T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy S II, HTC Amaze 4G Available Online

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If you've been waiting for either one of these two phones, you should be happy to find out that both the Samsung Galaxy S II and the HTC Amaze 4G are now available on T-Mobile's website.

The T-Mobile Galaxy S II packs a 4.52-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen, HSPA+ capability, but won't be powered by Samsung's own Exynos processor but will use a Qualcomm chip APQ8060 clocking at 1.5GHz. It goes for $229.99 with a two-year contract.

The HTC Amaze 4G packs a similar 1.5 GHz dual-core processor, has NFC support, and a 4.3-inch qHD display which packs more pixels than the Galaxy S II. Both the white and black versions go for $259.99 with a new, two-year contract.

Source: T-Mobile (1)(2)(3)
Via: TmoNews

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Sprint Epic 4G Touch Now Available Online

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We know this is the moment many of you have been waiting for! The just announced Epic 4G Touch, Sprint's Samsung Galaxy S II is now available online from the carrier.

It goes for $199.99 with a two-year contract, or $499.99 for the phone only. It sports a 4.52-inch Super AMOLED Plus display, radio capable of 3G/4G speeds, Mobile Hotspot functionality, video chat capability, 1.2GHz dual-core Exynos SoC and a very slim form factor.

Source: Sprint

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Satellite Hotspot Gets You Online Anywhere, But At What Cost?

No matter how powerful our smartphones are, and what advanced 4G services they can access, their usefulness takes a nosedive when you can't find a data signal. Thankfully, we can usually get by with the likes of GPRS or another slower-speed connection, but sometimes even that signal's not available. When you're going to be out in the middle of nowhere, there will soon be a way to get your smartphone online even then, but there are some pretty huge caveats to consider.

Satellite communication provider Iridium offers globetrotters reliable communication via its hand-held satellite phones. Now it plans to extend those services to providing satellite-based WiFi hotspot connectivity through the Iridium AxcessPoint.

The $200 AxcessPoint connects to a separate Iridium satphone for communications, making it pretty expensive for an accessory that can't even get online by itself. Those phones are in the $1000 range, and then the actual data service is a little over a dollar a minute.

For that kind of money, it must have some pretty impressive performance, right? You'd better dissuade yourself of any dreams of watching Netflix from a mountaintop, because we're looking at data speeds around 26-27Kbps ? that's roughly 1000 times slower than modern LTE, and slower than nearly all dial-up internet connections.

Getting your phone online through the AxcessPoint will be slow, expensive, and require lugging around a bunch of extra hardware. On some occasions, though, there just aren't any other options. The Iridium AxcessPoint will be out sometime in Q4 2011.

Source: Iridium
Via: PCMag

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Broadband Internet - Why Purchase Service Online?

You've made the decision to purchase broadband internet access for your home or office. What's your next step? Do you contact your local provider directly and sign up? This is certainly and option, but one that may not be in your best interest.

Contacting one local provider may not be your best option because it limits your choices. It limits the specials available to you. You see, the competition for your business is fierce. There can be a number of vendor choices each offering the same or different access methods and specials. There's cable access, DSL access, satellite access. Each comes with it's own pro's and con's.

You might live in an area where all three-access methods (not counting dial-up) are available. You may live in an area where only 2 or even 1 vendor is available. How do you know? Which do you choose?

The simple way is to contact the one vendor you know of, but there is another way. Use an online-brokered service.

These services should be FREE to you and provide information as well as quotes from multiple vendors within your area. There are many services available on the internet for you to access this information. Of course we'd like you to use our service, free of charge, but any service you find should provide you with the following.

Information - It's critical that you be provided with the information you need to make informed decisions.

Quotes for service - You should be allowed free access to quoting software that will search out and report back all the available vendors within your area. This quote should be free to you as well as identify who the vendor is, what type of service it is, detailed technical information about the service, price, contract length and what specials are available to you.

Lastly, there should be something in it for you as well. When searching for these types of services, don't forget to see what's in it for you! For one, our service offers rebates in addition to the vendor specials. Ok, we're biased here because we believe our service is the best, but other sites probably offer the same incentives. Also look for another level of support. You can go directly to the vendor of your choice with questions about modems, routers, email accounts, etc. and then wait until someone from their support group gets back to you. If you've purchased your broadband service using a brokered service on the internet, you should be able to contact them as well. An additional level of service is another incentive to purchasing your service online.

If you contact a single vendor chances are you're not going to receive unbiased information. A broker does provide unbiased information because they are not tied to a single provider. Having access to multiple providers with multiple access types allows the flexibility to search out and find the 'appropriate' service and the best price and provides value for using the service.

In closing, find a service that is FREE for you to use and provides the information, quotes for service and provides value to you in the way of cash rebates, information and another level of support.

Enjoy your broadband internet experience.

This article provided by Try Right Technology, Inc. Visit us at [http://www.trightrates.com]

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Online Bill Payment Services - The Wave For Merchant Retailers, Cheap Phone Cards

PREPAID CELLULAR TIME

Prepaid Cellular Are A Smart Choice!

There are huge demands for prepaid services all over the world, somewhere in the neighborhood of 120 million prepaid cellular and long distance users in North America along. The growth of the pre-paid wireless industry has been truly astonishing, and there is no end in site. In Europe, over 75% of all cellular phones are pre-paid. With the high deposit costs required to get a non pre-paid cellular phone, many people simply have not been able to afford to get one and penalties for the people who can afford cellular phones, if service is canceled. Pre-paid is the answer.

Your Customers Prepay and Never Get Overcharged.

Wireless with no contracts or monthly fee, your customers take control of their cell phone usage with Prepaid Cellular Service.

-Budget minded cell phone users

-Emergency users

-Parents who want their kids to stay in touch without the worry of running up a bill

-People with some damaged or no credit history

Prepaid cellular services are getting very popular these days. Many people now prefer prepaid services since they offer a variety of advantages related to lifestyle and cost control that simply are not available through post-paid contract based services.

Prepaid cell phones have a distinct advantage over regular subscriptions. They offer cost control with a fixed price per minute, control over costs with cell phones distributed by parents, no credit check and increased anonymity.

Increasing Consumer Demand For Prepaid Cellular

Prepaid cellular services are currently the fastest-growing segment of the wireless phone market, perhaps because wireless service can be started up with no subscription fee for well under $100. More and more people are using this service to control spending than to get around credit problems.

In Europe, already more than 60% of subscribers are on a prepaid wireless plan, while in the United States, only 8 to 10 percent of users have chosen that system. But it's growing fast: In Canada, for example, some providers see their prepaid subscribers base increase 50% faster than those of an ordinary monthly billed service.

Prepaid Cellular Phones Are Ideal In The Following Situations:

* If your customers want to budget their cell phone use

* If want a phone for occasional use but don't want to pay a monthly service fee or enter a long-term agreement

* If have no credit history or past credit problems

* If usage varies from month to month

* If want to buy children a phone for emergency use but restrict the amount of calls they make, or

* If are looking for a gift

* If don't feeling comfortable providing information for a carrier credit check

* If want to learn about their usage patterns before committing to a long-term monthly billing wireless contract.

Prepaid deals let your customers budget their spending in advance. Customers will never spend more than had originally planned with prepaid. Customers that need control cost of their cellular services use only their prepaid minutes and keep on track with budges. The ability to pay for the exact number of minutes used - and no more - appeals to everyone.

-up-front cost control

-no long-term contracts

-life-saver for emergencies - accidents, breaking down on the road

Advantages Of Prepaid Cellular Service:

Provides lifestyle advantages: The abilities to limit calling expenditures as well as service duration are especially attractive to students, parents, young professionals, and businesses with contract employees.

Young subscribers and their parents benefit because the possibility of receiving an unexpected large bill in the mail is eliminated.

Allows people who may not have established credit histories to enjoy the wireless communication.

Prepaid Cellular Service offers customers more flexibility, and the ability to pay up front for their cellular service - with no contracts, no credit checks and no monthly bills.

Prepaid cell phone service allows your customer to control their costs by giving them the freedom to purchase and redeem airtime on an as-needed basis without contracts and commitments.

For someone who doesn't want to talk a lot - able to limit themselves to less than one hour a month -prepaid cellular are more affordable than monthly contracts, with fewer hassles in starting or stopping service.

With prepaid cell phones, customers pay for what they expect to use upfront giving them total control of their cellular costs. Every time your customers use their cell phones, they buy some airtime. Just remember your customers will be repeat customers coming to your place of business to top-up their account before they run out.

Users enjoy the ability to control costs and retain privacy. They get the freedom and convenience of cell phone service with no deposit, credit check, contract or activation fee. Prepaid minutes can be spread over several months, usually two or three, so if use only phone occasionally, it can be less expensive than paying every month for airtime for airtime that they won't use.

Now from a single POSA Terminal, a retail merchant can offer his customers multiple Pre-Paid services.

This method is superior to merchants having to use "LIVE" pre-paid cards that are expensive to purchase and are plagued by theft.

A merchant must make as many as 10 Pre-Paid card sales to makeup for the theft of one live card!

But now, with the P.O.S. Activation System, these problems are a thing of the past.

Merchants receive an inventory and marketing materials, at no cost to them.

These Inventory have no value unless they are activated at the P.O.S. Terminal.

This has several advantages:

Eliminates Theft - The display have no value.

Reduces Display Space - There is no need for cards with multiple dollar denominations.

Encourages Repeat Business - Benefits to Merchants:

-Generate high income on each high-speed transaction-no upfront costs

-Choice of prepaid programs to meet merchant needs

-Aggressive commission programs

-Pay only for what you sell

-Eliminate stock shortages for specific scratch cards

-Encourage routine consumer visits

-Attract new customers with the added convenience

-Promote other consumer purchases at the ATM and in the store.

If you're a merchant retail business owner, and would like to receive the most knowledgeable beneficial benefits on how bill payment & cellular services benefits your business and customers...then this is a must read on.

www.billpaymentservice.blogspot.com - A SMART Solution Made For Smart Merchant Retail Businesses! The Wave Of The Future. The SMART Solutions. Retail Licensing Provider Of Bill Payment Services & Prepaid Cellular Services.

For More Information Go To: http://www.prepaidwireless.walkinmoneysolutions.com

If we can help you in any way, please do not hesitate to contact us! 1-877-947-3577

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10 Tips To Incorporating A Business With An Online Incorporation Service

If you're incorporating a business, read these 10 tips for incorporating a business with an online incorporation service.

10 Tips To Incorporating a Business with an Online Incorporation Service

1. Budget Properly

When budgeting, note that the State/Province filing fees are in addition to the stated incorporation service cost. Each State/Province has prescribed fees that may cost as much or even more than the incorporation service.

Moreover, understand the full scope of your needs and then price those requirements among the services. Maybe you need a trademark register and/or are closing an existing business. These are add-on services that you might be able to arrange favorable pricing in a bundle.

2. Assess the Customer Support

We all like communicating in different ways. Maybe you prefer e-mail. Other people prefer phone.

Be sure the incorporation service you choose offers a support mode that suits you. For significant purchases such as incorporating a business, I assess customer support before a purchase by the level of assistance I get with the sales department.

Of course, the sales assistance isn't 100% indicative of the actual support you'll receive, but it's a good start in your decision-making process.

Some online incorporation services offer access to an attorney. If you require legal advice to determine the structure and other details of your incorporation, then the service with access to legal advice may be the service for you.

3. Understand Your Needs

There are many options when incorporating a business. The more common structures include:


Regular C-Corporation
S-Corporation
Professional Corporation
Limited Liability Company (LLC)
Non-Profit Corporation
Professional Limited Liability Company.

Moreover, determine whether you have any unique Articles of Incorporation needs to incorporate into your Articles of Incorporation.

If you have complex requirements, you may be better off hiring your own business attorney to do the incorporation for you.

If you're intent on an online service, then look at the packages each sells. Most incorporation services offer packages that result in savings. Choose the package that suits your needs best.

4. Choose a Service that Reviews Your Information?

When you use an online incorporation service, you provide information to series of questions. Choose a service that will review your answers and will then seek clarification if unclear or there's something not right.

In other words, look for a service that's actively involved in your incorporation - and not merely relying on software to spit out documents without any human review.

5. Consider Future Needs of your Company's Paperwork

Your incorporation will require ongoing paperwork - annual filings and perhaps additional documentation and/or changes. Ensure the service you choose offers all the follow-up services you may require in the future. The above-listed services are full-service online incorporation services that offer the ongoing services you may require.

Some future/additional services you might need include:


trademark and/or copyright registration,
filing a foreign qualification,
obtaining a business name (DBA),
obtaining an employer identification number,
closing a business, and/or
obtaining a business license.

6. Check out Testimonials, Media Coverage & Accolades

One easy way to find out if an incorporation service delivers, is to read what other people have to say. Read the testimonials on the services' websites. See what kind and scope of media coverage the service received.

Do positive testimonials mean your business incorporation will proceed flawlessly? Absolutely not. However, it's an indicator of what you might expect.

7. Can You Make Changes?

This is a very important service feature to look into. You might change your mind once you submit your incorporation order to a particular service. Find out whether the service will work with any changes / revisions you need after you submit your order.

8. Independent Legal Advice?

In an abundance of caution, you might have an attorney look over drafted documents before your incorporation documents are submitted for filing. Maybe you're thinking this would defeat the purpose of using an online service. Not necessarily. You'll still save the time of the attorney preparing the documents.

This attorney review is simply getting independent legal advice... which can't hurt.

9. Are You In a Hurry?

Sometimes you need your business incorporated immediately. Then you may opt for a service that can expedite the service very quickly. Note that some States have a set processing time which ties the hands of any incorporation service to expedite the service to your desired speed.

10. Auto-Annual Document Processing

Some services offer auto-annual filing. This is a great service so your incorporation documents are processed on time. However, you'll also be auto-billed for this as well.

So, if you switch services, be sure you cancel any auto-billing/service with your previous incorporation service otherwise you'll pay double.

Which incorporation services meet these criteria?

Check out this online incorporation services comparison chart to discover several prominent online incorporation services.

Or, read an in-depth review of this full-scale online incorporation services giant to see read about a quality service provider.

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Nissan Servicing Made Easy Online

A Nissan service caters to the majority of models within the Nissan vehicle range. Every vehicle is thoroughly serviced according to the manufacturer's servicing schedule, using original recommended parts fitted by qualified technicians. There are companies online who fulfill the warranty criteria when servicing your Nissan. They are able to maintain your service book, just like the main dealer. You can protect your warranty and maximize the resale value of your Nissan car.

Nissan servicing is not as expensive as it is made out to be. You can save money on servicing your Nissan. Browse the Web to know about the best service providers in the UK. Reputed providers offer professional car service experience in terms of customer service and cost. They constantly strive to improve their service criteria to the highest level, and at a cost effective price at that. It is achieved by quality checks with each garage they use and the feedback they get from their customers. There are many benefits of opting for a Nissan service. Each car is serviced as per the manufacturer's service schedule. Rest assured that your warranty is protected at all times. Your service book is stamped and all parts and labour are guaranteed for a year. Companies providing such service employ only well trained and qualified technicians. You are entitled to free collection, delivery, wash and vac. You can even get in touch with customer care executives to have your queries answered.

Nissan service offers an extensive list of checks, which are more often more comprehensive than what you would get at a main dealer. Approved garages stock the latest equipment, which allows qualified technicians and mechanics diagnose problems quickly and efficiently. What especially deserves to be mentioned is that independent garages can carry out a Nissan service without making your Nissan warranty invalid. A

Nissan service with an approved garage means that your car service has its warranty protected, because genuine parts which are of 'Original Equipment' (OE) quality standard are used.

All Nissan service books are stamped. Each Nissan service carries a 12 month Parts and Labour Guarantee. The Interim and Full service schedule descriptions are merely a guide of what will be done. They vary on what each manufacturer service schedule says, which means every Nissan service has its warranty protected at all times. Once all the work has been completed, your car will have a wash and vac and then it is returned to your home or work depending on what is convenient to you. Servicing cars, vans and fleet vehicles is fast catching up. It has assumed tremendous importance. The best part is the prices are cheaper compared to those of main dealers. All the parts used are genuine and under the supervision of qualified mechanics and technicians. Service providers aim to offer proficient and cost effective services. To book your car service, just give them a call or email them and they will do their best to resolve your issues.

Charlotte C. Marshall is the author of this article on Nissan Service.
Find more information about Nissan Service here.

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Online Fax Service - What Factors Makes For a Great Fax Service?

Internet or online fax services is one form of "cloud computing" which has really caught fire with companies - big and small. Mainly because by using an online fax service provider a company can save on space, hardware, inks, toners, papers... and this new modern way of faxing is much cheaper, especially when you consider there are no start-up costs and you don't have the monthly bill of an extra fax phone line.

When you throw in the fact that online faxing is completely mobile and makes any portable device like a cell phone, PDA, netbook or laptop a virtual fax machine. You can send and receive your faxes from anywhere as long as you have Internet access. This also makes your business available 24/7, 365 days of the year and if your company depends upon faxing to bring in sales or to contact clients; one can easily see why using an online fax service simply makes good business sense.

However, a word of caution, since this is usually a long-term business service or arrangement you have to be extremely careful when choosing a fax service. The prosperity of your business could be at stake if your company depends heavily upon faxing.

So what factors should you look for in a good fax service?

First, reliability is numero uno - you must have a reliable fax service that's completely functional around the clock. It must deliver all your faxes to you and it must send all your faxes to your clients. Needless to say, missed faxes means you lose business, therefore, reliability of any fax service should be first on your mind when choosing any provider. So thoroughly check out any service, read reviews, ask your colleagues or users of a particular service, visit forums to see what other users are saying, and use the vast resources of the web to help you in your quest. Do a little homework now and you won't be disappointed in the quality of the service you choose.

Second, you must check out all the costs associated with the fax service you pick, make sure there are no hidden fees that will cost you an arm and a leg over the long-haul. Most service are on average around $10 a month and you get 300 free faxes (incoming/outgoing) with your account. You will have to pay for extra faxes, rates go from 3 cents to 10 cents but there are cheaper rates and plans out there so it pays to shop around. Most but not all fax services have no set-up fees and most also let you have a free 30 Day Trial so that you can check out their service before you buy.

Third, most of the higher quality services will have many ways or methods which you can use to send/receive your faxes. Ease of use is one of the major factors online faxing has become so popular. You can send them directly thru your email system, your faxes are sent as an email attachment - usually as a Tiff or PDF. Almost all have an online account or interface where you can logon and read your faxes, you can also send your faxes from this online account. Most services also let you store your faxes here for a certain length of time. Many services also have a desktop application you can use to send your faxes.

Fourth, you must check to see what type of support a service provides. Most quality services have 24 hour support which you can contact if you should have any problems. Some services have regular 9 to 5 business hours support which could be a problem if you have urgent faxes to send and you come into trouble and have to wait to contact support.

Fifth, you must also check to see if your fax service is completely scalable for business. Most of the top brand name quality services are scalable for businesses, if you want to scale up or scale down, then you can instantly do this since there is no hardware (fax lines or fax machines) to install since everything is done through your computers and the Internet. Most services also have fax broadcasting, in case you have to send a fax to a large number of people at once, you can do this with one click.

To sum up, when choosing an online fax service, you will have to try to find an affordable, high quality reliable service that is available 24/7 and is completely scalable for your company or business. What more could you ask for?

For more information on Internet Fax Services use this handy online Comparison Guide to get your own: online fax service. Or if you want more detailed information on Internet Faxing try here: internet fax services. Titus Hoskins Copyright 2010. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

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Online Services Directory and Your Local Services - Where Feedback Counts!

Local services are unique in all their own rights. Unlike major corporations that span the globe, they are often small-scale in nature and provide their services at much lesser costs than their international counterparts.

There is a catch, however. The inability to actually regulate and monitor these local services is limited at best, and is often impractical to pursue in the end. Engaging in a lengthy legal battle for something as simple as an unpaid bill is definitely not worth the effort, while recklessly exposing yourself to the risks involved is a costly and ineffective alternative.

So what should you do?

The answer is simple: browse up an online services directory and search for the service you need.

What is an online services directory?

Simply put, an online services directory is a listing of the available services available in your locale. These services can range from writing and editing jobs to veterinary services and pet accessories, and are pretty easy to access from the safety of your home PC.

What advantages does it bring you?

There are several advantages that online services directories provide for the careful consumer. Online directories not only categorize providers based on their services, but they also provide an escrow service between consumer and provider, ensuring safe transactions.

Yet it is the option of feedback that empowers a consumer to have an impact on the provider's credibility.

Where does feedback fit into the situation?

Online services directories serve not just as hubs for local services to market their services. These directories are also self-contained communities that require a degree of professional commitment to enter into.

It works this way: providers cannot just sign up willy-nilly for an online services directory. They stake their good name when they do so, and their good name is worth much more in such a community when compared to unmonitored and uncontrolled transactions between consumer and provider.

Unlike unmonitored transactions, a provider's reputation a determinant of its ability to rise on top of the competition selling the same services in the directory. This makes a customer's feedback paramount to a provider's success in an online services directory.

What benefits does this imply for the consumer?

It is simple, really. The consumer is provided an environment where the consumer's feedback is a prime determinant of a provider's success in the directory.

That means that if just one consumer raises the scam or fraud alarm on a provider, you can expect that provider to quickly vanish from the community that makes up an online services directory. Local services will not easily be able to pull off a fast one on their consumers unless they totally want to ruin their business reputation in the community.

And there is also the matter of a safer environment for transactions in services directories. By escrowing payment between two parties, the directory holds on to the money and ensures that the consumer gets his or her money's worth from the provider. If the local services provider decides to run from their responsibilities, they will be doing so empty-handed, as the money is held by the directory - and will be promptly returned to the consumer.

iServU Online Service Directory is targeted to the Services industry. They provide a medium where consumers can connect to Services Companies and individuals. They have an average monthly traffic of 10,000 unique visitors and over 30,000 page views. This means they are visited by an average of 10,000 individuals monthly who are interested in availing certain services. By placing an advertisement on their website you have a chance of converting these 10,000 visitors to 10,000 paying clients.

If you are a consumer or a provider seeking a medium for conducting business, you may want to look for the security that an online service directory can provide.

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Choosing an Online Dating Service - 5 Things You Must Consider

Online dating is a rapidly growing phenomenon. With an overwhelming number of online dating services, estimated to be in the millions, it becomes increasingly difficult to choose the right one. There are many factors to consider, some of them are crucial to your online dating success.

Niche Service vs. Generic Service

First, you need to consider what type of relationship you are looking for, marriage, friendship, sex. The generic service does not focus on any specific demographic, so it may have a larger database, but how many of those who join everyday are really a match for you. If you are a person who is greatly concerned about race, religion or sexual orientation, you would probably be better off with a niche service. If you are looking for something that is not considered main stream, there is probably a dedicated service for you amongst the millions available services. It is my personal opinion that niche services are much more efficient than generic type services. Searching a database where most of the members are already qualified in some respect creates a more efficient and less frustrating experience. If you are still interested in using a generic service, send an email to the service in order to see if they cater to your special need. Some websites require you to sign up and sometimes pay blindly before they allow full search capability. It would be a shame to pay a fee, only to discover that very few match your need.

Local vs. National or International

It only makes sense to choose a service that caters to your local geographical location. You are going to filter all other people in your search anyway, aren't you? Maybe the hopeless romantic in me does not want to limit something as significant as love and relationships to a geographical area. Or maybe I am just curious to see if other singles look different, based on geographical location. Part of me always wanted to move, and signing up for a local service, just forces me to admit it. I just like to keep my options open. If these are your thoughts too, then a national service is for you. However, if you are more realistic, have two feet on the ground, and are definitely not the type who is cut out for a long distance relationship, you should probably sign up for a local service.

Paid Vs. Free

If you can get the service for free, why would you want to pay any money, right? Not necessarily. Is it the same service with the same quality? I can't tell you for sure. However you need to be aware of the pitfalls associated with free dating services. I don't want to resort to cliches like "you get what you pay for", but it seems to be true for online dating. There is something about a person who pays his hard earned money to find a match that makes me feel he is more serious than the one who chooses a free service. Also, the fact that a person gave his credit card number indicates he is more serious, reducing the chance of a fake profile messing with your heart. Few people will pay to be a fake.

Free dating services are notorious as places for lurking predators, spammers and prostitution services. And since they are free, the web masters will likely have less staff available to insure quality. So if you can find a match there, it could be after the effort of reducing all the noise, and filtering all the fake/promotional messages, greatly reducing the pleasure you derived from the experience. In addition, it is hard enough to put yourself (your profile) out there. You certainly don't want to be the subject of laughter or abuse from a group of bored teenagers, who had their afternoon off and didn't know what to do with their time.

Some free services can be good, but finding a good one will be a challenge, since all will tend to be subject to these pitfalls, just by virtue of what they cost. Often people choose to overlook these disadvantages because the service can sound so good, and very often these same people have bad experiences and decide to switch to a pay service anyway.

Features

You should choose an online dating service that is on top of the latest technological advancements. Today's top features include video chat and video downloading. These latest technologies allow you to both see and hear your potential date, before you actually meet them in person. And the more you learn about them before you actually give out your personal information, the less awkward it will be, and the less risky it will be. And when it comes to security, spammers and predators are known to work best where they can hide who they really are. The more visibility you have, the more exposed they will be. These latest technologies make it hard for them to hide, and give you better visibility and more security.

Choosing the service with the best features is a tough one. As I mentioned before, many dating services will not let you to use their best features before you actually pay. It varies from service to service. You can compare online on their web pages or contact their customer service. Also, features are not necessarily related directly to price. Some services charge a higher fee simply because they are established and have a large database, for that reason, they are not pressured to upgrade their software. You may get better features with the newer less established services.

Maintenance

One of the major problems with dating services is that they keep inactive, stale profiles for months, even years. It is my belief that this is ethically wrong. It can cause frustration for the singles who use the services regularly and who might send messages but get no response. This can be a hard hit on their moral as well. Dating services leave those stale profiles in order to create an impression of much greater selection. Having said that, there are some dating services that actually clean their database every few months, removing members who have been inactive for a certain period of time. If you want to save yourself some frustration, stick to those who do.

Finding the right dating service can pose a challenge, but it is worth the time, as it greatly improves the quality of your experience and your chances of success. If I had to summarized my advice in one sentence, I would say, 1) Pick a niche service that caters to your special needs, 2) Choose a local service if you are not cut out for a long distance relationship or willing to move, 3) Stay clear of free services, unless they are highly reputable, 4) Make sure the company has the latest features and technological advancements, and 5) Choose a service which does regular maintenance to keep their database fresh and current, 6) Don't forget to have fun!

Looking for an online Jewish dating service that provides a fun, safe, and simple way to connect with other Jewish singles? At Yenta911.com we understand the importance of privacy and integrity and we pride ourselves on our excellent customer care, and our commitment to stay on top of technological advancements.

Please Visit: http://www.Yenta911.com - Where Jewish Singles Meet!

About the author: Alexanndra Weiss is the co-founder of the Jewish Online Dating Service Yenta911.com, she is also a blogger at Jewishblogger.wordperss.com  

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Online Dating Services - How to Pick the Right One For You!

Why Use Online Dating Services

Online dating is one of the greatest innovations that the Internet has made possible. Easy access and the means to store millions of profiles from people around the world make online dating services an exciting resource.

This relatively new capability advances matchmaking light-years ahead! Unlike any other time in human history, we can now easily find a truly compatible partner. Anyone who doesn't take advantage of this incredible resource simply does not understand what they are missing.

According to studies conducted by universities in several different counties, compatibility is the most important factor in producing a successful relationship. If a person relies solely on fate or his or her own means to find a highly compatible partner, their chances of finding one are very low.

Online dating services have the huge advantage of comparing your compatibility criteria with those of millions of other members in order to select the best possible matches for you. Compare that to the obsolete methods used by pre-Internet generations. Look at the results they got - 50% divorce rate. And many of those who remained married were miserable!

The matching technology used by leading online dating services could change everything! Our society could be transformed because its building blocks - couples and parents - would be more compatible, fulfilled, and stable. This would in turn lead to more harmonious, productive, and secure families, communities, cities, states, and countries.

Considering how much joy or sadness a love relationship can bring, buying one or more online dating service memberships would be a very worthwhile investment that could last a lifetime! The key is to find reputable services that align with your principles, tastes, and needs.

How to Pick the Right Online Dating Services for You!

Selecting an online dating service is similar to picking someone who you want to date. You look them over to see if you find them attractive, you learn as much as can about them, and then you make a decision on whether to give them a try based on your intuition (or gut feelings).

With online dating services, you evaluate the appearance of their website to see if you find it attractive, you learn as much as you can about them by reading their online material, and then you make a decision on whether to give them a try based on your intuition (or gut feelings).

You can determine more than you might think by the appearance of a website. Its look, feel, and headings reflect an organization's philosophy, approach, and professionalism. If it's filled with a lot of marketing hype and flashy ads on a poorly designed site, than you should beware. If on the other hand, it contains a reasonable mix between marketing language and sincere discussions about their service on a well designed site, then you might consider them further.

To get a true understanding about an online dating service, dive deeper into their site than just reading their "home," "how it works," and "menu of services" pages. Although these pages are important, and they often provide a summary of their matching methods, they don't reveal much about the true nature of the organization. To learn what really drives an online dating service, read their "about" and "management bios" pages. To dive even deeper, scan their "press," "career," and "affiliate" pages. These pages will give you hints about their "behind-the-scenes" business philosophies.

If a particular online dating service's website appearance, matching method, services, and philosophy align with your principles, tastes, and needs, then go for it! If they fall short, keep looking! If you're not sure, then give them a try by registering for their free offers.

Many online dating services offer the opportunity to look at your matches for free after you have registered and completed their matching questionnaire or profile. The catch is that you won't be able to communicate with any of the matches that interest you until you pay their membership fee. This is a great way to evaluate an online matchmaking service for several reasons. First, you get to see the criteria and methods they use for matching you with your perfect partner. Secondly, you get to see how successful their system performs by evaluating the resulting matches. Thirdly, you get to see if you are comfortable with the functionality (user-friendliness) of their system. If you've never used an online dating service or you've had poor results in the pass, I recommend that you do take advantage of these free offers.

What's the Surest Way to Find the Best Online Dating Services?

This method requires that you organize this project a bit. The four (4) steps shown below will help to do this to whatever degree you wish.

Step 1: Get yourself motivated! Visualize how your life would be right now (present tense) if you were sharing it with the love of your life! Imagine how you would feel. Picture every detail. Visualize your perfect partner's appearance, your interactions, and the activities you would do together - including the intimate ones. Now consider the fact that there has never been a better time to connect with a highly compatible partner than RIGHT NOW! (That statement will never become outdated because matching technology will only improve with time.) Finally, think about what compatibility means to you. It might help if you think about what incompatibility means to you as well.

Step 2: Quickly evaluate several online dating services based solely on the appearance (and headlines) of their website. In other words, do it based on your first impression. First impressions are powerful because they are created using the vast storage of information in our subconscious mind. Our subconscious mind reflects our true essence because it contains a record on every moment of our lives. This is where our intuition comes from.

Make notes as you visit various online dating services using some kind of scoring system like A, B, C... or 1-10. Then pick out the top three (3) based on whatever scoring method you used. I am suggesting three (3) because it has been found that this is the ideal minimum number of proposals (or estimates) needed to make a solid decision on a new product or service. I like to call it "The Rule of Three."

Step 3: Sign up to use as many of the free offers as you can with the three (3) online dating services you selected. This will be particularly valuable with those online dating services that allow you to complete their matching questionnaire or profile. This instrument is the key to producing matches that align with your needs, values, and aspirations. For example, if a matching questionnaire (or profile) instrument does not include criteria about appearance, occupation, or religion, and these issues are important to you, then that service probably would not be a good match for you.

If an online dating service has a small number matching criteria and you want to get the most precise match possible, then you should look for a service that has an extensive number of criteria.

If you are looking for an online dating service that uses sophisticated scientific methods in their matching, I suggest that you look for information about this on their site and carefully examine their matching questionnaire (or profile).

Make notes on the strengths and weaknesses of each of the three (3) online dating services you picked as you go along. Create a list of key issues that are important to you and score them as you proceed. These issues might include the matching method, ease-of-use, member services, and cost. I don't know about you, but if I don't keep notes while I am evaluating several unfamiliar service providers, I usually get mixed up at the end.

Step 4: Based on your evaluation and, most importantly, your intuition (or gut feelings) make a decision, become a member, and then give it a 100% effort! Don't be in a hurry though! You'll get much higher quality matches if you carefully work through each step of the process. This is particularly true when it comes to filling out the matching questionnaire or profile. Everything that follows depends on what you put in this questionnaire (or profile). And anything less than total honesty is a waste of your time!

Finally, keep your thoughts on your target and your reasons for using an online dating service.

I don't want to give you the impression that this needs to be an elaborate scientific process, but it should be something that you put your full efforts into. The rewards and costs are too high to do anything less. Like everything else in life, you get want you put into it and what you expect, desire, and think about on the deepest levels. This is a bit heavy, but so is being in love. And so is divorce!

It is my hope that you find an online dating service that connects you with the love of your life!

Brad Paul
Solotopia.com

Copyright © Brad Paul

To learn more about intuition, read my article on the Solotopia website entitled, "Intuition - How to Access, Recognize, & Trust It."

To see the original article with graphics & links at Solotopia.com, click: http://www.solotopia.com/online-dating-services.html

To see a list of all articles by category at Solotopia.com, click: http://www.solotopia.com/dating-articles.html

Brad Paul is the founder of Solotopia.com, which provides FREE resources for being single successfully whether a person chooses to remain unattached, just date, or find a perfect partner.

Brad began learning about the needs of singles as he built and led a unique, highly successful non-profit singles organization. He refined his knowledge about singles as he researched and wrote books on finding a perfect partner and couple's communication. Before changing careers, he headed a marketing group responsible for generating $400 million dollars in annual sales.

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Professional Online Dating Services Are Crucial For Meeting Your Match

Choosing the best online dating site is quite difficult. It is like looking for a needle in haystack. This is because not one online dating service could really make claim to the best online dating site. Choosing the best online dating site will depend on a number of factors and on the person casting the vote. Plus the fact that there are thousands of online dating services all over the net, it is definitely hard to compare them one by one.

Online dating services are traditional dating companies that have moved and expanded to the online service of providing dating services to the public via the internet. These online dating service providers allow for a database of potential relationships with like minded people to grow.

Professional online dating service is done via real time chat, emailing, profiling and telephone access dependant on the clients' choices. In order to access this service, the potential client must have access to the Internet via an Internet service provider, over the age of 18 and have registered with their chosen dating service provider.

Professional online dating service allows people to meet online. These services allow you to search thousands of singles and discover the best matches for yourself. Posting a profile on the dating sites is the best method of introduction. Profiling allows users to limit their search to include those matching the criteria that are absolutely vital in their future partner. Criteria such as location, age, etc. can be accurately limited. The schedules and geography are no limitations for professional online dating service.

Many professional online dating services provide the facility of limiting searches to a specific location. People have the advantage of having variety of ways to interact in professional online dating service. The various professional online dating service sites provide a wide range of services and features chat rooms. Some of the services also have advanced features like voice/video greeting. With features like these you stand a far better chance of finding that special someone than you would by placing a 5 line letter in newspaper personals or in the social parties.

The online dating offers unrestricted conversation with one person. Keep interested in several people and get to know them via email before committing to that first phone conversation, or first date. The relative cost of meeting someone online versus those of more conventional methods is numerous. Most of the professional online dating services provide free membership to begin with. In general, many professional online dating service sites will offer the following services for free after you sign-up:

1. Profile Posting including age, height, hair color, eye color, body type, hobbies, activities, etc.

2. Photo submission of up to four personal shots

3. Database Search of potential partners to meet

4. Instant Messaging to send/reply (depending on the site) to member messages

5. Event Invitations about singles events in your area where you can meet new people

Membership fees for professional online dating service sites vary and some sites are completely free. However, most professional online dating service sites offer basic services for free and then additional services for paid members.

Some free online dating services will let you instant message or post on a forum with your fellow daters. However, this is where free online dating services draw the line. If you want to avail of more benefits then you need to subscribe.

Dean Shainin is a successful Webmaster and publisher of Dating.MyWisdomBase.com For more articles, and valuable resources for getting effective dating tips and services, visit his site at: best dating services

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Business Idea: Online Marketing Services as a Work-From-Home Opportunity

Offering online marketing services is certainly an opportunity to

consider if you are interested in starting an internet business

that will enable you to work from home. Internet business is

booming, no doubt, and there are many people venturing into

e-business who haven't a clue how to go about marketing on the

internet. Online marketing services are not exclusive to

e-business; they can also be beneficial to brick-and-mortar type

retail or wholesale companies. Thus, there are many different

target audiences to choose from when offering online marketing

services. This enables you to identify and pursue a niche market.

There are a few things to do before launching an online marketing

services company:

1. Familiarize yourself with online marketing services

2. Conduct market research to identify a niche market

3. Decide which online marketing services you will offer

4. Become an expert

The next phase of launching your online marketing services

company involves:

1. Preparing your business plan and marketing plan

2. Developing your policies and service procedures

3. Marketing your online marketing services

4. Providing exceptional customer service

5. Building a base of repeat customers and referrals

for your online marketing services

With the internet, it is easy to review online marketing services

and to find out about your competition. A competitive analysis is

essential to differentiating and positioning your online

marketing services company. In your review of online marketing

services, you will get some great ideas about what services you

can offer and how to professionally present them.

Market research is the key to identifying a niche market to

target for your online marketing services company. For instance,

you may market your services only to attorneys, only to wholesale

grocers, only to work-from-home moms, etc. With an online

marketing services company, truly the world is your playground.

However, by narrowing the scope of your target market by finding

a niche to market to, you're advertising will have a stronger

impact as you can become known as an expert in online marketing

services for whatever field or niche you choose to market to.

Once you have reviewed other online marketing services, analyzed

your competition, and identified your target market, you are

ready to decide which online marketing services you wish to

offer. This is another opportunity to define a niche. For

instance, you may offer only pay-per-click management services

and you can position yourself as an expert in that area which can

be credible if that is the only service you offer. You can also

offer a whole menu of online marketing services with various

mixes in package deals which can be appealing to clients.

Whichever online marketing services you choose to offer, if you

are presenting yourself as an expert, make absolutely sure that

you are one before you take on your first customer. The

reputation of your online marketing services is at stake. If you

present yourself as an expert in search engine optimization for

instance, and you cannot achieve good ranking for your clients,

your credibility will be lost and this can frequently result in

your reputation being ruined via discussions about your company

through online marketing and business forums.

Preparing your business plan and marketing plan should be a

first-step before you launch your online marketing services

business. Writing a business plan just makes sense because it

helps you to put your ideas down on paper, to set your goals, to

think through issues and to define your budget. Your marketing

plan is equally important as it will serve to keep you focused on

the important aspects of your online marketing services business.

For suggestions about what should be included in a business plan

and marketing plan, visit the website for the Small Business

Administration . There you will find excellent guidance for

business planning.

Policies and service procedures are important for two reasons.

One, to protect your business; and two, to ensure that you

provide excellent service to your customers and that they

understand up front what your services entail. When marketing

your online marketing services business online, you should at a

minimum have a terms-of-use policy and a privacy policy. Through

your terms of use, it is a good idea to disclose your policy

regarding refund requests or your service guarantees as well as

any limitations to your service.

Taking customer service a step further, your service policies

will govern how you do business. Your systems will enable you to

provide the services. Starting out, you don't necessarily need

anything fancy, but as your company grows, automating some of

your sales and service features is a good idea. An example of an

automated customer service tool is an autoresponder that confirms

you have received an order. Repeat customers will come to you if

you offer excellent online marketing services.

It is easier to retain a customer than to get a new one, so

always keep that in mind when working with your customers. Happy

customers are also extremely valuable to an online marketing

services company because they will refer you to their friends and

associates. To encourage referrals, you may offer your customers

some type of incentive (like a 10% discount) if they refer a new,

buying client to you.

Copyright Christopher J. Enders. Are you at the end of your rope, fed up and confused by all the scrambled internet marketing advice you're getting? Whether you are new to internet marketing, or a website owner who wants to make more money from your website, learn the proven strategies that will sky-rocket your internet business at http://BiznessTips.com

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Choosing an Online Dating Service

The problem with choosing a dating service is choice -- too much of it! There are hundreds of services. To choose a dating service that's right for you, you need to be clear about what exactly you're looking for. As a newcomer to online dating, unfamiliar with all the options, you might be a little hazy on this front. Here's a rundown of the main areas in which dating services differ which will help you draw up a dating service wish list to compare sites to.

Relationship options

One of the most obvious things to think about when choosing a dating service is what kind of relationship(s) you're looking for.

Some services, including top dating sites like Yahoo! Personals (singles dating) and eHarmony (soulmates) focus on one type of relationship only. The advantage of choosing a dating service that's dedicated to a particular type of relationship is that everyone will be on exactly the same page as you are in terms of intentions.

If you're not clear what your intentions are, you might be better choosing a dating service where members can pursue different types of relationships within the same site. Again there's no shortage of choice. However, at some multi-relationship services it's not immediately clear who's looking for what and up to you to figure it out, using the search tools. If this sounds like trouble (and it can be), choose a service like Lavalife which has separate communities within the site for each type of relationship.

Members

Think about the type of person you want to meet. Are you open-minded, in which case a mainstream service will be fine, or do you have a lengthy list of "must haves" regarding your perfect match?

If you have set ideas about the type of person you'd like to meet, finding them in a mainstream service could be like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack. (By "mainstream", I mean that members are as diverse as the general population.) Instead, consider choosing a relationship service that specializes in bringing people together who have something very specific in common -- religion, political beliefs, ethnicity, body size, certain lifestyles, you name it.

Simply run a search for "dating (or matchmaking, or marriage)" plus whatever you're looking for (vegetarian, republican, biker...) and it's almost certain you'll find a relationship service to match.

Matchmaking features

Dating sites have thousands if not millions of members so good search tools are important. However, it's still up to you search out your perfect match and not everyone has time for this. Luckily many dating services have matchmaking features (more sophisticated search tools) that will help you find "the one" quickly and easily.

Matchmaking features range from the very simple, based on profiles and/or basic wish lists, to the sophisticated, based on personality and other tests as well as more detailed profiles and wish lists. Unless you're unusually picky (or just very unusual), these one-click options will typically churn up a good selection of possible matches on a regular basis -- popular dating services attract many new members a day. You can usually opt to have these matchmaking searches run automatically on a regular basis and receive new match details by email -- another time-saver.

At some services, matchmaking features are part of a complete matchmaking service where the selection process is much stricter, usually because they're geared towards serious relationships. Typically you'll receive just a handful of potential partners over a length of time. For example, eHarmony (designed to help people into marriage) advises clients not to expect more than one or two matches a month. To accept this level of matchmaking you have to be happy with the idea of letting the "experts" have the final say about who's right for you and who's not.

Tests

Online dating services are about much more than dating. They're also an opportunity to gain some valuable insights into yourself and the type of person you're looking to meet which could help improve your love life, online and off. If this appeals to you, choose a dating service with personality and other tests for members to take.

For the most part, larger, well established online dating services have the most insightful and detailed personality tests because they have more resources to put into their design. Almost all personality tests are free to take and at many sites matchmaking tools draw on the results to find members who are compatible with each other. So, by taking several tests and judging the results, you'll get a good idea of which site is going to do the best job of helping you find your perfect match. After all, if the results are a true reflection of what you're like, they'll be a true reflection of potential matches too.

Communications

There are two levels of communication to consider when choosing a dating service -- what you get for free and what you get as a paying member. On both fronts, some services offer a lot more than others.

Free communications matter because they let you get to know someone, or at least that the interest is mutual, before you spring for a subscription. (A subscription will let you communicate as much as you like.) At most services, free communications are limited to flirty icons and preset messages that members send to each other, but search around. Some services are much more generous than others.

Once you subscribe, the norm for communicating is by on-site email and instant messaging. Many of the top dating services, Yahoo! Personals included, have stuck with this simple set up and show no sign of changing any time soon. Others, like Match.com, are continuously adopting new technologies to offer members more communications options. Typically you'll pay more so think about whether or not you really need to to be able to access their services anytime, anywhere.

Entertainment

Think about what sort of experience you'd like to have with online dating services. Do you intend to focus on finding your perfect match or would you like to enjoy other activities as well? Many services offer entertainment features including light-hearted quizzes and polls, contests, articles and newsletters, as well as chat rooms and the option to sign up to meet new friends as well as dates.

Offline activities

If the idea of meeting someone online then having to meet them face-to-face at some stage is a little intimidating, look for a dating service that helps members meet and mingle, casually and as part of a group, offline too. Though some dating services go as far as offering singles holidays, offline activities usually involve meeting for concerts, shows and other events in your area or elsewhere.

You can get that all-important "feel" for someone in relaxed atmosphere with plenty of food for conversation and make as much or as little of the occasion as you like. If you haven't met someone yet, offline activities are an opportunity to meet someone you might like to continue chatting with online, with the advantage that you've already met.

International dating

If you're away from your native country, would like to chat in your native language or are planning to relocate or travel to a different country, some of the more established and successful online dating services have extended their services into countries other than the US. For example, Yahoo! Personals has a new Canadian service while Match.com is live in 27 different countries.

Cost & Payment Options

Most online dating services charge about the same for a subscription -- between $20 and $25 a month -- so cost isn't going to be much of a deciding factor when choosing a dating service. Instead, look for value -- services might charge about the same but there are big differences in what you get for your money. Also, check out payment options. Several dating services accept money orders and checks as well as the usual credit cards.

Find out what discounts will be available if you sign up for several months at once, and if any special offers are available. Finally on this one, look for free trials and try out all the extra subscriber features before committing to a subscription.

More resources to help you choose a dating service

When you've drawn up a checklist of what you'd like in a dating service (and hopefully this article has helped) choosing a dating service will be a lot easier. You can compare your checklist to dating service reviews and, for more specific details, explore FAQs, help pages and "take a tour" options (all good dating services have these). And don't forget, signing up is free and you can usually explore sites without having to post a profile first. Most of all, though it's important to choose a dating service that's right for you, one you'll enjoy using and are mostly like to have success with, choosing a dating service should be fun. If one dating service doesn't work out for you, move on and choose another!

For more online dating tips and advice, visit http://DatingMuse.com.

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Want to watch Glee online? Then subscribe, or wait

Updated. Wait, or pay up for a subscription: That’s the choice that fans of Fox shows like Glee and Family Guy will be facing beginning next month, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. The broadcaster will limit access to catch-up episodes of current shows to viewers that have subscribed to either Hulu Plus or a participating pay TV service. Paying subscribers will be able to watch these episodes the day after they air online, everyone else has to wait another week.

Cable channels like HBO and AMC have all been moving towards restricting access to online content to pay TV subscribers, a model that the industry calls TV Everywhere. However, this marks the first time that broadcast content is restricted in a similar fashion.

The Journal reports that the new restrictions will go into effect in mid-August, but many details are still unclear. The paper said that Dish Network is the only pay TV operator that already has a deal with Fox, which could mean that customers of other services could be left out until their operators sign up with Fox as well.

Also unclear is whether viewers will actually be able to authenticate their pay TV subscriptions on Hulu.com; the video site hasn’t been offering any TV Everywhere-functionality in the past, but broadcasters have been pushing for Hulu to make these kinds of restrictions available.

Update: Hulu declined to comment on the changes.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial.

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Start a Home Travel Business and Profit From the Multi-Billion Dollar Online Travel Industry

Yes, it is true. You can make money online working from home and can actually make a lot of money if you work hard, stay focused and execute. You can build a home travel business and live the Internet lifestyle you always dreamed of by operating an online home travel business. This article will put to rest any misgivings you may have had about starting an online travel business. I will not sugar coat it. In fact much of what I have to say will probably cause an up-roar in some parts of the online travel industry. I am aiming to tell it like it is.

The TRUTH!
Who really Makes Money in Online Travel. The truth is that you can't really make a lot of money reselling other businesses travel products. This statement is directed towards the home-based travel agent market. Yes, its easy to get started as a home-based travel agent and the online travel agencies can provide you with your own personalized white label branded website, including quality customer support but in the end you are NOT building a business, you are only paying yourself a salary.

Don't be fooled.

I am amazed at the amount of junk that there is online out there catering to the make money online from home crowd, touting selling travel as the route to freedom and riches. This truth is probably the most important fact anyone will ever tell you if you are just thinking about entering the online travel business. Let me repeat this for you one more time.

It is difficult to become rich and build a company reselling other companies travel products. You can become rich over time by building a business that sells your own uniquely branded travel products. You can get rich and build a business if you "own the travel product."

Owning the travel product means that you are contracting directly with travel suppliers under your company's own contracts, you are not just reselling a travel product owned by another travel business, tour operator, travel agency or travel consolidator. Your business creates the travel product by doing deals directly with travel suppliers. Your contracts with the travel suppliers become your businesses own unique inventory for the travel products you will be selling. The new travel product becomes your own brand. Your online travel business sells the travel product directly to consumers online or wholesales it too other travel agencies, travel agents, tour operators and resellers.

The Home based Travel Agent Dilemma.
I know I am opening up a can of worms here by disclosing this information but it's really the truth. My intent is not to knock anyone down but to provide insight into how the online travel business really works and to show you WHO is really making the money and how you can make real money by deciding from the get go to actually build a business.

Yes, if you want to make $20,000-$50,000 working from home then reselling cruises or popular travel products will be the best option for you but if you want to make real money, six or seven figures and you want to build a business that has real tangible value and can be sold later then you need to develop and sell your own travel products.

The Internet is NOT causing Travel Agencies too shut down.
I believe that the main reason that brick and mortar travel agencies are closing is not because of the Internet but because all they are really doing is reselling other companies travel products. The Internet contributed to the destruction of the traditional brick and mortar travel agency but the biggest factor in the down fall of travel agencies and travel agents in the travel industry is due to the fact that they are not selling anything unique or different from anyone else. It's really a business model established to fail in the long run.

How do you own your own travel product? You can own your own travel product in two different ways.

1. Your business acts as a travel supplier providing tours, guiding, travel and tourism related activities or you own a lodging property.
2. Your business partners with two or more travel suppliers to resell their individual travel products under a unique package that you own.

What type of Online Travel Business do I need to start where I can own my own travel product, sell packages and build a real business?

-Online Travel Agency
-Online Tour Operator
-Online Tour Guide
-Online Travel Broker
-Receptive Tour Operator
-the Hybrid

Let's discuss a little about each type. There are many directions you can go.

OTAs or Online Travel Agencies traditionally sell everything underneath the sun; including lodging, air, cars, vacation packages, and much more. On a hierarchy level of all online travel businesses, this would be the most expensive and most challenging type of online business to start. It's doable don't get me wrong it would just take much longer and be more expensive to startup.

If you second tier niche and focus on contracting your own lodging deals and contracting with activity suppliers you could easily build a smaller more focused OTA. Another option would be for you to utilize the Global Distribution System (GDS) for air, car and for lodging that you could not contract yourself. I don't recommend this last option as you'll be just reselling product you don't own but as long as you can combine the non-owned GDS products with your own contracted travel products you could create a nice win-win for the bottom line.

Online Tour Operator's sell dynamically packaged trips and pre-packaged trips to vacationers. I believe building an online tour operator business is your best option at building a successful online travel business.

Now let me first state that the name is a little miss conceiving because of the word "Tour." There is a big difference from a tour and a trip. On a tour there usually is a tour guide or person leading the tour with the travel participants. On a trip the traveler is traveling by themselves or with other people but there is no tour guide involved. In the travel business they call this a FIT trip, Drive vacation or Fly-Drive package.

I favor selling trips, where the traveler buys a tour or trip product then attends the trip by themselves on their own time. The reason being for this is two parts.

1. You don't have to be the tour guide and you don't have to hire one either.
2. You have 100% more freedom by not actually participating in the tour itself. Just think of the time involved of actually going on a tour with a group or individual people.

We operated tours when my wife and I owned the Yellow Breeches House Fly Fishing Lodge and B&B. We ran fly fishing excursions with lodging and guiding. Guess who was one of the guides? Yes, you got it. Yours truly. I would not change the past for anything. I learned so much from being a fly fishing guide and owning a lodging property. I just wouldn't want to run that type of business again. There are much better travel business models out there. That's part of the beauty about this report is that I am able to share some true life, realities for you.

Sell Trips not Tours. This is the most important thing I can tell you regarding wanting to live the Internet life style and working from home enjoying the freedom that comes from owning your own online travel company. You won't be living any Internet lifestyle if every week you are giving tours.

Online Tour Guide's provide tours to individuals and or groups. If I didn't scare you off from above that's ok, the tour guide business is a great business and it's easy to get started with limited investment. This is a great business to enter the travel business and starting learning about how to build a business.

If you love dealing with people and spending much of your time outside then this is probably the best travel business for you. This is serious work, day-in-and-day-out, as you are always outside in the elements. This travel business could be a stepping-stone for you to then go ahead and build an online tour operator business. I have a really good friend that owns a kayaking guide service. He runs eco-adventures that include island hoping for three to five nights. He just loves it.

Let me share a little strategy with you that will totally change the way you build or grow your existing tour guide business. Hopefully by now you'll already see it and be way ahead of me but if not here it is.

Create packages for your tour guide business that includes lodging, meals and your guide or tour service. You probably sell trips, guiding and or tours as an hourly or day product. Take the next step and package in lodging and meals and maybe a third activity. Sell packages to your clients and you will super-charge your revenue in a very big way.

Example:
Take an existing kayak guide that sells day trips for $250 for 2 people. Now create overnight packages. Create a new product line for your business.

1. Contract with a lodging supplier to buy lodging for your kayak packages.
2. Contract with two local restaurants to buy dinners for your kayak packages.
3. Sell a 2 night, 1-day kayak excursion, with 2-dinners. Make money off the lodging, dinners and a 3rd activity and you can seriously start adding more profits to your business.

Online Travel Broker - this is a new business category I stumbled upon. I believe this is a type of business you could start with literally no money. It's just a matter of understanding the travel business. Here is how an online travel broker operates.

Every travel supplier needs sales representatives. Your travel broker business contracts with travel suppliers to represent their business and help them sell more of their travel products. Many smaller travel businesses don't have sales representatives. This may be your entry into the online travel business industry.

Let's say you live in a resort town or area and there are 4 golf courses nearby or 3 ski resorts. You represent the travel supplier's products, finding larger partners and or resellers that would resell or distribute your client's products. This business is just a matter of finding other travel suppliers that need sales representatives and finding larger companies looking for new travel products to sell and distribute. You make money by earning a percentage of all future sales booked or earn a flat fee per contract you sign. This would be a great way to enter the travel business as a part-time business. You could start with not much investment and build out slowly.

Receptive Tour Operators receive inbound travelers from foreign countries. This is a B2B business (business-to-business). You build an Online Tour Operator business but you don't sell your travel products directly to consumers or vacationers online, you sell your owned travel products to wholesalers or other tour operators in foreign countries that then resell them directly to travel agencies and the consumers in their country. If you live in a world- renowned destination area or region where foreigners come visit you can build a successful receptive tour operator business. The receptive tour operator business takes longer to develop as the buyers of your travel products will be other travel companies, tour operators and seasoned travel business won't necessarily want to do business with a company that is new or just in startup mode. Adversity can be overcome though, through focus, determination and having an owned travel product that a wholesaler or foreign tour operator believes he can sell and make money.

The Hybrid - build an Online Tour Operator business that caters to individual vacation travelers. After the business starts selling trips and or tours, start building a Receptive Tour Operator business component.

I hope you have enjoyed a little insight into the world and possibilities of the online travel business and what it will take to start a home travel business.

You can get my FREE 35-page report called SECRETS of the online travel business. It has been downloaded by hundreds of people and business across the world and it will give you a huge advantage as you review and discover the opportunities of running your own Home Travel Business. I have built and sold two travel business both working from my home. My businesses have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, on CNBC TV, and many other major media outlets. Online Travel Business SECRETS report

Matt Zito delivers travel marketing strategies, business building ideas, insight and thoughts about the travel and tourism business at Travel Business Profits. Matt Zito-Travel Business Profits

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Where to watch Carmageddon live online

Carmageddon is upon us! This weekend, Los Angeles will close down its 405 freeway, which is one of the main routes for Angelenos to go from north to south and anywhere in between. And if you’ve ever been stuck in L.A. traffic — even when all the freeways are open — you know that things are going to be bad when one of the most important roadways is closed. Really, really bad, thanks to a car-centric transportation system that has been on the verge of collapse for years.

Or maybe everyone will just go green and stay home, if only for a weekend? Authorities in Los Angeles have been asking celebrities like Lady Gaga, Ashton Kutcher and Kim Kardashian to tweet about the closure and get people prepared. Airlines have been offering highly discounted flights within Los Angeles, and L.A. major Antonio Villaraigosa has been encouraging people to leave their cars at home entirely. Will it work? Well, we’ll all have a chance to find out, thanks to a number of live streams:

Carmageddon has also inspired a lot of creativity on YouTube:

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Where to watch the 2011 Home Run Derby online

The 2011 Major League Baseball All-Star Break is upon us, and one of the week’s premiere events will be streamed live online for the first time. For baseball fans, it doesn’t get much better than watching sluggers battle it out to see who can knock the most balls out of the park, which is why Monday’s live stream of the Home Run Derby should be one of the most popular events this year.

The contest begins at 8:00 p.m. EDT/5:00 p.m. PDT this evening, when Jose Bautista, Robinson Cano, Prince Fielder, Adrian Gonzalez, Matt Holliday, Matt Kemp, David Ortiz and Rickie Weeks will give their best hacks at Arizona’s Chase Field. The Derby will be broadcast live on ESPN, with commentator Chris Berman calling all the action. But for those without cable, have no fear: The contest will also be streamed online and possibly even to your Xbox 360.

The Home Run Derby will be streaming live from MLB’s Facebook page for the first time ever, as the baseball league attempts to tap social media to attract more interest in the already-popular event. In addition to the live stream on Facebook, a number of players will be live tweeting during the event, including David Ortiz (@davidortiz), Jose Bautista (@JoeyBats19), Matt Kemp (@TheRealMattKemp), Heath Bell (@HeathBell21), Gio Gonzalez (@GioGonzalez47), Hunter Pence (@HunterPence9), Brandon Phillips (@DatDudeBP), Gaby Sanchez (@GabySanchez215), Justin Upton (@RealJustinUpton), C.J. Wilson (@str8edgeracer), Howie Kendrick (@HKendrick47) and Joel Hanrahan (@hanrahan4457).

Those with an Xbox 360 game console may also be able to tune into the live stream as well, as the Home Run Derby will also be available on streaming service ESPN3. While not accessible through all ISPs (you can check to see if the service is available to your broadband provider here), ESPN3 can be watched through the Xbox Live service, and usually provides pretty good quality streaming video to the big screen.

For those on the go, the Derby will be available through the league’s MLB At Bat apps for Android  and iOS devices . Streams will also be on the WatchESPN app — but that’s currently only available for Time Warner Cable, Verizon FiOS and Brighthouse Networks subscribers.

Photo courtesy of (CC BY 2.0) Flickr user SD Dirk.

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