Science and technology truly have set us free.
Here I am with Mahananda working at our new Florida home.
Technology has accelerated change and this makes many uncomfortable. Yet look at the benefits… the mobility… the broadened horizons… the destruction of limitations imposed by time and space.
I can sit in my office in North Carolina and work.
with this view.
Or hike into our Blue Ridge forest and work.
Or visit Ecuador’s beaches and work.
Or enjoy our Andean hotel and work.
Many suggest an upcoming disaster scenario… but these predictions must be suspect. Fear sells and there have always been those who use this fact for their own hidden agenda. Yet mostly what technology has brought us is longer lives and more to fulfill us in that extended time.
A reader send this note in comment to our recent message 2012.
Gary, Much like the scares of the past (e.g., Y2K) the end won’t come in 2012. Albeit our 4.5 billion year old planet has gone through near life form extinctions before and may go through another, there is no credible evidence that it will be in 2012. Don Yeomans, NASA Senior Research Scientist, couldn’t have said it better, “I for one love a good book or movie as much as the next guy, but the stuff flying around through cyberspace, TV, and the movies, is not based on science.” To render December 21, 2012, as a doomsday event or moment of cosmic shifting is a complete fabrication and a chance for a lot of people to cash in. NASA has set up a website to address frequently asked questions about the myth. Consider suggesting your audience go to the website: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/2012.html
Regards, Richard D. Sanchez, Scientist Emeritus, U.S. Geological Survey
Actually even if there were a chance of chaotic disaster in 2012… the only logical way to prepare is to plan for the best. Chaotic disaster is too chaotic to predict or plan for. Preparing ourselves for anything… good or bad… makes the most sense… because chances are what is ahead is good.
Learning to stay healthier… have a keen mind, healthy body and knowing how to serve are the best survival tools of all.
This is why we help readers learn how to use the internet in business.
This is more important than ever because the internet recently became even better with concepts being developed by a private firm called NEXT JUMP.
Here is an excerpt from A December 5, 2009 article that says: NEXT JUMP may well be the most intriguing Internet business that you’ve never heard of — though that’s likely to change as the company seeks a wider audience.
The handful of industry analysts who were invited into the company’s New York offices recently have come away impressed. Next Jump, they say, represents the future of online commerce and could emerge as a counterweight to Amazon, the giant Web merchant. And this patiently gestated start-up, they add, shows one path to the still-elusive promise of Internet advertising: using data to greatly improve the efficiency of marketing.
“Next Jump is a bellwether for the next generation of e-commerce, driven by better data,” says Tim O’Reilly, a blogger and the chief executive of the technology publisher O’Reilly Media.
Today, 60 percent of the Fortune 500 companies use Next Jump’s technology for their employee discount programs.
Next Jump also handles the rewards programs that offer deals to loyal customers of companies like Dell, Borders and Hilton Hotels, and similar programs for membership organizations like AARP and the American Federation of Teachers.
As it has quietly expanded, Next Jump has been gathering data, and not only from companies and customers. It also gets credit-card transaction data from American Express and MasterCard. This vast trove — accumulated over years — is the company’s most precious asset, analysts say.
Next Jump analyzes that data to draw inferences about what a person would be likely to buy, and at what price. Its network also includes 28,000 retailers who can specify the characteristics of customers — age, location, income, for example — that they are most interested in luring with certain products.
Next Jump’s software then tailors offerings to small segments of potential customers, down to individuals, often reaching them with e-mail alerts. “It’s true microtargeting,” Mr. Kim said.
Most striking is the efficiency of Next Jump’s sizable network. Its click-through rate — the percentage of Web surfers who see an ad or offer and click on it — is 60 percent, the company says. At most e-commerce sites, a 5 percent click-through rate is considered excellent, analysts say.
But the endgame of Internet marketing is converting browsers to buyers. Next Jump says that for every 11 people who see one of its ads, one person makes a purchase. In Web commerce generally, 1,000 to 1 is deemed a good performance.
Until recently, the Next Jump e-commerce engine was entirely unbranded, working unseen underneath corporate intranets or retailer’s rewards Web sites. “We were all white label,” Mr. Kim said. “Nobody knew who we were.”
But that is starting to change. The Yahoo Deals shopping area now has a Personal Offers site, whose logo says “Powered by Next Jump” — co-branding similar to the Intel Inside campaign of the big chip maker.
In September, Next Jump rolled out a Web site, Corporate Perks, that lets small businesses and consumers tap into its marketplace. Similarly, it has recently developed BlackBerry, Android and iPhone applications for another of its sites, Overwhelming Offers, that offers deep discounts on merchandise in sales that typically last an hour or two.
Last month, the company struck a deal with MasterCard to offer Next Jump’s e-commerce marketplace to its cardholders.
By broadening its reach, Next Jump promises to become a more strategic partner for consumer-goods retailers. Many of them, analysts say, are leery of Amazon’s growing clout as the dominant online marketplace.
Unlike Amazon, Next Jump is not a retail competitor, merely a technology engine for sales. “Next Jump can potentially become a really viable alternative to Amazon for retailers,” said Leslie Hand, research director for IDC Retail Insights. NEXT JUMP’S status as a trusted middleman has enabled it to collect fees both from companies who use its software and from retailers on goods sold.
This is why we offer our internet course Tangled Web – How to Have an Internet Business. Plus our webmaster David Cross can create a site… just like ours for you. See details here.
Merri and I also personally conduct International Business and Investing seminars with our webmaster. We have three of these seminars set up throughout 2010 to share what we are doing with our international investing and internet business. We share how you can use the same steps to create your own online business. See detail on our Feb. 11-14 seminar in Mt. Dora here.
This is also why we provide a free course written by Michelle Toole on how to develop a website. The latest lesson in this course is below. I hope you enjoy and gain from it. We give special thanks to Michelle for sharing it.
Do You Know Your Numbers?
By Michelle Toole
How much do you really know about what happens behind the scenes of your web site?
You probably know the basics like how many visitors your web site has each day, number of page views, length of time on site and bounce rate, right? But have you ever thought about how your top pages are doing and how each of them contributes to your bottom line?
Here is a list of questions to ask yourself:
• Is my top-viewed landing page turning visitors off from my site before they read the second sentence?
• Is one of my lesser-viewed pages creating a buzz that I am not taking advantage of to ‘build my brand of one’?
• Am I giving my readers too many opportunities to leave my site before having them contribute to my bottom line?
• Am I missing out on maximizing keywords that are sending the most traffic to my web site?
Don’t know the answers to these questions? Well, then maybe you should consider using Google Analytics to find out.
What is Google Analytics?
Google Analytics is a full-featured web site analytics tool designed to track everything about how people use your web site. It shows you how people found your site, how they explored it, and how you can enhance their visitor experience.
Oh yeah, and it’s free!
Google Analytics has “over 80 reports that can track visitors through your site, and can keep track of the performance of your marketing campaigns – whether they’re AdWords campaigns, email campaigns, or any other advertising program. With this information, you’ll know which keywords are really working, which ad text is the most effective, and where your visitors are dropping off during the conversion process.” (wikepedia.com)
Google Analytics will not only help you increase your conversion rate and track marketing campaigns it can also help you attract potential advertisers. Yup, nothing like adding another revenue stream to your web business.
If you’re seeking advertisers be prepared to tell them your numbers. The great thing is that Google Analytics gives them to you! Most advertisers want to get the most bang for their buck and they do that by advertising on sites with ‘big numbers’. So what stats will they want to know? Well that can vary from advertiser to advertiser but generally they all want to know:
• How many monthly visits to your site
• How many monthly unique visitors to your site
• Number of monthly page views on your site
• Bounce Rate
• Length of Time on Your Site
• Reader Demographics
And this information is all available simply by implementing Google Analytics on your site. Simple enough, right? Well, yes, but as with most things there is a learning curve for the more advanced features. But, truthfully, nothing is more important than finding out what makes your visitor tick and Google Analytics can get you there.
Bottom Line….
Although there is a bit of a learning curve for the more advanced features you may find that you will only utilize the basics to begin with so it is well worth your time to add Google Analytics to your arsenal of tools to help you maximize your traffic and increase your overall conversion rate. Google Analytics can help you improve your website return on investment, increase conversions, and make you more money on the web and that is a bottom line I can live with!
Check out Michelle’s web sites at http://healthy-holistic-living.com and http://home-remedies-and-natural-cures.com. To get more great tips, like the ones above and to see how and what tools she used to create a successful on-line business go to http://sitesell-sbi.com
Michelle added this note:
Gary & Merri, I just wanted to give your readers a heads up Site Build It, the company I used to build my successful online business is getting geared up to run their holiday special and they have given a select few the opportunity to purchase Site Build It at the special rate of 2 for 1 starting December 16th!
This is a great opportunity for any of your readers that have been considering an internet business but has just been putting it off. My site, healthy-holistic-living.com is getting over 2,000 visitors each day and each month my income is increasing, last month was a record month! Having an on-line business is the only way I know to build a passive income with little or no overhead. It is almost hard to believe that we all have this opportunity. Thanks again for all that you and Merri do, your seminars are fantastic and your on-going support and friendship is more than appreciated. Much Love, Michelle
Good or bad… 2012 is on its way. Those who are prepared have the potential to see greater opportunity than any generation before.
Gary
Join us this winter in warm Florida or sunny Ecuador.
Jan. 8-11 Ecuador Export Tour
Jan. 13-14 Imbabura Real Estate Tour
Jan. 15-18 Coastal Real Estate Tour
Jan. 19-20 Quito-Mindo Real Estate Tour
Jan. 21-23 Cuenca Real Estate Tour
Join us in February or March.
Feb. 11-14 Quantum Wealth Florida -International Investing & Internet Business, Mt. Dora, Fl.
Feb. 15-16 Travel to and visit Quito
Feb 17 Travel to Manta
Feb. 18-19 Coastal Real Estate Tour
Feb. 20 Travel to Cotacachi
Feb. 21-22 Imbabura Real Estate Tour
Feb. 23-24 Quito-Mindo Real Estate Tour
Feb. 26-27 Cuenca Real Estate Tour
Mar. 11-14 Super Thinking + Spanish Course, Mt. Dora, Fl.
Mar. 15-16 Travel to Quito and Andes
Mar. 17-18 Imbabura Real Estate Tour
Mar. 19-20 Cotacachi Shamanic tour
Mar. 22-23 Coastal Real Estate Tour
Mar. 25-26 Cuenca Real Estate Tour
Enjoy extra savings with a multi tour pack.
2 seminar courses & tours $998 Couple $1,499
3 seminar courses & tours $1399 Couple $1,899
4 seminar courses & tours $1,699 Couple $2,299
5 seminar courses & tours $1,999 Couple $2,699
6 seminars courses & tours $2,199 Couple $3,099
(Be sure to show in the comments section which courses and tours you are attending)
International Club attend up to 52 courses and tours in 2010 free.
See our entire 2010 seminar and tour schedule here
Read the entire article Unboxed The Data That Turns Browsing to Buying here.
