Jan
02
2023

Online Marketing is the Best Marketing Opportunity During a Recession

Online marketing is one of the least expensive forms of marketing, which makes it very popular in recessions. It is a popular choice because of the large and varied results for the price. Online marketing is your web site helping prospects move forward. It is an opportunity to business if you don’t have the capital and the connections. This type of marketing is usually very affordable because there are so many places to advertise you need to learn how to best utilize your online advertising budget.

Marketing on the web is extremely targeted and measurable, making it the most cost effective form of advertising available anywhere. Marketing is simple, but it isn’t always easy. Marketing professionals need to deploy online programs such as email campaigns track and measure results immediately,and report ROI yesterday.

Online Marketing is a constant work in progress. It is finding a very important place in the budgets of all types of businesses, across the globe. Online marketing is defined from Wikipedia as the selling of products on the Internet. It is your web site optimized for search engines. This platform has become so popular for a very good reason. The platform is one of the most versatile programs which allows you to target prospects looking for your products.

Internet marketing is really the wave of the future. Internet marketing ties together creative and technical aspects of the internet, including design, development, advertising, and sales. Internet advertising offers an unprecedented vista of touch points with a customer. It starts with a professional, effective website.

Websites do not have to be overly elaborate to be effective, but they should be well planned, attractive, easy to navigate and include a clear call to action. Websites can also help firms gain ground on their larger rivals. Web usability does take time, money and attention. Sites that just list random keywords without an article, or articles that make little or no sense will be thrown out of search results lists by the new searching systems.

Search engine optimization helps to improve your site’s ranking in popular search engines online. Search engines often can’t read and find all the information. Search engine marketing means there are no wasted marketing dollars, because each visitor is pre qualified. Searchable on line directories, product catalogs, and even advertisements placed on search engines give current and potential customers easy, quick access.

Companies that haven’t already done so are finding themselves scrambling to create a presence so they can continue to achieve success and grow or at a minimum maintain market share. Common areas of interest within the field of online marketing include affiliate marketing. In affiliate marketing, a business recruits associates to promote the companies products or services. Companies that understand the online marketing cost their business needs to make are the companies that use the Internet to grow. Companies that incur an online marketing cost are the companies that see their dollars returning to them as they continue to expand their profits.

SEO and link building require a lot more creative effort, but can have more sustainable results. SEO marketing, PPC marketing, and SMO marketing are the most popular online marketing methods. SEO is a very important component of Internet marketing efforts. SEO in 2009 has become one of the number one ways to market a business or product. SEO services gives your website high ranking for the search on your specific keyword.

Marketers often get confused when faced with the dilemma of making a choice between organic search engine optimization or pay per click advertisement strategy, to promote their business online. Marketers are moving from informing to engaging their customers via the internet.

Social Networking via YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and an SMS campaign are some of the many tools being utilized by many international companies as part of their online marketing strategy, thus creating ever increasing online visibility and in turn the all important increased branded website traffic views. Social media combines business and personal objectives, which makes it difficult to tell why you’re spending time on it. Social media is addictive and can become unproductive very quickly. Social marketers can make or break any site.

Customers start by typing keywords into a search engine. Customers and contacts in a recession market need to know that their business contacts keep track of them and enjoy their time. Customers are hungry for the information only you can provide.

Start a blog if you are committed to posting regularly. A blog can be a great way to build relationships with your customers and leads. Start out with a question and then start talking about your business or freelancing career. Start marketing your business online today and watch the money come rolling in tomorrow.

Successful online marketers are persons who are not trapped in the old and traditional models of doing business. Successful online businesses have secured an online presence through effective marketing strategies, which have an initial online marketing cost. This type of marketing is a fairly new arena, with self made pundits spouting new strategies on daily basis on how to be successful online. Success in the online world is a result of accurate planning, knowing what works and passion for helping others.

Viral ads are online marketing campaigns that are intended to spread like a virus. Viral marketing is not easy as every one think it is. Viral Marketing is not just send my video into You Tube. This makes the idea so jumpy that our users would like to share it with others. Viral marketing is a technique in which companies encourage customers to pass along information about their products or services.

Online marketing is a specialized form of advertising and is constantly evolving. Online marketing is becoming an increasingly important aspect of a marketing mix. Online marketing is marketing that utilizes the power of the internet to promote products and services to the widest number of people in the most targeted and effective way possible. Online marketing is relatively inexpensive in comparison to traditional marketing methods. Online marketing is aimed toward maximizing website visibility and obtaining higher search engine rankings to produce higher conversion rates.

Dec
03
2022

Account For Property Tax When Home Shopping

Home shopping can be fun but when you think the time is now to invest in a property, you are leaping into a major financial commitment. Prior to your home purchase, you are actually entitled to pay off several expenses aside from the purchase price. And property taxes are included in your home acquisition repertoire. You have to do a little research whenever you do your home shopping. It is like canvassing products and equipment before riding the purchase bandwagon.

Property taxes can make any home shopper groan. Home buyers certainly do not like handling property taxes and the processes that it entails which is something they are likely have to deal with beforehand. Multitudes of home shoppers that have mortgage loans set up accounts whenever they close on a home purchase. From this account, property taxes are paid as well as insurance premiums. In some cases, many homeowners may want to take out the property taxes from this account and directly pay the taxes.

However, this can be difficult, that is why having an account for your property tax is much advisable.
Say, for instance, that you are shopping for a home. But reality and questions set in who will be responsible for paying the property tax at some point in the first quarter of your home acquisition. Usually, property taxes are classified as pro-rated meaning that sellers are responsible for paying the taxes until the closing date. From that date on, you will be held accountable for the property tax payments as home buyer.

So what is this account for property tax when home shopping? If you have a loan officer, he or she will provide you good faith estimates which reveal just how much you will be depositing into an Escrow account for property tax payments in the future. This account also includes putting in your homeowners insurance.

What will happen next is, you have to send payment for your property tax every month by using the Escrow account. Basically, property taxes are due annually so your account will hold your property tax payments every month until the time they are due. Note that the account for property tax does not create an interest for banks as it is merely a holding account that is useful and convenient for your expenses. If you have applied for loans when home shopping, the bank or loan company will pay the taxes for you at the time they are already due.

An Escrow account is basically a special savings trust account with the name of the borrower to pay the property taxes. You can deposit your savings in a bank or financial institution which are held and segregated for specific purposes such as your property tax. Indeed, having this type of account comes in handy whenever you are going home shopping. Escrow accounts enable you to purchase the home you want as you are confident you have adequate funds to finance property taxes and insurance pay offs.

However, do not be lenient when it comes to having this type of account for property tax whenever you go home shopping. You need to pay sufficient money to cover anticipated property taxes, insurance, and other estimated taxes. The money should be fairly paid into the account. Furthermore, when home shopping, keep in mind that you must be current in your loan payments to acquire your ideal home and pay off property taxes.

Nov
02
2022

Things That Might Be Asked of You in a Job Interview at a Bank

If you are sending resumes to banks, there is some important information you need to know about the interview. Before we go into the questions you might be asked, you must know that banks are still conservative institutions. If you are already in banking, you know that. If you are a new grad, or thinking about transitioning into banking, then be aware that they are traditional in their expectations of attire. Even though your teller may be casually dressed, make sure you go to the interview in a dark-colored suit.

The other thing you need to know about banking, if you are new to the business, is that banks consider themselves retailers. We never used to think of them as such, but they sell products to the general public from readily accessible buildings, hence it’s a retail environment. Banks have goals of how many checking accounts are opened, how many loans are processed, how many savings accounts are opened and what types of products are sold in each category. That means that the bank interview questions you can expect to be asked will relate to customer service and selling skills.

One of my new college grad clients recently interviewed for a banking position. She shared a few of the bank interview questions she was asked and that you can expect to be asked also:

  • Have you ever sold anything? Tell me about what you sold.
  • Have you ever had a customer who was unhappy about their service? What did you do?
  • Have you ever competed in anything?
  • Did you ever work in a group project in college?

The first question is obviously about selling skills. Be sure to tell what you sold, how and what the result was of how much you sold. The second question is seeking to find out if you can handle upset customers without getting rattled. Next is to see if you are goal oriented. People who are successful in sales, love to compete and set goals. The next question is to see how you work with others and can you work in a team. It is also an opportunity to share your leadership abilities, if you took the lead when you worked with a group.

Those are just a few sample interview questions that you can expect to be asked when you go on a bank interview. Prepare in advance to talk about your skills and what you can do to sell products, and to provide top customer service.

Oct
02
2022

Multiple Home Loan Choices: Weapons of Mass Destruction or Tools to Save Money?

Some encouraging signs are emerging in the U.S. housing market: there are significantly more loan choices available today than anytime in the last two to three years. While it is way premature to say that the mortgage market is in a perfect shape, the above is a positive sign of a new trend starting to take root. For one thing, when it comes to home financing, the more choices and the better chance that the loan product will be optimized to end users’ needs, and that is a good thing. Why? Short answer: because it can save borrowers thousands of dollars on interest, improve affordability, and reduce the overall rate of loan defaults.

At the depth of this latest Great Recession, it seemed that the only loan programs available to purchase or refinance residential properties were standard “bread-and-butter” 15 or 30-year fixed mortgages. These types of home loans were proclaimed the “safest” and the best way to go for those who dared to obtain a mortgage loan at all. All the other “exotic” loan products, such as Adjustable-Rate-Mortgages (ARMs), Option ARMs, or Intermediate ARMs (30-year mortgages with interest rates fixed for 3, 5, 7, or 10 years) were declared “weapons of mass destruction,” invented by Wall Street’s “fat cats” and sold by shady mortgage brokers.

With mortgages interest rates at historically low levels, how can anybody go wrong with a long-term fixed rate loan? Isn’t that the best and safest way to go? Not necessarily. The “one size fits all” model did not work very well in the old Soviet Union and it does not work well in the mortgage world either. The problem with offering only long-term fixed mortgages is that not all borrowers have long-term home or mortgage ownership plans.

In fact, according to the National Association of Realtors, the average length of home ownership in the U.S. is only about 6-8 years. It is still less in transient states such as California, Nevada, or Florida. But that is not all. The average life of a loan is also shorter due to a possibility of refinancing. So what? The problem is that the longer the fixed term of the loan, the higher the interest rate. For example, the interest rate on a 30-year mortgage fixed loan is about 1.00% – 1.25% above the rate on a seven-year fixed loan.

For example, in 2010, the average home loan amount, for purchase or refinance, in San Diego, CA was around $400,000. The difference in the interest rate of 1.125% means $4,500 per year. If the borrower can reasonably anticipate that he/she will keep the property for let’s say five to seven years, there is really no good reason to get a 30-year fixed mortgage. It is an overkill. Understandably, nobody has a crystal ball to know the exact length of homeownership a few years in advance. That is why it is recommended to add some extra fixed term to your loan for security, especially if you do not trust ARM loans, but it does not need to be 30 years!

For instance, if one estimates that he/she will keep the house for five years, the seven-year fixed might be sufficient. By the same token, if one thinks that he/she will move in seven years, loan fixed for 10 years should do the job. The bottom line is simple: the more optimized the fixed term of your loan, the more money you will save in interest. And this is real money, which will stay in your pocket, no some imaginary savings.

However, borrowers are not the only beneficiaries of such mortgage loan “precision shot.” Lenders can also benefit from this scenario because lower interest rates mean lower monthly payments, which in turn translate into better affordability and lower default rates. In spite of some public misconceptions, lenders do not make more money on the Intermediate ARMs as compared to the Fixed Rate Mortgages. Quite to the contrary. Historically speaking, long-term fixed mortgages have been the most profitable for the lenders because these loans generate higher yield based 30-year term, yet they are very seldom kept for the entire term.

In conclusion, more home loan products are becoming available to homebuyers and homeowners, who now have a better chance of selecting their mortgage financing to match their individual home buying or refinancing needs. Borrowers should ask their mortgage professionals about availability of different loan programs and request a detailed explanation of their pros and cons. “One mortgage hat” does not fit all, borrowers should optimize the term of their mortgages according to their individual financial needs and homeownership plans.