Written by: Brennan Deitsch -Off the Subject of Marketing-
Date: 11/ 29/ 2011
Today I was driving around and enjoying the wonderful rainy fall day when suddenly a driver in a BMW drove right in front of me. I confidently put the agility of my Mazda 6 to test and drove around him. Instinctively, anger tried to take over me. However, I did not let my emotions get the best of me. The driver sped off and had to be traveling close to 60 mph in a 35 mph zone. The driver was swerving around cars like he was in a race. I thought to myself that he must be in a hurry to get somewhere and trying to let him know I was frustrated would not solve anything. Surprisingly, the driver turned into a hospital.
While the driver had no right to disobey the law and put others at risk, perhaps the driver was in a hurry to see a loved one who was fighting for their last breath or maybe his wife was having a baby. Regardless, this is exactly why road rage is an abusive way of driving a vehicle. What does it solve? If you let your emotions get the best of you, your car could look like the Taurus in the picture. Just in case you were wondering, Ford does not offer a Taurus convertible. What if I let the emotions get the best of me with the driver of the BMW? The driver may have never made it to the hospital. In addition, that would of made me just as bad as a person!
Vehicle Road Rage: Our Most Deadly Weapon
We all know that guns are dangerous and can kill people. We also know that the Atomic Bomb can kill millions in a matter of seconds. Luckily, only a selected few carry guns. However, if you look in your driveway, you may own a weapon that may seem innocent at first. The beautiful lines and dual exhaust can make you grunt like Tim Allen on Home Improvement. Don’t let your car fool you. Weighing in from around 3,000 to 4,500 lbs., your “grocery getter” or “soccer mom” van is a dangerous weapon when left in the wrong hands.
Take my advice, as a retired amateur race car driver, I saw a small portion of how ugly car accidents can be. Race car drivers constantly deal with emotions of anger, however the best drivers contain their emotions and only worry about what their car is doing. We all have places to be, but expect people to make mistakes and be ready when they do. When drivers do things on the road that make you angry just let them go.
You will not prove anything by speeding up to catch up to them to show your anger. Just ask Kyle Busch in the Camping Word Truck Racing series. Kyle Busch was accidentally pushed into the wall by Ron Hornaday. Kyle Busch, known for a quick temper, retaliated and slammed Ron into the wall. Due to his recklessness, NASCAR took Kyle out of the race. Kyle also lost his sponsorship with M&M’s for the remainder of the season.
What is Road Rage and What are Some of the Statistics?
Road rage, also called road violence, aggressive driving and road anger, is defined as the deliberate use of a vehicle to express emotions such as anger and frustration. While some drivers resort to honking their horn or giving the other driver the finger, some drivers resort to hitting other vehicles or pedestrians to voice their displeasure. According to www.Coedu.usf.edu, 66 percent of annual traffic fatalities are caused by road rage. Interestingly, there has been a 51 percent increase in aggressive driving since 1990.
In conclusion, if you find yourself in a situation where another driver drives in front of you or offends you in any way, remember what is most important. Is it the offending driver or the family you are driving home to? Calm yourself down and listen to your favorite music. I hear Enya is a great solution to road rage.
The internet has given us so much. Students no longer need to go out to their local library to do research projects. Music lovers can download every song ever written in one day. You can even download my hit single “If I had the talent” from my album entitled “If your Ears are Bored”. Instead of calling or meeting old friends and family, we can communicate solely via email. The sad truth is that many people rely on technology because they really do not feel like talking to you in person or over the phone. What is one of the best ways the common American citizen can keep track of people that they hate or are jealous of?
Social Media!
Social Media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Myspace allow us to innocently stalk others. It is in our human nature to be curious of other peoples lives. If you do not believe me, pay attention the next time one of your Facebook friends changes their relationship status. It reminds me of 8th grade when the whole class found out that Billy and Sara were boyfriend and girlfriend. Suddenly that is the only thing worth talking about. People want to know what other people are doing and how they are doing it. Social Media makes it easy for us to do this and that is what is so great about it.
Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus
If Facebook, MySpace and Twitter was not enough for social media experts, welcome Google Plus or G+ for short. After witnessing the invention of Facebook becoming a hit movie, the search engine icon; Google, decided they wanted a piece of the social media frenzy.
What is Google Plus?
Google Plus (+) In a Nutshell
Like many of Google’s product offerings, Google+ is a very simple, clean and efficient platform.The profile design is very similar to Facebook. Of course you can upload your favorite photos, add your personal information and add friends. I would categorize Google+ as a mixture of Facebook and Twitter. Let’s talk about Google+ in more detail.
Google+ Social Circles
Don't worry, only your closest friends will know you are a drunken fairy. When did Mr. Tinkerbell start drinking light beer?
For all the social butterflies that would like to hide some of your shameful moments from your parents, G+ will easily allow you to do this. Circles is an unique feature that allows users to separate friends, family, co-workers or music friends into groups. That way you can choose what those circles can view. Therefore, even if it is not Halloween, you can dress up as a fairy and share the pictures with people you can trust!
Plus, Google (ha) allows you to connect with celebrities such as Joe the Plumber and Enya. These users are separated into groups just like Twitter. Sorry folks, this does not mean you are actual friends with Dick Trickle, but at least you are the first one to know what he had to eat for brunch.
Google+ Hangouts: Online Video and Chat
You may not be in a rush to switch to Google+ just yet. However, there is a nice new feature that allows users to join a online Video chat. The feature is called Google+ Hangout. While Facebook recently released a similar video chat feature by Skype, it does come free and it only allows two people at a time. Google Hangout is very similar to Skype. Users can invite their friends into a video chat. Even if you do not have a webcam, you can still talk to others via the Google Hangout function. So if you getting annoyed typing “lol” or “omg”, you can easily join an online video chat for free! In my view, this is the one feature that puts Google+ on top of Facebook and any other social media network. View the video below to learn how to use Google Hangout.
Google+ Offers Instant Photo and Video Uploads:
The Google team has also released a feature that allows you take a picture with your mobile phone and instantly upload it to your Picasa or YouTube account. For example, if you are at a party and you want to take a picture of someone you hate, you can upload the picture immediately and it can be viewable on your Google+ page. I suppose it can be a great way to “blackmail” someone. However, I would not recommend that.
Facebook: Still the #1 Social Media Network Site?
I still prefer to use Facebook right now and I expect that most social media professionals will do the same. However, it would be a great idea to experiment with Google+. It is worth to note that Google+ is still in its testing phase and many updates are expected to come. As Gigaom.com reports, 750 million people are addicted to Facebook and Twitter so it will take some time for Google+ to match that number. Having said that, I give Google two thumbs up for entering the social media game and I think they will develop some fine new features that may win over new fans in the future. Lastly, you may notice a transparent +1 box in the Google Search results. This allows users with Google+ accounts to recommend websites easily as they search. It is another great tool that shows what websites can be trusted. This should be another aspect of the social media frenzy that internet marketers need to be aware of! Enjoy being social on Facebook, Twitter plus Google. I would love to know how you feel about Google+. Feel free to leave a comment or participate in my poll.
This might be an all too familiar sight for parents. It could be a beautiful summer day with birds chirping. Your 80 year old neighbor, William, is walking his dog effortlessly. As he walks by he asks “So, where are the kids?” You painfully respond with, “Oh, just playing those darn video games again.” William than immediately says, “When I was a kid, I played tackle football all day long. When I got home, I had scrapes all over my body. And you know what, I loved it. I may have screamed like a girl when my Mother had to clean my wounds, but it made me the man that I am today.” Ironically, William was pulled away forcefully by his Chihuahua.
Does this sound like your children? Are your children addicted to video games? Think about that question for a moment before you read on.
I am not a fitness expert or a parenting guru. However, I doubt that raising healthy children and playing video games can co-exist unless parents are more proactive with their child on how their free time is spent. I know this because I once was a kid that loved video games. Video games were the subject of conversation even more than girls. That says a lot when you are a boy that was approaching the awkward stages of puberty.
My friends loved video games just as much. However, that did not mean that we spent all of our adolescent lives in front of a television screen. We were busy dreaming about playing like Michael Jordan or throwing a winning touchdown pass to end a game. We did not live our dreams through a virtual character on a screen. We got the neighborhood boys together and played all day long. At the end of the day, we smelled like old cheese, but we felt great! Usually, we only played video games when we were too tired or when there was no sun.
The Age of Video Games: Obesity in Children and Teens
As we approach the year 2012, the video game industry is booming! However, so are the waistlines of our youth. According to the US Centers for Disease and Control, almost 18% of US teens are obese. The study is not concluding that video games are the sole reason of obesity; however it should not be excluded from the list of causes. If you struggle to motivate your child to replace video games with more physical activity, the resolution might be staring you right in the face.
Can Video Games be a Form of Exercise?
Yes, it is true. There is new technology available that allows anyone of any age to break a sweat and love it! Best of all, it is still a video game!
Nintendo was one of the first mainstream video game developers that brought the idea of video games that force you to be active several years ago. The Nintendo Wii was a new platform that made video games practical again. Instead of having several different buttons for game play, you only have a few. In a matter of minutes anyone of any age can play games such as Bowling, Soccer, Baseball and Track and Field. The Wii was fairly accurate at matching the player’s actual movement along with movements of the character on the game. Visit this link for a Complete list of Wii Games.
The Xbox Kinect Video Game System: The Easiest Way To Exercise and Have Fun Doing It!
As I age, I struggle to find the time and motivation to exercise. My lack of exercise makes me feel sluggish and unhappy. As an Xbox 360 owner myself, after I heard about the new hands-free game that was coming to the Xbox, I was excited to try it out. My optimism was high for the Xbox Kinect as I felt that it might get me excited about working out and getting my body back. My initial review of the Xbox Kinect could be best described as “Fantastic”. I loved the fact that the Kinect was completely hands free. I felt some of the downfalls of the Nintendo Wii were the controllers and I never felt like mymovements were accurately displayed on the screen. In addition, I do not have to worry about anyone accidentally throwing a controller at my television screen when playing Kinect games.
I do not work for Microsoft, so I am not writing this short review for any type of personal gain. I will give you the good and bad news about this Xbox accessory. I will start with the bad news.
The Bad:
First, you must own an Xbox 360 console. I did a quick search on Google and found out you can buy the Xbox 360 Console with Kinect for $299.99. If you already have an Xbox 360, you can buy the Kinect for $149.99.
The Xbox Kinect requires all users to get off the couch (the instructions actually included this warning).
Probably not a good idea to buy a Kinect if you live in an apartment–unless your neighbors love the sound of kids screaming and grown men jumping up and down.
Not every Xbox game is Kinect compatible. Make sure the game case says that it is an Xbox Kinect compatible game.
The Good:
Easy to install. Simply follow the instructions, plug in the USB cable and begin calibration process.
Completely hands-free game play. No controller is required to play Xbox Kinect games.
Can be enjoyed by anyone of any age. Since it is hands free, even your Grandparents can enjoy the Kinect.
Can be fun as a recreational video game system and can be beneficial to the serious athlete.
The Best Kinect Games To Get Into Shape:
The Xbox Kinect has games that everyone can enjoy. From “Kinect Adventures”, “Sonic Free Riders”, “Dance Central”, “Kinect Sports” and “The Biggest Loser Ultimate Workout”. Each game proves to be enjoyable and quite frankly, a great workout. I am ashamed to say that after competing on the champion setting in track and field, I was sore for days.
I have now owned the Xbox Kinect for almost six months and I recently decided to take it up a notch. I bought the “Biggest Loser-Ultimate Workout”. I find it difficult to call this a game, but it is an useful tool for anyone regardless of their fitness goals. The “program” analyzes your body and determines your strengths and weaknesses. You get customized diets and a calorie counter to make sure you stay on track. My fitness goals are to tone and add muscle to my body. However, it is truly frightening to watch how slowly the calorie counter increases. As I wipe the sweat off my face after an intense 30 minute workout, I find out I only burned 180 calories. It makes me think twice when I look at a 12-ounce bottle of soda that has 150 calories. It takes a half hour of intense exercise to burn off a can of pop! Just in case you are curious, the Biggest Loser program has many different levels of difficulty, so you can go at the pace you choose. It even has yoga and tips to meditate! It is almost like there is a fitness instructor in your living room! There are many other fitness games for the Xbox Kinect (see this list of fitness games for the Xbox Kinect).
Conclusion: Getting Kids Into Shape Playing Video Games
If you are struggling to get your child or teenager interested in working out, ask them to try the Xbox Kinect. If you own a PlayStation 3, try the comparable PlayStation Move. The Move is also easy to use and it puts the user in full control! Your child might not even notice that they are getting a workout! As parents, it is your job to make every effort possible to help your child understand that every decision they make affects them for the rest of their life. If they choose to follow a non-active lifestyle, they will suffer later on in life. Making the right decision is never easy. However, sometimes adolescents just need a push in the right direction. If your loved one enjoys video games but feels as though they are allergic to sweat, video game systems such as the Xbox Kinect might be their first step towards a healthier life!
If Grandma can have fun and break a sweat, so can you and your children!
This is a Leonard Detroit Upright Piano. As you can see from the pictures, it could use some work. It will need some professional tuning, but besides that it plays just fine. A matching bench is included with the piano. The legs of the piano are also bent so it would need some cosmetic work. I just do not have the time to restore it and frankly, our house is not big enough for a piano. With a little TLC, this piano can be a great gift, decorative item and even an investment. It has the potential to be quite beautiful! Please send me an email if you are interested in this upright piano.
I would prefer for someone to pickup this vintage Leonard Detroit upright piano. Other relevant locations: Bowling Green, Monroe, Bedford, Sylvania, Lambertville and Maumee.
Please see the pictures of the used piano. If you would like to see more pictures, let me know. See my ad on Craigslist.
Price: $50
Location: Toledo (Northwest Ohio) and Southeast Michigan
This is a standard Story and Clark Upright Piano. As you can see from the pictures, it could use some work. It will need some professional tuning, but besides that it plays just fine. It has a matching storage piano bench too. I just do not have the time to restore it and frankly, our house is not big enough for a piano. With a little TLC, this piano can be a great gift, decorative item and even an investment. It has the potential to be quite beautiful! This could be a great piano for a beginner or for a piano restorer.
Please send me an email if you are interested in this upright piano.
I would prefer for someone to pickup this upright vintage Story & Clark piano.
Other relevant locations: Bowling Green, Monroe, Bedford, Sylvania, Lambertville and Maumee.
Please see the pictures of the upright piano. If you would like more pictures, let me know. See my ad on Craigslist.
If you’re getting rid of garbage in your garage and need more storage space, contact Backyard Buildings & More to get a nice storage shed. I got a nice 8×8 shed from them and I love it! Click here to visit their site!
There is no refuse or recycle collection on holidays observed by the City of Toledo. New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, President’s Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day
Locations: Toledo, Sylvania, Bowling Green and (Northwest Ohio)
Isn’t the idea of Pay Per Click campaigns great? All you have to do is develop a keyword list and ads that are relevant. Additionally, advertisers only have to pay when their ads are clicked on. Sounds fantastical, doesn’t it? If you have invested your time and money into Pay Per Click programs such as Google Adwords, you will understand me when I say that PPC management is not always profitable. Sometimes there is too much competition for certain keywords and companies can not afford to place high bids to achieve high rankings. The easy solution is to only focus on long tail and niche keywords. However, what do you do if that approach is still not enough?
Manipulate Your Visitors Into Creating New Keywords
Manipulate your consumers into developing a keyword list for you! You do this by creating a blog and writing unique and fresh content and include words that you might not find in all the various keyword tools found on the internet. Manipulating others should be easy for all of us as we have been practicing the craft of manipulation since we were able to speak. If you have kids, you know what I am talking about. One final note on behalf of this digression; kids are excellent manipulators! I think I made my point!
Commonly, when internet marketing experts write blogs and content for SEO purposes, they commonly use keyword tools. They research keywords and transfer those keywords into the content of their blog. It can be extremely difficult and costly to compete for those keywords organically and in Pay Per Click campaigns. Instead of inserting those keywords right into your blog, think of other variations of the keyword. Often readers will use your blog to educate themselves and they may even use the same keyword variations from your blog on a search engine to find your website. If you do not believe me, that is ok. Here is an example from some of my work as an Online Marketing Manager.
I was hired by the Vietnam Veterans of America to head their internet marketing strategies to help them raise more funds with their car donation program. One of the first strategies I implemented was keyword research. After researching the competition, I developed a keyword list that looked something like this.
Donate car
Donate your car
Car donations
Donate car to charity
Vehicle donations
Donate my car
Car donation tax deduction
(My beginning keyword list had at least 1,000 keywords). While this keyword list is a good start, all of the competition is already investing their SEO strategies and money on those keywords. The fact is that those keywords are too costly and are too broad.
This is where you have to think outside the box. What specific product or message is your website selling? Referring to my example again, all the car donation proceeds benefit homeless veterans. With that in mind, the keyword list will require you to brainstorm for new keywords and throw away those so called “keyword tools”.
This is how my new keyword list looked:
Donate your car for veterans
Veteran car donation
Donate car Vietnam veterans
Car donation homeless veterans
Donate car Vietnam veterans of America
Donating car to veterans charity
Vehicle donations for veterans
Donate car Vietnam veterans
Donating cars veterans
Donate my car Vietnam vet
Donate car for homeless vets
Car donation tax deduction veterans
Donate car veterans Michigan
Car donations disabled veterans
Donate car to disabled veterans
Give car to veterans
Hopefully you get the idea. I used the generic keyword “donate car” and “car donations” and made them into more specific keywords. When I first started working for the Vietnam Veterans of America, the keyword “veteran car donation” received an average of 10 searches per month.
After two months of using those new long tail keywords in my blog at helpourveterans.wordpress.com, I noticed that the amount of searches including donate car for veterans tripled. I discovered this trend using Google Analytics. Analytics showed me the actual keywords users were typing.
I focused on writing content that included many different variations of car donations and veterans. This also makes the blog sound less promotional. I sometimes would even write blogs that never mentioned the target keyword of car donations. The most successful blog does not always promote a product or service, but it should stir up the emotions of the readers. Regardless, after potential donors left my blog, they used my blog as a reference and used keywords that the competition was completely missing.
What This Keyword Targeting Strategy Means To You:
This strategy is perfect for new businesses or any business that fits into a niche market. This SEO technique will make it easier to achieve top ranking organically and it will lower your costs per click. (CPC) Here is another example to help you understand:
Estimated CPC for the keyword “donate car”: $5.00-$10.00
Versus
“Car donation for veterans”: $1.50-$2.00
This is because there is less competition for the keyword car donation for veterans. Using niche keywords such as car donation for veterans will not bring you as much traffic, but it will allow you to operate at a budget you can afford. It was especially critical for the nonprofit charity. In addition, the more targeted a keyword is, the higher the conversion rate! After I made those adjustments, the conversion rate jumped to 10-20%. The conversion rate for the generic keywords was no higher than 4%! Job well done!
I was then hired by other car donation organizations to run their campaigns as well because of the great results I achieved. I did this by thinking outside the box and allowing the general public to establish hot new keywords for me! Many reputable bloggers already do this, but they may not even realize it.
My advice is to write blogs in a non-promotional manner and stir up the emotions of your visitors! Stop relying on keyword tools to develop keyword lists and generate your own! Start your own blog and keep an open mind when writing the blog. Make sure you track your progress using analytics. When you start to see a trend in new keywords, add them to your website and use them in you Pay Per Click programs. If your competition isn’t using those keywords, you can achieve top ranking organically easily!
Written by: Brennan Deitsch -Off the Subject of Marketing-
We all know that guns are dangerous and can kill people. We also know that the Atomic Bomb can kill millions in a matter of seconds. Luckily, only a selected few carry guns. However, if you look in your driveway, you may own a weapon that may seem innocent at first. The beautiful lines and dual exhaust can make you grunt like Tim Allen on Home Improvement. Don’t let your car fool you. Weighing in from around 3,000 to 4,500 lbs., your “grocery getter” or “soccer mom” van is a dangerous weapon when left in the wrong hands.
According to www.Coedu.usf.edu, 66 percent of annual traffic fatalities are caused by road rage. Interestingly, there has been a 51 percent increase in aggressive driving since 1990.
