The Language Perfectionist: Frequent Mistakes, Set Aright
Some linguistic errors occur repeatedly. One of my favorites is the bungling of prix-fixe, a term that even some classy restaurants misspell in various creative ways. Below is a collection of other common gaffes — and how to avoid committing them.
READ MOREYou’d Have to Be Crazy to Start a New Business Right Now!
He sat quietly for a moment. Unwilling to accept defeat, he finally said, “Well, when you run out of steam with this thing, give us a call. We’d love to have you back.”
My boss could be called many things… excited about my new venture as The Mindset Maven was not one of them.
READ MOREThe Myth of Branding: Why Entrepreneurs Should Focus on the USP
I recently got an interesting e-mail from Brian Ochsner, an ETR reader in Denver. He said, “As a direct-response copywriter, I’m skeptical about the number of marketing people who are enamored with the need for ‘branding’ or to ‘build their brand’ to effectively market their business.
“I know that brands such as Kraft and Coca-Cola have power and influence with Americans, but I’m not sure ‘branding’ has much of a place with most small- to medium-sized business marketing.”
READ MOREThe Push-Button Success System
That’s the percentage of online businesses that fail.
Three big reasons explain why:
#1. Setting up an online business is complicated.
READ MOREHow to Profit From a Web-Based Business Phenomenon
The Internet Money Club — the world’s premier Internet business-building coaching program — is launching tomorrow… and you have to act fast if you want to join. There are limited “seats” (we sold out last year), and registration lasts for only two weeks.
We’ll be sending you a letter tomorrow with all the details… don’t miss it.
READ MOREThe Language Perfectionist: Lend Me a Word
Last year, I traveled to a small town in Canada to attend a theatrical festival. About noon one day, I entered an appealing restaurant.
“Would you like to be seated on our veranda?” asked the hostess. “Did you know,” I replied, “that the word veranda comes to us from Hindi, Portuguese, and Spanish?” I expected to be summarily booted out in return for my irrelevant comment, but she seemed genuinely fascinated by this fun fact.
READ MOREThe Power of Pay-Per Click
Yes, pay-per-click (PPC) advertising has an immediate cost associated with it. And if you do it wrong, it could mean thousands of dollars wasted.
However, if you do it correctly, the rewards are plentiful.
You can set up an AdWords account in five minutes and start seeing results immediately. Best of all, if your ad isn’t working, you can replace it with something new.
Another benefit of PPC is that you can narrow its reach. You can show your ad to everyone on the Internet… or you can target it to specific countries, regions, states, or even cities.
READ MOREWhy Common Knowledge Kills Success
Picture this:
A hot prospect stumbles across your blog…
… pulls up a recent post…
… starts to read it…
… stops midway through…
… leaves your site…
… and never returns again!
READ MOREHarnessing China’s Production Power
For years, Michael Masterson has been encouraging his readers to start a side business, preferably on the Internet, in order to develop multiple sources of income.
With many hundreds of millions of dollars to his credit, Michael certainly knows a thing or two about how to do it!
He says the simplest way to start a successful side business right now is to harness the production powerhouse that is China.
“First,” he says, “you find a popular product that is selling for about $100.”
“Next, you find someone in China to knock it off and sell it to you for $10.
READ MOREPut Some Lead in Your Pencil!
I’ve written before about what to write about when you’re "stuck."
How-to articles are the perfect antidote to writer’s block. But if your goal is to create content for your e-mail newsletter or website to attract search engines, you cannot rely on them every time. Thankfully, there is another type of article that’s remarkably simple to write. Your readers will love it — and so will the search engines.
READ MOREThe Language Perfectionist: “Who That?”
A reader of this column asked about the proper use of who and that.
Here’s an often-cited quip by George Bernard Shaw: "The government who robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul."
Shaw is regarded as a skilled writer. But is his use of who correct? Not according to language guru Charles Harrington Elster. In his useful and entertaining style guide What in the Word?, Elster writes: "It is a grave sin to use who of things, as in ‘the company who.’"
READ MOREThe #1 Reason Internet Businesses Fail
Quick… What business is McDonald’s in?
Burgers, right? It says so right on their sign. Bazillions served every day.
BUZZZZZ… Sorry. No prize for you. Thank you for playing.
McD’s is REALLY in the business of selling…
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