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The Nigerian Internet Estate – The Myths, Facts and the Reality I (online FOREX Trading)

As a follow up to my previous posts on this blog, I’ll continue to assert the fact that Nigeria is a force to be reckoned with as regards every known endeavor on the face of this planet called Earth, and the internet is no exception, it is left for the rest of the world most especially the United States to fathom this cold hard fact out. Well I would have titled this piece ‘the online conspiracies of the west against Nigeria’ well that would sound cynic and inane. It will look as we are beggars at the rich man’s table waiting for crumbs that falls off his table; when we are kings in the making. However, it has become imperative that we will take on destiny instead of waiting lazily for it to come beckoning at us. But do you know one thing my friend? Your destiny cannot come to you except you shrug off the ashes of defeat, rise to your feet, and then take what rightly belongs to you. Sorry if I have digressed from the main topic of the day, well I was trying to crave your indulgence as is always the case with me. Like I said earlier on, Nigeria remains the biggest internet estate and can compete favorably with India on the third world country category and in the real sense can give the west a run for their money; and as a member of cyber world is not immune to the fistful of online fallacies that pervades the internet daily. But I’ll only deal with this ill wind the as it concerns we Nigerian.

One thing that has remained obvious to we Nigerians especially those who wants to make a decent living doing decent business online is that we are greatly disadvantaged because of some pre-conceived notion of the developed economies against Africa and Nigeria in particular, but I wont dwell much on the bad side as an optimist but will deal on the possible and well established side as a realist. What do I mean by this? The internet has become a real estate and as such many people world wide are reaping the benefits of this innovation and smiling to the bank every other day, so my main concern is to get you acquainted with the common myth that pervades the internet daily and the obvious.

Recently, online FOREX TRADING has become a niche that every person with little or no experience on money matters wants to get involved in within a short period of time (most attend one to two days seminar) and want to start reaping from it, stop! I’ll love to ask, why is it that we still have few people that are rich from trading FOREX with all the hype associated with it? Well have you stooped to think this over? But my friend like I titled this article I’ll love to list the myths, facts and the reality of online FOREX trading. Personally I don’t trade FOREX but I know of an array of people who do; and from the fillers I get daily, it is not as rosy as it sounds. You loose money and you gain money, however the tendency of losing far out weighs that of gaining if you don’t know the fundamentals of the trade. Knowing the fundamentals is not some thing you gain the knowledge in 1, 2, 3 or even 7 days as those who advertise it in dailies will tell you. What the organizers of various FOREX seminars are after is to gain back what they have loosed trading through levying outrageous seminar fees on the participants. At the seminar they don’t take the time to explain the technical and fundamentals of the market, terms like pips, bull traps, Fibonacci analysis etc are not well explained: leaving the participant more confused than ever. But like I said earlier on, trading with no fore knowledge of the aforementioned points makes trading an experience not worth the venture.

Still on online FOREX trading, it will be unfair if I don’t mention the benefits of this online money making venture even if I’m not trading this very lucrative market (yet). Basically FOREX trading exceeds about 1.3 trillion dollars daily, so it will be mediocre of a person to jump into a market as large as this with no formal knowledge of the happenings. However ,it becomes expedient of the person to get fully into the know of this liquid market before getting his hands burnt in the process of wanting to make 100 pips a day as most of the self acclaimed FOREX experts promise you when you trade on their systems. Like I always do when posting any article, I try to make detailed research (even if I know little or not) before coming to press, and when I do it is in the form of a personal experience. While this FOREX rave reached fever pitch, every person wanted to tap into this market to reap bountifully; I decided to make my own in road. Daily, I hit every search engine on the net for a detailed report, I subscribed to every ezine, news letter, and every available publication that deals with the subject. From my findings I observed that the requirements of this market is quite tasking, however if all these requirements are met, the market is worth the venture, what are the requirements I’m talking of: they include a laptop computer connected to the internet; as you need this to enhance the mobility of the market, a domiciliary account, and a form of identity which could come in form of an international passport or national identity card and a plat form to trade on.

One day I saw an advert on a daily on a FOREX seminar that’ll last for about two days, and within these two days you will be taught all the basics required to start making between 30 to 40 pips daily (note: a pip is worth about 10 dollars). I did not attend the seminar as the seminar fee was too much, not that I can’t afford it but because the money was too much for a seminar that will last a couple of days. So I took the address of the FOREX firm and decided to pay them a visit and perhaps make more inquiries. On getting there I met a lady who looked more like a cleaner than a FOREX expert, as I was expecting to see a person who looked like those who work in wall street or if I want to sound modest like some one who works for one of the banks, then how can such a person teach me the basics of the trade for me to start making 50 pips every day!. I thought may be if she really is an expert as she claims, I figure she should be making good money as a FOREX expert and at least look good for her troubles. Is not like I’m saying that there aren’t people here in Nigeria who are doing good trading FOREX, but what I’m saying is that they are very few, this is the fact and the sooner it downs on you the better. I don’t want to sound cynical but in this business is very good for you to be very truthful to your audience, telling them the reality of every situation, instead of leading them falsely by reporting fallacies and stuff.

On the contrary, FOREX trading is a niche and can not be ignored as it has enriched many Nigerians (the few who know the rudiments of the business) as I know of a guy who takes home close to 30 to 40 pips any time he trades, do you know his secret? He sells when others are buying, and sells when others are buying. He knows where to make his stop loss and quit when it really mattered, he understands the basic trends mostly the fundamental, since with it you have a clue as to how the currencies are performing in the market relative to how the various big economies are faring. One other fact in relation to a myth pervading the scenario is that FOREX is not a vocation as the ‘experts’ will tell you. It is not some thing you do on a part time basis; rather I will say it is more of a career, since most traders do it full time. Why this is so is that you can dwell on a chart a whole day waiting for a favorable signal to begin trading, while you are in your office waiting for the required signal, your boss will be telling the secretary to prepare your sack letter and pay-off. But if you learn the ropes you work smart as a FOREX trader, knowing the best times to trade; then you can jolly well make it a vocation, rather than a career as earlier speculated. The secret is that most FOREX traders don’t trade every day. This is another fact, you only trade when there are auspicious signs. Another secret is contentment (avoid being unnecessarily greedy), when you make a good move that gives you 20 to 30 pips, is usually advisable to quit at that juncture even if you see another favorable trend. Usually such trends end with you losing the money you already made. So be careful, as it could be very enticing as well as deceitful

The fact about this market is that you make money if you avoid bull traps and interpret the market trends both fundamental and technical, looking at the charts, knowing when to buy and when to sell, knowing the best currency pair (e.g. euro/dollar), knowing when to enter and when to quit and Fibonacci analysis. If you get your self acquainted with all these, then your venture into this market will be worth the while, on the contrary the myth is that you don’t, make 30-40 pips daily by just taking part in a 2 day seminar or workshop as most will call it, most self acclaimed experts introduce you to robots that trade on your behalf, well the truth about robots is that they only function according to how they are programmed. Most robots are programmed using technical analysis, but this market is very volatile and economic trends in most leading economies especially the US can affect the market negatively or positively, for example the recent recession so experienced in the US resulted into a weak dollar and like a virus it spread to other economy especially the Euro zone and Japan: so if your robot was programmed following the reverse you can figure out what happens. The reality here is that you can only make it in FOREX when you master the ropes of the market as it has been noted that about 90 percent of those who go into FOREX exit after a short period of venturing. The fact then is that FOREX trading can be lucrative as well unprofitable. Which ever side of the divide you belong the choice is yours. But I assure you that you can make a difference if you believe in your self, since many plat forms reject registration from Nigeria (another western conspiracy), for example FXSOL no longer accepts registration from Nigeria. So it is left to you to decide how to take this market by storm as I promise to give frequent updates as regards my online experiences since I’ve decided to join the trend of Nigerians making dollars form FOREX trading.

Feel free to post your comments and views on this topic, you can also get a free FOREX manual by one of the world’s best FOREX experts, contact me by email if you are in need of this manual, it is free of charge and will come as an email attachment sent free of charge to your box. You can also get e-books on how to build your internet empire for a token fee, more so many freebies are also included like the e-book ‘as a man thinketh’ by James Allen and another free e-book by Wallace D Wattles titled ‘the science of getting rich’. Just contact me via email for these rich books that will enrich your online money making experience.

Why Haven’t Marketers Everywhere Been Told These Facts?

Your Marketing Will Be More Profitable When You Use These

31 Marketing Response-Triggers

Instantly Reach New Levels Of Sales & Profits In Your Direct Mail… Your Internet Marketing… And Your Space Ads.

These Powerful Response-Triggers Are Guaranteed- – Tested and Proven – – To Devastate Your Competition, Lock In Customer Loyalty, And Explode Your Wealth Even If The Whole Country Is Teetering On The Edge Of Recession.

These are the 31 powerful response-triggers I have used for some 25 years to create marketing packages for my clients. These response-triggers have generated hundreds of thousands new customers in as little as a year.

First, some history: The way ad agencies got their start was way back in the late 1800’s… a few guys pre-bought huge blocks of blank magazine and newspaper pages at steep discounts… Then they would go out and sell the pages to business owners at full price and keep the change. One thing led to another and before long they were creating the ads for the business owners, who then bought the page.

Then comes the juicy part… In about 1910 Albert Lasker put the word out on the street. He wanted to know the exact definition of advertising. Lasker was the head of the largest advertising agency in the world at that time.

Over the course of many years, certain marketers keep track of what worked in advertising and what did not. They did this mostly by coupon orders. If advertising “A” brought in more cash orders than advertising “B”… then they would take note. Many factors were considered. Price points. ($9.97 seemed to work better than $9.95, etc.) Offers. (Buy one, get one free- seemed to work better than 50% off) etc.

Before all of these elements were tracked and codified… A scientific approach was developed. Mr. Lasker was still puzzled as to a clear definition of advertising. So the search was on.

In the 1800’s the guys who knew the most about advertising were the various companies that sold patent medicines by mail. Dr. Shoop’s patent medicine was a HUGE marketer at the time. His two leading copywriters were John E. Kennedy and Claude Hopkins.

Kennedy was looking for a new job and had heard that Mr. Lasker was looking for the true definition of advertising. Kennedy showed up one day and sent a note up to Mr. Lasker’s office. The note said…

“I am downstairs in the saloon. I know the definition of advertising. I know that you don’t know. If you would like to know, meet me at the bar downstairs.”

After a quite a few beers, here’s what Mr. Kennedy said to Mr. Lasker: “Advertising is salesmanship multiplied in print.” Today, we would have to say that advertising is salesmanship multiplied by media. Why? Because you can use everything from billboards to web sites. But if you ignore that “advertising is salesmanship” you’re in big trouble.

Below you’ll find my notes on the various response-triggers you must use in your advertising to move your advertising from the “expense” side of the ledger to the “asset” side of the ledger. After all, if you have a salesman who does not sell, you don’t lose too much. But if you have an ad that does not sell, you stand to lose a lot.

Here is the First rule of advertising:

Use a SCIENTIFIC HEADLINE: Get the prospect’s attention FAST.

Far too many ads and web sites don’t use a headline AT ALL. Much less a scientific one. This is a waste. Why? Because the reader wants to know what he’s getting into. His time is valuable. If he really is interested in say… a trip to Florida… he will be more excited to read a message entitled: SPEND 3 DAYS AND TWO NIGHTS IN MIAMI NOW FOR ONLY $199.

FIVE RULES ABOUT HEADLINES:

1. Mention the prospect and his interests.

Use the words YOU or YOUR in your headline. “How You Can…” “Protect Your Family With This New…” If you’re not going to use the word YOU, you can certainly IMPLY it. “Aching Back?” Etc.

2. Promise big benefits. (Sizzle?)

There is a difference between a “feature” of your product or service and a “benefit” to using your product. Every Lexus or BMW has a coat of paint. No one buys a coat of paint. But they do buy “styling”… “beauty”… “luxury”… “Pride of ownership”, etc.

3. Use NEWS to the point.

The whole world is glued to the news. We buy newspapers and log into countless web sites to see what’s new. If there is something NEW about your product or service, people what to hear. Use the words “ANNOUNCING” or “FINALLY”. Many smart marketers make their ads or web sites look and feel like a new article. “DATELINE: FLORIDA” ETC.

4. Provoke curiosity. (If you can do it pertinently.)

This is a tough one. The best ad I know of that used curiosity pertinently was Sackhiem’s ad DO YOU MAKE THESE MISTAKES IN ENGLISH. Many people read the ad because they were curious to see if THEY were making mistakes. In the 1910’s or 20’s the master marketer Claude Hopkins was trying to sell a butter-substitute made of pig fat. He masterfully had the WORLD’S LARGEST CAKE made and took the cake on tour city by city. The crowds to see the world’s largest cake were so huge, city cops were always called in to control the crowds. This was long before TV and American Idol. When the crowds filed by to see the cake, they saw a little sign on the cake “This Cake Was Made With CottoSweet- Not Butter.” (CottoSweet or CottoLean was the butter substitute.) The cake was a curiosity. They sold a lot of that butter substitute.

5. Mention your product(s) in a favorable light.

Here is an Ogilvy headline that uses this idea: AT 60 MILES AN HOUR THE LOUDEST NOISE IN OUR NEW ROLLS ROYCE IS THE ELECTRIC CLOCK. As I recall the story of that ad, it only ran twice in a magazine. But Ford Motor Company spent a year’s worth of advertising money shouting that their car was quieter than a Rolls Royce.

HOW TO AROUSE INTEREST AND CREATE DESIRE.

6. Next: Immediately enlarge on the promise of the headline.

If your headline does its job of capturing the attention of the right kind of people (prospects) you had better keep whetting their appetite by enlarging on the promise.

7. Tell your story in the first paragraph.

You might not get them into the 14th paragraph… so do your job as fast as you can.

8. Emphasize one basic idea.

You cannot sell more than one thing at a time. Unless you’re that store in the little town of Nacusp, Canada that sells goldfish AND computers. Even if you’re a catalog, you must have ONE basic idea. A computer catalog should not sell gold fish.

9. Clearly tell the BENEFITS (Sizzle?) the prospect will gain.

Don’t… Don’t… Don’t… leave it up to the reader to instantly see the benefits he/she will get. Tell them. Tell them plainly. Then, enlarge on the benefits. Most people need a bunch of reasons rattling around in their head to make a buying decision. Why? Because they know that sooner or later someone at the office or the spouse is going to ask them WHY they bought that item. They will need to justify the purchase to themselves and to others. It’s part of life.

1O. Present the selling points to deliver those benefits.

(Present the steak that makes the sizzle believable.) Credibility and belief are heavy concepts in the advertising universe. If they don’t BELIEVE you… you won’t get the sale. In the 1930’s the Marx Brothers set up a table in downtown New York and tried to give away $5 bills. No one would take the money. They felt there must be strings attached. The promise of benefits sounds hollow without PROOF as to HOW the benefits can and will be delivered. If you’re selling PURE water… that wet stuff had better come from 3,000 foot deep wells… or distilled using glass distillers… or whatever.

11. Show that your product(s) is easy, economical, and agreeable to use.

Remember, it’s not just your product or service that you’re selling. You’ve got to sell them on just how easy it is to buy and use. It’s not just an investment of money you’re asking for. You’re asking them to commit to time and energy to buy from you and use your product. Do you have convenient parking? Will I have to buy a new computer to use your software? Do I have to build a bigger garage to park a new Hummer in it? A buying decision sometimes includes many factors that are not readily apparent.

12. Use sex and prestige appeals if you can.

One could argue that almost everything we do has the sex drive behind it. The clothes we wear… the cars we drive… the books we have on our shelf (does anyone have books anymore?) all are because of the image it projects. Diet? – Sex appeal. Pointy-toed shoes? – Sex appeal. Corner office? – Sex appeal. Tony Robbins’ self-confidence tapes? – Sex appeal. Since the early days of man, we get it that if we don’t procreate (sex appeal) there is no future. Our genetic line… will end if we don’t have sex appeal. However, if you’re selling TAX SOFTWARE… you’re out of luck.

13. Use negative inferences. (That is, to show ills avoided by purchasing your product.)

This RESPONSE-TRIGGER has real power. There are two major motivational directions people move into. They either move TOWARD pleasure or they move AWAY from pain. Most SUCCESSFUL marketers use both directions in their marketing. For example: Buy my product and you will increase your income. If you don’t you’ll continue in your frustrating, miserable existence with that nagging feeling that you really should have bought it sooner.

DISTINGUISH YOUR OFFER

14. Favorable comparison with others.

If there is a leader in the field, it might help you to ride on their coattails. Remember the Ford ad campaign mention above… they were comparing themselves with Rolls Royce.

15. Make points of contrast and superiority.

Remember, don’t leave it up to your prospect to see the distinctions. Point it out. Prove it.

16. Use “Only” and exclusive features.

If you’re selling Fords in an average size city, you’ve got 5 or 10 other Ford dealers to compete with. Yes, you are limited to some degree on what you can say about Fords… but your dealership is different right? Is it open till 10 P.M.? Do you offer 3-week trade-in guarantee? Will you double the trade-in value? Find “only” and exclusive features.

17. Make exceptional claims you can support.

Quite often, you can’t make exceptional claims. Why? Because all or most of your competitors are offering the same thing. But, most of your competitors are NOT making those claims. If you make the claim and can support it… they will look like they are being a copy-cat if they imitate your claims.

18. Compliment the prospect if you can.

Attention Homeowners… or… Attention Smart Homeowners. PICK ONE. Everyone feels they are smarter, wiser, better, than the average Joe. In fact, if you flatter your buyer, you get more buyers. Imagine that. If you’re selling diet pills, you don’t say to your prospect, “You dumb fat bastard… buy this.” But you know that don’t you?

CREATE CONVICTION

19. Present the main idea of your selling message three times.

There is something powerful about an idea being presented THREE times from three different angles. Even jokes are often told in a trilogy sequence. When you present your idea three times, the reader has more of a chance to OWN the idea and soon feels like it’s his idea to buy such a good product or service. And if it’s HIS idea, then it’s a GOOD idea.

20. Tell of your product’s popularity… who uses and likes it.

Most of us are terribly afraid of making the wrong decision. So, if everyone is buying this product, it must be good. No one goes into an empty restaurant. It must be empty for a reason. Auctioneers are famous for planting buyers in the audience to get the bidding going. Even my beloved ex-wife… who often tried to tell me that SHE would never fall for the “gimmicks” I use in marketing… suddenly wanted to buy a house that others were making an offer on. Before those offers came in, she couldn’t be bothered with that house.

21. Give bona fide testimonials… and authority’s approval.

Many people go to Barnes and Noble… grab a book and flip it to the back cover to see who else likes this book. They look for names they trust. Also make sure the testimonials are interesting. Lame testimonials could hurt your marketing.

22. Give assurances and proof of your offer… build confidence.

Putting a real time-limit on your offer might add credibility to this idea.

23. Guarantee if you can.

Typically the longer, stronger your guarantee, the more sales you get. A one-year guarantee does not bring more returns and refund requests. A 30-day guarantee is better than no guarantee. I have a client who offered a DOUBLE YOUR MONEY BACK ON THE SPOT guarantee and his sales went up 217%.

24. Make your offer vitally valid… be congruous.

Having a 3 day sale is one thing… but having a SALE due to rain damage or IRS tax liens offers more of a story appeal and is easier to believe and therefore get more action from buyers. WHY is your offer, your offer?

25. Convey the value of your product or service… definitely, positively.

Again, don’t leave it up to them to figure it out. Lead them by the hand show them line-by-line, step-by-step… that your offer has the value you say it does. Maybe a column of numbers showing the total savings IF they buy your idea… will help. Break down the numbers showing them it only cost so much per day, or month or year.

GO FOR ACTION NOW.

26. Give your reader good reasons and excuses for buying NOW.

If you’re selling high-ticket items… inflation alone is a good reason to… ACT NOW. Hording all that money under your bed is like lighting a slow, smoldering fire to your money. Every year its purchasing power disappears flicker by flicker. Surely you can find some other reasons to get them to ACT NOW.

27. Make choosing easy… stress ONE item above others you may sell.

If you’re selling three different colors of the same product, tell them which one is the most popular. Help them focus on one buying decision. If you leave it up to them to weed through all the choices, you will lose sales.

28. Tell how, when, and where to get it.

By now they want it… why can’t you move them to the next step by telling them what to do next. “Here’s what you must do.” is a phrase you could use.

29. Name prices and terms… make it easy to buy or order.

Some marketers are afraid to mention prices in their ad or web site. Here are two reasons why you should name your prices and terms.

First- You are wasting their time if you don’t mention price. If you make them call and talk to a salesman, you’ll lose sales. If you don’t tell them the price, they will tend to think it cost more than it actually does. Why? Because when we have NO INFORMATION, we tend to assume the worst.

Second, if you do have a high price, you SHOULD SAY SO and BRAG on it. Most businesses don’t charge enough for their products and services. If you raise your price, it will naturally trigger something in your brain that you had better justify this price and you will naturally be a better marketer.

You’re goal should be to make double-digit year-end profits after all expenses are paid, including owners salary. If you throw in your salary as part of the profits you’re deceiving yourself regarding your profits. From 10% to 25% year-end profits is a reasonable goal. Most business owners scrape by on 3% profits. Or less. That sucks. If you’re afraid to raise your prices, get a job at the post office.

30. Consider a coupon… or direct offer.

The point here is to track your efforts. If you don’t offer coupons, a direct offer tells you whether your ad is working or not. If you run an ad that brings you 100 phone calls and 10 buyers… that’s one thing. If you make a different offer to find out that for the same advertising expense you’re now getting 200 phone calls and 37 buyers… you’ve more than doubled your sales and profits without doubling your ad budget.

Your cost of advertising is one thing. Your cost per lead and cost per sale is a different thing. Coupons and direct offers not only help you keep track of what works, it also tends to bring in more buyers. Why? Because prospects clip the coupon late Wednesday night and call you on Thursday morning. Or, they note the direct offer and respond better than if your offer is vague.

31. Sell NOW as the time… make a bid for business and action.

If you take the time and trouble to get their emotions all worked up to say YES… get them to act now. Tomorrow the kids will be screaming, the doorbell ringing, and many other things will cloud their mind. NOW is the time to act.

If you follow these ideas… several things will happen all at once. Your sales will increase. When your sales increase, your competitors’ sales will decease. It just happens. The “Market Pie” is only so big.

PLUS: Your advertising cost will actually decrease. Why? Because you’ll be lowering your cost per lead and cost per sale for the same media dollar spent. Let’s say you’re spending $10,000 for a full-page ad in a mid-size town newspaper. If you increase your response your true media costs go down for the same amount of buyers coming into your door. That is smart marketing!!!

What is advertising? Advertising is salesmanship multiplied by media. Just because someone can design a so-called web site with flash and fancy graphics doesn’t mean jack when it comes to actually convincing people to part with their hard earned cash.

Use these ideas to increase your sales and profits in any media.

Bless You.

Linwood Austin

801-201-9026

The Facts About Business Internet Costs

The whole thing about internet pricing does not make any sense to most businesses. That too often includes those who should understand it the best. The computer support staff, in house “computer guy”, or IT cadre. But the key person needing an education is the decision maker. That person who will ultimately decide what solution your company will choose. This is for “them”.

Remember that complex network services are like a Trojan horse. If the boss lets a “solution” in because the price looks good….. the staff is left to deal with the consequences.

Be careful… you’re being tempted by the siren song of price. Woooooo ~~~ low price. Woooooo ~~~ higher speed. Uhhhh Ohhhh ~~~ long term contract. Uhhhh Ohhhh ~~~ bad service, support, maintenance and billing! And Uhhhh Ohhhh ~~~ time to update your resumé.

You understand for example that a T1 connection usually has a very stringent SLA (Service Level Agreement), one that cable and DSL does not. With the number of T1 circuits in existence and the number of years that they have been available, (and the number of abandoned smart jacks at customer sites), You’re apt to be frustrated that it is significantly more expensive to install a T1 than it is to install a DSL circuit.

You might even believe that if the actual physical costs (barring any repeating for long distances) are basically the same as DSL, then if you relax the SLA, why can’t T1 circuitry be used to deliver internet where DSL does not go?

You’re also likely to be confused because you can get a business 15/3 circuit from a cable provider for about $150/mo and the same circuit at home is about $80. Therein is another trap. Don’t get off track trying to compare a business grade line with a residential circuit. That’s like comparing apples and watermelons.

Is the higher cost of a T1 circuit (or DS3 bandwidth and so on) a matter of state mandated tariffs? Is it a matter of the ISPs protecting their profits with an air of exclusivity?

No….. now you’re buying into the conspiracy theory excuse.

This can be especially migraine inducing if you business is one of those bandwidth orphans, stuck out in Boonieville, Any State USA. You cannot use satellite without cutting down big trees. You cannot get reasonable cell phone coverage even if you are willing to live with the 5Gb limit. You have no WiFi and there is no DSL. All you have available is dialup at 45K. Now that would really suck.

We have been waiting for over three years for BPL (bandwidth over power lines) which apparently is still a work-in-progress. For example sake let’s say you may have been quoted say $850 last year for a full T…. with some less competitive prices above $1000.

You may also that we are bouncing signals off of satellites, trying to run IP over high power electric lines and bouncing wireless signals off of multiple towers, when the answer to rural internet coverage may be sitting on a little circuit board in the Demarc room.

Now that’s really reaching…. and too simple a argument. The facts just don’t support that line of reasining.

I can see where you might also think that the problem with bandwidth in the boonies is of our own making.

But here’s the “education” you need to get through all of that cloud cover. Facts…. not excuses and conspiracy theories.

DSL and cable are shared services. Bandwidth is shared in the residential neighborhoods, and is often oversold. Thus many customers are paying for a limited resource, and the low retail price is the result. Even the facility into your residential location is shared…. cable shares the TV connection, and DSL rides on an analog voice grade line.

The flip side is that T1 is a dedicated service (as is DS3 Bandwidth and Business Ethernet for example). The circuit is engineered as a digital circuit, special repeaters might be required if you’re far from the central office, and you don’t share your bandwidth with other subscribers.

If you want to talk about businesses getting thrown under the bus, simply talk to any independent bandwidth consultant who make a living rescuing frustrated DSL and cable customers with T1 service (or any other dedicated bandwidth solution). Certainly not every DSL and cable customer is disappointed, but there are enough of them to support a thriving industry.

You need to understand that the cost of the physical plant is irrelevant. Only the price to you is relevant. And the price to you for an internet T1 is almost always dependent ONLY on the distance from your central office to a carrier POP (Point Of Presence)…. and almost never dependent on the distance from your location to the local central office.

DSL rides on an analog voice grade line. T1 is a dedicated service. The circuit is engineered as a digital circuit, special repeaters might be required if you’re far from the central office. Irrespective of SLAs and oversold/dedicated upstream bandwidth, the wires for T1 and DSL are configured differently.

I can’t speak for the ILECs costs to themselves when they sell a T1, but any CLEC is going to pay $X for an unconditioned copper pair for DSL, and $Y for a conditioned loop (or loops, depending on how it’s delivered) for dedicated circuits.

On top of that, DSL gets terminated in a DSLAM which is, compared to traditional TDM “telco” equipment, way, way cheaper. Old school telco gear for terminating T1, T3 and OC circuits is an entirely different world with insane pricing, and one hopes, reliability. This stuff is built to meet certain standards and it’s all for 5-9’s reliability, which the DSL gear simply is not.

Then there’s the install and maintenance, which involves possibly installing repeaters, picking the appropriate technology (e.g. traditional T1, DSL-based solutions – yes many T1s ride “DSL”, but not the cheap stuff), circuit planning and possibly new construction, in some cases dropping a fiber Mux in the building.

Ongoing you are paying for the reliability of the line and a totally different tier of people to service it.

This is just the circuit itself, I’m not even getting into the handoff to the ISP and any oversubscription issues. Even Frame/ATM services over T1 where you are agreeing to go on a “shared” medium is going to be more than cable or DSL due to the underlying T1 line connecting you to the provider.

But one thing which is a HUGE factor in price is the fact that since it’s a “business-grade” line, the provider’s SLA’s require their Techs to respond to outages “within x hours” (usually 4 hrs). Meaning if you run a business and your t1 goes out at 11pm, an ILEC tech will be on-site (or at the cross connect box) by 3am. ILEC’s build that cost into the monthly price…. whereas shared/best effort services (e.g. DSL, cable) say “within 24-48 hrs” to fix it (if you’re lucky), and you’re on the same dispatch queue as the kid down the street who is complaining because his porn is downloading slow.

Keep in mind that the cost of copper and the equipment to support the digital circuit (Dedicated Bandwidth) is nothing compared to the cost of rolling a truck after-hours with a line tech to your location to fix the issue. AND, if it’s a problem outside your Demarc (which is usually the case), you don’t pay for the fix. It’s the ILEC’s issue…. meaning “someone* did pay that guy to go out there, just not you.

The bottom line is this.

If you’re serious about your business internet needs and understand the importance of having top notch customer service to go with it, you need to go with a carrier with a reputation for great customer service. Dedicated Bandwidth is a very cost effective solution for any company who understands the difference from DSL and cable. Simply be aware that the lowest price rarely means the best service or quality. Because in the internet connection world, more often than not, you get what you pay for.

Flat Fee Listing 101 – Know The Facts Before You List Your Florida FSBO Flat Rate In The MLS!

Who are you going to believe about how the flat fee MLS industry works?

There are four “business models” offering flat fee MLS listings in Florida:

1) National Website: They are not licensed in Florida but collect money and then refer you to a Florida discount real estate broker-who gets a portion of the fees collected. National websites are competent business enterprises that usually have a real estate broker’s license in one state but not in all states.

2) Florida part-time amateur flat fee website: There must be 70 or so of these “websites” in Florida. They are licensed real estate brokers that do flat fee listings part-time or are testing the waters to see if they can make a few bucks at flat fee.

3) Florida broker that is masquerading as flat fee: They seem like flat fee but their business model is not consumer friendly and I see their business practices as questionable. They may or do take your buyer leads from Realtor.com and other sources for their own agents; or possibly charge a cancellation fee as high as $500; or hold your listing hostage until you pay up ($500) by only “conditionally” withdrawing your listing from the MLS if you attempt to cancel and move to a full-service agent – your listing will be trapped in this “conditional” status until you pay the ransom of $500.

4) Florida licensed flat fee MLS broker that is established, trusted, transparent and paperless, specializes in Internet marketing and offers real customer support.
(Note: There is more than one trusted MLS flat fee firm in Florida but there are also plenty of firms that do fall into the # 2 and #3 categories above as well.)

Flat fee MLS requires more than simply inputting a listing into a local MLS…

1) Flat fee MLS sellers in Florida are 100% driven by control. They want their MLS listing correct at all times.

2) Third party websites such as Realtor.com, local MLS systems and IDX feeds to local real estate brokerage firms must be monitored constantly because listings do fall out of these systems. Technical glitches happen frequently.

3) Sellers make adjustments to their listing such as pictures, price, commission and their property descriptions. There are needed forms such as mold, lead-based paint and property disclosures.

4) The Florida Flat fee MLS broker is charged with the responsibility of buyer lead capture, agent showing requests, Internet marketing, trouble shooting, customer service, negotiating, editing and peace making. Flat Fee MLS brokers must be prepared to dedicate their time and energy.

Flat Fee MLS brokers must be prepared to dedicate their time and energy…

1) Taking $200 bucks and throwing a listing into the MLS as an afterthought is not what flat fee should be about. There are more moving parts that make up a “real” flat fee MLS company than one can imagine. For example: Last week, Orlando Regional MLS just took over Venice Board of Realtors. When they did this conversion, it knocked out 53 Realtor.com “showcased” properties from Mid-Florida Regional (Orlando area). It occurred on a Thursday evening and took the resources of the vice-president of Mid-Florida Regional and the Director of Operations and many phone calls to straighten out the major glitch.

2) Amateur or part-time flat fee MLS “website” operators might not have the resources or experience to deal with such matters.

3) The flat rate MLS broker must be prepared to back up the customer with support and market effectively on the Internet.

4) If the MLS discount broker requests that you print out forms, fill them out and fax back, this means they have put no thought or investment into on-line automation. This means listing changes, edit, status changes will all be fax this-fax that….back to caveman days.

What to look out for before you list flat fee

1) If the flat fee MLS “website” does not display the “listing agreement”, that should be a warning.

2) Carefully read the listing agreement “beginning-to-end” before you give any flat fee company money whether a National or a Florida based service.

3) Understand the process and policy about how buyer leads from Realtor.com and other sources get to you, the seller, if at all.

4) Realize that many calls do go to the flat fee broker. As many as 70 calls a day can come into a flat fee MLS broker. Miss one, that could be your sale.

5) Consider and verify what the hours are for the flat fee MLS service.

6) Flat fee websites that offer just one marketing option are really just a “website.” There are many marketing approaches besides just a basic MLS listing. What about marketing directly to Realtors®. For example, if a seller wishes to offer a 4% buyer’s agent commission, does the flat fee service provide a way to promote this higher than average commission? Some flat fee services do offer a Realtor eblast program which sends about 12,000 or so emails to all Ft Lauderdale, Miami, Orlando and Jacksonville real estate agent every 15 days. This is an effective marketing approach and Realtors do respond.

7) Flat fee sellers should think about contract representation. Contract-to-close flat fee programs help get the deal done faster. Having a seasoned real estate professional handle the contract negotiations results in a smoother transaction for the seller, as well, possibly netting a higher sale. One of the trickiest parts of negotiations is the possible- subsequent re-negotiations after the inspection. Negotiating an inspection report does mean re-roofing the house because some inspector or Realtor® says the roof is at the end of its “useful” life. There is an art to getting the buyer’s agent, the buyer and the seller on the same page. As well, there are some important nuances that do help get more Realtor® showings such as allowing the flat fee broker to schedule showings (more professional), using an Exclusive Right of Sale (not Exclusive Agency Listing Agreement) and use a professional looking metal sign.

How to flat fee list in Florida and stay out of trouble

1) Read the listing agreement.

2) Call the flat fee service and ask how they handle buyer leads.

3) Call and verify the hours of operation.

4) Ask if there any penalties or conditions if you cancel the listing.

5) Ask if the listing company will “unconditionally “withdraw your listing from the MLS if you choose to cancel and go with a full-service agent.

The Basic Facts of Web Design For Online Business

Designing a suitable website plays an extremely crucial part in promoting your online business on a professional level. Possessing a website which also appears good on a smartphone or tablet is vital to continue to keep your company competitive. To do this, your website should be clean, with simple navigation, and a look and feel that’s simple to follow for an improved user experience.

Website design needs a lot of creativity. An appealing design of the site is the secret, which will bring in lots of possible clients. An excellent site design can take your organization graph to new heights. It’s a neat compact design that may fit even in little spaces and is made entirely in the United States, to guarantee quality and support.

Since you’ll be leaving the designing of your website to a company, choose a web design company who employs the newest technology to keep your website on top of the competition. Apart from that you could also locate a great company which could offer security solutions for your business enterprise.

Without this, another business will quickly replace your business. While you’re looking for the web design company that is most suitable for you, do not fail to review about the organization’s name, reputation and company policies. It’s often hard to secure a web design company with expertise in excellent ecommerce programming, it isn’t impossible. So now you’ve found one of the best ecommerce website design firms.

The websites are created quite user friendly. The websites are completely designed and developed using WordPress or similar CMS platform and it is the ideal platform inside this arena. Submitting to business directories increase your small business site’s search engine optimization (search engine optimization), meaning that it’s going to be simpler for customers to discover your business through search engines.

If you would like your site to perform and generate leads for increased sales, your company will need far more than merely a site. If you own a site but not satisfied then it is possible to get help from reputed web design firm to get rid of same. The intriguing part about this site is it does not really comply with the tides of the fashion world, but instead intends to earn a mark of its own. It’s through getting your own site. You can do all these by getting your own website which works.

Your site is a direct reflection of your online business. Whenever your website is ready and accessible seamlessly across different mobile devices, then your website become greater engagement medium and a greater rate of retention. Not only does this increase your small business website’s SEO, in addition, it keeps people interested in your company by giving them fresh content to view on a regular basis. Submitting to local small business directories is another great way to market your small business website.

Each website is customized to their requirements. Many companies web sites have a bad position in search engine rankings, or might not be listed at all because they don’t understand how search engines work. Furthermore, maintaining your site content relays the message that you’re keeping your company techniques updated and keeps your small business image polished, in turn winning over new customers.

Imagine having your customers see your site, simply to discover that parts of your site are broken. To attain success, a website ought to be designed under the umbrella of one team. Your website is optimized for search engines to ensure it is simple for your clients to find you. In the modern technology-driven world, your website is often the very first impression of your company and have to capture the user’s attention instantly. A website, with fast and straightforward location search, was also a necessity for local business.