Behind The Book: A Note to Amazon Readers from Author Sophie Kinsella

It’s hard, in hindsight, to say exactly how a book comes into being. There are so many ideas and themes that get explored and discarded along the way; so many layers that are built up. Plus it’s a bit like having a baby—once the hard work is over it becomes a blur!

But with all my novels, I usually start with one little kernel of an idea–and gradually build it up over months of thinking, plotting, the “coffee shop stage” as I call it. With Can you Keep A Secret? it was: what if you told someone all your secrets? With Remember Me? it was: what if you woke up and didn’t recognize your life? What if you lost three years of memory–and everything had changed in that time?

All my books involve some kind of wish-fulfilment; some kind of escapism–whether it’s shopping, or a whirlwind romance, or stepping off the career treadmill–and Remember Me? is maybe the ultimate form of wish-fulfilment. What if you didn’t recognize your life. because it had become so perfect?

The image that kept coming to me was of a girl, blinking up at her Greek God of a husband, whom she doesn’t recognize. It made me giggle every time I thought about it. And so I created my amnesiac heroine Lexi, and her perfect new glossy, unrecognizable life–from the new shiny teeth to the designer handbag, to the perfect millionaire husband. The potential for comedy was irresistible.

Another theme I wanted to explore was identity, which I’ve always found fascinating. Our lives take unpredictable turns and we all change over time. But it’s so gradual we don’t always notice it. Would your younger self recognize your older self? Put another way, if you woke up tomorrow in the year 2011. what would you find?

I grew incredibly close to Lexi whilst writing this book, and really felt all her ups and downs. I laughed and cried and cringed at every embarrassing moment (of which there are plenty!) I think of all my heroines she has maybe the biggest challenge to face and journey to make–as her biggest obstacle is herself.

I hope you enjoy her journey!

Author:Sophie Kinsella
Hardcover:400 pages
Company:The Dial Press(2008-02-26)(2008-02-26)
ISBN:0385338724
List Price:$25.00
Amazon Price:$12.45
Used Price:$11.00
Remember Me?

Drive More Traffic Â? Increase Commissions

By: Nye Morgan

Every affiliate marketing program depends on the volume of visitors diverted to the affiliate program site. The more clicks, the more the chances of sales and hence more commission. The key is to attract more customers to your affiliate site.

How to enhance traffic?

There are heavy duty books written on this subject but the answer lies in a fundamental truth. Customers will only visit your site if they think they?ll find what they?re looking for. Therefore the key is to make them believe that your site and product offers them what they want.

There are several ways to boost traffic to one?s site, such as:

Funny videos: Very often humor does the trick for an affiliate program. Use humor in videos to get a customer?s attention. Then lead them on to the affiliate program site. This method usually has a high success rate.

Flashy banner ads: Banner ads have always been great at getting a customer?s attention. No matter what the topic the customer is reading about ? even if it?s molecular theory ? banner ads will get a person?s attention.

Blogs: There?s a reason why even the billion dollar companies aren?t missing out on blogs. Blogs are free, they?re great for diverting traffic and best of all can do what even an advertisement can?t! Try putting interesting content in the blog. Follow this up with a ?teaser? in the resource box to lead the customer to the affiliate program site. You can use a creative promotional catch phrase in the ?resource box? that?s specially provided for this purpose.

SEO: Also known as Search Engine Optimization, this is a way to improve your search engine rankings. By using strategic keywords that are commonly searched for by customers, you improve your chances at being listed in the top 10 search results. This ensures more clicks by customers and hence more commission!

Classifieds: It literally pays to have well thought out classified advertisements on the product you?re trying to sell. Customers are sure to visit the affiliate site.

Cloaking links: Many affiliate marketing wizards will tell you this is one of the best ways to divert more traffic. Cloaking links basically means disguising the hyperlink to make it look like a URL to your own website. In actuality, it?s a link to the product you?re trying to sell. This ensures more clicks, which in turn means more commission.

Unbiased product reviews: You can also write neutral, unbiased product reviews to promote your product. By not being self promotional, you gain credibility and customers are more likely to visit the affiliate website.

Press releases: Press releases have been used to market a product since time immemorial. These serve to create a buzz around your product, always keep the interest factor alive and best of all, keep reminding customers about your product.

A little bit on SEO and keywords

A lot of research has been done on keyword usage. There are certain phrases or words that are more commonly searched for when compared to others. This is what determines a website?s popularity on search engine rankings. Having well-spaced, strategic keywords helps list your affiliate website within the top 10 search results. This means better visibility for your product, more clicks and more commission.

Nowadays there are several tools and resources to help you research on keywords. Try and go for moderately searched keywords. Using too many common keywords risks your website being lost in the crowd of competitors and using less popular keywords means your site may never be listed in the top 10 or 20 results.

Most organizations are spending top dollar to increase their SEO rankings. They?re even hiring agencies to help them in this effort. There are several third party agencies who help optimize a website for better search engine rankings. Especially in today?s fierce competition, being within the top 10 can really make a world of difference.

Article Source:
http://www.articlecity.com/articles/online_business/article_5238.shtml

DO YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO WHAT YOU DO BEST EVERY DAY?

Chances are, you don’t. All too often, our natural talents go untapped. From the cradle to the cubicle, we devote more time to fixing our shortcomings than to developing our strengths.

To help people uncover their talents, Gallup introduced the first version of its online assessment, StrengthsFinder, in the 2001 management book Now, Discover Your Strengths. The book spent more than five years on the bestseller lists and ignited a global conversation, while StrengthsFinder helped millions to discover their top five talents.

In its latest national bestseller, StrengthsFinder 2.0, Gallup unveils the new and improved version of its popular assessment, language of 34 themes, and much more (see below for details). While you can read this book in one sitting, you’ll use it as a reference for decades.

Loaded with hundreds of strategies for applying your strengths, this new book and accompanying website will change the way you look at yourself — and the world around you — forever.

AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY IN THE NEW & UPGRADED EDITION OF STRENGTHSFINDER 2.0
(using the unique access code included with each book)

* A new and upgraded edition of the StrengthsFinder assessment

* A personalized Strengths Discovery and Action-Planning Guide for applying your strengths in the next week, month, and year

* A more customized version of your top five theme report

* 50 Ideas for Action (10 strategies for building on each of your top five themes)

* The more user-friendly StrengthsFinder 2.0 companion website, with a strengths community area, library of downloadable discussion guides and activities, a strengths screensaver, and a program for creating display cards of your top five themes

Author:Tom Rath
Hardcover:192 pages
Company:Gallup Press(2007-02-01)
ISBN:159562015X
List Price:$19.95
Amazon Price:$11.25
Used Price:$9.95
StrengthsFinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup’s Now, Discover Your Strengths

“This is simply the best book on the topic.”
—Randall Bell, Author, Home Owner’s Manual

“Tyson and Griswold have truly opened the world of real estate investing to all by tackling often complex issues in this easy to understand and use book. I can’t think of a better way to get smart about building wealth through rental properties than to read their excellent Real Estate Investing For Dummies!”
—Vern Hoven, CPA

Non-prime time TV is cluttered with infomercials about how you can buy non-prime real estate for next to nothing and get rich quick. Common sense should tell you that’s an exaggeration. (If common sense doesn’t tell you, bankers will.) Nevertheless, it is possible to get rich gradually by investing in real estate. Long term, you can expect to realize an annual return of 8 to 10% a year.

Real Estate Investing for Dummies gives you the keys to successful real estate investment, whether it’s in single family homes and condos, apartments, vacation homes, commercial properties (office, industrial, and retail), raw land, or REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts). With guidance from authors Eric Tyson, MBA, a financial counselor, and Robert S. Griswold, a veteran Real Estate investor, you’ll discover how to:

• Find and buy the best properties at a fair price
• Capitalize on opportunities such as foreclosures, no money down deals, auctions, tax sales, and more
• Secure financing and good mortgage terms
• Value, evaluate, and negotiate everything to do with real estate
• Work with agents and other professionals
• Project income potential and cash flow
• Handle contracts, inspections, and closings

Whether you’re interested in a fixer supper for rental, premier office space you can lease, or a vacation home you can enjoy and rent, when you become a buyer, you also become a landlord. That means you can hear from tenants any time, night or day. It means you may not hear from them when the rent is due. Real Estate Investing for Dummies also helps you:

• Find and keep good tenants
• Negotiate lease agreements
• Insure and maintain your property
• Keep good records for tax and accounting purposes

Remember, with any deal, you have to know when to hold them and know when to fold them. So Real Estate Investing for Dummies gives you guidelines on when and how to sell and how to reinvest to build wealth. It also lists 10 real estate investments you shouldn’t touch with a 10-foot pole. Especially if you’re tempted by those late-night infomercials, that warning could save you a fortune!

Author:Eric Tyson,Robert S. Griswold
Paperback:358 pages
Company:Wiley Publishing, Inc.(2007-01-07)
ISBN:0764525654
List Price:$21.99
Amazon Price:$10.88
Used Price:$10.88
Investing for Dummies

In Leading Change, John Kotter examines the efforts of more than 100 companies to remake themselves into better competitors. He identifies the most common mistakes leaders and managers make in attempting to create change and offers an eight-step process to overcome the obstacles and carry out the firm’s agenda: establishing a greater sense of urgency, creating the guiding coalition, developing a vision and strategy, communicating the change vision, empowering others to act, creating short-term wins, consolidating gains and producing even more change, and institutionalizing new approaches in the future. This highly personal book reveals what John Kotter has seen, heard, experienced, and concluded in 25 years of working with companies to create lasting transformation.

Author:John P. Kotter
Hardcover:187 pages
Company:Harvard Business School Press(1996-01-15)
ISBN:0875847471
List Price:$26.95
Amazon Price:$13.47
Used Price:$7.05
Leading Change