Thrasher University: What is a Mutual Fund?

This Thrasher University Video Glossary is all about the basics of a mutual fund. Find out what one is, how one works, and most importantly, how you make money from it. Diversification, Expense Ratios and potato chip? Watch and learn. ThrasherTV: Makin’ Money Never Goes Out of Style

How Direct is Social Media Marketing?

I had nice back and forth with Brian Clark of copyblogger on Twitter last week about direct marketing and social media.  Ultimately it was more an issue of perspective and semantics but there were some great points about the intersection of direct marketing on the social web. I’ve been an advocate for several years as have others in the social media consulting space, that the social web is not a place for direct marketing. In the past I’ve even posted a fairly good comparison of the difference between direct marketing and social media marketing.

Brian’s position via our Twitter discussion was that social media is exactly that, marketing directly to consumers - a great point. My perspective is that social media is no place for direct marketing messages.

Companies that rush into a social network with sales offers is a classic example of an inappropriate use of direct marketing tactics on the social web. People don’t join social networks to be confronted with marketing messages, they join to be social with a likeminded community.

One successful method for brands to engage social communities from a marketing perspective is to make an effort to listen, participate and leverage email as a transition opportunity.  Email works very well in conjunction with social media for direct marketing purposes.

The marriage of social media relationship building and building up an email list is more congruent to direct marketing than most people think. I think what can make direct marketing work best on the social web is to exercise “give to get” in terms of providing value first. Generate attention and interest through interaction, participation and education. Blogs, social networks and other social apps that allow a community to interact with the brand are good examples.  As the brand provides value and trust, interested community members can move from casual social connections to joining an email list with added benefits. The key is transparency about what providing an email address means, in terms of receiving commercial messages and offers.

What do you think?

• Can direct marketing be social?
• Can direct marketing messages succeed on the social web?
• What’s the difference between marketing directly and direct marketing?

For those direct marketers reading this post, you might be interested in the DMA’s new Social Media Council - special interest group on LinkedIn to help educate direct marketers on social media best practices, share insights with others in the community.

Federal Consolidation is easy as 1-2-3

The Right Strategy For Credit Consolidation

If you have been trapped in a huge pile of debts because of one reason or another and are looking for a way to get rid of the same, credit consolidation may prove to be a great help for you. It is the ultimate financial process that will not only free you from the nasty pile of debts but you will also be able to rebuild your credit score. However, it is very important for you to work on a proper strategy because there are plenty of choices available to you in this regard. You have to choose the one that suits your specific needs best. A prudent approach will save you thousands every year on your overall debt payments. For example, in order to make the best use of a credit consolidation service, you must have a clear understanding of the basic tax law. You must also be knowledgeable enough to differentiate between the secured and unsecured loan options.

Secured Vs Unsecured Loan Option

The several ways of credit consolidation can broadly be put into two main categories - secured and unsecured. The secured option, as the name suggests, requires you to put your home or an asset as collateral against the loan amount. An unsecured option, on the other hand, does not require any such collateral. Since the secured option of consolidating your debts guarantees repayment to the lenders, they usually charge the lowest possible interest rate for you. On the other hand, since the second option is unsecured, there are greater amount of risks involved in the process from the lenders' point of view. That is the reason why it is hard to get a reasonable rate of interest while you go for credit consolidation through an unsecured loan option. Obviously, if you are a homeowner and are ready to put the equity of your home as a collateral against the loan amount, the first option is much more favorable for you.

No Further Defaults

After you have consolidated your debts using a secured or unsecured credit consolidation, make sure that you pay the monthly installments on time. Any further defaults will cost you too much. If it is a secured loan option, you may lose your home as well. So be very careful.

Never Pay One Credit Card Bill With Another Credit Card

Some people try to repay one credit card bill by availing another, which is not recommended in any case. This method of credit consolidation looks simple, but it can be very painful because it is very hard to get a lower interest rate on credit cards. The interests on credit cards piles up quickly. You may pay off your existing debts but you are very much likely to end up getting into a much deeper debt problem.

Quick cash payday loans

Surprices and unexpected things overwhelm lives. Money are a key factor in our life. You might not be able to withstand a money requirement when it is most needed. This is where the quick payday loans come in handy. It is an instant solution to your immediate money requirements.

Payday loans are the loans which are given to an employee which is intended to be repaid by the day where the employee receives the next salary. These loans average between 100$ to 2000$. Person who acquires the loan will only have to pay it back when he/she has cash with them.

These quick payday loans are mostly easy to get. The person will most probably be receiving the loan on the next working day to which he applied for the loan, thus making it quick and fast. It is convenient for the customers that the loaner have many branches all over the country and can be accessed wherever you are.

Quick payday loans will however have very high rates of interests. This is understandable since the person who receives the loan will be paying on the day they receive their salary, so in a way it hardly concerns them when they repay the loan. But in long term it is not profitable to receive more than one or two payday loans a year.

There are occasions where payday loans will become more than handy. You will badly need a way of quick cash in a case where you are late on paying your bills which are piling up on your kitchen table, or maybe your child’s school payments are late due to lack of money you have got. Go for a payday loan and be satisfied that you don’t have any more bills to be paid for the month.
Applying for a payday loan is very easy considering that you will only have to fill an online electronic form. The approvals of these online payday loans would take only minutes and hence it is far quicker than the conventional payday loans. You can easily find a payday loaner in the internet.

Loan provider’s security measures and their history would be a crucial factor in receiving a loan. Their agreement statement is also important. The interest rates of a payday loan will go up to around 400%. This is not a huge amount of money since the amount of loan is little.

Don’t be bothered of any immediate credit requirements. You can get the help of a payday loan provider and get rid of your short term financial crisis.

Forex Trading

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Michael jackson visionary

Tags:micheal jackson heal the world.

A bus full of tourists thought they were driving up a fancy street to look at Michael Jackson's front gate. Instead, they witnessed the last moments of Michael Jackson's life.

What exactly happened was  around 13 micheal jacksons' fans aboard a Starline Tours bus saw the King of Pop being whisked to the hospital, in full cardiac arrest. That's certainly not what they are expecting to see.

Michael suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this afternoon at his Holmby Hills home and paramedics were unable to revive him. We’re told when paramedics arrived Jackson had no pulse and they never got a pulse back.

I've had Billy Jean in my head all day since I learned the news. Despite his weirdness and awkwardness, he was a brilliant performer and artist. Most of the accusations were very clearly bullshit anyways.

If Micheal's Jackson's health had not spiraled out of control, his  personal life certainly had. Twice in 15 years, he was taken to court under child molestation charges. His children were the result of strange agreements with faceless women, and his finances were destroyed. He was even recently sued by an Arab Prince who had been supporting him until he found out that Jackson was not going to go through with an agreement to tour in order to pay him back.

=> Click here to check out the best Michael Jackson hits

Michael Jackson's death reminds us of the importance of treasuring the people in our lives. Living each moment to the fullest, forgetting about yesterday and not bothered by tomorrow......the only moment we truly have to live is now!

Let us appreciate all the people we share our lives with, the encounters of the many strangers that touch our lives, whilst remembering the importance of slowing down, smelling the flowers and truly being gratified for the gift of life.

The Various American Express Credit Cards

American Express started 156 years ago as an express delivery service. 108 years later, it entered the age of credit cards in 1958, and the American Express credit cards were instantly accepted by all. Today, there are many different kinds of American Express credit cards for various uses, and are used in more than a million establishments and accessible to more than 600,000 ATMs all over the world.

The Amex Cards

American Express, often popularly known as Amex, has gained worldwide popularity, and are widely sought after by many. Some of the American Express credit cards are:

Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card - This card from American Express offers discounts on Starwood Hotels and other hotels within the organization. You can obtain special rates on Amtrak services, and redeem points for frequent flyer miles. There is no set up fee, but you need to pay $30 annual fee, which is waived for the first year. You are charged an intro APR of 2.90 percent for the first six months, and followed by an APR of 18.24%.

One - This is a great card for shoppers who go on impulse buying. This card creates a "high-yield savings account" with American Express Bank, FSB, for every cardholder. The Savings Accelerator plan deposits 1% of practically every purchase you make into that account. It helps you earn an annual percentage yield of 4.25% - but the rate is variable, as of July 2006.

You pay no maintenance fees, you require keeping no minimum balance, and there are no penalties for withdrawals. The card requires no set up fee, attracts an APR of 14.24%, and you are required to pay an annual fee of $35, which is deferred the first year. Your very first purchase with one earns you a deposit of $50 into your savings account.

Blue Sky - This is another of the American Express credit cards that is ideal for frequent travelers. The card offers no travel restrictions, and substantial travel benefits. Every dollar you spend on this card earns you one point, and every 7500 points is equivalent to $100. You can redeem your points for flights on any airline, for stays in any hotel anywhere, for car rentals at any agency, for cruises on any cruise line, and for booking any travel packages.

The Blue Sky cards do not attract any annual fee and set up fee. For the initial period of six months, the card attracts 0% APR, followed by 13.24% APR. The introductory APR on balance transfer is 4.99%, for the lifetime of the loan, provided you request a balance transfer when applying.

These and various other American Express credit cards available are excellent for people leading different kinds of lifestyles.

The GREAT REWARD 4 Black People, Part 2 of 9

to accept their poison called medication I rejected the tray given to me wishing to examine the kitchen and request to see the chef. The time now requires we examine the kitchen and if you do,youll find youll never wish to EAT from this restaurant any longer. Brothers & sisters surely this is a very glorious time if we understand it.It should make us clap our hands and stump our feet even thou we ourselves may not live to see the reality but be joyous that we lived in the TIME that began

Automated Forex Trading System – Currency Trading Software

Tags:automated, currency, easy, exchange, foreign, forex, money, software, system, systems, trades, trading.

AutoForex.BestReviewed.Net - If you're looking to invest some money in forex in an automated and intelligent way - here's the program that will let you do it. I've been into automated trading software for a while, and I am very, very impressed with the intelligence of this automated forex trading system. It's called FAP Turbo. It's just about completely hands free and has succeeded in making money making trades about 87% of the time for me. It makes 10-20 currency trades per week, so it has ...