Friday, August 28, 2009

Becoming A Homebased Freelancer

If you are tired of going to work every single day or need to stay at home for an extended period wthout having to sacrifice your finances or just need an extra source of income, then you might want to try becoming a freelancer.
What are the things you need to keep in mind?
  1. In order to get a steady stream of projects, you can subscribe to a number of project marketplaces such as oDesk, getafreelancer, or guru. Read carefully their FAQs and TOCs so that you have an idea on how fast you could earn money from projects posted on their site.
  2. Make sure that you have a PayPal account. Although most online marketplaces also allow you to receive payment via Moneybookers and Payoneer, PayPal is still the easiest and cheapest way to collect payment from your clients.
  3. Write a good profile. Your profile would be the first (and only) material your prospect would have about you. Highlight your skills and previous experience. Try to take online exams. Although oDesk offers their own certification program, you can also try getting certification from Brainbench.
  4. Bid on as many project as you can. When putting down your hourly rate, consider the complexity of the job, how much the client is willing to pay and how much the other candidates placed as their bid.
  5. Take time to write down a cover letter when submitting your bid or when applying for a project. Not all client would have the luxury of time to read through your profile. Your cover letter would already give them an idea on what your skills are. Check your grammar and spelling. Some clients use the cover letter as basis for hiring you especially if the job involves writing skills.
  6. Show up for an interview. Some clients would request an interview via Skype, YM or IM. Make sure that you show up and that you answer the questions promptly.

So there you have it, some basic tips to get you started on your freelance career!

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy

Technology is becoming even better. It is developing itself or being developed by the genius minds in our industry to further make our lives easier. Aside from this, technology is instrumental in providing answers with the myriad of questions that we have in mind. From our appliances that we can’t live without everyday to the complicated laboratory equipment that many companies are now using.

One of these equipment is the Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy. This device is used to determine the concentrations of the major classes of chemical compounds in organic materials, such as plant foliage. It claims to produce rapid, accurate and precise results that could work in lieu of the conventional wet chemistry procedures.

Using reflectance signals that is derived from bending and stretching vibrations in the molecular bonds of carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen and oxygen, it could correlate the spectral response of each specimen at an individual wavelength to known chemical concentrations from laboratory analyses.

Newman and his colleagues, in 1994, formulated the procedure for nitrogen, lignin and cellulose concentration for woody plant foliage using green leaf, leaf litter and decomposing lead litter. The specimen are dried and grinded to a uniform particle size before it would undergo NIRS.
Accordingly, diffuse reflectance spectral data were acquired using a NIRSystems 6500 monochromator with a spinning cup module, scanning at wavelengths from 400 to 2498 nm with a bandwidth of 10 nm. Reflectance data is converted to absorbance, A = log (1/R). Calibration equations were developed using partial least squares regression on first difference transformation of the absorbance data for the entire spectral range (Bolster et al., in press). A total of 18 deciduous and 10 conifer species are represented in the green leaf calibration equation; 13 deciduous and 4 conifer species in the leaf litter calibration equation; 4 deciduous species in the litter decomposition calibration equation.

Such equations are used for prediction of nitrogen, lignin, and cellulose concentrations in unknown samples. Equation should be precise in order to facilitate the prediction of unknown samples depends on whether the range of variation affecting the chemical and physical properties of the unknown samples is represented in the calibration samples. For convenience, universal equations are developed. They are made for broad, or infinite populations may be used for a wide range of samples. Universal equations increase the value of NIRS for the study of large-scale ecosystem processes and change through remote sensing.

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Your Own Call Center Agent For As Low As $500 Per Month

Talent Shout is pleased to be able to offer companies their own call center agent. For as little as US$500 a month, your call center agent will be able to handle both voice and non-voice based tasks for you. The call center/virtual assistant package comes with Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

Your call center agent will be able to handle voice account tasks, like answering calls and placing calls. Call center agents will also be able to handle non-voice account tasks such as receiving and sorting emails as well as provide chat support.

Other virtual assistance may also be provided in the form of word processing, spreadsheet creation, and transcription. Our call center agents/virtual assistants can provide valuable services without the overhead usually associated with this type of service. This is a good solution for companies who depend on being mobile which precludes the option of having a call center.

This is a valuable service at a reasonable price that Talent Shout is happy to be able to bring its clients. Having a dedicated call center agent/virtual assistant through Talent Shout can be a cost effective way of increasing your company's productivity as well as improve your professional image.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Writing For The Cyberworld

Writing an article for the web is different from writing any other type of article. Unlike articles written in print media, articles written for the web should be as short and as concise as possible. This is in keeping with web users who are always on the go and want to get information quickly.

This being said, bullet lists are more preferred in web article writing rather than large paragraph chunks. Having lists in your articles help the user to scan it quickly and know right away if this is the type of article that he or she is looking for. Putting headings is also another way of breaking down your content into easy-to-read portions.

Also, keep in mind that flowery words have no place in web article writing. Just use short and simple words so that you will not lose your target audience when he stumbles upon an unfamiliar word.

Finally, keywords are very important. You write to be read, and the only way for your article to be read is when it is found in the first place. Keywords make your articles easy to find, and hence achieve your purpose.
Need article writing services? Visit Talent Shout Business Consultancy

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

So You've Got a 3, Now What?

Sure, you've got a couple of good back links. You know how to maximize keywords. You've done PPCs, even posted a few PLRs. You've made use of blog comments and forum posting to increase traffic to your site. In a month's time, you were able to achieve a PageRank of three.
Now what?
Most people misunderstand the idea of PageRank and think that high web traffic automatically translates to higher sales. To some degree, increased web traffic and consequent increase in PageRank MIGHT increase your sales. This is because a higher PageRank means more chances of your site landing on the first two to three pages of Google search results. Of course, if a prospect would see your site first, there is a greater probability that he or she would go for your services. The next step, however, would be up to you.
Ask yourself:
(1) What kind of visitors does your site have? Are they the type of audience you had in mind? How did they land on your page?
Being aware of the kind of traffic that you have can help you plan ahead. It can be your basis for coming with a contest, for launching a new product, for changing the design of your site!
(2) Does your web site clearly discuss your products and services? Can visitors get all the information they need before making any purchase or getting your services? Oftentimes, putting the price of your product and services can be an advantage. Visitors can decide instantly whether to buy you product or not. Unfortunately, your competitors can also use any information you put on your web site as a leverage for their own products and services.
(3) If your visitors need to ask you a certain question, how fast can you give a reply? Does your site provide live chat? Do you have contact forms? Do they know where they could call you or email you? Remember, the faster you could answer their inquiries, the better.
(4) Are you willing to meet with your prospects? Do you have a ready slide show that you can use to discuss your products and services? Although some clients tend to make outright purchases, there are still those who are not that easy to convince especially if what they are interested in are your services. Be prepared. Make sure you have a slide presentation detailing your products and services. Have a detailed company profile ready.
(5) Lastly, do you have the right attitude and focus? Are you willing to sacrifice your time and go through many sleepless nights just to market your products or answer inquiries?
PageRank alone will not make your business earn money. With the financial crisis still haunting the world, you have to double your efforts.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Pampering Yourself with Essential Feel Goods


Every girl wants to be beautiful. I have yet to meet someone who doesn't. We like to keep ourselves looking good that's why we indulge in manicures and pedicures. But what if you do not have the budget?

Presenting the Essential Feel Goods Essential Spa Tools!

The Essential Spa Tools by Essential Feel Goods comes with a callus remover, a foot file, a spa cuticle softener and remover, a rock, and toe separators in various colors. What's more, you get to enjoy same day shipping* on stock products! Essential Feel Goods guarantees your 100% satisfaction and even includes free sample with every order!

So what are you waiting for? Visit Essential Feel Goods at http://www.essentialfeelgoods.com/ and pamper yourself!


* Terms and Conditions apply

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Finding Quality PLR Articles

With the dawn of e-commerce and online marketing, more and more people are resorting to the use of PLR articles for their web sites, blog sites and even newsletters. Unfortunately, some PLR article providers do not give much attention to what they are selling.
As an SEO person, I do believe that content is king. Never mind those page ranks! Even if you have a PageRank of 5 or 6, if you cannot translate those numbers into sales because your site lacks fresh content, that rank would not matter. However, I do believe that "fresh content" also means correct, clear and full of sense articles. Based on my observation, a number of PLR contents:
  • are full of keywords awkwardly repeated that at times it does not make much sense
  • were not edited enough that most sentences have grammatical errors
  • do not really provide much information since they just keep repeating keyword phrases
  • some include re-writes that were actually not re-written completely making it more of a duplicate content than a fresh one

This does not mean, however, that PLR content is not useful. Some PLR article providers do really take time to check the quality of their product. This is the reason why Talent Shout Business Consultancy has decided to come up with their PLR article packs. We were inspired by those quality PLR article providers.

What does a Philippine-based company know about PLR articles?

Well, for one, we had done some article writing and we had worked on some PLR articles before for our clients under oDesk. We totally understand the frustration some clients have when they realize that the PLR articles that they bought were not worth it at all.

You can visit our web site at http://www.talent-shout.com/articlewriting.htm in order to view our rates as well as package inclusion.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Essential Feel Goods Introductory Video

Essential Feel Goods has recently launched an introductory video detailing the different products and services that they offer. Here is the said video:







For more details visit the web site of Essential Feel Goods.

Monday, January 5, 2009

Employee Handbook 101

One of the major activity that an HR Professional has to spearhead in a company is the completion and issuance of the Employee Handbook. Most of the time, this happens when the company is just starting. The question now is, what should be included in the Employee Handbook?

In coming up with the Employee Handbook, an HR Professional has to keep in mind that the handbook should contain the basic things that would influence the company's operations. This can be done by preparing an outline of what these "basic things" are, some of which could be:
  • Company Details (Name, Founding Date, Milestones, History/ Timeline, Mission/ Vision, Culture and Philosophy)
  • Founders and their profile. You can also choose to include the board of directors
  • Names of the Division Heads and/ or Company Managers as well as a short profile
  • Description of the company's main products and services
  • Basic Office Procedures (Payroll Procedures, Separation/Resignation Procedures, New Hire Procedures, Work Flow, Leave Application Procedure)
  • Internal Policies (Dress Code, Attendance and Tardiness Policy, Phone Usage, Policy on Breaks)
  • Code of Conduct
This outline would guide an HR person in creating the contents. Once the Employee Handbook has been approved, the following tips should be in mind:
  • Prepare an Acknowledgement Receipt of the Employee Handbook before issuing it to employees
  • Have each department keep an extra copy of the Employee Handbook
  • Regularly review the Employee Handbook. Update if needed.
  • Every time that major changes are made in the Employee Handbook, discuss it with the employees to ensure that they understand what the change is all about as well as why there is a need for such change
Preparing an Employee Handbook is one tough job. However, its presence would be a big help not just to an HR Department but to the whole company as well.
Need more help in preparing an Employee Handbook? Visit the Talent Shout Web Site.