Cathy Stucker - The Idea Lady

Attract Customers and Make Yourself Famous

How to Take Good Photos

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There are many sources, both free and paid, for images you can use on your website, in your ebooks and for other projects. However, sometimes to get the perfect picture there is no better option than doing it yourself.

Taking your own photographs allows you to get the exact angle, lighting and image that you’re looking for. Not only that, it eliminates any possibility that you will be sued for infringing on someone’s copyright with that image you grabbed from Google Images.

Think you don’t have the skill to take good photos? Here are a few tips to help you get the right shot.
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How to Record a Flip Video and Upload it to YouTube

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YouTube videos are a great way to promote yourself and your business, or just share moments from your business or your life with a worldwide audience. Many people are intimidated by the idea of making and uploading videos. However, a Flip Video Camera makes it easy for you to record a video and upload it to YouTube. This tutorial shows you exactly how to do it.

Supplies Needed:

Step 1: Record Your Video

Turn on the Flip Video by pushing down the switch on the left side of your camera.

When you are ready to start recording, press the red button on the back of the camera. When you’re done recording, press the red button again.

Step 2: Open up the Flip Video Software on Your Computer

Your Flip Video camera will attach directly to your computer. Look at the left side of your Flip. Slide the colored textured tab and the USB plug will come out.

Now, just plug the USB plug into your computer.

Step 3: Use the Software to Load Your Video to YouTube

After you plug the Flip camera into the USB port, the FlipShare software will open automatically. To see the videos that are on your camera, click on “Camcorder” on the left side.

Select the video you want to upload by clicking on it and then choose “Share” -> “Online” from the bottom of the screen.

The next screen will ask you which online service you want to upload the video to. Click YouTube, then “Next.”

The next screen will prompt you to enter your YouTube user name and password. Once you’ve done that, click “Login.”

Next you will be asked if you want to make the video public so that anyone can see it, or private, where it can be seen only be people you invite. Choose one, agree to the Terms of Use, then click “Share” when you’re done.

You can see the progress of the video upload in the bottom left of the software screen:

When the video has finished uploading, you’ll see this update:

After the video has been uploaded to YouTube, open your web browser in your computer and go to your YouTube account. Add a description, tags and other information to your video to make it easy for searchers to find it.

Your video is done is can be viewed by the millions of visitors YouTube gets every day, or embedded in your web pages for viewing on your website or blog.

Set Up an Aweber Email List

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Do you have an email list? Having a list of customers and prospects who want to hear from you is like money in the bank. When they sign up for your list, they give you permission to contact them and that keeps you in front of them and on their minds when they are ready to buy. An email list is a way to build and maintain relationships with customers. If you do not have one yet, you need to get started. Last week.

There are lots of email marketing companies where you can host your email list. I use Aweber because, in my opinion, they have the best features and benefits. You may think you do not need a lot of the bells-and-whistles offered by a service such as Aweber but, believe me, you do not want to outgrow your email list service. After you have built up a large list, moving to another, better provider is not something you want to do. That’s why you should start with the best and it is my opinion that Aweber is the best.

There is no reason to be intimidated by the idea of using a sophisticated system such as Aweber’s. They make it easy to use, and their online and telephone support is very helpful if you have questions. To show you how simple it can be (and some of the useful options available to you) in this tutorial you will see how to set up an email list on AWeber. [Read more…]