foreclosure list

A few years ago, the Internet experienced a video revolution. As broadband access expanded and more people began uploading content, video became an expected resource for consumers. Businesses could get more mileage out of television commercials and engage users by linking to video reviews of its products.

A year ago, we saw evidence of small and medium-sized business increasing budgets for video content – to be used both on their homepages and in advertisements. In 2009, 19% of businesses polled were using video (up from 5% in 2008) and I’m willing to bet that number will be much higher in the 2010 report that should come out later this month.

Now, as technology has become more affordable and increasingly mobile, we’re able to experience virtually anything online. As such, local search engines are evolving into master content synthesizers to meet the needs of consumers and advertisers alike – offering video and photos, local advertising deals, user reviews, QR codes, maps and directions, etc.

Consumer expectations of local search engines have never been higher. Users want to see photo and video reviews of a company’s products, read what other people have to say, and even take a virtual tour of your store or restaurant before they visit.

The same is true of small- and medium-sized business owners looking to find a competitive advantage. Local search engines are offering more dynamic content than ever before to users and it’s up to search marketers to help business owners feed that content.

It’s interesting to see how video content has changed since the advent of YouTube. Instead of traditional video advertising, we’re seeing new technology that lets users look around your business from their own home. Soon, we’ll be able to find virtual creations of almost any environment online – and those virtual tours are being integrated with current deals and other advertising promotions to drive traffic to your business.

Recently, a company called EveryScape partnered with Bing and YP to offer digital advertisers a new local search solution – virtual tours. For example, YP360 will let a user step inside a restaurant in Baltimore while they’re still on the train. They can choose a place and even set a reservation, all within the same application on their phone.

Google Earth has gone indoors and local search engines are responsible for bringing this detailed and vivid content to users while keeping it simple and accessible. And the business case for offering this new content to users and advertisers alike is clear as local advertising is expected to grow to $16.1 billion this year, up from $13.7 billion in 2010.

Even more, mobile phone advertising spending is expected to be more than a billion dollars in 2011, up 48% from 2010. Local search engines like YP and Yelp! are seeing over 20 million visitors a month, many of them accessing via mobile phones.

This is a great opportunity for local search engines and advertisers to embrace this new technology and get ahead of the pack. Effective local advertising goes beyond building a social networking presence and listing in directories – you have to make sure your content is engaging. In the online world, the savviest local search marketers who use this technology well will have the most successful campaigns.

I recommend that any business owner or local search marketer read up on the latest digital advertising solutions and consider offering your customers virtual tours of your products or store. To set your business apart, you need to stay current with the best that local search has to offer.

Opinions expressed in the article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land.

Related Topics: Locals Only

A few years ago, the Internet experienced a video revolution. As broadband access expanded and more people began uploading content, video became an expected resource for consumers. Businesses could get more mileage out of television commercials and engage users by linking to video reviews of its products.

A year ago, we saw evidence of small and medium-sized business increasing budgets for video content – to be used both on their homepages and in advertisements. In 2009, 19% of businesses polled were using video (up from 5% in 2008) and I’m willing to bet that number will be much higher in the 2010 report that should come out later this month.

Now, as technology has become more affordable and increasingly mobile, we’re able to experience virtually anything online. As such, local search engines are evolving into master content synthesizers to meet the needs of consumers and advertisers alike – offering video and photos, local advertising deals, user reviews, QR codes, maps and directions, etc.

Consumer expectations of local search engines have never been higher. Users want to see photo and video reviews of a company’s products, read what other people have to say, and even take a virtual tour of your store or restaurant before they visit.

The same is true of small- and medium-sized business owners looking to find a competitive advantage. Local search engines are offering more dynamic content than ever before to users and it’s up to search marketers to help business owners feed that content.

It’s interesting to see how video content has changed since the advent of YouTube. Instead of traditional video advertising, we’re seeing new technology that lets users look around your business from their own home. Soon, we’ll be able to find virtual creations of almost any environment online – and those virtual tours are being integrated with current deals and other advertising promotions to drive traffic to your business.

Recently, a company called EveryScape partnered with Bing and YP to offer digital advertisers a new local search solution – virtual tours. For example, YP360 will let a user step inside a restaurant in Baltimore while they’re still on the train. They can choose a place and even set a reservation, all within the same application on their phone.

Google Earth has gone indoors and local search engines are responsible for bringing this detailed and vivid content to users while keeping it simple and accessible. And the business case for offering this new content to users and advertisers alike is clear as local advertising is expected to grow to $16.1 billion this year, up from $13.7 billion in 2010.

Even more, mobile phone advertising spending is expected to be more than a billion dollars in 2011, up 48% from 2010. Local search engines like YP and Yelp! are seeing over 20 million visitors a month, many of them accessing via mobile phones.

This is a great opportunity for local search engines and advertisers to embrace this new technology and get ahead of the pack. Effective local advertising goes beyond building a social networking presence and listing in directories – you have to make sure your content is engaging. In the online world, the savviest local search marketers who use this technology well will have the most successful campaigns.

I recommend that any business owner or local search marketer read up on the latest digital advertising solutions and consider offering your customers virtual tours of your products or store. To set your business apart, you need to stay current with the best that local search has to offer.

Opinions expressed in the article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land.

Related Topics: Locals Only

Surface Encounters

Fiesta Bowl fires CEO amid internal report; BCS status in jeopardy

The Fiesta Bowl has fired its longtime CEO John Junker after a scathing internal report found "an apparent scheme" to reimburse employees for political contributions.

Surface Encounters

FOCUS: Courageous workers at troubled nuclear plant endure tough <b>...</b>

Each of the employees of Tokyo Electric Power Co. and other workers engaged in containing damage at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is given 30 survival food crackers and a 180 milliliter pack of vegetable juice for ...

Surface Encounters

This Week in Credit Cards <b>News</b>: New Rules, More ATM Fees, End of <b>...</b>

Provided by LowCards.com New Rules Promote Smarter Use of Credit Cards The new consumer watchdog agency wants to help consumers understand the credit card offer they will receive before they apply for a credit card.

Surface Encounters

Titles from major book publisher Random House will now appear in Apple’s iBooks store. The news was one of many talking points covered earlier today at Apple’s media event. Random House had previously been the only major publisher not represented in Apple’s popular iOS book store, as it was not willing to grant Apple the 30% cut taken on titles sold through iBooks. The addition of Random House is a major coup for Apple as it looks to compete with the likes of Amazon’s Kindle bookstore and other popular offerings. Hit the break for Apple’s full press release.

Random House, Inc. Makes Entire US Catalog of 17,000 ebooks Available on Apple’s iBookstore

iBookstore Now Features More than 2,500 Publishers, Including All Six Major Trade Publishers

SAN FRANCISCO—March 2, 2011—Apple® today announced that Random House, Inc., the largest trade book publisher in the US, has made its full catalog of 17,000 ebooks available on Apple’s iBookstore℠, including bestsellers by Stieg Larsson, John Grisham, Dan Brown, Danielle Steel, Laura Hillenbrand, Cormac McCarthy, Lee Child and many more of the world’s preeminent authors. Starting today, customers can pre-order upcoming releases from Random House including Lisa Gardner’s “Love You More,” Suze Orman’s “The Money Class” and Jean Auel’s “The Land of Painted Caves.” With the addition of Random House, the iBookstore now offers ebooks from all six major trade publishers and thousands of independent publishers.

“We are delighted that Apple’s iBookstore now will be carrying Random House’s US ebooks for the first time,” said Markus Dohle, Random House’s Chairman and CEO. “And we look forward to bringing our 17,000 ebooks to Apple customers.”

“We’re thrilled to offer Random House on the iBookstore,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of Internet Services. “iBookstore customers have already downloaded more than 100 million books in less than one year, and we think they’ll love being able to choose from Random House’s incredible selection of titles to enjoy on their iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.”

iBookstore customers can choose from a wide selection of illustrated and video-enhanced books that look incredible on iPad™, including Jay-Z’s memoir “Decoded” and Bing West’s “The Wrong War”; bestselling children’s series such as Magic Tree House and Junie B. Jones; and cookbooks by Martha Stewart, Rachael Ray, and the Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten. Random House, Inc. comprises more than 80 adult and children’s US publishing imprints including Alfred A. Knopf, Doubleday, Crown, Pantheon Books, Vintage, Ballantine and Bantam.

The iBookstore, included in Apple’s free iBooks® app, is the best way to browse, buy and read books on your iPad, iPhone® and iPod touch®. iBookstore offers ebooks from more than 2,500 publishers in more than 20 categories, including Mysteries & Thrillers, Biographies & Memoirs, Cookbooks, Children’s & Teen, Humor, Romance, Business and Travel.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork, and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple is reinventing the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.

Tags: announcement, Apple, books, e-books, e-reader, ebooks, eReader, Event, iBooks, Random House

Editor’s Note: Jim Dalrymple has been writing about Apple for more than 15 years. You can follow him on Twitter @jdalrymple and on his Web site at The Loop.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs on Wednesday introduced the iPad 2 at a special event in San Francisco, taking even more momentum away from its competitors.

I’ve had a lot of people in the last 24 hours tell me that the iPad 2 isn’t as revolutionary as the first generation device. Yes, that’s true. But not every device a company releases has to be or can be revolutionary.

Apple has released three revolutionary products in the last decade alone: iPod, iPhone and iPad. I really can’t think of any products from Apple’s competitors that fit in the revolutionary category in that same time period.

People also said that Apple wasn’t very forthcoming with the specs of the iPad 2. Again, that’s true, but there’s a good reason for that—nobody cares.

Well, some people care. Those of us who are geeks care about specs. However, have you ever noticed that when you sit with your non-geek friends and start listing off specs their eyes glaze over and they rest their chin in their hand.

That’s because they couldn’t care less.

The iPad 2 is no slouch either. It lost one-third of the thickness of the previous generation, and therefore it is one-third less than the size of the iPad competitors too. It also has new technologies like a gyro built-in that will launch another round of cool apps.

Yesterday’s iPad 2 announcement wasn’t about the geeks—it was about all the other people who will buy an iPad. What those people want to know is “what can I do with it?”

If it fits into their lifestyle, most people are good with that. Apple showed many ways how the iPad 2 can fit into your lifestyle.

From the very beginning, Apple was very smart with how it marketed the iPad. The first thing it did was get the device into businesses and promote the fact that it could be used to get work done. And it was quite successful with that.

In an analyst call in October 2010, Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer said the iPad was already being used in 65 percent of Fortune 100 companies. That was four months ago and the iPad has grown since then, so we can only imagine where that number is now.

This strategy allowed Apple to do two things. If it came out with the iPad and pushed the gaming capabilities of the device, the business world would have looked at it as a toy. That would have certainly meant slower adoption. It also allowed them to work on some consumer software, two of which we saw yesterday.

In addition to the iPad 2, Jobs also unveiled iMovie and GarageBand for the iPad. This is what people want to know about—what can I do with the iPad that’s exciting and new.

Obviously, creating movies and being able to edit and share them with friends and family is a very popular thing to do these days. iMovie makes that easy.

Creating music, whether a novice or pro is also a cool thing to do. GarageBand is a great app to get that done and you can move your projects to your Mac and continue working on them.

It’s not just about the hardware. Apple delivers the whole experience that nobody else can. Jobs said yesterday that there are 65,000 apps on its App Store specifically designed for the iPad. That’s a lot of things you can do.

If you think Apple’s competitors are jumping for joy because the iPad 2 isn’t revolutionary, I believe you are wrong. I think they’re scared. Yesterday, they figured out Apple’s strategy too, but a little too late.

Surface Encounters

Surface Encounters

What’s affecting me, my clients and other small-business owners this week.

THE QUAKE IN JAPAN, A GOOFBALL IN VENEZUELA Japanese earthquake damage is estimated at $310 billion and could be the costliest natural disaster ever. Japanese exports suffer. Kate Rogers of Fox revisits how to protect your business from catastrophe. “Small-business owners can determine if they should be seeking disaster coverage by weighing their investment in the business itself, among other factors. If the business is the sole form of income, the risk is much greater than if it is a hobby or part-time project.” Elsewhere around the world, the war industry gets a boost in Libya. And Hugo Chávez of Venezuela says capitalism may have destroyed life on Mars.

REAL ESTATE FALLS, JOBS RISE Mark Thoma says commodity prices are increasing because of world demand. A small-business owner in Georgia is trying not to pass on the cost of high gas prices. Detroit’s population declines 25 percent. Existing-home sales fall to the lowest on record. Meredith Whitney, an investment adviser, says, “Unless the government comes out with a 50-year mortgage, this market is in trouble longer term.” Gallup’s job-creation index is the highest since September 2008. Durable goods orders fall.

ANNE HATHAWAY AND WARREN BUFFETT The Fed earns $79 billion and predicts that the recovery is taking hold. Nonetheless, one of its officials warns that the United States is approaching insolvency. Meanwhile, Warren E. Buffett predicts growth but some think his company’s stock is buoyed by Anne Hathaway. Household balances sheets continue to improve. Scott Grannis says “the Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey came in very strong. It hasn’t been this strong since the economic boom times of the early 1980s. It’s very difficult to ignore the mounting evidence of a strong economic recovery.” Architect billings increased slightly in February.

DEFICIT THRILLS The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget is thrilled to see 64 senators calling for comprehensive deficit reduction. But Stan Collender, a budget expert, isn’t thrilled at all: “Does a letter that is so vanilla that it could have been written at any time over the past 40 years really indicate any movement on the current budget debate?” James Pethokoukis of Reuters says he thinks President Obama’s budget is wildly dangerous.

A NEW DEFINITION OF SMALL BUSINESS Timothy F. Geithner says that American small businesses need greater access to capital to spur innovation. The Small Business Administration, facing even more cuts, is for the first time in more than 25  years proposing to change the way it defines small businesses. JPMorgan Chase says it will cease its debit card rewards program because of new legislation that would restrict fees. Missouri gets $27 million in incentives for small-business growth. The Small Business Savings Account Act makes its way through Congress.

TAKING CREDIT The health care legislation celebrates its first anniversary and Ezra Klein defends it by saying, “Is it a perfect piece of legislation? Not even close. Will everything work as expected? Almost certainly not. But for all its flaws, it’s a good law. And it’s worth trying.” Many small businesses are still not taking advantage of the health care tax credit.

TECHNOLOGY UPGRADES A Google project manager pitches cloud computing: “Web-based software is much less costly for buyers than traditional software, and programmers can be so much more innovative, that it’s worthwhile for an entrepreneur to say, O.K., let’s start from scratch.” Paul Mah, an information technology expert, gives us eight reasons to upgrade to Internet Explorer 9. Firefox 4 is released. Microsoft jumps to second in video search and introduces a new PC tool for small business. Netflix suffers an outage. BlackBerry’s tablet is scheduled to arrive in April. AT&T buys T-Mobile but not for the reason you think. And boy. has computer technology come a long way in 10 years.

THE GROWING APPS MARKET Information Week reports that 38 percent of small- and medium-size businesses depend on mobile apps. Amazon introduces an Android app store, and Apple is not pleased. Minda Zetlin of Inc. asks if you should make a tablet app for your business: “The answer is likely a yes if one, your product or service is one where having tablet access could benefit customers; and two, your customers are the type who use tablets.” Just in time: a flood of royal wedding apps.

SPEAKING OF THE BIG WEDDING General Electric releases a much-needed William and Kate refrigerator. Jack Daniels introduces a new product — perhaps to help us forget the royal wedding. Danny Wong gives us three winning ideas to consider. A dating site features a new single man every day. Score plans an e-business learning Web site for small business. Small Business Television is rebranding itself and has introduced a new Web site. Small Business Opportunities magazine is doing the same. A small business introduces its first electric car. Sales of e-books have doubled. The group buying industry is projected to grow to $2.7 billion this year.

TWITTER’S TAX BREAKS Casey Hibbard explains how one company used social media to make $300,000 in a weekend. Robert Scoble discovers the future of work: “Just when we thought we figured out the new ’social enterprise’ market along comes Convofy.” Twitter shows San Francisco’s businesses how to save a bundle on taxes. A one-legged wrestler shows us how to become a national champ.

IT’S GOOD TO BE GREEN A woman in Canada gets a standing ovation for being green. The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce holds its green marketing event on Wednesday. The Clinton Global Initiative holds its university conference this week with a focus on entrepreneurship and a live webcast.

ADVICE FOR SXSW: HAND OUT PILLOWS The Global Entrepreneurship Congress meets in Shanghai this week. April 2 is International Pillow Fight Day. The South By Southwest conference: as seen from a bunch of social media video bloggers — which is yet another reason I won’t attend next year. American Airlines offers a big promo for California business travelers. John Jantsch wants to know the worst business advice you ever received. A third-base coach gives life advice.

SEARCHING FOR HELP WITH SEARCH An American Express survey finds that more than half of small-business owners say they need help with search-engine marketing. A video about why it’s not important to go viral goes viral. Dharmesh Shah shares a few low-cost advertising ideas for start-ups and cautions readers to “think of advertising not as a long-term traffic strategy but as a testing tool to improve your Web site and find out more about your ideal visitor.” An advertising blog discusses how to develop a relationship with the media. Lucy Thornton comes up with a few good marketing themes for April.

A 100-MILLION-MEMBER NETWORK LinkedIn officially reaches 100 million members. Seems like a good time to read the co-founder’s 10 rules for entrepreneurial success.

TRIED TALKING? Whitson Gordon of Lifehacker gives us his top 10 tricks for working while on the go. Example: “Whether it’s that old, dead iPod or the smartphone you’re already carrying with you, you probably have gigs of unused storage lying around waiting to be filled with portable apps, files and other digital travel necessities.” Melanie Brooks of Workawesome.com explains why she uses a leather day planner instead of a smartphone. Greg Schinkel warns against hiding behind our keyboards: “Before you hit ‘reply to all’ and send back a zinger to someone who maligned you, stop and go talk to the person.”

THIS WEEK’S AWARDS

BEST WAY TO GET YOUR CUSTOMERS TO LOVE YOU Ben Yoskovitz talks about the benefits of delighting your customers: “The rewards are immense. Loyal, rabid fans tweet shamelessly about how incredible you are, how valuable your Web application is and how successful your start-up will be.”

BEST WAY TO MARKET WITHOUT A BUDGET Shisha Dublin-Green explains how to market without a marketing budget: “Form an alliance: if you have a hair salon that’s mostly frequented by women with young children and elderly women, you can offer a service whereby you arrange to do their grocery shopping whilst they’re in the salon. You may decide to form an alliance with a local reputable grocer or delivery service to provide this for your customers. This could also be a way to reach out to new customers via your local grocer.”

BEST ADVICE FOR BOOTSTRAPPERS The Smart Bear says that the things money cannot buy are still the most valuable things: “Show proof of your ability to master the things money cannot buy — your ability to learn, change and improve.”

THIS WEEK’S QUESTION: How do you bring in customers without spending a lot? We do free webinars every month.

Gene Marks owns the Marks Group PC, a Bala Cynwyd, Pa., consulting firm that helps clients with customer relationship management. You can follow him on Twitter.

What’s affecting me, my clients and other small-business owners this week.

THE QUAKE IN JAPAN, A GOOFBALL IN VENEZUELA Japanese earthquake damage is estimated at $310 billion and could be the costliest natural disaster ever. Japanese exports suffer. Kate Rogers of Fox revisits how to protect your business from catastrophe. “Small-business owners can determine if they should be seeking disaster coverage by weighing their investment in the business itself, among other factors. If the business is the sole form of income, the risk is much greater than if it is a hobby or part-time project.” Elsewhere around the world, the war industry gets a boost in Libya. And Hugo Chávez of Venezuela says capitalism may have destroyed life on Mars.

REAL ESTATE FALLS, JOBS RISE Mark Thoma says commodity prices are increasing because of world demand. A small-business owner in Georgia is trying not to pass on the cost of high gas prices. Detroit’s population declines 25 percent. Existing-home sales fall to the lowest on record. Meredith Whitney, an investment adviser, says, “Unless the government comes out with a 50-year mortgage, this market is in trouble longer term.” Gallup’s job-creation index is the highest since September 2008. Durable goods orders fall.

ANNE HATHAWAY AND WARREN BUFFETT The Fed earns $79 billion and predicts that the recovery is taking hold. Nonetheless, one of its officials warns that the United States is approaching insolvency. Meanwhile, Warren E. Buffett predicts growth but some think his company’s stock is buoyed by Anne Hathaway. Household balances sheets continue to improve. Scott Grannis says “the Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey came in very strong. It hasn’t been this strong since the economic boom times of the early 1980s. It’s very difficult to ignore the mounting evidence of a strong economic recovery.” Architect billings increased slightly in February.

DEFICIT THRILLS The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget is thrilled to see 64 senators calling for comprehensive deficit reduction. But Stan Collender, a budget expert, isn’t thrilled at all: “Does a letter that is so vanilla that it could have been written at any time over the past 40 years really indicate any movement on the current budget debate?” James Pethokoukis of Reuters says he thinks President Obama’s budget is wildly dangerous.

A NEW DEFINITION OF SMALL BUSINESS Timothy F. Geithner says that American small businesses need greater access to capital to spur innovation. The Small Business Administration, facing even more cuts, is for the first time in more than 25  years proposing to change the way it defines small businesses. JPMorgan Chase says it will cease its debit card rewards program because of new legislation that would restrict fees. Missouri gets $27 million in incentives for small-business growth. The Small Business Savings Account Act makes its way through Congress.

TAKING CREDIT The health care legislation celebrates its first anniversary and Ezra Klein defends it by saying, “Is it a perfect piece of legislation? Not even close. Will everything work as expected? Almost certainly not. But for all its flaws, it’s a good law. And it’s worth trying.” Many small businesses are still not taking advantage of the health care tax credit.

TECHNOLOGY UPGRADES A Google project manager pitches cloud computing: “Web-based software is much less costly for buyers than traditional software, and programmers can be so much more innovative, that it’s worthwhile for an entrepreneur to say, O.K., let’s start from scratch.” Paul Mah, an information technology expert, gives us eight reasons to upgrade to Internet Explorer 9. Firefox 4 is released. Microsoft jumps to second in video search and introduces a new PC tool for small business. Netflix suffers an outage. BlackBerry’s tablet is scheduled to arrive in April. AT&T buys T-Mobile but not for the reason you think. And boy. has computer technology come a long way in 10 years.

THE GROWING APPS MARKET Information Week reports that 38 percent of small- and medium-size businesses depend on mobile apps. Amazon introduces an Android app store, and Apple is not pleased. Minda Zetlin of Inc. asks if you should make a tablet app for your business: “The answer is likely a yes if one, your product or service is one where having tablet access could benefit customers; and two, your customers are the type who use tablets.” Just in time: a flood of royal wedding apps.

SPEAKING OF THE BIG WEDDING General Electric releases a much-needed William and Kate refrigerator. Jack Daniels introduces a new product — perhaps to help us forget the royal wedding. Danny Wong gives us three winning ideas to consider. A dating site features a new single man every day. Score plans an e-business learning Web site for small business. Small Business Television is rebranding itself and has introduced a new Web site. Small Business Opportunities magazine is doing the same. A small business introduces its first electric car. Sales of e-books have doubled. The group buying industry is projected to grow to $2.7 billion this year.

TWITTER’S TAX BREAKS Casey Hibbard explains how one company used social media to make $300,000 in a weekend. Robert Scoble discovers the future of work: “Just when we thought we figured out the new ’social enterprise’ market along comes Convofy.” Twitter shows San Francisco’s businesses how to save a bundle on taxes. A one-legged wrestler shows us how to become a national champ.

IT’S GOOD TO BE GREEN A woman in Canada gets a standing ovation for being green. The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce holds its green marketing event on Wednesday. The Clinton Global Initiative holds its university conference this week with a focus on entrepreneurship and a live webcast.

ADVICE FOR SXSW: HAND OUT PILLOWS The Global Entrepreneurship Congress meets in Shanghai this week. April 2 is International Pillow Fight Day. The South By Southwest conference: as seen from a bunch of social media video bloggers — which is yet another reason I won’t attend next year. American Airlines offers a big promo for California business travelers. John Jantsch wants to know the worst business advice you ever received. A third-base coach gives life advice.

SEARCHING FOR HELP WITH SEARCH An American Express survey finds that more than half of small-business owners say they need help with search-engine marketing. A video about why it’s not important to go viral goes viral. Dharmesh Shah shares a few low-cost advertising ideas for start-ups and cautions readers to “think of advertising not as a long-term traffic strategy but as a testing tool to improve your Web site and find out more about your ideal visitor.” An advertising blog discusses how to develop a relationship with the media. Lucy Thornton comes up with a few good marketing themes for April.

A 100-MILLION-MEMBER NETWORK LinkedIn officially reaches 100 million members. Seems like a good time to read the co-founder’s 10 rules for entrepreneurial success.

TRIED TALKING? Whitson Gordon of Lifehacker gives us his top 10 tricks for working while on the go. Example: “Whether it’s that old, dead iPod or the smartphone you’re already carrying with you, you probably have gigs of unused storage lying around waiting to be filled with portable apps, files and other digital travel necessities.” Melanie Brooks of Workawesome.com explains why she uses a leather day planner instead of a smartphone. Greg Schinkel warns against hiding behind our keyboards: “Before you hit ‘reply to all’ and send back a zinger to someone who maligned you, stop and go talk to the person.”

THIS WEEK’S AWARDS

BEST WAY TO GET YOUR CUSTOMERS TO LOVE YOU Ben Yoskovitz talks about the benefits of delighting your customers: “The rewards are immense. Loyal, rabid fans tweet shamelessly about how incredible you are, how valuable your Web application is and how successful your start-up will be.”

BEST WAY TO MARKET WITHOUT A BUDGET Shisha Dublin-Green explains how to market without a marketing budget: “Form an alliance: if you have a hair salon that’s mostly frequented by women with young children and elderly women, you can offer a service whereby you arrange to do their grocery shopping whilst they’re in the salon. You may decide to form an alliance with a local reputable grocer or delivery service to provide this for your customers. This could also be a way to reach out to new customers via your local grocer.”

BEST ADVICE FOR BOOTSTRAPPERS The Smart Bear says that the things money cannot buy are still the most valuable things: “Show proof of your ability to master the things money cannot buy — your ability to learn, change and improve.”

THIS WEEK’S QUESTION: How do you bring in customers without spending a lot? We do free webinars every month.

Gene Marks owns the Marks Group PC, a Bala Cynwyd, Pa., consulting firm that helps clients with customer relationship management. You can follow him on Twitter.

Surface Encounters

FOCUS: Courageous workers at troubled nuclear plant endure tough <b>...</b>

Each of the employees of Tokyo Electric Power Co. and other workers engaged in containing damage at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is given 30 survival food crackers and a 180 milliliter pack of vegetable juice for ...

Surface Encounters

Surface Encounters

Surface Encounters

Fox <b>News</b> Bureau Chief: I Thought It Was &#39;Far-Fetched&#39; When I <b>...</b>

In 2009, current Fox News DC Bureau Chief Bill Sammon admitted that he didn't really believe charges that Obama was a "socialist" when he encouraged Fox News staff to use the term. But, he claims, he soon realized it was true.

Surface Encounters

Making Money on Ebay

I wouldn't advice anyone to start a business on E-bay unless you sell something no one else sells. E-bay put my wife out of business! A few years back my wife had about $12000.00 closing and after that she got suspended. We got a call from somebody saying your going to get kicked off of E-bay and started laughing. We thought it was a prank but right after that my wife gets suspended. It turned out somebdoy broke into her account and started shield bidding. She called E-bay and the guy said don't say I said this but I believe this is an inside job. I was told people who work at E-Bay can sell on E-bay. So if you are taking business away from somebody you know what happens. People bidding with zero feedback was another problem. People who sell on E-bay would make up fake names and fake bid on your item you are selling to discourage buyers from buying your item in hopes they will bid on their same item. This happened everyday and E-bay did nothing to stop this nonsense. Another time a lady bought 8 items and left 8 bad feedbacks so my wife got suspended. She said she never received her tops. She calls E-bay and says ask the lady to show that she paid for the items. E-bay says that is our problem. I could go on and on. E-bay is a nightmare!

For more than a decade now, PayPal has reigned king of online payments. Just last quarter alone, their revenue was nearly a billion dollars ($971 million according to VentureBeat). It was a good move for eBay to gobble them up years ago, because today, an estimated 40% of the company’s revenue comes from the PayPal unit. In a press release last month, eBay stated that by 2013 they expect PayPal’s annual revenue to be in the ballpark of $6 to 7 billion. Will that still happen now that Visa has entered the playing field?

Visa’s new PayPal-like service
On March 16th, Visa issued this press release about their new service, which will allow Visa debit and credit cardholders to send money to each other. Visa has offered personal payments outside the United States but this is the first time such service will be available domestically.

“Bank customers of participating financial institutions will have the option to select a Visa account as the destination for funds when making a personal payment. By simply entering the recipient's 16-digit Visa account, email address or mobile phone number, consumers can send funds directly from their bank account to a recipient's Visa account.”

The press release didn’t specify an exact date this feature would be rolled out, other than saying it will be “soon.” Two other companies – CashEdge and Fiserv – have partnered with Visa to offer this service.

Is Visa the first formidable opponent for PayPal?
Obviously, this will not be the first or last competitor. A number of similar services have sprung up over the years, without taking root like PayPal has. Google Checkout was supposed to be "the PayPal killer" when it launched in 2006, but that expectation never materialized. So if the Goliath Google can’t beat PayPal, why would Visa have a fighting chance? Here are 3 things to consider:

Customer Base: At the end of last year PayPal reportedly had 94.4 million registered users – no small feat to accomplish and their first-mover advantage surely contributed to that success. Visa, on the other hand, may be new to personal payments here in the U.S. but they already have a massive customer base they can tap: 269 million credit cards and 397 million debit cards, as of September 30, 2010 (Source: Visa).

Processing Costs: Due to their sheer size, one can assume that the credit card processing fees incurred by PayPal must be bargain basement, comparable to a Wal-Mart or McDonald's. Regardless, it’s still a big expense. That’s why when a credit card is selected as the funding source, they direct you to a page to try and persuade you to use a checking account instead (where you will find an eye-catching orange button for it, which some allege is visually confusing). By cutting out the middle man, Visa might have a real advantage here when it comes to costs.

Card Benefits: If you’re like me, you prefer card payments. I love to exploit my cash back credit card rewards whenever I get the chance. Of course you can earn cash back on your credit card when sending PayPal payments, but the 2.9% fee incurred on the other end can be a deterrent (if the recipient doesn’t want to pay the fees, or you don’t want them to). Visa hasn’t stated whether or not these payments will qualify for rewards, but if they do and the fees are lower, that would be attractive to both parties.

Another benefit [some] credit cards offer is top notch customer service and dispute resolution. I admit, it does sound like PayPal’s dispute resolution has improved drastically over the years, but I think many would agree it still won’t hold a candle to the service you get with something like a Chase Sapphire or other Visa Signature card (disclosure: my website markets the Chase Sapphire card). The benefit of dealing directly with your credit card company’s customer service might be considered a selling point.

Conclusion?
It’s too early to tell if Visa’s personal payment feature will be a hit or miss. Both companies have their strengths and weaknesses. PayPal definitely knows their stuff when it comes to online payments, however my PayPal credit card review demonstrates their ineptness in the card arena. It will be interesting to see whether Visa’s idea fizzles or sizzles.

Disclosure: My company's website, CreditCardForum.com, advertises credit cards. Therefore I have direct and/or indirect financial ties to some credit cards. Additionally, a close family member of mine owns a small amount of Visa stock, which I had advised them to buy several months ago.

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From Japan to Libya, disasters and political upheavel around the globe are wreaking havoc on the already-skeletal budgets of cable and broadcast news organizations. "We've already had a year's worth of breaking news coverage, ...

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Digital News Report – Although the Obama campaign produced a birth certificate in the run-up to the last general election, there are still questions about President Obama's birthplace. ...

Small Business <b>News</b>: Creative Marketing Secrets

Marketing for your small business can be part art/part science. But however you would describe it, it is the key to both getting new customers and keeping the.

Search engine optimization Vancouver For any Better Marketing Solution

 

When you begin your personal website there are lots of ways you will have to market it and something of the best ways is to use Search engine optimization Vancouver if you happen to be in that area. The SEO or seo services will be the top method of getting good visitors to your website and therefore making more sales.

 

Now, you should know that you won't use SEO service if you are not an online business - but then again, if you do not have an online presence if you are an offline business, then you will not make it very far.

 

It is a well known proven fact that if you are planning to really make it in the offline world you must have an online business. This is something which all people are learning the hard way. One thing that you ought to also know is that it is not as easy as just setting up the web site and leaving it to do its things.

 

You can do this in most sorts of ways, however these companies usually take advantage of multiple techniques to create the perfect marketing technique online. You will be able to employ them to write articles for you personally, post on forums and blogs, create meta data and meta descriptions, cleanup the code, add alt tags to the images plus much more.

 

It is very important that you do this because otherwise the organization you have worked so difficult for could wind up losing all the money. If you have a website you want to produce, then you will also employ the services of an SEO company, which means search engine optimization company. What the corporation does is actually go ahead and take best areas of your site, check the code, create keywords and write various articles and documents to ensure your site is placed near the the surface of the list for the major search engines.

By doing this the Search engine optimization company cannot only increase your traffic, but additionally ensure that your website is fully optimized for the internet search engine spiders that will be introduced to it. These spiders are used to analyze your website and place it in certain positions determined on certain keywords.

 

If you wish to use the Search engine optimization Vancouver then all you've got to complete is find the top companies. It's through these how the SEO gets done effectively and efficiently. Because of so many SEO companies to select from you have to be sure that the one you're going for is reliable. You ought to be in a position to request a failure of what you want, and also the company also needs to have the ability to let you know know long they have been operating for. This can narrow down the list to reveal the very best ones.

 

Search engine optimization Provided by Different Vancouver Web Companies

The Vancouver SEO company services are extremely good for business growth as they provide quality services. If you are planning to produce a website for the online business, then you have arrived at right article as I will be explaining below how SEO Vancouver company services can improve your website ranking and make it popular.

Before that, you should know what Seo is. It's not that complicated and I'm sure you're going to get a grasp from it after reading my article. The main goal of SEO is to get increased traffic to your website and audience. It's a good decision to select a Vancouver SEO company that are experts in this sort of work, so that your website can be listed in search engines like google.

There is no reason for you having a website without any website ranking at all while you won't get any business and profits to outlive. It's a very tough atmosphere out there as there are so many internet business people exactly like you, who want their share of pie. You have to be aware of the fact that nearly 85% of internet traffic could be got from internet websites.

When a user types in a keyword or keywords for which he/she wants to know in different sites, these use crawlers to get websites using the relevant content and index them according to algorithms. You don't have to be worried about the algorithms which these websites use as that is not important.

To appear within the first page of the google listing, you will have to hire professionals and experts who can do the needful to maintain your site one of the good books in these websites. These professionals can optimize your site content to ensure that your site gets increased traffic.

When the traffic gets high, it's a sign that you are getting a service that will get you more revenues. SEO Vancouver company do the following to create your site appear within the first page of search engine results.

Use keywords that are popularly utilized on search engines like google on your website content.
Possess a website design for your website which is simple because top sites are allergic to flash and weird designs.
Submit your site to directories.
Submit your site to directory websites.
Postings on blogs and forums with back links to your websites. This really is regarded as an effective method of getting more traffic to your website as many internet users use blogs and forums.

SEO Vancouver company also perform site diagnostics that is an important part in online optimization as research and analysis on finding keywords is the way to begin a SEO campaign. So, be sure you select the right SEO Vancouver service company.

Are you searching for more info regarding SEO Vancouver? Visit http://www.seo4vancouver.com/seo-services.asp today!

 

What to anticipate When Hiring a Roofers

When the time comes to correct or replace your homes roof, it can be a challenging job to locate someone who is competent to do the job. There are many roofers out there, but the types who'll do a congrats for a reasonable price are not often simple to find. If you're in the market for the contractor, make use of the ideas beneath with regard to interviewing and hiring the right one.

Interview as well as Discussion

The majority of roofing contractors offer free consultation services. This is especially important, since it gives them an opportunity to evaluate exactly what your roof requirements, and it gives you a chance to assess them. As with all of companies, trust your instincts concerning the individuals you let up onto your roof. No matter exactly how good the contractor's status or recommendation, he should start by showing you with a business card. If a contractor occurs searching and speaking in an unprofessional method, most likely the task he's going to do may also be unprofessional. This isn't to say that you should anticipate companies to reach in suits. They will be climbing on your roofing, so most will be dressed in denim jeans as well as function boots or even athletic shoes. If the actual service provider seems to be interested in talking on their cell phone while on your roof than he's in analyzing your own roof's requirements, that may be another sign that he's not really the one to do the job. For your lawful safety, make sure that the actual service provider has adequate legal responsibility insurance.

Roof Assessment

Expect the contractor will be rising in your roofing. In fact, any kind of service provider who not want to go up in your roofing to judge the problem should be instantly discounted. Those who're serious about their work will possibly create a drawing of your roof's surface area and mark trouble spots onto it as they go through their own assessment, or even they will consider pictures or video clip from the surface while they are up there. This is an extremely important action, because it allows you to see exactly what the problems are as well as understand how they will be fixed.

Estimate

The next phase would be the written estimate. The contractor will take away his calculator and are available track of a written estimate. Some contractors will go to their truck or even truck as well as write down the actual suggestion, while others may crunch the amounts to do the job prior to you. Once you're because of the proposal, ensure that you comprehend exactly which items will be utilized, just how long the job will take and when you will find any extra or even concealed expenses that could occur throughout the repair of the roof. The service provider should be able to solution many of these questions effortlessly and forewarn you of any additional costs that might be sustained should the roof's ethics end up being broken within.

Once you have received several written estimates from roofers, assess exactly what each organization or service provider would like to offer you for that price. Do not always low cost the highest bet, because sometimes the highest bid will actually function as the contractor who does the task properly. Also, be wary associated with prices for bids which are not nearly as expensive other people. They might be using substandard items or perhaps be untruthful about the possibility of concealed expenses. Most importantly, trust your instincts and go with the actual contractor who makes you feel quite comfy about handing over your money.

 

Seven Uyghurs Sentenced to Death

2011-03-23

Critics of the sentences say China has politicized the robberies as acts of terrorism.

 

AFP

A Uyghur man walks past armed Chinese security forces in Urumqi, July 17, 2009.

Chinese authorities in the northwestern region of Xinjiang have ordered the executions of seven ethnic minority Uyghur men convicted of "violent" crimes, official media said on Wednesday.

 

The death sentences were handed down by the Supreme People's Court in recent days, according to state media in the regional capital, Urumqi.

 

The men were accused in connection with three separate attacks late last year in the Silk Road city of Kashgar, according to the news website Urumqi Online.

 

According to another website, the Xinjiang-based Tianshan news site, Aimaiti Tuheti, Yiming Dawuti, and unnamed "others" killed a security guard at a pedestrian mall as part of a failed Aug. 7 robbery attempt.

 

In a separate incident on Oct. 12, it said, Nuermaimaiti Aobulikasimu and 11 others broke into a house, bound and killed the couple living in it, and took their possessions.

 

It said the group also broke into the homes of two brothers, robbed them, and killed six people in a Nov. 11 attack in Kashgar.

 

The report gave no information about the victims or the schedule for the executions.

 

Three of the men were sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve, a sentence that is normally commuted to life imprisonment in China's judicial system.

 

They were convicted of deliberate homicide and armed robbery by the Kashgar Intermediate People's Court in the first instance.

 

'Strike hard' campaign

 

A Han Chinese resident of Urumqi surnamed Yang said a reference to "terrorism" in official news reports on the case showed that it was being politicized by the authorities, who have launched a series of "strike hard" campaigns in Xinjiang following deadly ethnic violence in July 2009.

 

"There is an implied political meaning; that they were somehow engaged in separatist activities or ethnic divisions," said Yang.

 

Exile Uyghur groups said the trials had been conducted behind closed doors, with scant opportunity for public scrutiny.

 

"The entire process against these men, from the trial through to the judgment, was opaque," said Dilxat Raxit, spokesman for the Munich-based World Uyghur Congress.

 

"There was also very little reasonable evidence to convict them on a legal basis, because all the evidence came from one side of the case," he said.

 

"We strongly condemn the Chinese government for continuing to pursue their policies of ethnic division," said Raxit.

 

"We are also strongly opposed to the death penalty in this case."

 

Earlier cases

 

Last month, the Supreme Court sentenced four Uyghurs to death for alleged involvement in an Aug. 19 bomb attack in Xinjiang’s western Aksu city.

 

The World Uyghur Congress pointed to concerns over lack of transparency in those cases too.

 

The Aksu blast left eight people dead, including two of the bombers, and 15 wounded after a man riding a three-wheeled vehicle threw explosives at a group of uniformed patrolmen. Four Uyghurs were arrested shortly after the attack.

 

State media characterized the cases as acts of terrorism and unrelated to longstanding ethnic tensions between Uyghurs and Han Chinese in the region.

 

Exiled Uyghur dissident Rebiya Kadeer has warned that attacks like those in Aksu will continue to occur until Beijing addresses the underlying source of tension in the region.

 

Millions of Uyghurs—a distinct, Turkic minority who are predominantly Muslim—populate Central Asia and Xinjiang.

 

Uyghurs say they have long suffered ethnic discrimination, oppressive religious controls, and continued poverty and joblessness despite China's ambitious plans to develop its vast northwestern frontier.

 

Those frustrations erupted in July 2009 in deadly riots that left nearly 200 people dead, by the Chinese government's tally.

 

At least 26 people, mostly Uyghurs, were sentenced to death in the aftermath of the riots, many of whom have been executed, according to state media.

 

China is believed to execute more people each year than the rest of the world’s countries combined, although the government does not publish official figures.

 

Rights groups say Beijing may execute as many as several thousand prisoners annually.

 

Chinese authorities blame Uyghur separatists for a series of deadly attacks in recent years and accuse one group in particular of maintaining ties to the al-Qaeda terrorist network.

 

New training scheme

 

China on Wednesday also announced a training scheme which places ethnic minority graduates from Xinjiang in work elsewhere in China.

 

Governments of the destination cities will spend 450 million yuan (U.S.$ 69 million) for the program, while Xinjiang will spend 400 million yuan (U.S.$ 61 million), the official Xinhua news agency reported.

 

The program targets some 60,000 jobless college graduates in Xinjiang, around 80 percent of whom are from ethnic minorities, and 60 percent of whom are women.

 

However, some commentators see the move as an attempt to assimilate non-Han Chinese into mainstream Chinese culture.

 

"From the point of view of ethnic minorities, the graduate work scheme is really taking the cream of youth from the minorities and using them to 'further cultural development,'" wrote one ethnic minority user on a popular microblogging service.

 

"In fact, the culture that is being advanced is Han culture, and this group of young people will have been totally brainwashed," the microblog update said.

 

An Urumqi resident surnamed Li agreed.

 

"They have run senior high school schemes like this before during the past few years," he said.

 

"Whether it's high-schoolers or graduate training programs, these are measures that are aimed at thought control and brainwashing, and the 'Partification' of their education," he said.

 

Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.

Copyright © 1998-2011 Radio Free Asia. All rights reserved.

 

Wikileaks and also the Uyghurs

through henry on Dec 20, 2010
Henryk Szadziewski, Supervisor, Uyghur Human Rights Project

If it had been actually in doubt, information obtained through the whistleblower website, Wikileaks, offers verified Chinese federal government fears more than it's continued charge of the region it phone calls Xinjiang, which is also known as Eastern Turkestan. The actual leaked out wires through U.S. diplomats show the extent to which Chinese government bodies make an effort to persuade government authorities worldwide to consider its position on problems impacting Uyghurs. The actual cables additionally show the U . s . States' issues as well as views regarding the ongoing repressive steps in the region.

The majority of lighting associated with Chinese government stress would be the wires pointing to Chinese anger, or even the specter of Chinese language ire, within the release of Uyghur detainees within Guantánamo to third nations. A December 29, 2008 cable television applies exactly how Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Jieyi met with the U.Utes. Ambassador in order to China in order to voice Beijing's strong opposition of launch to any kind of country other than China, which if the U.Utes. do certainly accede to this request it would "avoid harm to bilateral relations and to co-operation ‘in important areas'". Furthermore, a Feb '09 cable explains the way the Chinese language Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan, Zhang Yannian, regarded the actual feasible release of Uyghur Guantánamo detainees because "an unfavorable behave towards us" along with a "slap in the face". The Ough.Utes. government stood firm within not really releasing the detainees in order to The far east illustrates the degree from the politicized character from the Chinese judicial program. Legitimate concerns more than terrorism tend to be easy to understand, however in the actual U.S. government's view the detainees might most likely face torture and execution if they came back in order to The far east

Chinese language government pressure regarding the Uyghur Guantánamo detainees wasn't only applied to the U.Utes. government, but also to New Zealand and a number of Western government authorities which were thinking about resettlement. Albania, Indonesia as well as Finland, in addition to Eu member states all have the symptoms of borne the impact associated with Chinese government disappointment. Regarding Germany, that was at first willing to think about 2 Uyghurs upon purely humanitarian grounds, Uyghur Guantánamo cases had been much less preferable to additional detainees due to the unwanted effects taking Uyghurs would have upon relations with The far east. A May 8, 2009 cable television applies how "German Ambassador Michael Schaefer documented which Indonesia had informed The far east of the U.Utes. ask for to accept a few Uighur detainees kept from Guantánamo coupled with already been subsequently warned through China associated with ‘a large load upon bilateral relations' if Indonesia had been to accept any detainees".

The diplomatic cables additionally talk about the unrest within Urumchi, the actual regional capital, in This summer '09. The This summer 13, 2009 cable television talking about bulk occurrences within China states:

"Ethnic riots such as those in Xinjiang This summer 5-7 and in Tibet in March associated with 08 vary substantially within origin and nature from mass incidents, XXXXXXXXXXXX stressed to PolOff [Political Officer] on XXXXXXXXXXXX. Each existing severe problems for the actual Party, XXXXXXXXXXXX stated, but the Celebration leadership wouldn't wait to open fire on Uighurs or even Tibetans if they deemed it essential to restore order. Bulk occurrences present another kind of risk, he explained, since the leadership is actually ‘afraid' to fireplace on Han rioters with regard to fear of causing massive open public outrage that will change from the Party."

This can be a relaxing viewpoint, particularly when one views the evidence presented in two reports released this season through the Uyghur Human Rights Task (UHRP) and Amnesty Worldwide which fine detail eyewitness company accounts from the use of lethal live fireplace towards Uyghur protestors within July 2009. Additionally, the observation which fireplace would not be used towards Han Chinese language protestors has resonances for that various approach used by Chinese protection causes within Urumchi to Han Chinese protests within September '09. Throughout individuals protests, after that Party Assistant, Wang Lequan, tackled demonstrators, who had demanded that he inform them about federal government responses in order to security issues. An identical ask for to satisfy using the Celebration Assistant through Uyghur protesters within July was not met.

The actual broader consequences of the unrest also saw a brief discussion on the effect it would possess upon Iran-China relationships, as well as on relationships along with Australia following World Uyghur Our elected representatives Leader, Ms. Rebiya Kadeer, talked in the National Press Club in Canberra in August 2009. In the latter situation, china federal government "privately warn[ed] a significant Australian financial institution that vendors the nation's Press Club to use its impact to block a Kadeer speech there".

The actual U . s . States' issues about the scenario in the Uyghur region also come via in the wires. Inside a dialogue on policy direction within Tibet, U.Utes. officials explain that it'll end up being impossible for Chinese language frontrunners to adopt a softer line "if they appear like doing so below worldwide pressure". The actual cable out dated April Sixteen, 2008, 30 days after the episode of unrest within Tibetan regions, also relayed the actual observation "that household stability continues to be leadership's main concern above all else, which means there will ‘almost surely' end up being no relaxation of the current hard collection on Tibet or in locations like Xinjiang." The info included in the cable television also storage sheds gentle about the extreme level of sensitivity with which the Chinese government views territorial ethics, and the possible drip more than associated with unrest through Tibet.

The prospect associated with methods to tensions within Tibet and Xinjiang as a result of municipal society are discussed inside a February Twenty-four, 2008 cable television. Whilst suggesting which China's financial achievement will increase its resistance to democratic change, the cable additionally discusses how Chinese language frontrunners see the usefulness of "a limited growth of municipal society, such as improvements within the guideline associated with law along with a more powerful role with regard to authorized beliefs, NGOs, charities along with other stars within areas which bring about sociable stability and don't challenge Communist Celebration guideline." This can be a significant change in considering, that has seen Ough.Utes. authorities promote the notion that Chinese language economic improvement, as well as financial relations along with The far east brings in regards to a steadily democratic society; however, more belief appears to be put into a grassroots motion compared to one that starts from the best quantity of a Chinese language federal government. Nonetheless, the actual cable television proves that "[i]n places for example Tibet and Xinjiang, driving a car associated with separatism leads to tight restrictions about the development of civil culture." This approach can be regarded as counter-productive through the official, that shows that the U.Utes. government "should continue to express...serious concerns over Beijing's individual rights report as well as appeal to China's growing consciousness which greater regard for human privileges, religious freedom and also the guideline associated with regulation will serve to promote the improvement and social stability which China looks for in addition to to enhance China's worldwide image." Such a technique might take substantial diplomatic skills thinking about "China's paranoid concern that the Usa privately promotes routine alter as well as ‘separatists' in Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang".

The wires offer insight into the daily company of diplomacy that's rarely afforded to the general public, which is interesting to note the amount of function done nowadays upon Uyghur problems. The significance of the actual role of the United States like a keep track of associated with Uyghur human privileges problems within private discussions is made obvious, as well as contrasts with its sensible open public stance. Employees from the Uyghur Individual Privileges Task is actually comfortable with the pressure the Chinese government exerts on Uyghur activists; nevertheless, the facts of Chinese federal government stress upon it's alternatives is actually illustrative from the diploma which Chinese language authorities attempt to suppress contradictory narratives. With increased revelations to come through Wikileaks, concerns more than Uyghurs may not get the headlines, but the wires possess get rid of new light about the paperwork associated with individual privileges problems within the Uyghur area.

 

Wikileaks and also the Uyghur People

through holly upon Dec 20, This year
Henryk Szadziewski, Manager, Uyghur Human Rights Project

Whether it had been ever in doubt, info obtained through the whistleblower website, Wikileaks, offers confirmed Chinese language federal government worries more than it's continued charge of the location it phone calls Xinjiang, also is known as East Turkestan. The leaked wires through U.Utes. diplomats show the actual degree to which Chinese language authorities make an effort to convince government authorities worldwide to adopt it's position upon issues impacting Uyghurs. The actual cables additionally show the U . s . States' concerns as well as sights concerning the ongoing repressive measures in the region.

Most illuminating of Chinese government pressure are the cables pointing in order to Chinese frustration, or the specter associated with Chinese ire, within the release of Uyghur detainees in Guantánamo to 3rd countries. A December 29, 2008 cable television relates how Chinese Helper International Reverend Liu Jieyi fulfilled with the U.S. Ambassador in order to The far east to voice Beijing's strong competitors of launch in order to any kind of country other than China, which when the U.S. do certainly accede to this request it might "avoid harm to bilateral relationships and also to co-operation ‘in essential areas'". Furthermore, a Feb '09 cable television explains how the Chinese Ambassador in order to Kyrgyzstan, Zhang Yannian, regarded as the actual possible discharge of Uyghur Guantánamo detainees because "an unfriendly behave towards us" and a "slap in the face". The U.S. government was firm within not releasing the detainees in order to China demonstrates the degree from the politicized character of the Chinese judicial program. Genuine concerns over terrorism are understandable, but in the U.S. government's observe the detainees would most likely encounter torture as well as delivery when they returned in order to China

Chinese language government pressure regarding the actual Uyghur Guantánamo detainees was not just applied to the U.S. federal government, but also to New Zealand and a number of European government authorities that were thinking about resettlement. Albania, Germany and Finland, in addition to European Union member says just about all appear to have paid for the brunt of Chinese federal government disappointment. Regarding Indonesia, which was initially willing to consider two Uyghurs on purely relief reasons, Uyghur Guantánamo cases were less better than additional detainees because of the negative effects taking Uyghurs might have on relations with The far east. A May 8, 2009 cable television applies how "German Ambassador Michael Schaefer documented that Indonesia had informed China of the Ough.S. request to simply accept a few Uighur detainees kept at Guantánamo and had already been subsequently warned by China associated with ‘a large load on bilateral relations' if Indonesia had been to simply accept any kind of detainees".

The diplomatic cables additionally talk about the actual unrest within Urumchi, the actual regional capital, in July 2009. A July Thirteen, '09 cable discussing bulk incidents in China states:

"Ethnic riots like those who work in Xinjiang July 5-7 and in Tibet in 03 associated with 2008 vary markedly within origin and nature from bulk incidents, XXXXXXXXXXXX stressed in order to PolOff [Political Officer] on XXXXXXXXXXXX. Both present serious trouble for the actual Party, XXXXXXXXXXXX said, however the Celebration leadership would not hesitate to spread out fire on Uighurs or Tibetans if they deemed it necessary to recover order. Bulk occurrences present a different type of threat, he said, since the leadership is actually ‘afraid' to fireplace upon Han rioters for fear of sparking huge open public outrage that will change against the Celebration."

This can be a chilling opinion, especially when one considers evidence presented by 50 percent reviews launched this season through the Uyghur Individual Privileges Project (UHRP) and Amnesty International which detail eyewitness accounts of the utilization of lethal live fire towards Uyghur protestors in July '09. Additionally, the observation which fire would not be used towards Han Chinese language protestors offers resonances for that various approach taken through Chinese security forces within Urumchi to Han Chinese protests in September 2009. Throughout individuals direct orders, after that Party Assistant, Wang Lequan, addressed demonstrators, that had required he inform them regarding federal government responses to protection concerns. An identical request to satisfy using the Celebration Assistant by Uyghur demonstrators in July was not met.

The wider repercussions from the unrest additionally noticed a short dialogue about the effect it might have on Iran-China relations, as well as on relations along with Australia following Globe Uyghur Congress Leader, Ms. Rebiya Kadeer, talked at the Nationwide Push Membership in Canberra in July 2009. Within the latter situation, china government "privately warn[ed] a significant Australian financial institution that sponsors the nation's Press Club to use it's influence to bar the Kadeer speech there".

The U . s . States' concerns concerning the scenario in the Uyghur region also come through in the cables. Inside a discussion on plan direction within Tibet, U.S. officials clarify that it'll end up being impossible for Chinese frontrunners to adopt a softer line "if they look like doing this below worldwide pressure". The cable dated 04 16, 2008, 30 days following the outbreak of unrest in Tibetan areas, also relayed the actual declaration "that household balance continues to be leadership's top priority most of all, which means there will ‘almost surely' end up being absolutely no rest from the current hard collection upon Tibet or perhaps in locations like Xinjiang." The information contained in the cable television also sheds light about the severe level of sensitivity with which the Chinese federal government sights territorial ethics, and also the possible drip over of unrest from Tibet.

The prospect associated with methods to stress in Tibet and Xinjiang as a result of civil society are discussed in a February 24, 2008 cable. Whilst recommending that China's financial achievement increases it's potential to deal with democratic reform, the actual cable television also talks about how Chinese language leaders see the effectiveness of "a restricted expansion of municipal culture, including improvements in the guideline of regulation along with a stronger role for approved beliefs, NGOs, charities and other stars within places which bring about social stability and do not challenge Communist Party guideline." This can be a notable alternation in considering, which has observed Ough.Utes. authorities market the notion which Chinese economic improvement, as well as economic relations along with China brings in regards to a progressively democratic culture; however, more belief seems to be placed in a grassroots motion than one that begins from the best levels of the Chinese language federal government. Nevertheless, the actual cable television proves which "[i]n areas for example Tibet as well as Xinjiang, the fear associated with separatism leads to tight restrictions about the development of municipal society." This method is viewed as counter-productive through the recognized, who suggests that the actual Ough.S. government "should still express...serious concerns more than Beijing's individual privileges report as well as attract China's developing consciousness that greater regard for human rights, spiritual freedom and also the guideline of law will serve to advertise the development as well as sociable balance which The far east looks for as well as to improve China's international picture." This type of strategy might consider considerable diplomatic skills thinking about "China's paranoid concern the Usa secretly encourages routine change and ‘separatists' in Taiwan, Tibet as well as Xinjiang".

The actual wires offer understanding of the actual every day business of diplomacy that's rarely owned by the general public, which is interesting to note the amount of work carried out nowadays on Uyghur issues. The significance of the actual role of the United States like a keep track of of Uyghur human privileges problems in personal conversations is created clear, and contrasts using its sensible open public position. Employees from the Uyghur Individual Privileges Task is comfortable with the pressure china government exerts upon Uyghur activists; still, the details associated with Chinese government pressure upon its counterparts is illustrative of the degree which Chinese language officials attempt to suppress contrary stories. With increased facts in the future from Wikileaks, issues over Uyghurs might not get the head lines, but the wires have get rid of brand new gentle about the paperwork associated with human privileges conditions within the Uyghur area.

 

Seo And Marketing with articles Will Place You On Page 1

Search engine marketing and article promotion are a couple of the most powerful strategies that can be used in promoting your website and get the revenue and success that you desire for your online business. Both of these everything has been around for a really while already however they still remain to be really effective. In reality, these have helped lots of people free themselves in the traditional methods for money-generating options of society.

In this post, I will be showing the ways on what you are able to properly execute search engine optimization and marketing with articles for the betterment of one's small business website. In addition, I will be also discussing different points you need to look out for if you are using these two website marketing strategies to promote your website and acquire customers. Even though article marketing and Search engine optimization have been in existence for a long time already, you need to know that the trends and choices regarding how they are carried out are continually changing, which explains why you have to remain up to date with these things through the help of Search engine optimisation forum sites to be able to quickly adjust and discover ways to make your strategies more efficient.

In the past article marketing to different websites used to be so simple yet the effects they produce for web sites was powerful. However, everything has changed a great deal today. Nowadays submitting the same article to various websites has stopped being a good idea because search engines have now changed to a huge extent in the manner they rank pages. They will no longer rank contents that are identical like they used to in the past. This really is one of the best samples of changes that occur in internet marketing trends. This change has given birth to wide plethora of methods that web marketers are using today. Nearly all of web marketers now produce articles and distribute them in really popular article submission sites and wait for targeted traffic to come to their pages. This is perhaps that most reliable Search engine optimization strategy that you can use. Aside from being effective, and also this provides positive benefits frequently. One problem with this particular technique is that the caliber of traffic that you will get using this won't be that good if you do not do proper keyword research beforehand and rehearse in-links. You need for attending these two things prior to deciding to submit your posts so that you won't find yourself losing large amounts of targeted prospects. This means that you must practice good levels of diligence if you would like your advertising initiatives to function.

Apart from articles, you can even use blogs, that is another really powerful type of online marketing strategy today since it is highly favored by google and yahoo. On this technique, you are able to choose to create a single blog site that specifically targets your chosen market otherwise you can contribute to other blogs which can be labeled as experts within your niche.

Learn effective Vancouver seo techniques on the Vancouver SEO website.

Roofing Companies Vancouver Washington

There are many things to think about when looking for a roofing contractor. Value, experience, along with referrals are a handful of the things you'll probably be concerned about. Continue reading for even other great ideas.

• Finding a Roofing Contractors

Before searching for a roofing contractor, be sure you have a standard idea of the task that you need to do. By no means do you have to be an expert. If you have a new Roof Document, read it thoroughly to find the information about your current roof. If you do not have a Roofing Certificate, make reference to documents closed during closing to locate houses roof Inspection bed sheet. These paperwork should provide everything you need to know about your roof. Prior to contacting any roofing contractor, you need to have a list of requirements and requirements to help you determine exactly who is acceptable for your roofing project. Be sure to write down each potential roofing contractor's answers and also check these people against one another. If you'll find any inacucuracy, be sure to take note this as well as take this into consideration when making a final decision. There are no straightforward ways to choose a roofing contractor, however , if you take attention to the details provided, your odds of a successful roofer project are usually greatly enhanced.

One of the best means of finding a roofing contractor is by person to person. Try wondering a friend or relative that has had covering work completed, and has been satisfied with the job. Get the identify of the enterprise and their particular contact info. If you have no word of oral cavity referrals, attempt first hunting in the telephone book an internet-based. A large advertisement or expensive website is just not necessarily a sign of the quality of work, but can be a excellent tool regarding measuring just how long and commitment they have placed in their particular profession. Additionally, try obtaining current worksites and appearance at the covering work that may be done or in the process of getting finished. Should you be visually satisfied, ask the property manager for that name of the roofing contractor and also their speak to information.

• Background Research

When looking for the roofing contractors, it really is imperative to initial do your current background research. Acquire the best in the phone directory or on the web is a suitable destination to find a service provider, finding important information on most of these businesses is going to be found in a number of other areas. Initial, check with locations like the Better Business Bureau, city, point out, and state public records, along with local accreditation agencies. Request your roofer if they are a member of any roofing contractor associations. These kinds of precautions can mitigate your own risks. Also ask them what forms of roofing that they specialize in. In addition ask your own roofing contractor about any extended warranties they offer on their own installed rooftops. Find out what precautions they choose to use avoid harm done to other areas of the home by workers. Products such as gutters, house siding, and chimneys are near the coast proximity and so susceptible to accidental damages.

Make certain all of this facts are included in your written contract. Check if you need a covering permit and/or choice from your house owners association ahead of time. These organizations will let you know that's responsible for receiving these allows and permissions. If it is the obligation of the roofer, also have the idea included inside your contract. If it's your duty, get mentioned permits and permissions collated while using estimated roofer project and have it evidently posted or even readily available.

• Licensing and Professional references

Roofing Companies are not forced to be accredited in all says. Contact community licensing agencies that control general development contractors for any list of specifications. Once you have obtained the requirements, build a list of detailed questions to ask your own potential roofer. This simple checklist should instantly help you to weed out the competent from the dodgy roofing installers. Qualified contractors should be able to effortlessly answer questions or even tell you that they have to do more research just before giving any definitive answer.

Even if any roofing contractor features all needed licensing, you should ask to find out pictures involving completed covering jobs along with speak to happy clients. Have a list of questions handy to inquire about recent clientele, such as the character of the career, timeliness, and all round satisfaction. Be sure these are recent clients along with cross reference point if possible. When it comes to commercial roofing, make sure that the actual roofing contractor is bonded. Checking out these references is another additional measure of safety to define the list associated with potential roofing contractors.

Search engine optimization Through Content creation

Article writing could be an extremely powerful form of Seo to your company web site. Quality written articles manage to enhance your websites SERP and add quality for your company website. Writing informative keyword rich articles is crucial in gaining new backlinks in your business website. Articles can and will be written on topics which are unique to your business or industry. The articles can discuss an array of issues and ideas within your industry. Articles offering your reader having a resource are invariably the most popular and many likely types of articles that can result in backlinks to your website.

Focus your posts on the potential readers or customers. Seo articles should address real questions which can be asked by current or best buyers. Each article you're writing for you personally company includes detailed analysis and Seo keywords that will help associate your site using the content within the web site. Focus your posts on up to 3 keywords and do not stray from their website. Consistency is very important when writing Seo articles. In case you are authoring Vancouver Seo make sure your continue to write about information highly relevant to the keyword.

Give every one of your Search engine optimization Articles an engaging Title that will encourage people to see and bookmark your posts. Ideally, the articles you're writing can become as links from other websites which might be comparable to yours. This may help raise the power of every link all of which will aid in increasing your SERP. Make sure you end each article with a keyword anchored link (see Easy Small Business Search engine optimization). This link will assist you to enhance your rankings in Google along with other major search engines like google to the keyword coupled to the link. Submit the articles with a free article directory and Voila! Before very long, your web site may be on the first page of Google.

Thanks for reading. Can't wait to talk to your Seo articles!

Vancouver Seo Company Aims For Google Places With Total Good results

When individuals type in research online term hunting for a business of their local area, they may find that Google places and Google maps is showing listings of local businesses. It is rather eminent to enable them to be optimized and for auction on this first page whenever they desire to generate business. Vancouver SEO companies need to be educated in this area for their clients.

There seems to be a great deal of new Vancouver SEO companies establishing, simply because the importance is there. Finding an SEO firm containing the client's welfare at heart can be tedious. The amount of keywords do they optimize for? What are keywords and the corresponding amount of searches? Do they know how to optimize for Google places? And so on. Search engine optimisation could be the business of landing at the very top and Maxim Edge provide there.

"My wife i started our Vancouver Seo agency by accident. We have learned over the school of hard knocks and learning from mistakes how to use the web to market any business. We began using the website, then the competition, and then of course building quality back-links to push a website up within the rankings. It's not pushing control button and watching how are you affected type of business. It will require a lot of effort, plenty of research and plenty of commitment. We work hard for our clients and now we are very pleased with a high retention rate." Randy Neale says.

For additional information about Michael, a Vancouver Search engine optimization company, please visit their website today at seo4vancouver.com

Little about the Uyghur People

In the middle of the desert landscapes of Taklamakan, in the north-western part of China, the province of Xinjiang is the least populated province whereas it covers close to a sixth from the country's area. Getting resisted while in hundreds of years the chinese domination, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, or Old East Turkestan, fell within the Chinese Han domination in 1949. From then, its population is generally Uyghur People and Turkish - speaking System.

Muslim especially, the Uyghurs have a very good religious identification that, in specific, allowed them to maintain a strong big difference in opposition to the Chinese enemy. Really, the Uyghur Empire of Mongolia knew a great civilization, until its absorption by the Mongolian Empire in the XIIIth century.

During their background, the Uyghur People successively taken on Shamanism, Manicheism, Buddhism and the Nestorianism before finally moving to Islam when the Arab conquerors beat the Chinese in year 751 BC., therefore starting the way to the Islamization of the entire Central Asia.

Under the influence of the religions which they taken, Uyghur People used successively, and sometimes in a competing way, a great number of written forms (turco-runic, brahmi, tokharien, soghdien) before developing their own graphic system.

The entrance of Islam was a great modification simply because it was followed by the absorption of the Uyghur areas in the immense Turkic and Islamic Kingdom. Thus, the descendants of Genghis Khan slowly replaced their writing by a Arabo-Persan alphabet, still used these days.

If their writing, their own language and their religion mark a real big difference with the culture of Chinese Han, Uyghur People also are different from their aspect, so aspect of Central Asia's people. A shiny skin, eyes representing a whole pallet of colors, from black to deep blue, features going out to the Mongolian, Turkish or Uzbek origins of these men and these women.

For a few years, China has included the proper identity of these remote people, though they represent only 9 million population - a trifle for this kind of huge area. Thus, the Uyghurs are now part of the 56 racial minority groups having been well known in an official way by China.

This law allows these people a few rights in a land where their big difference is very often repressed. Thus, Uyghur people escape the "single child policy" and their language is known as the second official language in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

The integration of the Uyghurs and their culture in the People's Republic of China, however, appears pretty illusory. The presence of natural resources in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and its closeness with nations recognized as very sensitive, highly encouraged the government to speed up the sinicization of this area. Million of Han thus came to settle in this new Chinese eldorado, monopolizing the higher responsibility job opportunities.

In reaction to this true will to assimilate the Uyghur people into the Chinese culture, an independent party like East Turkistan Islamic Movement(ETIM) was born in the early 1990.

Saying more freedom, but in particular the recognition of their true identity, this movement was seriously repressed by the power authorities in place Xinjiang.

The situations of September 11, 2001, were the perfect occasion for the Chinese government to justify true reprisals: they declared the "Uyghur freedom fighters" as dangerous terrorists linked to Al Quaida because of their Muslim origins and their proximity with Pakistan and Afghanistan... However, the terrible repression which followed did not calm down the anger. The Uyghur peoples population continues today to proudly hold their identity and their civilization , despite the fact that they become a minority on their own land.

For further information and facts about the Uyghurs, you can visit a Uyghur website called Uyghur News at http://www.uyghurnews.com