Website copywriting faces a big challenge these days. Prospective clients and buyers get tired of reading the same promotional messages on every website.

Everybody promises, “Insider tips to take your business to the next level.” Or, “Transform your life in 7 easy steps.”

But do these claims really attract clients? I suspect visitors click away, muttering, “I’ve heard that before. And I don’t believe a word.”

You fill your practice faster if you brag about yourself — shamelessly. But you have to brag strategically. Here’s how I advise my own clients.

(1) Share your success stories.

Everybody promises they’ll take your business to the next level. You show how you actually deliver on your promises. Tell a 3-step story.

Beginning:

“When Jenny called me, all her friends had stopped speaking to her. Even her dog looked the other way when they went out walking. Jenny was desperate for a social life.”

Middle:

“We worked on Jenny’s communication style. We developed voice techniques customized to Jenny’s life. We suggested new conversation topics and we taught Jenny the weed-your-friends-weekly technique.”

Grand triumph:

“Jenny’s social circle has widened extensively. She has more friends than ever (including some special friends). Her dog proudly trots by her side, head high.”

(2) Use numbers to gain trust. Let’s face it: “many” can mean five thousand, five hundred or just five.” For example:

“Eighty-two percent of people who take this course tell me they increase business by at least 30%. Some raise revenues by 50% or more.”

“In 6 years I’ve worked with over 300 clients. My experience helps me deal with just about any challenge in my field.”

“I doubled revenue in my own business in 6 months with just one simple technique. And it’s so easy anyone can do it.”

Of course you’ll be accurate. But I would also choose meaningful claims. Readers won’t be excited when you say, “Ninety percent of people who took this course became more aware of their own prosperity.” They want prosperity, not awareness.

(3) Get other people to brag for you. Use testimonials to build credibility exponentially.

Your client says, “Hey, I really got a lot from your service.” That’s your signal to move fast.

Many happy clients are delighted to help but don’t have time to write out a testimonial. So draft up a quote and always, always get permission to use it on your website.

When your favorite clients won’t offer testimonials, they’ll often agree to serve as references. No problem: you need those too.

(4) Brag about what you’ve done. You lose credibility if you can’t document your claims.

One author claimed he had spent twenty years researching his topic. But his book cited just a few interviews and fewer references. So he can’t brag about research - unless he wants readers to fling the book across the room, yelling, “Impossible!”

But he can brag about his 20 years of specialized experience, his advanced degrees, and his program to create a success mindset for bored, lazy clients.

(5) Brag about what makes you different. Then tell us why it matters.

You spent 20 years in the meanest company in corporate America. You are uniquely qualified to coach executives who face unreasonable demands.

You’re a CPA with a hobby of oil painting. You can relate to clients in the artistic fields.

Your unique 3-step process will transform home offices from chaotic to calm. Your clients see results faster than those who use standard methods (and they are happier, too).

You know you’ve bragged strategically when you read your own sales page and think, “Wow - I would like to hire this person.”

And now I invite you to join me for the Cat Chats free teleseminars. You will discover exactly how to create websites that attract clients and increase revenue with less effort. I will teach you to create content that motivates buyers to take action. Get started with Website Marketing Teleseminars and also learn the essential skills to run your online business. From Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D., your copywriter and website marketing coach.

Many people ask if cancer can be prevented. Is there a way of beating cancer, that is making sure it will never even affect us?
The case of Chinese people in Hong Kong in succumbing to cancer after the introduction of fast food is well documented in medical research. Their previous diet of soya and other vegetables would suggest that a healthy diet is key in preventing and beating cancer.

Preventing cancer is easier than you may think and is very important for your health, quality of life and longevity. Preventing cancer is a serious business for all of us. Preventing cancer is possible if you keep your body healthy and free of toxins. Stating that vitamin D has no useful role in preventing cancer is as hopelessly outdated as claiming the Earth is flat. A diet with the aim of preventing cancer is generally the same as a diet to prevent heart disease and other diseases

What Are the Ways Of Preventing Cancer?

Prevention is the only real solution. The only way out of this cancer madness is through prevention. The Canadian Cancer Society is launching a program to make sure every Canadian citizen receives a level of vitamin D sufficient to prevent most cancers, including breast cancer. New research shows vitamin D slashes risk of cancers by 77 percent; cancer industry refuses to support cancer prevention. The American Cancer Society, however, seems stuck in the nutritional dogma of the 1950’s and continues to claim that only drugs, radiation and surgery can treat cancer, and that nutritional supplements have no role to play whatsoever in cancer prevention.

What Is The Best Way To Beat Cancer?

The best way of all is to ensure a healthy diet, eg. reduce sugar and salt intake and eat more fibre, fruit and vegetables.
A great way to get all the vitamins, minerals and nutrients we need is to eat healthily. That means a variety of foods. Ask yourself if you can reduce sugar, fat and salt intake while increasing fruit and vegetables. What about your intake of alcohol?

There other ways of preventing cancer. For more information on the best way to beat cancer, click on the link below to learn from an expert who has dedicated most of his life to preventing cancer.

Robert Locke is an Internet Marketer specializing in Health, Wellness and Fitness. Find out from a health expert what you should be doing to beat cancer.

http://www.usfreeads.com/884144-cls.html

I filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy about a year ago.

OOHHH….GASP…BANKRUPTCY

I went in knowing absolutely nothing about the process, all I knew was that I was $60,000 in debt. I had a mortgage company that wanted my default mortgage deed “paid in full”. Nine credit card companies (they use to be so nice to me) that couldn’t understand the concept of being “laid off”. And a guy that came in the middle of the night and Repossessed my Ford Ranger.

I’m not a lawyer and I’m NOT going to give any legal advice. I’m just going to relate my experience of the process to you so maybe you can learn a few things.

First, My suggestion is to find a really good Bankruptcy Lawyer. I know. Depending on what your financial situation is you may feel like that isn’t an option…don’t make it an option….MAKE IT A PRIORITY!

My total costs added up to $1,400 for the use of a good attorney….Let’s see… I paid $1,400 and got $60,000 in debt completely erased. I’ll have to admit, one of the better financial moves I’ve made in the last few years.

I was in a bad place financially and with bruised pride had to ask for help from family and friends.

Some of the Debts you CAN’T write off in a chapter 7 are:

Debts for most taxes, Debts that are domestic support obligations, Debts for most student loans, Fines, penalties, or criminal restitution obligations, Debts that were not listed properly by the debtor

The time span of Chapter 7:

The Petition

The first thing that happens is a petition is filed with the bankruptcy court. Once you submit a petition request for bankruptcy the courts order a “Meeting of Creditors” or a “341 meeting”. This is usually 60 days after the petition has been filed and you’re required to be at that meeting.

Meeting of Creditors

As stated above, you are REQUIRED to be at that meeting. You’ll sit before a Trustee of the Court (a judge), you and any creditors, or the creditors attorney’s who feel they have reason to stop the discharge. You’ll be the only one under oath while the judge and creditors’ representatives ask you questions.

Sounds scary don’t it. Going into the 341 meeting I had this image of a stern court judge and five pitbull attorneys tearing me apart. As it turns out the judge, she was really nice and get this, NO CREDITORS SHOWED UP.

This still doesn’t discharge your debts, whether creditors show up or not they still have 45 days from the 341 meeting to appeal to the courts. In this time you may be asked for more documents showing proof of your financial status. Bank statements, more check stubs, last years tax returns.

If all goes well, in around 60 days after the meeting of creditors, you’ll receive your discharge papers in the mail. Discharging you from your debt.

Naturally every case is different, and conclusions and outcomes may vary. But that’s pretty much what happened in my case. Basically a petition was filed along with documentation of my complete financial status. 60 days later a Meeting of creditors. 60 days after that complete and total discharge of all my debts.

224 Financial Debt Solutions can be found @: http://dijdown.com/search.php?keyword=debt

What are the most common and costly IRA mistakes? They fall under four different categories; prohibited transactions, self-dealing, indirect benefits and unrelated business income tax (UBIT).

Under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), there are a number of transactions that cannot be made within a self directed IRA account, while maintaining the tax-free or tax-deferred status. Making a prohibited transaction can be a common and a very costly IRA mistake, particularly if your trustee is not well versed in the ERISA laws.

Here are some examples of transactions that are not allowed, within your IRA. You cannot borrow money from it or sell property to it. You cannot use the account as security for a loan. You may not use account funds to buy property for personal use, whether for a present or a future home. And, your trustee may not receive unreasonable compensation for managing it.

Self-dealing are common and costly IRA mistakes. Funds may not be used to buy property or securities from a “disqualified person”. Those who are disqualified under the self-dealing rule include you (as the account owner), your spouse, parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, your children and their spouses, and service providers for the account. Service providers for the account would include your trustee, CPA, financial planner, etc.

Transactions between your IRA account and companies or corporations that are owned by you or any of the people above are also prohibited. An exception applies if you own less than 50% of the company’s stock.

Indirect benefits could be common and costly IRA mistakes, as well. Under this rule, you have to understand that Individual Retirement Account funds are meant to secure your future. You are prohibited from receiving a benefit from them today. There are a number of examples.

One of the most common and costly IRA mistakes is taking a vacation in a rental property owned by the account. Even if you pay the rent, you are not allowed to enjoy this property and neither are the close family members mentioned above. Your sister or brother could rent the house for a week, but not “you” personally.

Normally, the passive income generated by an IRA is not subject to this tax. But, in certain situations, profits or rental incomes from houses owned or sold within the account may be. Unrelated business income tax, or UBIT is another very common and costly IRA mistake, which can be the result of a real estate transaction, which required the use of a mortgage or other financing vehicle.

Most advisors recommend that the best real estate transactions are “cash only”. In other words, the account can buy the property outright. Financing is allowed, but profits and rental incomes become subject to UBIT, which effectively reduces income margins.

There are other examples of income within the account that would be subject to UBIT. Check with your trustee or tax advisor, if you are unsure. It is better to be safe than make one of these common and costly IRA mistakes

Paul Clinton: Dedicated to researching ways to invest in real estate while minimizing the risk and maximizing return on investment. For more information about Real Estate IRA Investments, please click on the following link: http://www.IRA-and-Private-Money-Investing.com

Background checks of any type can be used for both personal and professional reasons. There are as many different reasons out there to run them as to not. When you are doing these, there are different legal issues with which you have to deal. In some cases, you are going to have to study the laws in your state before you attempt anything. In other cases, you are on your own when deciding what you should and should not do.

You have to be very careful when running background checks on potential employees. There are many laws in place that state the reasons why you should ask someone before you run any type of check. These can range from credit or criminal background, to things like academic or even medical records. For the most part, any company needs to get, in writing, permission from the applicant to get this information.

The problem with background checks is that things can come up that lead to a bias towards someone, but do not constitute legal reasons to disqualify a job candidate. Though this happens all of the time, it is not legal. Companies that have a Human Resources department are usually in the clear, as they already know the laws and regulations with background checks. That means they know what they can and can not do.

If you have a small business, however, and you have no idea what you are doing, you should find out your local and state laws before you dive into any background checks. This covers you if you decide not to hire someone and they get angry and try to retaliate. When you know you have a legal right, still do yourself a favor and have permission, in writing, from the applicant. Be careful when you use free online resources like FaceBook and MySpace, as these are being called into question (in regards to privacy issues) as well.

When it comes to personal relationships, on the other hand, you may not need any legal permission to run them. The person may never know you are doing it, and if you can find the information for free, there is no reason why you have to maintain a friendship or a relationship with someone who has a past that you can not come to grips with in any way. Try sites that give you an option for a free background check to see what you can find.

Neil Douglas likes to write about online investigations. Visit http://www.freebackgroundchecksusa.com to read more of his work.