Statement from Bill Gates:
“I’m truly saddened to learn of Steve Jobs’ death. Melinda and I extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and to everyone Steve has touched through his work.
Steve and I first met nearly 30 years ago, and have been colleagues, competitors and friends over the course of more than half our lives.
The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.
For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely. “

Statement from Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook founder and CEO:
“Steve, thank you for being a mentor and a friend. Thanks for showing that what you build can change the world. I will miss you.”

Statement from Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen:
“My condolences to Steve Jobs family and friends. We’ve lost a unique tech pioneer and auteur who knew how to make amazingly great products.”

Statement from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
“Steve Jobs was a visionary who changed the way we live, an innovator whose products brought joy to millions, a risktaker who wasn’t afraid to challenge the status quo, and an entrepreneur who led one of the most creative companies of our time.
“His sage advice was respected by policymakers on both sides of the aisle. His courageous fight against cancer brought strength to many.
“I hope it is a comfort to those who loved him, especially his family, that so many grieve his loss and are praying for them at this sad time.”

Statement from Walt Disney president Bob Iger:
“Steve Jobs was a great friend as well as a trusted advisor. His legacy will extend far beyond the products he created or the businesses he built. It will be the millions of people he inspired, the lives he changed, and the culture he defined. Steve was such an “original,” with a thoroughly creative, imaginative mind that defined an era. Despite all he accomplished, it feels like he was just getting started. With his passing the world has lost a rare original, Disney has lost a member of our family, and I have lost a great friend. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Laurene and his children during this difficult time.”

Statement from California Gov. Edmund Brown:
“Steve Jobs was a great California innovator who demonstrated what a totally independent and creative mind can accomplish. Few people have made such a powerful and elegant imprint on our lives. Anne and I wish to express our deepest sympathy to Steve’s wife, Laurene, and their entire family.”

Statement from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg:
“Tonight, America lost a genius who will be remembered with Edison and Einstein, and whose ideas will shape the world for generations to come. Again and again over the last four decades, Steve Jobs saw the future and brought it to life long before most people could even see the horizon. And Steve’s passionate belief in the power of technology to transform the way we live brought us more than smart phones and iPads: it brought knowledge and power that is reshaping the face of civilization. In New York City’s government, everyone from street construction inspectors to NYPD detectives have harnessed Apple’s products to do their jobs more efficiently and intuitively. Tonight our City – a city that has always had such respect and admiration for creative genius – joins with people around the planet in remembering a great man and keeping Laurene and the rest of the Jobs family in our thoughts and prayers.”
Celebrities and Politicians Take to Twitter to Offer Condolences

Arianna Huffington, Huffington Post CEO:
“@ariannahuff: My thoughts go out to Steve Jobs’ family and friends. Thank you for changing our world.”

Steve Levitan, co-creator/executive producer of ABC’s “Modern Family”:
“@SteveLevitan: I’m so sorry to hear about the death of Steve Jobs. He was truly one of my heroes. He leaves one hell of a legacy. #iSad”

SnoopDogg, Rapper
“@snoopdogg: RIP Steve Jobs Rest in peace homie.”

Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger:
“@Schwarzenegger: Steve lived the California Dream every day of his life and he changed the world and inspired all of us. #ThankYouSteve”

Former California first lady Maria Shriver:
“@mariashriver: I’m going to turn off my Apple computer, iPhone and iPad tonight at 8pm and honor Steve with a moment of

digital silence. Will you join me?”
“@mariashriver: I’m so happy that I knew him and was so blessed by his friendship. He impacted all of our lives and changed the world.”
“@mariashriver: My heart weeps for all who worked with Steve and who loved him, especially my friend Laurene and their children.”

Jon Huntsman, Republican presidential candidate
“@JonHuntsman: Sad to hear about the passing of Steve Jobs, a true inspiration and a great American innovator.”

Ryan Seacrest, “American Idol” host/radio talk show personality/producer
“@RyanSeacrest: ‘Have the courage to follow ur heart & intuition. They already know what u truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.’ – Steve Jobs”

Nancy Grace, TV host, “Dancing With the Stars” contestent
“@NancyGraceHLN: About to go to air & discovered news about Steve Jobs – My heart goes out to his family tonight. #RIP Steve Jobs”

Lebron James, Miami Heat forward
“@KingJames: R.I.P Steve Jobs. Someone who definitely left his mark on this world! Innovations that will live and last forever!!”

Neil Patrick Harris, Actor on “How I Met Your Mother”
“@ActuallyNPH: Rest in peace, Steve Jobs. Your genius will live on for generations to come…”

Zach Braff, Actor
“@zachbraff: RIP Steve Jobs. A legend. A visionary innovator.”

Nick Lachey, singer, host of “The Sing-Off”
“@NickSLachey: Best wishes to the family of #stevejobs. What an amazing man and amazing life! Certainly, his legacy will be with us all forever. #RIP.”

As an Internet marketing strategy, SEO considers how search engines work and what people search for. Optimizing a website primarily involves editing its content and HTML coding to both increase its relevance to specific keywords and to remove barriers to the indexing activities of search engines.

The acronym “SEO” can also refer to “search engine optimizers,” a term adopted by an industry of consultants who carry out optimization projects on behalf of clients, and by employees who perform SEO services in-house. Search engine optimizers may offer SEO as a stand-alone service or as a part of a broader marketing campaign. Because effective SEO may require changes to the HTML source code of a site, SEO tactics may be incorporated into web site development and design. The term “search engine friendly” may be used to describe web site designs, menus, content management systems and shopping carts that are easy to optimize.

Another class of techniques, known as black hat SEO or Spamdexing, use methods such as link farms and keyword stuffing that degrade both the relevance of search results and the user-experience of search engines. Search engines look for sites that employ these techniques in order to remove them from their indices.

Wary of the risk of being laid off from large organizations, many highly-skilled workers are deciding to go into business for themselves. In many cases, they feel that they can deliver a better product or service to their clients as an independent contractor or consultant than as an employee of a large organization. Within America, the percentage of people who are working as independent contractors continues to grow, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. According to the latest numbers available, 7.4% of U.S. workers were classified as independent contractors. Amidst the backdrop of an uncertain economic environment, the article conjectures that more companies are using freelancers because their business models are becoming more project-based.

Business models are changing to reflect the new economic uncertainty. Since a business really can rarely forecast more than 12 months in advance, they are operating from business cycle to business cycle. This provides economic incentives for businesses to hire freelancers, enabling them to cut the costs of benefits and payroll taxes. Moreover, because of the bureaucracy of many companies, it’s much easier to get a freelancer approved for a project with a specific short-term time period than it is to get a new full-time position approved. Flexibility is also a key concern, since companies can scale back if they don’t meet projections by cutting the number of freelancers they use.

Freelancers are likely to be the first to find work when the recovery begins. Depending on the length and depth of the recession, companies will continue to view independent contractors as a less risky alternative to ramping up full-time hiring. Thus, it might be worth it for people who have been laid off from full-time jobs to look for some freelance opportunities. For workers deciding to become independent freelancers, the most important thing is to fully understand the tax implications of owning your own business. In addition to setting aside money for retirement and disability insurance, it’s also important to have access to a good accountant and lawyer who are very familiar with small business issues.

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For more information please visit: http://www.cpccci.com

1. Evaluate your history
Let’s start with an inventory of everything you’ve tried to date to market your reseller business. (Just getting started with advertising? Jump down to the next section of this article.) Record any action you’ve taken in the following categories, jotting down all the information you have regarding that activity (cost, time invested, dates, duration of advertisement, etc.):

* Online advertising – Pay-Per-Click advertising, banner ads, text ads on partner sites
* Print advertising – Newspaper or magazine ads, business cards, direct mail postcards, brochures or fliers
* Social networking – Writing your own blog, responding to or submitting articles or features to other people’s blogs, Chamber of Commerce listings, setting up RSS feeds, or listing with social search (Craig’s List, Insider Pages), social bookmarks (Delicious, etc.) or social networks (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter)
* Live networking – Handing out business cards, membership in professional organizations, public speaking
* Email Marketing – Communications with your house list (using your free Express Email Marketing® or another tool), electronic newsletters, adding subscription tools to your site to grow your email list
* Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – Creating custom content to attract traffic to your site “organically.”

Now, think about each of these efforts and be honest about what’s not working. Is it because you haven’t been able to dedicate enough time to it? Is it too costly? Or is it just truly not working for your audience? Be ruthless and drop anything that’s not yielding a return – especially if it’s costing you money. You can always try it again later.

2. Set your strategy
Now that you’ve shortened your list to just the things that are working, pick one or two to expand through June of 2009. Decide how much time you’re going to dedicate to this activity each week, and if there’s a cost associated with it, budget what that will be. Make your goals as aggressive as you like, but make them do-able. Here are a few examples:

Strategy: Carry business cards with you at all times. Share them with anyone you meet who shows an interest in your business, whether you’re at a client meeting, your Rotary Club, or a party where the topic of what you do for a living comes up in conversation. Give each person multiple cards, one for them and another one or two to share with someone they know who might also be interested in your services.

Place Banner Ads
Cost: $200/month (costs will vary from $0 to thousands, depending on site)
Time Commitment: 2 hours per week
Strategy: This project involves several phases. 1) First you’ll need to identify potential sites that might refer sales-worthy traffic, determine their pricing/trade policies, and decide how much you’re willing to pay and for how long. 2) If you don’t find a banner ad you like in the “Marketing Tools” section of the Reseller Control Center, you can create your own or pay a graphic designer to create one for you. 3) Once you’ve posted your banner, watch the results like a hawk – you want to know how much traffic the site gets, how many clicks your banner receives, and how many sales or new customers you got as a result. 4) Use these numbers to determine the return on your ad investment (Total cost of banner advertising ÷ number of new customers gained = Cost Per Acquisition).

Promote Your Business with Email
Cost: $0 if you use your free Express Email Marketing® Tool
Time Commitment: 1-5 hours per month
Strategy: Use one of more than 50 reseller templates in Express Email Marketing to reach out to your current customers with proven marketing messages. Or create your own electronic newsletter that speaks to your target audience and shows them how your products can help them. Email once a week or once a month – whatever fits into your schedule and makes your audience happy.

Link Building – Make sure you do a marketing campaign with www.cpccci.com – Cost: $1000-$2000

Once you’re done with your advertising review, celebrate! You’ve completed a task that all successful business owners do routinely to keep their businesses on track. Next month we’ll take a look at your target market.

If you can’t see the flowgram above, please follow this link http://www.flowgram.com/fg/ybdpkbdgurxtqj/

Even if too much creativity just isn’t for you, you can still make a few adjustments to your card so that it becomes a keeper and will hopefully be seen the moment your prospect needs your products or services. Here are a few tips:

1. Do pay for your business cards. Getting those free printing services with the printer’s logo on the back of your card makes you look cheap and stingy. Definitely not the image you’ll want to convey.
2. Print something useful. An inspiring quote, a 15% tip chart, an insider tip about your industry, anything that will increase the chances of your card not being tossed away or be forgotten.
3. Tape or glue a brand new penny to your card and write “A penny for your thoughts. I appreciate you thinking about ordering Z Widgets, you’re going to love it!”
4. Put your card in a gift box, maybe with a nice bow on top
5. Paste a gold star sticker, not a cheesy one but something that will actually make your card even better
6. Attach your card to a lottery ticket
7. When you hand out your card, take a moment and say:
   “this will save you money, hang on to it”, or
   “this is important, keep it in a safe place”, or
   “are you sure you want this? I really value who I give these to”
8. Have fun with shapes, colors and textures. Ovals, circles, odd shapes; leather, metal, cloth …  they are all fair game depending on the type of job and industry you’re in.

Without further ado, here’s the link to the flowgram so you can really, really get inspired: http://www.flowgram.com/p/qbc9bhzr9tse76.  Enjoy!

By setting a newsletter or sending automatic period announcements via email to your own customers, you increase the probability of repeat business. They’ve already bought from you, so they are very willing to buy your product or service again. You have to make sure you get their permission to send them those emails, otherwise, such communication may be considered as spam.

Local Directories

Placing your website in Local Directories is a great way to build inbound links and qualified traffic. And, best of all, most of these services are FREE:

• local.google.com
• local.yahoo.com
• city.ask.com
• truelocal.com
• locallaunch.com
• kijiji.com
• yellowpages.com
• superpages.com
• citysearch.com
• dogpile.com
• 411web.com
• jumptoyourcity.com

Email Signatures:

Take advantage of your email and incorporate a tag line that motivates your users to visit your website. This is not considered spamming, nor is it annoying since you are taking advantage of an email that’s going out anyway.  An example of a good signature would be:

“Dan Seidman, the War Correspondent of Selling, Sales Horror Story Library, read’em and weep (or laugh) -www.SalesAutopsy.com”.

Contests

Setting up a contest on your website is an excellent way to attract new and old visitors. Using your creativity and imagination, you can come up with fun, or serious ideas for a great contest.

Forums or Discussion Groups

Posting your expert opinion or help in a relevant forum is a sure way to get your website’s name out in cyberspace. Be sure to always leave a link back to your site, as well as a brief description on what you do. You never know how long afterwards your post can spark a lead.

Pay-Per-Click

Programs such as Google AdWords can be very cost effective and provide tons of incoming traffic to your site. Best of all, you get to choose your daily, weekly or monthly advertising budget by telling Google how much you are willing to pay for each click on only the specific keywords you wish to bid on.
Here is an Internet Marketing slide show presentation that summarizes the most important aspects of “How to Promote your Business on the Internet”.  View it now >>

Download “How to Promote your Business on the Internet” now >>

Compiled by Roberto Espinoza and Patricia Espinoza from CPC Computer Consultants, Inc.

For more information please visit out website at: http://www.cpccci.com
and http://www.cpcwebsolutions.com