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Are Hector the Connector Predictions Right 99.9% of The Time? You Bet!

Courtesy of  www.flickr.com
By Hector E. Cisneros

Every year I write a predictions article based on what I see coming to the web in the not so distant future. These predictions cover the gamut from conventional advertising, to digital marketing, from new tech toys for our homes and personal use, to innovative game changing technologies that will alter the world as we know it. Some of my predictions are based on research, visible trends and the emergence of breakthrough technologies. Others are based on what I see as missing in a world full of me too products, poor customer service and blatant false advertising. In this episode of Working the Web to Win, I am going to go out on a limb (again) and see if I can keep my 98.5% prediction batting average streak going for another year. So read on and discover what my crystal ball has in store for 2016 and beyond.

Do Smartphones Dream About Facebook?

Courtesy of pixabay.com
By Carl Weiss

You may not have noticed, but artificial intelligence, otherwise known as AI, has been sending its all-knowing tendrils slowly but surely onto the World Wide Web.  Many of the largest tech companies are arduously working to be the first to perfect this technology so they can corner the market. The big players include Google, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, IBM, and Amazon. Google has been in the headlines a lot recently. At first, its foray online was tenuous at best and comical at worst when Google created an AI that it turned loose to try to make sense of the images it encountered.  Hoping to find a workaround for one of the search engine’s biggest lapses, which makes search engine spiders blind to images and videos, the attempt resulted in hilarity when Google’s creation began to morph images as it tried to make sense of queries posed about them. 

Marketing 101 – What you need to Know before Buying Advertising

By Hector Cisneros
Courtesy of  www.flickr.com


You’re a new business owner, ready to buy your first advertisement, so you call the local newspapers, radio and TV stations along with several coupon and website vendors to see what they have to offer. Unfortunately, you have never purchased advertising before and you’re hoping the advertisers will help you figure out exactly what to do. You may not realize that most advertising sales reps are paid mainly on commission and their primary mission is to sell you advertising or they don’t make any money. What happens next is all too often the scenario that plays out. In this article we will follow this scenario and cover a simple 10 step program that will insure you’re buying the right advertising and that your return on investment has the best chance of making a profit. Now let’s get back to that scenario.

The Grinch Goes Digital

(We'll cover 12 ways online scammers can steal from you this Christmas.)


By Carl Weiss
Courtesy of  commons.wikimedia.org

TIS the season… to be scammed by online scammers who are out to steal your holiday cheer.  Every year as online commerce grows, so do online scams.  Today’s cybercriminals are going to try to entice you into giving them your hard earned cash through a number of ever more imaginative scams.  In today’s blog, I will endeavor to give you a leg up on the top 12 ways to avoid getting Grinched this holiday season.

Has the Internet Made Us Smarter?

Courtesy of  pixabay.com
By Carl Weiss

For all intents and purposes the Internet has been in existence for 20 years. During that time, the entire world has literally been at our fingertips online.  But has the advent of the World Wide Web made people smarter, or has it truly made us dumber as we become more reliant on having access to all kinds of information at the click of a mouse?  In today’s blog, I will look at how the Internet has affected us as a species, as well as examining whether it appears to be helping or hurting our intellectual evolution.  I will also delve into the rise of web-enabled “smart devices” that will soon be taking control of everything from our appliances to driving our cars. 

Caution: Slippery Road Ahead

As I entered the office building where I work, I spied a young woman who works in the office across the hall coming down the stairs.  Wearing high heels with her head canted forward, she was looking at her smartphone and texting as she descended the staircase. 

“You’d better be careful before you wind up taking a tumble,” I told her as she made her way through the lobby.

“Not to worry,” she responded without looking up from her phone.  “I do this all the time.”

Coutesy of  commons.wikimedia.org
“I know,” I shot back.  “That’s what I’m worried about.” As she headed toward the exit, I looked back to see if she ran into the door, as well as wondering whether I was the only one who seemed to realize that the world is becoming an increasingly impersonal place?

Maybe it’s a generational issue, but I remember a time when people weren’t so absorbed in technology that it became a hazard to their health.  I also remember when people took the time to meet and talk without having to bring their technological ball and chain with them. 

Think about it, the same technology that puts the world at our fingertips has actually caused our species to become more and more isolated.  Between texting, social networking, chat rooms, home delivery apps and virtual worlds such as Second Life, it is now possible to avoid interpersonal contact altogether.  (Any parent of a teenager will agree with this conundrum.)  What’s even worse is that technology has insinuated itself into practically every corner of modern society.  If you don’t believe me, go to a restaurant or coffee shop and see how many people are either texting or surfing the web while they eat, even if they have a dining companion sitting across from them.  Most people refer to this as multitasking.  I call it rude.

Besides, research has proven that multitasking isn’t helping us as a species.  It’s hurting us.  Everyone from Stanford Professor Dr. Clifford Nass to Michael Gazziniga, Director of the Sage Center for the Study of the Mind, agrees that multitasking negatively affects everything from attention span and writing quality, to task completion and brain function.

Stanford researchers compared groups of people based on their tendency to multitask and their belief that it helps their performance. They found that heavy multitaskers—those who multitask a lot and feel that it boosts their performance—were actually worse at multitasking than those who like to do a single thing at a time. The frequent multitaskers performed worse because they had more trouble organizing their thoughts and filtering out irrelevant information, and they were slower at switching from one task to another. Ouch.”

Courtesy of  acreelman.blogspot.com
What’s even more alarming is that the study found evidence that persistently heavy multitasking was shown to actually lower IQ scores by up to 15 points. 

(Score Internet 1, Evolution 0)

Far from pushing a “down with technology” agenda, when the Stanford research was performed, it was assumed that there must be some advantage to multitasking.  So they set out to find it. 

"We kept looking for what they're better at, and we didn't find it," said Ophir, the study's lead author and a researcher in Stanford's Communication Between Humans and Interactive Media Lab.

In the tests, the researchers created two groups of students, those who heavily engaged in media multitasking and those who didn’t.  Each group was then given a series of exercises to test everything from pattern recognition and organizational skills to their ability to filter out irrelevant information.  To their surprise, the research indicated that the more heavily students engaged in multitasking, the worse they did at these tasks.  Puzzled at why the multitaskers did so poorly, the researchers thought that maybe they excelled at switching from one task to another.  So they tested this hypothesis only to conclude that once again, the light multitaskers outperformed the heavy multitaskers.

"They couldn't help thinking about the task they weren't doing," Ophir said. "The high multitaskers are always drawing from all the information in front of them. They can't keep things separate in their minds."

So profound were the discoveries made in this study that it led the researchers to wonder if it was the Internet that had somehow interfered with the cognitive function of the brains of students who were heavily into multitasking, or if they were in fact born with an inability to concentrate.  Either way, the heavy multitaskers, by exhibiting an inability to filter out irrelevant information were clearly at a disadvantage.  Even more alarming, some of the heavy multitaskers also exhibited the same physiological symptoms as drug addicts.  In other words, the more they multitasked, the more electronic stimuli they craved.

Can You Say Crackberry?

Courtesy of  www.flickr.com
Digital addiction is nothing new.  Ever since video games were introduced back in the 1970’s a percentage of the population has espoused a propensity to playing until they dropped.  Back then to feed this Jones meant lining up with quarters at the local arcade or locking yourself in your bedroom to play game consoles until your parents dragged you downstairs for dinner.  But with the advent of the smartphone, the ability to feed your need at any time and place means that a much higher percentage of the population is psychologically addicted to tech in one form or another.  This is creating a problem for many.

Benjamin Wong, a counsellor at Richmond Addiction Services, said he works with individuals between the ages of 12 to 25 and their families to support them in dealing with digital addictions — when they just can't separate themselves from a screen, be it a smartphone, computer or gaming device.”

Just like drug addicts, the effort to break a digital addiction takes a lot of time (as much as a year).  It also isn’t relegated merely to Millennials.  Even Baby Boomers can get hooked on tech.  And the tawdry road that leads to digital addiction is a more slippery slope than that experienced by devotees of illicit pharmaceuticals.  As opposed to back alley deals, digital addiction can be as simple as accessing your favorite social media site.

In a 2014 CBS News report entitled, How Real a Risk is Social Media Digital Addiction,” social media marketer Jason Thibeault reported that he quit Facebook cold turkey when he realized that it was becoming an addiction.

"Just imagine that Facebook is like a digital water cooler. I was drinking A TON of water every hour," he wrote. "Although I'm not a neuroscientist, I'd venture to say that what was happening was related to my Dopamine levels--when I was checking status updates on Facebook, my brain was rewarding itself with Dopamine; when I wasn't, and Dopamine levels dropped as a result, I started 'jonesing for a fix.'"

Courtesy of  en.wikipedia.org
Jonesing for a Facebook Fix?  You heard that right.  You and the 700,000 other people that read Jason’s essay.  Is it any wonder that professionals, including the National Institutes of Health are becoming increasingly concerned over the deleterious effects of digital addiction.  While Information Addiction Disorder (IAD) is still not listed as an official psychiatric disorder, its counterpart, Internet Gaming Addiction was added in 2013, (better late than never).

(Score: Internet 2 Evolution: 0)

As our wired world continues its march toward technological domination, far from being an isolated incident, IAD will continue to spread as the Internet becomes available to more and more of the world’s population. (Google is building blimps that are intended to bring the Internet to isolated parts of the world.) To make matters worse, a new age of internet-enabled appliances, clothing and devices such as cars are going to inevitably make inroads into a number of areas that were once thought exclusively the domain of human beings. 

While I could wax apocalyptic about how smart houses, clothes, cars and appliances are going to lead to the disintegration of what’s left of society, I think I’ll let IDG Enterprise CEO Mike Friedenberg chime in with his post on cio.com:

“I look back at the time my parents taught me how to parallel park, and it's a very fond memory. Now all you need to do is push a button and your car will parallel park itself. Makes me wonder what our lives will become. Is the future really about pushing a lot of buttons to get things done?
Courtesy of  en.wikipedia.org
Attending the Consumer Electronics Show this year, you would have thought it was the Year of Smart: smart homes, smart cars, smart fridges, smart forks and spoons, smart watches, smart TVs, and even smart toilets. All of these devices have the ultimate goal of tracking, storing, analyzing, optimizing and educating us humans on how we can be better, healthier, fitter or smarter. It was all a bit overwhelming. If only everything that happens in Vegas really did stay there. ”
(Score: Internet 3 Evolution: 0)

My partner Hector told me about the new Terminator movie where it depicted a possible scenario of our not too distant future. In this future, everyone was wanting and waiting for a single operating system called Genesis. This new OS would run every machine and appliance that we use. The reason people wanted this change was so that it would make it easier for us to learn and use these devices. However the new OS in the movie was actually the artificial intelligence called Sky Net - poised to take over the world and kill off most of the human race. This is not too different from the doomsday proclamations as those issued by the likes of Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking concerning the emergence of artificial intelligence. 



There is no doubt that the Internet has allow us access to vast amounts of information and given us a huge knowledge base to draw from. With this the huge amount of knowledge also come a vast amount of responsibility. As to whether the Internet is going to wind up making us smarter or dumber, all I can say is this - that if society takes just a few more steps toward technology, it’s probably going to be game, set, match as far as human evolution is concerned.


----

In this article I have discussed how the improper use of the internet has created a large segment of tech addicted humans worldwide. I provide real studies that show how multitasking people preform much worse than those who don’t multitask and how people actually show withdrawal symptoms when access to their social networks are not available.

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If you found this article useful please share it with your friends, family and co-workers. If you would like to learn more about this subject, visit the notes page on this blog for the BlogTalkRadio show dated 11/17/15. I recommend checking out "Are You Prepared for Technological Extinction?“, “The Basics of Biohacking”, Is Too Much Technology Bad for Business?Is The Internet of Everything Really, Everything They're Cracking it Up to Be? and “How to Safely Whet Your Appetite for Smartphone Apps” You can also search for other related articles by typing in “casinos” in the search box top of this blog.

If you feel your business could use some help with its marketing, contact us at 904-410-2091,We will provide a free marketing analysis to help you get better results. If you'd like a free copy of our eBook, "Internet Marketing Tips for the 21st Century," please fill in the form below and we will give you immediate access to it. Your information is always kept private and is never sold. Don't forget to Plus us on Google+.



Carl Weiss is president of WorkingtheWebtoWin.com a digital marketing agency in Jacksonville, Florida that routinely works with bloggers and other online marketers to grow their businesses. 

Social Networking Secrets & Best Practices: Part 3 – There is no Substitute

By Hector Cisneros

I have been actively networking in a number of organizations since the early 1980’s. My experience, tells me that most people get out of social networking what they put into it. People often come up to me after a speaking engagement and ask, what is the magic formula for networking success. How can they become successful as a social Networker? My answer is always the same, it’s not a magic formula, although many perceive it to be a secret, a powerful principle or other hidden system of techniques. My answer always state that the secret is in plain sight. Look at the word “network” and the answer is in the title itself. The first parts of this series addressed the relationship between face to face networking and social media. Part two addresses the secret aspects of Giving. In part three of this series, we will discuss the habits that must be acquired and followed, in order to become a consummate Networker. We’ll be looking at 15 important habits which will guide and drive your success. So let’s get to work and begin by dissecting the term Social Networker.

Social Networking Secrets & Best Practices: Part 2 - Giving is The Givers Secrets

Courtesy of WorkingtheWebtoWin.com
By Hector Cisneros

Have you ever wondered why some networkers are phenomenally successful and other struggle to even get one referral? Why is it that many are attracted to a few seemingly special networkers and others are shunned? Could it be that there is a secret that these few Super Networkers know, that others do not? Part one of this series shows the relationship between face to face and online social networking.  In this second part of Best Practices of Social Networking Secrets series, I will cover what those Super Networkers know - the secrets that makes Super Networkers magnetic. The secret that brings them followers and referrals far beyond the average business Networker. The magical secret of Giving! Giving you say? It can’t be that simple. Well, I didn’t say it was simple or even easy, but yes, giving is the magical secret. In Part three of this series we will explore another secret that demonstrates that there is no substitute for proactive participation. But in this article we will expose Giving in all its glory. We will explore what has taken me a lifetime of learning. Now let’s explore what I mean by giving, so that you can use it to produce massive positive result for you and your business.

What’s at Stake When It’s Fake?

Courtesy of Pixabay
By Carl Weiss 
  
Forgery has been around for as long as civilization has flourished.  No sooner did humans start using chits burnished onto clay tablets to trade goods, when you can be sure some enterprising lad started turning out fakes.  Through the ages people have forged everything from works of art to currency and stock certificates. Some of the forgers went on to become legends.  Many of them went on to prison.  However, what most people do not realize is the effect that forgery has had or could have had on history. Fast forward to the 21st Century! Today a whole new world of forgery is taking place, not by a few, but by billions of unsuspecting internet users. We have fake business websites, fake government websites, Fake blog articles, fake reviews, fake email solicitations, fake products site, fake social media site, heck, what isn’t being faked on the web. To start with, let’s look at fakery throughout the ages to give you a little perspective.

Social Networking Secrets & Best Practices – Part 1 - Two Sides of the Same Coin

By Hector Cisneros 
Courtesy of  Working The Web To Win

Have you ever wondered what the relationship is between face to face networking (aka word of mouth marketing) and social media marketing? Have you noticed all the similarities between these seemingly very different marketing venues? I mean, come on, with word of mouth you’re having a one to one meeting at a coffee shop and with social networking you’re posting current events in your industry, right? How could these two very different venues have any similarities at all? Well, in this series I will cover over three dozen similarities that these marketing systems have in common. It is my hope that once you understand the commonality of these venues, you will start to use them synergistically to gain more followers, prospects and long term loyal customers. In part one of this series, I will cover how these two systems are two sides of the same coin. In part two I will cover how both use the “Secret of Giving” and in part three I will explain how both require proactive engagement for your ultimate success.  

Is Online Gambling a Bad Bet?

Courtesy of en.wikipedia.org

Or are you Missing out? 

By Carl Weiss

Since its inception, the US government has tried to put a stop to online gambling. Yet it has failed to slow, much less stop its spread. With the emergence of paid fantasy football sites, which advertise their games on TV, not to mention New Jersey offering legalized online casino games, is it any wonder that this industry is anything but a bad bet to developers and operators alike? Still, the feds persist in doing everything in their power to put the brakes on one of the most lucrative online industries ever created. In today’s blog we will look at the evolution of the online gambling industry.

Are Social Networks Becoming Antisocial?

By Carl Weiss

Social networks are nothing new.  They have become the conduits that let us tell the world all about us.  But lately a number of social nets have begun displaying alarmingly antisocial attributes.  Case in point: A new social networking app called Peeple, has been described as a “Yelp” for people, is slated to launch in November.  It will employ a star system that will allow you to rate anyone you know, including ex-spouses, former bosses, your friends and neighbors. 

To some, the specter of being categorized like a side of beef is appalling.  Caitlin Dewey, a reporter for the Washington Post summed up her Peeple angst this way, “Imagine every interaction you’ve ever had suddenly being open to the scrutiny of the Internet public.” That’s a pretty scary thought, if you ask me!

15 Ways Social Media Can Build Your Business and Credibility

Courtesy of  pixy.org
By Hector Cisneros 

Social Networks are the fastest evolving media in the world. In less than a dozen years, it has gone from relative obscurity to internet dominance. Today, any business that ignores social media does so at its own peril.  Social networking and Social media have become integral to internet marketing, business and social communications. Most importantly, it has changed the dynamic of what advertisers can say, do and get away with. No longer can businesses get away with touting poor products as the latest and greatest. Businesses can’t continue to provide poor customer service and expect to keep it under wraps. Today social networks allow consumers to spread good or bad news at the speed of the internet. Businesses have to be proactive using social networks to stay ahead of the competition and any bad news that may escape into the social “network-sphere”. This article will provide 15 reasons why every business needs to proactively be using social media to win the hearts and minds of the consuming public. They will be listed in descending order of importance (as chosen by me) to help you see the big picture. So let the countdown begin.

Is Your Website a Serial Killer?

Courtesy of  Flickr
By Carl Weiss

Nobody wants to upset the 800 lb. gorilla in the room named Google.  Yet, that is precisely what many business owners do when they employ serial sites to do their bidding.  Google hates serial sites with a passion.  That’s because these online clones attempt to generate position by the cookie cutter method, where the same site is used to target a number of individual keywords.  If the Googlebots catches you using serial sites, all your sites could wind up sandboxed (or at the very least lose ranking). 

Best Free and Safe Apps for Apple and Android

Courtesy of  iTunes & Google Play
By Hector Cisneros

In the past, I have written articles and done shows about the insatiable appetite that people have for free smart phone apps. We have talked about the many dangers inherent with free apps and what you can do to protect yourself. In this article we will be reviewing what we feel are the top 20 free and safe apps, available both for Apple and Android platforms. We will also provide a list of the top 50 apps available today along with links to them so you can read reviews and get these applets. So read on and get your appetite for apps satisfied by turning on to this week’s episode of Working The Web To Win.

Blogging as a Business

Courtesy of  www.flickr.com
By Carl Weiss

Blogs have been around for more than 10 years. During that time, millions of blogs have been written about every topic under the sun.  Some bloggers have even become superstars.  While blogging still remains a great way to promote any business, what most bloggers do not realize is that blogging can be a profitable business on its own.  That’s right, business owners are willing to pay a writer to handle the task of creating, publishing and promoting weekly blogs.  The reasons they are willing to outsource the job is simple:

How to Create an Irresistible Offer

Courtesy of The Irresistible
 offer on Amazon.com
Creating the Offer (Part 2 of 2)

By Hector Cisneros

In his book, "The Irresistible Offer - How to Sell your Product or Service in 3 Seconds or Less", Mark Joyner lays out a map which shows how to create an offer so compelling that it guarantees success. However, there are many factors and nuances to creating an irresistible offer. Creating a great marketing message is part art and part science. Most businesses can create a compelling offer by using the science of testing and measuring.  

An Irresistible Offer That Lets Small Businesses Compete

(Part 1 of 2) of How to Create an Irresistible Offer
Courtesy of Working the Web to Win


By Hector Cisneros

Millions of companies are trying to sell products on the web. Large companies like Walmart, Target and Best Buy have big advantages over the small mom and pop players. So just how do you compete with these mega corporations? What can you do to stay in the game? How can you get found and then provide an offer that your visitor can’t refuse? Well, if you’re not willing to leave a horse's head under your visitors bed sheets to get them to take the next step, you will have to provide another offer they can’t refuse. In this article, we will cover how to turn visitors into buyers by providing the real trust elements that every website needs. We will cover the basics of creating irresistible offers and we will cover how test your offers so that you don’t have to threaten equestrian wildlife to coerce your prospects to take the next step. So let's get started by digging into how small businesses can compete.

Is Google Trying to Make Alphabet Soup Out of its Company?

Courtesy of  Wikimedia Commons
By Carl Weiss

After being the big dog of search engines for more than a decade, Google has decided to change its corporate moniker to Alphabet.  After 17 years of building a $400 billion business that controls everything from the world's most popular search engine (Google) to the world's most popular video portal (YouTube), to life extension research firm (Calico), to self-driving car developer and a host of other acquisitions, Larry Page and Sergey Brin have decided to rename their enterprise.  Add to that the fact that CEO Page has turned the reins of Google over to Sundar Pinchai, and many people both in the Internet and on the stock market are wondering what's going to happen next.  Even before the soup has cooled, rumors are swirling that Google is interested in acquiring yet more companies, including everything from Twitter to a company that makes pocket toy satellites.  So if you are wondering if Google intends to make Alphabet Soup of their company, let’s give the pot a stir.

How to Safely Whet Your Appetite for Smartphone Apps

By Hector Cisneros

Does the public’s uncontrollable appetite for free smartphone apps also make you vulnerable? Right now there are approximately 4,000,000 apps combined that are available in the top four app stores. Are these apps being checked before being released to the public? Are we vulnerable as users by downloading free apps on our smart phones? Could we be compromising our security and financial information by using these apps? In this episode you will learn the truth about using free apps, how to stay safe, and what to look for when deciding “to get an app for that”. So stay tuned and turn onto this week’s Working The Web To Win and learn “how to safely whet your appetite” for smart phone apps.

Is it Time to Fire the Postman?

Courtesy of  pixy.org
By Carl Weiss

As far back as the 19th century, when the telegraph came into vogue, people have been looking for a better way to deliver information and goods more efficiently than the US Postal Service. Today's wired world has created a myriad of electronic delivery systems that do everything from rendering payment, to delivering messages and even packages at the click of a mouse. In today’s blog, I intend to delve into a number of innovative, cost effective delivery options to the USPS, as well as the possibility that in the near future the post office could very well be as dead as the dodo bird.

What's up With Windows 10

Courtesy of  Microsoft.com

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly


By Hector Cisneros

Ready or not, Windows 10 is finally here. We all know that Windows 8 was a bust. Its ill conceived design, cost Microsoft in a big way. Windows 8 was so bad that Microsoft had to re-release Windows 7 on new PC’s, even after it had withdrawn version 7 from the market.  I am sure that Microsoft even had to back burner other initiatives while they hurried to fix this problem. So why should you look at Windows 10? Why place trust in Microsoft? Why not switch to Apple IOS of Google Chrome?  Even the way Microsoft released their new operating system gave cause for alarm by sneaking it in as an update that showed up on your “Task Bar” displaying a Windows symbol!  In this article we will explore our first impression of Windows 10, uncensored. We’ll look at the “good, the bad and the ugly” of what we have found and pass that information on to you, our loyal readers. So let’s get started.

The Doc in the eBox


Courtesy of  en.wikipedia.org
By Carl Weiss

As healthcare grows ever more expensive and complicated, more and more people are turning to the Internet for everything from diagnosis to treatment options.  More telling still is the fact that doctors are also using the web for everything from consultation to telesurgery.  Even computer giant IBM has anted up, retooling their Jeopardy winning Watson computer into Dr. Watson the diagnostician.  For those of us who lead active lives, not to mention the mobility impaired, turning to the doc in the “eBox” can not only save time, but lives.

What Your Webmaster Should be Telling You!

By Carl Weiss
Courtesy of  www.flickr.com

If you have a website, then you know your webmaster has the power of life or death over it.  You probably also know that he or she speaks in tongues, where terms like “Link Equity,” “SERPS,” and “Meta Tags,” have a meaning all their own.  In today’s blog, I will part the curtain and allow you to see what the wizard of the web is doing as they pull and tug on the strings of your website.  I will also show you what you need to know to make sure your web presence is a strong one and not just a billboard in the desert. 

The Four P's of Online Marketing Success

Courtesy of  www.flickr.com
(AKA) How to Slay the Hydras of Advertising


By Hector Cisneros

Profits – every business strives for them. They are the end results of selling a useful product or service that the marketplace ultimately deems worthy. If you are a business owner, managing the sales of your products or services produce these profits. They are the ultimate measure of your financial success. Today, you have to become the master of not one, but two dragons of marketing. Old school media monster and the internet beast. To make matters worse, these two dragons are hydra's - many headed beasts that evolve and splinter as you master and cut each head off.  Luckily, both have overlapping marketing elements that allow us to create a formula for success. In this article, I will teach the principles you need to tame these beasts. We will cover the four P’s of marketing success along with the nine content elements these two dragons crave. So strap on your sword and come with me as we prepare to slay the hydras of marketing.

The Ultimate Guide to Creating an Ideal Customer Profile

Demographic criteria
By Hector Cisneros

You ever wonder why some businesses just take off and others just languish, not growing at all? What if you could focus all your marketing efforts towards the right area of town or region of the country? What if you knew how your best customers’ shop, where they live, how much they earn, what motivates them and why they buy your products? This would in essence pinpoint who your ideal customers are.  From there you could quickly deduce how to entice them to buy from you.  In this article, we will explore the importance of understanding your ideal customer profile. You will learn how to conduct research to gain insights into their demographic and psychographic attributes. You will learn how to target prospects by setting up better marketing based on these attributes. More importantly, you will better understand the significance of testing, measuring and picking the right marketing medium for your budget.