Thursday, January 31, 2008

Self Employed Loans in UK

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Christian_Phelps]Christian Phelps Are you a someone who works for himself and wants to take a loan for debt consolidation, home improvements, car loan, caravan loan, house deposit, business purposes, Christmas cash, funeral, holiday, boat loan, motorbike loan, cosmetic surgery or a wedding? If the answer is yes then self employed loan is what you need to look out for. What are self employed loans? Self-employed loans are those loans that are taken by the self-employed people from the different lending institutions. Who is a self employed person? A self employed person could be an individual who operates a business or profession as a sole proprietor, a partner in a partnership, an independent contractor or a consultant. How are the self-employed loans different from other loans? Since the loan is given out to individuals who have a variable income, lending institutions find it difficult to evaluate their loan application. The loan rate depends on the fact whether you have certified accounts. In case of employed people their salary certificate becomes an easy source of information to gauge their income. The income tax returns could also be looked at but the difficulty arises because they are mostly understated. In case of self employed loans the business should not be less than two years old. More flexibility has been incorporated into the repayment schedule of these loans. Some of the features that have been incorporated into the repayment schedule are overpayment, underpayment, and payment holidays. Types of self employed loans Self employed loans can be either secured or unsecured. Secured self employed loans are available at lower interest rates because the loan amount is given against some security. The security is usually home and real estate. This type is loan is suitable for taking a larger loan. Unsecured loans are available at higher interest rates and will not require any security. Since the interest rates are high unsecured loans are better suited for taking smaller amount loans. How convenient is it to procure these loans? Earlier self employed loans used to be difficult to find and expensive to procure. However now with more people being self employed, self employed loans are more widely available and are more affordable. Even if the borrower has an adverse credit history or bad credit rating, such as mortgage arrears, credit card problems or payment defaults these loans are available at a price. The rates vary from 10.9-27.60% APR with an average of around 17.5%. Most lenders are offering self employed loans with limited documentation or no documentation. This is highly favourable to the self employed who cannot forward documented income. In place of this provision lenders may offer self employed loans at a slightly higher interest rate (1-2% higher than normal interest rates) or will have a requirement for additional qualifications. Lenders may also compensate the high risk in self employed loans with a higher down payment. Importance of a good credit history Credit history always plays a crucial role in deciding the different aspects of self employed loans. Good credit history provides benefits that no other qualification criteria can provide. Good credit score makes it easier for the borrower to get the approval for self employed loans. With a good credit score the loans to value ratio can reach up to 90%. Moreover it may help in reducing the down payment to as low as 20% which otherwise goes as high as 40%. Current scenario of self employed loans in UK There are approximately 2.75 million people who are self employed in UK. With the rising number of self employed in UK, self employed loans have become an emerging category in the loans market. A self employed borrower is the one who owns 25% or more of the business from which income is derived. Self employed loans are not new to the loans market; however, they have recently been adorned with flexibility and ease with respect to a self employed. With this new outlook towards self employed loans, self employed should be careful not to misuse this freedom. Refrain from overstating your income and exercise self control. Then, there is no stating the fact that self employed loans will prove integral to strengthening your very own micro economy. Finally, self employed loan programmes vary from one lender to another. So, it might be a good idea to look around. There will be lenders who would appropriately charge for self employed. All you need to do is to keep shopping. Christian Phelps is a Masters in Accounting and Financial Management from Lancaster University Management School . He has been working with loan for self employed since his academics got over. To find Self employed secured loan,unsecured self employed loan visit [http://www.loanforselfemployed.co.uk]http://www.loanforselfemployed.co.uk. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christian_Phelps http://EzineArticles.com/?Self-Employed-Loans-in-UK&id=182335 discount phentermine no prescription phentermine online doctor approval buy phentermine free shipping buy phentermine us pharmacy
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Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Ambien Sleeping Pills

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Rob_LaPlante] Rob LaPlante Ambien sleeping pills have become the most popular sleeping pills over the last few years, being taken by almost 22 million Americans. Ambien is a prescription based sleeping pill which your doctor can prescribe to help those who suffer from insomnia. It is not meant for long term use, although it can easily become addictive. Ambien is intended to help a person fall asleep quickly, and should be taken accordingly. Ambien are sleeping pills which would be classified as sedatives. The drug is intended to alter the chemicals in your brain which sometimes can become unbalanced and lead to insomnia. What Ambien does is it reduces the cells in the brain from being electronically active, causing a feeling of relaxation, and allows the person to fall asleep quickly and easily. There are some important things to consider when you are taking Ambien sleeping pills. First, since Ambien makes you fall asleep quickly, only take Ambien right before you go to bed. If you take the drug and stay up, you are at risk to do and say things you do not remember. This is because the chemicals in the brain have been altered. Also, make sure to follow your doctors directions when taking Ambien sleeping pills. Do not take Ambien while under the influence of other drugs or alcohol, as that can greatly increase the severity of any side effects. Driving or operating machinery also should not be done after taking Ambien sleeping pills. Ambien sleeping pills, for all the help they can provide you in falling asleep quickly at night, do have some major drawbacks. The longer you have been taking Ambien, the higher dosage you will need to achieve the same effects. Also, users will often develop mood swings, and can become very irritable, especially if they are unable to take the drug. Ambien sleeping pills can also produce hallucinations for the user, some of which can become very intense and frightening. Anyone taking Ambien sleeping pills must also be very cautious of not overdosing. If someone takes too many Ambien sleeping pills, they could become very sleepy or even go into a light coma. If the person has also been taking other drugs, the overdose could become very severe. There have even been a few cases of death resulting from an overdose of ambient sleeping pills. There are many benefits and could also be many drawbacks from taking Ambien sleeping pills. Just remember to consult your doctor, follow his instructions, and Ambien could be just what you need to get a good nights rest. Rob LaPlante is a web author who was written countless articles. Visit his website, [http://www.sleeping-pills-information.com/Ambien_Sleeping_Pills.html] http://www.sleeping-pills-information.com/Ambien_Sleeping_Pills.html for more information. Article Source: [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Rob_LaPlante ] http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rob_LaPlante [http://ezinearticles.com/?Ambien-Sleeping-Pills&id=515027 ] http://EzineArticles.com/?Ambien-Sleeping-Pills&id=515027 phentermine 37.5 diet pills phentermine pharmacy biz buy phentermine by cod prescription phentermine diet pills
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Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Raise Funds With Multipurpose Secured Personal Loans

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Ruth_Stanhop]Ruth Stanhop Secured personal loans are the best option for homeowners. Whether you are suffering from bad credit or not, you can easily avail secured personal loans. As it is a secured type of loan so, lenders ask for collateral against the loan amount. Being a homeowner, you can easily pledge your home as collateral and raise large funds to meet your financial needs. In presence of collateral, lenders offer secured personal loans at low rate of interest. You get easy monthly instalment and long repayment periods to repay the loan amount. Longer repayment plan helps borrowers to repay the loan amount on time without any hassle. But in case, borrowers fail to repay the loan amount on time, lenders may repossess their property. But, if you have a good plan for investing money and the repayment strategy, you can avoid such problems. Secured personal loans help you release the equity attached with your home. You can use secured personal loans for any purpose. Raise funds for performing different activities like home improvements, debt consolidation, higher education, buying a new or used car, holidays, etc. If you are a homeowner and suffering from bad credit record then, you can also avail secured personal loans. But, you will have to pay somewhat high rate of interest. With some market research, you can avail [http://www.chance4finance.co.uk/secured-personal-loans.html ]loans at competitive rates of interest. So, many lenders in the financial market offer such loans with lucrative loan deals. You can use the Internet to start your search. Browse different financial websites and look for the loan offers, their terms and conditions, etc. Then, apply for secured personal loans online. Online process is easy, quick and you will get immediate response from different lenders. Choose the one as per your needs. About The Author: The author is a business writer specializing in finance and credit products and has written authoritative articles on the finance industry. He has done his masters in Business Administration and is currently assisting Chance4Finance as a finance specialist. For more information please visit http://www.chance4finance.co.uk Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ruth_Stanhop http://EzineArticles.com/?Raise-Funds-With-Multipurpose-Secured-Personal-Loans&id=237602 phentermine online without a perscription buy phentermine with master card generic phentermine no prescription buy phentermine without a prescription
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Monday, January 28, 2008

Holy Communion: Key to Spiritual Healing

By Jim Lynn Chronically-ill Christians who do not believe in spiritual healing of the sick today should examine their participation in Holy Communion as to why they remain sick. The Lords Supper (Eucharist or Holy Communion according to your tradition) consists of two elements: The cup representing Jesus’ shed blood, and the bread representing His broken body (I Corinthians 11:23-26). Traditional doctrine teaches us that the Lords Supper is to keep us mindful that, as Christians, we are part of the Body of Christ, that we are one in Christ through the Gospel (I Corinthians 15:1-4), and that He shed His blood for atonement of sin, and rightfully so. But Paul had grave concern for something more in partaking the Lord’s Supper that was killing his brethren. It lies at the very root of Gods Scheme of Redemption, which is inclusive of healing body, spirit, and soul (salvation). Paul states that the lack of discernment of the Lords body (I Corinthians 11:29) is cause for damnation and is why many of us are sick today. The Greek word for body (soma) literally refers to the physical fleshly body of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ, by His perfect life, sacrificed His body for our healing and blood for atonement of our sins. These two realities both occur on the Cross. Through the shedding of His blood, Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the law of sin and death (Galatians 3:13). But the broken body of Jesus is not for the forgiveness of sinIt is for healing to be made possible. For without His broken body, there could be no healing of any kind (Romans 11:36; Colossians 1:15-18), either before or after the Cross. This is where many Christians lack discernment. It is through His shed blood that we find forgiveness, not His broken body (Hebrews 9:22; Leviticus 17:11). And it is through His stripes (His suffering and torment in the flesh) that we are healed today (Isaiah 53:5; I Peter 2:24). With this understanding in mind, consider the words of Pastor Henry Wright, Author of A More Excellent Way: If we come to a Communion service and partake of the cup and the bread but we deny healing and deliverance as part of the atonement today, we eliminate the provision of God in our lives as a human being apart from salvation and eternal life in that day. For that reason, because we eliminate the broken body, but we celebrate it, and we dont believe it, then we cannot partake. For that reason many of us are filled with disease and insanity today because we have said in our heart that it (miraculous healing) passed away two thousand years ago, yet we still participate in the sacrament of Communion which represents its reality for today.” Celebrating the Lords Supper can either deny or provide us healing by how we accept or deny the spiritual healing power of the fleshly body of Christ. Could it be many of Gods people are chronically-ill today because they have eliminated half of the sacrament of Communion? Think on this matter the next time you partake of the Lords Supper. Our salvation is made complete in body, spirit and soul through both the literal blood and flesh of our Savior. But, Paul said many of us are weak and sick because we fail to recognize (have faith in) Christs body (soma). This means those of us who are sick, while we recognize (have faith in) the blood of Jesus Christ to save our souls, we do not recognize (have faith in) His literal body (soma) to heal our literal bodies of diseaseherenow. Friends, I did not say that, the inspired Apostle, Paul, did! Jim Lynn, a minister in the church of Christ, is the author of The Miracle Of Healing In Your Church Today, available on Amazon.com and http://godshealingword.org Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jim_Lynn http://EzineArticles.com/?Holy-Communion:-Key-to-Spiritual-Healing&id=46214 diet pills and phentermine phentermine diet pills cod phentermine online pharmacy online prescription for phentermine
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Sunday, January 27, 2008

Planning a Wedding in the Hurricane Season

By Michael Brito The summer months are some of the most popular times of the year for weddings with so many couples now looking at tropical destinations to hold their event. Aruba, the Bahamas, and Florida are favored wedding spots, with the latter two being among the most prized. Unfortunately, both locations fall smack dab in the middle of hurricane territory thereby increasing the risks that wedding plans could be cancelled in the event a storm hits. Are you considering a tropical wedding? If so, dont let your choice of venue ruin your day; instead consider taking some important measures to ensure that your wedding plans go forward no matter what the weather conditions may be. Before you make plans to hold your wedding far from home, especially in an area prone to hurricane activity, there are some things you must consider first: Location Is Everything. White sugar sand beaches are an attractive and unforgettable place to hold a tropical wedding. Just before sunset you and your betrothed meet together with your guests to exchange vows as the fiery red sun slowly sets to the west. A calm cooling breeze and the whiff of pure ocean air delights you and your wedding party who are enthralled at your choice of setting. Afterwards, you move indoors or over to a nearby outdoor pavilion for a celebration lasting into the early hours of the morning. That gentle breeze can quickly turn into a gale as the storm clouds roll in and as the surf kicks up. Soon, your outdoor wedding plans are threatened. If you are resolute on holding your wedding during hurricane season, your entire event could be cancelled especially if it is held in an evacuation zone. These evacuation zones, which include the beach and surrounding areas, are always the first to close up when a big storm threatens and the last to re-open when everything calms down. Can you afford the delay? Will your facility even be standing when you return? Preparation is the Key. Even if your venue is not evacuated, do they have a back up generator on hand should you lose power? Will each of your vendors stick around or will they head out at the first sign of trouble? Remember, their minds could be focused on securing their personal belongings and ensuring the safety of family members first. Who could blame them? However, it is important for you to know if things can continue on as planned despite the adverse weather conditions. Contingency Plans are Necessary. Out of town guests may have trouble arriving if airports are shut down, roads close, and hotels fill up with people fleeing the impacted area. Fort Lauderdale could be the target, but your Pensacola Beach wedding plans may still be threatened if the area is flooded with evacuees. Make certain that your guests are protected financially in the event that your wedding plans are cancelled or moved elsewhere. Encourage everyone to purchase travel insurance to cover the worst case scenarios. Of course, by now you may be rethinking your idea of a Florida wedding altogether. Likely, some of the other destinations are appealing, but they could be too pricey in comparison. However, if you choose to get married in Florida during the January to April time period, the chances of an out-of-season hurricane marring your plans are virtually nil. Besides, you and your guests may appreciate the off season get-a-way especially after enduring a long, cold winter! If you are considering planning your wedding in Miami Florida, and would like a free consultation with a Miami Wedding Planner please visit http://www.bestmiamiweddings.com Michael Brito is an internet marketing consultant for small business. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Brito http://EzineArticles.com/?Planning-a-Wedding-in-the-Hurricane-Season&id=241841 phentermine without prescription free shipping cheapest phentermine online phentermine diet pills in buy phentermine us pharmacy
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Saturday, January 26, 2008

New Sources of Hyaluronic Acid Provide Hope for Increased Availability

By Jana Willinger Recent research into the purification of Hyaluronic acid (HA) from the vitreous humor of fish has shown great promise. This method is highly efficient and easier than derivation from rooster combs and other traditional sources of HA. Specifically, scientists have pinpointed a way to derive highly pure Hyaluronic acid from the vitreous humor of fish. This method has the potential to be extremely important for the commercial Hyaluronic acid market as it provides an easy, safe and economical way to synthesize high amounts of Hyaluronic acid. If patent approved, the process could make Hyaluronic acid products even more readily available and could help scientists in the search for uses of Hyaluronic acid other than Hyaluronic acid injections, supplements, beauty products, liquids and serums. The specific protocol to obtain pure HA from vitreous humor of fish consists of the following: 1: Using platinum electrodes for protein electrodeposition. 2. Diafiltration, which reduces ethanol consumption 3: Redissolution of the pellet 4: Alkaline treatment of concentrated extracts There are many competitive advantages to this new process of creating hyaluronic acid. The two most compelling advantages are that the process results in higher quality HA, and requires less alcohol use which makes the process easier and more economical. Hyaluronic Acid Resources is dedicated to promoting an understanding of Hyaluronic acid, a major ingredient in many medical and anti-aging therapies and to highlighting places where you can safely purchase Hyaluronic acid products. For more information go to http://www.e-hyaluronicacid.com/. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jana_Willinger http://EzineArticles.com/?New-Sources-of-Hyaluronic-Acid-Provide-Hope-for-Increased-Availability&id=18044 viagra cheap cialis levitra pharmacy viagra online viagra prescriptions viagra uk buy online
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Friday, January 25, 2008

Who Was Buddha or Siddhartha Gautama?

By Tony Ha Founder of Buddhism, Pāli: Gotama Buddha or Gautama Buddha was a spiritual instructor in ancient India, between an estimated 563 BCE and 483 BCE (possibly even a century later). An excellent book on Buddhas life is, Introduction to Buddhism, by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. He discusses how Buddha being the founder of the Buddhist religion called Buddha Shakyamuni, after Buddhas real last name Shakya combined with Muni for Able One. A lesson in history tells the story of his life: History Lesson Long ago around 624 BC, King Shuddhodana and Queen Mayadevi Lumbini reigned in an area now belonging to Nepal, then referred to as northern India. The queen has a dream one evening that a white elephant came down from the heavens or more specifically Tushita heaven, the Pure Land of Buddha Maitreya, and penetrated her womb. This elephant told the queen that she was had just conceived a baby, a powerful and pure being, from the same place the elephant was from, Tushita heaven, the Pure Land of Buddha Maitreya. When Queen Mayadevi went into labor, she did not suffer painfully as most women do with birthing pains. Instead, the queen encountered or was a part of a vision, said to be pure and special. In this vision, she was standing with a branch of a tree held in her right hand. While this was going on, gods Indra and Brahma lifted the baby effortlessly and without pain from her, and ceremoniously honored him, AKA Buddha Skakyamuni, offering ritual ablutions to him. Royal prince Buddha Skakyamuni was born. Or more to point, when the King Shuddhodana saw his son and felt as though he had fulfillment of his own wishes, he named his young prince “Siddhartha.” The king asked for predictions about his sons future from a Brahmin seer. And the seer conducted a careful investigation. He found that the prince could become either a world ruler or chakravatin king, or a Buddha, fully enlightened. But the reign of chakravatin kings is over, so he would surely become a Buddha. And the prince would influence and help many, many people worldwide just like the suns rays. And so it has come to pass and Buddha has indeed influenced many, many people around the globe. His reach seems to be similar to that of the suns rays after all. Tony Ha is a freelance writer who writes about buddhism. He loves to write about Siddhartha Gautama & he thinks about the four noble truths a lot. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tony_Ha http://EzineArticles.com/?Who-Was-Buddha-or-Siddhartha-Gautama?&id=309044 online adipex meridia phentermine prescription viagra warning window buy viagra now buy locally viagra viagra cheap generic
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Thursday, January 24, 2008

Sewing Tips - Sew Buttons and Bows for Kids

By Marian Lewis Here is a novel idea on how to sew and create your own decorative buttons and bows on kids’ clothes. Sewing for kids is a lot of fun. It is a great way to try new ideas and sewing techniques, too. If you don’t have your own special child to sew for, then sew things for kids and give them to charity. It is still a gift of love and the kids really appreciate something made just for them. Try the buttons and bows for kids. It really is cute and the kids love it! Bows are really popular on kids garments, but they don’t hold up well in the laundry. So, here is how to sew some easy detachable bows. This idea grew into a delightful sewing project that involved the kids, too. Kids have great imaginations and a lot of really good creative ideas on what they want to wear. These buttons are called Velcro Button Bows/Flowers/Appliques. The kids call them “Stick-em Buttons”. They think these buttons are really “cool”. They love to change the “tops” of the buttons. Here is how to sew “Stick-em Buttons.” Sew the buttons at the shoulders of jumpers or overalls, on pockets or randomly scattered on jeans, tee shirts, skirts or other garments. The buttons can be functional or purely decorative. Use up those old buttons in your button box. Paint the rim of the button with nail polish or craft paints if you like. The large, flat buttons are perfect for this sewing project. Buttons about 7/8 inch or larger work well. First, sew a button onto the garment. Use double thread. Run it through beeswax and press it to melt the wax into the thread. This strengthens the thread and keeps it from tangling. After sewing on a button, apply a drop of clear nail polish or Fray Check to the button threads to keep them secure. Prepare the Velcro Using a coin, draw a circle the size of the button onto some Velcro or use sticky Velcro circles. If the button has a rim, draw the Velcro circle to fit inside the button rim. Glue the soft side of a Velcro circle to the top of the button that you stitched to the garment. Next, sew some bows, ribbon flowers or small appliques or use pom poms, etc. For boys, use small appliques of their favorite animals, cars, toys, etc. Fuse, glue or sew the rough hook side of a Velcro circle to the underside of the bow/flower/applique, etc. Button the button and stick the bow, etc. to the top of the button. Make several different kinds of bows in different colors or whatever you like to have a selection of things to attach to your “Stick-em Buttons”. Remove the bows to launder the garment. The soft loop side of the Velcro doesn’t stick to everything else in the wash. The kids will have fun with their “Stick-em Buttons!” It just makes sense! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 2006 Marian Lewis - All Rights Reserved 1st Step To Sewing Success Marian Lewis is a sewing instructor and the creator of an amazing new fitting method for hard-to-fit sewing folks. In her ebook, “Common Sense Fitting Method For Hard-To-Fit Sewing Folks Who Want Great Fitting Skirts And Pants”, find out step-by-step WHAT you really need, WHERE you really need it and HOW to apply that to a commercial sewing pattern. For more information, go to http://www.1ststeptosewingsuccess.com/fitting.html Marian is also the author of other eBooks related to sewing including, “Sew A Tee Pee And Accessories For Your Tribe Of Kids” and “Classy Designer Straight Skirt” where she teaches basic and advanced sewing techniques. To learn more, go to http://www.1ststeptosewingsuccess.com/sewing.html To discover sewing and fitting secrets to achieve sewing success, follow the link http://www.1ststeptosewingsuccess.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marian_Lewis http://EzineArticles.com/?Sewing-Tips—Sew-Buttons-and-Bows-for-Kids&id=192303 buy viagra now online viagra comparison prices online viagra for sale without a prescription viagra on internet prescription online
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Monday, January 21, 2008

10 No-Fee Resources for Climbing Your Family Tree Online

By Patti Santee As the Webmaster of a genealogy website, Im often asked if its possible to find family tree data that doesnt come with a price tag. My answer is yes! My favorite no-fee sites are: 1. FamilySearch.org This popular site now has over 1 BILLION names in its online database. Search by surname (last name), spouses name, parents name or place. Includes no-fee access to the 1880 United States census, 1881 British Isles and Canada censuses, as well as the Social Security Death Index. 2. USGenWeb.com Perhaps the best place for beginning American research. With a Website for every single county in the United States, this site provides no-charge access to items like county histories, biographies, court records, census transcripts, and historic photos. Each county site is managed by a volunteer, so the amount of information varies dependent on the volunteers efforts. 3. EllisIsland.org Want to find your immigrant ancestor? Head to this Website. No charge access to database containing 25 million ships passenger records covering entry through the Port of New York and Ellis Island from 1892-1924. This site was first launched on April 17, 2001, and has received over 6 billion hits. 4. WorldConnect.Rootsweb.com Search more than 385 million names in researcher-donated files. Download ancestor and descendant results, view individual records and sources, and contact people who are researching the same surname. Although Rootsweb is now owned by Ancestry, this database has no-fee access. 5. Linkpendium.com More than 2 million links to genealogy resources. Includes links to both surname Websites, and regional resources by state. Includes links to mailing lists, clubs, message boards, personal surname pages, and cemeteries. 6. Geneasearch.com This fascinating site is loaded with genealogy records, including military rosters, regional resources, links to biographies and surname registries, and obituaries. In addition, you can request a no-charge lookup from the many volunteers associated with this site; the volunteers will look up your surnames in both genealogy CDs and genealogy books. 7. GenCircles.com Search and view millions of names that have been uploaded by other family tree researchersall without a charge. New policies have instituted a small fee for use of the smart matching technology, but all searches and viewing of data remain without a cost. 8. Interment.net No cost search of close to 4 million names in more than 8,000 cemeteries world-wide. If you are hitting a brick wall in your research, be sure to search for the surname on this site as you may find a burial notice in a state or area that you have not yet researched. Special collections include some National Cemeteries and flooded cemeteries. 9. CousinConnect.com Sometimes the quickest way to climb your family tree is to connect with other people who are researching the same names. This Website has more than 83,000 genealogy queries posted; these are posts by people who are searching for a specific surname. Its possible youll find an Internet cousin or two on this site. Sharing research is an excellent technique for getting faster results. 10. OliveTreeGenealogy.com One of the oldest genealogy sites on the Internet, and filled with no-fee searchable databases. This site is huge (more than 1,7000 pages and almost 1,500 databases!) so take some time going through the site so you dont miss out on any family information. Includes ships passenger lists, church records, military records, city directories, and links to Native American genealogy sites. Nancy Hendrickson is the Webmaster of Genealogy-and-History.com, and the author of Finding Your Roots Online. Learn more about climbing your family tree and receive a free monthly newsletter. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Patti_Santee http://EzineArticles.com/?10-No-Fee-Resources-for-Climbing-Your-Family-Tree-Online&id=62366 online pharmacy and xanax xanax without a prescription cheap buy xanax ativan buy ativan valium buy valium lora soma vailum xanax lortab no prescription required
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Sunday, January 20, 2008

It’s Almost Midnight! Do You Know Where Your Profitable Customers Are?

By Jim Deyo Do you have any idea how much your customers are actually worth to you? Do you know which ones you make money on and the financial impact of those that beat you up over price, service levels and “extras?” Or, do you say things like “we don’t have the time to figure that out,” - or, “we are different,” - or, “how would knowing that really help us” - etc, etc? What could be more relevant to any small business than having at least a basic understanding of customer profitability? Usually when a company looks honestly at its customers, the realization jumps off the page that you make a lot of money from some customers, you make less on another group, and you probably lose money on some. When you think in terms of the factors that drive this in your company, you can begin to take steps to make sure you retain the profitable ones and not spend too much of your time on the others. There are several ways to look at customer profitability, but one of the best is to think in terms of the lifetime value of an individual customer. Lifetime customer value (LCV) is the amount of profit that you will realize from an individual customer over the time that that customer does business with you. Focusing on LCV gets you two things. First, it measures the profitability of your customers, not just the revenue, and, because there can be a big difference in margin and costs between customers, the amount of money you make can be very different. Second, LCV focuses on your overall, long-term relationship with customers, not recent transactions, and over time some relationships have the potential to be a lot more valuable than others. The challenge, of course, is that when you start thinking about how to implement this concept, you quickly realize that it can be expensive and time consuming to collect the information you need to really impact your bottom line. But, what if you could get “80%” of the benefit of knowing the LCV of your customers for “20%” of the investment? Wouldn’t you be willing to spend a few hours and maybe do a little tracking and forecasting, if it would make you more profitable? Here are some things you can do. Start by creating a list of characteristics that describe both your ideal customers and your less than ideal customers. The objective is to identify both the quantifiable and the intangible factors that influence the profitability of an individual customer. For example, a long time customer, or a customer that makes multiple purchases, is better than a new one, for the obvious reason that it gives you a bigger revenue stream and the not so obvious reason that it doesn’t cost you as much to market, sell to, and service that customer. A customer that has been in business for awhile, or buys higher margin products, or refers other business to you, or who you can use as a reference is a lot more valuable to you than one who is always pushing you on price, or takes up a lot of your time, or who requires that you stock inventory that you otherwise wouldn’t, or who is just generally difficult to deal with. The more that you can quantify in describing these customers the better; but the intangibles are important, too, because there are hidden costs involved. Then divide customers into 3, or 4 revenue groups. You can refine this later, if you want to, but you need a starting point. One place to begin is some combination of number of purchases, average sale amount, or total sales per customer. Looking at number and dollars of sales splits your customer base either by revenue (dollars), or activity (number). These are two of the important things that drive profitability. Sometimes a better place to start, if you have the information, would be 3, or 4 divisions based on gross profit margin, or some other key profit driver. If you don’t know gross profit margin by customer, you could divide your customer base by number, or dollars of sales, look at the margin for a few representative customers in each group, and make some assumptions about the margin for the entire group. The value of an initial division by gross profit margin is that you have already made a big profitability distinction in grouping your customers. Finally, look at your expenses a little differently and break them into 4 categories. These 4 expense categories are cost of goods sold (the cost of making or buying the product you sell), sales and marketing (the cost to get and keep your customers), fulfillment (the cost to deliver your product to customers), and general and admin (everything else). A few assumptions have to be made here and in some cases you might have to split an expense between more than one of the four categories. But, once you’ve done this, you can look at your expenses in a different way - i.e. how they are affected by individual customer transactions. In restating expenses and matching them to the revenue groups, keep in mind several things that can meaningfully impact the profitability of any customer group and ultimately the total profit of your business. The number of customers in each group is important, because some of your expenses will be related to this. For example, shipping and handling is partly driven by the number of customers that you ship to. The number of new, versus repeat buyers is key, because you really don’t need to spread as much sales and marketing expense to the “old” customers as you are to the “new” ones. There may be costs related to a particular group for sales and marketing, or fulfillment. Fixed, versus variable costs are important, because you benefit from spreading fixed costs over as many customers as possible, while variable costs can rise or fall based on the number of customers that you service. And, finally, don’t neglect to consider time you and you staff have to spend servicing customers. Salary expenses are fixed in total (at least in the short term), but the amount of time that a customer demands can vary greatly and in that sense can be “hidden” costs as you look at the profitability of any customer. If you are so inclined, you can bring these assumptions together in a financial model that lets you forecast LCV with some precision. But, consider what you have learned already by taking these few steps. You’re recognizing in a more focused, analytical way, that not all customers are the same. You see more clearly that the amount of sales to a customer is not all that matters. The margin is a lot higher for some customers that for others. Your company’s expenses take on a different meaning, because they now generally reflect what it costs you to get, keep, and service your customers. You’re thinking in terms of some of the key factors that impact the profitability of any of your customers. If you stop here, you have spent a few hours of your time, but you still have benefited from understanding more about how much you might make, or lose, from different groups of customers. (There are two Business Management Tools on the Business Advisor Online site that will help you easily gain a financial perspective on the Lifetime Customer Value of your customers. The Simple Calculation LCV Model provides a high level calculation; it does not require you to have collected detailed customer information, but will still give you a reasonable LCV estimate. The Detailed Calculation LCV Model lets you include more information in the calculation and helps to estimate expenses in the four categories outlined in this weeks feature article.) About The Author: Jim Deyo is the President of Business Advisor Online, an internet based service that provides small businesses with the ideas they need to grow and the resources they require to make the right decisions. As a former Sr. Vice President with a major banking institution, Jim worked extensively with small and medium sized companies and has over 30 years experience in commercial and consumer lending, accounting, finance, marketing, and strategic planning. Visit the website at http://www.businessadvisoronline.com and sign up for a six week free trial of the service, or e-mail Jim at jimdeyo@businessadvisoronline.com. 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