**********************************************
The Virtual Consulting Discussion List [VCDL]
http://www.TheVCF.com/vcdl.phtml
Thursday, March 09, 2006 Digest #27
**********************************************
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List Moderator: Michael S.DeVries DeVries@cris.com
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TABLE OF CONTENTS ...
---> [NEW] <---
#1 Getting Back in Action! :) - A Message from
your Virtual Moderator
- Michael S. DeVries
#2 Is There Really an Easy way to start an Online
Business?
- E K Gann
#3 The magic of outsourcing
- Richard Jackson
#4 7 Reasons To Publish An Ezine
- Azam Corry
#5 Malware, Spyware and Viruss all things developed
to harm you PC
- Paul Cottam
#6 Consumer and Business Benefits from Switching
To VoIP
- Justin Brown
#7 Dos and Donts in Email Marketing to Increase
Your Income Online
- E K Gann
---> [CONTINUED] <---
---> [RESOURCES] <---
---> [NEWS] <---
---> [INTRO] <---
---> [HELP WANTED] <---
---> [ADMIN] <---
************* [NEW] ***************
#1 A Message from your Virtual Moderator
-----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 08 Mar 2006
From: "Michael S. DeVries" < DeVries
@cris.com>
Reply To: Virtual-Consulting@topica.com
Dear Fellow Virtual Consultants,
I bet you all thought I "fell off the face
of the earth" ;(, huh?
Nope! ;)
Please do all accept my sincere apologies for
the longer than anticipated and unintended interval
since the publication of our last Digest of The
Virtual Consulting Discussion List.
And …
Thank You! to all of our loyal VCDL Members for
all of your patience and understanding in "hanging"
and "bearing" with me through all of
the evolution that The Virtual Consulting Discussion
List, and the World of Virtual Consulting, has
undergone in the now almost Three (3) Years of
publication of The Virtual Consulting Discussion
List! :)
You will also soon be receiving a separate Announcement
from our primary sponsor, The Virtual Consulting
Firm, for which I also act as a Principal, which
will give you some indication as to some of the
exciting developments which have kept me "tied
up" since the publication of the last Digest
of The Virtual Consulting Discussion List, and
through which you may also now further Benefit
as a loyal Member of The Virtual Consulting Discussion
List.
So …
Please keep your "eyes peeled" for
this Special Announcement (email message) coming
to you, from The Virtual Consulting Firm, soon!
I should (hopefully) now be "freed up"
enough again to be able to devote the appropriate
necessary time and attention required to again,
on a more regular publication schedule, put together
the quality content that you have come to expect,
and hopefully enjoyed and benefited from, in The
Virtual Consulting Discussion List :)
I am also (always) "on the lookout"
for some more good Free Gifts, just for, and
that will be of value and benefit to all, VCDL
Members, for which I will send you all as a separate
email message with the instructions on how you
may claim your further Free Gifts for your participation
in The Virtual Consulting Discussion List! :)
Therefore, if any of you happen to have a Free
Gift you would also like to share with all of
your Fellow VCDL Members, then …
Please send me the necessary information, and
a copy of, your Free Gift for, consideration
to offer to, all of your Fellow VCDL Members,
and I will also get all of these (appropriate)
further Free Gifts, with appropriate "credit"
to, and Great PR for, you for your sharing it
with us all! :), out to all of our Fellow VCDL
Members as soon as possible, ok?
Please also let me know if there are some (types
of) Free Gifts that you feel would be of particular
interest and value to you, and your Fellow VCDL
Members and I will see what I may be able to find,
get for, and provide to you all as further valuable
Free Gifts for all of your participation in The
Virtual Consulting Discussion List, ok?
So …
Please also keep your "eyes open" for
these messages containing even more Free Gifts
for you, as a Member of The Virtual Consulting
Discussion List, (hopefully) also coming soon!,
ok?
I would also, as always, Love to hear from each
of you! :), regarding …
What you would all like to see? And …
What would be to the most benefit to you? …
In future Digests of The Virtual Consulting Discussion
List.
Ok?
I would also, always, Love to receive and Post
any pertinent discussion points, Articles you
have written, etc. here in The Virtual Consulting
Discussion List, for all of our further mutual
benefit, ok?
Therefore, Please send any and all of your feedback
regarding what all you would like to see, and
your Postings for inclusion in, the future Digests
of The Virtual Consulting Discussion List to me
at:
Virtual-Consulting@topica.com
Or at: …
DeVries@cris.com
(which requires your response to the SpamArrest
"challenge" for your email messages
to reach me)
For the further mutual benefit of All of your
Fellow VCDL Members! :), ok?
Thank you all again for your participation as
a loyal Member of The Virtual Consulting Discussion
List and Have a Great Day! :)
Your (no longer absent ;)) Virtual Moderator,
- Michael S. DeVries
-----------------------------------------------------------
#2 Is There Really an Easy way to start an Online
Business?
-----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 1 Mar 2006 10:28:29 -0500
From: ekgann2006@yahoo.com
Reply To: Virtual-Consulting@topica.com
Many found the task either too confusing, too
difficult, too time consuming, too expensive or
downright impossible!
You got to believe "there is no free lunch…………….."
Starting an online business is Easy. You can get
it for free if you desire.
Getting an income out of your online business
is something different.
Different and/is not Difficult
The single biggest piece of advice every marketer
gave:
built a list of targeted opportunity seekers so
you could keep in touch with them and make product
recommendations to earn affiliate commissions.
"Believes create miracles"
Until you really believe that you can achieve
the sort of income you're looking for online,
you'll never take the necessary actions to get
achieve your goals.
Many people will procrastinate and do things only
when they have no other choice.
You got to set yourself an ultimatum. If you don't
get this to work, what will happen?
You'll just give up and go back to the rat race?
You must treat this as your business and not a
hobby.
If you're always on the 'learning mode" and
not doing, it's a hobby.
You may know what you need to do to succeed but
actually taking the steps to do it is a whole
different story. Why people don't do things even
though they know they need to. You're not taking
action because you don't see the immediate impact
of your efforts. That's because you're focusing
on the process and not the result.
For people who are confused, they don't know where
to begin and they're confused with the technology.
Frustration crisped in.
Reduce your confusion is to take one step at a
time.
And always Get The First Steps Right.
Don't try to learn everything at once.
Confusion can only be reduced through experience.
If you don't take action on what you've learned
then you will get no experience.
Don't ever give up because you don't know how
to work a program.
Again, focus on the results, not the process.
You only need to learn something once, and you
can use that knowledge to produce your income
many times.
Ask other people and search around the forums
to find an answer for your confusion. There's
no such thing as a stupid question. Start visiting
forums, you'll find the most helpful people there,
if you are willing and humble enough to ask for
answers.
This article is written by E K Gann. His aim is
to work together and help others starting business
online. Especially beginners who are facing problems
and difficulties getting resources, and those
in need for Personal Development; in marketing,
sales, self improvement, motivation and continue
education. He has been following the footsteps
of a man who earns $3,244,842.32 in 27 months!
You can do the same. Find out how he do
it: http://www.parabots.net/x.cgi?id=368&tid=4
View their website at: http://www.parabots.net/x.cgi?id=368&tid=4
-----------------------------------------------------------
#3 The magic of outsourcing
-----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 7 Mar 2006 13:14:59 -0500
From: webmaster@aumenta.cc
Reply To: Virtual-Consulting@topica.com
The magic of outsourcing
Written by Richard Jackson
"The survival of the fittest" is not
only the motto of the animal kingdom, but of the
business world as well. In order to survive in
a highly competitive market, business entities
have to adopt aggressive strategies for optimum
utilisation of their available resources (including
their manpower). Outsourcing has become an important
business strategy for survival and success in
the market place.
Nowadays there is a major tendency of businesses
to outsource their business processes such as
customer care and data processing to an external
provider in the pursuit of success. A typical
example is of a medium-size manufacturer of electronic
products who finds it difficult to operate his
customer care department within his affordable
budget. He gets in touch with a service provider
in India which has a well-trained and highly skilled
workforce that manages his customer care requirements
admirably and well within his stipulated budget.
Soon he finds himself on the stairway to success.
Of course, the results may not be visible overnight
but within a short period of 3 - 6 months the
owner is pleased, the service provider is happy
and the customer is truly satisfied. It is a win-win
situation. This is the magic of outsourcing.
There is nothing wrong about outsourcing and
everything right about it.
That's why it has become a popular buzzword in
the modern business world.
Keep functions such as Corporate Planning and
finance within your grasps.
Do not outsource functions you specialise in yourself
whether it is production or database management.
Then decide on the remaining areas such as customer
service perhaps or even the logistics function.
Can they be outsourced? Each individual business
will have its own response to this vital self-analysis.
Then the logical follow-up will be to whom should
they outsource these functions to. Again, the
decision taken should be uniquely suited to the
requirements of the organisation. Actually, many
companies outsource their business functions without
even realising it.
When you pay Fedex for delivering your parcels
and correspondences you are in fact outsourcing.
When you hire security guards from a specialist
agency to protect your premises once again you
are outsourcing.
However, business enterprises should be careful
about which service provider they will opt for
to manage their outsourcing requirements. The
low cost vendor will have the same demerits in
comparison with his more 'expensive' rival as
the flea market will have in comparison with a
high-class shopping mall like Bloomingdales. There
will definitely be a greater reliability in the
quality of services provided by a vendor who quotes
a higher price but has better staff, better infrastructure
and can satisfy your customers better.
The Customer Relationship Management (CRM) function
of the vendor should be like the BBC i.e. 24 hours
a day, seven days a week. This will be a boon
to the customers or even prospective customers
who require to be attended with a personal touch
so that they can obtain relevant information about
the products and services on offer. A CRM serves
as a marketing as well as a fulfillment function
for the business.
The customer should be encouraged to speak directly
to the manager rather than agents for important
ordering of products or services. For example,
if one wants to buy a custom-made car he or she
would approach the designer first and not the
mechanic who would actually implement the design.
It is but obvious that the manager is in a better
position to attend to the major customer demands
due to his knowledge of the actual customer requirements
due to his experience and his awareness of the
system as a whole. Besides, it is he who actually
has trained the executive.
India has become popular as a BPO destination
as it has the demographic advantage of a high
number of educated people who are IT savvy and
can communicate in excellent English. There are
numerous other advantages as well such as lower
overheads, Government support, improving telecom
infrastructure, lower infrastructure costs, hardworking
and dedicated staff, and the focus on quality
control by the service providers. There is an
improvement in quality and productivity of services
rendered by these vendors in India.
The outsourcing of various processes lead to
an economy of scale for the business and the operations
of the organisation can easily be scaled to meet
the requirements of the market. The expertise
of the service provider can result in better output,
an increase in the standard of the services rendered
and a better reputation for the outsourcing organisation.
There should be no compromise on costs when selecting
a suitable service provider as the fees charged
is nothing but an investment that will benefit
the outsourcing organization in the long run.
Thus, outsourcing is the way forward for most
enterprises whether they are corporate giants
or SMEs. It could be the key to their survival.
It is the key to their success.
Read more about Aumenta Services at http://www.aumenta.cc
Aumenta offers Call Center Services to small
enterprises.
View their website at: http://www.aumenta.cc
-----------------------------------------------------------
#4 7 Reasons To Publish An Ezine
-----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 7 Mar 2006 13:14:27 -0500
From: articles@nowsell.com
Reply To: Virtual-Consulting@topica.com
7 Reasons To Publish An Ezine
Written by Azam Corry
1. Publish A Free Ezine For Selling Products
You could publish a free ezine or newsletter
to promote your own or affiliate products, MLMs,
etc. This is the most common format, and to work
well requires quality - preferably original -
content related to your business and products
so that it stands out from the crowd.
2. Publish Free Ezine For Selling Advertising
Space
You could publish a free ezine or newsletter
to sell advertising spots and exclusive mailings
to other businesses. Similar in format to the
previous example, except that instead of using
the ezine as a vehicle for promoting your own
products, you use it to generate ad revenue. This
approach is often favored by those new online
and / or without their own product, using mainly
contributed articles for content and combining
the promotion of affiliate programs with ad sales.
3. Publish A Paid Subscription Ezine
You could charge a monthly or yearly subscription
to your ezine or newsletter. Unless your annual
subscription is fee is relatively little, you
will probably make more money with a low monthly
fee automatically charged to the subscriber's
credit card. Note that you need quality, highly
targeted original to be successful selling ezine
subscriptions like this.
4. Publish A Free Ezine As A Lead-In To One With
More Value
You could publish a free ezine or newsletter
as a "lite" version of paidsubscription
ezine that offers higher value content. You would
simply provide a taste of each piece of content
in your free ezine, with "full version"
articles of greater depth that provide more details
and specialized information, 100% original content,
secrets of the trade, etc., available with a paid
subscription.
Another variant on this model would be to charge
a small subscription fee for an ad-free version
of your publication. Some people don't want to
get advertisements in every issue and are willing
to pay to get rid off them. Free subscribers would
get ads and paid subscribers wouldn't.
5. Publish A Free Ezine And Charge For The Archives
Yet another way to make money with an ezine is
to charge a one time fee for lifetime access to
your ezine archives. Obviously, for this to work
you'll need to have plenty of issues archived
already, offering substantially original and/
or unique content. They also need to be searchable,
which isn't difficult these days using Google,
or at the very least indexed by topic.
6. Publish A Free Ezine And Sell Reprint Rights
You could publish a free ezine or newsletter
that has original content and promotes various
related affiliate products. You could then package
it up into a set with graphics and a sales page
and sell it or charge people a subscription fee
to reprint each issue and use it as their own
ezine. They would just have to change the titles,
contact info and affiliate link codes.
In a different twist, you could promote your
own products in the ezine and give it away to
your own affiliates as a promotional tool. Alternatively,
you could still give away your ezine with free
reprint rights, but require that certain links
to your website or affiliate promotions are maintained
for a semi-viral effect.
7. Publish A Free Ezine And Sell A Print Edition
You could publish a free ezine or newsletter
and charge for a subscription for a print edition
delivered every month. Put additional premium
content in the print edition, similar to how you
would do a subscription ezine.
The added benefit of a doing a tangible print
version is that you can charge more for it because
the perceived value is higher, plus you can make
a little extra on the shipping charges too.
Online since 1997, Azam Corry Cuts Through The
Hype To Help You
Develop a Winning Web Marketing Strategy. Subscribe
To His Blog
For More Free Articles, Tools And Resources.
Get His Free Ezine Promotion Plan With Expert
Tips For YOUR Ezine!
View their website at: http://www.NowSell.com
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Submit or Reprint Free Articles for Websites and
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-----------------------------------------------------------
#5 Malware, Spyware and Viruses all things developed
to harm you PC
-----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 7 Mar 2006 13:12:53 -0500
From: paul_cottam@hotmail.com
Reply To: Virtual-Consulting@topica.com
Malware, Spyware and Virus's all things developed
to harm you PC
Written by Paul Cottam
How many people do you know that bought a PC
that came with a limited virus package that have
never paid for updates or have not even bothered
to install and Anti Virus software on there PC,s
at all
With all the Spyware and malicious Malware out
the on the net now, especaily as most people now
how broadband access and as a result most PC's
are left connected to the internet for long periods
or indefinitely the chances of a security threat
is now very common
There are literally millions of computors out
there connected to the internet with no antivirus
sotware installed, many people simply cant afford
to pay for the ever increasing cost of such software.
Some even call for windows to come as standard
with antivirus software built in, fortunatley
there is an alternative that is FREE
When ever I am asked to help sort out a friend's
PC, be it a simple windows problem or a complete
reformat and reinstall of Windows. I always take
along a CD with a few useful programs stored on
disc. One is AV Antivirus from Grisoft, the next
is Microsoft Antispyware now called Defender and
the last is Swait a Anti Trojan and Bot Scanner/Remover
all programs are FREE and so there is no excuse
for not being protected at home
This is especially important if like me you have
a home network that has several PC,s connected
to it, one infected PC will infect all others
on the network very quickly. Often malicious code
can be downloaded very easily from the internet
with even knowing, one of the main areas for infecting
your PC with Spyware is by the use of file sharing
software (P2P peer to peer networking) and some
freeware which can often come bundled with Spyware
that installs without informing you
This is especially important if you share your
PC with other members of the household, or have
other PC's linked into your network as not everyone
is as security conscious as yourself and guests
etc often download and install stuff without thinking.
That new tool bar that they installed because
it gave them more emoticons to use in there instant
messenger or shopping helper starts to hijack
your browser settings. Suddenly your home page
changes and despite having a pop up blocker you
get regular timed pop up windows, some Spyware
like this can be so difficult to remover and occasional
leads to a reinstallation of the operating software
One other necessity has to be a pop up blocker
and my personal favorite has to be the Google
tool bar as it allows you to use the full search
facilities and block pop ups very effectively.
Also effective in this area is the Yahoo tool
bar which comes with some Antispyware features
although I have never tested this function
Windows XP has some good security features in
the Service Pack 2 download (SP2) and includes
a Firewall that is simple but effective to use
, I keep SP2 on a CD for any reformats that I
have to do, as Microsoft is removing some of the
downloads like this as it rolls back its support
for older versions of windows
There is a great online tool from Norton that
you can use to scan your PC for and security threats
including virus's from Symantec Security Check
page simply press the go button and let Symantec
scan your PC for FREE
All in all theres really no excuse for not protecting
your PC security and if we don't the net will
continue to drown in email virus's and spam until
one day the whole internet will become clogged
and ultimatley it will grind to a halt
Paul Cottam built his first Web site in 1996 and
has lots of information on anyone interested in
Land Rovers, Stage Rallying, Classic Car Restoration,
Rock Climbing and much more, he now builds affordable
websites for small companies and is successful
in the art of Search Engine Optimisation
View their website at: http://www.paul-cottam.co.uk
[Reminder: You may find some of these and additional
resources for protecting yourself against Malware,
Spyware and Viruses and other things developed
to harm you PC in The Virtual Consultants' Resource
center, for which some "quick links"
are provided below for your convenience and further
benefit:
Anti-Spyware -
http://www.thevcf.com/vccenter.phtml#SPYWARE
Anti-Virus - http://www.thevcf.com/vccenter.phtml#ANTIVIRUS
Firewalls and other Security software - http://www.thevcf.com/vccenter.phtml#SECURITY
Toolbars - http://www.thevcf.com/vccenter.phtml#TOOLBAR
]
-----------------------------------------------------------
#6 Consumer and Business Benefits from Switching
To VoIP
-----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 3 Mar 2006 10:21:57 -0500
From: justinbrownmail@yahoo.co.uk
Reply To: Virtual-Consulting@topica.com
Consumer and Business Benefits from Switching
To VoIP
Written by Justin Brown
There are not many that haven't heard of VoIP
and the benefits that it can bring to a consumer
and cut costs for a business. However, many will
be wondering whether VoIP is something that they
need and what the benefits will be of changing
over to VoIP. In this article I will highlight
some of the key points and you can then decide
for yourself.
From a consumer standpoint, VoIP can provide
an opportunity to make significant cost savings.
This is especially the case for those that make
long distance calls, but how can this be? Well
long distance calls are carried over your computer
broadband internet connection and bypasses the
telephone company altogether, meaning that a lot
of taxes and charges are not incurred.
The saving in long distance calling can result
in a massive saving for businesses. Furthermore,
the amount of VoIP service providers entering
the market means that the competition and resulting
pricing battle between the providers is good for
many businesses looking to convert to VoIP.
In order for VoIP to work well, it is important
that you have a good bandwidth connection (DSL
or broadband). Other necessities include a regular
phone or a computer microphone, and a VoIP route
adaptor in order for your phone to connect to
the internet. The fantastic advantage that you
receive with the converter is that it has your
number assigned to it. You may think "what
is so good about that?", well I'll explain.
As your number is assigned to the converter rather
than the line that your usual phone connects to,
you are able to plug the converter into any broadband
connection and immediately utilize your usual
number for making and receiving calls. You'll
also of course need to sign up with a VoIP service
provider beforehand.
You may find that many VoIP companies offer free
voicemail, caller ID, call waiting, speed dialing,
call forwarding, plus 3-way calling and a lot
more. Take a look around at the providers and
also take the opportunity to use the trials that
many companies are offering.
VoIP is still a very new technology and promises
to advance significantly over the coming years.
However, the benefits are already shining through,
and it may soon appear that regular analogue phone
system companies may not be able to compete with
the advancements of VoIP. Only time will tell,
but it looks as though VoIP is definitely here
to stay and will soon take over in many homes
and business premises throughout the world as
a cheaper alternative to existing phone lines.
Consider looking further into what VoIP has to
offer by visiting the website below. You will
find a lot of interesting information and may
settle any queries that you have about what VoIP
is, what it has to offer, and which providers
you should consider choosing.
Justin Brown provides informative articles on
VoIP at his site; http://www.voip-serviceproviders.info.
Here you can find great info and learn about this
hot new technology. He also runs http://www.idealauto.co.uk
where you can sell or buy any used cars online.
View their website at: http://www.voip-serviceproviders.info
-----------------------------------------------------------
#7 Dos and Donts in Email Marketing to Increase
Your Income Online
-----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 1 Mar 2006 10:28:32 -0500
From: ekgann2006@yahoo.com
Reply To: Virtual-Consulting@topica.com
Email is free. Or almost next to zero cost.
One major draw back is using it as an illegitimate
marketing tool, spamming. Everyone hates receiving
Spam and resent those that send it.
Building the List
Based on your business niche, acquire a relevant
list of potential customers or prospects. Built
up a list from the beginning can be time consuming.
But once someone request to be put into your emailing
list, you can periodically send them messages
to keep them informed of your products or services.
These are referred to as "opt-in" lists.
Most importantly is with these lists, you have
their permission to continue communication.
With your newly acquired high quality list, make
use of it wisely.
These guidelines give you the Dos and Don'ts in
making sure you produce results in the coming
years:
Don't create a campaign that promotes scams
or illegitimate businesses.
Your offers and information should be legitimate,
to create trust for a long time business.
Do make sure the content is as relevant to the
request the list asked for in the first place
when they opt-in into your list.
Do format your messages for easy reading.
Do make sure the subject line are short and to
the point.
Do personalize the messages, like using the prospects'
first name.
Don't send too much or too often. They are annoying.
Timed your messages, control the frequency. Prevents
overusing.
Don't include attachments. Many people will avoids
opening attachments as this is one of the most
common ways viruses are distributed.
Do focus on the objective of your message.
Do creates urgency to response to your offers.
Do provide up sells, if the opportunity arise.
Do promise your prospects that information you
gather through the opt-ins are safe, and their
privacy are maintained.
Don't send your message to the entire list at
once. Do some testing on a small number and monitor
the responses.
Email Marketing will allows you to create an
ongoing dialogue and established rapport with
your prospects and customers. It can starts helping
you to build those all-important relationships.
And with this level of relationships that you
have with your prospects and customers, it will
determine your online business's success in the
future years.
This article is written by E K Gann. His aim is
to work together and help others starting business
online. Especially beginners who are facing problems
and difficulties getting resources, and those
in need for Personal Development; in marketing,
sales, self improvement, motivation and continue
education. He has been following the footsteps
of a man who earns $3,244,842.32 in 27 months!
You can do the same. Find out how he do
it: http://www.parabots.net/x.cgi?id=368&tid=4
View their website at: http://www.parabots.net/x.cgi?id=368&tid=4
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