SEO Quotes From Specialists in Search Marketing

Not all information found online is created equal and it’s easy to get pushed and pulled in the wrong direction. To help you cut through all the clutter, I scoured the internet and found the top 10 timeless SEO quotes to guide your strategy. Even if Google unleashes an update tomorrow, these quotes will still hold true.One of the best things about the internet is instant access to just about any information you need. When researching search engine optimization (SEO), this is especially true.Enjoy!Using SEO tricks or hacks is like trying to beat the house in Vegas. Sure, you might get a couple of quick wins, but in the long run you’re bound to lose because “the house always wins.”In other words, SEO is an asset. It’s like buying real estate and investing to remodel your kitchen and bath. That work will increase the value of your home so that you can sell it in the future for a profit.Good SEO work only gets better over time.– Jill Whalen (@jillwhalen), WhatDidYouDoWithJill.com– Dave Naylor (@DaveNaylor), Bronco.co.UK Managing DirectorYou’re ignoring the most important part of SEO– your customers when you design your website for Google’s search engine spider. At the end of the day, ranking # 1 in Google is completely worthless if your website is not designed properly to convert that traffic into sales and leads!The goal of SEO is not to rank # 1. The goal is to generate leads and sales for your business.”My rule of thumb is build a site for a user, not a spider.”Even if you’re using other tactics like Radio, tv, and print, you still need an SEO strategy to ensure you’re not losing customers when they turn to the internet to do more research.”On a broad scale, I see SEO becoming a normalized marketing tactic, the same way Print, radio, and tv are traditionally thought of as marketing tactics.”– Duane Forrester, Senior Product Manager, BingIf your prospective customers are searching in Google, Bing, and Yahoo to find your products or services, you need an SEO strategy. More and more people are using multiple channels to research products and services and search engines are often part of the mix.This is one of my favorite SEO quotes because it’s so simple, yet so true. Google’s mission is to organize all the information online and present it so that the “best” is at the top of the search results.”Google only loves you when everyone else loves you first.”– Wendy PiersallHow does Google determine what is “best”?Google’s algorithm takes into account many factors, but one of the most important signals is the number of websites that reference, or link, to the information. Each link is like a vote in that website’s favor telling Google that it deserves to rank high in the search results.One of the big misconceptions about SEO is that it’s all about tricking Google to get your website to rank high.With that in mind, the goal of SEO is to make it as easy as possible for Google to find your website (by using proper HTML code, writing relevant copy, designing for ease of use, optimizing page load speed) and then to give Google a reason to rank your website higher than all the other relevant websites (by publishing better and more robust information, getting more links, more online PR).Again, it’s important to consider Google’s mission. They want to organize all the information online and present it to the searcher so that only the best websites are at the top of the results page.Successful SEO is not about tricking Google.– Phil Frost, Main Street ROIAgain, the goal of SEO is not to rank # 1, it’s to generate sales and leads.”Today it’s not about ‘get the traffic’– it’s about ‘get the targeted and relevant traffic.”– Adam Audette, Chief Knowledge Officer, RKGThat means your SEO strategy starts with finding the right keywords that will ultimately drive conversions for your business. Use Google’s Keywords Planner Tool to search for relevant keywords. Take it one step further to organize all the keywords you find into two categories:buying-intentresearch-intentAs you can probably guess, the buying-intent keywords are the ones where the person searching is most likely looking to make a purchase. The research-intent keywords are the ones where the searcher is most likely just doing research.Focus your SEO efforts on the buying-intent keywords first to give you the best chance to drive sales and leads.The sad truth with SEO is that most people will not find your website unless you’re on the first search results page. Keep in mind there are only 10 spots available and likely tens of thousands or even tens of millions of other websites vying for those coveted spots.Think about how hard it is to double the amount of visitors to your website. You’ll have to invest more in SEO, advertising, social media, email marketing, and/or another marketing tactic to drive more website traffic.Now consider the fact that you would get the same impact on your business if instead, you focused on doubling your website conversion rates.”The best place to hide a dead body is the second page of Google search.”– Anonymous.I’ll admit, I “LOL ‘d” when I first read this quote.”It’s much easier to double your business by doubling your conversion rate than by doubling your traffic.”– Jeff EisenbergIn the past, publishing more and more content was a great tactic to expand the reach of your SEO. As you publish more articles about different topics, your website has more opportunities to rank in Google.”Better content is outweighing more content.”– Rand Fishkin.Due to Google’s recent algorithm updates, quality outweighs quantity. Always keep this in mind and resist the urge to cut corners on quality in an attempt to publish webpages faster.Present a stronger, more compelling offer.Change the layout of your pages so that your offer is more easy to see.Offer free information in exchange for an email address so you can follow up and convert over a longer time frame.Use retargeting ads to bring prospects (that didn’t convert) back to your website.Add a lightbox popup so your offer can’t be missed.Many businesses took that tactic to the extreme and started to publish low quality articles in an attempt to scale up article production at lower costs.(Traffic to your website) x (Conversion rate) = (leads or sales).How can you double your conversion rate? Try some of the following ideas:.”What gets measured gets improved.”– Peter Drucker.This quote highlights a recent shift in SEO.Many businesses ignore this simple truth.Your conversion rate is the number of sales or leads you generate from your website divided by the total number of visitors. As you can see from that equation, you can either double your traffic or double your conversion rate and the result will be the same.It’s simple math…Peter Drucker was not specifically talking about SEO in this quote, but it’s an important point that deserves to make this list.What needs to be measured in SEO?This may come as a surprise, but tracking your rankings alone is worthless! Your rankings should of course be measured, but they tell an incomplete story.Good SEO work only gets better over time. Successful SEO is not about tricking Google. Good SEO work only gets better over time. Successful SEO is not about tricking Google. That means your SEO strategy starts with finding the right keywords that will ultimately drive conversions for your business.Good SEO work only gets better over time. Successful SEO is not about tricking Google.Even more important than your rankings is your website traffic from SEO and your website conversions from SEO.

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Managing Your Business’ Online Reputation Is More Critical Than Ever Before

Online reputation management can be a potent method for a company or organization to regulate its online reputation on social websites. Due to the fact a business’ online reputation will have a major effect on consumer brand perception and potential revenue, it is important to ensure that a business’ online reputation stays favourable, whenever possible. The subsequent guide examines the way online status management methods can help strengthen a company’s web reputation.Although Facebook and Twitter are incredibly well-known social interaction services, it’s important to remember that there are additional social networks that happen to be developing at a very quick pace. As an example, Google+ and Google Places have grown to be significant competitors for Facebook. com.Google+ and Google Places can be potent marketing tools for a lot of small companies and organizations. With these Google services, it’s possible to promote an organization for minimal to no cost. While Google+ and Google Places can be a fantastic way to market a business, they also open up a company to the likelihood of public complaint. The following guide provides uncomplicated how-to’s on how to make these Google services help one’s business.Google+ debuted in mid-2010 being a competitor to Facebook. While the early version of Google+ did not generate a lot of attention, it has evolved into a viable alternate to Facebook. com. Considering that Google+ does not allow applications or other third party tools, it may possibly provide a cleaner social media experience for many folks.When promoting a small business on the search engines or on Google Places, you need to fully grasp how social networking may affect consumer brand opinion and potential sales. Through building a well-designed profile, it is possible to generate new business.Google+ may have an impressive effect on a site’s rating in Google’s search engine result pages (SERP). With the new debut of authorship positioning, Google will give a greater rank to websites which have been connected to a Google+ account with a favourable standing. Considering that a Google+ account having a positive standing suggests that it is legitimate, Google is happy to permit sites belonging to the user profile to experience greater rankings.It’s also important to understand how Google Places can have a direct impact on a small business. Google Places was developed as a good substitute to services like Yelp. By way of testimonials, it is possible for customers to find out more information regarding local companies and organizations. Nevertheless, it’s essential to recognize that Google Places may have a negative or positive impact on a company.For instance, negative critiques on Google Places can be very detrimental to a company. Because so many shoppers in big cities utilize Google Places to locate a business, unfavorable information will be very seen.Fortunately, it is often possible to directly speak to the writers of any negative review. By bargaining as well as communicating with a negative review creator, it might be easy to get her or him to eradicate negative specifics of a company. Additionally, it could be easy to transform an individual with a poor experience in to a recurring customer in the future.

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Guaranteed Approval on Auto Loans: Guaranteed Benefits for a Bad Credit Car Buyer

The initial process of financing a car is ideally established. You approach your local car dealership, select your desired car and apply for the loan. However, in case of a car buyer with bad credit history, obtaining a loan might get difficult due to the absence of a co-signer, amongst other things. Despite a damaged credit history and significantly low credit score, a guaranteed approval on your auto loan can be an essential medium to get you closer to the car that you wish to buy.A guaranteed approval on your auto loan ensures that there will be a fixed amount of money that you will receive for the car that you purchase. If you do not have a perfect credit history, a guaranteed approval on your auto loan should be the first thing on your mind. It helps in the sense that even when you have bad credit, you can still get finance for your car; while at the same time determine the exact amount of approval. The approved figure can come in handy when you set out to look for cars in a dealership lot as you can estimate the car that fits your range. For those of you still contemplating whether a guaranteed approval on your auto loan can help your bad credit situation, here are a few benefits for you to consider.• Instant Credit ApprovalThe whole procedure of acquiring an auto loan can get cumbersome at times. The key advantage of a guaranteed approval on your auto loan is that the process becomes swift. In some cases, it may even take as short as one day to get your loan approved. That way, the next day you may have the funds required to make the purchase for your car. Therefore, it can help you bargain a better deal as you have already received the cash to buy your car.• Assistance in Advanced PlanningThere are a number of lenders who provide various options to get you a car that falls under your budget. Once you have knowledge of the approved loan amount, you can know where you stand with your payments. If you want to make a future investment, you can know the exact amount that you will need to put aside for the loan and accordingly plan where to spend. Thus, a guaranteed approval on your auto loan will give you a heads up on your future spends and savings.• Enhance your Credit RatingA guaranteed approval on an auto loan can be a great means of enhancing your credit rating, especially when you have suffered from a bad credit record, low credit rating or zero credit score. The ‘guaranteed’ in the guaranteed approval of an auto loan is an indicator of the fact that obtaining the loan is accessible to all, regardless of your current financial situation. Therefore, if you keep up with your regular payments for the loan, you can substantially improve your credit rating over a long period of time.Stumbling upon bad credit and getting rejected for a loan can be avoided with the help of a guaranteed approval on your auto loan. A smooth and swift credit approval and improving your credit rating are few of the benefits that come along with it. So next time you are refraining from entering a dealership because of bad credit history, get a guaranteed approval on your auto loan so that you can make your next car purchase a lot easier.

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The New Face of Modern India in Travel & Tour

Today, India has the potential to become the Global Super Power. Now, India is the 2nd fastest growing economy in the world after China with the growth rate 8.5%, and by 2013 we will beat China and will be on the 1st Position. India is territorially a large country, geographically a peninsula with a strategically dominating view of three major seas which could potentially provide a basis to control ship traffic from the Indian Ocean to Pacific Ocean by putting toll gates at the Malacca Straits, a long continuing civilization (over ten thousand years), a large and young population(average age of 29 years as compared to of China of 38 years, and Japan of 47 years)- which is termed as Demographic Dividend, and as proven inventors of cutting edge scientific discoveries in mathematics, astronomy, surgery and recently in high quality IT software. At present India has demonstrated innovative capacity in Chip design, Thorium reactors, Biotech, and pharmaceuticals.Travel & Tour is also the fastest growing industry in India. India tourism is gradually increasing every ending year. Nowadays, Indian people are traveling all around the world. The way of traveling by Indians is slightly different, preferring the luxury travel & tour.Organizers of the recent Travel and Tourism Fair (TTF) in Ahmedabad conducted a survey among Gujarat attendees, and results showed a significant number of Indian tourists prefer luxury travel and accommodations.TTF found that one-third of those surveyed had an average travel budget of Rs 80,000 as reported by the Times of India. Foreign tourism departments in attendance have taken notice of this trend and are offering more options for Indian travelers seeking upscale opportunities.”Switzerland provides tourists an option of staying together in fully furnished homes or chalet with a kitchen where one can cook one’s own meals,” Swiss travel agent Puneet Sehgal told the news source. Sehgal also noted that at least 400 Indians choose Switzerland for group vacations each year.Japan has been focusing promotions towards Indian tourists, specifically for theme parks. One Japanese travel agent at the fair told the Times of India that Osaka’s Universal Studios is a major attraction for Gujarati.More than 15,000 people attended this year’s fair, including exhibitors from Egypt, China, Dubai, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and many other nations.Celebrations times for Travel Industry…Travel Magazine has been informed there has been an increase in Package Holiday bookings this year compared to last year even though we are still in a trick economic climate. High Street Travel agents such as First Choice and Thomas Cook are celebrating after people looking for Holiday Deals in September helped increase bookings this year by 75% compared to booking for holidays last September.Some of the leading travel agents like Lets Travel India have been offering value deal holidays to help increase trade after the industry predicted early this year that the travel industry could suffer due to the unstable economic growth in the UK.Some of the top selling destinations which have helped increase trade for travel agents have been Canary Islands, India Tour and Spain with people looking for cheap package holidays as a large number of families could not afford holidays last year.Wise holiday makers have been keeping an eye on travel agents such as Lets Travel India to search for cheap package holidays after the company announced they were slashing prices on a large number of their holidays, while other holiday makers have been booking their own cheap flights and booking hotels abroad via the internet reducing the cost of their holidays.It was feared that a large number of travel agents would see themselves left with thousands of unsold holidays but with holiday makers looking for cheap deals after leading travel agents were forced to reduce their package holiday prices, this fear has now been reduced and travel agents are now claiming most of their unwanted holidays for September have been sold.The Indian travel industry is doing well with Indian flights. After having suffered from a somewhat slow season in 2008-2009, once again India is leading travel industry to the front, taken lime light and is seeing a growth in its travel industry of what is expected to be between 5-6% & 1-1.5% higher than the global average.There are two reasons behind this boom: one is the upcoming Commonwealth Games being hosted in Delhi in October & 2nd one is the Indian government efforts to boost the travel industry through improvements to international travel services and accommodation. This includes the completion of Terminal 3 of Delhi’s International Airport. The terminal is now the sixth largest in the world with a capacity for 37 million passengers per year. For the tourist and business travelers, this means shorter queues, more comfortable lounge areas, plenty of shops and increased flight offerings from UK airports including Birmingham, Belfast International and direct from London Heathrow as airlines bolster the number of Delhi-bound flights.In anticipation for the Commonwealth Games, the Indian government has also been giving the city of Delhi itself a major facelift; to such a point that professionals within the travel industry are anticipating that Delhi is quickly becoming a top contender as a one of the major travel destinations for world tourists.Of course, with all of this attention focused on India, destination-bound airlines and hotels are offering tempting fares and fabulous budget accommodation prices for Delhi bound tourists and business travelers – both in October during the Commonwealth Games 2010 in Delhi and beyond.

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Five Key Considerations Before Investing in Property to Let

The UK are big fans of property ownership, approximately seventy percent of property is owned with thirty percent rented, a ratio well above the average in Europe. Although the bulk of the drive for ownership about owning your own home, there’s also a growing popularity in buying property to rent out as an investment. Buy-to-let is a well marketed industry and is presented as an easy access opportunity to the general public. Letting out property as an investment can be lucrative in the right circumstances, however it is still a form of “business”, which has specific rules and requirements to be successful. Many people step into property investment without a full understanding of the many aspects that need appraising. Below are five key considerations, however please note the list is not exhaustive and all investors should do their own research before making their commitment.Mortgages For the investor usually there are two main methods to raise finance:Buy-to-let mortgagesEquity release from your own property.Buy-to-let mortgages are specifically marketed by the financial sector for this type of business. The rates of interest are usually higher than a mortgage taken against your own home. This is because there is a higher perceived risk to the lender in that the loan is usually covered by the rental income from a 3rd party who in this case is not the named borrower. This risk usually also translates into the need for a larger deposit to be put down against the purchase price, for example a 20-25% deposit requirement is typical. In calculating that risk affordability is given extra scrutiny so any applicant may need to evidence a higher degree of affordability at the underwriting process then with a residential mortgage. The buy-to-let mortgage is specific in that it treats your investment as a business case in its own right. Equity release mortgages allow the investor to borrow against the equity in their own home and then use that cash to purchase the investment property. In this situation the interest rate is more favorable, the lender considers the risk lower as the affordability and means to pay the loan is directly attributable to the borrower directly. The level of borrowing in this situation is determined primarily by two aspects. Firstly the level of loan-to-value, LTV requested, i.e. what percentage of the equity in your home’s value you wish to borrow against and secondly affordability criteria to service that loan. In terms of affordability any potential rental income from this equity release is not considered, so unlike the buy-to-let mortgage you are assessed for affordability based on your current situation only.Buy-to-let – Pros – Takes into account potential rental income in affordability criteriaBuy-to-let – Cons – Typically higher interest rate & setup cost, higher deposit required than most residential mortgagesEquity release – Pros – Lower interest rate, typically lower setup costsEquity release – Cons – Affordability criteria usually excludes potential rental incomeOther points… Often people move out of their main residence, with the intention of keeping it to rent out and mistakenly assume they can continue to run their residential mortgage on the property. However the risk levels and the terms that the residential mortgage was taken out against have changed, therefore the mortgage lender will require you to change your mortgage to a buy-to-let product or return to residency in the property.Especially with buy-to-let mortgages there may be other criteria on which properties a company will and will not lend on. For example, some companies will not lend on apartments above the 2nd floor etc. It’s recommended to check this against the property type being considered.Overall seek professional advice before making any financial commitment.Potential Rental Market ReturnsIt helps to know in advance what your economic conditions are, i.e. potential access to loans, available deposit, budget if no finance needed etc… This may help to clarify the amount of monthly rental return you are looking for to both meet expectations of the lender (where finance is needed) and yourself in terms of a given return for your invested money. Surprisingly the reverse often happens, a property is found, committed to and then at that late stage the financials are considered!Potential rental returns can vary greatly; aspects such as location, property type, property condition, supply and demand are just a few variables so it’s essential to gauge the market correctly. Using a property letting agent is a smart way to get a feeling for what is obtainable. A good lettings agency will provide guidance and advice without obligation. Bear in mind that when a figure is established for rental return some consideration should be given to “voids”, periods of time where the property is not rented. Voids are obviously undesirable but always possible due to the nature of tenants moving in and out. On average a figure of fifteen percent is sensible to account for, as the future is unknown. However, using a good lettings agency can help reduce the void percentage through efficient management and by leveraging their tenant client base and marketing reach.Evaluating CostsThere are several variables in costs and also some common costs to account for and find out ahead:Property Type – For example an apartment will typically come with service charges, find out what these are aheadFurnished or Unfurnished? – If furnishing enhances the rental return or ability to let the property then account for the setup costs of furnishing and also the replacement costs over the years. Again a local lettings agent could advise on the pros and cons of this choice.Repairs / incidental maintenance – Some upfront accountancy needs to be made for maintenance whether internal or external. Level of cost should be judged on state/condition of property.Property Management & Marketing – What are the annual costs, both one-off and ongoing?Ground rent – Payable annually for all leasehold ownership where applicableBuildings Insurance – Leaseholds, properties with communal aspects the insurance costs are dictated to you. Freehold you choose, check market ratesLandlords Liability Insurance – Optional but recommended Contents Insurance – Optional but recommendedOther Legal Requirements – Several additional costs to account for see next section.All in all once a full financial appraisal has been made of both costs and returns it’s probably a good time to start looking for the right property.Legal RequirementsThe property rental sector is not as heavily regulated as the property sales and estate agency market. However there are several Acts of Parliament which govern generally and regulate residential property lettings, such as the Housing Act. These laws are typically broad and all encompassing, certain aspects of them do apply to the property lettings industry whilst many do not. It’s also true to say that in recent years the letting industry has become more formalized and there is an increasing quantity of lettings specific legislation being introduced. This is in many ways a positive thing as helps to bring higher standards and professionalism to the sector; it’s also worth noting that some of the compliancy comes with a financial cost. For an up to date list of legal and safety regulations that any prospective landlord must be compliant with, consider talking with a letting agent, who will by up to date by default and should provide free no obligation advice.Managing your Property There are 3 principle methods landlords usually consider:Management via an agency – Tenants are both found and managed as a complete outsourced process. The cost is usually expressed as a percentage of the monthly rent received.Self-Management with Marketing via 3rd party – Landlord chooses to manage the property but uses an agent to find and vet potential tenants; the landlord may also use the agent to be compliant with the legal tenancy contract. The cost here is usually expressed as an upfront one-off fee.Complete self-management – Landlord manages the full scope of activity, markets their own property plus finds and manages their own tenant. The cost here is whatever the independent costs are the landlord incurs themselves.Pros & ConsAgency Management – Pros – Experienced management of all tenant and property related issues, financially simple – all monies managed for you, potential to negotiate best market rental rate, increasingly cost effective for landlords with multiple propertiesAgency Management – Cons – Cost is perceived higher than self-managed. However the long term earnings may be greater as a function of agent experience.Self-Managed, with 3rd party marketing – Pros – Lower cost option, allows landlords with enough time and confidence in their own management to save moneySelf-Managed, with 3rd party marketing – Cons – New landlords in particular stand a higher risk of error or mismanagement and usually gaining experience comes with a cost.Complete self-management – Pros – All costs under control of the landlord and if all the work is done by the landlord probably will provide the highest return on paper.Complete self-management – Cons – New landlords in particular stand a higher risk of error or mismanagement and usually gaining experience comes with a cost. They also don’t have access to the marketing tools or are able to leverage the economies of scale that a lettings agency can, which may mean the economics behind this choice need to be carefully weighed.Overall each scenario should be considered in its own right, the property and person involved, attitudes to risk versus reward and the amount of available spare time are big factors in making the decision. A local letting agent will be able to advise on their service offerings which should help determine the economics of this choice. Note that performance and service levels are likely to vary between agents.In conclusion these are five key aspects to consider before you consider investing in property to let. Each person’s motivations, personal feelings and situation will be different but generically addressing these five considerations will help provide an informed methodology to take the next step forward.

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Get Your Property Generating Immediate Positive Cash Flow

For property investment owners that want to earn as much money in a short period of time, there is one thing that has to be present. One thing above all else to get you the profits quicker than the average investor. After all, average property investors get average results don’t they?So, what is the one ‘Thing’, this “Trump Card Secret” of successful buy to let property investors must have? Immediate positive cash flow! Not five years from now, not ten, but right now, today! It sounds so simple, but believe it or not, so many property investors fail to keep this one simple rule in mind when deciding which property to invest into next.You know how it goes. Many times real estate agents try to sell you those buy to let properties that seem to look “OK”, but you then find out that the rental income just isn’t that realistic or attractive. Then the property owner tries to give you a “pie in the sky” story about the immediate income that you can expect to see from the property investment, but after working out your own numbers, you realize that you probably won’t even make a profit for quite some time. As a matter of fact, there’s a very good chance that you may even lose money at first or struggle to keep up with the mortgage payments. This is quite often the case in markets where real estate prices have appreciated so much that it is impossible to see a profit due to the fact that your mortgage payments outweigh the rental income generated.Let’s take Shanghai, China for example. Over the past few years, the Shanghai real estate market has more than doubled causing the average price per square meter to reach all time highs of nearly CNY 23,000. As a property investor looking at this situation, you need to take two very important factors into consideration in order to asses whether now is a good time to buy property in Shanghai. These two factors are Capital Appreciation and Rental Yields. Capital appreciation, the first of the two factors is the least important when discussing how to generate immediate cash flow, however we’re going to briefly touch on it anyway. The fact that the shanghai real estate market continues to hit all time highs during what has been considered to be one of the worst financial global recessions in the world, leads us to believe that there is quite a property bubble in the making, one that we’re afraid even Shanghai won’t even be able to avoid. How much further can we really expect the Shanghai property market to appreciate before it experiences a serious market correction? Let’s be honest, every single property market in history has always crashed right after the majority of the population stated “it could never happen to us”.For this exact reason, based on history having a tendency to repeat itself, we have advised short term property investors (less than 5 years) to stay away from the Shanghai property market. Obviously when investing for the long term (at least 10 years +) the odds of realizing a gain are that much stronger and most markets will always come out on top when you can afford to wait to sell. In that case, we would recommend buying investment property in Shanghai because we believe that Shanghai possesses some of the strongest capital growth potential amongst most property markets in world. Another reason capital appreciation is an important factor to take into consideration when trying to generate immediate positive cash flow is because when the price of your property appreciates, you are able to release equity which can then be used to pay for home improvements or other repairs that will ultimately help to push the rental income potential on your property up even further. This of course needs to be done in accordance with your financial situation as your mortgage payments will most likely increase in line with the equity released.The second factor when trying to figure out how to generate immediate positive cash flow, and by far the most important of the two contributing factors is the rental yield you can expect from your property. Nothing else matters when your primary investment objective is to generate secondary income. It’s a very simple rule of thumb, but many investors go wrong here when it comes to investing in property. Not only is it important to select a property that you can afford, BUT it’s even more important to select a property that your tenants can afford. It doesn’t matter if you alone can afford to purchase your property because if you can’t find a tenant to outweigh your mortgage payments, your property isn’t going to generate positive cash flow. We can’t emphasize enough how important it is to put aside all emotion when dealing with investment property and just focus on selecting a unit that won’t put you in the red from day one. You need to make sure that the market can afford to rent your unit for more then the cost of the mortgage itself. This is how you are guaranteed to generate immediate positive cash flow.Let’s take the property market in Shanghai, China again for example. If you purchase a 185 square meter apartment downtown for roughly CNY 23,000 per square meter, you are looking at a total cost of CNY 4,255,000 ($620,000). Let’s assume that you decide to leverage your assets in order to spread the risk of putting “all your eggs in one basket” by borrowing 70% from the bank. In this case, you will need to pay a deposit of CNY 1,276,500 ($186,296) leaving you to finance nearly CNY 2,978,500 ($434,691). Let’s imagine that the banks lend you the 70% loan at 5.25% interest rate over a 30 year period.(And yes, 5.25% is very good. Just because the federal governments have lowered interest rates doesn’t mean the banks have followed suite. Remember they are still are trying to recoup the billions of dollars they lost in the 2008 property crash, and will very rarely lend below 5%. As a matter of fact, HSBC China’s lending base rate on the RMB starts at 4.86% on a 0-6 month loan and up to 5.94% on five years or more).So based on the numbers above, the mortgage loan is going to cost you roughly CNY 18,980 ($2,770) per month in mortgage payments which isn’t all too bad considering you own a $620,000 apartment in downtown Shanghai. But wait! This isn’t for you to live in remember… It’s for investment purposes which means you now need to find a tenant who is able to pay at least CNY 18,891 ($2,757) per month to make this an immediate positive cash flow investment. According to the Shanghai Statistics Bureau, the average salary of employees in Shanghai was 3,292 yuan (US$481) per month in 2008 even after a 13% increase from 2007. Now this poses an enormous problem when trying to find tenants.As a matter of fact, less then 1% of the market is even going to be able to afford to rent your property at a price that is going to outweigh the mortgage payments, and because all the other landlords in your class are desperate for that 1% market share, they are willing to lower their rent to whatever they can get therefore making it nearly impossible for you to see positive cash flow on the above example. As a matter of fact, you would have to wait nearly 33 years based on an annual 5% income inflation rate just for the average salary in Shanghai to reach your $2,770 monthly mortgage payment. So guess what happens? You settle for anything you can causing you to lose money year over year leaving your investment entirely down to capital appreciation…Now this isn’t just the case in Shanghai, China as many other emerging market regions throughout the world present a very similar situation especially when the property industry outpaces the earning potential of its residents. So, how do you avoid the above situation altogether and still invest in a location that you are passionate about. First, find out what the average market is renting for per square meter versus the average mean income. Make sure that the general market can afford to pay above and beyond your mortgage payments. Financial planners suggest that when renting an apartment, you should not invest anymore then 30% of your income. So in an emerging market, make sure that you invest in an extremely cheap property so your tenants can afford to out pay your mortgage.Remember, real estate agents are NOT qualified to give advice on which property presents a strong investment case. Their only job is to sell you one of the thousands of different properties they are currently listing at the time. Speak to an investment property firm instead that understands how to research a good property investment [http://www.elite-ig.com/service/Investment_Property_Investment_Types.php?temp=Property].

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How to Make Use of Travel Agents to Help Plan Your Trip

There are many advantages of planning vacation with a travel agent. Travel agents are experienced not only with destination but also with all important things that must be taken care of. With their experience and exposure, you get free access to travel tips such as free holiday tips, airline travel tips, cheap airfare tips, travel insurance tips, budget destination tips, travel planning tips, international traveling tips and many more.Travel agents have resources, contacts and links to plan holiday within budgets and help you out in case of emergency. They can provide best airline travel tips and packages according to your budget. Most travel agents offer the travel package that consists of everything from airfare to toll taxes. The following travel tips will help you in finding a good travel agent and exactly what to expect from a travel agent:Tips and Advantages of Touring through a Travel Agent When you plan a travel or holiday with a travel agent, you get free access to many travel tips and benefits that help you in enjoying your holidays. Some of them are:o Airline travel tips When you organize a trip with some travel agent, you get tickets on discounted prices from multiple airlines. Travel agents have tie-ups with airlines and provide discount on tickets.o Hotel travel tips Travel agents can book hotels in advance. You should ask your travel agent to book a hotel well in advance to avoid last minute hassles. If you are visiting multiple vacations, book hotel at all places. This could save you heavily on your travel budgets because hotels charge exorbitantly when they see a traveler in need.o Tips For Seniors Travel agents also organize group tours for different age and vocational groups. The group tours are not only cheaper but safe also, especially for seniors. The benefit of group tours is that you never feel alone. You will soon find friends out of the fellow travelers. Group tours have a fixed schedule, so most of the destinations and important places are covered up within the budget.o Travel tips for historical visits Travel agents employ guides to explain historical monuments to tourists. Knowing the past heritage and visiting a monument arouse interest and make your visit memorable. Most guides know how to operate DV cams and still cameras. You can ask them to shoot you with your family or take a few snapshots. This could save you substantially because the cost of guides can be spread over the entire group.o Women’s Travel Safety Tips On Tour Criminals are always looking for innocent travelers for cheating or for sexual assaults. When you are planning a travel with travel agents, you have free access to travel safety tips for women traveling alone. Moreover, the travel agents have contacts and information on police, hospital, embassy and law that can come to your help. In case of emergency, a travel agent is better equipped than you to handle those situations.

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Five Key Considerations Before Investing in Property to Let

The UK are big fans of property ownership, approximately seventy percent of property is owned with thirty percent rented, a ratio well above the average in Europe. Although the bulk of the drive for ownership about owning your own home, there’s also a growing popularity in buying property to rent out as an investment. Buy-to-let is a well marketed industry and is presented as an easy access opportunity to the general public. Letting out property as an investment can be lucrative in the right circumstances, however it is still a form of “business”, which has specific rules and requirements to be successful. Many people step into property investment without a full understanding of the many aspects that need appraising. Below are five key considerations, however please note the list is not exhaustive and all investors should do their own research before making their commitment.Mortgages For the investor usually there are two main methods to raise finance:Buy-to-let mortgagesEquity release from your own property.Buy-to-let mortgages are specifically marketed by the financial sector for this type of business. The rates of interest are usually higher than a mortgage taken against your own home. This is because there is a higher perceived risk to the lender in that the loan is usually covered by the rental income from a 3rd party who in this case is not the named borrower. This risk usually also translates into the need for a larger deposit to be put down against the purchase price, for example a 20-25% deposit requirement is typical. In calculating that risk affordability is given extra scrutiny so any applicant may need to evidence a higher degree of affordability at the underwriting process then with a residential mortgage. The buy-to-let mortgage is specific in that it treats your investment as a business case in its own right. Equity release mortgages allow the investor to borrow against the equity in their own home and then use that cash to purchase the investment property. In this situation the interest rate is more favorable, the lender considers the risk lower as the affordability and means to pay the loan is directly attributable to the borrower directly. The level of borrowing in this situation is determined primarily by two aspects. Firstly the level of loan-to-value, LTV requested, i.e. what percentage of the equity in your home’s value you wish to borrow against and secondly affordability criteria to service that loan. In terms of affordability any potential rental income from this equity release is not considered, so unlike the buy-to-let mortgage you are assessed for affordability based on your current situation only.Buy-to-let – Pros – Takes into account potential rental income in affordability criteriaBuy-to-let – Cons – Typically higher interest rate & setup cost, higher deposit required than most residential mortgagesEquity release – Pros – Lower interest rate, typically lower setup costsEquity release – Cons – Affordability criteria usually excludes potential rental incomeOther points… Often people move out of their main residence, with the intention of keeping it to rent out and mistakenly assume they can continue to run their residential mortgage on the property. However the risk levels and the terms that the residential mortgage was taken out against have changed, therefore the mortgage lender will require you to change your mortgage to a buy-to-let product or return to residency in the property.Especially with buy-to-let mortgages there may be other criteria on which properties a company will and will not lend on. For example, some companies will not lend on apartments above the 2nd floor etc. It’s recommended to check this against the property type being considered.Overall seek professional advice before making any financial commitment.Potential Rental Market ReturnsIt helps to know in advance what your economic conditions are, i.e. potential access to loans, available deposit, budget if no finance needed etc… This may help to clarify the amount of monthly rental return you are looking for to both meet expectations of the lender (where finance is needed) and yourself in terms of a given return for your invested money. Surprisingly the reverse often happens, a property is found, committed to and then at that late stage the financials are considered!Potential rental returns can vary greatly; aspects such as location, property type, property condition, supply and demand are just a few variables so it’s essential to gauge the market correctly. Using a property letting agent is a smart way to get a feeling for what is obtainable. A good lettings agency will provide guidance and advice without obligation. Bear in mind that when a figure is established for rental return some consideration should be given to “voids”, periods of time where the property is not rented. Voids are obviously undesirable but always possible due to the nature of tenants moving in and out. On average a figure of fifteen percent is sensible to account for, as the future is unknown. However, using a good lettings agency can help reduce the void percentage through efficient management and by leveraging their tenant client base and marketing reach.Evaluating CostsThere are several variables in costs and also some common costs to account for and find out ahead:Property Type – For example an apartment will typically come with service charges, find out what these are aheadFurnished or Unfurnished? – If furnishing enhances the rental return or ability to let the property then account for the setup costs of furnishing and also the replacement costs over the years. Again a local lettings agent could advise on the pros and cons of this choice.Repairs / incidental maintenance – Some upfront accountancy needs to be made for maintenance whether internal or external. Level of cost should be judged on state/condition of property.Property Management & Marketing – What are the annual costs, both one-off and ongoing?Ground rent – Payable annually for all leasehold ownership where applicableBuildings Insurance – Leaseholds, properties with communal aspects the insurance costs are dictated to you. Freehold you choose, check market ratesLandlords Liability Insurance – Optional but recommended Contents Insurance – Optional but recommendedOther Legal Requirements – Several additional costs to account for see next section.All in all once a full financial appraisal has been made of both costs and returns it’s probably a good time to start looking for the right property.Legal RequirementsThe property rental sector is not as heavily regulated as the property sales and estate agency market. However there are several Acts of Parliament which govern generally and regulate residential property lettings, such as the Housing Act. These laws are typically broad and all encompassing, certain aspects of them do apply to the property lettings industry whilst many do not. It’s also true to say that in recent years the letting industry has become more formalized and there is an increasing quantity of lettings specific legislation being introduced. This is in many ways a positive thing as helps to bring higher standards and professionalism to the sector; it’s also worth noting that some of the compliancy comes with a financial cost. For an up to date list of legal and safety regulations that any prospective landlord must be compliant with, consider talking with a letting agent, who will by up to date by default and should provide free no obligation advice.Managing your Property There are 3 principle methods landlords usually consider:Management via an agency – Tenants are both found and managed as a complete outsourced process. The cost is usually expressed as a percentage of the monthly rent received.Self-Management with Marketing via 3rd party – Landlord chooses to manage the property but uses an agent to find and vet potential tenants; the landlord may also use the agent to be compliant with the legal tenancy contract. The cost here is usually expressed as an upfront one-off fee.Complete self-management – Landlord manages the full scope of activity, markets their own property plus finds and manages their own tenant. The cost here is whatever the independent costs are the landlord incurs themselves.Pros & ConsAgency Management – Pros – Experienced management of all tenant and property related issues, financially simple – all monies managed for you, potential to negotiate best market rental rate, increasingly cost effective for landlords with multiple propertiesAgency Management – Cons – Cost is perceived higher than self-managed. However the long term earnings may be greater as a function of agent experience.Self-Managed, with 3rd party marketing – Pros – Lower cost option, allows landlords with enough time and confidence in their own management to save moneySelf-Managed, with 3rd party marketing – Cons – New landlords in particular stand a higher risk of error or mismanagement and usually gaining experience comes with a cost.Complete self-management – Pros – All costs under control of the landlord and if all the work is done by the landlord probably will provide the highest return on paper.Complete self-management – Cons – New landlords in particular stand a higher risk of error or mismanagement and usually gaining experience comes with a cost. They also don’t have access to the marketing tools or are able to leverage the economies of scale that a lettings agency can, which may mean the economics behind this choice need to be carefully weighed.Overall each scenario should be considered in its own right, the property and person involved, attitudes to risk versus reward and the amount of available spare time are big factors in making the decision. A local letting agent will be able to advise on their service offerings which should help determine the economics of this choice. Note that performance and service levels are likely to vary between agents.In conclusion these are five key aspects to consider before you consider investing in property to let. Each person’s motivations, personal feelings and situation will be different but generically addressing these five considerations will help provide an informed methodology to take the next step forward.

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Get Your Property Generating Immediate Positive Cash Flow

For property investment owners that want to earn as much money in a short period of time, there is one thing that has to be present. One thing above all else to get you the profits quicker than the average investor. After all, average property investors get average results don’t they?So, what is the one ‘Thing’, this “Trump Card Secret” of successful buy to let property investors must have? Immediate positive cash flow! Not five years from now, not ten, but right now, today! It sounds so simple, but believe it or not, so many property investors fail to keep this one simple rule in mind when deciding which property to invest into next.You know how it goes. Many times real estate agents try to sell you those buy to let properties that seem to look “OK”, but you then find out that the rental income just isn’t that realistic or attractive. Then the property owner tries to give you a “pie in the sky” story about the immediate income that you can expect to see from the property investment, but after working out your own numbers, you realize that you probably won’t even make a profit for quite some time. As a matter of fact, there’s a very good chance that you may even lose money at first or struggle to keep up with the mortgage payments. This is quite often the case in markets where real estate prices have appreciated so much that it is impossible to see a profit due to the fact that your mortgage payments outweigh the rental income generated.Let’s take Shanghai, China for example. Over the past few years, the Shanghai real estate market has more than doubled causing the average price per square meter to reach all time highs of nearly CNY 23,000. As a property investor looking at this situation, you need to take two very important factors into consideration in order to asses whether now is a good time to buy property in Shanghai. These two factors are Capital Appreciation and Rental Yields. Capital appreciation, the first of the two factors is the least important when discussing how to generate immediate cash flow, however we’re going to briefly touch on it anyway. The fact that the shanghai real estate market continues to hit all time highs during what has been considered to be one of the worst financial global recessions in the world, leads us to believe that there is quite a property bubble in the making, one that we’re afraid even Shanghai won’t even be able to avoid. How much further can we really expect the Shanghai property market to appreciate before it experiences a serious market correction? Let’s be honest, every single property market in history has always crashed right after the majority of the population stated “it could never happen to us”.For this exact reason, based on history having a tendency to repeat itself, we have advised short term property investors (less than 5 years) to stay away from the Shanghai property market. Obviously when investing for the long term (at least 10 years +) the odds of realizing a gain are that much stronger and most markets will always come out on top when you can afford to wait to sell. In that case, we would recommend buying investment property in Shanghai because we believe that Shanghai possesses some of the strongest capital growth potential amongst most property markets in world. Another reason capital appreciation is an important factor to take into consideration when trying to generate immediate positive cash flow is because when the price of your property appreciates, you are able to release equity which can then be used to pay for home improvements or other repairs that will ultimately help to push the rental income potential on your property up even further. This of course needs to be done in accordance with your financial situation as your mortgage payments will most likely increase in line with the equity released.The second factor when trying to figure out how to generate immediate positive cash flow, and by far the most important of the two contributing factors is the rental yield you can expect from your property. Nothing else matters when your primary investment objective is to generate secondary income. It’s a very simple rule of thumb, but many investors go wrong here when it comes to investing in property. Not only is it important to select a property that you can afford, BUT it’s even more important to select a property that your tenants can afford. It doesn’t matter if you alone can afford to purchase your property because if you can’t find a tenant to outweigh your mortgage payments, your property isn’t going to generate positive cash flow. We can’t emphasize enough how important it is to put aside all emotion when dealing with investment property and just focus on selecting a unit that won’t put you in the red from day one. You need to make sure that the market can afford to rent your unit for more then the cost of the mortgage itself. This is how you are guaranteed to generate immediate positive cash flow.Let’s take the property market in Shanghai, China again for example. If you purchase a 185 square meter apartment downtown for roughly CNY 23,000 per square meter, you are looking at a total cost of CNY 4,255,000 ($620,000). Let’s assume that you decide to leverage your assets in order to spread the risk of putting “all your eggs in one basket” by borrowing 70% from the bank. In this case, you will need to pay a deposit of CNY 1,276,500 ($186,296) leaving you to finance nearly CNY 2,978,500 ($434,691). Let’s imagine that the banks lend you the 70% loan at 5.25% interest rate over a 30 year period.(And yes, 5.25% is very good. Just because the federal governments have lowered interest rates doesn’t mean the banks have followed suite. Remember they are still are trying to recoup the billions of dollars they lost in the 2008 property crash, and will very rarely lend below 5%. As a matter of fact, HSBC China’s lending base rate on the RMB starts at 4.86% on a 0-6 month loan and up to 5.94% on five years or more).So based on the numbers above, the mortgage loan is going to cost you roughly CNY 18,980 ($2,770) per month in mortgage payments which isn’t all too bad considering you own a $620,000 apartment in downtown Shanghai. But wait! This isn’t for you to live in remember… It’s for investment purposes which means you now need to find a tenant who is able to pay at least CNY 18,891 ($2,757) per month to make this an immediate positive cash flow investment. According to the Shanghai Statistics Bureau, the average salary of employees in Shanghai was 3,292 yuan (US$481) per month in 2008 even after a 13% increase from 2007. Now this poses an enormous problem when trying to find tenants.As a matter of fact, less then 1% of the market is even going to be able to afford to rent your property at a price that is going to outweigh the mortgage payments, and because all the other landlords in your class are desperate for that 1% market share, they are willing to lower their rent to whatever they can get therefore making it nearly impossible for you to see positive cash flow on the above example. As a matter of fact, you would have to wait nearly 33 years based on an annual 5% income inflation rate just for the average salary in Shanghai to reach your $2,770 monthly mortgage payment. So guess what happens? You settle for anything you can causing you to lose money year over year leaving your investment entirely down to capital appreciation…Now this isn’t just the case in Shanghai, China as many other emerging market regions throughout the world present a very similar situation especially when the property industry outpaces the earning potential of its residents. So, how do you avoid the above situation altogether and still invest in a location that you are passionate about. First, find out what the average market is renting for per square meter versus the average mean income. Make sure that the general market can afford to pay above and beyond your mortgage payments. Financial planners suggest that when renting an apartment, you should not invest anymore then 30% of your income. So in an emerging market, make sure that you invest in an extremely cheap property so your tenants can afford to out pay your mortgage.Remember, real estate agents are NOT qualified to give advice on which property presents a strong investment case. Their only job is to sell you one of the thousands of different properties they are currently listing at the time. Speak to an investment property firm instead that understands how to research a good property investment [http://www.elite-ig.com/service/Investment_Property_Investment_Types.php?temp=Property].

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