A Simple Sales Ad

It’s interesting how people ask me regularly if craigslist is a good place to advertise and market one’s business.  My first instant reaction is to answer: “Duh!  You think?!”  Then of course, humility and empathy get a hold of me and I simply say, “Duh, are you kidding!!” lol
 
Nah, you couldn’t be kidding.  Perhaps you just didn’t know.  So let me tell you how it’s done on craigslist.  Or, more specifically, let me tell you one simple powerful way to advertise on craigslist and market your business to success.  Especially if yours is an online marketing business or a site offering jobs to people.  It goes like this:
 
Let’s do say that your business is a job posting site and you want to get employers to post their job ads on your site.  There are literally hundreds if not thousands of job sites online for them to post their ads to reach job candidates.  But let’s say you already got 50,000 job candidates visiting your site.  But you need job postings to keep them visiting.  This means you need employers to post on your site.  But you can’t let them post for free, right?  You need to make an income and a profit, just like everyone.  So what to do?  Easy.  Advertise your job posting website on craigslist to get employers to post on your website.  Advertise with a simple sales ad.
 
Make sure your sales is clear and concise, to the point, and written in a compelling and even conversational manner.  But most importantly, what you need to state in your sales ad something that will market your website to employers to get them to post on your website.  And what you need to give them is simple: You need to offer them an incentive to post their jobs on your website.  Simple enough, yes? 

So offer them an incentive.  And keep it simply and low-cost at the beginning.  Let’s say you want to at least get one hundred employers to post on your site.  Or maybe even two hundred employers.  Offer them a low-cost incentive.  How about only $5.00 to post a single job ad on your site per week, and their ad gets to stay on your site for the entire week.  Five bucks is pretty cheap for a company to pay to post an ad online for a whole week.  And since there are actually millions of employers out there offering jobs and with ads to post, it becomes very easy to get just one hundred employers to post an ad with you.  And when they do, you will earn $500 for that week.  This of course translates into earning $2,000 per month.  Not chump change.  Yes?  Imagine if a mere thousand employers post an ad on your site each week!
 
Simply post your sales ad on a continual basis throughout all of craigslist to begin with.  Then also send the sales ad as a letter to employers directly, especially to employers who have ads on craigslist who are looking to find job candidates and employees via the CL website.  Just make sure you state clearly in your sales ad that you are only charging employers five dollars per ad to post on your site each week to be posted for the duration of that week. 
 
Now here’s the really big incentive you have to get those employers posting on your site: TELL THEM IN YOUR SALES AD HOW MANY SUBSCRIBERS YOU HAVE TO YOUR WEBSITE, AND HOW MANY VISITS (HITS) YOU GET EVERYDAY!!  Once they know you get thousands of job searchers each day visiting your site who are looking for jobs, then employers will become instantly motivated to post their classifieds on your site and in your newsletter.  Especially since you are only charging $5.00 to post an ad per week! 
 
I don’t care what product you have to sell: a multi level marketing business, toothpicks, shaving cream, or alligator shoes.  Too few people are utilizing the unlimited marketing power of the Internet.  The most powerful FREE marketing site on the Internet is CRAIGSLIST.  It has its spam, scams, and nonsense, no doubt.  But it also has tens of millions of honest real people surfing its pages looking for products, services, jobs, and business opportunities.  Or offering them.  One simple but compelling sales ad can help you tap into this incredible free marketing bonanza immediately.  And how easy is it to write a short, simple sales ad?  Duh!  Like, really easy!  🙂
 
So go for it.  And make it easy on yourself in earning some good income asap!

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Castles In The Air

Among America’s all-time premier songwriters, Don McLean has got to be near the top. Here is one of his sensitive masterpieces to demonstrate that fact.  The lyrics read and sing like pure poetry (exact rhyme!) and have an elegance you usually find in a songwriter like Cole Porter or Irving Berlin.  But this is the American Pie rocker here amazingly underappreciated for his amazing skills with rhyme and lilting words.  If there is another modern pop artist I put in the same category of excellence, it would be Jackson Browne.  But I’ll get to him soon enough.  For now, it’s Mr. American Pie himself, Don McLean, and one of his most beautiful ballads ever.  Enjoy!

LINK TO SONG:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNidllCtHZc&feature=related

 

LONELINESS

One reason I’ve always liked Neil Diamond is because he has often over the years written songs about loneliness (Song Sung Blue, Solitary Man, I AM, I Said, Courtin’ Disaster, etc.) and seems to know the subject as well as I do.  And I know the subject pretty darn well–not that I’m braggin’!  There are a lot of lonely people in this world, and The Beatles reminded us of this when they wrote Eleanor Rigby: “Look at all the lonely people/Where do they all come from?”  They come from the same lonely place I come from: a place where it’s easier and feels safer to be alone and lonely than take a chance at not being so, thinking something worse could happen. 

A lot of worse things could happen.  Or not.  You’ll never know, though, unless you take the chance and risk it.  I did this recently.  And I may have made a big mistake.  I don’t know yet, and it looks very possible it was a big mistake and could spell far worse for me.  But no matter.  I had to do it.  For, you see, I’m tired of being alone.  And lonely.  Not an easy thing for guys to admit…which may be why there are more guys alone and lonely than women!

So I think the chance and risk are worth it.  Even if the odds are great it will be worse if you take the chance and risk.  The reason is…well, here’s a poem I wrote to tell you the reason.  Give it a gander.  And if you’re a guy, really give it a gander!  It’s worth it.

LONELINESS

 

Out looking for a sunset or one sparkling sunrise,

Loneliness makes you tired of enjoying them alone.

So what of happy words, seeing sunlight in hope’s eyes,

If all your life loneliness is all you’ve ever known?

 

For what matter the glimpses you see that never form,

If they be no more than just a momentary gaze?

Oh, I would look for love in rain or even a storm,

If love were only cruel on desolate sunny days.

 

Might suddenly you appear along some sunlit beach,

And feeling as sullen as I of the lonely past,

Might we then share a sunset or sunrise within reach,

To know just one moment when loneliness didn’t last?

 

Oh, might I then see myself reflected in your eyes,

As you would see your happiness reflected in mine.

Oh, I would give you a sunset…and such a sunrise,

Where love was endless…and loneliness could never shine!

 

That if I should find you by some lonely, distant sea,

And if your heart be as sad and forlorn as my own–

(Though love became cruel and all that life had ever shown!)

You would know me…and then answer my desperate plea,

Cause loneliness is way too lonely to bear alone.

 

 

 

HOPE FOR LOVE

Sometimes it’s really fun just to write simple traditional verse about love that expresses some thought or aspect in simple terms and an easy to understand style and tone that even the most unreading poetry reader can appreciate and enjoy.  If love didn’t have so many thoughts and aspects and shades and nuances (and meanings and issues!) about it, I guess it wouldn’t be the most written and talked about subject on the planet and in human history.  You think?  So here is a simple but inspirational and upbeat love poem to usher in the weekend and celebrate this lovely, love-filled POET’S DAY.  For as you must know–especially if you read my blog here–every Friday is POET’S DAY. 

You know, POET’S DAY: Piss On Everything Tomorrow’s Saturday!  Not the most elegant acronym.  But an accurate one! (:-D

HOPE FOR LOVE

 

Don’t feel all alone with your pain,

Eschewing sunlight for the rain;

Hearing darkness only spoken,

Sitting there with your heart broken.

 

No, put your little hand in mine,

For soon again the sun will shine!

Pain is something everyone shares,

So know that somewhere someone cares.

 

Then dry your tears and dry your eyes,

Love doesn’t always speak in lies!

For if you found love once before,

You know you can find it once more.

 

Doesn’t matter how love comes in,

Or even when it comes again,

Someone will love you–wait and see!

In fact…it could even be me.

Hot salads are fun to eat!

I used to write recipe articles and food poems for cuisine magazines a few years back, based on recipes I created or obtained from my wife Liane at the time.  Here’s one of those articles.  I don’t think it’s dated and the recipe is still a good one!

 

HOT AND SPICY ROUGHAGE: CAJUN CURRY SALAD

Although the stomach doctor may warn “no more peppery” cuisine because many of us have an intolerance to capsaicin (the chemical in peppers that binds with receptor cells in the mouth, sensitizing them to the flavor of food), the notion that hot spices ruin the palate and one’s sense of taste is fast becoming a thing of the past.  In fact, hot  peppers–and their distant cousins, onions and garlic–seem to be catching on everywhere and are a prescribed staple of many dietitians.

In nutritional value, a raw pepper has more Vitamin C than an orange or lemon.  Recent research has found that the odorless chemical capsaicin may reduce blood-clot formation.  As well, a cream comprising capsaicin is an effective treatment against shingles.  While all peppers contain
health-sustaining and fat-reducing properties, a great number are mild and rather pleasing to the taste buds, including most varieties of bell peppers and pimento.  In contrast, Indian bird’s eye and the Mexican Habanero top the scale of hotness and are somewhere in the register of Dante’s Inferno!

Hot peppers come in all shapes and sizes.  And in a multitude of colors including red, black, orange, blue and even purple. Not only rich in Vitamin C but having almost no calories, hot peppers get hotter and hotter as they ripen, can be dried and used later on, and are indispensable to fresh salsa, stir fried cuisine and countless Mexican dishes.  Besides Habanero, Serrano, Cayenne, Thai and Tabasco are considered very hot peppers.  Jalapeno, Chili, Ancho, Anaheim and Poblano not so hot and are far more friendly to the taste buds.  But classifying peppers can be an often times confusing task.  For several common names are often given to one kind of pepper, and new peppers are being discovered all the time and being sold at the local market.

Hot peppers consist of a number of substances.  Some that determine their heat composition are called Capsaicinoids, which potency and concentration influence heat range from very mild to extremely hot.  Since Capsaicinoids are not soluble in water but only in oils, fats and alcohol, guzzling water after consuming a very hot pepper will not stop the burning.  A cold beer or stiff drink is considered a traditional remedy.  But drinking milk or eating ice cream provides much better relief form chili burn.  Milk products contain a fat-loving substance called lipophilic which washes away fatty capsaicin similar to how detergent can clean away grease.  It is also good to remember when handling hot peppers to wear plastic gloves.  Or wash your hands thoroughly with soap and hot water before touching your face or eyes.

Hot skin from an encounter with hot peppers is not uncommon among hardcore pepper lovers.  For people who ingest a lot of capsaicin-rich foods can over time build a tolerance to the heat.  Expert chili pepper lovers are often called Chili-Heads or “CHs”; and such capsaicin aficionados actually become desensitized to even the hottest peppers.  Since capsaicin excites the nervous system into producing endorphins (a substance that reduces pain and affects emotions) a pleasant sensation of well-being or “natural high” is experienced, and can last for several hours.  Some even believe that eating hot peppers can enhance love making and is a natural aphrodisiac.   This natural high or endorphin lift can make spicy foods slightly addictive.  And an obsession for those willing to try most anything to spice up their love lives.  Perhaps the following is a hot consideration!

LOVE, HOT AND SPICY!

Some people regard their tongue and lower lip
As something delicate or even holy;
All because they believe avocado dip
Is more palatable than guacamole.

Well, some people think love is out fashion
And pleasing the heart buds is way too pricey.
Well, I say people who relish real passion
Are people who enjoy food…hot and spicy!

What is also amazing is the ability of capsaicin to alleviate pain, not only cause it!  A paradox perhaps, but exposure to capsaicin decreases sensitivity to pain.  Cayenne pepper can be found in a number of over the counter health products used as a counter irritant to treat arthritis and even neuropathy, a complication brought on by diabetes.

Cajun curry powder, the principle seasoning to the accompanying CAJUN CURRY SALAD recipe, is of course a hodgepodge of various hot peppers and, when dispensed in generous portions, should certainly please even the most discriminating of hot and spicy palates.  And, as in all delicacies Cajun, the curry powder is a necessary garnish in south-of-the-border dishes and will, when used even sparingly, delightfully pepper away the doldrums of any meaty or vegetarian commonplace entree!

In addition, you may consider this a marvelous conversation salad for those who enjoy their roughage hot and spicy.  And the CAJUN CURRY SALAD can be served as a main dish for lunch or as a warm weather supper.  And goes quite well with French bread and any domestic or imported dry wine.

CAJUN CURRY SALAD

For 4 servings, you will need:             Preparation:
1/2 lb. sharp cheese, grated                1) Smoothly mix together sharp
6 oz. of sliced salami                                 cheese, salami, bacon bits
1/2 cup of bacon bits                                 jalapenos and minced garlic
2 diced jalapenos                                       in a small bowl and place to
1 close garlic, minced                                one side
2 red onions, sliced
1 thin-skinned cucumber                    2) For dressing, mix vinegar,
2 lbs. romaine lettuce                               olive oil, black pepper,
1 lb. black olives, sliced                            salt, curry powder, clove
2 large tomatoes, sliced                            leaves and dry sherry in
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley               small bowl
3 tbs.. apple cider vinegar
4 tbs.. virgin olive oil                            Gradually add in first bowl
1 tbs.. black pepper                                of cheese, salami, etc.
2 tsp. salt                                                 until dressing is well
1 tbs.. Cajun Curry Powder                  mixed and slightly
1 tbs.. clove leaves                                 thickened
1 tbs.. dry sherry

Some tips:                                               3) In large salad bowl combine
Dressing should be made ahead             remaining ingredients and
to blend flavors and for best                    toss, then slowly pour in
results.  Blend with fork or                      dressing and mix until entire
shake vigorously                                        salad is lightly coated

4) Chill one hour and then
serve before mixing with
salad

For Two Servings: Half of the ingredients.  So smell, taste, eat…and get high!  The natural way, of course.

Two beautiful ballads by ToTo

A master of ballads and one of the 10 best pop/rock bands of the 1980s and early ’90s, in my opinion, is Toto.  Here are two of their biggest hits and two of the most beautiful torch songs from that era.  My and my great novelist father’s favorites by this incomparable musical act, nostalgia and flames abound. So be careful…these fiery songs can scorch and burn!

PaTricK ThE PoeT

I’LL BE OVER YOU:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u1u3Q-G5xI

LYRICS:  http://www.lyricsdepot.com/toto/ill-be-over-you.html

OUT OF LOVE – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUx_FpJ55EM&feature=related

LYRICS:  http://www.songlyrics.com/toto/out-of-love-lyrics/

The Wind

This is how I think love should be: romantic, passionate, sensitive, deep, connected, and windy.  This is how I remember it to be…once so long ago when it was mine and I held it and thought it would never go.  But it did.  And now I wonder if I will ever know it or hold it again as I did…once so long ago.  Well, hope springs eternal.  So I guess I continue to hope to know it and hold it again.  Only time will tell my if my hopes shall be answered and fulfilled.  Meanwhile, you can read my poem here, THE WIND, and see if you relate to it and may find what you know and hope to hold of love. 

For if you’ve ever known it and held it as I have, then I suppose you must agree as I with what the great poet Alfred Tennyson had to say about the whole subject.  You know, this: “‘Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.”  You think?  I do.

THE WIND

I can tell you what love is…in a windy way,
When a storm looks imminent and the clouds are gray.
It’s running in the rain…just to capture one kiss,
Ah, from someone whose every breath you fear to miss!

It’s seeing the wind blowing in your lover’s hair,
And inhaling the sight of it as you would air!
And then arouse the stark storm into your embrace
Ah, but to see one smile upon your lover’s face!

For it is when death or darkness intervenes,
Intent upon making love forget what it means!–
From loving someone truly with all of your heart
Forever and a day…till death do us part!

Yes, I’ll tell you what love is…in a windy way,
Though it endures a cold, dark or bright windy day.
Or you spend it all in timeless turmoil and strife!–
Ah, love is loving one loving soul more than life.
(Like leaves love trees and the sand the seas…without end!
Love is loving someone like the clouds love the wind.)