Blogging for seo

If you’ve never heard the term SEO, let me explain briefly what it is, what it does and what it’s for.

SEO is the abbreviation for Search Engine Optimization. This is a web design technique that, when done effectively, draws positive attention from search engines. When your site is optimized for search engines you will discover that search engine users can find your web presence easier to locate when potential customers conduct their first online search.

When developing a site for SEO a web site owner needs to make sure they utilize a well researched keyword or key phrase that will be noticed by the search engine. The optimum number of times the keyword or phrase should be used is around 3-5%. If you use the term less it may not be noticed and if you use it much more it may be considered a spamming technique thus panelizing your site. You may also find that the content is hard to read if you insist on placing the keyword or phrase in locations that do not read naturally.

You’ll notice that the title of this article has to do with blogging. When you conduct a web search using various keywords or phrases you will often find blogs that are listed among the top ten for the phrase you chose. What this means is that if you develop a business blog to benefit your online business you should also work to ensure your core keyword or phrase is evident in your posts.

If you’re wondering why blogs might rank better than a standard business site it’s because blogs are updated more often than full websites. Search engines love to find new content so their interest in your site may be strong due to the new content you are making available. It is possible for a business blog to actually outperform a primary business website in terms of search engine rankings simply because there is more new information to consider and that often translates into improved trust and rank position. What this means is you may have more visitors to your blog than to your primary site. However this scenario is exactly why your business blog can be an important marketing tool for your primary site.

Here’s the equation…

Optimized blog + high search engine rankings = increased traffic to primary site

You just need to make sure that every blog post includes a reason for visitors to come to your primary site and you need to make sure a link is provided with every post on the profile page.

Did you know that when you blog for Search Engine Optimization you are also working to improve the overall traffic flow to your primary site? You do that by consistently blogging with a laser focus utilizing a very specific keyword or phrase.

Consider your business blog a funnel that helps direct the curious to a better answer to the questions they have about the very search term they used to find you. In other words, make it easy to find your site – and visitors will.

Stupidest tax mistakes to avoid this time around

As the season to fill tax returns and forms approaches people get confused and nervy. The IRS dons the role of a huge brooding monster that is all set to devour you. Unfortunately most of us keep postponing filing of papers and putting our affairs in order until the very last minute and then confusion and stress reign supreme.

The last minute dash and the lack of knowledge of tax laws, depreciation formulas, and deductibility guidelines can land you in a soup. And, this means coughing up precious dollars that you could find better use for.

Errors however small can result in payment of higher taxes and can mean a delayed or no refunds. As in everything, the way to smoothen things is to be systematic and file papers pertaining to tax returns carefully throughout the year. Do not throw away bills, vouchers, or receipts that support your tax forms. Next discipline your self to read the IRS rules and regulations. Do not depend on what others tell you or hearsay. Check out facts for yourself.

Everyone makes “tax” return mistakes even professors, CEOs, and VPs. Some common mistakes which are just plain idiocy or stupid are:

1. Benefits claimed pertaining to dependent children. Often if you fail to know the allowed exemptions you may fail to make a correct claim or make an incorrect one. To help clear confusion in 2006 the IRS created a uniform definition of a child and the broad outlines are at: bankrate. com/brm/itax/tips/20010208a. asp . However if you have any doubts or questions clear them before filing your return.

2. Most errors are calculation mistakes and wrongly filled in figures. Always check and recheck where the full stop or comma is applied. Go through the numbers patiently and do your totaling on two separate days. Better still ask a family member or friend to check the figures for you. Consider using “tax software programs” these ease many problems in filing your return. When filling details keep in mind the fact that the IRS will check entries against W-2, 1099 and other statements that pertain to your tax. If a discrepancy is found it just means trouble as well as delays.

3. Forgetting to sign and date the forms is a mistake that leads to the IRS just not processing your return. Be sure to check all the pages carefully and ensure you have not missed anything however small and insignificant. Another common error is forgetting to write your social security numbers or tax ID numbers.

4. Often tax payers forget to submit all relevant forms like W-2, 1040, or 07, or 16. Check the relevant schedule for each claim and ensure that all relevant and supporting forms are attached to the return.

5. Failing to keep track of investments, allowed deductions, interests paid or earned and so on. You need to maintain details of when you invested, what dividends were paid, whether any taxes were deducted on maturity, any capital gains, taxes paid on sums earlier. If you clearly keep track of taxes paid you could avoid paying tax on amounts already taxed. The calculations must be done carefully and systematically to avoid faux pas.

6. Choosing the EZ form 1040Ez rather than the long form. If your earnings, expenditure and other things are simple then just take the trouble of filling the longer form. You will be surprised at the amount you can save in taxes. The longer form allows subtractions from taxable income like student loan interest, alimony paid, donations of charities and so on.

7. Missing the deadline and asking for an extension. This means paying late penalties as well as interest. In case a personal problem prevents filing in April you need to submit form 4868 by the April deadline to get an extension.

8. Using a wrong table to make calculations. Two things need care filing status and the right tax tables. Using wrong ones or filing under a wrong status will put you in more trouble than you need. And, the mistake could mean paying taxes on taxes or on investment earnings. Be astute and compute your tax using the work sheet at the back of the booklet.

9. Three laughable mistakes tax payers make is to fill out the check wrong and forgetting to sign it. Posting the forms without the proper postage on the return package. And, worst of all not using the pre-printed label and envelope provided by the IRS.

The IRS has modernized its systems and some of the silly mistakes can be avoided if you opt for electronic filing. Last year almost over 50% of the taxes were filed using e-filing. The advantages are many. All the forms you will need are on tab, the software takes you step by step through the filling process, the electronic calculators rarely make errors, and most of all e-filing forms get processes quicker the turnaround is 14 days. See: irs. com/. If in doubt, you can e-file using the services of an authorized tax professional.

File on time and correctly. Avoid heart burn and hypertension.

What a black belt means to me - the journey

It’s often said in Martial Arts that the meaning doesn’t lie in how good you are or what belt you have, rather the meaning lies in the journey. Before I get into “What Black Belt Means To Me”, I would like to talk about my journey of these past few months.

The Journey

Last week I had flown to Nashville to test for my long awaited San Dan (3rd degree Black Belt - This is kind of like becoming an official “Teacher”). Prior to the test I had been training consistently since April of this year at a friends dojo and my local gym.

It had been about 5 years since I’ve last practiced my discipline, Wado-Ryu Karate-Do, so my recollection of the system was very vague. After watching numerous tapes of myself as a young martial artist, I had re-learned my under belt curriculum, however I was struggling to remember my black belt curriculum. If you know anything about martial arts, one’s under belt knowledge is essential because it is considered as the foundation of one’s training. On the other hand, a lot of people believe that your training truly begins when you achieve your first black belt. I couldn’t agree more. When I was promoted to Sho Dan (1st Degree Black Belt) my interpretation about Wado-Ryu and the martial arts had grown dramatically and I began to really learn.

Either way, I needed to know everything that could have possibly been thrown at me because it had been 10 years since my last official test.

In July, I went to Nashville to train with my highly recognized and beloved instructor Sensei Wayne Tyler. I consider him as a father figure in my martial arts career because of his vast knowledge of Wado-Ryu and unconditional love for his students and the art. Imagine being a scientist and your teacher was Albert Einstein – that is what it feels like to be under the wing of Sensei Tyler (or Mr. Tyler, as I call him). I was in Nashville training with Sensei 2 – 3 hours per day for 5 days. I caught up on my curriculum and took the extra knowledge that was passed down by him and applied it to my training back in Denver.

Again, since I didn’t know what to expect, I conditioned myself to be ready for almost anything. Not only was I practicing my basics and katas (Japanese forms), but I was also running 2 miles, three days per week, 15 – 20 minutes on the rowing machine and about 6 – 7 miles on the stationary bike. I don’t think I could have been more prepared for this test.

I successfully passed my test and was promoted to San Dan on October 17th 2006. I must say, this was one of my greatest accomplishments in my martial arts career and a dream come true. It has taken me several years to reach this goal, but it has reinforced my interpretation of being a black belt, or in my case – San Dan.

Travel insurance bargains for brits

UK travel insurance options, in addition to full year UK travel insurance coverage, are numerous: one-trip or multiple-trip designs, extended stay, business travel designs, several designed for family travel, and even three that's focused on the needs of backpacking travelers.

If you are travelling in the UK, or a UK citizen travelling elsewhere, you have lots of options including full year travel insurance. While the occasional traveler such as a vacationer may not find full year travel insurance preferable to the one-trip options, business travelers or other frequent travelers may opt for full year travel insurance as the best time saving and money saving choice.

Instant quotes are available online. On three informative UK site your instant quote is given individually for your choice of single trip, annual (also known as multiple trip) or backpacker.

With about every plan lost luggage coverage can be included or deleted a la carte, since travelers may find that this protection is included in their homeowners' owner. Full year UK travel insurance, as well as three or multiple trip options, also includes medical coverage while participating in most sports, although you sometimes must choose this option for the coverage.

Let's take a look at the full year UK travel insurance quote.

For this quote you are asked to register and then choose destinations. The location choices for this full year UK travel insurance plan are for travel specific to the UK, travel within all of Europe, travel worldwide with the exception of the United States and the Caribbean, word travel that includes the U. S. and the Caribbean, or travel in Australia and/or New Zealand. they indicated that they're a couple - 45 and 43 years of age - with no children under 19 accompanying us, that they're travelling throughout all of Europe starting September 1st of 2005, and that they're going to participate in winter sports.

The highest premium full year UK travel insurance product, offered an amazingly high ceiling on medical coverage - over $17 million - included compensation for any loss of limbs, dental coverage, mountain search and rescue and repatriation for medical emergency.

The quotes, converted from British pounds to U. S. dollars, ranged between $92 and $255, depending on the extent of coverage. At the low end of the full year UK travel insurance coverage they found lower ceilings on medical coverage. These quotes also excluded lost baggage coverage and some sports coverage. An accident during a round of golf, for example, was not included in this quote.

Clearly, if you seek full year UK travel insurance, you'll find lots of options and something that will fit your wallet.

Raising the bar of online financial news stockleaf has sprouted

So what is Stockleaf if it's not a budding pod on the branch of the World Wide Web's financial oak tree? Quite simply, it's a tool. And it may be the most ingenious tool introduced to the global cyber community. Why? Because it's simple and it works. If only everything were held to those standards.

Stockleaf isn't pretty—we've established that. So what is it exactly? It's a webpage that brings together every recent article published on the web from every reliable news site about any publicly traded company you want to know about. Say you're interested in Bank of America. Go to Stockleaf and type the symbol (BOA) into the field. Click on 'Search.' In seconds, your page will be filled with links. Links to articles about Bank of America from top news sources like: Google Finance, MSN Money, Seeking Alpha, Y! Finance, Forbes and Smart Money.

Instead of wasting your time flitting from news site to news site like a fragile butterfly (you knew I'd have to work those garden metaphors in there somewhere), the flower box has been brought to you. Simply find the blossom you want and pluck, or er, click. The article will open in a new window and you can easily navigate back to open others.

Like any good news site, Stockleaf also gives you quick facts on your stock: price, P/E, dividend information. And there are tabs that bring you the latest feeds from a variety of additional news sources like Kiplinger's and other financial blogs which may be of interest.

Stockleaf makes investment research quick and easy. And why is that important? Well, let's just say that being efficient will allow us time later to stop and smell the roses.

How to determine home building costs

Determining home building costs can be a difficult thing for anybody to do. There are so many factors that go into home building costs that it can often times be a task in itself to even come up with an estimate. But if you know what factors go into home building costs, you will then be able to better estimate your total price.

The first thing to do when trying to estimate home building costs is to find similar houses in the area. Find a home in the same area that has the overall look and size of one that you want to build. By doing this you will then be able to get an overall estimate in no time at all. For example, if the home you are looking at is selling for $200,000, and the cost of the land is $20,000, you then know that the construction of the home cost approximately $180,000. Of course this is not an exact science, but by following this basic rule you will be able to get an estimate of the home building costs.

Home building costs are often times based on features on the interior of the home as well. By simply comparing the exterior size, you will only be able to get a rough estimate. For example, one home may have a completely finished basement, where as the other does not. Even though this may not seem like a big deal, you could be dealing with thousands of dollars.

Also, when figuring out home building costs, keep in mind that there may be a cost overrun. Proper planning can usually make up for this, but just to be safe you may want to put away about 10% in order to ensure that you have the money to cover any overrun.

Every year, home building costs usually increase about 3 to 6%. This is due in part to the cost of land, as well as the cost of labor and materials. You should plan for this in advance as well.

Home building costs can often times be very difficult to pinpoint. By being precise and detail oriented in the planning stages, you will be able to come up with an excellent estimate on your home building costs.

How to find the best rates on automobile insurance in arizona

Finding the best insurance rate for your Arizona automobile does not have to be a difficult task. There are many tools provided by the internet to help make it easy.

Here are a few automobile rate saving tips:

1.Arizona Department of Insurance: Visit the state insurance website to find out which insurers are licensed to do business in the state. There are also tips on what companies can and cannot do and pointers on how to reduce your rate.

2.Before buying a vehicle, speak to a few insurance agents. The cost of to insure the cute little red speedy sports car may be prohibitive. Since the car has to be insured its best to know before you sign on the dotted line and purchase a car whether or not you can afford to insure it.

3.Bundle your coverages: If you have a homeowners policy or renters policy, submit your automobile underwriting information to the same company. Insurance companies offer what is called a multi-line discount for providing several lines of insurance.

4.Drivers Education. Take a safety driving class. This will serve to shave a few dollars off of your premium. However, prior to taking a class, contact the insurance company. Make sure the institution and the class is one that is approved by your insurance company.

5.Deductibles: Get quotes using various deductibles. Try getting quotes using deductibles $250, $500 and even $1,000. If you can afford to pay out of pocked what ever the higher deductible requirse, you will realize a premium savings.

6.Good Grades: Young Drivers are expensive, but if they are in school and have good grades, you may realize a premium discounts. Many insurance companies offer discounts if a student maintains a grade of B or better.

Always shop around. Be sure to provide the same underwriting information to all of the carriers to ensure that you’re comparing apples to apples.