An Internet Marketing Tutorial for the rest of us

South Korea Killed the Zombie
Mood:  loud
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
According to the latest from Sophos.com, South Korean officials have just arrested a man accused of running a Zombie botnet of some 16,000 compromised computers.

The man sent out 18 million spam emails a day to 133 countries. Most of the spam was related to loans.

My best advice, is to regularly empty your junk email. You'll want to look through the junk mail, though, because sometimes the junk email filter sends legitimate emails to the trash heap (i.e., comments to my blog and notice of guestbook entries sometimes get put with the junk).

Don't click on any offers from anyone you don't know. If you don't recognize the sender, don't even open the email. Doing so opens your computer to attack and the possibility of becoming a zombie.

If you need a loan or some other service that you see advertised in a spam email, use a legitimate search engine such as Yahoo, Google, or MSN to find it. Be smart shoppers and if it seems to good to be true, it probably is.

CIAO for now,
Randy

The 5 Credit Myths
Mood:  lucky
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
The article today is courtesy of Lexington Law, one of my Shareasale partners, whose aim is to demolish the 5 Credit Myths and to help consumers regain favorable credit ratings.

MYTH #1

There are only three official credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and Transwoeld), and these essential American orgaizations keep accurate, up-to-date records on each American citizen.

First off, these three exist today because of corporate greed as they have continually bought up the smaller companies over the years (think the old Ma Bell). There is nothing essential about these "privacy-busting companies."

Also, there are many newer credit bureaus, such as Innovis, Lakeside, and NCTDE. In fact, anyone could start up their own credit reporting agency by collecting info on their friends + neighbors and finding a buyer.

So, basically, there are no "official" credit bureaus. Additionally, the credit reports have no legal standing and are routinely filled with errors.

MYTH #2

Creditors, insurance agencies, and employers carefully screen credit reports to qualify applicants.

At one time, this was true. But with the immense explosion of credit to potentially millions of applicants, technology has taken over, and has not advanced to screen individual records.

MYTH #3

If you disagree with an item on your credit report, you can ask that a 100-word statement be added to balance the file.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act of the 1970s gave consumers the right to do this. But this was when credit reports were read individually, and the 100-word statement could actually make the difference in getting a mortgage.

These days such a statement could actually hurt you. If you want to repair your credit later on, what could be worse than a statement like "My payment was late because I was laid off. It won't happen again." You admit your guilt, and your "extenuating circumastances" are seen by the credit bureaus as lame excuses. This could make you seem like a bad credit risk.

MYTH #4

Negative items stay on your credit report for 7 years.

The credit bureaus want you to believe this so they can more effectively control you. The truth is that no one is forced to tell anything about anyone for any minimum amount of time to anyone else. The Fair Credit Reporting Act only LIMITS how credit credit bureaus can behave.

MYTH #5

Helping someone straighten false credit reports is illegal.

The fact is that each of us has a fundamental right as citizens to representation when someone else, whether a newspaper, TV station, or credit bureau, e.g., accuses us of some wrongdoing.

Credit bureaus know this, too, and attempt to frighten consumers by sending official-looking letters, hoping that consumers will back down.

Lexington Law is dedicated to helping you repair your credit report, get you back on your feet, and get more out of your life. 80,000 clients can't all be wrong! Please click on the link below for more information.

Women Diary
Mood:  celebratory
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
Welcome to our newest renter, Yulia, who proudly presents Women Diary! Be sure to visit her by clicking on the box to the right. She has a number of things to offer on her site. Recent posts include Baby Names, Celebrity Gossip, Dead Sea Skin Care, and a rant about the injustices on American Idol. She frequently updates her blog and has put it together quite nicely.

You might be asking, what does Women Dairy have to do with the content of this blog, which has an altogether different focus? Well. not only do we in the blogosphere have to suport each other, but also, Yulia (oops I almost wrote Yamin - still stuck in the American Idol track) also has a couple of other blogs that are more pertinent to Internet Marketing!

Namely, MySpace HTML Codes Guides Tutorial, My Webmaster Experience, and Cool Music Lyrics Collection. The titles are pretty self-explanatory, but please visit her at any of those sites, especially the one on the right.

Right now, I'm "baby-sitting" my teen- and tween-age daughters in a posh motel room in Orlando while mom goes to a conference. Talk about expensive baby-sitters! But it's all good. The girlies are sound asleep after staying up most the night. I just hope I can rouse them in time for checkout!

Please join my mailing list, give my great sponsors some attention, and join me next time as I drag my kids out of here kicking and screaming!

CIAO for now,
Randy

Update on unrapped.org
Mood:  energetic
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
Just wanted to provide all of you with an update on my other site, unrapped.org. I believe I have mentioned my other site before. It's a Christian resource site with daily Bible verses, daily devotions, WebTV/Radio, Bible searches, a Gospel Podcast message, and updates of some things I have recently done with the ministry. I also am trying to raise funds for missions trips via Paypal donations and sales in the Gospel Store, which currently features some Mother's Day gifts.

You may be asking, "Why is he trying to shove religion down our throats?" While it may seem that way, I actually am not. I want to offer my experience with the web sites as an example of the pros and cons of Internet Marketing.

First off, I was recently investigating a guaranteed search engine inclusion program for $50. I did some checking of the search engines they listed, and both of my sites were already in all the search engines listed, except for dmoz. That's all by using the "blog and ping" method I recommend here: create a free blog, post often, and each time you do, send a ping to Pingoat or any of the other pinging services I list on the right. Don't bother with the "Get on Google Overnite" scams that are out there. If you've got a podcast, be sure to use freshpodcasts.com.


Second, another program was charging $250 for top 10 listings on the search engines. Sounds good, but it was only for a certain number of guaranteed top ten listings. This site already has a Google PageRank of 4, and I'm currently working on unrapped.org to get a decent ranking. If you want to see what I've done, go to unrapped.org and click View => Source on the various pages. Feel free to link to this site or to unrapped.org. I'll gladly swap links with any well-made non-adult-oriented site.

CIAO for now,
Randy

Authorities Crack Down on Spammers
Mood:  suave
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
This just in from Sophos.com: "Spamford" Wallace has been ordered by a NewHampshire court to pay more than $4 million for his illegal internet practices.

Wallace's Smartbot.net downloaded software onto computers without users' permisison. Smartbot.net then altered users' search engine features. All this activity subsequently led to computer slowdowns, CD trays opening randomly, and similar computer problems.

Let's hope this fine and admonition by the FTC to cease his illegal practices actually stick this time. In 2004, "Spamford" - oops Sanford - was also ordered to stop. Maybe Ol' Spammy should serve some jail time? In a nice quiet little cell WITHOUT internet access!!! Maybe he might even get a girlfriend? Now that just wasn't nice o' me.

Leave me a note - what do you think we should do with folks like Ol' Spammy Wallace?

"Smart" Spam?
Mood:  crushed out
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
I just read an article in Network Computing that, quite frankly, scared me.

Gregg Keiser reported on some research done by Professor John Aycock, U Calgary, and his student Nathan Freiss.

"Smart" spam, they argued, would download malicious code on your computer, then, would scan your "inbox, mine it for information and writing patterns, then crank out realistic-looking replies to real messages."

Spammers and phishers could use this technique to send out emails that appeared to be from your friends and colleagues, tricking you into clicking embedded links that would put spyware on your computer.

The scariest part of this article for me was the way these two discovered this: they actually wrote a program that would do this! Kinda makes you wonder, in this era of cybercrime, if the REAL criminals aren't actually the professors and grad students that everyone traditionally looks up to...

Please let me know your thoughts, subscribe to my newsletter, and visit our sponsors!

CIAO for now,
Randy

What ELSE can you buy on EBAY???
Mood:  don't ask
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
What follows is an example of an article marketing. The first part is something interesting from Yahoo! news, the second is my opinion and conclusion.

Yahoo! news just reported that a businessman from China bought a MIG fighter jet on EBAY. He allegedly is going to use it to decorate his office.

The plane, last flown in 1995, is currently housed in Idaho and is in "excellent condition" and was retired by the Czech military.

The buyer, Zhang Cheng, doesn't even know if he can legally get the plane into China.

I, for one, am a little concerned about this transaction. I realize there's no government body regulating EBAY, but I'm not so sure there shouldn't be.

This transaction sounds like it could precipitate global conflict:

A. The plane was made by the USA
B. The plane was used by Chechnya
C. Who knows what the Chinese might use it for

Despite some reports to the contrary, I believe theirs is still a top-down society, where government reigns supreme. I believe they just sentenced someone to 10 years in jail because of an internet posting! Even busnessmen are government agents!

Henc, with a MIG fighter plane, the Chinese could easily head over to Iraq or Iran and stir up some trouble.

Which leaves me to ask, what ELSE can you buy on EBAY? How many illegal items are there for sale under the guise of seemingly innocent things? Not that I think there should be dictatorial control over EBAY, but there should be some sort of rules. If not the rule of common sense!

Wat do YOU think should be done? Drop me a comment or an email! And don't forget to visit our wonderful sponsors or sign up for our newsletter!

CIAO for now,
Randy

Tags: EBAY, China

Updates!
Mood:  celebratory
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
Good afternoon all my loyal fans and subscibers!

Sorry I have been absent for most of this past week. I think I mentioned it earlier, but, as an update, I have been involved in a number of church dramas this past week.

First, I was Judas in an Easter production at Calvary Chapel Worship Center, and tonight is the last night of my involvement in the dramatic presentation "Eternity." It's about the choices we make in life and how they affect our final destination, whether heaven or hell. I play Eric, a porn addict who doesn't get along with his alcoholic wife, and both get tossed into the pit. I'm going to try a link exchange with the producer, so you can get more info if you want.

I realize this post is a bit off topic, but just wanted to let everyone know what's going on.

Also, I have implemented a few design changes to make navigating this site easier - such as labels for The Book of the Month, my sponsor list, and the podcast, which, when I'm not acting, is a great way to blow off steam. More of that to follow!

CIAO for now,
Randy

Quick Updates
Mood:  mischievious
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
Just a quickie 'cause I'm about to head out to a gig...I updated the podcast today - feel free to give a listen and leave me your comments! Also, my other website, www.unrapped.com, was just indexed by Google, and the only things I did were the steps I detailed earlier. Next I'll detail how to increase your rankings. Hope the tips have helped you as well! Please subscribe to the newsletter, leave me a comment, and visit our sponsors!

CIAO for now,
Randy

Quick Updates
Mood:  mischievious
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
Just a quickie 'cause I'm about to head out to a gig...I updated the podcast today - feel free to give a listen and leave me your comments! Also, my other website, www.unrapped.com, was just indexed by Google, and the only things I did were the steps I detailed earlier. Next I'll detail how to increase your rankings. Hope the tips have helped you as well! Please subscribe to the newsletter, leave me a comment, and visit our sponsors!

CIAO for now,
Randy