One of the main reasons many of us get into investing is to become financially independent. Who isn’t trying to amass a portfolio with enough income to ensure that we don’t have to work when we should be playing golf or traveling the world. While there are several strategies to invest, is active trading one of the ways to become a millionaire?

For those investors who want to achieve that million dollar portfolio, you may want to read The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley and William Danko. While it wont help you identify great stock picks (but investorandtrader.com can help), it will help you to establish the difference between those who dream of having a million dollar net worth, and those who do it. You may be surprised at the answers.

While I won’t give away all the secrets, I will share one of the surprising findings which impact investors over the long term.

95% owned stocks

9% of investors held for less than 1 year

1% held for a few days

1% held for a few weeks

7% held for a few months

Less than 10%, less than 1 in 10 people with net worth of $1 millionaire or more actively trade their portfolios. Most definitions of active traders would mean that 1 in 100 are active traders. 99% of millionaires do not actively trade their positions. They hold for long periods of time. They find good companies and let the companies make them money.

The biggest problem with active trading is the commission, and the taxes. Your brokerage gets paid whether you make money or not. Making the presumption that you’re trading with a discount broker, you’re paying $20 ($10 to buy, $10 to sell) each time you trade. If you do make money, you’re paying taxes on that gain. At the end of the year, you get to keep a portion. Make 2 trades per week, and you will spend over $2000 a year in commission. If you lost money, add $2000 to your losses. If you made money, subtract tax, and then subtract $2000 more.

It takes a lot of successful trades to make money. While it can happen, sometimes, just finding a good quality stock and sticking to them, might just be your key to a million dollar portfolio.

That’s just one guys opinion.

bio = Trading Penny Stocks | investment strategies for penny stocks
1source4stocks.com provides penny stock traders with online trading and investment tips, online trading strategies and penny stock picks.

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Are you getting results from your business blog? Is it getting harder for you to spend time on your blog because you’re just not seeing how it is going to pay off? If so, you’re not alone. Hundreds of blogs are started each day and many of them are abandoned after several months because it takes time and energy to keep a good business blog going.

Make no mistake, blogs are a great tool for building community, interacting with potential clients, and marketing your services. And, it’s not enough to set one up and post occasionally. You have to use it effectively to drive traffic and gain readership.

We’ve discovered several common mistakes professionals make with their blogs. Mostly, they aren’t using some the features available to them with their blogging software, because it hasn’t been sufficiently explained. Eyes glaze over with the mention of RSS, pinging, trackbacks and permalinks. Professionals may be ignoring these things, hoping they don’t really need to know. But they do if they want results from their business blog.

Here’s a list of what we found on a recent trip around the professional business blogosphere:

Content:

1. Not posting frequently enough. (Recommended: 2-3 times a week.)

2. Content is not focused, and the target audience is not clearly defined.

3. Posting articles that are too long, instead of using extended post features.

4. Not linking profusely (because the professional isn’t researching their field on the internet).

5. Poor spelling, bad grammar and typos.

Design

6. No name of author in tag line or on side bar.

7. No author photo.

8. No signature or name in the footer; no way to tell who wrote post on a multi-author site.

9. No subscription form; no way to get blog updates through RSS or email.

10. No way for readers to leave comments and use trackbacks.

11. Too many categories or none at all.

12. No information about their business services and products.

13. Calendars for no reason at all (what is the point of those calendars anyway?).

Marketing

14. Blog isn’t submitted to blog directories.

15. Not pinging each time a new post is published.

16. Not using trackbacks referring or linking to other blogs.

17. No blogroll or list of favorite blogs or websites.

If you’re considering using a blog to build your business, optimize it by taking time to learn the features and steps that will ensure success. A blog is like any other marketing tool – you’ve got to use it correctly to get positive results.

Here are a couple of suggestions:

1. Get an ebook and take the time to learn about your blog software or hosting provider.

2. Hire a professional blog expert to coach you on how to rev up your blog.

Patsi Krakoff and Denise Wakeman are two blog experts who have teamed up to form The Blog Squad (http://www.fixmyblog.com). They provide advanced training and coaching for professionals who want to beef up their blog for marketing optimization. Each month a blog is selected as Blog of the Month and undergoes a rigorous makeover. At the end of the month, the blog must pass the Blog Squad Seal of Approval to be certified a success. Patsi and Denise also publish a popular blog at http://www.buildabetterblog.com

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Summary: To get the most from attending a trade show, you have to a clear strategy in mind. Knowing what you need to accomplish before, during, and after the show is the first step toward success.

The View from The Aisle: Attending A Trade Show
by Susan Friedmann

How many teams does your company send to a trade show? Unless you work for the very largest of Fortune 500 companies, the answer is probably one. It’s very rare for a company to send two teams to a show. Instead the same small group of staff members have to pull double-duty at the trade show, acting as both booth staff and gathering relevant information.

You’ve spent lots of time and effort concentrating on how to be the very best exhibitor. But are you prepared to be an attendee? Getting the most out of a trade show requires careful preparation.

With two important tasks –exhibiting and attending – to balance, planning becomes even more important. 39% of all trade show attendees spend less than eight hours visiting a show – and exhibitors who have a booth to man have a mere fraction of that time span available.

To get the most from attending a trade show, you have to have a clear strategy in mind. Knowing what you need to accomplish before, during, and after the show is the first step toward success.

Before the show:

Make a list of the goals you want to achieve by visiting the show. Include your own personal goals and those of your company. Every subsequent decision that you make should put you closer to achieving your goals.

Read through the trade show promotional materials carefully. Use the knowledge you’ve gleaned to make a plan for attending the show. Include a list of ‘must see’ booths and ‘want to see’ booths. Spend a little time researching the vendors, so that you’ll have a clear idea of who you need to see, and what you need to learn from them. That way you’ll have useful questions to ask, and will have to waste a minimum amount of time with small talk.

Decide how much time you want to spend at the show, and then allot an appropriate amount to each booth, making sure to schedule the ‘must see’ booths first. That way if your day is abruptly cut short, you won’t miss the most vital exhibits. Consider making appointments with those exhibitors you really want to meet with.

If co-workers are attending the show with you, divide the show up into sections. Each team member can sit in on different seminars to maximize the amount of information gathered by the entire team.

Once you’ve decided who you need to see, get a map of the show floor and prioritize your route. Walking a trade show can be an exhausting exercise, so make it easy on yourself by securing a hotel room close to the convention center. Booking your room well in advance will allow you to enjoy discounted rates.

When you’re packing, be sure to bring a comfortable pair of walking shoes, a lightweight outfit, and plenty of business cards. Additionally, develop a lead form to record vendor names, products, contact information, and any follow-up notes you’ll want to remember after the show. You’ll want a light carry-all bag for the materials you gather during the show. Avoid plastic bags, as they will cut into your hands and become unbearably heavy after hours of walking.

During the show:

Upon arriving in the convention city, obtain a map of the locality. It will make your life much easier and save you valuable time.

The next thing you’ll want to do is consult the latest version of the trade show directory and revise your carefully made plans. Exhibitors may have dropped out or arrived unexpectedly, or seminar times may have changed. Check your coat and bags before stepping onto the show floor – you won’t want to lug them around for hours.

Don’t just grab every brochure that’s offered to you. Collect the information that is of interest to you or that could be valuable to others in your company. Many exhibitors will gladly mail literature and samples, which relieves you of having to carry them around the exhibit hall. Use your lead forms or a small notebook to record the most vital information.

Let exhibitors know that you are on a tight schedule. They want to make the best use of their time as well, and will gladly cut to the chase with you. You might have to push a little bit to get the answers for questions you really want. Sometimes booth staff simply do not have the answers you require. In that case, ask who you should contact at their firm for follow up.

Trade shows are the ideal opportunity to gather information about what your competitors are doing. It’s often the first glimpse you’ll get of new product releases, special programs, or fresh marketing initiatives. Make a point to talk with the booth staff, but don’t ask overly technical or pointed questions. More likely than not, the exhibitors won’t be prepared to answer them, and you’ll be tipping your hand as a more-than-casually interested attendee. A simple “So, what do you guys have in the pipeline?” may reward you far more than any carefully-worded queries about technical specs.

Don’t be shy about by-passing booths that do not interest you. The exhibitors won’t mind. They want to devote their time to potential customers.

At the same time, keep your eyes open for networking opportunities. Industry leaders haunt trade shows, and they’re great people to know. Be social at workshops – now is the time to hand out some of those business cards you’ve brought along.

Take regular breaks to hydrate and make notes. The notes will help you write your trip report, and the water will keep you healthy and moving. Convention centers are notoriously dry, hot environments – be prepared.

After the show:

Long hours on the trade show floor are enough to wipe anybody out. But before you flop down on the bed for forty well-deserved winks, take some time to organize the information you’ve gathered. If it’s for co-workers back at the home office, sort it into envelopes and address them to the relevant person. If the information is for you, sort it by priority, affixing sticky notes to jog your memory after you’ve returned from the show.

Take a moment after the show to make note of any exhibits or displays that you thought were particularly effective. What did they do that you could implement in your own company’s marketing campaign?

Be sure to follow up with new contacts and vendors after the show. Having a clear plan of action will make sure that the time you spent at the show was a worth-while investment.

Written by Susan A. Friedmann,CSP, The Tradeshow Coach, Lake Placid, NY, author: “Meeting & Event Planning for Dummies,” working with companies to improve their meeting and event success through coaching, consulting and training. For a free copy of ExhibitSmart Tips of the Week, e-mail: susan@thetradeshowcoach.com; website: www.thetradeshowcoach.com

Popularity: 2% [?]

There exists a hot buzz word popping up again like never before in
internet marketing, and it’s about time you take advantage of it. No
internet marketing idea has rendered more curiosity than affiliate
networking. While this form of publicity has existed for ages, it has
not ever been hotter. If you have not already considered using
affiliate networking for your business, now may be the time.
Otherwise, you risk missing out on a great way to help pull in
interest you never knew was out there. This article will provide a
basic understanding of what affiliate networking is, as well as assist
you to gain more knowledge in the ways it can advertise your webpage.

What is affiliate networking? Simply put, affiliate networking is a
collaborative relationship between two businesses. In this article, we
are going to refer to them as the Advertiser and Publisher. The
Advertiser pays the Publisher to put a link on their web site, and the
Publisher provides targeted traffic to the Advertiser in return. This
system is set up in a way that each business is going to help the
other become more profitable.

How does affiliate networking work? First, let’s study our
Advertiser. Let us create a hypothetical company, Print Galore. Print
Galore specializes in a unequalled new brand of photo paper. They have
a outstanding product, and they must advertise it to get customers to
buy it. Print Galore designs a webpage for customers to learn more
about their unequalled paper, place orders, and ask questions. Alas,
they are having a tough time getting customers to their internet site.
They must advertise. That’s when the Publisher enters the picture.

Camera Kingdom has been very fruitful on the internet for quite
awhile. Each day, thousands of customers turn to their site for their
camera needs. Regrettably, though they are experts at cameras, they
have very little knowledge of photo paper . Though they would like to
help, when customers have paper questions they don’t know what to do.

One day, Camera Kingdom is approached by a trusted firm representing
Print Galore. The representative offers them a deal that if they
provide a small advertising space for Print Galore, they will pay
Camera Kingdom for the clients which they funnel to the Print Galore
web site. Camera Kingdom decides to give it a try.

Camera Kingdom is pleased because they are supplying an added service
to their customers, and are getting paid to do it. Print Galore is
pleased because they are getting loads of targeted customers to their
internet site every day that are searching for just exactly what they
are selling.

Where should a business start? Many advertisers will contact
successful businesses to ask them if it would be possible for them to
serve as their publisher. This method was effective at one time, but
as the internet has grown, successful businesses have become swamped
with advertisers who would like to affiliate with them. To avoid
losing the effectiveness of their site, publishers will only allow a
minimal amount of related links to be placed on it. Many large
businesses have turned to marketing firms to help them find the right
content for their specific business. Marketing firms are pros at
playing the role of matchmaker for businesses.

What should a business look for in a Marketing Firm? The main goal in
using an affiliate networking firm should be to increase the
opportunity that your company gets the greatest return for your
internet marketing efforts. Therefore, you should try to search for
three main things: size, experience, and innovation.

A expert marketing firm will have within it a good amount of
publishers to pick from. The greater the selection, the greater the
the chance of getting the right fit between advertiser and publisher.
Any firm worth its weight will provide a list of companies who they
have affiliations with. Ask to see a sample of companies which they
represent. If you haven’t heard of them, there may not be much traffic
going through their sites.

When you are looking for a firm, don’t forget that experience might
make a big difference. If you want to look like a professional
business, take yours to a professional team. You are putting the way
your business will be represented in their hands, so choose your firm
wisely.

The last on my list of the three things to look for, make sure that
the firm you are thinking about is innovative. The internet is
continually growing. New techniques are continually being developed to
capture the attention of your potential customer. The firm which works
for you has got to be able to keep up with tomorrows marketing
advances in a way that promotes your company in a professional manner.

There is little doubt that the success rate within affiliate programs
could be growing stronger more and more, and many businesses have
begun to see how valuable it is. Don’t make the same mistakes as many
others have. When searching for an affiliate firm, don’t forget to ask
yourself those three significant questions. Does the firm have a good
choice of publishers, do they have experience, and do they show
innovation in what they are doing? Remember this advice and you are on
the right path to discovering the ‘buried treasure’ in your own
internet site.

Author bio :

Aaron Bartlett is a business analyst and internet author. Much of his
spare time is spent observing popular businesses and their functioning
within the world wide web. A site he strongly recommends for affiliate
marketing is: http://www.clickbooth.com/ – Affiliate.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Layer Your Plantings
Part three in a series

In our last article, we helped you layout your new landscape. In this article we’ll explore which plants to put where and what makes an effective landscape.

If you think of your landscape as a stage, you can easily imagine the basics of layout. On a stage, you have a nice background or backdrop in the back. The backdrop is usually large and fills your entire view. In front of the backdrop, you have some smaller items that set the scene. These may be small pieces of furniture. And then in the very front you have your actors…your stars. They take the front and center to get the most attention. So, looking from back to front, you have your backdrop, your accent pieces, and finally your stars.

Laying out a good landscape uses the same principles: we start with a backdrop in the very back, then we add some accents, then finally, our stars!

The Backdrop
The backdrop can be any number of things but the basic principle is that the backdrop simply serves to show off the items in front of it, and can also be used to hide things behind it. A good backdrop could be something as simple as a wall or fence, or something as elaborate as a planting of evergreens. As long as the evergreens have one common element (perhaps they have the same color or same texture), they will serve as a good backdrop.

The Accents
Your accent pieces are plants that help to dress the set. These work well if planted in groupings of at least three. For example, a clump of bushes off to the left of your “set” and a clump or flowering plants on the right. Or perhaps some clumps of grasses would serve as a good accent.

The Stars
Now for the stars! Taking center stage are your accents. And they don’t have to be centered! As long as they are different from your backdrop and accents plants, they will become your stars. For example, an evergreen backdrop with some grasses used as an accent set up a nice monochromatic green image. Place some white flowering plants in front and they become the stars of your landscape. Because of their different color from the rest of your “set”, they will stand out.

You can create multiple “sets” in your landscape. Just break up your landscape into smaller mini-scapes. As long as each area is separated by backdrops and accents, you can easily achieve a beautiful look.

About the Author
Dean Novosat is an avid gardener and landscaper. He has transformed many boring yards into beautiful landscapes. He has several websites including http://www.the-garden-doctor.com and http://www.dr-landscape.com.

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