutions to the problems posed by invalid clicks, both admit they are months or even years from finding foolproof solutions. That both make a great deal of money from invalid clicks, clicks directed from parked domains, and other third-party shenanigans has lead some to speculate that the major search engines might not be approaching the problem with missionary zeal.

There is a lot of murky ground. The only obvious things about the issue is that there is an issue and that a solution, though not immediately forthcoming, is desperately needed.

About the author: Search marketing expert Jim Hedger is one of the most prolific writers in the search sector with articles appearing in numerous search related websites and newsletters, including SiteProNews, Search Engine Journal, ISEDB.com, and Search Engine Guide.

He is currently Senior Editor for the Jayde Online news sources SEO-News and SiteProNews. You can also find additional tips and news on webmaster and SEO topics by Jim at the SiteProNews blog.