Top 10 Factors That Influence Online Purchase Decisions [infographic]

Internet shopping or online purchase is becoming popular not only in the UK, but also in other part of the world.

The availability of fast internet connection (broadband) has contributed immensely to the popularity of online shopping.

As recently suggested by a survey from Ofcom, independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, online shopping is more popular in the UK than anywhere else.

Consumers in the UK spend an average of £1,083 a year on internet shopping, compared with Australia which spends the second highest at £842, the survey revealed.


Top 10 Factors That Influence Online Purchase Decisions [infographic]

Why Effective Internet Marketing Is Important To Online Business Success

Internet marketing is an online activity that involves online advertising or advertisement, online marketing or e-marketing, that aims at marketing and promoting products or services over the Internet.

Quite lots of businesses have benefited from internet marketing strategies not only to drive traffic to their websites but also to drive direct sales via e-commerce as well as sales leads from websites or emails.

Internet marketing activities have increased significantly over the last decade thanks to the improvement in modern technology.

Today, more places (cities and towns) are now connected to broadband internet. This means that more people now have access to the internet both at home and on the go through their mobile phone.

Why Effective Internet Marketing Is Important To Your Business

Internet marketing and online advertising efforts are typically used in conjunction with traditional types of advertising like radio, television, newspapers and magazines.

But the popularity of the Internet has ensured that internet marketing offers more benefits to business owners than the traditional marketing.

The ROI on internet marketing is far more than what business owners can get from radio, television as well as print ads.

Effective internet marketing means that your business is exposed to global audience and that's why business owners who have yet to take the plunge are missing out on wonderful opportunities.

Below are the top 10 reasons why internet marketing is so important to the success of your businesses.


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Smart Moves You Should Make For Successful Social Media Marketing Campaigns

Social media marketing is an online activity that can lead to huge, game changing effects on your business if successfully planned and carried out.

Mind you, social media marketing does take time but if properly done or carried out, social media marketing can effectively help propel your business.

Yes, the right social media marketing is extremely effective if properly incorporated into your online marketing plan. Having incorporated social media marketing into your marketing strategies, you will have to focus on the results, check and juxtapose figures.

Social media does take time, but many surveys have recently reported that small businesses can almost instantly see results of their investment of less than 10 hours per week on their social media marketing through increased traffic and conversions.

Your Business, Social Media Marketing And SEO Companies
You don't have to do everything by yourself because social media marketing can also be done through SEO company. So if you do not have the time to personally spend for your business's social media marketing campaign, then you can work with your SEO company instead. You can order your SEO company to include social media marketing as part of your package.

Most of the small businesses that have successfully incorporated social media marketing in their business have been reaping hugely from the move. This is because businesses on social media marketing can easily reach millions of people through social media compare to those businesses that are not using it. So from now on, start using social media to market and promote your business, don't be left out!

Smart Moves You Should Make For Successful Social Media Marketing Campaigns

Top Motivational Books That Can Inspire Aspiring Entrepreneurs

Motivational books are not ordinary books, they are books that are capable of inspiring you and change your outlook.

At times, being a successful entrepreneur does not just come with hard work or hard labour alone because most of the successful entrepreneurs you see out there today 're inspired by one thing or the others.

Entrepreneur inspirations can come from anywhere and at any point in time. Some people have been inspired or motivated after watching movies, reading books or just when travelling. Most of us have ideas of what we can or want to do, but it's just that we don't have the motivation to transform our ideas into reality.

Have you been spending the last few weeks thinking about your career or just assessing your current job position? Are you planning to try something new or you just want to take the bold step and be your own boss? This is where you need inspirational and motivational books most to get you through.

So if you want to take those first steps and move away from the security of your 9 to 5 into a business of your own, then I reckon you should try and read some motivational books to inspire you.

But if you happen to need a little more motivational books to read, there are loads of new books out there that share successful entrepreneurs’ stories and share how-to guides on building your own brand.

So if you are planning for your future professional aspirations, some of the books below can offer entrepreneurial inspiration if you just want to be your own boss.

Top Motivational Books That Can Inspire Aspiring Entrepreneurs

Success Recipes Serious Entrepreneurs Should Consider

Success or being a successful entrepreneur is one of the most sweetest things in life which not many people have been able to accomplished.

From passing an examination to running a business, opportunities to record success are there in all our daily activities.

But unfortunately, not so many entrepreneurs have been able to be successful in their chosen business activities.

Some people recorded success in their activities not only because they are extremely hard-working, but also because they think beyond today (present) and invest in tomorrow (future). So have you got the key to a successful future?

Nowadays, it is very hard to see people thinking of tomorrow as most young people only "live for today". But that being said, a huge number of young people have been able to record success as entrepreneurs.

Success Recipes You Should Consider

Not many of the successful young entrepreneurs were born with big silver spoons in their mouth; they were once like you and me, individuals trying to make their dreams come through.

On many occasions, I have heard people saying “let tomorrow takes care of itself“, I can’t just be bothered! But is it really true that tomorrow can take care of itself without you planning for it?

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Smart & Easy Ways To Save Money On Your Household Bills

Cutting your household bills to the minimum is one of the most important steps to take towards saving money on your expenses.

Have you ever wondered how your household bills compare with other people's household bills?

One thing that's certain is that you could be spending much more than what other people spend averagely on their household bills.

And if you don't know how to go about it, I meant if you don't know how to apply some tricks to save a bit of cash, you'll surely be left far behind while other people are saving money on their household bills.

So Why Cutting Your Household Bills?

According to Ann Robinson, Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.com, in the last six years the UK’s average household bill has rocketed from £660 to £1,252 a year – a £592 or 90pc increase.

So, if you're paying more than average on your household bills, it's imperative that you find some ways to save money on your expenses.

For example, do you know that you could save up to £200 per year by switching to a water meter? Or that most households waste £50-£86 a year by leaving appliances on standby?

Good read: Money Saving Tips: How To Save Money On Your Energy Bills

Smart & Easy Ways To Cut Your Household Bills

Do you know that you can save quite lot of money by making some necessary improvements to your house? Investing in technologies such as wind turbines and solar panels may be too much for your budget, but you can still make your home more eco-friendly and save money.

Even with small changes such as fitting radiator thermostats and fixing leaky taps, you can make a difference. Below are some simple ways to make your home greener and save on your household bills.

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Reasons Why Business Owners Should Be Using Social Media To Promote Their Business

With millions users of social media, the potentials of social media as an avenue for businesses to drive traffic to their websites and increase sales has exponentially grown over the last 12 months.

This article talks about how social media for business can help grow your small business by driving traffic to your website which might potentially lead to more sales.

Today, social media has been transformed from being a medium through which people make friends and stay in touch with their friends, to an important platform businesses are using not only to drive traffic to their website but also to grow sales.

The phenomenal growth of the Internet has aided social media and made it one of the most important strategies to generate traffic to a website.

So, are you using social media for your business or you are one of those people that think it's a waste of time?

...But What's So Special About Social Media?

I have lost counts of how many time I have been asked about what makes social media so special. Each time this question comes up, I always go straight to the point and make it precise; it drives traffic and helps sales.

With the amount of social networking websites out there today, it is at times difficult to decide on which one to use and which ones to avoid.

But the fact still remains that some of these social networking websites offer great tools to reach millions of people and as a result build a great fans base that bring better results.

Why You Should Consider Using Social Media For Your Business

1). To Build Brand Reputation

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Discover The Entrepreneurial Potentials In You And Make Yourself A Better Person

Entrepreneurial potentials, either hidden or obvious, are in everyone of us. We all have one or two potentially great attributes about ourselves waiting to be discovered. Some people were born with natural gifts that are really unique while some weren’t born with any but put their lives on the line to learn and develop themselves.

Entrepreneurship is an inbuilt attribute which I personally think we all have. But how to discover our entrepreneurial potentials is the only problem with most of us. Each and everyone of us has those attributes that many successful entrepreneurs possess but our problem is discovering and working on it.

Can You Describe Yourself?

I was recently asked the above question by a friend at a seminar for aspiring young CEOs and it actually took me longer than usual to answer the question. It’s not because I don’t know what to say but it’s just that I wasn’t expecting such a question to come up at such a gathering. After all, it’s not as if it’s a blind date gathering or an online matchmaking website where you will be expected to describe yourself in one or two sentences.

So after the seminar and exchange of pleasantries with other participants, I had a second thought of the question – “Can you describe yourself?”. Now, I am writing about it because not many of us young people can actually describe ourselves and our potentials. This is because most young people don’t even know who they are in the first place.

Discover The Entrepreneurial Potentials In You And Make Yourself A Better Person

5 Smart Ways To Save Money Through Your Smartphone - Money Saving

What make a mobile phone a smartphone is nothing more than the fact that it can be easily used for other activities than making calls and sending texts.

Nowadays, the popularity of smartphones was made possible as a result of the availability of thousands of applications that can be downloaded from the apps market.

Some people believe that having a contract smartphone with upfront cost and monthly data plan is actually a waste of money. Depending on the contractual agreement, the network provider as well as the quality of the smartphone involved, most of the smartphones on contract cost averagely £25.00 per amount in the UK.

However with the right apps, your phone can help you save money on some expenses. With the right smartphone apps, you can be able to find bargains and cut costs on certain stuff or activities that would have normally cost you lots.

5 Smart Ways To Save Money Through Your Smartphone - Money Saving

How To Be A Smart Classic Car Insurance Shopper

Did you know that you can get special value when you shop for classic car insurance? Class or vintage car insurance is not just car insurance for old cars.

It’s classic insurance for a collectible asset that appreciates in value over time. That appreciation, combined with the limited driving and extra care given to these vehicles by their proud owners, qualifies them for reduced insurance rates.

Remarkably, many collectors do not realize this and pay much higher premiums than necessary. So here are some tips on how to be a smart insurance shopper.

How To Be A Smart Classic Car Insurance Shopper

1. Shop With A Speciality Insurance Broker

Contact classic car clubs or search online for brokers that offer “classic” or “collector” car insurance. Interview them to find out how much they know about collector cars. According to NADA’s Collector Insurance Guide, they should have a strong network of specialty repair and parts providers and knowledgeable claims specialists. They should be able to advise you about valuation and about any use restrictions mandated by the coverage.

2. Shop For Service, Not Rates

State insurance authorities govern local premiums, but they are going to be considerably lower for classic cars. You should be more concerned with finding a broker that you can trust to understand the needs of the collector. Unlike regular auto insurance, you probably won’t find any discounts for owning more than one vehicle. In fact, most policies assume that you own a regular car for daily use.

3. Request Agreed Value

Because most collector cars appreciate in value over time, you want to ensure that you’re covered for the full and current market value, not some depreciated value out of a table. The “agreed value” that is written into the policy is the amount you will get in the event the vehicle is stolen or totaled. You should renegotiate this amount at every policy renewal date based upon then current value.

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Top 5 Smart & Easy Ways To Make Money Online Legally In 2013

Do you want to make money online legally? Making money online has been made easier thanks to the popularity of the internet.

Today, a large number of people, especially young men and women, are now making use of the internet to make online. The last few years in particular has changed a lot of things.

Not only has internet penetration improved dramatically which has led to increasing advertising opportunities, e-commerce has taken off in a big way and people are not hesitant to buy stuff online.

The internet has also opened new windows of opportunity for internet marketers to promote and sell products or services pretty conveniently. Good connectivity through efficient broadband has meant that assignments can be outsourced to destinations where the costs are lower.

It has therefore made possible for people in different parts of the world to communicate and work with each other at costs that are mutually beneficial.

5 Smart Ways To Make Money Online

Coming back to making money online, the internet marketing strategies that are being developed on a regular basis are making it convenient for setting up sites, getting into affiliate marketing, selling stuff through article marketing and other SEO techniques and so on.

As with anything, you have to be patient and give things time to stabilize in order for you to experience the kind of success you have always been wanting.

While it’s unlikely that you’ll make a huge money, at least you can start from somewhere by using your skills to make a living online. There are tens of thousands of people who are making a living on the income they are making online. Below are just a few ways you can make money online.

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House Prices & First-time Buyer: Cheaper To Buy Or Rent?

Are you a first-time buyer planning to buy or rent a house or flat? Considering the house prices and real estate market, is it cheaper to buy than rent?

There is always a question about whether it’s cheaper to buy a house or rent most especially if it’s your first home.

For first-time buyer, in most cases, the answers to whether to buy or rent a property could largely depend on your personal circumstances and the situation of the property market.

The case for and against buying a property rather than renting on fundamentally it depends on an individuals circumstances.

Interest Rates And House Prices

Low interest rates and falling property prices mean that buying a house or flat is over £120 a month cheaper for first-time buyers than renting a property is. Recent record low interest rates have played a significant role in keeping the cost of borrowing low and driving down monthly mortgage payments.

If you are thinking buying in the current market you must keep in mind how rising interest rates would affect your monthly payments. Fixed rate deals remain the best way for borrowers to protect themselves against this uncertainty, but they don’t suit everyone’s financial situation.

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Why Home Inspectors Need Errors and Omissions Insurance

Errors and omissions insurance should be a key component of every home inspector’s portfolio which no professional home inspectors can't work without.

Professional home inspectors can't work without errors and omissions insurance because it's extremely risky. Here’s why this insurance should be a key component of every inspector’s portfolio.

Home inspector scenario

A home inspector is called to a residence to perform a thorough inspection as part of preparations to sell the house. He goes through an exhaustive checklist, making notes where necessary. He’s found several areas within the home that need repair and a few items that need replacing. He signs off, gets paid, and leaves the residence.

The house is sold. A month later, during a storm, a moderate-size branch breaks off from a tree and lands on the corner of the roof, caving it in. An investigation determines that a number of boards in that section of the attic were rotted – and that the rot clearly began long before the new owners moved in a month ago.

So what happened?

The inspector failed to traipse through to the far corner of the attic during his inspection. All the attic boards he did examine looked fine, with no signs of leaking or rotting. This is called an error, and guesses who might be held responsible?

If the inspector is not carrying errors and omissions insurance – usually referred to as e and o insurance – he could be held liable for the cost of repairing the roof and any other related damage.

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Cheap Mother's Day Gift Ideas You Can Get For Your Mum - Money Saving

So what are you going to get for your Mum as Mother's Day gift? Mother's Day is here again, an opportunity for you to show some kind of appreciations to your Mum. I meant that beautiful woman that brought you to this world and looked after you.

Mother's Day gift ideas such as tablets and smartphones can make your Mum's day everyday. Mother's Day gifts should be all about celebrating the wonderful woman who has given you so much, and our Mother's Day gift ideas can do exactly that.

This Mother's Day, give your Mum a gift she'll love using every day. Surprise your Mum with by giving her gifts that will show how appreciative you are, but mind you, please don't spend beyond your means.

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How To Deliver A Killer Business Presentation That Offers Real Impact

Nowadays, business presentations have moved away from the traditional events such as big, formal business meetings. Today business presentations are used for a wide range of corporate communications.

Delivering or making a business presentation can be a nerve-wrecking event most especially if you are relatively a novice in the field. So how do you deliver a clear, concise and confident business presentation to your audience?

Many of us have this fear of speaking in public, not knowing how to engage with the audience and anxiety around being judged by the people that are listening to us, and most of these fears can negatively impact on the ability to present a successful business presentation.

What does it take to deliver a successful business presentation?

What can you say about your business if you are given an opportunity to talk? Delivering a successful business presentation doesn't come so cheaply at all as it requires a great deal of quality preparation.

To have a successful business presentation, you will have to decide what to put in and what take out of your presentation. Focus on your topic and drive your presentation points home in ways that got your audience engaged.

So how do you deliver a clear, concise and confident business presentation to your audience? Below are some tips that can help you deliver a success business presentation.

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Top 5 Popular Social Media Android Apps Amongst Young People

Social network and social media androids apps have been one of the major factors that have contributed to the popularity of android powered devices such as smartphones and tablets. Since its introduction into mobile market, android smartphones as well as tablets had recorded success stories for major mobile phone makers such as Samsung which has largely benefited through the sales of their Galaxy range.

Android smartphones and tablets can never have been able to record success stories without millions of android applications that have improved user experience. Today, android apps on nearly every aspect of human lives are available on android market either for free or paid downloads.

Popular Social Media Android Apps Amongst Young People

As the popularity of android operating system continue to rise, there is surely going to be more amazing new androids apps that will wow users.

In the list below are some android apps that are rally popular amongst young people. From browser to image editor, social media, social networks, news and games, there are tons of apps out there for everyone.

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5 Top Tips For A Successful Email Marketing Campaign

With email marketing campaigns, you are communicating as well as building relationships with your recipients. According to Marketo, email marketing campaigns are essential elements of any marketing strategy, they enable you to gather important data, and help boost marketing ROI.

A performing or successful email marketing campaign can turn to be one of the most efficient business strategies in any company. A successful email marketing campaign can bring tremendous return on investment as compared with traditional advertising and promotional means.

What Makes Email Marketing Campaigns Successful?
For an email marketing campaign to be a success, you must pay close attention to your audience, the message, and avoid the common trap of simply blasting out self-promotional messages.

To build, execute, and maintain effective email marketing campaigns, one must understand the fact that it’s not just about sending the campaigns out to the recipients, it’s more about getting the right message to them.

Many miss the mark and continue to fall short on their email marketing campaign’s return because the right messages are not being sent out. And this only leads to recipients hitting the delete button more than opening your message.

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Tips On How To Establish Primary Investment Objectives For Your Retirement

When it comes to retirement planning, what are your primary investment objectives and how do you go about making your life after work as comfortable as you might wish?

Retirement or no retirement, it's highly important to ensure that you knew how to establish your primary investment objectives as well as getting it right.

Nowadays, many of the pensioners are struggling with life after retirement because it's an entirely different life.

Retirement life doesn't come easy; it's a life that you will only enjoy if you have properly planned ahead for it.


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Some Important Facts You Should Know About Bankruptcy

The word "bankruptcy" is usually used when someone is unable to pay up/back his or her debts. Bankruptcy is simply a way of dealing with debts you cannot pay.

It helps to free you from overwhelming debts so you can make a fresh start, subject to some restrictions; and make sure your assets are shared out fairly among your creditors.

Bankruptcy is an option if you are completely unable to pay back your debts and a court appoints a trustee or Official Receiver to take over the management of your financial affairs for a limited period of time.

In this situation, the Official Receiver will be entitled to sell your assets - such as your house and possessions - in order to raise the money needed to pay off your creditors.


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Financial Plan: Top 5 Financial Goals You Should Consider In 2013

A good financial plan should be able to enable you to set a financial goal or target you will be working towards achieving. Financial plan does not only apply to an individual; it also applies to a small or big business or organisation.

Generally, what financial plan simply means is a set of steps, moves or goals through which an individual or business can attain certain financial goal such as being debt-free (getting out of debt), retirement plan, etc.

Nowadays, we are all living in a world where achieving a financial goal is an elephant task. It is one of those things that when you look at the magnitude of it, you get this sense that it’s just hopeless, pointless, just too big like eating an elephant.


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What You Should Consider When Buying Your First Home In Britain

Buying your first home usually comes with this excitement of making your dream of being your own landlord come through.

There is this feeling of great enthusiasm and eagerness as well as temptation and most people end up making huge mistakes that they regret in their lifetime.

There are several factors to consider when buying your first home in UK. Once you land a job that assures you a decent income, the first major investment that comes in the minds of many is buying a home.

A home is nevertheless the biggest investment in many people’s lives and it is essential you know all the factors you need to consider and rule out the possibility of regrets in the future.

What You Should Consider When Buying Your First Home

If you work in a local town in your home area and you are living with your parents currently, you should never rush to buy your first home unless you have saved a significant amount of money. With such savings, you will only have to apply for a small loan which will trim down your monthly loan repayment commitments greatly. This frees up your cash flow per month and offers you some cash for other investments such as buying a car.

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7 Powerful Social Media & Social Networks You Should Be Using To Promote Your Online Business In 2013

Social media and social networking website offers a great avenue for online business owners not only to promote themselves and attract potential customers but also to engage with their customers.

Social networking websites offer great tools for business owners to interact with their customers and offer superb customer supports experiences. If properly used, social media can be a great way to build online presence that will help you reach out to millions of people.

With millions of people active on social networking websites everyday no serious entrepreneur will want to be missing out on the potential benefits from social media.

With the amount of social networking websites out there today, it is at times difficult to decide on which one to use and which ones to avoid. But the fact still remains that some of these social networking websites generally stand out more than others. They offer great tools to reach out to millions of people and as a result build a great fans base that bring better results.

7 Powerful Social Networks For Small Business Owners

1. Facebook

Facebook has grown from being an avenue to connect with your friends and families to a much bigger social networking website and most powerful marketing tool for both small business as well as the big ones. The huge number of Facebook users alone has made this social networking website an important marketing too for any serious business and entrepreneur.Facebook offers powerful marketing tools such as dedicated business pages which gives Facebook a huge advantage over other social network websites. Other features such as "Facebook Ads" and "Promoted Posts" added to a huge fan base are what make Facebook an unmissable social network for serious small business owners.

2. Twitter

Considering the vast number of people that are using Twitter couple with the fact that it's much easier to use, no serious small business owner will want to miss the opportunity offered by the world most popular social media platform. Just like Facebook, Twitter rose from nowhere to become one of the most used social networks within a short period of time. Most entrepreneurs use Twitter because it is a great tool to drive traffic to their websites. Recent research has shown that people are likely to click on a link on Twitter than any other social networks.

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2012 Movie Reviews: 7 Best Action Movies Released In Year 2012

Year 2012 witnessed some of the best action movies ever released as technology advances, action movies are getting more and more impressive.

We were entertained with breath cutting action movies that heavily relied on 3D technologies. Here is the list of top 7 action movies for 2012.

7 Best Action Movies Released In Year 2012

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1. The Dark Knight Rises

This movie represents the last part of Batman’s Trilogy and is believed to be the biggest hit in comparison to the previous 2. In the film, Bane Wrecks havoc in the city of Gotham.

This time the law enforcers of the city can’t deal with him and are found running for their own lives. Once again Bruce Wayne has to save his Metropolis.

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2. G.I. Joe: Retaliation

This film features an ensemble cast which include key actors like Bruce Willis and Dwayne Johnson, with Channing Tatum, Arnold Vosloo, Ray Park, Jonathan Pryce, and Lee Byung-hun reprising their roles from the first film.

Th film is a sequel of the already successful hit G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. The storyline was written by zombieland writers and it promises a lot of action to those who love seeing guns. The US release date is March 29, 2013.

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