Avoiding Credit Card Fraud - Top Tips

by Richard Greenwood

Credit card fraud in the US is a rising problem. Up to 10% of Americans have been the victim of card fraud according to finance website bankrate.com. It’s easy to assume from the stories you see in the media that most of this fraud is the result of highly organised gangs using sophisticated techniques but the reality is the risks may be closer to home. Most card fraud cases are one off and may be conducted by someone you know such as family or friends. It’s crucial that you take some basic steps to keep your details in the right hands.The biggest step you can take toward your own credit security is to pay attention. Do you know when your monthly statements arrive? If not, find out. One very common trick is for a thief to change the statement address to something other than your home, and then start charging. If you don’t check what’s happening in between statements you won’t know that things are going on with your account. And if you don’t even know when it’s supposed to arrive, you’re just setting yourself up for trouble. Make sure you look through your statement each time it arrives and call your bank to query anything your not sure about.

Online security is important, too. Never access even a trusted website from a link in an unsolicited e-mail. These can be “mirror” sites set up to look identical to a trusted merchant’s, but in reality nothing more than data-mining sites that will take your credit card information and run with it. Go to a website through a Favorite or by typing the website manually into the address bar in your browser.

A secure website will often begin with “https” rather than the standard “http”. You’ll often see a small icon that looks like a padlock down near the bottom of your browser window—though even those can be faked these days. Once you have finished shopping online you should close the internet browser down fully. And consider cleaning out your browsing history on a regular basis. In Windows, this can be done via Tools, then Internet Options. In the General tab, click Delete in the Browsing History section to eliminate the addresses of recently-visited websites.

The golden rule to remember is under no circumstances should you reply to an unsolicited e-mail or phone call that asks for personal information. Banks and other merchants never request this information—remember, they should already have it on hand.

Protect your Personally Identifiable Information, or PII. NEVER give out your Social Security Number to an unsolicited phone call! If someone is asking for personal information and you didn’t call them you should hang up immediately.

You should contact your credit card issuer the moment you think you may be a fraud victim. Their number should be on your statement (which you’ve been checking every month of course?), but it’s a good idea to keep it in your address book, Day Planner, or PDA, as well. Your card issue needs to cancel your account with immediate effect and then set you up with a new account with the correct balance. You will likely have some forms to fill out. Make sure you take the time to complete and return the forms as the information you provide can be a huge help in helping the police and fraud investigation team from your card issuer to track down the thief and secure a prosecution.

Keep your card in a safe location (your wallet is generally a bad idea), never give out your PIN number or write it on the card, and check your statements every months. With a few simple precautions you can greatly reduce your risk of becoming a victim of credit card fraud.

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
ValueEbook.com

Poker: Tips, Tricks and Rules

by suzan

Learn the trade instead of learning the tricks of trade may be the common cliche’ but in the game like poker, which is full of cheats, deception and bluff, it becomes quite very necessary to learn the tricks besides learning the trade itself.You may think that learning tricks is easier than learning the trade. But in reality it’s no so. Grasping the hidden tricks and tips requires a lot of psychology, skill and more over great amount of concentration. And minimizing your same old silly mistakes you’ve been repeating in the past. .

To become a top poker player, fast, one need to follow some tips, tricks and rules while playing this bluffing game of poker. Follow these important points and you’ll learn all the trade tricks and be the winner, always!

1) No drunkards: No drinks please! 2 drinks may make you relaxed, but it may lead being a loser every time. And this may prompt you more drinks. So, better be out of this vicious circle. 2) Play in alight mood: It’s a general notion that playing you are emotionally weak sad, mad or depressed will make you winner and lighten your mood or anger. Being a poker doesn’t ever do that. Playing for escaping your sadness or bad mood. Is never a good idea. You give your fellow player an edge over yourself. 3) Attention to cards: if you are a beginner, it’s enough to pay attention to your own cards. But once you’re tried and tested, try to keep eye on what’s going on the table. Figure out the best possible hand for fitting the flop.

4) Observing other players: paying attention and observing the opponents is one best thing you can do to bluff, before you get bluffed. Once you know, when player folds to re-raise, that’s when you can steal the pot and be the winner.

5) Play not every hand: almost every poker beginner makes the mistake of playing far more hands than they can or should! To a beginner, it may seem that playing more means winning more. But sadly, its vice-versa in most cases

6) No bluffing for bluffing’s sake: newbie feel that, they have not won or are not a good player till now, until they bluff. But it’s not like this in the least. Remember, that bluffing only applies in certain case and against certain people only.

7) Staying because you’re already in: it’s a blunder to think or say, that “you’ll have to stay, as you have put so much in the pot.” Throwing money in the pot won’t always make you a winner. As is it, the money thrown in the pot is now not yours. And playing even till the end of game wont help in getting you yours money back!

Lucky me: don’t always play thinking that luck will favor will as always. You need to have at least some knowledge about this bluffing poker. Rather try practice playing poker and be prepared before entering that one round of poker, especially, if you’re a professional poker player. As, luck favor the prepared.

Poker is a smart game. So, defeat the defeat, before the defeat defeats you!

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com

Cpanel Hosting For Effortless Online Business Management

 

cPanel Control Basics Video Series

by Bill Pratt

When searching for your web hosting service provider, verifying if they offer cPanel is essential. cPanel or control panel would be the GUI or the graphical user interface, which is considered to be one of the best and most functional tools in the industry of web hosting.It provides the end user with a more convenient and easier way to manage his website. It is a software that makes website administration, which includes the setting up and maintenance of web programs, a breeze. cPanel comprises of a set of web programs, which makes the more difficult jobs doable by even the novice end users.

Through the pictorial interaction of the web server and its webmaster, who is the one who creates the various features of their web server’s Internet presence, things like creating mailing lists, emails and blogs are made simpler.

The interface of the cPanel operates on a couple of Linux platforms, which are RPM-based through port 2082 or port 2083 with the authentication and the login done on a separate web page.

Logging into and using the different programs can be done prove to be straightforwardly. If you need a blog, a bulletin board made using PHP or a content management system, setup is fairly effortless and quick.

Since cPanel has made website administration a lot easier, it has been made the industry standard. It works even better when Fantastico scripts are used with it. It sets off a multitude of tasks, like MySQL table creation for different programs, removing the manual importing of scripts created by third-party vendors that are in the market today. Together, cPanel and Fantastico are able to streamline the process for the end user in setting up software and other applications.

cPanel has efficiently combined the scripts and programs that which used to operate separately. cPanel was able to standardize these programs and scripts, which made webhosting and setup a uniform package for users.

Because of this, cPanel has become an essential part of any web hosting service package that webmasters should check for before purchasing a plan.

However, there is a disadvantage for using cPanel. Since it is widely used, it has become the method of phishers and hackers that create scripts that run and command it to setup unauthorized sub-domains that will be able to gather information from innocent victims. This method is referred to as phishing, and the user must always look out for signs of these when utilizing the cPanel.

Besides this drawback, the benefits and advantages with regard to ease-of-use and the convenience of setting up programs, definitely overshadows the concern regarding phishers and hackers.

Without a doubt, cPanel is the best way to go for web hosting. It is able to provide the user with everything he needs to set up and maintain a website successfully and effortlessly.

 

cPanel Control Basics Video Series

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com

Home Based Business Craze Review back again ” Beware Of Mentoring”

 

by Lance

 

Once again we will touch base on the home base business craze, Its always nice to know what to look for when having the entrepreneur Spirit, This spirit is essential in becoming an entrepreneur. But however even with this spirit you must be aware of the unseen Financial Hazards. Lets start by saying We are Entrepreneurs looking for another way to start extra money flowing into our bank accounts. So we search and we search the web looking for something that can help us. This is were the problems can arise. So we find a web sit or get an e-mail asking if you want to earn 5 billion dollars a month. If so go to this link. So you go to the link and give you info and WAMO the next day you have a “SALESMAN” oops I mean your new mentor contacting you to make you buy into a business that you don’t know that you haven’t the funds for until you sign on. This goes back to the HYPE that I wrote about in my last article. You remember? The cars, the boats, the houses. If you haven’t read it you can find it at Go articles and search for an author by the name of Lance. Or search Google for “HOME BASED BUSINESS CRAZE. Its Ranked 1 -3. This is the same concept my fellow business owners. You are sold on Hype alone. You see when your excited you make things happen “Mentors know this” They will use this against you. Lets look at a definition of a Mentor - “a wise and trusted counselor or teacher” - to act as a mentor: “She spent years mentoring to junior employees.”

You see my Friends, fellow entrepreneurs, business men and women. Mentors don’t make you buy things. They help you make decisions, give you philosophy, expand your mind and help you become smarter at what you do. This should cost nothing. Look at Aristotle, Plato and Di Angelo. They had mentors with them for years, there mentors were like father figures, councelors and most of all friends.

My point here is we need to invest in ourselves! If you want to work from home, Get involved with a work from home online business program that needs “YOU” you will make money on line without a doubt, for less than $50.00. Here is the cool part. Your Mentors are the people on your level that are using techniques that show progress. Like me for example I am there with you. On the same page. I have bean burned enough to know what to do and not to do. Whether your a entrepreneur, seasoned business man/woman or a newbie to the enternet world. We are together in this fight my friends.

If you are looking for a sound work from home business that alows you to work from home, with no, calling no mentor calling telling you you need to go hand out more fliers because you don’t have the money to advertise. Yes just you and your computer. Do yourself a favor and click the link below. Its free info. Take it or leave it.

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com

ProBlogging: Making Money From Blogs

WordPress Blogs Made Easy Video Series

 

by Rocky John Tayaban

 

A weblog (or simply blog) is a website that ‘publishes’ or features articles (which are called ‘blog posts’, ‘posts’, or ‘entries’), written by an individual or a group that make use of any or a combination of the following:

- Straight texts - Photographs or images (photoblog) - Video (videoblog) - Audio files (audioblog) - Hyperlinks

Usually presented and arranged in reverse chronological order, blogs are essentially used for the following purposes:

- Online journal or a web diary - Content managament system - Online publishing platform

A typical blog has the following components:

- Post date -the date and time of the blog entry

- Category - the category that the blog belongs to

- Title - the title of the blog

- Main body - the main content of the blog

- RSS and trackback - links the blog back from other sites

- Comments - commentaries that are added by readers

- Permalinks - the URL of the full article

- Other optional items - calendar, archives, blogrolls, and add-ons or plug-ins

A blog can also have a footer, usually found at the bottom of the blog, that shows the post date, the author, the category, and the ’stats’ (the nubmer of comments or trackbacks).

There are numerous types of blogs. Some of them are the following:

1. Political blog - on news, politics, activism, and other issue based blogs (such as campaigning).

2. Personal blog - also known as online diary that may include an individual’s day-to-day experience, complaints, poems, and illicit thoughts, and communications between friends.

3. Topical blog - with focus either on a particular niche (function or position) that is usually technical in nature or a local information.

4. Health blog - on specific health issues. Medical blog is a major category of health blog that features medical news from health care professionals and/or actual patient cases.

5. Literary blog - also known as litblog.

6. Travel blog - with focus on a traveler’s stories on a particular journey.

7. Research blog - on academic issues such as research notes.

8. Legal blog - on law (technical areas) and legal affairs; also known as ‘blawgs’.

9. Media blog - focus on falsehoods or inconsistencies in mass media; usually exclusive for a newspaper or a television network.

10. Religious blog - on religious topics

11. Educational blog - on educational applications, usually written by students and teachers.

12. Collaborative or collective blog - a specific topic written by a group of people.

13. Directory blog - contains a collection of numerous web sites.

14. Business blog - used by entrepreneurs and corporate employees to promote their businesses or talk about their work.

15. Personification blog - focus on non-human being or objects (such as dogs).

16. Spam blogs - used for promoting affiliated websites; also known as ’splogs’.

Blogging is typically done on a regular (almost daily) basis. The term “blogging” refers to the act of authoring, maintaining, or adding an article to an existing blog, while the term “blogger” refers to a person or a group who keeps a blog.

Today, more than 3 million blogs can be found in the Internet. This figure is continuously growing, as the availability of various blog software, tools, and other applications make it easier for just about anyone to update or maintain the blog (even those with little or no technical background). Because of this trend, bloggers can now be categorized into 4 main types:

- Personal bloggers - people who focus on a diary or on any topic that an individual feels strongly about.

- Business bloggers - people who focus on promoting products and services.

- Organizational bloggers - people who focus on internal or external communication in an organization or a community.

- Professional bloggers - people who are hired or paid to do blogging.

Problogging (professional blogging) refers to blogging for a profit. Probloggers (professional bloggers) are people who make money from blogging (as an individual blog publisher or a hired blogger).

Below are just some of the many money-making opportunities for probloggers:

- Advertising programs - RSS advertising - Sponsorship - Affiliate Programs - Digital assets - Blog network writing gigs - Business blog writing gigs - Non blogging writing gigs - Donations - Flipping blogs - Merchandising - Consulting and speaking

The following are a few things that you need to consider if you want to be successful in problogging:

1. Be patient. Problogging requires a lot of time and effort, not to mention a long-term vision.

2. Know your audience. Targeting a specific audience or group is a key to building a readership.

3. Be an ‘expert’. Focus on a specific niche topic and strive to be the “go-to” blogger on that topic.

4. Diversify. Experiment with various add and affiliate programs that enable you to make money online (aside from blogging).

5. Do not bore your readers. Focus on the layout. White spaces, line spacings, and bigger fonts make a blog welcoming to read.

Certainly, it is possible to earn money from blogs. One just needs to take risks, the passion, and the right attitude in order to be a successful problogger.

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com

WordPress Blogs Made Easy Video Series

7 Ways To Become More Sexually Satisfying For Your Woman

 

by Janet Martin

 

Being unable to achieve an erection once in a while is fairly common. In such cases, medication is not really needed. Sometimes, stress or drinking too much alcohol can be the reasons behind your inability to copulate. More often than not, tension or anxiety brought about by the feeling of being unable to satisfy a woman can also cause your inability to have an erection in the first place. But all these are temporary.

Taking a pill to make your organ stiff is actually not the only way to achieve an erection. If you want to provide long-term relief from your problem and boost your sexual life, you need to make permanent changes to your lifestyle and eating habits. Unless your doctor tells you that you have erectile dysfunction, there is still hope for you to enjoy a hassle-free sex life. Just follow these tips below.

Allocate Time For Exercise

Having problems down there can be caused by a wide variety of things. Being unfit is one of them. If you want to improve your sexual relationship with your wife or partner, you need to exercise regularly. Exercise will help improve your cardiovascular health, boost your stamina and endurance, and also improve your blood circulation. These factors are important in making your loved one happy and satisfied in bed.

Watch Your Weight

Studies have shown that sexual libido of men who are overweight and obese is significantly lower than those who are within normal limits. Moreover, your feeling about how you look when naked can affect your performance and erection. Maintaining a healthy weight will not only be good for your sexual health, but to your total wellbeing as well. Remember that the most serious illnesses are brought about or exacerbated by excess weight and fat.

Check Your Medication

For those who have other conditions and are taking medications, you need to talk with your doctor regarding your problem. Some drugs can actually affect your performance and ability to put ‘it’ up. Your doctor will surely help you look for other medications or treatments that will not affect your sexual performance. However, it is important that you do not discontinue or alter your drugs or treatment without the knowledge of your doctor.

Limit Alcohol Intake

A glass or two of wine can help you feel turned on; however, anything more than that may prevent you from having an erection. Thus, if you are planning to have a night of endless pleasure with your wife, girlfriend or partner, you have to lessen your alcohol intake. Besides, women hate alcohol breath.

Quit Smoking

Aside from being bad for you lungs, brain and other internal organs, smoking can also impair proper blood circulation. According to a recent study, smokers (both current and former) are around 30% more prone to suffer from impotence than non-smokers. And if smoking is bad, then using illegal drugs is worse. Aside from other problems and complications, drug or substance abuse can also cause impotence.

Reduce Stress And Anxiety

As mentioned earlier, erectile problems can also be caused by psychological reasons. Men who are suffering from stress, tension, anxiety and depression will surely find themselves not in the mood for some hanky-panky. If you want to bring the passion back into your life, you need to know how to relieve stress and ease tension and anxiety.

Taking a vacation every now and then, having a massage, drinking chamomile tea, or talking with a therapist can be helpful in easing tension, stress and whatever psychological problems you might have.

Mind What You Eat

The things that you eat can also affect your performance in bed. People who eat a lot of sugar and processed foods are most likely to suffer from impotence due to diabetes. Toxins and chemicals in the food that you eat can also make you feel sluggish and less energetic.

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com

Job Search Engines - What Are The Best Job Search Engines?

 

by Catherine Z

 

Times are definitely tough economically and many of us have either lost our jobs or are in danger of losing them.

Looking for new jobs can be a challenge. Local newspapers seem to have smaller and smaller ‘help wanted’ sections and rarely carry listings for opportunities that are beyond your local area. The solution could be job search engines.

What are Job Search Engines/Websites?

Job search websites are massive databases of available job listings which can be searched through by job seekers like you. The jobs can be searched in a wide variety of ways, including by location, job title, company name, experience required, field or industry, and more. You can even combine criteria to help you pin down your search more specifically.

These online search engines are even better because they are usually free to use. Many also provide additional services, such as job advice and resume posting for no additional charge.

The Pros and Cons of Job Search Engines

Job search engines have plenty of advantages. For example, you can search through new listings 24/7. You don’t have to wait for the morning paper to scour the ads. Plus, employers can post new jobs 24/7 so you’re more likely to see fresh opportunities daily instead of in local papers.

Another benefit is the searching capabilities. You don’t have to browse through all of the listings to find the ones that are best suited for you. Plus, most job search engines allow you to customize your search requirements and have daily or weekly job updates sent directly to your email so you’ll always know when an interesting position becomes available. You can also act faster.

Job search engines also make it easy to apply online which saves you time (your application is delivered instantly to the eager employer) and money (you don’t have to print your resume or use a stamp).

Unfortunately, there are some disadvantages. Most of the job search engine databases contain tons of legitimate jobs from well-respected companies but you’ll also find quite a few get-rich-quick scams, too.

Another disadvantage is that some job search engines do not keep their listings updated. You’re likely to find postings for many ads that were filled a long time ago. That can be frustrating. However, most of the engines do allow you to organize your search by most recently posted opportunities which improves your chances of finding available work.

Choosing the Best Job Search Websites

Currently, the best job search websites available are Monster.com and the Yahoo job search, Hotjobs.com. Both of these sites provide all of the advantages above, plus plenty of extra features such as the free resume posting which will increase your odds of landing a great job. Additionally, these are two of the biggest names in the industry so companies that are going to post their job openings online will most likely do so at either one or both of these sites before anywhere else.

Finally, you’re going to find the most search options at these sites and both will email you news about recent postings that meet your specifications. That makes it easier to find a new job even in a competitive market.

There’s more on job search engines here including information about the best job search websites, Monster and the Yahoo job search engine.

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com

Organizational Efficiency Quiz: How Much Waste Is In Your Organization?

 by Andrew Miller

Miriam-Webster defines efficiency as “…productive without waste.” In business, waste means money. So being efficient has a direct impact on your company’s bottom line.Is your company doing things efficiently?

My guess is that there are opportunities that are not being taken advantage of.

Take This Simple 4-Question Organization Efficiency Quiz to Discover Exactly How Much Waste is in Your Organization 1. Do you have standard processes and procedures?

This is a simple concept, but requires a great deal of discipline and executive support to complete successfully. Essentially, it means getting everyone in your organization to do things the same way. A large banking client of mine had various methods of contacting suppliers to place orders for products. Some employees would send emails. Others would telephone. And, still others would send faxes. As a result, suppliers were delivering products two or three times per day to the same location. Each delivery had a $35 charge and the company was spending more than $25,000 per year on delivery charges from only one supplier!

Deliveries were reduced to two times per week simply by standardizing the ordering process and having the supplier consolidate orders. Costs were reduced to less than $5,000 annually. That is an 80% cost reduction and a $20,000 savings just by changing the processes with one supplier. Extrapolate that over your entire supplier base and you can see the opportunities that are presented to your organization.

2. Are you using current technology?

There is some amazing technology out there and it is good advice to start using it. When possible, use web meetings, conference calls and especially e-commerce solutions. This reduces travel and operating expenses by a significant amount. One of my clients reduced their paper usage by more than 80% by sending purchase orders and invoices through an e-Commerce solution, and storing their purchasing documents in an online repository.

A pharmaceutical client implemented an electronic ordering system to replace their paper-based system. Before the new system, nine employees reviewed a typical order before the order could be sent to a supplier. It took as long as six weeks for the supplier to receive the order and fulfill it. Currently, suppliers now receive more than 95% of the orders within 48 hours.

3. Are you making everyone accountable?

A couple of years ago, one of my healthcare clients had created an organizational structure with no accountability. Simple decisions would take weeks, include many different resources and were often revisited after the decision was taken. After some analysis, we implemented a new organizational structure where roles and accountabilities were clearly documented and understood. Employees were given clear decision-making responsibilities and knew when escalation was required. Productivity improved significantly and most decisions were made quickly.

Does everyone in your organization know what their exact role is? Are they accountable for their successes and failures?

On any successful sports team, there are superstars and role players. No team wins a championship with only one or the other. You need a mix of both.

All successful companies have their superstars and their role players. The key is to create a structure and culture that supports the goals and objectives of your organization and removes ambiguity about people’s roles and responsibilities.

4. Are you striving to improve your business efficiency on a regular basis?

An organization should never be satisfied with the status quo. Most of the top-performing companies are constantly improving on what they did yesterday. Through employee feedback, waste reduction, better use of technology and improving customer service, organizations will improve results directly related to their bottom line. Those results may come in the form of increased customer retention, increased profit, improved employee satisfaction and reduced administrative costs.

If you found yourself not taking advantage of the opportunities in my organizational efficiency quiz, you are not alone. But if you want to benefit from reduced costs, increased profit, better employee retention and improved customer satisfaction, then you need to take action today. Now, who could refuse benefits like that?

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com

Viral Marketing: The Undercover Way of Creating a Million Dollar Business

by Ken King

After the explosion of social networking sites such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter, more and more companies now see the need to implicate viral marketing into their business. No more is there the old, tired, and limited way of marketing, working 10 years to start up company is a thing of the past. Now the only way to achieve life changing results is with viral marketing.A virus replicates exponentially, there by spreading illness rapidly. Like that, viral marketing is a marketing method, which enables spreading of messages regarding products, rapidly. It is an online version of the word of mouth marketing, network marketing etc. The business technique is a marketing phenomenon, which encourages people passing marketing messages to others, there by creation of exponential growth potential of influence as well as exposure of messages. Viral marketing became a successful and popular form of online marketing, as instantaneous communication through internet became affordable and easy. These viral promotions are possible in to form of interactive games, e-books, video clips, images, text messages, brandable softwares, advergames and many more. Aim of a viral marketer is about creating buzz around a business idea or product, to spread it in a big way amongst people.

Viral marketing depends heavily on person-to-person rate of message passing. If sizable percentage of the message reciepients forwards it to huge number of friends or acquainted, overall growth will be zooming up in no time. If the forward rate of the message by the recipients is low, then the whole exercise will be fatal. Viral marketing demands, identification of individuals with good social contacts. Creation of compelling viral messages is also vital, as they can make good impression on recipients, so that they pass it in a big way. Other wise recipients will read and then discard those messages.

Free advertising, automation of marketing methods, long-term attraction of visitors, immediate visitors’ attraction, exponential growth rate, and inexpensiveness, easy and quicker increase in targeted traffic, quick establishment of solid reputation, easy development of marketing tools etc are some of the benefits of the viral marketing.

For attracting attention, giving away services or products is a common practice. For example, free information, free buttons; free email-services etc. Utilization of already existing networks for communication. That is utilizing the social contacts for spreading the promotional messages through online. Provision of transfer of messages to others effortlessly is essential. Scaling up of transmission of messages, from small number of people to huge, depends upon the usage of mail servers. Exploitation of common behaviours and motivations, for transmission of messages, as greed drives growth. Take leverage out of resources of others like affiliate marketing for faster transmission. These account for an effective viral marketing strategy.

Many companies use viral components for attracting media attention. Some companies uses creative blogs, which lets people to have talks regarding company websites. Accepting comments from the audience is good for connecting with them. For those who have seen the campaign initially, it is important to keep interested. For that showing, sequel of campaign will be good. Never make advertisements for the sake sharing with people like in other marketing methods. Hotmail is an astonishing example of viral marketing. Ponzi scheme, pyramid schemes, multi level marketing etc is some of the earlier viral marketing examples. Now days any event can be campaigned through you tube emails and other sources. Simpler viral marketing concepts for business, has greater chance for its success.

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com

Working With a Realtor to Buy a Bank Owned Property

 

by Brent Wilson

 

Your success in investing in bank-owned properties will depend to some extent on finding and working with a suitable Realtor.

It’s also wise to do some of your own research on local REOs (bank-owned property), whether it be via REO web sites, the local multilist (Realtor.com), or any other resources you can find.

Some Realtors are competent in dealing with REOs and will readily show you any listing, and some are not so competent. Some Realtors become reluctant to show very cheap houses, since the commissions are so low. It is critical that you find a Realtor who will show you EVERY house that might be suitable, no matter how cheap. Some Realtors also become reluctant to show some REOs because the lenders pay only a low commission, and they could receive a higher commission if they show a different house.

This sort of selective marketing by your Realtor will work against you at every step of the way. You need to be sure that the Realtor you work with understands up front that they have to show you everything that meets your guidelines, no matter how cheap. Let them know that you will be a repeat customer, so anything they don’t make on one transaction should be compensated for over time.

Some Realtors, even when they belong to the multilist, are reluctant to show the listings of other Realtors, since they don’t want to split their commissions. Working with this sort of Realtor is usually a waste of time, since their potential inventory is usually quite small.

When the REO market gets into high gear and a majority of houses sold are REOs in some areas, the conventional Realtor will either have to change or get out of the way. You should be sure to work only with a Realtor who has successfully adapted to the changed market. Many Realtors also don’t like to show properties which are very rough or in bad areas, but again, you have to see these places, since there are bargains buried among them. Sometimes the worst looking (but still well built) property is the best deal. This coming market will be so different from what the average Realtor has grown accustomed to that most conventional Realtors won’t learn how to operate successfully until several years have passed.

General Strategies

Two of the best sources of REO bargains, once foreclosures become more numerous, are new listings and price reductions.

Some lenders will begin at a low price to sell a property quickly, so some buried treasure can be found in the new listings.

Price reductions can also be a source of potential bargains. If a property has sat on the market too long, some lenders will slash the price quite a bit to move it, depending on circumstances.

Ask your Realtor to send you a daily or weekly list of price reductions and new listings in the areas that you are interested in, especially after the foreclosure activity picks up in your area. You need current information on these so you can be first in line for the real bargains.

As times goes on and the REO inventory mounts, it will become more and more of a numbers game. You won’t get all the places you make offers on, but you should get enough to make things work. Don’t get hung up on the places you miss, just keep in the game and look for the next one.

Be sure your Realtor has time to submit offers in a timely manner. A day or two in delay can cause you to lose a lot of good deals. Your deals will probably be smaller than their usual business (lower prices equals lower commissions) so it’s critical that your Realtor is service oriented, with an eye toward a long working relationship with you, rather than just how much money they can make on any one deal.

By the same token, be a good client, make solid offers, don’t waste your Realtor’s time, and do what you say you are going to do.

One thing that will help you above almost all else is the ability to size up a property quickly, to know if it meets your criteria. Work on this and learn how to quickly eliminate from consideration any properties that are unsuitable. When you do meet your Realtor, you’ll be able to walk through a place and know immediately whether you want to make an offer on it. This will save a lot of time on everybody’s part, and a lot more bargains will come your way.

 

Hope you enjoyed the article,

Matt Soares
TurneBiz.com
CompForLife.com