JimWorld Gazette Issue #100 09/10/2000

JimWorld Gazette - Issue #100 - September 10, 2000

CONTENTS

• From Our Sponsor - Asynchrony.com
  
• Award Design Contest - Week 2
  
• From Our Sponsor - JimTool Extractor
  
• More Election Year Flailing
  
• Lessons From Amazon
  
• Simple Steps For Super Proposals
  
• Snippets

Link to this issue of the Gazette as http://gazetteworld.com/go/to.cgi?l=g100


Just a short note in recognition of the fact that this week represents the 100th
issue of the Gazette. Whew!

FROM OUR SPONSOR

NEW SITE FOR SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS

Asynchrony.com is a new site where programmers collaborate on their own ideas and share in the profits.

Most programmers spend some of their spare time on personal software projects. Unfortunately, most pet projects never earn the developer any serious money or recognition.

Now there's a new alternative.

On Asynchrony.com, more than 13,000 developers are working together on over 400 programs. Asynchrony markets the finished projects and gives up to 90% of the revenue to the programmers.

Check it out.

AWARD DESIGN CONTEST - WEEK 2

The time has come to update the JimWorld Way Cool Hot Site Award and it represents and opportunity for some talented designer to receive some well deserved recognition and advertising.

The prizes for the winning design will be:


>> Permanent credit on the winner's pages and submission form.
>> Recognition in the Gazette for the winner and top 5 finalists.
>> 50,000 banner impressions on the JimWorld web sites. A US $1,250 value.


The rules are simple.

Create an award graphic that is fast loading and small enough to be displayed on any web site's home page or awards page. You can view the current award graphic at < http://jimworld.com/hotpg.html >

I will select the top finalists and the Get High Forums and Search Engine Forums moderators will select the winner.

I am currently setting up a new database driven award management system to allow us to evaluate more submissions and recognize a new award-winning site each week.

Submit your entry via email before midnight California time on September 20th. mailto:jim@jimworld.com

That's it. Now get to work!

FROM OUR SPONSOR

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MORE ELECTION YEAR FLAILING

Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail Act of 2000
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d106:h.r.03113



The U.S. politicians are out in force against Spam... again. Seems like every time an election rolls around, our friends in Washington dream up another amazingly bad piece of legislation.

This year is no exception. The new Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail Act of 2000 has passed the House and is almost sure to pass the Senate. And considering that Al Gore invented the Internet, I'm sure his buddy Bill won't veto it.

What's right about this bill? It requires that anyone sending email use a legitimate Sender address. That's good. It requires that anyone sending email allow recipients to Opt-Out from future mailings. Also good. Provides for criminal prosecution of anyone forging information regarding the source of an email. Very good.

What's wrong? Nothing we haven't seen before which comes as no big surprise considering the widespread lack of technical knowledge in Washington. The bill extends legal protection to all ISP's who want to declare and enforce ANY rules about email. They can decide to exclude anyone's email from being delivered to their clients and the sender will have zero recourse. Considering that this law grants immunity to ISP's, wouldn't it be a good idea to at least require them to pass a background check and IQ test?

More wrong? Requires "identification that the message is an unsolicited commercial electronic mail message." That's all it says. No information about how that identification is to be presented. Then the bill wanders into the favorite areas for attorneys (which most politicians are, unfortunately) by allowing the same old $500 per message and recovery of legal costs.

This law has enough holes to bring the industry back where previous attempts at bad legislation almost took us: the best way to prove you subscribed to something is to charge you for it. When you pay, you prove you signed up.

This rehash of the same old crud Washington has tried before is just as flawed in its logic as its predecessors. It empowers ISP's to make arbitrary decisions about what they will accept on behalf of their users and grants their decisions, no matter how random or malicious, the weight of law.

Plus, instead of keeping enforcement within the government, which I thought was one of their few real jobs, they pass enforcement into the hands of every anti -spam lunatic and attorney in the country. It will be open season again.

Nor does the law deal with any meaningful definition of the term "unsolicited." We're still left with the threat that anyone can claim never to have requested mail and sue the sender.

Instead of the much-needed, well-balanced laws governing one of the very foundations that empowers the Internet, we get...

Same-O. Same-O.

LESSONS FROM AMAZON

When I think of e-tailing, I think of Amazon.com. I think most people share this connection of thought. When it comes to business-to-consumer e-commerce, Amazon.com is king. If you're selling something Amazon.com sells (which is a whole lot now!), good luck. They probably beat you in price, selection, availability, shipping time, and other aspects of business perhaps only Amazon realizes are important. But you know what they say: If you can't beat them, join them!

I started shopping at Amazon a year from the 18th of June. How can I be so exact? Because on the 18th Amazon sent me a $10 gift certificate to celebrate my one-year anniversary with them. What a company! Who else does that? No business
I know. But what first got my attention were their prices. It's always a sale day at Amazon. They had what I wanted so I bought something. Then I realized their low prices were just the first part of a one-two punch that amazes the customer. My book arrived within two days! Fast! It even came with a neat bookmark and Post-It Notes. So cool! I was definitely going to be back.

And this is just the beginning. Amazon now has a full arsenal with which to keep its customers interested, excited, and most importantly, SHOPPING. So our challenge is take a look at that arsenal and see what ideas we can apply to our own sites. I put together a list of everything I think contributes to that WOW! feeling Amazon.com develops in its customers:

* Cool, casual look.
* Wide selection.
* Powerful organization.
* Low prices.
* Fast, easy shopping.
* Lots of help.
* Responsive customer support.
* Fast shipping.
* Fun gifts.
* Targeted selling.
* Continued e-mail communication.
* Welcomed interaction.
* Simple, rewarding affiliate program.

Whew! I could probably write a book if I covered each of these points. So I'll just explain the biggees.

Cool, casual look. Amazon strikes a great balance in its layout. It's not overwhelmingly crowded (like some sites) but it does clearly convey that there's a LOT of exciting stuff at Amazon. The look is also fun and informal, which should appeal to a majority and may even encourage shopping (and self-indulgence)

Powerful organization. Amazon's search box is always on the ball. If I'm looking for a specific item, I come to it right away. At the same time, Amazon also organizes its products into a sensible system of categories that encourages browsing.

Fast, easy shopping. This is probably the most mistaken part of e-commerce - securing the sale. Some sites tend to have difficult ordering processes. Amazon doesn't drop the ball - its shopping cart is easy and for the recurring customer, its 1-Click ordering is fast (literally just one click after saving your information).

Lots of help. Here's another aspect of e-commerce many sites mess up. You can click on Help from anywhere on Amazon.com. Try it. They have a LOT of information available to inquiring minds. If you make your customer e-mail you for answers to even the most mundane questions, they might just not bother!

Responsive customer support. I've only needed it twice and both times I was impressed. You might think a big company like Amazon might take "3-5 business days" to respond to your e-mail. Nope! They get back to you fast, and they can be very accommodating. Recently, I purchased two items within a half-hour of each other. I tried to cancel the first item so I could ship it with my second item (and save three bucks). But it was already shipped! I e-mailed them anyway, not fully believing it could have been shipped so fast (although, sure enough, I got it two days later). Guess what? They said it really was too late to combine the orders, but they had credited $3 to my credit card anyway! Wow! They were willing to cut into their profit in order to please me.

Fun gifts. There's a lot to be said for neat little freebies. They make the customer smile - that's important. I always use my bookmarks. What can you give your customer, either for free or with their shipments, which will bring a smile to their face? Give it some thought.

Continued e-mail communication. I don't get many e-mails from Amazon and for this I am thankful. I get quite enough e-mail already. However, they do send the occasional promotional - and they're like a tease! Besides that gift certificate, they recently also sent me an e-mail about a new computer game they figured I'd be interested in (and I was). The result? I bought it. Would I have without their notice? I don't know, maybe - that gift certificate definitely encouraged me, though!

Welcomed interaction. Amazon builds a sense of community among its members. This is a new trend in e-commerce designed to offset the otherwise sterile Internet environment. They do this in a few ways, most notably by allowing customers to review their products. You might think that is a win-or-lose situation - the good products you have will get good reviews and the poor ones will get more reviews. Well, I haven't come across any products that received unanimously poor ratings. In fact, it's a win-win situation. Amazon again has an honest policy that builds customer trust - and that translates into customer loyalty.

Taken together, these practices build a strong business - and develop a well -rounded marketing campaign. Get a few people to your site, impress the socks off them, and (1) you'll get repeat business and (2) they'll tell their friends! It's a lot of work, but your time will come back in CASH!

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Jon Thomas is a web developer for small business. His latest venture is
myCustomCGI.com, a site that offers ultra cheap CGI solutions.

SIMPLE STEPS FOR SUPER PROPOSALS

There generally comes the time in the life of any successful business owner when s/he must prepare a proposal in response to a request for quote (RFQ or RFP) for a prospective client. While the task can be intimidating for the inexperienced entrepreneur, there are some basic elements that will ensure your proposal answers any potential questions your prospect may have.

These include:

• Background Information (Why are you the best person/company for this job?)
  
  
• Scope of the Project (What do you intend to do for the client?)
  
  
• Proposed Timetable (When do you plan to start/complete the projects? What major steps will you take to meet their needs?)
  
  
• Personnel (Who will be doing the work? List the qualifications of every employee or contractor involved.)
  
  
• Cost (How much will this project cost? Break this section down into bite-sized pieces. Itemize.)
  
  
• Additional Information (Testimonials, supporting documents, etc. Include anything that presents your company and staff in a favorable light.)
  
  As to format and actual preparation of the proposal, you have a lot of flexibility. However, keep these basics in mind:
  
  
• PROOFREAD! Your proposal must be as perfect as you can make it! If you can't make it perfect, hire a professional. It would be a shame to spend hours compiling a winning proposal only to have it thrown out because of poor grammar or typos. And it DOES happen!
  
  
• Use a professional font such as Arial or Times Roman with at least a 12 pt size for ease in reading.
  
  
• Leave out the hype. Create a document that will professionally explain your position, what you have to offer your customer and how much it will cost him or her.

There may be other items to consider, depending on the nature of the RFP, but these basic steps will help you prepare a simple, professional proposal that will -- along with your glowing skills, affordable rates and astonishing presentation skills -- win those important and high paying jobs.

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Darlene Bishop is a professional with over 16 years experience writing and editing ezines and newsletters, press releases, web site content, sales letters, and much more, and is the author of numerous articles on a variety of topics. Visit her site at http://www.writebusiness.com to learn more about her full line of writing and editorial services for businesses and individuals.

SNIPPETS

Finding Unique Affiliate Programs
http://jimworld.com/go/to.cgi?l=g98QuinStreet

I must admit that the first time I heard about QuinStreet was a month ago when their ad appeared in the Gazette.

Since then I've heard a lot from Gazeteers that have been members there for a long time and reported that they are very happy with the relationship.

QuinStreet offers a small selection of unusual, quality affiliate programs that you can participate in. I say unusual, because I've not seen them elsewhere and because they are, well... unusual. Programs like the University of Phoenix, Select Comfort (coming soon) and Hooked on Phonics.

To all of you happy Gazeteers, you can stop writing now. I get the point. You like it.

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Internet Marketing Strategy Day Conference
http://www.internetmarketingconference.com/

October 26 and 27, 2000 will see the second gathering of webmasters and site promoters, and the list of speakers has grown. The conference has also grown to two full days.

If you are planning to attend this conference in Stockholm, bring a few problems with you and take advantage of the second day's small group workshops to get some excellent advise on resolving the problems.

I look forward to seeing you there. I'm already working on my presentation and should be able to squeeze in a lot of good advice.

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"Clicks and Bricks" Shoppers are One-in-Same Customer
http://www.smrb.com/toyfair.html

It's no longer clicks versus bricks for market savvy toy retailers and manufacturers, it's clicks and bricks. Today's top toy shoppers use both channels of distribution and share their wallets fairly evenly between online (42 percent) and traditional (58 percent) shopping, according to a study released by Simmons Market Research Bureau at TOY FAIR.

Could this trend be used to your advantage in other product categories?

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"Wired" Kids Consume More Media Across The Board
http://www.smrb.com/kidson.html

American kids who are wired into the online world tend to be heavier consumers of all media when compared to their non-online peers.

Unlike the online adult population, which consumes less TV than their non-user counterparts, online kids are eager to gobble up every type of media from television to magazines to movies.

"These online kids are on the leading edge of the youth market," said Steve Carnevale, General Manager at Simmons Market Research Bureau. "They're the ones who are driving trends across industry segments. These kids have spending power. And, advertisers need to understand not only what makes them tick but also which media outlets best reach them."

This presents an opportunity for sites marketing to this segment to employ multiple, simultaneous media to get results.

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For Our New Zealand Subscribers
http://www.andovernews.com/cgi-bin/news_story.pl?293140/topstories

The advertising of products and services on Web sites is subject to the same rules as offline advertising, a New Zealand government agency has warned, making companies responsible for weeding out any outdated material on their online storefronts.

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Looking For Freelance Journalists?
http://www.journalism.co.uk/

This well developed site can help you find writers and editors to help you satisfy the Web's voracious appetite for fresh content. Go take a look around.

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Lycos Offers Free Video Hosting
http://video.lycos.com/

Lycos VideoCenter makes it easy for you to create, share, manage and post your videos on the Internet, whether you are a new webcam user or a seasoned video professional. You can even store up to 10MB of your videos for free!

Use their flexible editing software to easily create well-edited, professional looking presentations.

What's your excuse now for not adding some video excitement to your site?

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HoaxBusters
http://HoaxBusters.ciac.org/

My mail is starting to show signs of worried subscribers. I judge this by the flow of "Warnings" I get about e-dangers and offers of free cookie recipes. HoaxBusters will help you stay sane by lowering your scam stress level.

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Perl Learning Site
http://perl.about.com/compute/perl/mbody.htm

Looking for a good starting point to "discover" Perl programming? Try the Perl site at About.com.