After years of surfing without any major virus infections, I got hit by a lean mean virus twice this month. First, I found the System Fix virus had settled onto my computer. It took me two days to clean everything up, two days in which I couldn't spend time on running my business.

Earlier this week, my PC got infected by the Federal Computer Crime Unit ransomware.

"Ransomware (also referred to in some cases as cryptoviruses, cryptotrojans or cryptoworms) comprises a class of malware which restricts access to the computer system that it infects, and demands a ransom paid to the creator of the malware in order for the restriction to be removed. "

It completely blocked my system and I had to call in a professional to get it removed and get my system operational again. Time loss: 3 days!

Now I've decided: no more! I can't afford to lose all this time, and I assume neither can you!

Below are a few easy, cost-effective steps you can take to make your computer more secure:

1. Always make backups of important information and store in a safe place separate from your computer.

2. Update and patch your operating system, web browser and software frequently.

3. Install a firewall. Without a good firewall, viruses, worms, Trojans, malware and adware can all easily access your computer from the Internet. Consideration should be given to the benefits and differences between hardware and software based firewall programs.

4. Review your browser and email settings for optimum security. Why should you do this? Active-X and JavaScript are often used by hackers to plant malicious programs into your computers. While cookies are relatively harmless in terms of security concerns, they do still track your movements on the Internet to build a profile of you. At a minimum set your security setting for the “Internet zone” to High, and your “trusted sites zone” to Medium Low.

5. Install anti-virus software and set for automatic updates so that you receive the most current versions.

6. Do not open unknown email attachments. It is simply not enough that you may recognize the address from which it originates because many viruses can spread from a familiar address.

7. Do not run programs from unknown origins. Also, do not send these types of programs to friends and coworkers because they contain funny or amusing stories or jokes. They may contain a Trojans horse waiting to infect a computer.

8. Disable hidden filename extensions. By default, the Windows operating system is set to “hide file extensions for known file types”. Disable this option so that file extensions display in Windows. Some file extensions will, by default, continue to remain hidden, but you are more likely to see any unusual file extensions that do not belong.

9. Turn off your computer and disconnect from the network when not using the computer. A hacker cannot attack your computer when you are disconnected from the network or the computer is off.

10. Consider making a boot disk on an external disk in case your computer is damaged or compromised by a malicious program. Obviously, you need to take this step before you experience a hostile breach of your system.

As most business owners know, online marketing is the best way to reach out to people, but it seems like some have no idea how to use the websites properly. Though it can seem like a simple task to use a website like Twitter, some have trouble with gaining more traffic. Business owners know that traffic is the most important piece of the puzzle and so you will need to know these helpful Twitter traffic strategies to ensure that your online presence will continue to grow.

Use Your Other Social Networks

This is something that some people do not do. They don't understand that the other social networks out there will actually work together. You must promote your Twitter on places like Facebook, and YouTube  so that you will be able to gain more traffic on Twitter. If you simply just focus one area, you will never be able to see the full potential of your online advertising. If you use all the social networks that you can think of, you will surely see just powerful they can be for your business' future success.

Make A Contest

A great way to get more exposure on Twitter is to run a contest that will have people winning a prize. However, the trick is to make sure that the only way for them to join is to "ReTweet" the post. When you are making contests on Twitter, try your best to incorporate as much information as you possibly can so that everyone will know what to do. You can even add a link to the contest so that it will be easier for people to know how to join. It will also be a requirement that they follow you so that you can get more people involved with the contest and at the same time still drive more traffic to your Twitter account.

Follow, Reply & Network

The most important thing to do on websites like Twitter is to be active. When you follow other accounts, reply to everyone and network, you will be able to see just how much you can reach out to people. This is essentially all that you need to do to increase traffic almost instantly. There will be people online all throughout the day and so you can't be afraid to reach out to them. Try your best to make as many friends as you possibly can and to simply network with the people. When you follow, reply and network with a lot of people, you will surely start to gain more traffic.

Overall, Twitter is one of the best ways to make your online presence heard. If you are a business owner, then it is important that you use this platform as a way to reach out to people and to add more exposure for your company. Though this may take time, remember that it is highly recommended that you make your online presence known early so that you will be able to truly see your business grow.

Get more Twitter traffic strategies here:  Twitter Traffic Flow System

The WSO forum is massively popular… There's not another place on the internet where you get so many eager eyeballs in one place, ready to buy when an offer catches their attention.

Since Warrior+Plus went live a few months ago affiliates are now able to promote WSOs.

Many of the warrior+ affiliates are now making a killing promoting other people's WSOs… folks know the Warrior Forum is a great place to buy quality products at unbelievably low prices.
 
Isn't It About Time You Got Your Share?

Maybe you've heard you can promote WSOs but you don't know how or where to start? Maybe you've signed up to Warrior +Plus but you struggle to understand and interpret the stats, how to navigate around the site AND most importantly… select the right offers to promote.

Well there's no need to be left out in the cold any longer because now there's the "Warrior+Plus Affiliate Goldmine" Video Training Series, which you can download and watch for FREE here!

Facebook marketing can have a great effect on any business but there is a need to understand the pitfalls of Facebook marketing in order to know exactly what you have to avoid. If you know what can be done wrong you can easily learn what can be done correctly.

One of the most common pitfalls of Facebook marketing is not being able to differentiate between professional and personal approach. Through Facebook you can easily add personal touch and create a good link with a potential client. Unfortunately, when you are running a small business and you are the only person that deals with marketing aspects you can be faced with problems. You will need to find a mix between the professional part of your promotion and the personal approach that you use.

Another pitfall of Facebook marketing is building a profile page but not creating a fan page. Most people start with the profile page and simply forget or neglect the need of a fan page. The Fan page is highly important in Facebook Marketing. With a profile page you can only have 5000 people that are connected but with fan pages there are no limits. There are limits linked with marketing with the use of Profile pages.

One mistake that few people realize is not changing status and not offering new information in profile pages. You have many options that you can use in order to contact fan base. For instance, you can post photographs, write notes or even upload articles. You have to be constant in posting new material. You can even ask for different opinions and start discussions. The bottom line is to encourage discussions and to interact with your Facebook network. Followers will thus be aware of what your company does and they are going to feel involved.

Out of all the pitfalls of Facebook marketing there is one that few understand. Never make the mistake of not inviting followers to pages that they should like and are interested in. This keeps people rooted to your business as you are offering them much more than something that you are promoting. You can even include an opt-in box on the fan page in order to gain email subscriptions.

Most of the pitfalls of Facebook Marketing are linked with not understanding what Facebook is all about. We are basically in front of a social network and you need to socialize in order to be successful. This is the most important thing that you need to consider at all times. All the mistakes that you can do are linked with your fans and followers. You want them to stay on board and you never want to harass them and ask too much.

For more Facebook tips, check out the Facebook Marketing Secrets eCourse.

There are dozens of professionals that are going to offer you top facebook marketing tips that you need to take into account. The problem is that there are so many different marketing methods that you can use when running facebook based campaigns that you can easily be overwhelmed by all that is offered. We are basically in front of the biggest social network in the world and it is highly important to always focus on a personal approach because all people will react better when they see a person and not a business.

Out of all the top facebook marketing tips that can be handed out, one that is highly important relates to promoting businesses. You can promote them with the use of facebook but it is highly important that this is tastefully done. People basically want to know who the individual behind the business is before they are going to consider the actual business. Make sure that you tell people what you like and what your hobbies are. You can create a much better relationship with everybody if you are a real person and you look equal to those that are following you.

Every top facebook marketing tips page on the Internet is going to talk about Facebook pages. You need to create one in order to establish brand awareness. This will also help out a lot in ranking higher in search engines. Even if you have just one profile, you can always have many business pages that will be linked to it. Page rankings are increased in a direct link with how many fans you get.

It is highly important to establish yourself as unique because there are hundreds of people that are promoting businesses with the use of Facebook. Make sure that you highlight the reasons why your company is special and why people should watch what it is doing. Keep posting constantly but never talk just about business opportunities. We highly recommend that you also talk about yourself and try to create a good link with your customers.

The profile picture is also highly important. Make sure that you choose one that is clear and it features you happy. Make sure that you create photo albums and add pictures with friends and family. You want potential clients to see you as a person and not just a business. Whenever doing friend request we recommend that you introduce yourself so that you do not seem like you just want to gather numbers.

Keep in mind that these top facebook marketing tips are basically just things that people forget. You need to learn as much as possible in order to be successful and we recommend that you always pay attention to all that this social network has to offer.

For more Facebook tips, check out the Facebook Marketing Secrets eCourse.

The fastest way to build your list is with a highly targeted squeeze page that highlights the benefits of joining and offers your visitors with a quality incentive to motivate them into subscribing to your mailing list.

You’ll want to take your time constructing a squeeze page, paying attention to the headline you use as well as implementing bulletpoints that showcase the benefits and rewards that your subscriber will receive.

Incentive offers can include special reports, ebooks, video tutorials or even coupons or discounts on products and services. Just make sure that’s it extremely relevant to your market, and that it’s unique whenever possible.

If you plan to use private label content as the incentive motivator, make sure that it’s of high quality and offers clear value.  You could also consider compiling multiple private label products into one package so that you can deliver a unique compilation to your audience.

Your squeeze page should also feature a privacy policy, outlining the information you collect as well as what you do with this information.

You want to reassure your visitors that you do not share, rent or sell their information and that you will only contact them with offers that are relevant to what they originally sign up for.

Minimize external links!  Your squeeze page should consist of the following components, ensuring that you retain your visitors attention and capture the lead:

• Strong Headline – focusing on the most compelling question or statement in your niche market.

• Opt-in Box – above the fold and repeated at the bottom of your page.

• Bulletpoints – highlighting the benefits of joining your list.

• Contact Information – a direct link to your email or support desk.

• Privacy Policy – just a few lines long, in smaller font but clearly visible below the opt-in box.

Make sure to subscribe to your own newsletter so that you can verify that is everything is working as it should, and that you receive the incentive offer directly after confirming.

To build professional squeeze pages, please consider using the free online squeeze page generator service (or get the script and run this service from your own server)

If you've spent any time at all learning about copywriting, you know that the core of any great sales letter lies with an IRRESISTIBLE OFFER. People can't resist it. It continues to draw them back time and time again, long after they've finished comparing prices and scrutinizing bonuses to see which deal gives them the best "bang for their buck".

Listen, it doesn't take a copywriting genius or a programming guru to help you create an irresistible offer. All it takes is Exit Offer Generator and just a minute of your time. Test out different offers and find the one that really pushes your customer's hot buttons. With Exit Offer Generator, you'll never have to wonder "what's working" and what isn't.

Plus, if Exit Offer Generator doesn't pay for itself within the first two months – you're entitled to a 100% refund, no questions asked. There aren't many software companies out there that can make a claim like that and back it up – but once you see the testimonials (and the earnings!) from some Exit Offer Generator users, you'll see it really does live up to expectations.

lick the banner to visit the page where you can download the software (and at the price, it's a STEAL!)

RAP – or Rapid Action Profits – has really changed the way of selling products online. The completely automated system makes it easier than ever to set up and list a product for sale. Since the system is set up to pay out commissions instantly, it became one of the most popular systems around for vendors, affiliate marketers ánd buyers.

Everyone knows that the success of a product depends on a variety of things, of which traffic is definitely one of the more important ones. If you can't get people to visit your sales page, you won't get any customers – simple as can be.

Forloads of marketers, getting traffic to their site(s) is often a struggle.
If you have a mailing list or Twitter account with several 1000's of subscribers and or a blog that is read by 1000s of people every day, it shouldn't be that hard to get the traffic your sites deserve. But what if you have got none of thosE?

Would you have that salespage in which you put so much effort, simply let go to waist?

Not Anymore…

There's a new marketplace in town: RAP Bank

RAP bank likes to compare itself with Clickbank. It's a central site that  allows vendors to list their RAP products on their marketplace, available for all visitors to see, and promote.

Since every vendor or affiliate program that promotes RAP Bank using the big variety of available promo tools will actually drive new potential customers to your product too; you will instantly get a GIANT ARMY of affiliates that will stand in line eager to promote your product and drive a stream of traffic to your sale like you've never seen before.

And you will just have to sit back, relax and watch the money come in (of course you are allowed to do some promotion too – lol)

How's that for a traffic tip?

RAPBank offers both a free and an upgraded account, so I suggest you check it out and take it for a (free) test drive. In my opinion: Every extra visitor (even it is only 1) is a potential buyer…

I'm listing my sites as we speak, and there seems to be nothing to it. After installing the RapAddon they provide, I can control all my available products from within one RAP-installation in the RAP Bank admin area.

This is part 1 in a series of articles about JV giveaways. Stay tuned, more articles will follow soon!

(Subscribe Now And Make Sure you Don't Miss Our Next Lesson)

To get an idea of how JV Giveaways really work, the best way to think of it is like a giant ad swap.

How Ad Swaps Work

In a regular ad swap deal, you and another list owner do an ad exchange: you send out each others advertisement to your mailing lists. Mostly these ad swaps are done by list owners with a similar mailing list size.

Usually, you will want to send an ad that encourages the reader to subscribe to your mailing list.

You can call this 'legally stealing subscribers' if you want to. But why wouldn't you, as the average subscriber is subscribed to more than 10-20 mailing lists these days.

 

While ad swapping is a perfect way to build your mailing list by playing the game of “using subscribers to make subscribers”, the leverage effect is often 1:1 in a real sense.

You can only carry out one ad swap at a time, for starters. And even if you do swap ads with more than one list owner or e-zine publisher, the leverage effect remains 1:1 because you have to send that many advertisements to your list, too, in proportionate to how many list owners you agreed to swap ads with.

But if you want to discover how you can build your mailing list at warp speed , read on:

 
How Give Away Events Work

As said earlier, Give Away events are almost similar to what a BIG version of an ad swap.
 

• The host of the Give Away event invites partners, who are primarily list owners in the same niche, to contribute a gift.

• The gifts can be any kind of digital product: ebooks, reports, audio/video products, membership passes, software, scripts, …

• You, as one of the partners, prepare an opt-in page for visitors to sign up to your mailing list to download your gift. So in a real essence, anyone who wants to download your gift must opt into your mailing list first.

• The host of the event then adds all the contributed gifts to one page or member's area . This is where the visitors will go to download the gifts of their choice. When they click a link of a gift, it will bring them to the individual partner's optin page.

NOTE:

When you think about it, the gifts are never offered totaly free: visitors must 'pay' for them with their email address. That's why it's important you give your new subscribers the option to cancel their subscription to your mailing list at any time.

Okay, so that's EXACTLY how you're going to build your mailing list after all.

But where DO these visitors come from?

Like ad swaps, Give Away events are really using subscribers to make subscribers.

• On the launch day and during the limited time event, you and other partners are required by the host to endorse the Give Away event to your individual mailing lists.

  In other words, you are going to invite your subscribers to the Give Away event to download all the provided gifts at zero-cost. With the host and other partners doing the same, it will be a massive gathering of traffic at the website where all the gifts are being pooled.

• The host can decide on rewarding partners AND visitors for promoting the event, like giving them a commission on every referred sale of the one-time-offer that is usually shown after initial signup. As a result, many visitors will also promote the event to their mailing list, which will create an endles stream of visitors.

In this collective effort, as long as your gift is displayed there with a link to signup for your mailing list to download it, and people are interested in it, you can receive plenty of signups in a short time span!

I've used a lot of different affiliate marketing methods and find one of them to be the most effective.

Article marketing is cool, except the article directory gets to keep all the ad revenue and they are getting more particular about what articles they accept.

Review sites are OK, but does anyone really trust the reviews they read on those sites anymore? Most people know by now that review sites are just disguised sales pitches and aren't honest reviews.

Social media is fun, but it has its limits. It's more about socializing, less about doing business. Sure, you can make connections there but at the end of the day the lion's share of your profits likely isn't coming from social media. Social media sites are not the most important place on the web.

So what is?

Your own blog. In my opinion, there's nothing like having your own blog, especially if you use WordPress. WordPress makes blogging much easier and more effective.

Your blog is your castle. YOU get to decide which content to put on it and don't have to wait a week for someone else to approve it.  YOU get to keep your ad revenue. If you use Google Adsense, however, chances are it's more like Google Adcents. And don't get me started on Google slaps.

That's why it's more effective to promote affiliate products on your blog rather than rely on Adsense. Affiliate commissions have a much higher payout than ad clicks.

One option is to have a "blog sponsor" section in your sidebar. Place ads here (preferably with eye-catching graphics rather than just text) that link to select affiliate products and also your own products if you have any.

Another option is to occasionally write a blog post that promotes an affiliate product. The posts should contain solid content in addition to the sales pitch. Write the post as if you were talking to a friend so that it doesn't come across as too sales-y.

Don't forget to have an opt-in form on your blog so that you can collect the email addresses of your blog readers. You can occasionally promote affiliate products through email to your list. You should also send out emails that contain helpful, engaging content. You can use your blog posts as content but you should also use original content in your emails too. Mix it up.

There's one type of affiliate marketing that I highly recommend and that's the WordPress Affiliate plugin that automatically inserts professional-looking ads for Clickbank products in your posts.